Live. Laugh. Love.

Let's rodeo!

2012-02-22T14:25:00.000-06:00

Last week we took the kids to the rodeo with our good friends. We like to go every year, and this year was just better with good company!

( Ha ha. No, we didn't plan to be twins, but I think we look pretty cute anyway!)

We spent every bit of time we had before the rodeo at the carnival. The kids could not get enough! Taylor LOVES the Fun House.

But this is his favorite. He remembers it every year and he always rides it a ton!

Even Joey and Osman got in on the fun. They were lured in by the cowboy talking trash so they had to try to dunk him. They both came close, but the cowboy stayed dry.

Unfortunately, I think I ate my funnel cake too fast and didn't get a picture.

Neri and Osman had never been to a rodeo before so it was really fun watching with them and trying to explain all the different events. I should note, Neri and I are NOT fans of the calf roping. It just looks cruel to rope that poor calf, throw him on his back, and tie 3 of his legs together!

Oh, and we saw The Band Parry. They were good, but I'm not really a concert person. Honestly, we enjoy the carnival and the rodeo more than the concert. So we weren't too heartbroken when we realized it was a school night and we really should get the kids home to bed.

We love the rodeo - it's a shame it only happens once a year.

Weekend getaway.

2012-02-21T08:58:00.000-06:00

Joey and I had a fabulous weekend away for our anniversary! It's so nice just to get away from everything for a few days - no plans, no appointments - and play everything by ear.

We started off the weekend by taking Trigger to the kennel. I don't think he was all that excited.

After we dropped of Trigger, we headed out of town... in the pouring rain. It rained nearly the entire weekend, but we made the most of it!

After checking into the hotel and freshening up a bit, we headed out in search of some yummy Mexican food. And you can't have yummy Mexican food without a yummy margarita, right?!?

Ah... my super sexy husband. (And his fish tacos.)

And then there was me, with my appetizer sampler. (I'm a sucker for a variety plate, what can I say? And it was YUM-MY!)

After dinner we went to the movie (something we used to do all the time, but never seem to do anymore) to see Safehouse. It was really good - even with me nodding off a couple of times. It was late people.

When we got back to our room, the hotel had left us an anniversary gift!

On Saturday we slept in a bit then grabbed some coffee and headed to the hot tub. We had it all to ourselves and it was so relaxing. Then we got in a little workout so we could go eat this:

I know, I know. But we were on vacation!!

We also played a little shuffleboard...

And I won.

Then we headed back into town for a one and a half hour couples massage. It was heaven, but by the time it was over, we were super hungry! We headed back to get ready for dinner, but decided that since they had s'mores by a campfire, we would have dessert before dinner.

It was worth it.

Then we headed to eat the best food I've ever tasted in my entire life. If you're ever in Bastrop, TX, you have to eat at Baxter's on Main.

I had a spicy panko crusted salmon filet and Joey had a fabulous steak. You all should probably make a special trip just to eat there. It was THAT good.

That about did us in for Saturday night. (I won't mention the cheesecake we stopped and got on our way back to the hotel. That would be wrong.) We had plans to go back to the hotel bar and have a drink and play more shuffleboard, but I was so tired we just decided to call it a night.

Sunday morning we were woken by the joyous sounds of an Indian wedding on the grassy area RIGHT OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW.

I would say I had no words, but that wouldn't be true. I had a lot of words. And they weren't nice. I wasn't happy to be woken up at 9am (on vacation!) to the sounds of drums and horns. I wish the happy couple a great life together, I just wish they could've had a quieter ceremony.

Since we were up, we decided to just get ready and head on out. On our way out, we passed the hotel dog and I had to stop and get a picture. His name is Hoss and he lives at the resort. He has handlers that walk him and he has play dates with resort guests. He is so cute!!

(I can't remember the breed, but he is 2 years old and 140 pounds!)

Joey and I had such a fabulous time and I'm so happy we were able to get away and just spend quality time with each other.

13 years. And I'd do it again.

2012-02-20T09:00:00.002-06:00

Joey,

13 years ago today I married my best friend.

I can't imagine life without you.

I'd do it all over again and I wouldn't change a thing. I love you more today than yesterday.

Happy anniversary baby.

Basketball and good friends.

2012-02-14T08:21:00.003-06:00

Last weekend I took Taylor to a local college basketball game. I had a Groupon for tickets and with Taylor's love for basketball of any kind, it was a no-brainer.

We were able to go with our good friends and even though the game was not as exciting as a Spurs game, the kids seemed to enjoy it.

And Neri and I enjoyed chatting it up, as always.

I'm so thankful that God brought our families together - in truly the most random way. Taylor and Emilio have become the best of friends, and they are always so sweet to Elysia. Neri and I have become quite good friends as well and the icing on the cake? Our husbands get along!! We all have a great time hanging out and I'm so blessed by their friendship.

Stephanie cooks: Low fat chocolate cupcakes.

2012-02-13T08:53:00.000-06:00

I've been really good lately at counting my calories (on MyFitnessPal) and working out, so when I needed to bring something to Bunco on Friday, I was on the look out for anything that wouldn't totally ruin my streak.

So I went to skinnytaste.com, of course, and found the best cupcake recipe EVER!

I was seriously skeptical, but I thought I would give it a try and if they weren't any good, I'd toss them out and pick up some chips and salsa instead. But I didn't need to do that because they were fantastic.

If you're watching what you eat but still want to feel like you're cheating, you're definitely going to want to make these!

Low Fat Chocolate Cupcakes

What you need:

18.25 oz Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge cake mix (I had to buy 2 cake mixes b/c I could only find it in 16.5 oz size)
1.4 oz sugar free, fat free, instant chocolate pudding
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 1/3 cups water

How you make it:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix pumpkin and water in stand mixer.
Add chocolate pudding mix to pumpkin and combine well.
Add cake mix and beat for 2 minutes.
Mixture will be thick, but don't worry. Spoon into cupcake liners and cook for 25 minutes.
Cool 15 minutes before icing. (I used this recipe.)

ZipList. I'm in love.

2012-02-10T08:37:00.010-06:00

Last weekend my friend Neri was over at the house and we were discussing food and exercise. She, nonchalantly, pulled up an app on her phone call ZipList.

And my life was changed forever.

Dramatic? Maybe. True? Definitely!

Oh.Em.Gee. This app/website is freaking amazing! When I first downloaded it to my phone I was a little underwhelmed. But once I went to the website and started searching recipes and adding them to my recipe box, I was sold. (Several of your favorite recipe bloggers are on this site - skinnytaste.com and ourbestbites.com, just to name two.)

I know, I know. Isn't that what we have Pinterest for? To keep all of our recipes in one place? Well, yes. But Pinterest will not create a grocery list for you, will it? And it will not separate the grocery list into aisles in your store, will it?

I KNOW!

So here's the lowdown: On ZipList you can search tons and tons of recipes, add them to your recipe box, then add select the recipes you want to make and click "add to shopping list". It will pull up a window with the items it wants to add broken down into 2 sections - items you may need and items you may already have. You simply check/uncheck what you actually need to purchase (and edit the item, if needed) and move along to the next recipe.

The next best thing is you can add your own recipes to the site.

I KNOW!!

So what did I do this afternoon? I added several of our favorite recipes so the next time I want to make them, I don't have to think about what I need, I'll just click on the recipe and add it to my shopping list! And the shopping list is electronic on your phone, so no need to worry about forgetting it or not having it with you when you pass by the store. So simple!

I'm always looking for ways to simplify my life and this, so far, has really impressed! You all should totally check it out.

*And no, I wasn't asked to write this or anything. I just really love the site/app and had to share it! Happy shopping!

Our love story.

2012-02-09T08:40:00.011-06:00

Reading through some blogs today I came across Erin’s Love Story post. She had linked up with From Mrs. To Mama and I thought I’d jump on board! Our 13th anniversary is in just a couple weeks, so it seemed fitting.

How long have you and your significant other been together? Joey and I had our first date in February of 1998. Our 13th wedding anniversary is February 20.
How did you meet? {What's your "love" story?} Oh friends, we’ve been down this road before. I posted the truth here. Unfortunately you can no longer read Joey’s version (aka “The Stalker Story”), because he deactivated his blog. (If you don’t feel like clicking around, the gist of it is we met at church, knew we would marry each other, and were engaged less than 3 months later.)
How long have you been married? Joey and I will be married for 13 years on the 20th of this month.
Where did you get married? Big or small wedding? We got married at our home church and it was a rather large wedding. My dad was one of the pastors and I sang weekly on the worship team, so everyone felt like they knew us. We didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, so we invited everybody.
Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? Not really, but we have been known to refer to each other by our favorite cereal. He’s “Honey Bunches” and I’m “Fruit Loop”. Yeah, I got the short end of the stick on that one. LOL
Name 3 things you love most about your honey. He makes me laugh – all the time. He works hard and provides well for our family. He takes care of me.

Tell us how he proposed? He started out by sending me a dozen roses the day before, then 2 dozen the day of. We went to dinner at the Tower of Americas and then he drove us out to Boerne City Lake (we had been there on our first date). He laid a blanket out in the bed of his truck, lit candles, and got his guitar. Then he sang to me. (“From Here to Eternity” by Michael Peterson) He got on his knee and asked me to be his wife. It was perfect. (Well, it was perfect to me. Joey, to this day, is still upset that I didn’t cry. LOL)
Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals? We don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day. Our anniversary is so close that we’ve always opted to celebrate just the anniversary.
Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch? I’m really not much of a romantic. I just love being with him. Many a date night has been spent grabbing dinner and then walking around Target or Home Depot. (I know, I’m a man’s dream come true – I LOVE The Depot!) Not that I wouldn’t go for a sunset dinner on the beach, but since we don’t a beach nearby, I’m just fine with Target.
Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere? It may seem silly and sort of small, but I’ve always wanted to go to Boston in the Fall. (I’m not one that dreams of traveling Europe or anything. I’m a pretty simple gal.)
Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day. Probably nothing. Like I said earlier, we don’t usually celebrate. We are, however, taking an anniversary trip the weekend after.
Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day? Nope. (Pretty simple gal, remember?)
Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love. Spending time together, dating (your spouse, of course!), and forgiveness. Marriage is hard. You have to work at it and it’s full of give and take. Forgiveness is key.
Show us a picture of what love means to you.

Laser Quest.

2012-02-06T09:27:00.005-06:00

Last Friday was my dads birthday and my mom had been planning a fun family party for a couple of weeks. We were going to surprise dad with Laser Quest!

Ha ha. I know. No, we're not 12 (well, one of us is) but it sounded fun! So we planned to meet up on Saturday at Laser Quest, play our game, then head for pizza, cake and presents.

Only mom got seriously ill and didn't come. Boo! It was so sad no having her there, but she sent dad to meet us and the party went on.

(My mom is the scrapbook queen, so if there aren't pictures, it means it didn't happen. Since Mom wasn't there, I used her camera to document the party.)

Seriously, there's no way my dad just turned 61, right??

Laser Quest was so fun! I had never been, so I made Taylor be my buddy (I don't like to be alone, LOL) and we covered each other. My code name was Tango (Joey's shift name) and Taylor was Yoda.

After Laser Quest we headed to a new pizza place for dinner.

Don't be alarmed. My brother wasn't angry, he just refuses to smile in pictures. (Now I know where my daughter gets it.)

I made dad's favorite cake - Dr. Pepper Cake - so after pizza, we dug into some chocolatey goodness. Then I went to my car to get dads birthday present... Cinnamon Rolls! These are dads favorite and I knew it would be the perfect gift.

We had a good time celebrating dad, but it just wasn't the same without mom there. She's the party animal in the bunch, so it's hard to have a party without the animal present.

Fast lane.

2012-02-03T08:42:00.003-06:00

Last night I was headed to crossfit a little before 8. It was dark, of course, and I was driving in the fast lane. Crossfit is outside of town, so there's little-to-no traffic and not even homes or businesses, really. Just a decent stretch of road.

I was about halfway there when I noticed that the headlights in front of me appeared to be on my side of the divided highway, in my lane. In a split second I moved into the right lane and the car drove right by me. I honked and honked, but I couldn't tell if they realized or not.

I totally freaked out!

First I felt stupid because I know not to drive in the fast lane after dark. Joey has always told me that's where any wrong-way drivers will be, so not to drive in that lane at night.

Then I was just overwhelmed with shock, fear, thankfulness, and worry. I was so freaked out that I hadn't even thought to call 911 and report the driver. What was I thinking??? What if they hit someone???

I did call 911 and then on my way home from crossfit I drove all the way back into to town just to be sure there hadn't been a terrible accident. Praise God there hadn't been.

All of this to say, please don't drive in the fast lane after dark. People are crazy and it's just too dangerous.

Man's best friend.

2012-02-02T08:24:00.001-06:00

When we got Trigger last June, we had no way of knowing what a great dog he would be. We've had our fair share of wild dogs, so we were really hoping for the best with Trigger.

And let me tell you, we won the lottery with this little puppy! He is the best dog.

He loves to go to crossfit with us (but when he tries to run off when it's time to go, he gets tied down).

He washes dishes.

Yes, I let him lick the peanut butter out of my measuring cup. He's spoiled.

And he loves, loves, LOVES to snuggle!

He's made himself at home on our bed, that's for sure. If one of us gets up, he immediately moves to take our spot.

He's such a little stinker, but he's our stinker. And we love him.

I think we'll keep him. :)

Life with a cop.

2012-02-01T09:09:00.001-06:00

Oh look! Joey bought new shoes!

Nevermind. That's just confiscated weapons.

(BTW, that's not a real gun. Looks pretty legit though, no?!?)

It's just a normal day. You know, like the day I found a bullet in the wash.

Heaven is for real.

2012-01-31T09:01:00.000-06:00

For the past several years, Joey's grandma's health has been deteriorating. She'd been hanging on like a champ, but in November, she really began to take a turn for the worst.

Joey and I were more intentional than ever at going to visit and taking the kids to see her. One of the last times the kids saw her, Ashton insisted on baking her cookies and taking them to her.

Memaw had not been eating much of anything, but when Ashton brought the cookies, Memaw was ready to eat. Ashton sat in bed next to her and fed her bite after bite of homemade cookies.

I cherish this picture. The kids love their Memaw so much and she has been such a large part of their lives.

And I absolutely love this picture of Joey and Memaw. I think she looks so beautiful.

Over the years, the kids (as well a Joey, as a child) enjoyed expressing their love for their Memaw on woodwork that Pepaw would carve for them in his shop. I never want to forget these.

Sadly, Memaw passed away on December 1, 2011, just 4 days shy of her 88th birthday. Although we were confident that she was now with Jesus and no longer suffering, her passing was devastating. She was such a large part of Joey's life growing up, and then a great part of Ashton and Taylor's lives. She was giving, selfless, and loved us all with everything she had.

The kids were both dressed so nicely for the funeral. Memaw would have loved seeing Taylor in his little suit. (Ashton was just as beautiful, but she wasn't really up for pictures.)

Our Crossfit group sent these beautiful roses for the service.

Joey, my dad, and our friend Ryan served as pall bearers. The service was beautiful and everything that Memaw deserved.
______________________________________________________________________________
Memaw -

Thank you for welcoming me into your family almost 14 years ago and loving me as if I was your own. Thank you for loving my children, your "babies", unconditionally. You cared for them perfectly and spoiled them rotten.

I'm so grateful to have you taking care of my baby in heaven until I get there. No doubt my sweet baby is being loved on constantly. Meanwhile, we're doing our best to take care of Pepaw.

We talk about you often and reminisce about all of the wonderful times we shared. The kids enjoy getting their Highlights magazine in the mail each month. That's certainly a gift from you that keeps on giving. You always knew they loved that!

Memaw, we love you dearly and miss you always.

Harlem Globetrotters.

2012-01-30T08:51:00.000-06:00

Back before Christmas, I got a company-wide email offering Harlem Globetrotter tickets at a discounted rate. Taylor is so into basketball these days that I knew this would be a great Christmas present for him.

I purchased the tickets, not really paying attention (or having much choice) about where the seats were, just wanting to get the tickets.

Well, the game was last Thursday and Joey decided to make a father-son outing of the night. He took Taylor to eat ribs (his favorite) before the game.

I love that smile.

After dinner, they headed to the arena and found their seats... ON THE 10TH ROW! Joey texted me this pic saying he couldn't believe how great the seats were!

Taylor absolutely loved the game and he and Joey had such a great time. Taylor has told me all about it... at least 5 times. It's ok though, I love hearing him get so excited about something. He loves basketball these days!

12.

2011-12-13T08:56:00.000-06:00

It's almost impossible to fathom, but on December 9, 2011, my baby turned 12.

Twelve.

How in the world has it been 12 years since she was born? 12 years since she was too tiny for newborn clothes and I had to go buy preemie clothes. 12 years since she slept in the cradle that Pepaw handmade. 12 years since we had to bounce her on our chests and pat her bottom just to get her to sleep.

Impossible.

But I guess not, since she woke up almost as tall as me and looking more like 18 than 12.

For her birthday, she got one of the Twilight books, and necklace from Taylor, and a box of Swiss Cake Rolls. I think those might have been her favorite.

Joey had to work on Ashton's birthday, so I took the kids out to dinner to celebrate - Ashton's birthday, not the fact that Joey was at work. LOL.

Ashton chose Olive Garden. And she even posed for a pic with her brother - which is extremely rare.

After dinner, I had a surprise for Ashton. She's obsessed with cupcakes these days, so I surprised her with a stop by a cupcake shop. She was so excited! (Score one for mom!)

No one was surprised when Ashton chose a chocolate-chocolate cupcake.

Nor were we surprised when Taylor chose a vanilla-vanilla cupcake. My children are nothing if not predictable.

We certainly wish daddy could have been there, but we had a great time celebrating anyway.

Daddy didn't miss out on all the festivities, though. We celebrated with Joey's mom and Pepaw on Sunday, so Joey got in on some cake action.

Ashton, however, has become rather shy in front of the camera... unless I threaten to take back all of her presents.

Then she'll smile!

Happy birthday baby girl. We love you so very much!

Christmas Blues

2011-11-28T15:40:00.001-06:00

I’m not sure what’s wrong with me, but I’m just not in the Christmas spirit this year.

This is incredibly strange, because Christmas is my favorite time of year. I love the tree, the outside lights, the music, the gifts –I love it all. But this year, I’m just not into it.

I put the tree up with the kids last weekend, but it’s just sort of blah to me.

We watched The Santa Clause 2 –and it almost helped me get in the groove, but not really.

It’s sad, really, but I’m not sure what’s causing it, so I don’t know how to fix it.

I’m not all that excited about Christmas cards (which I usually LOVE) or even writing my Christmas letter.

Don’t get me wrong, I know what Christmas is really about, but what I’m talking about here is just the “fun” stuff. Usually I’m like a kid, but this year, there’s just something off.

And I don't like it.

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Pinterest wish list.

2011-11-14T08:39:00.001-06:00

When I first heard of Pinterest, I was not at all interested in yet another social media site to keep up with. I didn't really see what all the fuss was about.

But then I figured it out. And now I'm hooked. I pin everything from recipes, to crafts, to decorating ideas, to great hair.

Here are a few my latest pins:

Source: etsy.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

If I can find any burlap in San Antonio, I have to make this. So stinkin' cute!

Source: google.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

When Neri and I got together for our (failed) Halloween/Fall crafting day, this was one thing that we actually accomplished. I added some things to this, but overall, I really like it!

Source: thedishydecorator.blogspot.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

I had high hopes of making this wreath for Fall, but there is a serious shortage of burlap in San Antonio. After searching for 2 weeks, I finally gave up... and had no wreath.

Source: craftaria.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

My necklaces and earrings are taking over my closet and I really need a better way to organize them. I have a great wall in my closet where something like this would be perfect!

Source: google.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

If I ever get a tattoo, this will be it.

Source: thetwoodsfamily.blogspot.com via THEStephanieG on Pinterest

I'm really wanting to make these for the game room. Instead of canvases (because those can get expensive), I bought 3 large foam core boards. Now I just need to choose a paint color.

Snip snip.

2011-11-11T08:40:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, I finally took Trigger to get snipped. It was a long time coming, trust me.

Ashton and I picked him up that evening and they said he was such a good boy.

Once we got home, though, he spend the rest of the night like this:

Poor buddy.

Izzy came to visit...

2011-11-10T08:18:00.000-06:00

... and all I have to prove it are these 2 pictures.

It's sad, I know. We had so much fun, I just never thought to take pictures.

We shopped, cooked, ate, worked out, ate, cooked, shopped, ate, ate, and watched the Cowboys v. Patriots game. I just love getting to spend time with Izzy and wish so badly that she lived closer. I'm extremely thankful, though, that for the past few years, she's chosen to spend a portion of her vacation hanging with us in Texas.

We love you and miss you! Come back to Texas!

Crossfit competition.

2011-11-09T08:55:00.000-06:00

Saturday, the kids and I went to New Braunfels to support our good friends in a crossfit competition. It was so inspiring to watch and makes me want to work hard and compete myself someday.

In this competition, they competed in pairs. Ryan and Stacy did fantastic all day and finished 5th overall after completing 5 WODs! 5 WODs in one day? That's insane!!

This was the 3rd WOD of the day, which consisted of 100 sit-ups, 21-15-9 squat snatch and clusters, and 100 double-unders. They killed it!

This was the 4th WOD and it was just a bit strange. In this pic, Ryan is holding an L-sit while Stacy is doing an Atlas ball lift. Stacy was insanely fast with these lifts. So proud of her!

I've never been to a crossfit competition before, but I had such a good time. I'm so proud to crossfit with these guys!

Pumpkin carving and costumes.

2011-11-08T08:49:00.004-06:00

I mentioned yesterday that the kids and I went to our friends house to carve pumpkins this year. The kids were very excited to get started and really did a good job on their own, although Neri's husband and I had to help with most of the scooping and knife wielding.

Some may say that Osman and I carved the pumpkins, but these pictures wouldn't tell that story.

Taylor was so proud of his pumpkin! He named him Dave and set him proudly on the porch.

Dave barely made it to Halloween before he shriveled up, but at least he was still alive to greet the trick-or-treaters.

Speaking of trick-or-treaters...

Taylor and his friend from down the street dressed in the same costume. They didn't plan it, but I thought it was hilarious when they showed up on my doorstep together. (Taylor is on the left.)

Ashton was "too old" to dress up this year, so she handed out candy with me. We had a great turnout in our neighborhood, but it seems like "trick-or-treat" has gone by the wayside. I'm not sure anyone said that. Most of the time they were polite and said thank you, so I guess that works.

Funny story - one of our neighbors handed out soap instead of candy. There was a note on the soap that said "Have a clean Halloween!" Taylor's friend was quite, um... well, less-than-thrilled with the soap, but Taylor smelled it and said it was the best thing he got!

That boy...

Stephanie cooks: Chicken Tortilla Soup

2011-11-07T08:15:00.003-06:00

A couple weeks ago, I went to my friend Neri's house for a crafting day. We had plans to shop for Fall crafting supplies, eat tortilla soup, and carve pumpkins with the kids.

Well, the crafting was a big, huge fail. We couldn't find anything that we were looking for so we kind of gave up.

The kids carved pumpkins and had a great time and the tortilla soup was to die for! Neri sent me the recipe and I made it last week for dinner. I've had the leftovers twice already and I'm very sad that there's none left.

Do yourself a favor - make this STAT! (Joey says so.)

Chicken Tortilla Soup

What you need:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 Tbsp. Knorr chicken bouillon
1 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 bunch cilantro
1/2 onion
1 stick of celery
2 jars salsa
corn tortillas (white or yellow)
shredded cheese
avocado

How you make it:

Boil chicken (from frozen works great!) with bouillon.
Chop celery, onion and cilantro.
When chicken is cooked, remove it from the water, but don't dump the water.
Add celery, onion, cilantro, salsas, garlic, and salt to the water.
Shred the chicken and add back into the pot for about 20 minutes.
While the soup is cooking, cut the tortillas into 1 inch strips.
Fry tortilla strips in oil over medium-high heat. (Homemade tortilla strips in the key to having crunchy strips in your soup. Regular chips will get soggy.)
Pour your bowl of soup, add cheese, avocado, and tortilla strips.

Note: When I made this last week, I cooked the chicken in my crock pot all day, then started with step #4 when I got home. Next time, I think I'll just dump it all in and let it all cook together in the crock pot.

Also, I made a few minor changes from the recipe Neri gave me, but I'm sure she won't mind. :)

It's been a while.

2011-10-06T19:35:00.000-05:00

Wow.

I think this is a record for how long I've gone without posting! Goodness, things have been ca-ra-zy!

So let's get up-to-speed, shall we? (Face it, we all I will never go back and create individual posts, so we're going with the summary approach.)

Let's see, when we left off, I was working on finishing up my media cabinet. Well... I finally finished it!!

Look, I don't like to brag, but that media cabinet is amazing!! :)

Also in there was my birthday. Joey took the weekend off before my birthday and we went out with all our friends from Crossfit. We had Mexican food, drinks, lots of laughs, and coffee. It was my favorite kind of birthday.

Love these people! (And the ones that I don't have pictures of that celebrated with us, too.)

Next, there was my last day at my job of 6 years. It was really sort of bittersweet. Everyone was so great to me and I really had a wonderful last day. My boss took me to lunch and also sent these flowers.

I was really surprised because this is just SO not him. As the card attached should explain...

I died laughing when I read this. (He really was not happy to see me go.)

I suppose the only other thing to fill you in on would be my new job. I started my new job on Monday and I absolutely love it. It's such a great company and I love what I'm doing. As you can tell (by my lack of blogging and tweeting), I'm super busy - which I LOVE!

So, things are good. Super busy, but good. I'm looking forward to next week when my super duper good friend Izzy comes to town. I haven't seen her in a year so I can't wait to have nearly a week off to just relax and have fun.

Progress.

2011-09-26T09:20:00.000-05:00

Remember the media cabinet that I made earlier this year? You know, the one I still haven't finished?

Yeah, that one.

Well, this weekend I got the building bug and decided that it was high time I get those doors finished. My dad, who is my building partner, couldn't help this weekend so I was all on my own.

And let me tell you I am so proud of myself!!

People... I give you progress.

One of the reasons that dad and I stopped earlier this year and never got the doors on was because we could not, for the life of us, figure out the dang hinges.

So how did I figure it out? Through hours and hours of trial and error.

Look. I never claimed to be a professional. Obviously.

So once I figured out the hinges, then I took the doors back off so I could work on the false fronts.

In case you don't remember, the front of the cabinet is supposed to look something like this:

(I say "something" because I did modify the plans to add height.)

Anyway, I'm well on my way! I have high hopes to finish up all the doors this weekend and get them painted and installed.

I'm determined.

And just a word to the wise: When building furniture, never move it to its intended location (and begin using it) before it's complete. If you do, it will likely take you another 6 months to get motivated to finish it.

Family night out.

2011-09-22T09:50:00.001-05:00

Last night Joey and I decided to take the kids to dinner and have an evening of just the 4 of us. With Joey's schedule, this is hard to do on a regular basis.

We headed over to the local outdoor mall and ate at one of our favorite places, Grimaldi's. They have the best pizza. Oh my gosh. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

Who am I kidding? I don't need to just think about it. I have proof!

Mmmmmm... super yummy.

As we were paroozing the parking lot for a spot, we noticed that they are opening up a Cheesecake Factory. Taylor went crazy and then declared that cheesecake was his favorite cake ever. (I think he's maybe had it twice in his entire 8 year life span, but ok.)

So after dinner we sprung for dessert.

Do NOT get between a boy and his cheesecake.

I also managed to snap a pic of the two people who hate taking pictures.

It's a shame they're so good looking and hate having their pictures taken, no?

After dinner and dessert we wondered around the mall for a bit and let the kids spend some of their allowance. It was a really great night with just the 4 of us.

I kinda love my peeps.

Stephanie cooks: Crock Pot Baked Potato Soup

2011-09-20T15:51:00.001-05:00

You may have noticed a few trends around these parts.

One, I'm cooking a lot more. Yes, this is true. There's something about Fall that makes me want to cook and bake. I love it! My waist does not.

Moving along...

Two, I'm obsessed with my crock pot. This, too, is true. It's just so easy to throw something together and so fun to come home to a fully cooked meal! Wouldn't you agree?

So on that note, here's my latest and greatest crock pot meal, which is found on pinterest. The original recipe is here, but my adaptation is below.

Baked Potato Soup (Crock Pot)

(image found here)

What you need:

2.5lbs Russet Potatoes, washed, peeled, and cubed
½ medium onion, diced
3 cans chicken broth
1 Tbsp seasoned salt
1 Tbsp minced garlic
8 oz cream cheese
Crumbled bacon
Shredded cheddar cheese
Green onions

How you make it:

Add potatoes, onion, seasoning and chicken broth to slow cooker.
Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.
Remove half of the soup to another bowl and add cream cheese and garlic. Puree.
Return removed portion to the crock pot.
Stir every 10-15 minutes until soup is well blended.
Top with your choice of garnishes & serve!

This soup was so good, it had to be sinful. I made it on Sunday for the game (GO COWBOYS!) along with the yummiest bacon-wrapped jalapenos I have ever put in my mouth.

It was a pretty great day all around.