Chicken

In my honey lime enchilada post I commented that I always pre-cook my chicken to have for recipes. I had a number of people ask me to explain what I do so I thought I would take a second and let you know.
I always buy my chicken when it goes on sale. I buy what I can get cheap. I love boneless skinless, especially if we are just grilling or something but sometimes you can find breasts with the bone for 99 cents. Those are good too. I save some out for when I need a whole breast. I then take and fill my crock pot with the rest. I stick it in there and let it cook 6 hours to 10 hours depending on time. I then have Lee shred it (that is the crucial part....he is usually pretty willing except the other night when I screwed up the time estimate and needed it shredded at 4 am). I then fill sandwich bags with it. I then stick the baggies in the freezer for a quick dinner like Honey Lime Enchiladas, chicken soup, chick and dumplings from Cooking Light Magazine, chicken chili, chicken and broccoli casserole, etc. (let me know if you NEED any of these recipes). I have found having that step done lets me get a good dinner (or top a quick salad for me) on the table in a jiffy.
I also do the same thing with ground beef. Half the trouble with ground beef is the browning. If I have that done I can have tacos on the table in 10 minutes, Shepard's pie with leftover mash potatoes with 10 minutes prep (a little more cooking time), or Cooking Lights' no chop chili in 10 minutes.
I also make up a big double batch of my favorite homemade BBQ sauce and will buy the big pack of chicken thighs at Costco for 99cents a pound (or this week there are boneless pork ribs for cheap at Associated). I then separate them out into Ziploc gallon bags with plenty of sauce. Then when I am stuck for dinner I can pull one of those out and I have a quick marinated grill item ready and all I need to do is put in some potatoes and a veggie.

Hope this helps!

(This is RIGHT after labor. Of course I look torn up :)

I have thought a lot about new little babies these last few months. As Keaton and Savannah were placed in my arms for the first time I remember thinking, "shouldn't I recognize you?". Maybe I am alone but the first few days I feel like a lovely stranger has filled my space. I love them but I don't feel an immediate or terribly deep bond. As I nurse those babies and stay up night after night after night and care for their every need it doesn't take long to feel that amazing love you feel only for your children. It makes me think of the teaching, "you love those you serve". What a wise kind Heavenly Father that sends us these little helpless babies to care for and to learn to love completely. I am really glad he doesn't send them as a mouthy 3 year old :), or even more mouthy teenagers. What a marvelous time we live in that we can love and care for these little ones and get a small glimpse of how the Saviour has learned to love us in our inperfection.

A few things I LOVE...

I was heartbroken when Wal-mart discontinued their White Cloud diapers. I used those all the time with Keaton and they worked great for about 1/2 the price of the "national brands". I thought diapers would be a budget breaker with this little miss. I was thrilled though to find Target has a store brand as well. I gave them a try. They are GREAT!!! At $5 for 56 diapers they are a wowza! I have used them 2 mos. and have only have them leak 2x. Granted both times were at baby showers so maybe she just wanted outta there? They work out to be 1/2 the price of buying diapers at Costco....so maybe worth a try?

The second thing is GRIPE WATER. Have you ever heard of this? It is a natural thing with ginger and fennel. It eases colic, upset stomach, gas, and reflux. My sister Meesh suggested it (Meesha has a new baby too). It is a miracle. Savannah can be crying bloody murder and within a minute she is asleep. It is a must have for anyone with a new baby to have in their arsenal.

Lastly is one that you may like even without a new baby :) My friend Lisa and I just joined Bountiful Baskets . It is a produce co-op. It really is a cool deal. You pay $15 on Weds. and then on Sat. you go pick up a laundry basket of produce. This week my $15 got:

2 HUGE heads of Romaine

1 honeydew

5 small mangos

6 oranges

3 apples

10 bananas

1 big spaghetti squash

2 red peppers

2 cucumbers

6 pears

8 red potatoes

6 big tomatoes

I think for me it makes us think of new ways to use the produce and will help us eat better. You don't have to commit you can stop or start anytime. Right now it is in Northern Utah but Lisa is trying to get them to come more central.

So blessed...

We blessed our little girl in church on Sunday. It was a beautiful perfect Mothers Day. My Mother-In-Law made her dress.....all pintucks and smocking. It was seriously the dress of my dreams. We had most of our 10 (combined) brothers and sisters there so it was quite a crowd for dinner.

Family Picture....

Aunt Laralee made these darling little slippers for her, in like 2 days!

Head shot....

Thank you all who made the great effort to come to our special day!

TWO MONTHS!!!

We took the little miss to her 2 mos. appt. yesterday. She is getting so big. She jumped from the 3rd percentile to the 21 percentile. Of couse she has the classic big nog that Keaton has and is in the 50 percentile for head...my Mom is sure it is to house extra brain power....I am not so sure :) She weighs 9 pounds 6 oz. now. Yes, that is the same weight that her brand new cousin Brinlee came OUT at last week (what a good pusher you are Meesh!). She is now 21 1/2 inches so she picked up an inch there. She smiles like crazy (although I could NOT get her to smile in the picture) and is such a joy to have around. She has been a "made for TV" baby for us :)