First day of 4th..

Jeezzzz.....where did my baby go? I miss my cuddly little man.

Biscuits

Homemade biscuits....yummy and easy! After making what I wanted for supper I cut the rest out, froze them, and now all we have to do is thaw and bake. Love that I don't have to do the work every time I want homemade biscuits.

Buttercream and fondant

Yes it pretty ugly....but it was my first try. Honestly I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I will be making my own cake batter from now on though. I found a delicious recipe that is easy and so much better than a box cake!

To much pinterest??

Yeah Sam probably thinks so, but I on the other hand am loving all these ideas. :) Simple and a lesson learned during the process. ALWAYS check at the dollar store for crafting supplies before heading to Alco!

Something different!!

Definitely! My plan for dinner today was fried chicken strips, rice and gravy, yada yada....well I was way to LAZY! Yep I am admitting I am lazy. :) Or at least I have lazy days. So since the chicken was already thawed out I decided to make ranch chicken nachos. They were tasty and simple. Boil and shred chicken, add a package of hidden valley ranch dressing, and a can of Ricos nacho cheese. Heat and serve over chips.

Couponing

Most people that I know that coupon do it just for the free products that they can get. Yes free is good, but saving $50.00 dollars off of 150.00 dollar total is also. I have couponed off and on for the last 2 years and I have just started back. I now have a binder and a "plan" for when I go this Friday. Hoping it makes my shopping trips a little easier. Couponing with kids and a husband can be a pain! :)

Ready for take off?

I think I am. I have been wanting to start a little at home business. I decided on Crocheting for a Cause! Our daughter is a diabetic and we would LOVE a cure. I am hoping that by her teen years this will happen. Half of all of my profits will go to JDRF and the other half in a savings account for her insulin pump in the near future. If you would like to donate to help out or purchase a beanie, photo prop, or whatever else you desire you can email me at crystaljmitchell@gmail.com. You can use think link below to make a donation. A little or a lot....it all counts! I am sure every parent of an insulin dependent child appreciates your donation more than you will ever know.

https://secure3.convio.net/jdrf3/site/Donation2?2376.donation=form1&df_id=2376 

a buck or a five?

Yep definitely going to spend a buck over a five if I am able to. While shopping for snacks last night at the dollar store I was trying to decide if I wanted to pay $5 for "name brand" chips or not. Well after I decided that was just pure crazy to pay that price I stumbled upon these before leaving the chip aisle. They are GREAT and only cost $1. Give them a try.

ABC scavenger hunt...

While Morgan was playing with her abc puzzle from the dollar store I had an idea. I went and found an old Easter basket and told her we was going to have a scavenger hunt. Every time she would put a new letter in the puzzle I would send her off in the house to find something that started with that letter. Kobie even enjoyed it, and helped Morgan find some of the items. This is great for rainy or hot summer days. :)

Call it what you want....

Yesterday, I could not decide what I was going to make for dinner. Hamster wheel just kept turning and turning. Finally I took out stew meat, andouille sausage, and bacon. Weird combo right? So after those 3 things were out I started digging in the cabinets trying to figure out what exactly it was that I was going to do with  them. First I took out rotel, green beans, and corn. Hmmm...maybe I could serve it over noodles?? Then it hit me....cook the meat and then add brown gravy mix and serve it over rice. It was DELICIOUS!
So here's what I done...

One small pack of stew meat
1/2 pack of bacon
2 links of andouille sausage
1/2 cup of diced onions
tablespoon of crushed red
4 potatoes
2 pkgs of brown gravy mix
and whatever other seasonings you like
( I used tonys, onion powder, and black pepper)

In a pot add 2 cups of water, onions, stew meat, and bacon. Cook until your meat is as tender as you want it. Dice up sausage and potatoes and add it to the pot. Cook until your potatoes are soft. Drain off water and     add the brown gravy mix following the directions on the back of the pack. Simmer until gravy thickens. Serve over rice or mashed potatoes. We had biscuits and green beans with bacon for sides. It was delicious, and I will definitely be making it again in the near future!

Sneak Peek??

So the kids and I are building our own little town. We have a very long ways to go, but eventually we will get it done. Houses and stores out of craft sticks, and toothpicks. Roads, ponds, and other landscaping out of felt, and whatever else we can think to use. Its definitely going to be the bomb.com! Stay tuned for more of  "our town!"

Sick days!

Whats better on sick days than puzzles, and games!!? These puzzles are a buck a piece at our local Family Dollar. Morgan loves them!

Across the street

The park across the street!




Unfortunately we haven't even had the chance to enjoy it yet! Soon I hope! :)

5.00 Saving Plan....

Interesting!!! While browising the net I found the 5.00 saving plan. Every 5 that you get stash it away! Out of sight, out of mind! Right? I think I am going to give this a try for 6 months, and see what I can save. Do you have a way you save money? If so, what is it?

Whatever it takes!

Mornings are usually the worst part of the day for us. I usually have to beg Morgan out of the bed and then beg her to eat breakfast. SO when she awakes in a half decent mood we play a game while eating  breakfast. We sit beside each other and race to see who can finish their food first. I don't never win! ;) She gets excited that she is winning and I get excited that I am not having to force feed her since she has had 11 units of insulin! You just have to do whatever it takes to get it the job done! :)

SUPER supper!!

Yes indeed! I am not one to brag about my own cooking, but this was seriously some tasty food. Diced potatoes with bacon, seasonings, drizzled with ranch dressing, and topped with shredded cheese! OMG GOOD!! I also tried a recipe from pinterest. 7-up biscuits....super simple and probably the best homemade biscuits I have ever baked.



7-up Biscuit Recipe...
2 cups of bisquick
1/2 cup of sour cream
1/2 cup of 7-up
1/4 cup of melted butter

Mix bisquick, sour cream, and 7-up together to form a dough. Pour your melted butter in a 9 inch baking dish. Dust counter top with flour and roll out dough into the shape you prefer. (I used a cup to cut mine in to perfect circles even though you can't tell now.) Bake at 450 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. SERIOUSLY try it! You will be amazed at how light and fluffy they turn out....not to mention the fattening, but yummy butter bottom.

V.B.S 2012

Unfortunately they only got to go one day. We were SUPER busy trying to get moved. Even though we only moved 3 streets over it seemed like it was taking forever to get it all done. Hoping for some more church fun soon though. Calvary Baptist has some pretty amazing people that attend. :)

Pigs

Pigs in the blanket!! So simple, and so delicious! A can of biscuits, a pack of wieners, and sliced cheese. Roll out biscuits, place half a piece of sliced cheese, and half a wiener, and roll it up. Bake until golden brown. My kids LOVE these! :)

Going to the boot!

So Miss Priss had a check-up on the 25th. We haven't switched to an endo doctor here in New Mexico so every 3 months we make the 12 hr drive to Louisiana for her A1C and thorough check-up. It all turned out well. Her A1C was a little higher than they want it to be, BUT it has came down since her last visit. After seeing nothing, but desert for a while you get so happy when you see TALL pines, and mud puddles. The humidity is a KILLER though, and definitely something I don't miss!

drunk chicken.....yummy!

After years of hearing about how awesome drunk chickens were I decided to give it a whirl. A 2.00 chicken, a can of Budlight, and some seasonings. Not much to lose if it turned out bad. So I went to my best friend for advice....GOOGLE! I found out how to make the rub, and yada yada...! It turned out WONDERFUL! Sam even said that I deserved a raise for it. :) That has to mean something since the man has been eating my cooking for 12 and a half years!

Fig Heaven

Yes indeed!! LOVE that we have a fig tree in our yard! Not only figs,  we have pomegranates, and grapes also. Definitely makes this country girl feel at home eating figs straight from the tree. ;)

snowcones

Nothing like a snowcone on a HOT summer day! Don't worry it was sugar free! :)

Addiction Much????

My new addiction/hobby/addiction...lol! I could sit and crochet all day, BUT I have 2 kids, a husband, and housework that I wouldn't trade for anything.....NOT even crocheting! It is so relaxing though. I am hoping to start a small business soon. I would love to donate half of my profits to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation!

Chiles and Jalapenos

So while we were out trying to find something different to eat we stumbled upon a fresh veggie and fruit stand. We ended up getting chiles, jalapenos, onions, and cantaloupes. I roasted the peppers, diced the onions, and ate the cantaloupes. I love that when I need diced onions I can dig in the freezer and grab a bag. We will definitely be getting more before season is over.

back at it

Back to the world of blogging! Ahh...feels so good typing. So we have had a lot of changes in our lives since I last posted on our old blog. For starters our princess was diagnosed with diabetes on 2/18/11! Yeah big lifestyle adjustments there. In September of 2011 we decided to pack our clothes and move 610 miles from the only home our kids had known. Sam couldn't find work in Louisiana so to Jal, New Mexico we came. We got here on a Friday morning. That following Monday Sam had found and a job, and income has been steady every since. Such a blessing!! Our kids have somewhat adjusted to their new lives. Well lets just say they have accepted the fact that this is home now. We still get the occasional meltdowns. Kobie only has his when he is mad at me. Morgan on the other hand has them quite often still. Especially at bedtime. It was weird to go from trees, dirt roads, and a huge lake....to pavements, sidewalks, no trees , and a lake that would be called a pond where we are from. On the upside we are about 2 minutes from the stores, post office, etc. School is currently 3 blocks a way, but we will be moving soon, and will be even closer to it. We have parks, a swimming pool at the high school and lots of different sports that my kids would have never got the opportunity to play in our old hometown! Even though we miss our family dearly this move was the best decision we made for our kids, and ourselves! So now that we are caught up on our current situations in  the Mitchell household I guess its time for me to get off here and finish supper! :)