Sweet Garlic Chicken

I made the BEST CHICKEN EVVVEEERRRR the other night from a recipe I found on Pinterest and let me tell you...it's my new stand-by when I don't want to do much cooking. The prep took about 15 minutes at most, minimal clean-up and only 15 min in the oven. Made some minute rice and a quick spinach salad...dinner is done. Now we're talking!

Sweet Garlic Chicken

4 chicken breasts
4 garlic cloves
3 tbs olive oil
4 tbs brown sugar

(I used 6 little chicken tenders/cutlets. They cook quicker and there's less yucky stuff to clean off of them because they're so small)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place chicken in a greased baking dish and set aside. Heat oil in a small skillet. Add garlic until brown. Remove from heat and add brown sugar. Stir together and completely combine. Cover chicken with garlic/sugar mix. Season with salt and pepper and put it in the oven. Cook for 15-30 minutes depending on size of the chicken. (The cutlets took about 15 and were perfect!)

SO GOOD!

Happy Birthday!

This last week, my parents came to visit to celebrate my mom and the hubby's birthdays! It was so great to spend time with them even if it was short. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend!

*Walking to the car with Daddy/Playing in the sand with Poppa/Relaxing with Grammy/Tate enjoying his walk from the beach*

<3

We went to Newport to the dog beach (which apparently really isn't a dog beach...and it's illegal to have dogs there...but whatever). It was awesome! Nothing makes me happier than seeing my little guy with people I love :)

We got some really great food in Costa Mesa at this place called Plums which I'm really kind of obsessed with right now. If you live in the area, GO! Highly recommend the crab omelet! (I'll post a pic of it next time I get it).

There's also a really cute store about two doors down from the restaurant that sells upscale knick-nacks...soaps, candles, books, etc. and since I knew Hubby's birthday was coming up, I couldn't help but to pick up a few things...

 I'm in love with these. I have so many things from the company who made the post-its (a company called "Knock Knock") including note pads that say "Dear Douchebag," "WTF," etc. I like to casually leave them about the house ;) My mom actually tried to make me feel REALLY bad for buying J the card and even embarrassed me at the register but I had to get it. He's so far from a jerk it's comical that I would ever seriously get him something like that, so I just had to do it. He actually loved it! And the note cards! DUH!! 

Count, Dagmar!

Holy moly, is this a hit in our house!! A was about 3 months old when we first got him this book around Halloween. He used to love looking at the awesome drawings while I read to him.

Now, at 18 months, he asks me to read this to him over...and over..........and over again in just one sitting. There are tons of flaps which he is ALL about right now and he's even learning some counting basics as we count the different objects on each page. We are so in love with this book that it's nearly falling apart after only a year (I've already super-glued some of the flaps back on lol!) and the hubby and I have discussed buying a few of these to have on back up and even to keep at the grandparents' houses.

It is SO awesome to see someone so little love reading so much. It warms my heart every time he runs to me with this book or when I find him sitting in the corner by himself flipping through and talking to himself ..."reading." ;) It's definitely a must-have, especially for boys!

Skull Slippers

Baby's new slippers :) Getting the size right was a pain in the BUTT but they're done and I really love them! I can't wait to get a picture of him in them.

Sock Monkey Love

I don't know about you but we have a sock monkey obsession in this house. I had no idea they were popular right now but we have always loved them! We even have one that my grandma made for me 20-something (yes, I'm staying vague ha!) years ago that we got to put up in Baby's room. So when I saw this pattern, I about died of joy.

My baby wanted to model it, too. Ha!

Penny's Sweater

 This is probably one of my favorite things I've gotten to make so far. I know I say this every time but this one could be true. 

L.O.V.E.

Ok so I know this is WAY late as Valentine's Day has passed but I wanted to pass along something cute I got to make for our mantel! 

This was SO easy and I knocked it out in about an hour (excluding dry time) using my Silhouette.

I made the letters in the Silhouette program and just cut them out of white cardstock. I modpodged one side of them and then covered them in glitter.

I let them dry overnight, shook them off, and then hot glued twine to the back. Done. 

The little banner above the LOVE sign was done essentially the same way without the glitter - cut out the shapes using the Silhouette (I believe the hearts were free...I just made them different sizes, and I paid $0.75 for the little bird cut-out..totally worth it!) Hot glued them to twine and taped it up! 

I was so giddy about how they turned out. I'll definitely be saving them for next year and if they get ruined during storage somehow, no biggie! 

Thank You

I came across this picture on Pinterest a few days ago and I just had to share my feelings about it. I wanted to share this picture because it is such a beautiful reminder of how grateful we should be for the men and women who serve our country. I think, too often, we forget to thank them and to thank their families for what they do. 

My husband is in the military and most days, I hate what he does because of how it affects our family. I want my son to grow up with him there and I know that won't always be possible. That kills me. But for now, he's home and safe and while he still risks his life every single day, I can still hug him every day and see that he's okay. The fact that I complain about his schedule or I complain about what life may be like when he is away from us is just...selfish. This picture reminds me that I have it so good right now compared to most military families. Their sacrifice truly floors me. There are SO many men and women who aren't able to see that they're safe every day. There are so many women in this country who give birth without their husbands by their side because he is serving to keep us safe and free. I was fortunate enough to have my husband with me when we had my son. He was supposed to be gone, but he got to stay. THAT is why this picture makes me cry. I was SO fortunate. 

To all of the men and women who serve our country and to all of their strong families, THANK YOU. Thank you for what you do and for teaching me to be stronger when I'm not. I am so grateful for what you do because you are far stronger than I am.

XOXO

Newborn Hats I Love

I LOVE making hats for babies...especially my own baby :) I love the satisfaction of seeing him run around looking in cute in something I've made for him. Another great joy of knitting is getting to see them be used and looking so cute on someone I love. Here are a few I got to make for my little niece  Kalen. 

If I've made something for you, please feel free to send me pictures! Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than to see something I've hand made be modeled by beautiful little people :) 

Chocolate Banana Bites

Today, I was in one of those moods where you want to bake but you don't want to spend your whole day doing it, yanno? So, I decided to do some "fake" baking and came across this recipe on http://nomnomnomblog.com called PB 'Nana  Cream Bites. They are SO easy and SO good! I made them in about 20 minutes. Please excuse my pictures (as mine did not turn out nearly as pretty). 

Here's the recipe according to "nomnomnom":

Chocolate Banana Bites

2 large bananas

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I just used milk chocolate)

2 tbsp-1/4 cup milk

Cut up bananas about an inch tall and swipe some peanut butter on each slice.

 Combine milk and chocolate in bowl and microwave at 15 second increments until they are able to stir together smoothly. (I think it only took two separate increments for me).

Dip the bananas in the chocolate, using fork, until they are covered and set on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper.

Put cookie sheet in freezer until bananas are completely frozen (3-5 hours).

Personally, I found that the recipe called for too much milk...I.E. the chocolate was too thin. (See above). I actually threw them in the freezer like this for about 20 minutes and then went back, melted more chocolate with less milk and covered them again for a thicker covering. Yum!

Baby Pant Mania

I've had people ask me from time to time what my favorite things to knit are and honestly, I get REALLY excited over a lot of different projects. Usually, I love things that are new that I've never tried before (I'll post some of my favorites in another post) but I've discovered that one of my all-time favorite things to make are pants for babies. They are so fast and every single pair I've made has turned out so different from the other and soooo cute. They seriously have the cutest patterns out there for babies (even boys!! go figure!). 

Here are some pants I made for one of my closest friends who was expecting a little girl. 

How sweet are these things?! I wish I was brilliant enough to make these patterns myself, but that is something I hope to accomplish one day! Until then, I'm SO grateful for the genius people who come up with this stuff. :)

Aspirin Anti-blemish Face Mask

For years, I have been using this glorious and wonderful face mask. It is so easy and ultra effective!! It's so great for those days when you're breaking out.

I absolutely love it. The main ingredient is aspirin. Weird, I know. 

I don't recommend doing this more than you need to (I do it maybe once a month at most)  and I wouldn't recommend doing this more than once or twice a week if absolutely necessary as it does have a drying effect. I also do not recommend doing this while pregnant because your skin may absorb some of the aspirin.

However, that being said, TRY THIS! It is brilliant. I do it at night before bed and, no joke, my skin is gorgeous the next day.



Aspirin Mask
4 regular aspirin pills 
2 drops tea tree oil (You can find this at a health food store. I buy mine at The Body Shop)
1-2 tsp. water (Just enough to create a paste)

Instructions

Put 4 aspirin in a bowl and grind up with the back of a spoon. 

Add just a bit of water to create a paste.

Add 2-3 drops of tea tree oil. 

With your fingers, rub all over your face to create a light mask. Leave on until it dries, about 10 minutes or so. When it dries, add some water to your hands and as you start to wash it off, use the mask as a face scrub. Rinse.

Enjoy your pretty face! :)

Finger Mustache

This is one of my favorite things I've ever made. My friend and I were going to a mustache and beard competition last year in Charleston, SC and decided to make these to be...well...weird. :) 

Here's a pic of my little peanut wearing one! ha! 

Contact me if you'd like to buy one!

Cowgirl Booties

I am SO in love with this cute little pattern! I made these for a friend who's expecting and they just turned out so much cuter than I thought they would! 

Yeeeeeeehaw!! :)

Hand-Knits

If you are interested in anything in particular you find on my "Knits" page or if you find a picture of something on the internet and would like a custom made knit, feel free to contact me at shannonlado@gmail.com.

Feel free to check out my slowly progressing etsy site as well: www.etsy.com/shop/allinarowknits

Green Monster Shakes

For months, I've been hearing about the benefits of Green Monster shakes! What are these things, anyway? I describe them as a healthy shake or smoothie, packed with spinach, and masked by other healthy ingredients that disguise the yuckier tasting stuff: the key ingredient, however, always being that lovely spinach. 

Of course we've always heard how great spinach is for us but really, I wanted to truly know the benefits. Upon research, I found that there are tons and tons including diet aids by aiding in digestion, it's packed full of antioxidants and vitamins including Vitamins A,C, E, and K which help aid in the fight against osteoporosis, promotes a healthy nervous system and brain function, and boost our immunity, and it also helps to fight cancer! On top of all of these benefits, it helps promote healthy skin, hair, and nails! 

I've read that over 90% of our population does not get the recommended amounts of fruits and veggies in their diet every day which is a sad, sad fact. Even worse, I am a part of this statistic so I thought I'd give a Green Monster Shake a try! 

Thanks to the wonderful world of Pinterest, I found an awesome recipe on a blog called iowagirleats.com so I thought I'd pass it along! It's relatively low fat (with the exception of the peanut butter which, I use a light version of anyway) and tastes just like bananas and peanut butter! If you can get past the green look, I HIGHLY recommend these! I've altered the ingredients just slightly but it's basically the same. 

Green Monster Spinach Smoothie

Ingredients:

1/2 sliced banana (may be frozen)

1 Tbs. peanut butter

1/2 cup 0% Vanilla Chobani Greek yogurt

1 cup non-fat milk 

Fill the rest of the blender up with spinach

If it's not sweet enough, throw in a few frozen strawberries!

If it's not cold enough, throw in a few ice cubes. 

Blend, blend, blend until smooth and creamy and devour. 

You gotta do this!

Lola

I picked up this Zoya nail polish in "Lola" the other day when I was perusing a local beauty store and LOVED the fact that it was neon pink. I thought I'd give this brand a try as I typically stick with my OPI's. I love the fact that it's just as bright on my nails as it is in the bottle.

I don't think the picture does justice but this is by far the brightest polish I own! So far, it's holding up really well on the chipping (with my Essie non-chip topcoat).

"Skinny"

I just wanted to share something that I found on the internet a few weeks ago and just thought it spelled out how I feel about myself SO well.

I find that, so often, some women are so concerned with not offending anyone if they've gained a pound or two. The "f" word (fat) is like calling someone a whore these days. However, myself, as well as my mom, have ALWAYS been criticized for being tall and thin, and people see absolutely NO problem with making judgmental or rude comments about it. This double -standard we repeatedly experience seems to constantly get overlooked. I have received rude and snide comments by not only strangers but by close and dear friends, as well. The majority of these comments also come from overweight women which leads me to believe they are envious. But why? I do nothing to make you feel uncomfortable about your weight so any insecurities you may feel are only coming from yourself. It does not affect me, whatsoever, what your body looks like and my body should not affect you. What boggles my mind is how they know so little about what I do or do not do to take care of myself and they have absolutely zero concern for how their comments may sting. 

These comments have gotten even more prevalent since I've had my son as my figure quickly returned back to normal. Aren't we, as women, supposed to be supportive of one another? The new standard is that women give up after gaining a few pounds. And that's fine but don't complain if that's how you want it. Suddenly, we who are thin and healthy are looked down on. 

This posting isn't to criticize overweight women, skinny women, short women, or tall women but it is me, taking a stand in saying that we need to be comfortable in the beautiful bodies God gave us without tearing eachother down. I'm proud of the way I'm built. I know it won't always be this easy to maintain the older I get so for now, I'll enjoy it. Enjoy yours!!