Thursday, April 28, 2011

Don't Quit

Enjoyed this.. thought i'd share!

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow,
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

Edgar A. Guest

and heres a random picture - marley playing 'fetch'

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Crispy Ranch Chicken

Got this from http://recipes.sparkpeople.com
I made this last night - we gave it about a 7/8 out of ten. The only thing is i didn't have any rice crispy treats and i think i'll try that next time - it was pretty good, i think it'd be really good w/ spagetti. Enjoy!

- here's the recipe link if you want to read other users input
http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=447376

Crispy Ranch Chicken

Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 oz pkg ranch dressing mix
2 cups crispy rice cereal
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 egg whites (beaten)
2 tablespoons light butter (optional)

Nutritional Info


Fat: 5.3g
Carbohydrates: 15.2g
Calories:245.8
Protein: 34.1g



Mix rice cereal, ranch mix and Parmesan cheese together in bowl. Dip chicken in egg whites, then in the cereal mixture to coat evenly. Arrange chicken on greased baking sheet. Bake until golden. 30 to 35 minutes.

Number of Servings: 4

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

leftover martyrs

This email cracked me up from Savingdinner.com. Growing up i totally HATED left overs, and to this day i wont eat anything left over unless its alfredo.... thought this was interesting, and yes rachel.. GROW UP hahahahahahhahaha

Dear Friends,

There is this notion going around in families, that leftovers are an evil thing. This isn't new; it's been around since the advent of the icebox when the idea of even keeping leftovers was doable. Not having a freshly made meal, to most, is unthinkable. A meal of MRE's and dehydrated astronaut food would be better. Anything twigs and pebbles in the Outback, but NOT leftovers!

You've heard it yourself. "What's for dinner?", asks your earnest family. "Leftovers!" you retort with a sense of pride in your voice (after all, what a smart woman you are to make enough so you only have to cook once for two meals!). Then the groans start; pitiful and pathetic. Like you're threatening to stick a hot poker in each of their eyes. As if they're going to be fed cold gruel and a portion of dried chipped beef in a cage for the rest of their lives.

The problem with leftovers is they look so leftover. Girlfriend, if you want to trot out the leftovers the next day (and who doesn't?), you just gotta dress 'em up a little different! Let's go over the Three Rules for a Leftover Relaunch:

1)Change it. If it was baked chicken last night, chop up the leftover chicken and make chicken enchiladas tonight, chicken potpie or chicken noodle soup. The possibilities are endless; think beyond adding a can of cream of whatever soup and calling it a casserole.

2)Freeze it. No one said you HAVE to have it the next night. If the recipe is amenable, throw it in a freezer bag, mark it with a Sharpie (what it is—no, you will not remember, and the date; you won't remember that either) and yank it out as a great back up when you need it.

3)Lunch it. Pack it up for your hubby and you to take to work the next day. Chances are good it's just enough for the both of you. You're both adults and can suck it up a bit and do this. I promise, you will not die from eating the same thing twice in less than 24 hours.

There is no need to moan over leftovers (though your children may think so) and there is no need for you to act like a leftover martyr (though you may have inherited this unfortunate skill from your mother).

Now, if YOU are part of the problem with not liking leftovers, it's time to pull up your big girl panties and put on a great big smile. Part of growing up and maturing is doing the right thing for the right reasons. In today's economy and just for the sake of being a little more green, eating your leftovers and using them up is helping you, to quote Benjamin Franklin, become "healthy, wealthy and wise."

So chins up leftover martyrs and tally ho you leftover hating people! There are ways around this mountain and using the 3 rules above will get you where you want to go, save you so money, time and sanity. What's not to love about that?

Love,
Leanne Ely, Your Dinner Diva at http://savingdinner.com

Monday, April 18, 2011

Being thankful

Read this today... enjoy.

I am Thankful :

FOR THE WIFE
WHO SAYS IT'S HOT DOGS TONIGHT,
BECAUSE SHE IS HOME WITH ME,
AND NOT OUT WITH SOMEONE ELSE.

FOR THE HUSBAND
WHO IS ON THE SOFA
BEING A COUCH POTATO,
BECAUSE HE IS HOME WITH ME
AND NOT OUT AT THE BARS.

FOR THE TEENAGER
WHO IS COMPLAINING ABOUT DOING DISHES
BECAUSE IT MEANS SHE IS AT HOME,
NOT ON THE STREETS.

FOR THE TAXES I PAY
BECAUSE IT MEANS
I AM EMPLOYED.

FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE
BEEN SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS.

FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG
BECAUSE IT MEANS
I HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT.

FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK
BECAUSE IT MEANS
I AM OUT IN THE SUNSHINE

FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING,
WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING,
AND GUTTERS THAT NEED FIXING
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME.

FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING
I HEAR ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT
BECAUSE IT MEANS
WE HAVE FREEDOM OF SPEECH..

FOR THE PARKING SPOT
I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING
AND I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH TRANSPORTATION.

FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL
BECAUSE IT MEANS
I AM WARM.

FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH
WHO SINGS OFF KEY BECAUSE IT MEANS
I CAN HEAR.

FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING
BECAUSE IT MEANS
I HAVE CLOTHES TO WEAR.

FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES
AT THE END OF THE DAY
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN
CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.

FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF
IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM ALIVE.

submitted by The Silent Force

Friday, April 15, 2011

Snowboarding pictures, better late than never, right?


Jared and i


Night inner tubing <3 sooo scary!


How i spend most of my time snowboarding HAHA on the GROUND