Think-Ahead Thursdays

I just finished writing out my grocery list for tomorrow's Kroger trip. As I made this week's list, I realized that this will be my last week of doubling meals to freeze, as this is my last week at home. One week from today, I'll be back to the daily grind and our sweet, sweltering, simple summer will come to an end.

Although the busyness of caring for little ones can make the day seem to tick by slowly, this summer has flown by faster than any I can remember. It seems as though the hours in between nap-time last an eternity, but while that angel-baby is sleeping, I'll find one of his blankets that have his sweet smell, and I am simply giddy about holding him when he wakes up. Goodness gracious, I'm going to miss this little booger everyday.

The days are long, but the years fly by.

But these two beauties get to travel with me to school each day, and I am grateful for the extra minutes of "girl time" we will get to have together each day. I am praying that I be able to cherish these fleeting days as they can easily turn into a blur of panicked mornings, trying to get all of us presentable, fed,  and in the car by 7am.

We are planning to take this next week slow and steady. I'm seeing lots of ice cream, sno-cones, pools, and PJ's in our next week together.

Maybe you can use a few of these recipes and spend a few extra minutes cherishing your last days of summer with those you love.

Next Week's Meal Plan  (You can read about my meal-making schedule here):

Meal 1 - Low-Sodium Beef Stew (recipe below) - Making double for a freezer meal
Meal 2 - Baked Tacos - Freezing extra taco meat

Meal 3 - Chicken Fajita Pasta - Making double for a freezer meal

*No extra meal this week because all of these recipes make large quantities and there should be plenty for lunches each day.

Sunday Night Dessert: Oreo Brownie Trifle - This dessert is incredibly easy AND incredibly yummy! The last time I made it, I could NOT keep the kids out of it! It is so good!! 

Low-Sodium Beef Stew
I do not have measurements or quantities, as this is a throw-together recipe that I made on a whim and it turned out to be delicious. It is one of Russ' most favorite meals!
-Beef Tips
-Celery (diced)
-Carrots (diced)
-Sweet Potatoes (diced)
-1-2 can(s) diced tomatoes
-onion
-minced garlic
-3 packs of Mrs. Dash Pot Roast Seasoning
-2 cups unsalted or low-sodium beef broth

Cook your beef tips in about 1 tsp. of oil. Save the liquid from cooking for your stew. Saute onions, celery, garlic, and carrots until onions are translucent. Add beef tips and sauce to the veggies along with sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and all seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 4-6 hours. If using a slow cooker, let it cook at least 4 hours on low.

Think-Ahead Thursdays

Last week, I posted my thoughts Proverbs 31. My goal was to encourage all of you superwomen out there as you care for your families. I was overwhelmed at the number of texts, calls, and responses. So many tired mamas were telling me that they needed a scriptural reminder that through the piles of laundry, the sleepless nights, the sweeping of crumbs, and the drying of tears, that we are needed. We are valuable. We are being used to do mighty work in the kingdom.

In my efforts to help make your load a tad bit lighter, I am going to post my meal plans each week. I normally plan my next week's menu on Thursdays. I will try to post them each week, but this may turn into an every-other week post as life gets crazy again in August. 

Please feel free to come and snatch up these recipes each week. I can't take credit for any of them - I am just compiling all of my pinterest searches in one place. :)

If you read my last post, you will see that I only cook three days a week, and I have an "extra meal" for Russ' lunches. Below is next week's plan:

Monday - Mexican Chicken Soup

Tuesday - Grilled Chicken Strawberry Salad (grilled chicken, spring mix, strawberries, blueberries, mandarin oranges, dried cranberries, pecans, with a light strawberry-walnut vinaigrette)

Thursday - Salmon and veggies (I just season with brown sugar and garlic, and either bake or grill)

Extra Meal - Garden Veggie Soup 

*I order several low-sodium ingredients from HeartHealthyMarket.com

*I'm making lots of soup this week because they are easy meals to double and freeze.

We can do this, mamas.

In the meantime, does anyone know how to get vaseline of the carpet? This silly guy had a field day with a jar of it... 

Perfect Pot Roast + Weeknight Dessert

If you've been following this blog, you read here how Mr. Crawford has had a few medical setbacks. These setbacks have caused us to drastically change our eating habits. We are currently eating gluten free and very low sodium.

We've gotten through the gluten-thing pretty easily, as we've been working on that one for a couple of years now. The sodium thing is new and it is killin' me, yall. I am having the hardest time making meals with less than 500-600mg of sodium. It is in everything!!!!

So our meals consist of rice and beans. Literally. And Mrs. Dash is my new BFF.

I've been on the hunt for freezer meals to start prepping for the back-to-school madness. I found this great site. This chick has a gazillion freezer meals. Instead of doing them all at once, I'm trying to make one fresh and freeze another. That way I have a weeknight meal idea for now, and one in my freezer for later.

One of her recipes was for beef roast and carrots. I am normally not a big fan of roast, but the ingredients were super simple and the no-salt substitutions were easy.  Note: If you are using no-salt substitutions, like Mrs. Dash, you will need way more than one packet of seasoning to get some good flavor. See my notes below. :)

Also, she suggests to only use a shoulder roast and after making this I agree 100%. It was the most tender roast. Liquid only covered half of the roast while cooking and I kept wondering if I should add some broth or water, but I didn't and it turned out WONDERFUL! I am so glad I have another saved in my freezer.

I served this with brown rice and steamed veggies. This served our family of 5 for 2 1/2 days. The kiddos were pleased with it as well. :)


Slow Cooker Beef Roast and Carrot Recipe - Adapted from New Leaf Wellness

Ingredients:

• 2-pound boneless beef chuck shoulder roast (No substitutions!  This is the best cut of meat for the slow cooker!)
• 1-2 pounds carrots, peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces
• Chopped Celery
• Chopped Onion
• Garlic Cloves
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar - I used almost half a cup because my roast was HUGE
• one seasoning packet - (I used two packets of Mrs. Dash Pot Roast seasoning and 2 packets of Mrs. Dash taco seasoning)

Directions: Combine it all together and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you also know that I love any and all desserts. I found this recipe on, you guessed it, pinterest! It is Caramel Cobbler and it is by far the easiest dessert I have EVER made. I have made this several times because I normally have everything on hand. It is very easy to throw together and it is wonderful served warm with vanilla ice cream. 

This dessert has a bit of a special meaning to it because Russ' grandfather, better known has PawPaw, requested this dessert on a Sunday evening and he went to be with Jesus that following Wednesday. I am so thankful that I was able to fill his request one last time. Everytime I make it, I will always think about him. We miss you PawPaw.

Caramel Cobbler - orignal recipe from Call Me PMC

Ingredients

• ½ c butter (real butter)
• 1½ c self-rising flour
• 1½ c sugar
• ¾ c milk
• 1 tsp vanilla (or almond)
• 1½ c packed light brown sugar
• 1½ c hot water
• Ice cream or sweetened whipped cream

Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 1 stick butter in 9x13 inch pan. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, milk, and flavoring (vanilla or almond, both are excellent). Stir to combine, then pour over melted butter. Sprinkle brown sugar over top of batter. Carefully pour hot water over butter and batter. Do not stir. Cook 30 minutes until golden brown.

I hope this helps make meal planning a bit easier for you. And just because I have cute kids...

My Lyla, holding a ginormous bull frog!

Fall Favorites

Wow! It's been awhile. Things haven't calmed down for the Crawford's but that is okay, too. We've been busy going and doing. I've been in the kitchen, but just haven't had time to post much. We did have two of my fall favorites since the weather has cooled off a bit. I'll share them with you in hopes that they might become your fall faves as well. :)

Southwest Soup
I have to start off by saying this soup was an accident. I normally always make Southwest Chili during the fall, which is just as good, but we didn't have the ingredients, so we ended up having Southwest Soup and I can honestly say it ain't the last time.

Ingredients
-Ground turkey or beef (brown and drain)
-1 can Mexican Rotel
-1 can diced tomatoes
-1 can dark red kidney beans
-1 can light red kidney beans
-1 can corn (drained)
-1 box beef broth
-1 jar of salsa

I put mine in the crockpot on low for 4 hours. It was wonderful and would be great with tortilla chips and melted cheese. Go for it. Hubs vetoed that decision for our house.

If you want to turn this into Southwest Chili, follow the same recipe but don't use the broth. Instead use a can of tomato sauce.


Taco Soup
Before you skip over this recipe because you think you already have a good recipe for Taco Soup, think again. This really is the BEST recipe for Taco soup I've ever had. Plus, it is a one - dish wonder and incredibly easy. I wish I could claim it, but I can't. I first had it in college from one of my best friends. It was her mom's "famous" recipe. Russ and I honestly make this probably once every other week during the fall and winter. He asks for it in the summer, but I refuse. That is hotdog weather...sorry.

Anyway, it really is AMAZING! Make it, you will love it!

Ingredients:
-Ground beef (brown and drain)
-1 jar picante sauce
-1 can stewed tomatoes
-1 can mexican rotel
-1 box beef broth
-1 box rotini (I use whole wheat)
-cumin (to taste)
-garlic (to taste)
-Salt & Pepper (to taste)
-shredded cheese
-tortilla chips

Mix everything together except chips and cheese until it comes to a boil. Turn down the heat and let it sit for about 30 minutes. Put chips in the bottom of your bowl. Pour the soup on top. Put some cheese on that goodness. Eat it up!


Pumpkin Muffins
I've written about this recipe before. Two ingredients: Spice cake and pumpkin. Mix, bake, enjoy. But, I have discovered a new amazing muffin mix that makes these easy muffins something I want to serve for every meal. If you have a box of Cinnamon Streusel Muffin Mix and a can of pumpkin, make these muffins. They truly are wonderful.

 Maybe because it is a muffin mix and not a cake mix, but these might be the moistest muffins I've ever had. Seriously, I can't say enough about how amazing they are. And easy. Bonus!!

Finally, Halloween has come and gone. My girls were adorable as a bumble bee and a ladybug.

These are the only pics because sweet little Lyla fell asleep about 10 minutes into the Trick-or-Treat extravaganza.

I will share these cute little treats I sent with LR to school. I made these before as easter pops, but just coated them with Halloween sprinkles instead. Two year olds love sprinkles and marshmallows, so it was a hit.

I hope you and your family are enjoying some fall favorites this year as well. :)

Fall Weekends...

Much needed.

Fall, not the date, but the weather, couldn't have come at a better time for me. Work has been incredibly overwhelming this year. I can't get my head above water and I'm spending my nights planning the next day's lessons because I don't have time during my work day. I told Russ one day this week that if it wasn't for Jesus, I know that I would be crazy by now and probably on 10 kinds of anxiety meds and sleep aids. Thank goodness for sweet Jesus who fills me with hope and purpose for each and everyday.  Long story short, the weather and beauty of today came at a perfect time.

Lily Rain and I stepped outside this morning to go on our weekly excursion to Publix and were greeted by the most refreshing, crisp, cool weather. Even Lily Rain made the sweetest comment when she said, "Jesus gave you this beautiful day!" Yes, He did and Mama sure needed it.

Fall is simply wonderful. I love all the seasons and what they have to offer, but you just can't beat the coziness of fall.

Right now the girls are sleeping, I'm curled up on the couch (putting off next week's lessons), sipping coffee. My "sweet cinnamon pumpkin" candle is burning and I'm "pinteresting" for fall recipes. Tomorrow I am making an Apple Cider Cake that I found here. If I can get my tired tail out of bed in the morning, I'm planning on making these pumpkin waffles that I found here. 

Stayed tuned. Right now, I'll leave you with a quick and easy weeknight dinner recipe that the hubs and I both found wonderful.

Easy & Cheap Chicken Parmesan


1 Package Chicken Breast or Tenderloins
1 Jar Spaghetti Sauce
Grated Parmesan
Italian bread crumbs

Put the spaghetti sauce in one bowl and the bread crumbs and parmesan in another. Dip each chicken breast in the spaghetti sauce and then dip into the bread/cheese mixture. Place each piece in a baking dish and bake for 25-35 minutes. We served this with long grain rice and steamed green beans. It was great for a weeknight dinner when you need something quick and easy.

For my teacher friends that are equally overwhelmed, head on over to this devotional website for teachers. My friend, Leigh, at Precious Perks first introduced me to this website and it's very encouraging.

Enjoy this wonderful fall day!

Tried and True

I have two tried and true recipes for you today. You all have probably seen both of these before, but they are classic recipes that are so easy to make, I have to share them just in case you haven't heard of them or you've forgotten about them. Bring 'em back!

Crock-Pot Nachos
Chicken breasts (frozen)
1 can of black beans (drained)
1 can of corn (drained)
1 jar of salsa
1 can of mexican rotel
1 8oz package of light or fat free cream cheese

Cook on low 6-8 hours. Shred your chicken. Slobber that goodness on top of your favorite tortilla chips. We LOVE the Garden of Eatin' chips. Russ opted out of the nachos tonight and rolled the mix in whole wheat wraps.  I love this dish because if makes TONS! Life if getting very crazy around this place with back-to-school just around the corner and I knew this would be easy and delish!

As a side note:
1. I think this would be soooo incredibly yum with queso poured over it, or even some good old shredded cheese. I practiced some self-control tonight, but if you want to indulge, I won't judge you. :)
2. I would like to kiss the feet of the person who invented crock-pots. You are my hero.

Oreo Truffles
Okay, so these might just be the best thing on the planet. My original intentions were to make these adorable little pops for back-to-school.

Well, I bought the wrong kind of pretzels and I couldn't think of anything that would make a good leaf for the apple. So I went with the tried and true recipe minus the cuteness.
Ingredients
1 package of cream cheese, softened
2 sleeves of oreos, crushed
1 package of candy wafters or almond bark

Step 1 - Your oreos need to be crushed well, like itty bitty crumbs. The rolling pin won't do the trick. You need an appliance to crush them well. Mix in the cream cheese.
Step 2 - You can go ahead and roll your truffles into balls, but it works best if you put the mix in the freezer for about 10 minutes. Once you've rolled out the balls, stick them in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.

Step 3 -  Melt your chocolate/wafers. Dip each oreo ball into the melted chocolate and place back on the cookie sheet to dry. Once the chocolate hardens, EAT THEM!!!!

You can see that I immediately placed them into containers to be delivered. If these stay in my house for too long I would have to repent of gluttony. :)

At Christmas, I made these with peppermint oreos and added peppermint extract to the melted chocolate. You could do the same thing with the mint oreos or the peanut butter ones. I saw dark mint candy wafers at hobby lobby, so those could work, too.

I adore easy recipes that are so good you could eat them weekly. If you have any, please share!

You can thank me later!

We really try to eat healthy around here. We all know that fish is a very easy way to do this. I just don't cook a lot of fish because I can't make it taste as scrumptious as a piece of chicken or beef. Not anymore!

Publix has bags of frozen Talipa filets on sale this week for $7.99. I think that is very good considering each bag as 6 big filets. So, I put those bad boys in a baking dish with a bottle of Newman's Own Light Rasberry Walnut Vinaigrette. I baked them on 350 for 35 minutes. They were incredible! I also cooked some long grain wild rice with it and it seemed to be the perfect match.

Lily Rain and Russ both enjoyed it. In fact, Russ ate the leftovers for lunch today and his exact words were, "This is so good. Can we start having this once a week?"

Enjoy!

Sunday School and Breakfast

A couple of days ago I was reading through the Good Book. I've been doing a Beth Moore Study on the book of Esther and it has been great, but I was feeling bogged down in all the "study" and felt like I had gotten away from just hearing from the Word. Well, I opened up the Bible and it fell to Jonah. I thought, "Nah, Jonah is soooo 3rd grade." So, I flipped some more and came to Matthew 12. Well, what do you know, Jesus is talking it up about good ol' Jonah. So, I surrendered.

Okay, Lord, you win.

I'll read Jonah, even though I know all about this big fish vomiting him onto the shore.

Well, as we all know, His ways are incredible higher than ours and that sweet Jesus I serve had a little lesson for me in those four short chapters. If you haven't read it in a while, I encourage you to do so. Here is what the Lord spoke to me yesterday:

So, after Jonah gets swallowed he prays to God from the belly of the fish. Part of his prayer really struck me in Chapter 2,

 ⁸ “Those who cling to worthless idols 
   forfeit God’s love for them. 
⁹ But I, with shouts of grateful praise, 
   will sacrifice to you. 
What I have vowed I will make good. 
   I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the LORD.’”

Verse 8 is so powerful to me. I began to think about things that I've made my idols. Lately, through personal conviction and the book, Radical, I really think I've made my comfort an idol. I am so comfortable in this world. What do I sacrifice? If I feel led to give, we might not get to eat out one weekend, but is that really sacrificing?  Jesus' definition of what a true sacrifice is looks completely different than what I've defined it as. 

If you continue on through the book, Jonah becomes very angry with God because God provides things for him and then they are taken away. Jonah becomes concerned with what the Lord took, instead of focusing on the blessing that it was while he had it. Then, the Lord questions if Jonah realizes that there are people to be concerned with and not comforts that he no longer had. 

So, there is your Sunday school lesson for today. I wasn't going to share that with you, but on our way to church this morning, the radio pastor guy discussed, you guessed it, the book of Jonah! So, I thought that maybe you might get a little something out of it too.

Now for the breakfast, or dessert, whichever you want it to be:

Pumpkin Muffins

These are one of my most favorite recipes of all time, yes, it is that good! :) I first got this recipe from my dear friend Beth. The most glorious part is that it only takes TWO ingredients! You will be tempted to add eggs, or oil, maybe even water. But don't do it!! It only needs these two ingredients and you are saving your waistline a few inches if you just stick with what I'm about to tell you.

Ingredients

1 box of spice cake mix

1 can of pumpkin

Directions: Mix. Pour in greased or lined muffin tins. Cook on 350 for 16 minutes. Eat 'em up!

We have these almost every weekend from October-February. We had the most wonderful drop in temperature here the past two days (it went from 872 degrees, to 72 degrees) and it made me think about Fall. With fall comes pumpkin recipes, and that is how it all began. 

My sweet sister-in-law mixes powdered sugar and milk and drizzles that yummy mix on top of these. Also, I've taken can of premade cream cheese frosting and added pumpkin pie spice to it and spread it on top for dessert. Do what your heart desire, but make these muffins quickly! You can read the book of Jonah in the 16 minutes it takes to cook them! :) You won't regret it. 

I hope you've had a terrific Sunday! 

I wish there were 32 hours in a day...

Yes, 32. I think that would give me enough time to get everything done and still have time to play with my girls. Then maybe, just maybe, I could read more than 3 sentences in my book before falling asleep at night. But, the Lord gave us 24, and I'll accept it. Sometimes I just wish I had more time.


Today was one of those days. I've been working at the school for two days writing/revising our units. The units, I tell you, are huge tasks because of the changes that are taking place this year and because we just want quality stuff to use. Anyway, I've been a tad bit stressed because when I go to the school I'm reminded of how badly I need to work in my classroom. To top it all off, we are changing things up a quite a bit this year. Don't get me wrong - I am THRILLED for the changes. Delighted. Estatic. But, it's still change, and that's always hard for me. I'm a control freak.


I worked until 5:00 and when I got home I quickly made dinner (recipe below), swept the dog hair that is driving me extra crazy these days, washed bottles, straightened up, ate the dinner, nursed a baby, gave baths, took a shower, and then realized that I haven't said more than a couple of words to Russ and I hadn't played or snuggled with my girls at all, and then it was bedtime. I know, sad day, right? And single moms, bless your soul. I just don't see how I get through a day without Russ!


So that is what brings me to blogging land tonight. I wish we had 32 hours in a day. Don't get me wrong, I am incredibly thankful for my summer's off with my girls. I know that most moms work 8-5 everyday and come home exhausted without a summer break. So, for you stay at home moms - cherish it. Cherish every single stressful minute!!!!


I threw the recipe below together with ingredients I had on hand. You all probably have these in your pantry, too. It turned out sort of like baked spaghetti. It was very good, and healthy, too!


We will call it Baked Italian Casserole
Ingredients:
1 package Wacky Pasta (this is what I had, you could use whatever you have) -cooked
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
1 small red onion
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 can diced tomatoes (mine had garlic, oregano, and basil in them)
garlic
oregano
black petter
salt
Shredded Parmesan cheese
Shredded Mozzarella cheese


Directions: Brown your meat with the onion. Drain. Cook your pasta according to directions. Drain. Combine all ingredients (except cheese) in a baking dish. Pour into dish, top with cheese. I didn't use more than 1/2 a cup because I'm not a big cheese person, but you can go crazy if you want! :) Bake on 350 for 25 minutes. 

This was actually very good and a quick, throw-together meal. We ate it with steamed corn and a side salad. Personally, I think it would be divine with maybe chopped bell peppers or zucchini, but I didn't have any here tonight. 


Now that I feel like I've been very negative, I'll leave you with some sweet doll babies to watch! Lyla was supposed to be napping the other day when I heard some giggling. I went in to find these cuties just a playing!! 


Click here!

Enjoy!