Yummy salsa

Restaurant Style Salsa
Source: thepioneerwoman
Ingredients:

• 1 large can whole, peeled tomatoes
• 2 cans diced tomatoes with green chili's
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 white onion, chunked
• 1 bunch cilantro leaves, minced
• 1 pepper, sliced thin (mild=anaheim, medium=jalapeño, hot=serrano)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• lime juice to taste

Directions:

1. Throw all ingredients in food processor or blender.
2. Pulse 8 times or to desired consistency.
3. Refrigerate 4 hours and serve.

So EASY but SO DELICIOUS

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken Chile

Source: Rita's Recipes

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts, still frozen
• 1 can Rotel tomatoes
• 1 can corn kernels, do not drain
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 pkg. Ranch dressing mix
• 1 T cumin
• 1 t chili powder
• 1 t onion powder
• 1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese

Directions:

1. Put the chicken in the crock pot.
2. Top with the tomatoes, corn, the drained and rinsed beans, ranch dressing, cumin, onion and chili powders. Stir to combine then top with the cream cheese.
3. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, stirring one or twice to blend in the cheese.
4. Shred the chicken into large pieces and serve over rice.
5. Can also serve in tortillas or taco shells or as a dip.

Healthy Breakfast Smoothies

Having PCOS makes it so that I have to avoid so many foods and I have to eat a lot of vegetables daily... Probably just the recommended amount. But it is very important that I squish these veggies into every meal daily if I can. So I've started trying out green shakes for breakfast. It is a great way to get in a full serving of veggies, fruits, carbs, and protein... Depending on what you put in your shake.

Nut Butter Green Smoothie
source: Russell
Ingredients:

• 1/4 c oats
• 1-2 c fresh spinach
• 1/2 frozen banana
• 4-6 ice cubes
• 1 c milk (coconut is my favorite!)
• 1 T peanut butter or almond butter
• 1/2 plain Greek yogurt + 1 tsp vanilla (optional)

Directions:

1. Put all ingredients in a blender. Blend until all ingredients are well mixed together.

Applesauce Green Smoothie
source: ??
Ingredients:

• 2 c spinach
• 1/2 frozen banana
• 1 apple
• 4-6 ice cubes
• 1 c milk
• 1/4-1/2 tsp cinammon

Directions:

1. Put all ingredients in blender. Blend until all ingredients are well mixed together.

The Maze Runner Trilogy

The Maze Runner ***1/2
by James Dashner
Book Type: Dystopia, YA, Sci-Fi
Summary: When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.
Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.
Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers.
Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.
summary found on goodreads
My Review: I thought that the concept behind this book was great. The book starts with a young kid with no memories of his life. He is a blank slate. He finds himself surrounded by a bunch of other boys who also have no memories of their past. They are trapped in a maze with no direction and no past. Why are they there? How did they get there? What now? This book reminded me of Lord of the Flies when it first opened. A bunch of boys all living together with no adult supervision... Thankfully the story turned out to be nothing like Lord of the Flies. It is more like Incarceron in the end. A young boy with no memory of his past learns he is a key character in the world outside of the maze they're trapped in. They have to work with those around them to solve the problems that surround them. This book takes place in a horrifically deteriorating dystopic world, it is fun to follow along and try to figure out what's currently going on and what will happen next.

The Scorch Trials ****
by James Dashner
Book Type: Dystopia, YA, Sci-Fi
Summary: Solving the Maze was supposed to be the end. No more puzzles. No more variables. And no more running. Thomas was sure that escape meant he and the Gladers would get their lives back. But no one really knew what sort of life they were going back to.
In the Maze, life was easy. They had food, and shelter, and safety . . . until Teresa triggered the end. In the world outside the Maze, however, the end was triggered long ago.
Burned by sun flares and baked by a new, brutal climate, the earth is a wasteland. Government has disintegrated—and with it, order—and now Cranks, people covered in festering wounds and driven to murderous insanity by the infectious disease known as the Flare, roam the crumbling cities hunting for their next victim . . . and meal.
The Gladers are far from finished with running. Instead of freedom, they find themselves faced with another trial. They must cross the Scorch, the most burned-out section of the world, and arrive at a safe haven in two weeks. And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them.
Thomas can only wonder—does he hold the secret of freedom somewhere in his mind? Or will he forever be at the mercy of WICKED?
summary found on goodreads  
My Review: This was my favorite book in the series. This book begins to give you some background information while still developing the plot from the previous book. You learn a little bit more about what is going on. Who the boys are, where they come from, why they were trapped in a maze.... You meet new characters. You learn more about the characters that were in the previous novel. And you start to discover the truth behind the dystopic society that surrounds these boys. The people who are affected by the scorch are honestly creepy. They slowly degenerate physically and mentally until they are little more than zombies. This book is very interesting and well developed.

The Death Cure ***
by James Dashner
Book Type: Dystopia, YA, Sci-Fi
Summary: Thomas knows that Wicked can't be trusted, but they say the time for lies is over, that they've collected all they can from the Trials and now must rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission. It's up to the Gladers to complete the blueprint for the cure to the Flare with a final voluntary test.
What Wicked doesn't know is that something's happened that no Trial or Variable could have foreseen. Thomas has remembered far more than they think. And he knows that he can't believe a word of what Wicked says.
The time for lies is over. But the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever imagine.
Will anyone survive the Death Cure?
summary found on goodreads
My Review: Final book in the series. Wraps up the whole story and pulls everything together. You never find out everything, things are still left open ended. But the important details that have been kept away from you are finally revealed. Characters that are important in the first two novels are killed off and several minor characters get promoted to the front line of the story. I was disappointed with the end of this story. I have conflicted feelings about Theresa the entire story and I didn't feel satisfied by her role in the story at the end. As the story ended I felt a bit disappointed but I thought that overall the series was very fun.

Dark Shadows

Dark Shadows **
Trailer
I was supremely disappointed by this movie!! I LOVE Johnny Depp so I was looking forward to seeing him in this role. Unfortunately the film did not meet my expectations. There wasn't really much of a point or plot. There was some inappropriate material.... And really it just didn't have anything going for it. We were very disappointed by everything in this movie. It had a great cast with Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer, who act superbly as usual... But they didn't have much to go with on this film. I would highly suggest NOT trying out this flick. It just isn't worth the two hours it will suck out of your day.

Unwind Trilogy

Unwholly ***1/2
by Neal Shusterman
**Sequel to Unwind**
Book Type: YA, Sci-Fi, Dystopia
Summary: Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa—and their high-profile revolt at Happy Jack Harvest Camp—people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simltaneously providing much-needed tissues for transplant might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the impoverished.
Cam is a product of unwinding; made entirely out of the parts of other unwinds, he is a teen who does not technically exist. A futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles with a search for identity and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam’s fate to become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev, he’ll have to question humanity itself.
summary found on goodreads
My Review: I loved the first book in this series; Unwind. It is a fabulous, new, fresh story. It takes place in a dystopic society where abortion has been outlawed and a parent can have their trouble child unwound into little pieces rather than deal with them. This story is the second chapter in the soon to be trilogy. This part of the story follows the same characters- Risa, Conner, and Lev- but there is also a new main character- Cam. Cam is basically the new aged Frankenstein. He is made up of a million little pieces from who knows how many unwinds. This story is as interesting and engaging as the first book in many ways. However, Shusterman has a too many character voices which muddles the story on occasion. Yet, overall, I thought the story was fun, but not quite as good as the first book. ALTHOUGH, I am looking forward to book 3, Unsouled

Stardust

Stardust ***
by Neil Gaiman
Book Type: Fantasy
Summary: Hopelessly crossed in love, a boy of half-fairy parentage leaves his mundane Victorian-English village on a quest for a fallen star in the magical realm. The star proves to be an attractive woman with a hot temper, who plunges with our hero into adventures featuring witches, the lion and the unicorn, plotting elf-lords, ships that sail the sky, magical transformations, curses whose effects rebound, binding conditions with hidden loopholes and all the rest.
summary found on goodreads
My Review: Have you seen the movie Stardust? Russ and I LOVE that movie! So we decided to read the book it is based on. And the verdict is out. I like the movie better. The book and movie are very much a like but there were a few subtle differences. The book explains a few details that are merely touched upon in the book, which was one benefit of reading the story. Outside of these few details I felt that watching the movie left you feeling more satisfied than reading the book did. I liked the characters in the movie better and I thought the ending was much happier and more satisfying. Basically the book is fun, the movie is better. If you didn't like the movie DON'T read the book. If you enjoyed the movie but didn't love it, don't read the book. If you LOVED the movie and would like to get some more insight and details about the world in stardust, read the book. It is a fun story, if not a wonderful one!