The Grazing Kitchen

It's that time of the year again, the kiddos are off to school. Mother's every where are jumping for joy. As much as we love that our children are going back to school because we will get a little peace in our home.. it still doesn't alleviate the stresses of packing their daily lunches! My daughter doesn't like to eat the lunches that the school provides and prefers that I pack her lunch. I'm ok with that. I like knowing exactly what she is eating during the day..or what she has chosen not to eat. I don't like to get up the morning of school and making her lunches or spending my evening the night before prepping her lunches. Let's face it, around 8:00pm  the house starts to unwind and so do I. I like to prep my daughter's lunches for a whole month on a Sunday! I decided the other weekend to prep. In 20 minutes, I was able to make 12 peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. (Homemade uncrustables) and 12 mini turkey & cheese hoagies. All individually wr

Recently within that past few weeks I had made a lifestyle change that has affected my whole family. Not for the worst, but for the best. I decided to walk away from a career with an employer that I was with for several years. It was a decent job for what it was, but a part of me couldn't fully focus on the work that was required of me. The reason was that my true place was at home. My heart was always at home. Our evenings were so stressful with both my husband and I working different hours and always relying on someone else to be raising our children. After long talks, we decided to take a leap of faith and allow me to stay home and raise our children. Did we have a savings built up? No. Did we know how we were going to manage being on one person's income? No. I don't think we still know how we are going to fully handle this... but we are doing it! Our lives will be filled with more joy, more free time on the weekends to be with our family and not be tied down to the hous

Sometimes mornings are too busy to make a big hearty breakfast. I like to make healthy, satisfying parfaits to start our mornings whenever we are busy, or even if it's just a lazy Sunday and you deserve to step away from the stove! What's fun about parfaits is that you can be creative and make different varieties. I am always looking for versatility when making meals. Whether it is spring, summer, fall or winter, parfaits are great to make in any season. Here is a few variations: Fruity Pebble Parfait  vanilla greek yogurt fruity pebbles sliced bananas layer each ingredient in a container or glass. Granola Parfait  vanilla greek yogurt sliced bananas granola w/ raisins & sliced almonds layer each ingredient in container or glass. Apple Nut Parfait   vanilla greek yogurt cinnamon chopped granny smith apple   chopped walnuts drizzle of honey mix together a few spoons full of greek yogurt and cinnamon. Then

Since it is Saturday and I have no place to go, I decided to make a glazed ham for dinner. My husband works weekend shifts now and it makes for long days! He won't be home for supper, but will be able to enjoy this ham for days to come. There will be lots of options on how to use the leftovers. This is an easy recipe that is full of flavor. Please try it out for yourself, especially since Easter is right around the corner. 6-8 lb ham (you may use bone in or boneless- whatever your preference may be) 3 c. packed brown sugar 3 tbs. Apple Cider Vinegar 1/2 c. spicy coarse brown mustard 1 1/2 c. Dr. Pepper 2 tsp. Garlic Garlic seasoning (Tastefully Simple's Seasoning, if you don't have this ingredient.. ask me how to get it! I am a tastefully simple consultant.) Combine all ingredients (except for the ham) in a small pot on the stove. Warm the ingredients on medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar melts and becomes a thick glaze. You can make this a