Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Easy Cheeseburger Casserole

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I’ve shared a version of this Easy Cheeseburger Casserole here. But this is an even easier variety I’ve started to make, and I encourage you to give this a try!

This casserole is as easy as browning meat, then stirring in the other ingredients. Make it the night before, then bake it at dinnertime when you need it.

Two of my boys helped me make this recently, and took such pride in everyone loving their creation!

A little tip: Instead of topping my casseroles with cheese, I have learned to stir the shredded cheese right into the casserole with all the other ingredients. This makes the entire casserole cheesy, plus it prevents the cheese from sticking to the foil.

Easy Cheeseburger CasseroleYum

Easy Cheeseburger Casserole
 
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Serves: 8-10 servings
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds ground beef
  • 6 cups frozen shredded hashbrown potatoes
  • 2 cups ketchup
  • 2 Tablespoons mustard
  • 2 cups French fried onions
  • 2 cups shredded cheese (I use Colby jack)
  • Sea salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Brown hamburger meat until no longer pink.
  2. Stir cooked meat and remaining ingredients together in a large casserole dish.
  3. Cover dish with foil.
  4. Bake in a 350 degree oven for one hour.

Another tip: I like to set out some Bacon Bits for people to stir in if they want to. Then it becomes Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole – even better!!

Tip number three: Aldi carries a variety of Organic French Fried Onions that are inexpensive and super tasty!

Do I double this recipe and make a giant sized Cheeseburger Casserole for our family? Of course I do. The leftovers (if there are any) are great!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 4-10, 2026

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: January 4-10, 2026 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, January 3

For dinner on Saturday evening, I’d made a huge pot of Beef Stew with some stew meat I’d picked up marked down at Sam’s that week. The kids didn’t eat it very well, but we grown ups enjoyed it. :)

The evening was uneventful, filled with bath time and the normal mayhem. I did manage to finally cut and individually wrap the Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies that I’d baked the day before. Having these ready to pack in school lunches was my main goal for them.

Big Family Food and Fun: January 4-10, 2026

On Sunday morning after worship, Josie and Auggie helped Matt fill a tote of pantry items to bring home and fill our Little Free Pantry.

Our lunch gathering after church was a huge delight, as usual. Our friend Steve walked in a case of Root Beer to share – and it didn’t take much arm twisting at the mention of Root Beer Floats for him to run right out to the store to pick up ice cream so that we could add Floats to our dessert bar. He was back with “the goods” right as we were getting ready to serve lunch: Ham and Cheese Sliders, Tomato Soup, Fruit, and Potatoes.

I’d put together six foil 12-packs of Sliders to warm in the oven – so 72 Sliders altogether. At the end of our meal? Exactly one slider remained. I guess this meal was a hit!

There were 25 of us gathered that day, with so much joy in our conversation and fellowship.

Matt and I sent the kids downstairs to watch a movie with Elias, Malorie, and Malachi during the afternoon while we enjoyed time with three other couples during our Community Group. For dinner that night, I put a box of Taquitos into the oven, warmed up White Queso, and served up Grapes. Easy and fun!

In an effort to get ahead for our launch into a new school semester after a long break, I made a big batch of Breakfast Burritos.

On Monday morning, Emma came to help with the non-school kids, Auggie had ABA therapy, and guess what I got to do? I ducked out for the entire day for some time of Recovery. First stop: a massage. I’ve been holding onto this certificate from my sweet daughters since August.

My friend Terra is amazing if you happen to be in Lincoln and want a healing massage. I was so relaxed after this that I wasn’t sure it was safe for me to drive, ha. But, drive I did – all the way to Panera where I sipped (well, a ton of water at first to get the most out of my massage and then…) coffee. I had my laptop and spent two blissful hours writing.

I ended my time away from home with a run into Costco to get a couple of things. This is what “a couple of things” looks like for our household…

Back at home, Matt and I took Auggie in the stroller for a walk to pick up the school kids. Mayhem and meltdowns began immediately, then ABA therapy, then dinner. I’d thrown BBQ Sauce on Chicken in the crock pot early that morning, then I made Green Beans and Buttered Rolls to go with it.

As the kids were finishing their meal, I decided to make Cheesecake Parfait to go with the Strawberries I’d picked up at Costco. We went through one two-pound round of strawberries very quickly and I got my blender back out and made another batch of parfait. Four pounds of strawberries later, I’d say this was a huge hit with everyone that night!

On Tuesday morning, Little Sweetheart came over to spend the day. We did some hair styling then played in the container of hair ties – which are very, very fun to throw all over the place.

That afternoon, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to serve at our weekly Food Distribution. They all did well this week, and it was great to see over 100 people go through the food line.

Back at home, Matt finished the dinner I’d started: Leftover BBQ Chicken turned into Meat and Cheese Melts with leftover Veggies.

On Wednesday morning, I baked a batch of Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins.

Arrow came and spent the morning, making a batch of his own muffins in our play kitchen.

Somewhere in there, Josie helped me make Party Potatoes to slow cook for our dinner that night.

It was gorgeous outside, so I grilled Steak and Pork Ribs out on our smoker. IN JANUARY. What a treat!

Before bed that night, Brayden and Auggie helped me put together a large Cheeseburger Casserole for our Thursday night dinner.

On Thursday morning, after we got the kids off to school and settled Auggie in with his ABA therapy, I made a new extra large batch of Granola Bars to have on hand.

All throughout the morning, I baked many pans of Bacon. I had plans to use it with our casserole that night for dinner, for a breakfast-for-dinner on Friday, and just to have bacon on hand for anyone who wanted bacon during the next few days. The grown-ups in our house like it when I have cooked bacon on hand. I also save the bacon grease to use when I make Green Beans.

On my last round of bacon, I put two pans of Spinach Cupcakes into the oven to bake for a snack that night. I felt very relieved after all of this time in the kitchen because now I had a lot of good food items made ahead for upcoming needs!

When Malachi got home from work, Auggie helped him warm up and make a cup of coffee. There’s no way Malachi could have done this without the help of his three-year-old brother.

We enjoyed our Cheeseburger Casserole that night with Bacon for those who wanted to add it, Buttered Corn, and Spinach Cupcakes.

Keith took a break from his ABA therapy that night to make rice with Elias. I love how our younger kids love to be a part of life with their older brothers. And I love how the older kids include their younger siblings in their tasks.

On Friday morning, Daddy took Acacia to Speech Therapy. But first, this Helper of the Day helped me make Banana Bread with all of the bananas I’d been holding onto in the freezer.

We quickly ate our way through one loaf of Banana Bread, but I froze the other two loaves for later.

Dinner that night was a HUGE hit with everyone. I made a mountain of French Toast, 20+ Sausage Patties, and warmed up a large amount of Bacon from what I’d baked the day before. We got out Applesauce and Blueberries and feasted on dinner for breakfast. Everyone ate so well that we ran out of food before all of the adults got home from work to eat. Wow.

On Saturday morning, we took the kids to our favorite Sensory-Friendly Library Storytime. There’d been a break from this during the holidays, so we were very excited to go back! The theme for the day was SNOW, so we got to enjoy snowflakes made of felt, books and songs about snow, and then…

…we got to have a snowball fight!

Ms. Diane is incredible at putting this weekly program together!

Matt helped me load up the kids in the library parking lot, then he left in a different vehicle to drive to Heartlands to support our friends during their mom’s funeral service. I was on my own at home with all seven kids for a couple of hours, which is rare! We planned that we would let them watch a movie to help me survive the time. It all went well, and everyone did ok overall!

Part way through the movie, our friend Paula showed up with a car full of groceries for us to put into our Little Free Pantry. Their church group has been awesome to take part in this ministry with us! We paused our movie so that all seven kids could help bring in food.

It overtook our pantry floor – a great problem to have! So many people will be blessed by this food!

I needed to turn off my computer at this point, so I’ll continue sharing about our Saturday next week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: November 16-22, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: November 16-22, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, November 15

Saturday morning we took the kids to our favorite Library Story Time, then played inside the library for about an hour before heading home to eat leftovers for lunch.

I baked double batches of both Breakfast Cookie Bars and Flourless Brownies. Then we put Auggie down for a nap while Matt took the other kids to our church’s Build a Blessing event. I stayed home with Auggie and cleaned the house.

Later that afternoon, Elias and Malorie took Keith out for his Birthday Adventure as they do for all the kids to celebrate their special day.

I put together four Quiches for dinner…

And we were so thrilled to enjoy it with my cousin Laura from Colorado, plus her dad and his wife. It was lovely to have some time to catch up with them!!

Big Family Food and Fun: November 16-22, 2025

Sunday morning, we ate half a pan of Breakfast Cookie Bars as we got ready for church.

Lunch that day was Chili, White Chicken Chili, Baked Potatoes, and Cornbread. This meal was a big group effort as friends brought along many of the tasty dishes we enjoyed.

We had a smaller crowd of just 22 of us that day, and it was sweet to have a relaxing, good meal together.

I caught this group of men having a conversation in the kitchen after lunch and grabbed a three generation pic.

The kids watched a movie that afternoon while Matt and I enjoyed our Community Group time. Then we bravely loaded up our kids to pick up a new phone Matt had ordered, then a new phone case he’d found at Target. We prepared them all before we headed into Target, reminding them about how we stay safe in a parking lot and in a store, how we don’t ask for things we see in the store even though we will love it and really want it, how we stay with Mommy and Daddy, and how we sit safely in the cart…

Overall, they did well and we all made it out alive. It was a good outing to use up some time that night, and we only got four comments from strangers about “wow, that’s a lot of kids.” Yep. We know.

Before heading out on this venture, Matt had grabbed the coupon books that we’d received at the Boo at the Zoo event we enjoyed in October. The books contain a lot of freebies for the kids, so we took advantage and got seven free Cheese Burritos from Amigos for the kids to eat for dinner that night. We warmed up leftovers to fill in the gaps, and that was our night!

On Monday morning, Emma came over to stay with the kids so Matt and I could take some time off.

He and I went to Panera with our laptops. We had a lot to get done, so we didn’t visit much. But just sitting together by the fire was so very nice.

Back at home, we sent the girls off on the preschool bus and got Auggie down for a nap. I put together two huge Lasagnas for a family gathering over the weekend.

For dinner that night, I used some thinly sliced Roast Beef that someone had given us to make Meat and Cheese Melt Sandwiches plus Tomato Soup and leftover Taco Soup.

On Tuesday morning, I made a pan of Stick of Butter Rice so I could turn it into a casserole for our dinner that night.

We were completely muffin-less, which is a very big problem at our house. So Josie helped me make a batch of Flourless Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins.

Little Sweetheart spent the day with us!

I took Brayden and Keith to our weekly Food Distribution that afternoon. Kiya had been struggling with some extra needs the past few evenings, so I left her behind that day to hopefully help her settle. She also had a concert that night, so I wanted to give her plenty of unrushed time to get ready.

We made it back home just in time to drop off Keith for ABA therapy and load up others to head to Kiya’s concert.

Kiya has been working hard to practice her viola and was very thrilled with how this night went. Our friends, Christina and Clara, came to support her, which was extra special (but I only got blurry pictures of them, boo). Our friend, Pasha, is in orchestra with Kiya so it was fun to celebrate both of them together after the concert.

We made it home in time to eat dinner (or second dinner for some of the kids) – Tator Tot Casserole and Green Beans – then we headed straight to bed.

Wednesday morning, Keith was determined to put together special oatmeal packet gifts for people who stopped by our Little Free Pantry. He put them all out in our tote and they were gone in less than a day.

I made a double batch of Chewy Granola Bars.

Arrow spent the morning with us. At one point, all of the kids were enjoying all of Auggie’s ABA therapy toys with the technician.

The girls’ preschool teacher came over for her quarterly visit, and she played a game she had brought over for them. Ms. Kristine has been an incredible support for our family!

All morning long, I’d been baking several pans of Bacon.

I spent the entire afternoon grocery shopping. I filled a cart at Sam’s…

And why did I get an entire case of these bars??

Because they were marked down to $0.91 per BOX. So yes, I got twelve boxes. :)

I also got a box filled with 15-dozen eggs! They weren’t on clearance, but I sure am thankful that egg prices are back to a much better price.

I filled a cart at Wal-Mart also – food for our family and food for our Little Free Pantry fridge.

Back at home, it took a long time to get everything unloaded and put away!

That evening, we played outside until sundown and got to see a beautiful sunset.

Then we went in and had BLT’s with fruit.

Anna had been asking for a hair cut for several weeks, and I finally made it happen that night. She hates having her hair brushed, so I took several inches off.

She loved the results!

Thursday morning, Acacia and Josie helped me make more muffins to take on a weekend trip.

We made Pumpkin Muffins and Banana Muffins.

Little Sweetheart spent the day with us again, and she loved carrying around the girls’ backpacks.

That day, Acacia got her brand new glasses. They are PINK!

I made a very simple dinner of Fish Sticks, Mac and Cheese, and Peas.

Then we spent the entire evening packing clothes and food for our weekend trip.

We headed to Kansas Friday afternoon to spend time with family. I’ll share more about that next week!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Food and Fun: November 9-15, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: November 9-15, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, November 8

Early Saturday morning, I made a huge pan and a regular-sized pan full of Chicken Enchiladas for our upcoming Sunday Lunch.

Then I made a batch of Vanilla Ice Cream for Matt’s birthday lunch that day. His birthday had taken place a few days before, but we’d made plans to celebrate on Saturday.

We took a bunch of antsy kids to Library Storytime that morning. Getting them there and getting them home is a big effort, but worth it because they really need all the outings like this that we can provide for them.

Back at home, I finished putting together a big lunch: Oven Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes in the Crock Pot, Gravy, and Buttered Peas.

We feasted, then had Berry Cobbler and Ice Cream.

After lunch, we cleared away the plates and played a game of Settlers of Catan. Playing games is the best way to celebrate Matt’s birthday!

Big Family Food and Fun: November 9-15, 2025

Anna and Josie were the first to help themselves to Breakfast Cookie Bars on Sunday morning. Our kids (and me, for that matter) still haven’t adjusted to Daylight Savings Time so our mornings are starting ridiculously early.

After a wonderful time of worship that morning, our church family helped us load up a tote full of non-perishable food to add to our Little Free Pantry so that we could offer support to our neighbors.

Several families joined us for lunch after church and it was wonderful to visit and get to know what was going on in each other’s lives.

I caught Auggie in the playroom with his little Church Twin. These two boys are similar in age and if you see one at just a glance, you can’t tell which is which. It’s pretty sweet. :)

We enjoyed Chicken Enchiladas, Guacamole, Beans, Stick of Butter Rice, Chips and Salsa, and Chocolate Chip Cookies baked into Bars for lunch.

There were 26 of us gathered that day. We never feel like we get to talk to all of our guests as much as we’d like. But it’s still great to connect, and even better to see all of our guests visiting with each other. This time is so rich.

That afternoon, instead of hosting Community Group, Matt and I left the kids behind with Elias and Malachi (Malorie was visiting her family in Texas) while we took a small pan of Chicken Enchiladas over to our friends’ house where our Group was meeting instead. We are sad that these friends are moving to another state in a couple of months. This day, we spent time together packing boxes, moving refrigerators, and loading items to donate. The time together was bittersweet as we think about doing life together differently in the near future.

Back at home I threw together a quick dinner of Chicken Nuggets, leftover Mac and Cheese, and Salad. The kids were pretty wild and loud that night after being cooped up in the house to avoid being outside in the cold. Matt tried to run them around up and down our stairs with a game of ball tag, which they loved. Then he attempted a board game, which was absolutely nuts. Meanwhile, I was trying to manage kids jumping and yelling on the sidelines. God bless us everyone.

Monday morning, we had to change our schedule a little bit. Matt and I had the opportunity to record some podcasts at Back to the Bible where Asa works (and where Eva’s mom, Paula works too!). We settled the three youngest at home with Emma (who comes on Monday mornings), then we dropped the other kids off at school on our way.

I don’t have any pictures from our morning, but it was wonderful to spend time with the Back to the Bible crew! When we got home, the kids were outside with Emma playing in the leaves. Auggie had decked himself out in his coat and Brayden’s huge boots. He was very proud!

For dinner that night, I thawed and heated a pot of Taco Soup. It was great to simply pull it from the freezer without any effort!

That evening was especially rough. One of our kids had a meltdown that basically lasted from the time we picked kids up from school until it was time to go to bed. The others took turns melting down, so there was screaming and yelling in our house all evening long. Through it, on my way to the couch with a sad/mad kiddo to try and sit and help them calm their body down, I captured this scene, which only looks like we all sit and color and play magnatiles calmly in the evenings, ha.

Tuesday morning, Josie helped me make Pumpkin Muffins.

As we learn more every day about Autism Spectrum Disorder, we find that it’s impossible to get ahead of what our kids might “fixate” on. They see something or hear about something and suddenly it becomes the only thing they can think about. For Keith, this is often as small as an Amazon box or a long stick – and it is the most special item in the world – the only thing that matters. Or it is that he must have a dirt bike and a field to ride it in, and I need to buy this for him immediately. (<–try reasoning this out of an ASD kiddo. yikes.)

Well, on Tuesday morning, Keith’s obsession was getting dressed up to be the most handsome boy at school. This one we could accommodate and had no arguments with. (Also worth noting, at bedtime that same night, Keith laid in my room with me and sang a worship song for ten entire minutes that he was making up as he went. His song was all about praise to God and how Jesus has all the power and makes the darkness go away and is with us all the time and everywhere no matter what. It was the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard as it shows us that while Keith has a lot of struggles, the Truth of Jesus is getting into his heart. Oh how I needed to hear that song from his precious heart.)

After we got the kids to school that day, Justus dropped off Little Sweetheart to spend the day with us. Our day was pretty chill and we got a lot of little things done at home. Mostly, we played outside in the sunshine because we want to take advantage of every moment that we can before the severe cold sets in.

I took Brayden and Kiya to hand out food and clean with me at our weekly Food Distribution while Matt held down the fort with the other kids at home. As we expected, many more people came through the food line that day than we have had in the past. Thankfully, we had lots and lots of food that had been donated that we could hand out to people. As clients were making their way through to each food table, someone came in with jugs and jugs of milk for us to hand out – wow! So almost everyone who came through got a gallon of milk as a bonus. This was great to see!

When we got home, ABA therapy was well underway with Anna and a new technician that will be working with her for the short term while we wait for a permanent one. The needs of this, along with all the other needs of the kids, distracted me from taking a picture of our dinner that night. We had Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips, Salad, leftover Veggies from the fridge, and Pumpkin Muffins.

On Wednesday morning, while the kids were eating breakfast, I packaged up some hamburger patties and buns to put into our Little Free Pantry fridge. I’d picked up a pack of 12 hamburger patties on sale, so I repackaged them to provide three families with four burgers. This project has been so much fun!

Arrow came to hang out with us that morning. He and Josie were playing during snack time and I love this action shot!

We are in the process of getting Josie set up with ABA Therapy now that we have her ASD diagnosis. So this morning, we had a Telehealth call to work toward putting together her program. The clinician was very sweet to include Acacia in the fun interactions as they were running some tests to assess Josie’s cognitive ability.

That afternoon, I filled a cart at Aldi with items for our Little Free Pantry fridge and also for our own family’s needs.

That afternoon, we had quite a challenge getting Anna home from school. She struggles so much getting to and from school, but does just fine during school. The sidewalks had cleared and we still couldn’t motivate Anna to get on her bike to ride home (her legs didn’t work, she “couldn’t remember” how to pedal, she wanted to hold the snacks that Keith had…).

Ms. Rachel is one of the preschool teachers so she knows Anna from last year. She has been wonderful to step in and help several times when we’ve struggled to leave school. Here’s a shot I took of the two of them as Ms. Rachel worked to pull Anna out of the meltdown that was on its way to turning to shutdown. I sent this photo to Matt to let him know we were still at school and it would be a while before we made it back. God bless Ms. Rachel (oh, and Ms. Alex who joined us also and teamed up to finally get us on our way). Phew.

It was a hectic evening as Anna struggled her way through ABA therapy that night also. Dinner was really good though! I’d smoked Pork Chops that afternoon, then Stir Fried some Veggies (asparagus, zucchini, and carrots), and made Stuffing (from a box, ha). This all tasted delicious!

Brayden goes to Youth Group Bible Study on Wednesday evenings and it was his turn to take snacks this week. He helped me come up with his “menu” and he was very excited. He took chips and salsa, grapes, and Rice Krispie treats.

Kiya’s birthday was back in October and one of her gifts was to have a one-on-one outing with me to go pick out a new volleyball for our family to enjoy. Four weeks later, we FINALLY made this outing happen! It was a sweet time and after much deliberation, she chose this one.

Thursday morning, I made a loaf of French Toast for breakfast.

We checked our Little Free Pantry fridge after breakfast and it was completely empty – praise God! That means more people came and took what they needed after we went to bed. So the kids helped me restock it.

Before we left for school, I took this picture to show you, then we added in a few more items after we got back from school drop off. We try to keep a variety of items in the fridge to offer people choices, but not many more than one or two of each particular thing: milk, apples, yogurt, cheese, 6-pack of eggs, carrots, and a few meat options.

Little Sweetheart spent the day with us again and we took full advantage of sunshine and crunchy leaves to play in.

Auggie felt it necessary to rake the cement. And because one can never be too safe, he wore a baseball helmet to complete his task.

After school, Keith put on his full firefighter gear because that morning a firetruck had responded to a call across our street. Thus, he was now in firefighter mode.

And just who do you suppose drove by our house again that afternoon? More firefighters. They saw Keith in our yard, all decked out in his gear ready to fight fires. So they stopped so that they could take a picture. These men are heroes.

I’d made a very simple meal of Sloppy Joes with Chips and Grapes for dinner. My goal was to be able to spend time with the kids outside before it got dark since the temperatures were so warm.

We played volleyball until it got too dark to see the ball.

I’d browned ten pounds of hamburger meat that afternoon. Some of it got turned into our dinner. The rest of it got turned into a huge pot of Chili that I planned to serve on Sunday for lunch. Kiya was my Helper of the Day so she worked with me on this project.

On Friday morning, Matt took Josie and Auggie with him to take the elementary kids to school so that I could leave early with Acacia. Before her therapy appointments, we went to Wal-Mart to get more items for our Little Free Pantry. She was very insistent on helping me scan the groceries as we checked out.

For the next two hours, Acacia worked hard at Speech and Physical Therapies.

Back at home, we found Auggie hard at work with his Early Development Network special ed teacher. He was working his way through a sensory tunnel and Josie was helping.

That afternoon, I got ready for Keith’s 7th birthday dinner. He wanted a Dirt Bike cake so I rigged up a bike with a ramp. He loved it!

His dinner menu request was: Noodles. That’s it. He just wanted noodles. While that was fine for him (and for five of our other kids), I knew the rest of us would want something with our noodles. So I made both red and white sauces, warmed some bacon to go with white sauce, and steamed some broccoli.

We played a little bit of volleyball before dinner so that we could enjoy time outside before dark.

Then we all gathered around the table for the big birthday feast. Keith enjoyed two plates full of noodles with butter and salt. I was also able to get him to eat some birthday broccoli!

We never have to give big, expensive gifts to make the kids happy. Keith received a fun ball toss toy that I’d picked up on clearance for $4 a few months ago, plus a set of elbow, knee, and wrist protection gear to wear on all his bike/skateboard/skate adventures.

Saturday was full, so I’ll have to catch you up on this next week. We:

  • Made a double batch of Breakfast Cookie Bars for upcoming Sunday breakfasts
  • Made a double batch of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies for snacks and lunchboxes
  • Went to Library Storytime
  • Ate leftovers for lunch
  • Tucked Auggie in for a nap and left him home with adult kids while we took the others to Heartlands church for a Build a Blessing event
  • Got home and made a bunch of Quiche for dinner to enjoy with my cousins who were passing through town

And that was our week!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Food and Fun: October 26-November 1, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: October 26-November 1, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, October 25

Matt had rented a lift and had a few days left with it before needing to turn it back in. So he worked on Saturday afternoon while Auggie napped. As he came back down and was ready to move it (our neighbor has been using it also) – all of the kids ran out to take a ride!

I made a simple – but favorite – meal of Orange Chicken for dinner that night. All the kids will eat this chicken, some with the sauce and some without. So it’s a nice night off from food struggles. We go through two Sam’s-sized boxes of this convenience food, which costs a total of around $26. What a cheap way to enjoy “eating out” without eating out!

Big Family Food and Fun: October 26-November 1, 2025

Auggie has been our “up bright and early” kiddo lately – though it’s not exactly bright out when he gets up. He started on our plate of Breakfast Cookie Bars while I got plates and food ready for Sunday Lunch.

Matt is part of our Teaching Team at Heartlands, and it was his turn to speak at church that morning. How he pulled off working on the lift for a week and a half plus putting together a sermon was quite miraculous and going into this week, we were both pretty worn out. Sunday Lunch, though, revives us. Spending time in community like this is such a gift.

I had declared a Pie Theme for our lunch that day. Our friend Cindy brought Shepherd’s Pie, and I made Chicken Pot Pie and two Quiche.

Our friend, Ingrid, made a really good Cheese Pie, and I made a No Bake Cheesecake and an Easiest Chocolate Fudge Pie. Pie Parties: Highly recommend.

Auggie loves to escape outside (an autistic trait called “eloping”) and our friend Pasha was incredibly sweet to volunteer to go outside with him and keep him safe. Auggie loved the one-on-one attention and I think Pasha loved his time with Auggie too.

Meanwhile, Pasha’s dad, Steve, was in the living room teaching Brayden and Keith to play Chess. How cool is that?!

Matt and I were blessed to spend time with our Community Group later that afternoon while the kids watched a movie with Elias and Malorie. I made three Frozen Pizzas for dinner in an effort to feed some very excited kiddos before we put on costumes and headed out for the night.

Brayden had a Heartlands Youth Ministry party that night, so he’d dressed up and headed out to enjoy Big Kid time. We managed to get the other six kids decked out in this year’s Star Wars themed costumes.

Kiya pulled off Rey amazingly well and she was so proud (as she should be!). Keith was Mandalorian, Anna: Darth Vader; Acacia: Princess Leia; Josie was Chewy and Auggie was our little Baby Yoda. The cuteness was ridiculous.

We loaded up and headed to Boo at the Zoo, which was a free and ENORMOUS event. It was well organized though, and all we had to do was wrangle kids and follow the clearly marked off path. We were very proud of how well the kids handled this (and yes there were meltdowns later, but that happens with or without outings like this).

Monday morning, Auggie started ABA therapy again with a new technician. It took a little while for him to warm up, but his therapist was here too and helped get him acclimated. I sort of hovered on the outskirts to be available if needed, but gave them space to settle Auggie in.

Also that morning, our friend Emma came for a few hours. She was one of our dear babysitters in York, and now she’s married and lives close to Lincoln! So we’ve hired her to come spend time with the girls on Monday mornings so that Matt and I have some time to catch our breath. This is such a gift!

We had a fridge full of leftovers so for dinner that night, I pulled them out along with fresh spinach, and that was our meal!

On Tuesday morning, I discovered Keith in the living room working on a big Word Search. He’s recently discovered these and is so proud when he finds a word in the puzzle!

Little Sweetheart was on her way over and our afternoon was full. So I made a crock pot full of The Easiest Chili for our dinner that night.

It was raining, so we all played in the house all morning until preschool and naptime.

Matt went to pick the kids up that afternoon and snapped this sweet picture. Keith has a special buddy who was picked up by his grandma that day. Grandma and Buddy were holding hands, then Keith joined the train.

I took Brayden and Kiya to serve at our weekly Food Distribution after school.

Matt had fed most of the kids Chili and fruit by the time we got home. Josie realized that it was her day to be Mom’s Special Helper so she eagerly loaded a few dishes into the dishwasher for me. (There are seven days in a week and we have seven little kids. Therefore, each of the kids has a “day” that belongs to them. They get to help me in the kitchen or with other chores, which somehow has turned into a privilege even though it’s work. They love the special time with us, and the fact that if it’s their special day, that means they get extra privileges, like getting to lick the spatula.)

On Wednesday, the kids discovered what Amazon had delivered the night before. A few weeks ago, our ABA therapist had suggested to us that Sensory Socks might be helpful as a calm-down tool for our kids. I forgot about them until Kelsey texted a picture of them this week and made the same suggestion. So I ordered three – one in each size – to give them a try.

Auggie put on the Brayden-sized one and wasn’t sure how he felt about it. :)

As it turned out, ordering three Sensory Socks when you have seven neurodivergent kids wasn’t going to work for us. Instead of calming them, they fought over them while I was trying to get breakfast made and get everyone out the door for school. Hoo-rah. (Later we did have some calming success with them, and also later – I ordered more so that everyone could have one at the same time.)

Meanwhile, we needed go-to snacks. I had made a huge batch of Chewy Granola Bars last week and our household had plowed through them already. So Wednesday morning, I made another huge batch. These are one of the only things Keith has been choosing to eat lately.

I also made a double batch of Banana Muffins for snacks.

I was planning French Toast and Bacon for dinner, so I got all the Bacon baked that morning to make the evening easier.

Auggie had ABA therapy that morning. Acacia and Josie found a game to play.

Arrow came over because he’d heard that Lolli had made more muffins. :)

That afternoon, I ran to Wal-Mart for a few needed items. Notice that “a few needed items” still fills an entire cart. But also!? The price of eggs is exciting now as the chicken flu situation is on the mend and eggs are not as short in supply. In celebration, I bought ten dozen. :)

When Kiya got home from school, Malachi talked her into making him a sandwich for him. They had a silly time together in the kitchen and it was fun to watch. :)

Dinner that night was French Toast, Bacon, Sausage, and Applesauce.

On Thursday I didn’t take many pictures. I had a meeting for Auggie, Little Sweetheart came over to spend the day, and in general, we just kept plugging away to get work done and needs taken care of.

For dinner that night, I had slow cooked Salsa Chicken then made a pan of Stick of Butter Rice. Everyone built a Chicken Taco Bowl based on their preferences with all kinds of topping options.

The weather wasn’t too cold, so we made sure the kids played outside all evening. When it got dark, Matt decided to treat the kids to a few minutes around the fire pit. He fired it up and the kids had a grand time. No marshmallows, only silliness!

It’s hard to see this picture, but I hope you can hear this picture. The kids were giggling and singing Happy Birthday to no one, then blowing out the flame. :)

Friday morning, I stirred together all the Chicken Taco Bowl leftovers and turned them into Burritos for our freezer. I used our favorite Tortillas from Azure Standard. I buy them by the case and freeze them to pull out and use as needed. Eva has been making her own tortillas lately for their family and it reminds me of my tortilla-making days! Someday, I’ll hopefully make tortillas again! Until then, these.

I ended up with 16 Burritos.

And then Anna, who has a lot of food trauma plus Autism, which presents its own level of food issues, grabbed one of the burritos, unwrapped it, and ate the entire contents. Cold. For breakfast. What?? If I would have offered her this, it would have been a no-go, for sure. But there she was, gobbling this right up. Matt and I just smiled, shook our heads, and praised God that she was actually eating.

After we got the other kids off to school, these three kiddos helped me make Lasagna for Sunday Lunch.

Lasagna is a favorite for sure!

Acacia only had Speech Therapy that morning without her normal Physical Therapy that typically follows. She focused and did well, and it was nice to get home and have some time before the bus came.

Malachi texted from his office that afternoon to inform us that Sonic was offering $0.50 Corn Dogs that day. With a full evening ahead, we scrapped our original menu plan and asked him to please pick up 20 of those cheap corndogs on his way home. Hahaha, we never do this kind of thing, but I’m so glad we did. That deal was hard to beat and have you ever tried getting seven special needs kids into costumes and out the door? Corndogs for the win! (Matt air fried some French fries from our freezer to go with our dogs.)

Thanks for dinner, Malachi!

We managed to get everyone ready to go!

Our neighbor friend and his mom joined us for the evening. Brayden (I mean, Darth Vader) elected to skip trick or treating to stay on our porch and hand out candy. I feared that he would regret this and feel like he missed out. But we ended up having a million trick or treaters and he LOVED handing out candy to everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday morning was a rough one after being out and getting hyped up with trick or treating excitement. We managed to get everyone fed, dressed, and to the library for Story Time. Justus, Kelsey, and Little Sweetheart came too.

It was sweet to watch Justus play with his brothers afterward.

We spent some time inside the main library area after Story Time. Keith discovered a fun Word Search on the wall!

Back at home, Josie made a salad to go with lunch.

I put together a Spinach Cake and baked it for Sunday Lunch.

I filled a crock pot with Ham and Potato Soup to slow cook for our dinner.

Then we ate Chicken Nuggets and Salad for lunch.

The weather was chilly but sunny, so we bundled up the kids to play outside during Auggie’s naptime. Then we moved into our time of Sabbath and that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: October 19-25, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: October 19-25, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, October 18

This particular Saturday evening was incredibly restful and refreshing for me. Matt had gone to York to celebrate a special event at York University. Our friends, the Cases, had helped us out by taking six of our kids to their house for a few hours. So that left just Auggie and me to hang out together.

He and I took a long, peaceful walk around our neighborhood.

We did some cleaning, and since it was just the two of us, the house actually stayed clean for longer than five minutes. Most of the adults in our household were gone for the evening also, so I didn’t need to cook dinner. It was a lovely night off.

When the kids got back home, Elias and Malorie helped me with baths, showers, and bedtime. Matt had a wonderful time catching up with many friends and I’m so glad he got to go have that time in York!

Big Family Food and Fun: October 19-25, 2025

Sunday morning, I set out our pan of Breakfast Cookie Bars and everyone dug in.

After church that day, Keith and Acacia helped our friend Matt load a tote full of pantry items into our van. Our goal this week was to walk to our church’s Little Free Pantry to fill it up for our neighbors.

There were 31 people gathered at our house for lunch that day. Keith’s favorite friend Sam was able to join us, which made the day so much sweeter. Sam is so good to pour love into Keith.

We had a wonderful buffet of Taco Soup, Potato Soup, Mexi Dip and Chips, Ham and Cheese Melts, and Fruit. Plus friends brought Pumpkin Cookies and Berry Cobbler for dessert.

After lunch, Matt got back up on the lift he’d rented to try and knock out more work on our roof. I’d arranged with friends to help me with the kids, and we loaded up to head back to church for a fun Pumpkin Palooza kids’ event.

Once there, everyone got a sack with a checklist of tasks, and we all got busy!

The kids got to paint pumpkins, make a sensory bag, create a pumpkin launcher, make a craft, and of course, make a s’more.

I feel so blessed by people so willing to help us with our kids’ needs. Auggie is slow to warm up to people, but Kaitlyn is gifted and won him over throughout the afternoon. This, along with other friends helping with other kids, freed me to actually enjoy time sitting and coloring with Anna as she worked on her craft.

Everyone worked as a team to clean up after the party. As you can see, there’s no way Ms. Mandy could have put this stack of chairs away without our three little girls helping her.

Back at home, Matt was still working on the lift, so throwing a box of frozen Taquitos into the oven was about all I could manage for our dinner. No matter. Everyone was fed and then slept well that night.

On Monday morning, Acacia and Josie had dentist appointments. They were excited going in, but then  quickly became nervous during their turns in the big chair. The dental hygienist was extremely patient with both of them and while the appointments took longer than we all originally thought they would take, we got them accomplished. NOTE: During times like this, I am so grateful for the answers and diagnoses we’ve received for our kids this year. This helps me know better how to talk to and care for our kids. It also helps me explain their special needs to professionals so that our kids have a better chance at remaining calm.

Matt worked on the lift all day. I had a meeting with our kids’ BCBA – the gal who puts Keith, Anna, and Auggie’s ABA therapy programs together for their behavior technicians to work on each day. The kids are making progress (well, not Anna – she’s between technicians right now and we are praying a new one comes aboard soon!). We talked through upcoming plans and goals as we keep moving forward.

When the kids got home from school, everyone was excited to watch Daddy move the lift to a new location.

I had bananas that needed to be turned into something, but alas, I was down to only 3 eggs in our entire house. I had thought for sure I had another box of 5-dozen in our basement fridge. Oops. Nope. But not to worry…I made a double batch of Angela’s Egg-Free Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies. This was a perfect solution and my kids were very excited!

Meanwhile, Elias picked up some eggs for me on his way home after his workout that evening. Phew. That’ll get us through until I can get to the store.

For dinner that night, I had put 17 potatoes into our crock pot to bake all day. Just before picking kids up from school, I browned meat and seasoned it. We had Taco Potatoes, fixed to each person’s liking, plus I made a bowl of Caesar Salad.

During ABA therapy that evening, I worked on sorting clothes down in our laundry room. I pulled out summer shorts and shirts and switched them out with fall pants and sweatshirts. I didn’t finish the job, because this is a BIG JOB. But I made progress, and at least felt like our kids would have a few outfits to wear this week with the weather becoming cooler.

The best find in our totes: footie pajamas for Acacia. She has never been able to wear anything like this because of her need to sleep in a brace every night for five years. We had to get her jammies that didn’t have feet in them – otherwise they wouldn’t fit right. Her putting on footie pajamas wasn’t that big of a deal to her that night. But Matt and I sure felt pleased. :)

On Tuesday morning, Eva and Arrow came over to help me while Matt got back on the lift to work. He cut down some limbs, and Auggie felt that it was his job to drag them over to our growing stick pile.

Little Sweetheart was with us all day, so she and Arrow had some good chats.

That afternoon, I took Brayden and Kiya to hand out food and clean up at our weekly Food Distribution. Well over 100 people went through the food line that day and were served.

Back at home, Matt was feeding everyone dinner. I had smoked 24 Brats during the afternoon before I left, and Matt warmed up leftover Baked Beans. We had a few chips and pickles too. :)

I put together an Overnight Pumpkin Spice French Toast Casserole to bake the next morning. It felt good to get this done before bedtime!

I baked it bright and early the next morning. Keith thought it smelled so good that he got way too close to the dish and made me scared that he’d burn his face. Oy.

We’d run out of Breakfast Sandwiches, so while the casserole was baking, I also baked 18 eggs. Then I put together 24 sandwiches.

We had an intense morning planned, so I’d canceled all of our typical Wednesday “regularly scheduled programming.” Then our plans were all suddenly canceled, completely freeing up the morning. Phew, ok then.

Matt and I regrouped and after we got the kids to school, we loaded up Acacia, Josie, and Auggie to get our weekly shopping knocked out. I ran into Wal-Mart to get a few items while Matt stayed in the van with the kids. Then, he dropped the girls and I at Sam’s while he and Auggie went into Menards.

I told the girls that if they were sweet shoppers, we’d have time to look at the sparkly Christmas trees when we were done.

They’d finished the snacks we’d brought, so they dug into a container of Raspberries as we were heading out. They shared with Auggie once we got back into the van – and by the time we got home, we’d finished the entire container.

I’d scored 11+ pounds of hamburger meat marked down at Wal-Mart. So I browned it all with plans to bag it up and freeze it for easy meals.

For dinner that night, I’d “dumped sauce on some chicken legs” and baked them for an hour. I made Three Cheese Spaghetti and Steamed Broccoli to go with it, and it was a delicious feast!

I had some spinach that was getting wilty in the fridge, so Anna and Josie helped me make Spinach Cupcakes.

We ate some of them that night before bed, then more for breakfast on Thursday. Meanwhile, I had four overripe bananas that needed to be used. So super early on Thursday morning, Auggie helped me turn them into 48 mini Flourless Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins.

Anna and Acacia stumbled in and wanted to help too.

Then we had both Spinach Cupcakes and Flourless Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins to pick from. At our house though, we can never have too many muffins.

Eva and Arrow came over for the morning again to help me while Matt got up on the lift to work. They were awesome to stop at Hy-Vee and pick up my WIC order on their way, which was super helpful! Arrow sat in the midst of Lolli’s messy pantry with all the WIC food plus some of Wednesday’s Sam’s groceries that hadn’t been put away yet.

Little Sweetheart was with us all day too, and mid-morning, it warmed up enough that we were all able to go outside to play.

Little Sweetheart wanted a ride in the stroller, and Big Girl Acacia got permission to push her slowly and carefully on the sidewalk.

That night, knowing that Matt would still be outside working when the kids got home from school during my dinner prep time – I slid Chicken Strips into the oven for ease. We turned them into Chicken Sandwiches with a variety of sauces and spreads and had them with Lettuce, Grapes, and Oranges.

On Friday morning, Acacia had Speech Therapy and Physical Therapy.

That night was chilly outside, which made Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Tomato Soup a perfect dinner.

Saturday morning, Keith was in dire need of high protein snacks. I’d made muffins this week, but I didn’t have any of our typical peanut butter snacks on hand to meet his “I need food and I need it now” times of they day. (This isn’t Keith’s fault – it’s the way his brain and body are wired. He struggles at meal time, can’t always wait to eat until meal time, and in general often needs a good snack to help him with transitions.)

So, I made a double batch of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies and a huge batch of Chewy Granola Bars to have on hand. The adults in the house like all these too, so none of this will last long!

We loaded up all the kids at 8:50 that morning and headed to Sensory Friendly Storytime. After the program, Ms. Diane got out awesome sensory toys for everyone to enjoy.

We had some extra time, so we went into the main library area for about 45 minutes before heading home.

Back at home, we warmed up leftovers for lunch. I spent some time working on Sunday’s Lunch, which was to be a Pie Party! I had made a big Chicken Pot Pie Friday night to bake on Sunday. The girls helped me make Cheesecake, Quiche, and Easiest Chocolate Fudge Pie after their lunch on Saturday.

I then got caught up on dishes and finished this post! And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: September 28-October 4, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: September 28-October 4, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, September 27

Keith had a soccer game Saturday afternoon. He is such a go-getter out on the field and really focuses in. It’s precious to watch.

On the sidelines that day, we had an All-You-Can-Eat Clementine Feast.

Back at home, we took care of some much needed hair cuts. Auggie was first, then Brayden. Once I put on the cape, Auggie went into “the zone.” I set up my phone against a rock to prop it up and he was privileged to watch Ms. Rachel during his hair cut.

He did awesome and we got the job done! I still couldn’t get him to smile for me though. :)

I don’t have any pictures of this, but I wanted to mention that Kiya has been very into Volleyball lately. She’d been bumping a ball around during hair cut time, and Matt and Keith joined her. Then, after I was finished with haircuts, Matt hung out with Auggie while I got to bump the ball for a while with Kiya and Keith. Much to our delight, Brayden jumped into our circle. We all had a lot of fun – and I share this because I’m so thankful that God gave us those minutes to play. There’s so much “fight” in our kids that there’s often not a lot of “fun.” God provided that volleyball time to bond us together in a new way, and it was soooo great. I often pray that Matt and I can truly enjoy our kids. We so badly want to enjoy our kids. Those moments with the volleyball were very enjoyable. Thank you, God.

Dinner was a little bit late that night because I had chosen to play. Worth.It. We quickly threw together Meat and Cheese Melts, Salad, and Green Beans.

Big Family Food and Fun: September 28-October 4, 2025

Here’s Auggie, bright and early on Sunday morning, enjoying Breakfast Cookie Bars.

We had an extra fun Sunday Lunch that day, honoring our friend Christina, who loves potatoes. I decided that we’d have a Potato Party and asked guests to bring their favorite potato dishes. :)

I made Tator Tot Casserole and Spicy Ham and Potato Soup. Christina made Sweet Potato Potato Enchiladas and a Spanish Tortilla. Cindy brought Funeral Potatoes. Was it a carb overload? Sure. But it was fun and on Sabbath, we feast!

Christina brought Pies and I made Spinach Cake for dessert. So see? We had veggies with our meal. ;)

There were 28 of us gathered for lunch that day.

Matt and I enjoyed our Community Group time that afternoon while the kids watched a movie with Elias and Malorie. Then Acacia helped me put Frozen Pizzas in the oven.

On Monday, when we got the kids to school, this is what “hurry and lock up your bikes and let’s get you into your class lines” looked like. I always wonder why I ever even tell the kids to “hurry” because it is 0% ineffective.

After school that day, Brayden made it home a few minutes before the others. While I was out picking up the elementary kids with Auggie, Matt took advantage of his short one-on-one time with Brayden to play some Catan Junior.

Dinner that night was simple: Chicken Salad with Crackers or Bread options, Spinach, Pickles, and Boiled Eggs.

On Tuesday morning, Little Sweetheart came over for the day. We spent a lot of time outside watering trees and grass, playing…and ruining our clothes.

That afternoon, Brayden, Kiya, and I went to our weekly Food Distribution. Keith stayed home with Matt this time because his nervous system has been struggling more and going from school to Food Distribution to ABA therapy has led to extra melt downs. So we gave him some time off this week.

Before I left for the afternoon, I had put together a huge Egg and Hashbrown Casserole and got Banana Bread and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins from the freezer to thaw. Matt baked the casserole while we were gone, and our household gobbled this up.

On Wednesday morning, Acacia and Auggie helped me wash potatoes and carrots to put into the crockpot for dinner.

Arrow came to spend the morning with us. I have yet to find anything cuter than a toddler in overalls.

For dinner, we had Pork Roast with Carrots and Mashed Potatoes made in the Crock Pot. We adults loved this! The kids were half and half on feeling like this was edible, so I made some PB and Honey Sandwiches for those who refused to eat this or who only ate a little and didn’t get full.

Thursday morning, Keith rolled out of bed looking like this. The night before, he’d discovered a duffle bag full of Soccer Referee gear that had been used by Matt and our four older boys back in York. This is now Keith’s chosen career path.

That morning, I baked a double batch of Pumpkin Bars and a recipe of Bran Muffins baked into Mini-Sized Muffins.

We had Apple Crisp and Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream planned for our Sunday Lunch dessert. So I got started on the first of several rounds of ice cream.

Kiya had requested Peanut Butter Honey Rice Krispie Bars. So I made those too!

Little Sweetheart came to spend the day with us again. Josie had taken a basket full of random items outside, and Sweetheart helped her sort through them.

After the girls left for school and the babies were napping, I cut the Pumpkin Bars and separated them onto two plates – one to freeze and one to serve for breakfast the next day.

Dinner that night was super simple since I’d been baking to get ahead in other ways. I’d picked up a big bag of Teriyaki Chicken at Sam’s so I thawed it and heated it. I made a pan of Stick of Butter Rice to go with it plus steamed some Broccoli.

On Friday morning, I baked four pans of Bacon to get ahead and to have for dinner that night.

Acacia had Speech Therapy.

Then we moved into a Physical Therapy session. These are both challenging for Acacia, and she’s pretty worn out after back-t0-back therapies. But she’s making good progress, and we’re proud of her hard work.

Our entire household had been passing around a cold but it hasn’t been too bad. Josie, though, got knocked down a little bit harder with hers. She ended up missing two days of school this week. She fell asleep during the afternoon on Friday, and I captured this beautiful, sweet picture of her.

That afternoon/evening, I attempted to get ahead for Sunday’s needs. It was a little bit hectic, but then again, it always is. :) Keith and Auggie had ABA therapy. (Anna has been taking a very long ABA break as we wait for a new technician to come on board for her therapy needs.) I baked a double batch of Breakfast Cookie Bars for upcoming Sunday breakfasts.

Anna sat in the kitchen with me while I worked and did her “homework.”

Earlier in the afternoon, I’d put Marinated Chicken and a Pork Loin on the smoker to cook for Sunday’s lunch.

With our smoker already full of meat, I baked Hamburgers for our dinner. Some people built Bacon Cheeseburgers with the bacon I’d prepped earlier in the day. I air fried some French fries and got out pickles to go with our burgers.

It was at that point Elias saw that our smoker had run out of pellets and the Pork Loin was no longer cooking. Boo. Thankfully, it was done enough, so I pulled it off, knowing I’d cook it a little bit more on Sunday morning before lunch.

After dinner, Matt took Anna and Acacia to a birthday party. Those of us who stayed back home finished therapy and kitchen clean up.

During one of Auggie’s therapy-work breaks, he helped me make one more batch of Ice Cream for Sunday. It was a very full day and bedtime felt good that night!

Saturday morning, I put together a Apple Berry Crisp to bake the next morning for Sunday’s Lunch dessert. Here’s the pan before I added the oat crumble topping:

We’d discovered a free Pumpkin Patch nearby, so we loaded up to check it out. This spot was perfect for our family!

It was a small space with a jump pad, goats and chickens to enjoy, and a field full of pumpkins we could stroll through.

This Pumpkin Patch is the opposite of many that we have looked into for our kids – not overstimulating, not scary, no chance of losing kids in the crowd. The weather was beautiful, the other families who were there were roaming around calmly and sharing their goat food with us…it was a lovely morning.

Did we still have some screaming episodes and kiddo neediness? Yes. That comes with the territory for us. But overall, this was a wonderful setting for us to enjoy time with our kids and it provided a “Pumpkin Patch” experience for them that was just right.

Did I mention that it was FREE? We just paid for some goat food and the pumpkins that we choose. We bought several pumpkins to bring home because were happy to support the people that provided such a low key and fun outing for us!

I had packed some snacky lunch foods and distributed them to the kids once they were buckled into the van and had washed their hands with wet wipes, ha. We ate salami, cheese, applesauce, bananas, chips, and buttered bagels.

Back at home, Auggie napped while we transitioned toward getting ready for Keith’s final soccer game for the season, then started our time of Sabbath rest. And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: August 31-September 6, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: August 31-September 6, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, August 30

It was rainy that Saturday afternoon, so we had to find indoor activities to keep the kids occupied. Brayden and Kiya asked to see our wedding photos. So we all enjoyed taking a walk down memory lane, seeing so many family members’ pictures from 31 years ago, seeing Mommy in her pretty white dress, seeing Daddy looking like our now adult sons… :)

I pulled out a craft kit to enjoy at the living room table.

Elias and Malorie have a tradition of taking each birthday kid out for a “Special Adventure” to celebrate their birthday. That Saturday afternoon was a good opportunity for them to take Acacia out. They walked around the mall, then got her a special lemonade. She loved every minute of this special time!

Josie helped me make Baked Beans for our Sunday Lunch as we wrapped up our day and headed into our Sabbath evening.

For dinner that night, I used the last of some BBQ Pulled Pork I had in the fridge to make Sandwich Melts.

Big Family Food and Fun: August 31-September 6, 2025

On Sunday morning, we dug into a plate of Breakfast Cookie Bars.

We needed to be an hour early to church that day because Brayden had the honor of being on the Worship Team and they needed to do a run-through of the morning’s songs. Justus had arranged for a mother-daughter combo and a father-daughter combo to be on the team that day along with Brayden/Justus/Kelsey as a brother-brother-sister combo. I was glad we got there an hour early so I get get my happy tears out as I watched them worship. While Brayden struggles mightily with academics and social skills, THIS is a place where Brayden shines so confidently.

Back at home after church, we had 39 people gather for lunch. It was Acacia’s birthday and it was so much fun to have a houseful to celebrate with her!

We enjoyed Acacia’s lunch menu choices: Hotdogs and Cheddar Brats, Chips, Pickles, Grapes, and Carrots. For dessert we had Brownies and several batches of Homemade Ice Cream.

I tried to walk around to take pictures of groups gathered throughout the house, but I missed capturing everyone.

I love watching people enjoy a meal and fellowship. I am so thankful for this home God provided for us!

Because it was a three-day holiday weekend, Kelsey took full advantage of her time at home to get ahead in her kitchen. It was so fun to get texts and pictures from her throughout the weekend, sharing her tasty progress. Sunday evening: Stir-and-Pour Bread!

Meanwhile, I was tapped out and made Aldi Take-and-Bake Pizzas for Acacia’s birthday dinner.

We hadn’t had a chance yet that day to sing and blow out birthday candles or open gifts. So we gathered in the dining room after Pizza to enjoy this time with her.

Note that the boots Acacia was so excited to receive had been purchased on clearance at the end of last winter for an entire $1.00 and stashed away for such a time as this. Five-year-olds are easy to please and don’t need expensive presents. She LOVES these new sparkly boots!

Monday morning was rainy and dreary. We decided to take the kids to the Mall indoor play area to get some energy out since a park or the zoo was out of the question that day. I packed sandwiches, grapes, chips, almonds, and apples to get us through our outing.

The kids played until hunger took over, and we headed to the food court area to find a table.

And who did we discover along the way? Our friends, the Cases, and they had more friends, the Adcock girls, with them. Christina snapped this picture for us to send to the Adcock Mama to hopefully brighten her day.

Running into friends was a HUGE perk to our day and changed some grumpy attitudes around. We are so thankful for these friends!

Somehow we got everyone fed, then to the potty, then to the play area again before heading home for Auggie’s nap.

The Nabb family came over all afternoon so that Cindy and I could work on some paperwork together. The kids played school in the living room (it was still raining outside!), then we talked the Nabbs into staying for dinner! I made an Egg Casserole, Pancakes (from a box, ha – actually two boxes), Sausage Patties, and Fruit.

This was the best. We hadn’t made any Labor Day plans so I loved that this impromptu gathering happened.

Meanwhile, Kelsey had sent me pictures of a big Turkey she’d baked, Broth she made with the bones, and these Snickerdoodle Bites. You go, girl!

Tuesday morning, the teachers had a work day so the kids were home from school again. Somehow, most of the kids slept in and Anna was the only kiddo who joined me downstairs before 7:30. While we don’t get hours of one-on-one time with each of our kids, I find that God does provide small windows of opportunity to give undivided attention to them like this. During our time together, Anna helped me get Breakfast Cookie Bars, Spinach Cake, and Stick of Butter Rice into the oven.

It felt good to get ahead and to make good use of oven heat. (As in, since I had turned the oven on to bake a cake, I wanted to add more to the oven while it was hot to save energy.)

The kids have been very into sitting on skateboards and riding them down the driveway. The rain had stopped so we spent the entire morning outside, much of it on skateboards.

Justus dropped off Little Sweetheart for the day, and she proved herself to be one of the big kids outside walking around and riding the little scooter.

Mid-morning, Keith helped me make Cream Cheese Frosting for our cake.

I browned two pounds of hamburger meat and stirred it into the rice I’d baked earlier to make Taco Rice Dinner. I kept the corn and beans separate to accommodate pickiness. Then I covered it and put it into the fridge for Matt to rewarm at dinnertime.

At lunchtime, we used Sunday’s leftover hotdogs to make Beanie Weanies. Mealtimes seem to somehow turn our kids into screamers, phew. Several of our kids have food-related trauma, so it’s par for the course. Still, it makes me sad. How I long to simply make food, serve food, enjoy food, and then clean up after us. Instead, there’s yelling, fighting, food refusal, arguing, and a lot of “I hate this” even if they ate thirds of the same food last time. Anyway, this lunch time was especially challenging and loud. Parenting this time around is so different!

Note: My intent with sharing some of the challenges in our family isn’t to whine or complain. But I do feel that it’s important that I share the reality of our situation. Matt and I are constantly trying to figure out how to successfully train, discipline, and teach these babes. Mostly, we want them to know that they are loved and that they can trust us. Trust is tricky with kids who have lost so much. We’ll keep loving and being trustworthy, praying and supporting.

That afternoon, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to serve at our weekly Food Distribution.

Matt had warmed the Taco Rice Dinner that I’d made earlier in the day and fed some of the littler ones. ABA therapy was in full force when we got home so the rest of us ate in shifts as the evening went on. Meanwhile, Elias and Malorie did some cooking to pre-make some work lunches to grab and take as they headed out early the rest of this week. Malachi was hanging/working/working out with his friend, Graham, and they ate dinner too. It was a full kitchen all evening long – my favorite!

Wednesday morning, Auggie had ABA therapy and Arrow came to hang out. Grandbaby time is incredibly precious to us.

After we got the girls on their preschool bus around noon, Matt got Auggie down for a nap and I headed out to grocery shop. This might last us for a short while?

I had put a bag of frozen meatballs into our crock pot with barbecue sauce for Meatball Subs for dinner. We had them with Raspberries and Salad.

As we were getting all seven kids down for the night, Keith and Auggie parked themselves in our “Reading Room” with the big bear. I couldn’t believe how long Auggie sat there looking at books. This is a big break-through for a little guy who has had to be taught how to play, sit, and focus. By the way, our “Reading Room” is a sun room just off of our girls’ bedroom. This room has evolved from an extra bedroom to a Lego Room to what is now our Reading Room. There’s a shelf behind the door that you can’t see if this photo, and that’s where the kids can grab their books to calm down with at night in their beds. This great big bear has been a perfect addition to this room (thanks, Burham family, for handing this off to us!).

Wednesday evening, I made yet another double batch of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies because apparently we are obsessed with these now. They have become a very helpful go-to for snacks and lunches so I will keep making them until we get tired of them. I also made another big batch of Chewy Granola Bars for the same reason. We are eating through them very quickly and they provide a fast protein fix all throughout the day. On Thursday morning, I got them cut and packaged for easy grab-and-go options for everyone.

Kiya is always excited to help with projects like this.

Anna helped me scramble eggs to make French Toast.

We’d brought home a fun loaf of Cinnamon Swirl Bread from Food Distribution on Tuesday, and this makes the best French Toast! When I make it like this, I don’t serve it to the kids with maple syrup. It is sweet enough just as it is and I tell them that they can eat it like cookies. :)

Josie’s teacher sent me this fun photo that afternoon, stating that Josie had declared them to be twins that day with their flower dresses, messy buns, and sandals. :) :) :) She sure does love Ms. Kristine!

Little Sweetheart spent the day with us, and the kids are always so excited when she or Arrow join us for school drop off or pick up!

Dinner that night was the best. I had marinated and Smoked Chicken plus I had cut up 4-pounds of berries for Strawberry Parfaits. I steamed Green Beans, Sautéed Peppers and Onions, and Buttered/Toasted some Buns. We devoured this.

YOU GUYS. All of Auggie’s life we have tried to read books to him. But he would never let us, which was so sad both for snuggles and for his developmental needs. This day was the very first day he sat down and let me read a book to him. AMAZING. Brayden took a picture to document the milestone event. I made it through about a third of Bears on Wheels before Auggie was ready to move on. But wow did it feel good knowing the progress this baby boy has made!

Friday morning is a big morning for Acacia now. After we get Brayden, Kiya, Keith, and Anna off to school, we settle Auggie in with ABA therapy in our living room, and Josie gets one-on-one with Daddy while Acacia and I head off to Children’s Rehab for therapy. She starts with an hour of Speech Therapy.

Then we take a potty break and head in for an hour of Physical Therapy. This week we got home just as the preschool bus was arriving to take her and Josie to school. Phew!

Matt and I spend Friday afternoons together – not working but just being together. If we don’t block out time like this, we’d never have full conversations. :)

Dinner that night was Grilled Turkey and Cheese Sandwiches and Tomato Soup. Plus I cut up a huge Watermelon that we munched on all evening long.

Saturday morning, I made Cream Cheese Salsa Dip and Caramel Apple Dip in preparation for a big Chip/Veggie/Fruit Dip Buffet for Sunday’s lunch.

We loaded up snacks for the morning as we headed out to start with our first outing of the day. Our favorite Sensory-Friendly Library Story Time was starting back up for the fall!

This special library event is such a gift for our family and for several others who we see each time we go. Most of the guests are on the autism spectrum or have other disabilities – and it is such a safe, friendly environment. No one expects the kids to sit perfectly still. Ms. Diane offers lots of opportunities for the kids to move around, to participate or not participate in the simple songs and actions to go with songs/books, to be seen, to be cared for. There are special chairs and special weighted stuffed animals. It’s the most beautiful time and we are so thankful to be a part of this.

Malachi hopped in with us and played with the kids during the sensory toy time after story hour.

Then we loaded back up (ate snacks) and headed to Heartlands for a Color Run with our church’s Kids Ministry. Here’s a shot of everyone running the path getting sprayed with colorful chalk, while Matt and I stayed back with hesitant littles.

By the end, Josie had finally allowed herself to get a little bit “chalked” while Anna had decided to go all in and Kiya and Keith were very well covered. It was such a well-attended event and so much fun!

We went home and ate leftovers for lunch, then loaded back up to go to Keith’s soccer game. Did I pack more snacks, even though we’d snacked all day and just eaten lunch? Yes, snacks are a must. The kids ate their way through 2-pounds of strawberries and a bunch of animal crackers while Keith ran his heart out and even scored a goal.

Late afternoon was spent playing outside, cleaning, then moving into our time of Sabbath. And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: August 17-23, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: August 17-23, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, August 16

In last week’s post, I shared a little bit about swimming at our friends’ house last Saturday afternoon. We all loved this so much! Here’s a shot Justus got of all of us in the pool. Our kids came home tired and hungry that day!

Keith had played his first soccer game of the season that morning, and he was excited to help me made a batch of Gatorade that afternoon. It turned out pretty tasty, and he was so proud!

Big Family Food and Fun: August 17-23, 2025

Sunday morning, we ate our way through a plate of Breakfast Cookie Bars.

Brayden is a 6th grader now, which means he has joined Heartland’s Youth Ministry! There was an HYM parent meeting right after worship that morning, so we didn’t get to host lunch at our house. Instead, I packed Tuna Salad, Cheese, Crackers, Boiled Eggs, and Fruit Cups for all of us to eat at the church building during the meeting. :)

We got home in time for the kids to go downstairs and watch a movie with Elias and Malorie. Matt and I enjoyed Community Group time – one of our favorite parts of the week. Afterward, I baked three frozen pizzas for dinner, and we spent the evening getting ourselves reset for a new school week!

Monday morning, Auggie had ABA therapy and I had a meeting at the school for Keith. Getting everyone to school was a little bit hairy because of this, but our neighbor came to the rescue to help us be in three places at once!

It was a pretty chill morning after that, and we played outside until it was time to watch for the preschool bus.

These girls love heading off to preschool at noontime!

That afternoon, Brayden and Keith had their first homework assignments after school. Keith’s ABA tech helped with his and Matt sat with Brayden. I helped Kiya work on her homework in the kitchen and we all got done before dinner. Phew!

For dinner that night, I’d cooked Black Bean Chicken Nachos in the slow cooker all day. We enjoyed it with all the fixin’s on chips or in tortillas.

Auggie was excited to vacuum with Elias’ small hand-held Bissel. He’s getting so big!

Brayden played a game with his little sisters just before bedtime.

Tuesday morning, I made Chewy Granola Barsx4 plus a Smoothie for Matt and me.

Little Sweetheart came to spend the day with us, plus a friend came to visit that morning.

We were almost out of fresh produce (again!) so I’d put in a Hy-Vee order for our WIC items for the month. Matt picked it up that afternoon while Auggie and Little Sweetheart were napping.

After school, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to our weekly Food Distribution. Here’s the view from our station where we handed out bags of donated chicken or seasoned beef.

Keith was having a very hard time with his emotions while we were there. Adjusting to a new school year has been pretty rough for him. I hoped food might help, so I finally gave him a loaf of bread that we’d picked up on a donation table. He laid down on the kitchen floor to rest and fill his belly while we cleaned up before heading home. Poor guy.

Our friend, Paula, had been given these goodies by her neighbor and she brought them over that evening to share with our family. What a score! I thawed the drumsticks to marinate and smoke the next day for dinner.

Meanwhile, Matt had finished making a Spaghetti dinner for everyone.

Later when I had time to check email, I discovered that Acacia and Josie’s teacher had sent this gem from their reading time at school that day!

Wednesday morning, Auggie had ABA therapy and I played catch-up after a full afternoon/evening the day before! Matt and I had a lengthy meeting with our kids’ ABA therapist to go over progress made, needs each kid has, and future goals.

We’d brought home overripe bananas from Food Distribution, so I made a batch of Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins for breakfast and snacks.

I had made a couple of boxes of mac and cheese for the school kids to take in their lunches that day. These three were excited to finish off the leftovers before the bus came.

I went to Sam’s that afternoon to restock a lot of essentials and to get more fresh produce. Our freezer was pretty low on meat, so I was very excited to find several meat markdowns that day to help restock the freezer!

The lighting in the following picture isn’t great. But here’s a look at the counter in our dining room where I keep all of our fresh fruit. After all the latest shopping trips plus with the peaches Paula dropped off, our counter was overflowing with oranges, clementines, apples, bananas, and peaches – ready for everyone in the household to grab and enjoy as needed. This brings me a lot of joy, and a lot of comfort knowing that I don’t have to work hard/think hard to figure out snacks or side dishes for the next few days.

For dinner on Wednesday night, I used zucchini and summer squash that Paula had brought over plus okra from our neighbor and carrots from the store to make Stir-Fried Veggies. I smoked the 10 large marinated Drumsticks from the night before plus threw on 12 Steaks I’d picked up marked down at Sam’s that day. Plus I set out Grapes, steamed Corn, offered the Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins, and thawed some Rolls from the freezer.

At the last minute, to make sure this meal would stretch far enough for all of us, I got out and made some Instant Mashed Potatoes that I’ve had on hand from Azure Standard (much better quality than store-bought and sooo nice to have in a pinch).

Malachi had arrived back home after working several days in York. His friend Jordan, a York University student, was with him and joined us for dinner. Our friend, Elizabeth, had finished moving into our house this week and everyone was home to eat that night. So we fed nine adults and seven kids that night – and now you know why I made those last minute potatoes. :)

People were in and out of the kitchen all evening, fixing their plates and hanging out to visit. THIS IS THE BEST. I love being a part of conversations like this with our kids, our friends, and anyone who will fill their plate in our home and spend time being a part of life with us.

The next morning, we warmed up Breakfast Sandwiches to eat before school. Mornings are hectic around here as we try to get so many kids out of the door, yikes. I’ve found that so far this school year, I don’t much ability to do anything but warm up pre-made food or serve a bar or muffin made ahead of time. Therefore, any time I have a minute at another time of the day, I’m trying to prep easy breakfast food!

Arrow came to spend the morning with us! He got to join us as we dropped off the elementary school kids. I’d packed the last of the Chocolate Banana Blender Muffins for the littles to eat while we got everyone situated in their class lines before the bell rang.

Back at home, I turned the last of Monday night’s Chicken Nacho fixings into a bag of Burritos to put into the freezer for another meal.

Elizabeth (our lovely new housemate) had set up her coffee grinder and espresso machine so she showed Acacia and Josie how to make a Latte. They loved this!

I had picked up a 10-pound tube of hamburger meat marked down at the store the day before, so late morning, I turned it all into patties for dinner and for the freezer.

Dinner that night was Burgers with Caesar Salad, Pickles, and a variety of Fruit options.

On Friday morning, Anna helped me shake together a jar full of Ranch Dressing Mix.

Acacia had Speech Therapy that morning and showed some real signs of improvement in putting together complete sentences.

We’ve been on a wait list for Physical Therapy for her, and today was the day we finally got to start. Not only that, the therapists at the rehab clinic where we go had communicated with one another and found slots side-by-side so that we could go to the clinic once for both appointments instead of driving there twice each week.

Acacia was born with a club foot. After intensive treatments for the first six months of her life, she has continued to sleep in a leg brace every night. She will finally graduate from her brace in a few weeks! Meanwhile, we need to work on her balance and leg strength because her right foot/leg are much smaller than her left.

Back at home, we made it just in time for Acacia to get on the preschool bus with Josie. I then spent time getting ready for our upcoming Sunday lunch, baking pans of Bacon. I made my way through an entire 10-pound box!

Acacia was my “helper of the day” so she got to make the salad to go with dinner that evening.

I used some of the bacon I’d made earlier to make Potato and Bacon Foil Packs for the Grill. I realized as I was prepping dinner that afternoon that instead of making lots of small packets as the recipe says, I should just make one huge foil container. This was a great move! I can’t say enough good about this recipe. It is sooooo good! We enjoyed it with Acacia’s Salad plus Oranges and Slice Peaches.

After dinner while kids had ABA therapy, Kiya and Acacia helped me get some baking done. We’ve gone through two double batches of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies in the past two weeks. So we made another double batch to get ahead for next week’s breakfasts and lunches. While I was putting those together, Kiya and Acacia worked on a double batch of Breakfast Cookie Bars for our next two Sunday breakfasts.

We baked them in our large oven at the same time. Then I worked on all the dishes before bed!

Saturday morning, I cut the Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies into 18 pieces, individually wrapped them, then put them into our pantry fridge for an easy grab-and-go option for the upcoming week.

We packed up the crew and headed out to Keith’s soccer game. The weather was perfect, and the kids ran and played in a big field while Keith warmed up for his game.

There were no subs that day, so Keith and his teammates happily played the entire game without sitting out.

I packed Ham and Turkey Sandwiches, Clementines, and Cashew Clusters (from Costco) for everyone to eat on a blanket for lunch during the game.

We came home in time for Auggie’s nap. The kids played outside, Matt mowed the lawn, we did some cleaning, and we moved into our Sabbath time of rest. And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: August 10-16, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: August 10-16, 2025 post!

We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!

Saturday, August 9

We had an early dinner Saturday night so that we could take the kids on a special outing. I made Tortelloni from Costco with Sauce and Salad. Then we gave everyone a bath so that we could go straight to bed after we got back home from our outing.

Elias, Malorie, and Kermit joined us! The kids had earned a free scoop of ice cream from the 402 Creamery, thanks to their Library Summer Reading Challenge. It was fun to for them to pick their ice cream flavor!

I’m so glad we gave them baths before going out…

Big Family Food and Fun: August 10-16, 2025

Sunday morning, we ate Breakfast Cookie Bars as we got ready for church.

And then we got to eat a donut once we arrived for worship. “Donut worry! It will be a sweet school year!” All the students, teachers, and school staff were prayed over as a new school year begins.

Kelsey snuck this photo of Mama worshipping with her girlies…

Back at home, a large crowd gathered for lunch. I’d made three big casseroles: Burrito Casserole, Ham and Potato Casserole, and Chicken Spaghetti. Friends who came brought sides and desserts.

We got to celebrate our friend Elizabeth as it was her final day as Heartland’s intern for the summer. And fun fact: Elizabeth is moving in with us next week as she starts her new job in Lincoln. We are so excited about this!

There were 43 of us gathered that day at lunchtime!

People were everywhere, and it was awesome!

After we shared a meal, we gathered outside and headed out together to fill two of Lincoln’s Little Free Pantries.

Several from our group drove to a pantry that is farther away. And a big crowd of us paraded several blocks to a pantry that is walking distance from our house. This is the third time we’ve done this as a church body this summer and it is such a precious time of fellowship as we walk, sweat, keep kids safe crossing streets together, and fill pantries to help feed people in the community.

Matt and I enjoyed Community Group time with three other couples that afternoon while the kids watched a movie with Elias and Malorie. For dinner that night, I threw frozen Corn Dogs into the air fryer and got out a bag of Mandarins. This is how tired moms feed their kids after a very full day. :) (I have been making Frozen Pizza on Sunday nights but our kids seem tired of this “special treat” so I took a break to try something else.)

On Monday morning, I used what was left of Sunday’s Burrito Casserole to make two pans of Burritos for Tuesday night’s dinner. Auggie had ABA therapy all morning, and the rest of us spent time catching up from the weekend.

That afternoon, Brayden, Kiya, and Anna went to Eva’s and Keith, Acacia, and Josie went to Ms. Kathi’s. Kiya got to press flowers with Eva, which she loves to do.

Brayden built a blanket fort and then they all got to watch a movie and eat popcorn in the fort!

Back at home, Auggie napped while Matt and I rested/worked/had actual conversation. :) A friend dropped off two big bags of farm fresh sweet corn!!! So when the kids got home, they helped me get some prepped for dinner.

I made 20 Smoked Chicken Thighs for dinner with Steamed Broccoli, Sweet Corn, and Cantaloupe. This is my favorite kind of meal – smoked meat with lots of fresh, colorful sides! The idea was that there would be leftover chicken for Elias to cut up and take in salads for his work lunches. There was, in fact, no leftover chicken at the end of this meal. It is also worth noting that we ate almost every bite of two entire cantaloupes. This was a very satisfying meal for all of us! And I loved watching everyone devour good food.

Keith, Anna, and Auggie all had ABA therapy that evening. As they wrapped up their sessions, our family met with our next door neighbors on their porch to pray together over the upcoming school year. As we were praying, another neighbor and her daughter were walking by and Matt invited them to join us. It was beautiful.

Tuesday morning, we ate some of the Breakfast Sandwiches that I’d put together last week.

Brayden looked so handsome and smiled bravely even though he was very nervous for his first day of 6th grade at the middle school. I tearfully read him four texts that people had sent me that morning – sharing encouragement and prayer support with him. I was so touched by the people who love and care for our kids and who took the time to reach out on Brayden’s very big day.

Anna started Kindergarten that day, and she was all pinked out – pink shorts, pink shirt, pink shoes, pink back pack, pink lunch bag, and pink hair tie. This baby kindergartener likes pink! She was ready to go that day, thanks to the awesome Jumpstart Program Lincoln schools offer.

The other kids didn’t start school yet, so we had five at home the rest of the day. It was very weird to not have Brayden and Anna with us! Keith was very calm all day – and was excited to help me bake. We made Spinach Cake together and even though he already knew the secret of the spinach, he was very delighted that we were tricking people into eating salad.

Little Sweetheart spent the day with us!

Josie and Keith helped me made a double batch Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies to wrap and freeze for school lunches.

We ate leftovers for lunch, then Keith helped me make Cream Cheese Frosting for the Spinach Cake.

Kiya was very anxious to make our first day of school breakfast of Egg and Hashbrown Casserole without help. I wrote the specifics down for her and got out the ingredients that she couldn’t reach. Then she and Acacia did a very good job putting the casserole together!

As soon as Brayden got home from school, we headed off to our weekly Food Distribution. On our drive over, he got to share all about his awesome first day! Then we worked with the other volunteers to hand out food to just over 100 clients. The kids also helped get the coolers cleaned out and lined up in the hallway to dry.

Our wonderful leader, Kathleen, works tirelessly to organize this distribution site. At the end of the day, Keith was so sweet to help her carry out her bags. :)

Back at home, I didn’t get any pictures because ABA therapy was already in full force for two kids, then Keith started his ABA session. Matt was warming up the two pans of Burritos I’d made the day before. He’d already fed the little girls, then the rest of the household came in and ate as they were available. We went through all 17 Burritos that night!

Wednesday morning, I baked the Egg and Hashbrown Casserole bright and early. Brayden did a great job getting out the door by 7:35 and rode his bike to school with our 8th grade neighbor.

This was Kiya and Keith’s first day of 4th and 1st grade!

I put a pan of Stick of Butter Rice into the oven to bake while I walked/strolled the kids to school.

Later, Josie helped me turn the cooked rice into a crock pot full of Cheesy Beef and Rice for dinner.

After our Egg and Hashbrown Casserole leftovers had cooled, I wrapped individual pieces for grown-ups to grab and take to work in their lunches. I put them with the individually wrapped Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies for school lunchboxes.

Matt needed to put air into a tire, so he pulled out his air compressor. It was sweet watching the kids both love and hate this process. It’s fun, but loud!

Auggie found a solution…

That afternoon while Auggie napped, Malachi blessed us by watching a movie with Acacia and Josie so that Matt and I could go out for an anniversary lunch date!

For dinner that night, we ate our Cheesy Beef and Rice with Sweet Corn and Green Beans.

Arrow spent the morning with us on Thursday!

Then Little Sweetheart came that afternoon.

She and Auggie rode with me in the double stroller to pick up the three elementary kids from school that afternoon. I took along Zucchini Carrot Muffins for them to munch on and we handed out some to Kiya, Keith, and Anna to eat on the way home too.

For dinner I made Sausage Gravy to go with Biscuits we’d brought home from Food Distribution earlier in the week. I scrambled 24 Eggs, sliced some Pears, cooked 15 Sausage Links, and buttered some Bagels for the kids who didn’t want biscuits.

For breakfast on Friday morning, I made French Toast as we worked to get lots of tired kids out the door for their final day of school for the week. The transition into our new routine had been going as well as it could have and we anticipated that by Friday, there would be extra meltdowns. We were correct.

Acacia had Speech Therapy that morning.

When we got home, I made a batch of Ice Cream.

Then it was finally these girls’ turn to start their school year! They were ready for the bus thirty minutes before the scheduled pick-up time and were so frustrated that the bus took so long to get here! When it arrived, Auggie exclaimed, “BUS!” and Matt and I were taken aback by the fact that “bus” used to be one of only a hand full of words that Auggie could say. He has come so far!!!

I had Sloppy Joe Meat in the freezer. So for dinner that night, I made “Sloppy Sliders” with the meat and  sliced cheese plus Fries in the air fryer.

I also baked another double batch of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies because we’d eaten all the others so quickly. These are so full of protein and I appreciated having them on hand for lunchboxes. So I wanted more for next week (if they last that long!). I cut them into 24 Brownies and individually wrapped them, then put them into the fridge.

Saturday morning, Keith had his first soccer game of the season. Is it a lot of work to lug seven kids to a six-year-old’s soccer game? Yes. And did this game remind me that it is worth all of the effort? Very much yes. Running and playing a structured sport is where this guy settles in his body and really shines. (We see this for Brayden when he is singing! We pray that we find a special something for each of our kids so that they discover more of the giftings and peace God has given them.)

Our friend Paula (Arrow’s other grandma, hehe!) dropped off two boxes of Uncrustables for us this week – so sweet! I took advantage of this convenience by packing them for the kids to eat for lunch during Keith’s game. We had them with Apples, Bananas, and Almonds.

Our friends, the Adcocks, live close by Keith’s game location. We’d made plans with them to go over and swim in their pool that afternoon. I always get very nervous when we take this many little ones swimming. BUT, Justus and Kelsey met us there, the Adcocks were awesome to help with littles, five of the kids wore life jackets, and everyone did just fine!

It was wonderful to enjoy this time with our friends, and the kids loved becoming more comfortable in the water. The Adcocks had a watermelon cut up to share, and we ate the entire thing (plus granola bars and more Uncrustables on the way home!).

When we got home, Keith wanted to make Homemade Gatorade and I made Tuna Salad for a lunch meeting the next day. We reset out house for Sabbath, and that was our week!

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