Back in the Saddle Again...

The menu planning Saddle that is! Weeks off of planning didn't hurt the bottom line of eating from home though so that is good! They say that it takes 21 days to form a habit so even though I haven't posted my plans, the habit of eating from home is firmly embedded.

Now if only the habit of excercise would stick!


Week of Nov 29

Sunday
Enchilada casserole
mandarins
applesauce

Monday
Tortellini with red sauce
green salad
garlic bread

Tuesday (pta night)
Chicken noodle soup
crescents

Wednesday
Dressing croquettes - recipe below
mixed veggies

Thursday
leftovers/easy fixes

Friday
White chili
garlic bread

I'm hosting a cookie exchange this night(i hope--i've had responses of yes, but no one has said anything else-yikes) so I will be serving some snacks as well-nothing major since it will be after dinner and it will mainly be desserts.


Saturday
baked chicken
twice backed potatoes
green salad


Okay. so the Dressing Croquettes. I made the name up but I ran across the base recipe a few years ago when trying to figure out what to do with all the leftover dressing from Thanksgiving. It is really very easy:

cooked, crumbled bacon
grated cheese of choice, I use cheddar since I always have it on hand
dressing/stuffing
butter

Cook bacon and add to dressing mixture. Stir in cheese. Form patties in your hand and brown in butter over med-high heat.

The dressing I make is pretty wet/sticky so I don't need a binding agent like an egg. If your recipe is dry, you probably will need to add something to hold it together.
It's not an altogether healthy recipe, but it tastes so yummy!

Projects

So this is what I did all weekend. Soccer is ending this week and the awards ceremonies are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. The pinwheels will be the centerpieces for the tables and the little envelopes are gift card holders for the coachs. I also cut 8 inch soccer balls and will mat a picture of each girl to give out. Didn't get a picture of those though. Being a team parent is a lot of work I tell you! But I love that the girls love that I do this stuff. That makes it worth it.

And you notice that little cheese dome there? I got that for $1 at the Salvation Army last week. I plan to paint the wood and maybe put it on a pedastal to make it look more like the cloches I've been seeing on all the blogs lately.

I'm also working on getting more decor up in the house. I've decided to throw a cookie exchange party this year and a lot of the invitees have never been in my home. I really want it to look it's best for as little cost as possible. I did buy 2 yards of burlap and a large photo ledge to go on the tv wall. Everything else I will be using things I already have on hand on that costs next to nothing. And I am hosting Thanksgiving! So I only have a week and a half to do all tht I'd like to do!

Another Sleep Update

Isn't he a cutie?

Wyatt is in his bed! WOOHOO! So here is what we did to perservere over this parenting beast.


We ignored him.


When he came into our room, we acted like he wasn't there.


The first night he whispered "Mommy" over and over again. A few times I had to stifle a laugh because he was so persistent! And he poked me. A lot. I just turned over.


Troy eventually couldn't handle it any longer and took him back to his bed. And talked to him. That just amped Wyatt up. But I let Dad deal and he finally came back to bed and Wyatt stayed in his till the sun peeked over the horizon.





Eventually Troy realized that by giving him ANY attention gave Wyatt what he wanted. Once he stopped responding to him, Wyatt stopped waking us up. Yeah, some mornings I'd find him on our floor but he made due without waking us. Now he's in his bed every night.





Oh and I close his door. We never have done this with the girls but I think he tunes himself to our noises so I try to muffle them as best as possible. Closing the door is working.





Now it's time to work on Sophie.

Pumpkin patch Pictures

I love the patch. But I'm so upset that every patch around us charges you to be there! We've been going to the same patch for a number of years and this year they began to charge for parking as well as any adventure like the maze, haunted house hay rides etc. Next year I'm going to the grocery store for pumpkins LOL. Patches do have awesome photo ops though!

Here's a little more BOO for you!

So here they are, a hot air balloon pilot(not balloon boy as many people thought), a "swat team guy" and a 50's diner waitress. The kids got loads of candy and are still coming down from the sugar high.

So how did Maddies' costume come about? Well, I was reading Country Living magazine last month and I saw the idea there. Maddie loves to be different and to stand out so she was the perfect kid to wear it. She got a ton of "Honey you have to come see this!" and of course, the uniqueness won her a few more pieces of candy at some houses LOL

Monday

Good Morning. Menu Plan Monday at Orgjunkie.com so make sure to check This out . Tons of ideas and loads of inspiration!

Veggie Chili & garlic bread

Baked mac & cheese with steamed broccolli

Pasta with artichokes and tomatoes

Meatloaf(much to my families dismay)

Frozen pizza

Leftovers/fend for yourself

Rib eye & roasted potatoes

Still loads of beef. If I can get up the hill where the In-laws live, Nugget is having a sale on boneless/skinless chicken breasts. YAY! i really didn't realize how much we do eat chicken until I was completley out. I can't ever let that happen again LOL