Talented Tuesday #3

Ben can take care of his baby and work on his car at the same time.

Maddie our future fashion designer!

Valentine's Cookie Maddie and I made.

Make-A-Plan Monday #3

I am finally back. I didn't really go anywhere. My mind has just been on a mental vacation. Hopefully it decides to stick around.

Meal plan:
BBQ Pork Roast
Ham
Stew
Corn Dogs
Chocolate Chip Squares
Bread

Projects:
Clean pantry, three meetings, two playgroups, zoo (if the weather is nice), bank, hang pictures, blog daily, clean island (I know, again), clean out frig, scrapbook layout and misc. who knows what else!

Have a great week everyone!

Thursday Thirteen!

I picked out thirteen random pictures to show off today!

Wordless Wednesday #2

Talented Tuesday #2 a day late

I have been busy making some crafty crafts. I wanted to find a cute Piggy Bank for a friend's baby and just couldn't. So I made my own bank. I hope she likes it!

This picture frame is the craft project that Maddie's class will be doing. It is a dollar wooden frame from Michael's and tissue paper. It is super easy. I am planning on making some for Valentine's Day gifts. I just need to take a cute picture of the kiddos

Make-A-Plan Monday #2

The week seems to be full of snow again. We are waiting for another big snow. The last one was wet and heavy. We were able to make a great snow woman. I didn't get the car washed because of the big snow, maybe next week.
Meal Plan:
Tacos
Taco Salad (Lunch)
Pizza and Mac & Cheese (if we go to Ballet)
Chicken Kiev (Every one's favorite)
Fish Sticks
I am noticing nothing in the list except the tacos is homemade.

Activities:
Girl Scout Meeting, Cookie pick-up, sorting and delivery, MOPS Meeting - finish Address Books, make Valentine Gifts for teachers and family, Valentine Cards for kids at school, cut paper for Valentine party craft, do misc. things for Maddie's teacher, finish boxing up Ben's stuff, make piggy bank, playgroup on Wednesday and who knows what else.
Have a great week everyone!

Superbowl Fun!

Yesterday the girls got into the whole Superbowl mood. Maddie was booing and yelling at any given moment. She was unsure who was playing or winning. So she would just yell so Colts, or boo Saints here and there. It was pretty funny! I made potato skins, guacamole and chicken nuggets. What a party. Katie had to wear a hat too school today so I made her a cute blue and white hat. She decided that she can wear it for Easter, Spring, Summer or right now. She also wants me to make her ones in different colors and with different flowers. Who would guess?!?!?

Soupy Sunday "Pork Stew"

I was at Kroger's and found Pork Stew Meat on clearance. I thought lets give it a try. Boy did it come out good. I wish I had made a lot more.
Recipe:
2 lbs Pork Stew Meat
1 bag frozen mixed veggie
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup celery
1/4 onion
1 can cream of mushroom
36 ounces Beef Broth

I cooked the pork in butter in a pan until done. Then I put all the ingredients in a crock pot on low and cooked for 7 hours. The meat and veggies came out very tender. I loved it!

Soupy Sunday #1

I made some really good soup this week. It was called Loaded Baked Potato Soup. My parents, Tony and I thought it tasted great. The girls were not too happy about it.

Here is the recipe:

5 large baking potatoes peeled and mashed.

2 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed small

36 ounces of Chicken Broth

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

3 scallions chopped fine

4 slices of cooked bacon-make crispy and crunch up well

(Make more if you want to use as a garnish)

Mix together the 5 potatoes, cheese, onions and broth. Cook

Added the cubed potatoes and cook for

Garnish with cheese, scallions, bacon

Scrumptious Saturday #1

Here is a recipe that is very easy but taste great.
Roasted Chicken
I buy a 4 to 5 pound chicken place it on the chicken roasting rack and cover with seasoning. My favorite is paprika, garlic and Mrs. Dash seasoning mixed together and rubbed all over the chicken. Don't forget to add water to the roasting tray. I cook for one hour and 375'. The skin is crispy and the chicken is great. I like it more then the store made ones.
I am going to try a BBQ rub this week.
This is a meal that Katie, Maddie and Ben will eat up.
Serves great with just about anything.

Snow Fun

Yesterday we had some pretty heavy snow. Ben was not to happy to play outside so he watched from the window with Poppie. Katie, Maddie and Gramma built a pretty cute snow girl. The snow was heavy and was great for packing. Today we were on our way to a friends house around 1pm. The streets were hardly plodded. The street going to their house was down to one lane and still covered with snow. It was pretty scary!

Thursday Thirteen!

My Thursday Thirteen this week is thirteen goals I have for the year.

1. Lose 30 pounds
2. Finished an ABC book for Maddie and Ben-one each
3. Clean out my closet and dressers
4. Clean out Rubbermaid containers from the garage
5. Scrapbook once a week
6. Learn how to knit a hat
7. Exercise at least 30 minutes a day
8. Cook a new dish every week
9. Paint our bathroom, hallways and TV area
10. Start using a budget
11. Teach Ben to use the potty (Wishful thinking)
12. Redo all the pictures in the house; update and reorganize
13. Do a mom's day every other month; all day

Help me keep an track!

Wordless Wednesday #1

Talented Tuesday #1

I know that my talents are far and few between, but here are some things that I have made recently. I made 12 mugs and 20 plates for MOPS or presents. I have become addicted to porcelain and paint. It makes for a great personalized gift.

This week I am working on two scrapbook pages, an ABC book and my 2009 x-mas collage.

Make-A-Plan Monday #1

The weekend is finally over. This weekend was a long, boring, lazy one. Everyone except Ben had some type of bug. For the most part everyone is doing better. Katie has a head cold now. Our computer even got some kind of bug. Tony had to clean out the whole computer. It took all day Sunday and some of Saturday. I have only three programs on the whole computer. No pictures or word programs. Today is the start of my new daily plan. Hope not to bore everyone!
So here are my plans for the week:
Meals:
Stuffed Peppers and rolls
Pulled Beef , chips and slaw
Ham, corn and potatoes
Loaded Potato Soup and home made bread
Things that need to get done:
Recycle paper, Maddie's half Bday at school (a month late), clean out all the 9 months and under clothes from Ben's closet, Resale Shop for baby stuff, water plants, clean my room, sanitize the house, clean the downstairs and keep it clean all week, Dance Class, Girl Scout Meeting (valentine craft too), two playgroups, four meetings, returns at Kmart, groceries at Kroger's, wash car, get gas, and everything else that a mom does. Hopefully a MNO on Thursday night:)
Hope everyone has a great week! I am off to get things done.

Just for Fun!

I am pretty amazed I have been blogging for over two years. I started this blog on Jan. 25 th, 2008. A lot has happened in those two years. We added Ben to our lovely family. We had to buy a new car, washer, dryer, and hot water heater. We put in a playground, garden bed, landscaping, new floor, painted a lot of rooms in the house and worked on the basement. We have made some new friends. We are still living in the same house, amazing! We have been here for over three years now. We are planning for a busy summer as always. I am thankful for my family and friends, for our health and happiness.
There are many plans for our future!
One is that I am trying to post daily. I have a plan on how to do that.
Monday will be Make-A-Plan Monday. An idea from a friend, thanks!
Tuesday will be Talented Tuesday, I will post a project that I have finished or am working on.
Wednesday will be Wordless Wednesday, like so many of my friends do, thanks again!
Thursday will be Thursday Thirteen or Thrifty Thursday.
Friday will be Friday Fill-in or Frantic Friday (recap of our crazy week).
Saturday will be Scrumptious Saturday, I will post a new recipe that I made that week.
Sunday will be Soupy Sunday, I will post a new soup recipe that I made that week.

Happy blogging everyone!!!

The germs have found us!

Everyone is sick except Ben. Hopefully he does not get it. Everyone stayed home on Thursday. Katie and Tony stayed home today. I sent Maddie to school today and had to run to Wal-mart for pb and juice. I felt like hell the whole time. Tomorrow we are all staying in our pj's. Maddie and I got sick on Wednesday afternoon. She has been better since yesterday. Katie said her belly hurt yesterday and today she had a fever of 101.4 and a sore throat. Tony got sick yesterday and still is. He has been doing a lot of sleeping. Katie has been laying around. Ben has been playing and looking for attention. I still feel like crap. I can't even take the smell of food. Hopefully we will all feel better tomorrow. Clorox wipes and soup are our best friend.

Cuteness!

Wii

I have been trying to make some changes in my way of life. Yesterday I started doing the Wii Fit. My goal is at least 15 minutes a day. I am addicted to the hula hoop and yoga on the Wii Fit. I also donated 11 inches of my hair to "Locks for Love." I did this for two reason; first, because it is a good cause and second, because I lost a deal with myself. This is where the Wii Fit comes in. I am going to lose at least 30 pounds before Ben's 2nd Birthday! Please help me along.
Now the Wii has become a family event again. The girls love to play and Tony uses it because it is out. Ben even has an avatar. He loves to lay on the Fit board and help me to do yoga. My balance and weight are always a little off because of him. He does the one leg hug!

Life!

Lookng forward to warmer days!
Katie was almost 4 and Maddie was almost 2.