martha stewart monday

here is the deal. I am an all or nothing kind of gal.

I am either a total martha stewart super mom or a total unshowered shlumpadinka.

there is no middle ground with me.

in an effort to veer more towards martha-ness, i have decided to record the efforts of my good days (on mondays) so that i am forced to repeat them more often than not.

hopefully i will carry through with this week after week....and obviously if you want to follow suit and share your awesomeness...let me know and i would love to see it.

So anyways: Martha Stewart Monday #1 is all coooking related.

I am (occaisionallly) an awesome little chef.

On a good week, i grocery shop with a list, and then i come home, put the groceries away, and record on a little white board on my fridge what it is i will be making for that week.

most of these things were made last week - but 1 or 2 are just blogs that never happened. They are all chicken related, but with one pasta dish mixed in. (we eat a lot of chicken) what you should notice though is the repeat of ingredients also used in new and different ways....which i think is super important when you are trying to keep grocery expenses down.

without further ado....here are some good diner ideas (if you want them):

Chicken Enchiladas with avocado Tomato salad

( i have posted a similar recipe for this before...but i love it so much you are gettting it again.

I usually buy a rotisserie chicken for this and just use all of the white meat that i can get. I put the shredded chicken into a bowl and mix in most of a can of diced green chilis, chopped white onion, salt and pepper, a little bit of Tapatio hot sauce (the BEST stuff out there), and some sharp cheddar cheese. I mix all of that with my hands. then spray a pyrex dish (11x13?) with some pam. Fill in corn (or flour if you are my husband) tortillas with a generous portion of your chicken mixture. I think flour tortillas get soggy and corn is better but do whatever floats your boat. Place the tortillas with the folded side down in a row (right next to each other in your dish). pur over either green or red enchilada sauce....a little more cheese....maybe some jalepenos and bake for 20-30 minutes at 350.

the tomato avocado salad is the perfect solution for something a little light that you can serve on the side with a mexican dish. I hate when there is something heavy like refried beans served with a heavy main dish. sooooooo anyways, just cut up some ripe avocados, and slice some tomatoes (i used a fancy blend of tiny tomatoes). Chop up some cilantro....add salt and pepper and a tiny bit of olive oil and voila! it is delish.

Baked Chicken Marsala w/ Caprese Salad

I just used boneless skinless chicken for this one....once the chicken was thawed i added lawrys (seasoning salt) and pepper and baked it in the oven at 400 for way longer than i should have ( i seriously hate juicy chicken) you of course can cook this for as long as you want though. While that was baking i sliced up some baby bella mushrooms and a tiny bit of red onion. you really do have to chop red onion in super tiny thin pieces for it not to be overwhelming. i set that aside and melted about 1/4 to a 1/2 a stick of butter into a pan on medium heat. Add in about a 1/2 teaspoon of chopped garlic. When everything melts, add in the mushrooms and the onion. Pour in a large splash of Marsala wine too. probably about a 1/2 cup to a cup. let the mushrooms cook down and all of the flavors will start to blend. I let it simmer for a while. The marsala really doesn't taste good until it cooks for a while. Then right before i take the chicken out of the oven i added about 1/2 Tablespoon of cornstarch to about a 1/4 cup of cold water (in a seoerate dish) mix that up. It will just look like cloudy water. Add that into the mushrooms a little at a time until it thickens up. Str it constantly. You prob wont need all of the cornstarch and water. It turns into a sort of mushroom gravy that you just spoon over the chicken.

The Caprese is just like the salad above but with basil instead of cilantro and some thin slices of fresh mozzarella and balsamic vinegar....again - something like rice could be good with this too, but this was lighter.

Homemade Pasta Sauce with Whole Wheat Fettucine

Add a large splash of olive oil to a big sauce pan. Once heated, saute some onion, garlic, chopped white onion and diced green pepper. Let those ingredients soften and start to slightly brown then add in about 1 pound of ground beef ( i use 96%lean). brown/cook the meat completely. Add in two 14.5 oz cans of Diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil. chop up some fresh basil and sliced baby bella mushrooms. add 1/2 of the basil and all of the mushrooms. Also add some italian seasoning, salt and pepper. You will need a lot...but add according to your taste. I used 1/2 a package of "good seasons" salad dressing seasoning because i was out of italian seasoning and it was actually really good in the sauce. let the whole concoction simmer for at least 30 minutes to an hour. it just gets better the longer it goes but keep the heat low. Boil the water for the fettucine and cook for 9-10 minutes for al dente pasta.

Garnish the pasta with fresh parmesan and the remainder of the fresh basil.

You will have a ton of sauce left...i freeze it and just keep it in the freezer for next time....so that you can be awesome TWICE!!!

Crock Pot Chicken Chili

Again...shred the chicken from a rotisserie chicken and put it into your crock pot.

mix into your crock pot a can of cannelini (white) beans, garbonzo beans, and black beans...all drained and rinsed. Chop up some fresh corn and some white onion and throw that in there too.

Chop up one of those multicolor packs of peppers. I like orange red and yellow. Then add a can of diced tomatoes. Juice and all. Add in some (ummm maybe 1-2 tablespoons) of mexican chili powder, salt and pepper....and seriously whatever else you like in chili.

Cook the chili all day long and garnish with sour cream, fresh cilantro (my fave) and some tapatio.

My sister Lauren and her boyfriend Josh made this for us the week Ashlyn was born and i loved it!!!

Lemon Chicken.

This one is sooooooo not healthy....but sooooo good so its okay (every once in a while - like twice a year) :) It is a complicated recipe though and I don't feel like typing it out right now Sooooo if you are interested in finding out how to make some seriously ridiculous restauranty good chinese food, just email me :) for now. I will just post the picture of it to prove a little more martha-y ness.

this was a long post.

i bet no one is even reading anymore.

If you are though...i hope you try some of these recipes. They are all really good and very conducive to having a ton of leftovers....which only makes your life easier...and i like easy (most of the time)

Happy Monday!

my boobs

yep you read right...this post is about boobs. They are the COO to my little CEO Ashlyn and they pretty much determine when and how everything happens in my life theses days.

i have not gone to bed, eaten breakfast, left the house, or brushed my teeth without first flashin a little boobage to the Boss...not even once in the last 16 weeks have they stayed put and behaved like they did for the 27 years prior to mommyhood. they were kind if useless and unimpressive before but i mean seriously...my life...and her life revolve around these puppies these days and that is why they are getting their own post on here.

my boobs have never felt so important.

And just to clarify, the boobs i am referring to aren't the old school boobs i used to sport - These are like big time boobs. They are the boobs i always thought i would spend $8,000 to achieve. They are a source of pride when i feel like i had to (at least temporarily) cash in the rest of my body so that i could have a healthy wonderful cute baby. Call me a weirdo but i do appreciate that when god taketh away a human sized waist he did giveth me with some bigger knockers to detract attention

They are little sources of nutrition for my baby and surprisingly artsy inspiration for me too ;)

After all the build up -I bet you want to see them right?

Well unfortunately for some - I am classy enough and smart enough to know that posting a picture of my boobs online is "bad" and not really my style. I'm just hoping (fingers crossed) that i haven't done something socially unacceptable by writing about them and posting this frosted version of "my other" boobs below :

Boobs are okay when they are artsy right?

yep. I did it. I bought flesh colored fondant and made boob cupcakes. That is how boob centered my life is these days.

Not because i am creepy and obsessed with myself.... but because i happened to handle the task of planning the menu and decor for my brother in laws Bachelor party that was hosted at my house a few weekends ago while i was staring at ummmmmmm my own boobs during a flashing/feeding session with Ash.

i struggled with finding what kind of decorations i could do that guys would actually appreciate and the answer was literally right in front of my face! BOOBS!!!! so regardless of the ridiculous tackyness of boobie cupcakes, i did it, and i think they liked them.

Easter baby

i haven't been able to log into my blog for the last week - no clue why. Anyways, now that i am back...i am going to stage a comeback. A big one.

But, first - check out the baby love:

boom.

BOOM.

ON A HAPPIER NOTE....

i chopped off all of my hair this week (10 inches actually) and someone at the grocery store stopped me and said one of the nicest darn things i have heard in a while. She said:" you are a very chic mom"

it made my day.

It also made me laugh because that literally was the first day that week (okay maybe month) that i hadn't worn yoga pants with a big ole' fancy face of no makeup.

i'm loving the new do and higher maintenance look. My pony tails were getting out of control....and what better way to force yourself to put some effort into your appearance than to try a new haircut.

Oh and i have to recommend a great little hair product i discovered this week too......Bumble and Bumble "texture" is awesome. I tend to love when my hair looks piecy and messy (especially in the summer)....this stuff totally does that. It is matte too so your hair doesn't look greasy. Seriously, try it. People will probably stop you in the grocery store to tell you that you look like a beachy mermaid...and in my book - that is a very good thing.

As far as my last "horribly depressing" post goes. NO need to worry about my mental stability. I will be booking some flights pronto so hopefully these sad days will be a thing of the past :) thanks for your nice comments though.

i'll try to find something more fun to talk about soon!

just bummed

i think i am having a break down.

My baby is finally sleeping for a good chunk of time and i have been up for hours crying.

I don't know why today is particularly hard, but i just have an overwhelming sense of guilt for being so far away from my family. I miss them so much and too much time has passed since we were all together last.

It makes me feel like a bad person. These are all of my favorite people...and i NEVER see them.

p.s....

i'm holding Ashlyn listening to lil wayne while posting on this blog.

maybe i should start listening to baby advice

...she is kinda gangsta though

ha ha...dont tell dad :)

i need to clarify....

there is a reason i don't get paid to write my thoughts.

i have a very hard time conveying my full thoughts and i think sometimes just shooting out a portion of my thoughts makes me sound like an ass.

i don't hate all baby advice...and saying that i did - made me sound like a total jerk. I realized after the fact that a lot of credit should be paid to my friends, my sister, my mom and all the blogs i read too.

I stay away from annoying friends and annoying blogs - in reality, it just so happens that A LOT of what i know about babies and baby gear has been learned from other people. I actually forgot to mention one other book that i seriously read all the time - that has helped me to stay off of the psycho mom list at the pediatricians office....becasue without it - i think i would call that helpline 3 or 4 times a week. "What to expect the first year" is filled with facts that help you understand milestones and what you should expect as far as your baby's development goes...and knowing that stuff is important and not necessarily something that you just know on your own.

I really hope i didn't come off as a know-it-all mom.... i was only trying to make the point that books....and people..... that act like they know the one, only, and best way to raise your kid suck.

a good portion of all of my conversations with friends revolve around baby stuff.... and i love that. None of them are know-it-alls and i love hearing their suggestions. i also love reading about what other people are doing with their baby's online.

sooooo i hope that clears up my true feelings on the topic.

No more serious shit....my next post will be about my boobs.

:)

Stay tuned.