We're Back!

We just got back from our annual SWAT Choir Missions Trip! We spent the week with 85 students and sponsors in Atlanta, GA. The students gave multiple concerts and served by cleaning, organizing closets, yard work and any other random task possibly given. They did a wonderful job and blessed many people including the sponsors! The last day of the week, we gave them a fun day and headed to the World of Coke, Fogo de Chau, the Varsity & on a scavenger hunt. It was such a great week! You can read all about it on the SWAT blog.

Here are some pictures from the week:


























































































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Hard Boiled Eggs... In the oven???

So I tried yet another of my Pinterest finds. Hard boiled eggs- in the oven. I love hard boiled eggs, but I tend to worry about them boiling over and burning my stove top. Now, nothing I've cooked from Pinterest has failed me yet, but for some reason, I was expecting this to. I set my temp to 325 and hesitantly placed 8 eggs on the rack in the oven for 30 min. What did I get? 8 perfectly cooked eggs! (Do not be alarmed by brown spots on the shell or egg white. Its perfectly normal). This is perfect for making Deviled Eggs for a party or even if you want to stick them in and work on something else (our shower got scrubbed while mine were cooking). Let me know if anyone tries this and what you think about it!





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Best Shower Cleaner?

My one we request when we originally wanted to build a house was for NO clear glass doors. My argument was that they were SO hard to clean. When the building of the house(s) fell through, we found a brand new house. Since the house was already finished, I had no choice in shower doors. That dreaded clear glass was in our master bathroom. But let's face it, clear glass is BEAUTIFUL!
The first few times I cleaned it I made a Comet and Vinegar paste. It worked great, but took over 45 min to get it cleaned. I was so frustrated! Our shower did not get cleaned as often as it should that's for sure!
I was so excited the other day when I came across another idea for a shower cleaner- Dawn Dish Soap & Vinegar. I believe the original "recipe" came from Mr.Food.com. I mixed my ingredients and headed in. Not only did it get my shower doors clean, but it got some of the soap scum off the floor too! I LOVE cleaning the shower doors now! I actually even cleaned them after getting a temporary crown on yesterday.

Here are the directions:
9 oz of Blue Dawn Dish Soap
9 oz of Vinegar

Heat the vinegar up in the microwave then pour it into a spray bottle. Add the dish soap and shake it up really good. Then spray your shower walls and scrub, scrub, scrub!

Happy Cleaning!

Desiree

PS- please forgive the horrible photo. We are down our computer so I can't upload. I had to use my phone to take it.

Crock Pot Ranch Pork Chops

Last week, I tried a new recipe. I was very, very unsure of how it would come out, but very hopeful as it is probably on of the easiest crock pot dinners I've ever made. I was hoping to get pictures, but it was so good I didn't stop to take any!

Ingredients:
4-6 Pork Chops (I used boneless)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of water
3 tbs. or 1 packet of Ranch seasoning.

Directions:
Put them all in the crock pot and set on low for 6-8 hours.

How simple is that? They were a pretty big hit last night. Best part- It only cost me about 3.50. We even got 2 meals out of it.

I served it with steamed broccoli & mashed potatoes. Yum-o!

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Southwest Crispy Chicken Wraps

One of our favorite recipes is Southwest Crispy Chicken wraps. Our schedule is crazy sometimes (ok, most of the time), so I like things I can just throw together. My crock pot has become my best friend. Haha.

Wednesday is consistently our crazy day, so I've really got to plan in advance. Last week, we ate Little Rosie's leftovers for pretty much the entire week. (Thanks to D-Now) I was kinda getting tired of it, but we still had some tortillas and Mexican Rice leftover. It was time to make something fresh with it.

Recipe:
1 cup cooked chicken
1 cup cooked rice
1 can of black beans- drained and rinsed
Onion
Cumin
Chili Powder
Garlic Salt
Juice of 1 lime
Tortillas- fajita sized
Shredded cheese

I placed 2 small chicken breasts in the crock pot with some leftover canned chicken broth & some water. I cooked that from 7 in the morning till I got home at 8:30 that night. It was SO tender! I ended up only needing 1 1/4 of the small chicken breast. Then I heated up 1 cup of the rice mixed with some water. In the same bowl, I added the chicken, beans, onion, lime juice and seasonings. Sometimes, I add corn and tomatoes to the mixture as well.
Take the tortilla and spray one side with cooking spray. On the other side of the tortilla, cover it with shredded cheese then add 2 spoonfuls of the meat & rice mixture. Roll it up and place it on a hot skillet. Cook each side for approximately 2 minutes. I like mine fairly crispy so I tend to cook it a little longer. Then serve.




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25 Years Ago...

25 years ago today, I was barely 4 years old. I was loving ballet, dolls, friends, craft projects.







25 years ago today, I was sitting in my Baptist preschool listening to my teacher, Mrs. Brown, tell me that if I wanted to go to heaven I had to ask Jesus into my heart. I prayed with her and accepted that precious gift of eternal life.

25 years ago today, I went home after school and very indignantly told my mom that if she wanted to go to heaven she had to ask Jesus into her heart too. And guess what? She did!





I love that God placed me in a family where I could hear of His saving grace & come to know Him at such a young age. It's an amazing thing to think of how He orchestrated all of that. It still blows me away. I am so thankful that He gave me a mother that I could share a spiritual birthday with and that we could grow spiritually together. She is a wonderful role model & one of the greatest prayer warriors I know.
God has done so much in my life already and I can't wait to see what else He has in store. God is so good to me- in every circumstance!

I hope each of you have a spiritual birthday where you celebrate the time when you came to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. If you don't, please contact me. I would love to talk with you about it!

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Taste like mashed potatoes???

Ok, so most of my recipes I find on Pinterest. This recipe is no different, but it was a little riskier than I usually go for.
The recipe claimed this Cheesy Cauliflower Purée tasted better than mashed potatoes. WHAT?!?!? I kept thinking there is no way. I absolutely love almost any form of potato. In fact to ready myself for tonight's dish, I even had a baked potato for lunch. Gotta have something to compare it to right? :) I wouldn't say it tastes like or that its better than mashed potatoes, but it was DELICIOUS! It will be made again.

Here is the recipe:
1 head of cauliflower
1/3 cup of heavy cream
2 tbs of butter
2 oz of sharp cheese (I used sharp white cheddar)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Cut the cauliflower into medium sized pieces. Place in a microwave safe bowl and add heavy cream & 1 tbs butter. Heat for 5 min. Remove from microwave and stir- make sure that the cauliflower is covered with the cream. Put back in the microwave for 4 minutes. Then put in the blender with the cheese and 1 tbs butter. Blend until there are no lumps. Then add salt and pepper.

Enjoy!