Simply Delicious Grilled Shrimp

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cajun seasoning  (or cayenne pepper)
• 2 lbs fresh, peeled, deveined shrimp

Cooking Instructions:

1.  Combine garlic, olive oil, tomato sauce, red wine vinegar and cajun seasoning in a large bowl. Then top with salt and fresh basil.
2.  Add shrimp, cover and marinate for 1 hour; stirring once or twice .
3. Soak wooden skewers in water during this time
4. Remove marinade and skewer shrimp
5. Lightly oil grill grate and grill 2-3 minutes per side

"Stuffed Zucchini Boats"

So, thanks to my sweet grandmother, I have several GIANT zucchini and decided to try some new recipes with these bad boys. And thanks to pinterest, I got some very good ideas and found one that I could put my own spin on so that my entire brood could enjoy :) It's a very simple recipe with few ingredients. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Ingredients

• Large zucchini
• 1lb lean ground turkey
• 1 cup of cooked brown rice
• 1/2 cup of chopped fresh basil
• 3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 tsp chopped garlic

Preheat oven to 375

1. Wash zucchini, cut in half (lengthwise)
2. Microwave 3-5 minutes, scrape and hollow out inside with a spoon
3. Saute garlic in about a tablespoon of olive oil, add and brown meat
4. Add and combine the remaining ingredients (I left about 2 tablespoons of cheese to sprinkle on top)
5. Stuff zucchini boats, sprinkle remainder of cheese on top and roast for 20-30 minutes

I was so hungry while making these I completely forgot to take pictures along the way :/

This is the finished product just before I devoured it :)

Life and other tid bits: DIY CLEANING PRODUCTS! I'M IN LOVE!!

Life and other tid bits: DIY CLEANING PRODUCTS! I'M IN LOVE!!: Welcome to the world of DO IT YOURSELF CLEANING PRODUCTS! In the past few days I have made the following: "Febreeze" Anti bacterial roo...

Pesto Pizza

PESTO PIZZA:

Ingredients:

• Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins OR Flat bread (that's what I use for mine)
• Pesto
• Raw, washed broccoli crowns (any other fresh veggie is great, this is what i had on hand at the end of the week)
• Parmesan cheese (freshly shredded is better, but use what you have!)

***add sundried tomatoes a litte feta cheese instead of parmesan***

1. Pre heat oven to 400
2. Cut broccoli into small pieces
3. Spread desired amount of pesto over sandwich thins or flat bread
4. top with broccoli and add small amount of parmesan cheese
5. Bake for 6-10 minutes
6. Remove from oven and cool for several minutes before serving, ENJOY :)

Easy, healthy meals in under 30 minutes

Quick & Simple :Chicken, broccoli, rice n cheese

Ingredients:

• 1-1 1/2lbs chicken breast, washed and cubed
• 2 large crowns of broccoli
• 1 cup rice (long grain or even minute rice)
• 2% shredded cheese OR parmesan (to lightly top)
• olive oil
• sea salt
• pepper

***add additional spices to flavor if desired, perfect dish to experiment with ;) This is the plain n simple version, perfect if you have picky eaters ;) You can also leave the cheese off or add more if desired. I just lightly sprinkle half a cup. OR if I'm using parmesan just enough to lightly cover.

 

1. Heat large non stick skillet on med-high heat, add olive oil (1-2 tablespoons)
2. Add chicken, salt and pepper & cook through until golden brown (stirring occasionaly)
3. IF you want your broccoli to be on the softer side, steam for 2-3 minutes before adding to chicken
4. Follow package instructions to cook your rice
5. Add broccoli and rice to chicken and stir lightly (turn burner down to low)
6. Top with your choice of cheese, melt and serve!

 

 

 

Spinach Salad:

• 8 cups baby spinach
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/3 cup dried  cranberries
• 1/4 cup Gorgonzola cheese

Toss the spinach, walnuts, cranberries and cheese together, and add balsamic vinaigrette

***this makes quite a big salad, 4 large servings to be exact***

Add 6oz of grilled chicken breast or even salmon if desired ;)

Chicken Curry Salad

• 3 cooked skiless, boneless chicken breast, cubed
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 1 cup green seedless grapes
• 1/2 cup almonds, slivered
• 1/3 cup grapeseed oil vegenaise or light mayo
• sea salt

Stir together chicken, celery, grapes, almonds, mayo and salt in medium bowl. serve as is or great stuffed in whole wheat pita bread :)

Upcoming blogs

I just wanted to say thank you to those of you who have been following me. I realize all of my posts have been DIY cleaning and organizing. I do have TONS of recipes, kid friendly recipes, clean eating and most importantly "kid stuff" , what ethan is up to and pregnancy goodies of all sorts. I'm just learning to manage my time on here so please stay tuned :-)

LINEN CLOSET MAKEOVER

Linen Closet makeover ;)

Okay, the before picture was actually taken after I had already pulled a TON of linens and towels and just JUNK out of there. I ended up donating a heap of stuff to goodwill and discarding several things. I did save a few mix matched sheet sets to use for drop cloths for painting (which i'm doing a lot of lately)


I used some baskets that I already had and purchased the blue ones at the DOLLAR TREE.
I was able to save so much space  by ROLLING my pillow cases,towels and baby towels and blankets.


I probably could have done a better job with my larger blankets. Maybe I will tackle them later.
Still  A HUGE improvement for me.

BEFORE

AFTER

Life and other tid bits: DIY CLEANING PRODUCTS! I'M IN LOVE!!

Life and other tid bits: DIY CLEANING PRODUCTS! I'M IN LOVE!!: Welcome to the world of DO IT YOURSELF CLEANING PRODUCTS! In the past few days I have made the following: "Febreeze" Anti bacterial roo...

Life and other tid bits: DIY cleaner *UPDATE*

Life and other tid bits: DIY cleaner *UPDATE*: I just wanted to update a few things from my previous DIY cleaning post. Floor Cleaner : I found it to be a bit overwhelming in the vine...

DIY cleaner *UPDATE*

 I just wanted to update a few things from my previous DIY cleaning post.

Floor Cleaner: I found it to be a bit overwhelming in the vinegar smell department in my first batch I made with sweet orange essential oil.  I tried a smaller batch with lemon grass and lavander, these both seemed to cut the vinegar stinch down quite a bit ;)

Dishwashing detergant: it CLUMPS within a day or 2. if you put some rice in a cheese cloth or even tie some into worn dish rag and place in the container it will absorb the moisture and voila! no more clumpage. I wasn't about to waste what I had made so i just chipped at it with a butter knife ;)

Laundry Detergent: I will be making my next batch with some Dove soap for a softer scent. While the Fels Naptha soap works well to clean, it is a tad strong for me scent wise. This could also be my super pregnant senses kicking in. 


Here's the BIGGEST FYI of them all:

One of the biggest PROS of DIY cleaners (for me anyway) is the low low cost and having most of the ingredients on hand. It only takes a very SMALL amount with each cleaning. The first several times I used my cleaners I had the tendancy to load it up like I would with previously used store bought cleaners. You DO NOT NEED TO USE MORE THAN A TABLESPOON.
ex: i really layered on the grease cutter onto my stove and oven to clean, this left it a tad filmy and I had to wash with water and whipe over several times. My next attempt i used just 2 squirts and VOILA! perfectly clean, no streaks.
I have found the same goes for each of the products! This is awesome, they will last so much longer than store bought. And people I clean every day! Especially my kitchen.

I've started myself on a "weekly schedule" to try and break down my cleaning and give myself more time during the day to dedicate to more projects with my son. I'm into my 2nd week and must say it's working brilliantly ;) Instead of cramming all my cleaning into one day, I have set ONE big "chore" for each day. ex: Floors, bathrooms, laundry (i have to do this at least 2 days to stay on top of it) and I give myself a "project" day as well. I vacuum and dust every day out of habit and my kitchen is cleaned every meal. I know it's extravagant, but, it's just how I do things.
So, if you are finding yourself struggeling a bit cramming all your major cleaning into one day or you would like to have more time to dedicate to other aspects of your life, I urge you to give this a try ;)

DIY CLEANING PRODUCTS! I'M IN LOVE!!

Welcome to the world of DO IT YOURSELF CLEANING PRODUCTS! In the past few days I have made the following:

•  "Febreeze"
• Anti bacterial room spray
• All Purpose Cleaner
• Bathroom/Tile Cleaner
• Window Cleaner
• Clorox wipes"
• Floor Cleaner
• Dish detergent
• Laundry detergent
• Baby Wipes
• Make up remover Wipes
• Refills for my wallflowers!!

That's right!! I have made and tested each and every one of them and I am so happy and proud to say they are ALL AMAZAZING!!! YES, AMAZAZING!!!

You only need a few simple (and cheap) products!

• BORAX
• WASHING SODA
• CASTILLE SOAP
• BAKING SODA
• WHITE VINEGAR
• ESSENTIAL OIL (I USED LAVENDAR AND ORANGE BLOSSOM, YUM!)
• FELS NAPATHA
• LEMISHINE
• RUBBING ALCOHOL
• COCONUT OIL
• ROLL OF PAPER TOWELS (I USED VOILA FOR THE SOFTNESS AND DURABILITY)
• Dawn soap (BLUE)

This is the COMPLETE LIST of products I used to make ALL of the above!
IF you want to make the homemade clorox wipes you'll need an old t-shirt ;) and of course a few containers and spray bottles.

Luckily I had a lot of these already on hand.

Okay so...here's the steps for EACH product :)

Laundry Soap:

• 1 cup borax
• 1 cup washing soda
• 1 bar Fels Napatha soap ( these are all together in the detergent section of walmart!)
• OR dove/ivory white (this is my prefrence)

1. you will need to grate the soap (cheese grader) and I also ran mine through my food processor to get it nice and fine.
2. mix all these together and store in an air tight container
3. you only need 1 tablespoon per load! that's right 1 tablespoon!

Dish Detergent

• 1 cup Borax
• 1 cup Washing Soda
• 1/2 cup Mortons Salt
• 1/2 cup Lemishine

1. Simply mix all the ingredients and store in container
2. wrap some rice in a cheese cloth (or something similar) to draw in moisture to prevent clumping!!)
3. Use 1 tablespoon per load! I use a little white vinegar in the rinse aid to eliminate any spotting.

Anti Bacterial Room Spray  (love love love!)

• 1 cup water
• 20 drops essential oil (I used Lavender )

1. Mix the 2 in a spray bottle and VOILA! enjoy!!

"Febreeze"

• 1/8 c fabric softner
• 2 tablespoons baking soda
• warm water

1. start with fabric softner, then baking soda, fill the remainder of the 32oz bottle with water!
   (works wonders with pet odor!)

"Wallflower refills" (from bath and body works)

• Essential oil of your choice (this time I used lavender and orange blossom b/c i already had it)
• warm water

1. Remove wick, rinse bulb out
2. fill bulb 1/3 of the way with the oil
3. fill rest with warm water (not so full it overflows when you re insert wick)
4. re insert wick and your done!

All Purpose Cleaner (loooooove)

• 3 Tablespoon white Vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon Washing Soda
• 1/2 teaspoon Castille soap
• 2 Cups hot water

1. Simply mix into spray bottle and you are ready!! This works wonderfully in my Kitchen!

Bath, Sink, Tile Cleaner (this worked wonders in my bathroom!)

• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1/2 cup Castille soap
• 2 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• few drops of tea tree or other essential oil

1.  mix them all into a sturdy spray bottle (i had to use a thicker "straw" for the spray bottle)

***Shower, Bathtub Cleaner***

• 12oz vinegar
• 12oz Dawn soap (BLUE)

1. Heat vinegar in microwave, pour into squirt bottle
2. add soap to vinegar and gently "shake" to mix.

This works wonderfully! I now only use the above cleaner for the tiles in the master bathroom!

Glass Cleaner

• 1 cup rubbing alcohol
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar

1. Mix them up in a spray bottle and there ya go.
2. OR mix equal parts water and vinegar and use newspaper for a streak free finish ;)

Furniture Dusting Spray

•  2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp lemon essential oil
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1 3/4 cup water

1. mix ingredients into spray bottle , light shake and you are ready to use! Shake spray before each use (oil will settle on top)

Counter top/ Appliances

•  Rubbing alcohol
• Dawn liquid soap
• essential oil (lemon, lavender, orange etc)

1. Fill spray bottle about 1/8 full of rubbing alcohol (use less for smaller bottles)
2. add a few drops of dawn and essential oil of your choice, fill the rest with water, shake to mix.
3. Ready to use!

Shower door, before (dawn/vinegar cleaner)

 AFTER!!

 Garden tub fresh n clean

 look at that shine :)

 my sons tub



For the "homemade clorox wipes and baby wipes aaaand makeup remover wipes I'm going to refer you to the link I used, enjoy!
http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2011/11/homemade-clorox-wipes.html?showComment=1321206144001#c7156161311817350679

Some of my MANY "Projects" I have going on

First of all let me say that I have like many, recently discovered www.pinterest.com IF by chance you have not stumbled upon this absolute TREASURE of a site I highly recommend you check it out!

That being said...Here are some of the projects I am working on. Thanks to fabulous pinners on pinterest who have limited space like I do I have been able to re organize my kitchen (most importantly the tiny pantry) into a tidy, fully functioning space! hooray!!

Here is a  link to the website I used for my inspiration :)

http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com

my before (i forgot to take the picture before i emptied it all, it was awful.)

AFTER (however this is NOT the finished product, i have a few more things to do so i will post finished product ASAP, but, you still get the idea ;) )

Stay tuned for my tupperware cabinet (YIKES) and cookware cabinet!

Welcome to the New Year! 2012 of course

Wow, Is it 2012 already? So much going on this year and in the first few months! My son, Ethan, turns 3 on January 23rd. This in itself is mind blowing to me. He is growing SO fast! Everyday is something new with him. And though not always a pleasant  experience, I don't want to miss anything.
Speaking of mind blowing!! I'm halfway through my pregnancy! First half literally flew by. I am very excited to be welcoming a baby girl, Ella Marie, in May. My favorite time of year, spring :)
This morning Ethan and I spent a lot of time outside for the first time in weeks. Which makes me feel pretty cruddy as a mom. We usually spend most of our time outside. But, between the cold weather and the not feeling so great the first few months of pregnancy our time outside had dwindled. I'm happy to say those days are behind us and we can get back to our outdoor nature. Just have to bundle up!
We also went on our first good run in a month! THAT felt amazing!(Todays weather has put me in the  mood for a good hike!) What I enjoy the most is how that feeling can snowball into my actions for the rest of the day. From what I eat to my mood. Which I have really needed to "improve" in both of these departments! I'm happy to be back in a good routine and also having my son on a better one as well. Its amazing what a difference healthy meals and snacks and exercise make within my sons attitude as well.
 I've been struggeling with this, discipline when it comes to Ethan and his meltdowns.  And don't get me started on the pacifier. Were back down to just naptime (when he'll nap) and bedtime. I am hopefull by getting him back to a healthier/cleaner diet (which is what he's been on up until the past 6 months) this will help. Other suggestions are more than welcome!!
So, my goals for now...Stick with daily routines, clean eating for my whole family, not just me. And staying active for the whole family. (oh! on that note, I ordered some prental/postnatal workout and yoga dvds!)
What are some of yours?