Wordless Wednesday–Camping

My mom and I snuck in a quick camping trip with the kids this week. Here’s the highlights:

~S

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Wordless Wednesday–Sprinkler

Shane running into the sprinkler. Over and over again.

~S

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Tasty Tuesday–Cheesy Cornbread Waffles and Slow Cooker Chicken Chili

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday here at The Young'ns!
There’s a recipe index under the food tab above if you’re ever looking for a recipe I’ve already blogged.

It’s been hot here this week. Like mid-90s hot. Not when I want to use the oven or the stove particularly. Enter the slow cooker. And the waffle maker. I’m learning that my waffle maker is good for more than just plain waffles.

I came across this idea on Pinterest, and thought I’d give it a whirl. I also took a chicken chili recipe from an online cookbook and modified for mild-food-me. Tim said it was still flavorful enough, but I think he ended up adding Tabasco :) So here’s…

Cheesy Cornbread Waffles and Slow Cooker Chicken Chili

{Ingredients}

FOR THE CHILI:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
• 1 can black or pinto beans
• 2 cans petite diced tomatoes
• 8 ounces tomato paste
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
• extra cheese for topping later

FOR THE WAFFLES:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup club soda
• 1/3 cup canola oil

{Directions}

• Put everything for chili in slow cooker and cook for 6-8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high.
• For the waffles, mix first 5 ingredients in a large bowl (I used my KitchenAid). Stir in cheese. Combine eggs and next 3 ingredients; gently stir into dry ingredients just until blended.
• Pour the recommended amount into your waffle maker. Mine does well with 1/2 cup batter. It will be thin when you pour it in, don’t worry! Cook for 3-4 minutes.
• Once waffle is done, you can eat right away, or freeze on cookie sheet and store in gallon ziplock bag for later use. If you freeze them, thaw them in the microwave, then pop them in the toaster to get a little crispier before adding the chili.
• Place waffle on your plate, load it up with chili, then add some extra cheese. I used Monterey jack, and Tim used pepper jack, so whatever sounds good to you!

Oh yea, one other bonus about this recipe: both my little boys thought it was amazing! (Kahlen is a super picky, plain food kinda kid, just like I was, so she didn’t like the chili at all. Cornbread waffle: good. Chili: yuck). Another bonus: the chili is really easy to throw together, so I actually got it ready on Monday, froze it, then was able to just dump the bag in the crockpot today without any other prep work. Dinner with less than 10 minutes of prep time today? Yes, please!

~S

Menu Plan Monday - June

I thought for sure that  we wouldn’t stick to the menu by the end of the 6 week plan that I made last time I posted a menu, but we actually did! At least as much as we usually do, anyway.

I would’ve posted this last week, but it’s been a crazy last two weeks. We finished up our history co-op and several other main subjects the last week of May and then rolled right into VBS at our church, which was fun but a lot of work. We’ve also had a stomach bug making it’s way through our family. Kahlen was the last one to fall to it yesterday, so I’m praying that we have no more sickness this summer!!

There are several new recipes that I’m excited to try out! I’ll try to let you know how they turned out. From last month, our new recipes were:

• Chicken Pot Pie Soup – This one was tasty, I’ll definitely make it again. I want to make more crust crackers next time though.
• Sweet & Sour Citrus Chicken – quite delicious, also will be making this again. It was a nice change from our regular Orange Chicken Stir-Fry
• Light and Crispy Waffles – These were okay, but we still like our Buttermilk Citrus Waffles better
• Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole – Not a fan. It wasn’t a bad recipe, but it made too much and Tim didn’t like it. I’m not huge on leftovers, I rely on hubs to eat them, so when he doesn’t, they usually go to waste :/ We probably won’t make this one again.
• Green Beans, Potatoes, and Chicken – Simple, easy to make, satisfying. We’ll be making this meal again for sure.

Okay, here’s what we’re having this month:

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat
2 Dinner at Dad & Stepmom’s	3 Tacos	4 Date Night at Benihana’s	5 Healthy Mama BBQ Chicken	6 *Skillet Chicken & Ravioli	7 *Ranch Chicken Sandwiches	8 Meatballs & Spaghetti
9 Pizza (I just updated our recipe!)	10 Orange Chicken Stir-Fry	11 *Slow Cooker Enchiladas	12 *Chili & *Cornbread Waffles	13 Chicken & Lemon Soup with Orzo	14 Grilled Ham & Cheese Sandwiches	15 You’re On Your Own (YOYO)
16 Dad’s Choice!	17 Creamy Chicken Taquitos	18 *Chicken Marsala	19 *Orange Beef Stew	20 Date Night	21 YOYO	22 Hamburger Helper
23 Tortellini Spinach Bake	24 Sweet & Sour Meatballs from Our Best Bites	25 *Crockpot Cashew Chicken	26 *Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings	27 Red Beans, Rice, and Sausage	28 YOYO	29 Dinner with my in-laws for their 40th!
30 Baked Pasta Casserole

* denotes a new recipe

Yum, I can’t wait! What are you making this week/month?

~S

Wordless Wednesday–VBS

Please tell me I’m not the only one that has a dozen blog spots written in my head, but no time to actually write them! I’ve been working on a quilt for Shane, birthday invitations for Nate, next year’s Picture This! calendar, and a host of other things that I can’t even remember.

Oh, and this week is VBS at our church, which is always fun and very tiring! Here’s a few pictures from the first few days. And hopefully, I’ll get some of those other posts out of my head this week too!

Nate had to miss the first day due to illness, but he recovered, hooray!

My crew. I have four girls, about the easiest crew I’ve ever had!

Games today. This is Kahlen’s best friend who lives a few doors down. We’re glad she is able to join us!

I’m sure I’ll get more pictures, but no guarantees that I’ll post them any time soon. I mean, I do have a four-year-old birthday party to plan!

~S

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Summer Fun! Kid Activities & Free Printables

I am so excited to share this with you!!!

I was inspired by lists of fun summer activities to do with my kiddos, like this one and this one, but of course I had to remake it so that it was just the way I wanted it If you don’t have a perfectionist and/or crafty bend, feel free to just use this one as is!

Here’s what it looks like, all set up and pretty above my dining room table:

I’ve uploaded the pdf as well as the original publisher file (which you obviously can only open if you have publisher). I made them 3.5” square and mounted them onto 4” square pieces of scrapbook paper that I already had (7 sheets of 12 x 12 paper). I used regular yarn and mini clothespins from Joann’s to attach them. I have a DONE envelope to put them in when we’re done. Here are the fonts that I used:

• Aardvark Café
• Cool Dots
• Delius Swash Caps
• Eraser Dust
• First-Grader

I also made a supplies list for myself, broken down by activity, as well as cost, if any. Of course, there are a handful of activities that are local to my neck of the woods, but you can either just toss those or replace them with ones in your area. I’ve also linked to the resources that I found to actually complete these lovely activities.

Crafts / Cooking

1. Make Sidewalk Paint
• Cornstarch
• Food Coloring
2. Potato Stamps
• Potatoes
• Paint
• Knife
• Paper
3. Make Popsicles
• Dixie Cups
• Popsicle Sticks
• Yogurt
• Strawberries
• Lemon Juice
• Sugar
4. Paint with Pudding
• Pudding
• Muffin Tins
• Paper
5. Finger Paint
• Sugar
• Salt
• Corn Starch
• Food Coloring
• Jars for paint
6. Make a Bird Feeder
• Peanut Butter
• Plastic bags
• Bird Seed
• Plastic spoons
• Twine
7. Kool-Aid Soda Pop
• Kool Aid
• Sugar
• Bubble Water
8. Make Dessert
9. Make Cupcakes for Neighbors
• Cake mix
• Frosting
• Sprinkles
• Printed topper
• Ziplock bags
10. Snack Necklace
• Pretzels
• Cheerios
• Other snack foods with holes
11. Make Flubber
• Elmer’s Glue
• Borax
• Food Coloring
12. Make Play Dough
• Flour
• Salt
• Cream of Tartar
• Kool Aid
13. Caramel Popcorn
• 1/2 cup unpopped corn kernels (10-12 cups popped)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
14. Craft from Magazine
15. Make Shirts (I mean decorate some with fabric markers)
16. Make Ice Cream
17. Bubble Snake
• Plastic Water Bottle
• Sock
• Rubber band
• Super Giant Bubble Solution
• Dawn
• Cornstarch
• Baking Soda
• Secret Ingredient from link
18. Make Cookies for Neighbors
19. Bathtub Painting
• Clear Glycerin Soap
• Tempera Paint
• Long skinny ice cube tray

Outings that may or may not cost money

1. Picnic
2. Get a new clothing item
• $10
3. Swim
• $10
4. Movie at Theater
• $5
5. McDonalds Playland
• $10
6. Nature Scavenger Hunt
• Printable
• Collection bag
7. Get Slurpees
• $5
8. Bowling
• $10
9. Zoo
10. Camping
11. Bike to Park
12. Fireworks
13. Splash Park
14. Donuts
15. Go For a Hike

Things to do around our house

1. Campout in Backyard
2. Play a Board Game
3. Movie & Popcorn
4. Kids Plan Dinner
5. Ride Bikes
6. Lemonade Stand
• Lemon Juice
• Sugar
• Cups
• Signs
• Table
7. Learn a New Game
8. Blanket Fort
9. Water Balloons
• Water Balloons
• Bucket
10. Breakfast for Dinner
11. Paper Airplanes
12. Swim at Our Pool
13. Water Bottle Fight
14. Treasure Hunt
• Clue Cards
• Envelopes and Plastic Eggs
• Candy
• Prizes

Things specific to us here in Fort Collins (although you might be able to find something similar where you live)

1. Farmer’s Market
2. Ride the Trolley
• $6
3. TCBY
• $10
4. Lee Martinez Farm
• $3 x 3 = $9
• Pony Rides $5 x 2 = $10?
5. Mail a Letter to Maria (our sponsored child through WorldVision.org)
6. Discovery Museum
7. Swimming at City Park
8. Ice Cream Truck
9. Noontime Notes
10. Walk to the Mullins
11. Drive In Movie
12. IMAX at Discovery Museum

I also was thinking that since at least half of these aren’t necessarily summer-only activities, once summer is over, I’ll be putting these in a box or something to pull out once in a while when we need something besides our usual to do.

Also, please don’t be intimidated or think that I’m some kind of super mom!! I can guarantee that we will NOT be doing ALL of these this summer. I just wanted some ideas of some things to do so that we don’t feel like our entire summer slipped away. Some days we might do several of these, but some days (or weeks), we might only get to one or two or none for that matter.

A few others things we’re doing also:

• Going to as many parks in our town as possible. According to the city’s website, there are 38 parks with playgrounds.
• Doing several summer reading programs including the one from our library and and a few from this list.
• Nate is signed up for a music class as well as an Amazing Athletes class through the city.
• Vacation Bible School! The kids are beyond thrilled and eagerly anticipating VBS

I have a pinterest board just for summer too, so we might do a few more things from there, but who knows?

What are you doing this summer?

~S

In case you missed it in all those words, here are the download files:

• pdf  OR
• publisher file (which you obviously can only open if you have publisher

Here are the fonts that I used:

• Aardvark Café
• Cool Dots
• Delius Swash Caps
• Eraser Dust
• First-Grader

Wordless Wednesday–Tour De Parks

I’ve decided that we’re going to go to as many different parks as we can this summer. According to the city’s website, there are 38 parks with playgrounds. So far, we’ve been to three different ones this week!

You can follow our #tourdeparks adventure on Instagram too :-)

Here’s a few random pictures from our park adventures this week:

~S

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