Author: Abby H.

Two New Exhibits at Lego SEA LIFE® Aquarium

Abby H.

I’m stoked that the kids and I are feeling better! It’s spring break for the next two weeks and there are two new exhibits at Lego SEA LIFE® Aquarium!SeaLife_0315.JPGSeaLife_0301.JPG

On our next visit, we can take a splash in the ocean without ever getting wet and become a shark explorer at SEA LIFE® aquarium’s two newest exhibits: Sea at Night and Shark Mission!  Open just in time for spring break, both exhibits allow guests to learn about marine life in a fun and interactive way.

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Sea at Night invites guests to jump, leap and “splash” into simulated bioluminescent waves that react to their footsteps.  The reaction created by the guests’ movements demonstrates the effect of a glowing tide similar to ones often seen along the Pacific coastline.

Shark Mission allows kids to come face to fin with six different species of sharks and rays on three giant touch screens.  Young explorers can learn about anatomy, conservation and other cool facts through interactive activities and games.  Guests can also hold a shark’s tooth, learn about shark skin and eggs, plus step into a shark cage.

Sea at Night and Shark Mission are open now for guests to explore at SEA LIFE aquarium.  For more information, visit the Legoland website.

Screen Shot 2018-03-26 at 10.43.29 AM.pngDon’t forget to check your local Denny’s location for a Kid’s Go Free Coupons! I found these at our local Denny’s!

Recipe: Colonial Chowder

Abby H.2 Comments

stemarie_1650sfortentrance.JPGMy mom found this recipe in a local paper years ago in a column called “Making it Light”. The basic gist of the weekly article was to take crazy fat and calorie laden recipes healthy.

The problem becomes that that a lot of the changes that are made are so super drastic that the food no longer resembles the original recipe.  Since both recipes are published within the article, my mom was able to combine parts of each recipe to make something tasty and healthier than the original. I don’t have a link or a photo of the article or the original recipe, since it’s been over 20 years.

Without Further Adieu…. Colonial Chowder

Ingredients:

  • 2 T. Butter
  • 4 slices of bacon, finely diced (or you can use 1/2 cup of pre-cooked bacon crumbles)
  • 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
  • 1 large yellow onions, diced
  • 4 ribs of celery, diced
  • 3 large carrots, diced
  • 3 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 1 tsp. of each of the following: basil, oregano, thyme, sage
  •  Bay leaves (I usually use 2-3)
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 1.5 cup frozen corn, or 1 can rinsed and drained salt free corn kernels
  • 1 can cream-style corn
  • 1 can evaporated milk
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions:
  1. In a large stock pot, melt 1 T. butter, and cook bacon.
  2. Add chicken and cook chicken until no longer pink.
  3. Add onions, and cook until translucent (about 5 minutes)
  4. Add remaining carrots, celery, potatoes, and chicken broth. Cook over medium heat, until potatoes are soft.
  5. Add both types of corn, and milk. Cook over medium/low for about 20-30 minutes.
  6. Add Salt and pepper as needed. Serve with Cheddar biscuits.

This recipe serves 8-10, freezes well, and makes great leftovers!

This recipe is naturally gluten free. It cannot be made vegetarian/vegan.

Meal Plan Monday 3/19/18

Abby H.

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Bitty Bird has been sick for the past week and I’m hoping that it clears up soon. We’ve been cooped up into the house, and I want to take the kids to the park!

I’m just posting dinners for our meal plan. The kiddos lately have been having protein pancakes (I like Kodiak Cakes mix- it’s yummy and very versatile) with butter and Peanut butter. Hubs likes Oatmeal (my recipe for an easy almost instant oatmeal mix can be found here) if he’s got time, otherwise he and I have protein shakes. We mix it up, and have different flavors and mix in all kinds of stuff into our shakes, so as not to get bored. Here area few of our favorite recipes.

Lunches for Lil’ Man are usually Peanut butter and crackers, fruit, milk, a protein muffin (aka a kid cupcake), and applesauce cup. He takes his lunch every day! Hubs usually has a protein shake or I pack him leftovers or a frozen entree.

Bitty Bird and I usually have leftovers from the night before, or soup, sandwiches, quesadillas. She eats almost anything!

Monday:

  • D: Grilled Chicken and veggie skewers

Tuesday:

  • D: Frittata and fruit salad

Weds:

  • D: Colonial Chowder and cheese biscuits (I’ll be posting these recipes this week)

Thursday:

  • D: Been, Rice, cheese, and veggie bowls – Think Chipotle Bowls at home. 

Friday:

  • D: Turkey Meatloaf, mashed potatoes/cauliflower, and fruit

Saturday:

  • D: Henry has been asking to go out for dinner, so maybe Souplantation (one of his favs).

Sunday:

  • D: Chef Salad/leftover buffet. I love chef salad because you can just put whatever you’ve got in the fridge in the salad.

The menu may change, as  I pull stuff out of the pantry to rotate what we’ve got (I am trying to cut down on waste, and put the older stuff up front to get eaten first).

Free $5 Target Gift Card from Recyclebank

Abby H.

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If you’ve not joined Recyclebank, now here is your chance to do, spread the love, and score some $5 Target Gift Cards!

Here’s How the Awesome Neighbor Referral Program Works:

  • Use the social share buttons below or copy your personal referral URL and use it in an email you send to your neighbors.
  • You’ll earn a $5 Target gift card for every neighbor you get to sign up for our Recycling Rewards Program. If a neighbor signs up but isn’t eligible to get rewarded for recycling at home, you’ll still earn 25 points per referral.
  • Check your mailbox: every time we confirm one of your referrals, we’ll mail the gift card to you.

If you are new to Recyclebank, check out my post here that goes over all the ways you can earn points, save money, and the environment.

Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies!

Abby H.3 Comments

img_8846.jpgI know today is Pi Day, but Henry doesn’t really like pie (except Cheesecake), and I’m always looking for ways to get more protein into my buddy. He has a lot of food aversions, so most meat is a no-go (I don’t really count the occasional chicken nugget he inhales), same with beans, lentils, peas, and most other traditional sources of protein.

And who doesn’t love chocolate chips cookies…..

On the Back of the Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes mix I noticed that they say you can swap their mix  1 for 1 with flour, leavening, and salt in any baking recipe. Challenge accepted!

I turned to my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, the one on the back of the Tollhouse Chips Bag.

Making a few modifications based on what we had in the house, and we were ready to bake!

Here is the Original Recipe. One thing I really recommend is to cream the butter (basically use the electric mixer to “fluff up” the butter) for 30 seconds to a minute before adding the sugars.

IMG_8851.jpgIngredients:

  • 2 1/4 cups Kodiak Cakes Mix
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar or Splenda (I used baking Splenda)
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 cups Nestlé Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

 

 

 

 

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Cookie Dough

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Directions:

  1. Cream the butter for 30 seconds to a minute.
  2. Add Sugars and mix until combined.
  3. Add eggs one at a time, and mix completely before adding second egg.
  4. Add vanilla, Kodiak Cakes mix, blend until dough forms.
  5. Stir in chocolate chips.
  6. Spoon 1 Tbs. blobs onto a greased cookie sheet or a silicone cooking pad on a cookie sheet. I love Sil pads.
  7. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

Here are the calorie stats for the entire batch of cookies and per serving, which is 2 cookies. I serve Henry 2 of these with an 8 ounce glass of milk. So the total protein for his snack is 12 grams.

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This recipe makes 5 dozen cookies.

Do you have a secret to getting your kids to eat more protein?

$3, $4, $5 Sale at Flirty Aprons!

Abby H.

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. 

I love aprons. I have, probably 5 or 6 that I wear at home, and I have a couple that I when we camp (washing dishes and cooking when you camp is dirty business!). I got an email from Flirty Aprons last night that they are having a huge $3, $4, $5 clearance sale.

Spring Cleaning Sale at Flirty Aprons, Up to 86% off, Shipping $2.50, no code, exp 3/28

Here are just a few of my favorites:

 

If you aren’t in the market for aprons, They also have a lot of great kitchen gadgets like veggie peelers, choppers, knifes, etc.

I’ll be picking up a bunch of kitchen utensils and a few new aprons to kick off my holiday shopping. Yeah, it’s March, but I start my holiday shopping early and stash them away in the closet.

Corned Beef Deals (and a recipe)

Abby H.

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Even if you aren’t Irish, most of us love an excuse to party and eat. Saint Patrick’s Day is this coming Saturday.

I’ve scanned all of the ad’s for local area grocery stores to find you the best deal on corned beef. The winner for this year is Von’s/Albertson’s (They are owned by the same company, so they run the exact same ad).


Log on to your preferred stores App (or website) and add this clipless coupon to your card:

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Or, check the circular in store- There is a coupon in the circular too!

I’m not a huge fan of boiled meat, so I cook my corned beef in a crock pot. My recipe is here.

Earn 3000 Points from Fetch Rewards!

Abby H.

FetchRewards_LogoFetch is amazing! I love it. I’ve earned over $20 in rewards since August 2017- I usually get Amazon Gift Cards. If you’re not familiar with Fetch Rewards, there is a run down here.

Right now,
Get 3 friends to sign up with your referral code, and scan a valid receipt by
Sunday, March 11th, and you’ll receive 3,000 Bonus Points!

That’s on top of the 2,000 you already get for each friend. That’s 9,000 points for 3 friends! Not to mention, they also get 2,000 points for using your referral code.

Here’s how it works. . .

Step 1: Invite at least three friends to join Fetch Rewards.

Step 2: They sign up with your referral code and each scan 1 valid receipt by 3/11/18.
Valid receipts are any receipt that ends up Completed (not Rejected). Receipts don’t need to be Completed by 3/11/18, but must be scanned by then.

Step 3: You get 3,000 bonus points if three friends complete a valid receipt!
The 3,000 bonus points will be awarded on Tuesday, March 13th. You will be notified via email.

If you aren’t already using Fetch Rewards,  find Fetch Rewards in your app store. Use my code ND2TB when you sign up and you’ll score 2000 points after you scan in your first receipt with Fetch Rewards.

If you use my code, I’ll get 2000 points when you do. Win/Win, right? Honestly, my disclosure statement is here. I’m here to help ya’ll save money, not make a million dollars!

Freebie Round-up!

Abby H.

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I haven’t done this for a few weeks and I have found a bunch of really cool freebies and events, so I have to share!

Free Personal Pizza at Chuck E Cheese’s– The pizza is a lot better than it was when we were kids!

Free Window Birdhouse at Home Depot– Check and see if your local Home Depot offers free kids workshop every weekend, a few of our local HD’s do!

Free Subscription to Town & Country Magazine

Free Subscription to Weight Watchers Magazine

Panera Members – Free Bagel Everyday in March

Free Solero Frozen Fruit Bars for Kroger & Affiliates

Free Kroger Tortilla Chips at Kroger & Affiliates

Free Chobani Greek Yogurt

Free Sample of SPLENDA Naturals Stevia Sweetender

Free Goody Bag at buybuy BABY Stores

Free Quick Start kit from Atkins (and $5.00 in coupons too!)

What’s your recent favorite Freebie?

 

Meal Plan Monday 3/5/18

Abby H.

file000738334533.jpgSpring Break is just 2 weeks away and Henry is asking daily if it’s “Time for Spring Adventures” yet. I tell him not yet.

Even though he’s got school each day, I try and plan an adventure for him, it can be as simple as a walk at Walker Preserve or making cookies (these Justice League sugar cookies have been a recent hit).

The reason my Meal Plan Monday is so late today is that we had our daily adventure after school today. After school I treated the kids to Cheesecake Factory for cheesecake. By The Way… The pieces are HUGE. I know have three half decimated pieces of cheesecake in the fridge. We’ll be eating cheesecake for days!

I’m just posting dinners for our meal plan. The kiddos lately have been having protein pancakes (I like Kodiak Cakes mix- it’s yummy and very versatile) with butter and Peanut butter. Hubs likes Oatmeal (my recipe for an easy almost instant oatmeal mix can be found here) if he’s got time, otherwise he and I have protein shakes. We mix it up, and have different flavors and mix in all kinds of stuff into our shakes, so as not to get bored. Here area few of our favorite recipes.

Lunches for Lil’ Man are usually Peanut butter and crackers, fruit, milk, a protein muffin (aka a kid cupcake), and applesauce cup. He takes his lunch every day! Hubs usually has a protein shake or I pack him leftovers or a frozen entree.

Bitty Bird and I usually have leftovers from the night before, or soup, sandwiches, quesadillas. She eats almost anything!

Monday:

  • D: Pancakes and applesauce.

Tuesday:

  • D: roasted chicken and veggies- I’ve got tons of marinated chicken in the freezer. I’m trying new combinations of veggies and chicken roasted in the oven. Onions, carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes, potatoes, and garlic have been popular together.

Weds:

  • D: Black Bean Soup, cheese toast, and fruit salad 

Thursday:

  • D: Cheese quesadillas, beans, rice, and green salad

Friday:

  • D: Date Night

Saturday:

  • D: Family night in- Not sure yet, maybe home made pizza?

Sunday:

  • D: Chef Salad/leftover buffet. I love chef salad because you can just put whatever you’ve got in the fridge in the salad.

The menu may change, as  I pull stuff out of the pantry to rotate what we’ve got (I am trying to cut down on waste, and put the older stuff up front to get eaten first).