Meatloaf. 'nuff said

I love meatloaf. LOVE IT. Okay, not THAT Meatloaf. I love meatloaf freshly out of the oven, next day with mayo on a slice of bread, even the day after that -if there's any left!

Whenever I make meatloaf I always bake an extra loaf for sandwiches. The sandwiches are more anticipated than the dinner itself. If I ever think that there won't be enough for sandwiches the next day. No one eats. It goes straight the fridge and everyone gets cereal. That's the way I roll.

Who doesn't love leftover meatloaf? Okay, my kids don't, but they don't count. Here's a fun factoid about me, I haven't always been a lover of the loaf. I don't know if it was how my mom made it, what was in it(or what I thought was in it), or the fact that it had the word "loaf" in it, which in itself just sounds icky. Then when I was a sophmore in highschool I had a friend that brought a meatloaf sandwich to school. She asked if I wanted a bite. I cringed, but was captivated that her "loaf" didn't have stuff in it. It looked kind of good, like a smashed meatball- and hoova knows I love meatballs! So, I accepted and my tastebuds squealed in delight! I loved it!!!! From there on out Betty always packed an extra sandwich just for me!

I made meatloaf this last week. One in the crockpot, the other in the oven. I wanted to see which I loved more. While my crockpot loaf took the better of the afternoon, I was able to wait until evening before putting the other in the oven. I decided that I would share my meatloaf with the fam for dinner, the crockpot was finished first. When I started to slice up the loaf I was horrified at the "burnt" crust on the bottom. I had burned my loaf!!! And in the crock of all places to boot. Aw, the humanity! It was still good, but there was a lingering flavor that just wasn't right. What was left from dinner (no one except me had seconds) and the oven loaf went in the fridge for sandwiches. First to be finished was the crock loaf and it was much better on day two. The next two days was the oven loaf and it was heavenly!!!!!! I'm sorry all you crockpot fans (that includes me too) but meatloaf must be made in the oven. I don't exactly know what it is that makes it taste different but it just did and therefore the oven will have it - well, at least for my next day sammies!
sorry no pics of said meatloaf just cute kids

Here is my meatloaf recipe
I must warn you I make this to taste and I never measure!

2-3 lbs of ground beef (sometimes I'll substitute a pound ground turkey)
an egg or two
1 cup of breadcrumbs(homemade or canned), oatmeal, or cornflakes
pepper
salt
a bit of dried onion
a pkg of onion soup or beef onion soup mix
a bit of milk
a couple of shakes of Worcestershire sauce (more than less)
a couple of squirts of ketchup and mustard


mix together and form into one or two loaves

mix a couple of squirts of ketchup, mustard and some Worcestershire sauce and spread on top of the loaves

bake at 350 f for a good 30-45 minutes, just keep checking it.

Sometimes for shits and giggles we'll throw some grated cheddar in the mix and also sprinkle it on top. THIS IS WAY YUMMY. What would make it inexcusable and sinful would be if we were too add bacon and butter and deep fry the bad boy. But that would clog up our arterties and send us to an early death - we'll hold off just a bit longer on that one.

snot for glue and a menu

Can kid snot be used as a substitute for gorilla glue? Seriously, I think the only thing that will get it off of my kids' face is by sticking their heads under a hot fire hose, heck, even then the pressure may not be enough. I wonder if I leave it there, if it will fossilize and tomorrow we'll find a little bird or lego guy's remains in there. Maybe a hammer and chisel will get it off. I'll be right back.

As I sit here watching Ghostbusters with my little girls (yes, they love, and we don't mean this lightly, L-O-V-E this movie)I'm listening to the kitty purr in my ears and catching the snow fall outside the window. I'm so glad that I had the day off.
Yes, this is the road I live on- but I was too lazy to go out and take a new picture this was taken one of the many times it has dumped on us the last couple of weeks.

Moving on.

Here is this week's menu for anyone interested in what we are eating.

Monday: Crock pot meatloaf potatoes and green beans
Tuesday: Homemade pizza
Wednesday: Taco Skillet (loved it so much we're doing it again!)
Thursday: Swedish meatballs w/ noodles/potatoes/rice
Friday: Teriyaki chicken w/ rice and salad
Saturday: Pork chops w/ yakisoba noodles
Sunday: baked macaroni


I am making my cinnamon rolls right now and will attempt to make these rolls from The Frugal Girl later this afternoon. I'm pretty confident that I will succeed but I do have two tired girls who don't want to give up tugging at my pant legs. sigh.

Oh, just in time. One of the legs on the ikea chair keeps coming loose, I think I'll just grab a kid and wipe their nose on it.

food. work. airpockets.

Okay, I've been slack again but I totally have a good excuse. I have a job. I mean, I've always had the job of being a stay-at-home mom. Now, I have a worldly recognized paying job. I haven't worked for almost two years and then it was a three month stint, before that it had been two years, so really I haven't actually worked since 2005. The way it came about was funny, it pretty much just fell in my lap. I overheard my dermatologist and nurse talking during an appointment. I then overheard it mentioned how they were shorthanded due to some recent changes in the office. Later that afternoon I brought in my resume, thinking I might be able to lend a hand. Sure enough, it worked. One week later, I am now an employee. weird.

I have a feeling I'm going to be tired tomorrow, so I'm going to post my weekly menu and a recipe tonight.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened this weekend. Z has strep - always fun, therefore we took the other sick kid, L, in to be checked, thank goodness she has no sickness or infections. They concluded it was viral or a cold. Woo hoo. She still sounds like an old man who has smoked since he was 3. Also, along with her "cold" she has been clumsy as all get up! The kid has had some serious head trauma this weekend. We've had bruises, bumps, and cuts before, but usually one this week and a new one would appear just as the other had turned yellow. Nope, not L. Yesterday, while standing on her green Ikea chair she leaned, and as expected it tipped. She whacked her right eye/eyebrow on the jogging stroller(yes, it was in the playroom, having it's seat switched out) resulting in a beautimus scratch/bruise that runs over her eyelid into her eyebrow, also a little scratch on her nose. She had to finish the evening off by rolling off of daddy's back(they were laying on the floor) onto the hardwood floor and knocking the back of her head.

Then, this morning she managed to hit an airpocket which hurdled her into the round coffee table. Again, resulting in injury. This time a nice bruise/welt that runs from her right cheekbone up to her eye. So, she now has a complete package that we are sure will finish off with at least a black eye if not more. At least there was no major swelling (just the welt).

Ah... you've got to love a good farewell to no longer being a stay-at-home mom. I don't think I'll miss it one bit. *sniff*sniff*


On to this week's menu: ENJOY!
thank you evilmadscientist.com for that gem

Monday- Homemade pizza, pepperoni, salami, chicken, beef, cheese, veggies, whatev!

Tuesday- Rice-a-roni chick/beef (we were scheduled for this last week, but had a moment of weakness at costco and had pizza- ah costco, gotta love it!

Wednesday- Spaghetti/salad/french bread (freeze leftovers for another time)

Thursday- Breakfast night! -we'll try the egg bake, we didn't get to last time

Friday- Meatloaf/potatoes (we're actually going to be outta town, so this will be moved to Sunday

Saturday- Leftovers- this will be easy, we're outta town no need to do!

Sunday- Dinner ala mom! Meatloaf/potatoes/greenbeans! YUM!

This week's recipe is something that we were supposed to have on Friday night, Z spent the evening at the dr's so we improvised with leftovers/soup.

Taco Skillet -




Beef Taco Skillet
Campbell’s make in minutes
Prep: 5 min. Cook: 20 min.

1 lb. ground beef
1 can (10 ¾ oz.) Campbell’s Tomato Soup (Regular or 25% Less Sodium)
½ cup salsa
½ cup water
6 flour tortillas (6 inches), cut into 1-inch pieces
½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1. Cook beef in 10-inch skillet until well browned, stirring to break up meat. Pour off fat.
2. Stir in soup, salsa, water and tortillas. Heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 5 min. Stir. Top with cheese. Makes 4 servings.

Of course we are going to double this recipe to feed the masses. Um.. to feed our family.