WFMW: Making Cereral Last Longer

I'm sure in some houses, cereal is gone through like water. Not so much in our house. We like cereal, but we were always apt to end up throwing away partially eaten boxes of cereal because they were stale.

One day when I was at Target, I saw some cereal keeper containers (or, really for anything that would fit in them, I suspect). I didn't know if I could make myself by them -- they were around $7 - $8 each! But, I finally sucked it up and bought a few.

Wow -- can I just say that these are DEFINITELY worth the money spent! The other day, the kids wanted Cheerios. I am positive that it has been at least a few months since I opened that box originally, but there they were -- crunchy and just like I had opened the box yesterday.

These are great for the household that likes the occasional box of cereal (or that likes to have several types of cereal open at once).

Tasty Tuesday: May 29th Edition (And a Great Prize!)

(Scroll down for Mister Linky and to read about this week's prize!)


Here is a very yummy recipe for ham sandwiches that my friend Soncha served at a recent party she had. I couldn't help it -- I think I had to eat like three of them!

Ham Sandwiches

2 Pkgs. Hawaiian Rolls
1 lb. shaved ham
1 pkg. Swiss Cheese
1 stick butter, melted
1 tbsp. dried onions
1 tbsp. Honey mustard
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. poppy seed

Slice buns in half, put the bottom of the buns in a (Pam Sprayed) 11X13 pan. Place shave ham on buns, place cheese on buns. Place the tops of the buns back on. In sauce pan melt butter, then add rest of ingredients. Mix and pour on top of buns. Bake at 350 for 15-25 minutes.



Now...it's your turn! Post a "Tasty Tuesday" recipe on your blog, sign in on the Mister Linky, and get entered into a drawing for the awesome EAT Magazine (as described here).






So...what do you need to do to snag this? Just post a "Tasty Tuesday" recipe on your blog tomorrow (and feel free to mention there is a drawing on my site!) and then come and sign in on the Mister Linky that will be posted with a URL that leads DIRECTLY to your recipe posting. (Also, please post a link back to me and/or post the "Tasty Tuesday" button in your posting -- it's on the right side of the blog right now.)

Vintage Apron Giveaway

Be sure to check out Not Quite June Cleaver for a vintage apron giveaway!!!

The Prize for Tomorrow's Tasty Tuesday...

I just picked up the prize for tomorrow's Tasty Tuesday Mister Linky Drawing! Here it is:




And here is what the publisher (Better Homes and Gardens) says on their website about this Special Interest Publication:


EAT™ helps busy moms face the real-life challenges of everyday cooking. The magazine guides readers with creative, doable recipes and ideas. Whether working late, watching food budgets, trying to please picky eaters or juggling family schedules, EAT shows busy cooks realistic strategies to simplify time in the kitchen, all while enjoying the pleasure of cooking.



I think this looks like an awesome magazine full of lots of great recipes, which is why I picked it up for the prize!


So...what do you need to do to snag this? Just post a "Tasty Tuesday" recipe on your blog tomorrow (and feel free to mention there is a drawing on my site!) and then come and sign in on the Mister Linky that will be posted with a URL that leads DIRECTLY to your recipe posting. (Also, please post a link back to me and/or post the "Tasty Tuesday" button in your posting -- it's on the right side of the blog right now.)


Good luck! And, to whomever is the winner -- I will fess up and say that I just might have to glance through it before I send it out. LOL

Menu Plan Monday: May 28th Edition

Okay...so a lot of these are going to look a lot like last week (especially all the use of ham, since we didn't end up making our ham this past week). We ended up changing things around a bit, and got food from out on one evening that we had not planned (we normally plan it for one evening a week).

Because I actually plan our meals a month at a time, we mostly did stuff from some other parts of the month. (And we even had an impromptu cook out on Sunday after I saw corn on the cob at the grocery store on Saturday. We had grilled burgers, corn on the cob, pasta salad, broccoli salad, deviled eggs, cubed melon chunks, and a chocolate chip tea loaf. YUM!!! Oh -- and all of these yummy things meant that Sunday night, we had cookout leftovers for dinner. Yeah!)

Monday: brunch -- pancakes, etc. dinner -- roasted chicken

Tuesday: Teriyaki Steak kabobs & vegetable fried rice (both from Market Day)

Wednesday: Ham

Thursday: Fried Ham & Mashed Potatoes

Friday: Ham & Cheese Stuff and Puff

Saturday: lunch -- Grilled Ham & Egg Salad Sandwiches; dinner -- food from out

Sunday: lunch -- Salads w/ Grilled Chicken; dinner -- Ham Potato Scallop

Contest Winner from Tasty Tuesday Last Week!

Last week's Tasty Tuesday contest winner was Heather at With a Little Luck. (The winner was chosen by me saying to my boys, "Which number is best - two, three, or four?" They both shouted out, "THREE!" Ummm...okay. At least they were in agreement. LOL)

I'm not sure of exactly what this week's prize will be (I had to contact my sister to see!), but get your recipes ready, because the next Tasty Tuesday is coming up soon! I will actually try to get it up (and the Mister Linky up) by late Monday night, because my Tuesday promises to be crazy this week.

Congrats Heather! Make an ice cream sandwich for me, okay?

Fun With Search Words

So...just for fun, let's look at some of the search terms (through Google and such) that have brought people to my blog lately:

• "rcia pros and cons roman catholic church in america" (Hmm...I'm going to say I'm on the pro side of this, since I just devoted a good 9+ months to it)
• "menards straw" (Please -- don't waste your money going to Menards to buy straw -- Eric bought way too much, just pop by our house for our extra bale!)
• "rosary printables for kids"
• "blessing said at meal time" (unless you want one line to include "awfully blessed," I don't think we're your source for this)
• "catholic women blog" (Be sure to check out the Catholic Mothers Online blogroll! LOL)
• "kroger veggie trays" (Let me give you a tip -- they are over priced)
• I'll put these similar ones together: "arm lump", "swollen peanut shaped lymph node under arm", "I feel a pea size hard lump in my armpit", "pea size cyst under armpit"(apparently I am now the go-to girl about underarm lumps! Wow! Which reminds me...I am due to give you all a lump update (aka a "lumpdate").)
• "crayola color wonder markers ashes arm" (I can't even fathom what this person was looking for!)
• "silly things to anyone people" (Yes, quite silly indeed...I guess)
• "men usually sleep in pants shirtless" (Okay...I'll take your word for it)
• "serous otitis media pimple" (Huh??? If your ear infection is causing you a pimple, I am quite sorry. Unfortunately, I have no advice for you on that.)
• "why we lose self confidence" (As you know, I wish that I knew that too)
• +aspergers"sacrament of reconciliation" (this is something already freaking me out for next year, as well as first communion)
• Two gems here: "awake days hallucinating" and "hallucinating 9 year old" (Best of luck to both of you!)

Okay...well...that's just a fun little sampling from the various search terms bringing people here.

Fabulous Finds Friday: The Etsy Edition

I enjoy Etsy.com, and I know I have mentioned it many times before. I love to go look, even when I don't have money to spend. I go for inspiration, I go just to browse, and I also go to buy! I have described it before as being a craft fair that you can go to from the privacy of your own home.

If anyone visiting has an Etsy shop, please feel free to leave the link in the comments! I would always love new places to go check out! I have an Etsy shop that has a preview off on the right side of my blog.

Anyway, I hope this works -- I want to share a little preview sampling of some of the things that are in my "favorite items" category on Etsy. (There is also an option of Favorite Sellers. If you visit this link, you can also see some of my favorite sellers.)

Some of my Etsy favorites:

WFMW: The Pantry Edition

One thing that worked wonders for organizing my pantry better was to install a plastic shoe organizer onto the inside door of our pantry. Now, I know this won't work in some pantries, but because ours has a regular door just like any of the other doors in our house, it works wonderfully for us.

In most of the holders, there are things the kids can pick for a snack for after school and before bed. This eliminated a lot of discussions on what could or couldn't be for snack. In ones just slightly out of the reach of the kids (or some of them) are Mom & Dad snacks (like those Dark Chocolate Dove bar bites), as well as baking/cooking things that tend to get lost in our pantry -- like a packet of taco seasoning, for example. Then, in the very top rows (out of reach of the kids) are bottles of medicine (all that have child-proof caps anyway, though) like the children's Tylenol, etc.

Putting this up gave us SO much extra room in the pantry, and it gave the kids more ownership over picking a snack, I think. I am actually planning to perhaps put one of these on the back of the boys' bedroom door for all those little things that get misplaced -- like Gameboys!

The Dangers of Being Outdoors with the Pollen

I have allergies. I have for about as long as I could remember. At any time of the year, it would seem my sinuses can bother me. My Mom and I have a standing joke when I realized many years ago that it didn't matter when I said to her that my sinuses hurt, she would always say, "Well, you know, it's that time of year." It's apparently always "that time of year."

So, anyway -- yesterday, I ran outside to check the mail. As I was almost back up to the house, I let out a huge sneeze. Not some dainty "ah-choo," it was loud and it was strong. And, yes -- we know what a good strong sneeze can mean.

Darn kids...I love them...but they have ruined me.

My Etsy Shop

I finally added a preview of my Etsy shop on the right sidebar. Feel free to check it out! (Or...for that matter, even feel free to NOT check it out.)

Eventually, I hope to be adding cards to my Etsy Shop too, but it's another one of those things that I just haven't gotten around to. (Plus, I did up packages of cards for the boys' Religious Ed teachers at the end of their school year, and that seriously depleted my stock of cards.)

Hmmm...12 hours, a prize offered, and not a speck of interest

Maybe I'm the only one always interested in new recipes. Or, perhaps my Tasty Tuesday is meant to be a solo activity. Or...maybe nobody wants an ice cream sandwich maker.

I guess if I have no interest at all in it, then I won't post it as a Mister Linky next week and will continue on by myself. Not a big deal -- just thought it would be fun.

(Edited to add: I'm not looking for a huge amount of participation, just so nobody thinks I'm out of my mind. LOL If just one other person posts a recipe, I'll be happy. And they'll get an ice cream sandwich maker, apparently.)

Tackle It Tuesday: The Tasty Tuesday Edition

Okay, yes, that sounds odd. But, one thing I have been thinking about was trying to figure out the dang Mister Linky thing and be able to use it for a Tasty Tuesday reoccuring event (link to the Mister Linky & all that). I'm not sure if it will take off or not, but I'll commit to trying it through the end of June, since I will be giving a prize (randomly) through that point each week.

Anyway, I finally sucked it up and got it figured out early into the morning on Tuesday. I put together a cute (I think) graphic for Tasty Tuesday, and I *think* I'm all set.

It's not as exciting a Tackle It Tuesday as my Extreme Edition or the Vegetable Garden Edition, but it's one thing off my "to do" list, all the same.

Tasty Tuesday: Club Quesadillas & A PRIZE!!!

Okay -- first off...I think I figured out this Mister Linky business! WooHoo! I just hope that I have people actually wanting to participate now! To participate, just include the "Tasty Tuesday" icon on your blog with your posted recipe for Tasty Tuesday. (If you run in to problems with that, just linking back to here is fine as well.)

Then, come and sign my Mister Linky with a link directly to your Tasty Tuesday post. (That way, everyone can visit your recipe!) If you want, you may post what your recipe is next to your name in the Mister Linky: example -- Angie (Club Quesadillas).

And, as a bonus to try to get people involved in Tasty Tuesday -- I will be giving a prize (randomly) to one person who signs in on the Mister Linky each Tuesday through the end of June! This week, it is a {link to a company from whom I received a cease and desist email}!!!

My Entry for the Week: Club Quesadillas

I got this recipe from Quick Cooking Magazine many years ago. It lists the original submitter's name as Victoria Hahn.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing

8 flour tortillas

4 lettuce leaves

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

8 slices deli turkey

8 slices deli ham

8 slices provolone cheese

8 bacon strips, cooked

Spread mayonnaise on each tortilla. On four tortillas, layer lettuce, tomatoes, turkey, ham, cheese, and bacon; top with remaining tortillas. Cut into quarters. Serve with salsa, if desired. Yield: 4 servings. (Note from me -- if you use really big tortillas, this would be more like 8 servings!)

Tasty Tuesday: Looking for Recipes!

If you are like me, you are always on the look out for a great new recipe. I have been posting recipes each week on "Tasty Tuesday." I have seen that some other bloggers also do a Tasty Tuesday or Thursday (we do like illiteration, don't we?)

As I sat around (oh, okay -- who am I kidding -- I was doing the laundry, unloading/loading the dishwasher, etc.) thinking about what to take to a carry in, I thought, "Wouldn't it be great to do a weekly Mister Linky so other people could link to a Tasty Tuesday too?"

So...I'm working on getting it figured out, but I hope that you will want to participate! (And, maybe even post a fabulous something for taking to an outdoor carry in!)

See you sometime tomorrow with that -- hopefully!

Menu Plan Monday: May 21st Edition

Menu for the week, complete with a couple of carryovers from last week:

Monday: Beef Noodle Bowl

Tuesday: Pancakes (with other breakfast sides)

Wednesday: Picnic

Thursday: Ham (with sides)

Friday: Fried Mashed Potatoes with Ham (okay -- not healthy, but a nice splurge with some leftovers)

Saturday: Grilled Ham and Egg Sandwiches (lunch); Food from Out (dinner)

Sunday: Beans and Cornbread (lunch); Ham & Cheese Stuff & Puff (dinner)

Our one day homeschooling adventure

Okay, so I won't actually venture to compare our one day of teaching the kids at home to all those that homeschool day in and day out. But, the boys (in kindergarten & first grade) did have a day excused as an educational day this past week (i.e. we wrote up a plan of what we would be doing, and they counted the boys as "present" at school that day).

I have seemed to do this a few times each school year, mostly when they are doing something at school that I know the kids won't handle well (such as a loud fire safety field trip, etc.). This week, it was because of the kindergartners practicing having lunch at school. This just so happened to fall on the same day that I really wanted to do our planting for our garden. Since Jack is SO picky about food (and wouldn't want to eat any of the lunch that day), and since he isn't going to go to school there anyway next year, it seemed like a perfect reason to keep both of the boys home for planting.

My Mom, the boys, and I all went out to three different places to buy plants of the garden (and we still didn't find any zucchini plants!) -- we bought a variety of tomatoes, strawberries, three different colors of bell peppers, and some yellow squash. All the while, we read labels, talked about plants, learned about herbs (though we didn't buy any), talked about which were fruits and which were vegetables, and the like. My Mom taught the boys lots of things that I hadn't even thought to cover with them -- so it was extra fun to have her along.

Then, the next morning (the day they were staying home), we set out to planting. My Mom also came over for that, and Eric took a vacation day from work. It was great to all work together as a family. We continued to talk about all the different plants. We discussed the various things that plants need to live and what they need to fruit. The boys also assisted in measuring to see how far apart plants needed to be planted.

We had originally planned for the kids to make lunch then, but then I whispered to Noah that we should learn more about Japanese cooking, and he announced that to everyone. (Ha!) So then we all went out to our favorite Japanese steakhouse for lunch. Yum!!!

After we got home, we gave the boys a little down time (especially since we had done so many of our planned activities the night before, as well as having spent so much time outside that morning). Then, each of the boys worked on their eight page gardening journals that I wrote up for them. It included questions about what kind of tomato they picked out for us to plant (Noah wrote "better boy" and Jack wrote "early girl"). For each page, they wrote their answer, and then they drew a picture.

Oh -- and one cute part of the day was when Noah declared that we needed to name the garden. He said, "What about the black garden?" This was when all we had down was weed fabric. I pointed out to him that we hoped it would be green. I said, "How about we name it after someone we love? Or maybe a saint?" Jack, of course, jumped at this and said, "What about the St. Therese Garden?" Noah decided he wanted a male saint as well, so then it became "The St. Therese and St. Nicholas Garden." Quite a mouthful, but it was nice that they got to pick it. (And better than "The Black Garden!" LOL!)

At the end of this school week, I ran into one of Noah's teachers in the hallway. She gave me a big hug and told me that she was so pleased that I had taken him out to do the planting day with him. She said that he was so excited about it, and had shared his journal with the class and told them all about it. I didn't take the kids out for any kind of external reward, but it was so nice to have my efforts noticed.

Now, I will admit, at the end of our day, I did tell Eric that I was fine with the kids going back to school the next day. LOL But, then I did say that, of course, if we did homeschooling, it's not like every single day would be as labor intensive as planting day was. And, in the end, it actually was hard to drop Jack off the next day. He grabbed me tight as we waited for kindergarten and said, "Let's do homeschool again today."

Maybe someday -- at least for a day, anyway.

There is a time for compromise

Eric and I have been enjoying the little squares of Dove dark chocolates every now and then. I buy a bag and then just dump it in a holder in the pantry. That way, we can grab one or two whenever.

If you are not familiar with these, they have a message printed inside. We have been enjoying these as well.

One day, I came home and as I walked in, I noticed right away a foil wrapper stuck to the bulletin board which read, "Naughty can be nice." He said he just felt that he had to share that one.

So, now I have one on the board for him:

There is a time for compromise -- it's called "later."

Observations from Garage Sale Saturday

After I went to the gym on Saturday morning, I decided to pop by one of the neighborhoods that was traditionally the *best* neighboorhood in our town. Every year, they have a neighborhood-wide garage sale. Although I am not certain that this is true, I believe that it is also the only day of the year that they are allowed to have a garage sale (due to their HOA).

So, granted, I did stop by a few hours into the whole thing, but I figure that my observations are not out of line anyway.

1. Why do some people think that their items that actually should be in the trash belong at a garage sale? It was bizzarre. I am not one to throw out things that could better be donated to Goodwill or whatnot, but there were certainly things I saw for sale that should have been in the trash instead.

2. Appropriate parking has no meaning at a garage sale -- we witnessed this last year when we had a garage sale. We live on a small cul de sac, and we had someone just mosey around our sale while completely blocking incoming or outgoing traffic. This might not have normally been that big of a deal, but there were actually people trying to come and leave at that time (of course). I cannot believe how many times I witnessed people just parking their cars at the end of someone's driveway. And, mind you, only one of those times were they blocking a driveway with a garage sale. It was mostly at people's driveways that weren't even involved. Geesh!

3. If something really good is still at a garage sale after many hours, it is either broken or priced too high. -- I thought this to myself as I drove by a tiny garage sale (see number 4 for my thoughts on this) and saw a very cute (but small) play kitchen set. I just had to stop, even though I knew it was not going to be worth the stop. Sure enough, as I walk up to it, I see that it is cute. And, then I see the price tag -- $25. Based on what the set looked like (size-wise and brand-wise), I can't imagine that the normal price could be much more than $35 - $40. Granted, if you were really looking for this, it might save you $10, but seriously -- this is a garage sale. If you are pricing it that high, you are either: 1. greedy or 2. don't really necessarily want to see it go. Then again, I am of the mind set that when I have had a garage sale, I generally want to end the day with as much gone as possible.

4. Some of these garage sales were pitiful. Perhaps it is because they have guarenteed traffic (everyone waits for this sale, although now that I have visited, I'm not sure why), and they don't have to put in too much money (to their HOA) that day to have the sale. Then the HOA takes care of the rest (advertising, etc.). Most of these sales were tiny. I could walk through most of them and thoroughly look at everything and see it all in under one full minute. I know -- I came late, but just by the set up, etc, it was obvious that some of these were very small to start off with.

Okay, so enough of my complaining. It just seemed like after visiting about 14 sales, that it has been a worthless trip. Oh well -- not worthless, I guess. I did buy three things, and I spent a total of $1.00. (Two different packages of flash cards for $.25 each at one garage sale, and then a denim purse with an appliqued frog on the front for Molly to play with for $.50 at another garage sale.)

Fabulous Finds Friday: The Toy Edition

I have been thinking of some of the toys and games that we enjoy around here, and I thought to highlight some of them.

Leap Frog Word Whammer -- This is fun for refrigerator use (it is all magnetic) or for using off of the refrigerator. This has a variety of games, but our favorite for now is just trying to spell three letter words and having them say them back to us (and singing little songs). If they put in a real word, it spells it and says what they spelled. If they put in random letters, then it just tells them the sound each letter makes. I did read one bad review of the toy, and it was definitely something that I had noted. The person complained that it doesn't say God when you put in G-O-D. It *does* tell the child that they made a word, but it doesn't say the actual word. While I wasn't pleased, it didn't make me get rid of this very educational toy that actually kept my kids' attention (and one that they go back and play with again and again).

Leap Frog Fridge Phonics Magnetic Letter Play -- This toy is just like the Word Whammer, except that it only focuses on one letter at a time. It sings a little song for each letter and tells children the name of the letter, as well as what sound the letter makes (and, in the case of something like "C," for instance, it tells them the two different sounds it can make. Molly (age 2) loves this, and goes around singing the songs. This also sings the Alphabet Song and we dance around the kitchen singing right along.

Nintendo Wii -- Yes, this is a significantly more expensive game or toy than the others (since it is right at $250.00, and then you "need" other controllers, etc.). But, we finally got our hands on one, and we love it. It is great to have the kids up and moving while they are playing video games. And, seriously -- who are we kidding? I enjoyed "boxing" with Eric and winning. (And, afterwards, I was sweating more than I had at the gym earlier that evening.) Right now, we only have the game that comes with it (Wii Sports). So, if you have any amazing game suggestions for us, feel free to comment about it!

Cranium Cariboo -- An awesome "board" game for the younger set! The only bad thing is trying to keep track of all of the darn balls that go along with this fun game. Sadly, I will admit -- we did not. I miss playing this game, and have even thought about buying it again so that we could have all of the various pieces that have gone missing in the black hole that is our home.

Plastic Food from Walmart -- So...I searched around for a link to show these, but couldn't find them. I purchased a big set at Walmart for just under $10. It contains a bunch of plastic foods that are actually food halves that are connected by velcro. The set also comes with a little "cutting" board and a "knife." Kids can cut apart the food (good fine motor practice) and then use visual discrimination to find the matches to put them back together. My kids love this set, and so has every one of my kids I have done therapy for. Apparently there is something magical about "cutting" apart pretend food.

Shout out to my good friend Becca!

My good friend Becca just ordered (online) from the {name of company from whom I received a cease and desist email} that I am going to be having at the beginning of June! Thanks, Becca -- you're a doll!



If you would like to order from my {name of company from whom I received a cease and desist email} party, please let me know, and I'll get a link to you! And, just to sweeten the deal (okay, maybe it doesn't *sweeten* it for you, but it does for someone else), the consultant doing my show is one of my older sisters! She greatly enjoys being a {name of company from whom I received a cease and desist email} Director, and doing this helps enable her to be home with her two sons. Everytime someone orders, it helps this wonderful Christian woman be a mother who is at home -- what a blessing to my nephews!

Cupcake-a-palooza

It all started with an innocent comment. Many weeks ago, I told Jack's kindergarten teacher that he really wanted to make heart-shaped cupcakes for his class. Mrs. Teacher said, "You know, I have always wanted to have a Mother's Day Tea Party -- maybe we could do that this year!" And...away it went! Mind you, I had to take her comments to heart because I foolishly thought at the beginning of the year, "Wouldn't it be fun to sign up to be the room mother for Jack's class?"(since nobody else had signed up yet). I will not foolishly have those thoughts again.

So, Bud's Mom went to town in figuring out a menu, and I did up a paper asking for volunteers to make things (or donations), as well as invitations. Bud's Mom's menu may have driven some people not to volunteer, but it was nice anyway. We finally did get a few people to volunteer, and we got a whopping $8.00 in donations (just enough for the very small veggie tray I picked up). We had cucumber sandwiches (thanks to Bud's Mom -- they were delish!!!), and then from other Moms: a spinach salad, a fruit tray, and a lemonade punch. Bud's Mom also brought napkins and plates. I brought the veggie tray (with donations), cups, Arizona iced tea (it was a "Tea" afterall, though I don't drink tea), and then about 50 heart shaped cupcakes!

Yes, I am perfectly aware that most arts and crafts I do turn out looking like an eight year old did them. So, here are my amazingly gorgeously kind-of-okay passably decorated cupcakes. At least Jack was thrilled and the kids in class thought they were amazing.

Tackle It Tuesday: The Vegetable Garden Edition

I was thinking that I hadn't done anything for Tackle It Tuesday today, since I had spent all day putting together our garden. And then I thought..."Ummmm...duh, Angie -- I spent hours on a project that we had been meaning to do. That WAS Tackle It Tuesday."

First -- let me say, Eric has been working like CRAZY to get the garden ready for planting today. I had already decided to keep the kids home for planting day (for a variety of reasons), so it had to be ready by today. (I had the day excused as an educational day for the kids -- so it just *had* to be planting time today.) Kudos to Eric for all his hard work prior to today. He had to do tilling, adding the "addition" to the original garden (increasing it to twice its original size), adding top soil & manure/humus, etc.

Okay...so here is the garden first thing this morning:

And here are all the plants that the boys, my Mom, and I all went out to buy last night as our "field trip" for the day. We actually ended up going to three different places, and I still didn't get zucchini! Augh! (everyone was out!)

Working to get the garden ready for some weed fabric:



Weed fabric partially put down as Molly and Mommy each get to work on separate projects. (Yes, I know -- I looked so beautiful this morning. LOL)



The weed fabric is all down! Eric and the boys opt to go on another "field trip" to Menards to buy straw and stakes.



Eric comes home with a yellow slide for our play set as well as the straw and stakes. This was a big surprise to me, but it was apparently on sale, and Molly was THRILLED! We have been without a slide since Eric cut the playset down before last summer. The kids have missed having a slide, so it's nice to have one again. (Eric had to take a break from gardening to install the slide, of course.)



Noah helps to plant one of the 13 strawberry plants.



A bad "after" picture since it was night and raining! But, I realized I didn't have an after picture. My Mom has already called to ask if the crops are ready to harvest. Ha!

Tasty Tuesday: Broccoli Cauliflower Salad

An easy one -- but a tasty one! This is one of my favorite things to have at family gatherings!

Okay...and I don't have exact amounts on the veggies. But, I usually buy a bag of florettes of a broccoli/cauliflower mix (or sometimes just broccoli florettes), and then I chop up just a bit of red onions.

Cauliflower, chopped in small pieces
Broccoli, chopped in small pieces
Red onion, chopped in small pieces
8 slices fried bacon, chopped in small pieces
1 cup Hellmann’s dressing
½ cup sugar
¼ cup white vinegar

Blend well. Add bacon just before serving.

Menu Plan Monday: May 14th Edition

Monday: Steak Fajitas & Spanish Rice

Tuesday: lunch -- Taquitos (prepared from frozen) or the kids may plan our lunch instead!, dinner -- Spaghetti

Wednesday: Better-than-Ever Beef Enchiladas

Thursday: Creamy Rice, Chicken, & Spinach Dinner

Friday: Beef Noodle Bowl

Saturday: lunch -- Pancakes, dinner -- food from out

Sunday: lunch -- ham; dinner -- meat loaf

Fabulous Finds Friday: May 11, 2007

My fabulous finds this time mostly seem to come from my mailbox today!

My wonderful husband got me not one but TWO aprons from Kitchen"Wear" Aprons. I had been wanting an apron with more full coverage than most aprons that you can pick up at a store nowadays. And, these are just fabulous!!! (And really reasonablly priced too, and they arrived only about a week after they were ordered!) The only bad thing is, um...well...I could see feeling like I needed more, since their designs are so cute! If you check them out, be sure to click on all the different themes of aprons. (I got the Eyelet Lace and the Delicious Apple aprons.) Eric picked well!

And, speaking of aprons, I would be remiss not to mention where I had asked for an apron from (before I knew that unbeknowst to me, he had already bought some!). Kitchen Madonna has a wonderful blog and store on Etsy.com. She is a holy and Catholic Mother, and she makes fabu looking aprons. I especially love the looks of the Gianna and the Belladonna.

So...if you are in the market for a more traditional type of apron, you can't beat looking to either of these places!

Okay...so my other fabulous find in the mail today was a package from Prayerful Beads (a site on the Catholic Mothers Online blog roll!). I ordered several sets of Sacrifice Beads from Barbara (who also had a wonderful blog), and I couldn't be happier! As a matter of fact, she will start working on a Rosary for me to give as a gift to someone who won't be surprised because I had to ask that person for a lot of information in choosing the right beads/crucifix/etc. Barbara is great to work with, and has given me lots of options on my pieces that she has done or will do for me. Something is so extra special about a handmade Rosary! (Oh -- and her prices are fabulous too!) And...if you aren't familiar with Sacrifice Beads -- check them out! (And they even came with information about Sacrifice Beads!) These would be great for stocking stuffers, end of the year teacher gifts, little gifts for someone special, etc. (And, these are at SUCH a great price! I already told her I would probably have to buy more later if I give all mine away.)

My menu for the month - May/June 07

So...I did that big grocery shopping trip on Monday with all the kids. I picked up pretty much everything I needed (along with a trip to Kroger for some meat the next day) for the month (apart from replenishing things like milk, bread, eggs, produce, etc. later in the month). Here's what's on the menu...(oh, and if something is listed more than once, then we're having it more than once. LOL):

• Roast with potatoes and carrots (2)
• Beef Enchiladas
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Teriyaki Chicken & Veg. Fried Rice (2)
• Teriyaki Steak Kabobs (2)
• French Dip (2)
• Asian Chicken & Broccoli
• Spaghetti
• Roasted Chicken
• French Bread Pizzas
• Pancakes
• French Toast
• Taquitos (2)
• Beans and Cornbread
• Spaghetti Casserole
• Creamy Rice, Chicken, & Spinach Dinner
• Popcorn Shrimp
• Steak Fajitas w/ Spanish Rice
• Cobb Salads
• Ziplock Bag Omelets
• Ham
• Fried Mashed Potatoes with Ham
• Ham & Cheese Stuff and Puff
• Tuna Pasta Salad and Homemade Bread
• Tuna Burgers
• Grilled Ham and Egg Salad Sandwiches
• Beef Noodle Bowl
• Club Quesadillas
• Angel Hair Pasta with Chicken
• Ham Potato Scallop
• Honey Mustard Steak
• Velveeta Spinach and Pasta Dinner
• Dinty Moore Beef Stew
• Fish Sticks
• Chicken Fried Rice
• Cheddar Chicken and Rice Skillet

A lump, a fling, some groceries, and the last day of CCD

Whew! I have been away from my blog, and it feels hard to just pop back on and start writing (especially while I'm yawning right now!).

So...here is a quick run down on the events of the last few days that have been keeping me busy...

I had my recheck on my underarm lump (info here and here). Since the lump was still there (and bigger) after the two weeks, I figured I was probably safe to go ahead and shave before my visit back to the nurse practitioner. The N.P. confirmed that the lump was, indeed, bigger than it was two weeks ago. She has referred me on for a diagnostic mammogram (with the possibilty of a breast ultrasound as well). The N.P. said that she thinks this is probably just a lymph node that is, as I suggested when she was looking for a word, "angry." Unfortunately, she did say that as long as all goes well with the tests, then I am suppose to go see a surgeon about said angry lymph node. Yuck! (Oh -- the tests are going to be next Wednesday!)

A month of planning came to an end yesterday evening after the ladies at our parish had their annual Spring Fling. And, although I had never even been to one of the Spring Flings before (since we only started going to the church last summer), I jumped in head first and not only attended, but also joined the committee. It was so much fun, and I enjoyed being able to be part of the event. As I told Eric when we were going to join the church, "If we're joining the church, we're doing this right and becoming involved in the parish." Oh -- and not only was the Spring Fling fun, but tasty too, since it was a carry in! Yum!

I did something for the first time ever on Monday night -- I took all three children on a big grocery shopping trip. Eric had a dinner meeting, and I knew I *had* to grocery shop. So, I took all three out, and we did a month's worth of grocery shopping. To my surprise (maybe because I always think of the boys being younger than they are), Noah and Jack were very good helpers, and even pushed an extra cart for me. Funny thing is that we bought two carts full of stuff at Walmart for $266. Then, I went to pick up some meat and a couple other things at Kroger today, and left with three bags -- for $46! Geesh!

Tonight was the last night of religious education for the school year. I was very pleased that my boys got to go up and get perfect attendance awards! (And even more pleased when Jack was the only kindergartner to get an award! They did both excellent attendance awards -- for only one absence -- and then perfect attendance awards. Several first graders did get awards, but Noah looked extra proud to be up front as well.) All the religious ed. kids made cards and/or gifts for their Moms, and the Moms all met their kids in the parish for the certificates, etc. We also all prayed the Rosary together. This was my most special time of the day. Not just for the sheer fact of praying the Rosary, but Noah said it all along with us. I felt so proud! And, by the fourth decade, I saw that Noah wanted to grab for my Rosary. So, he and I held it together and I helped him to understand when to move to the next bead (and then he got the flow of it, and knew it on his own). I was so taken back by it that I thought I might have to cry. But, then Jack was moving around and making clicking noises with his mouth, and it helped me to hold back the tears. Ha!

I believe the rest of my week promises to be busy as well. But, hopefully one of these days, things will quiet down.

Why do we lose that innate self confidence?

I have a confession to make -- I'm not a very confident person. I am often too hard on myself and I am easily prone to pessimistic thoughts. I suspect, however, that people who know me in person, but don't know me really well, wouldn't necessarily guess that about me. But, really -- that's neither here nor there.

I talked to Eric on the phone earlier, and he said that Molly (age 2 1/2) was very cute. I turned to her and said, "Daddy says you're cute!"

"Yeah," she answered with a look about her of -- "Why yes, I am cute. Thanks for noticing."

So...it begs to be asked -- Why must we lose this self-confidence we once felt???

You tell a preschool girl that she is pretty, and you aren't surprised when she says, "I know."

It is not uncommon to tell a child that he is smart and to get an answer back about how he is sure that he is the smartest kid in his class.

When you venture to ask a five year old girl what she wants to be when she grows up, you might receive an answer that she plans to be a princess. Oh, and when she is on vacation from being a princess, she will also be a teacher and a doctor. She says it with such enthusiasm that you believe for a moment that she really might do all of those things, or, at the very least, you want to believe it.

For young children, the world is one huge adventure, full of potential.

It's such a shame that we all lose that. We lose that feeling of being special...of being able to do anything. Why do we learn to be so critical of ourselves? Why is it that we get to a point where blowing bubbles outside on a Saturday afternoon isn't quite so magical?

I really wish I had answers to these kinds of things, but, of course, I don't. But, I can say that I have been trying hard over the past six weeks or so to embrace more about who I am.

I have tried to take more time to appreciate what I have, and less time to seek out adding more things to my life and home. I have tried to take cues from my children and watch for those magical moments that I miss now because I don't have a child's eyes. I can't say that the past six weeks have been perfect, and that I haven't had times of feeling bad or not worthy or like a huge loser, but I find those times have happened a lot less over these past six weeks. This is a journey that I am going to try to continue on, even if I don't end up as Her Royal Highness Princess Dr. Teacher Angie, I still think it's worth the effort.

Fabulous Finds Friday

Here are a couple of gems to share...

The Works Toilet Bowl Cleaner -- Wow! This stuff really surprised me! I picked it up when the stuff I wanted to pick up wasn't there. And, this really worked! I have soft water in my house, but for whatever reason, I have been having trouble with rusty colored marks left in my toilet. This really got rid of the marks in one toilet, and then greatly reduced it in the other toilet (which was much worse to start off with). I would like to continue on how it has continued to work, but then when I went to buy more, Target didn't have any. Augh!

Pat The Bunny -- Okay, so I know, everyone already knows Pat the Bunny. Heck -- I think we already had a copy (I know we did) when I found one at a rummage sale for a quarter and picked it up again (last weekend). I got the extra one to read with my kids that I do therapy for. It has been such a huge hit with the kids all week. It reminded me what a wonderful story this is, and how fun it is for kids. If you have little kids and don't own it, you should! My seven year old (who is not the best reader) had a blast reading it to this little sister.

Grey's Anatomy Soundtrack - Vol 2 -- I got this a little while back, but I have been listening to some of the songs on my iPod lately, and I just had to suggest it as a *must* get for anyone who enjoys the music they normally play on Grey's Anatomy.

Crayola Color Wonder Mess-Free Soft Sticks -- A hit at therapy, a hit at home. These fun sticks help to make pictures appear on the special Color Wonders paper. And, they don't make a mess elsewhere. Well...that's not entirely true. There is sometimes this white "dust" type excessive if the coloring is excessively hard. Oh...and they certainly can break. So, if you have a rambunctious little one, these might not be the absolute best product. But, I have some kind of rambunctious kids at therapy, and it took a while before one of them finally broke one of the Soft Sticks.

A Great Mystery of Life Solved

For years, I wanted cherry Kool-Aid. But, every time I bought it and prepared it, I couldn't help but think, "What in the world am I doing wrong -- this doesn't taste like my Mom made it." And, I would be disgusted.

On a whim once, I bought Black Cherry Kool-Aid. Well -- lo and behold, it DID taste like my Mom made. I mentioned it to her and she said confirmed that when she bought and made cherry, it was only ever black cherry. Aha -- mystery #1 solved.

But, another great Mom mystery was still elusive. My macaroni and cheese never tasted the same either. And, we're not talking some wonderful whip up from scratch recipe. I'm talking Kraft from the box. Then, a couple of months ago, I thought, "Wait! She always used to lightly salt and pepper it!" So...I did that (just for my portion of it). And...it DID taste closer, but still not it.

A couple of days ago, when I went to make some macaroni, I headed to the refrigerator to grab the stick margarin. And it hit me -- my Mom doesn't use margarin. She hates it. What if I use stick butter?

And...there ya go. Mystery #2 solved.

There are some wonderful people in this world trying to find cures and treatments for a multitude of diseases and disorders, and here I am, trying to solve a macaroni issue. Perhaps it's an interesting commentary on my life. Or, maybe it's just means that we never forget the loving things our mother has done for us and, if she was a good Mom, we never stop trying to be just a little more like her.

Funny Email I Received: Words Women Use

You may have read this before -- I had. But, I just got it again, and it cracked me up again.
-----------------------------------------------------


Words Women Use

1.) FINE: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

2.) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour.Five Minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five moreminutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

3.) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means somethingand you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usuallyend in fine.

4.) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

5.) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statementoften misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are anidiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to #3 for the meaning of nothing.)

6.) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a womencan make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7.) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or Faint. Just say you're welcome.

8.) Whatever: Is a women's way of saying !@!* YOU!

9.) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement,meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking "what's wrong", for the woman's response, refer to # 3.

Blogs of Interest on Sidebar or Not

Just curious -- do you have "blogs of interest" or something like that along on a side bar or not? I have them on there as I have used them in the past for keeping track of blogs I enjoy. But, now I don't use that list anymore -- I have pretty much everything listed in the side bar (plus some) in my Google Reader instead.

But...I hate to just delete the blog list, in case other people follow blogs from there.

Oh...the dilemma!

What do *you* do?

Tasty Tuesday: Chicken Rice Casserole (Crockpot)

Per commenter request, I am posting the recipe of this Chicken Rice Casserole (for the crockpot). I thought, "Well -- it's Tuesday, why not post it as my recipe for the week?") This is not a recipe I came up with, but it is tasty. I like to serve it with something like green beans.

Ingredients:

2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup margarine, melted
6 oz box of Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice (Original Recipe) -- uncooked
4 1/2 oz jar of mushrooms (I usually buy a slightly larger jar than that)
10 oz can cooked chicken

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients in the crockpot. Cover. Cook on high for two hours or until the rice is tender.

Tackle It Tuesday: Extreme Edition

Welcome to my Tackle It Tuesday: Extreme Edition. Last week, when I did my first Tackle It Tuesday, I spent probably a little over an hour on it (cleaning out my refrigerator -- washing all the bins and shelves, etc.). This Extreme Edition was not done so quickly, and it was not just done on Tuesday. This little project started with me picking some things up at the store on Friday, and then working on it a little/a lot at a time on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and then finished it on Tuesday!


As anyone with large expanses of flat spaces knows -- they just collect STUFF. We have a counter that separates our kitchen from the dining room (which is also part of the open concept so it runs into the living room). This is not the first time that I have tackled clearing off the counter, I promise you that. Each time, I think it's for good. I will pray that this time, because I did some things that I haven't done before, that the counter will become a more manageable place.


Brace yourself -- the before pictures are not pretty!

Before:







After:

So...why is it that it took so long to clean up the counter? It's because I didn't just go for the cosmetics of it. I looked at the roots of the issue (hence the notebook in the last picture, which I will explain)

Actually -- apart from a bit of clearing, that notebook was my first project. You see...I have a problem with a lot of paper in this house. It sits everywhere, and it gets lost. So, my idea to get it organized came from this wonderful "Works for Me Wednesday" posting. I kept thinking about it, and FINALLY got around to doing it. I couldn't believe how many papers went into my notebook. I cleared off big areas of papers just by knowing that they either needed to be in the notebook, in the filing cabinet, or in the trash. In just the few days that I have had the notebook put together, I have used it many, many times. WooHoo! I think this will finally help to solve my paper issues. I'm SO psyched!

Okay, so...why else did this take so long? See that plastic rolling cart in some of the pictures? That all got sorted through too! And, because old receipts were piling up in it, that meant I finally balanced my checkbook again (and then got rid of receipts I didn't need AND then figured out a fabulous way to organize my recipes so that they don't just sit in any available drawer until I finally throw them away). Oh...AND I organized that plastic letter holder thingee too (and the small basket behind it too!). Nothing was allowed to just gather up junk -- everything in my path was organized, even if it meant taking time away from what seemed to be the issue to balance my checkbook. Extreme Tackle It Tuesday at its best!

Wish me luck to keep up with this because -- darn it -- it feels nice to look in my kitchen now (especially since, as you may notice, this is my headquarters!).

And, admittedly, I'm already thinking, "Where is my next Extreme Tackle It Tuesday spot going to be?"