Happy Birthday to my bro!

Happy 40th Birthday to my brother John today!!

Meal Plan Monday

Thanks to a little nudge from my friend Beth ;), here is my menu plan for the week:

Monday- Dinner with our community group...we made Spanish rice...the rice a roni kind. fancy I know.

Tuesday- Salmon Patties, Sweet Potatoes and Apples

Wednesday- Shrimp Gumbo with Cornbread (my parents got me a gumbo mix from Savannah)

Thursday- My friend Leslie gave me this recipe in one of those recipe exchange forwards over email:
Black Beans and Rice

2 cans black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 cup salsa
1 can diced tomatoes

You can add chicken or ground beef if desired. (at this point in the week we are pretty much out of meat so won't be using any)

garlic (1 tablespoon diced)
lemon juice (1-2 tablespoons)
lime juice(1-2 tablespoons)

add water if too thick for your taste (about 1/2 to 1 cup)

Put all the ingredients in the crock pot and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low 8 hours so flavors meld. Serve over white or brown rice with cheese, sour cream, and cilantro with tortilla chips.

Friday- We are headed to visit Brian's parents in Bowling Green

Recipe Reviews:
All the recipes that I listed on my last meal plan a few weeks ago were great. I would make any of them again.
Last week I made this great recipe that my friend Beth sent me called Falafel with Avocado Spread and it was yummy. Met the approval of my husband as well.

We also attempted these Stuffed Cabbage Rolls last week. They were tasty but after my umpteenth attempt at stuffing cabbage leaves I have decided that it is not for me. Too much work and my leaves usually fall apart.

Here is another one we tried, Scalloped Potatoes and Hamburger. I can't say that I am very proud of this recipe...it pretty much broke my rule of always having something green at the table. I was trying to use what we had and this recipe fit the bill. It was really good and Brian loved it but like I said...not real good for ya.

She's all Smiles

 

Happy 3 Month Birthday Telia

Telia is 3 months old now and for her 3 month birthday she got her first ever fever. Yep, it was a rough day but we are hoping tomorrow will be better. She is otherwise healthy as can be. She rolled over 3 times in the last month, smiles a lot, loves her bouncy seat with the little fish that dangle in front of her and is sleeping great (all night)! I realized when she was sick that we are really blessed with a pretty laid back baby. She usually only cries when she is hungry or tired...well, at least that is how it goes when I am present. We have found out that she has a hard time at night when Mama isn't around. Hopefully we will get through that one too. Enjoy this picture of Ruby and Telia in Telia's new crib. She isn't yet out of her bassinet but we found a sale on cribs this week and didn't want to miss it.

Meal Plan Monday

Monday- Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese. Although I am usually all about making stuff from scratch, I have come to appreciate the convenience of buying it already made. That being said, we have been loving this V8 tomato soup:


Tuesday- Zucchini Noodles with Shrimp and Goat Cheese Very excited to try this recipe.

Wednesday- Spicy Chicken with Peanut Sauce over rice (thanks to my friend Beth for this recipe)

Thursday- Hamburgers, Greens, and Potato's (I found a great deal on organic lean ground beef at Kroger this week)

Friday- Pasta with Broccoli

Saturday- Out to Eat

Sunday- Tortellini Soup with Vegetables and Pesto (this is a great recipe from my friend Kristyn's cookbook) If you want this recipe just send me a message...it really is great!

Last week the only new recipe I made was the Cheese Stuffed Meatloaf. I highly recommend this one...we will be making it again for sure.

My Friends Are Cool

At least they are cooler than me...I think the fact that I am using the term "cool" still makes me less hip than they are but, I digress.

This post is about my friends Smith and Erik (or as Ruby calls them "Smiff and Ewik"). Here they are:




Their apartment is featured on the Apartment Therapy Blog (see the link to the right). Click on this and check out their house tour. You should also comment which would help Smith possibly become a regular plus it is just cute stuff.

Meal Plan Monday

Monday- We are having dinner with our community group...potato bar

Tuesday- Pizza

Wednesday- Cheese Stuffed Meatloaf, baked potato and veggies

Thursday- White Chili in the Crock Pot

Friday- chicken, rice, and veggies

Here are a few recipes that I have tried recently that I recommend:

Tuscan Lentils and Chicken Sausage
I really liked this recipe and so did my dad but Brian just thought it was okay. Basically, after making many different lentil recipe we have concluded that Brian doesn't really like lentils. Therefore, I will probably only make lentils for Ruby and I to have for lunch from now on. Also, I cooked the lentils a lot longer than the recipe called for...they just wouldn't get soft.

Crockpot Black Eyed Pea Soup
This soup was amazing! I loved it and so did most of my family when I took it for a get together on New Years Day. I highly recommend this and will make it again. I didn't use the sausage that they recommended because the store I went to didn't have it. I used some sort of Italian sausage that was great but probably had more fat.