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Jackie from New Zealand asked, "We are heading to Disneyland later in the year, will need to get around by taxi or bus. What do you think are good places to take 8 year old boy, 11 year old girl, Mum, Dad and Nan? We have Disneyland pass, Universal Studios tour, Medieval dinner and thats all so far. Thanks."
I'm no expert, Jackie, but I did just go to Disneyland last year. It was my first visit as an adult and I hope to return with our family when each child turns five.
I know you didn't ask for frugal tips, but since you're traveling half way across the world for this trip, I'd venture to guess that you'd like to save where you can.
The first thing I would suggest, before you enter Disneyland, is to stock up on some Disney souveniers outside the park. I'm not sure what you have available in New Zealand, but if you even wait until you get to the states, then hit a store like Target or Walmart to find Disney-themed shirts, bags, etc. If you buy them on site, you'll pay a fortune and if you buy a few things ahead of time, you'll be less tempted to go crazy when you arrive at Disneyland. Because seriously...their stuff is really, really, really tempting.
I'd also suggest going to the grocery store and buying bottles of water and snacks (granola bars, dried fruit, stuff that you can carry in your purse) while at the parks. The food inside is pricey and Disney doesn't mind if you bring your own.
As far as places to go, I'm a big fan of the character dining. I'm not sure if your kids are too old to think that's fun, but I did a character breakfast in college and still loved it. The characters come around to your table and give you one-on-one picture taking opportunities. We did Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel on a day that we weren't planning on going to Disneyland, but I later learned that for the places that are inside of the parks (Ariel's Grotto in California Adventure and Breakfast with Minnie and Friends in Disneyland) you can enter the park early and avoid the crowds to get in. Be sure to make reservations ahead of time (like now) because time slots fill up quickly.
Someplace that we also really enjoyed was Downtown Disney. It's across from Disneyland and is a great place to spend some time either during the day or at night. It's mostly a shopping area; no admission required. They have live entertainment outside and tons of Disney stores to walk through. The Rainforest Cafe is a fun, family place to eat and is at the entrance of Downtown Disney - your kids will love the atmosphere and the food is really good.
My last tip is the Fast Pass system for rides at Disneyland. Once in the park, ask about an employee about it. You can grab a ticket at certain rides and avoid waiting in lines later in the day. You can do twice as much in the same amount of time by avoiding the long lines.
Be sure to also check out my interview with the Good Deal Gal about how to do Disneyland on a budget. There are other tips on that post from both of us about ways to enjoy your Disney experience.
Anyone else have any tips for Jackie? Please leave a comment if you do!
After my post listing out my kitchen staples last week, Kendra asked, "This was helpful to see what you keep in the freezer. I need to be better about freezing things before we need to pitch it. Like the chicken broth in my frig right now! :-) A couple of questions: The chopped onion & celery in your freezer, is that what you've chopped from fresh and then frozen in little ziplocs? Also, how do you make your bread crumbs, just process the heels till crumbly? Thanks for sharing this! :-)"
I try to set aside about an hour a week to prepare food for the freezer. I freeze almost everything. Usually fresh foods that I don't think I'll use before they expire or things that I want to be ready-to-go for labor intensive recipes.
When I get lots of celery, onions and bell peppers at the produce co-op, I usually cut most of them up to freeze. I've noticed that if I fill up a whole zipper bag, they will be in a huge frozen lump when I need to use them. Instead, I've learned to leave a little room and freeze the bag flat so I can easily manipulate half of the onions out of the bag and return the rest to the freezer, if needed.
We often get "weird" stuff from the co-op; things that I know we won't eat like kale, artichokes, yams and eggplant. I'll cut those up, too, and freeze them to hide in pastas, quiches or soups. I even cut up and freeze the broccoli stems that I used to throw out.
I also tend to puree vegetables (spinach, kale, sweet potatoes, beets) to hide in casseroles and sauces. Cauliflower can be easily hidden in mashed potatoes and scrambled eggs.
For bread crumbs, I keep a zipper bag with the heels of our loaves of bread on the top shelf of the freezer. When I have time, I'll put the leftover bread in the food processer and make crumbs. Sometimes I bake them on a cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes to dry them out, sometimes I put them back in the freezer without baking. I use the baked bread crumbs for meatballs and things that are mixed INto a recipe and the non-baked bread crumbs on top of casseroles (because they'll get baked/dried out anyway).
I hope that was helpful. Any other questions about freezing???
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"What are the foods that you always keep stock of in your kitchen? I want to start cooking more and eating out less, but I never seem to have everything I need for any of my recipes."
I've mentioned before that we don't eat a lot of processed foods, so things are pretty simple in my kitchen.
A few years ago, when I finally gave in to enjoying cooking for my family, I came across the book, "Express Lane Meals: What to Keep on Hand, What to Buy Fresh for the Easiest-Ever 30-Minute Meals" by Rachael Ray.
In this cookbook was a list of staples that Rachael Ray suggested people keep on hand. Then in each recipe, she listed the staple items that would be needed and a few additional items that could be purchased in the Express Lane on your way home from work. It really transformed how I thought about cooking.
Now that I'm much more comfortable around the kitchen, I have my own mental list of things that I try to have on hand. When things from this list are on sale, I stock up, so I rarely buy staples at a premium and my grocery bill stays low.
The following items are things that I use regularly enough that they don't expire before I need to replace them.
What's always in my FRIDGE?
- organic milk (both skim and 1%)
- bread
- eggs
- butter (both spreadable and sticks for baking)
- condiments (peanut butter, jelly, mayo, ketchup, mustard, relish, salad dressing, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, pesto, salsa)
- plain yogurt
- seasonal whole fruit (always apples, plus whatever we get at the co-op, and bananas are usually on the counter)
- washed and cut up fruit (for easy snacking)
- unsweetened applesauce
- deli turkey
- sliced cheese
- shredded cheese
- feta cheese
- shredded parmesan cheese
- garlic
- onions
- seasonal vegetables (zucchini, broccoli, celery, corn on the cob, etc.)
- salad ingredients (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, etc.)
- flax seeds (I grind them up and put in oatmeal and smoothies)
- usually a couple of containers of leftovers
What's always in my FREEZER? 
- minced garlic (from Trader Joe's, pictured)
- chopped onion
- chopped celery
- raw chicken breasts
- ground beef
- ground turkey
- salmon
- leftover grilled chicken, chopped
- cooked ground beef/turkey (sometimes a combo)
- cooked beans (black, white and kidney, stored separately)
- frozen vegetables (broccoli, green beans, corn and peas, plus leftovers from the co-op)
- frozen fruit for smoothies (strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, bananas)
- homemade chicken broth, portioned out
- homemade bread crumbs
- heels from bread in a zipper bag, waiting to be made into bread crumbs
- pureed vegetables to add to sauces and casseroles (things that my family doesn't normally eat: spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, kale, etc.)
- extra fresh items that I don't want to spoil (bread, butter, cheese, etc. - I freeze almost everything)
What's always in my PANTRY?
- baking items: unbleached flour, whole wheat flour, bread flour, sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, corn meal, cocoa and yeast. Plus I always stock up on stuff like brownie mix, cake mix and frosting when they're on sale to bring to parties and pot lucks if I'm in a hurry.
- old fashioned oats
- dry cereal: Cheerios, Kashi Go Lean and whatever other low-sugar cereals are on sale
- nuts: raw almonds, chopped walnuts, pine nuts
- lentils and dried beans: black, white and kidney
- raisins and dried cranberries
- granola bars
- tuna
- a jar for desserts
- pretzels
- crackers (usually Triscuits)
- raw agave nectar and honey
- spaghetti sauce
- canned tomatoes
- canned tomatoes with green chiles
- canned green chiles (usually two cans, unless on sale)
- canned evaporated milk (usually one can, unless on sale)
- canned sweetened condensed milk (usually one can, unless on sale)
- pasta: penne, spaghetti, bow ties (all whole wheat)
- dry brown rice
- taco seasoning
- oils: olive, canola, sesame seed oil
- vinegars: balsamic, apple cider, white rice
- whey protein powder (for smoothies)
What's always in my SPICE CABINET?
- olive oil spray
- canola oil spray
- salt
- pepper
- red pepper flakes (to spice up Mike's individual plate)
- garlic powder
- cumin
- Italian seasoning
- dried parsley
- dried basil
- chili powder
- corn starch
- kosher salt
- cinnamon
- baking soda
- baking powder
- nutmeg
- pure vanilla extract
Most of my recipes can be made with the items I have on hand. My staples used to be things like Hamburger Helper, canned vegetables and Rice-a-Roni, but I've made a conscious decision to eat more whole foods and eliminate preservatives where I can.
Was this helpful???
Things have been rough since Ryan's been home from school. There has been a lot of whining, a lot of complaining, a lot of tattling and a lot of time spent in separate rooms. My motto of "if you can't get along, you can't play together" is repeated over and over.
At first, both Ryan and Kaylin were getting in trouble when things erupted. The new dynamic of having Ryan home was very difficult for both kids, but I wrongfully assumed that he was more to blame because bad habits had followed him home from school.
After a few days, I realized that Ryan wasn't really doing anything wrong. He wasn't being perfect, but it was obvious that when he was punished, he was correcting his behavior and his attitude improved. But Kaylin was not. My sweet, helper-girl, mini-mama had turned into a tiny terror overnight.
It's like Ryan is suddenly the enemy. She races to beat him everywhere, runs to grab a diaper when I ask Ryan to get one for me, yanks things out of his hands, sits in Ryan's chair when he gets up from the table to get a drink, screams when something is clearly an accident, bursts into tears at the slightest injustice...the drama has been out of control.
Then a light bulb went off: Kaylin is jealous. And probably feeling unimportant.
My middle child was becoming a textbook middle child right in front of my eyes. She was competing with Ryan to reclaim her rank as the older, responsible child (which she was while he was at school during the days just a few weeks ago).
The first thing I did (once this finally dawned on me) was sat Ryan down and talked to him. I asked him to step up. To be the "bigger man" in each situation. To let her scramble into the van before him, for him to pick a different seat when she sits in his chair at breakfast, to show her that "winning" isn't that big of a deal. I didn't use this verbiage, but I wanted him to "kill her with kindness." I suggested that we try this for a whole day to see if it made a difference with Kaylin's attitude.
I tweaked my approach, too. I gave her more opportunities to be a big girl, I divided out responsibilities for both kids so it would seem more fair to her, I wasn't as quick to reward Ryan for compliance when Kaylin wasn't behaving, I tried not to be so hard on her for being over emotional about every. little. thing.
It took until later in the morning, but eventually .jpg)
her confidence started coming back and she stopped clawing her way back into her rightful place in the pecking order. She slowly dropped the attitude and began enjoying her big brother again. It's been a much more peaceful household.
I've let Ryan off the hook about giving in to her tantrums, but have reminded him daily to be a better example because he's the oldest sibling. And he is stepping it up, for the most part. I have had to tell him (repeatedly) not to correct her if she pretends to know how to spell a word or acts like she's as knowledgeable as him.
I shouldn't be surprised that Kaylin fell into the birth order role of the middle child. I guess I was just hoping that because she's the only girl, that she would feel different and unique for all the right reasons.
It took seven months for this to surface. Likely because all day long, with Ryan in school, she's been the top dog since Jason arrived.
This is all new for me. As an only child, I don't "get" the whole sibling rivalry thing. Can't we all just get along???
I'm ready to consciously help Kaylin feel special and important in her own way. Any advice from moms of middles out there?
This is my 1000th post and I want to celebrate! What better way to celebrate than with gifts? Personally, I enjoy gift certificates for pampering things like pedicures and massages. Oh, and cold, hard cash is always nice. My home address is...
I'm just kidding...the gifts are obviously for YOU!
Every Saturday for the rest of the summer, I will post about an awesome business that is giving away one of their products or services to one (or more!) of my lucky readers. Contests will run for six days and the winners for the previous weeks' contests will be announced each Friday. Winners will have 48 hours to contact me before a new winner is chosen. Everyone will have the opportunity to enter each contest multiple times; instructions will be listed on each post.
Remember: you can't win if you don't play!!! Check back every weekend to enter the newest contest.
Some of the companies participating include:
Blush Candles
Buttoned Up
Crown Bindery Printables
Flitterbugs Custom Childrens Designs
Butterfly Genes Tassles
Jadyn's Jewelbox
Karlee Fuch's Handbags and Accessories (currently running a 40% off sale!)
Kelly Joy Boutique
Kidding Around Playtown (Phoenix area only)
Purdy Things Crochet Accessories
Tutu Mamas
Wallsy Tales
For my global readers: please read the details at the bottom of each contest post to find out if the business ships internationally before entering.
Enough about that: back to ME.
I honestly can't believe I've written 1000 posts. I knew I had a lot to say, but wow. That's almost one post per day! I'm rarely short on words, that's for sure.
In my first post (that was read by about 10 people), Kaylin was 8 months old...practically Jason's age. I began my blog as a way to update family and friends about the kids and their accomplishments. I barely knew what a blog WAS back then! In three short years, my online journal, "Three Blondes and a Redhead," blossomed into the parenting / cooking / organizing / crafting / all things frugal / homemaking soapbox that "Intentionally Katie" is today.
Do you know what I would REALLY love from you? To know who you are. There are hundreds of you out there reading my blog and I'd love to "meet" you. Especially those of you hiding in the shadows. If you've never commented before, please take a minute to say, "Hi!"
I guess this is my opportunity to say, "thank you" to all of my wonderful readers. I am still amazed that so many of you choose to spend your precious time reading my long-winded posts.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
After posting my recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Stew the other day, Kendra said, "This looks wonderful. I love using my crock pot, especially in the summer. If you don't use the canned ingredients, what do you use? I'm assuming dried beans, but what is the conversion for that? Also, using dried beans kind of intimidates me, with the whole soaking thing. Any tips? :-)"
Yes - I do use dried beans. And YES - I have easy tips!
Dried beans are significantly cheaper and easier to store. I buy them in bulk and keep them in glass jars in my pantry along with other bulk items like lentils, raisins, cranberries, oats and wheat germ.
I started buying dry beans when Mike was out of work a while back, but hated soaking and cooking them, so we rarely ate them. Then I learned how to make them in the crock pot. They're so easy, Kendra, you're going to want to fly out here and hug me after you try it.
Are you ready for how easy this is going to be? This tip is for soaking any kind of dried beans, though I'd recommend doing one at a time because they cook at different rates. There might be some exact science to how long they need to cook, but I'll tell you the method that I use and I've never been disappointed.
Step 1: Before going to bed at night, put dried beans in your crock pot (if you're not measuring, 1/4-1/3 full is fine).
Step 2: Fill your crock pot with water (about 1 inch less than full to the top).
Step 3: Set crock pot to low.
That's it. Go to bed and you'll wake up to soaked, cooked beans. I usually turn off the crock pot when I wake up and remove the lid while I get through breakfast, then drain the water in a strainer and let them cool a bit before handling them.
Tip: I always make a bunch of one kind at a time, measure them out in 1- or 2-cup portions and stick them in the freezer. Then you can toss them into a recipe the same as a can of beans. (I pull them out and thaw them in the fridge overnight or on the counter when I know a recipe calls for beans the next day.)
I make my own kidney beans for my favorite Chili, black beans for Mexican dishes and white northern/cannellioni beans for soups and White Chicken Chili.
If you want to make exactly what you need, here are the conversions:
1/2 cup dry beans = 1.5 cups soaked beans
2/3 cup dry beans = 1 (15 oz) can of beans
I hope that's helpful, Kendra!
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elationships I made with the people in these groups. They were sincerely happy, but not perfect. They genuinely wanted to get to know me as a person, flaws and all. They accepted me without hesitation. As an awkward, hormonal teenager, that was so rare and refreshing!I make this enough that I've decided to add it to my blog. This was tweaked from a Spark People recipe. I don't use canned ingredients, but these are the measurements for simplicity. (Update: I posted some tips on making dried beans.)
Chicken Taco Stew in the Crock Pot 
1 onion, chopped
1 16-oz can black beans
1 16-oz can kidney beans
1 16-oz can corn (drained)
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies
1 1.25-oz packet taco seasoning
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Directions:
Mix everything together in a slow cooker except chicken. Lay chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. 30 minutes before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in.
Sprinkle with cheese, add a dollup of sour cream, or eat with tortilla chips.
1 cup butter, softened
Okay, I realize I just challenged you yesterday to join me in not complaining for 30 days, but I have a feeling that's going to be a tough pill to swallow. I want to pose another challenge.
A shorter challenger.
Possibly a harder challenge.
A "no electronic babysitter at the beginning of summer break" challenge.
I read a statistic recently that kids ages 2-5 spend an average of 32 hours a week in front of a screen. TV, computers, video games, movies. That beats the 6-11 year olds who average 28 hours a week in front of a screen.
That's 4-5 hours per DAY people.
Some of you may remember last year when I took the "TV Turnoff Week" challenge. I didn't think I could make it for a whole week, so I challenged myself to one day. It wasn't so bad; I explained what was going on to the kids at breakfast and they didn't ask for tv all day long. So I tried it another day. Then another. It didn't take long for me to see the huge attitude shift in my kids; specifically Ryan.
My kids had a new-found creativity. They played together. All. The. Time. They dressed up, played hide and seek, put on puppet shows, colored, made crafts.jpg)
, read books, played random games like two person duck-duck-goose, the list goes on and on.
Without defaulting to media, my kids learned to love playing together again. I stopped hearing, "I'm bored." It was awesome.
Over the last year, I have let them watch tv on occasion. Usually on Saturday mornings as a treat or as a reward for doing something great. But the tv is on less than 2-3 hours a week while the kids are awake. I LOVE it.
When I read that statistic above, it caused me to want to challenge each of you to turn off the tv in your house for a week. Or a day, even. SOMEthing to get your started.
Challenge yourself as a parent to get creative. Challenge your kids to find new things they enjoy. Send them outside to play, to be active, to be kids.
Is anyone on board with me here? (I'm hearing crickets...)
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