Abigails Spring Lipstick

Spring is upon and as always I am on the hunt for the best Spring makeup trend. Last year I fell in love with pink and orange. This year I will again stick with these two fresh and beautiful colors along with add a nice coral.

I am not much of a make-up girl through the week. Though I do manage to use concealer, mascara and lip-gloss daily it’s the weekends that I look forward to making my face up completely.

Cover Girl has the most fantastic lipsticks and they are all available on Amazon for a few cents less than on the Cover Girl website and Wal-Mart. In order to ensure I matched the right colors to my face I selected colors from the website site and then visited my local Wal Mart to ensure the colors matched then I ordered the best colors from Amazon.

CoverGirl Queen Collection Colorlicious, Premier Pink

CoverGirl Queen Collection Colorlicious Gloss, Plum Berry

CoverGirl Queen Collection Colorlicious Gloss Watermelon Splash

CoverGirl Queen Collection Colorlicious Gloss, Saucy Plum

CoverGirl Colorlicious Lipstick, Bombshell Pink

Abigails Easter Brunch

My families Easter brunch on Good Friday was a wonderful potluck with each family member contributing. One of my favorite dishes was a Chicken Bacon Ranch Layer Salad that I made having seen it on Melissa Southern Style Kitchen back in February of this year. I knew I would impress my guess with 7 delicious layers of lettuce, peppers, corn, tomatoes, onions, cheddar cheese, roast chicken and crumbled bacon. There recipe included a recipe for homemade dressing but I chose to use a store bought dressing that I knew my family and guest loved. This was also my first opportunity to use my new trifle bowl. The salad was a hit and I was proud host who can’t wait to serve this same dish again this summer at our family picnic.

http://www.melissassouthernstylekitchen.com/chicken-bacon-ranch-layer-salad/

Chicken Bacon Ranch Layer Salad

 

Print

Author: Melissa Sperka

Serves: About 12

Ingredients

• 1 recipe Avocado Lime Ranch dressing or Garlic & Herb Buttermilk dressing
• 9 cups roughly chopped green leaf or romaine lettuce, divided
• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 large poblano or green bell pepper seeded and diced
• 1 {12 oz} frozen corn, steamed and cooled
• 6 medium tomatoes, 5 chopped and 1 sliced into wedges for garnish
• 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
• 2½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• ½ lb bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 cup roasted chicken, roughly chopped
• 3 green onion, thinly sliced
• 2 large hard boiled eggs, cut into wedges

Instructions

1. In a large trifle or glass bowl layer in this order: ⅓ lettuce, ½ red pepper, ½ poblano pepper, ⅓ corn, ½ tomatoes, ½ red onion, 1 cup cheese, ⅓ bacon and ½ chicken. Drizzle with ½ cup prepared dressing.
2. Repeat, ⅓ lettuce, ½ red pepper, ½ poblano pepper, ⅓ corn, ½ tomatoes, ½ red onion, 1 cup cheese, ⅓ bacon and ½ chicken. Drizzle with ½ cup prepared dressing.
3. Top with the final ⅓ lettuce, ⅓ corn, ½ cup shredded cheese, ⅓ bacon and sliced green onion. Drizzle with 1/.2 cup dressing drizzling around the edge. Arrange egg and tomato wedges on top to garnish.
4. Chill for 4 hours, Serve with additional dressing on the side.

Notes

A quality prepared salad dressing or a packet of Hidden Valley Buttermilk Ranch dressing made per the package instructions may be substituted for the dressing in this salad.

Easter Vacation

Today begins a brief holiday break for the Chase Family. We are headed to  our cabin for a three day Easter Vacation.  I look forward to sitting on my porch watching the sunrise high above the mountain top as I sip my coffee.

I hope you all have a wonderful break...I will return on Tuesday, March 29, 2016.


Abby.

Abigail Enjoys Chicken Salad

I love chicken salad it's one of my favorite spring and summer go to meals. Recently I found a recipe that is light and delicious. As the Spring Showers roll in I'll be eating lots of this recipe.

Abby

Yield: 6-8 servings

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/greek-yogurt-chicken-salad/

Lightened-Up Chicken Salad

This Lightened-Up Chicken Salad recipe is made with healthier Greek yogurt and many of the other classic ingredients we all love!

Prep: 12 mins Cook: 0 mins Total: 12 mins

Ingredients:

• 4 cups diced cooked chicken
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 cup seedless grapes, halved
• 1 small shallot, peeled and finely-diced
• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries or cherries
• 1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to a large bowl, and toss until combined and evenly-coated.
2. Serve immediately, or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days.

Spring has Sprung with Allergies

Spring has sprung and my unapologetic allergies couldn’t be happier.  When I was a kid I was not allergic to pollen. I can remember marveling and running through the yellow clouds of pollen that permeated my parent’s cars.

As an adult if I look at pollen to closely I can my allergies became inflamed. I currently have a runny nose, itchy throat and itchy watery eyes.  My number one topic of discussion is “What allergy medication do you take and does it work?”.  Finding an allergy medication that works seems to be the number-one quest of most the people I have spoken with in the last month. Zyrtec, Allegra, Clairton, Benadryl just to name a few are on the tips of most folks tongues.

I have to admit, I have all four in my purse and medicine cabinet. While I don’t have a favorite they all seem to work and in combination with each other to cure my allergy. One of the things that I have fallen in love with is the liquid version that is available in many of the allergy medications.  

I think I will survive allergy season this year with a little help from my over the counter friends.

Abby

Welcome to The Abby

Welcome to The Abby. I am Abigail-Madison Chase your host for today. Please pull up a seat, sit back, relax and enjoy your time at The Abby.

Abigail

Abigail's New Washer & Dryer

I was asked last year what I thought the most essential household appliance invention was and I stated the washer and dryer. To me having a washer and dryer is an essential part of life. While doing laundry last week my twelve-year-old washer went on the fritz. Out of warranty, I decided to invest in a new washer and dryer rather than just replace the washer.

Shopping for a washer and dryer twelve years ago there were fewer choices. This time around I was overwhelmed with choices in colors, styles, makes and models. In the end I bought a tried and true Whirlpool set with few bells and whistle. I just want to wash clothes not create a dry cleaner in my home.

Abby

Abigail's Baked Spaghetti

Lately I have found myself depressed and cooking. I have dusted off my favorite internet cooking blogs, my favorite pot and pans and cooking skills. I am not gaining any weight because I am very careful what and how much I eat.

One of the things I love to make and rarely have time for is baked spaghetti. The best recipe that I have found is simple, easy and can be frozen. This is my all-time favorite recipe that I just made.

Abby

http://www.plainchicken.com/2014/10/the-best-baked-spaghetti.html

The Best Baked Spaghetti serves 10-12

• 16 oz thin spaghetti
• 1 lb italian sausage or hamburger, cooked
• 24 oz jar spaghetti sauce
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup parmesan
• 5 tbsp butter melted
• 15 oz ricotta
• 3 tbsp parsley
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 4 cups mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9x13-inch pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain. Whisk together eggs, parmesan cheese and melted butter. Toss with pasta. Set aside.

Combine ricotta, parsley and sour cream. Set aside.

Combine spaghetti sauce and cooked sausage/hamburger. Set aside.

Layer half of pasta mixture, half of ricotta cheese mixture, half of meat sauce and half of mozzarella. Repeat layers.

Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes (until cheese is bubbly).

Read more at http://www.plainchicken.com/2014/10/the-best-baked-spaghetti.html#qrrj4IiGA0J5zxLd.99

Abigail's Kitchen Cuties

I am a sucker for cute things in the kitchen. One of my all-time

favorite things to buy are glass or clear jars for cereal, sugar, flour

and other ingredients. Last week I found the perfect set of clear

glass Round chalkboard jar with tight lids on Amazon. The set of 3

clear round chalkboard jars are beautiful and practical. The

chalkboard in front allows you to write the name of whatever is in

the jar right in front. I was so excited when my jars arrived and I

was able to fill and display them.

Abby

Abigail's Go To Meal

My go to quick meal is the BLT. One of my favorite recipes is one that I found online a couple for the most delicious BLT and herb mayo.  This is the ultimate BLT. It has roasted tomatoes and a herbed mayo that is most delicious on my sandwiches I have ever had.

Abby

http://www.veggiesbycandlelight.com/blt-with-roasted-tomatoes-and-herbed-mayo/

Olive Oil Mayo with Herbs & Garlic

Prep time

20 mins

Total time

20 mins

Author: Sexy Veggie

Serves: 16 Servings

Ingredients

• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 Tbsp distilled white vinegar
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice + more to taste
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp kosher salt + more for seasoning
• ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper + more for seasoning
• 1½ cups olive oil
• 2 Tbsp chopped garlic
• 1½ Tbsp chopped chives
• 1½ Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1½ Tbsp chopped tarragon

Instructions

1. Place a large bowl on a folded damp kitchen towel to keep bowl from slipping.
2. Vigorously whisk yolks, vinegar, 1 Tbsp. lemon juice, mustard, 1 tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. pepper, and 1 Tbsp. water in bowl to blend.
3. While whisking continuously, slowly add oil drop by drop to form an emulsion.
4. Continue whisking, slowly adding the remaining oil, until mayonnaise is smooth and creamy.
5. Fold in garlic, chives, parsley, and tarragon.
6. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired.

Roasted Tomatoes

 

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Author: Sexy Veggie

Ingredients

• 12 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, cores and seeds removed
• 4 Tbsp good olive oil
• 1½ Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1½ tsp kosher salt
• ½ ttsp freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Arrange the tomatoes on a sheet pan, cut sides up, in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
3. Sprinkle the garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper over the tomatoes.
4. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the tomatoes are concentrated and beginning to caramelize.
5. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Shower of April Flowers

Winter Blues bring Spring Fever
Flowers blossom, Pollen falls like snow,
April Shower, May Flowers all in a row

Abby

Abigail's Rainbow Smoothie

I am a smoothie girl. I love the frozen treats for breakfast and lunch. Not only are they good to drink they can be extremely healthy. While cruising on the internet yesterday I found a fabulous recipe for a Rainbow Smoothie. 7 layers of delicious goodness in a glass. Peaches, oranges, pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, and mangos and mixed berries. This is the recipe for champions!

Abby

http://thefirstyearblog.com/rainbow-smoothie/

Rainbow Smoothie

Print Recipe

Yield: 3-4 cups of each color of smoothie

Ingredients:

Red Layer

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
• 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
• water or liquid for blending

Orange Layer

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1/2 cup frozen peaches
• 1 small orange
• 1/4 cup frozen mango
• water or liquid for blending

Yellow Layer

• 2 frozen bananas
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1 cup frozen pineapple
• water or liquid for blending

Green Layer

• 2 frozen bananas
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1 handful (or more) spinach
• 1 cup frozen pineapple
• water or liquid for blending

Blue Layer

• 2 frozen bananas
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1 cup frozen pineapple
• small amount of blue food coloring
• water or liquid for blending

Purple Layer

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1 cup frozen mixed berries
• water or liquid for blending

Magenta Layer

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
• 1/2 cup sliced beets
• 1 cup frozen strawberries or raspberries

Directions

For each smoothie

1. Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Add more liquid to help it blend if it's too thick.
2. Transfer the smoothie to a bowl or container, rinse the blender and prep the next smoothie.

To assemble the rainbow smoothie

1. Carefully layer each color smoothie in glasses in rainbow order. If desired, blend the smoothie using a straw or stir stick. Top each smoothie with a toothpick filled with leftover fruit.

I was able to make 8-10 rainbow smoothies using 15.5 oz glasses. If you are opposed to using a small amount of blue food coloring to achieve the blue layer, it's totally fine to skip that layer! If you want to go the all natural route, here is a tutorial for how to make natural blue food coloring, or you can buy natural blue food coloring here or here as well.

Abigails Doldrums of Midlife

 

“Rainy days and Mondays always get me down”

I think I am in the middle of midlife crisis. Now I really do. The doldrums of life have stolen my joy and life just seems blah on most occasions. I am not sure what the answer is but something has me misty eyed and wondering why rainy days and Mondays seem to be every day. 

Misty are the days

Weepy are the nights

Misty weepy days of doldrums

Lost in a sea of unforgiving scrolls of denial

O’ how I wish for the days of woe to be gone

Abby

Abigail's Long, Slow, Goodbye to Dish

DISH Network and I continue to have a misunderstanding. Dish understands I love cable and I don’t understand why they think I’ll pay for channels I don’t watch. This is a real misunderstanding.

Since the Summer I have worked hard at cutting the cable cord. Slowly but surely I am backing off the huge cable bill and moving to services that I like Netflix’s, Hulu and my new Roku 3 with voice which I absolutely LOVE.

Now that the kids are heading out the door and only Ayden is left I have decabled from premium channel subscriptions that I had, HBO, Showtime, Cinemax and Starz. Now I have less channels and more options available from other sources. My new bill is so affordable I almost cry with joy when I pay my bill $11.99 for Netflix’s and Hulu each and a one-time fee of 79.00 for my Roku 3 with voice which is a reduced price from Amazon Warehouse.  I am over joyed that I cut my entire cable bill in half. 

Abby

Umbrella Junkie Abigail

I am an umbrella junkie although it never rains for long where I live. I am your average six umbrella junkie who loves to decorate overhead in a rain storm. Possessing so many umbrellas, I finally decided to buy myself an umbrella stand.  Once I decided on an umbrella stand I had to create an area for all my shoes and new umbrella stand. In the end I created a small area that looks marvelous and was on Pinterest. Sigh, I started out an umbrella junkie and ended up with a nice little area in my foyer.

Abby

Abigail Purges Her Closet

 

 

The loftiest goal I have in 2016 is to purge until I have gotten all of the excess out of my life. So far I am doing a pretty good job of it. When we moved to our new home last month I did a lot of soul searching and purging. It was a difficult task since I like to hold onto things. But in the end I was able to leave half the clothes I never wear and almost all of the appliances that I never use.

I am pretty proud of myself for purging last month. I have reached a point in my life where keeping things seems to be a great idea. When my children were smaller I made sure to keep every picture and report card they received. Now that they are older I have laminated most of it and stored it away in my now pristine storage unit in back of the house. In not so many years each of the kids will inherit their lives from birth to college.

My goal seemed lofty when I made it last year. Yet as I glaze in my closet that should be in a magazine I realize that I have purged my life and I am all the better for it.

Abby

Abigail enjoys reading "A Geek Girl'd Guide to Murder (The Geek Girl Mysteries)

I was gifted with an Amazon Card to buy books. One of the series that I have wanted to read for a couple of months is A Geek Girl's Guide to Murder (The Geek Girl Mysteries) by Julie Anne Lindsey. Being a geeky girl myself I always love to read about other geeks that are girls.

Mia is an IT Manager and the fact that I am an amateur IT girl makes the two of us twines. This far I am looking this series.

Abby
http://www.amazon.com/Geek-Girls-Guide-Arsenic-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B014PJ0M9A/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Abigails Shopping List

I love to make list. One of my favorite list to make is my list for the supermarket. I spend hours poring over circulars and looking in my cabinets trying to ensure that my family has a bevy of food to choose from.

I love coupons also.

I am the supermarkets biggest couponed shopper. While I always willing to try new food that are cheaper with a coupon, I mostly stick to the things I know my family will eat with or without a coupon.

I always have a list on me. No matter how many times I visit the supermarket or even Walmart I always have a list of things that are needed. It never seems to me that I ever complete a list before I begin to make another.

Abby

Abby's New Appliance

I've finally found a convection oven that I love.  I bought with some reservations a Oster® Large Digital Countertop Oven off Amazon after reading the reviews over the last two months.  I have to say I am glad I ignored those with petty complaints.

This is the best countertop convection oven ever. In the last week I made a lasagna, cookies, bread and toast. I love toast and this is the best toaster I have ever had. One of the things I love is that its digital.

Abby

Dance Like You Are on Fire

Sometimes in life the only thing you can do is dance through the pain. I often marvel at the life of ballet dancers. Posed to perfection on stage, ballet dances make their job seem so easy. But watch any documentary on ballet dancers and you know how difficult it is to become a professional ballet dancer trained to perfection.

Ballet dancers often dance through the pain .

I want to be like a ballet dancer and dance through the pain. I want all the emotion of a dance as I move through the shadows of life flawless and beautiful.

Abby

Abigail's Social Media

Social Media has become an industry unto itself. I don’t think I can ever again imagine myself not knowing what friends are doing every second of the day. Social Media is big brother without the government. I can from my home keep tabs on friends and family half way around the world not because I am spying but because they chose to post online.

I am a fan of social media because it has bridged a divide that use to separate friends and families by miles. Now everyone is just a click away. Grandparents are no longer doomed to pictures of events they can’t attend or to watch grandchildren in other states grow up without their presents. Social media has connected families across the miles and united families in a way that was never before possible.

In real time grandparents can watch as their grandchildren play sports or attend a wedding. While there are some pitfalls and drawbacks in social media, there are some great things that are happening.

Abby

Abigail Says Happy Birthday to Hunter

Today is my son, Hunter's birthday. On Wednesday, March 1, 1995, I Abigail Madison Chase gave birth to a 5lb 19inch boy at 12:10am.

After nine months of anticipation I was rewarded with a perfect baby. I remember counting his toes twice to make sure they were all there. His hands reminded me of my Dads big and strong. O’ how I cried with joy the first time he opened his eyes and looked at me.

21 years ago today I gave birth to the most perfect baby boy “Happy Birthday, Hunter”

Abby