Mexicocoa

Posted on 1:28 PM by The Champions | 0 comments



1 serving.

Ingredients
•1 tbs. unsweetened cocoa powder
•1 tsp. cinnamon
•Pinch of chili powder
•Pinch of cayenne pepper
•3/4 cup almond milk (can substitute Irish Creme, coffee-flavored liqueur or milk)
•Splash of agave nectar (can substitute honey or maple syrup)
•1 oz. Silver tequila
•Paprika
•Cinnamon stick
Directions
In a saucepan over low heat add the cocoa powder, cinnamon, chili powder and cayenne pepper. Toast until spices begin to release their aromas, about a couple of minutes. Using a small whisk or wooden spoon, slowly incorporate the almond milk. Raise the temperature to medium-high and bring to a slow simmer. Stir in the agave nectar and remove from the heat. Rim a mug by dipping into a saucer of water, blotting and dipping into saucer of paprika. Pour in tequila. Add hot cocoa mixture. Stir with a cinnamon stick and serve.

Addis Ababa Part One

Posted on 2:30 PM by The Champions | 1 comments

We landed in Addis about 7pm Monday. We waited in line for visa, customs, money exchange, luggage, luggage to be scanned and on to our ride. We are staying at the Jupiter Hotel. It is a nice hotel, but with really short beds.


Tuesday we ate a late breakfast, got a taxi and went out. Our Taxi driver ended up being our tour guide. We went to the National Museum to see Lucy. She is the oldest fossil. Lucy is actually in the states, but we saw Salome. She is the first child...older fossil than Lucy. We went to the Lions Zoo. This mini zoo is a big deal, because the lions belonged to an Emperor, who is well thought of here. We ate at an outdoor cafe as it rained and got rather cold.


Wednesday was an exciting day...


We got to meet and spend about 2 hours with Alemetu! She is sooo sweet! She has 2 teeth, soft curly hair, easy going and a sweet smile! We met 2 other couples there and spent the afternoon with them. We all stopped by the agency for lunch..injera.. a traditional Ethiopian meal. Next, we visited a monk, who was in school with one of the couples brothers. It was very interesting conversations and views. Then it was on to shop... Mini stores where you haggle! Eve and I ate at the Lime Tree Cafe.. Very American style restaurant.

Thursday, we plan on visiting with Ali and doing a little more shopping. Friday will be court...

My Trip to Addis Ababa & meeting Alimetu

Posted on 3:40 PM by The Champions | 1 comments






Well, I am packing for..I do not know what. I hope a wonderful adventure. My sister, Eve, is adopting a little girl from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We get to meet her on Thursday, then go to court on Friday, where she officially becomes Eve's daughter. All my life I have said I wanted to go to Africa...I thought it would be on a safari, Egypt, somewhere of awww. Ethiopia was not where that visit would be...but I will experience something more wonderful then lazy hungry lions, or an old stone structures...the miracle of changing a child's future.

My first leg of travel starts in Birmingham, Sunday morning. I then fly to Chicago, then to Washington DC, where I will meet up with Eve. From there we will try to sleep, land in Rome for refueling, and on to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We land there around 7:40 pm Monday. It will be about 38 hours of travel time! Depending on how we feel, we will go to market and putter Tuesday and Wednesday.

The second leg of my trip will be all about the little miracle about to take place...

How I spent Easter afternoon

Posted on 5:39 PM by The Champions | 0 comments















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Wild Animal Safari Park Pine Mountain Georgia

Posted on 3:54 PM by The Champions | 0 comments

We decided to take a day trip and go to the Wild Animal Safari Park in Pine Mountain Georgia. It was an easy 3 hour drive, the park is located just north of Columbus Georgia and close to Callaway Gardens. So here's how it works, you can either rent one of the fabulous zebra painted vans (that have bars in place of windows) or you can drive your own vehicle through if you would like, there was a new convertible mustang behind us and several others drove their onwn cars through, but I wouldn't recomend it. So you basically rent the van, it cost $10 plus your admission and animal feed, and you drive through the park. The animals come up to your car and you feed them, they stick as much of their head in between the bars as they can and then they stick their tongues out as long as they can to get the feed. So it gets pretty disgusting and gross but extremely fun. We got to feed longhorn steer, deer, zebras, wild pigs, giraffes and mules. They also had some animals that looked like a cross between a mule and zebra. The video pretty much says it all. The constant giggling you hear is Sandie, she pretty much giggled the entire time through the park.

There is also a walk through area that has Ligars (cross between lion and tiger) that was pretty neat to see, and a few other animals. Think bad or redneck zoo.



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Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

Posted on 10:06 AM by The Champions | 0 comments


Ingredients
3/4 pound applewood smoked bacon
1 pound chicken tenderloins
1/2 cup beer
1 pound dry elbow macaroni
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus 2 tablespoons, plus more for baking dish
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus 1 cup
3 cups whole milk, plus 2 tablespoons
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 cups grated white Cheddar, divided
3 cups grated mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2/3 cup hot sauce (recommended: Frank's Red Hot)
1 cup panko bread crumbs
Sliced carrots and celery, for serving
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat bottom and sides of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish with butter.

Arrange the bacon on an aluminum foil lined sheet pan and bake until crisp, about 22 minutes. Allow to cool and coarsely chop.

Put the chicken and beer in a large bowl and let marinate, at room temperature, for 20 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add the macaroni and cook stirring occasionally, until cooked al dente, about 6 to 7 minutes. Drain and reserve in a large pot or mixing bowl.

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; whisk in the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until golden. Whisk in 1/3 cup flour and cook until golden, about 1 minute. Whisk in 3 cups milk, the salt and the pepper, and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Add 2 cups of the Cheddar and 2 cups of the mozzarella (reserving additional cheese for topping) and stir until melted, about 2 minutes.

Stir the cheese sauce, blue cheese and bacon into the macaroni until well combined; pour evenly into the prepared baking dish and smooth the surface.

Put the remaining 1 cup of flour in a medium-sized shallow mixing bowl. In another medium-sized shallow mixing bowl, add the remaining 2 tablespoons milk and the egg and whisk until combined. Drain the beer from the chicken tenderloins and dip into the flour to coat well, then dip into the egg mixture and back into the flour. Put on a plate until ready to fry.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Working in 2 batches, fry the chicken until golden brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Remove to paper towels to drain. Add the chicken and hot sauce to a large bowl and toss until well coated. Carefully slice the chicken into bite-sized strips. (Avoid knocking off the batter).

Evenly top the macaroni with the sliced chicken, and drizzle with additional hot sauce, if desired. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup of white Cheddar and the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese over the top of the chicken and sprinkle with the panko bread crumbs. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and drizzle it evenly over the bread crumbs. Bake at 400 degrees F until golden brown and bubbly, about 25 to 30 minutes.


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USS Alabama Overnight

Posted on 12:40 PM by The Champions | 0 comments

Riley has joined Cub Scouts and our first overnight expedition was to spend the night on the USS Alabama. We arrived at the Ship around 5pm and met up with the rest of the pack. We got our safety briefing and boarded the ship, and were led to our sleeping quarters, which consisted of a room full of three high bunks.. looks like I won't be sleeping tonight :). We choose our bunks and stow our stuff then we have about an hour to go explore the ship, so up and down the ladders we go. We meet back up with the pack to eat.. Domino's Pizza delivers to the ship. After we eat, we are sent on a scavenger hunt around the ship. we have to find out things like how many loaves of bread were made dailey on the ship (550), How many gallons of ice cream were eaten dailey (100.After about two hours of scavenging around the ship we meet back up with the pack to play a game of Battleship bean bag toss, the younger boys won against the older boys!! Then it was time for lights out, about 10:30. We all get some "sleep", I think Riley woke up around 4:30 Saturday morning, we finally get up and going around 6:00. The line for breakfast was a little long so we go to the air museum and to the USS Drum Submarine to check them out.



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