Hiking/ Memorial Day/ New Car

I have said it before, but I'll say it again. My husband and I are always up for an adventure. We love being outdoors and we definitely love trying new things. I feel very blessed that Abigail loves being outside just as much as we do, if not more. Anyway when you look out of our living room window you  can see a mountain in the distance. My husband had been saying that mountain was taunting him haha so we decided to go climb it. I was less than thrilled when we started because for some reason I just wasn't in the mood that day. However after we started climbing I was super happy we decided to. It was so beautiful and Abigail loved every minute of it. I was glad I got over my bad attitude because the climb was very rewarding. It was like 87 degrees that day with a slight breeze and it was just perfect. The hike altogether was around 3 hours and by the end of it Abigail fell asleep, which was super cute in her carrier on daddy.

As you can tell by her face, Abigail LOVED it. It also wore her out haha. Now onto Memorial Day.

On Memorial day we got together with some friends and decided to grill out some hot dogs and then go fishing. After going to Wal Mart(which by the way was a complete madhouse) and getting the stuff we needed we headed to the park that my husband said had a grill(so he thought). There were no grills to be found at any parks in town so we decided to go to the sand dunes. Luckily we found a grill there and made our lunch. After eating lunch and hanging out for a little bit we went to a sweet fishing spot my husband had found when he was on his mission. It was a secluded area that we had to walk down railroad tracks to find. It was super pretty with a small waterfall and just a fun place to fish. None of us caught anything, but we still had fun! Then our friends took us to a little place that had gelato and custard mixed.. talk about yum! It was so good. Later that night my husband, myself, and Abigail went out to eat at Olive Garden. It was a fun little Memorial Day. And of course I can't do a post about Memorial Day without thanking all the men and women who have, are, and will serve our country. It is because of them that we have our freedom and I am so very thankful for that. They give up their precious family time, their fun and freedom, and sometimes even their lives so that we may enjoy all those things. God Bless every single one of them! 

Oh and I almost forgot some exciting news. My husband and I bought our first brand new car together. We traded in his 04 Hyundai Sonata and bought a 2014 Subaru Forester XT. We love it :)

Life Lately!

So like I said we moved 1200 and some odd miles from Missouri to Idaho and we have been busy, busy, busy! We have been up to a lot so I am warning you now this post may be lengthy. We are loving the weather here and all the fun things to do. Don't get me wrong we miss our family like crazy, but its nice to be able to go hike and explore when we are bored. Abbey loves being outdoors too so thats a plus. We LOVE our apartment and I plan on doing a post about that as soon as I get everything decorated the way that I want it (who knows when that will be ;)) SO stay tuned for that. We also love the town we live in. Its a small little town where the people are super friendly and you can walk all the way across town. We love it.

We have been on many walks lately and we just started running. I ran cross country and track and high school and I loved everything about running. It was a huge stress reliever for me and I felt so good after a long hard run. I ran for the first couple months of my pregnancy but then I chickened out and just walked for the rest of it. So now that my little girl isn't so little anymore I thought it is time for me to get back into something I love. I have a goal to run a marathon in the near future so I hope that I can keep myself motivated enough to do that. It helps that my husband runs with me, but umm those jogging strollers are a whole different ball game. Those things are not easy to run with and about kill me. Good thing my husband is extremely sweet and took the brunt of that task. (Thanks sweetie!) Oh, and Abigail loved every minute of it just like we knew she would.

Our first walk:

Yes, they are holding hands. Precious!

Our first run:

The other day we went to a place called Wolverine Canyon. It is so beautiful and it was a blast. It was so fun taking abbey up to the little waterfalls and rivers and watching her take in her surroundings. She got excited and started kicking her feet like a mad woman when she heard the water...must have thought it was bath time, sweet girl. Since you drive 5 mph through the canyon we took her out of her seat and she sat on my lap. She thought she was hott stuff and it was super cute. Our little family loves adventure and being outdoors so this was one of my favorite things we have done by far! Oh and hubs would kill me if I didn't mention his favorite part. At about 7,000 feet above sea level it had started raining which meant very muddy dirt mud roads. In our little car that was a major yikes. We got stuck in some ruts and on our left side was 1000 feet down the side of a mountain. Needless to say Abigail was back in her car seat at this point and I was sitting in the back belted in beside her. It was super slick and we were sliding all over the place trying to get out of the rut. Way scary. Luckily my husband is way calm in every situation and he got us out. Afterwards it was funny and we laughed about it. 

Last night we went to the thrift store, where I scored a pair of brand new converse shoes for $3 heck yes! We ate dinner at a cute little restaurant downtown that was really good. And then we walked downtown while abbey got to ride on daddy's shoulders and was giggling and jabbering the whole time. We also have discovered that she can wave and say "hi" We were at Walmart the other day and an older gentlemen waved at her and said hi and without missing a beat she waved back and said hi. Umm, where did that come from? haha it is SO cute. You will see her waving at me in the picture of her on her daddy's shoulders. After walking around and making room, Nick took us to a little dairy that has ice cream and  a petting zoo. Abigail got to pet a horse and she loved it. She looked at Nick like  dad is this okay? And then started smiling great big. The horse loved her too and kept letting her pet him, but umm he wasn't a fan of me. Every time I tried to pet him he gave me the cold shoulder. Ha! Daddy even snuck Abigail a few bites of his ice cream and she was super impressed. She started diving  into his ice cream and squealing. Girl knows what she wants. 

And here are some random things we do at home when we are bored:

Mommy and Abigail bake yummy things together

Daddy slings Abigail around like a human sling shot while she cracks up laughing

Note: this is what happens when you don't have a dining room table yet folks. It turns into a free for all for daddy and baby. ;) 

We play soccer because daddy wants Abbey to be on the USA women's team. Ha, she's right up there with those ladies ;)

We practice our adorable little faces that melt everyones heart

Best one yet. Ornery much?

And here are some favorite pictures I have of me and little miss lately:

Idaho has been good to us so far and we hope that it only gets better. We have lots of plans in store and we are definitely excited for family to come visit when they get the chance. 

Happy Saturday Everyone!

P.S. I hope everyone has an amazing Mother's Day. I will be doing a post about that, but until then enjoy those little ones(or big ones) of yours and hug them and kiss them and let them know you are so thankful to be their mommy! 

{A food post} Recipes I have made lately that turned out amazing!

I wanted to post some recipes that I have made lately that have blown my socks off! Seriously Yum! Pinterest rocks because when I am meal planning I just get on there and BOOM my meals are planned for the week. Then, I just write down what we don't already have that I will need and I make a weekly trip to the grocery store. This has saved us money and time.

Main Dishes:

Honey Spiced Glazed Chicken

Prep time: 10 minutes 

Cook time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:     

1 package chicken breasts 

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon cracked pepper

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 teaspoons paprika

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1/2 cup honey

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Directions: 

Put broiler on low

                                       

 Mix spices together and set aside

                                              

Mix honey and vinegar and set aside

                                                                         

Cover both sides of chicken in seasoning, set flat onto sheet pan

                   Cook chicken under broiler for 7-8 minutes and flip then cook other side for 7-8 minutes

Flip again and baste chicken in honey/cider mixture(get it really covered)

Add to oven again and let it cook under broiler for a few minutes until honey is a glaze

Take it out of the oven and let it sit for a few minutes before eating

Enjoy! 

(Note: if you have a gas oven and broiler is at the bottom you can bake chicken at 400 degrees 20 min)

(I forgot to take a picture of this one. Sorry! It was so good we ate it before I could get one)

Who loves Chipotle?!?!?! WE DO! Here is a recipe to make their Barbacoa meat. DOUBLE YUM! 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 6 hours( in the crockpot) SCORE!

Ingredients:
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
4 teaspoons minced garlic clove
4 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup chicken broth
3 bay leaves
3 tablespoons lime juice
3-4 chipotle chiles in adobo
4-5 lbs chuck roast

Directions:

To make the adobo sauce combine vinegar, limejuice, chipotles, garlic, cumin, oregano, black pepper, salt, and cloves in blender or processor on high speed until smooth

Remove most of the fat from the roast and then cut into large chunks(approximately 6)

Pour oil into frying pan and sear all sides of roast on medium-high until browned

Place meat into crockpot and pour adobo sauce over meat

Pour in the chicken broth and add bay leaves

Cook on high heat for 6 hours or low heat all day

While still in the crockpot, shred the meat with two forks and turn the heat to warm

Serve with soft shells when ready.

No picture again. I forgot. Boo! But this stuff is amazing. We made tacos with it and homemade pico de gallo.


Buffalo Chicken Pizza Sticks
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time:15 min
Ingredients:
1(13.8 oz) roll of Pillsbury pizza crust
1 cup buffalo wing sauce
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 green onions, thinly sliced

Directions:

Cook chicken

Shred chicken with a fork

Heat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking sheet

Form pizza dough into a rectangle and place it onto baking sheet

Bake the dough for 8 minutes

While the pizza crust pre bakes, add buffalo wing sauce and shredded chicken to a medium sauce pace over medium heat. Stir occasionally, 3 to 5 minutes

Spread the buffalo chicken over the baked pizza crust then add the cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, and green onions on top

Bake pizza 6 to 10 minutes

It was so yummy! Chalk this one up to a win :) 

Turkey Chipotle Club Wrap

Prep time: 5 min

Cook time: 5 min

Ingredients: 

Flatout wrap( I used the Italian one) 

2 ounces of turkey( I used cajun turkey)

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 slices of cooked bacon (I used hickory smoked farmland)

1 tablespoon of the Taco Bell Bold and Creamy Chipotle sauce

1/2 roma tomato diced

1/3 green pepper 

(Note: this is the amount for 1 wrap) 

Directions:

Cook bacon

Spread the dressing in the middle of the wrap

Add turkey, cheese, bacon, tomato, green pepper

Fold in and roll up

Enjoy!

These were SO easy and SO delicious. They have a very refreshing taste. We had homemade pico de gallo and chips with ours. 

The best part? This wrap is only 307 calories! 

Sides:

Homemade Pico de Gallo(see picture above) 

Ingredients: 

6 roma tomatos, finely diced

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1/2 red onion, finely diced

1/2 teaspoon salt

juice of half a lemon

1 jalapeno, finely diced

Directions:

Dice everything, mix together and enjoy:) 

This stuff is so good. It can go on tacos, fajitas, wraps, or even with chips

Homemade Spicy Garlic Potato Wedges:

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients: 

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2lbs Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed and cut into wedges

2 teaspoons of chipotle seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Place minced garlic and olive oil in a small bowl and microwave on high for 45 seconds

Place potato wedges in large bowl

Sprinkle seasoning and salt over wedges 

Stir well to get it all mixed onto the wedges

Place wedges on a cooking sheet in a single layer

Bake at 425 for 30-35 minutes

Turn wedges every 10 minutes to get them baked evenly

Remove and serve immediately. 

I failed to get a picture again but these are so delcious...spicy, and crunchy on the outside but soft on the inside. We have had these twice already

Snacks: 

Cupcake Puppy Chow: 

Ingredients: 

4.5 cups Rice Chex cereal

1/4 cup salted butter

3 tablespoons of heavy cream

1/2 package of almond bark

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon butter extract

2/3 cup sprinkles

1 and 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions: 

Mix the almond bark, butter, and cream in a medium saucepan on low heat. You just want it warm enough to melt the chocolate. Do not burn

When its all melted remove it immediately

Add in butter and almond extracts

Pour the mixture over the cereal in a bowl and mix carefully

Wait a few minutes and add the sprinkles so they will stick

Pour the powdered sugar in a large bag 

Pour in the cereal and shake it up 

This stuff is to die for! I made it last night and it is already gone. It tastes just like mini birthday cake flavored cupcakes. 

 (Note: the original recipe can be found here. She explains it much better than me! Also, her blog is full of amazing recipes!) 

Sour Patch Grapes:

Ingredients: 

Bag of green grapes

Package of Jolly Rancher Apple Jello

Directions: 

Take grapes off vine

Wet grapes

Put jello mix into big bag 

Pour in grapes and shake

Enjoy! 

These taste like candy but are healthy for you! 

You can thank me later! 

I am sure you can see a theme here. We love spicy stuff at our house. Hopefully you do too. I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did :)