15 Year Anniversary

Today is our 15 year anniversary of when we met in person & went on our 1st date. I met my hubby on match.com. I feel like it is important to remember the date we 1st met. We've only been married for 12 years, but together for 15. That's a big difference.

Here's some old photos. We've aged so much in 15 years.

Nail Files. Week # 337

This week I'm wearing, OPI-I Manicure for Beads & Orly Color Blast-Speak Your Mind. Since I'm not a fan of Fall, I'm not really looking forward to all the drab/dull colors you are suppose to wear on your nails & for clothes. So I thought I would do a fun mani. I want to do a bunch more with pretty colors coming up.

Wordless Wednesday~Meet the teacher

Tasty Tuesday~Slow cooker chicken, broccoli & rice casserole

Slow Cooker Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Casserole

From Kristine's kitchen blog.

Prep time 10 mins
Total time 10 mins
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

1 small onion, chopped
1 cup long grain brown rice (not quick-cooking or instant), rinsed and drained
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon salt ⅛ teaspoon pepper
1¾ cups (one 14.5 ounce can) low sodium chicken broth
1 cup water (or omit the water and use a total of 2¾ cups chicken broth)
1 pound broccoli, cut into small pieces (4-5 cups)
½ cup plain Greek yogurt
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Combine onion and rice in bottom of 5 quart slow cooker. Spread out in an even layer. Place chicken on top of rice/onion mixture. Sprinkle with the garlic powder, thyme, salt and pepper. Pour in chicken broth and water. Be sure that all of the rice is covered by the liquid.
 2. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-7 hours, or on high heat for 3½ hours, until the rice is tender and almost all of the liquid is absorbed.
3. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and chop into bite-size pieces (or shred it in the slow cooker). Stir chicken back into the rice mixture in the slow cooker.
4.  Steam the broccoli in the microwave: Place broccoli in a microwave-safe bowl and add enough water to fill the bowl 1-2 inches deep.
5. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high 3-6 minutes, until crisp-tender. Drain. While the broccoli steams, stir the Greek yogurt, Parmesan and cheddar into the slow cooker. Then, stir in the cooked broccoli. Serve.

 *Notes: 1. Some readers have commented that the rice in this dish is mushy. As it's cooked in the slow cooker, the rice is much softer than rice cooked on the stovetop or in a rice cooker. My family loves this casserole and we make it all the time. We love the flavor and how easy this recipe is. If you are worried about mushy rice, this may not be the recipe for you. 2. Some slow cooker recipes are easily adapted, this one is not. I recommend making the recipe exactly as written, with the understanding that all slow cookers cook differently. Your casserole may take slightly longer or shorter to cook, depending on your slow cooker. You'll know it's done when the rice has absorbed almost all of the liquid. 3. I do not recommend using white rice in this recipe. 4. I do not recommend doubling this recipe, unless you allow for a much longer cook time.

Fibro update

 I haven't posted anything about fibro in a while. I had been having the usual aches & pains, but about 2 months ago my heart started fluttering. I thought it might be a new sleeping pill that I was taking. I took it for a month & I'm off of it, but the fluttering continues. Every day off & on. I went to my doctor last week for a med check & I mentioned that. She did an ekg & it came back okay, but on Thursday I am getting a heart monitor for a week. I'm kind of nervous about it. I'm not sure if it's going to be awkward & annoying. The doctor said most likely it's anxiety. I'm not sure what I will do if it is anxiety. I will probably try yoga & meditation. You can also have chest pains from fibro. This also isn't the normal heavy chest feeling like something is sitting on your chest from anxiety. I haven't been sleeping good. Today I am having all types of aches, different than every day. I am taking ambien & melatonin. I also tried Valerian root last night, but I woke up with a hangover headache. I don't know how I'm not sleeping with all of that. We've also been going non-stop on the weekends trying to get everything on our Summer bucket list done, that doesn't help. So that is what has been going on.

New England Minute~Rockport, MA

I love going to Rockport. I have been going there since I was a kid. We haven't gone there in 2 years. They always have awesome flowers. I love sunflowers & they had mini 1s out. 

There are some awesome views there of the boats & the water.

I love the shops. I bought a necklace, dreamcatcher pop socket, some post cards & a shirt.

Shinedown/Godsmack concert. August 25th, Mansfield, MA

Stuff & Things

*My fave snack to eat while I'm crafting is M&M's. I can't just have 10, I keep going. That's kind of a problem.

*My heart has been fluttering lately. I went to my doc last week for a med check & told her about it, so she did a ekg while I was there & it was fine. But I am having a heart monitor put on next Thursday. I'm a little nervous about it. Not sure how big it will be & annoying & awkward.

*We realized that Tara only has next week for us to do some things that we had planned doing this Summer (that we never got to do). 3 of those days we have things going on. We were going to do some diys & videos for You tube. We are going to make a list & see if we can do everything. We did have lunch at Dunkin donuts yesterday. I picked her up from art camp & decided we would go there & eat outside.

*We have another busy weekend this weekend. We are going to a concert tomorrow night & then to Rockport, MA on Sunday. A full weekend. I'll be happy when things slow down & we can just do stuff around the house.

Dreams

Wordless Wednesday~Art camp painting

Being an Empath

Being an empath with fibro & chronic fatigue is hard. It wears you out being an empath & you need your alone time to recharge. I think that's why it's been so hard for me lately with T being out of school for the Summer. I have no alone time to recharge. I do go into my office & do stuff on my computer to have alone time. I want to look more into it & see what are the best things to do, so you're not weighed down by other peoples emotions & energy. I guess you could sage yourself. Are you am Empath? What do you do about it?

Mommy & Me Monday

We were chilly at the beach yesterday, but we decided to get a few pictures. It was a fun day.

Five Finger Death Punch concert

We had a fun time at the concert. We got there late. Breaking Benjamin was on when we got there. I really don't like them that much. 1 song. I thought they were kind of boring & couldn't wait for them to get off the stage. We went to Mansfield, MA for the concert. It a little over an hour from us.

Rock n' Roll

nail Files. Week # 336

Today I have on LA Colors, Color Last~Honor. This is a gel polish, I love this color so much. I want to start getting more gel polishes. I really want to find some different colors. I feel like I'm sick of the colors I see in the stores,

Stuff & Things

*We are going to our 1st concert of the year on Saturday night. We are seeing Five Finger Death Punch. They are a heavish band that my daughter loves. They swear a lot, so that will be hard. We saw them before in concert, but they have a new cd out & they swear way more on this cd. We have our 2nd concert of the year on August 25th. Shinedown & Godsmack. I'm really excited about that concert. Shinedown is my fave band, along with Def Leppard.

*I'm working on getting together a new skincare routine. I get the Sephora play box, so I've been using some of that stuff. The weather will be changing & my skin will be getting drier. So I will need to change things up a bit.

*I'm hoping to get reiki done after T goes back to school. I'm sure my chakras are way off from tween attitude & arguing. I also want to start walking when the humidity goes away. I also have a pilates 10 day challenge that I haven't done yet. I signed up to do a Slimfast challenge to after Labor day.

*I need to get to Apple. Since I had my screen fixed on my ipod, they broke it. It doesn't work right. Sometimes it's just dead & won't turn on at all. Now it is messing with my photos. I take pics & they aren't on there. So I really need to get to Apple. They weren't the 1s who broke it. It was NH iPhone repair in Salem, NH. I'm going to give them a bad review on Yelp or wherever else I can. I'm hoping I don't have to buy a new ipod. I really don't have the $ for that right now. I just got a new computer a few months ago.

Wordless Wednesday~On Top of the mountain

Tasty Tuesday~Greek Pasta Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette

Greek Pasta Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette

Prep: 3 hours

Cook: 10 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

For the pasta salad:

• 2 1/2 cups uncooked pasta, such as penne or rotini
• 2/3 cup sliced red onions
• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup diced cucumbers
• 3/4 cup sliced olives
• 3/4 cup diced green peppers
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese

For the vinaigrette:

• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil 

Instructions

Make the pasta salad:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook it until al dente. Strain the pasta and transfer it to a large bowl to cool slightly. While the pasta cools, make the dressing.

Make the dressing:

In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients, except for the olive oil. While whisking, stream in the olive oil. Season the dressing with salt and pepper, to taste.

Add the red onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, green peppers and feta cheese to the bowl with the pasta.

Pour the dressing over the pasta, tossing to combine, then cover the salad with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 3 hours and up to overnight. When ready to serve, toss the pasta salad again and enjoy cold or at room temperature

New England Minute~Acadia National park & Bar Harbor

Nail Files. Week # 335

This week I'm wearing a Sally Hansen gel polish. It's Too Haute. Hoping this lasts since it's a gel polish.

10 Reasons I can't wait for Back to School

1. I can watch my reality shows the next day & not have to wait until T isn't around. I have to wait until she has a play date or camp.
2. I can clean in peace.
3. I don't have to here Mommy 100x a day.
4. I can get ready & go out & not have to sit around waiting for T to get dressed & brush her hair & teeth.
5. I can clean & have it stay clean for more than 5 minutes.
6. I can shop alone.
7. I can go to appointments alone.
8. I can rest.
9. Quiet/alone time.
10. I can watch what I want on the tv in the living room.

Friday Favorites

1. I finally got my bum bum cream. lol. I found out it's pronounced Boom Boom cream. It is for cellulite & firming your skin. I have put on some weight & noticed that I have cellulite on my thieghs & inner arms (I didn't even know that you can get cellulite on your arms). It's tough getting old. This smells so good & does really make your skin look better. I've only been using it for 2 weeks.

2. I love this Hawaiian tropic silk hydration after sun lotion for when you have a sunburn. I got 1 on my back when we were in Bar Harbor. I had a big circle cut out on the back of my shirt & my hair up. I didn't get to put sunblock on that spot. So a few days after my skin was burning, itchy & peeling & this soothed it. It felt a lot better after. I think I've had this bottle for 2 years now.

3. Some nail polish that I got in a swap.