Top Ten Tuesday: Things to Make with Ground Meat

We buy our ground meat in bulk and there was a sale soooo, we've been eating a lot of it lately. I've been going through my collection of recipes to create dinners with our freezer stash. Join me in our ground meat adventures :)

1. Rachael Ray's Mega Turkey Nacho Dinner: My FAVOURITE recipe of all time! As in what I want for my birthday dinner, or any other night.

2. Burgers: Really try this:

• ground meat
• ketchup
• bbq sauce
• egg
• onion soup mix
• salt & peppa
• garlic

I've only come to like burgers in the past year, around the same time I got pregnant, I blame it on pregnancy.

3. Sloppy Joes: try this

• ground meat
• tomato sauce
• basilsalt & peppa
• chipotle chili powder
• garlic powder
• onion powder

4. Lasagne: Cheesey meaty goodness. My favourite trick is a little nutmeg in the ricotta/cottage cheese.

5. Rachael Ray's Super-sized 7-Layer Casserole: A supper-fied 7 layer dip! yes!

6. Brown Bag Burritos: great for lunches!

7. Mexican Pile-Up: Like deconstructed tacos, yummy! A family favourite.

8. Baked Taco Salad: another family favourite

9. Taco Salad: just the normal kind not baked :)

10. Spaghetti: I've only liked spaghetti since I've been married..I know what kid doesn't like spaghetti?

Go visit Amanda for more top tens

Good Stuff Saturday: Feeling Springy

Pretty spring decorating from My Blessed Life: I love love love her dining room, so fresh and bright!

Super cute ruffled leggings from Sugar Bee: I'll be making some of these!

Beautiful birthday cards: how fun would it be to get one of these in the mail!

Cupcake contest winners: so cute!

Head over to It's Come to This for more linky love.

Friday Fail: Chocolate Covered Baby

As I was getting ready to nurse the baby a few weeks ago I had a major urge for chocolate, I grabbed a couple of chocolate covered pretzels and settled into the chair. When she was done feeding I handed her off to hubby for a diaper change and headed to the washroom. Looking into the mirror I wondered "what is that on my neck?" It was chocolate, a large smear of melted chocolate on my neck and chest, I chuckled at myself as I wiped it off, what a waste. A few seconds later I heard hubby calling me and I headed into the nursery, he asked me what is on the baby...there my little girl is laying smiling on the change table with a handful of melted chocolate and big smear across the side of her face.

Feeding the baby chocolate...fail!

I didn't think to take a picture of the incident but here is her cute smiling face :)

Things I love Thursday: Woodwick Candles

There is nothing quite like reading a good book, whilst cradling a cup of tea with the crackle of a wood fire in the background. Unfortunately if you are like me you have a gas fireplace which lacks that special ambiance that only a wood fire can give. Luckily for us there is the neatest little invention that I discovered a few years ago when my mom gave me a candle as a gift. Not just any candle, no no behold the Woodwick Candle!

It's wick is as you might have guessed is a thin strip of wood that crackles as it burns, I know!

It's great I have a big one for the living room and a small one that keeps me company when I am lounging in the tub.

I love Woodwick Candles!

Go visit The Diaper Diaries for more things people love.

P.S. she has a giveaway too!

Wordless Wednesday

Good Stuff Saturday

Awesome pancakes, seriously. I always used mix because my mom always used mix but we ran out sooooo on Shrove Tuesday we tried these and they are fantastic! It has changed my pancake making forever!

Cute tattoo: perfect for any baker, especially a cupcake obsessed baker.

Learning to Run Plan: Never been a runner but would like to be, what better time than when I am at my heaviest and most tired as a new mom (eye roll)

Top Ten Tuesday: New Baby Tips

Good morning! I'm recovering from my very first run yesterday...ugh legs are a little sore

but nothing a snuggle with my baby girl and some yummy breakfast won't fix. Did I mention that she is 3 months old...already?!?! It seems like yesterday when I wasn't sure I w

ould make it through those long nights in the first week.

Over the past 3 months I have gathered a few tips from other moms and my own experience on easy things to do to get ready for and/or to make everyday life with a new baby easy and economical.

1. Bounty - Peanut Butter Jar Wipes I need to buy some more paper towel to make more wipes so I will post a picture when I have some made but the link will take you to another mom who has discovered their wonder. I you are going to go the route of disposable wipes you might as well give homemade ones a try.

2. Hand-Me-Downs I will accept any and all donations of clothing from moms because they just make my day. Chances are my kid(s) won't wear them out either and they can go to their next happy home when I am done with them. Not to mention that most of the gross manufacturing chemicals have been washed out of them by the time I get them.

3. Baking Ahead It seems no matter what time I get up I am not on time since having this baby. She is always hungry or needs a diaper change as I am about to go out the door. I don't deal well without breakfast in my tummy so by making a batch of muffins I have insta-portable breakfast-to-go ready and waiting. Also saves money on drive-thrus.

4. Coffee Timers Caffeine makes me jittery if I have too much of it but since I have entered the realm of new parent sleep deprivation 3 months ago I have become a one cup of coffee in the morning type of gal. Our coffee pot has a timer and due to reasons stated in #3 if it is all set and brewing I can pour myself a travel mug and be on my way.

Just in case you are looking for some delicious coffee, visit my favourite coffee shop from home Java Moose...Maple Cinnamon Coffee??? drool. And like #3, saves money on drive-thrus.

5. Dishwasher I always felt kind of guilty using the dishwasher for just my husband and I but unless I want dirty dishes stacked until each evening when I have a moment without incidences that I mentioned in #3 we load our dishwasher and it at least gives me the feeling that my kitchen is clean.

6. Meal Planning I have been doing this for a while but it seems to make all the more sense now that my schedule is much more dictated by a 14.5 lb person. Laura hosts Menu Plan Mondays, an awesome place to start.

7. House Cleaning Schedule I'm still working on this one but it just seems like laundry piles up in a matter of minutes...

8. Cloth Diapers Not that these make my life a whole lot easier but they don't make it any more difficult. We do have to empty the garbage less and they are just so darn cute! My current fave are Fuzzi Bunz and I'm looking to buy some more, they really are great, and they do work out to be cheaper in the long run.

9. Baby Wrap I love this thing see my other post

10. Loving Husband He is seriously the best dad I could ever have hoped for and I wouldn't want to do this without him.

For more Top Ten Tuesday Fun go see Amanda.

Things I Love Thursday: Baby Wrap

I became a mom almost 3 months ago and I'm not sure I would get much of anything done without my baby wrap. She loves being in the wrap and it got me through her first month of life especially, she was so unhappy being anywhere but in our arms. I received 2 as shower gifts and was so grateful. If I hadn't I was prepared to sew one because of the good things I had heard about them from other moms. There are also benefits to baby wearing check out this list.

I have another popular baby carrier but the weight it puts on my shoulders makes them tired and sore in a very short time, baby and I are so much more comfy in the wrap. Daddy even wears her :)

Check out other things that people love over at The Diaper Diaries