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Real Solutions for Real Parents by Autumn Rose Reo

Chili’s® at Home Heats Up the Frozen Food Aisle

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Many thanks to Bellisio Foods for sponsoring this post about Chili’s® Grill & Bar frozen meals at home.

There are days that seem I have meals handled and then the days that deserve going out to eat. And now there is a new option from Bellisio Foods when it’s just not in mom to make dinner or going out to eat, but the rest of the family is still hankering for some of their restaurant favorites (at home!) Thankfully, you now find Chili’s® Grill & Bar as single-serve entrees and multi-serve meals made for adventurous taste buds on a flavor mission in your freezer section.

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Chili’s® Grill & Bar new line of frozen foods delivers the bold, southwestern flavors with entrées like Pepper Jack Mac ‘N’ Cheese and Chicken Fajita Rice Bowl. And with my kids, we couldn’t resist the Bacon Mac ‘N’ Cheese and Seasoned Chicken Bites with Honey Chipotle Sauce. For mom and dad the Chicken Fajita Rice Bowl and the Chicken Bacon Ranch caught our eye and taste buds.

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And all mom had to do when take it out of the freezer, to the microwave and in about three minutes it was on our plates, straight to our bellies!

Available at major retailers nationwide, including Walmart, Kroger, Safeway, Food Lion, H-E-B, Meijer, Giant Eagle, Schnucks and more, I was able to score a coupon for a free Chili’s® Grill & Bar single entrée from Kroger on their smartphone app, so keep your eyes peeled for other possible offers.

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SINGLE-SERVE ENTRÉES
1. Bacon Mac ‘N’ Cheese
2. Cajun-Style Chicken Alfredo
3. Cheesy Chicken Pasta Florentine
4. Chicken Bacon Ranch
5. Chicken Fajita Rice Bowl
6. Island Chicken & Rice
7. Mango Chicken with Rice
8. Pepper Jack Mac ‘N’ Cheese

MULTI-SERVE MEALS
1. Bacon Mac ‘N’ Cheese
2. Chicken Bacon Ranch
3. Chicken Fajita Rice
4. Nacho Potatoes with Beef & Bacon
5. Seasoned Chicken Bites with Honey Chipotle Sauce

Now you can have your favorite restaurant foods from at your fingertips with Chili’s® Grill & Bar frozen meals at home.

3 Must-Do Tips to Get Back-to-School Ready {Giveaway}

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Summer’s been great, but  I’ll admit part of me is excited for school to start. However, before that first bell rings, the kids (and you) need to get a jump start on getting ready for the school year. Here’s three tips I shared on Fox Good Day Saturday that every family needs to know to get your year off to a great start! (And a giveaway, too!)

3 Tips

Practice Makes Perfect 


Practice and get back into a routine now until school starts with setting alarms for waking up and going to bed.

Here’s the adorable clock I got for my first-grader in efforts to making waking up fun (He loves to sleep!)

Get Organized

Get a way to organize your family!  I use with my smartphone and Google Calendars to organize all of our schedules. Or you can use an app like Cozi if you prefer! But some prefer it to be written down,  so make a central location where everyone can see the calendar.

Make a Family Book and keep it updated! This has all the things you need from menus, basic phone numbers, policies, baby sitter instructions, etc.

Follow Autumn Reo {mamachallenge.com}’s board Back to School on Pinterest.

Think Smarter (not harder) when it comes to Meals

Breakfast:

Try to make a few items in advance to make a healthy breakfast a cinch. I like muffins and pancakes because they freeze well and best of all you can “sneak” in extra nutrition like one of these Go Go squeeZ pouches give you almost a full serving of fruit and used instead of sugar.

Dallas News | myFOXdfw.com

 Lunch:

Make them the night before! And make them fun & healthy without spending much time! My kids LOVE ready-made meals like Lunchables, but by making your own, you can make them healthy and save money. You can make your own pizza crusts in advance and with items that you have make a great and healthy meal your kid will want to eat.
Also you’ll want to multitask – use squeeze pouches for ice packs and then they’ll have them to eat in advance. Make sure you check out these other great tips on lunches from my recent visit to The Broadcast!

GGS

 Click here to find out how! 

Dinner: 

A little planning will go a long way, but sometimes that doesn’t happen with all the other stuff! I use emeals and it’s a plan that emails you the meal plan, recipes and shopping list so it takes all the work in being advance. Recommended by Dave Ramsey, emeals subscription-based service gives you a week’s worth of grocery shopping for your diet plan on a budget and the recipes so you aren’t busy figuring things out. Right now you can get 20% of any eMeals Meal Plan with the code SCHOOL!

Also make sure you think about items that can make one night and then use the leftovers later like roast for tacos or BBQ sandwiches. Or a rotisserie chicken makes the world go round! From chicken, pizza, stirfry, tortilla soup and more! (Sounds like another blog post!)

Back to School. Save 20% with code SCHOOL

Save 20% with code SCHOOL

Texas Rangers Score a Home Run with Limited Offering of S’mores Chocolate Pie

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Let’s be honest: this hasn’t be the best season for the Texas Rangers. (no more discussion, please.)

However, as a gal who lives in the hometown of the team AND lives so close to Globe Life Park she can hear the fireworks go off on Friday nights in the summer after each game, I still have faith that this year was just a time for them to rest from the last two winning seasons we’ve had. Or perhaps it’s because they’ve been eating this pie  and they’d rather be enjoying the gooey awesomeness of this S’mores Chocolate Pie while basking in some A/C.

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Who knows, but thankfully, we don’t have to make the choice between a game or pie. We get to eat pie while we watch the game!  In honor of National S’mores Day on August 10 (of course, there’s a day for s’mores!), Globe Life Park will be offering the pie at concessions for $8.50 at the Captain Morgan Club. Unfortunately, our boys are away on Sunday, but they are still nice enough to not let this delicious pie opportunity go to waste. We’ll all be able to get it  all week when they host the Rays (Monday-Thursday) and the Angels (Friday-Sunday.) 

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Now don’t say you don’t have a reason to excited about the game!

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S’mores Chocolate Pie (From Globe Life Park, Home of the Texas Rangers)

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Description

In honor of National S’mores Day on August 10 Globe Life Park, Home of the Texas Rangers, offers this pie to fans to celebrate. Or you can make this winning recipe at home for your own team!

Ingredients

Scale

Graham Cracker Crust:

  • 8 ounces graham cracker crumbs
  • 2 ounces melted butter
  • 2 ounces brown sugar
  • ½ tablespoon ground cinnamon

Chocolate Brownie Cake:

  • 1 quart heavy cream
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2.5 lbs. melted chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 8 eggs

Marshmallow Foam:

  • ½ cup egg whites
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 4 cups marshmallow foam/fluff
  • 1 tsp meringue powder
  • ½ cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  1. Graham Cracker Crust
  2. To make the crust, mix all ingredients and press into one thin layer across the bottom of a sheet pan.
  3. Chocolate Brownie Cake
  4. Combine milk and heavy cream in a sauce pan and heat.
  5. Melt the chocolate chips in a Bain Marie (water bath), and then add the milk and cream mixture to the melted chocolate.
  6. Mix until smooth.
  7. Remove from heat, then add the salt and the eggs.
  8. Beat lightly, then pour the batter on top of the graham cracker shell.
  9. Bake for 22-30 minutes until firm.
  10. Let chill, then cut into 2×2 inch squares.
  11. Marshmallow Foam
  12. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
  13. Add all additional ingredients and mix for a few seconds.
  14. Assemble
  15. Put the marshmallow foam into a piping bag and pipe a generous layer on each brownie pie square.
  16. Using a blowtorch, torch the marshmallow topping until golden brown.
  17. Serve warm.

Win 4 Season Passes to Six Flags at Pokémon Trainer Challenge

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Disclaimer: I was provided passes so we can meet you at the Pokeman Trainer Challenge at Six Flags Over Texas on Aug. 10! Affiliate links may be used. 

When I was a teenager my little brother, along with every other boy in the world was a big fan of Pokemon. However, I didn’t know what it was other than a game and the hot toy for his 6-year-old birthday. It, along with the Power Rangers, I thought, were a memory of us growing up.

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Then when my own little 6-year-old uttered the words “Pichachu” after watching a cartoon on YouTube that I might need to do a little homework since the enchanting world of Pokémon was back again for me a second time!

After spending some time googling Pokéman, I learned that the game actually encourages strategic thinking, math skills and good sportsmanship. Considering these are ideal concepts for any child to learn, I started to become a bigger fan of the more than 700 creatures that inhabit the Pokémon universe.

That’s why this Sunday, Aug. 10 we are looking forward to participating in the Pokémon Trainer Challenge at Six Flags Over Texas and a chance to win FOUR Six Flags season passes PLUS a Pokémon toy prize pack.

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Guests are invited to the Pokémon Trainer Station tent inside the park for contest info and to sign up. You can also practice your trainer skills, check out some of the hottest new Pokémon toys and take your photo with Ash.

Then 10 lucky guests will be selected from the eligible contest entry forms to take the Pokémon Trainer Challenge for the chance to win four 2015 season passes to Six Flags and more than $250 worth of Pokémon toys.

Pokemon

If you aren’t able to make it this Sunday, you can still make it out on Aug. 17, Aug. 23 & 24 to visit the Pokémonm booth at each park to try out the newest products and take a photo next to life-size Ashe!

The contest is open to guests age 8 to 13 at the park on Aug. 10. All guests must submit a contest entry form by 2:30 pm to be eligible for participation. Entry forms and contest rules are available at guest relations and at the Pokémon tent inside the park on Aug. 10.

Entrant selection begins promptly at 2:45 p.m. and all guests must be present at the designated Pokémon tent at this time to for a chance to participate. The contest will take place at 3 p.m.

Participating Six Flags parks include:
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Great America
Six Flags Over Georgia
Six Flags Great Adventure

One prize will be awarded at each participating park. Click here for Official Rules.

For more information on the Pokémon toys, check out www.tomycollections.com.

Summer’s Sipper: Watermelon Agua Fresca

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WatermelonAguaFresca

 

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Watermelon Agua Fresca

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Ingredients

Scale
  • 4 cups cubed seeded watermelon
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup sugar, or to taste
  • Ice

Instructions

  1. Puree the watermelon and water in a blender until smooth. Add sugar to taste.

For  more of the recipes from Good Morning Texas:

Watermelon Goat Cheese Bites

Grilled Watermelon with Blue Cheese and Prosciutto

 

 

Flirty Aprons Sale: 50 Percent off + Free Shipping THIS WEEKEND ONLY

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Contains Affiliate Links. 

 I’m obsessed with aprons. Have you noticed?

 Besides the fact I try to wear a different one each time I’m on TV, I live in them at home. 

They’re fun, functional and really make my yoga pants look productive. 

 Anyhow, Flirty Aprons, one of my favorite resources for aprons, has a big sale this weekend that I’m going to be hitting up like a mad woman and I suggest you do the same. 

 This weekend only you can get 50% off all purchase PLUS free shipping on thousands of aprons for you and all your friends and family! 


Giveaways on Mama Challenge!

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We have all kinds of great giveaways this week! 



You’ll need to stay tuned this week for some good ones including SEALIFE Aquarium and their newest attraction Shark Mission! You can read more about it on my page on TodaysMama:

And you can enter right now:




And don’t forget to enter my contest for a $50 gift card to Houlihan’s Restaurants! 

If you’ve never been, then check out what you’re missing! And if you’re a fan, you know why you need to enter to win! 

We will also be giving away tickets to all kinds of Dallas-Fort Worth fun, so stay tuned! 




This Weekend: Let the Kids Go Wild, Score with Food Trucks and Meet the Girls at the Barre

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To-Do Thursdays:

While the weather is still deciding what season it is going to be this April, this weekend we’ve got a packed schedule full of fun family activities that can fit whatever your palatte and budget. 

 Here’s a few of my picks for 4/26 – 4/28: 

The Ballpark in Arlington turns into the center of the food truck universe with the North Texas Food Truckin’ Fest on Friday and Saturday. Get our your elastic pants and…

 

Need to finish that crafty project, but still need a few things? Then bring the kiddos with you to Michaels for a $2 “Make-and-Take” project that they can put together while you shop for just $2. This week’s craft is…

 

Let the kids go wild for a little while for the special Re-opening of the New Play Place area at Galleria Dallas for a fun free event on Saturday. The Dallas Zoo, Texas Discovery Gardens, giveaways from…

 

And just for mama: 

 Get this Groupon, call the girls and begin changing your body with your 55-minute Pure Barre class in North Arlington. New to Pure Barre? Then try your first class free, but don’t miss this deal…

 
 

Mad Men Moms 3: Undercover

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Actually this week’s episode of Mad Men Moms really isn’t so undercover as much as we are both in sunglasses on Sunday night at 10 p.m. because of a misfortunate case of pink eye. Since pink eye didn’t seem so sexy, we thought the sunglasses seemed a little more Mad Men, don’t ya think?

Anyhow, this week’s show was all about…



Watch this week’s Mad Men Moms for our take on last night’s Mad Men! 

But before you press play, make sure you have your cocktail ready. This week we are playing homage to the Cube Libre and it goes a little something like this: 

CUBE LIBRE

Ingredients
2 oz light rum
1 oz fresh lime juice and a lime slice/wheel
3 oz cola
ice

Instructions
Pour over ice, in order given, into a highball glass. Garnish with a lime wheel.

Now get ready and join us for Mad Men Moms!




Are you just now finding us? 

Then make sure you see our other episodes and follow my cohort & cohost, Shannon at MilkandCuddles.com

Episode 1
Episode 2


or you can always catch us on the Milk and Cuddles YouTube Channel.

Chef Jackson’s Microwave Easter Day Bark {Recipe}

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Food Fridays: 

I have high aspirations of making holidays memorable for my children cooking and decorating, but my best-laid plans sometimes fall short with all the other things that get in the way. But this Easter I wasn’t going to let mom’s crazy schedule get in the way of some family fun – even if it was a “minimized” version.

Using my new skills as the Microwave Mama, the boy and I decided to cook up what he called “Easter Day Bark.” Needing only three ingredients and some microwave action, I was going to put together a video to show how easy it was to create this tasty and cute Easter treat. However, my son asked if he could do a video, too so I let him go.

Of course, in just one take, my own little TV star created a video that Bobby Flay could be proud of. While not the most innovative recipe ever, he tells you exactly how to do it in no time at all (although his focus is certainly on the M&Ms.)

So I can honestly this recipe is so easy your 4-year-old can make it.

Without further ado, here’s Chef Jackson!



Jackson’s Microwave Easter Day Bark 

Recipe Adapted from ServedUpwithLove


Package of White Almond Bark
Package of Easter M&Ms
Sprinkles
Easter Egg Malted Eggs

Place the almond bark in a microwave safe dish and microwave for 90 seconds to melt (adding more every 10 seconds until it’s melted.) 

Line a baking sheet with wax paper and spread the almond bark. Drop the M&Ms and other candy over the melted bark. Allow to cool by placing in the freezer. When it solidifies, break into pieces. Makes for a cheap, easy and cute gift to friends, neighbors and teachers!

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