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Run, don't walk to your crockpot and make these for dinner!

If you are anything like me, your time to prepare and cook dinner is quite small. I have always been a fan of my crockpot, but I have started using it even more now that I am staying at home. Here are two recipes that we L-O-V-E at our house.

Company Chicken- I got this recipe from a girl I used to "know" from a message board for newlywed women. It is absolutely delicious!

1 lb chicken breast (frozen of thawed, doesn't matter)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can chicken broth (i use low-sodium)

1 package of cream cheese

2 TBSP butter

1-2 packets of Italian Dressing mix (I use 2, we are big "flavor people")

extra wide egg noodles (not the frozen kind)

put the first 6 ingredients in your crockpot, and cook on the low setting all day. When it is done, take the chicken out and shred it. Return it to the crockpot and stir. Serve the chicken mixture over cooked egg noodles. Chris likes to top his with a little soy sauce, but I don't.

No-Peek Chicken Tacos (you will thank me for this one!!)

1 lb chicken breast (frozen or thawed, doesn't matter)

1 packet of chicken taco seasoning

1 can of RoTel (or you can use the equivalent amount of fresh pico de gallo)

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup of water

sprinkle the taco seasoning all over the bottom of the crockpot. On top of that, lay your chicken breasts. Then, pour your Rotel (or pico) over the chicken. Then over the top of it all, pour the oil and water. DO NOT STIR. I know it will be hard, but resist the urge. Then, cook it on low all day, and do not lift the lid (hence the name "no peek chicken tacos"). When done, take the chicken out and chop it up, then return it to the crockpot and stir it all up. Serve it with all of your favorite taco fixings. DELICIOUS!

OMGosh Moment of the Day (well, 3 of them, anyways)

Chris and I have started the early stages of house hunting for our next home. We have the neighborhood selected, and the floorplan/builder selected. Yay! We are pretty excited, even though we won't start building for probably 2 years. (Which is going to seem like an eternity, now that we have other things in motion...) ANYWHO, we have been going out on the weekends in our free time (har-dee-har-har) to model homes in our area, to get ideas for things for our new home. One neighborhood in our area is, um, pricey. Let's just say, the main model home in this particular neighborhood is 500k, and that ain't even the most expensive house on the block.

So, we meander on in to this 500k home, to have a looksee. This house is GIGANTIC, and BEAUTIFUL. It is easily the most amazing house I have ever been in. Stunning. I literally cannot describe how amazing this house was. Breathtaking. So, we walk around the house, oohing and aaahing over all of the cool stuff, and then we make our way to the finished basement. Chris and I are looking at the wetbar, and I say, "Where is Owen?" (one of the times were I thought that Chris was watching him, and Chris thought that I was watching him. We aren't the only ones who that happens to, right?) I then look the left to see O, dropping his drawers and peeing in the 500k model home toilet. Let's not forget that he is 2, and well, his aim isn't something to write home about. So, I dash in the bathroom, and he said, "I'm making the water, Mommy." ("Making Water" is what he calls peeing) So, I clean the floor/toilet seat up, and was about to help him pull his drawers back up, and said, "Momma, I have to make poop now." Of course, my child would HAVE to go #2 in a 500k house. I said, "Sorry, O! You are not making poop here!" Ay, yi, yi.

Then tonight we went to our neighbor's house for a neighborly get-together. Owen drank a boatload of Capri Suns, and proceeded to pee on the deck, in front of like 10 of our neighbors. Luckily, we don't have stuffy neighbors, and everyone got a good laugh at me washing the pee off of the deck. Did I mention that O has terrible aim and peed all over his shorts as well?

Then about an hour after he peed on the deck, he went inside the neighbor's house to play with the kids that were inside. Well, one of my neighbors (an adult) went inside to use the restroom, and 5 seconds later he comes back outside and is laughing. He said, "Jen, come here." So I follow him inside, wondering what cool thing he is going to show me. We walked down the hallway, and he starts cracking up, and points to the hall bathroom. I looked in, and saw Owen, BUTT NAKED, standing at the sink washing his hands. And on the floor is the biggest puddle of pee you have ever seen. Apparently he didn't make it to the toilet!!! Pretty fun night for me, scrubbing my neighbor's bathroom floor while everyone is dying laughing at my son, lol!

Money, money, money

Now that I am staying at home with the boys and we are down to one income, I am obsessed with finding deals/bargains. I even started ***gulp*** clipping coupons. I know, I know, what a "mom" thing to do. But after I started doing it, I felt like kicking myself, because I could have been doing this for a long time, and saving TONS of money. For instance. I use disposable razors that are 5.99 for a pack of 4. I have always paid full price, and considered myself lucky if I happen to catch them on sale. Well, they went on sale last week for 3.99 a package. WELL, I had 3 coupons for $3 off (which made 3 packs .99 cents) and 3 coupons for $2off (which made 3 packs 1.99) and then I had 2 "Buy One Get One Free" coupons (which made each pack less than $2.00). I spent 10.97 and got $60 worth of razors, just buy combining the coupons with the advertised sale. SCORE.

Here is how I am doing it. (And this is probably (definitely) not the best way, but it is working for me, for now). On Sundays, I get the paper, and then take the inserts out. There are up to 3 coupon inserts: SmartSource, Red Plum, and P&G Brandsaver (P&G only comes about 1x a month). I cut all of the coupons out (except for, like, pet food, since we don't have pets) and then I organize the coupons in labeled baggies.
*Health/Beauty
*Paper Goods/Home Stuff
*Canned Goods/Packaged Foods
*Refrigerated/Frozen Foods
*Meat/Produce

Then, on Wednesdays when the grocery store ads for the following week are delivered, I see what is on sale, then I make our "dinner menu" for the next week based on what is on sale. (If hamburger is on sale, then we will have 2 meals with hamburger that week...if bananas are on sale, that is O's fruit that week, etc.) Then I go through my coupon bags, and get the coupons out for the things that I will be buying. It doesn't save you money to use a coupon to buy something that you don't need. So only buy the item if you are going to use it or donate it.

As for health/beauty coupons, I scored big at Target this week. I had $1.25 off of Dove bodywash coupon, and I saw an endcap that had Dove Body wash on sale, and as a bonus, the bottles that were on sale were packaged with a smaller additional bottle...so I basically got 2 bottles of body wash for $2.50. WOOT!

Don't worry, friends. We are not "hard up" or struggling to pay bills around here. But, the more money that is left in the checking account at the end of the week, means the more money that is transferred into savings. Which means the better vacation we get to go on next year! (Yes, NEXT year. Thankyouverymuch to BP for the lovely oil spill, and ruining our plans to go to Orange Beach. ***virtual kick in the shins***) So, I will continue to get out my scissors on Sundays, and get a sick little thrill as the cashiers scan my coupons while I watch my "Amount Due" grow smaller and smaller!

Swingset!

After what seemed like eternity (to Owen, which in turn, made it seem like eternity for the rest of the family...) the swingset is DONE! Don't you love the bruise on O's forehead? It actually wasn't from the swingset. He was rough-housing with daddy...ooops!


Owen absolutely loves the rings. He does these wacky stunts, and can swing pretty well on them! I am trying to teach him how to do a flip on them, but he doesn't have any ab strength to help hoist himself over. (Honestly, what am I thinking, trying to teach him to flip upside down...remind me of this post after his next head injury. Mmkay, thanks.)


We got a swingset kit that has a large "treehouse" area. It is 25 square feet. We knew he would want to hang out in it. He has a periscope, and 2 steering wheels. We figured that next summer Wade would be up there too, and we wanted them to each have one to prevent squabbles. :o)


This is the back climbing wall, that we didn't think O would be able to use. We were Wrong, with a capital "W". He shimmies up that thing NO problem. To the right of the rocks, I think we will put a rope ladder...not sure yet.


Just an example of the random stuff that O does that leaves us scratching our heads...


My sweet baby. He is such an awesome kid.



The other rock wall, and the slide. He flies down that thing, sometimes so fast that he scares himself, lol.


Chris did a great job on it! (With Owen's help, of course.) It is so funny, Owen has become obsessed with measuring with the measuring tape since they built the swingset. When he measures ANYTHING, he says, "It is forty-one-six-and-a-half." Either that or it is "twenty-nine-six-and-a-half." And he is DEAD SERIOUS about...do not even think about laughing, because *hello* he is trying to measure something! We laugh (behind his back) at this, because it is freaking hilarious. Just his seriousness is hysterical.


And while his big bro is busy breaking in the swingset, Wade chills out on a blanket in the yard, and makes silly faces at momma.


How did I get to be such a lucky wife and momma? I am in a house-full of sweet, handsome guys. Can't ask for much more than that!

"No! I want Wadey-Poo!"

That is what Owen says when we ask him if wants Mommy to have another baby. :o) Chris and I are TOYING with the idea of Smithlette #3 (not like, next month or anything!!!!) and when we ask Owen if he wants another sibling, he says NO. We think it is because he thinks that we won't keep Wade if we have another baby. Who knows what goes on in his crazy toddler-mind! We go back and forth about adding another baby. We know that with a 3rd, we would have to have me stay at home a while longer, which means we wouldn't be moving into our "dream" home for that much longer. Owen and Wade would have to share a room for a while (not that that is a huge deal or anything...),3 college educations to pay for, 3 cars to buy,3 houses to help buy, 3 kids in sports/activities, and oh yeah, we would be outnumbered. Right now, we play man-to-man defense with the kids. But if we have another, then, well, they would outnumber us and they would have Owen as their leader. And Owen is very smart. And sneaky. Methinks we would be in trouble! I would have to give up my beautiful SUV, in exchange for a mini-van (shudder) because since kids have to be in carseats pretty much until they get their drivers licenses these days, we would need the space. Although my Pilot seats 8 people, the middle row will not hold 3 carseats unfortunately! I think that I am certain that I want another baby. Chris is less certain. To him, if you have 3 kids, you might as well have 19 and move next door to Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. (shout-out to the Duggars! Love your show!)

But, on the other hand, I can't imagine not being pregnant again, not hearing your baby cry/coo/laugh/etc for the first time, not seeing those gummy smiles anymore. Every milestone that Wade hits, makes me mourn a little, because it very well may be the last time we have a baby this little in our house! I can totally see why my grandma had 13 kids! It is addicting!

Anyways, what a random post. I had read a similar post from my friend, and it got me thinking!!!

My poor kids

Okay, I know it is horrible of me that I took a picture in the middle of a toddler meltdown. But, it was a ridiculous tantrum over me not letting him squirt a juice box into a bowl. I know, I am a meanie.



While all of that drama was happening, my sweet Wade was just hanging out, swinging away in his swing!



And the ultimate torture occurs when I get a new piece of camera equipment and have to test it out. That happened the other day when my new lens (50 mm 1.4) arrived. It is pretty dreamy, and Owen doesn't look too bad himself!


"Ugh, I hate this."


"Are you done yet, crazy lady??" He has no patience. But, he makes up for it in cuteness!