'Tis The Season

It seems that the yearly approach of the Christmas season continues to take me off-guard. I have such dreamy expectations of celebrating the holidays to their fullest, yet Christmas still arrives out of nowhere leaving me woefully unprepared. Not so this year, my friends. 

A few weeks ago I queried friends for meaningful Christmas activities and received some excellent responses. Coupling that with a hodge-podge of great resources found online and a little of my own originality I ended up with this: a great listing of holiday festivities for our family to brighten the season. I hope this sneak peak of what we'll be doing this year is helpful to you as you seek to make Christmas a meaningful time of faith, family and friendship. And in light of it all, may we never forget the real Reason for the Season. 

Merry Christmas!

A Mid-Western Family Christmas Celebration!

 

Putting Christ Back Into Christmas (Advent)

• Build a Jesse Tree (free devotionals and ornament prints, guide for doing it at home) or you can build your own and read one of the many Jesse Tree devotional books
• Make a birthday cake for Jesus

Simple Holiday Pleasures

• Put up Christmas tree & decorations
• Make a new Christmas CD & listen to it.
• Operation Christmas Mouse*, December 1^st
• Given: watch lots of Christmas movies and listen to lots of Christmas songs while sitting around the tree. :-)

Christmas Crafts

• Make a hand-print family Christmas tree (use as our Jesse Tree)
• Make a Christmas countdown chain
• Make candy cane playdough
• Make and decorate Christmas trees
• Make Christmas Ornaments (here, and some for Grandparents’ gifts here)
• Color Christmas sheets
• Make Baby Jesus in the manger

We won’t be getting to these this year, but here are two fun count-down-to-Christmas activity ideas:

Child’s Book and Activity Advent

Ornament Advent

Celebrating God’s Love

• Make Christmas baskets for our neighbors w/ Scripture (to include: candy cane play dough, Peppermint Popcorn Bark, Poor Man’s Toffee, Gingerbread men)
• Sort through toys and give a box away to Salvation Army
• Hang Shepherds’ Pouches on the mantle in lieu of stockings

   

Yummy Christmas Goodies

• Make marshmallow snowflakes and hot chocolate
• Make cranberry candy canes (breakfast treat)
• Make White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn Bark
• Make Poor Man’s Toffee
• Make gingerbread men

 

Places to Go

• Visit Christmas in Canal Winchester, OH
• Attend church Lifegroup Christmas Party
• Attend Station #4 Firehouse Christmas Party
• Visit Wildlights at the Columbus Zoo
• Visit Dickens Victorian Village in Cambridge, OH
• The Fantasy of Lights at Alum Creek State Park
• Just a drive around town to look at lights

 

Special Christmas Books

We have appreciated this resource of quality Christmas books to read during the season:

The Legend of the Christmas Tree by Rick Osborne

The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg

The Legend of the Christmas Stocking by Rick Osborne

The Story of St. Nicholas: More than Reindeer and A Red Suit by Voice of the Martyrs

The Three Gifts of Christmas by Jennie Bishop

The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Hunt

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski

The Pine Tree Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs

The Gift of the Magi by O Henry

The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (adapted picture book version)

The Candle In the Window by Grace Johnson

Jacob’s Gift by Max Lucado

One Wintry Night by Ruth Graham Belle

Christmas Carols for Kids Hearts by Sergio Martinez

Josie’s Gift by Kathleen Bostrom

We Believe in Christmas by Karen Kingsbury

The Indescribable Gift by Richard Exley

Also:

God Gave Us Christmas by Lisa Bergren (Our all-time favorite)
The Birds of Bethlehem by Tommy DePaola
The Lion in the Box by Marguerite De Angeli
The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado
All Is Well by Frank Peretti

*There are many variations of the Christmas Mouse. For our family, the Christmas Mouse quietly visits the bed of each child on December 1st leaving them a brand new pair of Christmas pj’s to wear for the season.

October at Our House

Back when we were a one-child family I found myself with lots of time on my hands and enough brain cells left over to create a bi-weekly newsletter filled with updates on life for our close friends and family. And then we had baby #2. 

Sleep then seemed like a thing of the past and with it went what little creativity I had. In a half-hearted attempt I pursued blogging, which went fairly well until we decided in May 2010 to make a 400 mile move... followed by baby #3. 

But in the back of my sleep-deprived mind, I've missed those newsletters... and I think others have too. They serve as such special portholes into our life and times and I can't help but wonder how many memories have since fallen by the wayside because I forgot to write them down. 

All that to say... here we go again. There is no creativity - or even time - to publish my little family newsletter, but I do think a monthly blog post updating the interested public is in order. With no further ado, I give you Vol. 1 No. 1 of the new and improved life and times of our family of three, four, five... six!

Welcome, Water Baby!

On September 5th we welcomed our fourth child and third daughter: Jordynn Evangeline Marie…. This is her story:

Born @ 7:42PM
8lbs 6oz
19inches

For you GUYS who might be reading, here’s an abbreviated version:
 
True labor started around 9am Wednesday morning Sept 5th and 10.5 hours later we had a live baby at home. Yes, my husband missed the very first NFL game. No, he didn’t complain about it, albeit he glanced mournfully at the TV every 5 minutes. Just kidding. 



And for the LADIES:

1. Why a homebirth?

2. Jordynn's Story


Let me first answer a pressing question… why a homebirth? 

My previous two births were attended by terrific CNMs (certified nurse-midwives) who had hospital privileges. I had good experiences with them, however, Jadyn and MJ were both diagnosed with shoulder dystocia during labor. This uncommon issue can be an obstetrical emergency resulting in damage or even death to the infant in severe cases. Thankfully our issues were never so serious. That said, my CNM with MJ was a bit shaken by our birth experience and she encouraged us to induce or grow a smaller baby the next time around. Ha!

When I returned pregnant with Jordynn, I found I had a bit of a reputation in the CNM’s office for my shoulder dystocia experience. As the months went on I grew tired of their continued mention of it and their reluctance to let me have the hospital birth I wanted simply because I was a bit of a liability. Concurrently I read “Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth,” a wonderful, albeit very crunchy, book written by one of the US’s most experienced midwives. Ina seemed unshaken by the urgency of shoulder dystocia which inspired me to do my own research about the issue.  I came away feeling strongly that my past births weren’t truly shoulder dystocia cases; the baby was simply not given time to rotate properly. Furthermore, all the safety the hospital afforded me in that situation was the possibility of a C-Section, in which event the baby is usually so stuck that the time required to prep for surgery can be too long. 

Armed with this info Matt and I confidently switched to a small home-birth midwifery practice in my eighth month.  Though so late in my pregnancy the midwives agreed with my evaluation that I most likely didn’t have dystocia issues and simply needed better support, direction and patience in labor... and they agreed to give it to me. Thus we fast-forward to September… 

Jordynn initiated her arrival in mid-August when my enemy/”friend” prodromal labor arrived. I fully anticipated a baby during week 39 and experienced contractions every day from 4pm-10pm starting around week 38. I was less than thrilled when no baby appeared days later. Ditto the following week.  Aaaaand ditto the following week. Seriously?! Me, past my due date?! Three weeks of prodromal crap?! Inconceivable!  

Me at 41 weeks

September 4th I started having stronger contractions in the morning – rather unusual from the prodromal pattern – and they continued all day at 3-5 minutes apart. I asked one of my midwives to come check the baby and she did a cervical check as well… no change. I was still 3cm and 60% as I had been for weeks. So after a Tylenol, a glass of wine and a good cry Matt and I went to bed. They stopped sometime in the night.

*Drumroll, please….*

Wednesday September 5th found me 41 weeks, 4 days preggo. And tired. And cranky. Thankfully I had a mother’s helper lined up for the morning and when she arrived I escaped upstairs to call one of my best friends. Then a *real* contraction hit. Finally! 

(Prodromal labor often leaves a laboring woman feeling so stupid when real labor starts. It’s rather retrospective in that sense… only in hindsight can you look back and say… “oh, yes, I WAS in labor”. However, there was no doubt in my mind that we finally reached a birth day. Yay!)

I didn’t time my contractions (I never do when they are the real thing since they are ALWAYS irregular. Whoever met a textbook laboring woman, anyway?) but they were intensifying so I called my midwives to cancel my office appointment and let them know I’d be needing them later. Once the kiddos were down for their naps my mom came over and we watched “Sense and Sensibility”. Contractions were now at the small land-mammal noise-making level. :-) Progress!

At 4pm… it was time to rid the house of small children. My parents graciously obliged and I finished the movie alone while waiting for the midwives to arrive. Matt busied himself by preparing our last minute items and tending to me when my primal noises approached the more mid-sized land-mammal level.

 -- Might I interject here how AWESOME it was not to have to prepare to head to the hospital! It was SO much more relaxed and comfortable at home. Using my own bathroom :-). No pressing thoughts of who else had been laboring on the toilet... --

My 3 midwives, Jill, Tanya and Alison arrived at 5pm. Two focused solely on me and my comfort while the other joined Matt in filling the birth tub in our living room. I still had no trouble working through these contractions; my biggest hurdle was the knowledge of what was coming and dreading… dreading… dreading. There is bliss in first-time birth. Not so much in subsequent ones.

Around 6pm I climbed in the tub and fell in love. I thought for sure I wouldn’t like it or would feel out of control working through contractions. Not so. Though the "pain" wasn't lessened for me, the weightlessness afforded more opportunities for movement without feeling like a beached whale. 

For the next half hour or so I floated through the “squeezes” and chatted about random topics. Matt was a huge comfort in the tub as he rubbed my back and the midwives helped me keep my voice low. I was encouraged to gauge my own labor progress (a very empowering thing) and finally close to 7pm I was starting to struggle with the intensity. 

--Enter aquatic-mammal noises and lots of whining.—

By this time my mind was chanting “no, no, no” while the rest said “oh yes, oh yes, oh yes.” I told the midwives I was feeling “pushy” and lo and behold the next contraction had a double peak… the first peak broke my water (a lovely and non-messy thing being in the tub!) and the second peak brought Jordynn completely down to crowning. It was so fast that she was very bruised afterward, poor thing.

The midwives helped me control my pushing more than I had with the previous three, which I both loved and loathed them for. During this time it was great to be floating in the water, leaning into Matt’s arms. Pushing in the water didn’t annoy me at all like I thought it would. I still felt very in control and as my contractions eased off I found I could relax much more than being in a hospital bed. And who couldn't with Enya playing in the background and my favorite candle burning nearby?

 After those few intense minutes of waiting, I delivered her head and breathed a sigh of relief. Jordynn had her cord wrapped firmly around her neck but it was still pulsing so the midwives decided to just let her be and summersault her out when the time came.

And now the moment of truth was here… would she be “stuck” like the other two had been? The midwives waited quietly and patiently, watching Jordynn’s color and asking me if I felt any further contractions. I didn’t. So we waited… and waited. For two entire minutes the midwives sat back and just let my body do its thing. It was wonderful. I was in no discomfort and thoroughly enjoyed the rest, floating in the warm water. Sloooowly Jordynn rotated as she was supposed to, but I had no further contractions. My senior midwife suggested I flip to my hands and knees to see if that would trigger a contraction. It was so easy to manipulate myself in the water and the very process of moving definitely kicked things back into gear. One push and out she came… with no shoulder issues whatsoever.

They left Jordynn floating in the water while I turned back around and sat down. I was able to pick her up out the water on my own and lay her on my chest. (‘Tis a very strange thing to see your new baby grayish-blue and floating face down in the water. I’m so glad I had watched numerous water birth videos to prepare me for that!) I rubbed her back and the midwives gave her a few pumps of air. Her first little cry was a pathetic one but within minutes she perked up and let us have it!
 

I climbed out of the tub minutes later and walked to the couch carrying our new child. I delivered the afterbirth there quite easily. Then the midwives excused themselves and Matt and I had a good hour just staring at her by ourselves. It was wonderful! Afterward I had a snack, went upstairs, took a shower, put on my own pajamas and cuddled up in bed while they did the newborn assessment. I felt terrific! I could never have hoped for a more peaceful and beautiful home birth experience.

 

 

Home birth is certainly not for everyone, but to those who are interested I would heartily encourage them to give it a try. My midwives were intuitive and confident in their work (much more than even the CNMs I’ve had in the past) and amazed me with their support and good humor. Moreover, they chose to encourage me in being confident in my body’s ability to do its thing, especially as we moved further past my due date, and in my own intuition. Jordynn showed no signs of being post-term and my placenta had no calcification either. Clearly, my worrying was for not.

Overall the homebirth and waterbirth experience was empowering and peaceful and I would do it again in the future. I loved avoiding the medical stresses of being "watched" in the hospital with the chaos that surrounds most moments at birth and finding comfort and deep peace in remaining at home. It truly reduced the birth experience to the natural, God-ordained physiological event that it is.That's not to say there isn't a place to medical intervention, but I'm a firm believer it should be the exception and not the norm. I hope this story encourages others to believe likewise.

Our new family of six!

A Lesson in Parenting

We’re home! There are still boxes to be unpacked and the occasional home maintenance project to conquer, but we’re moved. I hope to resume posting now as time allows, and I’m jumping in with both feet today. I know you’re probably anxious for pictures, but for now you’ll have to bear with me as I pour out some thoughts on a rather deep topic this morning. :-) Ah, it’s good to be back.

~

I was so discouraged yesterday by my eldest's disobedience. She was blatantly rebellious throughout the day and I’m sorry to admit that I lost my temper on several occasions.  Badly.

The guilt floods in then: “what a poor role model I am!” “How can I expect her to act a certain way, when I’m not acting that way?” 

With the guilt comes feelings of failure and fear. “Am I not training her correctly?”

God in His holiness knows not failure or fear, and yet how often do I act the same way as my child? However, He extends His grace to me, knowing that I battle not against flesh and blood, but against sin. And He has compassion towards me. Again and again.

I would do well to remember this during my daughter’s bouts of disobedience. Even Paul, a grown adult, grieved that he knew what was right yet did not do it (Romans 7:19 ). All mankind wrestles similarly, yet the Lord remains patience and loving towards His children.

I need to respond in kind, not in anger, but in compassion, as I strive to teach and equip my children to overcome the sin in their own lives.

Which brings me to my anger. My righteous anger, I like to think. In truth, it’s yet another example of my sin, as I am searching for my own glorification through the model behavior of my child. If I wasn’t wresting with wounded pride when I correct her, I would have no fuel for my anger. Only compassion for my sister in Christ who is struggling as I am.

And that is what I want: compassion. I’m so glad today is a new day.

...And As Promised

As I mentioned previously, my friend, Hannah, has an eye for photography.

And as promised, I do have lots of pictures of my animated first-born to share with you over the coming weeks. But here’s something else to tide you over until after our move.

Morenna is becoming quite the sophisticated little Diva. At times she reaches such an extreme that it scares me. She plays the role all too well.

And when I saw this picture Hannah took, I giggled at what a prime example it was of my little lady:

A Little Something to Hold You Over

If you didn’t know, we are preparing to move 400 miles to a new home... closer to family. This has been such an answer to prayer for my husband and I. A prayer more than two years in the making.

Soon I hope to share God’s goodness in directing our steps, but until then you’ll just have to bear with me. Trying to pack up a house with two small children around has been quite a difficult task for me, especially considering that this is the largest move I’ve ever made. In. My. Life.

So while we meander our way through boxes over here, let me tempt your interest with this, the most precious picture I have of Jadyn to date. And I didn’t even take it.

All credit goes to my girlfriend, Hannah. She’s incredible behind a lens... and in front of one, too, if you can catch her. :-)

Whacha think? And yes, I do have pictures to post of my sweet firstborn, too. Not to worry. :-)

Lil’ Sitter

Someone learned to sit by herself!
Look at those cheeks!
Jadyn, mid-May 2010

Bubbalicious

Jadyn started cereal the first week of May and loved it!
I’ve since added a little banana to it, which she likes as well.
In this picture, Daddy is trying his hand at feeding without making a mess.
Not too bad!
May 2010

My Tootsie Pop

Jadyn & Momma
May 2010

Meals for a Month – May

I’m still loving my month-at-a-time meal planning. Like with any planning, it has saved me a bundle of time. But doing it for a month seems to save me even more time.

Once I plan my menu, I lay out a grocery list for the needed items each week. Recipes requiring special, more pricey ingredients, I plan to have at the end of the month so I can hopefully find what I need when it’s on sale.

Then, I schedule a cooking plan of meals I can make ahead, double the recipe, and freeze.

After that, it’s sit back and relax time. I love that!

Here’s what May shaped up to be:

1. Out of town
2. Out of town
3. Out of town
4. Chicken | Asparagus Casserole
5. Spaghetti, Salad, Focaccia 
6. OUT – Birthday dinner!
7. Pizza, Green Smoothies
8. Cilantro Chicken, Rice, Corn Casserole
9. Tacos
10. Turkey Loin, Veggies
11. BLT Pasta (I used orzo instead and topped with croutons baked in bacon fat – Yum!), Applesauce
12. Spaghetti, Salad, Focaccia 
13. Rotisserie Chicken, roasted potatoes, veggies
14. Pizza, fruit
15. OUT – Birthday picnic – Curried Tuna Wraps – YUM!
16. Dinner with friends
17. Shredded BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, homemade buns, leftover salad
18. Spaghetti, Salad, Focaccia 
19. Asian chicken, rice, stir-fried veggies
20. Tuna medallions, guacamole
21. Pizza, fruit
22. Leftovers
23. Tacos
24. Crab legs, garlic mashed potatoes, sautéed spinach
25. Chicken | Asparagus Casserole
26. Steak, veggies
27. Spaghetti, Salad, Focaccia 
28. Pizza, fruit, leftovers
29. Out
30. Out
31. Out – Happy Memorial Day!

Double, Double... Toil and Trouble?

I got me some bravery earlier this week. :-) Many of you may laugh at my heroic efforts, but the truth of it is... I gave both the girls a bath at the same time.

Oh, yeah. I = awesome.

Or not.

‘Tis true that many before me have done this and more. I’m sure my sweet aunt, the mother of twins that she is, is reading this and smirking at me. Oh honey, if only you knew.

But I did it. I’m pleased no one drowned. And I have the pictures to prove it.

Does it count if each girl was in her own bathtub?

Celebrating Love... and New Life

Twenty-nine years ago today the love of my life was born. He arrived here before I did, but I know the Lord had recorded all his days on this earth... and on one of them, 21 years later, we would meet for the first time.

Not as husband and wife. But as friends.

And we’re still friends.

What better way to celebrate the gift of love and new life than to indulge in the beauty of spring in the great outdoors?! I packed a yummy picnic lunch of curried tuna wraps, brie & crackers, chocolate-covered bananas and strawberries, and peanut-butter cookies and we headed for the trail.

The trail at Red Rock Wilderness, which overlooks the Potomac River.

We basked in the beauty, munched on yummy food, considered the ant, and celebrated the gift of each other.

It was a wonderful afternoon!

The beautiful Potomac overlook!

 

Yes... just some subtle advertisement.

We had so much fun watching these ants!

Doing the manly thing. Showin’ off to the ladies. Er, lady.

Happy birthday to my best friend!

General Life Update

Life with two has been such a joy and a challenge. I’ve always heard it’s tough to adjust to two... or three (depending on who you ask)... and at least for me I think the former is the truth. I’ve struggled to live without sleep, find time to use the bathroom ALONE, and care for my family with grace and patience. It’s been a tough journey, one far from over, but I’m finally feeling more on top of things.

And I’ve had time to focus on all the joys of living life with two growing girls!

Morenna  - 25 months

Morenna continues to amaze me with her vocabulary. She definitely takes after her father in that regard. When Matt was five he was amazing people in grocery check-out lines with properly used words like “obstreperous” and I’m just waiting for Morenna to do the same.

She chatters constantly and will dialog with short conversations on the phone. And also by herself. Her capacity for imagination has definitely grown... which is something I’m thrilled about!

She can sing the entire alphabet and recognize the letters “O”, “M”, and “B”.  And she can almost recognize all colors.

Numbers-wise she can count to 10... and counts objects, too.

Dancing and music are definitely her forte, so I’m sure we’ll be looking into ballet or tap lessons in the near future. And dresses. She loves dresses with a passion!

And recently she’s mastered summersaults all by herself.

A haircut might be coming soon for her, too.

Potty-training still is a taboo subject. She will pee on the potty if we sit her on it, but other than that she has no desire. And I’m ok with that.

I’m also ok with they fact she still sleeps in a crib, with no apparent desire for the contrary.

Today we moved Jadyn into Morenna’s room... so we’ll have to see how that goes. :-) As a big sister goes, Morenna has definitely started to show more of an interest in Jadyn, but mainly to take her toys or let me know when she’s spit-up or lost her beloved binkie. There is the occasional kiss, but I’ve been a bit disheartened at her lack of gentleness or care towards her. Oh well, I shrug it off in light of her age.

Food wise she is my vegetarian in training. She’s not a huge meat lover, but will gladly pig out on beans, cheese and eggs... in addition to yogurt, fruits and veggies and crackers. Don’t forget the crackers.

She finally has both canine teeth on the bottom. Just two more to go and then we’ll be waiting for the last of her molars. I’m not at all saddened to see that phase of growth pass us by. I’m not big on teeth. :-)

 

Jadyn – 5.5 months

My little tootsie-pop. What a joyful spirit Jadyn is... despite how little she sleeps. Which is more than I can say for myself. :-)

At halfway through her fifth month she has taken to eating cereal like a pro. She. Loves. It. Funny how I’ve failed to make it to the six month mark with both girls before introducing them to solids. But both have been ready, so who am I to deny?

Jadyn can’t stand to be on her tummy, so about a month and a half ago she mastered rolling over from tummy to back on demand. Simply lay her on her tummy and before you blink, she’s flipped over and is giggling back at you.

Her latest accomplishment, though, is to sit unassisted. And she really likes this position. She does well with reaching for toys and keeping herself from toppling over.

Jadyn continues to act like she’s teething... as she has since month number one. Her favorite activity is to gnaw on daddy’s finger as he totes her around the house. Spoiled? Maybe. Adored? Yah.

And what a drama queen! I thought Morenna was passionate... boy, we’re in for it with Jadyn. Her version of a temper-tantrum is to cease breathing until her face turns bright red and then to squeal. A funny thing to behold!

In as much as Morenna is a Daddy’s girl (BIG time), Jadyn is a Mommy’s girl. She simply lights up whenever I’m around and thus far has belly-laughed really only for me. I’m not complaining. Such adoration is a small payback for the number of sleepless nights I’ve spent with her.

Morenna was a great sleeper right off of the bat. But Jadyn continues to get me up several times a night. I finally wised up to the fact she wasn’t waking in order to eat, but rather to cuddle with me... every three hours. Still not too sure how I’m going to handle that one... but I’m hoping it goes away soon.

For the Love of an iTouch

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who like Apple® and those who don’t.

I’ve always been a proud member of the latter category and even went so far as to marry a fellow member. We lived in ignorant bliss until just a few months ago.

Last year my husband announced it was time for him to get serious about studying to take the bar. A few hundred thousand dollars later, my husband relayed to me the shocking news: personal bar studies were only available through the use of an iTouch or iPhone.

My first thoughts were not pleasant ones. The words “disgusting monopolistic garbage” may or may not have floated through my mind.

But we had to do what we had to do.

And now... I’m a believer.

So why devote a blog post to such a topic? Just this: I’ve discovered another device that has saved my life. And I know several other mommas who just might be tempted by what I’m about to share.

Our iTouch now joins with our iRobot Roomba, Mosie, (which I could swear I wrote a post about but I can’t seem to find it now) as a couple pricey, but well-worth-the-money technologies.

Though my iTouch has allowed me to significantly increase my ability to maintain a social presence (through facebook and email), most importantly it has helped me stop wasting time on the internet.

It’s nothing new. I’ve mentioned internet addictions in the past. And I’m sure many of us mothers continue to have some moments each day that we’ve blithely tossed into the internet-surfing void.

And that’s precisely where the iTouch comes in. I’m able to manage my blog subscriptions, check and respond to email, browse and update facebook, and be consistent with devotions all through the use of this handy... TINY... device. I emphasize tiny because that is precisely what keeps me from over-doing my internet time. I mean, who wants to stare at such a small screen with such small font for more than 5 minutes?

My point exactly.

Blogs and facebook are browsed while I’m nursing, after devotions. Email is check multiple times during the day, but only long enough to see what’s new and if a timely response is needed. I’m more organized and MUCH more attentive to my girls this way.

And that, for the record, is what works for me!

What works for you?

An Evening with Daddy

Matt has great work hours in my opinion... he gets home early and takes the girls while I get dinner.

A-W-E-S-O-M-E.

Most of the time they tromp off to the neighborhood playground to swing and slide.

Morenna has become more and more courageous in what she’ll do by herself at the playground. So last month I decided to bypass dinner in lieu of venturing out to snap some pictures of all their fun. Here are my favorites:

View Full Album

Time with Grandpa

Morenna & Jadyn spending some quality time with Grandpa John.
Morenna was quite fascinated with Grandpa’s magical ability to pull candy out of her ear. :-)
“More candies, Grandpa? More candies from my ear?”
April 2010

Meals for a Month

I’ve definitely joined the camp praising the benefits of meal planning. A little preparation makes for a lot of ease. But I’ll be the first to admit to you: I dislike meal planning, too. 

It takes time and precious brain cells (from my dwindling supply) to pull together a meal plan.

Some women plan completely from scratch. Others have a 2, 4 or even 6-week rotation of family favorites.

I fall into the first group. For a while now I’ve dedicated a portion of my Saturday mornings to planning our menu for the following week. Armed with the weekly ads, my menu planning cards and my links to favored recipe sites, I’ve taken 20-30 minutes to do my thing... until recently I switched things up again.

One of my highly-esteemed blogger friends finds time to menu plan on a larger scale. And so, for the month of April, I took the plunge and decided to plan out my entire menu... for the whole month. While I’m on a roll, why not? And you know what, we have a winner!

It certainly works for me.

Here’s some noted differences, however:

- Additional flexibility. I don’t have as much control over my month’s schedule as I do for the current week. Solution? I made sure to plan out meals for every single day of the month. Then as issues arose, I swapped days.

- Planning around unknown sales. Obviously you’ll never know the ad from one week to another. Solution? Enter freezer cooking and good ol’ fashion guesswork. I’ve been attempting freezer cooking for some time now, and in planning for the month, it’s really been a lifesaver. When things are on sale, I stock up in hopes to utilize the items the following month. Additionally grocery chains rotate their sales every 4-6 weeks, for the most part. So it helps to keep a mental tab on what sales might be coming up.

- More rotation. I’ve never been a big fan of meal rotation. However, I have found that planning for the month required a little more structure than normal. Solution: Taco Tuesdays Sundays and Friday night pizza.

That said, here’s what our April plans looked like:

1. Spaghetti, Salad
2. Pizza, Fruit
3. EASTER
4. EASTER
5. Stuffed Chicken Breasts, Biscuits, Salad
6. BRC Quiche, 3 Bean Salad
7. Hamburgers, Fruit
8. Rotisserie Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, Bread
9. Pizza, Green Smoothies
10. Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo, Broccoli
11. Tacos|Burritos, Fruit
12. Sweet/Sour Turkey Meatballs, Veggies
13. Crab Legs, Roasted Potatoes, Veggies
14. Vegetarian Lasagna, Bread
15. Jamaican Salmon, Rice, Carrots
16. Pizza, Fruit
17. Cilantro Chicken w/ Avocado Salsa, Rice
18. Tacos|Burritos, Fruit
19. Rotisserie Chicken, Veggies, Corn Muffins
20. Vegetarian Curry, Rice, Fruit
21. Asian Chicken Orzo Salad, Fruit
22. BRC Quiche, Salad
23. Pizza, Fruit
24. BLT Pasta, Salad or Fruit
25. Tacos|Burritos, Fruit
26. Soy Salmon, Baked Potatoes, Veggies
27. Crepes, Sausage, Fruit
28. Spaghetti, Veggies, Bread
29. Rotisserie chicken salad sandwiches w/ yogurt
30. Pizza, Fruit
31. Lettuce Wraps, Fruit

BON APETIT!

Menu Cards

An Early Nap

I found Morenna sound asleep in her play box one day when I was making lunch.
So precious! March 2010.

Flower Child

Morenna’s Blue Flower
March 2010

Professional Grade

Jadyn, Punky Brewster, Gi-Gi, Pookie Bear
March 2010, 3.5 months.