WHADDA WE EATIN' WEDNESDAY - Recipe for "Creamy Dreamy Crock Pot Chicken and Noodles"!

Hi there friends!!!!

How's your week going???   Mine is good...it's having its ups and downs.

The ups?   This morning I got up to wake up the kids, only to find my son already awake, lying on the floor reading his Bible!   We didn't even tell him he had to...he just decided to do it on his own!  That was awesome!  He said he enjoyed reading this morning about the story of Jonah!

The downs?  I found out this week that I have rosacea!  UGH!  I had a feeling it was something like that, but to now have it confirmed...not my favorite thing to hear!  It means I'm gonna need to make some changes to keep it at bay...I've already had a few flare ups, and I guess it can get worse with age.  Not happy about that!  =(

More ups?  Tonight, I made a really yummy, and very easy dish, that I'm gonna share with you on this week's...

WHADDA WE EATIN' WEDNESDAY!!!!

I was taking the kids to a playdate today so I knew we wouldn't get home until dinner time.  I had to make something fast and easy and this recipe from Pinterest (I'm actually not sure who to credit it to, the pin goes to some weird site that doesn't actually post the recipe but all the instructions were on the pin itself) looked interesting and worth trying.

Since it didn't have a name on Pinterest, I thought I'd name it..."CREAMY DREAMY CHICKEN AND NOODLES". 

I'd also like to call it...a perfect weeknight dinner for busy families!!!  =)

Sooo easy!   I only got 1 picture, due to time constraints, but believe me when I say...I rarely can find a dish that BOTH of my children like....so when I find it, I feel the need to SHARE!  lol  My hubby and I also really liked this as well.

Here's how you make it!

Ingredients:
4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or 7-8 boneless skinless tenderloins, which is what I used.)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cheddar cheese soup
1 stick of butter, sliced
4 cups of chicken broth (I used water with 4 bullion cubes dissolved in them, which gave the dish a saltier flavor than broth would)
1 bag of egg noodles (or a box of your favorite pasta)
Seasoning (I used 3 tbsp dried minced onion, 2 tsp garlic powder, and 2 tsp onion powder, and then threw about 1 tsp parsley at the end)
1/4 cup grated parmesean cheese (optional)

Throw everything in the crock pot except the egg noodles.  Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4 hours.  Then dump the noodles in and cook for another hour on low or another 1/2 hour on high.  

I cooked everything on high. 

Here's what it looked like when it was all made and in the crock pot!

This was enough to feed a fairly hungry family of four and still have leftovers for another night for all of us!   I love that because I've started freezing meals for easy prep another night!  

The sauce may be a little runny at the end, but it does thicken with a little time.  If you'd like to thicken it a bit more, I added some grated parmesean to it and stirred it in. It did thicken even more as we ate it.

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UPDATE - I froze this and reheated this for lunch the following day to see how it tasted...and it was great!   Love this recipe even more now!!!  =)
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This is a very versatile recipe too....you could add peas or corn or broccoli or tomatoes OR mushrooms...you get the idea...haha...and I bet it would be very yummy too!

Thanks so much for joining me for another

WHADDA WE EATIN' WEDNESDAY!!! 

Have a great day!

This post is being added to...
Wonderful Food Wednesday
Fluster's Creative Muster
Festive Friday Fiesta

TABLESCAPE TUESDAY! "Orange you ready for a picnic?"

Hi everyone!

I hope you are having a great week so far!

I had a wonderful weekend....On Saturday, I took the kids out for a craft class at our local Michael's Craft store.   They have them every Saturday from 10am to 12pm and you can come anytime during that time and the kids can make a craft that they provide all the materials for.  The cost is just 2 dollars, but worth it...and the kids love it.  If you want, you can even shop around the store while they're doing the craft!  It's great!   Then we went shopping, so I had some happy kids this weekend.

On Sunday, a very sweet friend of mine treated me and some of her other friends to a wonderful Spa Day!  It was so nice and such a wonderful time for friends to get together and get some pampering!

I got home just a few hours before we had our Sunday Family Dinner...

In case you're wondering about what our "Sunday Family Dinners" are all about, here is a little snipet to explain this new tradition of ours...

______________________________

We started a new family tradition in January 2013 (a New Years' Resolution) that I hope continues even after the kids are grown.

"SUNDAY FAMILY DINNERS!"

We pretty much have dinner together as a family most nights, but on Sundays, we have a special dinner in the dining room as opposed to the kitchen table, where we normally eat.

I get out the fine china and candles and make a special meal and so far, it has been something we look forward to each week.

Then once a month, we invite some of our extended family to join us for a Sunday family dinner.

It's also been giving me a chance to do lots of new TABLESCAPES..haha!

To see my previous tablescapes from other Sunday Family Dinners, you can click here:

Sunday Family Dinner #1 - Red and Blue Toile
S.F.D.#2 - Black, White and Silver
S.F.D.#3 - Winter Woods With White
S.F.D.#4 - The "Royal Treatment"
S.F.D.#5 - Super Bowl Table
S.F.D. #6 - Mardi Gras Table
S.F.D. #7 - Spring is Springing Up
S.F.D. #8 - "Apple of My Eye"
S.F.D. #9 - "Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss"
S.F.D. #10 - The "KNego" Tablescape (Designed by my 9 year old son)
S.F.D. #11 - The St. Patrick's Day Tablescape
S.F.D. #12 - Last-Minute Lavender Tablescape
S.F.D. #13 - 3 Easter Tables
S.F.D. #14 - Wrapped In Love Tablescape
S.F.D. #15 - Wrapped Up in Family Tablescape
 

 

 Because I'm on a budget but love to switch up my decor for the various tablescapes each week, I'm decorating my tables almost entirely on BARGAINS....finds from the Dollar Stores, Thrift Stores, or regular stores with sales or clearance items.

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For our Sunday Family dinner this week....I decided to do an Orange and white theme.  I found this cute tablecloth at Old Time Pottery on sale, so I picked it up...it almost looked like a picnic blanket...so I thought I'd go for a simple kind of "picnic" theme.



I kept my white tablecloth on from last week, and just added this cute orange and white plaid tablecloth I got on sale from Old Time Pottery!   I wanted this to be a casual table...something somewhat reminiscent of a picnic, if possible, but maybe with a little more flair. 

Here's the plate breakdown...

I found these adorable orange flower chargers at Michael's on sale for 99 cents each...love those deals!



On top of that is my French White plate that I've had since I got married many years ago.


On top of that is a new orange salad plate with such pretty scroll edging from Old Time Pottery...just $1.49 each! 


On top of that is a 50 cent Goodwill dessert/bread plate in a pretty pattern similar to my dinner plate, but it actually goes great with both of my sets of white plates, so I'm a happy girl!

The Orange bowls are from the Dollar Tree...they have them in most stores now in some pretty colors!  =)   I also used paper napkins to portray the picnic theme.



In the center is my soup tureen filled with orange and white flowers and placed on my homemade pedestal...



and on each side are my IKEA pillar candleholders with some orange/coral candles on top.  

It was a nice meal, but I did end up taking the tureen off the pedestal so I could see my husband when we were sitting diagonal from eachother.  A thing I should have kept in mind when setting this table...if you want your guests to be able to talk with people across from them, make sure you set your table appropriately so that your centerpieces and décor is not blocking your guests's sight of eachother!


Thanks so much for joining me for this Tablescape Tuesday!  I hope you have a great week and I hope to see you again soon!  =)

This post is being added to...
Inspire Me Tuesday
Centerpiece Wednesday
Let's Dish
Open House Party
Tablescape Thursday
Thrifty Things Friday
Festive Friday Fiesta

FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA #7 and Features!!!

Hi All!

Welcome to the FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA!!!  I'm so glad you are able to stop by!

Well, as promised, in lieu of less features last week because I was so busy, I'm going to do EXTRA features this week!  And there were so many wonderful links to choose from here....sure wish I could feature them all!  But I've got my Fab 5 Features here...and of course, the post with the most views, which is also..FAB!   =D

First up, Sarah from Hyacinths For the Soul showed us some very cute ways to host a Taco Party! 

I'm contemplating having a few people over for Cinco De Mayo and I'd love to try some of these ideas!!   Thanks Sarah!

Cathy from A Peek Into My Paradise shared her easy recipe for Skinny Funfetti Dip!  

This looks like it would be yummy and easy to make!   My favorite combo!!!

 Robin from Fluster Buster has come out with another awesome post on using household items in unique ways!  This post shows 37 unique uses for Cornstarch!

Source

Some great tips here!  This is part of a series of hers, so check out some of the neat uses for other items in your pantry or cabinet! 


Kitty from Kitty's Kozy Kitchen shared a yummy-looking recipe for Strawberry and Cream Scones!  

Oh, man, these look very good!  And what a pretty presentation!  I wish I would have been able to make these last week when my mom was in town!  She would have loved these!!!  =D

Alycia from Table Twenty One has done it again with her ADORABLE Parisian Poodle Tablescape! 

How adorable is this?!?!   I love the pink and black, as well as all the cute details!
 
And the blog post with the most views this week was BJ from Sweet Nothings, who showed us the ups and downs of making a pecan pie in the crock pot! 
 
It looked yummy, even after the little "setback"!

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Congratulations to everyone who was featured!  If you were featured, feel free to grab a button below!  I'm also putting up my general Fiesta button in case you'd like to add that.

Here's the Button if you were featured!

 

And here's the code for that button....

<center><a href="http://www.the-home-girl-blog.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_mrWl3vcHK2Si-0OvNLTnqhZJxQJ-bRaeqS-IPYOAKPdBjQqFLhkD-iNQQzAMf2RTcGXVWvR_AJPGg5kTXRva8hEsBlyWl6a-8OYAm5NFxist8sKXKEkiGiagHcGyfSvdLgqUxiIKnc/s1600/FestiveFridayFiestaFeatured.jpg" /></a></center>

This one below is the general Fiesta Button

Here's the code for the general button....    

<center><a href="http://www.the-home-girl-blog.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrADRco0pAZZP82NE8h0SU_2mxM2nGKn-X-45WKHTV5BVLWozMKuouSl4Y7AGzlYfD2h0XSpwVGacPI5gWIQxCkCw54cVbLLaTCWgtLP2HDxrrZooXb1R18y-3VV52YT5O09k9CFTsy8/s1600/FestiveFriday+Fiesta+Button.jpg" /></a></center>

Hope those work! Thanks again!
Now onto this week's party!!!!  =D

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Tablescape Tuesday - Wrapped Up in Family!

Hi all!

I hope you are having a great week!   Last week was a crazy busy week, so I apologize because I did not post much and I just didn't have the time for the blogging!  

This week I'm back but time continues to be a bit limited...but I did want to share with you my newest tablescape!  

Last week my mom was in town for the week, and on Thursday, my parents-in-law joined us.  The following day, my hubby and I set off on a nice weekend CRUISE!  It was wonderful to get away for a few days while the grandparents watched the kiddos.

 This is a picture of the Bahamas from our cruise ship...and the beautiful Atlantis Resort!

The water was so beautiful!!!  

Since we were going to be gone on Sunday, on our cruise, we decided to have our "Sunday Family Dinner" on Thursday night.  The day before we left.

In case you're wondering about what our "Sunday Family Dinners" are all about, here is a little snipet to explain this new tradition of ours...

______________________________

We started a new family tradition in January 2013 (a New Years' Resolution) that I hope continues even after the kids are grown.

"SUNDAY FAMILY DINNERS!"

We pretty much have dinner together as a family most nights, but on Sundays, we have a special dinner in the dining room as opposed to the kitchen table, where we normally eat.

I get out the fine china and candles and make a special meal and so far, it has been something we look forward to each week.

Then once a month, we invite some of our extended family to join us for a Sunday family dinner.

It's also been giving me a chance to do lots of new TABLESCAPES..haha!

To see my previous tablescapes from other Sunday Family Dinners, you can click here:

Sunday Family Dinner #1 - Red and Blue Toile
S.F.D.#2 - Black, White and Silver
S.F.D.#3 - Winter Woods With White
S.F.D.#4 - The "Royal Treatment"
S.F.D.#5 - Super Bowl Table
S.F.D. #6 - Mardi Gras Table
S.F.D. #7 - Spring is Springing Up
S.F.D. #8 - "Apple of My Eye"
S.F.D. #9 - "Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss"
S.F.D. #10 - The "KNego" Tablescape (Designed by my 9 year old son)
S.F.D. #11 - The St. Patrick's Day Tablescape
S.F.D. #12 - Last-Minute Lavender Tablescape
S.F.D. #13 - 3 Easter Tables
S.F.D. #14 - Wrapped In Love Tablescape

 

 Because I'm on a budget but love to switch up my decor for the various tablescapes each week, I'm decorating my tables almost entirely on BARGAINS....finds from the Dollar Stores, Thrift Stores, or regular stores with sales or clearance items.

_________________________

I didn't have a whole lot of time to create my table, so it's fairly basic, but I do like how it turned out. 

I used the wrapping paper table runner theme again....I just love the looks I'm able to create with wrapping paper!  I got this wrapping paper for $2.99 at Marshalls, and I didn't use much of it to create this table runner.



Here's the plate breakdown for you....I kept it pretty simple

A silver charger from Walmart

My Dollar Store "white canvas" plates

My Dollar Store matching "white canvas" bowls

A white napkin with a turquoise "bling" napkin ring

I had my soup tureen in the middle, which was being filled with Lasagna Soup (recipe for that coming soon....this was so yummy!)  while I was taking pictures so I wasn't able to get it pictured because I had to snap the photos fast.......but here it is when I bought it.  Sorry...that's the best I could do for this one...haha!

Around it, white candles, silver candlesticks, and my little Pier1 bowls which served as votive candleholders.
 
It was fun to have my mother and father-in-law along with my mom there to enjoy this family dinner!  Other than Easter Dinner, my in-laws have not been able to be at a "Sunday Family Dinner", and my mom had never been to one, so it was a lot of fun to have them sitting with us that night!

Thanks so much for visiting!  Hope you enjoyed this Tablescape Tuesday!   Have a wonderful day and I hope to see you again soon!

This post is being added to...
Inspire Me Tuesday
Centerpiece Wednesday
Let's Dish
Open House Party
Tablescape Thursday
Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits
Thrifty Things Friday

FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA #6

Hi all!

I hope you are having a great week!  Ours has been waaaaaay too busy for our own good.  We've had family in town and it's just been non-stop!!!  We're also leaving town very soon for a vacation and have so much to do still!

Unfortunately, that means I'm afraid I haven't had time to put up any features tonight....but I will make it up to you next week by doing EXTRA features!  

I will share with you, though, the most-viewed link on this past week's Fiesta!  It was CHRISTINE from Christine's Home and Travel Adventures with  her beautiful Florida Guest Room!

So lovely!

I'm hoping next week things will slow down a bit and I'll definitely be visiting all the neat links that are up on this FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA!!!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week!  This party will continue Thursday night at 8pm ET until Sunday at 8pm ET.  Hope to see your awesome creativity this week!    Thanks so much for stopping by!

And now....onto the party!!! 

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TABLESCAPE TUESDAY - Ladies Prayer Breakfast #2!

Hello everyone!

I hope you're having a great week so far.  Mine has been wonderful every since this amazing Ladies Prayer Breakfast this past weekend!

The table was set....

 

The food was prepared...



But I was not set or prepared with how much I would be blessed by the lovely ladies that came and prayed with me!   We encouraged eachother with the Word of God. 



We prayed together for eachother.  We confessed our struggles and prayed some more.  We grew closer to eachother as friends....



And we grew closer to the Lord as we prayed!  



I love the ladies that came to this prayer breakfast!  

I love that I'm able to entertain my friends while my sweet husband takes the kids out for the morning!

I love that I was able to find some nice bargains to dress this table..

 

And I LOVE the LORD, who brought us together and allowed to make this Ladies Prayer Breakfast so special by being there and listening as we prayed!!!



Thank you so much for joining me for this TABLESCAPE TUESDAY!

I hope you have a great rest of your week and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow when I'll share my recipe for a yummy lemonade we served at the Prayer Breakfast!  It is truly DELISH!  (Recipe is posted HERE)

Also, don't forget to join me starting this Thursday night at 8pm ET for the FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA Link Party! 

Thanks again for stopping by!  Hope to see you soon!

This post is being added to...
Inspire Me Tuesday
Let's Dish
Centerpiece Wednesday
Tablescape Thursday
Festive Friday Fiesta

FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA Link Party #6 with Features!

Hello my Fiesta Friends!!!

I hope you're ready to Partaaaay!!!  lol

But first let me share with you the stars of the Fiesta last week. 

Well, you were ALL stars in my book, but I do have a few fun features to share with you! 

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Diane from An Extrordinary Day shines bright with these adorable spring branches made with book paper flowers!!! 

This is such a cute and creative idea!  It totally makes these old branches come to life!!

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Holly from the "Coconut Head Survival Guide" shares her inspiring history of her engagement and first two years of marriage while surviving breast cancer!!

Her story, and her creativity are worth checking out on her blog! 

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Wanda Lee from The Plumed Pen shared her lovely Easter Table and some nice pictures of her mom as well!

I love the beautiful things she has on her table...AND on her hutch shelves next to it!  So pretty!

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And the post with the most views this week is Marigene from "In the Middle of Nowhere" with her pretty "Spring is in the Air" tablescape!

She also shares some amazing bargains she got to create this beautiful table.

I just love seeing the wonderful, creative ideas you're all sharing!!!

Congratulations to everyone who was featured!  If you were featured, feel free to grab a button below!  I'm also putting up my general Fiesta button in case you'd like to add that.

Here's the Button if you were featured!

And here's the code for that button....

<center>
<a href="http://www.the-home-girl-blog.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_mrWl3vcHK2Si-0OvNLTnqhZJxQJ-bRaeqS-IPYOAKPdBjQqFLhkD-iNQQzAMf2RTcGXVWvR_AJPGg5kTXRva8hEsBlyWl6a-8OYAm5NFxist8sKXKEkiGiagHcGyfSvdLgqUxiIKnc/s1600/FestiveFridayFiestaFeatured.jpg" /></a></center>

This one below is the general Fiesta Button

Here's the code for the general button....

<center>

<a href="http://www.the-home-girl-blog.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrADRco0pAZZP82NE8h0SU_2mxM2nGKn-X-45WKHTV5BVLWozMKuouSl4Y7AGzlYfD2h0XSpwVGacPI5gWIQxCkCw54cVbLLaTCWgtLP2HDxrrZooXb1R18y-3VV52YT5O09k9CFTsy8/s1600/FestiveFriday+Fiesta+Button.jpg" /></a></center>

Hope those work! Thanks again!
Now onto this week's party!!!!  =D

WHADDA WE EATIN' WEDNESDAY! Recipe for "Stuffin' Cups"

Hey all!

I hope you're having a great Wednesday!  This week is going by so fast...in fact....the last FEW weeks have gone by so fast.  It's just been so busy around here!  

Welcome to yet another WHADDA WE EATIN' WEDNESDAY!!!   Today I'd like to share a recipe I made for Easter Dinner that was a HUGE hit!

STUFFINS!!!  

"Stuffins" are little stuffing cups that are so cute and fun and our whole family loved the stuffing goodness!

They are also SO easy to make!   I found the original recipe HERE from Pinterest, but their version was making the stuffing from scratch...I had made some other things from scratch, so I wanted to make this recipe a LOT easier....so I tweaked it...quite a bit....and it made the process so much easier!

Here's what you'll need...

1 Box of Stuffing  (I used Turkey Flavor)
Water
Butter
2 eggs, beaten

That's it!!!

Prepare the stuffing according to the package directions except you'll want to add the 2 eggs to the mix.

Make sure everything is mixed well and place the stuffing into well greased muffin tins.  I filled mine about halfway up. 


Then you cook for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.

This makes about 10 "Stuffins".....10 REALLY YUMMY Stuffins!!!   They held together great and they were definitely a hit.  Eveyone who tried them said they loved them!  



I will definitely be making these again!

Hope you enjoy!  Thanks again for stopping by!  Don't forget to come back by tomorrow night at 8pm for the FESTIVE FRIDAY FIESTA Link Party and share your creativity!!!   =D


This post is being added to...
Open House Party
Foodie Friday
Festive Friday Fiesta