That's a Crock of...

When life gives you lemons you are supposed to make lemonade.

And I'm pretty sure that when life gives you a snow day, you are supposed to make cookies.

So we did.

Big, chewy, yummy, chocolate-chip-oatmeal cookies.

And then ate them until our bellies hurt.

As far as snow days go, I rocked this one. I left the TV off and we read and baked and played games and did puzzles and made crafts and played in the snow.

When you play the role of Stay-at-Home mom only on a random Wednesday, it's easy to stay in the running for Mother of the Year.

And Holy Snow Batman! I offered to go out and shovel the stairs at 6:30 because I knew I would be in the house all day. I got them down to the concrete. By noon there was another foot of snow on them.

In the spirit of multitasking, Hubby shoveled the back stairs and turned the pile into snow fort.

And since this blog is billed as "Saving Teachers Time and Money," I feel it is my duty to share with you a useful tidbit that will do just that.

It's not rocket science and it's not new to you, but trust me when I say, "crock pots got it goin' on!"

Here's the thing.

Talking about crock pots makes me feel all old and uncool.

Combining the words crock pot + pot roast totally makes me feel and sound matronly. However, I was given the crock pot pot roast recipe from a coworker who is younger and hipper and more stylish than I'll ever be so it's totally OK.

At least that's what I keep telling myself.

And at the risk of receiving hate mail from those who believe "Earth Day is Every Day" I must tell you about the Crock Pot liner.

Along with parchment paper, they are little culinary gifts from Heaven.

Busy work day?

Throw a whole bunch of stuff in the crock pot liner and go to work. Come home to a house that smells delish and dinner that is ready. The downside is that I eat lunch at 11:00 get home about 3:30. It is all I can do to not stick my entire head into the trough of goodness.

After dinner just put the leftovers into those cute little Ziploc containers, toss the liner and stick the crock pot back into it's hiding place. You can make tons of food in it and therefore have lunches ready to go or stock your freezer.

I made the yummiest pot roast yesterday and because it was a snow day I was home all day while it simmered. After Hubby got home, I took the boy for a walk (well I walked and pulled a sled while he rode around the Hood like a King). Two blocks into the walk I noticed that dogs were being friendlier than usual.

Then it hit me.

I smelled of pot roast!

Fearful that other wildlife would find me enticing I quickly scurried home.

And devoured my yummy dinner.

And then just tossed the liner and called the kitchen clean!

What is your favorite crock pot recipe?