For my cousin’s New Year’s Eve party, I brought a huge bowl of vegetables with dips – the healthy option for us! I was going to buy a pre-packaged veggie platter but found out that was actually going to be more expensive and have less variety to buy individually. Sure I spent more overall, but the pre-packaged option only had carrots, tomatoes and celery in it. How boring! So I walked around the produce section of Woodman’s and picked up all my favorites to bring along – carrot slices, celery, cauliflower, broccoli, cherry tomatoes, yellow and green peppers and cucumbers. I picked up a light ranch dill dip and Woodman’s…

I was contacted by the Roaring Forks restaurant group and asked if I was interested in trying the new smothered burritos from Qdoba and sharing my thoughts on my blog. I didn’t have to think long about that because I have a love-love relationship with Qdoba. The three cheese queso nachos might possibly be my go-to meal and I can’t get over their chips! I taste a hint of lime on them and it’s really refreshing. My guy and I stopped into Qdoba for lunch and went all in on two smothered burritos, guacamole and chips and beverages- you know, a nice light lunch! We got in line to order…

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! Resolutions, Goals, Intentions, Plans…..they all mean the same thing and many people make resolutions at the start of the year, only to break them and fall off the wagon within a month. I used to be part of this group, but I have decided to make my goals more attainable and work on progressing them forward throughout the year. For example, weight gain doesn’t happen in a month, so you can’t expect to reverse the holiday affects completely by the end of January. But if you stick with it, you will see progress that should keep motivating you to go further. I’m not going to layout all…

When you want Mexican food and you are in Waukesha, there are quite a few options. But the one that comes to mind first for me is La Estacion. It’s the one that I have been to the most and has consistently delicious food. My guy and I went there a few Fridays ago before the Art Crawl and we were pleasantly surprised that we got a table right away. The place was hopping with people, but the tables were being cleared quickly to get the next groups in. They sat us in the main dining room and although the train cars are a great dining experience too, this time…

Growing up, I never had an Easy-Bake Oven. I always helped bake with my mom and grandma  but I did want one. All my friends had them and they looked so fun. This past weekend, I had the opportunity to use one with my guy’s daughters. And let me tell you, I suggest using the word “easy” loosely. Overall it’s an easy process to make the food, but the oven itself is another story. And it’s really time-consuming for the minimal amount of food you get at the end of the process. We let each girl pick out one treat to make and although one of the girls picked out…

2014 was an excellent year and though I’m sad to see it go, because that means I’m getting older, I’m really excited for what 2015 brings! I really made my blog a priority and I can’t thank my friends and readers enough for their support in the last year. I managed to knock out nearly 100 posts this past year – pretty crazy!!! I didn’t have a goal in mind but I am really excited to see what I accomplished by putting my fingers to the keys and enjoying every moment of it. Change is coming to the blog in 2015, but only in the good ways. I hope for…

The same night that my parent’s hosted their family Christmas Party, I had my annual friend Christmas with a White Elephant gift exchange.My friend’s hosted it in the gorgeous house in Vernon and they supplied a few eats while the rest of us all brought things to share. I don’t remember everything that was out on the buffet, but the kitchen was filled with food. Here’s a dabbling and please forgive me if I forgot an item or two. I was in a food coma shortly after arrival and may have forgotten everything I ate: Meatballs Bacon-wrapped water chestnutsOven-baked ham and swiss/cheddar sandwiches (Recipe Below)Southwest Egg RollsFruit SkewersCheesey-jalepeno dipCake ballsBagel…

I am actually heading out of town for New Year’s this year because I have family in from the East Coast that I haven’t seen in a year. But if I wasn’t going out of town, I would definitely be hitting up a few of these great New Year’s Eve specials in Waukesha. These are what I found, but I know there are more parties and events going on. Whatever you do, have fun and be safe. Call a cab if you have had too much too drink or follow the rule that I have – no driving (regardless if I drank or not) after 11 pm because after that,…

Today the Packers played a nerve-wracking game against the “dirty-playing” Lions. Though Aaron Rodgers went out early with an injury, he came back for the second half and (despite getting stepped on) threw some great passes for a Packers NFC North Championship WIN! I invited my friends over and together we made a great buffet of eats.  I made a large crockpot of sloppy joes. I used 3 lbs of locally sourced meat. My parents bought half a cow from Salentine Farms in Big Bend. It was processed at Sorg’s in Fort Atkinson. I browned it off, drained off the grease and added sloppy joe mix, carrots, celery, onion, worchestershire…

The holidays bring families together for parties that celebrate the magic of the season. Each year my dad’s brothers and sisters get together at one of their homes to have a nice evening without the kids and grandkids. My dad has 10 brothers and sisters so when everyone gets together, the parties can get quite large. I think the latest count I came up with is: 26 first cousins, 14 significant others of those cousins, and 23 kids of cousins:) So doing just the brothers and sisters allows for them to talk and share about what their families are up to without the distractions the kids can bring. This year…