I'm not tired!!

It's whats for dinner

A few of my friends have started posting their dinner ideas and sharing recipes so I thought I would join in. I had plans to make chicken cacciatore tonight which meant I needed to go to the grocery store. I planned to go the grocery store after Riley had his piano lesson but alas, Ella had a potty accident while we were waiting so we had to return home. This left me scouring the pantry for something for dinner. I also wanted to use up some hamburger buns. I always have ground beef on hand so I decided on Sloppy Joes.

Now this recipe is actually called Spicy Joe's and I found it several years ago on the back of a Maull's BBQ Sauce bottle. It's super simple.

• 1 pound ground beef
• 3/4 cup barbeque sauce
• 1 tablespoon worchestershire
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 6 ounces lemon lime soda
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• salt and pepper to taste

According to the instructions you are simply supposed to throw everything into one big skillet, mix well. Cover and cook over medium heat for at least 30 minutes. Uncover and then simmer until thickened. I however don't like the thought of the fat from the ground beef draining into the rest of the food so I prepare it as follows which also takes a lot less time. I brown the ground beef and then drain the fat. I add in all the other ingredients, but since certain members of my household (I won't name names but they are both male) don't like onion, I use onion powder. Bring it to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer until thickened. Takes about 15 minutes from start to finish! Add a side of mac and cheese, or like we did tonight Au Gratin potatoes and dinner is served. The recipe says it serves 4, which it does if no one wants seconds.

I'm no food stylist, but I promise it tastes yummy
Even my self proclaimed little vegetarian will eat this!

And if like most of us you are feeling a little budget conscious these days. This meal cost about $6.50 for our family of five (which includes one toddler who eats little tiny portions about eight times a day!)

What's for dinner at your house?

Tiny Seamstress ?!

I was roaming around all the blogs I love to visit today when I came across a new one that I loved instantly. This adorable little mama sews these really cute purses that she will customize according to colors that you like. Check out her blog Tiny Seamstress

This one is my favorite - I love this color combination!

Best part of my post today? Head on over to Make it and Love it for details on how you can win a $30 gift certificate good towards anything found over at the Tiny Seamstress.

And if you win, I expect a really cute purse for my birthday in November!
Good Luck!!

The bitter taste of defeat!

Last week Riley was voted Student Council Representative for the 5th grade. He was quite excited! They had an early morning meeting before school and he was dressed and ready to head out the door about an hour before the meeting started.

He came home that day and told me he would like to run for Student Council Vice President. I was excited that he was willing to take on the responsibility. So he wrote a speech which he had to present in front of the school and than they had a little election.

His teacher called me and invited me to go to the school so I could see him give his speech. I was so proud of him. He really spoke clearly and looked at his audience. When he went up to the podium he got a huge cheer from the crowds and kids were clapping for him.

This is his speech:

Hello (School name) Students, my name is Riley Jordan. I am in the fifth grade in Mrs (Teachers name) class and I have been attending (School name) since Kindergarten. Today I would like to talk to you about why I think I would be a good choice for Vice President.

Since this is my first year in Student Council, I don't think I'm ready to be President but I think I could be a great help as Vice President. I have maintained straight A's while being involved in other activities such as Probe, Orchestra and Baseball. So, as you can see, I can multi task! I am a great listener and would listen to your ideas. You see the President isn't always going to be here all the time so when he or she isn't available, I'm Open!

I can't wait to help plan some fun activities for (school name) Students. I would like to see more Spirit days such as Twin Day, Sports Day and many more. I think it would be fun to have some contests too and get all of our students involved.

Thank you for listening to my ideas. Please vote for me, Riley Jordan, for (school name) Student Council Vice President.

So at 3:30 I started watching for the kids to come up the path and along came Riley hanging his head down. He did not win the Vice President position and was super disapointed.

His dad and I are super proud of him for trying and hope that he will try again next year!

P.S. Would I come across as crazy if I demanded a recount?