Summer Bucket List Final Update

With summer coming to a close, I thought I should give a final update on our bucket list. We didn't get to all the things on the list, but summer was a blast!

Original List:

1. Have a sleep over with friends.
2. Make a back yard splash pad.
3. Plant a garden
4. Run a lemonade stand
5. Short stay-cation
6. Go to local carnival
7. See the animatronic dinosaurs at the zoo
8. Go hiking
9. Have a picnic at the park
10. Visit friends

What we accomplished:

1. Sleep over
2. Back yard water mattress instead of splash pad
3. Garden
4 Went to 2 carnivals (We love Carnivals!)
5. Visited friends
6. Had several picnics in the back yard.
7. Short stay-cation

Our stay-cation was the most expensive item on this list. I would like to share with you how we did it on a budget. We went to Chicago for 2 nights and 3 days. Initially we were going to stay in a friend's condo, but we had to change the date at the last minute and stayed in a hotel. I used hotels.com to book our room. I highly recommend this site for booking hotels. We stayed in the Best Western at Grant Park. We went to the aquarium, the Willis Tower, the beach, Buckingham Fountain, and Lincoln Park Zoo. As you can see we crammed a lot into a few days, but the beach and Zoo were free (you pay to park at the zoo). I prepaid our tickets to be able to bypass the ticket lines at the Willis Tower and aquarium. I didn't think Bubba would do well standing in long lines.

As for food, it is difficult to find a inexpensive hotel in the city that offers any kind of breakfast, so we brought our own. I also packed the individual drink mix packs and water bottles for the kids. This saved on drink costs. Whenever possible, we (the adults) would share a meal with the kids. We did have one nice meal out with friends at Gino's East. Our very generous friends paid. A big thanks to them for that fun dinner. I did splurge on Starbucks coffee since there isn't one where I live. I was in heaven for a few minutes everyday.

Whenever we could, we walked to our destinations, however, that isn't always feasible with two small kids. We did take a taxi three times. The kids thought that the taxi was so cool because they didn't have to sit in car seats!

For all this fun we paid just under $1000.00. This price in includes everything from gas to my Starbucks. However, the best part was all the fun we had together.  

Zucchini Lasagna - They Will Eat It

Every summer my parents grow a wonderfully large garden. Since it is just the two of them, they always have extra vegetable to share with family and friends. I love getting free stuff, so I am always happy to reduce my grocery bill by taking some extra veggies off their hands. However, I don't always know what to do with veggies like zucchini. My kids are little, so they are hit or miss when it comes to food. My husband thinks he might just die if he (knowingly) eats a vegetable, and I think zucchini bread is disgusting.

I turned to the Internet to see what people do with this vegetable. I found several posts on how to make zucchini lasagna. Everyone in this house likes lasagna - well actually if red sauce is put on it we will eat it. After reading about four recipes, I chose the one that seemed the easiest and began making the delicious dinner.

I used this recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/02/zucchini-lasagna.html , but changed it to fit with what I had in my pantry because I wasn't about to run to the store.

Here's what you need with my changes to the recipe:

• 1 lb 93% lean beef                                                                 (I used venison.)
• 3 cloves garlic                                                                        (minced garlic)
• 1/2 onion
• 1 tsp olive oil                                                                         (vegetable oil)
• salt and pepper
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes                                                   (Jar of Ragu)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil                                                     (Didn't use )                                                    
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8" thick                                     (1 large)
• 15 oz part-skim ricotta
• 16 oz part- mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/4 cup Parmigiana Reggiano                                                 (store brand)
• 1 egg

Steps:

1. Slice the Zucchini and sprinkle it with salt. This will dehydrate the zucchini some so it won't be so watery.
2. Brown the meat with the garlic and onion drain the fat.
3. Put the meat and the sauce back in the pan and warm it.
4. In another skillet, place 1 TBS olive oil and heat up. Place the zucchini in the hot oil 2 minutes on each side.
5. Once all the zucchini is seared,  mix together the ricotta, reggiano, and egg,
6. Place a layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Then layer with zucchini and ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with cheese. Repeat till you run out of ingredients and top with shredded cheese.
7. Cover and bake at 375 for 45 minutes.
8. Freeze left overs.

I hope your family likes it as much as mine!

Easy Dinner From: Kroger Deli Review

Recently, as a BzzAgent, I was able to try Kroger's Deli fried chicken with my family. I was glad to get this campaign because, I am always looking for tasty quick dinners for that one night a week we have activities.
After receiving my BzzKit, I checked the calendar to see when I could use this meal to benefit my busy families schedule. I saw that there was a Friday night that we were traveling home for a busy weekend with family. This was the perfect opportunity to try Kroger's Deli Fried Chicken because not only my family could see what it was all about, but so could my parents. When we arrived, I picked up the chicken right from the Kroger Deli. It was hot and ready! My daughter said in the car, "Mom, what smells so good?" I told her that it was dinner. She was very happy with that answer. At my parent's house, we paired the 8 piece chicken with potato salad and carrots. The meals was quick, inexpensive, and very good. My daughter ate two pieces for dinner and asked for another as a snack.
I will definitely keep the Kroger Deli Chicken in mind as an option for busy night dinners.

Disclosure* As a BzzAgent I assure you that the above opinions are my own, and I didn't receive compensation for this review.

Homemade Ice Cream Cake

My husband isn't much of a desert eater, but he loves ice cream cakes from Dairy Queen. So this Father's Day, instead of buying one I thought I would give it a go at making my own. The only way I was going to even attempt this is if I could find a recipe for the crunchy part in the middle. Lucky for me, I found one and to my surprise it only had two ingredients!

I bought all the ingredients and set forth to create this yummy, cute cake. Now, I have to fill you in on some helpful hints to make this easier for all of you; if you choose to make your own cake.

1. If one of your ice cream layers is chocolate, put it as the bottom layer so the ice cream doesn't melt and mix with the frosting.
2. Freeze the cake after each frosting layer. This makes it easier to smooth the frosting and make a pretty cake.

Okay so lets get on with this:

What you need:

1. 2 flavors of ice cream
2. Something for a base: ie: brownies, cake, pie crust
3. Magic Shell
4. Oreos (I used store brand)
5. Frosting
6. Pan (I used a round pan)
7. Plastic wrap

Here's what your do!

Line the pan with plastic wrap. Put the base of your cake in first.

I used a marble cake that was frozen from Bubba's birthday.

Take out the first layer of ice cream and let ti thaw out.

When the ice cream is the consistency of frosting, spread it on top of the base.

Then gently fold the plastic wrap over the ice cream layer and put it in the

freezer till frozen.

To make the awesome crunchy layer:

Take 2 rows of the cookies and smash them up very small.

I did this in a food processor. If you do not have one, put

the cookies in a baggie and smash them with a rolling pin or soup can.

 

 

Once the cookies are all smashed add the entire bottle of magic shell and mix.

It should look something like this. I know it looks yucky,

but it is so good!

Add the cookie layer on top of the first layer of ice cream and put it back in the freezer for 20 minutes. Now put the final layer of ice cream on top. Then put the cake back in the freezer to set. When it has set, spread the icing on top and decorate.

*** Sorry the rest of the pictures were deleted from my computer and camera.

Bucket List Update: Backyard Water Mattress

This activity was not on the original bucket list, but I saw it online and had to try it. It was not difficult to make, but did take about 45 minutes to construct. Plus some additional duct tape because I am not a skilled duct taper. Anyhow, once it was filled and all holes fixed the kids had a great time playing!



 

 

 

If you want to make this all you need is:

 

1. Plastic painters drop cloths

 

2. Duct tape (I needed 2 rolls)

 

3. Water

 

What to do:

 

1. Unfold or roll 4 drop cloths

2. Put 2 cloths together on top each other to make them double thick

3. Tape them together and do the same to the other 2 cloths

4. Put the 2 newly taped sides on top of each other and tape them together, but leave a hole on one corner.

5. Insert hose in the opening and fill with water.

6. Tape the hole closed.

7. ENJOY!

 



Summer Bucket List

For the last two summers, I have either been pregnant or had a new baby which made summer kind of dull. This summer, even though I'm working part time; I wanted to make sure we have a great time. Soon my little ones will be too busy with friends and activities to hang with their super cool mom.

I definitely want to have an awesome memorable summer, but we are on a budget. So I have been reading magazines, looking on the web, and asking other people to compile a list of things we can do this summer.

I have creatively named the the list: Summer of 2013 Bucket List

I know, I know, I'm incredibly creative.

Here's the list so far.

1. Have a sleep over with friends.
2. Make a back yard splash pad.
3. Plant a garden
4. Run a lemonade stand
5. Short stay-cation
6. Go to local carnival
7. See the animatronic dinosaurs at the zoo
8. Go hiking
9. Have a picnic at the park
10. Visit friends

We have started some of these and the stay-cation is in the planning process. Non of these things are too terribly exciting or expensive. The memories of doing these things together as family will make all the difference to my children.



Playtex Bra Review

Playtex has come out with a new bra, and as a BzzAgent I was able to try it out for free. This bra campaign from Playtex boasts that the Playtex Secret bra has not only great style, but a perfect fit as well. This bra comes in what the brand describes as true shades. One will not find this bra with flashy colors, yet variations of skin tones. Naturally, I was very excited to try this bra out.

As a mom of two, I have a hard time finding bras that fit properly. I hate shopping for bras because they look and feel fine in the store, but at home the bra doesn't fit or once I start moving it is very uncomfortable. I also prefer my bras to be natural colors, so I can just grab them and go. When I was chosen for this BzzCampaign, I was happy to give a different bra a try. I ordered a 36 DD in beige with under wire. The style is full coverage which is what I typically buy. When the bra arrived, I took tried it out right away. The fabric felt nice against my skin. The straps didn't dig into my shoulders and the around band stayed in place. However, the bra lacked side cup support. As a mom of two, I definitely need some added support on the sides. So my breast were pointing East and West and it was noticeable through my shirt. I wore the bra for the rest of the day, since I wasn't going anywhere. I was able to wear it all day without any discomfort.

If I did not need the bra to provide more side cup support, I would consider buying the new Playtex bra sold at Kohl's for around $35.00. The bra is comfortable and gives great coverage, but if you are like me and need the side support . . . this bra will not work for you.

**Disclosure: As a BzzAgent, I attest these comments and opinions are genuinely mine. I was not compensated for completing this product review.