Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Getting Ahead in my Kitchen

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It is a fact that participating in an occasional cooking/baking marathon is very therapeutic for me. (It is also a fact that I had no idea how to spell therapeutic, which is why I am very thankful for spell check options. You should have seen how I spelled it when I sounded it out. Let’s just say that I can cook better than I can spell.)

My spelling issues aside, I receive great pleasure from mixing up four or more recipes at once, getting most of my dishes dirty all at the same time, and covering every inch of counter space with a cooking project. I failed to take a picture of the kitchen chaos. Sorry about that. ;)  But I did manage to take a few pictures of what I accomplished during my baking day. Looking at pics of chocolate chip cookies is much better than looking at pics of my crusty cookie sheets, so let’s focus on the chocolate, shall we?

I made a double batch Chocolate Chip Cookies to serve at high school huddle. Our family also did a little taste testing because quality control is our specialty. :)

While the cookies were baking, I mixed up a double batch of Honey Whole Wheat Bread.

While the bread was rising, I started cooking a double batch of Taco Corn Fritters. These refrigerate or freeze well and reheat easily in the oven or toaster oven.

And last but not least, I made a big batch of Sloppy Joe Meat and some Sloppy Cornbread Muffins.

Although we’ve already eaten a good portion of the food I made to try and get ahead for this week, I do feel much better having a few extras on hand to warm up quickly for meals. Healthy convenience foods rock. :)

What are your favorite healthy convenience foods to have on hand?

 

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Menu Plan for the Week

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I really appreciated hearing from so many of you last week in regard to menu planning. Sounds like many of you have great methods of organizing your meal plans for your family. If you find my menu plan somewhat overwhelming, please read through this post to learn the method behind my madness. :)

I love using this Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe to make Tuna Casserole.
I just add two cans of tuna and it’s done. One of the easiest meals ever to put together!

Here are the meals we’re looking to have this week:

Sunday, January 15
Oatmeal, pears
Tuna casserole, peas
High School Huddle – Chili with fritos, cheese, and sour cream; carrot sticks, olives, chocolate chip cookies

Monday, January 16
Simple soaked pancakes, blueberries
Taco corn fritters, applesauce
Italian cream cheese chicken, tossed salad

Tuesday, January 17
Fried eggs on toast, clementines
Sloppy cornbread muffins, fruit salad
Roasted chicken, carrots, potatoes, gravy

Wednesday, January 18
Elias’ birthday – still waiting to hear his bday meal choices! :)

Thursday, January 19
Mini breakfast pizza, oranges
Chicken tortilla soup, carrots
Beefy enchilada bake, tossed salad

Friday, January 20
Peanut butter honey toast, applesauce
Quesadillas, apples
Homemade pizza

Saturday, January 21
Mini apple pies
Grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup
Roast, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans

What’s on your menu this week?

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His Needs, Her Needs: Building an Affair Proof Marriage

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Matt and I love the book His Needs Her Needs and highly recommend it for engaged and married couples. Matt took the time to write a review of this book to share with all of you. I love what he wrote and urge you to check this book out as you nurture your marriage.

His Needs Her Needs by Willard F. Harley Jr. was the first marriage book we read together and it was before we were married…by God’s Grace. From my standpoint Laura and I were perfectly compatible. I assumed what was good for me was good for her. Everything I desired, she desired. So I planned to apply the golden rule of doing to her what I would want her to do to me. I was getting married to this godly woman who was like me in nearly everyway. The slight differences were easily overlooked.

As we read this book and talked about it, I began to see that our desires were not perfectly aligned. What was good for me was not always her preference. Yes, most importantly we shared a love for our Creator and Savior, and yes our basic physical needs were obviously shared. We wanted to be connected intimately to each other, but our definitions were a bit different. We wanted to spend time together, just the two of us, but how we spent that time was not always the same. By God’s grace (this should be declared in Tony the Tiger voice, His GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRACE!!!!!!!!!!!) we have a wonderful marriage today. God used this book to help pull me from self-driven fantasy into reality…before we were married. Although it is not written specifically to a Christian audience, the principles helped me look outside of myself. Remember, I wasn’t getting married for strictly selfish reasons – my intention was that she would be just as pleased as I would be – but our picture of that was different. I needed some skills.

In the preface, Harley writes, “Successful marriages require skill – skill in caring for the one you promised to cherish throughout life. Good intentions are not enough. This book was written to educate you in the care of your spouse.”

His findings for the top five marital needs for a man and a woman were pretty close to how we personally ranked them. He lists that a woman’s top five basic needs in marriage tend to be: 1. Affection; 2. Conversation; 3. Honesty and openness; 4. Financial support; and 5. Family commitment. For men they tend to be: 1. Sexual fulfillment; 2. Recreational companionship; 3. An attractive spouse; 4. Domestic support; and 5. Admiration.

If after reading his descriptions of each of the categories they don’t match up with you and your spouse, at least it gets you discussing each other’s needs and you might recognize that you could make some alterations in serving your spouse in order to – as Harley puts it – make deposits in their love bank.

May God bless you as you care for your spouse!

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8 Tips for Feeding Your Family Whole Foods on a Budget (Plus a Giveaway for “The Money Saving Mom’s Budget”!)

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This is a guest post written by Crystal Paine, from Money Saving Mom. Be sure not to miss our giveaway below this post for Crystal’s new book The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget.

Many people have this misguided idea that it is impossible to feed your family a whole foods on a budget. If you live in Alaska or some remote part of the country, this may be the case, but in most areas, you can feed your family natural, unprocessed foods without spending hundreds of dollars each week to do so.

Sure, you might spend a little bit more than someone who is eating a diet composed mostly of processed foods, but it really doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg as some people will make you
think–especially if you’re willing to get creative and think outside the box.

Now, let me be upfront and tell you that our weekly meal plans probably wouldn’t win us the Healthiest Family of the Year award. We eat some processed foods (though we do make the majority of our food from scratch), we like sweets and we certainly do not eat 100% organic.

I know some people are really bothered by this, but we strive to have a balance of serving lots of fresh fruits, veggies and whole grains while still enjoying the occasional brownies and ice cream or even letting our children have a Happy Meal every now and then (gasp! Can you believe it?!)

So, despite the fact that I’m not the most knowledgeable and experienced person to be tackling this issue, here are some suggestions:

1. Plan a Menu Based Upon What is In Season and On Sale

If you want to feed your family on a budget, you need to have a plan for what you’ll be eating. If you can make your menu plan mostly based upon what is on sale at the natural foods store, what is in season at the Farmer’s Market and/or what you’re reaping in abundance from your garden, you’re going to significantly reduce your grocery bill.

2. Practice the “Buy Ahead” Principle

If you happen to come upon an incredible sale on tomatoes at the Farmer’s Market, or the health food store has organic frozen vegetables on a great sale, stock up. Buying items you routinely use when
they are at their lowest price is another surefire way to savings.

3. Plant a Garden (Or Barter With Someone Who Does!)

If you can pull it off, plant a garden. Produce is typically only pennies per item from your own backyard, it’s tremendously fresh and you know exactly what you did or didn’t spray on it. Plus, you can can or freeze your extras–or bless your friends and neighbors with them!

Have a brown thumb? Find a friend who loves gardening and trade services (babysitting, breadbaking, car maintenance?) in exchange for their garden excess.

4. Stick With Simple Meals Using Inexpensive Ingredients

When you’re planning your menu, think about how much your recipes will cost you to make. It doesn’t have to be a scientific to-the-penny figure, but just having a good idea that there is a $10 difference between the price of making one meal as opposed to another meal can help you decide whether you can afford to make something or perhaps should save it for a special occasion.

5. Serve Meat as a Condiment

I shamelessly stole this idea from Family Feasts for $75 Per Week because it’s so brilliant. Serving meat in soup or on pizza is going to be a lot less expensive than serving roast and sirloin,
especially if you’re buying high-quality meat.

Need ideas? Laura shows you how to make six meals out of one chicken.

6. Buy in Bulk

It is usually much more cost-effective to purchase meat and staple ingredients in bulk. Call around to local farmers and see what they would charge you for purchasing half a cow. In many cases, it’s at
least $1 cheaper per pound to purchase in bulk. Buying grains, beans, as well as many other basic ingredients with long storage lives in large quantities will almost always save you at least 20%, if not more.

Costco, as well as many bulk foods stores and local co-ops, offer great pricing. You can also check with your local health food store to see if they’d offer you a discount for bulk purchases.

7. Consider Joining a CSA or Co-Op

If there is a co-op or CSA in your area, check into pricing and details for joining. You might find that it is an affordable and money-saving option for your family. If you can’t find an affordable co-op in your area, you could consider starting your own co-op.

8. Use Coupons on Non-Food Items

I know a number of my readers don’t eat processed foods, but they use coupons to save money on toilet paper, toothbrushes and other non-food items which they purchase. Your savings might not be so exciting as others who use dozens of coupons each shopping trip, but even saving $5 each week by using coupons can start to add up over time.

Crystal Paine is a wife, homeschool mom to three, self-proclaimed minimalist, lover of dark chocolate and good coffee (those can be “healthful” in moderation, right?) and wannabe runner. For practical help and inspiration to get your life and finances in order, check out her blog, MoneySavingMom or purchase a copy of her brand-new book, The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget.

Interested in winning a copy of Crystal’s new book, The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget? They’ve offered to give away five copies! Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win. I’ll draw five random winners on Monday, January 16. Please watch for a post stating the winner as you will be responsible for contacting me if your name is chosen!

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Why My Whole Foods Menu Plan Might Be Overwhelming

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menuplanner1webI love planning a menu for my family. Without a menu plan, it takes me way too long to figure out what we’re eating each day. I also like sharing my menu plan with all of you each week. Many of you have mentioned how helpful you find my plan and have told me that you often “steal” many of my meal ideas. I love that!

But, I also really appreciate the perspective shared in a comment last week – the perspective that my menu plan may be overwhelming to some of you. The fact that I plan all three meals for each day of the week, and the fact that all three meals tend to be big meals – yep, I can definitely see how that could be overwhelming!

I decided to take the time to explain my menu plans just a little bit. I certainly don’t want to overwhelm anyone, nor do I think that planning all three meals for every day of the week is a necessity for everyone. It’s what works for me, but I know it doesn’t work that way for everyone. In fact, menu planning doesn’t work at all for some people. If you’re good at winging it at meal time – go for it! :)

I have found that planning all three meals each day for our family works well for me for the following reasons:

1. My family eats a boat load of food, for every meal. Having a plan for which boat load of food is going on the table really helps me keep my head above water. (Get it? Boat load? Head above water? Ha.)

2. Having a plan in place for each meal of the day helps me focus on other things so that I’m not constantly distracted by what I’m supposed to feed us next. Trust me, the boys ask all the time – “What are we eating for breakfast/lunch/dinner?”

3. Most of my boys wake up ready to eat my leg if I don’t have breakfast ready to offer them when they wake up. I need to know what I’m making for breakfast before I get out of bed. I like having two legs. It’s very handy.

So the question could still be then:  Why don’t I just feed my family cereal for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch each day, and then focus on our evening meal plan?

Well…I do feed them cereal and sandwiches every once in a while. But wow, the cost of feeding us this type of meal really adds up for us. I did the math one time on how much it costs to feed my family sandwiches. You can read about that here, but add even more to that dollar amount because we now eat probably double what I added up for a meal since my boys are older. (Did I mention that my oldest son has jumped several shoe sizes during the last year?)  Therefore, I find that it really saves our family a lot of money if I cook heartier, more nutrition packed meals if possible.

Some tricks I use to make putting three big meals on the table each day just a little bit easier:

~ Just about every meal I make for my family is simple – especially our breakfast and lunchtime meals. I really don’t find that making a “bigger” lunch for the family takes a whole lot more time than making a bunch of sandwiches.

~ Sometimes we have leftovers to eat, so I don’t have to cook something new. But I don’t always know when we’ll have them, so it’s hard for me to plan those into my menus.

~ I try to have food made and in the freezer to pull out for quick lunches.

~ I have a list of “back up meals” and all ingredients on hand to throw them together if needed.

~ While I do have a detailed menu plan, I switch it up all over the place throughout the week depending on what’s going on and what sounds good. The plan is there, but it is flexible.

~ I give myself grace. If I really just can’t get a good meal on the table, the cereal is in the background waiting to be pulled out.

For a little bit more information on this subject, sure to read my Cooking Healthy Meals When the Menu Plan Fails post. Also, you’ll find a free downloadable page full of healthy, easy lunch ideas here.

Okay everyone. Jump in here with your ideas and thoughts about making menu planning simpler. What do you do about planning breakfast and lunchtime meals?

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Gratituesday: Air Soft, Really?

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Well, I’m just a little bit surprised that I’m actually posting about this, but here I go anyway. :)  If you’re interested in learning more about my feelings on the subject of guns and other weapons, I’d love for you to listen to a podcast I recorded on that subject a few months ago to understand my perspective just a little bit more.

You are aware, right, that I live in a household of males? I am surrounded by toy light sabers, swords, knives, guns, and many other varieties of weaponry. Recently, our boys have been introduced to an awesome new toy – the Air Soft Gun. Oh yes, they are now old enough to play air soft. Using their own money, they each got themselves a small air soft pistol. Much to my surprise, Matt had so much fun playing with them, he got his own pistol too. Then, a friend of our family, who happens to be a gal who loves guns, joined the fun.

And long story longer, that very fun girlfriend talked me into playing air soft too. I tried to argue. I gave plenty of excuses. But she talked me into it anyway. Once the boys heard her trying to talk me into it, they joined the begging. What’s a girl to do?

I figure if I can’t beat ’em, I better get out there and join ’em. Or something like that.

Matt got a picture of me trying to figure the whole thing out.
I obviously don’t have a lot of practice aiming or shooting or loading or…

Well, terrible as I was at playing, I can’t believe how much fun I had. It was crazy fun. Exhilarating. I loved it. Unbelieveable.

Then I came back into the house, put down my gun, washed my hands, and continued to make dinner to feed all of us. It appears that I can go outside and shoot an air soft gun with my family and friends, then come back in and still be a homemaker. How about that? It didn’t kill me at all to take a break and have fun like that.

And I might just play again sometime.

Oh, and just in case you might be interested in this bit of information, everytime I open our dryer now, little air soft pellets fall out. They are everywhere in my house. My vacuum rebels. I love it. :)

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for!

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday,
please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

 

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Some Encouragement Before We Start the “No More Excuses” Series

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I really appreciated that so many of you left comments sharing your thoughts, struggles, and insights as to why eating a healthy diet may be difficult for you or for others. I have experienced all of these same feelings and shucks, I still do sometimes.

I have definitely not “arrived” when it comes to this healthy eating journey we’re all on. My family does not eat a completely healthy diet at all times. There are many times that I compromise on what would be the best choice to feed my family. There are times I pull out cereal because I can’t make myself get out of bed in the morning to cook the breakfast I have planned. There are times when, while I totally know better than to buy the chips with hydrogenated oils in them, doggonnit, I want them anyway and I don’t care what’s in them, so there. (Which is why you should never dangle a Nacho Cheese flavored Dorito in front of me. I will eat it. I love those awful things.)

Doritos aside, there are many areas of healthy eating I haven’t mastered yet. And guess what? I don’t even know if I want to master them. How’s that for a bad attitude that sort of flies in the face of my “No More Excuses” intro post? I don’t love eating completely raw foods. Fermented foods, while they are great for digestion, aren’t my favorites. And soaking grains? I’m beginning to find that practice very annoying and am therefore becoming a bit rebellious about it. There, I said it.

I’ve run the gamut of emotion on this healthy eating journey I’ve been on for the past several years. The biggest feeling:  Guilt. Now that’s a fun one.

Guilt when I don’t feed my family perfectly. Guilt when I don’t feel like cooking. Guilt when I know I could be doing better. Guilt when it feels like other moms are feeding their children a healthier diet than I’m feeding mine. Guilt when I read about what someone else is doing, but I just don’t feel like I want to go there yet.

Which is what leads me to the point of this post:  Please do not let anything I share on my blog, and specifically in this new No More Excuses series, overwhelm, frustrate, annoy, or otherwise make you want to throw Doritos at me. (On second thought…)  :)

I want to share my thoughts in the No More Excuses series to encourage you to consider how you might be able to feed your family a healthy diet and help you know that it is possible for you. But let’s also subtitle it the “No More Guilt” series, because we women have to stick together. We may all be in different places in our healthy eating journey, but we’re all on the same team. No comparisions allowed. No guilt. No pressure. Just encouragement and ideas, sharing and inspiring.

And maybe, the occasional Dorito. Someone stop me.

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Menu Plan for the Week

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We’ve had several weeks off from hosting and cooking for our “High School Huddle” group, so I’m afraid I’m out of practice. Tonight, we start back up again. I made pans and pans of Pizza Casserole, which was easy and will reheat quickly tonight before the kids get here. Funny how taking a few weeks off threw me off my game. I stood at the store forever trying to figure out how much pasta to buy. :)

Here’s what our menu looks like for this week:

Sunday, January 8
Oatmeal, bananas
Mission fund raising meal at church
Huddle – Pizza casserole, green beans, corn, butterscotch bars

Monday, January 9
Homemade poptarts, yogurt
Potato soup, carrots
Chicken fried steak strips, mashed potatoes, gravy, peas

Tuesday, January 10
Scrambled cheesy eggs, clementines
Popcorn chicken, ranch potato wedges, carrots
Spaghetti, tossed salad

Wednesday, January 11
English muffins, turkey bacon, apples
Salmon patties, steamed carrots and broccoli
Three cheese garlic chicken pasta, tossed salad

Thursday, January 12
Honey whole wheat bagels, clementines
Easy noodle stir fry with chicken and veggies
Steak tacos

Friday, January 13
Peanut butter honey toast, applesauce
Tuna salad on crackers, apples
Hamburgers with homemade fries

Saturday, January 14
Whole wheat donuts
Leftovers
Sandwiches at bball games

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5 Simple Ways to Accomplish More Each Day

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I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but my husband is very meticulous and thoroughly thorough with all he does. Nothing is done half-way with him. No matter what he is doing, he does it well. I mean, when the guy puts mayonnaise on a sandwich, it is spread with such love and care, one would think that Jesus himself was coming over for a picnic.

I, on the other hand, am completely non-meticulous and absolutely un-thorough. I figure I can get more done with my time if I hurry through jobs. Therefore, I slap sandwiches together, figuring that the mayo will surely smear itself around once it meets the cheese. I don’t measure ingredients when I cook. I don’t always close drawers or cabinets after I grab something out of them. I hate reading instruction manuals, and don’t ever ask me to paint your walls.

And this, my friends, is my secret method for getting a lot accomplished each day. Yes, my advice for you all is to simply do a half-hearted job of everything you do, and no matter what, do not be thorough, especially when making sandwiches. ;)

I’m kidding of course, except for the part about the mayo. Here are my five (real) ideas for ways I have found to accomplish much each day:

1. Get Plenty of Sleep

Cutting out sleep in an effort to give myself more awake hours in the day is actually counter-productive for me. If I focus on getting the sleep I need, I feel much more energetic and can fly through the day getting all kinds of work done.

2. Get Off the Computer/Couch/TV/Phone

There are fantasic benefits to all of the above. But if your time spent on each of them is not productive for your family, your work needs, and most importantly, for God’s Kingdom, get off. The end.

3. Make a List…and Then Do It

Not everyone likes making lists. I get that. But I find that if my to-do list is just swirling around in my head, I simply feel overwhelmed, and instead of plugging away at all I need to do, I feel bound by all I need to do and will, in turn, accomplish nothing. Write it down. Put your to-do list in perspective. Then start knocking it out, one thing at a time.

4. Stay Home

Funny thing about not being home – I can’t get anything done at home when I’m not here. As much as I love being with people, going to ball games, participating in home school activities, etc., I find that I can get so much more accomplished if I prioritize our outside needs and work to be home as much as possible.

5. Pray

We are on this earth to love God and serve his people. Pray for God to show you how to use your time in a productive way that glorifies him. When we are focused on living our life God’s way, much can be accomplished!

And for the record, my husband’s ability to be meticulous is very much appreciated. The paint going up on our living room walls is looking fantastic. Why? Because Matt is doing it, not me. Need I remind you of the slapping that goes on when I make sandwiches? That method is not recommended for wall painting.

Be sure to read all of these great 5 Simple Ways posts:

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5 Simple Ways…Free eBook

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Some of you may recall that last year, several other bloggers and I worked together to write a series of posts titled “5 Simple Ways”. My post was 5 Simple Ways to Live a Natural Lifestyle, which I’m sure that at least two of you found to be completely inspiring and life changing. (What do you mean, you don’t even remember that post?!)  ;)  That’s okay, here it is if you’re interested in reading it.

This year, we’re all working together on a new series of “5 Simple Ways” posts, which will be featured around the web tomorrow. In the meantime, last years posts have been combined into a lovely little eBook that we are offering free for everyone. You can download 5 Simple Ways at no cost, and enjoy learning all kinds of fun new tricks and tips! (Here’s the print version if you’d prefer.)

Be watching for all of our new 5 Simple Ways posts coming up tomorrow. :)

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