Volunteering. When I think of this I think, "Ok what can I do" but I know from volunteering with different organizations when someone is asked to volunteer, "I'm too busy" are the words that usually follow. I know this post will stir up some feelings of grrrrr in some, but it's important that I share my thoughts concerning this.
First we are ALL busy. Busy is not an excuse. We all have to take some responsibility in volunteering somewhere. I'm a mom of 4 kids so right there it qualifies me as busy but in addition I'm a girl scout leader of 2 troops, I'm the secretary for both the local girl scout service unit and volunteer support team, I work in the kindergarten class once a week, I work in the after school program at the elementary school once a week, I help out with the football team as far as serving boys food or whatever they need, I'm a member of 3 PTA's and yesterday I signed up for a mentor program with my church. I'm not saying all of that because I need some type of applause or recognition, in fact that would make me uncomfortable, I'm saying it because there are all different kinds of ways we can help. We don't always have to be physically present or in the limelight to make a difference. There are lots of "behind the scenes" stuff that needs to be taken care of. My husband for example helps with painting the football field for the high school. Now do you think when those folks are at the game they're thinking, "Wow those are some great looking lines and numbers." NO!! But sure 'nuf if those lines and numbers weren't there everyone would notice. That's an example of a behind but yet oh so important scene action.
Now just because I am involved in so many organizations, I don't expect everyone else to be at the level I'm at. In fact I know there are others who do so much more than I do and I appreciate their level of commitment. What I do expect and know is that we can all do something. I encourage you to look deep inside yourself and keeping your life in balance explore where you can help out. Being a president of something to being a prayer partner and everything in between is volunteering. I encourage you to just do something. You'll be surprised that most times, what started out as you giving to something, that something starts giving back to you. You may never know or see the fruits of your volunteer labor but I guarantee it's making a difference in something and someone.
Happy Volunteering!!
Monday, September 26, 2011
Saturday, September 24, 2011
The Horseshoe
When you think of the word horseshoe, you probably think of well....a horse's shoe. Having grown up in Springfield, IL this word brings a whole different thought to mind which is mmmmm yummy. Horseshoes were good anytime of the day, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Maybe if you weren't that hungry or watching your waistline, you might just get a pony. Yes folks, horseshoes are food. Now I'm not going to go into the whole history etc of how they came about. If you want to know all that information you can go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_sandwich. This will give you everything you might want to know on the origin of this scrumptious and comforting food.
Basically a horseshoe is a piece of toast, meat, french fries and cheese sauce. You can put any type of meat in it you would like. Ham and hamburgers are the most popular that I know of but it's the cheese sauce that brings it all together and makes you go mmmmm once you take the bite. In fact after the initial bite you may chew somewhat slower in order to savor the flavor that is exploding on your taste buds. Growing up eating these, I took for granted how yummy they are and the experience you have while eating them. I remember the time when I was visiting Springfield with my family and my sister took us out for horseshoes. I insisted that everyone order one because I wanted them to try it. Needless to say, they all enjoyed it but seeing their faces after the first bite was great. Who knew such basic ingredients could be so heavenly.
So you want one now, don't you? But chances are you probably don't live in Springfield, IL and can't run out and order one. Then you think, hey I can whip this up but making a cheese sauce may seem a little intimidating. Well I have just the recipe for you. Now, it's not as incredible as the original BUT it's fast, simple and budget friendly. I have made it several times for my family but next time, I'm doubling it because the pan is always empty and everyone could of had seconds.
Cheeseburger 'N Fry Casserole (recipe courtsey of the Marvelous Memorial Cuisine Cookbook)
1 lb. ground beef or ground turkey
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1 package frozen fries or tater tots
Preheat oven according to temperature on package of fries or tater tots. Brown ground beef or turkey in skillet. I season mine with salt, Lawry's, onion powder and garlic powder. Drain and pour meat into a small casserole dish. I use an 8 x 8. Add the undiluted soups to the meat and stir together. (Sorry about the pan but it's stoneware and it seasons as it's used so it gets darker)
Place a single layer of frozen fries across the top of the mixture. Bake until the fries or tots are done. This takes about 30 minutes or so. Once out of the oven, sprinkle some salt over the fries to taste.
Serve baked casserole over a slice of toast for a homemade horseshoe. Now, go ahead and taste. SEE, told you. mmm, mmm, goodness. :)
Basically a horseshoe is a piece of toast, meat, french fries and cheese sauce. You can put any type of meat in it you would like. Ham and hamburgers are the most popular that I know of but it's the cheese sauce that brings it all together and makes you go mmmmm once you take the bite. In fact after the initial bite you may chew somewhat slower in order to savor the flavor that is exploding on your taste buds. Growing up eating these, I took for granted how yummy they are and the experience you have while eating them. I remember the time when I was visiting Springfield with my family and my sister took us out for horseshoes. I insisted that everyone order one because I wanted them to try it. Needless to say, they all enjoyed it but seeing their faces after the first bite was great. Who knew such basic ingredients could be so heavenly.
So you want one now, don't you? But chances are you probably don't live in Springfield, IL and can't run out and order one. Then you think, hey I can whip this up but making a cheese sauce may seem a little intimidating. Well I have just the recipe for you. Now, it's not as incredible as the original BUT it's fast, simple and budget friendly. I have made it several times for my family but next time, I'm doubling it because the pan is always empty and everyone could of had seconds.
Cheeseburger 'N Fry Casserole (recipe courtsey of the Marvelous Memorial Cuisine Cookbook)
1 lb. ground beef or ground turkey
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1 package frozen fries or tater tots
Preheat oven according to temperature on package of fries or tater tots. Brown ground beef or turkey in skillet. I season mine with salt, Lawry's, onion powder and garlic powder. Drain and pour meat into a small casserole dish. I use an 8 x 8. Add the undiluted soups to the meat and stir together. (Sorry about the pan but it's stoneware and it seasons as it's used so it gets darker)
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Dinner
Ahhhh, dinner the one word that can either bring to you a calm feeling because you know exactly what you are having or a feeling of panic because although it something that comes along everyday about the same time, you have no clue what's on the menu that evening. I truly believe that if a plan is in place and items are stocked in the pantry this part of your day will be smooth and you can take the time to focus on coming together as a family to enjoy the meal that has been prepared.
Now having read the above you and I both know that this plan is not going to magically happen on it's own. You have to schedule a time to sit down and plan accordingly. Everyone is going to be different on how far they can plan out. I personally have done it a week, two weeks or even a month at a time. I've also read an article where one lady in Texas planned out her meals for the whole year!! Although we all will be different in this, I believe the basic guidelines I will share can work for any schedule. Also remember it takes time. Don't just expect it to all come together and run smoothly first time out. Cut yourself some slack, you can always pop a bag of popcorn.
First sit down and make a list of your families favorite meals. Next, gather up some of your favorite cookbooks and browse through them and write down your favorites or something you would like to try on this list as well. Don't forget to notate the cookbook it came out of and page number. Finally go grab your family calendar and get busy planning. Personally I have a calendar that hangs on the side of my fridge with meals as this a nice central place to know what's on the menu that evening without my family asking me several times. Now that you're armed with meals and a calendar start assigning meals to a particular day. Take into consideration what's happening that day/evening so you can cook accordingly. To help with assigning meals you can categorize such as Casserole Monday, Taco Tuesday, Chicken Wednesday, Pasta Thursday, Pizza Saturday. If your day has a category, it might be easier to assign a meal by always having a theme and not repeating a main ingredient back-to-back. A meal blueprint to use is have a main dish, two sides (one veggie and a starch) and some bread unless of course it is a one-pot meal. Try and make your meal colorful. Don't have mashed potatoes and cauliflower together, throw some green or orange on that plate with those potatoes. You eat with your eyes first so make it appealing. Fill in your meals from the list until the time frame you have decided on is complete. Remember to add in some out-to-eat meals if it's in your budget and if you like leftovers a leftover night. Now that you have a plan, your grocery shopping list will be easier to make. Consult your meal calendar, your pantry and then add to your list what you need from the store. Making the calendar has not only helped you in saving time at dinner but will help you save money because you will be buying exactly what you need and not throwing away food because it went bad before you got to use it.
All of us will have a day when even the best laid plans don't work. Before you call and order pizza try and have some go-to recipes that can be ready in 30 minutes or less. For this to work your pantry should contain ingredients that can work together to complete a fast meal. Another option is to have quick-ready food such as frozen chicken patties, chicken nuggets, a box of quick make macaroni, frozen pizza or a frozen lasagna. The following is a list of ingredients to have in your pantry, courtesy of Taste of Home's Casserole Cookbook, and you can pick and choose according to your likes/dislikes:
Pantry
Now having read the above you and I both know that this plan is not going to magically happen on it's own. You have to schedule a time to sit down and plan accordingly. Everyone is going to be different on how far they can plan out. I personally have done it a week, two weeks or even a month at a time. I've also read an article where one lady in Texas planned out her meals for the whole year!! Although we all will be different in this, I believe the basic guidelines I will share can work for any schedule. Also remember it takes time. Don't just expect it to all come together and run smoothly first time out. Cut yourself some slack, you can always pop a bag of popcorn.
First sit down and make a list of your families favorite meals. Next, gather up some of your favorite cookbooks and browse through them and write down your favorites or something you would like to try on this list as well. Don't forget to notate the cookbook it came out of and page number. Finally go grab your family calendar and get busy planning. Personally I have a calendar that hangs on the side of my fridge with meals as this a nice central place to know what's on the menu that evening without my family asking me several times. Now that you're armed with meals and a calendar start assigning meals to a particular day. Take into consideration what's happening that day/evening so you can cook accordingly. To help with assigning meals you can categorize such as Casserole Monday, Taco Tuesday, Chicken Wednesday, Pasta Thursday, Pizza Saturday. If your day has a category, it might be easier to assign a meal by always having a theme and not repeating a main ingredient back-to-back. A meal blueprint to use is have a main dish, two sides (one veggie and a starch) and some bread unless of course it is a one-pot meal. Try and make your meal colorful. Don't have mashed potatoes and cauliflower together, throw some green or orange on that plate with those potatoes. You eat with your eyes first so make it appealing. Fill in your meals from the list until the time frame you have decided on is complete. Remember to add in some out-to-eat meals if it's in your budget and if you like leftovers a leftover night. Now that you have a plan, your grocery shopping list will be easier to make. Consult your meal calendar, your pantry and then add to your list what you need from the store. Making the calendar has not only helped you in saving time at dinner but will help you save money because you will be buying exactly what you need and not throwing away food because it went bad before you got to use it.
All of us will have a day when even the best laid plans don't work. Before you call and order pizza try and have some go-to recipes that can be ready in 30 minutes or less. For this to work your pantry should contain ingredients that can work together to complete a fast meal. Another option is to have quick-ready food such as frozen chicken patties, chicken nuggets, a box of quick make macaroni, frozen pizza or a frozen lasagna. The following is a list of ingredients to have in your pantry, courtesy of Taste of Home's Casserole Cookbook, and you can pick and choose according to your likes/dislikes:
Pantry
- Canned soups including tomato and quick cooking soups such as cream of mushroom, cream of chicken and cream of celery
- Chili and kidney beans
- Chunk white chicken
- Cream-style corn
- Diced tomatoes, Stewed tomatoes
- Dried bread crumbs
- Green chilies
- French-fried onions
- Instant and Long grain rice
- Mushrooms in cans
- Pasta (Egg noodles, Spaghetti, Elbow macaroni)
- Sliced olives
- Slivered almonds
- Spaghetti sauce
- Stuffing mix
- Tomato paste and sauce
- Stew meat
- Vegetables (broccoli, corn, spinach and mixed veggies)
- Ground beef
- Ground turkey
- Shredded or cubed hash browns
- Bulk cheese
- Flour tortillas
- Parmesan cheese
- Crescent rolls and biscuits
- Sour cream
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
My Debut
This is actually the second time I have attempted a blog with the first one, and might I say a pitiful one, focusing on my family. It was an attempt to mirror a friend's blog who was and still is wonderful about updating what her family is doing which in turn keeps the extended out-of-town family up-to-date. Well, I was horrible at it updating only about 4 times. You see, Facebook was my main way of communication with what the kids or our family was up to. Now I am seeing myself wanting to share on Facebook more than what just the kids are doing like; recipes, cleaning tips, organizational tips etc and just a place for me to write, ok type, and express and SHARE. I don't think Facebook is the place for that so......another blog was born. I really don't know if anyone will ever read this and that's ok. I am doing this for me and so a year from now I can look back and reflect and go from there.
You see this next year, October 2011 - October 2012 is going to be filled with its ups and downs. With this being September 21 and Fall starting tomorrow I know the holiday season will soon be upon us. Then after that is January....oh January the month where people are either relieved that the holidays are done or perhaps concerned about what the holidays have created For me, it is the month where once again Mike will be deploying and that just plain sucks. As well, I hope to be tackling some weight loss issues and I want our family to be debt free. Now for most just tackling one of these is enough, but I'm a military wife and not cut from the same cloth as most folks. I'm just happy I don't have to move again during this time as well. Then come next September Marcus will be starting his senior year and that is just unreal to me. BUT WAIT.....I'm way to far ahead of myself. My main hope for this is to be an outlet because as I write I let go of things. I also grasp a clearer focus on what's going on around me. So in turn as I help myself I'm hoping to help others along the way.
My first item which seems to be a problem for quite a few of us is dinner. The "Oh crap, it's (insert your panic time) and I don't know what's for dinner and nothing is thawed" feeling. This happened to me today even with my handy dandy planning calendar. (Another blog post) What we were supposed to have I hadn't shopped for because, well that's a whole other blog post, so I needed to come up with something quick. It's nights like these you should have in your arsenal stock items in your pantry that when thrown together can make something. Along with the pantry items you should have quick cooking recipes that coordinate with the pantry items. Confused?? I will blog another time some the stock items to have on hand. So for tonight's dinner I am using a quick yummy recipe from Campbell's, Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo. It can be found at www.campbellskitchen.com. Start to finish 30 minutes and not a drain on the wallet.
PHEW.....there it is, first blog post done. Now to decide, do I dare share it on my Facebook wall or should it remain my little secret for now??
You see this next year, October 2011 - October 2012 is going to be filled with its ups and downs. With this being September 21 and Fall starting tomorrow I know the holiday season will soon be upon us. Then after that is January....oh January the month where people are either relieved that the holidays are done or perhaps concerned about what the holidays have created For me, it is the month where once again Mike will be deploying and that just plain sucks. As well, I hope to be tackling some weight loss issues and I want our family to be debt free. Now for most just tackling one of these is enough, but I'm a military wife and not cut from the same cloth as most folks. I'm just happy I don't have to move again during this time as well. Then come next September Marcus will be starting his senior year and that is just unreal to me. BUT WAIT.....I'm way to far ahead of myself. My main hope for this is to be an outlet because as I write I let go of things. I also grasp a clearer focus on what's going on around me. So in turn as I help myself I'm hoping to help others along the way.
My first item which seems to be a problem for quite a few of us is dinner. The "Oh crap, it's (insert your panic time) and I don't know what's for dinner and nothing is thawed" feeling. This happened to me today even with my handy dandy planning calendar. (Another blog post) What we were supposed to have I hadn't shopped for because, well that's a whole other blog post, so I needed to come up with something quick. It's nights like these you should have in your arsenal stock items in your pantry that when thrown together can make something. Along with the pantry items you should have quick cooking recipes that coordinate with the pantry items. Confused?? I will blog another time some the stock items to have on hand. So for tonight's dinner I am using a quick yummy recipe from Campbell's, Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo. It can be found at www.campbellskitchen.com. Start to finish 30 minutes and not a drain on the wallet.
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