June 28, 2013

Layered Oreo Dessert

 

Ingredients:

1 Pkg. of regular Oreos

1/2 C. Butter

1 lg. box of Instant Chocolate Pudding

2-8 oz. Cream Cheese, softened

1 C. Powdered Sugar

 

Directions:

 

1.  Crush the whole package of cookies either with a food processor, or in a bag with a rolling pin.

(As seen above, I didn't do either & made a huge mess)

I need a food processor, obviously!

2.  Save 1/2 C. of the crushed cookies to sprinkle on top of the dessert when it's done.

3.  Pour remaining crumbs into a 13x9 pan.

4.  Melt butter and pour into crumb mix.  Stir it up good & press crumbs in the bottom

of pan to make crust.

5.  Make the chocolate pudding according to package directions & let set up in fridge.

6.  In a mixing bowl, blend cream cheese until nice & smooth & then add powdered sugar, mix.

7.  Fold in 1-8 oz. container of Cool Whip.

8.  Top Oreo Crust Layer with the Cream Cheese Mix, then the pudding, then your last 8 oz.'s of Cool Whip.

9.  Cover & refrigerate until ready to serve.

10.  Before serving sprinkle with remaining Oreo's & Enjoy!

 

 

This was a very delicious, light dessert that we served after a cookout.  I had enough leftover

to take in the office the next day & everyone loved it!  I will definitely be making

this again!

 

June 27, 2013

Sammie & Daddy

Father's Day 2013

 

 

Oh Sammie, I hope you remember this one day and realize just how much your Daddy loves you.  You were away on vacation the week of Fathers Day & being without his little girl just wasn't an option for your Dad.  He booked his flight & hotel way in advance so he could pick you up in Panama City, Florida & spend Father's Day with you!  These types of things that your Daddy does, makes him the best Father out there by far.  I'm not sure too many other Dad's would've done the same, so you're one lucky girl!!  He picked up his rental the night he got in and picked you up the next morning which was Father's Day! 

 

 

 

I wasn't there, so I can't tell you exactly what you guys did, minute for minute or even hour to hour.  I do know though, that you took a cruise over to Shell Island, where they had a bunch of blow up bouncy slides & such.  They had snorkeling & you also took a dolphin cruise afterwards.



 

 

 

 

 

After the Cruise, you headed back to the hotel room to clean up for dinner.  You guys ended up eating Shrimp & your Daddy had A LOT of oysters!  You got to sit at the bar & they let you play the symbols that were hanging up to a song called "Sail".  After dessert, you headed out for Putt-Putt.  Looking at the score card, it looks like you may have had some trouble towards the end.  26 for one whole?!  It looked like lots of fun, for sure! 

 

Your Dad had to drop you off the next day to fly home, and from what he tells me, he had some trouble with it.  He told me over a text that "I had so much fun with Sammie this weekend, so why was it just so hard to drop her off?"  My guess was that he worked so hard to get to you, that it was just so much more bittersweet to say goodbye, even though it was for just a short amount of time!  Do your Dad a favor if you can help it, and never leave the state for Father's Day again... :-)

 

 



June 25, 2013

Roasted Chickpea Tacos

 

I've seen this recipe on two different blogs and had to try it.  They turned out amazing & I'll definitely be making them again.  Creag was a little apprehensive about a taco without meat, and I've never been so excited to finish cooking & try a taco in my life.  Tacos are just tacos right?  Not these!  They turned out delicious & we even used the left over roasted chickpeas in our salad the next day for lunch & I got excited all over again!

 

 

To make the Roasted Chickpeas:

 

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons water

1 (15 oz.) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

 

For the Tacos:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, sliced

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 bell pepper, sliced (I just used red)

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon oregano

Salt and pepper, to taste

Juice of 1 large lime

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

 

For serving:

Corn Tortillas

Diced tomatoes

Avocado slices

Plain Greek yogurt or sour cream (we were out so I added Salsa)

 

Directions:

 

1. To roast the chickpeas: preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, salt, lime juice and water. Stir in chickpeas. Place seasoned chickpeas on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 25-30 minutes, stirring once during cooking, until chickpeas are slightly crispy.

 

2. While the chickpeas are roasting, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onions and bell pepper. Cook for 5 minutes.

 

3. Spoon roasted chickpea and vegetable mixture evenly down into the taco shell, and garnish with tomatoes, avocado slices, cheese (just a pinch), and Greek yogurt. Serve!

 

And because they were so healthy and we got a little antsy at home, we headed over to ruin our healthy dinner with a little Fro Yo!   Maybe we'll skip this part next time?  Or maybe not!

 

 

 



June 24, 2013

The Sun and the Sand

And a Drink in my Hand

 

 

The first weekend of Summer for us was simply amazing.  We had a great mix of fun & productivity so I'm feeling very good on this Monday morning!  Friday night, our neighbors threw a pool party so we started off the weekend right with some BBQ & relaxation at the pool.  Best part about it, we could just walk home afterward!  Another side note that I found awesome was that my toe nail polish matched their pool liner.  I love when things just come together like that. 

 

 

Saturday morning, we packed up, went by Creag's shop to pick up our boat, then made a pit stop at Lowe's for some supplies & McDonald's for a little lunch & then headed to the River for the rest of the weekend.  We were so excited to finally get some good boating weather.  Michael met us there & we put the boat in the water & cruised up to the Manchester Islands for the day.  It was our little piece of Kentucky, Florida!  Sandy beaches & boats galore.  We had a blast.  We left around dinner time & stopped off at the Boat Club for a bite to eat.  The wait was a lot longer that anyone would've ever want to wait for food, but as always, the food was great.  The best Pizza Hoagie you'll ever get IMO.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since the wait for dinner was so long, it was dark when we finally pulled into the marina to dock the boat & fish were flying out of the water all around us.  It was the craziest thing I've seen in the creek for sure.  We finally put two & two together that the Asian Carp had finally made their way over to our neck of the River and we were all pretty devastated by it.  These fish are no joke & they say they could wipe out all of the fish & boating all together.  They can get up to 100lbs & jump in your boat & seriously injure you.  I hope to God this isn't the case because that would be AWFUL.  We love boating & want to continue for a LONG time.  Sunday morning, we went to breakfast & then came back to the house to work, work, work.  We got most of our Bedroom finished in the Cabin with just a few little odd ball things to do & a little decorating done.  I tried my hand & refinishing furniture & painted our nightstand white. 

 

 

I went with the white wash look & think it turned out pretty good.  I'm going to do the same thing with the bigger cabinet in the room this weekend.  We'll see how well it holds up, because I didn't sand it down or anything before painting it.  I really didn't have the time & since it's just our weekend house I didn't want to put too much effort into it because it won't be use a whole lot.  I think our room looks great & I can't wait to tackle the rest of the house!!

 



 



June 21, 2013

It's the Little Things

 

It's the little things that make like so great & enjoyable isn't it? 

The little things like Friday.  (Thank God you're finally here!)

It's finding a quote online that you can relate to.

 

 

It's getting a picture text from Creag while he was in Florida,

 reminding me of my love for Hand Grenades.

 

And then the day after he was home, getting flowers at work,

just because he loves me.

 

Getting a chance to rush to the pool for a few hours after work,

even if it was a little cloudy.

 

 

And Cerveza's while preparing to grill out with the Hubby.



 

It's pool redo days with a lot more sunshine.

 With an impromptu Date Night to follow @ Bone Fish.

Bang Bang Shrimp & Scallops w/ two bottles of wine at said Date Night.

And the quality time spent with my Husband.

That's one of my favorites, by far.

All of these things sound so little don't they?

But to me, they're not little at all.

They are what makes my life BEAUTIFUL!

 

 

 

 



June 19, 2013

Best Friends

 

 

Creag left me for Florida this past Saturday, so I had the entire weekend to myself to do whatever my little heart desired.  Saturday, early afternoon, I decided to go to the pool for a few hours to work on my tan and then drove to my little hometown of Enon, OH to hang with my Best Friend from school, Amy.  There was a benefit for the Local Humane Society at a Winery in Springfield, so that was our first stop.  The featured wine was Sweet Mingo Peach & $1.00 of each bottle sold went to the charity.  They had live music & the weather was great. 

 

 

The music ended at about 10:00 & we were starving so we went to grab a bite to eat.  We ended up at The Boone Saloon, which is a whole in the wall, but has great pizza!

 

 

After we scarfed our pizza down, Amy & Scott really wanted to go home from there, but I wasn't ready.  There's a bar that I'd never been to that I felt like checking out so I talked them into going!  I'm so glad we went.  It was quite entertaining to people watch & to run into a few people from High School.  We went home close to closing time & crashed!  The next day, Amy & I went shopping at the Greene where I finally made a few purchases at Francesca's.  I found a watch, a necklace & 2 shirts.  The orange chunky necklace in the picture below, I just love and everything that I found was on clearance so my 2nd shirt was FREE!  Who doesn't love to get stuff for free?! 

 

 

After I left Amy's, I drove to the River to spend some time with my parents.  Especially my Dad, since it was Father's Day!  We went out to dinner & I was going to buy, but my parents were not having any of that.  My mom sent me home with my stained glass picture that they bought me in FL a few years ago that I had her hold onto for what seems like FOREVER, so I finally found a place for it when I got home.  I think it looks ok in our window sill.

 

 

All in all it was a great weekend and even though I missed Creag like crazy, it was so good to spend quality time with my Bestie & my parents.  Distance may separate us, but every time we hang out it's like I never left!!



 

 

 

.



June 17, 2013

Let's Talk Recovery

 

The recovery process for you, little man has had it's ups & downs.  It'll be 1 week tomorrow since you had your tonsils removed, so I'm going to talk about days 1-4 post surgery.  Surgery day was probably the least painful day for you.  We were told that you'd probably sleep a lot once we got you home, but that didn't happen.  You dosed off for a bit after you had your first dose of pain medication & you had some ice cream.  Seems like as soon as you finally fell asleep, you started getting visitors.  Your Dad & Mamaw Burt stopped by for about 15 minutes with a milk shake & then left because they wanted you to get some rest.  You didn't fall back asleep after they left.  You actually never took another nap.  About an hour after your Mamaw & Dad left, Mamaw & Papaw came over with your brothers & sister with cards, balloons & 20.00 for you to spend on whatever you wanted.  You opted to have Creag put it in your Savings Acct.  We grilled out that night and I ended up making everyone go outside so you could get some sleep.

 

The next morning, Day 2 was probably the worst.  You got a very good nights sleep.  You didn't wake up until close to 10 and your throat was VERY dry & sore.  You wouldn't drink at first because it burned your throat & I remember you crying and saying "This is the worst thing ever."  I was pretty helpless and felt very bad for you, but was able to finally get you to drink & take your pain meds to help with the pain.  You ate a little bit on day 2, but not much.  Maybe 1-2 scoops of ice cream & a bite of mac & cheese.  Later that day/night, you were feeling a little better & we were getting a little antsy so I asked if you wanted to get out for a bit and you said yes.  You wanted to go to the movies so we went to see Iron Man 3.  Good thing the tickets were only $5.00 that night instead of $14.00 because you only lasted about 15 minutes & wanted to leave because your throat hurt & you were sleepy so we went back home & took it easy for the remainder of the night. 

 

Day 3, was pretty much the same as Day 2, with you eating as little as possible.  I could tell the lack of nutrition was taking a toll on you, but you had no appetite.  We got out of the house for a bit that evening & that kind of helped you.  You finally had a bath this night.  Your hair was sticky from sweat & we both laughed at how disgusting it was.  After your bath, Creag was gone, so we cuddled in my bed & watched the Spurs/Heat playoff game.

 

 

Day 4, which was a Friday, I went back to work & Creag's mom came over to watch you.  You guys laid around all day.  She made you a chocolate shake out of the homemade ice-cream that her & Sammie had made you & you guys watched the video of the Helicopter Ride in Hawaii & some of the Never Ending Story.  That night, after you still weren't eating, Creag & I decided that you needed out of the house.  You'd been cooped up for way too long so he bought 3 tickets to the Red's Game in the all you can eat Club Section.  We knew this would get you to eat & we were right.  You were tired walking in, so Creag gave you a shoulder ride.  We got to the cafeteria area & you decided to start with fruit to eat.  Oranges (which was supposedly the worst thing you could eat because of the acid) & grapes.  I judged the oranges by your expression & you didn't flinch so I let you go with it.  You did great with those & I think it instantly gave you the energy that you needed.  After the fruit, you had soft pretzels & cheese & then had an ice-cream sandwich.

 

 



 

 

This was exactly what you needed & I'm so glad we took you.  You made it through the entire game & got to see Jay Bruce's walk off homer.  I know you wanted to yell but refrained!  And then we sat through fireworks at the ballpark.  It was such a fun time with just you.  You crashed in the car & Creag carried you up to bed & you slept through the night like a champ!  BTW, you were the first & only kid so far to sit in Club Seats...bragging rights, buddy!!