Meet Yolanda's Table

Here's Yolanda then and now!

Yolanda is in 1/3 MOPS and this is her second year as a DGL.  She has two kids.

Meet her table!

just a few of the ladies! 

Each person was asked this question:

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

YOLANDA: On Christmas Eve, we wear our new Christmas jammies and open a second gift (it's always a game to play as a family).  When we wake up, we're ready for gift giving/receiving.  We also drive around with hot cocoa to look at Christmas lights.  

MENTOR MOM-KRISTI: We do lots of baking, candy making, and special recipes.  We all do our New Year's resolutions and put them in our Christmas stockings.  The next year we pull out our stockings and read our last year's resolutions.

AMANDA: Making Christmas cookies with my mom, sisters, and girls!

TIFFANI: On Christmas morning, the kids are allowed to go downstairs, before "waking up" mom and dad, and get their stockings.  It's so precious to hear them sharing this time with each other when they think we aren't listening.  

ANDREA: We read books under our Christmas tree with my daughters every night.  

We bake a cake on Christmas day to celebrate Jesus' birthday.  We sing Happy Birthday and have cake for dessert after Christmas dinner.  

MICHELLE: We sprinkle oatmeal and glitter mixed together outside for Santa's reindeer, and we throw baby carrots outside for them, too.  

Thanks for sharing your table with us, Yolanda!

Blended Caramel Frappuccino by Yolanda 

1 cup cold coffee
1 Tbs heaping sweetened condensed milk
Cream (heavy or half & half, as desired)
Ice

Blend!
Top with whipped cream and drizzle with caramel

Meet Jennifer's Table!

Here's Jennifer then and now!

Jennifer is in 2/4 MOPS and this is her second year as a DGL.  She has two kids.

Do you have any Christmas traditions?

We pick out our Christmas tree at a tree farm every year.

Meet her table!

Not pictured: Jenni

Each person was asked this question:
Do you have a memory from family vacation as a child?

JENNIFER: One year we stayed at a beach house in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  A group of us locked part of the family out and blasted them with water balloons. 

MENTOR MOM-JULIE: Most of our family vacations as a little girl consisted of lots of driving, and I always got carsick. :(

JESS: Our family went to a lake in Minnesota and stayed in a couple cabins.  I remember fishing and swimming in the lake.  The best thing about the trip was that there was a girl around my age I became friends with.  It was such a fun trip with our whole family-8 of us! :)  We played games and had a great time! 

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KELLEY: One time we drove across country from Ohio to Kansas.  Half way through the trip our old station wagon broke down.  My dad was able to get it to an old truck stop and the restaurant there took us in and fed my 4 siblings and I all day as we got it fixed. 

CARLY: I remember staying at Embassy Suites when I was about 12 or 13. My two younger sisters and I thought it was so great. Our favorite part was the elevators you could see out of. We would spend so much time just riding up and down in them.

JENNI

ELIZABETH

KELLY

Thanks for sharing your table with us, Jennifer!

Baked Cream Cheese Spaghetti Casserole

12 oz spaghetti
1 (28 ounce) jars prepared spaghetti sauce
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350º F.

In a skillet, brown the ground beef until cooked through; drain fat and stir in spaghetti sauce.  Set aside.

Cook spaghetti according to directions on packet.  Drain and place cooked spaghetti in bowl.  Add cream cheese, Italian Seasoning and minced garlic.  Stir until cream cheese is melted and the spaghetti is thoroughly coated. 

Lightly grease a 9x13" pan.  Spread a small amount of meat sauce in the bottom of the dish.  Put spaghetti on top of sauce and top with remaining meat sauce.  Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.

Bake for 30 minutes, until bubbly.

Meet Amy's Table!

Here's Amy then and now!

Amy is in 2/4 MOPS and this is her first year as a DGL. She  has one child.

Do you have any Thanksgiving traditions?

We usually stay home and have a super relaxed day (watching football and cooking/baking). We usually have our big meal for dinner, so we snack on cheese and crackers while waiting for the smoked turkey.  Just super laid back and no stress with lots of food, family time, and football. 

Meet her table!

not pictured: Carey, Mandy

Each person was asked this question:

What is your favorite amenity of our generation or current times?

AMY: Smart phone.  I love being connected and having access to the answers to the random questions.  And it helps me to stay organized and connected.  

MENTOR MOM-JEN: A blessing and a curse...Technology!

TAMI: iPhone

LINDSEY: Cell phone/internet.  Very convenient, but a curse at times.  

KRISTY: Ease of travel 

CHRISTINA: Okay, so if I had to choose, I would live in the 1800's with no amenities! But, I suppose a washing machine is nice! :)

Thanks for sharing your table with us, Amy!

Corn Casserole by Amy

Ingredients

1 can whole kernel yellow corn, undrained 
1 can cream style yellow corn 
4oz plain chobani yogurt 
2 eggs, beaten 
1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix 
4 tbsp stick butter, melted 

Notes / Directions

Mix all together and pour into large, lightly oiled casserole dish. Bake at 350°F for 55 to 60 minutes.

Meet Heidi's Table

Here’s Heidi then and now!

Heidi is in 1/3 MOPS and this is her first year as a DGL.  She has 3 kids.

Do you have any Thanksgiving traditions?

Traveling to see family and making "babka."  It's a sweet bread with chocolate and cinnamon rolled into it. It's delicious! 

Meet her table!

not pictured: Renee, Timaree, Tina, Pam

A few of the ladies at Heidi's table shared some delicious recipes! They were asked this question:

"What is your go-to meal that you bring to new moms?"

HEIDI

Chicken Poppyseed Casserole

3 cups dry eggs noodles

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup cheddar cheese

1/2 - 1 cup sour cream

2 cups cubed/shredded chicken

2 Tbs butter

1/2 pack crushed Ritz crackers

1 tsp poppy seeds

-Boil noodles

-Mix cream of chicken soup, cheese, sour cream, and chicken

-Add noodles to mixture, pour into casserole dish

-Mix butter, crackers, and poppy seeds

-Sprinkle over top, and bake at 350º for 20-30 minutes

MENTOR MOM-JULIE

CHELSEA

Lemon Rosemary Chicken

1 lb chicken breast

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp olive oil

2 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp rosemary

2 tsp parsley

1/4 cup chicken broth

1/2 lemon

Preheat over to 400ºF.  Coat shallow baking dish with cooking spray.  Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.  Transfer to pan and drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with lemon juice, rosemary, and parsley.  Pour broth around chicken to cover the bottom of the pan.  Bake chicken until cooked through about 30 min.  Garnish with fresh lemon and serve.

ASHLEIGH

 Cheesy Chicken Crescents

1 pkg crescent rolls

2 chicken breast, cubed or shredded

2 Tbs shredded cheese

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup milk

2 cups cheddar cheese

Mix chicken and 2 Tbs shredded cheese and put into crescent rolls.

Mix together cream of chicken soup, milk, and cheese.  Warm on stove until cheese melts, stirring constantly.

Place some of cheese sauce on bottom of 9x9 pan. Place crescents in pan and cover with remaining sauce.

PAM

Sloppy Joes

1 lb ground beef

1 1/2 cups ketchup

1/4 cup mustard

2 Tbs brown sugar

3 Tbs vinegar

Brown hamburger, add ingredients and simmer.  

RENEE

Baked Spaghetti Casserole

8 ounces uncooked spaghetti

1 pound ground beef

1 large can spaghetti sauce (26.5 ounces)

1 tablespoon butter

½ cup chopped green peppers 

⅓ cup chopped onions

8 ounces cream cheese

2 tablespoons milk

Fresh grated Parmesan cheese

French-fried onions (small can)

Cook spaghetti according to directions on the package. Cook to al dente, drain and set aside.

Brown ground beef. Drain excess grease. Add spaghetti sauce to skillet and heat.

Combine onions, peppers and butter in small glass bowl. Cover and microwave 4 minutes on HIGH until soft.

Add cream cheese and milk to vegetables and stir well. (If cream cheese is not soft, nuke it for 20-30 seconds to make it easy to spread.)

Using a 12 x 8-inch baking dish (or something close), assemble in the following order: thin layer of spaghetti sauce, cooked spaghetti, cream cheese/vegetable mixture, remaining spaghetti sauce, parmesan cheese (amount subject to your own taste)

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Top with french-fried onions and continue baking 5 more minutes. (This is the secret ingredient–don’t let them burn.)

TIMAREE

LALLENIA

TINA

Thanks for sharing your table AND recipes with us, Heidi!

Meet Leigh's Table!

Here's Leigh then and now!

Leigh is in 2/4 MOPS and this is her second year as a DGL.  She has three kids.

What is your favorite thing to do in the fall?

I like to go to the pumpkin patch, make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins & chili, jump in the fall leaves with my tribe!

Meet her table!

not pictured: Hilary

Each person was brave and answered this question:

What is your most embarrassing mom moment?

LEIGH: Returning to the elementary school, in which I taught for 8 years, with my new baby Sam.  My principal wanted to hold him and Sam coated her in spit up.  Quite humbling!

MENTOR MOM- LINDA: I left my 3-year-old, Blake, at Fuddrucker's alone

HILARY: One time my daughter & I were walking on the Minneapolis Stone Arch Bridge looking down at the river. She had been looking in between railings as we stopped & walked, but then somehow she got her head stuck in one! Lots of people were walking by and I had to try to yank it out as she was screaming for about a minute. Embarrassing!

MARIE: When my oldest son, who is on the autism spectrum, was learning to initiate conversation, he went into the women's bathroom with me and went right up to a girl, got in her face and said "Hi." I was happy that he was trying to start a conversation, but embarrassed that it happened in a bathroom to a very confused little girl.

JESSICA: It was in the middle of the summer and I was eight months pregnant, throwing a baby shower, when I walked into the kitchen and my mom said, "What's on your back?" I had tucked my dress into my spandex tights. I had walked through the entire shower that way. 

Kristen: A few weeks ago, Emma went potty in the potty chair for the first time.  In excitement we ran to the kitchen to call daddy to tell him, and as we told him she continued to go on the floor.  Running back to the bathroom I stepped in the poop on the floor and tracked it back to the bathroom. 

KATIE: My hair falling out after both my daughters were born.

KARI: When potty training my youngest, he had to strip naked every time he went potty.  At soccer, we had to use the porta-potty.  Of course, he had to take everything off.  I know everyone outside could hear me saying, "Please keep your clothes on.  It's nasty in here." :)

Thanks for the great stories, ladies!

Black Bean Soup by Leigh

2 cans black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can sweet corn, drained
1 can chicken broth
1 small red onion, diced
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
1 tsp thyme
1 T cumin
2 bay leaves
Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Sour cream
Tortilla chips

Heat oil in large stock pot. Sautée onion & garlic until fragrant. Add all other ingredients & simmer for 15-20 minutes on medium heat. Remove bay leaves before serving. (Or whoever ends up w/ a leaf in their bowl makes a wish...our family tradition.) Garnish with cheese, sour cream, and/or tortilla chips. Add crushed red pepper for more spice. Easy & economical! Enjoy!