Put That in a Tin and Bake It! Meals in a Muffin w/ Printable Recipes

While we all love to enjoy a sit down meal around the table, sometimes it is nice to have a grab and go type meal in the plan for nights when we are all rushing around.  Muffin Meals are also FANTASTIC for school or work lunches.  When I do these for my littles, I use Wilton's silicone muffin cups with scalloped edges to look like flowers.  It just dresses them up and makes them fun.  These can also be cooked ahead and popped into the freezer for later.

I threw a few of these recipes onto my first ever once a month shopping menu that was executed long before I started posting here.  Even if you don't make these ahead, they are super easy to throw together.  In fact, most of the time I let Laney (7) make these with only minor assistance (putting them into, pulling them out of the oven).

There are several variations to these online, but these are the ones that work best for us.

Recipe List:

Corndog Muffins
Cheeseburger Muffins
Chicken Pot Pie Muffins
Tamale Muffins
Mini Meatloaves
Pizza Muffins
Heart Attack Muffins (you'll see why, lol)

Get the printable recipe cards here!


Corndog Muffins

Jiffy cornbread muffin mix
1 egg
1/3 c. milk
hot dogs

Mix up your Jiffy Mix as directed. Pour 1/4 c. mix into each regular size muffin tin or less for mini-muffins.  Cut up hot dog into chunks and press into cornbread mix.  Bake according to box directions.


Cheeseburger Muffins

1 lb. ground beef
1 c. grated cheddar cheese
1/2 c. Bisquick Mix
1 Tbsp ketchup
dash worchestershire
1/2 c. milk
2 eggs

Brown ground beef, adding ketchup and worchestershire sauce halfway through browning.  Drain.  Mix in cheese while meat is still very warm.  In a bowl stir together Bisquick mix, milk, and eggs. Pour 1 Tbsp bisquick mixture into each muffin tin.  Then dump about 1/4 c. of meat and cheese mixture into each cup.  Pour 1 more Tbsp bisquick mixture in over meat and cheese.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.


Chicken Pot Pie Muffins

2 cans chunked chicken, drained
2 c. frozen mixed veggies
salt and pepper to taste
1/2c. Bisquick Mix
1/2c. milk
2 eggs

Mix chicken, veggies, and desired salt and pepper well.  Stir together bisquick, milk, and eggs.  Pour 1 Tbsp bisquick mixture into each muffin tin.  Put about 1/4c. chicken mixture in each tin.  Pour another 1 Tbsp bisquick mixture over chicken.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.


Tamale Muffins

1 1/2 c. corn flour
1/2 c. beef broth
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
1 can rotel tomatoes, drained
1 pkg taco seasoning (or your own blend)
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Mix corn flour, broth, and 1/3 c. vegetable oil well.  Press into muffin tins to make a shell.  Stir together beef, rotel tomatoes, taco seasoning and 1 Tbsp oil.  Place approximately 1/4 c. of meat mixture into each muffin tin.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes


Mini Meatloaves

1.5 lbs ground beef
1 egg, beaten
1 c. italian breadcrumbs
1 Tbsp Worcesterchire sauce
1/2 c. ketchup
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder to taste

Mix all ingredients well.  Make 12 balls and nestle them into muffin tin.  Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.  Add more ketchup to the tops (if desired).  Bake another 10 minutes.



Pizza Muffins

3 c Biquick Mix
1 can tomato soup
3/4 c water
1/2 c shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 c diced pepperoni
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Mix all ingredients well.  Pour about 1/4 cup into each muffin tin.  Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes


Heart Attack Muffins (can be halved for a smaller crowd)

2 cans corned beef hash
12 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Divide hash into 12 equal portions.  Press into muffin tins, making a depression in the center.  Crack an egg over each hash tin.  Season with salt and pepper. Bake at 400 for 16-18 minutes or until eggs are cooked to your liking.

Now you see why that is a heart attack in a tin?  So bad for you but so good.

Miss the Printable?  Get it here!


Did you try any of these recipes?  Have anything else you put in a muffin tin?  Let me know about it.

Morning and Night Routine Card Flipper w/ Free Printables

Ok, so this is not just for toddlers.  In fact, I use this particular item for my 7 year old....but you could definitely use the customizable cards to make these for your toddlers too.

We were having a lot of trouble with our morning routine and getting things done in a timely manner.  We were also having trouble with getting everything done in the evenings without a fuss.  I felt like I was nagging Laney half to death to no avail....definitely had a few meanie mom moments.  I just kept thinking that there had to be a way to keep her on task without having to keep hounding her verbally. 

We all know how much I love pinterest.  Well, I have a LOT of teacher friends.  they were posting pin after pin about classroom routine charts.  That got me thinking about whether I could create and implement something similar at our house.  So, I got to work.

I started out by creating my cards.  Simple background, description of each routine item. Clip art to match. Then I printed the cards onto cardstock for durability and cut them out.

Print out the Morning Routine Cards I use at our house here.

Print out the Night Routine Cards I use at our house here.

Print out blank cards to customize here.

Once I had the cards printed and cut out, I had to figure out a way to display them.  After a few minutes, I decided on a length of 3/8" black satin ribbon.  I grabbed a glue stick and began matching up the morning and night cards back to back with the ribbon sandwiched in between.  I glued each set of cards as closely as possible on the ribbon.

Once I had all of the cards glued onto the ribbon, I tied a loop in the top of the length of ribbon to hang the cards from.  Then I attached the ribbon to the wall of my daughters' room.

Now, she can easily flip the cards over for morning or evening and follow the steps to know exactly what to do without me hounding her constantly.

This has made a HUGE difference in how smoothly our house runs on school days as well as a huge difference in the response from her when she is asked to do something.  There is never any question about what is supposed to get done and when.

Some of you are probably thinking right now that she never gets a break to do anything fun and we are horrible and too hard on her....right?  Wrong.  If she comes in and gets things done that she needs to do, there is almost always time between certain tasks to have free play time.

Did you use these at your house?  Have a different way to stay on task?  Let me know about it!  I love to hear from you!

Casual Party Menu for Fall w/ Printable Menu Cards

Fall is upon us!  Finally!  As the holiday season approaches, we have more and more small, casual gatherings in our homes.  This past weekend I had some girls over for some fun and retail therapy (of the yummy smelling variety).  I just thought I would share with you the menu I threw together.  I kept it super simple this go around.  After our huge birthday shindig last weekend, I wanted this to be a low key event.  Two items are old go-to favorites that I use often.  Two are brand new to our home. 

The Menu: 
Our Favorite Rotel Dip served with Tostitos scoops
Ham and Cheese sliders (yes, again...these get requested over and over by friends)
Caramel Cream Cheese Dip served with apple slices and graham cracker squares
Cheaper Than Therapy Cake (because chocolate is cheaper than therapy)

The Recipes: (get the printable version here)

Our Favorite Rotel Dip

1 lb bulk mild breakfast sausage, browned
2 pkg cream cheese
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can whole kernel corn

Brown your breakfast sausage.  Drain.  While still warm, add the other three ingredients and mix well.  Serve slightly warm or at room temperature with tortilla chips.

This is a HUGE hit at our house.  I always get rave reviews...the best part is how utterly simple this is to make.  This is easily doubled for larger crowds....trust me...it goes fast.  10 ladies can easily consume a double recipe over the course of an evening.



Ham and Cheese Sliders
24 Sweet Hawaiian Rolls
1/2 butter, melted
24 slices deli ham
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
24 small slices white American cheese
1 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
1/4 c. mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1/4 c. miracle whip

Mix Miracle Whip and Mayonnaise together. Spread onto centers of Hawaiian rolls. Layer a slice of cheese and a slice of ham onto each roll. Place dressed rolls close together on a large baking pan. Mix together all topping ingredients and drizzle the mixture over the tops of the sliders. Let the sliders stand on the counter for 5-10 minutes or until the butter in the topping starts to set up slightly. Cover with foil and bake for 12-14 minutes at 350. Remove foil and cook for another couple of minutes, just until tops begin to brown. Serve while still warm.

You can prep these ahead as long as you cover them in the fridge overnight.  Everyone loves when these are served.  Try to pull these from the oven as close to party start time as possible.  They are best when they are still warm and ooey gooey.

I also threw together some little veggie/ranch cups. Just threw in two celery sticks, two carrots, and a squirt of ranch.  Easy peasy.

Caramel Cream Cheese Dip

1 pkg cream cheese
1/2 tub Cool Whip
1c. dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
toffee bits for garnish

Mix first four ingredients well.  Top with toffee bits and serve with fruit and graham crackers.

Fall has me longing for caramel apple EVERYTHING!  This is the perfect thing to satisfy that craving.

Cheaper Than Therapy Cake (aka...my ambitious recipe for the week)

2 sticks butter plus 2 Tbsp butter, softened

8 oz sour cream
3 c sugar
6 eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 c cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
6 oz. semisweet chocolate, morselfs or finely chopped
3/4 c. cocoa powder, plus some to dust pan with

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and cocoa dust a 10-inch Bundt pan.

Cream together the butter, sour cream, and sugar in a mixer. Add the eggs, 2 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla.
In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and cocoa. Add 1/2 the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, beat well, add the remaining 1/2 flour mixture, and continue to beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add chocolate last, mixing well.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Continue to bake for an additional 15 minutes if necessary, but do not open the oven to check the cake for at least 1 hour.  In my oven, I almost always need the extra 15 minutes...especially when I use my stonewear pan.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before attempting to dump to prevent it from tearing and sticking to the edges.  Then continue to cool the cake.  While you are waiting, you can prepare the topping.

6 oz. semisweet chocolate, morsels or finely chopped
2 Tblsp. butter
1/2 c. heavy cream

Put chocolate and butter into a heatproof mixing bowl.  In a small pot or saucepan, bring the cream just to the point of boiling...then pour it quickly over the chocolate and butter, stirring until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Pour this mixture over a mostly cool, not thoroughly cool, cake. If you want, you can add some semisweet morsels to the top for extra chocolate...if you don't have enough chocolate yet!

  This all makes for a great casual fall gathering.  I hope you enjoy these recipes and are able to use them with your family and friends.   Did you use any of these recipes?  Have any other great fall recipes you want to share?  Let me know!   Miss the printable?  Get it here.  

Dr. Seuss Birthday Party w/ Free Printables

As most of you know by now, my two youngest children are one year and 18 days apart.  Throwing two birthday parties within weeks of each other would be way too much stress and expense for our family, so we planned on throwing one party for both kids.  Now just to pick a theme that would work for both kids.  Since we would be having a party for one boy and one girl, the theme had to be something gender neutral.  With our munchkins, thing 1 and thing 2 seemed like the perfect fit.

Now that I had a theme, I had to get busy doing research....pinterest...google....you name it.  Slowly, I started forming ideas for the party.  I'm going to start out with an overal spread of the party...then break it down into seperate ideas/projects for you.  So many of the places I looked had pictures, but no instructions...sigh...so frustrating.  I don't want y'all to go through that.

Here is a look at the party...

Now let's break it down...

The food was planned to fit the Dr. Seuss theme:

Green Eggs & Ham (green filled devilled eggs; ham and cheese sliders) recipes here!
Truffula Trunks (pretzel sticks)
Three Cheese Trees (literally three stacks of cheese looking like Christmas trees)
Hop on Pop-Corn (popcorn, duh)
Cat's Hat Cabobs (strawberry and marshmallow kabobs)
Pink Ink Yink Drink (pink lemonade)
Fish in a Bowl (literally swedish fish...in a bowl)
Thing 1 & Thing 2 Cupcakes
Icecream...no awesome name...icecream is awesome enough

Green Devilled Eggs

Ham Sliders

Truffula Trunks

Cheese Trees

Cat's Hat Kabobs

Hop on Pop Corn

Fish in a Pot

Pink Ink Yink Drink

Had to slip in a picture of Silas Sneaking Snacks


The food table projects and decorations:

I took clear forks (I have a huge box from Sam's Club) and wrapped them in red with white dots napkins I picked up at Target.  Then I added a piece of turquoise curling ribbon held together with a glue dot and topped with a circle punch out Seuss picture from my free printables here.

I also printed out the food cards from the same document and placed them in some place card holders that I already had around the house.

For the truffula trees in the truffula tree trunk dish I actually just picked up some twisted neon colored pipe cleaners from the kids craft section of Walmart and a few foofy hair clips from the crafts section.  I twisted a couple of the pipe cleaners together and clipped the hair clips on the top, then just stuck them into the pretzel sticks once I dumped them.

The appetizer picks used to pick up the cheese were actually not DIY...I picked them up from the wedding/party aisle at Walmart.

I printed out water bottle wraps from wanessacarolinacreations.blogspot.com and taped them onto the water bottles.  They fit PERFECTLY on Sam's Club water bottles.

Projects for the treats and sweets Table:

I made these tissue paper poms earlier last week.  The tutorial can be found on last Wednesday's post here.

These were originally intended to hang from the ceiling...but we couldn't get them to stay hanging, so they found their home resting on the sweets and treats table.

I also made this really cute popcorn cone holder.

I bought a piece of florists foam in block form (green...from the floral crafts section).  It was actually cheaper to buy the florist foam than it was to have bought a white styrofoam block.  The florist foam is also a better texture for this project.

I wrapped it in red wrapping paper and but a strip of turquoise ribbon around that.

I then took 24 Wilton lollypop sticks and stuck into the block in a grid pattern....you could also do this randomly...it would be just as cute.

Once I did that, I cut out wedge shapes from scrapbook paper.  (I fit 4 wedge shapes onto a 12x12 sheet of scrapbook paper)  Then I wrapped the wedges into cones and secured them with staples, leaving a hole at the bottom just big enough to fit onto the lollypop sticks.

I stuck the cones down onto the sticks and then filled them with popcorn.  This worked out great, because I made plenty of extra cones.  When people slid the cones off of the sticks, I could easily replace the cone and fill with more popcorn.

The table covering was super simple.  I just took a red table cloth and draped it with half of a turquoise table cloth. 

The cupcakes were made my my husband's cousin. She has been doing cakes for our kids' parties for two years now.  She is fabulous.  She made us come confetti cupcakes with blue icing nestled in red cups so that they resembled thing 1 and thing 2.  I used some more of the thing 1 and thing 2 punchouts from my printables on the fronts of the cupcakes to dress them up a bit.

I put the favors on the sweets and treats table every year.  This year I wanted to stay away from any massive quantities of candy or noisy toys.  I actually picked up some Seuss books and printed out bookmarks, also from wanessacarolinacreations.blogspot.com. I just popped the bookmarks into the books...boom...favors.  These were actually a hit.

Photo Booth Project:

I wanted to give my guests a way to have fun while getting pictures of the guests that were fun and cute.  I hate getting caught in those awkward room scan pictures.  This is way more fun.

I picked up a red and white striped shower curtain from Target and some feather boas from Michael's. I added a penant banner (print and make your own here).  Then I grabbed a turquoise milk crate (Dollar Store, already had for toy storage in my daughter's room), a couple of Seussical stuffed animals, and a borrowed Thing afro cap.  I threw the feather boas and other props into a the crate.  I also grabbed a photo frame at Target and some turquoise spray paint from Walmart.  I spray painted the frame turquoise and saved the mat for guests to sign with a Sharpie.  Later, I will put a pic of the kids inside the frame. 

Here is what the backdrop looked like.

And here are a few of the pictures of guests having fun playing with the props.  I only included adults here, but some of the kid pics were adorable too.

The gift table was just a card table tucked into the corner with the same table dressing as the sweets and treats table.



I also threw a birthday banner onto the wall behind where the babies were set up to demolish their smash cakes.  You can print your own here.

Overall, I was super excited about how things turned out.  We had a blast with family and friends that day.  Now sit back and enjoy a couple of pics of the kiddos.

Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!  If you decide to use any of these ideas for your party, let me know about it!  I love to hear from you!

Cleaning Schedule With Free Printable Tools

Welcome to another Fabulous Friday on Cook It, Clean It, Make It Fun!  I have had several inquiries about my cleaning schedule and how I get it all done.  My initial response is that I almost never "get it all done."  Sometimes I would literally die if I had to have people in my house.  With two toddlers in the house...it's gonna happen.  That being said...I HAVE developed a method for doing a little at a time each day so that I don't ever feel like I have to get it all done at once.

I made some cleaning charts that go along with my schedule.  I'll post a pic of the one of mine that is filled out.  Of course, some of you who work outside the home won't need to include a lot of the things on my chart.  That is why I have left the printable versions blank.  Here is a picture of my personal daily chart.

Get your customizable printable here!

Ok, so let me start by going through my every day list, which is on the left hand side of the page and segmented out into Before Breakfast, After Breakfast, After Lunch, Before Dinner, and After Dinner.

Before Breakfast I require myself to do these four things: Devotional, Get Dressed, Make Bed, and Put in a Load of Laundry.  I find that if these four things don't happen, the rest of my day gets derailed.  You may have a different set of things that are important to you in the morning.  These are mine.  You can write in anything you want on your printables as the spaces are empty.  Typically this is my pre-breakfast routine: Get out of bed and immediately make the bed...it is always easier to take time to do this if you do it immediately.  If you need to go to the bathroom first, fine...the key is to do it while the sheets are stil warm.  (this helps with sheet wrinkles too if you are one to worry about that...I am not)  Then I get dressed.  As a stay at home mom, I have to be honest, if I don't get dressed first thing in the morning it'll never happen.  I love my pj's...I don't need to excuse myself to live in them.  Next I head into the bathroom to wash my face and do my morning routine, but on the way out I make sure to grab a load of laundry to throw in.  I don't know about you, but in a house with two adults and three children, I often end up doing at least two loads per day.  If I get behind...more.  Once I have thrown the laundry in, I grab my Bible and devotional book and settle in for at least a 15 minute devotion.  I try to get up early enough in the morning that I can get all of this squared away before I have to wake my oldest up to catch the bus, but more often than not this all happens while she is getting ready for school.

Phew....now I can have my coffee and enjoy breakfast with my babies.  Don't get too comfortable...that after breakfast list is coming.

After Breafast I unload the dishwasher from the night before and begin loading it for the day by throwing in the breakfast dishes.  I typically do one load of dishes per day in the dishwasher.  That load consists of our breakfast, lunch, and supper dishes as well as any pots and pans used preparing meals that day.  After I have finished unloading and putting away the dishes, I move on to an organizing task.  For me, these tasks come from a Declutter Calendar, which you can find here.  I love a lot of the ideas.  Some days I don't end up having to actually do the item on the calendar...because....well....I don't have some of the issues on it...such as piles of stuff in the hallways.  The kiddos are typically watching either Mickey Mouse Club House or Your Baby Can Read while I do this.  Once I am done with the organizing task of the day, I do a learning activity with the kids.  Some days this is really elaborate, planned, and thought out.  More often than not, this is grabbing whatever we have around us and turning it into learning.  We do colors, numbers, letters, whatever I think of when the time comes.  I would love to claim to be one of those really intentional parents with a plan...but I am just not.  Typically I give them some type of snack while we do this.  Usually string cheese or fruit is on the menu.  After our learning activity, we do a 10 minute quick clean.  These are my favorite things.  I get the kids involved as much as possible.  Obviously, my almost one year old doesn't help much....BUT she eventually will, so getting them started early doesn't hurt.  In a 10 minute quick clean, we basically run through the main part of the house like a whirlwind picking up and putting away anything we possibly can within 10 minutes.  For me...it is more important that the kids are just helping than what we actually get accomplished.  If you do this for yourself, great.  If you do this with kids, I urge you to keep it at 10 minutes and make it game or competition like so that they stay interested in helping out.  At this point, we have free time.  If time has gotten away and it is close to lunch time, I let the kids free play while I am preparing lunch.  If we are completely on our game, we have free time to spend together.  Typically this is our lazy around, cuddle time.  While we have a routine, we don't have a timed schedule.  I plan to work on that.  Leah (almost 1) usually either goes down for a nap now if there is considerable time before lunch or she will sometimes nap after lunch.  I just let her nap when she wants for now.

Lunch at our house can be quite an event.  After we are done make our lunch mess, I look outside praying for sunshine.  If there is sunshine, I make it my goal to go outside, soak up some sun, and let them run off some energy.  Leah really just sits with me at this point, but Silas really enjoys running around wild in the yard.  If it is rainy or still wet from rain (like today) I bust out our tent from Discovery Kids...I think it was about $20.  My kids absolutely love that thing.  We completely wore one out and are on our second.  They love climbing in and out of the tunnel.  After about 30 minutes of running wild in the yard or free play inside, I settle them in for reading time.  I cannot begin to tell you how important it is to read to your kids if you don't.  I so value the time my parents and grandparents spent reading to me.  I read between 3 and 5 books depending on how long they are.  Typically this is the time of day Silas (just turned 2) naps.  I always pull for Leah to nap at this time too...it just sometimes doesn't happen that way.  After reading time I finish my weekly chores that are assigned to that day.  We'll go over those in a minute.  Usually by this time I have completely forgotten about the load of laundry in the washer.  That is why I made a point to add it to my list...so I would remember.  Once I get the laundry switched over I do one more 10 minute quick clean sans children...assuming they are still napping.  I'm going to be honest with you.  At this point, if I have free time before Laney (7, second grade) gets off the bus...I SIT....you heard me...I SIT!  On my bum! And do NOTHING!  Typically by the time the bus runs the babies are awake.  When Laney gets off the bus I help her with any homework and then start my before dinner list.

Once I have looked over Laney's homework, she starts her afternoon routine (I'll do this in another post) and I start mine.  I go ahead and sweep and or vacuum.  We have hard floors throughout our house, but I find that the floor really gets cleaner vacuuming.  If I have time, I go ahead and put away laundry from the day...if not that gets pushed back.  When the time comes, I begin prepping dinner or putting the finishing touches on if it is a crockpot meal.  This is about the time the hubby rolls in and feeds up the dog and chickens.  When he comes in I try to make any phone calls that need to be made while I am finishing up supper and he is playing with the kids.  Once he walks in, I am dead to them!  Lol.  These are some daddy loving babies.  Wow, is it dinner time already?!?!  Let's eat!

After dinner, we clear the dishes and add them to the dishwasher.  I run the dishwasher and wash whatever doesn't fit.  After that I give the countertops a good wipe and the whole family does one more 10 minute quick clean before we start baths and bedtime routines.

I didn't realize how much of a whirlwind life is until I typed that out...hrm....if anyone ever tells you that stay at home moms don't do anything, have them come read this post...haha!

So that covers my every day routine.  Now let's get to my weekly schedule.

Monday is for dusting baseboards and furniture.  I run a swiffer duster (stay tuned for DIY tutorial on how to make your own) around the baseboards absolutely every week so that they don't have to opportunity to get gunky.  If yours are starting out gunky, you will have to scrub them first before you settle into a weekly routine.  I dust the furniture with just a rag and dusting stuff (will have a homemade version posted soon as well).  This is a fairly quick day, so I try to squeeze in a monthly task or two on Mondays as well if I get a chance to.

Tuesdays I tackle bathrooms.  I start in with the toilets.  I use the Clorox toilet wand with the pads.  I know that is neither economical nor eco-friendly, but that is what I feel works best for me.  Then I wipe the rim, seat, lid, and outer areas down with a Clorox or Lysol wipe.  Make sure you get the sides where all the dust builds up...your toilet should always look as close to new as possible.  Nothing says I love you like a clean toilet.  After that I move on to tubs/showers.  I make my own bleach cleaner which I use in combination with a sponge or rag and an old toothbrush.  I use the toothbrush around the drain or on any hard spots to clean in the textured bottom of the tub.  I also use my bleach cleaner, a rag, and toothbrush in the sinks.  I use windex on knobs and spouts and clean the mirrors while I'm at it.  Then, once I am sure the bleach cleaner has dried, I use my homemade multi-purpose cleaner on the countertops, making sure to wipe the switchplates down with the damp rag as I work.  Lastly I make sure the floors are clean.  For the two smaller bathrooms, this means getting down with my multi-purpose cleaner or disinfectant and wiping the floor with my rag.  For the master bath, this means mopping with a Swiffer Wet.  About once a month I will go in and steam mop the bathroom floors with my Shark.  Make sure that you are getting often forgotten places when you clean your bathroom...like the top ledge of the tub/shower insert, the cabinet knobs, door handle, ledges underneath body wash and soap bottles, the fan/vent filter cover....etc.  I also water plants on these days.  I have some vines in the kitchen and living room as well as several plants outside.

Wednesday is bedroom cleaning day.  If my seven year old has done her routines properly, this is very minimal in the girls' room...vacuum, wipe window ledges, and just fluff the place up a bit to make it pretty.  In the two year old's room, I have a little more work...nothing too major.  Usually I have to straighten the clothing drawers, pick up scattered toys, etc.  In our room, because I do live with a thing called a husband, I typically have some stray clothes to pick up, some clutter to put away on the dresser tops, and shoes to put back into the closet.  I also will try to get a monthly chore done on these days if the rooms are not too wrecked when I go to clean them.

Thursdays have tratitionally been my grocery days.  Now that I shop only once per month, I use Thursdays to run errands and get any unfinished monthly chores done.

Fridays are kitchen days.  I clean inside the microwave and stove, clean out the fridge, clear the kitchen counter of any clutter, wipe down appliances, etc.  If I have time I try to add in a monthly kitchen task per week, such as wiping down cabinets, deep cleaning fridge, deep cleaning freezer, etc.

Saturdays are for outside chores.  Any planting, porch sweeping or other outside tasks get done when there are two adults around to laso the kiddos.

Sundays after church and lunch, I try to sit down and clip and organize any coupons.  Honestly, I haven't done this lately.  I have been busy and the coupons in my area haven't been great.  I do plan to get back with the program though.

You have, by now, heard me talk several times about inserting my monthly tasks.  I'm not going to go into great detail about each of them, but here is the list.

Monthly: Dust blinds and fixtures, Deep clean fridge/freezer, Vacuum under furniture, Clean windows, Wipe down cabinets, Clean door handles, Clean inside stove, Clean porch overhead.

Every 3 Months: Go through house & purge, Take a load to charity, Clean out vehicle

Every 6 Months: Clean and Organize Deep Freeze, Scrub Walls & Touchup Paint, Change Out Family Photos in Frames

That is it!  I promise it sounds like more work that it really is when you get into the routine of it.  If you stick with this, your house is sure to stay fabulous all the time.  It is much easier to do a little bit each day than to try to clean it all at once.

Did you miss the printables?  Get them here.

Have you tried implementing this at your house?  Have questions?  Have a different way to doing things?  Let me know.  I would love to hear from you!

DIY Dishwasher Detergent

Welcome back for another Thrifty Thursday!  Don't you wish someone would tell you that you never had to wash another dish again?!?  Me too! Probably one of the most debated household chore between the older generation and newer generation is the washing of dishes.  Hand washing vs. dishwasher washing...which is cleaner and cheaper.  The older generation would tell you that dishwashers don't clean as well and cost more.  The younger generation would argue that not only do the dishes get just as clean, but that it is also cheaper to run a dishwasher (and less work too).

Clean dishes are important, but so is saving money.  Did you know that using your dishwasher rather than handwashing can actually save money, energy, water, and soap?  The average Energy Star rated dishwasher uses only 4 gallons of water to wash one full load of dishes.  The average kitchen faucet turned fully on passes 2 gallons per minute.  That means that unless you can wash and rinse your pots, pans, plates, forks, knives, spoons, bowls, cups and any other items by only using the faucet for a total of under 2 minutes, you are wasting a ton of water.  According to a German study, the average hand washer uses around 27.2 gallons of water per load.  The water savings alone may be enough for you city folks who have to pay per gallon for yours, but being that I get my water for free I was left looking for more savings.

Up until recently, I was paying $7.67 for name brand dishwasher detergent.  I kept thinking "there has to be a cheaper way to do this."  Man, was I right.  I did some research online to find several different dishwasher detergent recipes.  I tested and tinkered until I came up with a recipe of my own that works in my dishwasher just perfectly.  The best part?  I already had all of the ingredients in my home!  That means it was essentially FREE!  I know that is girl math and that I should technically be figuring the cost of each amount of each ingredient from the total cost of the package...but doesn't FREE sound so much more fun?!?!

Here's What You Need:

1c. Borax

1c. Super Washing Soda (not baking soda)

1/2c. Kosher Salt (dissolves differently than regular table salt)

2 packets Crystal Light drink mix (for the citric acid...you could use koolaid, tang, whatever you like that has citric acid in it....I just happened to have Crystal Light on hand)

To Make:

Now that you have gathered all of your supplies, here is what you will do.  Ready for these super complex directions?  Dump them all into the container of your choice, close the lid, and shake it like a polaroid picture!  (some of you much older or much younger than me might not be familiar with the reference...just make sure you dance around and have fun while you are shaking)  Continue shaking until the clumps are completely out of the mixture and you are unable to see any color.

To Use:

Add 1-2 Tbsp. of the mixture to the main wash cup of your dishwasher depending on how soiled your dishes are.

Depending on your water quality this should leave your dishes sparkling.  If, however, you find your dishes looking a little bit cloudy, you can use this simple rinse aid.  VINEGAR!  Just add 1/4 c. vinegar to the rinse aid cup in your dishwasher to clear up those cloudy dishes.  It will also keep your dishwasher clean and fresh of gunky buildup.

Alright, now get to it!  I want to see those dishes sparkle and shine!  If you make this yourself or have your own version of this, please share it with me!  I love to hear back from you.  Make sure you visit again for more money saving projects on Thrifty Thursdays.

Seuss Birthday Sneak Peak With Free Printables

Thing 1 and Thing two are turning 1 and 2!  I am throwing my babies a birthday party on Saturday, so my brain has been in total party prep mode.  Deciding what type of party to do with a boy and a girl turning one and two was a total no brainer when I started seeing all of the adorable Seuss ideas all over the internet.  So many ideas...I was having trouble finding a starting point.

I have spent way more time than necessary searching for exactly what I wanted.  My problem is that when I have an idea sparked in my mind, I can't settle for anything other than the picture in my head.  You know what that means....DIY time!

The best part about my DIY time is that you are going to benefit from it.  Here are some of the projects I have been working on for this weekend's event along with some free printables for you to throw a Seussical shindig of your own.  I PROMISE that I will take fifty million photos of the birthday party on Saturday to show you a complete party....this is just a sneak peak.

The Menu: 
Green Eggs & Ham (green filled devilled eggs; ham and cheese sliders) recipes here!
Truffula Trunks (pretzel sticks)
Hop on Pop-Corn (popcorn, duh)
Cat's Hat Cabobs (strawberry and marshmallow kabobs)
Pink Ink Yink Drink (pink lemonade)
Fish in a Bowl (literally swedish fish...in a bowl)
Thing 1 & Thing 2 Cupcakes
Icecream...yeah, no awesome name for the icecream yet

A glimpse of the projects:

Make your own birthday banner by printing this out on cardstock (or photo paper if you want shiny like this), punching out the holes on the template with a hole punch, and stringing the penants onto the color of ribbon of your choice.  I used a 3/8 inch red grossgrain ribbon.

Print out these and use a one inch circle punch (make sure it has the clear bottom so you can see what you are punching) to punch out the circles.  You'll see pics when I post the entire party later, but I am going to use the top half of these to put on the wrapped "silverware" and the bottom half of these I will affix to the front of the cupcake wrappers. 

(The ones pictured have "Silas and Leah," but the printables read "Happy Birthday.")

These are included in the printable file for the circles.  If you missed that link you can find them all right here.

These will be applied to tootpicks and popcicle sticks to use as food signs.

These bookmarks are from www.wanessacarolinacreations.blogspot.com and will be given inside Dr. Seuss books as favors.



Once I had all of that printed and cut out, it was time to move on to other projects.  Love them or hate them...the tissue paper pompoms are here to stay...for the record...I love them.  Round up some tissue paper in desired colors, an edge punch or very sharp scissors, and some floral or craft wire.

 Start by laying out 8-10 sheets of tissue paper one on top of the other, making sure edges match.

Accordian pleat the tissue, creasing each time.  Mine are about 1"-1 1/2" wide pleats.

Snip the ends of the stack of pleats with either your scissors or edge punch.  I used scissors because the Seussical theme allowed for a more whimsical, less structured edge.  Edges can be round or pointed.

Tie floral or craft wire snuggly at the center of the pleated paper, then fan out each side like this.

Begin pulling one layer at a time up toward the center until you end up with something like this.

These can be made in any size with any shape edge.  Continue making them until you have the amount you need.  I made one large red, one large blue, one medium red, and one small blue for this party.  Pictures of where I used these will be in the full party post.

I have a TON more to get finished before the weekend, and I absolutely can't wait to share it with you.  Come back next week to see how the party turned out and get even more printables, tutorials, and more!

Did you miss out on the printables?  Here are the links again.

Happy Birthday Banner

Seussical Circles

Food Signs

Green Devilled Eggs & Ham and Cheese Sliders Recipes

More birthday projects to come:

Popcorn Cones and Stand

DIY Photo Backdrop with Props

Table Decor

Silverware Bundles with Circle Punches

Thing 1 & 2 Cupcakes with Circle Punches