Sharing My Two Cents

What’s For Dinner?

2013-05-20T17:58:00Z

You might have noticed that I don’t always have 7 days of dinners listed in my meal plans. I like to leave one day flexible for times that we might go out to eat, have a leftovers night at home, or evenings that my husband makes one of his homemade pasta sauces.
Yesterday we tried a new to us pizza restaurant. It was delicious and the crust was excellent! I tried the Athena pizza which was eggplant, red onions, sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese, arugula, basil salad, and a balsamic reduction. My kids had a normal cheese pizza.
I’ll say that my husband’s pizza is still the best that I’ve eaten, but this pizza was the best pizza we’ve found in a restaurant in North County San Diego. San Diego has great Mexican food, but we’ve had the hardest time finding a place that makes great pizza.

Bread is baking in the bread maker right now. I bought this from a neighbor for $10 and this is only the second time I’ve used it. The first time ended up being a bit of a flop so I’m using a different recipe that will hopefully work better. Do you make your bread at home?

This Week’s Menu

Anniversary dinner out!
Slow Cooker Lasagna and salad (possibly making this lasagna meatless or with VERY little meat)
Slow Cooker Chicken Cordon Bleu (using homemade cream of chicken soup recipe)
Asian Lunchbox Noodles & steamed veggies
Chicken Divan & Rice
Southwest Pork Carnita Wraps with Maple Corn
French Tarragon Chicken with Redskin Potatoes served over spinach

I’m sharing my dinner menu this week at I’m an Organized Junkie and Susie QT Pies.

Hiking and Throwing Out Food

2013-05-19T17:10:02Z

We went for a hike yesterday. It was baby girl’s first hike! She hung out in the Kelty pack. We were almost ready to give that to a cousin until we found out we were expecting again so it looks like we’ll have it for a few more years. It’s been a great thing to have so that we can hike as a family.

We hiked over 3 miles, and I ended up running an additional 1-1.5 miles with my 12 year old to get his older brother who ran too far ahead of us.

My 12 year old brought along his camera to take pictures. He loves photography and I’m looking forward to taking a nature photography class with him through REI sometime this summer.

The view from the hill goes all the way to the ocean. Sadly the coast was a bit overcast yesterday so you couldn’t see the water very easily.

This weekend a mostly full Costco-size container of “bread crumbs” went into the trash. I was inspired after reading about the ingredients.

I’ll admit, I hadn’t really paid much attention to what was in them, and I really should have. I’ve been on a mission to rid our house of junk, and really, why is there high fructose corn syrup in bread crumbs????

Next project will be trying to make my own bread crumbs out of stale bread. I’ll let you know how it turns out! If you’ve made your own bread crumbs before do you have any tips?

If you are looking to avoid GMO’s, this handy little chart shows at a glance food companies that are entirely Non-GMO and where to purchase their products. The list is printable. For a more complete list of Non-GMO products you can browse the Non-GMO Project. We are making changes in how we eat, and trying to eat more whole foods or “real” foods. It’s been a sloooow process with our family, but I’m sure if I had cleaned out the kitchen in one big swoop we’d have been left with a bunch of bananas and frozen veggies!
I’ve noticed that I have more energy and feel better when we eat better. The food even tastes better without all the extra unpronounceable ingredients. And we are all about good tasting food in this house!

More Decluttering…13 more items gone!

2013-05-17T21:51:48Z

It’s really nice to see the changes around the house as I declutter bit by bit everyday. Getting rid of at least 7 items a day doesn’t seem like much, but it sure does add up fast!

Today’s purge:

5 old batteries
Swiffer cleaner (to a Swiffer Wet Jet we got rid of)
1 box (This was taking up space on our laundry room shelves, yet only held 6 light bulbs. I removed the light bulbs and placed them on the shelf. The box went out to the recycling bin!)
Hot tub filter (we got rid of the hot tub a year ago!)
misc. trash (plastic stick, washer and white plastic piece)
t-shirt and sweatpants used when painting

How To Fold a Towel

2013-05-17T17:17:15Z

A reader asked me how I fold my towels after seeing my kids linen closet. I was going to try and explain it but I thought pictures might make it easier. I learned from my mom when I was younger on how to fold towels, and have been doing it the same way ever since. I’ve been in enough different houses to see there are many different ways to fold towels, so I’m not claiming that mine is the only way. But this is what works for me, and maybe it will help you!

How to Fold a Bath Towel

Fold towel in half.

Fold in half again in the opposite direction.

Fold in thirds.

Done!

How to Fold a Hand Towel

Fold in thirds.

Fold in half.
Done!

How do you fold your towels? How did you learn?

A Ninjago Birthday Party (Part 2)

2013-05-16T23:32:48Z

A few weeks ago I shared the food and decorations I used for our fabulous Ninjago party. But the fun was really where the party was it, and I had a blast coming up with fun for the kids during the party (and convincing my husband to dress as Sensei Wu!) Thanks to all the wonderful bloggers on Pinterest who inspired me in creating this party!

Jumpy and Ninjago Music

In our itty-bitty backyard tables & chairs along with a jumpy were set up. The jumpy was only $80 and we had it at about 8 hours. I think that’s a pretty decent deal, and I didn’t have to set it up or take it down! While the kids jumped a playlist I had made played on my phone. Did you know there are Ninjago songs? Well, I had no idea until I dove into the world of Ninjago and learned everything I could about it. The band The Fold produced the theme song that is played during the opening of the Ninjago TV show.

A few songs on our Ninjago Playlist:

Weekend Whip – The Fold
Born to Be a Ninja – The Fold
Kung Fu Fighting – Cee-Lo Green and Jack Black

Ninjago Coloring Table

Besides the typical party jumpy set up in our backyard, I set up an inside coloring activity table for the kids. I covered a coffee table with paper bags (free!) to protect it, printed out free Ninjago coloring sheets from the internet, and placed stickers from the Ninjago sticker book and cups of crayons out for the kids to use. The girls really liked this area.

Ninjago Shirt

You can see the red Ninjago shirt my son is wearing in the above picture. I bought it specifically from IHEARTBRICKS for this party, and it’s STILL his favorite shirt to this day. I think I’m going to have to hide it soon because it’s getting too small.

Take a Ninja Guess! game

As each child entered the party they were given a headband and asked to estimate how many legos were in the vase. The guesses were put in the basket and a prize was given to the winner at the end of the party.

We had plenty of little ninja’s running around, who was missing? Sensei Wu of course!

The straw hat was ordered from Amazon.com and the karate uniform was from the local karate studio. The beard was made from fake white fur purchased at Michael’s (I used a coupon and total cost ended up being a little more than $1), white yarn and a stapler. I simply folded the fur over the yarn and stapled it on. Loops were tied on each end so that the beard hung off the ears.

For entertainment we had a demo team from North County Martial Arts come by. With the jumpy in our tiny backyard we didn’t have room for the demo team and the entire party so we moved to a neighbor’s backyard. The demo team was AMAZING! They did some fancy moves, gave the kids a lesson on the history of weapons, and taught the kids some moves. They also demonstrated board breaking and let me son, the birthday boy, break some himself. I’m pretty sure that was all he talked about for days if not weeks afterward.

Pinata!

The Ninjago pinata was a complete hit! We ordered it from Etsy although the seller I bought from no longer makes them. My husband (aka Sensei Wu) made the pinata stick using a long dowel and wooden circle. He taped one end with electrical tape to make the stick look like a Samurai sword. One tip: if you plan on having a karate demonstration, DO NOT do the pinata directly afterwards. Or have strict crowd control. I’ve never seen kids so happy to beat up on a pinata!

Goody Boxes

I used a Japanese name generator to write each child’s name in Japanese. I can’t find the actual website I used but this one would work great. A few names didn’t translate very well, so I took a few liberties with the phonetic spelling when doing the translation.

Inside each goody box were candies, a Lego Ninjago keychain (thank you to my good friend for picking up 20+ of them at LEGOLAND for me!), jelly bracelets and paper scrolls. On the paper scrolls I printed out where parents could download free Ninjago apps for their phones or Ipads, the link to the Ninjago website and links to where they could sign up to get free Lego magazines.

Free Ninjago Apps for Iphone

(yes I have these games on my phone and Ipad and my 7 year old loves them!)

The karate studio donated free magazines along with a coupon for a free class to each child. If I would have had more time (ie. planned a little better) I would have driven to LEGOLAND and picked up enough copies of their free Lego magazine.Looking for the rest of the party? In Part I I shared the food and decorations used for our Ninjago party!

Clutter Busting Challenge Day 12

2013-05-16T23:23:55Z

Another day of clutter busting done! How much did you get rid of?

I was able to get rid of 20 items today.

5 cookbooks
1 Bible study workbook (the study is over and I don’t like to keep the workbooks)
14 old markers
1 scrapbooking marker holder

The marker holder held dozens of my scrapbooking markers. I tested all of them to see which ones still worked. The dried up ones I threw out and the good markers went into the school supply stash for the kids to use on school projects.

Sweet treat from Mini Boden in the Mail!

2013-05-16T18:08:35Z

I almost threw out a great piece of mail yesterday! I get Mini Boden catalogs in the mail a few times a year. I think their clothes are cute, but other than maybe for special occasions, the clothes are out of my price range (remember I’ve got 5 kids!)
Yesterday I got a small envelope in the mail from them and almost put it straight in the recycle bin. I’m SO glad I opened it!

Inside I found a FREE $10 gift voucher and a 15% off coupon with free shipping! I read the small print and YES, you can use BOTH coupons! The 15% is applied first and then the $10 off coupon.

I found this sweet dress for baby girl. There are other items that are cheaper so I’m sure it’s possible to get something really close to free if you shop carefully! Look in the t-shirts section if you are looking to find an item that will be close to free after the coupon. And, DON’T FORGET to go through ebates first! Orders with Boden will get you 2.5% cash back!

Dress $24.00
- $3.60 (15% off)
$20.40- $10 gift card voucher
=$10.40 and FREE shipping! and 2.5% cashback with Ebates.

Check your mail carefully! Did you get a $10 Mini Boden gift voucher??

Day 11 Clutter Busting Challenge- 8 Items to Donate

2013-05-16T17:32:44Z

I had a little help yesterday de-cluttering. My 12 year old went through his shorts and found 4 pairs that are too small. I went through my cookbooks and found 4 to get rid of. My donate pile is getting huge, I’m going to drop off a few boxes this morning. I’m sure my husband will be happy to have the extra space back in the garage!

Days 9 & 10 Clutter Busting Challenge

2013-05-16T17:28:48Z

I’ve been keeping up with the Clutter Busting Challenge, just have been terrible at sharing my finds and what I’ve gotten rid of!
Day 9

I am working on going through my files. On day 9 I went through my household folders and purged a pile of fabric swatches, magazine clippings (pre-Pinterest!), 1 notebook, furniture catalogs and other home decorating ideas. No, I did not count all of them, but it’s safe to say there were more than 7!

Day 10

I worked through my craft closet this day.

2 ribbons
3 dried up glue sticks/pens
1 stamp
broken Xyron refill cartridge
Stamping roller thing I don’t have all the parts to anymore
chalk q-tips that have detoriated beyond use
misc. cardboard packaging scraps

What’s Cooking This Week

2013-05-15T18:22:51Z

Our basil plant, which is excellent on pizza

I’m a little late getting this posted, as I’ve already made the first two dinners on the list this week!

Breakfast dinner- Pancakes, scrambled eggs & strawberries
Buffalo Chicken Cavatappi Pasta, green beans
Spaghetti with red sauce, roasted zucchini
Slow Cooker Bajio Chicken served as a salad
Beef tacos with fixings, Spanish rice
Homemade pizza (it’s been awhile since we’ve had homemade pizza night, I’m hoping we have time this weekend for my husband to make it!)

What are you making this week? Trying anything new? I’m sharing my menu over at I’m an Organized Junkie this week!