Another Yummy and Easy Recipe

I had a package of minute steaks in the freezer and decided that those would be a simple meal for tonight, but I didn't want the huge mess of flouring and frying. So, this was was I did instead.

Mushroom Minute Steaks

1. Brown the steaks in a skillet (w/o flour) until lightly brown on each side. I also salt and peppered them at this point.

2. Mix Cream of Mushroom Soup and a packet of Mushroom Gravy Mix in a bowl with a cup of water.

3. Layer steaks and soup mix in a casserole dish.

4. Cover and bake. I baked them at 300 for the first 45 min. and then turned it up to 350 for the last 30 (that was just because I needed them sooner than I thought--bake them how you want)

5. Serve with mashed potatoes and a green veggie.

Yum!

Diaper Scare

So not until my fourth child have I experienced this creepy crawly incident. I was changing Caylee's diaper, getting ready to slide the new one under her little behind when I noticed something dark in the diaper. It was a creepy bug, and it was alive!! It was actually sewed into the diaper between the padding and the liner. When I touched it, it started crawling!!! It was obviously trapped, but it could have really hurt her had I not noticed it. It was long with lots of legs and pinchers on both ends. How horrible that would have been to have that strapped on to her! So everyone beware--check your diapers before you put them on your kids!

1st Place Feels Great!

Christopher had his Arkansas Valley Wrestling Tournament in Lamar today. It was his last meet for the season, and boy did he go out with a bang!! His first match was very awkward since he had to wrestle a girl! He pinned her pretty fast. I am completely disgusted by girls wrestling!! What a horrible position to put those boys in--it should not be allowed! Anyway, then he went on to pin the guy in his second match. For his final match, he was so close to pinning him the entire time, but couldn't quite get it. However, he still won 12-0, making him the 1st place champ for 132 lbs. (not sure how he ended up in that weight class since he's 128, but whatever). It was so awesome to watch him. He has really done well during this short sport, especially when you consider he had never, not once, wrestled before he decided to go out for wrestling this year.

(Psst...the girl is in the green capris--she got pinned all three matches)

I was one proud mama!

Mom and Dad were able to be there to watch the final match. Jan and Oggie took the three little kids home after his second match so that I didn't completely lose my mind.

Christopher and his buddy Tristan, who also got 1st in his weight class.

Yummy Beef and Broccoli

I have been on such a Beef and Broccoli kick when we go out to eat Chinese. I found this incredibly easy and yummy recipe. I was fairly confident that it would be good when I saw that it had been in Taste of Home. I was right, it was delicious!

I found this diced beef at Reyman's, so that's what I used. It cooked fast and it was easy for the kids to eat, since it was diced in really small chunks. Here is the recipe--enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
• 1/2 cup water, plus
• 2 tablespoons water, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 lb boneless round steak or 1 lb charcoal chuck steak, cut into thin 3-inch strips
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 1 small onion, cut into wedges
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• hot cooked rice

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1. 1In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 2 tablespoons water and garlic powder until smooth. ( I ended up using 3 Tbsp. of water instead of just 2 and I used fresh garlic and olive oil)
2. 2Add beef and toss.
3. 3In a large skillet or wok over medium high heat, stir-fry beef in 1 tablespoon oil until beef reaches desired doneness; remove and keep warm.
4. 4Stir-fry broccoli and onion in remaining oil for 4-5 minutes.
5. 5Return beef to pan.
6. 6Combine soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger and remaining cornstarch and water until smooth; add to the pan.
7. 7Cook and stir for 2 minutes.
8. 8Serve over rice.

Fowler Wrestling Tournament

Last Saturday Christopher had a wrestling tournament in Fowler. Originally, I had planned to go watch, but then Caylee and Cade started running fevers Thursday night, and it lasted all weekend. However, Saturday morning, Oggie volunteered to stay with the two little ones so that Jan, Connor, and I could go. It was kind of a last minute decision, but it worked out since Christopher had a bye the first round. This is what it looked like that morning when we started out. It was so pretty! It melted off pretty fast, though.

Christopher wasn't supposed to wrestle until 2:00, so we had it timed just right. However, while we were in LaJunta, Christopher texted that he had just wrestled and won. Obviously they ran ahead of schedule. So, we finished up in LaJunta and headed on to Fowler to watch him wrestle for the championship round in his bracket.

Here was the result. Second place--not too bad! I was one very proud mama!! He was up against an eighth grader who was really good and had wrestled since he was very young. Christopher still did an awesome job!