• Beef - Dinner

    Mini Cheese Stuffed Meatloaves

    January 8, 2016 - By 

    I love this recipe. I’ve actually been making mini meatloaves for awhile, so when I saw this recipe to add cheese. I knew it would be great for the mini ones as well. What I also love about this is that you can make it ahead and even freeze them if need be. You can Servings: 4 servings Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 30-45 minutes Ingredients: 1.5 lb. ground beef/turkey 3/4 cup chopped onion 1 minced clove garlic 14 oz. can tomato sauce 14 oz. can petite diced tomatoes 8 oz. can of green chilies 1 cup of italian…

  • Life

    Christmas Day 2015 Rundown

    January 6, 2016 - By 

    Despite our Christmas Eve day, Christmas was a nice, relaxing day for the most part. We woke up and enjoyed our typical sausage balls and apple dumplins. Dumped out our stockings Took our typical pictures before opening gifts Let Daisy open her gift. Here’s a little video of her tearing into her package A little downward dog action Alex is ready to open gifts! Of course, after opening her gift Daisy thought all the gifts were for her. Or least that’s what she was hoping anyway. Daisy is bored with us opening gifts… We even got a family shot After…

  • Life

    A Soggy Christmas Eve

    January 5, 2016 - By 

    Christmas Eve day started off uneventful. Rob and Drew were out eating breakfast with Mr. Baird. I got up and ran to the mall for one last gift. It was absolutely monsooning outside. When I got home, I started wrapping presents and cleaning up for company that was coming over the next day. While wrapping presents with door shut in my bedroom, I heard Alex screaming for me to come here. He was down in the playroom. I figured it was a problem with an electronic device or some 1st world problem. However, when I got down there, I saw…

  • Lunch - Recipes

    Chicken Strip Sliders

    January 4, 2016 - By 

    This is more of an idea than a recipe; Chicken Strip Sliders. Sandwiches is an easy throw together recipe often needed for a last minute tummy filler. They can be as simple as a grabbing some slider buns, chicken nuggets, or strips and your favorite sauce (honey mustard, BBQ, etc.) This week, I took it up a notch and made homemade rolls with one of my favorite sauces of all time. A copycat recipe from Chick-fil-a, their Honey Roasted BBQ Sauce. I didn’t have time to bread up chicken strips, so I just used some frozen Tyson crispy chicken strips…

  • Life

    Weekly Menu {Jan. 3-9, 2016}

    January 3, 2016 - By 

    Happy New Year everyone! I hate to admit, but as gung-ho as I was last year to have plans and goals, this year I’ve barely even thought about the new year that’s now underway. With that being said, one of the things I need and want to be doing is to start planning my weekly menus again. It makes life so much easier. Takes the guess work out every night when its time to cook dinner. Makes it easier to know what to buy at the store. Saves money, because every night you know what you’re cooking and you don’t…

  • Life

    Memories of the Month {12.2015}

    December 31, 2015 - By 

    This month I was happy about: getting rid of a rash that I’ve had on my leg for nearly 2 years. (joys of getting old!) This year I’m going to rate the books & movies. Here’s my rating system: ♥ ♥ = Love it! A must read/see! ♥ = Really good! Highly recommend. ✓ ✓ = Good, not great ✓ = Not much to talk about X = Awful. Total waste of time Movies I watched were: Christmas with the Kranks Other Christmas movies TV Shows I watched were: NCIS NCIS LA NCIS NO CSI Cyber Hawaii 50 The Pioneer…

  • Life

    Christmas Tree Tradition 2015

    December 18, 2015 - By 

    The last couple years for our Christmas tree shopping adventure we’ve been going to Gilbert Tree Farm. The place we used to go is just become super expensive and it would take us over an hour to get there. We love Virginia Pines, but those don’t seem to be selling like they used to, so less farms in our area our growing them. We’re really glad that Gilbert Farms still has them. It’s also been raining the last few years when we’ve gone, so that’s why you haven’t seen a post about it in a while. The weekend we went…

  • RBD Library is Growing!
    Life

    RBD Library is Growing!

    December 11, 2015 - By 

    Now that the university is closed for Christmas break, construction on RBD to add the new Mell Commons Building will begin over the holidays. The staff of the library took a picture today infront of our building since it will never look like this again. Photo above by Jayson Hill – AUL libraries (Flickr) I also got some shots to remember what it looked like from different angles. See all the pics I took here. To see progress on the new building see this link: Mell Commons

  • Dessert - Recipes

    Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies

    December 10, 2015 - By 

    It’s that time of year again, when we get back in the kitchen to whip up yummy treats. Cookies, candies, cakes, pies, and brownies! Brownies? Yes, these Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies are a great alternative to your typical brownies. Servings: 18 Prep Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter 8 oz. coarsely chopped semi-sweet chocolate 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar 3 large eggs 2 tsp. vanilla extract 1/2 cup + 2 tbs. all-purpose flour 2 tbs. unsweetened cocoa powder 1/4 tsp. salt Peanut Butter Part: 3/4 cup Reese’s Spreads Peanut Butter Chocolate…

  • Travel

    Thanksgiving Weekend 2015

    December 5, 2015 - By 

    This year for Thanksgiving we drove down to Spring Hill, Florida for a family visit. Rob’s Mom, brother, Nick, and adopted sister, Rachael as well as Rob’s sister Maria and her entire family came as well. We rented a home on VRBO.com. We split our time between the rental home and Gramma’s house. It was nice to catch up with my sis-in-law and her family since we don’t get to see them much. They live in Texas now and the last time we saw them was a little over a year ago. Seeing the cousins hang out made my heart…

  • Travel

    Winter Gatlinburg Trip

    December 5, 2015 - By 

    Last year was the first Annual Ski Trip for our Boy Scout (and family can come too so we get the group rate) trip. You can read about that trip here: —Boy Scout Ski Trip 2014::Gatlinburg, TN {Day 1 & 2} —Boy Scout Ski Trip 2014::Gatlinburg, TN {Day 3 & 4} This year the boys wanted to do it again. We ended up at the Days Inn again. It’s not the nicest of places, in fact some of the parents opted to stay somewhere else this year. We like it for the price and the location. It’s in the same…

  • Chicken - Pork - Recipes

    Hawaiian Chicken Marinade

    December 4, 2015 - By 

    Growing up, one of my favorite places to eat was Steak & Ale. Anybody remember that restaurant? I even had one of my birthday parties there and invited a bunch of my girlfriends back in elementary school. We all go dressed up in nice dresses and had a lovely dinner at Steak & Ale. My favorite thing to order was their Hawaiian Chicken. This Hawaiian Chicken Marinade takes me back in time. So flavorful whether you cook it outside on the grill or inside. Servings: 4 cups Prep Time: 2-3 days to marinade Cooking Time: 25 minutes Ingredients: 1/2 cup…

  • Life

    Memories of the Month {11.2015}

    December 3, 2015 - By 

    This month I was happy about: many things! See further down… This year I’m going to rate the books & movies. Here’s my rating system: ♥ ♥ = Love it! A must read/see! ♥ = Really good! Highly recommend. ✓ ✓ = Good, not great ✓ = Not much to talk about X = Awful. Total waste of time Movies I watched were: Don’t think I watched any. TV Shows I watched were: NCIS NCIS LA NCIS NO CSI Cyber Hawaii 50 Nashville The Pioneer Woman Life Unexpected (Neftlix) My favorite song this month was: Me 4 U by Omi…

  • Travel

    Clearwater Beach

    December 2, 2015 - By 

    Over Labor Day weekend, we went down to Spring Hill to visits Rob’s grandparents. One of the days we all piled in the car and drove down to Clearwater Beach. Rob and Drew hung out there at Spring Break when they went down for Baseball’s Spring training, so Rob knew the perfect spot to park Pier 60 at Clearwater Beach is a great location to park and costs $3.00/hour. We enjoyed a few hours on the beach before packing up and finding a place to eat. I spot a mermaid! Lots of building going on. A good amount of folks…

  • Beef - Dinner - Recipes

    Hamburger Pasta Soup {Crockpot}

    December 1, 2015 - By 

    I love when I’m scrounging around in the kitchen for something for dinner and the ingredients just fall into place. That’s what happened the other night when I was looking for something to make in the crockpot for the next day. Lately I’ve been on a quest to buy 1 new ingredient once a month to try in a recipe. I’ve had this Radiatori pasta just hanging out in the pantry for awhile. I decided to give it a try in this Hamburger Pasta Soup. Have you ever heard of it before? Servings: Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 8…

  • Travel

    Florida Tour 2014 Overview

    November 26, 2015 - By 

    For those that want a complete overview of our Florida Tour that we took at the end of last year, here is a complete summary of the trip with links to more detailed posts about each place. Itinerary/Budget for trip: Click pic for larger version Quick Stop at University of Florida Weeki Wachee Springs Myakka River State Park Capone’s Coal Fired Pizza Fort Myers River District Sanibel Island Naples, Florida Everglades City Everglades City Everglades National Park Key Deer National Wildlife Refuge Morning in Key West Morning at Sea off Marathon Key Spreading My Dad’s Ashes Burdines Waterfront Restaurant Bahia…

  • Travel

    Visit to Kennedy Space Center

    November 25, 2015 - By 

    We got up early, had a nice big breakfast at the hotel in Cocoa Beach, and drove over to Kennedy Space Center. Driving there we saw several gators and even a wild boar, which you see below. Such an impressive view. We got their before the gates opened, but were able to ask a few questions, take some picture, and just hung out until opening. Rocket Garden is one of the first things you see when you enter. This is the spot where old rockets seem to scrape the sky at 80-100 feet in the air. You will see Juno…

  • Recipes - Sides

    Praline Sweet Potatoes

    November 22, 2015 - By 

    One of my all time favorite holiday recipes is this recipe that my Granny passed along to me, Praline Sweet Potatoes. So amazing. I was never a fan of sweet potatoes/yams until I tried this. I have people beg me every year to make this, so it is no doubt a must try! Servings: 10 large servings Prep Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 2 40oz cans of mashed sweet potatoes 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup margarine, melted dash of cinnamon Topping: 1/2 cup flour 1 cup chopped pecans 1/2…

  • Travel

    Day Trip to Columbus, Ga

    November 21, 2015 - By 

    We live about 35 miles from Columbus, Ga and we used to travel there quite a bit to shop and for different places to eat. However, now that the Auburn-Opelika area has grown so much we really don’t have a need to go there like we used to. This past Sunday Alex had a friendly soccer game there, and it was so last minute we ended up having to get people to substitute for several church obligations we had, so just ended up heading over to Columbus after we had breakfast. I suggested we park downtown and walk along the…

  • Travel

    Afternoon in Cocoa Beach

    November 20, 2015 - By 

    After leaving Fort Lauderdale, we continued north towards Cocoa Beach. We checked into the hotel and ventured across the street to the beach. I was feeling quite nostalgic knowing Dad used to live right near there on a condo in the beach. It was quite breezy and a bit cold, but that didn’t stop the kids from getting in the water. Rob and I walked along the beach enjoyed watching cruise ships pass by in the distance. There was also several flocks of birds to keep us occupied. Carnival ship in the distance Disney ship in the distance Lots and…