Sacrament Meeting Ideas

Val gave lots of great ideas during our Tuesday night activity on things to help our children be reverent during Sacrament Meeting:

- the distribution center has picture cards that my kids look at

- the website friend.lds.org has church related printable activities and coloring pages the kids can do

- I have the 'scripture readers'  The New Testament, Old Testament, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants that they look at

- I have lots of religious kids books.  Picture books and board books. 

- Some people have 'quiet books'.

- My kids each have notebooks and colored pencils

- I bring the monthly Friend magazine

- I try to keep my kids quiet without any of these, but if they are restless, then I pull something out.

Simple Sunday Fruit Salad

Simple Sunday Fruit Salad

     32 oz of strawberry yogurt (I like the Mountain High brand-- not too sweet)

     Pint of whipping cream

     Small pkg of instant vanilla pudding

     Fresh fruit

Beat your whipping cream-- sweetening it with a little sugar or vanilla. In a separate bowl, add the yogurt and whisk in the instant vanilla pudding. Once that's done, fold in your whipped cream. Then you add whatever fresh fruit you like: strawberries, rasberries, blackberries, blueberries and bananas work well. You can even use frozen fruit! Mix gently. I like to save some of the fruit to decorate the top. This recipe makes A LOT. For a single family, you can cut the recipe in half.

From Coco 

Caramel Sauce

Caramel Sauce

3 C. Brown Sugar
1 C. Butter
1 Can Evaporated Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla

In a saucepan melt butter and brown sugar and cook to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and evaporated milk - stir constantly until smooth.

* Tasty on waffles, pancakes or french toast or even on your favorite dessert!
From Ann S.

Simple Sunday Recipes

Sun-dried Tomato Pasta

A bag meal by Belinda Craft, shared by Maria T.

8 oz. Penne Pasta
1 (14.5 oz) can Italian diced tomatoes
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
1 (13 oz) can chicken meat
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 1/2 T dried basil
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Cook pasta until desired tenderness.  Drain pasta and return to saucepan.  Add remaining ingredients to pan and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes.  Toss gently and serve.  Top with cheese if desired.

Chicken in a Crock

Chicken in a Crock from Sue N.

1/2 onion - chopped and saute.

5 stalks of celery - sliced

5 large mushrooms - sliced

3 slices bacon - precooked & sliced into pieces

4 chicken breasts - seasoned with herbs, cumin, salt and pepper:  Bake 40 min. and slice in strips or cube.

Place in Crock Pot.

Pour over ingredients:

1/4 c. sour cream mixed with 1/4 cup flour

1 can cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup - stir into sour cream and flour mixture

Serve over rice or pasta

Cooks Note:

Baking chicken or searing meat imporves flavor before placing in Crock.  I don't use boiled chicken.  Baked is easier to cut in pieces and holds together better.

The advantage of Crock cooking is you do all the prep and clean up on Saturday.

Just turn the Crock on LOW before you leave for church.

Add a salad, jello, veggies and dessert of your choice.

Lemon Chicken

Lemon Chicken

Boneless chicken pieces to serve 4 to 6 (you can use chicken breasts or tenderloins)
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp dried basil (or 2T fresh basil, chopped fine)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 can evaporated milk, scalded (empty the can into a microwavable container, heat for 1 minute)
1 can chicken broth (or 2 cups chicken bouillon)
2/3 cup lemon juice
Lemon peel (optional)
1 cup sour cream

Brown the chicken pieces in a large skillet.  Remove the chicken and place in a large casserole dish.  In the skillet, melt the butter.  Mix the flour, dry mustard, basil, salt, and pepper in a cup then add slowly to the melted butter, mixing carefully to make a roux (paste).  Slowly add the chicken broth, being careful to keep it smooth.  Then slowly add the scalded milk, stirring contantly until smooth and thickened.  Turn off the heat; slowly stir in the lemon juice and lemon peel (optional).  Pour the mixture over the chicken in the casserole dish.  Cover and bake.
Cook for 3 hours at 250 degrees or 1 hour at 350 degrees.
When chicken is cooked, remove the pieces and place them on a serving platter.  Then add the sour cream to the sauce, stirring until smooth and well blended.  Serve the sauce over mashed potatoes or rice and over the chicken as well.

This can be prepared the night before, refrigerated and then placed in the oven when you are ready.

Laundry Stains 101

Last week we had a wonderful activity where we tied quilts and learned about making our Sunday's Simpler.  One of the mini-classes was taught by Sister Jill from the Wilford 2nd Ward on getting our laundry clean (before Sunday of course!).  Here are her hints:

The Golden Rules:

• Act Quickly
• For a liquid:  
• gently blot up any excess with a white cloth or cotton swab
• work from the outside in so that you don't spread the stain further
• do NOT press hard or rub
• Sprinkle oily stains with an absorbent
• If it is a dollop of something (like ketchup or salsa):
• scoop off any excess, again from the outside in to avoid spreading the stain further
• dab the area with cold water, which will lighten most spots and remove some altogether

Disclaimer:
There is no single technique or product that takes care of every spot and spill.  If a garment isn't washable, the safest thing is to take it to a dry clean; Show them the stain and tell them what it is (if you know).  If you want to make sure these treatments don't do more harm than good, test the technique in a hidden area (such as the inseam) before you attempt to slay the dragon.

Your Basic Tool Kit Consists of:

• Your instruments:
• cotton swabs (ideal for dabbing)
• an eyedropper
• a plastic ice cream sample spoon
• Combination solvents (such as Shout or Spray N' Wash) particularly good on greasy stains on washables.
• Oil solvents a.k.a. dry cleaning fluid (such as K2R or Afta) are for greasy stains on nonwashables.  Use only on dry fabric, in a well-ventilated area.  Air clothes after treatment.
• Salt when mixed with water works as a pre-soak treatment for blood stains.
• Digestants (my personal favorite is Wisk, but you can use Biz, Era Plus and the like).  These are enzyme cleaners that eat protein stains like grass, blood and egg yolk.  Apply directly to damp fabric, or dilute in water and then soak clothes.  ALWAYS use cold water when treating blood stains.  Wool and silk are proteins, so digestants should never be used on these fibers.
• Absorbents (e.g. cornstartch, talcum powder, Gold Bond powder)  When faced with a grease stain, gently heap the absorbent onto the stain, wait about a half hour, then invert the fabric so that the heap falls off without spreading.  Then you treat the stain.
• Detergent (e.g. any mild, clear liquid dishwashing detergent - the key word here being CLEAR)  This is an effective all-purpose cleaner.  Apply it straight, wait 5 to 10 minutes, then flush or dab with water.
• Denatured Alcohol (from the hardware store) Breaks down many stains and evaporates without leaving a residue.
• Mineral Spirits (from the hardware store) Use for exceptionally greasy stains like tar.  Air clothes after using.
• Glycerin (from the drug store) is particularly good for ballpoint ink.
• Bleaches - Lots of people gasp when I say "bleach."  But actually, bleaches come in a variety of commonly accepted forms.  Use the following mild bleaches wisely to remove the color left behind by stains:
• lemon juice
• white vinegar (mixed 1:1 with water
• 2% or 3% Hydrogen Peroxide
• Ammonia (2 parts water to 1 part ammonia) Note:  Do not use on wool or silk.
• Chlorine bleach (e.g. Clorox) diluted with water should only be used as a last resort because it almost always alters the dye of the fabric as well as the stain.
• Method:  Use a cotton swab to dab the bleach, or place a paper towel under the fabric.  Use an eyedropper to flush the area with the proper bleach.
• One last note about chlorine bleach:  Bleach is bleach is bleach regardless of the branding.  Fragrance is the only difference between bleaches on the shelf at the supermarket.

Fabric First Aid Cheat Sheet

Click on the image and it should enlarge for better viewing

Make the Choice

" Yes, faith is a choice, and it must be sought after and developed.  Thus, we are responsible for our own faith.  We are also responsible for our lack of faith.  The choice is yours."

- Bishop Richard C. Edgley

First Counselor