crockpot

I love my crockpot. I use it a lot. I have the smart pot, so if i set it to cook on high for 4 hours when the 4 hours are up it turns to warm so if we are gone longer then i thought or we are not quite ready to eat the food stays warm. Anyway, i went last Thursday to put some pork in mine for pulled pork an guess what, it was cracked. all the way from side to side. :( Now I am just waiting on a new one to arrive (it was still under warranty but they are out of the stoneware so they are sending me a whole new system. I hope it has the settings I have now and its not some cheap one.

First Day Of School

Hailey, is in 5th grade

Emily is in 3rd

Abby is in 2nd

Maggie, the Kindergardener

All of them.
They are having a good fist few weeks of school. Maggie is loving going to school on the bus with her Sisters. I am enjoying a few hours each morning to myself. I have gotten my coupon book up to date, done grocery shoppig, and some cleaning. Oh and even went to work one morning.

Menu Plan

Now that the kids are back in school and I am getting into a routine, I am going to start my menu plan again. I am going to do it every 2 weeks. I may or may not type it up here. It just helps me to have a plan.
I have found a love for Winco. We had one when I lived in California and I have forgotten how much cheaper it is to buy groceries. Even with the 25 minute drive there every 2 weeks I have saved a ton of money. Before I would just go there when I had to be in Spokane anyway but all summer the kids and I have been going every other Friday. The kids love helping my bag the groceries. I don't know what I will do tomorrow when I have to go alone.
Friday
bbq hot dogs and homemade potato salad at the park when we are on the lake
Saturday
Homemade Pizza ( i found the best dough recipe)
Sunday
1 pot chicken dish.
Monday
Sausage and potato and butter noodles
Tuesday
hamburger helper and garlic toast
Wednesday
homemade egg rolls with crab and chicken wontons
Thursday
Mexican Lasagna
Friday
Mom and dad are going out to eat and put stuff on layaway
Saturday
BBQ steak
Sunday
Breakfast, crepes and scrambled eggs
Monday
Chicken enchalidas and rice
Tuesday Meat loaf and mashed potatoes
Wednesday
Homemade lemon chicken and stir fry
Thursday Spaghetti with french bread.

If anyone wants the recipies let me know or go to my Pinterest. i can't get the links to post right. But i have the recipies on there for one pot chicken dish, and the mexican lasagna.

Classic Skate

We have lived here for 3 loooooooooooong years. We have never been to the skating rink and last week the girls were invited to our friends Jonah and Jordyns birthday party there. It was fun and we will be going back.

Silverwood 2012

Silverwood Theme Park We have never been to Silverwood as a family. I took the girls the summer that we moved here and that was it. Its expensive. Well, this year the 3 girls got free tickets from school and i saw online that there was a buy one get one free ticket deal going on AND plus dad got in free. SO it only ended up costing us 45.00 for our entire family to go. We had a lot of fun and plan to buy a season pass for all of us next year for Christmas.

Maggie was tall enough for the big rides and she loved the roller coasters. Hailey was tall enough for all the rides and loved going on the BIG adult ones. It was a good day and fun was had by all. The weather was perfect and the kids behaved so well.

Hailey. Last Day of 4th Grade Emily on her last day of 2nd grade. Abby on her last day of 1st grade.

Maggie on her last day of Preschool.

Here is my Sweet Maggie on her last day of Preschool.

May Dinners

May 1 Chili in the crock pot and cornbread may 2 Chicken with the Philly cooking cream we have in fridge, may 3rd Don't know Maggie gets to pick may 4 Slow Cooker chicken sandwiches may 5th Ali and Maddies birthday dinner at their house May 6th Hawaiian grilled chicken kabobs/french dip sandwiches may 7 crockpot beef stroganoff May 8 crock pot root beer peeled pork may 9 BBQ hamburgers may 10 beef stew may 11 hash brown soup in the crock pot may 12 chicken fajitas may 13 crock pot chicken parm may 14th Shepard's pie may 15 sausage and potatoes may 16 chicken cordon blu casserole may 17th Philly cheese-steak sloppy Jose may 18 homemade pizza may 19 fantastic pizza casserole may 20 double crunch honey garlic pork chops may 21 BBQ chicken and steak may 22 meatloaf may 23 ham sliders may 24 breakfast may 25 eating out may 26 chicken taquatios may 27 spaghetti may 28 ravioli lasagna may 29 egg rolls may 30 chicken penne pasta may 31 pork chops

May Dinner Plan

Since I was bored all day, I did my menu for the month of May. If anyone wants to see it, let me know and I will post what I planned.

Meals that you can make in 30 min or less.

I just am putting this here so I don't loose it. Some of these look really yummy. And some of them I have made before from other sites. I hope you enjoy them if you try them.

Six Sisters' Stuff: 30 Meals that are ready in 30 Minutes or Less!:   By the end of a busy day, the last thing that you want to do is spend hours making dinner. We have put together a list of  30 Meals t...

UTAH

a couple of weeks ago for the girls spring break we went to Utah, We spent a few days at my parents house, and then on Tuesday we went to Moab, came back to my parents on wednesday and we left for home on the 31st, Abbys's 7th birthday.
So in Utah, my sisters and i repainted my parents bathroom on Saturday and Sunday while they were out of town for a wedding. We went to Moab and did some hikes. We took my little Brother with us too. We had a good time in Arches National Park. Thursday we took the girls to Hill Air Force base and they played in the space center and then Thursday night Larissa and I took front runner to Salt Lake and went to the new City Creek. that place was awesome. Friday we had Emily and Gabes Baptism and then we had Andrews court of honor right after. We like to do as much as possible at one time. Saturday we had Abbys birthday breakfast and then headed for Butte where we were staying the night. We went swimming at the hotel, went to Dennys for dinner and did some more swimming.
It was great to see my family and a couple of friends but its also good to be back home.
Although we are already planning to go back to Moab next year and do the jeep safari. that looks like a good time.

Menu Planner

Today I was searching the internet and I found this fun site http://anythingbutperfect.com/ and i went to the freebie section and the owner Angela has some cute meal planners. SO, I printed the dinner one, lamanted it and now I can use it month after month. Its so cute that I might even keep it on the fridge so I don't have to open the pantry door everyday. This way it will be right in front of me and will help me to remember what I need to take out. Go check out Angela and her cute site.

Freezer Meals

I am putting some freezer meals on my blog that I want to try. If I keep them here, maybe I won't lose them.
These came from:happymoneysaver.com

I really want to try the 50 meals in 1 day. Or maybe I will just start out with 10 or 15.

Spring

Yesterday was the first day of spring. You can't tell though from the weather. I woke up to 3 inches of snow. yep snow. stupid. It melted away though by afternoon. And it was so windy. Our trampoline even flipped over. yep so windy. its crzay. And we had snow all freaking day today too. At least it was warm enough that the snow didn't stick until now. I am so over the cold, the rain, the wind and snow. I am ready for spring to really be here. I am so wanting the kids to go out and play.
I hope its warmer in Utah next week.

Coupon Shopping

I am starting to get back into using coupons. I have been doing it a lot for shampoo, conditioner, shave needs and stuff like that but not so much food. Since Feb. I have been doing more food.
Here is what I got today.

I spent 23.42 and I got back a 5.00 catalina to use at Albertsons still.
Without coupons, double coupons and sales I would have paid 102.43. I think that is pretty darn awesome.
I got
10 rockstars
5 All in one laundry packs (25 loads each)
12 Yogurt
1 yogurt crunchers
3 cans of beans
3 salad dressings
1 tuna
4 boxes of granola thins
1 box of emerald breakfast bars
1 thing of Minute Maid fruit punch juice boxes
2 packages of frozen meatballs.

Sick

On Sunday, I was so sick. I have not been that sick in a long time. I woke up about 6 to go to the bathroom, I could not even stand up I was so dizzy. So I finally got up, went and came back to bed thinking I would feel better later. Nope. When i woke up at 8:30 it was even worse. I seriously could not move. Danny feels me and says I am burning up. So he gets up, gets me some tylenol and gets up with the kids. He brings me breakfast, I eat and go back to bed. I slept the whole morning. I was supposed to go to work at 230, I was the closer and I knew that there was no one to come in for me since everyone beside the 2 girls scheduled had requested the day off. SO I got ready for work. As soon as I walked in the door, Jet and Carol both looked at me and knew I was not going to be able to stay. Jet called around and no one could come in. Finally at 4, Carol who works in Cosmetics came and said she would work for me and then Carol who works in the front was going to come back tonight at 8 and close for me. So I called Danny who had driven me to work and he came and got me.
I came home, had dinner and went back to bed. I woke up this morning, still not feeling well but better. I have been hungry all day and still not feeling my self. Hopefully I am back to 100 percent tomorrow.

MARCH DINNER

I am glad that its March however with all the snow we have outside you would not think it was March already.
Anyway here are the meals I am planning on fixin' this month.
March 1st
Pizza Casserole
March 2nd
Crockpot Potato soup and garlic bread (pinterest)
march 3rd
Garlic and brown sugar chicken (pinterest)
March 4th
Navajo fry tacos (pinterest)
March 5th
Pork chops
March 6th
Sloppy Joes
March 7th
Baked sweet and sour chicken with rice
March 8th
steak
March 9th
Potato bacon casserole (pinterest)
March 10th
Homemade pizza
March 11th
Chicken Alfredo
March 12th
Breakfast Enchilidas (a thrifty mom)
March 13th
Spaghetti
March 14th
White Cheddar Chicken bake (pinterest)
March 15th
Lasagna rolls (pinterest)
March 16th
grilled cheese and soup
March 17th
Green eggs and ham
March 18th
Twice baked potato casserole and chicken
March 19th
Baked chicken alfredo
March 20th
pepperoni pizza monkey bread
March 21st
good casserole, not hard to make (pinterest)
March 22
steak
March 23rd
left overs

So there ya have it, i know it only goes to the 23 but we are leaving for utah on the 24th and will be gone till April 2nd.

When Pigs Fly: Loaded Baked Potato Casserole

When Pigs Fly: Loaded Baked Potato Casserole: Oh. My. Goodness. 1-1/2 lbs. (about 6-7 medium) red or russet potatoes, unpeeled, divided 1/4 tsp. sea salt, divided 1/4 tsp. ground blac...

this is whats what we are having with our dinner tonight. looks so yummy.

My Family came to visit

Over Presidents Day weekend my Sister Larissa her husband Colton daughter Mylee, my brother Gabe and my Mom came to visit. They got here late Thursday night and I am so glad they came.

We went to the lake on Friday and walked around and played at the park. It was so cold but it was fun at the same time.

I love this wall. I want to have it on my wall. i got the idea on this blog:

http://lilluna.com/quote-gallery-wall/

How fun is that? Now I just need to get me a vinyl cutter so i can make my own.

Brad Paisley

I got to go see Brad Paisley this last week. A friend on Facebook posted that her parents were sick and wouldnt be able to use the tickets they had and I was the first one to respond to wanting them. I was scheduled to work that night so I had to call in sick for the first time in 2.5 years. I felt so guilty the whole time I was there. Anyway, when i got the tickets I was really hoping that Danny would have gone with me but he didn't want to go and I didn't really have anyone to ask. Then Danny said I should just ask our Friend Faith so I did and she could go. We went to Applebees for dinner and then we headed to the Spokane Arena.
I have not been to a concert in years. Like 14 years. First Scotty McCreery sang, then The Band Perry and then Brad Paisley. He put on a great show and I am glad that I went. I would love to go to another concert again sometime. And this time I will bring my camera and get some pictures. I only got a few from my phone and they didn't turn out all that great.

Ham and Cheese Sliders | The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ham and Cheese Sliders | The Girl Who Ate Everything

these are so yummy. we are making them again for Haileys Family Birthday dinner tomorrow. Super Easy and super yummy. give them a try. you won't be disappointed.

Bountiful Baskets

So we really have been liking BountifulBaskets.org
We have tried many different veggies that I would never have bought before like brussel sprouts, asparagus, and cauliflower. or even cabbage. The girls love going to get the basket. they will be sad we are not going this weekend. We just have so much veggies I think we need to take a break and eat what we have.
This past weekend we got, 2 pineapples, asparagus, strawberries, onions, tomatoes, red bell peppers, broccoli, red lettuce, coconut, kiwi, mint, plantains, vanilla bean, a bag of potatoes, celery and more I can't remember. Turns out I like asparagus how we cooked it last night, and even the cabbage I cooked on Friday for dinner was good.
Bountiful Baskets is a co-op so no one gets paid and its all volunteers who put it together. I checked at the store and I saved over 20.00 just in one week. I love that the kids are trying new things too. Go to the website and see if there is a Bountiful Basket near you.

Dinner Feb. 10- Feb 29th

Yippie, I got a head start on my meals for the month. And I made the shopping list for the month too so now I know how many pounds of hamburger or boxes of pasta I will need and I can stock up when I see it on sale. So here we go:
Feb. 10
Danny and I are going to an adults party , Kid will eat at Nanas and Poppys
Feb. 11
Slow Cooker Sour Cream Chicken. (looks so yummy)
Feb. 12
Bacon Pineapple wrapped hamburgers
Feb 13
chicken bake
Feb 14
homemade egg rolls and fried rice
Feb 15
Sloppyy Joes
Feb 16
Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Feb 17
homemade pizza
Feb 18 and Feb 19
Not sure. I will have Family here for Haileys birthday and who knows what we will do.
Feb 20
crockpot Lasagna
Feb 21
meatloaf
Feb 22
bacon chicken slow cooker meal
Feb 23
breakfast
Feb 24
hanburger helper
Feb 25
potato soup. Probably homemade in the crockpot
Feb 26
Chicken Alfredo
Feb 27
tacos
Feb 28
Pork chops
Feb 29
bbq steak and chicken.

For the month of January it really helped to have the menu. we only ate out 2 times. one time was when we got a HUGE snow storm and I didn't go out in the snow to go grocery shopping and nothing we had in the house sounded good. By Friday night the roads were cleaned up and Danny is not afraid to drive in the snow and get stuck and so we used the girls coupons and got them each a free pizza hut pizza and danny and i went to our favorite mexican shop. then the next friday danny and I just had a night out and we went to Chilis.

yogurt made in the crockpot

Did you know that you can make plain yogurt in the crockpot? I didn't know that you could until I came across this on Pinterest. I love Pinterest. Anyway, we made yogurt today. it was easy.

--8 cups (half-gallon) of whole milk--pasteurized and homogenized is fine, but do NOT use ultra-pasteurized. (Debbie recommends starting with whole milk until you get the hang of yogurt-making)

--1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active culture plain yogurt (you need to have a starter. Once you have made your own, you can use that as a starter)

--frozen/fresh fruit for flavoring

--thick bath towel

--slow cooker

The Directions.

This takes a while. Make your yogurt on a weekend day when you are home to monitor.

Plug in your crockpot and turn to low. Add an entire half gallon of milk. Cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.

Unplug your crockpot. Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.

When 3 hours have passed, scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt. Then dump the bowl contents back into the crockpot. Stir to combine

Put the lid back on your crockpot. Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around the crock for insulation.


Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.

In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened---it's not as thick as store-bought yogurt, but has the consistency of low-fat plain yogurt.

Blend in batches with your favorite fruit. I did mango, strawberry, and blueberry. When you blend in the fruit, bubbles will form and might bother you. They aren't a big deal, and will settle eventually.

Chill in a plastic container(s) in the refrigerator. Your fresh yogurt will last 7-10 days. Save 1/2 cup as a starter to make a new batch.


See, it takes alot of time but its not terrible since most of its just sitting time. and it saves a lot of money. i bought my gallon of milk for 2.29 and I was able to make 8 cups. much cheaper then spending 50-65 cents for just one yogurt at the store.
Thanks to http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/10/you-can-make-yogurt-in-your-crockpot.html for this idea. my kids loved it.

New Van

We got a new van this week. Traded in the ol Mazda MPV van and got a much newer 2005 Ford Freestar.
Pros about the van:
* its newer
* had awesome miles on it.
* gets fantastic gas milage
* its in a lot better condition then the mazda, no check engine light, the key actually comes out of the ignation.
* it has a roof rack and more storage so when we go on vacation the kids are not crammed in it
* it has dual heaters. that means i won't freeze when we are on long drives since i like it hot in the car and danny likes it cold
* there is more leg room in the back for the girls to grow
* Payments are less each month
* the rear heat and air work
* it was a fantastic price.
* the dealer we bought the ford from simply paid off the mazda. all 3500 of it. didn't even add it to the price of the van.
Cons:
* I don't like to color to much. its a gold color. its not terrible just not what i would have picked had i had a choice
* we were almost paid off on the mazda and now we have 3 years of payments.
* the cd player doesn't play my burnt cds. so we are going to have to buy a new stereo. I will also get one that can play my ipod.
* this doesnt have an entertainment system for the kids. so we bought portable dvd players
* the seats are dirty. they just need a good cleaning and it will be better.
Ok, so i think that is all i can think of for now. I will get used to the color for sure. we drove a purple van for a year and a super super gold car before too. at least this is better then those 2 colors.

We did some canning

We have been doing www.bountifulbaskets.org for a couple of weeks now. We got so many tomatoes the first week we didn't know what to do with all of them, so we did some canning. We made stewed tomatoes and 1 can jar of salsa. Yippie for not wasting all those tomatoes. We did Italian and garlic. We got 4 jars of tomatoes. I need to buy more jars now so I can do the rest of the tomatoes.