We Are Family

This month, in honor of Valentine's Day, I'd like to focus most of my blog topics on showing your love.  Which is funny because we aren't really even big Valentine's Day celebrators.  But since most of the world recognizes this as the month of love, I'm gonna go with it.


I decided to start the month talking about something I love more than almost anything....Team Holmes. There is nothing more important to me than my family.  They are my greatest treasure and my most important job. That doesn't mean that I don't want to strangle them all some days.  But for the most part, they are pretty darn awesome.

As a bi-racial family, we have often had the attitude of 'it's us against the world'.  Maybe that's how the whole Team Holmes thing started.  I'm not really sure.  I have to say this attitude has served us well though. When the chips are down, it doesn't matter what anyone else does or thinks, because you have each other.  Ya'll are a unit.  We are a team.

Or maybe you're not such a unit.  But you'd like to be.  Maybe you'd like to spend more time together this year or for your family to grow closer.  Are you spending time together?  I mean, really together, not just 'we're all under the same roof'.  Do you even know how to spend time together?

Years ago we started family night.  Once upon a time, my husband loved playing poker.  He played all the time.  And I loved scrapbooking and went out to do that often.  I found on Fridays that I was always extra sad if he or I were gone.  It was the end of the week and all I wanted to do was be together.  Thus Friday night/Family night was born.  Now, no one makes plans on a Friday unless it is something really special (like someone's birthday party).  Other than that, you want me on a Friday?  You're going to have to come to the HolmeStead.  I'm not even kidding.  (By the way, others are allowed to join our family night!)

Originally, we would do different things each week.  Bowling, the movies, go to a favorite restaurant...Then, times got tight and family night turned into stay home, make pizza and watch a movie. And you know what?  I loved it even more.  For one thing, I'll be honest, I am wiped out on Fridays! And then I realized it didn't matter how exciting our evening was. All that mattered was that we were together.

Now times are not tight for us.  But guess what, we still don't go out on Fridays anymore (well, once in awhile).  We make pizza, play a game, and then watch a movie with some popcorn.  And while I realize that most people don't want to make pizza from scratch like I do (don't judge me!), you can still buy a crust and "make your own".  It's more fun than ordering out.  Just sayin'.  And family night is about having fun.  Enjoy each other's company.  Laugh.  Tell stories.  Talk about your day.

Family nights are sacred and non-negotiable.  They have become a part of who we are.  I remember when my 12 year old was in 1st grade her teacher told me that Cassidy often journaled about family night.  The teacher loved the idea and said to me. "I would love to know if you guys still do that when she is in high school." For some reason, I would think of that every so often.  I would wonder if they would ditch us and then I started thinking, maybe they would bring friends over here for family night, that would be fun.  I know when boys and dating and football games come around, I might not stand a chance.  Then again, I just might.  Last year, Cassidy went to a middle school dance on a Friday night. She was dying to go and asked if we could move family night to Saturday. She was all excited. An hour later she called and asked if she could come home.  When I picked her up, I said, "What's wrong, was it lame?" and she said, "No, it was pretty good.  I just wanted to be with you guys."  Boom.  Drop the mic.

I realize that you might not feel like you can just announce that you are going to have a weekly family night.  Like most things, it's all about the baby steps.  Try for one a month or every couple weeks.  Make them fun! Play the xbox, do karaoke, have a dance party (our personal fav!), make a fun snack to have for the movie, play pictionary....the possibilities are endless!  And if you've had a tough week, pop a movie in, order a pizza (yes, I just said that) and snuggle on the couch.  After all, that's what your team is there for.

Love Your Family!
K

February's Menu

We talked about revisiting goals for the year earlier this week.  Well if you have a goal of losing weight, not eating out as much, saving money or being more organized...you are in luck!  This post is for you.  February's menu, like all my menus, are about eating cleaner, non-processed, healthier foods.  And, we aren't going to eat out several times a week because we don't know what is for dinner and we are too tired to care. Are we?  (no Kim, we aren't!)

Most of you know the drill.  I take a weekend day at the end or beginning of the month and make all these meals for the month (with the help of some friends!) and freeze them.  Here's my gang I had this past Saturday!

One thing I love about freezer meal making is the camaraderie we have.  It makes me think of what quilting bees must have been like.  There's a lot of "Oh I have extra, take some of mine" kind of thing going on.  You get to visit and meet people and work hard and then...it's done!  Many hands make light work. Doesn't mean our feet still don't hurt at the end of our 5 hours!

Fear not, you don't have to do this.  You can freeze in smaller batches (like one week's worth) or, you don't have to freeze at all.  Any of these recipes can be made the night before and thrown in the crockpot in the morning.  So you can just plan for a week at a time, which I realize is a little more manageable for some.  Put you do need to plan.  That's clutch.

Most of the meals I freeze are for the crockpot.  One of the things I love about cooking in the crockpot is since I am not putting all this energy into dinner (I mean, how hard is it to throw a bag in?), I have energy left to make a good side when I get home.  That is one thing I felt like I needed to work on last year and I attacked it with a vengeance.  (Many of you won't believe this, but I would just have a can of corn or green beans for a side!)  I have found tons of delicious sides and they are listed on my calendar as well.  Many of them are really quick and easy, I promise! You too can step away from canned corn and that San Francisco treat. You know the one I mean.

I'm not gonna lie, I am super psyched about this month's menu!

February Menu

And here is the full grocery list!  People often ask how much I spend on groceries.  This month I spent $200.  However, I do split some of the ingredients with the other gals so I am not buying everything myself.  My friend said she spent about $220.  So she figured it out, because she is totally awesome, and the meals were working out to $2.89 each.  Which is pretty darn good, I say.  But again, we are splitting some ingredients with 4 or 5 others.  That helps.

Master Grocery List

Please take time on your weekend to prepare for your weekly meals.  I promise it will help you out SO much with your grocery bill, eating out, and even losing weight!  Think about how many bad decisions we make when we are hungry!  Just sayin'!

Enjoy some deliciousness this month!
K

One Down, Eleven To Go...

I hate to be Captain Obvious here, but we are already finished with our first month of 2016. Geez, how did that happen?

The end of the month is a great time to reflect back on how things are going. How are you doing on those goals you set this year?  Don't groan.  It is far better to look now than wait until the end of the year.  Don't be afraid to look at them.  That's why we wrote them down, remember?  So again, I ask you, how are you doing on those goals?

I have to admit I am pretty pleased with my progress.  I have made some steps to do things that I really wanted (and in some cases needed) to do. They didn't take a terribly long time.  I just had to focus on doing it.  Have I done everything perfectly?  HaHa, don't make me laugh.  But that's ok.  It's all about the progress.

Let me tell you a story.  Last year, my big goal was to actually start this blog.  And I did!  (yeah!) And this year, my goal was to blog more consistently (3 times a week to be exact) and I knew that was going to be an adjustment for me.  This is about to be my 11th post for the month, which is way more than I did any month last year.  I stuck to my schedule (Tues, Thurs and Sun posts) every day except for this past Tues.  It was the only day I missed the whole month.  And do you know what I did?  I started to beat myself up mentally for not doing it.  Isn't that terrible? Reviewing your goals at the end of the month is not meant to be the movie Fight Club.  It's meant to be Steel Magnolias.

Here's what you have to do.  Make yourself a cup of tea.  Get comfy.  Sit down with your goal list for the year.  Review it.  Be realistic.  Talk to yourself the way you would talk to a friend. Here's what I said later..."Wait just a minute here.  Last year, I had just started this blog.  One year later and I will have done 12 posts in one month.  That is incredible."  But hear how my story started out.  I didn't start out thinking that.  I started out at being mad at myself for missing one day in the month.  Shame on me.

I think that is why a lot of us hate thinking or talking about our goals.  Because we hear ourselves saying "I need to be better".  "I need to do this."   "I should have done that."  And I tell ya'll, I used to be the Queen of beating myself up over things.  I think I am still in the royal court, but I have definitely made improvements.  Here is what I am believing this year.  And I have to remind myself this ALL.  THE.  TIME.  I am believing the promises that God has made to me.  And I know I can do all things THROUGH Christ.  Not through Kim Holmes.  I am excited about the things I want to do this year.  And I don't have time to beat myself up for my shortcomings.  Because I am just Kim Holmes.  I will never do it all and certainly not perfectly.  But that is ok.  Because Christ is in me.  What I can't do, He certainly can.  And this gives me an overabundant supply of hope for myself and my life this year.

Tonight I was listening to Joyce Meyer and she said you need to make a decision.  Make a decision to enjoy your journey.  WOW.  How powerful is that?  I am not trying to drive myself insane by reaching all these goals.  I am trying to change myself.  To challenge myself.  I am asking God to continue to help me change and grow.  I want to be better. And I want, no, I need, to enjoy myself while God is changing me.

One of my dear friends gave me this mug.  Be true.  To yourself.  In the movie, The Incredibles, the young Syndrome says to Mr. Incredible, "You always say be true to yourself but you never say what part to be true to." I say all of it, my friend.  Every bit.

All those goals you wrote down for this year, you can do it.  Every bit.

Be True~
K

How to Make A Snowtini

Here in Richmond, we just got pummeled with 12+ inches of snow. What's a girl to do?  Make snowtinis of course!

I looked up lots of snow martini recipes on Pinterest and didn't see anything that floated my boat (or my sled, as the case may be).  Time for Team Holmes to start pulling things out and create our own!

Here's some of what we were working with:


A lot of "White drink" recipes use 1/2 and 1/2 but I really find that to be too rich for me.  I just don't care for it.  Call me crazy, but what I like to use instead is...vanilla ice cream.  My hubs made me a drink years ago with vanilla ice cream and I really didn't think I'd like it.  You know how you go out to a restaurant and get a drink like that and then end up feeling like you are drinking an expensive milkshake?  Not cool.  However, my husband managed to make an ice cream drink with a serious kick.  So vanilla ice cream has won my heart as an unlikely mixer.

We made a couple different versions (all for me to report to you guys, of course!).  They were all delicious!  So...you'll just have to try for yourself and see.

White Chocolate Snowtini
1 oz Whipped Vodka
1/2 oz Creme de Cacoa
1/2 oz Godiva White Liqueur
3 scoops vanilla ice cream

Butterscotch Snowtini
1 oz Butterscotch Schnapps
1 oz Godiva regular liqueur
3 scoops vanilla ice cream
(this one was strong but delish!)

White Out Snowtini
1 oz Vanilla Vodka
1/2 oz Godiva regular liqueur
1 oz 1/2 & 1/2
3 scoops vanilla ice cream
   (See how he secretly slipped some 1/2 and 1/2 in on me!)

You can make these in a blender, or simply whisk until ice cream is soft.  If I had more than a 2 tini limit, I could have tried more for ya'll.  As you see, the possibilities are endless.

Now, a word about rim trim, which I think makes a martini.  I am a serious rim trim junkie and while hubs comes up with the drinks, I'm in charge of decorating the glass.  Of course.  Because he certainly could care less.

You can make rim trim out of all kinds of things.  For my snowtinis, I used some sugar sprinkles, which I always have a ton of.  These particular kind are super pretty.

For the first drink shown, I used the gold sprinkles.  For the drink below, I used the silver and mixed in some regular blue sprinkles as well.

My friend used coconut to trim her glass and it really is gorgeous!

Rim trim won't always stick to your glass so take a very small amount of honey on your finger and run it along the rim of your glass.  Then, put whatever you want to use for rim trim in a bowl that the glass will fit in.  Set the glass in the bowl upside down and spin around.  Then your glass is ready to be filled!

For those of us who are going to be surrounded by the white stuff for awhile, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

Let It Snow!
K

Update on: "I Like Coffee with my Cream"....

Back in November (11/9/15), I brought you a blog post all about one of my favorite subjects.  No, not martinis (that was a darn good guess though)! My other favorite subject.  Coffee.  Recently, a friend of mine was interested in making her own creamers and I was just going on and on about the yummy new creamers I have tried from the blog post.  She asked me how the cheesecloth thing had worked out.  And...I had to say, "Oh yeah, I kind of forgot about that."

For awhile, I had really looked for cheesecloth to test out this straining method and couldn't find it anywhere.  And then, after she asked me, I was in Target and voila!  There was cheesecloth.  So begins cheesecloth experimentation.

For those of you who have not tried a homemade creamer with spices, your last sip will look like this:

I read all kinds of tips on straining that out and really was not having success with anything.  Enter the cheesecloth.

Put the cheesecloth over a strainer.  I kept mine doubled. 

I tried straining the creamer through the cheesecloth and thought it was working because it looked like this:

I even strained it three times.  But in the end, the creamer still looked like this on the bottom:

So, I'm gonna have to go with one of two options.  Either a) don't shake that bottle of creamer before you pour it or b) don't drink that last sip of coffee.  I don't notice it (aka, I don't get a mouth full of cinnamon) while I am drinking it.

On a side note, there were many creamer recipes I listed that did not involve spices at all, so you can just avoid the issue altogether.  Just in case you are a "good to the last drop" kinda girl.

Enjoy a homemade creamer!  They're delicious, regardless of whether you get that last sip or not!

K

I Feel Pretty - Stitch Fix

One of my main focuses this year is on...well...myself. I feel like I should be ashamed to tell ya'll that, but I'm telling you anyway. Too often we need something around here and I go without. I spend my allowance on stuff for my daughters, I go without getting my hair cut so we can have more play money in the summer...does any of this sound familiar to you mommas out there? 

 
A really funny thing happened to me this past summer. I noticed my self-esteem started to take a nose dive. I was jealous, when normally I am not. I was not happy with myself.  I really started to feel some kind of way and that way, well, it just wasn't me. I blamed it on a couple of things, but I think it was just from taking a backseat.  I know one thing for sure, I deserve time and attention just like everyone else does.  And so do you. Some of the the things I want to do this year are: 

1. Have more girls nights. I do lots of double dates. I do lots of "Team Holmes" and your family. Me and just a girlfriend? Not so much.
2. Get my nails done. Consistently.
3. Get my hair done. Consistently (usually it is summer time when I just lose it on this one).
4. And the biggest one of all...buy more things for myself. And by 'things for myself', I don't mean things for my house. I mean clothes. Shoes. Accessories. 

I wanted to get my closet purge in before this post so I could show you what my closet will look like when I am done....pitiful. Most of the things in my closet are either a) school t-shirts or b) don't fit anymore (but I keep thinking maybe they will again soon). When I purge it and only leave the things I love, and get rid of everything that is worn out or doesn't fit, I will be very surprised if I have more than 10 things (not including shoes). Sigh...

That's alright. It's a new year. Time for some changes.  One of the problems with getting your nails done, and your hair done, and buying clothes for yourself, is that you have to take TIME to do that. Excuse me, MAKE time. And therein lies my biggest problem.

It just so happened that before Christmas break one of my teacher friends told me about Stitch Fix. Ever heard of it? I hadn't (of course)! Stitch Fix is a personal stylist who picks out clothes and sends them to you. You start by filling out a small style profile questionnaire. You select how often you want a fix: every 2-3 weeks, every month, every other month, every 3 months, or not automatic at all. You can also link a specific Pinterest Board, Twitter or Linkedin account of yours, to let your stylist see what types of things you like! Schedule your first fix and sit back and wait.

Now, here's how it works:  When your box ships, a $20 stylist fee comes out of your account. If you buy anything from the box, that $20 is applied to your purchase. So you are really only paying a stylist fee if you don't buy anything.

Your box arrives! Ta-da! I was so excited, it was like Christmas. They send you 5 items. I got 2 shirts, 1 pair of pants, 1 scarf and 1 coat. You can specifically ask for certain things, such as "I am going to a wedding and am looking for a cocktail dress" or "I really need some jeans to love", etc. or just leave it open, which I did (what do I say, "I need it all!"?) 

They really walk you through the whole process...

And then, you get the fun of seeing the goodies!! 

They give you a list of what each item is and how much it costs, and a style card to give you ideas of what to wear with the items they sent you.  I mean, is this fun ya'll or what? 

Do you want to see what I got? Oh geez, I thought you'd never ask! First of all, let me apologize for the pictures and picture quality. Hubs had gone to work and I had to send my items back (you have 3 days to look them over, and yes, they send you a postage paid envelope to return everything in, just drop it in the mail!) So, my photographer was a 12 year old who really wanted to get back to her, whatever it was she was doing. Plus, I have never really taken a picture of just me modeling clothes so I felt like a big dork.

Item #1 - Andrew Marc - Sidi Toggle Wool Coat - $178

When I first saw this, I thought "Meh". Didn't think it was my style or color. But when I tried it on, it was super cute!

 

And warm. And it fit great. Alas, I couldn't keep a $178 coat at this time. Believe me, I wish I had kept it today. It was like, 3 degrees here.
Verdict: Returned

Item#2 - 41 Hawthorn - Beatrice Exposed Zipper Dolman Top - $58

I knew I was going to love this before I even put it on. It was very soft, and I just loved the gold zipper in the back! 

 

Trust me, it looked way cuter than this picture looks (see aforementioned comment about hormonal photographer and dorky model!)! I wore it Sat night to my hubs' birthday party and got so many compliments!

Verdict: Kept. Guess you figured that when I said I wore it to my husband's birthday party, huh?

Item #3 - RD Style - Wilkes Colorblocked Raglan Sweater - $58 

(picture below)

The sweater was cute but just not a great color for me.  It fit great and was really soft.  

Verdict:  Returned

Items #4 - Liverpool - Collen Straight Leg Jean - $78

Now I saw the price and said "I would never pay $78 for a pair of jeans."  Then I put them on.  5 minutes later I said, "I would pay $78 for these jeans."  Not only did they fit great, they felt like butter.  I loved the fade on them and according to my photographer, they made my butt look good.

Vedict:  Sadly, returned

 

Item #5 - Look by M - Della Tartan Plaid Infinity Scarf - $34
Another one I saw in the box and thought "Meh, not really me".  Put it on and it was really cute (and again, with the softness!).

So I guess my stylist knew what she was doing afterall.  This would be a good time to tell you that if you do buy your whole box, you get a 25% discount, along with your styling fee off.  So I could have gotten all these items for $284.50, which is a pretty good deal.  Now, this would also be a good time to tell you that I am pretty much a cheapskate when it comes to clothes.  The prices on these items, I needed a minute.  BUT...I had 2 epiphanies.  #1.  I have been having an issue lately with things I have recently bought having holes or tears in them.  Cheap clothes.  Am I saving money in the long run? (And apparently nice clothes are really soft.)  #2.  If we go out to dinner, which isn't often, but it DOES happen, we will easily spend $30.  And I am talking about Sonic here, not even a real restaurant.  I will spend $30 on food that, well, let's just say that's not gonna last (except on my thighs), but balk at spending $58 on a blouse that made me feel amazing and will hopefully last for a long time, at least longer than dinner, that's for sure.  Sometimes we have mindsets about things that we need to analyze.  When I thought about it that way, it seemed totally worth it.  I am totally worth it.  You are too.

If you would like to check out Stitch Fix, please use my referral code:

https://www.stitchfix.com/referral/6481899

I get a credit for anyone who does get a shipment.  Which would be great.  Remember the 10 things in my closet.  Well, 11 now because I kept that one black blouse.  A referral might get me up to item #12.

You might think I was disappointed because I only kept one thing, but I wasn't.  I had a ball!  One of the things that I indicated to my stylist was that I wanted to try new things.  She picked 2 things for me that I would have never tried on and I thought they were both cute on me.  And that's part of what I want this year.  To branch out a little, try some new things and become an even better me.  And yeah, what girl doesn't want to feel pretty?

Try Something New!

K

Some Cheese (and Bacon!) to Go with your Wine

In my last post, I shared some ideas with you for throwing a wine tasting party.  Here's a great recipe to serve with your wine, whether it's a legit party or just the two of you sharing a bottle of vino.

This recipe is amazing.  I know because I made it for our wine tasting party this weekend.  They were so good, the birthday boy didn't even get to try one!  Which is a shame, because the bacon was just for him.  They really went fast. (Although one person admitted to eating about 14 of them himself!)
                                   Cheddar Bacon Crackers

If you have a food processor, this recipe is super easy!  The hardest part is cooking the bacon, folks. Really.  

Mmmm.....

Enjoy some soon!

K