Buttermilk Pumpkin Pie

Hello Friends!

I wanted to share this pie recipe with you today, seeing how pumpkin everything will be here soon!

I found this recipe a few weeks ago when I wanted to use up some stuff in the house!
I had a pie crust, can of pumpkin, and half a bottle of Buttermilk on hand and wanted to throw something together. A quick Google search pulled up this recipe from The Food Network Kitchen.
I skipped the pie crust recipe and just went with the filling.
So here is what I did...

• 1 can pure pumpkin(not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 stick butter(mine was salted) 
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar 
• 1/4 cup sugar 
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice 
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 
• 3/4 cup Buttermilk 
• 2 Tbsp all purpose flour 

Preheat oven to 375. 

Mix the pumpkin, butter,eggs,sugars, and spices in a bowl until well combined. 

Add the buttermilk and the flour and mix until smooth. 

Pour in to the pie crust. 

Bake for 1 hour, or until the filling is set. 

Let cool completely before cutting. 

Can put confectioners sugar on top if you want. 

Super easy and delicious! Y'all try this soon! 

Menu 8-27/9-2-17

Hello Friends!
OK. OK. Technically September is on Friday but I am looking ahead people and this menu is for the whole week!

We are in full on Fair mode over here. Trying to get all the pictures printed, Fairy Gardens straightened back up, Lego Structures built, and deciding what we want to bake.
I took a break from all that to take some needed Momma time and to get this Menu out to all of you!
Our breakfast and Lunches are pretty much the same from week to week but, I still like to add it because I know not all the same people are looking each week.



Breakfast:
Smoothies (Our favorite right now is a Banana, 2 Strawberries, Chia Seeds, Flax, sometimes peanut butter, and Almond Milk)

Shakes (I love Premier Protein Shakes. I buy the Atkins shakes with less protein for the kids)

Eggs and Bacon

Omelet with Toast

Whole Wheat Banana Oatmeal Greek Yogurt Waffles
(Excited to try this one after seeing my friend April make them!)

Lunches:
Leftovers
Sandwiches
Snack plates
Salad 
Soup


Dinner: 
Spaghetti with Meat Sauce( I am having Spaghetti Squash) with Greenbeans

Turkey Kale Tacos

Taco Tuesday(plus Taco Salad)

Big Daddys night = Subway

Hamburgers(bun-less) with Sweet Potato Fries
(I found 80/20 Chuck patties at Aldi with the only ingredient being ground beef. So I bought a bag over the Summer and this will be using up the last of it. Also the Sweet potato fries came from Aldi as well)

Roasted Marinated Chicken Legs with Roasted Veggies

Cherry Pork Roast

Leftover Night

Homemade Chick-fil-A Nuggets

Homemade Chick-Fil-A Nuggets and Waffle Fries

Recipe adapted from: Tamar McGill

We love Chick-Fil-A it's one of our favorite restaurants to grab lunch at. I saw this recipe pop up on Facebook and I knew I had to try it. 

These are so good! Very easy to make and  the kids gobble them up every time I make them! I thought I would share the recipe that I have been using. 

I buy frozen waffle fries at Kroger.(Usually the plain, but I grabbed the seasoned bag this time)

• 1 pound chicken breast or tenders, cut into large chunks
• ⅓ cup dill pickle juice
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tbsp almond milk
• 1 tbsp almond flour
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp paprika
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ¼ tsp garlic powder
• coconut oil for frying

Directions:

• Marinate the chicken in the pickle juice in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
• Mix the beaten egg and almond milk.
• Pour out pickle juice then add the egg/almond milk mixture. Let sit for 10 minutes.
• Mix the dry ingredients.
• Drain the egg/almond mixture and add the spice mixture. Mix until the chicken is evenly coated.
• Add a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil to a large frying pan. Add a single layer of chicken when the oil is hot enough.
• Fry about 3 minutes on each side or until it's thoroughly cooked.
• It may take 2-3 batches to cook one pound of chicken.

(can use coconut milk, coconut flour, and arrowroot flour if you prefer) 

Y'all give these a try they are so Yummy! 

A small Menu and Homemade Breakfast Burritos

Hey y'all! How was your week? It has been busy here!

Seems like we have had something going on every day these last few weeks! 

I am longing for slower days, crisp air, leaves falling, my favorite time of year is just around the corner, and I can not wait! 

Lets take a peek in to our school week...

This week in school we are working on the Eclipse obviously, but also so much more! 

Oliver is perfecting his time telling skills in Math, devouring all the books he can get his hands on for Reading, working his way through the Magic School Bus series (books and shows) for Science, painting some for Art, learning about families, oceans, maps, etc.. in Social Studies and Geography, and so much more. 

He also did another Fairy Garden that he wants to enter in to the Fair. 

Abbey is working on Ratios in Math, Painting and Hiding Rocks for Art, Reading a My America book for History and a Harry Potter book for pleasure, and much more. 

She also got accepted in to Honors 4-H, helped work on the Fair Youth Board, had a Fine Arts class, and made another Fairy Garden to enter in the Fair! 

We have a lot going on this week but I did pull together a bit of a meal plan so I thought I would share a little bit of that. 

Breakfast- 

Cereal

Breakfast Burritos(recipe below) 

Omelet with Toast 

Smoothies 

Premier Shake 

Oatmeal 

Lunches- 

Leftovers 

Sandwiches 

Salad 

Eat Out 

Dinner- 

Chick-Fil-A Nuggets with Waffle Fries(recipe coming soon) 

Turkey Kielbasa, Taters, and Kraut in the Crock-pot 

Marinated Chicken, Sweet Potato, and Squash and Zucchini

Eat Out (We have a small back to school shopping trip planned along with Family Day so we will eat while we are out.)

Big Daddys cooking night(his schedule has changed were he will be home another night and he is going to take over dinner that night. He really doesn't like to plan ahead so we will pick up something when we are out shopping the day before!) 

Birthday Party(We will eat dinner at the party) 

Hamburger Patty with Sweet Potato Fries 

Friday I made some of my friend Aprils Breakfast Burritos to go in the freezer. Super simple and yummy! I wanted to share the recipe with y'all! 

• 1 lb Pork Breakfast Sausage(I used Jimmy Dean all natural)
• 1 bag Simply Potatoes Southwest Style Hashbrowns
• 1 cup kale
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk 
• 10-12 Flour Tortillas 
• Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese 

In a large skillet or pot add the sausage, break it up, and then add the hashbrowns. 

Allow these to cook until the pork is no longer pink and fully cooked. 

Crack the eggs in to a bowl, whisk the milk in. 

Add the eggs to the sausage/hashbrown mixture.

Allow to cook, stirring occasionally, add the kale and leave until the eggs are fully cooked. 

Lay out your tortillas and add the filling with some cheese on each one, then fold up. 

I wrapped them up in plastic wrap and then froze them in a freezer bag. 

The kids had one this morning, we put it on defrost for about a minute and then we cooked it about 2 minutes. 

Definitely a keeper and will make again! 

Menu 8-7/8-13-17

Hello Friends!

One week in to August already! I can't believe it!

Even though we Homeschool year round now, after being in public school all my life I still feel as though I should be getting ready for back to school! We are currently moving right along with 2nd grade and 7th grade. I can not express enough how much we love the freedom that comes with Homeschooling. It has absolutely helped our family in many ways!

I am currently sitting in the school room as I write this blog. I have been in here most of the day, doing some school with Oliver(Abbey was gone to a 4-H Day of Service), cleaning up, getting things better organized, etc..
Yesterday, I got some motivation to start back with this blog. A Homeschool Mom friend of mine said that she was going to be posting on a Facebook page to keep track of their Homeschool happenings for her kids to look back on. And it made me think, I already started a blog and I pay for this website every year so, why not pick up where I left off and get back to something I enjoyed! I still want to post meal plans, recipes, school happenings, adventures, etc...

So here we go! I thought I would jump back in with a simple meal plan for the week.
I am only doing 5 days because we have a Baby Shower and Birthday party this week.

Breakfast-
Smoothies
Premier Shakes
Oatmeal with fruit
Cereal with fruit
Omelets (Ok, don't laugh but, we have recently discovered making omelets with bacon bits and my kids love them!)

Lunch-
Leftovers are the main thing!
Sandwiches
Snack Plates (Fruits, Veggies, Pepperoni, Pretzels, etc...)

Dinner-

Chicken Salad - I am basically taking some of those Tyson Chicken that I bought on sale at Kroger and putting it in a Salad. Easy/Lazy dinner.

Pinto Beans, Cornbread, Sauerkraut and Wienies, Fried Taters (Big Daddys request for his one night off)

Buffalo Chicken with Sweet Potatoes (recipe)

Pork Chops with Veggies

Pizza Casserole(Recipe coming soon)


We hope you all have a great week!

If you haven't already, check out the Smoky Mountain Momma Facebook page!

Thanks for stopping by!

Meal Plan 2-29/3-6-16

Hello Friends!

I thought I would jump over here and share our Meal Plan for this week, while I had a chance.
Lots going on here and there. We are in full swing with our addition to the house and every thing is looking good! We are all very excited! The kids will have their own rooms and we will have a new Dining/School room! I can not wait to get in there and get everything organized!

We are hoping for a ride in the mountains this week to get away for a bit. I will share pictures if we do! :-)

Due to some changing health issues I have started dabbling in to the Trim Healthy Mama Plan so some of those meals are on here as well. I haven't gone 100% in because I am not big on all the artificial sweeteners. But I like the concept of the plan.
There are a few new meals on this plan and if we like them I will be sure to share the recipes!

Monday:
Breakfast Sandwich with Fruit
Packed Lunch
*ARBYS*

Tuesday:
Smoothie
?
Moab Tacos (Crockpot) with Veggies

Wednesday:
Smoothies
L.O. Tacos
*PAPAW*
(Papaws night to take care of dinner)

Thursday:
Fried Eggs with Bacon and Avocado
Chicken Sausage with Kraut and Veggies
Egg Roll in a Bowl Meal

Friday:
Oatmeal with Smoothies
Salad
Smoked Sausage and Veggie Bake

Saturday:
?
?
Lazy Lasagna with Green Beans and Salad

Sunday:
Cereal/ Smoothies
Quesadillas with Veggies
Taco/Taco Salad

I'll start on Monday...

Hello friends!
I thought I would get on here and try to jump in to this blogging thing again.
(I appreciate everyone who has reached out and tried to encourage me to get back at it.)

I titled this "I'll start on Monday" because that's what I would tell myself every time I thought about posting over here again(because it is always great to start something on Monday right?)
I took some time away from all this...just because!
But, I want to get back in the hang of it, so I thought I would post today and give you an update on where we are and what we are doing now!

*Oliver turned 6 in November
*This February 15th is mine and Travs 10 year anniversary!
*Abbey will be 11 in March
*We got a dog! A Black Lab/Golden Retriever mix, she is about 16 weeks old now.
*We are about to go in to a renovation on our house and redo some flooring.
*We are still homeschooling...and still loving it!
*I made a YouTube channel and I am hoping to figure it all out so I can share some "Vlogs" with y'all :-)

I would like to get back on track with blogging recipes, meal plans, grocery hauls, homeschool things, and anything else y'all would like me to.

Life-
Life is always hectic around here. I would love for it to slow down a bit but, this is the season that we are in, in our life right now, and I just have to embrace/accept it and move on. So in order to help a bit, I have started using a large Dry Erase board to schedule out our day(I said I would never do this but, we have seen that it helps tremendously with getting everything done, being accountable, saving sanity...) I actually go through and right out a detailed schedule for the entire day from 7:30 a.m.-10.pm. What dinner is and who is cooking it, what chores need to be done, who has what activities which days,etc..
So today's schedule looks like this, not much actual book work for school today because we have a Valentines Party and Abbey has Basketball practice tonight.
We have started limiting the time the kids have for T.V. and Kindles so in order to get "Tech Time" they have to have their chores done. But they can also lose Tech Time for bad behavior.
(Excuse the messy handwriting)

Recipes-
I don't have any recipes to share today but we try new ones about every week, so look for some new ones soon. :-)

Meal Plans-
Meal Plan for this next week;

Monday:
Pigs N Blanket
Snack Foods before party
Biscuits,Gravy,Eggs and Sausage

Tuesday:
Eggs and Toast
Soup
Red Beans and Rice with Kielbasa in Crockot

Wednesday:
Banana Muffins with Smoothie
L.O.
BBQ Chicken Sandwiches(Crockpot) with Baked Beans and Chips

Thursday:
Oatmeal with Fruit
L.O, OR Salad/Hummus plate
Chicken Stir Fry with Rice

Friday:
Eggs and Toast
L.O. or Dipping plate(Veggies with Hummus, Fruit with yogurt)
Hamburger Steak and Gravy with Taters and Peas(Big Daddy request)

Saturday:
FREE DAY...KIDS WITH YAYA  :-)


Groceries-
We went on our big once a month grocery trip this past week and I had fun spending the day shopping with the kids. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of this trip.(It was just me and the kids and it was a bit hectic.) I was able to hit up a Grocery Outlet,Walmart,Aldi, and Kroger Marketplace, and found some great prices and things to stock up on.
So we will just have short trips in the next few weeks for mainly produce.

Homeschool-
We have been homeschooling for almost 2 years now, and I feel more relaxed and settled in then when we first started. I am still learning new things every day though. We hope to stick with it from here on out!

Abbeys 5th Grade Curriculum-

*Math Teaching Textbook 5
*Handwriting without Tears + Keyboarding without Tears
*Spectrum Science + Skit Kits
*Spectrum Spelling
*Spectrum Writing
*Spectrum Reading + Reading List with comprehension questions
*Spectrum Geography
*Social Studies text book
*She also has Art books, Craft books(Like Origami, etc...) We have Sign Language flash cards that we work with. Lots of odds and end like Brain Quest cards,Kindle games, and lots of books on lots of subjects :-)

Abbey and I just got done reading Roll of Thunder Hear my Cry and we watched the movie. We are going to start the other 2 books that go along with that this week.

Olivers Kindergarten Curriculum-

I am pretty laid back with Olivers schooling. Right now we are mainly working on numbers, and reading, and just the basics.

We have workbooks(for letters,numbers,handwriting,math,reading,etc...),Handwriting Without Tears + Keyboarding without Tears, ABCmouse.com, StarFall.com, we watch Youtube videos (on letters, numbers, counting,reading,etc..)We have the Bernstein Bears Big Book Of Science,We use Bob Books and we are going to start Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read this week! We do scissor activities, play-dough, outside play, Brain Quest cards,games, read lots of books, etc...

Both kids also do Field Trips, and Craft Times, etc with local Homeschool groups.

I have figured out that we like to take June off, and then start back up in July so we can take extra days off in October when the weather is beautiful outside, It also gives us extra time off in December when there is so much going on.

Here is a snow video that I was playing around with, while learning the ropes of Youtube. This is from a storm that we got in January. We are currently expecting snow the next 3 days, not sure on accumulation but hoping for enough that the kids can play in it!
Snow in the Smoky Mountains

So that's it, y'all should be caught up with what we are doing and have been up to since I last blogged. We'll see if I can keep up with it.
Thanks for coming over and please let me know if there is anything you would like me to blog about.

Christmas Movie List and Christmas Decorating

Christmas is our favorite time of the year! We have lots of Christmas traditions, such as decorating the tree together as a family, watching certain movies together, and making the gingerbread house on Christmas Eve together. I try to find fun crafts and do at least 2 a week with the kids. We will also take a night to go to the Shadracks Christmas Light Show at the Smokies Stadium and possibly ride through the rest of the county to see lights as well.
  Here is a list of some of our favorite Christmas movies! And some pictures of our decorating! (Keep in mind my house is VERY small and I am not a professional photographer)

**Favorites

* Smoky Mountain Christmas
* A Christmas Story
* To Grandmothers House We Go(Olsen)
* The Santa Clause 1,2&3
* One Magic Christmas
* White Christmas
* The Grinch - new and old
* National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
* A Charlie Brown Christmas
*The Christmas Gift
* It's a Wonderful Life
* Home Alone 1,2
*Polar Express
*Jingle all the Way
* Jack Frost
*Scrooged
* A Christmas Carol

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas
Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas
Mickey's Christmas Carol
Eloise at Christmas Time
Berenstein Bears Christmas Tree
Franklin's Christmas
Casper Haunted Christmas
Barney's Night Before Christmas
Curious George:Very Monkey Christmas
A Very Thomas Christmas
Santa Paws 1&2
Beauty and the Beast:Enchanted Christmas
Ice Age: Enchanted Christmas
Muppet Christmas Carol
Garfield Christmas
A Chipmunk Christmas
Donkeys Christmas Shrektacular
Beethoven's Christmas Adventure
A Scooby Doo Christmas
Ernest Saves Christmas
Arthur's Perfect Christmas
A Golden Christmas
Elmo Saves Christmas
Flintstones Christmas
Winnie the Pooh and Christmas too
Elf

Sesame Street Christmas Carol
Prancer
Prancer Returns
Miracle on 34th Street
Rudolph
Frosty and Frosty Returns
Santa Clause is Coming to Town
Frostys Winter Wonderland
A Year without Christmas
Mickeys Choo Choo Express
Mickey Saves Santa
The Happy Elf
Prep and Landing & Totally Tinsel Collection
Disney's Christmas Carol

I'll be home for Christmas
Nightmare Before Christmas
Holiday Inn
A Year without Santa
The nutcracker
Blizzard
Shrek the Halls
Elmo's Christmas Countdown
Santa Buddies

The Boy is 5 and a Fall craft!

Yes it's true, the boy is 5! I can not believe time has flown by so fast! It seems like yesterday we brought him home!

He was very different from Sissy...from day 1. He cried more, he fussed more, and needed a lot more attention than she did.

He has always been rambunctious,and hard headed...and I think it's the red head in him! Look at those red curls...beautiful!!

But the time came to get the curls cut...and Mommy cried! My baby was a little boy.

We had his party on Sunday so family could come. Big Daddy made him the Lego cake and he wanted pizza. He had a great party and we enjoyed spending time with family! 

 He woke up on his 5th birthday with a dusting of snow on the ground. His first birthday that it has snowed.

Who says you can't have chocolate cake for breakfast on your birthday?? (HaHa...No Ma, he didn't eat all of that!)

 And yet another "Maginex" toy!

 We spent well over an hour finding, setting up, and playing with the "Maginex" toys.

We decided to take a break in our school/birthday day and do some crafts.

       


Lunch as requested "cheese sandwich" and  Big Daddy surprised him with ANOTHER Imaginext toy.

I am so glad this little boy is mine! He likes to tell me he loves me about 50 times a day. And he tells me "Mom you are my favorite girl ever" I get hugs and snuggles all through out the day(every day). 

He is my Wild Child, bouncing off the walls and being loud...but I wouldn't change him...he is my Brother Bear! 

Here is where I got the craft...

Hello November and a menu!

I can not believe that it is already 3 days in to November!! It is amazing to me how fast time flies!

November is a really busy month for us, lots of homeschool activities, Toys for Tots, and just getting ready for the holidays in general!
I am trying to use up items that we have on hand for my weekly menus so that's why I haven't shared many lately. But, I have had a few requests so I thought I would share what we are having this week!


Monday:
Yogurt,Granola,and Fresh Fruit
Shrimp and Rice
Crabby Patties (Salmon Patties) with sweet potato fries

Tuesday:
Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins with Kefir
Soup and Sandwiches
Baked Spaghetti  with green beans and garlic toast

Wednesday:
*PAPAWS DAY*

Thursday:
Biscuits,Eggs,and Bacon
Homemade Mac and Cheese with Homemade Chicken Nuggets
?

Friday:
Oatmeal with Kefir
Quesadillas with Fresh Fruit
Shepherds Pie  with Peas

Saturday:
Cereal
*Papaw*
Pork,Kraut, and Taters in Crock-Pot with green beans

Sunday:
Cereal with Smoothie
Grilled Cheese
*Daddy's Choice"