Crock Pot cheating

I love my crock pot, especially this time of year. Since it is such a time saver, I try to use it at least once a week.

Today I have a twofer for ya!



I love homemade tortilla soup but rarely have the time to do all the chopping, slicing and dicing. Instead, I pull out my crock pot and make it do all the work while I'm at work too. This has a little kick to it so if you have little kiddos, check the seasonings.

Cheater tortilla soup:


1 large can diced tomatoes (don't drain)
1 can black beans (drained)
1 can roteil (I use original, don't drain)
1 can fiesta corn (or those whole baby corns in a can.)
4 cups homemade chicken stock***see below
1 tsp cumin (or thereabouts...I don't actually measure it!)
2-3 tbls. chili powder (okay, so I use a palmful...not actually measuring it....just so you know.)
2-3 frozen chicken breasts (2 is plenty if they are large) I trim the fat off the edges before placing into the pot.

Put the chicken breasts on the bottom of the crock pot. Mix all the other ingredients together and pour on top. Turn the crock pot on low and let cook for 6-8 hours.

Pull the chicken out, shred and return to crock pot. Turn crock pot OFF but put the lid back on so it will reheat through.

Serve with saffron rice, shredded cheese and diced avocados when in season.

***Since I make my own stock (see below) I do the taste test, it sometimes needs chicken bouillon or a bit of salt.

When I want to make chicken stock, I let the crock pot do that for me too:

Put 1 cup of water in the crock pot
Add 1 large quartered onion, a couple rough chopped stalks of celery and 3 large rough chopped carrots in the bottom. (You want at least 3!)
Place cleaned and seasoned chicken on top of the veggies so it won't "sit" in the water.

Cover and turn the crock pot on low 6-8 hours

Remove the chicken from the crock pot, strain the stock to use later (I freeze it if not using it right then.)
Eat the carrots...they are yummy, but ditch the celery and onion...

Once the chicken is cooled, you can pull it off the bone and use it in other recipes or add it to the tortilla soup!

prayers needed

My Brother in law, Bill O'Connor is critically ill.....please put him in your prayers and thoughts as he is fighting for his life right now.

Bill is a brittle diabetic and has had numerous complications that began the latter part of the summer. He is now severely ill due to numerous complications including pneumonia and staph! He is in need of a miracle and I know no better way than to use my blog to reach out to you!

Please also put my sweet sister Page in your prayers. Thank you!

more boy art

This is getting to be fun.....for me :-)
Matt had to draw something again for his visual art's appreciation class. With a deep sigh he told me he doesn't like drawing because he sees too many things he has done wrong.




Personally, I love it when my kids do art....even if they do it because their teacher says they HAVE to!

decorating and a dance

Saturday I had to restring the lights around my front door so I spruced up the swag for Valentine's Day. I had some tulle from Christmas and used my old heart shaped rag wreaths. It turned out really pretty.


front at dusk
and at night...sorry it is blurry but you get a better idea of how pretty it is when it is dark outside.

tulle is so cheap that I think I'll swap it out for Mardi Gras colors and some beads on the 15th!

Saturday night was a special night for my son. He and his girlfriend went to the Who's Who dance at his school.
Here he is....all smiles getting ready....

very proud of the tie he chose. (He wanted to look good for his sweetie..)



as usual, his smile never left his face....and I was told her smile didn't either!

wonky pets

I made these little bears last weekend...



and decided to use this polka dotted one for February's toy drop.


I had a doctor's appointment and planned on taking it to the emergency entrance but once I got there, realized it was on the other side of the building.

I decided to give it a ride on the elevator..... and sent it to the first floor.

When I came out about 30 minutes later, he was gone!

Dreamin' Bohemian

When we lived in Forth Worth, I met an artistic lady named Adrienne. I couldn't believe someone crafty like me lived just down the block....and that I didn't meet her until we had lived there 4 years!
Adrienne is so talented. She does beautiful work...she paints, crochets and weaves rugs. Her work is so free spirited and fresh. I just love it.

When we moved, the two of us were pretty good about staying in touch at first. But eventually, we lost touch.

I was surprised when she commented on Kaela's art blog this week. I hadn't heard from her in 5 or 6 years!
We emailed a bit back and forth and then I poked around her website to see what she has for sale (yummy stuff.)
I found photos of Kaela "modeling" for her website. She was just 6 years old.

These photos brought back a flood of memories from our time in Fort Worth.

HERE is the link to this page from so long ago and here is the main website link in case you want to poke around.

the boy does art

Louisiana is big on appreciation of the arts and all students have to have a year of some type of art or music class before graduation.
Matt decided on Fine Art Appreciation but he didn't know he would actually have to DRAW anything.
Then he went to class on Monday and the teacher said they had to draw an animal and paint it.
Soooooo, he decided the easiest thing to draw would be a jellyfish:

I love it. My boy does art :-)