Honestly and truly I thought I would have had more time on my hands when the kids went back to school, but I can’t seem to keep up some days!  I don’t know what I was thinking! After getting three kids fed breakfast, helping them get dressed and two eldest on the school bus then the youngest three days a week to preschool, I run around doing errands, checking in on client portfolios and requests, and hope to get some housework done especially the never ending laundry, pick up one from preschool, help two with homework and drive to/fro after school activities… but what about dinner!?!  On the weekends there’s cub scouts, soccer, church, and a husband who’s worked every Sunday for the past month— he already works on Saturdays (just has one day off a week).  Oh, I also need to finish hours at the farm for my work-share and am volunteering for a PTA event and local library art show.  And the classroom volunteering hasn’t begun yet.  I am just a bit stressed at times and have had no time for writing. I need to say no every so often, but I honestly like to help out. 

I think I will be freer once PTA event and art show are over.  Then we’ll be into the holidays.  I did make a big change with our schedules and took my middle son out of a great magnet school in another town.  It was too much.  He was out of the house at 7:30 am but didn’t start school until 8:55 and then got home at 4:20.  He’s only 6.  And I had to drive him to a bus stop even though the bus went past our house.  We are already a part of the local school community which the other two are in.  My son also asked daily to return to his old school.  I will regret having him miss the wonderful opportunity of immersion Spanish, great international teaching and diverse atmosphere.  But it was best to take him out.  Our local school is great too. 

So, I am now taking this time to write before I run off to the farm and then hopefully get some housework done.   We haven’t exactly had slow cooker-weather, but I have used mine because it has been a huge help to retain my sanity.  I actually have tonight’s dinner started in my slow cooker (crock pot) right now.  The other day I made a killer chicken chili using it and had them eat early and ready for bed before I had to go to Open House at school.  I also put the brown rice in the rice cooker and used the timer so it was ready at 5.

The funny thing is that I just got my crock pot two years ago and barely used it for the first.  Now, I’ve figured it out— I think it takes a while to know what’s possible and how things turn out, to feel confident enough to use it often.

I was originally going to make the chicken gumbo I’ve wanted to make for weeks, but again, I had so many tomatoes, I changed dinner on the spot.  I made this recipe based on a friend’s chicken chili.  She makes a really delicious one with cinnamon in it.  I didn’t use her recipe, but adapted how I normally make beef or turkey chili to include cinnamon. So good and easy to make with the slow cooker. 

Chicken Chili

• 1 1/2 pounds chicken thighs, boned and skinned
• 6-8 tomatoes (sm/med), skinned
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 red pepper (sweet), diced
• 1 med onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1- 1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder (depending on tolerance)
• tsp cumin
• tsp cinnamon
• tsp dried oregano
• olive oil
• salt/pepper
• 3 cans of beans (kidney, black, pinto, etc)
• 1 okra, sliced (optional— I was going to make gumbo that night)

 Mix 1 Tbsp chili powder with cumin, cinnamon, salt and pepper.  Cut chicken into small pieces and coat with spice mixture.  Set in refrigerator while prepping onions, garlic, pepper, okra.  Blanch the tomatoes to remove skin and put in slow cooker.  I use my hands to crush the tomatoes into smaller pieces, you can use a knife.  Sauté onions in olive oil for 2 minutes over med-high heat, then add garlic, pepper and okra.  (I added okra later as an afterthought).  Sauté until lightly cooked but careful not to brown garlic.  Add to slow cooker.  Add about 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp ground pepper.  In same sauté pan, brown chicken with little more olive oil over med-high heat.  Spices need to open over the higher heat of pan.  Once browned all over, add to slow cooker.  Stir in beans and oregano.  Cover and cook on low for at least 3 1/2 hours.  Check seasoning about an hour through (if possible) and add more salt and pepper if needed.  Or adjust before serving.

It rocks!  The kids loved it.  My middle son whose most sensitive to spices added more rice to his dish and drank lots of milk.  It was fabulous for left-overs too!