Our Favorite Recipes - Stuffed Shells!

I love sharing new recipes I try but I decided I would also share some of our favorites.  Some I may have shared before but many will be "new".  I used to link recipes up so you could easily find them in the "archives" but over the last few years I got a little lazy with that feature - hopefully I can get back into the habit :-)  That also helps when I'm posting the menu - when I'm really on top of things I can provide links within my menu.

I haven't figured out how to post a "print recipe" option so I just try to post them in a way that you can easily "copy and paste" the recipe and print it that way.

Quite a few years ago, before we had kids, we used to go on vacation HA!  One year, while we were in Tennessee, we made a drive to South Carolina to see some friends.  For dinner, she made Stuffed Shells with Ricotta Cheese and they were amazing.  Once we got home, I went on a recipe search and found the perfect recipe.  It's been a long standing family favorite forever.  It's super easy, fairly inexpensive, and I love that I can put it all together in advance (like on a Saturday) and then cook it later (throw it in the oven right after church and dinner is ready in about 40 minutes).  I have no idea where I found the recipe since it has been so many years but I'm pretty sure that it is pretty standard this dish.

Ingredients:
2 dozen large pasta shells
2 teaspoons salt
24 ounces part skim ricotta cheese *
1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs, Italian seasoned
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 egg, slightly beaten
Pasta sauce (jarred or homemade)
Mozzarella Cheese

Cook the shells in boiling, salted water, following the package directions.  Drain and rinse with cool water.  Set aside.  In a medium bowl combine the ricotta cheese, bread crumbs, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, parsley and egg; mix until well blended.

Cover the bottom of of a 9x13 baking dish with a thin layer of sauce.  Carefully spoon cheese mixture into shells; arrange shells, open side down, in the tomato sauce in the pan.  Pour the rest of the sauce over the shells. Cover with Mozzarella cheese and the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.  Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and cook for 10-15 more minutes or until cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly.

* I usually buy the smaller container - I think it is 16 ounces - but keep the rest of the ingredients the same and it tastes fine.  It makes a slight smaller batch and I put the shells in a 9x9 pan instead.

Our Christmas Eve Gifts

I've learned through the years the often the best gift ideas come from other blogs - tried and true gift ideas from other parents and the gifts they have given their kids!  So, I thought I would start sharing some gift ideas and, when Christmas returns next year I will try to remember to post these ideas once again!

Christmas Eve - I have always tended to over think these really creative ideas for Christmas Eve gifts and, honestly, they don't go as well as I hoped they would.  For example, one year, the boys got a book called "The Monstore" and each a set of supplies to make puppets. I thought it was awesome . .. the boys, not so much HA!

 (In all fairness, this did become a favorite bedtime story book!  )

(These puppets are actually super cool - my boys just weren't into them.  I would recommend them to someone with kids that love to be creative with toys like this! ) 

This year, I decided to keep it a little more simple.  Naturally, I picked up some new PJ's for them.  I found them the week of Thanksgiving at our local Meijer when they had them on sale for "buy 1 get 1 half off" which made them super affordable. (Not to mention, they didn't ring up correctly but, when I explained it to the cashier, she was so fed up with the sales not being in the system correctly, she gave me an additional 25% off of the 15% already given so I got them for a steal!) I then got them each a set of Pokemon cards because they both love Pokemon and then I found these awesome logic games.

They can both be found on Amazon and in Meijer -- my boys had fun with them both.  Each game comes with cards.  The cards show what colored cat/dogs to use in the puzzle and the area they need to fit.  Using logic, you solve the puzzle.  Don't worry, there are also answer keys!  The Dog Pile game seemed to be a little harder and Nate and I did have to look at the first clue to figure it out but then Nate was able to complete several others without help.  Both of these puzzle games are great for quiet play and are small enough for easy transport anywhere.

These games were a perfect hit.  Both of the boys played with the game they got after opening it and they enjoyed the game!  Yeah!

Back To School

Today we return to school after about 2 1/2 weeks off.  It's been wonderful.  The boys and I worked really, really hard the week of December 17th to not only finish all of the work scheduled for that week but also to push ahead and complete just a couple of extra lessons so that I was comfortable not returning to school until today.  Technically school resumed on Thursday but I know between it being the end of the week and our little friends still being with us all day as they also return to school today that there was no way we would do school on that Thursday!

We have two weeks until the end of first semester so we will be pushing hard to accomplish all that is required.  Using the online program does force our hand a little because there are actual deadlines.  There is coursework that is required to be done so we will make sure it is done!  Outside of regular daily lessons, Nate has one paper to finish up while Josh has one paper, a social studies project and 3 reading journals.  My goal is to have the extra work done by Friday so we are just wrapping up lessons.  The good thing is that next week we just have a handful of lessons to finish and we will be done.

Our Homeschool Co-op picks back up in just under two weeks also.  This semester will be different as alot of the boys friends are taking the semester off.  Josh will actually be one of the oldest kids this time around which is odd since he is only 10!  I think we are all ready to get back together with friends though.

In all honestly, I find it hard to believe we are almost at the halfway point of school.  To make it worse, the second semester always goes faster!  I like to push to have as much of our work done by May 15th as I can so we can enjoy an early start to summer break.  (Who wants to do school when the weather is perfect!)

Sunday Worship - "Nobody Loves Me Like You "

I always enjoy sharing music on my blog.  I think because music speaks to my soul.  A song can bring forth so much emotion on all levels.  I heard this song sometime last fall and actually sat in my vehicle in the driveway until it finished because it was so good.  Such a great reminder of the simple fact that God loves us more than anyone else every could.

Our Week in Photos 2019 #1

I decided to start "Our Week in Photos" over a #1 for a new year.  I got a little behind last year but hope to keep up better this year!

These photos aren't technically from this past week - they are from the week before but, honestly, I didn't take a single photo this week.  New Years Eve and New Years day slipped by quietly and that's ok.  It's in the 40's here with lots of sunshine, which is beautiful but it also means I'm lacking any great snow photos too!  Next week we get back to our normal routine so hopefully I can remember to grab a picture or two of our week!

 The traditional opening of the Christmas Eve gifts. 

 This cat has to be in the middle of everything - he is such a people loving animal :-) 

 The traditional Christmas PJ's - this year, unbeknownst to me they came with nightcaps and the boys love them.  They wear them to bed most nights and I find it to be the most adorable thing ever. 

 A long standing tradition in our family - the kneeling, facing the tree photo.  My mom took this photo of my brothers and I ever single year until my brothers ruined it got to old to do it anymore. HA! 

 And yes, the both still believe in Santa.  Ironically all year long Nate will tell me Santa isn't real but let me tell you, on Christmas Eve Nate is the first one to write his note to Santa and he is the one to make sure that plate of cookies gets put out!! 

 Time for stockings! 

 We rubbed cat nip on Harley's stocking . . .Harley attacked Josh when he tried to take the stocking HA!  It was awesome! 

 I may have taken more photos of the cat this Christmas . . .again, he had to be part of everything. 

 Christmas was a day of fun and lots of gifts.  It was a relaxing day with my mom with us too.  

We had one last family celebration with Darryl's family last Saturday.  These are the only two photos I took.  

I think I need to practice my photo skills again this year.  Maybe do some online classes or watch some Youtube videos to take some better pictures!!  

Weekly Menu - The Official First Menu of 2019

I've been planning Menu's and meals for a very long time.  All the way back to when I was single!  Crazy!  No wonder I get tired of planning and cooking sometimes!

I know that in 2018 I got into a serious rut when it came to cooking and meal planning.  I'm going to work to get out of that rut while trying to trim our grocery budget a little more.  I've thought, again, about going back to planning a month at a time so I can shop sales.  I did this at Thanksgiving and Christmas and saved between $50.00-$100.00 around each holiday plan by shopping only the sales for the two weeks before the event and then picking up the final items.  I'm wondering if I can do that with a month of meals.  I'm not sure though - it takes a lot of time to plan like that and put together a master grocery list.  I've also thought about using 2019 as my planning year and making the weekly menu planner in a way that I can use it every year.  In other words, by the time I get to the first week in 2020, the years menu would already be basically planned.  But again, I know that takes a lot of work too!  So for this week, I'm just planning this week and then I'll go from there.  Not everything has to start on week one!

I've decided to focus on family favorites and comfort food in January.

Friday - Stuffed Shells, Green Beans, and Garlic Bread

Saturday - Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin, Mac and Cheese, and baked beans

Sunday - BBQ Stuffing Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli, and Crescents.  (A good Sunday Dinner)

Monday - Amish Baked Chicken, Buttered Noodles, and Cooked Carrots

Tuesday - Might as well start of the year right - It's Taco Tuesday!

Wednesday - Tonight is a good leftover night - I'll pull together whatever is left from the other meals and have dinner. 

Thursday - Chicken and Dumplings (with plans to make Chicken Noodle Soup on Friday with the leftovers!)

I feel really good about this plan for the coming week.  I wonder how many items I can get my kids to successfully try?? :-) :-) :-)

January Goal Focus

January brings a fresh start.  It's clean and clear; the first month in a new calendar and the first month is a new year of goals.  I know not everyone is goal oriented (Like my husband!) but I am.  I love my goals; my lists; my plans . .. even when they don't work out or get done.  I love having a way to measure what is being done (and, honestly, not done!).  It also shows me what is important.  If something is on the list but never gets done it is either not important or too big of a project.

I mentioned in my first goal post about an accountability group I'm part of and that focus is picking one main item for the month and focusing on that one item.  Then focusing on individual items daily.  I'm not going to follow that to a tee but I like the overall concept.

My January focus is
Strengthening our Family Finances

Why did I pick this for January?  Because it sets the temperature for the rest of the year.  If we can start strong, we can carry on through the year but if we start behind, we can never catch up. 

Here is what I'm focusing on this month:

1) Become an active Shipt shopper.  For me, this means grabbing 2-4 shops a week.  I think this is doable between evenings and days Darryl takes off since I can only do this while he is home.  

2) January will be a "no spend" month.  I've written out a calendar budget of all things planned.  Beyond that there is no spending outside of groceries and fuel.  No buying Kindle books, grabbing coffee, or picking up dinner :-)  Just trying to curb the spending and maybe even get a little ahead this month. 

3) Cut the grocery bill.  I feel like I've made some progress on this but I would like to use the weekly add more paired up with mperks coupons and Ibotta.  Ibotta is a great way to earn money just for shopping.  I've managed to earn almost $100.00 and that's with not using it consistently.  I would like Ibotta money to become my scrapbooking fun so it motivates me more to use it ;-) 

I know it doesn't seem like a lot but I feel like if I can do these three things consistently this month, I can establish a pattern or habit that will continue throughout the year.  

If though that's my main focus, it doesn't mean I'm not looking at the other items on my list - I am.  I have goals for those items as well which might fall more into the "daily" goal concept. 

1) Add exercise to our daily routine.  I'm looking to just take a walk daily  

2) Since this is a no spend month, projects are off limits so instead I want January to be a time I focus on working in the basement cleaning stuff up and out. 

3) Get back to our school routine including Math Minutes and Cursive Writing.

4) Have one movie night at home this month

5) Find one activity to do this month as a family. 

6) This is a no spend month, right? So I technically can't spend on getting one item for our grinch calendar 2019 but I should earn some Mperks rewards so I will plan to use that to pick up the first item. 

7) Make sure the Holiday Binder is up to date through New years. 

8) Scrapbooking - Use what I have here to finish up a few projects.  Also, use this no spend month to work on organizing photos on the external hard drive.  

9) Do the Flylady routine daily, weekly, for the month. 

10) Work on the first song to sing at church

11) Play piano - just play.  Not really measuring this but I just want to sit down and play. 

12) I do need to reserve our camping spot for the Family Reunion so I do plan to use Shipt money to do that as soon as I get my first pay day.

13) This should have technically been number one but I want to work on planning my day.  Taking time the night before and writing out specifics that I want to get done the following day.  This helps me so much on daily focus.

14) A must - make sure that I'm two weeks ahead on my Co-Op class as I may not always have a vehicle/way to get to Friday School depending on when we are able to find a car to purchase.  I need to leave the next weeks lesson with my stuff at school each Friday that I am there. 

15) Read, read, read.  First, I need to make my book goal list for the month and then I need to read.  I also want to start out this month reading outloud to the boys.  Maybe at lunch . . .I'm not sure yet. 

16) Create a lunch schedule rotation that not only keeps my boys happy but doesn't repeat lunch and dinner options (such as chicken nuggets) .  Along with this, I want to work on their ability to eat a few more food items.  This is not an easy feat, trust me, but it's time to start stretching them just a little ;-) LOL  (I'm a little "picky" too so it won't be too crazy!) 

17) Complete our Taxes and file them by the end of the month.  

18) Help Josh with his gold AWANA sections daily.  He has a goal and I want to help him accomplish that goal! Also, finish January with all things current in school. 

19) Think about February plans - Valentine's Day and Darryl's birthday.  Lay out a plan, budget, etc.  Don't wait until the last minute to do things for these events. 

I got to thinking as I wrote out the first 15 goals - wouldn't it be great to have 19 goals each month for the whole "19" concept??  Well, it worked this month!  So maybe my focus for "19 in 19" is to try to accomplish 19 goals each month ;-)