LIP SMACKIN GOOD RIBS!!

Andy enjoyed these ribs so much that he said next time we have people over this is what I had to make for them!!  It was so easy and best of all the cooking was done while I was at work!!  Can't beat that!!

Easy Barbecued Ribs

Adapted from America's Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution

1.5 tbsp sweet paprika (3tbsp)

1 tbsp light brown sugar, lightly packed (2 tbsp)

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (1/4 tsp)

S&P to taste (about 1 tsp each is what I used)

2 lbs pork (baby) back ribs (6 lbs) - leave the membrane on the ribs to help hold them together

1 cup barbecue sauce (3 cups)

Vegetable oil spray.  

In a small bowl, mix together paprika, brown sugar, cayenne and S&P.  Rub this mixture all over both sides of your ribs well.  Arrange ribs in the slow cooker by standing them up against the wall of the stoneware pot, thicker side down and meaty side against the pot.  Pour barbecue sauce over the ribs, cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low (I did 7 hours and they were perfect). Now comes the only stove/oven work involved, we need to reduce the sauce and then brown the ribs under the broiler.  These steps are what turn the ordinary into the extraordinary, so don't you dare skip them even if your ribs already look pretty good.  Once the initial slow cooking is done, very carefully (as they are tennnnderrrrr) remove the ribs to a baking pan which you have lined with foil and put a rack on (like in my photo collage), bone side up.  Set to the side.  Skim any fat that has risen to the top and strain all of the remaining juices from the slow cooker through a mesh strainer into a small saucepan.  Bring to boil and allow to simmer and reduce by about a third, approximately 15 minutes.  Put your oven's broiler on to heat up and make sure that there is an oven rack about 10 inches below the broiler element.  When the broiler is preheated, brush the ribs with sauce and broil for 3 or 4 minutes.  Take them out and very carefully flip them over, brush with sauce and broil again, meat side up, for approximately 9 minutes, taking them out once or twice (I did only once because I forgot) to baste with more sauce.  Serve any remaining sauce on the side with the ribs.

BRYCE IS A MUDCAT!!!

Bryce had his first practice yesterday with his new team.  I think he is happy to be on the Mudcats this year!!  I know Andy and I are very excited!  He got more practice in the infield in this one practice than he did all season in the fall.  We found out that he was the fourth overall pick in the draft out of about 50 boys!!  We are very proud of him!!  He did a great job batting and awesome job hitting.  Now we have to work on his running!!  Andy told him to take the piano off his back because he runs leaning forward like he has something heavy on his back.  I am so worried that one of these days he is going to just fall forward as he is rounding 3rd base!  We are looking forward to a great season.  GO MUDCATS!!!!!         
            

PRETTY YUMMY LETTUCE WRAPS

I made these Lettuce Wraps last night and they were pretty good :)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup instant brown rice
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 pound 93%-lean ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, rinsed and chopped
• 1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce,
• 1 teaspoon five-spice powder,
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 heads Boston lettuce, leaves separated
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, mint and/or chives

Preparation

1. Bring water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add rice; reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add turkey and ginger; cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until the turkey is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in the cooked rice, bell pepper, water chestnuts, broth, hoisin sauce, five-spice powder and salt; cook until heated through, about 1 minute.
3. To serve, divide lettuce leaves among plates, spoon some of the turkey mixture into each leaf, top with herbs and carrot and roll into wraps.

FUNNY OF THE DAY!!

Andy was going to buy Bryce a cup for Baseball.  He asked him what size does he need to buy?  Bryce cupped his crotch and then held up his hand and said, "About this big!"

PLAYLIST FOR MY HALF MARATHON

So here is my playlist that I have been using to train for my half marathon.  It is 1 hour and 16 minutes worth of music so I need to add about 45 minutes worth of songs to it before March.  I have tried to only have songs that are at least 130 beats per minute to help with my pace but there are a few that are slower in beats but have a good tempo so I added them anyway.  As you can see they are all over the spectrum; rock, hip hop, pop and even a little counrty!  Some songs I actually do not like but I tune out the words and listen to the beat when I run and it works well!! 

Written in the Stars- 172 BPM
Bulletproof-  126 BPM
Pricetag(the Sing-Off version)-  95 BPM
Waka Waka-  127 BPM
Club Can't Handle Me-  136 BPM
We No Speak Americano-  127 BPM
Dog Days are Over-  150 BPM
Wavin' Flag(the Sing-Off version)-  82 BPM
I Can Transform You-  112 BPM
Pump It-  133 BPM
The One That Got Away-  130 BPM
Pieces of Me-  170 BPM
Ravers in the UK-  153 BPM
Our Song-  96 BPM
Like a G6-  138 BPM
Clumsy-  123 BPM
ABC-  136 BPM
Show Me How You Burlesque-  150 BPM
Stuck Like Glue-  135 BPM
Party Rock Anthem-  125 BPM
Paper Planes-  86 BPM
Mambo No 5-  174 BPM

By the way...the 10K this weekend went very well!  My running patrner finished 1st and I finished 2nd in our age group.  I had a time of 55:47 and my average mile time was 8:59!!!  I was very happy with that time :)

Tomorrow might do me in :)

So I am signed up to run a 10K tomorrow!  For those of you not in the running world that is 6.2 miles!!!  I have not ran but once in the last two weeks due to me being a "Busy Mom on the Go"!  I could not recover from Taylor's cheer weekend in Atlanta.  So getting up at 5:45 to run was not even an option!!  I did run 5 miles one day after work this week and thought I was going to pass out!  So tomorrow should be interesting to say the least.  The race is in South Carolina so Keri and I will leave around 6am in the morning.  It will be great to spend the morning catching up with Keri!!  I just finished downloading a few more songs for my 10K playlist since I was a few songs short.  I will post my playlist tomorrow for anyone interested.  I have tried to download only songs that have between 140-180 beats per minute.  I need all the pick me up and go I can get!!
By the way... we got the call last night that Bryce was drafted to play spring baseball for West Raleigh!  We have heard that over 40 boys were cut and didn't make a team so we were very proud of Bryce!!!  I think Andy was more excited than Bryce :)  He was on the phone all night bragging to all his friends. I would say he was one proud Daddy!! 

EXHAUSTED!!

What a crazy busy weekend!!  Well actually all of last week was crazy!!  So crazy that I didn't even run!!  We left for Atlanta on Friday morning(bright and early) on a chartered bus.  One of Taylor's teams went to compete in one of the biggest cheer competitions around!  I was so proud of them!  There were 12 teams in their division and after watching the first 6 teams I was a little worried!  We have never competed against so many talented teams.  The girls were not intimadaited in the least!  They went out there and kicked butt and landed in 4th place after the first day.  We sometimes have a hard time putting together two solid routines two days in a row so again I was worried!!  The girls went out and did it again and stayed in 4th place which I was very happy with!!  We did not get back on the bus until 11:30 to head back to NC.  We pulled into our garage Monday morning at 6am!!!   Oh my gosh I felt like I had been hit by a train.  My body ached and I was EXHAUSTED!!  Going back to work today was even harder but I survived and even ran 5 miles after work(Which almost made me throw-up)!! 
I was way to nervous to video the competition so I bought a DVD! The video below is my lame try to share my talented daughter with you. Excuse the horse at the end that is Taylor's attempt at being funny :)
We find out tomorrow if Bryce made the baseball team!  Fingers crossed!! 

Taylor Atlanta

Funny of the Day!!  On the way home from cheer Taylor was talking about a group that fell at practice.  I asked her how did she know this happened and she said,"I saw them fall out of my "PREHISIONAL" vision"!  Love my kids!!! 

Made these yummy Burritos last night!!  They were spicy so beware!!!  It was fast and easy!! 

Preparation Instructions

Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, chili powder, chipotle, adobo sauce, cumin, and cayenne. Cook briefly until fragrant, about 30-60 seconds. Add in drained and rinsed beans, and water. Bring to a simmer, then lower heat to medium-low and cook for 8 minutes, mashing the bean mixture slightly. Remove from heat, and stir in rice and salsa.
Divide mixture evenly down the center of each tortilla. Top with cheese, lettuce, green onions, and Greek yogurt. Roll up, and serve!

Ingredients

• FOR THE FILLING:
• 1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
• 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
• 1 whole Pepper From A Can Of Chipotles In Adobo, Minced
• 1 Tablespoon Sauce From A Can Of Chipotles In Adobo
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
• 4 dashes Cayenne Pepper
• 1 can Pinto Beans, Drained And Rinsed, 15 Ounce Can
• 1 can Black Beans, Drained And Rinsed (15 Ounce Can)
• ⅓ cups Water
• 2 cups Brown Rice, Cooked According To Package Instructions
• ¼ cups Fresh Salsa
• FOR THE TACO ASSEMBLY:
• 6 whole Tortillas, Burrito Sized, Warmed
• 8 ounces, weight Shredded Cheese
• 3 cups Shredded Lettuce, More As Desired
• 4 whole Green Onions, Chopped
• 8 ounces, fluid Fat Free Greek Yogurt

Funny of the day :)

On the way to our Valentine dinner tonight Ava said,"Is this far away?  You know like India?"

Slideshow of the Kids

So I was playing around last night and tried to make a slideshow of the kids!  I'm not sure if this is the easiest and best way to go about it but it is the only way I know :)  This one is made from Kizoa.  I am going to play around and try a few different ones. Sorry Keri...this is why I was so exhausted and couldn't run this morning because I stayed up way to late playing around with this thing!! 


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What a Weekend

WOW!!  You could say my weekend was a little hectic!!  Taylor had a cheer competition Saturday and Sunday.  She did an amazing job!  She hit all of her stunts on all three of her teams.  I have to admit I was a little pissed after it was over because one of her teams should have won.  They had a much better day on Sunday and for some reason their score was lower?  It broke my heart to see those girls so excited because they knew that had gave it their all and still were not rewarded!!  Oh well, onto the next competition and this time kick some butt :)  Bryce had his baseball try-out on Sunday.  Andy had to take him because I was at cheer.  Andy said there were about 40 boys trying out.  He seems to think Bryce was at least in the top 10.  We will know in the next week if he makes a team.  I think Andy and I are more stressed than Bryce about this :)  Ava is sick with a cold so Saturday she couldn't sleep which we all knows that means I didn't sleep! 
This week will be just as hectic!  Taylor has the National Cheer competition in Atlanta this weekend.  That is like the super bowl in the cheer world.  We leave Friday morning around 9 and get back Monday morning around 6!!  So yeah I am a "Busy Mom on the Go"  Below is a Video of Taylor's Team performing!  There are three red heads.  Taylor is the little one being thrown in the air :)

Taylor's Level 4 team She is the little Red Head Flying in the air :)

Yummy and Fast Pot Roast

Made this from a recipe I found on Pinterst.  It was great because I was able to get up and run at 6am, take a shower and get this in the crockpot and still make it to work by 8:30(on time I should add:)  When I got home from work  it was ready to eat!!

What you need: 

• 2-5 pound pot roast (any kind)  
• 1 envelope ranch dressing (dried)
• 1 envelope Italian dressing
• 1 envelope brown gravy mix
• Potatoes and Carrots
• 1 to 1-1/2 cup water

What you do: 

1.  If you wanted carrots and potatoes in your CrockPot, cut them to your liking and put in the bottom of your CrockPot. 
2. Put Roast on top of vegatables. 
3. Sprinkle all 3 spice envelopes on top. 
4. Add the water. 
5. Cook on LOW for 6-10 hours until tender and veggies cooked through.  

Oh My How Do I Do This :)

I am trying to figure this thing out!!  I am not very computer savy but I am trying really hard to learn.  I hope you enjoy laughing at all my mistakes and lame post as I learn what in the world I am doing.  My purpose for this blog is to share recipes, workouts, and anything that helps make the life of a busy mom eaiser :)