Chicken Strips

I've been wanting to post this for a LONG time, but...time is something I don't always have a lot of...well, a lot of extra time that is!  I love, love, love me some good 'ol chicken strips at a little down home diner...but, let's face it...sometimes you're really taking a chance.  Have you ever ordered them and been disappointed?  They have two much batter, they are burnt....and just not tasty!  Well...I fixed that...now we can have DELICIOUS chicken strips at home.  The usual suspects:

egg
flour
milk
boneless chicken tenders (save yourself some time, seriously, buy them at Costco)
salt & pepper
and..maybe not so usual.....PANKO breadcrumbs (these you should buy at the Asian Market, they are much less expensive)

Here are the bread crumbs for your viewing pleasure!!

I usually make an assembly line...first you dip them in flour, then and egg/milk (salt and pepper) mixture...then finally, in the Panko.  I coat ALL the tenders first..then I put them in a stainless skillet that's been warmed with canola oil.....

I cook them on both sides until they are lightly browned.  I used to cook them all the way through in the pan, but...that just doesn't work good.  It's takes too long from them to cook all they way through...and then they burn.  SO, I put them on a baking sheet with a wire rack and bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes....

Finally...you get to eat these yummy treats....YUM-O...ummmm...just in case you're wondering...that is not gravy made from scratch...I can't do that.  Well, I guess I haven't tried...but, this tastes sooooo good and is so easy!!  But, the corn is from our own frozen stash...how's that??  ENJOY!!

Fabulous FRIDAY!

On Friday Grammie & Mommy took Halle and her Cousin Kai to Stoneyridge Farm....oh my!  What fun we had!!  I just posted two of my favorite pictures...I love Kai and Halle on this pumpkin wagon.  AND...how Kai has that silly little grin on his face.  The next picture is Hal eating her very first candy necklace.  OH MY!  What a big mess, but...she had so much fun...can't wait until next year!!!

SECOND Birthday Party Pictures

This post is FULL of pictures...ENJOY!  I don't think words are necessary.  I made Hal's shirt and her Foster Mom, MaryLynne made her sooo cute pants....we partied at Grammie's and had a FABULOUS time!!  OH...I made the monkey cupcakes with Grammie's help as well.

 

Happy SECOND Birthday!!

Today is your 2nd birthday Miss Halle Grace...I CAN NOT believe this BIG girl was the very same almost 9 lb'er we flew home from Texas with.  At the time she was 2 months old....and OH SO cute, guess what??  She still is!!  Her Daddy is trying to train her young...as you can tell by the above picture.  We'll let him....he even got her a PINK camo shirt for her birthday.  It's pretty cute!!  We'll celebrate at Grammie's house today with her cousins, Auntie's & Uncles, Nana & Papa....and she is getting a BIKE!  I can't wait to see the look on her face!!

To my silly, stubborn little brown girl,
Today you are TWO!  You have been practicing with Mommy and Daddy how to say that when people ask you.  You're doing GREAT!  You, my little ray of sunshine are as silly as they come.  You are so quick to give kisses and make the "mmmmm" sound when you do that...that is ALWAYS followed up with "love you"....that's what we say to you when we give you a kiss, so I guess it came naturally.  You still LOVE books and being read to....and your love of all things "Veggie Tales" is ongoing....not to mention, Elmo & Miss Patty Cake....."Lady and the Tramp" comes in at a very close second.  I wish you were as passionate about mealtime as you are about playtime!  HEHE!  You do not like to eat much and  almost every meal we have to coax you through it.  It's gets very tiring for both Mommy & Daddy. We're hoping this year, you'll grow out of that???  You love your Grammie, Titi, Nana, Papa, Auntie, Uncle and cousins....and readily talk about them throughout the week.  This year has proved to be an amazing year of new things for you....you went from walking to running, you've mastered climbing and love slides and swings at the park....your love for animals has GROWN.....and I still see a puppy in our future...Nana calls you her "little farmer girl".  Happiness for you is your boots and a BIG backyard to roam in.  You enjoyed your Saturday's with Nana watering flowers and checking the vegetable garden...not to mention eating strawberries right out of Nana & Papa's patch!  Your little singsong voice following me around at home makes me smile and Mommy almost cried watching you sing to Miss Patty Cake the other day...motions and all.  It's not uncommon for me to hear, "more, more" from you after I've finished a song...I respond with "more what"??  Your answer to me "SINGING".  While on the subject of music it should be noted that you know what kind of music you want and when you want it!  Well, that's pretty much true for everything with you. BUT, honestly, when we get in the car you usually shout out the title of the song you would like to listen to.  Your favorites:  "Big Green Tractor" by Jason Aldean & "What I like about YOU" by the Romantics....you also like David Crowder and are starting to sing many of his songs along with Mommy....It's so super cute to hear you say "Hallelujah"!  You're getting so big and it's a lot harder to snuggle with you at night before bed...you just don't fit well!  BUT, we'll keep doing it until you don't let Mommy and Daddy anymore.  YOU our little brown girl still bring us much joy and laughter....you love life and everything that it's about....you do challenge every boundary we give you and definitely keep us on our toes.  We are so thankful that our Jesus brought you into our lives....it was kinda boring before you came!  We pray that this your second year is filled with more wonder and amazement...continued learning and growing...your letters, colors & numbers...and more importantly Jesus' love for you!

We love you Halle Grace Louella,
Mommy & Daddy too....

LaConner -- Celebrating Birthdays!

Over Labor Day Weekend we jam-packed a BUNCH of stuff in....On Sunday we loaded Halle up after a short nap and drove to LaConner.  Aunt Ione & Uncle Ron were camping out there and our extended family would all be there to celebrate Jessie & Evan's birthdays.  Jess turned 17 on August 31 and Evan will turn 16 on September 11.  We made sure we were all dressed for the beach....good thing!!  Halle ABSOLUTELY loved it.....good thing she had her super cute boots on!!  Thanks TiTi for those!!  We spent time practicing our rock throwing skills and just walked and walked the beach!  Hal loved picking blackberries right off the bushes and was very well behaved.  PHEW!  We only had a meltdown when she wasn't allowed to walk RIGHT into the water.  Silly Girl!!