Deck the Halls

A little late, story of my life lately, here are some pics of our house all decorated for the season.

Elf, DJ Ginger, up to no good

Back-Up.... Getting ready for Florida

Before going on our family trip to Florida, in November, Mike wanted to rotate the tires on the van. The boys thought it would be fun to help! These are the types of moments I look forward to my boys having with their daddy. It is important to me that they learn all he knows about cars and tools. So they can be just as handy for their future spouse as he is.

"Walk a little slower, Daddy,"
said a child so small.
"I'm following in your footsteps
and I don't want to fall.

Sometimes your steps are very fast,
Sometimes they're hard to see;
So walk a little slower, Daddy,
For you are leading me.

Someday when I'm all grown up,
You're what I want to be;
Then I will have a little child
Who'll want to follow me.

And I would want to lead just right,
And know that I was true;
So, walk a little slower, Daddy,
For I must follow you." 

Meal Planning Monday

Monday- Tuna and Noodles with peas

Tuesday- Citrus Chicken and sweet potatoes in the Crock pot

Wednesday- Hamburgers, Fries and beans (missing summer already)

Thursday- Fried Rice and egg rolls

Friday- Homemade Cinnamon Rolls and Scrambled Eggs

Saturday- Carlos O'Kelly's?

Absence .... Halloween post

I need to go back in time and play catch-up. I want to document these moments. So bare with me as I get caught up from a little blog hiatus.

Halloween 2011

Our pumpkins this year consisted of 2 spongebobs, plankton,  baby with a nukie, and polka-dots. Everyone rolled their sleeves up and dug out the guts!

Trick-or-treating was short this year, Gabby and Jayden had enough after about 30-45 mins. Dexter would have loved to continue, but was out voted. This year Dexter was Dracula (which as you can see from the photos he really got into it!) Gabby was a "Funky Vampire".... no surprise this is her personality. And finally Mr. Jayden lightyear.

Thanks to Pinterest,  we had new decorations this year. The kids helped me make faces on milk jugs to put in our flower beds.

Finally, Our favorite treat on Halloweeen..... Paper Bag Carmel Corn

This carmel corn is an great mixture of sweet and salty, yet it melts in your mouth.

1/4 cup corn syrup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 bag puff corn

1 brown paper grocery bag

Combine corn syrup, brown sugar, margarine, and salt in a bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes, stir, cook again for 1 minute, stir, then 1 minute more. Add baking soda and vanilla. Place puff corn in brown paper bag, pour syrup mixture over corn and shake to mix. Place bag in microwave and cook for 1 1/2 minutes, shake, cook for 45 seconds, shake again, cook 45 more seconds, shake one last time then spread onto wax paper to cool. 

Bacon Ranch Chicken

This was on the menu last week, and is the second time I have made it since I found it on Pinterest. Bacon Ranch Chicken is a great crock pot meal. I always love this type of meal, because it makes my house smell great and all I have to do is cook some pasta and supper is ready! The last time I made this I didn't have a Ranch dressing packet. So instead I used 1/2 cup of ranch dressing. I liked it this way better, because it made a "soupier" sauce for the noodles.


Bacon Ranch Slowcooker Chicken
4 Servings

2 butterball turkey bacon strips, cooked and shredded
1 tsp minced garlic
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 10.75 oz can condensed cream of chicken soup (98% fat free)
1 cup fat-free sour cream
16 oz. chicken breasts
8 oz. pasta

Combine the first five ingredients. Place chicken in slowcooker and pour sauce over the top. Cook on high for 3.5 hours. Serve over hot noodles.

Nutritional Information: 456 calories, 61 carbs, 5 fat grams and 36 protein grams.

Meal Planning Monday

Monday- Tortellini Toss (Pampered Chef Recipe)
Tuesday- Eat out... HyVee Kids Night
Wednesday- Beef and Broccoli w/ egg rolls
Thursday- Brown Sugar Chicken (crock pot meal)
Friday- Tuna and Noodles... didn't make last week
Saturday- Homemade pizza with beer crust
Sunday- Meatloaf, cheesy tatos, and corn casserole

And lastly.... I will leave you with a little halloween preview..... Dex-ula!

Wordless Wednesday

Our first family trip to the pumpkin patch...                     

Meal Planning Monday

Well actually I tend to do this on friday, but here is what we are having this upcoming week...

Monday- Pomegranate Chipotle Pork Chops and Sweet Potatoes on the grill

Tuesday- BBQ Chicken Salads

Wednesday- Bacon Ranch Chicken

Thursday- Hot Beef Sandwiches... although I cheat and buy roast beef lunch meat so I just have to make mashed potatoes!

Friday- Tuna and Noodles

Saturday- Soup Bar- featuring Minestrone, Chicken Noodle, and Potato (Mike's family will be over!)

Sunday- Pumpkin Pancakes with Cinnamon Syrup- this was a new find on Pinterest this week.

I am going to try and share our menu every week. I like checking other peoples menus out, because it helps give me ideas for my own. So, hopefully this will give some inspiration to some of you. As always if we try something new I will review it on here!

Somewhere Near Cloud 9 - Mike's Guest Blog

Today I had the pleasure of redeeming my Father's Day gift - a 1-hour Discovery Flight Lesson courtesy of Exec 1 Aviation in Ankeny.  Yes, it was an epic procrastination scenario, as I was within 10 days of it expiring.  Not all of that was my fault - apparently there's a direct linkage between my schedule and the Earth's wind fields, as I had to reschedule several times because of high winds.  But at 10:00 this morning Gabby and I met up with our pilot, Colin Hansen, for a truly amazing experience.

Colin and Me, checking tires and brakes.

Colin, our pilot.

Much to my surprise, this was an all-out lesson from the ground up, literally.  Colin and I went through the entire pre-flight checks - flaps, wings, brakes, tires, cables, pins, fuel, and oil just to name a few.  I got a crash course (poor choice in words, I know) on the buffet of dials, switches, and gauges on the dashboard.  I probably learned more on the ground than I did in the air, but this was a lesson, after all.  We got our headsets on, ran a couple small checks, and we were ready for some air.

Or not...you can't just take off, because we need to taxi down to the runway first!  This was my first opportunity to actually take control of the aircraft.  Colin got us to what I would consider the least-dangerous stretch of taxi way, throttle set, and told me to steer it down.  I will admit I didn't think my first experience controlling an aircraft would be driving it on the ground.  It was harder than you'd think especially since the winds were picking up.  You control the steering with your feet, using a combination of the smaller rear wings and the brakes.  Colin said I did better than he did his first time.  He makes it all look so easy, so I can't help but think those were just some encouraging words.  And they were.

 

Ok, now we can take off.  One's departure from the ground is, in my opinion, one of the most wonderful feelings in the world.  It makes you want to sing praise to the atmosphere and the Wright brothers.  It didn't take long to climb to our cruising altitude, and before I knew it Colin had us pointed towards our house.

What's it like up there?  Well, it's a lot like looking at Google Earth while sitting on a cardboard box full of bees.  Everything seems so tiny and insignificant, and the motor's humming is remarkably soothing to a gearhead like me.  I've always had a solid sense of direction, but even that was a little skewed by the absence of familiar landmarks at eye-level.  Gabby certainly did her duty of snapping pictures of our surroundings.  Bravo to my little photographer!

My next opportunity to control the aircraft came somewhere near Saylorville Lake - Good call by Mr. Hansen, as not only was it very beautiful, it was also unpopulated.  He let me get a feel for banking, climbing, and keeping it pointed in a somewhat Westerly direction.  It was surprisingly simple to maneuver, despite the winds.  I was also rather surprised to learn that the plane would keep its banking under a calm-wind situation, even after you let go of the wheel (opposite of what a car would do).  The hardest part of the whole deal is trying to pay attention to the dozen gauges on the dashboard and enjoy your surroundings at the same time, but pilots don't get paid to enjoy their surroundings now do they?

We looped back around the north side of town, and headed back to the airport.  Colin flew past the airport and turned around to land.  His training and wisdom both kicked in here, as landing into the wind is far better than having a tail wind.  Landing is both exciting and also a moment where you mentally try to remember if your will is up-to-date.  It feels like 99% luck, and 1% pilot control.  But in Colin's hands, it was absolutely flawless.  Gabby had a permanent smile.  This was a very positive experience for her.

After shutting down the engine, unbelting, and exiting the aircraft, Colin snapped a couple pictures of his crew.

This gift was remarkable - a wonderful pick from Angela, Gabby, Jayden and Dexter.  I was happy to have had a great pilot, compliant weather, a safe airplane, and someone to enjoy it with me.  Thank you to my family, thank you to Colin, and thank you to Exec 1 Aviation for offering this opportunity to the community.  It's the closest I've been to Cloud 9 in awhile.

Loving Piano

Gabby started taking piano lessons at the beginning of the school year with a wonderful family friend. From the beginning she loved to practice she would play for anyone she could. I believe she has even been able to memorize the songs she has been given each week. Gabby has definitely amazed me in her ability to play thus far. She astounded me even further this weekend after her brothers soccer game when she played "Twinkle Twinkle" on a set of chimes on the playground. So, of course being the proud mama I am I to take video to share!

Thanks, Pam for being such a wonderful teacher! Gabby looks forward to piano lessons each week!!!

Being Prepared

We tend to make lots of visits back home to see our families and in these travels you never know what could happen... especially when you have kids. It always seemed as though we would get to our destination and low and behold someone would have a fever, or a cough, or allergies... and I wouldn't be prepared. I never remember or think to pack medicines for the kids if they don't have the symptoms before we leave.

Well.... that was before, now I am smarter wiser! I now keep this lunch box packed with all kids medicines. Allergy, Pain, Tummy medicines.... pretty much anything/everything the kids use. This box sits in the closet and if we need something it is always in the same spot and then when we leave I just have to grab one thing! This has made my life easier and now I am always prepared!

Oatmeal Scotchie Cookie Dough

Yes, this is safe to eat cookie dough! Eat it by the spoon full, use it as a dip, or make into truffles (which I will do at a later date). I have always LOVED making Oatmeal Scotchie cookies, and yes I would eat some of the dough. So I figured there had to be a way to make a safe to eat version. 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup flour

1/2 cup oats

up to 4 teaspoons water

1 cup butterscotch chips

Mix first 6 ingredients together. Then add water a teaspoon at a time until it reaches desired consistency. Finally add in chips. 

ENJOY!!!!

Make Lunch Interesting...

Well.... i'm trying to anyway!

Before school started I looked online for lunch ideas. My kids don't like the typical cold meat sandwiches, and PB&J is out due to allergies at school. I also don't want to spend a fortune on Lunchables. So one idea I saw was to make kabobs.

I bought a package of diced ham and a package of striped cheese sticks (the kids' favorites). I found reusable plastic toothpicks at the dollar tree. So I cut up one cheese stick per kid and they end up with 4 kabobs. So far the kids LOVE this new lunch. Gabby said it is was cool!

I am still looking for other ideas, because I know it won't be long and they will be tired of this idea to!

Chicago

WARNING: Photo overload!

A week ago we returned from our annual trip to Chicago. Where the women work hard all day buying dresses and the boys and Gabby play!

Watching the onion volcano at Benihana....this was Dexter and Jayden's first time

Eating ice cream with chop sticks

Chicago Childrens Museum

Of course, they like washing cars... its daddy's fault.

It wouldn't be a trip to Chicago without Bubba Gumps!

Although did you know... Because of a corporate dispute, they no longer serve Dr. Pepper there. It seems kind of wrong considering in the movie it is his favorite drink!

Gino's East pizza... gotta love writing on the walls!

At Work.... with Jonathan Kayne (he was on Project Runway)