Heavenly Homemakers

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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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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

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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Big Family Food and Fun: August 3-9, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: August 3-9, 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 2

Dinner on Saturday evening was very simple: I scrambled 20 Eggs and air fried Chocolate Crepes from Costco. We’d already given the kids their baths because…

We had tickets to a Salt Dogs game! The Lincoln Library had given us free tickets as part of their Summer Reading Challenge, and we were finally able to take advantage. Malachi joined us, plus our friend Sam and his friend Angelina met us there.

Had to get a picture with the Saltdog!

The weather was perfect and we were able to stay for about an hour and a half. Did the kids actually watch baseball? I would say no, not even a little bit. Though Keith had his baseball mitt and ran after any balls that came our way in hopes to take one home. (We did not, in fact, take one home.) Our night was lots of fun and we were so happy for the adventure!

Big Family Food and Fun: August 3-9, 2025

Sunday morning we ate a plate full of Breakfast Cookie Bars while getting ready for church.

We had a beautiful houseful of people join us for lunch that day.

We had a big Nacho Bar with Taco Meat, Smoked Chicken, and lots of topping options.

There were 36 of us gathered that day.

I can’t say enough good about days like this. They are my favorite – having a houseful of people sharing a meal and sharing life.

I’d made a double batch of Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars and three batches of Homemade Ice Cream (Vanilla, Peach, and Butterfinger) for dessert. The ice cream was gone by the time lunch ended.

Matt and I normally enjoy Community Group time in the afternoon, but we had rearranged our plans to enjoy dinner with our group for a special time together that evening. So at 4:00, we sent our kids downstairs to watch a movie with Elias and Malorie while our group gathered. We made Pizzas together for dinner. And do you see that beautiful Carrot Cake? Cindy made that for us to enjoy. It just so happened to be my birthday, and the entire day was incredibly rich and sweet. How perfect for her to make her special cake to top off the day!

After we grown ups got our pizza and headed to the living room (and hid the cake), we let Elias and Malorie know that they could feed the kids. We were missing two of our group members. Otherwise, we had the most lovely evening, sharing life and stories that involved both laughter and tears. It was wonderful. What a great birthday!

Monday morning, I ate a piece of Carrot Cake with my morning coffee before the kids got up. Don’t tell.

We spent the morning at home, with Auggie having ABA therapy and the other kids playing. We farmed out the kids all afternoon while Matt and I rested. The only picture I took all day on Monday was this one. Our friends, the Baker family, brought over delicious Lasagna, Fruit, and Bread to share and we had dinner together. It was wonderful!

Tuesday was a very full day. Acacia had speech therapy in the morning, and we loaded up everyone to ride along so that we could make the most of our time.

Matt dropped us off, then he took the other six kids down the road to run around at a park while Acacia had her speech session.

From there, we all went to spend a few hours at the Bee Me Sensory Gym. We’d heard about it through the Lincoln Autism Family Network, and they were offering complimentary family passes. This gym far exceeded our expectations and the kids had such a wonderful time climbing, jumping, running, and rolling – for hours. This place meets all of their sensory needs and then some. Amazing!

This was our last full week of summer break, and our goal was to give the kids lots of fun adventures. So from Bee Me Sensory Gym, we walked over to Slim Chickens for lunch. The kids had earned free kid’s meals from our Library Summer Reading Program and I had birthday money from my dad and his wife to pay for mine and Matt’s lunch. Super fun! ALSO CRAZY. They sat still and ate for the first ten minutes because they were very hungry after a morning full of play. But then they started to scatter and be needy and we vowed never to go into a restaurant ever, ever again. ;)

Later that afternoon, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to serve at our our weekly Food Distribution. I was so proud of all of them for how they worked together and worked hard to clean and hand out food to clients.

We got home just in time to enjoy a family gathering to celebrate my birthday (again!). Not all the kids were available to come to Sunday lunch, so this gave us an excuse to have another dinner together. Elias made our Smoked Chicken, and we had Cream Cheese Corn, Green Beans, Rolls, Mashed Potatoes, and Kelsey’s Cucumber Salad.

I was so glad for this precious time. I don’t know how long all of us will live in the same city, but for as long as we are together, I’m going to love it and be so grateful for it!

Brayden was so sweet when he saw me get up and take a picture of everyone visiting in the dining room. He asked if I’d like to be in the picture, so he washed his hands and took this shot of us…

Every time these guys get together, they bring up memories from childhood that have us all rolling with laughter. I loved that Brayden was sitting here listening and enjoying his awesome big brothers.

Wednesday morning, I put together two large casseroles for our upcoming Sunday Lunch. We had brought home several bonus items from Food Distribution the day before. (There was extra food donated that day, but fewer clients than normal. So we brought home three bags full of food!)

I used some Taco Meat and Spanish Rice that we’d been given, along with some of our own ingredients at home, to put together a casserole like this.

We’d brought home some ham, so I made a big Ham and Potato Casserole. Both of these went into the freezer to pull out, bake, and serve on Sunday.

Arrow came to hang out with us that morning. His aunties were very happy to take over and feed him the tasty breakfast that his mommy had sent over with him.

And then, Uncle Auggie was happy to be his entertainer. :)

We ate leftovers all day for all three meals – which felt great so that nothing went to waste and so that we cleaned out the fridge! When Auggie went down for a nap, we left him home with Malachi (and Justus, who happened to be there for a while) – and we took the other six kids to the pool to enjoy their free passes from the Library Summer Reading Challenge.

Elias and Malorie were able to go with us, thankfully. Four adults per six kids feels much better when there is water involved.

Matt and I hung with the three little girls in the kiddie area while Elias and Malorie took the other three to the bigger pool.

We met up after an hour and a half and had a snack – apples and Little Bites (thank you, Food Distribution, for the treat!).

Then, we took the little ones to join the big ones in the actual pool. Phew, I get nervous with so many littles in the water. Did they have on life jackets? Yes. Were there life guards? Yes. Was I still counting heads constantly? Also yes.

Brayden had an Open House at his middle school that evening while I stayed home with the others. We juggled ABA therapy, dinner, and playing. Some people peed all over the floor, others spilled barbecue sauce, or maybe that was the same person who did both. Either way, we survived the evening and slept well that night.

Thursday morning, we bravely took all seven kids to grocery shop. Our grocery list was long and there wasn’t another good day to go. So we packed water bottles and snacks and off we went!

Matt stayed with the kids in the van while I went through Aldi as fast as I could.

Then we took all of the kids into Costco with us. We put the four littlest kids into two different carts and I filled the carts as fast as possible. My main goal today was to get food we needed to make our transition into the school year as smooth as possible: easy breakfast foods, easy lunchbox foods, lots of fruit…

Thinking ahead, we ordered a Costco pizza to take home and eat for lunch so that we could tackle the huge task of putting away all the groceries while feeding hungry kids.

Here’s a look at the kitchen, and you should have seen the pantry. ;)

Justus dropped off Little Sweetheart for the afternoon.

Then our friend Bruce stopped by for a while. Keith got his “favorite” plastic bag stuck up in a tree and Bruce saved the day by throwing a stick high up in the air toward the bag until it finally came loose!

Before shopping, I’d baked a Spinach Cake. I frosted it and served it for an afternoon snack.

That afternoon, Kiya helped me put together 32 Breakfast Sandwiches for our fridge and freezer. It feels great to have these ready and available for our first week or two of school!

I heard the mower running and peeked outside to see this: Keith mowing with Daddy helping. :)

At Costco and Aldi, I’d picked up a larger than normal amount of ready-to-grab snacks like granola bars, Yoggies, raisins, and veggie straws. We have three adults in the house who are starting up a new school year plus three of our kids who will be packing lunches. I will likely not keep up with this as the year moves forward, but the hope is that this will get us off to a great start as we ease in and settle in with a big new routine. Here’s what our pantry counter looked like as I was getting snacks organized. Of course, the kids wanted to sample all of it and I didn’t let them. Mean.

Since we were bored and didn’t have anything else going on (ha), we decided to shuffle kids’ rooms around. Actually, we had big reasons for this and feel it will be a good move for the kids – putting all four girls in one big room and moving the boys to a different space. They were all so excited about this that they were very willing to help in any way that they could. We had started the process on Monday, slowly but surely, and we were finally ready to move the beds. Thankfully we only needed to move two beds as the other beds could stay where they were and simply change occupants.

Somewhere in there, I smoked Brats and Hotdogs, made Corn on the Cob, and cut Strawberries for dinner. The corn was yellow going in and ended up with a lot of brown spots when it cooked. Weird. And disappointing.

Justus and Little Sweetheart were there and Justus took Brayden with him to Worship Rehearsal for the evening. This was such a gift for Brayden and I heard from Justus later that he was a great help with Little Sweetheart. I love this!

We finished dinner in time to walk/bike to the elementary school for their Open House. All the kids got to meet their teachers and find their desks. This is such a big night with so many kids and so many classrooms to visit. I reflected back to two years ago when we were new to Lincoln, new to the school, new to everything and everyone. Now, we feel so much more settled in and we feel so much more comfortable. I was so thankful that night to recognize the peaceful difference in how I felt compared to two years ago on the same night. Thank you, Jesus.

Back at home, we finished putting clean sheets on every bed so that everyone could sleep in their “new rooms.” There was still more work to be done, but the beds were in place and that’s all that mattered that night. That and the fact that the new blue rug was awesome and fantastic for rolling around.

No surprise – it took everyone a little bit longer to settle in that night. But it was a happy transition, so we were grateful.

Friday morning, I browned the six pounds of hamburger meat I’d purchased the day before. After it cooled, I separated it into four freezer bags for easy future use.

We ate some of the Breakfast Sandwiches we’d made the day before. Keith was being a very good daddy to his animals that morning, making sure they had a nice place to sit and a good breakfast.

Josie and Auggie decided to move outside to eat their Breakfast Sandwiches. We moved the picnic table to the shade because it was already getting hot that morning.

We finished cleaning up the kids new rooms by doing what I was most excited to do: sorting through all the kids’ stuff that they’d accumulated in their rooms and either get rid of it or find a better home for it. Phew, that felt good! This ended up being a very healing experience for our two older littles. There’s a lot of emotion tied to their stuff – from stuffed animals to toys to scraps of paper. Resetting their rooms helped reset their hearts. This was so needed.

Then, a new friend who will be moving in with us arrived and the kids helped take trips into the house with some of her things. They were so excited to help!

That afternoon, we farmed out the kids. Elias is back to work for the school year, so Bro Time has ended for the season. Eva took Brayden, Kiya, and Anna. Then we took Keith, Acacia, and Josie to Ms. Kathi’s. Kathi sent me this fun picture of the cool kids in their shades taking their babies for a walk.

Eva took her crew to the library and I laughed out loud at these photos she sent me!

Back at home later, we made Chicken Nuggets and Tator Tots for dinner, eating in shifts because of ABA therapy needs and hunger levels. The kids helped me prep for a big outing to the zoo on Saturday. We had plans to meet up with another large family so Brayden and I made 18 Uncrustables for a picnic lunch. Then Acacia and Josie helped me make 10 little Turkey and Ham Sandwiches on rolls. Kiya worked on Breakfast Cookie Bars for Sunday. And then I spent a long time washing dishes and getting the kitchen reset for the next day!

Breakfast Cookie Bars fresh out of the oven!

Saturday morning, Kelsey and Little Sweetheart came over for a little while.

Friends from York came mid morning. We’d planned to eat a picnic at the zoo. But an early morning storm had come through town and the zoo needed to wait and open at noon so that they could do some clean up. We rethought our plans, hung out at our house for a while, ate our picnic lunch together in our dining room, and then headed to the zoo!

This was such a sweet time together! Our kids had earned free train tickets thanks to their Library Summer Reading Challenge. So that was an extra great treat this zoo trip!

We came home to give Auggie a late nap, then spent the afternoon getting the house ready for Sunday.

And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: June 22-28, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: June 22-28, 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, June 21

We’d had a big emotional morning that Saturday. So that afternoon, we just played outside in the little pool and on the slip-and-slide. We ate popsicles. We ate dinner outside.

Our meal was simple, but a favorite: Orange Chicken. I had leftover Green Beans in the fridge so we finished those off. We went inside for bath time and to clean up the house a bit before we watched a show and headed to bed.

Big Family Food and Fun: June 22-28, 2025

Sunday morning we enjoyed our traditional Breakfast Cookie Bars as we got ready for church.

Look at these matchy-matchy girls! I’d seen these dresses at Wal-Mart and knew the girls would love them, but didn’t want to spend $15 on them. I watched them go on clearance later for $7, but still decided not to buy them. A few days later, Kelsey happened upon them when she was shopping (not knowing I’d looked at them already). They were marked down to $1.00!! So she Facetimed to see, “Did I want some??”

Did I want some?! YES. In every size and in every color multiplied by four girls, please.

The girls were very happy to be matchy and twirly that Sunday. Here they are, heading off to Bible class…

After worship, our church family lined up to fill 75 sack lunches to hand out on Monday as we had committed to feeding a struggling community in our area. We partner with Atlas to do this and we are so grateful to be a part of this together.

It was sweet to capture this moment with the girls huddled around Eva and Arrow.

Back at our house after church, our Sunday Lunch crew put together 75 sandwiches and 75 bags of sweet peppers to go into the lunch bags for Atlas.

Then we cleared the countertops and made way for a big Baked Potato Bar to share together.

I was busier than normal that day since we were making all those sack lunches, so I didn’t get as many group photos. But I tried to walk around while people were fixing plates or eating to grab a few.

There were 33 of us gathered to share a meal that day.

Matt and I sent our kids downstairs to watch a movie that afternoon while we enjoyed time with our Community Group. For dinner, I made Frozen Pizza – only three because all of the grown-up kids in the household had other plans for the night.

Monday morning, I served a big bowl of Vanilla Pudding that I’d made the night before and chilled overnight. I’d added extra eggs to make it extra rich and nourishing for breakfast.

Auggie had ABA therapy all morning, and the other kids took turns having some extra behavior struggles. It felt like an intense morning. But we also got some laundry done and had some fun moments of play too.

Mid-morning, I put together sandwiches for all the kids to eat at noon when we went to deliver the Atlas lunches.

Our friend Becky came at 11:15 and helped us add a cheese stick to each of 75 sack lunches.

Then we loaded all the totes of food into her car so she could get them to Atlas on time.

We loaded up our kids and our sandwiches to head over to Atlas House in time to help hand out sack lunches to the people who lived in that area.

After we finished this great time of service, Kiya and Anna went home with Kelsey, the boys spent the afternoon with Elias, and Acacia and Josie went to Ms. Kathi’s. Matt and I put Auggie down for a nap then sat at our table together eating our lunch in the quiet, catching up on conversation we needed to have. Kelsey sent me some fun photos of her time with the girls.

Kiya was so excited to finish the sewing project she’d started!

That afternoon/evening was EXTRA BIG because we began ABA therapy for Keith and Anna. ABA therapy is for kids with autism, providing them with one-on-one support that is specific for their individual needs. We’ve been at a loss as to how to help Keith and Anna with some of their big, challenging behaviors. So this has been very welcome. (Auggie started his ABA therapy a few months ago, so we have been getting used to how it all works.)

Monday afternoon, all of our kids’ behavior technicians started to show up along with the therapist who is in charge of creating and executing their programs. I didn’t get pictures of the entire “event” for privacy sake and also because THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE EVERYWHERE IN MY HOUSE.

I exaggerate.

But still. Basically, the night was spent helping Keith and Anna become acquainted with their “special person” while simultaneously helping their new technicians become acquainted with our household and our kids’ needs. Can you imagine being one of our ABA Behavior Techs?? Bless their hearts. :) :) :) I’m very sure the therapist gave them some heads up about how many kids we have and some details about our family situation. But nothing can really prepare a person for what it’s really like to be here.

Kids are everywhere. Adults keep popping up out of no where. Then more kids. Then more adults. Also, we needed to eat dinner. :/

Kelsey had brought the girls home after their time at her house and she stuck around to help with the biggness of the night. I turned dinner over to Brayden, who warmed up leftover Chili and cooked 24 Hotdogs.

Acacia and Josie entertained Little Sweetheart.

Matt hung out with Auggie until his ABA technician arrived to take over with his care and training.

We set out cut fruit and peppers to eat with our Chili Dogs. Somehow we got everyone fed that night.

Kelsey took all the non-ABA kiddos on a walk to Sunken Gardens.

To add to the craziness of the night, it started to rain while everyone was outside. Kids were already wet, so we decided to let them dance in the rain and live it up.

Tuesday morning, I made a double recipe of Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins, per Josie’s birthday breakfast request. I also scrambled some Cheesy Eggs and made some Sausage Links to go with the muffins.

While the oven was on after baking the muffins, I made a huge pan of Fudge Brownies for Josie’s birthday dessert later that night.

We packed up a picnic lunch and headed to the zoo for the rest of the morning.

It was slightly rainy, but we decided not to let that mess with our plans.

We spent the first hour at the zoo indoors, waiting for the rain to stop. It was fun to watch the worker clean the birds’ cages!

When it stopped raining, we played on an outdoor Climbing Elephant, then found a good table by the train to enjoy our lunch. We had apples, peanut butter crackers, fruit cups, guacamole and chips, hard salami, and coconut rolls. Oh, and a visit from a Peacock. We finished almost every bite of food that I packed.

We’d promised the kids that we would spend time in the Butterfly Pavilion, so we headed there after lunch. On our way, we chatted with the Flamingos. They are practically family by now. ;)

It’s almost impossible to go into the Butterfly Pavilion without first taking a picture on the enormous caterpillar. These faces are screaming, “Happy Birthday, Josie!” per their mama’s request.

Ah, the butterflies. They weren’t super friendly that day so only two of us caught one. This was “not fair” and very disappointing according to those who didn’t catch a butterfly.

That afternoon, I looked through my Azure Standard favorites to put in an order since the deadline was coming up. I was getting low on our Whole Wheat Pastry Flour and needed to stock up! While I was at it, I updated this post to share more specifics about what I like to buy from Azure.

I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to our weekly Food Distribution. Well over 100 people came through the line to get food that day!

Back at home, Elias and Malorie had helped finish putting together Josie’s birthday dinner. Josie had requested Mac and Cheese, so Elias made seven boxes. :) Malorie and Josie worked together (though both told me later that Josie did it ALL by herself) to make three bags of Caesar Salad. I’d warmed up Beef Smoked Sausage and Meatballs to serve also.

We only had one hour together because a sweet friend of ours was getting baptized and we wanted to go celebrate this with him! So we ate quickly, then moved on to Birthday Brownies. Bless Josie, she wanted a brownie, but she was NOT interested in candles or being the center of attention while everyone singing to her. Note to self: next year, just skip that part and serve the dessert. This is Josie’s birthday wish.

Thankfully, she was ok with everyone watching while she opened her gifts. This little girl loves dresses! So this is what she got for her birthday!

Right after that, we all loaded up and headed to church to be a part of our friend Sam’s special night. It was a beautiful time with church family.

Sam is going to be a senior in high school, and he and Keith have become sweet buddies. Sam cried when he saw that Keith had come to celebrate his baptism. What a special night!

Wednesday morning, I was very happy that we didn’t have any plans (except for Auggie’s ABA session all morning). Every room of our house felt messy and I wanted to regroup. So we spent the morning picking up toys, sweeping various rooms, doing lots of dishes, wiping down counters and tables, and then of course, playing outside.

I don’t remember what we had for breakfast (no picture, no memory, ha). For lunch, we had a few tidbits of this and that to finish off from the fridge – pizza, fish sticks, chicken bites, pickles, cantaloupe, and strawberries.

By that afternoon, the kids were beginning to show signs of needing more structure. So we set up the pool and had popsicles. Arrow was hanging with us, so we set him up in our little pool (that leaks, but it worked for a while anyway). He kicked and splashed and had a lovely time. The other kids had more fun watching him play than actually playing themselves. :)

Later, Auntie Josie took Arrow on a stroll in our back parking area.

I had cooked 5-pounds of hamburger meat to make Taco Meat for our upcoming Sunday Lunch. So I got that packaged up to put away.

Meanwhile, I made an additional 2-pounds of Taco Meat for our dinner that night. I warmed up Black Beans plus got out Cheese, Salsa, Spinach, Chips, Shells, and Tortillas for a simple Taco Bar.

I had slow cooked Salsa Chicken for a few hours that day – also for Sunday Lunch. So that evening I got it shredded and put away.

That evening, Keith, Anna, and Auggie all had three-hour ABA therapy sessions. This night felt much more calm compared to Monday’s night’s initial session when we were introducing everyone and showing the new technicians the layout of our home and family life. While those kids were occupied, Kiya and Acacia used sour cream and yogurt containers to make drums.

As we got ready for bed that night, Auggie found a dress-up hat and surprised us all by running through the hall with it.

I had some Banana Muffins in the freezer, so we ate those for breakfast on Thursday morning with some Yogurt.

Meanwhile, I baked a pan of Egg Casserole to take to the park for a brunch-type picnic. I haven’t done this before. But had some other fun breakfast-y items that I wanted to surprise the kids with, so I experimented to see if I could transport and serve this at a picnic table. (I covered it and slid it into an insulated bag, and it was still piping hot at lunchtime!)

Justus met us at the park and took Brayden with him to give him some special one-on-one time. They went to a music store to play instruments together for about an hour.

Keith and Bonus Buddy spent over two hours on their skateboards at this park. They had the time of their lives!

I’ve learned to pack a bag of apples to take on many of our outings. The crunch and the time it takes to eat an apple seems to calm our kids’ nervous systems in ways they all need so frequently. Apples to the rescue.

At lunchtime, we ate all but three pieces of that Egg Casserole! We also ate Carrots and Fruit Cups. After everyone ate well, we let them have their own package of Little Bites – a treat we’d been blessed with at Food Distribution that week.

That afternoon, Josie got to go on an “adventure” with Elias and Malorie. This has become their birthday gift to each kid – to take them out to do something simple and special. Josie got a sweet drink to enjoy while walking through Target. She’d been looking forward to this for weeks and it did not disappoint!

We had a very early dinner that night of Quesadillas with Spinach plus leftover Sausages on the side.

Then we loaded up and headed to Heartlands for the first night of their awesome Kids’ Experience event!

We had left Auggie behind with Elias and Malorie so that he could have his evening ABA session. So what did Matt and I do WITHOUT ANY KIDS?!?! We took advantage of a gift card we’d been holding onto for over a year and we had ourselves a date!

Friday morning, Auggie had ABA therapy all morning so we stuck around home to play and get work done. Around 11:00, everyone was hot and hungry so I made Smoothies for the kids.

Earlier that morning, I’d stirred Cheeseburger Casserole into a crockpot to cook and be ready for lunch. This doesn’t look super pretty, but it tastes great and most of the kids ate it well.

The kids spent the afternoon with their special Monday/Friday people. Kiya and Anna got to make Popsicles, play games, and help with the garden, yard, and recycling at Asa and Eva’s. Then they went to the library with Eva! Brayden, Keith, and Bonus Buddy took some donations to Goodwill with Elias, Malachi, and Malorie, then played football in the yard and a video game in the basement (a huge, exciting privilege for them). Acacia and Josie got to play at Ms. Kathi’s, and they always have great adventures there!

Matt and I put Auggie down for a nap and had some quiet time just for us. After Matt left to pick up the girls, Auggie and I made Snickerdoodle Bites to have on hand for snacks.

The kids had another night ahead of them at Heartlands for their Kids’ Experience. So we fed them a dinner of Sandwiches, Oranges, Carrots, and Pickles before we loaded up and headed out.

After we dropped the seven kids at church, Matt, Auggie, and I went to spend some time with an older couple that lives near the church and is unable to get out very often. It was a lovely visit and we pray that they were encouraged. We know that we were.

From there, we went to stock up groceries at Sam’s. Two carts and lots of snacks for Auggie later, we packed everything in coolers with ice packs in the back of the van.

Our kids are not used to being up past 9:00, so two nights in a row of this made for some tired kids. Did that stop Anna from getting up at 6:00 on Saturday morning? No, it did not. Oy.

We dropped our seven back at Heartlands at 9:00am for their final morning at Kids’ Experience. From there we grabbed Little Sweetheart and headed over to hang out at a friends’ house whose kids were also at Heartlands for the morning. We had a great visit with them, and even got to hang out with their turtle for a while. :)

Back at Heartlands, there was a Pizza Lunch to celebrate the end of the kids’ great weekend together.

I’d been making batches of Ice Cream to serve for our upcoming Sunday lunch. That afternoon I made batch number three. :)

Malorie’s grandparents came that afternoon to spend time with her and to stay the night with us. It was wonderful to get to know them!

I got about thirty interruptions from our kids while trying to proof-read this post so I finally gave up and I’m guessing this one is a bit messy! But… I’ll share more about our Saturday evening next week!

 

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Big Family Food and Fun: March 23-29, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: March 23-29, 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, March 22

We typically spend some time on Saturday afternoons cleaning floors as we prepare to move into a time of rest. Anna was excited to help me vacuum (until she wasn’t).

Acacia wanted a turn. Then Auggie was indignant that anyone would dare to use HIS vacuum.

We were blessed with some time with some friends who came over that afternoon. Our kids have so much fun together, and the trampoline was their play place of choice that day.

At dinnertime, the girls finished off the last of a pineapple, using toothpicks to poke and eat it.

I had been cooking a pot of Ham and Potato Soup all afternoon, so at dinnertime, all we had to do was scoop and eat. (I used broth from a turkey I’d baked earlier in the week, which made this soup extra rich and good!)

We gave all the littles their baths and spent time brushing and braiding hair before bed. As we were getting ready to head upstairs for the night, we got to greet a group of college guys who had made plans to spend the night with us. Our long-time friend York Andrew (in the red hoodie) had coordinated with Malachi, who had coordinated with me to make these plans. And here they all were! This is the best.

Big Family Food and Fun: March 23-29, 2025

Sunday morning, we ate our traditional Breakfast Cookie Bars before church. When we got home at lunchtime, we set out a huge buffet of buns/tortillas, meats, cheeses, veggies, and dressings for a Sandwich and Salad Bar. This turned out to be fantastic (especially since it included five of those college guys who had stuck around)!

I’d baked a turkey a few days prior in preparation for this meal, plus I’d baked lots of sheet pans worth of bacon. We had some leftover ham that also got chopped up. Elias and Malorie had picked up four kinds of sliced cheese for people to pick from. The Long family brought perfect salad fixings.

People built a sandwich or wrap however they wanted, then many of them used our Air Fryer to toast it to perfection.

We had huge trays of Chocolate Chip Cookies and Rice Krispie Bars for dessert.

The Perez family supplied lots of fruit to round out our meal.

It was a great feast, with 31 of us gathered together spread throughout the kitchen, dining room, and living room.

For dinner that evening, we got out leftovers – and I forgot to take any pictures because I guess it wasn’t very exciting. :)

Monday morning, we ate Breakfast Sandwiches that I’d made ahead and frozen. We got the first round of kids off to school, played all morning with the others, then I went to Costco during the afternoon. I got stocked back up on diapers and wipes, plus took advantage of sales on clothing as I get everyone all set up for spring and summer. (This was just cart#1. I went back in for cart#2, which I filled with groceries!)

We had planned for Family Therapy that night, but our therapist needed to reschedule. So Matt and I decided to go with Plan B that evening. I quickly threw together a picnic dinner (Chicken Nuggets, spinach, dressings/dips, grapes, and Granola Bar Bites). We loaded up and headed to Pioneers Park, looking forward to a fun picnic in the sunshine, then a walk on the fun trails to the Nature Center.

Whelp.

Everyone screamed all the way to the van (not quite everyone – Matt and I sort of held it together). I handed out apples to curb the hanger on the way there. When we arrived, the sun went behind clouds and the wind was as it always is during March in Nebraska. So it became chilly and our dinner threatened to blow away. One of our kids refused to eat and just screamed during the entire meal. So yay, a family picnic. :/

Oh! And the trails we love and looked forward to were gated off and locked because the Nature Center wasn’t open yet for the season. Ha, ya just have to laugh.

With food in everyone’s bellies (except for the one who refused to eat), we loaded back up in the van and drove to the potties. Then we went to the playground for the rest of the evening. Everything went better at that point, praise God.

We played for almost an hour, getting back home in time to get ready for bed, eat a little bit more, then get settled in for the night. (The one who refused to eat at the park happily ate their fill at this point.)

Tuesday morning, Justus texted this photo with, “Tell me you’ve been spending a lot of time with Lolli, without telling me you’ve been spending a lot of time with Lolli…”

Yeah, girl!!
Some grandmas give their grandbabies cookies and candy. I teach them to love butter.

Auggie had speech therapy that morning, then Anna helped me make Spinach Cupcakes to use up some spinach in the fridge that was expiring.

Hmmm. Did I let her lick the spatula? Yes, I did.

Eva texted this photo of a loaf of Honey Oat Bread that she made that afternoon, along with a precious video of Arrow gobbling in up. :)

That afternoon, I put together two Quiche for Matt to bake for dinner. Then Brayden, Kiya, Keith, and I went to our our weekly Food Distribution site to hand out food to the community and clean up afterward.

Back at home, we enjoyed our Quiche with fruit and spinach.

I had been slow cooking two large Pork Butts all day like this. (I had picked them up at Costco the day before.) They shredded easily, so I finished them up and put them into two gallon-sized freezer bags to use for an upcoming Sunday Lunch.

The kids had been playing outside, and came in hungry before bedtime. They had strawberries and bananas, then grabbed one of the cupcake-muffins I’d baked earlier and headed back outside to play more.

Then they came back again and finished off the last three pieces of Quiche. No leftovers tonight! I am always shocked by Spring appetites! Playing, jumping, and running outside in the fresh air always makes kids extra hungry. I love it!

Wednesday, we met with Auggie’s ABA Therapist to finalize a draft detailing his upcoming therapy program. Malorie was awesome during that two hour meeting to keep track of Auggie and the little girls for us – no easy task.

Arrow came to hang out that afternoon! He enjoyed chewing on plastic broccoli for quite some time. Before I knew it, I was singing the Veggie Tale theme song. I guess we can call this “Silly Songs with Lolli.”

Two families joined us for dinner that night! We’d been wanting to connect because we knew of each other back in both of our early York days many years ago. I didn’t get any pictures of all of us, but I did get this shot of our buffet: Smoked Chicken Legs, Party Potatoes, Salad, Green Beans, and Rolls. I had picked up Gelato at Aldi a couple weeks ago and we enjoyed that treat for dessert.

Very Worth Noting: Our friends, the Case family, heard that we’d be getting together with these friends, and they know how difficult it can be for us to visit while chasing kids at the same time. So some of their family came over to stay with Auggie outside and to monitor the others so that Matt and I could have adult visit and catch up time. What a gift!

Thursday morning, I made a loaf of bread worth of French Toast. It had been a while since I’d made this, and the kids were pretty happy! These two were very excited to help me crack eggs.

Mid-morning, Acacia and Josie had a dentist appointment. They did great!

Thursday after school, I moved immediately into a therapy session with one of our kids. So Matt and Elias held down the fort, plus Kelsey joined the helping crew when she came to pick up Little Sweetheart!

It was dinnertime after that, and Matt warmed up leftover meat and Party Potatoes from the fridge. Kiya put together a couple of salad kits and we all filled plates and ate.

Kiya helped me make a triple batch of Flourless Peanut Butter Brownies. We turned most of them into mini-muffins and made a few regular-sized muffins for our Friday breakfast.

Brownies for breakfast? Yes. When they are made like this!

Special Helpers

Per our Family Therapy homework/instructions, we have been working now on creating a very structured chore system for the kids. Instead of assigning each kid specific chores for each day, Matt and I have decided to experiment with the idea of assigning a kid to a day of the week as a Special Helper. There are seven kids and seven days of the week, so why not try this!?

On any day of the week, all of the kids will have jobs to do – that’s how our family rolls! But on each kids’ Special Helper day, they will be pulled in extra times to do whatever Mom or Dad need. (They might also get extra privileges on their special day – no more fighting over who gets to lick the spatula, right?)

We think the best part of this, besides being able to teach the kids more about life skills, is that they all very much need one-on-one time and very rarely get it. So this will hopefully be an extra benefit for them to meet some emotional needs for positive, healthy attention.

All that to say, Friday was Acacia’s day and she took her job very seriously and worked very eagerly.

We had two appointments that morning for Auggie, first meeting with the Special Ed teacher assigned to him through EDN (early development network). Then after that, we had a meeting with his EDN coordinator. He was pretty tuckered out by the end of the morning!

Later that afternoon, I made a batch of Homemade Ice Cream to tuck away for our upcoming Sunday lunch.

Earlier, I’d browned and seasoned five pounds of Taco Meat for our Chipotle-Style Burrito Bar on Sunday. A few days prior, I slow cooked and shredded Salsa Chicken for another meat choice for Sunday. Both will be warmed and served in crock pots that day!

As the kids were arriving home from school, I put 15 burgers on the grill for dinner and I made a blender full of Smoothie to hold everyone over and cool everyone off since it was a very warm day. This was our fruit and veggie for the night, enjoyed before dinner instead of on the side. :)

Some of our neighbors were out enjoying the sunny weather, so our girls drank their smoothies with Ms. Ashley and Ms. Sarah.

When dinner was ready, we enjoyed Burgers and Fries with Pickles.

Then we gathered everyone (which took forever because we were missing a lot of shoes, ugh) and headed out to walk around the neighborhood. Neighbor Ashley and her son joined us for the walk.

We stopped at several houses to say hello and to drop off invitations to a Neighborhood Party we were planning in our yard for next Friday evening. Even Auggie was excited to go onto people’s porches and participate in this!

Saturday morning, I made another batch of Homemade Ice Cream for Sunday.

Anna was my Special Helper for the day and she helped me load the dishwasher.

Matt and I were blessed to go to a Baby Dedication Celebration for Arrow and Little Sweetheart that morning while Elias and Malorie stayed back with all of our kids. Before leaving, I made a bowl full of Chicken Salad to serve for lunch when we got back.

The morning was incredibly powerful and emotional as we prayed over the babes and dedicated their lives to Christ. What a special morning!

Matt and I arrived home in time for almost all the kids to melt down when we walked in the door, ha. I got out the Chicken Salad and other lunch fixings, and we got them fed.

Since Anna was my Special Helper for the day, she got to help me make Chocolate Chip Cookie Pies for Sunday’s Lunch dessert.

Matt had picked up some Chalkboard Paper for super cheap so the kids “helped” him get it up on the Play Room wall. Of course, it didn’t stick, so the project took all afternoon. Keith was in his happy place, helping Matt use his tools.

We moved into our time of Sabbath rest that evening, so I’ll share the final results and more details about our Saturday next week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 12-18, 2025

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: January 12-18, 2025 post!

Before I share about our new week, I’ll fill you in on the last part of our day Saturday, January 11th. (We enjoy a Sabbath rest beginning Saturday evenings so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoon instead of adding these to our weekly post.)

Elias and Malorie have started a tradition of taking our birthday kids out for a special treat as a gift for their big day. With all the sickness we had after Christmas, they had not yet been able to take Brayden out. So on this particular Saturday afternoon, they made it happen. Their idea was perfect since he loves music: they took him to the Guitar Center where he tried out various instruments. Then they treated him to a milkshake at a restaurant next door. He loved this!

Back at home, we were prepping to celebrate Anna’s 5th birthday. She requested Chicken Nuggets, Fries, Avocado and Chips, and sliced fruit for her birthday. (I’m telling you, she was very specific about wanting all the fruit – sliced. It was very sweet.)

All the kids were able to join us except for Malachi who had been invited to go on a last minute video shoot in California. We missed him!

Anna chose this cake “with sprinkles” and I baked it in a sheet pan. Did she request that her cake be filled with spinach? No. Well, that was just a bonus. It’s how we make cake now. :)

The three little faces in this picture are the sweetest. Thank you, God, that we are chosen to be their family.

After dinner, we gathered in the living room for present time. The great thing about gifts for 5-year-olds is that you can pick up a Scratch Art Princess book at Aldi for $5 and the birthday girl will think it is the best thing ever – because for her, it is.

Does all of this feel very “Sabbath-y” to you? Hmmm. The evening was certainly not calm, quiet, or particularly restful. But the more we learn about what it means to Sabbath, we are understanding that especially in this season in our lives, taking a “day off” doesn’t mean “do nothing.”

We are learning that Sabbath allows us to take a break from the normal days’ needs, to enjoy community, to delight in every bite of food we take, and to really take in what is going on around us. Our Saturday evenings and Sundays give us all of this and we are grateful to experience it.

Big Family Food and Fun: January 12-18, 2025

Sunday morning, we enjoyed Breakfast Cookies turned into bars. This has become a standard Sabbath Sunday breakfast for us because I can make them during the week and freeze them. I’ve actually been doubling the recipe (you’re so surprised that I do this) and freezing them on two plates to give us two Sunday breakfasts for one amount of effort.

The day before, I had made Beanie Weanies to share at a Kids’ Ministry Potluck and Game Time after church. So I warmed those while we ate breakfast plus got out Grapes and the rest of Anna’s Cake to take with us.

After church, families with kids shared a meal together.

Then the games came out. Have you ever played Happy Salmon? It’s so fantastic (and LOUD). But wait. Have you ever played Happy Salmon with Brayden?? This kid loves to yell, so Happy Salmon is HIS GAME. Come to think of it, you probably heard him playing from wherever you live. Now you know what that noise was on Sunday afternoon. :) It was kind of awesome.

Meanwhile, look at all these darlings playing board games together.

That afternoon, Matt and I got to enjoy our Community Group with three other couples. We had taken a break from meeting during the holidays so being together again on this day was extra sweet. We turned on a movie for the kids, then we grown-ups met around our table with coffee and carrot cake, sharing life and prayer needs. We’ve been going through Practicing the Way together – diving deep into what it looks like to be more like Jesus and do what He did.

Dinner that night was Leftovers and Salad. I gave the kids a weird snack of Muffins and Salami for a snack before bed. Did they think it was weird though? No, they just chomped it down.

Monday morning we used some overripe bananas to make a batch of Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins.

Mid-morning, I baked a pan of Stick of Butter Rice to use with our dinner that night. And for the record, I need to change the name of that rice because I’ve stopped putting butter in it, haha. All the other ingredients (salt, minced onion, and chicken broth) give this rice amazing flavor, and butter has gotten very expensive. So Butterless Stick of Butter Rice is what I make now, what can I say?!

I used the cooked rice to make a version of Tator Tot Casserole: this recipe but with rice instead of green beans. I served Broccoli and Corn on the side.

Brayden has been wanting to take Mac and Cheese for his school lunch so I walked him through making it that evening to rewarm on Tuesday morning. Kiya got in on the project too so that she could also take some.

Tuesday morning for breakfast, everyone chose between Breakfast Sandwiches and Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins. I also got out yogurt to help fill everyone up.

After getting the elementary kids off to school, I made a double recipe of Breakfast Cookies and baked them into bars.

Since I already had the oven on, I also made Crustless Cheesecake. I love having these in the fridge so that I can grab one when I need a filling snack.

Later, I cut the Breakfast Cookies into bars and froze them on two plates to pull out the next two Sundays for easy Sabbath breakfasts. The Crustless Cheesecakes went into the fridge for snacks this week.

As I prepped for dinner, I experimented with a variety of Chili Mac – using leftover Chili from the fridge stirred into leftover Mac and Cheese from the fridge. This is one of the big ways I save money on food –  using up leftovers, turning them into a new meal to make them more exciting. (For the record though, the little kids did not love this meal. So I won’t do this again. But at least we ate up some leftovers!)

That afternoon, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to hand out food at our our weekly Food Distribution site. Kiya and I ran our stations at a food table while the boys washed coolers as they got emptied out.

Afterward, I vacuumed while the kids mostly played at a chalkboard. But I love that the other grown-up volunteers know that they can ask my kids to help them with jobs during clean up time. Here, all three of them were lugging boxes out to the recycle bin. (Keith is behind Brayden – I missed getting him in this frame.)

Back at home, Matt had made Caesar salad and was feeding kids. They all ate this, but didn’t have seconds so our snack that night included bread or crackers with peanut butter to fill them up.

Wednesday morning, we enjoyed some of the breads and bagels we’d brought home from Food Distribution. There’s always a lot of bread up for grabs there, and we are thankful for this gift. This time, we had Cinnamon Swirl Bagels and Blueberry Bread – very fun!

We also brought home some almost-expired spinach from Food Distribution that I needed to use up quickly. I made a batch of chocolate Cheater Cheater Pumpkin Eaters and added a huge wad of spinach to the blender.

Then, instead of turning the batter into muffins, I baked it in a loaf pan. I love that it has both pumpkin and spinach in it! (Adding chocolate chips would have made it taste even better.)

Mid-morning, we loaded up the youngest four kids and went to the Children’s Museum to play. Look how big they are, hanging up their coats all by themselves…

There are three levels at this museum, and we typically stay on the main floor or go to the basement. This time, we spent our whole morning on the top level discovering new favorites!

We got home in time to eat Avocado Cups with Chips before the bus came to pick up the girls for preschool.

Arrow came to hang out with us this afternoon. His sweetness is overwhelming. Goodness, that face.

Dinner that night was leftover Tator Tot Casserole plus a few other leftovers we pulled out of the fridge.

Malachi had returned from California and came over to catch us up on his adventures. He grabbed a bite of dinner with us, then took kids on rides throughout the house.

Thursday morning the kids ate Yogurt with Granola for breakfast – a super easy meal. After we got the older three to school, I left Acacia and Josie behind with Matt while I took Anna and Auggie with me to Walmart.

Taking only two kids to the store? Sort of easy. But only having one cart? Yikes. We barely made it work. :)

Back at home, Justus had dropped off Little Sweetheart. I got home and we got all the groceries carried in and put away, got the little girls off to preschool, put Auggie down for a nap, sent Matt off to a meeting, and then I had some Little Sweetheart snuggle time!

For dinner that night, I made two pans of Pizza Chicken Bake. We had been given a been given a box of Instant Mashed Potatoes so I made these for a side dish. (Why do they not taste great and pretty much not actually taste like potatoes?). I also steamed Green Beans and toasted some Buttered Rolls.

At the last minute, we texted our neighbors Coleman and Sarah to come eat with us. During the warm months, we often hang out with them at their garage and the kids LOVE this. So we’d been missing them as we’ve all been cooped up inside. It was so great to catch up with them during dinner.

Friday morning, I let the kids chose cold cereal for breakfast so that I could focus on other food projects I wanted to get done. Kiya was completely ready for school by 7:45 (we don’t need to leave the house until 8:40), so I asked her to crack 20 eggs into a pan to bake for Breakfast Sandwiches.

Meanwhile, I browned a pound of hamburger meat and made a quadruple batch of Simple No-Bake Granola Bites.

Mid-morning, I cut the baked eggs into 20 pieces. (I always put shredded cheese on the eggs as soon as they come out of the oven, so it melts and is ready for sandwiches.) Then I put a frozen sausage patty on each of 20 buns, along with a square of egg/cheese to complete the Breakfast Sandwiches.

I bagged the sandwiches up individually for an easy-to-grab breakfast option for the grown-ups who take breakfast and lunch to work. Then I put several into the fridge and the rest into a freezer bag to be frozen and pulled out as needed.

Next, I stirred the cooked hamburger meat into a casserole dish with tomato soup, corn, and last night’s leftover green beans. I spread the leftover mashed potatoes over the mixture, then topped it with cheese. This was my way of using up leftovers to make our dinner of Shepherd’s Pie for that night!

This turned out SO GOOD. The kids ate it well, and I’m so glad I was reminded of this meal idea that I’d forgotten about. We will definitely make Shepherd’s Pie again. As an added bonus, it’s an entire meal in one pan. So easy!

There was to be a potluck on Sunday after church, so on Saturday morning, I prepped our dishes to take and share. I made a crock pot with Baked Beans and another with Cream Cheese Corn. I had a Chocolate Fudge Pie in the freezer so I pulled that out to take.

It was Elias’ birthday so that morning, I also prepped for his family birthday dinner. He requested Fish Tacos and I made Taco Meat from hamburger, too, for those who didn’t like fish.

He asked for a Brownie Sundae Bar for dessert. So I pulled Brownies from the freezer that I’d made a while back, plus made a quick batch of Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.

We ate leftovers for lunch in an effort to clean out the fridge, plus did some much-needed cleaning.

I put away my computer in the early afternoon as we headed into our time of Sabbath rest. I’ll share about Elias’ birthday dinner next week!

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Easy Crock Pot Meals and Desserts

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Need Easy Crock Pot Meals and Desserts ideas?

I’ve found that lately, I’ve needed more crock pot meal ideas so that I can have our lunch or dinner ready when we plan to be out for the morning or afternoon.

Outings with these kids? They are a must. We’ve found that if we don’t keep our kids’ days very structured, the behaviors are a bigger struggle. Loading everyone up to use their energy in a productive way makes our days much better. It’s trickier in the cold weather months, but we find ways to still get out if possible.

We love the zoo, parks, children’s museum, and the library. We take walks, find ways to serve, and have lots of appointments.

I always pack snacks so that we don’t have as many hanger meltdowns while we are out. But always after any of these outings, we need lunch or dinner ready as soon as possible when we get home so we can sit right down and eat.

Easy Crock Pot Meals and DessertsYum

With all of this in mind, I needed an updated list of all of our crock pot meal, snack, and dessert ideas. I thought you might appreciate it too! So many meals can be made in the crock pot so that all we have to do is wash hands and eat when we get home from being out.

Keep this list handy. These meals are so helpful for so many reasons!

Also, fun fact: with our family becoming the large size that it is, I’ve found that often I have to move from a crock pot to our huge roaster! This is especially true when on Sundays when our adult kids come for lunch plus lots of guests!

And now the lists!

Main Dishes in the Crock Pot

  1. Simple Crock Pot Chicken Soup with a Kick
  2. Simple Creamy Chicken Stew in the Crock Pot
  3. Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  4. Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  5. Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  6. Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  7. Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta
  8. Simple Crock Pot Shredded Ranch Chicken (for salad or tacos)
  9. Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
  10. Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  11. Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  12. Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  13. Simple Hashbrown Casserole
  14. Simple Lasagna Casserole
  15. The Simplest White Chicken Chili
  16. Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  17. Simple Three Cheese Spaghetti
  18. Simple Crock Pot Salsa Shredded Beef
  19. Easiest Beef Roast in the Instant Pot
  20. Simple One-Dish Chicken Florentine
  21. Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas
  22. Simple Creamy Chicken Soup
  23. Simple Cheesy Salsa Chicken
  24. Simple Cheeseburger Noodle Crock Pot Dinner
  25. Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas (Crock Pot or Oven)
  26. Simple 5-Minute Shredded Chicken
  27. Simple Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
  28. Simple Chili Mac
  29. Simple Crock Pot Creamy Stew Meat
  30. Simple 5-Minute Cheesy Hamburger and Potatoes
  31. Crock Pot Barbecue Chicken
  32. Breakfast Crock Pot Casserole
  33. Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot
  34. Crock Pot Chicken Tacos
  35. Crock Pot Beef Stew
  36. Fiesta Chicken
  37. Creamy Crock Pot Chicken and Rice
  38. Italian Cream Cheese Chicken
  39. Turkey Sausage and Red Bean Stew
  40. 5-Minute Crock Pot Pasta
  41. Bacon in a Crock Pot
  42. Spicy Pasta Dinner
  43. The Easiest Pulled Pork
  44. Easy Ham and Potato Soup with a Kick
  45. Honey Glazed Pork Tenderloin or Pork Roast
  46. 5-Minute Crock Pot Chicken
  47. Taco Soup for a Crowd
  48. Make 5 Meals with 1 Pork Roast


Snacks and Side Dishes in the Crock Pot

  1. Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
  2. Calico Beans
  3. Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
  4. Crock Pot Beans
  5. Hamburger Sauerkraut Dip
  6. Hamburger Cream Cheese Dip
  7. Apple Butter


I don’t often use these recipes in the winter, but in the summer, baking in a crock pot is fun!

Desserts in the Crock Pot

  1. Simple Crock Pot Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cake
  2. Crock Pot Cheesecake
  3. Crock Pot Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding Cake
  4. Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cake
  5. How to Bake a Cake in a Crock Pot
  6. Strawberry Shortcake in a Crock Pot

What are your favorite crock pot recipes?

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Big Family Food and Fun: November 17-23, 2024

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: November 17-23, 2024 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: November 17-23, 2024

On Saturday, November 16, Elias and Malorie took Keith on an outing to celebrate his birthday last week. This is something they’ve started doing for each birthday kid, and it’s so special for them. Here’s Keith at Scheels with a big bear!

Saturday evening, we enjoyed Cheeseburger Soup (this recipe with hamburger instead of ham) and quesadillas.

Malachi happened to be at our house at dinner time, so he got to experience our Sabbath kick-off meal with candles and special prayer time.

We’d made Breakfast Cookie Bars the day before so that all we had to do on Sunday morning was open the package and eat.

Is there anything better than baby-bed-head and footie pajamas?

We had a special Kids Ministry event after church that Sunday. Families brought lunch and we set it out potluck style to eat together.

Then we did THAT WHICH IS CRAZY, but also wonderful: We all went to Walmart together on a Sunday afternoon. Kids and families worked as teams to purchase items from lists that were provided for us. Our goal was to fill several Little Free Pantries around Lincoln.

It was a hectic but absolutely beautiful process to see so many Heartlands kids and families working together to fill carts. Our friends, Matt, Terra, and Mandy all helped our kids and Matt and I were SO GRATEFUL for this. Phew, it takes a village, and ours is so wonderful.

Self-check out went smoothly with our friend Matt…

Then we met up with other families who had finished their lists. Everyone left from Walmart to fill their assigned pantries.

Matt and Terra helped us load our van, but we planned to fill our pantry later in the week because we had to get back home for our Community Group.

Dinner that night was three frozen pizzas (there were only 10 of us eating that night) and a bunch of apples sliced up.

We enjoyed a turkey craft around the living room table that evening.

At bedtime, Josie pretended to play the guitar as she sang her own version of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. So precious.

Monday morning for breakfast, we ate the last of the Breakfast Cookie Bars with a dozen scrambled eggs and a container of applesauce. I spent the morning getting some much needed cleaning done on our second floor. When it was time to watch for the preschool school bus, we had to stay on the front porch because it was pouring down rain.

Auggie and I hung back while Daddy umbrella’d everyone to the bus. You might notice one little girl in a blue jacket who refused to look at the camera (above) and refused to walk under the umbrella (below). No worries, Matt and I are also stubborn and willing to work hard to win the hearts of these children for Jesus.

The rain continued all day and evening. We had Sausage and Cheese Quiche for dinner with Steamed Brocccoli and Clementines. Then we worked hard to keep everyone entertained on a rainy night.

Tuesday morning, I baked four pans of bacon for sandwiches and to have on hand to rewarm easily.

Later that morning, I put together 12 sub sandwiches (similar to this) to toast for our dinner that night.

Brayden, Kiya, Keith, and I went to serve at our weekly Food Distribution site that afternoon after school.

We came home to Toasted Subs and Tomato Soup.

Wednesday morning it was cold enough that we had to finally dig out all of our heavy winter coats. After we got the elementary kids to school, we bundled up the youngest four and headed to the Children’s Museum.

Dinner that night was a fun treat that we’d brought home from Tuesday’s Food Distribution: restaurant chicken patties that had been donated. We air fried them and put them in buns for sandwiches. I warmed up leftover noodles and steamed green beans to go with our meal.

I got out a puzzle to see who might be interested, and these three cooperated and had a blast putting it together THREE TIMES. It’s a puzzle miracle.

Meanwhile, Acacia put together these while Auggie kept taking out the pieces she put in. :)

Thursday morning, we enjoyed a loaf of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread that I had in the freezer and thawed the night before. I scrambled 12 eggs to go with it.

We loaded up the four youngest that morning and went to Walmart and Costco. We got restocked on fresh fruits and veggies plus several other Costco essentials.

We were blessed that afternoon with an Arrow visit…

…and one from Little Sweetheart too! Lolli and Pop are so thankful to live close to grandbabies. :)

When the kids got home from school, we got out a container of strawberries that we’d picked up at Costco for them to snack on. Two pounds of strawberries later…

…we loaded up all eight kid and headed a few blocks away to the Little Free Pantry we had planned to fill up. The groceries our group had purchased together on Sunday were still in the back of our van and we finally had a chance to fill the pantry.

As we were filling it, a gentleman came to shop. Perfect timing!! We enjoyed meeting him and vising, then handed him a bag to fill up as we were leaving. If you have any Little Free Pantries in your area, I encourage you to fill them with your family if you are able. It’s a need in our neck of the woods, and it is so great to teach our kids this way of loving our neighbors.

When we got home, we warmed up leftover Hotdogs and ate them with Raspberries and Baked Beans.

Everyone was getting a little too rowdy after dinner, so we gathered them around the living room table for a craft.

Elias and Malorie made something else for their dinner later that evening and Josie wanted to help. This was only made possible with an apron.

After the kids and I went to bed that night, Matt put a Pork Butt into a crock pot to slow cook all night so we could have it ready for our Sunday Lunch. Friday morning, we shredded it and let it cool before refrigerating it.

We had picked up 8-pounds of ground beef at Costco the day before, so I browned it while the kids ate breakfast.

I also made a big pan of Peanut Butter Honey Rice Krispie Bars. These are so fast and easy to make!

Matt took the four elementary kids to school while I stayed back with the youngest four. Auggie had an in-home appointment with an Early Development Special Ed Teacher to help him as we try to get him caught up on speech and social/emotional skills.

Both grandbabies got dropped off that morning and Malorie helped us out as we enjoyed them.

Later that afternoon, I turned some of the cooked beef into a huge pan of Creamy Layered Enchiladas to put into the freezer for a future Sunday Lunch.

I’d picked up a London Broil marked down at the store the day before and cooked it for dinner that night. It turned out tasty! I made six boxes of mac and cheese, which the kids ate with frozen peas. Plus we finished off another two pounds of strawberries.

The kids had been looking forward to our plans to put up the Christmas tree that evening! They all “worked together” to help while Matt and I tried to maintain order.

Brayden and Kiya have helped assemble the tree for the past few years so they did a really good job directing the others in what to do. We didn’t get the project finished that night, but we got the hardest parts finished.

Saturday morning, we finished decorating the tree.

It’s always a relief to have that job done – and now we can just enjoy the beauty. And hopefully we can keep Auggie from taking it all apart. :)

The rest of the day, we cleaned, ate leftovers, and prepared for Sabbath rest. And that was our week!

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Big Family Food and Fun: June 30-July 6, 2024

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Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: June 30-July 6, 2024 post!

Big Family Food and Fun: June 30-July 6, 2024

We started our week with a special Family Worship morning at church. The kids had been working on a fun song to share for us on stage. Four of our littles felt brave enough that day to get up there with their buddies. :)

For lunch that day I had put the last of our $5 hams into our large roaster to “bake” during church. We came home to a delicious Ham Dinner with Buttered Peas and Corn, Watermelon, Rolls, and Pineapple Fluff. We had brought home a pan of Cinnamon Rolls my nieces made after our weekend trip so it was great to enjoy those for dessert!

You can always tell when Elias’ girlfriend, Malorie, is here visiting by looking at our little girls’ hair. I have time for ponytails and that’s about it. Malorie takes time to create all kinds of adorable hair styles for them!

Matt and I have started to meet with three other couples on Sunday afternoons for a time of Bible study and sharpening/encouraging. I can’t express how grateful I am for this time. AND how thankful we are that Elias has been willing to help with the kids so that we can do this. He and Malorie kept them downstairs for a movie then took them outside. One of the guys here for our Bible study captured this photo through our living room window of Elias with Keith and Josie. So sweet.

That afternoon, Brayden and Kiya entertained themselves for a long time making “crafts with nature.” We loved how this activity helped them to be calm and engaged.

One of the couples who had come over that afternoon handed us two FREE PIZZA coupons that were going to expire that day. He’d picked up a bunch at his work place and they’d used all they wanted so we got the final two. Perfect! I guess we’d just have to eat pizza that night!

We got to order whatever variety we wanted as the coupons were for any pizza on the menu. Elias and Malorie went to pick them up for us while we fed the kids fruit to hold them over.

Elias helped me get them baked, cut, and served. And that was dinner that night.

Monday morning it rained and rained and rained. This was good except for it seemed that all morning the kids took turns (or sometimes joined together) screaming for a variety of reasons. Matt wasn’t feeling great that day so between that and the rain, we decided against an outing. Oy, usually outings stop the screaming, so now what?

We headed to the kitchen to bake. Kids helped me measure and pour as we put together a double batch of Breakfast Cookies.

While the cookies baked, we made some Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream. The kids were so excited about this!

The rain stopped so that the kids could play outside that afternoon. Dinner that night was Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot with Sunday’s Ham, Peas, and Corn on top or on the side.

Later that night I got this text and photo from my friend Tasha who was out at church camp where Malachi was serving for the week: “He’s like a celebrity. He’s doing a lovely job running evening activities.” Awww. I needed that.

Tuesday morning we prepped for a big day ahead, eating the Breakfast Cookies we’d made the day before. I packed up Peanut Butter/Honey Sandwiches, Guacamole and Chips, Carrots, Peach and Pear Cups, Applesauce, and a bag of Apples to take to the zoo where we were planning to meet up with friends. I watered down a bottle of juice and packed cups to give the kids a fun treat with lunch.

It ended up raining off and on during most of our zoo time, but we still had a lot of fun!

We watched the penguins eat their lunch, then stayed to let the zoo keepers share more about the penguins. There was even a baby penguin to enjoy!

All throughout the morning before lunch the kids munched on apples as they got hungry. I have learned to always grab a bag of apples or pears for the kids to eat when we are out like this. It helps prevent hangry meltdowns and as you can see from my once full bag that now contained only one half eaten apple – we needed these.

About the time we were going to set up a picnic to enjoy our lunch, the rain started to come down harder. So we went instead to the (very loud) indoor Spider Monkey play area to play and eat. There are no tables in there but we sat along a wall and I handed out food there.

After lunch, we loaded up and I dropped off Matt and five kids at home, then headed to drop off Acacia and Josie to have fun at Ms. Kathi’s. From there I went to hang out with Eva and Arrow (and bonus, Kelsey was there too!). I enjoyed an entire hour and a half of baby snuggles before heading back to pick up the girls. :)

Back at home, I dropped off the girls and picked up Brayden and Kiya to had out food at our weekly Food Distribution.

That morning, I had used some pre-cooked hamburger meat to make a pot of Sloppy Joes for Elias to warm up for dinner.

We spent the rest of the evening playing outside, going up and down our sidewalk on cars or pushing carts.

Wednesday morning we had Make-Ahead Breakfast Sandwiches that had been tucked away in the freezer. The girls ate with their baby dolls. :)

We packed up a lunch and headed out to Walmart and to Tierra Park for the morning. I attempted making Chicken Sandwiches before we left and put them into an insulated bag to see if they’d still be hot two hours later at lunch time.

It worked pretty well!

On our outing, I first ran into Walmart while Matt stayed in the van with the kids so I could get some fresh fruit and veggies for the upcoming days. I found and grabbed a roast and a bunch of coconut water marked down!

I love a cart full of fruits and vegetables!

We love Tierra Park because there is a skate park area plus a fun route the kids can ride their bikes around. Matt had loaded up all of their bikes and Keith’s skateboard for this outing. Phew!

Keith is so proud of his skills. :)

At lunchtime, we enjoyed our Chicken Sandwiches with Popcorn, Applesauce, and Chocolate Milk (there was a lot of extra milk at Food Distribution the day before so they sent some home with us!).

Afterward, we headed home to drop off five kids, then I dropped Acacia and Josie off at Josalyn’s for two hours. Off I went to get some more Arrow snuggles during that time. I was thrilled that Eva was able to nap while I was there and of course, I LOVED my time with Arrow.

Meanwhile, Elias and Malorie had taken Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to a library-hosted Heavy Equipment Encounter so they could see and climb on lots of emergency and work vehicles. After that, they stopped at a fire works tent to pick up some kid-friendly items for us to enjoy the next day.

We couldn’t wait for the 4th for all of them so we enjoyed a few that afternoon too.

We had plans to go to a dinner party that didn’t begin until 6:00 and I knew our kids couldn’t wait that long to eat. So I made them two plates of Corn Dog Bites, sliced a pound of Cheese, and got out the Watermelon. They ate and ate and ate (and were still hungry at the party later).

The party was hosted by a couple of young men that grew up with our kids. It’s so fun to see everyone in their adult world! Asa, Eva, and Arrow were there too so I got a few extra baby snuggles. :)

There was an amazing spread of food and we got to catch up with people we hadn’t seen in years!

The morning of the fourth, I made a skillet full of Scrambled Cheesy Eggs and Sausage Gravy to go with Biscuits we’d brought back home with us after our family reunion last weekend.

Malorie fixed Acacia, Josie, and Kiya’s hair SO CUTE for the holiday!

I was preparing a big family lunch but I also felt like cleaning out the fridge. So I used the rest of Sunday’s ham to make two Breakfast Casseroles and two Ham and Hashbrown Casseroles for the freezer.

Our kids were all coming over for lunch (except for Malachi who was serving out at church camp all week). I had planned to make Smoked Chicken Legs, Corn on the Cob, Watermelon, Caesar Salad, and Homemade Ice Cream.

HOWEVER, for some reason our smoker would not heat up for me. After messing with it for way too long, I ran out of time to cook the chicken. So I quickly switched gears and cooked Brats and Hotdogs (which I had thawed to make that night). Brats and dogs on the stove saved the day and I quickly made Baked Beans to go with our meal.

Asa, Eva, and Arrow arrived plus Justus, Kelsey, and Little Sweetheart. Our friend Ascha came too, plus one of our housemates, so we had a great crowd of 19! Just before time to eat, I found this crew in our living room watching some of our big boys’ old videos they’d made as kids. :)

Auntie Josie got her first turn at holding Baby Arrow. So sweet.

We enjoyed our feast of Brats, Hotdogs, Baked Beans, Corn on the Cob, Pickles, Watermelon, and Homemade Ice Cream. Elias and Malorie also made a pitcher of sweet tea for everyone.

After lunch, we headed outside to do just a few fireworks with the kids.

While BabyBoy#11 napped, Anna, Acacia, and I made Strawberry Shortcake Muffins for dinner.

After they were finished baking, Anna “gave me permission” to cut her hair. She does NOT like having her hair brushed and it causes a lot of fights that ain’t nobody got time for. :/ She was excited about it and it turned out very cute!!!

But don’t look too close. I don’t know what I’m doing, ha.

We got the smoker working so we could have our lunch chicken legs at dinnertime!

We had our BBQ Chicken Legs with Caesar Salad, Green Beans, and Rolls.

Then we followed our meal with Strawberry Shortcake!

We headed out to enjoy sparklers and simple fireworks with the kids. Our friend Dallas came over to enjoy the evening with us and he was so sweet with the little ones.

At bedtime, we put Anna, Acacia, Josie, and BabyBoy#11 to bed but the others had rested in the afternoon so that they could stay up late. They were so excited about this privilege!

Friday morning the weather was beautiful so we took a walk to Sunken Gardens.

When we got home I made six boxes of Mac and Cheese, cut up leftover Hotdogs from the day before and warmed up leftover Peas for lunch.

Late afternoon I made a big plate of Chicken Strips to hold everyone over because there was an outing opportunity we were excited to experience. Back story: Brayden had a chance to go to Lincoln’s Quilt Museum for a field trip during last school year and he really wanted all of us to go sometime. I had found a FREE event hosted this night at the Quilt Museum with a Storytime, Craft, and Cookie – so off we all went.

Oy, the kids were a challenge the entire time. The event itself was great and well put together. But most of our kids had a very hard time being calm, listening, or obeying while we were there. Hey, but here are some photos in which you can’t tell that anything is amiss.

Storytime:

Craft time:

Cookie time:

Ah, and after we looked at some of the amazing quilts through the museum (there was a scavenger hunt that we tried to enjoy with the kids), we discovered a children’s room! At least it was ok to touch stuff in here…

Truly, the Quilt Museum is very cool, just tough when you have seven high-needs kids to manage. We made it home and fed them loads of strawberries and cheese before bed. Phew.

Saturday morning the kids ate cereal while I baked a double batch of Bran Muffins to try and get ahead.

Then I drank my daily smoothie while I made a huge batch of Peanut Butter Honey Puffs for easy snacks.

We loaded up and went to our favorite Sensory Friendly Storytime. This was a MUCH BETTER outing compared to the night before. The kids know what to expect here and it is geared toward kids who need a calm environment. Even our timid Josie happily gets involved!

On our way home, we made a planned trip to Antelope park where we ate some buttered muffins, bananas, and milk before playing for about an hour.

Kelsey and Little Sweetheart were at our house when we got home so she helped me make pizzas for our lunch. We decided to cook the pizzas on our smoker, which caught on fire – not a great week for us and our smoker, ha. So Matt took care of the smoker while I baked the pizzas in the house in the boring ol’ oven,

We got the kids settled in for some rest that afternoon, then Lolli got to do this while finishing this post, so that was pretty much awesome:

We ate leftovers for dinner and that was our week!

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