Wednesday, January 27, 2010

2009. In Pictures.

I can't believe that we are already a month into the new decade. 2009 went by way too fast, the whole past decade went way too fast. At the beginning of the last decade, I was just a little freshman in high school. Fast forward 10 years and boy has life changed. I have graduated from college, gotten married, and have become a fully responsible adult...well sort of. I thought I would share my favorite pictures from 2009, no not the entire decade because I do not have the energy to choose my favorites. Hope y'all enjoy.


Patrick and Megan's gorgeous wedding in Birmingham.


It is so easy to hate LSU


Anna, Ashley, and I at Ashley's sister's wedding. Ashley made a beautiful maid of honor.

Our favorite time of the year, Football season.
Hotty Toddy! After we beat Arkansas.


Happy 1st Birthday Kinsley!


Mama and Kinsley being silly.




Happy Halloween! Octomom and Baby #8


Celebrating our 1st wedding anniversary. The cake was so yummy and the champagne bottle was from our wedding night.

Sweet girl.



Hannah & Anna came to spend a weekend with me in Hattiesburg.


Springtime in Oxford. New additions to Oxford-University Stadium.


Sitting at the Backporch in Destin

Monday, January 18, 2010

Pioneer woman.....sort of

Ben and I like to eat...alot.  We were both raised in the South and well meals are the focal point of any social gathering, therefore, we are lovers of all foods.  And since we love food so much, we also love to cook.  It is a great way for us to spend time together, from planning the trip to the grocery store to preparing the meal.  We have our list of favorite dishes that we can always turn to, but we are always looking for new recipes to try.  With the star\t of the new year, we have a list of new recipes to concoct.  I thought I would share our 2 favorite recipes from last week.  Now remember, we are not fancy chefs and tend to stick with ingredients that can be found in the middle of nowhere South MS.

E-Z Chicken Tortilla Bake
1 can Tomato soup
1 cup salsa
1/2 cup milk
2 cups cubed cooked chicken (we like ours grilled)
8 corn tortillas, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup shredded Fiesta blend cheese (cheddar is yummy too)

Preheat oven to 400.  Stir the soup, salsa, milk, chicken, tortillas, and half of the cheese in a 2 qt. shallow baking dish.  Cover with foil and bake for about 30 mins.  Remove foil and top with remaining cheese.  Place back in oven to melt cheese.  

We added a bag of frozen mexi-corn and a can of drained black beans to add some very healthyveggies :)  The corn tortillas are the key. They are what gives this dish a very authentic Mexican taste.  Ben and I both agreed that this dish tasted way better the following night.  


We LOVE anything buffalo, Buffalo wings, buffalo tenders, buffalo shrimp, you get the idea. When I came across the following recipe I new we had to give it a try.  This dish will definitely become a regular.

Sloppy Buffalo Joes
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 lb. ground turkey or ground chicken
1 carrot, peeled and grated
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt & pepper to taste
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup hot sauce (our favorite is Frank's)
3 oz. tomato sauce
1/4 cup chicken stock

Heat a large non-stick skillet with olive oil over med. high heat.  Add meat and break it up with a spoon.  Cook 5-6 mins.  Add carrots, celery, onion, garlic, salt and pepper, cooking 7-8 minutes more.  In a bowl, combine vinegar, sugar, worcestershire, hot sauce, tomato sauce, and stock.  Pour into the pan and stir to combine.  Simmer for 10-15 mins. to let liquids reduce.

We serve ours on onion rolls.  We diced up a dill pickle spear to put on top of our sloppy joe and drizzled it with ranch dressing.  For those who like blue cheese, a few crumbles might be good in place of the ranch dressing.  Get out your napkins for this dish!  

Bon Appetite!

Hooray for another Monday

Hello all!  Hope everyone is having a fabulous Monday.  I start classes this week so I am enjoying my last day of laziness for quite some time.  Did everyone have a good weekend?  We spent the weekend watching NFL playoff games, hanging out with friends, and eating yummy food.  Our friends, Robert and Amanda, had us over to watch the Saints game and I got to try deer meat for the very first time.  It was quite delicious. It's hard to not like something wrapped up with cream cheese, jalepenos, and bacon.  Good job Robert, I can now say that I have tried deer and do indeed like it.  

Here are a few randoms for the day in total presentation style:
  •  A day early but Happy 1 month anniversary to Patrick & Megan!  
  • Hooray & Good luck to my sister, Heather who started school last week
  • The rumor is true.  Tiger Woods is in Hattiesburg. He is in town seeking treatment from a sex rehabilitation facility.
  • Sandra Bullock won a Golden Globe last night for her portrayal of Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side.
Have a fabulous Monday everyone!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

HAPPY 2010!!

Happy New Years everyone! Its a few days late but tardiness never hurt anyone. I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas and New Years holiday. We spent Christmas in North MS with my family and the new years holiday in FL with Ben's very large family. It was great to see family that we only get to see once or twice a year. It was unsually cold in FL, much like everywhere else in the southeast, so we spent a majority of our time indoors. I learned how to play Puppyopoly, Clue Agents & Spies and I kicked my newphew, Harrison's butt in a snowball fight on the Wii. And there was LOTS of football watching. We saw some very interesting and crazy games and watched our Rebels pull out a sloppy win over Oklahoma State in the Cotton Bowl! HOTTY TODDY!

Now on to New Years' Resolutions. I typically dislike coming up with these things and never stick with them. However, this year I am trying to keep a positive attitude about them. Here are my resolutions:

Stop worrying. This one is a tough one for me. I worry ALOT. I mostly worry about things that are completely out of my control. I just have to remember that God is in control.

Be healthier. Every year my resolution is to lose weight. Well this year I decided it should be be healthier instead of lose ___ pounds. I decided that being healthier is much more beneficial and in the long run more rewarding. Hopefully, being healthier will just bring about weight loss :)

Just be grateful and thankful for all that God has given me.

Share your resolutions!