What's Cookin' Wednesday!

It is officially SUMMER!! WOO HOO!! Time to break out the pools, slip n slides, water balloons, BBQ grills and FRESH FRUIT!! One of my favorite parts of summer are all of the wonderful fruits that are in season! We have been enjoying doing things on our Summer Fun list! Our "Water Wednesday" yesterday got rained out, but we were still able to get wet while chasing our garbage cans down the street in the torrential downpour! Good times!! But we all try to eat healthier in the summer time, right? Now that it's time for swimsuits and shorts, we all try to get rid of the extra winter weight, blah blah blah.. But it's Summer for goodness sakes!! Everyone gets a cheat day! And last night, we had a CHEAT NIGHT!

Luther Burger

Don't judge. I know what you are thinking. DISGUSTING!! You are WRONG! I love trying new exotic foods! The first time I tried this I could not believe how yummy it was!! And yes, those are donuts! But you have to use use light and fluffy donuts like Krispy Kremes. Here's the recipe. I DARE you to try it and not love it!!

2 KK donuts
red onion
1 fried egg
bacon
cheddar cheese
grilled hamburger.

Assemble as you would like. I put ketchup on mine and Captain Hunk did mayo and BBQ sauce! I can't wait to hear your reviews!!

What's Cookin' Wednesday and Giveaway Winner Details!!

I apologize for not announcing which item won on Monday. We have been a little preoccupied! However, it was a direct TIE between the Ninja and the Sanuks!! I am SO excited about this and SO excited that so many of you voted!! I decided the way this will work is, if your name is drawn, you will win the item that you voted for!! Sound good? Also, you have until the end of the day TODAY (June 19) to share my page again to have your name entered twice! Gives you a better chance at winning!! You MUST share it from my (Jack's) Facebook page, so I know exactly who shared it again! Also, I'm pretty sure I have everyone but just in case, if you entered the drawing would you PLEASE send me your name and email address? I want to make sure I don't miss anyone! Also, so I can have it on hand for future give aways!! You can email me at chelseaheapphotography@gmail.com The winner will be announced at 12 pm eastern time tomorrow!! Now onto WCW!!

Green Chile Chicken over Rice

2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast cut into cubes
2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
2 cups light Sour Cream
3 4oz cans chopped green chiles
s&p to taste

Mix everything together, Spread into a 9x13 baking pan and bake at 350 for 45 mins. let it stand for about 5 to 10 mins. Serve over rice.

This recipe is so easy and SO yummy! You cane asily divide in half for smaller portions. Also, we like to add 2 oz's chopped jalepeno's for extra spice!

Few of Jack's Favorite Things! (And What's Cooking Wednesday)

So I have compiled a list of 15 of my favorite things! Now obviously my Family and church related stuff are at the top of the list, but on THIS list are my favorite material items. Things I use in my everyday life! Here they are, in no particular order.


LA's Totally Awesome
I have blogged about this before, but this is an all purpose cleaner that I use on EVERYTHING! Literally. It will get out nearly any stain from the carpet. Even ground in eyeliner...I use it to get the grease off my stove and teapot. I use it in the bathroom and to mop my floor. This stuff is magic. For real!! And I buy it at the dollar store.

Minced Garlic

I love this stuff! It is so yummy and so much easier then peeling and pressing garlic! Whenever I need garlic in something (which is almost everything) I just throw in a spoonful!

 

Pampered Chef Chopper

Need I say more?? Chops everything! I have gone through 3 of them in the last 10 years

 

 

Nikon D300 with 50mm 1.8 lens

I am hoping to soon get a new camera body, so this baby can be my backup! But 98% of the time, you will se me with THIS lens. It is my baby!

 

 

 

Crockpot

 

I own two of these and I use them both. I can't say enough about my crockpots. If you would like to read more or get some great recipes click here

 

 

 

 

 

Pampered Chef Scraper

This little thing comes in handy for all sorts of things! I mainly use it to scrape the extra dough off my counter after making cinnamon rolls or pie crust. So much easier then scrubbing with a rag! Tonight at dinner I used it to scoop up some salad dressing that had spilled!!

Costco Salad Spinner with Mandolin

This is pretty explanatory. We eat LOTS of salads in our house! This makes the washing, slicing and dicing SO much easier!

Dyson DC 17

I have owned two Dysons. I used to sell them at Sears and only ONCE did I see one get returned. Reason being their carpet was too long. I sweep and vacuum with this thing! The hose suction is incredible and I can vacuum the stairs all the way to the top without carrying the vacuum up with me. I will ONLY ever own a Dyson.

 

Bath and Body Works Hand Sanitizer with Rubber Key Chain

I have one of these that hangs off my purse and another on our pool bag. With a five year old little boy, this is very necessary!

Kitchen Ninja Blender

I LOVE my kitchen ninja!! It has three layers of blades so it doesn't miss a thing!! We even made fluffy snowcones with it today!

 Soft Bristle Brush

I use this to add the perfect amount of body to my hair! No back combing!!

 

 

Half Tee

Thanks to these amazing wonder shirts, I can still wear the cute stylish clothes, but be modest at the same time, without all of the extra bulk!

Natural Ice ChapstickThis stuff is hard to find! It has been my favorite since high school and you can ALWAYS find it in my purse! Thanks to Amazon I can buy it in bulk for CHEAP!!

Blue Bird Flour
If you are a baker then you NEED this!! This is the softest flour. I use it for my cinnamon rolls so they come out so light and fluffy. Unfortunately this flour is milled in Colorado and can only be found in the surrounding states. Thankfully I have sisters who are willing to ship it to me across the country!

Sanuks (it's not a shoe, it's a sandal) :)
Most comfortable summer time shoes!! I own this exact pair and the best part is they match with EVERYTHING!

Turbie Twist Hair Towel

My Grandma Peggy made me my very first hair towel. They are so nice and convenient!! I now own these ones. They are microfiber and work GREAT! you can buy these exact ones at Wal-Mart.



Blogger was giving me fits today, so I apologize that the pics and such are all scattered. Now that you have seen my favorite things list, how would you like to win one of these items?!? All you have to do is vote for which one of these items is YOUR favorite (excluding the camera and dyson)! You can vote by leaving a comment here on the blog or comment on the post on FB! Once you have voted, share my page to be entered into the drawing!! The Voting will go until Sunday 6/16 at Midnight eastern time!!! DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!!!!!!

Now, onto What's Cooking Wednesday!! Last night we had a full cajun dinner!! I made the EASIEST salmon!! Are you ready?

Salmon filets (how ever many you are cooking)
melted butter
cajun seasoning

Rub the salmon with the butter and then rub in the seasoning. In a skillet, cook on each side for 6 mins, or until fish flakes easily! So yummy, so easy!!

What's Cooking Wednesday!! (On Thursday...)

I have gotten so many different emails asking things like "what is a typical dinner you make?" or what is something your Family eats often?" I have decided to have a new segment called "What's Cooking Wednesday" Where I will share with you recipes and pics of a meal we ate in our home that week! Sometimes they will be new things we have tried and sometimes they will be Family Favorites!
Most of you know that my Family recently made a cross country move. That last week in our old house, the week we spent on the road, and our first few nights here we ate out EVERY night. Literally. GROSS. Some people love eating out because it's easy and convenient, but it can get SO expensive and depending on what you are eating, SO bad for you!
One of Troop's favorite places to eat at is Panda Express. You know you love it too. And what do you order when you go there? The Orange Chicken. I knew it. After all of the eating out that we had to do, I thought it would be fun to find healthier versions/make at home versions of our favorite eat out food. This week we did Chinese. Both of the chicken recipes I found on Pinterest and are made in the crockpot. The Fried Rice is my own, very simple recipe. Please excuse my cell phone quality pictures. By the time dinner was ready I was starved and too lazy to run grab my camera! :) Click on the links for recipes!


Bourbon Chicken

I loved this! It ended up being my fave. You can even add a few sesame seeds to make it more traditional!




Orange Chicken
I found my orange chicken to have a bitter aftertaste. I think the juice may have overcooked. I would suggest mixing all of the ingredients except the OJ, and add that in the last hour. That should eliminate any bitter flavor.




Fried Rice

I use long grain brown rice and follow the package instructions. You will also need:
2 Tblsp Olive Oil
1-2 cups frozen Peas & Carrots
2 eggs
1/4 Soy or Teriyaki Sauce

Cook the rice as instructed. Add Olive oil and peas & carrots to a skillet and cook for 3 mins, stirring constantly. Add the rice. Whip the two eggs together and add to the mixture. Sautee' until the eggs are fully cooked.




With the exception of the bitter orange flavor, the overall turnout was great! Most importantly Troop ate his ALL GONE!!

Putting Pinterest Pins to Use!!

We ALL have a Pinterest, right? If not, get on board! :) How many of us have 100+ amazing recipes, DIY tutorials, activities for kids, etc..just sitting on our boards. "Oh that looks amazing! I'm gonna pin it, probably never actually do it, but I am gonna pin it, just in case!" Sound familiar? When I first started following Pinterest I was really good at trying 1 new recipe or idea a week. Then life got in the way. Well now it's Summer time. The kids are home from school and they get bored..fast. So rather then letting them sit on front of the tv ALL DAY, plan some fun activities, using ideas that you have found on Pinterest!! I saw this really cute idea where everyday was a different theme! I tried to download her little list, but you had to take one ridiculous step after another...NOT COOL! So, I decided to create my own and share it with you all! And YES, it is a FREE printable!

Summer Fun

Click on the title "Summer Fun" and simply follow the download instructions. Print it off and hang it on the fridge! I sat down and organized stuff 3 weeks out. You don't have to plan ahead that far out, but I like to know what we are doing. I decided to make your first week easy and share with you what we will be doing for our first week!

Week 1

Make Something Monday- Make a treat or a craft that you have pinned! We are making Strawberry Sweet Rolls!! YUM!

Take a Trip Tuesday- Take a trip to the Library, the park, or a free museum! You may be surprised how many there are!
We are going to visit our new library and get library cards!

Wet Wednesday- This is pretty self explanatory! There are SO many options for water fun! This week we are playing with the sprinkler under the trampoline!

Thinking Thursday- There are so many fun, at home science experiments! My little Troop loves learning and watching how things work! This may become our favoite day! This week we are making Bouncy Balls!!

Fun Friday- Let the kids pick something fun they want to do or just pick a fun activity you have pinned! This week we are making a movie theater! Complete with all the fixins'!!

Have fun utilizing those boards that are filling up! Can't wait to hear some of the fun things ya'll will be doing!

Tiger Stripes

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." ~Elizabeth Stone

A couple of months ago I was in the bathroom getting ready and Payson came in to chat with me. My arms were up in my hair trying to fluff and volumize. My shirt had rolled up and exposed my stomach. Payson was standing in front of me and he softly rubbed one finger across my belly. "Mom, what are those stripes on your belly?" Stripes? I had never thought of, or heard them referred to as stripes. This was the first thing that came to mind. "Well Bubs, those are Mommy's tiger stripes. I earned them for being so strong and brave like a tiger while you were growing in my belly. Those stripes were my reward for helping you grow healthy and strong before you were born." Silence. Then, his eyes grew big as it sank in. "That's AWESOME!! My Mom has TIGER stripes!!" Then he ran out of the bathroom. As I finished getting ready I thought about that quick conversation and how in less than 30 seconds I made him think that those "stripes" were not the gross scars of pregnancy, but the honorable marks of carrying a child. ONE child. My WHOLE life, amongst being a country music singer, a psychologist, etc, The only REAL thing I wanted to be when I grew up was a Mom. I would have 5 kids by the time I turned 30. With my Prince Charming by my side, we would raise a big Family. My kids would have lots of siblings just like I did. Best friends for life! I never planned on the pain of infertility to come stabbing its way through my life. Lots of years trying to help our Family grow and two miscarriages were not in MY plans. Then I started thinking about my siblings. One sister who has had multiple miscarriages and was told after her 2nd and 3rd baby that she would probably not be able to have anymore. Now she has FIVE beautiful girls. Another sister who for 8 years has unexplainably been unable to get pregnant, but has now, through adoption, been blessed with the sweetest little miracle. I think of these 6 little girls and my heart swells with love. My heart. I think of my sister and the stress and fear she went through and the love that she (and we all) had for her, and all of these little ones before they were born. Our hearts swelled with love, stretched, to make room to love each new one who came along. Tiger Stripes. On our hearts.


“When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.” — Sophia Loren

When I think of women, like my Mom, who have raised a lot of children, I no longer look at the "crows feet" around their eyes and think of them as a sign of aging. I think of them as the "tiger stripes" they earned from all of the constant worry, the staying up late waiting for kids to come home, the helping with home work, putting a bandage on a scrape or a kiss on the forhead trying to help mend a broken heart, when in fact her heart is also broken because yours is broken. Once you become a mother, every selfish bone in your body disappears, or at least it should. You find yourself thinking of your child before yourself and are CONSTANTLY trying to keep them safe. Tiger stripes. On our eyes.

I will be 30 this year. I don't have 5 kids like I had planned. But, I do have my Prince Charming and we have ONE amazing little boy who I wouldn't trade for a house full of kids. Someday, he may get that brother or sister, and someday, my sister my bear a child of her own. But for now, I am grateful for my "Tiger Stripes". For the physical ones that you can see on my body, but most importantly, for the ones on my heart. Any human can grow a child inside of them, but it takes someone with a real open heart to truly love someone more than themselves.