Menu Plan Monday

Monday: Ham and Cheese Stuff 'n Puff (using leftover ham from Easter that I froze) ~ Salad

Tuesday: April Fool's Meal - Colorful Cupcakes ~ Green Beans ~ Fried Egg Sundaes

Wednesday: Quesadillas ~ Refried Beans ~ Chips & Homemade Salsa

Thursday: Corn Dog Bites ~ Fries ~ Mixed Veggies

Friday: Leftovers/Sandwiches

Saturday: Homemade Pizza & Cheese Bread

Sunday: TBD - I always leave Sunday open. Sometimes we go out on Sundays. Or we might go out another night during the week and that meal will get bumped to Sunday. And sometimes we still have plenty of leftovers and just eat whatever is in the fridge on Sunday.

For more menu ideas, visit Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie!

Tackle it Tuesday

Maybe someday I'll actually finish everything that was on my list. But this wasn't the week. Here's my list from last week and what I got accomplished:

• Finish deep-cleaning my bathroom
  
• Deep clean the other bathroom (and even bought a new rug and some new washcloths that were desperately needed for that bathroom!)
  
• Finish clothing switchover Done, but I still need to get hubby to move the winter clothes out to the barn.
  
• Get the projects in Ruthi's room done, and go through her clothes - Got started on this, but still have some more to do.
  
• Get a jump on cleaning the master bedroom Made some headway by removing clutter and getting the clothes taken care of.
  
• Clean out CJ's closet - Still need to do this!
  
• Work on some paper organization! - Did some, but lots more to do still.

All in all, not too bad considering the week led into Easter, in which I was cooking a big Easter meal!

For this week:

• Deep clean master bedroom
  
• Clean out front closet
  
• Organize cabinet
  
• CJ's closet
  
• Ruthi's room projects
  
• Work on business stuff

For more Tuesday Tackles, be sure to visit 5 Minutes for Mom!

Menu Plan Monday

I hope you all had a fabulous Easter weekend. We had a wonderful time. I'll be back later with pictures.

For now, here's this week's menu. We had a couple of changes in plans last week, so our first two meals this week are carryovers.
And I'm keeping this week very simple.


Monday - Homemade Pizza ~ Cheese sticks

Tuesday - Plain Jane Chicken & Potatoes w/ Roasted Garlic Gravy ~ Rolls


Wednesday - Leftovers/Sandwiches

Thursday - Hamburgers ~ Baked Beans ~ Macaroni & Cheese

Friday - BLT's ~ Chips

Saturday - Breakfast for Dinner

Sunday - TBD

Have a Yummy week!

Be sure to visit Laura for more tasty menus!

American Idol Recap - Top 11

I’m trying something different tonight. I’m tired of writing all my thoughts as the show is on. I have to pause it too often so I can keep up. I don’t have a laptop, but I can see and hear the TV from my desk. It’s not quite as comfy as sitting on the couch watching, but it will work...at least for tonight. And, I’m watching the show live tonight instead of waiting so I can skip the commercials. So I am going to try to just sit here and type my comments as the show airs. I’m sure I’ll like it better...I can type much faster than I can write!

The only thing I’m not happy about is the fact that since this is two hours, I will totally miss Dancing With the Stars. It’s the first night of the girls dancing, and I really wanted to see it. I’m going to miss it. Bummer. Hopefully I can watch it online – I’m not sure if it will be available immediately, but I can hope!

We’ve got more Beatles music tonight...I hope I know more of these songs this week!

First up, Amanda Overmyer...Back in the USSR...and I know this one! But I can’t even begin to imagine how this is going to go...
Sorry, I’m STILL not liking her voice. She looks like she’s having fun, but I just can’t get on board...no matter how hard I try! I do like her hair tonight though!
Randy gives her a “7 out of 10”.
Paula thinks she was a little ahead of the beat, but still thinks she’s unique.
Simon says it was predictable and is a bit bored with Amanda.

{SIDE NOTE – Since I’m actually sitting through the commercials...OMGoodness...preview for Hell’s Kitchen (I LOVE that show!) They are doing a spin on a Britney song .....Oops I Burned it Again. TOO Funny!}

Kristy Lee Cook...You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away
Let’s hope she does better than last week! OK, better than last week yes....great? Not really. She seems to be struggling with some of those notes and is quite pitchy. I’m not loving this. I think she really needed to nail it this week to recover from last week, and nail it, she did not.
Randy loves this song and says this was interesting arrangement. He thinks it was boring and safe.
Paula says it’s the best she’s ever looked (which is code for not so great).
Simon says she needs hypnosis and that she’s not a good performer. Musical wallpaper? That’s a new Simonism. I don’t think he likes her too much.
I think Kristy is definitely in danger. She says she can “Blow Simon out of his socks”. If that’s true, why hasn’t she done it already? Ok I think they got a little sidetracked on that phrase.

David Archuleta...The Long and Winding Road
I hope he can remember his lyrics tonight! (Ok, funny...he said the same thing!)
Hmmmm....not sure about this.
OK, there he goes, it’s sounding better now. I think he just started a little rough.
I have to say, I like his singing voice MUCH better than his speaking voice! I don’t know, but I don’t enjoy listening to him talk.
I think he did quite well with this song. Can I say David is back? I think so!
Randy says David has “brought the hotness back to his game.” But that he could have taken some liberties with it.
Paula loves him.
Simon says he was amazing.

Michael Johns...A Day in the Life
I think this is a good song for him. Well, maybe...not so much. I like it, but I don’t. I’m not sure.
Randy says it was the wrong song choice.
Paula...if she’d get to the point...I don’t think she likes it, but I’m not really sure!
Simon thinks it was a mess.
He chose this song because it was the favorite song of his friend who passed away. Sad. Maybe it as too emotional for him?

Brooke White...Here Comes the Sun
Oh my...another perfect song choice for her! She is amazing! And she is having some FUN with this one! OK, I hear a few weak spots, but for the most part, I love it. I think the judges aren’t going to like it as much as last week though.
Randy thinks it was awkward. It did not gel for him and was not hot.
Paula says you can’t help but smile watching her. I agree. Paula says it was too safe.
Simon thought the performance was terrible. He didn’t like it.
Maybe my ears were off, or I just like her so much that I can’t tell it was bad. I still liked it. And she’s agreeing with the judges, “One hundred billion percent!”
And Ryan says, “You have to love her.” So true.

David Cook...Day Tripper
I do believe Beatles music suits Mr. Cook. HE seems quite comfortable and he sounds really great. I think he is in his element.
Randy doesn’t know if it was best but says it was solid.
Paula says he’s ready to go sell records.
Simon doesn’t think it was as good as David thinks it was (because he knows what David thinks?) He doesn’t like it. Oh well...David’s not going anywhere.

Carly Smithson...Blackbird
I like this MUCH better than last week. But I was in the minority last week. Beautiful. he has gorgeous eyes. And for the record, she is hubby’s pick for the girls.
Randy loves it.
Paula thinks she fantastic.
Simon doesn’t like the song...and I assume didn’t care for the performance.
I love how she’s relating the lyrics to life and this competition. And now Simon feels uncomfortable. Funny.

Jason Castro...Michelle
To never have spoken French, I think he’s doing quite well. He’s just such a cutie pie. I think he’s doing a great job. I really like his voice. And I love his smile.
Randy says good choice, but interesting....not sure if he really got it.
Paula felt he was a little disconnected, and was uncomfortable and awkward for her.
Simon says the show is strange tonight, that maybe two weeks of Beatles wasn’t a good idea. Says it’s a good thing this is TV, not radio because Jason’s face sold it. So the song was a little off, but Jason performs well according to Simon.

Syesha Mercado...Yesterday
Her voice is pretty, but I’m not really feeling this. Maybe it’s the arrangement, I don’t know, but I’m not crazy about it. But her voice is beautiful.
Randy really liked it.
Paula thought it was beautiful.
Simon thinks her best so far! Wow, my ears must REALLY be off this week!

Chikezie...I’ve Just Seen a Face
Chikezie is picking all the right songs lately. Oh, and we have a little harmonica! Chikezie is fun...Loved it!
Randy didn’t get the slow part? I loved the slow part! Randy’s not sure.
Paula thinks he’s showing who he is, and that the slow part is pure, on pitch and beautiful. And she loves that he shows two sides in this song.
Simon didn’t like the harmonica. Or the end. Oh well, I guess I LIKE Achy breaky!

Closing the show is Ramiele Malubay...
I Should Have Known Better
My ears are probably off again, but she sounds shaky to me. I’m not crazy about this. She can hit the big notes, but seems to have trouble with the lower ones. It’s just alright to me. She’s having fun but it seems a bit karaoke-ish to me.
Randy likes her confidence but it’s just alright for him.
Paula says it’s better than last week.
Simon likes her personality but said it sounded amateurish. He says the song is mediocre.

Top for me tonight...Carly and well, I’m just not sure. Maybe David and David. But I still love Brooke. And I thought Chikezie and Jason were good too. I’m not very decisive tonight!

Bottom Three? Amanda (no surprise there), Kristy, and Ramiele.
I’m a bit concerned Michael may be in danger though. And I thought maybe Syesha, but like I said, my ears must just be off. Although I like her, I really think Kristy may be the one going home. She's had two rough weeks in a row.

**********************

OK, so I couldn’t take it. I HAD to watch Dancing With the Stars. So I ran into CJ’s room and took over his TV for a bit. He wasn’t too thrilled with me, but I’m the mom, right? Actually, (though he’d never admit it) he was kind of getting into it. But mostly he was making fun of them.
So, that put me a little behind with AI, and the hopes of my post going up immediately following the show went out the window, but I don’t really care. And I’m glad I went to watch...it was actually better than I anticipated. I didn’t have much hope for this season once I saw the list of dancers, but I think it will be pretty entertaining after all. But don’t worry, I won’t be posting on it every week. I may mention it, but I won’t be commenting on each dancer! I promise!

Tackle it Tuesday

Two weeks in a row...look at me go! LOL!

OK, so I didn't get everything finished that I wanted to for today's post, but that's ok. I'm still enjoying my nice clean kitchen - it seems much easier to keep clean after doing a deep-down clean!

I'm kind of following along the Spring Cleaning plan at MomAdvice.com. She has put a lot of work in to printables for some detailed spring cleaning and I'm using them as a guide. And so far, they are following right along with FlyLady's zone schedules, so that's a bonus for me. This week is the bathroom, so I'm tackling my master bath first, and then the other one. I got a jump start by cleaning out my medicine cabinet and under my sink. I'm very happy to say it's all nice and organized now!

Here's a before pic of my medicine cabinet:


And After:

I picked up a few baskets from the dollar store to help. I've organized this cabinet so many times and it just becomes a jumbled mess again. This time I grouped like items together. The blue baskets - one for first aid supplies, one for cold/sinus/allergy meds, one for digestive stuff (antacids, fiber pills, etc.) and one for pain meds (Tylenol, etc.)

Then I used the narrow white baskets for smaller groups of items. Much better!

I forgot to take a picture of under my sink before, but trust me, it was a mess! It just had a couple of baskets and everything was just kind of tossed under there. I picked up these drawer organizers and it is much, much better! I can actually find stuff now!


My wonderful hubby brought up the spring/summer clothes and I began going through them and am slowly making the switch. All the definite winter stuff will be packed away, but due to this crazy weather, I still have to keep some long-sleeved stuff handy until it turns warm for good.

I did get Ruthi's room clean too, but I still need to go through her clothes and do the decorating projects that I want to get done.

So here's my tackle list for the week:

• Finish deep-cleaning my bathroom
  
• Deep clean the other bathroom
  
• Finish clothing switchover
  
• Get the projects in Ruthi's room done, and go through her clothes
  
• Get a jump on cleaning the master bedroom
  
• Clean out CJ's closet
  
• Work on some paper organization!

For more Tuesday Tackles, be sure to visit 5 Minutes for Mom!

What's in YOUR Heart?

Earlier tonight Ruthi came to me with a funny look on her face - like something hurt.

I asked, "What's wrong?"

She answered, "I just hurt my heart." She patted her chest...she had apparently run into something.

I said, "You mean your chest?"

And she said, "Yeah. Did I just hurt Jesus?"

You know...because Jesus is in her heart!

How cute is that?

Menu Plan Monday

Maybe eventually I'll get my menu up on Monday MORNING! Oh well, at least it is still Monday!

I'm only listing Dinners this week. I have a basic plan for the rest but don't have it on paper yet, so I'm not going to type it out either.

Chip has to work on Sunday, so my parents are coming up on Saturday to celebrate Easter. I am cooking a somewhat traditional meal, and the kids and I will have leftovers on Sunday.

Anyway, here's what this week looks like:

Monday - Tonight it was just the kids and me so we had a super simple dinner. Pasta with alfredo sauce and green beans. Boring, but I colored the pasta and sauce green so we had a green dinner.

Tuesday - Chicken Continental ~ Broccoli ~ Rolls

Wednesday - Scalloped Potatoes with Ham ~ Salad ~ Rolls

Thursday - Homemade Pizza

Friday - Plain Jane Chicken & Potatoes w/ Roasted Garlic Gravy ~ Rolls

Saturday - Ham ~ Deviled Eggs ~ Green Bean Casserole ~ Potato Casserole ~ Aparagus & Mushroom Saute ~ Rolls ~ Dessert - TBD

Sunday - Leftovers

I just realized I have rolls on the menu four days tihs week - better get busy baking!

Super Savings Saturday

It's Super Savings Saturday!! Hosted by Crystal at Money Saving Mom.

Edited to add: I'm also linking up at BeCentsAble for Shopper Show & Tell, in hopes to win a $15 gift card!

It's been a while since I participated in SSS because I haven't been very diligent in seeking out the good deals and clipping/using my coupons. But I'm back on track and I'm actually having fun doing it!

I have a goal to cut my grocery budget as much as I possibly can. I've been reading several awesome blogs about how to do it best. I'm still not getting deals as awesome as some of these ladies are who have been doing this for a while, but I plan to be "one of them" as soon as possible! I'm taking the tips from all these great women and at the moment I'm working on stocking my kitchen. All the "experts" say that if you have a well stocked kitchen, you can get by with a much smaller grocery budget because you aren't forced to buy things at full price because you ran out. You can watch the sales and combine then with the coupons to get excellent deals. You get the best deals on the things you use this way. And I'm on my way to being a Super Smart Shopper!

Anyway, I'm participating in SSS today and sharing my shopping trips (with pictures) from this week and last week as well since I didn't get it done in time to have a post up last Saturday. This is going to be kind of long, so if you aren't interested in my groceries, go ahead and click away now! Don't say you haven't been warned!

First up - I am just a bit excited that I have an Aldi not too terribly far from me! I've read over and over again how people are saving so much money by shopping there, and I was just a bit jealous! So I was happy to make this discovery. It is 20 miles from me, so I won't be running there every week. I had to go to the chiropractor the other day, and it is right on the way home, so I decided to run in and check it out. And I'm glad I did. I was very pleased and I think a trip every 2-3 weeks to stock up will work great. And if I can plan it so this is a stop when I go to the chiropractor, it works out perfectly, and I haven't spent any extra in gas!

I only got a few things, but I was definitely pleased. Here is what I purchased:

That's an almost 7lb. ham, 2 gallons of milk, orange juice, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, onion soup mix, 2+ lbs. of bananas, peanut butter/cheese crackers, animal crackers, hot dog buns and tortilla chips for a grand total of $21.23.
Now, I don't know exactly how much I saved, but my guess is at least $15.00 had I bought the same items elsewhere. And you know what? EVERYTHING I've tasted is just as good as the name brands or store brands I usually buy. Even my husband commented today that the tortilla chips were good!

Next is Kroger. First I'll share what I got last week. I ended up taking a second trip when I realized I had forgotten to buy hubby's Diet Coke with Lime and also realized I could print more cereal coupons. Gotta take advantage of FREE cereal!
Sorry the picture isn't better, but here's what I got:


Total of merchandise pictured (both pictures combined): $238.60
I spent: $139.60
That's a savings of $99.00! Not amazing, but I think that's pretty good!
That included (I'm not listing everything):
10 boxes of cereal
5 boxes of Hot/Lean Pockets
4 lbs. of ground turkey
3 lbs. of ground chuck
Approx. 10 lbs. of chicken thighs + a whole chicken
2 lbs of bacon
...and obviously much more.
I think I did pretty good!

Today I went to Kroger again and Ingles. Ingles is about 3 miles from me, and Kroger is just around the corner, so it makes it pretty easy to take advantage of sales at both stores. I only bought the toilet paper (had coupons!) and the Vienna sausages there. (There sale price beat Sam's price which I have found to be the cheapest so far. And my kids LOVE these things!) The rest is from Kroger:

Yes...that is another 8 boxes of cereal. We LIKE cereal! (It happens to be one of my favorite late night snacks!) And with the deal they were offering plus my coupons (had them for every box), how could I NOT take advantage? After the sale and my coupons, I paid 81 cents a box!!!
The Loreal Kids shampoo and de-tangle spray cost me a total of $1.48 because the were B1G1 and I had a coupon for each! Also had a coupon for the B1G1 Vive shampoo/conditioner.
The Diet Cokes/Pibb Zeros were 4/$12 which isn't bad, but I love when I can get them cheaper than that - that's when I really stock up!
The only thing in this photo that was not on sale was the creamer (I have to have my creamer) and the pepperonis.
Everything pictured here was a total of $94.93 before sales/coupons.
I paid $42.72
Savings of $52.21
Yeah, I'm having just a little bit of fun with this.

I really can't wait to be saving MORE!

OK now on to CVS. I'm still not saving as much as I'd like on these trips. Usually, after I've figured out my plan, I have to re figure everything when I get there because my store is out of everything. But I found out when they restock and now I'm planning my trips accordingly to have a better chance of catching everything.

I was really hoping to take advantage of the vitamin c, toothpaste and toothbrush deals this week, but they still had not restocked those. Oh well. It's an all-month deal, so there's still hope!

Anyway, here are pics from 2 shopping trips (one last week, one this week):


Total of merchandise before sales/coupons: $79.50
My cost out of pocket (oop)- $10.32 PLUS I earned another $8 in extra bucks that I can use later, AND I made $10 CASH! (I'll explain in a minute.) I did have a little extra help in the form of a gift card. I filled a new prescription there and got a $25 gc for doing so. That really helped keep my oop cost down.
As for the $10 cash - I was doing the Excedrin deal which should have generated $10 in ECB's. I picked up the two that would give me the correct total for this deal. When they scanned, one of them scanned a dollar less than it was marked, so I was 52 cents under the mark to earn the ECB's. I asked the manager if I could possibly exchange one of them to get the deal to work and he said since I was that close that he'd just take care of it. I guess I thought he was going to somehow give me an IOU ECB or something, but he opened the register and handed me $10!
Now if I had been really smart, I would have gone and bought another bottle of Excedrin and still would have gotten my $10 in ECBs on top of that. But I didn't. Oh well.
Anyway, I think the combination of these two trips has been my best deal yet! Yay!

And if that brings this to a close. And if you are still reading, you deserve some kind of award!

Delayed American Idol Recap/Results

I know I'm late in my recap. I didn't get to watch the show until late last night. I steered clear of blogs who do recaps until I could watch. I came home from church last night and the results show was on. I walked into the bedroom where hubby was watching and realized it was on and immediately closed my eyes, stuck my fingers in my ears, and went "La, la, la" or something to that effect to keep from finding anything out. Yes, I am THAT grown up!

So I finally sat down and thanks to my trusty DVR watched the show from Tuesday and then the results. So even though this is a late post, I will do my recap as I would have immediately after the show, as I took notes as I watched. Then I'll move to the results and what I thought about that!

Here we go:

Cool - "New" music for the new top 12 on their new set. Let's see how they do!

Up first, Syesha Mercado - Got to Get You Into My Life
OK, I don't really know this one so it's hard for me to really tell how she's doing. I think she sounds good, but parts of it sound a little funny (flat?) to me...but that very well could be the way it's supposed to sound. I just don't know. But I think she did a good job. Judges? Randy says it's a little pitchy. Ooo- Paula said it too. Alright Simon...Wow! He liked it! Go Syesha!

Chikezie - She's a Woman
Alright now, this is making me smile. Very "Oh Brother Where Art Thou"-ish. I really like what he's doing with this. What fun! Yep, I liked it a lot. Will the judges? Randy - YES! Paula - YES! (and Hey! She referenced "Oh Brother" too!!) And Simon - He liked it too!! Way to go Chikezie!
But Ryan - calm down already - good grief! Too much caffeine tonight maybe?

Ramiele Malubay - In My Life
Hmmm...seems a little...dare I say it? Pitchy. Her confidence seems down again too. I'm not feeling it....YAWN. I'm a bit bored.
Randy agrees with me...boring! When Paula starts out with, "You look pretty tonight", you know she wasn't crazy about it. Simon was bored too. I totally agree with Simon.

Jason Castro - If I Fell
The guitar is back...good or bad? Seems good to me, at least so far. Not amazing or anything, but I like it.
Randy's not completely sure, Paula feels the emotional connection and I don't know what Simon's analogy means, but I do agree with him. Good, not great.

Carly Smithson - Come Together
I am probably in the minority here, but I'm not really caring for this. Just feels like she's yelling and I don't like it so much. I don't know, but I bet my hubby did like this. The crowd sure does. All the judges love it, even Simon. I'm probably the only person in America who wasn't crazy about it.

David Cook - Eleanor Rigby
Alright, I really thought I knew more Lennon/McCartney songs than I do. Apparently I've been living under a rock because I still haven't heard any that I really know. I'm sure I'm the only one who doesn't know this song. So I'm just not sure. Seems like he's doing a good job, but I have nothing to compare it to. Weird song to me, but seems like he did well.
I suppose he did do well, according to the judges!

Brooke White - Let it Be
FINALLY! A song I know! And she's playing the piano. Wow, first guitar, now piano, and a great voice too. I love this. She's incredibly talented. Love her. She's on a roll with the judges. And how cute is she with her bare feet!

David Hernandez - I Saw Her Standing There
Two in a row that I know! Hmmm....not awful, but I definitely don't think this is his best. He's done better. It just sounds weak to me. Not so crazy about it. And the judges agree with me.

Amanda Overmyer - You Can't Do That
First of all, I think she's looking a little bit like a Zebra! LOL!
I really try every week to like her. And every week, I fail. This week is no different. As I've said before, it's just not my style. I don't necessarily think she's a bad singer, just not my cup of tea. I think Simon said it best, but even he liked her better than I did.

Oh good grief Paula and Simon, I think you both may need a time out. Give it a rest already!
Ok, back to the show.

Michael Johns - Across the Universe
I actually think this is my favorite performance from him since he did Bohemian Rhapsody during Hollywood week. Great job. And of course I'm a fan since he lives in "my neck of the woods"!
I don't agree with Randy or Simon this time. I liked it. Yeah, maybe he could have "gone bigger" with it, but I liked it just the way he sang it. I agree with Paula.

Kristy Lee Cook - Eight Days a Week
Country Style? Not sure how that's gonna work with this song. Ummm... nope, not working. It feels like the music is too fast and well, it's just not working! Her voice sounds good, but that style just isn't fitting for this song at all. I'm betting the judges aren't liking this either. And they don't. I agree with Paula about the not taking the country thing too much to heard. It was just too much for this song. I fear Kristy is in danger this week.

David Archuleta - We Can Work it Out
Let's see if he can...he's admittedly nervous. Oops! He forgot the words! His nerves are definitely getting to him. Rough start for sure. It's ok, but probably his worst performance so far. Of course his worst has been better than a lot we've heard this season. He's not going anywhere.

My predictions for the bottom 3 - Ramiele, David Hernandez and Though I'd LIKE for it to be Amanda, it will probably be Kristy.


AND NOW THE RESULTS SHOW:

How fun - Jim "Horton" Carey is in the house!!

Starting off with the group song. I'm not so sure this group really meshes all that well. At least not with this medley of songs anyway. And why are some singers featured very prominently when others have very little focus on them? It's not evenly balanced. Oh well.

Whew! Michael is safe! Yay! (I was actually just a teeny bit worried about him.)
Booooooo - Syesha is in the bottom. I don't agree with that.

Ryan's calling them out by groups of 4. So I'm guessing it's going to be one in the bottom from each group. This group, it's going to be Kristy. Yep, she's in the bottom.

Kat is singing - I know that made my hubby very happy. He's a HUGE Kat fan! And wow - she got skinny! I need to get on her diet. And she sounds fantastic!

Last group of four - It HAS to be David H. or Ramiele....it's now down to them, so either one is fine with me. It's David.

I really think that Ramiele should have been there instead of Syesha. I really hope it's David going home out of these three.

YES! Thank Heavens - Syesha and Kristy get another chance!! So long Mr. Hernandez!

That's a wrap...until next week!

Tackle it Tuesday

Wow - it's been FOREVER since I participated in a Tackle it Tuesday! Many things have been tackled, I just haven't blogged about them. I think I'll try to get back into the swing of blogging them!

I am going about it slightly differently than before though. Instead of doing it all on Tuesday and then blogging it, I will blog what I accomplished since the prior Tuesday and possibly my goals for the following week.

So...what I've gotten done. First, it was Tackling CJ's room. It's been long overdue an update, and was supposed to be done as part of his Christmas gift. Well, I finally got around to it. I started painting it and then got sick, so had to hold off a few days before finishing. I finally got it all painted. There are still a few things to be done, but the big part is out of the way.

Here are some before shots. You'll notice that I had already started filling the bajillion holes that were in his walls. (Because he does things like hang blankets and stuff on his walls!)




Then came the primer...on the walls...and the trim...and the doors...ugh!



Then 2 coats of the dark green that CJ picked but I wasn't too sure about, that grew on me pretty quickly. I didn't get pictures of that step. I then took paint a shade darker and ragged it onto the walls. It kind of gives it a camouflage effect without actually being camouflage. CJ really liked it. We talked about doing one more layer in a shade lighter if it turned out too dark, but in the end it was fine and we opted to leave it at 2 colors.
And, if you were following the "what color with the trim end up" talk, well, I lost gave in. It is brown. Not white.
I really liked how the white trim made it look crisp and clean. Chip would have been fine either way but made the point that although the white looked nice, it didn't convey the "feel" of an outdoorsy room that CJ wanted. So it is brown. Like mud. But I actually like it too!



So, now there are some details still to add, but that won't take nearly as much time or effort! We are going to paint his desk black to match the rest of his furniture. Plus, it is looking pretty shabby due to CJ writing all over it and putting dings and dents in it, so painting it will give it a nice face lift. Then I need to do a window treatment, a couple of shelves, and stuff like that. I ordered a deer print from EBay and it arrived, so now I just need to get a frame. It's almost there, and CJ is already much happier with his room!

Yesterday I was busy in the kitchen and cleaned it top to bottom and inside out. A good Spring-cleaning I suppose. I even moved the fridge and cleaned out from under it and cleaned it inside and out. I think that may have done me in...I was very sore and had to visit my chiropractor today!

Now I plan to tackle Ruthi's room, which is mostly cleaning. And I have a couple of projects that I need to do in there that I hope to share next Tuesday! Oh, and I need to clean out CJ's closet and move some stored stuff out of there and move it elsewhere.

For more tackles, be sure to visit 5 Minutes For Mom!

Menu Plan Monday

Well, Monday is almost over, but I'm getting my menu up. I haven't posted it for a couple weeks because I haven't been very diligent in my planning. But I'm getting back because I really hate just winging it!

Here we go:

Monday
Breakfast - Cereal
Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Italian Chicken ~ Salad ~ Homemade Italian Bread (This was so good - it had Parmesan cheese and seasonings baked into the bread - yum!!)

Tuesday
Breakfast - Muffins
Lunch - Sandwiches
Dinner - Leftovers (We have lots of leftovers in the fridge right now)

Wednesday
Breakfast - Toaster Strudel
Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Sticky Chicken ~ Broccoli Rice casserole ~ Homemade rolls

Thursday
Breakfast - Cereal
Lunch - Chicken Wraps
Dinner - Chalupas ~ Refried Beans ~ Chips & Salsa

Friday
Breakfast - Oatmeal
Lunch - Hot Pockets
Dinner - Leftovers/Sandwiches

Saturday
Breakfast - Cereal
Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Chili Dogs

Sunday
Breakfast - Muffins
Lunch - TBD - possibly eat out
Dinner - Homemade Pizza

I'm off to bed. I'm exhausted - I worked hard today. More on that tomorrow. Good night!

American Idol - Top 8 Girls

Yes, I'm late with my post from last night. I was at church last night, and I just got a chance to watch it a little while ago. I figured I'd get this posted before the result show airs.

So here go...

Asia'h Epperson - she's singing some Whitney! I Wanna Dance With Somebody - I love this song, let's see how she does...Well, I think she did a great job - she didn't do anything special with it, but she's singing it nice and strong. Very well done.

Kady Malloy - Kady, Kady, Kady...I hope she does well since I don't think she deserves to be here. She needs to prove herself.
I'm not familiar with this song. I'm a little bored. Eh - she's doing ok, probably the best she's done, which makes me nervous because I really don't want to see her in the top 12.
I SO agree with Simon on her personality - totally explains why I was bored! I'd like to see Kady go home.
Hubby really likes her, but was ready to write her off before this performance. Now he'd like her to stay. Gag.

Amanda Overmyer - I'm still not a fan and that's not changing with this song. Although I do think it is a good song choice for her. And at least she looks better this week!
Well, the judges love her, and she's probably safe. She's just not my cup of tea.

Carly Smithson - I don't know this song either! But wow - she's sounding pretty awesome! She hasn't been one of my favorites but tonight, well, wow! What else can I say?
What's Simon on? Is he crazy? I usually agree with him, but not this time!

Christy Lee Cook - I see she took Simon's advice and picked a country song. And I'm liking it. Yep, I like her a lot.

WHAT is going on with Paula? Oh dear!

Ramiele Malubay - Against All Odds - LOVE this song. Hope she can do it justice. Hmmmmmm...not bad, but I'm not very impressed.
Romoly? Get the name correct Randy!
Oops, I don't even remember what the judges said. Apparently I was paying more attention to Paula's behavior than listening to the comments.

OK - Simon is really getting a kick out of Paula!

Brooke White - I really love her voice. Love is a Battlefield - GREAT song choice. I'm loving that the guitar is the only music, I think it has a lot of impact.
HEY! Randy just said what I said! And so did Simon!

Paula is really out there tonight! Sheesh!

Syesha Mercado - BIG song - can she do it? Ooo, I'm thinking not. The song is just too big for her and she's not doing it justice. But apparently the judges like it better than I do! And seems like they are out of time - I've never heard the judges say so little after a song!

My favorites tonight my favorites are Brooke and Carly.
Going home? Hmmm? Ramiele? Kady? (I can only hope!) I'm just not sure!

Valentine's...Revisited

Yes I know it's March, but I'm still going to post these pictures from Valentine's. I just never got around to it before now.

The day after Valentine's Day I had a little party for Ruthi and her friends. Unfortunately, two of the friends didn't get to make it due to sickness and prior commitments. But her friend Emma made it, and Emma's little sister, Hannah. And they had a great time.

Emma and Ruthi. By the way, Emma is 11 months older than Ruthi. I have a tall girl, don't I?


Here they are eating their heart-shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.


Making their "crowns".



Wearing their creations.



Aren't they cute?

Now we are hoping to have a little Easter party too...if I can get my act together and plan it, that is!

American Idol - Top 8 Guys

High hopes for tonight as I love me some 80's music! Can the guys deliver? Here's what I thought. (Oh, and Chip's watching with me tonight, so maybe I'll throw in a couple of his comments and hopefully that won't make him be unwilling to watch with me again!)

First up, Luke Menard - I really like him, he's just so stinkin' cute! Oh, I'm torn here - he's doing a good job, but I'm just not sure it's enough.
Well, looks like Simon may be in a bit of a bad mood tonight. Paula liked it. I'm just not sure if he's doing enough to secure a top 12 spot!

David Archuleta - this is one talented kid and he does not disappoint. Chip says he thinks he likes this version better than Phil's! We both loved it.
OK, I'm a little surprised with the judges comments, but I definitely think he's here for the long haul and so does Simon.

Danny Noriega - Are you kidding me? Ok THIS is TMTH!!! (Too Much To Handle - in case you didn't watch and missed that whole bit.) He is so annoying. And I think this is the worst he's done so far. He sounds off and is difficult to hear at times. Thank You Simon!!! He's the only one of the judges who heard correctly on that one!

David Hernandez - I love his voice - very soothing. The booger story - NOT soothing. Thankfully he can sing so I can forget that story! Wow - he's rocking some Celine! Fantastic job!

Michael Johns - Yay, one of my favorite 80's songs. Oh no, I'm so disappointed - he's just not quite there. He seems to sing just a bit under the music if that makes any sense - like he's so close but just can't quite get there. He's just not cutting it at all with this one.
Well, apparently the judges are hearing something different than I am, as they really liked it. That's good, I like Michael. But I still didn't care for his version of this.

David Cook - Another one of my favorite 80's songs, maybe this one will do it for me. Wow, I REALLY like what he's doing with this one - brave changes and they are working! Awesome! I think by far, the best tonight. Chip really likes it too - his favorite as well. And hey - the judges agree!

Jason Castro - No guitar tonight - I hope that's a good sign. Wow, seems to be, he's doing much better than last week. Oops, I think he lost it right there at the end, but other than that, I think he was really good. Chip says this is the first time he's liked him at all. Good job Jason, and the judges agree.
(But wow, Paula is having a difficult time getting her thoughts out tonight! I keep laughing at her!)

Last but not least, Chikezie - Great song choice, I think. He did a good job, not quite as good as last week, but still good!

Favorites tonight? The 3 Davids! Wow, must be something about the name! Very interesting.

Who will go home? Well, I think the 3 in danger are Danny, Luke and Michael. Unfortunately I'm afraid we're going to have another Sanjaya disaster and Danny's going to make the top 12. Especially if the stupid "Vote for the Worst" people have anything to do about it. Guess we will have to wait until Thursday to find out!