Stuffed Acorn Squash

Time for another fall recipe!  I love squash!  I know it might not be many peoples favorite food but I encourage you to try it.  If you need to break yourself in then try baking the squash in the oven and putting brown sugar and butter on it.  Not really healthy but at least it will get you used to the texture and tastiness that squash can be!  Squash is a great source of fiber and potassium for your diet. 

 I tend to not actually cook exactly how a recipe says to (unless its baking...you can make huge mistakes in baking if you don't follow exact measurements!) so for this particular recipe I threw in extra celery, and you could even add in some of your own extras that might go well with the rest of the ingredients...nuts, mushrooms, etc.  One other added bonus.....it's an in season fall produce product and you know what that means?  They are cheap right now!!  Hope you enjoy!!

Stuffed Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

• 2 acorn squash
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 medium apple (peeled, cored, diced)
• 1/2 small onion (finely chopped)
• 1/2 celery stalk diced
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried sage
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 1/2 cup dried apricots
• 1/4 cup raisins or dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup apple cider (or juice)

Directions:

1. Pierce acorn squash all over with a knife or fork and microwave on high for 2 minutes.  Remove from microwave oven and let rest for 1 minute.  Cut squash in half from top to bottom (crosswise).  Scoop out seeds and membranes.
2. Place squash halves two at a time, cut side down in a microwaveable baking dish.  Add 1/4 cup of water then cover with plastic wrap.  Microwave on high for 5 minutes.  Repeat with other two halves. Cool and set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
4. In medium skilled saute onions until translucent.  Add in apples, onion, and celery and saute for 2-3 minutes.  Sprinkle mixture with thyme, oregano, and sage.  Stir in cooked rice, dried fruit (I only had raisins and cranberries so I just added more of these).  Add apple cider and cook until almost evaporated.
5. Place cooled squash on large nonstick cookie sheet.  Spoon stuffing into squash cavities.  Bake for 20 minutes.  

**The stuffing mixture should freeze fairly well so make extra and freeze for batches in the future for a quick fall meal***

Bon appetit and Happy Halloween!!
Does your family have any favorite fall meals or fall traditions??  Please share!

Grocery Shopping With...(GASP!) Your Children

As I was walking through the grocery store one day it suddenly occured to me that there was once a time when taking my daughter to the grocery store terrified me.  As a newborn...what if she cried?  What if she wanted to nurse and I was only half done shopping?  What if everyone looked at me and scoffed because she wouldn't stop crying?  The mere thought of it made me not want to ever go grocery shopping again, that is until I realized, I would have to.  Somehow I would have to find a new normal.  So I did.  Now I only have one child, but I think some of these tips will easily be applied when I have more than one child as well.

So here you go, a few tips that might help you as you venture out into the grocery store after welcoming your first born into the world, or maybe you are on #2 and you can't fathom how it will work with 2 kids now!  Hopefully these will help put your mind at ease a bit.

Image from Kolcraft.com

• Use a baby carrier-  I cannot recommend enough using a baby carrier for your baby while grocery shopping.  When you have a newborn, how in the world are you supposed to fit all of your stuff in the grocery cart if your car seat is in the basket?  I know you can put the baskets on some stores grocery carts seat areas (some stores won't work) but they never felt completely stable to me.  So I quickly learned to leave the car seat in the car and bring my carrier/sling with me into the store.  Makes for a much better experience, and typically your baby is less fussy nestled into you anyway.  When you have a baby and a toddler then piece of cake...toddler still gets to sit in the seat of the cart.

• Take snacks (and have backup snacks!)-  our trips to the grocery store go much better with an 18 month old if I have snacks with us.  I don't typically bring back up snacks (though I probably should!) but I just fill a sandwich baggy 1/3-1/2 full of whatever the snack is (pretzels, goldfish, crackers, Cheerios  etc) and let it sit next to Abbie in the grocery cart.  She is happy and content and I can get my shopping done.

• Treat your child with respect-  I know this sounds kind of funny, but hear me out on this.  Of course we all assume we treat our children with respect, but do you really?  In the grocery store for example, talk to them like you would anyone else.  Engage them in what you are doing.  Walking by the fruits and veggies section?  Talk to them about the different types and colors.  They are living beings who will someday need to be highly functioning adults.  Now you don't need to push them to learn too much and make every trip be a big ordeal but engage with them while you are shopping and chances are the distraction will help keep them better behaved.

• Give them something to look forward to-  On our trips I try and make sure to keep Abbie's interests in mind.  For us this means a stop at the fish tanks, or better yet...the lobster tank if the store is only a grocery store.  Abbie loves the lobsters, sometimes we even name them (that may be cruel...I dunno, but I find it hilarious!).  If your store doesn't have either, then take a trip down the toy aisle.  Set clear boundaries for your children though.  Make sure they understand that you aren't buying any toys today, just look at them and see if its something they could ask for for birthdays, or even save up their allowance to buy, etc.  I've found that when I set clear parameters, even with an 18 month old and I follow through with them, I get respect and less tantrums in return, since she knows what to expect.  

• Give yourself a break-  sometimes just leave the kids at home with your hubby and go enjoy a peaceful, whine free, shopping trip by yourself.  Heck buy yourself a latte on the way and lavish in the moment of complete silence in your car :)  

Happy Shopping!

Blessings,

Serving in Action

Do you remember back a month or so ago when I wrote this post on Serving Others?  Well I just wanted to share with you a way we put serving into action in our home.  I don't say this to make anyone feel guilty.  I just want to share with you what we did and how simple helping another really can be on tight budgets and tight schedules.  We chose to participate in our churches Baby Bottle Fundraiser.  This fundraiser raises money for a local pregnancy center called Pregnancy Resource Center.  It's so simple.  You are given a baby bottle to be returned by a certain date, and during that time you fill it with your spare change to donate back to the center.  We happen to have a large change jar in our house so we kind of cheated and just used money out of that instead of the accumulating day to day pocket change that we had, but regardless it was a more tangible way for Abigail to see how we could help other people.  Here she is filling up our baby bottles...

To give hope to many...

By being His hands and His feet!

How about you guys?  Any fun serving ideas out there??  

We are having a missions/service week at our church coming up and I am so excited that they would dedicate so much of their time into teaching others how Christ calls us to serve one another!!

Blessings Friends and Happy Friday!!

Bridget

A Fashion Post

In an effort to be more frugal and a better steward with our money, I haven't really gone fall shopping like I normally do by this time of year.  We've been using the envelope system in our house, doing away with credit cards, and rarely using the debit card.  It's actually really amazing how much money we were spending outside of our means just by using plastic more than cash.  I'm really starting to enjoy thinking before spending, though the toddler streak in me just wants to scream to get my way, it's freeing.  It's rewarding, and more importantly, God's changing my heart to be more patient and take care of the possessions He has given me.  So I thought it would be fun to do a fashion post once in awhile.  I'm one of those people who typically looks at everyone else and thinks they are super cute and have poor self esteem and poor body image but you know what....I am cute.  It doesn't take a million dollars to be fashionable, and I am not trying to be vain in saying this ladies.  Each of you really is beautiful!  As a person who struggled with an eating disorder (maybe more on that another day) I am constantly reading the word of God in order to help remind myself of His truth and how beautiful He thinks I really am.  How beautiful we all are!  As christian women I don't think we need to make ourselves intentionally unattractive.  

I Timothy 2:9-10 says "I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds appropriate for women who profess to worship God."

You know what that means ladies?  Don't wear shirts that are cut too low that cause our brothers in Christ to struggle, don't wear a skirt that pretty much already is up to your butt crack, and don't spend 3 hours in front of the mirror every single day obsessing over your outward appearance.  Notice the verse says "with decency and propriety?"  Propriety means suitable and appropriate.  The verse doesn't say wear a burlap body bag covering you your entire life so no one can see you....it says to be decent and appropriate.  If you are going to a business meeting than wear business attire.  Wear the cute skirt of appropriate length.  Wear the cute cami under a blazer as long as you chest isn't hanging out.  It's ok!  Just be appropriate and decent and you can still look cute!  The end of the verses really drives home how important it is to focus more on the internal changes of our hearts instead of the outward changes to our appearance.  It's all about balance ladies.  Take time to get ready but know when it's time to say when.  When does it cut too much into your time with your husband, your kids, your other God given responsibilities ..then you are spending too much time primping :)  

So here it is my first outfit post (5 years ago I never thought I would ever ever EVER post about a cute outfit but never say never!)

Mid thigh length cardi- Kohl's

Necklace- Rue 21 

Brown bead bracelets- Icing Claire's

Striped Tee- Old Navy

Brown stretchy belt- Vanity

Pocket Skirt- Banana Republic

Tights- Macy's

Brown Boots- Gordman's

Most everything I have owned for 2-3 years with the exception of the striped tee (Old Navy this past summer for $5, and the Skirt (Banana Republic for $8 on clearance...wahoo!!)  In the summer I wore this outfit minus tights and cardi with gray or brown flats or sandals.

Not bad eh?  All of it was in my closet and instantly converted to fall/winter attire.  

What's in your closet that you are converting from your summer outfits into your winter wardrobe?

Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet Potato Fries

It's no secret that one of my favorite seasons is fall, and fall never disappoints when it comes to food either.  One of my favorite fall foods is sweet potatoes!  So good and good for you.  In fact they are much better for you than regular potatoes.  Why?  Mostly due to their lower levels of sugar than regular potatoes.  They are much lower on the glycemic index (higher levels mean your blood sugar spikes much higher when you eat something) than regular potatoes and in addition great sources of fiber and Vitamin C.  I try to use them in our house as much as I can in place of regular potatoes and besides all that, in the fall you can buy them super cheap!  Now buying sweet potatoes and loading them up with butter and brown sugar isn't really gonna help you much in the health department so here is my Sweet Potato Fry Recipe:

1. Cut sweet potatoes into wedges or long fries.
2. Toss with a little bit of olive oil.
3. Place onto cookie sheet and spread into single layer
4. Sprinkle sweet potatoes with cinnamon (light dusting all over).
5. Sprinkle tiny amounts of cayenne pepper if you want a little bit of kick (a dab will do ya!)
6. Finish with a light dusting of kosher salt and place in oven at 375 degrees.
7. Bake for about 35-40 minutes (until tender) and serve.

Bon appetit!

Frugal Picture Collages Made Easy

How I Made my Picture Collage on a Super Tight Budget

So it didn't take me very long to get obsessed with the picture collages that you see on every home makeover blog and splashed everywhere on Pinterest.  I love the look of them.  Problem was, I was on a really tight budget.  Like...zero extra spending dollars after Abbie was born.  So my natural born love to shop was smothered and I had to find a new way to enjoy shopping.... aka not doing it! 

 The thing that has been so awesome in the last 18 months of Abbie's life, is that God has taught me so much about being a better steward with my money, and though I have so far to go, he has taught me to stretch my dollar farther with our grocery budget.  He has shown me how to make something out of nothing, and I (I'm about to say something I never thought I would say EVER!) have actually become appalled at spending full price on something now.  I better have a coupon, free shipping code, promotional code, or clearance price tag now to even consider purchasing things.  I used to hate sale racks.  I am learning to like them.  I don't love them yet.  I still get confused and overwhelmed by their lack of organization, but it's a working relationship.  I think in time we will learn to be good friends :)  


So as I was walking through my house today I realized that I used the same tactics for my picture collage wall that I made over a year ago now.  I hardly spent anything to make it. You really can make the project as expensive or as cheap as you want to.  For my own frugal  purposes here is what I used:

Materials:

• Several picture frames of various sizes, and even different shapes if you want (None of the frames even need to match.  Re purpose your own, buy them on a garage sale, or from thrift stores...they always have picture frames!)  I just re purposed mine.
• Spray paint- choose one color for cheapest option, or a few colors that coordinate.  I chose black.
• White computer paper/coordinating scrapbook paper colors
• Scotch tape
• Your favorite pictures

Total Project Cost:

If you re purpose your own frames, already own scotch tape, and computer paper it could be as cheap as the cost of a can of spray paint and printing the pictures.  I mostly used pictures I already owned and if not printed them off for like 10 cents each at Walgreens.  Spray paint is around $3 so I can confidently say you can do this project for about $5 if you want to be super cheap!

Instructions:

• Select the frames you want to use.  I laid mine out on a flat surface and rearranged them until I liked what the arrangement looked like.  Then I laid out my pictures in the frames to see what pictures I liked where.  Don't go print pictures until you know what your frame arrangement is cause you may change your mind about which pictures you want and the size you want them in.

• Once you have decided on the arrangement take a picture of it.  This will come in handy later when you are reassembling everything.

• Take the frames apart so the glass and back are no longer in them and spray paint them your desired colors.  I typically use an old cardboard box under these when spray painting unless you want your grass painted some random color.

• Wait for the paint to dry and paint a 2nd coat if you need to.

• Now for cheapness purposes I just used computer paper as my fake version of a picture frame matte cause I didn't want to spend money on picture frame mattes or card stock.  Since computer paper is 8.5 x 11 you will need to cut it down to fit your size frame.  Scrapbook paper would have to be cut down as well and I'm sure you can find it for cheap at Hobby Lobby or something when its 50% off if you wanted a more decorative option.

• Now I'm sure the picture frame matting world will yell at me for doing this so I am going to caution you to not use pictures you spent a ton of money to get printed for this project (Ex photos you bought from a professional....many photographers sell cd rights to you now though so you can choose whatever photo printing options you want....reason being?  I put tape on the back of my photos single sided or double sided to stick my pictures in place to the fake paper matte.  It's never damaged my photos as long as I only put the tape on the back of the photo.  I'm just warning you cause I don't want you to ruin something on accident.  I just put tape on the back of the photo,  center it and stick it down to my fake cheap paper matte and reassemble the frame.  

• Now just get out the prearrangement picture you took and hang up your collage.  

• So easy.  So cheap.  And honestly doesn't take long at all.

The finished project:

Happy picture wall collaging on a super frugal budget!!!!  

Blessings,

Bridget

Pumpkin Patch

Our lives have been so busy and so full lately.  I find myself in a time of transition.  Waiting.  Sorting thoughts.  Praying.  Anxiously awaiting.  Then praying against the being anxious part :)  God is so good and faithful.  Though we do not know all of his ways, my heart rests securely in the promise of His word from

Romans 8:28

 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose."

Though I don't understand the "whys" now.  I know good things are coming and I know that even though I don't understand, right now is still good.  Good news coming soon to share with you all.  I can't wait :)  Hopefully this week...if I get back to blog again this week!  

For now, I figured I would leave you with a few pictures of what we've been up to lately....

We visited a local pumpkin farm yesterday.  I grew up just a few miles down the road from a pumpkin patch.  It was a huge part of my life as a kid....my siblings and I all at one point in time worked there in someway shape or form so going to pumpkin patches in the fall is a no brainer in my opinion.  We will go....doesn't matter how cold or rainy it is.  All things fall and pumpkin make my heart smile!  So...we made the trek yesterday.  Just to one a few miles away.  It was pretty cold outside and I think Abbie was having a hard time with that.  She really didn't want to have anything to do with well...anything!  Nevertheless this mama ain't happy if she doesn't get at least a picture so here is our day in pictures.

 At least she isn't crying in this one :)

 She kind of liked the kids village play area

 She hated the petting zoo

Dangit I will get a family picture of us to remember the "fond" memory of Abbie's 1st Trip to the Pumpkin Patch....(let's be honest, she hated it!)

Finally in the car on the way home...eating.  Maybe that was what was wrong the whole time.  She was hungry?  I just fed her lunch and gave her a nap before we went though so who knows!  She was a happy girl once we left :) 

What is your favorite part about fall?  I'd love to hear....besides pumpkin patches my other favs are:  hoodies and jeans, bonfires, chili, and pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks or anything pumpkin flavored for that matter!

Until next time,

Bridget