I keep hearing the idea of green smoothies buzzing around the internet. The idea being that you would blend green vegetables into a smoothie to make it more nutritious. I like the idea of boosting nutrition, but I’m not nuts about the idea of my fruity smoothie tasting like a salad.
This blog post from Passionate Homemaking popped up in my feed reader today, so I decided to finally give green smoothies a chance. My thrown together recipe included strawberries, Saskatoon berries, banana, grape juice, yogurt, honey, and field greens.
Wyatt loved it! The guy who typically turns his nose up at anything remotely leafy had three helpings!
I was not so convinced.
It really did have a bitter bite from the greens, but I suppose if the kids like it I will endure. They do the same for me, often. I’m thinking it would taste better as a popsicle in the summer, so I’ll throw that idea in my back pocket for later.
Do you make green smoothies? Any suggestions for a good recipe?
Your eyes speak more than words could say, even if you were able.
Big brothers and sister have all drifted off, and here you are, alone.
“Hold me,” you implore.
“Of course.” You know I’m willing.
So we sit. We rock. I hold you close, you lean in closer still.
Your heart to mine, our lives entwined, I’ll sear this memory deep within.
I love to hear you humming as you let the sleep come over you.
You finish with a simple, “Ma.”
Asleep. Precious baby, sleep.
The smell only a baby can bless the world with.
The sound of your breath. Rise and fall.
The softness of your velvet skin.
I’m taking it all in.
I’ll sear this memory deep within.
In this moment I understand.
Helpless, lonely, needing comfort,
That’s me. Helpless child.
And my heavenly father picks me up.
Holds me close.
And delights in the nearness of his child.
Lord, help me to remember my helplessness.
Sear this memory deep within.
I wonder what the librarian thought as I was checking these books out of the library this evening. It didn’t dawn on me until I was walking out, how weird I might have appeared. And how much more funny the situation would have been if I had brought all four kids in with me, rather than just one. Hey, before you peer down your nose at me, just try getting anything done quickly with four small children. Running into the library to grab two books that I had on hold would take an hour if I brought them all. Plus Deacon was sleeping. Sometimes you just have to let them wait in the car.
Please don’t call the police.
Has anyone read either of these? They were both recommended to me (different person for each book) and I am looking forward to reading them.
Just a bag of movies that my sister and brother-in-law borrowed a few months ago. We haven’t watched any of them in quite a while. What’s old is new again, so perhaps a few movie nights are in our future.
My good intentions of doing more writing on this blog seem to have been put on hold. Life is keeping me pretty busy at the moment, so my blog posts are reverting back to the old 365 photo format. Soon I will have more to say.
Each week our kids are allowed one movie day, and one Wii day. Meaning they watch one movie, not that they watch movies all day. Wii has a tendency to last longer than a movie would, since it has no obvious end. Also, it buys me time. I can get a lot done while the boys are busy sitting still on the couch, and not making messes. So does that mean I use the TV as a babysitter? Only sometimes. And no, not for the whole day.
Sunday is when the kids pick their movie and Wii days for the next week, and since I was busy when the planning was taking place, Wyatt took it upon himself to write it on our weekly planning board. My little unsocialized homeschooler is coming along quite nicely in his writing, wouldn’t you say?
Note to self:
Next time you move a drink from cupboard to freezer in an attempt to quickly cool it, set a timer.
After a long day involving chiropractor appointments, used book sale treasure hunting, co-op sorting, gritting my teeth over dog people, wondering if I should put another layer of cheesecloth over my brain to filter what I say on facebook, a home cooked meal at my wonderful parents’ house, and enduring an unrelenting headache, it is good to come home to my best friend and enjoy a cup of tea before bed.
I think I’ll go read some more Evangellyfish before I hit the hay.
Sweet little Deacon, captivated by the real-life-TV of the dining room window. His brothers and sister were busy in the back yard after supper, having light sabre fights and throwing balls around in the crazy wind. Deacon was delighted to watch from his perch, and his siblings loved putting on a show for him.
I just thought I would share a recipe tonight. The kids ate toast with honey for supper and were sent to bed a little early, as we tried to make up for a very late night yesterday. Then Clay and I ate our delicious supper in peace, without having to convince little people to like their veggies. I try to get my kids eating healthy stuff, and sometimes it is best for everyone’s sanity to just let them eat a little honey toast and send them to bed.
So here’s the recipe for the sandwiches. Another win in the vegetarian meal department! They were really easy to make, incredibly delicious, and my meat-loving husband was satisfied.
Portobello, Broccoli, and Red Pepper Melts | Martha Stewart
1 small head broccoli, cut into small florets (stalk discarded)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Coarse salt and ground pepper
4 portobello mushrooms (stems removed), sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 red bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), sliced 1/2 inch thick
1/4 cup light mayonnaise
1 small garlic clove, crushed through a press
4 thick slices country bread
4 ounces Gouda cheese, thinly sliced
Directions:
1. Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat. On a rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil, toss broccoli with oil; season with salt and pepper. Broil, tossing once or twice, until broccoli begins to char, 4 to 6 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms and bell peppers to sheet; season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine. Broil, tossing once or twice, until vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes more; set aside.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine mayonnaise and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Place bread on a work surface. Dividing evenly, spread with mayonnaise mixture, and top with vegetables, then cheese. Place on baking sheet, and broil until cheese is melted and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.
Over the past few years I have read too much about menu planning. Everyone says it’s simple, so I would read their simple instructions and feel overwhelmed. It’s really not simple when you over-educate yourself, have a million different ideas floating through your head, and have no idea how to streamline them into one workable system.
Weekly meal plans. Bi-weekly meal plans. Bi-weekly meal plans that repeat so you only have to actually plan for 2 weeks every month. Buy everything for the month in one big shopping trip. Have one smaller shopping trip each week. Make big batches. Freeze stuff. Use the crock pot as often as you can. Designate a type of food to each day of the week: Pasta on Monday, Sandwiches on Tuesday, etc.
Seriously.
It’s all good advice, but I wish someone would have just said, “There is not a perfect solution. This is what I do, but don’t try to copy me if it stresses you out. If this method stresses you out, the problem is in the method NOT YOU. You are not defective just because my menu planning strategy isn’t working for you.”
So now that I have said to you what I wish all the perfect mommy bloggers had said to me, I will briefly explain my menu planning strategy to you. You can copy me and I can give you more details if you want, but you don’t have to do this.
For me, I have learned that getting off the computer is a defining factor in my meal planning success. The internet is a wealth of resources, but it is too distracting for me for this task. If I sit down to find recipes online, I will waste hours reading blogs, facebook, and nothing at all. And I won’t have a menu plan when all is said and done, but I will be plenty discouraged and frustrated. Ask Clay if you don’t believe me. I’ll say stupid things like, “I don’t know how to menu plan. It’s so much work. I just can’t figure it out. It’s so overWHELMing!” When I should just be saying, “I have Internet Attention Deficit Disorder! Please help me out of this pit!”
So here’s what I do.
-I made a calendar template in a spreadsheet, so I print a copy, and write my dates in for the month.
-I sit down with real, physical cookbooks and find meals I want to make. If I remember any must-try recipes that I saw on Pinterest, I will find them. Then I get off Pinterest, FAST!
-I write the meals in pencil for the whole month.
-I designate one meal per weekday, and two meals per weekend day.
-I plan for every single day. Meals get switched around often, hence the pencil. This plan is open to change, but typically is not open to eating out, unless it’s written into the plan. By the end of the month I will probably have a week’s worth of meals that I never had a chance to make because of plans changing. Perfect! That makes things even easier when I make the next month’s menu because I have a week of ideas that I can just transfer to the next month.
-I make a shopping list in my phone.
-I do one big grocery shop for the month, which includes up to two weeks worth of produce. It has worked splendidly the last two times that I spend enough on the big shop at Superstore to get the free $25 gift card with purchase, which helps pay for produce and other perishable foods later in the month.
-I do the big shop after the kids go to bed – it is a beautiful thing that Superstore is open late. Then the kids come with me for the smaller weekly trips when we just need to pick up milk, apples, or whatever else we are low on.
Simple, right?
Don’t copy me if you don’t think so.