Attempting to be a Super Mom

For Lent, being a Catholic, I obviously can't have meat on Fridays, so I've been scouring Pinterest for recipes. One thing I've never really cooked much of before was shrimp. Both Shawn and I love shrimp and Ben has decided he loves it too. The girls are not so keen, but I think, the more normal it becomes, the more they will grow to like it, so shrimp dishes will be sticking around, long after Lent. Recipe 10 of 52 turned out so delicious, Shawn asked if we could add it to our normal routine.  I found the recipe here . Cilantro-Lime Shrimp Pasta 1 lb raw shrimp, deveined and peeled 2 tbsp olive oil 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 1/4 tsp salt 4 garlic cloves, minced 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped 3/4 cup chicken stock (I used vegetable stock) 1/4 cup white wine (I used chardonnay) 2 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice 8 ounces pasta (linguine) fresh cilantro, chopped for garnish lime, cut in half and thinly sliced for garnish Heat large skillet until hot on me...

Shawn has been getting onto me, because I collect cookbooks, but still use the internet for a good chunk of my recipes. He's decided to take it upon himself and pick out recipes he wants for dinner from some of the cookbooks. I appreciate it because I have a hard time narrowing down which one to cook, since everything looks so delicious. Recipe 9 of 52 came from The New Kansas Cookbook: Rural Roots, Modern Table.  My only complaint is that there wasn't more pan sauce. I could have eaten it with a spoon it was so tasty. Pork Chops with Whole Grain Mustard Pan Sauce 4 boneless pork loin or rib chops (5-6 ounces each) salt and black pepper, to taste 1 tbsp butter 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp shallot, minced 1/2 cup dry white wine 2 tsp whole grain or coarse ground mustard 1 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped 1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped 1 tbsp butter Trim excess fat from the pork chops and season with salt and pepper. Heat the butter and olive oil over medium-...

I have a chili recipe that I absolutely love and trust me when I say, it's a big hit with the family. We decided to make another kind of chili to go along side our current recipe when we were having a big family get together. I will say up front that it wasn't my favorite chili recipe, but purely because I love a bean filled chili. Everyone else that tried it seemed to really enjoy it. Recipe 8 of 52 came from The New Kansas Cookbook: Rural Roots, Modern Table. Dan's Special Chili 2 tbsp bacon drippings 2 onions, chopped 1 garlic clove, minced 3 tbsp chili powder 1 tbsp ground cumin 3 lbs (85% lean) ground beef 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce 1 (12-ounce) bottle dark beer 1 jalapeño pepper, minced 2 whole bay leaves 1 tsp salt 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded Corn chips In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the bacon drippings over medium heat.  Add the chopped onion and cook until lightly browned and tende...

The fifth book I read in my 24 books for 2017 was My Not So Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella. My Not So Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella Hardcover: 448 pages  Publisher: The Dial Press (February 7, 2017) After LOVING Can You Keep A Secret? I went on a crazy amazon shopping spree. I needed more Sophie Kinsella. My Not So Perfect Life is her latest book. True to her style, the main character Katie or Cat Brenner has big goals but the worst luck. She's made redundant at her job where she looks up to her not so nice boss with the perfect life, and she's fallen for her boss' boss. She can't find another job and moves back home to help her Dad and Step-Mom run the glamping site they've set up on the family farm. Her old boss shows up and hilarity ensues. Definitely a great read. I couldn't put the book down and laughed out loud through most of it. Every lady I know, who loves good girly, light hearted books, should read this and laugh along with me.

The 4th book I read for my 24 books of 2017 was Can You Keep A Secret? by Sophie Kinsella. After the tear filled ending of King's Cage, I needed something light and fun. Can You Keep A Secret? by Sophie Kinsella Paperback: 368 pages  Publisher: Dial Press Trade Paperback; Reprint edition (March 1, 2005) If you've ever read the Shopaholic series, then you've probably already fallen in love with Sophie Kinsella. She writes about these girls who could be anybody. They are really good in some parts of their life and crummy in others.  She does it in this laugh out loud, captivating way. This book is about Emma Corrigan, who accidentally tells all of her most deep dark private secrets to a stranger during a traumatic plane ride. When she gets back to work, she is shocked and embarrassed to see that he's one of the big bosses at her job. This book was awesome, and everything I needed and wanted it to be. I read it in about two days. Definitely a chicklit...

The 3rd book I read for my 24 books in 2017 is King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard. King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard Hardcover: 528 pages  Publisher: HarperTeen (February 7, 2017) So a year ago, my sister-in-law got me hooked on the Red Queen series. It was about the time the 2nd book came out. I read through the first one, bought the 2nd one on my kindle the moment I finished the first, and then bought the two novellas the second I finished the 2nd book. Then, I had to wait a whole year for this book to come out. This book starts out with Mare Borrow trapped as Maven Calore's prisoner. He takes away her powers with silent stone and is on a mission to control his country even if it means betraying people who have been loyal to him. Meanwhile Cal and the other new bloods are trying to figure out how to get Mare back as well as prepare for the impending war. King's Cage was so good. I love the suspense and how easy it is to be invested in the characters. This book ...

Last week was the kid's Spring Break. I had bought a couple of little plant seed kits from the dollar section at Target for something fun to do with the kids. We planted all of the seeds Thursday afternoon and last night I noticed a sprout or two. This morning, after looking with the kids, and watching their excitement, I decided, maybe I should track the progress a little. Here they are the evening we planted them: The purple pots are sensitive plants. The green pots are poppies. The light blue pot is a daisy. The dark blue pot is a forget-me-not. The orange pot is a sunflower. The hot pink pot is a coneflower. And the larger tan pots are 2 watermelons, 2 cucumbers, and 2 tomatoes. Here they are today: Close ups of the pots sprouting plants: Both cucumbers All three poppies. They have the daintiest looking sprouts. Extremely small and fragile looking. One of the sensitive plants. And the sunflower. Sydney told me that she was ups...

The weather::: This weekend was chilly and rainy. Today is the same. I think it's actually supposed to be this way all week long. On my reading pile::: The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella. I've been devouring her books lately. I love how light and fun they are. Movies or Shows I watched this weekend::: I didn't really watch any movies or shows this weekend. I watched KU basketball, when my Jayhawks lost, but that was pretty much it.  On my TV::: I can't wait to watch the new season of Grace and Frankie. Hopefully I'll have some time for that today, but I'm not counting on it. On the menu for this week::: Monday Shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, and cucumber and onions in vinegar Tuesday Oven tacos with rice and beans Wednesday Chicken potpie soup w/ rosemary biscuits Thursday  30 minute skillet lasagna with broccoli and asparagus Friday  Sesame noodles, honey soy...

The second book I read for my 24 books in 2017 was Born a Crime by Trevor Noah. Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Child by Trevor Noah Hardcover: 304 pages  Publisher: Spiegel and Grau (November 15, 2016) Something you should know about me.  I love memoirs about people I find interesting. Musicians I enjoy listening to actors I like watching. I really like reading these memoirs when their lives and upbringings are so different from mine. I should have been a sociologist. Is that a real thing? Anyway, Trevor Noah was born and raised in South Africa. If you know anything at all about South Africa, the word apartheid probably comes to mind. Yup, that's all I knew about South Africa... that and Charlize Theron comes from there. Apartheid is defined as institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination, in South Africa, that occurred from 1948 to 1991. Trevor Noah was born during apartheid to a Swiss (white) father and a Xhosa (black) mother. Interrac...

The first book I read, in my goal for 24 books this year, was The Magnolia Story by Chip and Joanna Gaines. The Magnolia Story by Chip and Joanna Gaines with Mark Dagostino Hardcover: 208 pages  Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 18, 2016) First of all, I'm a huge fan of the show Fixer Upper. I'm obsessed with Joanna's decorating style, Chips sense of humor, the idea of fixing up a house into exactly what you want it to be, and I really like Chip and Joanna's dynamic and family life. That's what drew me to this book. I really liked their story. It was a sweet book about two people who are total opposites, encouraging each other to follow their dreams from day one. I loved how on so many occasions they gave it all up to God and everything worked out the way it was supposed to, even if they didn't like the way it looked at the time. (Example: When Joanna closed her Magnolia Store to raise her kids and work on their home. Eventually, if you are fans of t...

Every year, Shawn and I go out for our anniversary. During dinner we discuss our personal and family goals for the next year. Last year it's where we said we'd like to buy our family home by our anniversary the next year. Six months and one day later we were moving in to our home. I also said I'd like to complete a crochet project, from start to finish, and that goal, I didn't achieve.  See, little goals and big goals. This year, one of my personal goals was to read two books a month. This is a big goal with all of my time wrapped up into housework, the kids, blogging, and vlogging. I'll have you know, upkeep on my blog was another goal this year. I just really like reading, and feel that if I'm reading, and Shawn's reading (He reads a lot, but very late at night usually and I have to get up early in the morning, so I can't do the late nights he does.) then we are setting a better example for the kids. So far, it's March 24th and since I made the...

This week is the kids' Spring Break. It stinks a little. Last year and the year before we tagged along to Shawn's business trips, but this year he didn't have a business trip so, we're at home.  Everyone around us had spring break last week, but our city lined up our spring break with the college so we can't even spend our days doing stuff with cousins or anything. The kids soccer started this week, which through a wrench in my day trip plans I was visualizing. It's hard to go somewhere a little ways away when you have to be back for practice by 5:30. I bought some little seed pots from the dollar section at target and plan to do some fun stuff with the kids this spring break. I also made sure to buy the kids some green shirts for the St. Patrick's Day Parade in town, since the kids first day out of school was St. Patrick's Day. Friday, Shawn was out of town, so the kids and I went to the parade with out him. We met with some friends there....