Mar 7

Let’s Start Some Pepper Plants

For this Springtime Saturday we are starting some Bell Pepper plants for the garden. This is a great project for kiddos, but let’s keep our fingers crossed that the kitties won’t eat those baby Pepper plants.

For the project you’ll need:

  • Paper Egg Carton (I had 2 on hand)
  • Potting Soil
  • Pepper Seeds
  • Small Spoon, Watering Can, Sharpie, and a Great Helper (Thade is helping me out with the dirt)

I decided to set up everything in the kitchen,  that way we could make a mess and it would be really easy to clean it up. I separated the egg carton, and labeled the flap on the egg carton with what we were planting, and the date. Then I let Thade add a spoonful or two of the potting soil to the egg carton. I decided I had better plant the Pepper Seeds, but Thade could help out with the watering.

Once the seeds were planted, I let Thade water the seeds just a tiny bit, and then we placed the carton in a warm and sunny window. We water the plants daily with the tiniest bit of water, and both kids love talking to the little Pepper plants and telling them to “grow grow grow”.

I hope that the seeds do well, and soon we’ll have a nice start to our future Pepper patch in the garden.

Mar 7

Another Addition to the Crazy Month of March

March brings Dylan’s birthday, Spring planting, Spring cleaning to be done, and Spring Break. Yep preschool has Spring Break too. As I was looking at the calendar I noticed that Thade is only going to school for 8 days this month. Whoa, this is going to be one long month… Thade loves going to preschool, and I know he is going to really miss it during the break.

I guess I should start racking my brain and come up with a few activites to keep Thade busy during the break. Wish me luck…

Mar 6

All Around the Yard

The last few days have brought amazing weather! Last week we had snow and ice, and this week clear blue skies and warm sunny days. I finally pulled all of the plastic off the plants in the front yard, and it looks like everything made it. Only about 1/2 of the daffodils are in bloom, so I hope to see some more flowers soon.

The Bird Feeders that we made are finally getting some Birdie visitors too. We’ve spotted a few song birds in the back yard. They are a little loud first thing in the morning, but I hope they stick around and help out with the bugs in the garden.

Mar 5

At Home Arby’s

Since we are missing take-out, I’ve got a few faux take-out meals to keep the drive thru temptations away. Last night I made at Home Arby’s, and it was so darn good, it might just be tough to go back to real Arby’s.

I made fresh homemade butter rolls for the sandwiches, and I piled them high with Roast Beef that had been warmed in Beef Broth. I picked up the Roast Beef at the Deli counter for about $5.00 a pound. One pound of Roast Beef made 6 very generous sandwiches.

When we made the Aldi run I spotted a bag of curly fries for just $1.55! I thought this little addition would help the look of this faux fast food meal even more. The best part, we only used 1/2 of the bag for dinner, so we still have a 1/2 bag left for a future meal. This was also a big savings too, for about the cost of a single Arby’s curly fries, I got about 8 servings of delicious curly fries!

I even kept a few Arby’s sauce packets from out last trip to Arby’s, so the boy’s were not without their beloved sauce.

The verdict….. Thade loved it and gave it a thumbs up! Dylan only liked the Curly Fries (same way with Arby’s), and then just wanted a sugar cookie instead. James said that it was “absolutely delicious” and also gave the meal an double thumbs up. I loved it too, it was so tasty, and super fast and easy to make too.

Making the meal at home saved a bundle. The closest Arby’s is 30 minutes away, and that costs a bit in the old gas tank. We also had plenty of big sandwiches left-over for those late night cravings. I will definitely move the faux Arby’s sandwiches into the menu rotation for a fast lunch or a delicious dinner.

Mar 4

Getting Stocked Up To Stay In

Call it March Madness, but I am really looking forward to the “Not Going Out In March Challenge”, but I don’t think my boys are. When I proposed the idea to my family, there were replies of “you are crazy”, “we’ll never make it”, and “I’ll never have a Happy Meal again!” . I’m going to be optimistic though, and say that we can do it, or come pretty close.

Getting ready for the month has been fun too. I worked out a menu plan for Dinner, and then I’ve got the first week’s lunches planned too. I think I’ll even get up extra early and make breakfast for my hubby to take to work, if the boy’s sleep good at night.

I also broke the month down into weekly shopping lists. I went through the list, and took out all of the items that I could find at a better price at Aldi. My best friend Shaunna and I made a big run to Aldi and stocked up for the month. I’ll fill in here and there with more grocery items as needed.

So the pantry is stocked, and I’m ready to go, now if I can just get the boys on my side. Hmmm maybe I can persuade them with homemade brownies.