Cast Iron Skillet

Well my new favorite item is the cast iron skillet.  I had saw some recipes that call for it and I knew people that swear bye them.  So I ran across my Aunt Kris's recipe for skillet cornbread and thought wow that would be so good with chili.  So off I went in search of a cast iron skillet.  Found one I really liked at Meijers.  I love it.  It is very heavy.
Came home and washed it and them made the corn bread.  Wow, was it great.  Thank you Aunt Kris!! It really is good.
Next is the apple pie you make in a skillet.  Yum.

Las Vegas

Cory and I went to Las Vegas again this year.  We were married in Vegas 6 years ago October 13th.  Cory loves Vegas and so do I but I do not like to go every single year...lol.

We stayed at Paris this time and I was very disappointed.  It is a expensive hotel so my expectations were high, so you can imagine my surprise when it was a very small room.  The had a huge rust stain on the floor and a knob missing off the armorie.  Not to mention that in the bathroom there was a hole in the ceiling that you could see up into. Also the TV would turn on and off randomly as we found out there was a short in the wiring.  The alarm clock kept making a weird low noise on and off all night long.  Loud enough to wake you up.  Cory and I decided to make the best of it and not complain. That was a big mistake.  Things went down hill from there.  I finally had to say something to management and they said I should have said something before as they will not do anything about it now and it was basically my fault for not telling them sooner.  I was very shocked.  We will not be staying there the next time.

Another bonus of this trip was Kaitlin and Justin was able to meet us in Vegas.  They live in California so it is only 4 hrs away from Vegas.  They stayed at the Mirage and boy their room was beautiful!!  We spent a lot of our time at the Mirage.
We had so much fun with the two of them.  Cory used that to his advantage as he suggested to the two of them that we make this an annual trip and they agreed.  UGH!  Cory knew I could not say no as I would love to see Kaitlin every year for a trip.  Very sneaky Cory!

I don't gamble at all and Cory likes to bet on the sports.  So as soon as we got there he got a huge table and had all these bets and teams and stats all spread out in front of him.   Trying to decide on who to bet on. I got a little bored waiting so I decided it would be fun to place a couple of bets of my own.  So I grabbed some betting slips and starting picking my teams.  I decided I would not bet on one team as they wore white after labor day and grass stains are hard to get out of white. So I picked the other team.  Then I picked another team because they wore Orange and I thought how cute for halloween time and a very bold fashion pick on their part.  I decided on another team as their mascot was cuter.  Also picked one as one of the players was cute, another was because everyone picks on them.  So the outcome was my husband won 100.00 and I won 1000.00.   Needless to say my husband was so mad. lol.....

All in all it was a wonderful vacation.  But glad to be home of course.....

Vegas

Well  my birthday weekend was packed full of shopping and eating out.  And seeing Brady.  He is getting so big.
We leave for Las Vegas Wednesday night.  I am glad it worked out so I can still go to my mom's chemo appt with her.  
Best part is getting to see Kaitlin while we are in Vegas.  Kaitlin and Justin are going to meet us Thursday night and stay the weekend in Vegas with us. Wooo Hooo.  I haven't seen Kaitlin in months.  I hate that she lives in California so far away from me.
I only have 2 days of work this week.  So happy.
Ugh still have my hot flashes.  They are still so bad.  I hate them.

Salsa Chicken (Slow Cooker)

I know this dish probably doesn't look that appetizing but you have trust me on this one. In fact, I think you should bookmark this page if you like the following: chicken, Mexican flavors and your slow-cooker. This is the very popular (at least in the food blog world) SALSA CHICKEN!

Who knew chicken breasts + can of cream of chicken soup+ taco seasonings + sour cream could be so good. I know I sure didn't. I had seen this recipe so many times but it just did not sound that appealing. Of course, everyone raved about it, hence it's popularity.

Well, I'm so glad I tried it too b/c it really is so tasty....and easy!! If you have already made this dish, please feel free to leave your review below. THANKS!

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts 
1 can cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup (I used the cream of chicken)
1 cup salsa 
1 package taco seasoning (I used 1 Tbsp of my homemade taco seasoning)
1 cup sour cream 
cilantro, for serving (optional) (I also added a little shredded cheddar-jack, black beans and scallion on top)

Directions: 

Put chicken, soup, and salsa in slow cooker. Sprinkle taco seasoning over everything. Cook on low for 6 hours. If shredding the chicken, pull the breasts out and shred; return back to slow cooker. Stir in sour cream and heat just until everything is combined.

CrockPot Chicken Tortilla Soup

I love CrockPots because they simultaneously make my life easier and make it seem like I've put a lot more effort into dinner than I actually did. Anything that can do that is definitely a winner in my book.

Because we're finally experiencing some fall weather around here, I decided to use the trusty CrockPot today to make some chicken tortilla soup, yum! And because it was so easy, so delicious, and I haven't posted a recipe in a long time, I thought I'd share with all of you! :)

Ingredients

2 chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cans Ro-Tel (I like the lime & cilantro, but the regular is fine)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can corn
1 onion, chopped
2 cans low-sodium chicken broth
1-2 cups of water
1 Tbsp garlic powder*
1 Tbsp chile powder*
1 Tbsp ground cumin*
1 Tbsp dried cilantro*

tortilla chips
sour cream
shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese

*Instead of these spices, you could include a packet of Taco seasoning if you prefer.*

Put chopped onion, cans of beans, rotel, corn, chicken broth, water, and spices in CrockPot and stir to mix. Put chicken breasts on top of mixture and make sure they're at least partly submerged in liquid. Cook on high 6-7 hours or low 8-9 hours. Before serving remove the chicken breasts from soup and shred, if needed, (sometimes they'll just fall apart on their own, but sometimes they need some help). Return chicken to CrockPot, stir to combine.

To serve put a few tortilla chips in the bottom of a bowl, ladle soup over tortilla chips, top with shredded cheddar cheese, (today I used the Kraft Mexican blend and it was yummy), and a dollop of sour cream, serve with more chips if you like. Enjoy!

New Orleans

My brother, sister in law, Brady and my dad are all in New Orleans to go to the Sugar Bowl. Michigan is in the Sugar Bowl and my brother likes to go to whatever bowl they go to each year. They keep sending pictures and it looks like they are having so much fun. I was bummed as I really wanted to go but I had to go back to work today. They got their picture taken by a reporter from Detroit and it was on the Internet. It was pretty cool.

My brother got the house in Ann Arbor they put an offer on. Pretty excited for them. Went to go see it last week and it is very beautiful. They have some time to sell their house before they to close on it. Will post a picture of soon.

Tray 1

Ok, I am on tray 1 of my invisalign treatment. I thought it was very uncomfortable getting them in for the first time. They have to put these "buttons" on your teeth that are permanent until the end of your treatment. They remind me of fangs. And the trays hurt getting them on and off. I thought I would rip them apart or crack them apart. Then some of the edges were cutting the inside of my mouth. A week went by and I couldn't stand it any more, as it was the holiday and my dentist was closed, I got a emery board out and filed the rough spots and it worked. I was shocked. After that it has been a breeze. I actually like them in. Sometimes I forget they are in there. Plus its nice as they fit so snug that it feels good to have them in there.

So of course I have to get them changed every two weeks and I get a new one this Thursday. Ugh here we go again. Its really not so bad. Just the first couple of days its some pressure.

I accidentally slit the bottom tray with my finger nail trying to take it out yesterday. But its not bad just a tiny slit and my dentist office said it would be fine till I come in on Thursday.

Thursday should be a breeze......

Happy New Years

Happy New Year!!!! I went to get my hair done yesterday. I got it all chopped off and colored brown. What a difference. I love it. I met my husband and my friend Stephanie and her daughter at the mall to shop a bit. Then we went to dinner at the Elephant Bar. We went to the movies to see New Years Eve after dinner. It was a great movie. I loved it. Had a very nice night New Years Eve. It is going to be another great year ahead.