BEST CHICKEN EVER!!

I just want to say that the recipe I posted a few posts ago for the Rosemary Ranch Chicken really is AWESOME!! We've made it 4 or 5 times in the last few weeks and each time I think I make enough to have leftovers but each time every last morsel gets eaten. So delicious! If you like chicken, even if you don't.... you'll love this!

Baby Sitter

I was baby sitting the kids the other day and while I was cleaning the kitchen I put on a Thomas the Train movie and thought that would keep them content for a few minutes. After about 10 minutes I realized they were both being SO quiet. They must be getting in trouble! This is what I found when I went to check on them.b

All three of them were just snuggling together on the chair. Aiden LOVED that Dexter was laying with him and he told me "Dexter loves me!" The funny thing is they stayed like that for almost 45 minutes. I got bored and had to pull out a word search. Next time, we'll just have the dog sit. Obviously it's more fun than me!

New Recipes

Tonight I tried a couple new recipes that were FANTASTIC!! I got the recipes from one of my favorite food blogs www.whatsonmymenu.blogspot.com/.

** The comments are from her blog but I agree 100%. **

Easy Cheesy Alfredo

I really, really love pasta in creamy sauces. I thought this was a great lower fat option with tons of flavor (plus I could use gluten free noodles for me!). And like I mentioned before, that Rosemary Ranch Chicken that The Recipe Club suggested putting on top was seriuosly divine. I mixed steamed broccoli in with it all and LOVED it!

Ingredients:
1- 8 oz. package cream cheese (I used 1/3 fat kind)
1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup margarine (I used 4 T)
1/2 cup milk (I used 1% and added some extra to thin out the sauce a bit at the end)
8 oz. fettuccini noodles, cooked & drained (I used gluten-free spaghetti noodles)
fresh parsley for garnish

Directions:
In a large sauce pan stir together cream cheese, 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, margarine & milk over medium heat until smooth. Pour over noodles & top with the rest of the parmesan cheese
**Top with Rosemary Ranch Chicken!!!**

Rosemary Ranch Chicken

I made this chicken to go with the alfredo we had last night, but the chicken itself was sooo good I thought it deserved it's own post because we will definitely be making this on its own in the future. I found it on The Recipe Club and we all absolutely loved the unique flavor of the marinade...seriously delicious!!!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup good ranch dressing
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste
1 tablespoon white sugar
4-6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Directions:
Mix all top ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir until sugar is disolved. Place chicken in a gallon size Ziplock bag. Pour marinade over chicken. Squish bag around until all chicken in coated. Refrigerate until ready to use at least 30 minutes, preferably a few hours or overnight (I only had time to let it marinade 1 hour). Grill on the BBQ or in the oven on broil. (I used a grill pan)

They were just so good I had to share!

Spring Weather

Since it was feeling a bit like spring today we, along with the rest of the county, decided to go out and have a picnic and play. I thought it would be a great day to take some pictures of the kiddos, just for fun. This is what we got. Hailey was being silly and didn't want to pose but Aiden made up for it in spades and was SO handsome!! Enjoy!

 

Have you ever wondered....

Can you cry under water?

How important does a person have to be before they are considered assassinated instead of just murdered?

If money doesn't grow on trees then why do banks have branches?

Since bread is square, then why is sandwich meat round?

Why do you have to "put your two cents in"...but it's only a "penny for your thoughts"? Where's that extra penny going to?

Once you're in heaven, do you get stuck wearing the clothes you were buried in for eternity?

Why does a round pizza come in a square box?

What did cured ham actually have?

How is it that we put man on the moon before we figured out it would be a good idea to put wheels on luggage?

Why is it that people say they "slept like a baby" when babies wake up like every two hours?

If a deaf person has to go to court, is it still called a hearing?

If you drink Pepsi at work in the Coke factory, will they fire you?

Why are you IN a movie, but you are ON TV?

Why do people pay to go up tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground?

How come we choose from just two people for President and fifty for Miss America?

Why do doctors leave the room while you change? They're going to see you naked anyway.

If a 911 operator has a heart attack, whom does he/she call?

Why is "bra" singular and "panties" plural?

(I didn't actually come up with these questions, but they definitely got me thinkin!)

Finished Cake

We were able to get a picture of the ruffle cake with the flowers. Looks pretty good doesn't it?!

Word of the day.... well, of MY day at least.

spoonerism \SPOO-nuh-riz-uhm\ , noun:
                         The transposition of usually initial sounds in a pair of words.

Some examples:

• We all know what it is to have a half-warmed fish ["half-formed wish"] inside us.
• A well-boiled icicle ["well-oiled bicycle"].
• It is kisstomary to cuss ["customary to kiss"] the bride.
• Is the bean dizzy ["dean busy"]?
• When the boys come back from France, we'll have the hags flung out ["flags hung out"]!
• Let me sew you to your sheet ["show you to your seat"].

I only experience this EVERYDAY! Sometimes I worry about myself.

GOALS

I'm not going to make "New Year's Resolutions" because by their very nature resolutions are meant to be broken- or at least I always break them so I assume that is why people make them... so they have something to break. I have instead decided to make goals. Goals that just happen to start at the beginning of the year. These goals are mostly to just improve myself so that I can come closer the person I am striving to be. Since it's easier to account to others and easier to keep track of if they are written down here goes....

• Read my scriptures every day, at the beginning of the day not when I'm half asleep right before bed and not getting any thing from it.

• Write in my journal every night, even when there is nothing to report.

• Be more kind in my thoughts and actions

• Do more service

• Become more social (this one is gonna be a doosey! I'm not a very social person!)

• Weight loss goal: lose 30lbs by my 30th birthday and if possible lose 60lbs by next Christmas... that is going BIG though, losing 60lbs would put me at my all time not likely to happen "goal weight." 

• Be more healthy - I'm not going to "diet" because I'm horrible at dieting but I am going to do my best to make healthier choices and exercise more consistently. (I sorta have to if I want to meet my previous goal)

• Get my first kiss - I know what you're thinking "WHAT SHE'S NEVER BEEN KISSED? HOW OLD IS SHE?!" I do it too. But I have had some weird issues that I have been working out with my therapist and I think I'm in a better place to be in a relationship and hopefully get that first kiss I've been waiting my whole life for. (No pressure future boy that I will kiss!) So I definitely better get on that "being more social" goal or this may never happen! Plus I'm paranoid about having bad breath and what if I go in for the big kiss and the guy is totally grossed out because I have weird breath?? It's okay Self, you can do it! (Yes, I just gave myself a pep talk.)

• Go to Disneyland again (though this one is already in the works... I'm gonna have the best 30th birthday EVER!! But that's because if I don't I'm probably going to have a SERIOUS panic attack... 30 is SO old. Not for other people, I just feel like I'm so behind and have a lot of "catching up" to do, it's overwhelming. But not this year, I'm going to be having FUN on my big day!)

So these are my goals. Hopefully this time next year I will be a better person and be able to make more goals to continue to better myself.

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas

“ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

What a beautiful scripture. At this time of year where we give and receive gifts – I always try to remember the most AMAZING gift of all time.  Jesus Christ – our brother, our confidant, our spiritual shoulder to cry on, He REALLY knows our pain and suffering and He is there to help you get where you need to be. He does have all the answers  and we need to remind ourselves to seek those gifts and blessing that he is ready and willing to give to us if we just ask. Sorta like Santa, I suppose. Sit on his lap, tell him what you want or need and he’ll see what he can do.

The first part of the scripture reminds me of what the meaning of life is. “For God so loved the world…”  GOD LOVES US. Each and every one of us. I was trying to teach my little niece about our puppy. Sometimes he chews on their toys or shoes or eats  all of my socks and that doesn’t make him a bad puppy, just a puppy trying to learn and makes mistakes a long the way and that does not change the love we have for the puppy. That is what we as humans need to remember that we are good people just trying to learn and making mistakes a long the way. But what is promised to us is that GOD LOVES US, JESUS CHRIST LOVES US and if we can embrace that; do what we can to do what is right we can feel Their love.  And as we find ourselves feeling the love of Christ and the knowledge that God really loves us, enough to send his only Son to die for us so we can all live again, we find ourselves sharing that love with others. 

Love – that is what I learn each Christmas.  To really love others and look at them through God’s eyes and see their potential and the love he has there for that person, it makes it so much easier to love others – even when we don’t like them too much. It also helps me to remember to accept that love. That is the hardest part of all. I need to see myself through God’s eyes and see his love for me and all of my potential.

So my message to you is to remember the reason for the season and to just love. 

I WISH YOU A HAPPY, VERY MERRY AND LOVING CHRISTMAS

All my love to you,

Stacie.
P.S. I absolutely adore this video, I may have posted this previously but thought watching it again couldn't possible hurt anyone. Enjoy.