Stop The Dinner Time Insanity - A House of Fauci's Experience

While raising  my second set of kids I became THAT MOM! THAT MOM  that took orders for dinner. THAT MOM that made my  husband and I one dinner and my 3 girls a separate dinner each; therefore making at least 4 dinners a night! For 7 years I allowed my girls to be 'picky' and tell ME what THEY wanted for dinner. This finally ended when my husband came to me one day and said to 'STOP the dinner time insanity' and that enough was enough.

When we told the girls of our plans to no longer make multiple meals at dinner time, they were not thrilled. My oldest daughter was not terribly unhappy about it, but was not thrilled about certain foods that I may serve. The baby, little Bella, was oblivious. The real challenge was going to come with my middle child, Gia. This child has certain foods that she will eat such as strawberries, grilled cheese, pizza, macaroni and cheese, chips, and maybe a few other foods; not many though. 

We explained to the girls that it was time to 'grow up' and help mom and dad out with not having to spend so much time in the kitchen and it would also make for nice family meals. On a side note, I only make dinners around 3 days a week so they were not going to be 'tortured' every day. 

Before our first official family meal I went to Kohl's and surprised them with their very own cute little plates. My hope was that it would help them accept the new dinner time plan. 

I made sure that the first meal that I made was kid friendly; cheeseburgers and macaroni. In an effort to get my Gia interested I had her help me make the burger patties. 

Each family meal was full of stress, it was definitely not what I hoped for or envisioned when I thought of what family meals should be. My husband and I sounded like broken records; eat, stop whining, it doesn't taste gross, hush, stop crying, do you want to be grounded, etc... It was not pleasant and may have made for a great YouTube video! 

As a result of our, at least 3 day a week, family meal times my girls have accepted that they are expected to eat or at least try what is served on their plates. It has gotten easier, not perfect, but much easier and I am so thankful that my husband stepped in and demanded that the insanity be put to an end. Even though these first few meals were not stress free, we will not give up because this can only help our girls grow and our hair to stop changing colors. My husband and I have agreed that the dinner time insanity has to stop. 

Do you have any meal time challenges in your household? How do you handle them?

Leibold Grothues Ranch at the Lake Medina RV Resort - A 'House of Fauci's' Camping Experience

On Memorial Day weekend our family decided to take the RV out and go camping. We did not want to travel too far from home and most campsites were packed but luckily we were able to stumble upon a great place in Leibold Grothues Ranch at the Lake Medina RV Resort. 

When you enter the ranch, as you drive down the long road to reach the RV sites, you pass by a variety of animals such as cows, horses and deer running. It is quite a site and very beautiful. 

Unfortunately, Lake Medina is dry so we would not be able to fish, but even though there would be no fishing we knew there would be a lot of fun stuff we would be able to do. 

After we parked the RV, I took the girls to explore the campsite. 

Even though there was not any water for fishing at this lake, we made the best of it and decided to explore where the lake used to be. The girls brought bags to collect shells and there were so many beautiful wildflowers for some great photo opportunities. 

The campsite was surrounded with so many grown trees that it was hard not to take more pictures of my girls and insist that we eat outside among all the beauty. 

At night we made S'mores. Yummy Yummy S'mores! I tried to make a red, white and blue s'more for the spirit of Memorial Day. It was not as easy as it was to make in my head, but my husband enjoyed it. 

At night the middle child, no surprise, started to cry out that she was 'bored', so I taught them a game that we played when our older three kids were their age. We played the ABC game and it was a hit. Basically you choose a theme such as food, names, drinks, etc... the first person has to figure out a word that correlates with the theme and starts with an 'A' and then the next person has a 'B' and so on. If a person gets stuck, they are out. It is a fun game that keeps you on your toes. 

Our family had a wonderful time and we will be going back to Leibold Grothues Ranch at the Lake Medina RV Resort! The biggest 'funny' was that it rained really hard on our last night and we woke up to water in the lake! 

Patriotic Sugar Cookies

The Fourth of July is right around the corner and my girls love M&M's so why not make some Patriotic Sugar Cookies. 

This is an easy and simple recipe that is fun to make with the kids. It also has simple ingredients that are most likely in your pantry. I found the standard sugar cookie recipe at Spoonful.com.

Place the rolled cookie balls onto the prepped cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for around 8-10 minutes. 

'Finish This' Week 25

1- I have a quarter to use a pay phone, I call... my husband because obviously I am without my cell phone and somewhere that I should not be. Where is a pay phone...Oh yes, somewhere you don't want to be!  (Keep that cell phone charged ladies & with you!) 

2- I found $25 in my pocket, I buy... most likely Happy Meals, 1/2 and 1/2 teas and Sonic slushies randomly throughout the week for my girls and I. $25 can go a long way for us! 

3- I have 25 minutes to watch anything on TV, I turn on... Fox News! 25 minutes is not long enough for me to enjoy one of my many shows, so I suppose I would turn on Fox News and get a brief update of the day's happenings. 

4- A meal I can prepare, from start to finish in 25 minutes of less is...hot dogs and macaroni and cheese! 

I am totally trying this!!!!

5- At the age of 25, I wish I had known... how important it was to exercise after having kids and not eat so much junk! Who knew that the pounds & flub stuck like peanut butter and were not so easy to fall off?

6- If I drove 25 miles (direction) from my house, I'd be in... New Braunfels, Texas. It is a sizable Texan German community. The great thing about New Braunfels is that Gruene Historical District is found here and it's amazing. So amazing I wrote a post about it! 

http://houseoffaucis.blogspot.com/2014/05/welcome-to-gruene-texas.html

The Bouqs Is My New Favorite Place to Order Flowers From #BouqLove #ad

This post contains affiliate links from Markerly for The Bouqs 

In the past few months I have found myself needing to order flowers for a friend or family member that has experienced a loss of a loved one or experienced a tragic event. I searched the websites of the local flower shops in their area and to my disbelief the small bouquets of flowers started at around $55 before the delivery fees were even added. After the delivery fees and tax were added, the bouquet ended up being around $80! 

Recently, after doing a little bit of internet research I stumbled upon a company called The Bouqs. 

The Bouqs, as seen on Shark Tank and in Forbes, own their own flower farm in which they grow flowers in the rich soil of an active volcano since 2012. All bouquets are cut to order and are sent to your door. In addition, the cost for the original size of bouquets are a $40 flat fee and include free shipping! After I discovered the flat rate fee with no delivery cost, I knew I had to order my next bouquet from them.

I ordered the Confetti flower 'Bouq'. This beautiful collection of roses includes farm-fresh premium roses of almost every color. When they arrived I was automatically impressed with how they were packaged; like fine china! 

After I freed the beautiful flowers of the packing I followed the directions on the box and then divided them up and placed them in two vases. I am loving my flowers. The smell, bright colors, and beauty made my home a happy home. 

The Bouqs has another awesome bouquet called the 'Red, White, and Bouq!'. This is a beautiful bouquet that consists of red, white and blue roses. This bouquet would be a perfect gift to send to a friend or family member that has someone special that is on active duty in the military. It would be a great way to show that you care and that you are thinking of them and it may help to lift their spirits. In addition, if you are attending or having a 4th of July party, the 'Red, White, and Bouq!' would be a perfect addition to have to add to the festivity of the event. 

The Bouqs  is a company that I respect. Not only do they provide quality service but they understand how important it is for customers to be able to afford beautiful flowers. Being able to purchase quality flowers for your loved ones or yourself and actually being able to afford it is absolutely priceless. The next time I need to order flowers I will most definitely be ordering from The Bouqs. 

Southern Goulash

What is Goulash you ask? In my definition, Goulash is a Southern meal of bliss that includes a mixture of pasta noodles, beans, meat, sauce and sometimes extra ingredients that Southerners may add at their discretion with a side of sweet cornbread. My mama used to always make Goulash and I could never get enough of it, so I thought I would share our version of Goulash with you. Get your taste buds ready! 

Goulash has very few and very simple ingredients. Feel free to mix it up and add a few of your own ingredients. I normally add a can of corn (drained) and the lady that babysat me when I was itty bitty added celery! 

What I love about making Goulash is that it is simple! 

I do not have a special cornbread recipe - yet- but I do know that if you use a cornbread mix, make sure to add a little bit of extra sugar. In the South, us Southerners like our cornbread like we like our tea-- nice and SWEET!

Serve up your Goulash, hot with a slice of buttered cornbread or serve it cold with a slice of buttered cornbread; either way it tastes great and will have you wanting more. 

'Finish This' Week 24

It's Wednesday!!! Here is a funny little 'SAY WHAT??' clip that has nothing to do with this post but it will make you laugh I promise you that! 

1. I could spend all day... doing nothing important! I get tired of cleaning and being responsible. I just want to do unimportant things and watch someone else clean my house. I don't do it that good anyway, so it would be a win win for all! 

2- My primary and most essential goal in life... is to make money, make money, make money!!! Money makes everything so much easier. 

3- You might be surprised to learn... that I win a lot of contests! I have yet to win a BIG TOP DOLLAR prize like a car or the lottery, but for whatever reason I am lucky when it comes to winning little contests such as Twitter parties and FB contests. 

4- My favorite place in the world is... Disney World! This is the happiest place on Earth! While Obama is trying to make sure that everyone has insurance, he should be trying to make sure that everyone gets a chance to go to Disney World! Our America would be so much happier. (Joke.. ha ha.. funny)

We paid our boy's friend to come along to help out with the girls! Best idea ever!!!

5- I wish I had known sooner... to be nicer to my mom as I was a teenager. When she said that God would give me kids that were mean like I was, boy was she right. (and to think he gave me so many girls)

Nestle Toll House Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

I was in the mood for chocolate chip cookies so I went to Pinterest to try and find a recipe. After searching for about 10 minutes I decided to use the simple recipe on the back of the chocolate chip bag, but add my all time special ingredient. 

This recipe is the exact recipe on the back of the Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip bag; except for that I added the glorious ingredient of cinnamon. Oh, cinnamon. It has such a wonderful scent, taste and it is said has great health benefits. 

For anyone that has baked cookies, especially the Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, it is simple, just mix it all up. On this day I enlisted some help of a boy that was surrounded by too many girls and needed an escape from them. While we cooked I took the opportunity to teach him some cooking tips and how to read a recipe. 

After the ingredients are mixed, plop the dough onto a cookie sheet in spoonfuls and place in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 9 to 11 minutes. 

Try not to eat them all in one day. The taste of cinnamon and chocolate is over the top amazing. 

Lake Conroe / Houston North KOA - A 'House of Fauci's' Camping Experience

After a lot of research, conversation, and money managing my husband purchased an RV for the family. Our plan is to use the RV to get us out of the house more and go on little camping trips; even if the camp grounds are less than an hour away. We rarely go on vacation so this will be a great opportunity for much needed family time away from the house. Our first camping trip was to Lake Conroe in Montgomery, Texas. 

When we arrived to the campground at Lake Conroe, the weather was beginning to clear up from the earlier rain. As we parked the RV and got settled we were blessed enough to see a beautiful rainbow. 

Lake Conroe has so much to offer its campers. Not only did they have a beautiful lake with tons of fish, but the scenery is gorgeous. The little cottages that they have available for rental are the cutest with all of their colors. 

Our family had so much fun fishing at Lake Conroe. This was actually the girls and I's first time and we did really good. Thankfully, the girl's dad was there to release the fish. We were good at catching them but releasing them was not something that we had any skill at. 

In addition to a beautiful lake that provided not only beauty but fish, Lake Conroe has a really nice playground and play area for kids. They have a huge basketball court, game area, sand area, a bouncy pillow and a play area. My girls had a great time and it was nice to see them have even more fun. 

We took advantage of the gorgeous weather and ate each meal outside by the lake. It was so relaxing to sit outside and enjoy the peacefulness that this lake had to offer. In addition, everyone that was visiting this lake was extremely kind. We had neighbors give us extra worm bait and we also had neighbors that gave the girls some of their yummy watermelon. 

At night we roasted marshmallows and made S'mores while we listened to quiet music from the camper. 

Overall, for our first camping experience as a family, we had a fantastic time and created so many memories. Lake Conroe / Houston North KOA was so pretty and had plenty of things that kept the girls busy that I would love to go back; especially since this was the place that the girls and I caught our first fish.