Crock Pot Lasagna

I have been asked many times for some of my crock pot recipes (I guess I am kinda know for using it), so I thought I would start putting up a few of my favorites. You know why I really enjoy cooking? Because I love those I am preparing it for. One way for me to show my husband I love him is to have dinner ready when he gets home.  He has actually told me this. It allows him to relax after a long day at work. The best thing about the crock pot is that it allows us to enjoy our time together rather than cutting and cooking when he walks in the door.

One of my favorite crock pot recipes is lasagna. It is super easy and super yummy and makes for good left overs.  I found the original recipe through pinterest on

http://www.creativelydomestic.com/2009/02/crockpot-lasagna.html

I made a few alterations.

Spray crockpot with non-stick spray.

Put 1/3 of spaghetti sauce in bottom of crockpot, then a layer of dried lasagna noodles. I usually break them in half. Don't over lap them too much.

Smear a layer of a 1/3 of the cottage cheese, 

and spread 1/3 of turkey

sprinkle with 1/3 of shredded cheese, 1/3 of spinach

Repeat layers, ending with a shredded cheese layer on top.

Put the 1/4 cup of water in your empty pasta jar and shake - 

Pour the juice over the whole pile of food.

Cover and cook for 4 hours on low.

I usually serve it with some veggies, salad, and/or garlic bread (you can't go wrong with garlic bread)

 

Crock pot Lasagna

• 8 oz box of regular lasagna noodles 
• (you don't have to use all of them)
• 26 oz jar of pasta sauce
• 12 oz container pureed low fat cottage cheese (you could use ricotta cheese)
• 8 oz package of shredded Italian cheese
• 1 bag of fresh baby spinach
• 12oz ground turkey cooked.
• 1/4 cup water

Spray crock pot with non-stick spray. Put 1/3 of spaghetti sauce in bottom of crock pot, then a layer of dried lasagna noodles , smear a layer of a 1/3 of the cottage cheese, spread 1/3 of turkey, sprinkle with 1/3 of shredded cheese, 1/3 of spinach. Repeat layers, ending with a shredded cheese layer on top. Put the 1/4 cup of water in your empty pasta jar and shake - Pour the juice over the whole pile of food. Cover and cook for 4 hours on low.

Let me know how yours turns out! 

And may the recipient feel truly loved!

Jungle Baby Shower

Have you ever had someone that you just can't wait to shower love upon? 

Well last weekend, I helped throw a baby shower for this little guy, Benjamin,

...and his mommy!

Theme: JUNGLE 

Marsella loves giraffe print so we ran with it and everything turned out great! 

We also primarily used green and brown.

Invitation: 

I designed the invitation using Adobe Illustrator. 

We sent half out as hard copies and half as an e-vite. 

Food:

We had an open house brunch WAFFLE BAR! We had three waffle makers going, someone in charge of prepping the batter and then people just scooped and waited. 

Guests then loaded on the toppings (syrup, butter, powdered sugar, and fruit) 

and got bacon and sausage. At the end of the table, we had a chocolate fountain and dessert. 

                                                                                          

With breakfast MUST come juice and coffee.

We had bought cute animal print fabric to put around.

FRUIT TREE

This was a highlight. A friend of mine had done this for a shower she threw and I just had to remake it. I wish I would have taken pictures of the process.

Basically, there is a wood base with a 1.5in dowel screwed into it.

We cored 4 pineapples and stacked on pole. The 5th pineapple we cut in half (leaving the top) and just cored out some of the center. Then we stuck fake branches into the top. 

We cubed watermelon, pineapple, honeydew, and cantaloupe and
just stuck it on using sandwich picks.

It is not a difficult process but it was time consuming. 

Dessert: 

Chocolate Fountain, chocolate cake and cupcakes made by Miss KJ.  

Ok look at the invite, now back to cake, now back at the invite, now back to cake. 

(Old Spice anyone?) Didn't she do a great job replicating it? I didn't know what it was going to look like and after all the time I spent on the invitation I was really honored actually.

Banners: 

I made three banners with my Cricut for miscellaneous decoration. They were all the same style with green leaf backgrounds using "Accent Essentials" cartridge. I actually didn't have one that looked like palm leaves so I had to hand cut the notches.  I used "All Mixed Up" font.

The first banner said Baby Benjamin and we hung it in front of the food table.

I did a "Welcome to the Jungle" one and placed it as people walked in. 

I also made one to put in front of the gifts, but didn't get a good photo of it.

Favors: 

These turned out so cute! We got jars at Michaels, filled them with Runts bananas (no we did not separate them, you can buy them in bulk), and tied animal print ribbon around the top.  I designed the little labels with the monkey that say "Thanks a Bunch for Hanging Around."

 Activities: 

There were a lot of fun things to do. I personally am not a fan of lame shower games so since it was an open house and people were coming and going, we didn't do any!

When people first walked up we had them guess how many Werther's Caramels were in the jar. Most people had left when we did the count so prizes were mailed. 

This was our activity table.

"Please LEAF your fingerprint and sign your name, 

to help us remember who shared in celebrating this special day" 

We had different color stamp pads, pens, baby wipes, and trash can at this station.

 

"Once someone touches your heart, the fingerprints will last forever"

I wish I had a picture of the finished product. So many people love this family!

Prayer Card Magnets

These are prayer requests from Mommy so people can be praying for them.

Advice Station

People wrote advice for the new mom on 3x5 cards.

Gifts: 

This baby is going to be set! 

I made a blanket tree with ribbon and safety pins. 

 Tables: 

Stella (grandma) did a great job with centerpieces. 

Mason jars with rocks, water and bamboo sticks really tied everything together. The animal print fabric and letter blocks were just perfect!

Like I said before this family is so loved and supported! 

I think everyone was happy to shower it upon them!

 

Last but not least a big thank you to my planning partner, Michele! This is our 4th shower to plan together but I'm sure it is not the last. I told her we have to be careful not to get a reputation. We are a great team and I couldn't have done it without her. 

Thank you to Stella, you took on so much in the midst of craziness! May God bless you for it! Thank you Geri for loaning me so many jungle theme decorations!

It was such a beautiful day showering love upon the Moreno's!

Mother's Day

I have to work on Mother's Day this year, so we celebrated with my mom a week early. I invited everyone over for a day "All About Mom."  My dad and I collected a list of some of my mom's favorites and made the day consist of all of them! It was so much fun to plan something just to make her feel special.

My first step was to use some Sharpies, butcher paper and vintage frame (side note: I got this from my grandparents before they moved recently and LOVE it!) to make a sign that said "These are a few of mom's favorite things"

I used Adobe Illustrator to design labels for each individual favorite she had. I went with a plum color scheme since purple is her favorite color. 

Mom's Favorite DRINK: Diet Coke

If you know my mom at all, you know she loves her Diet Coke. I put it on a pedestal because I think in her heart that is where she has it. 

Mom's Favorite TEAM: USC

My Dad got his bachelors and masters from SC so she married into it!

Mom's Favorite GAME: Nertz

This is a game her family plays often. Nate and my dad typically don't play because it can get a little too competitive and they end up with nail marks in their hands. But we played at the end of the night and it was so much fun!

Mom's Favorite MUSIC: Country

I not only had some CDs out but I had my country Pandora station playing before dinner.

Mom's Favorite FLOWER: Yellow Roses

My Dad grows roses and I always remember him cutting them for my mom especially the yellow ones. 

 

Mom's Favorite APPETIZER: Chips and Dips

We always tease my mom because she likes her chips so salty. We got salsa from Fresh and Easy that we LOVE and my dad made homemade guacamole from avocados off his tree.

Mom's Favorite MOVIE: Sound of Music 

(which was kinda the inspiration for the theme all together)

I was planning on just having the movie playing in the background while we talked or got dinner ready but we all ended up watching it. My mom kept saying "I don't remember the last time I watched this" and my sister and I were singing along. 

Possibly one of MY favorite parts (and my mom said it was hers) of the day came during an intermission from the movie before we put dinner on the BBQ.  In honor of the "Favorite Things" theme, I re-wrote the song from my mom's point of view.  It was so much fun to write, a little nerve wracking to sing (cuz I don't do that).  I think Lindsey was crying from laughing so hard. So here you go...

Sunny days tanning and Princess’ Cruises

Finding a great deal, when UCLA loses.

Browsing through facebook on my laptop screen

These are a few of my favorite things

Cake pops and cupcakes and hosting a party,

Jeopordy makes me feel like a smarty,

Strolling through Kohls and the way Urban sings,

These are a few of my favorite things

When the joints ache, or a long wait,

When my pictures from low,

I simply remember the great life I have,

And then I don’t feel so bad.

Tacos on Tuesdays with Tim and some friends,

Family laughing in tears it will end

Oh and my girls and the joy that they bring,

These are a few of my favorite things.

Mom's Favorite FOOD: Mexican

This worked out nicely since it was Cinco de Mayo and it went well with the chips and dip appetizer.  Nate barbecued carne asada and pollo asado and we had all the toppings for tacos. I also made spanish rice in my rice cooker. 

Mom's Favorite DESSERT: Creme Brulee

My sister made us a fabulous creme brulee with different flavors of sugar caramelized on top.

I think one of my mom's favorite things is being our mom! She is just so good at it.  I know all daughters say it when they are little but I know more now than ever I want to be like my mom when I grow up! I love my family and it was such a fun and special day together.