Cheap, Easy & Tasty

We did a lot of running in 2011 now we need to eat! We earned it right?! Hell ya. So I've been interested in this slow cooking fad and have wanted to try something. If you're new to this or a seasoned veteran you'll love this recipe I found at Midwest Living. I prepared this the other morning as I made my 8 minute egg; that's how fast and easy it is. It is the most amazing and flavorful dinner I have ever tasted and have ever made. It's also very economical! I'm still trying to figure out why it's called Angel Chicken?!

Makes 4+

Prep Time: 15 mins (it only took me 8 mins)

Cook: 4 - 5 hours

4 skinless boneless chekcen breast halves about 1 1/2 lbs (I used 3 and I think you could use up to 5 to 6 if you wanted)

1 Tbsp vegetable oil (optional)

1 8 oz mushroom pkg fresh button mushrooms, quartered (I just bought the halved ones and called it GOOD)

1 8 oz pkg fresh shitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps sliced (I thought these were really expensive so I just used a 4 oz can of mushrooms and called it GOOD)

1/4 Cup Butter

1 0.7 oz pkg Italian dry salad dressing mix

1 10 3/4 oz can condensed golden mushroom soup (I just used a can of Campbells Mushroom Soup and yes called it GOOD)

1/2 Cup dry white wine (I used $3 Chuck Pinot Grigio and yes this was good and of course I added a bit more but not too much because you will need the rest of the bottle to drink when the chicken is done. Share if you must)

1/2 8 oz onion and chives cream cheese (oops I just noticed that it said 1/2, just throw the whole thing in there, believe me it was awesome)

Hot cooked rice or angel hair pasta (We have this really large bag of Couscous from Costco and used this and it was awesome but really any starch will do)

Snipped fresh chives or green onion (forgot this but it would've been a nice addition)

Directions:

"If you like", brown chicken on both sides in a large skillet in hot oil over medium heat. Combine mushrooms in a 3 1/2 to 4 -quart slow cooker; top with chicken. Melt butter in a medium saucepan (I just used the skillet I browned the chicken in to get some of the chicken and butter flavor). Stir in Italian dressing mix. Stir in mushroom soup, white wine, and cream cheese until melted; pour over chicken.

2. Cover; cook on low heat setting for 4 to 5 hours

3. Serve chicken and sauce over cooked rice. Sprinkle with chives, "if you like" (what's this mean? if you like? Someone really nice or from Minnesota must have submitted this recipe! Oh and don't forgot the rest of the wine!

And that's it! Easy peasy! Cheap, Easy and Tasty and I'm not talking about me! Try this and let me know what you think!

It's the Journey . . . Not the Destination . . . Kind of Sort of

OMG! It has been hard for me to sit down and write about this. A mixture of procrastination, being busy and maybe a little depression. Depressed it is all over! It was a great experience to run my first marathon from start to finish. I wrote about how great the training was now we pick up with the event.

I went a couple of days early so I could spend some time with my brother Richard and his wife Vicki who live in Maryland.

So awesome to see them. My brother is a retired Marine and Vicki is a runner. They took me to the Expo. I hope I inspired Vicki to run a long race someday too! And that's a picture of me with my new nephew Sugar Ray!

Off to packet pickup. This is like the best part of the race! Lucky number 26996! The Expo was amazing. Brooks was the official sponsor and I had to get a jacket! This was something way a head of time I had been planning on purchasing! Of course I also picked up a knit cap, a baseball cap as well as a shirt! Oh and I also needed the poster. My goal was to get a jacket. So to my dismay they were all out of mediums, heartbreak! But I tried on the large and of course with my long arms it fit and a helpful runner suggested that I could cinch it at the bottom, disaster averted. Thank goodness because this was something I had my heart set on! Screw the run I want that jacket.

WEATHER

We need to talk weather. The one variable you can't plan. All along everyone had warned us about the heat. Washington DC is usually very humid, and it actually was when I landed on Thursday. But the day before the race it was cold and pouring rain and it was supposed to snow! WTF! And it did snow that evening. The northeast was getting a foot or 2 of snow but we were on the edge and they were predicting nicer weather on Sunday the day of the race but it would be a chilly start. In the end our training had prepared us for any kind of weather, so bring it.

STICK TO THE PLAN

Everyone we spoke to was saying they were planning on wearing what they planned to, so I just stuck to the plan; compression shorts and tank top, with arm warmers and 2 layers that I could throw along with gloves. It was a very chilly morning. As I

recall it was in the 20's but they kept saying it would get into the 50's and be sunny. That's us all bundled up and us right before we started. See all the cold people around us?

After running the same terrain over and over again the sights and sounds of Virginia and DC provided a spectacular background. As the sun rose we could see that we were by the Pentagon and just over to the right was General Lee's home which overlooks Arlington National Cemetery.

THANK YOU HILLS!

The first 8 miles was pretty hilly. Check out the elevation chart at:

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/4242930 Thank you Baker Park and Medicine Lake! The training we did at Baker and Medicine Lake, especially on the hot days really paid off. It was so nice to literally glide by all the other runners. I was initially worried that having all the hills in the beginning would be hard but it was nice to get them out of the way. The next 12 miles was pretty flat. Miles 20 - 23 is a climb of about 76 feet then a nice downhill. It's at this point when I was like wow I'm almost done. Totally cruising and I saw the flag for 26 miles, "I am so done" then I stopped dead in my tracks. The incline at 26 miles is called "The Wall" and crap when you've run 26 miles and you hit this wall which is a steep incline (which I had conveniently forgotten about) it does hit you like a wall. The only thing that got me going was that when I looked up I saw a Marine at the top and thought I can't let that guy see me walk! They need to line that last .2 with Marines!! Great way to finish.

CONSISTENCY

Consistency is the key. But it doesn't just happen, you have to train for it and include it in every pre race training run. Mostly for my documentation this what was recorded on my Garmin for each mile: 10:46, 10:40, 10:11, 9:51, 10:08, 10:06, 10:17, 10:24, 10:00, 10:01, 10:07, 10:00, 9:55, 10:19, 10:09, 9:57, 10:36, 10:24, 10:04, 10:37, 10:31, 11:05, 11:16, 12:04, 11:18, 11:04 = Avg. 10:29 = Final Time = 4:37:28 Probably the best compliment I got was on my way to the airport the next morning when a very experienced marathoner asked me my time and said "I wish I was that fast" ! Wow that was so cool!

LIFE CHANGING?

Did this marathon change my life? My initial reaction is no but from a woman who has a room full of half finished projects . . . scrapbooks, crafts, sewing, knitting, business start ups, etc! Huge accomplishment. I set a goal and accomplished it. I surrounded myself with experienced and knowledgeable people which was key to my success. I did think I would be more emotional about it but not so much. However, I had so much fun. Overall, an awesome experience. I can't wait to run another marathon with hopefully a newbie. I hope I can inspire someone to run because truely if I can do it anyone can!

THANKS AMAZONS!

A big thanks to Beth and Debbie who were there to hold my hand!

And for making me feel so tall! Until I saw this picture I did not realize that I was so short! Also a big thanks to Renee, Holly, Mike and everyone that is and has been a part of Lifetime Run club for being so inspirational! I can now put that 26.2 sticker on the car and know that I did it!