Random Acts of Kindness Christmas Countdown...Week 3 Recap

It’s Friday!!! My last day of work for 2 count them 2 whole weeks!!! But it also means that it is time for a recap of Miss Charlot’s Random Acts of kindness for the week. I can’t even explain to you the joy this little project has brought to my life. I worried that I would mess it up or that we wouldn’t have the time but I will always make the time for this. And you can’t really mess up a RAOK, can you? Plus trust me if I forget to get things together or I haven’t helped her do the act she is reminding me!

This week has been especially fun because we have left treats for many people and that means we got to bake cookies!!! Yummy. Again I encourage you to try this with your kiddos. I know that Christmas is only a few days away but it RAOK can be done any time anywhere. Just think how awesome it is just to make one person’s day better!

So here’s our recap from last Saturday to today!

12/13/14- We rang bells for the Salvation Army. Oh the people of Walmart got quite a treat from my little one singing Jingle Bells for an hour. This is a tradition that momma Linda started with me long ago. 

12/14/14- Charlot had a little random acts kindness card that she gave to a lady and told her she could go in front of us in line at Michaels. The lady was so sweet and thanked her so much and told me that she thought I was an awesome lesson. It was good for momma’s heart.

12/15/14- Charlot passed out candy canes at our local nursing home. It was so much fun to see the smiles on their faces. There was a door there decorated with Minions (Despicable ME) so Charlot hung two candy canes on that door for “the people that live behind that cool door!”

12/16/14- We left treats for our mail lady. And our mail lady left us a sweet note in return!

12/17/14-We left treats for the trash men, they kind of have a thankless job and deserve a pick me up! Just think if they stopped doing their job, YUCK!

12/18/14-Our local grocery store is AMAZING and we are so blessed to have an awesome meat department there. The meat cutters are always willing to help and go the extra mile. So yesterday they got a plate full of Charlot homemade cookies! (I forgot to take a picture)

12/19/14- Today goodie bags were packed and delivered to my co-workers.

Hope you all enjoy these stories and that maybe it will inspire you! 

Crockpot Beef Tips with Mushroom Sauce

Do you find yourself during the holidays struggling to get a decent meal on the table because of all the other things going on? Oh no you guys don’t oh well I guess it is just me! HA! This time of the year I find quick and easy meals that go in the crockpot in the AM and are ready when I come home in the PM make the most sense for us and today’s recipe does just that!

This rich, hearty and waistline friendly meal is perfect for those cold busy winter nights. Plus you can keep it really waistline friendly depending on what you serve it over! I served mine over a potato, parsnip, and turnip mash! Yummy! Give this guy a try and let me know what you think!

Crockpot Beef Tips with Mushroom Sauce

2 lbs beef chuck roast (cubed)

1 Large Onion Sliced Thin

1 Package Mushrooms Sliced

1 Can 98% Fat Free Cream Mushroom Soup

1 Packet Onion Soup Mix

1 Can Diet 7-Up

12 oz Beef Broth

Salt and Pepper to taste

2 Tbsp Cornstarch (for thickening)

On the bottom of your crockpot place a layer of onions, then your beef season your beef, layer on remaining onions and mushrooms. In a small bowl mix mushroom soup, onion soup, 7-up and beef broth pour over you meat onions and mushrooms. Set your slow cooker on low and cook all day. When you get home mix cornstarch with a splash of water and stir to smooth, add in to the crockpot, and allow mixture to cook for additional 30 minutes to allow for thickening. Serve over mashed potatoes, noodles or whatever soot’s your fancy! Just enjoy this hearty flavorful dish! 

Random Acts of kindness week #2

It's Friday so that means....RAOK recap! This little project is just getting better each day. Charlot gets so excited each day to open her envelope. And plus ok this is a proud mom moment, but her sitter told me that she asked the kids the other day what happens in December? My kiddo answers "Jesus's  Birthday!" Hooray! Then she proceeded to tell her Grandpa last night that Christmas is Jesus's Birthday and Jesus is so nice he lets us get the presents now on Christmas. 

I hope this project continues to bring her and others joy throughout the season! But mostly I hope this teaches Charlot how to lead her life the rest of the year. So here is our recap for the week starting last Saturday! Please feel free to join us in this project and share your stories with me!

Week #2-

This is her telling the lady at the window she wanted to pay for the car behind us

12/06- Paying for the person behind us at the drive-thru

12/07- Handing out candy canes at church and wish people a Merry Christmas (sorry no pictures) 

12/08- Calling someone just to say "I love you", she chose three people, grandma Linda, Mer Mer, and RaRa.

12/09- Picking out one of her toys to donate to the Holiday Project. She decided on two!

12/10- Taking a special treat to the pigs. Four legged friends need kindness as well.

12/11- Ding dong ditch someone and leave them a box of Ding Dongs!

12/12- Pack a homeless person snack kit, to keep in the car for when we see someone in need.charlot thought princess fruties were necessary. 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Salted Caramel Cooked Apples

The above picture is the result of the below picture. Blue Bunny just knew when they put out a cinnamon ice cream I couldn't resist, and then Wal-Mart strategically placed it directly in my path to much healthier options so basically it just fell into my cart. Oh how I love cinnamon ice cream and the very first time I ever had it was served on an apple dumpling. The memories…

When I bought this over the weekend I knew that I didn't want to eat it all by itself and making apple dumplings seemed excessive delicious but excessive. Just a normal caramel sauce was considered but I needed to make it somewhat healthy right? That is where these apples were born! Enjoy!

Salted Caramel Cooked Apples

4 Gala Apples peeled and sliced

4 TBSP Butter

¼ Cup Brown Sugar

1 TSP Kosher Salt

Melt butter, sugar and salt in a skillet over low heat , add apples and simmer on low until apples are tender. 

15 Minute One Skillet Complete Pork Chop Meal

Now this is not much of a recipe more of a method a method I am sure many of you already do but I am typically last on the slow train so here I am introducing it today. I am almost embarrassed how easy this is, I mean I’m a blogger everything should be fancy nancy right? Well guess what I am also a momma who struggles to get meals on the table quickly some nights. So this will be one of my new go tos!

Four ingredients plus some seasoning and oil that’s all it took and man alive it was good. I used one of the Uncle Ben’s flavored rice mixes but you could use any brand or you could even use plain rice and add in your own seasoning. This is also super flexible with the protein and veggies I used boneless pork chops and frozen peas, but chicken breast and broccoli would be fabulous as well. I was really hoping that I had some of the flavored wild rice in the pantry but I didn’t because I know that would have been awesome as well.

Skillet Complete Pork Chop Meal

4 boneless pork chops

1 box Uncle Ben’s Country Rice (any flavor)

½ half Bag Frozen Peas

Salt and Pepper

1 TBSP Butter

1 TBSP EVOO

Zest and Juice of One Lemon

In a large nonstick skillet (that you have a lid that fits) heat oil and butter over medium heat. Season chops with Salt and Pepper. Sear chops in the skillet for no more than a minute per side. You just want a little color. Remove chops. Add rice and ingredients it calls for minus the oil you already have that in your skillet. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and carefully add your chops back in as well as your peas. Allow mixture to cook covered for 10 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and chops are cooked through. Sprinkle on the zest and stir in the juice (you don’t have to do this I just think it brightens it up!) ENJOY!

Random Acts of Kindness Christmas Countdown!

We started a new tradition in our home this year a new countdown to Christmas a Random Acts of Kindness Countdown. I started this for two main reasons, 1. It is my greatest desire as a parent to raise my child to have a servant’s heart, and 2. I kept hearing her say Santa’s going to bring me this or Santa’s going to bring me that and I wanted her to understand that Christmas is about more than Santa. We really want Christ to be the center of Christmas in our house.

 This is our advent countdown, and no we don’t have an elf on the shelf, but our kiddo does know that Santa will still come. And hopefully if Santa sees her doing all these nice things for other people he will be even happier with her. No elf just a garland with envelopes that have a task for her to complete each day. The way we have worked it is that on Sunday night we presented a letter to her explaining what we were doing and why. Then we let her open her first envelope. We open one each night after supper and it tells her what she is going to do the next day, we typically complete the task after I pick her from the sitter each day. This has become something she looks forward to each day and the smile on her face makes it all worthwhile

A few people in town have seen what we are doing and asked or commented about it, which I think is awesome. I got most of my ideas for each day from Pinterest and some I really wanted her to do. My plan is to post a summary of her week’s activities each Friday. Then at the end of Christmas post a summary of the whole event. So if you and your family care to join in please do!

Week #1-

12/1- Tape Candy Canes and a Note to the ATM’s

This is her leaving the book on the friends porch

12/2- Pick out a book to give to a friend

12/3- Tape Money and a Note to the Soda Machines in Town

12/4- Color a Picture for someone and Mail it to them

12/5- Pick out Hats and Gloves to Give to the Holiday Project (No pictures yet her and Daddy are doing this tonight while I cook for the church chili supper)

I have nothing against the Elf thing this is just what we are doing and I wanted to share!

Oh Deer...Mule Deer that is...

Ok I must preface this story with a few things… 1. I am not the swiftest (is that a word) runner in the world actually I am more like a turtle striding through peanut butter than a gazelle but I enjoy running so I really don’t care. 2. Yes I grew up around livestock I am not afraid of hard work or getting dirty but becoming one with the wilderness really isn’t my cup of tea, I need a warm shower and an electric blanket. 3. Grace is not my middle name; actually I am pretty sure that my 85 year old papa has more coordination in his left big toe than I. With all these things said you should have a bit more mercy for me and this story. Or maybe you will just laugh harder.

I was really trying to prevent my double chin from showing in most of these pics. 

When we checked in to the house we were staying in outside Estes Park we were warned that there had been some bear sightings in the area. Nothing to really be concerned about but they just wanted us to be aware. Alright fine and dandy. On Thanksgiving morning I got up extra early to head out for a run, grabbed my cell phone for protection (no clue why it had zero service), slapped on my headband and told my brother-in-law I would see them in a little while (he was the only one up).

Tuck and roll option!

I get on the path and get a good pace going, my lungs are burning and I think I might faint due to the elevation (possibly 8,000 feet or more) but I was determined to finish. I push through the initial thoughts of dying and make the first few turns up the MOUTAIN. As I am running all alone (reminder I am SLOW) there is a steep up part of the mountain on one side and a possible plummet to my death on the other, I hear something rustling in the trees next to me. My initial thought dear lord if that is a bear please let my child and husband know how much I love them, because if that truly is a bear I am tucking and rolling down this mountain.

Not my deer but one I had saw earlier now do you understand why I was a bit startled. 

Luckily (HA) it wasn’t a bear, just a mule deer buck, with sharp looking horns. This deer proceeds to come on to the road; I stop so it can go where it pleases plus I needed to regain my composure because I nearly fell down the mountain at that point. So with in feet of me it crosses into the yard next to me.  I figure he’s off to his next adventure I’ll continue to run. I start back up and what to I hear but a deer running behind me. Lovely this guy is going to stab me with his antlers and I will again die here from puncture wounds, bear or no bear I’m not making it out alive. So again I stop and he continues to come closer to me, with in feet like three of them! If my darn phone hadn’t died I would have taken a picture (great protection device right?). I just kept thinking what in the world am I going to do dive down the mountain and what the heck does this guy want? So what did I do, no I didn’t assume the fetal position like I wanted, I just stood there. And eventually he lost interest and trotted off. I swear that was the longest 2 minutes of my life from moment of meeting all the way through the standoff. Lord of Mercy.

I think my phone finally turned back on and I am breathing a sigh of relief, and trying to keep the double chin under control as well!

I do believe the good Lord was trying to tell me something, I guess he tried at first making me think my lungs were going to implode but I didn’t listen. So he needed a bigger scarier option, oh deer. Man I am glad he didn’t choose a bear. But I did finish the run that morning, then chose to sleep in the remainder of the mornings on the trip.