Just catching up....

What a craptastic (this is a real word) day today was.  Work was a pain, fight with the body shop about my car, fight with the insurance company about my car.  Cable guy had to come out again tonight to fix something they broke on Saturday.  Seems like we are having a streak of bad luck, I knew things were going to well...

We did have a pretty good weekend.  So, I decided to show it to you below, in pictures....

Hubby was on 'outside' duty.  Cleaning the gutters, power washing the sliding, sidewalks, and patio.  Everything turned out great!

While he did that I was busy inside.

Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips

Chicken Fajitas with Cilantro Lime Rice, and Black Beans.

Strawberry Shortcake.

I bought this at Walmart of .97 cents and turned it into a new cookbook holder.

That's my Homemade Cookbook.

Poor Kitty, he had a bad day on Saturday, between the cable guy crawling around in the attic, Hubby power washing the house, and me ripping apart the sofa to vacuum and wash the slipcovers he was a wreck.



Hope you are having a great week!

 

~Cyn

What to Grill for Dinner: Chicken Fajitas

I'm so glad that my kitchen is finally have my kitchen back it order.  Finally, back to experimenting.

So yesterday's challenge...Fajitas with cilantro lime rice and black beans.

Actually, it wasn't too bad putting it together.

Start with your chicken.

Flatten it alittle and slice into strips.

Next the marinade.

Olive Oil (drizzle it over the chicken)
3 Tablespoons of lime juice
1 Tablespoon of Fajita seasonings
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

Cover and pop it in the frig for about 45 mins (less if you in a hurry) or you can put this together in the morning and let it chill all day until you are ready to make dinner.

Can't have Fajitas with the pico de gallo

2 medium tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup white onion, diced
4 - 5 Tablespoons of cilantro, chopped
1 Tablespoon of lime juice



Next, Veggies

(Dunkin Donuts iced coffee, optional)

I used green and red pepper and onions.  Orange and jalapeno peppers would other good option or additions.

Grill It.

I put everything together in a foil pan (you can also use a grill basket, or a grill pan on the stove), chicken on the bottom, veggies on top. Cover with foil and grill for medium heat for about 25 mins.

While that grills, make your rice and beans

Follow instruction on rice package you will want to make at least 1 cup.  For each cup, add 2 Tablespoons of fresh lime juice, 3 Tablespoons of chopped cilantro, and 1/2 Tablespoon of rice.

Heat up the beans.

Put it all together, with some sour cream and cheese.

Enjoy!!

~Cyn

Reader Mail Bag: Do-Over Weddings

I'm always amazed when I'm asked my opnion on something.  I mean, I love to give my opnion, but's usually to people who don't care.  So I was surprised, and flattered, when I received this email the other day.

Dear Cyn:

I'm wondering what your thoughts are on an invitation I received in the mail the other day.  It was invitation to a bridal shower for a second cousin of mine, who I haven't seen in years and would not recognize if I ran into her on the street, who is already married.  The invitation contained a picture of her and her husband on their wedding day.  After a call to my Mother, we concluded that they this was a 'do-over' wedding.  She and her husband had a actually gotten married a couple of years ago while they were stationed overseas while he was military.  Here is my question, how should we respond?  I have no intention of attending either the shower or the wedding.

Can't wait to hear what you think of this.

~Darlene


Dear Darlene:

This is the 3rd or 4th wedding like this I have heard about over the last couple of months.  Is the economy that bad that people are getting remarried? 

In my humble opinion is that you get one chance, let me clarify that, one chance per couple.  If you decide to run off to Vegas or City Hall (or on base overseas) that is your one chance.  The best part of a wedding is being there when a couple starts the lifelong journey of marriage, part of that is watching the joy (and nervousness) as they take those vows for the first time.

If having the showers, parties, and the big wedding are important to you, you need to have that wedding first.  I have a strong desire to be married by an Elvis in Vegas, but Hubby and I wanted to have a big wedding and be surrounded by family and friends when we took that step.  So Vegas was put on hold, and we started planning.

Since you are not planning on attending the shower or the wedding, your responsibility is simply to RSVP your regrets to the planner of the shower, and return your RSVP card for the wedding.  If you want to go one step further, you can send the happy couple a card with a note wishing them continued success.

~Cyn

While that was easier than I thought. 

What to Make for Dessert : Peach Cobbler

So now that things are finally back to normal, I'm finally back in the kitchen.

Last week when I was looking through the grocery ads, they all seemed to have peaches on sale.  It was like a sign, time for peach cobbler.

So a quick Internet search later I arrived a wonderful recipe by the Queen of Cobbler....Paula Dean.

So here is the link to the recipe.

Here is what you will need:

4 cups peeled, sliced peaches

2 cups sugar, divided

1/2 cup water

8 tablespoons butter (I only used 5 and it was way enough)

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour

1 1/2 cups milk

Ground cinnamon, optional

Here is how to do it:

Slice and peel your peaches, add to a sauce pan with one cup of the sugar and the 1/2 cup of water.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 mins.

While that boils and simmers, pre-heat your oven to 350, and in a casserole dish add your butter.  Once the oven is hot, pop the casserole in there and melt your butter.

At the same time, add the remaining sugar (one more cup), the four and the milk.  Gently add the milk and do not stir, gently mix together to avoid clumping.

Add to casserole, that add the fruit and pour the syrup over top.  Add cinnamon to your liking.

Bake for about 30 mins.

Serve warm over ice cream.

It's good to be back!

Enjoy!

~Cyn

Moving On Up....

Goodness, so glad that is over. What a crazy couple of weeks.  I guess that I forgot how much work all that packing and move and unpacking was. 

Kitty's New Favorite Spot...

Although, it has had it's advantages. I've seemed to have fallen down some crazy rabbit hole.  Where husbands make dinner and go to the grocery store.  There was also some talk about sweeping off the patio and wiping down the deck chairs and table.  I'm not going to argue.

So I few things that I have noticed over the past couple of weeks.  With all the calling to sign-up for new services and disconnect old services, I have been on the phone for hours.  The one thing that I've noticed?  Companies do not care about customer service.  They do not care if they retain you as a customer, they do not care if they get your order right or wrong.  They also do not care about making things right.  Rant Over.

So are back to business as usually around here...coming this week.....

Peach Cobbler Recipe

Reader Mail Bag...you will not believe the questions I've been getting...

Later
~Cyn

Back Up and Running...

After two weeks with no internet...I'm back up and running...pictures and moving stories to come over the next couple of days....stay tuned.....