Morrie's Grocery Outlet

Located at 2410 Chicago Drive, Hudsonville, MI

Here on FB.  Info here and here.

Morrie's Grocery outlet is a discount grocery store that sells damaged, expired, or surplus foods.  And before you get sicked out, check out the info here on eating expired foods.  The boys and I made our 2nd visit to Morrie's this morning and here are some of the deals we found, starting at the sourcream and going clockwise:

Breakstone sour cream~69 cents
Sunbelt granola bars ~ $1.19
Malt-o-meal cereal ~ 99 cents
2 lbs of shredded colby cheese~$2.99 (I got this home and saw that the expiration date was Dec, but there is no signs of mold, etc, so I think it'll be fine.)
Uncle Ben's Ready Rice ~ 79 cents (the rice felt a bit hard in the package so we'll see how it tastes)
Bittersweet baking chocolate ~ $1.49
Individual bags of snacks ~ 10 cents each (LOVE these for trips to park, zoo, etc.)

I also saw Starbucks coffee, $5.99 for 12 oz.  Not sure if that's a good deal or not.
Morrie's stock varies each time you go so you're never sure what kind of "treasure" you will find.  They also sell yogurt, eggs, meat, paper goods, diapers, etc.  

What's Cookin'

Mon~Bangers and Mash, green beans,bread
Tues~Dinner with family, making salted caramel cheesecake
Wed~Pork Tinga Enchiladas, Cilantro lime rice, black beans

Source: joelens.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Thurs~Baked Sesame Chicken, rice, salad
Fri~Omelets, toast, fruit
Sat~Pizza, cold veggies
Sun~Meatball soup and Chicken noodle, bread, salad (with family)

My Grandma

Mabel Roffel

February 22, 1934-March 26, 2012

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.  For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

I Thessalonians 4:13-14

My dear grandma went to be with the Lord ten days after my grandpa died.  I went to visit her after my grandpa's funeral on our way home last week, 6 days before she died, and even though she had physically aged and had lost much of her ability to communicate in the past year, I still saw glimmers of the wonderful woman I knew so well and will miss so much.  As I said good-bye and told her that I loved her, her last words to me were, "I love you, too."  And I know she did and I know she thought and prayed for me and all of her family.  

March = Spring time??

From earlier this week:

Andrew discovered The Littles and read his book during breakfast.  I so remember doing this as a kid.

Aaron will be 2 in 3 months and he is getting so big!  I still think he's a baby but he's definitely growing up.

And now some spring time...

Uncle Nate and Joe brought a load of dirt over to fill in our hole.  Joel was thrilled beyond belief.

I was sweeping out the garage and keeping a careful eye on this one, who discovered the mud puddle in the turn around and had a lot of fun!

He was soaked to the waist when he was through.

Caught him mid delighted shriek.  He's tiny, but has quite the vocal abilities!

What's Cookin'

Mon~Grilled chicken, roasted potatoes, cauliflower
Tues~Mommy's gone, Daddy's in charge.
Wed~Bangers and mash, corn
Thurs~Baked Sesame Chicken, Carrot rice

Source: allrecipes.com via Heather on Pinterest

Fri~Pizza, cold veggies
Sat~Chicken Alfredo (freezer), broccoli
Sun~Meatball soup, bread

The hole

Maybe the hole will stay filled in this year.  At least

the cow manure's covered up now.

What's Cookin'

Mon~Chicken Noodle Soup, artisan bread
Tues~gone
Wed~Bangers and mash, green beans
Thurs~Crockpot Beef stroganoff, corn
Fri~Mini Calzones, cold veggies

Source: 5dollardinners.com via Heather on Pinterest

Sat~ Leftovers, eggs
Sunday~Meatball soup, rolls

My Grandpa

John Roffel

September 1, 1931-March 16, 2012

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

John 16:33

Two Zoo trips this week!

There are great perks to having a zoo pass and living only 5 minutes from the zoo.  We were able to go twice this week since we've had such gorgeous weather.  I love how each time we go, we something a little different.

On Tuesday, we went with Aunt Shell.  Still cool enough for a jacket but it was a beautiful sunny day.  As you can see, Andrew was helping Aaron to look at the camera.

On this trip, one of the chimps came right up to the window and stuck its face right in front of Joel.  Another chimp was clowning for the camera.  

 I think the bears are absolutely fascinating, but its not often that you see them moving around.  Today they were swimming in their water hole and play fighting!  

Another great perk with our pass is that we can bring two friends for free each time if we want.  Today we brought Aunt Andrea and Jayden. Andrew was our tour guide, announcing which animal was our next destination (He's a little familiar with the zoo!).  And of course, we took the obligatory picture at the penguin statues on the way out.  Oh, and can you believe I got them all looking toward the camera on the first try??

Thanks again to blue Grandma!

Finish Powerball Tabs Deal

I have used powder, liquid, and these handy all-in-one dishwasher tabs and I have to say, the tabs wash my dishes much better than the other alternatives.  So even though they are a bit more money, it is worth it to have clean dishes when I open the dishwasher.  Right now, you can get 400 of these tabs for about $40 at the Costco website.  Check out the details here at Common Sense With Money.  400 is a lot and will last me well over a year.  The price without a Costco membership comes to about 10 cents per tab (There is a $1.80 surcharge if you are not a Costco member.) which is a great deal on these.  And, bonus, they are shipped right to your door!

What's Cookin'

Its "Feed Chris" week at our house.  He's not crazy about some of the "sweet" things I've been making, and since he's going to be gone next week, I thought I'd make him some meals he really likes.  :-)

Mon~Spaghetti, salad, bread

Tues~Pork chops and gravy, mashed potatoes, corn

Wed~Slow Cooker Chicken Parmesan, salad

Source: chef-in-training.com via Heather on Pinterest

Thurs~Beef and mushrooms, egg noodles, cauliflower
Fri~Pizza, cold veggies
Sat~Ham and cheese buns, potato salad, deviled eggs, chips, cold veggies
Sun~Chicken noodle soup, bread

Cheese extravaganza: Stock-up!

I got up early to get some GREAT cheese deals this morning.  Meijer has numerous promotions going:   Buy 5 Kraft products and get $3 off instantly and $4 OYNO.  So, I did 3 different transactions and after coupons and promotions, I only paid a few dollars net for 15 cheese products.

Check out Saving Addiction for all the coupon matchups and head to Meijer to stock up on cheese!

Chicken Tacos

Source: pedersenfood.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

I used the recipe embedded in the above pic as a guideline, but here's how I did it:

Chicken Ranch Tacos

3-4 pre-grilled chicken breasts (I pulled some chopped grilled chicken from my freezer)
1 package of chicken taco seasoning
1 cup of chicken broth
ranch dressing
hard taco shells
taco fixings

(Get ready, this is a really technical recipe.)

Deep breath.

Ok, let's start.

Toss the chicken, seasoning, and broth into the crockpot and stir.  Cook on low for about 3 hours.
(If you like, stir some ranch dressing in at the end.)

Phew.  Made it.

Ok, seriously, this is the easiest, yummiest thing I've made in weeks.  Maybe months.  Especially with the pre-grilled chicken.  And best of all, NOAH even liked it and ate the leftovers for lunch the next day.  Try it.  You'll like it.

A 3 year old's logic

Joel's bedtime prayers frequently have us muffling laughter so as not to disturb the solemnity of the moment. Tonight was no exception. After saying prayers of thankfulness for the day and praying for his friends, Joel prayed about being thankful for our trip to the zoo today. Chris prompted him and said, "And the lions that You made..." Joel peeks his eyes open and says, "No, I didn't!"

Makes me want to be musical

I love these guys and the story of how they started playing together (totally random). Jon Schmidt on the piano and Steven Sharp Nelson on the cello. My uber musical sister-in-law says this isn't her style. I think she's too sophisticated for me. I don't have many musical bones in my body (don't ask me to sing harmony unless you're screaming the part in my ear), but I sure do like these guys. I asked Andrew if he wanted to play piano like this guy, but Andrew said no because he plays too rough. Interesting.

Found: 1 dusty nickel

Found: 1 dusty nickel

Location:  Under the stove

Findee:  Andrew John Engelsma

Total:  15 cents

Little monkey

 Uncle Donald and Aaron.  He didn't stay there very long.

Here's a pic of Joel with Uncle Donald about 3 years ago.

 This week Aaron learned how to climb on the piano bench.

 He is pretty thrilled with the discovery.

He also learned how to climb onto the kitchen chairs and onto the table.  Fortunately, I rescued the sugar bowl before he could tip it over.

Aaron will be 21 months old tomorrow.  He still seems pretty babyish to me but he's almost 2! He says mom, bye-bye, yah, and he shakes his head no.  He will copy things you say and if you are his mother, you might be able to understand what he is saying.  :-)

What's Cookin'

I tried a few new recipes last week and although they were all pretty tasty, none were stellar enough to make the regular rotation.  The pasta fagioli was good, homemade nuggets were a hit (but time consuming), and the cheesy red potatoes I made in the crockpot were creamy, but a bit bland.  So let's try a few more new recipes this week, shall we?

Mon - Pulled pork (freezer) on homemade buns, raw veggies

Tues - Chicken Ranch tacos, salsa, salad

Source: pedersenfood.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Wed -Brown sugar and balsamic glazed pork loin, red potatoes, carrots

Source: candcmarriagefactory.com via Heather on Pinterest

Thurs -Teriyaki chicken, brown rice, broccoli

Source: lakelurecottagekitchen.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Fri -Pasta with chicken sausage, green beans

Source: pearls-handcuffs-happyhour.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Sat - Pizza, raw veggies 

Sun - Chicken noodle soup, bread

Andrew's photographic maneuverings

Andrew and Aaron (Andrew asked for this pic to be taken).

I think Joel took this one.

Andrew's set-up.  It changes a bit each day, gets destroyed quite regularly and is hardly ever cleaned up.  I'm guessing some sort of battle is going on in this pic.

Some pics from the week

 Andrew building a very tall tower (which did not last that long).

 Andrew leading Noah in some exercises.  Shirtless, of course.

 My two babies.  I think they must've just gotten up from their naps.

 Daddy singing with his boys.  Andrew is turned away because otherwise he blasts too loud.

 Dancing?  Noah set this up, not sure where he learned that.   

Watching a PBS documentary on "Superfish" with cousins Kaiya and Jayden during their sleepover.  Of course, popcorn is required.