• Dessert - Recipes

    Chess Cake with Pecans

    February 23, 2015 - By 

    Chess Cake with Pecans is just one of the yummiest desserts I’ve ever had. Now I’ll admit when I indulge on dessert, I usually want it to have chocolate in it. However, on occasion I crave something more like this and I also know that some people don’t care for chocolate as much as I do. I enjoy making this recipe for church potlucks for that very reason. Next time you’re looking for an amazing, non-chocolate dessert, you should give this a try! Servings: 18 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 40 minutes Ingredients: 1 cup chopped pecans 1/2 cup…

  • Life

    Granny

    February 20, 2015 - By 

    Family Friday {Granny} Last week, it was kind of quiet around here, because my Granny passed away and we spent part of the week in Texas. She entered the gates of Heaven on Sunday, February 8th. Rob and I flew out to Texas on Wednesday for the funeral on Friday. Granny was my last living Grandparent, so not only was it hard to lose her, it was hard knowing I now have no Grandparents and I have just 1 parent: my Mom. I never realized when people start losing family members how that really feels. It’s kind of a scary…

  • This Week I Will...(Printable)
    Life

    Keeping Up with Your Goals

    February 19, 2015 - By 

    Remember back when we brainstormed about the new year? Many of you expressed you’d like a way to keep yourself accountable, so I finally came up with a printable sheet to help you with that! This printable sheet can be used for 2 weeks, just cut it half. I like that because I can easily fold it and keep it in my purse to refer back to. I keep one of these Crayola 5 Count Washable Triple Tip Markers in my purse to make the 3 different colors depending on how I feel I’m doing with these things throughout the…

  • Margarita_ChickenSQ
    Chicken - Dinner - Recipes

    Margarita Chicken

    February 18, 2015 - By 

    This Margarita Chicken Recipe is just so easy and full of flavor. Great for those busy week nights. Servings: 4 Prep Time: 1 hour (marinating time) Cooking Time: 20-30 minutes Ingredients: 4 bone-in chicken breast halves 1 can (10 oz.) thawed frozen margarita mix 2/3 cup tequila 1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro leaves, 2 tablespoons chicken seasoning Directions: In a small bowl, mix together all ingredients except chicken. Put the chicken and marinade in a large ziplock bag. Let marinate in the refrigerator for a couple hours. Directions for Outdoor cooking: 1. Remove the chicken and allow it to sit…

  • Myakka River State Park
    Travel

    Myakka River State Park

    February 17, 2015 - By 

    On Sunday morning of our Florida tour, we got up and took Gramma and Granpa out for breakfast at Susie’s Grill. We dropped back by their house to finish gathering up all our stuff before to Fort Myers. We got a couple family shots as well. Here’s a few scenes along the way including a couple shot of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. When we were looking for things to do between Spring Hill and Fort Myers, both Caitlyn and I suggested going to Myakka River State Park, which is one of the oldest state parks dating back to 1942 when…

  • Travel

    Weeki Wachee Springs

    February 10, 2015 - By 

    On the 2nd day of our Florida Tour 2014, we took a little break from visiting with Gramma and Granpa and went to Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, home of the Real Live Mermaids! That morning Granpa told us the story of Newton Perry and how he invented the breathing hoses that are used for the show. This is such a neat invention because they don’t have to go to the service for air during the show. There’s 1 mermaid show that they do 3 times each day. I would recommend looking at their website or calling to get show…

  • 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.…