Annie and Patches are FREEZING! I don't think they could get any closer to the fireplace.

Brrrrrr....

26 Degrees at game time this morning. The girls played on a frost-covered field in Washougal. They won the game 5-0 and celebrated with an invitation to teammate, Heather's house down the street for hot cocoa! Some parents in the stands (of daughters who play more than one sport) agreed - it's BASKETBALL SEASON and we love the thought of the next month or so in a warm gym before State Cup Soccer playoffs begin in mid-January! (After one more early morning, possibly even COLDER game tomorrow!)

Update from Annie...

Hey you guys! Hows it going? I have lots to tell you about. The most exciting thing I did recently though was referee a soccer game. Well, actually three soccer games. All of which were U7 or below. Let me tell you it can get kind of boring when one team is ahead by like eighteen points. My first game was OK. I had no idea that the team that wasn't my favorite to ref. was the one I was refereeing. . . it was not amazingly fun, but I was refereeing and I love that! Then I got to ref my favorite boys U7 team (the Dragons) and that is always a fun game. It ended up being sort of boring bacause the Dragons beat the other team by alot. Finally I got to ref a girls game! It was fun and I enjoyed it. I had a bit of a blond moment though, when I heard one of the coaches telling his kid to get ready to sub I thought he was telling me that he wanted a sub. I was wrong and was really embarassed when he told me he wasn't really subbing. He told me to go on with the game. He thought I didn't know what to do when I looked at him. So he told me what to do. Then I apologized called it a goal kick and went on with it. But I don't want to ref their game again!!! Thats about it for refereeing right now. School is going great, except for science. Cheer is going better and better as time goes on. As is soccer. We have a two week break from this Tuesday. Basketball is good so far. I have officially accomplished a free throw without jumping :)! I love my team and we are getting better and better. Thats about it.

~Annie~Katharine~

P.S.- Boppy could you print this out for Great Grandma! LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!! Bye.

Belated Halloween Pictures!

Whoops... the batteries died in the camera right after Halloween and so I had to get new ones before I could download the pictures. It was a little bit different around here for Halloween this year. Annie's getting older and had a party to attend that night so it was just Chase and Dad for trick-or-treating while I stayed home to do door duty. They tagged along with the two little ninjas across the street for the first few minutes then took off on their own. Chase dressed up as his very FAVORITE Mariner... Russell Branyan (We even had to put the name on the back of his official jersey ourselves as we couldn't find a Branyan jersey!) Annie and her friends did find time along their own trick-or-treat trek to stop at our house for a quick drink before heading out on the road again. I didn't get a very good picture of Annie's ladybug costume - but that's OK... I've already told her she's gonna be a ladybug again next year!

Finishing Freezer Cooking!

Finished MOST of yesterday's freezer cooking... here's what I made:
Chicken Chalupa (recipe below)
Chicken/Broccoli/Rice Casserole (recipe below)
Chicken and Noodles (recipe below)
Homemade Spaghetti Sauce (I don't really use a recipe... just throw stuff in!)
Lasagne (recipe below)
Manicotti (recipe below)

I also froze two quarts of stock from that chicken I cooked (it was a pretty big one) and used the meat for all three chicken dishes. I froze enough spaghetti sauce to use for spaghetti after I finished the lasagne and manicotti. Today I'm working on some Freezer Mashed Potatoes and a big batch of Homemade Waffles. (Both of those recipes are below too.) I'm TIRED OF COOKING (though I usually love it) but I will really appreciate these hours I spent when I don't have the time to cook later! Here's those recipes...

Chicken Chalupa

2 Cups Chicken (cut into bite-sized pieces)

12 Corn Tortillas (torn into bite-sized pieces)

1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 Cup Sour Cream

2 Cans Diced Green Chilies

2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese (I often use the Mexican Blend)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all these together (reserve some cheese for topping) and pour into a greased casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Can be frozen uncooked - cook directly from frozen, about 90 minutes.

Chicken/Broccoli/Rice Casserole

2 Cups Chicken (chopped into bite-sized pieces)

1 1/2 Cups Cooked Rice (I used brown rice and cooked it in chicken stock)

1/2 onion, chopped

1/2 Cup Butter

1 Bag Frozen Broccoli (20 oz.)

1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup (or Cream of Chicken)

1 1/2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Melt butter in a saucepan and cook chopped onion until translucent. Toss in the frozen broccoli and continue cooking until broccoli has thawed. Combine the broccoli/onion mixture with all above ingredients in a greased casserole dish and bake uncovered for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. (Again, can be frozen un-baked then cooked from frozen for 60-90 minutes or until heated through.)

Creamy Chicken and Noodles

Approx. 2 Cups leftover Cooked Chicken (torn into bite-sized pieces)

1- 16oz pkg. cooked egg noodles or fettucini noodles

(Boil your noodles in a mixture of chx. stock and water for more flavor!)

2 large Carrots, sliced and cooked (or use frozen carrots)

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

10-12 oz. chicken stock

Mix all above ingredients together and freeze for later! (If you are NOT freezing this dish and want to serve it immediately, reduce the chicken stock by 1/2.)

Filling for Lasagne and Manicotti

1- 16oz. container Cottage Cheese

1- 16oz. container Ricotta Cheese

2 cups shredded Mozzarella Cheese

1 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese

4 eggs (beaten)

2 Tablespoons dried Parsley

2 Tablespoons minced Garlic

1 tsp. pepper

This mixture is enough for filling 1- 8oz. box of Manicotti and layering into one 9x13 pan of Lasagne. I use a batch of homemade spaghetti sauce to make both of these but you can cheat and use jar-sauce and still get credit for homemade. Top both dishes with additional Parmesan Cheese before baking.

Money Saving Mom's Favorite Whole-Wheat Waffles

(Makes approximately 6-8 waffles. I usually triple or quadruple this recipe for Baking Days and it will make enough to last for at least 4-6 breakfasts for us.)
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 Tablespoon baking powder

2 eggs

1 3/4 cup milk (I usually use half milk, half water--unless I have a lot of excess milk to use up!)

1/2 cup oil or melted butter

(I usually use half oil, half applesauce. You can use all applesauce, but we don't think they turn out quite as well that way. I've also substituted other pureed fruits and veggies and those work as well. So long as you do half oil/half puree, it doesn't make much difference.)

1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

Freezer Mashed Potatoes

5 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled & quartered
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 ounces sour cream
1 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoons onion salt
0.25 teaspoons pepper
2 Tablespoons butter

Peel potatoes. Place potatoes in a crock pot. Add water until potatoes are covered. Cook on LOW 7 hours or on HIGH 4 hours – a fork can easily be poked through them. Mash until smooth. Add remaining ingredients, beat until fluffy. Place in 2 greased 8×8 pans, dot with butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Freezing Directions:
Do not bake! Instead, cover and freeze. To serve: Thaw. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Double bake time if not thawed.
Servings: 8-10

Cooking up a STORM!

I'm actually doing more making a STORM of my kitchen, but my goal today was to cook 6 or 7 different meals that can go into the freezer for dinners when I don't want to cook. So far, I've cooked a chicken, made the homemade spaghetti sauce (with 1/2 of the tomatoes frozen from our garden), completed the chicken/broccoli/rice casserole and am waiting for Dave to get home with some more cheese so I can put together the lasagne and the manicotti (which we're eating tonight for dinner). That leaves me with chicken chalupa, chicken noodle soup, freezer mashed potatoes and the big batch o' waffles. I have to go now to pick up Annie from cheer practice - then I'll get back to work. I must admit, though, that the potatoes and waffles may have to wait till tomorrow! Yes, Suzie - I'll post some recipes when I get to it!

GOAL!!!

Today I played a soccer game agansta the Blue Tigers. It was apsalutly fun! My team and I (the Rockets) beat my freinds Boston,Carter, Anthony and Jack's team (the Blue Tigers) 18 to 2! Carter, Jack and Anthony played on my soccer team before. And Boston went to preskool with me. I scord three goals! My friends are really good but they didnt have a great day today. And guess what- I scord a goal from the corner. It went right thrugh my players and hit the goal post and went in. GOAL! Guess what - one of my goals went up and hit the top goalpost and went in! After the game I got to go to wndys and get a frosty for scoring a goal. It was such a fun game becuse I scord 3 goals.