Meat N Cheese Roll Ups

Meat n Cheese Roll Ups...

Ingredients:
- Crescant Rolls
- Cheese Slices
- Sliced Lunchmeat


Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350

- Unroll the crescent rolls. I usually use 3 packages of crescent rolls. (Makes 24 rolls)

- Lay a slice of lunch meat on it. (I used turkey this time)

- Put some cheese on the meat. (I used american, but you can use any kind) I only put 2 little slices on it so the cheese doesn't all melt out the sides.

- Roll it up. 

- Cook for about 10 minutes. Check it. It will probly not be done yet. I usually rotate the pan its on so all sides cook evenly. Maybe 5 more minutes. Or until crescent roll is done.

These are a big hit in our house! 

Enjoy!!

Homemade Mac n Cheese

This is one of my favorite meals to make because it's so easy...and it's a big hit with the kids!

Homemade Mac n Cheese...

Ingredients

-2 cups elbow macaroni

-2 Tbsp margarine

-2 Tbsp flour

-1 tsp dry mustard

-1 tsp salt (optional)

-2 cups milk

-2 cups shredded cheese (any kind or mixed...i mix different cheeses, I'll explain later)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook macaroni and drain. 

While the macaroni is cooking...in another pan melt butter. When completely melted...add flour, salt, and dry mustard. Mix together until it's a paste.

Add milk. If you want it more cheesy just add 1 1/2 cups milk. If you want it more creamy add 2 cups milk... When the paste is all dissolved (I use a whisk to break it up), add the shredded cheese. The directions only call for cheddar cheese, but I mix different kinds of cheeses, I think it gives it a little more flavor. I usually do a combination of cheddar, mozzarella, and taco cheeses (I have used sharp in the combination too before). For me, it's just whatever I have in the fridge. All the cheeses combined should still add to 2 cups. 

Stir in the cheese until it's all melted. Stirring consistently so the cheese doesn't burn.

Mix in the macaroni.

Pour in a 2-qt casserole dish. Top with cheese (for this I usually just use the cheddar, but any kind is fine) You can also top with bread crumbs and sprinkle paprika. Both ways are good. (I usually just sprinkle cheese on top because it's easier.)

Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20, or when cheese is melted and bubbly around the edges.

Enjoy!! This is a big hit in our house. It's my go to recipe since it's so good and easy!

Image

So the other day I had all 3 girls with me at Once Upon A Child (I know, crazy, right). You know...just walking down an isle trying to find a size for one of the girls. And all the sudden, while walking past a lady looking at a different size, she sees me with all the girls and says "another girl?" I say the first thing that comes to mind..."no" And I keep walking.

Now this was a little surprising to me as I didn't think I was THAT fat...But then again, I HAVE had 3 kids, so I'm bound to have some extra "baggage" (aka flub). And...I know there's some pounds that need to be lost.

There are so many ways to look at this...

Should I be ok with it? This is how I look after having 3 kids, it's not that bad (right?) ...Should I be offended ...either for her thinking I was pregnant when I am NOT, or her thinking I was big enough to be half way and know the sex already. I have had 3 kids and if I was far enough along to know the sex of the baby I would be a lot bigger. 

Yes I would LOVE to loose weight! And this makes me even more motivated to do so. But, it's not as easy as it used to. I used to have REALLY high metabolism. It was great! When Jon and I got married, at 20 years old I was 96 lbs. That's quite different now. 

After I told my mom this, she said "well, your not a teenager anymore, so you don't have a teenagers body." So true. I have the body of a mom. I have the body of someone who has given birth to 3 kids.

I mean...just think about that for a minute. I've had (of course at different times) 3 people growing inside me. I should not be expected to have a perfect body, or a flat tummy. No one that has given birth should be expected to show no signs of it.

Basically...if you've had a baby I expect you to have some flub. The more babies you've had, the more flub I expect you to have. If you have no flub, my first reaction would probly be, no kids. (No offense to you skinny moms)

I hope I don't step on any toes...I understand wanting to be fit. If you work out and work hard to get rid of that flub... more power to you. But not everyone can loose the flub that easily. And not everyone has energy to workout on top of all the other mommy things to do...just saying.

But I could go even further than just the tummy flub...What about all the other stuff that goes along with our new mom bodies?...

Sticking with the same area...stretch marks. Can I get an Amen? Honestly, I hate my stretch marks. And I know I can't be the only one that hates them. But it's proof that I'm a mom. Blah Blah Blah...Seriously, that's just something we tell ourselves to make us feel better. And does it help? Maybe a little.

Stretch marks and belly flub have made me so self conscience of myself. I know I'm a mom and these things shouldn't bother me like this anymore. Plus I don't want to teach my girls that its ok to have a bad image of yourself. 

But that's not always reality. We want to look at ourselves in the mirror and think 'wow, what a hott mama'. But honestly, who does that? Not me. When I look in the mirror I think 'wow, I'm so fat', or 'it really does look like I could be pregnant' (again, I am not). We always have negative thoughts about ourselves. At least I do. 

The right way to think is 'God chose me to be a mom, He knew I could handle this body'. I want my girls to learn how to love themselves, for who they are, so I need to do the same, I can't expect them to love themselves if I don't show them how. 

The biggest role model

I am my kids' biggest role model.

Whether I like it or not I am the biggest example in my kids' life. Especially being a stay at home mom...I am with them all the time. What I do...they will see, whether I know it or not.

Being an example and role model is a silent job...it's un-seen. They see the things you do and how you act even if you don't know their watching...So what I do is something I have to be ok with my girls doing. The way I react to something...is that the way I want them to react too?

I have pierced ears...and I'm ok with my girls getting pierced ears. Even though they haven't yet. They do need to be responsible enough to not mess with them and help take care of them.

I have dyed my hair red before...there are pictures. Am I ok with my girls dyeing their hair a surprising or strange color? 

I don't have any tattoos...do I want my girls following in my example and not getting a tattoo? If I had one...I would have to be ok with my kids getting one too.  

Do I want my girls to talk clean? Yes...so that's how I talk. Have good manners?...say please and thank you? Yes! That's why I even say please and thank you to my girls. If I expect them to have good manners toward others...it only makes sense to have good manners to them too. 

I need to dress the way I want my girls to dress. As a mom of girls I need to teach them to dress modestly...even at a young age. The way I dress is a good influence on them and how they should dress. Even though they may be too young right now to understand, I can still lead by example and use this as a tool for later when they will understand.

Even just the little things I do...like how I react when I get mad. Or how I handle punishing them. It's all things that their little minds are taking in. I want their minds to absorb the right things. Am I doing the right things? Am I being the right kind of influence on them? 

This is not something that I think about as much as I should. In the midst of being mad I usually don't stop and think "what kind of example am I being right now". Am I leading them in the right direction? In the way they should go?

The Favorite...?

So you know the saying that your not supposed to have a favorite kid? Seriously, how could you even decide? But...is there a difference between a favorite kid and different bonds with them? Yes...I think so.

I love all my girls the same...but in different ways. They have different personalities. So we have different bonds...we get along in different ways...But I don't think that's the same as having a favorite.

Emma is my oldest. She just turned 4 last month (in December). We are so much alike...she is literally my mini-me...just like me. Our personalities are very similar. Even down to the little things like we don't like trying new foods. Or we would much rather wear yogo pants or "soft pants" as Emma calls them, than blue jeans. She is even more outgoing like me. And don't even get me started on her sweet-tooth she gets from me.

Ava is my middle girl. She turned 3 in November. We are less alike...she is much more like Jon. She has such a silly personality. Although she does have my sweet tooth. She is also very sneaky, and I think she gets that from me too. She once licked frosting off about 8 cupcakes without me knowing. She is very stubborn and Jon says she gets that from me. 

Leah is my youngest...the baby of the family. We will be celebrating her 1st birthday at the end of January! She is my happy baby. Sweet baby. Silly. She is still too young to know who she will be more like I think. I also feel a bond with Leah because she very well could be our last baby. Unless God blesses us with a surprise.

So...no favorites...just different bonds with different kids. Each kid has their own personality so you get along with them differently. So maybe...all my girls are my favorites :) 

Whirlwind

So you might be wondering where I've been...It's been a whirlwind the past couple weeks.

Christmas Eve we traveled to Elkhart, where my family lives. So most of the day we were traveling. It's a 5-6 hour trip... and of course we stopped at Lee's famous recipe chicken!

Christmas day, of course, was quite busy. We usually have a Christmas at my parents house and then a separate Christmas at my Grandma's house. But this year it was combined at my parents house. Double the presents. Double the chaos. But we had fun.

  

Thursday...the day after Christmas...Jon and I went on a date for lunch before he left to go home. The girls and I stayed with my parents for a longer visit. 

Saturday...my brother and his family came over to my parents house and we took the kids sledding! (my parents house sits on a hill, so we have grown up going sledding right outside our door!) 

This was the first time I was able to take my just turned 3 year old sledding!

The kids really enjoyed it :) 

My youngest watched from inside. 

Tuesday morning we went to my grandparents house to visit with them. I praise the Lord I was able to go and take my girls for this visit. 

We didn't do anything for New Year's Eve...I value my sleep too much...New Year's day it was just a lazy day with the whole family. 

The girls and I were supposed to go home on Saturday, Jan 4th, but decided to stay...I'm very glad we did.

Sunday evening into Monday Elkhart got quite a bit of snow. Monday and Tuesday were the really really cold days. In the negatives. The real feel for Monday was -45. So of course we stayed home...especially since there was a ban on driving. 

The driving ban was lifted just in time for me to have to take Emma to an urgent care for an ear infection on Wednesday...and of course that evening she started looking like she might have pink eye. 2 days later of waiting it out I decided it was just a cold in her eye. It seems to be better now. 

Saturday evening...Jan 4th...my Opa (Grandpa) went home to be with the Lord. He fought cancer for over a year...and now he is walking the streets of gold!

The funeral was on Friday...it was beautiful, he would have liked it. He was 90 years old. An amazing example and role model for everyone who knew him. My grandparents had been married for 63 years! What an amazing example of a God-centered marriage! 

Such a bittersweet time...Life is so precious. Cherish every minute you have with your loved ones. I am so blessed that I was able to see him one last time...and take my girls to see him too. We will miss Opa always, but heaven has gained a true warrior for Christ. We have comfort and peace knowing he's with Jesus. 

Invisible

Being a mom (especially a stay at home mom) is sometimes an invisible job.

I can't speak for other moms, and maybe some have never thought of it like that.

I was just browsing my facebook feed on my phone and saw a friend's status...She was supposed to be busy baking cookies, wrapping presents, making food, and instead...she was holding her crying baby. While it was the right thing to be doing, she was frustrated and felt invisible.

I thought to myself...wow, I feel like that all the time. Invisible...especially when the kids aren't listening, and need to sit in time out.

Or when the girls aren't getting along, and need to wear their get along shirt.

I take care of my girls all day, and I'm on-call at night if one wakes up crying. I haven't gotten a full nights sleep in years.

But that's part of being a good mom...the details you do for your families that go unnoticed and unknown unless not taken care of.

And being a mom isn't about getting acknowledged for all the unspoken things we do. It's about doing the things that need to be done and knowing we accomplished it...even if its rocking our crying baby to sleep. Or buying a new toothbrush for a kid that just got over a cold. Or washing a blanket to get the spit up out.

A mom's job is not invisible. A mom's job is just a behind-the-scenes kind of job. Like at a play...the person that directs the cast backstage where to go next, make up, hair, costumes, etc. Or the person that makes a snack for the cast...I mean no one thinks, wow the person that had water waiting for the characters off stage in between scenes was great!

But instead... mom's get rewarded with smiles like these...

So even though we may feel invisible sometimes...our kids know us, even when they don't listen. We help shape our kids into who they grow up to be.  And that's very important.