One of My Best Mommy Idea's for Clutter Control

As you may know, when you are a mom, laundry is your LIFE!!! It never stops, not even for one day.

If I could do my house over again, I would have made the laundry room everyone's closet (well for Hubby and kids anyway) and a huge problem solved. Well, I didn't know as much 15 years ago so I made do with the best contraption that I could think of given the space I have, it's been serving me well for a couple of years.

I have 4 guys with socks all the same size, so when I match their socks they all go in 1 bin labled socks,which happens to be 3 feet away from all their shoes. Another sock bin for the non-matched and each one of us has a basket with our name on it, which holds almost a weeks worth of Laundry. By time Hudson was 3 he could locate his basket and find his own underpants.

I like this method because if someone cannot find something, they do not have to rummage through a basket and mess up all the clothes, either they are in their basket or they know it's not clean...

Other baskets are for cleaning products, sunscreen and bug spray, shoe shining kit, dry cleaning, rags etc.

So for what it's worth, this is my mommy tip!

Bet we've got more than you!

So every year we have a plague or should I say the same plague! First it's box elder beetles (they are messy) and then it's biting lady bugs. They like to warm themselves in the sun on our house, )they also like to get inside our house)! Oh, one of the joys of living in the "country"...stupid nature, do your business elsewhere!

The woodpeckers, and bugs seem to love our house, but not my neighbors! We also get a good dozen or so birds that fly into our tall windows, but that is kinda a form of entertainment, if you are twisted (2 today so far)... sorry, my boys have rubbed off on me.

Bryce is 18!

He thinks he is SO funny, this is Bryce on his 18th birthday and this is the "good" photo. Bryce you are such an awesome kid, we don't know what we did to deserve you...keep up the good work! And note...the open cell phone, oh my if we were to not get a text the second it came in, the world my end! Bryce didn't want to go out to get a bite to eat, he requested subs from Dibella's in Ann Arbor, we grabbed 2 huge platters.

Let's see, what is Bryce up to right now...well working at Steve Custom signs, going to college, working on his car, working out at the gym, being a cub scout leader, getting things ready for his Eagle Court of Honor, preparing to take an American Heritage final, going to Institute each Tuesday night...

Uppercase Living Expressions in my Home

In the mudroom, to remind us how to "be" as we leave the house everyday.
In the kitchen it say's, With God, All things are Possible. Bryce installed this one for me.
Above my desk, Never lose a chance to say a kind word.
This wall in my bedroom has been bare for 8 years, but this was the perfect addition.

Crockpot Shredded five-spice Pork

This is another one of our favorite meals (I love it because, well...did you notice the word crockpot?).

1 pork Roast (not a large one, sometimes I've used a loin, you don't want something too fatty)-Place in crockpot.

Mix together in a bowl:

4 cloves of garlic, minced (to me that means refrigerated minced garlic out of a jar-my gourmet days are over!).
1 TBSP Chinese five spice
1/4 c. sugar -brown preferably but if the white sugar bowl is full...
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/8 c. hoisin sauce
1/8 c. oyster sauce
1 TBSP balsamic vinegar
couple shakes of red pepper flakes
1 c. water

Pour mixed ingredients over crock pot and cook (duh!).

When it's done, shred it...if you have too much liquid after shredding, I would not throw it out, I would thicken it with cornstarch, while the crockpot is still hot.

Put Pork over cooked white rice.

Then top with:

Shredded napa cabbage
sliced green onions
fresh cilantro
bean sprouts
chopped peanuts
plum sauce

So this recipe evolved through the years, hope you like it!

See, women are born this way!

Mark said that I was just telling him the same thing yesterday!

Marble Cookies

So after the dinner posted below, I had a sweet tooth and made some cookies. They are made with sour cream and are cake like, Grant thought they smelled like ice cream.

I doubled the recipe when I made them though.

2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 stick salted butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 c. sour cream (I always add a little extra)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips



Preheat oven to 300.

Sift flour, powder and salt into a bowl (yeah right, that is extra work, do it if you wish).

Beat together butter and sugar until well blended.

Add egg, sour cream and vanilla, beat until light and fluffy.

Add flour mixture and blend until just combined.

Melt chocolate chips (forget the double boiler, the microwave works just as well). Pour into cookie mixture, use a wooden spoon or spatuala and fold to get the marble look and taste.

Drop rounded tablespoonfuls, 2 inches apart on baking sheet.

Bake 20 minutes, transfer to a flat cool surface to cool.

something yummy we ate this weekend

Chicken Florentine (an easy version)

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice ( I added 2 x that)
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and excess water drained.
  
• 4 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 2/3 cup bacon bits (Costco has the best)
  
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (We used fresh sliced mozzarella, it was so cheesey)
  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place the chicken breast halves on a baking sheet ( I brushed with oil to brown); bake 20 to 30 minutes, until no longer pink and juices run clear. Remove from heat, and set aside.I sliced it afterwards.
   
2. Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
3. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stirring constantly, mix in the garlic, lemon juice, cream of mushroom soup, Italian seasoning, half-and-half, and Parmesan cheese.
4. Arrange the spinach over the bottom of a 9x9 inch baking dish. Cover the spinach with the mushrooms. Pour half the mixture from the saucepan over the mushrooms. Arrange chicken breasts in the dish, and cover with the remaining sauce mixture. Sprinkle with bacon bits, and top with mozzarella cheese.
5. Bake 20 to 25 minutes in the 400 degrees F oven, until bubbly and lightly browned.
6. Serve with Angel hair pasta.
   

I doubled it, it was really good.

Then we had marble cookies. They are made with sour cream, they are delish!