Friday, July 22, 2005

The 80's and Home Cookin'


This photo is me (left) and my sister, Kendra. Her birthday is this weekend :) Happy Birthday, Kendra. I love you! (gotta love those itchy 70's brush curlers!)


I love 80's music. I always have! I still have a huge collection of 45's, albums, and extended 12" mixes. The music of the 80's was just fun, silly, and had no meaning. The scary thing is I still remember the words to most of the songs. The song you are hearing, A-Ha's "Take On Me" was one of my high school drill team competition dance songs. haha :) I just love it! This video (playing at the right down the page) sure was cutting edge back in the 80's. I had an 80's layout published back in April in Memory Makers magazine. When they called me to ask for the layout for publication, I laughed! I thought, "oh great! Now the world is going to see my hideous high school photo with the mullet!" I guess that's what I get for submitting almost every layout I create. :)

I can not WAIT until tomorrow. My entire family is getting together to celebrate my sister Kendra's birthday. She's 17 months younger than I am. My Mom is cooking a huge meal for all of us. This is why I'm excited. She's been trying to sell her house for the past few months and so we have been gathering at our house most of the time instead of at her house. With 5 grandkids, and 4 of them being 5 and under, the house doesn't exactly stay in "showing" condition. But tomorrow we are all going to be there, gathered around the table together, celebrating Kendra's 35th birthday. The menu will include beef wellington, mashed potatoes, green salad, beans, yellow cake w/chocolate icing, chocolate and vanilla ice cream, and iced tea. I get my love of cooking from my Mom. She is an awesome cook. I'll have to share her Chicken and Dumplings recipe soon :)


Oh, boy! Got an email from Wendi this morning that our Design Team kits are shipping today. That means I should have mine tomorrow since Wendi and I live in the same city. I can't wait to get this August kit! I think those huge quotation marks are my favorite. I'll be scrapbooking this coming week to get layouts ready for the Limelight on Wendi's site. She also put up some cool new stamps today made from her own handwriting. It is soooo cool to be on Wendi's team. What a blessing to work with someone so dedicated to the Lord's will in her life and a company that is on it's way to the top of the stamping world! :)


The August kit from Wendi Speciale Designs


Today's recipe is one that I found on an AOL cooking board 5 years ago. It is SO good and one that I fix often. It's a tad spicy, depending on your *hot* tolerance. You can adjust it to your liking, though. I like to serve it with mashed potatoes and a couple of vegetables. It's also really good with macaroni and cheese :)

Skillet BBQ Chicken

1/4 c. butter or margarine
1 med. onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken , cut into large pieces
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. steak sauce (like A-1)
1/4 c. tomato sauce
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. hot pepper sauce (optional)
1/4 tsp. chili powder

In a large deep skillet, melt butter/margarine; add onions and garlic and cook 5-7 minutes, or until onion is tender. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to the skillet. Cook the chicken about 10-12 minutes, turning to deeply brown all sides. Meanwhile, combine rest of the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Pour over chicken, cover and cook 15-20 minutes over med-low heat, or until chicken is no longer pink inside, stirring occasionally. *Note: You can double the sauce ingredients to have enough left over to pour over rice or mashed potatoes. Enjoy! :)

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Thank you for reading my blog! If you'd like to leave a comment, just click on the blue "comments" word below. Have a wonderful weekend enjoying all of God's many gifts in your life! :)
- Jennifer


Someone once asked Billy Graham, "If Christianity is valid, why is there so much evil in the world?" To this the famous preacher replied, "With so much soap, why are there so many dirty people in the world? Christianity, like soap, must be personally applied if it is to make a difference in our lives."



4 comments:

Julia Sandvoss said...

Jennifer..love the song you chose and yep..I too did a pom pon rountine way back in the 80's to it too! Funny how this song never tires me!

And thanks for the tips on sizing the video..I'm going to see if that will help me with mine messing up things!

Julia

Heather said...

Oh Jennifer. .. love the 80s too! Hey, I have some 45s that I have because I haven't figured out what to do with them. Wanna add them to your collection? Don't know what I have . .. some Paula Abdul, Til Tuesday probably . . .LMK if you're interested. All mid-late 80s.

Heather said...

OH, and you had to show that stamp set, didn't you!?!?!?! ::vbg:: Falling in love!

Anonymous said...

Happy b-day to your cute sister. Enjoy the special family gathering at your mom's house - that sounds fun. You have a great weekend ahead! Savor it.

I sure hope you are feeling a bit better. I've been thinking of you.

Smooches and hugs girly!
~kelly