One of my favorite dips to make for a party or game day is spinach and artichoke dip!!! I love to serve them with Stacy Pita Chips or tortilla chips. Crackers work too! This recipe is super easy, and if you are impatient like me…you can start enjoying it right away and snack while it cooks more and more in the crock pot.
What You Need
1 ten ounce package of frozen spinach
1 and 1/2 10 ounce packages of froze artichokes
1 eight ounce package of cream cheese
(I like to add a few more ounces of cream cheese if I have more than one package on hand)
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
What You Do
Bring spinach and artichokes to boil with one cup of water. I do this until everything is soft and falling apart. Drain in a strainer and make sure all the large pieces are cut up if they didn’t fall apart while you boiled them.
Heat cream cheese in the microwave for one minute to get it hot enough to be able to mix.
Mix all ingredients in a crock pot and keep on low. You can go ahead and have a few bites now, or serve it whenever you are ready!
I had to remind myself about five times that it was Sunday yesterday. Why do the weekends go so quickly??? Honestly, we didn’t do a whole lot this weekend and it still went by faster than ever.
Friday afternoon I met up with a friend for lunch that I haven’t seen in a few months. How we let so much time pass, I am not sure. But it was much needed!!! That evening, Chris and I settled in for Better Call Saul and called it a night.
Saturday Chris had to work some, so after Zoe’s morning nap, her and I headed out to do some shopping. Girlfriend needed some pants since she is too tall for all the ones we have. We headed over to Kohls and grabbed a few pairs and scored some major deals on some clothes for next summer that I am going to put aside.
After that, we headed over to get our grocery shopping for the week out of the way and grabbed some football snacks! Can you believe our Target here had hardly any meat or dairy??? There were signs up all around the store saying their shipments were delayed because of Irma in Florida. Sooooo we had to go to Publix to complete our shopping. Crazy Irma still causing chaos.
Saturday night I made bbq wieners and spinach and artichoke dip and watched the Alabama game. I also tried to get a little reading in.
Speaking of books, Zoe is obsessed with pulling all of hers off the shelf now that she is all big girl and can stand over there and reach them all. When did she get so big??? Seriously????
Sunday morning I cut the backyard while Zoe napped, and the rest of the day looked like this…
And this….
I think that this is only the second time that Zoe has napped on me since she has become mobile. She was not having her afternoon nap alone in her crib, so we snuggled in and watched reruns of Modern Family. I didn’t hate it. Not one bit. I hope that you all had a wonderful weekend! Linking up with Biana.
Favorite Moments:Unexpectedly working from home Monday and Tuesday was nice. I didn’t have to drop my baby off and have my heart break as she cries when I hand her over to one of her teachers and sneak out the door while they distract her. Mommin’ is hard during the week, and I certainly enjoyed the extra time and snuggles while still getting all my work done. And my sister stopped by for a few minutes with the boys so that she could see Zoe and it was great getting to see all of them for a little bit.
Sometimes you have to do things that are a little out of your comfort zone. I have been pushing myself hard this week to do just that. I worked on a few things that make me nervous, in a good way. I reached out to someone I had met before, but never really hung out with, and asked her to lunch. I ran into her over the summer while shopping and we said that we should grab lunch one day. You know how you always say you should meet up sometime but as you are saying it you know it is a lie? Well I am not saying that to say it anymore. I had a lovely time and we enjoyed delicious food and I hope to make it a regular thing with her. As busy adults, it is so easy to just keep living in your bubble and never venturing out. But how are you supposed to grow? How are you supposed to build your tribe?
Favorite Delivery: A few weeks ago while in Nordstrom Rack, I had tried on a pair of shoes that were super cute but I didn’t get them. I couldn’t stop thinking about them after I left and realized how many outfits they would go with. I looked online and found them, and they went even cheaper!!!! You guys, these are $15 right now!!!! I got them this week and they fit perfect! I wore them to work yesterday and had no problems all day. Do yourself a favor and grab a pair before they are gone.
Favorite Lesson: Just because it is the middle of the week, doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to do something special. Like wear a tutu because it’s Tuesday. Never save all your good stuff for the weekend.
This was such a cute story, sort of a finding yourself book. Would be great for a twenty something who is making their way in the world. Or you know, a thirty something who still doesn’t know what she wants to be when she grows up and can relate to the shitty commute and politics game at work. I found myself LOL’ing a few times and I could really relate to Katie. I just loved how the theme in the book seemed to be that life isn’t always as it seems or is portrayed on Instagram. The characters were just wonderful and I really enjoyed it!
You all know my love for Stephanie Plum! It seems like nothing changes in Plum land. She is still juggling Morelli and Ranger, Lula is still hilarious and these idiot criminals keep doing ridiculous things. Sometimes I wonder how many more of these there could really be. Yet, I never tire of reading them! I do wish that she would finally start to chose between Joe and Ranger though, you know? At least have a direction somewhere.
Bottom Line: If you are a fan of the series, this gives you a good dose of Stephanie, Lula, Ranger and Morelli!
I do love a good Jane Green novel! You know you can count on her for a solid beach read, and this one is even set in a cute little beach town. You have Emma, a former Banker from the big city, move to a quiet little town and get close with her landlord/neighbor Dominic. I liked the whole aspect of Emma trying to figure out who she is outside the banking/corporate world and turning a new leaf. She starts her own interior design company and I really liked that aspect of the book. Having Dominic’s son and his on and off feelings with Emma kept the book interesting, but there is just something that fell a little flat for me.
Bottom Line: While falling just a little flat, overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it if you are looking for a beach read or are a Jane Green fan. It wasn’t my favorite of hers, but it is still worth the read.
I always find consumer behavior interesting and like to keep up with the latest in marketing, advertising and just general consumer behavior. Of course, these days a lot of that revolves around the internet and social media. This book was written several years ago, but the main points still hold true today. I liked the author’s passion and thought the book was well written. I liked how he sort of describes social media has a cocktail party where meeting and conversation takes place.
Bottom Line: This is a great book for understanding consumer behavior and how to spread word of your business in a digital age with social media. I think some aspects even apply to blogging. While the book is a few years old, the main message is still very applicable today.
I started this book last month and I am only 60 pages in…still. It isn’t that it is a bad book, it is just that it is a physical book and I just cant seem to find the time to read right now. All the other books that I “read” this month were audiobooks in the car on my way to and from work, after I drop Zoe off. Zoe likes to listen to music in the car. I hope to finally finish it this month. And jump on the twenty Netgalley books I have sitting around. I wish Netgalley did audiobooks lol. It would make my life so much easier!
I am unexpectedly working from home today. Irma decided that she wanted to head straight to Birmingham after wreaking havoc all over Florida so most all of the schools in the metro area are closed today…and some even tomorrow. I think we are just supposed to get high winds and lots of rain, and there is concern of downed trees and power outages and that is why the state buildings and schools are closed. Whatever. I will take it. I didn’t want to get out with Zoe in this crap anyways.
Chris and I were glued to the TV all day yesterday watching Irma coverage. We were both up before 5am watching it. I am glad that everyone I know in Florida is safe, but it was crazy watching everything happen. I did manage to take Zoe out after her morning nap yesterday to get our grocery shopping done and pick up some food from Munoz.
Backing up to Friday, i left work early to take Zoe to her 9 month wellness visit. They do a lot of developmental testing at this appointment, and I am proud to say that Zoe was way above average on all the sections they cover. Proud mama over here! It is just astonishing how much she has changed in the last month. Yesterday, I watched her walk her push toy across the living room without any assistance. Crazy!!! The doctor strongly urged me to give her a flu shot since she is in daycare, so I agreed. I hate making those type of decisions. I never in my life got a flu shot until I was pregnant last year.
That evening, we stayed in and watched Catastrophe and I made homemade kung pao chicken and fried rice. It was so good!
Saturday morning during Zoe’s nap, I got the front and side yard cut and some cleaning done around the house. We ended up going over to Chris’s parents house to watch the Alabama game. I finally got to wear the fun Alabama stack of bracelets that my mom got me for Christmas. She picked out three that went so perfectly together! How cute is that elephant?
We did start The Americans last night. The first episode had as hooked pretty quickly, so maybe it will be another show we add to our list to watch regularly. Other than that, not much else to report here. If you live in the southeast, stay safe today and tomorrow as Irma blows through! Linking up with Biana.
