Pajama Kids

Sorry it's just cute so I had to share!

Meet Mr. Bigglesworth!

We adopted another cat. Yes I realize we already have two, when you have two what's three really. A little more food. Plus I've always wanted an orange tiger cat. They're my favorites, and always males, which means they are friendlier and move lovable. Girl cats are well girls, temperamental and moody. He came with the name Clovis, but we were all in agreement that we didn't like it. After much discussion and throwing out names like Norman and Murray we decided on Mr. Bigglesworth. We call him Bigs for short. He's hanging in Alex's room for a few days to make sure he's healthy and let him get acclimated. The ladies are not pleased, though they have stopped hissing at the door and only do it when they actually see him. Better pictures coming later!

My New Toy

Dad and Lyn surprised us with a Keurig Coffee Maker! Yeah I love this thing. In case you are not familiar with them you can make one cup at a time. You just load the little K-cup in the top and there you go. It makes tea, coffee, cocoa. It's great for people like Allen and myself who like completely different coffees. This week I brought a cup every day to work rather than stop at Dunkin's! Check it out.

The Report Card

Alex got his report card for the 1st semester on Thursday. All A's for his subjects and mostly N's (well 50/50 N's and S's-Needs improvement and Satisfactory) for behavior. I had my first parent teacher conference. He's a motor mouth. He talks out of turn, answers questions for everyone, whistles, sings, makes sound effects and is now sitting directly in front of the teacher. Well, at least he stopped pulling pencils out of his shirt!

Alex's Spelling Test

Every week Alex has at least 2 tests on Friday, spelling and religion. Then there are added ones that switch up week to week, social studies, science, grammar, math etc. Now remember this is first grade. This was his spelling test this week

Child
Chill
Neck
Character
Christmas
School
Cheese

There were 3 more but I don't remember them. Allen had a spelling bee for his 7th graders and they couldn't spell character and almost died when they heard it was one of a 1st graders words. Public School is Scary!

Homemade Chicken Pie...yum!

I found this recipe on http://www.allrecipes.com/, which I highly recommend by the way-tons of recipes. Decided to give it a try and wow is it good. I followed some of the review recommendations to modify it slightly and it was awesome. Two big thumbs up from Allen.

1 lb. boneless chicken breast.

1 small bag mixed veggies (corn, peas, carrots, green beans)

1.2 cup cubed potatoes

1/3 cup butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

2/3 cup flour

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning

2 & 1/4 cups chicken broth

4/6 cup (or 2 2/3 cups since that's exactly what I did) milk

2 unbaked pie crusts (I used the prepackage Pillsbury and they were great)

In sauce pan combine the diced chicken, veggies except onion. Add water and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. In saucepan melt butter and cook onion until clear. Add flour and seasoning cook for about 5 minutes to make sure the raw taste is gone. Add the liquids, mix well and cook on med-low until thick.

Put first pie sheet in deep pie pan (I didn't realize there are deep and regular, but I had both), add chicken & veggie mixture. Pour hot liquid mixture over, cover with top crust and seal edges. Cut away extra dough and put a couple of slits for steam to escape.

Bake for 45 minutes at 375. After it's done let sit for about 10 minutes and serve!

Props!

So often we complain about a store that did us wrong, or a restaurant that was terrible or whatever. Allen and I went two places today that were just awesome so I thought I would share.

The first is McKinnon's. I know most of you already go there but I can't say enough about this place. I bought 4 & 1/2 pounds of chicken tenders and 2 lbs. of ground beef for $11. I split into freezer bags and now have dinner for 7 meals. That's not even $2 worth of meat per meal. Incredible!

The other place is Maddie's which is in the same plaza as McKinnon's but over by the gas station in the little plaza in front. Awesome breakfasts and reasonable. I had carb overload today with french toast made form cinnamon rolls. I now have to do an extra mile on the treadmill tomorrow but honestly it was worth every bite. We've been there I think 4 times over the last few months and I've gotten something different every time. Every time it was delicious. Service is spot on, coffee mugs are handed out when you walk in so if you wait so can get coffee during that time and prices are decent. Give it a try!