Memorial Day Weekend

We had such a great weekend! Philip actually was off the entire weekend AND the holiday- yay for family time! 

We filled our nights with friends, families, lots of fun and hotdogs:) and not as much sleep as we had hoped ;) 

Philip took A to Lowes to buy flags and a pinwheel for the holiday 

Saturday night we went to Jordan and Nicks for a cook out. The kids had so much fun playing, and only 3 out of 8 kids got hurt:) nothing major- but swings are a hard concept to understand for kids. Rachel from FRIENDS knew the dangers. 

Sunday we went to our neighborhood pool in the morning and both kids had so much fun. Ainsley was swimming and jumping in all by herself (with her puddle jumpers). Parker is still working on loving the pool but seemed to enjoy it for the most part. 

That night we went to Brian and Lindsay's for a cookout and games. Brian is a great cook- and Lindsay's family gets nicer the more time we spend with them. Mrs. Raynee is going to be a great grandma one day;) 

Monday we spent the day at my parents. Playing outside and on the farm. After Parker went down for a nap we took Ainsley on the lake in an inherited paddle boat. 

We grilled out for dinner and Matt, Rachel, AB, & GG joined. It was a hot day but a perfect Memorial Day. Ainsley and Parker played hard and are both passed out. Momma and Daddy aren't far behind:) 

Ps I made this corn salad and it was delicious (and so easy). 

Recipe

I am always looking for new recipes my family will eat- and that aren't super time consuming. My friend Sarai sent me this one on Pinterest and I made it last night so thought I would share it! Philip really liked it and Joy came over for dinner and seemed to like it too:) 

8 chicken thighs
6-8 large potatoes, cut in quarters or halves 5-6 carrots, cut in 1-2 inch pieces
1 onion, cut in quarters
15-20 garlic cloves, whole
Kosher salt
Black ground pepper
4 tsp ground pepper or 5 cloves garlic, crushed 1⁄2 tsp paprika (optional)
3-4 Tbsp olive oil.
Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with foil or even better, parchment paper.
   
2. Thoroughly wash the potatoes & carrots with a scrubber and cut them in smaller pieces. Pat dry with a
   paper towel.
   
3. Rinse the chicken under running water & also pat dry with paper towel.
   
4. Add chicken, potatoes and carrots, onion & garlic to the lined baking dish and sprinkle with salt, ground
   pepper and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil. Toss everything to coat.
   
5. Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes. Check for doneness, if the potatoes and chicken thighs
   are soft and easily pierced with the fork they are ready.
   
6. If the chicken and potatoes have not browned up as much as you would like, turn the broil setting on the
   oven and broil for 5 minutes. Watch carefully, or they will burn.
   
7. Remove from the oven and serve right away in the baking dish or transfer to a warm serving plate.
   Recipe by Let the Baking Begin! at http://letthebakingbeginblog.com/2014/05/one-pot-chicken-potatoes/ 

CLICK HERE

to see full recipe
I used baby yellow potatoes and 1/2 an onion, and maybe a little more pepper:)

ENJOY! 

Oh and I got these beauties this week too ;) 

Funny article and random recipe

I read this article today and literally was like " I could have written this!" :) minus the f- word and few vulgar comments (dad you might want to skip this read it's not very lady like). But the overall gist is me while pregnant.

And since I was sick as a dog last night, ending my no-puking streak- I thought I would share:)

People who love being pregnant baffle me- but I also realize people who love being pregnant typically have easier pregnancies and for whatever reason my body just doesn't react well to growing a child. My husband made a comment on how I fare during pregnancy and while it did NOT go over well at the time- I understand what he meant. I'm just not at my best a lot of times during pregnancy:) it's hard yall. 

So yes while I love Parker and am so anxious to meet and love on him and kiss his face- I also wouldn't mind skipping the whole process it takes to get him here:) 

Ps- every time I'm super nauseas, I have one miracle cure: McDonald's French fries. It is better than zofran - I can't explain why but I am being totally serious here. It helps my nausea soo much! 

Here's the article for those who enjoy a light hearted chuckle- all in good, joking fun: 

http://www.scarymommy.com/i-hate-being-pregnant/

And since its been a while since I've shared a recipe- here's one my whole family seems to consistently enjoy. It's like adult macaroni and cheese with hot dogs. 

Spicy Sausage Pasta 

http://abitchinkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/09/spicy-sausage-pasta.html?m=1

Game On

Alright folks, it's time. I've been putting it off long enough. I even hoped maybe the problem would fix itself. But it's not going anywhere and something has to done. this baby weight is going to come off! 15 lbs by Christmas. That is my goal.  I am using my trusty ol' app 'My Fitness Pal' to count my calories and exercise. 

I used this before our wedding and lost some serious weight. I'm not saying it will be as easy as it was 4 years ago. But me staying home more has equaled me snacking more. I need to make myself count every little thing I eat. and track it. even that one little twizzler that was sitting on the counter.  For my birthday I asked hubs to get me a jawbone. (click on link to read about how awesome it is).  The features of this handy little bracelet are going to be saved for another blog, once I have more time to play with it. Because today I got an early birthday present! 

I love things like this that help you know your body better. I am super excited about it.  So, game on. time to shed these pounds and flab. :) __________________________________________________________________________ In honor of the adventure of losing weight, I will share a yummy healthy recipe I made for dinner tonight.  Easy Healthy Baked Chicken  2-3 boneless skinless chicken breast 1/2-3/4 cup chicken broth 1/4 tsp onion powder or onion flakes 1/4 tsp garlic salt salt pepper 1. preheat over to 350 2. rinse and pat chicken dry.  3. spray a small baking dish with spray.  4. sprinkle chicken with onion, garlic salt, salt and pepper.  5. add chicken broth. 6. cook 25-30 minutes or until no longer pink. Best part: 141 calories/chicken breast!  We weren't expecting much, since it is a 'healthy' dinner. But we both really liked it! it had great flavor. We dipped the chicken into the broth mixture and ate it 'au jus' style. yumm.  And if you aren't counting calories, toast some thick bread and dip it in the cooked broth.  Happy Baking:) and of course some pictures of our little princess

loves being pulled around in a diaper box

chillin

hangin with GG

this new thing she does- clasps her hands together in excitement. so cute! 

chicken salad recipe

ok so y'all know I love food (clearly from the weight I still haven't lost...), and if you have read my blog through my pregnancy, you know I LOVE chicken salad. my friend erin shares my love and shared this recipe with me, which I in turn want to share with you. because it is soo easy and it is DELICIOUS. Like, I might not ever need to go to Josie's again. (just kidding) 

anyway- here it is ( i adapted a little bit).

Rotisserie Chicken Salad

1 rotisserie chicken (buy them precooked at Kroger or wherever)

1 onion, chopped

3/4 cup mayo

2 oz cream cheese

1 tbs lemon

2 tbs chicken broth (or drippings from bottom of packaging) 

celery salt to taste

dill (depending on how much you like dill, I used a lot of it) 

salt to taste

pepper to taste

*celery , diced, optional* 

pull the chicken off the bone and put in large bowl. (if you have kitchen aid mixer, I will give you a secret in a minute)

add onion (and or celery)

in separate bowl mix mayo, cream cheese, lemon and drippings (or broth). add mixture to chicken. add dill , salt, pepper, and celery salt. mix it all up, refrigerate. eat best chicken salad ever. 

NOW, if you have a kitchen aid mixer, let me introduce you to this handy little attachment. 

my mom told me it will shred up your chicken and philip and I looked at it and were like 'no way' .but it did!!! the first time I made this I bought my own chicken breasts, cooked them and shredded them. and it was good, but not as good as the rotisserie chicken. 

asleep at the dinner table. she ate her carrots and was out. 

I hope you all make this and enjoy it!

oh, and if you dont follow me on instagram...

Burgers and Potatoes

This is going to be short and sweet, but I would be a bad friend if I didnt tell y'all about these AMAZING burgers we made last night. 

ok so the 2 on the left were our individual choice cheese burgers. I cut up mushrooms and feta cheese and just mixed it right in the ground beef and made into a patty. Philip did blue cheese and bacon. They were delicious, but not as delicious as the ones on the right. 

Jalapeño cream cheese burgers. aka awesomeness. 

 The top right is unfinished and the bottom right is the completed burger. 

the recipe is here. you sort of make a sandwich with 2 patties and the mixture. 

Philip and I loved them. so much so that I had to share. 

I also made potatoes slices and onions on the grill. recipe here. 

and my husband is loving trying his hand at bartending and making fun summer drinks :)

mojitos! rasberry for me:)

And baby girl had her own potatoes for the first time. I had my first turn at making her baby food (philip helped me for my first time)

 I enjoyed it, it was super easy, and she seemed to like it too! 

pinterest food

Philip has been putting his new father's day grill to good use. 

no, amazing use. 

A few weeks ago my friend alison told me about a delivery system they use called "green bean delivery". every week, or every other week, a truck delivers a bin of fresh, locally grown, (mostly) organic produce to your door. You get an email a week before of what is in your bin that week. you can add or remove whatever you want until the produce totals your set amount. Then the green bean truck comes over, drops off your green bin, and you get the yummiest fruits and veggies ever. And in 2 weeks, you set the bin out, they pick up and replace with your new stuff!! I figure it is a great way to a)eat healthy b)support local farmers c)order produce to make Ainsley's baby food d) save some $$. 

The first time the van came, we happened to be outside when it came down our street and i was like a little kid with the book mobile! (wait, was that just us country folk who had that?!) 

my first delivery! 

most of the fruit went pretty quick (us liking the raspberries the best). we grilled the corn and I have been using the lettuce for sandwiches. We got 2 zucchinis so I searched recipes on pinterest and found this amazing recipe. 

and it turned out delicious. i highly recommend. 

I also found this pinterest recipe. Philip liked these mushrooms better than the zucchini, but the zucchini was my favorite. it was a little sweeter, leading to why I liked best and he didn't:) 

ok so maybe they don't look great here, but they really were. 

As an appetizer (ok and maybe dessert) Philip made Bellini's! 

Ainsley got oatmeal cereal:)

We ended the night with play time and snuggles

Have a good weekend!!! 

Christmas Foods

Lots of food are "Christmas foods" to me. Here are my top 5.

my #1: puppy chow. some people call it garbage, or trash. whatever you call it, it is my favorite. in fact I have had it for breakfast the past two mornings. LOVE IT. 

#2: spiced tea. my mom makes this hot tea and i LOVE it. the best part for me this year- you can make it decaf! (recipe at bottom). Every other year Mom usually makes me some spiced tea and brings it to me. this year, I made my first batch all by myself! I am so proud of myself.  

#3: Aunt Annie's Wisconsin Strata casserole. Aunt Annie hosts a Christmas Eve brunch every Dec 24 in the morning. It is the best food of the whole year. Philip hasn't been able to attend one of these delicious meals... until this year! He has had to work and last year we both missed it. So this is his year:) 

#4: Grandma's peanut butter fudge. She makes homemade fudge every Christmas and it just melts on your mouth. Emily has discovered it this year and has stolen a lot of it from me. 

#5: Press Cookies. you know, the kind that you shoot out of one of those fancy guns and then cover in sprinkles? basically little buttery sugar cookies. my mom makes them. my uncle steve craves them. I think the uncooked batter is the best though (not for me this year though:( )

Ok anyway, here is the recipe for Spiced Tea. I don't like iced tea or even just plain hot tea. this is way different and so much better. Even Philip likes it and he doesnt usually like this kind of thing. 

ingredients: 

1/2 can frozen orange juice

1/2 can frozen lemonade

1/2 can frozen pineapple juice

8 hot tea bags (caffeinated or decaf) 

2-3 sticks of cinnamon

1 tbs whole cloves

to make: put cloves and cinnamon in water and boil for 5 minutes. 

Turn off heat, add tea bags and let simmer. 

Add fruit juices to pitcher. 

Strain tea into pitcher. 

add water to equal 1 gallon total. 

add sugar/splenda to taste. 

*store in refrigerator and make a cup, or two, at a time*

Enjoy! 

Crock Pot Chili

Last week I made chili for Philip before he went into work. And then my 2 friends Emily and Corey came over later and had it too! I am sort of picky about chili, because I love my Mom's so much, but this one was really good (and super easy)!! 

(taken and modified from www.myrecipes.com )

ingredients:

1 1/2 lb lean ground beef

1 onion chopped

1 green bell pepper chopped

minced garlic cloves

1 (16 oz) can red kidney beans

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes

2-3 tbs chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

brown sugar (depending on how sweet u want it)

prep:

cook first 4 ingredients in large skillet until beef is no longer pink. drain. stir in remaining ingredients and put in crock pot. cook on high 3-4 hours or low 5-6. 

makes 4-6 servings (fed 4 for me) 

I served with corn bread muffins. Everyone (including me) really liked it. I will definitely be making again! 

Frozen Meals

My eating habits have been less-than-healthy lately. I am just starting to be able to stomach vegetables and foods that are actually good for me. But I still can't go through the actions of actually cooking a meal. the time, smells, planning- its just too much for this queasy stomach. and poor Philip- luckily boy can cook :)

My mom had the brilliant idea of her and I getting together and making a bunch of meals that are freezable. So today I went to Gtown and we cooked, assembled, and now have meals freezing! 

Lucky for me, my mom thought ahead and browned the hamburger and cooked/deboned the chicken ( I am so spoiled). On the menu was cannelloni and chicken pot pies. We had left over hamburger from the cannelloni so we made mexican stuffed shells and with the left over chicken we made hot chicken salad. So I have 2 trays of cannelloni, 3 chicken pot pies, mexican stuffed shells and hot chicken salad. SEVEN meals! and it took us less than 3 hours! 

The best part is- these aren't just meals that freeze well. these are meals of my mom's that philip and i both love. So now when I have worked all day, or philip has, or one of us just doesnt feel like cooking- we have a homemade meal we can just cook up and serve!! and I wont be eating out as much:) (mommas take care of their babies)

OJ cake

We finally got some snow! Tuesday night Philip and I were outside playing with Jackson and grilling out. Wednesday morning I woke up and the view from our house was a blanket of white! it was beautiful :) crazy KY weather though! Supposedly it will snow a lot again tonight, and of course I have to work tomorrow. I am NEVER going to get to play in the snow :(

A big Happy Birthday ! to my Grandma Wilhoite. She is 86 years old today:) 

Anyway, to the point of this post- yesterday I made a breakfast cake and took it to work for a birthday. I was surprised at how many people loved it! So I wanted to share the recipe. It's a cake my mom has been making for years. it's so so delicious. 

Orange Juice Cake

Cake

1 pkg. yellow butter cake mix

1 small box instant vanilla pudding

1 c. orange juice

½ cup oil

4 eggs

Chopped pecans or walnuts

Glaze

1 cup sugar

½ cup orange juice

1 stick margarine

Mix all ingredients for cake together.  Spray the bottom and sides of a bundt pan with Pam.  Sprinkle the chopped nuts in the bottom of the pan.  Pour the cake batter over the nuts.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until done.

About 5 – 10 minutes before the cake is done, mix the ingredients together for the glaze in a sauce pan.  Bring to a boil and allow to boil for 2 minutes.  Pour glaze over hot cake while still in pan.  Allow to cool for 30-40 minutes before flipping cake out of pan.

glazed, before you flip

  Even Philip likes it, and that is a feat. he doesn't have the sweet tooth that I do.

And for some pre-Valentines Day humor:

(thanks joy!)

Happy Friday! I'm going to see The Vow tonight and am sooo excited!