Wednesday Already!

Thanks Gram for my ice cream outfit! (Somehow this never posted). 

Shopping Adventure

Today I scored French's mustard for $.50, 2 frozen pizzas for $4 each, 4 bottles of BBQ sauce for $3 total, and more! 

Mini Golf

We drove over to Cranberry Township's playground on Sunday afternoon, only to find that it was gone! Seriously, there was a giant empty hole in the park. So...we went to try and play mini golf, which I had no idea how well that would go with a six month old.

We made it to hole 17 without any whining at all! Go Ella! :)

This Pup Learned a New Trick

Ella is now sitting up in her own! She has been trying for about a week, but on Saturday she finagling nailed it - even stabilizing herself before tipping over!

Happy Anniversary

Very proud of my anniversary present for my love. The man at Home Depot falsely doubted me after I called a pipe wrench a "spiny wrench thing".

Spicy Salt

For Mother's Day this year I'm making my mom homemade seasonings. (I realized I'm a little late on Mother's Day, but better late than never, right?)

I just finished my first of four seasonings - originally named Seasoned Salt, but I've renamed it "Spicy Salt" after my recent "quality control" taste. :)

This was my first time making seasonings, so here are a few tips I learned along the way:
- Check your grocery store's International Food aisle for cheaper spices. (At my Giant Eagle, 2.5 ounces of Ancho Chili Powder was $6.49, but in the International aisle it was only $1.79).
- My Walmart has bagged spices that I found to be "one step fresher" which allowed me to ground my own spices rather than buying ground ones. (Cumin, Parsley, Thyme, etc).
- Check out the food aisle in your TJ Maxx or Marshalls - You will most likely be able to find your salt and pepper there. I got a cheap pepper mill to grind my pepper balls rather than buying pre-ground; you can also buy coarse sea salt and zip it in your food processor for 15 seconds to get a "mildly coarse" salt.

Spicy Salt Receipe: 

1/4 cup + 1 Tbs. (5 Tbs.) (home-ground) coarse sea salt
1/4 cup fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup onion powder
1/4 cup garlic powder
2 Tbs. chili powder
2 Tbs. paprika
2 Tbs. dried parsley
2 Tbs. crushed red pepper flakes (chop in your food processor for 15 seconds)
2 Tbs. cumin (chop in your food processor for 15 seconds)
3 teaspoons cayenne pepper (you could do less for less "bite")

Smoky Chili Lime Salt

This is the last for the 4 seasoning I made for my mom for Mother's Day this year. Check out the spicy salt, lemon pepper, and Rajin' Cajun seasonings too!

This one was definitely the most intensive recipe, but hopefully well worth it!

Ingredients: 
- 2 Tbs. ground pepper (I dried and ground my own peppers, but you could use pre-ground peppers).
- 4 Tbs. lime zest (zest for 3 or 4 limes)
- 3/4 cup coarse sea salt
- 1/4 cup pink Himalayan salt (this helps the seasoning keep its pink/red color)

Directions:
1. Zest your limes and leave out throughout the day to dry out. 
2. Cut the steams off of your peppers and remove all seeds (remember to wear gloves and NOT to touch your eyes).
3. Cover a cookie sheet with tin foil. Lay your peppers (bought in the International food aisle) on a cookie sheet. Cook on low heat for 10 minutes (I suggest opening your windows).
4. Take peppers out of the oven and let cool.
5. Once peppers are dry, grind up in your food processor.
6. After zest is dried, mix together pepper, zest, and salt.

Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning

Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning

- zest of 4 large lemons
- 1/3 cup crushed pepper corns {black and/or medley}
- 1/4 cup coarse sea salt

Directions:
1. Zest your lemons, leave out on plate to dry throughout the day.
2. Grind your pepper.
3. Mix together zest, pepper, and salt. 

Pretty Pretty Princess

Princess Dress-up ready to ship for my niece's birthday! Can't wait for the days of dress-up in my house!

Happy 3rd Birthday Bek!

Diet Coke

Like momma, like baby!

Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

Ingredients: [for 2 chicken breasts - just increase seasonings for more servings] 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon dried parsley

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 tablespoon butter
1-1/2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions: 
1. Mix together all seasonings listed in first portion of the directions.
2. Dip both sides of the chicken breast into the seasoning.
3. Heat butter and olive oil in your pan, saute your chicken until golden brown (about 6 minutes on both sides).
4. Drip lime juice over chicken and then sprinkle garlic powder on top, cook 5 more minutes.

Homemade Rajin’ Cajun Seasoning

Here is the 2nd of 4 homemade seasonings I'm making for my mom. For a few tips, check out my previous post. 

Homemade Rajin’ Cajun Seasoning:

• 1/2 cup paprika
• 1/3 cup Himalayan Pink Salt (I found this at TJ Maxx)
• 1/4 cup Garlic Powder
• 3 Tablespoons Black Pepper
• 2 Tablespoons Onion Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Oregano
• 1 Tablespoon Thyme
• 2 Teaspoons Cayenne Pepper (optional- won’t be spicy without this)

Mix and Enjoy!

Deal of the Week

$11.37 worth of food for only $5!

Get yours at Giant Eagle! But 2 bags if chips for $6 (regularly $4.29 each) get tea free ($2.79 value). Use $1 off coupon provided at display!

No Bake Cheesecake

This recipe is super easy and sure to please! It does have a slight lemon taste and is not as dense as your typical cheesecake, but considering how much time you save - it is a good trade-off in my opinion. Light - perfect for summer! 

Ingredients:
1 8 ounce package of cream cheese
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 8 ounce tub of cool whip
1/3 cup of lemon or lime juice

Directions:
1. Set cream cheese on counter for about an hour to soften.
2. Add together your cream cheese, condensed milk, and cool whip until smooth.
3. Add your citrus juice last, as it will start to harden your mixture almost immediately.
4. On the low speed of you hand mixer, blend well. Around 2 minutes of so is plenty, just make sure all ingredients are incorporated.
5. Immediately pour mixture into a waiting graham crust. I put into muffin tins with graham cracker crumbs in them - it made 24 muffins. 
6. Refrigerate for an hour and serve.

Here is the original recipe.

Where my toys at?

Ella's new favorite game?

Hiding all her toys around herself in the seat of her exercauser.

Cereal

Ella is loving her new yum yums!

Ohio for the weekend

This weekend we were in Ohio to celebrate the wonderful life of Josh's Grandfather. It was a joy to see family, reflect on memories, and create new ones all together.

I won't share the videos of the family dance-off which included a dancer's ribbon...but I'll share a few of Ella including her first swim and fun with cousins.

May 1

Today we had the world yummiest (and worst-for-you) broccoli.

Mince up done pepperoni, mix on garlic and panko. Put oil in pan, sauté panko mix for 5 mins, set aside. Mix cut broccoli in bowl with oil and salt, bake on pan for 15 mins at 425 degrees, flipping half way through. Spread Dijon mustard on broccoli then sprinkle panko mix on top, enjoy.