Buffalo Chicken Dip

This recipe was originally published February 6, 2009. It is one of our favorite dips, my husband frequently requests it!

1 pound chicken breasts, boiled & finely shredded

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce

8 ounces cream cheese

Blue cheese dressing

1 cup shredded mozzarella

Toss chicken with butter and wing sauce. Marinate for 30 minutes. Spread cream cheese in bottom of small baking dish (12-inch cast iron, 8×8 baking dish). Spread chicken on top of cream cheese, then spread blue cheese on top. Sprinkle mozzarella, and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips.

Linked to: Tasty Tuesday

Book Review: Captured by Grace

Grace is a word that’s often used in our culture, people “say grace” over meals and it’s even a popular name for girls but we rarely think of the gift of grace that God has given those who ask forgiveness.

In Captured by Grace, Dr. David Jeremiah breaks the book into 3 main parts, Grace for the Past, Grace for the Present and Grace for the Future. He uses the words to the timeless hymn, Amazing Grace,written by John Newton and the life of the Apostle Paul to explore the beauty of God’s grace. ”No one is beyond the rech of a loving God,” and Dr. David Jeremiah illustrates God’s grace to a slave trader (John Newton) and a persecutor of the church (Paul).

This was a book that I didn’t want to put down. The stories of John Newton and Paul were beautiful examples of God’s grace and proof that God radically changes lives! I really enjoyed reading more about the origins of the hymn as well as an in depth view of the lives of John Newton and Paul.

I would recommend this book for anyone who is struggling with understanding and accepting God’s forgiveness.

Disclosure: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Laundry Enemy

Oh laundry…you are quickly becoming my enemy! I have always loved doing laundry, especially neatly folding everything.

It seems like lately if I can remember to wash before my husband runs out of underclothes I’m doing good!

Then once I get things washed I often neglect the folding!

And then once they’re folded they just sit!

Here’s the evidence:

What’s not pictured is the other laundry hamper in the closet…yeah, it often looks just like this!

Here’s more evidence from earlier this week! (And I realized I’m also sharing the fact that my bed was never made!) Notice that the whites are somewhat molded in the shape of a clothes basket! Yeah, they stayed in there that long!

Another shot of our mess! But if you look very closely on the pillow you will see progress: one folded handkerchief (I am a hankie user!)

Ah, baby clothes and kitchen towels awaiting placement in their proper “homes”!

Once Paxton moved to his crib over 2 months ago the pack ‘n play just stayed…John David has lowered it though, if it was up to me it’d still be like this! And, I’ve found that it makes an excellent “laundry catcher” for those nights when we just want to push the clean clothes off of the bed but not into the floor!

Of  course I have much better things to do than keep up with the laundry these days:

This little man doesn’t care about clothes! He’s just happy in a diaper! (And I have *mostly* mastered doing the diaper laundry, thankfully!)

Linked to: Friday Fails

Seventh Generation Natural Baby Starter Kit Giveaway

As a cloth diapering mama, I’ve found that I can’t always cloth diaper my baby. There are times that it is easier to use disposables (like overnight trips!)

In the first few weeks, we used disposable diapers before we started cloth diapering. Once he started wearing cloth diapers full time at home and only wearing disposables when we were on the go, I noticed that the disposables had a smell! The “diaper smell”scent it made his soiled diapers smell just horrible! I knew there had to be an unscented disposable diaper!

Then I was introduced to Seventh Generation Diapers:

• Wood pulp processed without chemicals containing chlorine
• Hypoallergenic
• Fragrance and latex free
• Premium fit and absorbency

The light tan diapers make them look different than other diapers. One of my favorite features is the stretchy tabs and the fit of these diapers is great.

With a breastfeed baby (and the explosions and blowouts that come with that) how did they do? They were great! They had a high rise on the back and contained messes. He did have a little poop up the back one time but it was only a little bit and it was a huge dirty diaper! Other than that I never had any problems and never had any leaks with the wet diapers! (Other brands…let’s just say when he has to wear disposables I’m super prepared with tons of wipes and extra clothes!)

Looking cute in his diaper!

I also tried out the Seventh Generation Baby Wipes. They were okay wipes, they were a little thin and I found that I needed to use 2 or 3 wipes to clean up most dirty diapers. However, the fact that they are also hypoallergenic and unscented makes them a great option for babies with really sensitive skin.

Giveaway:

Win a Seventh Generation Natural Baby Starter Kit including Chlorine Free Diapers (in the size you need), Chlorine Free Wipes, Baby Laundry Liquid, Disinfecting Wipes, All Purpose Cleaner and a few more products (I’ll let you enjoy a surprise when the package arrives!)

Mandatory Entry:

Leave a comment telling me why you want to try out Seventh Generation Diapers!

Additional Entries: (leave a separate comment for each)

1. Tell me who the diapers would be for!

2. Tweet about this giveaway.

Giveaway ends Saturday, August 28 at 12:00 pm CST.

Disclaimer: I was provided a Seventh Generation Natural Baby Starter Kit to review. I was not compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Four Months

Yesterday our handsome little man was 4 months old! (Where does the time go?) He weighs 16 pounds 3 ounces and is 26 inches long!

(Visit our family blog, The Simple Life of the Boreings to read about milestones from this past month!)

Linked to: Wordless Wednesday

A Different Perspective on Pregnancy

This post was written by my sister, Rebekah. It’s a beautiful story of God’s forgiveness, grace and love. Not every woman is thrilled to learn it’s positive when they take a pregnancy test but each one of those babies are blessings!

Rebekah and 3-day-old Emerson

I was 19 when I found out I was pregnant.  I had just started my sophomore year in college and it was a nightmare.  Not only was I pregnant, but I was not in a relationship with the baby’s father; this was not exactly an ideal situation.  I was so scared about what my parents and friends would think and say.  I think I was even more nervous about going to church pregnant and unmarried.  I told my parents and they were pretty supportive, upset of course, but supportive.  My mother and I did get into a few arguments and she said some things that really hurt my feelings, but I know she was just as upset about everything as I was.

So many people that I talked to acted like it was no problem at all.  “You can take care of it” or “just get it fixed” were common remarks and an abortion seemed to be a simple “solution” to the problem.  Even though my parents already knew I was pregnant it would be so easy for me to just tell them I had a miscarriage.  But I couldn’t do it.  I had never even considered having an abortion if I got in this situation and now that I was in it an abortion was certainly not an option for me.  I knew things would be hard and some people would think badly of me, but I had made the decision to have sex and this baby was not something I could just get rid of like it never existed.

Each month was difficult for me.  Often I felt like no one cared and that I was a loser and a screw up.  I kept wishing that things would go back to normal, but I knew that realistically this was my life.  I was going to be a single mom and I needed to prepare for it whether I wanted to or not.  During my pregnancy my relationship with the Lord actually improved.  I had been a Christian for several years, although I had made poor decisions on many occasions, but I felt like I was closer to the Lord than ever.  Even though I was in a bad situation I knew that everything would be ok and towards the end of my pregnancy I was actually happier than I had been in a long time.

Emerson Alexandria was born on Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 9:54 am.  I couldn’t believe that this little bundle was actually my daughter.  It took a few months for me to realize that I was a mommy and the “unconditional love” didn’t set in for a couple months either.  I felt like something was wrong with me and that I wasn’t going to be a good mom.  After a while, however, I continued to fall more and more in love with my little girl.

Today I don’t know what I would do without her.  I love holding her in my arms and my favorite thing to do now is take naps with her lying on my tummy.  She has made me become a better person and has made me realize that I need to enjoy life and what I have and not take things for granted.  Although my situation is certainly not ideal and what God intended, I know that this happened for a reason.  I am so glad I made the decision to keep my baby and not “fix the problem” like I was encouraged to do.  Babies are not choices, they are a life.  We should not have the decision to terminate a life that God has created.  All people are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” and seeing how every person starts off as a baby, this applies to them also.  Emerson is the best thing that has ever happened to me and I know that every other baby can bring just as much joy as she has.

Celebrating Emerson’s First Birthday!

Rebekah is now 21 and is a wonderful mother to her little girl! She graduated with her Associates degree this past May and is starting classes in a few short weeks for her Elementary Education Degree. Emerson is 14 months old and into everything but such a blessing to our family!