Check This Out….

I am so excited about E-mealz that I’ve told every mommy friend I have about it! It is such a great time saver! I have seen my fair share of online menu planners, recipe sites, and shopping guides. But there were TWO main things that got me really excited about E-Mealz:

1. The recipes and menus are already put together for you on ONE page for the ENTIRE week! Only one page to keep track of and really good but simple recipes that don’t take forever to prepare.
2. The weekly menu and shopping list coordinate with the weekly store SALES! How cool is that? I don’t keep up with what’s on sale on my own so I don’t know to plan my menus accordingly. But E-Mealz does it for me! I love that!

They offer at least 16 different menu plans, including low-carb choices. You can take your shopping list to Kroger, Publix, Aldos, and even WalMart. Items on sale for the week are listed in the grocery shopping list you print out from their site. And at only $1.25 each week, it is definitely worth your time as a mom to check it out. They do so much of the work for you.

E-mealz’s menu plans:

…are written and created by REAL moms with REAL families
…are balanced and family friendly
…are as easy as possible, but delicious and kid tested!
…consist of favorite recipes collected from hundreds of moms
…come with an organized, aisle by aisle grocery list
…are for 4 to 6 people
…are based on the current week sales at your grocery
…are priced at approximately $75 per week
…Two person plans average $35 total per week

The ladies at E-mealz even offer special menus and recipes for holidays throughout the year! That is certainly more than I do around here.

They show you the items that are for sale each week that are included in your printout so you can begin to see your savings–before you ever leave home!

While there have been some menus we didn’t care for as a family, it wasn’t difficult at all to substitute one of our own favorites, or to put in a different menu from a previous E-mealz choice. And as you may have guessed, we often double or triple the recipes to feed our crew.

Do yourself a favor and check out E-mealz’s website to see the endorsements from people like Dave Ramsey and Southern Living, then view the choices they offer. It might be the best investigative work you’ve done in a long time that will pay you big dividends in time and money.

You may just find yourself sharing E-Mealz with all of YOUR mommy friends too.

I, too, am enjoying E-Mealz since you told me about them. I commented on this program in another post, which you can read by clicking here. I encourage every mom to give it a try. That’s the only way you’ll know if it works for you or not.

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My oldest son is coming home for Christmas on Thursday and he is requesting spiced cider. He’s not a hot chocolate fan, so this is his beverage of choice for the holidays. Normally, this is not a problem; however, I can’t find my recipe. Yikes! I basically know what goes into it, but I want the proportions so it tastes good.

I asked Faith, but she doesn’t have it either. And the other problem is, I can’t remember where I got the recipe years ago.

While I thought I’d look up some variations of this drink on the Internet, I also decided that maybe some of you would also like a recipe, too.

Listed below are a few that I found, along with a link of where I found them. I want to make sure I give credit where credit is due.

I’m sure after I look them over, I’ll tweek them here and there and come up with my own. In fact, I know that’s what I did years ago……That’s why I can’t find an exact copy!

Happy sipping!

Recipe #1

Hot Spiced Cider

Apple cider is spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

Ingredients:

• 3 quarts apple cider
• 12 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preparation:

In a large saucepan, bring all ingredients to a boil. Strain and serve hot spiced cider hot in mugs.

Makes 12 cups of hot spiced cider.

This recipe is a very basic one, and may taste great. It has some of the ingredients I use, but I’m looking for one that uses a percolator for preparing this beverage. Back to Google!

Recipe #2

Hot Spiced Cider

This recipe sounds pretty good, and contains most of what I put into mine, but it doesn’t have cranberry juice, so I think I’ll keep looking.

Recipe #3

Hot Spiced Cider

First, take a large jug of apple juice or cider (a gallon is a good amount). Then pour the juice into a large pot on the stove (or into the crockpot if you don’t want to use a burner). Heat to a simmer.

Then add the following ingredients to the simmering juice:

• 1 cup of frozen orange juice concentrate (this ingredient is a MUST)
• 2 teaspoons (more or less) of EACH of the following: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves (whole or ground)
• 1 cup (or less) of cranberry juice

Let it all simmer for awhile (half an hour at least).

The smell wafting through the house while the cider is simmering is simply heaven. Serve the hot spiced cider in mugs. For a nice touch, add a whole cinnamon stick to each mug.

Having a large pot of hot, spiced apple cider simmering on the stove when company arrives is a sure way to make them very happy that they chose to come over to your house.

Recipe #4

Vickie’s New and Improved Hot Spiced Cider

As I’ve looked over the recipes above, mine is starting to come back to me. Here’s what I’m going to propose as my new recipe for Hot Spiced Cider.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 gallon of apple juice or cider
• 1/2 gallon of cranberry juice
• 1 cup of orange juice
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 6 cinnamon sticks
• 10 whole cloves

Preparation:

Using a percolator:

1. You need a big percolator that holds at least 18 cups.
2. Pour apple cider and cranberry juice into coffee pot.
3. Place ingredients in the coffee basket and fill with brown sugar, cinnamon sticks, and cloves.
4. Brew, and serve hot.

Using a crockpot or pot on top of stove:

1. Be sure your pot can hold 18 cups of liquid.
2. Pour apple cider or juice, cranberry juice, and orange juice into pot.
3. Place brown sugar, cinnamon sticks, and cloves in a piece of cheesecloth and tie with string or twist tie.
4. Place spice mixture into liquid.
5. Heat cider mixture until desired drinking temperature.

Now, don’t tell Matthew I had to wing it this year. It will be our secret….

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Like so many other families, we have enjoyed certain Christmas traditions over the 34 years Jim and I have been married. I thought it would be fun just to share a few with you.

Here’s one my two youngest children started doing when they were about five and six. After spending the day decorating the Christmas tree, they would bring up their pillow and blankets for bedtime and sleep under the tree! As they have gotten bigger over the last ten years, it has become necessary to sleep more to the side of the tree, rather than under it.

At some point during the night, Jim or I would make our way out to the living room, turn off the lights, and go on to bed. When they were smaller, they were usually asleep by then. Now that they are older, they turn them off as they are getting sleepy because a 10-foot Christmas tree full of lights makes the living room too bright for sleeping.

You ask me how this tradition got started? I tell you….I don’t know.

Then there’s the one about spending the day in our pajamas. Personally, this is not one of my favorites because I tend to feel less productive when I spend the day in my PJ’s. However, the rest of my family really enjoys doing this. In fact, the girls have been known to buy a new pair of PJ’s just for this occasion! To this I say, “To each his own.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be Christmas Day without homemade hot chocolate and spiced cider. At some point after we have finished opening the presents, I make my way into the kitchen and whip up a special batch for those I love. (And don’t forget the marshmellows. They really do add to the taste of the hot chocolate.)

Then there is Jim’s favorite tradition. He loves being able to find a quiet moment during the craziness of the day and begin reading from his new book he received as a present. Which reminds me–I had better check with the rest of the crew and make sure somebody has bought him one for Christmas.

Finally, we usually try and make time to watch a couple of good movies to finish out the day. This may be a Christmas favorite we didn’t get time to watch leading up to Christmas Day, or it might be one that we received as a gift. Here’s hoping I get the newest Love Comes Softly movie. Hint. Hint.

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