Menu Plan Monday

I did pull out a few cookbooks to plan my meals for this week, they mostly just sat there cheering me on.  I felt a little inspired but not much.  Still haven't fired the grill up - the weather is hot and then cold and back and forth, hopefully soon!  I do think my first grill of the season will be Kabobs! 

Like I said last week, the hubs is a simple kinda food guy.  When I pulled out the hoagies last week,
I could almost hear the Hallelujah Chorus!  So, I am probably going to be having a hoagie night for a little while.  I am not complaining, it is super easy, just not super healthy IPO!  For my health conscience friends, yes the meats are nitrate free!  The kids loved how I made platters and let them assemble their own sammies. 

So this what I came up with for the week...


Monday:
Hoagies w/ Salt & Pepper Chips, Fruit Salad, Veggies w/ Dip

Tuesday:
Rosemary Pork Loin w/ Raspberry Sauce w/ Carrots and Potatoes


Wednesday:
Grilled Chicken Tortilla Soup w/ Tortilla Chips & Sour Cream


Thursday:
Breakfast Night (in the Crocky Pot) Egg & Cheese Bake w/ Bacon and Biscuits & Cantaloupe



Friday:
Papa J's

Saturday:
Tacos & Corn


Sunday:
Chicken Parmesan over noodles w/ Steamed Veggies

In Christ Alone

by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend


In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
here in the love of Christ I stand.


In Christ alone! who took on flesh
Fulness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.


There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.


No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath.
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

Our New Additions

We finally decided to get 2 dwarf hamsters.  At first we got a robo hamster (bad idea, for us anyway!) and a chinese dwarf hamster. 

The chinese dwarf has been awesome from the moment we got him.  He is easy to handle and has a very mellow manner about him.  We love him and are so glad we got him.  I never thought I'd see the day that I'd love a little rat like creature - espeically given the fact that they probably carry parasites and a host of other nasties but I gotta tell ya I am constatnly going over and taking Chesnut from the kids.  I keep telling them that he is really is mine!

Now, about that other thing we got.  The kids named him Speedy, because he was.  He was hard to catch and have you ever been bit by a hamster??  Doesn't feel real good, and yes I can say this from first hand experience.  So I made an executive decision to exchange him for another chinese dwarf.  Sorry Speedy, hopefully you won't become rat food!  The kids were not thrilled about this at first, but once we got our new hamster Oreo, all was well. 

Both of these hamsters are so cute, well mannered, LOW MAINTANCE and fun to watch.  I do feel bad for little Chesnut though,  my 3 year old son also loves him and I do believe the critter cringes when he sees him on the prowl.  So far he has been on adventures such as, a ride in the bat mobile, a ride in a Little People dump truck and he has been the owner of his very own lego home. 

Thanks again to everyone that gave their imput and voted.

Their cozy little homes. 

Aren't they cute??! Oreo & Chesnut with the kiddos.

Chesnut

Oreo

Make A Plate Review and Giveaway!

We just finished a really great family project!  We did Make A Plates!  We were blessed with a Make-A-Plate Classroom Kit from The Felt Lady.  In our kit were 50 - 10 inch circular sheets of special paper, a set of markers and a return envelope.  To make your plate you use the markers provided (or any other washable Crayola markers) and color to your hearts content.  This was one of those things where I am not sure who had more fun, the kids or me?! 

First, the kids and I made a family plate, I did most of the drawing on this one.  I am not an artist by any stretch of the imagination, but I really enjoyed it.  The kids told me how to draw each member of the family and I did. 

After I was done hogging the markers  The kids each got to make a plate of their own, it was really neat 

to see each child's personalitiy come out as they did their plates.  They traced their hands, colored and my 3 year old even used a dinosaur stencil.

 

So far we received the "family plate" back and it is really COOL!  I was amazed at how good it turned out.  The kids can't wait to get their plates back, they really want to eat on them but I of course think they are too nice and want to hang them on the kitchen wall.  What to do, what to do??!!

They are really excited about these plates and we are thinking about making a special birthday plate.  We also have the idea of making a special dinner plate, maybe with a scripture and a crown or something for the child that had the best manners that day.  

The kit (which includes the 50 special 10in. plate papers, markers, and the return envelope) is very reasonably priced at $6.95 and then you pay $5.95 per plate to have them processed (Please note this does not include shipping, but it is very reasonable).  This is great for a family night project or for a homeschool group, and it makes a great keepsake.  These would even make great gifts for Mother's or Father's Day!

Currently, The Felt Lady is offering you free shipping on any of the following kits. This offer includes:

• Make A Plate Classroom Kit
• Make A Tray Classsroom Kit
• Make A Mug Classroom Kit
• Make A Bowl Classroom Kit
• Make A Calendar Classroom Kit
• Or Any Individual Kit

To take advantage of this special offer please make sure to enter the code MP09 into the special offers and discounts page.

The Giveaway:
Michelle, AKA "The Felt Lady" has graciously offered a Make A Plate kit free to one of you (please note: this does not include the per plate processing fee)! I will be running the contest until April 30th (next Friday).  Here is how you can enter...

• If you are a follower or a subscriber, leave me a comment.
• If you become a new follower, please leave me a comment.
• Blog about the Giveaway

The Felt Lady also has some really neat educational & just for fun felt kits that I hope to review soon.  You all you should check them out!

Sue Gregg Cooking Giveaway and Review

Over at Raising Olives there is a giveaway for one of Sue Gregg's cookbooks, which focuses on healthy whole food cooking. 

Thought ya'll might want to check it out!