Home Maid Simple

Tag: back to school

  • Sausage and Egg Puffs

    Sausage and Egg Puffs

    *This is a sponsored post on behalf  of the Daily Meal and @Johnsonville. Opinions and recipe are all my own #backtoschoolbreakfast
     
    The first week of school is behind us, and so is a cupboard full of cereal. I use to be a morning person, and I love breakfast, but our mornings are a rush with 3 of the kids now in school, and me staying up wicked late to get work done. I’ve been trying to find something that’s quick, easy, and can be made the night before and I found a winner! These Sausage and Egg puffs are great for a lazy morning, or can be made and frozen ahead of time to be warmed up in the morning. Plus they’re just delicious!
     
    Sausage and Egg Puffs #backtoschoolbreakfast ad
    Anything is better in the morning than cereal – at least I think so. Something a bit more hearty, that can fill me up fast without having to eat a ton. I was a little unsure at first if these would fit that requirement for me, but after 2 puffs I was perfectly satisified. The kids all stopped at just one.
     
    Breakfast is better with sausage and syrup #backtoschoolbreakfast ad
     
    As every good New Englander knows, breakfast is just better when accompanied with maple syrup. I was excited to see that Johnsonville had a Vermont Maple Syrup breakfast sausage, and of course couldn’t leave the store without it. I couldn’t stop there though. After the mini beauties came out of the oven, I couldn’t resist pouring a little more syrup over the top. The crescent rolls soaked up the syrup so every single bite was filled with the delicious flavor from either the sausage or the actual syrup. 
     
    Sausage and Egg Puffs for breakfast! #backtoschoolbreakfast ad
     

     

     
    Sausage and Egg Puffs
    Serve a quick and delicious breakfast with these Sausage and Egg Puffs
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    Ingredients
    1. 4 Johnsonville Vermont Maple Syrup breakfast sausage links
    2. 2 eggs
    3. 2 TBS green onions
    4. 3 TBS Swiss Cheese, chopped
    5. 1 pkg crescent rolls dough
    6. Maple Syrup
    Instructions
    1. Chop sausage links into medallions. Cook in a frying pan over medium heat.
    2. Add eggs, and scramble. Set aside.
    3. Lay crescent rolls over a mini muffin tin, with the thicker side mostly in the pan.
    4. Fill each dough with egg mix, onions, and cheese.
    5. Pull thick end of dough over the top, and wrap the skinny end around the edge.
    6. Bake at 350 F for 10-11 minutes
    7. Let cool for a minute. Dip in Maple syrup, or enjoy on the go.
    Home Maid Simple https://www.homemaidsimple.com/
     
     
    Sausage and Eggs Puffs. Can be made ahead and frozen for quick breakfasts #backtoschoolbreakfast ad
     
  • Weekend Bites #47 Back to School

    Weekend Bites #47 Back to School

    Weekend Bites
    Weekend Bites


    New to Weekend Bites? Here’s the run down
    Visit my cohost Debi at Practical Parenting
    1. Link up your any food related post below
    2. Browse the linky, visit some new blogs, and share if you feel so inclined. 
    3. Please only link up 3 posts. This lets us visit as many of you as possible.
    4. By linking up you give me permission to feature your photos on Home Maid Simple (always linking back to you of course!)
    5. Each month I send out a newsletter with the most popular links from that month – you may be featured!!  This is a once a month newsletter, every first Friday of the month, no spamming involved. Subscribe!

    Welcome back to school! At least here it was back to school week. All 3 Princesses are gone during the day, leaving Little Prince and I with a ton of time on our hands. Mostly we’ve been playing RescueBots, because Transformers are most definitely still cool. We’ve also spent a little time in the kitchen, making Panlevi, and thinking up other fun treats to surprise the girls with. I hope you enjoy these features from last week’s part. I’d say they’re perfect for the busy back to school season. 
    Weekly Features

    Milk and Cereal Bars // Life Anchored #ad #QuakerTime
    Breakfast Milk and Cereal Bars
    DIY Rock Candy
    DIY Rock Candy
    Easy Minion Cupcakes tutorial guaranteed to please any Minion fan! Fun baking project to do with your kids, grandkids, or even when babysitting!
    Minion Cupcakes
    Grab a Featured Button!

    Weekend Bites
    Weekend Bites
  • Get a Shot. Give a Shot® and Recipe for Vitamin C Boost

    Get a Shot. Give a Shot® and Recipe for Vitamin C Boost

    This shop has been compensated by #CollectiveBias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.
     
    Making the right kind of memories #GiveaShot #shop #cbias

    Back to school time often brings up the debate of immunizations. Do you vaccinate? Do you delay them? Or do you completely forgo them?  This is obviously a personal choice for everyone, and I’m not here to judge you. Promise. Just sharing my opinions on why we choose what we do, and how you can turn a simple choice into an act of good for others.

    Alright, I want to try something with you – Take a look at your knees. A good long look.

    Alright, are we back? I bet you’re wondering what that was all about huh?  While you were looking at your knees, did you by chance reminisce about your childhood? That is what my knees always remind me of. Lots of days running through our wooded backyard, climbing trees, and flipping over my bike handles at the end of our gravel driveway.

    My knees carry many good childhood memories. My forehead on the other hand does not. If you take a close look at the left of my forehead, at the end of my eyebrow, you will find an indentation. A scar if you will from when I had the chickenpox. A time, that even though I was only 3-4, I still remember pretty clearly. It itched, I was miserable, and oatmeal in the tub? yuck! If I recall all my siblings had it at the same time too. Absolutely no fun at all for any of us, and I’m sure my parents weren’t enjoying it either.

    We can't prevent our kids from getting hurt, but we can take the right precautions #GiveaShot #Shop #cbias

    Like my knees, we can’t protect and prevent our kids from ever getting hurt. That’s just part of life, and those memories will be with us forever. However, things like chickenpox, whooping cough, and meningitis can be prevented, and I personally think should be. Unfortunately in developing countries the vaccines we have available to us in the USA are not as readily accessible. That’s why I love that by taking my kids to Walgreens for their school immunizations, we are directly helping a child receive a life saving shot.

    How? Walgreens has partnered with the United Nation Foundation’s Shot@Life Campaign. For every shot Walgreens gives, a shot is provided to a child in need. Since I can’t physically go help these children, I’m glad I can still help out by choosing Walgreens for our school immunizations. They make it easy too! No appointments are necessary, most insurances are accepted, and they will keep your primary care physician in the know.

    I want my kids to look at their knees as adults and remember that time they played foursquare and missed the ball as they took a spill into the pavement. I want them to remember learning how to learn a bike, and the time they begged me to let go before they were completely ready to go on their own. Or when they were climbing trees at Nana’s house.

    First Aid Kit To Go #GiveaShot #shop #cbias

    Since we can’t prevent bad things from happening, we can be ready for those scraped knees and common colds. I picked up this cute Johnson & Johnson first aid kid to go the other day with Princess R. It was timely too, since Princess C then came home with scraped up knees and asking for clean bandages. It also fits handily into the back of the stroller – it never ceases to amaze me how many times my kids get hurt just walking down the sidewalk.

    For colds and sore throats, I love making this Vitamin C Boost. Seriously, if I had not been so sick and stressed from moving I would have picked the ingredients up for me. As it is, now I have it all whipped up to get the kids and Mark over their colds.

    Relieve colds with a Vitamin C Boost recipe #GiveaShot #shop #cbias
    Vitamin C Boost
    Keep the colds at bay with this boost of Vitamin C
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    Ingredients
    1. Ingredients
    2. 1 cup Tang, or orange drink powder
    3. 2/3 cup sugar
    4. 2 tsp lemon peel
    5. 6 whole cloves, crushed or 1/4 tsp ground cloves
    6. 1/2 tsp Saigon Roasted Cinnamon
    7. Hot Water
    8. Cinnamon Sticks – optional
    Instructions
    1. Mix the drink powder, sugar and spices together.
    2. Store in an airtight container, or in the freezer.
    3. Boil water.
    4. Add 1TBS drink powder to a cup of hot water.
    5. Stir with a cinnamon stick (optional), and drink.
    Home Maid Simple https://www.homemaidsimple.com/
     
     
    Vitamin C Boost #GiveaShot #shop #cbias
     
    Will you Get a Shot to #GiveaShot ?
  • Refresh your Back to School Routine

    Refresh your Back to School Routine

    This post is part of the HEALTHY ESSENTIALS 2014 program by Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Inc. and The Motherhood, who sent me a box of products and compensated me for my time. Opinions, experiences and photos shared here are all my own, and I hope you enjoy them. 

    Are your kids back in school yet? We just started back last week, but I am personally going back as well, and start this coming week. With everything going on, I’ve decided I need to have more of a set routine to get my days started out right. Here are some tips for any Mom to help you get your day started out right.

    1. Wake up 1 hour before your kids. This will truly make a difference. Even if you’re “not a morning person” you can become one! Having that extra hour in the morning you will be amazed at what you can get accomplished!  For me, it means having time to actually shower daily. If I don’t get up before the kids, I’m more than likely not going to shower. I admit, though, this is hard. Something I’ve found helps me wake up on those hard days to get going so early, is using Clean & Clear Morning Burst. I love this face wash, and it really does give me that morning burst. Though sometimes I like to switch it up with the Aveeno Positively Radiant Skin Brightening Daily Scrub.

    2. Positive Affirmations! Start your day with some kind of positive affirmation, and you will have a better day. Things still might not go smoothly, but you’ll have a better attitude and can deal with the homework left at home, or missing shoes a whole lot better.

    3. Eat Breakfast. And lunch, and dinner, and drink a lot of water. It doesn’t have to be a big affair, but start the day with something nutritious. Whether it be cinnamon rolls, cereal, or a healthy shake. As my friend over at Our ADHD Story recently said as she’s taking more control of her health “Food is to fuel my body and mind…”. You wouldn’t drive on a long trip without first giving your car gas. So don’t start your day without the fuel needed, and remember to fill up as needed before you run dry. Maybe even indulge halfway through your day with these Raspberry Marbled Mini Cheesecakes.

    Raspberry Marbled Mini Cheesecakes with Splenda No Calorie Sweetener #Moms4JNJConsumer #ad

    4. Go to bed early. This just makes sense if you start getting up earlier as well. This is especially going to help my mind stay alert for the kids as well as my own studies as I go back. I tend to stay up way too late, and then try and get up early, and it just doesn’t work well.

    Ready to refresh your routine? 
    You can save on products like Clean & Clear, Aveeno, and Splenda at the Healthy Essentials website. There’s always a coupon, and right now you can find more than $40 in savings!
  • 5 Back to School Wants

    5 Back to School Wants

    *This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own*

    School is coming up just way too fast, don’t you think? I’ve already seen a number of my friends posting “First day of school” photos. Turns out they have year round school, but it was still just another reminder that in less than a month, we will be doing the same.

    It got me thinking, we see back to school supply lists everywhere. Teachers give them out, websites list them – but what you don’t see is a list of the extras! The things you might not need all year long, but find yourself running around town trying to find last minute. 
    So I decided it’s time we put one together! Last year was my first year as a mom with school aged children. Luckily for me we live fairly close to an amazing school supply store – Utah Idaho School Supply. Even though it says Utah Idaho, they have an online store, so you can still get everything you need from them! 
    1. Tri-fold Poster Board. This was the #1 item I found myself scrambling for. I’m so glad I did though, when both our daughters came home with 3rd Place for their grade in the Science Fair. 
    2. A Globe, or large wall map. Seriously, this might just be me, but I think maps are cool. I truly think that kids will get more interested in geography if they’ve got a globe to spin and look at. Utah Idaho has a myriad of different globes from inflatables to a Celestial Wonder. 
    3. Bookmarks. Especially if you’ve got older kids reading chapter books, you’ll want to stock up on these. I personally love these blank bookmarks that the kids can personalize for themselves. It would make an awesome after school activity. 
    4. Whiteboard. This is totally and completely just a want. We had one growing up and it was the coolest ever. My mom would leave quotes on it for us to memorize, and we’d use it for everything from math homework to drawing practice. 
    5. Storage Bags. I just, like just now while browsing saw these bags and I love them! I don’t even want to start thinking about all the papers that are going to be coming home with the kids this year. With a couple of these I can keep them organized by subject matter, homework, and special awards.
    What’s on your back to school WANT list? 
  • Back to School Shopping

    Back to School Shopping

    * This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Home Maid Simple*

    I keep seeing my friends and other bloggers on facebook talking about Back to School. Hey, I even have a banner up there advertising Back to School! But truth be told I’m not really ready for it. So I’ve avoided looking at when our school goes back. Come on now, it’s still July. Summer is just getting started. 
    But then I caved, and I looked. My kids go back August 19th. That’s 1 month away. Not bad, but 1 month usually flies by pretty quick. So of course that got me thinking about what they might need for school. We’ve already had to buy a new swimsuit for the summer, which means clothes are probably being outgrown as well. 
    It feels like just yesterday we were taking First Day of 1st grade photos!
    When I was a kid, one of our favorite things to do was back to school shopping with my mom. We always got 1 new outfit for the year. It’s a tradition I really want to keep with my kids, not because of anything extremely special about it – but kids do grow and need new clothes that fit – and the beginning of the school is a perfect time to let them get one outfit that’s not a hand-me-down, that expresses who they are, and for the very practical reason that they’ve outgrown the old clothes. 
    Living on a budget however, means just one new outfit, and at the best deal we can find!  I’ve been browsing Zulilly a lot lately (even made my first purchase for Princess V’s birthday coming up), and noticed they’ve got some great sales on back to school clothes – like Jelly The Pug! Seriously, these are some of the cutest outfits I’ve ever seen, and they’ve got something that would fit both personalities for my girls. 
    Turquoise Kira Dress - Infant, Toddler & Girls
    This right here the Turquoise Kira Dress – is totally and utterly Princess V! It’s a dress, it’s long enough, and it’s simple just like she is. I just know she would love wearing this on the first day of school.
    Princess C on the other hand, is a bit more of a wild child. She’s got her own sense of fashion, and wouldn’t go for something quite as plain. No no, this fits her much better. 
    Petals Shawna Dress & Leggings - Infant, Toddler & Girls
    The Petals Shauna Dress and Leggings are more like Princess C with big bold colors, and lots of them!  Plus with the way she plays, leggings are a must.
    Do you shop Back to School clothes with your kids?
  • School Pictures using PicMonkey

    School Pictures using PicMonkey

    I love the tradition of taking “First Day of ___ Grade” photos with the kids. It’s something we can afford to do and keeps memories alive for years to come. Use this Picmonkey tutorial to make the best out of your photos! This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated when you click on and purchase through them.

    Turn your First Day of School Pictures into a memory without props! All you need is Picmonkey. ad

    Here’s the kicker, we don’t have the money nor the space to buy full props to really make some of those amazing pictures you see. So I turned to my trusty photo editing friend, PicMonkey, to make our First Day school pictures pop just a little more while sticking to a budget. I hope you enjoy this tutorial.

    Raw, Unedited Photo. 
    A simple Auto-Adjust and Crop take out any unwanted visuals (like naked babies climbing stairs) and give you a more vibrant color.  From here you can play with the color brightness, RGB Levels and more but I’m usually pretty happy with the auto-adjusts setting. 
     
    For the First Day School pictures, I like to browse around PicMonkey’s School U theme. I grabbed a chalkboard shape it overlay and played with the color until I was satisfied. To make it look more natural after adding the overlay, in the little edit box that pops up with it, there is an eraser button. Using that I very carefully erased the part of the chalkboard covering her thumb. Voila! An instant home made chalkboard that needs no space in your home.
     
    To finish up, I used the Eraser Dust text to write our First Day Of… on the chalkboard. 
     
     
     
    Let’s do it again, but this time I’ll show you inside the super simple editor. 
     
     
    Upload your photo into PicMonkey’s photo editor. On the very to left is an icon with 3 lines and dots. This has your general editing tools – crop, rotate, contrast, etc. Click that to find the auto adjust and cropping tools.
     
    For this one, I chose to use an effect on top of the color adjustment. At the bottom left you’ll see an apple. This has the different themes. Once in there choose School U. For Princess C I added the yearbook effect which made the brick behind her a little less harsh and put a slight yellow tint to it.
     
    Instead of a chalkboard overlay, I thought Princess C had the perfect pose to add a shield.  Black was a bit hard though, so on the right is the item edit box. Here you can play around with the colors of different items you add to your photo. You can choose colors straight from your photos too!
     
    Finally, add your First Day of __ Grade and Export to your computer. 
     
     
    I hope this little tutorial helps some of you. Picmonkey has a FREE version, but for only $7.99/month ($3.99/month if you pay yearly) I find the Royale version to fit all my photo editing needs. I use it on an almost daily basis. 
     
    If you have any questions on how to use Picmonkey, I’m more than happy to help you out! Just shoot me an email, or leave a comment.
  • #ad Giving Back to Schools with Tyson Project A+ #Clip4School #cbias

    #ad Giving Back to Schools with Tyson Project A+ #Clip4School #cbias

    *I am a member of the Collective Bias. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client.


    It’s the beginning of a new school year. For our family it’s the first year having someone in school all day. I know how hard teachers work to prep during the summer for this time, but they still need our support and help. So Mark and I joined the PTA – and I already have my first assignment managing the basketball throw at carnival night. Thankfully there are companies that also give back to schools with easy label clipping programs, like Tyson’s new Project A plus.   In the packet we got after signing up for the PTA there included a pouch for collecting Tyson’s Project A+ labels. 
    There are so many programs out there like Box Tops and Capri Sun Pouches, that I was excited to learn more about Tyson’s new program for giving back with labels. It really only takes a few seconds to cut out the label and then send it with your kids to school. It’s seriously no work at all, and you get to feel good about giving back. 
    Before your start sending the labels to your school, though, make sure they’re enrolled in the program. It’s an easy 4 click process, and you can get all the information you need on your school’s website to register – things like address and phone number of the school. 
    Our elementary school was already registered, so I’m going to take some time the next day I get together with my mom, and help her register the school she works at – Because every school needs the extra help. Whether the library needs updating, a new safer playground is needed, or the teachers need a little extra help in purchasing supplies for their classroom. Tyson’s Project A+ labels will help get those needed items for your school. 
    I saw some great ideas on Tyson’s pinterest board for label collection boxes, and there are some fun clip-arts as well on the Tyson website. 
    To start our school year off right, I wanted to have a delicious, but quick the night before.  So I grabbed some Tyson Southern Chicken Breast Tenderloins (and other Tyson products for easy lunch and dinners this school year!)  Everyone loved these Southern Style Chicken Fajitas I made with Tyson’s Southern Breaded Chicken Breasts. 
    Southern Style Chicken Fajitas

    Ingredients
    6 Tyson Southern Chicken Breast Tenderloins
    6 Tortillas
    1/2 green bell pepper, sliced
    1/2 cup white onion chopped
    1 avocado
    2 tsp Wildtree Guacamole Seasoning
    sour cream
    salsa
    Directions
    Cook the chicken according to package directions. Saute peppers and onions in a small frying pan.  Mash avocado in a small bowl and mix in guacamole seasoning. 
    Assemble ingredients in the tortilla shells. Enjoy!
    Don’t forget to clip the Tyson Project A plus label and send it to your kids school!!
    *This post was sponsored by Colective Bias and their client. All thoughts, opinions and recipe are my own. 
  • Quick and Easy Pack Lunches

    Quick and Easy Pack Lunches

    I can’t believe I’m going to have two kids in school this year!  Where did the time go?  Princess V is headed to first grade and Princess C to Kindergarten.  With a first grader, it means I’ve got to think about school lunches now. I’m not big on getting school lunches – so for the most part she’ll be taking a pack lunch. Of course, I’m sure we’ll periodically let her eat at school, I’m not that set in my ways. It will just be reserved for special occasions.

    School starts tomorrow here!  Where did our summer go? I had all these fun plans, but I don’t think we got to any of them. We did however move, and are still settling in. Unpacking has been put on a slight hold though, while I get ready for the girls to start school. We’re pretty lucky here in that the elementary schools provide all the supplies, so we didn’t have to purchase anything for the classroom. That left me with a nice little budget for school lunch items. Even better, was while we were unpacking I realized we bought some tubs that would be perfect for storing all our lunch items – making it a quick and easy job to pack lunches.

    I’ve got one more container I need to unpack, and then I’ll really be ready. But right now this is going to get use through the first week or two of school. I’ve left sandwich stuff, and fruit and veggies out of them for now, but in the future I’ll put the bread and peanut butter and honey into it’s own tub. For now this is what I have.

    With Mark working a regular 9 to 5 type job now as well, I get to make him lunches as well. It makes me excited!  This makes it both easy for me to make lunches, but also for Mark to grab a lunch in case I forget, or am not feeling well (as was the case this morning).

    I’m stuck on ideas other than sandwiches (and I need to figure out if we have a no peanut policy at our school), but after browsing pinterest, I know I’ll be able to make some awesome lunches for Princess V this year. Peanut Blossom’s 30 days of lunch ideas is going to be my first stop before the next grocery trip I make.

    How are you getting ready for back to school?

    You can find this and other posts linked up at these fun parties
  • Back to School Fashion: Belle Bottoms

    Back to School Fashion: Belle Bottoms

    Did you ever wear Bell Bottom pants?  I remember in middle school I had some pretty big bell bottoms! I just loved the flair they gave to the bottom of my pants.
    When ever we think of Back to School, we think of School Shopping, right? All those new clothes, new fashions, latest trends. Not to mention that kids grow like weeds, and there’s no stopping them. 
    Buti-bag has added a new product, that is a fun way to add fashion and length to the bottom of your kids pants – Belle Bottoms. And just in time for Back to School! Here at our house, we are always handing down clothes. We’ve got 3 Princesses, all really close in age. When the oldest grows out of her clothes, we pass it down the line. I love that we can reuse these clothes, because quite frankly, clothes are getting expensive. 

    We were sent a pair of Belle bottoms to try out as part of MomPact’s Back to School Promotion.

    Princess V loved the idea! She went on a search for the perfect pair of pants to add them to, and then sat and helped me apply them. We love that these are iron on, so new sewing machine is required. I did have a slight struggle getting them positioned correctly, and although I did read the instructions, I missed that they are leg specific.  So mine are on the wrong leg, but unless you look closely, it really doesn’t matter.
    The real issue we had was when it came time to wear them. Princess V decided that she wanted the pants, but didn’t actually want to wear them. Princess C really wanted to wear them, but Princess V didn’t want to give them up. Oh that was a fun struggle. Princess C at one point was found crying that “sister broke my heart, because she won’t share the pink pants!”  Awe!  The particular pants we used are between sizes for Princess V and Princess C. Adding the Belle Bottom, gave it little more length, so it could still fit Princess V longer. It wasn’t too much length though, so it will also fit Princess C, but last longer for her.
    We finally settled on letting Princess C wear them, while assuring Princess V that they wouldn’t be hers forever.  Phew, an agreement we can all agree on. Princess C is absolutely loving the new flair to the pants! 

    You can check out more of the products on Buti Bag’s facebook page or follow them on twitter

    *I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mompact and received a promotional item to thank me for my participation