A Happy Tale

Let me tell you a happy tale

Of something quite funny

Something quite strange

A tale of a cotton tailed bunny

Out my back door I did go

And what should I see

All fluffy and brown

Came hopping up to me

I stared in shock and awe

Not quite sure what to do

Ran back into the house

To grab my phone before he flew

I snapped a picture or two

He came right up to say hi

He cuddled with the cat 

Such a sweet little guy

I caught him right up

And showed him some care

The kids came to see the bunny

With plenty of love to share

I knew without a doubt 

He was someone’s dear pet

So on Facebook I did post 

So they could come and get

The post was shared

Got a couple of likes and a love

Before long the owner was found

With a little help from above

They were happy as could be 

To have him back at home

Safe and sound in his little spot

No more to wander or to roam

Now you’ve heard my happy tale

Of something quite funny

Something quite strange

A tale of a cotton tailed bunny

Momma, come sit with me.

‘Momma, come sit with me.’ That’s what my 3 year old said today at lunchtime. He had been picking at his sandwich and sticking around the table after everyone else had went to their rooms for lunch. He gave me that sweet smile with those little blue eyes just a sparkling. Who could resist that smile?

Not me! The neverending To-Do list can wait. The basket of unfolded laundry can wait. The dirty dishes in the sink can wait. The chores that need finished can wait. The millions of other things running through my mind,at any given moment, can wait.

Right now he needs me and he is asking me for my time. I admit that sometimes I feel like I am spread pretty thin. I feel like I just can’t do anything more than what I am doing right now. It’s hard being a Momma.It’s hard being a single Momma. It’s hard being a special needs Momma. It’s hard being a single special needs Momma! Yes, I said it’s hard. It’s almost downright impossible on some days. But then there are the good days or the little moments like this.

The house is quiet-ish as everyone is settling down for naps and/or quiet time. The school work has been finished and put away. He continues to nibble at his sandwich while I grab my glass of watered down iced tea. I sit in the chair next to him and he smiles. A genuinely lit up ear to ear kind of smile. Those little eyes are just dancing with ideas that he wants to tell me.

So he begins by informing me that my feet are in the water. I laugh and pull my feet up and sit cross legged in the chair.

‘Is that better?’, I ask.

‘Yes, Momma, now the sharks can’t get you.’

‘Well that’s a good thing! Thank you so much for warning me.’, I say.

He laughs and then he proceeds to explain to me how a T-Rex would catch a fish. He imitates the T-Rex while eating his fish (peanut butter sandwich) and he laughs a lot. He tells me what he wants for snack later, a dinosaur cupcake from yesterday, and he asks if he and ‘all my friends’ can go outside after naps. He always refers to his brothers and sisters as ‘all my friends’ and he draws a big circle in the air when he says it. It is so cute!

He eats a few more bites and declares he is full. Then he grabs his napkin and attempts to wipe the peanut butter off his face. I help him and he takes off running back to his room before I can finish. He jumps into his bed and curls up with a stuffed toy and his favorite dinosaur toy. Then he closes his eyes and pretends to be asleep. I lean over and give him a quick kiss on the cheek and he giggles.

These are the moments that make my day and give me the momentum I need to get through the tough days. I get a little sad as I know they are all growing up so fast. I know that before long he won’t be asking me to come sit with him anymore. I want to take the time to cherish these little moments and enjoy them while I can.

I walked back to the kitchen to jot down this post so I will have it to look back on in the future. I think about how blessed I am and how precious life is. I am so thankful that God has put me where I am right now. He has given me more than I ever deserved and I know He has so many plans in store for me and my family.

He always knows what we need and when we need it. This morning I read Proverbs 13:4:

It reminds me that I need to keep pressing on towards my goals. I can’t give up and let myself get lazy. I can have hope in knowing that if I stay diligent there will be a reward for all of the hard work I put in here on earth. This little moment with my son was just a taste of that and it was so beautiful! I can’t even begin to imagine what the future may hold for us.

Thank you Lord for your blessings on me and my family!

Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken

This is a great way to use up leftover chicken and it is a family favorite too! I wasn’t too sure about it when I first made it several years ago but my oldest son fell in love with it. We usually eat it over a bed of rice but you can also eat it over noodles, Cauli-Rice, or even spaghetti squash… yum!

We love to serve this with Cole Slaw and rolls or homemade bread with butter… so good!

Continue reading “Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken”

Cole Slaw

This is as close as I can get to my exact recipe. I just kinda eyeball my ingredients as I pour, dump, and taste. I like mine a little sweet but with a little tang to it also. You can adjust the sugar and vinegar to suit your own taste. Continue reading “Cole Slaw”

January Pantry Challenge Grocery Trip

I wrote about the Pantry Challenge in an earlier post. This upcoming week is the next Pantry Challenge I have scheduled. I thought I would break down what my grocery list was and how much I ended up spending for the meals that I came up.

Below are the dinner meals and the ingredients that I had to buy and the costs.

Meal #1: Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken w/Rice and Cole Slaw

Cole Slaw Mix $2.00

Meal #2: Popover Pizza, Salad

Romaine Lettuce $3.29

Tomatoes BOGO $2.99

Meal #3: Tortilla Bowl Taco Salad, Rice, Beans

Will use the extra lettuce and tomatoes from Meal #2 and I had some extra pintos from last week that had I put in the freezer also.

Avocado $1.00

Sour Cream $1.75

Meal #4: Boston Baked Beans, Mac n Cheese, Fried Cabbage

Cabbage $2.05

Meal #5: Cheesy Chicken and Potatoes Casserole, Salad

Will use the extra lettuce and tomatoes from Meal #2 & 3.

Meal #6: Free Day (I will probably make some Chicken Stir Fry, Chicken Fried Rice, and maybe some fried ramen noodles. (These are links to other recipes as I can’t locate mine at the moment.)

**UPDATE: I found my recipes 🙂 Chinese Fried Rice with VeggiesEasy Fried Noodles, Japanese White Sauce. I had everything in the pantry and freezer to make all of these.

I had some stir fry veggies and chicken in the freezer. I also had some ramen noodles and rice in the pantry. I won’t be adding as many veggies to the noodles as this recipe shows either.

Sweet and Sour Sauce $1.99

Meal #7: Breakfast for Dinner

Krusteaz Pancake & Waffle Mix BOGO $2.79

(This is my favorite brand and I grab it when it is on sale.)

Aunt Jemima Syrup BOGO $3.89

So altogether I spent less than $25.00 to complete the meals from the pantry.

I also had to buy some staples that we buy every week like:

Milk x 4 $14.76

Bread x $4.00

Sliced Cheese $2.00

Margarine $1.00

Apples $3.49

Bananas $4.72

Creamer $3.00

Eggs $2.00

These came to about $35.00.

We had a few miscellaneous toiletries to buy for less than $20.00. I also found a BOGO meat sale and stocked up on some things that we will need later on in the month. I did spend around $50.00 0n the meat! Eeek… well I don’t feel too bad because I know that I am saving money in the long run and I won’t need to buy much more meat for the rest of the month.

You can see my totals below and the savings from the store card, sales, and coupons. Plus at Winn -Dixie you can also earn Fuelperks. Right now I am at $0.55/gallon which is about $11.00 off my next 20 gallons of fuel. I also did the survey at the bottom of the receipt to save $5.00 on the next trip.

If I had been tight on money or if I had decided not to spend any extra I could’ve left the store spending a little under $80.00. I could have also cut back on a few other things and stayed under $50.0. I do try my best to catch certain things, like peanut butter, on sale and grab them whenever I can.

By using what I have in the pantry and freezer I was able to save money and use it towards the sales I found for the meat. It also helps to prevent waste and helps me to set a good example for the kids about being frugal. This can be a very useful tool in any household.