Family Date Night

Family Walking On Beach
I know it's important to spend time with your spouse and it's a great idea to have a regular date night. Trouble is, sometimes it just doesn't work out that way. When our kids were little a date night for us almost never meant only the two of us. We usually at least had whoever was youngest and still nursing along. We even took Marcia to the symphony with us once. She was so tiny and I just couldn't bear to leave her (she slept through the whole thing). Even now, our weekly "date afternoon" is getting a drink at Sonic and going to the library.

If you can't carve out a night to go out alone with your husband, why not organize a family date night? There are plenty of ways to have a sweet time with your husband even when you bring the kids along. We usually have family dates about once a month and I have to take the time to think about it and plant it. If I don't plan it, it won't happen. Life gets busy, the kids have activities, and the weeks slip away so quickly.

For me, the keys to a successful family date night are:
1) Food:
A fun date for us almost always includes a good meal. Good as in "nothing the kids hate and are going to gripe about". No trying out a new Brussels sprout recipe on date night. :) It helps the date along when everyone is happy with the menu. My husband and kids ALL are happy when I make homemade pizza or pasta and Italian meat sauce.

Make the meal part of the date night fun. Spread a quilt in front of the fire, eat outside on the trampoline, or get out the fine china and damask napkins and eat by candlelight.

You can also have the food reflect the theme of the night. You could have a fiesta night and serve tacos or enchiladas, or a 50s night and serve diner style shakes and hamburgers (play some 50s music to go along with it). The possibilities are endless.

2) Fun:
Games: Games can be a great budget friendly part of date night. Two of our favorites are Spoons and Sardines. They are both great games for all ages and any number of people.

Spoons: Set out one less spoon than the number of players in the middle of the table. One person is the dealer and deals out 4 cards to every player. He then passes cards around the table. Everyone looks through the cards and tries to get 4 of a kind. The first one to do so quietly grabs a spoon. The rest of the group grabs spoons as quickly as possible and the one left without a spoon looses the hand. This can get wild so don't have any cups or glasses on the table while you play. We've learned the hard way. :)

Sardines: There are lots of ways to play this game, but our favorite is to start outside. We turn off all the lights in the house and then "it" goes inside to hide. Count to 50 (or whatever you decide) and then split up and try to find "it". When you do, you hide with him and so does the next person and so on until only one person is left who gets to be "it" next time. One time there were 6 of us squished together and giggling in the shower. It was so much fun! Little ones can hide with an older sibling.

Around town: Get a visitor's guide for your town. We found lots of ideas for free and cheap things to do in our town. We found out about a free Italian landscape exhibit in our visitor's guide that we otherwise wouldn't have known about.

Movies: Rent a new release for $1 at Redbox (or even get it free with you sign up to get free codes every Monday), or check out a movie from the library. It's also lots of fun to get out the home movies. My kids love to see themselves as babies. Or show the kids your wedding video/ pictures and tell them how you met. Our kids love to hear the story of how I spilled my dinner down the front of my sweater on my first date with their dad. :)


3) Keep your ideas organized:
As you come across fun recipes, places to visit or ideas for your date night (family or otherwise) keep them organized. Make a folder, a section in your notebook or use the fun new date night planner at Springpad. Make sure you don't find yourself thinking "now what was that fun idea I was going to use this weekend?" :)

Happy dating!


Related post: Frugal Valentine's Day

Chicken Enchiladas Suizas

Friday night has recently become my night for trying new recipes. I don't have to be in a hurry and if it takes longer to make the recipe than I estimate, that's OK. We aren't on a schedule. We had the BEST chicken enchiladas for supper tonight. They sort of remind me of the chicken burrito at On The Border. I found the recipe at Allrecipes (love that website). Here it is:

INGREDIENTS

* 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 1 green bell pepper, chopped
* 1 red bell pepper, chopped (I left this out because I didn't have one)
* 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
* 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chile peppers
* 1 cup green salsa
* 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 4 teaspoons ground cumin
* 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
* salt and ground black pepper to taste
* 12 (7 inch) flour tortillas
* 10 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
* 1 cup whipping cream
* 1/2 cup chicken broth

DIRECTIONS

1. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a rapid boil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the boiling water; cover. Cook 15 to 20 minutes; drain and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 10x15 baking dish.
3. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion, green bell pepper, and red bell pepper in the melted butter until just soft, 5 to 8 minutes; transfer to a large bowl. Add the chicken, Cheddar cheese, green chile peppers, salsa, cilantro, cumin, and chipotle peppers to the bowl. Season with salt and pepper; mix.
4. Place about 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture along the edge of a tortilla; roll tightly into a tube. Place the enchilada, seam-side down, into the prepared baking dish. Repeat until all the chicken mixture is used. Sprinkle Monterrey Jack cheese over the enchiladas. Whisk together the whipping cream and chicken broth in a small bowl; pour over the enchiladas. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
5. Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking until cheese is completely melted, about 10 minutes.

Everybody loved it. This recipe is definitely a keeper.

Make a Mosiac

As you can see, I don't have a window over my kitchen sink (I do have a large bay window in the table area of the kitchen). When we first moved in I had a huge wreath hanging over the sink. I never really liked it, but didn't know what else would go in such a large space.

One day, I visited a gorgeous home that had a professionally done mosaic style back splash in the kitchen made with pieces of blue and white dishes as tiles and I just fell in love with it. I decided to replicate it on a much smaller scale in DIY fashion.

First, I had to gather the dishes (it took more dishes than you might think). I decided to use one and only one of my beloved Blue Willow plates as the focal point of the mosaic, but I wasn't about to break more than I absolutely had to. The great part was that since I was going to break the plates anyway, I could buy the chipped and broken pieces on clearance. I got a couple of chipped plates on clearance at T.J. Maxx and I also bought a service for four of blue and white dishes at Target. The set was already on clearance, but I noticed that one of the plates was broken inside the box. I asked the checker if she could mark it down even further and pointed out the broken plate. I got the entire set for $6! I found the small blue "outline" tiles on clearance at Home Depot. I think they were being discontinued.

Next, my brother helped me cut a large piece of plywood to fit between the cabinets. I didn't want the mosaic to be permanent. We have no intention of moving, but you never know. Plus it was easier to make the mosaic while the plywood was laying flat and then fit it into place rather than doing it directly on the wall.

I broke the plates with a hammer (be sure and wear safety glasses if you do this). I had to hit them harder than I thought. I thought I could just tap them and they would break, but it actually took a little force. I put the plates in a pillowcase (that wound up cut to ribbons) and broke them on the front porch. Poor Mike thought I had lost my mind (and not for the first time I'm sure) when he came home and found me breaking plates on the porch with a hammer.

Then all I had to do was spread tile mastic on the plywood with a trowel and arrange the tiles like I wanted. I didn't even grout it afterward (although I probably should have). Once it was good and dry I nailed it into place and it's been there ever since. I love it and I think it adds a lot of character to my kitchen. I get lots of compliments on it. By the way, you can click on the picture to view it larger.

If you have a project that you want to try, go for it. If I can do it, so can you! :)

At Least It's Cozy Inside

This is the tree in my front yard. It is miserably cold and icy outside. Nice and cozy in the house though. I made cookies, got all my dusting and vacuuming done, and now the tea kettle is boiling so I can relax for a few minutes.

I have to get out in the weather soon to drive carpool and I'm so not looking forward to it. Six kids, three schools and icy roads...not a fun combination. I want to curl up on the couch with a book and my knitting and not leave the house until it warms up.

The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today (January 26th)

Outside my window... It's cloudy, quiet and COLD! I'm not a fan of 21 degree weather.

I am thinking...About starting a fire in the fireplace. I usually save the firewood for when Mike and the kids are home, but it would be so cozy on such a dreary day.

I am thankful for...being healthy and active enough to take care of my home and family.

From the kitchen...chicken enchiladas for supper and hopefully some baking.

I am wearing...A super thick and soft pink sweater, jeans and thick woolly socks.

I am reading... Re-reading one of my Betty Neels novels. They are so sweet and homey.

I am hoping...that we don't really have the "freezing drizzle" that the weatherman is calling for. Driving on icy roads completely freaks me out. Mike will just have to take the kids to school tomorrow if it's icy.

I am creating...Still working on my rainy day scarf.

I am hearing...Billie Holiday singing "On the Sunny Side of the Street".

Around the house...washing sheets and cleaning the laundry room.

One of my favorite things...The sight of my daffodils just beginning to push up out of the cold ground. Spring IS coming! :)

A few plans for the rest of the week... planning the upcoming school bake sale, returning library books (maybe by writing it here I'll remember), and hopefully some cozy evenings in front of the fire.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

Greg took this picture and I like it. Ranches and farms are common sights around here.

Find more Daybook entries at The Simple Woman's Daybook.

How to Knit

I've had some requests for knitting instructions. I taught myself how to knit from a book. If you don't know anyone who knits, you can check out a knitting book from the library or you can learn from videos. Sometimes it's easier to learn from actually watching someone knit in person or on a video than learning from a book.

I found a couple of knitting videos for you that might be helpful.

This video is all about the different types of yarns available. Hobby Lobby often has yarn for half price and Wal-Mart sometimes has yarn on clearance. I've even found some nice yarn at Dollar Tree. Knitting does not have to be an expensive hobby and you can make some really nice hand made gifts.


This video shows how to cast on. It's the first step in knitting.


This one shows how to make the basic knit stitch.


Hopefully this will get you started. Remember that it takes practice. I made LOTS of mistakes as I was first starting out and still do. Just keep with it. After a while your hands will be making that knit stitch without you even having to think about it.

Progress

I thought you might want to see the progress I've made on the rainy day scarf that I started on the 14th when I shared A Day in My Life. I haven't been able to devote any large blocks of time to knitting, but it is coming along nicely. I love the wavy pattern and it's a lot of fun to knit.