The kids are home from school due to ice... surprise ice... All 6 of them (my 2 and 4 others)! I’m quite outnumbered. Thankfully, they played really well all morning in some sort of elaborate imaginative game involving traps made of Tinker Toys and Cupcake bombs used to protect the Magic Crystal Ball… I’m not clear on the details (I honestly tried to block them out as I am trying this new-to-me idea of letting them play without my interference… quite so often. And that is really hard because we have a very small living/play space). There was a dragon, and more “fighting” than I care typically care for, but no one was actually whacking or hitting anyone… and they were checking each other to keep everyone involved and happy! They even made my little 2yo Bear an important character! So excited to see them including him!                              

My new approach kept me sane! Hooray! Furthermore, after that bit of playful independence they were great to clean up together and get ready for lunch. Lunch time with six kiddos under 8 at the table was a bit more of a challenge to leave alone… “Not time for Simone says touch your butt.”… “It’s also not time for singing head shoulders knees and toes.” … “Or any other song in unison… with your mouths full!” Jeez!

        Finally, they have eaten, cleared their dishes and set up their bed mats, gathered their quiet time toys and books and sat down to do what they know they should! WOW! If only every day could go this smoothly! Still, it takes a while to be sure everyone is settled, comfy and quiet. Then, I get to eat! A quick peek in the fridge at the ingredients available to me and AHA! This week’s salad will be my version of the Cheesecake Factory’s Factory Chopped Salad. Yummm!

Here’s how I make it:

Dressing

I’ve got this great dressing mixer I use from my days selling Pampered Chef.
¼ c Balsamic Vinegar
¼ c Olive Oil
A splash of water… Like 2-3 Tbsp
¼ Tsp Salt
¼ Tsp Basil (I use freeze dried)
¼ Tsp Garlic (Fresh pressed or slightly less for garlic powder)
¼ Tsp Onion Powder
1 Tsp Sugar or 1-2 packets of your sweetener
1 ½ Tbsp Dijon Mustard …  This is the ingredient that makes this Balsamic dressing stand apart!

Salad

- Left-over cooked chicken  (Save some when cooking dinner, or buy a cooked Rotisserie for the week!)
- Spinach & Romaine Chopped Fresh for today’s Salad (I add spinach to everything for the health benefits)
- Bacon Bits... left overs, or packaged, or substitute Sunflower Seeds for the salty crunch like I did today!
- ¼ - ½  Green Apple Chopped
- ½ Avocado chopped - (Slice in half, pull half off for today, LEAVE the pit in the other half & put in a zip bag to keep for tomorrow. Tomorrow pop out the pit, sliver off the browning top and enjoy the fresh Avo below!)

** You can chop everything fresh daily… or throw a large quantity of these ingredients chopped into a Tupperware to use all week.

- Roma Tomato, seeded and diced
- Purple Onion
- Corn kernels (I use canned)

        Throw it all together, pour on some dressing & enjoy! I personally LOVE chopped salad, I chop all my salads to bits! I like to scoop a big pile of salad into my mouth without a huge piece of lettuce whacking my cheek with dressing! I prefer to make a batch of one dressing each week and I usually get about four-five lunches out of the deal. I try this approach to ensure I eat something relatively healthy every day to go along with my sweet tooth. My lunch was delicious, and now it’s time for hot cup of caffeine… I mean tea, and a piece of chocolate before Quiet time ends!