When Paula Deen Lets You Down

(Now don't hate me because of that title~I adore Paula Deen! However, from now on I plan to only use her recipes that have lots of butter in them. This recipe includes no butter and clearly that was a mistake).

A couple of weeks ago I decided to include my daughter in the weekly menu planning and let her prepare a meal from one of her very own cookbooks.

We chose*Porcupine Meatballs* from her Paula Deen children's cookbook.

It was a very simple recipe consisting of meatballs made mainly of ground beef, Italian seasonings and rice. I was very impressed that The Princess dove right in with her hands making the meatballs. I know some adult women who wouldn't do that;)

The meatballs were placed on a bed of more rice and canned tomatoes, then covered and baked for something like an hour. (If you haven't picked up on it yet, I'm not sharing the recipe in its entirety here. You can thank me later).

Well, after the dish had baked for-e-ver, we took it out and prepared to dig in.

It was so disappointing.

The rice was crunchy and the texture of the meatballs was just...gross. I felt so bad for The Princess, but she was great about it. NO one liked it though.

Since there were a lot of leftovers, I just popped them in the freezer and decided to try to do something with them later.

Well, *later* came this week. I'm trying to clean out my freezer and all, so I thought I'd better deal with The Meatballs.

I had this *brilliant* idea to cut up the meatballs, dump them in my crockpot along with the rest of the rice and tomatoes, add a bit of water/broth, veggies and some pesto for extra seasoning and make a Pesto Meatball Soup.

Boy, was that a mistake! It was more like....how did my husband so graciously say it? Slop. Yeah, that's it....slop.

And although I pretended to take offense to that word, it was the perfect word for it. I couldn't even choke down more than two bites. Vince ate a bit more and The Princess tried it, but Mr. B was having none of it.

It's moments like that when you just cut your losses, apologize to your family and put it down the garbage disposal, folks. And that's what I did.

Then we all went out for burgers after Mr. B's t-ball game.

P.S. I still love you, Paula! Your peanut butter cream pie is to die for!

Wheelin' & Dealin'

We have been on a selling frenzy around here lately! I think my husband would sell every stitch of our furniture if I would let him, just so he wouldn't have to move it again. Unfortunately for him, I'm kind of attached to some of it. But there was plenty I've been willing to part with. So we decided to have a big yard sale!

The kiddos were set on having a lemonade stand and I baked my favorite chocolate chip cookies for them to sell also~who can resist a cookie, right? Then you've gotta buy some lemonade to go with it, don't you? Yeah, we're all about the marketing and suggestive selling here:)

We got busy that weekend! We decided we were only up for a one-day sale, especially in this horrible summer heat, but we started setting up on Friday. I think we almost made more sales on Friday than we did on Saturday! The people just kept popping by as we were setting up~it was a great day.

On Saturday we were up bright and early (me, with a big cup of hazelnut coffee, since I'm really not much of a morning person:). And the people came all day until mid-afternoon. By then I had melted and we started packing up. Except for a few larger items, we packed off the leftovers to a local veterans thrift store for donation.

I leave you with this one last photo...of some of our shoppers. These folks bought a mattress and box springs set from us~the one strapped on top of the pile on top of their minivan! They apparently have a business about 45 minutes from here and hit the yard sales each weekend and stock up, mostly on furniture it looked like. It was a sight to behold, watching them arrange and strap on all of that stuff (they bought furniture from our neighbors who were also having a yard sale). I think nearly the whole block came out to watch them put their load together..ha

I'm so relieved that the yard sale is over, but it was a HUGE success and I'm so glad we did it. It'll have to be a few more years before I do another one~I have to forget just how much work they are first!

Do you enjoy having yard sales or do you prefer to just shop them?

My Top 5 Ways to Save $$

Three years ago this very week we had a major shift in our finances~we became self-employed. Accordingly, we made some major spending adjustments. Lately I've been reflecting on some of the things we've learned and how we've grown in ways to make a dollar stretch. It's been a great (while not always fun) learning experience. We definitely have a better understanding of the value of a dollar.

Some of the ways we have saved:

1. Menu Planning: I had already begun to do this when our circumstances changed, but I began to do it even more in earnest. Because here's the deal: if you have a plan you're more likely not to do something else. In this case, that means not eating out as much. No more of the 4pm panic attack, "what are we going to eat for dinner?!" Now that's not to say that once in a while you've had one of those days and you just need to skip the plan and head out for the night, but that's the exception and not the rule. Menu planning has become a habit I can't break! I can't even begin to say how many $$ this has saved us.



2. Frugal Grocery Shopping: This goes hand-in-hand with menu planning. I always start my plan with what's already in my pantry, so I'm not just grabbing random recipes and starting from scratch on the shopping. That doesn't really save you money. But looking at your pantry and creating your meal plans by incorporating items you already have can really keep your grocery costs down. I also use some coupons (although I am not an extreme couponer), shop at stores like Aldi and buy store brands. Before 3 years ago my weekly grocery/toiletry budget was $125. By using the methods I've mentioned our weekly average grocery/toiletry reciepts total around $60. If you multiply that by 52 weeks in a year that is a savings of $3380 per year!! Unbelieveable!!



3. Homemade Laundry Soap: Until just over a year ago, I would purchase a box of Arm & Hammer powdered laundry soap about every 3-4 weeks for our laundry. I had ditched fabric softener long before due to Mr. B's sensitive skin. Now, Arm & Hammer is one of the most affordable brands coming in at around $5-$6 for a medium-sized box (if I'm remembering correctly). However, if you're buying that every 3 weeks that's $102 per year on laundry soap. A year ago at the beginning of February 2010 I purchased the ingredients for homemade laundry soap, which cost me about $8, including the cost of the bucket. Since then the only purchase I've made has been a 3-pack of Ivory soap, which was about $1. So that's a savings of $93 per year!!



4. Gardening: This is our 3rd year to have a garden and we learn something new every year. I'm loving it, but it is a challenge! The first year we started small with tomatoes, bell peppers and jalpenos. We actually had a fairly good little harvest, too. It was amazingly fun to go in the backyard and pick something then eat it for dinner! Last year we didn't do so well, the weather was so hot that the plants wouldn't produce, they were in survival mode. This year is looking GREAT so far! I'm really excited about harvesting corn, zucchini, summer squash, cucumber, tomatoes and onions~plus an herb or two. I really don't know just how much money this saves us, but I know that produce prices are skyrocketing and it is going to be so wonderful to cut that grocery bill even more by eating straight from the backyard!



5. Doing My Own Hair: Now I don't claim that this is the easiest thing I've ever done and some may say that it's not even necessary. However, I discovered my first gray hair at age 16 and now I have so many that there's probably more gray than anything else (I blame bad genes!). And seeing that I'm not quite 40~not yet anyway~I'm just not ready for a head full of gray hair. Before the extra tight budget I was getting my hair highlighted about every three months (needed to be every two, really). When I made the decision to take on that job myself, I decided to just go darker rather than try to highlight~which is way more involved than I'm authorized to do. I won't claim that I haven't had some mistakes: such as my first try which resulted in lavender hair. Or the time recently when I *tried* to highlight and turned it a nasty orange. Thank goodness for a sister who is well-acquainted with Sally's Beauty Supply! But going from paying at least $65 every three months to paying about $7 per month to do my own has been so worth it. That's a savings of roughly $528 over the past 3 years!! Amazing, isn't it?
   

There are lots of other little ways that we save $$, but those are my top 5.

What are your top ways to save? I'd love to hear!

Boy, Do I Have News For You!

I'm sure some of you have been wondering about me lately, what with my sporadic and random postings (at least that's what it feels like to me) and there being absolutely no mention of decorating the house we recently moved into.

That's because I really haven't been decorating and we still have boxes sitting around.

And I'll tell you why...

When we signed the lease on this house in March we had to sign for a year, but we thought that would be okay because we thought we would likely be here most of that time if not the entirety. However, God had some different plans for us. And they began to reveal themselves within 2 weeks of moving into this house. (Thus my complete lack of motivation to unpack more boxes!).

To make a somewhat lengthy story short, God has opened up a wonderful ministry opportunity for our family! We have been asked to be~and it is now confirmed just this past weekend that we will be~the next pastors of Christ Community Church in Hopkinsville, KY. We are SO excited about what God has in store for that town and our new community.

Vince was invited to come and speak back in April and that is when the process began. It's been a very good process, too. The people there have been so welcoming and kind and we love the area!

Back to our home lease...what happened there is nothing short of a miracle. Our contract was pretty airtight and we decided to simply throw ourselves at the mercy of our landlords. I should have known that God would already be working behind the scenes because talking with the owners couldn't have gone more smoothly. They completely released us from our contract, simply asking for 30 days notice and the ability to show the house as needed. Turns out, they also have family in ministry and know what it's like to need to move when the call comes. God is so good!

Oh~and did I mention that we went a couple of weeks ago on a quick overnight trip to look at houses in that area? And did I tell you that we found one that we REALLY liked A LOT?! Well, we made an offer on it this past weekend (in faith) to sort of get the ball rolling. They countered back an offer~which just happened to be the amount Vince and I had settled on as our final offer. So we ACCEPTED their counter offer!! It looks like we'll be moving to Kentucky the first week of August. July is going to be one busy month!

I can't wait to be a homeowner again!! I have so many ideas floating around in my mind, I can hardly wait to get settled in and start decorating! You'll definitely be hearing all about that.

So there you have it...our BIG NEWS!!

Yes, that means I am once again packing. But this time I do it with a sense of purpose, knowing that we are putting down roots and becoming planted into God's plan for our future. It's very exciting!

If you're interested in reading more of the details of this great process we've been going through, you can check out this post on my husband Vince's blog.

Menu Plan Monday: June 27th

I'm still working on cleaning out the freezer around here. With Vince being out of town last week, not much cooking happened. Being a single mom is one hectic job, especially when you throw in t-ball games, vacation Bible school and one sick kiddo. Hopefully this week will go a bit more smoothly!

So there are some repeats that haven't been made yet, I'm determined they will get made~and eaten~this week.

Monday: {game night} Tostadas
Tuesday: {game night} Pesto Meatball Soup with Cheese & Pepperoni Bread
Wednesday: Stuffed Pizza Rolls
Thursday: Stuffed Chicken Rolls, mashed potatoes and English peas
Friday: Grilled Tuna Melts with grilled corn-on-the-cob
Saturday: {leftovers!}

This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Making Egg Rolls

Recently I tried my hand at making egg rolls. I've been wanting to make them for a while. We currently live where there are lots of wonderful, authentic Asian restaurants, but that hasn't always been the case for us. So I'd like to learn how to make a few of our favorite Asian foods just in case they aren't readily available to us:) The things that are my priorities...

Well, this recipe turned out really great! I look forward to making it again.

Egg Rolls
(from my friend Brandi)

1 lb. of ground turkey
1 bag of coleslaw mix
1 package of egg roll wrappers
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. sweet & sour sauce
oil for frying
*****
Brown the turkey (I added some minced onion to the meat, too) and drain. Return the turkey to skillet and add the bag of coleslaw mix a little at a time until the while bag is mixed in and wilted. Stir in the soy sauce and sweet & sour sauce.

Next, follow the directions on the egg roll wrapper package for how to roll and seal (it's sort of like folding an envelope). Don't forget to dip your finger in water for the last edge of the wrapper to seal it.
Heat about 1" of oil in a skillet~get it hot enough to sizzle when you test it with a water droplet. Then gently place the egg rolls into the oil, seam side down. Flip them using tongs when they have browned on one side. When both sides are browned, place them on paper towels to drain. Serve with sweet and sour sauce or sriracha sauce (I'm in love with sriracha!!).

Makes about 16 egg rolls.

And that's how you whip up a batch of egg rolls! I hope you enjoy this one as much as we do!

A Visit to Hot Springs National Park

We were recently in Hot Springs, AR and before heading back home we decided to take the kiddos to visit the *Bathhouse Row* of Hot Springs National Park. Way back in the 19th century the hot springs were discovered and started to be used for their "healing" properties. By the early 1900's large, beautiful bathhouses were being built. I have always loved driving by~Bathhouse Row is right in the heart of downtown~the architecture is amazing and each so different!

This one (below) is the Fordyce Bath House and it houses the Visitors Center for the park. You can also take free tours of it~on your own or guided.

The porch of this house is so pretty~I can imagine the view must have been so much nicer at the turn of the century when it was built.

I loved that this Scripture verse was painted on the wall of the foyer.

I also adored these antique fans mounted on the walls! Vince and I are big *fans* of vintage fans (pun intended!).

We took the self-guided tour of the house and the house was quite impressive, I must say. Below is pictured one of the ladies room bath stalls...sort of like a bathroom stall, but with a bathtub instead of a toilet. The room was massive~and there was a matching one for the men.

Here are some of the steam cabinets. I don't know if you've ever been in a steam cabinet, but I have been and just looking at these made me start to feel claustrophobic and sweaty! Not my idea of a good time.

This beautiful fountain was in the men's bath room. Not sure why, but the men's room was much more ornate than the ladies'.

It had this gorgeous stained glass above the fountain.

Here is some kind of shower-thingy (can't you tell we did the self guided tour? I'm sure the guide had a much more sophisticated name for this). It had all kinds of pipes and knobs, very elaborate!

There was a huge section with massage rooms~I love this sign!

There was even a beauty parlor, as well as guest rooms. I was curious how much it cost to stay in a place like this back then, but didn't find out that bit of trivia.

This is the music room~lovely, isn't it? Can't you see these houses are the forerunners of our modern day spas.

Here is the gymnasium. I could just picture those men in those funny weight lifting outfits that you see in old pictures of the circus:)

In the basement you can actually see where the spring bubbles up from the ground. Surrounding the opening are locally mined crystals.

After our tour we sat *a spell* in the lobby and let the kiddos finish their Jr. Ranger program booklets to earn another badge. By this time it was nearly the end of a very long day and you can see it in their faces. But we all had a great time looking around and seeing how the rich and famous spent their leisure time 100 years ago.

You can check out the National Park Service website for more info on this and all of the other wonderful national parks.

One Thousand Gifts

The list continues...

0426. a growing garden

0427. children's laughter from the backyard

0428. watching the kiddos gently swing on a lazy summer afternoon

0429. flowers in window boxes~they just make me smile:)

0430. the quiet simplicity of tending the blooms in the window boxes each day.

0431. the joy of The Princess when I ask if she will water them for me~so sweet!

0432. lemonade stands

0433. seeing my kiddos help their *customers* so well

0434. chocolate cookies

0435. sneaking bites of cookie dough

0436. the simple pleasures of nature

0437. my son's delight in wearing his backpack everywhere he goes

0438. watching Mr. B *making* lily pads in our little pond

0439. time to read a good book

0440. watching my son's game at the ball fields in a slightly cooler summer evening

Menu Plan Monday: June 20th

Why is it that each Monday lately I'm saying something like "well, I made it through this past week!"? Has May and June really been that crazy? Yes, they have. Each week I think it'll slow down, but it never does.

This week Vince is speaking at a youth camp in Alabama, the kiddos are attending VBS and I'm attempting to get my house back in order after the yard sale this past weekend. Plus catch up on everything else I neglected this past week.

Some good cooking is in order!

Monday: BBQ stuffed baked potatoes
Tuesday: {I'm cooking a whole chicken in my crockpot this day and will use some of the meat for dinner and then freeze the rest for more meals later) Special Delivery Chicken with a veggie
Wednesday: Tostadas
Thursday: Pesto Meatball Soup
Friday: Parmesan Baked Fish with Swiss Potatoes
Saturday: {leftovers and snacks}

What are you cooking this week?

This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Happy Fathers Day!

I hope you're having a great day with your dad today!

Busy, Busy, Busy

Folks, it's crazy around here this weekend! We're busy getting ready for a yard sale and my house is an absolute disaster. Frankly, I can't wait till it's over, the leftovers are hauled off to donation and I can put things back in order:)

Do you ever have yard sales? I only do occasionally.

Here are some great tips for how to have a good one:

• 4 tips on how to have a great yard sale from Econobusters
• 10 tips for having a successful garage sale from Money Saving Mom

See you on the other side:)

Visiting the Mid-America Science Museum

This past week we took a field trip with The Princess' Girl Scout troop to the Mid-America Science Museum in Hot Springs, AR. We had such a great time! If you've never been, I highly recommend a visit.

To start the day off I got to sit in with the troop and see all of their science experiments while Vince took Mr. B to check out the museum.

There was the mixing of different liquids with different results.

Then we made some *Gak*.

Next there was a building exercise with Keva Planks.

They even got to test out hand-cranked generators.

Finally they learned about reverse engineering by taking apart some toys and putting them back together.

The girls had a blast completing their class and earning another badge.

In the meantime...Mr. B was exploring the nature trail (the museum is set in a lovely wooded area)...

...testing the heat sensor cameras...

...*capturing* shadows...

...climbing through tunnels...and much more! There were tons of great interactive displays.

All in all, it was a very fun day! So, if you're in need of a fun summer day activity head over to Hot Springs for a day at the science museum (and a/c!)!