Bring On The Weekend!

So, week two at stinking at the blog schedule! Oh well! It was a grand thought, and I will give it one more shot next week! ;)

Not too much excitement aside from the daily stuff this week. Although there are a handful of accomplishments that this mommy can't help but call attention to! :) 

Last night was a pack meeting for Cub Scouts. Grayson was the very proud recipient of two more belt loops, Soccer and Hiking. And he also received his Bobcat badge during a Bobcat ceremony. He and his daddy enjoyed this very much. He is definitely enjoying scouts and I hope he sticks with it. Can't beat a fun activity that builds character, independence, service, and gives you a little one on one time with dad! 

The little one is making great strides in the potty training department! It's been years since I haven't bought and changed diapers, but here we are! A diaper free house....crazy! He is such a big boy. And seems to enjoy 2k very much, so that makes Mama happy! :)

It was a quick change in the weather this week! Autumn has arrived!! There's been a good bit of rain, but it was absolutely appropriate with our science lessons on rain and evaporation. Perfect! 

School was great this week!! Two very well behaved and attentive students. Ada is excited to be learning some sight words and trying her best to read! It won't be long! And Grayson is moving right along in his phonics and math. And the load seems to be picking up enough to keep him very interested. They both reached their 25 point mark for chores and behavior so they got to do a little shopping in the treat bucket! (Mommy's clearance finds that get thrown in a bucket and earned! ;) ) 

It's been a busy, but good week! Hopefully this weekend brings a clean house, soccer pictures and game, visit from Nina, an evening with my "sister cousins", and an afternoon with one of our their favorite aunt and uncles! ;) So bring on the weekend!!

Work Box Wednesday- Apple Pickin'

We were able to go pick apples during Ada's apple unit! And I am finally getting around to blogging about it. Fun for everyone, despite us all feeling a little under the weather. We went to Sky Top Orchard for our second year in a row. It's a wonderful place to picnic and they have a great variety of apples to pick and also a great playground! And the only thing you pay for is the apples you pick! :) We have been eating on apples for the last two weeks! Yummy stuff!!! It was definitely a great way to welcome the Autumn season.

They worked very hard picking their apples! They earned every single dessert we made with them, and they had fun doing it. ;) It was a fun family time, and has become a tradition for us. Something we very much look forward to. And next year, Grady might even be content with sitting for a picnic! There was not much sitting this year...but fun was had by all.

Some of our recipes...

We made apple pie bites several times! It's just croissant rolls with a little cinnamon with an apple slice rolled up inside and cinnamon sprinkled on the outside and cooked per the rolls directions So easy and so good!

Ada made us two wonderful apple pies! ;)

Apple cinnamon pork loin in the crock pot. YUM! :)

And best of all, we just ate them! Nothing like an apple you picked yourself. :)

Happy Fall Y'all!

Fall pictures, fall clothes, fall food and fall activities! It's finally officially fall!!! The "ber" months are always exciting ones! Months of changing seasons, thankful hearts, fun family time, pumpin everything, and love! We love each other all year but there's something special about holiday love! Everyone's excitement builds right up to the last day of the year! It's a wonderfully fun time! And it's finally rolled around again! :) 

This year has flown by, it seems! And now it's time for birthdays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years!!! And before we know it, January will be here again and another year will begin. But for now, for today, we are gonna soak up every minute of this joyous time, and enjoy the changing seasons and abundant happiness that goes with. 

Happy first day of Fall y'all!! I hope the next few months are filled with joy and wonder, love and happy, and of course a little magic too!! ;) 

My fall babies! <3

Yummy pretzels with pumpkin spice kisses and m&m's! :)

Our bucket list for this season :)

Pumpkin muffins and apples for our first Fall breakfast! :)

Pumpkin spice play dough! :)

I'm Baaaackkk!

I know you have missed me something terrible, right?!? In light of my "less distracted" self (ha) I took a week off of everything...cooking, cleaning, blogging, etc. Actually our schedule was wacky and I was sick, so it was kind of a forced break. But it was nice! I had minimal Facebooking and other social media (just enough nosy to keep me sane! hehehe.) I would get off totally, but I enjoy it too much and it's fun and I have no other adult faces to look at during the day (don't judge). Just some people make me grumpy and it can be quite a distraction, and when it gets to that point, you gotta back off some!

It's been a good week! We went apple picking (despite all of us feeling a little less than par!), spent the weekend with my mother and father-in-love and spent Sunday afternoon with my mom, who celebrated a birthday on Monday. We left our big boy behind with his Papa and Rosey, so the little ones and I had a vverrry laid back, quiet couple of days while we all recovered from our sniffles...that seem to be never ending! Did a little sewing, running errands, and all that fun stuff. ;)

I will post about our apples soon! We love that trip and always look forward to it! And we have been eating up apple desserts and more to come. And I hope to get back on my post schedule next week...I have to spend the rest of this week "digging out" of the mess we made and piles of undone laundry and dishes! ;)

Happy hump day! Your almost there...another week is almost over. Enjoy today. Rejoice in today. The conversation with my children on the way home from picking up my big boy was about exactly that. (following a comment by one of my children that hinted at the awful "e" word...Entitlement. I dislike it in such a huge way...) How blessed are we? It's a beautiful day. And we are so so blessed. We have breath in our lungs, food to eat (way more than we need), clothes on our back (again, way more than we need), and a warm place to lay our head....we are blessed! Yes. It is true, we don't always get exactly what we want or think we need, but I pride myself in being an optimist...and looking up is about the only way to look. And as long as I am able, I will encourage my children to do the same. Be positive. Notice your blessings. Have a grateful heart. And don't let your "wants" drowned out the beauty and wonder of each day...the simple blessings...the little big things. Don't notice God, only when things are rough or not going your way. Notice Him everyday. He's everywhere. Thank Him everyday. He's good. So good. Love Him everyday. He loves you.

Taco Tuesday and Work Box Wednesday

Taco Tuesday this week was brought to you by the very "untaco" Zaxbys! And because we participated in a fundraiser for Ada's gym, we had some plain ole' tacos for lunch! Plain or not, it suited the big kids and Daddy was even able to join us for lunch so it was just right! ;)

Work box Wednesday is going to be short and sweet this week. Ada has moved on to her Leaf Unit and Grayson is well on his was in week 6! I can hardly believe we have been at this for 6 weeks! We have a fun weekend coming up, too....Apple Picking! :) So for this week, I am not going to bore you with alllll the details, just maybe the "special" parts of the day that don't include worksheets and workbooks!

Learning with The Magic School Bus...but first we took a selfie! ;)

We had exploration day last week at Hopeland Gardens...wonderful place for exploring! We counted the rings on cut trees, gathered leaves and flowers, fed the fish, and recorded it all in our science notebooks. :)

Our loot!

We pressed some leaves and flowers in a book! We will add them to the leaf album that Grayson started last year!

Educational trip to the local craft fair...fun fun! As always! :)

We painted pottery at a local pottery studio...mommy even joined in on the fun! We all had a blast and it was a nice fun art activity! :)

Tomorrow, Ada moves on to Apple Unit and Grayson and I will continue to plug away at long vowels! ;)

What's In The Freezer Monday

So, time for a confession....I only cooked twice  last week, besides Taco Tuesday!! Eeek. Just one of those....already doing better this week, though, so things are looking up! ;)

Monday, we had my mom's left overs from the weekend...yum! :) And yay for no prep for me!!

Tuesday, was our walking tacos. Once again, yum!

Wednesday we had Cheddar and Garlic Turkey Sliders. They were cute, they were good, and they were easy! That covers it all. :)

Cheddar & Garlic Turkey Sliders
1 ½ lbs ground turkey
1 tablespoon Wildtree European Dipping Oil-Garlic
1 ½ teaspoon Wildtree Rancher Steak Rub
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Combine all ingredients in a gallon size freezer bag, “smush” to allow seasonings to distribute. 

To prepare: Thaw in fridge. Oil and heat grill to medium high heat. Form the meat mixture into 10 

small slider patties (2-3 inch wide patties). Grill approx. 5-7 minutes per side. Be sure not to flip too early, as this causes the meat to stick to the grill. They are also able to broil in the oven. We did! :)

And Friday, Chris and I had a grilling date. Put the kids to bed and grilled! It was so so good!!! 

Ginger Beef Tips with Slaw

2 lbs beef stew meat, or sirloin steaks cut into chunks, or tenderloin steaks cut into chunks 

1 tablespoon Wildtree European Dipping Oil - Garlic

½ cup Wildtree Asian Ginger Plum Dressing

1 tablespoon Wildtree Rancher Steak Rub

For slaw:

1 (12 ounce) bag “Coleslaw Mix” (in the produce dept near 

the bag salads)

½ cup light mayonnaise

3 tablespoon Wildtree Asian Ginger Plum Dressing

Combine all ingredients in a gallon size freezer bag, “smush” to allow seasonings to distribute. 

To prepare: Thaw in fridge. Lightly oil and heat grill to medium high heat. Snip corner of freezer bag 

to allow extra water to drain. Skewer the meat  onto 6 metal grilling skewers. (Wood skewers that have been presoaked in water may be used.) Grill for 5-7 minutes. Turn over once, and grill additional 5 to 7 minutes until meat is cooked through. Serves 6. For slaw: mix together all ingredients and let stand 5-7 minutes to allow the flavors to combine. Serve alongside skewers.

 The food was great, but having Daddy all to myself was even better! Nice treat! 

That's it! The rest of the week was eating up left overs and finding their own food! ;) 

Hope everyone's week is off to a wonderful start! Happy Monday! :)