Wall Candy Frame Giveaway!

I love pictures! And I really love fun cute frames to put those pictures in! Remember how frames used to be plain, slim, flimsy things that basically just held a picture behind some glass? *shudder* Well aren't we glad THOSE days are over! Because now frames are almost as decorative as the pictures that go in them (okay, not really because I know some REALLY beautiful people...) but still, way better than they used to be!
So....in light of some of the most beautiful and creative frames I've ever seen, I'm doing a GIVEAWAY again! Yay! Beth with Wall Candy Frames has graciously agreed to give away one of her awesome frames!!

How adorable is this??? (holds a 5x7 pic, retails for $65 and also I know a REALLY good photographer who would love to help you fill it: Peacock Photography.)
Want it? Me too! All you have to do is subscribe to my blog (see that little window to the left where you enter your email address and click "subscribe"? Yeah, pretty tricky, I know.) AND go to Beth's Facebook page: Wall Candy Frames and simply leave a comment under the frame you see pictured above. Then just come back here, leave a comment telling me you did both! Easy-peasey! Already a subscriber? Don't worry, my friend, you are still included! Just let me know you already subscribe in your comment on this post.
**Extra chance to win: SHARE my blog link on your facebook wall and leave a comment telling me you shared it (in the comment section below, which means you will then have TWO comments, therefore two chances to win) and boom, you've increased your odds!**
Thanks again to the fabulous Beth with Wall Candy Frames for being so generous to my faithful readers and thanks to YOU, my faithful readers! (This is the part where you roll your eyes and go, 'dang, Sarah not only talks too much but she is totally shameless in trying to get people to read her blog'...um....well, YEAH I am.) Drawing will be Sunday!

*UPDATE: We have a winner!! Jenna Long Parker has won the FABULOUS Wall Candy frame! Yay! Congrats Jenna! ps. Here is the generator I use and the photo of the screen shot that chose Jenna's number in the comment section. And yes, I only did it once, you'll have to just take my word for it! :) Congrats Jenna!

White Chicken Chili Goodness

My sweet friend Haley Winter so kindly shared her White Chicken Chili recipe with me (I asked for it after hearing my sister brag about how DELICIOUS it was when Haley brought them dinner after my sweet baby nephew was born) and it was so good, I felt the need to share my adaptation of it! I made a regular version and a veggie version (for me) so I'm sharing both! (With Haley's permission!)

White Chicken Chili by Haley
2 cans of canned chicken (cooked in skillet to get rid of that canned taste, Haley recommended)
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 soup cans of skim milk (I used one can 2% milk, 1 can evaporated milk)
1/2 cup chopped onion (I omitted, G$ doesn't eat onions)
1 can Rotel
1 pkg of white chicken chili seasoning (I used a Splenda, Emeril's NoSalt, crushed red pepper, chili powder)
2 cans northern beans (I used 3/4 bag of dried beans, boiled for 2 hours)
*I also added 2 cloves of fresh garlic (minced)


I put all these ingredients in my big slow cooker and let it cook on Low for several hours. Haley says serve with corn chips and cheese, so I did!

Veggie White Chicken-less Chili:
1 red onion, chopped
1 can Rotel 
1 can northern beans (I used a little less than half a bag of boiled dry beans)
1 can Pinto beans
1 can cream of potato soup
season to taste: Emeril's NoSalt, crushed red pepper, chili powder, chiplotle-type seasoning)
1 clove minced garlic 
I sauteed the onion with a small amount of EVOO. Meanwhile, I combined all ingredients into my totally cute owl slow cooker (pictured first) because it's a medium sized slow cooker and I didn't need to make as much of the veggie version as the meat version and let it cook on Low for a few hours. I served with corn chips and cheese.

I combined some of both chili's and took it to my friend BreAnna and her husband who just had a precious new baby and they enjoyed it! My friend Lawanda also enjoyed a sampling of both versions and I'm proud to say she liked the meatless version best--Yay! All of my family actually ate this meal, so this one will definitely go into the rotation. Thanks so much for your willingness to share your recipe, Haley!!

Fondue You Love Me?

Okay when I wrote the title of this post, I said it to the tune of "Do do you love me/Do do you love me" by the one and only Paula Abdul, but I decided to remove the extra "Do" in case people thought I was stuttering. But now I can't get that tune out of my head unfortunately, so I felt the need to get it in YOUR head, too. Your welcome.
Tonight's menu had me salivating all day and as I sit here full and content watching the end of "Two Brothers" with the girls, I just HAD to share our yummy dinner with you so you can share it with YOUR family! Or for a dinner party with friends, except for the whole 'double dipping' concept would have me antsy and weirded out the whole time but maybe that's just me...
We had an easy fun fondue dinner tonight for Valentine's Day:

 Here were our "dippers" which just tickled the girls because they got to get as many dippers as they wanted on their plates! For our fondue, I oh-so-creatively warmed marinara sauce and alfredo sauce (from jars) in two small CrockPots (thanks for the extra 'crackpot', Lisa!) and then my yummy homemade cheese fondue in another small CrockPot and put them in the middle of the table (we plugged them into an extension cord):

 Haven and Stone were ready! You can't see it here, but I attached Valentine's balloons (or as Stone says "Bay-Boo!") to each of the kids' chairs and they had cards at their place settings. We drank water and Welch's sparkling grape juice which the girls made up 'toasts' with after our prayer.

 I used woven pink and red placemats (pink leftover from Haven's last two birthday parties and red leftover from my brother's Ole Miss graduation party and Stone's Pirate Party, these things have proven quite worth the $.99 each!) other fun Valentiney things. Gary brought me flowers:

And here were the kids' little happies, most of which I found at Target including the owl bowls and fork/spoon inside Stone's bag. Can you see the blue and white polka dot Duck tape in the bag on the right? That's for Micah's Duck Tape collection. Yes. Duck Tape collection...

And we had yummy chocolate covered strawberries for dessert (Thanks Lawanda!). And now for the recipe for the cheese fondue, because I know you're dying to try it!

Cheesey Fondue:

2 Cups milk

2 cloves fresh garlic

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp mustard powder

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 lb. Gruyere cheese (caution: its $13/lb at Kroger, ouch!)

2 Cups sharp cheddar cheese

4 oz. Coors beer

1/2 tsp Thyme (optional)

I melted everything except the cheese in a saucepan at medium heat, stirring frequently. Then I added the Gruyere (I have to confess I ate probably 1/5 of the cheese as I was cutting it and stirring the sauce, but it still turned out fine with a little less of this amazing-ness than I wrote in the ingredients, FYI) and kept stirring. Last I added the cheddar because it melts pretty quickly.

Once it was all ooey gooey and melty, I transferred it to a pre-heated mini CrockPot and BOOM--yummy cheesey fondue! 

Our dippers of choice were cheese tortellini, round cheese ravioli, cubed multi-grain french loaf, cubed chicken breast, beef meatballs, and fiji apple chunks.

I'll be heating some up tomorrow for lunch if anyone wants to come try it and see if it reheats as well as it tasted the first go-round! *This recipe was adapted from looking at 10 or 12 different cheese fondue recipes and editing/combining/revamping them into this delicious one*

I also have to add here that my 4-year-old.ate.nonstop. This is a HUGE deal. The kid ate one bite of my white chicken chili last night and went to bed an hour later without even complaining that she was hungry. Soooo I will definitely be making easy fondue style meals a normal part of our dinner routine! Let me know what you think! :)