Skillet Chicken Enchilada

Emily Bites had a recipe on her blog recently for Chicken Enchilada Skillet. The pictures looked really yummy. I decided to make some adjustments to it, so it is gluten free and sugar free. This recipe is also HCG phase 3 approved. Here is my alteration to the recipe. 

Chicken Enchilada Skillet

Source: adapted from Emily Bites

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon canola oil

1 small onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves - love my Pampered Chef garlic press!

3 tablespoons chili powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cumin

2 teaspoons sugar

15 oz can tomato sauce - I used my homemade sauce from last year

½ cup water

3 cups shredded cooked chicken - I used chicken thighs because that is what I had in the freezer

½ - 1 (4 oz) can chopped green chiles

1.5 cupes shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 scallions, chopped

Directions:

1. Saute onions until soft, add garlic, spices and saute. Add the tomato sauce and water, stir and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 5 minutes to thicken.

2. Add the shredded chicken to the sauce and stir together. Simmer for 5 minutes.

3. Turn the heat on the sauce mixture to low. Add the green chiles and about 1/2 the cheese to the chicken mixture and stir together until well combined and coated. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and place the lid onto the pan. Leave the lid on for 1-2 minutes until the cheese has melted. Remove from heat and sprinkle the diced scallions over top for garnish.

Happy Sunday!

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.  

(Philippians 4:8 KJV)

This Crazy Busy Life!

Boy life has been crazy lately!

• Bart descided to strike due to their union contract which made it a nightmare for 400,000 people each day trying to get to work. This week I have gotten up at 4am, drove to the ferry and took it across the bay. Thankfully there was a holiday in the mix and I was able to recover partially one day. Bart is claiming to be up and running by 3pm today. I sure miss my friend Bart!!!!

• I am helping with another department at work for the next couple weeks. I am trying to get everything organized and running properly, which is a HUGE task. I have been working 10-12 hour days.

• Dealing with MTC, crazy commute hours and extra work hours is a major challenge at the moment. I am trying to keep everything running, but some areas are failing. The blog has been put on the back burner for right now. I told my mom I would make a website for her new store and I haven't even been able to start it. I hope to be back on track the week of the 15th.

Wordless Wednesday

Bart Strike

Well the Bart strike happened. I was convinced it wouldn't happen. my opinion changed on Saturday when I heard the union side walked away from the bargaining table. The deadline for the new contract was the end of the day Sunday. 

I negotiated my first union contract this year, so as a pro I find the union actions unacceptable!  You do not walk away in the middle of negotiations. Around 400,000 people take Bart every day. Now these people are forced to find other ways to work. 

I took the Ferry bright & early this morning. I was out of bed at 430 arriving at the Ferry at 530am.  I was worried the parking lot would be packed. I parked in the front row. There were around 40-50 people in line and another 40 people got on the ferry once I was on. 

I am not looking forward to a 4:30 wake up until Bart gets their acts together. 

People lined up for the Ferry. 

The news was interviewing! Where is my mom because she would have been in front of that camera! 

Lazy Sunday

Last Sunday Art was down and out the entire day with a sore back. He spent most of Saturday working on the front yard. He felt comfortable laying on the hard floor. Sammy wasn't too thrilled he had to share his fly chasing space with Art. lol

All American Hunk

The little man came to visit Grandpa and Mimi last Saturday. He was so happy and was giggling away most of the day. He has realized when he comes to Grandpa and Mimi house nap time shouldn't happened because there is way too much excitement going on. 

I need to make him a tshirt that says Mimi is the best, but this one will do for now. =)

He lets these glasses stay on his face for about 10 seconds then he is grabbing at them. He gets very excited when I put sunglasses on him. His arms start flying around, kicking his feet and then he grabs them. 

Kaleb is now 6 months old. He is starting to sit up, ticklish, laughs, rolls all over, eats food, babbles, first tooth has poked in and tries to sing. He was singing to the tv on Saturday. It was SUPER cute! Typical little kid he likes to do things until I pull out the phone to record him. lol

OOTD: Last Week

Sweater: Nordstrom Rack

White Shirt: Thrift Store

Pants: Marshalls

Shoes: Gap

Scarf: Loft

Earrings: Target

Cardigan: NY & CO

Tshirt: J Crew Factor

Pants: Old Navy

Shoes: Bass

Tshirt: Old Navy

Pants: Target

Shoes: Bass

Cardigan: NY & CO

Tank: Banana Republic

Jeans: Old Navy

Shoes: Target

Tshirt & Jacket: Target

Skirt: NY & CO

Necklace: a gift from Art for Christmas - I think he bought it on Amazon

I have seen the necklace at J Crew recently. 

Bart Happenings

It is not wise to fall asleep on the Bart train because your picture could end up on the blog!

Wordless Wednesday

Recent Haul

I have been on a spending freeze for awhile. I was shopping way too much. Well I decided I can do "some" shopping each month, but I have to stay within budget. I went shopping with my friend a couple weekends back. Here are some of the items I bought. 

Items above I purchased from Oldnavy.com

I am still debating if I am going to keep everything or any of it. 

Banana Republic purchases.
The cardigan was $15 and the tank was $20

I LOVE the cardigan and wish they had it in other colors. I already went to other stores to see if they had my size in black, but they didn't. :(

The tank is kelly green and navy. Now I feel like I need a navy skirt or crop pants. I can wear it with white, khaki and denim for now. 

Gap purchases

I bought each shirt for $12 plus a pair of black capris (no pictures)

TJ Maxx: black & white striped shirt $16.99

J Crew Factory: Anchor tshirt $17

I did really good at the outlets. I am trying to add some nice blouses or tanks to my wardrobe. I seem to wear a lot of solid colors and I want some pattern tops. I also had cleaned out my closet a few hours before I went shopping, so I knew I had plenty of room for new stuff. =)

Menu Monday

I can eat again!!!! Last Tuesday was the first day I was able to increase my calories. I am making Art pretty much the same dinners that I am eating. I have been adding some carbs to his meals. Either a potato or bread. He has requested I not give him any broccoli. I guess I made him too much broccoli over the past couple weeks. 

Here is the menu for this week.

Cuban Pork Chops
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Chicken Thighs
Fair Food
Tacos with Cauliflower Tortillas

What is on your menu for this week? 

Happy Saturday!

We are enjoying our Saturday with the grandson. Lots of giggles and snuggles! 

Purging

We are having a garage sale on June 29 at the in laws. Last Saturday I wanted to go through the garage because there is a lot of stuff out there we need to get rid of. Art suggested I go through my closet while he ran to Lowe's. He is very nervous to leave me alone in the garage. I honestly don't know why because I haven't ever thrown his stuff away. I told him it wasn't necessary for me to go through my closet because I didn't have anything to get rid of. Well see the picture below for the small pile of stuff I found. 

I found a pile of clothes that no longer fit. I don't know why I have been hanging onto some of this stuff. I found distressed capris in 3 different sizes. Everything I got rid of is all too big. I found a few purses to get rid of too. Some of them are just not my style anymore and it will be a very long time before they come back into style. 

I also went through the spare bedrooms. I bought a lot of decorating stuff at the thrift stores, garage sales and stuff I got on freecycle. It is now time to declutter the closets. No reason to hold on to this stuff.

Be Your Own Advocate!

Taking charge of your health is so very challenging. When I was diagnosed with Medullary Thyroid Cancer I thought I would be referred to a doctor with experience. What a shock I was in for! At this point I haven't been able to find a doctor in my HMO with any experience. My endocrinologist hasn't seen anyone with MTC in her 30 years. I am the first patient for 4+ doctors with MTC. 

I am on the hunt because SOMEONE has to have some experience. I am also requesting to be referred out for a consultation by doctors that deal with MTC frequently. I have to go through a process with my HMO for a referral, so I am going through the very slow process. Luckily right now I have time to go through the motions. 

I have been educating myself the best I can on MTC. I didn't think there would be a time in my life I would know more about my cancer than my doctors. I am sure my doctors are getting sick and tired of hearing from me. When I get something in my head I don't stop. I rally all of them up until they realize I KNOW what I am talking about. Luckily they are very good about listening to me and talking to each other. I am sure there are times they are banging their head on their desk. I won't stop though! I will continue to push for what I think is best for ME. 

It is almost time for a CT scan again. There has been arguing about how the scan should be performed - with contract, without contrast, just chest scan, full body scan, etc. One doctor thinks I need just a CT scan of my check, another doctor things I need a PET scan and the 3rd is like yeah whatever the other ones want. Well I think I need a full body scan NOW for the future. I need a scan for the doctors to look at down the 5-10 years to verify there is no cancer anywhere else. I had an ultrasound and it showed my liver was clear. What if a spot was missed that could show up on a PET scan? Contrast works for some cancer, but not always for MTC. Should they expose me to the radiation and if so how often. A

In July 2011 I decided it was time to lose weight. I recently some negative feedback about the HCG diet and how it wasn't good for you. I learned after round 1 it was the right diet for my body. It worked! I had never experience that type of success with any other type of diet. I also learned about my body through the entire experience. I learned the good foods to eat, how to maintain my weight, started exercising and how I really feel sugar is the devil. Sugar is in almost every single thing in your fridge and cupboards. It is unnecessary to have that sugar in everything. 

I also think when I was going through the HCG diet back in 2011 my body was starting to tell me there were problems. At the time I just didn't know it. I thought my body was reacting to the diet. I had a lot of stomach issues which I thought were from the HCG drops or all the veggies. I do not believe that now. 

It is important for each of us to be aware of what we think is going on with our bodies. Talk to our doctors and push for the answers we need. If I hadn't of pushed that something was wrong my cancer could have continued to grow. My mom always said if I would use my stubbornness in a good way I could go a long way in life. My advice to you is if you think something isn't right with your health push for your doctor to listen to you. Ask them to order tests. If the doctor won't switch doctors! Do not ignore health issues. Go get any issues handled right away. You are never too busy to take a day off for a test. Putting off a test because of a busy schedule could lead to you being off for a lot more than 1 day. You are your best advocate for your health! 

Bart Happenings

Ignore the chick in the yellow skinnie pants. Check out the hootchie that got on Bart missing one thing....her bra. What in the world! 

Wordless Wednesday

Lacey's Little Luxuries

Lacey's little luxuries is a home based small business. Started with candles, now I cant stop soap, salts, bath bombs and scrubs made with love by me for you!!!! You can find lacey's little luxuries on Etsy and Facebook. 

Where is Menu Monday?

Menu Monday will return next week. Tomorrow I can start eating more food. I am tempted to go until Saturday with the limited calories and food. We will see by the end of today how I feel about extending it a few more days. Eating more variations of food is VERY tempting at this point. 

One thing I am excited to eat again is Mexican food. I LOVE Mexican food and could eat it every single day of the week. Usually on Sunday after church Art and I go out to eat for Mexican food as a place close to our house. At this point I have gone 20+ days without Mexican food. I am ddddyyyyyiiinnnnngggg!!!! 

Well I ran across this food blog called Slim Palate which lots of gluten free, Paleo and grain free recipes. There is a recipe on the blog for cauliflower tortillas.  I am NOT a fan of cauliflower AT ALL. I can't stand it cooked period! There are very few foods I do not like, but cooked cauliflower, lentils and black olives are at the top of my list. I will eat cauliflower raw with some ranch dressing. At this point I want Mexican food so bad I am going to try out cauliflower tortillas. They actually look really good. 

I have been dairy free for the past 21 days and my goal is to continue to stay dairy free. If I have cheese it will be goat cheese. I had switched to coconut milk this year. I just like coconut milk for my chai lattes. 

Prior to doing the HCG diet I was trying not to eat carbs and sugar. I was failing miserably. Every day I would eat chocolate and carbs. I just couldn't stay away from the stuff.  It has really helped my cravings for carbs and sugar, since I went hard core. I would crave all the things I shouldn't eat all day long. I had no self control, so what better way to get yourself in check then to eliminate all of it from my diet. 

I will go back to having my veggie/fruit smoothies for breakfast each day. Lunches will continue to be a salad and something sensible for dinner. I can't have carbs or sugar until sometime in July during phase 3 of the HCG diet.  I am going to try to stay away from carbs and sugar until we go on our cruise in August. There is a lot of controversy regarding sugar and cancer. Sugar simply isn't good for people and it is in almost every single thing people each day. 

Next week I will have a carb & sugar free menu! 

June Photo Challenge

I am trying to do the June Photo Challenge each day on Instagram. You can follow me HERE. Some days I am late and post the picture a couple days later. I am trying!