Archives for March 2013

Gifts: Date Night Jar (Eliminates the “Where Should We Go?” Issue!)

March 26, 2013 By Stephanie Louise

So I thought I’d show you my little date night gift I gave my hubby on Valentine’s Day. We constantly have the same argument on date nights…”Where do we go? I don’t know, where do you wanna go? I don’t care! Just pick somewhere! I DON”T CARE!” Does anyone else have this happen? It is so time consuming that we don’t end up doing anything fun!

I stumbled upon this idea from Life in the Green House on my Pinterest & got really excited. She had some really cute ideas for at-home date nights, date nights that contained planning, etc. Instead of using this same method I decided to tackle our particular problem…where to eat!

My next choice was how to organize the sticks. Do I organize by price range? Location? Type of food? How do I decide what goes on the sticks? I knew I wanted to color the tops of each stick because it was the quickest for me.

Because we’re stationed here we don’t know many of the restaurants outside of this particular city. We rarely drive into Omaha & even when we do the only places we note are chains. So how do we branch out? I love trying new places & hubby does now too so I knew just what to do! I researched on Yelp & read specifics! Lots of them.

In the end I color coded the tops of the sticks by region so if we were going to shop elsewhere we wouldn’t have to keep digging to find a stick for a restaurant there. I placed a card inside then wrote the city name in corresponding shades with the sticks. I put the restaurant name down on each stick confident that we’d be interested in going without eating at the same place all the time! This is perfect for us & exactly what we needed! When we’re trying to think of where to go we don’t want to take the time to research so now we just pull a stick out!

Life in the Green House actually has come up with some new ideas for Sticks in a Jar & I’m really excited to make some more. In fact…I already have a few in mind! What do you think of this idea? What kind of Stick in a Jar ideas would you create?

Pinterest: Easy Sesame Honey Crock Pot Chicken Recipe

March 20, 2013 By Stephanie Louise

So I found this fabulous little recipe on Pinterest (thus being part of the Pinterest series!) & had to try it! The original recipe is from Chef in Training & I urge you to check out their other recipes! Some fab stuff there! I kind of flubbed this a bit by doubling the sauce but it still turned out really tasty. I also tweaked it a bit myself. I doubled it because we always eat a lot of veggies with stir fry so I thought there wouldn’t be enough sauce. There was…so much! So here is the recipe NOT doubled! We also added some kick…but it could have used more!

Sesame Honey Crock Pot Chicken

Originally from Chef in Training

Ingredients
2.5 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup honey
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 tablespoons diced onion
4 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoon canola oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon garlic chili sauce
4 teaspoons cornstarch dissolved in 6 Tablespoons water
Sesame seeds

Directions
Season both sides of chicken with lightly with salt and pepper, put into crock pot. In a small bowl, combine all the other ingredients except the cornstarch + water mixture. Pour over chicken.

Cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high 1 1/2 – 2 1/2 hours, or just until chicken is cooked through.

Remove chicken from crock pot, leave sauce. Dissolve 4 teaspoons of cornstarch in 6 tablespoons of water and pour into crock pot. Stir to combine with sauce.

Replace lid and cook sauce on high for fifteen more minutes or until slightly thickened.

Cut chicken into bite size pieces, then return to pot and toss with sauce before serving.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

We ate this 2 nights in a row (there’s only 2 of us!) over broccoli & rice. Hubby really liked it & is looking forward to having it again! To reheat, add to a small sauce pot with a bit of water. Stir as it heats & it will be just as tasty as the first night! If you like heat, add more than above. I just didn’t want to burn any tongues! I have a very high heat tolerance so I always go on the way low end when adding recipes.

The “I’m Secretly Skinny!” Easy Ranch Dip (for everything from veggies to chips!)

March 4, 2013 By Stephanie Louise

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I feel like ranch dip is such a California thing. We eat it with nearly everything & I get odd looks every time I dip my fries into it. If you’re a ranch lover who wants a healthy alternative that still tastes like ranch…you’re in luck!

Key ingredients? Oh, there’s only 2! Ranch mix & greek yogurt. Now don’t give me that look, I’m being serious!

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For a large batch, just use the entire container or move it into a mason jar. I use a single serving below!

2 tablespoons plain greek yogurt
2 teaspoons ranch seasoning (more or less to your liking)
a bit of water or milk to thin

That’s it! Just mix it all together & gobble it up! I love this with a yellow or orange bell pepper as an afternoon snack. To use as a dressing on salad, thin it out a bit more & for a chip dip you won’t need to thin as much. Just know that if you make a big batch, greek yogurt lasts a long time in the fridge! Just check your date!

I hope you enjoyed this little post & a healthier ranch dip! I also use greek yogurt in place of many things in recipes so watch out for that in the future!

Personal: Trying to Combat Depression During Winter

March 3, 2013 By Stephanie Louise

So lately I’ve felt like I was in a life rut. Everything feels a bit blah & dull & that is how I know depression is beginning to creep in. If you’ve ever suffered from depression, the beginning is the worst for me. You can feel it coming but, unlike what most people think, you can’t just “be happy” & skip past it. I think mine currently has a lot to do with the winter. I get more depressed in the winter even with spring right around the corner.

Something about the lack of sunlight really does some damage & with the snow…I can never think of anything to do. We don’t have kids so most of the activities around Omaha, Nebraska (where my husband & I are stationed because he is in the Air Force) are placed around family events. I feel like we fall into ruts with what we do here & that’s rough. We basically go grocery shopping, eat out, & go regular shopping. That’s a big change for me. In California, there is so much to do even if you’re just hanging by the beach or outside in the sunshine. Keep reading to see a few ways I’ve found to make myself feel a bit better & you can add your tips as well!

I thought I’d make a short list of things that tend to make me happier when I’m feeling down, even in the winter snow. I’d love to know what gets your spirits up! I’m sure you have some great ideas.

1. Get out of the house. Even for a few hours, just leave. Being stuck inside can make me feel worse, more suffocated & lonely.

2. Go to the zoo or volunteer with animals. Being with animals (even though I have my own) can lift my spirits a bit. They make me happy, they’re fun to look at, & I always learn something new.

3. Find your local art scene. Not so much here because Ryan doesn’t like to go, but visit local art stores, museums, or art districts. If you’re artistic like me, this makes you happy because you love inspiration. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a piece of jewelry I wanted to learn how to make or a painting technique I would’ve never thought of.

4. People watch! I absolutely love people watching but I have some serious issues with feeling overcrowded. Unfortunately here there aren’t many outdoor malls. Imagine that! Maybe it is the snow? But if you live in a warmer area, this is always a go to for me. My favorite place to people watch is Fashion Island in Newport Beach, California if you’re ever in the area.

5. Watch a movie…somewhere other than your house. Like I said earlier, getting out can be the change you need. Even if you have loads of movies the act of getting ready & going out can make all of the difference. Look for a cheap movie theater, sometimes they have really fun random movies!

6. Go bowling, play lazer tag, or paint balling. Do something active that doesn’t feel like working out & that you can’t do at home. It is so much fun & if you have a spouse its something they’ll likely enjoy too. It is competitive without being too physically strenuous. Sometimes when I’m depressed I feel really lethargic so that’s something important to me. I wish running worked for me…but it just hasn’t.

7. If you don’t want to leave the house (or can’t) for lengthy periods of time…start something new. Start scrapbooking, learn to bake, work on training your dog, learn yoga. Do…something new. It can be frustrating at first so it might not work for everyone but the focus can really help me & I always feel good about completing something new on my own successfully.

8. Get organized. Start organizing an area that has been bugging you. I have OCD so that can really help me to focus without getting overwhelmed. Often times it is something that doesn’t NEED to be done in any length of time so I can take however long I need to make things exactly how I want them.

I’ll try to add more things as I come up with them but I’d LOVE your input. Feel free to leave your tips & blog links below & I’ll add them to the list! I feel like it is really important to remember you’re not alone if you feel like I do & that there are ways to helps!

Obviously I’m not a doctor & you should consult one if you have any feelings to do harm to yourself, others, or if you are concerned with your well being. The photo above was taken at the beach in Laguna Beach, California while shopping along the coast. It is my photo.