Chirsitmas 2010

Actually I have LOTS of pics, but if I posted them all it would take several pages. So here's just a glimpse....
Stockings at Nandy's -


Hattie and one of her monkeys -


Chad and me at Nandy's -


Hunter and Hattie showing some love -


Chad playing showing us one of his presents -


Christmas day at the Isaacs -


Best looking man alive -


This was such an awesome Christmas! I love spending time with family! I am always blown away by everyone's love and generosity. Thank you everyone! I love my family!
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Chicken and Dumplings

My great-grandma, MaMaw, made THE best homemade chicken and dumplings. They were sooooo good. I remember the first time my dad tried to get me to taste them...I really didn't want to. However, he was right and I did like them...a lot. Unfortunately, I'm not as good as she was and I don't make everything from scratch. Here's the recipe for what I made tonight and they turned out pretty good.




Chicken and Dumplings

Put a little OIL in a pot and heat. Add CHICKEN (I used some I had previously cooked and shredded that I had on hand in the freezer) and ONION (I used dry minced onion because if Chad sees any onion he won't eat it. I like the flavor so I try to hide it in things) and sauté. Add 48 oz CHICKEN BROTH, 1/2 c chopped CELERY, 1/2 tsp PEPPER, 1 tbs PARSLEY flakes and bring to a boil. Add Reames Frozen Flat DUMPLINGS (found in the freezer dept by the rolls). Let it heat back up to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook about 20 minutes and add 1 c chopped CARROTS. Let cook about 5 more min and it's done! Super easy, healthy, and delicious. You can adjust the amounts to suit your taste. You could add peas, but I personally hate peas...ugh.

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Free Chic-fil-a!

Go to www.getspicychicken.com today to get a free spicy chicken biscuit from Chic-fil-a!!


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$aving Money

Guess how much I spent today.....


my grand total was...... $3.66!! I would have been excited to just get the toilet paper for that amount. Wahoo! I saved $28.13! I'm getting so excited about saving money. It takes a while to get started...our pantry was pretty bare at the beginning of the month. I can't wait to see what our grocery budget looks like after a few months of focused shopping and coupon clipping.
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BBQ Roast Beef Sandwiches

This is one of my favorites and it's so easy. I just put some of the shredded roast beef (from last night) in the crockpot with some Head Country seasoning and BBQ sauce. Let it heat up and enjoy. (Head Country is the best in my opinion)

I'm not going to post about the burritos...they ended up tasting pretty gross.


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Roast Beef

So I cooked a roast beef today. I love how it smells up the entire house as it cooks. I decided not to season it very much so that I could use the leftovers to make bbq sandwiches, roast beef sandwich spread, and burritos. So I just plopped it in my crockpot, poured 1/2 c water over it along with a package of dry onion soup mix, and cooked it on low for 8 hours.
When it was finished I shredded it so that it would be ready to use for future meals. I've gotten better at planning out our meals and I decided to freeze some of the cooked meat so that I'd have it on hand for a quick meal later on. I love that idea. I get really tired of eating the same thing every day.


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Chocolate Cobbler

Thanks mom! I am so in love with this!

Chocolate Cobbler

Melt 2 sticks of butter and pour into 9 x 13 pan.

Stir together:
1 1/2 c sugar
1 1/2 c flour
3/4 t salt
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 c milk
Mixture will be thick. Dollop the mixture over the butter in the pan.

Stir together:
1 c sugar
6 T cocoa
Sprinkle mixture over dish.

Pour 1 3/4 c boiling water over the dish.
Bake @ 350 for 40 min.

Its soooo good when it's hot out of the oven! Enjoy!
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Stone's Corner Pharmacy

I'm so proud of Chad and all of his hard work with the pharmacy! He works so hard and does a great job. The pharmacy looks really pretty at night. I love the Christmas lights around the edge of the building. I'm still trying to figure out the settings, these are kinda rough pics. I hope to replace them with some better ones soon.
This is the sign. I took it from the back of the parking lot. It is soooo bright. I love it.


This is of the whole building. I'll take some more sometime when the parking lot isn't full and it isn't freezing outside. :) I left the shutter open for a longer time on this one to let more light in. The problem is...the longer I leave it open, the whiter the sign is. That's why it's a little washed out in this pic. I've still got a lot to learn with my camera, but I LOVE it!



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Danielle's Korean Style Ribs

I found a good deal on some ribs a week or two ago and stuck them in the freezer. My friend Danielle posted this recipe a while back (She has lots of great recipes!) and I really wanted to try it. Chad and I both really liked it. I love how cooking in the crockpot makes the entire house smell so good for hours. Try it sometime if you're looking for a quick easy recipe for ribs...



Danielle's Korean Style Ribs

1 package of ribs (I actually used 2 pkgs of boneless so I'd have leftovers)
1 1/2 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup water
8 whole jalepenos

Place the ribs and whole jalepenos (don't cut them up) in the crockpot. Mix the soy sauce, brown sugar, and water and pour over the ribs. Cook on low for 8 hours. They were so tender, they literally fell apart (as pictured). YUM!


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Ducks!

It's a little odd...I never wake up to dogs barking, but occasionally I'll wake up hearing the geese. There's a small pond behind our house and they love to hang out over there.


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My big stinkin bargain!

Chad only drinks DDP...he drinks A LOT of it. In fact, a huge chunk of our grocery budget goes to buying his pop. I'm always excited when I can find it on sale, but I've NEVER found a deal this sweet. I just bought 45 2-liters!!!! I'm hoping it will last a month. Scroll down to see how much I paid (and saved).




I'm wondering if Chad's going to think I'm crazy when he gets home and sees all of this. Haha.


You gotta stock up on the good deals, right?


And no, the pop isn't out of date :)


The grand total.....$12.61!!!!! That's not all, I also got a $5 gift certificate to use next week. If you subtract that, its like I paid $7.61. That's about $0.17 per 2 liter!!! I love saving money!


Normally I wouldn't take so many pictures of pop, but I'm loving my new camera :)

Christmas Tree

I think my parents were pretty thrilled that I finally took my Christmas stuff out of their attic. I love this! Almost every night we've had the tree lit and the fireplace going...now if I could just sleep in, I'd have it made.


Here's my attempt to be creative with my new camera! I'm really hoping to take a photography class this spring so I can learn how to do everything.






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Grocery Budget

So Chad and I spent a few hours working on our budget a few weeks ago. We are committed to sticking with it and I am sooo excited! After being inspired by my mom and sister-in-law, Keely, I am on track to use only about a third...maybe a fourth of what we budgeted for groceries! I love saving money! I bought all of this for $36! That's a veggie tray, two boxes of pizza pockets, cottage cheese, beans, 3 packages of rolls, 2 packages of deli meat, chili, milk, tortillas, 3 lbs of chicken tenders, 2 types of steak, ribs, and pork chops. Not too bad for my first focused bargain grocery shopping. If you haven't checked out the site: couponcloset.net, do it! It's a local lady that shares all of her coupons, bargains, and tips. I'm jealous of all of you that live in Okc and have a Homeland...they double coupons up to $1. Take advantage of it and match your coupons with the ads! You'll be amazed at how much you'll save in a month. It's so exciting!



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Nandy's 90th birthday!

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Red House

For my college friends.... I pass this house every day on my way home from school. For some reason I'm always kinda drawn to it...makes me think of the "ugly green house" in Shawnee that I liked so much. I think I still have the picture you guys took for me. Haha.


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Rice Krispy Treats

Have you ever had peanut butter rice krispy treats? Just add half a cup of peanut butter to the mix. Yum!



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