Recipe: Creamy Cucumbers
The fresh Green & Yellow cucumbers from our garden are now Creamy Cucumbers. Growing up my Mom and Grandma made this delicious creamy cucumber recipe from the fresh garden cucumbers. I always looked forward to eating it every summer. Now that we have a garden of our own we enjoy making this for our family and sharing it with others. If you need to use up some of those garden cucumbers and are looking to try a sweet, creamy and refreshing recipe try this one!
Creamy Cucumbers:
- 1 cup Mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 1/4 cup Vinegar (white or apple)
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 4 cups sliced Cucumbers
In a bowl combine mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar, and salt. Add cucumbers and stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
I will often make a half of recipe and it is still plenty for our family. It is a great cool side dish for summer meals!
Travel & Vacation: Family Fun – Boston, MA
Going to church with our cousins! The girls had a blast spending time with their cousins in Boston. They thought it was great getting a chance to go the early service at their church!
Beach time! The girls having a blast at a Boston beach. Their first exclamation after getting out of the van was “BEACH ROCKS” and then proceeded to collect all the beach rocks they could carry. The beaches in the South have seashells but not beach rocks so they were convinced these were amazing commodities and should gather them all. They quickly learned that the New England beaches contained MANY beach rocks. I think we still managed to collect a few but not nearly as many as they initially intended.
Jen picked up some fun Red, White and Blue Star Marshmallows for S'mores! Both the kids and adults had a blast roasting these cool marshmallows over the fire! They made awesome S’mores!
Daddy and Beanie watching the waves on the edge of the water! The water was MUCH colder in Boston (compared to South Carolina and Georgia). Everyone had a grand time swimming in the water. I was actually surprised how long the kids stayed in the water with it being so chilly!
Brina concentrating on roasting her marshmallows. It’s not every day you get to roast marshmallows on the beach in your swimsuit, life jacket and covered in sand. What a great day!
Karlie roasting her stack of Red, White & Blue marshmallows! Karlie talking and roasting. We had to make her go wash off before doing the marshmallows because she was covered in sand from head to toe, she loves playing (digging) on the beach!
Brina at the beach! Brina being festive at the beach. It was a lot of fun playing at the beach for several hours!
Karlie hanging out at the beach! Karlie stopping only for a moment for me to snap a picture. She was enjoying her time swimming and playing the in sand!
The base to a bonfire near us on the beach! It was hilarious watching the guys carry out the jungle gym, it was the base to a big bonfire next to us.
Karlie contemplating her next sand project! Karlie was frequently found creating a castle, a big moat, or some other creation in the sand.
Beach chickies! They love the beach so much it is such a chore trying to get them to pause for a picture! Jen picked up the snazzy head bands and stickers, super cool!
The jungle gym is now buried under all the other stuff, it's going to be a big bonfire! The bonfire is getting bigger! There were HUGE bonfires up and down the beach. This was one near us. From where we were located we could see 12 other ones!
The jungle gym bonfire is up in flames! It was amazing how big the bonfires were on the beach. You could look down the beach and see rows of them!
We had a blast spending time with our family up in Boston! Thanks Matt and Jen for sharing your weekend and family with us. We had a lot of fun relaxing and seeing the area with the whole family. Thankful for the opportunity to spend some time with everyone. It was a lot of fun hanging out and exploring the area. Many amazing memories were made over the weekend!
“A Vacation To Remember” series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: 40 Plus Hour Road Trip Together
Our family recently went on a forty plus hour road trip together. A lot of fun memories were created on our road trip up to New England including time spent with several extended family members. Here are a few pictures of our journey in the van:
Sleeping beauties in the van! Thankful to have girls who enjoy a long road trip. I had to smile when I looked back and saw them fast asleep with their toys on their laps.
Seriously, who needs a pillow when you have your sisters head to sleep against! This was a popular sight on our 40+ hour road trip. The girls would be quiet so we would look back and see them sleeping soundly with their heads together. A sister comes in handy for a pillow in a pinch!
Look out Boston here we come!!! We had a blast staying with family in the Boston area. Thankful for our time together with extended family!
Going through the "Big Dig" in Boston The girls thought it was neat going through the long tunnel under the city!
The girls enjoying one of their DVDs with head phones. We have a DVD player we can set up in the van which we use for long road trips. Our policy is if the road trip is longer than 5 hours we will put in the DVD player. The girls were VERY excited to go on a long road trip because they got to watch a couple movies.
Beautiful day and amazing scenery. We enjoyed the beautiful landscape on our drive up north. The green trees, puffy white clouds and Vermont Mountains in the distance. One of these years we need to head up to New England during the Fall, I bet it is breathtaking when all the trees are turning.
Little goodies and toys kept the girls entertained throughout the trip. Karlie watching a video while Brina plays with her remote control car. They had a blast playing in the car and exploring when we stopped.
Connecticul Welcomes Us! Yay! Even though we went through a lot of different states on our journey I was only able to capture a few state “Welcome” signs. It was hard to time the pictures and at night none of them turned out well. We made a brief stop in CT after trying three exits to find gas and a working restroom for the kiddos (I didn’t realize how many Mom/Pop gas stations didn’t have working restrooms).
Downtown Hartford We only spent a few hours in Hartford, CT on our trip. The girls said next trip they want to explore it more!
Welcome to Pennsylvania! The traffic in Pennsylvania was less but the roads were much rougher. We saw some beautiful scenery throughout the mountains of Pennsylvania!
So busy painting they completely ignored my request for a picture! These books were a big hit, obviously! The girls are always game for crafts and had been begging to “paint”. I found the solution at Big Lots in their clearance section, paint books that use water pens to paint. Less of a mess for us and more fun for the girls. All we had to do was fill up their pens a couple times along the way.
Beautiful river at sunset We were blessed to see a lot of wonderful scenery on the way.
Our girls resting in the van! Despite the many hours on the road the girls were such troopers. They did not complain at all even though they spent a lot of hours in the van. It was neat to see them have fun, entertain themselves, and get excited about exploring the different areas we stopped. Thankful for their sweet adventuresome spirit. They even slept a good 5 to 7 hours as we were driving through the night! Needless to say they were rested when we got home (Mommy and Daddy were exhausted). For tips on flying with the kids check out Tips on Flying with Kids.
“A Vacation To Remember” series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Save A Lot: Deals for the week of August 10 – 16, 2011
The Save A Lot weekly ad deals are listed below for your convenience. Save A Lot has continued their sale so it is a great time to stock up on several items (no coupons necessary to get the Save A Lot Today prices). Sign up for the Smart Shopper Club, by doing so you will get a $5.00 off of $25.00 coupon!
Meats and Seafood
Oscar Mayer Wieners or Bologna (16 oz or 12 oz) – $0.99
Use $1.00/2 coupon from insert 6/19 Smart Source (Expires 8/14/11)
$0.49 each after couponBeef Eye of Round Roast – $2.99 per lb
Eckrich Smoked or Skinless Turkey Sausage (14 oz) – $1.99
Use $0.55/1 coupon from insert 6/26 Smart Source (Expires 8/27/11)
Use $1.00/2 coupon from insert 6/26 Smart Source (Expires 8/27/11)
As low as $1.44 each after couponBoneless Chicken Breast – $1.49 per lb
Ground Beef 73% Lean (3 lb or 5 lb packages) – $1.99 per lb
Fresh Half Boneless Pork Loin – $1.99 per lb
Fresh Pork Tenderloin – $3.49 per lb
Shaner’s Boneless Chicken Breast – $5.99
Holten Quarter Pound Beef Patties (32 oz) – $3.99
Pick 5 for $19.99 promo on going: Pick any 5 specially marked packages of your favorite cuts of fresh, frozen or smoked meats and pay just $19.99 (about $2 per pound).
Fridge and Freezer
Coburn Farm Eggs (1 dozen)- $0.19*
*Valid with $10 minimum purchase.
Limit one purchase customer. Must present coupon at time of purchase.
Valid at local store (states the address of our local store)
Expires August 13, 2011Kraft American Singles (12 oz) – $1.88
Use $0.55/1 coupon from Kraft Food & Family Booklet (found at Bi-Lo & Food Lion)
$1.33 each after couponFerratto’s Fully Loaded Pizza (21.5 to 24.4 oz) – $4.99
Coburn Farms Mozarella String Cheese (10 0z) – $2.99
Take & Bake Pepperoni & Supreme Pizza – $5.99
Reser’s Potato and Macaroni Salad – $2.99
Produce
Black, Red and White Grapes – $0.99 per lb
Peaches, Plums, and Nectarines – $0.79 per lb
Strawberries (1 lb package) – $2.00
Cucumbers – $0.33 each
Peppers – $0.33 each
Summer and Zucchini Squash – $0.49 each
Cantaloupe – $1.49 each
Grocery
Ideal Bread (20 or 24 oz) – $0.19*
*Valid with $10 minimum purchase.
Limit one purchase customer. Must present coupon at time of purchase.
Valid at local store (states the address of our local store)
Expires August 13, 2011General Mills Cereal (20.5 to 21.5 oz) – $2.49
Use $1.00/2 coupon from insert 7/10 Smart Source (Expires 8/20/11)
$1.99 each after couponKellogg’s PopTarts (14 to 14.7 oz) – $1.66
Use $1.00/3 coupon from insert 7/24 Red Plum (Expires 9/18/11)
$1.33 each after couponHi-C Juice Drink Boxes (10 Count) – $1.79
Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks (4.5 to 5.4 oz) – $1.88
Use $1.00/3 coupon from 7/17 Smart Source (Expires 9/10/11)
Use $0.50/2 printable coupon from Betty Crocker
As low as $1.55 each after couponSplash Out Juice Drink Pouches Fruit Punch (10 pack) – $1.79
Mantia’s Tri Color Rotini – $0.89
Tipton Grove Apple Juice – $1.69
Panner Peanut Butter – $1.59
Bramley’s Concord Grape Jelly (32 oz) – $1.8
Fairfield Farms Mini Raisin Boxes – $1.49
Nature Trails Chewy Granola Bars – $1.99
J Higg’s Potato Chips – $1.19
J Higg’s Cheezie Puffs or Crunchy – $1.39
Portmann’s Salad Dressings – $1.39
Crisp Lemonade – $0.99
Summerset Green Citrus Tea (6 pack) – $2.89
Albany Bakery Creme Sandwich Cookies – $1.99
Vitner Multi Pack Snacks – $4.99
Mrs Freshley’s Buddy Bars or Oatmeal Creme – $1.00
Chef’s Finest Croutons – $0.99
Tree Ripe Lemonade – $1.99
Bakery
Fresh Apple or Cherry Pie – $2.99
Remember you can use the $5/$25 printable coupon to sweeten these deals! Plus you can earn up to 5 additional $5 off $25 coupons for sharing the coupon with your friends.
For more information about Save A Lot’s coupon policies go here. If you find additional deals or savings please let me know and I will add them to the list.
Travel & Vacation: Breakfast at Friendly’s
Breakfast at Friendly's after 18 Hours on the Road Our family recently went on a forty plus hour road trip together. After about 18 hours riding together in the van we decided it was time for a stop since the girls were awake and getting hungry. We noticed in Connecticut several Friendly’s restaurants and decided that would be a fun spot to eat. Jake had grown up in an area with a lot Friendly’s but the girls have never eaten at one so it was neat sharing the experience with the girls.
Brina ordered pancakes & ice cream! Brina was so excited that one of the menu items was ice cream and pancakes for breakfast! She got chocolate chip pancakes with watermelon ice cream. You can see Brina’s missing tooth in this picture, so proud of losing her first baby tooth!
Karlie proud of her breakfast! Karlie wanted to know why we had never eaten pancakes and ice cream for breakfast, it really is good MOM!? She ordered chocolate chip pancakes with mint chocolate chip ice cream on top.
The girls LOVED eating at Friendly’s. They thought it was awesome having chocolate chip pancakes with ice cream, silly straws that changed color when you drank out of them and fun activities to play. If you have a Friendly’s in your area or one where you are going on vacation you can sign up to recieve coupons from them including:
• Free 3-Scoop Sundae* just for enrolling 
• Birthday offers for you and your family • Information on special events • Announcements of new products and new menu items • Newsletters and more! Click here to find a location near you. Thank you Friendly’s for having a kid friendly restaurant for us to enjoy on our road trip!
“A Vacation To Remember” series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Song: “Our God” by Chris Tomlin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlA5IDnpGhc&feature=related
What a great song to remind us of how truly amazing our God is. He ultimately is in control of everything. We have the ability to get through each day because we have a relationship with someone bigger then ourselves.
Fresh & Healthy: Community Supported Agriculture (Week 12)
It is week twelve receiving fresh produce from our CSA! Our family purchased a half of share and will be receiving fresh produce, local honey, eggs and more for 20 weeks. We are back to our usual half share this week. Jake picked up the fresh veggies this week, thanks handsome!Week 12 of Fresh Goodies from our CSA!
Fresh goodies from our Local CSA Farm! Items in our Basket this Week:
- 1 bag Red & Green Okra
- 1 bag Beans
- 3 husks of Corn
- 2 Tomatoes
- 1 Red Hot Pepper
- Half Dozen Fresh Eggs
I am looking forward to eating these goodies this week! Thanks everyone for the delicious Recipes, keep them coming!!!
To find out how you can be a part of a local CSA check out this post – Fresh & Healthy: Community Supported Farms
Book: “Journey to the Center of the Earth” by Jules Verne
Daddy just finished reading “Journey To The Center Of The Earth” by Jules Verne to our girls. It is part of the “Treasury of Illustrated Classics” book series we have been picking up for the girls. The story is about Professor Hardwigg and his nephew Harry who discover an ancient parchment and explore the world together. Professor and Harry encounter many adventures during their travels including a volcano and ocean sea life. The book encourages the child’s imagination. Karlie especially thought the book was amazing. She is into rockets, planets, space and traveling so the title of the book intrigued her from the beginning. Both girls enjoyed the book and always love it when Daddy reads “chapter” books to them. If you are looking for an adventure book to read to your kids check this one out.
Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4
A whole week at home, yay! It has literally been weeks since we have had an entire week at home together. I enjoyed having the opportunity return to a somewhat “normal” schedule although the traveling has been a lot of fun! Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.
Groceries from Walgreens, Rite Aid | Save A Lot, and Aldi's Walgreens Groceries:
- $2.95 at Walgreens for 1 bottle Coffee Mate French Vanilla, 1 bottle Coffee Mate Hazelnut, and 3 cans Mandarin Oranges.
Rite Aid | Save A Lot Groceries:
- $2.38 at Rite Aid | Save A Lot for 1 package Cinnamon Raisin Bagels (on clearance) and 3 packages English Muffins (on clearance).
Aldi’s Groceries:
- $29.65 at Aldi’s for 1 can Cooking Spray, 1 package fresh Spinach, 2 cans Cream of Mushroom Soup, 3 cans sliced Mushrooms, 2 packages Sharp Cheddar Cheese, 4 cans Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, 2 cans sliced Olives, 1 bottle Ranch Dressing, 4 cans Refried Beans, 1 box Raisins, 2 cans Black Beans, and 1 bag All Purpose Flour.
Groceries from Ingles Ingles Groceries:
- $4.95 at Ingle’s for 1 container Blackberries, 1 container Strawberries, 1 container diced Yellow Onions, 1 container Carrots and Celery, and 1 container Baby Romaine. (all the items were marked down on clearance to $0.99)
This week I spent $39.93 on groceries. Even though I barely squeaked under my budgeted amount for the week I was able to do it and stock up on several items on clearance. I hope to have an even better week for my next update since it has been hard going under budget. Several of our local stores have raised their prices A LOT over the last several weeks making it even more of a challenge to purchase groceries within the budget. I am happy to stock up again and look forward to a fresh start next week. Part of our groceries went towards making a meal for a friend who was in the hospital this week as well as hosting, thankful for the ability to share what we have been given with others.
It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks! As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me. I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too. The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.
Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances. Life doesn’t always go as planned. We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given. Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life. A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others. There is so much more to life than having all the stuff. We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.
Family Recipe: Grandma’s Crunchy Coleslaw
The red and green cabbage fresh from our garden is now ready to be turned into coleslaw! During the summers when I was a kid I always enjoyed going to visit my Grandparents. Many summers I would spend a couple weeks helping Grandma Willa make meals while the guys were harvesting wheat. Grandma made the BEST coleslaw. It was one of my favorite side dishes she would make throughout the summer. I recently harvested a couple cabbages out of our garden so I had the opportunity to make Grandma’s Crunchy Coleslaw for guests.
Grandma’s Crunchy Coleslaw:
- 1 package Coleslaw Mix or 1/2 medium head of Cabbage, shredded (or part of a green cabbage and part of a red)
- 1 small Green Onion (yellow onion will work too)
- 1/2 cup Sunflower Seeds
- 1/2 cup Almond Slivers
- 1 package Ramon Chicken Flavored Noodles (uncooked), noodles broken in pieces (beef flavor will work as well)
Dressing:
- 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1/3 cup Vinegar (white or apple vinegar)
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1/2 cup Oil
Mix the coleslaw (or cabbage) and onion together. Measure and place in a separate bowl the Sunflower Seeds, Almonds, and Ramon Noodles. Mix the dressing and add chicken ramon flavor packets to the dressing. Pour the dressing over salad and mix well. Before serving add the mixture of Sunflower Seeds, Almonds and Noodles (adding before serving makes sure they are crunchy when you eat the salad). Serve and enjoy!
You can also add a lot of other great items to make the coleslaw more colorful and tasty:
- 1/2 cup Raisins
- 1/2 cup sliced Apples
- 1/2 cup shredded Carrots
- 1/2 cup shredded Broccoli Steams
I always add the raisins to the coleslaw and sometimes the carrots & apples depending on what I have in the kitchen.
