11/5/12 - Italian Chicken, Green Beans and Potatoes

Starting off another week! Christian still has his cold. Amelia still has her runny nose, and was really tired tonight. She first complained her mouth hurt, then her legs hurt, then her tummy hurt. Hmmmm. Maybe just tired? Hopefully. I do still think those molars are giving her trouble though. So far, Olivia and I seem to be OK – fingers crossed!

Christian actually had the day off. He still has a decent amount of leave time to use up before the end of the week, but it’s really hard for them to actually take time off. I guess his boss told him to take today off – I think Monday’s are their slowest day of the week, so it’s the best time to be off. He ended up spending the day packing up the rest of the “outside” for the winter. He took everything off the deck, packed everything up and tarpped it under the deck. So, at least we’re kind of ready for winter…

Work for me was OK. I had a nice long meeting mid-day to help speed the day along. It was off to work a WHOLE Monday though, I’m so used to leaving early to do my shopping. LOL. I am fairly certain I’m coming down with something though. Pretty sure the cold is making its leap to my system now. I just felt off all day. Warm, tired, headache (still) and my throat was bothering me. Hopefully it doesn’t get too bad.

I sent Christian on a mission to buy some Carnitas I need for tomorrow’s meal, so I picked the girls up after work (he usually picks them up on Monday’s, when they’re at his parents house). I chatted with his parents for a bit, and then we were on our way.

The girls were both pretty tired (residual effect of daylights savings time, I believe), so I sat them on the couch with a Tinkerbell movie. Amelia even sat there and watched it, and she NEVER watches TV. She was acting ill – looked worn out and really subdued and cuddly. But, she didn’t have a fever or anything. She refused to eat tonight; she just laid on the couch with her juice and apple, then went straight to bed when we finished dinner. Poor thing. Olivia ate, watched a couple videos, then was off to bed herself. YAY for earlier bedtimes!

Rico Update – Rico has been doing well. I've got a bit of a routine going with the cats now. I still have Rico set up in the kennel, with a litter box, bed, water and his food at meal time in our bedroom. He’s really adapted to that, and runs right into it when it’s time to eat, so that’s good. Chloe is still set up in the entry way of the house, and is NOT liking being on a schedule. LOL, diva. I feel them in the morning before work/when we get up. Rico stays in his kennel all day while we’re gone – I hate to do it, but he seems OK with it, and he actually eats all of his food throughout the day, which is great. I still don’t really see him going to the bathroom, but he doesn’t seem to spend as much time in his litter box as before, and still seems like he’s doing well and looks good, so hopefully everything is OK. He hasn’t had dry food for quite some time now, and seems to be adjusting to everything well. He’s back to fighting with the dog and running around, he still follows me around everywhere I go. So, we’re really happy right now. I do need to call this week to schedule his follow up appointment. Then, I guess we’ll REALLY know how he’s doing.

Tonight’s dinner was Italian Chicken, Green Beans and Potatoes. SUPER, SUPER easy one.

Ingredients:

• 3-5 Thawed, boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I did 3 since the girls split a breast, but I think I’d do at least 4 in the future)
• 4-5 Potatoes, cubed
• Green Beans (I used frozen. They recommend fresh or canned – they would probably work OK too, but would worry about them getting overcooked…)
• 1 packet of Italian Seasoning Mix
• 1 stick of Melted Butter (I think you could get away with ½ - 1/3 stick)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Layer your green beans along one (long) side of the dish; your chicken next to the beans, then your potatoes along the other (long) side – so, you end up with three rows of food in your dish. Sprinkle the Italian seasoning over everything, then pour the melted butter over that.
3. Cover with foil and cook for 1 hour
4. DONE – one pan, no mess, easy!

Christian LOVED this one, and Olivia ate it well too. Italian isn't my all-time fave, so I wasn't raving about it quite as much, but I loved the ease, and it did turn out well.