Traditions, Thanksgiving-Style

Time for the obligatory holiday post. :)

When I was little I could not begin to fathom the idea of NOT having Thanksgiving dinner at my Nana's house. Ever since I could remember we had made the three mile drive down the road to the farm and enjoyed the company of the crazy crowd that is my Dad's side of the family. Everyone made the same dishes each year (my Mom's contribution was a dish called "Peas Elegant," which had been affectionately dubbed "Peas Elephant") and each year Nana would say "This is my LAST turkey!" Well, I'm almost 29 and she is still hosting dinner and cooking the turkey, so I don't think she's going to stop any time soon.

Then when I got married I realized, somewhat begrudgingly, that I wouldn't always get to follow "my" traditions each year. In fact, I've only been back home for Thanksgiving one year since we got married, and that was the year my sister's son was a newborn.

The Hubby's family celebrates the holiday differently than my family. Instead of one day of overeating and visiting with family, it is an entire week-long ordeal involving lots of camo, hunting, and a serious lack of indoor plumbing. Dinner isn't at a set time on Thursday; the ladies make the food and wait for all the guys to come in from the woods before we sit down to eat together. We also have something not every family does... a second Thanksgiving dinner on Friday! No Black Friday shopping here, but another celebration of family and the blessing of being together.

So, what is my point with all of this, you ask?

My point is that things change over time. The traditions that you remember from your childhood will not necessarily follow you through to adulthood. The important thing about Thanksgiving is to remember that it is a time to celebrate family. A time to be thankful for what you have. A time to be together and enjoy the simple things, making memories for years to come. Do I miss having dinner at the farm with "my" side of the family? Absolutely. I miss all my cousins and my crazy aunts and uncles. But do I enjoy spending time with the Hubby's side of the family and embracing their traditions as my own? You bet I do!

The Munchkin is still young enough that he probably won't remember much about Thanksgiving when next year rolls around. But following traditions isn't for the adults. I didn't understand that when I was little, but I do now. It's important that my son grows up knowing the importance of family, and a big part of that is actually getting to see them! It's easy to find excuses around this time of year, especially once the snow starts falling. Do I really want to spend 6 hours in the car tomorrow, at over 8 months pregnant? No. But I don't want to look back in the years to come and see all the missed opportunities to spend time with family and friends around this most blessed holiday.

I hope this has made sense... It made sense in my head, but sometimes things don't translate well into writing. I'll leave you with something completely unrelated in hopes to distract you from my incoherent ramblings:

The "Funny Thanksgiving" skit by Stan Freberg. (Click on the link and scroll down to the "Funny Thanksgiving" audio file). It's worth a minute of your time.

:)

November Meal "Plan" and 10K Views

Welcome to November! So, I'm a *few* days behind, and November is already well underway. But today IS 11-12-13, which is still pretty cool.

Know what else is pretty cool? Milestones. Such as hitting 10,000 total blog views, which is exactly what happened this afternoon. So thank you to all my readers (which I am sure is just family and friends plus a few wanderers).

Anyway, on to the reason for this post ... I'm not putting together a meal plan for this month, for several reasons.

1.) We were gifted over half a bushel of potatoes last month, and I'm still working through using them up.
2.) Since my husband hunts, November is the month to clean out the freezer in anticipation of fresh venison coming in later on.

But you can be sure that I will be making these for Thanksgiving week --

Instead of planning out new things to make this month, I'm cleaning out the freezer and pantry to make the most of what we've already got on hand. I'm sure we will eat crock-pot venison and potatoes in several variations nearly every night (which Hubby tells me is OK with him!).

In addition to the Thanksgiving holiday food costs, the Munchkin's birthday is this month, and what is a party without food and cake?

I don't know if I will be posting anything between now and December, so I wish you all a safe and happy holiday, filled with good food and good company!

Sewing Extravaganza: What Happens When the Hubby Gives Me A Day Off

My super sweet Hubby gave me today off. Isn't he the greatest? I sure think so!

He and the Munchkin enjoyed lots of quality time playing, eating "manly" lunches (pepperoni is a food group on the manly food pyramid), watching American Pickers and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, playing outside, and visiting the local archery store. Oh, and they picked up pizza for supper so I didn't even have to worry about that.

Meanwhile, this mama got to shower BEFORE nap time (a luxury to be sure!), spend two hours running errands by myself, and hole-up in the craft room with my sewing machine to work on some projects that have been on the back-burner for a few weeks:

1.) Flannel-backed Burp Cloths
2.) Maternity Pants converted to a Skirt

For the burp cloths, I followed the tutorial here. She does a great job of explaining things so I don't see the point in being redundant. :)

I bought these cloth diapers and then dyed them a light Kelly green. I shopped and shopped and shopped again for some cutesy flannel, but couldn't find anything I liked. Of course, my closest options are Hobby Lobby and Walmart, and neither of them stocks very many flannel fabrics. So I went the budget-friendly route and re-purposed some flannel receiving blankets that were the Munchkin's. We had six, and barely used them, so I sacrificed three of them for this project. I used each blanket to make two burp cloths, and still have some scraps left over.

 These were very simple to sew, especially if you're not super-picky about how straight or neat they turn out. (The burp cloths always end up an odd shape for some reason. Oh well.) The most important thing for me was making them extra-absorbent. The Munchkin managed to soak every single burp cloth that we threw at him, so I'm expecting nothing less from Baby #2.

The skirt was definitely something I made up on the fly. It is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to find comfortable, stylish maternity skirts that aren't maxi/jersey skirts. I love maxis, but cannot wear them in the colder WV weather. So I tried my hand at making my own! I had a pair of Gap maternity khakis laying around from when I was pregnant with the Munchkin, and sacrificed them for this project. They were a nice wide-legged trouser so I didn't have to add any fabric to make the skirt wide enough.

I apologize for not having a step-by-step picture tutorial for you guys. That would have required meticulously taking pictures of each step, and as we all know, one-on-one time with your crafts is PRECIOUS. I didn't want to waste it taking pictures, so you'll just have to use your imagination.

First I ripped the interior seams all the way up each leg to the seat of the pants. (Since this was a nice mid-weight fabric it was easier to find the seams and rip them instead of cutting around them, and makes for a neater finish. I've also made a skirt out of denim capris, and had to just cut next to the seam.) Second, I laid it out on the bed and played around with pins to get the front and back seams to lay just right. I left a 12" slit in the back to make it easier to walk in. Lastly, I just started sewing it up.

Voila! Now I have another well-fitting clothing option for church services. Because we all know when you are pregnant, it's all about comfort. If you find your maternity wardrobe lacking when it comes to skirts, don't limit yourself to what you can find in the stores. It only takes a little creativity to make something uniquely your own!

I'm sure there are tutorials out there for converting pants to skirts if you need more specific instructions. Sorry that I'm too pregnant and lazy to take the time to write one up. :)

That's all for today... a big thanks again to the Hubby for letting me get these done! :)

October Menu Plan

I know that I say this just about every month, but... how is it OCTOBER already? I thought that time picked up speed when I had the Munchkin, but being pregnant with Baby #2 just makes it go even faster.

ANYway...

It's a new month, which means time for a new menu plan! We ended up not fixing all the meals I had planned for September, so you'll see a few repeats in October. You may also see a few themes running through this month's meals... We have TONS of apples that we just picked, so a lot of our treats this month will be apple-themed. And I am also trying to use up most of the venison we have leftover from last year to make room in the freezer (Lord willing!) for this year's hunting season. We shall see.

October Menu Plan

Main Meals

Venison Tips & Gravy over Mashed Potatoes*
Hamburger (Turkey) Stroganoff*
Homemade Pizza (bread machine dough)
BBQ Chicken (crock pot)
Mexican Stuffed Shells
Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheese Soup*
Venison Fajitas
Overnight Slow-Cooker Venison Roast*
Lasagna (Stauffer's frozen... I had a coupon!)
*See this page for printables!

Sides & Treats

Yellow Squash Casserole

Green Bean Casserole

Butter Dip Biscuits

Peasant Bread

Easy Garlic Knots

Pumpkin Snicker-doodles

Blueberry Coffee Cake

Apple Butter

Easy Apple Dumplings

Apple and/or Pear Crisp

So there you have it -- this is what our household will be munching on in the coming weeks. Lots of yummy fall-inspired goodness to get us through the month of October. If you have questions or comments, please share!

Saturday Mornings and Sour Cream Banana Bread

Saturday mornings have a special place in my heart...

... And a special place in my menu plan! Saturday morning is when I set aside time to do some baking, and today it was banana bread. I've had some bananas on the counter for *several* days, and today was the "make banana bread or throw these away!" day. So I made banana bread.

A close friend gave me a recipe for Sour Cream Banana Bread, and I've been intending to try it for a while, but never had an extra half cup of sour cream on hand to make it. But today I did, so we tried it... and it is AMAZING. 

Now this is a very simple, basic banana bread. No fussy substitutions. No chocolate or nuts to distract you from the delicious banana flavor. Just a hint of cinnamon to give it some spice, and some sour cream to make it super soft.

Sour Cream Banana Bread

(Recipe adapted from Food.com found here: http://www.food.com/recipe/sour-cream-banana-bread-9351)

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup mashed bananas (about 3)

1/2 cup sour cream

• In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients. 
• In same medium bowl (that you just emptied), peel and mash up the bananas. 
• Add bananas and sour cream to mixture and stir until combined. 
• Bake in a greased loaf pan at 350 F for 60 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Now, quick-breads such as banana bread are *supposed* to be cooled, wrapped in plastic wrap, and set aside overnight before serving. We don't do that in our house. We did cool it enough so that no one ended up with burnt fingers, but within a few minutes of slicing, we only had half of the loaf left!

To quote the wise Andy Taylor, "Eating speaks louder than words!" The Munchkin was pretty silent while he devoured his first piece, and the Hubby and I made short work of our slices, too.

The sour cream makes this bread extra moist, while the outer crust still has a fabulous slight crunch to it. Mmmm. Maybe I'll have another piece...

This will not replace my typical go-to recipe for banana bread, but if I have rotting bananas and sour cream on hand at the same time... you can bet I'll be making this again. 

Making the Most of Leftovers

Today let's talk about a controversial topic in households across the country... Leftovers!

Most people are not fence-riders when it comes to leftovers. They either love them or hate them. I recently watched an episode of Chopped in which the mystery baskets all had leftover food in them. I was not shocked to see the chef who said, "I hate leftovers!," chopped in the first or second round.

You can spend all the time in the world making a fancy meal plan, budgeting your groceries and clipping coupons, and slaving away in the kitchen to make tasty dinners, BUT if you end up throwing away uneaten food, you are WASTING YOUR TIME.

I have to admit, we do throw away our share of leftovers now and then. But I have some super-top-secret tips to share with you to help maximize your meals before they spoil.

Labels

What's my big secret for tackling leftovers? Label absolutely all leftovers before they go into the fridge or freezer. All I use is a roll of cheap masking tape and a Sharpie. I tear off a piece of tape, stick it to the lid, and mark it with the contents and the date. This helps eliminate the "When did I make such-and-such casserole?" question later on. Doubting whether or not something is still fit to eat seems to be a big problem when eating leftovers. A good rule to live by is "When in doubt, throw it out." Well, by taking the doubt out of the equation you'll know if things are still good to use. I also mark opened cans of spaghetti sauce, salad dressing and other condiments with the date (on the lid) so I know when to use them by.

Note: Speaking as one who has fallen off of the labeling bandwagon now and again, I can say with 100% certainty we eat up our leftovers better when they are clearly labeled. Keep the masking tape and marker handy so you aren't tempted to slack off!

Portion Control

Another big issue with leftovers is portion control. Many recipes make way more food than my family can possibly eat at one meal. If it's something that we eat well leftover, it's not an issue. If it's something that doesn't reheat well (like stir fry), any extra portions are essentially wasted (and money down the drain!). If you find yourself constantly throwing away leftovers from specific meals, cut the recipe in half the next time you make it to eliminate leftovers. Or, save yourself some time later on down the road and put half of the meal in a Ziploc bag and pop it in the freezer (cooked or uncooked, depending on the ingredients). For example, I made chili earlier this month and doubled the recipe, leaving us with three quart-sized Ziploc bags for later this fall. 

Note: Make sure to LABEL your frozen leftovers just as clearly as the ones that go in the fridge. Place them within easy access in the freezer, otherwise you'll end up forgetting they are in there!

Lead By Example

To change how your household handles leftovers, lead by example! If you want your husband or your children to be better leftover-eaters, then you need to do it yourself. Leftovers make great (and easy!) lunches during the week. Most are probably healthier than that Hot Pocket or boxed pasta, too. If you are the one planning dinners in your household, you have the power to work leftovers into your meal plan. You can serve it up buffet style and let everyone choose what they want. Or you can put a new spin on a leftover dish by adding fresh-baked bread or rolls and a vegetable side dish. Either way, you'll save yourself time making a whole new dinner, and money by not having to throw away the leftovers. 

I hope this post has been helpful! Nothing earth-shattering, but it is amazing how small, simple steps can help us live better, more organized lives.

Under the Kitchen Sink Revisited

When you love organizing, sometimes your "me time" is spent playing with the contents underneath the kitchen sink.

For those of y'all who don't know, we moved into a new place in late February. So all that work that I did getting the last under-the-kitchen-sink cabinet all clean and pretty was, well... wasted. Since this move was just across town, our approach to moving was the "just pack it up quickly and dump it over at the new place" approach. Which makes for a quick move... and a long period of reorganizing things later, one area at a time.

The under-the-sink cabinet at our "new" place is HUGE. It is the space under the sink plus about two extra feet of cabinet. Yikes! I crammed a whole lot of... "stuff"... in it when we moved in. And then immediately forgot what was tucked away into the dark and scary recesses of the cabinet. So when I pulled everything out to start organizing, here is what I ended up with:

I told you, there was a whole lot of stuff in there, from cleaning products to bubbles and water pistols. But
enough of the "before" mess, and onto the organizing!

Step 1: Empty Out the Space

• Clean the base of the cabinet and line it with contact paper or shelf liner. The point is to create a nice, clean slate for you to work with. I prefer to "splurge" on the heavy duty latex shelf liner ($5 at Big Lots) because it is durable enough to last through several moves. The cheap stuff from Dollar Tree has the tendency to stick to surfaces and leave little bits of itself behind. Yuck. 

Step 2: Purge

• Go through things and throw away what you don't need. (i.e. nearly empty bottles, fifty different wash rags, old moldy rubber gloves, etc) Keep in mind that not everything has to necessarily go back in this space. Some things may not belong, some can be trashed, etc.

Step 3: Containerize

• If you're like me, you seem to always have a stash of unused organizers on hand. I had several bins, handled caddies, and shelf risers to work with this time. Perfect for making the most of this cavernous space. Most of my containers come from Dollar Tree, but the shelf risers are from Walmart. Keeping things in the same color family really helps it look more organized in the end.

Step 4: Grouping & Placement

• Start grouping like items together. Not only will this help with organizing things, but you'll be able to double-check and see if you need to do further purging. Items you use frequently should be placed for easy access, and items you don't use often (but need to keep on hand for those rare occasions!) can be placed towards the back of the cabinet.

Step 5: Labels

• Labels can be as fancy or as plain as you want to make them. They can be scribbled in Sharpie on a piece of masking tape, or printed out and laminated. Mine are printed on copy paper, laminated, and adhered with a little loop of masking tape. I'm more likely to remember where things go if there is some sort of label. Labels hold you accountable to where you have decided to keep something, keeping you better organized in the long run. 
• Side note: I recently spent around $25 on a laminator and pouches for it, and let me tell you... I absolutely love it. If you are putting off buying one for some reason, just do it. You won't regret it. I've already got my money's worth with Bible class materials alone. 
  

The Finished Result

Start to finish this took about 2 hours, and that includes the time spent typing out labels and laminating them. There is still a little "wiggle" room for additional supplies. Sorry that there is no "overall" picture, but the sliding cabinet doors make it impossible to show the whole cabinet in one shot.

So what are you waiting for? The only one suffering from your messy under-the-sink cabinet is YOU. You are the one that has to get in there and find/use things. So take a little time for yourself and get it organized in the best way possible to fit you and your needs.

Blueberries, Baking, and a Helpful Toddler

The Munchkin loves to "help."

Be it doing laundry, or picking up his toys, etc, he just loves to be involved. And I am 100% OK with that. One day he will roll his eyes at me when I ask him to clean his room, but luckily that day is still far ahead of us. :)

So this morning we had a "first" -- he helped me bake a blueberry coffee cake for breakfast.
(See this link for the recipe.)

First we got the pan out of the cabinet:

And then we sprayed the pan with cooking spray:

Then we measured out all the ingredients. This was the Munchkin's first experience with flour, and it will not be the last. :) I still remember when my mom would pull out the giant Tupperware container of flour and let my sister and I play with it using cups and spoons. Good times.

Once the dough was all mixed up, we spread it evenly into the pan, and topped it with the crumb topping. I think this was the Munchkin's favorite part. One corner of the cake had a LOT of crumb topping. :)

The one thing he didn't get to help with was putting the cake in the oven. We're still working on not touching the hot stove, so it didn't sound like a good idea to me.

But here we are, proud of our finished cake!

And it sure was delicious. Just ask him:

He was silently devouring his piece for several minutes straight. If something captures his attention for that long, I know he likes it!

And in true "helping" fashion, he even helped me clean up the kitchen afterwards! A big part of Mommyhood is cleaning up messes. An even bigger part, though, is allowing your children to make messes. Moms (and Dads, too!) need to encourage their children to want to help and want to learn. So if we make a mess in the mean time, it's OK! We'll clean it up. :)

Meat Markdowns and Making the Most of Nap Times

The Munchkin took a three-hour nap today and as much as my pregnant self just wanted to take it easy, I decided to be a whirling dervish in the kitchen instead!

I recently snagged two large packs of fresh ground turkey at Food Lion. Six pounds of meat for a whopping total of $11.18. If you continue to do the math, you can see that comes down to just $1.86/pound. I don't know about where you come from, but here that is CHEAP. We eat ground turkey in EVERYTHING. Tacos, chili, spaghetti sauce, soups, etc. So when it goes on sale, I stock up!

Now, meat markdowns are only a great deal if you will actually use or freeze the meat before the 'use by' date. And as long as you have a few minutes, some freezer bags, and a Sharpie, you're all set! I like to divvy the meat up into one-pound portions since most recipes call for one pound of ground meat. These are three pound containers, so I eyeball it and stick the meat into pre-labelled bags. Then I smoosh all the air out, flatten them into nice little rectangles, and pop them in the freezer (making sure to rotate any older packs to the top of the pile to be used first). 

Want to know a neat trick about freezer bags? You can store AND defrost the meat in the same bag. When you need the meat, just open the bag a teeny bit and microwave it in short intervals until it is thawed and ready to go. How easy is that!? (Make sure, though, to check the directions on the box, because you don't want any melted plastic in your food!)

After just 10 minutes, I've managed to: 

1. Shave time off of dinner prep later on.
2. Save MONEY!!
3. Feel super organized and prepared. 

It doesn't get any better than that! 

**Tangential Note: Do not be fooled into thinking that Walmart has the lowest prices. If you shop at smaller chain stores, you can get a great deal if you shop smart. Some people like to price-match at Walmart, but I'd rather give my money to another store if I can. Stick to sales, and keep an eye out for markdowns. Our Walmart does not have a large variety of fresh meats to begin with, so they never EVER have markdowns on ground turkey. And rarely on chicken. So when an item you use a lot of goes on sale, make sure to stock up and save some $$ in the long run. Things like meat, cheeses, butter, and veggies are great staples to have on hand and freeze well.

September Meal Plan

Welcome to September! Wow. It doesn't seem possible that we are entering the last third of this year. Fall will be in full swing before we know it, and then the holiday season... Yikes. How about for right now we just enjoy September? :-)

As I admitted in this post, I've been pretty bad at following through with meal planning the last few months. I'm 5 months pregnant and the truth is other things have taken priority over meal-planning. All my slacking has accomplished though is shooting myself in the foot, since without a plan it is a bazillion times harder to put dinner on the table *nearly* every night.

So, I took some time and kicked out a plan for September. The month promises to be a busy one, and I want to be ready!

September Meal Plan

Click here for a printable list or here for the Pinterest Board

Main Dishes

Tacos / Taco Salads (See this post for taco seasoning)
Chili & Cornbread
Hamburger Soup* & Butter Dip Biscuits
Crockpot BBQ Chicken
"Bourbon" Chicken & Rice
Homemade Pizza
Mexican Stuffed Shells
Venison Stir Fry & Rice
Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings
Poppy Seed Chicken
Venison & Gravy over Mashed Potatoes
Homemade Macaroni & Cheese*
Sausage & Potato Bake

Sides & Extras

Blueberry Muffins
Banana Bread
French Bread (bread machine)
Cornbread
Butter Dip Biscuits
Yellow Squash Casserole
Broccoli Casserole
Fresh Apple Cake

Labor Day Picnic

Tortellini & Pepperoni Salad 
Snickerdoodle Bars
Hot dogs, buns, drinks, chips

*These recipes can be found in this printable.

Note:
Not all main dishes or sides  have links. Sorry! The truth of the matter is that a lot of these things I either make from the BH&G cookbook, or I make them without a recipe. For example, broccoli or squash casserole is pretty much the veggies, chopped and half-cooked in the microwave, and then topped with cheese and buttered cracker crumbs and baked for however long it takes till they are tender. Stir fry is made with whatever meat and veggies I have, and I follow the instructions on the Kikkoman bottle. See? I wing it. But if you have ANY questions about a particular item there is no recipe for, please comment or contact me! :-)

The Updated Meal Planning Binder

Has this summer flown by as quickly for everyone else as it has for me? I have to admit that I haven't been writing out meal plans for a few months. *Hangs Head In Shame.* But now I'm ready for Fall and so is my meal plan! It seemed appropriate, since I've fallen off of the meal-planning wagon lately, to give my Meal Planning Binder a much-needed makeover. It's stuffed with printouts, old menus, and all kinds of random things. It's a MESS.

The first step was to take out EVERYTHING. And since I don't need a massive 2-inch binder, I'm going to transfer it all to this lovely 1-inch beauty:

Then, I put in a pocket for the monthly calendar on which I wrote my meal list. (Find a printable calendar here.) I usually choose between 10-15 main dishes, depending on what we have going on for that particular month.

Then, any printouts that I have for the recipes in this month's meal list go right after the calendar, in plastic sheet protectors. When I'm ready to use a recipe, I can just pop it out and use it without it getting *too* messy while cooking.

Now, what to do with the rest of all these print-outs? Sort through for those you want to save and those you want to toss. Make one section for "Tried & True" recipes, so you can use them when the mood suits you.

Also make a section for "To Try" recipes. (I try to cut back on printing, and only print out recipes from Pinterest when I'm ready to use them). This is the section I'll look through for inspiration when meal-planning, to remind myself of things I've wanted to try in the past.

Last but not least, I have a pocket with calendars already printed for the remaining months of the year, calling to me to make sure that I don't fall off the wagon again.

And there you have it! Your monthly meal list and all the recipes together in a neat little package, ready to use. And next month, simply shuffle the recipes you had in the first section back to "Tried & True" (or trash them if they are complete flops!), and start the process over again.

Notes on Meal Planning

I do my meal-planning at the end of the previous month, and ask the Hubby for suggestions. I'd ask the Munchkin, too, but then we'd just be eating "cheeeeese cackers!" for every meal. :-)

Overall, it does take a commitment of a few hours each month, but the payoff is well worth it. Once you get into it, you'll find a groove and likely start using about half of the recipes nearly each month. And it's so nice to have a go-to list of meals when you're doing that blank stare at the pantry an hour before dinnertime, feeling like you're in your own personal version of Chopped.

I hope this post has been helpful, and that you're able to find a method of meal-planning and organizing that works best for you and your family!

Maternity Wardrobe on a Budget: Tips and Tricks

First off, let's give credit to clothing designers for cute maternity clothes. We've come a long way since the 80's and mid-90's, and giant tent-dresses and thick-paneled maternity pants are a thing of the past. Hooray! Many major clothing chains now have maternity lines, and they are tailoring styles to keep up with the times as well as keep preggo mama's comfort in mind. (Thank you for that!)

Admit it, all we expectant mothers really want is to be comfortable. We're already dealing with morning sickness, heartburn, backaches, headaches, etc. We don't want to be bothered with ill-fitting clothing, too.

It can be tempting to run out and purchase a whole new wardrobe when you are expecting. Keep in mind that you won't be wearing stretch pants forever, and that maternity tops will actually make you look bigger after delivery, so you'll be quickly stashing them in the back of the closet.

So, here are a few things to focus on when selecting maternity apparel.

• Buy items that can be worn in several different seasons (you don't know if you'll be pregnant at the same time of year again).
• Invest in a good pair of maternity jeans. Gap's are pricy ($40+), but they are super comfy, can be dressed up or down, and continue to look nice wash after wash. If you can, buy more than one pair.
• Focus on wardrobe staples that can be made into several different outfits. While cute and trendy colors are fun, it's better to keep things in neutral colors and pull in a "pop" of color with your accessories.
• If it's not comfortable or doesn't look good, you won't want to wear it. So if possible, try things on first, or buy them from an online retailer that offers free returns/exchanges.
• Check local thrift stores! Maternity clothes don't get a lot of wear, and people like to get rid of them when they are done having kids. You might score a bargain, you never know!

It's also important to keep in mind that even though you are expecting, you don't have to exclusively wear maternity clothing:

• Sometimes going "up" a size or two will work just as well. (Especially for tank tops or t-shirts, and even things like fold-over yoga pants)
• Pregnancy bands are also great ways to adapt your old clothing to your new body. You can find them at Target, and also online. They can cost $15 and up, though. 
• Using an elastic hair band to "extend" the waistline of your jeans or skirts is a budget-friendly way to wear your pre-pregnancy clothing longer. (Just make sure your shirt is long enough to cover the zipper!) 

Hopefully these things help you save some money and stay comfy during your pregnancy! Spend the mulah on something more fun, like cutesy clothes or toys for the new baby. :)

Counting Your Blessings: No Time For Complaints or Excuses!

In today's world it seems there are a million opportunities a day to "say" things, whether they be good or bad. Nothing is private anymore, and it is very easy to get sucked into complaining about things in an off-handed way. Our husbands don't help enough around the house; our kids require too much of our time; our house is too small; we don't like our job or didn't get that promotion/new job we were hoping for. Pretty much "life stinks," just worded differently. Always focusing on the negative side of things.

Do we take time each day to think about the good things in our lives? The hymn "Count Your Blessings" comes to mind. Have you ever really looked at the words?

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,

When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,

Count your many blessings, name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

(Refrain)

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

Count your blessings, see what God hath done!

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,

And you will keep singing as the days go by.

(Refrain)

When you look at others with their lands and gold,

Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;

Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy

Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

(Refrain)

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,

Do not be disheartened, God is over all;

Count your many blessings, angels will attend,

Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

(Refrain)

This song reminds us that comparing our lot to others will only leave us discontented and discouraged. Whether it be comparing worldly possessions, or the things we have to do day to day, or our jobs... All of those things take our minds off of what we should be focusing on -- that we have been so richly blessed already. 

A mouth that is busy counting blessings and singing praises all day long does not have time to complain or make excuses! Have you heard the saying, "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean"? Well, I say...

If you have time to complain or make excuses, you have time to make positive changes in your life.

If we are honest with ourselves, each and every aspect of our lives stems from our own decisions. We don't have the right complain or make excuses about the consequences of our own choices or actions. All we can do is remember that God will take care of us, even if it is not in the exact way we think it should be. We are not promised a "cushy" life here on earth, but we are promised a splendid one for eternity. Isn't that wonderful? 

Do you know one of those people who is always complaining? Someone whom you never ask "how are you?" because you know they'll tell you how bad things are. Instead, don't give them the chance to complain. Say, "it's great to see you today!" or something like that. Surrounding yourself with negativity just makes you negative; conversely, surrounding yourself with positive people will make you look at life in a positive way. For example, I recently started following southern cook Christy Jordan (see her website) on Facebook. She always makes an effort to look at the bright side of things (even when she herself has recently been placed in a wheelchair for medical reasons). She never complains! And I really appreciate that. It takes no effort at all to complain, but it takes constant awareness to stay positive and focus on the blessings in our lives.

So the next time you get ready to post to Facebook, text a friend, etc., take a minute to really think about your words. Are they positive? Could they be seen as complaining? Are you showing that you are truly thankful, or do you have to put the disclaimer that you "aren't complaining"? Then re-word it, or just don't say anything at all.

Striving to be the Proverbs 31 Woman

For those of you who don’t know, the Hubby and I are excitedly expecting our second child this coming January. So naturally I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Chalk it up to pregnancy brain (when combined with “mommy brain” is a very dangerous thing!), but lately I've been feeling a little overwhelmed. If I take a lazy day because I’m feeling sickish, all of the housework is still there the next day (and the piles are even bigger!).  It seems like I already have my hands so full, so how in the world am I going to manage taking care of another little person?

Well, it all comes down to just a few basic things, folks – priorities and time management. And to be completely honest, I know that I could do a lot better managing the time that I have.

Let’s take a look at the woman from Proverbs 31. I’m putting the whole passage here for convenience sake, but feel free to pull out your own Bible and look it up. 

¹⁰ Who^[b] can find a virtuous^[c] wife?

For her worth is far above rubies.

¹¹ The heart of her husband safely trusts her;

So he will have no lack of gain.

¹² She does him good and not evil

All the days of her life.

¹³ She seeks wool and flax,

And willingly works with her hands.

¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,

She brings her food from afar.

¹⁵ She also rises while it is yet night,

And provides food for her household,

And a portion for her maidservants.

¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;

From her profits she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷ She girds herself with strength,

And strengthens her arms.

¹⁸ She perceives that her merchandise is good,

And her lamp does not go out by night.

¹⁹ She stretches out her hands to the distaff,

And her hand holds the spindle.

²⁰ She extends her hand to the poor,

Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.

²¹ She is not afraid of snow for her household,

For all her household is clothed with scarlet.

²² She makes tapestry for herself;

Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³ Her husband is known in the gates,

When he sits among the elders of the land.

²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them,

And supplies sashes for the merchants.

²⁵ Strength and honor are her clothing;

She shall rejoice in time to come.

²⁶ She opens her mouth with wisdom,

And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

²⁷ She watches over the ways of her household,

And does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸ Her children rise up and call her blessed;

Her husband also, and he praises her:

²⁹ “Many daughters have done well,

But you excel them all.”

³⁰ Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,

But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

³¹ Give her of the fruit of her hands,

And let her own works praise her in the gates.

My initial thoughts on this passage are, wow! This lady sure has it all together. She’s superwoman! There’s no way that anyone can do all that!

But a closer look makes me realize that yes—I can be like this woman. Not literally, since I don’t have any servants and I don’t wear a lot of linen or wool. But I can be like her in how I set my priorities. When I take a look at all that this woman accomplishes, and then compare it to my own life, I see the biggest thing that stands in my way – time wasters.

What do I mean by time wasters? They are simply anything you spend a lot of time on that doesn't necessarily accomplish anything. Like when you say you’re going to do laundry, but you sit down at the computer and get sucked into something and all of a sudden the Munchkin is waking up from his nap and you didn't even start the first load. Time wasters can be anything, and they are not the same thing for everyone. But if you are truly honest with yourself, you know what your biggest time wasters are.

The Proverbs 31 woman was diligent, willingly working to provide for her family. She “does not eat the bread of idleness” (v 27). If this woman lived today, she wouldn't spend hours on Pinterest collecting hundreds of new recipes to try or new crafts to do in her “spare time.” She wouldn't spend time on Facebook posting about all of the great things she was doing or tooting her own horn, so to speak. She would probably be a lot like many of the good Christian women that we all know. One of those women that does so much but you wouldn't know it because she don’t go around talking about all that she does – she just simply does it.

Today’s society spends so much time with social media, myself included. I can’t pinpoint exactly why it is so “big” these days. It could be that we need validation from others for the things we do. It could be for competition – perhaps we’re trying to show others how no one else could possibly be as busy/overworked/etc as we are.  But whatever the reason, we need to ask ourselves, are we accomplishing anything good with these time wasters, or are we eating the bread of idleness?

I guess my main point is this – I don’t need to feel overwhelmed at the promise of a new baby. He or she will simply be fit into our family puzzle and things will work themselves out. As long as I make taking care of my family and their needs my priority, God will make sure that I can handle it all.

I hope this makes sense. If not, I’m blaming it on my crazy hormones!

Spring Cleaning: Bringing Spring Indoors

It seems like it is *finally* that time of year again -- SPRING!

I don't know about where you live, but here in WV the weather has been a roller-coaster ride for the last few months. One day it is in the fifties and sunny, the next it is back below-freezing and we've got a blizzard on the way. But since St. Patty's Day is tomorrow, and Easter is just around the corner, and the first official day of spring is coming soon, I think it's safe to say that Spring is finally here.

One of my favorite things about Spring is how fresh and new things feel. I like to make that feeling translate into my kitchen by giving it a little lovin'. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen - it's the heart of our home. And after Winter, it is just begging for a makeover. :)

Here are a few things I like to do this time of year to bring Spring inside!

• Re-decorate the wreath on the exterior door. I bought a rattan wreath last year, and decorate it (and then un-decorate it) each season. Right now it has silk hydrangeas and a white "B" on it. :)
• Wash windows. The rest of the year it is TOO COLD to bother with this. But Spring is a great time to  give the inside (and sometimes the outside) a good once-over with Windex and a paper towel.
• Switch out kitchen towels/trivets/etc. with lighter/brighter colors. I've been crocheting some dish cloths and hot pads, and the bright colors just seem to make the kitchen such a cheery place!
• Clean up clutter! Day by day little things are left out, and after a while it clutters up your space. It makes a huge difference to put those things away and enjoy how clean and tidy things are again.

So that's it. Nothing earth-shattering or new. Just a few simple things you can do to brighten up your kitchen/home an bring Spring indoors!

If you want some bright dish cloths or kitchen towel hangers, check out my Etsy shop! SimpleStitchesLB

Think Pink: Welcome to February!

February is my most absolute favorite month, for many reasons.

It could be because of my birthday... (Feb 5th) ;)

It could be because of Valentine's Day. (Despite the over-commercialization of the holiday, I still enjoy making/buying cards and creating some yummy treats for the Hubby and the Munchkin).

For whatever reason, I've always had a special place in my heart for this special 28-day month. I'm not a girly-girl by any stretch of the imagination, but when this month rolls around I reach towards more pink things than usual. So without further ado, here is something "pink" to start of February!

Crochet Heart Hair Clips

Materials:
Small amount of Yarn (Medium Weight)
Crochet Hook (G)
Felt Heart Cut-out (optional)
2" Alligator Hair Clips (2)
Ribbon (10 inches)
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks

Part 1: Crocheted Hearts

Chain 4. In the first chain, work 3 tr (triple crochet). In same stitch, work 3 d  (double crochet), ch 1, 1 tr, ch 1, 3 dc, 3 tr. Ch 3, and slip stitch into the center and fasten off. Knot the two yarn ends together and trim to 1/4 in. Repeat for second heart.

Part 2: Assembling the Hair Clip

• Cut ribbon into two strips 4 3/4 in each. Hot glue the ribbon onto each hair clip. (Great video tutorial here!) 
• Hot glue felt heart to the front center of the crocheted heart. (This is a great way to cover up the "hole" created by crocheting each stitch into one chain.)
• Hot glue crocheted heart to the alligator clip. **If making two to use as a pair, make sure to "flip" one of them the other direction so they will work on both sides of a hairdo.

These only take about 20 minutes to make a pair, and the color combinations are endless! 

If you don't have the time or skills to make them yourself, be sure to check out my Etsy shop and send a custom order!

January Meal Plan: Venison & Homemade Spice Mixes

How is it 2013 already? And better yet, how is it already the FOURTH day of 2013? Yikes.

Since we weren't at home for more than a week at a time during most of November or December, I sorta-kinda slacked off on my meal planning.

I know, I know... *shakes head in shame*

But one of my goals for 2013 is to be more organized in an on-the-ball fashion, so let's get to it.

To start off your new meal-planning binder for the year, you'll need a free printable calendar, right? :) This great lady has several to choose from. I picked this one here: Free 2013 Calendar Printable 

For those who are new to my method of meal planning, here's a basic run-down:

• I make one list of meals to make for the month, using mostly things I have on hand but with a few things we need to shop for. For us this is about 10-15 meals, and we eat leftovers the other nights.
• Each night, I pick what I'll make for dinner the next day. In the morning I'll know what sort of prep I'll need to do for it, etc.
• I keep my meal list and a printed calendar in a binder along with recipes I have printed out. Keeping everything together saves time and fuss.
• Throughout the month, I cross off what I've made off of the list and jot it down on the calendar. It helps me keep track of how many "leftover" nights we get off of certain dishes.

This month I made sure to clean out my binder. It had become overrun with print-outs of new recipes I had tried, and then haphazardly shoved into a pocket somewhere. Not very OCD of me, eh? So I pitched all the recipes I never EVER wanted to try again, saved the "keepers," and thought really hard about what we would actually eat this month. I get tired of throwing out leftovers, so I came up with things that we would eat well the first/second/third time through. So, here goes:

Meals:

• Baked Macaroni & Cheese
• Tacos or Taco Salads
• Mexican Stuffed Shells
• Venison & Mushroom Gravy over Mashed Potatoes
• Venison Roast (Seasoned with Onion Soup Mix) & Scalloped Potatoes
• Venison Fajitas
• Venison Roast (Seasoned with Homemade Italian Seasoning) & Green Bean Casserole
• Homemade Pizza
• Hamburger Soup & Rolls (Rhode's Frozen Rolls)
• Breakfast Night - French Toast, Sausage, Scrambled Eggs

Extras:

• Easy Mint Fudge
• French Breakfast Muffins
• Banana  Bread

Now let's talk about a few things from this list. The first thing that probably caught your attention is the amount of VENISON on that list. The Hubby is a hunter. His family hunts. So this year we have been blessed with a freezer-full of roasts, steaks, tenderloin, and stew meat. I would never be able to pull the trigger myself, but deer meat is actually very delicious when cooked properly, and it is very good for you (very lean!). Plus, now I don't have to buy beef (or much chicken) for a good long while. :)

The second thing - anywhere you see "hamburger" or recipes that call for ground beef, you can automatically assume I'll be using ground turkey. Again, it's better for you, and it is SUPER CHEAP at Aldi. We don't have one in town, but whenever we drive through a place that has one, we bring our cooler and stock up.

Thirdly, I have three words for you... HOMEMADE SPICE MIXES. 

I have been using homemade Taco mix for a while now, and we like it much better than the store-bought packets. I've also found Italian Dressing and Fajita Seasoning mixes that we really like. Here are the recipes I've found online for a few homemade mixes:

Taco Seasoning

Use 2 T and 1 cup water per pound of ground meat

2 T chili powder

½ t garlic powder

½ t onion powder

½ t red pepper flakes

½ t oregano

1 t paprika

1 T cumin

2 ½ t salt

2 t pepper

Onion Soup Mix

Use ¼ cup instead of one packet

4 t beef bouillon

8 t onion flakes

1 t onion powder

¼ t pepper

½ t parsley

½ t salt

Fajita Seasoning

Use 2 T to replace one packet

1 T cornstarch

2 t chili powder

1 t salt

1 t paprika

1 t sugar

¾ t chicken bouillon

½ t onion powder

¼ t garlic powder

¼ t cayenne pepper

¼ t cumin

¼ t crushed pepper

Ranch Dressing Mix

Use 1 T per cup of sour cream

5 t onion flakes

7 t parsley

4 t salt

1 t garlic

Italian Seasoning Mix

1 ½ tsp garlic powder

1 T onion powder

2 T oregano

1 T parsley

1 T sugar

2 T salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp basil

¼ tsp thyme

½ tsp celery leaves (or ¼ tsp celery seed)

I made my sister a set of spice mixes for Christmas. Don't they look so much cuter than those paper packets from the store? I simply doubled or tripled the recipe and put them in half-pint canning jars. The labels were just printed on brown cardstock (in a free font I found online that looks like an old typewriter!), and cut out in an oval shape. A dab of hot glue, and voila! Adorable spice mix jars. :)

Well, that's all for today. Please leave comments or questions you have about anything!