Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Cold weather makes me want soup!

So what did I do, I made some!

Here's what you need:

• 5 lb bag of potatoes
• 1 1/2 sticks of butter
• 8 oz sour cream
• 1 pkg of real bacon pieces or 1 lb of bacon
• chives
• cheddar cheese

optional: potato masher

might need: a little bit of milk

wash the potatoes

Cut up the potatoes into chunks. (slice potato long ways, then down middle of each 1/2, & then crossways about a 1/2 inch wide)

  

Put potatoes in pot

(I know, you could figure that out!)

  

add water to cover

 turn on burner medium high-ish

set timer for 30 minutes

let cook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Watch your pot or this might happen,

 not that this happened to me.......lol

 take potato piece

out and smoosh it

(checking its done-ness)

 add butter

 

add sour cream

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

add bacon pieces

  

 

                      

add chives

2-3 tablespoons,

I did 2 palm of my handfuls

salt and pepper to taste

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top with cheddar cheese.........

 

 

Voila, dinner is served!

Who likes saving money?

Ok, so I'm all about saving money. I mean who isn't right? Anyhow, in the interest of saving money here is my first money saving post! Oatmeal is cheap, its healthy and all that jazz, right? But why pay $2.50 (Walmart) for 10 packets of that name brand guy when all you are getting is about 2 1/2 cups of oatmeal! DON'T DO IT AGAIN! lol

Here's what you need:

• Take a big thing of oatmeal (make sure to use the quick oats, mine was 42 oz I went and checked, haha) $3.78 at my local Wal-mart in Texas
• a box of snack-sized Ziplocks (or whichever brand you prefer)
• a 1/4 c or 1/2 c measuring cup (I did mine 1/2 c but my kids are 8 & 11 and then there is my hubs, the pre-made packets are only about 1/4 c so if you have itty bittys you can just do the 1/4 c)
• a few spare minutes (probably took less than 10 minutes)

And here's how I put mine together, feel free to add in what you and your family like:

1. I put 1/2 c oats in the baggie (could do 1/4 c if you have itty bittys, that's how much are in the name brand guys pre-made packets)
2. Approximately 2 TBSP of brown sugar in the baggie
3. Zip it up!

For the water or milk part you add 3/4 c - 1 c of water or milk (for the 1/2 c oatmeal size), however you prefer. Easy-peasy! Done! Kids can even help on this one! You can also add in raisins, dried fruits, cinnamon, chocolate chips, whatever else you like in your oatmeal. So for $3.78 you now have 60 - 1/4 c packets or 30 - 1/2 c packets. The name brand guy for the same amount would cost you between $15 & $30 depending how much you would eat, 1 packet or 2 packets. I'll keep that extra money thank you very much! How about you? lol