Frugal Meal--Grilled chicken and pasta

Hi all,
  I've got another delicious, fabulously frugal meal to share.  Grilled Chicken with Pasta.....Mmmm!

Ingredients:
3 Boneless Chicken--From Aldi this week  $2.75
1 Jar of Spaghetti sauce from Aldi $1.19 (or very close to that-don't have receipt in front of me)
1 bag of Wacky Mac Pasta Veggie Bow ties--From Publix $.19

I just sprinkled the chicken breast with some Weber seasonings that I had gotten free from Publix a while back and grilled it on the George Foreman.

Cooked the pasta, and heated the spaghetti sauce.  Plated the pasta first, grilled chicken cut into strips, poured a good helping of the sauce, sprinkled a little mozzarella, then for color I used parsley for garnish.

I was just yummy!  This meal for...we'll say, $4 something if you included the sprinkled cheese and parsley fed myself, my husband and daughter with enough left over for my daughter and I to have some for lunch with a salad today.  Looovvvee it!! :)

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Like crafting? Visit Thrifty Crafty Girl!

Hi all,
  I just have to dedicate this post to a new blogging friend of mine.  It is my pleasure to introduce you to....

Priscilla from Thrifty Crafty Girl.




She is a new blogger, but sounds like an old pro.  She has become my crafting mentor.  She is chock full of creative crafting ideas.  From new projects made from scratch to repurposing old things into great new items.  She also shares recipes, frugal tips, and stories from her everyday life.  I never read her blog without giggling out loud!  I totally get her quirky humor dripping in sarcasm.

She is also responsible for helping me finally figure out how to make a button for my blog.  She made me an image out of the kindness of her heart, then bing, bang, boom...I finally had my button!  Thank you Priscilla!!

Just wait until you see what can be done with toilet paper rolls in this post.  Or, take a look at these mouth watering homemade doughnuts.

So, what are you waiting for?  Click on one of the links, or her button and be prepared to see some wonderfully Thrifty Crafty things and be comically entertained in the process.

Enjoy your visit!
Jennifer

Summertime Boredom?!

Hi all,
  Are your kids already saying....."I'm bored!"?   Do you wonder what to do to entertain them on those rainy summer days?  Here are some things I have come up with that my DD and I love to do:

-Let them pick out a coloring book for you and one for them to color or just draw on plain paper

-Get out that old tablecloth and cover your table to paint (or even better, back the cars out of the garage and lay the tablecloth out there to paint)


-Do a puzzle.  DD and I like to start those really big ones.  So, we bought one of those puzzle keepers (don't remember the exact name), that you can find in the puzzle section.  You can work on your puzzle, then it rolls up for safe keeping and storage until your ready to tackle it again.

-Go to the library (pick out books for both of you, and pick a nice interesting chapter one that you can read together out loud--maybe a child friendly mystery, wild western days, or begin a series)  Hint:  Stop at a good cliffhanger moment to keep them interested! ;)

-If you and your child are crafty....try a new craft.  There are loads of youtube videos that give step  by step instruction on how to crochet, knit, paper mache, polymer clay, scrapbook....the possibilities are endless.
Hint:  Find something interesting and get what you need to start before that rainy day comes, so that you have it on hand.

-Try a new recipe

-Board Games!!!

  Courtney from over at "Women Living Well" blog,  shared some really great ideas in her post titled, "Summer Boredom Busters for Kids." 


I also ran across the 100 Days of Summer from "50's Housewife."


Hopefully these lists will help keep the Summertime Boredom at bay, and you'll have a lot of fun doing them!

Have a great summer!
Jennifer

Homeschooling...To summer break or not to break

Hi all you homeschoolers,
  I have homeschooled my DD now from PreK through 4th grade (finishing 4th grade up soon).  I have found that going all year round definitely works better for us.  I tried following the public school system schedule and that just did not work!

  We both ended up frustrated after a long summer break trying to get back in the groove.  Not to mention the wasted time spent having to go BACK over information that was learned before the summer break AGAIN!   DD and I both were not happy about this.

  Our school year begins on Sept. 1 and goes through Aug. 31.  We attend school Mon.-Thur. and take about 6 weeks off throughout the year.  The three day weekends are so nice, and the 6 weeks breaks sprinkled through the are just enough. If for some reason we have to cut a day short or have an unforeseen bump in the week, we just use Friday for our day to make up any material missed.

  No more forgetting what was just learned.  Staying on a good schedule is much easier to achieve.  Summer time is great because the pool makes for a GREAT incentive to get our work done, so that we can enjoy the rest of the day at the pool with friends.  ;)

Do you school year round or do you take your summer break?  Either way, I hope you all are having a wonderful summer!

Happy Homeschooling!
Jennifer

200th Follower Giveaway Winner is.....

Hi all,
  The winner of the 200th Follower Giveaway is.....

Tracey said...

I follow you on Google Friend Connect!

Congratulations Tracey!  I will be emailing you for your address.  If for some reason I do not hear back from Tracey within 48 hours, I will pick another random winner.  

Thank you all for joining in on the fun!

Jennifer

Daylilies are in full bloom now!

Hi all,
  I just LOVE daylilies!  Perennials (flowers that come back every year) are just wonderful!  They are so hardy, which is great for me since my thumb is not too green. :)  I love how they multiply, so that you can start out with just a few and in a couple of seasons you have lots to spread around.

  So many beautiful varieties to choose from as well.  There's something for everyone.  They make the most lovely borders.  You just can't go wrong with this in your landscape.

  Now that my daylilies are in full bloom, I just had to share the rest of them with you.  This was the first one that popped open.


  I just love the peachy elegant ruffles on this one!

 This one's vibrant orange just brings a smile to my face when I look at it.  Isn't just cheerful?  I can't help but think of the warm summer sun when I see it.

Purple being my favorite color, I have to say that I really look forward to seeing this one every year!  It just looks like it's saying, "Ahhh!  Good morning!"  after getting a nice drink from the sprinkler.

  Here's another purple beauty.  I just love the delicate more narrow petals on this one.


  I just realized that I have some yellow ones that I forgot to take a picture of!  I'll have to add that one later. ;)


  I hope you enjoyed taking a peek at my flowers!  Which one is your favorite?

Have a wonderful day,
Jennifer

P.S. Don't forget to join in on my 200th follower giveaway ending tonight at midnight!

My latest Crochet project--Pink and Peach scarf

Hi all,
  Here's my latest crochet project.  I made my DD a pink and peach scarf for next winter.  I didn't follow a pattern this time.

  Here's what I did:

Abbreviations:
Ch=Chain
HDC= Half Double Crochet

Ch: 18

Row 1: HDC Starting in 3rd chain from the hook all the way across Ch 2 turn

Row 2-3: repeat row1 then tie off at the end of row 3

Row 4: Starting with second color chain 2 at the end of row 3, 3rd chain from the hook HDC across, ch 2, turn

Row 5: HDC starting in 3rd loop from the hook tie off at the end

Row 6: Starting with Main color chain 2, 3rd loop from the hook HDC across, Ch 2, turn


Just repeat with the main color for as long as desired length (mine ended up a little shorter than I wanted due to running out of pink).

Then with second color repeat in reverse starting from Row 4 back to Row 1.  Then I just finished off with pink and peach tassels.

  Please excuse the amateur pattern!  I'm still learning and have never written out a pattern.  I was happy with the result and DD loves it, so.....Woo Hoo! :)

I hope you all have a wonderful day!  Don't forget to stop by my giveaway here celebrating 200 followers. ;)


Jennifer

200 Followers Giveaway!!

Hi all!
  I've reached 200 followers!! Woo Hoo!!  I think that calls for a giveaway.  The prize is "Classic Rachel Ray 30-Minute Meals" cookbook.  This book  is from my personal collection and very gently used.  It is chock full of great recipes!

Giveaway Rules are simple: (be sure to leave a comment along with your email for each entry)

Mandatory Entry:
-Follow Just Peachy in Dixie through Google Friends Connect



Additional entries:(be sure to leave a comment along with your email for each entry)
-Post a link on your blog about this giveaway (be sure to leave a link in the comments for me to find it)
-Subscribe via email
-Follow Just Peachy in Dixie on Facebook

-Follow Peachy in Dixie on Twitter

-Tweet about the giveaway (just once and leave link in your comment for me to find it)

-Follow Just Peachy in Dixie on Networked Blog

 Entries must be in by 12 midnight eastern time 6/15/11.  Winner will be selected through a random draw and contacted by the email left in comment.  If I do not hear from the winner within 48 hours for contact information a new winner will be selected.

Note:  I will only ship within the US.

Thank you all for stopping in and following!
Jennifer


  

It's Summertime!!!

Hi all,
  It's definitely summer time here in north Georgia!  It is hot, hot, hot! It's been mid to high 90's and with the humidity it feels like over 100. As usual here we skipped right over spring and went directly into a heat wave.

  Our day lilies are blooming in abundance.  I just had to snap a picture of this one.  Time outside is spent at the pool.  Anything else is just too miserable.  The air conditioning is running full blast and I shiver to think what the power bills are going to be!

  I love all seasons, but I have to say, I'm already missing the cold weather.  It's so much easier to bundle up and get warm then it is to stay cool!  Oh well, may as well accept it since it will be hot around here until late October.

  Hope you all have a wonderful and safe summer!

Jennifer

Frugal Breakfasts to go....

Hi all,
  Are the morning trips through the drive thru killing your grocery budget?  Think you have no choice, because you just don't have the time in the morning to fix your breakfast?  Do you think you could spare 2 minutes in the morning to save big?  Sure you can!  Here's how we do it....

  This week my DH went to our local meat market and bought a 5lb. bag of his favorite country sausage for $9.99.

 I went to Aldi and bought their 4 pk of canned biscuits (10 in each can) for $1.79.









 The trick to quick breakfast is not to wait to fix them in the morning when you are trying to get out the door.  Go ahead and fix them ahead of time.

First I put all 40 of the biscuits in the oven to bake.  While they were baking, I made 40 sausage patties out of the 5lb bag.  Yes, it did take a while to fry up all those sausage patties, but it's well worth it.

  After the patties are cooked, I went ahead and assembled all the biscuits.  Then I take freezer bags and put two in each bag.  I roll up the bags to make them nice and compact so that I can then fit several into one large freezer bag before putting them in the freezer.  I do that to just keep everything nice a neat in the freezer.

  Now, for the time saving tip.  Before you go to bed, pull out one of the bags and put it in the fridge. By morning it will be ready for heating. Also, go ahead and get your coffee maker ready, if it has a timer set it for a few minutes before you plan to get up.  Lay out a nice cloth napkin and place your coffee cup, sugar, and spoon on it so you are greeting in the morning by the nice display ready and waiting.

  Be sure you go ahead and get your brown bag or lunch box ready to put your biscuits in and don't forget a napkin. ;)  In the morning pop your biscuits in the microwave for about 45 seconds pour your cup of coffee while they are warming and in less than a minute you have a warm breakfast and coffee ready to walk out the door!

  For $11.78 + tax I fixed 20 days worth of breakfast for my DH.  He would have spent that in about 2 days going through a drive thru!

  Note:  Be sure you don't throw away those freezer bags!  I'll share with you my frugal tip for those in a post soon to come. ;)

I hope you enjoyed the tip!  Have a wonderful day!
Jennifer

I'm in a slump.....but I'm going to get out! ;)

Hi all,
  I'm still here.....but, I'm in a SLUMP!!  I stare even now at this blinking cursor struggling to put into words that, I can't seem to find words!  Typically that's how inspiration comes for me, in ebbs and flows.

  Good news though.  I can just feel my creative juices trying to flow again.  Ideas are starting to pop in my head.  They tend to come at the most inopportune moments.  Like, when I'm elbow deep in washing dishes or in the middle of washing to dog.  By the time I have a chance to write it down, I can't for the life of me remember the topic!  Ugh!

  So, I'm trying to make a note as soon as I can so I can get my thoughts together for some interesting material.  Some of the things to come...what to do on those rainy days this summer, frugal crafting comes to mind (still working on topics for that one), frugal recipes/meals, book reviews, homeschooling chit chat and I'm sure to have some shopping trips to share.   Seeing as I'm only three followers away from 200...I think a giveaway is in order real soon. ;)

  Do you all ever struggle with finding things interesting to talk about?  Do you get ideas, but just can't seem to find the words to express your thoughts?  I'm just sure that I'm not alone!  Am I? :)

Anyway, I hope you all will come back soon to see what I've come up with!

Talk to you soon,
Jennifer