Menu Plan Monday- Week of Sept 19, 2011

Just wanted to share with you all my previous post link here....

it's for a great  cause, and if you're a blogger too, 

you might want to contact Sarah to help the cause! 

Thanks!

My oldest child, Lily turned 5 yesterday..I can't believe it...sniffle sniffle. 

In less emotional news...

We had a baking party, and it went really well...going to post about it this week! 

As for our menu plan for last week, it was kind of scattered. We were expecting to have a little more income than we actually did so I had to improvise a lot and create many meals that weren't on the plan! You will see a lot of repeats this week to use up the produce.

One of my favorites that I did on the fly is these Chicken Wings....I had a ton of them in the freezer from Costco.  My husband said they were the best Sweet Wings he's had! I did switch up the recipe amounts a little because I had run out of BBQ sauce, we use Bragg's Amino Acids instead of Soy Sauce which tastes saltier so I use less, and I didn't really measure the honey....BUT... all that said, this recipe is a great starting point!

Now for this weeks Menu Plan:

Here is what we have left from our produce share this week:

CHIOGGA BEETS
GREEN CABBAGE- 1/2 head
CARROTS
ESCAROLE
ROMAINE LETTUCE
FENNEL
AVOCADOS
GRAPE TOMATOES
SHALLOTS
GREEN KIWIS

For more menu plans, visit OrgJunkie

Here is our Menu Plan for the Week:

 

Breakfasts:

Dutch Baby Pancake- serve w/ heated up jam and syrup


Morning Glory Muffins

Quinoa Porridge w/ Cinnamon Apples

 

Eggs & Toast
Cereal 

 

Lunches:

 

Salmon/Tuna Melts

Egg Salad

Snacks:

I'm going out on a limb and going to try this- never made from last week.

 

Whole Wheat Blueberry Beet Muffins!

 

 

Fruit Salsa w/ homemade cinnamon chips

Easy Roasted Red Pepper Hummus 

 

 

Dinners:

Monday:  Glazed Chicken Wings...again! Yes, they are that good!

 

 Tuesday:         Pork Dumplings...never made this last week either!Subbing in Ground Turkey

Wednesday: 

Cannellini Bean and Escarole Dish

 

 

Thursday: 

Homemade Black Bean Veggie Burgers (Vegetarian)

Friday:  Date Night!! In-laws are in town...yay!!

Saturday:  Birthday Party- Dinner Provided

Sunday: Split Pea Soup- Uses Ham Bone I froze from Ham I got from Costco.


Thanks!

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Why I am Appauled...

I was just listening to the Diane Rehm show on NPR today and she had on Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie, authors of " Slow Death By Rubber Duck". I have to say, I can't believe how deceived we are as a nation of consumers.


The book is about the infiltration of BPA (Bisphenol-A) in almost everything we use as everyday products in our household. They did an experiment on themselves, mostly using children's plastic containers to eat and drink out of, and found their levels to be 7 times higher!

I started my quest to eat healthier about a year ago, and I felt like I was doing well by my "Made By Me" rule. The problem was that I was still buying canned beans, tomatoes, tomato paste etc...even though they are organic, the manufacturers are STILL USING BPA in the CANS!!!

I can't believe I was naive enough to believe they were out for my best interest. I just assumed the organic companies were not using BPA in their canning and packaging.

The only company found to package without BPA is Eden Organics. They started making BPA free cans and bottling in 1999! 1999! That is more than a decade ago, and the rest of the cooporations can't catch on... Eden claims the cost increase is only 2.2 cents per can, which is a small amount compared to the health risks BPA can cause.


I am ABSOLUTELY only buying Eden Canned Goods from now on.

This brings me to another point, I am going to step up my game, and buy all dry beans from the bulk section. This has been an area where I was slacking because I hate soaking beans overnight, well, I don't hate it, but I hate that I have to remember in order to have food on the table the next day!

This BPA debacle has definitely pushed me to take my healthy eating practices even further... will you join me? If we do this together, maybe it won't be as bad...

Articles on BPA Health Risks

Mercola- Why Canned Soups can be Bad for Your Health

Mercola- 5 Ways to Keep BPA out of your Food

Fast Company- The Real Story Behind Bisphenol A

MSN

Whole Foods- What they say about BPA in their products---major COP OUT if you ask me.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and comments on this issue!

Thanks!

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Who knew...

Who knew this little girl...

was an aspiring Jackson Pollock?

her medium? Milk and Carpet....genius


Must be exhausting....


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Who knew...

Um yeah, Santa shops at Costco...

He was there today and I was totally star struck..

its like seeing your dentist at the mall.... just a little wierd.

But Lily and Claire had no problem talking to Santa

because he was dressed in regular clothes

(they were red)

He gave them both his "business card" with his name , Santa on it....

go figure.

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'Twas the Night Before....

'Twas the Night Before Tomorrow which would make it Tonight,
I pledge to wash all my dishes have not one in sight.
The socks are in the wash cleaning with care,
hoping I remember to dry them so they'll be ready to wear.
The children are nestled all snug in their beds,
without a bath I might add, so don't smell their little heads.
With mama so tired from kids always on her lap,
She has visions of sleeping through the night or maybe just a short nap.
When out in the living room she trips over the kids toys,
wondering who can I blame the little girls or the boys.
Away to the toy room she flew like a flash,
Tore open the toybox and threw in the kid's stash.
The moon shaped bump on her left big toe,
Was aching with pain she thought how could they not know.
When what to her weary tired eyes should appear,
but all her little children who couldn't help but hear,
That they made mommy mad, boy they made her upset,
so they picked up their toys,gave her a hug and made mommy smile yet....

Just something I was thinking up while doing the dishes tonight
and thought I'd write it down. Can anyone else relate?

Thanks!

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Advent Wreath Tutorial- Using Clip Art

Advent Wreath Tutorial





You will need:

Contact Paper- Clear
Mini Clothespins 24 ct.
Small Wire Wreath
Scissors
Christmas Clip Art of Your Choice- My PDF here
24 Activities typed up to fit on back of clip art- MY PDF here


I first went on my Microsoft Word and typed in all the "Christmas-y" words I know in the clip-art search. I then adjusted them to the appropriate size.

Print out pictures and cut to desired sizes.
Lay out pictures with approx 4 cm between them so you have room to leave a small edge of contact paper around each picture.
Place all pictures face-up and lay contact paper on top making sure to avoid bubbles. It should look like this... with the back still sticky.
Print and cut out your Daily Activities and/or Verses see bottom PDF if you want mine for ideas. Place cut out activities face-up on back of pictures.
Place contact paper over the tops of activity cutouts and press firmly to eliminate bubbles. The front should look like this:
Cut out each picture and place in circle on wreath starting with Day 1 at top.



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Smell the Fresh Air... Eat Apple Pie!

I am so excited that it is finally cool here in Florida..
Could Fall actually exist in Florida?

I just have to capitalize on this opportunity because who knows how long it will last.

I came across this blog post and had to share it with you.
Its about Plein Air or Plain Air
from Pioneer Woman

I am taking my kids outside right after lunch to get some...
and perhaps Lily can draw a little too!

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Thankful... Tree.... Craft.... Fun...

So I saw this post a while back and really wanted to make one for my wall.

Here is what we came up with...

Here's how I did it....frugally

2 Paper Bags Cut Open

Freehand a Tree....shocking, I know.

Then you cut it out!

Tape to the wall...
Ask your kids what they are thankful for...
I felt special because I came right after Lily being thankful for pillows and the wall.
I used this leaf template.
I had them laminated for a church project, which I recommend because...
if you use a dry erase marker,
you can use them over again!

Write Thankful Things on Leaf of your choice, and have children tape to wall!

During this project
I let Lily practice her cutting skills
on a scrap piece of paper bag,
and I showed Claire how to Tear to increase
her hand-eye coordination....

I'm Thankful for my husband and my children, and our health....
What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

Thanks~

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Don't Make Me Count To Three....

Sound familiar? With two young children, I find myself at times becoming a desperate discipliner...what does that mean?

Enter Example:

In the thrift store.... 1 year old is hanging on the metal bars in front of the automatic door letting it open and close continuously while also "un-hanging" from the bars and walking in a circle in front of people trying to leave.

I am at the checkout in which the checkout woman tells me that I physically have to take the clothes off the hangars, she can't do it....(enter increased blood pressure). All the while, I'm saying, "Claire, come over here...Claire, come over here", frantically trying to get the pants off the hangars so we can get out of there before we all lose it.

Next thing you know, I'm telling my 1 year old that she will be in "BIG TROUBLE" if she doesn't get over to me....Big Trouble? What am I saying, honestly, what does that mean...then I get mad at myself that I just said it.

Meanwhile, I can't do anything if she doesn't listen and come over to me because I'm too busy taking the pants off the hangars that seem to be stuck in the belt loops...

That's what I mean by desperate disciplining. I find myself saying things to my children that have no REAL consequence, make matters worse, and probably actually make them want to disobey me even more....smart huh?

Then a friend recommended this book,
Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman.

I Love It. Now, not every story or example is exactly how I would handle things,
but the main theme of the book is what gets me....
are you ready?

Pay attention, this is good...

"Discipline your child fully so they have a heart change,
meaning to be more like Christ...
in addition to just eliminating the behavior. "

Wow, I gotta tell you...reading that book was the first time I had ever thought about disciplining to create a heart change in my child.

I guess I just thought that letting them know they did something wrong would make them better people because they would know not to do it again...I was missing the whole point.

Wouldn't you know that as soon as I read the first 4 chapters,

we had an incident that would let me test my heart shaping skills:

Lily,3, received a big pink chair for her birthday. Claire,1, did not. Claire loves to sit in said pink chair. Lily does not like that....enter conflict.

Screaming, crying and tattling.

"Mommy, Claire's sitting in MY chair...I want to sit in MY chair."

"Think Fast"
I say to myself...what would Ginger Plowman do....
oh wait, I mean what would Jesus do...

"Lily, wouldn't it be nice to just wait until Claire is finished sitting on the pink chair? She is having so much fun. You could sit on her Dora chair if you want?"

Lily explains, " No mommy I want the pink chair...(enter jumping up and down and pointing to Claire who is as cool as a cucumber knowing full well how she is causing her sister to act.) "

"Lily, do you think it would make you happy to force Claire out of the chair so you can get what you want? Don't you want to share the pink chair with Claire?"

" No mommy, I WANT to sit in that chair."

(ok, Ginger's example didn't quite go like this...now what?)

"Lily, have you ever thought about going to Claire and asking her nicely if she would get up from the pink chair before you come and cry to me?"

Lily walks over to Claire, "Claire...would you please get up from the chair?"

Wouldn't you know, Claire gets up and sits in her own chair?

... this felt a little like grace to me.

In the book, Ginger would have disciplined for the temper tantrum and for the tattling, but I was just happy to have tried the technique of getting at the heart of my child
and not just putting a bandaid on the situation which I am very likely to do at 4 o'clock
in the afternoon trying to get dinner ready.
Maybe next time, there will be even more success.

Being a mother and the main disciplinarian can be tough and there really are no written rules...but realizing that I am primarily a "heart-shaper" really made me change my tune
and want to mediate rather than quickly solve the problem.

I truly suggest you read this book...I am almost through,
and it really has changed my perspective tremendously.

Thanks!


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