whatever

Adla - what a perfect day to spend with neighbours! “Old school” games are such fun!
chat soon, Adla

traci - holy cow what a great party. that looks awesome!!! what a great neighborhood you live in. the corn looks yummy.

Dayna - Looks like so much fun! I wish I lived in a neighborhood like that!

Jenny - That is amazing! You live in a great neighbourhood.

Mrs. Fox - What fun! You guys really know how to throw a party. I can just taste the corn – all buttery and salty. Fantastic!

Lee Ann - Oh that looks like so much fun! Great neighbors are the best!

One Wired Woman - What a fun “old school” 4th of July celebration… right down to the corn on the cob and games!! Love it!! This is the way it outta be, sistah!! Great photos. 🙂 Thanks for sharing. ~Jill

Liz - Wow. I want to live near you! What fun.

Amanda Jo - I want to live in your neighborhood! Not only would we be great friends but I love this type of community!
It looks like everybody had a great time! Thanks for the sidewalk paint idea – my little guy thrives for artsy stuff like that!

traci - Do YOU even realize what a great life you have living in a sm. town with neighbors that you all are great friends and party together making memories???
My family got together with family (about 30) and had tons of fun but we didnt top yours..lol
NOTHING beats old fashioned games and friends!!!!!

Lanny Stanard - OMGosh, how cool is that! looks like alot of fun, our neighborhood is a ghost town…over the 4th, glad you had a great time, and Meg you are so cute 🙂
Lanny:)

mallory Heffron - Cute header. i just love the ladybug….

Liz - Love the new banner. Great photo of the ladybird, by the way.

mom - Your new header is beautiful.
But I really wish I could eat the Mexican Chicken. Will your kids eat it?

Jenny - I love the new header.

Staci - Oh, I’m so glad I’m not the only one who can’t “write” on their pictures! You are right though, I did gasp that YOU don’t know how! At least you have great pictures goin’ for ya! Me, not so much 🙁 Your new header is PERFECT! I’m so jealous of your title! I’m the queen of saying, “whatever”…I LOVE IT!!!

April - that’s perfect….just perfect !!

One Wired Woman - Geez!! I’m drooling right now!! ~Jill

PamperingBeki - Oh we make this too!! Here it’s called King Ranch Chicken, although I know it’s really nothing like the original King Ranch Chicken recipe.
We also just do ours on the stove top in a big pot, rather than casserole style like you’ve done, but I might try that too.

Camm - Yum….we had it for dinner last night…except we used real onions and I didn’t have any velveeta – so I just layed slice american cheese on top! Thanks!

Tiffany - My Mom used to be the executive secretary at Rotel tomatoes and it is based about 1 mile from the Mexican border, does that count in making it authentic? 😉

Nancy - Yum-O. I’m going to have to try that. I’m in the “closet” when it comes to admitting that I use Velveeta AND like it. It makes the absolute best grilled cheese sandwiches too. Maybe that’s because my mom used it. Takes me right back to childhood.

JimaieMarie - oh YUM!
i have to try this now.
you and your recipes are lifesavers!!!

robin bird - i won’t comment on the actual ingredients of your recipe..when you have children to feed i understand that all bets are off as far as following a strictly healthy diet 🙂
stopped by to see the banner and say it is gorgeous!!!!!!
🙂

Jennifer P. - Anything with Velveeta has to be tasty :)! Linda (restyled home) says that Velveeta is actually really expensive to buy in Canada—so American gourmet:)!
Love your new header!

melissa @ the inspired room - oh man, that beats our scrambled egg dinner. WHAT? it was hot out. i was too tired to cook.
🙂
xoxo
happy fourth! i want to see your bathroom. wait, did you see our beach house bathroom? we did a buffet cabinet for the sink. did you ever do the dresser for your sink? i want to see it. now.

lulusparkles - i will! looks awesomely delish. thanx

Jess - Megan-
I love reading your blog (I found it through Amy’s). It is fun to see pictures of Talby and what she is doing this summer. I miss Talby! I love the junk man and all the other crafts you have been doing. I also love seeing pictures of your house and scrapbook pages. You are so creative…now I know where Talby gets it from. Tell Tably that there is a letter in the mail for her. Happy summer!
Jess

Staci - Wow! What great memories! We got to go to the public pool occasionally and I can still remember that feeling going off the high-dive! EEEK! I’m with you on taking the kids by myself to the pool! It would be NO fun! Sweet husband is the fun one in our family…I’m all about safety and clean up! Looks like you had a great day–and the best part about that is EARLY bedtime because tired kiddoes! YEA BABY!

lorel - Oh yeah! I remember Cindy Chesser being there now! Actually yesterday, after I posted my first comment, I thought about it some more, and figured when we were riding to the pool, I must have been AT LEAST 9 (hee hee). And you know I have always been so mature…I had everything under control.
One more thing – last week I took the girls to a pool in a nearby suburb – our local outdoor pool is under construction – and Macy jumped off the diving board before I even knew they had one! She was so proud of herself!

julie - That froggy slide is the best thing ever! What a fun pool. My brother and I rode our bikes to the pool every day when we were little. Got Otter Pops at the snack bar… simple paradise. My mom got a nice little break too.

mom - Meg-
I just read Lorel’s post. It sounds like I just left you guys at home, but I didn’t – really!! Remember Cindy Chesser? She would come and stay in the mornings and I believe go with you to the pool. If not, then you may have riden by yourselves. It was Neodesha!
Hillsboro was different. Lorel was older, but we still had sitters off and on to stay with you.
Both of you are great writers! Very well described. Good job!

Rychelle - I want to be you when I grow up. Wait. I am grown up. But still waiting for “Mr. Right” and five kids of my own. Until then, I will sit here and read your blog and envy (I mean admire) you. I love how much you appreciate and cherish all that you have. I’m so glad that I found your blog. I hope that’s not too creepy coming from a blog stalker! Thanks for sharing your life and positivity. It makes me smile. I need that.

Peggy - You take amazing photographs!!!

amy - meg~
i remember my neighborhood pool too. in fact i can remember feeling so much like i had to jump off that high dive, but hating each and every step up the ladder. love this post!!
happy summer.
amy

lorel - Macy was just asking me about how often we would go to the pool. I said I figured just about everyday, from 2:00- 5:00, except on Tues. and Thurs. when I had my paper route with dad. I told her how we would put on our suits, and sometimes a cover-up and sometimes not, wrap our towel around our shoulders like a scarf and ride our bikes down to the pool. All the kids did this. So then I wondered, was I home by myself/watching you when I was 8? Riding my bike all over town with no supervision at all? Wow. Macy’s childhood and my childhood are different in soooooo many ways.
I also remember that I liked to drink 7-up (or Shasta Lemon-Lime)after swimming if I could, because dad said that it would “get our burps out” if we had swallowed some pool water. Silly.

Pam - hello there meg! i just love your blog…i admit i check on you every day…you make me smile 🙂 your taste is my taste to a T! would you mind sharing who makes the color ‘winter spinach’? i’m thinking it’d either be great on an old piece of furniture or possibly the playroom walls. xo

Shana - My favorite dog too! She’s soooo sweet!

robin bird - this is my first visit to your blog having found my way here by way of liz over at http://mabelshouse.blogspot.com/
i enjoyed being here right from the first click! your favorite things post inspired me to begin thinking about what i might post if were to make that list my own. it might be as long as 5 miles though if i were to have the time to lest and photograph all my favorite things! your photos are great and i see you are a scrapbooker…i’m the digital only type but passionate none-the-less.
i’ll be back 🙂

Yolanda - My friend, Peggy at RueRice.blogspot.com pointed me in the direction of you blog since you were looking for ideas for feeding the family.
I am a Registered Dietitian and have a blog called Yo’s Kitchen Counter – Where Friends, Family and Food Come Together. I am in the process of having a big, fancy website built that will include lots of food and nutrition ideas for the family. Until that is up and running you can visit my “tester” blog at
Yoskitchencounter.blogspot.com
I loved your scrapbook layouts. I started scrapping a couple of months ago. I need to include some layouts in my own blog.
In Health,
Yo

Liz - Why does my cereal and yoghurt never look that appealing?

Dayna - Great stuff!
I love that snack, too. That and watermelon. Mm.
Great shade of green, I like pretty much any shade of green =)

meleea - those are some of my favorites too – only my hubby, not yours. one of my favorite places to be is the tub! i love your pictures – they are amazing!

melissa @ the inspired room - Aw, love this. Where is that bathroom! Love the feet but let’s see the rest!!!
Happy soaking!
Melissa

Jennifer P. - I am that gorgeous shade of winter spinach green with envy over your new bathtub!
Love all your fave things :)!

One Wired Woman - I needed to read your happy post today. Not so happy over in my neck of the woods. Maybe I need a bath!! That’s the ticket!! Let me go and get the water running right now. 🙂 ~Jill

elisabeth (bovagoods) - not sure if you are much into coupon-ing, but it seems like everyone where i live is nuts about it. there are people here saving some serious money using coupons. here are my favorite sites:
http://www.moneysavingmom.som
http://www.moneysavingmethods.com
http://www.southernsavers.com
btw, love your blog. my mom used to have the “whatever…” verse stenciled on her kitchen walls. that was back when stenciled walls with flowing stenciled green ivy was all the rage. they recently repainted. i miss seeing those words when i visit. LOVE your house! i am having some serious house envy. i live near charleston, sc and people here want and arm and a leg and a child for the historic homes here. i am from ohio and things are much more affordable there, like kansas. jealous! 😉

Shana - This changed our life…Every month I make a menu – everyone in our family of four has to come up with at least 5 menu ideas (dinner only). Then we write the menu on the calendar, make a list and buy all of the groceries for that month – including snacks! They have learned quickly that if you want a snack at the end of the month you won’t eat two boxes of crackers in one sitting at the beginning of the month! Does our menu look the same most months? Yes! Does it take the brainwork out of 29 other days of the month? Yes! Does it take an hour or two to accomplish every month? Yes! Sometimes I am very creative in where and when I make the list – in the car on the way to a swim meet, yelling ideas from the shower, or just copying last July’s menu and saying “That must have worked!”

meg duerksen - thanks for the ideas girls!
i will definitely devising a more deliberate plan for sam’s club.
i usually just get whatever i see when i’m there…no planning ahead.
it’s 30 minutes away which is a bummer but worth it once a month.
and thanks for all the other sites. i will be checking them out when i am ready to get organized. 🙂

Liz - I don’t think there’s an easy answer to that one. The problem in our house is we’re sick of eating the same old, same old. I need new recipes!

cynthia - our fridge looked like that until this afternoon!
as far as what to feed a family of 7, i’m probably not much help with only the three of us…but what i do is make a menu for the week, make a list (stick to it for the most part) and head to the grocery store! i’ve found that this way we are not wasteful and usually end up eating everything!
i’m a planner, can’t help it!

Pattie - SAMS! It’s a lifesaver.
We have a minimum of 4 teenage boys at our house almost all the time. I grill chicken breasts by the ton and they use them for quesadillas, pizzas, nachos, salads or whatever. Same with most meat, I grill a lot of extra. Mine like paninni sandwiches too so I keep deli meat. I used to not have a ton of junk food but, I sent them to the grocery store this week to find stuff they liked and they came home with hot dogs, ice cream, chips, tons of fruit (yea!) hamburgers, and like 5 boxes of pop tarts ha. We also go through gallons of tea, gatorade and bottled water.
The thing I hate more than all the food they eat is all the dishes and dirty countertops that are left when they leave.

One Wired Woman - My two boys are eating me out of house and home this summer too. I’ll have to hack some of your visitor ideas here in the comment section. 🙂 ~Jill

danelle - We do a lot of ramen noodles during the summer. And popsicles for snacks. You ever shop at Aldi’s? I used to go there more often but I remember their prices being cheap.

amy d - start running it like a restaurant and make up a cute little menu on your chalkboard door and then START CHARGING THEM!!! 🙂 oh, and put out a tip jar!

traci - i wish i could help you but it seems like my fridge looks like that all the time too. i no sooner hit a couple grocery stores, fill it up and i hear “mom, there’s no food” – and it’s empty again. just wait till the boys get a little older.

Brenis - LOL !!
Sam’s club or Costco!! We make a trip monthly and usually end up buying most things on alternating months (w/ exception of meats, cheese and TP which we need every month! lol) Farmers markets for fruits and veggies twice a month, if you don’t have a veggie garden. Buy alot if it’s on sale and freeze it – and having an extra freezer is a must for us!! And yes.. always making more than we need and having left overs works wonders!
Good luck hon!! I know what a struggle it is. Cooking has become a chore anymore and i cringe each day it’s time to cook! LOL!
hugs,
Brenis 🙂
I can’t believe HOW CLEAN your fridge is!! Did you just clean it for this photo?? LOL!!
Mine always has spills of this or that with 6 of us in and out of it! 🙁

chris - Sorry I am baffled , and sick of the constant chore of grocery shopping and trying to make everyone happy at all with food selections, 10 years has drained me from liking cooking, how do we all do it ?

Karol - My refrigarator frequently looks like yours. I, too, am baffled by all the food these people eat in the summer. So, I have been going to Costco and loading up on fruit, snacks, meats, and bread items. It seems to be working and lasting much longer than my constant grocery store visits. Oh, and I am saving money!

robin bird - good morning! i stopped by today (it is sunday) for another visit but since you hadn’t updated your blog i went backwards 🙂 these photos are simply the sweetest ever baby shots! i also really laughed seeing explanation for all that tongue wagging 🙂 yes you were quite lucky!
xo

JimaieMarie - what a GORGEOUS little girl!! oh my goodness!!
you captured such PRECIOUS pictures of her!
so cute.

Lanny Stanard - Megan, you make me laugh!
Lanny:)

Peggy Rice - Hi Meg!
That is so exciting that you emailed. I love your blog! I have been a blog stalker for a while now and thought I would share it with others.
My family and I did recently move to Paris and it has been an adventure. I think my blog doubles as therapy. Stay tuned I just might go crazy online for all to see.

PamperingBeki - Megan, those are beautiful!! I love the one of her picking flowers.

traci - she is so cute and getting so big already. i just love her name!!! great photos of her – love the tongue – so cute!!

Jenny Pocknall - Gorgeous!

Amy Walker - She is absolutely beautiful and she has two great parents! Megan, you take such great pictures, always capturing the wonderful things life has to offer if we just slow down enough to “catch” them:)