Happy Homemaker Monday 05.02.16

Posted on May 2, 2016 by Carrie Ann Alexis

Hey there!! So we’ve had one day of spring, one day of summer, and a week of fall. It has been rainy and cold for the past couple of days, but last night we had a nice spring storm, lots of lightning and thunder, love spring storms…until the wifi goes out!! This week looks like we’ll see some sunshine…finally. Have a great week!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

WHAT’S FEEDING MY BOOK ADDICTION:
I have been reading, will never stop doing that, lol, but haven’t really had the time to finish anything lately. Once I do, I’ll give you my review. Toggling between a few books, maybe that’s why I can’t finish one 😉

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I TRIED/ONE I WANT TO TRY:
So I made the Mozzarella-Stuffed Chicken Fingers. These were interesting. They are pretty thick, and the ground chicken was difficult to work with. I actually tasted them, and thought the taste wasn’t bad, but the texture of the fried ground chicken was different. Usually my son eats several regular cheese sticks for a meal, but these were thick and filling. Both boys were not overly impressed with them, but they did think they were pretty good. We dipped them in a marinara sauce, which added to the flavor. If you’d like to give it a try, you can find the link to the recipe here.

I would like to try this next, Carbonara Mac & Cheese. My sister makes a delish Spaghetti Carbonara, so when I saw this, thought it might be worth the try.

FAVORITE VIDEO/ARTICLE FROM THE WEB:
It’s baseball season, and the Cubs are killin’ it!! How fun is this, the whole team dressed in these crazy suits for their three-game series in Pittsburgh.

Coach Joe Maddon calls it “a minimalist zany suit trip.” Everyone must wear some part of the suit everyday during the three-game series or face a $100 fine.

The article goes on to say that “The Cubs finished the month of April at 17-5, the best in baseball”. Wait…what? Did I read that right? The best in baseball? Yep…

The. Best. In. Baseball!!
#LetsGo #EmbraceTheTarget

You can read the whole article and see video here.

CREATIVE CORNER:
Elijah created this collage using pictures of his mini figures, some of his actual ships and photos.

QUOTES:

For all Mom’s…
Have a Wonderful Mother’s Day Weekend
You Deserve the Best!!

Happy Homemaker Monday 04.18.16

Posted on April 18, 2016 by Carrie Ann Alexis

Morning!! Another week, another Monday, another cuppa coffee that’s not doing it’s job this morning 😦 Have a wonderful week!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

WHAT’S FEEDING MY BOOK ADDICTION:
The House on Tradd Street by Karen White. I have been waiting for this one for some time. My mom told me about another book by this author, but when I looked it up I found this series. For some reason the Kindle Library Loan system was not working properly, so I just now downloaded it. This is a whole series about old homes in the Charleston area. This one is really good, old house renovations, ghosts, mystery, romance, and the main character sees and feels dead people. I’m over half way through it, each chapter gets better and better. It’s not a creepy, scary ghost story, because of the main character’s personality. It was well worth the wait, now I’ll have to wait for all the other ones.

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I TRIED/ONE I WANT TO TRY:
The Churro ice cream bowls, were a big hit!! It was a bit involved, but they were good. You are supposed to use a piping bag to make the bowls, but I didn’t have one, so I put the dough in a zip lock bag, and cut a whole in the tip. My whole was probably too big, so the piping was a bit wide. Then you have to freeze the bowls for about 3 hours, and then deep-fry them. I did burn myself a few times, only because I kept putting the tongs I was using in the wrong place, and my hands would brush up against them, and they were hot!! Ouch!! I could never do a cooking show, LOL. Anniehow…it’s not a quick snack, but a delicious way to eat ice cream. I added mini chocolate chips to my ice cream. Got the seal of approval, my sons said that they were amazing!! #iatethebowl

This is what’s up next…Mozzarella-Stuffed Chicken Fingers (Benji loves cheese sticks) here’s the link to recipe and video:

http://www.littlethings.com/video-embed.php?vid=yz53ADJs&dfpid=16457

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:
❤ LOVE Cookie Monster ❤

FROM THE CAMERA:
My daughter’s dotted doodles…yep…free-hand with Sharpie markers!!

QUOTES:

Happy Homemaker Monday 04.11.16

Posted on April 11, 2016 by Carrie Ann Alexis

Morning!! Spring is broken!! But it really doesn’t do any good to complain, since spring around here is like one day anyway 😀 I only look forward to the warmer weather for my flip-flops!! Me and heat don’t really get along, not since I was pregnant with the twins during the hottest summer on record!! Anniehow…here’s to warmer weather…it has to get here eventually!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

MOVIE REVIEW:
My family loves Star Wars. I like the movies, but I’m just not that into it, and really can’t tell which episode is which. But I did watch The Force Awakens this weekend with the boys, and I really enjoy it. Since I did see the original one in the theaters, it was nice that they brought back all the original characters, albeit the very old original characters, lol. I really liked the new BB8 droid, he was really cute, and it was good to see my all time favorite Chewbacca.

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I TRIED AND ONE I WANT TO TRY:
So…I tired the Chocolate Chip Bacon Cookie thingy. Yeah…bleh. First of all I didn’t actually make cookies, I usually don’t make individual cookies, I make pan cookies, spread everything in a pan and whala…cookie bars. The flavor wasn’t disgusting or anything, I just didn’t like how they turned out, they were really flat. Probably from the greasy bacon, which I did drain. It also wasn’t a taste like…wow…this is absolutely amazing!! I’ll stick to the normal Toll House Squares thankyouverymuch!!

But up next… is this!!

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:
Nature is amazing!!

~~HOMEMAKING~~ LIFE TIP:
A FB Post from my feed: Frosted Mini Wheats challenge. Eat all the frickin’ things before the powdered sugar dissolves off because of the milk.

After having this show up on my FB feed from my daughter’s friend, I shared with her how I do it, and her mom eventually chimed in, and thought it was Genius!! (her word not mine) Made her have a bowl right then and there, LOL. So I thought I’d share it with you:

I dip mine individually in a glass of milk, and eat them one by one. It’s the perfect amount of milk for each piece. My son also eats his this way as well. Spoons are optional, LOL. ♥ LOVE Frosted Mini Wheats!!

FROM THE CAMERA:

QUOTES:

Happy Homemaker Monday 04.04.16

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Carrie Ann Alexis

Good Afternoon!! It’s slow going today, as we get ourselves back in the swing of things, so hard to get motivated after a break like that, plus I have one sniffly kid as well. It’s a gloomy, freezing day outside, so that doesn’t help. Hope everyone has a great week ahead!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:
Bullsh…lol, sorry that just sums it up.

WHAT’S FEEDING MY BOOK ADDICTION:
House on Cooper Lane by Oliver Phipps. This is based on a true story. When I read the summary, it sounded pretty interesting; a haunted house that was turned into apartments. The story is about what one guy and his dog finds when they rent an apartment on the bottom floor, and why the other apartments haven’t been rented out for years. One of the reviews stated that it was chilling, and very scary. Eh…it was mediocre. The story was decent, but nothing bone chilling or suspenseful. When I am reading on my kindle, the bottom shows the percentage of what was read. So I’m like at 78% and the story ends, and I’m like that’s it? There was a sample chapter of another story at the end of this one 😐 If your looking for a typical haunted house story, it’s worth a read, it’s not horrible. I guess I was expecting more.

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I TRIED:
OK…so now I’m getting fancy. This one just looked so yummy, I think it’s because it’s so colorful, lol. I did add Water Chestnuts to mine, I just like the little added crunch they add to a dish like this. I also served it over rice, turned out good.

Here is the link for the recipe: http://bit.ly/1PrlKux

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:
There is something so calming in watching this video. I. Want. One!!

FROM THE CAMERA:

QUOTES:

Happy Homemaker Monday 03.28.16

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Carrie Ann Alexis

Good Afternoon!! Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. We had a relaxing Easter, my mom decided not to cook, and I didn’t either, which was a good thing, because Sunday morning we lost power. It wasn’t out for long, but at a time when we were to get ready to go to church. I had showered the night before, and let my hair dry naturally, which is naturally curly and quite wild. So needless to say, without a flat iron to tame my locks, I missed the service 😦 Had I planned an Easter bonnet with my outfit, I would have been good to go, LOL. Hope everyone has a good week ahead, I plan on enjoying my break from doing school with the boys.

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

WHAT’S FEEDING MY BOOK ADDICTION:
Holding Back Daylight by Carrie Crafton. I don’t remember where I found this one, probably on one of my Kindle lists. When I read the description, which described the story taking place in Chicago, I thought it would be interesting and familiar, and I was drawn to the author because of her name 😉 It took me awhile to read it, it wasn’t that the writing was bad, or the story wasn’t interesting, I guess it was just an average story, nothing too exciting. I did like the references from the city that I recognized. The main character, Claire is a bar owner, which she inherited from her Uncle that passed away. I loved the name of the bar which was called Ziggy’s, which was my nickname in high school since my last name began with a Z-y-g. It was a story about friendships and the loss of family, with interesting characters. Just a normal story, with a lot of drinking I might add, about a girl’s journey to allowing herself to live life, and let people in.

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I TRIED:
These were really good.

S’mores Pinwheels

10 oz. Mini Marshmallows
¼ c. butter
5 c. Rice Krispie Cereal
¾ c. Graham Cracker Crumbs
1 jar Marshmallow Fluff
½ bag mini Chocolate Chips

Following recipe to make Rice Krispie Treats, adding the graham cracker crumbs to cereal. Spread on a pan lined with parchment paper. Spread Marshmallow Fluff over the top. Sprinkle Chocolate Chips over the top of that. Places in over at 200* for 2 minutes. Spread melted chocolate chips until smooth. Roll up width-wise to form a log. Chill for 1 hour. Slice and serve.

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:
OMG, I don’t know how many times I have watched this, it just makes me laugh. What the heck is wrong with this hamster?

OUR LITTLE DIY PROJECT:
The house we live in is very old, built in the early 1900s. So the basement is a bit dungeon-esque. There is a small room with a table/desk built in, and this is where my son works on his custom Lego mini figures. So, we decided it needed a little makeover. We didn’t do anything extravagant, the walls are pretty bad and concrete, but we knew cleaning and some paint would make it look a lot nicer, so we started Thursday night, and finished Saturday afternoon. We painted the floor, walls, ceiling and desk. It’s that industrial style that is so popular now 🙂 My son chose the color scheme and both my sons helped with the painting and cleaning, it was a lot of work, but he is very happy with it. It’s perfect for a teenager, not to mention when the weather gets warmer, it’s about 20 degrees cooler down there. Perfect place to hang out. Here are the before and after pics.