Simple Saturday: The Morning Rush

As you know by now, I am not a morning person. Multiply me not being a morning person, by a lot of snow, and three kids to get ready and out the door, and I can be a bit of a grumpy camper before I’ve finished my morning coffee. So I try to keep the task organized, and get the kids involved too.

How I wish we had a mud room (add that on to the dream house wish list), but we don’t so I set up a little backpack and coats station right by the front door.

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When the kids come home from school there is a nice spot to hang backpacks, and a bin for all of their coats, gloves, and hats. The backpack-rack is at their height, so they can hang up their backpacks all by themselves. I think it is time to invest in new bins though, as they grow, we need a bit more room for coats.

Agnes has become the master of removing gloves and her hat, so I have to put her accessories on a few more times, but the boys are getting better about getting their items on, and us out the door. A little bit of organization helps those busy school mornings.

Jan 15

Simple Saturday: Setting The Timer

For today’s Simple Saturday I’ll be sharing a little tip that helps me stay motivated to get a few extra chores done around the house. Most days I’ll scribble down a list of chores that I need to get done for the day, and I’m always surprised at just how long that list can get. I have found out that if I have endless time to try and accomplish the chore list, I won’t get much accomplished, but if I set my oven timer I can get a lot done.

I start off by setting my oven timer for 30 minutes, and jump right to my list. I’ll throw in a load of laundry, and get to the dishes. If there is anything that needs soaked in the sink, then I will move upstairs to emptying laundry baskets and tiding up rooms. I’ll make one quick run through the downstairs with me sweeper-vac, and clean up the toys. I’ll empty all of the trash cans, and make a quick run outdoors while the buzzer is dinging. Time is a great motivator for me.

Setting the timer works great when it is time to de-clutter too…

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Start with 10 minutes and one contractor bag, and see how much you can fill in that amount of time. Then move up to 30-45 minutes and three bags, you will be amazed once that buzzer rings.

Have a fantastic and Simple Saturday, I’m off to wash some dishes and get going on a football feast.

Jan 8

Simple Saturday: Turkey Stock

O.k. I know I have posted this recipe a time or two (or maybe three) before, but I think it is a good one to revisit. If the weather in your neck of the woods happens to be extra chilly, this might just come in handy for a nice bowl of Winter soup.

For today’s Simple Saturday let’s talk Turkey Stock. I like to try and make a turkey at least once a month. You can usually find frozen turkey decently priced, even if it isn’t Thanksgiving. One turkey will last my family several meals, and make for some very quick lunches too.

Stock is a great way to stretch the turkey even further, and you probably have a lot of these items already on hand to get started.

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You’ll need:

A large Stock Pot with a colander insert
Around 10-12 cups of water
Carrots, Celery, and an Onion (I’m using whatever I had chopped in the fridge)
One turkey carcass

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It never fails, as soon as my kitty spots the stock pot, he is in the kitchen to see what’s cooking. Feel free to feed your kitchen-kitty-helper a bit of the leftover turkey. He’ll thank you.

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Also feel free to add:

Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Poultry Seasoning
Bay leaves, or Thyme work well too

The stock is very simple to make… Peel your onion, and rough chop it. Then to your stock pot add in the vegetables, turkey carcass, and enough water to almost cover the bird, but not enough to boil over all over your stove top. Bring the stock to a boil for a few minutes, and then take it down to a simmer. Once your stock is simmering add in your salt, pepper, garlic, and poultry seasoning. Let the stock simmer for a few hours. I let mine simmer until the entire house smells like delicious turkey soup.

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After your veggies have given all of their tasty flavor to the stock, it is time to discard the turkey carcass, and the spent veggies. Don’t forget to taste the stock to see if it needs a little more seasoning. Add in a little more salt and pepper (if you need it), and remove it from the heat. At this point I like to cool my stock, and then portion it out into glad-ware containers to freeze for later use.

The stock works great as a substitute for Chicken broth. I like to use it in soups, chicken and noodles, and even chicken chow mien. Give it a try, and make some tasty Turkey Noodle Soup for a super Simple Saturday.

Dec 11

Simple Saturday: Still Decorating

For this week’s edition of Simple Saturday, I’m sharing a few pictures from around the house. Try as I have, I haven’t finished decorating for Christmas… The cold and flu that has take over the house is keeping me really busy at the moment. I did get a few decorations up though.

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I should have started this post with this little statement, this was the year that all of the Christmas lights died… That’s right, my pre-lit tree only had one working strand, none of the outdoor lights made it, and we only had 1 strand of multi-color lights for the boy’s tree. So here is a picture of me taking out my frustration about the light situation by stripping all of the lights off the pre-lit tree. It was a pretty good arm work-out though.

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This is my favorite wreath, it is on the front door. I love it, I spotted it at a yard sale for $2.00, and it is just perfect.

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This little one is hanging in the living room. Thade likes this snowman wreath, because it has one of his spelling words on it. It was Christmas.

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Agnes loves her Hello Kitty stocking, Uncle Rob got it for her. She smiles great big at it, and coos whenever she sees it.

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Dylan’s favorite decoration is the 3 ft Santa in the foyer. It lights up and has a pretty glow about it. I also told him that it has a microphone in it, so Santa can hear when he is acting up. I don’t think he bought it.

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Then there is this pile… The decorations that haven’t made it up this year, and just might not. I like to keep the decorating simple, and switch up how I decorate yearly. Also the less I put up, the less I have to take down after new years.

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The Christmas tree is up and decorated though, and the kiddos each have small trees in their rooms too. I hope to finish the outdoor decorating this weekend, but I don’t know if it will happen. Maybe next Christmas season we won’t be so sick.

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What about you… Are you also decorating for the holidays, and what is your very favorite Christmas decoration?

Dec 4

Simple Saturday: Snacks

Saturday brings a lot of extra work my way. All of the kiddos are home, and usually my hubby is too. Today I’m playing catch-up around the house, and still decorating for the holidays, but before too long, one of the boys will be asking for a snack. I have a perfect one ready to go. We are going to make some super messy indoor smores for a simple Saturday snack.

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For this recipe you’ll need:

6-7 Cups of Golden Grahams ( 6 if you want your bars super sticky, 7 if you don’t want them too sticky)
1 10 oz. package of Mini Marshmallows, or Gigantic ones, use whatever you have on hand
2 Tablespoons of Butter or Margarine
about 1/2 cup of mini marshmallows and I added in what I had left in a bag of chocolate covered mini marshmallows.
1/4 to 1/2 cup of Milk Chocolate Chips (for the topping, totally optional)
A large soup pot to melt the marshmallows, a small sauce pan and a small stainless steel bowl to make a double boiler, an large extra bowl, a silicone spatula, or wooden spoons, and a 9 x 13 pan greased with a little Crisco to give these tasty bars a place to hang out.

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Start off your double boiler over low heat, add your chocolate chips to the stainless steel bowl, and give them a stir every once in awhile. Also start melting your 10 oz. package of Marshmallows and margarine in a large pot over med-low heat. Combine your Cereal and extra marshmallows in a large bowl and set aside.

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Everything is getting nice and melty. Once the marshmallows have completely melted add in your cereal and marshmallow mixture and stir. You need to move fast, so your added marshmallows don’t melt too much. Pour into your prepared pan and let it rest.

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Time to add the yummy chocolate topping. I made a little cone out of some parchment paper, but you can also use a ziploc bag to decorate the treats.

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Carefully spoon the melted chocolate into you parchment bag, and do be careful it is warm. Snip off the end of the bag, and streak across that tasty chocolate. Poof! Yummy indoor smores.

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