2 Months Old Tomorrow

It's hard to believe that our baby is 2 months old tomorrow... it makes me so sad! Here's a picture that was taken recently. The girls are both doing great and we are getting ready for the upcoming holiday!! Christmas is my favorite time of year!!!

M-I-Z...Z-O-U

GO MU!!

Tiger season has definitely started and we have been supporting our favorite team! We are also anxiously awaiting the arrival of baby number 2! We are going in on Saturday to have her if she hasn't arrived before then! I will post pictures as soon as we have exciting news!!

Above are a few pictures of L in her "MU gear"!

Easy Chicken Parmesan & Italian Parmesan Noodles

Easy Chicken Parmesan & Italian Parmesan Noodles

This recipe is super easy and very tasty! Below are the recipes for both the noodles and the chicken!

4th of July is just around the corner. We are preparing for Grandpa H's big 4th of July Party! Sunday will be spent eating good food, hanging out with lots of people, and watching J's firework show! We are very excited!!!

We have also been getting ready for the new baby! We have lots left to do as far as the room goes, but her room is definitely in progress... she will be here before we know it.

I make the noodles first and let them soak in the dressing while I am making the chicken...

Italian Parmesan Noodles

1 bag of tri colored noodles (any brand works!)

1/2-3/4 bottle of Italian dressing

1 cup Parmesan Cheese

Cook noodles as directed on the package. Strain. Cool by running cold water over the noodles. Add other two ingredients to the noodles in a bowl. (You can add more or less of either ingredient... you CANNOT mess this up... if it doesn't have enough taste, add more of the parmesan cheese!!!) Mix with spoon and let sit and soak in the refridgerator.

Easy Chicken Parmesan

1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
6 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1-1/2 lb.)
1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

HEAT oven to 375°F. Pour sauce into 13x9-inch baking dish. Stir in 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp.) Parmesan. Add chicken; turn to coat both sides with sauce. Cover with foil.
Bake 30 min. Uncover. Top with remaining cheeses; bake 5 min. or until chicken is done (165ºF) and cheese is melted.

We hope you like this recipe as much as we do! VERY quick and VERY easy!!!

Easy Oven-Barbecued Pork Chops

Easy Oven-Barbecued Pork Chops

I found this recipe online at http://southernfood.about.com/od/porkchops/r/bl10201b.htm

These pork chops are delicious and very easy! They are baked in the oven so this is a great recipe for summer or winter time. I have been looking for a great pork chop recipe that isn't bland and I finally found it!

Ingredients:
6 pork chops, 3/4 to 1-inch thick
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup vinegar (I didn't use vinegar, so I added 1/4 cup more water)
3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
dash cayenne, optional (I didn't use the cayenne)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350°.Place pork chops in bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. Place sliced onion over the pork chops. Combine remaining ingredients; pour over pork chops. Bake uncovered for 1 hour, or until chops are tender.

Serves 6.

I didn't take a picture of the pork chops, but I am attaching a picture of L at Grandpa H's farm with Daisy!

Hay Season

A Day at the Farm!!!

L loves going to Grandpa H's farm and riding in the tractor with her daddy!

Here's a quick picture that I took....

Hay season has began and J is busy in the field when it's not raining!!!

We have been spending the summer swimming, visiting family & friends, and flying

here and there by the seat of our pants. We LOVE summer time!!!

Fruit Pizza

Fruit Pizza- this delicious recipe is one that my mom used to make and now I've "adopted it"! I attached the recipe for the crust and topping. You can choose your favorite fruit to add to the top~ enjoy! I make this at home for L and J, but it's always a favorite when I take it to get-togethers!

Life is BUSY, BUSY, BUSY at our house. We have less then 3 weeks left of school, so the rush is on to get everything tied up at work and then we will be able to have a fabulous summer!!! We plan on taking a trip to St. Louis to the zoo, swimming, and doing other fun things this summer. In three weeks we find out whether the baby on the way is a boy or girl (we are SOOOO EXCITED)! This means, that we will also be preparing for baby #2 and overhauling our house to make sure everything has a perfect spot before the next baby arrives.

Fruit Pizza

1 package refrigerated sugar cookie dough (slice and bake type)

1 pk (8-oz) cream cheese

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Slice the cookie dough thin.
Place cookie slices on a 14 inch pizza pan, overlapping slightly.
Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees (or however long the package states). Cool slightly.
Beat together cream cheese, sugar and vanilla.

Spread evenly on cooled cookie crust.

Next, add favorite fruit and EAT!

-K

Easter

Easter came and went faster then I could blink. Sorry that I haven't posted in a while! I promise to get better after school is out for the summer! We had a busy Easter day and it seems as if we still haven't slowed down! Our family is anxiously awaiting 5 more weeks to find out if the baby on the way is a boy or girl. Then, we will begin all of the fun stuff preparing for baby... painting the room, decorating, furniture, and shopping for her/him! Enjoy the Easter pictures attached!

Disney On Ice Discount Code

Disney on Ice is coming to Kansas City and if you are interested in buying tickets, I have a promotion code to share! This code that will enable you to buy 4 tickets for $44! You have to buy a minimum of 4 tickets and you are allowed to buy additional tickets at the same price of $11 each. These tickets are not valid for Front Row, Rinkside or VIP tickets. To purchase these special value tickets go to Ticketmaster.com or call 1-800-745-3000 (Ticket Master's phone line) and enter the coupon code MOM.

A Trip to the Farm

We took a trip last week, when it was WARM outside, to Grandpa H's farm! L LOVED watching the horses, peting the dogs, and seeing the cows! She is bound to be a cowgirl! When we are at home, L is always talking about the cows, horses, and dogs! She loves to go with her daddy to feed the cows on the weekend and now that it is warming up again, she will be able to do that more often! ENJOY the pics!

Baby #2!

Now that baby #2 is officially on his/her way, things have changed in our household. I have had the normal symptoms: extremely tired; weak; nauseas. I also haven't been cooking much because certain smells make me feel sick. I will be up and cooking again soon! We are very excited to be adding another memeber to our family! I attached a picture of L when she was a baby and although it wasn't that long ago, it seems like it's been ages since she was this little. It's our to believe how fast little ones grow up!

P.S. It has been a little while since I have posted. I will try to keep up, but please understand that sometimes it may be a while between posts!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day

We spent Valentine's Day with L- hung out at home then took her to Applebee's! The waitress gave her 4 different colored crayon that she played with!

Daddy thought she had to have her own meal- so we ordered her chicken strips, brocolli, and french fries! Time flies.. we can't believe it's already L's 2nd Valentine's Day!

After dinner, we went to Wal-Mart and she got to pick out her favorite toy-with J's help!

She ended up getting a CAT with a front loader that lights up, makes noise, and vibrates. We think daddy helped her pick it out so he could play with it too!

Best Ever Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

I have always wanted to find a GOOD homemade chicken noodle soup recipe and I finally did! The last day and half have been a blast staying home with L! We have taken long naps, caught up on chores, and now are ready to finish the last half of the work week! Who knows what's in store for the upcoming 3-day weekend!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon butter

4-6 small cans chicken broth (For more liquid add 6 cans, for less liquid add 4 cans.)

1/2 lb. cooked, chopped chicken (I used a cooked whole chicken from Wal-Mart's deli department and just chunked it up into pieces! This saves a lot of time!)

1 1/2 cup egg or Amish noodles (I use the Amish noodles and they are found at Wal-Mart in the pasta aisle on the bottom shelf! I used 3/4 of the bag.)

1 cup sliced carrots

1 teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large pan on the stove; add carrots and let simmer for a few minutes. Then add chicken broth. Bring to boil. Add the remaining ingredients and boil for 12-20 minutes until noodles are soft. Stir while boiling. Turn heat down to low and let simmer for a few minutes before serving.

DELICIOUS!

Dirt Dessert-Yummy!

Dirt Dessert is definitely a MUST HAVE when you need a CHOCOLATE FIX! I made this recipe today and we are LOVING IT!!! I am so glad that we got out of school today at 12:30. I am also relieved that we had school, so we don't have to make up ANOTHER snow day at the end of the year! Since the snow is already coming down, I hope it snows & snows & snows!!! If it's going to snow, it might as well snow 5 inches! :) Then, I will be ready for spring! Here is a picture of L eating DIRT! J fed it to her while she ran around and watched her FAVORITE T.V. SHOW, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!

Dirt Dessert

1st set of ingredients

1 package beaten Oreos

1/2 stick of butter

8 oz. cream cheese

1c. powdered sugar

Beat the above ingredients in a bowl.

2nd set of ingredients

3 1/2 c. milk

2 large boxes of vanilla instant pudding

12 oz. cool whip

Whisp the pudding and milk in seperate bowl, then whip the cool whip into the pudding and milk mixture.

Mix the bowls together. You can layer the mixtures or beat them all together.

ENJOY!

Hidden Chicken Roll-up

This YUMMY chicken roll-up is bound to be one of your family favorites! This recipes was adopted from Justin's grandmother and we LOVE IT!

Hidden Chicken Roll-up

4 chicken breasts

4 slices of swiss cheese

4 slices of deli ham

1 package of cressent rolls

Honey D'jion mustard

Put chicken in a pot and boil on stove for 10 minutes. Drain chicken. Roll out 2 cresent rolls together, making a square. Put 1/2 Tablespoon of mustard on the chicken. Wrap a piece of cheese around the chicken, then wrap a piece of ham around the cheese. Place in the middle of the rolled out cressent.

Bake for as long as the cressent roll package says to. (Usually 10-12 minutes.)

Enjoy!

My Little Climber

L has always been a little on the onery side, like her dad. Here's a picture of her caught in action! She decided to CLIMB up on my mom's table to feel the lamp!

This is just one of the MANY times that she's been caught in action doing something she's shouldn't be! :)

The Weekend Has Arrived!!!

Wow! The weekend is FINALLY here! I felt like the week was dragging by! L and I will be busy cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry this weekend! I know, you are so jealous!? HAHA! Have you ever put off housework to the point that now you are going to be overwhelmed? Well, that's me, but that's okay! I will be GLAD to have a nice, clean house when it's all over with! I definitely am ready for spring time and the SUN! Last weekend, the sneak-peak of the sun was FANTASTIC! Let's keep our fingers crossed and MAYBE spring will come early!

I attached a picture of L licking the beaters! Too bad, they didn't have anything on them... she loves to get them out of the drawer and pretend she's mixing up a SWEET TREAT!

T's 80's Birthday Bash

One of the teachers, at NW, had a BIG BIRTHDAY! We had a 80's BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION for her last Friday and it was TOTALLY RADICAL! Enjoy the pictures of big hair, leggings, off the shoulder shirts, and FABULOUS make-up!

It was FUNNY when parents came into the school because I know they were thinking, "What in the heck... they are stuck in the 80's!" Lets hope they figured out that it was all for fun!

Delicious Dirty Gravy

DELICIOUS DIRTY GRAVY!!!

This is a great weekend breakfast and super QUICK-N-EASY to make!

What you need:

1-package of refridgerated biscuits (baked and ready to go!)

1/2 lb. sausage

2 Tablespoons flour

1 cup milk

Salt (to taste)

1/2 Tablespoon pepper

In a skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage and crumble into small pieces. Add the flour and cook for 5 minutes.and Add the milk bring to a simmer. Add salt to taste, black pepper, and cayenne and stir until blended!

The KEY to great dirty gravy is to continue stirring gravy while you are cooking it! If your gravy is TOO THICK, add more milk and let simmer, while stirring. If your gravy isn't thick enough, add a little more flour and continue stirring!

ENJOY!!!

Bacon Cheeseburger Roll-up

Last night, I had to be back at school for parent night, so I made this easy recipe and had J put it in the oven when L and him were ready to eat!

Bacon Cheeseburger Roll-up

1 lb. lean ground beef
4 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped (optional, I didn't use)
1/2 lb. (8 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 pkg. (13.8 oz.) refrigerated pizza crust

HEAT oven to 400°F. Brown ground beef with bacon and onions in large skillet on medium-high heat; drain. Return meat mixture to skillet. Add VELVEETA; cook until melted, stirring frequently. UNROLL dough onto greased baking sheet. Press into 15x8-inch rectangle; top with meat mixture. Roll up, starting at one of the long sides. Turn the roll over, so the seam is on the bottom. BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until golden brown.





Enjoy!!!

Lazy Days!

Our little PRINCESS, L, after a long day! She was tired and ready for bed! We are so GLAD that today is MLK's Birthday! It seems that teachers have had a lot of days off lately, but I'm not complaining!

We are READY for spring and warm weather, so we can play outside and go to the park! Hopefully it will be here before we know it!!!

No Bake Cookies

These YUMMY cookies are oh-so-easy to make and require no baking! This recipe was from my great grandma, Nanny, and has been passed down. The key to these cookies is not letting them boil for longer then a minute. If you do, they will be hard when they set up. I ENJOY eating them right out of the pan, when they are HOT. Once they set up, you can place them on a paper towel, put them in the microwave for 12 seconds and they taste like they are straight from the pan again!

No Bake Cookies

2 c. sugar

4 Tablespoons cocoa

1 stick butter

1/2 c. milk

1 c. peanut butter

1 Tablespoon vanilla

3 c. oatmeal

waxed paper or foil

In a sauce pan bring to boil the sugar, cocoa, butter, and milk. Let boil for 1 minute, then add peanut butter, then vanilla and stir. When the peanut butter is blended add the oatmeal. Drop mixture by spoonful onto waxed paper or foil. Let cool until hardened!

Daddy's Girl

L LOVES playing with her daddy! She decided to put her bow in his hair the other night! She's not too fond on bows, so J got to wear it! We are GLAD that tomorrow is a holiday so we can stay home and play one more day! We also have lots of "HOUSE KEEPING" to complete before the work week begins!

Bunco Night

Bunco Night!

Last night was bunco night! J & I played it last night at my mom's! We had so much fun! It is definitely a SOCIAL game where you roll dice and are able to drink or chat at the same time! My mom had a great turn out, around 25 people, and J won 1/3 of the MONEY POT!

We have decided this is a great way for our friends to get together and have fun, so we are planning to host a bunco party at our house in the near future!

Best Ever Homemade Chicken Enchiladas

Last night, I was digging through some of my recipes and I found this recipe. I haven't made my own chicken enchiladas ever! I adopted this recipe from my mom who adpoted it from someone else! It was easy to made and very tasty!

Chicken Enchiladas

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1 cup green pepper (I left this out)

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese

1 (8 oz.) jar of salsa, divided

6 inch flour tortillas

3/4 lb. (12 oz.) Velveeta cheese, cut-up

1/4 cup milk

Stir cooked chicken, bell pepper, cream cheese and 1/2 cup salsa in a saucepan on low heat until cream cheese is melted. Spoon 1/3 cup chicken mixture down center of each tortilla and roll up the tortilla. Place seam-side down in greased 12x8 dish.

Stir cheese & milk in pan on low heat until smooth. Pour sauce over tortillas; cover with foil.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Pour remaining salsa over tortillas. ENJOY! Serves:4-6

Amazing Restaurant

On Sunday, I left with my mom & R to take back my sister to college. K was excited to take us to a restaurant that her and her friends dine at once in a while. If you are ever on the Plaza in Kansas City, Mo, I highly recommend this Restaurant:

The Melting Pot

It's a fondue restaurant and we happened to visit during Happy Hour. So.... cheese or chocolate fondue with everything you could imagine to dip in it is around $4.00 a person! SO CHEAP! We also ate steak and veggies and it was so much fun! We had cheese fondue before dinner and the chocolate fondue after dinner! Yummy!

Saturday... is it over yet?

Today has drug on FOREVER! I enjoy spending time at home with London, but I am ready to get back into our normal routine. It's AMAZING to sleep in everyday, but it's going to be hard to get up at 5:30 a.m. on Monday morning! Tonight we are having dinner at my mom's. K goes back to college tomorrow, so this is her "going back to school dinner"! Last night I made an amazing new-to-me recipe. I didn't take a picture but it was delicious and I wanted to share it with you!

Easy Meat Loaf

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. water
1 beaten egg

3 oz. Chicken Stove Top Stuffing Mix (1/2 a normal size bag)

1/4 c. choppen onion

1/2 cup BBQ sauce (I use KC Masterpiece)

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix ground beef, water, egg, stuffing mix, and onion in a medium size bowl, with a spoon. Shape meat into an oval loaf. Place in a loaf pan. (I put it in the pan and shape it pushing it next to one of the sides to make it look like an oval "loaf".) Top with BBQ sauce. Bake 30 minutes or until loaf is finished (no longer pink).

Serves 4

I paired the meatloaf with mashed potatoes, brocoli and cheese, and a dinner roll!

I wanted to include a picture in my post, so here's a picture of L on the counter today while I was whipping up an appetizer to take to mom's for dinner!

OREO BROWNIES

Yummy!! These brownies were AMAZING and oh-so simple! Here's the EASY recipe:

Oreo Brownies

1 box brownie mix

12 oreos

Crush oreos in a plastic bag. Mix brownie ingredients in a medium size bowl, according to the package. Stir in crushed oreos. Bake for the time alloted on the box. Enjoy!

This is a DELICIOUS twist to brownies and is bound to be a favorite!

L's First Pony Tail

Here is a picture of L's first pony tail! We put it up last night and then I realized how old she is getting and it made me extremely sad. She is so independent and the fact that her hair is long enough to put up in a pony tail doesn't seem possible. Time flies.... I am blessed to have such a wonderful family and little princess.

The Beginning of a New Year

Wow! A new year has begun and I have decided to start blogging. I will try to update atleast once a week, but no promises! Today is a snow day, so I am at home with L and J is working. He has lots to do due to the snow... cows to feed, hay to move, etc. L and I are getting used to being home together since we were just home for two weeks before going back to school on Monday. A three day work week is definitely nice! Happy New Year to everyone!