It's Time for ...

Menu Monday!  Woo Hoo!

Well, let's see....

Meatless Monday we had.....burrito bowls.

Home made pinto beans with all our favorite burrito toppings; cheese, sour cream, salsa, avocado, olives...yummy.  With the beans on the bottom it makes a complete protein too. 

Tuesday - Hamburger Soup.  I think there must be 1000 recipes for this.  

 This one I made up to mimic one of Phil's favorites from his youth.

Wednesday we had lasagna.  Whenever I make one, I make another for the freezer so we have it quick and easy for the next time.

Well, Thursday was Thanksgiving, bet you can't guess what we had?  Well, it wasn't quick or easy...but I didn't have to cook it so......  I did make a few sides and these yummy canapés.

 Smoked salmon, cucumber, and dill.

Roasted shrimp, cucumber, and dill.

Mackenzie doesn't like shrimp and Brighton doesn't like smoked salmon, so I made both.  lol

We ended up with leftovers for Friday, so I don't really have anything to share there.

So, how about a quick recipe on these yummy canapés.  So yummy, so easy. 

Seafood Canapés

6 slices white bread - crusts removed

1 English cucumber
Fresh dill
Shrimp or Smoked Salmon
Shallot-Parsley Butter

1.  Lightly toast the bread. Cool on a wire rack.

2.  Spread each bread slice with the shallot butter.  Using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, thinly slice the cucumber lengthwise.  Place 2 cucumber slices side by side to cover the surface of a bread slice.  Arrange sprigs of dill over the cumber.  Place seafood on the slice.  Cut each piece of bread into quarters.  Repeat and serve.

Shallot- Parsley Butter
8 tablespoon (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large shallot
1 tablespoon dry white wine
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1.  Heat 1/2 tablespoon butter over medium low heat in a small skillet.  Add the shallots and cook until soft, 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the white wine and cook until the liquid has evaporated, about 30 seconds.  Remove from the heat and stir in the salt.  Cool completely.

2.  Place the remaining 8 tablespoons of the butter in a medium bowl.  Add the shallot mixture and the parsley.  Smash with the back of a fork or wooden spoon until well combined.

3.  Transfer the butter mixture to a sheet of parchment or wax paper.  Roll into a 1 inch wide log.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Reveal Day!

That's right, it is the 28th and that means that it is reveal day at Sassy Lil' Sketches.

Another fabulous sketch this month.

And here is my take....

American Crafts Dear Lizzy Papers, Thickers and Riboon Roses

My cutie patootie niece!  Love having a baby around to scrap.  Not that I mind scrapping the older children, but sometimes those baby faces are just too sweet.

And don't forget to check out this month's Sassy Sponsors

November Sponsors

Paper Sponsor

 Digi Sponsor

To be eligible for the November prizes, your layout/card must be uploaded

via Mr. Linky below by December 5th at 11:59 PM EST.

We reserve the right to delete any linked creation that does not follow the specific rules posted on our "SLS Rules" page.

*The paper prize is open to US residents only. 

Hope you are having a great weekend.

Hugs.

Nancy

Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to let you all know that included with all the blessing in my life, I am so thankful for each and every one of you!  I hope you all have something to be thankful for today.

My super talented, super cute daughter made this for Thanksgiving and I really wanted to share.  You can check her out on her blog Life of a Homeschool Artiste or on her youtube channel, Wondering Fan.  And yes, I am very grateful for her.

Hugs.

Nancy

The Day Before a Holiday

Here I am madly trying to get caught up around the house before tomorrow's holiday.  Thanksgiving here in the US.  We are headed over to my sisters for the afternoon feast and then the craziness of the Christmas season here will begin.  Cutting down our tree, decorating the house, Black Friday shopping, planning our visits to friends and family....Oh, and this year I through in a crop because my friend Sarah is opening her new scrapbook store, Our Paper Place.

So, here it is, the day before the madness ensues and I am trying to get a bit ahead.  Tomorrow I have a post up at Inspired to Scrap detailing some fun ideas for gift card giving this holiday season. And Sunday is the reveal for Sassy Lil' Sketches.

Well, and I really wanted to share these with you.  I hope you all have had a chance to catch the sale at Catch the Moments Kits. (Oh, remember if you haven't, it's still not too late)  I got the fabulous papers from the Jolly Kit, some Thickers and brads from Devon and couldn't wait to dive right in.

So....

Echo Park Paper, Custom dyed seam binding and lace, Prima Flowers, AC rose brad, tag and Thickers

American Crafts Papers, Thickers, Rose Brad, Echo Park Thickers, Custom dyed Seam Binding, Webster's Pages Roses. Sassy Lil Sketches Sketch.

American Crafts Papers, Thickers, Making Memories and Maya Road sheers. Custom dyed seam binding

Sorry about the terrible photos, but it has been pouring rain and icy cold here the last few days.  I did some fun custom colored seam binding for these.  If you would like a tutorial, you can check out the post I did yesterday on Ideas for Scrapbookers.

Scrapbooking all the fun photos from last Christmas is making me want to dig out the decorations and get busy so......

I hope you all have many things to be thankful for this weekend.

Hugs.

Nancy

Menu Monday...again

Lots of yummy-ness this week.  If I do say so myself.  lol

On Monday, Ainsley made macaroni and cheese...Yep, my 9 year old decided she wanted to cook dinner and made macaroni and cheese, by herself, in the crock pot!  Here she is with her plate, her pasta, salad and tomatoes.  Yummm.  Funny thing tho...she didn't like it.  She was the one, we all thought it was tasty.

Tuesday we made Pioneer Woman's Cowboy Calzones.  There were a huge hit.  I found the recipe in her cookbook, but I also saw it on the above link, if you are so inclined.

Wednesday we had white chicken chili.  I am really not sure why this recipe was called white chili...so many yummy peppers, anaheim, poblano, jalapeño....it was more green.  lol  The recipe came from America's Test Kitchen.  You can find a copy of the recipe here.

Thursday the children had grilled chicken sandwiches and fries.  Phil and I had chicken caesar salads.  yummmm

And finally, Friday...we had beef enchiladas, zucchini and rice.   Why do I make things like enchiladas?  So much work...but so good.  hee hee 

Well, since this week, all my recipes came from other websites and cookbooks, and I am not into plagiarism....no new recipe.  sigh

I promise to try and have something fabulous and original next week.

Hugs.

Nancy

Saturday...

Right now we are in the midst of a quick housecleaning before heading out to see the new Harry Potter movie!  But I had to drop in for just a minute to show you this....

I did this one, just last night!  Lots of fun Imaginisce papers and a fun sketch I found at The Scrappiest.  Mackenzie was so cute in her Elmo costume.  She is growing just way too fast.

The craziness of sales posts yesterday at Catch the Moments Kits was just so much fun, Devon decided to keep the love going by having all the sales, yes all 10 posts, going all week.  And now, Thickers are on sale as well.

So, scooch over there to check out all the great deals going on now.

Well, off to finish the dishes.

Hugs.

Nancy

Catch the Moments....

Post 4 is up now......

the beautiful Sassafras Vintage Brooches, if you haven't seen these, they are TO DIE FOR! I mean, the acrylic, the color, the size, so amazing! Available in pink or yellow!

*A complete pack for $3.50-great price!
*1 brooch for $2 (1/2 pack)

Email dvnmre@yahoo.com to order, make sure to specify color! You don't want to miss out on these...and don't forget about the basic grey button grab bag $2, the journaling grab bag $2.50, and the ribbon grab bag, $2..these prices are good ALL DAY! So email me to order the Sass brooches and check back later for post #5...here's a hint for #5 American Crafts!! 

Hugs.

Nancy

Catch the Moments....

Sale post #3 is up now at Catch the Moments Kits.  I promise, I have been up, it is after all 9:30 here....but, I just didn't have time to tell you about post #2.  Sorry.  Anyways...right now sale post #3 is up and it is Jenni Bowlin!  Yummmmm

All vintage sew on button packs $3.75, this is a great price, black, pink, orange, green, white, or yellow! 
*1/2 packs of JB vintage sew on buttons on sale for $2, this allows you to mix and get an assortment of colors if you want! 6 buttons total!
*Vellum butterflies in brown or yellow $3 Amazing deal!
*Chipboard butterfly packs $2.50, or you can get 6 of the butterflies for 75 cents!!!
*Butterfly stickers (to use with or without the chipboard) in pink or black $1.25

And when you get to the Catch the Moments blog, be sure and check out the gorgeous new Echo Park line, Be mine!  

Devon will have these in as soon as she can get them.   If you want to grab one, she will be selling them for $12!  Yep, $12!!!  That is below the MSRP, Can't beat that.


Well, off to start dinner. And get some more school work done.


Have a great day.


Hugs.


Nancy

The Friday Before Black Friday...

...sale at Catch the Moments Kits has begun with all kits being only $13!  All kits $13, that's right Retro, Wonderland, Festive, Spooky, Jolly, Joyful and even the brand new Vintage kit, for only $13..that's $5 off regular price! What a deal! A couple special kits, Retro is available for $11 without the butterflies, and Vintage is available for $10 without the thickers!This is the cheapest kits have ever and will ever be! So take advantage!

Also, all add-ons are $5...this is to good to be true...check out the Festive, Jolly, and both Wonderland add-ons for $5. In the Jolly add-on, the remarks book retails for $5, so it is like getting the ribbon for free! Amazing deals! So check out the kits section on our flickr account and email Devon at dvnmre@yahoo.com if you want to order any of the kits or add-ons! This is only good until she posts a new sale, so get on it! Be back later with post #2! Well, whenever I wake up!! Good night all and order up some kits and add-ons! You can order a kit and an add-on for the regular price of a kit...it is like getting an add-on for free! Love it!

There are also some great grab bags available.  Be sure and check out the Catch the Moments Kits blog for the most up to date information.

Oh, and don't worry.  Send as many emails today as needed to get all the best deals.  At the end of the day, Devon will combine your order and send you a total!  

Don't forget to become a follower.  Catch the Moments is almost to 100!!!!

Hugs.

Nancy

So Much to Say?

I keep seeing more and more of what is going on tomorrow with the Catch the Moments Kit sale and let me tell you....this is one you will not want to miss!  Fabulous!!!  And it starts tonight, at midnight.  Think I may be stalking the blog all night!  lol


Here is a quick card I made today using the sketch from this weeks Sassy Lil' Sketches card sketch.  I used a digi image that was provided to the SLS team from this months digi sponsor, Sassy Studio Designs.  Add a few cuts from my Cricut for the weekly Cricut Circle blog challenge and I actually have a card I like!  lol...and I don't usually think much of myself as a card maker.

.

So, don't forget about tomorrows sale.  Be sure and check out the fabulous digi images over at Sassy Studio Designs, and have a great day!

Hugs.

Nancy

Eeek! I can't wait

Here are some details on the sale I told you about yesterday, you know, the one at Catch the Moments Kits!

From Devon.....

Hi everybody! I wanted to give you the details on our really big sale that is happening Friday! This is going to be the biggest sale ever! You will be able to get brand new, awesome scrapbooking products for at or near wholesale price. This is a great way for you to get some new supplies! Here is how it will work..

Sale starts at midnight Friday morning! Throughout the day Friday, I will be posting 10 different sale posts. Each post will include different items that are on sale. The sale is only good until I make the next post. For example, when sale post #1 goes up on the blog, that sale is good until I post sale post #2. And post #2 is good until I post #3 and so on. So only one group of items is on sale at a time. You can order throughout the day as many times as you like, I will just add them all together over the weekend and get you a total. So feel free to email me as many times as you want! So you will want to check back A LOT on Friday, because the sales are going to be awesome...and you don't want to miss any of the posts. Many items I only have 1-2 of left in stock, so I am going to try my best to keep the flickr account updated throughout the day to only include in stock items! So basically what you need to do is come back by starting at midnight Friday morning and start shopping. You can always check the flickr to the right for photos of sale items. There is no timeframe for when I will post new posts Friday, just whenever I get a minute, so you will want to check back often! There will be  a lot of partial embelly packs on sale also. I will give you complete details in each post! So set your alarm and check back at midnight Friday morning, that is going to be a great sale post!! Trust me you don't want to miss it!

Well, sounds good to me!   Can't wait to see the sales.  Looks like I will be stalking the blog all day.  lol

Hugs.

Nancy

It's Wednesday

And that means the week is half over!  Hooray!!!


Lots of fun planned this weekend.  We have already purchased our ticket to Harry Potter and have dinner reservations at a super fun fondue restaurant.  And, if I play my cards right, I may have time to scrap!
The weekend simply can't get here fast enough.


Well, while we wait what about a little sneak of something fabulous happening this Friday!

Devon, at Catch the Moments Kits was planning on having a Black Friday sale...but then thought, everyone has a Black Friday sale! So, she decided to have a Friday before Black Friday sale...Details tomorrow, but this Friday CTM kits will be having the BIGGEST sale ever!   How fun is that!

And finally, a project I completed for the Color Combos Galore weekly challenge.

Ainsley loves playing with Zinca.  We have tons of colors so you can really decorate for swim meets.  It stays on in the water, and being made of zinc oxide makes a great sunblock.  Far be it from me to keep the children from using sunblock.  lol

Well, gotta run.  Still have dishes to do from dinner.

Hugs.

Nancy

Menu Monday

Another week and here I am with my menu and recipes.

I find that I am getting a bit bored with cooking this way, but it's either cook or go hungry, so I guess I will keep cooking.  lol  I have found over these past few months that the keeping track of the meals I prepare has been forcing me to try new things.  Can't just show you the same things week to week.

Monday - Phil cooked, I was running around. We had Ravioli with Pesto and Zucchini.  Guess what that means?  Yep, no photo.  lol

Tuesday - Steak Sandwiches, French Fries and Caesar Salad.  Again, I was running, so Phil finished and plated the food.  He put it on the table forgetting to photograph.  Well, so, I only have a photo of the sandwich I had the next day for lunch.  Here is a copy of the recipe over at Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen.

 

Wednesday we had Italian Sausage and Pasta Soup.  It was so yummy.....I cooked the pasta in batches as we ate the soup....soggy noodles are not tasty.  lol

Thursday - Cobb Salad.  I had hoped to add tomato.  But the girls snacked on all the little grape tomatos and there were none left.  Oh well.  Yummy bits of hard boiled egg, bacon, avocado, roasted chicken and olives.  mmmmmmm.

And finally, Friday.  I made a pot roast with mashed potato and green beans.  The green beans and potato had to be reheated in the microwave as you made your plate, but...it was a small price to pay.  

So, the recipe this week?  Soup!  

Italian Sausage and Pasta Soup

2 lbs hot or mild Italian Sausage (I used 1 lb of each)

3 carrots sliced

2 onion chopped

4 cloves garlic chopped

1/2 cup red wine

3 qts chicken stock

1 28 oz can diced tomatoes

2 cans cannellini beans

1 tbs dried basil

1 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

8 oz bag frozen chopped spinach

8 oz dried pasta

Salt * Pepper

1.  Squeeze sausages from casings into an 8-10 quart pan over high heat and stir often, breaking them apart with a spoon, until browned, 8-10 minutes.  Spoon out and discard all but 1 tbs fat from pan.

2.  Add carrots, onion, and garlic; stir often until onion is limp, 5-7 minutes.  Add wine to pan scraping all the browned bits off the bottom.  Add broth, tomatoes, beans, and spices, bringing to a boil.

3. Return sausage to the pan.

4.  About 10 minutes before serving add pasta, reduce heat, and simmer covered, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender.  Stir in spinach and cook for another minute.  

5.  Serve.  You can add salt and pepper to taste, and maybe a little Parmesan cheese if you like.

Hope you enjoy.

Hugs.

Nancy

Not Quite Ready...

For my Menu Monday post and recipe.  But while you wait I wanted to share with you a great sale going on over at Catch The Moments Kits.

 From now until Friday..all kits are $15! Yes, you read right, including the new Vintage kit! And all add-ons are $6. Check the kit set in the flickr account to see them all! Just shoot Devon an email to order! What a great deal! She has also a $1 or less set on flickr! Check it out!!!


Check out this great Holiday Kit - Joyful!

Here is what you get...1/2 pack of AC love details, Crate paper snow day border stickers, Sassafrass turquoise glitter alpha, 1/2 pack of Crate Paper Snow day brads Paper: Crate Paper Candy, Flakes, Melt, Sparkle and Echo Park Bright stripes, scallop stripes, and trim the tree

And this is only one of the kits available right now!


So, What are you waiting for?


Hugs.


Nancy

The End of Another Weekend

This weekend went by way too fast.  I can't believe it is over.  I don't think I got done 1/2 of what I had planned, but then...how did i expect to when I told Ainsley she could have a sleepover!  lol...Sleepover?  what a misnomer.  No one sleeps.  lol

I did manage to sneak a few layouts in.

Ainsley in her Halloween costume, heading out for trick or treats.

Imaginisce - Hallowhimsy Halloween Collection, Pencil Lines sketch.  Misc. chalk and Prima Flowers

These are a couple of older shots from Great America.  When Chris and I wanted to go to the Scrapbook Expo and I didn't have a baby sitter for the girls, we just dropped them across the street from the convention center with Chris's boys for the day.  Amusement parks make great babysitters.  This is for a challenge I am hosting over at Inspired to Scrap this month.

 Pink Paislee MistleToe and Co, Prima Flowers, Seam Binding, Glimmer Mist, Misc. buttons.  ZVA bling

And finally, the children with their Halloween Pumpkins.  I had a massive headache that day and Phil helped the children with the carving....he didn't however remember to take photos.  So this is all I have.  sigh

The Color Room sketch and color palette.

Well, I have a few more things to do this evening before heading to bed.  Hope you had a great weekend.  

Hugs.

Nancy

Gift Giving

Every year we try and make at least a few handmade gifts for friends and family.  It is sometimes a bit of a struggle to come up with new ideas that are simple to make and that the girls can help with.  This year I thought...why not some notepaper sets.

For Each set you will need
1 12x12 sheet of cardstock
Coordinating patterned paper and embellishments
1 small notepad (I like the white ones)
1 post it note pad
1 clear pen

First cut the 12x12 sheet of paper to 8 1/2x12 for the notepad, saving the 3 1/2 x12 for the post it note holder.

You will score the large sheet of paper at 5 1/8 inches, then at 5 3/8 and then again at 10 1/2.

Fold your paper at all the score lines.  With this size paper, you will have 1 1/2 inches at the edge for a little pocket.  This pocket could hold receipts and other little goodies.

 To form the pocket, glue just the top and bottom section of the paper.
Adhere the notepad to the inside of the card stock and embellish as desired.

For the Post it Note holder.
Cut the 3 1/2 x12 cardstock to 3 1/2 x  6 5/8.  Save the scrap for the pen.

Score this sheet of paper at 3 1/8 and 3 1/2.

Make your folds, and adhere the post it notes to the inside, embellishing the front as desired.

Finally, for the pen.
I used a clear pen from the local office supply.  Cut your paper to 3 1/2x 7/8.  Use the end of a paintbrush or other small round tool to help roll the paper lengthwise.  Unscrew bottom of pen and insert paper roll.  Super simple.

Hope you enjoy making one of these desk sets.

Hugs.

Nancy

Hippity Hoppity Blog Hop Friday

Do you want a chance to win some great prizes and participate in a fun, challenging Blog Hop?  



Then make sure you hop over to Sassy Lil' Sketches, because the Blog Hop starts there.   You will then need to visit each of these fantastic blogs to complete your layout! You will get an element at each of the 5 blogs. Using the elements create a layout or card and post it to all 5 blogs for a chance to win up to 5 times.  Yes, up to 5 times!!!!    Doesn't that sound like fun? 

Here is the Blog lineup.  Isn't this a great bunch all together?  You'll find links again at each of these as well.

• Sassy Lil' Sketches
• Scrap Fit
• Crop Suey
• Scrap Tiffany
• Cuttlebug Spot

Happy Hopping.   


Hugs.


Nancy

Hooray For Wednesday!!!

Ok, really, Wednesday's aren't all that great.  But I got notice today that all the gorgeous goodies in the new Catch the Moments Vintage kit are in, and will be shipping soon!  I so can not wait to get my hands on this kit!!!

Can you believe this amazingly beautiful kit is retailing for only $18.  Sneak over to the blog and place your order now.  I am sure this one will be going fast!

I also am going to be getting Thickers!!!  I love Thickers!!!  And Devon has brought in some new, fabulous styles.  I love both of these....be still my heart.  hee hee

Well, Gotta dash.

Hugs.

Nancy

Menu Monday

Yep, it is that time again...time to tell you what we had for dinners this week and share a recipe!  


We had a full and busy week, yet again!  But somehow we managed to all eat dinner each and every night!  lol

Meatless Monday - I guess, technically, this is not meatless cause we added bacon bits...but mostly meatless Monday was huge (like 1 lb.) baked potato with a caesar salad.

Tuesday night we tried chicken cacciatore again.  This time I made Pioneer Woman's recipe...with some garlic mashed potatoes.  Yummm!  This recipe was tasty, although Mackenzie thought the veggies were a little mushy.  

Wednesday night was Mexican cobb salad.  Sooooo good!

Thursday...well, it was scout night.  On the first Thursday of the month we have the boy scout youth leaders over for pizza and salad (I make them eat salad LOL  at first they didn't really eat much, but now I am making like 3-4 heads of lettuce) so they can plan out the coming month's events.  Did you know that Phil is the scout master?  Well....anyway.  We had pizza and salad.   But I am thinking we are going to have to rethink this because we are having more boys show up, and...well....good pizza gets expensive (I am not doing Little Caesars!)


And Friday night, we had this.....

Lasagna and zucchini.  I had planned on having pork in adobo...in the crock pot.  But, the meat wasn't defrosted, which meant, I couldn't make it.  And really, big hunks of meat don't defrost well in the microwave.  You know what does defrost?  Sausage and ground beef.  Not exactly a quick meal, but really tasty.  Sorry about the photo quality.  It was a long night.


Well, anyway...that's what we had.  And now for a recipe to share.  I would share the garlic mashed potatoes, but that is one we are still working on.  Just can't seem to get the garlic ratio right.  So let's do the salad.  I make so many big, dinner salads and people ask what I put in, so here is.....

Mexican Cobb Salad

3 hearts romaine, chopped
2 grilled chicken breasts - sliced
1/2 cup corn salsa
1/2 cup roasted red bell pepper - chopped
2 avocado - chopped
4 slices bacon - chopped
1/4 cup cojita crumbles (dry Mexican cheese, but use whatever you like)


In the bottom of your bowl or dish place the chopped lettuce.  Across the top of the lettuce make strips of your ingredients, alternating colors and textures to make it pretty.

I like my salad composed, because this way everyone can take the stuff they like and leave what they don't, and, it seems all the yummy things sink to the bottom when you toss a salad, and this way they stay on top, where I can see them.  lol

Well, I will be back tomorrow to share some scrappy goodies with you.


Hugs.


Nancy