Welcome 2015 Treat!
Our “Welcome 2015” Rice Krispy Treat!
The girls and I decided to make our rice krispies festive to bring in the new year. Thankful for a new year! I am looking forward to making new memories with my family and friends! I am blessed! Praying for health, safety, growth, and good times!
The “2” is made out of a Fruit Roll Up and Sour Patch Kids.
The “0” is made out of Fruit Gummies.
The “1” is a Blue Raspberry and Cherry Airheads that were rolled out and twisted together.
The “5” is made out of Starbursts.
Thankful for the many blessings and great memories as we start off the new year!
This Is The Year…
Celebrating Christmas!
Merry Christmas from our family!
We had a wonderful family Christmas. Jake was on call Christmas day and thankfully it was for the most part quiet. It was great having a day with the family. Love having time together. It was a relaxing day with fun, food, and activities. Thankful for a season where we can celebrate such a great event as Jesus coming to earth as a baby in a manger.
OH, YES WE DID!!! We put streamers, balloons, and a trap on the girls bedroom doors on Christmas Eve. Four confetti poppers to be exact attached to their bedroom doors. We had 3 poppers above their heads and 1 trip wire popper. When they opened their doors that Christmas morning they exploded!
Trip wire ready for the kids to wake up!
Jake putting the finishing touches on the explosion traps!
They thought the confetti poppers, streamers, and balloons were awesome!
Confetti spray!
One of the presents was a perfect “STOP” sign shape so we put it in front of the tree!
Chatting as we make breakfast!
Opening her stocking – fun stuff
Oh yeah! Hand sanitizer!
Sweet girls
Goofy girls
They thought the “stop” sign was hilarious!
Karlie girl!
Glad to be home and hanging out with my family for the day!
Giving Skipper a Christmas treat!
Giving the goats a Christmas treat!
My handsome man!
Laughing at Jake’s note on one of my gifts!
Lounging around!
Silly girl!
Family lunch!
Ham, salad, sweet potatoes, and mash potatoes!
Matching Tiger outfits!
The funny part is Jake and I got matching Tiger outfits too! Let’s just say we have a picture with all four of us dressed up as Tigers, but Jake made me promise not to share it on the blog. Seeing him in a full size Tiger outfit had us three girls literally rolling on the floor with laughter. Seeing him walk around with his Tiger outfit, hood, ears, tail, etc… was hilarious!
A Leaf Covered Driveway Becomes the Kids New Race Track
There are benefits living in South Carolina with a lot of trees on the property, we have a lot of leaves! Our leaf covered driveway became the kids new race track one sunny afternoon. The girls took the rake, broom, and chalk out to the driveway and made a race track. They spent the rest of the day riding their bikes, scooters, and cars around on their fresh track. Glad to see them use their creativity and vent some extra energy.
Starting line for the race track!
A maze of kid roads on our driveway!
Recipes: Easy Shepherd’s Pie
The other day when I made Shepherd’s Pie for dinner I went ahead and made a big batch so I was able to make one casserole for dinner that night and put two in the freezer for busy nights later in the month. The “Make 1 i& Freeze 1” recipes come in handy for those days when I cannot make a homemade meal from scratch. It is great when I can plan ahead! Shepherd’s Pie is not only easy to make it freezes well too. The recipe below makes one 9×13 dish of Shepherd’s Pie, but I doubled it and split the second one into two 8×8 dishes to freeze for later.
Shepherd’s Pie Recipe:
- 1 pound Ground Beef cooked
- 1 can Green Beans (used french cut, but any will do)
- 1 can Mixed Vegetables
- 1 can Black Beans
- 1 package Brown Gravy
- Mashed Potatoes (homemade or from package, your preference)
Cook the ground beef and drain the excess oil. Add all the brown gravy ingredients to the ground beef mixture. Drain the vegetables and gently mix in the green beans, mixed vegetables, and black beans. Let the beef and vegetable mixture cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring periodically. Preheat the oven to 350 degree and grease a 9×13 pan (or two 8×8 pans).
While cooking the ground beef and vegetable mixture start preparing your potatoes whether from scratch or from a box or bag. Once the potatoes and beef mixture is done you can put together your Shepherd’s Pie. The bottom layer will be your beef and vegetable mixture followed by a layer of mash potatoes. You can sprinkle bacon or cheese over the mash potato layer if you prefer as well. Cover and bake the Shepherd’s Pie at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
We ate one Shepherd’s Pie for dinner and these two (pictured above) are going in the freezer to be eaten at a later time!
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
I have thoroughly enjoyed having the kids home on Christmas break this past week. It is great to spend some extra time together playing, reading, cooking, celebrating, and relaxing. I haven’t missed running around for school, extra activities, and doing loads of homework. Our family had a wonderful time celebrating Christmas, spending time together, and creating memories. Even with the kids home and in between fun activities I was able to get some extra items accomplished which was nice too. I am looking forward toward another week with the kids home! Several of the activities will be the same because my main goal is to spend more time with the family.
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
Read a variety of Christmas and Library Books my Kids Picked Out from Home and the local LibraryPlan one special activity with the familyPrepare for Upcoming Holiday EventsPlay a Game with the KidsSpend Extra Time with the KidsComplete Our Christmas ShoppingFinish Wrapping GiftsCelebrate our Family ChristmasMake Cookies and Goodies with the KidsDo a craft with the kids
Personal Goals
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day – a couple days I was having too much fun I didn’t pay attention to how much I was drinking
Continue my YouVersion plan(s)– almost done with my yearly plan!!!Go to my Doctor Appointments Scheduled this week
Home (Yard & Pets) Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day – it took more time
Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week– although I had to alter it at least once last weekClean House (Focus – At least 15 minute daily “pick up” to keep the house clean as we prepped for the Holidays)Organize Chaos (Focus – Get Gifts Wrapped, Mailed, or Ready to put under Christmas Tree)- Yard Cleanup (Focus – Finish Leaves) – it rained almost everyday last week so it was too wet
Pet Care (Focus – Skipper Dog Food Bought & Bin Refilled / Snowball’s Collar Battery Changed)
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsRespond to Inquiry – Business Relation EmailsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attentionWork completed for clients
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Payoff the Car – working on it
- Payoff Outstanding Debt – (replacement microwave, refrigerator, hot water heater, and other debt) – working on it
Pay Bills & File PaperworkGo grocery shopping one time to one store this week and stay within budget
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Read a variety of Christmas and Library Books my Kids Picked Out from Home and the local Library, including Old Yeller and Where the Red Fern Grows
- Plan one special activity with the family
- Prepare for Upcoming New Year Holiday Events
- Play a Game with the Kids
- Spend Extra Time with the Kids
- Celebrate our New Years
- Make Cookies and Goodies with the Kids
- Do a craft with the kids
Personal Goals
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Continue my YouVersion plan(s)
- Go to my Doctor Appointments Scheduled this week
Home (Yard & Pets) Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Clean House (Focus – At least 15 minute daily “pick up” to keep the house clean as we prepped for the Holidays)
- Organize Chaos (Focus – Gifts Wrap & Boxes Put Away, Gifts Put Aways)
- Yard Cleanup (Focus – Finish Leaves)
- Pet Care (Focus – New Dog House for Skipper)
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Respond to Inquiry – Business Relation Emails
- 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
Financial Goals
- Payoff the Car
- Payoff Outstanding Debt – (replacement microwave, refrigerator, hot water heater, and other debt)
- Pay Bills & File Paperwork
- Go grocery shopping one time to one store this week and stay within budget
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.
Free Ebooks: Paleo For Beginners, Green & Lean, Breakfast Casseroles, Low Carb, Smoothie Recipes, and more!
The price to download these books is currently $0.00 (although the price may change at any time, please confirm prior to downloading). The ebooks are specifically for Kindles, however, you can click here and download the free application that allows you to read Kindle ebooks on your PC.
Download a free copy of Paleo For Beginners – A 14 Day Paleo Diet Plan For A Simple Start To The Paleo Diet by Marc Morris, David Winters, Susan Sanders
Download a free copy of Green & Lean – 20 Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes for Building Muscle, Getting Lean, and Staying Healthy by Michael Matthews
Download a free copy of Breakfast Casserole Recipes – 45 Recipes to Jump Start Your Morning by Hillbilly Housewife
Download a free copy of Low Carb & Low Cholesterol Guide and Cookbooks by Speedy Publishing
Download a free copy of Smoothie Recipes for Weight Loss – 30 Delicious Detox, Cleanse, and Green Smoothie Diet Book by Troy Adashum
Download a free copy of 40 Juicing Recipes For Weight Loss and Healthy Living by Jenny Allan
Download a free copy of How to Fly Fish for Trout – The First Book to Read by Tom McCoy
Download a free copy of Prepping 10 – A Beginner’s Survival Guide by Robert Paine
Joy to the World…
Happy Kids & Messy Mud Pies
The girls love making mud pies! I cannot count the number of times they have been found mixing up a batch of dirt, sand, clay, pebbles, water, sticks, and a variety of other treasures they find in the yard to make their special mud pies. The mud pie in this picture was made especially for me! 🙂 It is what they call a “Happy Mud Pie”! When I was a kid my Mom would let me make mud pies in the backyard so this activity brings back some fun memories for me too. Although, I don’t remember getting so dirty doing it as a kid, but my Mom may have a different opinion about that subject. Ahem…
To be honest one of the biggest reasons I am not a big fan of the kids making mud pies is because it is messy (I don’t like big messes), not to mention the random holes they happen to dig in our yard, but when I do allow it they usually have a blast and come up with some interesting creations. They always get excited when they get my approval to make mud pies! After whipping up their mud pie concoctions they will set them out in the sun to bake for a couple days. Once they are good and dry they will pop them out of their containers and proudly show us their fun creations.
The more I think about it the mud pie making process is good practice for cooking (measuring ingredients, mixing, etc…) plus it allows them to experiment, and be creative with a variety of ingredients. While I will probably never be a fan of messes sometimes I have to let go of my priorities and just allow the kids to have fun making a mess. Plus, if it is warm enough outside I can hose them down prior to coming indoors. 🙂 I am thankful for my kids and glad that they enjoy opportunities to play, be creative, and yes even make messy mud pies.
Free Ebooks: Learn Guitar Chords, Growing Juicy Delicious Tomatoes, Set Up Your Own Saltwater Aquarium, 365 Handy Hints For Horse Riders, Magic Tricks, and more!
The price to download these books is currently $0.00 (although the price may change at any time, please confirm prior to downloading). The ebooks are specifically for Kindles, however, you can click here and download the free application that allows you to read Kindle ebooks on your PC.
Download a free copy of How To Build Guitar Chords Using The Caged System – Learn to Build Chords Fast by Paul Watson
Download a free copy of Growing Juicy Delicious Tomatoes (Rainforth Home & Garden Secrets and Solutions) by Rees Cowden
Download a free copy of Set Up Your Own Saltwater Aquarium by Becky Wolff
Download a free copy of 365 Handy Hints For Horse Riders by Karen Bush
Download a free copy of Magic Tricks – 50 Simple, Fun, and Quick Tricks (How To Be The Life Of The Party) by Joshua Minute
Download a free copy of The 4.1.1. Cook Book – Seasoning Mixes and Homemade Fixes by Dewayne Newburn
Download a free copy of How Abraham Lincoln Use Stories to Touch Hearts, Minds, and Funny Bones by Terry Sprouse
Download a free copy of How To Write A Great Query Letter – Insider Tips and Techniques for Success by Noah Lukeman
