Mystery Bean - Monday

Today I'm going to relate a funny event that took place today... I went out to my freezer and there were two unmarked containers... I thought they were both Refried Beans... I took the smaller of the two and brought it into the house to thaw for a recipe (will share tomorrow) and to eat with Tacos... Well, you can imagine my surprise after it was thawed I realized... This isn't Refried Beans... It must be Chili... ::smirk:: So, I used them in my recipe anyway... Hey how different is Chili from Refried Beans any way... I'm eating mine not quite sure why it tasted 'sweet'... I asked my husband if he was enjoying his... He said yes and it was ok... I'm like well that sounds off... That statement almost contradicts itself! Today he decides for me to put his 'refried beans/chili' on the side of his entree instead of using it in the recipe... He is eating it as I was folding laundry before he headed off to work... He says something isn't right about this Chili... It doesn't taste like that awesome Chili we just had last month... Why is it sweet? Then we realized... They were BAKED BEANS!!! I put Brown Sugar in my baked beans which would account for the hint of sweetness we were tasting... So, I took it out thinking I'm thawing 'refried beans', used it as 'chili' and in all reality it was Baked Beans... My husband such a trooper eating it anyway... Despite my funny encounter with the 'mystery' bean... It teaches me to ALWAYS label my containers... EVERY time! ::grin::

Ts Tuesday

I couldn't just name today Tasty Tuesday because so many other Ts happened to us today... Thrilling day because our Little Flowers / Blue Knights order arrived... We are all ready for year II... I just love this program... I look forward to the day when I can just Travel and start this program in parishes... Sharing my Time and Talent with others... Looks like the Threat that appeared just after Mother's Day will finally be gone hopefully by the end of the month... We should have a letter stating to the fact soon... Woo hoo!!! Today is a double Tasty Tuesday because I'm sharing my Chicken Mushroom Fettuccine Recipe and my Old Fashioned Cookie Recipe...

Chicken Mushroom Fettuccine

1 stick Butter
5 Cloves Garlic, pressed (adjust to personal tastes of garlic)
1-2 pkg Mushrooms, washed and sliced (depending on how mushroomy you like it)
2 C. Milk
1-1/2 C. Powder Parmesan Cheese (I rarely use this form and usually grate my own fresh)
1/4-1/2 C. Flour (thickening sauce)
1-1/2 lbs Chicken, cooked and cubed
16 oz Fettuccine Noodles (cook as directed on box)

Saute mushrooms and garlic in butter over medium heat until tender... Add milk and cheese... Whisk till 'smooth'... Once mixture is warm add just enough flour to thicken and increase heat to medium high... Continue to whisk... After mixture is thicken reduce heat to low and stir in chicken... Stir occasionally till entire mixture is heated through... Combine chicken/sauce mixture and noodles... 8-10 Servings.
Old Fashioned Cookies

1 C. Butter
2 C. Sugar
1/4 C. Brown Sugar, firmly packed
2 Eggs
1/3 C. + 2 T. Milk
2 t. Vanilla
4 C. Flour
2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Salt
Icing
Sprinkles (we call them pretties ::grin::)

Cream butter. Add sugar and eggs, beating well. Stir in milk and vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl; add to creamed mixture, mixing well. Chill.

Roll dough to 1/8" thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut into circles (I used a floured biscuit cutter). Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool. Decorate as desired.

Yield: about 5 dozen.

Of course there was all the tantalizing fun of laundry, dishes and diaper changing today... ::smirk::

Moments in My Life - Monday

Here are just a few moments from my life on this particular Monday... This morning I photographed some beautiful snow that is now gone... Wasn't it beautiful?
Here it is on my lilacs:

At moments it was coming down pretty good...
A view down the street:

A lovely up close photo of the individual flakes... Beautiful: I picked up coats for all my blessings and myself today... I'm washing them so photos will be come in a bit... I made Chicken Mushroom Fettuccine... Recipe to come on Tasty Tuesday... Made a few homesteading phone calls... We finished the rest of our 'Family Movie Night' movie... We watched Race To Witch Mountain... Interesting movie... My husband picked it...

Tasty Thursday - SD Meatloaf Recipe

Since I forgot to post something Tasty on Tuesday and need to go back into the swing of sharing recipes... I thought I'd throw it out on Thursday because I don't have much to write about other wise... Next week Tasty will be on Tuesday with hopes that Thursdays can be Thankful again... ::grin:: We will see how that all goes when we come to it... Engineer had his dental visits this morning with his staff... He did well... They are waiting for his baby teeth to fall out, and his molars to come then we will schedule another sedation dental visit at the hospital so they can clean, x-rays, sealants, etc... He also had his late (we switched drs this year) 9 year well check with staff there... He recieved a seasonal flu shot... It is part of their policy... I don't agree with it... It will be interesting to see what his reaction is if any to it... I wonder how much mercury the current flu shots have in them... So, everyone has been introduced for future appointments... Peanut had ST today... She is doing so well... She's working on F and S sounds... I spent a good part of the day hunting for a remote... They need to put tracking devices on these things... ::smirk:: I can't seem to find it any where... I have the Notebook (yes i know I'm so 'outdated) which I have never seen but people keep talking about how 'great' it is so I'm watching it... ::grin:: I also have Ladder 49... I'm very excited to see that... Off to watch netflix... Enjoy the recipe...

South Dakota Meatloaf (never made this before till this month)
by Best of Taste Of Home 2009

1 Egg
1/3 C. Evaporated Milk
3/4 C. Quick-Cooking Oats
1/4 C. Chopped, Onion
2 T. Worcestershire Sauce (I never buy this and just use Steak Sauce)
1 t. Salt (I always leave this out unless baking)
1/2 t. Rubbed Sage
1/8 t. Pepper
1-1/2 Lb Ground Beef (I will use 2 lbs so it will hopefully last 2 days)
1/4 C. Ketchup

1. In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture, and mix well. Press into an un greased 8" x 4" loaf pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 1-1/4 hours; drain.
2. Drizzle with ketchup; bake 10 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink and meat thermometer reads 160 degrees.

Yield: 6 Servings

Comments:
Lauree Buus - Rapid City, SD
"I've tried other versions of meat loaf, but I always end up coming back to this one. It's based on my mother's traditional recipe."

Mixed Up - Monday / To Do List - Tuesday

Monday was kind of an off day... I went to an appointment only to find I had remembered and wrote down several times the wrong day... I caught up on laundry... I reorganized my quilting drawers... I guess a while back the children knocked it over and my husband being helpful picked it all up but everything was mixed up... I also realized I'm missing 10 pieces of fabric for a quilt I had planned on working on... That's frustrating... I rested in the afternoon/evening... I have a little bit of a cold...

I rested most of the morning... I still have that cold... It's about the same as it was yesterday... I ran a ton of errands today... One place had a waiting time of almost 2 hours before I could be helped and take care of why I was there... It was downtown... I was in 1/2 hour parking and ran out and moved to 90 minute parking... Glad I didn't have to move again... It is all taken care of so I'm glad I took the time to just wait it out... It was really bothering me that I hadn't been able to do this last Thursday/Friday... I dropped off paper work at a couple of places... It was another thing that had been bothering me that I wasn't able to take care of last week... I dropped off donations to a local clothing pantry... I went to the post office to mail bills and my brother's birthday gift... I stopped in person and paid our car insurance... It is due within a few days once the month begins so by the time payday comes and everything I rarely have time to mail it... I'm glad the office is only a few blocks from our house... I shopped at Walmart for this years supplies of undershirts and PJs... I found Peanut's Christmas Eve PJs... I know she is going to be excited when she sees them... I picked up an electric pencil sharpener... Our manuals have been just eating the pencils... It will make homework pleasant... We have been using pen... I made sausage gravy n' biscuits and chicken enchiladas today... I need to get the laundry moving again...

Tasty Thursday

It's been a while since I shared a recipe and I will share two today to catch up... ::smirk:: First I will update on the days events... We had our monthly pow wow with all of Engineer's service providers... Those who are uninvited were there... When we shared our latest news about the placement you could see the winds were taken right out of their sails... Should be interesting if they continue to harass us as they have been... They are supposed to call to set up an appointment to finally go over paperwork that we should have been given a month ago... Hopefully they will crawl under the rock that they came out from under and leave us alone!!! We set up another meeting with the placement people to talk about who great Engineer is and all his likes... School will also be in attendance to talk about what structure supports they used to help his day run more smoothly... What an exciting time in his life... I picked the boys up from their 2nd day of school... They had another awesome day... TBTG!!! I didn't have staff tonight so I filled our night with the baking of 4-1/2 dozen bars (recipe below) for the Parish bake sale this weekend... I also made from scratch Sloppy Joes (recipe below) to have for dinner Friday and Saturday... I worked on a monthly menu plan... I worked out dinner for August 24th - October 4th... Isn't that awesome? I am trying out several new recipes and will be sharing them... All that's happening with Engineer we will have to make some changes around here... It's also part of my Burn Out repair program... I walked 8 blocks (0.8 miles) today.. It feels good to be walking again... Peanut had her 2nd speech therapy at the new time... It went very well... We will be adjusting the schedule next week due to appointments I can't move... I worked on Engineer's hat a bit... Almost ready to make the brim... Here are the recipes... ENJOY!!!

Caroline's Bars:

2 Eggs
2 C. Sugar (I use cane not beet)
2 C. Creamy Peanut Butter (PB)
1 t. Vanilla
1 bag of your choice of chips... I made one with PB and one with chocolate...

Combine the first 4 ingredients until well blended... Stir in gently the chips... Press into a 9x 13 pan evenly... Bake 20 minutes (watch so they don't burn on the edges) in a 350 degree oven... Cool completely... Cut into bars...

Approx 56 bars (if I cut the pan evenly ::smirk)

Sloppy Joes

2 lbs Hamburger browned, drained
1 Med-Lg Onion, coarsely chopped, sauteed in butter*
2-4 cloves Garlic, pressed*
1 C. Ketchup
3 T. Steak Sauce*
3 T. Brown Sugar
2 T. Mustard
2 T. Cider Vinegar

Place browned meat in crock pot... Add remaining ingredients and stir well till meat is well coated... Add 1/2 - 1 C. of water if needed... Cook on High 1-2 hours or low 2-4 hours... Serve 2-4 T. of Sloppy Joes on Buns with Cheese and Mustard (as desired)...

*Onion, Garlic depend on personally taste as to how much you put in...
* Steak Sauce - Recipe calls for Worcestershire Sauce which we never use so we use Steak Sauce (A1 or Generic)...

ENJOY!

Wee Ones Wednesday

Today was the first day of school... It went great... Everything was remember and on time for both the start and end of the day... Both boys had fabulous first days... I am very pleased... Engineer was picked up for his month psych appointment... It went well also... I cooked a nice breakfast for myself, my husband, peanut and linebacker... We had omelets with shredded cheddar cheese and grilled onions that were leftover from the kabobs when we had steak and a sausage patty... I brought in breakfast from the freezer for tomorrow and Friday... I caught up on the tons of laundry... I even hung out a load on the line to air dry... I need to go and bring that in when I'm done here... I also walked 12 blocks (or 1.2 miles) today... Woo hoo!!! I haven't walked in weeks... I hope to walk another 8 blocks (0.8 miles) tomorrow... Depending on how the meeting goes with the uninvited will probably have an effect on how much I accomplish tomorrow... Hopefully we can put the unwanted in their place... ::scowl:: Off to laundry, work on Engineer's hat and bed...

Frantic Friday

Today I had more then I care to have to do in one day... It started with a 3 hour visit to the ER because Linebacker had a fever of 103... They gave him a Tylenol suppository and sent us home (1:30 AM)... I chatted with my husband about what all we had to do tomorrow and finally fell asleep (2:00)...I woke up after only a few hours of sleep (8:00) to take Monkey to his last day of VBS (9:00) at the Cathedral... I stayed with him while we watched a picture slide show of the children that week participating in various activities... The parents then listened to the children sing a song... Off we ran to the next thing... We then arrived at home to take the van to the mechanic (10:00) to see if he could figure out what was going on with it... It as back home for just a bit then I packed their lunch to drop them off in the drop in child care while my husband and I went to an appointment... Again I was off an running (10:35)... I headed back home to pick up my husband to leave for our appointment (11:30)... We arrived at our appointment (11:50) and it went very well... Back to the mechanic (1:25 PM)... It wouldn't do what it was doing for us so we said we would take it to run errands and bring it back and hopefully it would do it's 'thing'... Picked up Monkey and Peanut {Linebacker stayed w/ us the whole time} (1:50)... Next we headed off to errands... We stopped at 4-5 different places... We went back to the mechanic (3:00)... The van did it's 'thing'... Mechanic dx the problem as the 'crank sensor'... Which since the "geniuses" who designed the thing put it in an awful place would cost us $200... We said ok and left it there to 'fix' itself so we could drive it back home (3:30)... We won't be repairing it for now and will just deal with this latest annoying 'quirk'... We unloaded and worked on dinner... We picked the van back up (5:25) and brought it home... My husband and Peanut went out to run errands while Monkey stayed home to help me out with Linebacker because I had a horrible sinus headache and at that point could barely see... When they came home it was baths (7:00) and all that jazz then off to bed (8:00)...

To Do List Thursday

I had many things on my to do list today... This morning I made garlic mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts in a butter sauce to go with our hamburgers I made last night... I made a few phone calls... My husband had a dental visit (routine check up)... Monkey and Peanut had Speech... I chatted with my neighbor next door... She is 80 this year (born in 1929)... I will be 30 in less then a month... She calls me 'kid' instead of by my name... Always saying how beautiful the children are and that they keep her young... She has 3 grown children and several grandchildren (all school age)... We were talking how Engineer will be in 4th grade this year and Monkey in 1st grade... When we bought the house Engineer was 2 years and 7 months old, Monkey wouldn't arrive for another 5 months, and I had just turned 23... Look how our family has grown! I didn't do any sewing because I'm more tired then I thought I would be... Guess the week is catching up to me... I knitted some more on Peanut's hat... It should be done soon... I then can start working on the boys' hats and then scarves...

We Love Gravy - Wednesday

Ok... I'm stretching my title today... I admit it... However it is very relevant to my activities today... I made Sausage Gravy and Biscuits early in the morning and then I made hamburgers with sauteed onions in a brown gravy for dinner tomorrow... I refilled engineers rx at the pharmacy... Rescheduled the appointment I missed on Monday for next Monday morning... I worked more on Peanut's hat... I fought with my old computer... It doesn't want to accept my camera so I can't download and share PICS... Our new computer has completely died... It won't boot up at all now... It was booting up randomly when I spent 3-8 hours continuously turning it on and off trying to make it work... I made a quilt block for a secret birthday project I'm apart of... I actually made two... One to mail off to be joined with others who are working on the project and one for me to keep... They are only 3" x 3" and 14 pieces... Sooo cute!!! I listened to some great CDs I received in the mail from the Mary Foundation... I received 8 CDs and listen to Scott Hahn's Conversion Story and the Rosary/Divine Mercy Chaplet...

Tasty Tuesday

Today was a typical day... I ran one errand... Peanut had Speech at her new time... We met a good friend and mother of 8 (this includes twins!) at the park... The always constant picking up, vacuuming and laundry... My fun task for the night is cleaning off the desk so we can do drywall work in here... I will post before and after PICs later below the recipes... Thank you for all the replies to yesterdays publishing... Of course back by popular demand... It's Tasty Tuesday... ::smirk:: I guess this weekend I will share my latest version of the very common Mexican Casserole... ENJOY!!!

I modified the recipe to feed many... The recipe says you can make this in one of those tiny round 2 Qt casserole dishes... I expanded it to a 9 x 13 so we have more then a snack from it...

Flour Tortillas (2 pks of 10)
1 Qt. of Refried Beans (I make my own from scratch but you can use a can of the store bought kind)
1 Jar of Salsa
2 lbs of Taco Meat (hamburger w/ taco seasoning {I was out and mixed chili mix in mine})
2 lbs Cheese Shredded (I used mozzarella and colby/jack and medium cheddar {had several open so used it up})

Heat and mix the refried beans and salsa to make it a spreadable mixture... They recommending greasing your pan but I didn't... Who has time for such things... ::wink:: First is a layer of tortillas... Next is half the bean/salsa mixture... Next is a layer of 1/2 the taco meat... Follow that with a layer of 1/3 of the cheese... Repeat... Tortilla, Bean/Salsa, Taco Meat, Cheese... Finish with a layer of Tortillas and Cheese... Bake 25 minutes covered in a 350 degree oven... Remove foil and bake 15 minutes to finish heating it through and brown the cheese a bit on top... Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, olives, sour cream and guacamole as desired...

Computer Desk Before:
::photos appearing soon::
Computer Desk After:

Much Time Away - Monday

I really needed to take some time away... Things have been up and down here... I'm struggling with many things right now... I'm still trying to sort through them... My oldest, monkey and peanut are all done with school... Linebacker had his first birthday and is doing well... He is currently learning to walk while wearing shoes... He has always been barefoot and only walked indoors... Now that the weather is warming up a bit he is spending more time out back and needs the proper foot protection... He really enjoys exploring the backyard... He toddles around and checks every thing out... He recieved a swing for his birthday and he loves swinging with the breeze blowing... My garden hasn't gone so well this year... Linebacker was born mid-gardening season last year... The year ended well but I didn't do any end of the season prep before the snow came... We placed a lock on the gate... We didn't find the key till a week before Memorial day... The key (along with a whole group of others) was lost last Tues and we haven't been able to find it... Right now we have to do decide whether to keep looking for the missing key(s) or just cut the lock off and start over... We also added some 'compost' that wasn't right or something and the soil consistentcy is a mess now... I will probably have to empty each of my boxes completely and start over again... It makes me angry and I haven't even gone at to look at the garden in days... Remember when our kitchen leaked in February and the insurance company refused to do anything about it... We had the roof repaired in May... About 10 days ago or more we put up green board to replace the 'tile' ceiling... We are also in the process of staining our stair railing... The installer left it unfinished... We sanded it down and prepared it for stain... We are now staining it piece by piece... Each spindle has to be removed and stained the put back... We can only do a few at a time... We have 6 done and 6 more to go... We are still working here in the computer room as well with dry walling... We need to sand it down and put another coat of mud on... Hopefully it will be ready for primer then... I'm making a lasagna for a friend today who had surgery today... Today has been a pretty typical day... I picked up my oldest meds from the pharmacy... Stopped at the cathedral and registered for CCD for the fall... I went to the hardware store and picked up some more door keys (the little tuna can lookin' key) and a light bulb for the vent hood over the stove... I picked up the Italian link sausage I forgot yesterday that I need for the lasagna... This was all precedded and followed by the usual laundry, pick up, meals for the children, etc... I'm hoping to be posting regularly again now... I also spoke with a friend about my thoughts on discontinuing homeschooling completely...

Making It On The Homestead - Monday

As many of you may have read on Facebook... I'm offering all my crosses this month (May) and leaning on the strength of the Blessed Mother... Praying for the intersession Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Anne, St. Monica, St. Gianna, my Guardian Angel, St. Micheal the Archangel, and Blessed Kateri to assist me in accomplishing many things as a wife, mother and keeper of my home... Things have improved... I've been focusing on the homestead and not on the world... There are bumps in the road as is expected... Still much room for improvement... Thank you to all of you who prayed for me while I was away... I appreciate that... We are in full swing as far as remodeling 'season' goes... I sanded our banister and it is ready for us to start staining it... The children and I made a fun game of spread the grass seed today to try and recover our snow mashed and flood drowned lawn back to it's former glory... All the dishes were washed and put away... I spent a good part of the day vacuuming and wiping down all surfaces of the 'dust' provided by our sanding job... Several loads of laundry were done and I made a delicious new 'chicken n' biscuits' recipe which I will share on Tasty Tuesday... It's simple and quick! I browsed through the June issue of Martha Steward living... She has a wonderful section on grillin'... The children and I had a wonderful drive singing the Divine Mercy Chaplet and checking out the latest construction projects at the Hour of Mercy (3 PM) this afternoon... I'm instructing yet another FMCHE member in the wonderful art of SFG... I look forward to sharing her 'creation' and mine once I find the key to my garden... ::smirk:: I'm off to continue in my homestead...

Simply Saturday

It's simply another Saturday... Today I've done simply things I would do most any other Saturday... I woke up and fed Linebacker carrots and oatmeal... I sauteed onions in butter and fried up a lb of bacon... I made 6 scrambled eggs and shredded cheese... We had breakfast burritos... These consist of a tortilla filled with breakfast type items... Today ours had scrambled eggs, shredded cheese, onions, a slice or two of bacon and salsa... Roll it up and eat... We also had tater triangles on the side with ketchup... I ate a bowl of strawberries and blueberries while feeding Linebacker... I haven't done so well with drink of water today... I'm in a bad mood again... I did remember to take my vitamin... I fixed the tub faucet after our oldest stripped it by being too rough with it... This required the use of a flat head screw driver, adjustable wrench, and a tiny Allen wrench aka a hex key... Luckily it was the cold water... After I disassembled it and stopped the water I reassembled it and it's working perfectly now... I ate a snack of PB & Banana sandwich... Returned two of my husband's DVDs to the library... Scrubbed blue Xs off the wall my oldest decided to draw all over upstairs... Hopefully the stain of blue crayon left behind on the wood won't show after we stain it... Oldest and his staff finally have his rooms cleaned to our standards... I did a bit of laundry... Wrote a few emails and played a couple computer games... My husband is working so I wasn't out running tons of errands today... We spent the day at home trying to reclaim it from the chaos... It's not really dirty just cluttered up again because of laziness and busyness... I found a neat tool to help me track what I eat My Pyramid Menu Tracker... Today I'm behind on Grains (4 oz) and Veggies (2-1/2 C.)... It recommends for a nursing mother like myself to consume 10 oz of Grains, 3-1/2 C. Veggies, 2-1/2 C. Fruits, 3 C. Milk and 7 oz of Meat & Beans per day... I plan to do it each day for a week and see if I'm consistently behind in a certain group or if it varies and all even out by the end of the week... I'll let you all know...

2nd Lenten Friday - No Meat

I was Thankful for a quiet day today... I had one appointment this morning and was able to be home the rest of the day... I had a choppy nap so I am a bit tired... I'm looking forward to my husband mini vacation when I can have some R & R... I made Shrimp Broccoli Alfredo w/ Bow Tie Pasta today for lunch with my husband... The children and I are having a traditional Lenten meal of Fish and Chips (fries) for dinner... I did do a bit of laundry today just to be caught up for the weekend... We are doing linens during my husband's mini vacation... I dropped my latest Netflix video in the box Monster-In-Law... It was surprisingly different then I thought it would be especially the ending... I would recommend all women who have a Mother-In-Law, are a Mother-In-Law or will some day be a Mother-In-Law to watch it... It does have a few things I generally don't watch in movies and those were same gender relationships (very mild only 'references') and cohabitation/premartial relations... Otherwise a good movie... The rest of the Christy series arrived today so I look forward to watching those and then the 'independent movie spin offs' are next in my queue... I also dropped of a giant stack of DVDs at the library... When I went to renew them online I did so on the wrong day so they were due earlier then our 'usual' weekly library days...

Thankful Thursday

10 Things I'm Especially Thankful This Week

1. Warm Home
2. Functional Auto
3. Indoor Plumbing
4. Modern Medical Care
5. Plenty of Food
6. My Children
7. My Husband
8. Good Friends
9. Ability To Read
10. Religious Freedom

I dropped everyone off and headed to the dentist for visit... My second this week... It went very well... I stopped at Walmart to pick up Monkey's CARS Leapster game but they only had one and it the box was empty... ::frown:: So, I sat for 15 minutes and waited for TRU to open... It was cheaper there because I had coupon but I didn't really have time to wait for them to open... However I guess Walmart made the choice for me... I was about 10 minutes late coming home... I went and picked Peanut up and at a 'snacky' lunch... We had buffalo strips, mozzerella bites, pot stickers, creamed corn, pepperoni/sausage mini pizza and mini chicken egg rolls... We didn't want to fix a 'meal' because we knew we couldn't eat meat tomorrow... I picked up the house and vacuumed... The carpet man came and steamed cleaned the house... Monkey has ST in the kitchen because the carpet man was working where they usually work in the library... We took a quick drive around town while the carpets dried a bit... I didn't have respite because staff was attending a funeral out of town and wasn't unable to come back for their shift... I watched 1/2 a movie and did a ton of laundry... Almost ready for the weekend...

Money Spent - Monday

Today I seemed to writing checks left and right... I walked to boys this morning... I caught a ride back with a friend... I should have dressed better... I thought it was warmer... I was thankful for the WARM ride home... We went and picked up the van... A new radiator, repaired door handle and reattached turn signal/runner light... Peanut didn't have ST because the ST son is ill and didn't go to school today... We will have to reschedule to later in the week or some time next week... Next was the plumber... The tub was draining a bit better then it was a week ago but still wasn't draining like it should... He also unclogged the toilet... The holder did become stuck... He managed to remove 2 of the 3 parts and the 3rd part hopefully managed to go the rest way through the line... We have two plumbing fixtures working at peak performance... He referred us to the estimate department for our vanity... The water doesn't want to come out of the faucet and the drain doesn't want to drain... It seems we will need to replace our galvanized pipe with new modern 'pipe'... We will know more once the estimate team comes out for an inspection... The next check to be written was to the Schwan's man... I paid cash for my order and the stuff my husband and I picked out I wrote a check too... Supposedly there is a joke the Schwan's man is the modern day 'milk man'... I told my husband our Schwan's man was not seen as that way to me... I wanted to mother him versus having a 'crush' on him... We had a good laugh about that... I had a good nap... I picked up the boys and made a drop at the library... We had Chinese stir fry we made last night for dinner... It has steak, pea pods, green beans, peas, carrots, broccoli, green onions, and mushrooms in it with lo mien type noodles... I need to put the troops to sleep... They are resisting... I'm sitting away here just tap tapping on the keyboard...

More of the Same - Monday

The ills seems to be circling our home... I now have a pretty bad cough and sore throat... My nose is either running or I can't breathe... I guess this is round 2! Peanut woke up with what I thought might be a fever... She had ST and then became warmer... I gave her medicine and she has slept most of the day... Hopefully that won't mean she will be up all night... She also has a mild cough... My oldest was sent home from school early... He has an ear infection in his right hear... They also 'cleaned' his ears... He should be able to hear better now and hopefully be in a better mood once the antibiotic kicks in good... Linebacker has an on and off caught and runny nose... Monkey has the occasional runny nose... I hope we are well enough to attend Ash Wednesday Mass this week... I'm glad today isn't Wednesday because I don't feel like going any where but to bed... I did two loads of laundry this morning while Peanut snoozed... I also emptied dishwasher... I made NC Pulled Pork BBCUE in the crock pot (will share recipe on Thursday)... It turned out delicious... We make it on the grill in the warm months and in the crock pot in the cool months... I picked up oldest RX for his ear and a bulletin so I know what's going on at the Parish this week... Completely slipped my mind on yesterday... My oldest went on a road trip with his respite worker... To see the new 'stage' finished... His respite worker is in a band... My oldest helped them build the 'stage'... Praying for a quiet, peaceful night... Hopefully some sleepy medicine and full nights sleep so I can wake up well... I would write about Sunday but I really need to lay down... We did start watching Hancock together... Sad and Funny at the same time... So far pretty good...

Tasty Thursday

I did a load of laundry as soon as I woke up... I dropped off the oldest three... I also made Tasty Mozzarella Chicken before picking Peanut up from school... I took a nice nap and picked up the boys... Monkey had ST... Our Pampered Chef order came in... I talked to several friends about what I will bring with me to soccer... My group is serving the reception after a funeral on Saturday... I won't be able to help in person so I'm making bars... I wasn't able to make them tonight like I had planned... Here is the recipe I promised...

Tasty Mozzarella Chicken

1 egg, beaten
2 T. water
2/3 C. bread crumbs
1 envelope onion soup mix
1/8 t. pepper
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1-1/2 C. spaghetti sauce
8 oz pkg mushrooms, sliced and sauteed or 7 oz can if you like them like that
8 oz block mozzarella cheese, shredded

1. In quart zip lock, place egg and water. In gallon zip lock, combine bread crumbs, soup mix, and pepper. Coat chicken in egg mixture, then shake in crumb mixture till well coated.
2. Place in greased baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
3. Place mushrooms over chicken, pour spaghetti sauce over chicken. Bake another 10-15 minutes until chicken is done and sauce is bubbly. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 5-7 minutes longer until cheese melted.

Wintry - Wednesday

Today was a very Wintry day... It was chilly cold and we had a light dusting of snow... I would go outside and shiver... That rarely happens to me... I dropped the boys off... Peanut had Speech... The phone rings... The voice on the other side "come pick up oldest his nose is running, and he wants to lay down and be wrapped up... he 'might' have a fever"... So, I go and pick him up... I expected him to wreak havoc after we arrived home but he was surprisingly good... I stopped by the auto repair shop so the mechanic could make notes as to what he needed for the radiator replacement... Now he can order the parts... I made Tasty Mozzarella Chicken for lunch... I will post the recipe on Tasty Thursday... I ran out to the library and picked up some videos and books... I picked up a couple cooking magazines for my next cooking inspiration... I picked up Monkey and he had Speech... It's almost dinner time and Linebacker was a bit fussy last night... I'm quite tired today... No nap since oldest was home and despite him feeling a bit under the weather he wasn't interested in taking a nap... Hoping to call it an early night after baths and story time... Hopefully we will sleep better tonight... I think he might be starting to teeth and he does have a cold...