Sunday Dinner-delicious!

GARLIC CHICKEN FARFALLE

I've been finding so many new, delicious recipes through blogs. This one was found on Becky Higgin's blog. After church, when I was cooking this recipe, Alex said, "Let me guess, you found this recipe on someone's blog." But once he saw the bacon come out of the oven, he was jumping up & down and then gave me a huge hug! Let's just say Alex LOVES bacon!

If you're interested in a pasta dish with serious flavor, give this a try! My whole entire family LOVED this meal.

GARLIC CHICKEN FARFALLE

16 oz. Farfalle pasta

1 c. heavy whipping cream

3-4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)

2 to 3 cloves garlic, crushed OR garlic salt (I just did a little garlic salt)

1 Tbsp. pepper* (I only did about 1 tsp of pepper)

1/2 c. butter

1 lb. bacon, crumpled**

1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese

1 (12 oz) Lawry’s mesquite marinade with lime juice

*Seems like a lot of pepper, but it has a wonderful flavor when everything mixes together. If you're apprehensive, do less pepper. You can always add more.

**We like to cook our bacon in the oven (400 degrees). Way less messy. And it's crispy every time. It took exactly 30 minutes. Allow to cool and then crumple.

Crock pot chicken and bottle of marinade on low for 6 hours. Pull marinated chicken out of the juices, allow to cool a little bit, and shred (I pull it apart). Set this aside. About a half-hour before serving, boil the pasta. In a small saucepan, melt butter, add garlic, whipping cream, pepper, parmesan cheese, and crumpled bacon. Whisk together on low heat for 3-4 minutes. In a large bowl, pour over cooked, drained pasta, add chicken and stir through. Sprinkle a little bit more shredded parmesan cheese on top. ENJOY!

Weight Loss Secret by Alex

Yesterday, Alex & I were in the drive thru at Burger King. I just ordered a cheeseburger (no fries or coke) since I'm trying to lose weight. Alex told me, "Mom, you wanna know the secret to losing weight. Make sure you have fatter friends and then you'll always look skinny."

Now why didn't I think of that! It's sure does beat watching what you eat & exercising. Too bad I have such great friends or I'd be ditching them for some fatter ones!

Witches Gone Wild - A great girl's night out!

Last night, Amy & Tania hosted an incredible girl's night out, "A Witches' Brew" in celebration of "All Hallow's Eve." We were invited to Tania's house for a witches' feast, spells & prizes. I've never seen so many witches in the same room. They served delicious soups, salads & desserts. We also played some party mingle games to get to know all of the other witches. Thanks for having us, Tania!

From left to right: Tyra, Janene, me, Jessie, Angie, Amy, Jana & Tania. Thanks for inviting us, Amy! Good laughs, good friends-what more could you ask for!

The 2 nursing moms-Janene & I. We shopped for witch's clothes while the kids were at school. Janene found these great eyelashes to complete our diva witch look.

Check out these glitter goblets Tania made. Tania is the queen of glitter. Everything was done "over the top." Click here to see more of Tania's glitter & halloweeen craft ideas.

Prizes & loot. Wish I would've won one of these darling prizes. Love the cute star that Amy made.

When I came home, Abbey wanted to try on my fake eyelashes.

This was the first time I went somewhere without Ava. Luckily, she was great for Jason. They gave us these cute witches hats as party favors when we left. Thanks, Jason, for watching our kids!

Thankful Thursday

A few random things that I am thankful for this week:

1. My extremely comfy bed & "bat cave". If you've ever seen The Holiday, (one of my all time favorites), Cameron Diaz can hit a switch & turn her bedroom completely dark any time of the day. Jason rigged up our room, so we can enjoy the same effect. It's great if I ever need a nap or need to go back to bed after the kids go to school (because I've stayed up way too late the night before!).

2. Having a friend of mine (that I haven't seen for months) ask me if I lost weight! That definately beats having a distant relative (at my G'pa's 90th birthday) ask me if I was expecting! It also beats Aliza's comment this week to me, "That's a big tummy you got there!" Thanks for pointing that out Aliza, like I hadn't noticed!

3. Getting my hair cut, colored & styled this week. A small tender mercy is Ava slept in her car seat through the entire 1 hr 45 minute appointment.

4. My new friend, Slim Fast, and my new diet friend/supporter, who I'll keep anonymous, but we'll call her Stargo! Thanks Stargo for keeping me focused this week. We'll be weighing in every Wednesday to see how we're doing & I'll keep you posted.

5. New episodes of The Office, Gray's Anatomy & a new show Kath & Kim that I'm looking forward to (Molly Shannon is one of my favorites!)

I found this on Mindi's blog. My family will appreciate it since they all love Dwight's humor!

Preschool & Playdough

Aliza started preschool this month at our kid's elementary school. I couldn't decide if I should start her in preschool this year or wait until next year. She still has 2 years before Kindergarten, since she'll turn 4 in December. The preschool at our elementary school is so hard to get into. In fact, they do a lottery to determine who gets into the program. I had made the decision in the springtime when they held the lottery, to wait until next year for preschool. However, one day in August, I had the thought pop into my head about 5 times to call the school & see if they had any openings. I finally called & the lady told me they had a long waiting list, so she probably wouldn't get in. Then a week later, the lady called me & said they had a spot for her. I guess she kept calling everyone on the waiting list until she reached someone that was home. I happened to be here & answered the phone the day she called. I'm still not sure as to the reason why Aliza needs to be in preschool this year, but everything came together so smoothly, that it really feels like it's meant to be for her.

Aliza has really enjoyed this month of preschool. However, she's such a night owl that waking her up on Tuesday & Thursday mornings is like waking her up out of a coma.

With the preschool, if you volunteer 1 day/month or make playdough for the preschool, they take $20 off the monthly tuition. So of course, I gladly volunteered to make the playdough each month! Sign me up!

This playdough is extremely easy to make. So for any of you needing a good playdough recipe, enjoy!

Preschool Playdough

2 cups flour
1/2 cup salt
2 pkg unsweetened koolaid
2 Tbsp cream of tartar
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 cups water

In large pot, combine all dry ingredients. Mix well. Add the oil & water. Stir over medium heat until the mixture is firm and hard to stir. (The mixture changes consistency & look as it cooks). Do not overcook. Dump out of pan on lightly floured surface. When cool, knead until smooth & pliable. Store in airtight container. Refrigerate between uses.

General Conference-just what I needed!

I love General Conference weekend. So many of the talks were just what I personally needed to hear.

One of my favorite talks was from our prophet, President Thomas S. Monson. He said, “Nothing is as constant as change. Time never stands still. This is our one and only chance at mortal life. Opportunities come and they’re gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we’re to learn in this short, sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non existent future when you will have time and to do all that you want to do. Instead find JOY in the JOURNEY . . .NOW!” “There is no tomorrow to remember if we don’t do something today”
“If you’re still in the process of raising children, beware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will to your surprise miss them profoundly.”

As a mother to young children, I loved the reminder of enjoying the present moment. One of the greatest lessons I learned from my Grandma Eschler was on motherhood. She always told me that we have this short time to raise our children and the rest of our life to reflect on how they turn out.

15 seconds of fame. . . Michelle & Ava meet the Good Things Utah girls

Just call us celebrity stalkers! Mindy, a good friend of mine, and I took a quick break from peddling our scrapbook supplies at Scrapbook USA Expo, to meet the Good Things Utah girls. Here we are with Nicea, Reagan, Marti & Angie. They broadcasted the Good Things Utah show live from the Scrapbook Expo. They were all so nice, but I think I freaked them out with all of my useless trivia knowledge (like asking Reagan about her 2 boys, asking Angie about her dating life, telling them we want to go on the show after we lose some weight, blah, blah, blah). Marti was dying to hold Ava to get her baby fix for the day. They personally signed their cookbooks, which they were selling for only $5 (a screaming deal!). Jason, Michelle & Kim (another good friend of mine) working the cash registers. Since I'm still nursing Ava, she was with us all day Friday (8 am to midnight) & Saturday (8 am to 6 pm). She was quite the trooper for enduring this!

We liquidated through a lot of our inventory. We sold our papers for 10/$1.00 and our stickers, rub-ons for 3/$1.00. Our booth was usually slammed with ladies, but here's a picture when we had a quick moment to breathe!

Jason & I started Polar Bear Press in June 2005. We had experience with the industry from helping Karen Foster Design & Paperfever run their business. From 2005-2007, we had artists design scrapbook products (papers, stickers, rub-ons, ribbon & chipboard) and manufactured these products. We also own a payroll, accounting & tax business, Payroll Plus Services. After finding out I was pregnant with our 5th child, Ava, we decided to simplify our life & to sell our scrapbook business. To this date, we haven't sold the business, so we've been liquidating our inventory. There's been so many lessons learned from running this business.

Scrapbook USA Expo is having their 1st ever show in St. George at the Dixie Center, November 7-8. If you're in the area, stop by & say, "hi." We'll be there peddling through more inventory.

And thanks to Mindy, my great friend, for taking these pictures, since I forgot my camera. Mindy & I met as babies when our dads were in the military together in North Carolina. I'm only 3 weeks older than her & we've been college roommates & we were in the MTC together. I'm so grateful that our husbands & kids get along so well. You should see how many people count all of our kids when we go places together (she has 6 & we have 5 and yes we gave birth to them all & no we don't homeschool them!) I'm still trying to convince Mindy to break down & start her own blog. It would be a great one to read, a good laugh for all! She always has something "punny" to say.

Thankful Thursday

Where do I start? I really do have SO much to be thankful for:

1. My handyman & husband, Jason. He's great at fixing anything around the house, especially with the computer! His latest projects this week include programming the TV's to display the caller ID (when our phones ring) and adding new songs to my playlist!

2. My kids are healthy & have great friends & school teachers.

3. My DVR (I love to record my favorite TV shows & watch them after the kids go to sleep!)

4. Mah Jong Solitaire A computer game I play when I need to relax my brain from taxes, payroll & accounting. Yes, it's a little neurotic that I play numbers games to relax me. Click here to try it. And thanks Amy for teaching me how to add a link to my blog.

5. General Conference weekend Life would definately be easier if we could listen to our church leaders every Sunday from the comforts of our own home. I'm really looking forward to hearing their talks & being spiritually uplifted.

Some redneck humor!

Courtesy of my Uncle Lee, here's some redneck humor for the day!

Redneck Time Out

Redneck Yard Swing

And one joke to leave you with:
"How do you know when you're staying in a Redneck motel?"
When you call the front desk and say,"I gotta leak in my sink,
and the clerk replies, "Go ahead."

2 great friends, 2 great giveaways

My neighbor & friend, Amy, is having a surprise fall giveaway! Go to her blog, http://thisandthat-amy.blogspot.com/ for all of the details!

Another friend of mine, Kristy, is "stepping it up & laying it on the line." Go to her blog, http://lifescrapped.blogspot.com/ for all of the details!

Thanks Kristy & Amy for inspiring me to finally create this blog! Love both of your blogs!

Happy Birthday Jake!

We had fun last night celebrating Jake's birthday at El Matador! We love any excuse to eat out.

Alex loves hanging out with his cousin, Jake, who's just 4 months older than him. This picture was taken of Jake & Alex on their camping trip with their dads (Labor Day Weekend in Wyoming-yes, it snowed!). Jake & Alex were good sports to endure this 20-mile horse ride!

Margo & I enjoyed our Labor Day weekend, camp free. In fact, this sums up my thoughts about the subject:

Hello Costa Vida, Goodbye Cafe Rio!

So, I went to lunch today with 2 of my good friends from high school, Janel & Lisa. I've never been to Costa Vida before & LOVED it! Nothing like a good sweet pork salad! Sorry Cafe Rio, but you've been replaced!

It's hard to believe that next summer we'll be having our 20-year reunion! I really need to use this as a reason to get rid of my "muffin top!"

Aliza & Ava came along with me. Aliza asked me on the way home, "Mom, Do you think I'm cute or weird?" My answer, (of course!), "Aliza, You're definately CUTE!" She'll always come up with such random comments & questions. Later today, I was dancing and she said, "Mom, stop doing the robot dance. It's weird!"

Welcome to my blog!

So, after spending way too much time debating a name for my blog, I finally decided on the name. . . . thingswillallworkout. I love the above quote from President Hinckley & decided this was a more positive blog title than others ones I previously thought of. . . moments of chaos, life in survival mode and house of drama. When I told Ashley, my oldest daughter, about some of my possible blog titles, she said, "There's no drama at our house!" Ya think?

Thanks Melissa, my little sister, for inspiring me to finally starting my little blog. And yes, I'm sure you'll be my only reader!