Just let me whine for a minute

I am so tired.

A is getting worse not better.

He is having fits every week, when it used to happen far less. 

Halloween was so frustrating.  He used to not want to wear costumes...now he couldn't decide on what costume to wear.  Originally he was going as General Grievous from Star Wars....he says Jennifer Grievous...lol.  Then he changed his changed his mind to Darth Maul, just so he could get the Darth Maul light saber, which he had a full fit over in Target about. 

Of course Party City was out of Darth Maul by the time we went shopping, which was the last minute of 3 weeks before Halloween.  The snarky punk getting costumes made a face and said I should have bought costumes at least a month before....whatever...

The only costume A liked, that we could get in his size was a pirate.  Ok a pirate.  Well now he wanted a pirate sword and the Darth Maul light saber....Fine.  I give up.  Life is too hard, I will spoil him and buy him things I know I shouldn't.  Go ahead judge me...

Of course we get the light saber home and it is broken!  Of course by the time I get back to Party City it is an exchange only policy, and of course they are out of the Darth Maul light saber!

Of course the first time he uses the pirate sword it breaks.  Of course this happens in public, and he has a meltdown over it.

I am so tired.

Before Trick or Treating last night we headed to my mom's for her to see them dressed up.  She gave them each a cool cup, a flashlight, and tons of candy.  A wanted his flashlight.  Of course it doesn't work.  Of course this throws him into a fit and now he doesn't want to go Trick or Treating at all.  Well I am sick so I really can't handle taking the other boys Trick or Treating by myself, nor do I really want to stay home with a fussy A by myself.  So no A, we are all going Trick or Treating!

Then we head to Target to get A another pirate sword, because he had to have one.  The $5 sword wasn't what he wanted.  The $20 sword however was great.  Wonderful, now let's go. 
Wait that was too easy...here let's have A have a fit over wanting to buy toys as well.  He wanted presents for Halloween.  I tried to explain that Halloween is not a present holiday.  Well anyone who has ever had an argument with someone with Autism/Asperger's can feel my pain...because after 20 minutes he is still not convinced he doesn't get presents.

Finally we are Trick or Treating.  Or rather K and I are Trick or Treating while A hides by the stroller playing with his sword.  He is too shy to ask for candy or say Trick or Treat, but every now and then he does want to show people his sword and costume, which is really good.

I am so tired.

Today there is no school due a very strategically placed Teacher/Parent conference day.  A has asked no less than 5 times about a toy that he wants...not for Christmas, but today.  Again I keep explaining to him that he will not get anything until Christmas...to no avail.

I am so tired.

I have been hiding from life lately.  I am behind on work, housework, everything.  I am depressed. I just want to climb into bed and rest, or get lost in a great book...another world where there is no child who needs me to be more patient with him.  A world where I am not angry with people for not getting it. A world with no bills, or dealing with finances.

I am so tired.

Decisions...

So I need to make certain decisions.

How am I supposed to know if I am making the right ones?

Which path to choose?

I have been really down this week, and I think if I can get past certain decisions I have to make I will feel better.

I am going to start batch cooking again soon...I have been lazy since back from Disney....

In other news...K, my oldest, is thriving since we got him on ADHD meds.  I never wanted to medicate my child, but the difference is so great.  He is making great grades in school!  He can sit still (enough) to learn and remember, his penmanship is legible, and he looks forward to school!

However, A is not doing better.  We put him on an antidepressant and it did absolutely nothing.  In fact some of his behaviors got worse.  He developed a new tick...he now makes a weird sound in his throat when nervous or anxious, which is ALL the time... He doesn't want to go to school anymore...not that I can blame him.

I got his interim report and for the Reading section it said "Child is very below average, contact teacher"  Well DUH!  He is mentally 4 years old, and they have him in a regular 1st grade class for reading...kmngrwsnm;pweampfnio....that was me hitting my head on the keyboard!

Still haven't had an IEP meeting....still no speech therapy....he came home and told me that he can't eat luch at school because by the time he sits down it is time to pick up...oh and they told him he can't eat yogurt for snack time...owejiowfeoHNIROI...again my head banging in frustration! 

Blogging LIVE from Disney

We are here!

I know, I haven't posted much in a while.  I have been too stressed out since Hurricane Isaac.

Ok so real quick for this morning....

A is on a semi hunger strike.  I knew he would do this, and I am not fighting it or forcing him to eat.  He says his tummy hurts, and I see that look in his eye.  The look of not knowing where he is and being terrified about it.  His moods have been OK.  Much better since we got in and he was able to buy his first toy last night.  A Star Wars gun.  It is really cute to see him and K, my oldest stalking around with their toys gun shooting imaginary dinosaurs and Storm Troopers...

Hopefully he will eat something today.

Oh and as a PS...
We have been here less than 24 hours and already I saw an irate women tell her son that she "really couldn't even stand to look at him right now!"  He looked about 10.  Now I don't know what happened right before that, but minutes later she told her daughter off for playing with a rock...she might have been 8.

Come on lady you are on vacation at one of the most expensive places on earth...try to have some fun!

Oh and PPS...
We met a women with her mother and two daughters.  One of her daughters was in a wheelchair(the kind that looks like a stroller so you know this child has been in it for a long time).  After a discussion we learned that her daughter had brain cancer.  She said they were having a great time, but some people gave her looks when she and her family used another entrance to get on a ride...a look that reads "must be nice that they get to cut all the lines"...The lady went on to say that she felt like telling them she would gladly trade her daughter's brain cancer for waiting in any line, any day...

Open House

Tonight is one of those nights that I wish and wish and wish my kid was not in Special Education...

Open House at my kids' school was tonight.  Most of it was been there, done that.  A couple of changes that sort of irk my nerves, but nothing major.  ie New rule: if a kid forgets their lunch at home, they are SOL.  You can no longer bring it to them/to the office for them...supposedly it's all about holding them accountable.

We went to our oldest son's class first.  His teacher is very nice.  I told her that we are taking him out of school next month and that I would fully explain in an email.  She gave me a knowing smile and nod, and said that K has been telling her all about it!  I asked her how he was doing and she said she would fill me in when I emailed her.  I figure it can't be anything too pressing since she didn't want to schedule a conference like she did with some of the other parents.

So we moved on to A's teacher.  Let me stop here and mention the goings on of A's first few days of school.  As I mentioned in another post, I brought him to his 1st grade class on the first day of school.  I told his teacher who he was and that he should be spending some time in the Special Ed room as well as her class and that we need to adjust his IEP because he needs to start Speech Therapy as well.

Well, as the week goes on, I ask A how school is doing.  One day he comes home and tells me "School is OK, but I didn't get any candy today..."  I asked what he meant, and he said "Teacher said if we make our numbers we get a candy, but I couldn't do my numbers, so I didn't get a candy."  I asked him if he had someone helping him (I even referred back to last year's Aide) or if he asked for help and he said "No one was helping me, I asked for help but no one was helping me..."

Um...What?!  He is supposed to have an Aide or Para....why would she give candy to some and not all...why is she giving out candy at all...why would she single out a SPED student???

I then ask if he has been going to his other class and he says "No I spend all day in Mrs----'s class.

Again WHAT?!  A full 7 hours in a regular 1st grade class when my son is mentally about 4-5 years old!

Then the straw that broke the camels back...the note cards.  In 1st grade they write note cards in class so the kids can practice certain spelling words.  Well with no help this is what A came home with

 Those I could make out...these below I could not...

Now look I get it.  A doesn't "appear" different from most first graders.  However, as soon as he starts talking you can tell that he is a little behind.  His has an IEP.  Plus I sent his new evaluation in the first week, so it's not like the school doesn't know!  Per his homework, he was to study these cards for a test in a few days.  How were we to get him to study if we couldn't even make out what they were supposed to be?!  Not to mention A can barely write his letters and numbers, let alone words on his own. 

So I complained to Facebook, and waited to call the teachers until I was much calmer.

I call Mrs---- the 1st grade teacher, and leave a message.  She calls me back and says she doesn't know why A is in her class all day, but she will contact the SPED teacher and find out.  She calls back later to say starting the next day A will be in the SPED class and 1st grade class 50/50. No explination, no further instructions, nada.  OK

A keeps coming home with regular homework, no modifications...so we have spent every night painfully getting through this work.  The only way A can write a word or whatever is to have us write it out for him, then below that make dot outline or write it in highlighter and have him trace over it.  After every 3 or so letters he starts "Idontwannadothisitstoohard" and usually goes limp and falls to the floor a few times.  This process takes about 1 1/2-2 hours!

So I had really hoped to talk to his 1st grade and SPED teachers to find out ways to make this better, plus we really need to update his IEP and get him in Speech.

So we go see his 1st grade teacher and she looks right at us and says "A doesn't really come in here at all much, just for journal time and then he spends the rest of the day in Mrs==='s class." and turns away.

Um SERIOUSLY?!  WTF!  Just totally ignored us.  Before we left I walked up and told her that we were taking him out of school the last week of September...as I am saying this her eyes bulge and a look of disgust? maybe washes over her face.  I told her I would email the details, and left.  Really?!  UGH

The SPED teacher was out sick, so I didn't get anything resolved and now I am just pissed off all over again.  The most frustrating part is that this school is the best school for SPED in the parish...and I have never had a major issue before!

So for now, I am just going to...

Once a Month Cooking...August

Sorry I haven't posted this sooner but with the start of school I have been preoccupied!

I decided to give Once a Month Cooking another try.  I had a few issues with last month's recipes and how much money I spent on food, plus the amount of food I wasted.

So this time I read all the recipes first.  I got them here.  From that list I decided to make Roasted Tomato Bisque, Dijon Baked Chicken, Crockpot Mongolian Beef, Spinach Stuffed Chicken, BBQ Meatballs, Orange Teriyaki Pork, and Chicken Cacciatore, plus I had some left over pork chops so I made an addition Pork marinade.  The other recipes just didn't appeal to me this month, so I skipped them and made these to 6 servings.
I decided this time to do my shopping at Sam's to save money on certain bulk items.  From there I purchased a large pack of chicken breasts (containing 6 VERY large breast, that I portioned out for 6 meals), a large pack of THICK pork chops (enough for 4 meals), a package of Flank Steak (which had 3 HUGE steaks, enough for 2 meals plus I cut up the last one for breakfast...steak and eggs!), about 6-7lbs ground chuck (enough for 2 meat loaves AND I portioned the rest into 4 ground beef servings to cook later), and 2 roasting chicken that were on sale...Add in most of the produce, eggs, milk, and diapers, etc and I spent $250. I did have to go to Winn Dixie for a few things I didn't need in bulk, but I only spent a little over $50.  So strictly counting the food for these recipes I spent about $225.

  Altogether, this yielded me 14 meals, plus 4 servings of ground beef left and 2 whole chickens!  Minus the soup, because I only cooked half, which was still a HUGE pot and between my husband, my oldest son and I we ate a whole pot of it in less than a week.   That figures to about $16 a meal or $4 a person...and it really is a bit less because of the soup!

I thought it went really well, and I really liked the recipes I chose.  In the next few days I will go through each recipe!

Yes I booked my dining 5 months ago...

You may have heard...I am going to Disney World next month!

In the last Disney post I mentioned that you need to plan ahead for Disney.  One of the major planning points is booking dinning reservations (ADRs) 6 months in advance.

Ok, ok I hear you.  How do I know what we are going to want to eat on which day for a vacation 6 months from now?!  Well that's the tricky part.

What people used to do (I never did this but I have read about it) is make multiple ADRs for mealtimes and go to the one they felt like.  Well Disney caught on.  Now they don't allow your ADRs to overlap, plus the popular places now charge a no show fee of $10 per person if you don't cancel your ADR at least 24 hours a head of time.

So what to do?  Well You can over plan, like we did in 2009.  I made an ADR for every meal, for every day of our trip.  It was miserable.  Especially since one of A's panic attack/fit triggers is noisy crowded restaurants, where he doesn't know what kind of food they serve.  Of course we didn't know this at the time.

So I learned from that for this trip.  This go round, I planned out my days better.  First I checked out touringplans.com for their best park for each day of our trip.  It's pretty cool, they compile data from past years, they factor in tour groups or events in the area, plus I think they even factor in the weather that week.

Once I had that info, I planned one sit down meal or dinner show per day.  Now we are going during the Free Dining promotion, so we have a meal plan.  We upgraded to the Deluxe version of that plan, and we get 3 meal credits per day, and 2 snack credits per day.  Most meals cost 1 credit, but the dinner shows cost 2.  For sit down meals we get 1 appetizer, 1 entree, 1 dessert, and 1 non alcoholic beverage per person, and for counter service meals (fast food) we get 1 combo meal or 1 entree plus side and a non alcoholic beverage.
The meals I didn't plan for we will wing it.  Just grab something at the resort's food court, or if the kids see a restaurant they want to try we will go there.

I prefer the dining plan because it allows us to pre-pay for all of our meals, excluding tip and any alcohol we drink.  I prefer to make at least one reservation per day.  It makes sure we don't have to wait too long for that meal (walking up to a table service restaurant without an ADR is tricky, sometimes you have to wait 45 minutes and longer, and sometimes they have no availability!).

Some of the places we are going to eat at...

I have made ADRs to eat at Hoop Dee Doo Review- a GREAT dinner show, vaudeville style show and they serve fried chicken, BBQ ribs and fixins'...
Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show-another great show that features fire dancers and such while you feast on traditional Luau foods like roasted chicken and pineapple pork...
Cinderella's Royal Table- Dine in the the castle while Disney Princesses and Princes visit your table!
Liberty Tree Tavern-this restaurant is themed like colonial America, my husband loves this restaurant because the dinner is just like traditional Thanksgiving...
50's Prime Time cafe-Very cool restaurant!  Feels like you are dining in Mom's kitchen from the 50s and 60s...they serve the BEST fried chicken!..
Rose and Crown Pub-English food, I love this place for the fruit and cheese plate, the stew and Woodchuck Cider on tap!

See at Walt Disney World eating isn't just something you have to do, it becomes an experience.

Now that we have a plan, what can we do to help A, who doesn't like strange restaurants?  Well Disney is very accommodating.  I will be able to email and call someone in the dining department and explain our situation.  They will contact the chefs at each restaurant and let them know that our child has eating issues due to his Asperger's and they will try to make some of his foods available.  For instance at the Hoop Dee Doo, the chefs will make A a pepperoni pizza or a grilled cheese.  I would not have known this if it wasn't for planning, and I wouldn't know which restaurants to contact if I didn't make my ADRs back in March!

So it is worth it to book your ADRs 6 months in advance if you can!

Been a busy week

Where to begin?  Well now that the kids are back in school, I am working 5 nights a week.  If you didn't know I am a cake decorating instructor.  I normally teach at one account 3 nights a week, now I am teaching at a second account for an extra two nights a week.

I started last week at the new account, and it was the breath of fresh air that I needed.  First off, I am replacing someone.  Very weird/crazy circumstance that I can't go into here.  Let me just say that everyone is glad I am there now, and the students were very thankful that I am shall I say normal!

The kids started school last week.  I brought them to there classrooms, and I think the teachers must think I am nuts!  First to K's class.  I met his teacher and in all of the chaos tried to explain to her that he is newly diagnosised with ADHD.  That maybe she should sit him next to her, and that his doctor also suggeseted giving him tasks to do throughout the day that required him to get up.  I know I sound strange, but I just want the school year to start off on the right foot.
She kind of nodded and then turned away.  I hope to talk to her again soon.

Then to A's class.  Now normally he checks in with the Special Ed teachers and they bring him to class.  However he wanted me to bring him this time.  So we get to his class and again amid the bustleing halls I try to explain to his teacher that he has Asperger's and this morning he decieded not to bring his blanket to school for the first time ever.  And how he uses his blanket to calm himself when he has panic attacks...and where can I find his SPED teacher so I can repeat all of what I just said to her...

Again I get a nod before she turns away.  I get it...it's the first day of school.  I look like that crazy mom not willing to let her babies out of her sight...

I assure you, I am really not that mom.

 

I guess all of this is also compounded by the fact that in a week I am going to tell the teachers that I am taking my kids out of school for a week to go to Disney World.  I just know I am going to be their favorite!

More of A's photos

My middle son A, the one who has Asperger's loves to take pictures.  Here are a few more that I just uploaded.

Planning a Disney vacation...aka....Universal is not part of Disney World

As you may have heard, we're going to Disney World in less than two months.  I have been planning this trip since March.

I heard a statistic that 70% of all people traveling to Walt Disney World (that's the one in Florida) are "Once in a Lifetime" visitors.  Meaning that those people go to WDW once and that's it.  I have an idea why those people never go back.

Sure the easy answer is money.  Disney is freaking expensive...more on that later....

I truly believe the reason most people only go once is because of poor planning.

For instance, if I want to go to the beach...All I have to do is book a hotel room, and pack my swimsuit.  Done.  No planning, right?  Of course that isn't how I would travel to the beach...I would spend hours scouring the inter-webs for the best accommodations for our budget, research the best spots of beach to visit in that area, look into what restaurants they have on the way and nearby, and also plan a day trip to something educational as a back up/when my kids are tired of being at the beach!

Disney is NOT this kind of vacation.

I always hear from people returning from Disney, that it was too hot, too crowded, lines too long, no availability at the restaurants(character meals, dinner shows, and signature restaurants fill up 6 months in advance!!!), and everyone was tired and miserable on the 1 hour drive back to the hotel that claimed to be "minutes" from the main gate!  Oh and our ticket to Disney didn't include Universal Studios!

I get it.  Walt Disney World is huge, 47 square miles...twice the size of Manhattan!  It's confusing! It has 4 theme parks (none of which are Universal Studios), 2 water parks, a huge shopping and dining area, and over 20 resorts (all with different themes and levels of amenities).

Overwhelmed yet?  Look at it this way...if you were going to throw down a couple of grand on anything else, you would do your research first!  That is the best was to approach a Disney trip.

Now take that into consideration, then add a toddler, a child with Asperger's, and a child with ADHD.  Yes it does take me 7 months to plan a Disney vacation for my family.

Over the next few posts I will walk through what I go through to get ready for a vacation like this.

It's a Zippidee Do Da kind of day

We are going to Disney World.

Again, yes again.

I have been to the World 4 times on vacation, and dozens more while working there, first on the College Program in 2001-2002, and then for 4 months after Katrina hit in 2005-2006.  Disney is my happy place.  My drug.

I fell in love with the World as a 12 year old in 1995.  I was supposed to go before that.  My grandfather was going to take me.  My dad was going around the same time, but because he thought I was going with my grandparents he didn't take me.  Then my grandfather's trip fell through.  So on Christmas day, 1994, when my aunt and uncle asked me if I wanted to go for Mardi Gras, I was a bit skeptical.

My mom and grandparents scrounged up the me for me to go.  Funny story:  My grandmother won $700 on a slot machine two weeks before we left for this Disney trip.  She gave every penny of it to my uncle, for him to split between my 5 year old cousin and me.  She said God gave her that money for to go and have fun.  I love her!

Not knowing better, my mom packed me up, with mostly t-shirts and shorts, and a pair of Keds.  I don't know if any of yall know what Keds are...but they have maybe a 1/16 of an inch of material between your feet and miles of walking!  Not great Disney shoes!

Normally, my uncle likes to drive in the early morning hours, a tradition I would continue!  However, this trip got delayed.  My aunt and uncle owned a poboy(New Orleans style subs) shop at this time, and they had to open, and work through the lunch rush before we could leave.  I remember my cousin Markie and I waiting that day.  It seemed like it took forever for us to finally get on the road.  I think we left sometime around 3pm.

My uncle doesn't like to stop.  In fact he is one of those travelers that likes to "make good time".  We eat in the car, and only stop for gas, which is where we pee as well...

We arrived around 1-2am.  We stayed at Disney's All Star Music Resort, Calypso section.  I was so excited.  As I sleepily walked to our room, I took in the all the wonderful sights and colors...a 2 or 3 story tall pair of maracas, and everything was bright orange and pink!

I don't remember too much about that trip except for a few details.  Markie and I fought like brother and sister the entire trip!  I remember him singing "It's a Small World after all.." over and over again, all day, just because I told him to stop.

I remember going to eat at the Coral Reef, a restaurant that shares an entire wall with the Living Seas, a huge ass aquarium.  The restaurant makes you fell as if you are dining under water.  Ass you step into the restaurant, you have to step down 4 or 5 steps.  On the side of these steps used to be bubble machines.  Markie, who was in front of me, got distracted by the bubbles(what 5 year old wouldn't?) and to be honest so did I and he stopped mid step, and I tripped over him and landed on top of him.

Disney cast members quickly ushered us to First Aid to make sure I didn't break his arm!  Almost 20 years later and I still haven't lived that one down!

I remember renting a watermouse, falling asleep at the Luau,and not wanting to ride scary rides(Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion) until they made me ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (I LOVED IT!).  I remember my uncle getting sick after riding the Teacups, and I remember hearing Phantom of the Opera for the first time on the drive up there and back(my aunt and uncle had seen it recently and bought the cd, I LOVED IT, and still do!), and I remember going to mass at the Polynesian(it was outdoors and one of the most peaceful services I have ever been to!).

Most of all I remember having to get a wheelchair on the 3rd day because those wonderful Keds I wore gave me blisters on every area of my feet...I couldn't even tie the laces, let alone walk!  Another thing that I haven't lived down yet!



This trip started a lifelong love affair for me with the Mouse.  In my next few posts I will talk about my first trip with my husband, our first trip with our children, and planning our current trip-a trip with 8 y/o with ADHD, a 6 y/o with Asperger's, and a toddler!

Through the eyes of a 6 year old with Asoperger's

Here are pictures I just uploaded from A's camera

Once a Month Mom....My thoughts

I started this experiment because I was in a cooking funk and needed to get my butt in gear.  I am the kind of person who loves projects, and to follow a set of directions...so I thought, "Why the hell not?!".

I spent over $400 on groceries.  What I got from that was 4 meals worth of Mom's Pasta E Fagioli, one meal of Buffalo Burger Quesadillas, one meal of Baked Bean Chicken(Pork), 2 meals of Aloha Pork Chops, 2 meals of Aunt Sissy's Poppy seed Chicken, 2 meals of Chicken(steak) Alfredo Pierogie, 2 meals of Roasted Veggie Lasagna, one meal of Asian Steak Kabobs, one meal of Turkey Verde Enchiladas(I haven't made this yet), 2-3 meals of Chicken Spinach Flautas, 2 dozen Blueberry Oatmeal pancakes, 12 Make Ahead Melts(to be honest I don't think anyone is going to eat these), and 6 Tutti Fruitti cups.  I have the supplies to make the corndogs, but we still have store bought ones in the freezer....It will make at least 16 corndogs, which is about 8 snacks for the kids.  There is a chicken salad recipe as well, but to be honest it didn't look too appealing to me, so I am opting out of that one.

So that's approx 19 dinners, and not counting the melts and TF cups about 4 breakfasts, and about 14 snacks (corndogs and TF cups).   Considering I spent about $420, that's comes down to $12 a meal/$3 a serving.

There was some waste.  I over bought pork chops, and had some veggies go bad before I could cook them.  This was poor planning on my part, and now I have a better idea on how to prep better next month.

My thoughts...

Overall I think this works for my family.  I liked getting a list and following the directions.  Next month I will take a few hours to read every recipe first and tweak to our tastes, BEFORE shopping.  Next month I think I will also try to get my meat from Sam's.

This was a fun project for me, and I am willing to give August a try...after I clear out my freezer again!  As soon as I make the enchiladas and corndogs I will post about them...

Once a Month...cooking part 4

This part continues my experiment into once a month cooking...

So far I had 3-4 hours shopping, a day of prep, and cooking on Monday and Tuesday!  I pick this back up on Wednesday.  First up Baked Bean Chicken***  I made it with pork instead.

5lbs boneless chicken breasts I used about 3lbs boneless pork chops instead 
20oz tomato sauce
2 cans red kidney beans
4 cans pinto beans
2 cans black beans
2.5c chopped onions
2.5c brown sugar should have been about 1c less
1 1/4c vinegar
5T Worcestershire sauce
2.5T mustard powder I doubled this
2.5T minced garlic should have been more
1 1/4t Tabasco sauce
2.5t pepper

Place all ingredients in the crock-pot and cook for 4-6 hours on high. 

To be honest, this recipe had some flaws.  The sauce was very thin and VERY SWEET!  I love a sweet BBQ sauce, but this was sickly sweet!  I had to double the mustard powder, and it needed more garlic as well.  I did sub in pork chops, because frankly pork chops were on sale and chicken was not...Once I thickened the sauce, and added much needed spices, it was really good.  My husband's only request was that it have more meat.

Next is Buffalo Burger Quesadilla

2.5lbs ground beef
2/3c buffalo sauce
2/3c BBQ sauce
2.5c monterry jack cheese shredded
20 large whole wheat tortillas



Mix ground beef with sauces.

Form patties and fry in a sauce pan.  WAY TOO MUCH SAUCE TO FORM A FREAKING PATTY!!!!

What a freaking mess!  So I fired it up as a loose meat, think sloppy joes.  Once the meat was cooked and cooled, I froze it.  When I am ready to have this meal, I will thaw the meat and sprinkle on a tortilla, top with cheese, and top with another tortilla...and cook like a quesadilla.

The next recipe Aloha Pork chops is more of a prep/marinade/freeze instructions, then thaw and cook on the day of serving.

10lbs boneless pork chops I used closer to 6lbs
2.5T lemon pepper
2.5t olive oil
2.5c sweet and sour sauce
50oz pineapple chunks, drained
2c green bell peppers, sliced
2c red onion wedged
6 quart size Ziploc bags
2 gal size Ziploc bags

In two qt bags, divide pork chops, olive oil, and lemon pepper.  try to squeeze out all of the air and seal up bags.  In the next two qt bags, divide onion and bell peppers, seal.  In the last two qt bags divide the pineapple and sweet and sour sauce, seal.  In each gallon bag place one of each qt bag and seal and freeze.  To cook, fry chops until just done, then add veggies for 2 minutes, then finish with sauce.

Haven't cooked this one yet, but it is prepped in my freezer ready to go...very colorful! 

While I prepped that one, I went ahead and prepped Asian Steak Kabobs

3.75lbs sirloin steak cubed I used what was on sale, flank steak
9c yellow bell peppers quartered, then cut into chunks
2.5c red onion wedged
3c Vidalia onion wedged
1pt cherry tomatoes
4c zucchini sliced in chunks
2.5c pineapple chunks next time I will not include this
10t ginger powder
10t garlic powder
 7.5t sesame oil
15t soy sauce
bamboo skewers

In a bowl, mix together seasonings, oil, and soy sauce.  next time I will add some of the drained pineapple juice to make it slightly sweeter, plus it needed something hot to kick it up a bit.
To marinate, place cubed steak in a qt ziploc bag and cover with half of sauce.  In a gal size ziploc bag combine all the veggies and fruit and remaining sauce.  Marinate overnight.

When ready to prepare, soak skewers in water and make kabobs.  Grill.

The pineapple got a funky taste from the sauce, but other than that, these were supper yummy.  My husband and K loved these!

One more for today, Chicken Alfredo Pierogie Casserole

1lb of potato pierogies for my local peeps, this was in the freezer section at Winn Dixie
2c chicken cubed I opted for steak, because it was cheaper than chicken
2c frozen peas
2 jars of Alfredo sauce I used a mushroom Alfredo sauce

I cut the steak into strips, and pan fried them.  In 2 8x8 disposable baking pans I divided the pierogies, the peas, and the steak.  Cover with sauce.  I HATE Alfredo sauce strait from the jar, so I jazzed mine up first by adding Parmesan cheese, seasonings, and a little milk to thin it. Cover and bake for 45 minutes until pierogies are heated through.

This was really yummy.  The pierogies were an interesting alternative to pasta.  My husband loved that I made this with steak instead of chicken.

My final thoughts in the next post!

Once a Month...Cooking part 3

Sorry for the long time between the OAMM posts, but stuff came up, we went out this weekend, and then I wanted to post about something else.

So up to this point, mid Tuesday, I have completed 4/15 recipes.  The next recipe to make is the Chicken and Spinach Flautas.

5c boneless chicken breast, cooked I cooked this on prep day, in the slow cooker, I used about 2lbs
40oz beer I used 2-3 12oz bottles of Michelob Ultra
5c water
2.5t paprika
2.5t kosher salt
2.5t garlic powder
2.5t cumin
2.5t chili powder
2.5t chopped jalapeno
1 1/4c chopped onion
1 1/4c chopped red bell pepper
5c baby spinach chopped
13 large flour tortillas, cut in half
16oz shredded cheese, Mexican blend

Pre-heat oven to 450.  Place cooked chicken in a sauce pan and cover with water and beer.  Simmer for 10 minutes.  Drain chicken, reserving about a cup of the liquid.  Shred the chicken and place in gallon size ziploc bag, add seasonings, seal bag and coat chicken.

Place reserved liquid, and veggies back in pan and saute until cooked.  I thought it needed much more spinach...

 Mix chicken into veggies. Add a small amount of filling on tortilla, top with a sprinkle of cheese.  Roll filling length-wise into tortillas, starting on the flat side and place seam side down on a lined cookie sheet. 

Bake for 10-15 minutes at 450, flip Flautas, and bake another 10 minutes until crispy. 


I filled 24 half tortillas and had filling left over.  I I thought the filling needed more spinach, but overall this is a tasty recipe!

Next up is Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

5 med red bell peppers halved I used 3 green and 2 red, as green are cheaper, and I sliced them in thick slices
11c sliced yellow squash  I used about 5 med 
1 1/2c chopped onion
5t chopped garlic
2.5c cottage cheese
1 3/4c shredded cheese Italian blend
1.25t Italian seasonings
3 3/4T flour
1 3/4c milk
1.25t Italian seasonings #2
1 box lasagna noodles uncooked
2/3c shredded cheese Italian blend
2.5c spinach-I did not include this in my recipe

On prep day I roasted the bell peppers on the broil setting in my oven for 20 minutes and froze them until I was ready to use them.  Same with the squash and onions.  In a medium bowl combine cottage cheese, shredded cheese and Italian seasonings.  Put to the side.  In a sauce pan combine flour and milk and cook until thick, add seasonings and pour into a bowl to cool.  I had to double this to have enough sauce for the amount of lasagna this recipe made.

In two 8x8 disposable baking pans I layered the dry noodles, roasted veggies, cheese mixture, and sauce.

I got about 3 layers, stopping with noodles and sauce, then top with cheese.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

I froze these lasagnas, so I don't know how they taste yet, but they smelled really good!

 
One more for tonight!  Aunt Sissy's Poppy Seed Chicken

5c cooked boneless chicken breast I used about 3lbs, slow cooked on prep day.
2 cans cream of chicken soup I used one cream of mushroom and one cream of chicken
2/3c chicken broth I used a bit more for a thin consistency
2/3c sour cream
2 sleeves of Ritz crackers
1 1/4T poppy seeds Winn Dixie didn't have poppy seeds so I left this out
1 box of ziti uncooked-I added this

Combine soup, broth, and sour cream in a bowl.  Season to taste.  In 2 8x8 disposable baking pans, I divided a box of uncooked ziti between the two.  I then added the cooked chicken, and poured sauce on top.  

 In a large Ziploc bag, crumble Ritz crackers and add 4T melted butter.  Sprinkle mixture on top of chicken pasta mixture.  Bake for 45 minutes at 350.

Again, I haven't served this yet, but I did taste the sauce before cooking and it needed lots of seasoning!