Service

I lost count of the service I did my birthday week. Not because I feel I did a ton, but because things became busy. I know that throughout the week when I walked I stopped to pick up litter. It was great for my neighborhood, and a great sort of squatting exercise while walking. I did other things throughout the days, as well.

My main goal in trying to do so many acts of service was to try to learn to focus on others and not on myself. I hope to continue.

Monday

Today I didn't feel like I did much. I cleaned my parents house: vacuumed, changed filters, mopped, and took out the trash. In the evening at my husband's suggestion we took over dinner to my parents. Also, I sincerely thanked my daughters teachers. She loves going to school where she is at and she is doing a great job. I really am grateful to them for their help.

I count 5 today. Yes, I am counting the different jobs that I did for my parents. This week total is now 9.

My birthday

My birthday is coming up. I am turning 30 years old. I never thought I would make it this far. Oh, I didn't think I would die, I just never imagined myself at 30. I'm sure many young people are the same. Being 30 seemed so far away and now suddenly it is here, less than a week away. To celebrate this momentous event I decided I would try to do 30 acts of service/kindness before my birthday. I will try to detail what I did to see if I can make it. It is difficult to do things when I have a little baby and he takes up much of my time. I feel like I rely more on others service than I do serve but I will try my best to serve.

Today on our walk to church, one of my neighbors' mailbox lid was open so I closed it. I know that is simple but I'm counting it.

At church, my daughter and I passed a young lady wearing a pretty dress. We made sure to stop and compliment the lady on her dress.

After church, we went over and visited my parents. My dad had surgery a few weeks ago, so I try to go over every few days to give my mom a break and help out where needed. Today was just to visit and enjoy their company. I am also counting this.

Tonight, my nephew you called and asked if his sister in law could borrow something of mine. I immediately said yes. I think the best part of this was that when I said yes I wasn't thinking about this goal. I did it because someone needed it. How grateful I am that my parents taught me to serve others.

I reached to 4 today.

Hands

A few of the ideas will have to wait as we are packing, so I decided to take a picture of hands. I am fascinated by a baby's hands. They are so tiny, so cute and so like an adult just smaller. I love to look at my sons hands and what he does, so here is pictures of hands.

Around the House

Today's picture was about Helping out around the house. My wonderful daughter was kind enough to take out the kitchen trash for me.

Sunset

This month I have decided to do a picture a day. I hope to capture a bit of this summer as well as improve my picture capabilities. I am using the photo challenge from here: http://www.justatouchofcrazy.com/2014/05/50-photos-of-summer-picture-challenge.html

I will take a different picture a day, but not in the order listed. Today, I chose the sunset. I love the sunset. It is beautiful.

The Ten Commandments

In the Bible, Moses received ten commandments from the Lord. Many Christian religions follow these commandments and they are still applicable to today.

Commandment #1 : Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Moses led the children of Israel out Egypt, a place that worshiped many different gods. The children of Israel had been under this influence for many years.

Not many Christians worship golden statues but this commandment gives what should be our first priority. "If God is not first, then all other things are affected. Nothing in life, not even life itself can come before God." (LDS Institute Old Testament Manual) We often put things before God; like TV, work, movies, books, and more. When we put anything before Him in importance than we are breaking this commandment. "Anytime His children set anything before God in importance, they begin to thwart His work for them." (Manual) God wants to help us, but when we put other things before Him we are not listening to Him and he can't help us. A Bible scholar said "God is the fountain of happiness, and no intelligent creature can be happy but through him...The very first commandment of the whole series is divinely calculated to prevent man's misery and promote happiness, by taking him off from all false dependence and leading him to God himself, the fountain of all good." When we put God first, we can be happy. Despite trials, and problems, we can be happy if God is first in our lives.

Commandment #2: Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.

When Moses didn't return from talking to God as quickly as they thought he should, the children of Israel built and worshiped a golden calf.

This commandment is forbidding the worship of idols. Idols don't have to be graven images, like golden calves. They could be anything that is put before God, like clothes, homes, businesses, or degrees. When we put aside what God has said or requested for an object or idea then we are worshiping a graven image. The graven image is whatever is more important to us than God and results in interfering with worshiping and obeying Him. If we put an object or idea before God, then we have a graven image, which in the long run will not give everlasting happiness.

Commandment #3: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

Vain can mean useless, and can be substituted with the word empty or having no real worth. "It is difficult to understand how a person may truly and sincerely approach God in prayer, seeking a blessing at his hand, at the same time be so disrespectful as to take his name in vain." (LeGrand Richards) The Lord expects people to show him a reverent and respectful attitude. He does not want us to fling His name around in swearing or light, irreverent talk. How we use His name shows the respect and love we have for God. This commandment also covers any oaths or covenants we make. "In addition to religious oaths and covenants many formal acts in modern society are accompanied by solemn oaths and vows. And frequently these oaths are dismissed or set aside. Clearly the violation of such oaths is a violation of the third commandment." (Manual) When we make an oath or covenant, essentially we are invoking the Lord in that promise and by breaking it, we are taking His name in vain. If the world followed the third commandment then we could trust people to keep their promises and use clean language.

Commandment #4: Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy

When Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, they were told that now they would have to work to have food, clothing and shelter. Even though we need to work to live, we still need to put the Lord first. He set aside one day a week where we are commanded to rest from our labors and remember Him. "Resting on the Sabbath, then, implies far more than taking a nap or stopping normal activities. Mankind must enter into the Lord's work on that day...Doing the work of the Lord (sanctification) often involves great activity on the Sabbath day and the day may not be restful in the usual sense." (Manual) The Sabbath is not only to go to church, and then forget about the Lord. It should be time that we set aside from the world and focus on the Lord. This is not easy, because in today's world there are many enjoyable activities that occur on the Sabbath. If we participate in these activities we are breaking this commandment. "[The Sabbath] is a day on which to surrender every worldly interest and to praise the Lord humbly, for humility is the beginning of exaltation. It is day not for affliction and burden but for rest and righteous enjoyment." (Spencer W. Kimball) Unfortunately, there are many jobs that require people to work on the Sabbath, like doctors, police, military, and others. This does not mean that this commandment should not be kept. During time off they can still concentrate on the Lord and do his work. The hardest thing to do is find activities that are appropriate for the Sabbath. President Kimball gives a great list of things that can be done on the Sabbath.

"The Sabbath is a day on which to take inventory--to analyze our weaknesses, to confess our sins to our associates and our Lord. It is a day on which to fast in 'sackcloth and ashes.' It is a day on which to read good books, a day to contemplate and ponder, a day to study lessons for priesthood and auxiliary organizations, a day to study the scriptures and to prepare sermons, a day to nap and rest and relax, a day to visit the sick, a day to preach the gospel, a day to proselyte, a day to visit quietly with the family and get acquainted with our children, a day for proper courting, a day to do good, a day to drink at the fountain of knowledge and of instruction, a day to seek forgiveness of our sins, a day for the enrichment of our spirit and our soul, a day to restore us to our spiritual stature, a day to partake of the emblems of his sacrifice and atonement, a day to contemplate the glories of the gospel and of the eternal realms, a day to climb high on the upward path toward our Heavenly Father."

Commandment #5: Honour thy Father and thy Mother

The Lord respects the family unit. "In obedience to this law the family unit and all other parts of society remain stable and healthy." (Manual) When children honor their parents, they are showing respect. Many people think that honoring your parent means obeying them, but that is not always true. When parents are righteous and teaching good behavior than honoring a parent would include obedience. When parents ask for wicked behavior than the child should honor the parents but not obey them. Honoring parents does not always mean obedience to parents. "Anytime a child lives righteously he brings honor to his parents...The opposite is also true. Anytime a child lives wickedly he brings shame to his parents." (Manual) Parents are representatives of God and that office deserves honor. For example, the President of the United States is an office that deserves honor, even if we do not agree with the person holding the office. Parents as representatives of God must teach their children or they will have severe consequences given to them by God. This is the only commandment with a promise. The promise is "that thy days may be long upon the land." (Exodus 20:12) When we honor our parents we can live happy, long lives.

Commandment #6: Thou shalt not kill

Murder is a very serious crime. It is the act of destroying a life. "It seems clear that to be guilty of destroying life is the act of 'rebellion' against the plan of the Almighty by denying an individual...the privilege of a full experience in this earth-school of opportunity." (Harold B. Lee) When someone is murdered then their chance to live a full, long life is taken from them. This commandment does not necessarily extend to military service. Murder is the act of deliberately taking a life. While serving in the military if you kill someone then you are working under the direction of your government and doing your duty. It is not murder. "There is, then, a vast difference in destroying a life while acting under the mandate of a sovereign nation whom we are in duty bound to obey and wantonly killing on our own responsibility." (Lee) Military service is not wanton killing, it is out of duty. When killing becomes deliberate or unprovoked, then it is murder and breaking this commandment.

Commandment #7: Thou shalt not commit adultery

Family is sacred to God. He commanded Adam and Eve to procreate. Throughout the Bible we are taught that the family is important, but we are given the ability to choose and make decisions. To help with the procreation we were given a powerful sexual urge. To help guide us, God gave us rules for sexual relationships. Sexual relationships should stay between a husband and wife. Intimacy should remain between husband and wife in marriage. There should be no sexual relationships outside of marriage. There really is no excuse for committing adultery. When we marry we covenant with our spouse and God that we will honor and cherish each other. When we commit adultery we break this commandment and the third commandment to keep covenants.

Commandment #8: Thou shalt not steal

"When one seeks to reap the benefits of another's labor without adequate compensation, it is theft." (Manual) Stealing covers a lot of territory. It includes shoplifting, cheating, improper legal actions to avoid debt, giving less than a full day's work and getting the full days compensation. Anything done dishonestly falls under this category of stealing. If we try to take anything without proper compensation, it is stealing.

Commandment #9: Thou shalt not bear false witness

Bearing false witness sounds outdated or like something someone might do in court, but this commandment is more applicable to us then it sounds. "To bear false witness is to testify to or pass along reports, insinuations, speculations, or rumors as if they were true, to the hurt of a fellow human being." (Adam S. Bennion) Bearing false witness is not always done on purpose because it could just be a lack of information, lack of understanding, or misunderstandings. It could also be done purposely to distort or misrepresent. We should always be careful about passing on the negative things we here about others. It could destroy their character and we would be breaking this commandment.

Commandment #10: Thou shalt not covet

Coveting is the intense desire to have someone else's stuff. It is not wrong to have an ambition to have better things, or to even admire what our neighbor's items as long as we try to honestly earn better things. When we covet, we may be tempted to use underhanded means, like stealing, or murder, to get it these items. It is better to work hard and achieve goals then to covet.

All the commandments relate. "[They] are so intertwined that none can be broken without weakening all the others." (Manual) The Bible gives many examples of this concept. When King David saw Bathsheba bathing, he lusted after her, or coveted. From there David committed adultery,  and stealing her from her husband. When her husband came back, David had him sent to the place most likely for him to die in order to hide what he had done.  By breaking one commandment, David broke many more. Coveting led to lying, stealing, adultery, murder, taking the Lord's name in vain by breaking a covenant of marriage and dishonoring his parents. The commandments hold each other up and as we strive to live them we can have better and happier lives.

Sadness vs Happiness (Building Description)

Describe a building from the point of view of a woman who has just lost her son to war. Do not mention death, war, son or self.

As I passed by the little house, I cannot help stopping and staring. It seemed to share my sadness. I could tell the owners were trying to make a good impression with the fresh, white paint, but the bright sun showcased the chipped, old wood cracked under the paint. The roof shingles newly patched gave the roof a motley look. Red brick chimneys jutted awkwardly from the roof; the bricks worn and chipped. The grass and plants ran unkempt over the yard. The flag hung limp and lifeless. In the bright light the true age of the house could be seen. This was an old house. Once it had a good life, but now it was old and finished.


Describe a building from the point of a view of a woman who just found out she is pregnant. Do not mention birth, baby, self.

With a smile on my face, I stopped to stare at the cute, little, white house. The grass in the front yard looks perfect for bare feet. I could imagine running around the yard. The blooming flowers were beautiful. They would be a delight to see each day. The plants growing in an arch over the door give excellent shade for visitors knocking at the cute, green door. The white paint was bright and fresh. The red brick chimneys coming up from the roof gave the house unique look. The chimneys also gave a continuity to the house, showing that this house could span generations. The wonderful flag declared the house's patriotism. This house looked perfect for a little family. It had a beautiful yard to play in and plenty of windows for natural light from the bright sun. This lovely, little house was bright and happy.

The house being described:

Waiting

It was midnight. The woman closed the curtains and huddled on her bed. Tim should have been home hours ago. Why hadn't he called? She could still hear her daughter's question as Mary tucked her into bed.

"Mom, when will Dad be home? I miss him."

Mary didn't have the heart to tell her that Dad should have been home earlier this morning. She curled under the covers, listening to the rain, praying that Tim was just delayed. Mary shook her head to erase the rumors she had heard. She refused to believe it. Instead she thought, "Tim is just delayed and will be home soon." With that, Mary fell into a fretful sleep.

"Ding-Dong!" Mary bolted out of bed to the sound of the doorbell. Rushing she opened the door, hoping to find Tim.  Instead, she saw two men on the doorstep. Weakly, she collapsed against the door frame.

A week later with her children by her side, Mary held back tears as she accepted the folded flag and awards. Tim had been a hero, but she would rather have him home than the folded flag clasped in her arms.

Families are Forever

"Families are Forever" is this year's theme in primary. We learn from "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" that "the family is central to [God's] plan". We are all part of one family, God's family. He gave us families here on earth and these families can continue after death. Strong families are essential to strong communities and nations.

To quote a song from primary "Our Father has a family. Its me! Its you! All others too." Basically, we are all sons and daughters of God. He is our Father in Heaven. In the bible, Romans chapter 8, verse 16 says "The Spirit beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God". Heavenly Father loves all of us, his children. Most parents want the best for us and our Heavenly Father also wants the best for us. He provided a savior for us, Jesus Christ. Christ came to show us the path to return to live with our Father, and to provide us that way. Christ died for our sins so that we could return to our Heavenly Father.

Also, Heavenly Father gave us families. The proclamation states "The family is ordained of God." It was no accident that from the beginning of time men and women have formed family units. Adam and Eve were commanded to have children, but part of that commandment was "to love and care for each other and for their children... Happiness in family life is most likely to achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." (The Proclamation) In families, parents teach children how to love and care for each other and to follow our Heavenly Father. Parents learn responsibility and control because let's face it, no one can test the patience of an adult like children.

With all the work and effort put in creating a loving family, it would be sad if families ended when we died. That is why our Heavenly Father's plan includes the opportunity for families to be together eternally. In the sacred temples, families can be sealed together. This means that a family will be able to be together after death, if they follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. Parents will be able to be with each other and their children forever. Heaven would not be heaven if we could not be with the ones we love so much. Heavenly Father understands this, since He is our Father, so he provided the way for us to live with our families for eternity.

The theme this year is to teach the children the importance of families. We are are all one family, because we are the children of God. He gave us families to love and teach us how to return to our Father in Heaven. Heavenly Father then provided a way for us to be with our families for eternity. We have been warned that "the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets." (The Proclamation) Look around, watch the news, and it is clear that the slow disintegration of family values is having a negative affect. The family is vital to communities and nations well-being. We should all help to strengthen families.

End of month one

As I mentioned in the beginning, this blog would be about my attempt to find a hobby, to find something I could do to recharge. This first month I tried out cooking. I know that for many people cooking is a great hobby and stress relief. Honestly, for me, this is not a hobby and it didn't help with stress. I like to cook when I am in the mood to cook and already relaxed. When I was tired or stressed I wished that we could do take out or that there was someone else to cook for me. Cooking was not a stress relief. It almost became another point of stress as some days I would despairingly remind myself I had to cook. Cooking is not enjoyable to me unless I feel like cooking, which is not very often. Even with that said, I will not give up cooking. I am a stay at home mom, so I cook our meals to save money, but also, I did enjoy trying out new recipes. I just won't ever consider cooking a hobby and may limit my new recipes to maybe one or two a week.

This next month I have chosen my new hobby to be creative writing. I like to write. I don't consider myself a fantastic writer, but I do like to write. Generally, I prefer to write fiction, but I will try a variety of writing styles. I haven't been able to do a lot of writing since I have been married and especially since the baby came. Life has been busy and I have been so exhausted that when I have time to myself, I just want to go to sleep. I will really put in an effort to write and write well. My plan is that most days (read: every day possible) I will do some sort of creative writing prompt on the blog and hopefully a fiction story on the side for only me to enjoy. Please enjoy my writing and feel free to comment.

Taco Stuffed Peppers

My lovely sister in law introduced me to the wonderful flavor of a stuffed pepper. I have been trying to find a good recipe of stuffed peppers that my family would enjoy. We love tacos, so I thought this would be a good marriage of flavors.
http://www.skinnymom.com/2012/04/10/skinny-taco-stuffed-peppers-2/#.Us22lRYTHzI

I used beef rather than turkey. The stuffed peppers were absolutely delicious. Everyone wanted seconds, which unfortunately we did not have. I will definitely make this recipe again.

Honey Glazed Bananas

I haven't done any desserts so I thought I would try out this dessert recipe.
http://www.heandsheeatclean.com/2013/04/clean-eat-recipe-honey-glazed-bananas.html

This bananas and honey smelled really good. It was actually pretty hard to cook, because the bananas did not brown as quickly as the recipe said. In the end, it was delicious because it is a great combination of flavors, but I thought the bananas were soggy. I would try this recipe again, but brown the bananas better.

Roasted Cauliflower

I really wanted to try a roasted cauliflower recipe. I have never eaten a lot of cauliflower, but wanted to try more. I found this recipe that had some good spices to use.
http://www.wanderingspice.com/2012/09/04/roasted-cauliflower-with-tahini-lemon-sauce/

I did skip using the tahini sauce, because I was more interested in roasting the cauliflower and getting that taste.

Actually my wonderful husband did all the work. We had a visitor until just before dinner, and of course, my son decided he was hungry. I went off to feed the baby and my husband started our dinner, including the cauliflower. By the time I was done, so was the food.

Dinner was delicious, my husband did a fabulous job. The cauliflower was alright. My daughter ate them last, which I expected as she still doesn't like vegetables. My husband said that this was a good recipe. I think it is a good way to cook the cauliflower. I may do this recipe again.

Buffalo Ranch Cheese Ball

I love cheese balls. I love cheese and the buffalo flavor, so I thought this cheese ball would be good for my family.
http://whatscookinglove.com/2014/01/buffalo-ranch-cheese-ball/#_a5y_p=1194341

It was really simple to put together. Since I am nursing my son and because I'm concerned that he may have a slight nut allergy, we replaced the chopped almonds with bacon bits. Also, I halved the buffalo sauce to make it less spicy.

This was a hit with everyone even my daughter wanted more. I felt that the cheese ball was pretty good. I did feel that the bacon bits didn't really compliment the flavor, so when I am done nursing, I will have to add back in the almonds. Until then, I'll keep looking for something to give a crunch to the cheese ball.

Mac and Cheese

Originally we were going to have the sauteed zucchini with grilled cheese sandwiches, but I just felt like that didn't go together well. Instead, I suggested macaroni (or pasta) and cheese. This recipe looked like it might be flavorful and easy to do.
http://whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/cheese/stove-top-one-pot-macaroni-cheese-recipe/

Since I was making the zucchini, I asked my husband to make the pasta and cheese. I keep saying pasta because we didn't actually have any macaroni, so we used what we had on hand. We also didn't have any mustard powder, but my husband replaced it with a mustard sauce thing. I'm not actually sure what he used to replace it. In the end, we put bacon bits on top.

It was pretty good, very creamy because of the way that it is made. My husband did a great job.I'm sure that we could make this recipe again, or I might keep going the easy route and buy it in the store.

Sauteed Zucchini

In making this recipe, I realized that I really enjoy eating cooked zucchini. The smell of the zucchini was delicious and I was excited to try out this recipe.
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/sauteed-zucchini-10000001699409/index.html

I halved the recipe because my family is small and I wasn't sure that we would eat it all. I was pretty sure my daughter would be reluctant to eat it because she isn't into eating her vegetables. It turned out alright.

It took longer than I expected to cook the zucchini, but otherwise this was a really simple side dish. It smelled really good.

My husband said that he liked the zucchini, but that he would have cooked the garlic first so that the flavor would penetrate more fully. My daughter ate it without complaint, but that could be because she has learned that she has to eat her vegetables. I would make this side dish again.

Honey Chicken

For Sunday meal, I like to try something a bit more fancy. This past Sunday I decided to try this recipe:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/honey-chicken-195274/

I thought this recipe would be really good because it combined two of my favorite things; BBQ sauce and honey. I wasn't disappointed. (By the way, my husband had the camera and took lots of pictures)

Right from the start it smelled really good. I followed the directions exactly, though I didn't have enough Paprika. That didn't seem to make a difference to the flavor.

First the chicken was dipped in a flour mixture and cooked, while I made the honey sauce.

The sauce was then poured over the chicken and it was put back in to be cooked a little longer.

At about this time the chicken was smelling really good and all of us were excited to give it a try. After pulling it out of the oven the final time, I poured the chicken and glaze in a bowl and tossed the chicken.

We then ate a delicious meal.

I think everyone enjoyed it. My husband said he did and my daughter ate the chicken pretty quickly. In fact, my husband said that this was a dish he would serve to guests. I felt the chicken was very good, maybe a little too sweet but that did not detract from the delicious flavor. Basically this recipe was a success.

Chili Dog Casserole

I have made this recipe before, but my husband requested and I thought I would include this recipe in my list of food.
http://thatchbo.blogspot.com/2010/06/chili-dog-casserole.html

Chili Dog Casserole is a twist on the classic Chili Dog. There are not a lot of ingredients needed, so it is very easy to put together.

In fact, I asked my daughter to help me roll the hot dogs in the tortillas and she wanted to help grate the cheese. She loved helping out, so it made a great activity for us to do together.

I didn't get a picture of our final product because my son was being very fussy. We turned out all the lights in the house while I rocked him, to try and help calm him down. This meant that we ate dinner by blacklight which was a fun experience.

Here is a picture from the blog where I got the recipe.

This is a very popular dish in our house as my husband and daughter love hot dogs. This will definately be made again.

Ham and Bean Soup

We had some leftover ham in our freezer that needed to be used so I thought we could try this Ham and Bean soup recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Ham-and-Bean-Soup-II/Detail.aspx

I had to make quite a few changes to the recipe to make it work for our family. First off, instead of cooking beans I used some pinto beans that were already cooked. I didn't use a hambone and we had no carrots. Since I wasn't cooking the beans I didn't use all the water. Instead, I added all the ingredients than added water to cover it, which was about a quart and a half or 4 cups of water. I then added the spices and simmered the ingredients until the vegetables were cooked.

This soup was not bad, but it wasn't great. Nobody in the family was a big fan of it. I felt that the soup was slightly bland and needed more flavor, but that could have been because of all the changes I made. I probably won't do a ham and bean soup anytime soon.

Strawberry Donuts

This past Christmas, my wonderful husband did the twelve days of Christmas to me. One of the gifts I received a mini donut maker. With this gift, I decided to try out this recipe for strawberry donuts.
http://recipesforeatingwell.com/tag/donut-maker-recipe

I tried to follow the recipe exactly.

My husband offered to help, so I asked him to puree the strawberries while I put together the rest of the ingredients. He didn't exactly puree them, but finely chopped the strawberries. We hoped that would be enough and finished the recipe. Turns out we should have pureed the strawberries. When we went to fill the donut cavities, the chopped strawberries kept getting stuck and we lost a lot of our batter. Despite this mishap, we pressed on and glazed the donuts.

The donuts were pretty good. They tasted more like strawberry pancakes than donuts.

I will have to say that after glazing the donuts and letting them sit for a bit, I put them away in containers. The glaze soaked into the donuts and the next day the donuts were wet which not as appetizing. Next time I make this recipe, I will puree the strawberries and eat any glazed donuts immediately. Otherwise I will leave the donuts plain so they do not become wet.

Banana Granola Muffins

This past week, we bought bananas just so I could do this recipe:
http://www.justataste.com/2010/11/banana-granola-muffins/

I've done a lot of dinner items, so I wanted to try a breakfast item. These muffins looked simple and delicious. My husband has been hinting at me to make them for a few days, so last night I made them.

I didn't actually use granola. Instead I used oatmeal, because that is what we had available. It really didn't take me long to make the recipe. I quickly filled up the pan and put it in the oven.

Now the recipe called for it to cook for 10-12 minutes, but after 12 minutes they were no where close to being done. It took me about 20 minutes to cook the muffins. They smelled delicious and after a short wait my husband grabbed one to try out.

The muffins were pretty good. The muffins were moist. I will need to try this recipe with actual granola.

Homemade Whole Wheat Pizza

My family loves pizza. On days that we are in a hurry, we might pick up a $5 pizza from Little Caesars. I know that this is extremely unhealthy, but I haven't found a pizza recipe that everyone liked. I decided to try this pizza recipe:
http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/04/01/recipe_homemade_whole_wheat_pizza/

The recipe looked simple and I could make it a vegetarian pizza, helping us save money. This recipe did take a little preparation. I had to make the dough at least an hour before dinner to let it sit in the fridge. I made the dough two hours before dinner, but while in the process, one of my best friends called me. I hadn't talked to her in a long time, so we chatted for awhile. By the time we were done, I was running behind to go pick my daughter up from school, so I rushed through finishing the dough. In my hurry, I forgot to knead the dough a little before putting it in the fridge and rushing out the door. Luckily, the dough still worked out really well. I'm glad it did, because I preferred talking to my friend. Even if the dough had turned out bad, I wouldn't have cared too much because friends are more important.

When it came close to dinner time, I pulled out the dough and began to roll it out into a circle shape on the pizza pan that we have. The dough was really kind of springy, which may be because I forgot to knead it or just because of the wheat. I don't really know why it was springy. What happened was that when I would roll out the dough it would shrink back a little, so it was a slow process with the rolling pin. I finally tired of this and began to use my hands to shape the dough. Finall,y it was big enough and I could put on the toppings.

Instead of using tomato sauce, I used homemade pizza sauce I found in the collection of canned items that my wonderful mother in law gave to us. I layered on thin slices of tomatoes and sweet yellow pepper, topped with Colby Jack cheese and parmesan cheese.

Finally, I stuck in the oven.

It cooked for about 9 minutes and probably could have gone for another minute. It still came out looking delicious.

Everyone seemed to enjoy the pizza. They all went back for another slice. the thing about wheat pizza is that it is more filling, so after two slices, we all were full. My husband finished the leftovers the next day. I think this is a recipe that I could do again. I love pizza because it is versatile. I can always use different toppings to create a different taste.

Tomato Basil Chicken

Tonight we decided to try the Tomato Basil Chicken found here:
http://menumusings.blogspot.com/2013/04/tomato-basil-chicken.html

We had all the ingredients on hand so after church it was a simple matter to put it all together.

As mentioned in the recipe, I served the chicken and sauce over noodles; spaghetti noodles.

The general consensus was that the chicken with the sauce was absolutely delicious, but we didn't like it as much with pasta. The pasta didn't seem to add anything to the dish. Next time, I would probably serve the chicken with the sauce alone and have some side dishes. 

Spicy Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

My husband and I love buffalo wings. We love the flavor and the spiciness. In the attempt to make our own wings we discovered Frank's Hot Sauce or Buffalo Sauce. It is delicious. When I became pregnant I had to put off spicy food, but I miss the flavor, so when I saw this recipe I just knew I had to try it. I called it a poor mans buffalo wings.
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/01/spicy-buffalo-cauliflower-bites.html 

I tried to follow the recipe exactly. First, I gathered the ingredients.

(The stuff in the fudge swirl is actually flour)

Next, I made the flour mixture and dipped the cauliflower.

Once that baked for 20 minutes I added the hot sauce mixture.

This was baked for another 5 minutes.

The cauliflower bites were pretty good and very, very, very, very spicy. The more you ate the spicier it became. I could only handle a few. My husband liked them, but then again he likes most things smothered in the buffalo/hot sauce. I felt like the sauce overpowered the cauliflower flavor. This recipe would be really good if the sauce was cut down some. I will have to try it again with less sauce.

Easy Chicken Stroganoff

One of my favorite dishes is stroganoff. I don't get to have it very often, but I always love to eat it. Last night, I decided to try this Chicken Stroganoff recipe I found here:
http://www.campbellskitchen.com/recipes/easy-chicken-stroganoff-24443

Honestly this recipe was delicious. Everyone ate it and wanted more. It was easy to fix, but then again my wonderful husband had cut up the vegetables and the chicken for me while I fed the baby. I used yogurt instead of sour cream and generic cream of chicken soup. Also, I mixed the noodles with the sauce. Even with these substitutions, the food was delicious. This recipe is definitely going to be done again.

Here is a picture from the website:

Basil and Tomato Tagliolini

This past Christmas my husband received a pasta maker from Santa Claus. He really wanted to try and make pasta so I decided to try and make a recipe from the book provided. My husband was supposed to supply the pasta. This is the recipe I used on Monday night:

Basil and Tomato Tagliolini

4 Large heirloom or roma tomatoes, diced

1/2 cup fresh, chopped basil

1/8 cup red wine vinegar

1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp oregano

1/2 lb dried tagliolini or fettuccine pasta

1 Tbsp Parmesan Cheese, grated

Mix together all the ingredients except for the pasta and cheese. Allow mixture the stand for at least 10 minutes. Cook the pasta and mix with tomato mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.

As mentioned my husband was to supply the pasta. While experimenting with the machine, he ran into some difficulties creating the pasta, so we didn't have homemade pasta. Instead, I used store bought spaghetti. 

The night I made this we had guests over. We served this experiment with some poor man's garlic bread made from hamburger buns, and peaches. My husband said that the recipe was good, just too much pasta. I believe, he does think it was good, but don't think he liked it over much. He has yet to eat the leftovers. Yes, there are leftovers, because my daughter tried to avoid eating it, and our guests didn't really seem to enjoy it. I wasn't the biggest fan, either, but I am not a good judge since I don't particularly care for tomatoes, and this recipe was about the tomatoes.

I may not care over much for this recipe, but I am still excited to try homemade pasta. I have never had homemade pasta before.

Southwestern Chicken Primevera

Today I decided to try a easy recipe that I found here:
http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/meal-ideas/5-healthy-and-affordable-dinner-recipes

I wanted to be able to make something fast because I knew that we would all be hungry after church and would want to eat lunch as soon as possible. This meal seemed to like the one to do that. I didn't have to worry about cooking the chicken because we had some canned chicken in our pantry thanks to my lovely mother in law.

The Southwestern Chicken Primevera seemed to be a partial success. Everyone ate it without too much complaint, but my husband and I both felt that there was a little bit of flavor missing. Our daughter ate it, but she ate slowly. She is not a fan of corn, so she tried to eat around the corn.

As soon as we got home from church, I started gathering the ingredients. Instead of using the can of diced tomatoes, we diced our own. Since I have other recipes that need tomatoes this week, I was not able to use as many tomatoes as I wanted. this meant the tomato presence was very light. Everything else I used pretty much as directed. As always, my son insisted that he was hungry and needed to be fed first. My husband wanted to wait until we were done, so we could eat as a family. This meant that the food sat on warm for another 30 minutes before we sat down to eat.

Here is a picture of the food before adding chicken and pasta:

Now here is the final product: (We added the lime and cilantro on our individual plates, so that is not pictured)

This is a recipe I would try again. I want to try it using the exact ingredients, such as the can of diced tomatoes, because the juice in the canned tomatoes might add to the flavor or texture. Also, the recipe calls for seasonings but doesn't give any idea what type to use, so I used regular salt and pepper. I think I would play around with the seasonings and try to get a better flavor. This recipe seems like a really good one with grains and vegetables, so I would like to perfect it a little more, and see if I can get that missing flavor.

Fajita-Style Quesadillas

Today I tried Fajita-Style Quesadillas, which are found here:
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/appetizers-snacks/fajita-style-quesadillas/

These were a success and super simple. My husband told me I should have made more and my daughter ate it without complaint. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of what my creation looked like, but here is the picture from the site I found the recipe. My quesadillas were only slightly different in looks. Honestly, they were slightly messier, as I had trouble flipping the quesadillas.

I felt that this recipe was really simple, but that may have been because my husband did most of the prep work. My son had decided he was hungry, so I had to go feed him. While I was feeding him, my lovely husband chopped up the vegetables and grated the cheese. By the time I got to the kitchen to work, all I had to do was grab a few items and start cooking the quesadillas. Cooking the quesadillas was an adventure in itself. I cooked the vegetables, then started layering the quesadillas. The recipe then called for me to cook one side for 4-5 minutes. I tried that out and almost blackened one side of the first quesadilla. I then decided that I would only cook each side 2-3 minutes and the second quesadilla came out perfect. Even with the slightly darkened side of the first quesadilla, it was delicious.

I made a few recipe changes, by using a yellow pepper and jalapeno, instead of a serrano pepper. We also used Colby Jack cheese and flour tortillas.  I skipped the oil and used the nonstick cooking spray. I know it sounds like I changed a lot, but I doubt it was really that different from the original. I was basically using the ingredients we had in our house.

This recipe seems very versatile. I'm sure I could add and take away any vegetables, or meat, to create whatever kind of quesadilla I wanted. I'm really happy to have found this recipe.

Easy Taco Skillet

Today I tried to do two new things. The first one seems to be a fail but the second one seemed to be a success.

I wanted to try out this new recipe called Easy Taco Skillet found here:  http://unmeasuredscoop.com/2013/09/18/in-a-pinch-thursdays-easy-taco-skillet/

This recipe called for two different types of canned beans. Since we had a lot of dried beans, instead of buying the beans, I thought I would try to cook kidney beans.

Experiment One: cook dried beans.

I found a website to help me know how to cook the beans. Following the directions, I got up early in the morning and set the beans to soak. After 8 hours I started cooking the beans. After several hours the beans were still hard. I would have to find alternate beans to complete this recipe. Experiment one: Fail. Lucky for us, my lovely mother-in-law, provided us with homemade canned pinto beans that I could use.

Experiment Two: Easy Taco Skillet

After discovering the beans were not done, I gathered everything that I would need to try out the recipe including the pinto beans. At this time, we discovered the tomato sauce my husband thought we had was actually tomato paste, so he ran to the store to get us some tomato sauce. When he returned I started chopping the vegetables. I diced my own tomatoes, rather than buy the canned.

When I start cooking on the skillet our neighbor showed up needing help from my husband. He went to help out, and of course, my baby decided that he needed complete attention at the same time my husband left. This made it more difficult to concentrate on what I was doing, but luckily nothing burned and I completed dinner.

I did not follow the recipe exactly because I used a can of corn and only pinto beans instead of the two kinds of beans. Everything else on the recipe I tried to follow pretty closely. I wasn't able to eat the food as soon as it was done, because my son needed to be fed. My husband reported that he thought it was delicious. He added a layer of tortilla chips to the bottom of the bowl, then the taco skillet, then cheese and cilantro. According to him the cilantro gave it that extra kick into delicious. He also said my daughter started eating it, slowly, piece by piece, but after a few minutes she finished her bowl, so she may have liked it too. I thought it was pretty delicious, if a little bland. I may have to spice it up a little more next time. Experiment Two: Success. This recipe will go in our family favorites book.