12-16-08

Waiting for the gift game to start
Playing the gift game

Tree with all the gifts

Heading down the line of scrumptious food.

Our table of ladies


So today we had our little Christmas party at MOPS. With a ton of scrumptious food. Would it be MOPS without great food? Hmmmm, maybe we should try that out one time....OR not!

Pastor Dane Snyder and his wife Sherrie spoke today on finding the purpose of Christmas. They did a wonderful job of tag teaming.

Then we played a dice game to determine which gift you got. Once everyone had a gift we began rolling the dice again. If you rolled doubles you got to go and take another gift. This lasted for a LONG 3 minutes. However, at the end I did still have my wonderful reindeer candle holder that I wanted!

Meet the Moppet Teachers

MOPS would not be possible without our dedicated and caring Moppet volunteers!
Introducing the Moppet Team:

Tree House:

Monte

Julie

Heather

Friendship Room:

Karyn

Andreya
Brandon

Melinda

In the Nursery:

Jennifer

Jackie

Marilyn

Diana

Bailey

Not pictured in Nursery is Rebecca Myhill

12-2-08

Today's meeting was very fun.
Heidi Fox came and gave us some great holiday tips. Heidi is "budget caterer". She caterers friends, family & church functions. She said she is often referred to as Martha but is by far not Martha. Through her tips she gave a bit of her testimony growing up & how she believes her love for cooking is her God given talent. She encouraged each of us to find the talent God has given us because He has given each of us our own unique talent.

A few tips we learned today were:

• How to set a table with multiple layers using books or boxes to create layers & then "puddling" the table cloth or fabric over it. Think outside box when looking for table decorations. Some of her best table cloths aren't really table cloths at all. Example she gave was to use a fabric shower curtain.
• Use neutral platters when serving. Then you can let your food set the mood or be the presentation.
• She loves the knives found at Costco Business center. (roughly around $7.00)
• QFC sharpens knives for free in the butcher department or you can buy the handy dandy Samuri Sharke at Walmart.
• Some of her favorite cookbooks are

1. Martha Stewart Cookie Cookbook - she recommends the basic Choc. Chip recipe
2. Cake Mix Doctor - recommends the Carrot cake
3. Barefoot Contessa
4. Cooks Illustrated - each recipe reads like a novel but gives great tips like - soak a spiral
ham for 90 minutes before cooking. This helps to maintain the juices.

• Basic kitchen items she uses daily: kids ruler for measuring (it's dishwasher safe!), cake leveler for leveling/cutting cakes (cut a round cake into 4 pieces and you have a "torte"), and a digital scale that measures up to 12 pounds.
• Instant coffee/espresso is a great add in to any brownie or cookie recipe. Add 1tbsp per recipe for a little kick.
• Finally - she loves, loves, loves Costco!! - she mentioned many times - Anyone who knows me knows I was happy - as my husband is a manager at Costco - so you ladies spending money helps us pay our mortgage. A win-win for all of us ;o).
  
• Costco tips - When a price at ends in .97 it's a markdown and if the tag has a * in the corner it means that this item isn't coming back to the store - so buy it when you see it.

Our craft today was assembling a bag of Cranberry Pecan scone mix.
3.5 cups of scone mix
3/4 cup of craisins
1/3 cup pecans
Then we attached the recipe card & a pretty Christmas ribbon. I can't decide if I am going to make the scones or give them away. I love the way the little package looks but then again the scones will taste even better!

Okay, I believe that sums it up. Don't forget next time to bring a gift for the gift exchange. A gift found at home that you aren't using. Janas idea an un-opened bottle of lotion ( we all have at least one of these lying around)

What do MOPS mom's do for fun?

They go to the New Kids On The Block concert!!!!!

Yes, that's right a few of your fellow MOPS mom's attended the NKOTB concert. And when the concert started these MOPS mom's most certainly were waving their hands in the air, singing along and screaming their hearts out. We had a blast!!! Oh, and by the way.....we traveled in style to the concert.....a red minivan ;o)

Sweet soccer mom faces



Our party faces

Happy Holidays!!
MOPS will be gearing up for Christmas starting this Tuesday, December 2. Our speaker will be Heidi Fox - she will share her story on how God led her to begin a catering business. She will also share some cooking tips with us and some yummy recipes - one that you will take home with you!
Coming on December 16th we will be having our Christmas Party. I mention this date now because we will be having a gift exchange. It was so fun last year, we have to do it again. But this requires you to look around your house and find something you would like to pass on to another mom that can use it. For example - I still have a few baby gifts for Sarah that have never been worn and I also have several unopened bottles of lotion. I am sure some lucky mom would enjoy one or two of these items. Bring gift wrapped.
See you soon!

CLUBHOUSE SALAD

-Two packages of tiny macaroni noodles (not the elbow macaroni, but one step down from that)

-Sweet pickle relish

-Canned pimientos 8oz OR Sweet red peppers

-Chopped olives (2 cans)

-Best foods Mayonnaise

Add all of these things together in a big tupperware bowl so that you can cool everything after it has been made. It requires quite a bit of mayonnaise so add to your liking (taste test). When you pull it out of the refrigerator, you'll need to stir it again. The next day it tastes the best after its had time to get nice and cold.

*submitted by Michelle Stephens*

Ham & Scalloped Potatoes

HAM AND SCALLOPED POTATOES

-Peel 8-10 potatoes

-Cubed ham or half of a ham (cut up into squares)

-Cheddar cheese slices or shredded cheese (preferably cheddar)

To make the sauce in a saucepan, you want to add 6 tbs of flour, 6 tbs of butter, 3 cups of milk, chop 1/4 of an onion.

Start out by melting the butter, then add the flour. Stir with a wisk until its no longer lumpy. Add 3 cups of milk slowly.

Cook on medium heat until thick. Then after the potatoes have all been peeled, cut them up in slices horizontally. Start making layers following this pattern: potatoes, ham, chopped onion, then top with cheese.

BAKE AT 350 DEGREES FOR 1 1/2 HOURS!

*submitted by Michelle Stephens*

Apple Pan Goodie

4- 5 medium apples pealed and sliced
3/4 cup craisins
6 Tbs brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon divided
3 Tbs butter
6 eggs
1 1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cup flour
3/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar

1. Saute apples, craisins, 3/4 tsp cinnamon, and brwn sugar until apples are soft.
2. Put the apples into the bottom of greased 9x13 pan
3. Blend eggs, oj & salt until smooth
4. Pour egg mixture over the apples
5. Sprinkle with sugar & 1/4 tsp of cinnamon
6. Bake 425 for 20-25 minutes
   

**I used a mixture of apples & pears. And any size pan works, just make sure to
bake until a test stick comes out clean in the middle.**


*submitted by Ginny Taylor*

11-18 Meeting

On Tuesday we had a great time of fellow shipping, eating great food of course, hearing a guest speaker and a craft.
The guest speaker was Kathy Seregow. She is a pre-school teacher, pastor's wife & a mom. She was just wonderful to listen to.

CRAFT -
The craft was simple one - decorating envelopes to hold our coupons in. And then we put all the envelopes on a ring for easy handling. I had to leave before MOPS was over so I didn't get to see some of the finished projects. Above are mine that I did this morning.

SPEAKER -
Kathy spoke on Gratitude/Gratefulness. A few things jumped out at me that were said and I will share those with you:

• You will never coast into Joy but you must take it by the horns.
• Di satisfaction happens when our focus shifts from what we have to what we don't have.
• Albert Einstein said "There are two ways to live, As if nothing is a miracle and As if everything is a miracle.
  

And I loved what she said about prayer. "You will never be a prayer warrior at 65 if you aren't praying now. Wow - That is so true.

One of the last thing's she did was challenge us to take 5 minutes a day and spend it with the Lord. I know we all get busy, but 5 minutes is possible if we just set it aside.

Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole

This recipe is very good if you like curry dishes. Our family loves curry and enjoy eating this dish. Plus it's not very hard to make.

1 cup sour cream
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1-3 tblsp of curry (depending on how much you like curry seasoning)
4 tbls of milk
1-2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups of plain bread crumbs
4 lrg chicken breasts (this works well with lots of chicken)
1 small onion diced
2-3 cups of RAW broccoli florets ( do not use frozen)
Cooked Rice

• Cut chicken into chunks and saute with the onion
• In separate bowl mix soup, sour cream, curry powder and milk
• Add broccoli and chicken to the sauce mix and mix well
• Spray a 13x9 baking dish with non-stick spray & dump the entire mixture into the dish
• Top with cheese and bread crumbs
• Bake 350 for 50 min until tender
• Serve over a bed of rice

*submitted by Gina Detlor*

Tortellini-Basil Soup

1 32oz container of Fat free chicken broth
1 9oz pkg fresh cheese tortellini (I get the two pack at Costco)
1 15.5 oz can of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
1 tblsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 teas salt
1 teas fresh ground pepper

• Bring broth to a boil. Add tortellini, cook 6 minutes or until tender. Stir in beans & tomato.
• Reduce heat to simmer for 3-4 mins or till thoroughly heated
• Remove from heat, stir in balsamic vinegar, basil and salt.
• Ladle into bowls and top with sprinkle of pepper

*submitted by Gina Detlor*

Gina's Hasbrown Casserole

Here is the famous hasbrown casserole - the one that made Gina late to MOPS and that she burned her arm on while cooking. ***Warning***not healthy but ohhhh so good.

Ingredients:
2lbs frozen shredded or cubed potatoes
1/2 cup melted butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups cheddar cheese (shredded)
8 oz sour cream
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 small onion
2 cups crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup melted butter

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Spray a 13x9 pan with some non-stick cooking spray.
Dump the mixed ingredients into the pan.
Pour on crushed cornflakes and drizzle over the top the second 1/2 cup of butter.
Bake 45 min at 350

*submitted by Gina Detlor*