Tortilla Soup Recipe

I love pretty much all soups-there's nothing better on a cold night! I make a tortilla soup from one of my Mom's cookbooks (not sure why I have this cookbook? Sorry Mom!). It's healthy, easy, and YUMMY! You can see by the looks of the cookbook page that this one has been used a lot!

Here's the recipe:

2 chicken breasts
1 medium onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 14.5 oz. cans of fat free chicken broth (I do low sodium too)
1 14.5 oz. can stewed, chopped tomatoes
1 clove garlic
4 oz. green chilies
1/2 package dry taco seasoning (They now make this in low sodium too!)
1/2 cup fat free sour cream
6 corn tortillas, cut or torn into about 1" pieces (this is really the only recipe I make that uses these, so when I buy a package I use the 6, then put the rest in the freezer for next time-works perfectly!)

Brown chicken pieces in large pot sprayed with cooking spray. Add onion and celery and continue to brown. Add all remaining ingredients, except sour cream and tortillas, and simmer 15 minutes.

Add sour cream and simmer 1-2 minutes. Add tortillas and simmer 3-4 minutes.
I usually squeeze fresh lime juice on top, and it's great topped with fresh avacado. I'm thinking of maybe adding black beans next time too.

Here's the finished product:
This stuff is seriously good!

"Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world."

Anyone who knows me well at all knows that I L.O.V.E. shoes. I know most girls like shoes, but I think my love is pretty serious. I have always loved shoes-I can remember being a little kid and getting a new pair of shoes. If it was a pair I really loved, I would sleep in them because I just could not stand to take them off. I don't exactly do that anymore, but the love is still there. That is hands down, my favorite thing to shop for. I design a pair of shoes in my head at least once a day-I'm always thinking that I could design the perfect shoes to go with whatever outfit someone has on. I just love shoes!!

I've had this magnet on my refrigerator for years, and it speaks the truth:

Today was just a normal Wednesday-nothing special whatsoever. But, it was cute boot day:

Shoes can make any day better! These are a few in my *love* file right now:


I realize that these are 2,000% inappropriate for an elementary teacher who stands up all day long, but that doesn't make me want them less!

Long Weekends Are the Best

I have had such a nice weekend-I am really, really sad to see it go (well, I'm always sad to see them go, but especially this one...). Tom's new semester starts this week, which means life is about to get a lot more hectic and crazy than it has been. It's been so nice the last month to have him around a lot more, but all good things must end. We've been trying to spend a lot of time together since we know what is coming...I'm really going to miss him being around so much. It'll totally be worth it in the long run though, and we've got this down, no problem-just adds a different, very busy dimension to life. SO proud of him!!

This weekend we actually watched 2 movies (which is a lot for me-not a huge movie's at home fan-I can never stay awake!) We also got some great runs in, and just hung out. We did make a stop at Red Mango for our favorite treat! This place is SO good, and actually healthy too! Of course you can make it less healthy with your toppings, but it's a good thing I love fruit so much!
That's Tom's on the left-he got strawberries, dark chocolate and graham cracker crumbs. Mine has strawberries, pineapple, and granola. I usually get mango instead of granola, but it just hasn't been ripe enough lately. LOVE this stuff!!

Today we had a great run at the gym, and I got to sport my sweaty band! My sister gave me this for Christmas, and this thing is a miracle worker! It has velvet ribbon on the back of it, and I'm telling you-This thing DOES NOT move! Even after an entire run-this thing is exactly where it started. I don't know how it does it, but it sure does. They also come in really cute patterns, which makes it that much better. Here is mine pre-run:
Saturday night I went to the annual Miss America party, and had a great time. I can't believe it, but I don't have a single picture from that! Just imagine about 15-20 girls, wearing p.j.'s, also wearing tiaras and sashes, watching the Miss America pageant, and competing for who makes the best guesses as far as who moves forward-FUN! I was so sad Miss Arkansas got 1st runner up. She was beautiful!

All in all, it was a great long weekend. Tomorrow it's back to the grind!

Love Saturday!!

I love Saturday's! Even though most of my Saturday's are so busy with errands, chores, etc. that they fly by, it's so nice to think that the weekend is just beginning. This morning I headed out to do my normal Saturday things, like grocery shopping. As I was leaving Sam's, I had to laugh at what the back of my car looked like:
That would be carrots, cherry tomatoes, grapes, bananas, blueberries, and a 24 pack of Diet Dr. Pepper. Ha! That's story of my life-eating healthy and drinking "Liquid Satan", as I heard it referred to the other day. I may or may not have been drinking a Diet DP from Sonic as this picture was taken....God help me.

Then I headed to Old Navy to look for some new pants since I've basically been wearing some new jeans, or dresses with leggings everyday since none of my pants fit. I found some that fit (2 sizes smaller than I was wearing a few months ago! YIPPEE), so I grabbed them. They are "short" length, and still too long (which I realize is totally pathetic). Good thing I love to wear heels!

I stopped by Michael's quickly, and saw these:
That's animal print duct tape!! I am racking my brain for things I can use this stuff on-it's too cute!!

Tonight I'm heading to the annual Miss America party with a group of girls I've been friends with for years. This is always a fun night. We bring our favorite snack food, wear our favorite p.j.'s, there are score cards, tiaras..it's the real deal! I can't believe this is the 6th annual party. When I think back to my life 6 years ago, it's hard for me to even recognize that person. Every single aspect of my life has changed I think. It's so cool to think we all met a job that long ago, and are still friends today. Pictures to come!
Happy Saturday!!

Working On My Fitness

I wish every time at the gym was like today...I got there early, had my pick of almost any machine I wanted, had a new playlist to listen to, and ran like I could go forever. I love those days when it seems like your workout is easy...I have nothing to attribute it to-it just happens sometimes. Minus a few clothing malfunctions (workout clothes have gotten WAY too big. A good problem, yes, however almost losing your pants on the treadmill is not so good), it was a great workout!

You know I TOTALLY looked just like this at the gym today. HA!

Snow Day 2

I think part of getting older is losing the ability to sleep in-even when I don't set my alarm, I cannot sleep past about 7:30. My cat also thinks it's a crime for anyone to be in bed past 8:00 a.m., so I'm typically up pretty early. This morning I got up, and made myself my new favorite breakfast-a Green Monster! I realize this sounds scary, and there was a time when I would have agreed, but it's actually delicious!
It's basically a fruit smoothie, but with fresh spinach! Other than the odd color that it gives, there's not a trace of spinach at all-you would never know it was in there! There are many variations of this, but here's how I make mine: skim milk fruit (peaches, strawberries, pineapple, blueberries, banana, etc)
A few ice cubes for thickness
A few spoonfulls of cottage cheese or yogurt
A big handful of fresh spinach
*You can also add some protein powder if you have it
Basically, just blend all of this together, and it makes a great tasting smoothie! You can get a big dose of fruit, veggies, and protein all before your day starts!

After I got dressed (or bundled) for the day, Tom came and scraped all of the snow off my car so that I could get out for a little bit. I love snow, but after about 48 hours I want it to instantly disappear! I felt like if I could get to Target and Sonic, then I would be alright. The snow was piled up, but I made it!
There was not 1 thing I needed at Target-I just needed to know that I could get there if I wanted! But I NEEDED Sonic! Diet Dr.Pepper and I have a very close relationship!
Then it was home for lunch, and relaxation.
It's been a great little break, but tomorrow it's back to reality!

Snow 2011

Today was the first snow of 2011! It started yesterday afternoon, and continued most of the night. We ended up getting 5.7 inches, which is basically a BLIZZARD in Arkansas terms! Tom and I bundled up, and headed out this morning to enjoy the snow. We trekked all over the area, all through the hiking trails, made a run into the grocery store, and ended with some pizza. Everything looked clean and peaceful. We headed home then and settled in for a long winter's nap, which was such a treat! Then it was homemade chicken noodle soup for dinner, and an episode of the Bachelor. What a great day!