Menu Plan thru February 3, 2013

Our family had a wonderful relaxing weekend and it's hard to believe that it is Monday already!  My Dad came up for a visit and we mostly chilled out.  He likes to try new recipes like I do so on Sunday we whipped up some homemade chicken pot pie from America's Test Kitchen.  It took the two of us a little over an hour from start time to sitting at the table eating but it was SO worth it!  I normally don't cook on Sunday but now I have leftovers for tonight's dinner!

Monday-Leftovers from the weekend
Tuesday-Pancakes with Nutella, milk and fresh fruit
Wednesday-Panko crusted baked chicken, green beans and pears
Thursday-Chicken Carbonara Risotto
Friday-Pulled BBQ chicken sandwiches, roasted potatoes and cinnamon applesauce
Saturday-visiting family
Sunday-leftovers or snack on yogurt and blueberry muffins

This menu can also be viewed here and here.

Happy Cooking!

Homemade Gifts

I meant to get this post up right after Christmas...I couldn't do it before without people guessing what they were receiving as gifts.  Better late than never I suppose.  So--I love making homemade gifts.  Don't get me wrong-I also love shopping for gifts but there is something heartfelt about a homemade gift.  Last year I only did one homemade gift and this year I ramped it up and wanted to do more.  Next year will be even better!

I took a sewing class this summer and had a blast.  I would have rocked the 50's era....I love cooking, baking and sewing.  Gardening will be added to that list as soon as we get in our house.  (56 days and counting!).  Anyway, taking that class kind of lit this sewing fire and I wanted to sew more. 

Two of my gifts this year were on the sewing docket....I made this pillow for my Mom.  She is 100% hoosier and technically I'm 50% so I thought this would be a really fun idea.  This used to be a t-shirt but I thought it would make an awfully cute pillow.  I cut the shirt down into a pillow pattern and whipped this out.

An apron was the first thing I really ever attempted by myself...although my Mom really helped me during some tricky parts.  After that I was ready to tackle one on my own.  My mother-in-law doesn't use aprons...instead she shoves a dishtowel down the front of her shirt.  Although a viable option, I wanted to make her a pretty apron.  Here is the final outcome!  What do you think?

My Dad love protein bars so Rory and I made him a fresh batch!  Remember these?  So yummy and I know you can cut them up, freeze and pull out a bar anytime!

My mom received a photo book of the highlights of our year.  This is maybe not technically homemade but I did upload the pictures. :) 

Can't wait to show you what is in store for next year!  My wheels have already been spinning about what I can make.

Fire Museum

Rory and Josh routinely get to spend days together...just the two of them and just being boys.  Although I miss not getting to spend those days with them it's good for boys to just be boys!  On this particular day they visited the fire museum.  Like any boy, Rory is fascinated by airplanes, firetrucks and "popo" cars!  And...Josh is too!

Is this a boys dream or what?!

Christmas with the Smith's

Our Christmas celebration continued with Josh's side of the family.  This year we celebrated with a brunch at Aunt Becca and Uncle Dan's.  Since we met after the official Christmas holiday Rory figured out how this process works.  He was so happy to have a few new tractors to play with and Uncle Dan willingly took all the boxes apart and assembled the trucks while Rory patiently waited.  Good team work!

Rory gave Becca and Dan lots of practice!  Next year we will have a new little cousin/niece or nephew!

Some are Silver and the Others Gold

"Make new friends, but keep the old. Some are silver and the others gold."  Remember that song from Girl Scouts?  Well, I actually never made it past the Daisies but we still sang that song. This song always runs through my head when we met new great friends and sadly when friends leave.  When we moved across the state we left all of our friends.  It's not that we aren't still friends but things are just different when you live 2 hours away.  It just is.  However, it gave us the chance to meet new friends!

I met Katie for the first time when she moved in exactly a week and two doors down from our condo.  The second time she popped in to see if she could borrow our internet connection.  Hey, what are good neighbors for?  Maddie is only about 4 months younger than Rory and instantly our families had a connection.

These people were the kind of neighbors you always want to have.  We watched out for each other, traded babysitting and animal sitting services and routinely shared groceries, treats and dinner.  The kind of neighbors you can call when you baby is throwing up with a high fever and magically jello shows up at your door.  They patiently endured and taste tested my quest to find the best recipe for pumpkin bread in the fall and cherry bread in the spring.

Our husbands both worked lots of hours so us girls and the kiddos spent quite a bit of time together.  Trips to the zoo were always more fun with friends and when the power went out for 4 days we braved a trip to JoAnn's fabric store to wait 30+ minutes in line for fabric with 2 toddlers.  Although I love the trucks, tractors and legos, it was nice to have a little girl in the house.  Maddie routinely went home with clips in her hair because I just couldn't help myself!!

Not only did the kids have a great time I really enjoyed having another mom, friend and woman to talk to.  Katie was my first friend when we moved to this new city.  She is one of the strongest and most independent women that I know.  If it weren't for her I think I would still be adjusting to this new place we call home and trying to figure my way around. It was heart-breaking when we had to say good-bye and I maybe did the ugly cry just a little bit.  I don't have a sister but if I did I imagine that she would be like Katie. We will never forget and will always appreciate the great friendship we forged!  I am so thankful that modern technology allows us to keep in touch and stay connected.

Sometimes it's the people you only know for a short while that you want in your lives forever!

Menu Plan thru January 20, 2013

This week I'm pulling out some recipes I've had book marked.  I'm notorious for printing out recipes that look interesting but then I don't always get to them.  In an effort to be a bit more organized I'm either bookmarking electronically the recipes I like or printing them off, 3 hole punching them and putting them in a fresh purple binder I just bought.  Hopefully this will also help on the weeks I'm running low on inspiration.

Monday-Rachel Ray Sloppy Joe's on Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
Tuesday-Pancakes or Waffles with bacon and fruit
Wednesday-Grilled Cheeseburger Wraps with pears and green bean fries
Thursday-Biscuit Pizza Bake
Friday-Leftovers
Saturday-with family
Sunday-with family

My menu can also be viewed here and here.

Happy Cooking!

Menu Plan thru January 13, 2013

I'm not sure if the fact that we are moving and I'm starting to pack things up has me so distracted....but I had a hard time coming up with a menu this week.  I looked through my cookbooks but nothing was really jumping out at me.  So, this is what I've got....

Monday-Chicken alfredo pasta with peas and asparagus.  We had this last week but there is more than enough ingredients to make another batch.  Waste not...want not!
Tuesday-Pizza with our friends that just had a precious baby girl
Wednesday-Crunchy ranch chicken with green beans and blueberry muffins
Thursday-Semi-homemade chicken noodle soup
Friday-Fried Rice
Saturday-out
Sunday-leftovers

Even though we aren't moving for another 2 months I've got the itch to start packing up everything right NOW!  I know that time will be here fast and I don't want to get caught in the crossfire of moving but not having everything ready to go.  Hopefully, next week will be more inspirational!

Check out other menu plans at here

Happy Cooking!