Menu Monday and a recipe

Be careful what you wish for.
 I have been wanting just one or two days free to get some much needed cleaning done.  Joe and the boys went to a basketball tourney Saturday and Sunday, and the girls and I stayed home.  The girls had some events and things going on that we didn't want to miss.  I hate not going to the bball games, but it is needed sometimes. 
The girls and I had fun shopping 3 different Goodwill's and a consignment shop.  We found lots of great finds.  We even found Amy's prom dress for $75, so that was a score.  It is modest and looks great on her.
After shopping I got to work cleaning.  I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned.  Sad to say it doesn't look much different!  But I feel so much better about it.  All of the little things I don't normally have time to do, got done.
 I cleaned all of the drains (I'm weird),
scrubbed the bathrooms from ceiling to floor,
cleaned out my linen closet and a bunch of cabinets,
changed out all of the our flannel sheets because I am sick of winter,
dusted,
cleaned out the kids totes and found many of the "I can't find it" items,
cleaned and organized our bedroom,
purged a bit,
blew out the garage of all the leaves and dirt,
cleaned out the magazine pile,
grocery shopped,
hosted 5 teenage girls for a sleepover,
cleaned the top of the refrigerator off (gross, by the way),
and did 1 million loads of laundry.
This list isn't meant to impress, but to help me remember what all I did!  My legs were hurting last night!
On to menus:
Monday
Steak fajitas
chips and salsa

Tuesday
Crock pot potato soup
bread
salad

Wednesday
Crock pot chicken teriyaki( I still haven't made this :)
rice

Thursday
Italian baked chicken
green beans
boiled potatoes

Friday

Pizza

I made up a Tortellini Soup last Friday when I didn't have time to use the crock pot version.  It was so yummy!

1 box of chicken broth
1 bar of cream cheese
2 T minced garlic
2 cans, undrained, Italian diced tomatoes
2 cups milk
1 package frozen tortellini
2 cups tore up baby spinach leaves
1 pound turkey sausage

Brown the sausage then add broth and CC.  Stir until cream cheese is melted. Add the rest of the ingredients except the tortellini.  Cook tortellini according to package directions and then add to soup. Cook until all ingredients are incorporated.  Serve with a sprinkle of fresh Parmesan.

It was a hit with everyone.  Aaron and Ann picked out the tomatoes of course.

Menus

Busy week with lots of crock pot meals!

Monday
Chik fil a night for afterprom

Tuesday

Chili in crock pot


Wednesday
Crock Pot chicken teriyaki


Thursday
Crock pot Tortellini Soup


Friday
Pizza

Waiting

Waiting is hard.
Especially for this control freak.
Maybe that's why God does it, to stretch me.

“This is how God works. He puts people in positions where they are desperate for his power, and then he shows his provision in ways that display his greatness.” David Platt


Waiting....on so many things. Trying to be patient.

Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary. Isaiah 40:31

Reminding myself that God has brought us through so much more, why would He suddenly not?  When I say it out loud it sounds ridiculous.  Faith.

Once again, it comes down to Faith. My word for the year keeps popping up.

I take it as God reminding me. 

He is faithful. He will not leave me, nor forsake me.  Seems like such a "duh" statement.  Of course He won't. Sometimes our heads and hearts don't meet up though and the doubt sets in. 

That's where I  am.  Pushing down the doubt and stepping out in faith.

"These trials have come so that your faith-of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."  1 Peter 1:7

Monday Menus

I left my notes at home as to menus that I wrote down on Friday when I had a minute!  This is what I remember. 
Monday
Sausage tortellini dish
apples

Tuesday
Chicken Parmesan
salad

Wednesday
Spaghetti and meatballs

Thursday
Lemon chicken breasts
vegetables
fruit

Friday
chili

Now I am off to instill the virtue of showers and deodorant to a bunch of stinky 4th graders!

Menus

What a difference a week makes.  This weekend I went on the 7th grade retreat as the nurse.  I came home with a sore back, I can't stand up straight without pain.  Grr, luckily it usually is short lived.  A minor inconvenience.
My house is a wreck again, and laundry piles are plentiful.  Oh well, life is well lived at our house:)

Monday
Pork Chops(never had them last week) I "fry" them in a skillet with coconut oil and Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper seasoning.
Salad
fried potatoes
Strawberries

Tuesday
Slow Cooker Carmalized Onion Pot Roast in the crock pot with potatoes and carrots

Wednesday
Ham and cheese quiche

Thursday
Chicken strips
mac and cheese
salad

Friday
pizza

Menus and a recipe

We have the day off today, I so love 3 day weekends.  My laundry is caught up, house is somewhat clean and I am rested! Woohoo.  I took the kids to see "Parental Guidance" this afternoon.  It is the second time I have seen it and I cried again today.  It really is a clean, cute movie.
 Here are our tentative menus for the week.
Monday
Taco salad

Tuesday
Crock Pot chicken and dumplings
strawberries

Wednesday
Meatloaf
baked potatoes
salad

Thursday
Pork Chops
caesar salad
fruit

Friday
Chili

Weekend
I am off on a 7th grade retreat. They are on their own.

I tried out this new recipe a couple weeks ago.  It was a hit.  I took it to a friend who is pregnant with twins and not feeling so great, and she asked for the recipe.  That usually tells me it is pretty yummy!

Creamy baked Ziti

4 cups  ziti pasta, uncooked

1

jar  (24 oz.) marinara sauce

1

can  (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained

6

oz.  (3/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) Cream Cheese, cubed

3/4

cup Sour Cream

1

pkg.  (8 oz.) Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

1/3

cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 pound turkey sausage, browned

 Preheat oven to 350. Cook ziti according to package directions.

Mix all ingredients and place in greased 9x13 pan.

Bake for 30 minutes

It Hit me

These verses "Hit Me" this morning.

So relevant.  So alive. 

I have a friend whose dad is losing his battle with cancer.  She said she keeps reading him scripture even though he is unresponsive. 

"It is hard though, the words on the page are so relevant and there are regrets.  The tears just come."

Keep reading, keep reading....


“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:


to loose the chains of injustice

and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

and break every yoke?


Is it not to share your food with the hungry

and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—

when you see the naked, to clothe him,

and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?


Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness will go before you,

and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.



~Isa. 58:3-8