Chicken Cordon Bleu

HOLY COW CHICKEN AND PORK!

I made a SUPER yummy and easy dinner last night. I had been craving Chicken Cordon Bleu, so made it!!

Easy Peasy :)

Here's what you need: 

6 chicken breasts pounded thin

12 slices Swiss cheese

6 slices ham  

(I used honey ham slice on a #2 thickness from the Deli)

Panko Breadcrumbs

4 Tbsp butter

seasonings as desired

6 toothpicks

Here's what you do:

*Pound the chicken thin so you can roll it up

*I sprinkled each breast with onion powder, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning

*Lay 1 slice of ham on top

*Top with 2 slices of cheese

*Roll up and secure with a toothpick

*Roll in the Panko- 

make sure to get the whole chicken coated

 with those delicious, awesome, crunchy crumbs!!

*Place 4 Tbsp butter in bottom of 9X13 baking dish- divided into small pieces. 

*Add chicken to baking dish.

*Bake at 350 degrees until cooked through- I am PRETTY SURE it was about 30 minutes... but I guess it depends on how thin/thick your chicken is.

Here's my finished pan- I love all that oozed out cheese in the pan: 

This piece of chicken was too small
to roll so it was just folded over

And here is how it looks plated and cut... DELISH!  I served it with peas (obviously) and mashed red potatoes!! This was DEFINITELY a keeper recipe! It was super easy and super yummy!

This is one that is rolled up right,
but it's not as pretty as the one with peas! LOL

Finish the Sentence

Linking up today with Where We can Live Like Jack & Sally  for Finish the Sentence....

1. If calories didn't count, I would eat....  Moo-llennium Crunch ice cream! Oh my wow, have you had it?? It's a delicious blend of chocolate, caramel, pecans, walnuts, and almonds! Can't go wrong with that, right?? 

 

2. On my Prom Night.... I slept! I know, I know...it's a night of a lifetime. The night you'll always cherish and remember with stories to tell your kiddos, right? Well, FOR ME, I slept because the next morning, I had to be at the school by 5am to leave for the State FBLA Competition in Vail, Colorado. (FBLA= Future Business Leaders of America).  I was totally stoked to go to state- I had placed 1st in my district, so it was SUCH an honor to go to state- I wanted to be well-rested so I skipped my prom!

**AND, it paid off, I placed 10th in the state in my competition!! Go me :)

3. When I go to the store, I always buy.... chocolate syrup! Yes, I DO realize this isn't a staple for most households, but 4 out of 6 people in our house LOVE their chocolate milk!  It seems like we are always running out. SO, pretty much every time that my husband or I go to the store, we come home with chocolate syrup! You can never have too much :)

4. Family functions typically...involve me getting aggravated with my munchkins! While I know that they're just kids, I REALLY wish there was a magical button that I could press to activate their "Well-Behaved"  selves! LOL... but alas, there is no such button! Oh well- this too shall pass!

5. I think my blog readers... are awesome! I love y'all :)   ... and for those I've never actually met, we WILL meet one day!!

6. I'd much rather be... skinny & on a remote island in the Caribbean sipping on a pina colada or strawberry daiquiri!! This cold winter  spring is getting old...bring on the warm sunshine!!

7. I have an obsession with... impulse shopping. UGH... do I "need" it? Nope, probably not! Is it cute? YES!! So, I want it! I TRY to not even look at the little girlie clothes, but IF I do give in and go look I almost always end up buying SOMETHING...even if only a $3 shirt!

8. My work friends.... are DORKS!  I love them; they love me; they're dorks; I'm a dork! It's a loving relationship of dorkiness!! 

9. When I created my Facebook account... the first person to "friend" me was Laura from high school! I was SO excited that she found me... I moved from that town in 1998, so it had been YEARS since talking with most of my high school buddies, so having one find me made the world seem SO much smaller! YAY for finding old friends (no, Laura, you're not old...LOL)!!

This is Laura...HI LAURA!

10. My least favorite word is.... FU** ... I hate it! With an immense passion! Even the SOUND the word makes sounds vulgar. The "Ugh" sound in the middle describes the word entirely....it's an UGH word, and I hate it. Did I mention, I don't like the F word?? 

11. I don't really remember... a time without God in my life! I was raised by a Christian family in a great Bible-believing church. My oldest friend, Shannon, and I met in the 2year old nursery at church. Even in my darkest moments of life, God has always been there guiding me through! Can't imagine life without HIM!

12. Justin Bieber is... over-glorified! He's okay, but REALLY? I don't think he's GREAT... I think the teeny-bopper world makes him more than he is!

This was a fun post to write- hope you enjoyed reading!!

Asher update

If you haven't read any of my posts about my journey with my awesome kiddo, Asher, check out these two blog posts:  

 At a Loss   and    Asher...Take 2

Since I wrote those two posts, we've started taking Asher to a speech therapist. Not because he has trouble with language... in fact, she said that WHEN he speaks, he is very articulate and well-spoken. So the therapy goals are to get him the tools he needs to know HOW to communicate. One thing she explained to me that was an "Aha" moment for me...and I shared with Mr C (his teacher) is that communication is not always verbal!! 

Asher CAN communicate with non-verbal cues...it's a baby-step to full fledged verbal communication. She explained that, when playing a board game, if he hands me the dice, he doesn't have to verbally say, "It's your turn" because the NON-verbal communication of handing me the dice is his way of communicating. Shaking his head, or nodding his head, or giving a thumb's up... they are all ways of communicating for a "selective mute" kiddo that aren't as threatening to him as verbal communication can be.

(side note: WOW, I'm saying the word "communicate" A LOT!  LOL)

Anyways, since we began therapy 2 months ago, we've seen a significant improvement. He's not "there" yet, and has a long way to go, but the bit-by-bit progress is SO reassuring! In school, rather than sitting on the floor staring at the wall, he is playing!! He is drawing and participating in activities. A couple weeks ago, they did a "Monkey in the Middle" song. Mr C. took turns having different kids be the monkey. When he called on Asher, he expected him to scowl at him and not get up, but HE DID!! He actually got up in front of the class and pretended to be the monkey for the song!

 #PROUDMOMMA!

Yesterday was another step of progress. Not just for Asher, but for me as well. I realized that I MIGHT have been enabling him a little bit in this journey. This is why I hate "labels" like "Social Anxiety" and "Selective Mute" ... I heard those, and I MIGHT have coddled him too much. Rather than encouraging him to get out there and do things, I told him it was okay to NOT do things... I feared that pushing him, if he wasn't ready, would make matters worse. BUT, yesterday, I began to wonder if his road to therapy would be shorter IF I encouraged him to step out of his comfort zone...

Here's what happened...

At the boys' school, on rainy or below freezing days, all of the kids go to the gym until school begins. (On nice days, they play on the playground). Well, all school-year long, I dropped Xander off at the gym; then I parked in front of Asher's classroom so he could avoid the gym and just go inside when the rest of the class did. So, yesterday, I told him, "We're going to the gym together- I'll walk with you!" So I walked him to the gym to sit with his class!! The teacher assistant- Miss L said, "Wow!" with a look of confusion! LOL... So I explained that this is something new I wanted him to try! Then this morning, I told him and Xander to go together! And HE WENT!! He went all the way from the van to the gym without looking back at me!! I actually sat there and cried. I was so proud. Now, I realize, for most moms, this is not that big of a deal, but for me with Asher, it is a HUGE deal! 

We plan to continue his speech therapy appointments once a week through the summer... hopefully next year in kindergarten he'll adjust better! I am excited to continue to see these changes in him... I love seeing the butterfly break free from the cocoon!  It's a slow process, but when he's finally free, he'll be so much more amazing!!

!

Bubble-Bundt Pizza

My friend, Raeanne, over at Not My Own inspired me to make a Bubble Pizza. I liked her idea, so I started scouring Pinterest for similar ideas. I also have a friend who made what she called "Bubble Pizza" this week, but her version was different than Raeanne's! So, I decided to combine the best ideas of everything I read and make my own!!

What you need:

3- 7.5oz can refrigerated biscuits

1 pkg pepperoni

2-3 C shredded cheese (I used an Italian blend plus colby jack)

1 stick butter

3 cloves chopped garlic

1/4 C olive oil

seasonings: salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, italian seasoning

*In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add oil & garlic and saute until garlic is soft.

*Cut biscuits in halves and quarters. The "halves" will be stuffed, the quarters will not
*Cut pepperoni in quarters
*Grease the bundt pan, add seasonings & a handful of cheese to the pan 
(when it's done,you turn it upside down, so the bottom of the pan is actually the top of the "pizza")


**For the quartered biscuit pieces, roll in the butter/garlic sauce & put in the pan- evenly spaced

**For the halves, fill with cheese & pepperoni, then roll up into a ball. Then dip in the butter/garlic sauce & put in pan- evenly spaced.

**After I had a single layer of biscuits in the pan, I put a layer of cheese & pepperoni all over
**Then I put another layer of halved & quartered biscuits

I topped with the remaining cheese & pepperoni. 
THEN, (this part is extra yummy) I poured the remaining butter/garlic sauce over the top. 
Then baked at 375 for 35 minutes...
It probably should've only been 30 minutes because it was a little crispy outside, but the inside was PERFECT!

Before baking

Use your favorite pizza sauce for dipping!

Here's my final result:

Kids and hubby LOVED it!

Resolution Update

For those of you just tuning in, my 2013 New Years Resolution was to write one letter a week and send it via snail mail...otherwise known as the good ol' United States Postal Service!!

How cool is it to get REAL mail in your mailbox?? Not the junk mail of ads and catalogs, and not bills that we HAVE to look at, but the FUN, real-life mail.... a letter from a friend that says, "Hello, I'm thinking about you!" 

So, I have resolved to make this year MY year to brighten the day of 52 friends! I have- so far- sent out my 10 letters... Brayden, Brandi, Shawna, Rachel, Sandi, Amanda, Raeanne, and Allison have all received their letters, but Cathey and ----- haven't as of yet. (silly me, I had the wrong address for Cathey, so we're waiting for the good ol' USPS to locate her new home...LOL) I dashed out the 2nd name because I don't want that person to see their name here before it comes in the mail...it'll take away the surprise! 

But, I wanted to share a couple of the things people have said when getting their mail:

"Just got your letter! Thank you. Getting mail is so much fun and I love your commitment to writing! Have a great day my friend and thank you again- you made my day!"

"Awe Rachel, thank you so very much for the sweetest card I think I have ever gotten! It has been a really rough week and your words of encouragement were such a blessing!! God used you today to lift my spirit!!!! Thank you!!!! Love you!" 

"I am honored to be part of your resolution! Thank you so much!"

I am loving this resolution... I am loving writing letters... and I am LOVING that I can make someone smile just by checking their mailbox!! This is, perhaps, the BEST New Years Resolution ever!!!

Xander, Shrooms, and a Lie

Xander has been blowing me away lately with the things he's saying....

This weekend, Jonathan was being a PITT (pain in the toosh). 

Xander said, "He sure is a bad kid!"
I said, "No, he's not a bad kid. He's a nice, good kid who sometimes makes not nice, bad choices!"

He said, "You're right! I know he has it in him to be a good kid! I KNOW it's in him!"

* I love how he's always looking for the good in people! Even when someone hurts his feelings, he's all about forgiving them and remaining friends! He has such a big heart!

And then...

This morning, he crawled into bed with me and asked me to hug him. When I put my arm around him he said, 

"Mommy, I love you so much that sometimes I pray that God will never let you get old because I never want you to die and leave me!"

* I love you too, Xander! You have NO IDEA how much I do!!

---------------------------------------------

Stuffed Mushrooms??
I say, "NO WAY!!"

Tim says, "YES, PLEASE!!"

 I can't stand mushrooms, but Tim loves them! It's funny too... pretty much anything he asks me for (food-wise), he gets! So, when he said, "I'm really craving some stuffed mushrooms" yesterday, my reply was, "I have no clue how to make them, but I'll figure it out!"

So, here's what I did: 

13 mushrooms- stems removed & set aside

2-3 cloves garlic- chopped

1 Tbsp olive oil

8 oz cream cheese

1/4 C parmesan cheese 

garlic powder, onion powder, and pepper

bacon if desired

*Chop up about 4-5 stems. In a sauce pan, saute chopped stems and garlic until cooked through. Add cheeses & seasonings & stir until creamy. Fill mushroom caps with cheese filling mixture & put in pie pan to bake. Top with cooked, crumbled bacon. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 minutes, broil for about 3 minutes!

 Tim loved EVERY single bite! 

Honestly, I wish I liked mushrooms because they LOOKED great!

-------------------------------------------------

My Two Truths and a Lie  post was fun! I loved reading everyone's comments and guesses! 

So... TRUTH #1: I DID go to 4 schools in the 8th grade (Marietta Christian in Marietta, OH; Brevard Christian in Melbourne, FL; home-school in Orlando, FL; and another Christian school in Jacksonville, FL)  I wish I could remember the name of that 4th school in Jax- I really liked it, but I think by school #4 I was tuning it all out!! LOL!!

TRUTH #2: My grandmother DID grow up with Jack Nicholson!! They grew up in New Jersey. He was a year older than her, so they didn't hang out much. BUT his mom and my great-grandmother used to sit together and have tea... and his mom used to cut/style my great-gma's hair! Pretty cool, huh!!??

SO, my lie is about my favorite color. It is NOT blue...it's PURPLE!! 

Fooled you good  :)

Two Truths and a Lie

I found this fun idea today over at A Little Red Wagon. 

 She got the idea over at Flying into First Grade. 

Anyways, it's something to link up with, but the original post suggested for fellow teachers to link up and...since I'm NOT a teacher, I will just let you go visit their posts if you wanna :)

Anyways, it sounded fun to post 2 Truths and 1 Lie and see how many of you get it right!!

1. My grandmother grew up with Jack Nicholson!

2. My favorite color is blue!

3. I was in 4 schools in the 8th grade!

Okay, now, comment below and tell me which one you think is the lie!!

10 on 10- March 2013

TEN PICS

TEN HOURS (a little broken up)

on the

TENTH OF THE MONTH

Yep, It's the 10th again :)

I really hate when it falls on a Sunday, because it's impossible to get 10 pics in 10 straight hours! But oh well, I managed to get 10 anyways... it's just a little broken up across the entirety of the day :)

Here goes...

730 am

Super cool & Awesome pic of the trees across from my house as reflected by the puddle in my driveway!

830 am

My three plaid boys all ready for church!

930 am

I love this wall at church! It's in the nursery hallway... Our church is super-mission-focused, so this clock wall is pretty awesome!  Although, I'm not quite sure why they weren't set... kinda odd! LOL

1030 am

My view in church. 

Pastor Janet was sharing one of her many stories... she never fails to make me laugh! 

LOVE her!

1230 pm

My view driving home from church- that's my Father-in-Law in my rear-view mirror...

 HI DAD!

130 pm

Yummy Taco Salad before going to bed!

8 pm

Woke up to a dark room, but not quite time to wake up for work... back to sleep for another hour!

9pm

Shower time...nothing like a nice, hot shower to refresh you before going to work!!

10pm

My stop before work every weekend. Gotta have my $1 Diet coke!

11 pm

My goof-ball partner in crime! She had no idea what I was doing when I took this picture... 

don't you just love that look of  "what the heck??"   LOL

Who Rules the Roost?

I recently read a FB post where a mom said,

 "I never tell my child to hold on while I'm talking to a friend. My child will never come second to someone else. If he has a question or needs to tell me something, I ALWAYS stop and listen. He is not an interruption."

Good? Bad? Both?

A few other friends are getting involved in the "unschooling movement." Don't know what that is? Well, essentially, the kid is home-schooled. BUT they're not taught out of a book ...they're taught by their "natural curiosity in their environment!" There is no set agenda or schedule to their day. The child dictates their learning. If the child wants to play games, they play games. If, during the game, the child says, "How does this work?" then the parent takes that opportunity to explain real life stuff...and THAT is the education!

"The term "unschooling" describes an approach in which parents do not authoritatively direct the child's education, but interact with the child following the child's own interests, leaving them free to explore and learn as their interests lead. "Unschooling" does not indicate that the child is not being educated, but that the child is not being "schooled", or educated in a rigid school-type manner... children learn through the experiences of life, and encouraged parents to live their lives with their child. Also known as interest-led or child-led learning, unschooling attempts to follow opportunities as they arise in real life, through which a child will learn without coercion. An unschooled child may utilize texts or classroom instruction, but these are not considered central to education..."  (taken from Wikipedia)

I can definitely see the value of putting your child's needs as a top priority. They are sweet, little, innocent minds with big hearts. We don't want to squash their spirits, right?? But is it doing them an injustice by NOT teaching proper manners? By saying you don't ever make your child wait if he wants to tell you something, that teaches him/her that they are the center of the universe, and that what others need is irrelevant. It teaches that mom's need for adult interaction is unnecessary because no matter what mommy is doing, they are in charge.

Then, on the school topic, kids THRIVE on structure. They need structure and routine in their lives. They succeed best with structure. I have trouble understanding how un-schooling a child with no structure is a GOOD thing. I can appreciate the benefit of kids not having to suffer through the pressures of the school system. I can understand not putting your child through the heart-ache of test anxiety. BUT, child-led education once again tells the kid that the world revolves around them. I think this line of thinking encourages narcissism.

Perhaps I am wrong... Perhaps I am right. BUT I think that allowing young kids to dictate their lives is not preparing them for the real world. I feel like when they are grown and out on their own, they'll expect the world to bend over backwards for them like their parents did. I think they'll struggle with a manager in the workplace because jobs are NOT employee-led, they're manager led! I just don't understand how letting the child rule the roost is beneficial LONG TERM for the child. 

I am of the mindset that the child's thoughts and opinions are VERY important. I want to hear them... I encourage their curious minds! BUT, only to a certain extent.  I feel that it is important for a child to understand that when an adult is talking to someone else, they need to wait until the adult is done talking. I think teaching manners and respect for adults is vital to a child's upbringing. My kids are learning that if I am on the phone or talking to someone, unless it's an emergency, they need to wait until I'm done. AND... they need to say "Excuse me"  if they feel like they NEED to tell me something in the middle of another conversation. 

 DISCLAIMER:

Now, I do realize that posting this will make some people upset with me... but that's the beauty of a blog. It's my blog; it's my thoughts! Every parent needs to do what THEY feel is best for THEIR children. I think if you are doing the unschooling thing- more power to ya... I just don't agree with it being what is best for my children!  Perhaps I just don't fully understand the concept, but from what I can see....from what I DO understand, it's all about the kid controlling the parents. I think we need to get society back in a position where the parents control the kids! 

Okay...stepping off my soapbox now...enjoy your day!