In celebration of my 54th Birthday last month and in anticipation of Crocktober I wanted to try a new Crock Pot recipe. I found one online at Billy Parisi’s website and put my own little twist onto it to make this easy and inexpensive meal which was by far more flavorful than I anticipated.
Cook the chicken thighs in a little olive or vegetable oil until browned, as this will add more color and flavor to the dish.
Put all ingredients into a slow cooker coated with cooking spray and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours. Before serving sprinkle on a little salt and pepper to taste then serve over cooked brown rice and garnish with Feta cheese.
This was such a flavorful dish that both my son and I went back for seconds and it was more than enough for leftovers for the following day.
Last week I “celebrated” my 54th birthday with hubby and #1 son, I also received a mid-afternoon phone call from my youngest who is away at college, and it was the best birthday I could have ever asked for. Actually I stopped “celebrating” my birthdays many years ago after the death of my sister on September 14, 1992.
However, I know that everyday that I wake up ~ looking up is a gift, a gift that I definitely do not take for granted. However, even with all that being said, it’s always nice to get a little something something to commemorate the actual date of your birth. So this year to commemorate my birth, my gifts were ones of glamour and glasses.
On Sunday morning, I had an appointment with Dawn V. Gilmore, owner and photographer extraordinaire of DawnVGilmorePhotos. I had made an appointment a few weeks prior for the September Special, which was $50.00 for 4 headshots. I was super excited because I had always wanted professional headshots for my blogs and Social Media platforms and this was such a deal, making it a perfect birthday gift. Dawn is a personable and talented photographer who not only made me feel comfortable but she also made me look glamorous!
By the way, her specialty is Boudoir Photos so if you are looking to have these taken, give her a call!
After the 30 minute photo shoot, I drove to Dunkin Donuts to use my AARP discount of getting a FREE donut with the purchase of a large cup of coffee. I decided to splurge and also purchased a Pumpkin Muffin, a Blueberry muffin for hubby and a dozen munchkins for my son, then headed home to relax.
With his bi-weekly chemo treatments, hubby has his good days and then his not-so-good days, so when he’s smiling, I take full advantage of it with a selfie! #ihatecancer
I love to cook more than I enjoy eating out so I decided made a special dinner, Slow Cooked Mediterranean Chicken, you can see the full recipe in a Friday Foodie post next week, but check out this quick video.
The final gift to myself was a new pair of glasses, yes, glasses. I have been wearing them since the age of 50, however, I only wear them to read. I’ve always purchased a pair after each eye exam, but hubby and Malik started purchasing theirs from Spec$forLess, so I decided to give them a try. There are many styles from which to choose and the prices are great, made even more so with our insurance plans.
Monday afternoon I drove to their store located on 12 East Main Street in Middletown, and the sales person, Janine was a pleasure to work with. I had a lot of fun trying on different pairs and she indulged my lunacy by taking a few pictures.
I love larger rims, AKA Sally Jessie Raphael so those are the ones I tried on. I won’t show you which pair I finally ordered, but I will tell you that they are cute and I may just start wearing them all the time, including in my OOTD photos…we’ll see.
All in all It was a great birthday, and I want to thank all my virtual friends for their wonderful wishes as I look forward to another blessed year.
