Ellie@Home by Nicole Kapise-Perkins

   I was banging around the kitchen a little while ago trying to figure out what to do for dinner tonight as I need to do some grocery shopping. We've got some leftover burgers in the refrigerator, but not enough to make a filling dinner for five (three of which are adults). It has literally just occurred to me that I could have made some kind of hamburger soup, but seeing as how I just made curried chicken soup, I guess I'll wait and try that one tomorrow night, unless my oldest son takes the burgers in to work tonight for his 4:00 AM lunch break. (Night shift people have weird hours).    I love soup: it's generally fast, usually easy, and nothing says comfort like a tummy full of lovely warm soup. My husband is slightly less enamored of it, as he's a hard-working man that is always on the go while at work (and at home, chasing after our boys). He likes soup, but it doesn't always fill him up enough, so often when I make soup I cook up some chicken or sausage for

   I have been having a lot of fun reading the 'Bucket Lists' people have posted on their blogs. It's so interesting to see what people hope or plan to do during the course of their lives, and in many ways inspiring. While bungee jumping over the Amazon may not be of particular interest to me (okay, the thought terrifies me), I definitely admire the spirit of adventure behind it. (Not enough to want to do it myself, but to each their own.)    All of these amazing and wacky ides got me thinking, so I decided to put together my own Bucket List. It's far from finished, as I know I'll end up adding more to it as time goes by, but here's a start: * Ride in a hot air balloon (doesn't matter where. Just want to do it!) * Visit Ireland, Scotland and Wales * Visit Hawaii * Visit Puget Sound (I will see orcas in the wild) * Visit San Francisco * Visit Nova Scotia * Visit Spain (practicing my Spanish for when the day arrives!) * Visit Germany * Swim with m

     Lasagna and I have a complicated relationship. Maybe it's my lactose intolerance, maybe it's my preferred vegetarianism, but my attempts at making lasagna in the past are agreed-upon disasters. Call me a glutton for punishment, I keep trying. Last night, my persistence (obstinacy) paid off. *happy dance in chair*    Pintrest yielded a slow cooker recipe that looked like even I in my lasagna-ineptitude could manage, and as I was scheduled to go into work at 4 PM and the man and boys would be looking for dinner right away after a long walk home from Grandma's, last night seemed like a prime opportunity to attempt to not ruin another lasagna dinner.    My husband texted me raving: the noodles were perfect, the meat wasn't overdone, everything was great, he was on his second helping, and the little boys plowed through their bowls. I ROCK.    I cannot take all of the credit, however, as I only followed the recipe Lauren from the Tastes Better From Scratch blog pos