For This Season

Fish Sticks – Dairy Free Meal Idea

Becky Marie — Fri, 24 May 2013 22:00:13 +0000

This meal plan is part of my 31 days of Dairy Free Dinners. You can find the entire list of ideas here.

Fish sticks are one of my quick and easy meals that I like to keep in the freezer. It can be a bit of a challenge to find frozen fish sticks without milk in the breading. I’ve found one of the Great Value (WalMart brand) varieties to be dairy free. Be sure to check the label because they also have a variety with milk in it.

Jared and I like to dress up our fish sticks a bit by making burgers with tarter sauce and lettuce. Do you eat fish sticks at your house? How do you serve them?

Homemade Spaghetti-O’s (Dairy Free Recipe)

Becky Marie — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:04:31 +0000

This meal plan is part of my 31 days of Dairy Free Dinners. You can find the entire list of ideas here.

My boys are very good about eating vegetables, but I’m not good about serving them consistently. I love this simple spaghetti-o recipe because its packed with carrot and sweet potato. If you are just starting to add vegetables to pasta like this, you may want to start with only 1 cup of sweet potato and carrots. I hope your kids enjoy this as much as mine do!

Homemade Spaghetti-O’s (Dairy Free Recipe)

Ingredients

2 cups sweet potato, chopped
2 cups carrots, chopped
1 box pasta rings
2 small jars spaghetti sauce
Italian seasoning (optional)

Instructions

Place sweet potato and carrots together in a large pot. Cover with water, place lid on pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
In a separate pot, cook pasta according to package directions.
When sweet potato and carrots are done cooking, puree in a food processor or blender.
When pasta is done cooking, drain well. Add spaghetti sauce and sweet potato/carrot puree to the pot. Add Italian seasonings if desired.

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Tender Moments With Toddlers and Preschoolers Blog Hop #16

Becky Marie — Thu, 23 May 2013 10:00:29 +0000

It’s Thursday! Time for the Tender Moments Blog Hop! My co-hosts again are Dollie from Teachers of Good Things and Angela from Teaching Mama.

My favorite posts from this past week was How Many Ways Can We Learn and Play from Lalymom. This is a great list of ways that learning happens in every day life. A great reminder that school doesn’t need to be a formal lesson with little kids.

Dollie’s favorite was Butterfly Life Cycle from Seedlings Nursery School. This post not only documents the life cycle of a butterfly in pictures, it also includes a list of hands on activities for preschoolers.

Angela’s favorite was Dinosaur Week from Sorting Sprinkles. This post includes a great list of dinosaur activities including a sensory bin that will appeal to older kids as well as toddlers.

Were you featured? Grab a button:

Now its your turn! I can’t wait to see what everyone has been up to this past week. Grab the button below and link up your post. You can link up any post related to toddlers and preschoolers: crafts, cooking, homeschool, etc. By linking up you are giving us permission to use one of your images in a future post. Visit at least 3 other blogs and let them know you stopped by from this linkup!

Asian Lettuce Wraps (Dairy Free Recipe)

Becky Marie — Wed, 22 May 2013 23:59:01 +0000

This recipe is part of my 31 days of Dairy Free Dinners. You can find the entire list of ideas here.

This is my take on PF Chang’s Asian lettuce wraps. I’ve tried numerous times to carefully unfold a head of iceberg lettuce so I can make wraps like they do at the restaurant It never works for me. We’ve found that it taste the same weather the lettuce is cut up or used as a wrapper. This is a favorite for Jared and me, but the boys aren’t big fans of the lettuce.

Asian Lettuce Wraps (Dairy Free Recipe)

Ingredients

2 lbs ground turkey
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp or 3 cloves chopped garlic
1 cup chopped celery
½ cup water chestnuts, chopped
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup hosin sauce
Cooked white rice
Lettuce
Shredded carrots
Peanuts

Instructions

Over medium high heat cook turkey until all brown. Remove from heat and drain, set aside.
Over high heat, add oil and garlic. Sauté garlic until it starts to brown, about 3 minutes.
Add celery and water chestnuts and sauté for 5 minutes or desired doneness.
Add soy sauce and hosin sauce. Add cooked turkey back to pan. Mix well.
Layer lettuce, carrots, rice and turkey mixture. Top with peanut. You can also serve by placing rice, carrots and turkey inside a lettuce leaf and rolling it up.

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Staycation 2013 – Blogger Recomendation for Vacations Ideas Across the United States

Becky Marie — Wed, 22 May 2013 10:00:51 +0000

Yesterday I shared a few staycation ideas in our back yard, the Adirondack Park. You may live in another part of the country or be visiting somewhere new and would like find affordable family friendly activities. I’ve joined 92 other bloggers to bring you destination ideas in every region of the country.

Mid Atlantic

NW (or all), Connecticut :: Parenting Miracles
Boston (or all), Massachusetts :: Maven of Savin
Central, New Jersey :: Our Good LIfe
Adirondack Mountains and Central, New York :: For This Season
Buffalo/Niagara Falls, New York :: Ann’s Entitled Life
Syracuse, New York :: I am THAT lady
Erie, Pennsylvania :: Growing Kids Ministry
Greater Harrisburg, Pennsylvania :: Family Balance Sheet
Hershey, Pennsylvania :: Good Deal Mama
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania :: Beyond the Cover
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania :: The Coupon “High”
Poconos, Pennsylvania :: Bucktown Bargains
Scranton, Pennsylvania :: Bucktown Bargains

Midwest

Des Moines, Iowa :: Make the best of everything
Aurora, Illinois :: A Savings WOW!
Central, Illinois :: The Homeschool Scientist
Chicago, Illinois :: Chicagoland Homeschool Network
Naperville, Illinois :: The Sensible Mom
Schaumburg, Illinois :: Ravings By Rae
Fort Wayne, Indiana :: Simplified Saving
Indianapolis, Indiana (Metro Area) :: In Good Cents
Muncie, Indiana (Central IN) :: the daisyhead
Northern Indiana :: So Dough Savvy
Kansas City Area :: Kansas City Mamas
Metro Detroit, Michigan :: Saving Dollars and Sense
Grand Rapids, Michigan :: Give Me Neither
Oakland County, Michigan :: Bargain Shopper Mom
Minneapolis, Minnesota :: Creative Couponing
Rural Minnesota (either Southern our Lake Country) :: Mommysavers.com
St. Cloud, Minnesota :: Frugal Finders
Kansas City, Missouri/Kansas :: Kosher on a Budget
Springfield, Missouri :: Getting Freedom
Cincinnati, Ohio :: Family Friendly Cincinnati
Columbus, Ohio :: Cleverly Simple
Dayton, Ohio :: Savings Lifestyle: Dayton
Mansfield, Ohio :: The Traveling Praters
NE Ohio :: Raising Lifelong Learners
Northeast Ohio (Canton, Akron, Cleveland) :: Sisters Shopping on a Shoestring
Black Hills, South Dakota :: Little House Living
South Dakota :: Moms Mustard Seeds
Oshkosh, Wisconsin :: Adventures of a Stay at Home Mom

Mountain

Phoenix, Arizona :: Mom Endeavors
Scottsdale, Arizona :: Saving For Someday
Tucson, Arizona :: Desert Chica Ramblings
Colorado Springs, Colorado :: The Greenbacks Gal
Denver, Colorado :: Bargain Blessings
Helena, Montana :: The WiC Project
Omaha, Nebraska :: Mom Endeavors
Reno, Nevada – Lake Tahoe (Northern Nevada) :: Saving in Nevada

Pacific

Fresno, California (Central Valley) :: NerdFamily Blog
Los Angeles, California :: Savings.com
San Diego, California :: Good Cheap Eats
San Diego, California :: Life as MOM
Portland, Oregon :: Frugal Living NW
Seattle, Washington :: Thrifty NW Mom

South Atlantic

Arkansas :: Discovering Arkansas
Washington, DC :: Kidventurous
Clearwater Beach, Florida :: Bargain Briana
Jacksonville, Florida :: Saving The Family Money
Southwest Florida (Ft. Myers area) :: Chaos Is Bliss
St. Augustine, Florida :: Simply St. Augustine
Tallahassee, Florida :: SwagGrabber
Atlanta, Georgia (metro area) :: Hodgepodge
Atlanta, Georgia (metro area) :: The Couponing Couple
Annapolis, Maryland :: The Happy Housewife
Hagerstown, Maryland :: Cheryl Pitt
Asheville, North Carolina :: Paradise Praises
Charlotte, North Carolina :: from our front porch lookin’ in…
Raleigh/Southeastern, North Carolina :: Upside Down Homeschooling
Upstate South Carolina :: The Tween & Me
Charlottesville, Virginia :: How to Have it All
Richmond, Virginia :: Teachers of Good Things
Smithfield, Virginia :: Walking in High Cotton
Virginia Beach, Virginia :: The Coupon Challenge

South Central

Coastal Alabama :: Meet Penny
Huntsville, Alabama :: The Traveling Praters
Northern Kentucky :: Simply Sherryl
Chattanooga, Tennessee :: Living Chic on the Cheap
East Tennessee (Smoky Mountains, Knoxville) :: Finding Joy on the Journey
Nashville, Tennessee :: Montessori Tidbits
Arlington, Texas :: Grocery Shop For FREE
Austin, Texas (Hill Country) :: Ponder the Path
College Station, Texas :: How to Homeschool My Child
Dallas, Texas :: Surviving The Stores
East Dallas, Texas :: Funky Faith Girl
Fort Worth, Texas :: Coupons & Freebies Mom
Houston, Texas :: MomsToolbox
Houston, Texas :: MyLitter
Katy, Texas :: Moms Confession
McAllen, Texas (Rio Grande Valley) :: iLoveMy5Kids
San Antonio, Texas :: Melissa’s Bargains

Bean Burritos (Dairy Free Meal Idea)

Becky Marie — Tue, 21 May 2013 23:37:29 +0000

This meal plan is part of my 31 days of Dairy Free Dinners. You can find the entire list of ideas here.

Since I cook dry beans in bulk, there are always beans in the freezer ready to be used or in the refrigerator left over from another meal. When I’m making burritos from unseasoned beans, I will usually cook bacon and add it (including the fat) to the beans. I often will also use leftovers from taco salad or bean burgers along with rice and corn. In our house this is a quick and easy dinner packed with protein and vegetables that everyone loves.