Momma T's Mock Shephard's Pie

I'm always looking for easy one stop shop-type of dinners that make everyone happy. This one I was able to get from my fabulous mother in law and she calls it 'Momma T's Mock Shephard's Pie." Not only is this super easy to make and tasty, but most of these ingredients I tend to have on hand in my pantry; always a plus! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do.


Prepare mashed potatoes.
1lb. Ground beef
Small yellow onion
Garlic to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 can cut green beans, drained
1 can Campbell's tomato soup and a little milk.
Cheddar cheese

Brown the ground beef with chopped onion and garlic. Drain any fat please. Add tomato soup and a little milk to meat. Place meat mixture in greased casserole dish. Add on top of meat mixture the green beans. Top with mashed potatoes and top potatoes with grated cheese. Bake 350 degrees uncovered until heated and bubbly. Yummy. I have made with ground turkey too.

Happy cooking :)

Time to Face the Music

There are so many things I have 'wanted' to do with my life in my everyday routines, but just never found the time or was too lazy. But, with having a baby, I find that it is time to 'face the music' and be the person I have been wanting to be so that my child will be taught the things I believe in. I'm talking about clean eating. Coming from an agriculture background, I have certain feelings about home-made and home grown. I want my child to have the best start to life with a healthy body and mind, and I truly believe it starts with breast milk (which is why I'm still nursing) and then homemade food. I also have started to think more about my choices of products for my family such as organic and local grown. I have always, always wanted to purchase more locally grown food products as the local farmers markets and local grown meats. I also have wanted to purchase more organic foods. I have seen many times filter around the Internet and Facebook the following lists:

Here is the Dirty Dozen- this is where you want to spend the extra money on organic produce whenever possible:

1. Apples
2. Strawberries
3. Grapes
4. Celery
5. Peaches
6. Spinach
7. Sweet Bell Peppers
8. Nectarines- imported
9. Cucumbers
10. Potatoes
11. Cherry Tomatoes
12. Hot Peppers

And here is the Clean 15 list for 2013.  These are the items with the least amount of pesticide contamination found so these are not as high of a priority when buying organic.

1. Sweet Corn
2. Onions
3. Pineapple
4. Avocado
5. Cabbage
6. Sweet Peas- frozen
7. Papaya
8. Mangos
9. Asparagus
10. Eggplant
11. Kiwi
12. Grapefruit
13. Cantaloupe
14. Sweet Potato
15. Mushrooms

And there is also a Dirty Dozen Plus- these items are not on the Dirty Dozen list but still something to try to find in organic if you can:

1. Summer Squash 
2. Leafy Greens (kale and collards in particular)

I got these lists from one of my favorite coupon blogs and they also have a list of these for on the go, go here! 

 I also want to incorporate cleaning the fruits and vegetables properly (water and white vinegar) after purchasing or before eating.

These things don't seem like hard things to do, but it means getting everyone that shops to get on board, then remembering what to buy while in the store, plus adding an additional step of washing when you get home and as you unpack. Doing all of this on top of my all ready busy working and being a mom schedule... daunting. BUT, it's time to put my wants for my family as my priority! It's time to put this into action. 

My last thought is... how has our country become a place that doesn't always have nothing but the freshest, cleanest homegrown food for all of our residents? When has agriculture changed to mean we have to pay more and go the extra mile to feed our families the best? Makes me sad for my daughter's future.

SIDS

I was talking with a new mommy friend of mine and she mentioned how she wish she hadn't of done some late night reading on the Internet about SIDS. Her baby was premature so he is tiny (but perfect!) She said she is so freaked out now to even put him in his bassinet to sleep at night. I remember feeling the same way and Gracie was 4 days over her due date. I felt so frozen by fear. It's like, here is this perfect baby and oh by the way, some scary ass syndrome that no one knows why it happens can just steal your baby like a thief in the night. OMG! Needless to say, I was scared shitless and slept with her on my chest for the first 8 weeks with a pile of pillows all around me so that I didn't drop her or rollover on her. SIDS might be the single scariest thing to deal with mentally as a new mom. I have eased my mind over the last few months about this topic, but talking with my new mommy friend has brought it to the forefront of my mind. Why the hell don't we know more about this? How can there be no warning signs? There could be nothing more terrible for a mother than loosing her baby to SIDS so unexpectedly. My mind is heavy thinking of all those babies lost to SIDS and other unfair conditions. I feel so lucky and blessed to have my Miss Gracie.

Diaper Rash Meet Aquaphor

I feel like I have found the holy grail. I have tried diaper rash cream after diaper rash cream and to no avail. Gracie has super sensitive skin and so anything causes massive diaper rash. I have even concocted crazy recipes of my own that I have taken off the internet. Nothing worked! That is until... I found Aquaphor. It's seriously the bomb. I'm not sure if it would work this great for anyone else's child, and I have heard different things work for different children. However, diaper rash SUCKS and when you finally find an answer after months of battling it; it's like finding out Santa is for real. Or winning the lottery. Anyways, I highly recommend it! One point for mom!

Personal Protection

I've had thoughts about this subject before when I lived alone as a single woman, but it has been even further at the forefront of my mind since I've become a mom. What do other women do for personal protection? A friend of mine at work went to a friend's house party called a 'personal protection party'. She chose to buy a taser gun. In the past I have carried both a knife and pepper spray, but what do I want to do as a mom? Of course I worry about her getting into it later and hurting herself or others, so anything I chose I would absolutely take the proper steps to make sure Gracie was never in danger. But, I also have been noticing shady things happening lately around work, home, and even town. Is it that I have a super sense now that I'm a mom/ momma bear per se, or are things really getting shady these days? Either way, my husband and I have been talking about getting me training and a handgun. I want to protect my baby and be ready for any and all situations that might happen. So, I'm curious; what the heck are all the other mommas doing out there?? I'm just not sure what I want to do. Statistically women tend to get guns taken from them and used against them. But, I also would hate to not be able to do anything if something where to happen in or around my home… Hmm. I'll just have to think more about this and decide. I was also thinking I'd go to the shooting range with my husband and see how comfortable I get handling a gun before I even think about buying one. Yikes...