Freezer Friday!

Remember my last post on Tuesday about my Freezer Cooking ambitions for the week?  Here's the breakdown of what's back in my freezer so that I can defrost & heat for the next five weeks, instead of cooking.

- 24 Ham & Cheese Rolls (The recipe is coming!)

-2 Pans of Ravioli Alfredo with Broccoli & Grilled Chicken

- 2 Pans of Chicken Stuffing Casserole

- 2 containers of Chili (for Chili Dogs later)

- 4 containers of Butternut Mashed Potatoes

The added bonus is that the only grocery shopping I have to do this month will be for produce, milk and eggs.  What a great way to start off the new year!

Menu Planning Madness!

When I made my December menu, I had only planned through Christmas and then New Year's Day with a big honkin' gap in between.  As much as I would like to go on kitchen strike for the next five days, that's not realistic.  Then I looked at the calendar and realized that I needed to top out the freezer with ready to cook meals for January since my time will be dedicated to ventures other than cooking.  So, there went my delusion dream of a kitchen break.

So instead I will be combining my freezer cooking with a "clean out the freezer/pantry" challenge, similar to last year's challenge.  I worked to find dishes that will freeze well and use up stuff I already have on hand.  I was given  Taste of Home: Freezer Pleasers for Christmas which was very helpful with some new meal ideas to mix things up a bit (great index by ingredient!).

Christmas Ham remainders were repurposed to soup and Ham & Cheese Rolls that made it to the freezer.  I'm really looking forward to the rolls  as they are similar to a hot pocket and will go great with soups!

I will be cooking up a chicken which we will have for dinner and then will be used to make double batches of Chicken Stuffing Casserole and Chicken Potato Casserole and broth.   I also plan to pull some grilled chicken from the freezer and make Ravioli Alfredo with grilled chicken and broccoli to go to the freezer.

Also on the planning board is Beef Stroganoff and Chili.  Check in for Freezer Friday to see how far I get! (Oh, and for New Years Day on Saturday, there's a large pork roast who's travel plans include a stay in my slowcooker, a meet-up with homemade rolls & homemade BBQ sauce and then the freezer)

I'm hoping with a little extra work this week, my freezer will be stocked with meals, instead of ingredients, and I'll be done cooking for the next month!

Little Star

Little Star by Anthony DeStefano  is a charming story of Christ's Birth, as recounted by a father to son.  The age old story is told with a twist: it is from the perspective of the stars in the night sky.

There is a lot going on in this short little story.  You have a parent retelling the Christmas story in a new light, but in symbolism, one can also see story of redemption through Christs death and the true gift of life everlasting.  All these threads are woven together into a great tale of determination by a little star to shine out for what he believes in.

I was captured by the illustrations by Mark Elliot.  Mary and Joseph are portrayed as very young people, which they were.  The characterization of the faces in the celestial bodies are well done to show the emotions written into the text.

Overall, it's a wonderful book to share the true gift of Christmas with your child, young and old alike.



I received a complementary copy of this book from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Sunday Sunshine

Practicing contentment by remembering the graces of the week and practicing gratitude by giving.

It is Sunday night and my brain is fuzzy - so this post may be a bit scattered.  One of the biggest blessings of this week was the arrival and installation of my new washer and getting caught up on laundry.  One emergency load of laundry ended up turning into an impromptu gathering with friends - it was fun to catch up.

Christmas eve was spent with family and friends and Christmas day was blessedly low key.  Although GBaby was pretty sick, it was fun to watch her eyes light up when she found a gift that was on the hearth, unpackaged and not wrapped.  I also loved watching her enjoy the simple toys and basic play, in the midst of all the lights and noise that came with some of the other gifts.  Christmas was pure with GBaby this year.  Delight in new things to play with, but no hint of the "gimmes" or "mines".  There are even still gifts on the hearth -once she wore out, she didn't have the desire to explore any further.  So we left them for now.  Theres 11 more days of Christmas, right?

Saturday night finally brought a break in a fever that GBaby had been fighting since Thursday and again I'm thankful for the guy who said "lets give people this obscure mold and watch them get better".  Ammoxicillian, ibuprofen and tylenol are great.

Tonight as a tired me reached the end of my nice-mom rope, I'm glad that HandyMan was willing to be home and take over the parenting so that I can have some space to work on regaining some patience.

As the Christmas season continues, I'm so thankful for all that we have: food on the table, warm house and bills paid.  I hope you can find a moment to remember the blessings found in the little things this week.

Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light.” (James 1:16 -The Message) May the light of the Father brighten your week!