2012: A Review.

Good Morning, Friends.

Tomorrow, I will write my annual post regarding resolutions and other new-year-beginnings.  Today, however, I would like to write about 2012.  I mean, this is the last day of it and all.

Let's see what amazing things occurred in 2012...

• I went in for my yearly physical in January and found out I was a lot more overweight than I thought.  I decided to do something about it and over the course of this year, I have lost 8 pounds!  I tried some new crafting techniques, tried to start a daily writing prompt but couldn't stick to it, started to scare myself about my future children, and found some new music - finally.

• In February, I tried lots of new recipes, quit my job at Intab, bought a new dresser, got tickets to see Wicked for Vday, and started Freakin' Obsessed Friday.

• March was a more wound-down month.  I came to the incredibly unfortunate conclusion that I had lost 6 months' worth of photos.  I still haven't recovered them, by the way.  We found out Durham had a Zaxby's, which thrilled our souls, and it's right next to Goodberry's!  I finally finished The Green Mile.  I learned about taxes, the hard way.  I was also given a sewing machine by my absolutely awesome husband, but the post was never published.  (Well, maybe March wasn't so calm after all!)

• In April, Bonnie revealed how much of a scaredy dog she is.  I painted some pretty shoes for Easter.  We went home for Easter and I got all my hair chopped off.  Although I had heard of Etsy, my love affair with it began here.

• May had the fewest number of posts, with only two.  I started writing about my move to Durham and how hard it was for me to acclimate.  Desperate Housewives ended, and I started watching 30 Rock instead.

• June turned out to be a busy, fun month.  Ray Bradbury died, and the literary world wept.  The Indy Weekly came out with their Best of the Triangle issue and Justin and I made the best of that weekend trying out new things.  KK5 came out and was promptly read.  I told the blogging world about my then-new job.  I discovered Boy Meets World exists in DVD form, and was graciously given the entire series by my sweet hubby.  I participated in my third handmade gift exchange.  I made my first, very little, thing on my new sewing machine.  Justin and I had our first ever commission made by the supremely talented Gabe Dunston.

• The first week of July was my birthday week, and I turned 26 on the 5.  The blog got a face lift.  I found out that sometimes reliving your childhood as an adult isn't a good idea.  I got that old, familiar baby bug - but this time, Justin and I actually discussed it and there may be Lunchables in the near future. :)  I read Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  I looked into this neat 5K called Color Me Rad, and started thinking about running it.  Then, after several signs, I decided to do it.

• In August, the date for CMR in Raleigh was finally announced.  I read The Postcard Killers.  It was in August that I started looking for other work.  Still no word on that front.  I suffered a good two-week bout of IBS, and pulled a Cinderella, using new shoes to fix the problem!  Halloween came early, and I couldn't stop thinking about it!

• The Halloween kick continued into September.  I discovered Wordle.  I will make another cloud tonight to encompass an entire year's worth of words.  I was finally able to run again, in crisp autumn air no less, and had a lead for a job that didn't end up panning out.  I discovered Gangnam Style.  I read and re-watched The Time Traveler's Wife.  I left a sweet little goodbye letter for our little apartment, when the times comes for it.

• October was another busy month, clocking in the most posts for the year, with 23.  I tried to do a 31-Day challenge but just couldn't stick with it.  After buying an iPhone in September, I was then on the hunt for a case.  I chose the I-Arc Reactor-You case.  My blog finally reached over 1,000 page views since its installation in September 2009.  I held a Halloween Movie Extravaganza, and started with my favorite, Hocus Pocus.  I finally started seeing results from my running.  This is the only positive reinforcement I received from my boss this year.  I ran the Color Me Rad 5K in Raleigh, and wrote about the little-known details.  I started jotting down ideas for tattoos.  I published a long-forgotten post about accepting Durham as my new home.  Justin and I held an awesome Halloween Party.

• We started November out with Daylight Savings Time.  Justin and I voted in our first presidential election, and Obama won.  For our anniversary, Justin and I went to Asheville, NC to see the Biltmore House at Christmastime.  Still haven't had time to work on those pictures, though.  I wrote up my experience with running in CMR.  Justin and I continued our tradition of not eating turkey the day of Thanksgiving, and had Phil to enjoy the meal with this time.  At the end of the month, I offered some cleaning tips I use myself.

• The Waterfields ended the year by heading down to Spartanburg for Christmas (no post yet), and I participated in my fourth handmade gift exchange.  I was given an ultimatum about my job that I started in May, and there still isn't a lot that is certain on that front.  As a Christmas present to Justin, I started reading The Dresden Files.  I am currently on the second book.

That's a lot of stuff!  Truthfully, when I start writing this post this morning, I wasn't expecting quite that many links.  But it makes me happy to see the year in bullet form. :)  2012 yielded 122 posts, more than 2009, 2010, and 2011 combined!  I hope to see similar numbers next year.

A whole mess of other stuff happened that just never made it into a post.  One of my best friends, Dave, wrote and published a comic called Pizzula.  Along with me turning 26, Justin turned 25.  We went to see Wicked in May.  The gang reunited for our yearly shenanigans at D*Con down in Atlanta, and this time Luke got to come!  My mom started a new job.  My step dad got laid off from his.  Luke and Elyse started dating way back in February.  I got a new Keurig for Christmas and have been loving it.  Those are just some of the things that never got written about.

2012 was a pretty good year.  A lot of good happened, and a lot turmoil got passed around, too.  But I guess that's how it is with every year.  As of midnight tonight, we have officially survived the Mayan apocalypse.  I'll be glad when the year is over.  It seems like December burdened me with a bit of the Scrooges.  I've been in a bad mood almost this entire month.  I'll be glad to turn the new calendar to the first clean page and start over in 2013.  Thirteen is a lucky number for me, and I hope next year will be lucky.

Hope you enjoyed my little recap there.  Happy last day of the year to you!

Some Pinterest Updates

I realized that I haven't been sharing a lot of my adventures with Pinterest lately.  I've made 4 recipes I found on Pinterest (really 5, but one was just terrible, so I'm not going to share it).  All original sources are linked to either the pictures or their captions.

• Wendy's Frosty Knockoff

picture used on Pinterest

• I made this, because I absolutely love Frostys.  A small Frosty has 300 calories, and this knockoff claimed to only have 80.  It has a bunch of good stuff in it - pudding mix, milk, cocoa, vanilla, and Splenda.
• After mixing it up in a blender, I had my first sip and was really darn smitten.  It tastes nothing like a Frosty.  But it does taste like a pudding milkshake, and it was delectable.  I'd recommend this; it's fast and sweet and good!

• Miracle Mac N' Cheese

• This recipe claimed to be extremely easy and quick, and made with homemade ingredients.  It was all of these things.
• I made this last night, and I thought it turned out rather well.  Justin wasn't a huge fan (he likes traditional-Southern baked MnC the best), but he said it was okay.  It was very fast and easy to make.  I would recommend this as well if you're dealing with someone less picky than my husband!

• Slow Cooker Cheesy Chicken Quesadillas

• I made these originally to get some use out of the quesadilla maker Justin and I got for our wedding.  They turned out quite well.  I'd like to add more spice/seasoning to the chicken mixture, but I'm not sure what I want to add to it.
• The recipe claims the chicken mixture to be very soupy, the original cook having to use a slotted spoon to remedy that problem.  Mine has never been soupy, and has always been nice and thick.  Not sure what I'm doing differently.  They are good, and super easy if you have a quesadilla maker.

• M&M Cookie Pie

• This thing.  Oh, my.  Not only is it incredibly easy to make, but it is scrumptious!  You basically make M&M cookie dough and plop it into a dish/pan instead of onto a cookie sheet to make a cookie pie.
• Every time I make this, it's a big hit.  Justin loves it (!).  I'd definitely recommend this.

So there you have it.  A small update on how I'm actually trying to accomplish what I'm pinning!  I hope all you other pinners are enjoying seeing your pins come to life, too!

Sugar.

I've been getting/using a lot of it lately!

Last week, I used this recipe from Urban Nester to make Baked Oatmeal Casserole.

It was a big hit with Justin and Dave, but I would have liked it more without the chocolate.  I'm one of those weird people who doesn't like the chocolate+fruit combo.

Good to the last bite!

With the leftover strawberries and bananas, I made Justin strawberry and banana waffles the next morning.  He loved them.

Today, Justin and I spent the 4th watching Hey Arnold! on Netflix most of the day and having red, white, and blue spaghetti for dinner.

The noodles look a little teal in these pictures, but they were more so blue!

Just before dinner, Justin headed out to go get a birthday surprise for me!  I wasn't sure what it was, but I was really excited about it!

He brought me a Kroger whipped-icing cake!!  It is, like, my favorite thing.

Purple icing!

I also got lovely flowers and a very sweet card. :)

It sure made for a great surprise kickoff to my birthday weekend!

I wish the day had started off as well as it ended, though.  My poor hubby woke up around 5:30 this morning knowing out-right he was going to throw up.  And after waiting an hour sitting on the bathroom floor, he finally did.  Afterward, when we tried to go back to sleep, he threw up again.  That's just not a nice way for anyone to start their day, especially a day off work!  But thankfully, he's doing much better now and didn't get sick anymore today.  Ginger Ale and McDonald's cure anything!

My mom bought me a 4th of July headband.  Rock on.

Hope everyone had a very Happy and Relaxing 4th!  God bless America, and bless us, everyone.

*I'd just like to apologize for some poor lighting in these pictures.  Delilah is on loan to my mother at the moment for photographing a wedding. :)

New Recipe: Crispy Cheddar Chicken

I found a new recipe last week and tried it out, but the first go (as it usually happens), wasn't the best.  But I made this recipe for the second time Thursday night and we both just LOVED it.  It was amazing!

(recipe source)

Crispy Cheddar Chicken

Time: 15 minute prep + 35 minutes baking

Yield: 7 servings

Recipe from adapted from What's Cookin' Chicago via Pinterest

Chicken:

4 large chicken breasts

2 sleeves Ritz crackers

1/4 t salt

1/8 t pepper

1/2 C milk

3 C cheddar cheese, grated

1 t dried parsley

Sauce:

1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup

2 T sour cream

2 T butter

 

1. Cut each chicken breast into 3 large chunks.
2. In a small food processor grind up the ritz crackers.
3. Pour the milk, cheese and cracker crumbs into 3 separate small pans. Toss the 1/4 t salt and 1/8 t pepper into the cracker crumbs and stir the mixture around to combine.
4. Dip each piece of chicken into the milk, then the cheese, and finally the cracker crumbs.
5. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and lay the chicken inside the pan.
6. Sprinkle the dried parsley over the chicken.
7. Cover the pan with tin foil and bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes. Remove the tin foil, bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until the edges of the chicken are golden brown and crispy.
8. Into a medium sized sauce pan combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream and butter with a whisk. Stir it over medium high heat until the sauce is nice and hot. Serve over the chicken.

Here are a few adjustments I made to this recipe:  I subbed the cream of chicken for cream of chicken with herbs, and it was amazing.  I didn't use two sleeves of crackers.  I did the first time I made this, and it was just way too many.  Half a sleeve worked just fine.  You don't have to follow the measurements for each chicken ingredient exactly, just put some milk and some grated cheese into separate containers.  Because using what is exactly listed here, I had to throw out so much.  Once I put all the chicken into the pan, I took the leftover crumbs and cheese and just drizzled it over the chicken.  I served this with rice and it was big hit with the hubby.  I also cooked all the chicken on top of parchment paper, and it worked well.

It's always nice to find a new way to cook chicken!

This Weekend and New Recipes

This weekend, Mother, Luke, and Dolly came up to visit us!  Mother is taking pictures of her best friend Johnny's family for his birthday next month, and wanted to use my camera.  Her original intention was to drive the 4 hours up on Friday, grab the camera, and leave!  Well, Justin and I just weren't going to have that!  We insisted that they at least spend the night, and they did.  Friday, the five of us hung out at the apartment before having Bojangles for dinner and the painting the town red (a.k.a., going to the new Wal-Mart that my mom had heard so much about).  Saturday, we all had lunch at Piper's, which is better for me now that I've discovered their chicken sandwiches.  We took Luke over to Sci-Fi, which was fun, and then my mom and I did some more gallivanting over to Vaguely Reminiscent and Sustain-A-Bull Bookstore while the boys stayed home and played Star Wars.  I found the cutest dress down in the basement of Sustain-A-Bull, which is now a small clothing boutique called Pb Buttermilk's.  It cost me all of $18, and I love it!  I put it on when we got home and almost went to bed in it!  It's so comfortable.

[picture is coming!]

Plus, it's a huge upgrade from the skirt that I fell in love with in Vaguely Reminiscent that cost almost $80.  It gave me a sad face.

My mom insisted on leaving that night, because she has this thing where she doesn't want to "take our weekends away from us," which is a very sweet thought, but also a bit absurd at times, because weekends are there for a reason.  But anyway, we started packing her up to go home when we got back to the apartment, and it was sad.  But I'll see her again in a few weeks (I'm going home the weekend of the Super Bowl), so it's all good!  A great time was had by all.

I also tried some new recipes last week!  I live on Campbell's Kitchen.  I'm always finding new recipes on there to try, and they always come out delicious!  I haven't had a stinker yet!

Last week, I made two new dishes.  The first was Chicken Mozzarella.  Justin really loved it, so we will probably be having it again soon.  As in, I'm going to the store today and will probably buy the stuff to make it with then.  Here's the recipe:

1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Healthy Request® Condensed Tomato Soup

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning or dried oregano leaves, crushed

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (about 1 ounce)

1/2 of a 1-pound package rotini pasta (about 3 cups), cooked without salt and drained

• Heat the oven to 400°F.
• Place the chicken into an 11 x 7 x 2-inch baking dish. Stir the soup, Italian seasoning and garlic powder in a medium bowl. Spoon the soup mixture over the chicken.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle the chicken with the cheese. Serve the chicken and sauce with the pasta.

I had to bake my chicken a little longer because my chicken breasts were a bit larger than the recipe called for.  But, they only needed about 15 more minutes, so it wasn't too bad.

The other dish was Beef and Noodles in the Crockpot.  I was a huge fan of this while we were eating, but it sort of killed my stomach a few hours later.  I'm not worried, though.  Most new dishes do that to me!  Justin liked it as well, but was dealing with family drama on the phone at the time, so his enthusiasm wasn't as clear.  Here's that recipe:

1 pound beef for stew, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)

1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed French Onion Soup

2/3 of a 12-ounce package medium egg noodles (about 4 cups), cooked and drained

• Place the beef into a 3 1/2-quart slow cooker.  Stir the soups in a small bowl.  Pour the soup mixture over the beef.
• Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours or until the beef is fork-tender.  Serve the beef mixture over the noodles.

Yes, it's that insanely easy.  I'm not even joking, I cook with my crockpot every single week.  Sometimes, more than once a week.  It's a necessity to my kitchen!

Well, I said not too far back there that I had to go to the store, so I guess I'm going to get dressed and go!  Bummer.