Lemon Linguine

8 oz. linguine
3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper
1/4 C. parmesan cheese

In a pan, cook linguine in boiling water until tender. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, combine butter, lemon juice, basil and lemon pepper; cook and stir until butter is melted. Drain linguine; add to butter mixture and toss to coat. Add cheese and toss.

Mermaid Shells
2 C. large shell noodles
1 C. frozen carrots and peas, thawed
1/2 C. diced ham
1 Tbsp. butter
1 C. spaghetti sauce
1/4 C. half and half

Cook shells according to directions. Add veggies to water the last 3 minutes. Drain well; stir in ham and butter.
In a saucepan, heat spaghetti sauce over medium heat until warm. Stir in half and half and cook to heat through. Divide sauce among serving bowls and place veggie and ham filled pasta shells on top.

Chicken Roll ups

This is a recipe I got from my Mom. I have always loved these, and I'm glad my kids do as well.

Chicken Roll ups
2 C. cooked chicken, diced
6 oz. cream cheese (don't tell my hubby! shhhh!)
1/4 C. margarine, softened
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c. celery, diced
1/4 c. onion, diced (optional... I use minced onion flakes)
1 egg, beaten
2 packages crescent rolls

GRAVY
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 can water or milk

Mix chicken, cream cheese and margarine. Season with salt and pepper. Add diced celery and onion. Unroll crescent rolls; Add a spoonful of mix to each roll and roll up, sealing the edges. Brush with a beaten egg. Bake at 325 for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Make gravy by warming up soup and water or milk.

15 Minute Herbed Chicken

This one is WAY easy to make, and I usually have all the ingredients on hand, and my kids love it!

15 Minute Herbed Chicken

1 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 c. milk
Herbs to taste (I use Parsley, oregano, salt and pepper)

In skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add chicken and cook for 8 minutes or until browned. Set chicken aside. Pour off fat. Add soup, milk and herbs and heat to a boil. Return chicken to pan and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until chicken is done.

Blonde Brownies

Blonde Brownies
2/3 C. margarine, melted
2 C. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
2 lg. eggs
1 1/2 tbsp. water
2 3/4 C. flour
2 C. chocolate chips (mix white, semi, and milk chocolate)

Mix first 7 ingredients together, then add flour. Blend together. Add chocolate chips and stir. Spread into a 9x13 pan. Bake at 340 for 22-24 minutes, until brownies begin to slightly brown on the edges.

**Variation-- omit chocolate chips and frost with your favorite chocolate frosting.

This is the Place Park

So, this was a new one for all of us. We really enjoyed it! Right across from the Hogle Zoo is This is the Place park. WOW! So much to do, so much to see.
The entrace fee was $9 for adults and $7 for kids over 4. But it was SO worth it. With your admission you get a wrist band that has 3 boxes. When you do an activity they will cross off a box, so the kids had to choose activities wisely.... Plus, I gave them each one of my boxes... so they each did 4! Some activities don't take a box, so we still had lots to do.
Besides touring the old cabins and houses, Learning about different trades like tinsmithing, leather tanning, and cabinetry, we did many things.
There were crafts in some of the cabins, one cabin we learned about the pioneer children... what their chores were, what games they played, etc.
We also rode the train around, there is a petting zoo, panning for gold, a playground, Native american village, Ice cream and snow cone shop, old fashioned candy and toy store, pony rides, and so much more. We were there till close(5 p.m.) and still didn't have time to do it all. My kids all want to go again soon. Me too!! Next time though, we will take lots of water.... it was HOT!!

Health Contest

For the month of August, I am participating in 2 "Contests". The first is a deal with my Sister in law's that we would go all month without sweets! The second is a contest with my company, It is a month long health challenge. We get points for how much water we drink(up to 12 cups a day), how much exercise we get(up to 2 hours daily), how many fruits and veggies we eat (up to 10 a day), how much sleep we get(up to 8 hours daily). We subtract 5 points for every sweet or soda. The winners in the company will get cash prizes! I got myself a prize already though, Sketchers shapeups shoes, although I can't wear them until I make it through the month!
So, because I'm not eating sweets for one contest, I'm doing pretty good on the other! I'm posting this because, I challenged my girls to do one of the contests. Emmie gave up after the first day, but Kilee and I have now made it halfway through the month! It hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be. I have had a few days where I've really had to focus on not eating sweets, but for the most part I am not even tempted. Kilee chose to do the "work" contest, so she has had a few days where she has had sweets, but she made sure she exercised for an hour those days to make up some points. If she has 700 points by the end of the month, I will pay her $20.00. She is really doing well, and we talked today about how after the month is over, we both know that we can do it, and we both have decided to only eat sweets occasionally!