tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42991186508749669682024-03-13T05:20:22.651-05:00live { love } taste!my adventures as a wife, mom, designer, home decorator and chef!colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-34320092509265024642013-03-14T11:35:00.001-05:002013-03-14T12:21:52.497-05:00A Mexican Fiesta<h3>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><b>It’s been a fiesta at Casa de Havens!</b></span></h3>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">It’s no secret my family loves Mexican. Baileigh only eats a handful of things, but she loves quesadillas. That may or may not be from the copious amount of Pancheros I ate while pregnant with her. My mom loves Mexican food too. Every time her and my dad come up to Dubuque to visit us, we will go to Los Aztecas or Salsas. The apple </span><span style="background-color: white;">doesn't</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"> fall far from the tree...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We make some sort of Mexican food on a weekly basis. Enchiladas, fajitas, quesadillas, etc. Lately I have also been pretty obsessed with avocados, which feeds into my obsession with making Mexican food. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">last 2 weeks we have made 3 new Mexican meals. Two for dinner and one for breakfast. I already posted the </span><a href="http://chavens.blogspot.com/2013/02/chicken-black-bean-enchiladas.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Chicken + Black Bean Enchiladas</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> recipe, so here are the other two!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The real reason I keep up with the blog is <span style="background-color: transparent;">to post recipes we loved, so I can remember them, and go back to them in the future. My <a href="http://pinterest.com/colleen_havens/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a> boards are overflowing with recipes, as are my recipes books at home. I need a place to throw all my favorites so I can come back and search for them. (I do need to work on “tagging” my posts more if I want to make this easier!)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">First off, a recipe I developed myself!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">Southwest Chorizo Breakfast Hash</span></b></span></h3>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">Serves 2<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 small russet potato<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 small sweet potato<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1-2 cloves of garlic<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">Montreal Seasoning<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">salt + pepper<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 ½ tbsp olive or canola oil<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">¼ c chopped onion<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">½ small jalapeno <i>(seeds removed)</i><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">5 oz ground pork chorizo<i> (Hy-Vee sells it in a 10oz roll. We used half and froze the rest)</i><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">4 eggs<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">2-3 oz pepper jack cheese <i>(shredded)</i><u></u><u></u></span><br />
<b style="color: #134f5c;">Optional toppings</b><span style="color: #134f5c;">: salsa, pico de gallo, sour cream + avocado</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p-5aFHA__pk/UUH22K9oECI/AAAAAAAAAbM/r-yRO9IMUtI/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p-5aFHA__pk/UUH22K9oECI/AAAAAAAAAbM/r-yRO9IMUtI/s640/photo+1.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">Using my new favorite skillet from Pampered Chef. Amazing! Look how delicious those potatoes look!</span></td></tr>
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<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Wash and dice up the potatoes (with skin) Heat up a large skillet to medium. Saute the onions and jalapeno in the oil for 3 minutes or until soft. Add the fresh garlic and the potatoes. Cook uncovered for 15-20 minutes (until soft and crispy), stirring every so often. Season with salt, pepper and Montreal seasoning.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">In a small skillet, brown the chorizo on med-high heat until cooked thoroughly. Set aside.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Once the potatoes and chorizo are done, cook the eggs, two at a time, to your preference. (We like our eggs cooked over easy)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Assemble the hash! Place the potatoes down first, then half of the chorizo, top with shredded cheese and finish with the eggs on top! I like to throw it all in the microwave for a couple minutes to melt the cheese, but the hot eggs may do that too!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Finish with your toppings!</span></li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IwWrxYP8PTc/UUH21wFzLYI/AAAAAAAAAbI/zJVD30etOME/s1600/photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IwWrxYP8PTc/UUH21wFzLYI/AAAAAAAAAbI/zJVD30etOME/s640/photo+2.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">Doesn't it look delicious!?</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Thoughts</b></span>—<span style="color: #134f5c;">This was DELICIOUS! The potatoes were a little crispy, the chorizo was flavorful and the eggs made it breakfast-y! (Ha!) It was delicious and easy to make. We will certainly make it again!</span><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The next recipe was a pinterest find, from the blog <a href="http://www.peasandcrayons.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0c343d;"><b>Peas and Crayons</b></span></a>. Something about the recipe completely intrigued me. I don’t cook vegetarian meals very often. My husband loves meat and it takes the right vegetarian meal for him to “feel full.” Personally, I think it’s all in his head! (I’m pretty sure he doesn't read this, so I’m in the clear!) Nonetheless, this recipes lived up to what I thought it could be. Delicious, full of flavor + texture, and filling! I wonder how often I can sneak in more vegetarian meals like this?<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Black Bean + Sweet Potato Flautas</b></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Slightly adapted from </span><a href="http://www.peasandcrayons.com/2012/09/baked-black-bean-sweet-potato-flautas.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Peas and Crayons</a></span></span></h3>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">11-12 corn tortillas</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 can black beans</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 can jalapeno-corn </span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 small/medium sweet potato</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1 small red pepper, diced</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1/2 tsp chili powder</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1/2 tsp garlic powder</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1/2 tsp dried or fresh cilantro</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1/2 tsp cumin</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">1/4 tsp cayenne pepper</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">2oz cream cheese</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">4-6 ounces of pepper jack cheese (grated)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">3 tbsp of enchilada sauce</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">olive oil</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;"><b>Optional toppings: </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">cilantro, salsa, guacamole avocado, jalapenos + sour cream</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Pre-heat your oven to 425F. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Poke a few holes in your sweet potato, wrap it in a slightly damp paper towel, and microwave on high for about 6-8 minutes.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">While the potato is cooking, mix together the veggies, black beans and garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, cilantro, cayenne, and enchilada sauce</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Scoop out the inside of the potato and add it to your veggies. Mix in the cream cheese. Season with salt and pepper.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Next wrap your corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave on high for 30 seconds. I usually do about 4-5 at a time.<span style="background-color: transparent;">This softens the tortilla so it's easier to roll.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Spray or rub one side of the tortilla with oil and add veggie filling to the center of the "dry side" of the tortilla.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Top it off with a layer of cheese and roll the tortilla. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Place on a wire baking/cooling rack and seal with a toothpick. Place the baking rack on top of a cookie sheet lined with foil. (This helps the fautas crisp up on both sides.)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Repeat these steps until you have used all of the filling. <span style="background-color: transparent;">Use a silicone brush to brush just a little more oil onto the rolled flauta.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bake on the middle rack, at 425F, for 15-20 minutes.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Finish with your optional toppings!</span></li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OzvGnEUVQ7E/UUH22AADonI/AAAAAAAAAbY/o7FwijiLbmU/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OzvGnEUVQ7E/UUH22AADonI/AAAAAAAAAbY/o7FwijiLbmU/s640/photo+3.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">This is the only photo I took. I was too anxious to EAT! Check out Peas and Crayons post for much better photos!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;"><b>Thoughts: </b>These were incredible! So flavor and SO filling! I ate leftovers the next day for lunch too. They didn't stay crispy because I microwaved them, but then were still tasty! Make these today!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have one more Mexican recipe but I'll save it for another post. This post is already getting pretty long!</span></div>
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-47927545492139412402013-03-13T12:45:00.001-05:002013-03-14T12:22:25.330-05:00Shamrock Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing <br />
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I have a small collection of cookie cutters. They are cute
and hang under a shelf in our kitchen. However, I’ll admit, I rarely bake sugar
cookies. I never wanted to make up a bunch of colored frosting pipe designs
on them and have a cookie with way too much frosting. Recently I read a post at
one of my favorite blogs, <a href="http://www.annies-eats.com/" target="_blank">Annie’s Eats</a>, that had a tutorial on royal icing. It
looked pretty simple. You whip up the frosting in the mixer, pour some into a
piping bag, pipe around the edges of the cookie and let it harden. Then, you
water down some of the icing, pour it onto the cookie, and use a tooth pick to
help it spread out. It looked easy
enough, but you never know! I tested it out back in February when I made the
heart sugar cookies. Surprisingly enough, they were pretty easy! The end result
was a pretty cookie with a thin layer of royal frosting that hardened as it
cooled. It is nice because you can stack or wrap up the cookies without the
frosting getting all messy. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J4hiPR9fk7w/UUC55MEqJBI/AAAAAAAAAaY/bOyQZz-0L4s/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J4hiPR9fk7w/UUC55MEqJBI/AAAAAAAAAaY/bOyQZz-0L4s/s640/photo+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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Since the first attempt went pretty well, I decided
to try again. This time, with cookie cutters that celebrate my heritage and my husband’s
name-sake, St. Patrick’s Day. Shamrock cookies! I couldn’t find my shamrock
cookie cutter, so I took Baileigh and headed to my favorite local baking shop,<a href="http://calicobeanmarket.com/catalog/" target="_blank">The Calico Bean Market</a>. They have an entire room in the back dedicated to
baking! Cookie cutters, food coloring, flours, misc. baking ingredients and an
ENTIRE wall dedicated to sprinkles. If you ever need baking ingredients, check
it out! It’s on Bluff Street, by the 4<sup>th</sup> street elevator. The owner
is super friendly and helpful, too! While at Calico Bean I picked up meringue
powder (for the icing), shamrock and butterfly cookie cutters, green food
coloring and green and purple sprinkles. I baked the cookies on Saturday night,
let them cool and then Baileigh and I got to work Sunday frosting the cookies!
I baked shamrocks for me to decorate and the butterflies for her. She did an excellent
job frosting using my new decorator bottles (via Pampered Chef) and enjoyed
using lots of sprinkles!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FmQLQy4rvLM/UUC553Feo3I/AAAAAAAAAa4/68sIh0mS_tg/s1600/photo+3+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FmQLQy4rvLM/UUC553Feo3I/AAAAAAAAAa4/68sIh0mS_tg/s640/photo+3+%25282%2529.JPG" width="476" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Shamrock cookies!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I9a4pVWE_Bw/UUC550YD8II/AAAAAAAAAao/69HF3MonF1I/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="475" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I9a4pVWE_Bw/UUC550YD8II/AAAAAAAAAao/69HF3MonF1I/s640/photo+3.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baileigh's butterfly cookies!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g3jFjsoU7dI/UUC547MlQHI/AAAAAAAAAaM/iqkitAHSmEs/s1600/photo+1+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g3jFjsoU7dI/UUC547MlQHI/AAAAAAAAAaM/iqkitAHSmEs/s640/photo+1+(2).JPG" width="476" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hard at work!</td></tr>
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<b>Cookie Recipe:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/The-Best-Rolled-Sugar-Cookies/Detail.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/<wbr></wbr>The-Best-Rolled-Sugar-Cookies/<wbr></wbr>Detail.aspx</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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(The only thing I changed was using Almond extract for the
vanilla. I like almond flavoring better in sugar cookies for some reason!)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Icing Recipe: </b><br />
<a href="http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/2011/04/royal-icing-101-or-all-roads-lead-to-rome/">http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/2011/04/royal-icing-101-or-all-roads-lead-to-rome/</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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The cookies looked and tasted delicious! I made way too much
frosting, so I have plenty to use when I made Easter cookies in a couple weeks!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Here are two blogs that have beautiful sugar cookies! Both have tutorials too which help beginners like me!</div>
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<a href="http://www.annies-eats.com/" target="_blank">Annie's Eats</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/" target="_blank">Sweet Sugar Belle</a></div>
colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-91922683751712602852013-02-27T16:09:00.000-06:002013-03-14T12:23:09.807-05:00The Best of 2013 -- February EditionTomorrow is the last day of February, so I may be jumping the gun writing the “Best of 2013” post, but that’s okay!
Like I mentioned in the <a href="http://chavens.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-best-of-2013january-edition.html%20post" target="_blank">Best of 2013-- January</a> post, 2013 have started off great! There were several small things that happened, and one VERY exciting thing as well. Let’s get started, shall we?<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Birthdays</b></span><br />
February was jam packed! Both of my parents had birthdays! Mom’s was the 7th (I won’t disclose her age..somewhere around 39?) and my Dad turned 60! (He will tomorrow, actually!) Birthday’s are fun. We picked up cupcakes from my favorite local bakery, <a href="http://candlereadycakes.com/" target="_blank">Candle Ready Cakes</a> and enjoyed lunch in Davenport the weekend after! In addition to my parents, there was another very special birthday. My neighbor and her family welcomed the birth of their son, Owen. He’s adorable and I’m so happy for their family!<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Date Night</b></span><br />
We didn't do much for valentine’s day, so instead Patrick & I had a day date/date night and went to Brew Fest on Ice! It was a fun event down at the Mystique Ice Area. There were tons of Iowa and national brewers there and we were able to try lots of beers, as well as sample meats and cheeses from local shops. It was a great event and we ran into a lot of people we knew, which is always fun. After Brew Fest, we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants to dine for one last time, as they closed that weekend. We loved Star Brewery. Some people thought it was pricey but to be honest, it cost the same for burgers and sandwiches at our local Applebee’s, and I thought the food was better at Star. The owner is opening a new restaurant soon, so we’ll have to check that out! After dinner we bounced around a few different bars, met ups with friends, drank swamp waters, and almost sang karaoke. Instead of singing, we grabs some late night snacks and headed home after a looonnnng (but fun) day!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_nnCjjO8NZQ/US59-_iejfI/AAAAAAAAAZM/Bb54UTvlHSo/s1600/date+night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="618" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_nnCjjO8NZQ/US59-_iejfI/AAAAAAAAAZM/Bb54UTvlHSo/s640/date+night.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Date night!</td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c;">Kitchen Projects </span></b><br />
I didn't make a new year’s resolution this year. Well, I did the whole “try to be healthier” bit, but nothing drastic. I did make note I would try to cook a lot of new recipes February was no exception.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;">Here are a few of my creations: </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mjPfQ6pZ9zY/US59-I6gaBI/AAAAAAAAAY4/hcgrGqdUQSk/s1600/chix_parm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mjPfQ6pZ9zY/US59-I6gaBI/AAAAAAAAAY4/hcgrGqdUQSk/s640/chix_parm.jpg" width="638" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homemade Chicken Parmesan. Recipe post to come!<br />
Made with homemade marinara too.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HDZc-Q8SUww/US59-y65TFI/AAAAAAAAAZE/xrP4VO3lLyA/s1600/gravy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="634" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HDZc-Q8SUww/US59-y65TFI/AAAAAAAAAZE/xrP4VO3lLyA/s640/gravy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Biscuits + Gravy. Pat wanted to run to the store to get the ingredients, and<br />
I challenged him that we already had everything to make them from scratch. It was a success!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--MbnrpZCyRo/US59_DTsU7I/AAAAAAAAAZI/XdsOjDV6-2A/s1600/pasta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="638" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--MbnrpZCyRo/US59_DTsU7I/AAAAAAAAAZI/XdsOjDV6-2A/s640/pasta.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new favorite pasta meal. Another recipe post maybe? <br />
Tomatoes, green olives + artichokes in a light, spicy sauce</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PlDUg6fh-RI/US59_dUzNbI/AAAAAAAAAZU/ecpdpFpVU7E/s1600/royal_icing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PlDUg6fh-RI/US59_dUzNbI/AAAAAAAAAZU/ecpdpFpVU7E/s640/royal_icing.jpg" width="638" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Valentine's cookies! I tried my hand at royal icing for the first time. <br />
Not bad for an amateur! can't wait to make more for other holidays!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>ADDYs</b></span><br />
I mentioned above that one VERY exciting this happened. I won an ADDY! Not just an ADDY, but a GOLD one. To top that, I placed in the Final 15!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EqDSYnVrvLM/US59-BszIMI/AAAAAAAAAY8/j95TXFhNmX4/s1600/addy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="638" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EqDSYnVrvLM/US59-BszIMI/AAAAAAAAAY8/j95TXFhNmX4/s640/addy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Gold ADDY award & my Final 15 award. Love the golden popcorn!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nC-1Z-WWtxI/US59-IIgfyI/AAAAAAAAAY0/9VODtfE7Cns/s1600/addy2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nC-1Z-WWtxI/US59-IIgfyI/AAAAAAAAAY0/9VODtfE7Cns/s640/addy2.jpg" width="636" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me & the awards by the ADDY banner. Wasn't the theme adorable?</td></tr>
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A little background about the ADDY awards.<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"> "The ADDYs are the advertising industry's largest and most representative competition, attracting over 50,000 entries every year in local ADDY competitions. The mission of the ADDY competition is to recognize and reward creative excellence in the art of advertising. Conducted annually by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the local AAF Dubuque ADDY Awards are the first of a three-tiered, national competition. Concurrently, all across the country, local entrants vie for recognition as the very best in their markets. At the second tier, AAF Dubuque winners compete against other winners in one of 15 District competitions. District winners are then forwarded to the third tier, the National ADDY Awards competition. Entry in your local ADDY competition is the first step toward winning a National ADDY."</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">(Source: <a href="http://www.aafdubuque.com/" target="_blank">AAF Dubuque</a>) </span><br />
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There were over 200 Professional entries submitted. Judges then reviewed each entry, ranked it and gave pieces they liked either a silver or gold award. After that, they gathered all the gold awards and decided which made it to the final 15. Now you understand my excitement! Out of all those entries, my piece was in the Final 15! Since I won gold, my piece is automatically entered to the District competition to be judged. Our district is made up of Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska & Kansas. After, if I place there, my entry will go to Nationals to be judged. I'm not getting my hopes up! Winning at our local event was awesome enough!This was the first year have submitted to the awards and I didn't leave empty handed! The entire event was an amazing success! The “vintage circus” theme was great and everything went off without a hitch! I have volunteered to help co-chair the event, so I have some pretty big shoes to fill! Luckily, one of the co-chairs from this year is staying on to show me the ropes for next year.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"> Here was my award winning piece:</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d6X0UvcYFuc/US6DPvPuV-I/AAAAAAAAAZ4/vXoZdDS2ZMM/s1600/F01_ch_visual_resume_ADDY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d6X0UvcYFuc/US6DPvPuV-I/AAAAAAAAAZ4/vXoZdDS2ZMM/s640/F01_ch_visual_resume_ADDY.jpg" width="496" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">I created this as a unique way to stand out in a pile of resumes when I was job searching. It was so fun to create and I am really proud of it! </span></td></tr>
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That was my month of February. Great month, don’t you think? I’m not sure if I will always have such big things to mention each month, but it will be nice to have something to look back on too!colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-54696115581225018072013-02-26T15:37:00.000-06:002013-03-14T12:23:30.649-05:00The Best of 2013—January Edition2012 was a fine year. It had its ups… and it’s downs…<br />
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2013 has only graced us with its presence for less than 2 months,
but so far, they have been two very good months! I want to use this blog to
remember things. Remember the great moments, the great meals and recipes we
made and the great things we accomplished. I’ll start with January. I’ll write
up on February in another week or two.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c;">New Job!</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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After 6 years with Hy-Vee, Patrick got a new job as a
Digital Success Consultant at McGraw-Hill! Hy-Vee was good to him and our
family for the last 6 years, but he was ready for something new. Being a retail
establishment, Patrick worked weekends (usually only Saturday though) and
holidays were always chaotic. The only day Hy-Vee ever is closed is on
Christmas. That’s it! In his new position, Patrick has the usually Monday-Friday
hours, weekends off and paid Holidays. He started towards the end of January
and he really likes it so far. We may or may not have had a few late night
publishing debates after a few beers/glasses of wine. By the way, custom,
online publications is the way to go. Go GRT! <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>My 15-Minutes of Fame</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m thrifty. REALLY thrifty most of the time. Unless it’s
something made by Kate Spade. I have a tendency to indulge on KS. Even on sale,
it’s still very much indulging! Nonetheless, my thrifty self was VERY excited
when Hy-Vee rolled out their Fuel Saver program in December. Long story, short,
each week the grocery ad will have several items that when you purchase will give you pennies off per
gallon. Every time you buy these items, you can bank the cents up on your card
and eventually redeem them for cents off per gallon of gas. I started banking
up in December and was able to fill up our Subaru for $26 dollars, saving
$1.20/PER GALLON and $17 that trip! How can you not be excited about that?
Well, while visiting the Hy-Vee website, there was a form asking for feedback
from customers about the new fuel saver program. Being the dork that I am, I filled
out the survey and even included a photo I took at the pump!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's right! $1.95 per gallon! I can't remember the last time it was that cheap!</td></tr>
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About an hour later I was emailed by a marketing person at
Hy-Vee corporate, asking if I would be in a Fuel Saver commercial. I laughed
out loud, but agreed to do it. One week later I was at the Locust Street Hy-Vee
with a camera crew filming my testimonial. I felt like a huge dork, especially since
two ladies I know who work there witnessed the entire ordeal! The marketing
person just asked me a few questions, and they filmed my answers. It was pretty
candid and not scripted. After it was done, I was informed they had filmed 30
people or so the last few days and they would use about 15 in the commercials and
they handed me a $100 giftcard to thank me for my time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Two weeks later the emails, texts, facebook messages and
calls started pouring in. They used my testimonial in an ad!<o:p></o:p></div>
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I just tried to pull the link up on youtube so I could link
to it from here, and it’s gone! The other 3 are still there but not mine! Hmm!
Nonetheless, I had my 15 minutes of fame!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Other than the two things above, most of January was spent
hanging out with friends, trying out new recipes in the kitchen and trying to
stay warm with all the snow storms! Below are some instagram photos from Jan
& Feb so far!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--MU0JI_N3bI/US0p4oT63fI/AAAAAAAAAYc/7sWAvvaRg0c/s1600/jan-feb+pics.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--MU0JI_N3bI/US0p4oT63fI/AAAAAAAAAYc/7sWAvvaRg0c/s640/jan-feb+pics.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-68636343333282413592013-02-22T10:53:00.001-06:002013-02-22T10:53:06.798-06:00Chicken + Black Bean EnchiladasDinner last night was a “happy accident.” I had an art instructor
in college who referred to mistakes as happy accidents. This seemed to make
sense in the class, printmaking, because it is hard to always be exact. That
phrase has stuck with me since that day.<br />
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Last night the dinner plan was Chicken Fajitas. I was
excited. I loooooove fajitas and have been kind of obsessed with avocado
lately. Pat calls me as I’m about to leave work that the bell peppers were kind
of going bad. Fajitas were out. However, we had black beans, rice, chicken,
salsa and avocado, so we could still make chicken burrito bowls. I arrive home
and he had opened the avocado, it was bad too. I was ticked. Originally I
planned to make the fajitas earlier in the week, but changed things up and the
fresh produce didn't last. I didn't want
burrito bowls anymore because the avocado had gone bad. I know, that doesn't make sense, but I was annoyed and stubborn at this point. Pat mentioned
enchiladas. We had corn tortillas, chicken, pepper jack cheese and black beans,
but we don’t have enchilada sauce. After a quick Google search, I found a 10
minute enchilada sauce recipe! Dinner was back on!<o:p></o:p></div>
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The chicken has been marinated in <a href="http://img4-2.realsimple.timeinc.net/images/0906/marinade-mings_300.jpg" target="_blank">Trader Joe’s Soyaki</a> marinade.
It’s a great marinade that we use a lot for fajitas. I wasn't sure how the
flavors would do with the enchilada sauce, but I wasn't too worried. Turns out
the random ingredients we had at home made some of the best enchiladas I have
ever had! Sometimes it’s fun to try out new recipes in the kitchen.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NSMbSQ4rQOM/USeh2DPf9cI/AAAAAAAAAYM/TSnFslkWmws/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NSMbSQ4rQOM/USeh2DPf9cI/AAAAAAAAAYM/TSnFslkWmws/s400/photo.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">iPhone photo of the enchiladas.</td></tr>
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<b>Chicken + Black Bean Enchiladas</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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(Recipe created by me, enchilada sauce adapted from: <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/ten-minute-enchilada-sauce/" target="_blank">AllRecipes</a>)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Serves 3 (3 enchiladas each)</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>For the sauce:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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¼ cup vegetable oil<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 TBSP self-rising flour<o:p></o:p></div>
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¼ cup chili powder<o:p></o:p></div>
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8 oz tomato sauce<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 ½ cup water<o:p></o:p></div>
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¼ tsp cumin<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ tsp garlic powder<o:p></o:p></div>
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¼ tsp onion salt<o:p></o:p></div>
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Salt + pepper<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>For the enchiladas:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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9-10 white corn tortillas<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 lb chicken breast (I used the <a href="http://www.justbarechicken.com/product.cfm?id=297" target="_blank">Just Bare</a> Breast Filets<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ cup Trader Joe’s Soyaki Marinade (or your favorite
marinade)<o:p></o:p></div>
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8 oz block of pepper jack cheese, shredded (or 2 cups pre-shredded)<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 ½ c of black beans <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Optional toppings:</b> sour cream, avocado, lettuce, tomato, salsa<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Instructions: </b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<ol>
<li>Toss the chicken with the marinade
and let it sit for 30 minutes or more.</li>
<li>Preheat and bake the chicken in a
covered casserole dish at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until done. Cool then
shred the chicken.</li>
<li>Start making the sauce by heating
the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in flour + chili powder,
reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly
to prevent burning.</li>
<li>Gradually stir in tomato sauce,
water and remaining ingredients, stirring until smooth. Cook over medium-low
heat for about 10 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. Season to taste with salt
and pepper.</li>
<li>Add 1c of enchilada sauce to the
shredded chicken. Add in the black beans. Stir till combined.</li>
<li>Add ½ cup of the enchilada sauce
to a 9x13 pan. Spread it out so there is a thin layer of sauce in the dish.</li>
<li>Microwave corn tortillas, about 3
at a time, for about 25 seconds to soften. Fill the middle of each corn
tortilla with the chicken + black bean mixture, roll and place seam side down
in the casserole dish. Continue filling until the mixture is complete. Make
sure to line up the enchiladas close to each other.</li>
<li>Top enchiladas with more sauce and
the pepper jack cheese. (You will have enchilada sauce left, so use as much as you’d
like)</li>
<li>Bake at 375 degrees for 25
minutes, or until the cheese is hot and bubbly!</li>
<li>Let cool about 5 minutes and serve
topped with your favorite toppings!</li>
</ol>
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<i><span style="color: #38761d;">My Thoughts:</span></i> These turned out awesome! The marinade, pepper
jack and enchilada sauce worked so well together! Since this was whipped up
last minute, all I had for toppings was sour cream, but they were great! Happy accident!<o:p></o:p></div>
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I know, this is the first blog post in like 6 months. I
haven’t decided if I would keep up with it or not. I do like posting recipes we
make, because it’s easy to go back and reference them. Even if I’m the only
reader + it’s my personal recipe collection!<o:p></o:p></div>
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-14389204650285745802012-09-13T09:28:00.001-05:002012-09-13T09:28:35.440-05:00Molly got married!Molly got married! Yay! Molly is one of my closest friends and Baileigh's godmother. We went to Loras together, but for most of college we were just "class friends" we were both IVA majors and since the major only has 8 people or so in our class, we shared most of our major classes together. We never spent much time outside of class hanging out except for the quick trips to Wendy's between classes and the occasional run in out at parties and the bars. After college we both still lived in Dubuque and we started to hang out a lot more. Molls has been there for me through a lot of crazy things. She helped me do all the busy projects for our wedding, helped remove wallpaper and paint our house and even helped a lot while I was pregnant with Baileigh. I asked her to be Baileigh's god mother as well because I think she's awesome!<br />
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Molly started dating Matt summer of 2010. They got engaged a year later and they got married on September 1st! Matt is an awesome guy and treats Molly wonderfully! I am so happy for them! Both Baileigh and I were in the wedding. Baileigh even debuted her first wedding as the flower girl! The wedding was a success and one of the most fun nights I can think of. Here are a few pictures! Congrats Mr. & Mrs. Kennedy!!!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few of Molly's bridesmaids & the beautiful bride! Rachel & Tara</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">action photo!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Molly & her little flower girl!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baileigh and Logan walking down the aisle. They were adorable and did a great job!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The adorable couple!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Molly with her little attendants-- Baileigh & Logan</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She looked beautiful and was such a good girl all day!</td></tr>
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-10424263301714231522012-08-29T12:51:00.003-05:002012-08-29T12:51:57.421-05:00My Spirited Child<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My daughter, Baileigh, is the joy of my life. She is so full of life and energy. Sometimes, however, too much energy. From the moment she was born and Patrick exclaimed, "She has red hair!" I knew I was in for trouble. Trouble she is!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The day she was born the nurse came up to us and said "Boy, that little girl was not too happy about her shots! You are going to have your hands full with her! She has quite the temper!" </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Baileigh, ANGRY at one of her first baths.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course I was thinking:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1) What baby enjoys getting shots? Of course she's not happy!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2) Can a nurse REALLY tell the temperament of my newborn?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, she was right! Baileigh is very strong-willed and sticks to her guns. <strike>I have no idea where she got those characteristics</strike> She's just like me. That is why I think we butt heads so much. She wants me to carry her down the stairs, I know she can walk so I refuse. She's angry and I get annoyed. Sometimes I need to just give in, and do something little, like carry her down the stairs, if I know it will prevent the infamous toddler meltdown.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This past weekend truly was a test in parenting for Patrick and I. Saturday afternoon was great. We attended the first birthday party of our friend's daughter. Baileigh just loved her. Spent a lot of the party helping her walk and playing with her. Saturday evening, however, was not as delightful. Let's just say the breaking point was when was found Baileigh eating sugar out of the sugar bowl BY THE HANDFUL! She freaked out when we put her in timeout and refused to eat dinner that night complaining that "her belly hurt" (from the sugar I assume!) and that all she wanted to eat was a cupcake. Bedtime is always a disaster right now. She stalls and stalls and stalls. You name it. She has made an excuse about it. The author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Go-F-Sleep-Adam-Mansbach/dp/1617750255/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346261439&sr=1-1&keywords=go+the+f+to+sleep" target="_blank">Go the F* to Sleep</a> OBVIOUSLY had a toddler JUST LIKE MINE. She wears us out and I'm only 27 and Pat is only 29 but I swear she sucks the energy out of us!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sunday was another rough day. Is rained almost all day, so we couldn't go outside and play. I decide to clean but as usual our curious little one was making messes just after we cleaned other messes up. She refuses to nap during the weekends at home, so we can't even get a moment to <strike>down several glasses of wine</strike> breath. By Sunday night I was exhausted. I posted this status on facebook: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had 13 friends/family comment that yes, 3's and 4's are tough years but we will get through it. I couldn't help but wonder, Will we get through it? I know, I know, I'm being a bit melodramatic, but still! I decided to look online for some advice, maybe a book that has some insight into my strong-willed daughter. I'm not usually the "self help book" kinda gal, but I can't be the only person who's toddler is this stubborn.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />Thanks to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/" target="_blank">Amazon</a> I found a book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Raising-Your-Spirited-Child-ebook/dp/B001TJ2YBY/ref=dp_kinw_strp_1" target="_blank">Raising Your Spirited Child</a> byMary Sheeda Kurchinka. I liked it initially because of the phrase "spirited", which isn't as negative as other books mentioning "difficult" children. Baileigh is very much spirited. Like I said, she's SO full of life and so happy (when she's NOT having a temper tantrum at Hobby Lobby and I'm having to carry her football style out of the store!) I read the preface of the book online and realized it is very much my daughter. The book has 4 1/2 stars online w/ 72 reviews. Here is some basic info:</span><div>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The spirited child—often called "difficult" or "strong-willed"—possesses traits we value in adults yet find challenging in children. Research shows that spirited kids are wired to be "more"—by temperament, they are more intense, sensitive, perceptive, persistent, and uncomfortable with change than the average child. In this revised edition of the award-winning classic, voted one of the top twenty books for parents, Kurcinka provides vivid examples and a refreshingly positive viewpoint. Raising Your Spirited Child will help you:</span></div>
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">understand your child's—and your own—temperamental traits</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">discover the power of positive—rather than negative—labels</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cope with the tantrums and power struggles when they do occur</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">plan for success with a simple four-step program</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">develop strategies for handling mealtimes, sibling rivalry, bedtimes, holidays, and school, among other situations</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I downloaded the kindle book and have been reading it on our ipad. Which, by the way, is so easy and convenient! I downloaded it, and a minute later I was reading Part one! I have only made it through Part one, but I do think the author is brilliant. She raised two "spirited" children and understands them to a T. I feel like already I am beginning to understand my daughter better and why she is the way she is. She is such a loving, nurturing, smart sweet little girl and I'm glad to have found this book to help me learn to appreciate her just as she is. Maybe there is hope that she will get a sibling someday! haha!</span></div>
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-55832933887045551372012-08-23T10:37:00.000-05:002012-08-23T10:37:46.603-05:00Project 24 {UPDATE}Back in February, I created a list called Project 24. 24 projects I wanted to accomplish by the end of the year. I am behind, that is for sure, but I have successfully fulfilled a few of them. Below is the list with annotated updates.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Project 24</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1. Replace the awful light in our kitchen.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><strike>2. Hang curtains in Baileigh's room.</strike> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>I decided against this. She already have blinds and with the furniture by the windows it doesn't seem to make sense.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-decoration: line-through;">3. Make or find cheap (& adorable) chevron curtains for our dining room. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; text-decoration: line-through;">{</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><strike>Note: I already made curtains for our dining room, a couple years ago, with less than great results. This time I plan to use Kristin's "no-sew" method!}</strike> I completed this, sorta. I replaced the curtains, but I went with a simple linen looking curtain, instead of chevron. I've decide to keep my walls/curtains neutral and use color/pattern on the table and furniture.</span></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><strike>4. Either paint or stain the old dresser in our dining room & add new hardware. </strike> <i>Complete! Painted it "Oxford Blue"</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">5. Fix our dining room ceiling</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">5. Create a mixed-media gallery wall in Baileigh's room. <i>Not done. I have all the frames/pieces, just haven't put them up yet!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">6. Add ceiling fans to our room, the front screened porch & possibly Baileigh's. <i>Not yet, soon I hope!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><strike>7. Potty train our 2 1/2 year old. </strike><i><strike>{Okay, not technically a project, but anyone who has a toddler knows this is a big undertaking!} </strike>Complete! (Well, not at night, she's in pull ups, but for the most part, done!)</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">8. Re-paint my eames chair. Grey isn't working for me. <i>Hmm... trying to decide what color!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">9. Paint the built in shelving in my closet something other than the lime green it currently it. <i>Not too worried about this. No one sees the closet but me! Focusing on the rooms in our house that people DO see.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">10. Get the awesome "Dubuque" print I got from the Dubuque Museum of Art matted, frame and hung. <i> I should do this... I have the perfect place for it!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">11.Make a cute monogrammed wreath to hang on our front door. <i>Not yet...maybe for our "Pinterest Challenge" with Kristin and Stephanie!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">12. Power wash the outside of our home. White siding is such a pain! <i> Not yet...oops!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">13. Landscape the retaining wall by our garage. (I think this will be Pat's summer project) <i>This didn't happen and summer is almost over. Maybe next summer?</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">14. Make or find simple shades for our screened in porch. <i>Not yet!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><strike>15 Organize all the cabinets and drawers in our kitchen.</strike> <i>Complete! I did this back in the spring when we rented the large dumpster...however, things are getting a bit messy again!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">16. Make homemade laundry soap, glass cleaner and all purpose cleaner. <i>Hopefully this weekend!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">17. Try a new recipe a week- for all 52 weeks. <i>(This won't be able to get checked off until the last week of December!)</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">18. Create a jewelry holder for our room.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">19. Create silhouettes of all three of our profiles.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">20. Create a chalkboard wall, or area in B's room for her to color on.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><strike>21. Organize all my craft supplies. (I have a ton!)</strike> <i>Complete! They are located nicely in drawers in my newly painted "oxford blue" dresser!</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">22. Add an outside railing to our new front steps. <i> Not done.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">23. Replace the make-shift railing for our back steps. <i>Not done.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">24. Paint our bathroom a new color. <i>Not done.</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">There you have it! 9 out of 24 are complete! I'm behind on 7 of them, and there are a few that I don't think will happen before 2013, but I'm okay with it. </span></div>
colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-79112187637794514832012-08-22T13:50:00.000-05:002012-08-22T13:56:04.970-05:00Homemade Laundry Detergent? <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lately we had a laundry issue. No, not the usual issue of having too much laundry laying on the basement floor BEGGING to be washed. And no, not the issue of my husband seeing the aforementioned piles of laundry, and then only washing one shirt and one pair of pants for work the next day. That really annoys me, however, that is not the issue at hand. The issue is that because we use free & clear laundry detergent, I don't feel like it smells good once cleaned. For example, Pat and I have been running a combined 6 days a week. That means 6 pairs of shorts, 6 tops and 3 sports bras (obviously only I wear those) that are being laundered each week. Anyone that works out knows that running makes you sweat (especially in 100 degree weather like we were having) and sweat makes things stink. Because the free & clear detergent is unscented, I don't feel like the stink truly gets out of the clothes. Pat likes to use fabric softener, but I don't really and I know it's full of crazy chemicals that are really hard on the dry and the clothes. We have been using it lately though because it is scented helps with the smell issue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We haven't always used free & clear detergents. Back when i was pregnant we used something else, Tide, maybe, but I had sensitive skin and it used to make my skin itch. When you're pregnant and having so many changes you can't control, having itchy skin from your detergent isn't cool. We switched then and haven't looked back. We never used dreft when Baileigh was a baby because the free & clear worked well on her sensitive baby skin. Detergent isn't cheap, and between laundry, towels and your daughter wetting the bed twice in 3 nights (fantastic...) we do a lot of laundry. I'm looking for a new detergent option that will provide the following:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1) Clean our clothes (obviously!)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2) Make them smell good</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3) Not make my skin itchy</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4) Easy on the wallet (chaaaa-ching! I'd like to have more money, you know, for craft supplies!)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My friend Michelle made her own detergent a few months ago and even blogged about it at her blog <a href="http://makeandbakememories.blogspot.com/2012/04/homemade-laundry-detergent.html" target="_blank">Makin' and Bakin' Memories</a> She mentioned that it cost about $20 for all the ingredients and she estimates it will last for 9 months or so since you only use 1-2 tablespoons a load! She washes a lot of laundry too with a two- year-old and an 8 month old!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This weekend I don't have any plans so I think I am going to go out and get the ingredients! Pat is a bit skeptical, but he doesn't like his workout clothes smelling either, so hopefully he just lets me "do my thing"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hopefully I love it! Then maybe I'll move onto creating my own cleaning supplies...something I have been planning to do since Earth day- 2010! (Kristin, do you remember me printing out the Homemade Cleaning Supplies handout and distributing it around NICC on earth day?)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyways, I'll eventually post back and let you know if it was successful! Don't expect a nice tutorial like Michelle did though. Why must I reinvent the wheel? :)</span><br />
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colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-45744310372555968192012-07-19T15:19:00.001-05:002012-07-19T15:19:49.910-05:00Ready to Run-- Training for my first half-marathon<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few months ago I started running again. I decided on a whim that I wanted to run the Grandview Gallop, which at the time was about a month away. When I decided this, I had not ran more than a mile in the last year. Some say that "muscles have memory" and because I was a runner in high school, I was able to get back into it fairly quick. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To be honest, it's funny that I ever started to run. In junior high, I hated running. I was a bit chatty in gym class and my gym teacher would make me run laps if I wouldn't quit talking. We also had to run a timed mile in gym class once a year. I hated it and would whine and complain the entire 15 minutes. (Yes, back then running a mile took me 15 minutes, and no, I didn't walk it...) It wasn't until a high school crush (awww....) got me to join cross country. Okay, to be honest, he didn't ask me to run, I pretty much did it so I could <strike>stalk him</strike> spend time with him. Turns out, after I quit complaining, I wasn't too bad of a runner. I managed to run varsity cross country sophomore and junior year, and most of senior year. I did develop "senioritis" that year and didn't really care much for running. I was "recruited" to run at Loras College after I attended XC camp there for two years. Take "recruited" with a grain of salt. They pretty much recruit anyone with an interest in the sport, especially if they have contact info from XC camp. I almost ran college XC but last minute, about a month before I was to move into the dorms at Loras, I decided against it. I didn't really love to run, and I knew it would take a lot of time away from <strike style="background-color: white;">partying </strike><span style="background-color: white;">meeting</span><span style="background-color: white;"> new people and </span><strike style="background-color: white;">partying</strike><span style="background-color: white;"> my studies. I would go through running spurts during my 4 years of college, but nothing regular. Incase you are't aware, Dubuque is HILLY and running up hills isn't my cup of tea.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fast forward to now. After 2 1/2 months of consistant running (averaging 25-35 miles/month) i decided to be crazy and train for a half marathon. In May, a few of our friends mentioned on facebook they were training for the <a href="http://www.qcmarathon.org/" target="_blank">Quad Cities Marathon</a> and I never really thought much of it. At that point, I had run only run a few times and only a couple miles each time. I finally made it up to 4 miles a couple weeks before the <a href="http://www.grandviewgallop.com/" target="_blank">Grandview Gallop.</a> I ended up doing really well in that race, finishing the 4-miles in 33:43, and placing 11th in my age group! That gave me the confidence to keep running and see how I would do! After I was able to run about 6 1/2 miles, I decided that I was going to train for the half-marathon, which is 13.1 miles. I'm on week 2 of my official <a href="http://running.about.com/od/racetraining/a/basichalf.htm" target="_blank">training schedule</a> and it is going really well! My husband, who has NEVER been a runner (he was a swimmer in high school) started training for the 5k race at the QC Marathon. I am super proud of him for going out and training for the race. because of his new training, he has also started eating healthier. It feels good getting back into running and into shape!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you follow my on facebook, you will probably see my runs several times a week. I enjoy the app and keeps the motivation going so I keep running!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is there anything new you are trying to achieve?</span></span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-51553108578223024862012-07-17T10:41:00.002-05:002012-07-17T10:41:47.028-05:00I'm not a good blogger<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh hello again. Forgive me <strike>father</strike> readers, for I have <strike>sinned </strike>been a slacker, it has been 4 months since my last <strike>confession</strike> blog post. (Can you tell I went to Catholic school for 13 years... 17 years if you count college?)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been busy. Very busy, indeed. I think part of the reason I hasn't blogged is because I don't have much to say. I think part of me got so wrapped up trying to create pretty blog posts, full of cute, edited pictures; recipe tutorials and crafts I have made, that I quit blogging when I wasn't being successful at that. I'm not sure how some of the amazing bloggers that I follow do it. Some are stay-at-home moms, but that is not easy task either. I'm a pretty busy lady. I work full time as a graphic designer where I spend my days designing, managing freelance designers and attempting to hit all my deadlines so textbooks are published on time. Evenings are spent cooking dinner, trying to get a run in (i'm training for a half marathon in September), working on freelance design projects (designing two wedding invites now... programs, tables numbers, ect. to come soon), attempting to keep a tidy home and most of all, trying to be a good wife and mom. Boy, i'm exhausted just reading that! In addition to all that, I'm obsessed with crafting and making out house a home. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Summer has been busy too. We are attending 5 wedding this summer. I'm in two of them. Plus, baby showers, bridal showers, bachelorettes and bbqs! I love summer because I love all of these kind of things, but having something every weekend makes it hard to get things done for the week. Last summer, we went to Florida for a week vacation. That was amazing. This summer, no such vacation. However, we are going up to Minneapolis in a few weeks with some friends and I am VERY much looking forward to that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not making excuses for why I haven't blogged, but saying more that things more important to be came up. To be honest, I have a tendency to jump into thing really fast. For example, my etsy shop, hello little whimsy. I go through spurts of exploring etsy for hours on end. I would see all these adorable hair accessories and think, "hey, I can do that!" and so I did. I spent several evenings hot gluing felt, making bows and creating hair accessories. I photographed everything, edited them in photoshop and then set up a shop. All this from conception, to reality, in about a week. Another thing I do is get bored with things...fast. This is what happened to my shop. I sold a few items, and then, I wasn't really in the mood to keep up with it. I started a facebook page, but I never posted on it. After 3 months the items I had posted on my page expired, and I never posted them again. I make rash decisions. I guess I kind of get wrapped up in what others are doing, and want to do that too, like the etsy shop.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh well! Most of the time my sporadic obsessions aren't a big deal, so I'm okay with that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well to wrap it up. I may try to post more often, but don't expect much out of the posts in regards to design. I'm not a professional blogger and I'm, okay with that. I just want to have this blog to write about things going on in my life. Even if I only post once in 4 months!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cheers!</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-26169153560354430612012-03-16T08:14:00.000-05:002012-03-16T08:14:00.377-05:00Beautiful weather, river walk & gelato!<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now that the weather is starting to get nice and warmer I enjoy being able to get out for walks at night. Tonite for dinner we marinated and grilled out chicken, sautéed peppers and made fajitas. They were delicious and so easy! After dinner we decided to head down to the port of Dubuque for a walk. It was a beautiful nights. The river walk was busy with lts of people and Baileigh was having a lot of fun running around, looking at the art on display and saying "hi" to all the puppies. We had fun. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">B asked to stand by the art and have me take her picture. Such a little ham!<br /><br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">B's silly face!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OcrwyyLraoQ/T2M6cWAvQwI/AAAAAAAAASI/axXxUTBCri4/s1600/6986192831_8f99373405_b.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OcrwyyLraoQ/T2M6cWAvQwI/AAAAAAAAASI/axXxUTBCri4/s400/6986192831_8f99373405_b.jpeg" width="398" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Baileigh and daddy with the MIssissippi in the background.<br /><br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the river walk, Pat suggested we get gelato at Chocolaterie Stam. Oh my gosh, they have the best gelato! Pat got Espresso Biscotti, Baileigh got Blackberry Raspberry (only because the color of it was pink) and I got Chocolate Hazelnut, which was pretty much chilled nutella. It was fantastic! Its a little pricer than regular ice cream, but the taste makes it so worth it! They are located on Main Street by Crust. Check them out! <a href="http://www.stamchocolate.com/">Chocolaterie Stam</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, tomorrow is Friday! It is supposed to be a beautiful weekend! Enjoy! xo</span><br />
<br />colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-76368098836158054822012-03-10T13:32:00.001-06:002012-03-10T13:33:04.575-06:00What foods do you buy organic?Lately I've been hearing a lot about the pros of buying organic foods. It's not a new concept, but the news if full of health concerns about the pesticides and antibiotics used in foods. I have read some articles that have really made me consider trying to buy more organic foods. Of course there a pros and cons. Organic foods don't have all those yucky pesticides and chemicals in them. The meat comes from farm raise, grass fed animals and the milk is from animals not treated with rBST. The biggest con though is the higher cost. Being a family on a budget ( who am i kidding, aren't we all on a budget?) I try to get the most "bang for my buck" and with come organic foods costing twice the amount as non organic, who can afford to only ea organic? Plus, organic foods don't always stay fresh as long because they aren't preserved with chemicals. Another issue is there aren't a lot or restaurants in town that only use organic products meaning we can eat as healthy as we want at home, but if we eat out, we won't be eating organic. This makes everything confusing, that is for sure! Places like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's(my favorite!) have a lot of organic options, and TJ's is pretty reasonable, but unfortunately the closest ones to Dubuque are in Madison.<br>
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I can across this graphic though that gives you a good place to start : Produce.<br>
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This chart is nice because it shows what produce has the mst pesticides hat you should buy organic, and which ones are okay not. This article is always nice too. I explains what you should buy organic and why:
<a href="http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/10-foods-you-should-buy-organic.htm"></a>
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Today Baileigh went to the store and. Was determined to try to buys organic meat, produce (from the dirty dozen list) and dairy. Out try was a success, but I'll admit I spent more than usual. Usually I plan out 4-5 meals for the week and get those items, milk, fruit, yogurt and snacks and spend about $50-$75 for the week. I am a thrifty shopper! This week I planned 3 nights of meals but the other ransoms things we needed. Today I spent $68 and got everything I needed but I didn't get nearly as much for my money! A gallon of organic milk was over double the cost of non, $6.89! I bought two red peppers for $6.99, which was $3 more than non-organic. I also bought yogurt for Baileigh and I that was only a little more expensive. For meat I bought 1 lb of grass fed ground beef for $6.15, about $2 more than usual. Those were just a few of the items. It sure is interesting to see the different in cost. I'm looking forward to the meals this week and to see if there is a taste difference or anything.<br>
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Do you buy organic items? If so, what ones? Are starting slowly adding items to your cart or diving right in? I'd love to hear feedback!<br>
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P.s. I wrote this post on our iPad for the first time and had to code the HTML my self, so try to look past those errors :)colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-85493896049954203902012-02-25T09:17:00.000-06:002012-02-25T09:20:14.322-06:00Best Buttermilk Pancakes<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">Back when I wrote the post </span><a href="http://chavens.blogspot.com/2012/01/pancake-saturday.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #38761d;">Pancake Saturday</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> I mentioned that I use a boxed pancake mix, mostly out of convenience. My neighbor Stephanie commented about a buttermilk pancake recipe she makes with her family and that the extra work is totally worth it. That got me thinking I should try a homemade recipe. I had extra buttermilk in the fridge from the </span><a href="http://chavens.blogspot.com/2012/02/dont-judge-book-by-its-cover-or-cake-by.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #38761d;">German Chocolate Cake</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> recipe, so I decided to look online, aka Pinterest, for a recipe since I didn't have Stephanie's. (In hindsight, I should have just stopped over and borrowed her cookbook!)</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I found a Martha Stewart recipe titled, "Best Buttermilk Pancakes." I know a lot of recipes claim to be the best, but </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I read the reviews and most said this recipe really was <i style="font-weight: bold;">the best. </i>Last Monday was President's day, and I didn't work so I made the pancakes. I have to admit, they <i><b>were </b></i>the best! I did make a small adaption to the original recipe, I chopped up some Hershey's milk chocolate and added it to the pancakes, because I love chocolate, especially in pancakes, while drinking my morning coffee.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Best Buttermilk Pancakes</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Slightly adapted from <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/318689/best-buttermilk-pancakes" target="_blank"><span style="color: #38761d;">Best Buttermilk Pancakes</span></a> by Martha Stewart</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Yields 12- 4 inch pancakes (2 Points Plus</span><span style="line-height: 15px;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">™ </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">each)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><br /></span>1 cup all-purpose flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tsp baking powder</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2 tsp baking soda</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/4tsp salt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 1/2 tbsp sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 egg, lightly beaten</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 1/2 c buttermilk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1oz chopped milk chocolate</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1. Heat griddle to 375 degrees. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & sugar in a medium bowl.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2. Add egg, buttermilk and butter; whisk to combine. <i>Batter should have small to medium lumps.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3. Spray griddle with cooking spray. Using a 1/4 cup, pour the batter onto the griddle. Sprinkle with chopped chocolate.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">The best wedding gift I never thought I'd use! Turns out I do, all the time!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">4. When pancakes have bubbles on top and are slightly dry around edges, about 2 1/2 minutes, flip over. Cook until golden brown on bottom, about one minute.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Mmm, and when you are all done, you'll have the most delicious pancakes!</span></div>
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They turned out awesome! Stephanie was right, homemade pancakes are worth the extra steps! They are easy and way delicious!<br />
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</div>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-19128365504121226652012-02-19T07:52:00.000-06:002012-02-19T07:52:45.839-06:00Bye, Bye Binky<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h95aWGSAtlA/Tz6zYRbeuZI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/2xwk292ahtY/s1600/5080_525649497691_66000141_31049886_4623622_n.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h95aWGSAtlA/Tz6zYRbeuZI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/2xwk292ahtY/s400/5080_525649497691_66000141_31049886_4623622_n.jpeg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">Baileigh 2 weeks old!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Yes, you read the title correctly. We did it! We got rid of the binky! Baileigh is two and 1/2. Actually, she's almost 33 months old. Anyone who knows me knows I hate the darn thing and have been planning to get rid of it for quite some time. Easier said than done. When she was little, I really didn't mind her using a binky. It was cute and had a purpose, but once she was old enough to take it out to talk, I was over it.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">Baileigh, 4 days old!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the hospital they asked if we cared if they gave her one, and we didn't. "They" (doctors and such) said that the pacifier is good for babies who have extra need to suck, but that by 3 months or so, that extra need is gone, and they don't need it anymore. Around 6 months or so I worked with B's daycare to start to process of getting rid of it. Well, from 6 months to about 14 months she was sick at least once a month with ear infections. I felt horrible getting rid of it when she was sick, so it kept getting put off. Originally she wasn't that attached, mostly liked it when she slept. She slept well, so we didn't care. One day daycare sent home her binky and said she doesn't use it anymore. That day we should have gotten rid of it at home too...but I'm sure I came up with some excuse for her to keep it. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>Fast Forward</b>:</i> All of a sudden she is over two years old and addicted. She needed to have multiple binkies on her at all times, she had one in her mouth, one in her had, one in a bag and so on. We didn't dare to run errands or go for a car ride without one. In the course of a year she went from "enjoying its company" to "needing" it. I never liked seeing kids that were old enough to talk have one in their mouth. I don't know why but it drove me crazy. We got better about not letting her have it as often. We quit letting her take it in the care (except long trips to/from Davenport), and we even got to the point she didn't take it away from home, except maybe to grandparents house. At her age, she doesn't need it anymore and it's not good for teeth and speech. To be honest, she's quite a good talker and has a nice vocabulary, so that wasn't as much of a concern, but still, I wanted her to get rid of it.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">Multiple binkies at the same time!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">About a month ago Baileigh was resisting to take an afternoon nap. She kept getting out of bed and playing. I went up to her room several times, and finally told her that if I have to come up one more time, I am cutting the binky. ot even a minute later I hear her get out of bed, and start playing again. I was beyond annoyed. I walked upstairs with scissors, grabbed the binky out of her mouth and snipped off the end. A major meltdown followed with big tears and sobbing. I gave her another one and told her to go to bed...and she did. I walked downstairs feeling awful. You never want to make your child cry. Her big blues eyes full of tears was heartbreaking but I had gotten fed up with her shenanigans and gave up.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Threatening to "cut the binky" worked for a while whenever she played games at night. She would immediately try to go to sleep, that is, until yesterday afternoon. Patrick was off work so Baileigh and him had a daddy/daughter day. He said the day went will, until nap time. Baileigh was up to her old tricks at naptime, refusing to stay in bed, taking everything off her bed, etc. Pat said he tried to get to to go to bed, without success for almost 3 hours. Finally, frustrated and fed up, he cut the last binky! I walked in the door from work and saw both cut binkies, the one I cut, and her only other binky, cut and sitting on kitchen island. Lets just say I was nervous to walk in and ask what happened. I ask Baileigh and she goes, "Daddy cut my blue one. " I ask her why and she says, "Because I was being bad and not listening!" I laughed. I knew she gets it too. We have been telling her "binkies are for babies" and "no more binky for Baileigh" for a while now, and she gets it. We decide right then and there, no more binkies.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We decide the best way is to talk about how proud we are of her and how she is such a big girl. We take her to target to buy her a new doll to cuddle with at night since she doesn't need a binky anymore. We really talked it up all night.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">Our big girl! Binky free and proud with her two new dolls!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I remember when we were "sleep training" Baileigh as a baby, I read it takes 3 nights to make it a habit. Those 3 nights may be rough, but babies, and toddlers love routine, and after 3 nights, thy should have it. Here's to three nights!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Night one: </b>We did the usual to get B ready for bed. She did her usual stalling techniques as well. About an hour later she was asleep. She only woke up twice in the night, but both times I think it was because she was coughing some. She did start crying and seemed sad, but never mentioned she was sad because of the binky. We just rubbed her back, tucked her in and gave her the new dolls to cuddle with. She did come in our bed for a little bit, but shortly later was back in her own bed again. All in all, the first night was a success!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Night two:</b> Night two was about the same. She woke up a few times, and ended up in our bed (which rarely happens, let alone two nights in a row!)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Night three:</b> Fantastic! She went to bed well, woke once, no big deal and then slept the rest of the night...till 6:30 a.m., that is! I'm not complaining though. One night of <i>almost </i>uninterrupted sleep is great, even if I wake up before the sun has fully risen.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Three days later I can officially say, it's gone! I have such a big girl, that's for sure!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Next up:</b> Potty Training....ahhhhhh!</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0Dubuque, IA, USA42.5005583 -90.664571842.4069038 -90.8225003 42.5942128 -90.506643300000007tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-35261202614783355652012-02-10T09:36:00.000-06:002012-02-10T09:36:32.806-06:00Crazy Busy Times<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;">Our family is crazy. Life with a two-year old makes things even crazier. We planned a trip up to Minneapolis to visit our good friends Grant & Kelly this weekend. I am so excited! Before kids (aka BK) we could pack out bags the night before, or even last minute and jump in the car to head out of town. Now things aren't that simple. The amount of things We did last night actually amazes me. Especially after each of us working 8/9 hours. This was my crazy Thursday. I got off work at 4:30. Ran to get my eyebrows waxed (embarrassingly overdue!) and got home in time for Pat to run and get his ice skates sharpened. Grant and him may play hockey this weekend. While he was out, I made taco salads for dinner and quesadillas for Baileigh. After dinner we cleaned out entire house. Entire as in kitchen, living & dining rooms, our room, bathroom and Baileigh's room. We also did 3-4 loads of laundry and put all of that away. Now that is an accomplishment all on its own! Oh did I mention that I made brownies for my moms birthday and Baileigh made a birthday card? Oh right. That was while making dinner! We kept Baileigh up late hoping she'd sleep in (ha, didn't work!) so she finally went to bed at 9. Time to relax, right? Baileigh's school valentines day party is Monday. Since we won't be home from Minneapolis until Sunday afternoon, I knew I needed to make her valentine's ahead of time.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Now I could have bought the cute printed valentines and quickly added the "to" and "from" names to them. But you know me, that would have been too easy. I had to make her valentines. So at 9:15 p.m. last night, I started making her valentines. B's class has 23 kids, including her. I bought some cute foam hearts and 3-d sparkly and puffy stickers at the $1 section at target. I ended up Creating little valentines for each kid and tying a little 100 cal bag of cookies to it. Okay, I know giving a class of 2-year olds cookies isn't a fantastic idea, but I figured they were better than pixi stix! (Plus, one of her classmates dad is a dentist and I bet he'll give out toothbrushes!) Here are B's valentines:</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1lLbuB-bHrQ/TzU24fuekHI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/fVpW8i-hjWE/s1600/valentines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1lLbuB-bHrQ/TzU24fuekHI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/fVpW8i-hjWE/s400/valentines.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In hindsight, I should have printed out cute labels and stuck them onto the foam heart instead of trying to write out the kid's name. The markers didn't work as well ad I would have liked with the foam texture. Still, I thought they turned out cute.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Finally, at 11:30, or 16 hours after I woke up, I finally went to bed. Yikes. what a busy night!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Now it is Friday morning! I took 1/2 day of vacation, and since I am now off at 11 a.m. on Fridays, the 1/2 day equals a full day off work. Nice, eh? This morning we have relaxed. Ate cinnamon rolls for breakfast and are finishing up some last minute things. My parents are coming up at 11. We are taking them out for lunch as a "happy birthday" and "thank you" for watching B all weekend, then we are heading out of town!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We are super excited to visit Grant & Kelly! We haven't been up there since fall of 2008. I was 9 weeks pregnant at the time, and sick with morning sickness. Needless to say, it wasn't the best trip. Now, over 3 years later we are FINALLY getting back up to see them! They bought a house in 2010 and we are finally getting the change to see it! We wanted to bring a little housewarming gift but were having troubles deciding what to bring. We thought about a cute picture frame collage, but I know Kelly would already have those. She loves pictures. After much thinking we created a little basket with whiskey, glasses, gold fish crackers, and starburst. Random, I know but it works. Grant drinks whiskey, so we thought we could "cheer" to their new home. Kelly loves candy & Grant loves goldfish crackers. Randomness, but it looks cute all packed up!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Well, I better finish packing! Have a wonderful weekend!</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-53342402573686282102012-02-05T10:36:00.000-06:002012-08-22T14:37:06.775-05:00Project 24<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;"> As I explore Pinterest, I find all these projects that I'd like to do for our home. Being a visual person, I almost get overwhelmed about the possibilities and projects I can do. Back in July 2010 I created a list of </span></span><a href="http://chavens.blogspot.com/2010/07/eleven-before-2011.html" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;">Eleven before 2011</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;"> I had hoped having my "to-do" list out here on the blog would help me accomplish all my projects. Although I only finished a couple of the items before 2011, I did finish all of them within 2011. That is progress, right? I didn't finish 3 of the original 11. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;">#1 from the previous list was to repaint our living room. I have since decided I am okay with the yellow we have now, so I'm not going to worry about that one. #7 was to print & burn photo cd's. I haven't done this, but I did backup a lot of photos using a free service, </span></span><a href="http://www.dropbox.com/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;">Dropbox</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;">. #10 was to replace the ugly florescent light in the kitchen. I still haven't done that, so it will be moved to my new list. I've decided to attempt to accomplish 2 projects a month for 2012. Some may be bigger ones, some small, but the goal is to finish every item on my to-do list.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Project 24</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1. Replace the awful light in our kitchen.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2. Hang curtains in Baileigh's room.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3. Make or find cheap (& adorable) chevron curtains for our dining room. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">{</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Note: I already made curtains for our dining room, a couple years ago, with less than great results. This time I plan to use Kristin's "no-sew" method!}</span></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">4. Either paint or stain the old dresser in our dining room & add new hardware.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">5. Fix our dining room ceiling</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">5. Create a mixed-media gallery wall in Baileigh's room.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">6. Add ceiling fans to our room, the front screened porch & possibly Baileigh's.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">7. Potty train our 2 1/2 year old. <i>{Okay, not technically a project, but anyone who has a toddler knows this is a big undertaking!}</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">8. Re-paint my eames chair. Grey isn't working for me.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">9. Paint the built in shelving in my closet something other than the lime green it currently it.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">10. Get the awesome "Dubuque" print I got from the Dubuque Museum of Art matted, frame and hung.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">11.Make a cute monogrammed wreath to hang on our front door.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">12. Power wash the outside of our home. White siding is such a pain!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">13. Landscape the retaining wall by our garage. (I think this will be Pat's summer project)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">14. Make or find simple shades for our screened in porch.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">15 Organize all the cabinets and drawers in our kitchen.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">16. Make homemade laundry soap, glass cleaner and all purpose cleaner.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">17. Try a new recipe a week- for all 52 weeks. <i>(This won't be able to get checked off until the last week of December!)</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">18. Create a jewelry holder for our room.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">19. Create silhouettes of all three of our profiles.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">20. Create a chalkboard wall, or area in B's room for her to color on.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">21. Organize all my craft supplies. (I have a ton!)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">22. Add an outside railing to our new front steps,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">23. Replace the make-shift railing for our back steps.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">24. Paint our bathroom a new color.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Yikes, this is a lot of projects! I hope trying to complete two a month isn't too ambitious! Some of these cost a decent amount, so I will keep that in mind, but for the most part, I hope to accomplish all these projects!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In January I accomplished two, so I'm well on my way! I created a Jewelry holder for our room and we fixed the ceiling from the water damage. The ceiling fix isn't exciting, but it got done! Here is a picture of the jewelry holder I made.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Well, this may be one of the longest posts ever! Monthly I will have a post dedicated to the two projects I completed that month!</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-64767745877392950032012-02-04T10:35:00.000-06:002012-02-04T10:35:49.645-06:00Don't judge a book by its cover (or a cake by its frosting!)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The saying "Don't judge a book by its cover" always made me laugh. I am a very visual person, and even remember saying "yes, I do judge a book by its cover." Ironically, in my new job, I will actually be designing book covers! Kind of funny. As a designer, the goal was to make pretty things. Actually, this </span></span><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/76756095/graphic-art-print-i-make-pretty-things" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">print</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> by </span></span><a href="http://yellowheartart.etsy.com/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Yellow Heart Art</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> always makes me smile.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Well, I have learned that when baking, you can't always end up with "pretty things." For example? German Chocolate Cake.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AHAEm54fu9g/Ty1ZsCz-5wI/AAAAAAAAAQE/fW1cidzZZwo/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AHAEm54fu9g/Ty1ZsCz-5wI/AAAAAAAAAQE/fW1cidzZZwo/s400/photo.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My father in-law's birthday was last weekend. We are celebrating it tonight and I offered to bake a cake for the event. A little birdie told me his favorite cake is German Chocolate (Thanks Linds!) I have never made one from scratch, so naturally I turned to my new obsession, <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>, to find some inspiration. I found a recipe via <a href="http://www.cookiemadness.net/" target="_blank">Cookie Madness</a> for German Chocolate cake. She had a lot of different recipes for it. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://www.cookiemadness.net/2009/12/german-chocolate-cake-recommendations/" target="_blank">German Chocolate Cake</a> recipe via Cookie Madness </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My verdict? Wow, I haven't been able to taste it yet, besides a small piece that broke off, but I have a pretty good feeling it will taste amazing, despite its look! The frosting is pretty runny, and because of the added chocolate, it is kind of a blah color. I learned that traditional German Chocolate cakes are only frosted between layers and on top because the frosting is too delicate to frost the sides. I totally agree. The coconut/pecan frosting makes it look not so pretty, but they also make it taste delicious.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I guess all cakes can't be beautifully decorated! Taste is more important! Once I taste it, I'll update this post!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">P.S. Did you know that contrary to the name, German Chocolate cake isn't from Germany? Until I was researching recipe, I had no idea! Heres the history of this delicious dessert! <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_chocolate_cake" target="_blank">History of German Chocolate Cake</a> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-78483940285777553942012-01-20T18:20:00.000-06:002012-01-20T18:20:59.708-06:00Making Chili!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Well, the inevitable has happened. We finally got a huge snowstorm. Something like 6-8 inches. I can't say I'm shocked. I do live in Iowa and it's winter. It is part of the climate. However, every time we get a snow storm people seem surprised! I like snow. I think it's pretty. My husband, not so much. I think that is because he is the person who shovels everything. I kind of understand his distaste for snow because of that reason. That is why I made a huge pot of chili while he shoveled.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My father in law, Dan, makes excellent chili. Until Pat and I started dating, I had never made it before. My first time actually was for a Chili Cook Off back when I worked at NICC. I winged Dan's recipe and was surprised how good it turned out..in fact, I won the cook off! {<i>This is where Queen sings, "we are the champions"} </i>Just Kidding! </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Every time I make chili I wing it. I never come with a list to the store. There are some main ingredients I always remember, and others that I think might work well. The chili we make now is kind of a mix of Dan's and kind of our own. It is one of the few recipes I am proud to say we "created" and isn't from a recipe book.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Our Chili Recipe</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l-_PyQ18-Aw/TxoBeqyDDfI/AAAAAAAAAPk/XO9CED-KGL8/s1600/chili_ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l-_PyQ18-Aw/TxoBeqyDDfI/AAAAAAAAAPk/XO9CED-KGL8/s400/chili_ingredients.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">1 lb ground beef</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 1 lb stew meat (the *secret ingredient*)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">32 oz can of tomato sauce</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">32 oz can crushed tomatoes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 can black beans, drained and rinsed</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 can chili beans, in sauce</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 can Mexican corn</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 can diced tomatoes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">green pepper, chopped</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">red onion, chopped</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped or pressed</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3-4 tbs of chili powder seasoning</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">salt & pepper</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">pinch of red pepper flakes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nCmO0Uwiafk/TxoBfhw7s5I/AAAAAAAAAPs/Zv7LiMn9PRo/s1600/pot_chili.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nCmO0Uwiafk/TxoBfhw7s5I/AAAAAAAAAPs/Zv7LiMn9PRo/s400/pot_chili.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1. Brown the ground beef & steak w/ the peppers, onions and garlic. Season with salt & pepper. Drain grease.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2. Add remaining ingredients.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3. Simmer on medium until the juices start to bubble up a bit and simmer on low for at least 2 hours.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">4. Top with shredded cheese, sour cream and green onions. Enjoy!</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8x8iYdjwKU/TxoBeVSgHWI/AAAAAAAAAPc/UaxLAVL0f5c/s1600/bowl_chili.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z8x8iYdjwKU/TxoBeVSgHWI/AAAAAAAAAPc/UaxLAVL0f5c/s400/bowl_chili.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-14362535702955635342012-01-16T11:17:00.000-06:002012-01-16T11:17:29.663-06:00Mixed Berry Muffins<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Since I'm off work today, I decided to make muffins with Baileigh. My co-worker, Angie, is an amazing cook/baker and has a family cookbook that she and her mom & sister collaborated in. One of the recipes in the book is for Yogurt Muffins. The recipe is actually from an old, little shop in Dubuque called Annie's Lil' Bits. The owners retired a few years ago, but published several of their recipes. One of the things it was famous for was these yogurt muffins. I have never made them before, but as I was browsing Angie's cookbook, I saw she had included the recipe from Annie's. Below is the recipe & a few pictures of my delicious muffins.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b>Yogurt Muffins (Annie's Lil' Bits)</b></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">1 c. butter, melted</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">2 c. vanilla yogurt</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">1 c. sugar</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">2 tsp vanilla</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">4 egg whites</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">2 tsp baking soda</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">2 tsp baking powder</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">4 c. flour</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">2 cups any fruit (berries, bananas, peaches, etc.)</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Blend together all wet ingredients and sugar. Blend together all dry ingredients. Mix wet and dry mixtures together. Add the fruit. Top with cinnamon sugar, white sugar or brown sugar, depending on the fruit.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Bake for 20-25 minutes. Makes about 24 regular muffins or 12 jumbo muffins.</span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IcnI86I7skU/TxRZ5DZNsYI/AAAAAAAAAPU/YnQSu82g-Lw/s1600/unbaked_muffins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IcnI86I7skU/TxRZ5DZNsYI/AAAAAAAAAPU/YnQSu82g-Lw/s400/unbaked_muffins.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Heres the muffins before they hit the oven! I used frozen mixed berries (thawed)</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCDyNCUYPvg/TxRZ4DtPw7I/AAAAAAAAAPM/zQG9avNaKL0/s1600/muffins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCDyNCUYPvg/TxRZ4DtPw7I/AAAAAAAAAPM/zQG9avNaKL0/s400/muffins.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Mmm, just out of the oven! The juices from the berries started to give the muffins a blueish color...but they still taste great!</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DBaS3icZaLM/TxRZ3eiENxI/AAAAAAAAAPE/gOd18heG7aw/s1600/berry+muffin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DBaS3icZaLM/TxRZ3eiENxI/AAAAAAAAAPE/gOd18heG7aw/s400/berry+muffin.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Mmm berry muffins! Perfect treat for this monday off work! Thanks Angie for sharing your families cookbook!</span><br />
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</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-57942432669941293332012-01-14T10:29:00.000-06:002012-01-14T10:29:22.156-06:00Pancake Saturday<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Baileigh and I have started a tradition, Pancake saturday. Pat works on Saturdays and A few months ago Baileigh and I started making pancakes. I didn't think much of it at first, but now on any day that Baileigh doesn't go to "school", she requests. Like this morning, she came in our room at 7:15 requesting pancakes & sausage. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I hate to admit, but I use a pre-made pancake mix, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_416978977">Krusteaz Honey Wheat Pancake Mix</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://./">.</a> Its easy because it only require water. This is nice because I don,t have to worry if we have milk or eggs on hand. Of course we do add two special ingredients to the mix, cinnamon and vanilla! My college roommate, Isabelle, taught me that trick. She always made the best pancakes! </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We have been making turkey sausage lately too. The brands vary, usually whatever I find at the store. Our breakfast wouldn't be complete without coffee for me and milk or juice for the B.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RrM2qndpzZs/TxGspJk9oEI/AAAAAAAAAO0/w2HHMU76528/s1600/Pancake_B.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RrM2qndpzZs/TxGspJk9oEI/AAAAAAAAAO0/w2HHMU76528/s400/Pancake_B.jpg" width="282" /></span></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">B loves pancake Saturday. Today she helped me. We made Mickey Mouse pancakes (for her) and chocolate chip pancakes (for me!) This is a tradition I hope we can keep for a long time! Do you and your families have any traditions?</span></span></div>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-13454551182639917672012-01-14T09:49:00.000-06:002012-01-14T10:31:30.387-06:00Too ambitious?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I started this blog officially 3 years ago. In three years I think i've posted 17 times? Give or take. My intentions were good. I wanted to share crafts, recipes and other items in my life. Well, life got in the way, as it should. In the past three years many things have happened, and I wouldn't have it any other way.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I keep coming back to this blog and thinking to myself, "Okay Colleen, keep up with it this time." Like I said before, my intentions are always good, but I forget how busy I am and I never seem to post as often as I'd like. I don't really have a "following" but that is okay by me. This blog is a place that I'm going to post recipes and other things I'd like to share, as time allows. Between work, being a mom & wife, keeping the house together & making memories with my family, I stay busy, but I'd like to be able to use this blog as a place to stay creative.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Welcome to live {love} taste!</span></span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-22395112240941364062011-08-19T10:28:00.000-05:002011-08-19T10:28:00.791-05:00oops!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">hello blog. it's me, Colleen.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">No, I haven't forgotten about you. I've just been....busy. Life has happened.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sorry :(</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I'm not going to go back and try to update what has happened in my life since last Thanksgiving. I'm just going to move ahead! Yay!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I'd like to start cooking more & posting more recipes. we'll see if that happen though.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Anyways, all 4 of you that may read this (..and by 4, i'm being generous, maybe one person? Maybe you Mom?) I hope to start posting more soon!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the meantime, here is the cutest 2 year old I know....</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dEzdX2wOXzg/Tk6AWMgSogI/AAAAAAAAAOA/KwmLxkVS8BE/s1600/263065_211126165589726_105636519472025_530206_4813649_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dEzdX2wOXzg/Tk6AWMgSogI/AAAAAAAAAOA/KwmLxkVS8BE/s320/263065_211126165589726_105636519472025_530206_4813649_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_REIZVvD2BA/Tk6AZSndl1I/AAAAAAAAAOE/Sc6T0mvptDg/s1600/258553_211112812257728_105636519472025_530072_1422936_o+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_REIZVvD2BA/Tk6AZSndl1I/AAAAAAAAAOE/Sc6T0mvptDg/s320/258553_211112812257728_105636519472025_530072_1422936_o+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Sorry, couldn't help it! Photo's by <a href="http://www.jenniferjayne.com/">Jennifer Jayne Photography</a></span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-4267882231195208722010-11-18T13:38:00.000-06:002010-11-18T14:16:17.810-06:00{eight} things i am THANKful for!<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was just browsing on Shine, an off site of Yahoo when I found this article</span> <a href="http://shine.yahoo.com/event/moreformyfamily/15-unexpected-things-we-re-grateful-for-2409741/"> <span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">15 Unexpected Things We're Grateful For</span></a> <span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">and it got me thinking. I am very blessed and have so much in my life to be thankful for, but I never think about it. I do believe it's the little things in like that make you happy. Sure we never seem to have enough money, things need to be fixed in our home, work can be stressing, but those seem like such little things in comparison to all the things we have. In the spirit of thanksgiving being 8 days away, I am going to share 8 things I am thankful for.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">{<i>in no specific order</i>}</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVqXcvhjnI/AAAAAAAAALQ/4eERrfpA58E/s1600/patrick+%2526+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVqXcvhjnI/AAAAAAAAALQ/4eERrfpA58E/s320/patrick+%2526+b.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> 1 } <b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Patrick Michael & Baileigh Patricia</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You didn't think I was going to forget about them, did you? Aren't they adorable?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Of course I am thankful for them! I am very, very thankful for my family and friends.</span><br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVutdfy1nI/AAAAAAAAALY/dDCRiJSYd4I/s1600/red+door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVutdfy1nI/AAAAAAAAALY/dDCRiJSYd4I/s320/red+door.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2}<b> <span style="color: #6aa84f;">Our Home</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We were newlyweds when we purchased our first home. We looked at a few houses, bought a car, and found out we were pregnant...all in the same week! This upcoming Wednesday will mark the two year anniversary of being homeowners! (AND the 3rd anniversary of the night we got engaged!) </span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVt5l-fuqI/AAAAAAAAALU/1yJdxkhlPCI/s1600/starbucks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVt5l-fuqI/AAAAAAAAALU/1yJdxkhlPCI/s320/starbucks.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> 3} <b style="color: #6aa84f;">Red Starbucks® Cup</b></span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Okay, I promise I am not stealing this idea from the original post. I am a coffee-a-holic, and there is something special when Starbucks bring out their red cups. Maybe it's because it means christmas is near, or maybe it's because I love the color red. Either way, like I said before, it's the little things, and the red Starbucks® cup is a little thing I love<br />
<a href="http://biscottisblog.wordpress.com/category/day-to-day-stuff/">{image by...}</a></span></div><br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVw6308rWI/AAAAAAAAALc/eoFf8-VZghE/s1600/apron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOVw6308rWI/AAAAAAAAALc/eoFf8-VZghE/s1600/apron.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> 4} <b style="color: #6aa84f;">hosting thanksgiving </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love to cook. I love to bake. P & B enjoy my food, but it's not very often that i cook for others than them. This year I am having my parents, sister and possible cousin & aunt up to our home<b>.</b> I'm cooking it all. I'm so excited. Please <a href="http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/index.html">Real Simple Magazine</a> don't fail me now. Most of my recipes are from you! And thanks to an early gift from my dear mother, I will be cooking in style while wearing this lovely apron from <a href="http://www.pier1.com/">Pier 1</a>. Thanks Mom!</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV0KCikrdI/AAAAAAAAALg/kGufQXWH-Ts/s1600/target+basket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV0KCikrdI/AAAAAAAAALg/kGufQXWH-Ts/s200/target+basket.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> 5} <b style="color: #6aa84f;">target debit card</b></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I always do my main grocery shopping at hy-vee. Mostly because my hubby works there and of course we want to support his store {which is where over half out income is from!} and because it's convenient and I know where everything is. However, I am thrifty & love a good deal, and Target is better for everyday home items. By using your Target Debit card, you save <b>5% EVERYDAY</b> on <b>EVERYTHING</b> (few exclusions apply...but not many!) Now I know 5% doesn't seem like much, but since I am at Target at least once {okay, twice!} a week, it starts to add up! what is cool is the card isn't a credit card, the card is linked to your checking account and the money comes right from there. No extra bills to pay! You can get your debit card at any target (make sure to have your checkbook on you, they need a voided check.) Seriously, totally awesome. You can find more info at <a href="https://redcard.target.com/redcard/content/rcw_benefits_tgt_rewards">Target</a></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV2k7euM0I/AAAAAAAAALk/Cop1Q5tSqyE/s1600/date+night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV2k7euM0I/AAAAAAAAALk/Cop1Q5tSqyE/s200/date+night.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">6} </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">date nights</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">date nights with my husband are few & far in between. Of course we love Baileigh, but it's fun to go out for dinner & drinks with Patrick. He works a lot of hours to help provide for us, and he doesn't get the chance to wind down very often. We may even get a date night next week. Here is a photo from our last date night. We had a blast!</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV7lv0xX8I/AAAAAAAAALs/DwH9KB2dtJI/s1600/etsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV7lv0xX8I/AAAAAAAAALs/DwH9KB2dtJI/s320/etsy.jpg" width="320" /></a>7<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">} <b style="color: #6aa84f;">handmade with love</b></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">i love all things homemade. I have fallen in love with <a href="http://www.etsy.com/">etsy</a> and I think handmade/original items are so much more fun & thoughtful. If you have never visited etsy, do so today. There are two items I am in love with at the moment. I may not have them {yet!} but just the sight of the beauty makes me smile, and I am thankful for that. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">The left is a print from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/61816425/cooking-up-love-i-heart-kitchens-series">Vol25.</a> I am in love with her work and have already asked for a couple of the prints for Christmas for my kitchen. (mom, do you read this? :) </span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">The right is a gorgeous afgan blanket from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/55145959/colorful-afghan-blanket">Atelier Afra</a>. As gorgeous as it is, it's still a bit ot of my price range. I'll just log onto Etsy every so often and lust after it until I can afford it :) </span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">Nonetheless, homemade is beautiful :)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;"> </span><b style="color: #6aa84f;"><br />
</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV9zpFzv4I/AAAAAAAAALw/i33XINJX9qc/s1600/chocolate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TOV9zpFzv4I/AAAAAAAAALw/i33XINJX9qc/s1600/chocolate.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"> 8<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">} <b style="color: #6aa84f;">chocolate </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b style="color: #6aa84f;">{in all forms, cookies, hot cocoa, cakes, etc.}</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">I love chocolate. A lot. I don't really think this needs a description. :)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.umassmed.edu/healthyheart/chocolate.aspx">{image by...} </a></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">Okay, I stopped at 8 because I cold seriously go all day with big things & little things I am thankful for {and that would be a big list!}</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">Thank you to everyone who is is my life. You are amazing and why I am so happy & blessed.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: black;">Now..the big question is, what are <b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">YOU thankful for?</span></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span></b></span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4299118650874966968.post-80730088888179662432010-08-06T12:45:00.000-05:002010-08-06T12:45:21.250-05:00{TASTEday} - Chicken Chilaquiles<div style="color: #444444;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TFxKCCu_EMI/AAAAAAAAAKc/dajlOJPRA_c/s1600/chicken+chilaquiles_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nqNFsmiG6VQ/TFxKCCu_EMI/AAAAAAAAAKc/dajlOJPRA_c/s400/chicken+chilaquiles_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Yay, it's Friday! I love Fridays, as I am sure most of you do as well. I promised when I wrote the post <a href="http://www.livelovetaste.com/2010/08/time-to-get-healthy.html">time to get {HEALTHY}!!</a></span> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">that I would still try lots of new recipes and post recipes on Fridays. Just because I am following <a href="http://www.weightwatchers.com/">WW</a> doesn't mean I am going to eat salads all day everyday. yuck. I do like a good salad now and then, but I like real food, specifically, Mexican food! Yesterday I was browsing <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/">Martha Stewart</a> and found this easy and delicious look recipe for <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/chicken-chilaquiles?comments_page=1">Chicken Chilaquiles</a>. I like recipes that are: 1. easy, 2. don't take FOREVER and a day (especially during the work week!) and 3. minimal ingredients. This recipe was all three. I did make a few adjustments though (based on the reviews I read & ww)</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Here is my version of Martha's <b>Chicken Chilaquiles</b>.</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444;"><b><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Ingredients</span></b></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1 tbsp Peanut Oil (I was out of olive oil, but normally that's what I would have used!)</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">4 cloves garlic, chopped</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1 28oz can whole peeled tomatoes in puree</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">2 canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, finely chopped (about 1 heaping tbsp)</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1 tbsp of adobe sauce (from can of chipotle chiles)</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">salt</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1 can of black beans, drained </span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1 1/4 lb of boneless, skinless chicken thighs*</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1/2 c lightly packed cilantro leaves, chopped</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">tortilla chips</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">light sour cream</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">** i LOVE chicken thighs. They have so much more flavor. I buy the <a href="http://www.justbarechicken.com/">Just BARE Chicken</a> which is already 1.25 lbs and boneless/skinless **</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><b>Directions</b></span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">1. Place chicken thighs in a saucepan and fill with water just over the height of the chicken. Sprinkle in salt & pepper. Cover until boiling. Remove lid and let boil for 12-15 minutes. Remove Chicken from pot. Once cool, shred the chicken. Place aside.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><b> </b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2. </span></span><span style="font-size: small;">Combine oil and garlic in a large (3-to-4-quart) saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and sizzling, 1 to 2 minutes.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">3. Add tomatoes with their puree (breaking tomatoes up), chipotles and adobo, black beans, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil; season with salt. Reduce heat and simmer rapidly until lightly thickened, 6 to 8 minutes.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">4. Add chicken and cook, stirring, until hot, about 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in chopped cilantro.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">5. Place a handful (or so) of chips at the bottom of a bowl. Top with the chicken/tomato mixture. Garnish with cilantro and sour cream.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Makes about 6 servings.</span></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">It was fantastic! One of my new favorite dishes. It's easy and the chipotle peppers and adobe give it great flavor that I'm not used to cooking with! I did change a couple things from Martha's recipe. She has you use a small rotisserie chicken. That would have actually make the recipe only 4 steps and easier, but I wanted to boil the chicken (healthier) and save a little money. (Rotisserie Chicken - $5.99, Chicken Thighs, $3.99) Also, the original recipe says to add feta cheese as an additional garnish. Because I am trying to be healthier, I cut that out, but I promise, it's SO good without it! Lastly, when I was reading the reviews on the original recipe, people said they added black beans for extra protein. I thought the beans were great!</span><br />
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</span>colleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17747439510392822291noreply@blogger.com0