Chicken Parmesan Bundles

We tried a new recipe this past week that was a definite keeper. So I thought I would share it with all of you! I found it on Kraft Foods.

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 pkg.  (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained

1-1/4 cups KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese, divided

6 Tbsp.  KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided

6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1-1/2 lb.), pounded to 1/4-inch thickness

1   egg

10 RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 1/2 cup)

1-1/2 cups  spaghetti sauce, heated

HEAT oven to 375ºF.
MIX cream cheese, spinach, 1 cup mozzarella and 3 Tbsp. Parmesan until well blended; spread onto chicken breasts. Starting at one short end of each breast, roll up chicken tightly. Secure with wooden toothpicks, if desired.
BEAT egg in shallow dish. Mix remaining Parmesan and cracker crumbs in separate shallow dish. Dip chicken in egg, then roll in crumb mixture to evenly coat. Place, seam-sides down, in 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.
BAKE 30 min. or until chicken is done (165ºF). Remove and discard toothpicks, if using. Serve chicken topped with spaghetti sauce and remaining mozzarella.

Tweaks We Made: I didn't add spinach because my little family would have turned their nose up to the meal. I had planned on adding spaghetti sauce but realized that I was out (story of my life). While it still tasted amazing, I think the spaghetti sauce would have taken it over the top and gave that extra kick.

Sides: We had some zucchini so I just breaded it the same way I did the chicken. Dip in egg, cover in bread crumbs, and put in skillet with just enough oil to cover pan.

TIDWTFT

I haven't done one of these in awhile. So if you are new, TIDWTFT stands for Things I Don't Want To Forget Thursday.

Both boys decided while we were on vacation that they won't eat meat anymore. They only want chicken. And broccoli? Nope don't like that anymore but green beans are still the best.

Gabe likes to stick his finger up his nose, not to pick it or anything. I guess just because he can. He also thinks it is funny to stick his finger up everyone else's nose too. Silly boy...I guess at least he isn't picking his nose yet because that would drive me crazy.

Grant doesn't let me out of his sight for long. If I am sitting he is going to come sit in my lap and use me as his personal jungle gym.

They both learned to say meow when I ask "how the kitty cat goes?'. It is precious!

Priceless Memories in Colorado

50 hours in the car(there and back)
1 box of cheerios
1 bag of animal cracker
355 time that we played the throw-the-toy-on-the-floor-so-mommy-can-pick-it-up game
138 times that Wheels on the Bus was sung(especially the part about the babies going wah wah wah and the mommies going shh shh shh)
264 times I said the "How does the {insert animal name} go? {insert animal sound}"
60% of the time I heard this....

Okay so maybe that was a little bit of a exaggeration but it is not far off. But it was all worth it because we got to see this beautiful scenery and made priceless memories along the way.

Must be horrible to have to live in one of those houses right?

Dallas Divide

More pics to come....

Gift Idea for Wedding

I made this plaque for a wedding gift for Kevin's Aunt Susie who got married back in March.

It was super easy to do. You only need a few supplies and of course some kinda a digital cutter (silhouette or cricut).

I didn't take pictures for a tutorial because it is pretty self explanatory. I used the font "Copperplate Gothic Bold" for the last name and "Lucida Handwriting" for the date.

It was used at the gift table at the wedding.

Gift Idea for Baby Shower

I packed up my Silhouette and all my crafting supplies about 2 months ago and I am having crafting withdrawls without it. So I thought I would show you some projects that I did awhile back and never shared with you.

If you need a gift for a baby shower, this is a easy and cute gift idea. I have recently decided to try and stay away from gift bags and wrapping paper and be more creative with my gift giving. You can buy a cute basket or bin for the same price as a gift bag these days and it can be repurposed instead of thrown away. I got this cute little basket from the Better Homes and Garden line at Target. It can be personalized with the baby's name or nursery theme. I also decorated the wipes case. And what new momma doesn't like their baby's name on everything?

Stay tuned tomorrow for a gift idea for the next wedding you are invited to!

And the biting begins...

Blood was drawn and the marks are still there. Now this isn't my first experience with biting. I got bit as preschool teacher many times but the difference is 4-5 year olds know what they are doing is wrong. I know the babies are doing it because they are unable to verbalize their frustrations and it doesn't help that they are teething. First Grant bit Gabe over a fight over who was going to stand in front of the door and then Gabe bit Grant while fighting over a  toy jet ski later in the day. I am counting today a good day because no biting went down. I wish I could say this is going to be the first and last time but I am sure it probably won't be. It doesn't make it any easier that I have two going through the biting stage at the same time.

Just Another Day...

WARNING: MAY CAUSE A MAJOR HEADACHE

5 things about this video that amuse me (because when dealing with this multiple times a day, you must find some humor in it or you will find the need to drive to the nearest mental institution):

1. There is nothing in the lower oven. I was cooking their lunch in the upper oven.

2. Lucy is not fazed by this behavior anymore. She is even seen yawning in the video as if to say "This is all you got? C'mon I know you can scream louder!"

3. I play the video back and the boys rush over and start hysterically laughing at the video as if it was a comedy.

4. I often feel like throwing myself on the floor and throwing a tantrum when I see this behavior, but I refrain from doing so because I know it solves nothing. Now if they could just learn the same.

5. This is just another day in our house, I know this same act but different scene will occur again in the near future.

Hope you are having a tantrum free day!

Totally Organized Tuesdays: Travel Edition

Well we should be experts on traveling after the past 8 days. We went to Colorado and on our way home visited family in Kansas. We spent about 50 hours in the car and drove through 6 states with two 18 month olds. I think that might qualify us for being certifiably insane.

I thought I would share some of my tips and tricks that made our trip a success (well sorta).

I packed all their outfits in ziploc bags. I rolled all the shirts and jackets so they would be less likely to be wrinkled.

Packing outfits in a ziploc bag makes it much easier to not have to dig through to find the shirt that goes with the right pair of pants.

We had a medium sized basket in the backseat full of all of the necessities. For the record, we have this basket full of this stuff even we are just going to the grocery store.

I took a laundry basket(that I usually use in the trunk for making it easier to transport groceries to the house in one trip) and stocked it full of toys. The boys still have a bunch of toys that were still in packages from their birthday and I added them so they would have something new and exciting to play with. In this picture most of the toys were probably on the floor where they spent most of their time because the boys like to play the throw-the-toy-on-the-floor-and-cry game. I also have to mention the irony in this picture, Grant spent most of the time crying yet he is the one covering his ears when one of the very few times Gabe cried. Apparently, he only likes the sound of his own crying. 

More pictures of our Colorado vacation to come!

Water Babies

The boys haven't really done anything new this week, but one thing that was even more evident this week is that they LOVE water.

Daddy rigged them up a "slide".

They learned how to blow bubbles in the water and you can hear Grant at the end saying "bubble".