Strange Weather...

What strange weather we are having here in Kansas City. Yesterday evening I opened all of my windows and enjoyed the fresh air blowing through. I left them open overnight, and soon it started raining. It was PERFECT sleeping weather!!! I still have the windows open, and am enjoying the sound of a lovely (and much needed) thunderstorm. But as you can see..my time with the windows open is limited. At some point today, the temperature is going to start plummeting, and that will be the end of the nice weather for awhile again. But what can we expect? It is still January.

So...why am I home blogging on a Tuesday? Well...the car is still acting up, so it's in the shop (and of course won't do the same thing while the mechanic has it!), and I'm going to be doing some work from home today, in addition to some menu planning a bit later. It's time to figure out what we'll be eating in the first half of February so I can get my list made, as I have to go grocery shopping on Friday evening.

So stay tuned....I'll post my menu plan later today or tomorrow. Hopefully there will be something in there to inspire you, or maybe a new recipe you will want. Who knows? See you soon!

Car Issues

I love my "new" vehicle, which was a generous gift from a family member. I've been driving it since mid-November, and have loved every second of it. With cruise control, a CD player, and a sun-roof, I've felt like I was moving up in the world. LOL!

But late last week it started making a funny noise, and after taking it to the shop found out it needs a few hundred dollars worth of work. Thankfully, the Lord has provided a way to get it taken care of, but it's always a pain in the wallet when vehicles decide to start acting up.

Last night I was grumbling about having to pay to get it worked on, and then realized I was forgetting my blessings. The car was provided during a time when I had absolutely no money, and we were trying to figure out what to do. I've run it for a couple of months now, and if it had to have work done, now's the time to do it, with our tax refund around the corner. If it had broken down any other time of the year, I don't know what we would have done.

All in all, I'm thankful for the vehicle (and the dear folks who gave it to us), and I'm thankful that we will have the means to get it repaired. While it's never good to have car problems, sometimes it's better to just focus on the positive aspects, so that's what I'm choosing to do. I have too much other stress in my life to focus on these things, and I am bound and determined to try to make 2013 a year of focusing on the positive.

Love my hubby!!!

So, first of all....GREETINGS! I'm so sorry that it has been so long since I've posted anything. I was having trouble with my blog, and could never get it figured out, so I finally started using a different browser for my blogging, and VOILA! Here I am...

On Friday I celebrated my 27th birthday. After work, hubby took me to dinner at Cracker Barrel (One of my favorite places! I love to get a salad and baked potato when I go there. Yum!), and then to the movies to see "The Hobbit". After that we came home for sparkling grape juice and presents.

One of the presents that he got me (amongst other things) was this nifty set of Better Homes and Gardens Flip-Tite stackable storage containers.

My pantry is one area where I just can't seem to keep things organized. I'm always digging to the back to get the items I need, and no matter how much I clean it, it's always a mess. ERG! So, he decided to help me out, and get me some storage containers.

Now...4 containers isn't going to get me too far in my organizing...but wow! What space savers! I am going to start investing in a few of these containers at a time. They may cost a little bit initially, but it's going to be great when my pantry is organized!!!

They come in all shapes and sizes. I can't wait to go get more! Flour will go in one...sugar in another. Brown sugar, powdered sugar, coconut, chocolate chips, oatmeal, spaghetti, lasagna noodles....the list is unending.

These are great, because you flip up the handle on top to open them. When done, you replace the lid, snap down the handle, and it creates a suction, keeping all moisture out of the container. You just can't beat that.

That's my newest item in the land of organization. And now, maybe it won't be so long before you hear from me again!

Awesome Fitness Tool!

Ok...so for some reason I'm having trouble putting in pictures. You'll have to forgive my boring pictureless blogs until I can figure out why.

However, I wanted to share my latest find with you, and this one is in the fitness area. There is a website that helps keep track of all of the food you are eating, and counts your calories for you, as well as your weight and measurements and so many other things. It's AWESOME....and so easy to use! The web address is www.myfitnesspal.com. I honestly can't say enough about how great this site is.

It's one thing to know what you're eating, and maybe even keep a food log. But when you see all of the numbers in front of you in black and white...WOW! It makes you sit up and take notice. Once you enter all of your food for the day, it will tell you "If every day were like today you'd weigh XXX in 5 weeks", and reflects whether you would have lost or gained. And it really works to see it. I've lost 5 pounds using it already. On those days you don't do so well, you take notice, and it makes you want to try all the harder the next day.

I thought the hardest part would be remembering to login every day, but I find myself wanting to know how I've done that day, so up to this point at least, that hasn't been a problem.

I would like to get healther in the new year, along with saving some money, and just trying to make a good life even greater. Would you like to join me?

Money Saving Plan

Today I saw a money-saving plan that I really liked and thought may be usable. Because of this, I am going to share it with you.

It's actually very simple. It works on a 52-week basis. Every week you put back the same amount of money for the week that corresponds with it.

For example:
Week 1 - $1.00
Week 2 - $2.00
Week 3 - $3.00
Week 4 - $4.00
Week 5 - $5.00

And so on. On week 52 you put in $52.00.

The monthly break-out is as follows:
January (5 weeks) - $15.00
February (5 weeks) - $40.00
March (5 weeks) - $65.00
April (5 weeks)  - $90.00
May (4 weeks) - $90.00
June (4 weeks) - $106.00
July (4 weeks) - $122.00
August (4 weeks) - $138.00
September (4 weeks) - $154.00
October (4 weeks) - $170.00
November (4 weeks) - $186.00
December (4 weeks) - $202.00

By doing this, you can save a total of $1,378.00 per year! WOW! The hardest weekends are at the end of the year, so I may switch those to the middle of the year so I don't have to deal with that around Christmas and tax time, and put some of the easier weeks towards the end of the year. But what a great idea!!!

Here's another thought...if you use the same model with pennies, on a daily basis instead of a weekly basis, you could still save $668.72. The hardest day would be day #365....a total of $3.65. It's amazing how quickly small amounts add up!

Crock Pot Cabbage Rolls

Thanks for your request for this recipe, Amber R. They are one of my husband's favorites. I hope you enjoy them!

CROCK POT CABBAGE ROLLS
1 large head of cabbage
3/4 cup cooked rice
2 lbs. ground beef
1 egg
1 onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 can tomato soup
1 can (14.5 oz.) tomatoes
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
salt and pepper to taste

Remove whole cabbage leaves from head, and scald in gently boiling water for a few minutes. Remove to clean towels/paper towels to cool and drain. Mix meat, rice, onion, egg, salt and pepper. Place a scant 1/4 cup of meat mixture  into cabbage leaf. Fold in sides and roll. Secure with toothpick and place in crock pot. Repeat until all of mixture is used. Mix tomatoes, soup, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Pour over cabbage rolls. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

I usually serve this with a vegetable (mashed potatoes works well), and a bread. So yummy!

I Love Scentsy!

I've seen Scentsy burners before. All of my in-laws have them in their homes. But I didn't have one.

And then my sister-in-law drew my name for Christmas. She got me this "Lisbon" Scentsy warmer, and several scent bars (the little wax squares that you melt in it). I brought it home and plugged it in. I then threw in a few squares of "Sheer Innocence" wax. The room quickly filled with the scent, and the house has smelled great ever since.

I knew it was doing its job when my 11-year old nephew walked in tonight, and the first words out of his mouth were "Wow! Your house smells GREAT!"

Thanks, Debbie! It was a great Christmas present!

January 1-15 Menu

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! The last year has been full of ups and downs. Because of this, I am excited to start a new one, and am hopeful that it will be a better one, without so many roller coaster moments.

So what does my hand have to do with the new year, or my menu plan? Absolutely nothing. LOL! My sister-in-law got a home gel nail kit for Christmas, so we did our nails today. Supposedly it will last for two weeks. We shall see, as I am pretty hard on my hands.

 

(L-R: Phillip holding Freddie, Preston, Connor, Maddie, Carson and Wally)

Tonight we have 5 of our nephews and one of our nieces here at the house, ranging in age from 9 1/2 months to 11 years. We have been having fun. We had dinner, ate snacks, watched TV...bedtime in 15 minutes!

Ok...Menu...

1/1 - At Mother-in-law's house
1/2 - Chicken with black beans, chips and salsa
1/3 - Tuna patties, mac & cheese, canned potatoes
1/4 - Eat out
1/5 - Crock pot cabbage rolls, peas, bread & butter
1/6 - Leftovers
1/7 - Chicken parmigiana, cream cheese corn, garlic bread
1/8 - Steak, creamed corn, baked potatoes
1/9 - Chicken with wild rice
1/10 - Waffles
1/11 - Eat out for my birthday (Cracker Barrel)
1/12 - Crock pot lasagna, garlic bread
1/13 - Leftovers
1/14 - Taco salad
1/15 - Chicken enchiladas, Mexican rice

If you saw my last menu, you'll see some of the recipes repeated this time. I have to admit that I failed miserably with my last menu plan. With Christmas and New Year's coming up, we were invited to so many places, that many of the nights I wasn't home to cook what was on the menu. So...I already had the ingredients, and they showed up here. This saved me bunches of money with my grocery shopping on New Year's eve.

And by the way...grocery shopping on New Year's eve when it's snowing is NOT a fun time to be out and about. Just saying...

I hope and pray that you all have a wonderful upcoming year. Let's strive to make 2013 the best that it can be!!!