What's Cooking
Grape & Blueberry Fruit Smoothie
The warmer weather brings with it some great smoothies! Our family enjoys smoothies especially throughout the Spring and Summer Seasons. This is one we had recently. Most of our smoothies we make to order per person since all of us have a variety of tastes and preferences.
Grape & Blueberry Fruit Smoothie
- 1/4 cup fresh or frozen Blueberry
- 1/2 cup fresh or frozen Purple and/or White Grapes
- 1 cup Milk (dairy, soy, or coconut)
- 1/4 cup Yogurt (plain or flavored)
- 1 fresh or frozen Banana (optional)
Put all the ingredients together and blend until it is smooth. Enjoy!
Travel & Vacation: Road Trip Snack Container
Have I mentioned before how much we enjoy traveling??? 🙂 We have been blessed with a number of opportunities to travel over the past few years. On a quick side note – While it is great to get away and explore new places it is always wonderful coming home.
You may have noticed one of my previous posts about these Road Trip Snack Containers here or here, but I want to encourage anyone with kids who take roads trips to try these out. These have come in very handy over the past few years at our house.
The girls are always super excited to see what I have packed in their snack containers. It helps with the “I’m Hungry” statement you hear in the middle of a road trip and it allows you to pack a little container for each kid instead of bringing the whole box of crackers or nuts or whatever it is you typically bring. Plus it gives the kids a variety of snacks to choose from, kids really do love having choices!
The girls have yet to finish an entire snack container on the trip so usually it provides snacks throughout the time you are away too. It always surprises me what they choose to eat first. I cannot count the number times that they go for the nuts or fruit over any of the sweet treats.
One Child’s Road Trip Snack Container
Items that we packed for this road trip:
- Animal Crackers
- Raisins
- Whole Cashews (without shells)
- Fruit Marshmallow Bites
- Cheesy Bugles
- Fruit by the Foot
- Peanuts
- Sweet Tarts
- Chocolate & Mint Swirl Marshmallows
- Golden Raisins
- Chocolate Covered Raisins
- Whole Peanuts (with shells)
- Fruit Chews
- Whole Pecans (without shells)
- Ritz Crackers
- Whole Pistachios (with shells)
- Organic Applesauce (in a squeeze bag)
- Flavored Peanuts
- Cheese & Peanut Butter Crackers
- 2 Packs of Flavored Fruit Drink Packs to add to their bottled water (1 Kooleaid Fruit Punch & 1Mixed Berry)
- Rainbow coated Sunflower Seeds
- Ritz Bites Peanut Butter Crackers
- Rice Krispie Treat
- 2 Million Dollar Mints
All packed and ready to close up so we can put them on the girls car seats before we go to bed!
We don’t stop a lot on road trips unless we need gas, go to the bathroom, or for a quick meal (a lot of times we’ll pack a picnic lunch to eat on the way). The kids are content to read, work on workbooks, play games, or occasionally watch a movie if it is a long road trip (our rule is that the trip needs to be 5 hours or longer before a movie is part of it).
We picked up the containers at Walmart for a couple of dollars. The stickers were at Hobby Lobby in the scrapbook section and we used a 40% coupon. We have used these Road Trip Snack Bins for several road trips with our girls and they have held up well. Once the trip is over and they have finished eating the items in the bins all you have to do is wash them and store until the next family adventure. It is a blessing to be able to travel with our family. We have created many amazing family memories on the road together.
A Side of Fresh Fruit
Fresh fruit is always a hit at our house. The girls love fruit and we try to have a variety in the fridge at all times. When there’s fruit as a side dish at dinner table we have to make sure the girls eat the rest of their meal before digging into the fruit because they love it so much.
Having a side of fresh fruit at the dinner table not only add color to the meal but a lot of great nutrition too. The best part about having a variety a fruit is everyone can pick what they like. I haven’t found a fruit that the girls didn’t like yet so they usually enjoy a little bit of each one. My favorite way to serve it is fresh washed (and sliced if needed) without anything on it. Although, we do have quite a few fruit salad recipes we enjoy too. What is your favorite fruit to serve at dinner?
What’s for Dinner: Our Weekly Menu Plan
This past weekend we got to spend some time with my parents who were in town, celebrate my nephews birthday, and spend some time with our family and two cute kids. The week is packed full of activities, it should be fun being a family of 6 for awhile too. The menu plan is especially important with everything that is going on this week. Here is our menu plan for the upcoming week:
Our Weekly Menu Plan
- Monday (Beef or Seafood Entree): Green Bean Tator Tot Casserole, Fruit Salad
- Tuesday (Kid’s Night to Cook): Homemade Pizza, Steamed Vegetables
- Wednesday (Chicken or Vegetarian Entree): Chicken Calzone, Fresh Fruit
- Thursday (Pasta or Pork Entree): Roasted Pork Loin, Vegetable Bake
- Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Leftovers, Family Preference, and Hosting
I have a general pattern I try to follow for my weekly Menu Plan (for example Monday we have a beef or seafood entree and so forth). It is my goal, at least in the beginning, to have at least the main dish and one side planned. I will put together the remaining side dishes (veggies / fruits) based on the food items that need to be used up first and compliment the main entree.
Setting a weekly menu plan helps me utilize my time better, thus freeing up extra time to spend with my family. On the days that I am working longer hours I can prep the meal in advance so it will be easier to pull together once I am home. As I go through the menu planning process I will try to share some of our favorite family recipes. If there is a specific recipe you would like please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate (some recipes are a toss together meal and I do not use any set measurements).
As a family of four our life can get busy. What’s for Dinner is our weekly menu planning series and one of the ways to help keep us organized, on schedule, and within budget. Our family typically eats 6 to 7 dinner meals at home a week. We do try to go out to eat at least once a month as a special treat. Breakfasts are eaten at home before work and school, lunches are eaten at work, school, or home, so dinner is our main meal together as a family. Dinner is our time to reconnect, share, and enjoy being together after a busy day. Our weekly menu plan covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only because the weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is our time to spend with family and friends. The weekends tend to be more spontaneous and my husband (who is the better cook) likes pitching in therefore we keep the menu open for variety. We use up the leftovers throughout the week for our lunches and on the nights that we are busy or can’t cook.
Photo by Liz
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
We are back into the normal school and work schedule again. It was great getting a chance to see my parents this past weekend and celebrate my nephews birthday. It is going to be a fun week with a couple extra kiddos around!
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
Read The First Four Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls (Book 9)Read Imagination Station: Attack at the Arena by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 2)
Plan one special Activity with the FamilyPlay a board gameLunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night beforeDaily School Activities & Homework CompletedAttend After School ActivitiesVolunteer One Day at Girls SchoolPrepare for Upcoming Visitors- Finish the girls Bookshelf
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week – didn’t stay on top of it with everything going on this week
Drink 8 glasses of water each dayContinue my YouVersion plan(s)- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read) – getting closer and taking notes along the way (has a lot of good information, some of which I have implemented and seems to be going well)
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned out for the weekPay all upcoming billsWork on Spring Cleaning
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work completed for clients
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchWrite and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
- Groceries $40 for 4 – went over budget again this week as we prepared for company
- Payoff the Van – making payments
- Pay medical bills in full – making payments
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Read Imagination Station: Peril in the Palace by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 3)
- Plan one special Activity with the Family
- Play a board game
- Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night before
- Daily School Activities & Homework Completed
- Attend After School Activities
- Take care of, play, and enjoy extra time with the little ones staying with us this week
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Continue my YouVersion plan(s)
- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read)
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Pay all upcoming bills
- Work on Spring Cleaning
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work completed for clients
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Write and Send Out Community Group Email
- Send out the Alms & Legs Meeting Reminder
Financial Goals
- Groceries $40 for 4
- Payoff the Van
- Pay medical bills in full
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results.
Chocolate & Peanut Butter Banana Bites
Awhile ago I got some bananas on clearance and had an event coming up so I decided to try a variant of a recipe that I had seen somewhere months ago. It was pretty easy to do and tasted delicious. The girls loved putting these together and enjoyed eating the frozen delicious bananas too!
Chocolate & Peanut Butter Banana Bites
Bananas cut and ready to be dipped
1 cup of milk and white chocolate swirls with 1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter
Melted chocolate and peanut butter is ready to have the bananas dipped into it.
Once the bananas are dipped into the chocolate and peanut butter put them in a single layer in a pan and put into the freezer until they are completely frozen. After they are frozen you can transfer them into a ziplock bag. Pull them out immediately before you serve them (if you keep them out too long they will start to melt).
How to Keep Fresh Garden Vegetables Separate & Accessible in a Refrigerator Drawer
Refrigerator drawer full of fresh garden vegetables
We love it when our vegetable drawer is crammed full of fresh garden vegetables! The problem is at times it can be difficult finding the vegetable you want in the middle of all the other goodies in the drawer. Now that Spring is here and people are planting gardens, going to farmers markets, and stocking up on some of the great fresh produce in the stores I thought it would be a good time to share how I have found an easy and inexpensive way to keep the garden vegetables separate yet accessible while in the refrigerator drawer.
Solution – recycled bread bags! It seems silly but it really works well! You probably already have them around plus you can usually fit more bags into the drawer. We tried doing containers but every week we had a different amount of vegetables or they were overflowing among other things that just didn’t make them work well. As I was throwing out a bread bag the thought came across my mind that it would make a good “holder” for the garden vegetables.
The bags can be packed as little or as much as needed (and can be adjusted accordingly) plus they keep the vegetables separate so I can easily reach in and grab whatever veggies I needed at the time. It also made it super easy for the kids to pack their own lunches or to grab a quick snack from the vegetable drawer.
Here’s how we did it:
French bread loaf bag, washed & dried so it can be filled with cherry tomatoes from the garden
Once the tomatoes are all in the bag roll the remaining bag down until it is even with the stack of tomatoes
Bag of tomatoes ready to be put into the fridge drawer
Fresh veggies organized and accessible for the next meal
Steamed Fresh Vegetables
There is just something about Spring and fresh garden vegetables! Whether you get your vegetables from a garden or the store they are still delicious and a healthy part of the meal for your whole family. We enjoy our vegetables raw (at meals, in lunches or just for a snack), on the grill (add touch of Italian salad dressing and they taste amazing), baked, or steamed (a perfect compliment to any meal).
The pictures are some of the vegetables we ate recently. Included in the steamer are cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, green beans, and purple beans. Some were ones we had from our garden and the rest we got at our local grocery store. I prefer to steam the vegetables over boiling them because I believe more of the nutrients remain in the vegetables plus they tend to stay more firm (not mushy, which happens if they are boiled too long).
Our steamer has printed on it how long it takes to steam a variety of items. Since there are several vegetables in this one I just average out the time for the items I put into the steamer and make sure to check it before dinner is served. Although the purple beans are beautiful they do lose their purple color (they turn green) when cooked. If you want the purple beans to retain their color you will need to serve them raw (on a salad, raw, or in any other cool dish that calls for green beans). What is your favorite way to eat fresh vegetables?
Steamed fresh vegetables
What’s for Dinner: Our Weekly Menu Plan
Last week was pretty full of fun activities with the girls off from school for Spring Break. We got to spend some time together with our family both at home and a few days in Charleston. I was so sad that the girls had to go back to school this morning, but thankful for our fun time together. Having the menu ready in the evenings has been a big benefit for our family and makes the evenings go much smoother. Here is our menu plan for the upcoming week:
Our Weekly Menu Plan
- Monday (Beef or Seafood Entree): Spaghetti & Meatballs, French Bread
- Tuesday (Kid’s Night to Cook): Sandwiches, Fruit Salad
- Wednesday (Chicken or Vegetarian Entree): Chicken Pot Pie, Fresh Fruit
- Thursday (Pasta or Pork Entree): Pasta Casserole, Steamed Vegetables
- Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Leftovers, Family Preference, and Hosting
I have a general pattern I try to follow for my weekly Menu Plan (for example Monday we have a beef or seafood entree and so forth). It is my goal, at least in the beginning, to have at least the main dish and one side planned. I will put together the remaining side dishes (veggies / fruits) based on the food items that need to be used up first and compliment the main entree.
Setting a weekly menu plan helps me utilize my time better, thus freeing up extra time to spend with my family. On the days that I am working longer hours I can prep the meal in advance so it will be easier to pull together once I am home. As I go through the menu planning process I will try to share some of our favorite family recipes. If there is a specific recipe you would like please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate (some recipes are a toss together meal and I do not use any set measurements).
As a family of four our life can get busy. What’s for Dinner is our weekly menu planning series and one of the ways to help keep us organized, on schedule, and within budget. Our family typically eats 6 to 7 dinner meals at home a week. We do try to go out to eat at least once a month as a special treat. Breakfasts are eaten at home before work and school, lunches are eaten at work, school, or home, so dinner is our main meal together as a family. Dinner is our time to reconnect, share, and enjoy being together after a busy day. Our weekly menu plan covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only because the weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is our time to spend with family and friends. The weekends tend to be more spontaneous and my husband (who is the better cook) likes pitching in therefore we keep the menu open for variety. We use up the leftovers throughout the week for our lunches and on the nights that we are busy or can’t cook.
Photo by Liz
Silly Clown Snack
Clown snack
The girls love it when they get simple silly snacks. One weekend evening recently we were especially busy, by the time we got home it was already bed time so while they jump into the shower I made a quick supper for them to eat. They gobbled up this silly “clown” as they named it.
Even though it only took me a few minutes to put something together it is somehow more special when it is shaped differently. Plus it seems like they eat a little better when their food is a little entertaining because they are so busy looking and talking about it before they know it the food is gone. Included in this snack is one hotdog, one hotdog bun, ketchup, mustard, one cherry tomato, two pringles chips, and one purple green bean cut in half.
