Friday

What a day, what a day! I have been running non-stop til now!

We got our van back last night (goodbye forever, Dodge Caravan!) and I had to take it back in today because the sliding door wouldn't shut. Turned out to be ice in the lock because they washed it before giving it back:)

This morning it was about -200 degrees and the doors of the van were frozen shut so all three kiddos (carseat and all) and I had to climb through the passenger door to get to school! Fun times.

Then, Zakkai (who had no school), Eliana and I checked out our new library for lots of books and came home in time for a fun lunch of hot chocolate, quesadillas baked in the oven and oranges:) Eliana had 2 major meltdowns today (Note to self: do NOT allow her to get overtired!!) that took forever to calm down. She really has to tell you when she is tired! The only thing she complains about:)

Then we rushed back to school to get Samuel, took the car by the autobody shop, went to HP to get Ben from school, came home to meltdown #2, made dinner, got kids in bed and now we are finally ready to have a little peace and quiet!!!


My lunch buddy:)

I shall leave you with a new favorite recipe!!

Southwest Chicken (in the Crockpot)

2 (15 oz ea) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (14 1/2oz) reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 can (14 1/2 oz) diced tomated with mild green chilies, undrained

1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast

1 jar (8 oz) salsa

1 cup corn

1 tsp ground cumin

3 cups hot cooked rice

Preparation:

1.Combine all ingredients except rice in a crockpot and cook on Low 6-8 hours or until a meat thermometer read 170 degrees.

2. Shred chicken with 2 forks and return to slow cooker; heat through. Serve with/over rice.

*We ate ours over the rice and IN homemade torillas(actually Indian Chapati bread but taste like homemade tortillas)! It was SOOO good! So good that I will even share the tortilla recipe with you:)

Homemade Indian Chapati Bread (or Tortillas:)

1 c. whole wheat flour

1 c. all-purpose flour (I was out of whole wheat and used both cups white this time)

1 tsp salt

2 TB olive oil

3/4 cup hot water

Preparation:
1. In lg bowl, stir together flours and salt. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the olive oil and enough water to make a soft dough that is elastic but not sticky. Turn dough out on a floured surface and knead until it is smooth.

2. Divide dough into 10 parts (or less if you want bigger breads) and roll each piece into a ball. Let rest a few minutes.

3. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat (I have found that some olive oil works better than just a spray) until hot. Roll balls of dough out on lightly floured suface until very thin like tortillas. When pan starts smoking a little, put a chapati/tortilla on it. It will bubble up; cook until underside has light brown spots on it, about 30 sec and flip over. Repeat with remaining dough.

*These are also really fantastic when you cook the second side with some parmesan or a pizza cheese on it and brown:)

Enjoy!!