A Week of Fave Foods

As I have mentioned, we are eating a lot more soup than we have eaten in years.  If I have calculated correctly, we have had soup six days out of the last ten.  That's a lot of liquid!!  There have been some old favorites and now some new favorites!!

One of our favorite things too is tilapia, okay not Cassie's, but we have a hard time finding it around here.  We usually get it from the seafood area in Sam's Club's meat department.  It is a little pricier here, so maybe it costs more to ship in here so they don't carry as much.  We have only had it twice since November.  I check for it when we go to Sam's but they just don't seem to have it by the time I get there.  We really like it grilled, Cassie seems not to mind it as much when it's grilled, but due to the weather conditions around here we have only grilled once since November - and those were those delicous cheeseburgers a couple of weeks ago. 

Since we can't get out to grill, I used one of our favorite recipes the other night to prepare the tilapia.  It's a recipe from Rachel Ray's Just in Time! called "Tilapia Club Stacks."  Instead of just eating the tilapia over a bed of salad mix with bacon strips, we decided to put it all on a hoagie and eat it like a BLT.   It was very yummy!!

Then we had some of our favorite homemade soups, Hot & Sour Soup.  This is one of my favorite soups, minus the tofu, that I get from the Chinese restaurants when we eat there.  Luckily I found a recipe that is very easy and it tastes very similar to those I have had.  Now, the kids don't like it and they difinitely don't like the way it smells. That's okay, Jay & I like it and with the right amount of red pepper flakes it has a "kick."

One of the kids' favorite homemade soup . . . homestyle chuncky chicken noodle soup.  I have made it so much in the two months, probably once a week, that I could make it in my sleep.  I really don't have a recipe.  I read a few and then just made what I thought would be easy and tasty.

Well, now I have to think ahead to next week and what the menu will be.  Our evenings are starting to get busy so I have to have dinner ready between 5:00 - 5:30 p.m., which is really early to eat, so we can eat before everyone is out the door to meetings, children's choir, catechism, youth group - gymnastics requires us to not eat until 7:00 p.m. which is way to late in my opinion.

Our upcoming 33 day long Field Trip with Multiple destinations . . .

The kids and I are so looking forward to our visit HOME.  We have been busy talking with friends and family making all kinds of plans. 

We are leaving ND on April 5th to go to Iowa for a week.  While we're in Iowa we're going to hang out with my side of the family and throw an AWESOMELY fun baby shower for my sister-in-law.  My mom, sister, and I have already started planning and buying decorations for the shower.  You see it is going to be a  Nebraska Cornhuskers football themed shower so we have to stock up now on all kinds of football gear/decor.  Mom-to-be's family are HUGE Husker fans, so this should be fun!!

On April 12th we will arrive in Pickerington and get to spend some quality time with family and friends.  The kids already have get togethers and overnights scheduled.  We are very fortunate that it looks like all our friends are going to be around so we will get to spend some quality time with them. 

We were originally going to leave Pickerington on April 23rd, we're going to Dayton to stay with family the 23rd-25th, but then I jokingly said to Jay, "We should stay till at least Wed., April 28th, because it's the last Wednesday of the month."  Well, for those who don't know what the last Wednesday of the month is . . . it is the best thrift store shopping day in the Columbus area!!  Ohio Thrift, which has multiple locations all over Columbus, has 50% off ALL clothes and household items. 

You see, that's how we do, I'd say at least 80% of, our wardrobe shopping and unfortunately the thrift stores here are a little pricier than back home and their clothing, especially for kids, is not a very good/big selection.  We've checked several of the thrift stores out here and haven't had much luck finding clothing.  I've had to buy more new things from Target, Wal-Mart & Kohl's than I have in the past couple of years because we just can't find the right things at the thrift stores.  I just realized while we're in Iowa we can hit a couple of their awesome thrift stores, too.

When we leave Dayton on the 25th we will be heading back to Columbus for another week.  So, with the decision to stay and shop we decided to stay another weekend so Cassie could try and get together with some of her non-homeschooling friends.  Now we are scheduled to leave the Columbus area on Sun., May 2nd and arrive back in Iowa on May 3rd.  Luckily I have an aunt that is about halfway between Columbus and Council Bluffs, so we are breaking up our drive and staying with her.  Thank you, Aunt Janet. 

Well, we were going to leave Iowa and head back to ND so we could see Jay on May 5th, but then I realized . . . HELLO, it's my sister's birthday and I haven't spent a birthday with my sister in I don't know how long.  So guess what, we are staying for her birthday and will head back to ND on May 7th.  So, did you get that?  We are leaving ND on April 5th and will return on May 7th.  We will be away from Jay for more than a month.  That's a LONG time to be away from him, BUT we all so need to get away.  We are ALL a little, okay A LOT, homesick and are so looking forward to being someplace familiar.  This is definitely one of the many perks of homeschooling . . . when we need to get away and rejuvenate we have that flexibility. 

We are definitely excited about the trip, the plans, and the visits we'll get to have, but we are so not looking forward to the drive.  It is a round trip of 2,850 miles.  Luckily we get to break it up!!  AND we are definitley not looking forward to being away from Jay that long - we will be homesick for him!

Digging out . . .

Well, I don't think we got as much snow as they had originally forcasted, but it was enough to give us a hassle.  This morning when we left to go deliver papers, first we got up and evaluated what we could see and it really didn't look all that bad.  Jay shoveled the main concrete part of the driveway so we could back out.

We got out of the garage and then off the concrete driveway onto the gravel.  When Jay put the van in drive we DIDN'T go anywhere, the tires just kept spinning.  Well, we were trying to decide if I should call the carrier hotline and let them know I couldn't get out of the driveway and I'd go out once the sun started to come up.  Jay worked on digging out around the van and I walked all the way down the driveway to see what the road looked like.  There were deep ruts where a truck had already drove through.  I think it stopped snowing by eight or nine o'clock last night and then thankfully didn't do anything else over night.  I told Jay if we could get out to the road we could just follow the tracks, but he'd have to probably dig out the end of the driveway because the snow had blown enough into a deep drift.  We spent about 40 minutes working on the driveway - just parts - so we could get out.

Once we got out of our subdivision and on to the main road, we hesitated because they were pretty well snow covered.  Keep in mind our whole area was under a "no travel advisory."   We were only driving about 30 mph and kept contemplating turning around, but we got half way to our pick-up location and decided to go on in.  It took us a little longer than normal to deliver because we had to bag the papers and then I had to drive a lot slower in the neighborhood.  On our way home, we had hoped the roads would have been plowed, but they hadn't been so we drove slowly again.

When we got to our neighborhood we were just hoping we'd be able to get up the hill.  We decided to go a different way, that is less hilly, but the road we had to turn on hadn't been traveled so it made for an interesting drive - panic dialogue, "Jay, the road's this way . . . NO, not that way. That's the ditch line. NO. NO. The other way!"  Thank goodness he was patient with me and didn't yell at me for losing my cool!!  We made it home safely!

Believe it or not, not one plow ever came through our area.  Apparently we didn't get enough snow to warrant a plow, but what happens when you don't have a four wheel drive vehicle to get out.

Luckily, one of the congregation members has a snow blower and he called today and asked if we needed any help getting out of our driveway.  Well, Cassie had already gone out and shoveled the main concrete area, but there was no way we could get the gravel part of the driveway shoveled.  To the rescue . . .

Mr. M arrived with his snowblower, and believe it our not he got stuck in the same area of our driveway that we got stuck in earlier this morning. 

Jay helped unload the snowblower and while Mr. M took care of the driveway, Jay dug out the snow around his truck tires.  I'm sure he would have gotten out without Jay's help, but at least Jay felt like he was helping.  LOL

The kids had a fun time playing out in the snow, and watching the snowblower at work.  THANK YOU!!  Mr. M, we so appreciate you helping clear our driveway to make getting out easier!!

New Foods & They are KEEPERS

Today was a day for some new recipes.  I have to admit, I probably have more cookbooks than I will ever be able to use.  I mean, there's probably no way I will ever be able to cook even half of all the recipes in all the books I have.  However, I do flip through them all the time looking for something new to try.  Some of my favorites include the Gooseberry Patch cookbooks, Rachel Ray's Just in Time, and The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook. 

Today I broke out Rachel Ray's book to check the ingredients for an upcoming meal, and I decided to see what kind of soups she featured.  You see, since we've moved to North Dakota, we have eaten more soup in the past four months than we have probably in the past four years.  Matter of fact, by indulging in today's soup, this was the third soup of the week since Tuesday.  Jay says soup is definitely a comfort food and great for cold days like today.  Well, I made her Harvest Creamed Corn Chouper, and boy was it a HIT!!  It was truly very easy to make, the ingredients were definitely "pantry" items or things one would have on hand regularly, and it took less than thirty minutes to make.

Well, I wanted to figure out what to have for dinner so I grabbed my latest magazines.  You see, I get the Taste of Home Healthy Cooking, Taste of Home Simple & Delicious, and Taste of Home magazines. When I get the new issues I try to make something out of them, you know to justify paying for it!!

So, tonight I used a recipe from the February/March 2010 Taste of Home issue, Tacoritos.  Okay, maybe they don't look very appetizing, but I made some adjustments to the recipe (don't tell my husband - you see I use not ever stray from a recipe & it drove him NUTS!!) - anyway, after some minor tweeking, it too was a HUGE HIT!!

One day, two recipes . . . and they BOTH are KEEPERS!!  Now I just need to come up with a system so I know where to find those "KEEPERS".

6 days ago & now 2night

Well, on January 16, 2010, it was so nice outside. Not too cold. Not too windy.  The sun was shining. The kids went out in their snow pants, boots, sweatshirts and gloves to play.  No big bulky coats needed.

Zack was even snowboarding, on what little snow was left on our hill, in a t-shirt.

The girls were enjoying the warmer temps, too.  Mackenzie insisted on setting up a space on the deck so she could eat her lunch and enjoy some fresh air.

Cassie even wore shorts and did some skateboarding on the driveway.  Later, we all actually went out and enjoyed a nice meal at Olive Garden.  It was nice to see the sun and to get out of the house!!

Well, today is a different story for the forecast.  Actually, they, the lovely local weathermen, wanted to assure us that the nice unseasonable weather was not here to stay.  They even fore warned us a week ago that this weekend could possible be another big storm. 

Sure enough, since early this morning we have been under a winter weather storm warning and it is in place till early Monday morning.  They are forecasting 6-10" of snow between now and Saturday.  Of course, the high winds are suppose to come in too and cause major drifting in the rural/country. 

I just stepped outside and took some photos of our current snow status . . .

I don't think we'll be grillin' any time soon. 

Going HOME for a visit

In April we are traveling to Iowa for a baby shower.  Well, I figure we will only be 13 hours from Ohio so why not take the kids HOME to visit family and FRIENDS. 

So, tentatively we will arrive in Ohio by April 13, 2010 and we will leave Ohio on April 23, 2010.  That way we have some time to have some play dates/get togethers with as many as we can!!  The kids and I are hoping that a lot of you will be around so we can get together!!

It will be a long trip away from Jay so we will miss him dearly, but he'll be busy with work and taking care of the dog.  You see we will be leaving ND on April 5th and not arrive back till April 27th or 28th.  The last big trip we took like this was when we lived in Denver - we left Jay on August 26, 2001 and flew back to Denver on Sept. 10, 2001 (the day before 9/11).   This time we won't be flying - we'll be driving the 2,800+ round trip miles. It will be FUN, right!??! ; )

So, if you are going to be around please let us know so we can start planning.  Also, will co-op be in or out of session?  If it's in session, maybe we can come for lunch and say hello. WE are all looking forward to our trip HOME!!

Such a sad puppy . . .

Chloe was distracting Mackenzie during school the other day.  Mackenzie wouldn't pet her so she decided to pout!!

Enjoying the unseasonable temperatures

The weather really hasn't been horrible here, so far.  Yes, it gets really cold when that arctic air comes in, but nothing hibernation doesn't take care of.  Then the other days that weren't in the negatives, a nice layer of clothing, a heavy coat, a scarf, thermal gloves, ear muffs, and snow boots were sufficient to keep us warm.  Luckily, we haven't had near the amount of snow they had last year, but the little bit that we have had has been challenging for us - only because of the drifting in the open country. 

I have to say we have never owned a sled and the kids had never been sledding before.  So, they have enjoyed the packed snow and the new adventure it has provided.  They have built forts in the yard and then they dug a tunnel through that massive snow drift in front of our house.  They have had some great fun!!

Apparently, we've had some unseasonably balmy days. I can't say I, we, haven't enjoyed them. The last few days, we saw temperatures as high as 50*.  We had a couple of days back to back that were in the mid 40s and it was nice and sunny.  Of course that kind of warmth and sunshine brings a January thaw.  So our yard is showing spots . . .

The side of the house where the kids sled is not as snowy anymore either . . .

Then they were sad when they saw that their tunnel had collapsed.

Of course, Chloe is enjoying the warmer air temps and the snow free deck.  There when it was so frigid cold, she'd go out do her business and then was back at the door before you knew it.  Now she is taking her time enjoying the fresh air.

I have to say, with the warmer temps we took advantage of it and broke out the grill.  You see, in Ohio, it didn't matter what season it was, we always grilled at least once a week.  Well, our grill has been buried in snow under the deck and it has been way too cold to stand out there to make food.

But the other night, we ALL were craving cheeseburgers.  Now keep in mind we are not big cheeseburger fans, matter of fact it has probably been at least six months, if not longer, since we had grilled cheeseburgers for us.  Jay's dad is a huge cheeseburger lover.  When we'd grill burgers for him we usually grilled fish or chicken for the rest of us, but every once in a while we would devour a burger too.  Well, the other night we had cheeseburgers . . .

Now at first we didn't think we'd get to have them on the grill.  Jay had gone out and shoveled the back patio off and moved the grill to just find out it wasn't working.  He figured the propane was out, which didn't make any sense because we filled it in November and hadn't grilled since.  Jay was pretty sure he closed the valve but he didn't know why it wasn't lighting.  The only thing we can think of is the line was frozen because when he went out about 15 minutes later, it was working.  YEAH!!!

Of course, since it had been a while Jay and Mackenzie had to make their master pieces . . .

It was so funny, because once we had all finished our cheeseburgers we all agreed they were they best we had ever had.  And I'm sure it was only because it had been half a year since we had them.  But they were pretty tasty!!!

I'm not sure when we'll get to grill again because they are already predicting a huge winter storm coming in this week by Friday.  But for now we'll just enjoy the above average temps. 

Just have to say . . .

We are warmer than our fine weather friends in Ohio . . .

According to our digital thermometer, it is 41.2* at the time I took the photo; however, as I am now typing this post it reads 43.3*. 

And according to the WeatherBug on Google, it is only 36.7* in Pickerington, OH. 

Now, I know it is not nice to brag, BUT I just have to because this will not happen often during the winter months.  Besides, they are already predicting a winter storm, possible blizzard, for a week from tomorrow here in ND. Yay, me!!?? ;{

Two fun activities on the opposite end of the spectrum

Jay had mentioned to the kids about digging a tunnel through the huge snow drift by our front door.  So the kids kept him to his word . . .

Look how much fun Jay was having.

Crawling through the tunnel.  Look how much fun they had!!

Zack was working on the roof of the tunnel while Mackenzie was passing through it.

So they spent some quality time out in the snow.  Thank goodness it was a warm day.  The temperature was in low 30s on Sunday.  Which was definitley a nice turn around from the -35 degrees a few days earlier. 

After they spent an hour or so outside, they came in for chicken enchiladas with homemade enchilada sauce.  Then we got ready for our next family outing, which was completely the opposite of earlier in the day.

So they spent some time outside all bundled up to stay warm, and then we were off to the YMCA to enjoy some fellowship with families from First Lutheran.  After we took a quick tour of the Y, then the kids stripped down to a single layer, their swimsuits, and jumped into the pool for a swim.  They haven't swam since the end of August when we visited Zoombezi bay for the last time. 

Having fun at the YMCA . .

Zack had a great time jumping off the diving board!!

Mackenzie had fun swimming in the shallow end with Cassie.

Family night fun . . .

Thursday of last week was very cold day.  I can't remember how cold it was, but I know none of us really wanted to go out, and we were in the mood for pizza.  Now, I also have to admit, after seeing some homemade pizzas on a friend's blog, we were inspired to make our own.  Okay, we have made pizzas before by using already made crust in some form or another or even pizza dough in a box.  It never really tastes good.  

Well, the other day I broke out the bread maker and made a loaf of homemade bread, so why not make homemade pizza dough.  Believe it or not it turned out pretty tasty, but it was a little denser than we like.  It had good flavor as I added cheeses and seasoning. 

After it was done in the bread maker, it was time for Jay to roll and shape the crust . . .

Mackenzie and Zack got to oil the edges of the crust and then Jay spread the homemade pizza sauce - a new recipe we tried, not too sure if we really liked it so if anyone has an awesome homemade pizza sauce they'd like to share, please pass it along!!

Then the kids got to add the toppings.  Mackenzie, Jay & I love a Hawaiian flavor pizza with Canadian bacon and pineapple.  Zack went for mushrooms and Cassie had her fave pepperoni.

Cassie wasn't too excited that she had to put her own toppings on, but if she wanted pepperoni then she had to make her side of the pie!!

Jay supervised the making of the pizzas and they turned out pretty tasty.  The kids said they were probably their favorite homemade pizzas we've made, but there's still something about chain restaurant pizza. 

Well after our family fun making pizzas, Jay decided to join the girls and play Monopoly.  Zack chilled and played his DS while Chloe took her snooze behind the couch. 

Let me just say, about the Monopoly game, Jay taught the kids how to play - now I'm not a fan of the game - and he created a monster with the little one!!  The first game he played with Cassie he forgot to tell her that buying the properties was an important aspect of the game - so she started buying late and well, lost that game to her dad.  Mackenzie had observed them play a couple of times so she basically knew the strategy of the game. 

She is RUTHLESS!!! 

Funny story . . . Mackenzie and Zack were playing the other day, you know it is actually a good game to use for math skills/class (lol), anyway early in the game Zack asked about buying some real estate from Mackenzie, here is that dialouge . . .

Zack:  How much would you sell Vermont for?

Mackenzie:  I'm sorry that's not for sale at this time.

Zack:  Come on, you'll make some money.

Mackenzie:  I'm sorry that's not for sale at this time.

Zack:  How much?

Mackenzie:  I'm sorry that's not for sale at this time.

Zack:  H . .

Mackenzie:  I'm sorry that's not for sale at this time.

                  . . . I'm sorry that's not for sale at this time.

Anyway, she was not going to sell and I kid you not that was her approach the whole game.  Guess who won . . . Ruthless I tell you, ruthless!!!!