Quote of the Day

Loved this quote...it is so so true!  Take a moment and think about it! 

“Always set high value on spontaneous kindness. He whose inclination prompts him to cultivate your friendship of his own accord will love you more than one whom you have been at pains to attach to you.”   - Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English author

No Place on Earth I'd Rather Be...

than buried under these two!!!

So THANKFUL for a life full of love, laughter, snuggles, footed jammies, *dog*  fur, quilts, and so so so much more!  Oh yeah...and mexican food takeout...

Photo of the Day

Chicken Picatta

When I find something I really like to eat, I can go crazy with wanting to eat it everyday.  Especially when I was pregnant...I had to put in place massive rules with my Toaster Strudel addiction...no more than 3 per day, must eat with a side of fresh fruit...blah blah blah.  Anyway, I love Chicken Picatta from Cheesecake Factory!  I HAD to have it once I got my appetite back from the Black Plague then 2 days later then 2 days later.  Cheesecake Factory is pretty darn expensive!  In fact, eating out anywhere that often is expensive!  So I decided I better try to duplicate the recipe.  I made it today and it was WONDERFUL!!  Sorry Cheesecake Factory...

Ingredients

1 pound chicken breasts--I bought the Tyson thin breasts because I do not like to pound on chicken...yuck!

a few tablespoons butter

1 lemon

a few dashes of white wine vinegar or white wine if you have it on hand

italian seasoning, black pepper, sea salt-or regular salt

1/2 a jar of CAPERS! 

splash of heavy cream (1/4 of a cup)

angel hair pasta

Melt your butter in a pan, slice half your lemon in fine slices and throw in the pan.  Put your thin chicken breasts in and squeeze the other half of the lemon on top of your chicken.  Add your wine or wine vinegar. 

 Let cook on this side on med-med/low for about 6 minutes.  Then flip your breasts and add in several tablespoons of capers (about half a jar). I went ahead and covered it for the next 6 minutes just to be sure my chickies got all cooked!

Meanwhile, you should be getting your water boiling so you can drop the angel hair pasta!  It only takes 5 minutes!  I also chopped some broccoli and threw it in another pan with some pam, salt and pepper and a tiny squeeze out of my lemon.  Once your chicken has cooked 15 minutes it should be done so turn it down to low and add ina splash of heavy cream.  It only takes a tiny bit but I think it is essential to calm down the vinegar and lemon juice.  Serve your chicken over the angel hair and a drizzle of the yummy lemon sauce with plenty of capers and a side of crunchy broccoli!

Delicious!!  This will be a new regular around here!!! 

Quote of the Day

Loved this quote this morning and wanted to share...it will be a good one to have in my pocket for Mini come junior high! 

"Troubles are often the tools by which God fashions us for better things." Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887) American clergyman

Monkey See, Monkey Do

I thought I would share a few funnies that are the latest craze around here!  When Paige is upset (crying) I always say "OH NO!" in a dramatic tone I'm sure and then go check on her.  Well, a few days ago she started making her theatrical debut and when I won't pick her up on demand, she breaks out the crocodile tears and starts wandering through the house saying "OH NO!!!"  "OH NO!!"  "OH NO!!"  over and over!  It is one of the funniest things EVER!  If she really wants to put on the dog, she drags blankie with her! 

Wearing a combination of both of our headbands and dragging our suitcase around the house! 

Discipline time??!!  We do get onto Paige when she is doing something naughty...like standing on couches and chairs.  They are for sitting not taking nose dives into the hardwood!  Or when she decides to throw a fit.  Mainly we say no and then ignore her as to not promote that behavior!  But yesterday I made Paige and I chicken tacos for lunch.  Nothing fancy but lunch usually isn't a hot meal unless its turkey dogs or scrambled eggs.  So I thought my little eater would be excited!  Oh was she!  The second she got in her chair she started grabbing handfuls of her little tacos and throwing them as far as she could across the room!  You BETTER NOT be laughing!  :)  So I got her out of her seat, washed her hands and told her there would be NO lunch for her today!  Tyler thought that was kind of mean but clearly she wasn't hungry or she wouldn't have been acting like a heathen.  I almost gave in and fed her a nutrigrain bar or something and I thought, nope...I remember doing this sort of thing and having to leave the table and it really teaches you a lesson waiting for that next meal!  Sure enough, she was dancing around for dinner and sat like a very good girl and ate her ENTIRE meal! 

The crime scene...

So here's to hoping she doesn't do that for awhile and praying we always come up with a rational approach to parenting that teaches our daughter AND the strength not to laugh when she is being super naughty but it is oh so funny!!  The kid does have an arm on her though...

Chocolate Crinkles!!!

I love food that reminds me of my childhood.  The older I get, the more I feel like I forget and I hate it!  Both of my grandmothers passed away when I was young...before I knew how important it would be to have their recipes or ask them questions about their lives.  But I do remember these chocolate cookies my grandma would make me and I can still taste them, that's how good they were!  I just remembered they cracked on the top and had powdered sugar on them.  Gooey and sweet!!  I have seen several recipes that were similar but none that were a match.  Until now that is!!  I served these this weekend for one of our halloween treats and have it marked for a cookie exchange for Christmas time!  They seemed to be a big hit with everyone else too!  Hope you enjoy! 


1/2 cup vegetable oil


4 oz. (4 squares) unsweetened chocolate

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 powdered sugar (for rolling the dough in )

1. Melt chocolate in a small bowl. (I did this in the microwave with the instructions on the chocolate box)

2. In a large mixing bowl blend the oil and melted chocolate.

3. Beat in the sugar and eggs (one at a time) and continue mixing until fully combined.

4. Add vanilla.

5. Stir in the flour, salt and baking powder.

6. Cover dough (in bowl) and chill several hours or overnight.

7. When the dough has fully chilled, make small balls of dough (about 2 Tablespoons) and roll in a bowl of powdered sugar. Place on lightly greased baking sheets (or line baking sheets with Silpat liners).

8. Bake at 350* (in pre-heated oven) for 8-10 minutes.  (I used my convection bake which made every other cookie recipe turn out perfect...for some reason these seemed like they needed to cook a little longer so just watch them.  Mine cooked about 11 minutes.  I haven't ever made chocolate cookies so I was nervous they were raw for some reason.)

Public Service Announcement-Cinnamon Bun Pancakes

We decided to end our fantastic weekend with a yummy Sunday breakfast!  I came across a recipe for cinnamon bun pancakes on a blog the other day and it sounded like something my fam would like.  That is an understatement!!!  We all LOVED them!  I don't like sweets all that much and especially not for breakfast.  I am a hearty kind of girl...you know...meat and potatoes.  But these puppies are A-MAZING! They are sooo good if you let them get a tiny bit crispy on the outside. The glaze that goes on top...I could drink it!  Ok, enough bantering here's the recipe!  If you know what's good for you, make these!  These would be a super special treat on a little one's birthday morning or Christmas morning or tomorrow morning for that matter!!

Dry Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp white sugar

1/2 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

1 Tbsp Cinnamon

Combine all of these and whisk together! 

Wet Ingredients

2 eggs (whole) beaten
1 Cup of milk (or a little more if your batter isn’t runny enough for you)

2 Tbsp Corn Syrup
1/4 Cup butter or margarine, melted

1 Tbsp vanilla

Beat together these wet ingredients, then add them to the dry. Mix well.

Drop the batter by about 1/3 cup fulls onto the pre-heated/greased griddle and cook until the tiny bubbles JUST start appearing on top, then flip over. These only take a couple of minutes to cook. But DO let them get a tad crispy...I cook mine really slow so the inside stays super soft and the outside has a nice crust! 

Maple Icing Syrup


1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cups butter – melted

1 Tbsp Maple Syrup

1/4 cup milk (more if you want it a little runnier)

Combine all of these ingredients with a wisk and drizzle over your cinnamon bun pancakes.  It makes such a pretty glaze and you only need a tiny bit!! 

I wish I had a picture to share but we were all like a bunch of vultures and scarfed these down before we could blink!  Best. Pancakes. Ever.  I Promise! 

Update:  Here is Paige really enjoying the leftover pancakes!!  

 MMMMM MMMMM Good!!