My Yummy Creation and New Do

I had such a wonderful day! We got a Wii for Christmas so we played tennis for a little while yesterday and then watch Prince of Persia.  Unfortunately we both fell asleep during it, so we'll try to watch it again tonight.  We got to sleep in today and didn't bother to set the alarm clock.  We listened to our internal alarm clock and woke up when we were ready.  I desperately needed to get my hair done, because it was looking like a HOT MESS!  It look her about 4 hours to do it and give me a little trim but I really needed to do it today...

 FINAL OUTCOME

I really like it! :) 

I also made a wonderful dinner....my masterpiece....completely off the top of my head when I got home from the Salon so we could eat dinner together before... here my recipe for 2

Ingredients

2 cups of Buitoni Mixed Cheese Tortellini

1/2 cup of Arrabbiata

2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 oz. green bell papper
2 oz. red bell pepper
Onion
1/4 c. fresh grated Parmesan Cheese 
8 oz.  chicken breast
Kickin' chicken seasoning
thyme
fresh basil
fresh parsley
2 cups romaine lettuce
10 cucumber slices
10 baby carrots
1/2 cup broccoli 
4 tbsp.  fat free zesty Italian dressing

Directions
1.  Boil water, add tortellini with 2 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil cook for 8 minutes.  Be careful that you don't overcook it.
2.  Cut up parsley, basil, green and red peppers, and mix in bowl.  Pound chicken breasts.  Coat chicken with Kickin' chicken seasoning, then thyme.  After mix chicken in bowl with the parsley and other seasonings.
3.  Saute chicken in a pan and add more peppers and onion.
4.  Drain pasta, then add the Arrabbiata and Parmesan cheese, let it sit on a low heat for 5 minutes.
5.  Make tossed salad with lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, broccoli, and red peppers.  Toss in Italian dressing.
6.  Plate the salad.  Mix the pasta and make sure that it is hot, then serve the chicken over it.  

Nutrition
Makes 2 servings
Calories- 580
Fat- 16. grams
Carbs- 60 grams
Protein- 50 grams  

I'm going to call in Saboroso- from Brittany's Kitchen

Decorating Sugar Cookies

WARNING!!!! This is very messy haha, there is no way to make this not messy, so be prepared for it....you will get dye and frosting all over your hands, they best way to get it off is to mix toothpaste and baking powder and just scrub the heck out of them. 

Recipe for sugar cookies...

Makes 2 dozen

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar; mix until light and fluffy. With mixer running, add egg, brandy, and vanilla; mix until well combined. With the mixer on low, slowly add reserved flour mixture. Mix until just combined.
2. Transfer dough to a work surface. Shape into 2 discs, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
4. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes, and transfer to prepared baking sheets, leaving an inch in between. Leftover dough can be rolled and cut once more. Bake until lightly golden, about 10 minutes; do not allow to brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Ideal Sugar Cookies - Martha Stewart Recipes

 

Royal Icing Frosting 

5 cups powdered sugar

2 tbs.  light corn syrup

1/4 cup milk

* when your flooding the cookies, or doing to base color, make it more fluid like by adding more milk till you get the right consistency.

* when doing the details add more powdered sugar to make it thicker, you don't want the details to run

 I'm kind of dumb, and forgot to take pictures after I added the details, but they were delicious and looked cute.  The 2 dozen of sugar cookies were gone by the end of Christmas day!

It's finally over!! :)

Yes the semester is OVER!  We are so happy, are grades came back pretty good I didn't get the grade that I was aiming for with my math class, but I gave it my best.  It was a Crazy semester, and I was getting super stressed out toward the end.

Story with my math grade....

Well my teacher sent out an e-mail a week ago and said the days that we could take our final, then I had to work the whole day so I didn't check my e-mail.  Then the next day I didn't check my e-mail but that was the day my teacher sent out a correction saying that the final actually closed THAT DAY!!

So I wake up the next morning check my e-mail and then I see the e-mail that he sent yesterday, so I missed my FINAL!! I immediately started crying and Ben just runs into the room, and I was pretty much hyperventilating.  I finally calmed down and called my teacher directly on his cell phone that he gave us his number too in case of a math emergency (they are apparently more common then you would think).  See says that I can go and take it right now but I'm going to get 25% off automatically.  So I ran up an took it, did terrible because I was stressed out.  Oh on top of that, when I was dressing to go and take the test I realized that the night before I somehow only put on contact in my case and the other one sitting on the counter.  They were my last stinking pair, and I lost my glasses like a year ago.  Thankfully I had a pair of colored contacts that I could were temporarily until my real ones come in.

Back to the test....So I get back home after taking and and I get an e-mail from him saying that they don't have my scores for the 2nd test I took...HOW?!?!?!?!?! Please someone enlighten me on how you loose the test scores.  So he told me that I could go in an take it again....OH this is the wonderful part (JK) I will be getting  25% off of that one to!!!! ARE YOU FO REAL?!

ANYWAYS, I'm so happy the semester is over....I get a nice break, and I'm excited for next semester.  I'm not going to be a manager at t-bell, because I don't want to work 30 hours a week, so I'm dropping down to 20 a week.  Ben's off track so he'll be working full time so it will be all good.  And I don't think I'll have a problem picking up hours if we need too.  

SO all is well on the home front....

Exercising has been WONDERFUL! I shaved over a minute off my mile! :) Yesterday I did 1.5 miles in 12 minutes...that's pretty good for me!  I did a total of 4 miles between jogging/running, and just 5 miles on the bike.  I feel awesome! 

I'm finally reaping the rewards! I lost 4 lbs. and dropped a pants size, and honestly I just feel fitter which is good.  I didn't gain the freshman 15, but I did gain the engagement 15... and it doesn't help working at t-bell....So I just try to bring food with me, always eat breakfast, and tell myself that I will feel so sick when I'm at the gym later if I eat that...so it's really not worth it to me.  But sometimes I indulge in a little bean burrito! :)  

BABY FEVER...that's all I have to say

Eat Healthy America

Working at T-Bell has really opened my eyes though about taking care of my body.  It's not like a vain thing so people will tell me I look good, but it's more like I want to be really healthy when I get pregnant, and just live a healthy lifestyle because parents are the bets example for their kids! And we want healthy kids!

We were talking the other day in the car about how much money the state and federal government must spend on fighting obesity and promoting a healthy lifestyle ($148 Billion just to treat the ailments in 2008, it's increased since then!), and I was getting so upset because I feel that the biggest reason children are having to be taught how to eat right and exercise by their schools and programs is because parents aren't doing it. I don't mean to offend anyone, but I think it's a parents responsibility to teach their children how to be healthy.  We don't have any kids yet, so it's probably hard for me to understand, but I would feel just terrible if I was setting a bad example for my kids.  To me there isn't a huge difference between smoking in front of your child and eating a big mac on a constant basis in front of them.  I'm all for having treats once in a while, and not depriving yourself and everything in moderation, but for adults to constantly be eating that food and then getting it for their children too, I just think it's not the same plan that I want to have when we start to grow our little family.

Alright.....so now I'm stepping off my soapbox!

On the bite side of things, I've found this awesome website called http://www.eatbetteramerica.com
it's simply wonderful!

Tonight were going to try a Chicken, Rice, and Beans Bake
 

Prep Time:20 min

Start to Finish:1 hr 10 min

makes:6 servings

1/4 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/2 to 3 pounds meaty chicken pieces (breast halves, thighs, and drumsticks), skinned
2 tablespoons oil
1 can (15 oz) Progresso® black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14.5 oz) Muir Glen® organic diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup tomato juice
1 package (9 oz) Green Giant® frozen whole kernel corn
2/3 cup long grain rice
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced

1  Preheat oven to 375ºF. In a large resealable plastic bag, combine flour, 1 teaspoon of the chili powder, the salt, and pepper. Add half of the chicken pieces. Seal bag; shake to coat. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces.

2  In a very large skillet, brown chicken on all sides in hot oil over medium heat about 10 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside; discard drippings in skillet. Add beans, undrained tomatoes, tomato juice, corn, uncooked rice, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, the cayenne pepper, and garlic to the skillet. Bring to boiling. Transfer rice mixture to a 13x9x2-inch baking dish or 3-quart rectangular casserole. Arrange chicken pieces on top of rice mixture.

3  Bake, covered, for 45 to 50 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (170ºF for breasts; 180ºF for thighs and drumsticks) and rice is tender.

Nutritional Information 

1 1/3 cups: Calories 350 (Calories from Fat 70); Total Fat 8g (Saturated Fat 1g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 65mg; Sodium 600mg; Total Carbohydrate 44g (Dietary Fiber 6g, Sugars 5g); Protein 28g % Daily Value Vitamin A 15; Vitamin C 30; Calcium 6; Iron 20 Exchanges 2 1/2 Starch, 2 1/2 Lean Meat, 0 Fat Carbohydrate Choices 3

It's the Christmas Season!!

I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!

It just seems to me like everyone is in a better mood.  We put up our Christmas tree a while ago, but I never blogged about it. 

We love it!