Home Sweet-Smelling Home

Thanks to Angie at Thrifty Florida Mama for posting this great deal from Bath and Body Works!

Here's what I did:

Added Scentport Diffuser to my cart $7.50 FREE with purchase of Refill
Added Scentport Lavender & Chamomile Refill to my cart $12.50 (I wasn't able to get any other scent to work with the promo code!)
Added Fresh Vanilla Shower Gel to my cart (SALE Page) $2.50

Sub-Total:$15.00

Minus $15.00 via Promo Code: Therapy15

Here's how it ended up:
$2.50, price of the shower gel
$6.00 Shipping
$.71 Tax

TOTAL: $9.21 for $29.50 worth of product!

Oh Yeeeaaahhhh!

Monday...

Last week went well, all things considered. We did have a few bumps in the road regarding meals, but overall I'd label it successful. Due to the bumps, you will see some meals 'carried-over' from last week. Yeah...like you are really paying that much attention!

This week I am trying a few new recipes which I will link for you.

slow cooker mexican beef stew, cornbread or rolls, whole fruits
chicken and dumplings, salad, SF/FF pudding
sexy joe's, Sun Chips, carrot sticks, apple slices
roasted veggies & chicken, side salads, whole fruits
tuna noodle casserole with peas, side salads, Jell-O
homemade pizzas, side salads, frozen yogurt
leftover night

Check out MPM at orgjunkie.com!

Menu Plan Monday

*Edited because I changed my mind on a few things!

Not much into planning this week's meals so we'll see what happens.

Here are the ideas I have floating around:

chicken enchiladas, spanish rice, salad turkey chili, cornbread

baked ziti tuna noodle casserole, brocolli, fruit salad

MYOP (make your own pizza!), salad

taco salad, whole fruits

Farmer's Breakfast Casserole, whole fruits

chicken noodle soup with brocolli, grilled cheese sandwiches

tortellini soup with spinach, crusty bread, whole fruits

leftovers (this will probably fall to Friday or Saturday)

No pizza night this week since we will be making our own. It's easier on the budget and healthier too! Can you tell I'm trying to convince myself? Yeah, thought so.

Someone asked me about lunches and snacks. I don't post them because I don't plan them!
Some of our regulars are...
pbj's
tuna on crackers
leftovers
'snack' trays as my kids have labelled them. Actually, it's more like a 'deli' tray: cold cuts, cheeses, pickles, olives, fruits, pretzels, Sun chips, etc.
You know, regular lunch stuff. Nothing exciting.

So, what are you eating this week? Click on over to Org Junkie to list your ideas or get some new ones!

Have a fantabulous week!

P.S. I'd love to link you to some recipes, but I never follow a recipe exactly. So rebellious.

Snagged

A few days ago, as I poked around Homespun Living, I found a recipe for Orange Pecan Scones. Quickly bookmarked that specific recipe thinking it would make a great Saturday morning breakfast. Fast: check. Easy: check. Simple ingredients: check. Different: check. I couldn't wait to try it out! This Saturday, however, had other things in mind for me. Things that would bore you to tears. Or maybe you'd long to be visiting your dentist instead of reading my post. Either way, Saturday was a bust.

Since we begged persuaded my husband to purchase lunch out today, no one was hungry for dinner. So guess what I made? I know, you could never imagine. The Orange Pecan Scones. Shocked, aren't you? There were heavenly!

Now, some of my friends do not like scones. They say scones are like eating cardboard. They don't know what they are talking about. And certainly, they've never had these scones.

Now, go make them. Or at least bookmark the recipe for future use!

Also, poke around her site for yourself. It's amazing! She is very talented.

Free Stuff or Lame Post of Links

Random items/services for FREE! Who doesn't love FREE?

Free 2 year subscription from Parents magazine.

Free shortstack at IHOP. Tuesday, Februrary 12th, 7am - 10am.

Free Dole Salad.

Free printable grocery list in alphabetical order.

Lots of free organizing printables here.

CVS deals at Money Saving Mom. *Remember to check out her sidebar for more savings ideas.

It's Monday!

Game Show Announcer Voice:

That means it's time for Menu Plan Monday! Woo Hoo!
Click on over to visit Laura & get some fresh new ideas for your own menu!

Commercial end.

Here's what I've pulled out of my hat for this week:

salmon, broccoli, brown rice
bacon & broccoli quiche, fruit salad
BBQ chicken sandwiches, carrot sticks
15 bean soup with sausage, corn bread, whole fruits
pork chops, stuffing, green bean casserole
leftover or sandwich night
Friday is always pizza night!

What are you cooking up this week?

I stole this from my online buddy, Mel. It fits my day perfectly!

We're Crafty

This is what we are making today.

Hopefully ours will be as cute as these. If they are, I'll post a picture or two.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Packin' on the pounds...

My mom carried this dip to all sorts of functions when I was growing up. It was always a hit and

super simple to make. After I married, it became a standard around the holidays. During the last few years of mom's life, she couldn't have it due to dietary restrictions so we didn't make it. Now that she's gone, I'm making it in her honor. This dips for you, Mom!

If I were more organized, I would have a picture of the 'Cast', but I'm not. So here's the list instead:

2 blocks of cream cheese, softened

1 jar sliced dried beef, diced

2-3 green onions, chopped

1 can black olives, chopped

Toss it all in a bowl and stir. I use the KitchenAid. I'm lazy like that.

It'll look like this:

Serve with crackers and enjoy!

MPM and Construction

It's going to go something like this:

spaghetti, foccacia, salad
chicken something, steamed broccoli*
grilled ham and cheese sandwiches, tomato soup
chicken nuggets, 'cafeteria' mac n cheese, green beans
tuna sandwiches, pickles, carrot sticks

oriental noodle bowls with turkey and veggies

*If you're thinking we eat a lot of broccoli, we do. It's the one vegetable that the whole family likes.

That's as far as I can think right now. I don't have much in the way of a menu.

But I DO have construction photos!

This is what we started with:

An enclosed garage.

On the other side of the exposed studs is our miniature laundry room.
See:

It's tiny. Seriously. It's only as wide as the washer and dryer.

Once it was opened up:

And now:

Plenty of room for laundry baskets, some shelving, a drying rod and best of all I won't be face down in cat's box when I put clothes into the dryer! I'm so excited!

The outside:

To the left is our chest freezer, water softener, hot water heater and a whole slew of junk! There will be a small storage area. Hopefully we'll keep it neater than this!

Here is the room being framed:

And the closet, which is outside the room. Which hurts because this addition won't be considered a bedroom since there is no closet inside. However, it does give the boy more useable space.

Sheetrock going up:

And here it is insulated:

I know you were just dying to see that pink fuzzy stuff. You're welcome.

See that table? I have special plans for that. If I'm successful, I'll post about it.

'Till next time...be blessed!

Merry Christmas to Me!

I mentioned earlier that my camera was on the fritz...here's the replacement:



Oh yeah!

I also stated there were some things I'd like to check off my list. Exactly NONE of them have been completed! Instead, we have been making preparations for a family member to move in with us. This is a corner of our enclosed garage which we call a den. We have been working frantically to clear out this room so that the construction can begin. Nevermind all the school stuff and sports equipment!

If you can make it out, there is an outline of a soon-to-be new room for my son.
Maybe next week my neighbors will get their cookies. Maybe.

MPM

Since nothing was consumed on the specific day it was planned for last week, I am taking a different approach to my meal planning. This week, I'll just list the meals and not assign them to a day. I'm such a rebel like that.

turkey chili, cornbread, apple slices
baked rosemary chicken, mashed potatoes, broccolli
tuna noodle casserole, peas, fruit salad
taco cups, spanish rice
sandwiches or fin-for-yourself night
broccolli cheese soup, crusty bread, pears
Friday is always pizza night! Woo Hoo!


I had wanted to try some new recipes this week, but we have too much going on. I'm just going to stick with tried & true's.

Also, I am studying Tammy's site with great excitement!

Other items I would like to check of my list this week:
6 dozen cookies for neighbors
For the freezer: 2 pumpkin pies, 1 pecan pie, another blueberry pound cake, pan of chicken enchiladas, farmer's breakfast casserole
3 bookcases reduced to 1 Ha!
Unclaimed Freecycle items to Goodwill
a pedicure!!!!


Praying that you all have a wonderfully productive week!

Too easy

This cake is way too easy. Dd made it earlier in the week and thankfully I set aside some for a friend. I fear I would have consumed it ALL.

Try it out.

Berry 'Pound' Cake
Preheat oven to 325
1 box yellow cake mix
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup oil (we used applesauce)
2 cups berries (we used frozen blueberries)

Mix together: cake mix, eggs and oil.
Fold in berries.
Pour into greased bundt pan and bake for 1 hour.


(Now, I added a glaze, but the recipe doesn't call for it.)

Also, is it still a pound cake even though it's baked in a bundt pan? All the pound cakes I've had were baked in a loaf pan. Am I sheltered? Is it a pound cake because of the ingredients? It has nothing to do with shape does it?


P.S. I would post a picture but my camera DIED!!!

Menu Plan Monday

Hi Folks! It's Monday again, all day!
Last week was so easy, I'm doing it again. I've allowed for a lazy leftover night to prevent that whole pizza ordering, budget killing moment we had last week.

Monday: pork chops with potatoes and carrots, fruit*
Tuesday: beef & vegetable soup with cornbread
Wednesday: chicken enchiladas, chips, salad
Thursday: leftover soup & cornbread/or whatever you can find
Friday: chicken fried rice, egg rolls, egg drop soup
Saturday: chili with cornbread muffins
Sunday: restaurant for dinner, b-fast for supper


If you are not familiar with MPM, please hop on over and check it out!

*Yes, I know we had this last Monday. Kids & dh requested a repeat.

MPM Update

This was the plan:

Monday: salmon/steamed brocolli & cauliflower/wild rice
Tuesday: pork chops/cabbage/carrots *added potatoes
Wednesday: spagetti/focaccia bread/salad
Thursday: chili dogs/chips/salad*
Friday: homemade chicken noodle soup/fruit salad
Saturday: chimichangas/spanish rice/chips

This is how it went down:

Monday: As planned
Tuesday: As planned, added potatoes fruit salad
Wednesday: As planned
Thursday: Couldn't stomach the thought of chili dogs. Used Saturdays meal.
Friday: Got really lazy and ordered pizza.
Saturday: Leftover pizza
Sunday: As planned (fast food) for lunch, b-fast for supper.

I call this Success and will be participating again. This week, right after I hit 'publish'!

Menu

I'm participating in Menu Plan Monday to *hopefully* establish a habit of planning. Ha!
We'll see how it works and I'll post an update at the end of the week.

Monday: salmon/steamed brocolli & cauliflower/wild rice
Tuesday: pork chops/cabbage/carrots *added potatoes
Wednesday: spagetti/focaccia bread/salad
Thursday: chili dogs/chips/salad*
Friday: homemade chicken noodle soup/fruit salad
Saturday: chimichangas/spanish rice/chips

Just for kicks I've also made a list of lunches for the kids and I:
leftovers/salad
turkey sandwiches/chips/apple slices
tuna salad sandwiches/carrot sticks
soup/crackers/salad/fruit
hot dogs/mac-n-cheese *I'll eat a big salad on this day. Hot dogs = nasty!

Breakfasts:
whole wheat toast with peanut butter
oatmeal * 3
cold cereal with bananas

Baking

In preparation for the upcoming holiday, I am spending the day baking. In addition to the previously posted Starbucks Pumpkin Pound Cake I am making the following recipes:

Cornbread Dressing (Not an exact recipe)
1 hen boiled & deboned, reserve broth
2 pans of cornbread, crumbled
2-4 eggs, boiled & chopped
2 raw eggs, slightly beaten
celery, finely chopped
carrots, shredded
1-2 apples, shredded
green onions, chopped
broth from hen

Mix all together and place in baking dish. Bake @ 350 until done.

I don't know exactly where this recipe came from. If it's yours, step up and claim it!
Easy Pecan Pie
1 unbaked pie crust
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vailla
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup light Karo syrup
1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cup pecans, halves or chopped - your choice.

In saucepan, brown butter until it is golden but don't let it burn. Set aside so that it can cool. When cooled, add sugar, salt, vanilla, syrup and eggs. Mix well. Add lemon juice and fold in pecans. pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell and bake at 425 for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, reduce the heat to 325 and bake for another 55 minutes.

Black Friday Breakfast
Quiche in a Bag (if I recall correctly, this is from 30 Day Gourmet)
In a gallon sized bag mix the following ingredients:
1 cup cooked meat, chopped (turkey, duh!)
1 cup veggies, chopped (I used sauted red & green peppers and broccolli)
1 cup shredded cheese, whatever you prefer
1/4 cup diced onion (we used green)
Now blend together:
2 cups milk
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup flour
*optional dash or four of Tabasco
Pour this into the bag and toss in the freezer if making several days ahead / refrigerator if preparing the day before.
When ready to cook, thaw and pour into a pre-baked (5-7 minutes) pie shell. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes, until set in the middle. You can also add extra cheese to the top if you like.

In honor of Fall

Our temps are dropping. From the 90's to the 60's overnight. That's a big drop, People. We were wearing shorts and sweating on Sunday. Monday's temps brought out the sweats and socks!

This book* is on my rotating list of cookbooks to check out from our local library. It's fabulous! It's contains the recipe for my all-time favorite pumpkin recipe. Starbucks Pumpkin Pound Cake. Pumpkin. Pound Cake. What's not to love?
So in honor of the long awaited arrival of Fall, go make this. Now.
DEVIN ALEXANDER’S VERSION OF
STARBUCKS PUMPKIN POUND CAKE

Butter-flavored cooking spray
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt (not artificially sweetened)
3 egg whites
1 cup canned pumpkin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mist an 8 1/2x4 1/2x2 1/2 inch nonstick loaf pan with cooking spray; set aside.

Sift flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cloves and nutmeg into a mixing bowl, set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, yogurt, and egg whites. Using a sturdy whisk, mix until thoroughly blended. Stir in the pumpkin. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture. Stir until no flour is visible. Pour into the reserved pan.

Bake for 55-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove cake to the rack to cool completely. When cool, cut into 8 slices.

Nutritional Information:
Per serving: 246 calories, 5 g protein, 57 g carbohydrates, trace fat, trace sat fat, 2 g fiber.

Alexander’s version saves 64 calories, 12 grams of fat, and 1.5 grams of saturated fat over the original.

Yield: 8 servings

*In case you have a fear of linking: Fast Food Fix: 75 Amazing Recipe Makeovers of Your Fast Food Restaurant Favorites by Devin Alexander

Cooking, lots of cooking

I just recently returned from a short trip to visit with my dad and grandmother. I cooked, cleaned, cooked, visited, cooked, watched a little CABLE! TV!, cooked, laundry, and then I cooked some more. Oh, and then there was the cooking. Lots of cooking, folks. Did you catch that?
Basically, I simply double my standard recipes that I know freeze well. When fully cooked, I freeze into indiviual portions in handy dandy FoodSaver bags. Oh how I love thee, FoodSaver! This is the model we use. This is the newest version. Much sleeker and more modern looking. It also claims to have an 'Advanced Design'. However, I'm not rushing out to replace my 'older' model. So far it's worked wonderfully for me.

While there are several cookbooks and websites listing recipes for bulk cooking, I find it best to use my own. They are standard family friendly recipes. Nothing special, but so nice to have in the freezer. Here's a list of what I recently stocked: taco soup, minestrone soup, turkey chili, beef pot roast with potatoes and carrots, lasagna, sausage balls, chicken spagetti, chicken and rice, soft sugar cookies and brownies. It only took two days of cooking to store about 3 months worth of food!
So, if you have the urge to start freezer cooking, get to it! The weather is perfect. What are you waiting for? A recipe? Oh, ok. This is my favorite version of Taco Soup.
4 lbs ground beef or ground turkey
2 onions, chopped
4 cans Ro-Tel tomatoes (Diced tomatoes with green chilies)
1 large bottle V8 juice
3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large bag frozen whole kernel corn
3 packages French's Chili-O seasoning
3 packages Ranch Style dressing mix
Enough water to make it 'soupy'.

Brown ground beef or turkey with chopped onions. Drain if necessary.
Add all other ingredients to meat/onion mixture. Stir well. Simmer over low heat 20-30 minutes. Cool and freeze in individual containers.
Enjoy!

Tasty Peas

We did in fact have peas again last night. I think I could eat them 'round the clock. Of course, fresh peas are always best, then fresh/frozen, THEN grocery store peas. These are my favorite store bought brand if I happen to be out of fresh/frozen:

Smokey bacon flavor and onions already in there! What a deal! All the work is basically done for you. Now, if you try these, don't salt before tasting.

On to cornbread. Usually I make it from scratch using an altered version of my Grandmother's recipe. Yesterday I was in a hurry & feeling particularly lazy since the peas were so easy. Here is my favorite cornbread mix:

Martha White Yellow - NO sugar. If you put sugar in your bread - it's then cake. Whew. Glad we got that out of the way.

Those muffins I was talking about yesterday....I'm not feeling it today. Hopefully in the next few hours we can finish school & I will be in the right frame of mind to cook.

Dinner will be sandwiches and fruit.
Supper will be Sloppy Joes and coleslaw.

What are you eating today?

*I couldn't find a picture of the peas online, so I pulled this bag out of the trash. Yes, really. I did. Just keepin' it real.