Easy Oven Baked BBQ Chicken with Spike Gourmet Seasonings

So this is a super easy dinner I like to cook for the family which takes no time at all. There's an order to this but your dinner will be done within 45 minutes. I used a few of my Spike Seasonings along with some KC Masterpiece Fiery habanero honey sauce. This will be a wee bit spicy so if you can't handle the heat then I would just substitute some honey bbq sauce.

The first thing I do is take a medium sized pot and fill it with water. I rinse and dump small potatoes in the pot for it to be boiled. The taters will be done at the same time the chicken is. So with that on the stove I then preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place your chicken in a baking pan. I use chicken breast for this recipe and would recommend that. You can use tenderloin or any other cut but just make sure to adjust the time for smaller cuts. I first season my chicken with some Spike Garlic Magic on both sides. I then use Spike Onion Magic and follow that up with Spike hot' N Spicy Magic. Add some fresh cracked pepper on there. I then brushed on some bbq sauce finishing with a drizzle over the top with a bit more cracked pepper.

The chicken then goes in the oven for about 30-35 minutes. About 5 minutes before the chicken is done you drain the potatoes and cut them into halves. Put the potato halves into a mixing bowl and throw in some rosemary, thyme, butter , salt, pepper and olive oil. Mix it all up together.


That's pretty much it! It's easy and believe me the chicken will come out so delicious. I totally love cooking with Spike Gourmet Seasonings and love to come up with new recipes.

You can check out all the varieties of Spike Gourmet Seasonings

Visit their site here: http://spike-it-up.com/


Spike ® Original Magic!
The one that started it all! 39 different herbs, spices and vegetables all lovingly blended with just the right amount of salt!

Spike ® Salt-Free Magic!
More than 39 lovingly blended exotic herbs, spices and vegetables – and NO SALT!

Spike ® Hot’n Spicy Magic!
Some like it HOT!!! And spicy!!! With cayenne and red hot chili flakes

Spike ® Vegit Magic!
The delicious VERY LOW SODIUM seasoning for those with a salt-conscious mindset!

Spike ® Vege-Sal Magic!
Perfect for “bringing it all together” – when you want something more than just plain old salt!

Spike ® Garlic Magic!
Flavors like fresh garlic, but quicker and easier! And it’s SALT-FREE!

Spike® Onion Magic!
Just a dash or two adds GREAT flavor to soups, sauces and stews – with NO SALT!

Spike ® 5 Herb Magic!
A delightful, SALT-FREE, Italian-inspired combination of Basil, Marjoram Oregano, Rosemary and Thyme!

Spike ® Lemon Peper Magic!
With real lemon crystals and ripe, non-irritating white pepper, adds and brings out flavor in all your favorite foods – without overpowering!

Spike ® Tenderizer magic!
Tenderizes, flavorizes and seasons meats, poultry, veggies – all in one!

Making Slow cooker chicken tacos with Frontera mild red chile + cumin

I decided to try out this taco skillet sauce by Frontera. I am actually quite familiar with this brand because I have been buying them from time to time at my local Target. I found out that they are recently starting to be sold at Walmart as well which is wonderful! These sauces are so amazing and packed with so much flavor! It is a little bit on the expensive side but well worth it in my opinion. I'm a frugal shopper and can't pass these pouches of goodness up.

Green Moms Meet gave me the opportunity to share this particular skillet sauce with my family. They also included a ton of coupons so I can pass those out to my group , family and friends. Awesome!! Now, I don't buy ground beef too often as the price is kind of high right now for it. I always have chicken and pork chops though. I decided to make chicken tacos with the sauce to see how it would turn out. I also would be using my slow cooker to do this. So EASY!

So I used some frozen chicken tenderloins for this. I seasoned it with a little garlic powder, onion powder, cumin powder, black pepper and fresh cilantro. I then put the Frontera sauce on top and then added half a can of Rotel diced tomatoes with habanero. I then covered it and let it cook on low for about 5 hours. I then opened it up and broke it up to let it stew with the sauce for about 30 minutes more. I just took tongs and broke it up inside the crockpot. No need to take it out.

Here's the finished product. Delicious slow cooked chicken tacos. I cut up some lettuce, fresh cilantro and corn for a topping. You could opt to add fresh onion if you want. There was definitely enough to have some leftovers as well. My whole family enjoyed this meal very much ( even my 11 and 12 year old). My kids even opted to have this as an after school snack the next day. So it pretty much cleaned up well here.

I totally recommend the mild red chile + cumin Frontera sauce but I also recommend trying some of their other things too. I don't think I have ever come across a bad sauce from them. The flavor is so rich and amazing. Thanks Moms Meet and Frontera for letting me share this sauce with my family.






Learn more about Frontera here: http://www.fronterafiesta.com/about

Making tea with my new glass kettle

I have just discovered the awesomeness of glass tea kettles. I usually just boil water in a metal pan which has worked out fine but I think I like doing it this way better. I can actually see through it too. I love that I can also use this for coffee or getting some hot water for ramen cups.

 So basically you just fill it up with water and put it directly on top of your burner. I did not leave the top on it while using it and am not sure if you can but I probably wouldn't do that. You also have to try and position it a little bit from the center of the burner so that the plastic handle doesn't melt. Make sure that the flame doesn't go to the outer edges but just centered under.

 I never boiled the tea in the pot while stove top before but decided to give that a try. I would only assume that the flavoring becomes more potent.

This is a blend of Pu'er ( Pu-erh or Pu'er is a variety of fermented and aged dark tea produced in Yunnan province, China. Fermentation in the context of tea production involves microbial fermentation and oxidation of the tea leaves, after they have been dried and rolled. )  tea leaves with Chrysanthemum tea. (Chrysanthemum tea is a flower-based infusion beverage made from chrysanthemum flowers of the species Chrysanthemum morifolium or Chrysanthemum indicum, which are most popular in East Asia, mostly especially China. )

  The smell was just really something to admire. They look so pretty when they open up. Anyway, once it was boiling hot I just popped the plastic top back on and poured myself a cup.

This glass tea kettle is just so easy to use and worked out very well. I see myself using this from now on instead of a metal pot because it just tastes better.

You can BUY your own glass tea kettle here on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B019W2OZAC

Benefits of using a glass tea kettle?

They  provide a soothing visual experience as you watch the tea leaves unfurl and release their natural beauty to the water. A glass pot will let you show your guests that your brewing container is clean. In addition, they can witness the steeping process, which will help them decide when the tea is ideal for their drinking preferences.

A major benefit of using glass to steep your tea in is that it will not transfer flavors from past teas you have used.

Keeping food fresh with Ozeri Instavac food Storage Set

I sometimes have leftovers after cooking dinner but feel bad about throwing it out. I typically use regular plastic containers to put them away but I end up having to throw it out soon after if no one touches it. Well, I don't blame them because sometimes it can get yucky very quickly. I also have some problem foods that don't last long after storing it in the fridge such as asparagus, strawberries and lettuce.

Let's take a look at this amazing food storage set that Ozeri provided.

There are 4 different containers in 4 different sizes. The way the containers close is they have 4 snap locks for each side. There's a dial on the top of the containers where you can mark the date of the month that it is stored. It's easy to keep track of your foods and leftovers this way.

Just so you can gauge what you can fit in a container this is part of my leftovers. I made chicken wraps and this was the chopped lettuce and corn. I was able to fit this into the smallest container. So what you do is snap the lid on and you just kind of push down with your thumbs so the air comes out creating a sort of vacuum seal. In turn, your foods stay fresher for a longer period of time.

I was able to fit the leftover shredded chicken into the next size up container. There was much room to spare. These containers have a hefty amount of space to them which is awesome. As I am writing this, my daughter decided to heat up some of the leftovers to eat for an after school meal. So there must be a better visual appeal already to it.

Here are the two larger containers. I have my strawberries in the one alone which has space for other fruits if I wanted. I have my lettuce and asparagus in the largest container.

I'm very happy with this storage set and will continue to use it for all my food storage needs.

You can BUY your own food storage set here on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-INSTAVAC-BPA-Fee-8-Piece-Container/dp/B00JM3VFVE?ie=UTF8&keywords=ozeri%20instavac&qid=1461180451&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

Crisp white bed sheets to brighten up your bedroom for Spring & Summer time with SWENYO

There's nothing like clean white sheets to make your bedroom look bright and open. I actually got to try a nice full set from a company called SWENYO. I was sent their Queen Sheet set, white pillowcase set and Duvet cover. The way they send out their products is really interesting. Their boxes can be used as a decoration piece if wanted. They make sure to get full use out of it all. I didn't use it as decor but it's a neat idea.

Now you won't get everything together and it has to be purchased separately. I do like how everything came though. The sheets actually came in a cute drawstring bag to store it away later on. With the sheet "set" came the mattress cover and the top sheet. You have to get the pillowcase separate. The duvet cover is also the third separate thing to get. 

You can see on all the corner edges is an elastic band to keep it on the mattress perfectly. 

Everything fit just great on my Queen sized bed. I would say this is a good set for the Spring and Summer seasons. It's a bit lightweight and 200 thread count. All of the pieces are 100% cotton. I can say that I am honestly more of a micro-fiber type of girl but this works as well. It does have a different feeling from micro-fiber. It's almost rougher but not in a bad way. It's kind of refreshing. I would say something like this is perfect for a guest room.

The duvet cover is really interesting. I actually don't own anything like this. I just use large comforters and that's that. What's cool about this is it opens up and you can put your duvet in here. Once it's in you can just button it closed. I LOVE the look of their buttons on the cover. It just looks so unique and rustic. It totally matches with my log pillow.


I'd give this whole set a 4.5 out of 5. I just wish that the pillow cases were included with the bed sheet set because that's usually a given. SWENYO is an awesome company and I love their interesting style. They almost remind me of IKEA. Fantastic products!

Be sure to check out the links below to Buy the bed set pieces on Amazon


You can BUY the Queen sheet set here for $29.95 : http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B01B571J5Q

You can BUY the Pillowcase set here for $14.95 : http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B53CLIO/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=

You can BUY the Duvet cover here for $32.95 : http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01B26WLMU


You can check out SWENYO's full site of house wares here: https://swenyo.com

Affordable Vintage Dress for a fraction of the price it usually is

I ADORE vintage styled clothing and would wear it every single day if I could. There's only one big problem with that and it's the fact that it is usually expensive. Why does vintage styled clothing have to be expensive? I know it might take a little more effort to make sometimes but sometimes it's pretty simple and might use the same amount of fabric as regular clothing. There's a few places you can find affordable vintage styled clothing online such as Ebay or Amazon. I have found that there are a bit more trusted sources on Amazon though. As you can actually see photos of what people get and how it looks on them.

I wanted to share two vintage styled dresses I had the chance to get my hands on just in case anyone was interested.

Here's a beautiful 1950's styled lace dress from online seller Chic. U

It's in a 3/4 sleeve style. It's available in navy blue and black but I decided to go with the navy blue.

It pretty much looks the exact same as it does on the model which is a big plus. I love the sturdy materials. You just can't find quality like this in local stores for an affordable price. I do wish there was an extra button somewhere around the middle breast area since its a bit open there but that's nothing a pin can't fix later on if I wanted. (( Sorry for the bad quality on the pics..hard to take a full selfie )) Here's a few other shots of the dress.

The dress fit me perfectly and I got it in a size Medium. I would say it's true to size because I usually end up wearing a size Medium in clothing nowadays. Sometimes I can be a small but I honestly can just look at something and know if it will fit me a particular way now.

You can buy this pretty lace dress here on Amazon for $22.49 (Medium price) : http://www.amazon.com/CHIC-U-Womens-Vintage-1950s-Sleeve/dp/B01AA5WZ6G/ref=sr_1_1?s=apparel&ie=UTF8&qid=1457945665&sr=1-1&nodeID=7141123011


Some of the sizes are even $19.99 shipped so just check it out. You honestly can't beat that for a pretty little dress that fits like a glove.

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Here's another pretty rockabilly styled dress that I got to try. I will admit that the price of this one is double the first one but this one is a bit more formal I suppose. It's really pretty and has a nice flare to it. This dress is from a Seller on Amazon called Ouges.

sorry for the lack of quality to the pictures. Black always gives me trouble and I end up having to darken it a little on a photo editor. Anyway, the dress fit me nicely. The material quality is nice and I would probably end up wearing something like this to something formal like a wedding. I also like their navy version of it. It's simple but has a tinge of unique styling to it. I also got this in a size Medium which fit me nicely. There was just a tiny bit of slack on the top part. My body is kind of weird though.

You can get this beautiful dress on Amazon for $45.99 : http://www.amazon.com/OUGES-Sleeveless-Rockabilly-Vintage-Dresses/dp/B019YYTB5W?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage



There's so many pretty dresses on Amazon to discover. Don't be afraid to shop online, ladies! :)

GeoCentral's Hatch'ems - A Fun Learning Experience

These were so much fun to play and experiment with! They are called Hatch'Ems and they remind me of expandable water toys I used to play with when I was younger. They are made from super absorbent polymer. These growing pets are cool because they are in actual eggs. They look super realistic besides the two holes in the bottom for the water to enter. When the creature expands it starts to crack the eggs open.

I currently have the egg sitting in water in a Tupperware bowl. It should hatch within 48 hours. I will post how it looks after that point.

Alright, so I gave the egg a few days actually and here it is without touching it.

Most of it has hatched and I just helped the creature out of the egg.

I'm leaving him in the water for a longer period of time just to see how big it can get. This is definitely something quite entertaining.

This set comes in a pack of four which you can buy here on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014PXCP8C/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=