Mama Loves Jewelry!

Meet My Beautiful Friend, Shamaine

of

Shamaine Klein Design!

We met in high school and have been friends ever since!

She is a very talented and driven lady!  She stays very busy raising three beautiful children and loving her wonderful husband Rick!

Did I forget to mention she is a Good Ole Texas Girl!

That just makes the whole package just a little bit sweeter!

Shamaine was born into a family of Jewelers and has been inspired to design jewelry for as long as she can remember. After a career in the arts and raising a family she started to sketch out designs that reflected her experiences in life, her faith, her family and her sense of fun. Shamaine made some of her initial designs into pendants for herself and as presents for her friends and family. With their unique styling and themes the pieces were an instant hit, and soon what started as an engaging pastime turned into a full time occupation and a design studio.

Today Shamaine continues to be inspired by her desire to create designs that reflect the lifestyle of the person who wears them – unique, and fun to wear, dressed up or dressed down.

One of my personal favorites!

Madonna with Child, the universal icon of motherly love and caring. This contemporary design was inspired by a Raphael painting - Madonna of the Pinks.

Shamaine was chosen by Donald J Pliner to create a piece for  

Peace For The Children Foundation.

http://www.donaldjpliner.com/Store/Foundation/

This is one of her designs for the foundation.

Yoga Girl

&

Peace Pearl Bracelet

Shamaine will also do custom designs for you!

Shamaine I am so proud of you!

http://www.skleindesign.com/default.aspx

website

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo7mppp9idI

Video Presentation

Hey Good Lookin! Whatcha Got Cookin!

Look What's Cookin Today!
Magic Fire Crackers!
Mama Liz from El Paso, Texas 
gave this recipe 
to Mama Nancy and 
Mama Nancy gave it to 
little old ME!
Whipped it up last night 
and 
WOW! MAGIC!
My new favorite crackers!

Start with a box of 
 wheat or white saltines.
Line them up in rows in a 9x13 
Tupperware container.
Or in a large Ziplock Bag.

Whisk together:

1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing Mix

1 1/2 Cups Canola Oil

2 tsps. Garlic Powder

1-2 tsps. Cayenne Pepper

2 Tbs. Dried Red Pepper Flakes

Pour over crackers!

Cover tightly and flip!
Yes I said FLIP!

Flip again after 5 minutes!

Do this for half an hour, 

flipping every 5 minutes!

Open and serve immediately or store 
in same container for up to a week.  
I know what you are thinking.....
NO they are NOT SOGGY!
They are magically dry and yummy!  
Serve with cheese, dip, soups, or even Brie! 
 Last night my kids just scooped 
them up and munched them 
down without any dip!
Fun and Easy!
Not crazy about Saltines?
Try it with Oyster Crackers!

Here is another BIG HIT at Mama's house!



Sausage Cheese Crescent Rolls!

Click HERE!

Nobody Puts Mama In A Corner! Not Now And Surely Not Then!

Check out these Perky and Adorable Vintage Mamas!

Mama Can Bake

Mama Can Garden

Mama Can Sit Pretty In The Sun

Mama Can Write! Boy Can She Write!

Mama Can Stand Tall

If you are looking for old vintage photos go visit this new blog!

She has a lot of great mama photos!

Get Your Craft On! Mama Brag Boards!

This is my crafty entry.......what is yours?

How important is the entry in your house?  Very Important says Mama Holli!  It welcomes visitors and gives a little tease about your "HOME"!  I like to change our entry seasonally as most.  At times one will find a special plaque representing a family member centered on the entry table.  This is a hint that this family member is being highlighted for one reason or many!  My youngest daughter did very well on her report card at a brand new school! She takes the spot today! Maybe my son makes the winning shot at his basketball game or my husband comes back from a long business trip.  You get the picture!  So how do you make a Mama Brag Board?  Many ways says Mama Holli.  I just painted wooden squares and glued pictures printed on canvas paper to the board.  I bought metal letters at a craft store and glued each name under the photo. No right or wrong way.  Have fun and create it with materials around your house! Nothing fancy needed. You could use a chalkboard, cardboard or blocks.  Just find a way to highlight each family member during this thankful month of November!

  

Up Close

All ready to go when Mama needs to brag!

So make your Mama Brag Boards and start a new Mama Tradition! Don't forget to make one for yourself! Mama deserves to be bragged on too!

Mama CAN Bake! Yes She CAN!

There is something seriously wrong when your kids LOVE the slice and bake cookies from the grocery store more than your homemade cookies from a recipe handed down from
generations of loving mamas!
"Mama these are your best cookies ever!"

WOW!

Warms my heart!

Granny's Laredo Supper

Laredo Supper
It just sounds
Tough 
and 
Hearty!
Does it Not?

My Granny would have this on the stove simmering in her cast iron skillet when we arrived at her house on a Friday night!

We would all stand around in the kitchen eating a bowl of this yummy chili queso.  As we ate my sisters and I would fill her in on our latest adventures, antics and boyfriends.  Such warm fond memories we have from our time spent with her.

This is SOOOOOOO GOOD!

My husband laughs at the name each time I serve it!

Laredo Supper

2lbs. hamburger

1 large jar of cheese whiz

1 small chopped onion

1(15 oz.) can of diced tomatoes

1(15oz.) can of drained kidney beans

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 T. chili powder

Brown hamburger and onion in a large skillet.  Drain off fat. To the meat add all remaining ingredients.  Simmer for about 15 minutes.  Serve with flour tortillas, Fritos, Doritos or as my Uncle Jesse would say, "Pass me a slice of bread please!". Then he would carefully sop up all the yummy backsplash on the sides of his bowl!

If this recipe intrigues you, you might also like
Colleen's Queso!
Go HERE!

Serve it Up Purty

Cowgirl!

                                     

Turkey Day Tins

This Craft Is Easy As Pumpkin Pie!

With Halloween at 5 days and counting I have started to pull out my T-Day Goodies!  The girls and I made these cute vintage cans yesterday.  We cleaned out used soup cans and glued on these darling vintage graphics provided free at The Graphic Fairy! We sprayed them with a little clear acrylic and TA-DA!  Check out over 1000 free graphics on her blog.

http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com/

v

Potato Chip Chicken Tenders

Let's talk chicken shall we?

Most kids like fried chicken tenders correct?

Mama's know fried food is not the best thing for our kids correct?

Well here is my version of fried chicken tenders that might be a tad bit healthier.      
I did say a tad!

Mama Holli's Chicken Tenders

1 package of skinless chicken strips

1 cup of Ranch Salad Dressing

2 cups of crushed potato chips (crush more if needed)

Place the dressing and crushed chips in separate bowls.

Dip one tender at a time in the dressing first and then roll in the chips to coat.  Place coated tenders on an ungreased baking sheet.

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes or until crispy and done.

Serve them up hot and crispy with veggies and a salad!

These are baked not fried but the chips probably counteract that a bit!  :)  Regardless my kids love these!

Monday Night Is Soup Night

During Monday Night Football Season my sister, Joy and her family reserve their Monday suppers for Soup.

Monday night is better known at The Schindler House as "Soup Night".

Sometimes Mark will make soup and add his famous homemade noodles!

My family loves Chicken and Dumplings.

Ingredients
Chicken:
1 (2 1/2-pound) chicken, whole or cut up
3 ribs of celery whole
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can evaporated milk
Dumplings:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
Ice water
Directions
Place the chicken and celery, in a large pot. Add 4 quarts of water and salt and pepper generously. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer the chicken until it is tender and the thigh juices run clear, about 40 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and debone. Put the chicken in a separate bowl while you prepare the dumplings. Keep the broth warm over low heat.



To prepare the dumplings: Mix the flour with the salt in a mixing bowl. At the center of the flour, drizzle a small amount of ice water over the flour. Using a spoon, and moving from the center to the sides of the bowl, gradually add all of ice water. Knead the dough and form it into ball.



Sprinkle flour onto a clean surface. Roll out the dough, working from center to 1/4-inch thick. Let the dough sit for several minutes.



Whisk the cream of chicken soup to the pot of broth  and simmer gently over medium-low heat.



Cut the dough into long 1-inch pieces. Cut each long strip into 2 inch pieces  and drop into the simmering soup.  Do not stir the chicken once the dumplings have been added. Gently move the pot in a circular motion so the dumplings become submerged and cook evenly. Cook until the dumplings float and are no longer doughy, 4 to 5 minutes. Once the dumplings are done, lower the heat and add the chicken. I usually thicken my soup with cornstarch(see below). The last ingredient is a must in my book.  I add one large can of evaporated milk to the soup.  This makes it extra creamy.

If the chicken soup is too thin it can be thickened before the dumplings are added. Simply mix together 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/4 cup of water then whisk this mixture into the soup.

Chili Con Queso

Mama Colleen makes a mean Texas Queso!

She is the ultimate southern cook and everything 

she serves up is amazing! 

She is one of my favorite buddies and I 

miss those lazy summer days hanging 

out at her pool with the kids!

Chili Con Queso Dip

by Colleen Rice

one 2lb box of velveeta

2 (5oz) cans of evaporated milk

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef, browned and drained

2 (4oz) cans of green chilies chopped

2 (4oz) jars of pimientos 

1 ts. oregano

3-4 pickled jalapeno peppers chopped

1 Tbsp. Knorr Suize Calso de Pollo Spice

2 (15oz) cans Ranch Style beans undrained

In a large crock pot add chopped Velveeta. Pour in evaporated milk and mix.  Heat crock pot on low. While the cheese and milk heat, prepare ground beef in a large skillet by browning and draining. Then add the remaining ingredients to the meat in the skillet. Simmer for 10 minutes and then add to the cheese mixture in the crock pot. Mix well and heat on low.  Serve with your favorite chips.  Colleen serves this at their annual Halloween Party.  It is so very good and fat free of course!

Make sure to check out these 

CRAZY, AMAZING RECIPES!

Black Bean Dip

Salsa

Snow + 22 degrees = Chili Time

CHILI TIME

Many times in my childhood during the early fall months we would attend the famous "CZHILISPIEL" in Flatonia Texas.

It is a childhood memory that I am quite fond of.  This event is not only a competition to uncover the best chili but also quite the entertainment venue.  Some of the entertainment good, some not so good!  You see the competing chili teams tend to adopt a theme associated with their chili.  Here are a few examples of some of the private labels; Hot Cow Chili, Belly Buster's Chili, and finally Road Warrior's RoadKill Chili Brew.  Do you get the picture? These teams find it quite amusing to mark their territory with decorations to represent their theme.  This is part of the entertainment!  Team members also decorate themselves in more ways than one!  It is very amusing to the innocent bystanders.  Skits are performed, songs are sung and antics are performed.  As the afternoon progresses the entertainment gets more and more interesting!  So if you are ever in Texas research the Czhilispiel in Flatonia.  It is worth the trip!
http://flatoniachamber.com/

Now for my chili recipe!

I do not have a theme nor an outfit I wear when I make this.

Sorry!

Taco Soup Chili

2 lbs ground beef

1 large onion chopped

1 pack of Taco Seasoning Mix

1 pack of Hidden Valley Ranch dry dressing mix

1Tbsp of chili powder

2 cans of stewed tomatoes

1 can of Rotel tomatoes

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 can of kidney beans (undrained)

1 can of pinto beans  (undrained)

1 can of beer

Brown meat with onions in a large soup pot.  Drain off fat.  Dump remaining ingredients in the pot.  Simmer for 30 minutes. DONE!

Serve with flour tortillas, chips and salsa!  Cheddar cheese, sour cream and jalapenos may be served on the side as toppings.

Nutty Talk

Sammy Squirrel

I like most people enjoy nuts.  So I guess we have that in common with squirrels.  
After doing a little research on the critters I found that we mama's secretly 
desire a genetic factor that squirrels possess.

Squirrels eyes are located high, and on each side of 
their head. This allows them a wide field of vision, 
without turning their head. 

Even though we claim to have eyes in the back of our heads to explain our supervision, we all know this is just another "mama lie" we pull out when needed. 

Definition of a "mama lie": A story fabricated to assist a mama in slightly manipulating the truth, coercing children, avoiding distasteful chores, and basically just getting what we want.

Today I would like to share a nutty recipe with you.

Mr. Yeager's Famous Pralines

1 Box Light Brown Sugar

1 Cup Whipping Cream

2 Tbs White Karo Syrup

2 Cups Chopped Pecans

1 Tbs Butter

Mix sugar,cream, and Karo in a 2 quart microwavable bowl.

Is this beautiful or what?

Cook in microwave on HIGH for 8-10 minutes.

Add butter and pecans.  Beat with a spoon until smooth.  It will take on a glassy look when ready.  Use 2 teaspoons to drop on cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.  Let the pralines set up for about 30 minutes or until hard.  Transfer to a container and keep in the refrigerator until ready to eat.  

These are so easy and yummy!  

Mr. Yeager says they will only taste good 

if after preparing them 

you stand back and yell,

"Gig Em Aggies! Whoop!" 

 It is nutty but it does work!  

Thank you Mr. Yeager!

A Blog Is Born!

Woo Hoo!  Let The Games Begin!

This date will surely go down in history!

Today is the birth of
"Nobody Puts Mama In A Corner!"

Hang on for the ride of your life!