Inspired by Melissa from "Next Food Network Star," who taught us that ratatouille has Eggplant, Zucchini, Peppers, Onion and Tomato (EZ POT) and because we had all but the eggplant ready for harvest in our garden, we (Aaron) made ratatouille last weekend. There was a bunch leftover and we didn't think it would reheat very well, so we pureed it and froze it for future use on pasta. It was quite tasty and I'm looking forward to having a nice sauce, chocked full of veggies for our pasta!!
Now this weekend, we have a bunch of Roma Tomatoes ready along with some carrots, and of course, more zucchini. Aaron's currently roasting everything and then we're going to make more veggie-licious pasta sauce. We'll be set this fall/winter for lots of yummy pasta dishes!!
We'll have even more tomatoes ready in the next few days, so if anyone has a great homemade marinara recipe, please share!!
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Thursday, August 06, 2009
How Naive
I thought this was a big'un... Oh how I was wrong.
Aaron discovered this guy hiding in our broccoli the other day. We're starting to run out of ideas for using fresh veggies (last night we made green bean and zucchini tempura as our side - yummy!!) and freezer space. Oh what a problem to have.Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Hooray for Veggies!!*
Our menu planning has been thrown out the window the last few weeks. We usually do 1 day of grilling, making extras so that we have a few meals throughout the week. We've also depended on the stockpile of freezer meals, so we haven't gone hungry by any standard. However, our meals haven't exactly been well-balanced on a regular basis. But now we're able to harvest from our garden, so that should all change. Tonight, we're having Crock Pot Chicken from the freezer with brown rice AND we're having salads with Bibb Lettuce and Zucchini and Grean Beans straight from the garden!!
Aaron just pointed out a couple little zucchinis to me yesterday, so we didn't think we'd have any ready for another week at least. Then, when I was picking green beans today I noticed this giant and decided it was time to harvest it. I don't know how big they can get, but this one's significantly bigger than any I've ever purchased in stores. We're going to get dozens of zucchinis, so if you have any great recipes or would like any for yourself, let us know!!
Aaron just pointed out a couple little zucchinis to me yesterday, so we didn't think we'd have any ready for another week at least. Then, when I was picking green beans today I noticed this giant and decided it was time to harvest it. I don't know how big they can get, but this one's significantly bigger than any I've ever purchased in stores. We're going to get dozens of zucchinis, so if you have any great recipes or would like any for yourself, let us know!!
*For anyone who's known me longer than a couple years, did you think this phrase would ever come from me?!?
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Home Warranty
We are so thankful we got a home warranty when we purchased our house last year!! Over the winter, we had our water heater replaced for just over $100, to cover the service fee, disposal and a permit from the city. Now, we're having our air conditioner replaced for 1/3 of the normal cost. Again, most of the costs would have been covered, but we decided to upgrade the outdoor unit and replace the indoor part of the unit as well (which is technically still working.)
Our current unit is 35 years old, so "it doesn't owe us anything" according to the repairman. The SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating) on the current unit is a 6. That's assuming that it's actually working at peak performance, which it's obviously not since they're replacing it!! The lowest SEER on currently produced units is 13 and we're upgrading to a 15, so we should save a ton of money on energy costs. The rating basically means that for every watt of energy purchased for the unit you get that number of BTU's out, so we really can say that our new unit will be 2.5 times more efficient.
Our warranty expires on June 23, so if any more of our appliances decide to stop working, hopefully they do so soon!! (And hopefully I haven't just jinxed us!!)
Our current unit is 35 years old, so "it doesn't owe us anything" according to the repairman. The SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating) on the current unit is a 6. That's assuming that it's actually working at peak performance, which it's obviously not since they're replacing it!! The lowest SEER on currently produced units is 13 and we're upgrading to a 15, so we should save a ton of money on energy costs. The rating basically means that for every watt of energy purchased for the unit you get that number of BTU's out, so we really can say that our new unit will be 2.5 times more efficient.
Our warranty expires on June 23, so if any more of our appliances decide to stop working, hopefully they do so soon!! (And hopefully I haven't just jinxed us!!)
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Our Apple Tree
Aaron and I spent about 3 seconds appreciating how pretty our apple tree looks in bloom, before we realized that all those beautiful flowers were going to become apples. Apples that would most likely become bug-infested and fall off the tree. That means that all those flowers are going to become apples that we'll have to pick up from the yard again...
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Yummy Peanut Butter Bars
I came across this recipe the other day and thought I should give it a try. The recipe poster claims that the bars are similar to Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, which I LOVE, and we had all 5 ingredients on hand, so I whipped up a half batch before we headed over to my mom's for dinner. Although I'm not sure if I'd say they're exactly like Reese's PB Cups, they were very tasty, so I thought I'd share.
Combine 1 1/2 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs, 1 lb. Powdered Sugar (about 3-3 1/2 cups), and 1 1/2 cups Peanut Butter and mix well. Blend in 1 cup melted butter until well combined. Press evenly into a 9x13 pan. Melt 12 oz. Chocolate Chips and spread over the top. Chill until the chocolate sets and cut into bars. (They'll be difficult to cut if the chocolate gets really hard.)
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
2+2=??
I'm beginning to seriously question whether or not many adults would be able to solve that little math problem. I know not everyone is good at math, but everyone should be able to handle simple addition and subtraction and I don't think asking that someone be able to multiply or divide simple equations is too out of line. Here are two examples from my last week where simple math was just too much for some cashiers I had to deal with (really?!? These are the people you trust with your money...)
- We were buying seeds, plants and bulbs for our garden over the weekend. They were selling bulk onion bulbs for $2.99/qt. We purchased a half quart and the cashier had to get out a calculator to figure out that she should charge us $1.50. The really sad part, is that she had to try 3 or 4 times before she came up with an answer - so she's apparently not good at math or using a calculator.
- We were at Target last night so I could pick up a maternity tank top and get Chloe a going home outfit (it's adorable, FYI.) I was paying cash with money from our envelopes - yes, Chloe has her own clothing envelope. The total w as $21.14 and I gave the cashier $21.25. I originally gave her $21 and was rooting around, looking for change. The cashier must have entered "21" while I was searching and then "21.25" when I gave her a quarter, so the register saidthat she owed me $2100.11 in change. She knew this wasn't right, asked if the total had been $21.14, which I confirmed, and then gave me $0.09 in change. It was close to dinnertime, and I wasn't feeling super polite, so I didn't say anything and just left two cents short.
Maybe we'll encourage our kids to learn simple math by banning calculators in our house until they start in on calculus.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
I haven't posted our meal plan in a while, but with the impending arrival of BabyMort, I want to make sure we're still sticking to this as much as possible. My temp job ends this week, so I'll have a lot more free time to try out some new recipes and stock up our freezer meals as well. Plus, I think we have a pretty good menu this week, so I wanted to share :-)
Sunday - NY Strip Steak w/ grilled stir-fry veggies and mashed potatoes (the leftover steak will be used for quesadillas for lunches and the leftover potatoes will be used in another recipe later this week)
Monday - Tacos
Tuesday - Pasta w/ marinara sauce with pureed squash and italian sausage (This was a great idea for getting veggies in, posted over on Lovely Ladies Dish on the Dish)
Wednesday - Grilled Burgers w/ grilled asparagus
Thursday - Mexican Pizzas (We're using the leftovers from tacos, but getting a whole different meal out of it. This is something we want to try to do more, so we don't get tired of eating leftovers.)
Friday - Perogy Lasagna (This is my first day of unemployment again, so I thought I'd try out a new recipe. I'm going to make two 8x8's instead of a 9x13 and freeze one.)
Saturday - Frozen Pizza (My baby shower is on Saturday - hooray for great family and friends!! - so we're not really sure how our day will end up and wanted to stick with something easy.)
For more ideas, head over to The Organizing Junkie.
Sunday - NY Strip Steak w/ grilled stir-fry veggies and mashed potatoes (the leftover steak will be used for quesadillas for lunches and the leftover potatoes will be used in another recipe later this week)
Monday - Tacos
Tuesday - Pasta w/ marinara sauce with pureed squash and italian sausage (This was a great idea for getting veggies in, posted over on Lovely Ladies Dish on the Dish)
Wednesday - Grilled Burgers w/ grilled asparagus
Thursday - Mexican Pizzas (We're using the leftovers from tacos, but getting a whole different meal out of it. This is something we want to try to do more, so we don't get tired of eating leftovers.)
Friday - Perogy Lasagna (This is my first day of unemployment again, so I thought I'd try out a new recipe. I'm going to make two 8x8's instead of a 9x13 and freeze one.)
Saturday - Frozen Pizza (My baby shower is on Saturday - hooray for great family and friends!! - so we're not really sure how our day will end up and wanted to stick with something easy.)
For more ideas, head over to The Organizing Junkie.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Three Dogs and A Softie (or 2)
Someone made a comment a few months ago about Nick the dog looking a little chubby. Aaron and I hadn't really noticed it, but then again, we see him every day. Steve the dog still looked fine and Max the dog didn't look any different to us either, so we figured they were doing fine. They all got the same opportunities to eat and exercise, so if the other 2 were fine, then how could Nick be gaining weight??
Fast forward a couple months...Max's owners are in town and stop by the house - immediately commenting on how Max has put on some weight. Really?? We hadn't noticed it... Then we start thinking about how even if Steve had put on weight, we wouldn't be able to tell, because he's so darn furry. And then we discovered that a 55 pound bag of dog food was lasting only 2 weeks. That seemed a little ridiculous. We decided the boys needed to go on a diet.
In comes the softies. Ever since Nick joined the family almost 4 years ago, the dogs have been fed pretty much whenever their bowls were empty, because we never knew which dog(s) had eaten and which hadn't. I didn't want my boys to go hungry and I just kept thinking, how do you limit the amount of food you're giving 3 dogs when you're never sure if they've all eaten??
Then we figured it out. You train them using rewards, just like anything else with a dog. The plan: We'd been given a case of wet dog food by my parents, because Pluto's stomach has gotten sensitive in her old age and it made her sick (which then discovered after buying a whole case of this particular brand.) So, every night when we got home, we'd give each dog 1/3 can of wet food with their dry food so they'd gobble it up. In addition, we'd give them each a cup of food in the morning so they weren't going 24 hours without eating - or at least without the opportunity to eat. Over time, we'd decrease the amount of wet food they were getting until they were just getting dry food, assuming they'd be conditioned to eating at the same time by that point.
We're down to just a few cans of wet food, so we're trying to wean them off. We thought we'd see what they did if we gave them only dry food the other night. And boy did we get our answer - they totally snubbed it!! All 3 looked at us like we were crazy when they realized there was no wet food in their dishes. Then they ate like half their food and walked away.
I haven't decided yet if this means our plan was a failure, they didn't learn anything, or if it means we're still giving them more food than they really need. I can tell you one thing though - Aaron and I will no longer feel guilty, wondering if they've all gotten enough food. They get their chance and it's not our problem if they choose not to eat!!
Fast forward a couple months...Max's owners are in town and stop by the house - immediately commenting on how Max has put on some weight. Really?? We hadn't noticed it... Then we start thinking about how even if Steve had put on weight, we wouldn't be able to tell, because he's so darn furry. And then we discovered that a 55 pound bag of dog food was lasting only 2 weeks. That seemed a little ridiculous. We decided the boys needed to go on a diet.
In comes the softies. Ever since Nick joined the family almost 4 years ago, the dogs have been fed pretty much whenever their bowls were empty, because we never knew which dog(s) had eaten and which hadn't. I didn't want my boys to go hungry and I just kept thinking, how do you limit the amount of food you're giving 3 dogs when you're never sure if they've all eaten??
Then we figured it out. You train them using rewards, just like anything else with a dog. The plan: We'd been given a case of wet dog food by my parents, because Pluto's stomach has gotten sensitive in her old age and it made her sick (which then discovered after buying a whole case of this particular brand.) So, every night when we got home, we'd give each dog 1/3 can of wet food with their dry food so they'd gobble it up. In addition, we'd give them each a cup of food in the morning so they weren't going 24 hours without eating - or at least without the opportunity to eat. Over time, we'd decrease the amount of wet food they were getting until they were just getting dry food, assuming they'd be conditioned to eating at the same time by that point.
We're down to just a few cans of wet food, so we're trying to wean them off. We thought we'd see what they did if we gave them only dry food the other night. And boy did we get our answer - they totally snubbed it!! All 3 looked at us like we were crazy when they realized there was no wet food in their dishes. Then they ate like half their food and walked away.
I haven't decided yet if this means our plan was a failure, they didn't learn anything, or if it means we're still giving them more food than they really need. I can tell you one thing though - Aaron and I will no longer feel guilty, wondering if they've all gotten enough food. They get their chance and it's not our problem if they choose not to eat!!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Stay skinny to go green...??
I saw this article and thought it was interesting. I guess it makes sense since some of the biggest contributing factors to obesity are eating more and exercising less. This means more food production and transportation costs, as well as more transportation costs associated with transporting people more often and heavier people.
I'm always looking for new ways to go green, so I thought I'd share!!
I'm always looking for new ways to go green, so I thought I'd share!!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
The best thing since sliced bread is...
....three-cheese sliced bread from Panera!! Our usual bread is a whole grain, HFCS-free bread by Sara Lee. It became 'our bread' because of those qualities and because we can find it at the bakery outlet and get it for half the grocery store price, which means we don't spend close to 10% of our grocery budget on bread every week.
It's a good bread, but it gets a little tiresome every now and then. And it's not really the right bread for certain things, like french toast. Well, we had Monte Cristos on our dinner menu one night this week, which is basically a ham and cheese, french toast sandwich (I know, not the healthiest choice, but we replaced an egg with 2 egg whites we had in the freezer...) So, since we've been doing really well with our grocery budget lately, coming in under budget every week, we decided to splurge (but not go over budget!!) on some 'fancy bread' this week.
It's a good bread, but it gets a little tiresome every now and then. And it's not really the right bread for certain things, like french toast. Well, we had Monte Cristos on our dinner menu one night this week, which is basically a ham and cheese, french toast sandwich (I know, not the healthiest choice, but we replaced an egg with 2 egg whites we had in the freezer...) So, since we've been doing really well with our grocery budget lately, coming in under budget every week, we decided to splurge (but not go over budget!!) on some 'fancy bread' this week.
That's where the Three-Cheese bread from Panera comes in. It is very tasty and HFCS-free (actually free of any sweetener) although not whole grain, but that's fine by me since it's not all-the-time bread. We've used it in our Monte Cristos, as a breakfast bread with an egg scramble on top and for cold ham and cheese sandwich. I can't decide if we should eat the rest or freeze it so we can enjoy it sometime down the road...
If you told me a few years ago that I'd be this excited about a loaf of bread, I'd call you crazy. But I'm really happy for us that we've been able to stick to this grocery budget and even work in ways to 'splurge' every now and then. And it's just plain tasty :-D
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
A Tried and True Argument: Leaving the Toilet Seat Up
Aaron leaving the toilet seat up has never been something that bothered me. I think part of the reason is that I haven't really had to deal with someone who leaves the seat up on a regular basis. I know that when we only had 1 bathroom, the seat would get left up occasionally, but it was the exception, not the norm. Now that we have 2 bathrooms, I think his seat is up all the time, but it doesn't effect me!!
I've discovered over the last few weeks why this might be an annoying habit though. I work in an office that usually just has another female and 2 males working. There's 1 bathroom in the office (which presents it's own unique challenges for a pregnant woman who seems to have to pee all the time!!) and I swear that 75% of the time when I go in there, the toilet seat is up. I despise having to touch it to put it back down.
Maybe no one else has really thought about this, but what do you think about the age-old toilet seat argument??
I've discovered over the last few weeks why this might be an annoying habit though. I work in an office that usually just has another female and 2 males working. There's 1 bathroom in the office (which presents it's own unique challenges for a pregnant woman who seems to have to pee all the time!!) and I swear that 75% of the time when I go in there, the toilet seat is up. I despise having to touch it to put it back down.But, then I think about a possible alternative. What if they didn't put it up in the first place?? The possible mess there just grosses me out even more. And I suppose there's this argument as well...
Maybe no one else has really thought about this, but what do you think about the age-old toilet seat argument??
Monday, March 09, 2009
"Mortology"
Let others know a little more about yourself, re-post this as your name followed by "ology"
***********FOODOLOGY***************
What is your salad dressing of choice? French - boring, I know.
What is your favorite sit-down restaurant? Carlos O' Kelly's, Cheesecake Factory
What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of? Chips & Queso
What are your pizza toppings of choice? Italian Sausage and Zucchini
What do you like to put on your toast? Peanut Butter or Cinnamon & Sugar
Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate for sure!!
***********TECHNOLOGY***************
How many televisions are in your house?3.
What color cell phone do you have? Pearl (fancy name for shiny white)
Do you have a laptop? Yup - it's our only computer.
***************BIOLOGY******************
Are you right-handed or left-handed? I'm right-handed.
Have you ever had anything removed from your body? A few teeth...
What is the last heavy item you lifted? Nothing too heavy recently...probably a gallon of paint.
Have you ever been knocked unconscious? Nope.
************BULLCRAPOLOGY**************
If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die? No way.
If you could change your name, what would you change it to? I wouldn't. Even if I do have a horribly to pronounce and spell name, I like it :-D
Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000? I don't think so. I don't really do spicy.
************DUMBOLOGY******************
How many pairs of flip flops do you own? A few - I'm too lazy to go upstairs and count.
Last time you had a run-in with the cops? Haven't had one.
Last person you talked to on the phone? Someone who called in at work.
Last person you hugged? My hubby.
**************FAVORITEOLOGY****************
Season? Spring.
Holiday? Thanksgiving, Christmas.
Day of the week? Saturday. I get to sleep in and snuggle.
Month? Either June or October.
***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************
Missing someone? Yeah, it's been too long since I saw a few of my friends.
Mood? Content.
What are you listening to? The TV and the 'whir' of the exercise bike.
Watching? Nothing really - "Rules of Engagement" is on, but I'm not paying attention.
Worrying about? Finances.
***************RANDOMOLOGY****************
First place you went this morning? To the bathroom.
What's the last movie you saw? Some weird movie about summer camp.
Sleeping Alone Tonight? Nope - I'll have Aaron on one side and my snoogle on the other.
Do you always answer your phone? If I'm available when it rings....
Its four in the morning and you get a call, who is it? Better be somebody with an emergency!!
If you could change your eye color what would it be? I wouldn't.
What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic? I don't eat there...
Do you own a digital camera? Yes.
Have you ever had a pet fish? Yes. Several, but cleaning the aquarium wasn't really my thing.
What's on your wish list for your birthday? A great weekend away with my husband and daughter.
Can you do push ups? I used to be able to do a couple...but it's been a while.
Can you do a chin up? No.
Does the future make you more nervous or excited? Definitely a lot of both.
Do you have any saved texts? Nope.
Ever been in a car wreck? Nothing too bad.
Do you have an accent? I sound normal to me....
What is the last song to make you tear up? Actual tears...it was a father-daughter dance at a wedding a couple years ago.
Plans tonight? It's tonight already. I plan on watching "Medium" and going to bed.
Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom? Not really.
Name 3 things you bought yesterday. Nothing - we didn't leave the house.
Have you ever been given roses? Yes.
Current hate right now? Uncertainty about my job status and my constant craving for junk food.
Met someone who changed your life? Of course.
How did you bring in the New Year?Playing the Wii at my in-laws!!!
Would you go back in time if you were given the chance? Maybe, but the whole "butterfly effect" idea freaks me out.
Have you ever dated someone longer than a year? Yup - then I married him.
Do you have any tattoos/piercings? I have one tattoo and I used to have a belly button ring, but I took it out.
Does anyone love you? Shyeah!!! I'm very lovable :-D
What songs do you sing in the shower? I'm usually just trying to stay awake.
Ever had someone sing to you? Yes.
Do you like to cuddle? Uh, yeah - who doesn't??
Have you held hands with anyone today? Yes.
Who was the last person you took a picture of? I think of myself with the self-timer.
What kind of music did you listen to in elementary school? Ace of Base was my first CD...and the Grease soundtrack!!
Are most of the friends in your life new or old? New-ish.
Do you like pulpy orange juice? I'm not a fan of citrus-ey juices.
What is something your friends make fun of you for? I don't know - they're nice enough not to do it to my face.
Have you ever ridden an elephant? No, my life is rough.
Do you like to play Scrabble? Sometimes.
What are you saving your money up for right now? Chloe and possible unemployment.
When is the last time you ate peanut butter and jelly? It's been a while. We go the peanut butter and honey route lately.
What were you doing 12 AM last night? Finally sleeping.
What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? For seriously?!? It can't possibly be time to get up!!
***********FOODOLOGY***************
What is your salad dressing of choice? French - boring, I know.
What is your favorite sit-down restaurant? Carlos O' Kelly's, Cheesecake Factory
What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of? Chips & Queso
What are your pizza toppings of choice? Italian Sausage and Zucchini
What do you like to put on your toast? Peanut Butter or Cinnamon & Sugar
Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate for sure!!
***********TECHNOLOGY***************
How many televisions are in your house?3.
What color cell phone do you have? Pearl (fancy name for shiny white)
Do you have a laptop? Yup - it's our only computer.
***************BIOLOGY******************
Are you right-handed or left-handed? I'm right-handed.
Have you ever had anything removed from your body? A few teeth...
What is the last heavy item you lifted? Nothing too heavy recently...probably a gallon of paint.
Have you ever been knocked unconscious? Nope.
************BULLCRAPOLOGY**************
If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die? No way.
If you could change your name, what would you change it to? I wouldn't. Even if I do have a horribly to pronounce and spell name, I like it :-D
Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000? I don't think so. I don't really do spicy.
************DUMBOLOGY******************
How many pairs of flip flops do you own? A few - I'm too lazy to go upstairs and count.
Last time you had a run-in with the cops? Haven't had one.
Last person you talked to on the phone? Someone who called in at work.
Last person you hugged? My hubby.
**************FAVORITEOLOGY****************
Season? Spring.
Holiday? Thanksgiving, Christmas.
Day of the week? Saturday. I get to sleep in and snuggle.
Month? Either June or October.
***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************
Missing someone? Yeah, it's been too long since I saw a few of my friends.
Mood? Content.
What are you listening to? The TV and the 'whir' of the exercise bike.
Watching? Nothing really - "Rules of Engagement" is on, but I'm not paying attention.
Worrying about? Finances.
***************RANDOMOLOGY****************
First place you went this morning? To the bathroom.
What's the last movie you saw? Some weird movie about summer camp.
Sleeping Alone Tonight? Nope - I'll have Aaron on one side and my snoogle on the other.
Do you always answer your phone? If I'm available when it rings....
Its four in the morning and you get a call, who is it? Better be somebody with an emergency!!
If you could change your eye color what would it be? I wouldn't.
What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic? I don't eat there...
Do you own a digital camera? Yes.
Have you ever had a pet fish? Yes. Several, but cleaning the aquarium wasn't really my thing.
What's on your wish list for your birthday? A great weekend away with my husband and daughter.
Can you do push ups? I used to be able to do a couple...but it's been a while.
Can you do a chin up? No.
Does the future make you more nervous or excited? Definitely a lot of both.
Do you have any saved texts? Nope.
Ever been in a car wreck? Nothing too bad.
Do you have an accent? I sound normal to me....
What is the last song to make you tear up? Actual tears...it was a father-daughter dance at a wedding a couple years ago.
Plans tonight? It's tonight already. I plan on watching "Medium" and going to bed.
Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom? Not really.
Name 3 things you bought yesterday. Nothing - we didn't leave the house.
Have you ever been given roses? Yes.
Current hate right now? Uncertainty about my job status and my constant craving for junk food.
Met someone who changed your life? Of course.
How did you bring in the New Year?Playing the Wii at my in-laws!!!
Would you go back in time if you were given the chance? Maybe, but the whole "butterfly effect" idea freaks me out.
Have you ever dated someone longer than a year? Yup - then I married him.
Do you have any tattoos/piercings? I have one tattoo and I used to have a belly button ring, but I took it out.
Does anyone love you? Shyeah!!! I'm very lovable :-D
What songs do you sing in the shower? I'm usually just trying to stay awake.
Ever had someone sing to you? Yes.
Do you like to cuddle? Uh, yeah - who doesn't??
Have you held hands with anyone today? Yes.
Who was the last person you took a picture of? I think of myself with the self-timer.
What kind of music did you listen to in elementary school? Ace of Base was my first CD...and the Grease soundtrack!!
Are most of the friends in your life new or old? New-ish.
Do you like pulpy orange juice? I'm not a fan of citrus-ey juices.
What is something your friends make fun of you for? I don't know - they're nice enough not to do it to my face.
Have you ever ridden an elephant? No, my life is rough.
Do you like to play Scrabble? Sometimes.
What are you saving your money up for right now? Chloe and possible unemployment.
When is the last time you ate peanut butter and jelly? It's been a while. We go the peanut butter and honey route lately.
What were you doing 12 AM last night? Finally sleeping.
What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? For seriously?!? It can't possibly be time to get up!!
Monday, March 02, 2009
Frugal is my (our) middle name!!
I've always liked being able to find a good deal. And if I can save money, sign me up!! I'm always trying to come up with ideas to save a little here and spend less there. Sometimes, it takes my lovely husband a while to warm up to my ideas, but he's usually pleased with the end result. Here are a few of our latest money-saving adventures.
--We're going to make our own laundry detergent. After a lot of research, we've decided to use the Duggar's recipe. There are only 4 ingredients - water, borax, washing soda and bar soap. We were able to buy everything below for less than $10 and we can make many, many batches of laundry detergent from what we bought.
I think the cost for the portion of ingredients needed to make 1 batch (10 gallons) is ~$2. According to the recipe, we should get about 640 loads of detergent, which means each load only costs about $0.03. Currently, we use the All Free & Clear concentrated HE detergent. A bottle that claims to have enough for 32 loads costs around $7.99, which works out to $0.25 a load. Although $0.22 might not seem like much, if we average 10 loads a week after Chloe arrives (I'm not sure how many we'll need to do since we're cloth diapering...) that's a savings of $2.20 a week and $114 a year. That's pretty good!!
And...if we do average 10 loads a week and 1 batch of detergent has 640 loads, then it'll be more than a year between making detergent, so the time investment is pretty much negligble. In addition, homemade detergent has fewer chemicals so it's not as hard on your clothes or as harmful to the environment. Bonus!!
--We like it when we can be frugal and green at the same time. Along the same path, we like it when we can eat healthier and save money. One of the biggest things we're trying to do to eat healthier is just knowing what we're putting into our bodies and avoiding unnecessary sugars, preservatives, etc... A few months ago, we made our own vegetable stock. We threw all the ends of onions, skins from carrots, brocolli stalks, etc... into a Ziploc bag and kept it in the freezer until we had enough. Then we froze the stock after we made it and pulled it out as needed to make soup this winter. After seeing a great deal on whole chickens at Hy-Vee, we decided to try the same thing - making chicken stock. We didn't have an immediate need for the amount of meat we'd get from the chickens though, so we shredded it and froze in usable portions.
We ended up getting 10 12oz. portions of shredded chicken and 2 quarts of chicken stock. A 12 oz. can of shredded chicken costs $2.18 and a quart of chicken stock is $2.89, totalling $27.58. We spent almost exactly $7 on the 2 chickens, which means we saved over $20!! Our total time investment was probably about an hour - and $20 for an hours time isn't too shabby in my opinion.
--We're going to make our own laundry detergent. After a lot of research, we've decided to use the Duggar's recipe. There are only 4 ingredients - water, borax, washing soda and bar soap. We were able to buy everything below for less than $10 and we can make many, many batches of laundry detergent from what we bought.
I think the cost for the portion of ingredients needed to make 1 batch (10 gallons) is ~$2. According to the recipe, we should get about 640 loads of detergent, which means each load only costs about $0.03. Currently, we use the All Free & Clear concentrated HE detergent. A bottle that claims to have enough for 32 loads costs around $7.99, which works out to $0.25 a load. Although $0.22 might not seem like much, if we average 10 loads a week after Chloe arrives (I'm not sure how many we'll need to do since we're cloth diapering...) that's a savings of $2.20 a week and $114 a year. That's pretty good!!
And...if we do average 10 loads a week and 1 batch of detergent has 640 loads, then it'll be more than a year between making detergent, so the time investment is pretty much negligble. In addition, homemade detergent has fewer chemicals so it's not as hard on your clothes or as harmful to the environment. Bonus!!
--We like it when we can be frugal and green at the same time. Along the same path, we like it when we can eat healthier and save money. One of the biggest things we're trying to do to eat healthier is just knowing what we're putting into our bodies and avoiding unnecessary sugars, preservatives, etc... A few months ago, we made our own vegetable stock. We threw all the ends of onions, skins from carrots, brocolli stalks, etc... into a Ziploc bag and kept it in the freezer until we had enough. Then we froze the stock after we made it and pulled it out as needed to make soup this winter. After seeing a great deal on whole chickens at Hy-Vee, we decided to try the same thing - making chicken stock. We didn't have an immediate need for the amount of meat we'd get from the chickens though, so we shredded it and froze in usable portions.
We ended up getting 10 12oz. portions of shredded chicken and 2 quarts of chicken stock. A 12 oz. can of shredded chicken costs $2.18 and a quart of chicken stock is $2.89, totalling $27.58. We spent almost exactly $7 on the 2 chickens, which means we saved over $20!! Our total time investment was probably about an hour - and $20 for an hours time isn't too shabby in my opinion.--Then there are times when the only way we can spend money, is to try to save some in the process. (I'm not sure if that'll make sense to anyone but me!!) We've been wanting a new bed for a while now. Our bed is over 20 years old and only a full. The size didn't bother us too much until I got pregnant and started having trouble sleeping, which meant lots of tossing and turning, and then the addition of a very large pregnancy pillow. Apparently, the pillow and I don't leave a lot of room for Aaron...
We decided to use some of our tax return to buy a Queen size bed. Aaron did a lot of reading online and decided a Memory Foam mattress would be the way to go. We still had a definite budget to stick to, and we couldn't get the mattress we wanted and a box spring. So my handy husband built us a platform!! We were able to get some 2x4's leftover from another project (thanks Steven!!) We had to buy a couple pieces of plywood, which cost $68. The cheapest box spring we found anywhere was $200, so that's a $140 savings!!
And...thanks to my husband making smart cuts, we'll be able to use the scraps to make a couple shelves for our office. So chalk up another one for the frugal Mortvedt's!!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Yummy!!
We've been trying to use at least 1 new recipe a week from Recipezaar - one that we found either from Gayle at the Grocery Cart Challenge, assuming it will be fairly cheap, or one that I found while searching around through popular recipes. Well, this week's recipe, Crock Pot Chicken, was a hit!! It was super simple to make, not horrible on the nutrition scale, makes a ton and it's pretty versatile.
Aaron came home for lunch and threw the chicken breasts, salsa, black beans and corn in the crock pot on high. When we came home from work, we threw the cream cheese on, turned it to low, and took a walk for 45 minutes. When we came home, we realized the chicken was really 'fally-aparty' (a very technical term) so we shredded the chicken, stirred everything together and threw some rice in the steamer. We ate the chicken mixture over rice and it was very tasty!!
After we ate, there was still about 6 cups of the mixture left, so we froze half of it and kept the other half out for another dinner and a lunch. Others who have reviewed the recipe have suggested using the leftovers to make wraps, which we might try out with what we froze. (We don't currently have tortillas or have any need for them for any upcoming recipes.)
Next time we make this, I think we might try using less chicken, doubling the black beans and corn and using the fat-free cream cheese (we used 1/3 less fat this time). We weren't really sure how the cream cheese was incorporated or how the fat-free would work out texture wise, but since we just mixed everything together, there's no reason not to use the fat-free.
Aaron came home for lunch and threw the chicken breasts, salsa, black beans and corn in the crock pot on high. When we came home from work, we threw the cream cheese on, turned it to low, and took a walk for 45 minutes. When we came home, we realized the chicken was really 'fally-aparty' (a very technical term) so we shredded the chicken, stirred everything together and threw some rice in the steamer. We ate the chicken mixture over rice and it was very tasty!!
After we ate, there was still about 6 cups of the mixture left, so we froze half of it and kept the other half out for another dinner and a lunch. Others who have reviewed the recipe have suggested using the leftovers to make wraps, which we might try out with what we froze. (We don't currently have tortillas or have any need for them for any upcoming recipes.)
Next time we make this, I think we might try using less chicken, doubling the black beans and corn and using the fat-free cream cheese (we used 1/3 less fat this time). We weren't really sure how the cream cheese was incorporated or how the fat-free would work out texture wise, but since we just mixed everything together, there's no reason not to use the fat-free.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Blame the Dog - for seriously!!
I'm sure I'll be sharing baby poop stories soon. For now, just a dog poop story.
When I let Steve the dog out of his cage on Monday night, he'd left a little 'surprise' for me. I could tell he must have an upset stomach, because it was totally unlike him to go to the bathroom in his cage.
Then all night last night, Tuesday, you could hear his stomach growling and gurgling from across the room so we could tell things still weren't right. We gave him a Pepto Bismol pill and he seemed to quiet down a little.
Tonight, Aaron let him out of his cage. I could hear some cries of disgust coming from their room, so after I let the boys outside, I asked if everything was okay. Aaron said everything was clear, but their room was stink-tastic. We thought one of them must just be gassy, as they often are, which is why we commonly "Blame the Dog." Then Aaron let the dogs in and I almost fell over from the stink. I'll just say 2 things - Steve has longer-ish hair and he must have gone #2 before we left for work today. So...the stink had been literally been hanging around with him all day.
Aaron gave him a bath, was truly grateful that we put in a fancy shower head with a hose, and Steve is no longer stinky. The entire basement still stinks though...hopefully the Febreze Air Freshener kicks in soon!! And I'll love our daughter no matter what, but I hope she's not as stinky as the dogs...
When I let Steve the dog out of his cage on Monday night, he'd left a little 'surprise' for me. I could tell he must have an upset stomach, because it was totally unlike him to go to the bathroom in his cage.
Then all night last night, Tuesday, you could hear his stomach growling and gurgling from across the room so we could tell things still weren't right. We gave him a Pepto Bismol pill and he seemed to quiet down a little.
Tonight, Aaron let him out of his cage. I could hear some cries of disgust coming from their room, so after I let the boys outside, I asked if everything was okay. Aaron said everything was clear, but their room was stink-tastic. We thought one of them must just be gassy, as they often are, which is why we commonly "Blame the Dog." Then Aaron let the dogs in and I almost fell over from the stink. I'll just say 2 things - Steve has longer-ish hair and he must have gone #2 before we left for work today. So...the stink had been literally been hanging around with him all day.
Aaron gave him a bath, was truly grateful that we put in a fancy shower head with a hose, and Steve is no longer stinky. The entire basement still stinks though...hopefully the Febreze Air Freshener kicks in soon!! And I'll love our daughter no matter what, but I hope she's not as stinky as the dogs...
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
25 things about the two of us
This is kind of like the 25 things from Facebook - except there are pre-decided questions and it's about you and your spouse. Come on, play along - inquiring minds want to know!
♥ What are your middle names? Michael and JaDeane
♥ How long have you been together? About 4 1/2, married for 2 1/2.
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? About 8 months - we spent pretty much every Saturday together at work.
♥ Who asked who out? Aaron asked me over as friends, but then tricked me and romanced me - it was a date by the end of dinner :-D
♥ How old are each of you? I'm 23 and he's 36.
♥ Whose siblings do/did you see the most? My older brother lives in town, but we probably see his sister almost as much.
♥ Any pets? We have our 2 boys, Steve and Nick, and their 'cousin' Max lives with us right now too.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Finances - Chloe will be here in a couple months and I'm basically unemployed. Not how we planned it!!
♥ Did you go to the same school? No, which is good, because he graduated when I was in kindergarten and that's just weird to think about!!
♥ Are you from the same home town? Nope.
♥ Who is the smartest? Well, I'm always right (hee-hee) but he did score a point higher on his ACT's.
♥ Who is the most sensitive? We deal with our emotions differently, and I'm definitely more vocal about my emotions.
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? We don't go out much, but when we do, there's a good chance it's Panchero's.
♥ Who has the worst temper? Again, we deal with it differently.
♥ Who does the cooking? Well, since Aaron doesn't like Hamburger Helper or Chicken Patties every night, he does!!
♥ Who is more social? Probably me.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? Neither of us are really neat freaks. I'm more of an organizer than he is though.
♥ Who is the more stubborn? Ooh...that's tough. Probably me.
♥ Who hogs the bed? Currently, I do. Me and my Snoogle take up a lot of space. I've promised Aaron a bigger job if/when I'm gainfully employed again!!
♥ Who wakes up earlier? We get up at the same time for work, but I'm a better "sleeper-inner" on weekends.
♥ Where was your first date? At his house. He made me dinner, charmed me with his dog, and we watched "Finding Nemo" together.
♥ Who has the bigger family? We each have 2 siblings, but both my immediate family and extended family are bigger, I think.
♥ Do you get flowers often? No, but he does send me flowers occasionally and it's always a nice surprise!!
♥ How do you spend the holidays? With our families. We're lucky to have them all nearby, so we don't have to decide.
♥ Who eats more? We're about same-same right now, but it used to be Aaron.
♥ Who does/did the laundry? We both do.
♥ Who drives when you are together? 99% of the time it's Aaron.
♥ What are your middle names? Michael and JaDeane
♥ How long have you been together? About 4 1/2, married for 2 1/2.
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? About 8 months - we spent pretty much every Saturday together at work.
♥ Who asked who out? Aaron asked me over as friends, but then tricked me and romanced me - it was a date by the end of dinner :-D
♥ How old are each of you? I'm 23 and he's 36.
♥ Whose siblings do/did you see the most? My older brother lives in town, but we probably see his sister almost as much.
♥ Any pets? We have our 2 boys, Steve and Nick, and their 'cousin' Max lives with us right now too.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Finances - Chloe will be here in a couple months and I'm basically unemployed. Not how we planned it!!
♥ Did you go to the same school? No, which is good, because he graduated when I was in kindergarten and that's just weird to think about!!
♥ Are you from the same home town? Nope.
♥ Who is the smartest? Well, I'm always right (hee-hee) but he did score a point higher on his ACT's.
♥ Who is the most sensitive? We deal with our emotions differently, and I'm definitely more vocal about my emotions.
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? We don't go out much, but when we do, there's a good chance it's Panchero's.
♥ Who has the worst temper? Again, we deal with it differently.
♥ Who does the cooking? Well, since Aaron doesn't like Hamburger Helper or Chicken Patties every night, he does!!
♥ Who is more social? Probably me.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? Neither of us are really neat freaks. I'm more of an organizer than he is though.
♥ Who is the more stubborn? Ooh...that's tough. Probably me.
♥ Who hogs the bed? Currently, I do. Me and my Snoogle take up a lot of space. I've promised Aaron a bigger job if/when I'm gainfully employed again!!
♥ Who wakes up earlier? We get up at the same time for work, but I'm a better "sleeper-inner" on weekends.
♥ Where was your first date? At his house. He made me dinner, charmed me with his dog, and we watched "Finding Nemo" together.
♥ Who has the bigger family? We each have 2 siblings, but both my immediate family and extended family are bigger, I think.
♥ Do you get flowers often? No, but he does send me flowers occasionally and it's always a nice surprise!!
♥ How do you spend the holidays? With our families. We're lucky to have them all nearby, so we don't have to decide.
♥ Who eats more? We're about same-same right now, but it used to be Aaron.
♥ Who does/did the laundry? We both do.
♥ Who drives when you are together? 99% of the time it's Aaron.
Monday, February 02, 2009
We've lived here how long?!?
For whatever reason, Aaron and I are both into light fixtures - they were the first thing we changed out when we moved in. Our bedroom just had a cheap $5 light fixture and we decided to change it out for a ceiling fan. It came with a remote, which we thought was fantastic, and were happy that we could change the fan speed in the middle of the night without getting out of bed. But...the light was super dim. It uses a halogen, so we tried buying a new bulb to see if it would improve. It didn't. We had accepted the lack of lighting and were thinking about putting some track lighting in/by our closet so we could at least see our clothes.
Saturday, we were looking at light fixture for Chloe's room. Again, there's just a cheap $5 fixture and we want to put a ceiling fan in. Right now, the light is on a dimmer switch and we like the idea of having a 'dim-able' light for middle of the night feedings and diaper changes. While looking for a ceiling fan where the light could be dimmed, we discovered that a remote just like the one with our ceiling fan can dim the lights. We thought, Wierd, wonder if our remote does this somehow?!? We got home and did a little experimenting. Turns out, if you hold the light button down, it changes the intensity of the light!! We felt a little silly that we'd had this fixture for ~7 months and just discovered this, but there wasn't anything in the manual about it, so we were just thankful to have finally found out!!
Then came Sunday... I was wiping down all the cabinets in the kitchen. Next to the oven, there's a plain wood panel that's maybe 4-5 inches wide. As I was wiping it down, it seemed like it was really loose, so I pulled on the bottom just to see how loose it was. To my surprise, it pulled out completely. It wasn't just a panel between the oven and our lazy susan, it's a drawer!! It has 3 shelves that are wide enough and tall enough to hold, for example, a box of Mac & Cheese.
How crazy - we discovered a new-and-improved light in our bedroom and another cabinet/drawer in our kitchen within 24 hours after living here for over 7 months!!
Saturday, we were looking at light fixture for Chloe's room. Again, there's just a cheap $5 fixture and we want to put a ceiling fan in. Right now, the light is on a dimmer switch and we like the idea of having a 'dim-able' light for middle of the night feedings and diaper changes. While looking for a ceiling fan where the light could be dimmed, we discovered that a remote just like the one with our ceiling fan can dim the lights. We thought, Wierd, wonder if our remote does this somehow?!? We got home and did a little experimenting. Turns out, if you hold the light button down, it changes the intensity of the light!! We felt a little silly that we'd had this fixture for ~7 months and just discovered this, but there wasn't anything in the manual about it, so we were just thankful to have finally found out!!
Then came Sunday... I was wiping down all the cabinets in the kitchen. Next to the oven, there's a plain wood panel that's maybe 4-5 inches wide. As I was wiping it down, it seemed like it was really loose, so I pulled on the bottom just to see how loose it was. To my surprise, it pulled out completely. It wasn't just a panel between the oven and our lazy susan, it's a drawer!! It has 3 shelves that are wide enough and tall enough to hold, for example, a box of Mac & Cheese.
How crazy - we discovered a new-and-improved light in our bedroom and another cabinet/drawer in our kitchen within 24 hours after living here for over 7 months!!
Monday, January 26, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
Last week's menu had a couple great new recipes in it. The White Chicken Chili and Nacho Casserole were both fantastic!! The Manicotti was good the first night, but didn't reheat very well. This week we tried to plan our menu around things that were on sale and did really well with our grocery budget. Here's what we have planned:
Monday - Quiche based on this recipe
Tuesday - Shrimp Scampi w/ veggies
Wednesday - Leftover Nacho Casserole
Thursday - Jumbalaya w/ corn muffins
Friday - Homemade Pizza
Saturday - Salmon w/ yukon gold potatoes and veggies
Sunday - We're taking Queso Dip to a Super Bowl Party.
For more ideas, visit the Organizing Junkie.
Monday - Quiche based on this recipe
Tuesday - Shrimp Scampi w/ veggies
Wednesday - Leftover Nacho Casserole
Thursday - Jumbalaya w/ corn muffins
Friday - Homemade Pizza
Saturday - Salmon w/ yukon gold potatoes and veggies
Sunday - We're taking Queso Dip to a Super Bowl Party.
For more ideas, visit the Organizing Junkie.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Week #1
So I had my first week of unemployement and abundant free time. I feel like I managed to stay fairly productive - and even took a shower every day!! Here's what I got done:
I also did a bunch of laundry, kept up on the dishes and made dinner every night (things my wonderful hubby normally did the bulk of.) I spent a few hours hanging out with a friend's baby so she could get some errands run, had a nice long phone conversation with a few friends, deep cleaned our stove, brushed out the dogs and vacuumed the basement. On the less productive front, I also watched 4 episodes of "Private Practice" and read a couple novels. And unfortunately, I spent 2 days cleaning up after a sick dog (as much as it sucked, we were sort of glad he wasn't stuck in his cage all day.)
It looks like I have plenty of things left on the list that I didn't get to this week that should keep me busy next week. And I'm sure I'll find plenty of things to keep me busy that aren't on the list.
- Research and apply for every possible legitimate job opportunity. (The Obvious) I didn't find any new jobs to apply for, but I did have one interview and a proficiency test for another position.
- Have lunch with my friend Becky, without looking at the clock even once to see if I need to hurry back to work.
- Go to the chiropractor. My hips have been out of alignment for weeks, but I've been putting it off, knowing I'd have lots of free time coming up.
- Make bread. We've tried making bread twice this week with our bread machine, and it's turned out funky. We can't tell if it's because we're using the delay setting or if something's wrong with it. I made bread on the Express setting and it worked. I still have to test the regular setting.
- Find the ingredients for and make homemade laundry detergent. I've checked 3 stores and haven't been able to find Washing Soda yet, so I'm still on the hunt.
- Get a book from the library on the Bradley Birthing Method and other natural birthing techniques and start loading up on info. I also got a couple books on eating well during pregnancy - I'm hoping to find some inspiration in recipes and snack ideas.
- Perfect my Wii Bowling and attempt to get my first Turkey.
- Go through what has become the junk bedroom and figure out what we're keeping, what we can sell, give away or throw away. Then, organize the rest!!
- List a bunch of stuff on Craigslist.
- Finish and send out our holiday cards. Better late than never, right??
- Put away the remaining Christmas decorations. Sorry love!!
- Attempt to invent "the next big thing" so we never have to worry about money again.
I also did a bunch of laundry, kept up on the dishes and made dinner every night (things my wonderful hubby normally did the bulk of.) I spent a few hours hanging out with a friend's baby so she could get some errands run, had a nice long phone conversation with a few friends, deep cleaned our stove, brushed out the dogs and vacuumed the basement. On the less productive front, I also watched 4 episodes of "Private Practice" and read a couple novels. And unfortunately, I spent 2 days cleaning up after a sick dog (as much as it sucked, we were sort of glad he wasn't stuck in his cage all day.)
It looks like I have plenty of things left on the list that I didn't get to this week that should keep me busy next week. And I'm sure I'll find plenty of things to keep me busy that aren't on the list.
Friday, January 23, 2009
A Perfect Thursday
This is what a great Thursday night looks like - my fantastic cousin, Bethany, a couple of cuddling dogs and a new Grey's Anatomy. To make it even better, my wonderful hubby was nearby, we had a warm, toasty fire and the White Chicken Chili and bread I made for dinner turned out great.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
We're trying out some new recipes this week, enjoying some leftovers and dinners with family and friends. To see what others are doing, head over to The Organizing Junkie.
Here's our plan for the week:
Nacho Casserole
3/4 cup dry lentils
3/4 cup dry brown rice
4 cups water
4 beef bouillon cubes (or chicken, vegetable)
4 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup sour cream ( I use fat free)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 can sliced olives
Fresh diced tomatoes
diced onion (optional)
Corn chips
1. Dump first 8 ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn down to simmer and cook covered until rice is done., stirring every 5 minutes to keep it from sticking to the bottom.
2. Preheat oven to 350.
3. Spread mixture in the bottom of a 9 x 13.
4. Layer sour cream, cheese, olives, tomatoes and onions on top and bake for 20 minutes.
5. Serve with corn chips.
Here's our plan for the week:
- Monday: 4-Cheese Spinach Manicotti
- Tuesday: White Bean Chili
- Wednesday: "The Grammie Meal" at my mom's (she was sick last week)
- Thursday: Leftover Burrito Casserole
- Friday: Dinner at a friends
- Saturday: Leftover Manicotti
- Sunday: Nacho Casserole
Nacho Casserole
3/4 cup dry lentils
3/4 cup dry brown rice
4 cups water
4 beef bouillon cubes (or chicken, vegetable)
4 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup sour cream ( I use fat free)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 can sliced olives
Fresh diced tomatoes
diced onion (optional)
Corn chips
1. Dump first 8 ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn down to simmer and cook covered until rice is done., stirring every 5 minutes to keep it from sticking to the bottom.
2. Preheat oven to 350.
3. Spread mixture in the bottom of a 9 x 13.
4. Layer sour cream, cheese, olives, tomatoes and onions on top and bake for 20 minutes.
5. Serve with corn chips.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Free Time
I think most people find themselves saying, "I'd do _____ if I just had more free time." Well, Friday is my last day at Gateway, so I'll suddenly have a lot more free time. It's not exactly how I would have liked to get more free time, but I'm going to try to make the best of it. I've been coming up with a list of things I'm going to try to do next week - some more exciting than others - to keep myself busy, so it doesn't just turn into a big pity party for myself. Here's my list so far:
- Research and apply for every possible legitimate job opportunity. (The Obvious)
- Have lunch with my friend Becky, without looking at the clock even once to see if I need to hurry back to work.
- Go to the chiropractor. My hips have been out of alignment for weeks, but I've been putting it off, knowing I'd have lots of free time coming up.
- Make bread. We've tried making bread twice this week with our bread machine, and it's turned out funky. We can't tell if it's because we're using the delay setting or if something's wrong with it.
- Find the ingredients for and make homemade laundry detergent.
- Get a book from the library on the Bradley Birthing Method and other natural birthing techniques and start loading up on info.
- Perfect my Wii Bowling and attempt to get my first Turkey.
- Go through what has become the junk bedroom and figure out what we're keeping, what we can sell, give away or throw away. Then, organize the rest!!
- List a bunch of stuff on Craigslist.
- Finish and send out our holiday cards. Better late than never, right??
- Put away the remaining Christmas decorations. Sorry love!!
- Attempt to invent "the next big thing" so we never have to worry about money again.
If you're in the area and have some time to hang out, let me know!! I'd be more than happy to put off one of the more productive items on my list for some quality social time!!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
It's Monday again. I know you're all sitting on the edge of your seats, waiting to find out what Aaron and I will be eating this week. Wait no longer!! And if you need more ideas, visit the Organizing Junkie.
Monday - Frozen Lasagna (from the freezer - we skipped it last week)
Tuesday - Parmesan Crusted Flounder w/ brown rice and green beans (We got a great deal on the flounder and it was cheaper than ground beef!!)
Wednesday - Dinner at my mom's; "The Grammie Meal" - Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy and Corn
Thursday - Corn and Bacon Chowder w/ homemade oatmeal bread (We're using homemade vegetable stock in place of the chicken broth.)
Friday - Pork Chops and Rice Bake w/ broccoli
Saturday - Dinner at a friends; we're taking dessert
Sunday - Creamy Burrito Casserole
Monday - Frozen Lasagna (from the freezer - we skipped it last week)Tuesday - Parmesan Crusted Flounder w/ brown rice and green beans (We got a great deal on the flounder and it was cheaper than ground beef!!)
Wednesday - Dinner at my mom's; "The Grammie Meal" - Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy and Corn
Thursday - Corn and Bacon Chowder w/ homemade oatmeal bread (We're using homemade vegetable stock in place of the chicken broth.)
Friday - Pork Chops and Rice Bake w/ broccoli
Saturday - Dinner at a friends; we're taking dessert
Sunday - Creamy Burrito Casserole
Tagged by my husband
Rules: It's harder than it looks! Copy to your own note, erase my answers, enter yours, and tag 5 people. Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real. . .nothing made up! If the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. You cannot use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/girl name question.Have Fun!!
1. What is your name: Blakely
2. A four Letter Word: Ball
3. A boy's Name: Bill
4. A girl's Name: Bailey
5. An occupation: Baker
6. A color: Black
7. Something you wear: Bra
8. A food: Buckeyes
9. Something found in the bathroom: Bathtub
10. A place: Bolivia
11. A reason for being late: Bile
12. Something you shout: Bravo!!
13. A movie title: Blazing Saddles
14. Something you drink: Beverages!! (I know, this might be cheating...)
15. A musical group: B-52's
16. An animal: Bovine
17. A street name: Beach
18. A type of car: Bonneville
19. The title of a song: Baby It's Cold Outside
1. What is your name: Blakely
2. A four Letter Word: Ball
3. A boy's Name: Bill
4. A girl's Name: Bailey
5. An occupation: Baker
6. A color: Black
7. Something you wear: Bra
8. A food: Buckeyes
9. Something found in the bathroom: Bathtub
10. A place: Bolivia
11. A reason for being late: Bile
12. Something you shout: Bravo!!
13. A movie title: Blazing Saddles
14. Something you drink: Beverages!! (I know, this might be cheating...)
15. A musical group: B-52's
16. An animal: Bovine
17. A street name: Beach
18. A type of car: Bonneville
19. The title of a song: Baby It's Cold Outside
Monday, January 05, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
As part of our quest to save money, we want to become more diligent in planning our meals for the week. We used to do this all the time, but the craziness of moving, the laziness of summer and the unpredictability of pregnancy cravings, we got out of the habit. However, deciding ahead of time really helps us cut down on our grocery bills and lets of take advantage of sales and items we already have. (An added bonus - we end up going to the gym more, because we can plan quick, easy meals for those nights.) So...we're at it again!!
I'm going to try participating in "Menu Plan Monday" to hold myself accountable. You can find out what it's all about and get more ideas by going here.
This week's menu looks something like this:
Monday - Sirloin burgers with chips
Tuesday - Leftover Texas Cowboy Pie (recipe below) w/ mixed veggies and homemade bread
Wednesday - Parmesan Chicken w/ potatoes lyonaisse
Thursday - Lasagna (frozen leftover from the freezer) w/ corn and homemade bread
Friday - Going out w/ friends or attending a housewarming party
Saturday - Munchies (Bock Family Christmas at noon should keep us eating for a couple hours and fill us up!!)
Sunday - Tortellini in a cream sauce w/ veggies
Texas Cowboy Pie
Leftover Roast
2-4 T BBQ Sauce
3 Large Potatoes
Milk or Butter - whatever you use for mashed potatoes
Salt/Pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1. Boil potatoes and mash.
2. Shred leftover roast and mix with BBQ sauce.
3. Spread mashed potatoes in the bottom of an 8x8 baking dish. Next, layer on the saucy meat and finally, top with cheese.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, or until cheese begins to golden. Enjoy!!
(My favorite part about this meal is that it made enough for 2 meals for us, so we have leftovers of leftovers. I would assume if could be doubled for a larger family and made in a 9x13 dish. Definitely a good way to stretch out meat!!)
I'm going to try participating in "Menu Plan Monday" to hold myself accountable. You can find out what it's all about and get more ideas by going here.
This week's menu looks something like this:Monday - Sirloin burgers with chips
Tuesday - Leftover Texas Cowboy Pie (recipe below) w/ mixed veggies and homemade bread
Wednesday - Parmesan Chicken w/ potatoes lyonaisse
Thursday - Lasagna (frozen leftover from the freezer) w/ corn and homemade bread
Friday - Going out w/ friends or attending a housewarming party
Saturday - Munchies (Bock Family Christmas at noon should keep us eating for a couple hours and fill us up!!)
Sunday - Tortellini in a cream sauce w/ veggies
Texas Cowboy Pie
Leftover Roast
2-4 T BBQ Sauce
3 Large Potatoes
Milk or Butter - whatever you use for mashed potatoes
Salt/Pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1. Boil potatoes and mash.
2. Shred leftover roast and mix with BBQ sauce.
3. Spread mashed potatoes in the bottom of an 8x8 baking dish. Next, layer on the saucy meat and finally, top with cheese.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, or until cheese begins to golden. Enjoy!!
(My favorite part about this meal is that it made enough for 2 meals for us, so we have leftovers of leftovers. I would assume if could be doubled for a larger family and made in a 9x13 dish. Definitely a good way to stretch out meat!!)
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