The Barefoot Housewife

Happy Summertime!

2010-06-28T15:10:00.001-07:00

Hello, dahlings!

I just wanted to drop in and tell you all that I'm officially on hiatus until Fall begins. You all know how busy the Summer months can be.

So, a really quick update...

God is doing some wonderful things in my life right now, and in the lives of my family members. It's exciting times, guys!

My schedule is flowing fabulously, I'm so happy to report. And this means that I'll have no problem working in time to blog when fall arrives. Right now, my downtime is spent doing Summery things with family. I just love this time of year!

Have a wonderful sunny season, and I'll see you back here in the fall!

I love you!

You Are My All In All!

2010-05-30T22:05:00.001-07:00

Another picture by my boy! :)

Music: Nicole Nordeman - You Are My All In All

*A special thanks to my dear friend, Rachel, who gave me my smiley

emoticons! She knows I can't express myself without them!

I love you, Rachel!*

Hi there, my dear friends and family!

It's 10: something and Husband and I have just returned from yet another date night. We've run away together the last three nights. Now I'm sitting in our bathroom on the edge of our soaker tub, warming my feet and legs in a tubful of hot water. Bliss! I do this when I get chilly and can't warm up. hehe!

So, what's going on with me....

Well, in a nutshell, I'm doing a lot of praying and trusting... and waiting. Ugh, I hate the waiting!! I (and of course I mean 'we', as in Husband and me) am so in 'waiting on the Lord mode' right now for so MANY things in so MANY areas, and let me tell you, I'm feeling the spiritual stretching (and, again, when I say 'I', what I really mean is 'we', hehe!). I'm just waaaaaaiting!

"Hey, Lord.... Hello....? You comin' through already, or what?"

Okay, I know He's going to do great things. And 'HE' knows that 'I' know He's aaaalways faithful.... Truly, it's just a matter of time. Ugh, time!

God is so good. He answers every single prayer, and He's such a blesser. I know that whatever He has up His sleeve is going to be good. I've been able to sing His praises every day of my entire life. He's always, always faithful! He may not do things exactly how 'I' imagine He will, and His timing baffles me... But He's never let us down, and He's always blessed us better than we could ever bless ourselves.

Husband and I were talking over dinner tonight about how in the past, there've been other times when our list of needs, both spiritual and tangible, has gotten crazy-long. Praise the Lord, life is not normally this way. But in those times, we've had to wait until we felt we couldn't stand it a minute longer. And then all of a sudden.... Behold, He comes! And we rejoice in His constant faithfulness.

"God, you never cease to amaze me! There's no one like you! You are truly a dream Daddy. My mind flies away at your power, your love, your awesomeness, your perfection. What a combination!"

And while I wait on Him, my heart is so full of His beautiful presence, He takes my breath away and my eyes fill with tears when I connect to Him.

"I'd go anywhere with you, Lord. As long as there's no separation between you and me, nothing else really matters. You 'are' my next breath."

So here we are, blessed beyond measure, and with the through-and-through knowledge that as long as God is holding us close, nothing else 'really' matters. We'll still pray, and we'll ask, and we'll seek, but in the end, God IS our joy. He IS our peace. He IS our hope. Oh, goodness... We are so blessed in His presence!!

Changes II: A Happier Life

2010-05-27T16:43:00.000-07:00

*Picture taken by my boy, Scotty*

Hi, guys! How's everyone doing?

Well, it's Thursday afternoon and I've just finished my daytime work. Justin should be calling to tell me he's on his way home from work soon and the kids are just finishing up their schoolwork. All is well.

It's chilly outside for the end of May, and it's been raining off an on for the last few days. I hope the weather turns nicer for the holiday weekend. We don't have any fantastic plans, but Husband will be taking a three day weekend so there'll be more time for family fun and togetherness.

My new regime of allowing myself to mainly focus on those things which are most important (foundational) has been such a blessing! I'm still doing the same things I've always done every day, but I'm no longer reaching for the *above and beyond*. Friends, let me tell you, this has been so freeing! A huge amount of stress has been lifted from my shoulders and for the first time in a long time, I'm not constantly trying to figure out how to squeeze more 'important' accomplishments into my day. Life is goooood.

I've talked about my 'normal stuff' again and again here. It's what I've always done since being a stay at home mom, and now I'm calling those things 'my day'.

My usual routine looks exactly the same: My time in the Word early in the morning. The kids get up and tackle their morning chores (taking care of themselves, showers, their rooms, their bathroom, etc). Breakfast. Their Bible study. I check messages online and then work on the finances. Polish the house from top to bottom and do the laundry. Break for the kids. School, lunch, and more school. I do my workout and get my shower. And then it's break-time until I put dinner together. Evening chores are easy. I call it wind-down time. The kids and Husband go to bed at around 9, and I hit the sack not long after.

I do have time in the middle of the day to tackle some extra little chores I may feel up to doing. Today I did a little ironing. It was relaxing. Some days I go shopping.

So, that's how things are going. Not terribly exciting on paper, as I said in my last post. But offloading a ton of stress is super exciting for me! Thank you, Lord, for opening my eyes!

I made my last blog entry in several steps. hehe! I started by publishing the text. Thought I'd just call it good. But later as I was thinking about it, the song (Turn! Turn! Turn!) kept going through my head, so I went back and uploaded a header pic, a Scripture, and the music. Of course my boy helped me with the music. He's so awesome!

Anyway, to keep blogging easy for me, I'll probably just wing it. I might call a simple entry good enough. Or I might come back and tweak it a couple of times. Silly, huh? It's a creative outlet for me, what can I say?

I'm going to bring this entry to a close for now, but don't let me forget to tell you about the spaghetti sauce I made the other night. It was so weird... and sooooo goood! You won't believe the ingredients! Don't let me forget, k?!?

More later, lil dahlings!!

Changes

2010-05-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

*Picture taken by my boy!*

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

What profit has he that works in that wherein he labors?

I have seen the travail, which God has given to the sons of men to be exercised in it.

He has made every thing beautiful in his time...

Ecclesiastes 3
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music: The Byrds - Turn! Turn! Turn!

Hey there, everyone! It's been a long time since I've posted, I know.

God's been making some changes in me lately. Where to even start? *sigh* I just don't know. Maybe if I just scratch the surface a little...

In a nutshell, I've been doing too much. It's not my usual day-to-day routine that's over the top. It's all the extra stuff I've tried to make priority in my life that's pushed me over the edge into too much busyness, stress, and exhaustion.

The thing is, I'm so careful about what I take on. I'm not someone who enjoys running out the door and being on the go all the time. Taking care of the kids and household are the most important things to me, other than my relationships with God and my husband. I guess I've questioned whether what I do here is *enough*. I'm so type A, I have a huge tendency to push too hard and not know where to draw the line.

I know you know how it is. It's not that we all have trouble with taking on silly stuff that robs our time and our peace. No, it's the stuff that *seems* so important; the stuff that has real merit and value and would actually add to our lives, but in actuality, unless God specifically calls us to it, drains us and leaves us feeling depleted and like we're spinning our wheels but going nowhere. It's this kind of thing I've fallen for time and again, feeling like I *must* if I'm going to be the best wife and mom I can be. But every time, I wind up tired and feeling defeated because I just can't hold it all together.

Well, it's taken a long time, but I've finally gotten the message. Wish I'd caught on sooner, but I'm sure God knew I'd have to run allll the way to the end of this highway and hit the wall or I'd keep feeling like I was somehow not doing enough. My curiosity and wonderings have been satisfied. I and the wall are now acquainted. It's the end of the road for this girl.

So, back to really only focusing on what's most important. I know my daily life isn't all that exciting on paper, but it's what floats my boat. And lo and behold, it's just what I'm called to, and that makes me happy.

With all of this said, I don't know the direction my blog is going to take. I hope you don't mind. I think I'll just play each day by ear rather than trying to force a theme or follow a certain format. I've had so much fun with my blog to this point, but it's also been more time consuming than it maybe appears. Could be that I'm not great at this whole blogging thing, and I can accept that. hehe! I don't know. I do like talking and journaling, so that part is easy. As for the daily themes and all the extra stuff, those things will probably follow my moods. We'll see.

Love you all!

All Things are Possible

2010-04-20T01:10:00.000-07:00

All Things Are Possible - Kim Alexis

Almighty God my redeemer
My hiding place my safe refuge, no other name like Jesus
No power can stand against You.

My feet are planted on this rock
And I will not be shaken
My hope it comes from You alone
My Lord and my salvation

Your praise is always on my lips
Your word is living in my heart
And I will praise You with a new song, My soul will bless You Lord

You fill my life with greater joy
Yes I delight myself in You
And I will praise You with a new song, My soul will bless You, Lord

When I am weak, you make me strong
When I'm poor, I know I'm rich for in the power of Your name
All things are possible
All things are possible
All things are possible
All things are possible

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If you're feeling discouraged or just facing some tall mountains, turn this song up and sing along at the top of your lungs! That's what we did over here tonight.

I'm dedicating this song to my dear friend, T, who's waiting on the Lord to move His mighty hand in her life. "You're not alone, sweet friend! We're holding our collective breath over here, too, eyes glued on Him, watching and waiting for His next move."

Today has been a good day... I pretty much always say that, don't I? That's because it's true! With God at the helm, every day is good. It may not always be an easy one, and things don't usually go the way we plan, but every day with the Lord is blessed because HE is such an excellent Father and friend. Because of Him, we're never alone and we need never fear tomorrow. That's a good reason to rejoice, don't you think?

So, back to today. It was good. hehe! But I was a bit off kilter all day long. Not necessarily in a bad way, just not feeling as focused as I normally am. Things started out well with morning chores, breakfasts, and Bible studies. Then we started Monday chores... That went well for awhile, and then... well... I lost focus. It just seemed there were so many distractions, and before I knew it, it was almost 2 in the afternoon and the kids hadn't even started school yet!

I finally got the kids going on their schoolwork and I called my dear friend, T. We talked for a long time while I finished my Monday chores and other pressing duties. You'd think talking on the phone would distract me from my work, but I just throw my headset on so my hands are free, and the wonderful conversation with sweet friends keeps me motivated, and the time flies by. I love it!

I had all kinds of plans for today, some of which I didn't accomplish. But we got the important things done, and we had fun doing them. I spent hours talking to a very special friend, my kids enjoyed *not* starting school on time.... and Husband took me out to dinner because preparing a new and imaginative meal was one of the things on my list I never got to.

See? It was a good day!

Sweet dreams, Jellybeans!

Somethin' Good

2010-04-19T22:07:00.000-07:00

Cooking is like love...

It should be entered into with abandon

or not at all.

~Harriet Van Home~

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Music: Herman's Hermits - I'm Into Something Good

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Hi, guys! How's everyone doing?

As promised, today I'm doing a rundown of my Paula Deen recipe test drive!

I want to start by saying that I had so much fun with this one, you guys. Paula's recipes are uncomplicated, yet delicious! Each time I set out to buy the ingredients for one of her recipes, I was beside myself with excitement that I was able to find everything I needed at our regular grocery store. With the exception of one ingredient (mirlitons) in one recipe, it was always one stop shopping. And not only that, her recipes don't have that many ingredients and they're a breeze to put together. How great is that?!?

Yaaay, Paula!

When all is said and done and you're sitting at the table with your family tasting Paula's creations for the first time, what you're experiencing is soothing comfort food that's simple and homey and yet somehow elegant at the same time.

"Paula, I'm so pleased! Keep those wonderful recipes coming, Sister!"

My first recipe to test drive...

Paula's Deen's Chicken Scaloppini

Ingredients: Oil, butter, chicken breast, flour, salt and pepper, pancetta, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, capers, and linguini.

Lemon Butter Sauce: Lemon juice, white wine, heavy cream, butter, salt and pepper, parsley leaves

I'm really sorry that I'm going to sound like a broken record today but, OH-MY-GOODNESS! This was so good, I could eat this every day! I barely tweaked any of these recipes, and all I can remember doing to this one was adding more mushrooms and maybe more wine? I can't remember, so just play with your ingredients until they're perfect for you, but as this recipe is written, it's already wonderful! As always, make sure your sauce-to-noodle ratio looks good to you.

Next...

Paula's Baked Spaghetti

Ingredients: Canned diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, onion, green bell pepper, garlic, parsley, Italian seasoning, Paula's House Seasoning, salt, sugar, bay leaves, ground beef, angel hair pasta, cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese

House Seasoning: salt, pepper, garlic powder

Yummers! This was so ridiculously easy I pretty much winged it. I added a little wine to the sauce because I add wine to everything I can! hehe! And I used my own Italian seasonings. You're just looking for a good spaghetti sauce, so go with the seasoning blend you like best. I also added more sugar for less acidity, and we used gobs more cheese. The recipe says to throw your onion and garlic into your sauce to simmer. I cooked mine with my ground beef. The angel hair pasta is a *must*, you guys! I've made baked spaghetti before, but this one was heads and shoulders above the rest. The delicate noodles were perfection!

Next...

Lady and Son's Chicken and Wine Sauce

Ingedients: Boneless-skinless chicken breasts, butter, Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, Swiss cheese, cream of chicken soup, white wine, herb-flavored stuffing mix

It was like we'd all died and gone to Heaven! Please try this one! This was the epitome of 'homey yet elegant'. It's the perfect dish to serve to dinner guests. It's *THAT GOOD*!

Oh, I forgot to mention 'fast'. So fast and easy, ya almost feel guilty.

My tweakages: I used those little tender strips of the chicken, added a few seasonings to the soup and wine mixture, a little heavy cream, plus more wine ( ). We also used Monterey Jack cheese with the Swiss, going lighter on the Swiss, but overall more cheese than called for. In the end, ours was more saucy (especially when hot out of the oven) than it would have been without our tweakages, and I strongly recommend doing it that way! The pic above doesn't show the dish's true sauciness.

Two recipes here...

Paula's Shrimp Stuffed Mirliton

and

Cheesy Squash Casserole

Shrimp Mirliton ingredients: Mirlitons, Cajun seasoning, butter, green onion, celery, yellow onion, green bell pepper, shrimp, bread crumbs, salt

First of all, none of us, or anyone we asked here in Washington state, had ever heard of a mirliton. I had to go looking for it. Mirlitons taste a little like cooked zucchini or summer squash. They have a soft, mild flavor, and after they're cooked long enough, they're very tender. The shrimp-stuffing filling was really good. We'd never tasted anything like it, but overall we all enjoyed it.

Cheesy Squash Casserole ingredients: Vegetable oil, yellow summer squash, Vidalia onion, butter, grated Parmesan cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, black pepper, Ritz crackers

K, this was delicious! Yeah, baby! We added more cheese (big surprise), and used less of the yellow summer squash. Check your ingredient ratio before cooking. Too much squash will make the recipe dry. Ours was wonderfully gooey!

Onto...

Paula's Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients: Cubed round steak, House Seasoning, flour, olive oil, butter, onion, mushrooms, beef broth, cream of mushroom soup, salt and black pepper, sour cream, egg noodles

This was easy and good. I made mine more saucy, as per my usual. Added some wine, a little more sour cream, more onion and mushrooms, and a few of my own seasonings. I was really surprised at how tender and yummy the cubed round steak turned out. This wasn't as 'fancy' as the European version of stroganoff, but it was better than any American version I've ever tasted. Again, homey and kinda elegant at the same time. How *does* she do it???

Lastly (but only for now)...

Paula's Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Ingredients: Canned apple pie filling, (9 inch) graham cracker crust, cream cheese, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, caramel topping, pecans

Okay, aren't these too cute? I made these to take to my parents' house for Easter. Both were wiped out!

So, here's the deal. I'm not a dessert person, which is why you don't see me posting dessert recipes very often. On top of that, I don't like cheesecake very much. But this recipe got 486 reviews and a 5 star rating, so I trusted that it was going to be a sure thing... and it was! Plus, it was easy! You don't even need to make your own pie crust. I didn't tweak a thing because cheesecake can be temperamental, but I did need to cook mine longer than the directions called for. There are many different styles of cheesecake, and this one was super fun! It has apple pie filling in the bottom and on the top, which makes it moist, but not like those made with sour cream. Just really good. If you like making cheesecake and you want something a little different and delicious, give this one a whirl!

Alrighty, my friends, that's all for now. I was going to announce my next test drive but I've decided to save that for another day due to sleepiness on my part.

Bye for now, lil dahlings!

Talking in My Sleep

2010-04-14T16:43:00.000-07:00

If you want your spouse to listen and pay

strict attention to every word you say,

talk in your sleep!

~Anonymous~

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Music: The Romantics - Talking In Your Sleep

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Hi, everyone! It's so nice to be back! I hope you all are doing well.

So, talkin' in your sleep; do you ever do it? Hmm??? C'mon, you can tell me. It'll be our little secret.

Okay, I'll go first. I do! I'm a sleep talker and always have been. Not as much as when I was a kid, but I'm still known to launch into the occasional nocturnal monologue. I do usually have a vague, dreamlike memory of the event when I wake up the next morning, or when I'm informed of my sleepy chatterings. But it's always surprising, and a little disturbing, when I hear that I've engaged in a full-on conversation while snoozing and I have zero memory of it whatsoever.

Amazing!

This very thing happened to me the other day! My husband was leaving early in the morning for work, and as per his usual he came around to my side of the bed to kiss me goodbye and to wish me a good day. Well, I'd be lying to you if I said I was always completely coherent for our morning adieu's, but normally I do have at least a hazy recollection of the event. On this morning, however, I was apparently more talkative and particularly romantic (or so I'm told!), yet I have absolutely no memory of our conversation. hehe! In fact, until I was enlightened to what actually transpired in those wee hours, I thought my always attentive, adoring husband had left the house without even saying goodbye to me (for, like, the first time ever in 20 years!) and I was a little miffed, truth be told.

What's even funnier is that my husband had no idea I was talking in my sleep. Apparently, I was sitting straight up in bed and carried on a conversation longer than a few sentences, articulately and with eyes wide open. Really, this *is* amazing to me. I believe the story, though, because when I woke up a few hours later, I felt unusually disoriented and like I'd somehow lost time.

It's such an odd, almost disconcerting feeling to be told your subconscious is speaking aloud even whilst you slumber peacefully. Has this ever happened to you?

Okay, moving away from sleep talking...

I've completed my Paula Deen recipe test drive and have a number of recipes and pics to share with you all, but I won't be posting those today. I'll do a recipe rundown on Saturday and announce then what my next test drive will be. I can't wait to get started on something new!!

Here are a few random pics from Easter. I hope you all had a very blessed holiday celebrating our risen Lord!!

Easter morning at our house. Special breakfast, gift baskets for the kids,

and a lively Hershey's Kisses hunt throughout the house.

The kids' fun little gift baskets

Girlies getting ready to see what the Easter Mommy left them

(Scotty and his basket of gifties are off to the side, away from the camera!)

Matching play shirts for the three princesses.

Must always buy three of everything!

Cute little shirts with matching shorts.

(Caught the boy this time!)

Daddy watching the chicklets go through their

gift baskets

Later that afternoon, we left for my parents' house and had a wonderful time celebrating with them!

A picture of the best parents any girl has ever had!

Okay, my dear friends and family, I'm going to wrap this entry up for now, but I'll be back with my recipe rundown and more pics on Saturday. Until then...

Hugs and kisses!

Can't Smile Without You!

2010-04-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

Music: Barry Manilow - Can't Smile Without You

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Hello, my dear friends and family! I miss you!

I'm so sorry I've been MIA for the last week and a half. I've been super busy working on behind the scenes details, but I'll be getting back to posting in

Wednesday afternoon.

See ya tomorrow, sweet dahlings!!

Forever Friends

2010-04-01T00:45:00.000-07:00

Never shall I forget the days I spent with you.

Continue to be my friend,

as you will always find me yours.

~Ludwig van Beethoven~

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Music: Amy Grant - Stay For A While

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Hello, my dear family and friends! Happy Wednesday (technically Thursday)!

It's way too late Wednesday night and here I sit in my jammies with my mug of hot tea, typing to you while my family sleeps; all except my son who's up late reading. I hope you all had a wonderful day and are sleeping peacefully.

Today started out slowly for me. Took a good amount of time to really get the ball rolling and accomplish what needed to be done. I'm happy to report, though, that we ended up having a very productive day and all is well that ends well. Actually, I'm not done yet as I still have two loaves of bread baking, which is why I'm up so late.

I'm really excited to share with you all that the other day I was able to reconnect with my very first childhood best friend, Patsy!

I still remember the day we met like it was yesterday. We were around four years old when my brother, Scotty, introduced us. We lived a few doors down from each other. Patsy had long, curly blonde hair, big blue eyes, and she was wearing a little red dress with white polka-dots. Our first conversation was about grilled cheese sandwiches, which we both called 'girl'ed cheese. We hit if off immediately and became the best of friends, and later 'blood sisters'. You don't want to know how we accomplished the 'blood sister' part. Eww! hehe!

Patsy was, and will always be, one of the dearest, sweetest friends any girl could ever dream of having. Reconnecting with her has touched my heart so deeply, there just aren't words... Hearing her voice on the phone the other day, it was like the years instantly melted away and we were seven again. It's like not a day has passed.

I saw a picture of my sweet Patsy on FB and let me tell you, she is absolutely gorgeous! She looks like a model. But when I look into those blue eyes, I still see my precious best friend in her little red dress, the two of us swinging on the swing-set, singing pre-school songs in rounds.

Patsy is working for a wonderful company called butter LONDON. Their products look amazing, and they're all natural. Click on the link and check them out!

I'm going to wrap this post up now due to the late hour, but I'll be back tomorrow to talk more about things happening, post some new recipes I've tried, and share some pics. Until then, blessings to you all!

Sweet Patsy, I love you so much, and I'm thanking the Lord for reuniting us after all these years. Blood sisters forever!!

Toodles, friends!

More later...

Dedicated to Mom and Dad!

2010-03-28T01:02:00.000-07:00

Myspace Icons

... For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother,
and shall cleave to his wife;
and the two shall become one flesh...
So that they are no more two, but one flesh.
What therefore God has joined together,
let no man put asunder.

~Matthew 19:5-6~

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Music: Shania Twain - You're Still the One

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My entry today I dedicate to my wonderful parents in celebration of their 44th wedding anniversary!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, MOMMY AND DADDY!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Turn your volume up, Mommy and Daddy. Justin, the kids and I dedicate this song to you!

'They' said you wouldn't make it, way back when you were both kids. But look at you guys now! You've proven them all wrong, through God's amazing grace and your ever enduring love and commitment to each other. It's our incredible honor to follow in your footsteps.

We love you!!

Here Comes the Sun!

2010-03-24T23:11:00.000-07:00

This is the day the Lord has made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

~Psalms 118:24~

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Music: The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun

Hey, everyone! How are you all doing?

Well, Spring has officially sprung in our neck of the woods. Hooray! We've had gorgeous sunny days every day since Saturday with 65-75 degree temps. We're lovin' it over here! I've been singing 'Here Comes the Sun' (the Beatles) all day today. We've had all the doors and windows open and the sun has been flooding in. Simply beautiful!

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The last few days have been planning days for me. We've accomplished all the usual stuff, too, and I've even been sticking to my workout! Yay, me! Unfortunately, due to the late hour and my brain being tired, I'm going to have to make this entry a real shortie.

I'll just say God is good and all is well. Husband is incredible. The kids are happy and sweet. Household is in lovely order. School is coming along well. Fun dates have been had by husband and me. The kids have spent more time frolicking outdoors in the amazing weather. And, of course, tasty food has been created and eaten!

Here are my latest test drive recipes. The first is Ina Garten's Roasted Butternut Squash Soup and Curry Condiments.

Ingredients: Butternut squash, yellow onions, McIntosh apples, good olive oil, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, chicken stock, and good curry powder.

Condiments: Scallions, flaked sweetened coconut (lightly toasted), roasted salted cashews (toasted and chopped), and diced banana (I skipped the banana).

Delicious soup! I've always loved butternut squash soup anyway, and of course Ina's is fantastic! I loved the curry. My only tweakage was to add a little creme fraiche sort of deal for a creamy zing.

With the soup, we made Ina's Banana Crunch Muffins.

Ingredients: All-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, unsalted butter, extra-large eggs, whole milk, pure vanilla extract, mashed ripe bananas, diced ripe bananas, walnuts (I used pecans), granola, and sweetened shredded coconut.

For the top (optional): Dried banana chips, granola, or shredded coconut.

Yuuuum! I followed the recipe exactly and Husband said they were the best muffins he's ever had!

For dinner tonight, we test drove Guy Fieri's Seared Scallops with Bitter Greens, Fried Shallots, and Andouille.

Ingredients: Canola oil, all-purpose flour, salt and pepper, shallots, sherry wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, olive oil, andouille sausage, scallops, radicchio, baby arugula, butter lettuce, frisee, and chives.

We really liked this. I played a bit with my lettuce mixture, otherwise I pretty much followed the recipe exactly. I did add cute little bay scallops to our larger sea scallops for more little nibblers to munch on. The combination of the seared sea scallop with the dressed lettuce, topped with the crispy fried shallots was really neat-o! I tried to get a little of everything in each bite. Good stuff, Guy!

With Guy's scallop and greens, we also had his Green Polenta.

Ingredients: Olive oil, onion, garlic, kale, salt and pepper, water, heavy cream, polenta, butter, and grated Parmesan cheese.

Ya know what? This was my family's first time eating polenta, and we liked it a lot! It was so creamy and rich, and the kale and garlic turned it into something else altogether. I'm a polenta convert! My only tweakage was to add some buttermilk and a squeeze of lemon juice at the end for a little kick to offset the rich, creaminess. Oh, and I also added A LOT more Parmesan cheese. hehe! Mmm-mm good!

Okay guys, I'm looking at the bottom of my tea mug, and that means bedtime for me. Sweet dreams, Jellybeans!

More later...

Mall and Nail Day!

2010-03-18T22:32:00.000-07:00

Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,

who finds great delight in His commands.

~Psalm 112:1~

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Music: 4Him - Psalm 112

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by clicking 'pause' on the music player in your right sidebar,

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Hey everyone! Happy Thursday! I hope today was a good one for you. Today was mall and nail day for me and the kids. Yaay! I love mall and nail day!!

We headed out in the early afternoon and made the long trip from the moon to the mall. I got the kids set up in the food court with their yogurts and waters from Subway, grabbed my large diet pop and headed over to the nail shop where my mom was already waiting for me.

As usual, we talked through our manicures without a pause. I always wonder what the nail techs think of our conversations. hehe! After checking in with us, the girls took off together to do some window shopping, and Scotty went to Barnes and Noble to read (his favorite thing to do at the mall after hitting the candy store and the electronics store... typical boy).

When we were all through at the mall, nails done, girls shopped out and Scotty retrieved from the book store, we all headed back to my parents' house for dinner, fun, and lots of good talk-time.

Here's what my daddy made for me for dinner. Marinated, grilled chicken breast with grilled red peppers and asparagus. It was delicious! My daddy is the original 'Master of Seasonings'! He knows his way around a kitchen!!

Mm-mm, good!!

Playing at my parents' house is never boring. There's adventure lurking around every corner.

How cute is this??? The doorway to their in-home theater.

Here's my family being silly and having fun in the theater. You should have seen the shots I discarded. LOL!

So much fun to ride the elevator up and down, and play hide and seek in the big house!

Getting ready to go. Parting is such sweet sorrow.

"Mommy and Daddy, thank you for letting us come over and play with you guys. We love hanging out with you! I especially love our wonderful conversations. You're the best! We love you!!"

Well, that's all for now, my dear friends and family. It's jammies and tea-time for me! Hooraay!!

More later...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-18T00:12:00.000-07:00

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"May the raindrops fall lightly on your brow. May the soft winds freshen your spirit. May the sunshine brighten your heart. May the burdens of the day rest lightly upon you, and may God enfold you in the mantle of His love."

~Irish Blessing~

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Happy St. Patricks' Day, my dear friends and family! I borrowed my quote of the day from my sweet Irish friend, Jayne. Thank you, Jayne!

Did you all have a nice St. Paddy's Day? We had so much fun!! We started celebrating as soon as our eyes opened, and we partied and played all day. It was also Carissa's special day, so lots of celebrating!

I made green eggs and ham for the kids for brunch. It was just Eggs Benedict with green food coloring in the Hollandaise sauce. Looks cute, doesn't it? Little key lime yogurt on the side. Green, green, and more green!

A little hint for anyone making Hollandaise for the first time. *Must* add freshly squeezed lemon juice in order for it to taste right. Otherwise, forget about it. hehe!

For dinner, I made Guy Fieri's St. Patrick's Linguini. It was awesome!

Ingredients: butter, oil, diced carrot, diced cabbage, minced shallot, minced garlic, cooked corned beef, freshly cracked black pepper, white wine, heavy cream, half-and-half, Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard, prepared horseradish, grated Irish white Cheddar, peas, linguini, and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

We really liked this dish. It wasn't our traditional corned beef and cabbage, but it was really tasty, rich, and full of flavor! We also made Irish Soda bread to go with the dinner, and we had a green salad with Mandarin oranges, toasted pecans, and croutons, topped with... what else?... Green Goddess dressing! hehe!

Dessert... homemade carrot cake with cream cheese frosting... Green, of course.

Here are the sisterlets festively dressed in their green St. Paddy's shirts.

And Scotty in his celebrating duds. Justin wore the same shirt today (after work, of course).

Okay, moving on from our happy day of partying and indulgence of green food...

Let's talk '5 Ingredient Fix test drive', shall we? For the last of our 7 day test drive, I made Claire Robinson's Beef and Onion Stuffed Potatoes and her Iceberg Salad with Buttermilk Ranch Dressing.

First, the stuffed potatoes. Ingredients: beef stock, 3 large russet potatoes, EVOO, cubed beef chuck, Kosher salt and black pepper, water (as needed), and frozen pearl onions.

I won't go into all the directions being that you can just click the link above for that. But as you can sort of see by the pics, the potatoes are cooked and then hollowed out. The skins are thrown back into the oven to crisp. You season and sere the meat and cook the onions. Mash up the potato insides. And then you fill the potato shells with the meat/stew mixture and top with your mashed potatoes. Turned out really good. I'd elaborate more, but it's late and I'm soooo tired. Yummy, though, and super clever!

You can add to the seasonings for your meat/stew mixture (I did), but it would be good even if you didn't. I also deglazed my pan with red wine instead of water, which was terrif! And I spruced up my mashed potatoes, too, just to make them more special and flavorful. I went with a 'baked potato' idea and added milk, sour cream, salt and pepper, chives, etc. Just really good.

The salad and dressing were incredibly easy, but you wouldn't believe the flavor! And SO fast! Read the recipe and try it for yourself. You'll be amazed at how simple and delicious it is! I bet you'll never look at Buttermilk Ranch in the bottle or seasoning packet the same way again, I promise you! Go for it!!

I'm sorry to talk food and run without getting into any other life details, but as I said, I'm really beat tonight, and I need to run down to the kitchen and take care of my loaves of bread that are just about to come out of the bread makers. Yaaaaawn!

More later...

Weekend Update

2010-03-14T23:45:00.000-07:00

Be faithful in the small things

because it is in them that your strength lies.

~Mother Theresa~

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Hey, everyone, how are you all doing? I love this quote of the day! I totally agree; those seemingly small things are where a person's character really shines through. My song for the day, Baby I Love Your Ways (Inner Circle), I dedicate to my incredible husband who is a constant blessing in my life, even 23 years after we first became 'we'.

(Note: To listen to this music, disable current background music

by clicking 'pause' on the music player in your right sidebar,

then click on the pic below.)

Are you ready for my weekend update? I'll backtrack to Thursday.

Thursday was Courtney's special day. Our day started out pretty normally, she got a little 'giftie' from Mommy, and later I took her out for dinner and some good talk-time. Just sitting and listening to my lil Nerns it's always the same thing with me, I end up feeling so proud of her and I walk away beaming. That is one deeeep girl, let me tell ya!

Friday morning, we did our regular morning chores and Bible time, baked a little bread, polished the nest, etc. Then, after I got Scotty, Courtney, and Chloe' going on their schoolwork, Carissa and I took off together for a day of shopping and lunching. Carissa is literally years ahead in school, so she can afford a day off here and there. We had a wonderful time together, I and my sweet girl.

Friday night was date night, so Justin and I took off and had a relaxing dinner together. We had delicious salads at a nearby restaurant and talked for a good, long time. Husband was tired from an especially draining week at work, so we headed for home so I could tuck him in a little earlier than is his norm for a Friday night. Later, I ran out the door with my boy, Scotty, to take him to see the late showing of Alice and Wonderland (in 3-D of course!). He loved it, and even I liked it as much the second time around.

Saturday, we all slept in and took the morning slowly. It was cute seeing all the kids in their jammies til almost noon. I love easy days. Then Husband and I went out for a semi-late lunch at our new favorite Chinese restaurant. I was especially wanting to have their soup, which is amazing!

When we returned home, Justin ran out the door with the boy to do 'guy errands'. The girls and I hit the kitchen and had a total blast cooking together! It was great! We had the music cranked and we put together several yummy things. We made my famous Bruschetta (tomatoes, red, yellow, and orange peppers, onions, garlic, basil, etc) which is one of my favorite staples these days to have on hand for my lunches ... the girls baked a German chocolate cake... and we made our latest 'test drive' recipes for dinner.

The girls working in the kitchen

My post is already pretty long, so I'll make my foodie update as brief as possible.

We're on day six of seven of our 'Claire Robinson's 5 ingredient Fix test drive'. Saturday was Claire's Bacon and Blue Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts, and also her Creamy Roasted Broccoli.

Visual aids

So, really quickly... Both of these recipes were da bomb! In all fairness, though, I must tell you I changed the chicken recipe in just one way. Instead of using Blue Cheese, which can be quite pungent, I used Feta, which my whole family loves. The Feta was rich, tangy and creamy, and went perfectly with this chicken recipe. But it really is a matter of preference. The broccoli recipe was delicious, and I'll be doing it again next time we have broccoli... which will hopefully be soon! The chicken was amazing! Try it! We added a little of the reserved cheese spread to the top just before serving, and all I can say is YUM! Make this one, guys! It's a must!

That's all for now, dahlings.

More later ...

Jammies, tea, and blog time

2010-03-11T00:07:00.000-08:00

It is not how much we have but how much

we enjoy, that makes happiness.

~C.H. Spurgeon~

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Ahhh, I love this time of the day. It's so relaxing. My day is behind me, my precious family is nestled in for the night, and I get to put on my snuggly jammies and get all cozy with my cup of tea and my puter.

Do you like my choice of music tonight? It's Beethoven's Sonata No. 8 in C Minor. Isn't it perfectly dreamy?

(Note: To listen to this music, disable current background music

by clicking 'pause' on the music player in your right sidebar,

then click on pic below.)

Really, this song fits the tone of our day pretty well. I woke up feeling sleepy and ended up moving through my day at a slow pace. We were all in good moods, but it just felt like a jammy day all day long. The blustery, cold weather outside made me want to snuggle up next to the fireplace all the more. It's surprising I was able to accomplish anything at all today.

We still managed to polish the castle and do the laundry; we had our Bible studies, the kids worked on schoolwork... I even exercised, but I will tell you in all honestly that I did not break a sweat. At least I did it. That's good enough for me.

Carissa was my wonderful helper in the kitchen tonight. I never have to ask her, or any of the other kids for that matter. She offers to be my sidekick almost every time I step foot in there. She's just incredible the way she works right next to me, predicting my next move, grabbing this, wiping that, running to the pantry... She makes my life so much easier. I love my little Tissy.

Here's she is setting the table before dinner:

Aaaaand... speaking of dinner...! Shall we talk foooodieee???

We're on day 5 of 7 of our Claire Robinson's 5 Ingredient Fix test drive. So far, we've made her Spinach Carbonara, Pork Roast with Hard Cider Gravy, Red Wine Braised Short Ribs, Sunday Pot Roast with Mushroom Gravy, and tonight's dinner; Mini Beef Wellingtons and her Crispy Brussels Sprouts on the side.

Here's what mine looked like when it was all done:

We loved both of these recipes! Five stars from this family! Go, Claire!

I followed the Brussels Sprouts recipe almost to a 'T', and it was super good. Its ingredients were applewood smoked bacon, Brussels Sprouts, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, toasted chopped walnuts (I toasted Pecans), and a Granny Smith apple.

You cook the bacon in the oven, remove the bacon from the pan when done and throw your cleaned, halved B. Sprouts right into the bacon grease, salt and pepper, and then pop the sprouts into a 400* oven and bake until crispy. They were delicious before we even added the other components! Then you toss the sprouts with your toasted nuts and peeled, cored, and sliced apple. Serve hot. Loved it!

The Mini Beef Wellingtons were absolutely delicious and so much fun to make! Moms, if you have kids grade school age or up, this is a great one to do together!

The ingredients are olive oil, beef tenderloin (cubed), Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, cremini mushrooms (stemmed and finely chopped), 1 large shallot (also finely chopped), and 2 sheets of frozen puff pastry (thawed).

You cube, season, and sere the meat (just for a second, not to cook through). Then you cook the mushrooms and later the shallots in the drippings. Roll out the dough. And then you scoop 1 teaspoon of your mushroom mixture and place it on your dough, topped with one cube of meat, and fold the dough over the mixture. Repeat. The recipe makes 24 little Wellingtons. Then you cook seam-side-down until golden brown.

My only tweakage was to add Feta, which I placed on top of the mushroom mound, under the cube of meat. My only regret was not adding enough of the Feta, which gave the Wellingtons the most wonderful creamy bite, on top of the rich, flavorful mushroom and tenderloin combo. Really wonderful, guys! And it wasn't hard at all. I'll be making this one again! Next time with LOTS of cheese. I can't wait!

Okay, this post has gotten too long, so I'd better wrap it up before I lull you all to sleep.

More later ...

A Perfectly Peaceful Tuesday

2010-03-09T23:31:00.000-08:00

You will keep in perfect peace

all who trust in you,

all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

~Isaiah 26:3~

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Hi, guys! How's everyone doing? Things are going great over here!

It's nearly midnight and my day has drawn to a peaceful close. Husband and the kids are all tucked soundly into their beds and most are already fast asleep. Scotty is the only one burning the midnight oil, thoroughly engrossed in the book he's reading. Me, I'm sitting here writing to my dear family, friends, and secret blog readers, sipping my third cup of hot tea of the night while snowflakes fall outside my window.

Today was good! Got a lot done and had fun doing it. I guess that's pretty much the goal for us every day. Well, that and making sure God is at the center of everything we do. That would be number one.

Rundown of our day... Does this part get painfully monotonous for you? I hope not. It's actually helpful for me to see what we've accomplished each day and what we need to work harder on tomorrow. I hope I don't drive you all up the wall. I suppose you could skip over this part in my posts.

Okay, back to the rundown. Up early, showers all around, morning chores and breakfast, Bible studies, beatified the palace top to bottom, EXERCISED (I know, hard to believe, right? lol!), laundry washed and put away, didn't need to bake bread today... Lots of hard schoolwork for my smart cookies... 'An 'A' for each of you, lil' chicklets!'

Later in the afternoon, I spent a good, long time talking on the phone with my very sweet friend, Dianne. We've been besties since... um... forever! We've known each other since grade school but didn't become tight until I got over her being a horse-loving country girl, and she got past me being a prissy little princess. hehe! We compliment each other very well. We talk on the phone and I'm in the kitchen in my apron in my pristine house, and she's outside chasing chickens and feeding horses. It's awesome! I love you, Dianne!

So, speaking of kitchens... It's foodie time!

Okay, sticking to my theme, Claire Robinson's 5 Ingredient Fix meals... Tonight was Sunday Pot Roast with Mushroom Gravy. I just realized I was supposed to prepare this recipe on a Sunday. Oops! I bet Claire will forgive me. hehe!

Ya know what? This pot roast was really delicious! I think you should try it for yourselves. The recipe calls for a 4 to 5 pound boneless beef bottom round roast, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, olive oil, 1 lb of cremini mushrooms, 2 med. yellow onions, and 4 cups of beef broth. Here's what mine looked like when it was all done: (I'm noticing my pictures look darker when I load them onto my blog. I'll see if I can lighten them next time.)

I added a couple more seasonings to the recipe to my own taste. I really love onion powder and garlic powder when I'm searing beef, so I added those. I also couldn't resist throwing in a splash of Medeira wine, tasting the brothy liquid before I put the seared meat back into the Dutch oven. It came out great!

Claire's pot roast recipe is perfect, even if you don't feel the need to jazz it up. The mushrooms and the onions gave the gravy and the meat a wonderfully rich and savory flavor. Yummy! Try it! You won't be disappointed. It's comfort food at its best.

Well, that's all for now, folks.

More later ...

Great is Thy faithfulness!

2010-03-08T23:51:00.000-08:00

Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

God is just SO good! This song has been playing in my mind all day today. I can almost hear it audibly; can't you?

(Note: To listen to this music, disable current background music

by clicking 'pause' on the music player in your right sidebar,

then click on the pic below.)

There are a number of things Justin and I are seeking God's will and provision in, and we're just seeing His hand all over the place in our lives. We pray, and then we see Him move. It seems everywhere we go we hear God speaking life into our lives and the things we're seeking Him about; in our daily Scriptures, in the songs we're hearing on the radio, pastors, the people we talk to... He's so faithful in making His presence known when we seek Him. God, you are awesome and your blessings overwhelm us! We love you!

We got a ton done today. It was a great Monday! The day started early and in the usual way with morning chores, breakfast and Bible studies. Then the kids and I did our Monday deep cleaning of the house, and man-o-man does it look gorgeous in here! I love living in a clean, pretty temple. I baked fresh bread for the kids' lunch, and then....I did my workout! Yes, I did! Mm-hm. Maybe we're really back on track this time, folks. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

We had a long, intense day of homeschool, and the kids rocked their schoolwork. They're incredibly committed. Kidlies, you guys never cease to amaze me! You make a momma proud!

Here are a couple of pics of the girls being mellow after school today:

Courtney and Chloe' playing cards after school

Carissa sewing in her room

While all the kids were playing, I worked my way down to the kitchen and got three more loaves of bread started; fruit and nut bread for tomorrow's breakfast, sammie bread for tomorrow's lunch, and a yummy cheese and onion bread for tonight's dinner. That one was super yummy, by the way!

And while we're on the subject of bread making, gotta give another shout-out to my wonderful daddy and my loving, doting husband who've spoiled me with my own fleet of bread machines! I've had six over the years, and my fleet now consists of my trusty Breadman of almost ten years now, and two Zojirushi's, which are such a pleasure to operate! *grins* I had three going at once today. What a rush! LOL! Do I sound obsessive? I am.

Soooo, dinner... Claire Robinson's 5 Ingredient Fix week, remember? Tonight was Red Wine Braised Short Ribs. They were good! Not amazing, but very good. Here's a picture of tonight's meal, minus the cheesy onion bread. We served the short ribs over rice with a delicious side salad tossed with my daddy's famous dressing. That dark slimy-looking stuff on the plate is garlic sauteed baby spinach. Looks ickers in this pic, doesn't it? Sorry 'bout that.

Back to the ribs. They were juicy and fall-apart. They're braised in a whole bottle of Cabernet so they have a rich wine flavor, which is very nice. But I felt the sauce was missing something. I added onion and garlic powder for more flavor, plenty of Kosher sea salt and fresh ground pepper, and I didn't add as much vegetable broth as the recipe called for. Not bad when it was all done, and super simple.

Here's my boy helping me with dishes after dinner. It was another sneak attack. His cute little face says it all, doesn't it? hehe! Not to worry. He has his ways of getting me back for the torture I put him through... like spraying Mommy while he washes the dishes, or getting soap in my hair. Bad boy, Scotty!

Well, it's getting late and I've finished my cup of tea, so I guess I'd better be heading to bed. Hope you had a wonderful day, and I'll see you all soon!

More later...

Weekend Update

2010-03-07T21:35:00.000-08:00

Hey, everyone! Ready for a rundown of the last few days?

Well, first of all, I got sick again. I know; twice in less than two months. Not normal for me at all. Fortunately, my energy didn't bottom out so I was able to keep functioning; PTL!

Guess what? I've been sticking to my regular workout again! Yay! I can't express how important it is for me, being a stay at home mom who doesn't get out every day. It doesn't matter how busy I am, there's just no way to get the exercise I need to keep going without exercising. This year has been so hit and miss, I've really been struggling to fit it in and still get to everything I need to do. But finally... ! I'm back into my groove, and I feel better already. I know it's even helped in getting me through this cold in record time. Again, yay!

Let's see... What else? Ooh! Thursday night I went out with my dear friend, Michele, for a girls' night out! It had been ages since we'd last run away from home together. We had a fabulous time, let me tell ya! First, we saw a movie, and then we played at the mall. Before my family moved to the moon, Michele and I used to go out every Monday night. Did that for several years, I think. *sigh* I miss those days.

Friday was a busy day for us. We had to get our normal stuff done; showers, housework, Bible studies, and school. And then we had to run out the door in the afternoon to go to the orthodontist. Rush, rush, rush! The kids did a great job of flying through their chores and schoolwork and were waiting in the car for me a few minutes early, even. How 'bout them there apples? Bravo, my little chicklets!

And of course, Friday is also date night for hubby and me. But then, you already know that by now. We tried to go see Alice in Wonderland, but the line was so long, we decided to play elsewhere and try again on Saturday. So Saturday rolls around and we head back into town (coming from the moon, keep in mind), leaving plenty early to beat the crowds... Or so we thought! Sold out! We ended up buying tickets for the next showing almost three hours later. Back to the moon so hubby could get some work done in the meantime. Got back to the theater 45 minutes early, tickets in hand... LONG line almost around the building! Whaaat? Good grief!

Sooo... The movie was well worth the long wait... out in the nearly freezing temps... Brrrr! NOT the best thing when you have a cold. Who knew? We must be way out of the loop to not know this movie was so popular. It was really good, though, so go and see it in 3-D! But I warn you, it's not exactly a kids' movie.

Sunday was a wonderful and much needed day of rest for the whole family. The girls played together all day long. Nothing new there. And Daddy and Scotty played games together almost the whole day. They're so cute... albeit a tad immature... Did I just say that? hehe! shshshs!

On the cooking front...

Okay, so what I'm doing is, I'm test driving some of Claire Robinson's recipes from her show, 5 Ingredient Fix. The concept is simple and is as stated; 5 ingredient recipes. I like the idea of 5 ingredient meals that taste good, so let's hope these recipes are winners. The last new recipe I wrote about was one of hers, but I must admit I didn't like it well at all. I'll chalk that first one up to personal taste. I'll only be testing her five star masterpieces.

The next recipe of Claire's I tried the other day was Pork Roast with Hard Cider Gravy, and it was delicious! I say, go for this one, guys! I added some garlic powder to the pork roast, but other than that, there were very few 'Joy tweakages'. The cider gravy was fantastic! Note to all: Don't overcook your pork roast! It should be lightly pink (145* F on a digi-thermometer) and the juices should run clear. Then, let it rest!

Visual aids:

Well, that's all for now, guys! But don't you worry, I'll be back!

More later...

Blame It on the Rain

2010-03-02T22:32:00.000-08:00

Quote of the day:

"If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving is NOT for you!" Anonymous

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*For the record, my quotes will not all start out with 'If at first you don't succeed...' lol! I just saw this one tonight and cracked up. I hope it made you giggle.*

Okay, I have a bone to pick with you guys! You all are supposed to be holding me accountable to do my workout every day! And guess what? I've been slacking off again! Yes, it's true! Maybe three times a week is all I'm doing. I really should be exercising every single day because I feel so much better when I do. And where have you all been, huh? *tapping foot... tap-tap-tap*

Okay, you're right. It's my responsibility, and I need to be self motivated. Is there no one and nothing else I can blame for my lack of commitment? No? Once again... all roads lead back to me. *sigh*

Hey, I got it! I'll blame it on the rain! And now I have a title for this post... which is something I always have a hard time coming up with. Do you remember that song? Hold on! Let me see if I can find it. BRB!

Here it is. Do you have your volume turned up?

(Note: To listen to this music, disable current background music

by clicking 'pause' on the music player in your right sidebar,

then click on pic below.)

Okay, back to today...

We had a full day with all the usual stuff. Did our Bible studies and polished the whole house til it sparkled. School happened. Everything is going well in the 'to-do' department. Well.. other than the whole exercise thing, which, as we've recently established, is not my fault after all, but rather the fault of the rain. Of course, it's not been raining, but that's beside the point. This is my new excuse and I'm stickin' to it.

Seriously, though, I wish our days could be longer. There's always so much more I'd like to get to, but there never seems to be enough time to do it all. Ya know, I seldom feel like I 'want' my day to come to a close. If I had the energy, I'd just keep going and going and going.

To be honest, I think there are some big lessons in there that God is working with me on. Most days, I have drive and motivation enough to spare. But I do struggle with not having realistic expectations for myself. There's only so much I can do, and I'm always needing the Lord to show me when enough is enough. I can't wait to get to Heaven. Then no one will tell me I have to go to bed! hehe!

I didn't make a new recipe for dinner tonight. Well, I guess it was a new recipe, but it was one I made up. I took Carissa out shopping for this week's recipes this afternoon, and by the time we got home, it was too late to embark upon a new culinary adventure. We ended up having marinated steaks (I made up the marinade, so that part was new!), baked potatoes, and salad. My wonderful Daddy gave me his recipe for sweet honey basil dressing, so I made that tonight to go on the salad. So good! Thanks, Daddy-doooo!!

We watched American Idol tonight. The guys sang. I think my favorite guy-voice is Lee DeWyze. He has some trouble staying on key when he sings too hard, but I love his tone! There are others I like, as well, but I especially like Lee. And Michael Lynche is really good, too. He's so cute with those huge dimples.

Okay, I'd better sign off for now. It's hot tea time! Yay!

More later, lil dahlings!

Weekend Review

2010-02-28T23:43:00.001-08:00

Hey there, everyone! It's Sunday night and time for a recap of the last few days! I think my last post was Wednesday, so Thursday...

Thursday was mall and nail day for us. I can't remember if I've mentioned mall and nail days here before.

Anyway, every two or three weeks, the kids and I meet my mom at the mall so Mom and I can get our nails done while the kids do a little window shopping and snacking in the food court. Mom and I relax and talk while our nails are being done up all pretty. Sometimes we even get our feet done! Woohoo! It's our 'thing'. We've been getting manicures together for seven years now. *sigh* I love being a girl!

After our nails are all pretty and the kids are through with their window shopping, we head back to my parents' house of a nice long visit and a yummy dinner prepared by my daddy! We talk until late-late, and then my parents pretty much have to about throw us out. My parents are awesome!

I grabbed some quickie snapshots while we were at their house the other night, but I'm afraid I did an unusually horrible job with the camera. My pics don't do either one of them justice.

Visual aids: First, my very beautiful Mommy. Isn't she gorgeous? And she's as sweet and loving as she is pretty! What a combo. I'm so blessed!

Next, my awesome Daddy! Isn't he the cutest? He's being silly in this pic as he's plating dinner in a mad rush. My daddy is so funny and so wise... And he's a great listener... and hugger... and tear wiper. Have I mentioned how much I love my parents?

Pretty Carissa sitting in the sunroom. No sun shining when I took the pic, so maybe we'll call it the dusk room for now. hehe!

My helpful Nerney and Boodle tossing the salad.

The kids up in my Daddy's office.

Okay, onto Friday! Ya know, I don't remember much about Friday, other than Friday night was date night... and Justin bought me my first laptop! Yaaaay! I'm so excited!!

I've never had a laptop before. The kids have one, and Justin has one.... But this is my first! I never thought I needed one before, but Scotty needs my puter more and more for school-type things...and the rest, as they say, is history.

We're mostly a Mac family. The kids' laptop is a Mac my parents gave them. My desktop is an awesome Mac, which I LOVE. So Justin bought me a MacBook! So far so good! I'm still getting used to typing on this dinky keyboard, though. My nails are long. hehe! I'm not complaining, though. I'll get fast on this thing in no time, I'm sure.

Saturday was family day, and then hubby and I went out for our second date night. Funnily enough (don't ya just love that word? Funnily? hehe!), hubby and I were sitting in a restaurant a good hour from our home, when who do you think walks into the joint? My parents! Yeah! They joined us at our table and we had a great time talking and supping (another good word!) together!

Sunday afternoon, I took Scotty out for the afternoon. We went shopping and out to lunch. And this evening, being that the kids and I weren't home on Thursday night, we had our Mexican food night (taco bowls again, as per hubby's request) and watched last Thursday's Survivor as a fam.

Everyone's in bed now and I'm about to make myself a hot cup of tea, and then I'm going to soak my little hannies (that's 'hands' in our family, btw) in luxurious paraffin wax in my hand spa. Feels and smells heavenly! And then I need to hop into bed and get some much needed sleep. Monday's a-comin'!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

More later...

"If at first you don't succeed...

2010-02-25T00:53:00.000-08:00

...you're running about normal." M.H. Alderson

Hey, guys! What's up? I hope you all had a nice day today.

Today went pretty well for us over here. I slept in after staying up late... I know; I'm breaking my own rules, and believe me, I'm not proud of myself. I was up late last night and I've done it again tonight. *sigh* It's been a long and busy day and I'm having a hard time squeezing everything in and getting to bed at a reasonable hour.

The kids got up before me today, as was our arrangement. They did their morning chores and ate breakfast while I slept in for another hour or so. We had our Bible studies and then got the house all sparkly and oh-so-pretty.

Hmmm... What else did we do? I know I'm skipping over some good stuff, but it's all gone now. Oh well. Anyway... Then kids hit the books and I should have done my workout. Didn't.

We still had a good day, though. The sun was shining. The kids were happy. They worked hard in school and got a bunch done. Way to go, chicklets!

Scotty helped me in the kitchen with dinner this evening. We made Claire's (from '5 Ingredient Fix') Spinach Carbonara. Sort of. hehe! Okay, I *did* make it, but I wasn't crazy about the taste, so I changed it up really big. By the time I was done, it wasn't even close to where we started out. I'm pretty sure Claire wouldn't be pleased, because technically speaking, after my tweakages you could no longer call the dish Carbonara. I don't know what you'd call it, but the kids LOVED it! I tasted it, and I will honestly say that I don't believe this one will make it to my big book of winner recipes.

visual aids: My non-Carbonara

Really quickly, my tweakages: The recipe called for fresh spinach noodles but our store was out of them, so I bought stuffed spinach tortellini. I thought the kids would really like that. And then I assembled the simple saucy stuff following the recipe perfectly, but I didn't like it when all was said and done. So I added sour cream, some ricotta, lots more fresh grated Parmigiano Reggiano, and a little cream. Oh, and some lemon juice for a little kick. Turned out rich and creamy. The kids wolfed it down!

Anyway... As it turned out, it didn't at all matter that I wasn't crazy about the dish because hubby took me out to dinner. Yay! He's so romantic.

We ended up going out for taco salads and talking for a good long time. I think Justin and I could talk til the cows come home without running out of things to say to one another. There's always so much we're working on with the Lord and growing through. It's wonderful sharing and comparing notes with each other.

When we got home, I took Scotty out for a long drive... and a sing along. LOL! Okay, mostly my boy refuses to sing with me, but that does NOT in any way deter me from singing loudly and full of emotion to him! LOL! My boy is the cutest ever!

Okay, enough for now. I'm off to bed. Better late than never, eh?

Nighters, all!

More later...

The Perfect Cookie-Cutter Life

2010-02-24T00:51:00.000-08:00

Hey there, my friends! How's everyone doing?

Today started out pretty slow for me. To be honest, I was really dragging and not at all wanting to face the work I had ahead of me for the day. It was just daunting. *sigh*

So, for the first part of the day, I moved about slowly. We managed to get the morning chores done and Bible studies all around. And then I found myself dilly-dallying, wasting time, procrastinating... Argh! Just did not want to move. I let the kids watch some shows we'd recorded for them instead of starting school on time, and I played online, not even enjoying myself. It was all about avoidance for me.

Finally, right around lunchtime, while complaining to the Lord I felt a little nudge in my heart and a soft spoken promise from Him that I'd be working with Him today. We'd get it all done together. Suddenly, my day looked a whole lot brighter! PTL!

I turned my puter off. The kids had already started on their schoolwork by this time, and I jumped right into my work with both feet. Jesus and I got a lot done! We polished the house until every room was shiny. Did some laundry. Baked some bread. Worked on the finances. And when Justin got home from work, the three of us worked together in the kitchen making dinner together!

Ya know, I absolutely love working side by side with my husband. We're incredibly compatible, and my hubby is so silly and entertaining! He keeps me giggling and rolling my eyes at his ridiculous sense of humor. And he's great in the kitchen. As soon as I set a dirty dish or utensil into the sink, he's immediately right there washing, drying, and putting it away. He's awesome! And he likes chopping veggies for me. He says it's all about the knives. I think it's a man thing, ya know? He loves those sharp knives and cleavers.

Tonight, hubby and I made Anne Burrell's Excellent Meatballs and her Marinara Sauce . They were so good! We especially loved the balls. They're now my fave meatball recipe ever. Yum!

Visual aids:

I followed Anne's recipes to the letter and only added a tiny bit of sugar to her marinara sauce. You'll see that I pretty much always add a touch of sugar to tomato sauces. Not enough to detect with your taste buds. Just enough to cut the acidity a bit.

Anne's marinara isn't a spaghettis sauce, though it looks like it in the pic. There are no traditional Italian seasonings in it like oregano, basil, or thyme. It does, however, have pancetta, onions, garlic, and lots of Italian plum San Marzano tomatoes. She said you 'have' to use authentic San Marzanos if you want the sauce to taste right. So we did. And they're very expensive, let me tell you! But they are super good! I won't always use them (4 cans at $ 4.64 per can just for the tomatoes!), but for the first time making the recipe, I wanted to make it right. They really were a richer, more flavorful tomato, I must admit.

Moving away from food...

We watched American Idol after dinner tonight with the kids. Loving it, as always! I'll probably do a little name dropping here at some point, giving shout-outs to my faves, but at this point, I still don't know anyone's name yet. I can tell you, though, for anyone who's watching the show, hubby and I are loving 'harmonica girl'. There are others we like, too, but she's a standout for us.

Okay, I'd better be heading to bed. Should have been there two hours ago, but, alas, I was still working on finishing up my day. That late start came around to bite me in the bunz. It doesn't pay to procrastinate. Unfortunately, stuff happens. No perfect cookie-cutter life for this girl, and I'm okay with that.

Sleep well, little darlings!

More later...

Fiesta in a bowl!

2010-02-19T00:52:00.000-08:00

Hey, everyone!

Well, it's Thursday, which means it was Mexican food night again. Now, you all realize I'm not claiming these are authentic Mexican dishes, right? Tonight's recipe was another Rachel Ray creation. She just makes 'em up in her head.

Let me begin by saying to all mothers of younger children that I have found it! I have stumbled upon the answer we've all been looking for!

You know how it is. Kids love tacos. But we all know how messy and frustrating to eat they can be for younger kidlets. And then there's the whole thing where you and your hubby are standing in the kitchen assembling the tacos while your kids are gobbling them down as quickly as you can put them together. Oh, of course you could let them make their own... and sometimes that's what we do just so we can sit down and enjoy the meal... But let's not even talk about what happens to a kitchen when children are unleashed to create their own taco extravaganzas. Yikes!

So here it is! The answer we've all been looking for. And it was right under our noses all this time! It's a combination of a taco salad, and maybe a seven layer Mexican dip... and of course, a taco! It's Rachel Ray's Taco Bowls with Guac-a-Salsa- Salad, and it is absolutely delicious!

Just click on the title of the recipe above, and you'll have Rachel's recipe. But keep in mind, you can take her basic idea and do it up any old way that floats your own personal boat! Gotta like that!!

I didn't actually spend any time thinking of creative ways I could play with this recipe, but here's what I did off the cuff with what I had on hand.

Rachel's recipe called for a bag of chips, crushed, and the chips used in the 'layers' of the dish. I only threw a few crushed tortilla chips into the bottom of each bowl.

Next, we're refried bean lovers, so we threw some of those right on top of the crushed chips. Heated the beans first, of course.

Then, Rachel's yummy meat mixture, complete with jalapenos, onions, garlic, cumin, chili powder, etc... So good, I didn't even mess with it!

Throw plenty of Jack and Cheddar cheese right on top of the warm meat mixture. It'll get all nice and melty on its own. Mmmm-mmmm. Who doesn't like cheese, I ask you?

I added some sliced olives next, and I would have also added sliced jalapeno if I had more on hand. At least to hubby's and my own.

Okay, so then comes Rachel's amazing 'guac-a-salsa', which was so good, I would have been happy just eating this with a big ol' spoon and calling that dinner! It was a combination of guacamole and salsa, of course, but it was also a little like pico de gallo. Avocados, plum tomatoes, cilantro (I added more than was called for), lemon juice (I used both lemon AND lime juice!), a little EVOO and some salt and pepper to your liking. YUM!

These last few touches were mine. I chopped iceberg lettuce and threw that on top, with a nice dollop of sour cream. And the chips... I LOVE crunchy tacos, so I took yellow corn tortilla chips and threw them in a 400* oven, single layer, on a cookie sheet, and toasted until desired crunchy-doneness. And then I lined the bowl with the hot chips. One more squeeze of lemon and lime juice right over the top, and... Perfecto!

This recipe had all the wonderful qualities and flavor of a crispy taco, but with none of the mess! And I simply cannot say enough about the salsa/gauc. Mmm! But, maybe the BEST part for Mom; you can assemble all the bowls at once and dinner goes right on the table, with Mom actually sitting down with the family! HALLELUJAH!! It's a miracle!!

Phew! Enough about food. Let's move on, shall we?

Today was Carissa Day again! My little girl and I spent some special one-on-one time, made dinner together, and then headed out for a late date this evening. As Carissa and I sat in the restaurant sipping our sodas, she tells me she's 120 pages into the sixth book she's written. She started writing books about five years ago, just for her own enjoyment. She likes to make them about 180 pages long. I had no idea she was even writing this one! I'm so proud of her! I could sit and listen to my girl talk all night. She has such a way with words, and I love seeing the world through my princess' eyes! I love you so much, little Ree!

Here's my 15 year old baby doll getting ready to go out with me this evening!

Okie-dokie... I'd better wrap this up for now.

More later...

Back on the wagon!

2010-02-16T23:47:00.001-08:00

It's true, I'm back on the 'sleep-on-time' wagon. Only off for two days this time. AND, I've even been sticking to my workout! Go, me!! hehe!

I was absolutely exhausted on Monday and ended up sleeping most of the afternoon away, and well into the evening. I was still able to fall asleep on time last night and even slept through the night without waking up once. Now that's unusual for me! I was worn out!

We really knocked ourselves out today, the kids and I. We did our Monday chores (a day late) and deep cleaned the whole house from top to bottom. The kids were total whirlwinds. We did our Bibles studies. I worked on the finances for a bit. The kids cranked up the brainpower and worked hard on their schoolwork. Nothing new there. I did my workout, as I mentioned already.

I spent some really good time with the Lord in the late morning. Sort of a boardroom meeting between God and me. I had some planning to do and needed His insight. He is, after all, the CEO. I go right to the top when I need direction!

The weather has been downright gloomy! Good golly! It's been positively gray outside. That is, when it's not nearly black from storm clouds. The weatherman says it's going to be sunny for the rest of the week and into the weekend. I sure hope so. I'm ready to see this house filled with bright, cheery sunshine!

For dinner tonight, I made an Anne Burrell recipe called Braised Chicken with Mushrooms and Sauteed Haricots Verts. Haricots Verts are basically baby green beans. Well, the store where I bought the ingredients didn't have any Haricots Verts, but they did have some pretty small/young green beans, so those had to do. I also put together Rachel Ray's BLT Salad.

My precious Nernie worked right by my side the whole time, prepping veggies, stirring, browning, major dishwashing as we went along... Nerns, you blow my mind, girlfriend. You're freakin' me out right now!! I love you, sweet girlie-girl!

Visual aids: The food was excellent! Anne's chicken was over-the-top flavorful! And we loved all the wonderful mushrooms! Way to go, Anne!

Totally uncharacteristic for me, I didn't tweak tonight's recipes at all... that I can remember. Okay, maybe a tiny tweak here or there, but nothing worth even noting. But, as always, taste and adjust seasonings as you go to your liking, and be careful with cook times as they can vary dramatically from kitchen to kitchen.

Okie-dokie, I'm off to the nigh-nigh. I hope you all had a wonderful Tuesday!!

More later ...

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-15T01:58:00.000-08:00

Silly little girls dancing with dishtowels. Kitchen cleaning time, music cranked waaay up, and girlies having all sorts of fun after a long, happy day. I'm sure dessert's sugary cupcakes contributed to their bubbly bouncy-ness.

Happy Valentine's Day, my friends! I hope your day was super special and you were able to spend it with the ones you love best!!

We had a fun, busy weekend. Dates with hubby on Friday, Saturday, AND Sunday!! I feel so spoiled. We went out to eat a couple of times, and we saw two movies. On Friday night we saw 'Valentine's Day', which I don't recommend anyone else seeing. Major disappointment. And on Sunday we saw 'Dear John', which was wonderful, and I totally recommend it. Definitely a chick flick, but totally unexpected and deep. We also had all kinds of wonderful family time this weekend, and celebrated V-Day pretty big with the kidlets.

For dinner I made my traditional heart shaped meatloaf, but I did things a little differently this time. Normally, when it comes out of the oven, I cover it with a tomato sauce, paste, and sugar mixture to make it cute and red. This year I wanted something a little yummier, so I made my own homemade tomato basil cream sauce with wine. Served the meatloaf with creamy mashed potatoes and a salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Chocolate cupcakes with pink and red frosting for dessert. Delicious dinner.

Here's my heart shaped meatloaf in the pan, waiting to go into the oven.

Meatloaf all cooked up and covered in my creamy tomato basil sauce. Too bad it's orange instead of red. *sigh* Oh well...

Whole meal with the fluffy whipped potatoes (mashed with heavy cream, butter, and salt) and the raspberry vinaigrette salad (with feta and pine nuts).

The meatloaf is very easy and really yummy. I use Lipton Recipe Secrets. The recipe is right on the box. Normally, I like to use their onion mushroom soup mix, but this time I thought I'd try the beefy onion. We all like the onion mushroom much better, so if you want to give the recipe a whirl, go for that one!

Here's the recipe on the box:

1 envelope Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Mushroom Soup Mix

2 lbs ground beef

3/4 cup plain dry bread crumbs

2 eggs

3/4 cup water (I use milk or half and half)

1/3 cup ketchup

Preheat oven to 350*. Combine all ingredients. Spray pan with non-stick spray. Form meat mixture into heart shape in the pan. Bake 1 hour or until done. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

My creamy tomato basil sauce was just lots of Roma tomatoes, blanched, peeled, and seeded. Throw the matos into a food processor with lots of basil to your preference. Pour mixture into pot and add beef or chicken stock and wine. Saute chopped onion and garlic in olive oil. Add to sauce pot. Salt, pepper, onion powder, sugar... any other seasonings you want, to taste. I just threw mine together and played with it till we were oohing and ahhing. Excellent!

Okay, I'd better head to bed now. I've fallen off the sleep-on-time wagon and need to get whatever sleep I can still get. Tomorrow is a new day. The good news is, I'll be extra tired, extra early tomorrow night. That's good, right?

Nighters, all!!

More later...

Muy Bueno!

2010-02-11T23:30:00.000-08:00

Oooh, I have to post fast. It's already so late! I'll keep this as short as possible.

Had a nice day. We accomplished all of the stuff on our to-do list. Always a good feeling.

Today was Courtney day, so Daddy took her out for a little special time when he got home from work. Carissa and I worked together in the kitchen putting together our Mexican dinner while Daddy and Courtney were out.

This evening, we watched our two recorded American Idols. Hollywood week! Yaay!! We also watched a little of the first episode of this season's Survivor! Will watch the rest this weekend. What a great night!

Dinner! Muy Bueno!

Did I mention that we're trying to make Thursdays our Mexican food night? Justin loves Mexican food so I've been trying some neat-o recipes with a south of the border influence. Hubby is lovin' it!

Tonight we made Rachel Ray's Chili Suizas Bake, and a Mexican rice recipe from 'All Recipes'. I've actually made the Mex. rice tons of times, with my own twist, of course.

Here's the Chili Suizas. It's made with roasted poblano peppers, ground chicken (can't see the meat in the pics), onion, jalapeno, garlic, lots of green tomatillos, cilantro, honey (weird, huh? so good, though!), lime juice, creme fraiche, crushed tortilla chips, Swiss and Jack cheeses, and some other spices.

The green sauce (and meat and veggies) with the creme fraiche on the top:

Add the lightly crushed tortilla chips...

Lots of cheese melted under the broiler!

Mexican Rice with sour cream on top, garnished with cilantro!

My personal tweakages: For the Chili Suiza, I added more garlic, plenty of salt and pepper, much more lime juice than they called for, some heavy cream to the green sauce when it was complete, and gobs of cheese! For the cheese, I used the suggested Jack and Swiss (went light on the Swiss) and added moz and some cheddar. Yummers!

For the Mex. rice, I pretty much follow the recipe, but I add more onion (we LOVE onion!) and some chopped fresh garlic (sauteed first!), and instead of using cumin and garlic salt, I use taco seasoning mix to our own taste. Sometimes we melt cheese over the top, too, but the main dish was already cheese-heavy, so we decided to cut our arteries a little break tonight.

Okay, more later, cutie-patooties!!

How Sweet It Is ...

2010-02-10T21:57:00.000-08:00

... to be loved by God! Don't ya think? I was talking to the Lord today, the two of us having a very nice conversation; and I found myself singing, "How sweet it is, to be loved by YOU!" Isn't He so sweet?

We had a great day today. The kids and I were up early and got all of our chores done, breakfast eaten, Bible studies, house all sparkly, laundry washed and put away, homeschool...

Later in the afternoon, Scotty and I left to do a little grocery shopping. And then home to cook dinner. Scotty and Carissa helped me in the kitchen. They make my job so much easier!

Tonight we made Guy Fieri's Spicy Tangerine Beef, and Ina Garten's Crunchy Noodle Salad to go with it (the 'crunch' is from the veggies; not the noodles, btw). Both were great! I'm finding I love Ina's recipes! This gal knows her seasonings. They always seem pop in an unexpected way, but her spice blends are also elegant and smooth somehow. Way to go, Ina!! Another 5 star recipe, girlfriend!

Visual aids:

Here's the Spicy Tangerine Beef over rice. Again, very good. I used a tad less ginger than the recipe called for, and I added more tangerine juice and more zest to the sauce, and also some onion powder while it was cooking. Easy peasy!

And here's Ina's Crunchy Noodle Salad. I just loved this!! Had to seriously hold myself back from inhaling it. hehe! I only made a couple of tiny adjustments to my own taste. One, I added a little more honey to the sauce. And two, a tiny bit of hot mustard to add a little kick. YUM! If you like Thai peanutty sauces, you must try this! Mmmmm!

SOOOOoooooo.... Shall we talk accountability??? You know, the only reason I dare to bring it up is because I *am* sticking to my routine. Yay, me! teehee! Went to bed on time last night. Got enough sleep and woke up rested today, PTL! And I even did my whole workout. Mm-hm. Oooh yeah, baby!

Okay, enough for now, my little pretties.

More later...

The Duck Is Irrelevant

2010-02-09T22:05:00.000-08:00

It's true. Don't look for a deeper meaning in the above duck. hehe! I didn't take any pictures today and was talking to my son this evening about not having any visual aids to post. He suggested looking for something cool to take a picture of, but I told him I'd need something relevant to my day.

Just as I was explaining this to my boy, I spotted my little rubber ducky that sits next to me at my puter desk. I told my son we could shoot the duck. "And the duck is relevant?" he asks. No, the duck is not relevant, but he IS cute, and that does count for something in my book. We proceeded to shoot the duck sitting on my tilted puter screen.

Okay, all ducks aside... We had a good day and accomplished all that needed to be done. Up early with the kids. Morning chores and breakfast. Bible studies all around. Cleaned the house together from top to bottom. Got the laundry washed and put away. Put in a full day of homeschool. I spent some time working on my cookbooks...

I had plans to throw together a new recipe tonight. Can't remember who's it was. Hmmm... Maybe Emeril's? But Justin called literally seconds before I started cooking and told me he had food enough for the kids' dinner left over from his district meeting today. When he got home, we decided to go to our favorite Chinese food restaurant so we could have some quiet alone time talking. Sometimes ya just need to fly the coop so you can focus on one another, ya know? My cool recipe will have to wait until Wednesday.

So, two things I've been working at being more consistent on. One is getting to bed on time, instead of burning the candle at both ends. And the other is exercising regularly, instead of my usual hit and miss routine. *sigh* Honestly, my family will vouch for me, I do stick to my stuff pretty often, but then I backslide. I'll pull myself together again, and then... I revert back to my old ways.

Last week I really started working on getting to bed on time, and so far so good. I've pretty much stuck to it. This is actually nothing new for me, but I do need to stay committed. You all can help me with accountability, k?

This week I got back into my regular workout routine again. Two days down. Must keep going. I don't actually mind doing it, but I need to make it a priority or I won't find the time in my day.

The kidlets are all reading in bed as I type, and hubby is hopefully sawing logs. I need to start the dishwasher and head to bed now, too, so I can stick to my good-for-me schedule.

More later...

Where does the day go?

2010-02-08T21:09:00.000-08:00

That's how I've been feeling. The days just fly by and there never seems to be enough time to squeeze everything in. There's always so much I want to do. And I like to be able to sort of take each thing as it comes, rather than rushing. I want to do it all, and I want to get to everything... But I want to be able to amble along and really soak it all in; the time I spend with my kids and the Lord's many blessings.

I wish there was a perfect balance. I'd love to have a blueprint I could follow. That would suit my structured personality beautifully. But it seems the Lord has another plan for my life. Every day I'm needing to seek Him for direction and wisdom in my prioritizing and my pace. And every day looks a little different than the one before, so no perfect science in this ol' house.

Well, we had a marvelous weekend! My parents came over on Saturday and we had a little birthday party for my mom. We had so much fun, laughing and talking. It was wonderful!

I told my mom I'd make her anything she wanted for her special meal. She chose lasagna. I ended up preparing an entire Italian feast. I made the punch she likes so well, and we had my Bruschetta (the one a couple of posts below) as an hors d'oeuvre. Then came the soup. I made Zuppa Toscana (yum-a-licious!). Next was a wonderful salad with my daddy's own creamy honey and sweet basil dressing. It's my favorite dressing in the whole wide world!! Then came the Lasagna and amazing Cheesy Garlic Bread. And lastly, for dessert I made Ina Garten's Fresh Lemon Mousse. Super good! My mommy loves lemon! We ate until we could hardly move! hehe!

I'm sorry to report that we forgot to take pictures. I promised my mom I'd take some and post them here. Sorry, Mom! But I did grab a couple of the girlies after my parents left, while we were cleaning up. They were acting all silly. Cute little punkins!

That's it for now, little darlings!

More later...

Boodle Day!

2010-02-04T00:21:00.001-08:00

One more quickie post on the heels of the last. It's Boodle Day again, so she was my main gal all day today. What a sweetheart, let me tell ya! She makes my heart go pitter-pat.

Here's Chloe' helping me prepare dinner in the kitchen this evening. She's whisking the hollandaise sauce for Mommy. We left later this evening for a special little date, just the two of us.

I love you, my sweet little girl!

Be blessed, dear friends and family!

More later...

Recipe Rundown

2010-02-03T23:12:00.000-08:00

Hi there, everyone! It's been a few days, so I thought I'd make this post my recipe rundown of this week.

Monday night's dinner was Guy Fieri's Bacon and Tomato Pasta. This was super yummy! It was a little spicy, so if ya don't like heat, cut back on the red chili flakes!

Along with Guy's recipe, I also made up my own Bruschetta recipe. This was absolutely wonderful. I had leftover ingredients and had it for lunch this week. Oh goodness... What did I put in it? Chopped tomato, bell peppers (red, yellow, orange), onion, scallion, minced garlic, and lots of fresh basil, coarse Kosher sea salt and freshly ground pepper, sauteed in olive oil. Brushed the baguette with olive oil and toasted both sides under the broiler. Topped with veggie mixture and thinly sliced Feta. Then, back under the broiler to melt the cheese. Lastly, drizzle a little basil oil on top. Unbelievable stuff! My new favorite food!

Tuesday was a Rachel Ray day! We made her Pork Chop with Cider Gravy, Sauteed Apples, and Onions. This was pretty good, too. I made extra gravy and browned the chops in the skillet. Then I moved them to the oven and cooked them the rest of the way. Threw together my own creamy mashed potatoes.

Also on this plate is Rachel's Corn Muffins with Bacon and Cheddar Cheese. The reviews said the muffins were a little dry, as corn muffins tend to be. I added extra milk for moisture. The pic doesn't do these muffins justice. I cut this one in half in hopes of showing the oozing cheese, but I couldn't capture that with my camera. Gotta take my word for it. The cheesiest!

Tonight's (Wednesday's) dinner was a recipe I found on Recipe Zaar called Kittencal's Moist Cheddar-Garlic Oven-Fried Chicken Breast (long name!). YUM! Crispy. Garlicky. Wonderful! Use your own spices to make it to your taste. On the side, fresh asparagus with lemony hollandaise sauce.

I also took our leftover creamy mashed potatoes, and to them I added crispy fried bacon and sauteed red bell pepper, onion, garlic, scallion, and parsley, and then I added some sour cream at the end to sort of remoisten the potatoes. Fabulous! Justin said that the only thing wrong with the potatoes was his spoon was too small!

More bread pics. This time for my daddy! "Zojirushi bread, Daddy!"

This last picture shows what I've been doing for the last few days in my free time. I have a table set up in my bedroom so I can work on my recipe notebooks. I've been compiling my recipes for quite some time now, but I fall behind in getting them sorted and filed. I've been putting my 'keepers' in page protectors and making sure I have my notes on each recipe so I can remember my tweakages.

Okay, that's it for my foodie update. No cooking for me tomorrow. It's mall and manicure day! Yaay!!

More later...

Going With the Flow...

2010-01-29T00:59:00.000-08:00

"Like a twig on the banks of a mighty stream." (A favorite quote from Planes, Trains, & Automobiles) That's me. Errrr... At least that's how I aspire to be. I've not yet arrived.

What's all this about, you ask? Well, let me tell you. It's schedule tweaking time again. When does it ever end? That's what I want to know.

I've been a stay at home mom for more than 17 years now, and the schedule shifting and priority juggling never ends. Not ever. I've learned to not get too attached to any one way of getting it all done because the inevitable change is always right around the corner. My type 'A' personality doesn't thrive on change. Then again, if life were not this way, my creative side would probably starve to death.

So, once again, I'm trying to flow. Like a little twig... That's me. Yeah, right. (rolls eyes at self)

My birthday was on Monday. Yay! I had a wonderful birthday weekend just before my big day, and then lots of celebrating on the day of. My amazing parents took Justin and I out to dinner that night. We had so much fun! We laughed so hard, and the food was yummy! It was hard saying goodbye to my special day at midnight. The kids generously offered to make Tuesday my birthday, too. They even greeted me Tuesday morning with a cheery "happy birthday" when I emerged from my bedroom.

The rest of the week has been an absolute blur! Justin's been incredibly busy at work, as always. But even more so than usual. And I've been going and going, doing my thing with the kids, the household chores, homeschooling, and spending one on one time with each punkin. I'm so ready for the weekend!!

I tried a new Emeril Lagasse recipe called Bayou Chicken Pasta. It turned out really well. Had a little kick to it. The recipe calls for a tablespoon of chopped habanero pepper, but I used chopped poblano pepper instead for a little less heat. I always tweak the recipe a tad to my own liking.

Visual aids:

A little Caesar salad at the side to round out the meal.

*Note to my mom: Mommy, click on the pink lettering above ("Bayou Chicken Pasta"), and that'll bring you to the recipe. Kiss-Kiss! *

Okay, I need to hit the hay. It's super late and the nigh-nigh is calling to me.

More later...

Gotta Try This!

2010-01-22T01:05:00.000-08:00

Found this Ina Garten recipe for Lemon Fusilli with Arugula on Food Network's website. It was so good, you simply must try it!

The only alterations I suggest are, first, to make a little more sauce than the recipe calls for. Second, I only put in half of the baby arugula and it was perfect. And third, the recipe says to remove the sauce and noodles from the pot, pour it into a bowl, and then add your parm cheese, arugula, cherry or grape tomatoes, cooked broccoli, and lemon slices just before you serve. I actually threw it all together in the pot on med-low heat for just a second to wilt the arugula a tad, otherwise the texture is a little too 'leafy', if you know what I mean. Other than that, the creamy, zesty, lemony sauce was incredible!!
Gotta make this one, guys! You won't be disappointed!
Visual aids:

I tried a new Wish-Bone Italian dressing tonight called Romano Basil Italian, and it was totally yum-a-licious! Don't you just want to grab a fork and stab a bite? I do and it's not been all that many hours since we had dinner.

Just for fun, I thought I'd throw in a picture of the two loaves of bread I made today, and our homemade butter. That's our normal sammich bread on the left, and our fruit and nut breakfast bread on the right. All are staples in our house, made almost daily. This is a goofy looking picture, I know. Embarrassing. Bear with me. Photography is not a gift I possess.

One more random visual aid: This is my darling boy. You'll find most pics of him will be sneak attacks. Isn't he cute, though?

Today was a good day. It started out gorgeous and sunny which was a blessed change from a the wind and rain we've been getting. That put me in a great mood!
We had our showers, morning chores, breakfast and Bible study in the first part of our day. Then we polished the house and got the laundry done. I got the kids going on their schoolwork. Got to my workout today which was much needed! Baked some bread. Then Carissa and I worked together in the kitchen on our new recipe for dinner. (Thanks, Sweetie! You're a huge help to me! )

Daddy came home just before dinner went on the table. We sat down together and had a nice family dinner. Then I sat and talked with the kids at the table while my incredible husband cleaned the kitchen for me. What a guy! *swoon!*

Hubby had to go to bed extra early this evening so he can get up before God tomorrow. Lots of big stuff happening at work for him, so his hours are long! It's all good, though. He loves his job!

My baby, Chloe', still has the flu so she spent the day in bed. She's stopped throwing up, but she fought a fever for most of the day. At least one more day in bed for her; maybe two. We'll play that one by ear. We did let her curl up on the couch to watch Wednesday's American Idol with us.

All of my family peeps are snuggled into their beds now, and I'm about to head down to the kitchen to put the kettle on for some lovely tea. Mmmm... I can't wait. It's jammy and tea time for me. How wonderful. Life is gooooood.

Okay, I'm outie for now.

Be blessed my dear family and friends!

More later...

Another One Bites the Dust

2010-01-21T01:09:00.000-08:00

The kids have all caught Daddy's and my cold. Most are doing pretty well with it, but it seems Chloe' has come down with a full-on flu or some other virus. My sweet baby spent the day with a fever and throwing up. No one else we know has had a stomach bug, so I don't know where she picked this up. She's been in bed for most of the day and will be there for at least another two. I hate seeing her sick, but I must admit to enjoying spoiling her and finding things that'll cheer her up.

Our day today was a productive one. We got up and had our Bible studies. The kids did their morning chores and we polished the whole nest, including getting all the laundry done and put away... until tomorrow. School happened, or at least half a day of it. Let's just say that between sick kids and some altered school schedules, the kids only ended up doing half of their schoolwork. Ah well. Momma said there'd be days like these....

This afternoon, Scotty and I dug into a fun (albeit tedious) project. We did some reorganizing of our walk-in pantry, which is actually a storage room off the kitchen. Some things had accumulated taking up more of my space than I prefer, so we did some housekeeping and purging. We even vacuumed and dusted everything, including the walls and the ceiling. Justin just mounted a new light fixture in there, and now it's good and bright so I can really see what I'm doing and looking for. Love it!

Today was Carissa's special day! Yaaay!! I got her a little surprise and gave it to her this morning. She got some special treatment today, and this evening she and I went shopping and out for dinner. We had a blast. Carissa just cracks me up! I think we have a similar sense of humor. We're on the same wave length, me and mini-me.

Today's visual aids: My darling Carissa

No cooking for Mommy tonight. We had leftover cheese stuffed meatballs and creamy tomato sauce, and also leftover coconut chicken that needed to be eaten. Tomorrow... a new Ina Garten recipe. Carissa and I shopped for the ingredients tonight and I can't wait to throw it all together. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.

Well, I'm almost finished with my cup of tea, and that can only mean one thing; It's bedtime!

Love you all!

More later...