0 Sausage, Cheese and Crackers. . .

Once again, I have the honor of being featured on Holy Turf's Tasty Tuesdays!!!!  Don't forget to tell the men in your life about Holy Turf AND make sure to explore the other great tailgating recipes under Tasty Tuesdays!

Sausage, Cheese and Crackers.. . .

This is more of a reminder than a recipe! It is so simple, but it is often lacking from most tailgates or football parties. If your man is like mine, MEAT is a necessity at any tailgate! Since we are deer hunters, our freezer is STOCKED with rows and rows of sausage! Throwing sausage on the grill is a quick way to help you alleviate some crowding in your freezer and gives your husband a reason to "relive" his last hunt! Just grill the sausage, slice it and put it on a cracker with cheese! Or just slice the sausage and stick a toothpick in it! Don't have sausage in your freezer? No worries, use summer sausage from the grocery store! I can't guarantee that your team will win this weekend. . . but I do know that your crowd will LOVE these bite sized appetizers!!

1 The Joys of Teaching Middle School Girls. . .

As I have said, I love my job. This past Friday made me love it even more.

The teachers at my school have SO much fun together. . . which, I believe, makes for a more joyful place for kids to learn! A new teen pop star, Cody Simpson, contacted our principal about having a concert for our kids during lunch. . . and, of course, our principal said yes! So here is what ensued!

(To see what the local news said about our star, click here.)

Some of my friends getting ready to blockade the girls from Cody.  . . .

Cody Simpson . . .

Cody thought it would be a good idea to touch the girls hands. . .

and this is what happened.. . .

don't worry. . . it got worse. . .

The cute face looking at the camera is my friend, Rachel. . . we were DYING laughing the entire time. . .

All in all, just another day as a middle school teacher! :-)

5 My Man! :-)

One year ago, today, Nate asked me to marry him! ;-) Click here if you would like to read about that wonderful and VERY surprising, special night! I have written about my sweet man here, and here, and posted about our wedding and honeymoon! But remembering him down on one knee a year ago, makes me want to tell you about him MORE! ;-)

My cute husband looks like he is in the FBI. Clean cut and ALL American! (he has a borderline panic attack if hair is touching his ears, and has to go get his "hairs" cut immediately so he doesn't look like a hippie!) Sometimes we eat lunch, after church, at the same place as President Bush. More than once, the secret service agents have mistaken Nate for one of their own! When he puts his sunglasses on, he looks like Tom Cruise in Top Gun. . .

Yes, that's right. . .HOTTIE! :-)

He is also SUPER protective of those that he loves, which is just another reason why I adore him! I run in a very nice neighborhood. . . imagine moms with strollers and labs, kids playing in the yard, etc. . . Nate ALWAYS wants me to take Gus Gus with me (who is my baby at home but an attack dog around strangers) and the mace he gave me! :-) I will never forget when he came home and told me he got me something! I was SO excited . . . flowers?? Jewelry?? "What could it be??" Nate proudly handed me a HUGE bottle of MACE!!!! And then proceeded to tell me that he researched the very BEST one and that the kind he got me was a gel so it wouldn't spray me AND that it DYES the person's face orange (so you can identify them later)!!! OH MY GOSH! I thought it was SO cute! (side note, he is a "flowers" guy and is constantly sending flowers to school "just because!". . . so mace is not my only surprise throughout the year!) Since then he has given me an even MORE "potent" kind of mace. . . :-) Gotta love him!

My man is a Texan and a COWBOY!!! He has that awesome Texas drawl and is most comfortable in his boots and jeans! (now he'll dress up and it is when he is in his suit that he looks like he just stepped out of the President's entourage!) Our first Christmas together, Nate wanted to get me something he knew I would like. So he saunters over to Galleria, finds a parking space for his F350 and goes towards the makeup area (he says all the lights and perfume smells make his head hurt). . . so this was a BIG deal! He then proceeded to ask the lady behind the counter for some Chanel (and oh don't worry, he pronounces CHANEL like the English CHANNEL) perfume! He chooses his favorite and gets it wrapped in "CHANNEL" paper to put under the tree. . . he was SO proud of himself, and I was REALLY impressed with his sacrifice to get me something that he knew would be a hit! :-)

There are so many more stories like how he LOVES his country. . . (our Tuesday was spent in front of Fox News watching the election results. . . with Nate cheering or booing like he was at the World Series). . . but I'll leave you with those for now!

My love for Nate is so much more than it was just 5 months ago. . .it is different, and almost unexplainable. . . . . I can't even imagine what it will be like in years and decades to come!

I love you! :-)



5 Oreo Balls of Goodness! :-)

My friend, Kayman, is an AMAZING baker! She is always bringing fun treats or beautiful cake balls to school, and we LOVE her baking expertise and beautiful decorations!

A couple weeks ago, she introduced Oreo Cake Balls to us and I immediately fell in love! I am not a big chocolate person. . . not really into candy bars. . . don't like things that are too rich. . . give me a good old Southern pie any day over chocolate mousse or something like that. . . U-N-T-I-L this!!!!!!!! OH MY WORD. . . HEAVEN IN A BITE SIZED BALL. . . and just wait until you hear the ingredients. . . you will want to and make these IMMEDIATELY . . . ESPECIALLY if you are a TRUE chocolate lover! I served these at our party this weekend and then gave the rest to my dad. . . I called him to see how his office like them. . . and. . .he confessed that they didn't make it to the office! ;-) haha! Enjoy!

Oreo Cake Balls
melted chocolate (use a package or more of melted semi sweet chocolate chips)
1 package oreos
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
Put the oreos and cream cheese in a food processor and mix/chop! Put wax paper on a counter and make little balls of the oreo and cream cheese mixture. (I stuck them in the freezer for a little bit so they would harden) Then stick a toothpick in the oreo ball and dip it in the chocolate. Use another toothpick to loosen the ball from the original toothpick or just tap the toothpick to have the oreo ball fall on the wax paper. Then use a toothpick dipped in the chocolate to drizzle chocolate over the "hole" from the toothpick! Make a pretty design or swirl! Let harden then SERVE!

2 Cilantro Chicken Salad

Today was the first day of basketball tryouts . . . and I got to school SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO early! :-) Cooking a huge dinner is not in the future the next couple of days! This is a perfect quick/healthy dinner or lunch! Parker and Emily ran over to my house this weekend and I literally threw this together in a couple minutes and they both LOVED it! :-) Enjoy the colder weather tonight and don't forget to VOTE! :-)

Picture and recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes

Cilantro Chicken Salad
Servings: 2 • Serving Size: 1/2 of recipe • Points: 4 ww pts
Calories: 163.3 • Fat: 6.2 g • Protein: 23.2 g • Carb: 21.4 g • Fiber:0.2 g
7 oz cooked chicken breast, shredded or diced
2 tbsp light mayonnaise
1 small scallion, chopped
2 tsp lime juice
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
salt and pepper
pinch garlic powder
pinch of cumin
pinch of chile powder
fat free chicken broth
Combine chicken, mayonnaise, scallions, lime juice, and cilantro. Season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, and chile powder. Add a little chicken broth if chicken seams too dry, 1 tbsp at a time
*To Poach: Cover chicken breast in broth in a small pot, add water if it doesn't cover the chicken. Add salt and pepper, a piece of celery and it's leaves (you could add herbs like parsley, garlic, onion, or whatever you want) and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover tight and let it sit for 15-20 minutes or until thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees. Chicken will be cooked through. Let it cool and cut into small cubes.

2 Halloween Buddies

Last night we had friends over for a "dessert party!!!!"

It was fun to spend time with such special people and Gus and Wrigley were on their BEST behavior!

I have MANY fun recipes to share this week but I thought that this one was a yummy and easy way to get rid of use your candy corn!

Halloween Buddies
4 1/2 cups Corn Chex® cereal
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (3 oz)
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup candy corn
1 cup salted cocktail peanuts
1.Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.
2.In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 30 seconds; stir. Microwave about 15 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 1-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.
3.Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Add candy corn and peanuts; shake to mix. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.
Betty Crocker

0 And the Winner is. . .

And the winner is. . . .

Number 7: Rebecca Lawson (chosen by random.org)

Congratulation Rebecca, I will email you with the giveaway details and information! 

Thank you to everyone for entering and a big thank you to CSN for the wonderful giveaway!

 I hope you have a wonderful Monday!