The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ June 30

Better late than never ~ here is my Daybook entry for today ~

Outside my window. . .the sun is shining today after a cloudy, rainy day yesterday. Birds are flying around the trees, bees are buzzing around the flowers, and a nice breeze is blowing.
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I am thinking. . .about school plans for next year.
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From the learning room. . .Fourth of July lapbooks all printed out and ready to go – I’ll be reading aloud “The 4th of July Story” by Alice Dalgliesh this week and we will start putting together our lapbooks.
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I am thankful for. . .the temperatures staying below 100 this week after last week’s hot streak.
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From the kitchen. . .Crockpot Round Steak and gravy with a tossed salad tonight.
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I am wearing. . .pink polo and denim capris.
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I am creating. . .still working on my file crate.
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I am going. . .to be postponing Summer Camp . . . again – I don’t have the finances right now to do it all the way that I want to – so I am moving it back to later in the summer.
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I am reading. . .schoolbooks, the book of Philippians for our new Ladies Bible Study, and I have started reading “Summer with the Moodys” by Sarah Maxwell with the children.
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I am hoping. . .that my Dad will get some relief from his bad coughing spells.
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I am hearing. . .children voicing their votes on what video to watch while they eat lunch – I’m hearing votes for Lucy, Little House, and Mario cartoons, and a last minute vote for Teletubbies (guess who?) – and the winner is . . . Brady Bunch . . . which came out of left field and swept all of the votes.
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Around the house. . .Edward (kitty) batting things around on the floor while Macey (kitty) observes, lots of coloring sheets printed out from the Internet – the kids have been spending alot of time lately coloring, washing machine running, dinner cooking in the crockpot (yay!).
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One of my favorite things. . .Homemade vanilla ice cream (can’t wait until Saturday!)
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .working on lapbooks, swimming, Ladies Bible Study, Anna’s first dental appointment (she’s so excited!), and celebrating the 4th with the family.
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

Bounty from the garden

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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme.

Have a lovely day!

Blessings,
Nancy

Crockpot Barbecue Pulled Pork

Here is a wonderful easy dinner that is so perfect for these lazy, fun-filled days of summer. We had dinner about a month ago at my sister-in-law’s home and she served this for dinner. It was delicious, so, of course, I asked for the recipe. It turned out to be a recipe on the back of this McCormick seasoning packet -

A few weeks ago, pork loin went on sale, and so I decided to try cooking this myself. I bought two packets of seasoning and about 6 lbs. of pork loin to be sure that I had enough for our group. It turned out to be plenty with extras to eat on for lunch throughout the week (always love that!). I will give you the ingredients for a single recipe ~ you can double it on your own if you so choose -

Ingredients
1 pkg. McCormick Slow Cookers BBQ Pulled Pork Seasoning
3 lbs. boneless pork shoulder roast, well trimmed (I used pork loin and it was fine)
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar

Place pork in slow cooker.
Mix seasoning, ketchup, brown sugar, and vinegar until blended. Pour over pork.
Cover and cook 8 hours on LOW or 4 hours on HIGH.

Remove pork from slow cooker.
Shred pork, using 2 forks.

Return pork to slow cooker; mix and heat with sauce before serving.

Couldn’t be easier! And it was kind of fun shredding the pork – it fell apart so easily.

There are also instructions on the packet for using this to make BBQ Spareribs, if you prefer.

Serve it up on hamburger buns with french fries and some cole slaw (wish I’d thought of that when we had it!) and you’ve got the perfect summer evening meal!

Blessings,
Nancy

Summer Has Officially Arrived

We recorded our first 100 degree day yesterday for the year. . . with how many to follow? Looks like we’ll be spending our afternoons here for the foreseeable future -

Happy Summer!

Blessings,
Nancy

What’s Living Behind Your Furniture?

Beware! This post contains harsh realities and fuzzy findings! Continue reading at your own risk. Really, it’s not that bad – it could have been much worse than this – in which case, I may not have been so willing to share it with you. If you have an aversion to dust, feel free to skip this post entirely.

As I mentioned in my Daybook yesterday, Michael (7) was in a real cleaning mood yesterday. I don’t know if it was the Dr. Pepper he had for lunch (not a normal occurence) or the driving force of earning a dollar, but he kept coming to me asking for more work. To his credit, the paid jobs came after his initial independent decision to clean the entire living room, as well as do his other afternoon chores without being told and before our normal chore time.

Anyway, one of the jobs that he asked to do was to clean out behind our entertainment center, which is a mostly neglected area, not high up on the list of places to clean up regularly, and so generally forgotten . . . until you are hunting for a missing DVD or video game, and then you muster up your courage and dive into the mix of cords, dust and whatever else has found it’s way back there. It doesn’t help that our entertainment center is rather large and therefore, has lots of space behind it for gathering . . . things.

So, what did Michael find while on his expedition to rid our home of this particular black hole? Well, I asked him to tell me, while I jotted down his findings so that I could share it with you (whatever was I thinking?).

Here’s the list he gave me -

-Dvds

-Books

-Videos

-Dust (we won’t even talk about how much)

-Video games

-Uno card

-Toy figures

-Cheeseburger – no, it wasn’t real – a toy from Anna’s play kitchen.

-”Soft, gray thing” – which turned out to be an old tissue covered in dust – he was wary of diagnosing this himself and called me in to investigate. My first thought at his description of it was, “Oh, no, I hope it’s not a dead mouse!” Needless to say, I was quite relieved to find that it was not.

-Pencil

-Duplo block

-Ball

-Cords (LOTS of them)

-MarioKart steering wheel

-Paper

-Dirty socks

So, there you have it. No, I’m not proud of it, but not too disturbed either. In a house with this many people, including small children – you just learn that there are priorities in life, and the floor behind my entertainment center is just not one of them right now – unless, of course, you are seven years old and looking for income anywhere you can find it – even in dusty, uncharted territory.

Hmm. . . maybe he’ll decide to dive under the couches next. But I really might not have the courage to tell that story.

Blessings,
Nancy

The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ June 22

Here is my Daybook entry for today ~

Outside my window. . .HOT summer weather – should be almost 100 degrees this week.
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I am thinking. . .about summer camp plans – camp is now scheduled for the week of July 6th!, and next year’s school plans.
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From the learning room. . .I have a new Fourth of July lapbook with red and blue folders ready to start with the kids when the moment presents itself.
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I am thankful for. . .my Dad, who is a loving father to me and my Husband, who is a loving father to my children.
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From the kitchen. . .dinner tonight will be Mexican Chicken, Tossed Green Salad and Strawberry Shortcake for dessert.
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I am wearing. . .white t-shirt and capris.
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I am creating. . .a new file system for each week of the year similar to Dawn’s system here.
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I am going. . .to be implementing a new discipline system this week as consistently as I can. I hate disciplining, as I would like everything to be happy and pleasant all the time, but I know that it is necessary and things have been a bit out of balance around here lately, which means I’ve let them get away with too many bad attitudes and behaviors, so I’ve come up with a list of consequences for misdeeds ~ now I just need the discipline to stick by it!
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I am reading. . .a book my Dad loaned me yesterday called “same kind of different As me” by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. I started it at bedtime last night and had to force myself to put it down after four chapters so that I could get some sleep – am looking forward to getting back to it tonight.
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I am hoping. . .for a productive week with projects around the house.
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I am hearing. . .computer keys, the dryer dinging at me . . . again, a dog lapping up water, music playing on the stereo, and children talking to each other as they play.
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Around the house. . .the dining table is piled up with clean clothes piles and the remains of a busy weekend, Legos scattered around, craft supplies all out of place as they await their new larger cabinet home which is being moved from upstairs when Jeff gets home.
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One of my favorite things. . .when my children clean up a room without being asked – a rare moment, but one that I’m being blessed with right now by Michael!
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .organizing projects at home, Keepers club meeting – our topic this month is horses and we will be meeting at a friend’s house for live hands-on ( and seats-on!) learning, dental appointments for two children, painting t-shirts for camp.
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

A favorite spot in my kitchen.

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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme.

Have a lovely evening!

Blessings,
Nancy

Chicken Pasta Salad with Grapes & Poppy Seed Dressing

I found this recipe on the Betty Crocker website a little while back and tried it a few weeks ago. It was delicious and a wonderful summer meal. The recipe calls for using the boxed pasta Suddenly Salad. I knew that I was going to double the recipe, so I opted for just using bagged spiral pasta instead. I will give you the recipe the way that I cooked it and in the amounts that I used. If you want to see the original recipe, click here.

Ingredients
Pasta (spiral or your choice)
2-3 cups cooked chicken
1 1/2 cups halved red grapes
1/2-1 cup thinly sliced celery
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 bottle refrigerated poppy seed dressing

Cook pasta -

I used two boxes of Rotini -

Drain pasta, rinse well with cold water. Shake to drain well -

Chop up chicken and vegetables. Grapes -

Celery -

Chicken – I used two packages of this chicken that came already grilled, I just had to chop it up -

Toast the almonds by sprinkling them in an ungreased heavy skillet. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until the almonds begin to brown, and then stirring constantly until light brown -

Now everything’s ready to be mixed together -

Mix all of the ingredients except dressing in a large bowl -

Add the dressing. I used this one -

Mix well. Serve immediately or refrigerate -

This salad would be perfect for a luncheon or as a light, cool dinner on a hot summer evening. I loved the flavor of the toasted almonds in the salad! Enjoy!

Blessings,
Nancy

The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ June 16

Here is my Daybook entry for today ~

Outside my window. . .okra blooming, tomatoes ripening, squash growing, final set of corn sprouting.
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I am thinking. . .about some of the things I heard in the seminar the other night (see below).
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From the learning room. . .I attended a Homeschool seminar Sunday evening, which was very encouraging, and learned a bit more about using notebooking in our homeschool.
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I am thankful for. . .David’s black eye healing up well – he fell and hit his nose and cheek on the edge of the coffee table last week, resulting in a very colorful swollen face. All of the swelling is gone now, and we are just watching it change colors daily, which he thinks is great!
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From the kitchen. . .Stouffer’s Macaroni and Cheese, green beans, and Hawaiian Sweet Rolls for dinner. Strawberry Shortcake is on the menu several times this week, as strawberries were a good price at the grocery store and I bought 8 quarts.
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I am wearing. . .white embroidered t-shirt and denim capris (yes, I pretty much live in them in the summer!)
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I am creating. . .my monthly budget plan and menu plans.
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I am going. . .to attend a new Homeschool group meeting this week that meets in my own little town – I’m hoping it will be a good group to join and will open up new opportunities for field trips and fellowship with fellow homeschoolers.
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I am reading. . .my Bible and devotional book.
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I am hoping. . .to spend more time each day studying God’s Word.
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I am hearing. . .the vacuum cleaner running, Edward’s (kitty) bell as he is running away from the vacuum cleaner, Tommy and Sarah talking together next to me, a lawn mower outside.
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Around the house. . .a nicely restocked pantry and refrigerator, Lego creations all over the piano (still), Laura’s sewing supplies all over the couch, stacks of laundry to be put away and more to be washed.
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One of my favorite things. . .a clean kitchen (which I get to see for a few minutes each day!)
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .Ladies Bible Study (our last lesson in the study on worry and anxiety – we will be starting a new study of Philippians in a few weeks), Homeschool group meeting, weeding the garden, quilting, a stop by my favorite Primitives Shop, and celebrating Father’s Day.
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

Fresh picked green beans from the garden
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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme.

Have a lovely day!

Blessings,
Nancy

Back Up and Running

Well, we had quite a week last week! A storm blew threw Wednesday evening which knocked out our power. We spent the evening camped out in the living room with candles and flashlights aglow. One by one the children fell asleep and we finally joined them, expecting to be awakened by the lights coming back on in the night.

We were surprised to find that the power was still out in the morning. It was refreshingly quiet in the house with no electonics, washers, dryers, etc. running. Finally around lunchtime the lights came back on – but only for about 10 minutes, and then they went out again. We kept expecting them to be back any moment – surely they were working on it, right? We went out to lunch and drove around town to see if the rest of the town was affected, which they didn’t seem to be, although we saw a number of downed trees and limbs around.

We spent the afternoon playing outside and swimming – enjoying the light of the sun, which was newly appreciated. I spent most of the afternoon working on my quilt. By dinnertime there was no sign of power, so we started to prepare for another night of darkness. I gathered more candles and set them around the rooms downstairs. I set two candlesticks with tapers on the table so that we would have a nice spot for playing cards and games when the sun went down. Still no power meant still no cooking in the kitchen, so Jeff ran out and picked up some pizzas for dinner.

As the sun set, we lit the candles and settled in for another night. It was a different atmosphere from the previous night, when we were sitting out a storm in the outage – expecting it to be a temporary inconvenience. Thursday night there was no storm – everything was calm, and we now had the feeling that we could be living like this for awhile. We’ve been learning alot about pioneer days recently, and we couldn’t help but talk about the similarities in what we were experiencing to what we’ve been learning – no electricity for lights, cooking, cleaning, entertainment. It was inconvenient and we all were looking forward to the return of our normal lifestyle, but at the same time – it was an adventure, fun and exciting.

We played Dutch Blitz for a little while, and then pulled out our In A Pickle game. It is a card game where you build words on each other and end up with some really funny sequences. The two littlest were asleep by this time, but we were having a great time dying of laughter over the game.

We fully expected to spend the night this way, when, to our surprise, the lights suddenly came on about 10:30 pm – we all cheered, but then we turned them back off and finished our game – the lights ruined the cozy atmosphere that we were enjoying, so while glad to have the lights back, we savored the last few moments without them. The kids camped out in the living room again that night, reluctant to give up the fun!

It was nice to have our power back Friday, but the Internet was still down. There was some damage to the tower which took them longer to get fixed. It finally came back Saturday, and we were back up and running in every way.

Our power was out a total of 27 hours – a new family record – although I’m sure some of you have experienced longer outages. It turned out to be a time of blessing; however, and one we will remember for a long time.

I’ll be back later with my Daybook for this week!

Blessings,
Nancy

Chicken Stuffing Casserole ~ #1 of 3

Over the years I have managed to acquire three different recipes for Chicken Stuffing Casserole, all of which are delicious and are used on a regular basis in our house. They are somewhat similar to each other, but yet, are each unique also.

Today I will be sharing a recipe that I call “Sharon’s Chicken Stuffing” due to the fact that I got this recipe from my friend Sharon some years ago. I believe that she cooked it for me when Tommy or Sarah was born (I don’t know which – they were born a year apart, and the times blur in my mind!). I enjoyed it so much that I asked her for the recipe and have been cooking it for my family ever since. I almost always serve this one with a side dish of orange Jell-O, because Sharon did, and I think the flavors go well together. Of course, the Jell-O can be replaced with many different sides of your own choosing!

Here you go -

Ingredients

6-8 boneless skinless chicken breasts
6-8 slices Swiss cheese
3-4 cans Cream of Chicken soup
Stove Top Stufffing – Chicken flavor (I used two boxes for a 9 x 13 pan)

Wash chicken breasts and lay in bottom of 9 x 13 baking dish -

Lay Swiss cheese slices on top of chicken -

Spread soup evenly on top of cheese -

Prepare stuffing as directed on the box and spread on top of casserole -

Leave a little stuffing in the pan, so you and your three year old can have a little appetizer -

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 – 2 hours -

Go outside and play with the kids while it’s baking, or just sit on the porch while they play, or maybe take a few nature photos – that’s what I did. I know that’s what I did because I found these two pictures right smack in the middle of my recipe shots on my camera -

This one’s a little blurry – okay a lot blurry -but still beautiful, don’t you think? Just keeping it real, folks -

Finally, back in the kitchen, a delicious dinner awaits -

I will share my other two Chicken Stuffing recipes when I get around to preparing them next, so that you can try them all, or pick out your favorite and go with that. I’ll try to include them in the menu plan soon, but don’t want to overdose my family on Chicken Stuffing dishes, so please understand if I space them out a bit!

Tonight I will be making Tater Tot Casserole for dinner, but the exciting part is that I will be cooking our first homegrown green beans of the season to go along with it! I was so surprised when I checked on the garden yesterday and discovered green beans galore, so I’ll be out picking them this morning, snapping them this afternoon, and serving them this evening! Aren’t gardens wonderful?

Enjoy!

Blessings,
Nancy

The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ June 8

Here is my Daybook entry for today ~

Outside my window. . .lovely pink flowers are starting to bloom on the Rose of Sharon outside the window, towels out by the pool that I forgot to bring in yesterday, a seriously overweedy patio garden, many tomatoes almost to the point of ripening, beautiful weather.
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I am thinking. . .about plans for our family summer camp. I had planned to have camp next week, but am thinking of moving it back to July – not sure yet what I’ll do.
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From the learning room. . .school books are quiet. Lessons from everyday life are front and center.
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I am thankful for. . .lazy summer days of swimming, playing and relaxing.
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From the kitchen. . .Barbecue chicken, rice, and salad. Chocolate meringue pies for dessert.
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I am wearing. . .bright pink polo and denim capris.
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I am creating. . .a list of memory verses for our camp week. We will be memorizing a different one each day throughout the week.
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I am going. . .to run to the grocery store in a bit for a few items – milk, rice, and something to resemble “Tubby Custard”.
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I am reading. . .my Bible and starting back on Spurgeon’s “Morning and Evening” devotional.
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I am hoping. . .to get some weeding done in the garden this week.
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I am hearing. . .Wii Music being played out in the living room, Tommy and Sarah talking to me (which is making the writing of this take a Loooooong time!), David talking about Teletubbies (his new favorite subject – he has even assigned different characters to each of us in the house), the wind in the bush outside my window.
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Around the house. . .Legos, video tapes, blankets scattered across the floor. Dishes needing attention and the always present laundry.
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One of my favorite things. . .my new wreath made of beautiful natural toned berries (see picture below).
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .camp preparations, dental and orthodontist appointments, baby shower, Stamp Club, and taking the children to see “Up” at the movie theater.
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme. Peggy is taking the summer off from her Daybook, so there are no links posted at her site, but I’ve decided to keep mine going throughout the year.

Have a lovely day!

Blessings,
Nancy