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S'more Fun Than You Can Handle!

2012-05-14T07:43:00.002-07:00

ahhhhhh Summertime means campfires and s'mores right? Right! Well I don't know about any of you, but by June I am fed up with s'mores. SOOOO tired of the same ole' campfire fun. I can't help it...I do get tired of that marshmallowy...ooohhieee.....goooeeyyy treat.

So this blog is about two things....how to turn s'mores into a s'moregasboard and an easy ways to make s'more time, fun time, not work time! So let's get started.

First of all....who ever said s'mores had to be plain chocolate and marshmallows?

This was our S'moregasboard last night.... with so many varieties of marshmallows now...you gotta try different types.

We included Strawberry and Plain Marshmallows

Regular Honey Graham Crackers....Notice how they are already broken into the appropriate size....Keep that in mind ....it will be useful info later on in the blog.

Reese's and Hershey chocolate.

This is kinda plain in comparison to ideas I will list below! But the season in early yet!! By October, we will have circled full swing and be back to plain marshmallows on regular graham crackers with Hershey's Chocolate!

HERE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL IDEAS!

Drizzle coconut on top of the chocolate before placing the marshmallow
Chopped nuts on top of the chocolate before placing the marshmallow
Use NUTELLA instead of chocolate for a healthier twist (kind of...hahaha)
Use Chocolate or Cinnamon graham crackers
Place Banana Slices on top of the chocolate
Place Strawberries Slices on top of the chocolate
why use plain chocolate when you can use any candy bar! Reese's, Take 5 (for that salty sweet flavor) almond joy, mounds, but buy the snack size. Regular size is just too much.
White Chocolate and Chocolate marshmallows for a reverse s'more!
Use Chocolate Chip Cookies instead of Graham Crackers.

Seriously the possiblities are endless!!

IDEAS TO MAKE THE S'MORE EVENT A SMOOTH EVENT:

Now, we all know that if you have little kiddos, S'mores can be a nightmare. Making sure nobody is catching anyone on fire, watching out for flying flaming marshmallows because instead of blowing out the fire, they decide to wave the campstick back and forth and hurle the flaming mallow across the campfire at their little brother....sounds like I speak from experience? Maybe! :)

Next comes the mess....chaos of assembly and licking sticky fingers and touching all the chocolate and graham crackers....GROSS!

So here we go....ideas for a simple s'moregasboard!

First line everything up on a tray:

Notice I took the portions out of the bags. This is not only to make things easier, but saves your grocery bill. Remember how you bring the bag of marshmallows inside and they are sticky from being close to the fire and then the moisture from the outside? This prevents that from happening...you can always go get more if you need it.

Next you see how I have the grahams laying next to the chocolate already in the appropriate s'more size square.....anxious little kids (and some adults) don't think ahead...

.........we roast a marshmallow before we get anything ready and then we are scrambling to get the graham out of the wrapper...break in half...DARN IT...that one crumbled...try again....Finally, now I need my chocolate....so I go to open the hershey bar....in my day you would get to smell the chocolate as you unwrap it from the glorious foil....now you have to manage your way through some tear here instructing plastic. AND JUST WHEN YOU GET THE CHOCOLATE OPENED....your marshmallow can't take it anymore and slid it's melty self right to the ground! Do-Over!!!!

Ok...let's prevent this! Look at the tray! Stack as many graham piles as you have kids....Parents seem to have more patience and can wait....if not...make stacks for you too.

Instruct your kids to place whatever toppings they want on the first graham cracker....then go roast the Mallow people! .....done roasting and your happy little sandwich is waiting for the mallow to join it and be merry! SUCCESS!!!!!

Now....what about the sticky fingers?? No kid wants to leave the campfire to wash his hands when they have perfectly good mouths to suck off the marshmallow goo! Right?? Right! So I doubt you will stop them from licking themselves clean...but you can protect the next set of food on the tray by placing baby wipes by the campfire.

We found a pop up trashcan in the camping section of the big box store...you can place that right by the baby wipes! Or a plastic bag for trash.....either way!

I hope these simple tips help you smooth out your S'moregaboard!

Next all you need is this!!!

Time to Relax.....

Happy Pinning Everyone!!

Simple Fruit Smoothie

2012-04-11T06:31:00.000-07:00

Honestly this has to be the easiest recipe in the world and it took me FOREVER to figure out why my smoothies were not perfect.

I am a bit of a smoothie snob....I like my smoothies at the consistancy of soft serve ice cream that has sat for a bit. Not too runny and not too thick...I want to be able to get it through a straw but still use a spoon if I want....or heck drink it right from the glass. Am I asking too much really?

Well apparently my previous attempts thought so! :)

But here is how I do it....Follow these simple steps.

Here is what you will need:

Frozen Yogurt (any flavor) I prefer Vanilla
Frozen Fruit
Fruit Juice - or Milk...I prefer OJ or some OJ blend

That is all! Very easy to make this all natural. Did you notice I did NOT say ice! Seriously...I always thought smoothies and ice went hand in hand. But it ruins it! Here is the process:

1. Put your desired amount of fruit in a bowl - Usually about 1 cup of fruit per smoothie

HERE IS THE MAGIC!

PLACE THE FRUIT IN THE MICROWAVE A FEW SECONDS

I do this on high for about 30 seconds....enough time to not completely melt your fruit but make it start to get a nice juice but yet frozen enough to still keep it from melting the yogurt.

Now place your Frozen Fruit and about 1-2 Scoops of Frozen Yogurt to your blender per serving. So for our family of four I usually place about 4-6 scoops of yogurt...it really depends on how much fruit you put in too...but if you load your blender about 3/4 the way full...you should have plenty.

Pardon the above picture...this was round two...you can see the left over smoothie on the bottom...The first round I used Milk instead of OJ because one of the TEEN'S friend did not like OJ and I was making these up for the kiddos after a game of air soft....Yay, I am a cool mom!

So after you have your Ingredients in the blender...GIVE IT A QUICK PULSE OR TWO OR THREE...Just to chop up the fruit and incorporate the frozen yogurt. Then let the magic happen.

SLOWLY POUR THE JUICE INTO THE LID AT THE TOP...as if you were doing a salad dressing..

THEN BLEND TO THE DESIRED CONSISTANCY! Voila' SMOOTHIES!

It is really that simple! I have tried so many varieties and ways....but this works perfect everytime. The magic is in letting that fruit get somewhat soft and juicy....MAGIC!

Hope this helps all you fellow moms! Happy Pinning and Posting!

Staycation - Vacation - Call it what you will...We got outta Dodge!

2012-04-04T06:29:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't blogged in awhile...work has been busy and we also went on a little getaway! Spring break is this week for the TEEN and TWEEN and I wanted to get out of town without spending a fortune. So what to do and where to go?

Staycations are technically a vacation that you find relaxing things to do at home. But with any newly coined phrase it starts to morph into something else. ( I guess we live in a society of ever changing ideas). Now Staycation can mean anything from vacationing in your own town to vacationing just a few hours from home.

Well I am putting my vacation, staycation foot down. If I leave good ole' Fort Wayne Indiana it is a getaway...hense a vacation in my book! Guess I am just easy to please! :)

So for spring break we took the kids to Michigan. Frankenmuth Michigan to be exact! I think my boys would feel complete if we only ever vacationed in Michigan. They just love it!

Bavarian Inn Frankenmuth, Michigan

We stayed at a very family friendly hotel that I will recommend to anyone out there that does not know about the Drury Inn brand of hotels. It is a smaller chain, but they really know how to treat a guest. A good friend from high school suggested it to me and I am forever grateful. It was a good deal!

Let me break it down:

Hotel room (2 double beds) very spacious

Free Extras....and I mean Extras.... Free Wifi (oddly that is not the norm these days)

Free cocktails for adults between 5:30-7:00pm

Free Breakfast and DINNER! Yes Dinner....if you are frugal traveler like myself, you know that eating at the local "hot spots" for dinner is much more expensive than lunch. We go out to a nice lunch and then snack or do a light dinner. This can save you tons of money on vacation.

Well with Drury Inn...they serve a dinner that is better than fast food because they usually put out some sort of salad or fresh cut carrotts and celery! The meals we experienced were Chicken tenders, Baked potatoes, nachoes, hot dogs, mac and cheese and things like that. They usually had about 3 varieties of entrees to choose from. This was such a great feature!

There slogan at the Drury Hotel is .....where the extras aren't extra! I agree....very refreshing.

We did break our own rule the first night because we had at sandwiches for lunch traveling up to Michigan and wanted a nice dinner. Plus....frugal momma had a coupon for Buy one entree get one of equal value 1/2 off. So we headed on over to the Bavarian Inn for Frankenmuth's World Famous Chicken. YUUUUMMMMMY!!!

Here are some other great things we did in Frankenmuth!

We chilled with our Gnomies! TEEN, HUBBY and TWEEN were good sports...actually they saw this photo op in the basement of the Bavarian Inn on a detour to the restroom and drug me down for the photo op! We had to get this for OMA! She loves Gnomies!

The history Museum is a great little gem at a very reasonable price....$5 max for the family. The museum has an interactive timeline of the first settlers of Frankenmuth. It is heart warming and well done. Tells the story of the Germans that made the trip to mission to the Indians and spread God's word. The display is honest in the love of God, community and Brewing. Yes brewing. German's love their beer and it shows! Did I mention I am proud to be German! :)

This is TWEEN drawing an Alpine style home. He loves architecture.

TEEN in front of "his" candy shop!

Tween enjoying a flower Kaliedescope

Lager Mill offers a new museum and selection of local brews

Frankenmuth Brewery

HEY....WHERE DID MY BEER GO???

Frankenmuth Pilsner was a win! Very yummy

My happy place!!

Home of Chocolate cheese....now let me say that I am a HUGE cheese lover...and love me some chocolate...so this screwed me up! Can't really get my head around it. Not a fan...but....their cheese cheese...yes I said cheese cheese...it is YUMMY!

And of course BRONNER'S The Christmas Superstore.

All in All...I HIGHLY recommend Frankenmuth. In the springtime and winter season....the "activities" are more sparce than say in the summer with the beautiful boat rides on the Cass river...but anytime of year is a fantastic time for a vacation or staycation or whatever you want to call it. We sure enjoyed our little getaway!

Family Fun Day! - Geocaching Style!

2012-03-26T06:26:00.001-07:00

If you have never Geocached...I believe you are missing out on the easiest way to get your kids to experience and love the great outdoors. It is a fairly inexpensive way to enjoy a day away and still feel like you went somewhere. We have discovered lots of great places in our own town that we had no idea were there.

Besides the cost of a GPS unit...geocaching costs you no more than the Gas to get where you are going....I know based on the $4 per gallon gas prices of spring/summer 2012 that can say something. But all in all....any trip will cost you that....besides, you probably can go out your back door and find a few caches! Remember signing up on geocaching.com is free! Also most smart phones have apps that you can download for a nominal one time fee! Even better! But remember if you can't get a cell phone signal you can't get your satellites for GPS navigation with a phone...I suggest an inexpensive GPS unit for back up!

I also think there is no better time to do this than the SPRINGTIME! In northeast Indiana....spring is a sense of renewal. Freshness everywhere....even without all the leaves in place...there is still such a sense of beauty in the Midwestern springtime. I will show you what I mean as we go along.

Now some of you may wonder what Geocaching has to do with my blog...well I found it on the INTERNET!

Let me break Geocaching down for you.....

geocaching is a treasure hunt using GPS navigation (not the car type) you need pedestrian gps.
the level of difficulty ranges from avid mountain climber to people bound to a wheelchair. -no I am not kidding....there are tons of park and grab geocaches so ANYONE can participate in this hobby. (ok die hard geocachers will kill me for calling it a hobby-much heated debate here)
find the geocache...sign the log....providing proof you were there....log your find on Geocaching.com or various other sites out there now. I prefer geocaching.com but you feel free to look around.

Here is a video about geocaching...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yMMyj3vTvE&feature=player_embedded

Now onto my adventure yesterday!

We needed to go later in the day for our adventure so we just decided to hit one of the local trails yesterday...nothing too intense. Just right in our back yard...literally!

Off we go! TWEEN takes the lead.....Hubby and TEEN pull up the middle.....#19 looks like he belongs to my clan, but really is the neighbor boy that hangs with TWEEN, and mommy the picture taking fool....pulls up from behind! WE ARE OFF!

This trail is VERY popular so geocaching is difficult at time with excitable children. You don't really want NON-Geocaching people to catch on to what you are doing because you risk people taking or moving the cache. People work tirelessly to provide safe "treasures" for us to find. Nobody likes them to come up missing. Our family hosts 5 in the Northern Indiana area...but some people have HUNDREDS! So protect their investment to the sport by not letting people on to what you are doing. We like to pretend we are studying the nature...with two boys....totally believable!

This was the first part of nature that we strolled up on. We know it is there because we walk this trail often, but I just want to show you some of the amazing things you can see even in the largest city in Northern Indiana! :)

This group of turtles reminded me of our little geocaching group...there is Hubby and myself...TEEN TWEEN and neighbor! I like to believe they were pond caching! :)

TWEEN enjoying the turtles at the pond!

TEEN enjoying the turtles! Notice he has the emergency pack with him! We are such prepared geocachers! That little bag holds band aids, sting relief, pens and some SWAG in case we find "treasure" in the geocache! Band aids come in handy a lot...even on this urban path! Thorns everywhere people!

Hubby entering coordinates for the next cache into the GPS...we don't plan...we go with the flow. We were in town so we just searched nearby caches when we are close to the location and upload them to the GPS. If we were going into the country and unsure we would have cell phone coverage...then we put them all in the gps ahead of time. But today was an easy going kinda day.

This picture is looking for the first cache which came up missing....so we log it as a DNF (do not find) That way future geocachers can look on the log and see the past 5 cachers couldn't find it...it was probably "Muggled" Muggles are not just for Harry Potter people....our geeky hobby just couldn't be any more creative...we embrace it!

Also I wanted to prove that we didn't lose #19 out there.....You will notice only the back of his head due to the fact that I will exploit my own children on my blog....but not my friend's children! :)

Next we saw Little Bunny FOO FOO...hopping past the geocache!

Then Quackers came looking with us!

Yes I even look up! I always want to take it all in. I just think that for making so many mistakes as a human race...God still provides us with a pretty AMAZING place to live in! Stepping off soap box!

Can you even see what that is? It is a misplaced baby turtle....on the other side of the path...far away from the water. TEEN noticed it while walking....he almost stepped on him....So he did what any TEEN would do! (at least that is what I tell myself!)

He picked it up........and ...........

Walked him down to the pond on the other side of the PATH! You were expecting something bad weren't you? TEEN and TWEEN have been taught to preserve nature. True Geocachers...are helpful for the enviroment. We stay on paths when possible....we don't bushwhack unless necessary...we pick up garbage and clean the geo sites. I want my children to respect the world around them. So TEEN stepped up and needed no coaxing from us....he knew exactly what he was going to do. Yay TEEN!

TWEEN searching for a geocache!

TEEN and TWEEN looking!

Hubby and TEEN looking!

TWEEN SCORES THE FIND ON THIS ONE! Almost everyone else had given up! LOL Patience is sometimes a virtue! The older the kids get the longer they look now. They don't like the Did Not Find caches!

Our family has been geocaching for about 5 years now....

Geocaching can be a 4 season sport in the Midwest but we prefer late winter through early summer. Once the bugs get so bad that you can't hear the person next to you talk in the woods....forget about it. NOT OUR CUP OF GEOCACHING TEA!

But Urban caches we will do anytime of year. Also look for the ones with historical value in towns you have never been too. People put a lot of time and effort into placing geocaches.

But most of all...make sure you take time to stop and enjoy the nature! It is so worth it!

Easy Blender Salsa

2012-03-22T05:35:00.001-07:00

Ok...so salsa is virtually one of the best bargains you can get on the market right? Always a sale...always a coupon....and I LOVE ME SOME COUPONS! But honestly it is nice to know what you are eating and when you make the salsa...you know. Also, the homemade Pico de Gallo style is awesome...but sometimes you just want that restaurant quality without the the added cost of dinner out.

LOOK YUMMY DOESN'T IT???? IT IS!!!!!

Here is what you need

1-2 Cans of diced tomatoes (you can freeze this if you want)
1 Can of green chili's (example Old El paso makes this)
Cilantro
1 small diced onion (do this to taste and preference)
1 garlic clove
jalapeno
Juice from 1/2 lime
salt and pepper
1 tsp honey (I make mine without honey, but some people like a hint of sweetness)

mmmmmmm looks good even before we start doesn't it?

First you need to chop your onion....Yes I know we are throwing this in the blender...but if you don't want complete mush...chop first. If you don't mind baby food salsa...go for it! LOL The less you have to blend the chunkier it will be. I like mine somewhere in the middle. I like it to have some body, but I don't want it to be pureed to mush or so chunky that my taste buds are screaming because they process onion, then jalapeno, then cilantro. I like it to be a nice unison concerto of flavors in my mouth!

SO CHOP PEOPLE!!! You can determine the amount of heat your salsa has by leaving the seeds in the Jalapeno...or gutting it. If you gut it...it will still have heat. I suggest keeping the seeds and membranes until the end and add as you go...you can't take heat away...but you can add it! That's thinkin' Lincoln"!!!

Add all your ingredients into the blender...ALL THE INGREDIENTS....except the salt and pepper...ya ya...that means almost all. I think the tomatoes can be salty themselves.....

Now just Pulse that bad boy! No need to turn it on and run like a mad woman....just a few easy pulses.

TASTE YOUR SALSA PEOPLE!!!!

How will you know if it is the right heat or the right amount of salt and pepper unless you taste it???

All that is left to do now is enjoy! We had this last night with some steak taco's that we enjoy on the grill. Now that I think about it...I should have grilled my tortilla's too! LOL Oh well...guess what is for lunch? :)

Notice the body on that salsa??? Not runny and not dripping juice...because I did not over blend my salsa. It still is a nice medley but holds up well even laying on chips!

Yes that is the famous TWEEN divider plate. The kid can not stand his food to tango together....so guess who set the table???

Yep! That's the ear....ehhhhhuuummmm TWEEN! He was camera shy! :)

Happy Pinning Friends! Hope you enjoy the salsa!!!

Easter Egg Craft -Table decoration - Centerpiece...whateva'!

2012-03-21T06:29:00.001-07:00

Oh blog world I have missed you! It has been a very busy week....With St. Patty's day behind us.....I wanted to get my house feeling a little spring like! Nevermind the weather in Northern Indiana is like the middle of the summer. I however, am not complaining....simply stating it is unusual!

So I decided to do an easy string egg decoration to through in a basket I usually switch out with various fruits or such for my table. But the basket if very dark and needed a SPRING pick me up!

So here it is!

Here is what you need:

Embroidery Floss

Liquid Starch

Balloons (I used water balloons) very small

Wax Paper

Bowl

(I also cheated hand had my wonderful hubby blow the balloons up with the ball pump! :)

First thing is blow up the balloons to desired size. I will confess hubby is helpful but in my opinion blew the balloons slightly bigger than I wanted...hey learn from my mistakes...take the help and shut my gob hole or do it myself! I took the help. Love you honey!

Next you will pour some UNDILUTED LIQUID STARCH into a bowl
Unwind your string into the Starch

Next you will start winding the starchy (is that a word???) ....starch coated string onto your balloon mold.

Let this dry for several hours or overnight!
Once completely dry all you need to do is POP (the fun loud part) the balloon and pull it carefully from inside the string

THERE YOU HAVE IT!!! A beautiful accent for your springtime table! Easy and inexpensive! Remember to save money....if you don't have embroidery floss laying around.....buy only about 7-8 of the individually wrapped packages. They run about $.40 per pack. Just make sure you have enough for your project.

AND ALL YOU HAVE LEFT TO DO IS ENJOY!!!!

Homemade Safe Weedkiller....DEBUNKED!

2012-03-15T06:36:00.000-07:00

Oh I can't tell you how excited I was when I saw this little gem of a tip on the WWW! I mean seriously....Safe and Healthy alternative to weed control...I AM IN! With two kids and a dog, I had to try this. My dog is tiny and licks at everything...this would be an awesome alternative!

So with the onset of crazy warm weather here in Northern Indiana....I decided to put this little trick to the test. So here goes...

ALL THE SUPPLIES YOU ARE SUPPOSE TO NEED ARE Vinegar, Salt and a dash of Dish Soap

SO I gathered my supplies....Added 1/2 Cup Salt.......Filled spray bottle almost full with the vinegar and add a squeeze of dish soap!

THIS WAS PERFECT BECAUSE THE AWESOME VINEGAR AND DAWN SCUM BUSTER THAT WORKS PERFECTLY ALREADY NEEDS TWO OF THE THREE INGREDIENTS....THIS COULD BE A WIN WIN....MAYBE

So on to the weeds and Grass growth I need to kill

I have seen people on the WWW say that within an hour it is already dying...I was so excited!

1 HOUR LATER.....NOTHING

2 HOURS LATER NOTHING

No big deal...my Weed Killer usually takes about 1/2 a day to start wilting and shriveling up the weeds....I will check it in the morning.

So I go out this morning and this is the Picture of the RESULTS.......

ROUND UP HERE I COME!

In light of this I will just have to buck up and hit the hard stuff...so to speak! Oh well....the WWW loses this round. But there are many more cool tricks out there that do work....and I will find them!

For the record...I am not out anything because we use all the products. If you went out and bought vinegar to try this....and also found it failed. Fear not my Internet friends....Check out my post on Soap Scum Remover.....Problem solved....Mission POSSIBLE!

Happy Pinning friends!

Cut out Cookies

2012-03-14T06:34:00.000-07:00

Today I get to give a little glory to two wonderful women that I had in my life. My grandmother Esther and my Mother Lorain. Two wonderful women that were taken from this world much too soon! But, they left us with some FANTASTIC recipes for our family cookbook.

Today I want to talk about my Grandma's Cut out cookies....In honor of St. Patty's day this weekend I whipped out an old German recipe! haha...not kidding. The joke here is that hubby turned our basement into an irish hangout/pub and we have more German and Scottish in us than Irish....so I had to have my own little chuckle when he got excited about the cookies I was making in honor of the great IRISH celebration! shhhhhhh!

I BAKE MUCH BETTER THAN I DECORATE! HEHE!

This recipe is SOOOOO simple. People who buy the rolled up dough and roll it out spend more time trying to get the dough the right consistancy....plus those are TOOO SWEET for my taste. YES THE FAT GIRL SAID IT! Too sweet. Grandma's cookie has a nice balance of not too sweet cookie with blow your mind sweet frosting. Pure Perfection!

HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED:

5 CUPS OF FLOUR (more if necessary to make rollable dough)
2 CUPS OF SUGAR
1 CUP SHORTENING
2 EGGS
1 CUP SOUR MILK*
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt

*sour milk can be made by adding vinegar or lemon juice. I prefer lemon juice!

Sift (or mix for us lazy bakers!) the dry ingredients....incorporate the wet.....mix together until an almost sticky free ball happens. Adding more flour if needed.

Once you get the ingredients to this consistancy....START ROLLING!

Roll to your desired Thickness....I like very thick cookies...just add baking time!

Cut out and place on a parchement lined baking sheet. If you don't line the baking sheet...no need to grease. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Thin cookies would be more like 6-8 and really thick might take about 11 minutes. Keep an eye on the first batch to judge your oven.

NEXT FROST DECORATE AND ENJOY!!!!!

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

1 LB POWDERED SUGAR

2 TBS. BUTTER

1 tsp. vanilla

Milk to desired consistancy

Side note...you know how when you color your frosting it breaks down the consistancy? Add some extra powdered sugar to get that frosting back up to the consistancy you need. Nobody wants runny frosting! That is only good on Hot Cinnamon rolls people!

I love this recipe because the frosting will set up! That is a huge bonus if you are making these for Christmas and storing them.

So in honor of St. Patty's Day....Enjoy this traditional German cookie! :)

Happy Pinning!

Definition Decal Craft

2012-03-12T07:53:00.001-07:00

Today's World Wide Web Presentation proudly sponsored by a TEEN and a TWEEN that can't put anything away! We have amazing storage in their bathroom. Each boy has a cabinet to themselves....and three drawers to share....PLUS an entire linen closet that is actually IN the bathroom. Yet I will walk up to their bathroom and the cotton balls, cotton swabs, toothepaste, toothebrushes, Proactive (did I mention I have a TEEN! haha) EVERYTHING is on the counter. So Solution.........

You can leave anything on the counter if it is cute! Am I right ladies?? I don't want to see your nasty half squeezed toothepaste or your used floss.....but if you INSIST on not putting things away....well here...let me help you!

At least two items are now OKAY to leave out thanks to this handy little project. It is trendy, and yet kind of timeless. Those are the projects I love best!

PLUS IT IS CHEAP.....ISH! The ish is because the decal paper is around $8 but I guess if you bought these in a store...say Crate and Barrel...you would pay about that per container. So a 50% savings is not bad....and you can't put a price on Momma's peace o' mind!

Here is what you need:

Clear Decal paper (pick this up at any office supply store or even a big box store)
Clear containers Size appropriate
Printer

That's it! You can get the glassware at the dollar store usually....I happened to be at the big box store and saw these for like $1.50 each. So I was ok with that. One thing I would suggest is use one with a few of curves as possible. The containers I picked were hour glass shaped and I wish I would have just done a round/straight vase style. The decal adheres easier.

Ok, so now you have your supplies....just pick out the FONTS you want to use

I used Courier New and Another Typewriter (I downloaded this one)

Downloading fonts is free and easy....if you don't know how to download them to your word document creator, just go to youtube and search tutorials for downloading fonts. Make sure you search for tutorials with your operating system...like windows 7 or vista. Whatever you have. The process can be different for each operating system.

Next after you design the definitions (I used dictionary.com ) place them phonetically how you want them to look.....You print them! I print one on plain paper first to make sure the sizing is good and the layout is the way I really want it.

Make sure you place your decal in your printer the right way. As you can see from my photo...most inform you which side to print on...but you have to know your printer and how the paper comes out. Make a test print if you need to.

Next trim your Decal to size.

After that start to peal the decal away from the backing but don't take it all the way off...This prevents getting finger prints all over the decal. Or worse yet....when my darling Black Lab was still alive....their was always a black Zoe hair floating around. When I wrap gifts or did painting...always a little piece of Zoe love to come with it. Did I mention I miss my baby girl Zoe ...BUT NOT THE HAIR! God love her!

Continue smoothing the decal onto the glass...Now...this will look really good, but don't kid yourself that it will look like you printed right on the glass. This is an amazingly easy project, but you will notice a bit of a line no matter how well you smooth the decal. It is normal. However, once you FILL THE CONTAINER....you will barely notice it!

Now all you have to do is fill it and enjoy! And my boys can leave out the cotton balls and Q-tips all day long! INTERNET IMPOSSIBLE JUST BECAME POSSIBLE!

I have seen this project done on Flour, Sugar, and spice containers....just remember That these decals are not dishwasher safe....You can save your backing and take it off....when you wash the containers...OR you can save the file you created and print more! Either way....

Happy Pinning and Enjoy!

Rice Pilaf in a Snap

2012-03-10T06:12:00.001-08:00

Ok...you know the nights....The nights that we are really tired but need to get something on the table quick. So we reach for the phone and order pizza! STOP...PUT DOWN THE PHONE! I have great recipe that makes dinner POSSIBLE again!

This recipe is so fast...you literally would have it on the table before you could pour one of those San Fransisco boxes out and fix it. BONUS....it is so much more healthy for you!

Here goes!

RICE PILAF

(1) small onion diced
(1/2) cup sliced baby carrots (give or take)
1 TBSP olive oil
Mortons Seasoning
(2) cups Instant Rice
(2) cups Chicken Broth (This is where the magic happens folks!)

First heat up the Olive oil in a medium size sauce pan...
Sautee Onions and Carrots to desired tenderness (I beleive this is a personal choice!) this usually takes about 3-5 minutes

add CHICKEN BROTH bring to a boil
add Rice and desired seasoning....stir...Cover and turn to simmer for 5 minutes

FLUFF AND ENJOY!!!

That is it! Now whip out that Electric Grill and slap some chicken breast or pork chops on them.... a little BBQ sauce and your family will think you spent more than 15 minutes on dinner for sure!

THE MAGIC IS IN COOKING THE RICE IN THE CHICKEN STOCK! LOVELY! You can even disolve boullion cubes to make a broth. That should be a staple in everyones pantry for days that our pantry lost our chicken stock! Yes my silly pantry tends to do that!

Hope you all enjoy!

Happy Pinning!

Crock Pot Meal Part 2

2012-03-07T07:18:00.003-08:00

This is a blog to follow up on my last post about the crock pot meals. I had two meals I did not post about because we had not tried them....so now the verdict is in!

SAVORY BEEF SOUP

Chop 1 onion and Chop 2 Cloves of Garlic- Brown in pan with two pounds of ground beef - Let cool and divide between two freezer bags.
(2) Whole Carrots chopped per bag
(2) celery stalks chopped per bag
(4) Red Potatoes chopped per bag
1 can v8 split between two bags
(1) 15 oz can diced tomatoes per bag
(1) cup frozen green beans per bag
(1) TBSP Worcestershire sauce per bag
(1/2) cup Beef Broth per bag
(1) TBSP Parsley per bag
(1/2) tsp. thyme per bag
(1/2) tsp. Salt per bag
(1/2) tsp Black Pepper per bag.
(1) TBSP Sugar per bag

* Place in Crockpot with 1.5 cups of water and 15 oz of Beef Broth. Cook on High for 4 hours or Low for 8 Hours.

THIS SOUP IS AMAZING!!! We definately had a Win with this one! It is hearty, Warm, Comforting and just plain yummy! Hubby Loved it! TEEN Loved it! TWEEN ate it!~ haha..that is a win with him! So all in all! Huge win! Veggies cooked perfectly and the meat was great in this. I was skeptical because it was hamburger and I am used to beef stew meat in a soup like this...but honestly...it was amazing.

SUGGESTION: Make sure you write the cooking directions on the freezer bag. Add 1.5 Cups of water and 15 oz of Beef Broth cook on high 4 hours or low 8 hours.

This prevents having to look up recipes and honestly this all about be fast and easy right? Take the exra step and add it to the freezer bag with the date!

I just wanted to show you my freezer soup mountain! haha....I never let the meals thaw out much...and end up with Mt. Soupaminjaro! I just take a knife an break it down. When you pour the liquid on the meal that helps as well! Just don't make a mess like I always do! :)

AHHHHH Lid fits now! YAY! Cook away magic crock pot...cook away!

Well as you can see this is definately a WIN for us! We loved it so much that nobody added crackers! I laugh and say when you need to just "get through" lunch you add crackers to the soup. A good creamy soup deserves a bread dip, but if you are adding crackers to the soup it is usually flavorless! This was perfect and NOBODY in the house added crackers and they were available on the table! TRUE WIN!!!

Thank you Pinterest and World Wide Web for a wonderful Dinner!

Hang out Room Mission!

2012-03-06T07:16:00.000-08:00

BOYS!!!   BOYS!!!! BOYS!!!!!   My house is filled with boys! As nutty as this sounds...I LOVE IT! The family consists of My lovely Hubby...TEEN....and TWEEN! Looking towards the future I can not wait to call them TEEN1 and TEEN2! haha Dr. Suess shout out!

Even the pets are boys (this is going a little overboard) Two dogs ( Wall-E) and (Murphy) Wall-E because we love all things DISNEY!!! And Murphy because we needed something Irish to go in our basement/Irish Pub! Plus he is a St. Patty's Day addition to our family...just came home two days ago. Next is the Hamster...(Sir Albert Einstein) we dubbed him a knight....just seemed like a cool thing to do! And last but not least we have Joe...of Joe's Crab Shack! Seriously??? Where are the chics? Well honestly I believe in my heart of hearts...Joe is a girl! Look...let me have my dreams, besides...where do you begin to look on a crab to determine the sex? If you know the answer please keep that to yourself! Let me look like the only weirdo on this blog!

So with all the boys in the house it was time for some room division! We moved into our new home in August and the kids went on their way picking rooms. This house has 4 bedrooms upstairs. There is the master (for me and hubby, of course) then a decent sized room , a normal size bedroom and a crazy large bedroom left.  Obviously they both would love the BIG room, but in all fairness...we decide that TWEEN gets the decent sized room....TEEN gets the normal size room (he loves the view) and The room of plenty will be a hangout room. TEEN also gets to make all decisions on the hang out room. Like vetoing mom's Hello Kitty Theme!

Cool! Problem solved right? NO! How do you make this a cool hangout room without carrying sofa's and large furniture upstairs...FUTON? ahhhhhh I really don't care for futons that much, but they will do if need be.

PINTEREST and WORLD WIDE WEB.....HERE I COME!!!

So I found various ideas on the web....from pallet couches to just plain ole' day beds.   I wanted to combine both ideas....and I wanted an "L" shape.   I also wanted room for guests if need be.

PROBLEM! Big Window on one wall.....Picture window to be exact....and Closet on opposite side. "L" shape denied...MAYBE!   Here is what I came up with!

L SHAPED SEATING THAT PULLS APART INTO 2 TWIN BEDS

This is perfect to HANG OUT or to use for guests or sleep overs. I simply took the "L" up to the window and stoped the back board (headboard style) at the window. I found these Chair Style pillows for in front of the window and it gave it some versatility. I loved what I came up with! Now we just need some more pillows to really "FLUFF" it up in a DUDE kinda way!

This project was super easy to do as well! We didn't make anything "too perfect" meaning...I did not spend a lot of time filling holes and painting it completely....only where it is showing. Why bother? This project is meant to get used, abused and utilized!

HERE IS HOW TO DO IT!

Build out your frame to the dimensions of the mattresses you pick up. We chose twin size so you can utilize it as Guest beds and great for sleep overs (because we do that so often ....NOT!)
Support your frame with a middle reinforcement to make sure there is plenty of support. This would go from longest end to longest end.
Now cut slats to go across the frame to support the width.

SHOULD LOOK LIKE THIS

Next Attach Legs...Honestly cutting 4x4's or putting (2) 2x4's together is fine. We added the bun foot, but they are kind of expensive. Looking at it now, I think I would have been fine with plain straight legs to keep the cost down....but the Bun foot does slide well on carpet causing no damage to the floor.

** You could also attach casters if you want it to move easily and don't want bun feet.

NOW ALL YOU NEED IS THE "HEADBOARD" This was so easy. All I did was cut Pressed Board (you can use MDF, partical board...whatever you like) Hubby likes a wood that will drill into easily.

Cut the board to the desired length.
Add foam or batting ( I used batting because I did not want it too thick)
Cover with Fabric and Staple on backside to wood

I GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE! This picture is from ProjectNursery.com They have a great site with wonderful ideas. Their pallet couch is very similar, just lower (for toddlers not teens)...on casters and construction is a bit more complex. But check out their site. Fantastic decorating ideas!

If you want to skip the fabric....Good Housekeeping has an idea for this headboard:

Take Plain BEADBOARD and PAINT IT! Very cool effect. I just prefer fabric! If you have toddlers...this would be WAY EASIER to clean! Nice idea.

Next you need to attach FRENCH CLEATS to the back of the head board. to attach it to the wall. These are found in any home improvement store such as Home Depot, Lowe's or Menards. They hold pictures up to 200 lbs. Your Headboard will be snug as a rug!
Now line your headboard up against the wall slightly under the mattress so when you sit on the mattress there is not a space.

Now just Decorate your "BENCH"

HANGOUT ROOM IS STARTING TO COME TOGETHER!

I will add more pictures later of the completed room!

Today's Mission Impossible- Soap Scum!

2012-03-05T05:52:00.001-08:00

VINEGAR + DAWN (Dishsoap not me) = CLEAN SOAP SCUM FREE SHOWER!

This post is right up my alley! I absolutely HATE scrubbing the bathroom tub and shower. Honestly even with three men with really bad aim in this home, I would much rather scrub the toilet any day of the week! So with that being said....I could not wait to try this little bit of internet DIY tricks.

HERE IS THE RECIPE

12 oz Distilled White Vinegar
4 oz Blue Dawn Dish Soap (must be the original)

Pour into a spray bottle - spray the entire shower top to bottom
Wait 1-2 Hours and RINSE

That is right....NO SCRUBBING NEEDED!

Ok that had me at Hello! Seriously???? No Scrubbing???? Have they seen my grout? Ok internet your on! I got your recipe and I am armed and ready to go!

VERDICT- MISSION COMPLETE!

This totally worked! I am not kidding....I was shocked. So excited that my shower elbow will heal!

Now for the bit of BAD NEWS.....This completely works as a scrub free product as described. I did not need to scrub my shower at all....however, the smell is SO STRONG! I shut the doors and turned on the fan in all the bathrooms but my house was filled with the vinegar smell. Our neighbor's son came to play with my Tween and the poor kid was like "WHAT IS THAT SMELL?" I heard my Tween say "mom is cleaning the bathrooms" The look on the neighbor boy's face was that of confused and grossed out all at the same time! :)

Now with that being said...I think it is completely worth the smelly ordeal. Once rinsed the smell of vinegar went away. And as we all know Vinegar is an odor neautrilizer....so the next day my house smelled very fresh. I will simply do this when the kids are at school! The vinegar is VERY STRONG AT FIRST. Some have suggested an extract oil like Eucalyptis or Peppermint....but that jacks the cost up considerably and I am not sure if the oil would make the solution slide down the tile or not.

*** Side note

Some people have this recipe requiring you to heat the vinegar before adding the Dawn Dish Soap. I will try that next week and see if I notice any differnce and update this blog!

Ok ladies and gents....Say goodbye to Shower Elbow and hello to an Easy Clean! This is definately a win in my book!

Happy Pinning friends!

Crock Pot Dinner Rescue

2012-03-01T06:52:00.000-08:00

Ok, we have seen all the posts of woman after woman crock potting her way through dinners. Day after day......Trying endless all in one pot meal solutions for the on the go wife, mother, and plain ole' hungry person that doesn't want to spend hours after work preparing dinner. Sounds like a great idea right?????

I don't know about you...but I myself could not eat Crock Pot meals everyday. But a few in my freezer for emergency would be a nice twist to Chili wednesday. Yes Chili Wednesday.....you know we all have them. The stand by meal that the hubby can throw together while you run the kids to football, music lessons, blah blah blah. That is wednesday for us. The hubby makes a mean chili!

But sometimes it gets old...so enter in the crock pot. All the veggies and meat in one pot and dinner is on the table. We have recently seen an over abundance of pinning on this subject, so I put to test the easiest one (and seems to be most popular one) out there right now. 4 simple meals with virtually the same ingredients just differnt sauces. I love that about this one.

HEALTHY BBQ CHICKEN
CHICKEN TERYIAKI
SAVORY VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP
BEEF GOULASH/STEW

This recipe will make two freezer meals of the above and leave little to no left over vegetables to worry about finishing up before they go bad.

So far we have frozen all 4 meal and ate two of them: Chicken Teryiaki and Beef Goulash/Stew Lunch today will be Savory Vegetable Beef Soup and the Healthy BBQ Chicken is on the menu for this weekend.

THE PREP:

CHICKEN TERYAKI

2 FREEZER BAGS NEEDED - I label and date each bag and also add crock pot directions to the bag so I don't need to look up the recipe later. It is all on the bag for me!
1/2 of large bag of baby carrots split between the two freezer bags
1 Red Onion cut and split between two freezer bags (nice large chunks for this recipe)
1 20 oz can of Pineapple Chunks undrained in each bag (I used one and split between bags) I don't prefer my teryaki overly sweet. Personal choice.
2 Garlic Cloves chopped per bag.
1/2 Cup Teryaki sauce per bag
2 chicken breasts per bag. I used the already frozen chicken! I like easy!

*Cooking instructions

Place in crock pot with 1/4 cup of additional teryaki sauce and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

Serve over rice

I am a realist....I don't care how you cook in a crock pot....it is never a "PRETTY" meal! But this one tasted great! Well done crock pot guru's! You will get another spot at our dinner table!

I feel like but cutting down on the pineapple, this recipe was savory enough to be dinner. Sometimes chicken teryaki can feel more like a dessert...which I was afraid would happen with a full can of pineapple, but hey who says you can't eat dessert for dinner, so have at it if you like! I shant judge!

NEXT ON DECK:

BEEF GOULASH/ STEW

2 Freezer bags labeled and include the cooking directions from the bottom of recipe again
1 Green Pepper diced and split between 2 bags
1 Onion diced and split between bags
1/4 of large bag of carrots split between 2 bags
2 Garlic cloves chopped and split between 2 bags
3 lbs beef stew meat split between 2 bags
1 6oz can tomato paste for each bag (12 oz total)
2 tsp Paprika per bag
1/4 tsp black pepper per bag

* Place in crock pot and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours adding 1/2 cup Sour Cream 10 minutes before serving. Serve over Egg Noodles.

This SMELLED amazing while cooking!!!!

But sadly that is all I can say about it! Not a single one of us enjoyed this crock pot meal! We felt it was too carroty (I am aware that is not a word...but really applies here!) I suppose you could double the tomato paste and add more meat...but not a huge favorite and not sure it will be making an appearance at our dinner table again. Even hubby who eats ANYTHING said it was not great!

So as far as recipes go....We have a WIN and a LOSS for our family!

CHICKEN TERYAKI IS A BIG WIN This meal was easy to put together at a family friendly price. It was satisfying and included pleanty of healthy ingredients to make us busy moms feel less guilty about an easy dinner.

BEEF GOULASH/STEW is a big ole' LOSS! My kids choked it down and were not happy! I know that is not saying much because most kids are picky, but TEEN is not! He loves anything I make! Eats it...compliments me .....and eats more. TWEEN yes I will confess is uber picky...but will eat it. This he was crying as he ate.....

I know some of you caught that.....he was crying, but let me explain. :) Recently TWEEN had his yearly physical and the doctor put him on a strict diet....the diet is eat everything and anything...must be nice huh? But he is not gaining weight fast enough for his TWEEN body (just like his daddy when he was a kiddo) So he knew he HAD to eat...so it was a tough go at dinner....but he managed to eat a bowlful! GO TWEEN!

ABOUT THE ASSEMBLY OF THE CROCK POT MEALS!

TOTAL WIN!!! I made all 4 meals x 2 = 8 meals for my freezer for all you math geniuses out there!

This probably took me a total of an hour and a half to chop, cut, label and assemble the freezer bags. That comes out to a little over 11 minutes per meal to assemble. Take that you 30 minute meal mommas! :) So the ease is there....now it is a matter of finding recipes that you like!

I would imagine 8 meals with completely different ingredients would be a lot more tiring and difficult to put together....so these sort of recipes lend their hand to the frugal and busy mom!

Thanks for reading my blog...feel free to share it.

Happy pinning!

Mascara Revival!

2012-02-28T06:06:00.000-08:00

No self respecting woman would dare leave the house without make-up right? Well I must not be self respecting at all. This woman walks out in a baseball hat and no make-up often. Actually it is more often that I would not have make up on than do have make up on. So I think this Pinterest "trick" is one that appeals to me.

I am having a mascara revival! The tent is pitched....the flyers are around town and the ever so sweet talking Reverand Mary Kay will be officiating the revival! What??!!?? ohhh your right...it is not that kind of revival....darn homophones!

Never the less....I needed to see if I could "Save" (pun intended) my mascara with a little ole' Pinterest magic.

I saw a post that stated I need to simply put a few drops of my contact lens solution in my dried up mascara to REVIVE it! So on with the experiment!

I had a tube of my mascara that I love but dried up. 5 drops of Opti-Free later and Voila' It went on smooth and clumpless! YAY!

THIS IS A PINTEREST WIN AND LOSS

I am sure you are confused by my findings as a win and loss after I just said it works....But here is why:

Mascara should only be used for 3-4 months before a new tube is purchased. This is a health issue and recommeded by several dermatologists and doctors. I do not want to be responsible for people rehydrating 6 year old mascara
The mascara took a little longer to dry than normal. (obviously you added something that was not in it before) and caused those dreaded mascara polka dots on my eyelid and lower lid! So extra care and mind numbing stare downs in the mirror to not blink is required!

This is enough for me to determine it is not a 100% win in my book....but rather a neutral. It didn't fail, it did what the blogger/magazine said it would...but there were enough negatives for me to not jump on the bandwagon right away!

Now if you are like me and you hardly wear make up and you know it dried up because you opened it a month ago and didn't use it since....sure go ahead have at it. But people...be smart in your choices.

This is an INTERNET POSSIBLE TODAY (with some small IMPOSSIBLES!) I guess my glass is not half full or half empty...LOL Just HALF!

Happy Pinning friends!

Celery, Grapefruit, Olive Salad

2012-02-23T07:36:00.000-08:00

Yes I am a little behind schedule today..but I am sure you will all forgive me! It is quite foggy here in NE Indiana and the kids had a 2 hour delay. Yay for them....boo for me! It really slows down the process of my day. But I remember how much I loved them when was in school...so I shant complain.......much! LOL

Ok I want to finish my reveiew of Melissa D'Arabian's Greek-onomical meal. Because I was so surprised by this salad.

CELERY GRAPEFRUIT OLIVE SALAD

Ingredients

4 stalks celery and their leaves, chopped
1 red grapefruit, supremed, sections halved
1 green onion, finely chopped (greens only)
1/4 cup chopped black olives
2 tablespoons grapefruit juice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place the celery, celery leaves, grapefruit, green onions and olives in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the grapefruit juice and the sugar. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking. Add salt and pepper to taste, and pour over the salad. Toss, taste and adjust with salt, if needed.

Ok...as I was putting this salad together my husband said.....What are the leaves in there? Are you serious???? How is the man skinny??? I have to force feed him vegetables....He is an overgrown two year old! But on the flip side....if you tell him to eat it...he does! Good Boy!!!!

Dinner is SERVED!

Ok so onto the verdict.....I AM SO SHOCKED!   The salad was AMAZING....however, let it be known the grapefruit diet would kill this fat girl. I swear to you I am not a huge fan.   I love the acidity of the grapefruit juice in the quick and easy vinegrette....but I think I make those grapefruit sections microscopic next time.   Of course the color is appealing too...so I would not omit them. Food needs to be as pretty as it is yummy! Right???? Sorry Moussaka, you are the ugly step mother of this dish! (no offense to step mothers everywhere!) well most anyway! :) You know who you are people!

TWEEN - Ate it!

TEEN - Loved it

Overgrown 2 Year old....also known as loving hubby....- dealt with it!

Me- Would make it again! Provides a ton of nutrients including the all important fiber. So this was a win win.   My kids got more veggies in this meal than my hubby ate all last year! I kid...I force feed! baaaahhhaaa

Best of all this side dish took no time at all to make- under 5 minutes! Yay and it really brightened up the dinner next to that very hearty moussaka. Way to go MEDA!   You have a win!

This is a thumbs up for sure! The INTERNET IMPOSSIBLE just became Possible!!

Moussaka - Smoussaka!

2012-02-22T10:25:00.000-08:00

I was really excited to get to blogging this morning and wanted to combine my foil test with my Moussaka review from Melissa D'Arabian. But I felt the need to sleep off my comfort meal dinner and sleep in leaving me only a little bit of time this morning before work. So now you get a lunch blog! Pardon the typo's!

(Melissa won a season of Next Food Network Star) She now has a show called Ten Dollar Meals....focusing on complete and balanced nutrition with a variety of tastes....She was always doating herself as the "mom chef" but yet had all of these worldly recipes that made me feel very sheltered! Let's for the sake of this blog call her a "well versed and traveled mom chef" Sounds nicer than what I was thinking! ohhhhh back of people I love MEDA! (My pet name for (ME)lissa (D)(A)rabian! If you want to be mad....be mad that I felt the need to show you where the acronym came from instead of assuming you would figure it out! :) I joke!

Ok so onto the review......

The recipe is as follows:

MOUSSAKA Melissa D' Arabian via foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

Vegetables:

3 medium or 2 large red potatoes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
Kosher salt
1 medium eggplant
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Meat Sauce:

1 onion, chopped
Kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces ground beef ( I used the full pound..I buy them that way...just made it easier)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup red wine (I used Beef Broth) <-------See I am not nearly as worldly! :)
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce (since I doubled the meat, I used a full can of tomato sauce 15.5 oz)

Bechamel:

5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons flour
4 cups milk, heated to very warm in microwave
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Vegetable oil, for greasing
3/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

For the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the potato slices for 5 minutes (do not cook longer) in heavily salted, boiling water. Meanwhile, slice the eggplant into 1/4-inch slices, brush with the olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoons salt and the pepper on both sides. Place on a baking sheet and cook in the oven, 6 to 7 minutes per side. Set aside the potato and eggplant slices for assembly.

For the meat sauce: In a large saucepan, sweat the onions with some salt in the olive oil over medium heat. After 5 minutes, add the ground beef and cook until golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the oregano, cinnamon, nutmeg and garlic, and cook until fragrant. Turn the heat up to high, and then deglaze the pan with the red wine, allowing to bubble and reduce for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and lower the heat to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat and set aside.

For the bechamel: In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the flour, whisking to make a paste. Whisk constantly for 2 minutes, allowing the mixture to bubble. Add the warm milk slowly, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Once the sauce starts to come to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes, whisking very frequently. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg, and set aside.

For assembling the moussaka: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Before assembling, taste each of the 4 layers and confirm that they are properly seasoned. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with vegetable oil.

The photos I am inserting are of my assembly! This is not MEDA! I am sure her's would be much more "well versed and traveled mom chef like".

Lay out potatoes in the bottom of prepared baking dish:

Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan.

Place the eggplant on top of the potatoes.

Sprinkle with another 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan.

Spoon the meat sauce on top,

followed by 3 more tablespoons of Parmesan. (sorry about the blur! )

Finish with pouring over the bechamel and top

with the last 3 tablespoons of Parmesan. Cover with foil (sprayed lightly with vegetable oil) and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and continue baking for an additional 30 minutes.

So this is the Moussaka! I served it with her Celery, Grapefruit, olive salad.....I will review that later.

I think if you use whole milk the Moussaka will hold shape better. I used skim! Sorry I am a girl of convenience. Besides...I don't stand and eat, I don't make my food either! MEDA's didn't really stand either like some Moussaka you see!

YES THAT IS A DIVIDER PLATE!!! I have issues! :)

So all in all....I loved this recipe. I made a few changes and mine was not quite as "greek-enomical" as hers but still ok. Since I am EVALUATING HER.....I will break down my pricing and see if it is truely a $10 dinner!

Hamburger $2.59 for the lb

Potatoes $1.00 for 3 Lbs and I used about 1 Lb (don't be a hater, Kroger has them on sale through today...go stock up they last for months in a cool dry place.)

So I used about $0.34

Eggplant was $2.69 I used about 2/3 of the eggplant but lets be real...WHAT WILL I REPURPOSE THAT FOR???? Before it goes bad anyway??? LOL The compost got it!

Black olives $1.89 I used half the can $0.95 That I will use...I keep them in the fridge and whip it out for greek salads! Spinach, tomato, cucumber and olives with feta...YUM! Lunch in a flash!

Celery ($1.79) I used about half and wrapped it back in a paper towel and foil (PINTEREST ALERT) and will experiment to see how long it lasts! FUTURE BLOG ALERT! $0.90 on celery

Grapefruit $0.75

MILK Yes I don't usually factor in prices of "staples", neither does MEDA ...but she takes way more liberty on this than I do. 4 Cups of milk is ALOT! That is about $.75 of my milk!

Parmesean is the other that she considers a staple (which I do too...BUT, big BUT....expensive at over $4 per container.) We used 3/4 of a cup (or so!) I didn't measure....too lazy when you can just sprinkle! But I would guess I used about $.50

So all in all I spent DRUM ROLL......................

$9.47 on my Dinner! Not too shabby! On this one I think Kroger's Potato Sale Saved MEDA!

SO HOW DID IT TASTE YOU ASK?????

The biggest thing is that I had to remind the boys that this was NOT a Lasagna! LOL See we are not well traveled! Once I got that in their mind I told them to expect a woodsy taste (my best effort to describe the nutmeg and cinnamon combo in the Beachumel sauce) I think telling my boys what to expect helps...They both loved it!

"the tween" has issues with textures (no idea where he gets that from...eeehhhuuumm mommy) so when he found the skin of the eggplant that took some coaxing to get him to accept it was ok to eat. Like we bake things in food that are not edible??? LOL

And my "teen" is a human vacuum so no problems there!

Hubby said...and I quote "after I got used to the cinnamon and nutmeg it was ok" LOL He grew up like I did on meat and potatoes with a dash of salt and pepper! Garlic from a bottle if we were going all crazy!

So all in all it was a win for MEDA and food network. Now with full disclosure I will let you know it does have a 5 star rating on their website, so I am not completely shocked that it was edible!~

A few things to note...I will cut back on the amount of cinnamon and nutmeg as to keep the hubster happy next time, but I think MEDA did a great job on this recipe.

Internet Impossible Mission -Foil removes gunk off bakeware

2012-02-22T05:43:00.000-08:00

I am all about learning the little tips and tricks that make life easier around the house. So last night before I made my Moussaka...I pulled my old go to pyrex dish out of the cabinet...you know the one...the one that is NOT VERY PRETTY! Seems like too big of a chore to clean the baked on gunk off of, so we use this for our family (keeping the nice ones for when we need to actually present food). Being fully aware that if I used this dish at a carry in my food wouldn't be touched with a ten foot pole! :)

EVIDENCE EXIBIT A! (it really does look like a crime scene....don't judge you know you have one too!)

Next it was time to ball up the foil and go to work....Full disclosure here: this goofball started rubbing the foil on the pan without water! That was not working at all....

As the brainiac I am...I decided to run it under water (concidering this was a quick fix to a scrubber..duh) then it started to work...

I have no problem telling you that it worked....but it most certainly was DIFFICULT!! I was cooking dinner so I said to the ever wonderful hubby...."hey will you help me do this?" So he proceeds to start scrubbing and proclaims "this is too much work...I am getting out a razor blade"......Ok I know kitchen work is gruling, but honestly don't you think you are being a little over dramatic???? Whatta' you some kinda chick?

Ok the gig is up...he is just smarter than pinterest on this one! He goes out and brings in a plain ole' razor blade and scrubs it off in like 2 seconds! All ready for my Moussaka tonight! Yay! Just keep the razor blade angeled so you don't cut the glass.

So here is my final verdict....Does aluminum foil work to get the gunk off of your bakeware?....Yes....might your arm fall off into the garbage disposal from all the scrubbing?............... YES! But if you had no other means to clean it off.....it would work. But I think that most women that have foil in the kitchen have at the very least a metal scraper/flipper/spatula/serving something-er-ruther! That also may prove easier than the aluminum foil.

I think PINTEREST gets a big KINDA on this one. Not a clear win....but not an absolute fail either!

Happy Pinning Friends!

Pinterest on my mind!

2012-02-21T11:11:00.000-08:00

Gather round ladies (and gents)....we all do it....scour Pinterest for the latest and greatest ideas on the web. Carefully organizing our boards for maximum entertainment value. AND I LOVE IT! I will admit I am a Pinterest ADDICT! It is my new thing....forget farmville (so passe') forget farkle (why do I play that again?) and forget all social aspect of facebook....wait, scratch that last one! I love seeing what my friends are up too! However, you get the point...PINTEREST IS HOT! So why don't I try the ideas I am going to "PIN"? I don't know????? So now I am doing just that. And this is my first blog about it!

The First Project....FROM THE BLOG: Sugar and Charm

Painted Glass Vases! I thought....wow fantastic! $1 vases made into fantastic accents for my office! The color was perfect....but will it work???

The blog shows the following steps and simplicty of use:

So off to Michael's to purchase the items needed.......

Insert sobbing and Cheering....Once at Michael's I was sad to find out that the surface conditioner I needed to prep the glass was no longer offered and the paint was being clearanced. I figured....stock up if it works great...if not take back the unopened.

So I found my blue and my white...some orange and green for the kitchen. WARNING: Had the paint not been on clearance this paint would cost $5.00 a bottle. I would guess you could get 2 large vases per bottle and maybe 5 small vases. I did three small - mixing blue and white for 2 and pure 1 for one.

So DRUM ROLL PLEASE........here are my findings

This project was as easy as the lovely Sugar and Charm blog boasted. It was VERY economical for housewares. Now for a picture of the final project!!!!

So....WHAT DID I LEARN? First of all....I do not like the vases with the fishbowl glass at the bottom for this project (honestly I didn't think about it when I was doing it) It makes the vase kinda look like a tall shot of milk! :) But all in all the project was as described! YAY Pinterest...and thank you Sugar and Charm for sharing!

UPDATE!!!!! I am trying this project with plain ole' Acrylic paint (obviously you will be unable to place water in it...but my vases were for decor, not flowers.....so we will see how it goes and I will get back to you! SO FAR SO GOOD!!!!

THIS IS A PINTEREST WIN!!!