Recipe of the week: Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

Of course my new favorite place to find recipes is Pinterest, since I HAVE to have every food that I see on there.  Decided to try this Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili.  And I am so glad I did.  (For the sake of my time I'm not going to rewrite all the ingredients and directions on here, follow the link to find all that info, believe me it's worth it!)

Pretty much throw everything in the Crock Pot and let it cook! Just need to shred the chicken 30 minutes before it's done cooking.  I topped it with lots of cheese and some fresh cilantro, which I thought made the dish!

That's how ours turned out! I, of course, added a TON of extra cheese.  We ate this with tortilla chips instead of rice.  And I got to spend the day at the library and running errands with my little girl while this amazing dinner was cooking in my new Crock Pot! And I still have 1/2 of this frozen for when my next craving comes along!

Sunday Fun day!

Today started with a pancake breakfast with my little family! I then got to meet great friends for lunch at a Thai restaurant to celebrate belated birthdays! It was so great to catch up with friends and get a little break from "toddler world".  The birthday girls even got this awesome "flaming" dessert and "Thai birthday" song! 

After a few hours away, and of course a little shopping stop on the way home, I was ready to come back to "toddler world" just in time for my baby girl to wake up from her nap.  As I went to get her from her room she says, "Mommy, you're home! I missed you so much!"  Sweetest thing ever! I missed her too!

We had a fun night playing games, doing puzzles, and doing crafts! It's amazing how much more fun those activities are when you get a little break from them! This was our favorite...

Working hard

Tada!!!

Not ready for the weekend to end! :(

Shopping Deals!!!

Well, I have been doing WAY to much shopping lately! Mostly for kids rooms and my babies, but just a little for myself too! I am not one to turn down a great deal, even if it's something I don't "really" need, which can be bad sometimes! Here are some of the awesome deals I scored this past week!

Spent the afternoon at the Pottery Barn Kids Outlet...big mistake...I wanted to buy Everything! But I did pick up this bookshelf for baby boy's new room...You can probably guess what the theme is going to be!  And they thankfully had one that was still in the box so I didn't have to buy the display! $169  (I can't find it online anymore, but I think it's original price was $299)

Another Pottery Barn Kids Outlet deal... Originally $19.99 Each, I paid $5.99 Each

Also ventured over to the Children's Place Outlet... Got 16 items for $64.  Used a 25% off coupon from their email list, also had a $30 giftcard, so ended up only really spending $34 for everything pictured! Even some cute new baby boy outfits :) 

Brown Storage Basket from Home Depot.... $5.00 each! Bought 4 of them! 

The real reason we went to Home Depot was to purchase a closet organizer system for Alissa's new room.  I found this Closetmaid Suite Symphony Laminate organizer from Target.com that I really liked, looked easy to install and was close to what we wanted to spend ($119).  However, last week I went to purchase it (not available in stores, only online) and they were charging $54 to ship it!!! I was not paying $54 for shipping, so I kept looking. Found it on Closetmaid.com for $115 and $18 shipping, but when I went to purchase it the next day it was no longer available! Their website tells you where you can purchase their closet products which is Home Depot! So we went to Home Depot and wouldn't you know the same exact closet organizer was $89!!!! And we didn't have to wait for it to get here! Woo hoo! We used the $ we saved to buy some extra shelves to go with it! 

Also stopped at Sherwin Williams to pick out paint for both kids bedrooms so we can finally start painting! Lucky for our us, in our Sunday paper (that I only get for the coupons) they had 25% off paint, 15% off paint supplies coupons! We used both, and paint was cheaper than we had budgeted for too (And the nice guy working there gave us an extra gallon that he tried to color match for us, but wasn't quite what we wanted) 

And of course something for ME! Became a Fan of Coupon Divas on facebook a few weeks ago and last week they posted a great deal on New Balance Running Shoes! I just got a cute new pair of WHITE sneakers for Christmas, and within one day of being around my dogs they are muddy! So when I saw dark colored sneakers, I thought it would be a great idea! I got them through Coupon Divas from Joes New Balance Outlet for $29.99.  Only tried them on, haven't worn them yet, they are comfy so far, fit perfectly, are really light weight, but the mesh material is really thin and they probably wouldn't last real long if you are an avid runner.  Thankfully, I am not! 

I definitely spent more time than I should have on the computer looking for deals and running to a million different stores, but it definitely ended up saving us money! 

Decisions, Decisions

So as we rearrange and redo all the upstairs bedrooms, I am having such a hard time making decisions about any decorating...not to mention I am horrible at decorating!

So looking for any and all opinions! We have quite a few different opinions on toddler girl bedding for her new big girl bed which is making it even harder! Here are my 2 favorites right now, and I can't pick which one! Help!

Pottery Barn Kids- Hayley Bedding

OR 

Kohls-PEM America Flowers for Hanna bedding

Recipe of the week: Zucchini Boats

As I mentioned earlier this week, I decided to join Pinterest.  Love, love, love the website and all the amazing ideas you can find on there.

But being 24 weeks pregnant, every time I see a picture of food, I HAVE to have it! So I have already tried several recipes that friends posted! And I can't wait to try some more (like the cookie dough, oreo, brownie dessert, looks so yummy).

But I went with a healthier option for my first recipe and made what I call "Zucchini Boats".  I kind of "winged" it based on what I saw in the picture.  But they turned out really well.

Ingredients

Cheese, bread crumbs, zucchini, tomato, basil, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper

 Directions:
1. Cut zucchini in 1/2 lengthwise and scoop out seeds, place in baking dish, and brush with olive oil and garlic
2. Add sliced tomato to top of zucchini and sprinkle with bread crumbs
3. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
4. Remove and sprinkle cheese over top, bake for 5-10 more minutes until cheese is melted.
5. Drizzle with olive oil, fresh basil, and Parmesan cheese

They definitely don't look exactly like the picture, but they were yummy!

"Nesting"...or something like that

Since we didn't want to venture out on this snowy day, I decided it would be a great day to ORGANIZE!

Let me first start by saying, we are "messy" organized people.  I can usually tell you where anything is in this house at any given time, but if someone else tried to find it they would be lost...so our organizing might not be very organized for other people, but it works for us!

Started with the bathroom drawers...

I used these "gift boxes" I got after Christmas! 50 cents each at Target.

I'm sure there are some better options for draw organizers out there, but for $1.00 I have a somewhat organized drawer! 

After weeks of procrastinating, I decided I really needed to clean out our craft closet.  Alissa asked me a few times for certain crafts and it would take me 10 minutes just to find everything! 

The beginning of the project

Of course when my husband came home he said "Is this some kind of nesting thing, or just organizing stuff that doesn't have to be organized?"  Haha! One day he'll appreciate the organization! 

After sorting and labeling, this is what our new craft/motorcycle jacket closet looks like.

                                                

I'm sure there are better craft storage options out there also, but we like the cheap plastic drawers and bulk pack of Ikea magazine holders! 

Mommy's little helper

Tonight, as I was "reminding" my husband that I cleaned the bathrooms today, My 2 year old says "I want to clean 2 bathrooms!!" So we decided to let her clean her "bathroom" :)



Hopefully she will say the same thing when she's actually old enough to clean the bathroom!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Pinterest

Well, I jumped on the Pinterest Train..had to see what it was all about!  I've only spent a little bit of time looking at "pins".  So far I have learned there is so much cool stuff out there and I am so not creative at all! The site has definitely made me wish I had a creative bone in my body!

In my few minutes on searching through my friends' pins, this is one of the favorites I have found!

Sneaky, Snacky, Squirrel

Since the House Transformation is a bit overwhelming, I think I'll blog instead of organize files from 1995!

Santa was very very good to us this year, and Alissa has enough new toys, games, clothes, gifts, to fill an entire room! And all of them are awesome! Christmas was so different this year! I really felt like every gift we got was awesome, meaningful, and very useful! (yes, greedy little me will admit there are some holidays you get so much stuff you just don't need) So I thought I would slowly share some of the new items she got for Christmas and how much she loves all of it!

Sneaky Snacky, Squirrel...what?  Well that's what I thought too, but Santa knows what he is doing and found this awesome game!

Of course it says for ages 3 and up because of small pieces, but I think everything says that now a days! My daughter loves this game! She knows how to play it and can follow the directions (although she has a hard time understanding when Mommy is "sneaky" and steals her acorns, part of the game of course).  But we have a lot of fun playing it together!

What are some great things Santa brought to your house this Holiday? Always looking for great, new products!  I'll be sharing some more posts of all the other great things Santa, Grammy's, Pappy's, Aunts and Uncles brought to our house!

The house transformation!

We have begun the house preparation for baby boy! Although, it feels like we have spent hours working on everything, we have yet to get anything done that is actually for the baby! We decided to completely rearrange the upstairs and move pretty much every room, but the master bedroom!

The fun began with an office cleanout and moving our office to the "nook" in our bedroom. Seems like a fairly easy project....or so we thought.  We aren't the most organized people in the world, yes my house tends to look clean and organized, but open a drawer or closet and you will find the total opposite! (and you might get hurt in the process) We had about 1 year and 1/2 worth of filing, that was never filed, 2 years of scrapbook items, that were never scrapbooked, I even still had my teaching/lesson plan bag completely packed in the office closet (I haven't been teaching for 3 years!!!) We had a lot of stuff to go through and organize in order to fit an entire bedroom and closet into one little nook.  And...we are still working on it! Anyone know a professional organizer cause I could really use one???? 

The new office "nook" (and yes it currently still looks like this)

And this is what my child was doing while all the organizing was taking place! 

We only had a few days to work on this project, we decided to order new furniture for Alissa and use her furniture for the baby.  When I ordered it (didn't want to miss the sale price), I really thought it would take a couple weeks to get here, but about 5 days later, they were delivering it and setting it up in her new room! (which was our office).  We had about 5 days to empty everything out of the room! But we did it (sort of) and my "baby" now has her big girl furniture! :( 

And well as you can see we have a blank slate!  We still have to paint her room, as well as the baby's room, and then touch up the paint in Alissa's old room to transform that into our guest room!!! Ahhh! 

Oh yes, the baby's room.... He will be in our old guest room and here is what that looks like right now....

What you can't see in the picture is the entire twin bed along the wall, 3 tv's, and a floor filled with stuff!

Any decorators, organizers, moms, dads with any advice for this craziness??? We pay with beer, wine, and food! :)

"Mmm, that sure is good!"

Today started out as one of those days where every little thing would annoy me! (I know, surprising coming from the pregnant lady) I think it was a combination of being out to late last night and the wacky dreams I had all night! So, by lunch time I was in one of my moods, tired, and ready for nap. As we get 1/2 way through eating our soup, Alissa sets her spoon down and says " Mmm, it sure is good!" I of course had to smile at that! She just brightens my day and reminds me how blessed I am to spend everyday with her! :) - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Moon Dough...

My wonderful hubby decided to buy a surprise gift for Alissa for Christmas. (I usually handle the Christmas shopping) He picked A Moon Dough pizza kit! Thought he did a pretty good job...until we started playing with it!!!


Although she loves it, I am totally not a fan of Moon Dough! The stuff gets everywhere! She loves to cut it up into a million little pieces, which means I find a million little pieces all over!!! I would definitely pick Play-doh over Moon Dough any day! - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happy New Year!

Well after hearing about and seeing Pork and Sauerkraut all day on facebook, the prego that I am, I decided I had to have some! :) Thought about going out to eat, but my baby girl was sleeping, and well I was still in my PJ's at 3 PM.  So my loving, wonderful husband said he would run out to get some pork and we could make our own.... so that is what we did!

And OMG it was amazing! It wasn't ready til almost 7:30 since we made such last minute plans.  But it was the perfect craving stopper!

Made some mashed potatoes to go with it! MMM MMM GOOD!

I used what seemed to be a "nontraditional" recipe that of course I found using my AllRecipes app for my iphone, Sauerkraut Pork Supper.  I wasn't sure how I'd like it, using tomatoes, but it turned out fabulous, and the tomatoes and other ingredients took a little bit of the "sour" out of the sauerkraut.  Definitely would make this again! Made me miss my Grammy and all the New Year's dinners we had at her house! Hopefully she'd be proud of this meal! :)

Great way to start off 2012! Happy New Year Everyone! Can't wait to enjoy all the blessings 2012 brings to our family!