Chicken nuggets, fries and leftover sauce packets....

As my alarm went off this morning I realized that the kiddos had slept through the night. So I hit the snooze button and at 0425 DD 5yo came stumbling into the room. I pulled her into the bed covered her up and got up to get ready for my first day back to work after three days off. Err three days of babysitting and trying to keep even with the current mess the little ones were making. I am making a conscious effort to limit you tube on our phones, the little ones love watching but it really influences their little minds and not always for the better. With terrorism the way it is and their use of social media who knows how early they can influence a small child.

I rejoice in the knowledge our Lord and Savior knows the future and it is not my job to worry about what is next. It is my job to shape the children in my care and protect their hearts and most importantly teach them about Christ and the saving grace that is available to  them. And I might add do it with patience....that is my biggest failure to them I believe...patience.

It is hard to believe it is 13 days to Christmas!! I have all my gifts to wrap and the tree to decorate, and gifts for the residents at work to get ready. As I try to plan my time in order to get it all done I realize if I don't get it all completed the only disappointed one will be me...

As I reflect on the list of things to do each day I wonder how my kids managed to grow up....how did they survive my ineptness as a parent? Then again I realize that is not on my list of things to wonder about on my to do list....So banish the thought and get on with the tasks at hand!

That would be homemade ice cream cookie sandwiches!

Packaged in sets of two for an easy after school treat

I try not to make them too thick....

But sometimes I get carried away lol!

Well this recipe really doesn't need too much explanation... the hardest part is putting the treats back in the freezer without eating too many! It can be as frugal or as expensive as you like. Choose a cookie, choose an ice cream and soften it a bit, scoop some on to a cookie top with another cookie and wrap in plastic or wax paper and stick in the freezer! 

Yesterday I made homemade chicken nuggets and homemade fries. We have been to the golden arches way too many times this month so I thought I would save $12, that and I went to town with a checkbook not cash. Not a bad idea actually. And making the nuggets fit into my shop from my freezer menu. When I buy chicken breasts I buy the skinless, boneless kind mostly, and I repackage them into single or double packs. By that I mean one or two breasts to a baggie and then put all those into a larger bag for easy retrieval. So here is how to make easy chicken nuggets.

Home made chicken nuggets

One large chicken breast, boneless, skinless is easiest to use

If frozen allow to partially thaw, this makes it really easy to make uniform chunks

Seasoned breadcrumbs, croutons, dry cereal i.e. cornflakes, rice krispies (pretty much anything that you can season with salt and pepper or Mrs dash)

Water, milk or an egg beaten (to dip the chicken chunks into before dredging in your coating of choice)

1. Preheat your oven or toaster oven to 350 degrees

2. Cut chicken into chunks about an inch or so big

3. Put chunks into liquid of choice, till moistened

4. Put coating of choice into a plastic bag, or bowl add chicken chunks toss or stir to coat pieces.

5. Place coated chunks onto a cookie sheet greased or not, doesn't really matter

6. Place chicken into oven for 20-30 minutes check the center of thickest chunk for doneness.

Serve with sauce of choice... one breast can yield quite a few chunks but for the three little ones I had to feed yesterday it was more than enough. If there are any left when I get home I will take picture. For our lunch I used some croutons that were open and left in the pantry, I crumbled them in the chopper and used a milk and egg combo to dip them. I also took two potatoes from the bags I got at Safeway for <$1.00 for ten pounds, and sliced those into fries. We had several dipping sauces left from previous trips to the golden arches so it was just time to have a go of it.

Now if I could just get hubby on board for nuggets!

Well I shall close for now...stop by soon for more recipes and updates on all the chaos that is my life😊