This Week's Menu

We have an unusually chilly week ahead of us, which makes me want to cook soothing, comfort food. But I also want to balance that with some healthy items as well. So, here's what's on the menu this week...

Monday:

• Mini meatloaves
• Fresh steamed green beans
• Mashed potatoes

Tuesday:

• Chicken Noodle Casserole - this recipe is from one of my favorite Mom blogs, Clover Lane. This mama has 6 kids, so she knows a thing or two about kid-friendly meals!
• Broccoli
• Biscuits

Wednesday:

• Crock Pot chili
• Cornbread muffins
• Cooked carrots

Thursday:

• Crock Pot Chicken & Stuffing (see recipe below)
• Peas 

Friday:

• Take out/pizza & salad

I'm also making these Banana Nut Cheerio Energy Bars. They are always a huge hit with all the boys and it's a good post-workout snack for me.

Crock Pot Chicken & Stuffing
1. Place 3-4 chicken breasts in greased Crock Pot and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2. In a bowl, combine 1 can of cream of chicken soup with 1/3 cup milk and pour over chicken.
3. Then combine 1 box of Savory Herb Stove Top Stuffing mix with 1 2/3 cup water. Allow the stuffing to absorb most of the water then dump on top of chicken/soup mixture. Spread around to create an even surface.
4. Cook on low 6-8 hours.




Have a yummy cozy week everyone!

Fun & Inexpensive Valentines Gift

Y'all know this girl loves the Target Dollar section. It gets me in trouble sometimes.

But this month, when they rolled out their Valentine's decor, I controlled myself and only bought a few things to be used as gifts.

When I spotted an adorable pink mini mailbox and 2-pack of Valentines stickers for only $1 each, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them.

 

Since I don't have any girls of my own, I have fun doing girlie stuff for my nieces. And poor Joel, my nephew, just has to take one for the team and see his name emblazoned on a pink mailbox. Sorry kiddo.

Here's how I did it.

1. I wanted to make sure the names would be evenly spaced on the front of the mailbox, so I printed off a font that I liked on the computer making sure it was the right size for the area.

2. I used a white craft pencil and colored over the BACK of the paper where the names were printed. Then I placed the paper on top of the mailbox lid and firmly went over each letter with the closed end of a Sharpie marker. Basically, it works like carbon paper, but leaves white marks instead of black.

 It left just a tiny amount of the white pencil marks behind so that I could use it as a template.

 Then I used a black Sharpie to go over the letters. Not perfect, but much better than I could have done free-hand.

Then I simply applied some stickers and a few white dots with a paint pen, and "Voila!"

 

And since it is a Valentine's gift, I had to fill it with some chocolate...

I hope the kids enjoy it!

Now, I just have to come up with some creative Valentine's gifts for boys. Any ideas???

 

Valentine's Ideas - {FREE PRINTABLES}

Yes, I realize it's only January 14 - not February 14, but I like to get the most "bang for my buck" when it comes to holidays. So I decorated the house this week and I am in full planning mode for some cute crafts, fun teacher gifts, and other creative odds and ends.

I have been searching the web to collect some of my favorite ideas thus far. And my "go-to" blogs are already in full Valentine's mode, so it made it easy to compile a list for ya.

This is what I am making for teacher gifts this year:

Valentine Pretzel Hugs

You can find directions and a creative packaging idea on The Sunny Side Up blog.

And I love this craft idea. I may get the neighborhood kids together to make these:

 

I'm thinking that they don't have to be in picture frames. Using a heavy card stock paper would provide just as cute of an outcome. 

And of course you know I am obsessed with this adorable set of free printables from Dimple Prints.

I've already downloaded and framed the "I love you" print. And I'm tempted to go back for more! She also has a ton of other adorable free Valentine-related printables on her blog. Creative people blow my mind sometimes!

If you're hosting a Valentine's party, how about these fun labels from the Dating Divas:

 

Print them out and use double-sided tape to wrap around glass soda bottles or water bottles flavored with a cherry powder drink mix. Or you could present it to your sweetie on Valentine's Day wrapped around a wine or mini champagne bottle. ;)

And if you're feeling super ambitious, I think this gift idea is absolutely precious! Blooming Homestead blog created this free printable poem to go along with a "decorate your own cookie" gift box. Of course she baked her own sugar cookies and made her own frosting, but I bet if you packaged up some Publix sugar cookies, a container of icing, and some toppings, anyone would love to receive this gift!

 

As for my decor, I've pretty much covered the house in red and pink hearts, which makes Brian oh-so-happy. I'm sure this banner in the playroom is his fav...

Here are some of my other favorite Valentine's decorations:

I bought this chalkboard sign from Groopdealz last year.

These adorable fabric mailboxes are from Pottery Barn Kids and attach to the back of the kids' chairs. Starting February 1, I will put a little something inside them each day.

These faux peonies and this Brown Sugar & Fig candle will likely stay out well past Valentine's Day.

Some fun throw pillows

 The only Valentine's purchase I have made thus far, is this tiny mailbox and pack of stickers. They were each $1 at Target. I have a fun idea in store for them. Stay tuned!

I hope that got your creative juices flowing! You've got a whole month to enjoy celebrating all of the love around you. Have a great week friends. :)

Updated Pic & Weekly Menu

This week has been good.

Like full of love from friends, family and my hubs. Which is always good. ;)

I had the chance to celebrate my birthday, AGAIN. My girlfriends had planned a birthday dinner before the holidays, but it had to be rescheduled, so we were able to go out this week.

They gave me a wonderful spa gift card and then took me out for a very fun dinner.

I tell ya, after two very special birthday dinners, I feel so loved and so celebrated. Between my family and friends I have been totally spoiled...and I love it! :)

.................................................

A few of you have asked about our bunny, Mocha. She's doing great. After we had her "fixed" she chilled out a lot and became much more cuddly. We rarely ever close her cage. She has free roam of the house, but really never leaves the playroom. She goes from under the craft table to her cage and that's about it.

She'll cuddle with anyone willing to give her treats. She prefers quiet, but occasionally will come out when the boys are playing in the play room.

Personally, I like her when it's quiet and she wants to snuggle. :)

Sometimes I wrap her up in my sweater. She likes it.

 Other than that, we're back to our normal schedule of school, playdates and homework (yuck!). It's been particularly warm here, which I'm not complaining about. I'll do 70's any day of the year! But when the rest of the country is dealing with freezing temps and snow and we have on shorts and tank tops...

Well, we just smile and say, "Thank you God!"

Tonight, we enjoyed dinner... fireside. It was beautiful.

Okay, on to this week's menu...

Monday: Mexican Chicken
(Brian bought a rotisserie chicken today, so I need to use it by tomorrow)

• Mexican chicken - I simmer a can of black beans, a jar of salsa and a can of corn and an envelope of taco seasoning together on the stove. Once they are warmed & combined, I add chopped Rotisserie chicken. Then serve over yellow rice and top with shredded cheese.

Tuesday: Meatball Subs

• Brown meatballs in a skillet then add to a Crock Pot with a jar of good quality marinara. Let simmer on low for as long as you wish - preferably 4 hours at least.
• Cut open sub rolls, lightly butter and lightly toast.
• Place hot meatballs inside toasted sub rolls and top with Provolone cheese.
• Optionally: broil subs in oven to melt provolone cheese until bubbly.

Wednesday:  Chicken Ceasar Salad

• Bake chicken in oven (salt & pepper, olive oil, 325 degrees for 30-45 minutes)
• Cut into thin slices
• Take lettuce, sliced chicken, croutons and place in tupperware with lid. Drizzle with Ceasar dressing and place lid on tupperware. Shake vigerously to distribute dressing.
• Dump on plate and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Thursday: Turkey Sausage Jambalaya

• Thinly slice turkey sausage links (I use Pepperidge Farms)
• Brown sausage in frying pan with a tablespoon of vegetable oil
• Cook Zatarian's Jambalaya boxed mix according to directions
• Add sausage according to directions

Friday is usually frozen or take out pizza along with a big salad. I don't like to cook on the weekends and I totally include Friday on my "weekend" schedule.

I'd love to hear from you if you are using my menus to help plan your weekly meals.

Hope you all have a great Monday! It's a fresh new week, full of possibilities and wonder! :)

Walmart Grocery Shopping: Day 1

I said I'd report back as to how my goals were going, and so far, I have:

• Started a book
• Talked to the leader of my Bible study group about the upcoming semester and my involvement in it
• Gone grocery shopping at Walmart

Not bad for my first few days.

So, here are some of my first impressions about shopping at Walmart...

1. I don't know my way around the store, so it took me at least twice as long to find what I needed. This is frustrating to say the least, but definitely something that can be overcome.

2. The prices are cheaper on pretty much everything. Plain and simple.
There was one item that was on special at Publix, so I told the cashier, "These pizzas are 2 for $10 right now at Publix, so can you price-match?" He didn't even say a word - or look up from his blank stare at his register - just nodded and typed a bunch of things on his keyboard until they rang up for $5 a piece.

3. There were a few things the didn't have. I was surprised to see the entire crate of avocados empty. Not one single one. I was going to ask someone in the produce department to check in the back for today's shipment, but I couldn't find anyone. They were also completely out of Hawaiian rolls. The whole shelf was empty. Again, wanted to ask someone for help, but there was no one in site. Apparently there was a huge avocado Hawaiian roll fiesta here last weekend.

4. It was convenient to also buy toilet cleaner, greeting cards, a birthday gift and some other odds and ends while I was there, and know that I was paying a lot less for those items than if I had purchased them at Publix, or even Target for that matter.

So, to sum up my experience thus far...Walmart wins in the price and convience category, but loses in the friendly, easy-to-find help category. I don't think anyone will ever beat Publix in the friendliness area, but at least I'm saving money, right?

I'll report back soon with my first book review and where I have been working hard at being more appreciative. Stay tuned friends!

This Week's Menu

I've broached the topic of menu planning several times on this blog. You can read about it here and here.

I am a firm believer that if you plan ahead for at least 4-5 simple meals per week, you will save money and decrease your grocery bill.

My dad has challenged me to start grocery shopping at Walmart this year. Did you know that they will match any BOGO deal that Publix has? I had no idea. So, I am going to attempt doing the majority of my grocery shopping at Walmart for the month of January. Then I'll report back and let ya know if I am going to stick with it, or return to my old "rusty trusty" Publix.

Okay, back to meal planning.

I thought it might be helpful to post my upcoming menu for the week in case you are looking for some simple meal ideas for your family.

Of course every family is different, and some kids are pickier than others (I'm fairly sure I have the pickiest eaters on the planet!) so adapt as necessary, definitely make it healthier if you kids will go that route, and please share with me any adaptations that worked well with your family.

Here's our menu for the week:

Monday

• Ritzy chicken
• Broccoli
• Biscuits

Tuesday

• Crock pot beef stroganoff served over egg noodles (see below for super-easy recipe)
• Green beans
• Crescent rolls

Wednesday

• Mini Cuban sammies
• Black beans & rice (the boxed Zatarain's version, not my cook-all-day-homemade version)

Thursday

• Deconstructed turkey tacos - 
• I use the McCormick's taco seasoning & ground turkey, cook according to directions, then combine with shredded cheese rolled up in soft tacos for the kids. For me and Brian, I make a taco salad and serve it with whole grain tortilla chips.
• Corn

Crock-Pot Beef Stroganoff

1. Spray Crock Pot with cooking spray.
2. Dump in desired amount of raw cubed beef (usually it will be labeled "Beef for Stew" or you can get a larger cut of meet and cut it into cubes yourself).
3. Season beef with salt & pepper.
4. In a separate bowl, combine 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, 1 envelope of Lipton's onion soup mix and 1/4 cup milk, stir well to combine, then pour mixture over beef.
5. Let cook on low 6-8 hours or high 4-6 hours. Beef should be fork tender when done.
6. 20 minutes before dinnertime, mix in 1/2-1 cup of sour cream (depending on how thick you like your sauce).
7. Serve hot over egg noodles.

I hope this menu helps get your planning off to a good start. If you have any ideas or recipes you'd like to share, please leave me a comment.

Setting Goals

Every January Brian asks me if I've written down my goals for the year.

And every year I say, "Nope."

I'm not sure if it's the fear of failure, or laziness, but I've just never wanted to participate in his "write down your goals" mentality.

But I think I'm ready to put on my big girl pants and do it this year.

Well...sort of.

See, when Brian writes down his goals, he has them all categorized and cross-referenced and filled out in fancy spreadsheets and such.

I'm just going to share some of my aspirations for 2014 and then come December, I can look back and see how I did.

My goals are not lofty. They're not unattainable. They're actually pretty easy. It's just putting some action behind the nagging thought "I really should..."

But before I share my goals for 2014, I feel I should back-track a bit and share the reasons behind them.

First off, for the past 10 years my brain has spent a lot of time thinking about babies. In every sense of the word. Like, "How many do we want, when do we want to start trying, why isn't this working, what do we do next, how long do we keep trying, what's the next step, now what, do we adopt, how's the pregnancy progressing, when do we try again, how much are we willing to spend on this, maybe we should try once more, now that we have two babies are we done, should we try for a third, what, when, where, why..." AGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ENOUGH!

Brian and I have prayed about it and thought about it and we gave it until Parker was almost 3 and we've finally decided...we're done. No more babies. His little "outpatient surgery" is coming soon.

So with that huge chunk of my thought process freed up, I feel like I am ready to tackle some new challenges for my brain. One of which, is reading more.

My first goal of 2014 is to read more.

Not magazines, not blogs, but real actual books.

I'm open to any suggestions you may have. I have quite a few that I am planning to reserve at the library, but if you've read anything recently that really knocked your socks off, please share!
I want to read one book a month to start. If I get into a good groove after a few months, maybe I'll up the ante a bit. But for now, one book a month feels "do-able."

My second goal isn't exactly structured yet, but the gist of it is, to spend less.

I already feel like I'm pretty good when it comes to saving money. I often buy the kids clothes and toys at consignment shops, I love finding good deals on groceries, we don't eat out very often, I don't shop at expensive stores. But somehow...we still manage to spend too much.

I think the cash envelope system that several of my friends do is really smart, but we use a credit card for points and flights, etc. so I'm not sure that will work for us. As I said, this goal isn't quite structured yet, I'm still working on the details. But I will definitely update you when it's taken shape.

I would however like to participate in one of the "No Spending Month" challenges that I've read about. Basically all you can spend money on is groceries and emergency items (like medications or if you run out of toilet paper). No eating out whatsoever, no Starbucks, no bouncehouse places with the kids, no Groupons, no nuttin'!

I'll let you know when I embark on this challenge and see if it's something you want to do with me. I'd love some moral support!

My third goal is more spiritual.

I've shared this confession with so many of by girlfriends: When I am participating in a face-to-face group Bible study, I do great sticking with my quiet time with God and reading the Bible.

However, if I'm not currently involved in a Bible study, I am lucky to read a couple of emailed daily devotions per week. It's not exactly quiet, meditative time with God, that's for sure.

When I think about all God has given me in this life - an amazing family, two beautiful, healthy children, a husband that loves me, dear, dear, treasured friends - I am sad that I don't take the time each day to just stop...be quiet...read His word...and give Him thanks.

I am starting up a new Bible study in January with some girls from my church, so this will help tremendously. But my goal is to spend more quality time with my heavenly Father. Because I know that when I do, I feel more balanced, more grateful and definitely more peaceful. Three things I need more of in my life.

My fourth and final goal kind of ties in with the third one.

I want to be more appreciative in 2014.

I find myself taking life for granted a lot of the time. Days - even weeks - fly by in a whirlwind with school, play dates, homework, dishes, laundry, cooking, cleaning, and then starting it all over again the next week.

It's so easy to forget all of the amazing things in our lives.

From the most basic things like a house and groceries, to things like children and a husband.

All things that if I stop and think about it...I realize there are a lot of people - friends of mine - who do not have these things.

How did I go from crying out on my knees begging God to please give me another baby, to yelling at that same child because he spilled yogurt on the couch?

Stop. Take a breath. Assess the situation for a moment. Is it really something worth yelling about? Being mad about? Being resentful about?

Kids are kids. Husbands are humans. We all make mistakes. We all have our moments of ugliness. The truth is, there are so many more thousands of wonderful, joyful moments than there are times that bring us down.

I want to appreciate life for what it is...now. Not what I want it to be in 2 years, 5 years, 10 years. But right now. Blessing abound for all of us. We just have to look for them. Notice them. Appreciate them.

So, to recap, here are my goals:
1. Read more.
2. Spend less money.
3. Spend more quality time with God (reading Bible, meditating, etc.)
4. Be more appreciative.

Feel free to check in on me during the year. Ask me how it's going. If you see me snapping at my kids or husband, please just whisper "be appreciative" and hopefully I will be able to re-adjust my attitude.

I'm not saying I won't fail at times. I know I will. But I'm excited to have these written down and thought out.

Hey...maybe Brian was really right all along. Whatdaya know?