15 Minute Chores

I'm busy, or I like to pretend to be. I dislike chores and cleaning. But you know what I dislike more than cleaning? The spazz-out-oh-my-god-people-are-coming-over cleaning. The we-need-to-spend-3-hours-before-dinner cleaning. I dislike that more.

Rewind to last year and Peter was traveling a lot for work. Like, weeks at a time with his only time home being a 2 or 3 day weekend. When he would leave, we wouldn't know when we would be back. I was also working in a job that wasn't a good fit, had a new dog with Giardia (read: uncontrollable diarrhea), whose treatment (and the stress of a new home) made him puke daily, who had no manners, and who had bonding issues. It was a rough winter.

Apple chips

I like snacking. And I like sweet things. I also like crunchy things like potato chips and cheese doodles. All of these things are high in calories and processed food and things that probably shouldn't be eaten, but I eat them anyway.

Two years ago, a friend bought me a dehydrator for Christmas. I then discovered that dehydrated strawberries are AMAZING. So, after some research I decided to try dehydrating apples in the late summer. I did some searching and then some experiments and after trying a bunch of things, I have figured out how I like them best.

Christmas Crafts for 2014

We're running a little lean when it comes to money, so many of my Christmas gifts were handmade. For my parents and sister, I made a bunch of things and packed them in mason jars, I also made a mug cake mix for my sister. I made some buttermints, white chocolate peppermint bark, dark chocolate peppermint bark, chocolate covered pretzels, and white chocolate covered pretzels. I also made some white chocolate chex mix, which involved no actual chocolate (for a post on a later date).

I made some comic book coasters for my husband. My dad found a bunch of comics for free and I picked up six tiles at an estate sale.

Black Bean Burritos, Stuffed Portobellos, and Window Fixing

So tonight we tried some slow cooker black bean burritos. Yes, it's from a vegan cooking blog, don't let it scare you! We used chicken broth instead of veggie, used white rice instead of brown, and we omitted the corn, but they were really good! Peter said he'd prefer them if they had some beef in them (of course he wants beef in a vegan recipe), but they were tasty.

Creamy Ranch Chicken, Rice, & Butternut Squash Ravioli

Tonight's dinner was a mishmash of homemade goodness.

Peter started Slow Cooker Creamy Ranch Chicken (which I found thanks to Pinterest) in the crockpot when he got home from work. We only made two chicken breasts, but used the whole sauce recipe. I also made a few cups of rice, and when we made up our plates, poured a bit of the sauce over the chicken and rice.

Weight Watchers Recipe Review #2

I tried another Weight Watchers recipe, this time it was Grilled Ginger Chicken with Peach Salsa. However, I made it in the middle of winter, so I didn't use a grill. I also didn't use fresh ginger. However, it was delicious and received approval in the form of second helpings.

Weight Watcher's Recipe Trial #1

I'm working on a weight loss goal and I received a great Weight Watchers cookbook for Christmas. I'll hopefully be trying a bunch of these recipes and I know a bunch of other people are looking for good and light recipes.

Chicken and Vegetable Ragu with Herb Dumplings from Weight Watchers Momentum Cookbook