Visiting Grandparents

Recently, my oldest daughter (age 7) went to her grandparents' house for two weeks.  Her grandparents live 450 miles away.  I see heads snap around and women say, "You did what?!" as if I let her play in a pit of vipers or something.  Yes.  I allowed my seven-year-old baby go 450 miles away to spend two weeks with her grandparents.   Katherine has been once and was too lonely. Annie and Harrison are still too little to be there alone.

There are multiple reasons I think it's good for her to go.  She gets to spend some time alone with her grandparents.  She gets to spend some time being The Only Child - and doesn't have to worry about her siblings (she is a little mother).  She gets to see what marriage vows mean - in sickness and in health - as she watches her Grammie take care of her PawPaw (my father-in-law has ALS).  She gets to see what honoring your parents means as she watches her Uncle Wayne help his parents - either by helping with PawPaw or helping around the house or in the yard.  She gets to serve her grandparents.  She helps Grammie with housework or planting flowers - her favorite job at Grammie's is vacuuming the stairs down to the basement.  As a matter of fact, my mother-in-law called me one day kind of teary - "Let GoofyJane know I need my basement stairs vacuumed and she's not here to do it."  (she started calling Elizabeth "Goofy Jane" when E was there in May because she giggles so much). 

She will be going back in a couple of weeks ago and will again stay for two weeks.  I want her to go as much as she can right now. Some of my fondest memories are of the days I spent at Lake Hamilton with my grandfather.  That Elizabeth make these memories is important to me.

Top Ten {Tuesday} - Recipes

So, I haven't done a Top Ten {Tuesday} post in forever. Okay, I've only done a Top Ten {Tuesday} post once and then I felt overwhelmed and pressured to think of a cute theme each week I didn't do any others.  Well, pressure be gone! I'm not going to feel pressured any longer.  Some Tuesdays you may get "top ten things on my mind today", some Tuesdays it might be pictures of my kids - or pictures from Flickr, or Etsy finds.  Today, you're getting Top Ten Recipes.  These aren't all dinner or all dessert recipes. They're just 10 of our favorites (with links)

1. Creamy Italian Chicken - this one is from our church cookbook. We love it, my in-laws love it, everyone I know who has made this has said "it's a keeper."  The whooshing sounds you hear when you eat it are your arteries clogging.  But seriously, cream cheese? How can you go wrong?
2. Bread Machine Hamburger Buns - this recipe is the reason I bought 5 pounds of natural sesame seeds.
3. Caramel Cake with Browned-Butter-Caramel-Sea-Salt Frosting - I made this cake and frosting six times in six weeks last year. Seriously.  It's that good. 
4. Oatmeal-Chocolate-Chip-Flaxseed Cookies - I found these when trying to boost my milk supply when Harrison was an infant.  These are still the chocolate chip cookies I bake all the time. They aren't my most favorite chocolate chip cookies, but they are very, very good.  
5. The Chewy - If you love chewy chocolate chip cookies, these are DaBomb.  These are my favorite chocolate chip cookies ever.  Alton Brown. Food Network. 'Nuff said.
6. Chicken-Black-Bean Enchilada casserole - I was blog surfing one day and found this recipe. I had everything in the pantry so I made it for dinner that night.  Delicious.  Emailed it to all my family and friends.  And, it starts off with frozen chicken tossed into the crock pot?!  I love. 
7. Quick Chicken & Spinach - This is another staple in our house.  We serve it over penne, or angel hair. We usually have a ton of both in the pantry.
8. Richard's Sloppy Joes - And another staple.  The kids eat these "open-face" style. Always on homemade buns.  With shredded cheddar jack cheese.  Mmmmm!
9. Easy Greek Flank Steak  - a wonderful faux gyros.  Serve it with Sour Cream-Cucumber Sauce in pita pockets.  Very yummy.  Very easy. 
10. Fun, Messy, but a definite must do if you have kids:  Homemade Marshmallows.  Yes. I did just say that!

For more Top Ten {Tuesday} posts, visit OhAmanda's blog here.  

Creamy Italian Chicken

This is one of our favorite dinners. It is in our church cookbook and I happened across it one day when I wanted something different for dinner.  It was a huge hit with Brad and the kids, so it has become a staple.  I've even mixed up quite a bit of the spices and keep them, already prepared, in a half-pint canning jar in my spice cabinet.

1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt {I only use 1/8 tsp or leave it out all together}
1/4 tsp EACH garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, sugar
1/8 tsp EACH dried basil, black pepper, thyme, celery salt
6-8 chicken breasts {I use boneless-skinless}
1 cup water
1 (8-oz) pkg. cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 (16-oz) pkg angle hair pasta, cooked and drained

Combine all spices in small bowl, set aside. In 5-quart crock pot, place half of the chicken breasts. Sprinkle half of spice mixture over chiken in crock pot. Repeat with remaining chicken and spices. Pour water around edges of crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours {I cook on high for 4 - because I canNOT think about dinner before noon}. One hour before serving, soften cream cheese in microwave for 45 seconds or until creamy when stirred. Add chicken soup, blend well. Pour over chicken in crock pot and continue cooking for one hour or until sauce is heated through. {I turn my crockpot to low for this hour - so I guess I actually cook it on high for 3 hours and low for the 4th hour}. **Cook pasta according to package directions and place in 4-quart baking dish (15 x 10 x 2). Place chicken breasts on top of pasta and cover with sauce. Garnish w/fresh chopped parsley. Serves 8-10.

**We cook the pasta then shred the chicken in the crockpot and place it over the pasta on individual plates.  I'm not so big on dirtying up another dish for a family dinner. 

Working on the design

I'm still working on everything for my blog design. :) I'm loving the patriotic theme. Just have to get all the buttons and extra pages created. Hopefully later this week I can get it finished and actually get caught up on my photos for each week.  Watch your Google Reader.  :)

Harrison...the ways he makes me laugh

I love how Harrison asks for things.  I can't quite figure out why he asks for things like he does - but I have a couple of theories.  Any time he wants something he'll say, "I want X, too."  

Mama, I want some choc-it milk, too. 
I want a peanut butter and jelly taco, too.
I want my sunglasses, too.


Sometimes when nursing, he'd say, "I want choc-it milk."  I would ask him, "You want to nurse and have chocolate milk, too?"  So - it could be from that but I don't think it is.  Often, he's the second or third child to "order" lunch (he usually waits to see what everyone else is having before he decides what he wants).  Annie will say she wants a PB&J taco and then I'll ask him, "Do you want a PB&J taco, too?"  He'll nod and say "yup!"  Or Elizabeth will want rice and he'll say, "I want RICE!"  "You want rice, too?"  I really think that is where he gets it.  By the way, a peanut butter and jelly taco is PB&J on one piece of bread that is then "folded" diagonally.  Annie said once that it looks like a taco - and the phrase stuck.  


Harrison is now 29 months old.  He still nurses.  I'm amazed, and a little ready for him to stop but a little ready for him to keep on since he's our last baby.  The other night as he was seeking to comfort nurse I asked him, "Harrison, do you still get Mommy's milk?"  He didn't stop nursing, just said, "Yup."  Then, he stopped nursing, sat up and said, "No. I not get milk. I get KoolAid."  So...there ya have it.  That's why he isn't weaning.  I make KoolAid!  I've often heard that people think women should stop nursing at 12 months because breast milk "turns into" KoolAid (that's dripping sarcasm on the part of women who choose to extend breastfeeding beyond a year).  I laughed so hard, I could barely catch my breath.  


Love this sweet boy of mine! 

I love my son. Really. I do. Part 2

I was just putting hamburger buns in the oven to rise.  Harrison walked in, "What you make, Mama?"
"Hamburger buns."
"Ha-bug-uh?" Turns and walks away, "Hey, guys! Mama make ha-bug-uh!! Guys! Ha-bug-uh!!!!!"

He was so excited and it was very sweet. Love that sweet boy!