What in the heck is going on here.....I am NEVER

this bad at blogging but lately, Lordy, I don't know what is happening.

So anyway, what has been going on here in the hot desert of Arizona??? Not much really....my neck and shoulder pain seem to have finally almost disappeared, I have a tiny crick left in my neck but nothing like it used to be. Only problem I'm having now....AHHH there is ALWAYS a downside to medication isn't there???

Since I was on the muscle relaxants for about 2 weeks I feel like my body is still used to it, so since Saturday I still feel a little lightheaded at times, kinda drowsy, but I'm sure it will all go away soon.


We're on the homestretch, exactly one month from today we will be boarding an airplane to South Africa, can you believe that????
10 years in the making and finally it's here upon us....I still don't have my south african passport so I'm praying every single day that it comes in and soon.

Last week friday was Nicholas' birthday, my little man turned 5 years old and I was left with the task of creating a Yoshi cake. Why me??? I am just not a baker, I love cooking but baking is just not my thing...so I had a blank cake, frosting and food coloring and a knife. Sounds ominous doesn't it? LOL

I'm afraid to post the picture for fear that I will shatter that image that you all may have of me, you know the one where I cook well so I HAVE to make awesome cakes too??? Or is that just my own image of myself??
Anyway, here it goes:




It's been a while since I've posted my sky photos and I think it's about time I did. So this is what it looks like outside right now, we have the beautiful White Tank Mountains in the distance, they are just beautiful.
They even have a webcam set up....how neat is that?

If you had to turn around and look behind me you would see the dark grey clouds closing in on us, I'm hoping there's some rain in the forecast. We could use some right about now, it's been in the mid 90's and the poor plants are begging for water.

I just posted a recipe for the Chicken Tortilla Bake, a couple of ladies asked for it on my food blog, so you can see it just below this post.

I have Chicken Wellington and some Breaded Pork Chops recipe to post tomorrow but here's a preview just to wet your appetite.


Curt is working really weird hours this month, he's going in the afternoon and only getting home around long after we're all asleep....which means, it's just me and the kiddos, which means bedtime falls all on me and it's NOT easy getting two kids into bed when they're determined to do and say anything to say up. I'm about to start the bathes and then we're settling down to watch American Idol.

Have a great night everyone,

Go grab a plate, I have dinner ready!

I hope you're in the mood for Mexican because that's what we're having tonight.....

Follow the link to my food blog and you'll find the recipe.

CHICKEN TORTILLA BAKE

Makes you think......

You know that I've been completely engrossed in the "Road to Avonlea" tv series through Netflix, and by engrossed, I mean absolutely, shamefully addicted. I remember putting the first DVD on my queue at Netflix and I waited with baited breath until it came in the mail and since then I've been on a wonderful journey through the lives of the folks of Avonlea. I love them and I think it's because they're family oriented which is so hard to find nowadays anywhere. All these reality shows are just plain horrid to me, there's cursing and fighting and yelling and backstabbing and women portraying themselves in a very nasty way.


If you don't have the reality shows, then you have all the crime investigation shows like CSI and Law and Order etc, and as much as they may be great for us adults to watch, there doesn't seem to be anything on tv (that I've been able to find) that is catered towards the whole family.

So while watching this series it's become almost a getaway for me, a time where I can lay in bed and be transported back to a simpler time where family came first, where kids were an integral part of the everyday life, they had chores, they were good students, they helped in the running of the household and they didn't watch tv or play computer games.

I know for a fact that the minute the tv, computer, video games are not accessible to my children they become completely lost. They're bored, they don't know what to do with themselves, they complain and they whine and honestly don't know what to do for amusement.

Watching the series you see young girls who by the age of 9 or 10 can cook, sew, embroider, take care of little ones and pretty much run a household, which then makes me understand why in the early 1900's they got married a lot earlier and younger than we do now.

The boys helped the fathers with all of the physical work done in the farms and the ranches and this was all done before school, when today I can barely get Jasmine dressed and out of the house for school, imagine if she had to go milk a cow or gather eggs or clean the stables before hand? LOL


Road to Avonlea has to be one of the BEST television shows ever. It’s funny, it’s dramatic and it’s real without being surreal. In the second season, the focus shifts from Sarah Stanley of L.M. Montgomery’s Story Girl series to Felicity King, Sarah’s cousin and this is mainly because of the introduction of Gus Pike which has become one of my favorite characters.


Watching him go from boy to man and become one of the most romantic fictional characters ever has been such a pleasure. He's the kind of man you want for your own daughter.


If you want to watch the first episode of Road to Avonlea, click here.

And then I BET you will either rush out and buy it OR add it to your Netflix Queue.

I'm off, I have laundry to do, the new menu to draw up and MORE Avonlea to watch....can't wait.

From little one to Big Boy!

It's true when they say that you need to cherish every single moment you have with your children because before you know it, they're not so little anymore.

My little baby Nicholas is turning 5 today.......FIVE?!?!?! Where has the time gone???? In a few months he will start Kindergarten and then it's all downhill from there, the time will fly by and before I can blink he will be in Third Grade just like his sister.

How did we get from this?

To this?

And even this.....
Finally to this???? How, how did it go by so quick?

Nicholas has always been our miracle baby. When Jasmine was about 2 years old we decided to try for another baby and unfortunately it wasn't meant to be.

I went through 2 miscarriages, it was one of the darkest moments of my life, I literally felt defeated and a failure, I felt that somehow I was to blame for this, that I wasn't able to keep my babies safe within me. I lashed out and I cried and I hurt, but I never turned away from God, because you see even in my darkest hour I knew that He was at work and that it wasn't meant to be, there was a silver lining, there would be something amazing coming my way.

I didn't understand why the miscarriages happened and it's something that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy (not that I have any, but anyway).

About a year after my second miscarriage, I found out I was pregnant, needless to say it was a bitter sweet moment. I was ecstatic but apprehensive and worried, every little cramp, every little thing that wasn't quite right made me fear for the life of my baby.

I was considered a high risk pregnancy and had to go in every week to draw blood so the doctors could be sure that my HCG levels were rising. My arms were bruised and my heart was heavy with worry, I couldn't really enjoy my pregnancy because of that.
At about 28 weeks, I started having contractions and was admitted to the hospital, this was the day before Curtis was leaving for Texas for a 2 week deployment......I was alone with a 2 year old and a high risk pregnancy.

I got through it, Nicholas hung in there and from the very start he proved to be a fighter, he wasn't giving up and neither was I.

I had bleeding, I had contractions, I felt horrible all the time but on April 11, 2003 at exactly 5:30pm, he made his entrance into this world and would you believe that when he came out he had the cord wrapped around his body???? LOL
I guess it was his way of holding on in there, he made sure he wasn't going anywhere LOL

I am beyond greatful for our son, he has been the light of our lives and has turned into such an amazing little man.......immensely loved by mommy, daddy and big sister.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NICHOLAS!!!!

And now I'm off to bake a Yoshi cake, wish me luck, I don't know how it will turn out but I will take pictures to show you either way.

Slow Cooking Thursday!

All my slow cooking recipes are now online and starting today, I will add all the recipes shared weekly to my online del.icio.us site too. So if you're wanting to find ALL the slow cooked recipes that have been shared since the first SLOW COOKING THURSDAY, here is the link for you.

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

FINGER LICKIN' RIBS

3 to 4 lbs. baby back pork ribs
salt and pepper to taste
garlic salt to taste
8-0z bottle Russian salad dressing
3/4 c. pineapple juice

Slice ribs into several portions to fit into slow cooker; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange in a slow cooker; add enough water just to cover.

Cover and cook on high setting for 6 to 7 hours, until tender; drain. Arrange ribs on a broiler pan and sprinkle with garlic salt.

Combine salad dressing and pineapple juice in a small mixing bowl; brush ribs with half the sauce. Broil until browned; turn over, brush with remaining sauce and broil other side.

Serves 8-10