Dinner Planner II

1 weeks worth of easy meals your family will love!

1) Hamburger Stroganoff
Cauliflower
(3 cups of prepared egg noodles, combine 1lb cooked ground hamburger with 8 oz sour cream, 1 can cream of mushroom soup, salt and pepper to taste.)
2)Roasted Vegetable Soup (recipe below)
Biscuits
3)Chili Verde
Spanish Rice
4)Breaded Chicken Strips (homemade or from freezer section of grocery store)
Mashed Potatoes
Corn
5)Hamburger Helper (yeah, I can use a little helper sometimes!)
Green beans
6)Chicken Alabam (recipe below)
Minute Rice
Broccoli
7)Broccoli Manicotti
Cesar Salad
(prepared manicotti noodles stuffed with ricotta cheese and bits of broccoli, top with spaghetti sauce and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and bake at 400 for 20 minutes)

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:
1 cup cauliflower
1 cup broccoli
1 cup potatoes
1 cup carrots
1/2 cup onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons canola oil
3 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons half and half
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup of small cubed chicken (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place cut up vegetables on cookie sheet, toss them with the canola oil and salt and pepper. Roast vegetables for 30 minutes stirring once in middle of cooking time. Remove vegetables from oven and let cool for about ten minutes. Pour 1 cup of chicken broth in blender or food processor, then add roasted vegetables. Blend till pureed. Pour into large soup pot and add other 2 cups of chicken broth, mix thoroughly, until smooth. Add chicken if desired. Bring to desired temperature. Add half and half and mix again. If soup is too thick add more chicken broth to thin it out. Salt and pepper to taste.

Chicken Alabam

Ingredients:
3 pieces of chicken
1/2 tsp. paprika
dash of pepper
5 tbs. butter
1 cup chicken stock
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
dash of thyme
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup half and half

Directions:
Dredge chicken with mixture of flour, paprika, salt, pepper, and thyme. Brush with melted butter and brown in 3 tbs. of oil. Remove from pan.
In same pan saute onion in butter, stir in excess flour. Add broth, cook and stir until thickened. Add cream and cook until smooth, and thick. Add lemon juice and blend well. Pour sauce over chicken in 2 to 3 quart casserole, cover and bake 1 1/4 hrs. @ 325 degrees. Serve over cooked rice.

Recycled Wrapping Paper Gift Box or Treasure Chest

This box is prefect for that gift that doesn't have much of a shape and is also great to be used as a great treasure chest for scavenger hunts.

For this project you will need:

- A box that can easily be taken apart and put back together.

- Old wrapping paper.

- Scissors.

- Glue (I use hot glue but any glue will work fine.)

1.) Lay out your wrapping paperon a flat surface and smooth out wrinkles. (Paper with little tares will be okay because if you decorate the box they can be easily hidden.)

2.) Take apart your box so it can be laid flat and lay it on the paper.

3.) Cut off excess paper so that there is between .5" and 1" left surrounding the box.

4.)Wrap one side of excess paper around the longest side of the box and glue down.

5.) Flip box over and glue the rest of the paper down to the main parts of the box (not the parts of the box.) Do any necessary trimming and glue the rest of the paper to the box.

6.) Put the box back together and decorate.

Egg Noodle Soup

This is one of the favorites in my family. It is simple, cheap, and perfect for the cold and rainy Houston winters. (Recipe courtesy of my wonderful husband Kaleb.)

2 Packages of Chicken Ramen Noodles

4 Chicken Bullion Cubes

5 Eggs

Salt to Taste

Crush the two packs of Ramen noodles and boil them for 3-5 minutes in a large pot of water. Add 4 chicken bullion cubes. Once the noodles are soft add the five eggs in and stir slowly until cooked throughly.

Chinese Chicken Noodles

Chinese Chicken Noodles

Cooked spaghetti (enough to serve 4-6 people)
2 cups shredded chicken
2 cups broccoli florets
1 cup cut carrots

Steam vegetables till tender, but still a little crisp. Combine all ingredients and then toss with the sauce recipe below.

1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 tsp chili sauce (asian section of grocery aisle)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp minced ginger
2 tsp minced garlic
2 tablespoons brown sugar
salt to taste (soy sauce has a lot of saltiness)
1/8 tsp pepper

*note more chili sauce can be added for a spicier sauce
whisk together until all ingredients are well incorporated.

Habits

A lot of us, especially me, struggle with the idea of habits. We get caught up in the negative side of the spectrum of habits when in all actuality there is a positive side if our habits. Right now my biggest projects is to add good habits to my routine in replace of my bad habits.

The worst word that I battle with is "CAN'T," so I have been telling myself things I can do rather than what I cannot do.

Example:

I Cant Vs. I Get To

I can't eat that Candy Bar. I get to nourish my body.

I can't watch three hours I get to strengthen my mind

of T.V. tonight. with a book.

I can't sleep in on Saturday . I get to spend time with my family on Saturday.

I can't play on the computer I get to have a clean, company

all day. ready home.

I can't go shopping this I get to save money for

insert weekend for {insert idea here}.

These are just a few examples of the positive examples that I have come up with so far. You can use these or make your own.

It is said that it takes 300 instances of positive reinforcement to turn an action into a habit. So by changing ONE habit, we send a butterfly into effect and will ultimately start to change other habits.

We first make our habits, then our habits make us. -Charles C. Noble

Nightly Dinner Planner

With our busy schedules its so easy to not get around to planning a menu for the week. This is where I step in. Once a week I will post a week's worth of meals some with the recipe to help you plan your week and make it a little less stressful. I very my week's worth of meals from VERY easy, to crock pot, to comfort foods. Please feel free to leave a comment or question about any meal I post and I will get back to you.




Meal 1:
Sheppard's Pie
Quick and easy this is a one dish wonder (well almost), see recipe below
Meal 2:
Pork Chops
Lipton Flavored Rice (I like Broccoli and Cheese)
Steamed Broccoli and Carrots
Meal 3:
Crock pot day! See recipe below
Cowboy Casserole
Meal 4:
Ribs w/ BBQ sauce
Corn
Mashed Potatoes
Meal 5:
White Chicken Chili and cornbread
try this recipe http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000000701089
Meal 6:
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Tomato Soup
My super fast meal, my kids love
Meal 7:
Leftovers!

Sheppard's Pie

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 medium carrots - diced
1/4 cup onion - diced
2 tsp. garlic
1 lb ground beef
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp onion powder
instant mashed potatoes (serving for 4)
canned corn - drained
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese


Preheat Oven to 400 degrees. In an oven safe pan heat the oil, then add carrots and onion let cook for about 4 minutes, add garlic and cook for another minute. Add meat to vegetables, and brown meat till done. Meanwhile prepare instant mashed potatoes. After meat is cooked remove it from pan and drain oil. Spread potatoes in bottom of pan evenly, place meat on top of potatoes, then corn and top with cheese. Place in oven and cook for 30 minutes. Ready to eat out of oven. Serves 4-6 people.

Cowboy Casserole

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1/2 onion diced
1 lb tomatillos diced
2 cloves garlic
1 large can enchilada sauce
1 6.5 oz can sliced black olives, drained
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups water
1 cup cornmeal mix
1/2 tsp -1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 cup cheddar cheese shredded

In a large skillet, cook ground beef together with onions, and garlic. Season with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper while cooking. Drain fat off and place in slow cooker.

Place diced tomatillos and olives in crock pot. Pour enchilada sauce over top. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

30 minutes before you are ready to serve, bring water to a boil. Add salt, sugar, and cornmeal and return to a boil. Lower heat and simmer and continue to stir for another minute.

Drop cornmeal batter by spoonful into the slow cooker. Set the slow cooker to high and let cornmeal dumplings cook for 30 minutes.

Sprinkle with cheese and let melt. Serve. Serves about 6

Hair-Bows #1: Classic Bow

Over the next few weeks I will be posting instructions for making different types of hair- bows.

Todays Bow is the Classic Clip Bow

Cost $0.32 each if you have hot glue and scissors and $0.16 when hobby has ribbon and hair accessories on sale (in jewelry section.)

For the clip, you will need Scissors, a Hot Glue Gun, the Clip, and an 8" Piece of 3/4" Ribbon.(The thicker the ribbon, the longer you will need it to be.)

Step One: Fold the ribbon in half and insert it into the clip.

Step Two: Make sure the ribbon is even on both sides of clip.

Step Four: Put glue on one side of the clip and fold corresponding ribbon over. Repeat for other side.

Step Five: Fold and glue excess ribbon over top.

For the Bow you will need Ten inches of 1/2" ribbon (The thicker the ribbon, the longer you will need it to be.) Scissors, thread, a lighter, and a hot glue gun.

Step One: Seal the edges of the ribbon with the lighter.

Step Two: Fold the ribbon in half, leaving a crease.

Step Three: Lay the ribbon flat on the table (face down if using a print.) Take one end of the ribbon and center it with the crease, face up. Repeat for other side.

Step Four: Fold loops to the center.

Step Five: Wrap thread around the entire bow three to four times loosely. pull the ends of the thread to make the bow.

Step Six: Wrap a Small piece of the ribbon from the clip around the bow and hot glue in place. Hot glue the bow onto the center of the clip and you have made an adorable classic bow.

For the headbands I just wrapped 3/4" ribbon around plastic headbands that I bought at Hobby Lobby on sale for $0.50 each, otherwise I would have bought them at Dollar Tree for about the same price, and i used roughly 26" of 1.5" wide ribbon.

Routines, routines, routines

So Christmas is upon us, there are Christmas parties, school activities, plays, shopping, cooking, baking, wrapping presents, and well you get the point. And along with all those extra activities there is still being a mom, wife, and all the other responsibilities you have. If I didn't have routine in my life I know for a fact chaos would reign in my household. By routines I mean things either written down or on my mental checklist that get done every single day no matter what. Routines give a sense of security, comfort, and stability in our homes and are necessary to help reduce the mounting stress of the holidays.
Below are routines I do on a daily basis that keep my house running on a daily basis. They keep me sane on even my most busiest days (like tomorrow). I shall start with the my night time routines because if they are not completed my morning does not go nearly as smooth as it could.

Night time:
-I clean up the kitchen, I rinse all dishes even if the dishes don't all fit in the dishwasher. Just make a neat pile of dishes on the counter so they are easy to load in the morning.
-I pre-make our coffee so all we have to do is switch on the coffee pot when we get up
-I switch my laundry from the wash to the dryer and run it
-I pack any lunches for the next day
-check my calendar for tomorrow
-make sure all pack-backs and diaper bags are ready for the next day
-pick-up the living room
-and lastly before bed I turn the dishwasher on so the dishes are clean for in the morning

Morning time:
-Make bed
-get dressed and ready for day
-get girls up, ready, fed and to school
-empty dishwasher
-clean up breakfast and load any dishes left from night before
-start a load of laundry
-put away last nights load in dryer
-a five minute house pick-up (go through house picking up miss placed items and re home them)

Morning or Afternoon time:
-do housework assigned for the day (about 15 to 30 minutes) Note: I don't always get this routine done but as long as the others are taken care of this can be done when time is more friendly

As you can see none of the above routines take long to do, just a couple of minutes each, except for the housework one which is pretty flexible in itself. But keeping those simple things done on a daily basis makes mine and my family's life go so much smoother. I challenge you give a go at setting your own routine up. Just start with a few if you are afraid of being overwhelmed with it.
A website to check out that is Flylady.net. The Flylady created for me the foundation to the see the need for routine. I don't follow her exact suggestions any longer, but she is the best mentor I could have asked for when it came to learning how to organize my time and my home. By the way, her website and services are completely free. She is an angel from above. Check her out!

Pinecone Ornaments

Make homemade pine cone ornaments for little or no cost. My kids collected pine cones from a friends yard and we used leftover gold spray paint, glitter, a glue pen and some ribbon and raffia I had left over from previous Christmas's. So easy and the kids loved making them. Can't wait to see them hanging on the tree.

From the Pantry Cheese and Noodles

These noodles are so easy to make and I almost always have the ingredients in the pantry and fridge for them. They are great for lunch or a side dish and they don't take any longer than a box of mac and cheese.


Cheese and Noodles

spaghetti noodles for for broke in half
splash of olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3/4 cup shredded cheddar
3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

Cook spaghetti noodles according to directions on package (I always add a splash of olive oil to mine to prevent the noodles from sticking). While spaghetti noddles cook place butter in small sauce pan over med/low heat and let melt. Add flour to melted butter, whisk together and let sit over heat for a minute. While whisking slowly add milk to the mixture whisking vigorously to prevent lumps. Add salt and pepper. Keep mixture over heat until it thickens into a sauce stirring frequently. Test to see if it is done by placing a spoon in mixture and pulling it out, if the sauce coats the spoon without sliding off then it is done. Add cheeses to sauce and whisk together. Pour on top of spaghetti noodles and toss, serves about 4.

Baby Its COLD Outside!

Wow it is really cold and windy here and expecting showers tomorrow. This cold weather makes me in the mood for warm yummy foods to keep us cozy in our house. 3 things I'm making to warm our bodies inside and out hot cocoa, bread pudding, and Creamy veggie soup, all my recipes and they are so yummy.

Hot Cocoa (so easy, but so satisfying)

6 cups of milk
3 tablespoons of cocoa
1/2 cup sugar

Add all ingredients in large pot and heat up slowly and gently, stirring often with a whisk. Do not allow milk to come to full boil. After heated through serve in mugs topped with whipped cream or marsh mellows.

Over the months I like to save the heels of our loaves of bread. I just stick them in the freezer and when I need bread for bread pudding, stuffing, or breading all I have to do is pull the bread out that I need and let it defrost for about half an hour. I consider it a free ingredient.

Bread Pudding

5 cups of bread torn into small bite size pieces
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups of milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 8X8 pan and add bread crumbs to it. In a mixing bowl add the eggs and sugar, whisk together until well incorporated. Add spices and vanilla, mix well.
Well whisking egg and sugar mixture slowly add in the milk. Pour over top of bread being sure to wet all the bread with the custard mixture. Use the back of a spoon or your hands to press the bread down into the pan to make sure the bread has contact with the custard mixture. Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes. Let cool, but serve warm if desired, which is my family's favorite. We also serve it with a mixture of milk, nutmeg, and sugar poured over the top.

Creamy Veggie Soup

1/2 half cups cauliflower florets
2 medium potatoes
1/2 cup of leeks (cleaned)
3 large carrots or 4-5 small
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
6 cups of chicken broth
1/2 cup of milk
1-1 1/2 cups of cooked chicken in chunks
salt and pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut cauliflower, potatoes, leeks, and carrots into pieces of the same sizes. Place on sheet pan. Toss veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 30 minutes, mixing the veggies at least once during roasting time.
In large pot bring to simmer chicken broth/stock. Add veggies to the broth once roasting is complete. In either blender or food processor begin to add veggies and broth with ladle. Only fill the container 1/4 of the way so there are no spills or explosions due to heat expansion. Process until smooth or almost smooth depending on how chunky you like it. Ladle into a separate pot. Continue until all broth and veggies have been blended. Turn low heat under blended soup. Add milk, stir till blended, then add chicken chunks, heat through, salt and pepper to taste.

Keep your kids entertained

The lazy days of summer are about at an end and I don't know about you, but the closer summer comes to an end the more antsy my kids become. Here are some suggestions to help keep your kids entertained without breaking the bank or their spirit.

1) Take your kids on nightly walks or morning walks. Just a time during the day when the weather has cooled enough to enjoy being outside. My kids love walking the different streets of our neighborhood. Their favorite thing is to admire gardens of houses we walk by.

2) The dollar theater...if you area has one, use it :) Our theater has everyday $1.50 per person or my favorite 75C Monday. Our whole family gets in for $3.00!!! Air Conditioned and entertainment and it keeps the kids entertained for a few hours.

3) The best free source in my opinion is the library. My kids and I can spend at least a couple of hours in the library browsing the selections. Also, most libraries have craft days or theme programs and shows at least once a week for kids. Check out books and now you have some quiet time each day while your little ones read and look through their treasures they got to pick out themselves.

4) Have them create a nature craft. The cost: glue and googly eyes, just use imagination. Have your kids go and find branches leaves, rocks, anything that catches their eyes. Then when all is collected they can build little people or animals with the glue, attach the eyes and you have one fun creation your kids are bound to love. We did this when went camping and talk about entertained kids! They loved it. See the picture of two my girls did.

5) Join a mommie's group or a parents group. This is such a great resource. Play dates are always being arranged in these groups. Not only do your kids get to socialize, but you do as well. What a great opportunity to meet other people in your area. Check facebook and meetup.com to look for groups in your area.

Who needs IHOP?

I have been on a pancake kick lately and have been coming up with some really fun pancake creations I thought I would share. These pancakes are easy and fun to make. I just use the very simple just add water pancake mixes, that's right, no from scratch recipe here. This is actually a great way to get your kids involved in making breakfast too. Here are some fun and fantastic pancake creations.

Regular pancakes with fruit toppings. (great summer time breakfast treat because all the fruits are in season or use frozen when they aren't).
Pick a fruit and cut it into bite size pieces (strawberries, peaches, apples, blueberries, raspberries to name a few) . Place in a sauce pan, add 3 table spoons of water and 3 table spoons of sugar to each cup of fruit you use. Turn heat on med/low and let simmer until fruit breaks apart and a syrup has begun to form. Add more water if needed as the mixture simmers. Serve over warm pancakes. Add whip cream if desired.
***Tip if your sauce is too thin, add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to 3 tablespoons of water, mix and then simmer with your fruit mixture. Should thicken right up.

Pancake add ins:
Blueberries. Mix your pancakes per directions on box and add a couple handfuls of fresh or frozen blueberries. Cook as usual. Caution, frozen blueberries may turn your pancakes blue, but still tastes great!

Chocolate chips. Add the chocolate chips to the prepared batter and cook as usual.

Cinnamon apple chunks. Cut apple into very fine pieces add to prepared batter, sprinkle in some cinnamon and cook as usual.

Peanut Butter and Jelly. Add a few table of peanut butter to batter and then check consistency of the batter, add water to thin it out if needed. After batter is the correct consistency swirl in your favorite jam. drop a few teaspoons in and swirl in with a knife. So pretty when they are done.

Pumpkin. Use a can of plain pumpkin mix. Add about 1/2 a cup to 4 servings of powdered batter and then add water till consistency is correct. Sprinkle in tsp cinnamon, pinch of cloves, and 1/2 tsp of nutmeg. Cook as usual.

Claire's blueberry/chocolate chip pancakes. Add in blueberries and chocolate chips to your batter, its like desert!

Have any pancake ideas you would like to share? Feel free to comment!

"Go Green" and Clean with what You Already Have - Cheaply

These days everyone is looking for ways to be environmentally friendly. Here are some of my favorite tips to clean with everyday things you have around the house with everyday products you already have. You can see a lot of ads on TV for all those environmentally friendly cleaning products but why pay out the extra money when you can use these items for a fourth of the cost?

* For dusting skip the expensive polish and use a micro-fiber mitt. I know that you may not have this yet, but once you buy it, it will pay for itself within a few months because you won't be using all that polish you were using before. After you use it just toss it in the wash for the next use. I'll even dampen it if I have a lot of dust to pick up. My favorite is Flylady's http://flylady.net/pages/FlyShop_d_duster.asp and it is only about $10.

* To clean windows put the vinegar that is already in your pantry into a spray bottle, spray, and wipe off with microfiber towels or newspaper. I buy vinegar buy the gallon, love the stuff!

* Use the same spray bottle with vinegar in it and attack that bathroom. It works fantastically in the shower and around the sink area. Spray, let it set for a minute, wipe it off and rinse.

* Have a tough cooked on stain on the stove? 1 part bleach to 5 parts water in a spray bottle. Spray over stain and then sprinkle baking soda over it. Let it set a couple of minutes. Use a washcloth to lightly scrub off. This won't scratch up your surface and to me works just as well as those harsh chemicals you can buy. You might need to repeat, but I'm telling you it really works. I am always fighting those yucky stains around my burners on my stove.

* Do you have tile floors? I do and when I was pregnant I would wash them with cleaners and they would make my floors so slippery. After slipping a couple of times when I was seven months pregnant, I came up with this solution. Add about 1/2 cup of rubbing alcohol to your warm mop water, no other cleaning products needed. The rubbing alcohol sanitizes my floors and prevents them from getting that slipperiness that I was having problems with. And my floors look great too.

* Do you have a piece of clothing that has a smell you can't get out? Add a cup of vinegar to the wash along with detergent and wash as normal. This really helps. You might need to repeat, but the smell should come out after a couple of washes. You can also add vinegar straight to a potty spot from an animal to help get the smell out. Just add, let set for a few minutes, then blot it up.

I can tell you these items are so much cheaper than buying the factory made cleaning products and the work so well, why spend the money? Leave a comment if you have any suggestions or natural cleaning tips.

Pamper Yourself!

Here are five ideas to pamper yourself, in a hurry (if need be), easily, and definitely on a budget.

1. Stick your favorite face lotion/cream in the fridge. On a day you've had too much sun or just want something soothing, apply the cold lotion on your face. It feels sooooo good, I should know, I just did it!

2. Take 10 for yourself. Soak your feet in water, add epsom salt if you wish. Then wash your feet with a foot scrub, it moisturizes and sloughs off some of that dead skin we have a tendency to get on our summer feet. You can get foot scrubs at the dollar store.

3. Download your most relaxing music onto itunes, don't have it? Its free to download and you don't have to have an ipod to use it, just listen off your computer after you download your cds. Make a folder labeled RELAX. When stress is at its best steal 15 minutes to yourself and listen to your relaxing music with your eyes closed. Turn it up to block out the kids!

4. Stash your own little guilty pleasure such as little Dove chocolates or some dark chocolate, you know what you love. When things are hectic and you need to slow down find a quiet corner and take a minute to indulge in one of your little treats with your eyes closed and focus only on the taste in your mouth.

5. Buy yourself a little inexpensive bouquet of flowers next time you are at the grocery store, or if you happen to have flowers growing in your yard hand cut some and put them in a vase. Place them somewhere you will see whenever you walk through the livingroom. They'll make you smile when you see them. Who doesn't love flowers?

There are lots of little things we can do for ourselves that we normally don't think to do. Why because we are moms and life goes so quickly we barely make time to "smell the roses." While I wouldn't trade my life for anything, I do know that I need to try and recharge my batteries even if that means 2 minutes at a time.
If you have any fun ideas to pamper yourself that are fast and budget friendly please post a comment!

What to do this summer break and oh yeah on a budget!

If you are like us this summer, you are on an extreme budget, which means that vacation is not going to happen. Well vacation isn't going to happen away from home. But even with the money belt tightened this year we are determined to not sit in front of the TV with no plans while our summer whittles away. Here are some ideas we have come up with to ensure that our summer is still a blast.

1. Explore your own backyard. And I don't mean literally your own back yard but the many things around you. We are taking advantage of state parks around us that we have never been to but are less than 2 hours away for day trips. There are lots of lakes and great outdoor activities for us to enjoy and our kids love it. It is easy to find the natural places to explore around you, just go online and do a little research.

2. Tour the world in your own home. Allow each family member to pick a country they would like to visit. Each week take one of these countries and research it. Go to the library and find great picture books, find a cookbook, find a movie that is set in that country. Have a night "out" in that country. Decorate the table in the country theme, dress if appropriate, and try that country's cuisine. What a fun educational experience for the whole family.

3. Enlist the other neighborhood families for some fun activities. Get together for craft day once a week. Each family can take turns hosting the event. Have the kids get together for some fun water activities and games.

Staying home for the summer doesn't have to be the same 'ol same 'ol. With a little creativity you can spice it up and have some memorable family times. I dare you, give it a try.
Do you have ideas? Comment ideas you may have or share something you have already done with your family.

3 websites you won't be able to live without

There are so many websites on the internet that are designed to help you at little or no cost. Below are 3 websites that once you try them, I know you won't be able to live without.

The first is Flylady.net. Oh how I love my Flylady. Through her website you will learn that making your house a HOME can be done 15 minutes at a time and through routines you can be free. I'm telling you my whole household is designed around the Flylady principles, from how I clean my home to how dinner makes it to the table. If you are at a loss for how to get started on your house, especially if you have NO IDEA where to start, please check her website out. I promise you, you'll be forever grateful you did yourself this favor.

Through the Flylady I found out about the Dinner Diva. Savingdinner.com is a website designed to help you get dinner on the table every night. It costs a mere $10 for 3 months worth. Leanne is a nutritionist who plans for you a healthy menu for 6 nights of the week, including a grocery list. The recipes are healthy, tasty, and they sure can help you get out of a dinner rut. She also plans the meals based on the season. Plus if you have health issues or want to change how you eat, she has meal options for these changes in lifestyle too. Want to just check her out without commitment? Go to her website and she has a free weeks menu for you to sample.

And finally there is the Coupon Lady. http://moneysavingmom.com This website can help you to see what specials are going on at your grocery store before you even hit the entrance. I don't know about you, but my favorite grocery store does not send out circulars as a practice. But I can go to moneysavingmom and find out what my store has on sale and plan a grocery list based on that information. Takes the guess work out of my grocery list. Plus I can match up my coupons to her list and get some GREAT deals.

Stay tuned for additional websites I will review on occasion. They must be websites that make everyone's life easier to make it to my list.

1 Week of Easy Dinner Meals (even your kids will like)

I know how hard it is to get dinner on the table especially when there are practices, church nights, and just plain trying to make it through the evening. Below are five easy dinner ideas that can make it to the table quickly and even your kids will like them. Trust me, my kids do and they can be rather picky!

Night 1

Creamy Lemon Shrimp Pasta

8 oz. angel hair pasta
1/2 to 1 lb. of already cooked deveined and shelled shrimp (whatever size is cheapest)
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 lemon
olive oil or canola oil
1 clove garlic
salt and pepper

Cook pasta according to directions on package. In large skillet heat oil. Drop finally minced clove of garlic and let sautee for a minute. Don't let the garlic overcook. Combine zest of lemon and juice of lemon, heavy whipping cream in with garlic. Heat up mixture but do not bring to boil. Add shrimp and warm through. Salt and pepper to taste. Add cooked pasta and toss. Serve with simple salad.
Serves 4
Night 2

Crockpot Cowboy Casserole

1 lb ground hamburger
1 tspn oregano
1 tspn garlic salt
1 can 28 oz. enchilada sauce
1 lb tomatillos
olive oil or canola oil
1/2 med. onion chopped
2 gloves garlic
1 cup cornmeal
2 tblspns sugar
1 1/2 tspn salt
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

In a skillet warm oil. Add onions and garlic and let them sautee for one minute. Add ground hamburger, oregano, and garlic salt. Cook meat until all the meat is brown. Drain off any fat. Cut the tomatillos into small bite size pieces. In large crockpot add meat mixture and tomatillos. Cover with enchilada sauce. Cook in crockpot on low for 2-3 hours.
Next turn crockpot up to highest setting. Bring two cups of water to a boil. Add salt and sugar to boiling water then cornmeal. Cook at a boil stirring constantly for 1 minute, will get VERY thick. Then take a large spoon and drop cornmeal dumplings into the crockpot, on top of the enchilada and meat mixture.
Cover and let cook for 1/2 hour. Now add cheese to top and again place the lid on top of the crockpot until cheese melts. Serve.
Serves 4-6

Night 3

Sheppard's Pie

Instant Mashed potatoes - prepared by package instructions
1 lb ground hamburger
1 tsp. garlic salt
canned corn - drained
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 onion
2 carrots
olive oil or canola oil

Preheat oven @ 400 degrees

Dice onion and carrots into like sizes. Preheat oil. Add carrots and onion. Cook till onions are translucent. Add hamburger. Season with garlic salt. Break up hamburger and brown until cooked all through out.
In 8X8 baking dish layer potatoes first, hamburger mixture 2nd, corn third, and cover with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted. For super fast stick under the broiler for a few minutes to melt the cheese.

Night 4

Baked Tilapia

4 tilapia fish steaks
onion
1 lemon
garlic clove
2 tblspns butter
salt and pepper

Preheat Oven to 425 degrees

Cut onion into thing rings and lay at the bottom of 8X13 casserole dish. Lay fish on top of onions. salt and pepper to taste. divide butter into for portions and lay 1 portion on top of each piece of fish. cut lemon into thin slices and lay two on each piece of fish. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Fish will flake easily with a for when done. Serves 4. Serve with some easy lipton rice and a bag of prepared steam able veggies found in the frozen section @ the store.

Night 5

Homemade Mac & Cheese

Prepare this earlier in the day and pop in the oven when your ready to eat.

Elbow Macaroni - 1 lb
16 oz. sharp cheddar cheese - shredded
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup shredded asiago cheese
2 slices of cooked bacon strips cut or tore into small pieces
1 cup of milk
3 tblspns butter
3 tblspns flour
1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Prepare macaroni according to package directions. In large pot (5 qts.) melt butter on med. heat, then add flour, whisking to incorpate into butter. Let cook for about a minute to take raw flour taste out. While whisking briskly slowly add in milk, whisk until the mixture is smooth. Turn heat down to med. low heat and season with salt and pepper. Mixture will thicken, do not let it come to boil. you will know it is ready when you stick a spoon in it and the spoon is coated in the mixture and does not drip off. Add cheddar into the milk mixture and let melt. Now add the pasta to the cheese and milk and toss. Pour into a 8X13 casserole dish. Top with bread crumbs, asiago cheese, and bacon. Cook for 20 minutes, bread crumbs and cheese on top should be golden brown. Serves 6.