Jul. 25, 2008
How do you meal plan and a recipe
Posted in Recipes
Today's meme from Heart of the Matter is about Meal Planning. More specifically:
Welcome to the Heart of the Matter Online meme. Every Friday we will feature a different topic for our meme. Mr. Linky is set up below so please share with us your How Do You Meal Plan? We would love to see recipes of all kinds! I would especially love to find some new homemade bread, crockpot, and meatless recipes.
Well, first of all, my days always go better when I have a plan! But a plan is exactly what I do not always have. Typical problem, I would say.
This is especially true with David's ever-changing work schedule. Either he's home for a meal or he's leaving for work a couple hours before it's actually mealtime. Sometimes I'll cook him his own dinner at 9pm... it's not that he makes me or something, but the poor boy has to eat so much fast food with his job, it is nice to have a home-cooked meal whenever possible. When I was little, I never thought the words "I'd rather eat at home" would ever come out of my mouth!
If it's a normal week (as in not expecting any sort of company), I usually just shop with The Grocery Game and buy whatever meat is on the List and plan my weekly menu by what is on sale.
Whenever I have extra chicken on hand (and the super yummy freshly made tortillas from Kroger-- mmmm...), these are pretty tasty and good on-the-go. I think when soccer season is upon us once again we will be eating a lot of burritos...
Chicken Burritos
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 (1.25oz) package taco seasoning mix
1 (16oz) can refried beans (can use whole or black beans but these are nice and sticky)
8 (8-inch) flour tortillas
1 (8oz) package shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Salsa (verde-- the green kind is good, can also use regular red)
Chopped plum tomatoes (about 3) and 1/2 c. minced onion if desired (my kids don't desire it, thankyouverymuch).
-Place chicken and seasoning mix in large ziploc bag, seal and shake to coat chicken.
-Spread beans evenly over tortillas. Tope each with chicken, cheese, tomato and onion; roll up. Wrap each burrito in foil; place in 5-6 quart slow cooker.
-Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours (it steams in those packets and the flavors meld nicely). Serve with salsa and if you're like me-- sour cream. :-)
Makes 8 burritos.
Jul. 21, 2008
Think before you jump! (and some giveaways)
Posted in Encouragement and Other Thoughts
 You've heard the old phrase (or lecture) If all of your friends jumped off a cliff, would you?! I had heard that a time or twenty growing up and I hate to admit it, but I have also said that to my own kids (even though I totally promised myself I would never say those words when I was a grownup)! I imagine they took that sound piece of advice exactly as I did when I was their age-- a la Charlie Brown's teacher... y'know, Waahhhh waaaah wa wahh waaaah wah.
In fact, those words came out of my mouth recently when one of my kids gave another one a wedgie. Yup, that's right, a wedgie! First of all, it's not a family ritual or pasttime to give swirlies or wedgies in this house. Second, umm... we homeschool so where did they get this bright idea? Third, that's just plain old mean and disrespectful to the other person. When the perpetrator of the aforementioned wedgie was further interrogated, his feeble defense was Well, my friend Luke does it! Ahhh... so Just because Luke thinks it's a good idea and fun, does that really make it the right thing to do? And this is the precise spot where you would insert the oft used phrase And if Luke jumped off a cliff, would you do it too?
Please head on over to Heart of the Matter to read THE REST.
Also, HOTM has a couple of giveaways going on right now where you can win some books or tickets to HOTM's Virtual Homeschooling Conference-- which is just around the corner!
Posted in Kids-Family-Funnies-Etc
My friend DeeDee tagged me with this one a while back... Since I am a slacker blogger, I am just now getting around to playing along!
1. Who is your man? David
2. How long have you been together? We just celebrated 12 years of marriage! :-) I think I forgot to mention that that was one of the reasons I went on that Cancun trip with him last month. Happy Anniversary, baby!!!
(Ummm... yeah, this is us NOT in Cancun! We are not really beachy people. This was our very cool trip to Beijing that we took a few years ago-- it was cheap, not crowded and WINTER. Worth freezing our butt off, though!)
3. How long dated? We were married one year and 2 days after the day we met.
4. How old is your man? 35
5. Who eats more? Him, although I have been known to be REALLY hungry!!!
6. Who said "I love you" first? He did-- I was determined to not say it first. One of those romantic notions of wanting to be serenaded by words. I even remember where we were, the obnoxious movie that was playing, my little sister asleep on the couch, and that he had this little speech leading up to "...and this is why I LOVE YOU." Be still my pounding heart!
7. Who is taller? He is! He was 6'3" when we got married but is now 6'2". I am still 5'7".
8. Who sings better? I guess I do. He kinda sings really quietly... almost whispering to himself. One day, I know he'll sing with gusto! He does sing a little louder when it's his fav song at church "It is Well with my Soul" or if there is a cheesy 80s song on the radio.
9. Who is smarter? Ahem, actually we are both smart-- smart enough to marry each other! He's very practical and common sensical... I'm a bit more academic. We're smart in different ways and balance each other out perfectly!
10. Whose temper is worse? Mine! Mine! Mine! David is VERY laid back and rarely loses his temper. It's a daily thing for me. Sometimes even hourly, I'm ashamed to say. But I do apologize... in fact, I'm a little too good at it as it is often necessary!
11. Who does the laundry? I do. Although he does carry the heavy laundry baskets for me to the laundry room.
12. Who takes out the garbage? We finally gave that duty to 7yo Tank. I'll take it out of the kitchen trashcan though (since it is often overstuffed and gets stuck). Tank takes it to the big bin outside and drags it all to the street on trash days.
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do!
14. Who pays the bills? I do. I'm home all the time and his schedule is wacky... besides, the more I can do myself, the more time he has to spend with his family when he's home!
15. Who is better with the computer? Internet and programs, that would be me. Fixing something that's broken or adding more memory or something technical like that-- that would be him!
16. Who mows the lawn? We all do. :-) I'll usually get on the zero turn riding mower and he'll get on our old fashioned regular riding mower (we have 3.5 acres-- so the addage many hands, make light work is very true). But since the kids are getting bigger, I imagine they'll take it over more and more. I do NOT trust them on the zero turn though-- it is waaaay too fast for them!
17. Who cooks dinner? I love to cook! David's cooking skillz consists of cereal, Kraft mac and cheese (made the wrong way), pb&j's and perhaps Hamburger Helper's Double Cheeseburger Macaroni if he is feeling adventurous in the kitchen.
18. Who drives when you are together? He does! Call me old-fashioned but I can't stand to see a wife in the driver's seat and husband in the passenger seat. It just makes me think that the wife is overbearing and the husband is a pansy (no offense to those who do for medical reasons or whatever-- just being honest here!)
19. Who pays when you go out? It's our money so I'm not sure whatcha mean... David usually physically pays it though. My purse is a cavern and it's so much easier for him to just whip out his wallet. Besides, I think it's the gentlemanly thing to do.
20. Who is most stubborn? Oh, do you even have to ask?! Of course it is ME!!!
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Well, since I am usually in the wrong (see above regarding temper and stubborness), that would be me. But David has no problems admitting he's wrong if that's the case.
22. Whose parents do you see the most? Hard to say, we see both quite often. Maybe we see his more since they live closer and are retired? But we don't really keep count... I think it's pretty even stevens.
23. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first.
24. Who asked who out? After talking long-distance on the phone for almost a week, he finally said "So when are you going to let me take you out?" I thought he'd never ask!
25. Who proposed? He did!
26. Who is the most sensitive? Yours truly. (aka emotional)
27. Who has more friends? I've never really counted. We are both very blessed with lots of friends!
28. Who has more siblings? Definitely me! I am one of five children. David is an only child.
29. Who wears the pants in the family? David does, although yes I am the opinionated type and some people might find it hard to believe that I do submit to my husband (and cheerfully-- well, most of the time I'm cheerful about it). He always respects my opinion and seeks my advice, so I definitely cannot complain. I would not want the burden of being the final authority in our family-- I'll let him stand before God on that one! Besides, I completely trust and respect him-- he's wise with money, level headed, has his priorities straight regarding his family/job/friends/etc, and always has our best interests at heart.
30. How did you meet? We met at the federal building in Dallas taking the Air Force Officer Qualification Test. I wanted to be in intel and he wanted to fly the big C-5 transport planes with a reserve unit in San Antonio. We went to lunch that day, dated, were engaged in 3 months and were married 1 year and 2 days after the day we met. We would've gotten married sooner but I needed to graduate college first-- one of those unspoken family rules. We did end up turning down our commissions for the sake of being together. It is probably the only regret we have-- not having served our country. We would still make the same choices about it today, but we are saddened about it nonetheless.
Well, I guess this means I have to tag some peeps. How about I take the pansy way out just leave this open? If you actually read this far down, consider yourself tagged!!! Just be sure to let me know that you are participating so I can be sure to come take a look-see about your other half!
Jul. 17, 2008
Big and little
Posted in Kids-Family-Funnies-Etc
Yesterday before the typical summer afternoon downpour of rain, I walked outside to behold this beautiful sight:
That is my newly turned 7yo mowing the lawn-- hooray! And he did NOT drive it into the pond-- double hooray! What a big boy! Can you see how his feet barely reach the pedals? He had to put bricks and a log on the seat to give it enough weight to reach the pedals and keep the engine from shutting down (which it automatically does if you lift up off the seat).
Today I was thinking about this incident and how my kids are growing up so quickly (bear with me if you have teens and think that this is when they are really little kids, okay?).
We went to Denny's for lunch today and upon leaving the restaurant, the above mentioned Tank noticed a sign very similar to this one:
He saw the sign and audibly gasped.
I heard him excitedly whisper Smoke. Free!
And then I knew. I knew exactly what that boy was thinking. I hated to burst his bubble... but I did it anyway.
Tank, that does NOT mean that they are giving away free smoke!!! It means that you cannot smoke here.
My little pyro was visibly disappointed, especially since they lit and launched and burned the very last of their roman candles, smoke bombs, strobe flasher thingies and other loud and bright and loud fireworks last night. Yup, he is definitely still quite little.
I think we're going to have to start back with our lessons very soon. I don't know how much more brain mush I can take.
Jul. 15, 2008
Another Birthday, look-more-alike's and missing my sister
Posted in Kids-Family-Funnies-Etc
Yesterday was my sister Coco's birthday-- she is now closer to 40 than 30! CONGRATULATIONS Older Sister of mine! hehe Would y'all mind hopping over to her blog and wishing her a (slightly belated) happy birthday? :-)
I love my sister-- she has always been my best friend. I'm sure I've gotten on her nerves over the years and have beaten her up a time or two when we were little (although I'm sure she totally deserved it!), and yet she still sticks by me. I love how I can talk to her half a dozen times a day and she still answers the phone (she's obviously a glutton for punishment). And we really got close when she was prego with Benjamin the same time that I was prego with Dozer. I highly recommend being prego at the same time as a sister because NO ONE else could possibly be as interested as a prego sister in exactly how big you're getting, how tired you are, what you really wish you could eat and the constant Ugh... it's hard to breathe when you are past the 35 week mark-- oh and all of this repeated several times a day, every day for a very very very long time!
It was really nice having her and her kidlets over this last week-- I miss them already! Speaking of her kidlets, I must say that my niece Emily is quite a cutie-patootie...
Whenever I see her and Dozer together, I can't help but realize how they look so much alike-- as in bright eyes, blonde hair, and very WHITE.
I'm telling you, they look more like siblings than they do with their real siblings. The rest of us are more blah blah brown haired and eyed and skinned!
(Ewww... for some reason that gave me the visual of actually being skinned... Oh let me digress for a split second... In my college biology lab, I walked into the lab and thought to myself What is that piece of driftwood doing on the lab counter? Then I realized it was a skinned cat! I kid you not. Startling, it was. And learning about different muscles the assignment would be, young Jedi.)
Anyhow, moving right along!
It was nice for my littlest man to have a cousin so close in age to play with. Benjamin is only a month younger than Dozer so they totally understand one another, even when nobody else does. Nothing like a pair of 3yo boys to make you smile and keep you on your toes!
Okay Coco, you need to hurry up and get your hiney down here-- closer to ME!
Jul. 13, 2008
Look who is 7 years old today!!!
Posted in Kids-Family-Funnies-Etc
 Look who is 7 years old today!
Happy, happy birthday to Tank!
You have a contagious laugh that spreads around the room; your interesting turn of words always impresses; your sweet spirit makes you a joy to be around; your "noticeable" voice makes it so easy to know if you are nearby; and your super smile and laid back ways makes everyone want to be your friend. These are just a few of the many things that make you unique and one of a kind-- we are SO proud of who you are!
 
Jul. 8, 2008
My Cocopuff of a sister is here
Posted in General Ramblings
My OLDER sister Coco is visiting me right now. Isn't she purty?
By the way, that is me on the left and her on the right in case y'all thought we were twinsies. I commented that I look older than her in this picture and instead of gracefully saying, Oh no dear sister of mine, you look so young and youthful and here I look like an old hag. But NO! The brat, she just smugly looked at me and said Yup.
Okay, we are totally laughing our heads off because she is sitting right next to me as I type this. I contemplated paying her back by photoshopping her teeth a la Hee Haw style, but then I realized that she has photoshop too. And probably more incriminating pictures than I have in my personal posession (possession? too lazy to look it up).
I am glad that my sister Coco is visiting with my cutesie wootsy niece Emily and funny little man Benjamin. I have no idea what we're going to do this week, but I'm sure it will involve coffee, laughing, play with the kidlets and a whole lot of relaxing!
If you get a chance, stop by Coco and my other sister Lele's etsy store where they sell handmade jewelry: lele+coco Speaking of my New York City living sister Lele... we could tell some funny stories about her this week. Hmmm... Maybe we will, maybe we won't. She doesn't read my blog (I don't think)... but I think she might be able to whoop me... so we'll see.
Love,
Marshie
Jul. 4, 2008
Star Spangled Banner-- a work in progress
Posted in Kids-Family-Funnies-Etc
We have been working on learning all the words to The Star Spangled Banner-- verses 1 and 2. Yes, we are obviously still working on it! LOL This was (definitely!) not their best performance but... well, it just makes me smile. :-) Yes boys, I sometimes have trouble with those high notes too. And trying to decide between saying "the" like thee or thuh... that's always a tough call in the music world.
Happy Independence Day, y'all!
Jul. 3, 2008
Catch-all post o' the week! Oh and winners!
Posted in General Ramblings
Apparently, my draft post stunk because it was eaten up by the mysterious computer monster and I completely lost the whole thing. I am sure that I had written all kinds of fun and witty stuff in there too. boo hoo.
So from the mixed up files of my bad memory, I bring you the winners of the free tickets to Heart of the Matter's Virtual Homeschool Conference.
Congrats go to Letitia, DeeDeeUK, Amada, Christy and Cammie! (Can you believe I had to count that three times to make sure it was 5?! What can I say? I. need. more. coffee.)
I finally got around to posting my assignment for Hallie's super fun Through the Lens: Digital Photography 101 group. It's not too late if you want to join the fun! And you don't even have to have a fancy camera... my sister Coco has joined and she has a Kodak Easyshare that takes amazing pictures! Speaking of Coco, she is coming to visit me next week!!! Oh and she started a blog! Wanna go over there and say hi? :-)
It is almost midnight and I still have 2 munchkins that are wide awake. One little 3yo in particular is counting out loud right now...
one, two, fwee, foh, fiiive, sixteen, benineteen, fowteen, nineteen
I count fo you mommy!!!
Ummm... yeah... I think it's time to start some lessons with the little man. It's a sad day when you counted better last year than you do now! Whew, it's a good thing we don't have preschool testing or something around here. I'd be in big trouble! So what would they put him in? Remedial counting?
I wonder if he'd get extra credit for this talent:
The rest of the fam, we can't touch our nose with our tongue. Weirdo. I mean, unique child of many talents!
I also realized a while back that he knows ZERO songs like Itsy Bitsy Spider or Jesus Loves Me. And wanna know why? No, it's not because I'm completely neglectful of poor child number 3... It's really sad for me to admit this publicly... but whenever I try (or tried!) to sing a song to him, he'd reach up with his chubby little fingers and SQUEEZE MY LIPS SHUT. And then he'd whisper "No sing, mommy." So lest y'all have pity on this blonde boy, just remember, it's all his fault that he doesn't know any lullabies or even how to sing the ABC song! Hmmm... I wonder if he's ever said "No sing, daddy" ??? I'll have to ask David about that when he gets back from work tonight.
Speaking of work, I got to go to work with him yesterday!!! And why in the world would that be even remotely exciting? Well, the kids went to a friend's house while David I slaved away HERE for a 25 hour layover. I know, I know... it makes you want to cry a tear for me and for him, doesn't it? How does he endure such difficult work? It takes a special kind of person, let me tell you!!!
And lastly but not leastly, we got a new dog... She's a white German Shepherd puppy!
Currently, her name is Snowball. We're not too crazy about it though... it just doesn't roll of the tongue very well. Dash really wants to name her "Cloudy." And he really wants her middle name to be "With a Chance of Rain". It's time to send in her papers so we really need to decide. What do y'all think? I believe the choices are Snowball, Snowflake, Cloudy and Avalanche.
Jul. 2, 2008
Through the Lens - Assignment #1
Posted in Photos
This is my first assignment for Hallie's Through the Lens - Digital Photography 101 group.
I just can't decide which one I like best... so I'll just enter both. :-)
Jun. 27, 2008
My giveaway for Heart of the Matter's Virtual Homeschool Conference!
With the cost of gas sky-rocketing and the lack of a reliable sitter, nanny or grandma-in-close-proximity to watch my kidlets, it is very hard to find the funds or time to get away to a homeschool conference! I am sure many of y'all can relate. That is why I am super-dee-duper excited about Heart of the Matter's First Annual Virtual Homeschool Conference!
It has the best of all worlds-- freebies, encouragement, great speakers, timely topics, workshops... AND I can attend while I'm in my pj's and drinking coffee! Have to run out for a bit or miss even entire days? No problem! You can simply download the audios to listen to later-- at your convenience (in this house, most likely after 9pm when the kids are in bed). Geeze, I'm beginning to sound like an informercial. ANYHOW, here is the offical schpeel (scroll all the way down to see how you can win a FREE TICKET to this conference):
In Heart of the Matter Online's quest to bring you the absolute best home school resource online, they have listened to your requests and are providing you with a fun filled online adventure! On July 30th through August 3rd, they will be hosting Heart of the Matter Online's first annual Virtual Homeschool Conference! They will be providing the attendees with motivational speakers, video tutorials, free products, question and answer sessions, and a vendor hall - all ONLINE! Just log on and listen live during that time or log in at your convenience and download the audios.
This conference will be less like a "seminar" and more like a bunch of close friends in a chat room. Just wait till you see what some of your favorite home school personalities have done to educate and entertain you! At the end you will join in to chat with them, ask questions, and they will answer.
To ensure your spot in the conference room and to take advantage of the early bird special. Simply, visit the Heart of the Matter Online Conference site and click the "pay now" button. At $19.95 these prices won't last long! This $19.95 includes a fabulous $30 package from Currclick: curriculum in a click! Currclick (formerly HomeschoolEstore) is the largest one-stop shop for electronic lapbooks, affordable curriculum, and homeschooling resources.
I am giving YOU, my wonderful friends, the opportunity to attend this amazing event for FREE. I have 5 tickets to give away! Your ticket includes the $30 package from Currclick! To enter my giveaway, just leave me a comment. :-) See? I told you this is an easy conference-- it won't even make your feet hurt! This contest will close on Monday night, June 30th. Whenever I get tired of being awake, I'll random number thingy 5 winners.
Jun. 23, 2008
Thanks and some excitement!
Posted in Good Ideas and Interesting Stuff
First of all, thank you dear friends for all of your kind words in my previous post. David and I are going out of town tomorrow for the viewing and funeral. We would really appreciate your continued prayers-- for safe travel and for David's Uncle Ronald. Uncle Ronald is mentally handicapped and has been at his dad's side FOREVER. When he was little, his parents chose to keep him with them instead of sending him off to some institution. They literally did everything together and had an incredible bond! Uncle Ronald is extremely sorrowful and I'm sure confused and frightened as to this new part of his life-- his life without his father right by his side 24/7. Please, please lift him up in prayer!
*******
And in completely unrelated news, God has sent us some very encouraging news-- and NO, it is nothing like 2 pink lines or anything...
GUESS WHO is going to be speaking at the Heart of the Matter Virtual Conference???!!! Ahhh! Seriously, just GO LOOK and then come back here and tell me what you think. Isn't that a fabulous lineup? God is SO gracious to allow HOTM to host these amazing members of the homeschool community! I am so excited I could scream! All of my favorite people-- in ONE place... and I can listen to them at my leisure (and in my pjs) and even ask them questions LIVE through the conference software! (If you could see me now, I would be jumping up and down like a lunatic).
Oh and one more thing, when I get back in town I will be having a little contest here on my blogola to give away 5 (FIVE!!!) tickets to the HOTM Conference. So please spread the word and come back really soon, okay?
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