Heavenly Homemakers

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 28-February 3, 2024

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It’s time for our Big Family Food and Fun: January 28-February 3 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: January 28-February 3, 2024

Because our church building is undergoing major repairs due to a frozen pipe and flood, we will be meeting for worship with our church family at a different location on Sunday afternoons for the next several weeks. It’s different, but we sure are thankful to be together with our church family again!

With the change in Sunday schedule, I decided to make Pancakes, Eggs, and Sausage for lunch that day before we left. Josie helped me count the cups of water we added to the mix.

Keith helped me whisk it together.

And we had a great feast.

Unfortunately, while trying to get everyone fed, some of our kids had some pretty severe behavior struggles. We can never predict what might trigger these larger melt-downs and this particular day, my heart felt broken to pieces after dealing with them.

Our babies have so many hurt places to deal with and I just hate it. I was so glad to spend time in worship right after this, and I just cried through the songs. Their words were perfect to minister to me, knowing that we serve a Savior who rescues and heals us. He will do this for our children. Oh how I hurt for their hurt.

It was good to hug friends after church that we hadn’t seen for quite a while because of the harsh weather. Then Justus and Kelsey came over to have a Snacky Dinner with us.

We had Cream Cheese Salsa Dip with chips, carrots, pickles, leftover tuna, fruit cups, and cookie bars that I made from a mix we got at Christmastime.

Monday morning we got Brayden and Kiya off to school, then Eva came over to help! Keith and I packed up some snacks for him to eat on the way, then headed to help set up food for the next day’s Food Distribution.

Is he setting up the food or is he building towers? The answer is yes.

We arrived home to find Anna feeding BabyBoy#11 his bottle, while Eva made sure no one dropped any babies off the couch.

Now that Acacia and Josie are 3 1/2 and 2 1/2, they have decided that afternoon naps are for babies and Matt and I have decided to stop fighting the losing battle. Booooo.

So we let them watch a show for a while in the afternoons so that we can at least have a short minute of breathing time, then I took them into the kitchen with me to do some food prep. Acacia crunched up some cornflakes for me while I mixed up Peanut Butter Honey Puff ingredients for a snack.

After everyone got home from school, Kiya started her homework and Elias grabbed Brayden to head off for some “Bro Time.” (I mentioned last week that we’ve hired Elias to spend some very intentional one-on-one time with Brayden to help meet some of his needs. It’s going fabulously.) This particular day, they headed to Barnes and Noble to look around at games and books. Brayden comes home ten feet taller after these outings.

Meanwhile, I’m able to use this time to pour more intentionally into the others. Anna and Acacia were happy to fold kitchen towels and washrags for me.

I wrote out my Easy Egg Casserole recipe for Kiya. She read through it, and I got out measuring cups and spoons to show her more details about how to use them. Then she put the entire casserole together almost completely on her own. She has decided that she loves cooking and can’t wait to learn more!

After she finished putting together the casserole, we set it into the fridge to bake Tuesday morning for breakfast. Then she started to butter hoagie buns for dinner.

For dinner that night I had made a Crock Pot full of Spicy Ham and Potato Soup with leftover ham from last week. 

Then we toasted the buns Kiya had buttered and spread jelly over them for our dessert.

Tuesday morning I was up early and put Kiya’s Egg Casserole into the oven to bake while I had my God time. Once all the kids got up, we ate it with pears and leftover pancakes from Sunday. It tasted great!

For a morning outing, we went to a Music and Movement Library Storytime. Then we played with some of the library learning toys for a while before heading home.

Late that morning, we had a visit from BabyBoy#11’s CASA who has been with us through several of our kids’ cases. She loves seeing all the kids’ progress (and we appreciate hearing her perspective since we are living through the day-to-day and don’t always see progress through the messes). The girls had fun vising with her while they ate avocado cups and applesauce.

It was gorgeous outside so we got to play in the sunshine and get nice and muddy. :)

After school, I took Brayden and Kiya to Food Distribution to hand out food. Before clients started to come through the line, I was able to sneak in a quick photo of the kids setting up their tables so that you can see a little snippet of what the set-up looks like. Brayden got to hand out boxes of crackers this week and Kiya gave out different varieties of meat. I can’t say enough to share how good this service opportunity has been for our kids.

Back at home, Elias and Matt were holding down the fort. Elias warmed up leftover Pizza Casserole from last week for everyone to eat for dinner. We got home and handed out some grapes and berries we’d been given at Food Distribution and the kids acted like they’d never eaten fruit before. :)

Wednesday was GLORIOUS. The beginning of January gave us negative temps and the last day of the month gave us high 50s. Amazing! We got ready to head out for the morning, but before we did, everyone took turns scrubbing potatoes to put into the crock pot for our dinner.

They took their jobs very seriously.

It takes FOR.EV.ER to get out the door any time we go anywhere. Shoes, man. Finding this many shoes (that have a matching pair), and getting everyone a jacket, and packing snacks, not forgetting the baby’s bottle…

Leaving the house is such an ordeal every time. But then it’s always worth it!!! We went to a skateboard park so that we could play outside at a park but avoid mud from all the melting snow. This was perfect! We took Keith’s skateboard, Anna’s bike, and Acacia’s and Josie’s little scooters. But then, of course, they mostly just climbed all over the cement mountains. :)

We got home in time to eat a few bites of lunch before sending Keith and Anna out the door for the preschool bus. Then we cleaned the kitchen and took Acacia and Josie over to our friend Kathi’s house to spend part of the afternoon.

Matt and I have been praying that we’d find a few more people we could call on for babysitting as the girls stopped napping and we are rather exhausted from the pace we keep. It’s been hard to get much work done beyond parenting tantrums and dealing with poop.

God answered with not one, but two different people who are kind and willing to helps us out a few afternoons each week. We are so thankful! As I write this sentence, only BabyBoy#11 is home and he is asleep. The quiet house is life giving and needed!

Meanwhile, this is how I left the girls today. Ms. Kathi had a lovely assortment of activities for them to enjoy.

The weather was so incredible that the kids played outside all afternoon when they all got home while I made Smoked Chicken. We ate it with salad, corn, stir fried veggies, and watermelon. I had made Baked Potatoes in the crock pot but they weren’t done cooking by dinnertime, so we had buttered rolls instead.

Justus and Malachi came over and ate with us (followed by a piano lesson for Brayden by Justus). I plated up some leftovers to send back with each of them for Kelsey and my nephew Troy since they couldn’t come over to join us. We’d eaten most of the food, but at least they got some of the amazing chicken!

Thursday morning for breakfast, I made two loaves of French Toast like this. No need for syrup when it’s this good all by itself. :)

Keith spent some time with gloves and a shovel clearing out more melting snow. He enjoyed this work so much that I could hardly get him inside when it was time to get ready for the bus to come.

After school that day, Elias took Brayden out for some Bro Time so Kiya and I hit the kitchen for more cooking lessons. The little girls joined us too, of course. Today, Kiya learned how to make Chewy Granola Bars. This involved learning to turn on the stove and stay safe with the heat.

They turned out great!

Meanwhile, I made a big jar of Ranch Dressing Mix to use with our dinner.

The Baked Potatoes we attempted the night before got turned into Potato and Bacon Foil Packs for this night’s dinner because it was beautiful enough to grill again.

While they cooked, Kiya helped me make Pineapple Fluff Salad for a side dish.

What is the best part of helping cook? Licking the spatula. Of course.

Josie had been puttering around and found one of our waffle irons. She sat down and started using it as a laptop. It was the CUTEST.

Dinner that night was Potato and Bacon Foil Packs, Green Beans, Salad, and Pineapple Fluff Salad.

Elias sent me this as the two of them headed home from their outing to enjoy dinner with us.

Friday morning I made Eggs in a Nest for breakfast before getting Brayden off to his early morning Ukulele class, Matt off to York for the day, then Kiya off to school. Elias wasn’t feeling well so Malachi came over to help me hold down the fort while they were gone.

We spent some time getting Malachi’s empty room cleaned up for company over the weekend. The kids had too much fun with the extra mattress that kept “accidentally” falling on them.

At noon I had a big IFSP meeting for the two youngest kids (IFSPs are like IEPs for kids under age 3). So we made a couple of Frozen Pizzas for an early lunch then Malachi was a rock star chasing kids while I spent two hours in the meeting. Phew.

With Matt being gone, we kept dinner simple too. I cooked a package of hotdogs and made these smoothies so we’d get some veggies in us. Kiya helped make Baked Beans because she’s enjoying the kitchen so much and wants to help at every meal now. :)

Saturday morning we had cereal, yogurt, and fruit plus leftover Chewy Granola Bars.

We headed to our favorite Sensory Friendly Storytime. Check out Brayden sharing his coat with Keith as they walked in.

Everyone got to pick a special sensory chair to sit in.

Afterward, Ms. Diane, the librarian, pulled out special sensory-friendly hand-on toys. Truly, this is an amazing option we love to take advantage of here in Lincoln!

We spent time in the main area of the library also, thinking we’d just be there a few minutes. But the kids got very involved playing Post Office and we ended up mailing packages for an hour!

On our way home, Matt remembered that we had some Free Kids Meals coupons that we’d been given way back in October. Today was a good day to cash them in! So he bought one adult meal and we got five free kids’ meals. The kids were so excited about this treat!

There was a special showing of Charlotte’s Web at the theatre for only $3 that afternoon, plus someone gave us two free vouchers. So Elias helped us out and took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith there during afternoon rest time. What a day – restaurant food AND a movie at the theatre!

While they were gone and the youngest four were resting, I cleaned. Hello mop. Thank you for your service.

Meanwhile, Anna’s “nap”…

My brother and his family came to visit Troy so they were all here for dinner. Having them all in our living room was pretty great!

Asa and Eva were able to join us for dinner. (Justus and Kelsey came later. Malachi was filming a hockey game and couldn’t make it.)

For dinner I made 3-pounds of Meatballs, a double batch of 10-Minute Instant Pot Mac and Cheese, Cornbread, and Buttered Peas.

 

I had Chocolate Chip Cookies and Brownies in the freezer so we pulled those out for dessert.

And that was our week!

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Monthly Grocery Budget for 13 People

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Here it is! Our current grocery budget for 13 people living in our house right now.

First, let’s talk about inflation.

As I write this, it is January, 2024. Grocery prices have been creeping up, but here’s what I’ve noticed:

The food that has more greatly been affected by inflation are processed foods. Restaurant prices? WOW. Items in the frozen prepared food section of the store? Those prices shock me!! Cereal? Yikes. I used to rely on some of these more often as back-up options on days I am too worn out to cook. But I find that I buy fewer of these now because I just can’t justify spending the asking prices.

But be encouraged by this:

Some ingredient and fresh food prices have gone up also, but not so much that I feel any sort of shock while I’m buying groceries. Truly, basic grocery prices are still very, very reasonable and many still cost what they have cost for several years!

  • I can still buy Chicken Legs for $0.98/pound, just as they have been for quite some time.
  • Boneless Chicken Thighs are still around $3.50/pound, no change here!
  • Produce sales still give great savings – just take note of the sales and buy in season.
  • Stores still have marked down items that need to be sold quickly. Watch for those and take advantage. (Remember the $5 hams I found after Christmas?!)
  • There are still wonderful sale prices available at stores every week – giving us all great opportunities to buy our favorite foods at prices we feel good about. We just have to spend a little bit of extra time to watch for the sales.

But beyond inflation…

Have I been able to hold onto my $1,200/month grocery budget?

Sometimes. Oh how I’ve tried. The stubborn, frugal part of me has been so determined to avoid a budget increase. Some months I can easily stay under $1,200. Other months I go over quite a bit. I suppose it all averages out, but here’s what I realized:

It’s causing some stress and I’m overthinking. 

Now, there’s a lot to be said for determination, hard work to stay under budget, and finding great ways to save money on groceries. But my head spins too much keeping up with our family as it is. I finally bonked myself on the head and asked, “Why are you doing this to yourself?”

Ultimately, I’ve been trying to stay within our 2017, family-of-six budget EVEN AFTER DOUBLING our family size and adding more adults to our household (three gals who rent our third floor suites). Plus, our little kids are getting older and starting to eat more.

And there’s more to be considered: The rent amount we charge our three third floor housemates includes food. They are welcome to eat any and all meals with us, pack their work lunches and snacks from the food in our pantry/fridge – what’s ours is theirs. It’s part of the package, they are a part of our family, and it’s fantastic! But one must wonder: Why it has taken me so many months to consider the fact that some of that rent money should be added into our monthly grocery budget amount?

I just really like keeping our budget number as low as possible, I suppose. I like a challenge!

But I’m tired.

I need to give my budget brain some freedom. We eat A LOT OF FOOD at our house.

2024 Monthly Grocery Budget for 13 People

I just drank a cup of coffee, so let’s look at this with fresh eyes and an awake brain. What if I took some pressure off and bumped our grocery budget up to $1,400/month?

This would feed:

  • Six adults
  • Six kids
  • Lots of guests throughout the month
  • One year-old baby who still struggles to eat solids, is mostly covered by WIC, but not entirely and wow, formula is expensive.

I just did some calculating and wait. This can’t be right. $1,400 divided by 13 people is just $108-per-person-per-month?? THAT’S IT? Why have I waited so long to figure this out?

We can absolutely increase our Grocery Budget to $1,400/month. We are still eating so well for so little. And with this, we can easily feed all the precious extra people who join us at our table each week! It’s one of our favorite things to do!

More Math

I’m going to geek out some more. Thank you.

  • $1,400/month for 13 people = $108/person for the entire month
  • $108/person/month divided by 30 days in a month = $3.60/day
  • $3.60/person/day = $1.20/meal

Ok, Laura. This is a no-brainer. You should have made this move months ago.

Something important to note

There are three very significant items I need to point out about why I don’t need to increase our monthly budget amount even more:

  1. Our youngest four kids qualify for WIC because of their foster/adoption subsidy benefits. This blesses our family with some cheese, cereal, beans, juice, bread/pasta/rice, and produce – saving us around $180/month.
  2. We volunteer once a week at a Food Distribution and often bring leftovers home, which saves us a small, unknown amount, but saves us nonetheless. I haven’t had to buy bread, buns, or bagels for a very long time. This has been such a gift!
  3. I am an affiliate with Azure Standard. Typically this earns us $30 in Azure credit each month. I wait until the amount accumulates to somewhere over $100 then place an order for free. Such a blessing!

The Bottom Line

I don’t actually think much will change about how I grocery shop and buy all the food we need. But the grocery budget increase will relax my brain, and that’s what I need.

  • I’m still going to watch for and take advantage of deals and sales and markdowns.
  • I’m still going to buy the frozen pizza and other occasional convenience items we need so that I can give myself needed breaks as I feed all of us.

We have the money we need for this increase. —> If you’re curious, these are all the ways we don’t spend money so that we have enough money for groceries. We are so thankful for God’s provision!

Grocery Spending Total for January 2024

I decided to do the official calculations for this month since we just started a new year and because I wanted to see where I landed on our budget as January comes to a close. As it turns out, I spent:

  • $639 at Costco
  • $90 at Aldi
  • $112 at Walmart
  • $102 at for Amazon Subscribe and Save
  • $182 at Sam’s
  • and I ordered seven Domino’s pizzas once for $53

Grand total for January: $1,178

So after all that, I stayed under my old budget amount, and now I’m cracking up. :) :) :) Stay tuned for grocery spending updates as the weeks and months go by!

Care to share your household size and grocery budget? It’s always fun to see what works for other families!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 21-27, 2024

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Here’s our Food and Fun: January 21-27, 2024 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: January 21-27, 2024

Because of the extremely cold temps last week, our church building had a pipe burst and a lot of water damage. :( We are unable to use our building for a while now, so our ministry staff put together a worship service that we could stream online, and our church leaders organized families to meet together in people’s homes.

We were happy to open our home to whoever wanted to join us, so in preparation to host Sunday morning, I set out Bran Muffins I’d baked that morning, plus some Banana Muffins that were in our freezer.

I also made a pot of coffee and got out creamers and mugs.

We were thankful for the friends who gathered in our living room for worship that morning.

Our Kid’s Minister had organized a “Picnic with Pals” event for that day also. Since we couldn’t stay after church at our building to eat as originally planned, we all met at the Mall Food Court. The kids had helped me pack a picnic the day before. We ate cheese, turkey, crackers, pistachios, applesauce, juice, and cookie bites.

After we ate, several of us walked over to the Mall’s play area. It was so fun to burn off energy after so many days of being cooped up in the house. But the best part was being with friends. We are so thankful for the connections we are making here.

We watched a show when we got home so we could have some down time. Then for dinner I made a big Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole, using the leftover burgers I’d made last week. I topped it with leftover French Fried Onions I had in the pantry from Thanksgiving. This made the casserole so good! Also, not all of our kids like bacon so I left that on the side for people to stir in as desired.

After dinner that evening, I got Brayden and Kiya involved in scrubbing potatoes for our next day’s big meal. They are so capable of being big helpers, I just have to be intentional about involving them. They love it!

Monday morning we ate Bran Muffins that I cut in half, buttered, and warmed in the air fryer. They are so good this way! I also made several sheet pans of bacon and got out a container of yogurt to finish off.

Eva came over to help with kids that morning so I took Anna to an appointment then used my extra time to make a batch of Peanut Butter Honey Puffs. The kids love these, but mostly I make them because I’m addicted to them right now. :)

I took a photo of the smoothie full of greens I made that morning, just in case you were wondering if we still drink these every day. ;) For Matt and me, this blender-ful means survival. :)

Acacia has decided that she doesn’t need an afternoon nap any more. Ugh. So she and I did some baking during naptime. My plan was to make a double batch of Poppyseed Bread. But then I realized that I didn’t have poppyseeds or almond extract – both key ingredients in this recipe. So this turned out more like our knock-off Starbucks Lemon Loaf. It was delicious as our after dinner treat!

When the kids got home from school that afternoon, Elias figured out how to play our new Catan Junior game with them.

Malachi dropped by to pick up a few things. Just like when each of his older brothers left home and then came back for a visit, he seemed like a celebrity. :)

We’d been given two turkeys during the holiday season – one from the realtors who helped us buy our Castle and one from our foster care agency. I pulled one out of the freezer to thaw last week and baked it for dinner that night. We ate it with mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans. It was more work than a typical weeknight meal, but it was so good!

Unfortunately, we had a mix-up on getting leftovers put away so the leftover turkey got left out all night and wasted. Boohoohoo. :(

The good news is that I had already put the bones into the fridge and could still use them to make broth. I started cooking it during breakfast on Tuesday and it turned out great.

That morning, we had a home visit with our Speech Pathologist who comes to work with three of our kids. As you can see, the kids love her.

That afternoon I picked Brayden and Kiya up from school and we headed straight over to hand out food at the Food Distribution site where we volunteer. We had missed two weeks because of all the terrible weather and road conditions so it was so great to get back and see everyone. Now that we’ve been doing this for several months, we are starting to become acquainted with the clients who come through the food line each week. We love this.

I’m not able to have my phone out while people are coming through the line so I can’t show you pictures to describe the specifics of how this works. But local restaurants and grocery stores donate items that they can’t sell to an organization called Food Net. There are locations all over Lincoln throughout the week that give out this food to people who come at the designated pick-up times. The goal is that no food gets wasted and that no one goes hungry. It’s such a cool program and we’re so thankful we can serve in this way.

Volunteers are blessed with any excess, and often we come home with quite a bit of wonderful food.

We got some great bread and bagel items on Tuesday plus some fruit, sparkling water, chicken broth, and canned goods.

While Brayden, Kiya, and I are handing out food, Elias and Matt are home holding down the fort. I try to leave something easy for them to make for dinner while I’m gone. This week I left what I called “Taco Dip” which was all of last week’s Taco Bar leftovers stirred into a casserole like this. Elias warmed it up and scooped it onto plates with chips like this. It was so good!

Wednesday morning I made a pot of oatmeal and told the kids that after they ate theirs, they could have a Poptart. :) We’d been given a box of Organic Toaster Pastries at Food Distribution so this was very exciting!

The kids’ favorite way to eat oatmeal right now is with an overripe banana smashed up and stirred in.

Mid-morning we took our five littlest to a Music and Movement Storytime at one of our libraries. We got there early so we had time to play with the learning toys. The girls found the make-believe post office.

Meanwhile, Keith hung out at the Train Station.

The story time was SNOW themed this time. I tried to capture the fun they had dancing and singing with their snowflakes here…

Back at home, we decided that our table was a “charcuterie board” and just tossed out apples, clementines, nuts, and crackers for the kids to eat before the school bus came for Keith and Anna.

That afternoon, I baked Chocolate Cake full of spinach for our dessert that night. I topped it with this Cream Cheese Frosting, though instead of stevia I used a couple of tablespoons of powdered sugar just to lightly sweeten it.

I also cracked 24 eggs onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets to bake. Once they came out of the oven I sprinkled shredded cheese on top to melt.

Then I cut the eggs into squares and turned them into 24 Breakfast Sandwiches to have on hand. I’ve noticed that our third floor renters really enjoy grabbing these and warming them up for breakfast before heading to work. Elias, Brayden, and Matt really like them too. How long will 24 sandwiches last? I give them a week. :)

For dinner that night I made Smoked Sausage, Stir-Fried Veggies, leftover Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans, plus Mac and Cheese and Corn on the Cob we’d brought home from Food Distribution. Followed by Chocolate Cake of course.

I had to run out the door for Parent-Teacher-Conferences that evening, Justus and Kelsey came over to eat and to have a piano lesson with Brayden, and we had a lot of dishes to wash at the end of the day. That sums up Wednesday. :)

Thursday morning for breakfast I warmed up Sausage Links or Bacon, depending on kids’ preferences. Then we toasted and buttered some Cranberry Orange Bread we’d been given at the Food Distribution plus I sliced apples.

Mid-morning we piled all the littlest kids into the van and went to the Zoo Play Place to burn off energy.

We had freeze dried apples, crackers, and juice for a snack while we were there.

That afternoon, Elias took Brayden out for some one-on-one time (something we’ve decided to employ him to do a couple afternoons each week to help with some of B’s extra needs). So I used that time to pour extra energy into Kiya. We read through my fun new (old) cookbook and picked a recipe to make together. She learned about measuring cups and some simple, cooking basics and she LOVED IT. So did I. :)

I had put together a huge pan of Pizza Casserole that morning, so it baked while Kiya and I made her snack. We steamed broccoli to go with it.

That evening, one of our housemates, Abby, went out for dinner with some of our York friends, Melody and Alice. Abby returned home with a special bag for us from Melody – a 4-pint package of Culvers Ice Cream!!! Such a sweet surprise!

Friday is a big blur as Matt and Elias went to work in York for the day. Malachi came over and helped me with the kids, but I got no photos of our day because we were mostly in survival mode. We decided to take advantage of a Domino’s Pizza special offer for dinner. We knew we’d have up to 16 people joining us that evening, so I ordered seven larges, paid for them online, and my nephew Troy picked them up and delivered them for us at dinner time. He then grabbed the Baby and chased preschoolers and toddlers and basically, he was the hero of the night. :)

By the way, seven large two-topping pizzas that night only cost $53 – a pretty sweet deal!

Matt and Elias brought our Bonus Boy (former foster son) back from York with them Friday evening so that we could enjoy the weekend with him. Saturday morning we took all 8 kids to our favorite Sensory Story Time at one of our libraries.

BabyBoy#11 was soooooo cute, crawling up to the front where Librarian Diane was singing and reading and doing fun action games with us. He sat there the entire time, just like he was one of the big kids. :)

We then did something a bit crazy, but what do you do when you are almost out of milk, eggs, and formula?? We took all 8 kids into Walmart, oy. It was a good outing but wow, not one we want to enjoy regularly. I got zero pictures of the shopping time or groceries because we were keeping everyone alive and trying not to scan groceries twice. Also, Walmart on a Saturday?? WHY? But at least we now have milk, eggs, and formula. :)

I had made a big bowl of Tuna Salad before we left so as soon as we got home, we made sandwiches for lunch.

Our friend Katie came by for a visit and while we chatted, she washed dishes and swept my kitchen floor. SO SWEET!!

We had a couple extra friends over that afternoon so after they did crafts and painted nails (hello, we have girls now!!), we let them watch a movie. I made popcorn for everyone, and as it started popping out into the machine, Anna laughed and laughed!!

Dinner that night was one of our $5.00 Hams, along with Mac and Cheese and Peas.

It was time to get ready for bed after that, and that wraps up our week!

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Costco or Aldi: Which Has Better Prices?

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Have you ever been curious about the bottom line here? Costco or Aldi: Which has better prices?

Back when we lived an hour away from both Costco and Aldi, at most I could hit each of these stores once per month. Now that we live in Lincoln, I can go wherever, whenever. Hahaha, I mean, if you don’t consider the fact that getting out of the house and to the store EVER is quite the feat.

How many carts does it take to contain all of the Coppinger children??

Two. And then let’s hope there’s still room in the carts for groceries.

If I move a few mountains, I can get out of the house all by myself to buy groceries. This still sometimes requires two carts, but that’s only because I don’t have kids with me and will therefore buy as much as I can because of the “convenience” of shopping on my own.

Our current grocery budget

There are currently 12 people living in our home and our grocery budget is hanging in there at $1,400/month. You can read details about this here.

Now that we’ve lived in Lincoln for over half-a-year, I feel like I’m finding my groove just a bit when it comes to knowing which prices are better at which store.

My favorite places to shop in Lincoln are: Costco, Aldi, Sam’s

I pick up our WIC items at Walmart because I’ve found that to be the easiest and because the three above-mentioned stores don’t work with our WIC cards.

There are a few items I can only get at Sam’s. This post details that info. But for today…

Costco or Aldi: Which Has Better Prices?

Now, it all depends on what you’re going for. In my experience, non-organic items at Aldi are less expensive than almost all Costco items. But the quality of most of those Aldi items are subpar and I’ve found that it’s not always worth the savings. I mean, have I really saved money if I buy cheaper grapes at Aldi but then have to throw half of them away because they got moldy right away?

Here are the items I’ve cost compared and where I’ve landed on purchase preference. Prices tend to fluctuate so I won’t share specific costs, but will instead note what I’ve learned about which store has the better overall price.

Grassfed Butter – Both stores have a Kerry Gold knock-off and wow are they good! Best price: Aldi

Tip: Watch for it to go on sale during the holidays and stock up. It freezes well!

Cream Cheese – As of 2024, I’ve stopped buying cream cheese at Aldi and have discovered that Costco’s brand of cream cheese is less money and delicious! Best price: Costco

Regular Butter – Best price: Depends on the day – watch for sales at both stores and stock up when they are discounted!

Shredded Cheese – Aldi has regular-sized pouches whereas Costco has bulk-sized (5-pound) pouches. Shredded cheese freezes well, so buying the bigger pouches works even if you don’t go through it quickly. Best price: Costco

Nitrite-Free Lunch Meat – Both stores carry a nice variety of healthier lunch meats. They freeze well so it works to buy in bulk. Best price: Costco

Organic Chicken Broth – Both stores have good quality organic broth that I like to have on hand for easy soups and casseroles. Costco’s price wins by a few cents per container. Best price: Costco

Organic Salsa – Both stores have tasty organic salsa, but Aldi’s is significantly cheaper. Best price: Aldi

Canned Corn – Cost per can of corn is about the same at both stores, but Costco’s is better quality. So in my book… Best price: Costco

Applesauce Pouches – By far every variety of these is cheaper at Costco. We go through these like crazy at our house! Best price: Costco

Why yes, I do buy my bulk in bulk…

Organic Pasta Sauce – Both stores have very tasty pasta sauces and both are high quality. Hands down though, Aldi’s is cheaper. I buy 6-12 jars at a time! Best price: Aldi

Rotel – Cost per can of Rotel at Costco and the Aldi knock-off are about the same. Because the price is the same, I prefer to buy a case at Costco because we go through a lot of it and it’s easier to buy by the case. Best price: Both

Organic Coconut Oil – There is no comparison on this one – Costco’s oil is much, much less per ounce compared to Aldi. Granted, Costco’s is an 84-ounce tub vs. Aldi’s 14-ounce jar. The bulk option saves a large amount of money! Best price: Costco

Organic Olive Oil – Again, you’ll have to buy a larger quantity to enjoy the savings. But I find that it’s worth it! Best price: Costco

Cage Free Eggs – I like to buy the 5-dozen packs at Costco because we go through eggs so quickly at our house. As it turns out, they are less money this way. Best price: Costco

Whole Milk – I buy many gallons of milk each week and while I know the cheapest price is at Aldi, I can’t go there every week. I just pick it up wherever I happen to be that week. But best price: Aldi

Half & Half – Do you want organic or non-organic? If you want organic, best price: Costco. If you aren’t particular and are ok with non-organic, best price: Aldi

4% Cottage Cheese – We like whole milk cottage cheese at our house and have found that price per ounce is less expensive at Aldi. Best price: Aldi

Grocery Shopping Cheat-Sheet

Here’s a quick summary of each item I mentioned above and what is cheaper at which store:

Costco

Shredded Cheese
Regular Butter
Nitrite-Free Lunch Meat
Organic Chicken Broth
Canned Corn
Rotel
Organic Coconut Oil
Organic Olive Oil
Cage-Free Eggs
Applesauce Pouches
Cream Cheese

Aldi

Grass-Fed Butter
Regular Butter
Organic Salsa
Organic Pasta Sauce
Rotel
Whole Milk
Half & Half
4% Cottage Cheese

Obviously this doesn’t cover every grocery item. And both Costco and Aldi carry specific products that the other doesn’t carry, making it impossible to compare.

I love and appreciate both stores! Hopefully these price comparisons are helpful to you as they are to me!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 14-20, 2024

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: January 14-20, 2024 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: January 14-20, 2024

Last week was full of Snow Days, below zero temps, and a bit of going stir crazy while being cooped up day after day with so many littles. Church services on Sunday were canceled. By the day before, the roads were finally starting to be cleared out somewhat. So we decided to text some families to see who might be ready to venture out and make their way to our house for worship and fellowship.

Altogether, there were 28 of us gathered in our living room. It was so very beautiful to enjoy this time together. Kids played and were engaged at the same time. It was awesome.

I had made a roaster full of White Chicken Chili and Applesauce Muffins to share. Plus I put Saturday night’s leftover Spaghetti and baked it with cheese on top for an additional option for people to enjoy. I made 12 Sub Sandwiches with turkey, bacon, and cheese then toasted them and cut them in half. Friends who came brought Pigs in a Blanket, Cookies, Homemade Bread, Crackers, and we all had a wonderful feast!

Several families stuck around for a good part of the afternoon to visit and play games.

Monday the kids didn’t have school because of MLK Day. For breakfast, I baked several pans of bacon, fried leftover baked potatoes, and rewarmed leftover French Toast. I also made a blender full of these smoothies so our kids could be filled with veggies and fruit.

Mid-afternoon, Keith requested Breakfast Cookies. He was so excited to help me, and it was a great idea. So we made a double batch.

They turned out tasty, but for some reason all the cookies I’m making in this oven aren’t turning out pretty. I still feel like I’m getting used to my Castle oven. :)

Eva came over that morning to help with kids. Brayden and Kiya had fun playing games with her. And it was because she was there helping that Keith and I were able to make our Breakfast Cookies. :)

We warmed up leftover mac and cheese and Pizza Chicken Bake for lunch with sliced oranges and cucumbers.

That afternoon, Malachi finished packing and loading up all of his stuff. He and his cousin, Troy, have been making plans to rent an apartment together here in Lincoln. And Monday – cold as it was – was moving day. Snifffffff. I’m super happy for Malachi, just as I was when his three older boys left for college and got to venture out on their own. But I cried just the same, just as I did for his three older brothers. I just really, really like my kids. :)

And yes, he’s just moving across town so I’ll see him often. Which is why he chuckled at my tears.

Currently living at our house right now: Matt and me, Elias, Brayden, Kiya, Keith, Anna, Acacia, Josie, BabyBoy#11, plus three gals who rent our three third floor suites. We frequently have our adult kids coming and going plus lots of friends in and out. This Castle God gave us is such a blessing. :)

Back to our Food and Fun…

That afternoon, Justus and Kelsey came over and they, along with Eva, started doing some freezer cooking. By the end of the afternoon we’d made a huge bunch of Breakfast Sandwiches, Burritos, and four pans of Creamy Salsa Enchiladas.

For dinner that night, I baked our pan of Creamy Salsa Enchiladas and served it with canned fruit, fresh spinach, and buttered corn. We’d gotten a fun M&M Cookie Mix in a Jar for Christmas so we baked those for dessert.

Our kids were going a little bit nuts (Matt and I were fine though, hahaha) because of being copped up in the house for so many days. So we let the kids play in the bathtub until they got wrinkled that night, just because we needed some kind of indoor activity and change of pace. As we pulled them out and jammied them up for bed, Matt made popcorn for a bedtime snack.

Tuesday morning was guess what? Another snow day. We lazed around watching a show that morning, then ate some of the Breakfast Sandwiches that Justus had made the day before plus some of the Breakfast Cookies.

As a way to provide some structure and learning to our day after having SO MANY DAYS away from school, I decided that we would have a “Pretend Homeschool Day.” I pulled out activity books and put together Learning Packets for Brayden, Kiya, and Keith. They loved this!

They spent a full hour and a half on their packets, taking their jobs very seriously. I was thankful God had given me the inspiration to do this that morning.

While the “big kids” were doing their school work, Matt hung out with the littler ones. Magnatiles are the best.

Meanwhile, Kelsey had managed to slowly make the drive over to help us out, praise God. She had stopped at the store for us on her way, picking up much needed formula and milk – plus construction paper and balloons!

 

Just before lunch, I read a Magic School Bus book to the kids for a “science lesson.” After lunch, I found the episode that went along with this book on Netflix so they got to watch that and have fun learning more about the Human Body.

Lunch was leftovers, heated up by Kelsey. We all chose from Beanie Weanies, Taco Soup, and Ham and Potato Soup.

Keith helped me make dinner that night. He was so proud of how he poured the sauce on the chicken all by himself.

He also helped me make a double batch of Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins. These made a great snack that afternoon plus a great addition to our dinner that night.

The temps were still ridiculously cold, but Kelsey bundled up with the kids and went outside anyway. It had been days and days since they’d been outside and they were needing the fresh air. Most of the kids only lasted a short time, but Brayden hung in there for about an hour. Phew1

Dinner that night was Barbecue Chicken, Green Beans, 10-Minute Mac and Cheese, and Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins.

It was a loud and crazy mealtime (louder and crazier than normal) because several of the kids had refused naps that day and were cranky. Matt had to go to our church building to help with a frozen pipe flooding mess. <— This has turned into quite an ordeal as the building now has a lot of damage.

A friend had come by for dinner, so she got to help with babies, bless her. Our three housemates helped with babies. Kelsey stayed to help with babies and helped me get them all to bed. It was a pretty crazy evening.

Oh! Also, my brother, Kevin, had come to town from Kansas to help his son Troy move into the apartment he is sharing with Malachi.

It was all good but wow was I happy to see bedtime roll around that night. :)

Wednesday we sent Kevin off and were able to get the kids to school. They were excited to go back! Acacia wanted to help me fold laundry and she actually did it. She was very proud of her work, as she should be!

I knew that this would be the warmest day of the week so during naptime I headed to Walmart and Costco for groceries.

Is it just me, or do we go through a lot of food every week? I’m not sure why this astounds me every single time I fill the back of our huge van with food. :)

I picked up as many of our kids’ WIC items at Walmart that I could that day. But BabyBoy#11 has been put on a special Toddler Formula since he isn’t eating solids yet. I am having a hard time finding it and will have to keep looking around town.

I got home from the store just as Matt was getting home with Brayden and Kiya from school. So they got to help bring in all the groceries. I’m excited to see that while our kids still need so much focused care, some of them are also becoming big helpers. We’re getting there!

I made four pounds worth of Hamburgers plus a big bag of Fries for dinner that night. Plus I cut up a watermelon I’d found at Costco. Watermelon in January? I’ve never bought one in the winter before. But Kiya had been hungry for watermelon and I wanted to surprise her. She was so excited!

I cut it all off the rind and we ate almost all of it with our dinner. Just before bedtime I caught these three stinkers up at the counter stuffing more of it into their mouths and GIGGLING. Oh, the giggling. I swiped the tray of melon away because it was getting destroyed and making a sticky mess. But I also captured this photo because they were still in a fit of giggles. :)

Thursday morning the kids had fun playing dress-up during BabyBoy#11’s naptime.

Josie helped me make Brownies for Elias’ birthday.

Malachi came over to give Elias his birthday gift and to take him out for coffee. :)

That afternoon, it started to snow again. Matt parked our van on the side of our house after picking the kids up from school because he needed to shovel our driveway. The snow had continued to fall so by the time he was ready to move it back to the driveway, the van got stuck. Well. There “just so happened” to be a tow truck driving by. The driver turned around and pulled Matt out, refusing to let Matt pay him anything. Amazing!

We all watched this “show” from our play room windows. :)

It was Elias’ birthday and we’d invited all of our kids to join us for dinner. With the snow falling yet again, some decided just to stay in for the night. But Asa and Eva were able to make their way over after the snow stopped. We’ll have another “official birthday dinner” a different night. But this night we had Elias’ choice of Fish Tacos with the works.

He had requested Frosted Brownies for dessert, and I filled the pan with 22 candles to challenge him to blow them all out in one breath.

Can he do it?

Yes, he can.

 

Friday is a bit of a blur as I tried to get caught up on laundry (4 loads, woot!) and reset for the weekend. Usually I make some sort of fun dinner on Fridays, but this time I decided we just needed to clean out the fridge. So we rewarmed the last of our White Chicken Chili and 10-Minute Mac and Cheese and that was that.

Asa stopped by with a couple of his buddies that we hadn’t seen for a while, so that was awesome. Elias had some friends over to hang out for his birthday, and that was also awesome. We put all the littles to bed after a long week, and that was the most awesome of all, ha. :)

Saturday morning for breakfast I made sausage and Peanut Butter Honey Puffs (the childhood favorite recipe I mentioned here). I’ll share my adapted recipe for these in a post soon. These are so good and our kids love them like I used to!

After breakfast, we prepped to host House Church on Sunday. With the pipe bursting and the subsequent flooding at our building, our elders and ministry staff worked extra hard to organize a Live Stream option and encouraged people to meet in homes to worship together. I haven’t made communion bread for years, but found a recipe online and it came together quickly.

Please take a moment to appreciate how un-uniformly I cut the pieces. Good grief, Laura. :)

Next, I got the kids involved in helping me pack a picnic for after church. There had been a scheduled “Picnic with Pals” with our Kids Ministry Group inviting us all to stay after worship and enjoy together. But with the building being unusable, the new meet up spot became one of our malls in town. Knowing we’d need to leave right after online worship to make it on time, we got our food packed and put into the fridge to grab and take with us.

I was feeling a bit like I needed a kitchen break, so for lunch we had Chicken Nuggets, Spinach with Dip, and Oranges.

Dinner that night was Hotdogs and Peas. And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 7-13, 2024

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: January 7-13, 2024 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: January 7-13, 2024

Sunday for lunch we made Cheddar Brats (I cooked them before church then put them into a crock pot to stay hot). I had made Cheesy Mashed Potatoes and Oatmeal Raspberry Bars the day before. Plus I made Green Beans, Cream Cheese Corn, Baked Beans, and warmed up leftover Ham for those who didn’t want Brats.

There were 17 of us for lunch that day. :)

That afternoon, our friend Paula dropped off school lunches for Brayden and Kiya to enjoy all week (read here about how this came about). This is a huge gift and help for our family!

That evening Keith, Anna, and Acacia helped make pizza for dinner.

While the pizzas were baking, I did some work on Anna’s hair. It seems that while she was in her room “napping” that afternoon, she had discovered the body wash in the girls’ bathroom. I’m not sure how much she pumped out of the container, but you can be sure that her hair was very, very, very clean. It took quite some time to rinse all the bubbles out of her locks. Oy.

We had carrots with our pizza. Some of our kids really like to dip carrots in peanut butter. Ever tried it? It’s highly recommended by the Coppinger kids. :)

That night we got the much anticipated school email that Monday would be a Snow Day! I started thinking of ways to make our day with the kids super fun at home since we wouldn’t be able to get out and go anywhere.

First up, Snowman Pancakes for breakfast with sausage links.

After breakfast we headed to the table to make Shrinky Dinks. Remember those?! None of our kids had ever experienced them before so they were a huge hit.

We heated up the smaller of our two ovens knowing we didn’t need the large one for melting down our Shrinky Dinks. But this was a bad idea because it was too hard to get that many heads in the same spot to watch the magic happen in the small window of that oven. Oops.

We headed back to the table for more crafting…

Then we went into the kitchen and started making Snowflake Quesadillas. The kids LOVED this.

Anna was convinced that this was NOT the snowflake she made and I couldn’t talk her into understanding that once I unfolded her tortilla, this was the result. Nope. (I gave hers to Josie and asked Anna to make another one – showing her the unfolded version right away this time.)

After lunch, we headed into the living room to put together puzzles before naps.

We had leftovers for dinner that night. Brayden asked if he could warm up the Chili. He has started to really love helping in the kitchen!

After dinner, Elias was an awesome sport and joined us for a game of Headbands. :) :) :)

We had served an early dinner so before bedtime I sliced, buttered, and toasted some Pumpernickel bread that we’d been given last week.

We had another snow day on Tuesday so I drew fun faces on cups and filled them with Warm Vanilla Soother. (Our BabyBoy#11 has eating challenges but I was able to get two tiny nibbles of Soother in him. Hooray!)

I made French Toast that morning also. Man, I love this built-in griddle. It is such a blessing to have!

I had been hungry for a childhood recipe “Peanut Butter Honey Puffs” – likely the very first recipe I tried on my own with my very first Buddy Bear Cookbook. I couldn’t remember the exact measurements but we made it work and they tasted like I was eight again!! (Also? That afternoon I was able to find the cookbook on Amazon and ordered it for myself!! I mean, I ordered it for the kids. Ha.)

Then, we took turns adding ingredients to make Chocolate Chip Cookies to share with our church staff.

At lunchtime, I turned Sunday’s Baked Bean leftovers into Beanie Weanies. Once again, Brayden wanted to help.

The boys were excited to help Daddy shovel snow during naptime.

Acacia helped me vacuum the living room rug later that afternoon. She’s tiny but mighty. :)

For dinner I made two pans full of Crunchy Ranch Chicken with leftover Cheesy Mashed Potatoes and Buttered Peas. We all LOVED this chicken. I need to make it more often!

Since we’d been cooped up so much that day, we found some Winter Dance Party videos on YouTube so that we could get some exercise before bed.

The kids got to go back to school on Wednesday after two weeks of Christmas break and two bonus snow days. I made them Scrambled Egg Sandwiches so they’d be nice and full for their first day back.

We’d heard that there was more Snow Storm on the way so I went to Aldi and Costco during naptime that afternoon. At Aldi I got several gallons of milk, lots of whole milk yogurt, salad mixes, cucumbers, fritos, and cake mixes for upcoming birthdays.

At Costco, I got stocked back up on frozen fruit, frozen peas, frozen pizza, chicken nuggets, potatoes, bananas, grapes, avocados, broccoli, spinach, spring mix, oranges, eggs, hamburger meat, turkey for sandwiches, canned corn, rotel, applesauce, chocolate chips, and a few other odds and ends. I was so happy to find a new coat/snowsuit for just $9.00 for a birthday gift for Anna!

Back at home, the older boys helped me get everything unloaded. It was fun to see all the fruits and veggies filling the island in our kitchen! I’ve been trying not to spend much at the stores this month so that I could focus on using the food we have on hand. But we were really low on produce so I feel like after this shopping trip, I can put together more well-rounded meals.

That night I used Tuesday’s Crunchy Ranch Chicken to make this Chicken Bacon Pasta dish. It was SO GOOD. And so easy. It’s a one dish meal with spinach stirred right in.

We got the kids off to school Thursday morning and sent Matt and Elias to York to work on our houses there. Malachi helped me get through the morning with the 5 littlest. At one point, all of them were in one spot playing happily. I got a picture as quickly as I could before they scattered or screamed. :)

Mid-morning we put together plates of cheese, crackers, blueberries, and cucumbers with ranch. We had case workers visit after that, plus Keith and Anna left on the school bus for their afternoon pre-school.

It was Anna’s birthday! Kiya wanted to paint her nails as a gift to her, so as soon as Anna and Keith got off the preschool bus, this was the scene:

Anna requested Mac and Cheese with Peas for dinner, and we made some Chicken Strips and Caesar Salad too. (We just stir frozen peas into hot mac and cheese – it’s a kid favorite.)

Yes, it was as loud in our dining room as you imagine that it was when you look at this:

Cake time! Anna requested Chocolate Cake, which of course I made like this with spinach blended in. Then I poked holes in the cake and poured in chocolate pudding. Then I made Chocolate Whipped Cream for frosting. It was super good!

After cake, we gathered in the living room for present time.

 

Anna loves her new coat. Hooray for Costco clearance!

While we were gathered in the living room, we got the email telling us that school was canceled for Friday because of another incoming snow storm. Justus and Kelsey, who were at our house for Anna’s birthday, had packed a bag in hopes that this would be the case so that they could “accidentally” get snowed in with us. We didn’t tell the kids – but let them be surprised when they woke up on Friday morning. :) It was awesome!! And it was so helpful to have them with us because Matt and I were getting a little bit exhausted from keeping so many cooped up kids entertained.

I made Whole Wheat Waffles and Bacon on Friday morning.

Mid-morning, we found some fun YouTube videos that walked us through the process of “how to draw.” We all drew a dinosaur, a minion, and a flamingo. This was a fantastic activity to keep us busy! By the way, we all decided that it was a Pajama Day. ;)

Kelsey warmed up leftover Chicken Bacon Pasta and leftover mac and cheese for lunch. I sliced oranges and that was that.

Keith and Acacia worked together to scrub potatoes for dinner.

Matt and Kelsey played Ticket to Ride First Journey with the kids during naptime while Justus and I worked on our computers.

After the game, I pulled Brayden, Kiya, and Keith into the kitchen to teach them how to make Pizza Chicken Bake. This is a great recipe to give to the kids!

While dinner baked, Kelsey and Justus played several rounds of “Silent Ball” with the kids. That might be one of the most amazing games – it’s quiet, engages the kids, and keeps them busy. Perfection!

Dinner that night was Pizza Chicken Bake, Baked Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli, and leftover Cream Cheese Corn.

Justus and Kelsey hadn’t planed to stay a second night, but the snow had continued to fall all day, leaving them no choice. I sure didn’t mind! I hadn’t made Cinnamon Rolls for a very long time (years probably), and after all the Snow Days, it seemed like the perfect thing to make. It was super fun to show the kids how Cinnamon Rolls were made. But I will likely not make them again for a while. I just don’t have time to spend on recipes like this right now. :)

But what is worth it? Oh yes.

We turned on music and made more crafts that morning.

For lunch, I made Taco Soup with avocados, fritos, and fruit.

Justus and Kelsey were able to shovel themselves out make it home that afternoon. Having them here for two days was such a game changer for our Snow Day needs. It was amazing to have them here!

Brayden ventured outside to get us a bowl full of snow so that we could finally make the Snow Ice Cream we’d hoped to make all week.

I had apples that were getting squishy so I turned them into a double batch of Applesauce Muffins.

I made Spaghetti with Salad for dinner.

We spent the evening giving everyone baths and getting ready for Sunday. WHAT A WEEK!!! :)

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Big Family Food and Fun: December 31-January 6, 2024

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: December 31-January 6 post…

Big Family Food and Fun: December 31-January 6, 2024

This week’s big goal was: CLEAN OUT THE FRIDGE. We had enjoyed so many fun meals the week before when we celebrated Christmas and birthdays! So our refrigerators were full of all kinds of tidbits we needed to eat up.

Sunday for lunch, we pulled everything out and prioritized what needed to be finished first. We warmed up Nachos, Chicken Tenders, and Orange Chicken and put everything else away for another meal.

Justus and Kelsey joined us, plus our friend Kermit who comes almost every Sunday after church and feels like a part of our family now. I mean, you know you’re a part of the family when you’re only offered random leftovers for lunch, right?

Dinner that night? More leftovers. This time it was cheese, crackers, and meats. We got out Avocado Cups to provide something green with our meal. :)

Breakfast on Monday was Yogurt and Granola with the rest of our Blueberries.

Eva came over to help Matt with littles and I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to our Food Distribution site to set up food to give away the next day. We did everything we could and then had some down time while we waited for the next delivery truck to show up. So we enjoyed some Tic-Tac-Toe. :)

When we got home, we built Magna-Tile Towers with Eva.

Lunch was leftover pizza (that I almost over cooked when I warmed them up in our Air Fryer). I sliced an entire bag of pears to eat with the pizza.

We snacked that afternoon on Bananas and Pretzels to help tide us over because at 5:00 we’d been invited to tour our neighbor’s house. They decorate for every holiday in a BIG way. While we’d enjoyed looking at the outside of their house, they told us that their inside decorations were even more impressive. They were correct!

We had our Bonus 5-Year Old with us (former foster son) so we bravely took eight little kids into this beautifully decorated home full of breakables. Our neighbor took us into every room of their house, showing us all that they’ve collected through the years and telling us where they’d bought their treasures. The kids did amazing and were fascinated!

We headed back home and pulled out a Ham I’d put into the oven that afternoon (one of these awesome $5 hams!). We enjoyed it with leftover Mac and Cheese plus Buttered Peas and Corn. I also drank my Smoothie because I hadn’t had one yet that day. :)

Tuesday morning I baked a batch of Pumpkin Muffins, scrambled some Cheesy Eggs (with spinach), and peeled some Clementines.

BabyBoy#11 had his one-year check-up that morning and Anna went with us for the appointment. They had fun looking at the very sweet kids in the mirror while we were waiting for the doctor to come in. :) :) :)

Back at home, Matt sliced apples to serve with peanut butter and sprinkled cinnamon. We needed a substantial snack because we decided to take all the kids to the zoo for a late morning run around with the Spider Monkeys!

I grabbed Cheese, Summer Sausage, Crackers, Applesauce, and Juice to take with us for a snacky lunch.

It was a sunny 38 degrees, so a great winter day to walk from the van to the indoor play area! (…with an unnamed three-year-old who “wasn’t cold” and refused to wear the spring jacket she brought to wear with the spring dress she’d chosen to wear that day.)

We stopped off at the Tigers on our way as they were sitting in their hay bed soaking up some sun. How many Coppingers can you fit into the Tiger Truck? Quite a few, as it turns out.

The kids ran around and played for a solid hour, stopping eventually to eat and drink every last drop of food I’d packed.

We took some time in the room next door to enjoy the Iguanas and Chinchillas before heading home for rest time.

I had used soup bones from last night’s ham to make a pot of broth that morning. That afternoon, I blended up the veggies to stir into the broth for extra nourishment, planning to use it later in the week for soup.

Brayden, Kiya, and I headed out to hand out food at the Food Distribution while Matt and Elias kept everyone else happy at home. We came home with some extra food, including some Izze drinks they were handing out. The girls found them and pretended to chug them down on the step.

Matt had warmed up Tomato Soup and leftover Sandwiches from last week for our dinner. Everything was too crazy when we got home so I forgot to take a picture of our meal. ;)

Wednesday morning we had Toast/Bagels with Cottage Cheese and Peaches/Pineapple.

We loaded up and drove to meet some friends at a library for a Snow Much Fun Story Hour.

After fun stories and songs, we got to make crafts.

I had used the broth I’d made on Tuesday along with leftover Ham from Monday to make Spicy Ham and Potato Soup. We were all super hungry when we got home so it was great to have it ready to serve when we got home.

The kids also enjoyed Tuesday’s Pumpkin Muffins with their soup.

Justus and Kelsey came that afternoon so that Justus could give Brayden a piano lesson. Kelsey was awesome and played games with Kiya and Keith during that time!

I made Spaghetti for dinner that night with Salad and Corn.

Thursday morning was busy as we had an appointment in the morning and then needed to leave for York so that some of our kids could have a scheduled visit with their bio mom. Emotions were running high that morning.

I had a container of Homemade Instant Oatmeal in our pantry so I used it for our breakfast. We had bananas that were over ripe so I smashed those in the bottom of each bowl so that the kids could have Banana Oatmeal – their favorite.

Meanwhile, I made a pot of Chili to take to York for our dinner and a bowl full of Tuna Salad for us to eat quickly for lunch after appointments and before heading out.

Brayden, Kiya, and Keith stayed home with their big brothers while Matt and I left with Anna, Acacia, Josie, and BabyBoy#11 for their WIC appointment. I was able to snap this sweet photo of Anna as she got her height checked. (All three of the little girls are almost exactly the same height and weight. No wonder people ask all the time if they are triplets!)

An hour+ later, we waved goodbye and said thank you as we headed out the clinic door.

The rest of the day was a blur as we made Tuna Sandwiches at home before loading all the kids and heading to York. The kids and I played for a few hours at a friend’s house (delightful!) while Matt and Elias spent some time working on our York properties. Then I took three of our kids to spend some time with their biological mom. It was bedtime when we loaded everyone back up and made the drive back to York.

Friday morning after breakfast and general hubbub, we loaded everyone up to go to a Sensory Library Storytime. These are our favorite as they provide an intentionally calm environment with fidgets and weighted animals for the kids as they sing interactive songs and read fun stories. Quite a few of our kids become overwhelmed so easily (as do I, honestly, as everyone’s emotions start to run high with overstimulation). These story times have a smaller audience – and in fact, this day we were the only family who showed up. We filled the room, ha. And the librarian was so sweet to all of our kids as she engaged them in the interactive songs and stories.

Afterward, the librarian pulled out some fun learning toys for the kids to enjoy.

Then we all explored the rest of this library as we hadn’t visited this one before. We loved it and will likely visit often even though it isn’t super close to our house.

Everyone was “starving” when we got home at lunchtime. The plan was to warm up leftover Spaghetti, which we did. But while it was warming up, I quickly spread some peanut butter on tortillas and folded them into triangles to fill their bellies as fast as possible.

For dinner that night, we put together a simple Nacho Bar with chips, seasoned meat, white queso, shredded cheese, salsa, cilantro, spinach, and corn.

Saturday was an exciting day as it was my niece’s wedding day! We spent the morning taking baths and getting dressed up for the big event. I also took some time to get our Sunday lunch ready since we’d be gone all afternoon/evening Saturday.

But first, Bacon.

We baked (like this) the last of a big box of bacon we’d gotten at Sam’s so we could enjoy it for breakfast and for upcoming easy meals.

I made a huge pot of mashed potatoes, then added sour cream, butter, and cheese to bake for our Sunday Lunch the next day.

And I made Oatmeal Raspberry Bars (x2) for our Sunday dessert.

After the baking and cooking, we got all seven littles through bath and showers. I had grand plans of braiding all the girls’ hair but time got away from me and I only ended up getting Josie’s and Acacia’s done.

We quickly threw sandwiches together for lunch so that we could get dressed in wedding attire and head out the door.

I filled a bag with non-messy snacks knowing that we’d likely need them to get us through the day while we were gone. Before Christmas I’d found Party Trays at Sam’s marked down to only $6.91 – crazy low and not near expiration. I still had one in the fridge and it was perfect to take along to feed hungry kids (and grown-ups for that matter). I also grabbed granola bites, pistachios, and applesauce. I was glad I packed all this because the kids worked their way through quite a bit of it throughout the day.

The wedding was lovely and we got to see so many people we hadn’t seen for years! We are so happy for the new Mr. and Mrs. Heinrichs!

Our girls spent as much time as they could with their very favorite Emma.

Keith was determined to dance to every song and took this job very seriously.

Before heading out we said our goodbyes and took this photo with two of my favorite friends. There’s Anna, still attached to Emma and acting as silly as possible.

And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: December 24-30, 2023

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Here’s our Food and Fun: December 24-30 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: December 24-30, 2023

We enjoyed a beautiful Christmas Eve service at church Sunday morning, then came home and set out a simple but fun Sub Sandwich Station. We had a variety of breads, meats, cheeses, and chips. After we built our sandwiches, we toasted them in our Air Fryer to melt the cheese and crisp up the bread. So good!

After lunch, we exchanged Christmas gifts with one of our housemates. She gave the kids soft blankets and fun snacks for a movie night. :)

After we put the littlest kids down for naps and older-littles downstairs for a movie, Elias, Malachi, and I surprised Matt with a brand new Settlers of Catan game. We all love this game and hardly get a chance to play because of lack of time. This was a perfect way to enjoy Christmas Eve afternoon! (P.S. I was sooooo close to winning, but then Elias snuck in the win. Stinker.)

Asa and Eva were enjoying Christmas Eve with her family, and Justus and Kelsey came over that evening after they were finished with their responsibilities at church where Justus is worship minister. We had a simple meal of Nachos and would you look at that? Matt and I got to actually sit down together to eat!

Kelsey made her family’s traditional Christmas Eve Hot Fudge for us to enjoy on ice cream after dinner!

We found some interactive Christmas Dance Party videos on Youtube and Justus led the kids in getting lots of wiggles out before bed.

Everyone settled in surprisingly well that night, then Kelsey helped me stuff stockings and set up everything for Christmas morning. “Santa” got the kids new coats or a new outfit, clocks for their bedrooms, and a weighted stuffed animal to help them with calming needs. (The kids have no idea that their awesome new animals are therapeutic. They just think they got an adorable new friend.) :)

The next morning, I stuffed stockings and set out a few extra gifts for all the older kids too. :)

We ate Egg Casserole and Monkey Bread (<—that our neighbor had made!) as everyone woke up that morning. Asa and Eva came over around 8:15 to enjoy the day with us.

We had pulled the living room doors closed and put wrapping paper on them so that the kids wouldn’t see into the room before we were all gathered to enjoy our Christmas morning together!

Then the doors opened to reveal all the treasures!

It snowed all day long, creating a feeling of special Christmas magic!

We took turns opening gifts from each other while the snow fell outside.

Keith got ear protective headphones (that we found used at a Restore and knew he’d love because working with Daddy is his favorite!) and a hat with built in light. If those were his only two gifts, he would have been as happy as can be.

We made Chicken Strips and Fries for lunch. Asa and Eva had picked up a huge cup of Cane’s Sauce for us – a family favorite. I made a couple bowls of salad, some buttered toast, and we had a Costco cheesecake for dessert. Everyone loved this meal for Christmas!

Asa went outside during the afternoon and took this photo of our snowy Castle.

For dinner that evening I set out a variety of meats, cheeses, crackers, chips, and dips that I’d picked up at Costco, Sam’s, or Aldi. It was a perfectly easy meal we could all snack on that evening.

Tuesday morning we warmed up leftover Egg Casserole. Then at lunch I felt the big need to give us some vegetables so I made these spinach-filled smoothies for the kids and these for the grown-ups. The kids had gotten oatmeal packets in their stockings so they requested those also. A weird lunch? Yes. But it filled their bellies and we got lots of greens into our systems.

Brayden, Kiya, and I went to hand out food at our weekly Food Distribution that afternoon. Before we got home, Elias warmed up leftover Lasagna for dinner that night plus steamed some broccoli.

Food Distribution was different that week because of the holiday. There was extra food but fewer people to go through the line. The lady in charge let everyone go through twice, which I loved to see as everyone was able to go home with a lot of free food for their families. When that was finished, there was still plenty leftover so all of the volunteers took home quite a bit too.

We brought home a lot of organic greens, several bunches of bananas, a large selection of breads/rolls/buns, and a few other miscellaneous items.

Wednesday morning we warmed up more Egg Casserole leftovers and ate it with some muffins we’d brought home from the Food Distribution. (I cut them in half so everyone could have a little bit.)

I cut up all the bananas from Food Distribution because they were on their last leg. They went into the freezer to be used for smoothies or Banana Bread.

Anna had a dentist appointment that morning so she and I enjoyed reading some books together in the waiting room. Any one-on-one time with our kids is rare and special.

Picking out a new toothbrush is so fun, but also, making decisions is hard, ha.

For lunch we warmed up leftover Roast and Carrots from the week before plus leftover green beans and corn. It felt good to be slowly getting the fridge cleaned out!

We had a lot of bread from Food Distribution plus several bits of lunchmeat from last week’s Sub Sandwiches. So for dinner I made a big pile of Grilled Meat and Cheese Sandwiches with Tomato Soup.

Thursday morning I baked several sheet pans worth of bacon to enjoy with breakfast and to have leftovers for upcoming meals. I also made a lot of French Toast and we ate it with syrup or applesauce.

A couple of the kids had appointments that morning so while I was with them for those, Matt and Malachi held down the fort. At lunchtime, Malachi made six boxes of mac and cheese and a pan of peas. (Someone who shall remain nameless put a pea up her nose during lunch. Never a dull moment.)

That afternoon during nap/rest time, I ran to Walmart and Sam’s to pick up some items for an upcoming birthday meal. While I was at Walmart, I checked for clearance items and I HIT THE JACKPOT. Their spiral cut hams were marked down to $0.50/pound!!!! I’ve never seen anything like this. I decided to “only” buy eight hams, ha. They were 10ish-pound hams for just $5.00. Crazy good. We have a freezer full now and I can share with our married kids plus anyone else who might need or want one.

At Sam’s I found chicken tenderloins marked down so I picked up two packages. I plan to use these for Pizza Chicken Bake and Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips.

Later that afternoon, the kids were acting hungry so I made everyone a big cup of Smoothie using some of the greens I’d gotten at the Food Distribution that week.

While I had the spinach out, and because I really had a lot in the fridge and didn’t want it to go bad, I made these muffins with both spinach and pumpkin. Hooray for sneaking in veggies!

I can’t remember what we ate for dinner that night, and I can’t find any pictures so that must mean that we ate leftovers and I didn’t think about documenting it. :)

For breakfast on Friday morning we enjoyed Brayden’s birthday request of biscuits (that we’d gotten at Food Distribution) plus sausage links, muffins, and fruit.

I mixed up a double batch of Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies that morning so we could put together and deliver Happy New Year gifts for our neighbors.

We knew an outing would benefit the kids after being cooped up for so many days in a row, so we loaded up and headed to The Front Porch, which is a coffee shop/play area at a church here in Lincoln.

I packed Capri Sun and cracker/cheese packs for the kids to snack on during a play break.

When we got home, Brayden, Keith, Anna, and I worked together to make Brownies for his birthday dessert that night.

Malachi had put pizzas in the oven to bake for us so we took those out, slid the brownies in, and had our lunch.

That evening we planned to have a big birthday dinner for not one, but two birthday boys! Yep, Brayden and BabyBoy#11 share a birthday. Kiya used salad kits to put together two bowls of salad for us. I love that I can turn this job over to her (or to Brayden) now!

BabyBoy#11 didn’t have any opinions about the meal choices for the day. :) But Brayden requested Orange Chicken (the boxed kind from Sam’s) for dinner. I baked a dish of Stick of Butter Rice to go with it and of course, we had Kiya’s salads.

Dinner was awesome, with Asa and Eva plus our friend Allan joining us.

BabyBoy#11 is battling eating challenges so he enjoyed his bottle for dinner. (And then puked up his bottle, the poor dear. Pray that we can find the right specialist for him and get to the bottom of his eating needs.) We still put a candle in the Birthday Brownies for him to “blow out” even though food is a no-go.

Then, per Brayden’s request, we added the 0 candle to turn the one candle into a 10!

After brownies, we all headed into the living room for present time. Of course, BabyBoy#11 mostly loved the tags on his new sweatshirt. :)

Saturday morning we packaged up the cookies we’d made for neighbors along with some others goodies, tea, hot cocoa, and chocolates.

I’d saved the Trader Joe’s bags we’d gotten while Christmas shopping and these made perfect gift bags.

It was sunny and 40 degrees so a perfect day to take a walk around the neighborhood delivering packages.

Whenever we try to do anything like this, I do question my sanity. It’s hard enough to keep up with laundry, dishes, and keeping everyone fed and happy. To get anything extra accomplished and then head out the door with this many little ones (stopping every few minutes to deal with a behavior issue or an ouchie or a diaper need or…) – well. I always wonder if it’s worth it.

Yes. It’s worth it.

The kids LOVED this. They took turns ringing doorbells, handing over gifts, and whenever we caught someone at home, the kids felt so loved and appreciated by our neighbors who gushed over the gift. It was also fun to leave surprises on the porches of neighbors who weren’t home at the time. :)

Lunch was a tasty but simple meal of Croissants with Turkey, Bacon, and Cheese (with snuck in spinach) melted in the oven.

We all had an afternoon rest time and then it was Birthday Party time! We had invited a few York friends to come for the afternoon/evening to celebrate Brayden’s 10th. We usually just have family birthday time (which we’d had the night before), but since it was a significant year for Brayden, we told him he could have a party. The kids played, the adults caught up and visited. It was wonderful.

We ate Brayden’s birthday choice of Chicken Nuggets and Fries along with a tray of fresh fruit and a plate of veggies.

There was cake, there were cookies, there was a lot of laughing and joy.

After all the excitement of Christmas along with three birthdays within the past nine days, I felt some relief that we could maybe settle down for a while. Ha. And then I remembered that we have two more birthdays coming up in January. Party on!

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Big Family Food and Fun: December 17-23, 2023

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: December 17-23 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: December 17-23, 2023

As you can imagine, Sunday mornings are a bit hectic at our house as we try to get out the door to church with so many little ones. I’d get more done ahead of time on Saturday night if I wasn’t already just trying to survive the regular needs of Saturday night. Phew.

At one point in the morning this Sunday, I was able to run to our laundry room to gather outfits for our five littlest. I laid them on the back of our living room couch like this so that Matt and I could work together to get everyone dressed.

Our Sunday lunch that day included 23 lovely people and it was marvelous! I set up a big Baked Potato Bar and our friends brought salads and desserts.

I usually bake potatoes like this in a crock pot. But I needed my crock pots for other things, plus 10 pounds of potatoes don’t fit into one crock pot. So I “baked” them in our large roaster, hoping it would work well to do the job I needed it to do while we were at church. Phew, it worked!

Our potato bar included Chili, white queso, bacon, shredded cheese, butter, sour cream, salsa, ranch, guacamole, and olives. At the last minute, before leaving for church, I also threw 24 hotdogs into a crock pot to cook all morning. I knew we’d have a large crowd and I wanted to make sure we had enough food. AND I realized that a lot of baked potato toppings can double as hot dog toppings (chili dog, anyone??).

We went through all 24 hotdogs plus almost 10 pounds of potatoes this meal. It was awesome!

Here’s our drink station filled with coffee options, hot cocoa, and tea:

The selection of desserts our friends brought was so good. Those frosted bars there look like brownies but take one bite and you realize they are a delightful Ginger Snap bar. Wow. So good. I’m not going to tell you how many I ate with my coffee that afternoon. And the next day. :)

Our friends trickled away for the afternoon and our family pulled up the Husker volleyball final match to enjoy together. This photo is a peek into why we love living in Lincoln. Being able to enjoy time with our adult kids is a gift I can’t put words to. (Even if the Huskers did choke and forget how to play their sport, bless ’em.)

After the game, we got the kitchen cleaned up from lunch and I decided that there would be no more cooking or dishes that day. Anna finished off the can of our lunch olives while I put five frozen pizzas into the oven for dinner.

I only burned one of them. Ack.

Some friends of ours had been sick all week so we decided to put together a surprise package for them and deliver it to their porch. Brayden, Kiya, and Keith made cards…

And we put together a box filled with treats and crafts. Look at these adorable ornaments from Delight Design! I have a stash of them for our kids to color or paint so I put some in for our friends to color.

I had a couple of frozen Lasagnas in our freezer so I put one in a large gift box to go along with our surprise box along with the cards our kids had made. Then we loaded everyone up to go make our delivery.

We had some disposable cups with lids leftover from our Christmas party the night before, so we put some hot cocoa into them and told the kids they could have one for the road after they buckled in. This was a GREAT idea that we will probably not do again any time soon because giving kids sugar while confining them to car seats made for an extra-crazy van ride home, oy!

Someone gave us the gift of this delicious loaf of cinnamon-y bread at church on Sunday so Monday morning we enjoyed it with our breakfast.

Eva came over and helped Matt with the littles while Keith and I headed to our  Food Distribution set up to help get food ready to give away on Tuesday. Mid-morning, Eva sent me this “Mini-Laura” photo of Acacia. :)

There was a Sam’s close-by so after Keith and I finished helping at Food Distribution, he and I headed to Sam’s to pick up a few necessary food items as we get ready for Christmas.

That afternoon, I browned 4-pounds of sausage and 6-pounds of hamburger meat to get meals ready for the upcoming days.

I used a combination of cooked hamburger and cooked sausage to make a huge Lasagna for Friday night. My dad and his wife were coming for a visit and we were planning a fun evening with all of our big kids coming to see them.

I then used some of the cooked sausage to make four pans of Quiche for our dinner that night. Brayden was happy to mix up a big bowl of Caesar salad to go with them, plus we had some strawberries.

I had planned for us to make these Reindeer Cookies for a couple of weeks and we finally made it happen Monday night!

Our little Josie-girl had fun trying to put antlers and a nose on her cookie. Turned out pretty good, don’t you think?

Anna was very proud of her cookie creation!

While the cookies were baking, the kids watched part of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer since it matched the theme of the evening.

And then they ate their cookies before getting ready for bed!

Tuesday morning Keith decided that pancakes sounded really good. :) I had a Kodiak mix from Costco so he helped me mix it up and I made a huge batch of pancakes on our griddle for breakfast.

A dear lady at church had told us on Sunday that she had the week off and to “go out for some time to yourselves before Christmas!” while she came to babysit. Ohhhhh such a sweet offer!

So Tuesday mid-morning we left the youngest five with Kathi, Elias, and Malachi while Matt and I had an early lunch at Cheddar’s. I took this picture to send to another friend who had given us a gift card to use on a date sometime. Great food and uninterrupted conversation!

I wrapped presents all afternoon during naptime, then picked up Brayden and Kiya to head to the Food Distribution to give out food. This service opportunity really stretches them and is teaching them so much about seeing others and showing love. It also sometimes triggers some tough emotions as sometimes they see someone that reminds them of a person from their past. We tend to have a few things to work through as we drive home on these days.

This particular day, they had been given an excess of donations from various grocery stores so we brought home two bags of food like potatoes, salad kits, canned soup, buns, rolls, and bread.

I had put White Chicken Chili into the crock pot earlier in the day so that dinner would be ready to serve without me being there to make it. I forgot to take a picture that evening but here are the lovely leftovers in the fridge. ;)

Wednesday morning after we got Brayden and Kiya off to school, Matt and I loaded up the youngest five to run final errands before Christmas. We went to Aldi because butter and cream cheese were on sale. I got a case of both – woot!

Then we headed to Costco, putting two kids in my cart and three in Matt’s.

I felt a little bit like a crazy woman, but that afternoon I also went to Sam’s. I’d gone to a different Sam’s with Keith earlier in the week but they didn’t have the bacon I wanted and we must have our bacon, mustn’t we? This Sam’s had it and it was still hugely discounted! I got two boxes, which equals 20 pounds. I feel no regret. :) :) :) I am now FULLY stocked up on groceries and ready for Christmas!

When Anna got off the bus from preschool that afternoon she was excited to open a gift from her teacher. It was so sweet to watch her delight as she pulled the little items out of her package!

Have I mentioned that we have not one but FOUR birthdays in our family in December? This particular day, we were celebrating Malachi turning 19! Per his request, we had a junk food buffet, ha. I couldn’t handle only serving pizza rolls and corndogs so I included grapes, berries, and carrots in the food line.

Several off his friends came to Lincoln to celebrate with him plus his cousin from Kansas. SO special! Asa and Eva came too (Justus and Kelsey weren’t able to join). It was a great evening!

I could only scrounge up 10 candles for our 19-year-old. I need to put candles on my Walmart list. :)

We had “present time” in the living room, giving Malachi some very adulty gifts like dishes and boxes of mac-and-cheese. He and his cousin are planning to get an apartment together soon so he’s starting to collect needed items.

Somewhere in there, I managed to get Brayden, Kiya, Keith, and Anna to join me in putting together little gifts for their teachers. Phew, what a busy (but great!) time of year.

Acacia wanted to get in on the action, the little sweetheart. She put together a teacher gift for the teacher she doesn’t have, haha.

Thursday morning I made our daily smoothie, then put a roast and carrots into the crock pot to slow cook all day for that night’s dinner. (Note to self: Put the carrots on the bottom next time so that they can cook in the juices and turn out to be more tender.)

My dad and his wife, Tacy, arrived early in the afternoon – such a treat to see them! (We hadn’t seen them since Adoption Day in May.) We visited all afternoon, then for dinner enjoyed the Roast and Carrots plus Buttered Corn and Rolls.

Our nephew, Troy, was still here visiting too – so much fun to have family in town!

We finished off dinner with Christmas Cookie Cut-Outs, which we’d made like this. So I gave each kid a cookie with some frosting and sprinkles so that they could decorate their treat before eating it.

Friday morning it was fun to make several pans of bacon with the big box I’d picked up on sale earlier in the week. We had it with Cheesy Scrambled Eggs and Grandma Tacy’s Banana Muffins that she’d made and brought for us.

Papa walked to school with Matt, Brayden, and Kiya. Then he and Grandma Tacy were excited to walk Keith and Anna to their bus when it came to pick them up at noon. :)

We set out a fun Sub Sandwich bar for lunch with a variety of breads, meats, and cheeses plus avocado, spinach, and condiments. We had chips and carrots on the side and we were nice and full afterward.

Acacia and Josie ate their lunch at a little table Papa and Grandma Tacy had brought for them. It’s soooo cute.

When Keith and Anna got home from preschool that day, they were excited to pull everything out of their backpacks and tell us about their Pajama Day – Gingerbread Party. :)

Kiya and Brayden made crafts at the table with Grandma.

We ate a huge Lasagna for dinner with Caesar Salad and Green Beans.

Plus we enjoyed Christmas Cut Out Cookies and Frosted Brownies.

All of the older kids were able to be there to enjoy some Papa and Grandma Tacy time. :)

I happened upon this scene in the kitchen and while I had to keep up with littles and couldn’t hang out with them, it was delightful to me to see all of our Bigs enjoying each other in our kitchen. :)

We gathered in the living room after dinner for a little bit of Christmas gift exchange time.

And then we attempted to put some VERY HYPER CHILDREN to bed. They are all a little bit extra-emotional because of the holidays. Having extras at our house is so exciting – but makes it hard for them to regulate. Which makes it hard for me to regulate as I work with Matt to settle everyone. This was the third night in a row of crazy bedtime behavior (it started on Malachi’s birthday evening) and I was in tears by the time we finally got them calm and into their beds.

Ugh. This life is so, so good. And also very much hard. It is everything all at once. God led me to read Psalm 18 on Saturday morning and the Truth from it is so good and was so needed. He is our strength. He is our rock. He delights in me and loves me. This is how we can walk through these days. Breathing all this in changed Saturday for me.

My dad loves to buy donuts for us when he comes to visit so we enjoyed those with an Easy Egg Casserole and fruit.

We had gifted my dad a Big Boggle game for Christmas and I reallllllly wanted to play it with him. So we decided to let the kids open a gift from their CASA that she’d delivered that week. I knew that the gift was a huge set of Magnatiles and thought the kids might spend some timing enjoying them so that I could have some good grown-up game-playing time. This plan worked out about as good as it could work, haha. Dad, Tacy, and I played several rounds of Big Boggle even while there was a bit of chaos behind and around us. :)

I had started a full crock pot of Ham and Potato Soup that morning and it was ready for us to eat at 12:30. I buttered and warmed up some rolls we’d been given at the Food Distribution to help stretch the meal. We had a few additional friends hanging out that morning and Justus and Kelsey stopped by too. So altogether there were 20 of us and we finished the entire pot plus all the rolls! (And some clementines and cookies.)

I rested that afternoon after Dad and Tacy headed home. Then I went to the kitchen, turned on Christmas music, and did some baking as the girls were waking up. I mixed up my Peppernut recipe but made them into regular cookies instead of a billion tiny bites like my grandma used to make. They taste delicious like this and of course take much less time.

I also made Fudge and Shortbread.

After all of that, I didn’t feel like making dinner, ha. So we made popcorn and got out fruit, cottage cheese, peanut butter pretzels, and yogurt.

While Matt and I started our Saturday night bath process, Malachi and the boys set up our new Corn Hole game that Papa and Grandma Tacy had gifted us. :)

Then the best thing happened! We settled all of our clean, jammied kids into the living room for Singing and Prayer time. Just before time to head upstairs, the doorbell rang. Who could it be??

The kids were AMAZED by this special visitor and each one of us received a beautiful handmade (by Mrs. Claus) gift. It was incredible and sweet and well, we have some pretty great neighbors. ;)

And that was our week! Merry Christmas!

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Big Family Food and Fun: December 10-16, 2023

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: December 10-16 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: December 10-16, 2023

Sunday we were blessed to have friends join us for lunch after church – a precious family of five that we have known for many years. Living in Lincoln with them now is a huge blessing so that we can worship and spend time together.

I made a Spiral Cut Ham, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes, and Green Beans. Their family brought Salad, Cucumbers, Cornbread Muffins, Brownies, and a Trifle. It was an amazing feast!

When our kitchen looks like this, it is my favorite. I will stare at this photo and praise God for all He’s given.

We visited and the kids played a good part of the afternoon. Then I turned some of the leftovers into casseroles. I used leftover ham to make an Easy Egg Casserole and put it into the freezer for Christmas morning. Then I made two Ham and Hashbrown Casseroles – one for us to eat this week and one to give to a mom who just had her first baby.

At dinnertime, we finished off some of the side dishes from lunch along with Roasted Chicken. After we got the kids to bed, Matt finished getting all the chicken off the bones. Throughout the week, we can have easy chicken meals, plus I can make broth with the bones!

Monday morning Eva came over to help with the kids. I took BabyBoy#11 to a WIC appointment. Then I was blessed to spend two entire hours visiting with my friend Charlene – a rare and awesome treat!

Monday evening, Brayden had a Ukulele Concert so I made a big pan of Cheesy Chicken and Rice (this recipe but with chicken instead of beef) so we could have an early dinner before his performance.

Most of us were able to watch his concert and he was so excited (and nervous) that so many were there!

Justus and Kelsey surprised him with flowers afterward. :)

Here’s our crazy concert crew:

Tuesday after breakfast I used the chicken bones from Sunday night’s chicken to make a big pot of broth.

Keith and Anna had home visits from their preschool teachers that morning. Then as soon as all the littles went down for naps that afternoon, I headed out by myself to shop at Costco. I got a few more Christmas gifts plus milk, fruits and veggies, olive oil, chicken nuggets, diapers, and a few other needed items.

I got home just in time to unload the van and then pick up Brayden and Kiya to head to the Food Distribution where we help hand out food each Tuesday afternoon. I had used the last of Phyllis’ pulled pork to make BBQ Pork Melts, which Matt and Elias baked at dinnertime. So we got home and ate them along with leftover potatoes and fresh spinach.

Wednesday morning I used leftover ham from Sunday to make Ham and Cheesy Eggs and then let the kids choose a bread item. (We almost always bring home quite a bit of bread leftovers from the Tuesday Food Distribution.) That day we had a couple varieties of loaf bread plus bagels and Cranberry Orange Muffins.

Our morning was full of appointments and meetings. As we were getting kids dressed, Keith requested to comb Acacia’s hair for her. I usually let the girls look at pictures on my phone while I brush their hair (to keep them still) and Matt was able to capture this sweet sibling moment. Acacia actually let Keith brush her hair for quite a while!

I had a lot of tortillas from Azure Standard in our freezer and I wanted to make a big batch of these Burritos, so for lunch I made a Burrito Bar so that I could the leftovers to put together freezer burritos.

For dinner that night I used the chicken broth I’d made on Tuesday to make a pot of Chicken Noodle Soup (with spaghetti noodles since that’s what I had on hand). I also made a blender full of these smoothies because I had a lot of greens in the fridge to use up.

Justus had come over to give Brayden a piano lesson so he grabbed a bowl of soup too.

I was going to get out a Christmas craft for the kids to work on that evening, but I discovered a wrestling match that then turned into an I Spy game with Daddy. And before we knew it, it was bedtime. :)

Thursday evening we had signed up to deliver a meal to friends who just had a baby. So we decided that we would eat an early dinner, load everyone up to look at Christmas lights since we needed to head out to drop off food.

Brayden saw what we were having and asked if he could make dinner. Yup! From start to finish, he made our Orange Chicken and Steamed Broccoli. (This may not seem like a big deal for an almost-10-year-old. But for this guy, it is a very big deal and we are so thankful he has come so far as to do something like this.)

Meanwhile, I pulled out some frozen Christmas cookies to frost and decorate for the new parents we were delivering food to. Following these methods of making cookies with kids is sooooo helpful and this night proved it! The cookies were already rolled out, cut out, and baked. All we had to do was frost and sprinkle. Kiya loved helping me with this job and wanted to know who else we could make food for. :)

After we ate Brayden’s delicious dinner, Matt loaded all of the littles while I finished putting together the meal we were going to deliver: Ham and Hashbrown Casserole, Steamed Broccoli, Grapes, and Cream Cheese Cut-Out Cookies.

After we dropped off the food we found fun neighborhoods with lots of Christmas lights to enjoy. When we got home, Elias had pulled up the Husker volleyball game – perfect timing! We won the game just in time to get the kids to bed. :)

Friday morning I made a loaf of bread worth of Eggs in a Nest. Kiya had requested them since I hadn’t made them in a while. Perfect!

That morning I also made a batch of Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins with some bananas that were turning black.

Putting the muffins into festive paper liners turns them into Christmas muffins!

We loaded all the kids up that morning to run errands. First stop: Trader Joe’s to look for a few gifts to put together for teachers, etc.

Keith got to push a kid-cart, which totally made his day!

After school that afternoon, Keith proudly pulled out an ornament he had made at school and wrapped by himself.

Look at who is learning to write his name!

That evening, we all put on our snuggly-est jammies and headed to church for a Christmas Pajama Party! The children’s ministry team did a wonderful job putting together a super fun evening for the kids. We had a great pizza meal.

We had a dance party.

A grinch and an elf showed up and started a “snowball fight” which was a huge hit!! Well, except for with Acacia and Josie who weren’t so sure what to think about the whole thing, haha.

More dancing!

There were crafts and a bingo game and a chocolate fountain – a WONDERFUL party that we all loved! Best of all, the kids were all jammied up and ready for bed as soon as we got home. :)

Saturday morning I set out the Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins  I had made the day before. I also baked the remainder of the box of bacon I had bought a few weeks ago. We had a few yogurt cups from Aldi so we finished those off too.

Mid-morning we loaded up snacks and kids and headed to the indoor play place at the zoo.

I had made a big bowl full of Tuna Salad so we could eat right away when we got home.

During naptime that day, we spent time getting ready for a Christmas party with some friends who were coming from out of town. Kiya set out fun Christmas plates and juice pouches.

Then the kids watched as I attempted to put together Santa Bananas. Hahahaha, you got me, Pinterest. We were all giggling the entire time I was putting these together – especially every time I tried squirting the whipped cream onto the Santa hats and into Santa beards. The whipped cream didn’t cooperate very well.

Oh – and then the red M&Ms started to bleed so by the time we served these, Santa had quite the bloody nose. Sorry ol’ fella. It was FUN though and I’m glad we tried these. Good luck if you decide to try too. :) :) :)

We set out a buffet of Hotdogs, veggies, and other fruit to go along with our Santa Bananas.

Justus and Kelsey came over to help, thankfully! Altogether there were 8 adults and 16 kids. Was it loud? Do you even have to ask? But look at this precious, full table…

After dinner, we all loaded up in our cars/vans and drove around to enjoy Christmas lights. When we came home, Matt and Justus had popcorn ready and then Justus and Kelsey helped serve Hot Cocoa to go with it.

What a night! Matt had already bathed four of the kids earlier while I was working on the infamous Santa Bananas. Kelsey threw two of the girls into the tub after Hot Cocoa. Our guests headed out and we tucked everyone into bed after a fun time together!

And that was our week!

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