Have you ever had a case of “the blahs”? You know – that sinking, sad, yucky feeling that just drags you down? Worse yet – do you have the blahs now? What in the world can you do about that feeling when you don’t have a say in the weather forecast and Spring is still several weeks away?
How to Be a Work at Home Mom
I’ve been a work-at-home mom for the past ten years. I remember this because one of my very first posts on the blog was about throwing a bubble-themed birthday party for my oldest daughter. It has been a big learning experience, but I have found working at home suits me (and our family) really well. With the right attitude, the right office setup, and the right resources, working at home is something that may just work for you as well. I’ll share toward the end of this post about my actual workspace, and tell you about the desk and chair I recently received from Autonomous, the sponsor of today’s post. If you prefer to watch a video about this, jump over to my YouTube channel where I just posted a video about it.
With kids, what does working at home look like?
[Read more…]How to Make Homemade Bread
I keep getting requests for how to make homemade bread and more specifically, for bread machine tutorial videos. I get it #becausebread. I have done these types of tutorials many times on Instagram, but I finally got around to a full three-part series about how I make homemade bread in the bread machine for our YouTube channel.
But that doesn’t mean you should jump over to YouTube just yet. Let’s cover some basics in this article first which will really help you know the tools and method better.
How to Cook Steak in a Skillet (on the stove)
I’ll be the first to tell you, cooking steak was never my forte in the kitchen. I had never been good at it – and grilling is also a skill that I haven’t acquired because I don’t spend enough time trying to learn the ins and outs of it. But you always should experiment – and so I set out to learn how to cook steak in a skillet on the stove.
I knew it could be done because my friends did it – and I knew that butter HAD to be the answer. I mean, isn’t butter the answer to most of life’s problems?
Dry? Butter. Tasteless? Butter. Old? Butter. Stuck? Butter.
And while we’re on that topic – can we all agree that REAL butter is way better than the cheap garbage that was made in some chemistry lab or factory? Okay…moving on.
So to Google I went – on my quest to research the elusive steak-at-home perfection! Let me just tell ya – there’s about forty trillion tutorials for this on Google. But let me save you a bunch of time so you can just get to the good stuff. Keep reading. 😉
The Steps to an Amazing Steak in the Skillet:
- Remove the steak from the fridge 30-60 minutes before you plan to cook.
- Blot the steak with paper towels to give it a dry surface – don’t worry. This does NOT make a dry steak. It makes it easier to sear in the skillet.
- Heat a HEAVY skillet over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes with NOTHING in it. Most folks will say cast iron – that’s GREAT but I’ve also had great luck with a heavy stainless steel skillet as well. Use what ya have.
- Salt the steak on both sides. That’s it. Don’t add any other seasoning – that comes later.
- Add your steak to the skillet and sear for about 1 minute – you’ll know it’s okay to flip when it releases from the skillet and doesn’t stick.
- HERE’S THE KEY!!!!!!!!!!!!! You have to flip each steak every 60 seconds or so. I always used to just leave it – turning it over once. That doesn’t make a nice, tender steak. Flipping regularly until it’s done is better.
But how do you know when your steak is done?
Personally, I need almost totally well-done. If I cut into a steak and any red juice comes out, then I AM OUT. I can’t eat it. Barry likes a medium steak, and my kids like steak the same as me.
General Cooking Times
Although it depends a lot on the thickness of the steak, here are some general guidelines for how long to cook a steak based on what you want:
- Rare –> 5-6 minutes
- Medium –> 8-10 minutes
- Well done –> 10-12 minutes
This is where you have to pay attention – do not leave your steaks. You’ll lose track of time – or one of your kids will have to go to the bathroom and you’ll forget you’re making steak.
As you’re turning, after about 4 minutes, add a few pats of butter to the skillet. Add the seasonings you want to the BUTTER. Not the steak. Then just make sure your steak is getting into the butter as you flip it. We like the Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute.
Remove steaks when done. Some folks say to let the steak rest – others say it’s not necessary. I say –> whatever works for you, boo. You do you.
PERSONALLY, I prefer a piping hot steak. So, I don’ like mine to rest. I like to eat it. Therefore, I make sure everything is ready for the rest of the meal before I start the steaks – they are my 100% focus for about 8-10 minutes.
Because Barry likes his less done, I remove his steak and cook everyone else’s a few more minutes and I start plating things up at that point.
You might even find that cooking your steaks this way means you don’t need steak sauce – try it and see! 🙂
Homemaking vs. Housekeeping
It seems that over the last 100 years or so, the ART of homemaking has been lost. What used to be something that we coveted as little girls, became somewhat of a burden. We were no longer taught that we should desire to be homemakers – that it was LESS THAN. Instead, we should desire a career only and also wanting to keep a home was beneath us.
Crock Pot vs. Instant Pot
When the Instant Pot became all the rage, a lot of my friends get rid of their slow cookers because they didn’t think they would ever use them again. It became a Crock Pot vs. Instant Pot “thing” for some reason. But they’re both pretty amazing in their own ways.
Nothing New Under the Sun
Pressure cookers are nothing new – they’ve been around for a long, long time. I had already been using a stove-top pressure cooker for about two years when Instant Pots became popular, and yet I still had my Crock Pots. Why? Because I used (and still use) both.
While the Instant Pot (or other like versions) do offer the slow cooker option, a lot of times (from what I have read), they don’t work as well as a “real” slow cooker and have a tendency to burn food. I know that’s likely not the case for ALL Instant Pots; however, I think it makes sense for me to have both and I’m going to tell you why.
[Read more…]Surround Yourself with Words that Matter (Because ALL Words Matter)
Part of making-your-home (homemaking) is the decorating part. I’d be lying if I told you that was my expertise. The truth is, I get all my inspiration from Pinterest and then I just copy it. Ha ha! They say imitation is a form of flattery, right?
If you were to come into my home, you’d be instantly aware that I love words.
There are words EVERYWHERE.
I have printed words on the wall. There are printed graphics that are framed. We have blocks of wood with words painted on them. I have painted chalkboards in the kitchen with scripture. There are chalkboards in the bathroom. There is a whiteboard in the kitchen. Letterboards galore live here. I have window clings on the mirrors. Jewelry? Yup, words there too.
Scripture is everywhere. Funny sayings are in abundance.
But why?
Why surround yourself with truth and laughter?
Because if I don’t, my inner voice with negativity is louder. Lies are loud.
I take the Scripture about writing things on your doorpost (Deuteronomy chapter 6 and also chapter 11) to be very literal.
It is crazy important to surround yourself with truth. Every day. It’s a daily, hourly, minute reminder of what’s really true.
Laughter is good medicine. You are God’s workmanship. A joyful heart is good. No one can snatch you out of His hand.
And here’s a homemaking bonus – it’s really easy to decorate your home with words. Find free prints on Pinterest and go to town with some Dollar Tree frames. Don’t like the color? Hello, spray paint!
Find a friend with a Cricut or Silhouette and print vinyl clings for your walls. Buy window clings with scripture for your mirrors.
Letterboards and chalkboards are easily changed as often as you like! Change it up with the seasons! 🙂
Don’t know how to letter? No problem – you can use my cheater method.
Find phrases and scripture that speak to your soul and make you laugh.
And then, surround yourself with them. Words have power.
Why Rebounding is My Exercise of Choice
Do you want a discount code to save on the best rebounder out there?! Keep reading!
Listen up – I hate to exercise. It’s the lowest thing on my GET IT DONE list each day. But regardless, I knock it out every day before my kids wake up.
Why am I doing this thing that I don’t really like…especially when I’d rather curl up on the couch with a good book, under a blanket, when the house is nice and quiet?!
Well, the short answer is…I just feel better when I do it. But after trying lots of different methods of exercise, I’ve landed on rebounding as my favorite (see what I did there? Ha!). Let’s talk about why jumping on a rebounder is awesome.
[Read more…]Keeping Christmas Simple
Everywhere we look, it seems like we’re inundated with things to do for Christmas:
- Beautiful trees
- Crafts
- Fancy desserts
- BIG gifts
- Trips
- Parties
Is there anything wrong with any of that? Absolutely not! Those are all wonderful things!!! The problem is, when those things stress us out, and keep us from enjoying our time with family, we don’t really need them.
Menstrual Cups: Not for Coffee
I remember when I first learned about menstrual cups – and it’s totally not a normal story. We were at Bible study and everyone knew I loved coffee – so they gifted me a coffee mug that says: Domestic Diva. For the record, I still love and use that mug regularly.
But then, the men started calling it my Diva Cup. And somehow, someone got on the internet and found out what a Diva Cup really was…and I was ABHORRED. No really.
What!?! No Way!
People do this?! They put a cup up in their hoo-ha?! What a bunch of tree-hugging weirdos!
And now, here we are. In the place where I always find myself…falling off my high horse and eating lots of crow.
Hear that? It’s the crows in my front yard.
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