I Made It Monday: Easy Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Dip

 Another round of "I Made It Monday" here today. I just LOVE making this dip - it is so darn good. I made it recently for our Superbowl Sunday get together at our house. I also make it a lot for food days at work because it's so easy.

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

• 8oz Philadelphia cream cheese
• 1/2 cup Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing 
• 1/4 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce 
• 1 cup of Colby Jack or Mozzarella shredded cheese 
• 1 - 12.5oz & 1 - 5oz Tyson white meat canned chicken

You'll drain your chicken while you put the rest of your ingredients in a skillet on the stove on low. I cut up the cream cheese so it melts faster and more evenly. Add your chicken in once it's drained well, and after everything has melted, transfer it over to the Crockpot on low until it's warmed up nicely. Then I just keep it on warm until it's gone!

I made a recipe card for this recipe I wanted to share today too. Just click on it to download! :)

Project 52: Week 7

This week's theme is love.

I had to post two photos of my gorgeous roses J got me for Valentine's Day. He knows someone who opened a flower shop last year so I told him I expected flowers for a lot of occasions now (jokingly... sort of). As I marveled at how pretty they were, he asked if he did okay. (DID HE DO OKAY?!) I said yes, obviously, that they were very beautiful. That's when he told me he'd never bought flowers for anyone before. I was shocked, and I felt so very special. It was the best gift he could've given and it was about more than just the flowers.

Interested in joining in on Project 52? Go here. 

Snow Day

Yesterday, Cam's school had a snow day. I had heard that he would be having school so I picked him up yesterday evening after work. I couldn't get a hold of his dad or grandma, so I had to stay home with him. It was probably for the best though, I think we both needed a day of rest.

We did puzzles.

 

We were silly.

We watched shows and movies (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and several Veggie Tales shows).

We even got a little crafty and I made this Cardinal for him. (Earlier in the week, M made a duck but Cam decided he wanted a Cardinal when he saw her bird.)

It was a good day. I always enjoy spending time with him, but also I really did need to work. It's such a struggle being a working mom. I was ahead on my bills and due to the snow now I probably won't be. I also feel guilty when I have to call in. I just have to step back and be thankful for the time we got together today and that maybe we both just needed it. We don't get many days together like this anymore.

I Made It Monday

I've decided to do a little blog series here called "I Made It Monday" where I can either post a layout or a craft I've done recently. I've been very crafty here recently since I'm DIYing my wedding (more on that soon), and it'll make me accountable to post on Mondays at least. ;)

With that said, a while back I made a digital scrapbook template based on a paper scrapbook page I did. I decided to give it new life and create something with it, and put it in my Etsy shop. I have dubbed it "Hello Happy" and it's available now in my shop. :)

What have you DIY'ed lately?

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Supplies Used: Echo Park Hybrids Playground kit.

Project 52: Week 6

This week's theme is unbalanced.

This was kind of a hard one. I actually had another idea, but didn't have time to actually go get the photo. This is a set of magnetic toys the boys play with a lot. Their creation is definitely a bit unbalanced. :)

Interested in joining in on Project 52? Go here. 

Animal Love

I've been getting back into all aspects of scrapbooking and it feels really good. :) I bought this kit from One Little Bird the other week for another project (more on that soon), but decided I wanted to use it on this page of me and Cam too.

My computer hasn't been running right recently, so J reloaded it yesterday. Man, it feels good to start out with a clean slate. This process really made me go through all of my old stuff and clean it out. I burned a bunch of products I don't use much anymore (baby products and random other stuff) onto CD's. Freed up quite a bit of space on my external hard drive. The rest I finally moved over to my computer so I see it and use it more.

I've also been creating real, paper layouts recently. My soon-to-be step-daughter M wanted to learn how to scrapbook, so I bought her an album and have been helping her put together layouts. She's quite the little scrapbooker. I really enjoy helping her, and it's actually made me sit down and do some layouts myself too. I'll have to show you some soon. Still been working on our 2014 Project Life album. Slowing getting all those weeks done!! I'm working on a layout I really like today so I'll share it soon too.

Other than that, I've been cooking and baking. I've made dinner several times this week since I was off work on staycation. I baked brownies earlier in the week and my hubby-to-be's favorite cookies Snickerdoodles today. I normally am not a good cookie baker, but man, these turned out great!! I got a lot of wedding planning done this past week, as well. Also, I found THE dress last Thursday!!! But that's another post itself... ;)

What have you been up to this weekend?

Project 52: Week 5

This week's theme is morning.

Well here we are at week 5 and I'm just trucking along! I'm pretty proud of myself for sticking with this thing! I am off on vacation this week so I had the opportunity to take the DSLR out this morning once the sun was good and up. I actually got the idea for it yesterday as I was getting the mail. I realized what a good photo it would be from this angle and sure enough, there it is! I was excited about my little bit of sunflare I got too. :)

Interested in joining in on Project 52? Go here. 

The Second Time Around

Getting married for the second time is something I think about a lot. When J and I decided we wanted to get married (which was a long road with a story for another day), I knew I wanted to have a wedding this time around. I always regretted not having a real wedding. Of course now I am thankful I didn't back then (hehe). This time I know that this is right, and I want to do it the more traditional way.

I've spent a lot of time in my life feeling like I've missed out on things or that I didn't do things the right way. Now, of course, I realize everyone has their own path and the way things work out is really for the best. I just knew the 'ol courthouse ceremony wasn't for us though.

J and I have been through a lot over the past two and a half years. There were times that I wasn't sure we would ever get married. I knew I loved him, and I knew he was really the one, but outsiders were putting so much negativity into our lives that it made it seem like it just might not happen. We don't need marriage to define our relationship or our family. I know J will be by my side no matter what and I know I will always be there for him, but to me it just feels like the last step to making our family official. We have so many friends and family that have cheered us on along the way that this really is a time for celebration for them too.

Although wedding planning is really stressful, I am remembering to enjoy the journey and not get too far ahead of myself. All in all, it's been really fun and I'm just trying to soak it all in. Taking engagement photos, putting together flowers with my mom and bestie, and most recently, the cake tasting have been some of the most special times of my life.

Being in love is wonderful and having the support of everyone around you is even better! Live your life and go with your gut. It is never wrong - I am living proof! :)