Meals for Moms on the go...

Or girls on the go!

When you live a fast pace life as I do, you need things to be simple. I'm always looking for quick, easy, and most importantly, TASTY recipes for my family.

I have to confess, we've eaten out quite a bit lately and I've felt guilty for slacking in the kitchen, but I'm going to make a better effort to cook more often from this point on! We'll see how long that lasts. =)

Today I went through the pantry and made a never-ending grocery list to get me started on my quest to cook more. I wanted to share a few recipes of mine that fit the above criteria and I think you will enjoy!

Chicken Pot Pie
Serves: 4 (at least!)
Prep time: 25 minutes

What you need:

1 14 1/2 ounce can chicken broth
1 2.64 ounce package country gravy mix
3 cups finely chopped chicken
1 16 ounce package frozen cut vegetable medley, thawed
1/4-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 15 ounce package refrigerated pie crusts

How you do it:

1. Whisk together chicken broth & gravy mix in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in cooked chicken, vegetable medley, and garlic powder.
2. Place 1 piecrust in a 9-inch deep dish plate. Spoon in chicken mixture. Top with remaining pie crust, pinching edges to seal. Cut several small slits in crust.
3. Bake at 400 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.

BAM! You have a wonderful dish for your family that incorporates protein, vegetables, and carbs all in one!

This recipe came from my The best of Southern Living cookbook. It's a great resource and I highly recommend it. OR you can just go online to their website and search for whatever you're in the mood to cook!

Ma', the Meatloaf!....for those of you who don't like meatloaf!
Serves: 4 (at least!)
Prep time: 25 minutes

What you need:

Loaf:
2 lb. ground beef
2 teaspoons salt
2-4 teaspoons finely chopped green pepper
2-4 teaspoons finely chopped yellow onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 eggs
1-1/2 cups quaker oats

Sauce:
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
4 teaspoons brown sugar
2 small cans tomato sauce
2-4 tablespoons ketchup
1-2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

How you do it: 

1. Saute green pepper and onion with olive oil in a skillet until golden brown.
2. Mix loaf ingredients together in a bowl and form a loaf using a bread pan.
3. Poke holes in the loaf.
4. Mix sauce ingredients in a bowl. Pour over loaf.
5. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees F.

Serve with mashed potatoes and green beans.

This recipe will change your mind about meatloaf, I just know it!

Crock Pot Recipes:


Pot Roast
Serves: 4-6
Prep time: 30 minutes (at the most)

What you need:


3 lb boneless chuck roast
1 can golden mushroom soup
1/2-1 can water
1 package Lipton's Onion Soup Mix
1 medium onion sliced thin, quartered
3 bay leaves
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3-4 beef cubes, crushed
1/2 cup dry chardonnay (or if you're like me & don't always have white wine in the house, you can                   substitute red and it still tastes great!)
3 large baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 package raw baby carrots
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

How you do it:

1. Season both sides of roast with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Sear on both sides in a skillet.
2. Add roast to crock pot.
3. Cover with all ingredients except wine, water, potatoes, & carrots.
4. Add chardonnay, then add water.
5. Add potatoes and carrots.
6. Cook on low in crock pot for 8 hours.

Serve with buttermilk biscuits.

****Since fall is just around the corner, tailgates are quickly approaching, 

and cool weather is in the near future, this next one will definitely be a hit!****

White Bean & Chicken Chili
Serves: 6-8 (maybe more!)
Prep time: 25-30 minutes

What you need:
*Dont worry, it sounds like a lot of ingredients, but you basically just open them and dump them in the crock pot!

1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 14.5 ounce can chicken broth (2 cups)
1 16 ounce can petite diced tomatoes, not drained
1 jar salsa verde (the green salsa)
2 15 ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt & pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 ears fresh corn (or 1 can corn, drained)
1 lb. diced cooked chicken (or I prefer a whole rotisserie chicken, pulled)

How you do it:

1. Heat oil, cook onion and garlic until soft.
2. Stir in broth, tomatoes, & spices. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Put in crock pot.
3. Add corn, chicken, salsa, & beans. Cook on low as long as you want!

Serve with sweet cornbread muffins.

Now how's that for easy, delicious, and healthy? This one's a winner, I promise.


Vegetable Beef Soup
Serves: 6-8 (or more!)
Prep time: 25 minutes

What you need: 

1 pound ground beef
2 cups baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 can diced carrots
1 can green beans
1 can corn
1 medium chopped onion
16 ounces tomato juice
1 1/2 quarts boiling water
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

How you do it:

1. Brown ground beef over medium heat. Drain grease.
2. Add all ingredients to boiling water.
3. Cover and bring to a boil.
4. Lower heat and let simmer for 1 hour.

*This recipe has been slightly modified from my Pop's original recipe. I added more vegetables, so if it looks too think, you may need to add more tomato juice. You can also add or leave out any vegetables that you wish! I usually don't add the whole can of every vegetable until I get to the right consistency. 

Serve with grilled cheese and hot sauce, of course!


Something for the chocolate lovers...


German Chocolate Snack Bars
Serves: 18
Prep time: 20 minutes

What you need:

1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 box German Chocolate cake mix
4 large eggs, divided
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 16 ounce package powdered sugar
8 ounce package cream cheese, softened

How you do it:

1. Bake pecans at 350 degrees F. on a cookie sheet for 5-7 minutes, or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Remove from oven.
2. Reduce oven to 300 degrees F.
3. Stir together pecans, cake mix, 1 egg, and melted butter. Press into the bottom of a lightly greased,
13 x 9 inch pan.
4. Beat powder sugar, cream cheese, and remaining 3 eggs at medium speed. Spoon powdered sugar mixture over batter in pan, spreading to edges.
5. Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes.
6. Let cool and cut into squares.

This delicious treat came from a Southern Living magazine. I love all things Southern Living. =)

I hope you all enjoy! Do you have a few favorite quick and easy meals? I'd love to add to my collection!

Loren

Forgive me followers, for I have sinned....

It has been two weeks since my last post.

Whew...forgive me for keeping you all hanging! You know, sometimes life just gets in the way. I've had a busy few weeks! It's been quite a juggle of school, mommy duties, wife duties, and the whole purchasing/renovating a house thing. But, I will survive! =)

The first week of school was a little overwhelming, but I can say with confidence, that I have finally adjusted. I put my big girl panties on, haven't been late, gotten lost, or confused my schedule lately. This week I had three exams and I passed with flying colors! I can now breathe a sigh of relief knowing that I can handle this! I can also say that I, without a doubt, know that this field of work is my calling. It has comes so natural. Thank heavens.

So, lets back it up a few weeks. I've been meaning to share my very latest experience with the farming gig, but for obvious reasons, I just haven't gotten around to it.

Before I get into that though, I have to share one thing. Every time I think "I just didn't get around to it", I think of a sermon I heard years ago where my preacher spoke to us about the "round toit". Long story short, he preached about how we often say we will get around to it, and life gets so in the way that we forget to make time for what's most important in our lives. I know I've used the saying a million times, and I feel guilty each and every time because I think, what have I not gotten around to lately? Especially in a religious since. So, if I have any bit of advice for you today, it is...make time for God and those you love. Don't always think you will get a "round toit". What have you not gotten around to today?

ANYWAY...pardon the interruption! I always seem to get off on some random tangent in the midst of getting to the real point of my story.

David has finally wrapped up this "session" as I call it of this years tobacco. For several weeks now actually he has had his tobacco cut and hung. What a relief! It couldn't have been better timing. He has been such a HUGE help as I have started school. It feels so good to have him around!

So the day before I started school, David got a wild hair and actually asked if I would help him cut tobacco. (Whaaattt?) Of course, I was thrilled that he asked me to help! And obviously, I had no idea what I was getting into! It topped the charts on the "hardest things I've ever done" list.

And as usual, I made sure I got pictures of myself doing it! I just HAD to document my experience. I guess I can officially check it off my bucket list. hahahaha....

Me, the bandana, and my tomahawk. 

Did I mention this was one of the hardest things I've ever done? Oh yeah, I did. What I didn't mention is what a MAN I had to be while doing it. I popped a squat like a man, blew my nose like a man (because I was still battling a cold & couldn't find anything to blow my nose with), and drank from a dirty water cooler that who knows who's mouth had been on...like a man. Yep, I played the part alright...and I got after it, just to make sure David knew I was tough! ;) I cut while David speared. I think I put a pretty good dent in the patch, if I do say so myself!

At one point though, I stopped and asked him if he was turned off by my dirty, nasty, stinky, slave-working self. Luckily he said it made him love me even more! tehehe.

Posing in front of the patch.

All patched up. In a fair amount of pain.

Something's in my eye.

Unfortunately, my virgin hands didn't withstand the manual labor for long! I had a glove on my left hand (the one I was grabbing the tobacco stalks with), but did not have a glove on my right hand, which I was using to cut the tobacco. P.S. I was using a tomahawk that honestly looked like it came straight out of a history museum in the "Cowboys and Indians" section!!!

Probably no more than 8 stalks into the patch I noticed my hand started stinging and looked down to see that my skin was literally peeling off my fingers in MULTIPLE places. Ouch.

So David, being the loving husband that he is (ha),  rigged me up with electrical tape, as you can see in the above pictures, and I got right back to it. This scores me major wifey points if you ask me.

The next day at school, once I finally made it to class, my hands were so sore and raw that I couldn't write my name! My teachers were probably wondering what level of education I had previously, judging by my chicken scratch.

The best little helper!

Oaks was right up in the mix for a while, before heading off on the 4-wheeler with Papa. He loved every second of it of course. He found a stick and started mimicking me. I think he did more damage than he did good..considering he whacked more than a few stalks down to nothing, but it was the cutest thing ever!

The farmer and his wife.

All in all, I can probably say with certainty that I will never volunteer to help with cutting again. It was kinda horrible. I was rewarded with a terrible headache afterwards and was out of commission for the rest of the day. However, I'm proud of myself and can say that I am getting pretty darn good at this farmer's wife gig. =)

Have a lovely labor day weekend my friends,

Loren

Red's Bachelorette Bash

My last weekend of freedom (before this awful week of school took place) was fantastic! 

Last friday night, I spent another lovely evening with my girls celebrating the "bride to be", Megan! 

First things first. This post needs a warning label. 

WARNING: Viewer discretion advised. What you are about to see may be a little 

inappropriate and could potentially cause you to feel a little secondary embarrassment 

for myself and/or my friends. Scroll down at your own risk! =)

Our first stop of the night was a little Cincinnati Reds action. We had PERFECT seats, right behind the home plate, and got top notch treatment from the Red's staff.... as well as from the creepy old man who sat behind us. (EEEK!) 

*About the creepy old guy: I thought this certain creepy old man was great when he 

bought our entire party all beers at the game...ya know, happy to pitch in to make

 Megan's night that much better....but then he took it to the next level. 

This guy was on a mission. He followed us to the bar, sat in the "background" and

 watched us from afar all night, at one point, pulled me aside and called me "desirable" (WOOF!) (Who calls someone "desirable" anyway),  and then gave me the option of going home with my friends, or going back to HIS place. (Ahhhh!!!!) 

Total friggin' creapo.

Anyway, back to the original message. We had the cutest shirts ever! Seriously, see for yourself! How cute are they? For those of you who don't know, Megan's last name is Redmon, hence the names on the shirt. What a great way to celebrate Megan...the "red"s game, the baseball tees...it was all so perfect! 

Olivia, Megan's BFF did the most fabulous job organizing the festivities. I know she was stressed (which she took care of with a few beverages at the game =)), but it turned out PERFECT! PROPS to Olivia..and all of my other friends who can throw a great partay. Planning an event like this one has GOT to be tough! 

After the game we strolled over to the Holy Grail (which I thought was called the Holy Grill) for a few "beverages". The night was nothing short of eventful!! 

Here are some snapshots from the night. Sorry, but for the sake of time, I uploaded them in no particular order. 

The lovely bride-to-be (and my big sis), Megan and I.

Lindsay and I with the Red's mascot. He came to visit our group of girls. Celebrity status. 

Sweet girls

I have the cutest friends.

Pace and Ellen

Megan and her man.

Megan got to participate in one of the trivia questions, or whatever you call it,
and she got some mad tv time on the big screen! Isn't she a doll?

Meet Olivia...the event planner slash booty shaker slash shot taker! =)

Cheers to the bride!

Lindsay and I. Always classy. Always inappropriate. 

BEFORE.....

annnnnd AFTER! Woowza.  

Olivia showing off her dance moves....on the bar stool. That move right there takes skill. This brings me back to Spring Break Bahamas...when I first met Olivia. Shortly there after, she won the booty shaking contest... and won my heart! =) 

I love her. 

Hiiii! ;)

Showing off our (once again inappropriate) pins, which you can't see very well.
Lindsay's might have said tease & mine might have said slut. We are so bad.

And once again, Olivia breaks it down. Except this time, I'm there to spank her booty. What???

What's not to love about this girl? Muuuuwahh!
And seriously, she gives Kim K a run for her money in the bum department. It's niiiiice.

Always an idiot in the background to ruin the picture. Nice job dude.

The last one's standing! Of course, I go all out when I get the rare opportunity
 to hang with the girls. What a fun and eventful night we had! 

Besides a few minor injuries (Angie, I am so sorry about your foot :( ), and a few that may have had a little bit too much to drink (mission accomplished), this was one of the FUNNEST nights I've had in a long time! Total Success! Total Blast!

Cheers to Megan....I love you girl! I wish you and Justin the very best.

 You are going to be one smokin' hot bride! 

Lastly, I will leave you with this:

TOP TEN THINGS I LOVE ABOUT SPENDING TIME WITH MY GIRLS:

1. Every once in a while, I get to let go and pretend that I have no responsibilities, 

just fun with my friends.

2. I typically laugh so hard my stomach hurts. 

3. We say and do totally inappropriate things and its' okay

 because it's just us girls. (Reference pictures above). 

(Favorite quote of the night: "Is that a tampon or an elephant toe??" Ohhemmgee)  

4. I get to catch up on everyone's life and fill everyone in on mine. 

It feels so wonderful to know that people are genuinely interested in my life. 

5. I can totally be myself and no one cares. 

6. My cosmetic diva's, as I would call many of my friends, catch me up on all of the latest products that I should be using (i.e. hair extensions, false eyelashes, makeup, hair products, etc.). This is essential considering the closest thing to Sephora in this town is CVS! *Gasp.

P.S. Yes Lindsay, you are cosmetically high maintenance. And it's okay. You can admit it.

7. We pretend like we are back in college again and do stupid things like dance 

on bar stools, take shots, and harass the taxi drivers. 

8. We get to bunk up in our hotel room and giggle under the sheets like silly little teenagers.

9. There is always some sort of drama. Which is never serious, but living with two boys, 

I need a little girl drama in my life every once in a while.  

10.  I always leave with my heart is SO FULL after seeing them. 

I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful, unique, and loving friends. 

(I hope you all know how much I care about you!)

Much love to my girlfriends,

Loren

"Put your big girl panties on"

First of all, let me just say, HOLY SHIZNIZZLE...what a week! I just wrapped up my first week of college (round two) and my head is spinning. College the second time around is not nearly as fun as the first! I may never stop missing the days when the biggest worries I had were finding the perfect shoes to wear with my perfect outfit to wear to Two Keys or which fraternity had the cutest boys! This time around, there's much more to worry about. Finding time to study in-between being essentially a single mother 95% of the time, cleaning my house, potty training my two year old (which I must say is not going so well), driving back and forth to Etown four days a week, and buying and renovating a new house, is exhausting!

*SIDE NOTE: David and I met with the bank today and applied for our loan for the new house. Hopefully by the first of September we will have closed on the house and can begin renovations. In the mean time, I'm going to try to come to terms with the thought of having two house payments, which in return means I'm going to be broke.

Here is a look at how my week started off....on the WRONG foot! Let's just say if we were playing "three strikes and your out," I'd be OUT.

FAIL #1: I was VERY late to my first class of the semester due to horrendous road work on the bypass in Etown. They had the entrance to the school completely closed off from the bypass and sent students on a little detour. Of course, I got completely lost. Once I finally found my way to the school, I realized I was completely disoriented, being as I'd only used the main entrance (and only been on campus once before) to get to my building, and had no idea where I was! Luckily the parking attendant was very helpful in pointing me in the right direction!

FAIL #2: After finally finding my classroom, I then realized that not only did every other student in the class have their books, they had already been on blackboard and printed out lecture notes. First of all, I didn't even know where the bookstore was. I had no clue what books I needed and certainly hadn't been online to do anything!!! Apparently my idea of the first day of class where they go over the syllabus and it's over is not so much the case with this program.

FAIL #3: Once again, I was late to class on just the SECOND day of the semester due to road work. This time, although I knew where I was going, traffic was at a stand-still on the ramp to the bypass and of course, I didn't make it to class on time. Yikes.

FAIL #4: After arriving on campus late yet again, I got my schedule mixed up and went to the wrong building, making me even MORE late. Really? Who does this? It's not like this is my first rodeo.

So in attempts to redeem myself, I left super early for school the rest of the week and managed to make it to the right class room, at the right time, with books in tow. Luckily I haven't been kicked out of the program....YET!

As my professor, who is in her 60's (no offense), said in her incredibly northern accent, "It's time to put your big girl panties on". And that is what I plan to do. Hopefully I will learn (quickly) how to balance my personal life and school, but for right now, I'm just trying to get my head to stop spinning.

Sincerely,

The worst college student ever.

Summer Wrap Up

My summer is coming to an end & so is my short stint as a "stay at home mom". (*Sigh) 

Starting Monday I become a full-time college student...again. This is suppose to be an exciting time for me, but I am absolutely heart broken that this phase of my life is over! I never in a million years would have expected to enjoy staying at home with my kids, but I guess my life has given me many surprises along the way, many in the recent years. Much to my surprise as well as most who know me, I'd rather continue to stay at home with Oaks than go back to school/work. BUT, we all know that ain't gonna happen! Farmer says NO.

So anyway, I've tried to make the very best out of the summer months & crammed as much fun in as I could. All along the way knowing that this coming Monday was right around the corner. I feel sad knowing that I will never get to play "stay at home mom" again, but it's time for mommy to make some dough! ;)

I wanted to share with you all some tid bits of my family's summer & fill you in on what was happening before I entered the blogging world.

As you scroll down through the pictures, I hope you experience as much joy as I did through it all!

SUMMER 2011 WRAP UP

Sneak Peak of David's 30th Birthday: 

A Surprise trip to the Great Harbor Cay Island of the Bahamas

Riding in Style

Our transport to the Island

We're HERE!

LOVE

The view from our beach house...right out of a fair tale

Having a "What it is?!" with my wonderful Sister-in-Law at one of the TWO restaurants on the island.

Holding the BIGGEST starfish I've ever seen!

The crystal clear water was out of this world!

Missing our baby boy

A PLAYDATE to WEST PALM BEACH:

Oaks' first ride in an Airplane. It went extremely well surprisingly!

Oaks & his buddy Campbell waiting for our luggage in West Palm Beach

And he got tired of waiting...

Campbell building sand castles

Oaks & I on the beach!

Worn out babies

Does it get any better than this?

Hard at work.

Admiring sea shells

Trying to get discovered! 

Play time at an indoor jungle gym. He had sooo much fun!

Playing in the fountains or "waterfalls" as Oaks would say.

Ready for another day at the beach!

The next Tom Crews.

So. Stinking. Cute.

Sending daddy lots of love from WPB

MY THIRD & FINAL TRIP TO THE BEACH THIS SUMMER: St. George Island

See previous post for details about our trip

CINCINNATI ZOO

Oaks missed most of Dora in 3-D

But mommy & daddy didn't!!!!! 

Feeding the giraffe a cracker. My favorite part!

NEWPORT AQUARIUM

AMAZING neon jellygfish

Daddy & Oaks checking out the sharks

CINCINNATI REDS BALLGAME

CHEEEEEEESE!

MANY TRIPS TO THE POOL

FUN TIMES WITH GREAT FRIENDS: In L.E.B.

Maybe a little TOO much fun! ;)

The lovely couple, Nick & Laura Ellen

Just the Girls.

FUN TIMES.

AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

BEST.SUMMER.EVER.

Loren