Mommy in Heels on The Ridge

Bath & Kitchen Towels...STINK??!!

2012-09-19T15:12:00.001-07:00

I don't know about you but I HATE....HATE......HATE...the smell of soured towels.  It really grosses me out and I have tried everything to remove it!  I have bleached them over night...put in extra detergent....extra fabric softener...NOTHING was working.  I couldn't figure out how they got this smell.  I never leave them in the dryer very long and I never let them sit very long after being washed.  

I then came across an article in a magazine talking about the sour scent from swimsuits.  I used the same trick with towels and I was more than amazed!!!!!  

Here is what you do:

Wash towels in a cup and a half of vinegar....I added a little more because I threw ALLLLLL the wash cloths and towels in.  Make sure you put NOOO detergent and NOOO fabric softener in.

Do not dry yet!  

Next wash it again with a cup and a half of baking soda.  Make sure again you put NOOO detergent and NOOO fabric softener in. 

After they are washed the second time.  Put them straight into the dryer and HELLLLLO brand new fresh towels.

I looked up why this method works and it states that after many washes the towels will build up with detergent and fabric softeners and your towels will not absorb much water and start to smell.  YUCK!

I hope this helped! If you try it please let me know how it worked for you. 

Or if you have another trick, please share!

XOXOXOX,

Brianne

Cook Bacon in the Oven

2012-09-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

How to cook bacon in the oven is so easy and the #1 reason why I love it....no mess and easy clean up!

I'm sure several of you have done this! But I found a new way that's even better.

BLT'S are my absolute favorite thing to eat in the summer!  Only in the summer when you have fresh tomatoes from the garden. Typing this is making me hungry.....

Last time I cooked bacon in the oven I noticed all the grease it was cooking in. I always put it on paper towels after I take it out but I knew their had to be another way.  I decided to crinkle the aluminum foil so the grease had small pockets to sit in and that way the bacon is not sitting and cooking in it's own grease.  Here is how the crinkled aluminum foil looks.

Then I un-crinkled it.  Before I put them on the pizza pan I lined it with two regular sheets of foil then put the crinkled aluminum foil on top and lined the bacon on it.

I had to take a picture of my tomatoes the nice neighbor brings me everyday.  These tomatoes are amazing!!!!!!! Look how great they look!!!!

I cook the bacon at 400 degrees for 17 minutes....sometimes longer because I like my bacon a little crispy...just a little! :-)

I also use real mayo...I know it's not good for you but it makes a HUGE difference!!!

Let me know if you try this and what you think?

Also let me know if you have a better way to cook it.

XOXOXO,

Brianne

Too many passwords to remember!!!

2012-08-23T06:08:00.000-07:00

Who has

Email?

Facebook?

Twitter?

eBay?

PayPal?

Online bill pay?

Etc.....etc.....etc.....etc....etc....

We all have usernames and passwords to everything we do these days.  How do we keep track and remember everything???  Memory? Password keeper? I'm sure most of us do that but sometimes we forget or looking it up takes forever.  So my friend "Redbird" sent me an email today suggesting a neat

idea.  She suggested this for passwords.....

Email-emailbri1234

eBay-ebaybri1234

PayPal-paypalbri1234

How cool is that?

If u don't want to use your name, you can use your initials or something unique that you can use with all of them.  Keep it consistent!!!  This means you only have one word or name to remember!!!!  When deciding on a username come up with one name and use it for all of them.

Amy just made my life a lot simpler!!!! Thanks!  I love this idea times 10. :-)

What other ways do you use to remember usernames and passwords?

Please let me know.  And if you use this idea, let me know how it works for you!!!!!

XOXOXO

Brianne

Mr. & Mrs. Brent Jokisch

2012-08-14T16:34:00.001-07:00

I have had this blog in my drafts since about a week after the wedding and just never got around to finishing it. This summer has been crazy busy! My brother Brent and his wife Sara got married in June and had a BEAUTIFUL wedding. I was part of the big day and wanted to show you some of the great pictures her photographer took. She was AMAZING!!! They had an outdoor wedding and it really couldn't have been a more perfect day. The weather & the location was amazing! They were only the second people to get married at this location. It's crazy to think I am the one who introduced them and here they starting their lives together.

If you missed it...check out my blog where I show you what I made them for their wedding gift!

http://mommyinheelsontheridge.blogspot.com/2012/06/wedding-seasonmr-mrs-jokisch.html

How CUTE are they?? :-)

I stressed all week about shoes, hair, and jewelry. I decided I wanted to do my own hair because it was cheaper. I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I went to Claire's to find jewelry and I wasn't about to spend $18.00 on just a necklace. NO THANKS! I ended up getting my necklace, earrings, and bracelet that all matched for $20.00 because I had a coupon! :-) My shoes I got for $10.00 because I used Kohl's Cash and got 30% off.

You still can't see my shoes but they are white with rhinestones and silver studs. Very elegant and classy! NOT TO MENTION CHEAP!!!!!

I know your thinking this is just the pillow for the rings but it's so much more than that. Sara's mom made this for her. Sara's dad passed away a few years ago. The flowers were made from a t-shirt of her dads. How unique and perfect was this idea.

The Bridesmaids

The groomsmen...lol

Wedding Party

Wedding Party and Parents

When I see this cute little face my heart skips a beat!

Sister, Brother and I

My cute lil family....Brody trying to grab poppy's camera

My mommy and I

My Daddy and I

My brother and his boys'....I can't get over how big they have gotten and how much Brayden looks just like his dad.

Awww they love each other :-)

They were very happy for their daddy!

and they both love to dance like their daddy

And they learned from him! HA

Love this pic of Bray in the air :-)

Love Sara's face here...Priceless

The place they got married made a brick with their name and the date they were wed on it. They then placed it in the entrance to the outdoor church where they were married.

This is what the brick looked like.

And they lived happily ever after........ :-)

My FAVORITE!!

I hope you enjoyed these photos as much as I did.  Her photographer was AMAZING and so much fun!

I wish my brother and Sara many years of happiness.  :-)

XOXOXO,

Brianne

I gave my son a ticket.....

2012-07-31T19:25:00.001-07:00

Not really but if he was on the roads of Southern Illinois he would have been given one. :-)

Yes.....my 16 month old son was texting on his daddy's phone while DRIVING!!!

I can assure you he did not learn this from me. I use HeyTell while driving....or I use my text recorder. That can only mean one thing.....his daddy has been texting and driving!

Right after snapping the first picture I then caught him TALKING on his daddy's phone while driving. I think I am in big trouble....

Ohhh and we can't forget to take our blankie and have our "putt putt" (pacifier) in our mouth when we get in the car! HA HA

How precious is he? :-) Even if he is breaking the law at a very young age!!!!!

XOXOXOX,

Brianne

Green Beans Sparking.....WTH

2012-07-26T13:22:00.002-07:00

Soooo.....About 5 months ago I started feeding Brody green beans. He didn't like them straight out of the can, but he did enjoy them when we had them at supper time. I thought maybe it's because my green beans are cooked in butter, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Who doesn't like green beans with all the unhealthy stuff. :-) I decided to try to just heat them up. Well that's where the story becomes a mystery....

I put a few of Green Giant green beans in a bowl and set the timer for 20 seconds. They were in there for 5 seconds and I saw flames! Yes sparks and flames coming off the green beans! I immediately thought the bowl must not be microwave safe.....but I looked on bottom and it was. I then thought maybe some of the metal got in the green beans when I opened it so I threw the ones I just cooked out and put new ones in the bowl. Guess what??? It sparked again!!!! WTH! I decided to try another can of green beans and a different bowl and it still sparked. I even tried a paper towel....that was worse because it caught on fire. My last option was to try a different brand.....which I had. I used Great Value green beans and the same thing happened AGAIN! I started to wonder if it was my microwave. I decided to Google it and sure enough I wasn't the only person wondering about this vegetable mystery! Their were several other people wondering the same thing. If you haven't tried it, please do. You will be shocked!

This is what I have found so far on Google.....

****

If you've wondered why your green beans cause sparks to fly when you microwave them, blame it on their density. According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, dense vegetables such as green beans, carrots, and green peppers have higher amounts of minerals than other food items. The minerals act like tiny pieces of metal and can create arcing effects in a microwave. While this doesn't harm your veggies, it may prevent them from heating thoroughly.

****

http://www.health24.com/dietnfood/Food_journey/15-2052-2949,27452.asp

I did try putting a little bit of water in a bowl and cooking them and saw no sparks.

I feel better about letting him eat them now, but was worried in the beginning. :-)

Please tell me if this has happened to you and what your thoughts are?

XOXOXO,

Brianne

My must have Apps

2012-07-17T15:12:00.002-07:00

I absolutely love my Droid and love to find cool APPS to download.  I am going to share with you some of the ones I love and need your help as well.  Why do I need your help?  Well because my son loves my phone and loves to play with it and I can't find any cool APPS for him....I know their are some momma's out there that have some fun APPS for their babies.  Brody is 16 months so I need something age appropriate and I would like it to be learning but fun too.

The APPS I love (in alphabetical order) are:

1. Draw Something....I am not much into playing games but I LOVE THIS! You basically are playing Pictionary with your friends or random people they pick for you.  My friend Julie and I play it quite a bit.  She always sends me a text or HEYTELL (I will explain below) and says HEY DRAW SOMETHING!

I downloaded the free version because I don't like to pay for APPS...I know I am cheap!  If you have it please add me and I will DRAW you SOMETHING!  Hehe

2. Dropbox....I haven't used this very much yet but so far I love it. You simply create an account and it allows you to put pictures, files, videos, etc on the internet that only you or someone with your account info can get into.  When you need them or need someone else to view them just get into your account or let someone else get into your account. My phone will not allow me to send videos thru text messaging because the file is too large and if I record them in a lower resolution they are fuzzy and you can't see anything...BOOO!  This way I can put my videos and pictures in a drop box and let my friends and family view them!  They can download and copy the pictures, videos, and files to their own computer.

3. HeyTell.....Looooooove this and I had it for a long time but nobody else did so I deleted it....well my friend Julie got it and so I decided to download it again!  She HeyTells me ALLLLL the time and now I had my sister get it.  It's basically a walkie talkie.  Well that's what I think.  I love using this when I am driving or if I have a lot to type.  It's also better than leaving a voicemail.  I NEVER EVER check my voicemail so this makes it easier for me to check my HeyTell and then reply back real quick.

4. HP ePrint Home & Biz......this is great if there is a coupon, picture, etc that I would like printed on our home printer.  It sends it directly to the printer and prints.  When I get home its sitting in the tray.  How cool is that?  The only complaint is that it won't let me print emails!  GRRR  I am looking for a wi-fi printing app that will allow this.  If you have a suggestion please let me know!

5.Instagram.....awwww it simply makes me into a professional photographer when everybody knows I am far from it.  It allows you to do so many cool fun things with photos and then save them and post them to Facebook.  I am still learning things everyday with this app but I highly recommend it.   I think of this as a Photoshop for your phone and it's FREE!  SCORE!

6. KFVS12weather.....there is one for news and one for weather.  I love this.  This allows you to type in your zipcode and will give you a digital radar map, 10 day forecast, severe weather alerts, and what the weather is doing hourly.  If there is a storm cell, you can click it and it will tell you the wind speed, direction, and the time it hit.  It will also tell you if it includes tornadic activity, high winds, or hail.  It also gives you an icon at the top on your main page of the current temp.  Make sure if you get this, get the weather version.  The news version has weather but it's not as fancy as the KFVS12weather app.

7. MyFitnessPal....I have already talked about this app in a previous post but I will explain it again.  It allows you to track your calories day by day, meal by meal.  It's very cool if you have a goal set for how many calories you are allowed because it will tell you how many you have left and if you workout it will tell you how many extra calories you can add.  I love how it allows you to track everything.....calories, exercise, water intake, etc.  If you would like to start counting calories this is a MUST.  It's very easy to use.

8. Notepad....I like this silly app because it simply lets me type things so I won't forget them.  When I am laying in bed at night and something pops in my head, I really have no desire to get out of bed to write down something so I type it on my notepad and look at it the next day.  This comes in handy!

9. Pandora.....I find a lot of people either don't have this or don't know what it is.  Well if you don't....... PLEASE get it.  You will LOOOOOVE it.  I plug it into my iHome and listen to it in the shower, or on the boat, or in my car.  You pick an artist, or genre and it randomly selects songs similar to what you picked.  I usually just type in an artist but a few days ago I typed in Old School Hip Hop (bringing back my dance team Indianette days with Tawmi :-(   It saves what channels you previously picked and will be there when you turn it back on.  It has a few commercials but not very long!  :-)  Please download this if you haven't already!

10. SoundHound.....hear a song on the radio and want to know the name of it,who sings it, and when it came out.  Just go to SoundHound and it will listen to the song for about 10 seconds and it will tell you.  You can also humm a song or sing a song yourself and it will tell you.  I have tried singing a song though and it didn't work....probably because I can't sing or carry a tune.  HAHA  Great App!

Those are my favorite 10....please leave me your favorite apps and kid apps.  I love finding cool apps!  Some of these may already come on your phone.  

XOXOXOX,

Brianne

Summer so far.....

2012-07-05T12:27:00.000-07:00

So it just hit me today that it's already July 5th!!!  Summer is half over and I dislike HATE that!  I always dreaded the day after 4th of July because all you see at Wal-Mart and the mall is BACK TO SCHOOL!  Can we all say UGGGGGHHH!!!

I personally love love love school but having summer vacation is the best!  I also HATE winter..... so today I am reflecting back on what I have done so far this summer and I am actually pretty happy with all the fun I have had. The only negative thing I can think of this summer is the HEAT and NO RAIN!....but with that being said this is what my summer had consisted of so far and I hope to continue on with the list!

Brody riding in a wagon with his great-grandpa Pyle

Late nights with my loveys! xoxox

Sunday Funday with my favorite Blue Martin bartenders

Family time at my brothers wedding

My brother's wedding

Birthday outings with friends

Quatros with the family


Kentucky Derby party Click here

Late night fights refusing to go to bed and falling asleep on the floor......

Swimming with friends and family.......

Cooling off in his small fountain pool.....

Levee town tour for birthday celebration.......

Brody's 1st zoo trip.......

Daddy with Brody at the zoo......

Shopping and finding redneck wine glass........

Finding awesome pinterest ideas.....still haven't found this but if you know where I can get one please let me know!!!

Pool time........

Mule rides......


side walk chalk....

I could go on and on but like I said...I am very happy with the great and fun things Josh and I have done with Brody and the rest of our friends and family.  I hope the rest of this summer is double what I have done so far and really feel blessed...minus the heat and no rain.  I hope everybody else is enjoying their summer as much as we are!  

XOXOXOX,

Brianne

Couch to 5k

2012-06-26T15:58:00.001-07:00

So last night I posted on Facebook about how well I was doing with my Couch to 5k. I had lots of people text me, private message me, or comment on my status so I decided the best way to let everybody know was to blog about it. I first want to start off by saying that I HATE RUNNING! I know your probably thinking why in the world are you doing this if you hate to run. I have figured out that having a 15 month old and living so far from a gym it's not easy to work out. I knew I could burn more calories in a shorter length of time at home outside then if I drove to the gym in town. I never liked running because I felt awful afterwards.

My:

LEGS
SIDE
CALVES
SHINS
ARMS
NOSE
EARS
LIPS
FINGERS

Okay......I may be exaggerating a little bit (Josh says A LOT... :-) but I am very serious. My body is not built to run. When I competed in dance in high school we did 3-4 minutes intense routines and I could handle that just fine. BUT running for 30 min....ummmm not so much! PUKE PUKE PUKE

I even tried track and I just couldn't do it. I tried to stick it out just because all my girlfriends were in it. :-) The sacrifices I made to be with my friends....haha. I won't discuss what I tried out for in middle school to be with all my friends! You would probably die laughing! Hopefully none of my girlfriends will remember! hehe

So I decided in the spring I wanted to start running. My best friends from high school (actually we went to school since preschool....geeeez that's a long time) Abby Elder and Ashley Hill (Hicks) were training for a 5k....I asked them what they were doing and Ashley had found this website where she downloaded podcasts to her ipod and listened to them while she ran. The girl talks during the work out to let you know when to run and when to walk. You always start and end with a 5 minute walk. I haven't even told you the best part yet????

THE MUSIC IS GREAT! It ranges from Michael Jackson to P.Diddy. LOVE IT ALL!

I did skip two weeks because I was sick and I was busy with my brothers wedding so I just started where I left off.

I just finished day 1 of week 8. I also love this work out because you only have to do it 3 days a week and sometimes I do 4 just because I want to.

I will say I am not "IN LOVE" with running still but I will say I feel a lot better, I have more energy, and I am no where close to puking after my 28 minutes of running which I did for the first time today. Not to mention I am burning WAAAAAY more calories in 30 minutes running then if I were to walk for 30 minutes! YEA!!!

Here is the website. Just download the podcast and then transfer them to your ipod or iphone. I have a droid and haven't figured out a way to get them on there, but if you figure out a way please let me know!

Couch to 5K

If you have any questions please ask! I remember texting Ashley quite a bit in the beginning! :-)Please let me know how it works for you. I will warn you that week 3 or 4 is harsh.(Can't remember) You will be cussing at me while you are running because that's what I was doing to Ashley and Abby that week! :-)

Good Luck RUNNING!..................

XOXOXO,

BRIANNE

Father's Day Gift

2012-06-20T15:26:00.002-07:00

What do you get someone for Father's Day who has everything??  I'm talking about Josh!  I decided a picture would be great but I wanted it to be something different and unique.  I searched Pinterest and found something similar to what I decided to make.   This is what Brody gave Josh and I am pleased with what I came up with.  Let me just tell you.....it's not easy having a 15 month old hold a letter box, look at you, smile, ohhhh AND not rip the color paper off the front!  And he has Jaw teeth coming in and all he wants to do is put his hand in his mouth!!!!  After about 30 minutes which to me seemed like 2 hours I finally got some decent shots.  It was rather HOT and he just wanted to go play with Sami our pet dog.  She is a chocolate lab and Brody loves to chase her and hit her. :-)  

Here is my finished product. 

I don't know why it's showing up so blurry.  On my camera it looks very clear!  Sorry?

I went to Hobby Lobby and bought paper mache letters and covered them in bright colored scrap book paper.  Then took him outside and had him hold each letter.  This was the only three frame picture arrangement Hobby Lobby had to choose from that wasn't a wire framed.  I also wanted them to be different sizes so this framed worked out PERFECT!  

Happy Father's Day Josh.....we love you very much and appreciate all you do and how hard you work for Brody and I! 

This would also be a great day for Mother's Day....or any other type of gift!  Let me know what you gave as a unique gift for Father's Day.  I love hearing ideas.  :-) 

XOXOXO,

Brianne

My favorites...CHEESY & EASY

2012-06-13T07:57:00.002-07:00

I remember as a kid ~~not liking~~ HATING meatloaf from the school. It was so dry and looked like someone had yaked all over my plate. I would always pick to take my lunch box on the day they were serving meatloaf. I remember my mom getting a new meatloaf recipe and fixing it for the family to try. I hated meatloaf, so why even try it right???!!! Well guess what she put in it??? What makes everything taste AMAZING??? You only get one guess.........................

CHEESE

Yep she put cheese in her new recipe for meatloaf and I had to try it. Here I am 20+ years later still making my moms meatloaf with cheese and still loving it. I still refused to eat school meatloaf when I was teaching. UGH!

So I am going to share with you how easy it is....

Go to the super market (I go to Wal-Mart, and Kroger) and buy a can of Hunt's Meatloaf Sauce. How cool is that??? It's already made for you!

On the back I follow the recipe except I only put 1/2 cup of bread crumbs instead of a whole cup. I use Progresso bread crumbs. Make sure they are PLAIN.

I use 2 lbs. ground chuck instead of ground beef. Then I add a whole bag of this....

you can also use this

but if you buy shredded you wont have to slice the block up in cubes. Noooo I am not lazy...I just like to make things easy and it takes an extra step out! :-) I would like to add that I have tried other cheeses and nothing beats Velveeta. One night I forgot to pick up Velveeta and used the cheddar. I didn't tell Josh and he immediately noticed something was different. It wasn't as creamy. :-)

Before I pour the can of Hunt's Meat Loaf Mix in with everything else I always add a couple squirts of Hunt's ketchup. I like my meatloaf really saucy. I stir it up and leave about 1/4 in the can (this is what I put on top later). I mix it with my hands and put it in the pan and I'm done. It only takes about 5-10 minutes to prepare which works out great because it takes an hour to cook.....this gives me time to chase Brody.....~~do laundry~~.....~~do dishes~~....~~read 50 Shades of Grey~~......~~shop on the internet~~.....~~sit on the back porch and sip on some wine and relax~~....hahahaha....Having a 14 month old, I wish I could do just one of them. He just wants my attention at all times so I just have to wait till nap time or bed time. Christian waits for me though. HA :-) I always tell Josh when I am going to read that I'm going to see Christian!

Back to Meatloaf...FOCUS BRIANNE!!!!! After 45 minutes I take meatloaf out and pour the remaining sauce on the meatloaf and stick it back in oven for 15 minutes. When I take it out I sprinkle brown sugar on my portion because Josh HATES sweet stuff. If I was eating this meatloaf alone I would pour a lot of brown sugar in the mixture but since it's for him too, I just make adjustments. I wait till the end because it melts when I sprinkle it on top and it taste better that way. My advice to you is to try it with brown sugar first on one slice. It really makes a difference. If you don't like it then you don't have to add it. :-)

This Meatloaf will blow you away! It is soooooo cheesy!!!! Who don't like cheese??? It's amazing and I have to give all the credit to my mommy. She is the best cook! She can't bake though. :-(

****If you have any questions please ask!

If you make this please comment below how delicious it taste!!! :-)

xoxoxox,

Brianne

Wedding Season....Mr. & Mrs. Jokisch

2012-06-06T11:07:00.000-07:00

About two months ago I started looking at Etsy on what to buy my brother and his new wife for their wedding gift! I found sooooo many cute ideas and everything I wanted was over $70.00. I didn't have a lot to spend after buying everything it cost to be in the wedding. I found something I REALLLLY liked a lot and it was different and unique.

The only problem was it was $70.00 with shipping and it wasn't framed. :-(

I decided I could pull it off and make it myself. I also wanted to add the year they were married on it.

So I went to my favorite store Hobby Lobby and bought burlap, black & white fabric paint, stencils, and a frame I found on the clearance shelf. The frame was a little more than I wanted to pay but with the last name J O K I S C H...I had to find a long frame. ;-)

Oh and if you haven't been to Hobby Lobby in the last two weeks you need to go ASAP...They are re-doing aisles and they have put SOOOOO much stuff in the clearance section! I was in there for 2.5 hours last week with Brody and I would have stayed longer but he was getting tired. He was so good. He just sat in the cart with his gold fish and played. Thanks Brody!

Here is how it turned out...and I can't take all the credit. Josh helped me out measuring it all out and making sure it sit just perfect in the frame. He was getting frustrated and I think he was so happy to see me finish it and give it to them! haha

Here it is.....

I was very happy with the way it turned out and I won't say what I paid for it but it was not even close to half of what I would have paid on Etsy.

I hope you like!!! If you have any questions on how I made it please ask! It's pretty easy!!

XOXOXO,

Bri

**The top image was taken from a shop on Etsy. I can't remember the name of her store but she has lots of super cute items for wedding gifts! :-)

Just call me Martha Stewart !!!!

2012-06-01T14:21:00.001-07:00

Sorry these were taken with my camera phone. The dresser looks much better in person! :-)

I am ~~very~~ SUPER happy with the project I have been working on for the past couple of weeks. This project should only take one day....maybe two at the most but when your a stay at home mom you have nosey britches.... And it takes weeks! HA

Josh's grandma BC, whom he adored left this dresser to the family.

It has been over at Mase's Place Bar & Grill for the past 6 years and was used to keep the napkins, silverware, tea, coffee, etc. There was two of them over there and we remodeled the Bar this season so we decided to eliminate one. Josh and I have no furniture in our bedroom because we both have our own closets. I decided I needed a dresser to keep all my crafts and other things (Josh refers to them as JUNK) :-( He thinks I am a hoarder but I'm really not, I just like to keep sentimental items. Is there anything wrong with that???

So I decided it needed work and to be painted because I don't like the color of wood. Wood is boring and I LOVE BLACK!! Have I said that before? ha Here are the before, during and after pictures of my our new dresser!

Before

Before (The top had water spots all over it from tea)

Primed

Top Primed


FINISHED!!! How awesome does it look now? I must say I am very happy with the way it turned out!

Just a note: I DIDN'T SAND THIS DRESSER!!!!!! How cool is that???!!!

SUPPLIES

I changed all the knobs to silver instead of gold. I bought them at Wright's Do-It Center in Murphysboro for .50 on the clearance rack. SCORE!!! If you go there, go to the back counter and ask for Julie (cute and sweet blonde girl will show you where all the clearance is located, and any other items you need help looking for). I also bought black flat paint, primer, and mini roller from there. This project cost me a total of $20.00. I didn't want to spend that much but I have SOOOOO much primer and paint left. I need to find some more things to re-do/paint!! HMMMMMM

Love,

Breezy XOXOXO

DIY Summer Sandals

2012-05-24T13:36:00.001-07:00

In the summer, I have an obsession with open toe pumps, flip flops, sandals and WEDGES!!! LOOOOVE THEM ALL. Besides laying out in the sun by the pool, I think these are my favorite part of summer. This is what I made....

Don't mind my nail polish...I am waiting one more week before I get them done for my brothers wedding. :-)

Here is the reason why I decided to make them.....

Brody and I went to the mall one day last month in Cape. I walked into this store and on the table was the most adorable pair of sandals. They were adorable. I picked them up and when I looked at the price tag, I dropped them....NO LIE! I could not believe they wanted $39.00 for these cute sandals.

I put them back on table and continued to shop around the store. I couldn't stop thinking about these cute sandals as I shopped. I decided to go back and look at them. As I looked at them I was trying to figure out why they were so high. I finally decided I can make these for half the price! So I took a picture of them and went to Hobby Lobby. HA! They all know me and Brody by name in there. I bought a spool of black and white zebra ribbon. They didn't have black and white cheetah ribbon. It was $4.99 for the spool, but was 50% off so I paid $2.50. I then went and bought 2 packs of black iron on rhinestones. They were 2.99 a pack. The sandals were plain black and I bought them at wet seal for $6.99. I got 10% off of them. The pair in the above picture are silver sandals but I wanted black. Wet Seal had silver but if you know me then you know I love black. All together these sandals cost me approx. $15.50. How cool is that? That store was charging more than double for the same thing. I am very pleased with them and got to wear them last night. Josh had an appointment to show one of his apartments so we decided to drive to Marion since we don't make it there very often. We went to Walt's Pizza. YUMMY!!! We sat outside on the covered patio...B E A U T I F U L !!!! Josh's mom watched Brody. He also took me to Chill over by Shoe Carnival in Carbondale. That place is a gold mine. I still like Dairy Queen for the price we had to pay at Chill. YIKES! :-(

I just love looking at them and knowing in my head that I didn't spend $39.00 makes me smile even bigger!!! YEA!!!! One last photo just because I am so happy with them!

Let me know what you think? Would you like me to make you a pair? I have extra ribbon! :-)

XOXOXOX

Brianne

Lake Time with CAT DADDY

2012-05-19T12:28:00.000-07:00

Josh has got the Cat Daddy ready and we hope to be enjoying the lake soon. Memorial Day is just around the corner and I can't tell you how excited I am!!!!

I was looking at pictures this morning while Brody was napping and came across some of Josh and I before Brody came into our lives.

This was summer of 2010. Last year Brody was so little and we were to scared to take him on such a fast boat so maybe this year he will get to take a ride on daddy's fast boat. Brody's eyes got so big the other day when Josh pulled the boat out of the pole barn.

I am however a little disappointed.....I have always been the one to back the boat in the water and back the trailer in the water to load it back to take home....not this year. Josh sold my favorite truck ever this winter. :-( I was going to post a picture but it makes me cry. I miss it so much! Josh bought a new truck and guess what.....IT'S STICK SHIFT! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr I can't drive stick and Josh has tried to teach me but I can't do it. I feel like I have no control and it has a mind of it's own. I keep hoping he comes home one day and will have a different truck......ANYTHING but stick!!!! So this year Josh will be doing ALLLLL the work. Sorry babe. I even had a night mare the other night that I tried to back the boat in and the truck rolled back into the water and I sank the truck.

On a good note, I can't wait to see how Brody does on it and to see this.....

I hope everybody has a safe and fun lake and boating season!!

Love,

Brianne xoxoxox

MOMS....check this out!

2012-05-11T11:48:00.004-07:00

Calling all MOMS !!!!!!!

Does anybody else hate it when you are trying to give your baby/child a bath and water gets in their eyes and they HATE it! They cry, scream and sometimes it's just not worth the tears! :-( I have tried to tilt his head back....use a rag....pour a cup of water a little bit at a time, but babies don't really hold their head the way we want them to so while browsing on Pinterest one day I found this niffy item.

I don't even know what to call it or how to find it so I decided to make my own. Well after a trip to Hobby Lobby 3 times last week for my Kentucky Derby Hat...I found this similar item that I am very happy about!

Can we say cheap..... .99 cents is all I paid. It's styrofoam and I love it! Brody isn't a big fan but as soon as it's time for water to come over his head he leaves it alone.

Sorry the pic is blurry...He is pretty quick and I couldn't snap the picture quick enough of him when he was looking up. The baby in the picture above is obviously a lot younger. :-( When did Brody grow up? I can't believe he is almost 14 months old!!!!!!!!!!

I am open for suggestions on other ways you have found it easy to give your little one a bath with no or little water in the eyes. This right now is working GREAT! Thanks Hobby Lobby for not making me upset during bath time and making it easy on Brody's eyes! :-)

xoxoxo

Brianne

Talk "DERBY" to me! 2012 Kentucky Derby

2012-05-07T14:54:00.000-07:00

I was a busy girl last week trying to create my Kentucky Derby Hat. I was stressed between decorating my hat, finding a dress in my closet to match, and Brody teething. Blue Sky Winery was having a hat contest and "the girls" had a weekend together because "the boys" were doing their Rugby thing! My sister and her friends were going as well. My sister and I both went to TJ Maxx and bought our hats for super cheap. Then we went to Hobby and Lobby and got stuff to decorate them. She wasn't feeling well and asked if I would make her hat for her. I did hers first....that way if it looked bad I wouldn't make the same mistake on mine. HA :-) She wanted brown and peach. I wanted black and pink with white. My friend Julie already had her hat. She then had her husband Timmy spray paint her hat blue and then he spray painted white clouds on it. She also went to Hobby Lobby and bought flowers to put on her hat and felt to make a kite. She also added a special touch to her hat and printed off Blue Sky labels to add to the tail. VERY CUTE!!! And she had a cute pink butterfly she hot glued on it. Our other friends we went with bought theirs. Julie received 3rd place and got $50.00 giftcard. My sister and I got runner up and each got a free bottle of wine. Julie also won the horse race and won another $15.00!!!! I didn't make the hat to win, I did it because I wanted my hat to be unique and I had fun doing it. After going to Hobby Lobby 3 times, I called Josh's mom over to help me decide what to do. (Remember I am not at making a decision) I showed her what I wanted and she gave me some ideas and helped me hot glue everything on. We also had to figure out how to support the huge gerber daisy on my head so it wouldn't fall over! :-) Hope you enjoy the pictures. I didn't get very many because my phone died....SHOCKER! If I can find somebody who took more pictures I will post the pictures of the two older women who won 1st and 2nd. The lady who won 1st had her hat for over 50 years I think if I remember correctly. The second place winner went to a lady who bought her hat in New Orleans. I will try my best to get their pics for you.

Happy Kentucky Derby Day!

My Hat!

Julie's Hat

My sister and I

Kelli, Amy and I

Julie, Kelli, Amy and I

Lanae and I....I use to babysit her when she was little. :-( makes me feel old!!!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza....yUmMy!!!

2012-05-02T13:25:00.000-07:00

It's time for a recipe right???? A sweet friend of mine "Redbird" Amy was emailing me the other day and I asked if she had any good Buffalo Chicken Pizza Recipes because I have been craving one. She sent me three links to some GREAT websites and I narrowed it down to one. She is a recipe crazy women! If you ever need an idea for something to cook, she is your girl! This is the one I made and below is the link to it.

Taste of Home-Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Sorry my camera isn't very good on my phone but I PROMISE this pizza is AAAAAMAZING!

I will tell you below what I will do next time to change it up.

Ingredients

1 tube (13.8 ounces) refrigerated pizza crust
1 cup buffalo wing sauce, divided
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1/2 teaspoon each garlic salt, pepper and chili powder
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Celery sticks and blue cheese salad dressing

Directions

Unroll pizza crust into a lightly greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan; flatten dough and build up edges slightly. Bake at 400° for 7 minutes. Brush dough with 3 tablespoons buffalo wing sauce. Combine cheddar and mozzarella cheeses; sprinkle a third over the crust. Set aside.
In a large skillet, cook the chicken, garlic salt, pepper and chili powder in butter until chicken is no longer pink. Add the remaining wing sauce; cook and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Spoon over cheese. Sprinkle with oregano and remaining cheese.
Bake for 18-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Serve with celery and blue cheese dressing. Yield: 8 slices, 4 servings.

Editor's Note: This recipe was tested with Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce.

I highly suggest Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce. It is very good. If you know of another Buffalo Wing Sauce please comment below. I would love to try another one but I just love Frank's so much I don't think it can be beat. :-) They sell one that says HOT on it but I just buy the regular Buffalo Wing Sauce.

The next time I make this pizza I will add blue cheese on the bottom of the crust with the wing sauce.

I used thin crust and it was a great choice but it was a little doughy so next time I will bake the crust a little longer the first time you bake it.

Next time I will cut back on the oregano seasoning. It was a little strong for me.

This time I added extra cheese. Great move because it made it extra cheesy. It calls for 1 1/2 cups of each and I put 2 cups of each. If you know Josh then you know he adds cheese to every dish I cook. Let me say it one more time.....JOSH ~~LOVES~~ IS OBSESSED WITH CHEESE! He will even add cheese to my broccoli and cheese !!! Ha Ha!

Some buffalo chicken recipes call for thin sliced chicken but I really liked the cubed.

Let me know if you make it and what you think of it. ENJOY!

I NEED YOUR HELP!

I don't buy Blue Cheese dressing very much because it's not the best for you. I need everybody that reads this to tell me what brand they buy. I bought Ken's Steak House Blue Cheese and it was just okay! Please let me know. I plan on making this great recipe again so I need to know what kind to buy.

Brianne xoxox

**Everything in Red at the top came straight from Taste of Home website. You can also go to their website and check out more recipes! :-)

You WON'T believe this...........

2012-04-26T16:18:00.000-07:00

Brody and I go to Carbondale at least twice a week just to get out of the house and run errands. I usually try to get back home in time for Lunch or leave after lunch so that I am not eating out or spending the money to eat out. It gets expensive!! Well today I was there during lunch and I was hungry so I decided to go where I usually go, Panera. Who doesn't love Panera? Its healthy and they have a drive thru which makes it very easy and convenient.

On Monday of this week, I started counting calories and running. I downloaded MyFitnessPal for my Android to help. If you are looking for an app to count calories this App is AMAZING! It lets you log everything you eat along with your exercise for the day. You can even bar code scan food items and it will enter everything for you. You can type in what your calorie intake goal for the day is, and it will tell you how many calories you have left, and if you go over. Let me say it one more time....I LOVE THIS APP and you should definitely try it out. So back to my point.....I was sitting in the parking lot to see just how many calories were in my favorite sandwich(Sierra Turkey) that I always get from Panera. I entered Panera Sierra Turkey and hit search. The reason I am angry is that when I hit search I about passed out in shock. My favorite sandwich that I get because it's ~~healthy,~~ is NOT healthy. Just the sandwich and nothing extra is.....are you ready for this..........................you may want to sit down................................

920 calories!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was so angry that I decided to look up McDonald's and Arby's food to see if my App was malfunctioning. Well it wasn't. I even got on Panera's website and researched their nutrition guide.
I decided to look up Arby's roast beef sandwich.....It's Good Mood Food right? :-)

This is what I got and what the calories are:

Arby's Classic Roast Beef.............154 Calories (no sauces just plain)
Medium Curly Fries.......................170 Calories
Ice Water..........................................0 Calories

A grand total of 324 Calories!

I could have ate this three times to equal close to what my turkey sandwich is at Panera.

Now I know a lot of health nuts are going to get on to me because french fries are greasy and not healthy! I am just counting calories, nothing else! I know grease is bad for you but I don't eat it very often. PROMISE!

As soon as I get home and put Brody down for his afternoon nap, I get on my home computer at home to research why the Panera Sierra Turkey Sandwich is so bad.

-The bread was 510 calories....next time I will ask them to replace the bread they use for their lowest calorie bread which is honey wheat. It may make the sandwich have a different taste but it's worth a try. The honey wheat has only 290 calories.

-The chipotle mayonnaise has 300 calories and this is seriously what makes this sandwich. It is the BEST! I could(not going to happen) substitute it but I can eat the mayonnaise spread by itself because it's so good.

-I never get the onions and it's only 10 calories for them.

If I decide to get this sandwich again with the honey wheat it will be 700 calories, which to me is still high for a turkey sandwich. I may even just eat one slice of the bread and not two, taking it down to 555 calories. It helps! :-)

My point is just because you think it's healthy doesn't mean it is. If you have a smart phone and are trying to watch what you eat please download MyFitnessPal. You will be so happy with it!!!!!
Please comment below what you think about the MyFitnessPal app if you already have it on your phone. Also comment if you use another app that you enjoy.

XOXOXOX
Brianne

Brody turns ONE....Sock Monkey Birthday Theme

2012-04-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

My baby….YESSSS he is still a baby, turned ONE last month. Being pregnant seemed like it lasted an eternity but since he has come into our life it has went VERY fast. In January, I started thinking of themes. This was harder than what I thought because I am horrible at making decisions…Ask Josh….he gets angry! :-) So I was texting one of my best friends, Ashley Hicks(Hill) one day and she sent me pictures of the nursery she did for her new baby boy Houston Howell (love his name and he is precious!!). She did Sock Monkey and I fell in love!!! Thanks to her I decided to do Sock Monkeys. My first place to find stuff was Etsy. If you haven’t tried Etsy yet..... you are missing out! They have EVERYTHING!!! You can find some great stuff and it’s handmade (most of it). I needed to get invites ordered and sent out first before I did anything else. I picked out 18 different designs I liked and put them all in my online shopping cart. Then I called my mom and asked her to narrow it down to three. Well lets just say that wasn’t a good idea. She picked out 8 she liked. GRRRR She wasn’t any help….thanks mom! Here we go with me trying to make a decision. Finally after 2 weeks this is what I decided on(see below) and I LOVED IT!!!! I also ordered the matching thank you cards.

Luv Bug Design is who I bought them from. I sent her my info and she sent me a file 24 hours later. I emailed my file to Staples and they printed two images per sheet on white card stock paper. I supplied my own card stock paper I got on sale at Hobby Lobby. I also got envelopes on sale at Hobby Lobby! Heeeeey!

This is her Etsy website: http://www.etsy.com/shop/luvbugdesign

Then I needed to pick out decorations. Photodesignz was having a 50% off sale. I was sent a file that I also sent to Staples to have printed out. I got 30 sheets for $5.00. Yes $5.00....that was not a typing error. I didn’t need it all so I just picked the sheets I needed and decided how many I would need of each. Here are some of the decorations I printed and cut out. Some are hard to see. Sorry!

This is the Etsy website where I got all my print out decorations.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/photodesignz

The polka dot balloons I ordered from Amazon.com

This was a print out that I cut and tied together with red ribbon.

This is a close up of the fabric from Hobby Lobby.

This is what I had on the cupcake/cake present table. I bought paper mache letters from Hobby Lobby and covered them with scrap book paper from Hobby Lobby.

This is the food table with red pom poms hanging in the corner. I bought them from Party City.

This was brown table cloth with red table skirt from Party City. The center cloth is Sock Monkey material I bought from Hobby Lobby and made into a centerpiece with hem tape.

I made the "I AM 1" sign with scrapbook paper. Hobby Lobby has sock monkey scrap book paper that was really cute and I added red and brown to it. I wasn't impressed with it, but it was okay. The balloon I bought from Amazon.com. The sock monkey dolls I purchased also from Amazon.com.

Brody wanted to be playing, not taking pictures in his high chair! HA

Picture timeline. I used clothes line and clothes pins to hang pictures and the signs I had printed.

Another timeline picture.

This was his present and Cupcake/Cake table. I did the opposite colors I used on the food table. I did red table cloth with a brown skirt. I did a triangle sock monkey fabric piece and used hem tape on it. The matching napkin and plates which I didn't take a picture of I ordered from Amazon.com. The sock monkey on the corner my mom bought at Target and it sings and dances. It is so cute and Brody loves it! :-)

My mom made the treat bags. I printed the Thank You tags for her and she cut them and glued them on these small brown bags she bought from Hobby Lobby. She then attached red ribbon. She bought little toys and candy to stick in them for the kids to take home when they left.

This is my centerpiece. I bought sock monkey fabric from Hobby Lobby and cut it into squares. I used hem tape to make them look clean on the edges. I then bought big paper bags from Hobby Lobby and glued sock monkey print outs on them. I also printed out water bottle tags and hot glued them to water bottles to stick on all the tables.

The pom poms that are in the inside came from Party City. They were pom pom garland and I cut them so I could sit them inside the bags. I was pleased with the way they turned out.

Next step was finding an outfit for the party. I found someone local and her name is Angie. I told her what kind of onesie I wanted and she did it EXACTLY how I wanted. It was PERFECT!!!!
Thanks Angie!!

This is her website: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lois-Jeans-Linens/239001752102

Brody and his cousin Jax. They are exactly one day apart in age. I love this picture!

What’s missing????….a cute party hat for Mr. Brody of course! Sweet Lily Tutus from Etsy had a hat that matched his outfit perfect!

This is her website: http://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetlilytutus

This picture was taken from Nicole at Whimsey in Murphysboro. She did amazing! This picture shows his cute hat!

The cake was done by a lady I use to work with. I was going to just stick with the cupcakes but she loves to make cakes and she did my baby shower cake and was VERY cheap and does AWESOME!

I was suppose to sit the sock monkey doll I bought next to the bottom layer of the cake where it says Brody and I forgot! GRRRRRR


The cupcakes I made and cut out the red and white polka dot trays to sit them in. I also printed out monkeys that said happy birthday and glued them on tooth picks to stick in the cupcakes.

I think I covered everything. We had it at Mase's Place Bar and Grill and it was a B-E-A-U-T-F-U-L day so we tried to do a lot out on the patio. We had a great turn out and Brody had a blast. He enjoyed his day and it lasted till 5:00. He was wore out and took a nap after the party! :-) I also need to thank Patty(Josh's mom) for helping with the party. She come over one day and saw everything I had to cut and she about die....LOL. She helped me make a lot of the decorations. I also want to thank my mom for helping me. She also came early to help get everything ready and stayed to help clean up. They made my day a lot easier!!! xoxoxo

If you have any questions on where I bought anything or how I made it, please ask! I got most of my ideas from Martha Stewart. She is amazing!

~Brianne~

Pinterest Jewelry Project

2012-04-19T06:52:00.000-07:00

I am obsessed with jewelry! O B S E S S E D !!! But I don't pay anymore than $20.00 on anything I wear. If I ever have something on that is more than $20.00 it's because somebody bought it for me. :-) If I leave the house without earrings, bracelet and a necklace I feel naked. I have made Josh drive me back home when we are on our way to eat just because I forgot my earrings. He has now started asking me before we leave if I have alllll my jewelry on? LOL He knows me well. Last year when we went to a Cardinals game I asked him to put all the bags that were on the kitchen bar in the vehicle for me.When we got to St. Louis I noticed he had left my make-up and jewelry bag at home....GRRR ......that's worse than forgetting my clothing bag! I cried....I was so upset. NO MAKE-UP AND NO JEWELRY....EEEK!!! I wasn't mad at Josh for not putting it in the SUV (even though it was next to all my other bags... :-) Everybody makes mistakes. I had packed everything to match my Cardinals outfit!! So my bestie Julie(Fog) had me come to her room and let me borrow her earrings and bracelet. God love her....she told me I could wear anything and she just wouldn't wear any! Julie=lifesaver!!!! My make-up I borrowed from my friend Amy...along with some hairspray. Again I have great friends!

Ok...So whats the reason for this blog>>>>>>>

This is my PINTEREST PROJECT

I am so proud of it and it was so cheap. I debated on so many different ideas I came across on Pinterest, but this was by far my favorite. I had Josh hang it in my walk-in closet. It looks so clean and classy. My son even likes it.....GRRRR

I bought the curtain rod, and shower curtain hooks from Wal-Mart from the clearance shelf. The curtain rod was $4.00 and a set of 12 shower curtain hooks were $2.00. I have lots of jewelry so I had to purchase 4 sets of hooks. I still need more hooks for all my jewelry. I am so happy with the way it turned out. And SUPER happy with what I paid.

If I had to do it over I would've had Josh hang it a little bit higher so Brody wouldn't try ripping my necklaces down, or ripping the whole thing off the wall! He has even figured out to stack my shoes and stand on them so he can reach them....yes he just turned ONE and is so smart!

**If you have done the same project please let me know how yours turned out. I would also like to know if you did something similar. If you have any questions on my project please ask!

St. Louis Cardinals Opening Weekend Ring Ceremony

2012-04-16T12:58:00.005-07:00

Who went to the St. Louis Cardinals opening weekend ring ceremony? This Girl!

Yes our good friends got a group of 40 tickets and we went up early Saturday morning and went to the game. They had a rain delay. BOOOO! But we were in the Champions suite and got to enjoy all you can eat and drink while we waited. The food was GREAT!

Right before the rain delay we got to watch the ring ceremony since the St. Louis Cardinals were the 2011 World Series Champions.....who was at the winning World Series Game? This girl! Josh is good to me. I have never been to so many Cardinals game in my life.

I took this picture of the ring ceremony. This is the closest the CUBS will ever get to a World Series ring ceremony! (Sorry Cubs fans) :-(

I also want to share with you about my outfit story. If you know me, then you know I love coupons! I love a good sale and try to get the best possible deal! My son just had his 1st birthday and I bought him summer clothes. In addition Kohl's gave me a Kohl's cash coupon. Kohl's cash allows you to go back a later date and buy anything for $10.00 + and get $10.00 off. I was super excited because I knew we had planned on going to this game and Kohl's online had some cute Cardinals shirts. The Carbondale store doesn't carry many ladies Cardinals gear. :-( Kohl's had recently sent me an email offering me free shipping last weekend so I decided I would purchase my new shirt with my Kohl's cash and get free shipping --- SCORE! Well that didn't turn out like I planned. Does anything? NO! The shirt was on sale for $20.60 originally $32.00. I had a 30% off coupon, which brought it down to $14.42. Then I used my Kohl's cash of $10.00 and it was $4.42. So with free shipping and plus tax I got a GREAT DEAL! The shipping that was free said my shirt would arrive Thursday which was perfect because we were leaving Saturday morning. Well I started tracking it and by Wednesday it said I wouldn't get it till Monday! GRRR That doesn't make me happy since I was suppose to wear it to the game. So I decided to wear an old Cardinals shirt.....But when we were on a rain delay Josh took me to the team store and bought me a new rhinestone tank....Double SCORE because I love rhinestones. I was super excited!!!! Thanks Josh!

Then we get home Sunday morning and guess what was in the mailbox....GRRRRR You can't tell from the picture but the lips are glitter!!! :-)

Here is a pic of some of the guys and me and my favorite girls Julie(Fog) & Sherry(Prin).

Fog & I

Prin & I


Timmy, Matt, & Josh Oh and by the way we WON! Go Cards! (Sorry the pics are not the best. They are from my phone and Julie's) xoxoxox

Spicy Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

2012-04-11T16:23:00.000-07:00

Well I lied....I said today I was going to share a recipe from Pinterest but it's not. A friend of mine Beth McDannel (soon to be Beth Medici....so happy for her) posted she was cooking Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches for supper. I messaged her for the recipe and she sent me the link to a website. As soon as I read it only needed 4 ingredients...YES I SAID 4...I jumped up off the couch and had it started 5 minutes later...no lie. And all you need is a crockpot. Here is the recipe link. The website is called The Crockin' Girls. They have tons of recipes and I can't wait to try some of them. If you try one of them please let me know how it turns out. I changed the way it was cooked just a bit. My boyfriend Josh whom I cook for about 5 out of 7 nights is not much on bread so I decided to just make it spicy buffalo chicken. This recipe also calls for a dry packet of ranch dressing which I did not have so I put half a bottle of liquid ranch salad dressing. I used Ken's Steakhouse salad dressing. The Buffalo Hot wing sauce I used was Frank's. My favorite part is I put the chicken in frozen. LOOOOOVE THAT PART! No I am not lazy, I just love quick recipes that taste delicious. This recipe is more than just good, it is DELICIOUS! It is a little spicy but I love a lil kick. When I put it on my plate I took a spoon full of the sauce and poured it over the chicken. I cooked steamed asparagus, and Stove Top Stuffing(I am obsessed with that stuff...Josh doesn't care for it because I think I have burned him out on it. I make it quite a bit. :-O Sorry babe). Please try this recipe. A girl on Beth's post stated she had made it and used the left over sauce to make a buffalo chicken pizza. I am thinking about doing it because I did save the sauce. :-) If you do try this recipe please let me know how much you love it(or hate it). I also thought about putting noddles of some sort in the crock pot or cooking noodles separate and cutting the chicken into chunks to put over the pasta. HMMMMM Maybe somebody reading this can try it and let me know for the next time. :-)

Spicy Buffalo Chicken ~~Sandwiches~~

I wanted to do a blog on a recipe since a friend of mine "Redbird" likes to look at recipe books and enjoys to cook. This is for you "Redbird"......even though it's nothing elaborate please try for me! xoxox

I DID IT.....FINALLY

2012-04-09T16:39:00.000-07:00

WOW! I am finally doing it. YEA! I have been wanting to blog for the past year and finally decided to start after becoming addicted to Pinterest. If you haven't jumped on the bandwagon yet....you are missing out....PROMISE! After seeing so many neat and cute ideas and then learning a majority of them came from bloggers I decided it was time. I have been on Pinterest since October and I have created some cute stuff. It is very addicting. If you're not careful you will notice how you tell yourself your just going to look through the first page.....then you click view more, then you click it again. It's almost like your scared your gonna miss something great if you don't hit the view more button just one more time right? right???? So thanks to Pinterest and to other bloggers I have been following for a while, I decided to start this week. My goal is to post 2-3 times a week. I have a one year old who keep me pretty busy so I guess we shall see how it goes. I also hope to Vlogs in the future as well. For those of you who don't know what that is, I will explain in a later post. I will basically just be talking about my everyday life on Hickory Ridge and what's going on. I will share my favorites things with you, and sometimes my favorite things from other bloggers....... and I hope you comment and share your favorites with me. If there is something specific you would like me to blog about I would love to hear from you. Hope everybody had a great Easter.....I know I did. :-)