Cafe Thursday – Skillet Chicken Stew

I raised some picky eaters.  And my punishment for this?  I am condemned to high frustration and endless complaining every night around 6 pm.  My dear sister-in-law did this right, she had her kids eating veggies and fruits from the time they were small and now she actually has a child that loves tomatoes and broccoli.  Me, I have children who love bread and sugar.  I think I am going to have to learn to be more cleaver if I am going to get my kids to eat better.  Time to pick-up a copy of the book Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food.

I know I almost never find recipes that all 4 of us will agree on, but if I can hit 3 out of 4, I am pretty happy.  For that reason, I am adding Rachel Ray’s Skillet Chicken Stew to my bi-weekly line up of dinner menus.

This recipe is right up there with our chicken pot pie, chicken alfredo, and salmon nights.  I also have a taco night, a frozen pizza night, and usually a spaghetti night.  For Sundays, I try to get a bit more fancy and will try to make either a homemade soup, pot roast, or pork chops. 

Happy Hump Day – Shopping at CafePress

My daughter and I have found a site that we just love.  We can buy clothes and mugs and pins and bags that say just about anything we want.

Cafepress is really a great idea for anyone interested in designing and selling promotional type products, or anyone just interested in buying them.   Their slogan is “shop, create or sell what’s on your mind,” and we sure do.  I really like the motorcycle stuff, and DD loves all of the flute and band shirts.  And while the boys in the house are not real big shoppers, DH and DS spent a couple of hours one night designing their own picture to place on the front of a T-shirt.

Netflix Feature to Check Out

The forcasters predicted a snowy, chilly weekend, and Chicago did not disappoint.  With the weather outside so unfriendly, we needed some ideas to keep us occupied inside so of course we looked to the internet for a solution.

I had heard about the new instant movie viewer from Netflix a few months ago, but hadn’t had a chance to try it out.  We tried it over the weekend and were quite pleased with  it.  Not only is it easy to setup and use, the quality is great, and with most Netflix subsciptions it is free.  You can’t beat that.

We were able to watch both The First Howie Mandel Special and The Italian Job.  My kids didn’t even know that Howie Mandel got his start as a standup comic and sadly, they had never seen Bobby’s World either.  I was able to enlighten them and provide hours of laughter as well.

If you haven’t seen The Italian Job, I highly recommend it.  There is only a bit of violence, no gratuitous sex, and just a few “bad” words sprinkled in.  If you are a fan of the “Ocean’s” films, you will like this one as well.  I have been a Mark Wahlberg fan since his Calvin Klein ads in the 80’s . . . what, I’m human.

Don’t you just miss the 80’s?!

Finally Friday Fun – Marathon Weekend

Here in Chicago, they are calling for some cold tempures and snow for the next two days, all of which has me making plans to stay inside all weekend long.

I plan to cook some soup, make some cookies and goodies, watch my cooking shows on TV, read a bunch, and do some knitting.  All of this is well and good and should keep me busy for a few hours, but my teens will want to watch some movies or something tonight and Saturday night.

So, I am planning a Marathon Weekend.  You know, pick a movie series and watch all of the episodes in one sitting.   Recently we have watched the Pirates trilogy, the Matrix trilogy and Lord of the Rings.  All of these are pretty family friendly, and provide hours of entertainment.  This weekend I am thinking we should do a Batman weekend, or maybe the Bourne Trilogy, since we haven’t seen the last one yet.  I would love to do a Godfather weekend, but I think my daughter would prefer something less gory.

Cafe Thursday – Easy Chicken Alfredo

We had a cheap, easy, delicious meal last night, so I thought I would share it here.

Easy Chicken Alfredo

2 cups chicken cubes

1 Tbls Olive Oil

1/2 tsp Emeril’s Essence seasoning

salt & pepper to taste

1 jar of Alfredo Sauce (I have tried them all, Bertolli is my favorite)

1 pkg of linguine, cooked (Dreamfields is the best tasting, low carb option out there)

Cook pasta to desired consistency.  In the meantime, in a skillet, heat oil, then add chicken chunks and seasoning, salt and pepper.  Cook chicken until it is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.  To the skillet, add the jar of alfredo sauce and let simmer.  When the pasta is done, drain and add to the sauce.

Add a veggie and a salad for a half-way healthy meal.

Calling All Speed Racer Fans

I guess I lived under a rock growing up, because I didn’t get introduced to Speed Racer until I met my husband when I was in my 20’s.    My kids, however, love Speed Racer just like their Dad.  And my young nephews and their Grandpa all seem to love this strange cartoon as well.  Proof of that was that there were lots of Speed Racer themed presents under the tree at my in-laws house this year.  So it must be that with the recent surge in popularity of NASCAR there is a whole new generation of fans for all things speedy. 

For that reason, I thought that I would include this link to a picture of the Mach 5, which is on display at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.  I know my kids and DH will want to see it, and I will have to forward it to my nephews also.  I got this link on the Kim & Jason site, so thanks Kim!

I also am super hyped myself now that I  have watched the trailer for the upcoming live action version of Speed Racer.  It looks amazing, and it was done by The Wachowski Brothers, the directors of The Matrix trilogy so it should not only be fantastic quality, but may just stretch the limits of film making.  Keep in mind, it was this duo that first made popular the ”bullet time” visual effect that has been copied in everything from Michael Jordan to the Max to Shrek.  And while I try to never approach a new movie with too many expectations, least I be disappointed, I am hopeful that this movie will again stretch our imaginations. 

More Board Game Reviews

Before Christmas I recommended some board games, and that post was so popular, that I thought I would add some more recommendations here.

First, let me say that conversations with my kids may not always be easy, but I find if we play board games and laugh together, we have an eaiser week than if we don’t spend time bonding somehow.

We have played two games in the past couple of weeks that we adore, one a board game, and one a family Xbox game.

1.  Quelf - This is an awesome game!  I can honestly say that my DD and I laughed so hard we had to excuse ourselves from the table, if you get my meaning.  Be warned, this is not your typical, average, passive board game.  You will get up and move, and do things, but I promise the investment is worth it.  Learning to play is easy and straightforward, winning is anything but.

2.  SceneIt for Xbox - Now this is how a play at home game should be.  Have you ever played the family fued home game or the jeapordy home game and been disappointed because you realized that without the buzzer the game just doesn’t work?  Well the guys over at Xbox have changed all of that.  This game comes with a game and 4 controlers so you can buzz in.  We have had more fun with this game than any other console game out there.  If you have an Xbox, get this game.  If you don’t have an Xbox, get one for this game, really, it is that much fun.  Of course, if you don’t watch movies, you may not like this game, but watch for others like it to come out soon.

MLK Day 2008 – Have we made progress?

I attended a church service yesterday where we reflected on this question. . . How far have we come?

Not far enough was the answer my minister gave.  His argument was that basically, it is in education where there is still a huge rift between the races.  White students get a better education, due mostly to funding, than African American students do.

I don’t know if this is true, I believe it is, but I know almost nothing about this argument.  What I do know is that I am in a working-class neighborhood with more African American neighbors than white ones, and our school is on probration and about to undergo restructuring due to poor test scores. 

The population of their school breaks down this way:   85% African American, 10% white, and 5% Hispanic.  I don’t think that the education they are getting is equal to that of kids in more afluent neighborhoods, but I am not sure I understand why that is, how that is, how it happend, and how it can be fixed.

We constantly struggle at our school to keep programs running.  The band program is so underfunded that each year band parents have to pay $600 for their children to participate.  I am told that many teachers have taken pay cuts, and I know that activities have been cut.

WHY?  I will be looking into this over the coming weeks and plan to blog about it here.  I have many questions and few answers right now.  I am hoping to change that.

Beginning Running

I stared running daily recently, and thought I would share some helpful links and tips for starting a running routine.

1.  Start small and slow.  I am running at a slow speed for 20 minutes at least 5 days a week right now.  I don’t expect to loose weight or be able to run a marathon anytime soon, but I am doing something good for myself that will payoff eventually.  Right now, I can run/jog for 20 minutes so that is what I am doing.  I did find another plan that I would use if I wasn’t already well on my way with my own workout at the Cool Running website.

2.  Warm-up!  I didn’t do any warm-ups (I know, I know, very bad) the first two days I was running, and my back quickly reminded me that I am not in my 20s anymore.  I was able to find a routine that does work on my sore areas.

3.  I check the Runners World website regularly for inspiration.  I would someday like to run a race or something, but for now, I will just read about others who do and enjoy their stories and use them to inspire me to keep it up.  It is also a great place for finding running gear and the latest gadgets.

4.  I read my Women’s Health Magazine religiously.  This is a great magazine, really.  It has great articles, recipes and tips.  There is a new workout each month that you can do right at home, and there are also great articles on ways to be more healthy.  Check out their website to get a pretty good feel for the types of articles and tips they have.

Music Monday – Kevin Max

The Blood by Kevin Max is the first solo music I have heard from him.  I have to admit that I was not looking for this album, and it is probably not for everyone.  However, any album that starts with “The Old Rugged Cross” can’t be too bad.

Kevin Max, formerly of DC Talk, has some really different music that fits together for a great listen with a theme centered on the blood of Christ. There are lots of flavors here including some folk-like songs, some soul, some rock n roll and even a hymn thrown in.

There are also some really great guest appearances from DC Talk, Erica Campbell of Mary Mary, Amy Grant and Vince Gill, and there is a nice little song with Joanne Cash. My personal favorite is the remix “People Get Ready” with Erica Campbell.

As someone whose music tastes run a bit on the eclectic side, I found this album to be just diverse enough to hold my attention. I would guess that anyone who enjoyed the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack would also enjoy this compilation.