My Fluffy Stash...organized.

I find cloth diapering is most fun when I'm organized. This is my current set up, it's a tiny linen closet that was pretty much useless for such and since I really don't use my changing table lately this makes more sense. So here I am encouraging you to think outside the box and find a nice spot for your fluff!
On the top shelf are premium sized prefolds & flannel fitteds. Next shelf is our current prefolds, fitted workhorse diapers & small prefolds & flats I use for doublers.
Third shelf down is pockets, AIO's & Cover's then on the next shelf is wipes and a few disposables plus a basket for snappi's.

Last up we have my 3yr old's pullups & wet bags. I LOVE wetbags!!
As you can see I've discovered I still have room for more fluff- yay!

M is for Menu.

Well, life got has gotten so busy that along with blogging my menu plan went out the window, now it's time to get back to it. Eating healthy & mostly organic and local is important to me and the only way to make that possible on a budget is to plan your menu! Lately I have been transforming not so healthy dishes to healthy ones... Tater Tot Casserole is one that I will share you later this week!

M: Veggie Lasagna

T: Honey Lime Enchiladas

W: Poppyseed Chicken & Garlic Green Beans

T: Chicken Tortilla Soup

F: Pumpkin French Toast, Bacon & Fruit

S: Broccoli Casserole & Roasted Squash

S: Popcorn Chicken, Roasted Potatoes & Caesar Salad

4 things NOT to do when canning pears..

We went to see Bugman as field trip a few weeks ago- He said that if you have a fear of spider's that the best way to get over it is to expose yourself to them, well I also have a fear of....Canning. I don't really know why? but I am seriously terrified. So I thought I would try to "expose" myself to it as much as possible, so I went ahead and ordered a 20lb. box of pears from Azure Standard, when they arrived just looking at them was causing me to panic. I drove in because at this point they were pretty ripe.

#1. Do not start your canning in the afternoon, on a week day when your children are running around wild.
#2. Do not start canning when you have a time limit because you have to be somewhere.
#3. Do not try to Can while also prepping dinner.
#4. Do not ignore tips from family who know what they are talking about!

Lessons learned. Next time I will can on a Saturday when my husband is home to help with the little ones and I have no where else to be and I already have a quick dinner prepped, lastly I will heed advice from experienced "canners" and raw pack them even though online it says not to do that- my poor pears got quite mushy while "cooking" and I ended up with 6 pint jars of sliced pears & a whole vat of creamy pear sauce because the pears got too mushy.

Trader Joe's Black Bean Soup Recipe-

I love this recipe, but the number one thing you can do to it is...
Blend it up. That's right, when it's done pour it all in a blender and puree it.
Your children will gobble it up because they cannot detect the onions & other "yucky" stuff plus somehow it just meshes all the flavors together so well.
Enjoy!

Black Bean Soup

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped, or 2 cups bagged Freshly Diced Onion
1 clove crushed garlic, or 1 cube frozen Crushed Garlic
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 (15-oz) cans black beans ( I used beans from scratch that I already cooked)
1 cup (half a jar) Chunky Salsa
2 Tbsp lime juice (juice of 1 lime)
Plain yogurt, such as Plain Cream Line Yogurt, or sour cream

1. In a medium pot, sauté onions in olive oil until they are soft and translucent.
2. Sprinkle in cumin and garlic and sauté for a minute; pour in black beans (including juices), salsa, and lime. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Simmer covered for 20 minutes.
3. Ladle soup into individual bowls and top with a dollop of yogurt. Chili and Lime Tortilla Chips or other white corn tortilla chips go nicely on the side.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Hands-off Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves 4-6
From Trader Joe's Cookbook.

Consignment Sales (& why they can be better than thrift stores..)

Why I prefer Huge Children's Consignment Sales like the Just Between Friends Sale and in my area The Creme Brulee Kids Sale...
Well, one reason is with one stop shopping it will save on your gas, rather than driving to several different thrift shops. Another reason is that it will save you time and on one hand you will have more selection and most of these sales even have a section for housewares-
Yet another reason is all the clothing is screened for stains, I don't know about you but I don't want to pay for items that have stains. Plus if you go to the sale on the last day most items will be half off compared to the thrift shop where you have to dig to find a green tag in what it seems like a sea of all other colors!
Now there are two rules I follow while shopping these sales.
Rule # 1. I have to love it! if you don't love the piece, it won't be used and that is wasteful.
Rule #2. for clothing, it has to be under 3.00 each piece. it's simple, I'm cheap.
Other items like bouncers, strollers, etc. I will check Craigslist before I go to check how much something is going for and then go from there.
Don't get me wrong, I love shopping at thrift shops but for bulk seasonal shopping for children I find consignment sales a much better deal.
Now I will brag about the deals I just got at my local JBF sale... (I went on 1/2 off day)
Gymboree dress
Gymboree pants
Gap Tee shirt
NWT Organic hand knitted pants
Old Navy dress
Carter's Overall & Onsie
Osh Kosh Shoes
Bag of small toys (for stocking stuffers)
All of that for 18.00- sweet!

New Addition....

We are so blessed to have a new little one in our house and she is by far the star of the show....
Miss Callahan Joy is truly the joy in our lives.

Menu Planning Monday...

I did it, I planned a week's menu for the first time since I became pregnant and came down with the worst morning sickness I've ever had in my life! At almost 21 weeks I feel I can actually set and obtain goals- God is good.

One problem. When your pregnant everything sounds yummy or totally nasty so I did this a little backward... I went shopping for all the stuff I normally buy and grabbed everything that sounded yummy, came home and pounded out a menu as a result I still need to buy a few things... but hey just having food in the house is progress right?

Monday: Parmesan Chicken Tenders, Wild Rice & Creamed Cauliflower

Tuesday: Spinach Enchiladas

Wednesday: All Natural from scratch, Tuna Casserole

Thursday: Creamy Italian Chicken

Friday: Beef Tacos

Saturday: Paella

Sunday: Baked Potato Bar

Breakfast this week includes:

Blueberry Pizza
Crepes with jam
Protein Smoothie & toast
Steel Cut Oats
Ezekiel Raisin Toast with cream cheese
Eggs in toast

Lunches this week include:

Israeli Couscous Salad
Pesto Pasta (not my fave but the kids love it)
Grilled Ham & Cheese
Quinoa with sauteed veggies
Turkey BLT wraps with sweet potato fries
Toastadas

Whew! I'm exhausted from the planning... now I have to cook all this stuff?