Summer Lyn...6 weeks

Our baby, Summer Lyn, is now 6 weeks old. *Sigh.* I just love sitting down and holding her in my arms. Kissing her little forehead. Having her grasp my finger in her little fist. Watching her first real smiles. Hearing her first little sounds talking. Life is sweet. I thank the Lord for every minute with my precious miracle!

Recipe: White Chicken Chili

Here is a new soup recipe I tried two nights ago...and it is a keeper for me! I love autumn because it is great soup and sandwich weather! :) And this is delicious! Don't forget to add the toppers on it...that is the best part! Trust me!

White Chicken Chili

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked thoroughly and diced

1 onion, chopped

4 cups chicken broth (2 cans)

1 tsp. cumin

1 1/2 tsp. chili powder

3 jalapeno peppers, chopped

2 cans cannellini beans (15 oz. each), rinsed and drained

Lime juice (liberally)

Toppings:

Sour cream

Shredded cheddar cheese

Chopped cilantro

Place all ingredients into a pot. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

When serving, top each bowl with a shredded cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream and chopped cilantro! Very important!

It makes each bowl simply divine! Enjoy and happy fall!

My Recent Gift

These are just a few pictures of the new furniture set that my sweet hubby bought for me a few months ago. :) I am posting these pictures for my sister who has requested me to do so. Now she needs to come and visit me!
(Sorry about the spots...they must have been on my camera.)

Field Trip...Pumpkin Patch 2010

On the hayride at the pumpkin patch. :)

The farm where the pumpkin patch is located with the Sierra Nevada mountains in the background. God's country! :)

Baby Summer...6 weeks. Love this girl!

Addie, Autumn and Sierra.

Story time on the field trip.

Today, we took a field trip to a local pumpkin patch. It was in a beautiful location with the Sierras in the distance. We also had a beautiful, sunny day in the low 60's. :) They had many fun things to see and do for the kids. We took a ride on the wagon and picked a pumpkin from the field. It was a fun time with our friends!

October is ending...

Taking a few moments tonight to update my blog about the happenings at the Tastet house...

Sunday was a sweet day. We had one of our teen boys in our church accept the Lord in the service! Our attendance was 46! We are just two weeks away from our charter service and moving to our new facility. Praise the Lord for His blessings to our church family!

After church, we had some nasty fall weather...winds up to 70mph, rain and more rain! It was a wonderful day to cuddle up in a blanket with a warm drink and stay inside. Which is what we did! :) I needed a relaxing evening after a very busy week.

Yesterday, my husband went with his dad and another man from our church to do a few things to prepare for our Harvest Party on Saturday. After school, the girls and I went to Sierra's first dentist appt. Sierra just turned three and can talk a leg off a horse! The girls and I were cracking up because we could hear her talking away to the dental hygenist while we waited in the waiting room! She's a hoot!

That evening, my husband and I took our girls trick or treating at a local strip mall which they enjoyed. They were all ballerinas. :) We then ended the evening watching Biggest Loser together with a bowl of hot, salty popcorn and some sweet tea.

Today, my husband and I had a date! We first had an appt. at Best Buy to change our cell phone plans and get new phones, etc. After that, we had lunch at Red Robin which we enjoyed a delicious burger, fries and a coke. :) I love my dates with my husband but they are never long enough! Then I babysat our friends' kids while my husband was on call for his job.

Tomorrow...a regular day. Which means...home schooling, cooking, cleaning, laundry...all that good, regular stuff. :)

Friday is Field Trip day! We are going to IHOP for breakfast and then to the pumpkin patch with my friend, Shannon, and her two sons.

Saturday is our church Harvest Party!

I will try to get some updated pictures from these events. :) Have a great Thursday!

Autumn Name Cards

Here is a cute idea for autumn name cards at your next party...

Write your guests' names with a paint pen on mini pumpkins. Place on top of a fall colored napkin with a sprig of autumn leaves.

Autumn Decorating Idea: Pumpkin Centerpiece

Here is an easy decorating idea for your fall table. Place a white pumpkin on glass pedestal. Add a branch with leaves, etc. from the craft store. Elegant and easy!

Recipe: Presto! Chicken Tacos

Tonight I tried a new recipe and thought I would share...

Presto! Chicken Tacos

2-3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4-5 large garlic cloves, minced

1 can (14 1/2oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 can (14 1/2oz.) diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

Lime juice-liberally added :)

12 - 15 corn tortillas (6 in.), warmed

Toppings: Sour cream, diced avocado, salsa or hot sauce, shredded cheddar cheese, cilantro, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes.

Cook the chicken breasts, when cooled, shred into pieces. Place into skillet with a small amount of oil. Saute garlic and add back into the skillet-the shredded chicken. Add in the tomatoes, lime juice and seasonings. Cook on med. heat for 10 - 15 min. to soak in the seasonings into the meat. Serve and enjoy!!

Recipe: Chicken Lo Mein

This is a new recipe I made on Monday night...a little Chinese take-out at home!

Chicken Lo Mein

8 oz. uncooked linguine

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in strips

1 lb. sliced fresh mushrooms

1 bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables (I used an asparagus mix)

1 bottle stir-fry sauce (in the Asian food section)

Cook linguine according to directions on package. Cook the chicken strips until no longer pink. Add in frozen vegetable and mushrooms. Saute until crisp-tender. Add in the stir-fry sauce. Heat through. Drain linguine and add to veggie mixture. Stir and serve!

Great meal...serve with eggrolls and enjoy!

Happy Birthday Sierra Rae!

Today is our third daughter's 3rd birthday! Sierra Rae was born on October 16, 2007 in Crown Point, IN. She was named for the Sierra Nevada mountain range...where we now live in Reno, NV. Her middle name was in honor of her two grandmothers. My mom's name is Marcia Rae and Eric's mom's name is Raeanne. So both names are "Love" names. :)

Sierra is our outgoing and independent child! She likes to boss her dogs around...who outweigh her by 30 pounds! She won't let her big sisters push her around...she can hold her own! She is now a big sister as well and loves it! She loves to kiss her baby sister, Summer...she likes to "talk" for her as well since Summer is not able to right now. In fact, she talks enough for the entire family! She also lately likes to sing and perform...using a jump rope as a microphone. She not only sings songs she knows...but she makes up songs while she sings!

I like to think that each of our daughters have some attribute or trait of their father. :) Sierra's is probably her fighting spirit! I think this is a good thing. A fighting spirit will keep her going on a successful path to whatever she chooses in her life. We pray that she will be saved and that path will be whatever God has for her.

So...happy birthday to my little 3 yr. old! Daddy and Mommy love you!

Nacho cheese and dinner...

Ever have too much of one ingredient left in your fridge? We recently had loaded nachos...and had quite a bit of nacho cheese left. What to do???

So, I made a tuna noodle casserole for dinner tonight! Here is the easy version that I put together with ingredients in my cabinet...

1 - 16 oz. package of whole wheat pasta (elbow macaroni, rotini, etc)

1 can of tuna, drained

1 can of sweet peas, drained

Leftover nacho cheese with a splash of milk

Boil the pasta according to directions on package. Drain. Add the cheese, milk, tuna and peas. Stir and heat through. Wa lah!

Recipe: Hot Dog Pizzas

Need a simple, kid-friendly meal tonight? Try hot dog pizzas! Well, hot dogs are not involved...just the buns! :)

1 package of hot dog buns

1 jar pizza sauce

1 package mini pepperonis

1/2 red bell pepper-chopped

fresh mushrooms-chopped

fresh green onions-chopped

1 package shredded mozzarella cheese

Open the hot dog buns and place flat on a baking sheet. Spread pizza sauce over each bun. Add toppings. Bake until cheese is melted at 400 degrees. Eat and enjoy!

This is an easy and fun meal for a child to help make as well.

Nana's Visit and Other Happenings...

This past week, my mom has been visiting from Ohio. We have enjoyed having her and she is spoiling our girls like all good Grandma's do! They have been reading books, playing games, watching movies, making crafts, etc. They will not know what to do when she leaves! LOL! I am happy for them and for her...for all the sweet memories they have made. :)

So this has been a busy past week...yet good. :) I will be taking the next few days to get back to my regular schedule. Home schooling...grocery shopping and laundry...and a teen activity in the evening tomorrow.

Our little baby, Summer, is growing like a weed! She is just my little sweetheart! Even though the sweetness wears a little thin at 1:30 and 4:30am in the morning! LOL! She is already up to 9 lbs. 4 oz.! I tell my older girls that her "rolls" on her little legs are my little "cinnamon rolls" since she is so sweet. :) They just crack up when I say that!

Today, I found a cute Old Navy jean skirt at the thrift store along with some black knee high boots for this winter! Woo hoo! My last black boots bit the dust last winter and I have been searching the thrift stores for another pair for several months now and God brought them along for me just in time for the autumn season! God is just so good to me!

We had a wonderful day in church yesterday! We had 49 in attendance which is a packed house in our little conference room! We had our first missionaries come and present their work...Isaac and Nicole Hunsinger...missionaries to Guyana. It was also fun to sing a special with my mom and my husband...It's Still The Blood...and to play the offeratory with my mom.

I am looking forward to more autumn days...cold nights and crisp days...hooded sweatshirts...crunchy leaves...flickering candles...cuddling in blankets...caramel apples and apple crisp...pumpkins and pumpkin patches. :) Happy fall!!!

Autumn days...

Today begins a busy week! My mom will be flying in from Ohio for a visit! She is able to come visit for a week once a year and we look forward to her visit every year!! I have been working and working...preparing and prepping...to make things perfect for her when she comes. I am just that way! LOL! If you are like me, just remember that things will not always be 100% perfect (especially when four kids are in the picture! :)...so do what you can...go with the flow...and enjoy! My sister reminded me that my kids aren't able to have very many memories with their grandparents (one set lives in Alaska and one in Ohio)...so take these chances and go all out! My daughters started telling me all the fun things that Nana did with them last time she was here...I was pleased to see that they remembered it all...and how much it had meant to them.

So today starts off chilly and cloudy...one week ago...96 degrees...today high of 58. LOL! We have actually received our first snow up in the Sierra's...it is almost like a contest with my hubby and I to see who gets to see the snow first...yesterday morning he called and let me know he could see the snow through the clouds! :) We love Nevada!

A quick update on our church...we had 35 in church on Sunday...4 adult visitors! We are planning lots of fun activities for this month...
Teen activity...Redneck Night at the Allen's home!

Church activity...SVBC Harvest Party at Crystal Peak Park! Hayride...bonfire...hot chocolate and hobo stew with homemade fall desserts!

We have a date set for our charter service for our church...November 7th! We will be moving to our new meeting place...from our conference room at the Hampton Inn to Hunsberger Elementary School. Pray for our church as we go through these growing pains...thatour congregation will continue to grow and God will provide the finances each week for this step!

Hope you all have a great week!