Triple Clicks

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Will Spring Ever Come?

Garage sale season has officially started around here which means deals on clothes. Unfortunately, the weather didn't get the memo and it's COLD today. 

Our town's city wide garage sales are this weekend, I have marked which ones I need to go to, along with a list of what I'm looking for. 

I went to Goodwill with my mom last Friday while I was in Nebraska, but we didn't find much. Since I'm buying clothes, I am buying dresses and tights or pants to go underneath. We are trying to get away from form fitting clothes in our house, which is easier said than done in today's world. Luckily I have girls who love dresses. And a sewing machine to make if I can't find-which is a great repurpose for large sized clothes from a thrift shop if you can't find what you want.

This year's garage sale list has little girl clothes in 3T, which is a size I do not have-after this my hand me downs start. Church shoes for Andrew and once I have all the clothes found, books. :) I love books and I love being able to expand our little library with cheap books. 

My nine year old would greatly appreciate having a selection of chapter books available, too. 

We are all just lounging today. The girls and I have a cold, Eva is the only one who can take anything for it, but she is still miserable. Dennis isn't feeling well, either, so he stayed home from work. We are impatiently waiting for spring to arrive. The kids want to be able to play outside and take walks, and I'm with them. I just want it warm. But it looks like we will have to wait. 

Monday, April 21, 2014

Popcorn Chicken Bites

I found this recipe on Pinterest from the blog Food 4 Tots. My kids LOVE this recipe, and Dennis and I agree, it's awesome. Now, I did change the recipe a bit because I don't have in the cupboard some of the things and I couldn't add anything else to my list, but it was good. 

My changes: I don't keep oyster sauce or sesame oil, so I just used black pepper, sugar, soy sauce and olive oil.  Also, I used the entire egg instead of the egg whites. 
Make sure you grease your pan first. I also did not pound the chicken, just did a little more cutting. 

Liquid Marinade
1 1/2 tsp oyster sauce
1 1/2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp white pepper
pinch of sugar

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1/2 cup cornflakes
1/4 cup flour
2 egg whites

Breading
4 tsp garlic powder
4 tablespoon parmesan
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 392
Trim fat from chicken and pat dry. Pound to flatten. Cut into 1 inch cubes. Mix seasoning for marinade, coat and marinade for at least an hour. 




Pound cornflakes to crumbs. Add parmesan, garlic, paprika and black pepper. Mix well. 
You need three bowls- one for flour, one for egg whites (whisked lightly), one for corn flake mixture. 



Dip chicken in flour, egg, corn flake. 
Grease baking tray, arrange chicken, spray on more grease. 



Bake 15 minutes or until golden brown turning halfway. 




I sent some to work with Dennis the next day when I made this last week, and it is not soggy the next day after storing in the fridge. Not sure about the freezer, I might make a bigger batch next month and see how that goes. 

First-World Problems and Health

Exercise. It's a good thing, it keeps us healthy. We all know that. So why is it so hard for a lot to stick to an exercise routine? 

Well.. for me, it's just plain being lazy. That and every time I've got an exercise routine down I've been told by a doctor to stop it. Crazy, isn't it? I inherited my mom's fast metabolism. Which is awesome because I can pretty much eat whatever I want. My only problem is, the more I eat, the more I lose. And while probably all of you reading are calling me plenty of names and growling at me in your head I can assure you, it's not as fun as it sounds. 

It's frustrating. Very frustrating. 

I had to stop nursing my now 2 year old because I couldn't keep up with the calories with being pregnant and nursing.  I dealt with a VERY unhappy toddler for almost a month until we got the new routine established, not how I wanted to stop nursing. 

They were pushing me to GAIN as much weight as I possibly could during my last pregnancy because the scales said I just didn't weigh enough. Whereas I had gained 35 pounds by the time it was said and done, they wanted me to gain more but because of the high metabolism, nursing and morning sickness throughout, I was underweight when I got pregnant. On top of that, my diet was limited because of a low blood pressure issue my system decided it needed to have.  

Yet, our youngest came out healthy and happy, the biggest yet at 8 pounds. And if you know me, you're probably like us and still trying to figure out how the heck I had an 8 lb baby. (I'm 5 nothing and typically 100 pounds soaking wet).  I know the nurses and midwife were sure surprised because she certainly didn't look like an 8 pound baby. And to that, all I have to say to the doctor in Nebraska who told me my 7 lb 9 oz boy would have to be a c-section because he was 'too big' is a tongue sticking out at you and maybe a 'na-na boo-boo'.  (No, I don't spend all day with toddlers.....) 

I do have a point behind this post, I promise. And it's not to make my whole two dozen readers jealous that I'm little. I hate it as much as you do... 

The year I got pregnant with Eva we decided we were going to start exercising. (I laugh now because we aren't really the go-getter types and my husband has a bad back so he really needs a trainer, but anyway...) We can't afford a gym membership-not like I could go because I have babies to take care of. So we went and bought the PS2 (I think that's right, I can never remember which version we have) version of a Wii fit 'game'.  It was fun...for the first few weeks.  I think I petered out about two weeks before we found out we were expecting Eva because I couldn't keep up with it. Go figure, I was only 15 weeks pregnant trying to do a hard core exercise routine. Plus keeping up with a one year old. And getting the now out-of-business family dollar store up and going. 

So, for two years, this has been sitting on the shelf, collecting dust. I'm considering starting it again. We'll see. I know Grace is only two months and I have preaching since I got pregnant with her that 'it takes nine months to gain the weight, give your body nine months to get it off'. Which makes perfect sense to me and I fully believe that. But, quit frankly, I'm tired of seeing a muffin top every time I put on a pair jeans or a skirt and I can't wear my favorite dress because of said muffin top. Which is really frustrating and leaves me with a whole two skirts to wear to church. 

I also know it's warming up (YAY) and that means, I'll start my garden and start cleaning out the gardens in the back yard. And we'll start walking every day. And housework and this and that the other.... I know the muffin top will go away soon between all this.  I just feel self-conscious is all. It won't go away. 'Course it probably doesn't help that my four old declared the other day 'mommy, your belly isn't little anymore and Grace is out'. Gee, son, thanks for THAT.  I don't remember my oldest being so brutally honest.  

I also know we (the kids and I) snack WAY TOO MUCH around here. I need to find healthy snacks that don't break the budget. Quite frankly, I'm all for the carrot sticks with ranch dip. Or the fruit with cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk dip (I'd have to get that recipe from my mom-it's GOOD).  The problem is, produce is more expensive than flour and sugar and raisins for raisin cookies. Hey, they have raisins, they have some health aspect. If say it enough, maybe it would be true?

My entire point here is that I don't FEEL healthy any more. Perhaps it's the constant back pain, perhaps it's because I want to get out of the house and walk, work on the garage, the gardens. ANYTHING but be confined to the house. Perhaps it's all in my head because of the muffin top (that makes my husband laugh that I complain about a muffin top). Most of all, perhaps I just need to be content with the body God gave me. Yes, that's got to be the key, right there. 

Now that I've probably confused and infuriated every single one of you because I'm doing nothing more than venting and am starting to even wonder if I should publish this.... I think I have uncovered the root of the problem (besides this back pain that has been driving me crazy for two months).. I'm not content. I need to pray, sit back, and be thankful to God that he has given the blessings I do have. A wonderful husband, four wonderful children. A roof over our heads, food in our bellies. And the first-world problems of muffin-tops and gardens to clean out before black birds think it's their new summer home. 

Speaking of gardens and the birds. The sun is starting to come up, the birds are singing-we have cardinal family and blue jay families this year. The blue jays are new. The cardinals were here last year for the first year.  Maybe I'll even get pictures..during nap time so the kids don't scare them away. Now, if anybody in the area wants to come give their kids a lesson in horticulture and what NOT to do to gardens..or what house NOT to buy if you don't garden.. Come on over, give me call, message me. I would love the help and maybe you can teach me a few things while you're at it. Because I'm bad at keeping plants alive... I planted 9 tomato plants, three have survived-the cat killed 4; 6 onion plants-yep, they died. 3 pepper plants-the cat killed the one that grew... Are you seeing a pattern here? Which, with all the dead plants, I'm scared to try an indoor herb garden, but since the garlic is already growing on my kitchen counter I need to find the instructions I pinned for that...  But since I have discovered this cat does not like vinegar (YAY! no more scratched furniture), maybe a herb garden has a chance. Can't hurt, can it? 

But seriously...if you are close, you can even take some plants home. There's flowers galore. Tree saplings if we can get them out with the root... Peppermint running around somewhere. Rhubarb-which I'm told can't be transplanted until fall, but you can sure come harvest. I even have a back yard full of vine that likes to grow beneath my dryer vent and took over the back yard last year. Heck, take the ants. PLEASE TAKE THE ANTS that have invaded my kitchen every year for 4 years.. Seriously, you can't kill them. I have tried EVERYTHING. Diatomecious earth only slows them down. Heck, bleach didn't even work and if that chemical straight from Agent Orange doesn't work, nothing will.  The point in this particular paragraph is, if you are close and want more plants in your yard, come take them-I'll even help you get them out. They will just go to the city dump here. I NEED HELP. I'm not cut out for pretty gardening and I'm wondering if I'm cut out for any gardening.  Just...watch out for the resident snake.. I can show you where he lives... If you need wood-we have trees that need trimmed, you can have the firewood for trimming...we even have mini-pine trees (I have no idea what they are, besides little and pine) that need cut down because the ice storm last year killed them. 

Well, now that I have begged and pleaded I suppose I  had better start on housework and maybe even start that exercise program. At least get my last cup of coffee for the day.. 6 AM and I'm on the last cup for the day. Also proof that I need to remember to proof read when I write a post at 5:30 in the morning.... 

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Beef Enchilada Skillet

A lot of recipes I have saved to try I have found on Pinterest, through an email (I am signed up for many recipe emails), through a blog or through a Facebook post. It did not occur to me to keep the web site I got it from because I never thought I'd have my own blog. So this particular recipe, I don't know where it came from other than somewhere on the internet. Please forgive me for not giving the author due credit, because I cannot.



Eating this came about because I did not check my recipe for Saulsbury Steak and I didn't have all the ingredients. So.. I started looking through my saved recipes to see what I could do with what I had on hand-another reason keeping a pantry stock spreadsheet is a good idea. 

I did change this recipe a little to match what I did have. I did not have green chiles, so I put a finely chopped onion in with the beef and garlic. With the tomato sauce, I added taco seasoning. I used flour tortillas-one whole, one tore in half. And I used just mozzarella cheese. 

Beef Enchilada Skillet
1 lb ground beef 
1/2 TBSP garlic, minced
4 oz can fire roasted green chiles
1 3/4 cup tomato sauce (14 oz can)
1 TBSP chili powder
1 tsp cumin powder 
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup lite shredded Mexican cheese, divided
2 corn (or flour) tortilla shells cut in half

In a medium bowl, add tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and salt. Mix until combined; set aside. 



Tomato Sauce Mixture





In a skillet add ground beef, garlic and cook until beef is no longer pink. Drain the fat. 



Add green chiles to beef, and half of the tomato mixture. Mix until combined. Top with 1/4 cup of cheese and then the tortilla shells. Add remaining tomato sauce and top with remaining 1/4 cup of cheese. 





Turn the heat down to medium-low ad cover. Cook until sauce starts to bubble and cheese is melted. 
Let it cool for a couple of minutes and serve. 
Topping Suggestions: Avocado, Greek yogurt, jalapenos, fresh tomatoes, hot sauce. 

Dennis didn't mind this recipe so much but said it taste more Italian than Mexican. The kids didn't eat much so they obviously didn't like it. General consensus says we won't be eating this again, but maybe one of you will like it. 

I make my own taco seasoning which I got Modern Alternative Mama. It's equal parts of chili seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and cumin. If you like more spice throw a little red pepper in there. 

My taco seasoning in an old yeast jar

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

It's a birthday!

Monday was my four year old's birthday.  It is also the last birthday in our immediate family for the year. 

I have been working on making the kids' birthday cakes instead of buying them. I don't think I did too bad with the request of a Thomas birthday. 


Not too shabby, wouldn't you say?  

I cheated and used a boxed cake mix, but hey, it was on sale a few months ago so might as well.  The icing was cream cheese icing..or is it frosting? Never could figure out the difference between the two. 

1 8 oz chunk of cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup of butter (one stick) room temperature
4 cups of powdered sugar
a little bit a liquid (I used water, but you could use milk, cream, I've seen recipes that use whipping cream) 
Beat together the cream cheese and butter, add the powdered sugar and mix. I needed to add liquid to get it the right consistency and since we don't keep milk in the house, I used water. Add food dye and you're ready to ice. 

I also bought some of those candy letters because they were on sale. If I had been thinking ahead I wouldn't have made so much black and saved some for a different color..But I dyed too much black and had to use it somewhere since I had a little 4 year old helper so couldn't stand there and eat it. 

We also had pizza for his birthday day. 

Homemade Pizza Dough
1 scant tablespoon yeast
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Mix yeast and water, let sit for a few minutes while you get the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add yeast, stir with fork until combined. Cover and let rise for about 5 minutes. I let it rise until the oven is heated to 425. 
Put on your pan and spread, you can make two thin crusts or one pan crust with this recipe. Use fork to poke holes  so you don't get air bubbles. 
Put in oven for 12 minutes. 

While the pizza is cooking make your pizza sauce
1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tablespoon each of garlic powder, oregano, parsley
bring to a boil then turn off burner. 
The longer it sits, the more flavor it gets. I usually make a big batch when I make it because we are constantly making some form of pizza around here. 

When the crust is done, put on your toppings (I usually do sauce, meat, cheese (mozzarella and cheddar) and bake for 10-12 minutes more depending on how brown you want your crust. Cut and enjoy. 

He says he had a good birthday and I think the kids are still on a sugar high from the cake and grandma-provided ice cream. 


  

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Starting Home School

I have found many freebies for our home school adventure..and we haven't even started yet! 

One of my favorite sites is Free HomeSchool Deals. There is a link to sign up for emails on this page. Every day, Jamerrill sends out an email with a collection of freebies she has found, along with a weekly collection from her and 10 other bloggers that she links to on Pinterest.  As part of signing up for her newsletter, you get a free ebook with tips on how to homeschool free and frugal. I have been getting the emails for probably six months now, and am just now reading the ebook. It is full of AWESOME tips and many online resources. 

I am thoroughly convinced that I should be able to homeschool through 5th grade without any formal curriculum. And even more so after reading that book. 

I collect anything that I think might be useful. I'm sure I could be saving more, but I'm only saving it when it sounds like something the kids will benefit from. I would say about half of what I save is special deals that only last for so long, while the rest is free as long as the web site is up. 

Yesterday I printed off ABCs booklets for Andrew and Eva. Well, mostly for Andrew but I knew if I didn't print one off for Eva things would not go well. And since the printer had a booklet option, the 33 page Acrobat file only printed off 9 pages per booklet. So I was able to save paper. I'm not starting anything formal with Andrew as he is only 4, but he knows his ABCs and is trying to write letters, so I figured I will start.  

So this is my first post of what I hope to many of our adventures in homeschooling on a tight budget. 

Friday, April 11, 2014

Shopping Trip April 10

Well.. I failed and I've been kicking myself in the butt ever since. Now, in all fairness, prices went up.. so SOME of the overage wasn't my fault. But I still went over and it will affect the rest of the budget. 

On the plus side, the kids were good and Grace was only fussy through one store. 

My meal plan:
I wrote down on a notebook paper week by week for the dinners. I'll not always follow verbatim by day, but I know I have the ingredients for everything on the meal plan. 
Lasagna, Tacos, homemade pizza and bread sticks with cake for  Andrew's birthday Monday. Salisbury steak, ravioli, spaghetti, chicken parmesan with fettucine alfredo.. and more pizza and spaghetti for fill ins. 
I also plan to try home made bread again, we tried in a borrowed bread maker and didn't like it..so trying again now that I have an oven. I'm making pizza rolls and oatmeal cupcakes for our trip snacks to Nebraska, yes I'll share recipes. I also write down what we need to breakfast and lunch. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, orange juice, cereal, toast, coffee cake. Peanut Butter and Jelly (for hubby, not for kids), fruit, pizza bites, popcorn chicken (homemade). Hamburgers, hot dog and french fries for the weekends. 

Dollar Tree
Lasagna noodles $1.00
Baking soda 2 $0.59 each
Pancake Syrup $1.00
Apple Juice Boxes $1.00
Liquid Dish Detergent 14 oz $1.00
Tortillas 2 $1.00 each
Grand total of $7.61 with tax

Earthgrains-the bakery outlet store
10 loaves of bread for $.90 each (They were day olds, but they go straight in the freezer until we need them)
3 packages of hambuger buns at $1.10 each (yet again, go straight in the freezer until needed)
1 package of hot dog buns $1.10
Worcestershire sauce $1.49
Dill pickle slice $1.49
Grand total of $17.79 with tax

Fareway Food Store
Fiora Paper Towels 8 pack $3.99
Ground Beef 10 pounds $2.29 a pound for $22.40 (The chub was about 9 lb 7 oz, this was an ad match to a competitor)
Frozen Corn-store brand 2 at $1.29 each
Cream Cheese $0.99
Folgers $6.99
Spaghetti Sauce Rinaldi brand 4 at $1.18 each
Yeast $3.99
Roma Tomatoes $1.29 a pound paid $1.18
Bananas $0.55 a pound paid $1.64 (not on the list, but they were on sale for cheap and I knew hubby wouldn't mind bananas)
Yellow Onions 3 pound bag $1.99
Fettucine Noodles 2 at $1.00 each
Alfredo Sauce 2 at $1.50 each
Lettuce head $0.99
Refried Beans 2 at $1.49 each
Grand total of $66.13

Sam's Club
Cheerios Two Pack $5.78 (40.7 oz each box)
Captain Crunch Two Pack $5.46 (20 oz each box)
Nature Valley Oats and Honey Granola Bars $7.93 (30 pack, 2 bars in each pack) (minus digital coupon of 2.00)
Vinegar Two Pack bought two boxes at $3.58 each (one gallon jugs)
18 Count Eggs at $5.69 each
Tropical Fruit Salad 2 at $5.58 (107 oz)
Daily Chef Angel Hair Pasta 6 1 pound packs at $4.98 for the box
Jif Creamy Peanut Butter 2 pack at $4.98 (40 oz each jar)
Sugar 10 pounds at $3.98
Parmesan Cheese 24 oz at $6.98
Flour 10 pound bags 2 $4.33 each
Minute Maid Orange Juice 1 gallon 2 at $5.48 each
Sunny D 1 gallon at $2.38
Spinach and Cheese Ravioli 32 oz bag $9.98
Daily Chef Chicken Breast 6 pound bag $10.98
Shredded Mozarella Cheese 5 lb bag $13.40
Beef Patties 6 pounds $17.98
DiGiornio Pizza 3 pack box $13.44 (minus digital coupon of 4.00)
Shredded Cheddar 5 pound bag $14.95
French Fries 6 pounds $6.98
Oscar Meyer Hot Dogs 60 count $5.26
Bacon 3 pound packages 2 at $10.76 each
Butter 4 pound pack at $8.79
Flea and Tick Stuff 6 month supply $19.88 (minus digital coupon of 4.00)
Stouffer's Lasagna $10.98
Grand Total of $255.12
On most of my list from Sam's the prices went up. So I'm recording the new prices in my price compare spreadsheet so I can look for sales next time. 

I also went to Shopko because of sales. 
Shopko
Kids Organizer Bin $29.88 (Originally $99.99, this was a closeout sale while supplies last)
Kids Plates 5 pack $4.99
Kids Bowls 5 pack $4.99
Thomas toy for Andrew's birthday cake $4.99
Cottonelle 12 pack $4.48 (originally $6.99)
Grand Total of $52.29
Shopko was not figured in the grocery bill as most of it was extra. 

I went over by $46.65. Grand Total of just groceries was $346.65. 
Yeah... I'm not happy. Hubby wasn't thrilled, but the food was needed. 
I could have avoided SOME of that overage had I gone to Sam's first as I usually do because Fareway had cheese and bacon on sale. Sam's only takes certain credit cards and since I left that card in Dennis' wallet I had to wait for Sam's until we met him for lunch.  I had to pay the high price at Sam's because there was no way I was going back to Fareway with two toddlers who were done shopping by this point. 

On the plus side, our living room is a little neater with the new toy box. We were using just miscellaneous broken Tupperware dishes, old gallon ice cream containers and Folgers containers, now it's being stored vertically..except for the many trucks that are too big for the container. And the kids also helped me put the shelf together. 

I do think it's going to be LONG weekend. Andrew is already begging for his Thomas birthday cake (only because he wants to play with the toy). His birthday is Monday.