100,000 views and a BIG change

I had no idea that the blog would explode like it has over the last month. Between Pinterest and searches online for recipes, our little blog has exploded into something I could never have dreamed of. Today, as I sat down to write this post, I found that we had hit 100,000 views.

What an amazing anniversary to have hit, as I announce our new blog...

http://thisworkmanlife.com

Yep guys, we are now a DOT COM. Head on over, subscribe via bloglovin so you don't miss out on any of the fun and recipes we've got in store (and trust me, I have more than a few waiting to be posted!), and join us as we start a whole new blogging adventure!

Carrie's Baby Shower

The lack of posting over here has not been for nothing. We've been busy! One of the reasons for our slower posting schedule is we were getting ready for Carrie's baby shower!

My sister in law, Amanda made these adorable centerpieces. Love how she incorporated a thank you in them too! So darling!

But this diaper carriage blew us all away - how darling is this?! Amanda included everything Carrie loves in it, frogs, purple, pink and all things adorable. 

I did the clothesline to this lovely set up. Isn't everything all put together just lovely? I thought it turned out really, really cute. 

Here are the favors that I made and put together. We didn't want to do just one of anything, so we did a little of everything, Lipsticks, lip gloss, nail polish, and hand sanitizers! 

My mother in law ordered the cake, isn't it cute?
Not just that, but it was TASTY. 

Us Workman's cannot have a normal party without a chicken salad sandwich.
Also, chips are a must. 

When it came to clothes and presents, this little girl will have plenty to wear!

And everything she got was simply adorable.

Shameless Carrie, her mom gave her her blessing gown and her old blankie...well whats left of it.

It was a beautiful baby shower and a fun night. It was so great being able to see family and friends and give Carrie and baby Dezarae the love they deserve as they start this new adventure in their lives. We love you Aunt Carebear! 

Easy Chicken Pot Pies

I hate to admit that I tried a recipe seen on Facebook. We all know what that means...that it was kidnapped from a blogger somewhere. I did try this recipe out, and we love it, so if anyone knows the original author, could you please message me? I want to link to them and thank them for the recipe. 

We put this dinner together after a long day at work, which makes the task of cooking dinner that much more daunting. I was surprised to see how easy it was to make! (And inexpensive!)

What you'll need:
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 canister of Pillsbury Grands rolls
1 can Libbys mixed veggies
1/2 cup cheese (top top it all off with)
1 chicken breast, cooked and chopped

How to do it:

1. Open up your Grands container and roll each roll out flat. Place each one into the slot of a greased muffin tin, pressing it flat and creating as much of a cave as possible inside of it.
2. Cook your chicken breast, and chop it into cubes. Place into a bowl, and mix with veggies and cream of chicken soup, stir well.

3. Add mixture into each dough cave, and top with cheese.
4. Bake according to directions on the Grands container, and wait a few moments after removing from oven to remove from tin (doing so while its hot will result in a MESS).

Serve and enjoy!

According to the world... (I'm a terrible mom)

According to the world, I am my worst nightmare.
The thing is, the world doesn't see what is going on, and the end result and the judgement, is unbelievable.
According to the world, I am a terrible mom.

__ __ __

According to the lady at Dollar Tree, I'm raising a brat.

She said this because when she entered the store my son was starting to get fussy. She had absolutely zero idea that he and I had been to five different stores, over the course of three hours, with little to no break and a snack he refused to eat still in the car. After much begging and trying to be a good mommy, I finally gave in and offered him a board book in exchange for him behaving himself.

She saw this and felt the need to inform me that I am raising a brat while we waited in line to check out.

What she didn't see, or hear, for that matter, was my son telling me "thank you", very excitedly as I handed it to him. She didn't see him tell everyone in the store how happy he was to have a new book. She didn't hear him thank the lady at the check-out when she handed the book back to him after scanning it. She didn't see any of the manners, or the sweet moment when we were leaving, and I told him I was frustrated with him being grumpy, how he threw his arms around my neck and told me "sorry, mommy."

Instead, she saw me raising a brat.
___ ___ ___

According to a friend on facebook, I'm a bad parent.

This was said because she witnessed a mom hand over her phone to her kids and let them watch videos on it during a meal at a restaurant. The kids were perfectly quiet and didn't disturb a soul, and even ate all their food when it came. I defended that action, because honestly, at one point or another, you do it to survive wherever you are.

We've done it at Wal-Mart, when the lines are long, I have coupons and ad-matches, and when the scanners are broken. Mommy and daddy, exhausted, tired, and trying not to lose it, hand over their phone and set it up so he can watch songs from Frozen. I've done it when I've had to take him with me to the doctors office. The doctor is an hour behind, Little dude is past naptime, and you're nerves are shot as you finally give in an set it up to Baby Einstein.

But instead of appreciating the silence, instead of being thankful the child in front of you isn't having a complete meltdown, instead of understanding; we're bad parents.

They don't even see the fact that it's on an educational video.
___ ___ ___

According to family, I'm too hard on my son.

Little Dude is an incredible boy. He loves to help and has the biggest heart. He WANTS to help, and if I don't give him ways to help, he "helps" in his own ways that are disastrous. They see me forcing my toddler to work, when in reality, he wants to be busy and productive.

They see me giving him rags with dish soap on them, and see him taking to the walls and to the kitchen, wiping everything down for me. They see him helping me make dinner, see him trying to help me vacuum, see him helping me get the mail, see him trying to help me sweep the floors. They see a toddler being turned into Cinderella.

What they don't see is the toddler at my feet in the kitchen, hugging my legs and screaming "Mommy! I help!" and this act continuing until I put his apron on and set up his stool. What they don't see is the toddler shoving me out of the way whenever the vacuum turns on so he can be the one to do it. What they don't see is the kid who actually will clean up his toys when asked, and who will sing and dance while we work.

Instead, they see me being "too hard" on my son.
___ ___ ___

According to the mommy blogger community, I don't do enough for my toddler. I'm holding him back.

I don't post every activity on Instagram. I don't post everything we do on the blog. I don't "Dear Diary" our lives like some mommy bloggers tend to do. That in turn is being seen as laziness as a mother, and apparently I do not do enough to keep his brain going and growing.

They don't see the daily coloring time we do. They don't see all the books we read. They don't see the trips to the park, or the dancing we do. They don't see how I set up a workout routine at home that my son and I can both do, to encourage hand-eye coordination. They don't see the snuggles, and the educational videos about animals. They don't see the hours spent on the floor playing with trucks, or the Pinterest board full of ideas that we are always working on.

I'm not like them. I don't tell everyone everything.

So instead, they see a complacent mom who doesn't do anything for her kid.
___ ___ ___

It's amazing, how hard we all fight for us to quit being so nasty to each other, yet this is just a 36 hour period in my life. There are so many other moments that I could describe in my day that makes me want to lose my mind at other people, other women, and other mommies, that are so out of line.

• Like the bitch who laid on her horn while my son and I were crossing the street. In a crosswalk. And we had the right of way. She yelled at me because I was letting him walk and it "took too damn long." 
• Or the rude lady at the store who got upset because my son was mimicking mommy and was looking through the clothing rack. No clothing was damaged, he was barely touching it, yet she was nasty with us.
• Like the jerks who openly comment on us allowing our son to sing when we are out in public. It's twinkle, twinkle Little Star, you d-bag, get over it. 
• Or the numerous amount of people who give us dirty looks when my son happily smiles at them and says "Hey! How are you?" He's being polite, yet they can not help encourage the good behaviors or manners. 

According to the world, I can do everything right, and it is still absolutely wrong. I can pay all the attention in the world to my son, I can work hard to make sure he knows how to act in public, I can be the best mom I can possibly be, and I will still be a terrible mom. 

I guess I'll have to deal with that title, it could certainly be worse. 

Broccoli Chicken Bake

This is a really easy recipe that I just threw together one evening. I had called Bubba and asked him what he wanted for dinner. His response was, "a delicious, pasta...something."
Challenge accepted.

Both of my boys ate seconds and thirds of this dish. It freezes really well and can be converted into lots of other dishes if you simply switch out the broccoli. 

What you'll need:
2 chicken breasts
1 packet of Italian Seasoning
1 bag frozen broccoli
1 box noodles
1 can cream of chicken soup

1-2 cups of cheese

How to do it:

1. Start off your dish by getting the noodles started (boil them in water) and placing the chicken on the stovetop to cook. Cover both chicken breasts in about 1/2 a packet of seasoning. Set the other half aside.
2. In a large baking dish, prep it with non-stick spray. Add the can of cream of chicken soup, and the other half of the seasoning. Set aside.
3. Once the noodles are boiled, begin to cook the broccoli on the stovetop. Add the noodles to the baking dish and stir it in with the sauce. Once the broccoli is finished cooking, add it as well.
5. The chicken breasts should finish last, and once finished cooking, cut into small cubes of chicken. After adding that last ingredient to the baking dish, top with 1-2 cups of cheese and bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Serve and Enjoy!

Homemade Funnel Cake

This recipe was one seen on Pinterest, one of the ones that has the recipe in the comments.
Thats how you know its an easy recipe, which really means its one I can safely attempt.

What You'll Need:
2 cups pancake mix
1 cup milk
2 eggs
Oil for frying

Topping suggestions:
Powdered Sugar
Chocolate Syrup/ Strawberry Syrup
Fresh Fruit

How to Make it:
1. In a bowl, mix all your ingredients with a whisk. Set aside.
2. In a saucepan, add about one inch of oil and set to medium heat.
3. Using an empty container (ketchup bottle for example) or an icing container (I used one from a $5 Betty Crocker Icing Set and it worked PERFECT), put batter into the container. Top with an easy squeeze tip.
4. Once the oil is heated and your container is full, begin to squirt it into the pan, creating a zig-zag pattern. You'll want it touching as much as possible, or else it will fall apart when you flip it.
5. Cook for about 60-90 seconds (or until golden brown) and then flip and cook again. Remove from oil and set onto a plate lined with paper towels or napkins.
6. Add your toppings, and serve while warm.

Enjoy!

Reeses Pieces Peanut Butter Brownies

My husband has the biggest sweet tooth of anyone that I know. And when it strikes...theres no going back.

The other day he informed me that he had a sweet tooth. I wanted to surprise him, so I took to the kitchen in the hopes of fulfilling the craving.
According to him, these bad boys really did the trick.

What you'll need: 

1 box Brownie Mix (yeah, we keep it classy here) & all it entails (eggs, oil, water)

1 box Reese Pieces

2-3 heaping spoonfuls of peanut butter

How to make it:

1. Make brownie mix as instructed on the box. Add 1/2 box of Reeses Pieces.

2. Prepare baking dish by spraying with cooking spray, and preheat the oven.

3. Add 1/2 the brownie batter to the baking dish.
4. Add your heaping spoonfuls of peanut butter into the brownie mix, then using a spatula, spread it over the brownie mix. (If you're having trouble getting it to spread, place the baking dish on top of the oven as its heating up. The heat from the oven will warm it and help it spread).
5. Add the other half of the brownie mix to the top, spread it so that it is even and then top with more Reeses Pieces.

Serve and enjoy!

Crockpot Mango Salsa Chicken

This recipe was entirely experimental. I had some foods I needed to use up and I wanted to try an all original recipe that I had never even considered before. Surprisingly, this turned out great! 

What you'll need:

2-3 chicken breasts, frozen

1/2 jar salsa (I used homemade salsa, that was chunkier)

1/4 jar of "super spicy" salsa (also homemade)

1 mango

1/4 cup water

How to do it:

1. In a crockpot, add all your ingredients. Dice mango before adding it to the mixture.

2. Cook on low for about 6-8 hours. Stir occasionally, and poke chicken with a fork during the cooking process to allow chicken to get moist and juicy.

3. Let sit for 20-30 mins on "keep warm", to allow the fruit juice to sweeten and to thicken.

4. Serve and enjoy!

Other Serving suggestions:

We ate it as was with chips. Little Dude loved it that way, but we decided if we were to ever make it again, we'd serve it on top of a salad or with other fresh food items, like green beans or oranges for a real flavor burst.

If you have any other serving suggestions, please add them in the comments below! 

Mani Monday: Purple

I've apparently been playing around with PicMonkey lately...and my backgrounds. 

I couldn't not post it...this is fantastic.
It's an awkward family photo of mani mondays.

BTW, this color is a beautiful color by Revlon. No idea what color it is, half the label is missing, including the color on the bottom.
Thats what you get for shopping at Wal-Mart. 

Fried Pickles Recipe

Over the weekend we had a football Sunday when Green Bay played the 49ers. My husband had requested football food in honor of this game, so I took to the kitchen, making some of our favorites: oven baked fries, chipotle raspberry wings, and then, when discovering an unopened jar of pickles, decided to make fried pickles.

If you've never had them before you may not like them. The first time I had them they were similar to this, and every time after it they were terrible. I'll tell you what makes them disgusting: corn meal or corn starch. Keep the corn away from this recipe kids. 

What you will need:

1 egg

1 cup flour

1 cup beer (I used Pabst)

Pickle Chips - I did both sweet and dill and they were great!

Oil for frying

1. Mix all your ingredients into a bowl. The beer will cause the batter to fizz for some time, so set aside, wait for fizz to dissolve and then stir some more. 

2. Remove your pickles from the jar and start to pat them dry using a paper towel. Set aside until batter is mixed well.

3. In a skillet pour some oil in and start to heat it up- medium heat works best. It will take a few moments to heat up, so you can dry more pickles at this time.

4. You'll need to create your own routine here to limit the mess - You'll dip a pickle into the batter, then drop it into the oil. Continue, doing about 5 pickles at a time. It'll take about two minutes for one side to cook.
5. Flip pickles and let cook for a few more moments. Prepare a plate with paper towels and once cooked, transfer pickles onto the plate. Repeat until all pickles are cooked.
6. Let cool and serve with dill ranch sauce or serve plain, which is just as delicious.

Enjoy!

Jolly Voxbox Review

I feel so lucky to have gotten some goodies from Influenster in the Jolly Voxbox. Let me start by saying - it was a PERFECT treat for me, after dealing with the INSANE holidays! Check out these fantastic treats that were tucked inside that beautiful pink box!

Skinny Cow Divine Chocolates

A chocolate treat I can use to help keep my diet up? YES PLEASE. If you've never had these before you'll want to pick some up and try them out - and better yet, they come 3 to a pack, with 6 pouches in a box. That is a lot of great chocolate! 

Ducktape Duckings

Basically the cutest thing ever, and something that I can use EVERYWHERE. I've already found uses for this adorable tape at home, at work and in our car. I need more Ducklings!

NYC Color Trio in HD.

I needed a new eyeshadow pallette, and this one has not failed me yet! It is perfect for the "subtle" makeup I have to wear to work, and it works great for my day to day makeup, making it more than perfect.
You and I both know I'll be picking up more palettes soon from NYC!

Puffs Plus Lotion

As a mommy these have been a lifesaver when it comes to being on the go during the holidays! We've already used this whole pack and are planning on getting more. They are super soft, don't shred apart and are durable, all things we need!

Rimmel London Show Off Lip Laquer

While it's not my favorite (its actually a pretty dry formula), I do love the color! Its not only pink, but has an orange hue to it, which is such a fun color for spring! You'll be seeing more of this soon! 

Thank you to Influenster for sending me the goodies! I love being an Influenster and testing out these fantastic products! 

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.