Laminin

Menu Mon March 30, - April 5

Monday, March 30
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
(I'll be using left over take-out Chinese rice, that I froze)

Tuesday, March 31
Left over Crock-Pot Beef Burgundy
w/ buttered egg noodles
(2-3 pounds chuck roast, 2 green peppers sliced, sliced carrots, one onion sliced, 1 cup red wine, 1 cup beef broth, canned mushrooms, 1 garlic clove minced ... cook on high 4 hours or on low 6-8 hours)
from Sunday

Wednesday April 1
Hamburgers on Grill, baked beans, Salad

Thursday April 2
Left overs, OR, Pizza

Friday
Red beans and Rice

Saturday
Spaghetti

Sunday
Roasted Chicken, Mashed potatoes, Green Salad

Ave Maria

Lyrics:
Ave Maria, gratia plena.
Maria, gratia plena
Maria, gratia plena
Ave, ave dominus,
Tecum.
Benedicta tu in mulieribus,
Et benedictus
Benedictus fructus ventris tui
Ventris tui, Jesus.
Ave Maria.

Sancta Maria,
Ora pro nobis,
Nobis peccatoribus,
Nunc et in hora
Mortis nostrae.
Ave Maria

This Weeks Menu March 23- 29

Monday March 23, 2009
Stuffed Cannelloni

Tuesday March 24, 2009
Left over stew/cornbread casserole
(I froze my leftover stew from Tuesday. Thaw & pour left over stew in a casserole dish, mix up your favorite boxed cornbread and spread on top of the casserole, bake according to the cornbread recipe on box. This works well with leftover chili also).

Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Crock pot Beef stew

Thursday
Pizza Night

Friday
Fish Stew

Saturday
TBA

Sunday
TBA

Make it simple

When organizing your home, don't try to make great complex plans. Keep it simple. Also, keep in mind your own personal style. If you are the type of person that can't bring yourself to hang up every item of clothing, or coats, then don't. Find a plan that will work. Put hooks on your doors. Sure beats seeing the stuff on the floor.

Also, if you hate to wash lots of pots and pans then don't buy so many. Plan menus around one pot, or make crockpot meals. Donate some of your pots and pans and keep just one of each size.

Avoid clutter by bringing home less! When you are shopping, even at a yard sale, ask yourself if you are willing to clean up after 'it,' store, 'it,' wash 'it,' etc. If not, then put it back.

Keep things where it will be easiest to get and to store. Take for example your bills, if you are the filing type, the file away. If you are the toss in a pile type, then get a plastic bin and only allow bills in that bin.

Blessed are those with work to do, and the ability to do it!

Without love, deeds, even the most brilliant, count as nothing. ~ of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

When you have to wipe up that extra spill today, or you stumble over yet another book bag, just keep our lovely, St. Thérèse in mind and do the deed with love.

Positive Diet

I had a crazy dream about dieting. I keep taking away this and that from my diet and it seems to be so negative. Well I awoke with the idea of having a POSITIVE +++ diet!

Instead of thinking about taking away, think about adding to. Add more fruits and vegetables. Add more exercise. Add more water. You get the idea...

OK so it's not the newest greatest thing going, but perhaps a new attitude regarding these things will help make them easier to do. Just a thought!

I found this in a search about positive dieting: http://www.annecollins.com/weight_loss_tips/diet-positive.htm

Free Deals

I love a good deal, but free is the best deal.

Directory Free Assistance: http://www.free411.com/index.php

Free Legal Advice: http://www.avvo.com/

Search for Free Kids Meals: http://www.kidsmealdeals.com/

And to top it off a friend just emailed me this: Free Arby's Roast Beef

This Weeks Menu

Monday March 16, 2009
Cowboy Chili:
Easy recipe, I'm using the left over baked beans from Saturday.
1 lb hamburger, one onion chopped, saute, drain. Add left over beans, 1T chili powder, 1 lg can tomato sauce, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 4 hot dogs sliced (also left over). Warm and serve with biscuits or corn bread.
A variation on this is CowGIRL chili. Just substitute the hamburger for ground turkey. This is a kid favorite! YUM!

Tuesday March 17, 2009
Irish Stew
(Stew meat, potatoes, carrots, onions, broth, parsley, salt & Pepper... keep it simple!)
Irish Soda Bread

Wednesday March 18, 2009
Left over spaghetti

Thursday March 19, 2009
Greens cooked* with smoked turkey leg
Grocery store fried Chicken
Whole Grain bread w/ smart balance
(*Deli smoked turkey leg, 2 lbs washed/chopped kale, collards, mustard greens, 4 cups low-sodium beef broth, sprinkle of red hot pepper flakes, 2 T apple cider vinegar)

Friday March 20, 2009
Homemade Margarita pizza & a mushroom cheese pizza

Saturday March 21, 2009
Hamburgers on the grill
Whole wheat buns
baked beans
Organic Green Salad


Sunday March 22, 2009
Crockpot Chicken BBQ,
Whole wheat buns
Potato chips

Spiritual 911

Today's tip comes from Father Corapi. As he puts it,

"Well, it often happens that people, suffering many and various things, need
help from God right now. I have a “Spiritual 911” for you if that’s the case."

I can hear his rich speaking voice now, urging us to go to the father with our sufferings. He has a fail proof strategy for getting that help we all need.

Spiritual 911

Quick clean up!

OK, so you have been out with the flu, or a bad cold. Or life has been hectic and you have let the house slide. Or you bought a new book and it has absorbed your every move. Or you have a new video game in the house and it has kept you up late into the night and it is all you can do to go to work, feed the family and sleep at night. OR you hadn't really noticed the mess until your slipper got stuck on the kitchen floor and it was like a light bulb went off. Regardless, as you look around your house you realize it has become disheveled, di·shev·eled,Variant(s):or di·shev·elled,Function:adjective,Etymology:Middle English discheveled bareheaded, with disordered hair, part translation of Anglo-French deschevelé, from des- dis- + chevoil hair, from Latin capillus;Date: 1583, : marked by disorder or disarray <disheveled hair>).

Here is an easy quick way to get your house back in shape. Keep in mind that this is a QUICK, clean up job. It is not the good house keeping seal of approval version. Quick is the operative word here.

Ingredients::
Laundry basket or two, or three...
trash bag
multi purpose spray, like spic n span, with paper towels or dust rag
vacuum cleaner
Pen and Paper
several helping children, ;o)
some good music
lastly, a servants heart, offer the task up for poor souls, and remember to thank God for the home you have to clean, and the family you have to clean for.

Incidentally, the following kitchen clean up is the routine that I have taught my children. It helps them to think in an organized way. It could be my computer programmer training coming into play, but it works.

~Start in the kitchen. Make a quick detour in the living, and sleeping areas and collect dishes. Place next to dishwasher or sink if you hand wash.

~Now making as few steps as possible. Place everything to go in the pantry, in a pile closest to the pantry. Do the same for the fridge.

~Clear the table, scraping plates, and throwing away trash. Pile up the dirty dishes next to the dishwasher, or if you hand wash stack next to the sink. Empty glasses and cereal bowls. Then start a sink of warm, soapy water and start soaking the dishes to hand wash.

~Now put away fridge and pantry items. Wipe the outside of appliances, as quickly as possible.

~Next, load or wash/dry dishes. Empty and wipe out sink.

~Finally empty trash, wipe counters, table, and sweep. If you can do a quick mop in less than 10 minutes, do it. Otherwise, just spray some of your multi purpose cleaner on the worst spots and wipe.

~Next move on to the living space of your house. Quickly run around and put the things that don't belong ... (remember Sesame street, some of these things don't belong here, etc. ... that game will come in handy here) ... and place the items in the laundry basket. If it is trash, then place in trash bag. Spray spots and wipe as you go.

~Give the laundry basket to your children and have them put the items away. If they are at school then give them that task when they come home. This applies if they are having lessons for home school. NOTE: If you do not have children, then borrow some or put the stuff away yourself.

~Next move to the sleeping area of the house. Assess the damage and make some choices.

~Make beds. Do not change sheets. This is the 'quick' day. Have the children make their beds. (TIP: Here is a tip, within a tip: for children, give them a fitted sheet, and a comforter, do not have a top sheet. This is completely unnecessary and the kids will have an easier time just pulling up a comforter.) Give them trash bag and laundry bag. Get trash and clothes off the floor, tables, chairs etc.

~If you have a sorter for laundry, have them sort it now. DO NOT START WASHING LAUNDRY ON THIS DAY.

REMEMBER: This quick clean up is to get you back on track, not to have a 'perfect' home.

At this point you can decide to be done. OR you can continue to clean the rooms more. My suggestion is that you stop.

~Next, sit down with a pen and paper and make a daily job list to help you keep on track. Let me give you an example.

Daily, clean kitchen, wash ONE load, fold, put away.

Monday: Thorough kitchen clean day. Clean inside/outside of appliances, trash can, door handles, windows, mop.

Tuesday: Thorough Bathroom clean up day.

Wednesday: Dust/vacuum day throughout the house.

Thursday: Make a menu for next week, cut coupons, make grocery list. Look over your daily routines and decide that you are going to make a menu based on your jobs. For example, on Monday it might be a good day to throw something in the crock pot, to free up your kitchen while you clean it.

Friday: Extra job day. Clean out a closet, put some photos in an album, back up computers, etc. Pick one job. This is also a good day to make appointments, or do something fun for yourself. Paint your nails, do a facial, comb your hair. ;)

Saturday: Bedroom day. Wash/change sheets, pickup, dust vacuum. Give the kids an incentive. Maybe allow the kids to rent a movie if they get their rooms done in a timely manner. My youngest two love to go to the park and will clean their rooms up very quickly if a trip to the park is the reward. Play some peppy music and get the family to do the task happily.

One last note. This is a routine that can work for the stay-at-home-mother, the homeschooling mother, and the working mother. Of course it must be adapted to your life style.

For example, you may decide that while your children are doing their math lesson you can start your task for the day. Then when they are having free time you can finish the task. You also may have to make a sacrifice and not have the house in tip top shape. Then you must make a different weekly schedule. Maybe on Wednesdays you have more time and can combine two of your tasks.

If you are a working mother, maybe you will have to combine several tasks off the weekly schedule to do on Saturday. And of course this goes for all mothers, enlist help. Help from your spouse, and help from the children.

No matter what your life style is, coming up with a plan is key so that you do not feel overwhelmed. You will simply say to yourself," OK, I know I planned to do this or that on Saturday. I can relax."

I hope this helps, and please share a clean up tip.

Painful Hangnails

I have found liquid bandaid to be quite beneficial in helping to heal a painful hangnail. If you want to prevent a hangnail, check out ehow: http://www.ehow.com/how_2562_prevent-hangnails.html

This Weeks Menu, March 9 - March 16

Monday March 9, 2009
Steak Fajita Casserole
(Layered like a lasagna with whole wheat tortilla's, grilled steak, sauteed peppers, mushrooms ... from steak last week. First layer is beans, followed by steak mixture, followed by salsa, then cheese, ending with a top layer of tortilla's, salsa and cheese. Bake covered at 350 for 30 minutes, then uncover for 20 minutes).
Organic Green Salad
Cut Fruit

Tuesday March 10, 2009
Crock pot Spaghetti sauce with whole grain pasta
Organic green salad
Warm whole wheat baguette, dipped in Olive oil and roasted garlic
ice cream

Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Roasted Chicken (Costco)
Organic Green Salad
Mashed Potatoes (made healthy!)

Thursday March 12, 2009
Pizza
Organic Green Salad

Friday March 13, 2009
Corn and Tuna chowder
Biscuits

Saturday March 14, 2009
Baked Beans
Hot Dogs
Salad

Sunday March 15, 2009
TBA
CCD, etc., makes this day hectic, I will look through some crock pot recipes to see what I may have available.

Tackling Laundry

With a large family laundry can be a nightmare. So here are a few things that I have learned over the years to help make it less of a chore.

1. Never, and I mean NEVER, say the laundry is done, because unless you are in your birthday suit, the laundry is never done, and it can actually make you feel inept if you say it is done.

2. Do NOT fold underwear, in fact, do not fold anything, especially in the children s department. Simply 'bend' them. You know what I mean. Lining up all the parts so that this matches with that and that the crease is straight. Oh brother. Just BEND the clothes.

3. Then come up with a system. For example, I have a 4 bin sorter (Two 2-bin sorters). I have them lined up in my hallway next to the laundry closet. In this order, white, dark, light, and lastly towels. This will help keep whites out of light. Of course if your teen boys wash laundry, then you can pretty much mix it light, dark, red, silk, ... anything goes, it really doesn't matter to the teen boy,

4. Towels. Dirty ones have a way of multiplying. So here are a couple of tips. Give each child 1-2 towels depending on age and hair length. I have a towel rack in each of the bedrooms so that the children will hang their towels up there. I also do not fold bath towels but have a small white square basket labeled, clean towels. And I do not disclose all towels because these towels would be used in one day. I hide towels, and no one is the wiser. In fact, teens have been known to search, and when they can't find any more clean towels, they wash some. Amazing.

Please share your laundry tips.

Many Uses of the Baby Wipe

Buy unscented, alcohol free (I prefer to drink the alcohol rather than rub it on baby ;0) ... baby wipes in bulk at a warehouse, i.e. BJ's, Costco, etc.

1. Remove makeup/wash face at night. Moisturize afterwords of course.

2. Quick bathroom clean up with ONE wipe: Start with the mirror, then the sink and then the outside of the toilet. All with one wipe. This takes seconds. (I use a paper towel on the mirror after just to dry it off).

3. Keep a pack in the kitchen and I wash baby's face (first duh), and then the high chair. The wipe is very durable so if needed rinse out and do the floor around the high chair as well. (I've been known to do the whole dinning room table and counters with the same wipe. I use it like a cloth. Rinse in warm soapy water and keep wiping, ending with the trash can. No germs for Baby. This works well in the bath also.

4. Turn off & unplug your computer then clean off the keyboard, and monitor, then continue to the TV, etc. Always turn off & unplug electrical appliances.

Keep a pack in the kitchen, bedroom, family room, car and baby's room. I don't know how long it takes me to go through a box but they seem to last forever.

Please share your 'wipe' tips here, or any easy clean up tip!

BTW, here are some neat recipes for homemade wipes: http://www.naturalbirthandbabycare.com/homemade-baby-wipes-recipes.html

Money Saving Pizza Tip

Ok besides cutting a coupon and dialing 1-800-PIZZA... here is a great easy to make pizza crust. This was given to me by a friend, Judy, and it is delicious!

Judy:
Pizza dough is dead simple to make - just knead together the following to make a pliable dough:

1 c. warm water
1 T yeast
2 1/2 c. flour (can use half whole wheat)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 T olive oil

If you make a double or triple batch, you can wrap the dough in plastic and freeze it. After a couple of hours on the counter, it's ready to go. To use, let it rise once, then roll it out and top as desired. Back the pizza at 450 for about 25 minutes.

Cleaning Silk Flowers

Easy tip: Use only real flowers.... haha.... but if you do have silk flowers, take the plant outside, turn it upside down, and use a blow dryer on cool to blow off the dust.

Many Uses of Olive Oil

We all know that olive oil is good for us, but did you know it has many other uses? These tips were sent to me in an email:

USE OLIVE OIL TO:
1. Shave. Olive oil can provide a closer shave when used in place of shaving cream.

2. Shine stainless steel. Many cleaning standbys, such as ammonia, can dull and even corrode chrome and stainless steel. Olive oil, however, is a safe and effective shining agent.

3. Remove eye makeup. Dab a little under the eyes and rinse off with a washcloth.

4. Prevent wax from sticking to a candle holder. Rub a thin coat on the base of the holder before inserting a candle. Dripped wax should peel away easily.

5. Care for your pet. Add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon to your cat's food to help prevent hair balls.

6. Moisturize cuticles. Apply a small amount of olive oil to the nail beds.

7. Treat dry skin. Rub a thin layer over the skin after a shower or a waxing.

8. Unstick a zipper. Using a Q-tip, apply a drop to lubricate the teeth.
(Avoid touching the fabric.) The zipper should move up and down freely.

9. Dust wooden furniture. Apply a bit of oil to a cloth and wipe.

10. Silence squeaky doors. Lubricate hinges by applying a small dab to a cloth, then wiping the top of the hinges so that the oil runs down the sides.

Check out Olive Oil's amazing health benefits here: http://www.healingdaily.com/detoxification-diet/olive-oil.htm