Things on Hand

There are certain items in my kitchen that I try to always have on hand. I think things like that we call staples. When I was about 20 and learning to stock my kitchen, someone called them staples---I thought to myself, *Staples?*...so I immediately called my grandmother and asked her what staples were. At that time, we did not have the Internet and Google.

(However did we manage back then...LOL)

Okay, so in my kitchen I try and always have on hand:

Yeast~~~I keep this in the freezer.
Bread flour
All purpose flour
butter/margarine
Oil
Rice~~~White/Brown/Jasmine/ Basmati
Pasta~~an assortment
Spaghetti sauce
I will have a few bags of dried peas~~~~Love pea soup.
Sugar
Eggs are a must!
Milk
An assortment of canned goods~~~I try and buy fresh veggies, but I also have canned veggies too.
Cream of mushroom soup~~~Some of you may think how unhealthy, hey it is a favorite of my husbands:)
Potatoes~~~~There are so many things you can do with potatoes~
Onions
Tomatoes
An assortment of herbs and spices. I will buy things like fresh Dill and Basil and dry them myself with my dehydrator. The dill I use a lot for my Ranch dressing.
Vinegar
Salt and pepper
...and my husband will say Popsicles are a must too...LOL~~~Probably not a staple, but they are always in the freezer....LOL.

Okay so some of these things may not actually be considered a staple, but they are things that make my kitchen happy:)

I am sure I have forgotten a few things but I will add them if I remember!

Is there something that is a must in your kitchen?

Question~~~

Has anyone used the *Topsy~Turvy*?

I am very curious about this. I have read some really good feedback on Amazon.

Wordless Wednesday!

Okay...

My MIL had not been feeling well, so she had been going to the doctors, and she was very persistent in this. Well, they had found cancer and she had to have surgery to have it removed. My husband flew out to Georgia to be with her. I was just not myself while my husband was away, so that is why there was a lack a posting. I did not want to say what was going on until my husband returned. He is home now and the test results showed they had gotten all the cancer, thank goodness, my MIL is the most awesome lady, and I don't know what we would do with out her.

Sunday was also Little Kevin's Birthday he turned 2 and we had a small party--pictures to follow, I took a bunch.

Well that is what has been going on here~~~~Now that my MIL is going to be better, things will be getting back to normal. It is hard when your husband is hurting, I felt so bad for everyone.

Wednesday!

Hope all is well with everyone in blog land. I have lots of things to discuss, but I can not do it until next week, I will explain why too at that time.

The weather here has been HOT~~~we even had to turn on the A/C for a few days to cool off the house, and might I add, I have a terrific sunburn~~~OUCH!! We filled up the little pool and played in the sunshine~~~ My kids used sunscreen, I did not~~~oh did I get red!

I baked some rolls today, did a little grocery shopping too.

I am making fish for dinner tonight, my absolute favorite~~YUM!

You all have a very Blessed day today and please remember to smile, you never know who may be looking at you::::Giggles:::: xoxox

WoW! Monday:)

Today
Mostly Sunny
High 94

Low 54

Hello!

Today is Saturday and I am just about done with my mountain of laundry~~~~I have been working on that every spare moment I had~~~Oh, how glorious it would be to have two washers. Sometimes I feel like just taking all the wash to the laundry Mat and doing it all at once. I remember one time my dryer had broke and I took everything to the laundry mat, I had ten washers going all at once~~bedding, rugs, lights, whites, darks, etc~~I had it all done in under 2 hours.

Okay, I am going to have a big clean today~~~I want this house to sparkle by tonight~

I have my lists going on my kitchen counter~~things I want to get done, grocery list, things I want to make etc.

Lots going on here~~~but I want you all to know, I read blogs everyday~~they help me keep focused, and they inspire and motivate me:) I may not always leave a comment, but I am there:)

Happy Saturday!

Food Post~~Pictures:)

Here are some pictures from Easter
A pretty Candle

I had fresh flowers in every room

A pretty bowl of candy

Deviled eggs

Stuffed mushrooms

Celery with cheese

My rolls ready to be put in the oven

My rolls ready to come out of the oven



A Fresh Green Salad~~Lots of Avocado





The ham out of the oven

The Ham after Kevin carved it

The prime rib roast coming out of the oven

The Roast all cut up

Potato Salad

Cheesy Potatoes

The green Beans and Cauliflower steaming away!




Freshly steamed Green Beans

Cheesy Cauliflower

I did my dinner buffet style, setting the table especially for Holidays has become quite a challenge, because Little Kevin is at a stage where he pulls everything off the table~~So for his safety, I had all the food buffet style out of reach:)

Thank you for looking. We had a really nice Easter~~~I hope all of you did too:)

Ecostore USA

I got an email from Ecostore, and she asked me to let you all know this~~~~~>


Hello,

Please let your readers know that Malcolm Rands will be touring Meijer Stores. Malcolm will be available to answer any questions on Eco friendly products. The first 25 moms or dads that ask Malcolm A question will receive an organic Ecostore T-Shirt. There will be entertainment for the kids while mom and dad ask Malcolm ( Ecoman) questions. Listed below is the tour schedule.

Thank you,

Melissa

Ecostore USA

4/13 Chicago - McHenry (5-7 PM)

4/18 Detroit - Wixom (5-7 PM)

4/20 Fort Wayne - Illinois Road (5-7 PM)

4/21 Indianapolis - Carmel (5-7 PM)

4/22 Cincinnati - Harrison Road (4-6 PM)

4/23 Grand Rapids - Cascade (2-4 PM)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was given to try, their Dish soap, Dishwasher Rinse and their Toilet Cleaner---I have to say all the products worked wonderfully, and they smelled nice too. The rinse for my dishwasher really helped , my dishwasher was starting to leave those water, soapy spots but the rinse aid made them sparkle:)

Hello!

I hope everyone that stops by has a blessed Easter~~~I so enjoy writing my blog, and the comments I get make it so much more enjoyable~~~you truly all help me be a better person!xoxoxoxoxox

Friday!

Okay---they had a super sale at the grocery store this week--there prime rib roast, the same kind we made at Christmas was on sale again and my husband told me to pick one up at the store for Easter Dinner, along with a ham. The roast was originally 45.00--I paid 15.00~~~YaY!
So, my menu is in the making with the awesome sale on certain things---Green beans were on sale and so was cauliflower. I will make potato salad along with Potato Chantilly.

Another thing that has totally made me sad---ALL STORES will be opened on Easter---UGH, what is wrong people~~~~ Jesus is so important~~~Do we not honor him anymore~~~UGH!

Potatoes Chantilly for Easter Dinner

WE JUST LOVE CHEESE IN THIS HOME!!!

Cheesy Potatoes--AKA Potatoes Chantilly

I got this recipe in an Easter edition of Woman's Day magazine--in 1995...LOL--it was in an article about Amy Grant and what she serves on Easter--and these potatoes were one of her side dishes--this recipe is actually on the Internet too--it is a wonderful potato side dish, very rich--and you can use different cheeses too--we love Cheddar so that is what I use.

CHANTILLY POTATOES

6 Large potatoes
2/3 Cup Milk
5 Tablespoons of butter or Margarine
1 tsp Salt
Pepper
1 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

Boil potatoes until tender. Mash with butter and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Whip the cup of cream until stiff. Spread mashed potatoes in a greased 3 quart baking dish. Spread whipped cream over the mashed potatoes; sprinkle with grated Cheddar cheese. Bake until cheese melts and top is golden brown at 350 degrees --the magazine says 45 minutes, I just watch it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have been doing a lot of work around the home, I just bleached down the kitchen, cleaned the master bathroom and I am working on laundry detail too. I was able to walk my mile too~~~I just adore preparing for Easter:)

Happy Thursday!

Wednesday~~~

Happy Wednesday!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week. We are currently on spring break and I am just loving having everyone home.

I made my regular dinner rolls and gave them to a few of my neighbors and then I got inspired and did some research on the Net and found a recipe for
Jalapeno Cheddar Rolls~~~>


Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
2/3 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/3 cup canned jalapeno pepper, minced
50 ml sugar
1 teaspoon salt
5 ounces hot water (105'-115')
1 package active dry yeast
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Directions
1. Follow your Bread machines recipe directions for adding ingredients.

I used my bread machine on the dough cycle and added the directions that my bread machine book says to do---I then made the rolls let them rise and let them bake in my oven for 12 minutes--I have to say they came out AWESOME!!!

Sunday!

Please everyone who may stop by my little blog~~~Have a glorious Sunday~~~God is so absolutely wonderful giving us such a beautiful day today, and everyday. Smile, laugh and make today special~~~breath deep in the beautiful air and know how absolutely awesome each and every one of you are~~~God is sooo good. I lay in bed at night and pray to him and thank him for all that he has blessed me with, I thank God, my husband, children and dear friends~~~Enjoy this day xoxo Happy Sunday:)

Missing Scenes!

I think you all know by now, I am a very big fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House shows and books---well, when I heard there were missing scenes out there I just had to find them~~~~> This is a really cute missing scene about Laura getting new shoes with a heel:)





Here is a whole youtube channel full of missing scenes~~~~I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Click Me

Also, I am just heart broken they not only took the Waltons off of Hallmark, but now they took off Little House :(

Thursday!~~~and a question:)

Happy Thursday everyone~~~This week is almost over and spring break will soon begin--Yay!! I love having ALL my kids home with me. Easter is fast approaching and I am looking through my Taste of Home and other magazines and cookbooks for some special Easter recipes.

I need some ideas--

What are some special dishes you make on Easter?

P.S. I already did two, yes, two loads of laundry...LOL. Chili is in the crock pot for dinner tonight
Happy Day Everyone!

Kitchen Frugality~~

If anyone is reading this from there--where did the message board go? I can see it in my google reader but it is gone when I try to go to the actual board:( Is it gone? OHHH, I think I remember you all started another board just in case, can I come over?
Help!! :)