Archives for 2012

Expired Papa Murphy’s Pizza: Customer Appreciation Days

September 14, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Papa Murphy’s Pizza

From Thursday, September 13 through Sunday, September 16, participating Papa Murphy’s Pizza locations celebrate Customer Appreciation Days.

During this promotion, Papa Murphy’s pepperoni pizzas are $5. Yeah!

Papa Murphy’s Pizza is hands down our family’s favorite pizza supplier. I use the word supplier because Papa Murphy’s is a take and bake establishment.

Take and bake means, you order your pizza, and they create and wrap it. You make payment, take it home, and bake it.

Their pizzas are fantastic. Our favorite is the Chicago-style stuffed pizza which feeds our family of 5 and my husband’s parents. Yes, one pizza for 4 adults and 3 children.

The cost is worth every penny – $13 for a family-size (using a coupon, of course.) With frequent coupons and a limit of 3 per coupon, I order three pizzas, pay, and bring them home. I bake one to eat and freeze the other two for future meals or to minister to a family in need.

With customer appreciation day in full-swing, our family will enjoy this affordable dinner solution this weekend. Thank you, Papa Murphy’s!

Question: What is your favorite pizza supplier or topping?

Perkins: Free Pancakes – September 15, 2012

September 14, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Perkins

To promote Give the Kids the World, participating Perkins locations will serve free pancakes to each guest. The free short stack of buttermilk pancakes is only valid Saturday, September 15, 2012.

If you participate, Perkins will request a donation to Give the Kids the World, a non-profit resort for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Per the Perkins Facebook page, these are the participating locations. You may want to contact your Perkins location to confirm participation and promotional hours.

Photograph Credit: Perkins

Enjoy your weekend making special memories with those you love. Happy weekend!

Question: What is your favorite pancake topping?

Drying Herbs: Basil, Oregano, and Parsley

September 13, 2012 by Tracy

Most of you know that this is my first year having a garden. Our little experiment has produced strawberries, cucumbers, tomatoes, a green pepper, lettuce, and herbs.

As our basil, oregano, and parsley filled their squares of our garden, I trimmed their plants and harvested the herbs. Though not perfect, I present Tracy’s version of drying herbs of basil, oregano, and parsley.

Trimming the Plants

Basil: I learned early in the planting season that basil needs lots of water. Wilting leaves revive quickly with heavy watering and multiply into a thriving plant. The basil plant grows vertical and horizontal, so I used scissors to trim from the perimeter to the core. I left a center section for continued growth.

Oregano: I love the feel of oregano. It has a soft coating on the leaves. The oregano plant has short, thick leaves, grows close to the ground, and spreads horizontally. When harvesting oregano, I trim all but a 3- to 4-inch center because the plant will keep growing.

Parsley: Our curled parsley grows like a fountain. The stalks are thin and tall cascading to the sides. The growth is both vertical and horizontal, so I cut towards the center without bothering the main stem. (I learned that lesson with my lettuce as I cut the main stem and killed the entire plant. Oops!)

Washing the Cuttings

Taking the cuttings, I rinse and wash them in cool water. Since the basil and parsley grow off the ground, they have little soil on the leaves. However, the oregano spreads on the ground, and the soil dries on the leaves. Also, the oregano leaves are smaller than the others making cleaning a bit tricky.

Tracy’s Tip: I found putting the oregano in a bowl of water and rubbing the leaves through my fingers easily dislodges the dirt. To prevent the leaves from wilting, I dry them well with paper towels before leaving them to dry.

Drying the Cuttings

In reading tutorials, the cuttings should dry in a cool, dark place for a few days to a few weeks. My cool, dark place is on my counter. I know, a closet might work better, but I’ll forget about it – out of sight, out of mind. So, I place the rinsed cuttings on paper towels on my counter for a few days.

Once they are partially dry, I stack them on top of each other. I then make a dark place by covering with another paper towel. In about 2-3 weeks, the herbs are dry and ready for storing.

Storing the Cuttings

When the cuttings are dry, I place all the basil cuttings in a bowl. Using a pair of kitchen shears, I cut for about 5 minutes until the basil is in fine pieces. I repeat this process with the oregano, and then again with the parsley.

Once the herbs are cut, I place one herb in a sandwich-size Ziploc bag. I write the name of the herb and the date on the bag with a Sharpie marker. When all the bags are closed and labeled, I store the bags in my pantry on the top shelf.

In getting the most from my garden, I am learning to dry herbs of basil, oregano, and parsley. As a newbie gardener, I am experimenting, so I welcome your tips, tricks, and suggestions.

In using time wisely, I find drying herbs worth my time and energy since the process takes bits of time throughout the process. With room for improvement, I’m enjoying the journey. Happy harvesting!

Question: What are your tips for drying herbs?

National Do Not Call Registry

September 12, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: National Do Not Call Registry

While cooking dinner on the stove, calling out spelling words to my second grader, and buckling the tiny plastic seat belt in Strawberry Shortcakes’ car, my telephone rings.

As I prevent dinner from burning, calm my son who is waiting for his next word, and hand the car to my toddler, I trip over the toys on the kitchen floor and reach the phone. Met with a recorded message informing me that I qualify for a credit card or a credit increase that I have not requested, I hang up.

Though those irritating phone call disruptions will never entirely go away, I have limited those disruptions by placing our telephone numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry. Due to the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007, telephone numbers placed on the Do Not Call Registry remain on the list permanently.

Do Not Call Registry Defined

The Do Not Call Registry is a list of phone numbers refusing telephone solicitations. If you have an account with a company or one of its subsidiaries, you may have accepted their terms of agreement to contact you with offers, like my example above. You cannot stop all the extra phones calls, but you can stop lots of them.

Limits of Do Not Call Registry

You can register your home and cellular phone numbers.

Registration is free, and as of February 2008, your registration will not expire.

How to add your number to the Do Not Call Registry

1. Online

2. Phone by calling 1-888-382-1222

3. TTY by calling 1-866-290-4236

In using time wisely, add your phone numbers to the National Do Not Call Registry. As you cut the number of distractions, you might finish dinner on time without any burnt edges. 🙂 Happy distraction removal!

Question: How often do you get bothered with unsolicited phone calls?

Celebrating Labor Day – Easter-style

September 11, 2012 by Tracy

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! I love this saying since life is constantly changing. Though I plan and schedule activities, sometimes life happens and those plans fall through. Such was the case during Easter this year, so we changed plans to celebrating Labor Day – Easter-style.

I had great plans for celebrating an unhurried Easter, and then our family caught a spring cold that brought our schedule to an abrupt halt. Our recovery lasted through Easter and into the next week, so our Easter celebration was simple without lots of extra activities.

My children still wanted to complete the Easter activities, so we kept out our decorations. With the busyness of the end-of-the-school year, summer, and family vacation, I finally pulled out the Easter activities on our rainy Labor Day weekend. Yep, 5 months later, we celebrated our Labor Day – Easter-style. 😉

Resurrection Eggs

My favorite Easter activity is reviewing the Easter story through the hands-on opening of the Resurrection eggs.

On Labor Day morning, we setup on the living floor. With their eggs before them, my children opened the eggs in numerical order as I read the Easter story.

I enjoyed hearing my children tell me portions of the Resurrection story using the items found within their eggs.

After finishing the Easter story, I listened as my children used their eggs to re-tell the Easter events. At the conclusion of play, we packed up our Resurrection Eggs for safe-keeping until March or April of 2013. Well, that’s the current plan because you just never know. 😉

Coloring Easter Eggs

After a Labor Day lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches, my son chose to play a game with Paul while the toddler took a nap. My older daughter had begged for months to color Easter eggs, so we created them together.

Upon prepping our work space with newspaper, she chose the coloring kit and plastic colored cups that matched the colored tablets. We measured the water, added the tablets, and watched the water change colors.

We had a blast as my daughter colored 2 dozen eggs. While patiently waiting the 5 minutes between colorings, she drew with a wax crayon on the white eggs.

When she colored those eggs, her writing remained white as the wax prevented the dye from coloring the egg. The Easter egg coloring process took around an hour and was time spent wisely.

Though we did not have an Easter Egg Hunt due to the rain, we opened the Resurrections eggs while reading the Easter story and colored eggs. Our unconventional Easter-style Labor Day offered fun activities and ended with Easter decorations neatly packed and organized for spring activities.

In using time wisely to prepare for holidays and special events, plan well. When your plans fall short, reschedule – even if it’s 5 months later. Plans will change, but when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Happy planning!

Question: What holiday have you celebrated unconventionally?

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