Weekend Wrap Up

I don't have any pictures so I am not sure how interesting this post will be with our pictures but basically we had a great weekend and I had a great time hanging out with family all weekend. We had a great steak dinner on Friday, baby shower on Saturday ( hosted at my favorite Mother-in-Laws house) and then we caught a show with Mom and Rachel at the Pocket Sandwich Theater. Sunday after church we came home and Heidi got a great 4 hour nap that she had been needing all week. We are 5 weeks out from getting us a baby and Maddie is growing fast and wearing out Heidi so it was good that she got to sleep and I got to watch bad Sunday movies. Maddie's room is almost ready and so are we.

It was a great weekend and pics may follow.

Labor Day trip

We took our last trip as DINKS and went down to the farm for a good weekend out of the city. We showed up Saturday afternoon and since there was such a nice breeze on the patio so we started out the trip off with a nice nap. We went to town to get some food for Sunday and pick up some more fishing lures for the sacred traditional sacrifice to the the tank god. Two 3 sacrifices lures equals 4 fish. After our afternoon fishing trip we went to Orsaks for catfish and chicken fried. Great end to a Saturday. Sunday we went to visit on one of my high school friend and her new baby then back to the farm for some more fishing. It was a great weekend and now we are back in Dallas with a full September schedule and then October is Baby Time.

As most of you know we have two dogs: an Aussie and a Rottie and Rottweilers are know for their bite strength, fierceness and aggression. We, like other Rottie owners, always think that our Rottie is different and not like other dogs. Well this weekend our Dixie the great Rottweiler - bread to be a hearder, guard dog, and force to be reckoned with showed us who she truly is.

Please be advised these video can be very unsettling


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFOMLnA2Z70



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX95WgqdxGo

It has been a while

We have been getting a lot of requests for us to update our blog with all the new happenings here with those McDows.


The people have spoken and we have your answers!!!!

You said that you wanted to know about our jobs....
We both got new ones!!! I am back with Aerotek as a Recruiter and Heidi got an offer with Prestonwood Christian Academy as the Director of Communication and Web. She really likes it and is enjoying her new job AND the beneis are great. Tuition discount!!! Which means that our little Maddie will get all educated and stuff.

You wanted to know if we decided on a name...
We are going with Madeline Grace McDow and she will be coming into this world round October 28th

You wanted to know about the nursery... well it looks like the guest room without the guest bed (don't you sit there and judge us)

And finally...what you have all been waiting for...THE BELLY PICTURES


Wait for it.









HOLD...






HOLD...

PICTURE!!!!

Finally, another post- with pictures:)

I have been slacking off a little on my posts, but for a good reason.
I have been interviewing for the past three weeks with Prestonwood Christian Academy for their Director of Communications position! I have made it past three interviews, one to go!
Ryan and I are excited about this possibility, but we know it is in God's hands.
I have picked up a little side work for a friend of ours, so that might be another route!
I'll keep you posted as to if I get the job or not. Either way, we are blessed.

My pregnancy is going well, I can't believe we are almost at 5 months!
It seems like just yesterday that little stick read, "pregnant." We have a sonogram next week to confirm if our little one is a girl - we are pretty sure already, but we will know for sure by next Thursday. We have picked out a name we like, but will wait until we are sure to really announce it. And of course we could change our minds, again. She was going to be Makayla, until we heard another mom in church announce the name and we decided it just wasn't right for our little one.

SO that being said, I have another recipe to share.
I have to admit that I have been watching the TODAY show a lot, so I lifted this from one of their cooking segments... and of course, added my own spin.

Fresh tomato and herb pasta-









What you will need:
4 Roma tomatoes- chopped
fresh basil-2 sprigs chopped finely
fresh thyme-1 small bunch ( I used about 5 stems)
Fresh oregano-2 sprigs chopped
1/4 onion finely chopped
1 heaping tsp chopped garlic
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 block (small block) mozzarella cubed
Angel hair pasta

Chop up all of your fresh ingredients add salt and pepper and combine, - hold the cheese and olive oil.

Tip: If you don't know how to use fresh thyme- its easy- pull the leaves off in one swift motion from top to bottom by sliding your thumb and pointer finger down the stem.

Heat your olive oil to bubbling and then pour over your fresh ingredients- it makes a great popping sound!
Stir to coat your herbs, onions and tomatoes. Make sure to taste at this point to see if you need more salt or pepper. Set aside.

Boil pasta according to package directions- I used half a box, about enough for 4 people. Pour drained pasta over herb and tomato mixture, add cubed cheese and toss. Cover with some plastic wrap for a minute or two so cheese gets a little melty and herb mixture soaks into pasta.

This is VERY yummy.I actually grilled up some chicken to add a little extra protein and tossed in with the pasta.

Just a quick note: This is extremely herby , so you can adjust the herbs if needed. I loved it, Ryan thought it was a bit much, but I'll make it again maybe for a girls lunch, or maybe just for me! It is super light and with all the fresh ingredients, really refreshing.

Enjoy!

Mac& Cheese off...and fire, what else could you ask for on a Sunday night?

Last night at the McDow house we held a Mac & Cheese competition with some friends of ours. It was a cheesy, noodley (is that a word?) gluttony fest.

The contenders were Ham with Mac & Cheese, Truffled Sausage Mac & Cheese, Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese, Baked Mac & Cheese and mine, Green chili Mac & Cheese.

We have some very creative friends! We also had chicken, BBQ meatballs ( a recipe I got from pioneerwomancooks.com- you should check it out, yummmm!) chicken strips, seafood fondue and birthday cake for our friend Taylor.

We were all sitting on the porch as it was a beautiful Sunday, everyone was enjoying the different variations of gooey goodness and one of our friends ran around from the side of the house and said, " The House next door is on fire!" There was black smoke billowing out from the roof and flames were starting to appear.

Needless to say, that kind of ended the party atmosphere. We all ran out the front door, checking to see if anyone had called 911, making sure the guy who lived there got out ( he did) and trying to decide if we should hose down the side of our house, but by the time we got the hose, 6 fire trucks had arrived!

It was really amazing to watching the firemen and women work, rushing in the burning house and climbing on the roof, making sure that the fire was put out. It took them about 30 minutes to get the flames under control.

Everyone in the neighborhood piled onto our street, into each other's yards, one guy even brought his entire family- including the baby in the stroller! - I think this is the most excitement people on our block have seen in a long time!

So - Mac & Cheese night turned out to be extremely interesting. I won the cook off, but it pales in comparison to the excitement next door.

Please be in prayer for the family who owned the home, they were a troubled family to begin with and this of course doesn't make it any easier.

Oh and as promised, the Green Chili Mac & Cheese- warning, this is NOT health food dish!

1 stick of salted butter divided in two

1/2 of a large onion diced

2 cans of green chilies ( get the larger cans)

1 tomatillo chopped

1 small container (pint) of heavy cream

1/4 cup of flour

1/4 cup of milk to deglaze cream pan

1 box of pasta- I used mini bow tie pasta
1/2 small block of sharp white cheddar grated

1/2 small block of mozzarella grated

1/2 small block pepper jack cheese

Parmesan cheese to sprinkle over top

2 cups of dry breadcrumbs

2 teaspoons of minced garlic

kosher salt to taste

black pepper to taste

Directions:

Melt half of the butter into a large saute pan and add onions and tomatillo and saute until onions are opaque. Add a pinch of kosher salt. Add in the two cans of chopped green chilies and saute about a minute. Stir in your container of heavy cream and slowly whisk in the flour. Sprinkle in black pepper- I used about 1/4 tsp. Let simmer on low until thickened.

Boil pasta and drain. make sure to run cold water over it so it gets to room temp quickly.Pour pasta into buttered large casserole dish and stir in cheeses. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese all over the top and mix. Now pour sauce over casserole and use the milk to get the residue out of the pan and pour into dish. Mix well.

In a separate dish include bread crumbs. melt the other half of the butter and pour over crumbs and include 2 tsps of garlic and a pinch of salt. mix well and spread evenly over the pasta dish.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes and then pop on the broiler for a couple minutes to crisp up the top. take out when nice and toasty. Make sure to watch it carefully as it can burn very quickly!

This is really good, creamy, cheesy and about as down home as you can get.

It's Friday night-sounds like clean out the fridge night to me!

First things first,
Ryan and I found out this week that our Baby Mac, as we have been calling the little one growing inside my ever rounding belly, is most likely a girl!!! The Doctor managed to get a really good shot of the baby with her legs sticking straight up and he said, " Yep, its a girl" But there is about a %10 chance it could still be a boy.
Highly unlikely, but we will confirm at our next sonogram in a few weeks:)

Now,
I know I promised my Green Chili Mac & Cheese next, but I actually want to make it again just to be sure it is worth posting:)
So tonight- we are having Chili beef casserole- aka left over stuff in the fridge I managed to actually concoct something quite tasty!

Here we go!

1/2 lb of browned ground beef seasoned with onions/cumin/and fajita seasoning ( my taco meat from the day before)
2 cups of white rice ( again from the day before)
1 can cream of mushroom
1/2 onion chopped
1 Anaheim chili chopped finely
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup softened cream cheese
salt and pepper to taste
grated cheddar/jack cheese- about 1 cup

Saute onion and chili in butter, sprinkle with salt and pepper, when onions are opaque throw in your garlic. Add beef,soup,rice and cream cheese and mix thoroughly. Taste warmed mixture to see if you need any extra seasoning. Pour mixture into a casserole dish and top with grated cheese. Pop into a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until casserole is bubbly.

Pretty darn good for leftovers!!!

Monday night kickoff

Still on the quest to become the ultimate housewife, I decided to try my hand at an old recipe last night- Cornflake Crusted Chicken.
My grandmother used to make this and I remember it was really good, but she cooked the whole thing in oil.
I have been trying to cook healthier as we have a little one on the way, so I wanted to find something that would taste just as good, but eliminate the extra calories.
I found several recipes, but decided to make my own version.
I made this just for two ( well two and a half:)

Here is what i did, and it turned out pretty well!

2 large chicken breasts- trimmed of all skin and fat
Buttermilk
1 cup cornflakes crushed
1/4 tsp each salt, black pepper, paprika, poultry seasoning and garlic powder

Soak chicken breasts in buttermilk for about 20 minutes- I simply poured it over the chicken till barley covered.
Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper on the breasts and turn then over and repeat salt and pepper.
Place cornflakes in a plastic baggie and crush, then open up the bag and throw in your seasonings. Shake well. Then pour your mixture into a shallow bowl.
Remove the chicken from the buttermilk and place chicken in crumbs. Flip chicken to coat both sides.
Place your pieces on baking sheet in over at 400 degrees and bake for 20-25 minutes ( depending on how our oven cooks)

This is really tasty, relatively low calorie and super crunchy. I served it with garlic mashed potatoes and corn. I know, I know starch and starch, but it was yummy:)

Coming soon- Our mac and Cheese off!!! We are hosting a party this coming Sunday for our small group and folks are bringing their own version of Mac & Cheese to be tasted and judged- I'll post my entry into the competition a little later this week. For now, I have to start cleaning. Who knew to people and two furry kids could make house so messy!