PreK Graduation

Tonight our darling H graduated from PreKindergarten. A very fun night! Each child was given a character award. H recieved "Peaceful". The teachers shared that she "had a peaceful heart and brought peace to all classroom situations." E was a very good boy and with the help of Angry Birds, was able to sit still through the whole ceremony.

A Three Turtle Day

It is turtle season and we have seen a crazy amount of turtles on our country road between our house and preschool. The kids and I stopped the other day and picked up three off the road and let them loose in the yard. After reading on the internet about the box turtles, we probably won't do it again. Apparantly they like to stay in the same general area where they were born. Even a 1/2 mile move, can stress them and interrupt their breeding cycle. The kids and I decided we would just help them across the road from now on, if it was a safe spot for us to get out of the car. :) We had fun while it lasted and learned the definiton of predator and prey from wikipedia.
My back yard has been neglected, but I have some beautiful irises blooming. Thank goodness they are so easy!

Menu for the Week

At least one person out there finds my menu planning helpful, so I'm going to keep posting. Keeps me organized, anyways. We are pretty busy this week (PreSchool graduation!), so I have a couple of really easy dinners, and one from last week that I didn't get around to making. I am cooking pretty heavy out of my Everyday Paleo cookbook. All the recipes so far have turned out well.
Better Butter Chicken - got my last strange spice (fenugreek) last week, so I am ready to give it a try. It is an Indian inspired dish, but has no curry, and Matt hates curry! I hope it is good!
BLT Avocado Wraps - bacon, tomato and an avocado sauce wrapped up in bibb lettuce leaves.
Huevos Rancheros - This is Matt's most favorite thing to eat! Fried eggs, some cheese, some salsa verde and we have some chili leftover from last week so I am going to use that up. Avocado on top! Easy and FAST!
Garlic Beef Stew with Acorn Squash - crockpot recipe. This looks really good. I think it would be equally good with chicken instead of beef, or another type of squash. EASY!
Albondiagas Soup - this is a meatball recipe that cooks in a mexican style soup. Looks pretty good and easy. Calls for a El Pato Jalapeno salsa that I found at Walmart in a little green can. Not expensive.
Im going to make a batch of Egg Cupcakes, Paleo Apple Muffins, and Paleo Pancakes for the week and weekend breakfasts. We should also have plenty of leftovers to fill in the blanks.

Eating Paleo this Week

Here is what we are eating this week...
Monday - Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce and salad. I don't make my own sauce, I just try to pick a good one at the store (no added sugars or weird ingredients, maybe organic if it is on sale) and add my own ground beef. Serve over spaghetti squash that has been baked and pulled apart with a fork. If I am going to go to the work of baking one, I do 2 or 3 and then use the rest of the squash later in the week. My dear friend said she liked it with butter and cinnamon, which I think sounds yum if you are in the mood for a treat.
Tuesday - Huevos Rancheros with Salsa Verde sauce. Just bought some Salsa Verde at the store, and who doesn't like eggs? Fast and easy. I will probably serve with avocado for some healthy fats.
Wednesday - Steak w/Chimchurri sauce, veggies, and mashed sweet potatoes. Using the recipe from Everyday Paleo for the sauce. Mostly just cilantro and parsley blended with some seasoning. Easy.
Thursday - Better Butter Chicken from Everyday Paleo cookbook. This is inspired by an Indian dish. That isn't a cuisine we eat much of, but I am looking forward to trying it. I have a backup plan in case Matt and the kids won't eat it. Had to buy a couple of spices to complete the recipe (cardamom, coriander and fenugreek), but I am hoping it turns out well. She suggests serving it on a bed of greens, so I guess I will buy some kale and saute it. I am going to try to pull this off in the crockpot, will post the recipe later if it works out.
Friday - Paleo Chili. Biggest difference is no beans, but I am sure it will be delicious. Even thought it is spring, chili is one of my favorite foods and hope I can freeze some for lunches later. Planning on serving it with some avocado and Fritos (gasp) but Fritos are gluten free and go great with chili. So glad I am not allergic to corn. Chili leftovers are also good to serve with eggs for breakfast or on spaghetti squash, Steak and Shake gets away with a Chili 5 way, right?

My throw it in a pot dinner from last week that turned out pretty well:
Apricot Chicken with Cabbage.
I put cut up chicken breast, 1/2 can coconut milk, 1 cup chicken broth, 3/4 cup dried apricots (sliced), 2 Tbsp garlic pepper seasoning (Tastefully Simple), and 1 thinly sliced cabbage in a crockpot and cooked on low for about 6 hours till chicken was done. I added some sliced almonds for crunch when I plated it. Turned out pretty well for odds and ends leftover in the fridge and no desire to go to the grocery store. I love how chicken turns out in the crockpot.

Girls vs. Boys

Aunt Leslie and I split up the kids Saturday morning. The girls were invited to a Fancy Nancy Tea Party at the Library and I took the boys on a hike at the Coleman Nature Area. The girls looked adorable and the boys were boys. Mud, sticks, bugs, etc...Such great kids!

Zoo Field Trip

We had an amazing May day for H's preschool field trip to the zoo. H, E and I saw a lot of animals and checked out the Zootennial exhibit in the Lion House. The kids really enjoyed the pictures and examples of the clothes people used to wear to the zoo (Sunday best) as well as the late 60s/early 70s console TV they had on display. Wow, how things have changed. No way you could have hung one of those things on the wall.

Easter with the Ottos

Lots of things to be thankful for this Easter. A new addition to the family, Baby L, and T turned 15. Not the best weather, but maybe next year.