What's for Dinner?

I feel like I have been away from my blog for some time.  I need to get back to it and catch up!  What a better way then start with a menu plan for the week! I was trying to think of somewhere to write it but I also wanted to link the recipes from Pinterest so that I could easily get to them when I needed them.  So what better way to do that all in one place than here!  So I'm halfway through the week but I have already planned the rest of this week and next.  We are trying to cut out the eating out a little bit and trim down the budget.  As I'm sure most American's are feeling the squeeze on their wallets and my husband being a Service Member we're not sure what sequestration will do with our near future...BLAH!

Okay! On to more positive talk! FOOD!

Wednesday-

I'm cooking my own beans for this soup later this week, and making Banana Crumb Muffins for snacks and Breakfast.  I might make these cookies too since I got a big bag of banana's from the commissary that were a tad over ripe for $.70

DINNER- I'm going to make these Turkey Meatball's and have them on spaghetti with a salad.  We will have enough extra's that I will freeze for another meal.

Thursday- Possibly a school pizza fundraiser or Homemade Pizza

Friday- Slow-cooker Bean, Kale and Sausage Soup This will be perfect since it will be cold, with flurries/or freezing rain!

Saturday- Baked Salmon, Broccoli and sweet potato faux fries

Sunday- I'm going to try my hand at Homemade Tortilla's to have with Chicken Fajita's

Monday- Beef Stroganoff over egg noodles

Tuesday- AWANA?

Wednesday- Korean Beef (Ground Turkey) We don't eat a lot of beef so I will probably use the 93/7 Turkey since it's a little "beefier" tasting.  We'll have this with a side salad with Toasted Sesame dressing.

Thursday-  This is one of my favorite recipes from Skinny Taste, Sante Fe Chicken.  She has some great Weight Watcher inspired recipes on her site!

Friday- Leftovers and a Movie (Redbox or the Library)

Saturday- Grilled or Baked Chicken, Cowboy caviar, Quinoa

Sunday- Chili or Taco Soup

WHEW!! That was a lot harder than I thought! Now hopefully we can stick to it! I know I have everything to make these recipes already but sometimes I just don't want to cook...or clean.

Transitions to a SAHM

So a month ago a made a HUGE decision to leave my job.  I slowly transitioned to part-time working from home for a month and then full-time Stay At Home Mom.  WHEW! What a transition!  I have been a SAHM in the past, it's been a little while but it's a big difference from the corporate world and it's taking some getting used to.  I was having some difficulty at work sitting there all-day-long working on a great project but doing nothing useful and wasting my hard earned degree.  It was so draining and down right degrading. I just felt that I'd much rather be at home with my kids than spend time with people who can't get a long and waste the governments money one someone sitting there doing nothing.  I would have LOVED more than anything to continue doing a job that was meaningful but- it wasn't.  Although I looked for a new job it was half-hearted because my self-confidence was gone and I was just so un happy.  In the last month I have found some happiness and I'm trying to build back that confidence.  I know it will come with time but right now I think I just need to enjoy some time with my boys and take a break!

(Ry, Me and Bubba)

Right now I think the easiest thing I have done is get Ry into a routine.  Since he's 2.5 that is very important.  I've noticed that if we miss nap time the day can be a total disaster after 4pm.  That's when we need him at his best for Bubba's sports: soccer, karate and Piano (busy kid!).  When Daddy's gone it's 10 times harder so nap time is a must!  I think we are mastering the schedule though.  I'm not a hermit though and we like to get out of the house so I would like to find some things do in the early morning hours that are FREE or CHEAP in the area that can get us back before nap time.. any ideas?

My biggest challenge so far is getting out of my comfort zone and meeting some new friends! I don't have too many friends that I "hang out" with.  I'd love to meet some new gal's with kids the same age as the boys to hang out with.  I met a great group of girls when we moved here when Bubba was in Pre-k but since then they all moved and I worked 40 hours a week for 2+ years and haven't had the time to meet anyone new.  Sad I know, pathetic really!

I have faith that it will all work out in the end and that I have made the right decision for me and my family.  My kids are already happier that they are getting more time with me which makes me happier.  Ry's behavior has already improving since leaving daycare.  I'm able to help Bubba with his homework and he's able to have more time do play and do other things he enjoys instead of going to before and aftercare.  I'm not sure how long this will last but I will enjoy it while it does and try to make the most of every minute.  While I do I think I will restart my blog and try to post some updates and maybe even some SAHM ideas.  I'd love to see some great ideas from you too!

Garden Update

I am sad today this is not a happy post.  We have not been as luck as last year with the garden.  It has been a combination of poor soil, insects, heat and now rain (hurricanes)!  We are pretty bummed about the results of the garden- it seems like every time we are getting ready to harvest something it either gets eaten by stink bugs or it rains for weeks and rots or explodes- have you ever seen a tomato explode?!?! EWW!

We went on vacation the end of July and when we came back the Community Center Garden was a sad sight! Our entire garden was infested with stink bugs and most of the squash, zucchini and cucumbers plants had been eaten.  The hubby decided it would be best to pull them all up.

The backyard garden was a little rough as well but without the infestation- a little more on the dry side. THEN hurricane Irene passed over and we find this....

The boys had a great idea...

Yes Zucchini Baseball!!  Never a dull moment!!

Sewing Machine Cover

I had this beautiful fabric and I've been waiting to use it and I REALLY needed to make a cover for my kitchen aid mixer so I decided to try it out.  My measurements were a little big and the fabric was a little TOO much for my tiny kitchen so I tried it on my sewing machine (which was actually in need of a cover as well).  It fits the sewing machine MUCH better!!  I think this fabric is really pretty and I actually wish the cover was big enough to cover my ENTIRE craft area- excuse my mess...

I added a little handle to the top so I can hang it while I'm crafting and the inside is lined with the same fabric.  It was super easy so I don't have a tutorial- plus I made it at 11pm last night.  But if you need help just ask.  

 My measurements were:

 top (2) 11"x15"

side panel (a) (4) 16"x15"

side panel (b) (4) 16"x11"

The handle was about 3"x8" (I forgot to measure-I sew like I cook)

Let me know if you need help putting it all together! I think it would have been much sturdier if there was interfacing but I didn't add it.  I still LOVE it though and it will keep the dust out!

Back to School Time Art Smock!!

So last year I made this Art Smock, I have to admit it was a pretty thrift an awesome idea!  Well...Austen didn't bring it home from school and we've called the school to see if it was there but the teacher is not there this year and he will be going to a new school so NEW school, NEW smock!  So I had an idea in my head to do a black dress shirt with flame-ribbon BUT I couldn't find flame-ribbon or a cheap black dress shirt SO new idea!  I found a red mens dress shirt at Target on sale and then took the big boy to JoAnn's to pick out some ribbon, we decided on soccer balls!  So I thought...flames and soccer balls- I know I can't get away from the flames but it's SO COOL!! :)  

Last Year's smock

So off to the NEW Smock!  

So first thing you want to do is put the large dress shirt (size small mens) on your model and mark where you want to cut the sleeves, remember you want the sleeves long enough to cover their school clothes so they don't get ruined. Using scissors or a rotary cutter cut the sleeves where marked.

as you can see I already sliced the sleeve off :)

At this point you want to turn the shirt inside out, fold the ends of the sleeves 1/4 inch then 1/2 inch iron and hem.  Once you have both sleeves hemmed turn the shirt right-side out and attach ribbon to the end of the sleeves.

Next you'll remove the buttons and add Velcro.  

                                    

I like to add Velcro because it's going to be easier to take off when you're 6 and when you've got dirty fingers!  I cut 5 pieces of Velcro, that should be enough to go the length of the shirt

Mark where you would like to add the Velcro (evenly spaced) and pin.  You want to make sure the Velcro is even with it's matching partner on the other side. Remember the the velcro will be facing out on the former button side and facing in on the button hole side.

Once you've added the Velcro in place of the buttons you will want to cover the button holes with the ribbon you picked for the sleeves.  Fold over the top of the ribbon and put it as close as you can to the collar- pin. Pin the ribbon down every 3-4 inches.

 

Now you want to sew the top, down each sides and across the bottom.

Next you'll do the same to the edge of the collar.  I folded the ends of the ribbon and tucked them around the collar edge before sewing just to make it look cleaner.

Now you can add your design it you like.  I chose to do freezer paper stenciling and this is were the FLAMES come in!  I found an image of a flaming soccer ball that I thought was pretty awesome and 

stenciled in on the pocket and back.

Then I decided I better put his name on it since it's SO awesome someone might snatch it!  I had some flame fabric from a previous project.  The heat-n-bond wasn't working properly so i had to sew the edges but it gave it a rough look. (You could also freezer paper stencil your letters like I did last time)

I think he likes it?  Pretty happy kid! He was showing everyone at back to school night (proud momma) :).

 I hope you enjoyed and feel inspired!

Jessica Percifull

Square Foot Gardening Take 2!

So this year we are starting our second year of Square foot/raised bed gardening. We've decided to expand! One bed at our house and one in the Community Garden.  We started the one in our backyard on time but didn't get to start the Community Garden right away due to rain and the fact that they were still building the plots.

This is the garden in our backyard May 16

We used this plot last year and it's still in great condition!  We're using out knowledge of what did better in the sun or shade and changing the line up! Hopefully we've made the right decision.

Backyard Garden June 4

 Only a few weeks later and the garden is already showing progress!

Backyard Garden 6/16

 We decided that we had some extra room and wanted some herbs right away.  I have never had luck with cilantro so I figured I would get some thats already started.  I've also learned through some research that as soon as your cilantro and basil start to have flowers they wont produce any more leaves and it's best to throw some seeds in the ground every couple of weeks!

Backyard Garden 6/28

 We have Squash, Zucchini, Thai Basil, Rosemary, Sweet Basil, Cilantro, Plum Tomatoes, Carrots, and Cucumbers!

Backyard Garden 7/11

 Only about two months in and it's overgrown!! I hope we didn't crowd it too much!! We were a little worried when all of the flowers kept falling of the squash plants. We actually found that it's very common if there are too many males they just fall off!!  Also once they've pollinated the females they'll fall of as well because you'll only get fruit from the females!  Maybe we'll get brave and try one of the many squash blossom recipes on the internet!

Our first harvest from our backyard garden!!

This is our first pick from our garden and it sure looks yummy!  Just two months in and we've already gotten some yummy veggies!!

Community Center Garden

Our garden did SO well last year we decided to add another! They're kind of expensive to start so when we heard out community was starting a Community Garden where we could pay a refundable deposit for a small, medium or large plot we were super excited!! (Ok maybe just me) :)  The hubby and oldest son started the garden and found the dirt filled with glass and just pretty crappy dirt.  After a week the garden wasn't looking too good and it wasn't allowing the water to drain. 

Community Center Garden June 4

  So we added removed half of the dirt and some organic garden soil and some of our compost. Surprisingly all of the plants transplanted well!

Community Center Garden 6/16

Community Center Garden 6/16

Community Center Garden 7/4

Just a few weeks in and it's looking great!

Austen and Neil (courtesy of the Capital Flyer)

 My husband and oldest son were even pictured in the base paper!

My big helpers!

Of course I have the best helpers ever! I'm surprised they're even dry in this picture because I think they really only come to play in the hose! 

Unfortunately our first harvest from the community garden has already been enjoyed by the rabbits!  So sad! They even ate all the leaves down to the stems! This made us decide to put up a fence whether or not it's "allowed"!

I hope you enjoyed visiting our garden!  If you have a garden going be sure to link your blog below! I can't wait to see what your growing!

Thanks for stopping by,

Jessica Percifull

Baby Sea Cow "Manatee" Costume

So I wanted something original for Riley's first Halloween costume.  He's so "fluffy" that I wanted something to match.  I thought, pumpkin- nah, marshmallow- nah, Michelin tire mascot?- too much! LOL  So we were actually walking around Lowe's here in good old  Clinton, Maryland and saw a Manatee lawn decoration and the light bulb went off! 

We are originally from Florida and The Manatee is by far my favorite animal.  It's sweet, friendly and innocent.  Just like my little bear.  So I attempted to create a Manatee costume without a pattern!  I bought a yard and a half of gray fleece (50% off), 2 Black buttons ($.50 on clearance), and some black "floss" to make the nostrils.

I think he like's it don't you?  All I have left to do is put velcro down the front and I think I might make some little pants for his legs with the leftover fleece, since they hang out :)