UNDER 30 Minute Meals

Ha! Take that Rachel Ray!
I kid, I kid. She definetly has me beat in the kitchen but I'd still jump at the chance to give her a run for her money! I'm just down right competitive like that. Oh, and I'm not ashamed to lose. 

To say our schedules are crazy would be an understatement. Our schedules are so much more than crazy, its crazy. Make sense? Okay. I love to cook and I don't mind slaving over a meal that takes hours. Its a comfort thing. Being in the kitchen and cooking just melts my stress away. But, in order to slave away in the kitchen for hours....you have to have hours. Spare hours. You know those endless number of extra hours just lying around each week? Yeah, those. Ha! Okay, I'm stopping with the wise cracks.

There are many nights that we simply do not have a minute to spare to get things done and prepare for the next day to do it all over again. David is never home before 8pm during baseball season and I'm usually not home from work until around 6pm or later. I'm usually in bed by 10pm, so that doesn't leave much time to do the nightly routine. So, without further ado this is my quickest and yummiest dinner recipe that we fix on the nights when we literally have like 20 minutes to fix dinner.

Chicken Tacos - my recipe is for two people so you may have to adjust.

Ingredients -

• 4 - chicken tenderloins or 1 large chicken breast
• Lettuce
• Tomato
• Shredded Cheese
• Sour Cream 
• Jalepenos 
• Salsa 
• Any other taco toppings you enjoy. 

Seasoning -

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

Cook chicken (whole) in a lightly oiled skillet until done through. Remove from pan. Allow to cool slightly and shred with a fork. Return shredded chicken to the pan and add the seasoning and 1/2 cup of water (more water can be added if necessary to dilute seasoning). Cook on a low simmer until the liquid is almost completely gone from the pan. This is what my chicken looks like when its done.

While my chicken cooks I usually cut my tomato and lettuce and pull the other toppings from the fridge. We always eat this meal on paper plates to control the clean-up and I only have one pan, one spoon, one fork, a cutting board, and a knife to wash afterward! Yay!

 I forgot to take a picture of the finished product and by the time I remembered it my husband was shoving the last taco in his mouth! I know taco's are a very simple meal and most all taco recipes don't require much time, but this recipe is honestly the fastest chicken taco recipe I have prepared, so we stick with it and it works. Y'all know my old saying - If it aint broke, don't fix it!




 

Wordless Wednesday

Self Portrait Fail (again)

This time I thought I would be fancy and use the self timer on my camera to take our picture. Needless to say, it wasn't much better than our last self portrait. I'm guessing I should leave the picture taking to others...when it comes to photos of Bronx and I together!

Easter 2012

We had a beautiful Easter service at church this year, as always. Dave and I arrived just in the nick of time for the service, but still late enough to have to sit in the balcony. We were late...imagine that! It ended up working out in our favor - we had the entire left side to ourselves and I got to sing loudly without hurting Dave's ear drums with my beautiful voice. Ha!

We had a big lunch with Dave's family with all ham and all the fixings. My brother in law was very upset that we didn't serve mashed potatoes and gravy this year. My Mother in law reminded him that it was Easter and we only have potatoes and gravy at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Both my BIL and Dave made sure everyone knew that next year they were not coming if there was not potatoes and gravy served! Ha!
*Side note - if this doesn't explain why my husband's nickname is "Gravy" and my BIL's nickname is "Biscuit" - I don't know what will!

I ran out the door without my camera and my cell phone died shortly after church. I have not one.single.picture! I'll try to do better next year!

The Small Stuff

Its amazing how fast a year and a half fly by! I swear, it was just yesterday that I was walking down the aisle to my groom! Happy year and a half, babe! (Don't worry, I'll tell him in person, because he doesn't read my blog)

As a little girl and well into my teens my Mom always told me to enjoy that small stuff. Take time to look around and soak up everything around you, because as you get older time picks up its pace....she wasn't kidding.

Now, I know, time doesn't actually start ticking by any quicker as you get older, but sometimes it seems like it does. No one has any control over time and even when we want it to stand still, it just isn't possible. Time doesn't have to just fly by. I mean, minutes are always going to pass by as they always have. But right here, right now, we all have the ability to use the time we have wisely and make the most of those minutes ticking by...we just have to make it happen.

Days like today make me reminisce on the sweet moments David and I have spend together as husband and wife. Its those sweet moments that always make me smile because we made those moments ours. Nothing special or extravagant. Nothing over the top or spectacular. Just him and I making the most of the time we have together, as it passes quickly into the past.

Its fixing pancakes together on Saturday mornings. Its drinking a cold beer on the tailgate after pulling weeds together in the flower beds. Its giving Bronx a bath and laughing when he covers us in soap suds from head to toe, even though he's the one getting the bath. Its going for an afternoon walk together as a family, our little family. Its playing catch together in the back yard or having our dinner on the patio at sunset. Its the small stuff we do together that always ends up being the best quality time we've ever day. Its the small stuff that actually brings a smile to our faces or makes us laugh uncontrollably at each other. Its the small stuff that gets us excited and raring to go.

Sure, I love to get romantic cards on Valentines Day or my birthday. I love every single piece of jewelry David has ever give to me. Some of my most prized possessions are gifts he has given me over the years,  But twenty years from now will I really remember what those cards said? Will I always wear every piece of jewelry? Chances are, I probably wont. Will I remember the time we went for a long hike and stopped and laid on the grass in an open field all afternoon because we couldn't keep our hands off of each other any longer? Most certainly.

Its the small stuff that really matters most, to us anyway.

Photoshoot with B

While I planted in my garden and in my planters around the house last week this silly boy was too interested in eating my dirt, stealing my gloves, and tossing my plastic planters into the air.

Although at the time it was annoying, it was still cute to me to see him content and playing by himself while I was busy. I'm sure other Lab owners would agree that this breed of dog isn't really the "play by themselves" type. They are loyal to their owners, full of energy, and usually like attention or play from others. Bronx literally follows every step I make, inside and out. Its probably my fault for allowing him to do it when he was a puppy and I didn't train him not to, so now I can't even go to the bathroom by myself (TMI - sorry) or turn stop suddenly when walking without him bumping into me!

So after I was finished with my flowers - I grabbed the camera and let B ham it up for me! :) I think he is the most adorable pup in the whole world....I am a little bias though!

 Its so funny to me that he knows what the camera is. He always sits or lays down for me when I pull it out like he knows he needs to pose sweet for Mommy! 

 He was a little over having his picture made at this point. He just laid down on the porch with a big huff and ignored me!

Yep...he was finished. Done. Over it. He finally just rolled over and looked up at me like "umm, would you get out of my face with that thing now!"

Here Comes Peter Cottontail...

I know that Easter has so much more to do with bunnies, eggs, and pretty dresses but I usually don't feel the need to express my religious beliefs on my blog so with that said, here are a few shots of my Easter decorations this year. I'm really into my flowers and gardening and I usually start digging (no pun intended) deep into that routine around this time of year and it takes away from any actual holiday decorating that would occur otherwise. Hence, I go decoration crazy at Christmas because I have no outdoor tasks to keep me busy! :) 

 This little egg tree was a Dollar Tree grab from last year. I just painted the pot white (it was an ugly green) and tied a bow on the top. This is in my spare bathroom. I also have one in my bathroom, but I guess I didn't take a picture of that one.

 I have on on the window seal in the spare bedroom too! I think they are just too cute!

My mom gave me this little bunny banner. He is hanging on my laundry room door. Most people come into our house from our garage - so I put it here so it would be seen. 

Happy Easter y'all! God Bless! I hope I wont be so slack after Easter and have lots of fun pictures to post from our family gatherings this weekend!