Here and There (Pan Sauteed Chicken and Vegetables)

Good Times!

Last weekend, Tiffany's kids spent the night with us! It was a cool rainy night and I made a big pot of Chili. The kids play so well together. When it's time for bed, I make a big pallet (sp?) on the floor, start popping the popcorn, fix the drinks and put in the movie. Usually this settles everyone down until they fall asleep watching the movie. This week they watched The Gameplan. When I came in to check on them at 12:00, Cooper the 3 yr old in the red pjs, was the only kid still awake.

On Saturday night the kids went to stay with Mom and Dad while Michael and I went to a Birthday Party for my cousin Wayne... at Stars and Strikes. Normally when you think of Stars and Strikes, you think of kids' parties, but Wayne just turned 36. None of us brought our kids and it was so much fun. I bowled the best game of my life! I bowled 2 strikes in a row and on my next turn I almost got another strike, I just left one pin standing. Now, I am not a bowler by any means, so this was huge, HUGE for me! Here's a picture of Michael and me on our way out the door. What a fun night!

Back to the kitchen, I have been trying to incorporate more vegetables into my cooking lately. I don't think my kids are getting enough vegetables because they don't really serve green beans or carrots at Zaxby's or Chick Fil A. This is a new favorite recipe for me, although the kids didn't really get into the carrots. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, but this is what it looks like before you cook it in the oven. It was delicious!

Pan Sauteed Chicken and Vegetables
I got most of this recipe off of the back of the Swanson Chicken Stock container. I just changed it around to suit my tastes.

5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbs. all purpose flour
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 large onion, cut into thick slices
1 lb. baby new potatoes, cut into quarters
5 medium carrots cut into thick slices
5 cloves of garlic
1 - 2 cups Chicken Stock
Salt and Pepper

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Put flour in a large baggie and then add the chicken. Shake the bag to completely coat the chicken with flour.

Heat oil in large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove chicken.

Add onions and potatoes. Cook 5 min. Add carrots, garlic cloves and chicken stock, scraping down the bottom. Heat to a boil and return chicken to skillet and cover.

Bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 25 minutes or until chicken is done and vegetables are tender.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I am turning 38 today! In honor of this special day, here are 38 random facts about me that you may or may not find interesting:


1. I love to bake! I learned this from my Grandmothers. One of my favorite memories of all times is sitting in my Grandmother's cramped, 3 ft by 4 ft kitchen and learning how to make Teacakes. Now, I'm the person in my family who makes the teacakes every holiday. I am proud to be able to do it. I can also remember as a very young child helping my Meme make biscuits.

2. I have an insatiable sweet tooth. My favorite candy is Reece's Peanut Butter Cups. I love strawberry pies.

3. I drink decaf coffee every morning. I just like the way it tastes. I also like coffee with dessert. I hardly ever drink anything with caffeine in it. Caffeine really messes with my sleep.

4. I love to nap. I love to go to bed early. I love my bed. I hardly ever sleep late anymore. I guess I am getting old.

5. I think it's neat that even though my Pop (my Dad's dad) died when I was in high school, he knew my husband from church. My Pop and Michael's grandad worked together at the local mill when they were younger.

6. I love it when people say that my daughter looks just like me. And I love it when people say that I look just like my mom.

7. My boys look just like their dad and I think their dad is the most handsome man in the world.

8. Michael (the hubby) is a multi-tasker and can do lots of things at one time. This is one of the things I love about him because I am a "one thing at a time" person.

9. I love reality TV. American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Big Brother, Survivor... the list goes on and on.

10. I am athletic. I play tennis, I'm not very good but I hope to get better. I have also played and/or coached golf, softball, basketball, soccer, track and gymnastics at some point in my life.

11. I don't love to dance! I think I am too inhibited. I DO love to dance to the "oldies" with a partner though. Sometimes I think I should have lived in the 1950's or 60's.

12. I love old movies. Doris Day, Audrey Hepburn, Carey Grant, and Grace Kelly are some of my favorite actors. I love Breakfast at Tiffany's, An Affair to Remember, and Pillow Talk.

13. I love the "80's" I love the music (Come On Eileen), I love the movies (Sixteen Candles), I love the hair, I love the clothes. I loved being in high school in the 80's.

14. I am a rule follower. I drive the speed limit.

15. I love my Dad. He has been making me laugh for 38 years. He has always been around for me. He coached my sports teams growing up. He was at every game I ever played as a High Schooler. Now he comes to all of my kids games. He's so wise about everything and he is a good listener.

16. I got a new camera for my birthday and I can't wait to learn how to use it.

17. I am creative. I am good at crafty things.

18. I'm a little bit of a perfectionist so when it comes to the "crafty things" I mentioned in #17, it usually takes me a while.

19. I am very patient and laid back. I am not bothered easily by people or circumstances.

20. I have a new elliptical machine and I love to work out on it.

21. I can't wait to go swimming again in our backyard pool. Next week is Spring Break and I hope to be spending a lot of time out there.

22. Unless we go to the beach. We are spontaneously planning a trip to the beach for Spring Break. I love spontaneous trips.

23. I love to wear sweat pants.

24. I am going to let Sophie get her hair cut after Easter.

25. I am going to MAKE Bo get his hair cut before Easter.

26. I ABSOLUTELY HATE, with a fear that many people have never known, the dentist. I would say, this is my biggest weakness.

27. I can't wait until the tulips bloom in my front yard. Any day now.

28. I am content. I love my life right now. Thank you God!

29. I wear a size 9 shoe. Most of that is my toes. I have really long, skinny toes.

30. I love to wear dresses in the summer and spring.

31. Even though I look like my mom, I hope to act like her too. She is someone who will bend over backward to help the ones she loves. She is the true example of the Proverbs 31 woman. I love my mom!

32. I am very close to my brother and sister. My brother is in Belize right now sharing Jesus with the kids in school. He will be home this weekend. I see my sister everyday. I keep her 3 year old (Cooper) while she teaches 4th grade. Her son, Russ and Bo are the same age and Madi is almost 11 years old. Sophie looks up to Madi like a big sister. And Madi is so good to Sophie and Reed.

33. I love to plan parties and menus. I am good at delegating, but sometimes, I just like to do everything myself.

34. Both my grandmothers and Michael's grandmothers are still with us. Including Michael's grandfather, my kids have 5 Great-Grandparents around to teach them and love on them. I love to hear stories from our grandparents.

35. My main job in high school and college was being a life guard. I also cleaned house for a sweet little Jewish woman for a short time in college. I also worked at HoneyBaked Ham during the Holidays. My family called me the "Pork Princess."

36. When Bo was a baby, the Paulding County Sheriff's dept. stormed my house looking for a fugitive car thief, while we were home! (Long, scary story)

37. I have never broken any bones.

38. This was harder than I thought. I usually don't really focus on myself.

I'm Changing the title of my Blog (Chili)

A BLESSED MESS! That's more like it these days. It seems my life is one big continuous mess! Poor little Reed, I'm not blaming everything on him and I LOVE HIM! But oh my goodness that boy can get into things... Let me just give you a few examples from this week:

You know the big, big boxes of Goldfish crackers that you buy at the grocery store? He dumped the whole thing out onto Sophie's bed.

Oh and the Q-Tips! Those stinking Q-Tips! He loves to empty the box and spread them throughout the house. Q-Tips are not very easy to put back in the box once they come out either.

Here's a picture of him after he dumped my canister of rice out into the floor of my pantry. He started to clean it up, but then he liked the sound the rice made as he put it back into the canister. It got worse from there. (Sorry all you organized people for the messy pantry.)

And here's another picture of the mess he made after emptying our TV armoire of all the movies.

I'm not going into detail and I don't have a picture for this, but yesterday, Reed gave a whole new meaning to the words "Poop Deck." Luckily for me, I was away at Bunco and Michael was on call to clean this one up.

Do you think I never watch him? I do!!!! It just seems like every time I turn my head he goes to find the first thing he can get his hands on.

I don't care what he does, he will always melt my heart with those big brown eyes. Even as I sit and clean up all of his messes, I never get mad at him. I am fine with him being two and being a "mess - maker." He's my last baby and I'm just not ready for him to grow up.

I read a great quote from Katie Holmes about cute little Suri. "I've never met a 2-year old who is terrible. I'm so cool with every stage my daughter goes through. I just think she's amazing. I hope she's not looking at me thinking, Mom, are the terrible 30's coming on with you?"


Reed, Sophie and Bo are my precious gifts from God! I love every minute of being their mom!



The cousins are coming over to spend the night tonight and I made a big pot of Chili. It's been a rainy and dreary couple of days around here. All of our Ballgames are cancelled for tomorrow. So tonight, we are going to stay in, have a bowl of Chili and watch "Twilight."

Have a Great Weekend!

Here's my Chili Recipe:

2 lb ground sirloin
1 med onion
2 packets Chili seasoning
2 large cans diced tomatoes
2 large cans Hunts Chili beans
5 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
3 Tbs Franks Red Hot Sauce

Brown the ground sirloin and the onions in the bottom of a big stock pot. Drain. Add the Chili seasoning packets and stir. Add diced tomatoes, chili beans and sauces; stir. If you like a soupier Chili, add a can of V8 or some water. Let simmer for at least 30 minutes to an hour (The longer the better).

I serve my Chili with Fritos, Sour Cream, Mustard, Mozzarella Cheese and crackers. We will probably have some hot dogs also in case the kids don't want chili.

Baby Cydney (Hashbrown Casserole)

We had a great weekend: 1 softball practice, 1 birthday party, 1 tennis match and 5 baseball games that ended with us winning 1st place in the tournament! I also lost Reed once which was a little scary, but after a lot of help we found him. Here is a picture of our team after they won! Way To Go 'Horns!

This is what Reed does during a baseball game. He is filthy!

The concession stand is Sophie's favorite part of baseball!

The highlight of my week was the birth of Baby Cydney Claire Check, daughter of one of my favorite people in the whole world! Monica left for the hospital at about 9:00 on Monday night and at about 9:00 the next morning, Cydney was born with a head full of black hair! It's going to be so fun to have a baby around again. Here she is at the hospital on the day she was born. I think she has stars in her eyes.

We took dinner over to Carter and Monica's house on Friday. I made some fresh green beans, hashbrown casserole and bought some rolls and a turkey breast from Honey Baked Ham. I also made an egg custard pie for dessert. Here's my recipe for Hashbrown Casserole:

Hashbrown Casserole

2 lb bag frozen hashbrown potatoes

1 tsp salt

2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cup sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup

Corn Flakes

1 stick melted butter

Mix all ingredients together except Corn Flakes and butter. Place in a greased casserole dish. Crumble up several handfuls of Corn Flakes in a single layer over the top of the casserole. Drizzle melted butter over cornflake topping. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour.

Russ' Birthday (Baked Salmon)

I'm still here working on my computer real estate classes. I've decided to push back my test date to May. This will give me a little more time to finish my computer work and I will be able to take the "Cram Course" before the test. Apparently this cram course is helpful for taking the state exam and I need all the help I can get.

We had Russ' (nephew) birthday party last weekend. Tiffany took all the kids to see "Race to Witch Mountain" and then they went to Stevie B's for dinner. After that, we all met at Tiffany and Brandon's house for Cookie Cake, Ice Cream and Presents. Bo and Russ are really into Bakugon right now, so that's what we got him for his birthday. Here's a picture of Bo and Russ at the party. Russ is actually a little taller than Bo, but he was sitting down when I took this picture.

Because we really like to celebrate a birthday for as long as possible, on Tuesday, we met at Taco Mac for Russ' actual birthday. Here are the cousins being silly and playing "the claw" after we ate. They all make me so happy!

Russ was Bo's first best friend! I can remember when Bo was barely talking, I would go to his room every morning to get him out of his baby bed and the first thing he would ask me was "Where's Russ?" They get into a little mischief sometimes. Just as an example, when they were about 5 years old, we found them in the middle of a kudzu patch down behind our church one day. It was actually pretty dangerous, because that was some thick kudzu, but Tiffany and I couldn't stop laughing at the sight of them. We could barely see their heads poking out of the top. We just had to take a picture!

I'm so proud of Russ and the kind young man he has turned out to be, but mostly I am thankful for him being such a good friend to Bo.

On another note, I made some really good Salmon last night. Sophie loved it and she had 2 helpings. Here's a picture and the recipe:

Baked Salmon

1/2 pound butter

4 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp prepared mustard

3 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup ketchup

1 garlic clove, chopped

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 1/2 - 3 lbs of a fresh side of salmon, skin and bones removed

In a small saucepan heat all ingredients for sauce until almost boiling. Set aside half of the sauce to serve with the cooked salmon.

Baste both sides of the salmon and place on an aluminum foil lined pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 30 minutes or until the salmon flakes easily.

A Quick Friday Note...

I have been working on the computer all morning while the boys are playing and taking it easy.

I just thought I would let you know about how DESTRUCTIVE my baby boy has become.

Yesterday, Reed emptied a whole bag of sunflower seeds out into the floor of Sophie's bedroom. It took me a while to clean that one up. I found sunflower seeds in her bed, under her bed, in her closet, in her bookshelf and in her baby bed. I am still finding them.

Yesterday afternoon, I popped a bag of popcorn and left the whole bowl of it on the table for the kids to snack on. I was in my room getting ready to go to Russ' baseball game and when I came out, I found Reed sitting on the kitchen table throwing every bit of that popcorn to the ground. It was scattered and stomped on all over the kitchen, breakfast room, living room and hallway. No, he didn't just spill them, he was throwing the pieces of popcorn in different directions... and laughing.

Now, this morning, Reed was sitting in Michael's recliner and drinking his milk and watching his favorite show. I didn't worry about it being so quiet because this is the calmest part of my day. When I strolled back through the living room to fix another cup of coffee, I noticed white fluffy stuff all over the floor. It looked like a cloud had landed right there on the floor. No, it wasn't a cloud. Reed had figured out how to open the zipper of the cushion of the recliner and he had pulled every bit of the stuffing out of the cushions and had thrown it out on the floor.

All this in less than 24 hours!

What is it about boys and messes?

I love him to pieces though!

It's Been a While, I know... (Lemonade Cookies)

My schedule has been pretty manageable lately. For the most part, I have kept up with the laundry. I have even been cooking. The reason I haven't been blogging is that I am working on getting my real estate license. Right now, every spare minute I have at the computer is put into working on the on-line courses that I have to take in order to get to the Final Exam (just the word "exam" stresses me out!). I'm not really doing it to get into a full-time career in real estate. I have family members who can help you there. My goal is to be able to help Michael with his customers who want to buy rental property. For anyone who reads this that doesn't know me, Michael, my husband is a mortgage banker in Douglasville. So... I am learning something new and we will see how it goes. I am trying to be finished with the on-line part of my classes by the beginning of April.

Meanwhile, back to the kitchen. Sophie and I had a fun time making chocolate chip cookies the other day. We even videoed it in the form of a cooking show. I would love to post the video here because it is too cute! Sophie does everything herself! She uses the mixer and splatters sugar and butter all over the place. She tells what all the ingredients are. I especially love it when she says, "Next you add the manilla." Unfortunately, I can't figure it out and it just won't come up on my blog. I will try to get Michael to help me if I can lasso him down long enough. Here's a picture I did manage to pull off of my video.

I had a kitchen "FLOP" last week too. 4 words: Split Pea Soup = Disgusting!

On Saturday, Bo played 2 baseball games. It was such a beautiful day! Here are Mom, Dad, Michael, Bo and Russ hanging out after the game.

We had a home tennis match on Sunday and I was in charge of bringing something sweet. I made Lemonade Cookies and they were wonderful! I wasn't prepared for how long it took me to make these, but they were worth it. Here's a picture and the recipe:

Lemonade Cookies

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, softened

2 large eggs

1 Tablespoon lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream

Lemonade Icing

In a large bowl, combine sugar and butter. beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, lemon zest, and lemon extract beating well.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture, alternately with sour cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed, blending well after each addition. Divide dough into thirds; wrap each portion in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of chilled dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 6 - 8 minutes. Let cool in pans for 2 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Decorate with Lemonade Icing and Sprinkle with decorator sugar or sprinkles if desired.

Lemonade Icing:

3 cups confectioners sugar

6 Tablespoons butter, softened

6 Tablespoons frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

In a medium bowl, combine sugar, butter, and lemonade concentrate. Beat at low speed with an electric mixer until well combined.