Birthday Freebies

http://moneysavingmom.com/birthday-freebies

There are some really great ones!

Miracle!!

I know, it's a miracle that I am on here ready to post. Mostly because I need to find a way to sort out my feelings and emotions while Court sleeps. He's been working crazy hrs, so I'm unable to talk to him more than a few min a day...

Most of this is me venting about things, and feel the need to write down my feelings so feel free to skip if you like. It's not a super positive post.

So we thankfully were able to get pregnant 5 months ago!! Such exciting news! I got really super sick for a while, but unlike my pregnancy with Carter I got over it. ( With Carter I was pregnant the whole 9 months) Because of being sick at the beginning I currently weigh about a lb or two less then when I actually got pregnant... but hey we are getting there.

Right about the time I quit throwing up 6 times a day, I went on a trip to New York with some girls from my new ward. We had so much fun, the first 2 days. I then had a big scare and started bleeding like a period and cramping all night long. From then to now I have been on "couch rest" which is not quite as strict as bed rest, but I have to stay home as much as possible, and just go out when I know I can sit pretty much the whole time. I am able to take care of Carter, but that's about it. It's not my personality to sit at home, but I am getting more and more used to it, and it's totally worth it to have a baby. Emotionally it's hard to not get out and have adult conversation, that's really the hardest part about it.

I have had about 6 ultrasounds before today, checking up on the baby... I found out the sex at 14 weeks, and confirmed it at 16 weeks. It's a girl!! Now I am 20 weeks, and had the big ultrasound where they check for all the parts today. I was hoping they would tell me my placenta has moved away from my cervix, but it hasn't. It is concerning to the Dr's because I may need to go on hard core bed rest if it doesn't move, as well as it would be pretty hard to go close to full term in it's current position.

Also, when I was pregnant with Carter I grew a Dermoid Cyst on my left Ovary. 3 months after I had Carter I had to get a surgery where they opened me up like a c-section and remove my left ovary. Now, I am growing a new Dermoid Cyst on my right ovary, which means after this baby is born I will have to have it removed. There is a tiny chance they can save a portion of the ovary, but it's not looking too likely.... Which means I will be left with no more ovaries, and no more girlie hormones, and Hello menopause!! As if this wasn't enough news for me to handle in a day, the scariest part came next. There are a couple growths they found on the babies brain, that hopefully will go away, but if not it is an indicator of a chromosome issue, that can cause mental problems, small chance of down syndrome etc.

I am still so thankful I have a baby coming to me, but I am struggling emotionally with all of the issues. Although, deep down I know I can't control any of this, I feel like it's my fault the problems are happening. I've been a basket case all day. My face is swollen and eyes are burning from all the crying.

Court has been working about 80 hrs a week for the past 3 weeks straight, which makes it even more crazy. With a almost 17 year old Dakota, and a 2 1/2 year old Carter, I am sure I am on my feet more than I should be. Can't wait for this Chevron Refinery problems to be done with so I can have my husband back!! I literally talk to him about 20 min a day.... maybe...

On that note. I really hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!!!!!!! Love you all! I will try and post more positive posts in the future =D And more often too!

And here she is:

Easy Recipies

Thank you to everyone that gave me a recipe (or more than one!) I really really appreciate it! I am going to try them all in the next couple weeks. Ashley we just had your italian chicken tonight and it was SOOOOOO good! I might add a little less butter next time, but it was just heavenly!! I will seriously make it like once a week! Mmmm mmm!

1. Caramel Popcorn
2 bags popped popcorn (microwave)1 c. brown sugar1/4 c. light corn syrup1 cube buttermix brown sugar, butter and corn syrup on stove top and bring to a boil, then add:1/2 tea. baking sodamix and pour over popcorn

2. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 pkg Spice Cake Mix1 Can pumpkin1 pkg choclate chipsMix, and bake350 degrees for 15 minutes...yum

3. Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies
1 pkg junior mints1 pkg chocolate chip cookie dough (refrigerated kind)Bake cookies, when out of the oven place a mint on each cookie and when it is melted, spread over cookie.cool and eat


4. Apple Dip
1 pkg cream cheese6 TBS brown sugarcinnamon (to taste)1 1/2 tea. vanillaMix and serve with apples


5. Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 box white cake mix2 eggs1/3 c. oilchocolate chips
Cook on 350 for 9 Min.


6. Enchiladas!Ingredients:Tortillas (I use the 10 inch size)2-3 chicken breastsenchilada sauce (packet from McCormick or El Pato you choose!)Cheese*Preheat oven to 350 degrees1. Boil the chicken until it's cooked through (usually about 10 min if its thawed 15 if frozen)2. Shred the chicken (I do this with two forks and it's pretty fast go against the grain)3. Get the sauce ready (make it if it's the packet or open the can)4. Put the shredded chicken (it's best to let it cool a bit), enchilada sauce and about 1/2 a cup of cheese in a bowl and mix5. pour some enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Just enough to coat the bottom6. put a line of filling down the center of the tortilla shell and roll them up placing them in the pan7. once the pan is filled (usually 8-10 enchiladas) pour the remaining sauce over the top and make sure each enchilada is coated with it otherwise the enchiladas will dry out8. cover the enchiladas with cheese! 9. Bake for about 10 - 15 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly all over10. ENJOY!

7. Crock pot chili (it makes a ton, but you can adjust the reciepe)1 lb. ground hamburger or sausage (or mixture) browned2 large cans tomatoes (can be chopped or diced; drain 1 can)2 large cans kidney beans; drained2 large cans chili beans1 16 oz can Chili con Carne no beansspices to taste (i like chili powder, red pepper flakes and salt&pepper)Throw it all together in the crock pot and leave it on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Make sure to stir occasionally to mix the flavors (this is more important for the last hour prior to serving)


8. Taco Soup2 cans corn 2 cans minestrone soup2 cans kidney beans 2 lbs hamburger2 cans Ro-Tel tomatoesCook hamburger, drain. Add remaining ingredients, heat through.


9. Taco Soup2 cans corn 2 cans minestrone soup2 cans kidney beans 2 lbs hamburger2 cans Ro-Tel tomatoesCook hamburger, drain. Add remaining ingredients, heat through.Chicken Enchiladas 4 chicken breast (cooked and shredded) 2 cans cream of chicken 8 tortillas 1/2 cube of butter16 oz. grated cheddar cheese 1 cup milk16 oz. sour cream 1 can green chillies Combine sour cream, soup, butter, milk and chillies. Mix together in saucepan over medium heat until creamy. Cover bottom of large baking pan with a few spoonfuls of sauce. Place on tortillas: a little chicken followed by a spoonful of sauce mix, followed by a little grated cheese. Roll tightly and place side by side in pan. Pour remaining sauce over top of rolled tortillas and spread evenly. Sprinkle the top with cheese and bake. Bake 350 for 30 mins. Serve with taco sauce if you want a little spice.


10. BBQ Chicken SandwichesCook and shred chicken breasts. Add BBQ sauce. Place on Croissants.
Chicken salad
Grill a piece of chicken and cut it up and throw it on a salad.

11. Pasta Salad
Boil noodles. Add at least three veggies and/ or cheese (whatever veggies happen to be in the fridge) oh and/ or olivesadd mayoand mustard if you want
Add a packet of ranch dressing
Much better than a box suddenly salad, plus you get to use fresh veggies.Much better than a box of suddenly salad, plus you get to add fresh veggies.

12. Chicken Casserole
3-4 chicken breasts
¾ cup mayo or whatever you prefer
4 cups cooked rice
8 slices of cheese
Shredded cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
Cook the chicken and cut into cubes. Cook rice and put in 9x13 pan. Mix the chicken, mayo, soup and a handful or so of shredded cheese. Put the sliced cheese on top of the rice. Put the chicken mixture on top of that. Sprinkle more shredded cheese on top o that. Cook on 350 for 20 min.

13. Chicken Lickin’ *This one is from me =D My Mom used to make it for us all the time for Sunday dinners. SOOOO good! You just throw it all it and bake. Doesn't get much easier than this =D
Lay 4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts in 9x13 pan.
Put 1 thick piece swiss cheese on each breast.
Place 1 thick piece of ham on each piece of swiss cheese
Mix (in separate bowl) 1 can of cream of chicken soup and one small tub of sour cream.
Dump mixture on top of everything else.
Bake for about 1 hr 20 min on 350 degrees.
You can get creative and add other veggies or ingredients. We have used cooked bacon, etc. Very yummy! Also a good side is just a baked potato and you can use the extra sauce for the gravy. If you want extra gravy just use one extra can of cream of chicken soup.


14. Turkey Avacado Swiss open faced sandwiches
1 loaf french bread - cut in half horizontallySpread mayo on both sides - face upLayerSlices of turkey breasts
Sliced Avocados
Swiss Cheese
Place on baking sheet and bake at 425 for about 15 min or until cheese is melted and bread is toastedSliced AvacadosSwiss CheesePlace on baking sheet and bake at 425 for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bread is toasted.

15. Catalina Cashew Chicken
Place uncooked chicken breasts or chicken tenders in greased casserole dish.Sauce:1 bottle Catalina Dressing1 Jar apricot pineapple jam
1 envelope Lipton onion soup mix
1 C cashew pieces
Stir sauce and pour over chicken
Bake covered at 350 for 1 hr. Serve with Rice, or baked potato.

16. Easy Linguini PastaHeat 1/2 c evoo in large pot. Add 3Tbsp. chopped garlic. Add 6 Tbsp. lemon juice, 4 tsp. chicken bullion and 1 tsp. pepper. Stir until dissolved. Add in 1 box of linguine pasta (cooked to box directions and drained), 1/4 c fresh chopped parsley and 1/2 c Parmesan cheese. Add grilled chicken and/or broccoli if desired. Serve immediately.

17. Kristy’s no name recipe
4 chicken breasts (thawed)1 teaspoon curry powder1 12-oz jar of chili sauce (Homeade brand is best)1 cup heavy whipping cream(Can use half and half or wholemilk or a combination of twoof the three to equal 1 cup) Mix curry powder with chili sauce and pour over chicken in a bag. Let sit over night or for 8 hours. Put chicken and sauce in a 9x13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Pour whipping cream over the chicken and sauce and cook for 20 more minutes or until chicken is done.Serve chicken on top of bow-tie pasta and pour the sauce the chicken cooked in over the chicken and pasta.This is REALLY good and very simple, you just have to plan ahead so it can sit overnight. Double or triple the sauce recipe according to how much chicken you are cooking. I like this dish with a lot of the sauce to pour on the chicken and pasta, so make plenty!1 envelope Lipton onion soup mix1 C Cashew piecesStir sauce and pour over chicken.Bake, covered, at 350 for 1 hour. Serve with rice or baked potatoes.

18. Italian Chicken
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts1 cup butter or margarine (Tim and I both like it better with margarine)1 packet dry italian salad dressing mixPut ingredients into crockpot for 4-6 hours on high (Mine usually cooks in four hours...but my crock pot cooks things rather fast)After chicken is cooked...add one package cream cheese and one can cream of chicken soup. Shread chicken and mix it all together. Serve over rice.It is really really yummy. I like to put a little bit of lemon on top of mine...but I also like to put lemon on everything :).

add a packet of ranch dressing.add a packet of ranch dressing. Much better than a box suddenly salad, plus you get to use fresh veggies. I know how to make ranch dressing too, but I thought this would be more simple. Probably doesn't go with your diet tho.add a packet of ranch dressing. Much better than a box suddenly salad, plus you get to use fresh veggies. I know how to make ranch dressing too, but I thought this would be more simple. Probably doesn't go with your diet tho.


19. Easy Linguini PastaHeat 1/2 c evoo in large pot. Add 3Tbsp. chopped garlic. Add 6 Tbsp. lemon juice, 4 tsp. chicken bullion and 1 tsp. pepper. Stir until dissolved. Add in 1 box of linguine pasta (cooked to box directions and drained), 1/4 c fresh chopped parsley and 1/2 c Parmesan cheese. Add grilled chicken and/or broccoli if desired. Serve immediately.

20.
chicken alfredo! all you need is bone less chicken breast. bacon. broccoli. a jar of alfredo sauce. and spaghetti noodles! Just cook bacon and cut up. Cook chicken in pan with garlic powder. Cut chicken into little strips. Boil broccoli. Boil noodles and heat up sauce. Combine ingredients cooking for 10 min.
If you can think of any more recipies (ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE READING THIS AND HAVEN'T DONATED ANY) Please add to this by posting it under "comments". Thanks again everyone!! I am actually excited to cook now.

Easy Recipe

I am hoping that everyone reading my blog would do me a huge favor! I don't ask for favors very often, but I am hoping that you all will give me your most easy, favorite recipe. This could be a cassorole type recipe, or anything. The only thing I ask is that it's easy.

For everyone that helps me out I will give all the Recipes I recieve to each of you so you can either leave it/them here or e-mail to stacychivers@yahoo.com, or e-mail to my facebook account. I want to compile a bunch of them together because I am really bored of my menu selections...

Thanks a ton! I really really really super appreciate it!

Moving

I still have pics to post from our January vacation, as well as our St George gettaway... I have been keeping too busy to blog, but
WE ARE MOVING!!!!
I am very excited to say the least! We only had our house on the market for 3 days, and we had an over full price offer. I toured each and every home in our neighborhood that is on the market (and there are a ton of them) so I could price it correctly. I also staged my house perfectly and we pretty much didn't live here for 3 days so it would stay perfect. Whala, we will be here for about a month and then so long to Hamilton Farms =D
HELLO to DAYBREAK!
We found an awesome home brand new from Hamlet homes. It is exactly the lifestyle change we are looking for! You all know my back sucks, and last year I did a # on it trying to make our yard pretty because Court was too busy and gone tons of hrs. So now instead of working in the yard I will be taking Carter to the pool, or the lake. The hoa covers all of our boat check out's, they have a HUGE recreation center with a daycare onsite where you can pay 3 bucks an hr for a trained adult to watch your kids while you workout. This is all included in my hoa so there are no additional fees to use the facility.(now I have no excuses, huh) So many fun volleyball courts, tennis courts, splash parks, regular parks, I think Carter is going to have a very good life there. Each day he can go to a different playground!

I hope all of you with kids come visit me everyday in the summer to go to the splashparks etc, and all of you without kids come when your not working! We will play on the lake all the time =D

YAY for no yard work! And new places to decorate =D
We are going to be selling quite a bit of furniture, lawn mower, weed wacker etc on ksl, I will keep ya'll updated in case you need any of that stuff.

shedding lb's

We just got back from our cruise! I will post pic's in a few days, but I wanted to share my secret to getting ready for swim suits.

My good friend Lacie lost a bunch of weight and I asked her what her secret was. I am so glad she told me because it TOTALLY worked for me too! And, it's not really a diet.... it's a lifestyle change that is do-able. Trust me, it was hard just because I wanted top results fast as the cruise was my deadline. I was able to maintain this lifestyle through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years... with all those parties I was still able to lose 15 lbs!!

It's 100% free to use this website called: myfitnesspal.com

How it works: You put in information about yourself. How old are you? How much do you weigh? What is your goal? It tells you what your goal for each day should be as far as calories ect. WAIT don't get scared! You don't have to do all the calorie counting. You can eat anything you want, it just teaches you to limit your portions.

What I love about it the most is you can eat anything. Say you ate a Jr Bacon Cheeseburger from Wendy's on your way home. Just plug it in on myfitnesspal. You don't have to know or look up how many calories they have. Seriously most every restaurant is on there. I ate a lot of healthy choice meals, and "Smart Ones" meals. "Smart Ones" is a weight watchers brand of food. They totally fill you up and teach you the size of portions you should be eating. They have yummy treats too, like brownies and ice cream. I would let myself have the treats whenever I felt like it, but since they were a good size portion it satisfied my cravings.

I am probably giving way too many details now.

One more cool tool it has is if you are willing to work out, you can put in what you did when you worked out. A list pops up and you say how long you did the excersize for and it guestamates how many calories you burned and gives you extra you can eat that day. If you know how many calories you burned through other equipment you can put it in yourself if you prefer.

I am saying everything. It really is quite simple though. If any of you want to shed some lb's I highly recommend using this tool. I did this the same time my friend did weight watchers and we lost the exact same amount of weight. We are also the same height and the same before and after weights as well, so why spend the money when you can do it on your own?

I'm not saying it wasn't hard work, because it is SO hard to eat only one brownie and not the whole pan. It is hard to go to Christmas parties and not have one of everything.... but I am glad I did. I took a few cute and much smaller swim suits than I would have/ could have a couple months earlier.

I wont lie, by the end of the cruise I did get a pooch in my tummy. I did gain a little but not near as much what I gained last year on the cruise...

So once again if any of you are interested it is myfitnesspal.com. I did it for 2 1/2 months OVER THE HOLIDAYS and lost 15 lbs. If I can do it ANYONE can do it. Oh one more thing... I didn't work out more than 2 or 3 times until after Cmas when I got a wii fit plus! That thing is so fun and wonderful too! My friend worked out all the time. She ran like 3 miles a day or 5 sometimes... I am a little more lazy and less driven but it all worked out =D