Slow Cooker Love

 

Hello Blogland Besties! How's your week going so far? ;) 

I thought for my recipe Thursday moment this week I'd share my love of slow cooker recipes. Do you have one... if so, do you use one often? I use mine all of the time! I think I'd still like to get an instapot someday...but the regular old slow crockpot way has still been working great for me. I have a board on my pinterest called slow cooker that you can find clicking here. In case you want to check out the recipes there. 

Some of my go-to slow cooker recipes on this blog are my slow cooker ham and scalloped potato that you can find by clicking here. And my slow cooker sweet and sour meatballs you can find if you click here.

So continuing the slow cooker love - I thought I'd share this cute little cookbook I grabbed. It's only a little bigger than like a 4x6 size. But it's neat because it's reversible. You can search the chicken slow cooker recipes. Or the beef slow cooker recipes, just by flipping it over. 

I thought I'd share a couple of recipes from it. And I love that all Gooseberry Patch cookbooks come with some fun tips too. 

This little cookbook has a lot of yummy ideas for cozy foods that will be great for Fall. I'll share any I try here on the blog too -  so you can enjoy if you want also. 💗 

I hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend ahead. I'll be using my slow cooker! Lol I'm making slow cooker pork fajitas one of the days we're up at 10 Mile lake with Matt's folks. It's so wonderful to let something cook away all day while we're on the pontoon and in the lake. And then come in from the fun with food all ready to go. ;) 

I hope you'll have lots of yummy goodies this weekend as well. 

Enjoy! xo

Wordless Wednesday

 

*(had a rare albino squirrel in the yard yesterday)

Happy Homemaker Monday

Good morning and happy Monday Friends!

Well here we are at the very end of August. Late summer is officially here. It's not going without a fight as we have several pretty warm days predicted this week. I'm having our a/c unit serviced as I'm typing this. Lol It's been a while since it was looked at and it's old (like 15-16 yrs) but still in good shape I guess. And it does a great job, yet, cooling the whole primary floor of our home. We may need a new one in the near future, but cleaning it up anyways. ;) We may need it yet this week a few times. 

Also, Annie started back to school mid last week and this is her official first full week of school! So more signs summer is ending quickly. 

How was your weekend? It was a lovely one here. We did a lot of our usuals errands etc....but fun highlights were going out with the C's for a date night starting with a yummy dinner at a steak house. They came over after and we had a fire on the deck and gabbed away. Then when it got dark and chilly we came in and played cards until the wee hours. One of those perfect summer nights with friends. 😃  Then we also celebrated my PapaBear's 78th birthday! We were going to BBQ but then it changed to just getting our favorite Chinese food from the area. And I made a mixed berry pie we had with ice cream. Shout out to my friend Billie Jo as her mixed berry pie is still a summer go-to for me! It's always such a hit when I make it. Having a slice warmed with a big of vanilla ice cream is pure summer goodness!!! 

Matt and I were also very productive. We did a 3 mile walk Saturday morning. So nice to have him around on a Saturday and not have to work, now that he's starting his new job!  We also shampooed all the carpets, finished cleaning the windows (always a big job easier to do in parts) and he scrubbed our primary bedroom shower! Yay for things getting cleaned up for the future hibernation season ahead. Matt set up his new office downstairs and he's down there right now working away. It's so weird and wonderful for both of us! He'll have to travel some days for his job but never very far and he'll always be home for dinner. Now that he's officially moved in and living here - it just feels like all kinds of wonderful new beginnings. ♥️ 

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

ON THE BREAKFAST PLATE THIS MORNING:

toast with homemade strawberry jam from my step Mom, iced coffee

ON MY TO DO LIST THIS WEEK:

groceries, home projects, helping my Mom, Annie's volleyball games, watching our friends (the C's) daughter's soccer game, hospice work and paperwork, Ruby's grooming appt, yard work I want to do

THINKING ABOUT:  

The Labor Day weekend coming up soon. Going to be spending time with Matt's folks and was talking over menu & plans with his Mom ;) 

Also, I forgot to take pics with my Dad and step Mom cuz of living in the moment. But it reminds me I want to take more video's of life moments with my video camera - like I used to. I also have a really nice cannon camera and would love to start capturing some moments that way too. It will be nice to have moments preserved on discs as well. Not just by my smart phone. So I've been going through those things and charging my video camera etc. I plan to use it this holiday weekend ahead. 😊 

AS I LOOK AROUND THE HOUSE

It's nice and cleaned up after the bday party for my Dad. Sun is cheerful in the windows.  Matt and I did a little shopping during our errands and I enjoyed some time in Home Goods. I found some really cute new Autumn goodies and i see a little pile of them in the corner. In another week or 2 I'll start making it all things Fall around here.  Yay!! 🎃🌾🧡

CURRENTLY READING

I still need to finish my Colleen Hoover book...I love biographies and I have Julie Andrew's biography and may dive into that next. 

ON THE TV TODAY:

HGTV shows, When Calls the Heart, Big Brother, AGT, Better Call Saul, some movies taped

ON THE MENU THIS WEEK:

    MONDAY - leftovers 

TUESDAY - might be doing dinner at my Mom's?

WEDNESDAY -  tomato basil soup, cheddar bay biscuits, salad

THURSDAY - tacos

FRIDAY -  grilled naan pizzas, fruit

** for Labor Day weekend our weekend menu plan:

MEAL FOR DAY 1 - grilling burgers, onion rings, veggie side, snickers salad (i'll share recipe for this next week!)

MEAL FOR DAY 2 - slow cooker pork fajitas & fixings, melon

MEAL FOR DAY 3 - Matt's Mom is going to make homemade egg rolls and crab rangoons, fruit and other sides

I'm also planning to make a pan of rocky road brownies to have for the whole weekend

TO RELAX THIS WEEK I WILL:

work on my new craft space, go through old clothes/organize, read

TIPS OR SOMETHING TO SHARE:

I love using pinterest wallpapers for my iphone. They're a nice way to have a pretty background - and I thought I'd share a few for the cozy season ahead. Maybe you'd like to capture one for your phone? 

Enjoy! 

 😍 📲 

FROM THE CAMERA:

Back to school! 🍎 💕 

On nice nights we often like to play ladder golf ;)

Can you spot the moon? 

Matt's desk is one that can go up or down - so he can stand at when he wants. So much better for his back. 

❤️❤️❤️

PRAYER LIST:

 For an end to the conflict in the Ukraine and other areas of the world living in war & fear. For peace and unity in this country, especially from hate and shootings or violence.  For anyone sick, suffering, in pain or fear... that God bring them comfort and peace. For His Light and Love to cast out the dark everywhere. 

For all those suffering from weather events and turmoil in our world. Especially for those in Maui dealing with the aftermath of those horrible fires and loss of lives and property. 😢 🙏 

For any kiddos starting school soon. That they have a blessed year ahead filled with knowledge and safety. 🙏 

PRAYER, INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE OR DEVOTIONAL:

Have a wonderful week ahead! I'm sharing with Sandra of Diary of a SAHM for Happy Homemaker Monday.

A Couple of Easy (& Yummy) Appetizer Dips

 

Hello lovely Friends!

I hope you've been having a lovely week so far. ☀️ 

I thought today I'd share a couple of dips that I made for the gathering we had for my Cousin and family last weekend. They are always a winner and I come home with empty dishes. ;)

The first one is a dip that I've posted before. However, I had to change it up this time and I think I liked it more this way!

This is the original recipe my Aunt gave me many years ago:

However, I didn't have cool whip on hand. So I found another toffee dip recipe and I kind of combined ideas of both and came up with a recipe that I had 3 people ask me how I made it! 😋 

Here is the recipe I found at cookingclassy.com

And here are the ways I tweaked it a bit. When I made it I added only 1/2 c. of brown sugar. And I added about a Tbsp or so of caramel topping (you could do butterscotch too - I had caramel). I didn't want the dip so sweet with that much brown sugar. And then I whipped up the cream cheese, brown sugar & caramel mixture with my hand mixer until it was smooth. I folded in about 1/2 a bag of toffee bits (not the whole thing) I then spread the dip in a pie plate. I topped it off with a drizzle of caramel and a sprinkle of toffee bits.  It was absolutely scrumptious! I served it with red and green apple slices. 

BTW, I always share this pro tip for apples: if you toss the slices in some pineapple juice before you put on a tray, it doesn't change the flavor (like lemon does) and they WILL NOT TURN BROWN! It works beautifully! 

😋😋😋

Next dip...

This is the crab dip I have made for many many years. I have posted it on here a few times. You can find it under my recipes tab. You can click to it right here. It's made up of a cream cheese base where you add mayo, lemon juice, worcestershire sauce, & dried minced onion. You then top with cocktail sauce and lump crab meat and let chill in the fridge an hour. It's so yummy served with a buttery cracker like Club or veggies too 

(like cucumber slices & celery).

Enjoy! xo

Wordless Wednesday

 

Happy Homemaker Monday

Good morning Friends!

Happy new week to you. I don't know where the time is flying to - but somehow after this new week ahead, we're coming to the end of August already! I can believe it because as I was doing devotional time, and offering up whispered prayers to heaven, I had the windows open and I could feel cool breezes blowing in. And I just heard a group of geese flying over! The practice runs have begun and my sweet girlie starts school this week. Fall is imminent my Friends! 😉 🍂 

Speaking of my dear Annie - we started her grads this weekend. Her lovely Auntie (my former SIL) is doing them for her. She's an amateur photographer and has gotten great with editing software. She also has an artistic eye, she's very efficient, fun and we love her. So that sure makes this process easier! Lol We did a shoot in the rose garden...that also morphed into some pretty lakeshore moments and a railroad track. We're thinking the next shoot may be at the Lake Superior beach and then wait and do some in the Fall with the pretty leaves.  Not gonna lie that the thought of empty nest in a year goes right to my heart like an arrow. But I know this gift of Motherhood comes with bittersweet like this and being their Mama will never change. I will continue to treasure every new stage that it brings. 💕 

Other than that we also got to visit with a cousin of mine that was in town from Italy with his family. He's an F16 pilot and stationed over there. We all gathered at my Uncle & Aunt's house and it was nice to catch up and for more of my relatives to meet Matt! ♥️ Speaking of him - I have news I can finally share! Matt got a new job! He's so excited and I am too. 💃 🎉 He will be a rep and consultant for a whole new region (created for him) in a position that this big company (it's a fortune 500 company) created just for him! He will get to create his own schedule. He will have weekends off (no more working Saturdays!!) He will have some travel involved but never more than a few hours away so he will be home for dinner each night. And he will work from home a lot too! It's going to be so nice. 😊 We went shopping for office things for him as we'll be setting up a cool new home office for him here. He also had a new luxury truck delivered yesterday. It's going to be part of his new office too (so to speak with the travel he'll need to do) - so it needs to be comfortable. 😉  The company is also providing him with a work phone, computer and monitors, ipad etc. He starts next week already. So it feels like a  season of change in more ways than one. ;) 

We ended the weekend having dinner with both of my kiddos and playing some games. Lots of laughing involved! So grateful for precious moments like that. 💗 

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

ON THE BREAKFAST PLATE THIS MORNING:

1/2 of an onion bagel with a little butter, peach, iced coffee

ON MY TO DO LIST THIS WEEK:

Help my Mom with some things, celebrate my Dad's bday with him and my step Mom, hospice work doing respite for a family, errands, groceries, home projects, carpenter coming to repair wall from water damage, Matt's office, hospice work from home

THINKING ABOUT:  

All the change ahead with Matt's job. Changing things in my own little office too (hospice work and crafting I do there). Fall jobs Matt and I will work on together - shampoo carpets, clean windows, yard work.

AS I LOOK AROUND THE HOUSE

It's so cloudy and gray today. Cool breezes still blowing. Might rain later. The house feels cozy and peaceful. I have Enya music on. My daughter and I were just chatting about our lunch & dinner plans for today. 😋  

CURRENTLY READING

magazines currently

ON THE TV TODAY:

Outlander, HGTV and food network shows taped, AGT, Sweet Magnolias, And Just Like That, Grantchester, When Calls The Heart, Big Brother 

ON THE MENU THIS WEEK:

    MONDAY - fettuccine alfredo, garlic bread, caesar salad (Annie faves)

TUESDAY - pasties (meat & veggie pies), roasted broccoli with lemon

WEDNESDAY -  grilled sandwiches, sweet potato waffle fries, fruit

THURSDAY - maybe sushi night? (need groceries so not sure yet)

FRIDAY -  maybe out for dinner? 

TO RELAX THIS WEEK I WILL:

craft, read, play golf or ladderball with Matt

TIPS OR SOMETHING TO SHARE:

Back to school inspired 📚 😉 

FROM THE CAMERA:

I know I've been sharing more of Annie lately - but wanted to share these pics of my sweet Aaron when he was little. It was his bday last week and I had put some of these pics up on my social media. Oh how my heart misses these days!! 💕 

My Aunt & Uncle had put up this cute sign in their yard for my cousin and his family visiting. 😊 

i ws able to wander and enjoy the rose garden while Annie & her Auntie were busy working...

PRAYER LIST:

 For an end to the conflict in the Ukraine and other areas of the world living in war & fear. For peace and unity in this country, especially from hate and shootings or violence.  For anyone sick, suffering, in pain or fear... that God bring them comfort and peace. For His Light and Love to cast out the dark everywhere. 

For all those suffering from weather events and turmoil in our world. Especially for those in Maui dealing with the aftermath of those horrible fires and loss of lives and property. 😢 🙏 

For any kiddos starting school soon. That they have a blessed year ahead filled with knowledge and safety. 🙏 

PRAYER, INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE OR DEVOTIONAL:

Have a wonderful week ahead dear Friends! I'm sharing this with Sandra of Diary of a SAHM for Happy Homemaker Monday.