Halloween 2009

I was in charge of costumes this year because Jacob was busy with work.
This is the line up:

Aeris, a cute little pumpkin

Elijah, a scary vampire

Ethan, a mad scientist

Porter, a creepy mummy

and Jacob, as himself :)

Our Halloween festivities included:

1. A ward Fall Festival and trunk or treat(with Porter being a finalist in the costume parade)
2. Trick or treating at Jacob's work (and his win as Scariest Costume in the costume contest)
3. Trick or treating on Halloween night where my kids wimped out after about 7 houses! Obviously they don't know how good they have it. Why, I remember tromping through 18 inches of snow in 25 degree weather for hours in search of a few measly treats!

Halloween was fun! Now to get rid of all this candy!

This Bread's for You!

Here's my latest recipe acquisition: Artisan Bread

This recipe is from my friend, Sarah. She's been teaching bread classes for Enrichment and she is good.
Here's the recipe:

Dixie's Artisan Bread

3 c. unbleached flour
1/4 tsp. instant yeast
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 5/8 c. water

Mix together, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit overnight at room temperture.

On baking day

1. Pour dough out onto a floured surface, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 mins.
2. Liberally flour 2 towels (NOT terry cloth, those smooth flour sack towels). Place dough between the towels, fold over and let rest for 2 hours.
3. 30 minutes before baking, place your pot (covered with an oven safe lid) into the oven and preheat to 450.
4. Pour the dough into the pot and bake covered for 30 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes to brown the top.

This is a mild flavored bread and is delicious dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette.

Let cool completely and enjoy. If you cut the loaf too early, it cuts poorly and dries out quickly.
The best way to keep bread fresh is to store it cut side down on a nonporous surface, like a plate.

It's been awhile

Sorry, no posts in forever. I did finish the grocery challenge with $10.34 to spare. Then, as soon as October arrived, I stocked back up! But at least I know I can do it and I plan on doing it more often.

As for the mixer, I'm going to hold off maybe until Christmas.

More posts with pictures to follow. I burned my fingers (2nd degree) today and typing is a bit difficult :( .

Sept 3rd and 4th

Money Spent So Far:
$14.45 Lunch date
$13.86 Diapers
$56.69 Left for the week

To answer some questions from my HUGE readership;).

No, I don't have any specific recipes but the blogger I got the idea from does have a recipe book that just came out and she says it's got good stuff in it. I'm just going to shop the sales and be very sure I buy only what we need. I may sneak in a few wants but I'm going to try making more treats this month and maybe even try my hand at making crackers and I will be making bread. I did stock my freezer with meat last week but that's only because we'd run out of every thing and it was before I planned on doing this. I know I'll be using more beans. Be glad you all live far away:).

As for keeping their "grubby hands" off the food, I just send them to school (so I don't have to deal with their "hungrys" for several hours) and have a snack planned when they get home and then the kitchen is CLOSED until dinner. If they say they are truly dieing for food, I offer carrot sticks. Not many of them are that hungry.

And the salad recipe is as follows:

Turkey, Apple, Craisin Salad

1 bag of salad (romaine mix or American mix)
Turkey lunch meat
Colby Jack cheese, shredded
Craisins
Gala apples (or Fuji)
1 stalk of Celery
Ranch dressing or a fruit Vinaigrette (we really like Marzetti Berry Balsamic Vinaigrette)

I chop the celery and add to salad mix and toss. Everything else I chop/shred and put in little bowls and people can pick what they like. I love this salad. It's very lite and fresh and delicious!

And our menu
Sept 3rd
Breakfast: Pancakes and eggs
Lunch: PB&J Sandwiches and Jacob and I went out for a lunch date $14.45
Dinner: Black Bean Soup and Cornbread
Snack: Apples and crackers and cheese

Sept 4th
Breakfast: Oatmeal
Lunch: PB and Honey sandwiches or leftovers
Dinner:Pita pizzas and cauliflower and zucchini with cheese and seasonings
Snack: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies and milk

Just so you know, the lunches I pack aren't just sandwiches. There's always a fruit, chips/crackers, tiny treat, juice and a gogurt or string cheese. I have a feeling most of my $$ is going to be spent on lunch items.

With all the money I'm going to save this month (cross my fingers) I decided I'm going to buy a Bosch mixer just like my mom has. She got one used and has had it for at least 15 yrs and it's still going strong (as far as I know). I will think of it whenever I'm tempted to buy Skittles. I don't have any type of stand mixer and I'd like to think I'll make more bread if I have one. They are supposed to be the best on the market and last forever.

September 1 and 2

I have to make a disclaimer about these first 2 weeks. I already planned my menu and bought the groceries before I heard about this idea. And it's funny that since I can't/chosen not to go shopping, I keep thinking about what I'd like to buy and I don't need ANYTHING!! The feeling will go away after awhile, right?

Sept 1
Breakfast: Cold cereal
Lunch: Sandwiches and leftovers
Dinner: Turkey, Apple, Craisin Salad and saltine crackers.

Sept 2
Breakfast: Yogurt/egg, toast and fruit
Lunch: Tuna Sandwiches or leftovers
Dinner: Ravioli Vegetable Stack and cauliflower with cheese

And can I just say my little daughter is trying to be troublesome! She's on antibiotics for a double ear infection and she refuses to take them! She used to be so good at taking medicine. Unfortunately, she has to take them no matter what and so it will be given the "hard way". Very sad for her (and me).

$85 a Week for Groceries for September

I read about this on this blog. And if she can do it with 10 kids I can do it with 4! I'll post our meals and keep you updated on our progress. Even if we don't stick to the $85 a week, we'll still be saving money since I usually spend $600+ a month! YIKES! I'm going to go with all cash because I know that will help immensely. If anyone want to join us in this endeavor that would be great.

Our 10th Anniversary

Since we've survived 10 years of togetherness we celebrated by going out of town for the weekend. Jacob planned the whole thing. We divided our kids amongst 2 wonderful, fantastic, patient friends and headed off!

We went to Universal and Islands of Adventure.

The next day we drove to Key Largo to Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park to camp (like we did on our honeymoon) on the beach. The next morning we went snorkeling on a coral reef. It was amazing! It is just like it shows on TV. The fish are so close you can almost touch them. We even saw a sea turtle go gliding by. We ate lots of delicious fish at little out of the way restaurants and enjoyed each other immensely.