Shelley's Swag: Free Nasaflo Neti Pot

These really help and it was easy to sign up for.

Shelley's Swag: Free Nasaflo Neti Pot: "Free Nasaflo Neti Pot
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Posted by ~Shelley~ at 12:14 PM"

Chicken Pasta Italiano

Supper tonight...served with a salad...very yummy....I substituted 2 cans of diced tomatoes, drained for the whole tomatoes, regular bacon instead of turkey bacon and gluten free pasta instead of whole wheat pasta.  I also used only 8oz of pasta and added a chopped zucchini(gluten free pasta is sort of expensive)

Chicken Pasta Italiano
 Serves 6
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound whole wheat spaghetti
1/2 pound turkey bacon
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
8 cloves garlic, pressed
4 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons sherry (or additional low sodium chicken broth)
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a skillet over high heat until crisp; drain and crumble. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings and reduce skillet heat to medium-high; add garlic and chicken to pan drippings and cook, stirring frequently, for about 4 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove chicken from the pan and set aside. Add tomatoes, chicken broth, sherry (or additional broth), Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes to the pan; cook for 3 to 4 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Return chicken to the pan and heat through. To serve, spoon chicken/tomato mixture over cooked and drained pasta; top with bacon and Parmesan cheese.

Potty training a princess update

I am AMAZED at how quickly Caitlin is catching on.  She is doing so well.  I had to update and let you know...she made a bm in the toilet again today...no accidents thank goodness.  That was the worst part of training the two older boys and I know that will be the worst part of training JR.  I am so thankful that its easy for her because that makes it easy for me.

My hubby has a job!!

After two years of unemployment and no luck re-entering the managerial field my husband went back to school and got his CDL license.  Today he got a job driving a regional run for Werner Enterprises.  He will leave on the 23rd for an eight week training session in Des Moines.  That's gonna stink.  Then he'll be assigned a regional run where he should be home most weekends.  I am proud of him for being willing to bend with the economy and not let it get him down!!!

My famous Missourian

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Jake is in fourth grade this year and the big project for them is doing a famous Missourian project.  They have to do a written report, oral report, poster and they have to take part in the "living history" museum.  Jake loved every minute of it.  We went to school this morning for the finale and found him posed against the gym wall(lovely red color for my picture huh?).  I wish I would have taken a picture of that...it was cute.  He had a green dot sticker on his hand and when we pushed his "button" he came to life, presented his report, and sank back into his "pose".  I'm proud of how well he did.  He was Wild Bill Hickok, by the way.  Interesting character.

Preschool is back in session!

I am finally feeling well enough that I went downstairs to our school area and got a lesson ready for c and j tomorrow.  I almost had what my mom used to call a "conniption fit".  The kids have totally demolished my nice clean basement.  I know what we will be doing this weekend.  I cleaned up enough to make room for our activities and we are going to learn about the letter d and the number 2 tomorrow.  A simple plan but one that I could put together quickly and that they will enjoy.  When I asked if they were ready to start preschool again tonight they both cheered and danced around so I know how important it is quickly becoming for them to have that dedicated learning time.

Asthma kiddo take two and a rundown of a busy day!

I started the day off at the allergy doc for JR.  He has been on oral steroids for his asthma three times already this year so it was time for an action plan and something to curb the craziness(craziness referring to a four year old on steroids....talk about climbing the wall).  The visit went well.  She ended up putting him on flovent, a drug that asthma kiddo take one(oldest son) takes during the spring and fall months, so I am well acquainted with it.  The bad thing is that we had his two therapy appointments after that so we were at the hospital from 8 am until 12:30 pm.  By time we got home we were all three frazzled(did I mention I had to take the two year old too because Jim had a job interview) so we went through the drive thru at Burger King and went straight down for a nap.

A note about Burger King...mostly to myself....if you are on a gluten free diet and you decide to eat at burger king............do NOT eat breaded chicken and onion rings just because you are worn out and hungry beyond belief.  I sank into a "gluten" coma...the fog descended, the joints are achy, I bloated up like a balloon..yuck.  Next time I think I'll go to wendy's and have a baked potato!!!  Not worth it.  I'm wondering how long its going to take the "glutenated" feeling to go away???  We shall see.

I got an appointment with the developmental pediatrician!!!  August 9, so the clock is ticking.  That's not as bad as I was thinking it could be.  They said to expect three hours..argh.  Ah well.

On the illness front...I feel like I am at about 80% recovered.  It feels so good not to be coughing all the time. I haven't had an asthma flare up like that in quite awhile.

I hope your day was blessed in some way and I look forward to hopping around and reading everyone's blogs.  This definitely becomes habit forming!

Bobbi

ps.....Caitlin only had 1 accident today and that included all the time at the hospital waiting on JR's appointments!!!  Potty dance anyone??

Potty training a princess--warning...contains "potty talk"

Today I started the down and dirty process of potty training my princess.  We have had the basics down for awhile and just haven't done the "cold turkey, no more diapers" part yet.  So when she woke up this morning I told her that she was too big for her princess pullups and mommy had gotten her some "princess panties".  The first words out of her mouth?  "I don't like a princess panties, I don't like a princess panties.  I want my princess pullup I not want a princess panties"  Sigh.  she definitely has a mind of her own.  She was dry though so I just proceeded to carry her to the bathroom and sit her on the toilet.  Way to go...success on our first try of the day. Fast forward an hour.  We are sitting at the dining room table and she announces that she has to go potty(yay for her), but not in time.....flood on my dining room chair...straight through the cushion.  She was NOT HAPPY.  There were many tears and lots of very fast talking about not liking princess panties.  I dried her tears and we picked out another pair of the dreaded princess panties.  She did so good the rest of the afternoon.  I reminded her about every 45 minutes or so. She went on the potty all day.  I did put her in a pullup for nap and she was wet when she woke up, but right back to the panties we went.

Fast forward again...to after supper...Mommy has to go to the store.  I hurried...I really did. When I got back she had pooed in her underwear.  I was just thrilled to be greeted that way.  Ugh.  I cleaned her up with much talk about how we put the poo in the pot.  She was all tears and "I'm sorries"(that's her big thing....great big crocodile tears and I'm sorry over and over).  I had her all cleaned up and was going to deal with the mess and get more offensive princess panties when she FELL IN THE TOILET.  She never forgets to put her little adapter up, but she sure did this time.  A wail that rose the hairs on my neck came from the bathroom and I raced back just in time to see her pulling herself out of the "poopy water"  Can we say early bathtime? and another round of awful princess panties?  LOL....she's doing really good and I'm proud but the next few days are going to be interesting.

Fun Saving Money: Menu Plan Monday!

There are some really good recipes on this blog. Yummy...makes me want to go and cook....I mean eat...lol...

Fun Saving Money: Menu Plan Monday!

Crockpot Brisket — your homebased mom

Crockpot Brisket — your homebased mom: "I have said before I am not a huge fan of meat cooked in a crock-pot but I was pleasantly surprised with this recipe.

This�dish is so simple you really don’t need a recipe!

So here it goes:

Place your brisket in the crock-pot – mine was probably 3-4 lbs.� Actually I don’t really remember….

Squirt mustard over the top – I used a Spicy Brown Mustard but�Cindy used just regular old yellow mustard.� I just squiggled it over the top

Mix one package of Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix with one cup of water and pour over brisket

Cook on low for 8 hours!

It is great served with mashed potatoes (or so my family tells me as I don’t eat them – texture issues!)"

Motherless Mother's Day...but filled with joy anyway!

Today was a good day in spite of my missing my Momma so much.  I think that I did very well.  I focused on loving my kids and my husband and just went about as if it were any other day.  I do miss her, but I am so very thankful to know that she was saved and is in heaven waiting for us to join her.

I think my cough is slightly better though its really irritating just how long it is taking to resolve itself.  By time I finish the twelve days of prednisone, I'll be as big as a house.  It is making me so HUNGRY.  I could eat a horse.

I hope that your Mother's Day was blessed in its own way.  My dear husband and oldest son reworked our playground area, added a slide to our swingset, mulched the whole area and filled the sandbox with fresh clean sand.  What a mother's day blessing to be able to take the little ones outside and have a nicer place to play in!

Laptop worries

I guess its sad to say that it worried me but it did.  I came in and hit the power button and.......nothing....then an error message which took me in a loop of never ending nothingness.  I called my brother and he tried to help, but this time it was bad.  So I got on the geeksquad free help board and searched how to restore factory defaults.  Sigh....I wonder what I am missing.  The good news is that my laptop is functioning again.  The bad news is that I am starting from scratch.  I hope that I didn't lose anything important.

Our riding lawn mower played the same trick today.  It either needs a new carb. or clutch...hmmm...and hubby is going to be gone for 8 weeks.  He is going to by ds1 a push mower.  That's probably safer anyway.  I wonder if it will take him all day to get the yard mowed that way though.  We shall see.

Tomorrow is mother's day.  I am happy and sad.  I have four wonderful children to celebrate and one wee babe in heaven.  My Momma is in heaven too though and therein is the sad part.  I miss her so and mother's day was always more between she and I than between me and my kids.  I guess its time for some new traditions.  I hope that not too many people call me tomorrow...I think I'm hoping for a quiet mother's day.

My Asthma is still flared.  Day 4 of oral steroids.  I did much better today but I overdid it.  Now I'm coughing something terrible again and breathing through straws.  I took some cough syrup with codeine in it and I'm waiting for that to start working.  I did take my inhaler too, but the codeine helps at night.

Well, this has been a negative post so maybe I should think of a couple of good things to add in.

I took the babies to Lowe's Build and Grow workshop this morning.  We built a planter with a trellis to put a flower in for mom.  They LOVE the Lowe's workshop and ask each time we pass by there if they can go and  hammer something.   The planters turned out really cute.

The boys and Jim helped my brother pack up some more things from their house(they are moving from across the street from us to another state).  What a sweet thing to see my big guys banding together in work and serving another family.

I think that's all for now.  I hope you have a blessed mother's day.  I'm going to focus on soaking in the hugs and kisses and enjoying my family.