Weekly Menu 8/30/2012 - 9/5/2012

• Thursday: Out for dinner after football practice

• Friday: Slow Cooked Whole Chicken with Stuffing and Cheesy Broccoli

• Saturday: Crock Pot: Sausage & Peppers on Egg Noodles (recipe coming soon) with Garlic Toast and Salad

• Sunday: Crock Pot Chicken & Gravy on Mashed Potatoes (recipe coming soon) with Green Beans and Fresh Bread

• Monday: Grilled Sausage with Corn on the Cob, Baked Potatoes and Crock Pot Mac & Cheese

• Tuesday: Meatball Sandwiches (recipe coming soon) with Salad

• Wednesday: Ranch Chicken Drumsticks (recipe coming soon) with Cheesy Broccoli and Mashed Potatoes

Made With Love...

     I may not be the most crafty person, and my sewing by hand skills are atrocious, which sucks since I do not own a sewing machine, but the little things that I am able to make, are always made with love. Like these baby leg warmers to keep J's knees from getting friction burns on them from creeping so much. (Her poor little toes got it bad last week.) Mr came home and said "I can't believe you sacrificed your favorite socks!" LOL That's just what us mama's do though, isn't it? *Smile*

     I just adore this pic, by the way. Her little toes sticking out from beneath the leg warmers. Siiiigh. This just melts my heart. I thought it looked so incredibly cute that, of course, I made her a matching headband from the scraps.

     I will say though, that made with love or not, my hands do not like sewing by hand anymore. Maybe one day, after bills are all paid and we have extra money (HAHAHAHA!!!) I'll invest in a sewing machine. Someday. ;)

Crockpot Peach BBQ Shredded Chicken

     Tangy with a touch of sweet, this is absolutely delicious! And the fact that it cooks up in the crock pot while I'm busy running around like a chicken with my head cut off all day? Well, that my friends, makes it even better. *smile*

Paired with broccoli and Broiled Feta Cherry Tomatoes

 Seriously, go ahead and give it a try. See what you think!

 YOU WILL NEED:

Wordless Wednesday

*big smile*

Gypsy Skillet

     Every time I go to a local restaurant, I get a skillet. It's my new favorite taste. Then, I like to go home and try to recreate it, but my way. Here is the resulting, award winning, Gypsy Skillet. Okaaaay, It's not award winning. But it *should* be. lol

     It has veggies, little chunks of ham, hash browns, cheese and egg whites. Holy mega yum! And it's not bad Weight Watchers points-wise. Which is important for me. Anyways, I like to try and keep some of the veggies cooked up and in the fridge. If I do that, this takes less than 10 minutes to cook, from start to finish!

HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY, PEE-WEE!

  Pee Wee Herman turns 60, today.

     

On A Rainy Monday....

     Another Monday. And it was a very rainy morning in my neck of the woods. Yeah, ok, so, I don't live in the woods. Or near the woods. But, I DO live next to a creek. That counts, yes? Anyways, as far as Mondays go, today is a pretty darn good one. Why?

For starters, This was my breakfast. My Egg White Gypsy Skillet: And since I saved some veggies from last night's dinner, this only took about 10 minutes from start to my plate. On a weekday while getting kiddies ready for school? I call that a SCORE!

      Oh yeah, and then there is my second cup (first cup MUST be consumed before dealing with anyone. So please, Shhhhh until then.) of Butter Toffee Coffee.... Holy delicioso! Ohhhh coffee, what would I do without you?? Oh yes, I know, go completely mad. Really folks, you would see me on the news.

And finally, a beautiful, peacefully sleeping Baby Bear. All snuggled up in the crook of my arm. *smile* It. does. not. get. better. than. this.

Dare I say this, but... Happy Monday, all. :)

Cooking With a Baby In Hand... literally

 

      It's not always easy. So many times since Baby J has joined us, she needs tending to right when my hands are at their messiest from preparing dinner. I have learned to make my Greek Turkey burgers with one hand, while rocking a baby in the crook of my other arm. From start to finish. Adding ingredients, mixing them, shaping it into patties and cooking em up. It is by no means easy, but sometimes we gotta do what we gotta do, uh?

     Sometimes though, I just cannot do it one handed. Or the baby needs both hands. What's a mama to do then, you ask? Why, you call in the reinforcements, of course! We were going to have Ranch chicken for dinner and Josie was NOT about to cooperate. So, L jumped in and washed her hands to prep the chicken. M came down shortly after and wanted a piece of the action, too. There was no fighting. It was truly SUCH a beautiful moment, the two of them working side by side in the kitchen. You could see that they felt a sense of pride in the fact that they made the chicken, totally on their own from start to finish. And rightfully so, because it was delicious! I was quite proud of them, too. *smile*

dipping chicken in Ranch, then breadcrumb mixture

getting their hands dirty in the kitchen

Ranch Chicken. GREAT job kiddies!

It was DELICIOUS!!

This is me... NOT COOKING! *smile*

      L is also getting really good at making pancakes. I get such a kick out of how excited she still gets every time I let her pour the batter and flip them.

    

BIG Cheesin' Grin

Q: What makes this mama smile like this?

     A: Just when you are totally convinced that your 13 year old son *totally* hates you, you make him an omelet... and he hugs you. Like, puts his arms around you, his head on your shoulder and stays there for a minute. ACTUALLY hugs you. (I almost cried. I can't tell you the last time he hugged me.) That should get me through some attitude for a while. lol

     My cup runneth over!

Weekly Menu... 8/23/2012 - 8/29/2012

      Not a whole lot going on for meals this week. Excited about a few of the dinners, and will be posting some recipes after I make them. (I strongly dislike recipes without pics, so that's what you're waiting for. lol)

• Thursday: Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole, "Caesar" Salad, Crescent Rolls

• Friday: Turkey Sausage, Potato and Pepper Skillet (recipe coming real soon), Warmed Tortillas

• Saturday: Ranch Chicken (recipe coming real soon), green beans, mashed potatoes

• Sunday: Shrimp, Udon Noodle Stir-Fry (just something I threw together). Quesadillas for the kiddies who may not like this. (update: My daughter LOVED it.)  :)

• Monday: Cheesy Chicken Tamale Bake, "Caesar" Salad,

• Tuesday: Shredded Peach BBQ Chicken Sandwiches (recipe coming real soon), Green Beans

• Wednesday: Taco Cups (recipe coming real soon), Tortilla Chips and Salsa

We Cannot Have Chickens, Damn It!

      So, random story here. I was sitting in my little glider, feeding Josie. Mike was in the living room watching TV. This is the conversation that took place.

Me: Babe, I really want chickens.

Mike: extra crispy or original recipe?

Me: no, really. I want chickens, babe. 

Mike: we can't have chickens.

Me: then I'm going to buy whole chickens at the store and scatter them around the house and pretend to feed them.

Mike: but they'll be dead.

Me: so?

Mike: So... they'll spoil.

Me: then I guess you better get me live ones!

Mike: honey, we *cannot* have chickens. Besides, no way will your mom let you.

Me: she doesn't hafta knoooow.

Mike: she'll see em when she takes the dogs out and they attack the chickens.

Me: I'll build a cage.

Mike: she'll still see them!

Me: I'll hang curtains

*silence for a good 2 minutes*

Mike: WE CANNOT HAVE CHICKENS!
Me: WELL, DAMN IT!

LMFAO ♥

Bawk Baaaaawk!!

Brownie.... Waffles?

Yes, brownie waffles. I got excited when I thought about this the other night. So much so that at 8:00pm, I started throwing everything together to give em a try. While they weren't exactly what I was expecting, (a brownie that tastes just like brownie, but looks like a waffle) they were seriously yummy! You use a brownie batter, but since they're cooked on a waffle iron (well, DUH) they really have the waffle texture/taste.

     Which is still WAY yummy. Then, I thought to heat up a little bit of peanut butter and drizzle it over the brownie... errr... waffle... (broffle? waffnie?) Eh, you know what I'm talking about. I took a bite and it was soooo good. Buuuut, being one who never could quite leave "well enough" alone, I grabbed the (reduced sugar) strawberry jam and put a spoonful smack dab in the middle of that bad boy. Birds sang, rainbows appeared, the Heavens opened up and all was right with the world. Really! You're not buying it? Ok, ok, they were DELICIOUS, though and my kiddies went nuts for them. So give em a try! Especially with the peanut butter and jam.

AWWWWWW, YEEEEEEAH, BABY!

 You will need:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted (I used light butter with no problem)
• 1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 sugar, 1/2 Equal for baking)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

1. Heat up your waffle iron and spray with non stick spray
2. In a medium bowl, mix together your melted butter, sugar and vanilla
3. Add eggs, mix well. Add the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Stir til mixed well.
4. Pour some of the batter onto waffle iron, close lid and cook until it stops steaming, anywhere from 2-4 minutes.
5. Remove from waffle iron and go at it again. Use up all that batter. Every. last. drop! You don't want to waste any, that would be a sin! lol
6. Top with some peanut butter and jam/jelly. Take a big bite, sit back and see if all is not right in your world. At least for a moment. *smile*