Friday, August 31, 2012

Freezer Friday: Labor Day Edition

Happy Friday!  We are ready for the three-day weekend ahead, how about you?  Are you going to be spending it with the ones you care about, BBQ'ing, poolside, lakeside or having a movie marathon?  Those are definitely our plans.  Whatever you are doing this weekend, I am hoping there will be at least a little relaxing taking place.

Since I am planning on doing a lot of relaxing, I want to make sure that our meal plans are in place and there is little-to-no cooking for me.  I also want to make sure that we are feasting like its a holiday!  When I came across this dessert recipe on Oprah.com, I couldn't resist sharing it with you.  I've adjusted the recipe a little to make it sort of banana split-like.  The original recipe won the 2010 Pillsbury Bake Off...so you know they are delicious!!

Mini Ice Cream Cups - Banana Split Style

Image Courtesy of: Oprah.com and Sue Compton
Ingredients:
  • 1 package (16 ounces) Pillsbury® Ready to Bake! refrigerated sugar cookies (24 cookies)
  • 4 tsp. sugar
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate baking chips
  • 1/4 cup strawberry jam
  • 1-2 banana(s), cut into rounds
  • 1 1/2 cups vanilla ice cream , softened
  • Strawberries

Instructions:

Heat oven to 350°. Spray 24 mini muffin cups with non-stick spray. Place 1 cookie dough round in each muffin cup. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Place 2 teaspoons of the sugar in small bowl. Dip end of wooden spoon handle in sugar; carefully press into center of each cookie to make 1-inch-wide indentation. Cool completely in pan, about 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix walnuts and remaining 2 teaspoons sugar; set aside. In small microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips uncovered on High 30 to 60 seconds, stirring after 30 seconds, until smooth. Run knife around edges of cups to loosen; gently remove from pan. Dip rim of each cup into melted chocolate, then into walnut mixture. Place walnut side up on cookie sheet with sides.  In another small microwavable bowl, microwave jam uncovered on high about 15 seconds until melted. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon jam into each cup. Freeze cups about 5 minutes or until chocolate is set.   Spoon ice cream into cups, using small cookie scoop or measuring tablespoon. Top each cup with strawberries. Store in freezer; let stand at room temperature 5 minutes before serving.


Have a great no labor involved weekend!

Always ~ Momma Goose

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Healthy Living Tip #4: Exercise 20 Minutes a Day at Home

I have a hard time getting up before the sun rises to exercise and once my day is started there are goslings, dishes, laundry, errands, doctors appointments...my list of excuses goes on and on. There is a gym in my town, but its hours aren't early enough or late enough to make it really feasible for me to go and they don't have daycare. The nearest gym with the right hours and/or daycare is 25 minutes away, so making that trip would take at least two hours of my day. Adding a two-hour trip to the gym, not going to happen. What about you? What are your reasons for not exercising?

According to the article, 10 Habits of Healthy Families, all we need is 20 minutes a day! How many of us can truly say that we don't have 20 minutes to spare in our day? Even with all of my excuses above I can't think of an actual good reason not to spare 20 minutes.  We can all spare 20 minutes.

Here are my new excuses: I know that my goslings would love to jump rope with me in the front yard for 20 minutes. I know that my goslings would love to walk around the neighborhood for 20 minutes. I know that my goslings would love to chase me around at the park for 20 minutes.

What's great about my new excuses? It makes getting and staying healthy a team approach AND I bet we will be having so much fun "exercising" that it will last longer than 20 minutes!

What about you?  Got any new excuses TO exercise?

Always ~ Momma Goose

Monday, August 27, 2012

Mellow Monday: Cowboy Chicken

Another weekend has passed.  Two more days in our memory book.  A weekend jammed of great memories for sure, a fun wedding beaming with personality and beautiful smiles as well as a day at the lake with one of our favorite friends, Uncle "Googe."

Today the goslings and I mellow out and gear up for the week ahead with leftover pizza for lunch and hopefully long naps in the afternoon.  I am hoping that your weekend was packed with as many great memories as ours.

What are your plans for today?  Make sure you include this yummy slow cooker recipe in your plans.

I found today's slow cooker recipe from a new website, Moms Who Think.  A website with great recipes, celebration ideas, parenting tips and diet/nutrition advice.  I've enjoyed looking through its resources and I know you will too.


Ingredients:

  • 4-6 chicken breasts
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoons Dijon Mustard
  • 2 cups salsa (any type)
  • 1 (15 ounce) can corn, drained 
  • 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • ½ cup sour cream (plus extra for serving)
  • Brown rice (for serving

Instructions:

Place chicken in a 5-6 quart greased (I used non-stick spray) slow cooker.  In medium bowl mix brown sugar, mustard, and salsa.  Pour mixture over chicken. Add water to cover chicken, if needed. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4 hours.  With 30 minutes of cook time remaining remove the lid and shred the chicken using two forks.  Add the beans, corn, and sour cream to the slow cooker and mix together with the chicken. Replace lid and cook for remaining 30 minutes.  Serve over rice with sour cream.





Monday:  Slow Cooker Cowboy Chicken
Tuesday:  Spaghetti with green salad
Wednesday: Leftover spaghetti
Thursday:  Chicken "Nuggets" with grapes and corn (Brother Goose's pick)
Friday:  Quick take out
Saturday: Dinner with Gram & Grampy Goose
Sunday:  Lake Day - sandwiches on the lake!

Do you like to menu plan?  It helps me to stay on budget, stay on track with food choices and frankly, just makes life easier.  If you'd like to see more menu plans, head over to OrgJunkie.com.

Always ~ Momma Goose

Friday, August 24, 2012

Five Minute Friday: Join

Five Minute Friday


On Fridays a group of people who love to throw caution to the wind and just write gather to share what five minutes buys them.  Just five minutes.  Unscripted.  Unedited.  Real.  Check out mine below, and then see others at  Five Minute Friday.

This week's topic is: Join

Is it crazy that I can't find the words to write about join?  I am eager to see what the friends I join up with at Lisa-Jo's Five Minute Friday have come up with.

There are so many ways to express the word, join.  Some are pretty lovey-dovey (like: to join in holy matrimony, to join hearts, union, join hands, join a club) and some are well, ho-hum (like: body joints, the river and sea join at the bottom of the cliff, a seam where fabric joins, or to join the Army) .

When I first saw the topic, join, I thought of the lovey-dovey kind of definition.  Pathetically, above was all I have been able to come up with.

Or maybe...it's just a view into me.  I am lovey-dovey.

When I think of the word join, I think of all the good that can come from two things uniting.  I think of my family joining together for a meal, laughter and making memories.  I think of joining hands with Daddy Goose.  I think of the world joining together to stop all that's wrong with it.

Well...my five-minutes are about up...what do you think about join?

Always ~ Momma Goose

Thursday, August 23, 2012

A thought...

I've recently been at "war" with Brother-in-Law Goose.  Not the gossipy, never gonna talk to you again kind of war, but the healthy, share your opinion kind.  I'm sure this war is raging all across America - it's the Presidential campaign!

I've always had my views on the "hot topics" of politics and I'm not generally afraid to voice my opinion about them.  I try to listen to, read and take advice from all parties, Democrat, Republican, Independent and the Tea Party, to make sure that I'm well informed of the issues before I make my opinion. 

I won't share with you who is a Democrat or Republican, but know that we are equally passionate about our views.  This is, in my 10+ years in the Goose family, that we have ever gotten so deeply into the election issues and I think it is because, according to my brother-in-law, one of the most important elections in a long time.  One that is leading him to the poles after a leave of absence from voting.

Which got me to thinking...
  • Why do people get so passionate about politics?
  • Does this election really mean as much or as little as the past or future elections?
  • Will our next President fulfill campaign promises or are they just this year's election platforms?
  • Who am I going to vote for?
  • Does my one vote really matter?
I will admit, I've really been enjoying the redderick with my brother-in-law.  Every couple of days he texts me or brings up a new fact about his side of the issue.  Even though we are on two very different sides of the fence, this has brought us to a different relationship - soldiers in the politics war. While we fight for different sides, we both are fighting for what we believe in and that bond is unbreakable.

What are your thoughts?

Always ~ Momma Goose

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Family Fun Date & Its OK Thursday

Yesterday, we surprised Brother Goose and took him to the Island Water Park for an afternoon of family fun, water and sun.  Lil' Miss Goose and he had a blast and Daddy Goose and I thoroughly enjoyed the uninterrupted family time.

Kids Key Largo Lagoon
Photo from Island Water Park FB page

They have the coolest "lagoon" of slides, falling water and pool for kids my goslings age.  There is also a lazy river we could float along and a wave pool with real sand!  Of course, there are the "big" kid slides, but Brother Goose isn't quite there yet.  Although, Daddy Goose and I would probably have enjoyed them...but that wasn't why we were there. ;)

Taking Brother Goose to the water park was one of the last items on my summer to-do/wish-list.  I am so glad that we got to get it marked off as a family!


Its Ok Thursdays
It's OK...
...if my daughter's 1st birthday party doesn't turn out perfect! 
As long as we get to share the event with our friends and family.
...that I didn't look even remotely fantastic taking my walk this morning.
At least I went for a walk.
...that I don't still fit into my clothes from high school.
I'm not in high school anymore!
...that I am totally addicted to Rock Band!
I completed 15 songs last night!  I rocked it!

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Healthy Living Tip #3

Healthy Living Tip #2 was all the way back on June 13th!  It is definitely time for another one!  Healthy Living Tip #3 is one of my favorite and one of the easiest ways to have a healthy family - Automate Breakfast and Lunch.

You'll notice that when I menu plan I don't generally include the first two meals of the day.  That is because we are a family of simplicity when it comes to breakfast and lunch.  I usually have coffee with yogurt or oatmeal or toast with fruit.  The goslings usually have yogurt, fruit and either frozen pancakes/french toast sticks or cereal.  Brother Goose is not really a breakfast eater, so I have to make him quick eat on the run foods or he won't eat.  For lunch it's usually a sandwich and/or salad or a frozen Lean Cuisine/Weight Watchers meal for me and some sort of variation of the above for the goslings.  We pretty much always have some sort of fruit with our lunch.  I'm very lucky that both my goslings love fruit...any fruit!

Make sure your refrigerator and pantry are stocked with healthy options that you don't have to think about in the rush of the morning.  If you're prepared for these meals, you're less likely to choose something like a croissant or doughnut from Starbucks.

What are your breakfast and lunch staples?

Momma Goose's Healthy Living - 7 Day Report Card

Image Courtesy of:  http://www.clipartheaven.com 
Did you see my post last Wednesday?  I needed help deciding on how to get back into exercise as part of my healthy living.  If you didn't see it, click here.  So, now that you've checked it out you know that my two goals for the seven days that followed were to:

  • Jog at least twice a week; and
  • Do a DVD at least twice a week.

I am proud to say that I accomplished most of that goal.  I ran three of the last seven days and did an exercise video once.  I still haven't decided whether I'm going to do P90X or Insanity, but for now I did videos from YouTube.  (I am always amazed at what you can find on You Tube!)


How did you do in the past seven days?

Always ~ Momma Goose

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

It's a Toddler Tuesday!

I got to spend my morning with my favorite toddler girl...Lil' Miss Goose!

Photo Courtesy of Jim Healy Photography

While Brother Goose was at school this morning, Lil' Miss Goose and I had a breakfast date, went to the salon, the grocery store, checked out the new store in town, filled up the tank with gas, went to Rite Aid and then ended the morning with a lunch date.

It was a great morning with my gal, she was an absolute doll to have with me.  She didn't ask for anything at the stores, she didn't cry when I told her it was time to go and she didn't even mind getting in and out of the car so many times.

I know these days won't last, it is the curse of time going by. I am enjoying each second with my goslings.  Well mostly each second. (Ha-ha!) With everything there are a few I wish I could take back or make different.

And with that...I'm going to finish the rest of my chores while my sweet goslings nap, so I can spend the rest of my afternoon playing with the two cutest goslings in the world!  You should do the same!

Always ~ Momma Goose

Friday, August 10, 2012

Five Minute Friday: Connect

Five Minute Friday

On Fridays a group of people who love to throw caution to the wind and just write gather to share what five minutes buys them.  Just five minutes.  Unscripted.  Unedited.  Real.  Check out mine below, and then see others at  Five Minute Friday.

Here we go...Connect

After Lil' Miss Goose came along it became clear to me that it could be hard to really connect with Daddy Goose with all that babies and four year olds require.  A couple of months ago I bought a book called, "21 Days to Loving your Man on Purpose."  I bought it on a whim in the grocery store checkout and it has taken me a while to get through the short 100 page book.  It was, however, one of my better book purchases.  It was a great way to get some ideas on how to connect with Daddy Goose in a way that he needs.  In a way that I need.  I haven't done the projects yet, but I definitely intend to.  For now, I am working on ensuring that Daddy Goose and I have quality time together.  Whether its watching a movie he wants to watch or having a cold beer ready for him when he walks through the door after a hot day so we can talk about the craziness of our days.


Photo taken on our honeymoon...February 2006

Daddy Goose is THE MOST important man...no, person...in my life.  Making sure that we connect is my number one priority.  He does so much for our family, the least I can do is ensure I'm doing my part in our relationship.  Besides, I've always told him that we're going to be together until one of us dies...so we might as well make this a meaningful, fun and happy relationship.

I wonder, how we will connect today.  What do you do to connect with your spouse?

Always ~ Momma Goose

Thursday, August 9, 2012

First Day of Pre-K

Can you believe summer vacation is over in our town?  Our little school,  Kerman Christian, as well as all of the schools in our district went back today.  It feels like just yesterday that I was writing a post on what I was going to do with Brother Goose all summer.  I'm pretty proud to say we got a lot of that list accomplished.

We took the traditional picture this morning.


In typical Brother Goose fashion, he would not smile, he would not look into the camera and he would not say cheese.  I usually have to catch him by surprise to get him to smile.

While you can't tell from the picture, he was so excited about his new sweatshirt that he had to wear it to school today.  Mind you it's supposed to be 104 here today.  I finally convinced him that he should leave it in the car so he didn't have to worry about putting it in his backpack.  And...check out those high tops!  Wow, those are the COOLEST shoes ever, right?  Right?

It was a tough drop of for both of us, but by the time I pick him up his enthusiasm will be enough to make us both forget the trauma earlier in the day.

Let the school year fun begin.  Before we all know it, Brother Goose will be graduating from high school.

Good luck to those of you starting school in the next few weeks.

Always ~ Momma Goose


Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Healthy Living - HELP NEEDED

Ok all, I need your help.  Please read and add your comments, suggestions and thoughts below.

Before my goslings, I was a gym gal.  I loved it there.  The classes, the weights, the machines, the teachers, the trainers...everything.  I usually went a couple times a week.  A few years ago, I really got into spinning.  A good friend of mine became a teacher and it became our obsession.  We were going three or four days a week to a spin class.  I even took my obsession onto the open road and did a 40 mile ride with an event called Tour de Fresno.

ENTER GOSLINGS.

Picture courtesy of: Jim Healy Photography
After Brother Goose was born, I did my best to keep going and did pretty good for a while.  But, he DOES NOT like the childcare center at the gym.  I have no idea why.  It has the most amazing playground, the awesomest toys and super fun ladies that work there.  Each time we went, I would pick him up sobbing.  It became heartbreaking, so I stopped taking him with me.  Which gives me less opportunities to go.

Seriously, I wanna jump in there!
Source: GB3
After Lil' Miss Goose was born, my motivation became non-existent.  I have been to the gym here and there.  I used to never look at the clock during a spin class, but since Lil' Miss Goose all I could do was stare at the clock and pray for the class to be over.  To top it off, Brother Goose's dislike of the childcare center gives Lil' Miss Goose anxiety about it, so they would both be sobbing when I picked them up.

I thought a big goal would help with my motivation, so I signed myself up for a 1/2 marathon in May.  I did  it.  It was fun.  Training was fun.  I loved every minute of it.  But then...the 1/2 marathon was over and my motivation stayed at Chuckchansi Park where I finished the race.  Over the last several months, I've jogged here and there, I've walked with my goslings several times and I've done a few crunchies. It's nothing like the "old days."

 I am extremely upset by this.  I'm disappointed in myself.  I'm irritated by my lack of motivation.  I need to change my attitude.

So, I am.  Right now.

For me, it's not about my weight.  My doctor says I am at a great weight, my blood pressure is perfect and my cholesterol is better than any of his other patients.  Its about the fact that I enjoy healthy living.  I feel better physically and mentally when my body is in better shape.

Here's where I need your help.

I'm looking for something I can do at home while Brother Goose is at school and Lil' Miss Goose is napping.   I've been looking into the P90X as well as Insanity DVD series and both look great.  Or I've also thought about going back to one of my favorite gals, Jillian Michaels.

What do you think?  Have you done any of these?  What was your experience?

I'm going to take this one week at a time.  Actually, it will probably be one day at a time.  Setting goals along the way. My first set of healthy living goals are for the next seven days.  They are:

  • Jog at least twice a week.
  • Do a DVD at least twice a week.

What are your healthy living goals?

I'm so excited about my new mindset.  Join me.  Set a few healthy living goals for the next seven days.  Let's check back again soon and see how we're doing.

Always ~ Momma Goose

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

I'm a Blog Star!

Mrs. Monologues

Hello you...my readers and fellow bloggers!

When Mrs. Monologues wrote her Blog Star post today, it got me to thinking...what are some things about me that you may or may not know about me that would be fun to share.
  • My name is Buffy Goosev...hence Momma "Goose" nickname.
  • I married the "boy next door."  Daddy Goose and I literally grew up two houses from each other. (We still live in the same town...in fact, only about 4 blocks from our childhood homes.)
  • I am the oldest of three and I seriously never thought (and neither did my parents and siblings, if we're honest) that I'd be the only one married WITH kids!
  • I have been getting my nails done since I was 15...I can't live without it...it's totally weird.
  • I am totally loving my new obsession with Twitter, Blogging and all of the great blogs, ideas and friends I've made using these two tools.
Thanks to Mrs. Monologues for hosting this fun event!  I hope you enjoyed my gettin' to know 'ya!

What fun facts can you share about you?  Or me? Ha-ha!

Always ~ Momma Goose

Toddler Tuesday

On July 25th, Baby Goose turned 1.  As with all one year olds, Baby Goose had no idea what the big deal was, however she was quite pleased with her little slice of cake.  We were camping on her birthday, which will probably (unfortunately for her) be the way we celebrate most of her birthdays.  We will be having a celebration with our family in the next couple of weeks, but we did not want the actual day to go by without having at least a little celebration.

A couple of days ago, I received one of those emails that tells you all about your child's development and where they should be in their growth.  It said, "Your toddler," should be...I about fell out of my chair.  My toddler???!!!  She's only 1, when did she become a toddler?!  But, I guess if she must grow up, she must grow up.  It just got me thinking, maybe she's not Baby Goose anymore.  Maybe she's Sister Goose?  Or maybe she's Lil' Miss Goose?  We are a family full of nicknames, and we call her:

  • Sister
  • Sissy
  • Sis
  • Lil' Miss
  • Baby Girl (or as Brother Goose says, "Baby Gurl")
  • Devushka, Doshka or doch (these are phonetics for Russian terms for daughter or girl)
  • Or any variation of any of the above

Out of all of these, I think I like Lil' Miss Goose.  It is one of my favorites that Brother Goose says.  There is just something so cute and hilarious about a little boy calling a little girl Lil' Miss.  So from here on out, you'll see me refer to Baby Goose as Lil' Miss Goose.  A transformation I'm a lil' sad about, yet I'm excited for her next stage in life.

Here's a picture collage of Baby Goose becoming Lil' Miss Goose.



Happy 1st Birthday, Lil' Miss Goose!  Daddy, Brother and I love you lots!

Always ~ Momma Goose




Monday, August 6, 2012

Mellow Monday: Crockpot Pizza Casserole

Mellow Monday is in full effect in our nest.  With vacation Bible school every day last week and Brother Goose going back to school this Thursday, we need all the mellow-"ness" we can stand today.  Other than the normal housekeeping chores, we are going to play low key games, drink plenty of water and replenish our bodies from the crazy week and get ready for the crazy week ahead.

We love pizza!  Before our goslings, Daddy Goose and I used to eat it at least once a week. Our favorite toppings are pepperoni, black olives and pineapple.  These days, between growing pot bellies (or ponch, as Daddy Goose says) and a smaller budget, pizza once a week is not in our menu.  I'm always looking for healthier, cheaper ways to enjoy the yummy taste so we can save our bellies and budget.  This is one of those types of recipes.

Today's pizza style recipe is from Big Oven.  I recently found BigOven.com through ZipList.com.  The tools available on the site are great!  It gives you plenty of menu planning options and boasts that it holds more than 250,000+ recipes.  Make sure you check it out.


Ingredients:
  • 1 pound ground meat (I use lean ground turkey)
  • 3 ounces turkey pepperoni
  • 1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup; undiluted
  • 1 large onion; chopped
  • 12 ounces parmesan cheese; shredded
  • 8 ounces rigatoni pasta; cooked 5 minutes and drained
  • 14 ounce pizza or spaghetti sauce
  • Other pizza ingredients such as mushrooms, black olives or bell peppers

Instructions:

Brown meat and onion.  Cook pasta.   Mix together meat/onion and pizza or spaghetti sauce.  Layer ingredients into crockpot in this order: half the meat mixture, half the cooked pasta and half of the canned soup, 6 ounces of cheese, half the pepperoni slices and top with any other pizza ingredients you'd like to add, such as mushrooms, black olives or bell peppers.  Repeat layers.  Cook on low for 4 hours.

Do you have any other ways that you enjoy pizza ingredients?  Share them - we're always up for new "pizza" recipes.

Here are some of our other meals for the week.



Monday:  Crockpot Pizza Casserole with green salad and bread sticks
Tuesday:  "Pigs" in a Blanket (turkey hot dogs wrapped with cheese in crescent rolls) with corn
Wednesday: Chicken BLT's Wraps and fresh fruit
Thursday:  Tuna Noodle Casserole (Kraft Homestyle mac-n-cheese with a can of tuna and hidden veggies*) with green beans or snap peas
Friday:  Breakfast for Dinner - Breakfast Burritos
Saturday: Chicken Ceasar Salad with bread sticks
Sunday:  Lake Day - left overs!

*Sometimes I "hide" extra veggies into meals by using baby food.  Like for this recipe I'll add a baby food jar of squash or carrots.  Something that's the same color so Brother Goose won't notice.

Do you like to menu plan?  It helps me to stay on budget, stay on track with food choices and frankly, just makes life easier.  If you'd like to see more menu plans, head over to OrgJunkie.com.

Always ~ Momma Goose