Loving the Simple Moments

TWD: Cran-Apple Crisp

2009-11-10T19:42:00.003-06:00

It is my very first Tuesdays with Dorie post. TWD is a baking club following the cookbook Baking: From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan. Every Tuesday futures a new recipe from the book and each member blogs about their experience. I am IN LOVE with this cookbook. And my first Tuesday did not dissapoint. If everything goes smoothly this recipe is a snap. Things did not however go smoothly. I do not have a food processor for the crumb topping, but my little old pastry blender did the trick. As I was peeling the apples, my peeler broke. And as I was cutting the apples my correr broke.

My all time favorite deserts are crisps, apples, cherry, blueberry...I have never had the apple cranberry combo before and it did not dissapoint. The tart and sweet balance was yummy. I can see my self making this again. The only change I would make is too lower the sugar in the filling. It was a little sweet. Thanks to Em of The Repressed Pastry Chef for choosing this weeks recipie.

Beautiful Summer!

2009-08-06T19:54:00.013-05:00

This has been the best summer! Here are just a few of the highlights! Enjoy! (we did)

Silver Beach St Joseph Michigan 8/6/09

Mama Mia! with my girls!

Blueberry Picking July 09

Garage Sale with my Moms Group! Sean sold lemonaid, note the tie! He is so cute!!

Johnson Beach Alabama

Beach in Milwaukee while visiting my sister

Decorating cakes (cupcakes went on the top)

Organizing my local moms Meetup group, with a great group of friends!

Grown up Playdates with great friends.

**I am going to try and be a better blogger!!**

Kat's Birthday

2009-04-20T09:22:00.006-05:00

My beautiful girl is no longer a baby! She is walking, talking, smiling, stubborn, and throws tantrums just like a 2 year old. And I love every day of it! Her favorite word is MINE, her favorite toy is whatever big brother has, she loves to sign and dance. She looks like her Mommy but has Daddies personality. My beautiful princess!

The Birthday Girl!

This dress is hand smocked and made by Gran! My babies are so lucky to have such a talented Gran!

This rainbow cake has been making its way around the blogs lately and as soon as I saw it (in January) I knew I was going to make it for Kat's birthday. It was super easy and so cool! She loved it and so did big brother. The hardest part was waiting 3 months to make it!

Here it is pre cooked. For full instructions please see Omnomicon for the original post.
Credit where credit is due!

Here it is decorated. The mini My Little Ponies were a gift from Aunt Gina for Christmas! Thanks!

And here is the inside, honestly that as great of a picture. I thought I had a picture of just a single slice, but I guess I don't.

Working

2009-03-03T15:48:00.002-06:00

It has been over 2 years since I last had a paying job. And I have LOVED my time at home. If you know me at all then you should know that I have always wanted a family and a large one. Staying home seemed like a natural choice. Sunday Justin had his second auction and I worked as his cashier. And I love doing this. I love seeing Justin as an auctioneer and I enjoy being a part of the business. I feel like I am contributing. It was a long hard day and I was exhausted but refreshed. It was good to get out of the house for a day.

Monday I subbed at Sean's school for the full day. I was feeling guilty for spending 2 full days away from the kids. In the morning I was regretting agreeing to sub. But I dragged myself to Starbucks and then headed to the school. I have to say my day was surprisingly peaceful. That may be surprising to some but in reminded me all the things I love about Montessori. Sitting on the floor doing a Europe map puzzle with Sean, almost brought tears to my eyes. Watching a five year old doing the forty five layout, and doing sounds at the sound table really made me realize how much I miss teaching. During my lunch break I spent a little time walking around the class and appreciating the order of the Montessori method. Everything has a place right down to the strips of paper used for cutting in the tray built just for this. The soft classical music playing in the background. The oil painting on the wall. Montessori is truely a different world than a traditional preschool.

I have thought about this a lot and talked to Justin about it many times, but yesterday I really decided that someday I would like to open my own Montessori School. Just a small one classroom school. Either in our basement, or in my true dream I would have a small guest house on our property devoted solely to the school. (yeah, I know, I'm dreaming!)

Mexican Lasagna

2009-02-22T12:09:00.003-06:00

I have been experimenting some with my cooking, trying new recipes and adjusting some to our taste/budget. And when I make a good one Sean will say "Put this in the recipe box Mommy" So here is one that we love.

Mexican Lasagna:

This is an combination of a few recipes and just what was in the pantry that sounded good. We LOVED this one. It makes a lot, so I froze 1/2 of the mixture for a quick meal later in the week.

1 Cup uncooked rice (2 cups if you are making it all for one night)
2-3 Cups chicken broth (more if you are making it all for one night
1 can tomatoes (or 2-3 fresh whatever you have)
1 small onion (chopped really small so Justin doesn't know it is there!)
2 Can black beans
2 packet of taco seasoning
1 1/2 lb grnd turkey, or beef (I also use turkey it is cheaper and leaner than beef)
1 jar (16 oz) salsa.
4-6 small flour tortillas (double if you are making it all for one night)
Bag of shredded cheese, I prefer cheddar and a lot of it, but a Mexican blend would be good too
4-8 oz enchilada sauce
2 bags frozen corn (I prefer the white and yellow mixture)
Sour Cream for garnish

Cook the rice according to package directions replacing the water with chicken broth. In large skillet melt 1/2 T of butter. Add tomatoes, onion and garlic and saute until tender. Add in taco seasoning to taste I used about 1/2 a packet. Stir to combine. Add the beans and stir. Transfer 1/2 to a large bowl and 1/2 to a freezer safe container. Add rice to bowl and stir combine

In the same skillet brown the ground turkey. Mix taco seasoning and water according to packet instructions. Add 1/2 of the meat and one bag corn to your freezer container stir and set aside. Reserve remaining meat in pan.

To assemble lasagna pour 1/4 jar of salsa in the bottom of a 9x9 pan. Layer tortillas to cover. Spread 1/2 of rice mixture over tortilla. Sprinkle with a layer of cheese. Add another layer of flour tortillas. Pour a thin layer of enchilada sauce over tortillas. Spread taco meat over sauce. Layer 1 bag corn over beef. top with remaining rice mixture in an even layer. Spread remaining salsa over rice and sprinkle with cheese.

Bake 375 for 25-35 minutes. Allow to sit 10 minutes.

I used the frozen mixture as a taco filling instead of lasagna. I was just as good.

Enjoy!

YUM-O!

2009-02-20T16:05:00.003-06:00

I have had mixed results with recipes from Rachel Ray. It seems like the ones I like I LOVE, and then the rest I really do not like. Well her Gingerbread waffles are definitely blog worthy! Because I am such a rock star mom (in my head anyway) I have been sending special snacks to Sean's speech class on Fridays that relate to the "sound of the week." This week was "W" (Waffles) so I decided to give these a try. It was SO worth the trip to Meijers at 8:30 Thursday night for Molasses.

Friday morning Sean and I made the batter while Katherine was still sleeping. I cut them into waffle sticks so they could easily be eaten. I felt bad that they wouldn't have syrup so I bought some strawberries which Sean helped me cut up. His teacher said they were a huge hit! And Sean said "Lets always make these, no more regular kind." After I dropped him off I came home and Katherine and I each had one waffle topped with Strawberries. They didn't even need syrup. I think this will become a regular Monday morning breakfast for us. (Monday is our Sunday since hubby doesn't work) The leftovers also made a fantastic after school snack for the kids.

Here is the recipe hope you enjoy as much as we have:

Gingerbread Waffles

3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, eyeball it
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter, plus some to butter the iron
Syrup, whipped cream or fresh fruits for topping, to pass at table

Preheat waffles iron. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar until fluffy, then beat in pumpkin, milk, molasses and melted butter. Stir the wet into dry until just moist. Do not overstir the waffle batter. Brush the iron with a little melted butter and cook 4 waffles, 4 sections each. Serve with toppings of choice.

Valentines Blog coming soon, I am having trouble uploading pictures.

So VERY Thankful today

2009-01-28T17:55:00.005-06:00

Today I am Thankful for many things
1. GOD
2. The angel who was sitting on my husbands shoulder today
3. My Mom who is always there when I need someone to settle me down and tell me it is going to be ok. THANK YOU!
4. My husband who knows what to do in emergencies
6. The two women who stopped to help
7. That the Rodeo had a sun roof that they could climb out of
5. That Justin and his Uncle David survived the crash.
6. Seat Belts!

Justin was on his way to Chicago today when he hit some black ice and sled off the road. His truck rolled 6 times and landed upside down. They were able to punch out the sun roof to climb out off. He said he did everything right, turning into the slide not breaking, but his back wheels hit a snow bank on the side of the road and he couldn't do anything else. He just started rolling. David went to the hospital for observations but was released soon after. Justin is fine just sore. Said he feels like he just played football.

I am going to spend the rest of the night holding my husband and thanking God for saving him today. The pictures are from my cell phone and don't really show how bad it was.

Who knew

2009-01-27T12:20:00.002-06:00

Who knew my kids would like Roasted Chicken so much! Meijers had bone in skin on chicken on sale last week so I bought some it. I just roasted it with some salt and pepper and a little garlic salt. Sean ate both the legs and Katherine ate it up too. I will have to add that to my menus! Justin doesn't like the skin on but he can pull it off. We had roasted chicken, some white rice, and 1/2 a bag of frozen California mix veggies for 2 nights because Sean requested it again and we had leftovers. Because Justin was out of town last weekend I still had some chicken left that I pulled off the bone and put in the frezzer for soup later in the month. Not very fancy but easy and cheap!

Learning our sounds

2009-01-16T13:00:00.004-06:00

Sean has been working really hard learning his sounds. In Montessori we learn the sounds a letter makes before the name of it. The idea is that we teach them to read before spell....make sense? And they learn the sounds out of order so they are not just memorizing the order. I wanted to add some fun to it and give him an incentive to master them. So we make these sound lollipops once he has mastered a sound. It is fun for both of us!

I print out letters on the computer in outline. Put that under waxed paper then all he has to do is fill in the outline with melted chocolate (in a baggie) and let it harden in the fridge for 10 minutes, and we have a yummy treat. While we are eating we talk about all the things that start with that sound.

Sean's First Snow Day!!

2009-01-15T10:40:00.003-06:00

Today is a chilly 6 degrees here in Northern Indiana. But it is Sean first snow day, we have to play in the snow! So last night (anticipating a snow day) I decided I would bring the snow inside. Yes I know a little crazy, but they are loving it. Except for the occasional slip on the floor, and Sean's obsession with snow on the floor...we are enjoying it.

Last year I did this on a smaller scale for Katherine since she was not walking yet.

While I was sitting here enjoying my coffee and writing this post I see that Amy over at MotherLoad has this in her notebook today (Great minds I guess!!) So since the post is already written why not enter her notebook experiments! The kids have been playing for over an hour with only one arguement! Not to bad

Another of the simple moments in my life I cherish. I hope you find something simple to make you smile today.

Italian Pork Chops

2009-01-07T12:17:00.003-06:00

My first meal of the new year was Italian pork chops with Italian Biscuits. YUMMY! I loved it, and Sean ate it so I will call it a success. Justin, well he doesn't like pork, but he ate it. Super easy and yummy. This is defiantly going into my recipe box. I don't have the cost break down, because that is too much math for me! But everything, with the exception of the fresh parsley was bought at Adli, so it was cheep. More on Aldi later! For now here are the recipes. Hope you enjoy and find something you might want to try.

Italian Pork Chops:
Serves Four

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 pork chops - bone in
1 can petite diced tomatoes - in juice
2 teaspoons Italian Seasonings Blend spices
¼ cup white wine (anything you would drink)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 pound angel hair pasta

Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle the pork chops with salt and pepper. Add the pork chops to the skillet and cook until they are brown approximately 3 minutes per side. Transfer the pork chops to a plate and tent with foil to keep them warm. Add white wine to the pan and deglaze the pan with a whisk (getting up all of the drippings from the pan). Add the tomatoes with their juices, and spices.. Cover and simmer until the flavors blend and the juices thicken slightly, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt.. Return the pork chops and any accumulated juices from the plate to the skillet and turn the pork chops to coat with the sauce. Meanwhile, cook pasta until al dente and then drain. Place 1 pork chop on top of the angel hair pasta onto each plate and spoon the sauce over the pork chops and pasta. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

Amy Clark

Cheesy Parmesan Italian Biscuits
Makes about 10 biscuits

1 c. grated Parmesan (the kind in the green bottle)
2/3 c. mayo
a few tbsp. of fresh chopped green onion
Garlic powder to taste
Italian seasoning to taste
1 can Hungry Jack flaky biscuits (I used Aldi brand)

1. Mix all ingredients except biscuits. Flatten biscuits on an ungreased cookie sheet.

2. Spread an equal amount of filling over all biscuits.

3. Bake 13-15 minutes, eat hot!

Divine Domesticity

Eating, Living, Being Heathy on a Budget

2009-01-03T11:35:00.002-06:00

I started this blog with a post about not making new years resolutions. And now here I am one year later making a life change at the new year! I have been feeling in a tug of war the last year of cooking healthy foods and living on a budget. Now with the inspiration of my fellow Mothers and More member Amy Clark I have decided I can do both. And to help keep me motivated I will be blogging my experiences. Now I am not saying by any means that I am "going green". However if it fits into my budget than I will.

I hope you enjoy my journey!

Big Day!

2008-12-29T12:09:00.004-06:00

Lots going on today! For a few weeks we (I) have been trying to decide the best time to transition Katherine into a big girl bed. She is starting to potty train and it seems she should be able to get out of bed to use the bathroom if she needs to. But I am also not sure I am ready for her to do that! Well today when I was taking her up for her nap she was very insistent on sleeping in Sean's bed. So, what better time than now right! I took off one railing to her crib, so it is now a toddler bed. And she did great. Looked over the edge a few time but then settled right down with her blankies (all 3!) and drifted off to sleepy town.

And not to be out done, it is a beautiful sunny December afternoon and Sean got a bike for Christmas. He did great, although we still need to work on the the foot motions. But he will get there.

Finally!

2008-06-07T07:35:00.005-05:00

We moved into this house one year ago and yesterday I finally found furniture for the front family room. I am so excited! I love it and even better it was a great deal. I found it at a garage sale and it really looks brand new. the chairs I already had and was happy that they matched the sofas. So now I am enjoying my new sofas and for now, it is clean and free of toys : ) The same women is selling a canopy bed that I am going to go look at for Kat. If it is in the same condition as the sofas/tables I will be buying it. Even though she is not ready for a bed yet her room is big enough for the crib and the bed.

It has been a while so I guess I should update you on the family.

Sean has finished his speech therapy for the summer. I still don't know how much it helped but it didn't hurt. He has made improvements, but not sure if I can credit therapy or just his own progression. Starting in the fall he is enrolled in Countryside Montessori 5 afternoons a week and will be going to speech therapy 2 mornings a week. We will have to wait and see how this goes. I think two full days will be hard for him so we may cut back later.

Katherine is getting more and more independent and also has a bit of an attitude. She know exactly to get what she wants from Daddy, and if I tell her no she will run crying to him. She is cutting all her molars at once and has been miserable all week. Poor girl. Sean and I have been working on teaching her signs, but she has not been interested. Until I showed her the sign for shoes! She started doing that immediately. And yesterday at Meijers she saw me put milk in the cart and made the sign for milk. I love it!! Now if I could just talk Justin into letting me take the instructors course so I could teach baby signs.

Justin has been working really hard still. He is taking one class this semester and since it is a summer course it is very condensed. He has done a few "hotel buys" and no he is not buying hotels. He rents a conference room at a hotel and puts an ad in the paper that he is buying; gold, silver, coins, antiques, anything collectible. Usually for 3 days and people bring him what they have. He buys it and then sends most of it to the smelters and sells the rest on ebay or in the store. He would like to do one a month, but we will see.

I am doing fine. I went to a scrapbook class and made a mini book to display the family beach pictures that we took in Hawaii when Sean was 6 months old! I am really happy with the way it turned out. I will post pictures soon. I will be doing more of these mini books.

Well I think I am going to do some laundry.

Enjoy your day.

My helper

2008-04-05T10:22:00.002-05:00

Sean LOVES to help me with house work and his favorite thing is to vacuum the sofa. My sofa has been very clean lately. : )

My new toy

2008-04-05T10:15:00.003-05:00

I have been wanting a Cricut personal cutter for 2 years, and I finally bought one this week. And I loved it, until it started smoking...I tried to show it off to Justin to prove that it was as cool as I said and guess what, smoke started coming out the back and I could smell the motor burning. I had just bought it that day! Well I called the company and they are sending me replacement machine : ( I guess I have waited 2 years I can wait another 5-10 days. I tired to see if they could upgrade my model for the trouble, but they didn't go for it.

Look for some very beautiful scrapbook pages in about 2 weeks...

Kat turns 1!!

2008-04-01T14:52:00.004-05:00

Couldn't resit taking a video of Katherine eating her first cake.

Here is a picture of Sean eating his first birthday cake, he did not dig into it they way Katherine did. He never did like being messy.

Loving life

2008-04-01T14:35:00.002-05:00

I turned 25 today!! Holly cow, is it possible I am that old. I know, I am still a baby to most of you. So how did I spend my day. Well I finally got around to cleaning the dried up cake from Katherine's high chair, then I called around to try and get our furnace fixed and oh yeah, got up at 6:30 to take Sean to the dentist, talked to my brother who is in Italy (thanks Corey), and later the family is taking me to dinner we will be home by 8:00, put the kids to bed and hey maybe I will stop on the way home and get a nice bottle of wine. Fun right, well to me yes it is my life. And I love it. Justin and I have been falling into this trap lately of wondering what our single (they all are) friends are doing on a Friday night, or how they might celebrate their birthdays. Well today I realized that I don't feel old or young. I feel exactly how I believe I should feel today. Yes I am a young mother, yes we got married young. But I love my family and they love me. I enjoy taking care of them and I would not trade my life for anyones.

Miss K

2008-03-24T17:56:00.002-05:00

Well my baby is not really a baby anymore, she will be 1 on Saturday and has started walking this week.

Meet Dexter

2008-03-21T09:18:00.004-05:00

We have added a new addition to the family. Dexter is a 14 week old German Shepard puppy. So sweet and playful.

Freedom

2008-03-05T08:46:00.005-06:00

I feel like I have always given Sean an appropriate amount of freedom for his abilities. And now that he can open his dresser drawers I have been letting him pick out what he wears, on the days that we stay home : ). And this is what he picked today...

Picking my battles. This one he wins. But when I asked if he was going swimming, "No, there is ice in the pool." Such a smart guy! *It is 23 very chilly degrees today...

Preschool

2008-02-15T11:32:00.002-06:00

South Bend is opening a public Montessori preschool in September. I have been going back and forth all week about this decision, I need to put it down maybe that will help. : )

Public vs. Private Montessori

Public

Pros
1. F-R-E-E
2. continues through 4th grade with possibility of going through 8th in the future
3. Bussing (when he is older)
4. First year so all materials will be brand new
5. I wouldn't have to work until Kat is 3

Cons:
1. Not great part of town
2. New teachers...I have more experience than they do
3. OLD building, big debate this fall on tearing it down or keeping it
4. 20 minute drive
5. Not convinced of his safety
6. Couldn't work until Katherine was 3
7. Unknown

Private

Pros
1. I LOVE it
2. Clean
3. Beautiful
4. LOVE the teachers and know most of them
5. safe
6. Teachers are well trained
7. peaceful
8. offer financial aid
9. I would love to work there
10. They have a toddler program for Kat
11. Elementary program is excellent

Cons
1. EXPENSIVE
2. I would have to work next year to pay for it
3. No more babies : (
4. No more babies
5. No more babies

And FOUND!!

2008-02-09T18:37:00.001-06:00

After 24 long hours Daddy found the blankie in Katherine's closest. Don't know how it got there but I am sure Sean had something to do with it. She is sleeping peacefully now. And hopefully so will the rest of the house.

Lost

2008-02-09T10:34:00.001-06:00

Missing one pink and white tag blankie. Loved by a sweet 10 month old princess. If anyone finds it please call. Princess has trouble sleeping without it. Last seen by 3 year old brother...it could be anywhere!

Valentine Pictures

2008-02-08T09:52:00.000-06:00

Since Sean was a baby I have refused to get their pictures taken at a studio. I have never been happy with them and it is way too expensive for something I felt like I could do myslef. So last night I decided I would take their Valentine pictures. Well, 1 hour later and 128 pictures and I still don't have one! The best one is the very first one I took. I am going to try again later maybe with Justin's help I can get them both to look at the camera.

Taxes

2008-01-08T09:32:00.000-06:00

I did not work this year!! Hurray, no W-2's to file. We have survived as a family of 4 with one income for one year. Can we do it again? The transition to the civilian world has not been easy, but is worth it. I am learning how to manage my own health care, which is VERY expensive. I had no idea how much it would cost. I don't think I will ever forget our very first bill from a civilian doctor. Katherine's 3 month check up cost $720. We will be going to get her shots at the health department from now on, $8 a shoot. I wonder if I can apply that to my unbelievably high deducible. I may have to go back to work just for the insurance. But we are taking our vitamins and trying our best to stay healthy to avoid the doctor.

They really should update the life skills class in school, maybe they have since I was there. But it was a joke for me. They should teach you about saving money, avoiding credit card debit, the steps in buying a house, health care coverage. In Econ class we spent an enormous amount of time playing the "stock market game." But it seems like that is putting the cart before the horse. You have to learn to manage your money before you will have the extra income to invest.

Britney

2008-01-05T20:23:00.000-06:00

I will admit that I enjoy reading about celebrity gossip. I feel like by me paying to go see their movies and buying their CDs I have helped make them millionaires, so I am entitled to know a little about their personal life. But truly, the gossip magazines have jumped over the line and are still running. Some time during Britney's many rehab stays I decided I was no longer going to watch E News and would not buy the magazines. My own silent protest. But I can't even watch my local news channel anymore with out hearing about Britney Spears! Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC have all had segments on a celebrity this week. With everything going on in the world right now Britney Spears many breakdowns qualify as NEWS!!

New Year, New Me?

2008-01-02T09:11:00.000-06:00

Well no. I generally don't believe in making new years resolutions. Why should I wait until the new year to start doing something I should be doing anyway? But if they work for you then that is great. All the talk of the new year has got me thinking about things in my life that could change. But for me it always boils down to the lack of time in a day. Yes I would love to work out everyday, I would LOVE to catch up on my scrapbooking, keep up with the laundry, and find time to make a few baby blankets a week. But before I can turn around it is time to make dinner and get the kids to bed. Then it is time to clean the kitchen, enjoy a little time with my husband before I get some much needed sleep.

This year, I am going to find the time to do the things I enjoy for my self. Because we all need to do something for ourselves. Justin bought me a gift certificate for a crop class at a scrapbook store so that is number one on my list. I am really excited to get back into that. I am also going to be selling my baby tag blankets at the South Bend Farmers Market. Justin's mom and grandmother have a booth their and have offered to sell them for me. Who knows, maybe someday I will be as good as my mom and really could be a stay at home mom forever. Oh, I hope the sewing talent gene was passed on to me. Practice, Practice, Practice. So for me that means less time spent watching TV and more time being productive. That sounds a lot like a resolution doesn't it.

Speaking of productive, the laundry is waiting!

Happy New Year!