So I have been shopping late checking out great mid century . I started a vintage store on etsy. I figured O love the hunt and want to share my treasures. Check out my vintage store. Babypop Boutique.
Meal Planning Monday Inexpensive meals ideas
Meal Planning Monday: inexpensive meals ideas. I have been away for a long time and my meal planning has suffered. It has been a trying time and I feel with the start of spring I can get back to what I enjoy. I need to make myself happy and I know I will be a better mom and wife for it. I am trying to get back to things I enjoy, blogging being part of my happiness. My little space in the world.
I had a great loss this winter.. actually the lost has been since last July resulting in my fathers passing this past February. I miss him and I will address it at another time. With him being so sick for so long my life was in an emotional limbo and truly super exhausting.
My 1st step back to sharing with my readers is my meal planning.
Meal Planning for a family of 4 ideas what to feed a family that are inexpensive yet homemade:
Sunday: Loaded potato skins
Monday: Shepard’s Pie
Tuesday: Baked chicken, asparagus, rice
Wednesday: Chili
Thursday: Special Meal for my mom
Friday: Pasta with sausage (Kids cooking)
This week I spent $101 on groceries and $20 at the produce store.
I am hopping you have a wonderful week and may life bring you joy.
Cheers.
Google Chromecast Audio
I was recently asked review and write about the Google Chromecast Audio helps Play music on your speakers, new or old, wireless from your phone, laptop or table. Chromecast uses WiFi instead of Bluetooth, you can stream crystal clear hi res sound. We enjoyed using the chromcast audio because the older speakers around the house could be used to to stream out favorite music.
Play music on your speakers, new or old, wirelessly from your phone, laptop or tablet. Because Chromecast Audio uses WiFi instead of Bluetooth, you can stream crystal clear hi res sound. Listen to your favorite tunes on your speaker By using your phone, it’s easy to play, pause, or change the volume from anywhere in the home. And while streaming, you can still text or call without interrupting what’s playing or draining your battery. Crystal clear sound, powered by the cloud Use Chromecast Audio to stream over Wi-Fi which has many advantages over Bluetooth including higher sound quality.Enjoy hundreds of your favorite audio apps Stream millions of songs, radio stations, and podcasts through apps like Pandora, Spotify, YouTube Music, and Google Play Music. Find more at chromecast.com/apps Play music everywhere with Multi-room Now you can easily fill every room in your home with synchronous music. Simply group Chromecast Audio devices together so you can listen to the same song on multiple speakers.
Bertucci’s Anniversary Menu
Bertucci’s Anniversary Menu: In the last month I was asked to join Bertucci’s for the 35th Anniversary Menu celebration at a local Bertuccci restaurant. It was a magical night of food and learning about the brand from the original and still current head Chef Rosario. We started out with the Antipasto, which was just made this olive and cheese loving girl, my heart sung for the Perorino Romano Cheese very lovely salty and aged. My husband kept saying “Did you try the cheese!”
Bertucci’s Anniversary Menu: What to eat
Then all the Bertucci guests moved into the new stromboli which is coming soon to menu. Then my favorite the Pizza and the Nolio pizza is back!! I seriously was very happy, if you have not had Nolio pizza it is a must try. The Nolio Pizza is a Parma style prosciutto ans sweet caramelized onions lightly season cream, with Pecorino and mozzarella cheese. For me it is all about the caramelized onions so sweet and butter my mouth is water just thing about it. The Nolio left the menu for sometime. I learned that if a favorite menu items of your leaves the Bertucci’s menu you can always ask the Bertucci chef to make it for you according to Chef Rosario.
The restaurant originally founded in Somerville, MA, has become an east coast staple for hand-crafted artisanal pizza and Italian fare…and yes, those rolls have left an imprint in all our minds (and stomachs).
It was an additionally fun evening because Chef Rosario was sitting next to me, he was serving me the perfect bite of food and feeding me all night. He also called me “Bella”, in an Italian accent which could not hurt the charming feeling of the entire evening. I almost forgot my husband was next to me-OOPS. I would like to say I had pictures of Chef Rosario feeding me, but I was blushing too much to show, so you will have to check out my table-mate above being fed (see above). She was a sport posing for me.
A photo posted by Sherry Aikens (@sherryaikens1) on
I also found some of my new unexpected favorites at Bertucci ‘s is the Butternut Squash Ravioli. I was expected the Lobster Ravioli to steel my heart but no the Butternut Squash won out for me. I am not sure it was the asiago-sage sauce or the roasted brick butternut but it was so rich and decadent it was a perfect pillow pasta bite amazing.
Butternut Squash Ravioli
Lobster Ravioli
My husband and I we able to experience many dishes with our fellow dinners, like Chicken Ana Maria chicken with sage mushrooms artichokes and the coming soon Possimamente: Grilled Chicken Marengo on Arugla Salad which is a wonderful option for those non eating carb humans. We finished the evening with a Cannoli- I would love to say I had a picture of the cannoli but it did not make it long enough.. it was scrumptious.
The Bertucci’s we visited was a newly renovated one in Plymouth Meeting Pa complete with an outside Patio, which will make it a great destination during warmer months, and a new dinning venue to try the Bertucci’s 35th Anniversary Menu .
I have to say because of everything I was able to experience at the 35th Anniversary Menu Experience, I could not wait to revisit Bertucci’s again. Over the holiday break my daughter and I went back we ordered some of my favorites on our Girls Day Out. Tip also if you go during lunch they give you a free salad, and those amazing soft yummy rolls.
If you have not been back in a while to Bertucci’s it is time to go, order some of your old favorites and try some of Chef Rosario’s new ones.
Disclosure: My husband and I were hosted by Bertucci’s in exchange for this post. My tastes buds are honest and true to how much I enjoyed the food at Bertucci’s 35th Anniversary Menu.
Holidays at Camelback Lodge & Aquatopia
Christmas is coming how about family time in a warm friendly place that is great for the kids and parents alike! Throughout the Holiday season, Camelback Lodge guests can enjoy a myriad of festivities including visits with Santa and his elves, appearances from the Lodge’s mascots Cliff & Cami Camel, story time with Mrs. Claus, donut decorating, crafts and games.
Check out the Camelback Lodge Holiday Schedule
Saturday, December 3rd 2016
2:00PM – 4:00PM
- Prepare for Santa’s arrival with festive crafts and activities throughout Camelback Lodge.
- Kids and adults too can write letters to Santa and drop them in the Lodge’s North Pole
- Express Mailbox, and enjoy festive holiday crafts and activities.
4:30PM – 4:50PM
- An urgent news report from Brittany Holiday will play throughout the Grand Lobby alerting all guests that Santa was just spotted hurdling across the sky near Camelback.
5:00PM
- Hear the jingling of sleigh bells and holiday carolers as guests prepare for Santa & Mrs.
- Claus’ Grand Parade. Clif and Cami Camel will lead the way, followed by the Pocono
- Mountain East Marching Band, Jackson Township Volunteer Fire Department Trucks,
- Volunteers from the Evergreen Charter School in Mountainhome, PA dressed as Santa’s merry elves, and finally Santa and Mrs. Claus’ horse drawn carriage from the Bethlehem Carriage Company.
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5:30PM-9:00PM
- Visits and photos with Santa & Mrs. Claus; hot chocolate and cider in the Grand Lobby
Santa’s Visits to Camelback Lodge.
Camelback Lodge guests can enjoy visits with Santa and his elves, story time with Mrs. Claus, holiday activities and more throughout the month of December!
Dec. 5 5:00PM-9:00PM
Dec. 4 11:00AM-3:00PM
Dec. 10 5:00PM-9:00PM
Dec. 11 11:00AM-3:00PM
Dec. 16-17 5:00PM-9:00PM
Dec. 18 11:00AM-3:00PM
Dec. 23 5:00PM-9:00PM
Where:
Camelback Lodge & Aquatopia Indoor Waterpark, 193 Resort Drive, Tannersville, PA 18372
About Camelback Lodge & Aquatopia Indoor Waterpark
Camelback Lodge & Aquatopia Indoor Waterpark is located at the base of Camelback Mountain in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. The 453-suite lodge is coupled with the largest indoor family entertainment center and indoor waterpark in the Northeast. With Camelback Lodge & Aquatopia Indoor Waterpark complementing the existing seasonal outdoor waterpark, skiing, snowboarding, snowtubing, ziplining, treetops obstacle course, alpine mountain coaster and more, Camelback Resort offers more year-round excitement in one location than any other mountain resort in the country.
Want to learn more click here
Macys Holiday Fun
“This post is sponsored by Everywhere Agency on behalf of Macy’s; however, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.“
I love the holidays. It is a time of family fun, crafting, and shopping. This weekend come visit Macy’s Lehigh Valley for some holiday fun with Macy’s! Macys will have great holiday holiday music and a DIY station to help make your home sparkle this holiday season!
Visit macys.com/believe to learn more!
- Macy’s
- Lehigh Valley in Whitehall, PA
- Saturday, December 3, 2016
- Event is free
Join us for an afternoon of holiday cheer! Shimmy to Santa-rific tunes and get crafty with a DIY station. Take our Naughty or Nice quiz and receive a $10 Macy’s gift card!* Plus, with any $35 Holiday Lane purchase, you’ll receive a glittering gift!** For more information, visit www.macys.com/believe
Menu Planning and Life
This week is a busy week. I have a lot going on at work and in my life. I have a bazaar at work, I am headed at the end of the week to a wedding in Dallas leaving my husband to do the running with the kids. Plus my daughter is preforming in a play on Sunday. I need to meal plan which I have not been doing any regularity lately causing me to be very disorganized.
My meal planing this week is all about easy because of how much I have to get done. Easy for my self and my husband is super important. also Tuesday night I have to make a pot of my Split pea soup for the Bazaar.
I really also want to tell you about what else I have been up to. I am still sewing and making superhero capes. Check out BABYPOP (for your custom capes starting at $17 for custom letter, color, and logo they make great Christmas gifts.
I even make capes for the family pets !
My mask are $4.50 each at my store Babypop
I have been reading more because the political environment makes me shut of the TV. I just finished Orphan Train and now I am reading Boys on the Boat. Both books are amazing. What are you reading .. any suggestion for my next book.
Meal Planing this week:
Sunday : Baked Fish and potatoes asparagus
Monday: Beef and noodles
Tuesday:Pork chops
Wednesday: Chili
Thursday: Perogies and kielbasa
Friday: Pizza
Saturday: Burgers and Tator Tots
Be sure to check out my posts :
LG ProBake Double Oven for the Holidays
The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free
The holidays are coming and I am feeling the need to bake. Thanksgiving being the food holiday my tired old oven is a real concerned . I would love to have the option of the ProBake Convection™ in my home. This oven bakes to perfection every time. Un like my current oven that anything on the bottom rack well lets say it is less than perfection. I love the ProBake Convection™ – Baked to Perfection on Every Rack, Every Time. The idea of my kitchen having a professionals style of cooking makes me giddy. Inspired by pro-style ranges, this LG range moved the heating element from the bottom of the oven to the back wall for optimal heat distribution. Enjoy consistent browning on top and bottom – with every cookie baked to perfection with LG’s ProBake Convection ranges.
The other major holiday concern is cleaning my oven. My current oven takes 5 hours and a temperature of over 500 degrees heating up the house and causing me to open up the windows. EasyClean® – LG’s ProBake Convection ranges feature LG’s EasyClean®: 3 Steps. 10 minutes. 1 spotless oven. In three easy steps and 10 quick minutes your oven can be sparkling clean, without strong chemical fumes or high heat with LG’s Easy Clean. I love the cleaning of the LG oven because I also wont be wasting heat by having my windows open int he cold weather. It helps with those heating bills that is a win win great food, easy clean, and saving money.
Here is another way to save money with this oven and BestBuy. Kitchen Bundle Rebate through 10/29, where consumers receive a Visa Gift Card valued up to $400 with purchase of a 4 piece Kitchen Package & Receive 5x reward points with your Best Buy account on any ProBake Range purchase from 9/28 – 10/29. This can also be stacked with the kitchen bundle rebate mentioned above.
Linksys WRT3200ACM Wi-Fi Router
As a blogger and raising a digital family the speed of my internet is very important to everyone in our household. Recently, I was provided Linksys WRT3200ACM Wi-Fi Router from BestBuy to review. Wow!! has it sped up my access and made our home flow better.
Get ready for the one and only WRT.
The WRT3200ACM MU-MIMO Gigabit Wi-Fi Router is powered by Tri-Stream 160 technology, which doubles the bandwidth on all spatial streams for the fastest dual-band router on the market. Gain access to restricted DFS channels at full bandwidth for the clearest Wi-Fi not available to most other routers. The WRT3200ACM also boasts:
• 1.8 GHz CPU for high-powered performance
• MU-MIMO technology for high-speed Wi-Fi to multiple devices at the same time, same speed
• Open-source ready with OpenWrt and DD-WRT® for complete flexibility and customization of functions,
• Upgraded Smart Wi-Fi app to manage and monitor your home Wi-Fi from a mobile device, anytime, anywhere
• 256MB Flash and 512MB of RAM Memory
• 4 Gigabit Ethernet Ports
After trying the router for a few weeks we really loved the effect on the WRT3200ACM MU-MIMO Gigabit Wi-Fi Router . My son loved the speed of his video games, My daughter loved the how quickly she can download the you tubers she loves. My husband loved the how fast he can chat on Facebook, share and post photos. For me it means a great connection when working on my blog or uploading videos. The new WRT3200ACM MU-MIMO Gigabit Wi-Fi Router was a win win for our family.
Check it our at Best Buy.
The Car Kids and Moms Love !! Chrysler Pacifikids
This blog post was sponsored by FCA US, LLC but the opinions are completely my own based on my experience.
We take road trip a lot of road trip so what we drive is important. I love a exploring a new car and my kids are a huge part of my process. I was recently asked to learn more about the Chrysler Pacifica with the Chrysler Pacifikids. My daughter and I watched the videos on started to fall in love with all the options. With a daughter who loves the detail and a son who is tall techie. The Chrysler Pacifikids videos showed what we needed as a family.
The All-New 2017 Chrysler Pacifica is the Ultimate Tool for the Modern Family. The Pacifica provides unparalleled versatility, innovative entertainment & technology features, and unsurpassed safety features – attributes valued by families to meet the demand of their chaotic and active lifestyles.
Features and my “mom” comments
1. The Quietest vehicle in its class- I could hide in the Pacifica for quite “mommy” time
2. Stow n’ Go seating Yes because our vehicles have to transform to fit the dogs!
a. With an assist feature- I am always in need of assistance
3. Stow n’ Vac This integrated vacuum reaches every corner of the van!- Did I mention I have Kids and Dogs!!
4. Lift Gate- I never have enough hands
5. uConnect Theater System- A built in theater sign me up
a. Two 10” touchscreens that provide integrated kids game Apps, an ‘Are We There
Yet’ trip tracker, wireless streaming, HDMI, Bluetooth, USB and Blu-Ray connectivity – My son is a Techie and the best way to avoid car fights is internet access.
6. 8 Passenger Seating- I car pools are my game and Mom is my name
7. Hybrid & MPG Efficiency It’s the world’s first and only Hybrid Minivan with 80 MPG! We are are leaving out world to our kids!!
8. Stow Assist-
9. Tri-Pane Panoramic Sunroof- Because Nom does like to see the sun and who doe not need vitamin D –
10. Hands Free Sliding Doors- Did I mention I never have enough hands?
11. Handsfree ‘Just Swipe Your Foot’ lift gate
12. Easy Tilt Seats for 3rd row access –
13. Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop- This is a great feature because one never gets distracted when driving with kid?
14. 360 Surround View Camera- Because I never ran over a toy behind a car maybe only once or twice
15. Parallel, Perpendicular & Rear Park Assist I never did learn how to parallel park
16. Blind Spot Warning with Rear Cross Path Detection- Awesome!
17. Forward Collision Warning with Brake Assist- Ok I night have a habit of the late break with the Mom cross body block arm
18. Lane Departure Warning with Lane Keep Assist- Drifting who me??
19. 20” wheels- Rolling with my Homies !
20. Rotary Style E-Shift
So you want to try out the Chrysler Pacifica try the Test Drive Experience Field Trips are the new Test Drive. Going to the dealership is not the highlight of everyone’s day. And when it comes to test drives, who really has the time for that anyway?
The Pacifikids know something that everyone likes, and that’s going on a field trip. But, in order to go on a field trip, you need a permission slip! Anyone can fill out theirs at the Pacifikids website click here >>> http://lynk.to/2DM54 , where submitting it is easy as 1-2-3.
The Pacifikids will read every submission and choose their favorite ideas and 3 lucky families
will win their field trip experience with the All-New Chrysler Pacifica!
For your chance to Win! Win a Field Trip Experience – Starting October 10 through October 26 consumers can visit
ThePacifikids.com site and apply to win a field trip with the Pacifica.
Then want to Win a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica – from November 12-18, vote for your favorite Pacifikids field trip
and you’ll be entered for a chance to win a free Pacifica!