Sour Cream Noodle Bake
For this weeks recipe I turned to Pioneer Woman. She has never failed me and I love her. Her recipes are delicious, easy to follow and she has great pictures! Like a lot of her recipes, this one isn't the most waist line friendly, but it was good!
You can find the recipe here: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/03/sour-cream-noodle-bake/
Verdict: We liked it! Big K was sick so she didn't eat any, but everyone else enjoyed. The leftovers were very good also. It was quick and easy which is always a plus. It wasn't the best dish I've ever made, but it will definitely be added to my menu.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
New Recipe Week 1
So this was the first week of my goal to try 1 new recipe every week. This week I chose a Crockpot Honey Apple Pork Loin. I'm not really sure why I chose this recipe. Other than bacon, I'm not a huge fan of pork. Thanks to an unfortunate experience in the OSU Student Union Food Court I have a fear of consuming undercooked pork. So every time I attempt a recipe it always ends up being really dry because I've overcooked it. The Hubs really likes a non-dry pork loin and the ingredients in this recipe appealed to me so I gave it a try.
The verdict: Just so-so. It did have a really good taste. I was a little worried it would be really sweet, but it wasn't at all. But...it was dry :( The original recipe did not call for any liquid to be added. I made some gravy to put on top and it helped. Next time I will definitely add some apple cider and maybe marinate it overnight.
I will give it another shot in a couple of months. If it comes out not so dry, I'll definitely add it to my rotation!
Crockpot Honey Apple Pork Loin
original recipe can be found here.
I forgot to take picture...sorry :)
Ingredients:
- Pork Loin (I used 1lb.)
- 2-3 Red Delicious Apples, sliced
- Honey
- Cinnamon
Prep: There is next to no prep time with this recipe. Other than having to touch the meat I didn't mind it at all. Slice 2 apples and put them in the bottom of the crockpot. Sprinkle with GOOD cinnamon. Next, cut slits in the pork loin about ever 1/2 to 1 inch. Drizzle honey into each slit and push a slice of apple into each slit. Place the pork loin in the crockpot on top of the apples. Drizzle honey on top of entire loin and sprinkle with more cinnamon.
Cook: Cook on Low for 6-7 hours and enjoy the amazing smell all day. Do NOT remove the lid when cooking! (If you use a bigger cut of meat, it shouldn't change the cook time much)
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Better late than never. Goals for 2013.
Well, it's halfway through January and I have finally decided on a couple of goals that I want to achieve in the upcoming year. Thanks to my busy mind that never turns off, pinterest and my constant urge to organize something I have a million goals that will probably never happen. However, I have narrowed it down to 2 obtainable goals that I can focus most of my energy on.
1. Getting back on track with my fitness goals.
This time last year I was doing so well! I was at the gym 5 nights a week, I had completely stopped drinking pop and the pounds and inches were melting away. I loved the results I was getting and I have never felt better about myself. Towards the end of the summer I decided to stop going to the gym because I just couldn't justify spending the insane amount of money it was costing every month. I thought I could just work out at home, save the money, and get the same results. Fast forward 6 months and I've only worked out a handful of times. When I'm home I am mom. There is always someone wanting my attention,someone needing something, someone getting into something,laundry to be done, dishes to be loaded, meals to be cooked and floors to be vacuumed. Even if I try to set aside 30 minutes to work out, the chances of it being uninterrupted are almost non-existent. Don't get me wrong, I love my job as a mom and wife, but I find it almost impossible to step out of those roles and do something for me. I'm not making excuses. That's just how it is.
When I started going to the gym I found myself eager and excited to go. Not because I love spending 30 leg burning minutes on the elliptical or doing squats, lunges and crunches, but because when I stepped into the gym I was me. I wasn't mommy,wife,chef,chauffeur or laundry folder. I was Shanon and I was doing something for myself. For an entire hour I didn't think about anything else. It was my therapy. When I would get done I would be so exhausted, but I would feel so good about myself. In turn, I believe it made me a better mom and wife.
Also, working out and eating healthy go hand in hand for me. When I work out I am much more disciplined with my eating because I don't want all of that hard work to go to waste. By no means do I deprive myself, but I certainly think twice before indulging.
Finally, the last reason for this goal is to set an example for my girls. I want to show them a healthy lifestyle. I want them to grow up with a healthy self image. When they're grown I don't want them to have memories of their mom complaining about her weight or eating herself into obesity. I want them to remember sitting down at the table with me and eating healthy meals. I want them to remember going on walks, playing at the park and just being active with me. I want them to know that the number on the scale does not matter.I don't want them to believe that their self worth is not based on what they see on TV and read in magazines. I want them to grow up have a happy, healthy and active lifestyle.
2. Expand and organize my recipe box.
In the 7 1/2 years that the hubs and I have been married, my cooking has definitely come a looooong way. I'm very proud of how far I've come, but I feel like I'm in a bit of a rut. I seems like we have the same meals over and over and over. So, this year my goal is to try 1 new recipe every week. In addition, I would also like to organize all of my recipes in a way that is easy to plan and rotate meals. I plan on doing a weekly post of the recipe I tried for that week. I'll also do a post when I find a good way to organize them. Suggestions are greatly apprecitated :)
So that's it. Seems doable, right? Please feel free to hold me accountable:)
1. Getting back on track with my fitness goals.
This time last year I was doing so well! I was at the gym 5 nights a week, I had completely stopped drinking pop and the pounds and inches were melting away. I loved the results I was getting and I have never felt better about myself. Towards the end of the summer I decided to stop going to the gym because I just couldn't justify spending the insane amount of money it was costing every month. I thought I could just work out at home, save the money, and get the same results. Fast forward 6 months and I've only worked out a handful of times. When I'm home I am mom. There is always someone wanting my attention,someone needing something, someone getting into something,laundry to be done, dishes to be loaded, meals to be cooked and floors to be vacuumed. Even if I try to set aside 30 minutes to work out, the chances of it being uninterrupted are almost non-existent. Don't get me wrong, I love my job as a mom and wife, but I find it almost impossible to step out of those roles and do something for me. I'm not making excuses. That's just how it is.
When I started going to the gym I found myself eager and excited to go. Not because I love spending 30 leg burning minutes on the elliptical or doing squats, lunges and crunches, but because when I stepped into the gym I was me. I wasn't mommy,wife,chef,chauffeur or laundry folder. I was Shanon and I was doing something for myself. For an entire hour I didn't think about anything else. It was my therapy. When I would get done I would be so exhausted, but I would feel so good about myself. In turn, I believe it made me a better mom and wife.
Also, working out and eating healthy go hand in hand for me. When I work out I am much more disciplined with my eating because I don't want all of that hard work to go to waste. By no means do I deprive myself, but I certainly think twice before indulging.
Finally, the last reason for this goal is to set an example for my girls. I want to show them a healthy lifestyle. I want them to grow up with a healthy self image. When they're grown I don't want them to have memories of their mom complaining about her weight or eating herself into obesity. I want them to remember sitting down at the table with me and eating healthy meals. I want them to remember going on walks, playing at the park and just being active with me. I want them to know that the number on the scale does not matter.I don't want them to believe that their self worth is not based on what they see on TV and read in magazines. I want them to grow up have a happy, healthy and active lifestyle.
2. Expand and organize my recipe box.
In the 7 1/2 years that the hubs and I have been married, my cooking has definitely come a looooong way. I'm very proud of how far I've come, but I feel like I'm in a bit of a rut. I seems like we have the same meals over and over and over. So, this year my goal is to try 1 new recipe every week. In addition, I would also like to organize all of my recipes in a way that is easy to plan and rotate meals. I plan on doing a weekly post of the recipe I tried for that week. I'll also do a post when I find a good way to organize them. Suggestions are greatly apprecitated :)
So that's it. Seems doable, right? Please feel free to hold me accountable:)
Saturday, December 29, 2012
7 things you may not know about me...
I found a list of blogging prompts and since my everyday life is quite boring, I thought I would use some of them.
1. I'm a YouTube addict! I LOVE watching beauty channels. I can waste hours and hours watching makeup tutorials, product reviews, vlogs and hauls. Some of my fave gurus:
Samanthaschuerman
Makeupbytiffanyd
Leighannsays
Grav3yardgirl
Eleventhgorgeous
I could go on for hours. Watch them if you have a chance!
2. I have a serious problem when it comes to the sound of people eating and breathing. Smacking,slurping,crunching,scraping of teeth on the utensils and loud or heavy breathing absolutely drive me insane. I'm not exaggerating when I say I am positive I have misophonia.
3. I don't have any tattoos and probably never will.
4. I have never smoked anything. Seriously nothing. Ever. I don't plan on that ever changing.
5. I use to be terribly shy. It was so bad that in HS I tried to pick my college major based on which one didn't require me to take Speech. Turns out, there are none.
6. I'm 27 and I have A LOT of gray hair. It's unfortunate.
7. I'm a planner and I obsess over details of everything. My mind never turns off. It causes a lot of sleep loss.
1. I'm a YouTube addict! I LOVE watching beauty channels. I can waste hours and hours watching makeup tutorials, product reviews, vlogs and hauls. Some of my fave gurus:
Samanthaschuerman
Makeupbytiffanyd
Leighannsays
Grav3yardgirl
Eleventhgorgeous
I could go on for hours. Watch them if you have a chance!
2. I have a serious problem when it comes to the sound of people eating and breathing. Smacking,slurping,crunching,scraping of teeth on the utensils and loud or heavy breathing absolutely drive me insane. I'm not exaggerating when I say I am positive I have misophonia.
3. I don't have any tattoos and probably never will.
4. I have never smoked anything. Seriously nothing. Ever. I don't plan on that ever changing.
5. I use to be terribly shy. It was so bad that in HS I tried to pick my college major based on which one didn't require me to take Speech. Turns out, there are none.
6. I'm 27 and I have A LOT of gray hair. It's unfortunate.
7. I'm a planner and I obsess over details of everything. My mind never turns off. It causes a lot of sleep loss.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Like a Child
As a parent, one of the most rewarding parts about having children is seeing the world through their eyes. Little things that we take for granted or hardly notice are so exciting and new for a small child. For a VERY short time they just accept and/or believe what they see and hear. Their pure innocence does not allow them to question "why" or "how". They just believe.
At our church for the past 2 weeks we have been studying the attributes of God through the eyes of a child. This series has really been speaking to my heart. So much of the time, at least for me, we try to make having a relationship with God so much more complicated than it is. We feel we have to pray a certain way or act a certain way. If we feel like our prayers/actions/works aren't up to a certain standard we feel distant from God and the more distant we feel the less we try to become closer to Him. As a Christian, I know that even if I did all of those things perfectly, I would not be deserving of His grace and mercy. But I still can't help but feel like I can't get close enough to Him because I'm just not good enough.
When you tell a child that God is always with them they just believe. They don't feel like they have to do certain things to keep him there and when they make mistakes they don't think he has left them. When you tell a child that God will always forgive their mistakes they without question believe and fully accept His grace and mercy. When they pray they talk to Him like their talking to their best friend. They don't feel they need to use big or fancy words. They don't feel like they have to pray for a certain amount of time. They say what is on their heart and that's it.
My heart needed this message. A great reminder to stop making things so complicated. Just be with Him. Just talk to Him. And most importantly for me, just receive Him. No, I don't deserve it, but His grace and mercy are endless. God wants to bless us if we will just stop doubting and questioning Him and have that child-like faith.
Just believe.
If you don't have a church home I would love to invite you to Life Church. No matter where you are you can listen to all of the messages here.
At our church for the past 2 weeks we have been studying the attributes of God through the eyes of a child. This series has really been speaking to my heart. So much of the time, at least for me, we try to make having a relationship with God so much more complicated than it is. We feel we have to pray a certain way or act a certain way. If we feel like our prayers/actions/works aren't up to a certain standard we feel distant from God and the more distant we feel the less we try to become closer to Him. As a Christian, I know that even if I did all of those things perfectly, I would not be deserving of His grace and mercy. But I still can't help but feel like I can't get close enough to Him because I'm just not good enough.
When you tell a child that God is always with them they just believe. They don't feel like they have to do certain things to keep him there and when they make mistakes they don't think he has left them. When you tell a child that God will always forgive their mistakes they without question believe and fully accept His grace and mercy. When they pray they talk to Him like their talking to their best friend. They don't feel they need to use big or fancy words. They don't feel like they have to pray for a certain amount of time. They say what is on their heart and that's it.
My heart needed this message. A great reminder to stop making things so complicated. Just be with Him. Just talk to Him. And most importantly for me, just receive Him. No, I don't deserve it, but His grace and mercy are endless. God wants to bless us if we will just stop doubting and questioning Him and have that child-like faith.
Just believe.
If you don't have a church home I would love to invite you to Life Church. No matter where you are you can listen to all of the messages here.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Christmas Train
I know I've been slacking a bit since Thanksgiving, but I've been really busy with a lot of not-so-interesting activities. Cleaning out closets, cleaning the garage and organizing the attic...not much to blog about :) I did make a couple of trips out to my grandma's house to help her with her Christmas decorations. If you've ever been to her house at Christmas time, you know what a big job that is! Little K and I went while big K was at school and we had a wonderful time helping her
This past weekend we went to the Christmas Train. It was our family, my grandparents, parents, brother, cousin, other brother and my soon-to-be SIL. It was so much fun and the temperature was in the mid seventies so the weather was fantastic!! If you ever get the chance to go you should! You can read a little more about it here.
I promise it won't be another 2 weeks until the next update :)
This past weekend we went to the Christmas Train. It was our family, my grandparents, parents, brother, cousin, other brother and my soon-to-be SIL. It was so much fun and the temperature was in the mid seventies so the weather was fantastic!! If you ever get the chance to go you should! You can read a little more about it here.
I promise it won't be another 2 weeks until the next update :)
Here are a few pictures from the weekend :
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| My sweet family <3 |
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| Big K and Aunt Hollie |
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| Big K enjoying her cotton candy :) |
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| Little K and Nana <3 |
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| My loves <3 |
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| Love them! |
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| Melts my heart!! |
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