The most patient cat in the world

Once we had kids, the adoration of our furry family friends definitely waned and I'd be lying if I didn't say that I wouldn't be sad if we could find them another home. But, oh do the girls love them; and I'll be danged if Milo isn't the most patient cat ever. He seeks the girls out, let's them fawn all over him, dress him up, and occasionally Charlotte will attempt to ride him like a horse. Daisy is a little less tolerant of the dress-up games, but makes up for it by napping with Anna on a regular basis. Just a few recent examples ....

Family fun day

Mike and I took a Friday off work a couple of weeks ago and planned a family fun day for the girls. We live very close to Kings Island, but the cost to go given the rides we can enjoy seemed steep, so we checked out Coney Island. It took us a few extra minutes to get there, but the cost was about 1/8 and we had a blast! If you've never been, it's a fairly small amusement park with mostly carnival-style rides; perfect for our littles. We got there right as the park opened (on a Friday) and had no waits for any ride. We rode, played, enjoyed lunch, and were good to go a couple of hours later; well, the girls and Mike may have been keen to stay, but it was HOT and this pregnant lady was melting.

Friday Funny

Diver girl

The girls have loved our weekends at the pool, as have Mom and Dad, especially a very pregnant and hot Mom : ) We went to the same pool last summer and love it because of the many kid-friendly features; last year Charlotte and I hung out in the zero-entry area while Mike and Anna were able to bop around the pool and the water slide. This year we're all over the place, bopping around the pool, in the deeper (5 foot) area, on the wall of stairs, the slide, and after this past weekend, the diving board. Anna has done GREAT at swim lessons and has more confidence than I ever imagined after just a few months of lessons and decided she was ready. She did great her first time off the board, swam to the edge by herself, and showed no fear. I had a mild heart attack, but that's to be expected : )

Perfect timing to get her swim class ribbon for swimming the length of the pool!

They don't' give ribbons for just being crazy, sorry, Charlotte : ) 

Wordless Wednesday

What's cookin': A whole lotta freezer meals

We're getting ready to have a baby around here and part of my pre-baby preparation has always been making a few freezer meals that are ready to pop in the oven or slow cooker so that things are just a *little* less hectic those first few weeks. This past weekend I prepared 10 meals that are ready to heat and eat!

I keep a file of freezer-friendly, somewhat healthy, slow cooker meals that I chose from and picked out a few other meals that the girls *usually* eat.

This round of meal preparation included:

- Bolognese sauce that was used for:
     - Baked ziti (1 batch split into three containers; 2 for the freezer; 1 for the next day)*
     - Two bags of bolognese to serve over pasta
- Cheese ravioli "lasagna" (basically frozen cheese ravioli layered between marinara sauce and topped with mozzarella)
- Cranberry BBQ chicken *
- Peppers and onions with turkey smoked sausage *
- Chicken cacciatore *
- Jamaican gumbo *
- Ranch pork chops *

* Recipe below

Baked Ziti

Slow Cooker BBQ Cranberry Chicken

2 lbs boneless chicken breast

¼ cup dried minced onion

1 (16 oz) can whole cranberry sauce

1 cup BBQ sauce (I use Sweet Baby Rays)

Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Zip close and place in freezer. When ready to use thaw in fridge overnight. Empty contents into crock-pot and cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-7 hours.

Slow Cooker Sausage & Peppers

12 oz pkg sausage, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 green pepper, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1 small onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can Italian diced tomatoes

1 Tbsp Italian seasoning

Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized freezer bag, zip close & place in freezer. When ready to use thaw in fridge overnight. Empty contents into crock-pot and cook on low 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Serve over rice.

Chicken Cacciatore 

1 lb chicken tenderloins

1 (26 oz) jar of chunky vegetable-style spaghetti sauce

1 zucchini, chopped

1 yellow squash, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1 sweet onion, chopped

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag and mix together. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for overnight - 24 hours. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Serve with cooked spaghetti noodles and garnish with cheese.

Jamaican Gumbo 

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (whole or cut into pieces)

12 oz andouille or smoked sausage, sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

3 stalks of celery, diced

1/2 a medium onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, small diced or grated

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons Jamaican jerk seasoning blend

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Mix together and zip bag closed. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge overnight - 24 hours. Cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours.

3-Ingredient Slow Cooker Ranch Pork Chops 

4-6 uncooked pork chops

1 envelope of dry ranch dressing mix

2 cans cream of chicken soup 

To prepare right away: Put all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

To freeze: Put all ingredients in gallon size freezer bag. To prepare, thaw overnight, then pour everything into the slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours. 

Fisher girls

Anna got a fishing pole and tackle box for her birthday, but with a hectic summer (aka slacker parents), we hadn't put them to good use yet. Mike picked up a fishing pole for Charlotte over the weekend and the girls and Daddy trekked down to the lake in our neighborhood. No one caught dinner, but they all had a blast and swear they saw our friend Terry. Please note Charlotte's clip-on tackle box that may have been filled with goldfish crackers to use as bait that she actually ate : )

Big muscles

Mike taught our girls early how to flex and flaunt their "big muscles" and I almost died a few weeks ago when nakes ba'bakes came around the corner flexing for me. Daddy wasn't home, so we naturally had to get it on video and send to him : )

Word(less) Wednesday

These girls ... most pictures were taken on days Daddy was out of otwn or had to leave early.

The day they insisted their stuffed animal friends wear headbands : ) 

Funny faces because we had to get to school early so I could lead an early morning conference call ... they were not fans : ) 

Kindergarten safety camp graduate

After hearing rave reviews from a neighbor and knowing Anna would have a friend in the class, we enrolled her in a Kindergarten safety camp class that ran a few weeks ago. To say she had a blast was an understatement! The camp ran one week from 9 - 11:30am and taught the kids all sort of safety lessons, tips, and techniques. They also got to drive small electric cars each day, meet a police officer, ride a school bus, and tour a fire station. I loved the graduation ceremony on the last day,  it really hit home that I have a school age child now (tiny tear!).

The graduate and her certificate!

With her BFF and neighbor, Adam : ) 

The kids sang a few songs for us, including Twinkle Twinkle Traffic Light, which is now a fave in our home : ) 

I took the afternoon off to spend with my big girl, we started with lunch at her fave, Frisch's