Kid History - Episode 2

Please go watch this right now. You will laugh and smile. There is also a first and third episode. They are equally hysterical! They are on youtube under kid history. I don't know what these movies mean...they just make me laugh and miss my little ones.

Best Lasagna Ever

When you are trying to decide what to make for dinner this week...try this lasagna. It was so good! I got it from http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/. I love most of her recipes and her tutorials are hilarious. The crash hot potatoes are a real favorite in my house too.

Ingredients
■1-½ pound Ground Beef
■1 pound Hot Breakfast Sausage
■2 cloves Garlic, Minced
■2 cans (14.5 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes
■2 cans (6 Ounce) Tomato Paste
■2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
■2 Tablespoons Dried Basil
■1 teaspoon Salt
■3 cups Lowfat Cottage Cheese
■2 whole Beaten Eggs
■½ cups Grated (not Shredded) Parmesan Cheese
■2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
■1 teaspoon Salt
■1 pound Sliced Mozzarella Cheese
■1 package (10 Ounce) Lasagna Noodles
■(add 1/2 Teaspoon Salt And 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil To Pasta Water)
Preparation Instructions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet or saucepan, combine ground beef, sausage, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat until browned. Drain half the fat; less if you’re feeling naughty. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil and salt. After adding the tomatoes, the sauce mixture should simmer for 45 minutes while you are working on the other steps.
In a medium bowl, mix cottage cheese, beaten eggs, grated Parmesan, 2 more tablespoons parsley, and 1 more teaspoon salt. Stir together well. Set aside. Cook lasagna until “al dente” (not overly cooked).
To assemble:
Arrange 4 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a baking pan, overlapping if necessary. Spoon half the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles. Spread evenly. Cover cottage cheese with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Spoon a little less than half the meat/sauce mixture over the top.

Repeat, ending with meat/sauce mixture. Sprinkle top generously with extra Parmesan.

Either freeze, refrigerate for up to two days, or bake immediately: 350-degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes, or until top is hot and bubbly.

Pioneer Trek Poster

I was given the assignment to create a poster for our upcoming Pioneer Handcart Trek this Spring. Thanks to the great and talented Mr. Stoner, the task was finally accomplished! This baby will go up in at least 2 of our church buildings tomorrow. I'm hoping the youth will be excited!

Puzzles

We like puzzles. Lauren requested that we get a 2,000 piece puzzle for Christmas and work on it over the holiday break. I picked out this beautiful castle. It is the Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. Everyone was really excited at first. We all took turns working on it. Then...it got really hard. There are so many greens, blues, and mountain pieces. It's also been really annoying because it is taking up half of our dining table. I want it gone! I am over doing the puzzle. It is now January 10th. This puzzle is taking so much longer than I thought it would. Poor Mr. Stoner has been the only one consistently trying to complete the beast. Lesson learned: a 2,000 piece puzzle is too big!

Mr. Stoner has every piece neatly laid out. He's very methodical. I'm just hoping we can all sit comfortably at our table very soon.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from all of us!

The rolls are baked, ham is in the oven,

strawberry pretzel jello in the fridge,

cheesy potatoes prepared, and fresh

green beans ready to boil.

All of the presents are wrapped

and it's only 4:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

This is a miracle!

Good Things...

Today is Sunday. Here are the good things about my day.

Going to church. It just feels good to be where I should be with my family on a Sunday.

Watching the snow flakes fall outside my kitchen window. Magical.

Listening to Mr. Stoner teach Ben how to sweep the dining room floor. After he finished the job, Ben came to me and told me that he is now a "trained professional sweeper."

Celebrating when we heard the announcement that school is cancelled tomorrow. I have mixed feelings about that. However, I love that I don't have to make lunches! Yippy!

Matthew asked me to play Frans. He would be Hans. Here's how it went:
Matthew: "My name is Hans."
Me: "I am Frans."
Together: "We are here to pump (clap) you up!"
How many mom's get asked to repeat that with their son? I felt really special.

Staying up late because there is no school in the morning. I'm not even going to set my alarm. Heaven.

I Love Shutterfly!

 It's time to choose my free Christmas cards from Shutterfly. What a great deal. This company has made life just a little easier for me. Shutterfly has so many fun products! If you haven't ever visited their site...you should. This first item is a birthday card. What sweet little birthday girl wouldn't love having her own personalized card? Adorable!

These calendars are really fun too. My sister made one of these calendars for my parents one year for Christmas. My mom absolutely loved it. I'm sure my dad liked it too. It had pictures of all nine of their children. They took it to work and showed it off to all of their customers.(ok...maybe not all of them...but most.) 

We are getting our family picture taken in a couple of days...so these next items are some of the picture Christmas cards I have to choose from. I really like the collage designs...

I think my favorite might be the last one on the bottom. If you want to get 50 free Christmas cards go to this link now. The promotion ends on Friday, December 10th.