Menu Planning Monday

Sunday: Hamburgers on the grill, baked beans, salad

Monday: Frittata with Yukon gold potatoes and turnip greens

Tuesday: Chili with cornbread (maybe)

Wednesday: Chicken puffs, honey mustard brussels sprouts, rice

Thursday: Tortellini bake, Caesar salad

Friday: Chicken stir fry

Saturday: Depends on if the kids are home!

Linking up at OrgJunkie!

Winter CSA Week 1

Week 1 of our Winter CSA! Pardon the terrible IPhone picture:

I am so glad that we took the plunge and also signed up for the winter share. I finally feel like I have control of it now and it will give me a chance to practice before our next summer share. I have a feeling I will be freezing quite a bit!

This week included:

• 1 whole pasture raised chicken (we are going to do Beer Butt Chicken and I will make more stock)
• 2 spaghetti squash
• 1/2 gallon apple cider
• Quarter peck winesap apples
• 1 handful sweet peppers (will slice and freeze for recipes)
• 1 bunch turnip greens
• 1 bunch kale (plan is to blanch and freeze for soup)
• 1 head cauliflower
• 1 dozen eggs (making a frittata with the eggs and turnip greens)
• 1 bunch beets and tops (I am going to give this recipe a try this weekend)
• 1 stalk brussels sprouts 
• 1/2 bag stir fry mix

I am really going to try and document how we use it throughout the week and do a recap on the weekends when I post our new bag contents!  Fingers crossed!

Logan's 2nd Birthday: The Inspiration

As with every toddler of the male persuasion, Logan is pretty much obsessed with trains.  It came on suddenly and he just adores his choo-choos now.  So when trying to decide on a theme for his second birthday party, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Elmo went out the window and on came the trains.

BUT.

Not just any trains.  But one SPECIFIC train.

The Polar Express.

Last year, we took Logan on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic' Railroad's Polar Express and he just loved it.  So, instead of a regular train theme, it will be a Polar Express theme.  For once, his December birthday will come in handy with this theme!  Plus, I figure that this will be the last time I get to choose his theme without any strong opinions from the little man himself.

I also have included some pictures of a regular train party that I may decide to go with instead of the Polar Express.  In that case, orange and navy blue will be the colors :)

Source: thecakeblog.com via Gia on Pinterest

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Source: catchmyparty.com via Gia on Pinterest

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Source: catchmyparty.com via Gia on Pinterest

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Menu Planning Monday

Sunday: Easy Eggplant Parmasaen
Monday: Rigatoni with sausage
Tuesday: Velvet chicken with bok choy
Wednesday: Chili with cornbread
Thursday: Chicken paprikash
Friday: Meatloaf, garlic mashed potatoes, roasted veggies
Saturday: Depends on our CSA

Linking up at OrgJunkie!

CSA Week 22: Final Summer Share

Well, it is Week 22 and the final week of our first Summer Share CSA with Fresh Fork Market.  

This week's bag:

• 1# ground beef
• 1# ground pork
• Turnips
• 1 bag salad mix lettuce
• 1 bunch carrots
• 1 head jumbo bok choy
• 1 head broccoli

I have a TON of stuff leftover from last week as well, so I will be scrambling to get some things frozen this week.  I am going to try a recipe from our weekly CSA newsletter called Velvet Chicken with Bok Choy, as well as use the pork and beef to make a meatloaf.  We have leftover potatoes I can use to make some garlic mashed potatoes as a side and some greens I am sure we have floating around.  I am still stumped with the ginormous rutabega from last week and I did not like the turnips last time, so I am going to try again.

Looking forward to our first Winter Share CSA starting this week, as it will be primarily protein driven, which is good because we are backed up with produce!  It has been a true pleasure working with the folks at Fresh Fork and I really look forward to continuing the CSA in the future!

No Day But Today

When I was a junior in high school, I became obsessed with the musical Rent by Jonathan Larson.  I mean OBSESSED.  I listened to the recording constantly and saw it for the first time in NYC on a school field trip.

Senior year, when it came time to vote for class color, class song, and class motto, mine was submitted and won.  i signed everyone's yearbook next to the saying that year.  I listened to the songs so much my friends had "La Vie Boheme" memorized.

I always felt like these were words to live by.  And I still do today.  The original YOLO, if you will.  We can not let a moment pass without being grateful for our lives and what God has given us.  We will overcome adversity.  We need to love one another.  We need to live each day as if it is our last on this earth.

There's only us.  There's only this.

Forget regret, or life is yours to miss.

No other road, no other way.

No day but today.

~Rent, Finale B

I am linking up with NaBloPoMo, which means I am committed to blogging every day in November.  If you are interested in signing up, it is open until November 5 and you can sign up here.  

Happy Halloween!

Even though our trick or treating has been moved to Sunday and we just carved our pumpkins tonight because of the hurricane, my little lion wants to wish you a Happy Halloween!

Linking up at Five Minutes for Mom and Angry Julie Monday