Make 5 Dinners in ONE hour: 10 School Lunches in 15 Minutes

I really wanted to share this with you. I bento, because for me it is easy. But I just came across this and realized for many of you THIS would be a perfect solution.

Make 5 Dinners in ONE hour: 10 School Lunches in 15 Minutes: "Two of my kids take their lunch to school every day and EVERY morning I make them.  Well now that does not make much sense does it?  I make ..."

Digi – Tic Tac TOe!

So I am still testing myself to think outside the scrapbook pages for my digi work.  I seen some cool printables and decided to make my own.  So I made a tic tac toe board for this month.

Just print it on regular letter size paper, cut out the pieces and play.  I think I am going to put mine on the fridge for the kids to play and do magnets for the pieces.  I again used Cheerful Halloween Digital Kit.  I hope you like it, because it is here for you to have.

 

Enjoy!

~trish

Digital Hybrid – Christmas Planner

Alright, I am trying to challenge myself to think outside the box with my digital program!  So I was sifting through the web and cam across a lot of sites gearing up for an organized Christmas.  Now in years past, I had promised myself I would make one for me, well after the house went hushed last night.  I designed one on my digital storybook creator and then this morning I put it all together.

It is so nice being able to lay it out in the storybook creator and then print, cut and glue!  And I get to easily share it with you!  So here is my planner!

So I am using a brand new creative memories digital kit.  It is the Very Merry Digital Kit and is only $8.95 to download.  The kit comes with all this!

So In the first 2 pockets I have my to do list for each month and then lined paper to track my gifts.

 

Next pockets is for any cooking and then another to keep track of cards sent and received.

When I put the planner together, I had to use 2 pieces of 12 by 12 aqnd I ended up with a pocket at the back.  Then I realized how perfect.  I sealed an envelope and trimmed it to fit and added a tab and it became my receipt holder!  

 

See it is sturdy enough to stand up on its own!

 

 

So to make this all wonderful for you!  I have the files here for you to be able to make your own!  If you love the content!  Buy the digital package.  I got the calendar and the lined portion of the paper from the freebie blog by Creative Memories.  Have fun!  If you are part of my midnight PJ party crew.  Print these out and bring 2 12 by 12 cardstock, you cuter, and adhesive and we will make these Friday night.

Now click on them to enlarge them, then save them as a picture.  Print out on standard letter.  Make sure your printer ink is filled, I printed mine out the first time at the end of my color ink cartridge.  If you make yours, send me links so I can take a look!

Enjoy!

~trish

Party time! #1 is turning 6

So what do I love most about being mom!  Birthdays!  They were a miserably difficult experience to birth these wonderful children.  I never thought I could ever go through that much pain and live through it, much less be so happy.  I must say, God has a great since of humor.  It is horrible to go through it once, but then to repeat the process.  Hmm, must be a bit crazy.  So I love each birthday, because I am having another year with my child and I can celebrate that I went through the worst pain I can imagine and survived!  Wow!  My body is amazing for its strength!

So this week is #1’s storybook character parade and it works perfect with our costumes anyways.  So here is my little pig (1 of 3).

I still have 2 more pigs to make.  The overalls were a pair I had made for #2.  I added pink to the straps and the cuffs and was so thankful they fit here.  My husband and I had it out trying to put the snaps on them (this goes back to having 2 engineers that live and breath together).  I made the ears and tail out of felt and I used a good gauged wire left over from my wedding stuff.  I did pick up the nose at the party store.

So to celebrate at school, we brought in cupcakes.  To help make it special they had to be cute.

Here cake for her party is just finished. 

and my kitchen looks about like this.

Plenty of candy, another cake for just the family tonight.  What a mess!  I am so thankful for the Dollar Tree when it is birthday time!  I got her a balloon for each year!

 

I made custom bag toppers for her goodie bags. 

I am really trying to challenge myself to do more everyday stuff with my digital program.  I look forward to sharing some more of my ideas!

~trish

Digital Paint cans

I just came across Jill at www.controllingmychaos.com she has amazing ideas on using the digital storybook creator in different ways.  She has the entire layout for making these sweet candy filled treat cans at her blog!  You will love crawling through her blog of creativeness.  She has some amazing ideas that I am already trying out myself!

Digital Recipe Cards – Cheerful Halloween Digital additions Preview

I am so excited that I got to preview one of the new digital additions from my Creative Memories Consultant, Tracy Croy!  She has really managed to get me hooked on making recipe cards.  They are relatively easy and then you can print them out via a 4x6 printing service or at home.  So I was able to play with the new Cheerful Halloween Digital Addition.  This picture shows you everything you get in the kit.   I have to say this is amazing!  Since the digital file is only $5.95!

So I decided the best thing for some good recipes to add to my recipe collection would be to look in www.familyfun.go.com.

 

So I came up with these 3 recipe cards.

You can click and save these jpegs and then either print to your local printer or send it to a photo lab.

Enjoy!

~trish

Decorating for fall

http://www.familycorner.com/homegarden/crafts/pumpkin_candle_holders.shtml

 

So I used to love to get in the spirit of the season and go crazy decorating.  Well, with 4 kids so young, I find it hard to get the energy to cook dinner, much less decorating for a party or holiday.  So my house is the one that looks the same day after day inside and out, except for a Christmas tree in December and the grass continually growing and getting cut.

 

My inner self that constantly thinks and wishes for an altered life as I move constantly through this one, invisions a home decorated for the seasons with cool decor that is not found in a store.  I imagine all the cool ways to make these things.  And when I get the moment to sneak away to make something, I am clueless on what to do.  Well let me tell you!  These are so cool, and then I realized they are wine glasses!  Ahh, I can probably buy them for less than a dollar a piece.  If I get a chance, I am picking some up to make.

~trish

Cooking with dried beans

Cooking Dried Beans in the Slow Cooker

Day 292.
It's day 292. And I finally have cracked the cooking-with-dried vs. cooking-with-canned-beans code.
Why did it take me 292 days?
Sheer laziness. I have no other reason.
1 bag of dried black beans costs $1.89 at the fancy-pants grocery store, and it costs $0.89 at our local produce stand.
1 can of organic black beans at Trader Joe's costs $0.99.
1 dried bag of black beans (16 oz) = 3 cans (15 oz each).
Which means even if you buy over-priced dried black beans you will save some money making them at home yourself.
The Ingredients.

--bag of black beans (or other beans. but remember that kidney beans have that freaky toxin.)
--water
--crockpot (4 quarts and up)
The Directions.
Pour the entire bag of dried beans into a colander and rinse under cold water. If you see any beans that have broken in half, or skin that floats to the surface, get rid of it. Also pick out any beans that look shriveled and gross.
Dump all the beans into your crockpot. Add enough water to cover all the beans and an additional 2 inches.
Cover. Do not turn on. Let the beans soak for at least 6 hours, or overnight. If you live in a very warm area, and the crockpot won't be in a room that is climate-controlled, put the stoneware in the fridge. You don't want bacteria to have the opportunity to grow.
In the morning, dump the water, and rinse your beans. The water will be bean-colored.
Put the beans back into your crockpot and cover with enough fresh water to completely cover the beans with an extra 2-3 inches.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
The beans are done when they are bite-tender. Don't worry if the water hasn't all absorbed. You're going to dump it, anyway.
Drain the beans.
When cool, put 1 2/3 cups of beans into storage containers or freezer bags (you're adding this amount because you aren't adding filler-liquid like the cans have). The beans will store nicely in the refrigerator for 1 week, or in the freezer for 6 months.
Use as you would canned beans in your favorite recipe.
The Verdict.
I like knowing what is in my food. I like the idea that we can save money and reduce consumption by using dried beans.
This takes a while. When I do this again, I'm going to get quite a few bags of beans and do them all at once in a few crockpots. The kids liked picking through the beans to weed out the undesirables, and they will munch on black beans (and garbanzo and pinto and kidney) for a snack, which makes me happy.
I've found a chart that breaks down the energy consumption of kitchen appliances:
(First Energy Corp., Ohio--scroll to page 5)
it states that a crockpot costs 2 cents an hour to run. Which means that even with adding the cooking time/cost to the beans, it's cost-effective to cook your own.

Make It Fast, Cook It Slow

by Stephanie O’Dea

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Posted by Stephanie O'Dea at 7:02 AM

I am featuring post from another blog.  My husband found it, in his effectiveness to prove to me, why my chili is a failure.  So here it is.