Whoosh! My calendar is packed. And June is almost gone! There’s the old saying, “Bad luck comes in threes” but I’ve decided that “Busy-ness comes in fives!” This week I’m hosting the RevGals Friday Five, and so I think we’ll take things five-at-a-time. Tell me:

1. Five flowers you’d like in a bouquet or in your garden:
Roses – any color
Iris – especially Japanese iris
Carnations – because I love how they smell
Gardenias – same reason as carnations!
Peonies – I love, love, LOVE them!

2. Five books you want to read (or re-read):
I’m afraid my stack of “to read” has more than 5! But for starters…
Torn by Justin Lee
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Pioneer Women by Joanna L. Stratton
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
The Space Between Us by Thrity Umrigar
That’s just for starters…

3. Five places you want to visit:
I want to take my family to Ireland where there’s far more than five places to visit! We would see the Cliffs of Moher, the Giant’s Staircase, the Dingle Peninsula, wander a bit in Dublin, then go some place remote with castles! 😉

4. Five people you’d invite for tea/coffee/beer and pizza:
I wrote this question, and I’m struggling to come up with only five! 😮 But… I think it would be wonderful to sit with my Grandma Hickox, my mom, my many-great-grandmother Ellen Brown Hickox Stewart, and my two daughters. That would be fun. And we’d probably not have beer, (our of respect for my foremother’s membership in the Women’s Christian Temperance Union!) but I’d serve tea and coffee. And I’ve have to make proper cookies because my Grandma Hickox was a bodaciously awesome cookie baker!

5. Five chores or tasks you’d gladly give to someone else:
I had NO TROUBLE coming up with five of this category!!!
The taxes
The bathrooms
The laundry
The vacuuming
The dusting

BONUS: A five ingredient recipe!

I haven’t made these in a while, as our kids are well past the chicken nugget stage (thanks be to God!) — but they are simple, easy and you can use organic ingredients and “real” chicken – not processed leftover chicken extruded into ‘nuggets’! BLICK!!! I’ve made them for “baby meals” where families have toddlers and younger school aged kids (and the adults get a more “adult” chicken dish!). If you have kids who don’t like the taste of mustard, you can substitute mayonnaise.

Deb’s Homemade Chicken Nuggets
1 pound chicken breasts, deboned, skinned, and cut into small pieces
1/2 cup dijon mustard
paprika, to taste
1/2 cup cornmeal or bread crumbs (may need more – adjust as needed)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Toss chicken in mustard, cover all sides of the pieces.
Mix paprika and cornmeal; add chicken and toss to coat the pieces.
Heat oil in large skillet (or wok) and cook the coated chicken over medium heat. Turn and sear both sides, then allow to cook until browned and just cooked through.

FREEZING: Allow to cool. Put on a baking sheet on waxed paper and freeze separately, then remove from pan and put into a freezer bag or container.
REHEATING: 400 degrees until heated through or microwave for 30 seconds at a time, turning frequently.