Mommy Has to Work

Easy Back To School Dinners

October 24, 2015 By Marijean

Back to School to me means lots of rushing around, getting homework done & picking kids up from after school activities. The last thing on my mind is making a dinner that is very time consuming. I put together a list of 9 easy back to school dinners you can make in a pinch!

English Muffin Pizzas: A family favorite! Your kids will love helping make these yummy pizza muffins. Link to recipe.

Chicken and Apples in Honey Mustard Sauce: Apple slices cook along the chicken in a yummy honey mustard sauce, simply yet a very different kind of recipe! Link to recipe.

Bacon, Egg and Maple Grilled Cheese: Breakfast for dinner! How yummy do these grilled cheese sandwiches sound? Link to recipe.

Barbecue Sloppy Joes: Very easy dinner, and kids will love the “sloppiness” to this meal! Link to recipe.

Cheeseburger Wrap Ups: This isn’t your typical cheeseburger! This is a fun recipe with so many yummy flavors wrapped into one! Link to recipe.

Kielbasa and Cabbage: This dish will be a family favorite! Smoked Kielbasa paired with cabbage, and even add some mustard dipping sauce for the kids! Link to recipe.

Easy Shake and Bake Chicken: Very easy recipe and a great one for a last minute dinner after picking the kids up from an after school activity! Link to recipe.

Tuna Noodle Casserole: A recipe the entire family will love! Easy, quick & delicious! Link to Recipe.

Crockpot Lasagna Soup: This crockpot recipe means no prepping or cooking for you after the kids get home! This is a delicious soup that is a complete meal! Link to Recipe.

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Papa Murphy’s Take ’N’ Bake Pizza Review

October 24, 2015 By Marijean

My family loves Pizza. We usually order or make pizza once a week. We have tried many different kinds from different pizza restaurants, and also from the freezer at our grocery store. When I heard about Papa Murphy’s Take ’N’ Bake Pizza I was very excited to give it a try.

This pizza place isn’t your typical pizza place. It is not a restaurant that you sit and eat in. What is different about Papa Murphy’s is that you pick your crust, pick your sauce and pick your toppings, then they hand toss your pizza and make it for you, but they give it to you to take home and bake yourself! I think this is a really great idea, especially if you want to cook it later in the day, or even the next day.

My family and I went to the Mandarin, FL location. When we walked in we were Immediately greeted by a smiling and friendly staff. There was a good sized menu where you can choose different types of pizza crusts and toppings. We decided on a thin crust large cheese pizza for the kids, which we got for only $5 since we decided on the “special” pizza of the day, which was a large thin crust with Pepperoni, Mushroom & Sausage. Everything was ready in less than 5 minutes to take home and the pizza even comes on a paper baking tray, which is convenient if you do not own one. You can also get a free rewards card and with 12 purchased pizzas you get a free family sized 1 topping pizza. We came home and put the large cheese in the oven to cook along with the cheesy bread. We will save our other pizza to enjoy tomorrow.

We were very impressed by the pizza! It came out of the oven perfectly done. It only takes 12-18 minutes to cook per directions, and in our oven it took 12 minutes. The crust came out crispy and the cheese was very cheesy! The sauce had a very flavorful taste. The cheesy bread was very garlicky and had so much cheese on it, very good!!

Papa Murphy’s website is www.papamurphys.com You can check out all their locations and hours. You can even order online, that was your order will be ready when you get to the store. They also offer money savings coupons that can be text to you or emailed. Our family enjoyed this pizza very much and will be going back for more soon.

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

5 Quotes on Going Green and Changing

October 23, 2015 By Marijean

Beautiful young woman jumping on a green meadow with a colored tissue

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on “change” and just how hard it can be for some to accept but also how hard it is when you are the person making the changes or asking for changes that others do not want to accept. These five quotes from the Quote Garden, make me think about the change I have gone through on my eco-journey as well as the change I try for others to accept to embrace.

If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit

When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves. ~Victor Frankl

Change is inevitable – except from a vending machine. ~Robert C. Gallagher

The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind. ~William Blake

If you want to make enemies, try to change something. ~Woodrow Wilson

This post was copied from Green and Clean Mom

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Snack Pack Halloween #SpoonfulofFun #ad

October 23, 2015 By Marijean

Halloween will soon be here, and my kids love making creepy snacks and crafts for the holiday. I am going to share with you some fun and easy Halloween mix-in ideas with Snack Pack pudding.

Snack Pack Pudding Cups come in a variety of flavors, for these snacks I used Vanilla, Chocolate Vanilla & Chocolate Cupcake.

The first Halloween pudding snack idea is: Gummy Worm Dirt Snack Pack Pudding Cups. So cute and fun for the kids to make! What you will need for this snack is: Snack Pack pudding cups, crushed up Oreos and Gummy worms. Crush up the Oreos and mix them in the pudding, take the worms and stick a few of them in the pudding half way and layer Oreos on top of the pudding cups. The flavor I used was Chocolate Cupcake Pudding. Easy and fun!

The second Halloween pudding snack idea is: Banana Ghost Snack Pack Pudding Cups. What you need fort this snack is bananas cut in half, chocolate chips for the eyes and mouth, Snack Pack pudding and peanut butter to mix in with the pudding. I used Snack Pack Vanilla Pudding. They came out so cute, and they are great for a class party or Halloween party!

The last Halloween pudding snack idea is: Peanut Butter Pretzel Snack Pack Pudding Cups. For this snack, you can use your choice of Snack Pack pudding flavor, put a dollop of peanut butter on the top of the pudding cup and add some crushed pretzels. I used Snack Pack Chocolate Vanilla Pudding.

My kids also did a fun craft with the pudding cups. They are very excited to pack them in their lunch for school tomorrow and show their friends! If you go to Snack Pack’s website your children can print & then cut out some cute characters to put on their pudding cups!

Snack Pack Pudding Cups make it fun & easy for you and your children to make fun and creative snacks for all holidays!

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Strider 12 Balance Bike Review

October 22, 2015 By Marijean

My son is 4 years old, and it is a good time to start to teach him how to ride a bike. I have been hearing about Strider bikes from friends, and how much better they are for teaching your children to ride right away without training wheels. When I was asked to review a Strider bike for my son, I was very much looking forward to seeing what this bike can do for him.

Strider 12 bike in color red

Strider 12:

Super light weight: 6.7 lbs
Durable, U.S. Patented steel frame
No-tool assembly and handlebar clamps
Quick release saddle and handlebar clamps
Puncture proof EVA polymer tires (no flats!)
Engineered ultralight molded wheels
Premium cartridge wheel bearings
Mini-grip handlebar with safety pad
Ergonomically shaped padded saddle
Launchpad footrest with grip tape
Available in 7 colors

Available to purchase online and through a network of Bicycle, Motorcycle, Hardware, Sporting goods and Toy retailers. Retail price: $119.

He loves his Strider!!

My son was so excited when we put together the bike for him. He got right on it and started riding. He has picked up speed on it in the last week and is starting to pick his feet up. I do believe that he will be riding it perfectly soon, and will advance right to a bike with no training wheels.

I must say, the bike is excellent quality. Nice size tires, it comes with 2 different sized seats, and the handle bars and seat is adjustable. This bike is meant for children ages 18 months – 5 years old. They have different models, Strider 16 is meant for ages 6+ and Strider 20 is meant for ages 13+.

On Strider’s website, www.striderbikes.com , you can check out the different models and colors these bikes are available in. You can also see the different parts and apparel they have for sale.

In conclusion, this bike is a great option to start children on, especially if you want your child to learn to ride a bike without training wheels.