March 2012 Menu

What this Mommy did while her two year old was down for a nap:

THIS is what we're having for dinner for the month of March

If you click on it, it gets bigger. :) or at least it's supposed to...

There are many blank dates this is because there are going to be nights that 'what's for dinner' doesn't sound good or I forget to pull it out early enough or INSERT EXCUSE HERE (ha!) so we end up having something else -- which means there will be 'leftover' dinners that need a new home.

I really try to do a lot of make ahead meals because it just makes my life easier throughout the month and if we don't eat that dinner it can stay in the freezer for the next month.

See some code on there you don't understand? What, you can't decipher my writing? Silly you! ha! Here you go :

**=in the freezer/make ahead

online = I have book marked the recipe on my computer for easy access- for me. Look below for links to recipes for you

FFF= recipe came from the book Fix, Freeze, Feast. I found this one on Amazon! Love it!

PT= recipe came from Pinterest and is saved on my FOOD :) board. WHAT you aren't part of Pinterest? Then message me and I'll invite you. Silly you!

Most of the time I 'wing' the sides each night because we always have frozen corn, veggie blends, garlic bread, rice and such on hand. This month I did put some ideas on some of them.

I try to do my shopping for THE ENTIRE MONTH in one shopping trip. This usually amounts to 1-2 hours in Winco. WITH Dax. He's an angel and doesn't usually loose his cool until we get to the bakery where I then bribe him with a donut for the ride home. :) It's his little, cheap reward. :) Yes, he even gets one if it is dinner time. What angel shouldn't get this kind of spoiling once a month. :) haha!

I promised you links, here they are:

Easy Mexican Casserole:
http://www.plainchicken.com/2010/10/mexican-casserole.html

Honey-Sesame Chicken (this recipe is actually calls for skewers but I use chicken breasts. Still yummy!)
http://makeaheadmeals.blogspot.com/2008/03/40-honey-sesame-chicken-skewers.html

Saucy Chicken Enchiladas:
http://www.heatherdriveblog.com/2008/12/saucy-chicken-enchiladas.html

Pioneer Woman Fettuccine Alfredo
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/07/fettuccine-alfredo/

Pioneer Woman Frito Chili Pie:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/frito-chili-pie/




Give me your feedback. Was this helpful, will you use this? Should I keep doing this each month? :)
 
PS if you're on a diet, these recipes probably aren't for you... I <3 food!

Meal Menus

So I'm starting to gear up for planning another month of dinners for my family and I got to thinking that maybe I should try to figure out how to post them on here. I have two thoughts behind this: 1. I can keep track of what I've planned before-saving time in the futre and 2. maybe someone else out there would find it useful too.

I am hesitant too because I am a very picky eater and...well... let's just say there aren't a lot of 'greens' on my menus. Ha! So NO teasing! :)

Any thoughts??? Anyone read this? :-p

Oops!

So apparently I can't get my act together to do a 10 on 10 post... next month it's a Saturday... hopefully that helps. I did take one picture of Dax eating pizza for lunch and watching his DVD playing. Work days are hard to take any interesting pictures. :)

There really is nothing new to report on our front. I wish I was a better writer to be able to turn the mundane, everyday activities of our family into something more exciting... yeah not that good by any means. :)

Hmm maybe next year my resolution will be to write about 'boring' things :) Too late for this year, right? :-p

10 on 10- January

WELL.... this didn't work so well.... I made it until Dax woke up from his nap and then stopped snapping pictures... oh well... here's what I tried to accomplish yesterday :)

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Look at me! I'm actually doing a 10 on 10! Impressive! haha :) This will be in reverse order since I going to build it throughout the day as the pictures are taken. Hoping this will help me COMPLETE this task. Please excuse the blurry cell phone pictures.

2:40pm Oh sunshine, how mean you are to be shining so brightly while I am working????


1:34pm FedEx dropped off our fantastic new hotspot and then me being the AWESOME teacher that I am, did not read all the directions like I ALWAYS tell students and parents to do so it took about 20 minutes longer to activate than it should have! Stupid!


12:38pm Nothing like a boy and his tractors



11:45am Holy Wind batman! Dax and I both about jumped out of our skin when this big 'ol branch hit our front door! So glad it hit the bottom metal part and not the top glass part

10:33am this is what our living room looks like when Mommy is too busy working to make Dax pick up his toys between tasks :) yes, those are empty Keystone boxes-- Daddy has made Dax a whole outfit out of them. I can't throw them away :)


9:45am Dax watching Mickey Mouse Club House in his jammies, yes it's a little late in the day to still be in jammies

New Years Resolution

So to be totally honest, I think New Years resolutions are silly. We never stick to them, so why make them???

Now, that being said. I'm going to see if posting on here what I would LIKE to do in 2012 will help me stick to it. I usually keep my resolutions to myself because I know I'll only stick to it for a couple of weeks. ha! SO my New Years resolution for 2012 is..... to be more healthy.

I figure that is broad enough to hopefully make it stick for at least a couple of months. I am a very healthy person (meaning I almost never get colds or other bugs) but I can always improve---I need to eat better and exercise more.

My biggest issue with exercise is I get bored very quickly. I hate exercising in the house and since we live in the middle of a big hill it's hard to take Dax with me for walks. SO those are my excuses for not exercising... I'm going to try to get over the exercising in the house one, ha! :) My goal is to exercise for 1/2 an hour 2-3 times a week and then slowly increase the frequency. I think I can get up 1/2 an hour early a few days a week and accomplish this without the help of Mr. Dax.

For those who know me I am not very good at eating good foods like veggies. For most I can't stand their texture. I have already done a lot better with expanding my food selections but this year I want to do even more 'trying' :)

Well there, I did it, it's public... let's see if I stick to it. :)

Wishing you and yours a wonderful, blessed 2012!!

It's my favorite time of the year

Christmas is my very favorite time of the year. I love filling our house with beautiful decorations, lighted trees (we have 3) and the joyful spirit that comes with the excitement of the year. Dax is not quite to the age of knowing what is going on but he does love looking at the decorations around our house and the Christmas lights when we are out and about. He calls our big Christmas Tree 'pretty' and each morning says 'pretty, please, pretty' which means he wants me to turn the lights on. He gets so excited as soon as it is lit.

I have always loved Christmas but there is something that much more magical about it when you include your own children. Even with having Children to remind us to slow down and enjoy this time of the year-sometimes I think we lose sight though about what Christmas is really about. I believe in God and that Christmas is the celebration of Jesus' birth. I believe that the gifts we give to each other are representation of the gifts given by the Wise Men to Jesus following his birth. That being said, I often wonder about those who don't believe in Jesus. I wonder what they really believe Christmas represents. It feels so sad to think that for them Christmas may just be about the presents. I hope and pray for those people, that if nothing else they recognize that Christmas is a time to get together with family and share the love that fills this season.

Our Christmas' have always been very busy. Even before Dustin and I got together, my family was all over the place on Christmas day. Now we have 5 Christmas' in 2 days-3 on Christmas day. Ya know what though, I wouldn't have it any other way! We get to see almost all of our family in 2 days and to me, that's important. I get all excited just thinking about it! :)

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and I hope I get to see you over Winter Break.

With my bonus girl, Kyleigh, in our matching snowman hats.

My story about Santa

Last year one of my friends at work was asking us all what we were told growing up or what we tell kiddos about Santa when asked if he is real. So while standing in the hallway coming up with ideas here is what I put together from what A. I was told growing up B. What I have come up with as an adult and C. What a pulled out of my @$$ at that very moment. Ha! I hope you enjoy....

Child: Mommy Santa isn't real, is he?

Mom: WHAT (shock, horror, panic) who told you that?

Child: Some kid at school.

Mom: You know that I still believe in Santa don't you?

Child: So he is real?

Mom: I believe that Santa is real. That Santa comes to us each year to bring us happiness and excitement on top of a very special present Christmas morning. I also believe that when you stop believing in Santa he stops coming. That's why I still believe in him, I'm afraid if I didn't believe he wouldn't visit us.

Child: So what about those kids that don't believe? My friend at school says that YOU put my present under the tree.

Mom: If a child doesn't believe in Santa then yes, his/her parents do put the present out from Santa BECAUSE they don't believe anymore so Santa doesn't come to their house. Wouldn't they be sad if they woke up Christmas morning and there wasn't a Santa present under the tree.

Child: Yeah, of course. So do you put the present under the tree or does Santa?

Mom: Well, do you believe in Santa?

At this point I have no idea how the rest of the story would go because... well... I haven't had to REALLY give this talk before... I am REALLY hoping that at this point Kyleigh or Dax would say 'It's okay Mom, that kid was STUPID and of course I believe in Santa still. '

I dread the day that Kyleigh and Dax stop believing in Santa. While I do believe that Christ is the true reason for the season, Santa lends a certain element of child-like excitement in all of us.

For the record, I do still believe in Santa. Santa brings booze to my parents house for all the adults that still believe. :-p