Easy...

...dinners. That's my philosophy now that school has started back. We have started off with a bang. Back to our busy school schedules. I forget over the summer how hectic life is once I start back to work, and this year added to the mix is the fact that Emma has started kindergarten. Our weekly after school schedule is like this:

Monday: nothing much scheduled except to get back in the weekly routine.
Tuesday: afterschool duty for me, Emma- tumbling at 5:00
Wednesday: Literacy meetings after school, AWANA at church at 6:00
Thursday: afterschool duty for me (yes, again!!)
Friday: NADA!!

Needless to say, there are always a few extra things thrown in, especially once football starts because Emma and Mac both love football. Since we are pretty busy, I am trying to use my crockpot more often. Here are a couple of recipes I've tried since school started that are pretty yummy!!

Cheesy Crockpot Potatoes
2 1/2 lbs. Velveeta cheese, cubes 1 cup butter
1 cup cheddar cheese 2 large bags hash browns
1 pint half and half

**I actually used different cheeses I had in the fridge!!

Melt cheeses and butter together. Put hashbrowns in the crockpot. Pour cheese and half & half over potatoes and let sit for 1 hour. Cover and cook on hight for 1hour, then cook on low for 2 hours. May need to cook longer. Potatoes are done when soft and all liquid has been absorbed.


Lasagna
1 lb. ground beef (I used deer burger meat) 1 pkg. broad noodles (uncooked)
32 ounce can spaghetti sauce w/ mushrooms 12 oz. package mozzarella cheese
1 egg, beaten 12 oz. cottage cheese

**You could also add onion and mushrooms for more taste, but this was my first time to make it, so I stuck with the recipe.

Brown ground beef; drain. Place enough spaghetti sauce in crockpot to cover bottom. Combine egg with cottage cheese. On top of sauce, layer noodles, cheese mix, mozzarella, remaing spaghetti sauce, and meat. Save a little mozzarella cheese to put on top. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours. WONDERFUL!!