Whatchya got cookin'

I'm no chef by any means. However, I'm the only one my husband's got. I like to do test runs with my leftovers. Sometimes I make up my own recipes and sometimes I look online for ideas. This particular week I've had great success with both methods of coming up with dinner. We are big chicken lovers in this household so both happen to include that love. 

Enjoy!

First up is my own creation!

Basil Chicken with Olive Feta Filling

 Ingredients:

1. 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2. 3/4 cup feta cheese
3. 3 tbls onion powder
4. 4 tbls dried basil
5. 1 cup green olives
6. 1/4 cup bread crumbs
7. cooking spray

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lightly grease the bottom of a 9.5in baking dish.
3. Sprinkle it with a thin layer of bread crumbs.
4. Hit the breasts with a meat tenderizer a few times on each side. (i used a handheld cheese grater)
5. Sprinkle the onion powder evenly on one side of each breast.
6. Repeat with the basil and feta cheese.
7. Cut each olive into slices.
8. Then on half of each breast apply one even layer of the slices.
9. Fold each breast in half.
10. Place each folded breast in the baking dish.
11. Sprinkle remaining bread crumbs on top.
12. Place on middle rack in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

Next is a recipe I found on (myrecipes.com). 
Cilantro-Lime Chicken with Avocado Salsa

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil 
4 (6-ounce) skinless boneless chicken breast
1/4 teaspoon salt 
Cooking spray  

Salsa:
1 cup chopped plum tomato (about 2) 
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion( I had onion powder so I used 1 tbsp of that instead)
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 avocado, peeled and finely chopped  

Instructions:

1. To prepare chicken, combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl; toss and let stand 3 minutes.
Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade.
Sprinkle chicken evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray.
Add chicken to pan; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done.

2. To prepare salsa, combine tomato and next 4 ingredients in a medium bowl.
Add avocado; stir gently to combine.
Serve salsa over chicken.

Sgt Griffith

My husband, Chris, was promoted to Sergeant in the Army this summer. It was an honor to be able to be at his ceremony. I couldn't be more proud of this man. He works hard every single day to be the best that he can be at his job, so it was nice to see him get the recognition for it.

He postponed his 'pinning' ceremony for a month in order to have his mentor and friend, Cory Yates, do the honors. They were deployed together to Iraq last year and became good friends.

Beginning the promotion ceremony at the 3rd ID Rocky statue.

Chris's sergeant 'pinning' him.

Standing at attention.

Posing with his certificate.....and Rocky!

The congratulations!

Initiating begins by others taking turns punching you in the chest for good luck.

Sgt Yates couldn't wait for his turn to come around.

Wifey's turn to initiate. This should be good!

He pretended that mine hurt the most =)

"And we're the three best friends that anyone could have."

Reciting the NCO creed.

Makeshift Family

Chris and I would love to have children of our own in the future. However, while we wait for the time to be right in our lives, here is our makeshift family. We used a site I found on the internet that morphs our faces to make a best guess at what our future children would look like. I thought it was fun to play with so I'm sharing it with you. I've posted the link at the bottom of the blog if you'd like to try.

“To understand your parents' love, you must raise children yourself.”

Our future Annabelle Elizabeth.

Our future Liam Matthew.

 I wanted to keep these pictures somewhere safe so that when we have children for real, I can compare our results.

To get images made of what your future kids could look like, go to www.MorphThing.com. This site gives you tons of options. Go ahead and check it out!

Love and Marriage.

"...What I can't see is how I'm ever gonna love you more
But I've said that before

And now you're my whole life
now you're my whole world
I just can't believe the way I feel about you
We'll look back someday, at this moment that we're in
And I'll look at you and say
And I thought I loved you then."

Brad Paisley-Then

Soundtrack to My Life

 Here are some of my favorite songs:

Murder in the City- Avett Brothers

You've Got the Love- Florence and the Machine

If I go- Gregory Alan Isakov

Possibility- Lykke Li

Sway- The Kooks

Timshel- Mumford and Sons

Crystalised- The XX

Everlasting Light- The Black Keys

Skinny Love- Bon Iver

Molten Light- Chad VanGaalen

Boy with a Coin- Iron&Wine

 Lover, You Should've Come Over- Jeff Buckley

Reptilia- The Strokes

Fake Plastic Trees- Radiohead

The Distance- Cake

The Engine Driver- The Decemberists

This is the First Day of My Life- Bright Eyes

Gold Lion- YeahYeahYeahs

Ottoman- Vampire Weekend

Our Swords- Band of Horses

When I Get Home, You're So Dead- Mayday Parade

I can Barely Breathe- Manchester Orchestra

Stars Would Fall- Monk and Neagle

Sound of Silence- Simon&Garfunkel

Almost Lover- A Fine Frenzy

You are the Only One I Love- Jaymay

Where Do You Go To My Lovely- Pete Sarstedt

Strange Condition- Pete Yorn

My Home is Your Head- Joseph Arthur

Nights in White Satin- Moody Blues

Weekend Wars- MGMT

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, gaiety and life to everything; It is the essence of order, and lends to all that is good, just, and beautiful.” -Plato

DIY Bedroom Magic

My husband and I both have a really traditional/contemporary style when it comes to our home and decorating it. We've been finding in our search for a home, that the house we desire is well out of our price range. Our dream would be to own an old stone farmhouse on a  6 acre lot, sprinkled with fireplaces and decades of character. One that is still within reasonable distance to a large city center. I always say, "When we're rich....(fill in the blank)." 

Although our dream home may take years to save up for, and realistically could never happen, its about making the place you are the place you want to be. I'm always trying to find budget friendly ways to have a million-dollar style.  In my opinion, the bedroom is one of the main places I want to feel at home. There is nothing that says sophistication quite like a great big fancy headboard, right? This post is one of the first projects on my personal list of DIY's.

Things you'll need:

1/4" Plywood

2-3" Foam backing

Batting

Durable fabric

Black marker
Pencil

Stapler w/ 1/4" staples

Scissors

Jigsaw

Flush mounts

Two of my favorite headboards.

Find the style headboard you'd like. If you're not as traditional as I am, then you could go with a regular rectangle or maybe a triangle shape. The great thing about doing it yourself is that your have lots of options, so definitely use the fabric as a way to take your headboard someplace special. Anything from leather to floral.

First, measure the width of your bed. The headboard should be a little wider than your mattress. Then, decide the height you'd like to have your headboard. With these two measurements, have a piece of  basic 1/4" plywood cut to that size by your local home improvement store. Trace the design you have chosen onto the plywood with a pencil (remembering to keep the bottom rectangular, unless you're cutting out legs as well) and cut it out using a jigsaw. When that is finished, be sure to sand the edges to get rid of splinters and sharp edges.

Next, lay your cut headboard on top of your piece of 2" thick foam and trace the shape with a black marker. Cut that piece out. Then, cut out your batting, making sure that you have at least 6" extra of batting to wrap around the foam and plywood (same with the fabric as well. )

Now it's time to put it all together. Make sure to have a clean, flat surface to work with. Place the fabric (design side down) flat on the ground. Next, place the batting evenly on top of the fabric. Then place the foam in the center of the batting, and add the plywood right on top. Pull the fabric and batting up and over the plywood. Now put 2 staples in the center of each side. Check the front to make sure your material is centered the way you wanted. If it's looking good, then continue to staple the batting and fabric together up and over the plywood every 2" inches the entire way around the inner edge of your headboard.

All that's left is to trim the excess material off the back with scissors, and you've got yourself a custom made headboard!

I've read that it's a good idea to use flush mounts to make sure your headboard doesn't smack off the wall every time you move in bed. Simply find your wall studs and fasten the flush mounts to them and your headboard. Connect.

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If you'd like to think outside of the conventional headboard, consider the following ideas:

Try a grand old mantel piece.

Or a rustic set of shutters.

A canopy could add some romance.

Also, wall decals are a playful touch.

I learned how to do this project on 

http://www.bejane.com/diy-projects/by-topic/carpentry/make-your-own-upholstered-headboard

  Enjoy!