I’m going to share a little secret with you. I don’t like to cook. What? You already knew that? Oh! My bad. Well, since you already knew my allergy to cooking then you must know that when I have to cook I like to make it easy on myself. You knew that too? Cool. Then there won’t be any of those getting to know you akward silences in our convos. Eeeeeeexcept for…..this one.

Anywho, getting back to what we were chatting about. Food. And how I hate to cook.

Here’s a little recipe that is super simple and super yummy. It’s called Cheesy Chicken, Bacon and Avocado Quesadillas. I found it on KevinandAmanda.com, and had to try it. I did however change the recipe around a bit to suit my taste a little more. (They add scallions, and cook their bacon in the oven…odd) Click here to check out their version.

You can make this dish a few different ways, but today I’m gonna show you my slacker way of making it.

First, in a skillet we are gonna fry up 8 pieces of bacon to the point of crispy. Let them cool and then crumble up all that bacon-y goodness and set aside. I’ve used microwave bacon before, and although not quite as crispy as the real thing it works in a pinch. Or if you are just cruising on my level of lazy.

Now we need to dispose of the bacon grease (never down the sink…always into a glass jar or plastic tub). Now don’t rinse the skillet out. Just put it back on the stove and use the remaining grease coating the skillet to help flavor the chicken we’re about to cook. Take the chicken that we just cut into bite sized pieces, and cook in the skillet we just cooked the bacon in.

I also like to add my favorite seasoning to the chicken while cooking it. It’s from a local burger joint here in Memphis called Huey’s. Adding your own seasoning to the chicken helps add flavor to the dish if you when the microwaved bacon route. Go Team Lazy!

Once you’re done cooking the chicken rinse out the skillet and wipe out the inside. We will use it again in just a sec.

Cut up one ripe avocado into bite sized pieces. Make sure you have a ripe avocado, because it adds this perfectly smooth texture to the quesadilla. It’s actually my favorite part of the meal.

* It’s very important that everything is in bite sized pieces so that when you add them to the quesadilla it all fits inside. Also, it helps you get all the flavors in your quesadilla in every bite.  

** To find the perfect avocado do the squeeze test. You want it to be just a little bit squishy or soft. If it’s still hard take it home and let it hang out on the counter for a couple of days to let it ripen up. To remove the pit I stab my knife into the pit and wriggle it out. Depending upon the ripeness of the avocado this may be a little more difficult at times.

I honestly never really cared for avocado before I tried this dish, and now if it’s offered with a meal I’m all, “BRING IT ON! I LOVE ME SOME PRE-GUAC.”

Then you’re gonna need some cheese. I just use regular mild cheddar.

Plop a tab of butter into the skillet we just rinsed and wiped out, and place it back on the burner to let it melt. Don’t turn that burner up to high. We don’t want to burn anything. A nice low-medium heat should do the trick.

Now, grap that bag or tortillas over there…

*** Depending upon the size my local grocery store has in stock I sometimes use large tortillas when the recipe only calls for medium. Oh well.

Place one of the tortillas in our buttered skillet and swirl it around so that it gets coated by the butter.

On just one half of the tortilla add your chicken, bacon, avocado, and cheese. Using tongs or your utensil of choice, fold your tortilla in half so that it covers all those goodies you just placed on top. Let the food and tortilla sit there for a moment or two until the bottom side of the tortilla is a nice golden brown.

And this is why I like using tongs….FLIP THAT BAD BOY! Now let the other side reach a nice golden brown and then slide that glorious piece of deliciousness onto a plate and dig in!

Okay, so you might want to cut it into more manageable sized pieces. I like using a pizza cutter. It works like a charm.

And there you go! A delicious lazy person’s dinner.

And if you are like my husband then make sure you have a gallon of sour cream to dip your quesadillas in. Because for some reason, he thinks everything taste better with a pound of sour cream on top.

Cheesy Chicken, Bacon and Avocado Quesadillas

4 medium-sized flour tortilla shells
1 lb chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
salt and pepper or favorite seasoning
8 strips of bacon, cooked & crumbled
1 avocado, diced
mild cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tbsp butter

Cook 8 pieces of bacon to the point of crispy. Let them cool and then crumble and set aside. Dispose of bacon grease and put back on the stove. Use the remaining grease coating the skillet to help flavor the chicken we’re about to cook. Over medium heat add the chicken, season to taste, and cook for about 5 mins or until chicken is golden and cooked through. Remove the chicken and rinse out the skillet.

Add about 1/2 tbsp butter to the skillet over medium heat. When foamy, add a tortilla and swirl it around to get it nice and buttery. Layer one side of the tortilla with chicken, bacon, avocado, and a little cheese. Use tongs to flip the other half of the tortilla over and press down. Cook the tortilla for about 1-2 mins on each side or until golden brown and crispy.

Repeat with the rest of the tortillas, adding a little more butter for each tortilla as needed.

Makes 4 quesadillas

Sunday :: Jan 22 – He spent the better part of the day (after his nap and church) Swiffering the house. I threw a Swiffer cloth on the thing hoping that he might pick up a little of the dirt/dust/dog hair floating around on the floor. Am I wrong for that? The kid loves the Swiffer. The kid has been known to push the Swiffer around the house all day, by choice, instead of playing with toys. Later that night we went to eat with our friends Jeremy and Rachel at a new place called Humdingers. It was pretty good, but a little on the pricey side for having to go to the counter to order. The staff was awesome and extremely friendly.

Monday :: Jan 23 – We spent a fun day at home doing one of Grayson’s favorite things….stickers! He calls them “stickies”. It makes me smile every time he says it. It’s so cute.

Tuesday :: Jan 24 - Grayson invented himself a new type of sippy cup. He plopped his sippy cup inside a normal cup and held the normal cup to drink from both. He thought he was the coolest kid ever. I sure thought so.

Wednesday :: Jan 25 - Someone snuck into the pantry and raided te graham crackers. I couldn’t get mad because he looked was stinkin’ cute sanding there with a graham cracker in each hand.

Thursday :: Jan 26 - We went to visit with Oma & Opa. The kid loves to play the piano at my parents house. He will sit at the piano forever and just bang away.

Friday :: Jan 27 –  Spent the day with my friend Rachel. We went shopping all over town an then stopped in at Chick-fil-a for some lunch. Gray win extra points for learning to saying “Rachel”. he kept giving her hugs all day long. It was so sweet. He loves that girl.

Saturday :: Jan 28 – We attended a birthday party for Grayson’s friend Carol Hannah who was turning one. He played with every toy he could get his hands on including the slide. Which he proceeded to go down head first each and every time. Oh, and he only napped for maybe 10 mins that day so he was extra crazy. What people must have thought. Oh dear. My child is the kind who becomes hyper the more tired he becomes.

Sunday :: Jan 15 – Day 4 of my migraine. Derek took Grayson to the zoo in leu of church. I needed him to be close by in case I needed him, and the zoo is right down the road from our house.

Monday :: Jan 16 – Day 5. As you can see, I had spent the previous 4-5 days with towels covering my bedroom windows. This was the 1st time that I emerged from my cave of darkness in an attempt to rejoin the land of the living. It was slow going, but I managed to make it to the couch by 2pm!

Tuesday :: Jan 17 – Since I was still somewhat recovering from that nasty migraine; Grayson and I spent the day in our PJs and just lounged around the house doing not to much of anything. It was wonderful.

Wednesday :: Jan 18 – We had a play date scheduled with some friends from church. We went to my friend Meghan’s house and the kids pretty much destroyed her living room (sorry, Megs!) while us 3 mommies chatted and got our coffee on.  The kids had a blast though. Grayson even had him an older woman (she’s 2) push him around in a toy dump truck. Ahhh….young love. Ain’t it grand?

Thursday :: Jan 19 – Thursday was a day full of doctor’s appointment for me. I went and sat in my GP’s office for over 2 hours. Sheesh! The time spent with the doctor was about 5 mins. Then after picking up the kiddo and then dropping him off with my MIL I headed to the dentist for a cleaning. After my cleaning I realized I had yet to eat. That meant I went straight to Wendy’s for some fries and a Coke just minutes after my cleaning. Worst dental patient EVER!

Friday :: Jan 20 – My friend Allie and I took the kiddos to a free Kindermusik class at a local bookstore. Grayson was enamored. He loved watching all the other kids dance and sing. He made sure he was right up in the mix of things. Constantly at the teacher’s side. And after every activity they did he would stand up and clap for everyone while saying “yaaaay!!!!” The teacher got a kick out of that.

Saturday :: Jan 21 – I started the day with a photo shoot for a little girl’s 1yr portraits. Shoots are always a bit tiring, so I spent the remainder of the day chilling on the couch editing until Gray noticed his Uncle Davis in the frontyard raking leaves. Anytime there is a rake, broom, or vacuum involved Grayson wants to help. It was so cute watching him trying to help Davis. He just adores his uncle.

• You are a solid little boy. As of your 15m check-up, you are in the 90 percentile for height, and in the 70th percentile for weight. When I took you in for pinkeye a couple of weeks ago she said you weighed 27lbs. No wonder I get tired holding you.
• You are still a champion sleep and have been since 5-6 months old. THANK YOU! You were not the best sleeper for the 1st 5 months of your life, so I appreciate the about-face. Up until 2 weeks ago you went down for the night at 6:30pm and woke around 8-8:30am everyday. Just before you turned 1 you began taking 1 nap per day. It usually last around 3 hours. You are just like your Dad. You both love require hours and hours of beauty sleep. Now you are hitting the hay around 7:30pm.

• You love spinning and spinning and spinning. It’s so cute. Sometimes you fall down and that’s when it gets really funny. You find falling on your bottom hilarious, and so you will repeatedly spin just so you fall on your tush.

• You are a grandpas’ boy to no end. Mommy and Grandmas just don’t get the massive smile out of you these days like Daddy and your Grandpas do.

• You at times have a nasty litte temper, but usually only show it when we are at home or getting in or out of the car. Don’t worry you still have the masses fooled into thinking you are a sweet little angel. I on the other hand know better.

• One of your favorite things to do is take either your bubble mower (sans bubbles) or one of your riding toys and push it, while running and screaming “run, run, run, run” “run, run, run, run”, around the the house chasing the dogs or ramming these toys into doors or walls, and the baby gate. The dogs are less than thrilled about this game. You are all boy I tell you, all boy.

• You still love your Giggy (that’s what you call Wrigley and Cohen sometimes) more than words can say. I truly believe you leave food on your face/body just so she will come and lick you. Anytime you are near her you smile real big, squench up your little face, point your fingers at her, and start squealing her name over and over her. Then you hunker down, tuck your chin into your chest, in hopes that she notices you and comes to lick your face. Sometimes you even walk like that towards her to help her out a bit. LOVE. THIS. As a matter of fact, most of the time you call BOTH of the dogs “Giggy”. You can say “CoCo”, but I guess you choose not to.

• You love to vacuum. It use to be that you made me hold you when I vacuumed, and now you won’t let me touch the thing at all until you’ve had your fill. It’s quite cute really. You turn it on and off and push it anywhere your little arms can carry it.

• I’ve been working with you a bit on sign language. You don’t know a ton of signs, because I don’t know many and forget what they are to often to use them all the time when I talk to you. You do know a few basics that help us know what you want. So, that’s nice. I’ll continue to work with you in effort to help you tell us what you want instead of throwing a fit. That’s always nice. Here is a list of the ones you know currently. There might be a few more, but I’m drawing a blank.

• more
• all done (a.k.a.- finished)
• eat
• drink
• fan
• hot
• ball
• brush teeth
• bath
• milk
• juice
• apple
• baby
• O’s (for cheerios)

• You love knocking on things: doors, windows, walls, tables. Really, anything that makes noise when your tiny little knuckles hit it. While knocking you also say “knock, knock, knock”. It’s pretty stinkin’ cute, Kiddo.

• You give kisses with your lips puckered, and afterwards you say “mmmmuuahhh!” I beg for kisses these days just to to see you pucker up. I love it.

Looks like I may want to rethink my pantry organization I tackled yesterday. Within 10 minutes of waking someone had already helped himself to two GIANT graham crackers. Maybe he was just trying to tell me that he wanted breakfast………….nah.

This head tilt cracks me up. It started last week. If he thinks something he is doing is funny or when the theme song to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse comes on the head tilt comes out. I crack up everytime.

jan 8 – Other than Gray acting like the class clown in sunday school nothing much happened this Sunday. His teachers love him, because he is one of the few that don’t cry when he gets dropped off. This boy is just happy to be somewhere other than home playing with toys other than his.

jan 9 – We went to visit and eat dinner with my folks. We went to a small family restaurant, and were one of two tables (w/ customers) in the entire place. It was odd, but kinda nice. Unfortunately, we figured out why we were one of the few people eating there…it wasn’t that good. I hate saying that, because it is their livelihood, but neither Derek or I enjoyed our meal very much.

jan 10 – My poor baby had to go to the doctor today, because he had a mild case of pink eye. Which meant I got to fill his very 1st prescription! I know, weird…right? I guess that’s not something you write in a baby book. That meant a trip to Target! Since he was such a good and sick boy we picked him up a super awesome Blue’s Clue’s DVD for the car.

jan 11 - I had to get a little house work done and Grayson always makes me hold him when I vacuum, so I strapped him in the Boba and got to work.

jan 12 – This is the day that my massive migraine started. That means Grayson and Daddy time began. I stole the next 3 photos from Derek’s phone. Here are my boys playing with some stickers. This boy loves stickers.

jan 13 – Day 2 of my nasty migraine. The boys continued to survie without me, but Derek did have to take of work to take care of Grayson. Looks like the boys played in the yard strolling around in Gray’s wagon. He knows exactly where we keep it and runs straight to the shed to pull it out when we walk into the backyard. Derek’s parents kept Gray this night so the house would be quiet and so Derek could take me to the minor med.

jan 14 – Day 3 of the migraine. I’m still in bed with all the windows covered by bath towels. Thanks to the prescriptions I got the night before I at least wasn’t nauseous anymore. I still didn’t want to eat and it felt like I had an elephant dancing on my skull. From what Derek tells me once his parents dropped Gray back off they just hung out played a little Xbox and watched tv all day.

Since Gray hasn’t been throwing things as much lately and the kid was in desperate need of having a poopy diaper changed, so I allowed him to play with my iPhone while I changed him. Lets just say he knows how to unlock it and access the camera. I say this because I opened my photo stream to find a photo play-by-play of what it looks like to have your diaper changed by me.

See that big green empty wall to my right? I’ve got big plans for it.

And the grand finale…

Wow! I look like Shrek.