Today as we were getting into the van Rebekah pointed at the side of the van and said "There's snow all over my van". "No, honey," I said, "That's salt". Bekah responded "Oh." Then she pointed to some mud on the side and said "And pepper too!" :)
I have been doing menus the last two weeks but it's been a couple of weeks of "Cleaning out the Freezer" so nothing too exciting. Been feeding the family some box meals (like Lasagna, chicken nuggets, etc.) Not the healthiest but trying to add in lots of fruit and veggies. Next week I will post as I am hoping to add some items I haven't done in a while.
Lizzie's been fighting a cold the last couple of weeks again. No antibiotics this time. Just Tylenol and after three nights of being up all night with her a little bit of Benadryl. She seems to be feeling better though she has been doing two naps a day which would be nice except her naps are before and after Bekah's so I rarely have any "kid-free" time.
We've been doing okay with our toddler free time. It's a lot harder than I thought. We have done many different activities and right now 30 minutes is a long time for one activity for Bekah so I have been trying two 15 minute activities throughout the day and that seems to work better.
Have a great week!
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Menu Plan Monday
It's time again for my Menu for the week. I hope you made some time to check out her website. Be careful though - it could make you lose hours of your day!
First let me tell you about the recipes from last week. I made three new ones and they all were pretty good. The chicken parmesan bundles were my husband's favorite. They took a lot more work than any of the others but it was worth it. They were pretty yummy. I'm not a big spinach person and this had a little too much in it for me. I think next time I would not use the whole box - would still get the benefits of the spinach but the taste wouldn't be quite so strong.
The tortilla pie was awesome and I can see it being a common fixture on here. I used turkey meat instead of beef to help make it a little healthier (but then used sour cream and avocado as garnishes). I used tomatoes with green chili's to give it the Mexican taste but I think it would be just as good with Italian tomatoes for that Italian taste.
The salmon was the biggest surprise for me though. It was good! And that's huge as I don't like salmon. I know I should, I know it's healthy but I just have never, ever liked it. My MIL made a dish once that was okay but this was down right good. Will for sure make this again. The Citrus relish was super yummy. Elizabeth ate that. She wasn't so sure about the salmon but ate that right up! :) This is a relative easy dish that presents fancy!
For next week we are having:
Monday - Weeknight Lasagna Toss
Tuesday - Easy Baked Cheese and Vegetable Twist (I've made this before. It's a yummy, chilly night food. May serve with soup. I don't add mushrooms or tomatoes but do add in some turkey and maybe some carrots for more veggies.)
Wednesday - Awana night
Thursday - Taco Salad
Friday - Spicy Garlic Chicken (I use the box as a starter but we have found that it comes with a lot of sauce so I always add more veggies - water chestnuts, green peppers, red peppers, carrots and broccoli. It ends up doubling the amount of food almost without adding many calories or fat. I also will often make brown rice instead of the normal white rice if I am feeling healthy!)
Saturday - quiche I have used this recipe many, many times. Super quick and easy. I have done many variations of it - one of our favorites is broccoli with colby jack cheese. Be creative! :)
Sunday - Chicken in the crockpot
Hope you all have a good week!
Friday, January 8, 2010
The Things Kids Say...
Tonight Rebekah tripped and said "Ow, my sock hurts!"
This morning she mentioned something about her daddy to someone at church. They asked where he was and she said "He runned away." (We are working on grammar). There is a little bit of truth in that...although somedays I am sure that he would prefer to just stay home and not have to "run away".
After Awana DH was driving the girls home and Rebekah was concerned because "Her house was lost - find it, daddy!" They did (it's all of three miles away!)
Just thought I would share a smile with you today.
Had our first family game night last night. It was great. Two games of CandyLand. DH won one, and Bekah won one. For some reason I am NOT good at Candyland. Watch out Bekah...someday you'll want to play Monopoly with Mommy! lol
Bekah wanted Lizzie to play too and was not easy to convince that Lizzie really didn't care. Someday...but last night it was more about eating her red gingerbread man.
This morning she mentioned something about her daddy to someone at church. They asked where he was and she said "He runned away." (We are working on grammar). There is a little bit of truth in that...although somedays I am sure that he would prefer to just stay home and not have to "run away".
After Awana DH was driving the girls home and Rebekah was concerned because "Her house was lost - find it, daddy!" They did (it's all of three miles away!)
Just thought I would share a smile with you today.
Had our first family game night last night. It was great. Two games of CandyLand. DH won one, and Bekah won one. For some reason I am NOT good at Candyland. Watch out Bekah...someday you'll want to play Monopoly with Mommy! lol
Bekah wanted Lizzie to play too and was not easy to convince that Lizzie really didn't care. Someday...but last night it was more about eating her red gingerbread man.
Monday, January 4, 2010
TV Free Toddler Time
A fellow blogger (mother of 9 and one on the way) has created a challenge for those of us with toddlers to set aside a minimum of 1/2 hour a day where the TV is off and we are focused on an activity. (I guess this would fall under my "FUN" resolution.) If we do 7 in a row we get on her weekly smiley face list! lol You know, it really is the little things. :)
Today Bekah and I played with her Tag Jr. She has several of the books but today we concentrated on her favorite one (at this time). She seems to love David Smells. It's a book about our senses. I know she's not really reading at this point but she certainly can tell you with almost 100% accuracy what each page says now. It's awfully cute.
After reading the book, over and over and over and over (well, you get the point) we did some of the worksheets that you can download from Leap Frog. Even with those she was able to mostly tell me what each said. It has been so fun to see her vocabulary just blossom these last few months. There was a period of time where I was concerned but no longer. "They" say the average three year old has an average of 300 words so one night a few days after her third birthday I sat down and made a list. In about an hour I had 301 and when I showed it to DH the next day he came up with a bunch more. Throughout that whole day I kept thinking - "Oh yeah, I forgot that one, I forgot that one...." So - no worries at this point.
One reason for the worry is that Bekah is not a good eater. She is an extreme picky eater and has been since she was about 13 months old. At that time was the first time she had the stomach flu and threw up a bunch of green beans. Since then she has not eaten anything green except for pickles and the occasional green apple. She later got ill again and stopped eating pasta, rice, other veggies like carrots and corn (she had had fried rice with veggies). About a month ago she was down to eating toast w/ peanut butter and jelly, some fruits, some cereal, cheese (only orange though) and of course chips and cookies. She wouldn't eat pudding or jello and had stopped eating applesauce and yogurt and string cheese (if it was white). The biggest concern was that she had lost two lbs so at 3 she was 2 lbs less then she was at 2.It could get to a point where it could affect her development.
We took her to see an Occupational Therapist and while there is not yet an official diagnosis it sounds like they believe her to have "food anxiety". They are working with her each week on different foods. It's all very interesting. We have had a few sessions so far and it seems pretty positive. She is again eating yogurt and applesauce and took a bite of a fishstick. She did spit it out but at least she tried it! :)
It is so weird to think of a toddler with an eating disorder but I heard from a friend who's daughter was in a treatment program that there was a whole wing for toddlers with severe eating disorders! It's hard to wrap one's mind around that.
I'm thankful that my doctor is pro-active and that we are getting her help early where habits are a little easier to change. Please continue to pray that all continues to go well and the treatment is a successful.
Have a great Monday!!!
Today Bekah and I played with her Tag Jr. She has several of the books but today we concentrated on her favorite one (at this time). She seems to love David Smells. It's a book about our senses. I know she's not really reading at this point but she certainly can tell you with almost 100% accuracy what each page says now. It's awfully cute.
After reading the book, over and over and over and over (well, you get the point) we did some of the worksheets that you can download from Leap Frog. Even with those she was able to mostly tell me what each said. It has been so fun to see her vocabulary just blossom these last few months. There was a period of time where I was concerned but no longer. "They" say the average three year old has an average of 300 words so one night a few days after her third birthday I sat down and made a list. In about an hour I had 301 and when I showed it to DH the next day he came up with a bunch more. Throughout that whole day I kept thinking - "Oh yeah, I forgot that one, I forgot that one...." So - no worries at this point.
One reason for the worry is that Bekah is not a good eater. She is an extreme picky eater and has been since she was about 13 months old. At that time was the first time she had the stomach flu and threw up a bunch of green beans. Since then she has not eaten anything green except for pickles and the occasional green apple. She later got ill again and stopped eating pasta, rice, other veggies like carrots and corn (she had had fried rice with veggies). About a month ago she was down to eating toast w/ peanut butter and jelly, some fruits, some cereal, cheese (only orange though) and of course chips and cookies. She wouldn't eat pudding or jello and had stopped eating applesauce and yogurt and string cheese (if it was white). The biggest concern was that she had lost two lbs so at 3 she was 2 lbs less then she was at 2.It could get to a point where it could affect her development.
We took her to see an Occupational Therapist and while there is not yet an official diagnosis it sounds like they believe her to have "food anxiety". They are working with her each week on different foods. It's all very interesting. We have had a few sessions so far and it seems pretty positive. She is again eating yogurt and applesauce and took a bite of a fishstick. She did spit it out but at least she tried it! :)
It is so weird to think of a toddler with an eating disorder but I heard from a friend who's daughter was in a treatment program that there was a whole wing for toddlers with severe eating disorders! It's hard to wrap one's mind around that.
I'm thankful that my doctor is pro-active and that we are getting her help early where habits are a little easier to change. Please continue to pray that all continues to go well and the treatment is a successful.
Have a great Monday!!!
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Menu Plan Monday
One "resolution" I seem to have every year is to get organized. I must have missed that gift when they were passing it out. :) I like things organized but I usually just don't know where to start. So - this year I am starting with menu planning. I've "heard" in my research that menu planning saves time in the kitchen, encourages healthier eating, saves money on groceries, limits waste of food, eliminates my 4 PM "Oh shoot - what am I going to make for dinner I have nothing thawed!" stress out and just helps me organize one more aspect of my life. Baby steps!
I found Laura over at I'm an Organizing Junkie who must have received my organization gift. One of the great things she does is post her family menu every Monday - usually with links to get the recipes! Not only does she post her menus but she puts up a Mr. Linky where other organized people put up their menus! Last week there were over 250 I believe. 250 times 7 recipes equals 1750 ideas - each week!!! How great is that! So feel free to head on over and take a look. I may not post each week but so far have the next three weeks planned out. Boy - did it make shopping a lot easier. I bought the food we needed, nothing extra, and was able to plan the menu around the deals and sales!
So here is my menu for the week - with recipes for some of the items. Go check out Laura!
Tuesday - Easy Pleasing Meatloaf
Wednesday - Awana (As the secretary I go early with the girls so we eat dinner there - usually something light or sandwiches.
Thursday - Tortilla Pie
Friday - Citrus Salmon with Orange Relish
Saturday - Lunch - leftovers Supper - Grilled Cheese/Salad
Sunday - Lunch - pot roast w/ veggies and potatos Supper - pizza
I have to be honest ... Three of these recipes are new. The chicken parmesan, the tortilla pie, and the citrus salmon we have not had before but I get in such ruts of cooking that I need some new recipes. I hope they turn out well...I'll let you know! :) My goal for the new year is to try 4 new recipes a month - at least. With planning ahead menus it is easier to do because you have everything you need and it's ready to go.
Have a great week!
Friday, January 1, 2010
It's a New Year
Happy New Year - a little late! (Not that you're surprised by that...I'm usually late and am often playing catch up).
What are your resolutions?
I always come up with some...I never make it the whole year through but I figure if I have goals and achieve a percentage of them I am still better at the end of the year then I was at the beginning.
I also like alliteration.
So I came up with my resolutions and figured I would remember them best if they were "catchy".
1. FAITH - I've always had faith but one can always improve. I need to spend more time studying the scriptures. I need to not leave my weekly Bible study for the last day and do it all at once. I need to pray more...alone, with my husband, and with my children. My children's spiritual walk is my responsibility. It is my job to teach them and there is nothing more important. I need to make my Faith more of a priority. I take it for granted sometimes and I need to find my zeal again.
2. FRUGAL - Ilike love to shop. I always have. The hunt for a good bargain, the perfect present, something cute for ______, a new toy, even grocery shopping - whatever the reason I enjoy it whether it be in the stores or from my computer. However, money is tight these days. There isn't an unlimited supply and I hate the thought that we are in debt. So my goal this year is to work hard on getting us out of debt, limit careless and impulsive spending, and be wise and frugal with our spending. I want to be able to give more to charities and church and to help others out. We have so much - much more than we need. I also want to weed out my items. Clothes, toys, and collectibles all are in abundance for each of us.
3. FIT - Let's face it...I need to get fit. My DH could get more fit. AND my girls need to stay fit so they have a healthy lifestyle from a young age. We are members of a wonderful community center so there is no reason that we are not there several times a week working out, playing and swimming. They offer daycare which we get for free based on our membership so the girls get to play and socialize for an hour and DH and I can work out - really - it's not hard is it?
4. FUN - I want to do more "fun" with my family. More hands on activities with the girls. Seeing how much fun we had making the ornaments I saw how important that was for Bekah to do those hands on activities. I found a very helpful website, TV Free Toddler Time (link is also on my sidebar). This is filled with wonderful ideas of things to do with your little ones that cost minimal to nothing and that don't include the TV. I also want to look for things to do as a family. Anyone have any ideas they would like to share of something fun they do with their family?
So that's my FOUR resolutions....Faith, Frugal, Fit and Fun - all large but doable and all for my Family!
God Bless!
What are your resolutions?
I always come up with some...I never make it the whole year through but I figure if I have goals and achieve a percentage of them I am still better at the end of the year then I was at the beginning.
I also like alliteration.
So I came up with my resolutions and figured I would remember them best if they were "catchy".
1. FAITH - I've always had faith but one can always improve. I need to spend more time studying the scriptures. I need to not leave my weekly Bible study for the last day and do it all at once. I need to pray more...alone, with my husband, and with my children. My children's spiritual walk is my responsibility. It is my job to teach them and there is nothing more important. I need to make my Faith more of a priority. I take it for granted sometimes and I need to find my zeal again.
2. FRUGAL - I
3. FIT - Let's face it...I need to get fit. My DH could get more fit. AND my girls need to stay fit so they have a healthy lifestyle from a young age. We are members of a wonderful community center so there is no reason that we are not there several times a week working out, playing and swimming. They offer daycare which we get for free based on our membership so the girls get to play and socialize for an hour and DH and I can work out - really - it's not hard is it?
4. FUN - I want to do more "fun" with my family. More hands on activities with the girls. Seeing how much fun we had making the ornaments I saw how important that was for Bekah to do those hands on activities. I found a very helpful website, TV Free Toddler Time (link is also on my sidebar). This is filled with wonderful ideas of things to do with your little ones that cost minimal to nothing and that don't include the TV. I also want to look for things to do as a family. Anyone have any ideas they would like to share of something fun they do with their family?
So that's my FOUR resolutions....Faith, Frugal, Fit and Fun - all large but doable and all for my Family!
God Bless!
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