Favorite Little Princess

Got another Paleo recipe for you! This is one looks much more difficult than it is. In fact, I think producing these meals has made me feel like I can actually cook. Maybe. We like topping ours with our favorite spice blend. Ingredients: Chicken breasts - slice open butterfly style 1 slice of deli “honey baked” ham 3 asparagus stalks, hold each end and bend until it breaks, use only the top half 1 slice of brie cheese Olive oil Salt and pepper Your favorite spice blend  Directions: Stuff chicken with ham, asparagus and brie. Hold together with a toothpick. Sprinkle olive oil, kosher salt and black cracked pepper over the chicken or use your favorite spice blend. We use  Minorcan Datil Pepper Spice  and it's perfect! Bake on 400 degrees for 15 minutes. If your breasts are really thick, you may need more time. YUMMY!  This is a great way to not serve chicken the same old way.

Oh my goodness. It's November. I'm stalling. I admit it. The days keep ticking away and all I can do is look at patterns. I can't seem to come up with a real plan. What do I give my mom? What would my husband's aunt like?  It all just gives me a headache. I hate just giving gift cards. It seems so impersonal. My kids, however, love the idea of shopping for what they want. It's a losing battle. I tend to make most of my gifts because I like to put thought and time into it. I also like the idea of buying from other crafters. Maybe I can find some fairs to go to before Christmas? Where do you go for inspiration? Magazines? TV? Blogs? Pinterest? Etsy? It doesn't help that I don't like shopping. Maybe it's time for a trip to my local library. I found some really great books for crochet patterns when I was hunting for baby gift inspiration. There's nothing worse than buying a book and then not liking what's inside. What's wors...

I love this salad. It's so delicious! The only bad news is now I have used up my entire stock of blueberries from our picking outing last April. Guess I need to get more this year. If you can't find honey roasted almonds, the coconut or cinnamon almonds are tasty, too! Ingredients Fresh spinach leaves Fresh strawberries, sliced Fresh blueberries Goat cheese or honey goat cheese Honey roasted almonds Grilled chicken (optional) Directions Gently mix berries and cheese in a bowl. The strawberries, blueberries and goat cheese will break down to make the best dressing. Pour over spinach and top with nuts and chicken.  Put this together in no time. It's easy to make for 1 or 10. Super simple, super quick, and super yummy!

I love Eggplant Parmesan, but it's not exactly on the Paleo diet. This is the next best thing and it's super simple to make. It's got great texture and flavor. I have to admit, the hubby doesn't care for it, but K1 and I love it. I guess I can only push vegetables so far.  More for us! Eggplant Bruschetta: 1. Heat Oven to 350  2. Slice the eggplant into even slices (don't slice too thin or they will burn - about 1/4 inch) and lay slices out on a sheet pan sprayed with olive oil 3. Lightly shake salt and pepper over eggplant slices and place in the oven for 15 minutes 4. Flip eggplant over and add salt and pepper to the slices and place back in oven for 10 minutes Bruschetta topping: • 3 or 4 ripe plum tomatoes • 1 clove garlic, minced • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar • 3 fresh basil leaves, chopped • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Place eggplant on a plate and top with bruschetta and fresh mozzarella. ...

Charlie is the best little model. She's always awake, quiet, and never complains. I think we will keep her.  The soft colors are perfect for wearing with anything and would be great for photo shoot, too. There are plenty of color combinations  that you can switch it up with as well. Makes a great gift for a new baby! Size : 3-6 months Supplies : Worsted Weight Yarn - I used Caron So Soft. Perfect for babies Size H Crochet Hook Size G Crochet Hook Size F Crochet Hook Tapestry Needle Hat Using H Hook, Ch 3. Join into a ring. Round 1: Ch 4 (counts as dc and ch 1). *Dc, ch 1; repeat 9 times. Join to 3rd ch of beg ch 4. Round 2: Sl st in first ch 1 sp. Ch 4 (counts as dc and ch 1), dc in same sp, ch 1, *(dc, ch 1) twice in next ch 1 sp; repeat from * around. Join to 3rd ch of beg ch 4. Round 3: Sl st in first ch 1 sp, ch 4 (counts as dc and ch 1), dc in same sp, ch 1, dc in next ch-1 sp, ch 1, *(dc, ch 1) twice in next ch 1 sp, dc in next ch 1 sp, ch...

A few weeks ago I decided to get serious about my eating habits. I was feeling sluggish and just blah.  It has been suggested over and over that I try a Paleo diet. I really didn't know what that was, but I finally decided to check it out. I found a website that interested me that had a meal plan with simple recipes. Robin's Sweet Confessions  Paleo Challenge seemed simple enough, so I figured I could try anything for 5 days. I posted photos of the meals as I made them on my personal Facebook page and generated a lot of conversation. Well, 5 days turned into weeks and I'm still sticking to it.  Do I cheat? Heck yea! However, I have noticed a huge difference in the way I feel when I do and don't eat paleo. Better yet, I feel like I'm enjoying my kitchen again. The preparation is simple and the results are fantastic.  Have I lost weight? Sure, some. I've been slacking in the exercise area since I hurt my wrist in kickboxing, but I'm getting back into runni...

I know you must have thought I disappeared. Well, I did sort of. K1 and I went to Spain for a week and had quite an adventure.  It was not the trip we were hoping for, but we made the best of it. Next time we will go without a tour group. I don't speak Spanish at all, so I was anxious about being on my own, but we were given so much "free time" that we might as well have been on our own. Lesson learned, but I'm glad to have had the experience. When we got home, it was a mad dash to get ready for school to start. Supplies to buy, teachers to meet, and K2 got braces. She was such a trooper and has really been good about keeping them clean. I'm so proud of her! As if getting the kids ready for school wasn't enough, I had my own course to get ready for. It's a class I've taught many times, but we just got a new learning system at the university so I had to adjust to that. Fall is always crazy with new hires and it seems like something always happ...