Sunday, December 13, 2009
Show us Your Life-Christmas Cookies
This is the one that the instructor made.
Candy Cane Cookies
Christmas Tree Cookies
This was made by the girl I took the class with. I love her container.
Wilton Sugar Cookie Blossom Recipe
Ingredients
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar with electric mixer for 2 minutes; scrape down bowl.
3. Cream the mixture for an additional minute.
4. Beat in egg and vanilla extract.
5. Sift baking powder and flour.
6. Add flour mixture 1 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition.
7. The dough will be very stiff.
8. Blend in the last of the flour by hand.
9. Do not chill dough.
10. Roll dough to 3/8" thickness and cut out using cookie cutters.
11. Bake 8-10 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned.
12. Remove cookies to cooling grid to cool completely.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Lately.
So, several weeks ago, we decided to finish the basement. We've wanted to do it since we've moved in, but went back and forth about when we'd start (and by we, I mean Greg) and Greg has finally started it. I'm really proud of him. When we moved in, he was not handy at all, but owning our home has really brought out the worker in him and he's done so many projects since moving into our house. He already framed several of the walls, I'll post some pictures soon.
For Thanksgiving, we went to visit my mom and sister in Augusta, Georgia. It was so nice to see them. It'd been 6 months since I've seen them last. We went in on Tuesday morning and left the Sunday after Thanksgiving, so we had plenty of time to catch up and relax. We did a ton of shopping, including 4:00am black friday shopping, we went to Lights of the South, ate a ton of food, watched movies, etc. It was a great time, I just wish my dad, who's in Afghanistan, was there with us. He's coming back in January and I can't wait.
We got some snow on Saturday. I was so excited. It snowed all day. I'm glad it came on Saturday so we were able to just relax in our pajamas and watch movies all day. I opened the back door to take some pictures and our cat, Izzie was just as excited as we were, I think she wanted to go outside and play in it.
On Thanksgiving Day we found out that Greg's brother and sister-in-law are expecting another baby. I'm so excited! They already have a boy, Ian, who turned 2 on December 1st. She is due this summer. I can't wait to have another niece or nephew.
This past Sunday I celebrated another birthday. Another year older. My birthday and the upcoming new year have got me thinking about some new year's resolutions and things I want to accomplish. I want to make a list of fun stuff/goals that I want to accomplish before this time next year. I want it to be a mix of fun stuff, like a bucket list and things I need to do, like workout. I've started on it and will post it on here when I finish.
Well, that's enough catching up. I will start posting more often so my blogs aren't long ramblings of random things.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
It's Been Awhile
Thanks!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
What I'm Reading Now
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Day of Shopping
I started a Kirklands where I got a beautiful fall wreath for 50% off, a black and white jewelry holder that you hang in your closet, and a pretty plate with the letter "W" on it for the kitchen. The purpose of going shopping today was to get a few things for the house and get some ideas of what I want for my birthday/Christmas. I wanted to stick to house things, like frames, pictures, candle holders, etc.
But, I had a coupon for New York & Company, so I stopped by there and managed to spend most of my afternoon in there trying on clothes. I found so many things. I'm so excited. Between their great sales and my 30% off coupon, I bought over $340.00 worth of stuff for only $170.00. Here's some of the things I got. The pictures on their website are not the best. I think the clothes look much cuter on the mannequins in the store all dressed up and with accessories.
I hate these shoes! I think the jeans look much better without those shoes in the picture.
After spending so much at New York & Company, I didn't think it'd be a good idea to go into all the stores I had planned on going in to. So, I went to Bath & Body works and used a coupon for a free product, then did a little bit of Christmas shopping for some gifts. It doesn't count as spending money if you spend it on somebody else. ;)
After this hard day of shopping, I'm going to relax with a cranberry vodka and diet sprite, read my Us Weekly, and watch some Thursday night tv--Survivor, The Community, and The Office.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Weekend
It was raining all day but cleared up as soon as everybody got to the party so we were able to go out in the yard and enjoy a campfire. Greg even went out on a canoe in the lake. It was a lot of fun.
This isn't a great picture, but I wanted to post something from the party.
Sunday we got up early and worked out in the yard. I bought some bulbs to plant. I've never, ever planted flowers before, so it was all very new to me. I planted bulbs while Greg made me a flower bed around our mailbox and extended the flower bed in front of the house. We weren't able to get it completey finished and it's been raining every day since. It's supposed to be sunny tomorrow, so hopefully I can get that finished. I can't wait for spring to see how my flowers look.
Before:
Before:
After:
After:
After we worked out in the yard we met my friend and her son to see "Paranormal Activity". I loved it! Greg thought it was kinda boring and stupid, but I really enjoyed it because it'd seemed very realistic and super creepy.
This weekend is Halloween and I can't wait to hand out candy and see all the cute little kids in their costumes. On Sunday we're going to a town about an hour away to do some shopping. I'm hoping to get some fall decorations on sale and get some Christmas shopping done.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Mexican Bean Dip
Mexican Bean Dip
Points: 1
Servings: 17
* 1 can fat-free refried beans
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
* 1/2 cup light sour cream
* 3/4 cup reduced fat mexican blend cheese
* 1 cup of refrigerated fresh salsa
* 1 can sliced ripe olives (I omitted these because I hate olives)
* 2 tablespoons chopped green onions
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1. Combine refried beans, garlic powder, and chili powder in a small bowl, stirring until blended. Spread mixture into bottom of a 9-inch pie plate.
2. Combine sour cream and 1/4 cup cheese, spread sour cream mixture over bean mixture.
3. Combine salsa, olives, green onions, and cilantro; spread salsa mixture over sour cream mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.
**I read the directions wrong and added all the cheese to the sour cream layer, so my dip will look different**
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Southwestern Corn Salad
***AFTER I ORIGINALLY POSTED THIS, I HAD SOME OF THIS SALAD LEFTOVER AND IT WAS DELICIOUS, THE STRONG LIME FLAVOR WAS TONED DOWN A LITTLE AND IT TASTED FRESH. I WOULD SUGGEST REFRIGERATING THIS DISH FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS BEFORE EATING IT***
Southwestern Corn Salad
Points: 2
Servings: 8
* 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
* 1/2 teaspoon salt'
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 can white corn
* 1 1/4 cup of chopped green pepper, red pepper and yellow pepper
* 1/3 cup sliced green onion
* 1 diced peeled avocado
* 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and mince
1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add black beans and remaining ingredients; toss gently to combine. Serve immediately.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Szechuan Chicken
Szechuan Chicken
Points: 4
Servings: 4
* 1/4 cup chopped green onions
* 1 1/2 tablespoons less-sodium soy sauce
* 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
* 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
* 2 teaspoons brown sugar
* 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
* 1 teaspoon grated, peeled fresh ginger
* 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1. Combine first 8 ingredients in a large ziploc bag. Add chicken to bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator 8 hours or overnight, turning occasionally. Remove chicken from bag. discard marinade.
2. Cook in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes or until no longer pink.
Monday, October 19, 2009
WW Quick Posole
Quick Posole
Points: 4
Servings: 5
* 1 pound lean ground pork
* 1 package taco seasoning
* 1 (15.5oz) can white hominy, rinsed and drained
* 1 (14.5oz) can zesty chili-style diced tomatoes
* 1 (14oz) can fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
1. Cook pork in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain, if necessary, and return pork to pain. Sprinkle pork with taco season, and cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 30 seconds.
2. Stir in hominy, tomatoes, and broth. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Ladel into bowls.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Philly Cheesesteak Quesadillas
Philly Cheesesteak Quesadillas
* 1 small box of Steak-Ums Slice Steak
* 1 onion
* 1 green pepper
* mushrooms
* mozzerella cheese
* hot sauce
Saute onions, green peppers, and mushrooms until soft. Remove from pan. Cook steak according to package directions. Remove from pan. Place tortilla in pan, add cheese, steak and onion/pepper/mushroom mixture. Cook until cheese is melted and tortilla is slightly brown. Remove from pan. Add hot sauce. A big thing in Philly is Cheez Whiz on their cheesesteaks. This quesadilla would be delicious with Cheez Whiz drizzled over top, or on the side to dip the quesadilla in.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Philadelphia
We did the daytime tour, they offered a nighttime haunted house, which I thought would be fun, but we didn't want to worry about trying to catch a bus at night. We had enough of a time trying to figure out which bus took us where in the daytime. Parking is super expensive there, so we got a special deal-book a room for two nights, and get hotel parking for free, and we just left our car in the parking lot the entire time. We walked most places, but some we had to take a bus for and we got quite lost. The bus drivers there are really sweet though and helped us get back to our hotel.
We went to some bars both nights that we were there. According to one website I researched before the trip, Philadelphia is the "beer drinking capital". They have several local breweries and almost everything on tap was nothing we had ever heard of, so we had fun going from bar to bar trying different beers out. And of course we had to have a Philly Cheese Steak. It was good, but honestly, I like my dad's better. We also met some fun people at our hotel bar, a girl who just got out of the Navy, her sister and her dad, we had some drinks with them and really enjoyed hanging out with them our last night there.
I love going on trips, it's one of my favorite things to do and I love having a trip planned for the future so I have something to look forward to and plan for. I'm not sure where we're going to go next (I'm not counting trips to see our families over the holidays, that's not sightseeing trips) I'm thinking of Boston, Niagara Falls, or Chicago. We'll see. Check out the pictures from a our trip. You can see all of them at our Shutterfly website.
The penitentiary was especially creepy because of the cloudy day we were having.
We had to get an authentic Philly cheese steak while we were here.
Greg, drinking a local beer.
Taking a soco and lime shot. There were advertised at every bar we went to, so I thought maybe it was a local favorite.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Crunchy Italian Chicken
Weight Watcher Crunchy Italian Chicken
Points: 6
Servings 2
* 1/3 cup Italian-style panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
* 1 tablespoon grated fresh Parmesan cheese
* 2 (6 ounce) skinless boneless chicken breast halves
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* cooking spray
* 1 cup grape tomatoes
1. Preheat oven to 450.
2. Combine panko and Parmesan cheese in a shallow bowl; set aside
3. Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap, and pound to 1/2 inch thickness using a meat mallet or heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken with pepper. Dredge chicken breasts in panko mixture, pressing mixture onto chicken, if necessary.
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan, and cook 3 minutes. Coat top of chicken with cooking spray; turn and cook 3 minutes
5. Transfer chicken to baking sheet, and cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 450 for 5 to 6 minutes or until done.
6. While chicken bakes, add tomatoes to hot skillet, and cook over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until tomatoes begin to burs. Serve tomatoes over chicken.
I got this out of Weight Watchers 20 minute recipes
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Songs I'm Loving Right Now
"Meet Me Halfway" Black Eyed Peas
"Watchu Say" Jason Derulo
"Down" Jay Sean featuring Lil' Wayne
"Sweet Dreams" Beyonce
See the real video Here
"Cowboy Casanova" Carrie Underwood
See the real video here
"Love Your Love The Most" Eric Church
"Hotel Room Service" Pitbull
See the real video here
"Party In the USA" Miley Cyrus
My favorite group right now is LMFAO. I went and bought their cd and absolutely love it. I like almost every song. My favorites are "La La La", "Yes" and "Scream My Name"
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Apple Festival
Here's some pictures from this weekend.
Spicy Stir-Fried Chicken and Spinach
Weight Watcher Spicy Stir-Fried Chicken and Spinach
Points: 5
Servings: 4
Ingredients
* 3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
* 3 tablespoons ponzu sauce (it's a citrus-y soy sauce)
* 1 tablespoon cornstarch
* 2 teaspoons chili sauce
* 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* cooking spray
* 2 garlic gloves, minced
* 1 8oz package presliced mushrooms
* 1 pound chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 1 6oz package fresh baby spinach
* 1/2 cup cut green onions
* 2 cups hot cooked Chinese noodles
* 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
* chopped green onions, for garnish
1. Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl; stir with a whisk. Set aside. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add garlic; saute 30 seconds. Add mushroom; saute 4 minutes. Remove from pan.
2. Coat pan with cooking spray; add chicken, and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Add reserved sauce mixture to pan; bring to a boil, and cook 1 minute. Reduce heat. Add spinach and green onions; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Add reserved mushroom mixture and noodles; toss gently to combine, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Garnish with green onions, if desired, and serve immediately.
I got this recipe out of 20 Minute Recipes.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Fall TV
The Community- I'm not very impressed. I had high hopes for this show since it stars Joel Mchale, who I absolutely love. I watch his show, "The Soup" on E! every week and he's so funny. I was so excited when I heard he had a comedy coming to NBC this fall, but unfortunately, it's not that good. It's kinda cheesy. It's not really funny and it's a little boring. I've only seen two episodes, so I'm going to give it a little more time. I really hope it gets better.
Survivor- I love this show. I really look forward to watching this every Thursday evening. It's the only show we watch live. Most shows we tivo and watch a few days later, but not this show. We are always so excited to see what's going to happen next. This season there is a hateful jerk on there named Russell. He's an awful person and so full of himself. He's mean and is only there to make everybody miserable. He owns an oil company and has made it clear that he doesn't need the money, he's just on there to manipulate people. It's so annoying. There was another jerk on there to, Ben, but he got voted out last night. I'm not sure who I want to win the game yet. I have some people I like, Jaison, Ashley, & Mick, but it's still a little early for me to have a favorite.
The Office- I absolutely love this show and will never get tired of it. Some shows stop being funny after a couple of seasons but not this show. It's hilarious. And next week Pam & Jim get married, which I can't wait to see. They are the cutest couple ever.
How I Met Your Mother- This show is really funny. My favorite character is Barney played by Neil Patrick Harris (Dougie Howser).
Heroes- We have the first 2 episodes of this season tivo'd, we're currently watching season 3 on dvd and want to get caught up before we start watching season 4, so I don't know how this season is so far, but I'm sure it's good. I love Heroes. It's not really my type of tv show, I usually like reality shows and comedies, but there's something addicting about this show. It's so good. Plus, it's full of hot guys!
The Amazing Race- this is the first time we've ever watched this show and we've only seen 1 episode, but I think we're going to like it. The first episode was 2 hours, which is way too long for me, but other than that, it was pretty good. I like seeing how the teams treat each other when they're stressed out. Some teams are so positive and supportive and others are so hateful.
And 2 shows that I know I'm way too old to be watching but I just can't help myself.
The Hills- I haven't watched this in a couple of seasons because it was so
ridiculous. It's very staged and kinda boring, but then this season they brought back Kristin Cavelerri from Laguna Beach, so I had to watch it. I love Laguna Beach. The first episode had a lot of drama in it, so I'm hooked. I will have to watch the entire season now. Damnit.
Real World/Road Rules Challenge- I love these challenges. I cannot get enough. I've been looking forward to this one ever since the last one ended. They are so full of drama, I just can't stop watching. I've been addicted to the challenges for quite some time, so I know all the players and who they don't like, who they've dated, etc. All they do is compete during the day and drink and party at night, which has led to some great fights. I know that this show is so ridiculous and stupid and that I'm far too old to be watching it, but I just can't help it. It's one of my favorite shows!
Friday
Weight Watchers is going good. I lost another 2.4lbs this week. I'm very excited. I love trying all the new recipes out of my Weight Watcher's cookbooks, it makes it much easier to stick to it when I have fun things to cook. I'm so glad I started Weight Watchers before the holidays because now I feel that I'm prepared to handle all the temptation that comes with the holidays.
Well, I'm off to plan our upcoming trip to Philly. I would love to hear ideas of things to do, places to see, and restaurants to eat at.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
80's Party!
Greg dressed up like an 80's rocker with a mullet, bandana, eyeliner, and a Def Leppard T-shirt. I put my hair in a side ponytail, big bangs, big hoop earrings, a shirt a wide collar hanging off one shoulder, bright plastic bracelets, and some bright pink leggings.
This Madonna costume won her "Best Dressed Girls" at our party. She created this entire outfit for $13.00! He decided to go a different route and dress up like he was in his 80's and he pretty much stayed in character the entire night. It was so funny.
Cyndi Lauper & Miami Vice. I love her hair!
I love her belt & side ponytail.
He even put a police light in his car to go with the "Miami Vice" theme.
Her son even dressed up. He came as Joey Lawrence. One of Greg's favorite 80's personalities!
Look at her bright pink shoes--so 80's. And I'm loving the headband.
He kept those sunglasses on the entire night. Perfect when "I Wear My Sunglasses at Night" came on, one of our favorite 80's songs.
I love her vest, I'm surprised we didn't see more vests since those were so popular during the 80's. And they're making a comeback.
I thought they looked great. He won for "Best Dressed Guy". Everybody LOVED his boots.
Our go-to rocker pose for the night.