Friend Makin Monday ~ A Survey

It's Monday, again! I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! I know we sure did. I am staying with my In-laws (while my husband and oldest son are back in Arizona). Thanksgiving dinner was yummy, but when I woke up Friday morning everyone was GONE! They left for Disney World. So now I have the house to myself and could not be happier..

Anyways, since it is Monday I figured that I should jump over to Amber's {aefilkins} blog to find out what this weeks question was. This week, she is doing a survey. So here are my answers, and I hope you hop on and post your own in your blog!

1. Favorite website
This is a hard one. I love going to thenest.com and a message board I am on. Facebook is on ALL DAY on my computer (even if I am not at it). Then there is people.com for my gossip.

2. Favorite color
Pinks.. All different shades of pink. I hated pink growing up, but have realized as an adult that there is SO MUCH you can do with it.

3. Facebook? {Post a link or share your name if you want some new Facebook friends!}
Im not much on putting my whole name out here, but if you are really interested let me know and I'll pass it along!

4. Favorite Christmas song?
The 12 Pains of Christmas. I used to hear this song so much living in Maine. I hope I can hear it in AZ as well. If you want to go with the classics though, I would say that I love Silver Bells...

5. Christmas tree: Real or fake?
As much as I love the smell of a real tree, a fake one is so much easier so that is what we've had for the last 4 years.

6. Hottest celebrity?
I LOVE David Boreanaz.. I mean, what is not to love about him?



7. Favorite restaurant?
For chain restaurants, i love TGI Fridays and the Olive Garden. I have not been to either since moving to AZ but hopefully soon. Then there is this little whole in the wall Chinese place in Tewksbury, MA called Longs that I love.

8. Favorite magazine?
People magazine is great. I also love Better Homes and Good Housekeeping. I love the recipes that come out of there.

9. Favorite thing to drink around the holidays?
Vodka? Lots of it :-) Haha! No really though... I dont get into the whole eggnog thing. My big splurge is coffee with peppermint creamer. Boring huh?

10. Favorite Christmas movie?
A Christmas Story and The Santa Clause. I love both of them the same

So now it is your turn. Answer the questions and go back to Ambers blog to add your name to the roll, and hop around and read other answers.. Happy Monday!

Its Friend Makin Monday...

Yep, it's friend makin monday again! I love how Amber is willing to do this every week. It gives me something to blog about. So this week, Amber wants to know everything about Thanksgiving. How exciting.... So here we go..

1. Turkey or Ham?
Turkey.... Do people really eat Ham on Thanksgiving? For me that is a Christmas thing :-)

2. Favorite side dish?
Stuffing. My mom used to make the best stuffing ever! I miss having my mom here to make it for me.

3. Favorite dessert?
Warm apple pie with french Vanilla Ice Cream... or Brownies...

4. Black Friday: Are you going or not?
Not this year! I love getting crazy but im home in New England and have nobody to watch the boys.

5. If so, what's on the top of your list?
N/A

6. Going out of town or staying close to home?
Im out of town this year. We live in Phoenix but I am staying with my inlaws in MA for a few weeks.

7. Hosting or helping?
Helping.....

8. Name one family tradition at Thanksgiving.
The Parade in the morning. Then after dinner we all pile into the itty bitty living room and we watch a movie...

9. What do you do after dinner?
Oh, I already answered this but we watch a movie in the living room

10. What are you most thankful for this year?
Im thankful for the amazing friends i've met in Arizona that have helped make the transition a lot easier for our family...

So, tell me all about your Thanksgiving?!?!?!

Friend Makin Monday ~ Favorite Winter Recipe?

YAY! It's Monday again! Now that I am coming down off my high from the Colts somehow pulling off a win in last nights game, I'm ready to blog again! Since it is Monday, I figure a good way to start is to jump on the Friend Makin Mondays bandwagon. Today, Amber {aefilkins} wants to know, what your favorite winter recipe is...

I'll start by saying that Winter is very different here in Arizona. Growing up in New England, winter was ALL ABOUT cooking in the oven. Making your house smell amazing. Im not saying that I dont do that here, but if more people actually saw what we like to cook and how involved it is and how long it cooks for... I'd probably be told I am crazy, haha!

Anyways, Im off track again. I had to think about what one meal is my absolute favorite to make in the winter time. I've decided to go with Chicken Corn Chowder... We had this last week and I could not get over how tasty it came out. Here is the recipe.. Oh yeah, I cook it in a crockpot!

2tbs butter
1 1/2 lbs of Chicken Tenders or Chicken Breast (cut into 1/2 in cubes)
1/2 C. chopped onion
4 celery ribs (sliced up)
4 carrots (diced up)
2 C. frozen corn
2 Cans of cream of potato soup
1 1/2 C. chicken broth
1 tsp. dried dill weed (i use a little more)
1/2 C. half and half (I use a little more then that... probably 3/4 to 1C. Depending on how the soup is looking. I like it thicker.

In large skillet, melt the butter and brown the chicken. When that is done, put it into the crockpot.

Add the onions and celery to the skillet and saute' for 3 or 4 minutes or just until tender.

Add the onions and celery to crockpot along with the carrots, corn, soup, chicken broth and dill.

Cover and cook on low for 5 or 6 hours until chicken is fully done and vegetables are tender.

During the last 10 minutes of cooking, stir in the half and half..

I dont have any pictures of the soup I made. I've just recently started taking pictures of the food I make, but I did not do that the last time I made this dinner. I"ll be sure to take a picture another time and post it up. Maybe i'll make it tomorrow.

Now, I am going to ask you, what is your favorite winter recipe? Happy Eating!!

~MckLinky Blog Hop~ Ask a Question

So, thanks to a new blog that I am following, ive decided to join in on the fun. MckLinky has a weekly blog hop where there is a theme / question asked every week and then other bloggers can hop from blog to blog reading your answers, and leaving you comments.

The Blog Hop theme for this Week is "ASK A QUESTION".

Ask your readers ANY question and invite them to leave a comment with their answer. ANY QUESTION.

So after giving it much thought (OK, probably not as much as I should have but enough to make it interesting) I've decided to ask myself, and also my readers :

~If you could know anything about the future, anything at all... What would you want to know?
I think that the only thing I'd really want to know is did I personally do a good enough job as a mother that my four boys grew into really great men. I'd want to know that the morals and beliefs that I taught them helped them along the way. If my kids turned out to be sad/depressed/crazy/arrogant/etc then I'd want to be able to have time to rethink the way I teach them things so that they could have the amazing life they so deserve...

Now what about you? If you could know anything about the future, anything at all... What would you want to know?

Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies, anyone?

Ok, seriously... these are the most delicious things EVER! I have never really been a fan of pumpkin so I was a bit scared when I tried this recipe. Holy crap... i think they should be tried by each and every human on the planet. These things are DELISH!!!

Brownie Batter
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder - I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

Cheesecake Batter
6 oz cream cheese, softened - I used 8oz
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar - I used 1/2 cup
2 tbsp flour - I used 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp
1/2 cup pumpkin puree - I used 2/3 cup
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract - I used 1/3 tsp
1/2 tsp cinnamon - I used 2/3 tsp
1/4 tsp each ground ginger and ground cloves - I used 1/3 tsp

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8x8" square metal baking pan.

Beat together melted butter, sugar, and vanilla, then beat in eggs one at a time. Combine dry ingredients and then gradually stir into butter mixture with a wooden spoon. In separate bowl, beat together cheesecake batter ingredients.

Spread about 2/3 of chocolate batter into prepared pan, and spoon cheesecake batter over. Dollop remaining brownie batter over cheesecake batter. Swirl the batters together by running a butter knife back and forth through the pan.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until center is set. Cool completely on wire rack and chill before cutting and serving

I found the recipe on Beantown Bakers Blog. She has a TON of yummy ideas that you should go and check out.

I chilled them overnight before I cut into them and man oh man... I think I am going to have a hard time with my 101 list because I think I gained 10lbs in my left thigh alone, haha! If you make them, please tell me what you think...

Friend Makin Monday

It's that time of the week again! Wait, did I use that line the last time I joined in the Friend Makin Monday theme? Possibly? Who knows.... Well anyways, it is that time again. Today, Amber over at aefilkins asked

What are your favorite candles/scents?

Banana Nut Bread.... YUM!

Vanilla Pumpkin

Almond Cookie

Christmas Wish

and last but not least.... Cookies and Cream

So I think that you can see a pattern forming here as to the kind of scents that I personally enjoy. Anything soft and not to over powering. There are a few more that I love as well, but these were the first that came to mind. The list is much longer if she would have asked what DONT you like.

Now I ask of you, what is your favorite candle/scent?

Was it worth it?

Every once in a while, while I am sitting here in AZ, missing my friends and family back east, I tend to ask myself.... was it worth it?
Was it worth moving 2600 miles away from everything I have ever known my whole life? Was it worth leaving Kaleb and Christian with their father for the year to come out here? The decision was solely put on my shoulders. Carl would never ask me to move 2600 miles away from everything I've ever known.
It's been a bit of a financial burden for me to come here. Not so much moving here but all the money I've spent to go back east when I get sad. I've been home 2 times now and am going again in 2 weeks. For as much as I've gone home you would think that maybe we made the wrong decision.
But then I step out onto my patio off my bedroom and I see this:



The change of scenery is absolutely AMAZING! It's new, its refreshing, its peaceful. So when I sit and wonder if we made the right decision, I just look out my window to the amazing things that I see.



Taken from my favorite Musical Artist: "Life's a journey, not a destination... you just cant tell, just what tomorrow brings"

So while I miss things in New England. My family, my friends, my old house on the lake.. I wouldn't trade what I have for the world. The experience of seeing new things, of meeting new friends and starting a new life.. For now, i'll enjoy this journey and i'll see what tomorrow brings!