Snow day!!

We had a pretty big snow storm this week and it kept me home from work one day. This was Carson's first encounter with snow and he was in love! His mouth hung open the whole time, just in awe of all the white stuff on the ground. We pulled him around on the sled for a while until his little nose felt like an icicle! it was so fun!!

All bundled up and ready to go!

This was the look he had most of the time! ha :)

Sledding!

After sledding, he didn't want to go inside! Boy, he was mad! Doesn't he look like Randy from The Christmas Story?! HA!

Oven Fried Honey Chicken Nuggets

So...daniel repeatedly tells me as he's shoving his face with these nuggets that this is his "new favorite meal" :) And Carson normally doesn't care for chicken nuggets (consistency thing, i think??) so i wanted to try these out for him and he agreed with his daddy. he dipped them in ranch and ate two whole nuggets!! i was very excited...and i have to say i agree! these were really good. the perfect amount of honey flavor...loved it! I found this on Lauren's blog

Oven Fried Honey Chicken Nuggets

1/4 cup honey

2tablespoons balsamic or red ine vinegar

11/2 cup dried bread crumbs

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or cooking spray)

6 (4-6 oune) fresh boneless, skinless chicken breast, halves

Preheat over to 375. In shallow bowl, whisk together honey and vinegar. Pour bread crumbs into separated bowl. Set bowls aside. Spread oil over foil lined baking pan large enough to hold chicken pieces in one layer. Roll chicken pieces in honey mixture, then in bread crumbs, place in pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until cooked thoroughly.

Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings

We had a snow storm here which kept me home from work...so, it was the perfect weather to put some Chicken and dumplings in the crockpot. This recipe is so good...i found it on allrecipes.com The original recipe is slightly different but i've shown my modifcations below and it is really really good. The carrots and celery are optional but if you have them, i highly suggest to add them! Personally, i think it makes he dish! I knew it was good when my husband told me last night that it compared to his grandma's recipe and she makes all her stuff homemade!

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons of butter
2 (10.75 oz) cans of condensed cream of chicken
1 can chicken broth
onion powde(optional)
1 package refrigerated biscuit dough, torn into pieces
salt and pepper, spices
cut up chunks of carrots and celery

Place the chicken, butter, soup and seasonings in a slow cooker, and fill with chicken broth to cover.
Cover and cook for 5 to 6 hours on high. (or if you are cooking all day, set it on low and then when add biscuits, turn it on high) About 30 minutes before serving, place the torn biscuit dough in the slow cooker. Cook unil the dough is no longer raw in the center.
side note: once done, if you feel it is to thick, just add water til you get a soupy consistency

Spo Bob!

Carson loves spongebob or as he says it...Spo Bob. :) So, he's in the kitchen with me playing with the pots and pans and i'm doing some dishes. The tv is playing in the living room. Personally, i can't hear the tv but apparently carson can because all of a sudden he stops playing and goes "oh, man" and runs in the living room, looks at the tv and starts shaking his butt and humming to the theme song of spongebob! ha! Then after the song is over, he comes back in the kitchen and continues playing with the pots and pans. haha He never watches the cartoon, he just likes the song! It's hilarious to see!

Chocolate Chip and Cheesecake Heaven!

These bars are delicious! I love chocolate and i love cream cheese so i knew this would be a winner! i saw them on brooke's blog and had to make them! The original recipe did call for 1/2 cup of coconut, if desired but i omited. I may try that next time. Nik...these are for you, girl! I know they are going to be right up your ally! Considering you text me just to tell me that i hadn't posted the recipe yet...i know you are dying to make these!! ha! :)

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury refrigerated chocolate chip cookies

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and egg until smooth.

In ungreased 8 or 9 inch square pan, break up half of cookie dough. With floured fingers, press dough evenly in bottom of pan to form the crust. Spread cream cheese mixture over dough. Crumble and sprinkle remaining half of dough over cream cheese mixture. Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch. Cool 30 minutes and then put in refrigerator for at least two hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into four rows by four rows. Store in fridge.

Our new Kitchen Addition

I am so excited! I am sure most mom's can agree with me that we spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Originally we wanted a flat screen in the kitchen but we have cathedral ceilings and was told that it would be almost impossible to get cable hooked up in there. I wasn't to sad because having a radio was just as good! I have been waiting for this baby for over a month now! Best Buy has been sold out since Christmas and just got some in at our local store. I got the last one! This is what my christmas gift cards went towards and i couldn't be happier with it! Now i can play music and cd's when i cook, bake, clean the kitchen or whatever. Carson loves hearing his special cd's when he's eating breakfast too! It was a fun purchase and looks really good in our kitchen too!

30 (31) Things about me

My friend Jill sent me this email teling me to list 30 things about mysef. I had 31 but i could of probably kept going...i thought it would be neat to include in my blog for those that don't know me well!

1. My name is Shelby
2. If i was to be a boy, my parents would of named me Travis
3. I have a fear of spiders and any kind of flying bugs. Especially horseflies. Eek!
4. daniel is 27 and i am 32
5. I got married in Breckenridge, CO
6. I have lost 50 pounds since i had Carson!!
7. I have three more to go to my wedding weight!
8. I went to college at the University of Northern Iowa
9. I chose that school because i got a full ride to play Division I Softball
10. I am a pitcher
11. One of my biggest accomplishments was running a half marathon-13.2 miles
12. I only walked a total of 5 minutes through the whole thing...my knee hurt
13. the one place i desire to travel to is Charleston, SC. i love the south and hear it's beautiful!!
14. I love to blog...http://lifeofdscd.blogspot.com/
15. I would like three maybe four kids
16. I have one sister, Nikki-28 and one brother, Christopher, 17
17. My favorite color is ocean blue...but i'm becoming partial to anything green lately.
18. i have been to 11 concerts, i think?
19. two of those were smashing pumpkins and two were Alana Davis
20. I have met Billy Corgan and Alana Davis!!
21. I met oj simpson at a bar in the lodge we stayed for our wedding. he wished me luck in my marriage. he was staying at the same lodge we were in CO.
22. I hate raw onion...if any food has any onion in it, i wont eat it
23. I love yoga!
24. So much so that i secretly want to be certified to become an instructor :)
25. I have had broken two bones in my whole life
26. they were two of my toes when i cracked them on the tub getting in the shower. i was 17 when i did that. how clumsy!
27. I want to make my own jewelry-jill is going to show me how!
28. i have pierced my nose, belly button and ears
29. i have one tattoo on my lower back and can't wait to get another. i want the next one on the inside of my wrist but my husband hates that idea
30. carson is 18 months yesterday! i sware he's a genius...he's so smart it's scary! we are so blessed!
31. i LOVE to cook and bake!

My Little Hercules!

Can i brag a bit about my child?? I figure this is my blog...so, i can do what i want,right?? :) I have never been one to brag...about anything.. but when it comes to your kids...you have to! When i was pregnant, I always had a serious gut feeling that Carson was going to be a boy. When we had the 3-D ultrasounds done, it was confirmed even though we didn't see the "goods" :) The definition of the muscles in his arms and back were a dead give away that he had to be a boy. Otherwise, we would of had one hell of a muscular girl! I sware...it was like nothing i have ever seen before. The little guy was ripped and he wasn't even born yet! Anyway, i nicknamed him "Hercules" for the rest of my pregnancy. When i finally delivered him and Daniel said the words "It's a Boy!" it was no shock to me! I was 100% without a doubt positive that he was a boy....and he is ALL boy to this day! This morning, I was watching him run around the house in his diaper, throwing a nurf football around and it brought me back to seeing his muscular little body on the 3-D ultrasound. It brought tears to my eyes because it seemed like yesterday i was pregnant with him and now he's exactly 18 months old. Time really does fly. Being an athlete myself, i would love to see Carson one as well! A baseball player (i hope...i see him being a catcher!) football player (his daddy hopes!) basketball, soccer, golf, rugby...something! And if he's not...i am 100% ok with that! But darnit, we're going to at least try to get him to use those muscles of his in a sport somehow!! ;) My parents got me into sports when i was a kid and that was the life i knew. I loved it! I loved the competition, the feeling of winning and accomplishment and with my parents at my side, they always made me feel like i was the best at whatever sport i played.. I want to give that same feeling to Carson. So, i snapped a couple pictures of him playing...not sure if you can tell how broad his shoulders are or the muscle definition in his back but just look at the bicep on his arm in the one picture of him dumping out his blocks. That's my little hercules and i am so proud!

Chicken Spaghetti

An old roomate of mine made this for me on one of my birthday's and i've been making it ever since! It is so darn easy and so good! My husband has said that the cold leftovers the next day are even better!! I add a little garlic salt to give it a little more flavor. This is one of my favorite recipes!

1 pound of spaghetti noodles (i use less....tends to be a lot of noodles)
1 can rotel
1 can cream of mushroom
1 cup of milk
2-3 chicken breast
garlic salt to taste

Boil noodles in salt water and same time cut chicken into chunks and cook on skillet. drain pasta. When noodles and chicken are cooked, add chicken, rotel, cream of mushroom and milk to noodles and stir. Season to taste.

Chipmunk Cheeks!

Carson was trying to see how many oyster crackers he could fit into his mouth at once. He just kept piling them in until he looked like........this!! oh, thank god i had my camera nearby!

Tomato Chicken Pasta

THIS.IS.SO.GOOD!! Lots of flavor and very easy to make!! You must like oregano...it is a strong spice in this dish. You can lessen the oregano if you are not a fan though. I will definately be making this again!

2 cups of pasta (i used mostaccioli but you can use any tube pasta)

3/4 pounds of chicken, cut into pieces

1 can healthy request cream of chicken soup

1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes

11/2 cup of milk

1 tbsp of dried basil

1 tbsp of dried oregano

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1tsp black pepper

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella

Cook pasta as directed. Heat skillet over medium high heat. Add chicke and cook thoroughly. Reduce heat to medium, stir in soup, tomatoes, milk and seasonings. Stir in cooked pasta. Cook about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through. Sprinkle with cheese. Reduce heat, cover and let stand about 5 minutes.

Nikki is the Big 28!

Last saturday we celebrated my sister nikki's 28th bday! Her and her FIANCE (yay!! they just got engaged xmas eve!), Sam just moved into their new apartment together so they had people over to kick off the night. Sam is from Bloomington, IL and just got a new job in St. Louis to move down here and be with Nikki. They are getting married next year! so exciting!! Anyway, some of the funny pictures are on a cheap throw away camera we got from Melting Pot at new year's so i'll have to scan those and post them later. But here are some pics from our night...

Me, our great friend (and sweetest girl ever)Beth, my sis/bday girl, Nikki, sipping on our martinis! they were so good!

This is the whole gang! l-r, Sam, Nikki, Me, My hubby daniel, my hilarious cousin james and beth

Daniel, Me, James and Beth

Nik and Sam! so cute!

Crockpot Lasagna

i found this recipe on Brooke's blog...and a cookie for dessert. This was a easy recipe...a little more prep work than i would like but it was still really good. When i think crock pot, i think throw everything in there and call it a day but this took a little prepping....but worth it! and note...when it says to cook on low 4-5 hours...it really means 4 to 5 hours and no longer!! thank goodness my husband was home to watch it because i put it together at 8 am and it was done by noon! He turned it on warm for the rest of the day so by the timei got home at 5 it was rather dry on top. However, it still tasted good!

1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 oz package of lasagne noodles
1 jar of spaghetti sauce
1/3 cup of milk
15 oz. ricotta cheese
1 egg
11/2 cup shredded italian blend cheese

Using a little olive oil, add onion and garlic to a saute pan. Then add beef. Over medium heat, cook until completely browned. Add sauce to meat and simmer for a few min. In a bowl, mix ricotta cheese, add egg and mix completely. Add shredded cheeses and mix well.
Using cooking spray. coat sides and bottom of crockpot. Pour 1/4 of meat mixture into crockpot, then a layer of noodles (you will need to break them in order to fit), followed by a layer of the 1/3 meat mixture. Repeat 3 times. Then top with remaining meat mixture. Make sure all noodles around the edges are covered with sauce. cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Oreo Pudding Pie

This was so easy and pretty light....the recipe calls for one box of the oreo pudding mix but i think it should call for two. With one box of pudding, i think the pudding got lost in the cool whip so next time, i will try two. this was so good!

Oreo Pudding Pie
1 box of Oreo Cookies and Cream pudding mix (i would do 2 boxes)
1 pre made chocolate pie crust
1 tub of fat free cool whip
Crushed reduced fat oreos to top

Mix pudding mix...put in crust and top with cool whip. Crush oreos to sprinkle on top. Simple!

Pizza Casserole

This was dinner tonight....a very easy recipe and good as well! I think next time i may add pepperoni on top. I sprayed the crust with olive oil spray before baking and sprinkled it with garlic powder and some italian seasoning.

Here is my trusty helper! Notice the spatula...he was ready to help mom stir the meat!

Pizza Casserole

1 lb of extra lean ground beef

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 jar of sliced mushrooms, drained

1 jar of your favorite tomato sauce (i used pizza sauce)

olive oil cooking spray

1 10 oz can regrigerated pizza dough

6 oz of park skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Preheat over to 425. in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, cook onion, garlic until softened, add meat stirring until it's browned. Drain and return to skillet. Add musrooms and tomato sauce, and cook until heated through and most of the sauce has been absorbed. While meat cooks, coat a 13X9 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Unroll pizza dough and press into bottom and halfway up sides of the baking dish. Pre-bake in the oven for 5 minutes. remove from oven, then ada a layer of cheese, then layer the meat mixture on top of that, then top meat mixture with another layer of cheese. Bake, uncovered for 12 min. or until cruse is browned and cheese is melted. cool 5 minutes before serving.

First post!

Welcome!! I am recently new to "blogging" but i've been following others blogs for months and have so much fun doing it that i decided to start my own! I am all about cooking, baking, decorating our home, sports and of course, my wonderful family! Let me introduce...I have a wonderful husband, Daniel...we got married in Breckenridge, CO on June 16, 2006. He is the kindest and most thoughtful person i know and i am so blessed to be married to him. Next is our beautiful son Carson who is 18 months. He has truly changed our life in every way possible! He is so sweet, adorable, hilarious, (i could come up with a million words to describe him)...but oh...such a handful!! We love him more than words can say! And i can't forget the wonderful and hyper "horse" of a dog, our yellow lab, Dakota! He is quite entertaining and i'm sure i'll have some funny posts about him. I'm starting this blog so that family and friends can see what we're up to! Every day seems to be an adventure for our little family and this blog will tell you all about it! For now, i leave you with one of my favorite pictures of Carson. isn't he the cutest?? :)