Turkey Sausage Bake!

I fully intend on doing a catch up blog tomorrow but tonight I want to share with you one of my favorite recipes that I found on Pinterest. Not only is this recipe healthy, it's really filling too!

Baked Turkey Sausage, Peppers, Carrots & Potatoes

(Yes, I eat on tiny salad plates for portion control)

Here is what you need to do:

Ingredients

• 1 package (at least 1 lb) of your favorite sausage links (johnsonvilles, evergood, generic smoked sausage, whatever you like.  i used smoked turkey sausage, 2 long links)
• 4-5 decent-sized potatoes (i prefer yukon gold or red bliss)
• 1 small jar banana peppers
• 1-2 bell peppers, sliced (I didn't do this on this recipe but I added carrots)
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 3 tbsp olive oil (yes, it has to be OLIVE oil)
• salt & pepper
• Parmesan Cheese (enough to sprinkle over the top)
• *optional — 3 tbsp creole seasoning ( I use Tony's because it's THE BEST)

Instructions:


Spray a large baking pan w/ nonstick spray (make sure there is at least a small “lip” that provides a “side” to the pan, don’t use a flat baking sheet.

1. Slice sausages into thin rounds, about 1/5″ thick. 
2. Cut potatoes into 1/2″ chunks
3. Slice onion and pepper into strips
4. Leave baby carrots as is if you use them. Just throw them in with everything else.
5. Place all ingredients on baking sheet and drizzle oil over.  use your hands to toss everything together in the oil, making sure everything feels coated.
6. Add salt & pepper and spices (if using)
7. Top w/ sliced banana peppers
8. Sprinkle Parmesan Cheese over the top
9. Bake at 400 for about 40-45 minutes or until potatoes are tender

There ya have it! This dish is really good and husband approved. It's one of his favorites as well. I added a salad to this meal too because I LOVE salad.

I'll be back tomorrow with a full 365 update and trip blog!

This photo is day 93 for the record. :-)

xxx

Ryan

Insert Clever Title Here.

365 update!

Day 66. We're finally feeling better after our ear infection!

Day 67.  We threw a surprise bachelorette party for our friend Tiffiny. She got married 2 years ago but they had a quick ceremony because her step daughter was diagnosed with Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD) and they were traveling back and forth to Duke University to get her treatments to try and extend her life. (More on Mak HERE) There is no cure for MLD so they still battle everyday but Mak is doing great and finally getting to be a little girl again. Tiffiny is a great mom, friend and step mom and we're glad we could give her the bachelorette party she never got to have. Ps. We are too old to party like we did that night! :-)

Day 68. Macro Love!

Day 69. Millie got up early to catch a sunrise. Millie is my new friend. I've decided to use her in some of my photos as inspired by Andrew Whyte. More on Andrew and his legography HERE.

Day 70. The weather is warm and she wants to play.

Day 71. Just eating her apple.

Day 72. Spring is right around the corner!

Day 73. I gave up coffee, tea and diet coke for Lent. Meet my new best friend.

Day 74. So we recovered from our ear infection and got the stomach bug. Bath #3 for the day.

Day 75. Wishing it would warm up so I could stop taking pictures of food.

Day 76. Happy St. Paddy's Day friends!

Thanks for looking :-)

It's just one of those days...

Sitting here listening to Lana Del Rey Radio on Pandora, playing around with photos and hacking the husbands Facebook account. It's a lot of fun. :-)

Yesterday was Charlie's 9 month doctors appointment and of course Dr. Hubbs didn't tell us anything we didn't already know. Our little bug is perfect :-) She weighs a whopping 22 lbs and is 27.4 inches long. Last Friday she started crawling and then out of no where yesterday she started pulling up to her knees on her toy box. I guess this means she's going to be pulling up to standing position and walking before I know it. I can't believe how fast this is all happening! Make it stop! Just kidding, I enjoy watching her grow, learn and discover things.

She only had to get one shot yesterday so she was pretty happy about that. Here is day 20.

Today is the last day to post my week 3 image for the lyric "It's like you're my mirror, my mirror staring back at me" for The Photographer Within's P52. I had this whole idea planned out in my head that incorporated Charlie but she just didn't want to cooperate with me this week. So instead of Charlie, I completed another selfie.

Day 21. Week 3.

I feel like it was kind of cliche to take a picture of myself in the mirror. I guess I was a little uninspired this week. Hopefully I can have some fun with next week's lyric.

I haven't really talked much about my weightless journey recently. I weigh in again Saturday but I'm currently down 7 lbs. Hopefully I'll be down another 2 by the time I weigh in again. I've really been doing great running and eating right. I feel so much better than I did 20 days ago. I'm not really trying to diet, I'm just trying to focus on making lifestyle changes and not eating crap that I was before. Luckily for me I've got a lot of motivation $$$ and some good friends along for the ride. :-)

Christina Perri's Jar of Hearts just came on. Wow. I love this song, it reminds me of a million different things.  I think I'll go ahead and sign off for tonight and sing this song at the top of my lungs. (Hope my neighbors can't hear me.)

xxx

Ryan

xxx

Ryan

Sunday Fun-day!

Today was a great day!

First, Charlie slept until 730. I actually woke up before her and I was soooo glad. Hopefully she keeps that up so I can get my runs in during the time she sleeps in the morning. This morning I did sprints for 3 miles and felt GREAT afterwards. I need to start building my endurance back up if I'm going to do some races this spring.

After I ran, I cooked breakfast which consisted of eggs and toast for Ryan and an egg white omelet for me. Charlie refused to eat her fruit and insisted that she get yogurt bits and puffs instead. How could I say no to that cute little face?! When we wrapped up breakfast I got ready and went to the grocery store to get supplies for the week.

When I got home, Charlie took a nap and I was able to read some of the new book I'm into right now. It's called Divergent. I really like it! There is a movie coming out about it this year and it's part of a series like the Hunger Games.

When Charlie woke up we went to dads house to hang out, watch the game and eat some dinner. Jeannine (my awesome step mom) made some delicious potato soup, a salad and some chicken salad. It was awesome and diet friendly :-) Jeannine texted me last night and asked if I had any recent pictures of me, Ryan and Charlie and honestly I don't. I have one from Thanksgiving of all of us and a few from Christmas but none that I really loved. Today I decided to take one of us three for my 365 project. (And for Jeannine of course).

I set the camera up on my tripod and had Ryan sit with Charlie while I focused. When I was good to go I went and sat down and snapped the shots with my remote control. Here is what we got.

Day 19.

This was my favorite. I really cannot wait to get my hair done this weekend. My mop is a mess these days! I loved the red while it lasted but I'm ready for my brown hair back! Thank goodness I go see my cousin this weekend to get fixed up and beautified. She is seriously a hair genius so if any of you in Louisville need some hair love look her up.  Looks by Lauren

Here are some other fun shots that I took with my remote today.

Charlie is such a trip. She's the happiest baby ever and we are so blessed. I thank God everyday for giving me the chance to be a mommy to this awesome little girl. Things aren't always easy but I wouldn't change my life for anything.

I hope everyone had a great Sunday. I'm rooting for the Bronco's to win the Super Bowl. I don't really have a team in this fight but I like Peyton Manning and I'm glad they beat the Patriots. (Haha Papa)

xxx

Ryan

Short and sweet

Ok. I just want to post the photos I chose for today's 365 project. They will probably look familiar because I posted similar ones earlier but today I'm just too tired to write anything too long.

Day 7.

Day 7. #2

Pretty sure I had fun during this polar vortex! :-)

I'll be so glad when it warms up later this week.

Goodnight!

xxx

Ryan

Baby, it's COLD outside.

Hey y'all! Hope everyone is having a great Monday. It is SOOOO cold outside! -2 is way too cold for me. I think I need a vacation somewhere warm very soon!

Today is day 6. And today happens to be a selfie day. I took about two dozen photos today of random things, including what I was cooking for dinner for a recipe blog but I didn't like any of them once I started processing.

Day 6.

I actually have a ton to write about but honestly I'm wore out today. I've started running again so this morning I was up and on the treadmill at 530. Tomorrow I will post a little bit of a mixed blog about running, our weight loss competitions and the whole Louisville Football coaching mess and my thoughts about it.

Hope everyone likes day 6, especially because it's of my face! haha :-)

Don't forget to like my FB page and my blog! I seriously need more followers. I know you guys come check this out from Facebook so just FOLLOW it! Spanks!

Here is another selfie from today. Just for fun.

(I don't do serious well. I prefer to smile :-)

Have a good night! Stay warm!

xxx

Ryan

Sunday Funday!

Hi again!

Today was day 5! Woo.

Today I attempted to shoot some indoor portraits which most of you know is totally not my thing. In fact, the photos from today that I love the most are outdoors. Luckily we caught the weather at just the right time and we were able to get some fun stuff outside. I've got some indoor shots as well but the photo I chose for the 365 project was taken outside.

This is my Aunt Theresa. She's fun, spunky and has tons of personality. I frequently shoot portraits for her and she is so willing to do whatever! I really liked her expression in the picture below. I labeled it "Waiting" on  my project. It looks like she's waiting on something. Either for me to leave her alone, the snow to come or for me to let her go back inside. Haha. Anywho, her expression really made this photo for me. So this is our day 5!

I did a lot of post processing to this photo. Mainly the grass, background and coloring. The grass this time of year is not really what you would call pretty so I added some color, some texture and a little dodging and burning. I love this photo. Hopefully my Aunt does too!

Second topic of the day. TWINS! I've never got to photograph twins before so I was really excited when I met Sean and Alex. They were so fun and I'm glad their mom, Pam, contacted me to shoot some photos of them and discuss possibly shooting her daughter's wedding in the summer. Alex and Sean were cracking me up through their whole shoot. They are quite comical and were willing to do whatever I asked which was awesome! I hope to see them again maybe in the summer/fall to shoot some senior portraits! Fun Fun! Anywho, here is a shot from their informal pics today.

Again with the processing. I brightened things up a bit.

Well, that's about it for today. The weather is about to turn freezing so me and Charlie are in our jammies staying cozy watching some football. Our Eagles lost yesterday so we're pretty bummed about that. Hope everyone is having a great Sunday!!

xxx

Ryan

Hello Teddy.

Good morning friends! Today I had this whole selfie planned outside with my new 85mm and then my crappy camera remote decided to die. I've got wifi on my 6D and the app on my phone but I still haven't figured that whole mess out yet. I guess I better because my remote is a pain in the butt!

So, since I didn't get to do my fun selfie, I decided to take Teddy out to play. My sister in law, Shawn,  is currently in Africa on a Peace Corps mission until 2015 and she is who got Teddy for Charlie for Christmas. Probably because Charlie kept trying to steal her childhood bear, Norton. Also, Teddy is named Teddy for now because Charlie can't talk to name him, and I like the name Teddy, mainly because of our amazing few years with Teddy B. Teddy and Charlie. Good fit. (More on that later). One day, when she's old enough, she'll probably rename him. But for now, he's Teddy.

So anyway I wanted to capture an image that showed awesome bokeh and this does that. I seriously cannot wait until outdoor portrait session weather. This lens is a gem!

Here is Teddy.

Obviously my backyard isn't awesome for portraits but I love this shot and Teddy was a willing participant.

Well, I guess I better go for now. I have to go pick up my little bug from her grandparents house!

xxx

Don't forget to "Like" my Facebook page and follow my blog!

Ryan

"Turn the clock to zero, honey. We're starting up a brand new day."

Good Morning! "Turn the clock to zero, honey. We're starting up a brand new day."

I know, I know, you're probably like huh? Well as a part of this photography journey I'm on, I'm also doing a 52 week photo challenge with some of the ladies over at The Photographer Within that incorporates song lyrics in photographs. This week was Sting's Brand New Day lyric. So, this is day 3 of my 365 project and week 1 of the 52 week challenge. Whew. This year is gonna be fun!

This morning Charlie was a little fussy because she's had a cold. (She always has a cold. Daycare is building up that immune system!) So around 5am she wouldn't go back to sleep in her crib so I brought her into bed with me. Crazy husband was up at 130am to go duck hunting so he was already gone. Well anywho, I was hoping she would sleep a little longer this morning so I could get some daylight into our room because the lighting in my house SUCKS! (I can't wait to take Sarah's On Camera Flash workshop on the 20th) I managed to get this image about a minute after she woke up at 8am. FYI, she never sleeps this late on the weekends. She must get that from her momma.

Charlie wasn't really ready to start a brand new day this morning but momma has to work so we had to get rolling!

Well there you have it. Week 1 of the P52 and day 3 of the 365. Hope everyone has a great day!

Please "Like" my Facebook page and subscribe to my blog.

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xxx

Ryan

Day 2! It's a new recipe kinda day!

Hello friends!

As some of you know I LOVE to cook, bake and try new recipes and tonight I made a delicious dish and decided to blog about it and incorporate my 365 photo to it as well.

The dish is called One-Pan Venison Enchilada Pasta. Of course you don't have to use venison, but since I have a hearty supply here in my freezer thanks to the husbands hunting adventures, I rarely use any other type of meat. Plus it's so lean, I don't have to worry about all the fat and icky stuff that's in ground beef. Bleh.

Enough about that. Here is what you need:

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced ( I was out so used a little garlic powder and garlic salt)
• 1 onion, diced
• 1.25 pounds of taco seasoned ground venison, turkey, or beef
• packet of low-sodium taco seasoning
• 2 cups of low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 19oz can of red enchilada sauce
• 8oz (about 2 1/2 cups) of dried rotini pasta
• 2 cups of freshly shredded Colby Jack cheese 
  
  
• green onions
• black olives (optional I didn't use olives)

Instructions

1. In a large skillet or sauté pan, sauté garlic and onions in olive oil over medium low heat until softened.
2. Add ground meat and cook, breaking meat up with a wooden spoon until browned.
3. Once turkey meat is cooked through, add pasta, chicken broth and enchilada sauce to pan.
4. Bring to a boil, then reduced heat to low and cover.
5. Cook on low, with pan covered for about 15 minutes.
6. Then remove lid and let simmer for additional 5 minutes until pasta is tender and sauce has reduced.
7. Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of cheese.
8. Top pasta with additional cup of cheese and melt under broiler for a minute or tow, or place lid back on pan and let heat from the pasta melt the cheese.
9. Garnish with black olives and green onions.

The end result looks like this (minus the matte Lightroom filter :-)

Please don't mind my old as dirt pan. I think if I'm going to start taking pictures of my cooking I should probably get some new pots and pans. But hey, if it's not broke, don't fix it right?

Thanks for checking out the recipe and day 2 of my 365 photo project! I'm going to try and do a recipe a week. Don't forget to follow my blog and "Like" my Facebook page! Click the link below and it will take you there!

Please "Like" my Facebook page :-)

Next time I will take more photos of the cooking process as well! It's hard to do when you're trying to entertain a 9 month old in a highchair and cook dinner at the same time!

xxxx

Ryan

365......Attempt 2. Among other things......

Well here we go again. It looks like I'm going to attempt yet another 365. This time I have a lot of motivation and I'm in a wonderful Facebook group with some awesome photographers that are doing the same thing so hopefully we can all motivate each other to finish.

This was my image today.

This image means two things.

#1. This is the first image of my 365-2014 project.

#2. I'm FINALLY going to start training again. I've been running on and off over the past 8 months but it's really time to focus and get back in shape. I've joined two bets for weight loss. One with a group of friends and one on dietbet.com. The one on DietBet is HUGE. I've never seen a pot so big for a weightloss comp. This bet is over 6 months so I have to stay focused!

The triple crown of running and the mini marathon are coming up again. I haven't ran a race since the mini in 2012 so maybe if I start today I can whip my butt into shape. Plus I cannot wait to try my new outdoor running face mask my sister and brother in law got me for Christmas. That thing is SWEET!

Anywho, I'm going to be keeping up with my 365 project on here and on Facebook. This is where I'll elaborate a little on the image I've shot for the day. Obviously this is a huge time suck so I may not be able to post everyday. I hope some of you will hop over and follow my blog.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and safe New Years Eve! Welcome to 2014!

Thanks for the love and support!

xxx

Ryan