Friday, October 22, 2010

It's been so long!

It's been a while since I last posted on here! I haven't been doing my giveaways as much. Just been busy with Charlotte and lots of stuff going on. I've been fall cleaning in my house. I borrowed my parents shark steamer and cleaned so much of my house! I just know we'll be stuck inside more and I want it clean and disinfected to keep us all healthy these next 5 or 6 cold months. Plus Scott and I have decided we're not gonna paint. Just too difficult with the dog and Charlotte. So we've reconfigured our office/extra bedroom, living room and some stuff in our kitchen. It makes all 3 rooms much more open and a lot less cluttered. I just tried to organize a bit better since we have been here 2 1/2 yrs. So things look good and when Charlotte lets me keep it clean it looks pretty dang nice. We've also hung a bunch of pics. Our marriage certificate is finally on the wall. Our temple pics are hanging. The wood signs I have are hanging up too. I also purchased some more temple pics including the first presidency and quorum of the twelve. Our house looks so much better.

I've also become officially addicted to ebay. I got my new 160gb ipod  for cheaper. It was all factory sealed. So sweet. I've also won a skirt, bought some scentsy samples for really cheap, won a cheap 6 c. food processor I have yet to receive and try, won Scott a pair of shoes for just over $10 and some stove burner covers. It's my new friend. All these years its been around and just now I'm discovering it. I also am in love with the dollar store. Got all my halloween decorations there. I got some hanging skeleton things to hang from the gutter by our walkway and some orange paper lanterns. Scott's cousin also posted about how she uses glow sticks instead of candles for pumpkins. The dollar store sells those so I bought a bunch for our pumpkins and for the jars I made. I'm gonna place them on our walkway. If I had a blacklight I could do some cool stuff. I should check with my parents.

I'm just amazed what I've been able to find between the dollar store and ebay to help improve our home. I love it. If you haven't tried either of those for ideas.... seriously.... check 'em out. I have loads of time tonight to surf ebay since Scott is gone on a campout and Charlotte's been down since about 8:30 so it's me and dog in my bed and he better not hog it all! But yeah....I'll be on ebay seeing what other amazing deals I can find! I love my new skirts! I should post them sometime.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Texas Ranch Style Stew

This is another recipe from my Everyday Light Meals cookbook. It's yummy, its easy, and I like that its flexible. I think you could add additional veggies or any beans to fit your taste. So here we go:

1 c small shell pasta (I use whole wheat medium... its all I can find in whole wheat in Winco's bulk section)
1 lb. lean ground beef ( Like I've said many times I prefer ground turkey)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced (I don't have time to be mincing up garlic so I use the pre-packed stuff)
3 cans (5 1/2 oz each) reduced sodium V8 juice
1 can (15 oz) ranch style beans or baked beans, undrained (I use kidney beans instead. I think they are heartier plus when we were on WIC I stocked up on a lot of those and chick peas so yeah... I use what I have already)
1 can (14 1/2 oz) southwestern diced tomatoes, undrained (you can buy the name brands that way or look for the cheap store brand that is diced tomatoes with green chilis... way cheaper)
1/2 c frozen corn, thawed (I love corn. I'll add a cup or more)
1 tbsp chili powder (I thought this might be much for Charlotte but it doesn't make it too spicy and she still eats it up)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, cook the beef, onion, bell pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta. Stir into the stew. Then serve it up!
Sometimes we like to add a little grated sharp cheddar on top. Or we'll do leftovers with some tortilla chips with melted cheese. I love this recipe because you can really do a lot with it. You can add extra veggies or maybe add a little cumin to it. So many options. Hope you guys enjoy!