4.21.2014

My first experience with Green Smoothies

In the words of my husband: "Sorry my wife is on a kelp (he meant kale. Lol.) kick right now"... Haha.
 
So recently I had my very green smoothie! I'd heard so much about them and seen so many pictures on Instagram and Pinterest and thought they looked really good but had never  yet tried one; and always meant to buy the naked "green machine" drink but every time I was at the store somehow it would always end up slipping my mind. Anyhow to make a long story short I made one myself not too long ago and it turned out so good I decided to share the list of ingredients with you all!
 
I used:
2 Bananas
Half an Avocado
Half an Organic Cucumber
Kale
Broccoli
Spinach
A few Strawberries
Apple Juice (around 1/2 a cup)
A little Lemon Juice (probably around 1/8 a cup)
Ice cubes (around 6)
A few drops Organic Raw Agave Syrup
 
Or as my husband put it "everything but the kitchen sink! haha. I added pretty much all the ingredients "to taste", I really didn't measure anything out; But it made quite a lot and I had enough for several days! Quite green, quite healthy and quite delicious! :)


4.20.2014

Happy Easter!

 Happy Easter!
 
 
Happy Easter! So thankful Thank Jesus died on the cross for us and then rose from the dead 3 days later so that we might have salvation and eternal life! And I am so thankful for the wonderful family He has blessed me with! I Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!

4.17.2014

Recipe: Pasta Fagioli

I had been craving Pasta Fagioli for the past few months, so I got the recipe from my mother-in-law a couple weeks back and finally had the chance to make it yesterday! And it turned out so good I decided I had to share the recipe with you all! As a side note though, I did change the recipe somewhat so this is my version of it and also this makes quite a lot, I filled my crockpot up and had enough leftover to fill a gallon sized Ziploc bag and put in the freezer for another meal later on. :)

Pasta Fagioli
1 lbs ground beef (or ground turkey)
1 small onion, finely diced
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup finely sliced celery

3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
2 (15 oz) cans beef broth

2 beef bouillon granules
1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, with liquid
1 (15oz) can great northern beans, with liquid
1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste, if needed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 cup apple juice
8 oz dry ditalini pasta


Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium-high heat, lightly seasoning with salt & pepper. Then add to a large slow cooker. Add onions, carrots, celery, garlic, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, kidney beans, great northern beans, salt, oregano, basil, Italian seasoning, pepper, and apple juice.
Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours, or until veggies are tender.
When the soup is done, cook pasta in salted boiling water until just under al dente. Drain, rinse in hot water, then add to the soup and let cook for about 5 more minutes.
Ladle into serving bowls and enjoy!



 
Happy Cooking!


The Versatile Blogger

I am so excited to announce I have been bequeathed my second blogging award! I am so honored to be receiving the Versatile Blogger Award! Before I started blogging I figured no one would notice my blog  but it didn't matter because I still wanted to blog; and here we are now, I launched my blog only 3 months ago and I've received my second award! Thank you so much my sweet friend Gisella from www.serendipitydelight.com for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award! You are an inspiration to me, your blog is awesome (I'm super into DIY even if I don't have a lot of time to take on DIY projects), your style is fabulous and chic, you're a great mother and just a sweet and fantastic person all around! It means so much to me, and feels awesome that people actually do care about my blog! I do have to apologize for it taking me so long to get a chance to write this, life can get crazy with a 4 month old! lol :)
 
I do want to start blogging on a regular basis and maybe this is just the little kick in the seat of my pants that I need! ;)
 
What can I say, the world of Blogging and Instagram has brought so many new friends into my life and I have "met" some of the sweetest ladies! And hope to actually meet some of you all in person in the future! You ladies inspire me, and makes me realize that a lot of the same things I go though as a new mother and as a wife and as a woman you are all going through too! It makes the world seem a little more friendly of a place and I think its wonderful and amazing that we all support and lift each other up with a positive atmosphere all the while keeping things real!
 
Now back to the award (you all thought I forgot didn't you? lol)... The Versatile Blogger Award has only 2 rules: list 7 random facts about yourself and pay it forward to other bloggers! So here goes!
 
1. I am obsessed with keeping my daughter's nose clear, it drives me crazy to see boogies or snot. lol.
 
2.  I have lately become somewhat of a health food nut, I have been eating so much healthier the past couple months and  it feels so good! And I've become addicted to salads, I eat at least one salad every single day, sometimes I eat salad for all meals of the day and for snacks as well... I'm starting to think I should re-name my blog to "the happy salad". Hahaha. Just kidding. ;)
 
3. I would love to learn to surf someday, but I'm also afraid I'd most likely be eaten by a shark. I'd be an hors d'oeuvre for Megaladon (you did watch shark week right?) for sure, I just know it. lol.
 
4. I am ever the optimist. Always looking for the good in any situation, even if its just trying to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
 
5. When it comes to hair bows on my daughter my thoughts are "the more the merrier" and "the bigger the better". Now I knew I liked hair bows before she was born but I surprised myself at how into hair bows I really am. I would LOVE to start my own hair bow business.
 
6. I have a love/hate relationship with auto correct, its good in some ways, helps you type/text faster, but in other ways its not so great, makes a person lazy (lol) and has also made for some pretty embarrassing typos. lol.
 
7. I am a slight insomniac. I wish I could sleep now like I did when I was pregnant, I slept better during those nine months than I've ever slept in my entire life. I just can never seem to shut my brain off. lol.
 
Now I nominate:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Happy Blogging!

4.15.2014

Cheesy Chicken Ranch Fold-overs

1 tube Pillsbury jumbo biscuits.

1 packet Hidden Valley buttermilk ranch mix.

A small amount of Velveeta cheese.

1 cup sour cream.

2 baked chicken breasts.

Flour

Cup of water.

Take your 2 cooked chicken breasts, shred them, and put them aside. Mix your sour cream and ranch mix together and set aside as well.
Next, take some flour and sprinkle on your countertop, then take your biscuits and roll them out individually as round as possible, they'll be fairly thin, but they shouldn't be paper thin. Take your sour cream ranch mixture and dab about a tablespoon to a tablespoon and a half in the center, next, add shredded chicken, and then cut and add your desired amount of Velveeta (I used two thin quarter sized pieces in each fold-over, but it could have used a little more).
Now take and dip your fingers in the cup of water, wet the edges of your biscuit dough and fold one side over, press the sides together and seal with a fork. Put on a cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 mins at 350°. Enjoy!

4.02.2014

Bella's Birth Story - Part 3

At 5-something-am-in-the-morning I hit 9 centimeters dilation and the epidural quite working altogether (no more cat naps lol), I wanted to push so badly but they told me not to because I wasn't yet fully dilated, but as soon as I got to 9 and a half centimeters the nurse started trying to push back that last half centimeter and I started pushing whether they wanted me to or not, not serious bear down pushing like later on but pushing none the less. They called the doctor and when she came in she had on her white coat, then put on long elbow length gloves, a face mask and goggles, and even though I was in the middle of a terrible contraction and it made the hurt worse to laugh I still started laughing my head of when I seen her with all her gear on and I told her she looked like an alien (I still can hardly believe I said that haha) but her and my hubby and the nurses all got a kick out of it and joked that I was going to laugh the baby out, after that though, things got serious again. They brought out the table with all her surgical equipment (thankfully she never had to use any of it) and I got really scared again, it just looked so cold and scary; I had my hubby give the doc my natural healing oil concoction I had made and she poured it all around (and some in) the birth canal (I'll be sharing the recipe soon). And with my hubby on one side of me and a nurse on the other side, she had me start pushing. I pushed and pushed, taking small breaks in between contractions, receiving oxygen because I was hyperventilating again, all the while my wonderful husband was telling me that he loved me and that I was doing good and to breathe like I we had learned in Lamaze class and that he was right there with me. I wanted to push more! I wanted to meet our little girl, it was getting oh so close and I needed to hold her, all of a sudden my doctor said that she could see her head and proclaimed that just as suspected... she had a full head of hair, and that also she couldn't believe how perfectly round her head was! Now I had to push! I had to push with all my strength, I could see the light at the end of the tunnel and I had to hold our baby daughter! And after a few more pushes and experiencing the "ring of fire" (seriously felt like a blowtorch) I pushed one last big push and I suddenly felt so much lighter, I opened my eyes to see my daughter, our beautiful Bella for the very first time and all the pain just went away, it was all gone, just like that and as replaced with the sweetest feeling on earth. As she was laid on my chest and I held her in my arms for the very first time it was the most beautiful amazing moment I have ever experienced in all of my life, I cried such tears of happiness (I'm crying from happiness even now just writing this and bringing back memories). She was perfect! Perfect in every single way imaginable! How was I so blessed?! Her full head of dark hair, her tiny wrinkled fingers, her ears, her nose and lips and her eyes, she just stared at me, not even crying, just taking it all in. I looked up at my husband again, seeing all the love in his eyes looking at us... there are absolutely no words in the human language to describe how I felt. It was the most beautiful and sacred moment on earth and I am so completely beyond blessed and thankful that God chose me to be the mother of such a beautiful wonderful child as our little Bella and to be the wife of such a wonderful caring man. All together I was in active labor for about 7-ish hours and I only pushed 25 mins before she was born. Bella Nicole was born at 6:20am exactly and weighted 7 lbs. and 10 oz. and was 19 inches long. My heart is so full of love and contentment and I am so excited to see what plans God has for the future of my sweet little family, our Bella and my husband and I. I love them with all of my heart!



The moment I first held her in my arms.


Wide-eyed.

Momma and baby snuggles.

My husband holding Bella.

Sweet sleeping angel.