I shouldn’t have been surprised. After all, MR comes from a long line of strong willed women who speak their mind. She joined the ranks of these women today when she commented on a “messy yard” right in front of the homeowner. She went on to call his yard art (think cement animals in various sizes) “tacky”. She also told him that the “HOE” (she was referring to the HOA) would “put him in jail” if he didn’t cut his grass. Wonder who she heard that from?

Unfortunately, I couldn’t laugh this one off. She made the same comment to the homeowner the last time we walked in his neighborhood.  In fact, her comment was the reason we stopped walking in the neighborhood months before. One things for sure though, she sure made an impression on the homeowner. He remembered his last conversation with her and even remembered that her name had “Mary” in it.

As we walked away, I asked MR how many cement animals should be allowed in a  yard. She looked at me matter-of-factly and said “none mama, people should just stick to bushes and flowers. Because tacky is bad. Real bad.” I wondered if the mans neighbors would agree with her…

Pictures like this are becoming a thing of the past.

These days, our little guy is constantly on the move…

And his big sister is constantly on his case. Soon he’ll learn that he really has two mamas looking after him.

He’s already learned that Key Lime Pie is good…

And his mama is learning that heating healthy is not so bad after all. I’ve traded in the last 2 weeks of Mexican and Chick-fil-A for a carb free/sugar free diet. The change has been hard and expensive. But, it has also been eye opening. I had no idea how much processed food I was consuming. Today, I made a healthy pizza for lunch with a cauliflower crust. I know. It sounds terrible, but it wasn’t. I topped the pizza with fresh tomatoes, sauteed onions, mushrooms, and spinach, and low fat mozzarella cheese.

You don’t have to leave your home to travel oversees. Thanks to Betty Crocker, last week was deemed International week at the Harvey  house. Tired of meatball Monday and taco Tuesday, I decided to branch out and try a few recipes. Here were a few of our favorites:

Sweet and sour pork:

1 lb boneless pork loin chops, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup Original Bisquick® mix
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups frozen bell pepper and onion stir-fry (from 1-lb bag)
1 can (8 oz) pineapple chunks, drained
1 jar (11 1/2 oz) sweet-and-sour sauce

1. In medium bowl, toss pork with egg. In 1-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag, place Bisquick mix, salt and pepper; seal bag and shake to mix. Drain excess egg from pork. Place pork cubes in plastic bag; seal bag and shake to coat.
2. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Place pork in single layer in skillet. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown and crispy on outside and no longer pink in center. Drain on paper towels. Cover to keep warm.
3. Reserve 1 tablespoon oil in skillet; discard any remaining oil. Add bell pepper mix and pineapple; cook over medium-high heat 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in sweet-and-sour sauce and pork; heat to boiling.

Chicken Alfredo with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream:

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 box Chicken Helper® fettuccine Alfredo
1 cup hot water
1 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup chopped dry-pack sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

1. In 10-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken and onion; cook 15 to 18 minutes, stirring onion frequently and turning chicken once, until onion is tender and juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F). Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.
2. Meanwhile, fill 2-quart saucepan 2/3 full of water. Heat to boiling. Stir in uncooked pasta (from Chicken Helper box). Gently boil uncovered about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender; drain. Set aside.
3. In same saucepan, mix hot water, half-and-half, tomatoes and sauce mix (from Chicken Helper box). Heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce is slightly thickened.
4. Cut chicken into slices. To serve, spoon cooked pasta onto serving plate. Arrange chicken slices and onion over pasta. Top with sauce mixture. Sprinkle with basil.

Spinach and Artichoke Lasagna

1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 can (14 oz) vegetable broth
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts, drained, coarsely chopped
1 box (9 oz) Green Giant® frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed to drain
1 jar (15 to 17 oz) roasted garlic Parmesan or Alfredo pasta sauce
9 uncooked lasagna noodles
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (12 oz)
1 package (4 oz) crumbled herb-and-garlic feta cheese (1 cup)

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13×9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Spray 12-inch skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; cook about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is crisp-tender. Stir in broth and rosemary. Heat to boiling. Stir in artichokes and spinach; reduce heat. Cover; simmer 5 minutes. Stir in pasta sauce.
3. Spread 1/4 of the artichoke mixture in bottom of baking dish; top with 3 noodles. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers twice. Spread with remaining artichoke mixture; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with feta cheese.
4. Cover and bake 40 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes longer or until noodles are tender and lasagna is bubbly. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.

Alright, alright…I’ll admit, I’m from the south and am not a huge fan of Paula Deen’s. On more than one occasion, her recipes have been categorized as “non-repeat” offenders in our household. That being said, I do have a few favorites that are worthy of all of that extra “budder” (butter). Here is one that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Gooey Toffee Butter Cake:

Cake:
1 (18.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
1 large egg
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 (16-ounce) box confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup almond toffee bits or chocolate toffee bits

Instructions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 13 by 9 by-2-inch baking pan.

For the cake: In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside.

For the filling: Still using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioners’ sugar and beat well. Reduce the speed and slowly pour in butter. Mix well. Fold in toffee bits.

Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Don’t be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don’t bake it past that point!

Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares. Just remember that these wonderful cakes are very, very rich, and a little will go a long way!

Now that we’ve got precious Boss back home, I want to tell you about my very talented and creative sister-in-law, who just opened an Etsy shop. Lauren is an absolute jewel to our family. Not only can she cook a mean macaroni and cheese, but she can also paint. Please stop by her shop and blog to browse through her unique collection of paintings, children’s wall art, and stationary. Here are a few of my favorite pieces. 

Llama watercolor stationary

Pumpkin on old barnboard

Mary Reese wall art

Hendley wall art

Hand painted bathroom stool

Last but not least, I want to share a fabulous and easy peasy recipe for Banana Bread. The recipe comes from Garrett’s step-mom and is an absolute favorite around the Harvey house.

 Meme’s Banana Bread: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan.

1 1/2 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
2 1/3 cup Bisquick mix
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup chopped nuts

Beat all ingredients vigorously for 30 seconds. Bake 55-65 minutes.

To make your banana bread even more fabulous, cut off a slice, spread with butter, and zap it in the microwave for a few seconds. It is seriously melt in your mouth good! For an easy and delicious dessert, serve warm banana bread with a dollop of caramel sauce (I use the kind in the jar) and a scoop of vanilla ice cream! I promise you, you won’t be disappointed by this tasty treat!

I know we need it, but these last few days of rain have put a damper on our outside plans. Thank the good Lord for a front porch, rain boots, and Sesame Street.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

* ½ cup butter
* ½ cup sugar
* ½ cup brown sugar
* 1 large egg
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1¼ cup flour
* ½ tsp baking soda
* ½ tsp salt
* ¾ cup macadamia nuts
* 1 cup white chocolate chips

1) Preheat oven to 375°
2) Mix butter with sugars until lumps are gone.
3) Add ingredients in following order: egg, vanilla, flour, baking soda, and salt.
4) Mix until creamy.
5) Stir in macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips.
6) Spoon dough on parchment paper and bake at 375° for 10 to 15 minutes.

1) Heat the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 15 minutes or until it’s well browned on both sides and cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet.
2) Prepare the stuffing in the skillet according to the package directions except let stand for 2 minutes.
3) Return the chicken to the skillet. Stir the soup and milk in a small bowl. Pour the soup mixture over the chicken. Sprinkle with the cheese.
4) Cover and cook over medium heat until the mixture is hot and the cheese is melted.

Recipes aside, here are a few pictures from our weekend in Athens…

On Friday night, MR stayed up til’ 9:15 -two hours past her normal bedtime- watching the Wizard of Oz and eating a big bowl of Big Daddy’s frozen yogurt. Those dancing Lollipop kids sure got her giggling.

On Saturday, we watched the first half of GA/Auburn game at Locos. MR, knowing very little about football, chose to wear an orange dress instead of a red one.  Her daddy was not too happy with her decision, but decided to let it go when she ate 2 of the 4 crayons that the nice waiter gave her. Sometimes, you just have to choose your battles.

Look closely, the “golden” Elmo and MR are slowly but surely becoming an inseperable pair.

We spent the second half of the game at Uncle Brother’s and Crazy Aunt Cookie’s (CAC) house.

CAC quickly moved to MR’s #1 spot after taking her outside to play in the leaves.

And finally, meet Vince, Trent and Lauren’s adorable new puppy. I’m thinking about photoshopping Uncle Brothers camouflage jacket so that this can be their Christmas card picture. And while I’m at it, I might as well take care of that pacifier hanging out of Aunt Cookie’s pocket…