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Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole Recipe Over Rice

Posted on January 13, 2020January 13, 2020 by Mandy

Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole is one of our favorite family meals. It’s definitely one of those filling comfort foods. I learned how to make this amazing casserole a few years ago by following a recipe from a sweet church lady friend. Her recipe is very easy to follow and the end results are amazing. Delicious, creamy chicken topped with buttery Ritz Crackers. If you are feeding a crowd, this recipe will make a nice 9 x 12 casserole dish full. If not, there will be plenty of delicious leftovers, which is never a bad thing! I made this the other night while trying to get with my new program of meal planning and it was absolutely worth all of the effort!

Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole

Ingredients:

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 cans of Cream of Chicken Soup

16 oz. of Sour Cream

2 teaspoons of Poppy Seeds

2 sleeves of Ritz Crackers- crushed (left this out of the picture above. Sorry!)

2 sticks of melted Butter

Directions:

Boil the chicken and shred.

Mix the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and poppy seeds together. Add the chicken to the soup mixture and mix well. Pour the mixture into the casserole dish.

Mix the butter and Ritz cracker crumbs and spread on top of the chicken mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly.

I serve this over white rice. I don’t have a rice cooker, so I just cheat and use the boil-in-bag rice. It’s so delicious and it usually makes enough for me to have leftovers for work the next day. I’m almost positive this would probably freeze well for those nights when you just don’t feel like being on your feet very long. I plan on trying to freeze a batch the next time I make this.

Let me know in the comments if you give it a try!

How Life Has Changed in A Decade for Me

Posted on January 7, 2020January 12, 2020 by Mandy

With the new decade here, I thought it would be fun to look back on how life has changed in a decade for me and my blog. Ten years doesn’t seem like so long in the grand scheme of life. However, things sure do change quite a bit in a short amount of time.

How Life Has Changed in a Decade

Family

Ten years ago I had a 4-year-old. My baby is 14 now. He will turn 15 in February. I’ll spare you the “what happened to my baby???” novel, but when he was small it was hard to even imagine him being a teenager. We’ve traded everything Thomas trains for video games and an iPhone, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I still love him to pieces and no matter how many years go by, that will never change.

In 2010, hubby and I had been married for 10 years. We celebrated 20 this past year! We have truly tested the vows of our marriage in those twenty years…for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health. Today, we are more blessed than we deserve and we also get a lot more sleep, so everyone is feeling good (because our son is 14 and sleeps through the night…and sleeps, and sleeps, and sleeps…)

Pets

Unfortunately, in ten years’ time, we have had to say goodbye to all of our cats. We lost Bonnie in 2009. We said goodbye to our big, beautiful Clyde (bonnie’s littermate) in 2018. He was 17 years old. And we just had to say goodbye to our sweet Pearl girl a few months ago. We adopted Pearl after Bonnie died and she lived to be 14 years. A few months before Pearl died, our neighbor’s cat named Jake took a big liking to us and he has pretty much made himself at home.

We let him come and go as he pleases (he was mostly an outdoor cat), but this big orange fluffball sleeps with me just about every single night. #borrowedcats

Jobs

In 2011 I went back to work as a school librarian after being a stay at home mom. Although I have changed schools a couple of times, I’m still working full time. Some days are tough, but the good ones are more frequent and it keeps me going. Hubby changed jobs in 2014 and he is still driving for the same company.

Health

Whooo boy! Wow, how life has changed in a decade for me. I was always a tired mom. Shopping trips or even just family trips wore me out. The reason for the extreme tiredness was finally discovered in 2016 and I had to have an emergency double bypass heart surgery. I also just had my gallbladder removed almost three months ago. Do you know what? I feel AMAZING! How many people can say they feel BETTER ten years later? I am so thankful and appreciate each new day.

Living Quarters

We’ve moved three times in 10 years! Thankfully, each new place was very nearby in the same town. We sold our first house. We lived in an apartment for a few years and we bought another home in 2016.

Life

Probably the most significant loss I experienced in these 10 years was my dad passing away in 2015. I still miss him so much and my grandmother now lives with my mom. I’m so thankful they have each other as it’s helped my mom transition so much better having her mom so close.

Blog

This blog has certainly transitioned in 10 years. 10 years ago this was a small blog that made no money. Things started booming around 2013 for the blog as far as sponsorships and ad revenue and this hobby turned into a great little side gig. However, things change. Requirements for sponsored posts have gotten much more strict as far as how big of a readership and following you have to have. I’ve also aged-out of most parenting gigs and I’m totally fine with this slower pace. This blog is now back to hobby status as far as earnings, but I’ve turned selling on eBay into my side gig. I still love this blog and I hope ten years from now I will still be writing here.

This is how life has changed in a decade for me. I’ll turn 46 this year. It’s amazing how time flies by!

3 Ingredient Sausage Balls You Can Freeze Ahead

Posted on January 6, 2020September 6, 2021 by Mandy

3 ingredient sausage balls are one of my favorite breakfast items to make. Not only do they require so few ingredients, but you can also freeze these. It’s perfect for a quick breakfast or snack. My mom introduced our family to sausage balls many years ago while I was young. She would make these for work parties and for our special Christmas Eve breakfasts. They were always so good and made the house smell amazing. I looked forward to the holidays because I knew these would be made.

I recently had to make these 3 ingredient sausage balls for a work party and decided to make up several batches. They freeze very well and it’s so easy to grab a few for a quick breakfast.

3 Ingredient Sausage Balls

2 cups Bisquick

1 1/2 cup of shredded mild cheddar cheese

1 lb. uncooked sausage

Put all ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix well. Make sure you have clean hands!

The mixture should look like this. and yep, you will get your hands a little dirty! But it’s worth it, I promise!

Next, you will pinch off a little of the mixture and roll it into individual balls. If I’m not going to eat these immediately, I just roll off a piece of aluminum foil or wax paper to hold them until they go into the freezer bag. If you are eating them immediately, just place them on the pan.

These will be bagged up for another day. Yep, these 3 ingredient sausage balls freeze very well and taste just as delicious as the day they were made!

When you are ready to cook, place them on a baking sheet and cook at 350 degrees for 15-17 minutes. I find that if they are frozen, they may need just a few minutes longer.

Another great thing about these 3-ingredient sausage balls is that clean up is a breeze! You can also try using hot sausage if you like a little kick to your sausage balls.

Not making any Ebay sales with your items? How to know when it's time to pivot and change what you sell on Ebay to increase your sales.

Pivot to Increase Ebay Sales and Win the New Year

Posted on January 3, 2020January 3, 2020 by Mandy

When is it time to pivot to increase eBay sales? And what does it even mean to pivot? Maybe you’ve noticed that certain items just don’t sell well for you. You might find your storage area for your eBay items just filled with items you don’t even enjoy listing. It may be time to pivot your business. This means to change strategies or direction.

Pivot to Increase eBay Sales and Win the New Year

Taking Stock

As the new year is moving in, I found myself reflecting on my sales for the past year and looking at a lot of inventory just sitting around. It’s not uncommon for me to have an item listed for months. Some things just take longer to sell than others. However, a little over a year has passed since some of the inventory was acquired and it wasn’t moving. I have tried sales and auctions instead of buying it now, but these items just wouldn’t budge. It was time for a change! I needed to pivot to increase eBay sales.

What wasn’t moving for me? Toys, mainly. I also had a few household items and clothing. I’ve decided to make a pivot in my own eBay business, so it was time for me to find a new home for these items. New in box toys went to the school I work at for Christmas gifts for kids in need and then I boxed up the rest of the items to be donated to the Salvation Army. My eBay room looks so much cleaner and I am excited about changing direction by selling items I enjoy selling instead of forcing myself to sell things I don’t enjoy selling just to make a profit.

When To Pivot

How do you know when it’s time to pivot to increase eBay sales? First, take a look at your bottom line. I looked at my profit as well as my expenses and it just didn’t make sense to keep sourcing and listing items that weren’t selling. Look at what actually is selling and decide if it’s worth it to devote more time to these items. I sold a lot of books, so that is one category of inventory I will be keeping. Other categories didn’t do so well and some were even a pain to box up and ship out because of their weight and bulk.

Next, sell what you enjoy or know a lot about. Selling books is easy for me because they are usually small and don’t weigh a ton. It’s easy to ship them out and source them as well. I discovered that I hated taking pictures of clothing and taking the measurements to sell a clothing item. I’ve decided I won’t be sourcing or listing any more clothing. This is a very profitable niche for some, but I just didn’t enjoy selling in this category. Trying to sell a little bit of everything works great for some people, but ultimately I found that books and ephemera were my jam. I had more sales in this category and I actually enjoy it.

Finally, realize that it’s alright to change your mind when it comes to your eBay sales and try new things. While deciding what not to source and sell anymore, I realized that I’m probably leaving money on the table by not trying to sell a little of everything. However, I’ve decided that it’s OK for me to try a different way. If I see where it’s not working out, I can always switch gears and pivot to increase my sales again. Trying and failing has taught me more about running my eBay business than anything.

Making the Pivot to Increase Sales

So, I am headed into the new year with some fresh ideas for running my eBay business and I hope this pivot will help me increase eBay sales and help me reach my selling goals a little better this year. I hope your year of selling is great as well! Have you ever decided to pivot your business? How did it work out for you? I’d love to hear your stories in the comments. Please share!

My personal experience with using several over the counter skincare products to get rid of or reduce the appearance of Melasma on my face.

How To Get Rid of Melasma- What Works and What Doesn’t

Posted on January 2, 2020August 8, 2024 by Mandy

Figuring out how to get rid of melasma was a top priority for me this past summer. About four years ago I suddenly developed melasma underneath my nose, right above my upper lip. What made it so embarrassing? I looked like I was growing a mustache! I was horrified and tried my best to cover it up with makeup, which seemed to only make it look worse. Dermatologist visits and treatments can be expensive, so I wanted to see if treating this with over-the-counter skincare could help clear it up.

What Didn’t Help My Melasma

The first thing I used to try to get rid of melasma was Rodan & Fields’ Reverse regimen. These products were just way too harsh on my skin. I tried to love it and push through it, but after a couple of weeks, I couldn’t continue to use this regimen. My skin is sensitive and dries out very easily. I was disappointed. I spent a lot of money on these products I couldn’t use.

Next, I tried several products from The Ordinary by Deciem. These products are highly recommended, and many people rave about them online. They were also very affordable, and I was so excited when I received my order. I used them faithfully for two months, but I saw absolutely no change in my skin at all. I was so sad about this because I loved the way it made my skin feel. If melasma is not a concern for you, I highly recommend this brand for everyday skincare.

What Finally Helped My Melasma

What finally showed promise in helping me get rid of melasma was Eucerin’s Anti-Pigment line, specifically the Pigment Reducing Night Cream. I have been using this for two months now, and I’m really seeing a difference in my skin overall. I have quite a bit of sun damage from years of spending summers at the pool growing up, so seeing my face brightening slowly all over is encouraging. There were dark, dull areas on my cheeks that are finally brightening up. While these changes are very subtle, I can tell a little difference in where the melasma is lightening up! I’m also about to add the Eucerin Anti-Pigment Spot Corrector and as well to my daily skincare regimen. I’ve read success stories from people who use these together and are seeing great results.

Before Eucerin:

After Using Eucerin 2 Months

Hiding Melasma

So, I feel like it’s pretty obvious, but using a great sunscreen every single day is so very important. I use a Neutrogena brand because it’s gentle on my face and has never caused me to break out. Sunscreen feels yucky under my makeup. I wear it when I am bare-faced and out in the sun.

I have also found that a full coverage foundation is great for reducing the appearance of melasma as well. My makeup routine starts with Farsali Unicorn Essence makeup primer, Too Faced Born This Way Concealer in Swan, and then my foundation is Laura Mercier Flawless Fusion Ultra-Longwear Foundation in Cashew. I also use the Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder to set it all. It took me a while of trying samples of products to find some that worked. I’m pretty happy with these, and they work for me.

I’ll keep you updated on my journey of using over-the-counter skin care products to help reduce the appearance of my melasma. Do you have melasma? Share what works or what doesn’t for you in the comments. I’m listening!

How To Organize Your Life in the New Year

Posted on January 1, 2020February 14, 2023 by Mandy

If you’re wondering how to get your life organized in the New Year, keep reading! Are you like me and swear that THIS will be the year that you get everything in your life organized for the New Year? Finances, meal planning, and decluttering are all areas I struggle with each year. I have the best intentions and always start off with a bang, but somehow it all seems to fizzle out by March. I have vowed to stay focused this year. Here are a few tools I’ll be using to keep it all together.

Finances and Budgeting

I can’t get down with budgeting software and spreadsheets that break everything down into millions of categories. I simply make a list of my bills and when they are due and sit down a week in advance to plan properly. This free printable budget tracker from the Savvy Couple is easy to fill in and help me see where our money is going each month.

However, I do love seeing our debts shrinking! One fun and easy way to do this is by using Debt Free Charts. Most of these are free. Some cost a dollar or two. I downloaded the ones that were relevant to our family’s needs and placed them in a binder. I’m a visual person, so seeing our debt shrink and charting it on paper in such a cool way is motivating for me. This is a great way to get your financial life organized and see your debt shrinking away!

As for my eBay business, I use GoDaddy Bookkeeping to help me stay organized with expenses and profits. It’s super easy to navigate and it’s also affordable as well.

For blogging, I use a free blog income tracker that calculates everything I need. Very simple to use and plug in the numbers. It’s seriously the best one I have found online that does everything I need it to do without being complicated.

Meal Planning

Meal planning is an area I struggle with and it’s simply because I’m lazy. However, due to rising costs at the grocery store, I have decided that this is an area that definitely needs to improve. Not only will it save me time, but it will also save me money. I love this free meal planner printable from The Happier Homemaker. It’s just perfect for planning our weekly meals.

Home Organization

Trying to find something to wear each day to work used to be a huge pain for me because my closet was an unorganized mess! However, I did a good clean out and organized my closet Marie Kondo-style and wrote about it here. I’m happy to report that it’s still working out for me and getting ready for work now is a breeze! I also recently went through my bathroom cabinets and makeup drawers and cleaned out as well.

Organizing and decluttering your home can seem like a huge task that’s impossible, but it’s really not. If you have a few minutes in your day, just go from room to room and weed a few things out that you no longer use. Donate what you can and throw away what you can’t. A few sweeps through each room will make a huge difference in helping you get your life organized for the New Year. Less clutter just feels and looks better.

Everything Else

I’m working on decluttering my bookmarks on my computer and phone. I tend to save things and forget why. I’m also going through my inboxes and clearing out emails I no longer need. A bad habit of mine is that I tend to save emails until I am ready to take action and sometimes that can be a few days if it deals with a sale at an online store or something not very important that can wait.

I purchased this new address book to start the new year fresh because so many of our friends and family have moved in the last year. I was shocked when it came time to do Christmas cards at how many new addresses I needed to make note of. What I absolutely love about this address book is that there is a section in the back for all of your website logins and passwords. I definitely needed to get that organized as well, and now it’s all in one place.

I’ll also be working on more personal correspondence (handwritten cards, birthday cards, and thank-you notes) this year. I feel like that’s becoming a lost art and I love writing. I have big plans for gradually becoming more organized for the holidays well in advance this next year as well. Scrambling around shopping and cooking at the last minute this year was no fun! I will have a better system in place for that and I’ll also share more about that in another post.

What are some areas you struggle with when it comes to getting your life organized? What do you use to help yourself stay on top of things?

Gallbladder Surgery After Heart Surgery

Posted on December 22, 2019December 22, 2019 by Mandy

I recently had to have gallbladder surgery after heart surgery, so I thought I would share my experience with that here on my blog. I had a gallbladder attack almost two months ago that was pretty bad. It landed me in the emergency room. I had experienced a handful of these in the past year, but they were not too bad and usually cleared up within a day. They were annoying for sure but the frequency of these attacks started to pick up.

My gallbladder attacks felt like a gnawing feeling in my upper stomach. I was starving but had no appetite to eat. Everything I tried to eat just made that gnawing feeling worse. My upper stomach was severely bloated and there was a slight pain in my right side. The morning of the attack that sent me to the emergency room the pain had traveled up the right side of my back and really hurt. I tried to ignore it for a few hours but I finally just had to give in.

HEADING TO THE ER

By the time I got to the ER my heart was racing. I hadn’t had my heart medications that morning. They started an IV and did some bloodwork. It turns out my magnesium was very low. My blood pressure was also high. I was sent for a CT scan which revealed that I had a few gallbladder stones. One stone was near a duct and could be very painful if left there. It was decided I definitely needed to have my gallbladder out, and soon. Because I was a heart patient I would have to be transferred to the hospital where my heart surgery was done. This was 2 hours away from where I live. The ER doctor also told me that I wouldn’t be a candidate to have it done laparoscopically and I needed to be prepared to be cut open again.

Naturally, this scared me very badly. The thought of having to endure another surgery after my heart surgery did not sit well with me at all. Of course, I was scared, but I also did not want a long recovery time again. I was so busy at work and didn’t want to be away from my son. I cried. Deep down I knew I had to have this done. I just didn’t want to go through with it.

HOSPITAL TRANSFER

I was transported by ambulance at midnight to the hospital where I would have the surgery done. I arrived at 2:30 AM and was seen by the ER doctor there. He got me admitted and more bloodwork and x-rays were done. I was eventually moved to a very nice room and got settled in.

The surgeon came around later to talk with me. He informed me that everything was under control and that I would be able to have the surgery done laparoscopically. He told me if all went well I could be discharged a few hours later if I had no complications! Wow! I could hardly believe this, but it was definitely much better than I was expecting. It made me feel better that he didn’t anticipate any problems. However, I was still very scared. I was able to rest well that night because I asked for something to help me sleep. The nurse gave me an Ativan and it greatly reduced my anxiety.

SURGERY DAY

On the morning of surgery, I had to shower using a special medicated soap to help reduce infections. I was wheeled to a holding room and my husband and I chatted a few minutes before they came to get me. I remember being wheeled away to the OR, but I was getting very sleepy by that point.

The next thing I remember I was waking up and the nurse asked me if I was ready to get my tube taken out. I sort of panicked because I was thinking I had a breathing tube down my throat, but it wasn’t like heart surgery. I had a tube down my nose instead. She pulled it out and it didn’t hurt, but it felt a little weird. I was then taken back to my room and it was like nothing had happened. I wasn’t in pain and was very alert. Four hours later the nurse informed me I was being discharged.

GETTING HOME

The ride home was fine. I tried to sleep in my bed that night, but I am a side sleeper and laying on either side proved to be uncomfortable, so I went back to the recliner I used during heart surgery recovery. I was finally able to get back in my bed after three nights. I only used one pain pill in all that I was prescribed. It was more to help me rest because I was never in any bad pain. I have four small punctures in my stomach area. I had to be careful showering so as not to dissolve the glue covering the punctures. No tub baths.

EATING AGAIN

A few friends who have had gallbladder surgery warned me that eating again might be a different experience. I was told about dumping syndrome. Many said that certain foods made them have to go to the bathroom quicker. I was warned to be near a bathroom at all times.

I’m glad to report I have had no problems eating. I found I wasn’t able to eat as much as I normally did, which has helped me to drop ten pounds in the last couple of weeks. I took it easy the first night I got home and had soup and jello. It took a few days for my stools to become solid (sorry, TMI….just being honest), but I am back to my regular bathroom habits. I was also warned about shoulder pain and gas pains but did not experience this. I did have a little soreness in my throat from the tube.

GALLBLADDER SURGERY AFTER HEART SURGERY

Overall, having gallbladder surgery after heart surgery has been a good experience. I feel better and have done really great. I’ve had a little soreness a few days, but nothing more. My scars healed up quickly and nicely. I was able to return to normal activity (with a few restrictions about lifting) within a week or so but my doctor made me wait three weeks to return to work just to be safe and so he could see me again before he released me.

I just wanted to share my experience in case anyone else may be facing gallbladder surgery after heart surgery.

How to get free Kindle books every single day. Read for free on your Kindle or other e-reader.

How to Get Free Kindle Books Every Single Day In Your Inbox

Posted on September 17, 2019December 27, 2019 by Mandy

I get free Kindle books every single day delivered right to my email! Yep, it’s true! I read constantly. It helps me to fall asleep easier at night. Besides that, I just love learning new things! Of course, being a librarian, I would encourage you to visit your library for free books. However, sometimes you can run across great deals and even FREE books online! Ready to learn how you can get free Kindle books every single day like I do?

How to Get Free Kindle Books Every Single Day In Your Inbox

Daily Free Books– I love this website because every day I get a huge selection of books that are free delivered to my inbox. Just sign up at the website and choose which book genres you love. Each day you will receive an email chocked full of free Kindle books. When you see a book you want, just click through to Amazon to grab it. It’s super easy and the selection is great!

Freebooksy– Freebooksy is another great site for scooping up free e-books. Not only that, a lot of the freebies are even offered on other e-reading platforms like Nook, Google, Kobo, and Apple as well! Just like the other site, you just visit and sign up, choose your favorite categories of books and your email full of free books arrives daily.

eReaderIQ– Find even more free Kindle books here. You can check out the website daily to scope out the whole list of freebies, but you can also sign up for an email tailored to what interests you as well.

More Free Kindle Books?

I’m always interested in finding free e-books. Do you know of a place not listed in this post? Be sure and share with me in the comments if so!

Do you have so many books and just can’t seem to finish them all? Go here to read my tips on how to stop procrastinating and finish your books!