yummy new recipe!

So last night we went grocery shopping, and while we did that i Had some boneless chicken breasts thawing at home.

I was looking in the refrigerator trying to think of what to do with the chicken and I saw a container of un opened Chipotle ranch dip from HEB (Texas only grocery store, but I am going to give you some dip recipe's if you dont have an HEB)

So All I did was sprinkle a little garlic powder ont he chicken, and then totally cover the breasts in the chipotle ranch dip and bake for about 40 minutes. omg YUM!

Im a dummy and didnt take pictures, but it was fantastic, Luke LOVED it!!

Here is a recipe for chipotle ranch dip...

1 1/2 cups ranch dressing


2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (from 7-oz can), drained

Put all in a blender and mox until smooth
 
Also, Marie's (a salad dressing brand) has a chipotle ranch dressing!
 

Now to accompany this yummy chicken I made cheesy squash & Zuchini! SO EASY an dso yum!

You need one yellow squash and one zucchini.

about 2 cups of either shredded shard cheddar or colby cheeses

1/2 cup of parmesean

Garlic powder

pepper

couple of cups of chicken broth

Bring the broth to a boil and then boil the sliced squash and zuchini about 4 minutes, then drain VERY well.

layer in a pie plate in the following order



Zucchini/squash

garlic/pepper

parmesean

shredded cheese

repeat and let the shredded cheese be the top layer and bake about 5 minutes then turn broiler on and broil until the cheese starts to crisp!

YUM!

What Im Lovin'!

Jamie over at this kind of love does a "What Im lovin' wednesday" blog....its not wednesday, but I think its a fun idea!

So here is what Im lovin' THURSDAY :)

I'm loving that so many Mobley's came together over the weekend to visit! Mamah would have been so proud!

Im lovin' these home decor items!!

Im lovin' this little dress ( i bought it in an orangy-peach color) for $14! at Walmart to wear to my father in law's wedding next month with a little sweater over it!

Im LOVIN' thie Zesty bean & Cheese dip!

And of course I'm always lovin' my husband and our God centered, wonderful marriage!



Making memories

I take pictures. Most group gatherings my camera is on hand. And when its a particularly momentus event (in my mind anyway) I will put my bossy pants on and order everyone to stand as a group, smile, and snap some pictures.
Does this annoy you? Maybe. DO you hate having your picture taken? Okay. But here is my theory.
You know what one of my favorite things to do has always been? I love to look through mom and dads photo albums. I loved looking through my Grandmothers albums. Someday your kids, and my kids and our grandchildres will have lots of pictures to look through, and I am so thankful for that! I lile to document my memories with a picture.
So the next time we're in a group setting, and I start telling everyone to get in certain groups and take a picture and you think I'm getting out of hand or overboard. You can do everyone a favor and leave. Because I'm not going to stop, and I dont care how annoying you think it is. And I dont care if you hate having your picture made, and I dont care if you think Im going overboard, or if you think I am bossy. I am no photographer by any means, never claimed to be, but I like to take pictures of those I love and Im going to continue to do so.
My project right now is to make prints of all the memories I have documented and put them in albums.
I can't wait to have a book shelf full of them to look through!

Family Reunion 2011

THis past weekend we trekked to Inks Lake State Park in Burnet Texas for the Mobley family reunion! It is a beautiful lake!
First night there everyone got together at the pavillion and ate hot dogs and visited.
Same night, Brian got a ticket for not having a parking permit and we all (Brian, Lynn, Dad, Luke and I) got verbal warnings for public display of alcohol...in the dark, at night in the bed of the truck...UGH anyway...it was a good night...even though Luk and I got about 2 hours of sleep!
Saturday EVERYONE came out, we played in the water, ate a lot of awesome Mobley BBQ and visited...even went out in the boat a time or two!
Here are some pictures of the weekend! I love the Mobley family! Hopefully next year, COLORADO!

The three Mobley Brothers!

The whole clan! We had a few that snuck off and I think that was on purpose! But all but 3 in one picture is a good one, I think!

 Michael and Marshall

Luke & Brian's turn!

 Cooling off!

This is something like a 4th cousin...she was SO CUTE, McKenna

 Wyatt watching the ducks!

 Sitting around visiting

BEAutiful sunset over the Lake!

I am so blessed

In order to keep my mind in a positive light, stop thinking about the negativity, and try not to let OTHERS make me negative, I decided it was important to list out all the things I am blessed with. I’ve done this before….but in a moment of “down time” when irritations, aggravations and some negativity are beginning to eat away at me I know this is what I need to do to bring myself out of it.


Maybe you can make your lists too and share them with others, and me, and we can help each other out?

These are in no order other than just how it pops into my head. The list may be missing some things…I can always add to it….



My life’s blessings:



My wonderful, sweet, loving, caring husband

My amazing unconditional loving, giving parents

A brother and sister who make me laugh and who, even with our age difference, can hang out with and be friends

I have a small group of amazing friends. Not even a group really, most have only met once or twice, but all of the individuals are amazing and wonderful and I love them all dearly.

I’m blessed to have a roof over my head

Our sweet girl Alli! Nothing can make you smile like walking through the door and a furry face comes running, wagging her little stub tail and SO happy to see you!

I am blessed to have a job in which I receive a paycheck every other week

I am blessed to live in the United States of America

I am blessed with awesome extended family, who love and support me…and I them

I am so blessed to live near my immediate family

I have a car that runs and am able to drive it

I can see, hear, feel, run, walk, talk and jump

I am able to work

I am able to block negativity, and try to keep it from ruining who I am

I know God

I know that other peoples opinions of me should not matter…the only true judgement that matters is God’s

I can laugh

I am intelligent

I have an education

We have running water

Money to go to the grocery store to keep our pantry full

Electricity for the AC/Heater and lights

I can read

My husband’s family who has welcomed me

I have visited many neat places with family and friends

We got to have a lovely wedding exactly the way we wanted it

I’m thankful for quiet nights at home with my husband

Changes that are coming our way

I’m blessed with at least a little common sense

I have the ability to watch other people and learn from them.

Im blessed to really know how blessed I am

Im thankful to have people to vent my frustrations out to

Im blessed to know what Love is and how to show it

Change is a comin....

Change is coming. I can’t talk about what that change is just yet, but it is coming and Im so so excited! God has proven to me that if you are patient, pray, have faith and just wait it out, good things will happen. God is listening. As my mother told me yesterday “I guess they went further than the ceiling.”




(By the way, No I am not pregnant! ….I knew that question was next! And NO Im not)






There are a LOT of changes happening around us, some of which I’m not sure what to think about. Mainly I have to remember, we all do, that as adults we have the right to make our own choices and our own decisions and those of us who are spectators just have to let it happen. But sometimes we as adults do not see the detriment we have caused on others. People do not see, that by their own selfishness, their inability to look at a situation from another perspective, their own need for something that they themselves can’t even identify has, in reality, affected other people and those affects are life long lasting. Sometimes we have to think about how our own actions have affected those around us. Look at our families and ask ourselves WHY they are the way they are, all it takes is opening our eyes and ears, and stop the selfishness.






Moving on to better topics! This is the last weekend before a few busy but fun weekends coming up! Next week we go to Inks Lake for the Mobley Reunion! Im really excited about this, its going to be a blast! Then the 24th is My sweet friend Prescilla’s baby shower that Im throwing, then the next weekend its my BIRTHDAY! Then the next weekend is my BFF’s sons bday then the NEXT weekend is my Dads birthday!  Busy and fun fun!






Im so thankful to God that he has blessed us tremendously! Sometimes we do not see the blessings like we should, but He is so wonderful and gracious and we have such a rich life because of Him.


Luke and I are truly proof that God is in control, and he is listening!






Happy weekend friends!

Summer fun!

Summer is in full swing and we've had a good time and its been busy! My only regret so far is I have not documented enough of our happenings on film!! BUT i have a few events! :) and more on my camera that I have yet to take off!!

This is just a picture of Luke and I before we went to Summer Mummers in June! SO much fun!!

MOm and Dad got a pool this summer so we've spent some time floating and splashing around!

Michael turned 11 on June 27! Look at those cupcakes! YUMM-O!

 Luke enjoyed his cupcake!!

 On July 3 we went to San Angelo to the San Angelo POPS concert and fireworks! Really neat event and a LOT of people....The firework show was quite impressive too! (Luke liked the cannon fire :) )

(In this picture you can see a distint color difference in my neck and face lol! My spray tan still lingers on my neck and thats about it!)

I have a few candid photos from July 4th at my parents as well but I havent taken them off my camera yet! We went to My parents house, the whole family was there and we played in the pool then ate hot dogs & Dads "Pickle dogs" and homemade peach icecream!

YUM!

happenings...

Well I thought I’d give a little update one the Ellis household! We’re doing pretty darn good! God has really been so good to us!


We signed another lease on our apartment this past weekend, where as we’d LOVE to be in a house, it’s just not feasible for us right now and we do not want to settle with a piece of crap house just to be in one, so we decided to stay in the apartment another 11 months, yes we signed an 11 month lease, weird, I Know. Best part about that is, yes, rent was raised, but not beyond what we could afford therefore we’re still able to live in this large apartment!

We had a garage sale recently and got rid of SO MUCH stuff! Soon, hopefully, the second bedroom will become a BEDROOM and we wont have to keep that door shut and hope people don’t ask “whats in there” haha!

June begins the non-stop bbq-ing, eating out, homemade ice cream making, family gatherings in the Mobley family. Starting with Father’s Day it is literally non-stop for a few months. This last weekend was my sisters 23rd wedding anniversary, my Parents 46th wedding anniversary and today is my nephews 11th birthday! Next week Im going to have a girls night with my BFF, then Luke and I are off to see his Dad on Sunday and then Monday we have July 4th! July 15th begins the Mobley family reunion at Inks Lake in Central Texas, and then July 24th Im hosting a very large baby shower for my sweet friend Priscilla, then July 30 is MY birthday, THe first wkened in August is my BFF's sons birthday and then Aug 12 is my Dads bday!!

Whew! Maybe Im just going to take a long nap on my birthday! 



Things are good, and busy, and we’re just thankful to have this blessed life together and be able to share it with so many wonderful people!



I’ll post pics of the previously mentioned events later! Happy Monday to all my readers….(do I have any readers? Haha!)

Positive vs. negative

So Im sitting here coming down off of a lovely weekend with family, counting my blessings, we really are incredibly blessed in so many ways. This got me thinking about all the negative things that can blur your vision, cloud and muddy up our sight so that we don't SEE the blessings we've been given. THere are lots of things that do this, but most of all, we do it to ourselves, and we let other people do it to us.
There are SO many beautiful, wonderful, positive things in our lives, in all of our lives, but often times we dont see them.
Why?
Well in my life a big reason I dont see these beautiful things as often as I should, is because of the negativity and naysayers Im surrounded by. What is it with these people who make you feel bad, low, stupid etc...? Why do they feel the need to constantly be a negative influence in others lives? Are they jealous? Unhappy? purely evil?
Im naturally a pretty positive person, I'm pretty good at seeing the light at the end of a painful tunnel, seeing the good side to situations and to people...but if I am surrounded by negativity it is bound to wear off on me and sometimes, it does.
I really am tired of the constant complaining, putting down and bashing that I hear on a daily basis. Im tired of feeling like Im beneath someone else because of my job title or where I live etc....(just generalizations, not necessarily specific examples)...I only have to prove aything to GOD, Only his judgement matters. Those who are of real importance in my life, those who really know me and love me do not judge me.
This is the internal monologue I have going on in my head most of the day, "dont listen to them, they're opinions do not matter" over and over.
And I truly believe that....what I do no understand is what is their motive? WE all have these people in our lives. What motive do they have? What kind of sick pleasure do they get by being a negative force in others lives? How is it possible to get off on someone elses pain that you've caused?
Hmm...I guess thats one of the questions I'll never have the answer to. But for now, I am so blessed, GOD has been incredibly good to me.
I have Luke, I have an amazing family and the best friends, I have a job, a roof over my head, a dog who loves unconditionally, I am intelligent, I am able bodied, Im capable of things even I am unaware, and I have a GOD who loves me and wants the best for me.
So Im trying, consciously TRYING to be that positive force...not let that negativity get to me, or bring me down.

Enchiladas and Papas--Katie style!

I like to experiement with food...sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesnt....well tonight it DID, and I wish I would have taken pictures to make this blog a lot more interesting...but alas, I did not...so here are my recipes.

First let me just say that I do not measure, I never follow a recipe (unless IM baking, I do use measuring tools for baking...therefore i dont bake very often...) SO there will be a lot of "pinch of this", "fist full of this"....they're just generalizations, if you have to have a set rcipe....my recipes are probably not for you :) Oh, also, this is just what I have on hand....lots of substitutions can be made...in fact I think I'll probably use shredded chicken in the enchiladas next time...also the veggies in the enchiladas are what i had too, and they're veggie Luke likes (besides the onion but I didnt put many in and cute them up really small)

Enchiladas:

Ground turkey
1 can green enchilada sauce -Mild
1 small can chopped green chilis
1/2 yellow onion
1 small zucchini
1 small yellow squash
Low Carb flour tortillas (6-8)
Shredded mexican blend cheeses

brown the meat and add the chopped onions, zucchini and squash until tender.
Add in 1/2 can of the green chilis....if you like spice then add the whole can (Lukes not a big fan of spice so I just added enough for the flavor) and stir in, then pour about 1/4 of the can of enchilada sauce in to the meat/veggie mix.
Spray a baking dish with cooking spray, and I always coat the bottom of the pan with a tiny bit of the enchilada sauce.
Take a flour tortilla (you can use corn tortillas too, make sure they're warm enough that they're flexible and will not break) put meat mixture down the middle, add a few fingers full of shredded cheese, roll up and place seam side down in the pan. continue until you either run outta room or out of mixture. THen sprinkle a fist full of cheese over the enchiladas (At this point I had extra meat mixture so I pour that  over the enchiladas at this point too) THen pour the rest of the can of sauce over them, finish it off with more shredded cheese and bake in over at 350 for about 20 minutes until its all melty and bubbly.


Papas

6-8 red potatoes
shredded cheese
sour cream
butter
1 can rotel tomatoes drained
salt & pepper

Rinse the potatoes then nuke them in a microwave safe plate until tender (I had 6 for 11 minutes, perfect)
whent they're soft thake them out and smash them up with the butter (about 2 spoons full), sour cream and salt and pepper, once mixed well add a fist full of shredded cheese. mix well then add about 1/2 the can of rotel (drained). I used 6 potatoes, and didnt want the them to be TOO tomato-y do I used a little over 1/3 of the can...

Mix all together and TADA! Mexican Papas!

I served this with corn & watermelon!

Well Luke LOVED this and it will definately be something I make again!