Did you feel the mountains tremble?
You did last night at 11:55pm if you live in Central California!
At first our bed started to shake slightly, like someone was pushing it trying to wake us up. It worked, because I woke up and laid there for a moment wondering why the bed was shaking.
Then the light bulb inside my head turned on and I realized it was an earthquake! I started tapping Mr. Crumbs and after merely two taps, he said “I know!” in a it-woke-me-from-my-good-sleep-yet-this-is-kinda-cool way.
Then our bed shook heavily. Ever seen a scary movie where the left-behind spirits of the dead shake beds when they’re trying to get the new owners to leave the house?
It was sorta like that.
(A weird explanation I know, but it worked, right? 
)
A few seconds later it was back to the light pushing, and then it was over. What a neat way to start off the week! (and yes it counts as this week… the week resets when we hit the pillow Saturday night ;) )
In other exciting news, my oldest child turns 5 in one week. *sniff sniff* We’ve somehow started a tradition of two birthday dinners… which also means two birthday cakes. He’s requested a dump truck cake and a train cake. I’ll be collaborating with my step-mom on who does which cake, with me getting the easier of the two.
Cake decorating is not one of my strengths and hers are phenomenal. We made a round “Thomas the Train” cake last year and it turned out grey instead of blue. The color mis-match was obvious to everyone at the table but him. I’m hoping he’ll view this year’s cake through the same forgiving child-like eyes because mommy’s decorating skills could use an extra dose of grace.
Besides more pumpkin mania – and don’t forget to mark your calendars for next Monday when Pumpkin week begins – we’ve been eating some real food too. The chicken and spinach verde enchiladas were delicious. Having to soak the pans overnight in hot soapy water – TWICE – and use old fashioned elbow grease to scrape the baked on goodness off was well worth the effort. 
Once again, the gourmet grilled cheeses did not disappoint. We used thinly sliced granny smith apples with provolone (for the kids) and pepper jack (for the parents) on the very little bother oat bread – so what we had on hand and nothing fancy. But the combination of each simple ingredient was so yummy! The kids were asking for second sandwiches before they were halfway done with the first. Do you and your meal planning a favor and put these on your menu. You won’t be disappointed!
And finally, after a crazy hiatus, my homemade spaghetti sauce was a home run. I went back to the original recipe and vow to never tweak it again! With some hot from the oven homemade garlic sticks, we were (and still are) in spaghetti heaven.
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Breakfasts and lunches for this week can be found here.
Week 3
(S) Family Dinner
(M) Buffalo Chicken Tacos, Salad and Fresh Veggie
(T) Men’s BBQ, sending Pumpkin Spiced Cookies, Girls Dinner Out
(W) Simple Sandwiches (i.e. PB&J, tuna, egg salad, etc.) with fruit
(T) Rice Bowls using Leftovers from Monday’s Dinner
(F) Homemade Pizza
(S) Birthday Dinner / BBQ Chicken and BBQ Steak, sides to be determined by the birthday boy
What’s on your menu this week?
