History Of Halloween

While all of you are celebrating Halloween I was wondering if you knew the reason behind the festivities?

I will share a little history with you, compliments of the Farmer's Almanac. I love this thing.

Halloween (October 31) originated with the ancient Celts, who celebrated the new year on November 1. They believed that the souls of the dead returned to Earth the night before (Samhain).

In later years, the Irish used hollowed-out, candlelit turnips, carved with a demon’s face to frighten away the spirits. When Irish immigrants in the 1840s found few turnips in the United States, they used the more plentiful pumpkins instead. The towns people would dress up in scary costumes to also scare away these spirits.

There is your little fun fact for all your Halloween festivities!

Enjoy!
-Kaci

Blog Share Sunday: The Pioneer Woman

I know y'all are probably sick to death about me talking about "The Pioneer Woman" but I'm not sick of her. I love her. Her blog is the sole inspiration for my blog.

I'm going to dedicate this Blog Share Sunday to her. If you have not checked her out before now, you should. Besides, haven't I blabbed enough about her that you are just a little curious? Her blog is beautiful. I can only hope that I grow into half the blogger she is. She takes beautiful pictures, has amazing recipes, gives away some of the coolest things, tells how the cow eats the cabbage, all the while homeschooling her kids! I will never know how she does it all. She's an inspiration to all women.

Check out The Pioneer Woman, I promise it will change your life and take you on a wonderful journey right along with her.

Enjoy!
-Kaci

Boo at the Zoo

This past weekend, along with other friends and their little boys, we went to Boo at the Zoo in Fort Worth. They have this event every year for the kiddos to dress up in their costumes, play games, get candy and learn about animals. The boys had such a good time.

Two of my dearest friends, Ashleigh and Kayci, brought along their boys Noah and Jet. I love these little boys so much and I'm so glad Blaze has such awesome buddies to grow up with. Noah will be 3 in January and Jet just turned 2. We have quite the brood. I enjoy watching them grow up and learn new things together.

Noah was a night in shining armour. Jet was "Woody". Blaze was a lion and he absolutely HATED his costume. We did a test drive at the house before it was time to go and Blaze kept trying to pull it off. I knew it wouldn't last long so I had to get one picture before he took it off. I really didn't get any good ones because he acted like it was kryptonite.

Blaze doing everything possible to not get a picture.

After the Boo at the Zoo part, we had fun looking at all the animals and going on a train ride. The boys were worn out by the end of the day. The mommies even needed a nap, too.

Blaze and me on the train. Of course he smiled right after the picture was taken.

Gotta get a picture with the turtle.

And the baby elephant too.

All in all, we had a great time at the zoo.

-Kaci

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner Wednesday: Be Kooool Patches {Winner Announced}

Winner Announced!

Dyana, you are the winner! Email me at kacjohnson@live.com with your address and I will get your prize in the mail to you!

These things are amazing!!

A friend told me about these when Blaze was sick about a month ago. He seems to get sick everytime a new tooth decides to make it's entrance into the world.

Blaze was miserable and mopey. I put one of these on his back and I don't know how it works but it did! Within 15 minutes his fever broke and he was playing again. These little suckers are amazing!

Because I think they are so cool, I'm going to give 2 boxes of them away. By the way, these aren't just for kids. They are adult approved too.

Of course there is some crowd particpation required to win.

You must comment with your answer to the question on this blog to be entered to win.

Question: What makes you feel better when you're under the weather?

When: Contest will start on Wednesday October 26, 2011 @ 6:00 am and entries will be taken until Sunday October 30, 2011 @ 12 noon.

Prize: 2 boxes of Be Kool Patches

Want more chances to win? Share my blog with your friends whatever means necessary: Facebook, Twitter, email and have them comment on the questions and tell me you sent them. For every friend that you send to the blog, you will have another entry into the drawing.

Remember this is just for fun and the winner will be drawn from a hat.

Good luck!

-Kaci

*** This give away is sponsored by me. This is not a paid advertisement. ***

Tip Tuesday: Bobby Pins

I will now begin having "Tip Tuesday" where I will share a helpful tip every week.

It may be simple or extravagant, nevertheless, it's a tip.

This week's tip is about bobby pins.

Do your bobby pins slip on your head and you are always trying to reposition them? You know why?

It's because the proper use of a bobby pin is for the grooved side to go against your head and the flat part is supposed to show!!! Tah dah!

Try that and see how much better your bobby pins stay in!

Blog Share Sunday: Bandster Momma

This is the first blog on the new "Blog Share Sunday". I will share blogs with you that I like and think you will enjoy also.

This week blog share is Brenda's blog at "Bandster Momma". You can go to her blog by clicking here .

I know Brenda personally and her blog is the first blog I started "following." Her blog is about her incredible journey through weight loss. She is very inspiring with her will power and determination. She is a very sweet lady but doesn't sugar coat the truth. She is witty and intelligent.

I enjoy reading her blog very much. Go check out Brenda at Bandster Momma and join in on the fun.

-Kaci

Blog About A Blog

I've been writing this blog for a couple of months and it has changed my life. You just read that sentence and probably snickered a little and thought it was a complete overstatement. I'm completely serious though.

I'm the type of person that needs to verbalize my feelings. I'm an open book and find it hard to supress how I really feel.

Since I've been writing this blog, I find myself thinking about if what I'm doing in life is "blog worthy." I go through my day focusing on the positive things in life instead letting the negative in because who wants to read about more negative things? I think we have enough negative surrounding us that the last thing we want to do is read about it on a blog. I have found this to be therapy for me and it has pushed me to do things that I normally wouldn't have and to think outside the box.

I encourage you to do the same. It's fun. It's freeing. It has a purpose in your life, if you are looking for that sort of thing. People ask me all the time how I have time for all of it. I make time. I need it. It's theraputic for me. I write for a little while when everyone is asleep. I write while I'm waiting for something. I blog while Blaze is taking a bath. 

Here are 6 tips from what I've learned so far that makes a good blog. 
(6 seemed like a good number)

1. Keep it real. Make your blog true to yourself. Don't try and sugar coat it or make yourself out to be someone you're not. You will relate to more people if you let your true colors show. Nobody is perfect so let's quit pretending! Start with your blog. Look at it as your online diary. Even if you never share your web address with anybody, getting your feelings out helps the sanity of your noodle!

2. Stay positive. Even if you are having a bad day, there is always something positive to say. Spread your little seedlings of happiness all over web space and watch the lovliness grow.

3. Variety. Make your blog about all kinds of things that anybody will relate to. Try not to be opinionated and pushy.

4. Blog often. You don't always have to write a huge story, a how-to, or have something profound and genius to say. Posting a picture or one of your favorite quotes will suffice should you have writer's block. If people are following you, they look forward to reading your next post. Don't keep them waiting.

5. Support and participate in other blogs. Blogging and reading other blogs is fun! See what other people out there have to say and are doing. The blog community is large and have an unspoken sense of family. Become one of the family, not a wallflower.

6. Love your people. Talk to your followers like they are family. You never know when someone needs a pick me up and they go to your blog for inspiration.

There you have it. My little insignificant tips to get you blogging in the right direction. Always feel free to write me at lifeaskaciknowsit@gmail.com should you have any questions about starting your own blog.

Love ya!
-Kaci

Dutch Oven

If you know me personally, then you know that I can be impulsive, and with that impulsiveness, obsessivness usually follows. I get pretty obsessive about the things I'm impulsive about. Follow?

My current impulsive obsession is cookware. Since I have submerged myself into cooking and baking, I want every kitchen device available. If I were independently wealthy, you bet your buns that I would have every gadget, pot, pan, and utensil there was. Since that's not the case, I have to budget in my new toys.

I've had my eye on this one piece ever since HEB opened it's doors about a month ago. They have their own line of cookware called "Cocinaware" and it is beautiful. They are all in bright, vibrant colors, made of good quality and are reasonably priced . Take note that I'm no expert but I'm learning my way through the culinary world, therefore I'm not going to give you an explanation full of specific, knowledgeable info. All I'm saying is that they are pretty, not cheaply made and affordable. This beaut cost $30. Do you really need any more info other than that? Maybe you do, but that's all I care about.

So here is my first and new dutch oven!!!



Isn't it beautiful? Yes, I am pathetic. I get excited about a dutch oven. They had several colors to choose from like: red, orange, purple, green, dark blue and light blue. I picked the light blue one because it spoke to me. Not really, I just loved the color.

As I'm typing it's in the oven with my first pot roast. This blog is full of first!

I will let you know how the pot roast turns out.

Happy cooking!

-Kaci

Do It Yourself Gift Series

I've been thinking about doing a series of blogs about gifts for the holidays you can make yourself. I asked a couple of you on Facebook and I got some "likes" and a couple of comments so I decided to go with it.


There are several reasons why I'm choosing to do this.


1. I have completely run out of ideas what to get people. Pajamas and a basket of Bath & Body Works is getting old.


2. Who doesn't want to get a gift that is unique and handmade? I would enjoy a unique and handmade gift.


3. I would like to not break the bank.


4. This new spark of do it yourself inside myself is running rampant!


5. It's something to blog about. I might run out of things to say one of these days but it's not looking like it's gonna be anytime soon.

I've been researching some DIY gifts and I have found some REALLY fun ideas. Eventhough I might be stealing these ideas, I will in fact be doing it myself and taking you through the tutorial because I want to be true to myself and also to you guys.

Each tutorial will have:

-Easy Factor: scale 1-10. 1 being the easiest, 10 being hard

-Cost of Total Project


Ok, now I'm off to the store to stock up on supplies!

Happy crafting!
-Kaci

New Member of Our Family: Vegas!

Welcome the newest member of our family, Vegas!





 
Vegas is a border collie and comes from a long line of working cow dogs. Both his mom and dad are extremely intelligent. His dad, "Junior" has a signature haunting stare that will make you stop right in your tracks.

He comes from Oklahoma but we won't hold that against him! He got to Texas just as fast as he could!

We are so proud to have Vegas around and can't wait to see him grow and learn the ways of the working cow dog. At 6 weeks, he is already "working" a rope and has a personality larger than life.

His sister, Charli doesn't really know what to think about him yet but I bet she warms up to him.

Tougher Than The Rest... Much Tougher

Things I learned today:

1. I need to grow a pair of emotional balls

2. Sometimes a good cry makes it all better

3. Life gives you what you need

4. I dig music. I already knew that but today it's been reinforced times a million.

I have been super stressed at work. Being a busy office and trying to transition to a new charting system equals a constant tension headache that won't go away no matter how many Excedrin I ingest or the occassional beer that I drink. I so need a vacation. I've been saying that for months. But I really mean it this time.

You know that stress where you are so worn out, your brain is mush that you can't even spell your own name but there is no time to break down? Which that reminds me, check out the song "Breakdown" by Cross Canadian Ragweed. That's so the vibe I'm feeling right now. Here are some of the lyrics:

"Well I'd like to break down,
but I don't have the time.
You're all looking to me, to keep it in line.
Well I'm gonna keep it in line. "

I love music. There is always someone out there that can say exactly how I'm feeling when I can't. I think I'm a rock star in another life. Too bad I don't have a lick of musical talent. I'm pretty good at the air guitar and acting like I'm the lead singer. Do those count? No? Dang!

See how I get so off track. Geez! Somebody get me some Atterol!

Back to the mountain of stress in my brain.

I've been putting going to the dentist off for months because I knew I had a cavity, maybe two max. I don't have a phobia of the dentist or anything, it's just that going means I have to actually look reality in the face. That's no fun. Yes I do drink way too many sodas but I brush my teeth twice a day. So I'm in the clear.

After my cleaning, the dentist came in to go over everything with me and he is spouting off numbers to his hygienist. Little did I know, those numbers that he was spouting off where the numbers of teeth in my mouth that needed work. So there I am. Sitting in the dentist chair thinking that I have a few minor problems. I wish.

When I got the number I almost passed out. I could feel that tightness in my throat. I tried my best to stiffen my bottom lip so it wouldn't quiver. I kept blinking to try and will the tears away. And then that's when he looked at me trying to hold it together. By the way, he is a personal friend of ours so that added insult to injury. And he said, "Come on, Kac, hold it together. We'll get through this."

Great! Let's acknowledge what I'm trying so hard to hide. And..... there is goes. One tear down the cheek is followed by just a couple more. Not that this news was that big of a deal but everything in my life leading up to this was the bushels of straw on the camel's back. This was just THE straw.

I pull myself together just long enough to make my appointment to get this grueling process started. As fast as I can, I get into my car then I let it all fall apart. I was a nasty, ugly, slobbery mess. Sitting in the parking lot bawling my eyes out, I was quite the site. Thank god for aviator sunglasses. Wow, was I a pansy ass or what? Yep. Pretty much.

After a couple minutes of a no holds bar, feeling sorry myself sob fest I tell myself that I'm being ridiculous. But I noticed that I felt tons better. It was like every tear was a pound of stress escaping my body. Only if those tears were actual pounds of fat! Then I'd be crying all the time!! Not really, but it would be nice. It felt like I could actually put some distance in between me and it all.

On my drive home I have some time to decompress and bring myself back from the brink of a total melt down and a song on my playlist comes up that I fell in love with many years ago. By the end of it, I'm renewed. I'm my tough self again, minus my mascara and makeup. I'm back to playing the air drums on the steering wheel and singing into my hand like I would if I where on stage belting it out, hair flips and all. I love playing rock star. It's one of my favorite things.

Like I've said before in many other blogs, life gives you what you need. A song, an epiphany, money, opportunities, blessings, a dose of reality and sometimes a break. If that song wasn't a dose of reality to realize everything is and will be ok and to not take myself AND life too seriously that it causes stress in my life, then I don't have any other explanation for it.

Since this blog has been lacking one of my favorite things in this whole world, I'm going to fill that rock n roll void by posting the lyrics of the song that gave my day a u-turn. I found this band about 7 years ago in a bar on an off night. Just going there to have fun, I was immediately mesmerized by their sound and clever lyrics and got lost in the bass drum and spent more time tapping my foot and dancing in my chair than drinking beer. I have since followed them to many more shows and made several CD and t-shirt purchases. They are a great band.

Keep on rockin' in the free world!
-Kaci

Phil Pritchett
"Tougher Than The Rest"

"She's got a face
That knows no concept of fear
Even criminals and never-do-wells vanish each time she appears
She's got a reputation as somebody who knows how to get things done
She's got a habit of pickin up red hot pots and pans
With her bare hands, just for fun

She doesn't care about all the everyday stresses
She's a bag of nails beneath her colorful dresses
She's tougher than the rest (much tougher)
Tougher than the rest (much tougher)
A little hardship brings out her best, her best

Aw, fever, I'm at 105 degress
I got the sweats and the shakes
And the pain in my neck, back, and in my knees
And any diagnosis will show that psychosis
Is the cause of my grief
But she's the one who fills me up
With all of the strength, hope, and belief

She doesn't care about the things that make us worry
She can run around at speeds and never hurry
She's tougher than the rest (much tougher)
Tougher than the rest (much tougher)
A little hardship brings out her best, her best

The spirit in her is holy
She drinks her beer slowly
She lights the candles in her room
With a strike of a match
The band helps me say it
My guitar helps me play it
Keep the bass low down
And stay on the high hat for God sakes

She's tougher than the rest (much tougher)
Tougher than the rest (much tougher)
A little harship brings our her best, her best
Heyyy, Heyyy, Heyyy "

Battle of the Bulge

I've never been one that had a problem with staying thin despite all the sweets, junk food and sodas I drank. That is until Mr. Blaze came along and my body has decided to hang on to the extra weight. I have officially become a puffy version of myself.

I always tell myself, "Ok, Monday I'm going on a diet and I'm going to start back exercising."

I will lose about 10 pounds and then gain it all back when I decide to either stop dieting or stop exercising.

I have tried numerous cleanses, done a couple days of workouts, and failed at drinking 20 bottles of water a day.

Then I realized, if I want to lose weight and keep it off, it has to be a lifestyle change.

So here is where it begins!

I'm sick and tired of being a puffy version of myself. I'm sick and tired of my clothes not fitting because I refuse to buy a bigger size. And I'm sick and tired of feeling tired and have no energy ALL the time.

Starting today, October 17, 2011, I WILL begin this weight loss journey. I WILL devote at least 30 minutes of my day to myself and my health. And I WILL get back to the skinny person I used to be. Maybe if I put that out there, I will be more accountable for myself.

Let's see how this goes!
-Kaci

Lucky You, Horseshoe!: Giveaway {Winner Announced}

Winner Announced!

I didn't realize when I put y'all up to this challenge that it would be so heartfelt. All of you made me tear up a little. I put all of your names in a hat and drew out....... drumroll please!!!

Winner: Davida!

Please email me @ kacijohnson@live.com to advise me of your address so I can send your necklace to you!

Thank you ALL for participating and watch out for more giveaways!


 This time of year is very busy for the Johnson family. It seems like we live in the truck and are always pulling a trailer full of horses either going to a roping, coming from a roping, working a roping, or just watching a roping.

The US Finals in Oklahoma City are in late October. The Finals are for the team ropers that spent all year at ropings all around the states to make it to the big show to compete for LOTS of money. I mean LOTS! In some ropings, each partner wins around $80,000 for first. Since Clint had his shoulder surgery back in July, he has been working very hard to be in top notch roping shape and chase after some of that money, not to mention all the cool stuff they giveaway for prizes: saddles, buckles, rope bags, trucks, trailers, tractors, four-wheelers... yes I said tractors and four-wheelers! It's crazy. Clint said if he won a tractor or a four-wheeler that he was going to ride it all the way home.

The World Show is spread out all throughout the month of November which means several trips back and forth from here and Oklahoma City. The World show is held by the AQHA (American Quarter Horse Association) and everyone and every horse has to go to horse shows during the year to obtain points to qualify for the World Show. There are many events at this big shibang. Team Roping, Reining, Pleasure Riding, the list goes on forever but Clay (Clint's boss) and Clint just compete in the team roping. I think the total number of horses they got qualified for the WS is around 19. That is an awesome accomplishment for Logan Performance Horses. It's a direct result of how much hard work they have all put into training this year. We are very excited for this one because this is the first year that Clint is showing an outside horse of his own at the World Show, "Pudge". Root for all of the Logan Performance Horses and "Pudge" in November!

A funny thing about team ropers is that some of them are superstitious. Last year, Clint gave up shaving until he won money at a roping. I'm going to find the winning picture that was published in a roping magazine when he won and post it on here. The boy looks like Grisly Adams. Thank goodness we aren't doing that again this year! Whew!

So in the spirit of this time of year and the need to harness all the luck we can, I am going to be hosting a giveaway. I want you to comment under this blog with the answer to this question...

Do you have a lucky charm? If so, what is it? If no, why not?

THE PRIZE: For every 10th person that comments, I will give away 1 horseshoe pendant necklace handcrafted by yours truly! ! I will pick the winner(s) at total random. (Example: If 30 people comment, I will give away 3 necklaces.)

Why a horseshoe? The upwards facing horseshoe is a symbol of luck. If you turn it over, all your luck falls out. Totally appropriate for this occasion, right? I thought so! (each necklace will vary because I made several of them and they are all different)

But wait! That's not all! (I sound like a cheesy infomercial)

Also, I will give away a necklace to the person that sends the most people to my blog. You can share the link to my blog on your Facebook, Twitter, all your email friends, whatever means necessary for you to win! They must comment with their answer to my question on the blog under this post and also tell me you sent them. It also wouldn't hurt for them to click "follow" up in the right hand corner or "follow by email" and enter their email address to get new blogs right into their email. If you haven't become a follower yet, you can do the same.

WHEN: This will start at 6:00 am Thursday morning October 13, 2011 and will end at 12:00 noon on Sunday October 16, 2011. I will announce the winner soon after the contest ends.

Get to commenting and telling your friends!

Lucky you, Horseshoe!

Good luck!

-Kaci

Operation: Feed The Family

As you have heard me mention before, I am learning my way through domestication. So, on that note, I wouldn't say that I'm NOT a good cook because I never really cook. And I guess I couldn't say I'm an awesome cook because I never really cook. My idea when Clint says "What's for dinner, honey?" is a bowl of cereal or take-out. My brain is so not in that track of actually cooking anything that me slaving over a stove is never even a thought. My poor husband is usually in charge of the kitchen because he is an awesome cook! But I've decided that I need to step up my domestic game and put "Operation: Feed the Family" into action.

On a girl's trip to Salado, while Colleen was roping in the girl's roping, Beth and I decided we would check out the shops in downtown. In one of the stores, I found "The Pioneer Woman Cooks". I have wanted to buy this book for so long but just never pulled the trigger. So I figured, what the hell, this is a "me" trip and I bought it.

Let me tell you one thing, this is my kind of cook book! The ingredients are things that we ACTUALLY eat, not weird, hard to pronounce food that I wouldn't even know what isle to look down in the grocery store for the ingredients. The recipes are simple, and I need all the simple I can get. And they are delicious! And for me to make something and it be edible is like winning a gold medal. I made the chicken spaghetti and it was definitely a hit. Clint loved it. Blaze kept eating off my plate. I was so happy and puffed up my chest a little bit. I don't think y'all understand how deprived of a good wife and mother my family has been in the kitchen, but it was bad.

I didn't take pictures or step by step instructions because I believe that The Pioneer Woman does such a good job of it that I didn't want to insult her by trying to do my own, but I made Chicken Spaghetti from her cook book. The next week I made chicken fried steak, creamy mashed potatoes, and peach crisp with maple sauce. All fabulous! The next week I made Cajun Chicken Pasta and it was out of this world good! And today I am trying a pot roast.

Have you ever seen the movie "Ratatouille"? You know the part where Chef says "Anybody can cook!" For the longest time I giggled at that part because I always inserted my own caption, "anybody but Kaci!" But Chef, you are right! Anyone can cook!

If you are starting out like me and have no idea what the first step in making mashed potatoes are, I encourage you to pick up "The Pioneer Woman Cooks". It's fabulous and beautiful and so much more than a cookbook.

Happy cooking!
-Kaci

And Now Introducing... Characters of the Johnson Family

I do realize I'm going at this blog a little bass ackwards. I will remind you that I'm learning as I go on this thing. From the first post, you know a little about me, but I think it's important to know more about the members of the Johnson Family. I'm going to scrape the surface of the 2 two-legged people and the 1 four-legged person I live with. They will get their own dedicated blogs in upcoming weeks.

The man of the house and my better half is Clint. We met back in 2008 and I wouldn't give him the time of day for anything. Timing was off for me, but if you ask him, he would just tell you that I was a major B word. On Labor Day weekend, he was flagging a roping and I was announcing and keeping the books. Everybody decided to go to the only smoky bar with a band in the little town we live in after the roping was done. He asked me to dance and I finally gave in because I really like to dance and my dancing partners were slim pickens. I don't think we ever left the dance floor.

We haven't left each other since that day. 3 weeks later we decided to get married. We got married 3 months later on December 6, 2008 in Las Vegas during the National Finals Rodeo. Believe me when I say that I heard all my friends and family when they were shocked that we decided to get married so fast and that we didn't know eachother. You ever hear those stories from old couples that have been married for 60 years and they tell the stories about how they just knew the other was "THE ONE"? Well, I bet you Clint and I will be sitting on the front porch in our rocking chairs drinking sweet tea when we are 80 telling the same story to our great grandkids. He is the ying to my yang, the bread to my butter, the sugar to my iced tea... you get the picture. I couldn't ask for a better husband, father to Blaze and partner in crime. We laugh together until our stomachs hurt, dance until we can't dance anymore, and get on eachother's nerves to the point where we want to strangle the other. He is constantly giving me a hard time and pushing my buttons. He keeps me in check and brings me down from "Kaci Land". He's realistic, kind, and very hardworking. Clint trains team roping horses and comes from a long line of cowboys. He grew up in Post, Texas. Clint is a great partner to live out our days together with.

Me and my 8 month pregnant puffy face and Clint

In January of 2010 we found out that we were expecting a very special gift. On September 13, 2010 we got the best blessing we could ever be given. Blaze Benjamin Johnson. Isn't that a name that just oozes cool? I think so and he definitely lives up to the coolness of his name. He likes the color red. He loves music, animals and goldfish snacks. He will travel anywhere we take him. He loves playing in water and his bath is his favorite time of the day. He has a grin that will make your day. He pays close attention to detail and picks up things quickly. He likes hot dogs, mac & cheese and Popsicles. And he would rather run around naked than wear a stitch of clothing. And he hates wearing shoes.

I'm pretty sure the definition of a dog is: a four-legged, fury, domesticated animal whose sole purpose is to please its human counterpart. Well at least that's my definition, not exactly Webster's definition. Speaking of, that brings me to that part of our family.

Charli is my little silky terrier that Clint swears he doesn't like but I think he is just trying to play cool because I find them snuggled up quite often. Charli will be 6 years old and she is the best little companion I could ask for. She's not the brightest crayon in the box but she loves me and will follow me into a fire. How can you not love a dog for that? I was a little worried about how she would act around Blaze because she is so protective over me but she just loves him just as much. She is the first one to his crib when he cries. She lets him pull on her fur and drag her around by the collar. She is the biggest tom boy of a little dainty dog. She likes to go swimming in ponds, rolling in mud, chasing the cows out of the barn and goes on the occasional adventure miles away from the house and I get a call to come pick her up.

Then there is Skip. One word to describe Skip: goofy. I have to admit that I was a little hard on Skip at first. I was so used to Zipper and him being the perfect dog and never doing anything wrong that I found myself getting easily frustrated at him during his puppy stages and the fact that I was heartbroken about Zipper didn't help his chances. But Skip has always been the sweetest dog I've been around. What he lacks in brains, he makes up with heart. He loves Blaze and would let him ride him if he wanted to. He ALWAYS goes to Blaze's room with me at bedtime to make sure that he is tucked in. Skip mainly stays at the barn now and he couldn't be happier. He loves being able to run around, love on the barn cats and jump in the horse troughs several times a day. There is not a mean bone in his body. He's a nice boy.

Skip is much bigger than this now but I just love this picture. If I were to give it a title it would be simply, "Buddies"

That's just a smidge of my little family so when I reference them in other blogs, you have a little background.

Keepin it Real!

Loves!
-Kaci

Poor, Lonely Recipe Box

I picked this cute little recipe box out to be on our wedding registry wwwaaaaayyyy back. Way back 3 years ago. hehe!

Notice "The Pioneer Woman Cooks"
in the background. It's been my bible
for the last month.

It is multi-functional with the top folding up so you can place your recipe card on top so you can read it while you cook. It came with cute dividers that I can divide my recipes by categories.

By now you are probably wondering why I am blogging about my recipe box. The reason is because it is a poor, lonely and not to mention EMPTY little recipe box! We are going to have a good ol recipe swap! The way this works is you will comment or email me your favorite recipe. I'm going to post mine. It is my favorite because it is the first meal I made my little family. I mean actually make all the ingredients and see it through to its completion. I didn't pop a frozen pizza in the oven, or heat up a ready-made lasagna. I actually MADE this. I'm embarassed to say but, since we are all about being honest here, this was 3 weeks ago. You could have knocked Clint over with a feather when he walked in from work and saw me in the kitchen and not burning something. Anyways... let's get to swapping!!

This is straight from "The Pioneer Woman Cooks" and it's Clint AND Blaze approved!

Ingredients

• 2 cups Cooked Chicken
• 3 cups Dry Spaghetti, Broken Into Two Inch Pieces
• 2 cans Cream Of Mushroom Soup
• 2 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 1/4 cup Finely Diced Green Pepper
• 1/4 cup Finely Diced Onion
• 1 jar (4 Ounce) Diced Pimentos, Drained
• 2 cups Reserved Chicken Broth From Pot
• 1 teaspoon Lawry's Seasoned Salt
• 1/8 teaspoon (to 1/4 Teaspoon) Cayenne Pepper
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 1 cup Additional Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Preparation Instructions

Cook 1 cut up fryer and pick out the meat to make two cups. Cook spaghetti in same chicken broth until al dente. Do not overcook. When spaghetti is cooked, combine with remaining ingredients except additional 1 cup sharp cheddar.

Place mixture in casserole pan and top with remaining sharp cheddar. Cover and freeze up to six months, cover and refrigerate up to two days, or bake immediately: 350 degrees for 45 minutes until bubbly. (If the cheese on top starts to get too cooked, cover with foil).

Get to cookin'!

-Kaci