Finger Lickin' Good

I've been trying to experiment with different recipes that I usually don't have a chance to cook. I'm kind of at the point that I'm bored with the same ole same ole...pizza, tacos, etc. When I try new recipes, any recipe at that...I usually do not follow them.

#1 Because I don't have all the ingredients necessary
or
#2 Because I like to make it my own...tweak it a little bit to our taste

When I cook a new recipe either it fails miserably or it is finger lickin' good, like last night.

After a day of just hanging out and spending some quality time with my family, we enjoyed a nice meal.

Stuffed Chicken
4 Chicken Breast
1 Package of ritz crackers crumbled
1/2 cup of italian dressing

Filling can be whatever you want it to be. I used ham and cheese for a cordon bleu taste.

Flatten your chicken breast. This was my favorite part of cooking this recipe...I took a can and well I guess you could say I took out some aggression on the chicken ;-)

Keep your CB (chicken breast) flat and lay your fillings in the middle. Roll the CB up and coat the outside with italian dressing. Then roll it in the ritz crackers. Close with toothpicks...

*disclaimer* remember folks to take these out before you eat them.

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for approx. 30 minutes.









This was the end result...before we scarfed it down! :)

Told ya it was "finger lickin' good!" It sure does make a wife and mom happy when the whole family loves your cooking. Especially when the dinner of choice for the princess is chicken nuggets and fruit cocktail.

I feel so blessed to have such a beautiful husband and daughter!
One more thing before I close for the evening...ROLL TIDE ROLL! For those of you who did not have faith in the crimson tide...look who's laughin' now :-)

Fire Starters

Let's just go ahead and get this out of the way...




Things around here have been busy the last few days, hence the reason of no posts. There have been a few "fires" (shall we say in the politest way possible) that certain people...YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE...have been starting! Let me just tell you something that was passed on to me. Success IS Revenge!!! We're successful. Stop living in your false reality and move on.





So, now that the fires have been put out...the funny thing is...well...





It's that our business is 110% based on restoring damage. That's what we do. Might I add, we do it well! At the end of the day, when you finally decide to rest that vendictive brain of yours...remember that ^





And as Forrest Gump would say "that's all I have to say about that." Maybe the Forrest Gump level is one you can understand.

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Ava is LOVING Montessori. She knows when we turn down the street before we even get there. As we approach the school she begins dancing in the carseat and singing at the top of her lungs. Rory and I just gleam with joy!




Okay...can't I play pretend that I live in a perfect world. ha ha. I'll fess up. She screams when we get there. She's getting better though. It's an adjustment. At least that's what I keep telling myself.


Ava got a few new toys to help accomodate the Montessori environment here at the house. Tonight she actually took her shoes from the living room to the foyer to join her other shoes. We didn't even ask her to do it. Gotta love Marie Montessori. :)

I thought this was the coolest thing. The kitchen will grow with her. Ava loves it. We've got it in the kitchen, so when Rory is cooking his lovely 4 course gourmet meals (remember my perfect world) then Ava can cook with her kitchen too!

All you have to do is pop it up and *ABRACADABRA* It's "big girl" size! :)

This is her new table and chair set. When we eat a meal now she can sit at the table with us or sit at her table. She does so much better at the table than the highchair. I guess her having some independance isn't such a bad thing.

Okay, I guess I've got to post pictures or a video to show her progress. :)

Good Night folks.

Ava's Adventures

We have this lovely playset in the backyard, and finally the weather this weekend was pleasant enough to actually enjoy it.

She had such a blast playing with her "big sister" Libby. That is, as long as Libby stays a minimum of 2 feet away. Ava has never encountered a dangerous animal. There is no explanation to her lack of courage with other species. Who knows, maybe she's staying extra cautious in case the day comes she runs into big foot!

After this eventful weekend the little one started Montessori school this morning at "The Academy." The teacher said she did great and actually sat down and did lessons. Okay, I'll admit it...I caved. I caved and I called to find out how Ava was. I was heartbroken to leave her with big gator tears rolling down her face. It's so new to her, but she did so well. She even got her placemat for snack time, put it on the table, ate her snack, and put the placemat away. Gotta love a little structure in this chaotic life.

We finished the day with Ava's first haircut. Did you people know that even at the age of ONE...yes...ONE...you have to make an appointment for the kiddy salon? I'm not joking. Maybe I'm just not as hip as I use to be. I was cool at one time with my Lisa Frank unicorn trapper keeper and my New Kids on the Block Keds that my Aunt Toni painted. Sorry, didn't mean to sidebar there. Back to what I was saying. This salon is making a killing. The haircut took all of 8 minutes and we dished out $20. The price of the haircut itself was not expensive considering the location http://www.sweetandsassy.com/ but the salary these hairstylists are making must be insane. I typically work 40 hours a week. On their payscale I would make $6,000 a week.

FYI...after revisiting 3rd grade math and even asking the dear hubby for confirmation of my calculations...I'm in the wrong field of work. Anybody else agree? Jump on the bandwagon and we'll open a kiddy salon, just say the words.

Grandpa Joe

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDPA!

Upside down, what can we say she's only 1

She likes to scrunch paper, sorry lol

How lucky, kisses too! :)