End of school semester, holidays, kids and life update

As this school term for me comes to a close I am reflecting on how much has happened in the last 6 months. It's crazy to think of everything that has happened to our family. I'm glad there were lots of fun times with lots of family togetherness, messy house, lack of sleep, travel, growth, and learning.

We recently went on a drive to look at the beautiful colors around Table Rock State Park. It was so beautiful and very peaceful. We love this beautiful land where we live.

My family has recently moved outside Charleston, SC. We had a lot of adjusting to do. My school mentor suggested that I take the summer off of school so I could just focus on the family and all that was scheduled to go down this summer. Me knowing it would be hard to pick up after not doing school during the summer decided to keep going. I'm glad I did, I am now four classes closer to graduating. The last month before my term was to end was a mad dash to get it all completed... I still had three classes to finish. But my wonderful in-laws helped watch the kids so i could have some major time to study and do the required work to pass the three remaining classes. I was able to complete them with a week and a half to spare. That was close. I know I need to be better about scheduling dedicated time to study on a regular basis so i won't be cutting it so close next time.
Plus I'll be able to hopefully complete more classes, so I can finish sooner. We shall see how it all shakes out in another 6 months. I'd love to finish 8 classes in the next term however only 4 are required. We will see if i'm as dedicated as I should be. This next two terms are going to be very math heavy with lots of accounting classes. I'll definitely need to give myself time to complete them.

With halloween tomorrow and the littles super excited to wear their costumes all day and get candy. I think back to my older boys when they were little and how much they loved halloween. All of their homemade costumes and a few store bough costumes. Lots of candy and excitement around the holiday. I miss having the older crew share in the holiday. They are "too old" for trick or treating. Bryen works and lives in WV, so i doubt he's going trick or treating, Braeden and Mikey will probably be working unless I can convince them to pass out candy at our house. With our neighborhood only having 14 homes currently, we are doubtful we will even get trick or treaters. We will see. We will be going to a different neighborhood nearby for our trick or treating.

Bryen has turned 20!!! I can hardly believe it! He has been working hard and being independent in WV. He recently made full-time salary at his job. This will be a big blessing to him through the winter with a steady paycheck in the slow months. He misses us but enjoys his independence. It's part of growing up and making your own way. We miss him but wish and want him to be happy in his choices. 

Braeden turned 19!!! When did I get so old!?  Braeden did not go to college this fall. He decided to have the military pay for college, but recently as of this week is thinking twice about that. He's working full time while doing Military PT twice a week. He spend some time in WV visiting friends and his brother. That might have changed his mind about the military. We will see.

Mikey is working and doing online seminary for the church youth. He stays busy and when not working a couple nights a week he also does some Military PT for the marines. He is planning on joining the Marines, April 2020. He's looking at the reserves. We will see what happens.

Aimee is finally potty trained... she has a few accidents every now and again, but I'm definitely grateful to only have to really worry about pull-ups at bedtime. She loves playing dress-up and using her imagination with Andy.

Andy is such a big boy, he is starting to write his name and can match numbers. He's learning lots of big things but reverts to baby talk and wants to be a baby a lot. It's understandable because so many changes have happened,

We love all of our children and pray for them daily. We've had lots of comings and goings this summer and fall. Braeden has come and gone a couple times, Mikey went and came a couple times, Bryen has visited a few times (I wish it was more often), My in-laws have stayed a few weeks at a time a couple times, which we enjoy greatly. We've had the pleasure of seeing my sister-in-law twice as well, where one time she stayed with us a couple of days.  We love visitors!

Bill is working and traveling a lot these days and we miss him while he is away. We try to go to the beach whenever we can. We are slowly making our house a home. Helping our kids with financial issues seems to take up house beautification monies. We will eventually have this place the way we want it. We are grateful for Bill's job and my ability to stay home. I would love to work outside the home but it just isn't in the cards right now.

Making friends is slow going for the littles and bigs... even mom and dad. Its hard going to a new area where you don't know anyone. Its isolating at times and I have a fear of  being too needy of a friend. I know I tend to smother and want a lot of friend time. So I have been reluctant to reach out to others. I try and meet new neighbors as they move in or shortly after. Not many have younger kids, which is fine. I'm glad Aimee and Andy are friends with each other. I just feel lonely, which is hard for me.

As we are coming into the major holiday season I will be focusing on the Savior and his love for us. For Jesus' birth and to be thankful for our many, many blessings. May you find the Lord's hand and blessings in your life. God Bless and keep you.

French onion smothered boneless porkchops

It's a dreary, overcast day outside and I just want to curl up in bed and sleep all day. I force myself to be productive even though it's hard.

I tried to use what I had at home, but realized I had to go out anyway so I picked up a couple items I needed for this recipe.

It is super easy, it was done in however long it takes to brown both sides of boneless pork chops. Maybe 10 min. Thrown in the Crock-Pot on high for 4 hours. Even put in at 2pm. Dinner will be done by 6pm tonight. That's a win in my book.

Ingredients:

6-8 boneless pork chops (I had 7)
1 onion, sliced thinly, halved
1 can Campbell's chicken with herbs soup
1 can Campbell's french onion soup
Season of choice. I coated both sides of my pork chops with Ms. Dash

2tbsp butter and olive oil for browning pork chops

Directions:
Brown pork chops in olive oil and butter.

Place half the sliced onions on bottom of Crock-Pot

Place first half of pork chops on top of onions then layer rest of onions on pork chops. Top with remaining pork chops.

Mix the two cans of soup together and


pour on top of layers of onion and pork chops. Set on high 4 hours. Enjoy!

Cordon Bleu pockets

I was meal prepping this week. I don't always meal prep, but my weeks definitely go better when I do. One of the things I prepped was some sandwich pockets. These can be used as quick easy lunches, grab and go dinners on the run or a great after school snack. 

I love making sandwich pockets! So versatile and easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 lb deli ham

.5 lb Swiss cheese

4 cups Shredded or cubed chicken

3 grands flaky biscuit cans

2 eggs (used for egg wash)

Seasoning of choice (used for tops)

Follow pictures for easy assembly

Cut cheese and ham into 4ths

 Break biscuits apart in half

 Spread half of dough flat.

 Place a slice of cheese on bottom of stretched dough.

 Place a few ham slices on top of cheese.

 Place another cheese slices on top of ham.

 Place a spoonful of chicken on top of the cheese.

Top with another slice of cheese.

 Place top half of dough on meat and cheese layers and pinch sides to close it up.

 Repeat process until all the dough is used. (makes about 24) brush tops of dough with egg wash and sprinkle with seasoning of choice. I used Ms. dash.

 Bake 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 min.

 You can cool and freeze or place in container in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Easy Sunday crockpot French dip sandwiches

I love easy Sunday crockpot dinners. The house smells amazing, I'm not slaving over the stove and everyone gets a delicious tasting meal.

Today we had choir practice after church. The song is so pretty as it comes together. However, my stomach was feeling empty on the way home from church. I have felt uninspired of what to make for dinner. I had thin sliced beef that needed cooking and all I could think of is Philly cheese steak sandwiches which would need bread I don't have, or beef and broccoli which we've had recently. So as I was talking to my hubby about what he might be able to think about to use the meat for. He suggested some kind of meat sandwiches. Then it hit me. The older boys favorite sandwiches are French dip sandwiches. I had some "fancy" buns in the freezer... So here is my take on an easy French dip crockpot sandwiches.

Ingredients

Thin sliced beef (I had stir fry beef)
1  small onion sliced thin
1 PKG dry italian seasoning
1 PKG dry au ju mix
2 cups water
4 tbsp worchestershire sauce

Directions
Add onion, beef and dry italian seasoning to crockpot, mix the water, worchestershire and au ju mix together. Pour over top. Set cook on high 2-4 hours. Serve on buns with cheese.  Use sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!

Easy peasy creamy salsa chicken

Nothing could be easier than this. Not many ingredients, open cans and most if not all are pantry staples.

I love this on busy nights or when I feel overwhelmed, or even just not inspired to make anything.

A quick go to that can even be put in the crockpot early afternoon and be ready for dinner.

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breasts (mine are almost always frozen)
1 medium size container of salsa of choice
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 block cream cheese

Cheese for topping when done

Directions:

Use a crockpot liner (such a life saver)

Add chicken, beans, salsa, corn, and block of cream cheese*, Let cook 6-8 hours on low. Shred chicken, stir all together. Serve over rice topped with cheese. Enjoy.

*Note: cream cheese should be on top, it softens as the rest cooks. Stirs on smoothly when ready to mix after chicken has cooked.

Chocolate Chip Apple Strawberry Snack Bars

This recipe uses a lot of food storage items. Freeze dried strawberries, dehydrated apple slices/pieces, Whole wheat, sweetened coconut flakes, oats and granola. These are all items I try to keep in my food storage, as my children love the dried fruits. I had the kids help me add ingredients and asked them if they like the items I put in it. They all said "yes". So I'm hoping that there will be more kids eating these than just me. Last time I made snack bars the boys had one bite and then didn't really want anymore. This time I added more chocolate and chocolate chips to hopefully have them eat them.

Preheat oven 350F

First add Dry Ingredients:
4 cups oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups apple slices/dices
2 cups wheat germ
2 cups freeze dried strawberries
1 cup cocoa powder
2 cups sweetened coconut flakes
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Stir to incorporate all dry ingredients. Then add all wet ingredients:

Wet Ingredients:
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pint apple sauce (homemade)
1 cup honey
3 eggs
6 tsp vanilla

Stir to mix all wet ingredients with the dry ingredients.

Spoon or dump all mixture on to a large jelly roll pan. Flatten out and evenly distribute. This should fill the whole pan with mixture all the way to the top of the sides of the jelly roll pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes at 350F and edges are golden brown. Remove from oven let cool slightly and cut in the pan. Makes anywhere from 42-84 snack bars depending on how you slice it.

I loved the last snack bars I made. I'm hoping the kids love these.

Cordon Bleu - Rosemary Garlic Maple Bacon wrapped chicken tenders

I watched this food network show, where the person mentioned that they always brine their poultry chicken breasts and such. So, today I decided I would try it, I was thinking of making an easy version of chicken cordon bleu. I decided that I would brine my chicken tenders before I put together the dish. Mind you this is not your typical cordon bleu. It's my mashed up version using what I have at home. ;) I only have chicken tenders right now, so no splitting the chicken stuffing it with swiss cheese and ham. Here is what I did for the chicken.

Ingredients:

8-10 boneless skinless chicken tenders

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup sugar

4 TBSP rosemary garlic seasoning

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

4 cups of warm water

In a bowl, mix the salt, sugar and water together so the salt and sugar dissolve in the water. I just used my hand to stir it. Then I added the apple cider vinegar and rosemary seasoning to the water. Once that was in the water I placed my chicken tenders in the brine, covered it with saran wrap and placed in the fridge for 1 and 1/2 hours. Next I removed the chicken tenders one at a time patting dry with a paper towel, wrapped the chicken tender with a strip or two of bacon and placed on a parchment lined jelly roll pan. I then sprinkled some smokehouse maple seasoning on top of the bacon wrapped chicken tenders. I placed in a preheated 350F oven for 45 minutes to cook the chicken and the bacon together.

Once those come out of the oven I will pour some cream of mushroom soup over top, then place some swiss cheese on top of the cream of mushroom soup bacon wrapped chicken, Next I will sprinkle with some italian bread crumbs and bake in the oven until cheese is melted.

This will be served with scalloped potatoes and green beans.

What's cooking?

Several friends have said I need a blog to post what my meals are for dinner and other stuffs... I tell them I already have one, I just haven't updated it in a while. Things have been pretty hectic the last two years. We've moved from West Virginia to South Carolina. My husband is working from home full-time. I am in school full-time, while trying to be a mom and all that entails. My oldest moved out and lives on his own in West Virginia and working full-time for a pool cover installation company. My second oldest finished high school in WV then moved home for about a month, then went back to WV for about another month and is now living with us again working full-time at Walmart, and has decided to join the marines as a way to pay for college. My third child (who is 16) graduated from High School, is working full-time at Walmart and also wants to join the marines when he turns 17 at the end of March 2020. My fourth child, who is four yrs old, is rambunctious as ever, growing so big and strong... He is very inquisitive and loves being in the middle of everything. Last but definitely not least my fifth, last and only girl is still not potty trained, 2 1/2 going on 15, super sassy, sleeps on my floor and loves to do everyone's make up is Andys shadow. She wants to be so grown so fast... I can barely keep up.

So, dinners have been hit or miss but I try and share on Facebook what I'm doing if anyone needs ideas of what to make for their dinner if they are tired of the same things all the time. I have made bacon, cheeseburger pockets, egg salad, crockpot Salisbury steaks with crockpot mashed potatoes just to name a few. I've posted recipes on my Facebook page as well.

Tonights dinner of choice:
Crockpot Salisbury steaks with Crockpot Mashed potatoes.

Luckily, I have two different sized crockpots so I am able to cook them both at the same time. It would also work if you only have one crockpot and a small family, the potatoes can be cooked on top of the Salisbury steaks (I would think) with foil dividing them or next to the Salisbury steak divided by foil in the crockpot.

Salisbury steak
Use 6-8 qt crockpot with crockpot liner

Ingredients

 8 - hamburger patties (I prefer frozen) (I've even used flavored ones with like bacon and cheese or vadelia onion ones)
1 pkg dry au ju mix
1 pkg brown gravy mix
1 med onion sliced
1 container of sliced mushrooms
1-2 cups of beef broth
Monterey steak seasoning
Worcestershire sauce


Directions:

In the crockpot place on the bottom a layer of onions. Place 2 or 3 hamburger patties (however many will fit easily). Dash Worcestershire sauce and then sprinkle with Monterey seasoning on top of that. Layer on top of the burgers with seasoning more onion and mushrooms, then repeat hamburger patties, sauce, seasoning, onion and mushrooms. Until all layered. Next mix the au ju, beef broth and gravy mix together, and pour on top of layered meat, mushroom and onions. Set to cook high 4-6 hours or 6-8 hours low. Enjoy over mashed potatoes with green beans, broccoli or Brussel sprouts  on the side.


Crock pot Mashed Potatoes
Use 4-6 qt crockpot with crockpot liner

Ingredients

2 small potatoes per person (if using yellow, yukon gold or red potatoes) or 1 large russet per person
1 onion, diced
2 tsp minced garlic
1-2 cups chicken broth
1-2 sticks of butter cut in chunks
1/2 cup to 1 cup sour cream or 1/2 brick of cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup milk or heavy cream
S&p to taste

Directions:

wash and peel potatoes
dice potatoes
dice onion

in crockpot layer potatoes, onion, garlic and butter. Pour chicken broth over top.

cook on low6-8 hours or high 4-6 hours.

mash potatoes, mix in sour cream or cream cheese, milk and S&P. Stir to mix together. Enjoy.