blend until purple.
My daily addiction:
1 cup skim milk (90 calories)
1 cup fat free yogurt (any berry flavor) (100 calories)
2 fistfuls of frozen blueberries (1 cup = less than 85 calories)
6 frozen strawberries (about 5 calories each)
blend until purple.
An antioxidant, vitamin C loaded snack that tastes like dessert for around 300 calories!
I’ve spent decades of my life not eating fruit on a daily basis. I’ve gone weeks at a time without eating any fruit. Not because I don’t like it, because I really like most fruits. It just doesn’t occur to me to eat any. Multiple times per year, I make resolutions to eat just ONE fruit per day. Finally, I included it on my fitness log (see the sidebar to the right) to try and put myself in a situation where I have to be accountable.
I also have a problem getting enough calories, which causes my metabolism to drop. I tend to forget to eat.
Smoothies solve both problems. I’m actually consuming fruit on a daily basis for the first time in my life and making them is easy and takes less than 5 minutes, so eating doesn’t intrude on my day. It doesn’t hurt that I actually crave them now.
I stumbled upon the smoothie idea while trying to get PinkGirl to consume some sort of nourishment in the morning. Trying to get that girl to eat breakfast before school is a chore! A few friends suggested I try smoothies and since PinkGirl loves Planet Smoothie, I thought it might work. It only took about 3 or 4 months to finally hit on a recipe that I actually liked. (for ME, not her. She still wavers about what she likes. I don’t know if I’ll ever find a recipe she really likes.)
But I was having blender issues. If the Vitamix is the BMW of blenders, it seems my little Oster was the VW bug of blenders. It was either forming a little pocket of air at the bottom and doing nothing or it was spinning like crazy and only blending the bottom half of my smoothie. I had to add more and more milk to thin it out so the blender would actually blend the entire smoothie.
I put a new blender on my Christmas list.
Which really irritated me because I own an Oster Kitchen Center with nearly every possible attachment, similar to this one:
It transforms from a blender to a chopper to a slicer to a mixer to a juicer to a . . . it does everything but clean itself. We got one as a wedding present from my husband’s parents and about 10 years ago, it died and I replaced it at our church’s WHALE of a Sale. Since all Oster attachments are interchangeable with every Oster made, I even bought a newer countertop blender 
So I was not looking forward to having a different blender on my countertop. It was going to mess up my system.
FirstHusband surprised me with an early Christmas present: An Oster Milkshake blade for my blender!
My little Oster just got tricked out!
And THIS ONE
5 minutes for petrified croutons & other science experiments.
This post proves that I will do anything to distract myself while trying to get through the last half mile of a 5 mile catch-up walk on the treadmill at a 6.5 incline…
As usual, I don’t have time to devote a full day (or 7) to concentrated cleaning, so I’m once again applying my long time practice of microactions to tackle deep cleaning my kitchen.
The recent “worms in the fridge” episode has me focused on cleaning my refrigerator. You’d think that the shelf with the worms on it would get my attention, but no. The drawer that was so stuffed it wouldn’t open gets first dibs. I had 5 minutes, so I completely emptied and cleaned it out.
Includes emptying out the drawer (including the loose, petrified croutons) cleaning the drawer bottom, searching for science experiments and tossing them out, combining the contents of multiple open packages of the same items and reloading the drawer – leaving out the food that shouldn’t have been in there in the first place.
Here’s the photo documentary of this exciting event:
And my theory is that nobody really wants to see the science experiments that were discovered and discarded, but if I’m wrong, HERE THEY ARE.
What can you clean in 5 minutes?
5 minutes. one counter with magical magnetic properties.
oh, you get to see the ugly now. My last few 5 minute posts have been in line with my goal to spring/deep clean my kitchen, but today’s post is about a DAILY struggle.
I have to believe that my kitchen counter is not the only one with magical magnetic properties. Magical in that it attracts all materials, not just metal.
We’ve got paper, plastic, wood, glass, medicine, vitamins, food items, cleaning supplies, a doorknob (don’t ask), even flat out GARBAGE. Maybe if I put the garbage can ON the counter…
But I digress.
I decided to find out if I could clear it in 5 minutes. If so, maybe it won’t seem like such a daunting task in the future. Maybe if I SEE that I can do it in 5 minutes, I’ll be more likely to do it every day.
Bwahahaha! (in our house, that would be referred to the Zack and Cody laugh. a statement, followed by a brief pause, and then a burst of mocking laughter.)
Did I make it within 5 minutes?
I’ll admit right now that this was challenging, simply due to the distance I had to travel to put some of this stuff where it actually goes. Which is probably WHY it got dumped on the counter in the first place.
Nobody wanted to go the distance.
I did cheat a little bit and put the items that were supposed to go upstairs ON the stairs to carry up the next time I go.
You watch, the next 5 minute post will start with a picture of my cluttered staircase.
What can YOU clean in 5 minutes?
And I just want to state right now, that I am confident that I can not clear my minivan of CARbage in 5 minutes.
UPDATE @ 2:34pm: Right now, there’s only one thing on my kitchen counter. A crock pot full of Cream Cheese Chicken
Find more tips from other bloggers over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family. MY previous Works for Me Wednesday posts are HERE.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer.
5 minutes. 1 drawer. and a kapoosh.
Still applying my long time practice of microactions to tackle deep cleaning my kitchen. Today, I had 5 minutes, so I completely emptied and cleaned out the knife drawer.
“BEFORE” photos:
If THAT photo doesn’t show how bad it really was, THIS one surely does:
I followed the same steps as yesterday’s 5 minute drawer cleanup: emptied the drawer, cleaned the bottom, scrubbed and dried the drawer organizers and put everything back. This time, I didn’t get rid of anything. It may have been dirty, but it’s stayed organized like this since we had the kitchen redone in November of 2000.
“AFTER” photo:
2000. I wonder if that’s when I last cleaned the bottom of this drawer. no . . . NO. I’ve definitely cleaned it since then. That’s my story and I’m stickin to it.
What can YOU clean in 5 minutes?
But that was only the knife DRAWER. My favorite knives live in my Kapoosh
how to be the best mom EVER! (for a few minutes anyway)
Her children rise up and call her blessed…
Proverbs 31:28
…because she threw frozen chicken wings in a crock pot, smothered them with a bottle of barbecue sauce and cooked them on high for four hours selflessly dedicated four hours to cooking perfect, fall off the bone tender chicken wings dripping in finger-licking good sauce.
Prep/Work time? 5 minutes
End result? sticky fingers and happy kids
I’m ALWAYS on the lookout for “dump it in the crock pot and walk away” recipes, so if you have one, LINK UP or post it in a comment!!!
Click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace MY past Tempt My Tummy posts can be found HERE.
Need more? Head over to Tasty Tuesday hosted by Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam MY previous Tasty Tuesday posts are HERE. Tasty Tuesday posts prior to April of 2009 can be found at Forever . . . Wherever
5 minutes. 1 drawer: would you like chocolate sprinkles with that?
As usual, I don’t have time to devote a full day (or 7) to concentrated spring cleaning, so I’m applying my long time practice of microactions to tackle deep cleaning my kitchen. Today, I had 5 minutes, so I completely emptied and cleaned out the flatware drawer. I forgot to include a clock in the picture to prove that it only took 5 minutes, so you’re just gonna have to trust me.
FIVE minutes.
Includes emptying out the drawer, cleaning the drawer bottom, scrubbing and drying the drawer organizers and reloading the drawer – leaving out the flatware we don’t really use anymore.
What can you clean in 5 minutes?
“AFTER” photo: (“BEFORE” photo below)
Me, to PinkGirl: “Hey, take a look at this silverware drawer. See anything different?”
PinkGirl, crinkling brow, silently stares at the drawer.
Me: “It’s totally clean.”
PinkGirl: “ohhhhhh.”
Me: “So. I have a question. Why was the bottom of this drawer full of chocolate sprinkles?
PinkGirl, grinning: “Funny story….”
ummm hmmm.
(I had already gotten some of the sprinkles out before I remembered to take the photo.)
“BEFORE” photo:
penalties or rewards, pleasure or pain.
“Everything you and I do, we do either out of our need to avoid pain or our desire to gain pleasure…
Why don’t you do some of the things you know you should do? After all, what is procrastination? It’s when you know you should do something, but you still don’t do it. Why not? The answer is simple: at some level you believe that taking action in this moment would be more painful than just putting it off…
Why is it that people can experience pain yet fail to change? They haven’t experienced enough pain yet…hit a level of pain you weren’t willing to settle for anymore. We’ve all experienced those times in our lives when we’ve said, I’ve had it – never again – this must change now. This is the magical moment when pain becomes our friend. It drives us to take new action and produce new results.”
Awaken the Giant Within : How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny!
by Anthony Robbins
I hope that the negative consequences I just experienced will be motivating enough for me to never repeat the circumstances that led to them.
I skipped working out yesterday. According to my freakish self-commitment to be a good steward of this body God has blessed me with – which I was foolish smart enough to document on the internet – I had to make up what I skipped. Thank GOD I only skipped one day. I had to do double work today. If I had missed two days…
What happened yesterday that prevented me from working out?
nothing.
I have no excuse. I just procrastinated and then I got distracted and then I rationalized that I would just make it up tomorrow.
I should not have listened to me. I really, really hope I remember how difficult it is to do TWO 2 minute forearm planks, TWO 1 minute supermans and FORTY Bosu push-ups.
I’m going out of town with PinkGirl to chaperon a field trip on Thursday and Friday. Excuse me while I have a little talk with myself:
“Julie. There is absolutely NO reason you can’t do your plank, superman and regular push-ups on Thursday and Friday. Do you feel your arms right now? Do you really want to go through this again on Saturday? Do NOT wimp out. You WILL regret it if you do. It’s LESS than FIVE minutes a day, for cryin out loud! Don’t be a whiny butt. Just suck it up and get it DONE.”
That said, here’s where I am with regard to my fitness goals for the month of March:
8 two minute forearm planks (caught up)
8 one minute supermans (caught up)
130 BOSU push-ups (doubled my daily goal after 3 days, need to catch up to 160)
17.7 miles walked. (To meet my average of 2.3 per day, I should be at 18.4. Got some catching up to do – and I should try to get a head start on making up Thursday and Friday because I can’t leave my post as chaperon to get my walking in. I’ll try to remember to wear a pedometer during the day as we do field trip stuff)
How are you doing with YOUR fitness goals? If you’re a beginner, I’m challenging you to exercise for only ONE minute per day this month. In April, I’ll tell you why I’m saying only ONE minute.
I’m blogging my daily fitness updates in my exercise log, and posting my daily progress on my Facebook page and my Twitter account, so follow along any way you like:
1. Subscribe to the blog via email or RSS (there are widgets in the sidebar to subscribe)
2. “Like” my Facebook page to see the updates in your news feed or
3. Follow me on Twitter!
I would LOVE it if you would join me in fitness accountability by commenting and letting me know your progress too!
Wassail. revised.
(I originally posted this back in December of 2008, but I’ve made a revision since then. I used to float cloves in a coffee filter, sealed with a twist tie. Not very Martha of me, I know. But I’m reformed. Check out the photo below.)
When I was in high school and college, I sang at a few madrigal dinners. If you’re unfamiliar with madrigal dinners, here’s a sampling. (and no, I’m not in this video).
One thing was a constant in every madrigal dinner – Wassail. It’s a kind of warm cider drink my choral director would make every year. I’ve made it on Christmas Eve for years. It’s a family favorite and a longstanding tradition. It only takes about 5 minutes to prepare, but allow it to simmer for a couple of hours in the pot if you really want the flavors to blend together.
Wassail
Needed:
1/2 gallon apple juice
2 cups pineapple juice
2 cups orange juice
2 cinnamon sticks
2 teaspoons whole cloves
1 orange (optional)
Instructions:
Pour all juices in a pot or crockpot.
Float Cinnamon sticks in the pot.
Here’s the update:
Take an awl and poke holes in an orange in any pattern that strikes you. Then insert the stems of whole cloves in the holes. Float the cloved orange in the pot while simmering.
When it the smell starts to waft, you know it’s gonna be GOOD.
Enjoy!
For a print friendly version CLICK HERE.
no more wax, just a little thread
Until about two years ago, I didn’t think too much about my eyebrows. I plucked an obvious stray every once in a while, but for the most part, ehh.
Until September 6, 2008, when my manicurist abruptly told me I needed a brow wax. kinda harsh, but true. So I gave myself an early birthday present. It completely changed my eyes. I didn’t look tired! Even FirstHusband noticed a difference. I decided right then I was never going back to “natural” eyebrows. (BTW, I no longer have a manicurist. I’ve learned to do a better job, faster and cheaper, with no risk of fungus.)
Problem is, I have sensitive skin. When I put benzoyl peroxide on my face, I get a bright red welt. When I use certain moisturizers or eye makeup, my eyes swell and appear very, very tiny. When I get a brow (and lip) wax, I get lots of tiny clear water blisters that take 2 to 3 days to go away.
Nevertheless, I continued to get the waxing, figuring that a few days of blisters was the price I had to pay for arched brows and an “eyelash free” upper lip.
Until I tried threading. No blisters. Similar pricing. Long lasting. Check it out:
I tried threading a few months ago for the first time when I had my upper lip done. Today, I went back for a little “pick me up” and had my brows done too. Love it. Great shape. So fast – I was in and out of there in about 5 minutes! (Locals, I went to the little shop in the Oviedo Mall near the food court, to the left of the escalators. Can’t miss it. $11 for brows, $7 for upper lip, lasts months.)
(NOTE: My upper lip and brow area are bright red after. I make sure to give myself at least 15 to 20 minutes before I have to see humans. The redness is very noticeable.)
I’m probably going to try do it yourself threading for maintenance, but the speed and preciseness of the professionals can’t be beat for shaping. They can do an entire line at once – and they actually get exactly what they aim for. I’m not that good. I’ll be going for the strays, one or two at a time. Here’s the ebay tutorial that gives me the confidence (or cockiness) to try maintenance myself:
Find more ideas over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family. MY previous Works for Me Wednesday posts are HERE.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer.
dear pineapple: you do not intimidate me. anymore.
For my entire life – until this week, pineapples either came in a can, on a buffet or on a plate a restaurant server placed in front of me. “Real” pineapples were impenetrable. I mean, look at it. In my mind, in might as well have been a coconut. Or a big rock.
Then, I watched a devotional video by Lysa Terkherst on youtube. She voiced my same reservations about pineapple, and then casually proceeded to cut one up without any trouble at all. Where’s my “easy” button? So, ever the “good idea stealer” I passed up the container of cut pineapple at Sam’s Club, priced at $6.98 and bought myself a “real” pineapple for $2.98.
I cut off the top and bottom. And I didn’t need a chainsaw or a hedge trimmer, just a knife:
Then, I cut along the core:
Then sliced off the outside:
Took five minutes, tops. That was Wednesday afternoon. By Thursday evening, we were out of pineapple. Same thing happened to the pineapple my dad brought over for lunch on Sunday. Gone by Monday evening.
Ready for a pun? How easy is it to get my family to eat fresh fruit? Easy as PIneapple.
Find more helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes! Check out MY past Kitchen Tip Tuesday posts HERE
Find more ideas over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family. MY previous Works for Me Wednesday posts are HERE.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer.
Pragmatic Summer Recipes
Kristin over at We are THAT Family is is hosting a themed edition of Works for Me Wednesday this week! Here are some of my favorite summer recipes! Click on the links for the original post and the ingredients/recipe.
5 Minute Panera Wanna Be Salad
Wannabe Salad Ingredients
Panera Wannabe Salad
5 Minute MorningStar Burrito Lunch
5 minute MorningStar Burritos Before
5 minute MorningStar Burritos Done!
pastasalad
Find more ideas over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer
easy garlic toast
I used to make this garlic toast when I was a kid, using the oven broiler and I can fairly say I burned more than a few pieces of bread. Now we use the toaster oven. It’s VERY easy. Butter a piece of bread and sprinkle garlic salt to taste. Toast in the toaster oven (or place on the top rack of your oven and use the “broil” setting) Garlic toast in less than 5 minutes!
We use wheat bread and smart balance spread for a healthier bread, but this is especially good with slices of french bread too!
Find great recipes and helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes! Check out MY past Kitchen Tip Tuesday posts HERE.
And click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace MY past Tempt My Tummy posts can be found HERE.
Need more? Head over to Tasty Tuesday hosted by Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam MY previous Tasty Tuesday posts are HERE. Tasty Tuesday posts prior to April of 2009 can be found at Forever . . . Wherever
Find more ideas over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family. MY previous Works for Me Wednesday posts are HERE.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer.
Chicken Grape Salad
A track meet lasts for hours. HOURS. I suppose I understand. If FavoriteSon doesn’t rest between races, he tends to ralph. But what to feed a runner between races? Too much and again, ralph. Too little and they don’t perform as well. Then there’s getting him to eat something at all.
Here’s the scene: He runs a race (and wins, of course). I walk to the field with Gatorade or water. He waives me off and turns away. (Because it is NOT cool to talk to your mom at a middle school track meet.) His coach says, “Take the Gatorade, your mother knows what she’s doing.” (That’s RIGHT!)
After a few weeks of that nonsense, I explained to FavoriteSon: “When I walk out on that field and hand you a bottle of Gatorade, I’m invisible. Your friends don’t even see me. You know when they see me? When you waive me away and your coach calls you out in front of everyone.”
silence. thinking.
I continue, “Here’s what I’ll do – after a run, I’ll bring a small snack and drink to you on the field, hand it to you and walk away. No one will even notice me. Okay?
“ok.”
It worked out perfectly. After the first race, I walked out to the field, handed him half of a peeled navel orange and walked away. No eye contact necessary. Didn’t even interrupt his conversation. After his second race, I walked out with a banana and some Gatorade and he actually talked to me. I waited and took away the rest of the banana and the Gatorade bottle. I will not take that as a sign that it is now acceptable for me to interrupt him when he’s engaged in post-race conversation with his friends.
Last week, I packed us a dinner and brought an ice chest in an effort to stave off concession stand food. The big hit was the chicken salad. It takes about 5 minutes to make! The first version was canned chicken breast, drained, shredded and mixed with light mayo and white grapes, sliced in half. BIG hit! This week, I ran out of mayo and had to substitute spinach dip. LOVED it!
I don’t assemble the sandwiches before the meet because they tend to get soggy. I just bring the salad in a container (square, of course), some bread and a fork. I can assemble the sandwiches right there in the stands. Here’s my sandwich from today, using the leftover Chicken Grape Salad:
Find great recipes and helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes!
And click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace
Need more? Head over to Tasty Tuesday hosted by Kim at Forever . . . Wherever!
Find more ideas over at Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by Kristen at We Are THAT Family.
Works for Me Wednesday posts prior to February 2009 are archived at Rocks In My Dryer
fast food food, fast.
Sometimes, I need to feed FavoriteSon fast. Considering what the boy can pack away and how much it can cost, I need to stock some quick, easy, cheap meals.
Meatball subs are a hit with him:
PinkGirl doesn’t like the sauce, so she dips her plain meatballs in low sugar ketchup. Frozen french fries bake up quick and again, PinkGirl goes for the ketchup while FavoriteSon opts for cheese dip.
I’ve got a few meals like this that I can pull together in 5 to 10 minutes. I’ve also made meatloaf sandwiches, turkey & gravy sandwiches and beef tip sandwiches using Hormel Refrigerated Entrees. Served with a bowl of soup or baked fries, these meals are fast, filling, inexpensive and healthier than a double quarter pounder with cheese and a large fry.
And no. I didn’t have any. Wasn’t even tempted.
Tomorrow? A family favorite. Cream Cheese Chicken.
Find great recipes and helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes!
And click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace
Need more? Head over to Tasty Tuesday hosted by Kim at Forever . . . Wherever!
it’s a little “chili”
White chicken chili, that is.
I think it may be cold every where in the U.S. right now, and I don’t pretend to be whining. I actually like it. But of course, I have heat and snow doesn’t blanket Florida. I grouse about hurricanes and humidity, not cold weather.
The freeze warning last night? You know, take in your plants, blah, blah, blah. No need.
Basketballs don’t die.
We had a fire in the fireplace last night and the first chili of the season. I wanted to have white chicken chili, but as I was doing my impression of a short person trying to see on the top shelf at the grocery store, the manager stepped up behind me and asked if he could help me find something.
“White chicken chili mix?”
He copied my impression of a short person, made a “sorry” face and apologized.
“I guess I wasn’t the only one who thought of chili tonight.”
Another (taller) manager was with him and, after sliding her hand across and back the top shelf (show-off) she said:
“Well we should have thought of it too – it’s only freezing outside. Of course people would want to make chili.”
So I made the standard “Chilio” chili instead. (They were out of those packets too, I just had some at home.)
I’m hoping to score some white chicken chili packets today at another grocery store. This is how easy it is:
It needs to simmer a little, but the prep is only 5 minutes if you use the canned chicken (from Sam’s Club) and the canned beans. I’m hoping to make a double batch. A little corn bread, some s’mores and smears over the fire for dessert . . . that, combined with no athletic practices and some family night American Idol watching.
Shoot. We might even take the Christmas tree down. Yes. Yes, I said it. No judging. Our family rule is “if you’re not willing to help, you’re not allowed to complain.”
Find great recipes and helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes!
And click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace
And I found one more! Head over to Tasty Tuesday hosted by Kim at Forever . . . Wherever!
Want to learn cool tips and tricks from lots of different people? Click on over to Works for Me Wednesday hosted by Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer!
wassail
CLICK HERE for an UPDATE to this recipe.
When I was in high school and college, I sang at a few madrigal dinners. If you’re unfamiliar with madrigal dinners, here’s a sampling. (and no, I’m not in this video).
One thing was a constant in every madrigal dinner – wassail. It’s a kind of warm cider drink my choral director would make every year. I’ve made it on Christmas Eve for years. It’s a family favorite and a longstanding tradition. And it only takes about 5 minutes to prepare!!!
Wassail
Needed:
1/2 gallon apple juice
2 cups pinapple juice
2 cups orange juice
2 cinnamon sticks
2 teaspoons whole cloves
Instructions:
Pour all juices in a pot or crockpot.
Float Cinnamon sticks.
Place cloves in a coffee filter and tie with a twist tie. CLICK HERE for an UPDATE to this recipe.
Simmer for AT LEAST 30 minutes or more
(when it the smell starts to waft, you know it’s gonna be GOOD)
Enjoy!
I know some would cover an entire orange with cloves and float it in the wassail. My hat is off to you, but I can’t find my thimble. Actually, I haven’t looked. But you go ahead. More power to ya.
The bonus is the way the house smells while it’s simmering.
For a print friendly version CLICK HERE.
Find great recipes and helpful kitchen tips at Kitchen Tip Tuesdays hosted by Tammy’s Recipes!
And click on over to check out the recipes at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa at Blessed With Grace
Shannon at Works for Me Wednesday is on a blogging break, but check out her past issues for more great tips, tricks and recipes.
recipes and mini-vans and a shower, oh my.
I’m back! And I’m ramping up to meet the holiday scheduling “challenges” in our lives. It’s December 3rd!!!! There are currently only two advent calendars taunting me as they count down the days till Christmas in my house – with at least one more to be unpacked as we decorate for Christmas.
I mentioned a few weeks ago that my color coded calendar looked like a rainbow and I’m seriously focused on keeping things “normal” (whatever that means). We traveled to visit family in Georgia last week and I had to work Monday and Tuesday, so this is my first blog moment in nearly a week. I’ll be catching up on my blog visits in spurts. Oh. And while in Georgia, my windshield got whacked by a rock and now needs replaced because the crack is smack dab in front of the driver’s seat. I’m told that it will only take an hour and can be fixed in my own driveway. I REALLY hope that’s true.
But now it’s time for a little stress relieving stream of consciousness. oops. cold coffee. need to nuke (for the second time this morning and it’s only 9:13 a.m.)
Okay. Here goes.
Kitchen Tip Tuesday – LATE
If I’m not careful, we will eat out or grab takeout for the rest of the month. Monday, I had to work (thankfully, on Go To Meeting, and not on client site) and then I rushed to pick up PinkGirl from school at 3:00 p.m. (late) and then waited for FavoriteSon to saunter on over to the van at 3:36 – 6 minutes after 2nd grade bowling began (His punishment for being late was to ride past all his friends in my festive holiday “carstumed” van.)
I fed them snacks in the car to avoid buying food at the bowling alley, dropped PinkGirl off at bowling, took FavoriteSon home as he did homework in the car, changed from shorts and sleeveless because it was getting cold, put on some make up because I looked . . . asleep, took FavoriteSon – still doing homework in the car, back up to the bowling alley to pick up PinkGirl, drove to pick up FirstHusband at a nearby parking lot where he left his truck while we picked up dinner at Wendy’s (dropping my driver’s side Rudolph antler in the drive-thru) on the way to FavoriteSon’s first basketball game – across town – an hour before the game started because they had to hand out uniforms at the last minute. Got in the van to come home at 8:30 or so, drove 45 minutes home stopping for McDonalds for PinkGirl and at Checkers for FavoriteSon because they were “starving,” (again dropping my driver’s side Rudolph antler in the drive through) arrived home with PinkGirl asleep in the back seat . . . it’s December. See what I mean? And we only allow one extra curricular activity per kid at a time. I can’t imagine life with kids involved in multiple activities.
Oh, and it seems I stepped off the bleachers a little too vigorously after the game. I felt my neck “jar” as my foot hit the ground, so, while I’ve not suffered a complete setback, I did take a few steps backward on the road to ruptured disk recovery. I’m going to schedule another massage for Friday afternoon after a few more traction and inversion sessions. We are taking PinkGirl and three friends to Magic Kingdom on Saturday for her birthday and I’ll have to be standing on hard surfaces all day, so I’m going to be a little proactive. I’m also going to be good and NOT ride any roller coasters either. Bummer.
So . . . those are a few of our recent scheduling challenges. I said this was stream of consciousness.
I need some serious meal planning, which is what I’m doing today. Yesterday I went for a tried and true favorite, Cream Cheese Chicken. Today, we have leftovers and for tomorrow, I’ve already pulled out my “easy” cookbook.
I know Cambell’s soups aren’t the healthiest ingredients in a meal, but they’re a whole lot better than Wendy’s. Or McDonalds. Or Checkers. So, here’s the crinkliest page in this book:
Chicken-Broccoli Divan (click here for a printable PDF version)
Ingredients:
4 cups cooked broccoli florets
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 tbsp. dry bread crumbs
1 tbsp. butter, melted
Directions:
Place the broccoli and chicken into a 9-inch pie plate. (I use an oval Corningware casserole dish.)
Stir the soup and milk in a small bowl. Pour the soup mixture over the broccoli and chicken. Sprinkle with the cheese. Stir the bread crumbs and butter in a small bowl. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the cheese.
Bake at 450°F. for 20 minutes or until the chicken mixture is hot and bubbling.
It’s fast, it’s easy, and the kids like it too! In a bind, I can use frozen broccoli florets and a large can of cooked chicken breast. I use lowfat or low sodium soup, skim milk, lowfat cheese, and Smart Balance margarine. So . . . not SO bad for us.
This morning, I forgot to eat breakfast, so three hours later I just made:
5 minute Oatmeal.
One cup water, 1/2 cup old fashioned oats (not quick or 1 minute oats).
Nuke on 50% power for 5 minutes (I put a paper plate underneath because there can be boil over).
See?
Fast and easy.
Okay – I stepped away from the computer for just a minute – and it’s 4:40 p.m. Again. It’s December.
I saw a termite swarm in the back yard and our “termite guy” stopped by to check it out. There’s nothing near the house, thank goodness and while he was telling me how many termite colonies there are per acre in Florida and how the ones who fly are just looking for a girlfriend and not eating anything important, I got a client call and had to work for a while.
And if anyone remembers reading “With layers, I can choose to blow my hair out straight if I want, but I still have the option of wave or curls.” I’ll just tell you now. I did NOT blow my hair out straight today. I needed the 10 or so minutes for something else. I just don’t remember what the something else is right now. I’m going to have wavy hair for most of the rest of the year.
In other news, our new shower is almost done. I understand the only thing left to do is buff the floor. Check out our “broken” shower photos HERE. And now, our new shower:
Next, I paint.
But first, I take PinkGirl to children’s Christmas choir practice (we broke the one activity rule for this one), walk for an hour with a friend, attend my own Christmas choir rehearsal and then come home.
At the moment, there’s nothing on my calendar tomorrow. Maybe it’s a catch up day? I love catch up days.
the chop wizard dices again!
I’ve already posted my contribution for Kitchen Tip Tuesdays for this week, but Tammy asked for other ways to dice carrots, so . . .
or
I did need to cut the carrot in half to fit on the grate and the smaller grate needed extra pressure, but it worked great – as usual! I’ve posted before about what my Vidalia Chop Wizard! can do.
5 minute diced peppers
5 minute onions in a flash (freeze)
It’s the handiest gadget in my kitchen. Besides the speed, do you know my favorite part? It’s dishwasher safe.
freakish kitchen organization
Shannon, over at Rocks in My Dryer is hosting a themed edition of Works for Me Wednesday. Today is all about kitchen organization! Since it’s Whale of a Sale time and I’m sorting hundreds of books and alphabetizing by author until I literally can’t remember how to spell, I’m maximizing my time (cheating) and highlighting previous posts about my kitchen.
My favorites are:
the good, the bad and the ugly (kitchen cabinets)
veggie box (our key to 5 minute meal preps)
five minute sink (two of my biggest strategies for getting things DONE.)
lunchbox flatware (no more missing place settings)
AND, Shannon’s theme has also prompted me to organize my “recipes” page, above. It was missing quite a few posts but now – I think – it is up to date! Just in time for Thanksgiving pumpkin soup!
frozen chicken, cream cheese chicken II
Back in April, I posted one of our family’s favorite recipes, “Cream Cheese Chicken..” (The original post has a printable version of the recipe in PDF.)
Yesterday, we made a little change and it turned out pretty good, so I thought I’d share.
First, I doubled the recipe except for the chicken and the cream cheese (I have a large crockpot). But this time, we rolled everything up in flour tortillas and made burritos! Next time I think I’ll take the lid off and let the mixture stand a little to thicken up, the burritos were a little too runny. But they were GOOD.
It does take an extra few minutes to roll burritos after everything is cooked, but it’s still only 5 minutes to prepare on the front end!
Tammy is taking the day off from Kitchen Tip Tuesdays, but she should be back next week and I’ll linky this up then.
I found another Tuesday food carnival at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Lisa and Lana at Blessed with Grace, so check out some more recipes!
New to Compendium? Peruse my topics & my “little known facts” page to see if we have anything in common, watch a short video of my testimony or check out my website, vocal samples or speaking samples.
Feel free to steal my ideas, ponder my musings, disagree with my rants, jump on my bandwagon, read my favorite books, comment, email me, or just lurk. Whatever works for you.
Most Recent 10- working on it.
- the efficacy of prayer.
- conversations with a born-again atheist: abandoning Santa.
- comfort zones.
- conversations with a born-again atheist: some behind the scenes banter
- conversations with a born-again atheist: the Santa comparison
- that’s just sad, that’s what it is.
- conversations with a born-again atheist: comparing belief in God to belief in Santa. and faires. and WibbleFoo.
- conversations with a born-again atheist: the “shotgun” email (more reasons why faith is unreasonable, illogical and irrational.)
- conversations with a born-again atheist: why faith is unreasonable, illogical and irrational.
Fitness Log: April
April Totals as of 4/3
HIIT Incline Days: 2
HIIT Incline Miles: 7.5
HIIT Incline Hours: 2.5
Strength Training/Yoga Days: 1
Forearm Planks: 2Recent Comments
multiplemom on the efficacy of prayer. Alberto Mason on sanctimonious. grace on sanctimonious. Julie Stiles Mills on conversations with a born-agai… Atomic Mutant on conversations with a born-agai… -
Where Ya’ll From?
-
