Lack-of-Meal-Plan Tuesday

Wondering what happened to Meal Plan Monday?

Yesterday was so busy that I forgot to post my meal plan. Sunday was so busy that I forgot to make a meal plan. Heck, this week - I barely went grocery shopping. Mason and I stopped and grabbed a few things at the store while Gavin was at school this morning.

Can I just say that I hate not grocery shopping? If I don't do one big grocery trip... I end up doing 5 small grocery trips and it just becomes so expensive!

The week's plans... ugh.

Monday - work for me. I made quiche for the guys.
Tuesday - work for me. Game for Jordan (cancelled due to rain). Easy pasta and fresh bread with steamed broccoli.
Wednesday - work for me. Window company coming to give a quote for replacement windows. Dinner must be fast and require no prep or work on Jordan's part... so I'm thinking pork chops in the crockpot, rice and steamed veggies.
Thursday - work for me, and Jordan is working late. My sister is coming to watch the boys and I'm ordering them a pizza!
Friday - Jordan's softball game has been rescheduled, so the boys and I are going to go watch daddy play. This means a picnic dinner - PB&J on whole wheat, fresh fruit, crackers and bottled water, all packed up for the game!

Since Sunday was Mother's Day, I didn't do any batch cooking, baking, freezing or fruit preparation. I think later in the week I will go and buy a watermelon and pineapple for the boys, but for now they are fine with the apples, oranges, strawberries, bananas and blueberries that we have that don't require chopping and storage. I am also planning to "celebrate" National Chocolate Chip Day today by making a fresh batch of chocolate chip muffins with the boys, so we can have those to snack on this week, as well.

Kid-isms

My life probably seems boring and uneventful to most people. And some days, it truly is. But these two little guys that I get to spend my time with are incredibly smart and funny, and there are certain days where I wish we had a camera crew to follow us around and capture all of the strange and hilarious things that happen during the day.

Today is one of those days. And it isn't even noon.

Mason has been following every single action with a loud, spread-armed "Ta-Da!" Successfully balance plastic red car on mom's head? Ta-Da! Take a bite of my peanut butter sandwich? Ta-Da! Open plastic tool box without help? Ta-Da! He's a one man magic show today.

We picked Gavin up from nursery school this morning and he told me that he made a duck. I asked him what he named it. He looked at me like I was literally the dumbest person to ever walk the face of the earth, summoned up his most sarcastic tone and told me, "Mom. A duck is a duck. Ducks don't have names." Pause. "But I named him Goose."

We got home from school and I paused getting out of the car (to text hubs the above duck story) and said, "Ugh. It's such a rainy day." Gavin told me, "It's actually not raining."

"It's not?" I asked.

"Nope," he replied. "It's just water falling from the clouds. It's called per-cip-i-tation."

Was I schooled in meteorology by my three year old? Yes, I think so.

Mother's Day!

I had a pretty great Mother's Day weekend.

Yesterday was a busy day. Jordan let me sleep in and when I got up, he and the boys were dancing to Darius Rucker and making scrambled eggs and toast. Melt a woman's heart, huh?

We went to Home Depot and got a price estimate for the windows that we want to replace, and then we bought the supplies that we needed to build our raised garden. On the way home, we stopped for lunch at our favorite outdoor eatery and enjoyed some sunshine and delicious food. When we got home, Mason went down for his nap and Jordan and Gavin got to work building our garden beds. It was a ton of hard work, but Jordan was able to get the beds constructed and the ground tilled all while Mason napped!

520 lbs of soil later, our new garden bed was finished and ready for planting. It was a great day.

This morning, Jordan made me French toast for breakfast. It was so yummy. The cinnamon smell filled the house, and Gavin went back for seconds. He doesn't do that when I make French toast! After we were dressed for the day, we went and used a gift card and bonus coupon to get the boys a brand new water table. After a long nap, we spent the afternoon outside in the yard, playing with the water table, swinging on the swing set and planting our garden. It was a perfect afternoon!

After a quick bath and dinner (which was a simple pizza, courtesy - again - of Jordan!), we finished our day by going out for ice cream. Mason had his first ever ice cream cone! He bit the bottom off first, of course.

Here are a few pictures from our day:

Jordan raking the soil.

The boys checking out their new water table.

Playing with Daddy.

Gavin and his sarcastic "Cheese" face.

The start of our garden.

All in all, my Mother's Day was idyllic. It wasn't anything fancy or spectactular, but I got to spend the day with the people that I love most in this world, and that is a good day for me!

To all of the moms out there: I hope you had a wonderful day!

Thankful

I am a lucky woman. My life may not be exciting or newsworthy or even particularly glamorous, but I truly am blessed beyond words. And one of my biggest blessings, and a person that I am incredibly thankful for, is my husband.

Jordan, playing around with Gavin.

Jordan and I got married five years ago. Even before we were married, our life was an adventure. We just seemed to fit together so well, right from the beginning. Where one is lacking, the other is strong. Where one is giving up, the other is holding on. When one needs a break, the other steps in to help. We make each other laugh. Yes, we make each other yell in frustration sometimes, but we always come back to laughter and that is what matters in this world.

In our five short years of marriage, we have had two (almost three!) babies, bought and remodeled a house, been through numerous career transitions, lost loved ones and gained new friends. It's been a busy time, but there is no one else that I would rather share it with!

About a year and a half ago, after I had Mason, I desperately did not want to return to work. I felt a strong calling to be a stay at home mom. I know that Jordan took a huge leap of faith to agree to me quitting my full-time job to stay home with the boys. I know that it was stressful for him to take on the roll of sole financial provider, and I know that he had hesitations. But I also recognize that our family has grown so much because of our decision for me to stay home and because of our commitment to our boys (and soon-to-be daughter!). He is a dedicated husband, provider and father. It makes my heart so happy to hear our boys shout, "Daddy!" and run to him with hugs when he returns home from work. There is no one in the world that those boys would rather play with or spend time with than their amazing dad.

So Jordan - I love you! I am so thankful for you and all of your hard work and your dedication to our family. I know I do not say it enough, but you are an amazing husband and father and we love you!



Waiting...

I hate to even start feeling this way. You know why? Because I'm only 35 weeks, 3 days pregnant. But who's counting? (Well, technically I guess I am more like 36+ weeks because they keep moving my due date up. But again - who's counting?)

Today especially, I feel so... off. I'm waiting for something that may not happen for a while! I feel kind of icky, and not quite myself. Crampy. Achy. Probably normal pregnant symptoms. Mentally though - I'm so distracted. I keep feeling like something BIG is going to happen!

My first son was two weeks early, and my second was a week late. So "due dates" don't mean too much to me. I've been around the block enough to know that assigning a due date does not give baby an arrival time or even a deadline. So why do I feel like I'm waiting today?

I have no idea.
I need a nap.

Cutting out the TV...

My goal - or test, rather - for this week was to cut out television as much as I could. Not to make a political statement or anything, but just to see how our days went around here when we removed the time and mental energy that we devoted to TV during the day. I was noticing that I'd turn on Curious George while I was making breakfast, and before I realized it, it was 9:30 am, nothing had gotten done, Super Why! was on and Gavin was arguing with me saying, "I want to watch this!"

Now, I'm picky about what the boys watch, anyway. When choosing television for them, I stick to PBS or movies that we own. I do sometimes watch the news or weather in the morning, but let's face it - the news is depressing. I avoid channels with commercials, because it drives me NUTS to hear Gavin say, "I want that!" in reference to whatever item happens to be featured in the commercial. Seriously, he will ask for everything from Cocoa Pebbles to a My Little Pony doll if it pops up on that darn screen. I'd rather not hear it, or expose him to tons of garbage that he does not need.

I've also managed to keep my boys blissfully unaware of most television shows and characters. For the most part, I don't know what other moms are talking about when they mention their kids' favorite shows, and I'm fine with that! Kids TV irks me, so I'm picky about what I expose them to. Now, if only I could get my husband and mother-in-law to stop sabotaging my efforts... but that is another post altogether!!!

We've spent our time playing restaurant, baking, and listening to music, among many other things. The need for background noise has not bothered me as much as I anticipated it would! Plus, the boys have been getting a kick out of turning on the radio when they want some sound or music. Good thing they LOVE country music like their mama!

Catching Up

I have to admit, I am still feeling the pain of my littlest guy being so sick last week, and a really busy weekend. Yesterday, while the boys ate breakfast, I made myself a to-do list. It was a mile long.

By the end of the day, however, all but two things were crossed off! Hooray!

Yesterday was spent catching up. It was a busy day. On top of a million things to do, we had Gavin's spring concert yesterday evening. And he desperately needed a hair cut before he went on stage. So we had to squeeze in an outing after nap time. BUT - we got it done!

Yummy pineapple slices.

My handsome baking assistant.

Muffins, anyone?

The highlight of the day was certainly Gavin's concert. Nursery school performances are just so... adorable. Gavin spent the entire day insisting that he "forgot how to sing" and "only knows animal songs". So I wasn't quite sure what to expect from him when we got to the show. But he was awesome!

I am the proud mom of the kid who picked his nose on stage. Multiple times and for long durations. Hubs and I were cracking up!

Not only did Gavin remember how to sing just fine - he remembered how to sing LOUDLY. I could hear his voice over all of the other kids. He kind of ended up being the background singer at some points.

His class singing: This little light of mine...

Gavin singing: .................................LIGHT OF MINE!

Tears were streaming down my face from laughing so hard. And the woman next to me knew just which child was mine!

Meal Plan Monday

Ah, I'm a bit late with this. It's Tuesday, isn't it?

This week is hectic. Lately, hectic has been our new "normal".

So here are our goings-on this week!

Monday - Gavin's Spring concert
Tuesday - Work for me
Wednesday - Work for me, softball for hubs. My mom is watching the boys
Thursday - Work for me
Friday - nothing!

Keeping this in mind, and in light of the fact that I did not follow my meal plan at all last week, this is what I've come up with:

Monday         - Parmesean breaded chicken, with fresh bread and a veggie
Tuesday        - Homemade mac 'n cheese with steamed brocolli
Wednesday   - Baked ziti and fresh bread - a simple meal that my mom can pop in the oven at dinner time
Thursday       - Hamburger hashbrowns for hubs. Healthy chicken nuggets for the boys, with some fresh fruit
Friday             - Grilled marinated chicken breast, steak for hubs if he wants it, roasted potatoes, steamed carrots and cauliflower and garlic bread
Saturday         - A bit of a change from tradition, but we are making pizza! It will be a busy day, so a simple and quick meal is a necessity. We could even put our multigrain pizza crusts on the grill. Grilled pizza is delicious!

Sorry for the late menu post! I'm still reeling from Mason being sick last week and a hectic weekend.

A Day on the Farm

We were invited to celebrate the birthday of a dear friend's little girl today. Her party was at a local farm, during their Baby Animal Days event. I can't lie - I have looked forward to Molly's party for the last couple of weeks!

The weather was perfect - warm and sunny. The kids loved going on the hayride, checking out the animals and eating cupcakes. Molly's cupcakes were a-MAZ-ing! They were so beautifully decorated that it was a shame to eat them... even though they were delicious!

Here are a few pictures of the kids playing on the farm.

Snacking on an apple.

Seeing the sights on the hayride!

What mom? You want to take our picture?

Farmer Gavin with his bucket of animal feed.

Petting a baby duck.

Jen, Ray, Molly and Raymond - thank you for inviting us to be a part of your celebration! Happy birthday, Molly! :)

Sunday - A Day of Rest (Wait, what?)

Sunday... Oh, Sunday.
A day of rest.

Rest? What the heck is that? I think Sunday's new title should be Sunday... a day of prep.

Family time passes too quickly. I am a stay-at-home-mom, so weekends are strange for me. It's kind of the same-old-same, but with hubs thrown into the mix. And of course, that changes everything! Our Monday through Friday routine sometimes goes out the window. We usually end up doing something fun, which is what the weekends are for. But by the time Sunday afternoon rolls around I am looking ahead to the week, being alone with the kids, checking out our schedule and seeing what I need to accomplish.

On Sunday, I usually try to prepare for the week. These preparations include....

• Reading the newspaper, reviewing fliers, matching coupons to sales
• Planning my grocery shopping
• SOMETIMES accomplishing my grocery shopping
• Batch-cooking some waffles or muffins for breakfast during the week
• Slicing fruit
• Making lunch for the hubs

Now, some weeks, I get all of this accomplished and more. Other weeks... I get nothing done. It's life, right?

This was my dining room table at 9 pm on Sunday night. Finally looking through the fliers. While waiting for rice to cook so that I could assemble and pack wraps for husband. I got about... two pages in. I'll deal with that tomorrow! (It does look like there are some good coupons, so I'll likely order some duplicates tomorrow, too.)

So what DID I get done on this day of prep?
Lunch for hubs? Check!
Waffles cooked and in freezer? Check!
AND... that's it! The rest will have to wait until tomorrow.

The Best Laid Plans...

So this week has not gone the way it should have gone.
Eh, scratch that. I guess there is no real way that things should go, but it certainly has not gone according to plan. Well, at least not my plan! Maybe God's plan.

Mason has been sick. It started Tuesday night. He had a low fever - just felt a bit warm. He kept pointing to his mouth, so I assumed teething. Gave him some Tylenol and he did okay.

By Wednesday, he had a rash. So we visited the pediatrician. Sinus infection. Antibiotics. I can handle that!

By Thursday morning, at around 4 am, he had a fever of 105.1. With about an hour of sleep, I went to the grocery store to get him ibuprofen, as Tylenol was not helping his fever at all. Fever broke, we all got some sleep. I was able to keep the fever down most of Thursday with a cool bath and medicine.

This morning, his fever was back to 104.9. Sigh. At least we got some sleep last night! But needless to say - we were back at the pediatrican's office this morning.

The doctor was fantastic. We reviewed all of Mason's doctor appointments, ER visits, urgent care visits - you name it, we went through charts, spoke of symptoms and tried to piece together what is happening. You see, this is not a new occurance for Masey. He has had a fever of 105 four times so far this year. What we noticed is that each time a fever presents, it's accompanied by viral symptoms. The doctor thinks that Mason has an extreme febrile reaction to most common viruses that would simply cause a runny nose in other kids. So for now, we need to keep him comfortable when he gets sick, treat his fever with ibuprofen as I have been doing, and be a bit more cautious. We need to wash our hands more frequently, try to avoid other (obviously) sick people. And we will continue to track his illnesses, symptoms and fevers to see if we notice any further correllation. As of now, however, it does not look to be an auto-immune problem. So that is good news!

With Mason being so sick, I've been home all week. Which has been good and bad. I am thankful that I don't have to worry about working, finding childcare and taking care of my sick little guy. But I am also feeling a bit frustrated and trapped. Even though I'm a stay at home mom, the boys and I really try to get out of the house every day, even if we just wash the car, visit the lobsters at the grocery store or take a walk. And we play in the yard often now that it's warmer out. But we've been inside. Yesterday was a pajama and movies kind of day. I ordered pizza for lunch.

Needless to say, I haven't been cleaning like I should. All of my organization - which I was so proud to accomplish last week - has gone to crap. We missed our mom group park date on Wednesday. I haven't been able to cook or bake. BUT - I have gotten in extra snuggles and quality time with the boys. So maybe the best laid plans aren't really always the best plans, anyhow!