We arrived late this afternoon, went on a very muddy hike by the river, met the aquantience of the many horses just outside our cabin door (literally 5 feet away) and just had a chill evening that included hot dogs and rice krispie treats.

And now, the kids are all down in the gigantic bed we made by pushing the two together in their room. I’ll post those pics later.

We have fun plans tomorrow, but right now I don’t want the complete.quiet.with.no.distractions. to end quite yet.

Friday night

The Olympics - I let the boys stay up to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremonies.  Remind me that this was not a good idea.  Most of it was my fault, I didn’t remember that even though it “starts” at 6:30pm, the actual ceremony doesn’t start for an hour after that.  JJ kept saying that “this looks like the news” and Henry kept asking when the “party was going to happen”.

Then, the sadness of Luge accident.  I didn’t know about it until just then, it took me by surprise and then I had to explain it to the boys.  I probably flunked that parenting talk. And then they kept showing the accident over and over again….

The Olympics switched around things and brought the athletes out first instead of the “show” first.  The boys were getting pretty riled up from being up late, so I just put them to bed.  It was a really fun idea in my head.

Saturday

The Party – Our great friends Maddie and her daughter Annie threw their Second Annual Valentine’s Tea.  It was incredible, from the food to the decorations – Maddie needs to seize her calling if you ask me – for pictures click here and here.

Last year, JJ and Henry made Annie some roses made out of painted newspaper – like these.  I had the thought to keep the tradition going by making some other sort of flowers with them for Annie – but it never happened.  So we stopped by Dierbergs and split a bouquet of orange roses (their choice) between the three of them so they could all give her some.  It was sweet.  I’m trying to take every opportunity to raise them to be little gentlemen, however, I am really out voted when it come to the farting and belching right now.

The Baby- We got the call at the party that John’s sister, Katie,  went into labor and was en route to the hospital.  She delivered a gorgeous baby girl – Rosemary Elizabeth – on Katie’s birthday no less.  So of course we made a mad dash out of the party to pick up John and head to the hospital.  We are so excited for them and their new little family – so sweet!

Sunday

The Sickies - I was feeling pretty crappy into the night Saturday and Sunday morning.  I took myself to the clinic Sunday afternoon to find out I have strep throat AGAIN.  Can you believe it?!? The nurse – who was my same nurse last time-  must of read my blog post last week because she didn’t charge me a co-pay. Happy Valentine’s Day!

So the rest of the day was a flop.  Spring come fast! and it better be twice as sunny than it’s been snowy this winter!

Project 52: Bucket List - I love.love.love. the idea of Project 52!!!!  John and I are pretty good about having a date night once a month…usually on the 14th which is our anniversary date.  And we always say we should do something intentional once a week, but you can imagine how that goes.  I love the direct guidelines she sets up for Project 52, that there’s a Mr.Linky so I can get ideas from other people and that the dates involve staying at home and not having to find a sitter.  Such a good idea!

Simple Mom: How to Create a Paperless Kitchen- This something I really want to do.  I didn’t grow up with paper towels but it’s amazing how they have become a staple in our kitchen.  I don’t want to get rid of them all together, but I would love to cut the use of them drastically.  I love how Tsh spelled out what her “system” was for going paperless, it takes the thought out of it for me.  Oh and how I love systems.

Check our orgjunkie.com for more menu ideas!

MONDAY: Frozen Pizza — I have a deacon’s meeting

TUESDAY: Cuban Pork, potatoes and steamed carrots

from Leanne Ely of savingdinner.com

1/3 cup orange juice

3 tablespoons lime juice

2 cloves of garlic

1- 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

1 -1/2 pounds of pork loin roast

Put all ingredients in a plastic Ziploc bag – freeze for later or marinate ingredients for a couple of hours.

Set oven to 375 degrees.

Place pork in roasting pan, reserving marinade.  Roast pork for 45 minutes, or until it reaches the internal temperature of 165 degrees.

In a pan, bring reserved marinade to a boil.  Let pork sit for 10 minutes and serve with sauce on the side.

WEDNESDAY: The Stokke’s are bringing us dinner!!

THURSDAY: Leftovers

FRIDAY: Cheesy Beef and Rice Casserole — this was in my freezer

SATURDAY: Sloppy Joe’s…I have girls night at Stir Crazy – yum!

SUNDAY: Spaghetti and Meat Sauce

Hey!

Even though I’ve been on a blogging break the last couple weeks, I’ve still been menu planning…I think it might have actually become a habit!

What about you, has this inspired you to start menu planning or is it something you have always done?  Have you checked out orgjunkie.com to find more recipes?  What have you tried?  Leave me a comment – I’d love to hear about it!

My new thing is soups and casseroles, probably inspired by our rainy fall weather here!  I have literally been going down the index of my Cooking Light cookbook and trying them and rating them as I go – this method totally aligns with my somewhat compulsive nature.  Now there are some, that I know there is NO way John or the kids will eat, so I did skip those, but I have tried many that I wouldn’t have tried before.

For more recipe ideas go to: orgjunkie.com

MONDAY: Beef Bean and Cornbread Casserole

TUESDAY: House Group Dinner Night — Tacos…I’m bringing a Southwest Bean Casserole.

WENESDAY: PBJ’s and fruit..I have girls night

THURSDAY: Chicken Paprikash

FRIDAY: Leftovers

SATURDAY: John’s Chili….he makes it up as he goes

SUNDAY: Northwoods Chicken with Glazed Julienne Carrots

We did go out of town last weekend so we may have some repeat menus for this week.  Home cooked meals sound so good right now, because we ate out a TON while were in Indiana.  Most of it was not so good for us and my stomach especially is still recovering. This is the week of NEW recipes (don’t tell John) – I’ve had a bunch I’ve wanted to try and decided this week was the week.  I’ll let you know the favorites!  Check out other menu planning ideas at orgjunkie.com.

MONDAY: PEGGY’S CHICKEN TETRAZZINI

Peggy’s Turkey Tetrazzini
1/4 butter or margarine
1/4-cup flour
1/2-teaspoon salt
1/4-teaspoon pepper
1-cup chicken broth
1-cup cream (or milk—if you use skim don’t use as much water)
2 tablespoons of sherry (Peggy doesn’t use this)
1 package (7oz) spaghetti, cooked and drained)
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken or turkey
1 can (3oz) sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1. Make Noodles

2. Cook Chicken

3. Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Blend in flour and seasoning.
Cook over low heat stirring until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Stir in broth and cream.

4. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute.

5. Stir in wine, spaghetti, chicken and mushrooms.

6. Pour into 2-quart casserole. Sprinkle with cheese.

7. Bake uncovered 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Peggy’s Note- I usually make the white sauce and add broth or liquid until the right consistency- you don’t want it to thick, as it will thicken as it bakes and the spaghetti absorbs the liquid. I often add cream of mushroom soup and some more milk to make more sauce. Of course I probably use more spaghetti and chicken as I make a larger quantity.

TUESDAY: OUT TO EAT FOR JJ’S 1ST DAY OF SCHOOL…HIS CHOICE

WEDNESDAY: TACOS AND RICE

THURSDAY: CROCK-POT CHILI

1 pound ground beef

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1/4 cup dry red wine or water

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon  ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 garlic clove, minced

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, undrained

1 (14.5-ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes with jalapenos, peppers and spices, undrained

6 tablespoons shredded reduced-fat extra sharp cheddar cheese

1. Cook beef in a large skillet, stirring to crumble.  Add onion and next 7 ingredients or until onion is tender.

2. Place meat mixture in the crock-pot and stir in beans and tomatoes.  Cover with the lid, and cook on low heat setting for 4 hours. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with cheese.

FRIDAY: TANGY BBQ CHICKEN WITH CORN CASSAROLE

Tangy Barbecued Chicken

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup beer

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons horseradish

1 teaspoon Bay Seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 (13- 1/2 ounce)bottle ketchup

cooking spray

8 (6-ounce) skinned chicken breast halves

1. Combine first 8 ingredients in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

2. Prepare grill.

3. Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill, uncovered, 45 minutes or until chicken is done, turning and basting with ketchup mixture.

SATURDAY: KARIN’S SHRIMP CREOLE

SUNDAY: GROUND BEEF AND TOMATO MANICOTTI

I’m blogging about my mornings this week because I want to be intentional and accountable about how I spend my time without kids.  To see how I came to be with out kids and how I desire to spend my time click here.

I am tired. All of this getting all the boys places before 9 am is wiping me out. Even with the thought of my respite hours ahead – this morning I questioned the worth of it all. I am also saluting all working moms that do this every day. I can barely get myself clothed at 7am needless to say 3 extra!

I was feeling more at awake after my coffee at Uncle Bills. Mary and I had a breakfast together at Uncle Bill’s Pancake House – because this week is all about food right? I made my own menu item of 2 eggs over easy, whole wheat toast and Canadian bacon. How is something like that not on the menu?!?! BTW, they don’t have fruit cups, which I found a little surprising. I just wanted a little something to balance all the carb and grease options.

I left my time with Mary feeling very encouraged and excited about some of the ideas we were plotting. Mary and I are both deacons at Riverside Church, which basically means that we help with the care and mercy needs of our community. Although we are on different teams, she is over the long-term/short term illnesses and I am on a team that helps with life transitions, we were able to brainstorm ideas about how we do what we do better. It was great.

One more day….

Today we are pseudo-snowed in because John took my car to work since it handles better in the snow.  George has a bad cold – so we cancelled our day anyways.  So we are cocooning.  This is my friend Marsha’s term.  She is an empty-nester, so her idea of cocooning looks  a little different than ours.  I’m sure it’s quieter.

But cocooning to us, consists of any or all of the following:

- Wearing the most comfortable clothes with slippers or woolly socks with treads

- Creating a “big” project that may or may not continue throughout the day; today it is a tent around the island in our kitchen.

- A laidback attitude that nothing needs to be accomplished. (this is for me)

-  Comfort Food; for lunch today we had grilled cheese and tomato soup , later we’ll make some hot cocoa

- A movie together in my bed; today it was Willy Wonka

Through all of these things,  hopefully we’ll discover more time.  Time for each other, time to really listen and time to rest.  It hasn’t been easy, JJ has been sassy and the sibling rivalry is constant.  But, it’s not to the extreme and I’m a little more mellow.  In our cocoon today, my hope is that we are less fragmented as a family.  And that, through a little quality down time, we’ll be a little more connected and understand each other better.  We’ll see.

The ones in the shop are girly and have sweet little flowers on them.  You can see them here.

While I’m talking about Greta, I should share that she is a great friend.  She especially has this quality  that I just love and want to emulate.  I’ll try to explain it and I hope I do it justice.  When I am with her she exudes a sense of rest and that makes me want to rest too.  I feel like I can just “be” with  her.  And after we’ve hung out, I usually have learned something about myself and leave feeling good about myself and life in general.   That’s a pretty good quality, huh?