1 pd. of Spaghetti = 3 main dishes

This pic compliments of https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/

Howdy Sweet Friends,

How is your week going so far??

Good I hope.....

Can you believe this is the last

day of July already.....that is just

totally amazing to me....

We are 2 months into hubby's

 retirement today and still loving it!!

So far, our week has been a good
one, a lil busier than usual, but 
that is fine...... hope yours has

been good too.

Thought I would share some-
thing that was helpful to me,
that just happened by mistake
actually....but thought it use-
ful to share with you.

A few weeks ago I decided to

make spaghetti and meat sauce

for din din.....and because I was

hungry, and tired and not really

thinking I made a whole pound

of spaghetti for just the 2 of us.

So once we had dinner and I was 

cleaning up the kitchen, I thought,

 oh wow, we really have a lot of 

sketti left over....and thought what

 could I do with it, as I really do not

 like to waste food.  So I thought

I know.....I will make a Spaghetti
 pie.....as they are very easy.

So first, I rinsed all the leftover

Spaghetti in the colander with

hot water to get that starchy

gunk off that settles on it, as it

cools....then after rinsing I let

 it drain really well.  Then I got a

 glass pie pan and put half of the 

leftover sketti in it,  then thought

don't want to make 2 of these or

they will not get eaten, so was 

thinking what else can I make,

and Mac n' cheese came to mind,

and I thought perfect.

So I added our leftover meat sauce

 on top of the spaghetti in the pie pan,

then added some shredded mozzarella

 and parmesan cheese, and sprinkled
some granulated garlic and italian
 spices on top of that, and it was 
a done deal.

This pic and the one below are
compliments of lil o me!!  lol

 Then I started to make the Mac and
 cheese....once I put the spaghetti in a
 casserole dish I took a knife and fork and
 sort of cut it into pieces, then added 2
 different types of cheeses and stirred it
 up as best I could. (no milk added yet)
 Then I covered both dishes and popped
 them in the fridge to keep for the next 2

 nights for din din.

Uncooked Mac and Cheese, without
Milk added, that comes later when you
are gonna cook it.



My purpose wasn't to give you the 

recipes but the idea. I whipped these 

2 extra items together in less that 

10 mins, but had a partial dinner for

 2 more nights.  Love that!!  and

thought you might too!!

You can use whatever sauce you

make or buy and have meat sauce

or meatballs for the first meal,

then add the sauce, meat and cheeses

your family likes to the spaghetti 

pie, for the 2nd meal, (would need to 

crush up the meatballs probably)  then

 use your Normal Mac and cheese recipe

 or cheeses you like. I put the milk in

just before I cooked it, then added

more cheese to the top after it was

done cooking along with some

 panko bread crumbs on top and

let it brown a little.  I cooked the

 Spaghetti pie for about 20 mins. 
or so,  @ 350 degrees until it is
 warmed thru well and browned on 
the top if you like it that way......
Cooked the Mac and cheese at 350
 degrees for about 50 mins. then
added more cheese on top, then
put the panko on top of that. and
put it back in until it melted and
browned a little bit.  

Sorry for no after pics once it was
cooked,  totally forgot!!  But I like
mine browned on top a bit, and
it looks nice like that.

If you have a larger family you

will probably need to double or

triple the amount of spaghetti

if you want to do what I am

suggesting here.

Anyway, hope this helps someone

else time wise, and $ wise, I was quite

 happy at how my over abundance

 of spaghetti turned out.  Made for

3 quick dinners.  Quick and easy

works for this girl.

If  I left anything out or left you

 wondering about something,  please

 let me know in the comments

 sections so I can correct it or add 

info if needed.

Happy Eating!!

Thanks for coming by!

Have a Sweet last Day of July,

Nellie


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Quote to Ponder

Happy Sunday

Sweet Friends,

Here is a quote to Ponder today!

To be grateful is to recognize the 

love of God

 in everything He has given us.....

and He has given us everything.

Every breathe we draw is a gift of 

His love, every moment of 

existence a gift of grace.

by Thomas Merton



Just in case you are wondering who
Thomas Merton is....

Thomas Merton OCSO (1915–1968) was an American Trappist monk. He was a successful writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist, and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the priesthood and given the name Father Louis.

Thomas Merton - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Merton

Happy Pondering!

Have a Wonderful Day!

Nellie


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Thankful Thursday July 26, 2018, Golf cart tour #6

 For great is the LORD and 

most worthy of praise; 

he is to be feared above all gods.

1 Chronicles 16:25 NIV

Morning Sweet Friends.

So how has your week been??

Hope it has been a good one.

Ours has been good....fairly quiet

 this week.  Hubby has worked a lil 

more this week than usual but only

a few hours a day, so it goes by 

pretty quickly. It has been very 

dismal, overcast and rainy, and 

 didn't rain but it was still overcast

 most of the day.  If we want sun we

have to get out there very early.

This weather really makes both

of us sleepy and lethargic. I am

in the mood to do something 

creative, so think I am gonna

work on a birthday table for

my daughter for when they

come next month, it will be

after her birthday but we will

celebrate with her then.

Pictures today....are you guessed

it from our golf cart tour of

Charleston still,  next week

will finish us up.........lol

So on with my thankfuls for

 the week.

#1

Thankful for our new shower head

in our Master Bath.  Every time I

would get in the shower I would

start sneezing and coughing and

feeling like my throat was closing.

Finally figured out we must have

mold in our shower head and hose.

We have one that you can use

as a hand held as well, so we

got a new one,  problem solved.

Not one sneeze or cough now!!

Click on one picture to enlarge

them all, for better viewing pleasure.

#2

Thankful for our new Life Group, 

we are really enjoying it, we still

call in Sunday school......lol

#3

Thankful for another fun Sunday. We saw 

an old student of ours, who used to come

 to our marriage classes years back, when he 

was single cause he wanted to learn to be a 

good husband for when he did get married.

He is married now with 3 children and

his wife said he is a wonderful husband.

They also have moved back to our area

and we will get to see him all the time

now.......lovely family.....and what a 

smart cookies he was and still is......

#4 and 5

Thankful for lunch out with our new 

friends again to another place we

 haven't been lately, and thankful
for seeing an old neighbor of ours 
in the restaurant again. She just 
moved back into the area.  She was
 a young single gal in her 20's when
 we last saw her, now she is married
 with 3 grown children.  Am surprised
 we even recognized each other, but I
 kept thinking she looked familiar and
 she was thinking the same so she finally 
said something and we figured it out 
from there.  She was and still is a very
 sweet young lady.

#6

Thankful to have come across a letter 

when I was working on my closet, from 

an old friend that I haven't heard from

 in years. The letter was from when

 she was in rehab for a drug addiction.

She wrote me and I wrote her back but

 never heard from her again. I said to

hubby when I read it that I wished I

knew her Mom's phone number to

see if I could call and find out how

she is, just a few mins. later I came

across a notebook and was thumbing

thru it, and here was her address at

the rehab but also her Mom's phone

number......I personally think that was

the Lords hand,  so I called her Mom

and she is back in the area,  so plan

to call her this week.  Seems like

the Lord is bringing so many people

from the past back into our lives.

#7

Thankful for what a wonderful role 

model that Tim Tebow is for our young

 people, and old ones too!!  lol

So sorry to hear he broke a bone

in his hand and will need surgery

next Tuesday.  Praying for this

inspirational young man.

#8
Thankful for an old game we have,
but is like new to us, as we haven't
played it in years.  It is called Phase
10 and we have really been enjoying
playing it.  Sometimes we play half
of it,  then get some work done,
then come back to it later......lol
Makes for a fun day!

#9

Thankful that we got some new 

 family pictures hung up in our

bedroom.  Have had them done

for about a week or so,  but just

couldn't decide if I wanted to

put them in the same place as

the ones I took down, but finally

decided to just do that for now,

as I don't have time for rearranging

the whole room right now, as you

who decorate know, you can move

 one thing and it leads to something 

else and then something else, etc.

So decided to post pone that for

a better time, as I have other fish

to fry right now ( mainly our

guest bedroom) as it is still full

of things from Winter and early

Spring, and the kids are coming

the end of the next month and we

also might have some friends

come in mid August as well,

So looking forward to both.

and gotta get our guest bed
room gussied up again.



#10
Thankful we finished one book
 we are reading, so we can move on

 to another one we need to finish.

#11

Thankful that I am making headways
on destroying some old records that we
 had stored, but our no longer needed.
Takes time to shred all that stuff.....

So I am over half way there!!

#12
Thankful our lil bunny is back
this morning, as we hadn't seen
him for about a week or so and
was concerned that maybe some
thing happened to him.  Also
thankful for getting to watch 
a beautiful cardinal taking a
bath several times this week
in our birdbath.  They show up
so well, so you can really see
what they are doing,  the other
birds sort of blend into all the
background and you can hardly
see them unless you use binoculars.

                                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, there you have it .....

another week at Cozy Place.

If you missed Tour #5 and would 

like to see it just click here.

Hope you have a delightful Friday

and weekend with those you love.

Love, Hugs, and 

end of July Blessings,

Nellie

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Stone Gable

A couple of easy low-cal snacks

Hello Sweet Friends,

How this finds you well and happy!

We are well and happy, but just not

 a lot going on around here today other 
than the normal household chores. 

 So since I have time to spare decided

 to make a snack I have been wanting to 

make since last week to eat and to share

with yall.  I already made the other

 snack a number of times.  Both very

simple and yet delicious.

The first one I call...... 

personal fruit pizzas

Have you ever had fruit pizza?
It looks like a pizza with fruit

on it......well, if not, they are so

amazingly wonderful....but since

I can't eat a whole one of those

and because it has a lot of sugar

and sugar cookie dough....

I came up with these fun and

delicious lil babies.

that are made with these 3 ingredients

below here.

Just spread the creamy cheese on
the cracker,  slice a strawberry or
2 and lay them on the cracker and
if you want sprinkle them with
just a teeny bit of sugar.  
Sugar is optional and since I have
been using organic strawberries
they are so tasty I don't need to
use it at all.....

I figured the calories at about
123 for what you see on the 
plate below......that does not
include sugar......but if you
just sprinkle it lightly it shouldn't
amount to much. Love these!!
and you can use any kind of
fruit you prefer.......my fav just
happens to be strawberries.

The 2nd snack I think I might have 
learned from Weight Watchers
 eons ago......


I  just call them.....
Frozen bananas slices
(such a creative name, lol)


Use as many bananas as you would like,
and slice them into 1/2 " slices
I used 1 1/2 bananas for my pictures 
below.

Then put each slice on a cookies sheet
lined with parchment or wax paper.
Next use the Herseys syrup to drizzle
on top them.  You can use whatever
chocolate you want.......

You can either drizzle it or squeeze 
a dollop on top of each one.

This shows both ways.....I choose the
drizzle as it is quicker and easier on
my hand since it is a squirt bottle, but
you do waste some chocolate.....

Then you stop them with any kind of 
chopped nuts, many times I use pecans
 but this time I used peanuts cause I had 
some tiny bags leftover from MacDonalds
Ice Cream Sundaes, so just used those
since they were available, quick and
easy.  As you can see I wasn't going
for perfection here.....lol  but you
can if you want..........

Now put them in the freezer uncovered
for about an hour till they freeze, and
you can eat them all or store them in
a plastic container and put them back
in the freezer and eat them a lil at a 
time........I usually make a whole 
cookie sheet full and they are closer
together, but ran out of naners...lol



I figured the calories for one banana
with both toppings to be about
 210 calories.  I typically only eat
about 4-6 at a time.  They are a
nice refreshing treat for this hot
summer we are having......


Hope you try some out.....think you
will like them, and if you have kiddies
that like naner's they will probably
love them too.  I meant to make some
today with caramel on them and forgot.
so guess I will do that next time.
So you might want to try it if you
have some caramel on hand, I am
sure they would be great too.


Thanks for dropping by!!


Have a fun summer Day!


Blessings,
Nellie


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Quotes to Ponder

Happy Sunday Morning.....

Here's the quote to ponder.....

"A friend is a precious possession

whose value increases with the years,

Someone who does not forsake us

when a difficult moment appears."

By Henry Van Dyke

Do I get an Amen on that!!

So So True....

Happy Pondering!

Have a Blessed Day,

Nellie


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Thankful Thursday July 19, 2018, late spring golf cart tour #5

In him our hearts rejoice,

 for we trust in his holy name.

Psalm 33:21 NIV

Greetings Sweet Friends,

Hope your week has been a good

one.....

Ours has been good and a bit busier

than usual, which was fine.  I will

let the post do the talking today.

Pictures today are from Charleston

S.C. again, from our golf cart tour.

So on with my Thankfuls....

#1

Thankful for an evening out on 

Friday,  we tried to go shopping

but I all of a sudden I started

 feeling not so great, but at least

did get a picture frame I went

after, and we did get to go to 

dinner at Red Lobster and was

able to enjoy that and it was

 nice to get out of the house

 for awhile.  Think I was just

overtired from not sleeping

well the night before.

#2

Thankful to see an old neighbor

 of our friends that we just went to 

visit last week at our church this

 Sunday morning.  I just saw her

a few weeks ago in Publix and

she never said she was coming

to our church, so it was quite

a nice surprise.  

Front

Side and back

#3

Thankful to hear that the young

couples class that we taught for

41/2 years, has stepped up and

are doing a life group together

on Thursday evening. We were

very happy to hear that as they

are the church of the future.

#4 and 5

Thankful for a fun time out

to lunch with some new friends

after church and it was really nice

 that we went to a buffet restaurant

 that is about 30 mins away in another

town that we haven't been to in years,

 in fact, it has a new name and new

 owners, but it was really good, and 

we love that it is like a little country 

inn....very quaint with a lovely

atmosphere and delicious food

and great fellowship with our new

friends.

Thankful also that when we were

walking thru the restaurant to leave,

 we saw a lovely older couple that

used to go to our church for years but 

moved away, but they were in the

 area visiting their grandson.  It was 

definitely a divine connection cause 

not only did we know them, and get

a kick out of seeing them, it turned

 out that those sweet folks used to be 

best friends with our new friends 

 parents back then, so they were

thrilled to see them. Love these

fun surprises like that!

#6

Thankful for a new bath and body

fragrance in my guest bath, it is

called Lemoncello and it is just

 such a wonderful clean lemon

 fragrance.  I love having a nice

fragrance when you walk into

a bathroom especially.

#7

Thankful hubby got a good 

report at the Dr. so far.  He still

has to do an echocardiogram,

but we are expecting it to be

good as well.  Thankful that

the Dr. cut back on his Blood

pressure meds, as his BP has

gone down since he retired.

#8

Thankful for a fun night out on

Tuesday after the Drs. visit to cheese-

cake factory and their yummy cheese-

 cake that we brought home.  Mine was

 Caramel salted pretzel, and it was really

 scrumptious but rich, so you can't eat

to much at one sitting, so finally 

finished it off today after lunch.

  Um Um....

#9

Thankful for my hubbies hilarious

sense of humor.  I am seeing that

more and more since he retired and

 when we watch lil darling. He is

really getting even more into his role 

as a Grampy, and it is fun to watch.

 Dr. asked if we were

working out and we said No, we

have been having fun...... but then

yesterday I told hubby we should 

make a video of our days with lil 

darling and send it to him, and he

will see we don't need a work out 

routine.........lol

She keeps us on the move all the

 time........playing games, like hide 

and seek with her barbie dolls, and

 my hubby has some very creative 

hiding places that crack us up,

then there is one called " 4 corners"

 and a new game "The floor is lava" 

or something like that, oh and finger

rockets....we are just having too

 much fun over here......and by the

end of the day we just want to drop

on the sofa and do nothing, cause

we are worn out.....but it is a good

worn out..........lol

#10

Thankful for a new food discovery.

Trader Joe's movie theatre popcorn.

It is really delicious and only $2

a bag.  Only problem is the store

is an hour away so not sure how

often we will get to buy it, but it

will surely be a treat when we do.

Just now realized my daughter is

coming in August and they have a 

store near them. Will have to get

 her to bring me some. Sounds

 like a good plan to me.  lol

#11

Thankful for a sweet and precious

 card and letter from our friends

 in Gainesville today.  They are

both sweeties and we have missed

them every since they moved away

 about 25 years ago.

#12

Thankful for a lot of little projects

that we got done this week that

have been nagging at us. Such a

good feeling when they are done.

Well, that is our week at Cozy Place.

Glad you could stop by.......

If you missed Tour #4 and would

like to see it, Just click here.

Have a lovely Friday and Weekend

with the Special people in your life.

Love, Hugs, and

Sweet Summer Blessings,

Nellie

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