Monday, May 4, 2015
Requesting Jamberry Samples
I'm so excited!!! I finally figured out how to set up sample request forms for my Jamberry business! This is such a big deal for me. It's something I have wanted to do for some time, but never got around to. Now I am super motivated to continue blogging, getting myself back in shape, cleaning and eating right! How are all these thing tied together you ask? Stay tuned for the explanation and more details about what's been happening out here on Ponderosa!
Saturday, January 3, 2015
I'm Back!
It's been a while! Now that is an understatement. It's been 2 1/2 years since my last post and SO MUCH has changed and a lot has stayed the same!
Biggest change...our family grew by one! At the end of May 2014 I gave birth to our sweet daughter, Lily. She was quite the surprise for us as we thought our family was complete, but the Lord had other plans. She has stolen all of our hearts and filled a hole we never new was there! She is an amazing blessing to our family and has forced me to work harder on being "girly".
Biggest change...our family grew by one! At the end of May 2014 I gave birth to our sweet daughter, Lily. She was quite the surprise for us as we thought our family was complete, but the Lord had other plans. She has stolen all of our hearts and filled a hole we never new was there! She is an amazing blessing to our family and has forced me to work harder on being "girly".
Enter change #2! No that is not a hashtag, that is a number sign! I started my own business as an Independent Consultant for Jamberry Nails. Being introduced to this AMAZING product has changed me! I always wanted pretty nails, but could never get the polish to stay and now #becauseofjamberry (yep, that's a hashtag), I can have pretty nails and feel the need to be more girly!
For more information on Jamberry visit my website at: sarahpackard.jamberrynails.net or like my Facebook page here. To subscribe to Jamberry emails from me click here.
Stay tuned for more family updates, Jamberry awesomeness and yummy recipes!
Monday, July 9, 2012
Moving Up the List
Every year for the past three of four years we have been attending Railroad Days and every year I dread going out and melting in the extreme heat. Why on Earth would anyone have such an event (or any event for that matter) in the middle of July?! This year the event is moving up the list on what I am most excited for this summer. My husband works for Union Pacific and this is an exciting year for them. This year marks the 150th anniversary of President Lincoln signing the Pacific Railway Act establishing Union Pacific Railroad. This year we will have the opportunity to see the original Pacific Railway Act signed by President Abraham Lincoln as well as a rare collection of photographs illustrating the construction of railroad from Omaha to Utah, and many more exciting exhibits. Okay truth be told, I have to admit over the years this event has slowly grown on me (with the exception of the heat). Really you can't beat $15 for an entire family to see five metro area attractions. What are those attractions you may ask? The Durham Museum, Lauritzen Gardens, the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, the Historic Dodge House, and the RailsWest Railroad Museum. Normally if we wanted to visit all five attractions as a family it cost of $60+. So you can see it's quite a bargain. This year they added an additional attraction, the Joslyn Art Museum so we are getting an $80+ day for the bargain price of $15 and they throw in transportation (okay, it's a school bus, but what do you expect for that price)! Now that's what I call savings!
Monday, June 25, 2012
Recipe Discovery
I recently had the opportunity to help a friend with the food for her daughter's wedding reception and in the process discovered some out of this world recipes! A few I didn't get to try, but looked and smelled delicious. Here's what I found:
Wonton Cups with Cream Cheese and Chutney - The filling on these little appetizers was absolutely divine! We used mango-ginger chutney from Trader Joe's and skipped putting the chives on top. I didn't try one in the wonton cup, but I could have eaten all of the filling on it's own...must try this appetizer recipe if you get the chance.
Smoked Paprika Shredded Pork with Orange Fennel Marmalade - Didn't get to a chance to try this one, but the smell alone is reason enough to make it. The smell in the kitchen was the most wonderful meat potpourri!
Mini Quiches - These were made sans asparagus and with store bought pie crust, but still quite yummy. These smelled absolutely divine when they were cooked, the Gruyere gave them a wonderful nutty flavor.
Zesty Marinated Olives - Now, I'm not an olive eater, but upon opening these up after marinating them a couple of days, I had to try one. They were absolutely delicious and I would imagine you could use the same marinade on various different items.
Croquettes with Serrano Ham and Manchego Cheese - These are an absolute pain to make, but smelled wonderful. I didn't try any mostly because I'm not a fan of ham. Serrano ham was difficult to find, so we substituted prosciutto.
Vegetable Sushi - This was so much fun to make and was really quite good. I would recommend watching a how to video on YouTube before attempting to make it. We rolled it using a $2 bamboo mat we found at a local asian market. The sushi dipping sauce was a snap to make and complimented the vegetable sushi well.
Chicken Satay Skewers - I can't say enough good things about this recipe. Not only is it really simple to make, but it also has tons of flavor, and the chicken stays most and tender. The chicken is excellent on it's own and adding the peanut sauce gives it an entirely different flavor.
Artichoke Turnovers - If you love artichokes, this is the recipe for you. They are quite easy to assemble, but are a little pricey to make. They have a lot of flavor, but if you don't like artichokes, stay away.
Tomato-Avocado Toasts - I don't care much for avocados so I skipped trying this one. It was really simple though, my only recommendation would be to use the avocado mixture sparingly or doubling the amount you make.
Cucumber Bites with Garlic Herb Filling - These were absolutely fantastic and super easy to make. I LOVE Boursin cheese, so naturally I would love these. The cucumber adds a freshness to this recipe, but beware of the bitter cucumber. The first one I tried was really bitter and I couldn't get the taste out of my mouth. The second, was much better. I've made these before and added store bought hummus to them, makes them even easier.
Hope the next time you have guests for dinner or throw a party you try one of these delicious recipes. Happy Eating!
Wonton Cups with Cream Cheese and Chutney - The filling on these little appetizers was absolutely divine! We used mango-ginger chutney from Trader Joe's and skipped putting the chives on top. I didn't try one in the wonton cup, but I could have eaten all of the filling on it's own...must try this appetizer recipe if you get the chance.
Smoked Paprika Shredded Pork with Orange Fennel Marmalade - Didn't get to a chance to try this one, but the smell alone is reason enough to make it. The smell in the kitchen was the most wonderful meat potpourri!
Mini Quiches - These were made sans asparagus and with store bought pie crust, but still quite yummy. These smelled absolutely divine when they were cooked, the Gruyere gave them a wonderful nutty flavor.
Zesty Marinated Olives - Now, I'm not an olive eater, but upon opening these up after marinating them a couple of days, I had to try one. They were absolutely delicious and I would imagine you could use the same marinade on various different items.
Croquettes with Serrano Ham and Manchego Cheese - These are an absolute pain to make, but smelled wonderful. I didn't try any mostly because I'm not a fan of ham. Serrano ham was difficult to find, so we substituted prosciutto.
Vegetable Sushi - This was so much fun to make and was really quite good. I would recommend watching a how to video on YouTube before attempting to make it. We rolled it using a $2 bamboo mat we found at a local asian market. The sushi dipping sauce was a snap to make and complimented the vegetable sushi well.
Chicken Satay Skewers - I can't say enough good things about this recipe. Not only is it really simple to make, but it also has tons of flavor, and the chicken stays most and tender. The chicken is excellent on it's own and adding the peanut sauce gives it an entirely different flavor.
Artichoke Turnovers - If you love artichokes, this is the recipe for you. They are quite easy to assemble, but are a little pricey to make. They have a lot of flavor, but if you don't like artichokes, stay away.
Tomato-Avocado Toasts - I don't care much for avocados so I skipped trying this one. It was really simple though, my only recommendation would be to use the avocado mixture sparingly or doubling the amount you make.
Cucumber Bites with Garlic Herb Filling - These were absolutely fantastic and super easy to make. I LOVE Boursin cheese, so naturally I would love these. The cucumber adds a freshness to this recipe, but beware of the bitter cucumber. The first one I tried was really bitter and I couldn't get the taste out of my mouth. The second, was much better. I've made these before and added store bought hummus to them, makes them even easier.
Hope the next time you have guests for dinner or throw a party you try one of these delicious recipes. Happy Eating!
Monday, May 7, 2012
Good Intentions
We were supposed to have Simple Scrumptious Grilled Chicken for dinner tonight. I was ready for dinner. Marinated the chicken for four hours, made the sauce (which was fantastic) and started the grill. So excited to finally be eating this meal. I placed the chicken strips on the grill and went inside to set the table. Anyone want to venture a guess what happened next? No, well the doorbell rings and I answer looking oh so lovely after my workout but no shower. (I know gross, but it was dinner time.) Went outside to flip the chicken only to find it completely raw! I had run out of propane! I can't believe it. Someone does not want me to make this meal. I couldn't let the sauce go to waste though....I ate most of it by itself. It was heavenly.
Food This Week
Alright, I'm starting to see a trend here. I plan a weeks worth of meals and then only cook two to three of the meals. Why do I do this to myself. Well quite honestly, I love reading recipes. When I read a recipe I can almost taste what the finished product will be. Unfortunately I sometimes let myself down.
Once again last week I only made a couple of recipes. So you will see a few repeats. I also had trouble finding a couple of ingredients so I am still on the hunt for them. Tuesday is my regular grocery day, so I am off to hunt some more tomorrow. I will continue to plan a weeks worth of recipes at a time in hopes of someday achieving my goal.
Monday - Simple Scrumptious Grilled Chicken
Tuesday - Korean-Grilled Beef Skewers
Wednesday - Gnocchi in Vanilla Brown Butter Sauce with Baby Spinach & Toasted Hazelnuts
Thursday - Chicken Piccata
Angel Hair Pasta
Salad
Friday - Date Night!!!
Saturday - Family Date Night
Sunday - Mother's Day at my Mother-in-law's (FONDUE!)
Monday - Moroccan Bean & Pepper Stew
Tuesday - Garlic & Herb Marinated Chicken
Roasted Rosemary Fingerling Potatoes
Salad
Wednesday - Ropa Vieja
Once again last week I only made a couple of recipes. So you will see a few repeats. I also had trouble finding a couple of ingredients so I am still on the hunt for them. Tuesday is my regular grocery day, so I am off to hunt some more tomorrow. I will continue to plan a weeks worth of recipes at a time in hopes of someday achieving my goal.
Monday - Simple Scrumptious Grilled Chicken
Salad
Tuesday - Korean-Grilled Beef Skewers
Wednesday - Gnocchi in Vanilla Brown Butter Sauce with Baby Spinach & Toasted Hazelnuts
Thursday - Chicken Piccata
Angel Hair Pasta
Salad
Friday - Date Night!!!
Saturday - Family Date Night
Sunday - Mother's Day at my Mother-in-law's (FONDUE!)
Monday - Moroccan Bean & Pepper Stew
Tuesday - Garlic & Herb Marinated Chicken
Roasted Rosemary Fingerling Potatoes
Salad
Wednesday - Ropa Vieja
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Holding Court
Last night was crazy! By crazy I mean epic storm, sounded like a freight train was going through our back yard! The storm was amazing and if I had not had little children to care for I probably would have opened the blinds and watched the storm from the family room. There was a fantastic lightning display, tons of rain, a little hail and high winds. The funny thing was we were never issued a watch or warning for severe thunderstorms. These storms were most definitely severe. I could have sworn that one of our windows was going to be blown out. The glass looked like saran wrap, the wind was so strong the glass in the windows was moving. The storms hit about 4 a.m. and due to the freight train we heard in the backyard thought we should check on the boys. Of course our youngest was sound asleep and oblivious to what was going on and the oldest asked if there was going to be a tornado. He is so eager to experience his first tornado - if I haven't said it before I'll say it now, this child amazes me. We told him to go back to sleep and if he had trouble sleeping he should come down to our room and he could sleep on our couch. Needless to say we had an extra child in our room this morning.
We woke up this morning to find all our patio furniture and planters strewn across our lawn (so wish I had thought to take a picture). And the garden we had been attempting to start from seed (an experiment in expanding the oldest's diet) was scattered across the patio. This last little problem was entirely my fault I had forgotten that I put the pods outside and hope they survive their torturous night. As we were surveying the area we saw this:
So glad our brand new playset escaped this fate. Pretty sure if we had, the boys would be able to add a few choice words to their vocabulary.
After retrieving all of our lawn furniture we got ready for church. After our church service was over, as we were leaving the chapel some friends of ours stopped to talk and our oldest began a detailed description of what we woke up to this morning, including the fate of our neighbors playset. He held court with five adults who were so engaged in the story I thought we would never be able to leave. They kept asking questions and he just kept answering them. When we finally said our good-byes he proceeded out of the chapel talking the entire time to no one in particular and anyone who would listen. He had several adults very amused. This is my precocious child:
He is sometimes too smart for his own good and has little to no fear (he's been that way since the day he was born). He is the most curious child (should have named him George). He says the funniest things and makes some of the most amazing observations and apparently is a fantastic story teller. Maybe he'll be a writer when he grows up.
We woke up this morning to find all our patio furniture and planters strewn across our lawn (so wish I had thought to take a picture). And the garden we had been attempting to start from seed (an experiment in expanding the oldest's diet) was scattered across the patio. This last little problem was entirely my fault I had forgotten that I put the pods outside and hope they survive their torturous night. As we were surveying the area we saw this:
 |
After retrieving all of our lawn furniture we got ready for church. After our church service was over, as we were leaving the chapel some friends of ours stopped to talk and our oldest began a detailed description of what we woke up to this morning, including the fate of our neighbors playset. He held court with five adults who were so engaged in the story I thought we would never be able to leave. They kept asking questions and he just kept answering them. When we finally said our good-byes he proceeded out of the chapel talking the entire time to no one in particular and anyone who would listen. He had several adults very amused. This is my precocious child:
He is sometimes too smart for his own good and has little to no fear (he's been that way since the day he was born). He is the most curious child (should have named him George). He says the funniest things and makes some of the most amazing observations and apparently is a fantastic story teller. Maybe he'll be a writer when he grows up.
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