• Easy! Crockpot Mashed Potatoes - save time and still be able to enjoy this favorite comfort food!
    Recipes - Sides

    Mashed Potatoes {Crockpot}

    February 8, 2015 - By 

    For the longest time, I had boycotted mashed potatoes. Even though they are one of my favorite foods, I just couldn’t seem to get them right. Then, not long ago I wondered if I could expedite a meal by cooking the potatoes in the crockpot to help save time. That’s one less component of the meal to deal with in the evening. I decided to give them a try again and I’m so glad I did. The pic above is an example of when I made the potatoes a little chunky. I usually love my mashed potatoes creamy, but these…

  • Chicken - Dinner - Recipes

    Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken

    February 7, 2015 - By 

    Today is National Fettuccine Alfredo Day! Whaaa??? With that being said, I thought I’d share my recipe for this Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken. This sauce is smooth and creamy. I think the key to making this meal a step above this dish is to marinate the chicken! I simply marinate the chicken in Italian dressing. This give it a nice flavor that’s goes nicely with the Alfredo sauce and it’s not too overbearing. If you prefer shrimp in your Alfredo, those can be marinated as well. Servings: 4 Prep Time: 5 minutes + marinating time Cooking Time: 15 minutes Ingredients:…

  • Chimichangas
    Beef - Dinner - Mexican - Recipes

    Chimichangas

    February 4, 2015 - By 

    This is a recipe for one of my favorite Mexican dishes, Chimichangas. I could totally eat tacos or burritos once or twice a week with no complaints. However, the fam is not huge fans of tacos. With that being said, I’ve had to come up with some new Mexican dishes. I always know that a dish is a winner when the kids ask for on a regular basis. Makes: 4-8 servings Prep Time: 35 min Cook Time: 15-20 min Ingredients 1 lb. ground beef 1/2 cup finely chopped onions 2 cloves minced garlic 1 tsp. dried oregano leaves 1/2 cup…

  • University of Florida
    Travel

    Quick Stop at University of Florida

    February 3, 2015 - By 

    The day after Christmas was a big day for my family as we got in a rental car and headed south for quite a long journey. You see, last year when my Dad was diagnosed with ALS and we were in Fort Worth discussing with him his final wishes, he said he wanted to cremated and he wanted to have his ashes spread in the keys. So on the anniversary of his death, we started our trek down to the Keys. We had an itinerary that would allow us to not have to drive more 3 hours of total driving…

  • Photography

    iSpy Photo Challenge #4

    February 2, 2015 - By 

    Here are my 3 favorite pics from this week. I’m recovering from being really sick since Thursday, so I didn’t get to really challenge myself like I wanted. However, I’m digging these 3 shots. What did you photograph this week? border=”0″ class=”no pin” src=”https://acameraandacookbook.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/iSpySquare.jpg”/></a> I would love to see what you captured this week, so please link up to your blog using the linkup below. Challenge yourself this week to step out of your comfort zone. Get low, get high, change your angle, get close. Do something different with your shots this week! See you next Monday! Happy iSpying! [symple_spacing…

  • Mexican - Recipes

    Restaurant Style Salsa

    February 1, 2015 - By 

    Today I’m sharing one of my favorite salsa recipes that makes a huge batch, but I love it that way. I usually make it on the weekend and then, have it all week to serve with tacos, chimichangas, or just as a yummy snack. When I made it last time, as you can see from the pics, I kept it pretty chunky. Originally, I had pureed it more, making it smoother, but really it’s all about preference. Servings: lots! Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 0 minutes Ingredients: 1 can of 28 oz. whole tomatoes with juice 2 cans of…

  • Memories of the Month - Taking time to document the important memories from January.
    Life

    Memories of the Month {1.2015}

    January 31, 2015 - By 

    I was happy about: going to Gatlinburg with the Boy Scouts. I was sad about: hurting my back in Gatlinburg. Books I read were: Bread and Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes by Shauna Niequist. I didn’t watch any movies this month. TV Shows I watched were: CSI NCIS NCIS LA NCIS NO The Mentalist Hawaii 50 random old game shows The Bachelor The Pioneer Woman Revenge (Season 4 on Hulu) Hart of Dixie (Netflix) Parenthood (Season 1 Neftlix) The Good Wife (Season 1 Neftlix) My favorite song this month was: Something in the Water…

  • Life

    Newest Member of the Family

    January 30, 2015 - By 

    Family Friday {New Pet Edition} For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you know about the newest addition to the family. Yes, I think hell has frozen over, because our newest family member is a cat. Rob has never been a huge fan of cats. When this cat started hanging out around the house, he actually entertained the idea of keeping it. We got her spayed the week before Christmas, which ended up becoming a nightmare. To sum it up, she ripped the sutures out. We had to take her back to the vet and they put staples…

  • Water - Are you drinking enough? Here's a helpful post to help you ensure you're drinking enough.
    Life

    Do You Drink Enough Water?

    January 29, 2015 - By 

    Today I’m back to thinking about my New Year’s Resolutions. I have to keep in on the forefront of my mind or all those lofty goals will be long forgotten. Out of sight, out of mind, but I really want to succeed at accomplishing these goals. So today I’m thinking about making sure I drink enough water. Remember that our bodies are about 60% water, but in order for our bodies to remain healthy we have to drink water. In fact, our bodies require quite a bit of water everyday. Now we do get water from foods we eat, but…

  • Chocolate Chip Strawberry Cookies
    Cookies - Recipes

    Chocolate-Chip Strawberry Cookies

    January 28, 2015 - By 

    Lately I have had an obsession with the combination of chocolate and strawberries. I came across a myriad of wonderful recipes with this sweet pair on pinterest. I decided to give these a try last week. They turned out beautifully. So easy! My son said these were the best cookies he’s ever had! I almost left them in there too long as you can see there is just a bit of brownness on a few of them. So look carefully at step 7! Servings: 24 cookies Prep Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 20 minutes Ingredients: 1 regular sized strawberry cake…

  • Photography

    iSpy Photo Challenge #3

    January 26, 2015 - By 

    How was your week? Were you able to catch some amazing moments? iSpy Photo Challenge would love to see them! I hope people will start sharing this and linking up. I would love to start having featured pics each week. Anyway here are the 3 of my favorite pics from this week. Last Sunday we were in Gatlinburg. I’ll be working up a post for that trip, but here’s a picture I got of the skis. Monday as we headed out of town we stopped so the the guys could get some go-cart riding in. Here’s Alex! I noticed this…

  • Beef - Dinner - Recipes

    Tater Tot Hamburger Pie

    January 25, 2015 - By 

    The other night I found a package of tater tots that I had forgotten about. Since I had forgotten they were in there means, they had been in there too long. I decided I needed to use them. I was able to whip up this Tatortot Hamburger Pie, which my family enjoyed. Servings: 4 Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 25 minutes Ingredients: 1 lb. ground beef or turkey 1/3 cup of chili powder 1 can petite dice tomatoes with green chilies 1 cup Mexican shredded cheese 2 cups frozen tatortots 1/3 cup ketchup 1 finely chopped onions

  • Steakhouse Burger {Copycat Recipe from McDonald's}
    Beef - Dinner - Recipes

    Steakhouse Burger

    January 24, 2015 - By 

    Ever since last summer when I had the Steakhouse Burger at McDonald’s, I’ve wanted to make it at home. I decided to try and recreate it and come up with an easy recipe. I was able to recreate it, so I would definitely call this a “copycat recipe.” Servings: 4-6 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Ingredients: Burger: 1 1/2 lbs. of hamburger meat 1 packet of onion mix 1/3 cup of Worsteshire 1/2 tsp. pepper 8-12 pieces of “Giant” bread (thicker cut white sandwich bread) Spray butter garlic powder lettuce tomato French fried onions Provolone cheese

  • Life

    Drew’s 17th Birthday

    January 23, 2015 - By 

    Family Friday {Drew’s 17th Birthday Edition} Today my oldest turns 17! How can it be? It’s amazing how things change, but also how they stay the same. It’s really crazy to think that I’m old enough to have a 17 year old! Heck, I feel like just a couple years ago I was 17! I’ve typed and backspaced so many times on this post trying to convey so many feelings. So for now I’m going to quit the madness and maybe at some point my brain can come up with words to really express what my heart is feeling today.…

  • Looking for an easy way to keep up with your daily tasks? This 2 sided printable is a great tool to do just that!
    Life

    Checklist Planner for Busy Moms

    January 22, 2015 - By 

    One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to be more organized and my word for the year is FINISH. Part of that is just having a plan of action each day to ensure that what needs to get done, actually does. I came up with this Checklist Planner to help me out each day. It has a place for what I need to accomplish in the mornings and in the evenings, as well as what I plan to blog about, what I plan to have for lunch and dinner, among other important reminders.

  • Chicken - Dinner

    Pizza Smothered Chicken

    January 21, 2015 - By 

    Servings: 4 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 20 minutes Ingredients: 1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts 1 12 oz. box of pasta (I used Penne) 1 large jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce Parmesan cheese Italian seasoning Garlic Pepperoni (your favorite pizza toppings)

  • Mississippi Braves At Trustmark Park
    Travel

    Mississippi Braves at Trustmark Park

    January 20, 2015 - By 

    This week for Travel Tuesday, I’m sharing our stop in Jackson, MS. When we travel to Fort Worth, TX we often use Jackson, MS as a mid-way stopping point. Back in 2005, we stopped there and planned to spend the night and go to a Mississippi Braves Game. The Mississippi Braves play in Pearl, MS which is just a few miles outside of Jackson at Trustmark Park. I love going to minor league baseball parks, because they are so easy to get in and out of; more like a college ball park than a major league park with 1,000s upon…

  • iSpy Photo Challenge
    Photography

    iSpy Photo Challenge #2

    January 19, 2015 - By 

    Hope everyone caught some amazing photos this past week! Here are the 3 pictures I decided to share out of the many pictures I took. I was walking to my car the other day and looked up at this tree. Something about it was interesting. When I looked at the picture after uploading it to my computer, I couldn’t believe the color of the sky in the background. I chose this pic, because it was taken from the hip. “Shooting from the hip” means your taking a picture with your camera at hip level. This of course means you’re not…

  • Mini_Buffalo_Chicken_Pot_Pies
    Chicken - Dinner - Recipes

    Mini Buffalo Chicken Pot Pies

    January 18, 2015 - By 

    A couple weeks ago I posted a yummy recipe of Chunky Buffalo Chicken. I made a triple batch of it because I had several pounds of chicken that I thawed out and it needed to be used. I love to do things like this to help expedite a meal later in the week. This saves so much time. So this is a “leftover remix!” Servings: 12 Prep Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Ingredients: Chunky Buffalo Chicken 1/2 packet of Ranch mix 1 container of grands layers biscuits 2 cups of frozen veggie mix (peas, carrots, and corn) 1…

  • Make this cute little book for your loved-one for Valentines day and even turn it into an adventure!
    Life

    54 Reasons Book for your Valentine

    January 17, 2015 - By 

    A few days before Valentine’s Day, I decided I wanted to do something special for Rob. At first my plan was to write on index cards things I loved about him and hide them around his office. Then, I thought about the little books made out of playing cards. I thought that would be a great idea. I gathered/purchased the materials needed: 2 boxes of playing cards (Walmart has a package of 2 for $1) Avery Permanent Square Label, White, Inkjet/Laser, 2 x 2-Inches, Pack of 300 (22806) used Word template 22806/22816 Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad – Antique Linen…