Oct 22

Stocking the Pantry for Flu Season

I know it isn’t the loveliest of images, but flu season is on the way. This month my family has had the flu twice, and the first go around I was caught way off guard. I had a little break in between the sickness to stock up the pantry with supplies.

Even though I was sick I still had to cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and believe me, I really didn’t want to cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I stocked up the kitchen pantry with easy to prepare meals, and made several homemade frozen meals for dinner.

  • Spaghetti, Jarred Sauce, and Black Olives are all staples that keep well, and are simple to prepare when you aren’t feeling too good. Add in a little Garlic Bread and you’ve got dinner!
  • My kids love Macaroni and Cheese, and it makes for a very fast lunch. I always serve sliced Bananas too, and lunch is ready to go.
  • Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Soup is also a quick and easy lunch. My kids would live on Grilled Cheese, if I would let them.
  • I often make a double batch of Chicken and Noodles, Mashed Potatoes, and Chili to go in to the freezer. All of these dishes keep well, and reheat well at a moment’s notice.
  • For Breakfast Pop Tarts were the only thing that sounded good to me and the kiddos too. They keep well, and I lived off them for about a week. They make great snacks too, and who could resist a Chocolate Chip Pop Tart?!?

Of course having a few Get Well Supplies on hand is always a good idea.

  • I stock up (buy 10 boxes) at Dollar General on Kleenexes. We have been using 5-8 boxes a week with this cold, and Dollar General has the best prices on tissues.
  • Have the Vaporizers ready for your kid’s rooms, and one for your room too, they really help with stuffy noses.
  • I also keep on hand Single Symptom Medications, such as; Cough Syrup, Cough Drops, and Sinus Medication. Walgreens is a great place to stock up on these supplies, and our Pharmacists always take the time to answer all of my questions, and give helpful advice too.
  • You can never have too much Vick’s Vapor Rub, it truly is the cure all. They even make one for babies, and the scent is great.
  • Keep the Chap Stick or Carmex handy too. Thade and I both get chapped lips whenever we have a cold, so I keep Chap Stick in just about every room.

I really hope for all of us that this is a mild flu season, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.

Oct 21

The Decorating is Complete

Yesterday, I finally finished decorating the house for Halloween! I’ve hung one more Spider decoration in the living room, and I finally got the inflatable pumpkin and ghosts out on the front lawn.

The boys were excited to see the new decoration on the lawn, and we went out to get a few pictures, once the sun went down.

Thade loved giving the pumpkin a big hug, and Dylan wasn’t scared a bit of our newest Halloween decoration.

Have you finished decorating for Halloween?

Oct 20

New Recipies with Nico: Brownies

I love to make Brownies from a box, but every once in a while I run out of the mix and that is when someone requests this family favorite dessert. I searched for an easy recipe for Homemade Brownies. I found one that called for everything that I keep in the pantry, so I can make them at a moments notice. Let’s see if the boy’s will eat them…

You’ll need two bowls, one for the dry ingredients, and one for the wet ingredients.

The finished product looks pretty good, but let’s see if the kiddos will eat them.

My hubby and the kiddos loved the brownies cake-like texture, but I wanted something with a little more chocolate. I will keep this recipe handy though, just in case I run out of the mix.

Oct 19

Nico in the City, One More Time

On Saturday we went to visit my Brother Rob! We also got to visit his adorable kitties too.

I had a plan for this trip to Rob’s. I needed to pick up a few presents for James Birthday, and our anniversary too. I knew that Rob would have some pretty good gift suggestions, also Rob doesn’t mind driving all of us all over the city!

We were headed up North to shop a few stores, and we ran into a lot of traffic. Rob told us that Barack Obama was in town for a Rally, and we couldn’t believe the crowds. My Mom found out that there were 100,000 people at the Rally.

I love the city. There are amazing Fountains everywhere you look, and art work around every turn.

The shopping is fun, but honestly I love just walking around the city and viewing all of the amazing buildings. Dylan loves architecture too, he would look out of the window at all of the tall skyscrapers, and say “oh wow”.

Rob and I always have to visit the Plaza. It is by far one of my favorite places. There are beautiful fountains, incredible shops, and even a few places to get an iced coffee.

Before we headed back to Rob’s, I had to get an Vanilla Iced Bliss Coffee at Latte Land, they are so tasty!

The day was so much fun, and I really appreciate Rob letting us visit for the day. Thade is still talking about the city non-stop today, and we can’t wait to visit again!

Oct 19

A Little too Much Fun

This weekend has been a blast, but I’m paying for it today… On Friday I went to MOPS, and then later in the evening Shaunna invited me to a Girl’s Night Out. We all met at a friend’s house for Chick Flicks, Popcorn, and Ice Cream. It was a fun evening, but I stayed up a little too late.

On Saturday I was up way too early, but I thought it would be great to get out of the house and go and visit my brother. I called my Mom and she said she was up for the trip too. It was a great day, and I even finished up my Anniversary/Birthday shopping for James, and made quite a dent on my Christmas shopping list too. The boys had a great time, and I can’t wait to share all of the cool pictures from the day.

We made it home a little late though, and I was exhausted, the kiddos were too. I stayed up a bit to watch Saturday Night Live, and then I was just too tired to stay awake any longer. At 3:00 a.m., my stomach had different plans for me. I was up with an evil stomach ache and tummy troubles until 5:00 a.m., not too cool.I am just so sick of this flu, and today I am still feeling awful.

I’ll be staying pretty close to home today, and just hoping that I’ll be back to normal tomorrow. This flu has to end sometime, right?!?