Weekend Plans... Easter 2013

How can it be that Lent passed so quickly and we find ourselves on the eve of Good Friday? I wish I could say I accomplished everything I had intended in my heart this Lent, but sadly, that is not true. Friday we will spend time in quiet reflection and prayer and on the suffering of our Lord...In addition to fasting, we will spend the hours between 12 and 3 in quiet prayer, using the Stations of The Cross as our guide. We will have a simple supper of fish and then make a few preparations for our holiday meal on Saturday.


Saturday we are having my parents and my sister and her husband in for an early holiday meal. We are eating around 3:00, as Madison works Saturday evening. I am planning ham, cheesy potatoes, cucumber and onion pasta salad, broccoli casserole, and a yummy cherry delight for dessert. Peyton has promised to give me a hand in the kitchen! Yay! Saturday evening, we will spend preparing for both our Savior and on a smaller scale...the Easter Bunny himself!


Easter Sunday is looking to be a bit warmer here. We will attend an early Mass dressed in our finest to celebrate the Risen Lord and return home to quickly change and begin to hunt for Easter baskets! Easter Sunday will be a quiet family day here with just the six of us together...my favorite kind of day...We will snack on leftover ham on sandwiches and lots and lots of chocolate eggs, I hope!


That is what our plans look like for this Easter Weekend...I hope you and your families have a blessed, happy, peaceful Easter Day as we celebrate the Risen Lord! Thanks so very much for sharing your lives and families with me! Happy Easter friends!

Last weekend, we decided on some last minute Easter cookies...

Peyton was in charge and I supervised...

all went well. And boy, were they yummy!

All ready for Mass last Saturday...

and another...

and just one more!

Her Easter Bow

And winter was not done with us yet...

Flynn was a bit concerned that the Easter Bunny might get confused, and think it is still Christmas...

Happy Easter! : )

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Rhett's Holy Week school project...the perfect way to spend some time on Good Friday, don't you think?

A Touch Of Easter

As soon as our St. Patrick's Day dinner was over, we said goodbye to all the shamrocks and leprechauns and packed them away until next year. Now normally, I would leave them up a bit longer, but another special day is quickly approaching and that means only one thing...time to decorate for Easter and spring. Never mind that we were right in the middle of a snow and ice storm, right? In any case, here are a few pictures of our home all decked out for Easter.

These precious bunnies take their spot on the kitchen table every year...

right next to our Easter snack dishes.

This cute signs hangs near my desk...

right around the corner from these...

and these. The kids made these in Kindergarten, and I love them so...I hang them up every year.

My mom got this for me when I was first married. I still remember Madison putting the baby bunny inside, and now Flynn does the same.

The Easter mantle...

and the book basket underneath. Those beautiful bunnies are my mom's. She used to put them in the big bay window in our house when I was little. When she and my dad moved into their apartment, she gave them to me. But don't tell my sisters...I don't think they know...

The holiday tree...

with bunnies and chicks...

and the movie basket complete with bunny glasses and plastic eggs.

This cute little guy rests on the bookcase...

near the most adorable Little People set ever.

I can't forget our treat of choice... which somehow tastes even better all decked out for Easter.

And finally, our Bunny Cake candle which, burns every evening in our cozy home.

Happy Easter!

Weekend Plans

The first weekend of spring is here! Hooray! And even better...we have no plans! I considered tackling our spring cleaning on Saturday, but we still have snow and ice, which means all kinds of pebbles and random yucky stuff are still getting tracked in. Plus it is going to be all of  35 degrees and I really like to throw open the windows and get some fresh air in while we clean. If it sounds like I am justifying a lazy weekend...I am. : )

Friday night is free of any plans. Madison even has off, so I think we will have fish fries and a movie night. Next week is the last week for fish fries at our church. Get 'em while we can, right? And in place of a movie, we have been watching episodes of one of my very favorite shows...The Brady Bunch. We have all 5 seasons on DVD, and my kids love them! I love that because I have been watching that show my whole life. When I was in high school, it was on at 4:35 on TBS. My sisters and I watched everyday. When I was in college, all my friends would watch and go to dinner right after. Remember that, Marian? : ) We would all meet in the hall as soon as it was over. My kids are amazed because I can tell what episode it is almost as soon as the first scene appears!

Saturday is free of all plans except Palm Sunday Mass. I think I may do a few smaller jobs like clean out my desk or the linen closet. We will have Mass in the early evening, then a simple supper of sloppy joes and chips with fruit. Saturday night will find us home in our cozy house, just the way I like it!

Sunday Madison works at 4:00, so I am planning our main meal early in the day before she goes. I am having pasta with tomatoes, garlic toast and fruit salad. Once we eat and clean up...we will have a quiet afternoon of rest before packing up for the start of a new week. Holy Week! Such a special time of year...Well, that is what we have planned for this first weekend of spring. I hope your weekend is happy and spring-y and peaceful, whatever your plans may be.

Found this at the store this week...yummm!

 

 

Our St. Patrick's Day table all ready for sausage and cabbage...

 

 

 

with a piece of lime jello poke cake for dessert.

 

 

What do you do when it is St. Patrick's Day, and you still have a bag of these?

 

 

 

Pick out the red ones and make cookie bars with the green ones, of course!

 

 

My little sweetheart in her daily outfit of choice...jammies!

 

 

And winter had one last gift for us...

 

 

a snow and ice storm on its last full day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pierogie Lasagna

If you are in need of a new recipe for Lent, look no further. This is one of our family favorites, but for some reason, I don't make it all that often. It comes together fairly quickly, and is delish. I usually serve it with steamed carrots and applesauce. I found this recipe in one of my favorite sources...a Gooseberry Patch cookbook. Enjoy!

                                                   Pierogie Lasagna


Ingredients  1 Box Lasagna Noodles,
                       cooked and drained
                       2 cups mashed potatoes...
                       I use instant to save time!
                       2 eggs, beaten
                       8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
                       Garlic salt and pepper, to taste
                       1/2 cup butter
                       1 onion, chopped


Directions   Arrange a layer of cooked
                     noodles in a  13x9 baking pan, sprayed
                     with Pam. Combine potatoes,
                     eggs, cheese, and seasonings;
                     layer between noodles, finishing
                     with a layer of noodles.
                     Melt butter and cook onion until
                     soft. Pour onion mixture over
                     lasagna. Cover with foil and bake
                     at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
                     Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

From The Files Of...I Agreed To What?

Do you ever have those moments as a wife and mother where you are participating in a conversation, but in retrospect, you realize that obviously you actually heard nothing that was said? Perhaps it was because you were loading the dishwasher, checking homework, and mentally calculating if you have enough milk in the fridge to get through until morning, all while looking at the clock and deciding if your toddler could skip her bath that night? I admit it. I do. And here is the proof...

 ( Love Flynn peeking around here! )

Yep...that would be a full set of drums. In my basement. Right beneath my family room. At some point during the past few weeks, I somehow agreed to this. At least the remaining members of my family tell me I did...Yes, it is louder here in my cozy, country home these days, but when I go down and see this, how can I not be so very happy for my son? And glad that I don't remember half of the things I agree to.


He is really quite good, and Madison's boyfriend Ryan plays too, so he is giving him a hand. Add those drums to this... which is Ryan's and somehow has taken up permanent residence in my basement as well...

and we almost have a band! Madison sings, so perhaps we have the new Partridge Family here! : )  And if you are too young to know who The Partridge Family is ...I'm sorry. Not really...I'm jealous.

Weekend Plans

Usually, this is where I say, "The weekend already?"...but this week seemed soooo long. We decided it was due to the time change. Ugh... Needless to say we are indeed happy that Friday is here once again. Friday evening we are free. I am planning a family favorite... pierogii lasagna for dinner. I usually serve it with steamed carrots and applesauce. After dinner, we will probably watch some tv and try to stay awake long enough to pick Madison up from work at 10.

Saturday during the day we are free as well, and I am planning on getting some odds and ends done around the house. The kids and I may tackle drawers and closets and weed out some outgrown clothes. We have Mass in the early evening, and then Steve and Rhett are going to a Knights of Columbus Dinner and Raffle. Madison has work, so Peyton, Flynn, and I are planning on Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen. My kind of night!

 Sunday is St. Patrick's Day, a favorite holiday here in this house. Dinner will be smoked sausage and cabbage with a lime jello poke cake for dessert. After the fun, we will pack backpacks and lunch bags and prepare for a brand new week. That is what we will be up to this chilly March weekend. I hope yours is happy, and green, and cozy, whatever your plans may be. I am so glad you stopped by!

All ready for Mass on Saturday...

and finally outside making her first ever Frosty the Snowman on Sunday. Don't you just love my thrown together hand me down winter boots and gloves paired with a spring jacket and no hat because it was almost 60 degrees?

Frosty himself...upon completion, Flynn admired him for a mere 2 seconds before proclaiming, "Now let's make Rudolph!"

March cupcake delivery...boy, do these months pass quickly!

5 Things And A Liebster

So the awesome and adorable Brooke from dietel days tagged me in post and I was thrilled! Brooke is a super sweet mommy with the cutest little girls! I am supposed to share 5 things about myself and answer her questions before I tag 5 ladies myself. So here we go...

5 Things... I did a 5 Things Post recently and if you are really interested in how I once had a cat  that I thought was a Chelsea that turned out to be a Chester...here is the link.

Now on to Brooke's questions for me...

1. Do you subscribe to any magazines, and if so what are they?

    Love to read, mostly books, but I do get Real Simple which I

    love with my afternoon coffee...

 2. Best dessert you ever had?

   

     Oh Brooke, how much time do you have? I love dessert.

      Period.  But if I had to pick,  I'd say the sweet piece of
      baby cake I had at each of my Proud Parent
      Dinners before I left the hospital with my brand new baby.

3. If money didn't matter what is the one thing you would

    splurge on right now?

    Hmmm, probably a new house for my parents.

4. Dream vacay? DISH!

    Ok, so you know how exciting and adventurous I am, right?

    So I'd say a week at a beautiful log cabin overlooking a

    crystal clear lake with a huge

    front porch. We would swim and fish and read

    and I would bake and swing on a hammock in the yard. We

    would play board games and watch

    movies. The beds would be super clean with fresh smelling

    quilts and white sheets. We would be

    all alone, just the six of us, with WI FI of course! : )

5. Share something that made you smile or LaughOutLoud

    today.

     Flynn answering the phone today and expecting

    every person to be her Daddy, and then trying

    to convince them that they should indeed be Steve.

6. If there was one thing that you could learn how to do

    what would it be?

     Ok...sew. Like I seriously cannot thread a needle.

     At all. It is sad.

7. What are your hobbies?

     Hobbies? Hmmmm does this count? Ok, reading, and

     playing with my kids.

8. Summer plans?

     Being outside! Walking outside. Eating outside. Oh and

     sitting on the porch eating Dairy Queen.

9. Do you hit the "snooze" button in the morning and

    if so how many times?

    Never. For real. I have this weird ability to get right up

     and get going. I know, right?

10. If your day had a soundtrack what would be the top 3 songs?

      Anything by The Fresh Beat Band. : )

 Ok... so here are the awesome blogger friends I am tagging...

Sarah, Valerie, Kari, Sarah, and Megan.


Here are your questions, and don't forget to nominate 5 people and to share 5 things about yourself!!


1. Would you rather drink coffee or tea?

2.  Who is your favorite television mom of all time?

3.   What color was your first prom dress, and do you
       still have it?

4.   What is your favorite meal to eat? And to prepare?

5.    What is your ideal day? Staying home, or going out?

6.    What is your favorite movie ever?

7.     What is your best memory of  High School?

8.     How did you choose you first child's name?

9.     What is the most random thing about you?

10.    Which of your child's tv shows would you choose to run
         for a 24 hour marathon in your home?

Thanks, Brooke! That was fun!

A Touch Of The Irish

I packed away the winter snowmen, and the Valentine's Day decorations too. The house looked really bare, and I figured it was time to break out the green! Here is our home all decked out for St. Patrick's Day!

The St. Patrick's Day mantel...

with the book basket underneath.

A shamrock pillow for my rocker...

with the holiday tree nearby.

Here is what it looks like all put together!

This cute little sign hangs in the mudroom...

and this one is near my desk.

My March folder in the basket on my desk...

and this little sign, Madison's favorite, hangs in the hall.

This cute little guy rests on our bookcase in the tv room...

watching over these cute Little People!

anad finally, our Lucky Shamrock candle burns every evening in our home!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!