Jambalaya

I was looking for a dish to take with us for deer camp and wanted a one pot dish.I may have out done myself!  I just found my new favorite comfort food recipe!  Who wouldn't like chicken, shrimp and sausage in one dish?  Jambalaya has always been one of my favorite dishes.  Now I have the perfect recipe.  And it is so easy!

Let me know what you think!  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Jambalaya

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 green pepper diced
• 1/2 red/orange/yellow pepper diced
• 1 onion diced
• 3 stalks of celery sliced
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 lbs chicken, cut 1inch pieces
• 1/2 lbs sausage, cut in 1/2 inch slices
• 1 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp (I take tails off)
• 1 can dice tomatoes
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3 cups uncookd white rice
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried thyme

Cooking Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in the Dutch oven over medium heat.  Stri in the chicken until no longer pink, set aside.  Cook the sausage, then set aside.  Cook shrimp, then set aside.   
2. Add the onions, bell peppers and celery; season with salt Cajun seasoning.  Cook and stir until the they are soft, 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the rice and dice tomatotes and chicken broth, bay leaves and thyme.  Add all the meats back in and bring to a boil, and then simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Remove pot from heat and let it sit for 5 minutes.  Discard bay leaves, serve and enjoy!

Speedway in Lights 5k 2015

It was a cool crisp evening with tons of people all around ringing in the festive season with a stroll around the Bristol speedway grounds.  

I ventured out with my three musketeers, was that wise?  
To give them an evening of lights and some rigorous exercise.  

It was a fun evening had by all.  And to top it all off, the proceeds go for a good cause!

Happy Holidays and hope your season is bright!  

Speedway In Lights

Every year Bristol Motors Speedway decorates their race tracks with lights and spectacular holiday scenes to raise money for the Bristol Speedway Children's Charities.  They open the event up with a 5k for participants to run or walk around to take in the sights by foot.  They then welcome vehicles to drive through the tracks throughout the holiday season.  They run midway rides and an ice skating rink for visitors to enjoy.  

It's a great evening of fun, and I highly recommend it if you're in the Bristol area between Thanksgiving and New Years!

8th Annual Race for Ian

What is hemophilia? It's a blood disorder which a person's blood does not clot properly due to a missing clotting component. Treatment alone cost about 100k a year! 

A Race for Ian is an event hosted by a family affected by the blood disease. All the proceeds raised during this annual event goes to finding a cure for Hemophilia.

I first met the family three years ago while looking for daycare for my son. The mother is the owner of Little Bo Peeps and runs an excellent program that prepares the children for future academic success. The family is the sweetest with hearts of gold. Their son, Ian, battles with the danger blood disorder. 

This was my first time running this annual event and I came in with the time of 38:25. I plan to run this event each year to support this family's cause and will improve my run each year. 

Project: THANKFUL

I am really excited about starting the next Challenge Group!  I am teaming up with some amazing Coaches to tie Fitness and the Thanksgiving Spirit! 

Last year they donated 27 meals to those in need during the Thanksgiving holidays!  For every inch lost, a meal was donated on behalf of the challengers!  That's awesome!  I hope this year is just as successful!   

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It's not too late to take advantage of October's promotional Challenge pack offers of 21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, and Body Beast!  They are world class fitness programs that you can do in the comfort of your home!  No commute, saves time, and you will love your results! 
 
I love being a Coach and being a part of this culture where I can help people improve their health and wellness.  But, to be able to incorporate helping those in need really ignites my passion to do my best in this venture and share my journey!  I am thrilled to be a part of something bigger than myself!
Click here to join this Challenge Group.

 

A hunting we will go

For me, there is no better feeling than being one with nature and in the elements.  Sitting in a tree and being truly unplugged, listening to the leaves actually falling from the trees and the wind travelling through the woods, it gives me the calmness and peace like no place on earth.

Growing up in Florida, I didn't know anything about deer hunting!  I thought deers were cute and the most famous one I knew was Bambi.  That's about the extent of it.  Nationally, about 5% of the population hunt, and roughly the same percentage actively oppose hunting.  The rest of the population is predominantly neutral.

Once I moved up to Minnesota to be with My Paul Bunyan, I quickly learned about this ever so popular sport that is pretty much its own holiday season.  As a newcomer, I was shocked but the openness and acceptance of it all throughout the whole midwestern region!  And quickly,  I too was swept in by the "buck fever".  

Halloween Costumes

When it comes to holidays and holiday decor, I have a hard time parting with my money and really getting festive with it! I don't know if it's because it's temporary or maybe I'm too broke, or that I lack vision to come up with good ideas!  Whatever the case may be, I know I want to celebrate and acknowledge the holidays so that my three musketeers can get excited about them. Without breaking the bank.

Here are my twins and this year's costume choices.  As you can tell by the photo, they are super thrilled about this idea!

Happy Fall and Chili Season

There's a chill is the air with the changing of the seasons.  Hurricane Joaquin has dumped a lot of rain and is causing some flooding along the east coast.

The season of change at my house is no exception.  The twins have graduated out of their cribs to twin beds!  They were so excited when we were setting up the beds and rearranging their room. But when it came to bedtime, it was a different story and they weren't so sure.  They cried for comfort in their strange new setting and their new beds.  They managed to fall asleep after an hour of getting up and coming out of their room three times.

The next day, we woke up to them in the living room watching TV.  They have learned how to operate the remote at a tender age of not even two.  I think they are loving their new found freedom. Naptime, on the other hand, is a whole other story and is something that we will have to work diligently on to establish a new routine.

Chilly weather and weekends are perfect for crockpot meals!  Add football, and we've got our agenda for the weekend.  My husband grabbed our favorite red chili recipe and loaded up the crockpot!  You would think that it would last a few days, but not so much in this house.  It will be gone by the end of the weekend.

I am really excited to share this delicious chili recipe as my first clean eating entry to my blog!  It comes from our dear friend Tracy who use to be our neighbor in MN.  She is a hospice nurse and is a wonderful person inside and out.  Thank you for sharing this recipe with us, Tracy!

Enjoy and bon appetite!

Chili

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp accent
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp celery salt
• 15 oz red chili beans
• 2 cups celery chopped
• 1 cup onions chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 quart (4 cups) cooked tomatoes
• 3 cups water
• 2 Tbsp chili powder

Cooking Directions

1. Brown ground beef and drain. Then add all the ingredients into your crockpot and cook on high for 4 hours.
2. Optional: Top you bowl of chili with sharp cheddar cheese and diced onions.