Family Organizing

Three years ago I posted about our Family Bank Account system here. Since then we have simplified this system. This new system fits our family better in our current stage. I share these thoughts with you in the hopes that you will find ideas for making your family life a little easier and more organized.

1. We now give the children money each week based on their age. They age out of this at 18! They get a $1 per year of life each week. For example, our son who is 10 gets $10/week. This money is used for saving, charitable giving and for spending on items they need or want like clothing, tickets to movies or outings with friends and birthday or Christmas gifts for friends or family. They have chances to earn more money with extra jobs at home. Our teenagers have found jobs outside the home as well.

As part of learning to save money the boys are required to have an emergency fund. This is an amount they have to keep in the account for emergencies. Little children don't have many emergencies but once they are teenagers it seems like these happen more often! Also, we have taught them to plan for the future. One son is going to college. We've looked up the cost of the school he wants to go to. He knows what he needs to save for college and has been working on a plan to reach that goal.

The boys have their own bank accounts. This has made my life easier. We have a set amount that comes out of our bank account each week that goes into the account for each son. Then if a child needs new shoes he can see if he has enough money and he can pay for them. It's nice that it's not a hit to our account each time this comes up. Plus, as I mentioned in the first post about family organizing, that child has a real sense of ownership and understanding of what things cost. This is such a valuable lesson.

2. Each week a son has a chore he is in charge of. It's either taking out the trash/recycling, picking up the floors, folding laundry or getting the mail and dusting. You could work this for whatever jobs you want your kids to get good at. I know one family who divides up meal time with setting the table, clearing it, wiping it down after a meal, etc. The job/chore rotates each week so the boys get to help with everything at some point. They have to make sure to get their job done before screen time. (And we have a limited amount of screen time each day but that is a can of worms for another post!) One reason we had the day divided up was to help the children have motivation to get to bed on time. They were able to earn money if they did this. Instead, we now have a routine. About 30 minutes before bed we have a family prayer. Then the boys do what they need to do to get ready for bed. If they are all ready and in bed on time I read with the youngest or let the older ones read to themselves for anywhere from 15-30 minutes. Our bedtime problems have mostly gone away. We don't have to keep track of who stayed in bed or not. The boys seem to like the routine. To be read to and then tucked into bed seems calming for our youngest son who struggles at night. This is often a good time for questions and one on one time with a parent. I used to be so tired at the end of the day that I didn't want bedtime to take a while. But, by structuring what we do, it probably takes less time than it did before when we had kids coming out after they'd been tucked in. You may do different bedtime things, but whatever you do, it helps a child to have a routine to let him or her know it's time to wind down.

3. Speaking of routines, I've found it very helpful to have a weekly schedule on the refrigerator. It's in the middle of the kitchen so everyone sees it. It's on a magnetic whiteboard so it's easy to change each week. It includes the jobs the boys need to do. I see the boys checking it often. And now that we have kids working, piano lessons, basketball practice, play practice, tennis lessons, and on and on, we need a way to stay organized!!! And by writing it all out we can see just how busy we are. We've started not doing things that don't bring us joy or add value to our lives. By saying no to activities we are saying yes to family time and down time that we all desperately need. Our days start around 5am every day and it's been healthier for us to say no and have time for things like walks, relaxing by watching a show together or playing games. With one son graduated from high school and another who is a senior I feel the days are going too quickly. They are going to be living away from us too soon. We are trying to savor every moment with our sons.

4. We are also savoring the moments together as a couple. A friend recently passed away from cancer. It shouldn't take something as heart breaking as that to remind us that life is short. Now his wife is a young widow. I'm sure she wishes each day she could talk to her husband again, hug him, do something sweet for him or go get dinner together at a favorite place. When we have someone we love in our lives it makes life sweeter to make time for this person and to appreciate the gift of this relationship. I guess that's what's been driving the changes in our family system. We are simplifying and being very intentional about what we spend our time and money on. We are trying to focus on what matters most.

Christmas Ideas

Hookey

BulziBucket

Family games are a great Christmas gift idea. Here are two that we've enjoyed playing this year:

1. Hookey. With six soft rings for each player to throw at the board you don't have to worry about damage to your walls. There are several different ways to play this game. It's fun for the whole family. 

2. BulziBucket. With three buckets to get your three soft hacky sack type balls into, hopefully you will connect with one of them! The smaller the bucket the more points you score. The buckets slide into each other to pack up and take with you in a bag. The concept is simple but that doesn't mean it gets old quickly! The only con is the price. It sells for around $60 on Amazon right now.

3. For card or table top games you might consider: 

Monopoly Deal. It's a quick card game. I know, that's hard to believe since the regular Monopoly game is anything but quick! Try it-I bet you'll enjoy it! 

Bananagrams. This game is like Scrabble but instead of taking turns everyone makes words with the tiles in front of them. You have to keep taking tiles every time someone uses all his or her tiles. Once the draw pile is gone the first person to use all his or her tiles by making (legitimate) connected words wins! 

Mango Chicken Tacos

from loveandlemons.com, heavily adapted

4 to 6 tortillas, lightly charred or warmed (this recipe is gluten free if you use corn tortillas) 
1/2 lime
2 chicken breasts, grilled and thinly sliced
2 cups shredded green cabbage
1 avocado, thinly sliced
1⁄2 mango, diced
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons crumbled feta or cotija cheese
sea salt
Spicy mayo-if you don't see this at your local store in the asian or indian section for food you can try this:

1⁄3 cup mayo (highly recommend Sir Kensington's Avocado Oil Mayo) 
2 teaspoons sriracha

Instructions

1. Make the spicy mayo: In a small bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and the sriracha.
2. Toss the cabbage with a squeeze of lime (1 teaspoon or so) and a few pinches of salt.
3. Fill each tortilla with chicken, cabbage, avocado slices, diced mango, cilantro and cheese. Top with the spicy mayo.
   
   

Green Colada

adapted from my friend, Jenna's, recipe

1 cup coconut milk

1 cup frozen pineapple chunks

1 banana

1 handful of spinach

1 cup of ice

Place all ingredients in the blender. Mix until smooth.

The boys love this. I will get creative and add frozen mangoes or strawberries one of these days!

Banana Walnut Pancakes

from allrecipes.com, submitted by CoOkInGnUt

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
3 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup almond milk
2 small overripe bananas, mashed
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted or coconut oil, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg

Mix flour, walnuts, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; make a well in the center.

Whisk almond milk, bananas, melted butter, and vanilla extract together in a separate bowl until smooth. Whisk in egg. Pour mixture into the well in the flour mixture; stir until just combined.

Heat a lightly non-skillet or griddle over medium-high heat. Drop 1/4 cup batter into the skillet. Cook until bubbles form and the edges are firm. Flip and cook until browned on the other side. Repeat with remaining batter.

Boys said: thumbs up! They actually said these were the best pancakes they'd ever had. I was nervous that the walnuts would be a problem for my picky eater. But I think because they were so small he didn't really care. 

I'm sensitive to milk so I love that this recipe calls for almond milk. 

I doubled the recipe for the five of us and had half a dozen or so pancakes left over for the next day.

Minestrone Soup

adapted from ourbestbites.com

Ingredients
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 small/medium onion, chopped
1 large carrot, thinly sliced or about 1 cup of julienned carrots (I buy these in bags from store so I can do this step faster)
1-2 stalks celery, diced
1 small zucchini, sliced
4-5 cloves garlic, minced or pressed (2 tsp minced garlic) 
1 c fresh french cut green beans, chopped into thirds
2 15-oz cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 15-oz cans white beans like Great Northern or Canalini, drained
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes, drained (blend if desired)
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
32 oz vegetable broth (that’s 4 cups)
3 c hot water
1/2 c ditalini or other small shell pasta
1-2 c loosely packed fresh spinach leaves, hand broken into about half or thirds

Instructions
Heat a large stock pot to medium high heat.  Add olive oil to coat bottom of pan. Add onions, carrot, and celery and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, 4-5 minutes or until onions start to look translucent.  

Add green beans, kidney and white beans, tomatoes, seasonings, broth and water and stir to combine.  

Bring soup to a simmer. Cover pot and simmer on low for 20-25 minutes, until carrots and celery are tender. Add zucchini and pasta and cook until pasta is soft, 8-10 minutes.  

Remove pot from heat and stir in spinach. Replace lid and let soup sit for five minutes before serving.

Observations

One of my running friends recommended I try this recipe. I'm so glad I did! The ingredients list is a little daunting. But for a soup that warms you up during the cold winter months and makes you feel good with all those vegetables, it's worth the effort to make it! And really, when you can throw everything in one pot, clean up isn't so bad. 

Husband rating: 4 stars

Boys say: thumbs up

Creamy Cilantro Lime Chicken

from sallysbakingaddiction.com

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 c chicken broth (I recommend reduced sodium)
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice (I use closer to 1.5 Tbsp)
• 1/4 c finely chopped red onion
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes¹
• 3 tbsp heavy cream²
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed
• optional: lime wedges and more cilantro for garnish, steamed asparagus for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
2. If the chicken breasts are uneven in thickness, pound them down so they're all even. This way all the breasts will cook through similtaneously. Sprinkle each with salt and pepper.
3. In a large ovenproof skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 6-7 minutes, turning once. You want the chicken nice and browned on the outside. (It doesn't have to be cooked all the way through yet.) Set chicken on a plate and cover tightly with foil until step 5.
4. Remove skillet from heat and add the broth, lime juice, onion, cilantro, and red pepper. Return to heat. Cook and stir to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a boil. Allow to boil gently, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until the liquid is reduced to around 1/4 cup. (During this time you can steam some veggies to have on the side, like asparagus.) Reduce heat to medium-low, then add the cream and butter. Stir until butter has melted.
5. Add chicken to the sauce and place the skillet in the preheated oven. Bake uncovered until the chicken is completely cooked through, about 5-10 minutes.
6. Serve chicken with sauce spooned on top and any of the listed optional garnishes. Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for a few days. Reheat to your liking.

Recipe Notes:

1. Adjust the amount of red pepper flakes to your liking. This amount made the chicken mildly spicy. The cream in the sauce mellows out the spice.
2. You can use whole milk instead, but for the thickest, richest sauce I highly recommend heavy cream. If using whole milk, make sure it is at room temperature to help prevent curdling.

Observations 

I used 6 chicken breast halves. For the first steps I had to cook them three at a time in the pan because they were so large. At the end I put them all in the same pan to go in the oven. I just made sure to scoop sauce over the chicken once while they cooked in the oven.

I also doubled the sauce. 

Our whole family enjoyed this recipe.

Husband rating: 4 stars

Boys say: thumbs up

Molasses Crinkle Cookies

from Cooking Light Magazine, Dec 2017 issue

Ingredients

2 c all-purpose flour
1 c whole wheat flour
3/4 c packed brown sugar
4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 c unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c molasses
1 tbsp whole milk
1/4 c granulated sugar
1/4 c powdered sugar

Directions
Place first 7 ingredients in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment; beat at medium speed until combined. Add butter; beat 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl as needed. Add molasses and milk; beat just until combined. Divide dough into 2 portions; wrap each portion in plastic wrap. Chill 2 hours or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Shape dough into 36 balls (about 1 tbsp each). Place granulated sugar in a small dish. Place powdered sugar in a small dish. Roll each ball in granulated sugar, then powdered sugar. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or until set but slightly soft in the center. Cool 5 minutes on wire racks before serving, or cool completely before packaging. 

Observations
Two things to keep in mind with this recipe:

1. You need two hours to chill the dough before you cook it! That means you can't whip it up right when the kids get home from school so take the extra time into account when you're planning.

2. If you leave these cookies in the oven until you think they are done they will probably end up hard. So remember to take them out when they are still a little soft in the center.

Boys rating: 4.5 stars