Saturday, December 31, 2011

Yummers.






I don't know if you can tell, but this is D-lish. I made this for dinner last night and my family loved it! I've made Josh start giving me a rating from 1-10 on food that I make. I honestly like to know what he likes that I make so that I know he'll like it if I put it on the list of "make agains." When I normally ask him what he thinks of a dish, he'll do what most men do. Give a half hearted "Its good." Which doesn't let me know if he wants me to make it again or not of course. So, the scale has been working very well for us. He gave this a 7. Which was great, considering the night before the meal had gotten a 4. I guess that's the risk you take when you make a pinterest meal, right?

I did NOT come up with this on my own. Thanks to my nice little Betty Crocker app on my Iphone, I came across this and decided to give it a try. It most definitely will be made again. My 6 year old adored it as well.


Ingredients

2 tablespoons Italian dressing 
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch strips 
3/4  chicken broth 
1 package (9 oz) refrigerated cheese-filled ravioli 
1/2 cup half-and-half
4 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled 
Shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired Chopped fresh parsley, if desired

Directions   

- In 10-inch skillet, heat dressing over high heat. Cook chicken in dressing 2 to 4 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown.
- Add broth and ravioli to skillet. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium. Cook uncovered about 4 minutes or until ravioli are tender and almost all broth has evaporated.

- Stir in half-and-half; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered 3 to 5 minutes or until sauce is hot and desired consistency (cook longer for a thicker sauce). Sprinkle with bacon, cheese and parsley.
I would leave a tip to remember to start cooking your bacon ahead of time. I always cook bacon in the oven, so before you start anything, I would go ahead and preheat the oven and pop your bacon in, that way its done by the time you're done cooking your meal. You want it crispy, so you need to keep it in there awhile. This meal is so yummy! Let me know what you think!





Friday, December 30, 2011

2011

A lot of my fellow bloggers have been doing a recap of the past year. I thought it was a great idea. Since I've been on a blogging hiatus, I thought it would be a great way to explain what we've been up to, instead of boring you with one REALLY long post explaining it. So, here's our 2011 recap!

January


This was a great month for our family! We had a couple days of snow and were able to stay home and play in it. I was in my second trimester of prenancy. We got to get a first peek of our bundle too. The most exciting thing that happened this month? We found out we were having a girl! We were so excited. This is such a great month to look back on!

February 
February was a month full of dealing with my eating issues thanks to extended morning sickness. That is one part of pregnancy I don't miss! We were able to fit in some fun days at a local theme park though. Josh also switch to working from 2pm to midnight....which stunk! Anistyn met the mayor when he came to her school! I made it to the halfway mark of being pregnant and this is the month when I first felt Britton kick!

March


In March, we finished Britton's bedding and curtains! I say we, but actually Josh did. Yes, I have a country serving, deer hunting, sewer of a husband! How lucky am I? We also spent a lot of time outside because March is when the weather is getting warm, but not hot. So we went to parks a lot and back to the small theme park here.
April 
 Such a busy month! We started it off by Anistyn having her spring break. One of my best friends, Kelly and her son Caleb, came for a visit and Kelly and I got my baby registry done. Josh went to working full on nights from 6pm to 7am which, again, stunk. Anistyn and I took a tour at the hospital I was having Britton at to take a peak at where the whole thing would be happening.  We also took a trip to Helen, GA with Josh's parents for the weekend, which was a lot of fun. Towards the end of the month, Josh and Anistyn attended their very first Daddy/Daughter dance that Anistyn's school held. They both looked great and had a great time!
May

This was another very busy month! I hit 30 weeks this months and was starting the last countdown to Britton's arrival. My friends here in Augusta threw me a surprise baby shower, which was so great of them! Anistyn graduated kindergarten, was accepted into the gifted program and turned 6! We drove out to my sister's house where her and my friend Kelly threw me a great baby shower as well! We made a trip to Alabama to see my family, and we also went to Fort Stewart to watch Josh's older brother graduate from his Officer training school!
June


We started out the month with Anistyn staying in Alabama for two weeks with my mom. It was the longest I've ever been away from her and I missed her SO much, even though she had a great time. Josh and I threw his mom a retirement party and she threw me a baby shower at her house! I got to enjoy a spa day with my friend Sara which was so great. Our hubbies had gotten them for us for Valentine's Day presents! Josh had a birthday at the end of the month and turned 26. We also learned that Britton was breach and I had to go into do a version, where they put mineral oil on my belly and flipped Britton from the outside. It hurt, but worked! By the end of the month we had everything ready for Britton's arrival.
July


This was a wonderful month! On July 8th, we welcomed Britton McKenzie into the world. We all fell in love instantly. We spent the 4th watching fireworks on base and at a local place before Britton made her arrival. I did a lot of walking! It was my walking on the treadmill that sparked it though! This month was spent getting to know Britton and getting adjusted to having a baby in the house. AKA...a lot of sleepless nights, but well worth it! The end of the month was a little stressful though, as Josh burnt his arm and had to have surgery to put a skin graft put in. It all turned out great though and now you can barely tell! 
August

In August, Anistyn started first grade! She was so excited, but had to spend a couple days within the first two weeks home sick. All those kids being around each other means germs right? My mom, sister, and brother also all came for a visit and it was great. Anistyn also lost her very first tooth! I started training for the job that was short lived, so a couple weeks were VERY hectic trying to juggle everything. But, that's what caffeine is for, right? Josh also got switched to daytime shift which was WONDERFUL for us!
September



Football season had begun, which is always a big deal in our house. The picture above is one of my favorites of Josh and Britton. He was watching his game online, and she was watching with him. He's made it one of his life goals to make her an FSU fan like him. Mommy says Roll Tide! My family came back for another visit and brought my older sister and her two girls so they could all meet Britton. I also took up doing hair, and its pretty much become one of my biggest hobbies! Thank goodness for Anistyn and her head full of hair! Oh, and her patience too! Josh and I celebrated our two year anniversary with Taco Bell by candlelight, haha! Hey, when you have an infant, breaks don't come very often, right? 
October


We went to Oktoberfest here on base in October. They have great rides every year during October, so we took full advantage! We also took the girls out around the neighborhood to get some candy. Anistyn went as a bumblebee and Britton went as a ladybug, although she slept through the whole thing! My younger sister came to stay for a week and we had a lot of fun. We even went up to Anistyn's school so we could surprise her and have Tia read to her class. Britton also got baptized in October! Josh and I also bought a new vehicle that we both ADORE! Its a Chrysler Aspen and we consider it our new baby!

November

This month marked my 21 27th birthday. My husband and I had our first date night since having Britton and went to dinner and out to see Breaking Dawn of course! I also started working, watching kids in my home, which I quicky learned wasn't going to work our for us. In November we also found out that Britton was having muscle problems in her neck and began physical therapy. We had about 15 people over for Thanksgiving as well! It was loud, busy, and full of fun!
December


After over a month of watching kids in my home and it just not working out, I shut it down so that I could (thankfully) have my house back! Britton continued her physical therapy and they are now saying its in her hips too. She did roll over though, so thats an improvement! I'm sure she'll come around fully! We took a trip to Alabama so that some of my extended family could meet Britton since we hadn't been out there since before she was born. We then had Josh's family over for Christmas. We celebrated Britton's first Christmas and had a great time! 
It was great to go back through the year and not only see all of the good times, but to see all of the blessings God has given our family. I am so thankful for this year that we have had and I look forward to 2012!
Happy New Year!!





New blog, new look!

I'm baaaaack! After a very long break from blogging, due to kids, a job, and life in general, I'm back and ready for action! I've missed my blog and am excited to have a fresh start. Before I start, I need to thank my friend Elizabeth Allred for all the work she did designing my blog for me! I couldn't have done it without her...seeing as she did all of it! You can check her blog out HERE. Thanks so much Elizabeth!