A Good Down Day.

There will be no photos of food today.  No recipes.  I was surprised to see that my last post was a week ago.  It's been a pretty hectic week at work, and then we were a little busy at home, too.  Come Saturday, I was feeling like I needed a break.  I've been volunteering on the usher team at church and Saturday night, I was just feeling like sitting in service for once.  I wanted to be able to really participate in worship.  So I did.  I took a break that night.  And it was an exciting night at church.  There were lots of people that got baptised which was neat to witness.  I hear over the weekend it was some 400 people that got baptised.
Sunday, I worked.  It was still busy at work, and I was really looking forward to getting home.  I had stopped at the store to pick up a couple things to make dinner and when I had gotten back to my car, I saw that I had a flat tire right up front.  I really wanted to cry.  But I didn't.  I took a deep breath to keep myself calm and I called up my husband.  Now, his car is out of commission, which I had forgotten, so he recommended that I call my Mom.  She lives right down the street from the store I was at.  After a conversation with Mom, she had my Uncle Marcus on his way to help me put the doughnut on my car so that I could get home.
Was I up for cooking by the time I got home?  Not exactly...I was so relieved that Mom had sent home leftovers of lasagna from the night before.
So today we had a nice down day.  Not too much going on here.  I've done some laundry and some dishes.  It's always good to get a little cleaning done.  Rich, Dillon and I went and meandered the mall while waiting for my tire to be fixed.  We treated ourselves to some delicious See's chocolate while we were there.  As we stood in line at the See's Candies store, Dillon recognized where we were and he says in this super cute voice "Choc-o-late?"  "Oh yes honey, chocolate!"
After my car was ready, we came home and snuggled up together and watched movies.  This was just the kind of day I was needing.  A good down day.  I feel all ready to tackle the week now.

Well...I Thought Fall Was Coming...

Well...I thought fall was coming...the weather has made a bit of a turnaround.  The sun is shining and it's supposed to be around 80 the next couple of days.  Still, I planned my meals around things that I enjoy eating this time of year.  I'm always thinking of food.  It doesn't help that I spend my work day talking to patients at the hospital about food.  On my break I read cooking magazines, and when I get home, I watch Food Network or Cooking Channel.  I think it's safe to say that I love food.  Which is why I think I have a hard time losing weight sometimes.  As the seasons change, I'm looking forward to all the new types of food.  As spring approaches I'm dreaming of fresh vegetables.  In the summertime I'm ready for salads and grilled food.  Fall...I start gearing up for the warm cozy meals of winter.  I look forward to roasts and baking.  And above all, I like it to be easy.  Nothing too complicated, but delicious all the same.

I tried one of these McCormick Recipe Inspirations and really thought it was easy.  I don't mean to sound like an advertisement, but I liked that all I had to provide was the pork and the apples for the Apple and Sage Pork Chops. The seasonings were all there.

The only thing I changed from the recipe is that it called for two apples and the first time I made this, two apples seemed like too much.  This time around, I used one apple and it came out perfect.  I served this with a baked sweet potato.  What an awesome treat!

I Think Fall Is Coming...

My alarm clock went off and I groggily rolled out of bed.  I never know when Dillon is going to be up, so I got right into getting ready for the day.  I ran myself a bubble bath and just as I had begun to wash my hair, I hear Dillon at the gate in front of his bedroom door.  "Mommy..." he says.  I sigh.  I had just gotten into the bath.  "I'll be right out, honey, Mommy's in the tub!"  So I quick-like wash myself over and I can hear Dillon getting impatient.  He was starting to cry.  I rinsed the shampoo out of my hair in a hurry, drained the tub and threw a towel around myself.  "Mommy's coming!  Hang in there!"  When he's crying one minute can seem like 10.  I let him out of his room and then went and got myself dressed.  I made myself a quick and oh so glamorous breakfast of Honey Nut Chex Cereal before getting Dillon dressed to go to daycare.  It wasn't until I opened the front door that I realized I hadn't even looked outside yet this morning and was surprised to see that it was still a little dark out.  It was little bit chilly, too.  I almost considered grabbing a light jacket, but dismissed the thought as Dillon and I headed on our way to take on the day.

I have been anxiously waiting for Fall to come.  And this morning, it was looking like it was almost here!  Summer is nice...but I do think I like Fall and Winter the best.

Tonight was a night for leftovers.  Earlier in the week, I had made my own version of Katie Lee's Apricot-Glazed Braised Pork Chops.  The recipe is from her book, The Comfort Table.

Obviously, I used chicken, as that was what I had.
Here's the recipe:

1 cup low-sodium chicken stock
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar (I actually used apple cider vinegar because I don't have red wine vinegar)
1/4 cup apricot jam
2 Tbsp. olive oil
6 boneless center-cut pork chops (Like I said, I used chicken breasts instead but this is super yummy with pork, too.)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, smashed
1 bay leaf

In a medium bowl, whisk together the chicken stock, mustard, vinegar and jam.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Season the pork chops (or chicken) with salt and pepper.  Place the pork chops (or chicken) in the hot oil and brown about 3 minutes per side.

Remove the pork chops (chicken) from pan and set aside.  Add the chicken stock mixture to the pan and deglaze the pan, scraping up the brown bits.  Add the garlic clove and bay leaf.  Reduce heat to a simmer.  Return the pork chops (chicken!) to the pan, cover and braise until just cooked through, about 5 minutes.  (I might have done a minute or two over just to make sure the chicken was cooked.)

Transfer the pork chops (You know!) to a serving dish and tent lightly with foil to keep warm.  Discard the garlic and bay leaf.  Bring the liquid to a rapid boil and reduce to a thick glaze, about 3 minutes.  Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Pour the glaze over the pork chops and serve.

This is super yummy prepared with the pork and with the chicken.

Anyways, back to leftovers.  I sliced up the chicken breast I had left and made a quick stir-fry with it.  Loaded with veggies and some brown rice.  Super easy dinner.  I like that. :)

Ah Monday.

I have been looking forward to today.  Most people go back to work today, but for me it was a blissful day off.  Well, mostly, when Dillon wasn't screeching about something.  But still.  I got to spend the day with my husband and my son.  And I am happy to report that we didn't do much of anything.  Ok, ok, so I did some laundry and some dishes and I did do a little shopping.  But really, it was a pretty restful day.

Ever since I saw this recipe for Slow Cooker Puffy Pizza Casserole on Stephanie O'Dea's blog, I wanted to try it.  I finally got around to adding it into my meal plan for the week and today, I made it!

Stephanie says that this serves 8.  After my husband, my brother, my little son and I sat down for dinner and chowed down, I looked in the crockpot and laughed.  Not quite 8 servings...maybe like...5 or 6 because my brother had seconds and I picked at it a bit, too.  Before I had seen this recipe, I would have never thought to make something like this in the slow cooker.  And it turned out awesome!  This is definently one I will be making again!

Remembering.

Today was a day of remembrance.  We honor and remember the thousands of people that died this day 10 years ago.  Seeing news footage again, I still feel that sense of shock when I see that plane fly right into that tower.  Ten years later, it still nearly takes my breath away to watch.

Church had a really nice video they played with images from the attacks while a guy from the choir named Davie sang “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” by Alan Jackson.  It was incredibly moving.

The terrorists set out to make us weak, but only made us stronger.  Our country bonded together in a way that really hadn’t happened in a very long time.  I believe that this tragedy came with a lesson.  A lesson to live every day to the fullest, and to always show love and kindness for your family and fellow man.

I pray that you embrace your loved ones and always let them know you love them.

The Week So Far...

When I was a little girl, my Dad was an usher at church.  He'd wake up my brother, sister and I early every Sunday morning to go to church.  When I was little, I hated having to be there so early.  And as I grew up I remember being annoyed at having to be at church for all three services in the morning.  Pastor's jokes were funny the first time around.  The second time I'd hear them I'd chuckle a little.  The third time it was like "Yeah, whatever."  Over the years, my Dad and all of us quit attending church.  I could go into the reasons why, but that's not really what I'm posting about now.  In the past few years, my brother began attending church again and so did I.  When I first brought my fiancee he really liked it too, and he joined us.  Dad sometimes comes, too.  Anyway, in this past year I've been getting involved at church.  I'm on the Justice Team which has to do with giving a helping hand for all kinds of things.  Unfortunately, a lot of their events are either on a work day for me or on my weekend to work at the hospital.  Once a month, I help in the Walkers classroom in church.  These tykes are 14-23 months old and can be a lot of fun!  And just recently...I felt led to join the usher team.  Sunday morning I felt so proud to be doing something that my Dad used to do.  It's funny how something that once annoyed me is something that I ended up wanting to do.
Then came Monday.  Labor Day.  I had to work, and it was fine.  The day went by kind of fast despite the fact that it was kind of slow.  All day long I was looking forward to the events once I got off of work.  Mom and Dad were having a barbecue at their house.  There's nothing like coming home from work and not really having to cook.  Don't get me wrong, I love to cook and I do just about every night.  It's just nice to have a break once in a while.

My husband Rich manage the music while we all visited.  Mom and Dad were there as well as my brother, Uncle Curtis, Aunt Lori, my cousin Amanda and her son Brayden, my cousin Jessica and my Uncle Marcus.

This is typical Dillon.  His tongue is always out!

Mom and Dillon blew bubbles for a little bit after he and Brayden had gotten a chance to play in the pool.  If you're ever looking for something cheap and fun to do with little kids - get bubbles.  They love 'em and can be entertained for a while!

Tuesday morning rolled around.  Normally, Dillon is up around 5:30 in the morning just as I'm getting up for work.  But I got up, got myself dressed and had breakfast and realized it was going on 6:30 and Dillon was still sleeping.  So I went and gently woke him.  I stroked his hair and gently rubbed his back.  "Dillon...it's time to get up now."  He felt warm.  He slowly and groggily sat up and then began to cry.  I brought him out into the living room and took his temperature because he felt so warm.  101.5.  Crap.  If he has a fever, he can't go to daycare.  It was too late to call in sick to work, I was supposed to be there in about an hour.  So I ended up calling his daycare and explained that it was too late for me to call out and told her that I'd give him some Tylenol and if the fever doesn't go down, I can come and pick him up.  9:30 came around at work and I got a call that Dillon seemed to be doing fine.  I was relieved.  I had been hurrying to get my work done in case I had to leave early.  I got another phone call around 11:30.  He was heating back up again and acting lethargic.  I ended up bringing him home to take care of him.

I knew Dillon wasn't really interested in eating.  I even asked him, "Dillon, are you feeling hungry for dinner?"  He gave me an emphatic "Nope!"  However, Rich and I were getting hungry.  I'd planned on making chicken fried steak for dinner.  I've never made it before.  I was also hungry for some roasted potatoes but it's been in the upper 80's here so there was no way I was going to turn on the oven.  So tried pan roasting some, and they turned out awesome!  The chicken fried steak came out really good too, though I was having a hard time getting the coating to stay on there really good.  I was almost disappointed until I tried it...it tasted amazing!

I tried offering Dillon some bites, but he refused.  He did eat a few bites of corn, though.

Here it is Wednesday and Dillon bug is still running a temperature.  He seems to be feeling a little better.  It's just weird, cause he was doing this just over a week ago.  He'd had a fever for like, 3 days.  I took him to the doctor and was told he had a virus.  I wonder if it came back?  Who knows...

Saying Hello.

Hello, my name is Trista.  Nice to meet you!  What does the comfort of home mean to you?  We all live very busy lives with work and activities.  At the end of the day, home is the haven we can go to to relax and reconnect with loved ones.  I was blessed to come from a big family.  So for me, home means time with family, good food and a comfy kind of decor around the house.

When my husband Rich and I got married, I couldn't wait to get settled into a home.  I'd dreamed of having a home like I grew up in.  I also had fond memories of my Grandma's house and of big family gatherings.  So far, we've lived in a few apartments.  We currently live in an apartment now, with our two year old son, Dillon.  My husband is well aware that I have at times wished that we could have a home of our own to set roots in and to grow and flourish.  These financial times are tough, though.  I think they are for just about everybody.  So I've finally decided that what I need to do is just take wherever I am living and turn it into home.

I have to admit, I don't know too much about decorating, but I'm  going to learn.  I can turn our apartment into a place of warmth.  That includes our relationships and the food.  Join me as I learn to create a home, wherever I may be.