Four crockpot recipes--help make your workweek easier!

Since I am so incredibly behind I thought I would link some crockpot recipes that I have tried in the last few weeks that have been hits at our house.  For us the crockpot is very important in the fall---football from 6-8pm 3 nights a week makes it difficult to make a meal easily and stress free.  Enter the crockpot.  We have a lot of great staple recipes from chili to gumbo but I wanted to try a few new ones.  Pinterest of course helped me out on that one.  lol

The first one is a tortellini soup.  The recipe can be found HERE.  I used reduced fat cream cheese and a while bag of spinach leaves but otherwise the recipe was left as is.  I calculated the calories using a "recipe builder" on myfitnesspal and if you have 4 servings ( very generous servings) it is 450 calories per serving.  I really liked it.  Travis wouldn't eat it however.  He didn't even try it--if he had he would have liked it I'm sure.  You could also serve over rice if you wanted to.

This picture shows the soup with sausage crumbles in it

The next one is a balsamic chicken recipe.  I love balsamic chicken and this was no exception.  The ingredients you probably have at home all the time which makes this recipe even better.  The recipe can be found HERE.  I chose to serve this over rice and we had some corn as well.  A definite keeper if you ask me.  Low calorie and very tasty.  Everyone enjoyed it---well not Brody but unless it's a chicken nugget he's generally not interested.  ;)

This next one was a huge hit.  "Cool ranch crockpot chicken"---we served it as tacos with all of the fixins.  I personally had mine on a bed of spinach leaves but the boys had taco shells.  This was super yummy and so easy.  We generally have the ingredients on hand for this one as well which makes it a winner.  You can find the recipe linked HERE.

And last but not least I tried out a new apple dessert crockpot recipe.  I honestly can't remember what we had for dinner that night but this was the dessert.  We came home from football that ngiht and the house smelled AWESOME!  You can find the recipe linked HERE.  I loved it.  Evan had seconds.  Travis wouldn't try it---he doesn't like warm apples apparently.  Weird.  ;)

Brody loves school

Brody's teacher just sent me these pictures of Brody and his girlfriend Lauren at school.  He loves school--he doesn't love the early wake up call so much but he loves school once he gets there and sees everybody!

It took 45+ minutes of coaxing to get Brody to do the shaving cream activity but here is proof he finally caved and had a great time with the activity in the end!

Brody and Lauren stacking the blocks in the specific order they learned from the book "The Napping House"

Here is Brody laying down his "The Napping House" character when they were doing group sequencing and Lauren is behind him

Brody and Lauren enjoying the water table

Lego show

Over the summer on a complete whim I decided to take the kids to the Lego show at the Dulles Expo Center.  Mandy, Charlie, Annabelle and Paxson came with us too!  (Evan was at Lollapalooza that weekend)  Wwe waited in a HUGE line but thankfully the line moved super fast---it was at least 200 people deep but it only took about 10 minutes to get in the door once it opened.

The kids all loved looking at the Legos--Brody was infatuated with this one huge dusplay of levers etc with tiny basketballs and soccer balls.  Every time we tried to look at something else in the room he would eventually make it back there.  I bet if I had just left him there he would've still be at that display 30 minutes later!  lol

A good time was had by all and next year I will be sure to get the pre-order tickets and save a few dollars and a little bit of time.  :)

Annabelle, Brody, Paxson and Travis in line

We made it in!

The little ones loved watching this pirate ship go around and around

He loved this football stadium display

CUTE

Free build

Part of that basketball/soccer ball display

Star Wars

Batman

This was on the way out--I couldn't get Brody to get in there with him

Just priceless......

What's priceless you ask?  The look on a kids face when they catch a lightning bug for the first time.  I don't think either of my kids had ever "caught fireflies" before.......so I had put it on my summer list this year.  One evening we went over to Aunt Mandy and Uncle Charlie's house (she said they had a lot of lightning bugs) and we wanted to get it done.  :)  It had rained most of the day/evening and we were standing in the yard seeing not one bug.  I was about to put the kids in the car to go home when someone yelled "I SEE ONE".  lol  Then this happened.  :)

Are you ready for some FOOTBALL?

Travis is in his 3rd year of tackle football.  This year he is playing 1st team center and 1st team defensive end.  They have only played 2 games (one loss and one tie) but Travis has been on FIRE!  On defense he has been tackling kids all over the place and on offense he has gotten 100% of his snaps off without an issue.  He loves football---loves it.  He works hard and it's defiantely showing this year! 

Huddle before they run through the sign  ;)

Travis #34

In hot persuit of someone

He doesn't play in the 2nd quarter but he loves to watch his team mates

Travis and Daniel

Huddle

Travis under center

#34 doing his thing :)

Brody is playing SOCCER!

After watching Travis play sports for about 3.5 years it's FINALLY Brody's turn!  Brody is on a team with his cousin Annabelle and this past Saturday was their first "game/practice".  I will be honest when I say that I fully expected him to do NOTHING with the team the entire time.  You could have knocked me over with a feather at one point I was just so shocked----Brody was participating 100% the whole time (except when he was way over heated and had to sit for a minute) and was listening and understood all of the things the coach said to do!!!!!  Seriously I was shocked.  He seemed to be loving it the whole time too which is awesome.  Maybe Brody has found his sport.  :)  With all of his speech issues and his "developmental delay" I just wasn't sure what he would do.......I now know that it will always work out.  Enjoy the pictures! 

Brody is ready!

Practicing throw ins-lol

Listening :)

Brody was the 1st to know where the colors were each time!

There he goes!

Going to the "red one"

Lunging

Tired

Kick it Brody!

I put my camera down about 30 minutes into practice......aka when Annabelle finally joined in (she was being ultra shy).  I will get some pictures of her in action next time.  :)

Travis by the way wasn't thrilled with having to sit on the sidelines.  He kept complaining about being hot and bored.  I told him to deal with it since Brody has had to do that for his whole life at Travis' practices and games!  :)