This was seriously such an easy meal to prepare. My husband loved it so much he said it was like Thanksgiving!!
Ingredients:
* 1 lb chicken
* 1 box of stuffing
* 1 cup Chicken Broth
* Water
* 1 can of cream of chicken soup
Directions:
* Take 1 lb of chicken and place it in the crock pot.
* Pour 1 cup (I actually just used the whole soup can of chicken broth) over the chicken
* In a seperate bowl mix the stove top stuffing, cream of chicken soup, and water together.
* Layer the stove top mixture on top of the chicken.
* Cook for 6-8 hours on low (or if you are like me 3 hours on high and probably 1/2 hour on low).
Serve with a side of corn and side salad and there you go!! Easy easy dinner!!
I will have to admit, this Mama can't cook but I can throw together an easy meal the crock pot!! It did taste a little like Thanksgiving -- just needed some green bean casserole and maybe some cranberry sauce!!
***Original recipe was from Pinterest -- I went to give credit to the original person who posted it and it informed me that it could be spam or virus. Unfortunately I can not give credit to the person***
Monday, June 24, 2013
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
First REAL family Vacation
The time finally came for our first "real" family vacation!! We went down to North Myrtle Beach for a full week of beach, ocean, sun, and fun!!
We had been planning this trip for quite some time. It not only included our immediate family, but my husband's extended family. It was a family vacation that included 12 people. My husbands mother & her husband, father & his 2nd ex wife, sister & brother in law, brother & girlfriend, then our 2 kids. I like to say 2nd ex wife just because everyone thinks its funny (and cool) that Jason's dad went on vacation with both of his ex wives!! Not many people can get along after divorces, but this family sure can!! It's nice to see how well everyone gets along and can have fun together!
This was my first experience with a large family vacation. I have always traveled, but never in this size group. My anxiety about how, or if, I would enjoy myself started early on. I wasn't sure how I would cope with not having my own personal space to retreat to. Doesn't help that I'm an only child and an introvert!! Thankfully the house we rented was big enough to have plenty of privacy -- if needed... Which I really didn't need much of. But this is where I came if I just needed a few minutes to myself... Off our bedroom was a nice private balcony... Awesome view too!
Was all good until I would go missing for too long and Jason and Alex would come searching for me!!
The vacation was awesome! North Myrtle Beach was a great choice. The house that we rented was amazing! 3 stories of just fun! Private pool, game room in basement, plenty of living space, and just 2 very short blocks to the beach. The fact that the house came with a golf cart made things so much fun - especially for Alex who insisted on going on "golf cart ride" at least 4-6 times a day. The golf cart by far was Alex's favorite part of the vacation.
Although you can't tell by his facial expression -- he loved the golf cart!
We kept ourselves busy with sight seeing, beach time, and family time. The guys did a lot of golfing and a day of deep sea fishing. The girls hung out at the beach/pool and did some shopping. I took Alex to few different sites in the area just to get out of the house and do something. He seemed to really enjoy himself -- especially if we were eating breakfast out!! Toledo friends just happened to be in North Myrtle Beach at the same time so they came over for a cook out. Here is Alex and his friend/classmate Brooklyn (aka Brookee or Brookabee). It's funny that out of everyone, Alex is the one to have a friend over in a different state!!
I loved hanging at the beach, yet Jason and Alex weren't as excited about it -- love how the sand feels against my toes!!
We went to the Ripley's Aquarium and saw the sharks and all -- Awesome aquarium tunnel with fish surrounding you, yet, a little too $$$$ for the little bit that they have to see. Wasn't that impressed with it and honestly, you could go to the piers and see more wildlife excitement then the 1/2 hour of viewing in the aquarium.
Jason and I were able to have a well overdue date night!! That was awesome! We went to Dick's Last Resort which Jason just found to be hilarious... He laughed until he cried at the entertainment. I think he could have stayed there all night. But we walked around and found fun things to get into at Barefoot Landing.
So many other things we got the chance to do and see. Had a wonderful vacation -- even if the car ride was waaayyy too long with a toddler!!
We had been planning this trip for quite some time. It not only included our immediate family, but my husband's extended family. It was a family vacation that included 12 people. My husbands mother & her husband, father & his 2nd ex wife, sister & brother in law, brother & girlfriend, then our 2 kids. I like to say 2nd ex wife just because everyone thinks its funny (and cool) that Jason's dad went on vacation with both of his ex wives!! Not many people can get along after divorces, but this family sure can!! It's nice to see how well everyone gets along and can have fun together!
This was my first experience with a large family vacation. I have always traveled, but never in this size group. My anxiety about how, or if, I would enjoy myself started early on. I wasn't sure how I would cope with not having my own personal space to retreat to. Doesn't help that I'm an only child and an introvert!! Thankfully the house we rented was big enough to have plenty of privacy -- if needed... Which I really didn't need much of. But this is where I came if I just needed a few minutes to myself... Off our bedroom was a nice private balcony... Awesome view too!
The vacation was awesome! North Myrtle Beach was a great choice. The house that we rented was amazing! 3 stories of just fun! Private pool, game room in basement, plenty of living space, and just 2 very short blocks to the beach. The fact that the house came with a golf cart made things so much fun - especially for Alex who insisted on going on "golf cart ride" at least 4-6 times a day. The golf cart by far was Alex's favorite part of the vacation.
Although you can't tell by his facial expression -- he loved the golf cart!
We kept ourselves busy with sight seeing, beach time, and family time. The guys did a lot of golfing and a day of deep sea fishing. The girls hung out at the beach/pool and did some shopping. I took Alex to few different sites in the area just to get out of the house and do something. He seemed to really enjoy himself -- especially if we were eating breakfast out!! Toledo friends just happened to be in North Myrtle Beach at the same time so they came over for a cook out. Here is Alex and his friend/classmate Brooklyn (aka Brookee or Brookabee). It's funny that out of everyone, Alex is the one to have a friend over in a different state!!
So many other things we got the chance to do and see. Had a wonderful vacation -- even if the car ride was waaayyy too long with a toddler!!
Traveling with a Toddler
Two weeks ago we went on our first family road trip.
Our estimated 13 and a half our trip turned into 17+ hours. Traveling with an almost 2 year old can slow things down quite a bit!
On the way down we decided to travel through the night. We traveled caravan style, with other 2 car fulls of other family members. We left our house at 9 PM. It wasn't long after our departure that my toddler son, and myself, settled into a less than comfortable sleep.
We started off pretty good! Had some issues traveling through some construction zones in the "big" cities. But for the most part my son did a great job. When we stopped for restroom breaks, he woke up. We got out to change diapers, stretch, and run around. Alex thought it was cool that his grandparents were also following us in different cars so he wanted to say "hello" to everyone.
The hard part was getting Alex back into his car seat. He was restless and didn't want to get back in the seat. He cried and fussed, but was easily distracted. Thankfully I found this awesome traveling carrier from One Step Ahead that held so many books, toys, cds, portable DVD player, and other snacks & drinks. It was perfect for such a long trip. And it was on sale so that made the purchase even better!!
Before leaving I did a lot of research about traveling with toddlers. Many good blogs out there with a lot of helpful hints. I started a list of things to buy and also things to pack in the car with us. Luckily, on the way down to South Carolina we had an empty seat. It really helped keep my stress levels down because I had easy access to everything Alex may need. I just reached over for a new book, toy, or snack! It seemed like there was a lot, but the travel organizer really held a lot. I'm so glad that I had access to everything on the way down.
Here is just a summary of things that I packed - most fit in the oranizer or on the floor of the empty seat.
Our estimated 13 and a half our trip turned into 17+ hours. Traveling with an almost 2 year old can slow things down quite a bit!
On the way down we decided to travel through the night. We traveled caravan style, with other 2 car fulls of other family members. We left our house at 9 PM. It wasn't long after our departure that my toddler son, and myself, settled into a less than comfortable sleep.
We started off pretty good! Had some issues traveling through some construction zones in the "big" cities. But for the most part my son did a great job. When we stopped for restroom breaks, he woke up. We got out to change diapers, stretch, and run around. Alex thought it was cool that his grandparents were also following us in different cars so he wanted to say "hello" to everyone.
The hard part was getting Alex back into his car seat. He was restless and didn't want to get back in the seat. He cried and fussed, but was easily distracted. Thankfully I found this awesome traveling carrier from One Step Ahead that held so many books, toys, cds, portable DVD player, and other snacks & drinks. It was perfect for such a long trip. And it was on sale so that made the purchase even better!!
Before leaving I did a lot of research about traveling with toddlers. Many good blogs out there with a lot of helpful hints. I started a list of things to buy and also things to pack in the car with us. Luckily, on the way down to South Carolina we had an empty seat. It really helped keep my stress levels down because I had easy access to everything Alex may need. I just reached over for a new book, toy, or snack! It seemed like there was a lot, but the travel organizer really held a lot. I'm so glad that I had access to everything on the way down.
Here is just a summary of things that I packed - most fit in the oranizer or on the floor of the empty seat.
Things to Pack IN CAR:
·
First
Aid Kit * Books * Phone charger
·
Toys *
Diapers * GPS
·
Wipes *
Sippy cups * Tylenol/Motrin
·
Snacks * Water * Medical Bag
·
Extra
pair of clothes * Crayons * Coloring Books
·
Flashlight * Towels * Paper Towels
·
Juice
boxes * Plastic bags *
Play dough
·
Plastic
puke bucket * Blankets * DVD player
·
Small
cooler * camera * magazines
· Ball *
Clorox wipes * CDS & DVDS
On the way home we had a completely different experience. We left early in the morning, which meant a lot more awake time with Alex. We also didn't have an extra seat available for the travel organizer -- which meant it was in the front seat in the middle. I didn't have easy access to it so I pretty much had to grab things out of it when we made stops. Wasn't horrible but, just made things a little more crowded and less organized.
BEven though we had more awake time, Alex did an amazing job. More fussing and let's just say it, screaming & kicking when he had to get back in the car seat after a stop, but all in all, he did a great job. Just took a lot more effort on my part of entertaining him with reading books and playing with toys. Distracting him was key to the long car ride. When he wanted out of the seat, he wanted out!! Worked himself up a couple times so much that I thought for sure the plastic puke bucket would be used!! At one point he got so worked up he choked on a chip or cracker -- in the middle of the rest stop parking lot, my kid is choking!!
Needless to say, we took a risk going on such a long road trip for our first family trip. Next time we may need to fly!!! Just kidding!! It's all about keeping new things available for the kids and lots and lots of snacks!!
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