I decided that once again it was time to do some freezer meals! I love doing the prep work beforehand and then just heating it up or putting in the crockpot! The hardest part is deciding what to have and then making sure it doesn't sit in your freezer for months, or get lost in the back - yeah, I found some shredded pork in the bottom of my freezer that I had forgotten about.
Last month, I sat down and decided I was going to commit to freezer meals and get the freezer stocked! I did! And for the most part, I didn't sway from my menu either, except the night we decided to go out and one night was a scout dinner I forgot about, but that's ok. I didn't end up prepping everything for every meal, so I just counted those out. I also had extras from a couple meals that made more meals, which means less prep for me, YAY!
So I wanted to share with you what I did. And the recipes, which most came from the internet, others where just ones that I had in my stash of recipes that are pretty easy. Some are dump meals that just go in a bag to the freezer and then to your crockpot, so easy!
You can also find my instructions for freezer meals and some great recipes on this site! Just look under the freezer meal tab or the recipes tab! So on to the meals!!
First I went through all my recipes and wrote down the ones that my family would like. Then I looked all over the internet and pinterest and found lots of others that I liked. Then I plugged them into a list so I could then put them into a calendar menu. Here is my list:
1. Chicken Burritos
2. Chicken Enchilada Casserole ("Fix it and Forget Cookbook")
3. Teriyaki Chicken
4. Cilantro-lime chicken tacos
5. Crockpot chicken taco chili
6. Crockpot Chicken Philly Cheesesteak
7. Healthy Mamma BBQ Chicken
8. Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken
9. Comforting Chicken and noodles crockpot
10. Honey Teriyaki Chicken
11. Hamburger Stroganoff
12. Cheeseburger Casserole
13. Sloppy Joes
14. Tacos
15. Meatball subs
16. Lasagna
17. Corn, black beans and beef Empanadas (adapted from Cooks Illustrated)
18. Chili
19. Summer Beef
20. Parmesan Garlic Pizza Pasta
21. Freezer to slow cooker Italian Wedding Soup (newleafwellness.biz)
22. Slow cooker Beef Fajitas
23. BBQ pulled pork sandwiches
24. Baked Penne with sausage and creamy ricotta (adapted from Food and Wine)
25. Slow cooker green chili pork tacos
26. Pork Chalupas
27. Chili Verde Tostadas
28. Café Rio Sweet pork burritos
29. Easy Homemade pizza pockets (newleafwellness.biz)
30. Veggie Burgers
31. Mushroom Spinach crockpot Stroganoff (newleafwellness.biz)
This menu worked great, there was just one, the mushroom spinach stroganoff that my family didn't really care for. Some decided they don't like mushrooms, others didn't like that it didn't have meat. I think it really could have used some chicken or something, and about half the amount of mushrooms! Other than that, so far everything we have tried have been good! I will be doing another month of menus and will try to remember to take pictures this time and post the recipes as I go! I hope you found this post informational! Please leave comments and let me know what you think!
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Summer Happenings!
Wow, the summer flew by and we had so much going on! Since I last posted about our little flock; we raised our chicks and still have some in the freezer (homegrown chicken is seriously the best chicken ever! I have never had a fryer chicken that was so juicy!). Our ducks were a little more tricky. We got them big enough to go outside and put them in their enclosure with a little pond and one night the board got taken out of the pond and three died because they couldn't get out of the water. Nope ducks can't live on the water forever! They actually drown.
So we replaced the three ducks with four more and still had two others, totaling 6 ducks! They have been so much fun! The enclosure got too small for them to just stay in all day, so we would put them away at night and let them out during the day to roam. We bought a swimming pool for them to play in and they were having so much fun! They were so much fun to just sit and watch.
The end of May, we received our laying chicks. They have been fun to raise as well. They looked like little caramel corns and were so cute. Now they are big and getting ready to lay eggs. We can't wait for the eggs!
In June, just after having gotten my garden in (32 tomato plants, 17+ peppers, 4 tomatillo plants, 8 okra, a bunch of onions, 72 strawberries, peas and beans), we had an awful hail storm. It hailed golf ball size hail for about 20 minutes. I was afraid our garden was done for. All of our boxes were just flooded. A few days later when we could go out and survey the damage, only a few tomatoes were lost, but most of the peppers were gone. I decided not to replace anything and just see what came of the garden. We were very blessed that most of the tomatoes did great and what peppers we had did great and everything else we planted did really well too!
Along with the hail storm came other damages though. We had some dings in our siding, ruined screens on the windows, but mostly the roof. We were needing to replaces one section of roof anyway because the boards were saggy. I feel that this was a blessing for us because they took care of all of that for us! We didn't have to worry about it. So we now have a new roof and no worries!
We did also have to replace our back deck. We have wanted to since moving in but figured it would be a few years, but then when we walked out on it about a month ago and felt like we were walking on a trampoline, only to find out the support boards were broken and rotted through, we decided to suck it up and do it this year, for safety reasons! We are excited for it though, it will be bigger and stronger than before and we will never have to replace it, hopefully!
So that pretty much catches us up to where we are now and I am starting freezer meals today, so that will be my next post! Have a great day!
So we replaced the three ducks with four more and still had two others, totaling 6 ducks! They have been so much fun! The enclosure got too small for them to just stay in all day, so we would put them away at night and let them out during the day to roam. We bought a swimming pool for them to play in and they were having so much fun! They were so much fun to just sit and watch.
The end of May, we received our laying chicks. They have been fun to raise as well. They looked like little caramel corns and were so cute. Now they are big and getting ready to lay eggs. We can't wait for the eggs!
In June, just after having gotten my garden in (32 tomato plants, 17+ peppers, 4 tomatillo plants, 8 okra, a bunch of onions, 72 strawberries, peas and beans), we had an awful hail storm. It hailed golf ball size hail for about 20 minutes. I was afraid our garden was done for. All of our boxes were just flooded. A few days later when we could go out and survey the damage, only a few tomatoes were lost, but most of the peppers were gone. I decided not to replace anything and just see what came of the garden. We were very blessed that most of the tomatoes did great and what peppers we had did great and everything else we planted did really well too!
Along with the hail storm came other damages though. We had some dings in our siding, ruined screens on the windows, but mostly the roof. We were needing to replaces one section of roof anyway because the boards were saggy. I feel that this was a blessing for us because they took care of all of that for us! We didn't have to worry about it. So we now have a new roof and no worries!
We did also have to replace our back deck. We have wanted to since moving in but figured it would be a few years, but then when we walked out on it about a month ago and felt like we were walking on a trampoline, only to find out the support boards were broken and rotted through, we decided to suck it up and do it this year, for safety reasons! We are excited for it though, it will be bigger and stronger than before and we will never have to replace it, hopefully!
So that pretty much catches us up to where we are now and I am starting freezer meals today, so that will be my next post! Have a great day!
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
So as promised, here is my post about our new little flock! We are super excited to welcome them to our family and to take care of them! They have been the talk of the neighborhood! We love them so much!
So maybe you are wondering what possessed me to ever think of raising chickens and ducks. That's a good question! For a few years now I have wanted to and have talked with my husband about it, but at our last house, we really didn't have much of a place to keep them, unless we cut out half our garden space. I'd rather have more for fruits and veggies than chickens!
Now that we are much more property and have so much more space, we are so very excited to raise these cute things! We decided to get laying chickens and so my mom's friend ordered my mom 20 chickens, but they didn't want that many, so we are getting laying chickens, they will be here in May. In the meantime, we time to the IFA nearest us to look at fertilizer for our lawn and of course as you walk in, they have all their chicks and ducks and turkeys right there. So being excited, I started looking around. I came across the ducks, which are super cute and just fell in love!
Not only are ducks so cute and fun, but there are some that will lay eggs that you can eat! I was even more excited for that! I've never had duck eggs before and am curious if they are as good as everyone says they are. So we bought the supplies to start our ducks and chicks but didn't get ducks, since they only had one layer. That gave us time to come up with how we would take care of them.
The guy at the IFA was very helpful and said to put them in a Rubbermaid type tote. I emptied a tote and started to get it ready. We have a Tractor Supply Company that is much closer to us and we went in there for something, not sure what, but they also had chicks and ducks. They didn't have any laying ducks but would get some in sooner than the IFA, so I went back a few days later when they would get some in. They also had the lights and bulbs cheaper there, so I got some there.
When I went back to get our ducks, I decided that we should get some meat chicks as well as laying chicks so we could have some fresh chickens in our freezer. One thing about the Tractor Supply that I don't know is the same with the IFA, is they require you to buy a minimum amount of birds. Minimum for chicks is 6 and ducks is 2. I wasn't planning to get that many meat chicks, but that just means more meat in the freezer. Plus they were only $2 each to buy and I'm ok with that. Ducks are more, at about $5 each, but the Tractor Supply was less cost on their ducks.
I got a little crazy at this point and was so in love with those ducks that I ended up buying 5! They had 2 layers and then I got 2 Mallards and 1 White Pekin. They are super sweet. The non-layers were about 2 weeks or so old when we got them, but the two layers that just came in, had just hatched! They told me that one still had part of his shell on him when they got him. They are so precious, and I am so in love! It has been fun to see how fast they are growing! I have loved having them so much!
- Our garage has smelled like a farming store!
- Keep their cages and bedding clean so they don't smell so bad!
- Make sure to check food and water morning and night!
- Ducks love water and will splash and play and make a huge watery mess!
- Kids love to hold the little cuties
They have grown so much in the almost week we have had them. We had to move them from the Rubbermaid tote to a larger box, which we were so fortunate to have! My brother in law works for the former governor Huntsman at the airport. They were getting rid of these 3 foot square boxes that used to store and ship landing gear in. He asked if we would want them for anything. I said yes, not really knowing what we would do with them, but figuring we would somehow use them.
When we realized the totes were going to be too small, my husband thought of these and they have worked out perfect! They have plenty of room to run and stretch and then we fashioned these tops from the lid that have hardware wire on them so they can't get out and other animals can't get in. I did have to line the duck box with some plastic under the bedding, since they love to make everything wet and I don't want the wood on the bottom to start splitting and hurt them. Here is what the boxes look like, and my husband also fashioned a thing to hold the lights, since we found out when they are attached to side of the box, it gets much too hot.
Welcome! I am so glad that are joining me on my adventures as a homemaker, backyard farmer, crafter, cook, baker, etc! I am so excited to start this new blog!
I love to talk about myself and what my family are doing. No I'm not conceited or self-centered, quite the opposite in fact. I do feel, however, that I have a lot of useful information to share with others. So here is a little about me so you can get to know me a little better and hopefully learn something from me as well. I love positive comments and hope you leave lots, it's important to build people up, not tear them down!
So, I grew up the oldest of 4 kids. My parents were great and raised us the best they could. I was a normal child that fought with parents and siblings, but we made it through and I'm a much better person because of the influence they all had on me. I love them all so much!
In elementary school and through most of my junior high and high school days, I was teased by others because of how I looked. It was hard during those years but those times made me stronger and now I teach my kids that that is just not right! No one should be teased because of how they look! We are all created by a loving God who made us just the way we are supposed to be and we need to embrace that!
My family was there through a lot of hard times, like the teasing, break ups and bad grades, and also during the good and fun times, like marching band competitions and dating and of course my wedding! Which brings me to:
I am a wife of 15+ years to an amazing man who treats me like a queen and has given me so much in that amount of time! He is a full-time programmer for a great company that he loves, that allows me to stay home with our kids. When we met I was going to cosmetology school to cut hair. I love this industry so much and I'm so glad I have this background! I was able to put my husband through college cutting hair, which didn't pay much at all, even at full time, but we were fine being poor and learned to get by. Plus I haven't paid for a haircut much in that time, and my family never has had to.
While my husband was in college, We had three kids. The oldest was born a couple years after we were married. He has been a good kid, but very strong willed and likes things his way. The second and third were born together, yep they are twins, which is a great story I should tell sometime. They were nine weeks early and a lot of work, but I wouldn't trade them for anything, they are great!
About 5 months after the twins were born, my hubby graduated from college and began working more full time. We moved closer to his job and by that summer were pregnant again. We decided we needed to make a more permanent move and bought a home. Our fourth son was born the next January. Having four boys was not our plan, but we don't run on our own plans, God is always in charge!
But we did wait for a while to have anymore kids, since we had four boys in 4 years! Four years after having our last son though, we welcomed a beautiful little princess to our family who is our pride and joy! It was so much fun having pink and purple instead of blue and green! Don't get me wrong, I love my boys dearly, but there is just something about having a girl!
So we stayed in our house there for 10 years and decided since our boys were getting so big, we needed to move to a larger home and try to get a little more property. We were able to move last summer to a wonderful place that we love and have never been happier! The neighborhood is great, the schools are great, and my kids love that we have lots of kids close by to play with! We couldn't have asked for better!
Which brings me to now. We are very excited to have made it through the Utah winter and are very much looking forward to gardening and especially some new chickens and ducks we are going to raise. We are so excited!! My next post will be about our new little flock, so I won't write much here, just know I can't wait till they are bigger! We are also building garden boxes from scratch and I'm excited to share those with you as well, they don't look like many I've seen anywhere, It's all my hubbys design and thinking and we can't wait till it's all done!
So in a very small nutshell, that is me and what adventures we are pursuing in the near future, so come back often and see what I've been working on lately. There is always something, promise!
I love to talk about myself and what my family are doing. No I'm not conceited or self-centered, quite the opposite in fact. I do feel, however, that I have a lot of useful information to share with others. So here is a little about me so you can get to know me a little better and hopefully learn something from me as well. I love positive comments and hope you leave lots, it's important to build people up, not tear them down!
So, I grew up the oldest of 4 kids. My parents were great and raised us the best they could. I was a normal child that fought with parents and siblings, but we made it through and I'm a much better person because of the influence they all had on me. I love them all so much!
In elementary school and through most of my junior high and high school days, I was teased by others because of how I looked. It was hard during those years but those times made me stronger and now I teach my kids that that is just not right! No one should be teased because of how they look! We are all created by a loving God who made us just the way we are supposed to be and we need to embrace that!
My family was there through a lot of hard times, like the teasing, break ups and bad grades, and also during the good and fun times, like marching band competitions and dating and of course my wedding! Which brings me to:
I am a wife of 15+ years to an amazing man who treats me like a queen and has given me so much in that amount of time! He is a full-time programmer for a great company that he loves, that allows me to stay home with our kids. When we met I was going to cosmetology school to cut hair. I love this industry so much and I'm so glad I have this background! I was able to put my husband through college cutting hair, which didn't pay much at all, even at full time, but we were fine being poor and learned to get by. Plus I haven't paid for a haircut much in that time, and my family never has had to.
While my husband was in college, We had three kids. The oldest was born a couple years after we were married. He has been a good kid, but very strong willed and likes things his way. The second and third were born together, yep they are twins, which is a great story I should tell sometime. They were nine weeks early and a lot of work, but I wouldn't trade them for anything, they are great!
About 5 months after the twins were born, my hubby graduated from college and began working more full time. We moved closer to his job and by that summer were pregnant again. We decided we needed to make a more permanent move and bought a home. Our fourth son was born the next January. Having four boys was not our plan, but we don't run on our own plans, God is always in charge!
But we did wait for a while to have anymore kids, since we had four boys in 4 years! Four years after having our last son though, we welcomed a beautiful little princess to our family who is our pride and joy! It was so much fun having pink and purple instead of blue and green! Don't get me wrong, I love my boys dearly, but there is just something about having a girl!
So we stayed in our house there for 10 years and decided since our boys were getting so big, we needed to move to a larger home and try to get a little more property. We were able to move last summer to a wonderful place that we love and have never been happier! The neighborhood is great, the schools are great, and my kids love that we have lots of kids close by to play with! We couldn't have asked for better!
Which brings me to now. We are very excited to have made it through the Utah winter and are very much looking forward to gardening and especially some new chickens and ducks we are going to raise. We are so excited!! My next post will be about our new little flock, so I won't write much here, just know I can't wait till they are bigger! We are also building garden boxes from scratch and I'm excited to share those with you as well, they don't look like many I've seen anywhere, It's all my hubbys design and thinking and we can't wait till it's all done!
So in a very small nutshell, that is me and what adventures we are pursuing in the near future, so come back often and see what I've been working on lately. There is always something, promise!
Friday, February 12, 2016
Pay Day!!
Does anyone love pay day as much as I do? Probably so, but I think I get the most excited! Most people get a pay check every other week, or twice a month, or some even get paid weekly or daily. In our home, we get a pay check once a month, in the middle of the month.
It has been a hard adjustment for us, but for 11 years now, we have lived this way. I get all my grocery money and spending money in one lump sum instead of breaking it up over a couple times. I have really learned to have to plan what that money goes to.
Our grocery budget right now is $450. That has to buy all food and non food necessities like toilet paper, paper towels, shampoo and soap, etc. At times I don't feel like this money stretches as far as I would like it to, but I also have a great supply of food storage and toothpaste that I won't run out anytime soon.
I shop with coupons a lot as well and that helps me to stretch my money farther. So today, I will sit down with my calendar for the month, put in my menu plan for the month, my grocery list for each week, and then decide what other things I need, like fruits, veggies, shampoo and deodorant and see what things I can get on sale.
I also want to do some freezer meals and items this month, so I need to decide what things I need to buy for that and put them into my menu as well. Freezer burritos on the top of the list this month, as well as things for Saturday and Sunday lunches that sometimes we can't seem to figure out, as well as things for snacks for my kids.
Have you ever made something that you eat one and just can't get enough of it so you have to have just one more and one more? Brownies are my biggest downfall in this area, but I also love a good muffin! And not just for breakfast! And more than that, I love homemade muffins! I will also take one from Maverik but I hate to spend the money sometimes.
Today I'm going to share a couple of muffin recipes that are my favorites, I have so many, but a couple are always my go to and these also freeze great! I will usually double my recipe and then put the leftovers in the freezer where my kids can have one another day and my hubby will also grab a couple and take to work to have as a snack.
My all time go to muffin recipe, because it is super easy and I usually have everything on hand, is Poppy seed mini muffins. I love these because I can make them lemon or almond flavored and they are so moist and yummy!
My other favorite, that I haven't made in a long time, takes a few more ingredients, but it is a great bran muffin that is light and super yummy is the Mormon Muffin. If you are ever in Ogden Utah and need a yummy place for lunch, go to the Greenery Restraunt. It is at the mouth of Ogden canyon and has very yummy food and is well known for their Mormon Muffin with honey butter. I got this recipe years ago from a friend and have made it a few times. I do not know for sure if this is the actual recipe or just one that someone made up themselves. In any case, it makes a huge batch and they are so good!
What kind of muffins do you like? I'm just sharing these two today, but have others like banana muffins and pumpkin muffins that I will share at a later time.
Poppy Seed Mini Muffins
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 TBS poppy seeds
2 TBS milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. lemon or almond extract
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt; set aside. Combine remaining ingredients, mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill greased mini muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 400* for 12-15 minutes. Makes 3 1/2 doz.
I usually make these normal size and double recipe and bake about 15 minutes. Minis I usually cook about 10 minutes.
Mormon Muffins
Muffin mix must sit in fridge overnight before baking. Muffin mix will last one week, covered and refrigerated. Makes 6 dozen regular size tin cups or 3 dozen large tin cups.
2 cups boiling water
5 tsp. baking soda
1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 quart buttermilk
5 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
4 cups All bran cereal
2 cups 40% bran flakes
1 cup chopped walnuts
Add soda to boiling water and set aside. Whip shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, add eggs slowly. Mix well. Add buttermilk, flour, salt and mix again. Add soda water very slowly. Gently fold in cereals and walnuts. Let sit in fridge over night. Spoon 1/8 cup into greased muffin tins. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes. You can freeze baked muffins.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we do. Now I am off to get my menu ready for the month and get my shopping list done for the week. Have a great day!
It has been a hard adjustment for us, but for 11 years now, we have lived this way. I get all my grocery money and spending money in one lump sum instead of breaking it up over a couple times. I have really learned to have to plan what that money goes to.
Our grocery budget right now is $450. That has to buy all food and non food necessities like toilet paper, paper towels, shampoo and soap, etc. At times I don't feel like this money stretches as far as I would like it to, but I also have a great supply of food storage and toothpaste that I won't run out anytime soon.
I shop with coupons a lot as well and that helps me to stretch my money farther. So today, I will sit down with my calendar for the month, put in my menu plan for the month, my grocery list for each week, and then decide what other things I need, like fruits, veggies, shampoo and deodorant and see what things I can get on sale.
I also want to do some freezer meals and items this month, so I need to decide what things I need to buy for that and put them into my menu as well. Freezer burritos on the top of the list this month, as well as things for Saturday and Sunday lunches that sometimes we can't seem to figure out, as well as things for snacks for my kids.
Have you ever made something that you eat one and just can't get enough of it so you have to have just one more and one more? Brownies are my biggest downfall in this area, but I also love a good muffin! And not just for breakfast! And more than that, I love homemade muffins! I will also take one from Maverik but I hate to spend the money sometimes.
Today I'm going to share a couple of muffin recipes that are my favorites, I have so many, but a couple are always my go to and these also freeze great! I will usually double my recipe and then put the leftovers in the freezer where my kids can have one another day and my hubby will also grab a couple and take to work to have as a snack.
My all time go to muffin recipe, because it is super easy and I usually have everything on hand, is Poppy seed mini muffins. I love these because I can make them lemon or almond flavored and they are so moist and yummy!
My other favorite, that I haven't made in a long time, takes a few more ingredients, but it is a great bran muffin that is light and super yummy is the Mormon Muffin. If you are ever in Ogden Utah and need a yummy place for lunch, go to the Greenery Restraunt. It is at the mouth of Ogden canyon and has very yummy food and is well known for their Mormon Muffin with honey butter. I got this recipe years ago from a friend and have made it a few times. I do not know for sure if this is the actual recipe or just one that someone made up themselves. In any case, it makes a huge batch and they are so good!
What kind of muffins do you like? I'm just sharing these two today, but have others like banana muffins and pumpkin muffins that I will share at a later time.
Poppy Seed Mini Muffins
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 TBS poppy seeds
2 TBS milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. lemon or almond extract
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt; set aside. Combine remaining ingredients, mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill greased mini muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 400* for 12-15 minutes. Makes 3 1/2 doz.
I usually make these normal size and double recipe and bake about 15 minutes. Minis I usually cook about 10 minutes.
Mormon Muffins
Muffin mix must sit in fridge overnight before baking. Muffin mix will last one week, covered and refrigerated. Makes 6 dozen regular size tin cups or 3 dozen large tin cups.
2 cups boiling water
5 tsp. baking soda
1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 quart buttermilk
5 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
4 cups All bran cereal
2 cups 40% bran flakes
1 cup chopped walnuts
Add soda to boiling water and set aside. Whip shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, add eggs slowly. Mix well. Add buttermilk, flour, salt and mix again. Add soda water very slowly. Gently fold in cereals and walnuts. Let sit in fridge over night. Spoon 1/8 cup into greased muffin tins. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes. You can freeze baked muffins.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we do. Now I am off to get my menu ready for the month and get my shopping list done for the week. Have a great day!
Thursday, February 11, 2016
I know I didn't blog yesterday. First I just couldn't think of anything to blog about, and second I just couldn't bring myself to do much of anything yesterday.
I don't know why I have those days where I do almost nothing. My Type 1 nature is so not like that! I should be bright and vibrant and busy all the time, but every now and then I have a gloomy day.
I don't have depression or anything like that, but yesterday I just had emotions so close to the surface I didn't know how to feel. I don't know what emotions I was feeling either. I can't describe exactly what I was feeling or going through.
I did get some cross-stitching done and some TV watched, but not much else. I tend to eat my feelings as well, and luckily what sounded good was a salad from Costa Vida and a caffeinated drink from my favorite drink place, which isn't so bad, but the fact that I was feeling so low, I took it.
Maybe that's all I really needed was a good lunch, but even after my kids got home from school, I was still feeling low. At those times I really don't want to do anything, and we did left overs and fried eggs and toast for dinner.
Once my hubby came home, I was starting to come out of my cloud and seeing him go right to work with things around the house that need to be done, gave me a little energy and I was able to clean and vacuum my room, which was really needing to be done. I felt a little better knowing that that room was at least clean, since when I stitch, it's usually on the couch in my bedroom.
I can't decide if this is just the weather getting me down, we did have a few days of sunny and nice weather and now we are back to foggy and drab, or if there is something really wrong with me.
I read a post from someone that was shared on Facebook and it really hit home, especially about how I feel. It was mostly on depression and anxiety, but it also talked about when you just don't feel happy. I think this is the stage I'm in. I have just not felt happy.
Maybe it's because I feel like I fight with my kids every waking hour of the day, or because everything is my fault and they're not afraid to tell me so. Or maybe it's just my own insecurities about life and my calling and all the new people I have and need to meet, and try to remember their names. Or maybe it's that one person I'm concerned I offended by a comment that was not at all geared to her or said to offend anyone, but I'm still afraid it may have. Or maybe it's that I'm stuck at home all day not feeling like I contribute much to the family other than cooking and cleaning. Or being sad that in our move here, I have lost some great clients and friends that I miss so much. Or maybe it's just that I'm not living my truth and need to again to feel happy and love my body now, not 30 pounds ago.
Whatever the reason, I also have a choice in this matter! I can continue to have a pity party and stay in this slump I'm in, or I can get up and choose to live life!
Satan would have me continue on in my pity party hour after hour and day after day, but I need to make that choice to not let him in my life! I would much rather take the light over the dark and that's just what he is is darkness.
I need to look beyond myself and focus on others. How can I serve my kids, my husband, those I serve with, those I live near, those I miss and love so much, my extended family, friends I haven't seen in a while, etc? How can I reach beyond myself to touch others with the light of Christ that I know is in me, but on those darker days is harder to see?
We all have choices! What to wear, what to eat, what to drive, where to live, who to associate with, how to worship, who to love, forgiveness or not, repentance or not, service or not.
What will you choose?
I read this yesterday and on a day like yesterday, it hit me hard:
"Living for the sake of other, makes us most beautiful in the sight of God!"
Service and kindness and love for others is what matters most in this life! "When we are in the service of our fellow beings, we are only in the service of our God" (Mosiah 2:17). Who better to love and serve than God! And it is through our service and love of others that is achieved.
So on that day that I am feeling in a slump, I will serve and love more. Serve and love my family, the sisters I serve, the friends I have, those I see only occasionally, my neighbors, those with different beliefs than mine, those that I may disagree with.
I can serve everyone in even the smallest of ways: a phone call, a plate of cookies, a loaf of bread, a smile, a compliment, and in so doing, I am serving God, whom I love dearly, for He has blessed me with everything that I have, and will have, and I see his guiding hand in my life and I'm grateful!
We all have choices, I pray that we will make the right ones that keep us safe, and help us love and serve those around us!
I don't know why I have those days where I do almost nothing. My Type 1 nature is so not like that! I should be bright and vibrant and busy all the time, but every now and then I have a gloomy day.
I don't have depression or anything like that, but yesterday I just had emotions so close to the surface I didn't know how to feel. I don't know what emotions I was feeling either. I can't describe exactly what I was feeling or going through.
I did get some cross-stitching done and some TV watched, but not much else. I tend to eat my feelings as well, and luckily what sounded good was a salad from Costa Vida and a caffeinated drink from my favorite drink place, which isn't so bad, but the fact that I was feeling so low, I took it.
Maybe that's all I really needed was a good lunch, but even after my kids got home from school, I was still feeling low. At those times I really don't want to do anything, and we did left overs and fried eggs and toast for dinner.
Once my hubby came home, I was starting to come out of my cloud and seeing him go right to work with things around the house that need to be done, gave me a little energy and I was able to clean and vacuum my room, which was really needing to be done. I felt a little better knowing that that room was at least clean, since when I stitch, it's usually on the couch in my bedroom.
I can't decide if this is just the weather getting me down, we did have a few days of sunny and nice weather and now we are back to foggy and drab, or if there is something really wrong with me.
I read a post from someone that was shared on Facebook and it really hit home, especially about how I feel. It was mostly on depression and anxiety, but it also talked about when you just don't feel happy. I think this is the stage I'm in. I have just not felt happy.
Maybe it's because I feel like I fight with my kids every waking hour of the day, or because everything is my fault and they're not afraid to tell me so. Or maybe it's just my own insecurities about life and my calling and all the new people I have and need to meet, and try to remember their names. Or maybe it's that one person I'm concerned I offended by a comment that was not at all geared to her or said to offend anyone, but I'm still afraid it may have. Or maybe it's that I'm stuck at home all day not feeling like I contribute much to the family other than cooking and cleaning. Or being sad that in our move here, I have lost some great clients and friends that I miss so much. Or maybe it's just that I'm not living my truth and need to again to feel happy and love my body now, not 30 pounds ago.
Whatever the reason, I also have a choice in this matter! I can continue to have a pity party and stay in this slump I'm in, or I can get up and choose to live life!
Satan would have me continue on in my pity party hour after hour and day after day, but I need to make that choice to not let him in my life! I would much rather take the light over the dark and that's just what he is is darkness.
I need to look beyond myself and focus on others. How can I serve my kids, my husband, those I serve with, those I live near, those I miss and love so much, my extended family, friends I haven't seen in a while, etc? How can I reach beyond myself to touch others with the light of Christ that I know is in me, but on those darker days is harder to see?
We all have choices! What to wear, what to eat, what to drive, where to live, who to associate with, how to worship, who to love, forgiveness or not, repentance or not, service or not.
What will you choose?
I read this yesterday and on a day like yesterday, it hit me hard:
"Living for the sake of other, makes us most beautiful in the sight of God!"
Service and kindness and love for others is what matters most in this life! "When we are in the service of our fellow beings, we are only in the service of our God" (Mosiah 2:17). Who better to love and serve than God! And it is through our service and love of others that is achieved.
So on that day that I am feeling in a slump, I will serve and love more. Serve and love my family, the sisters I serve, the friends I have, those I see only occasionally, my neighbors, those with different beliefs than mine, those that I may disagree with.
I can serve everyone in even the smallest of ways: a phone call, a plate of cookies, a loaf of bread, a smile, a compliment, and in so doing, I am serving God, whom I love dearly, for He has blessed me with everything that I have, and will have, and I see his guiding hand in my life and I'm grateful!
We all have choices, I pray that we will make the right ones that keep us safe, and help us love and serve those around us!
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Beans, beans, the magical fruit!
Yep they sure are, in more ways than one! I have cooked with beans for a long time and love beans! I'm talking those dried beans that you can buy in the Hispanic food isle. Or the ones in cans are fine too. Pinto, black, red, pink, white, cannellini, garbanzo, kidney, etc.
Beans are so healthy for you! Not only are they a great source of protein, but they have half the fiber that you need for one day! They also have antioxidants, are low in sugar and are great for weight loss and insulin!! Does sound like a magical fruit, doesn't it?!
I realize for some people it's hard to cook your own beans, that's why they have canned beans that are already cooked for you, just open the can and rinse and put in whatever you want. Just be careful when choosing your canned beans. Some companies will add sugar or excess amounts of salt to make them taste better.
Sometimes I will just grab a can of beans for a meal when I don't have time to cook my own. Especially refried beans for burritos or 7 layer dip. I did notice yesterday when I opened a can of refried black beans that I didn't look at the label for, that it had more than just beans and salt, it had lard and partially hydrogenated lard! The latter ingredient is so not good for you! I was just a little upset! Why did my super healthy beans need to have such awful ingredients in it? Sometimes I don't understand why they have to do that!
Years ago when we were very poor, we couldn't afford meat very often. I didn't know how to stretch food very well as our family grew. My husband, on the other hand, was awesome! He would just say, throw a can of beans in it. I thought that was kind of weird, but the more I did it, the more we grew to love beans. We would have stroganoff with kidney beans, which sounds weird but is actually really pretty good!
Now I don't use beans quite as much, but I do still use only one pound of ground hamburger or turkey, or in our case now, ground elk, and add things to it to stretch it. I can feed all 7 of us on one pound of ground meat, mixed with rehydrated refried beans and some taco seasoning. This is how I make tacos. I always stretch it with beans of some kind.
Fresh refried beans are some of my favorite! We got an easy recipe from a friend years ago that I use often still. I usually double this recipe and freeze whatever I don't use for another meal. Here is the recipe I usually use:
Refried beans
1 cup pinto beans
1/4 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
3 TBS oil
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Wash beans thoroughly, remove any rocks or twigs. place in deep pot with 3 cups water. bring to a boil and slowly add baking soda to "de-gas" beans. Remove from heat, skim off foam, cover and let stand in liquid 1 hour.
Add 2 more cups water to beans. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring once, until beans are tender. Save 1 1/2 cups bean liquid for use during mashing. Heat 3 TBS oil in skillet over medium heat. Add cooked beans and 1 1/2 cups retained bean liquid. Add 1 tsp. salt and 3/4 cup cheese. Mash until smooth and cook until liquid is mostly absorbed. Serve warm topped with 1/4 cup cheese.
Really easy recipe, but plan about 3 hours start to finish. I don't usually mash these beans, I have, but don't usually. I will just cook them and then scoop them out into quart size freezer bags and freeze for when I need them later. Or we will use them right away for chicken burritos. I will either leave them whole or mash them right on the tortilla if I don't want them whole. They work out great!
I also use this recipe for other types of beans as well. I have done black, kidney and pink beans as well and they all turned out great!
I also love soups and chili with beans! There are so many ways to use beans! Do you have any favorite bean recipes? Share yours with us!
Beans are so healthy for you! Not only are they a great source of protein, but they have half the fiber that you need for one day! They also have antioxidants, are low in sugar and are great for weight loss and insulin!! Does sound like a magical fruit, doesn't it?!
I realize for some people it's hard to cook your own beans, that's why they have canned beans that are already cooked for you, just open the can and rinse and put in whatever you want. Just be careful when choosing your canned beans. Some companies will add sugar or excess amounts of salt to make them taste better.
Sometimes I will just grab a can of beans for a meal when I don't have time to cook my own. Especially refried beans for burritos or 7 layer dip. I did notice yesterday when I opened a can of refried black beans that I didn't look at the label for, that it had more than just beans and salt, it had lard and partially hydrogenated lard! The latter ingredient is so not good for you! I was just a little upset! Why did my super healthy beans need to have such awful ingredients in it? Sometimes I don't understand why they have to do that!
Years ago when we were very poor, we couldn't afford meat very often. I didn't know how to stretch food very well as our family grew. My husband, on the other hand, was awesome! He would just say, throw a can of beans in it. I thought that was kind of weird, but the more I did it, the more we grew to love beans. We would have stroganoff with kidney beans, which sounds weird but is actually really pretty good!
Now I don't use beans quite as much, but I do still use only one pound of ground hamburger or turkey, or in our case now, ground elk, and add things to it to stretch it. I can feed all 7 of us on one pound of ground meat, mixed with rehydrated refried beans and some taco seasoning. This is how I make tacos. I always stretch it with beans of some kind.
Fresh refried beans are some of my favorite! We got an easy recipe from a friend years ago that I use often still. I usually double this recipe and freeze whatever I don't use for another meal. Here is the recipe I usually use:
Refried beans
1 cup pinto beans
1/4 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
3 TBS oil
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Wash beans thoroughly, remove any rocks or twigs. place in deep pot with 3 cups water. bring to a boil and slowly add baking soda to "de-gas" beans. Remove from heat, skim off foam, cover and let stand in liquid 1 hour.
Add 2 more cups water to beans. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring once, until beans are tender. Save 1 1/2 cups bean liquid for use during mashing. Heat 3 TBS oil in skillet over medium heat. Add cooked beans and 1 1/2 cups retained bean liquid. Add 1 tsp. salt and 3/4 cup cheese. Mash until smooth and cook until liquid is mostly absorbed. Serve warm topped with 1/4 cup cheese.
Really easy recipe, but plan about 3 hours start to finish. I don't usually mash these beans, I have, but don't usually. I will just cook them and then scoop them out into quart size freezer bags and freeze for when I need them later. Or we will use them right away for chicken burritos. I will either leave them whole or mash them right on the tortilla if I don't want them whole. They work out great!
I also use this recipe for other types of beans as well. I have done black, kidney and pink beans as well and they all turned out great!
I also love soups and chili with beans! There are so many ways to use beans! Do you have any favorite bean recipes? Share yours with us!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)