Bitty Burrito Bowls

My family and I are huge fans of Mexican food. So one night I came up with a fun take on one of our all time favorites...burritos!

The Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Tortillas

Butter Cooking Spray

Fat Free Refried Beans

Ready To Cook Grilled Chicken

 1 cup Salsa

1/4 cup Chopped Onion

Low Fat Shredded Cheese

Sliced Black Olives

Sliced Green Onion 

Step One: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray your muffin pan with the butter cooking spray.

Take your wheat tortillas and cut out some medium size circles. I used a muffin paper as a guide. I was able to get 6 full circles from 3 tortillas then I folded up the scraps to make the other 6 tortilla bowls in the muffin pan.

Place the tortilla circles in the muffin pan and spray with a bit of the butter cooking spray. Place the pan into the oven and bake the tortillas for about 10 minutes so they will keep their bowl shape when you take them out of the pan.

While your tortilla bowls are baking chop up some chicken and the onion. Slice up the green onion.

Pour a bit of olive oil into a pot and add the chopped onion. Saute the onion over medium heat. Add the refriend beans, salsa and the chopped chicken into the pot and mix everything together. Cook until the mixture is hot. 

Put a bit of shredded cheese into the bottom of the tortilla bowls then spoon the bean mixture into the tortilla bowls on top of the cheese. Sprinkle a bit more of the shredded cheese on top and place the pan back into the oven on broil until the cheese is melted.

Top your burrito bowls with the sliced black olives and green onions and there you have it, bitty burrito bowls!

(next time I am going to add a dollop of fat free sour cream to the toppings, yum yum)

Homemade Happy Meal

Every single time I ask my son what he wants for dinner he tells me "chicken nuggets, fries, apples and some apple juice." What he just requested was the 4 piece Chicken McNugget Kids Meal from McDonald's. He is obsessed which doesn't make me that happiest since McDonald's food isn't the greatest for him, plus they cost a bit of money! So I decided to make him a home made happy meal to make both of us happy.

Ingredients For Nuggets:

2 slices of Wheat Bread

1/8 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/8 teaspoon Salt

1/8 teaspoon Pepper

1/8 teaspoon Onion Powder

1/2 teaspoon Parmesan Cheese

1 Egg

1 tablespoon Fat Free Milk

1 medium Chicken Breast

First things first toast the pieces of wheat bread.

Place the toasted bread into a food processor. 

(If you don't have a food processor put the toast into a zip lock bag and crush with a rolling pin)

Process the bread until you get some nice fine bread crumbs.

Chop the chicken breast into bit size pieces.

Place the bread crumbs into a zip lock bag then add the garlic, salt, pepper, onion and cheese. Mix everything together well. 

In a small bowl beat the egg and the milk together. 

Place the chicken pieces into the milk egg mixture and toss them to coat well.

Place the milk egg coated chicken pieces into the zip lock bag with the bread crumb mixture. Shake until every chicken pieces is fully covered in bread crumbs.

Place a cooling rack into a small pan then place the pieces of chicken onto the rack.

Bake in a 400 degree oven until they are golden brown and the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. 

Fry Ingredients:

1 medium Potato

1 1/2 tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Peal and wash the potato. 

Cut it up into long thin little french fries.

Pour the olive oil, salt and pepper into a medium bowl then add the potato slices.

Toss them in the oil mixture making sure they are all well coated.

Place the potato slices on a baking sheet.

Bake them in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes, flip the slices over and bake for another 10 minutes.

Here is my sons home made happy meal, toy and all! His face lite up when he saw it! He ate every last piece, which almost never happens, so I would definitely say this meal was a success. 

Pleasent Zucchini Pizza

Like I said in my Cauliflower Crust Pizza  post,  pizza is one of my favorite foods. But again...pizza is not that healthy so I always try to find healthier pizza alternatives! I had seen some recipes online for zucchini pizza so when my mother-in-law gave me a zucchini from her garden I knew just what to do with it!

I thought I had some pizza sauce but I was wrong so I made my own!

Pizza Sauce Ingredients:

1 - 6oz can Tomato Paste
1 1/2 cups Water
1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cloves minced Garlic
1/2 tablespoon Oregano
1/2 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste

Pizza Ingredients:

Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Pepperoni 

(I used the lower fat turkey pepperoni I found at my grocery store)

Zucchini

(My mother-in-laws zucchinis were huge so I just used one)

 I put all the pizza sauce ingredients in a pot over medium low heat and mixed them together. I just let it cook while I prepared the zucchini stirring it occasionally.

 I cut the zucchini into four pieces then scraped out the seeds using a spoon. I placed them on a baking sheet then brushed on a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. I then baked the zucchini at 350 degrees until it was tender, about 20 minutes.

 I then spooned some of my pizza sauce into the ditch of the zucchini.

I sprinkled some of the mozzarella cheese on top of the sauce then topped that with my pepperoni and finished it off with a bit of Parmesan cheese. I placed the baking sheet back into the oven until the cheese melted. 

I was pleasantly surprised at how great my zucchini pizza turned out. It was delicious and again I didn't feel guilty eating it! My son ate a whole piece then asked for more, it is definitely on my "Must Make Again" list!

New Years Camp In

For new years I set up a little camp in for my son and my nephew. We had a fake fire, the moon and the stars, s'mores and a lot more! It was a really fun night, the perfect way to ring in 2014!

 We pitched our massive tent in our living room and I draped it with lights so it looked like stars when we were laying inside.

I took off the decorations on our Christmas tree and placed it against the wall to give the room an outdoors feel. I also made a fake fire and hung my sons light up moon on the wall.

I also put some Spruce & Citrus wax melt cubes into my Potpourri Crock to make the house smell like the woods.

I used a few sticks and rocks, some red and yellow tissue paper and a small sting of battery powered Christmas lights to make the fake fire. I love the glow it had!

I made some fun "wooden signs" out of card board which I put up around the living room.
"The Great Indoors Campground" - the sign for our campground of course.
"Cuisine Canyon" - hung over the counter top which was covered in food.
"Out House" - I don't think I need to explain this one!
"Hot Springs" - this directed the kids to our hot tub.

For dinner I made hot dogs, twice baked potatoes and baked beans. 

And for dessert we had some s'mores and a glass of hot coco with marshmallows which I served in mason jars. 
The kiddos started to get tired around 8:00pm so we popped open the sparkling cider early so they could toast with us! 

The hubby and I stayed up to toast to the new year! 

Casa Bonita (C.I.C)

Ever seen the Casa Bonita South Park episode? (If not click here) I don't like South Park but I do like this episode because I love Casa Bonita! My family and I visit Casa Bonita quite a bit! Not because of the food...don't get me wrong its good, its just not your typical Mexican food...but because of the atmosphere! Its pretty much the only restaurant where our son actually stays in his chair at the table and eats his food because he is so mesmerized by everything that is going on around him!

 As you can tell from the outside of the building this isn't your ordinary restaurant!

 The inside is even crazier then the outside!

Like I said this isn't your average restaurant! After you walk inside you weave your way through chained paths until you come up to an employee standing at a computer. You order your food with them, they give you your ticket, then you weave your way through more chained path ways, passing by a window where you can see employees in the kitchen making sopapilla's. Finally you reach a counter. 

Above this counter are stacks of trays and silver wear for you to grab for yourself. You then side your tray down the counter top and show the first employee you come upon your ticket then they grab your food from a tiny window that leads into the kitchen and they put it on your tray.  
Caution: Don't try to take your plate and put it on your tray because the plates are freakishly hot and you will burn the crap out of your fingers!

You then slide further down the counter until you come upon the drink employee, tell them what drink you ordered and they will place it on your tray. You don't get any alcoholic drinks here, those are given to you by your waiter in the dinning area.

You then slide your tray down to the end of the counter where there is another employee there waiting to greet you and lead you into the dinning area....this is where the magic begins!

The dining area is so much fun! There are palm trees wrapped in lights everywhere. Right in the center of the room is a large water fall. There is seating everywhere you look in all different decorated rooms. There is a wishing well, a sopapilla bar, an old time photo booth, a path to walk behind the water fall and a set of stairs that lead down to the pool.

There are live shows every 15 minutes in the dinning area and most nights there is a mariachi band walking around playing music. If you are there celebrating a birthday they will be the ones singing happy birthday to you for everyone in the whole huge restaurant to hear!

The shows you will see are a dive show, another dive show, a gun fight, a dive show and a gorilla act.

While you enjoy all the shows you get to stuff your face with food!
This is what our table typically looks like! Our son gets the Pollo Plate and my husband and I get the All-You-Can-Eat Chicken Deluxe dinner, you read that right! After you finish your plate of one crispy taco, two enchiladas, Mexican rice, re-fried beans, guacamole and sour cream you can order a whole other plate if your still hungry! 
You also get chips and salsa to munch on and some yummy hot sopapilla's with honey for dessert! 
The food is not gourmet by any means but it is pretty good, especially the kids chicken strips! 
There Casarita's are really good !

After dinner its time to explore all the activities Casa Bonita has to offer! There is Black Bart's cave that you can walk through, there is a gift shop that you can brows, there is a character artiest for you to get a fun prorate drawn by, there is puppet shows and a pinata for the kiddos to hit to try and get some candy. There are also two places you can get an old time photo taken and two arcades to play in, one upstairs and one downstairs (make sure you get tokens from the first employee you come to at the computers where you order your food.)

Casa Bonita is just a great time and I totally recommend it! Its such a fun, great experience! 

Casa Bonita 
http://www.casabonitadenver.com/

 

Healthy Hair Tips

One of my best friends just happens to be an amazing hair stylist so I asked her if she could answer some questions I had on how to keep my hair healthy, what I could do to make it healthier and what products I should be using on my hair. 

1. What is your favorite shampoo and conditioner (Salon Brand)?

I have a few favorites for my own hair:  

S Factor True Lasting Colour - It has Almond Oil to soften the hair fiber and retain the colour.

Joico K Pac Color Therapy - It restores elasticity and shine for higher levels of damaged hair fiber.

There are other brands I love as well:  

Matrix, Redken, Catwalk, Paul Mitchell...there are many to choose from.

2. What is your favorite shampoo and conditioner (Store Brand)?

There is not a single store brand shampoo or conditioner I have used. 

I do not recommend grocery store products because they don't have the high quality of nutrients like salon brands do. 

You may see some salon brands in the hair isle, but I caution you, these are only guaranteed by a professional stylist and they may not be the same product as the ones sold in salons. Most of the time it is a knock off and your better off stopping by the salon of your choice to buy your products to make sure you get the best quality for what your needs are.

3. What is your favorite at home hair treatment?

Most of the at home treatments only coat the outside of the hair fiber for a very short period of time. They do not have the ability to penetrate the hair cuticle. 

If you are in a pickle (which wont help your hair either haha) and you need something to help your hair for the moment, coconut oil is light and will add shine. 

Also using cold water to rinse out your conditioner will close your hair cuticle a make your hair smooth and shiny.

Of course I do recommend you see a professional for a product that will have better performance on a daily/weekly basis to help what your hair may be lacking.

4. How often should you get your hair trimmed?

The general growth of hair is about 1/2 inch per month. 

If you want to maintain the same length and style you should get your hair trimmed every 4-6 weeks. 

If your growing your locks you should get your hair trimmed about every 8 weeks. 

Just make sure you're using great products to prevent damage and breakage during the time between your services.

5. What is the best way for someone with naturally curly hair to get their curls to look their best?

My favorite product for curls is Curls Rock Amplifier by Catwalk. It has some tack for control but it leaves touchable curls like a cream. We all know that curls can grow bigger and more frizzy as the day goes on, and this helps prevent that lion mane from happening.

I also love a great diffuser. Most just pop on the end of your dryer and will dry curls without frizz. The more you move your hair while drying the more volume you will have. The less you touch your hair while drying the more controlled curls you'll have.

A couple other products I like for curly hair are Total Results Curl Cream and Curl Gel. The cream is lighter and intended for more fine hair. The gel looks and feels like a gel yet you wont get the stickiness and it wont flake in your hair like other gels can. The gel is more for coarse hair or very curly hair.

6. Whats the key to healthy hair?

There are many things you can do to keep your locks beautiful. First things first you need to see a stylist to figure out your hair type, texture, etc. so you can figure out what will work best for you and your hair.

Make sure to have tools that are up to par. If your blow dryer, curling iron, flat iron are looking a little ruff then replace them. The heating elements in them wear down which will also wear down your hair.

7. Any tips for people with dry and flaking scalps?

Winter time can be the worst on skin and scalps. With the lack of humidity your skin will become extremely dry, which means you need to take a little extra care in the cold months. Tea Tree Shampoo and Conditioner by Paul Mitchell is a great product for scalp issues. 

Be sure to get a consultation by your stylist before starting a anti-dandruff regimen to make sure that there is not anything else going on. Dandruff could be the reason but Psoriasis could be a culprit as well so double check before you purchase something that may not be needed, no one likes to waist money on something that wont help them in the end so know for sure. 

8. Any tips to grow long healthy hair?

The less you do the better! If you use less heat, have less chemical services and keep up on your trims you should be able to grow long healthy hair. 

There are some supplements for hair, skin and nails that you can take to help as well.

Also make sure your diet is up to par.

9. How often should you deep condition?

Truly depends on the damage level you have. I deep condition twice a week because I am a Platinum Blonde. If you have very little damage or no chemical services done I would say you should deep condition maybe once every two weeks. 

There are also so many deep conditions to choose from. Some have more protein and some are more moisture based.  
My top three favorites:

S Factor Serious Conditioner

Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger (In Salon Service)

Biolage Cera Repair Pro (In Salon Service)

If you receive a salon deep condition, make sure to take home products that are recommended to maintain the benefits of the deep condition between your salon visits.

Some manufactures provide information of what your hair needs on their websites like Matrix, and there are a TON of professional items/brands to pick from. 

It can be overwhelming picking out a product to use so do some research to find what will work best for you. 

10. What is the best brush/comb to use on wet hair?

A wide toothed comb is the best to comb through wet hair.

 Anything extra to add?

Have you ever tried to replicate the amazing way your stylist styled your hair but find yourself disappointed when you just cant make it look the same? This is because you most likely are not using the same products we use in the salon. So if you want to get the look you loved you will need to use the same products your stylist used on your hair.

If you have any hair needs and live in or around the Northglenn Colorado area please come in and see us at Twisted Scissors, we would be more then happy to help you with all your needs. We are a Rock Star Salon on a groupie budget!

-Erin

  

 I didn't get my hair cut for forever after moving to Colorado because I was very nervous to have someone new cut my hair since I had had such bad experiences with stylists in the past but in all seriousness I love Twisted Scissors. As you could imagine my hair wasn't in the best shape from not having any services done on it in forever but now, thanks to Erin, my hair is the healthiest I think it has ever been and I now get my hair cut, colored and styled at the salon. I know how hard and how nerve racking it can be to find a good hair stylist and that is why I am sharing this information, I am never disappointed with my service at the salon and I trust them with my hair 100%. Everyone's hair is different so the key to getting your hair the healthiest it can be is knowing exactly what will work best for your hair. If you have any questions for Erin about your hair feel free to email me at MommyMiaa13@yahoo.com or stop in and see her at her salon! 

Twisted Scissors

2145 E 120th Ave
Northglenn, CO 80241

(720) 628-2654 

Birthday Thrifted Twin Threads

This is another outfit that I found on Pinterest. I thought it would be a great outfit for dinner and drinks on my 30th Birthday.

This is totally my style, pretty simple and comfortable but still cute and would go from dinner to drinks very easily. I will probably just take off the scarf after dinner.

If I would of bought all the pieces of this outfit new I would of paid around $245 but since I bought everything thrifted I paid about $25.

Draw My Life

A long while ago I watched a few "Draw My Life" videos from my favorite YouTubers. It was pretty cool seeing what other peoples lives are like and what others have gone through all over the world. Since my 30th birthday is only two days away I thought it would be fun to do a Draw My Life post so I could share my 30 years of life with you in a fun way.

• I was born on January 13, 1984 in rainy, beautiful, green Oregon. 
• My family: dad, mom, me and my little brother.
• I was so super shy and quiet when I was little. I would hide behind my dads legs whenever someone tried to talk to me.

• Being as shy and quiet as I was I was not social AT ALL so all through elementary and middle school I only had a few friends.
• I spent most of my time hanging out with my friends, swinging on the bars, roller skating, take pictures, writing silly stories, listening to music and making up secret clubs.
• But in High School everything changed. My friends made new friends and most joined sports teams or school clubs but my insecurities and shyness held me back and I started to suffer with depression. Going to school was torture and I dreaded every day. I had Tums for breakfast almost every morning.

• The only place I felt happy and comfortable was in my room doing the things I loved: listening to music, watching movies, drawing and writing short stories and poems. 
• But at the end of my freshmen year I met a girl and her and I became best friends, we were inseparable! She introduced me to her group of friends and I finally felt like I belonged.
• My junior and senior year was when I got my first real boyfriend, my first car and I got my first and second job. My first job was a temporary position pushing papers at my dads office and when that job ended I started serving food at one of the local colleges. Oh and this was when I first dyed my hair dark!

• In 2002 I graduated high school.
• But I had no idea what I wanted to do next.
• So while I tried to figure that out I spent all of my time either with my boyfriend or at work.

 

• But in 2003 my boyfriend and I had broken up and I had quit my job serving food and I could not find anything else to do. And because I had spent almost all of my free time with my boyfriend I really had no friends.
• I needed to get away from the stress in Oregon so I decided to visit an old friend in California. He was a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton. While I was there he introduced me to his group of friends. We all had a fun time together and I kept in touch with a few of them after I got back to Oregon.
• Right after my 20th birthday I moved in with some family in northern California. I figured there would be more opportunities for me down there and I wanted to be closer to my friends in southern California. Every weekend I would drive down to Camp Pendleton to hang out with my friends.

•  I had become close to one of my Marine guy friends and one day we decided to get married. In true Military fashion we ran out to the closest court house and said "I do" as fast as we could.
• Our honeymoon didn't last long because a month after we were married he was deployed to Iraq with no return date....it was one of the hardest things I have ever had to go through.
• While my husband was gone I moved back to Oregon to be with my family. Soon after I moved to Oregon I ventured south to Texas where I lived with another Marines wife. A couple months after moving to Texas her and I moved back to southern California to wait for our husbands to return from Iraq.

•  In January 2005 my husband finally returned home from his deployment.
• Life was fun and amazing for about a year but then most of our friends started moving back to their home states because their time in the Marines was over. This was pretty hard on my husband an he seemed to get pretty depressed which was hard on our marriage, he didn't want to do anything anymore.
• The day after Valentines day in 2006 he left again for a 6 month deployment, saying goodbye this time was just as hard as it was the first time.

•  Since my husband's 4 years in the Marines were going to be up after he returned home from his deployment I moved out to Colorado, where my husband was from, to get a job and settle down since Colorado was where we were planning on spending the rest of our lives.
• One of my husbands old Colorado friends introduced me to one of his girlfriends and her and I were inseparable from the start. She introduced me to a whole bunch of amazing people. All of us would spend almost every weekend together watching our friends cover bands play. There is nothing like live music...I love it!
• In August 2005 my husband returned from his deployment and joined me in Colorado. We moved into our own apartment, I got him a job and he went back to school.

•  But all the time that my husband and I had spent apart had taken a huge toll on our relationship. We were now two totally different people who didn't have anything in common anymore and didn't want to do any of the same things. To this day I believe my husband was suffering with P.T.S.D. but he did not want to get help so I guess I will never know for sure. Towards the end of 2006 we got divorced. 
• After my divorce I moved back to Oregon to be with my family. 2006 was a very hard year for everyone in my family! We had to deal with my divorce, a family member struggling with addiction and a close friends death. 
• But something good did come out of 2006. I got a job as a teller at a bank and that is where I met my two very best friends and we are still as close as close can be today!

•  I loved being around my family again and I adored my friends but I really missed Colorado so in October 2008 I moved back.
• I got a job as a teller at a different back and I started hanging out with all my old friends. One of those friends was a guy named Jason. We started dating not long after I moved back, we had so much in common. We enjoyed watching anything that had to do with sports, going out to watch our friends band play and just lounging around his house watching movies.
• It wasn't long until we were crazy in love and expecting our first child. We were also parents to 5 very crazy, cuddly boxers.

•  In March 2010 we welcomed our beautiful son!
• My husband and I have been common law married since 2009 but in 2013 we made it totally official. So now I am for reals married to my love who is fun, funny, a very hard worker and very loving....he still likes to take me out to watch live music! I am still a stay at home mommy to my very hyper, fun, mischievous, sweet little man. We now have 3 crazy, cuddly boxers and one tiny, rambunctious pug mix who is my baby! We love going on as many adventures as we can as a family. I have some very close amazing friends and I am obsessed with blogging! Needless to say I am very happy with the way my life turned out and I cant wait to see what this year has to offer!
• I hope you enjoyed reading about my crazy spontaneous life! I am sure there will be a lot more craziness to come and I cant wait. Also thank you for visiting my blog! Feel free to stay awhile and check out what else I have to offer!