Observations from StayAtHome

As I woke up this morning, I was reflecting on this time we have had at home over the past five weeks. It's only officially been four weeks since we learned of the true StayAtHome order (and still a few days short of it being four weeks its been in effect) but it was five weeks ago that things started to close. First to close for us was the schools, then restaurants for dine-in, then gyms, then non-essential businesses and so on.

On one hand, I feel isolated with no where to go and miss time spent with people (outside of those that I live with). I miss going to the kids' sports and school events. I enjoy watching them do the things that they love and the chance to connect with friends that I only see at those events (who has time in their schedule to see them otherwise). I miss being able to go to the gym and visit with people as I walk on the track or swim in the pool or take a class with friends. Sure, I am getting out and walking each day but even though I am getting in my activity and decompressing in the process just like I would at the Y, it is not the same as it lacks that social element. (Actually, I am pretty proud that I have found the opportunity every day for the past 35 days to get out for at least a 30 minute walk. Considering the rain and snow, I had to make an effort to find the right time to get out.) I miss getting together with friends for hanging out or game night, I miss going out for dinner or trivia, I miss having plans.

I know that the kids are also feeling it too, although I would say it feels like it is impacting my son more than my daughter. He has reached the point of bored where he went for a 7 mile bike ride last weekend. No destination, just a ride. Yesterday, it was snowing and he wanted to get outside for a bit. He wasn't sure what to do but settled on getting in some swings of the bat, hitting the ball off the tee into the net. This actually surprises me a bit because I would have always said my daughter is more social than my son - I think though now that I reflect on it, he has always been very dedicated to sports and spends a lot of time on a sports field and even when he hangs with friends there is usually some type of sport involved. It isn't that he isn't social, its just that he does more group social activity than one on one. My daughter is all about spending time with friends and although she does a lot of that through sports too, her and her friends can spend hours just spending time together.

I don't even get my normal weekly get away to the store (one constant that I can always count on regardless of the schedule is getting to the store to buy food), as I am almost exclusively shopping online for curbside pick up of my groceries. As I have shared, I am an in person shopper - in part to connect with others and in part because I like to explore and consider my choices - so this shopping online is not natural for me. I also find it is not easy to explore products online - you can't exactly walk down the aisle and see all your options. I have found that some stores do more abbreviating in their names making searching challenging even. I am very appreciative of those stores that have apps and I can scan barcodes of the products I have at home, then I don't have to figure out how to locate the item online. I am still rotating through stores based on what time slots I can get. Normally, I am going out about every 10 days for groceries and every other day it seems to Target for a pick up of odds and ends. This next week is an odd one as I have two grocery pick ups scheduled. The one store has a sale on 2L of soda and the other has the beer that my husband enjoys and we are out of. I haven't yet filled out my orders but anticipate that the first one will be a really light order, since I just picked up groceries last week and have been buying for two weeks at a time. I will likely make the second one be my next 'regular' pick up and fill it out with milk, bread and eggs.

On the other hand though, having no plans, no place to be has been kind of nice. There is a certain leisure to being able to get up in the morning and take care of a few chores and then to simply sit down with a coffee and a book or movie or my puzzle. It is nice to be able to have time to bake each week - I have used the same bread recipe each week but it is a little different each week (better in my opinion).

It is nice to be able to find time for a 30 minute walk each day - without having to try to squeeze it in between things or before it gets too dark. In fact, everyone is finding time to get out and be active - whether going for a walk, a run, a bike ride or simply playing in the yard. It is nice to sit down as a family each day and enjoy our meals at a normal time (we usually eat together, it just is squeezed in or after all our things) and to spend our evenings hanging out watching Jeopardy!, a TV series or a movie. Everyone has developed a new routine. We are staying up later and sleeping in. We are keeping our meals mixed up to avoid boredom and still finding a chance each week to do pick up from a local restaurant (and occasionally from Chik-fil-A because who can resist those sandwiches).

This time home has certainly made me appreciate time at home. Normally, it's only on that random Saturday where games got called due to rain that we legitimately have a completely unplanned day. I like unplanned...in doses. I suppose right now, as we all have our new routines, that it feels a little less unplanned but certainly is unrushed. The kids have flexibility on when to do their schoolwork most of the time, the exceptions being when there is a class online or a quiz that has to be done in a certain timeframe. Most of their work has a weekly rather than a daily due date.

We learned this week that the governor hopes to begin to open things up on May 1. There is officially a light at the end of the tunnel. Sure, the opening will be gradual and will not be 'full' but it is a move in the direction of returning to normal. I am hopeful that all of us will remember this time and will find ways to keep some unplanned/unrushed time in our schedules and will appreciate the little things that we had taken for granted.

How are things in your part of the world?

Baseball Uniforms - A Laundry Challenge! #whiteuniformpants #whiteagain

My son has played baseball for years. Many of those years the biggest cleaning worry was a grass stain, which was easy to treat and return the pants to their pre-game appearance. Now that he is in high school, they play hard and they really ground in the dirt from the field. Whether laying out for a catch or sliding into base, his pants are always dirty when he comes home.

Over the years, I have tried this cleaner and that, all sorts of pre-treatments and soaps. Some of them work great most of the time, but it seems that there are playing conditions that cause dirt that just won't come out of the pants no matter how many times you wash them.

Before and After with Fels-Naptha soap. It helped but there is still a lot of dirt.
Before and after with a combination of dish detergent and peroxide. Better but still not clean.

So, I finally broke down and gave a try to a trick I heard time and again, the car wash. You know what...it worked. We tried at home with our hose and a jet spray nozzle, but that just wasn't enough. I did put a bit of prewash on it to provide a bit of soap. Use the hooks that they have for hanging mats and voila! clean pants.
Not perfect, but pretty good and much better than with soap alone. Be sure to take a bucket with you to bring the pants home in...they are pretty damp after being hosed down.

100 Things to Do in Cleveland Before You Die 2nd Edition by Deb Thompson and Tonya Prater

A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

I'm not sure why, but we generally are terrible at being tourists where we live. When we head out of town, we do research and plan for the places that we might go and the things that we might do; but when it comes to staycations and finding things on the weekend, we seem be creatures of habit and return to the tried and true, rather than explore the local area. This summer, we decided to finally visit the Mansfield Reformatory, where Shawshank Redpemption and other films were filmed. It was a neat attraction full of information about the history of the facility and information about the films that were made there. It even had 'haunted' stories to share about paranormal experiences that others have had. This gem is right off the main road and only 45 minutes from home, but it took us 16 years after we moved here to finally check it out. It's examples like this that found me jumping at the opportunity check out 100 Things to Do in Cleveland Before you Die; a guide that could help me as a local explore many activities and places that are close to home.

The book is well organized, divided into 5 themed sections: Food and Drink; Music and Entertainment; Sports and Recreation; Culture and History; and Shopping and Fashion. Within each section there are several local places or events to check out, including a brief description or story about each. Also sprinkled in are tips with some other nearby things to check out. This format is easy to thumb through and check out some great options in (and around) Cleveland. Several of the listings actually include more than one place to check out, giving you even more than 100 things to check out. The locations and activities included are both everyday and special occasion activities, like the Summer Solstice Festival and the Woollybear Festival. At the back of the book there are suggested itineraries to explore, including one for date night or a family outing; a guide to the activities by season; and an index which makes it easy to look up something specific.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a mix of some places/events that I have visited and some hidden gems that I have yet to experience. The guide would work well for both locals and out of town visitors, offering a mix of places that local residents may not have tried and places that visitors will want to check out. There are several new places that I look forward to checking out. The book is the perfect size to stash in the car so that we will be ready for the next time we are out and about in Cleveland.

About the Book:
100 Things to Do in Cleveland Before You Die, 2nd Edition by Deb Thompson, Tonya Prater

Located on the shore of Lake Erie, Cleveland is as diverse as the people that call it home and is finally being recognized as the gem that it’s always been. From family fun to romantic getaways there is something for everyone in the city that Rock and Roll built. 100 Things To Do In Cleveland Before You Die is the ultimate guide to finding the best things in the city and, for life-long residents, new ways to explore old favorites. This is THE guide for finding the best food, festivals, museums, outdoor activities, music and more. 100 Things guides you through the city like a local and shares what residents have known for years; Cleveland is the place to live or visit for a memorable experience. A melting pot of people and cultures, Cleveland is a place where you can find great food from a truck or from an award winning chef, home to some of the biggest sports fans in existence, world class museums and venues, an amazing amount of green space, and features public art around every corner. Browse the pages of 100 Things before you set out on your next trip to the city to experience something new.


About the Authors:

Deb Thompson is a freelance travel writer whose work takes her across the country to find the most unique attractions that destinations have to offer. An avid fan of the strange and bizarre, she enjoys nothing more than exploring the hallways of haunted locales, searching for Bigfoot in the great outdoors, finding aliens in Roswell and mixing it up with a great cocktail. You can follow her endeavors at JustShortOfCrazy.com. Tonya Prater is a travel writer with the heart of a nomad. Once a full-time RVer who dreams of reliving the experience, she is on a mission to find the fun, quirky stops scattered across the U.S. that most people drive past. Tonya shares her experiences at TravelInspiredLiving.com, which offers travel inspiration for the budget-minded.

No compensation was received for this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family. A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

Dinner in a Hurry: Burrito Bowls

*information for this post was in part supplied by Hormel Foods through their Hormel Extended Family Blogger program. No compensation was received for this post.

At our house, summer is punctuated with a variety of sporting events for the two kids and many times, the events overlap. The net result is that having a family dinner is increasingly more challenging, but since family dinner is something that I strongly value, I find creative ways to make it happen and to try to keep it reasonably healthy.

One thing that we have turned to this summer has been Burrito Bowls. I can prep most the night before and we can simply assemble and enjoy for dinner.

Ingredients:
Rice, prepared
Pinto and/or Black Beans, prepared
Pork, Chicken or Beef, prepared
Shredded Lettuce
Sour Cream
Shredded Cheese
Salsa - Mild, Hot, Verde

Assemble bowl, with desired ingredients, starting with the rice, the beans and the meat. Then top with the lettuce, sour cream and cheese.

Finish with desired salsas.

We love the Herdez Salsa Casera and the Herdez Salsa Verde as toppers for our bowls. They also make great dips for a side of tortilla chips. Sometimes, I even get ambitious and make some guacamole.

The last time we made bowls, I found a great product to help make the prep work even easier. I used Lloyd’s pulled pork for this. It’s this new variety I haven’t seen in store yet, but hope I do soon!

I love that it has no sauce. It makes it perfect for use in the bowls and it also allows more flexibility in my family where everyone likes their pulled pork a little different - more or less sauce, more or less spice.

What is your family's go to meal for a quick family meal during busy times?


No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are mine or those of my family. I am completing this post as a participant in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger program. Hormel Foods provided some product samples for my family to try. I also receive thought starters and information that can be used in a post.

The Return of the Busy Life

*information for this post was in part supplied by Hormel Foods through their Hormel Extended Family Blogger program. No compensation was received for this post.

It's funny to me how cyclical busyness is in our lives. We either have nothing going on or we have a hundred and two things going on.

As we start to get back into the school routine, we are also getting back into soccer for two kids and baseball for one. That is one less sport than the spring/summer season, but still proves to be very busy. The good news is that by some coincidence, both kids have soccer practice at the same field, on the same day, at times that overlap by 45 minutes...meaning that although they will each get a bit of time to sit before or after their own practice, I get to have a much easier than normal schedule.

Of course, even though their practices are on the same night, we still have to get there pretty quick after I come home from work. This makes dinner a real challenge, but it is important to me that we get the chance to eat together as often as possible. I tend to take two approaches to dinner on these busy nights. Either I select a meal that I can prepare ahead so that I can get it on the table in a quick turn before we head off for soccer or I plan a meal that I can prep while they shower after practice.

One of my quick prep favorites is tacos. By cutting the vegetables and preparing the meat the night before, we can quickly warm the meat and eat before heading out. Another favorite is chicken Caesar salad. When I cook dinner the night before, I prepare a couple of extra chicken breasts, slice them up and have them ready to go, along with romaine lettuce, some shredded Parmesan, some dressing and croutons.

When we have to wait for dinner, it is important to me that the kids get an afternoon snack that I know will help hold them over through practice until dinner. This means that I look for snacks that have both carbs and protein - I have always heard that a sustaining snack has some protein along with carbohydrates to help fuel their energy needs. Some of our go to favorites are string cheese and crackers, or apples and peanut butter, or yogurt and granola.

Another item that the kids enjoy as a snack before we head out the door (or sometimes, as we do) is Hormel Rev Wraps. I like that they have a good amount of protein, but don't seem to be such a big snack as to spoil their dinner. The kids like that there are so many varieties to choose from, although experience says that Pepperoni Pizza is their favorite.

Then, dinner is usually some sort of a dish that requires a little bit of prep time - either on the stove or in the oven - that times up well with them getting their showers.

It can be a challenge, but sitting down as a family for dinner is important and we find ways to work around that.

What is your approach to dinner when your schedule is full?

No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are mine or those of my family. I am completing this post as a participant in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger program. Hormel Foods provided some product and some of the information for this post.

NFL Hall of Fame Game - #HOF #Canton

No compensation was received for this post. A complimentary set of tickets was provided by Canton/Stark County Convention & Visitors’ Bureau to facilitate the sharing of our experience. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

NFL/Hall of Fame Game ***Giants vs. Bills in 2014 NFL/Hall of Fame Game*** Unlike other NFL games, the NFL/Hall of Fame Game is played in a historic high school stadium. If you’ve never experienced seeing an NFL game up this close, you won’t want to miss out on getting your tickets for this year’s game. Watching an NFL game from the comfy confines of Fawcett Stadium (right), a 22,000-seat high school venue, is a must on any real football fan’s “bucket list.” There’s not a bad seat in the house!- See more here

HOF Game 08/03/14 (written by A Busy Dad of Two)

It was a beautiful night for a football game and my New York Giants had made their way out to Canton, OH for the annual NFL Hall of Fame game at Fawcett Stadium. Their opponent tonight: the Buffalo Bills. The game won't matter in the standings but for many of the 90+ players on each roster who are trying to make their respective teams, tonight could mean everything. For me it means a chance to see my favorite team without having to travel back to New Jersey and for my son (age 10) to attend his first NFL football game. Joining us at the game were my friend and his son - both Bills fans. How convenient.

We arrived at the Pro Football Hall of Fame complex about 90 minutes prior to kickoff and started to look for parking. Since Fawcett Stadium is a high school stadium, it's not very well equipped to handle a large number of vehicles and so, for what I would imagine is a once yearly occurrence, property owners nearby the stadium rent out their driveways and lawns for people to park at a cost of between $15 and $20 a spot. We parked and made our way into the stadium. Once inside we decided to take a walk around the stadium, check out the concessions and essentially see all that we could see. We snapped a few photos of the players warming up and then decided it might be a good idea to go find our seats. As we were walking back toward our section, it started to become very clear: the stadium was starting to really get crowded. We got to our section - #23, behind the near end zone - and took in the pregame warm ups.

Giants - pregame warm up

We were on the Giants side (cool), so we saw Eli Manning, Victor Cruz and others participate in their warm up drills and pre-game huddles. We even caught a glimpse of Al Michaels and Chris Collinsworth who were both on the field prior to kickoff. (They were on hand to call the game for NBC Sunday Night Football.)

View from the seats

Some of the inductee class on the sideline

About 10 minutes before kickoff we decided to head down from our seats to grab a drink. Getting back to our section proved to be a bit of a challenge. Originally built as high school stadium that sat 15,000, additional seating was added to expand the capacity to over 22,000. However, the concourse was not intended to handle crowds of that size. Due to the layout of the stadium, access to some of the sections are limited by several gates that create a small "chute" style walkway that can only handle one-way traffic. This means that people on either side of the chute must wait for those coming in the opposite direction to get through. It's akin to a one lane road with traffic being regulated by a traffic cop. It was frustrating to have to wait, but eventually we were able to make it back but to our seats. This one-lane traffic pattern continued throughout the evening, whenever we ventured from our seats. Despite the fact that Fawcett is an old stadium, you'd think this is something that they could come up with another solution for.

While we were waiting in line to return to our seats, several parachutists dropped in to Fawcett Stadium - a sight to behold. It looks so much easier on television but watching in person - the amazement factor goes up by a thousand percent. It was a very cool thing to see.

We ultimately did return to our seats in time for kickoff - the moment had arrived for my Giants to beat up on the Bills.

Just after kick-off

Some people told me that since Fawcett is a high school stadium there are really no bad seats in the entire place. Being seated in the end zone did have it challenges, it was a little difficult to judge depth on the field and often our view of the action was blocked at just the right angle by the goalpost crossbar. We did, however, get a great view of Corey Washington's 73 yard TD reception (which gave the Giants the lead and the win) but action near the other end zone was not the easiest to see.

Halftime Entertainment

Towards the end of the game we decided to make another brief trip to the concourse before heading back to our seats for the final two minutes of action. Unfortunately, as we were heading back, we found that the walkway back to our seats was completely blocked off. The reason, we were told, was because they needed to keep the section clear for when the players ran off the field. I understand why this has to happen but it didn't make me any less frustrated that we couldn't return to our seats for the end of the game. Essentially we missed the last 2-3 minutes because we were not permitted to return to our seats. However, this negative situation soon turned into a positive experience. Sure, we missed the end of the game, but now we're in a prime spot to see all the Giants leave the field. A few Giants came over and signed for some fans and Eli Manning ran over and tossed his wristbands to a young fan who was sporting a Manning jersey. After the team had left the field, former Giant and current analyst Carl Banks meandered over and signed for a few fans - including us! As an older Giant fan, I thought it was pretty cool to get #58's autograph. My son received a brief history lesson on Carl Banks during our exit from the stadium.

Carl Banks signing for fans

As we made our walk back to the car, we took the opportunity to review the evening's events. We all agreed that we had a fun time at the game. Even my son, who in the days prior to the event couldn't muster a ton of excitement about it, had a lot of fun. For me, it was about seeing the Giants. I don't get to New York often (if at all) and a chance to see the Giants play is hard to pass up.

This will forever be remembered by my son and me as a great father/son bonding experience and for that I'm thankful. And if the Giants win it all this year we can look back at this game and say that it all started in Canton, at the Hall of Fame game, with a victory over the Bills.

No compensation was received for this post. A complimentary set of tickets was provided by Canton/Stark County Convention & Visitors’ Bureau to facilitate the sharing of our experience. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

Fantasy Life by Matthew Berry*

*complimentary review copy received for this post.

When I was growing up, as many siblings can relate to, I spent hours watching my brothers play soccer and baseball. But aside from heading to a Reds game when we got discounts for good grades or going to watch the local hockey team play, I don't really remember watching sports. It changed a little bit when I was in high school. I started to attend the football games, because it is what everyone did and I wanted to fit in. I didn't know much about the game of football when I started to attend, but with time, I started to learn a little bit about the game. In college, that social tradition of attending football continued.

But, I don't think any of that prepared me for being the wife of a Fantasy Football Player. Not only is my husband a fantasy player, but also the league commissioner. Sunday afternoons in the fall and winter were spent watching as many football games as possible and all of the post-game commentary and anything else where we could get regular updates on the stats of the players on his and his opponent's teams. In dating and marrying my husband, I was suddenly submerged in the world of football.

Off season was spent dealing with a lot of drama as all the other owners debated what needed to be changed with the league. The weeks leading up to the draft, which was an auction, was spent prepping and creating an order of who to bring up and what they were each 'worth'. One season, I even got to serve as the auctioneer - talk about an experience.

During the early seasons, my husband relied on the newspaper for scoring and line-ups and trades were submitted by leaving a message on his answering machine. The increased usage of the internet and e-mail was transformational for the league, allowing line-ups to be submitted and trades to be worked in e-mails and statistics being pulled from a specific site (in case there were differences in numbers, there was a source of record that was used for the official scoring). Now, there is a site that everyone can log into and see live statistics and know exactly where they stand.

For a long time, it seemed that the only fantasy players that I knew of were my husband's friends and league-mates. Then, I started to notice that people I worked with were playing and then, with time, there seemed to be whole leagues comprised of co-workers. As recently as this week, during a new employee introduction, it was shared that he liked to spend his free time analyzing sport statistics and the woman next to me made a comment that he probably was a fantasy player.

Recently I had the chance to read Fantasy Life. Fantasy Life is the soon to be released, auto-biography mixed with anecdotal tales about the world of fantasy sports, from Matthew Berry who is "universally regarded as one of the leading voices in fantasy sports" and is ESPN's Senior Fantasy Sports Analyst.

Despite never having actually played fantasy sports, it was an enjoyable read and surprisingly easy to relate to. Matthew Berry's unique sense of humor and perspective permeate the book.

I enjoyed learning about the path his life took to make him the "Talented Mr. Roto" and eventually to his career as an ESPN Fantasy Sports Analyst. His experience really shows how being in the right place at the right time can really shape your life. I enjoyed reading about the evolution not only of his career, but of fantasy sports themselves - from the early days where the perception was that only 'geeks' played to a widespread activity openly enjoyed by many people from all backgrounds.

I could see aspects of my husband's league in some stories and realized how fortunate I am that his league is not as extreme as some whose stories were featured. His league with friends from college was filled with history and rituals, but they didn't have anything like the 'hazing' rituals that were shared in Fantasy Life. Draft day has always been more of a draft weekend and a social event for both the guys and their girlfriends/wives. Many of the owners would show up the night before for a night of cards and then stay the next night for a cookout and hanging out. For the wives/girlfriends, the weekend was filled with shopping and chick flicks.

Reading about the men that drafted while at weddings or during/after the birth of children, reminded me of the uproar created when my husband 'moved' the draft the year that I was expecting our son. Being the sensible person he was, he held the draft earlier in August than normal that year, in hopes of not being 8 hours away when I went into labor. Of course, the challenge is that there are too many unknowns at that point. The good thing is that his move of the draft was a good thing, as our son was born on a weekend, less than two weeks before the start of that season.

The stories about families in fantasy sports throughout the book was a favorite part of mine, it was great to hear the stories about generations brought together by fantasy sports. There were tales from kids separated from their kids due to divorce that used fantasy to bond to sons, dads and grandpas playing together in leagues. Even Matthew Berry has used fantasy sports to help him bond with his stepsons and brought together a group of kids and parents for a 'family' league.

Whether you participate in fantasy sports or have a spouse that does, I think that Fantasy Life is a book that you will enjoy and relate to. You can pick the book up at your local bookstore or order it online. It is scheduled for a July 16 release, but is available for pre-order.

No compensation was received for this post. A complimentary advanced reader's copy was provided for this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

Entertainment Book - a giveaway

I like to save money, it is no secret. One tool that I have used to help me save money for several years (over 20 years to be sure!) has been the Entertainment Book. I first learned about the book when I was a kid. My parents had the book and I can remember using the coupons. It was when I went off to college and started dating that I became a first-time owner of my own Entertainment Book.

It may seem odd that a college student would own an Entertainment Book, but I got a book with my boyfriend because of all the fine dining offers. The offers in the front of the book, were BOGO offers at local fine dining locations. It allowed us to be 'fancy' in dating while still on a college budget. It was also a benefit for us when we would order pizza or go to the movie.

When I moved to Pittsburgh after college, I got an Entertainment Book for a different reason - to help me explore the area. Being new, I wasn't familiar with the local restaurants and entertainment venues (movies, bowling, sports, and more), but with the Entertainment Book, I was able to flip through by neighborhood and find places that were near to where I lived or where I was. It gave me a chance to try new things and save.

Now that I am married and have kids, we still use the Entertainment Book. There are a number of offers for local movie theaters, local mini-golf and entertainment centers, local sports teams (minor league), and zoos and museums. Since these are things that we would do anyway, it is nice to be able to save while we have fun with the kids. We still, of course, use the restaurant and the dry cleaning coupons too.

The book has gone more high-tech in recent years. Now, when you register your book online, you gain access to additional coupons through their website and now, through your phone too!

We also like giving the Entertainment Book as a gift. They are a great option for those in your life that like to try new restaurants or like to golf or like to check out the arts and culture in their community.

If you haven't checked out the Entertainment book, I highly recommend that you do. Review the discounts and deals in the book for your area. If you can find two or three offers that you know you will use and cover the cost of the book, then any other offers you use will be a good return on your investment. As an example, if you do a lot of dry cleaning, there are coupons in my book for 50% off your dry cleaning order, up to $10, each month. If I used these every month, I could save up to $120. Those coupons alone will pay for my book. If you are a golfer, or someone in your family is, there are a number of local courses that offer a free green fee with green fee, the senior rate to everyone, a free bucket of balls at the driving range, and more. Again, the savings opportunity for the golf alone will cover the cost of the book.

Giveaway!
Courtesy of Entertainment Book, I have the chance to give away to one A Busy Mom of Two reader an Entertainment Book for the community of your choice. Choose one for you or give it to a friend or family member (Christmas gift?!?)

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Giveaway will remain open through December 6th. Giveaway is open to residents of the US only. One winner will be selected through Rafflecopter. The winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

No compensation was received for this post. I received a complimentary Entertainment Book to facilitate my review and one to give away to a reader. All opinions expressed are entirely my own or that of my family.

Quick Prep Meals

As the kids are about to start their spring sports season, I am once again preparing to include many quick prep meals in my weekly menu plan. Eating dinner together as a family on as many nights as possible is important to me. During sports season, with practices and games it can make this a little more challenging. This is when I turn to quick prep meals (and the occasional picked up pizza).

At our house, we seem to have a mix of conflicts.

Some practices/games start early in the evening and we plan our dinner for after the game. On those days, we start by grabbing a small snack before the game/practice. Generally, I try to encourage them to have yogurt or a granola bar. Something that will give them a bit of energy without being too much food. Then, I plan a dinner that can be made after the practice/game, while the kids shower. Some of our favorites (and my approach) are:

Tacos - by cooking the meat and prepping the toppings the night before, I can quickly warm the meat in a skillet and set out a taco bar for everyone to enjoy a satisfying meal.

Chicken Caesar Salads - if I plan the menu right, we can have grilled chicken for dinner one night and follow it up with Chicken Caesar Salad the next night. By using bagged salad, the preparation is quick and the meal satisfying.

Hamburgers on the Grill - we use the frozen, premade burgers. They are quick to prepare and topped with lettuce and tomato make a quick and tasty meal.

Pizza - we pick it up on the drive home. We have a shop that does $5 large pizzas, so it is still pretty economical.

Breakfast for Dinner - whether the Tyson Breakfast Bowls that I shared earlier this week or pancakes or scrambled eggs, breakfast seems to be a quick prep meal.

Some practices/games start later in the evening and we plan our dinner before the game. This allows us a lot more flexibility. Clearly, we don't want to eat as we are rushing out the door and we need to make sure that we aren't eating too heavy that the kids feel sick while they are running around. Some of our favorites (and my approach) are:

Baked Chicken - whether we are using the new Fresh Take option from Kraft or simply baking chicken with barbeque sauce, my husband, who is home to get my son off the bus, will put the chicken in the oven so that it is ready to go on the table when my daughter and I walk in the door. A quick side of vegetables or a side salad, round out the meal.

Casseroles/Lasagne/Enchiladas - I prep the dish the night before or in the morning and leave it in the refrigerator. My husband can put it in the oven at the right point for us to enjoy a warm meal when we get home.

Freezer meals - frequently casseroles/lasagne/enchiladas are freezer meals, but there are other meals that I will put up in the freezer that will allow for quick prep. Meals like Chicken Gravy over Biscuits, Spaghetti and Meatballs, Chili, and Sloppy Joes are meals that are ready to heat and eat in my freezer most of the time.

Of course, the options for after practice/game work was well.

I leave the 'fancy' meals for the days where we have more time.

Having a variety of quick prep meals allows my family to enjoy dinner together even when the schedules are busy with sports. This works for me.

On the Run Again...

Does it ever feel like life just is running past you? Or, is it that you are running past life? I never realized just how busy life could get or just how much a relaxing weekend at home is needed.

As the two kids are getting older and are becoming more involved in things, our schedule is getting increasingly busy. About a month ago, my son's baseball season started in full swing. Initially, we had just practices and now we are starting into the games. There is still some practice, but not as much. Next comes soccer. For my son, the practices have started, but the games are still a couple of weeks out. For my daughter, thankfully she is still young enough where the practice is immediately before the game, and those don't start for a couple of weeks. Unfortunately, for a few weeks - we have OVERLAP. It means that for a few weeks, I need a number of creative quick to table meals for easy dining as a family before or after practice/games - which can occur two to three times on evenings during the overlap windows. For the most part, the games don't actually occur at the same time, but when it comes to Saturday, the games are scheduled back to back to back. We have games at 10, 11 and 12. This year, there is about 3 weeks of overlap in the fall (it was more like 4 in the spring this year, because of all the rain and delays that occurred in the seasons). It's not ideal, but we make it work! (to think, I once had hoped to have only one activity per child at a time.)

When we are on the go for most of the day on Saturday for those weeks of overlap, we have to have meal-time solutions to go. Having to eat lunch on the run can be a challenge. Not only do I want to offer something healthy (and want it for myself), I need to make sure that the kids are getting the nourishment needed to sustain them through the different games. There is a concession stand usually available, but as much as I love to support the sports boosters, the options don't make for the most healthy, well-balanced meal choices. By packing lunches to take along, we can pack food that is easy to eat and healthy too. My son usually eats his lunch while watching my daughter's game and my daughter eats at the baseball game.

Lunch on the run frequently consists of a sandwich, a fruit and a drinking yogurt (to go with the water that is packed for all of the games), with an occasional treat like pretzels or cookies. Many times for the sandwich, we go with the old stand-by of PB&J, but sometimes you need to mix it up. One option that works well especially for the grown ups is to make a salad in a wrap. Take some Romaine lettuce and dress it in some Caesar dressing, add some chicken and roll it up inside a tortilla shell. An easy Chicken Caesar Salad wrap. You can use leftover cooked chicken or, use Hormel Premium Chunk Breast of Chicken. I find that if you wrap that in some foil and peel down from the top as you eat, you can eat the wrap with less mess. I also like to make a wrap with luncheon meat, cheese and some lettuce. Simple, but tasty. I personally prefer to layer in a variety of meats, but my husband would certainly be fine with just turkey.

Looking for other wrap ideas, you can find recipes for things like Cranberry and Orange Chicken Wraps, Florentine Spirals and Turkey and Fruit Wraps on the Hormel Foods Recipe Site.

With a little creativity, eating healthy (and finding some variety) can be easy, even on the go.


No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed in this post are mine or that of my family. I am currently a member of the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger Program. Each post written for this role, serves as an entry into a grand prize giveaway. Hormel provides materials and resources to assist me with my posts.