The JMB Family

I am going to try to make Lily a tutu!! I have lots of tulle sitting in the closet and have never found a way to make a tutu, but I guess I never looked hard enough.. I am anxious to get started so I might just have to go to the craft store tonight and buy elastic and ribbon! :o) Yay! I will be sure to post pictures as I go!! Look for the posts if you are interested in how it turns out!! Here are the instructions I am going to follow: FeelsLikeHomeBlog And the instructions for ribbon wrapping: TreasuresForTots

Here are some of the pictures that Tara with Tugboat Photography took on the 20th! I cant wait to see the rest of them!! :o)

Yield : 2 to 3 dozen cookies Prep Time : 10 minutes | Cooling Time : 30 minutes ½ cup (1 stick) butter 2 cups granulated sugar ½ cup milk 4 tablespoons cocoa powder ½ cup peanut butter 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3 cups quick-cooking oats 1. Add the first four ingredients (through the cocoa powder) to a 4-quart saucepan. 2. Bring to a rolling boil and let boil for 1 minute. 3. Remove from heat. 4. Stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until smooth, then stir in the oats. 5. Drop by heaping tablespoons onto wax paper-lined baking sheets. 6. Let cool until set.

Alfredo Sausage Bake (From: Carrie's Sweet Life) 2 jars alfredo sauce, I prefer classico but any will do 1 bag tortellini 1 package of italian sausage 1 cup mozzarella 1/2 cup parmesan Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 x 13 pan with Pam. Fry sausage until it’s cooked through. Cook tortellini as directed on package. Pour alfredo sauce into cake pan. Add 1/4 cup water to each jar and shake to get all alfredo sauce. Pour into cake pan. Pour tortellini, and parmesan on top. Cut sausage into 1/2 inch thick pieces and top tortellini. Mix well. Top with mozzarella. Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

Prep Time: 15 Min. Total Time: 25 Min. Makes: 4 servings, 1 1/4 cups each INGREDIENTS: 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces 1 small zucchini, chopped 1 tub (10 oz) Philadelphia Italian Cheese & Herb Cooking Creme 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in halves 2 cups hot cooked penne pasta DIRECTIONS: Cook chicken and zucchini in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 6 to 7 min. or until chicken is done. Add cooking creme and tomatoes, cook and stir 2 min. Serve over pasta SUBSTITUTE: Substitute 2 cups frozen cut green beans for the zucchini. (This is what we are doing because we dont like zucchini)  ((I am also doubling everything because I have a family of 6 to feed!))

Recipe and photos taken from I Am Baker Did you know you can make your own cake mix? You can have high quality, delicious tasting cake with the ease and convenience of a box mix. And it just takes moments to do! Just assemble your dry ingredients as well as the sugar. Dry Ingredients: 2 3/4 cup flour 1 3/4 cups SUPER fine sugar (you can buy this or make it) 2 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 tsp salt (I will post the rest of the recipe I am using below) Sift together all ingredients and place in mason jar or your chosen storage container. And viola!  You have your own cake mix! (This recipe totaled about 4 1/2 cups of dry ingredients, so I used an eight cup mason jar) You will of course need to add the wet ingredients when you are ready to make your cake. So I just write what I need to add on a little reminder card. And don't forget the date!  I would probably try and use this within three months.  But around here, I usually use at least one jar a...

So I admit it! I have NEVER bought my girls dress-up stuff before.. well for Lily, I did it!!!!! I had a Toy R Us/ Babies R Us gift card and I went and bought her a play dress and shoes!! She LOVES them!! I specifically bought them for some cute pictures for her 18 month pictures, but she can now play in the dress and shoes too!! :o) Beautiful Little Lady Lily Her fancy princess shoes! Yes she is wearing her jammies on underneath and a winter stocking hat on her head! Pretty wings!

So I have been craving cheesecake for a while now.. My husband and I were going to go to the Cheesecake Factory and a movie last night to celebrate my birthday, but what do ya know?! It didnt happen! God had other plans for us apparently including a bruised bum and hand, and a sore back and head from my fall on the ice last night.. Oh well! Prep Time: 20 min Total Time: 5 hr Makes: 32 servings INGREDIENTS 18 HONEY MAID Honey Grahams, divided 1/3 cup  butter or margarine, melted 3 Tbsp. sugar 4 pkg.  (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened 1 cup sugar 1 Tbsp.  vanilla 3 Tbsp. flour 4   eggs 1 cup BAKER’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks, divided 1 cup  JET-PUFFED Miniature Marshmallows DIRECTIONS PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Line 13×9-inch baking pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan. Crush 14 of the grahams. (You should have about 2 cups crumbs.) Mix graham crumbs, butter and 3 Tbsp. sugar; press firmly onto bot...

So yesterday was terrible.. Today is a new day!! I am hoping that when Joe gets home we will be able to grab lunch, go buy Lillian some shoes (hers are too small already), head to toys R us and pick up some pretty dress-up clothes for pictures for Lily tomorrow, and then who knows what else.. My prayers are for today to be a GREAT day! No fighting kids, no upset mommy and daddy, no crying, no negative anything!! God is in control today and I am excited to see what he has in store for us! No no make that a GREAT weekend! Haha! I am taking Lily and Nathan to get pictures done tomorrow so that will be fun!!!! Hopefully we can find something else fun and exciting to fill the rest of the day after pictures!! :o)

So another year passes by and not a WHOLE lot has been very exciting.. I cringe at the sound of being '25'! Thats half way to 50 thank you very much! And that also means if I have to grow up, so do my kids. I'd now like to freeze time for the next 5 years please... Ok so it's not the end of the world, but I guess I would have thought it to be a big deal.. Maybe 'celebrated' might be a better word. I kid you not, my birthdays have not been celebrated since I was a kid. I cannot honestly remember the last time I have even had a birthday cake. :o/  Not from my parents, not from my husband, not from my kids! I blow it off year after year like its not a big deal, but it hurts. The Facebook "Happy Birthday" messages help, but its not the same.. I at least expect something from my husband and parents. It doesnt have to be elaborate! Just a "Happy Birthday" or something! It's like I have fallen off the face of the earth. To me, its just another...

I took this recipe directly from Macaroni and Cheesecake because I think it looks SO yummy! I hope to some day be able to make these! "If you are having a lot of guests, I would make a double batch! The dough is perfectly soft and tastes just like the pretzels you buy at the mall! I served these with a honey mustard dipping sauce and it paired nicely. This is great for any party and I made these ahead of time and then put them back in the oven to warm them up just before my guests arrived. I had people asking me what these little bites were and raving over them for days after the party." Ham & Cheese Pretzel Bites Source: Pennies on a Platter adapted from Pink Parsley Yield: 42-48 bites Ingredients: 1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast 2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar, divided 1/4 cup warm water (110-115˚F) 1 cup warm milk (110-115˚F) 2 1/2 to 3 cups flour 1/2 cup finely chopped ham (about 3 ounces) 1/2 cup shredded cheese of choice 6 cu...

This recipe is amazing..  So good...   2 c milk 1 box (18.25 oz) chocolate cake mix (Betty Crocker) 1 1/4 c water 3 large eggs 1/3 c canola oil (Wesson) 1 box (5 oz) chocolate cook-and-serve pudding mix (Jell-O) miniature marshmallows (Kraft) chocolate flavored syrup (Hershey) 1) coat a 5 quart slow cooker with cooking spray (or your liner bag); set aside.  In a small saucepan, over high heat, heat milk until almost boiling.  Remove from heat; set aside. 2) in a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, water, eggs, and canola oil.  Using a handheld electric mixer, beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, occasionally scraping down side of bowl. 3) transfer batter to prepared crock.  Sprinkle pudding mix over cake batter.  Slowly pour in hot milk. 4) cover and cook on LOW heat setting for 4 hours.  DO NOT lift lid for first 3 hours of cooking. 5) turn off slow cooker.  Sprinkle cake with 1 c of the marshmallows.  Cover; let ...

Ingredients: 1 c brown sugar 1 1/2 c water 1c grated carrot 1 c grated potato 1 c grated apple 1/2 c melted butter or margarine 1 c sugar 2 eggs 2 c flour 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1t salt 1 t cinnamon 1/2 t cloves 1 tsp nutmeg 2 c nuts (optional) Directions: Mix the brown sugar and water in the bottom of crock pot. Mix remaining ingredients in large mixing bowl. Spoon mixture into crock pot over top the brown sugar/water mixture. Cook on high for 2 1/2 hours. DO NOT lift the lid at any time. Serve with ice cream

Servings: 4 Ingredients: 4 boneless center cut por chops, 3/8-inch thick 1/2 cup Italian salad dressing 1/2 cup barbeque sauce 1 teaspoon chili powder Directions: In a small bow, stir together Italian salad dressing, barbeque sauce, and chili powder. Place pork chops in a plastic container. Coat chops with 1/2 cup of sauce. Cover container and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or overnight. Drain marinade from pork and throw away. Heat non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Place pork chops in the skillet and cook for a few minutes on both sides. Pour the remaining sauce over the chops and cover the pan. Turn heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve immediately, topped with sauce. Suggestion: You can serve with corn and oven-roasted potato wedges

I changed things up a little bit again.. Hopefully making it easier for you to find what you need.. Now I added more labels to my 'Recipes' so if you are looking for something made with chicken, you can click on chicken.. if you would like something made in the crockpot you can click on crockpot, etc... If you are reading a recipe and see a label I could use please feel free to post it as a comment on that post. I just quickly went through the posts I have already had written so I may have missed things.. :o) Thanks!

I completely stole this from Carrie's Sweet Life Just thought it looked oh so yummy!! And it sounds very easy to say the least and I LOVE a good blondie!!! :o) Carrie said "I had saved this recipe a while ago as I fell in love with brown butter with these cookies." Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies (From: Our Italian Kitchen ) 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pan 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 2 cups packed light-brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 3 large eggs, room temperature 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 cup chocolate chips DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; spray parchment paper. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until it turns golden brown; remove from heat, and let cool. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. In the bow...

Ok so a friend of mine posted this recipe on facebook and I had to steal it and post it here because it sounds SO yummy and I want to be able to find this easily when I am ready to make it!! (Recipe taken from Vinessa Chapates-Thanks Ness!!!) 1 8oz package manicotti 1 8oz can Italian tomato sauce (I always just use spaghetti sauce normally the hunts cheapy, then put in extra seasoning if I want) 1/4 c chopped onion 1 clove garlic, crushed ( you can use the already minced stuff too) 1 tbsp butter 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese 1 cup cottage cheese 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese ( i just use the powder) 1 10oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese Cook manicotti using package directions; drain. cover bottom of 9x12 inch baking pan with 1/3 of italian sauce (or spaghetti sauce)  Saute onion and garlic in butter in small skillet until onion is tender. combine 1 cup moz...

INGREDIENTS 2 cups egg noodles 1 can cream of mushroom 1 pkg cooked and shredded chicken breast 1/4 cup cheese plain potato chips frozen corn, optional DIRECTIONS Cook egg noodles until done. Mix together  soup and chicken, add corn if desired. Stir together with noodles and put into a baking dish for baking. Sprinkle with cheese and crushed potato chips. Bake about 30 min at 350 or until done.

Here are some random pictures I have taken of the kids.. One cutie patutie at your service! She was ready to leave Kaylee's party.. She was pretty tired! Wearing daddy's boots! Showing off her 'button' Nathan practicing sitting up on his own while playing with Kaylee's 'un-mentionables' Silly little boy! I will be using this a blackmail if needed some day.. haha Lily, Kaylee, and Natalie Smoochie All four of them! (dont mind the mess in the background)

Natalie had tubes put in again yesterday.. We woke everyone up bright and early and had the babies at Lynn and Steve's so Erinn could watch them and then we headed to Kaylee's school to drop her off so she could sit with Lynn.. Then off to Methodist Hospital Joe, Natalie and I went.. Check in was at 8am for surgery at 9am.. Natalie whined the whole time that she was hungry and thirsty but she couldnt eat or drink anything so she went without.. Cant say I blame her though. I didnt eat or drink anything in front of her so I went without too.. Poor kid! I tried to get the earliest appointment in the day but 9am is all they had.. Finally around 8:50 someone came down to get us to bring us up to Natalie's room.. I was getting a little panicked when is was only 15 minutes before her surgery was supposed to start. Natalie was pumped and ready for getting her ears fixed! Until we got to her room and the nurse handed her some pretty ugly pajamas to change into. She argued and ...

These muffins are really good. The glaze really adds the little pop of lemon flavor which I love. Lemon Poppyseed Muffins (From: Dorie Greenspan) 2/3 cup (134g) sugar grated zest and juice of 1 lemon 2 cups (256g) all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup (150g) sour cream 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 stick (113g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 2 tablespoons poppy seeds Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter or spray the 12 molds in a regular-size muffin pan or fit the molds with paper muffin cups. Alternatively, use a silicone muffin pan, which needs neither greasing nor paper cups. Place the muffin pan on a baking sheet. In a large bowl, rub the sugar and the lemon zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and hte fragrance of the lemon strong. Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large glass measuring cup or a...

A classic favorite! 2 1/4 cup flour 1 tsp baking soda Pinch of salt Mix these 3 and set aside 2 sticks butter 3/4 c sugar 3/4 c brown sugar 1 tsp vanilla Mix together 2 eggs Added one at a time to above mixture Then add the flour mix slowly, once mixed add the chocolate chips Bake at 375 for 9-11 minutes

So Saturday was the offical start of Girl Scout Cookie Go Day! Kaylee is selling again this year but I am sure I have already mentioned that.. Kaylee ended up at the Mall of America with a friend.. This friend missed Kaylee's birthday party so they decided to take her shopping with them yesterday so she could pick out a gift. She ended up getting a hat, belt, keychain, bracelet, and a pair of flip flops (yes in the dead of winter)! :o) It sounded like she really enjoyed her day! Me, not so much.. Natalie complained all day of a tummy ache and she wouldnt eat a thing.. So to let the babies sleep we drove out to my parents house to sell some cookies for Kaylee.. On the way home, Natalie threw up all over herself in the van.. Nathan and Lily woke up with nasty colds.. green slimmers and all.. So needless to say we will be missing ANOTHER week of MOPS! I am so sick of missing MOPS and am just ready to call it quits.. Why even bother getting my hopes up to not be able to go.. :-/ No...

Photo from KRAFT Prep time: 20 min Total time: 40 min Makes 4 servings What You Need 1 pkg. (7-1/4 oz.) KRAFT Macaroni & Cheese Dinner 1/2 lb.  lean ground beef 1-1/2 cups spaghetti sauce 1 cup  KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese 2 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese   Make It HEAT oven to 350°F. PREPARE Dinner as directed on package, using the Light Prep directions. Meanwhile, brown meat in skillet; drain. SPOON half the Dinner into lightly greased 8-inch square baking dish; top with layers of half each sauce, meat and shredded cheese. Repeat layers. Sprinkle with Parmesan. BAKE 20 min. or until heated through.

Okay so I havent blogged in quite a while!! I am slacking! Sorry! I promise though that I have been VERY busy! For starters, we are looking at houses. We looked at grandma and grandpa's house, and it needs extensive TLC before it can be nice again. It makes me want to cry! As a matter of fact, I did cry on the way home and a few other times since walking through it. Thursday we are going to look at a 5br/2ba home by Joe's parents.. Wish us luck! Next we have Kaylee's birthday! Thats right!! She turned 8 last Friday!! It started out Friday night with a limo ride to go get an ice cream sundae because she did so well in a school fundraiser, then we headed to Pablos for dinner (birthday girls choice). There she got a free fried ice cream! The even put a candle in it and sang happy birthday to her! Dip stick me didnt think to take a picture of the lit candle or her blowing it out! Ugh! The Saturday we had both of her birthday parties. Her first was at the bowling alley with ...