Meal Plan #3

Monday:
Breakfast-Whole Wheat Toast with peanut butter and a Banana
Lunch- Lady bug Pizza's on whole wheat English muffins
Dinner- Baked Penne
Tuesday:
Breakfast- Cantaloupe
Lunch- Tuna Sandwiches on Toast with Tomato slices and lettuce
Dinner- Whole Chicken and Vegetables (whatever looks good & has a nice price. Throw in with chicken at end to cook. Think carrots, red potatoes, green beans, asparagus, squash, etc.)
Wednesday:
Breakfast- Cereal and grapes
Lunch- Scrambled egg and cheese quesadillas
Dinner- Jumbolia
Thursday:
Breakfast- Yogurt and blueberries
Lunch- Cucumber and tomato salad (I'll post recipe. This is amazing & super simple!)
Dinner- Leftover Chicken from Tuesday and a salad
Friday:
Breakfast- Raisin bread and apple butter (Not the best breakfast, but not the worst & super tasty!)
Lunch- Hard boiled egg, orange, and a side salad
Dinner- Chicken & Spinach Roll ups (Recipe on blog)
Saturday:
Breakfast- Cream of Wheat or Oatmeal (Only half of us love Cream Of Wheat)
Lunch- Spinach Dip, Veggies & crackers for dipping
Dinner- Free Choice
Sunday:
Breakfast- Eggs, Turkey Bacon, Toast, & OJ
Lunch- Leftovers from the week (I just put it all out there & let everyone grab what they want. If it looks like slim pickings, than I make peanut butter sandwiches an option.)
Dinner- Mushroom Burgers

Snacks- Grapes, low-fat cottage cheese, string cheese, and pretzels.
Dessert Item- Popcorn with M&M's on top for family movie night (We have a movie night once or twice a month on Friday.)

Meal Plan #2

Monday
Breakfast- Fried Potatoes & Peppers with a scrambled egg on top
Lunch- Sandwich (We're doing Ham. Bella is doing Cheese.) & an orange
Dinner- Bar-be-que Chicken Legs & Ranch Black bean, tomato, & corn salad

Tuesday
Breakfast- Hot Grapefruit & Honey (This was on Rachael Ray last week & looked tasty! You just half a grapefruit, squirt honey on top, & put in oven or microwave until steamy hot.)
Lunch- Omelet with cheese, ham (leftover from sandwiches), leftover peppers, & spinach
Dinner- Rotini with red sauce

Wednesday
Breakfast- Cereal (leftover from last week) and Banana
Lunch- Left over Rotini & applesauce
Dinner- Fried Rice with chicken stickers

Thursday
Breakfast- Bird's nest (Cut hole in the center of a piece of bread. Place in hot pan and crack an egg in center. Cook until egg is cooked as desired.)
Lunch- Broccoli & Cheese Stuffed Baked Potato
Dinner- Vegetable & Beef Stew

Friday
Breakfast- Oatmeal
Lunch- Fish Sticks and Steamed mixed Vegetables (Steamed in the bag from the frozen section)
Dinner- Dirty Rice

Saturday
Breakfast- Pancakes and turkey bacon
Lunch- Vegetable egg rolls
Dinner- Free Choice (Eat out, take out, delivery ??)

Sunday
Breakfast- Egg & Cheese sandwich on toast
Lunch- Chicken salad sandwiches and a side salad
Dinner- Enchiladas with black beans and rice

Snacks- Hummus, Crackers, baby carrots, Rest of Broccoli (from potato lunch), and fruit (pears, oranges, & green apple).

PS. Sorry this was a little late! I was in Chicago. It was amazing! I will be writing about our adventures in the city on my travel blog over the next week. Hope you stop by and check it out!

Potty Training Update

The second day with her potty chair is going well. She has gone three times on the potty today already and it is only 4pm!! She has had two accidents. I'm so proud of her. Not even 2 and doing so well on the second day of actual potty training! I'll give you an update in a few days.

A Little Pink Potty

A little pink potty has made our house more colorful. We began with Bella just going occasionally on the big tiolet. She has started to get more in control of her urges to go so we got her a potty chair this last weekend. We put the potty in the bathroom. She has ran to the bathroom many times in the last couple days but she always goes before I can get her clothing off. Last night she was playing in her room while I wrote. I hear her coming back down the hall. I look over and she is carrying her potty chair to me. I hurried over and started yanking off her pants. She pooped right as I was taking off her diaper. I cleaned her up and let her sit on the potty anyway. That's when I realised that the problem for the last couple of days is the fact that it is in the bathroom. I moved it by her bed this morning. She got up, yelled for me, got on her potty, and urinated!! YAY Bella!! We will now be keeping the potty a little closer.

We are doing the M&M method. She was super happy to get an M&M for her troubles! I'll give an update on how it is going soon.

Grocery List for Week 1 Meal Plan

• 2 boxes cereal (We did Cheerios (with coupon $2.00 & store brand Raisin Bran - $1.89)
• 4 Bananas (Half for each person on the 2 mornings, sliced with cereal) - $0.75
• 1/2 pound turkey - $3.50
• 2 loafs store brand bread - $2.00
• 1 box of Whole grain spaghetti - $1.25
• 1 box frozen spinach - $0.89
• 1 large can crashed tomatoes (I make my own spaghetti sauce but you could buy pre-made for around the same price.) - $1.79
• 1 loaf cheap bakery bread (went w/ two small Italian loafs because it was cheaper) - $2.29
• Box of frozen whole grain Waffles - $1.50
• Bagged Salad mix - $1.10 (Coupon of 0.40)
• 1 dozen eggs (we had 1/2 dozen leftover from last week) - $1.29
• 1 Salad Dressing - $1.49
• 2 tomatoes - $1.52
• 2 cucumbers (1 for salad, 1 for snack) $1.38
• 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast - $4.14 (On sale for $1.99 a pound)
• rice (already had)
• Frozen broccoli -$1.00
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese - $2.29
• Shredded Italian Cheese - $2.29
• Shredded Mexican Cheese (Already had but it was $2.00 a bag)
• Whole Wheat Tortillas - $1.39
• 2 pounds Ground Round - $5.28 (Had a Coupon for $1.00 off & it was on special this week)
• 1 Bag frozen tatter rounds - $1.89
• Swiss cheese left over from last week
• Hamburger buns - $1.00
• 1 bag frozen mixed vegetables - $1.00
• 4 Yogurt (2 yoplay (free w/ coupons) & 2 store brand for 0.40 cents each) - $0.80 for all
• 1 pack Kraft American Cheese - $1.99
• 2 cans of Tomato soup - $0.59 each
• 1 pack pork ribs - $3.77
• 5 pound bag potatoes - $2.49
• 1 can baked beans - $0.79
• Microwaveable Vegetable lasagna - $2.28 (super sale of the week & coupons)
• Pizza crust (already had)
• 1 bell pepper (green was cheapest) - $0.69
• 1 bag shredded pizza cheese - $2.29
• Pancake mix - $2.09
• 2 packs of whole grain Mac N Cheese - $1.50 for both
• 2 packs muffin mix - $1.00 each 
• small bag Grapefruit $2.50
• fish fillets (frozen) - $2.30
• 1 pot roast around 1 & 1/2 pounds - $6.00
• 1 pound red potatoes - $1.29
• 1 pound carrots (buy loose or "bulk" they are much cheaper) - $1.00
• 1 bag apples - $3.00
• 1 bag tortilla chips - $0.85 (had a 0.40 cent off coupon)
• Salsa (already had)
• 1 box crackers - $2.00
• 1 block cheese - $1.79
• 1 container ice cream - $2.50
• 2 gallons of milk - $1.25 per 1/2 gallon was best price so $5.00 for all
• Butter - $3.38
• Kraft miracle whip - $1.79

For a Grand Total of $97.55!

Feel free to ask anything else you would like to know. Hope that helps and Thanks for reading!

Weekly Meal Plan

I have decided to start including our weekly meal plan on here. I was inspired by the "Cooking for your family" group on Baby Center to do this. I will try to include it every week.

Monday-
Breakfast-Cereal & Banana
Lunch-Turkey Sandwiches
Dinner- Spinach Spaghetti & Italian bakery bread

Tuesday-
Breakfast-Waffle
Lunch- Salad and a hard boiled egg
Dinner-Chicken, Cheddar, & Broccoli Casserole

Wednesday-
Breakfast- Cereal and a banana
Lunch-Chicken (made the night before) & Cheese Quesadillas
Dinner- Swiss Burgers, Fries, and mixed vegetables

Thursday-
Breakfast- Yogurt & choice of fruit
Lunch- Grilled Cheese & Tomato soup
Dinner- Pork spare ribs, baked potato, and baked beans

Friday-
Breakfast- Eggs & Toast
Lunch- Vegetable Lasagna
Dinner- Mediterranean Pizza

Saturday-
Breakfast- Pancakes
Lunch- Whole Grain Mac N Cheese
Dinner- Free Choice (We tend to go somewhere every weekend)

Sunday-
Breakfast- Muffins & Fruit
Lunch- Fish sandwiches, Broccoli, and pasta salad.
Dinner - Pot roast, red potatoes, and carrots

I got fruit, tortilla chips & salsa, and crackers & cheese for snacks. I also get the kids one dessert item a week.  I let them pick. Ivy chose Baked Dutch Apple Ice Cream. It looks so good I may have to cheat a little!
If you want the recipes for anything just leave it on a comment and I will post them.

Photographs That Make Me Smile!



I looked over and Bella was wearing my high heeled boots!



A Day Alone With Too Much Time To Think

Normally I put my oldest on the bus at 8am and she gets home at 4pm. My husband leaves for work by 4:30pm. He is home during the day and Ivy is home during the evening. Today my husband went boating and fishing with my uncle. It has been just Bella and me all day. I did not have a lot that I had to get done today so I ended up with too much time to think. This does not happen often. I live a busy life but I enjoy it. However my brain is constantly going through things. There is always way too much pinging around in there. Today just put the spotlight on it.


Not until I had a little additional time, did I realize how much not only my life has changed but how much I have changed in the last few years. A few years ago I had an Aha! Moment. A true Epiphany. That was when I first realized that somewhere along the way my life had gone off track. I was becoming the thing I hated. I looked in the mirror and saw a sheep. I was the stereotypical boring and bored housewife. I no longer liked my life, let alone loved it. After being at home for a few years I began to lose myself. I did not drive for the first 5 years I was an at-home mom. I did not get out nearly as much as I would have liked to. Making friends became increasingly difficult when we moved from an apartment complex when Ivy was two to a country setting. At this point my self-esteem started to nose dive. When she was 3 1/2 we moved into the downtown area of a small town. I was happy because I could walk to someplace. My husband changed jobs to a place where he would only be home four days a month. I had to learn to drive. If something happened to Ivy I could not risk not being able to get her to the doctor. I had a lot of anxiety about driving. I recognized the fact that it had to be done so I stepped up. It was the first fear I confronted. It went well within a month I was driving fairly well. This was a bigger change then I could have ever foreseen. This was the first time in years that I was proud of myself, not my children, myself. I cannot explain this to someone who has not been there.

My daughter started school. I had met a few people in town but I had made no real friends. A few weeks into school her teacher asked if I would be interested in being a reading aid. They were looking for somebody willing to come in twice a week. I agreed and was thrilled by the thought of helping children. I loved the hours I spent there. After a couple months the school librarian asked if I would be willing to help out in the library once a week. She told me she really needed my help. She was a nice lady so I agreed. I started spending two days a week as a reading aid and one in the library. Within a month another mother approached me and invited me to my first PTO meeting. I went and somehow ended up being the PTO hospitality chair. I am not sure how that happened but the ladies were friendly so I went with it. Once I got back into a social situation I started to notice that I did not fit in well. I was socially a little rough around the edges from years of being at home. I was often oversensitive. I did not come from this small town although I loved it. The women acted as if they were excited to get to know me. They asked me tons of questions and told me loads about themselves. It did not take me long to notice that they all talked about each other behind their backs. However they were the first friends I had made in years so I kept the relationships going.

Over the summer my daughter's Girl Scout troop leader quit. She was so upset! The troop leader called and asked me to take over the troop. I reluctantly agreed. I made another small turning point at about this time as well. I sat down and wrote out a list of the things that I wanted to change about myself. I must point out that I am a list person but this was something completely different. This was not a list of things for dinner, places to visit, or errands. It was not even a wish list of things I wanted in life. You know the silent list in your head that says things like buy a home or retire at 65. This was a list of the things that were wrong in my life that I had control of. I wrote out the things I was unhappy about. Then I wrote what I could do about it. Anything that you are unhappy about in your life you have the ability to change. I had read this but did not honestly believe it at that time. I said to myself, “Yeah, I can just do anything I want. Sure, and pigs fly too.” I had no idea what was ahead of me. I figured if I was going to try this life changing stuff I had to start somewhere. I decided to quit smoking. I tried the cold turkey method and failed. I tried the patch and I failed. I tried to gum and…yeah, that’s right, I failed. I tried the lozenge and once again failed. That’s when I quit trying to quit.

The following school year they talked me into taking on two additional projects for the PTO while keeping the chair of hospitality. This brought me up to six volunteer positions. I am an organized and hardworking individual. I kept up with it nicely. At this point I made my first few real friendships in that small town. These were people who were nice to me and did not pressure me to do anything. I had my yearly check-up and talked to my doctor about quitting smoking. She said I think I’ve got an idea. I will openly admit it, I used Chantix. It worked wonders! I had tried to quit many times but this time was different. I was getting really stressed out. I called the doctor and she suggested exercise. I had a YMCA membership that we used for children’s programs and swimming. I began going to the gym whenever I felt too stressed out. After a couple months of being on Chantix I was doing really well until I had one very bad day. I snapped. I had not smoked a cigarette in a while but I did that day. I smoked one and immediately lit another. I felt sick and my eyes were watering from the smoke. I was so upset with myself. I threw down the cigarette and stomped on it. I threw the rest of the pack in the outdoor trash can. I knew right then that I was done smoking. It was at that point that I remembered the list. I went in the house, dug the list out of the back of my planner, and crossed out quit smoking. I sat there in stunned silence that I had done one of the things on this list! I knew right then that I could do anything on it. It was going to take a lot of work but I could do everything on that list. I could be happy. I did not know how but I knew it was possible. I made a promise to myself at that point to finish the list, to do the things that make me happy, and turn the corner in my life.

At the end of the school year I was nominated for PTO vice-president. I was so flattered that I accepted without ever stopping to consider the outcome. I had fallen into the trap. I got so caught up in trying to be nice that I had way too much on my plate. I was now doing seven volunteer positions. I sold things part time on E-Bay, mainly vintage books and clothing. I did not have an actual paid hourly job but I was putting in just as many hours if not more a week. I had weeks that I was doing 70+ hours! I was losing it. I was still going to the gym to deal with the stress of life. But this was too much stress even for me. My husband and I had begun talking about having another baby. We were living in a two bedroom townhome at the time. We talked about moving into a three bedroom house. When Ivy was about half way through second grade we found a big place in the country. It was not in the same school district. My husband, Michael, asked if I thought it was alright to move Ivy. I told him I wasn’t sure but I thought we should try it. I knew it was what was best for me.

I know it sounds funny but I both loved and hated our country house. I loved it because when we moved I quit all the volunteer positions. I knew that I could not do them any longer. I was tired of feeling used. The ladies who had got me into most of this were pretend friends. They needed something from me. Once I moved I did not hear from most of them again. I felt like I was on a prolonged vacation when we first moved to that house. I quit selling things on E-bay as well. I was just Ivy’s mommy and a housewife. My husband switched to a new job that allowed him to be home on weekends. It was nice to see him more often. Within a few months of moving in I found out I was pregnant. We were so excited. The pregnancy came with a few ups and downs. One of the biggest ups was that I rediscovered church. Ivy and I began going to family night every Wednesday. The biggest down was a fall when I was 26 weeks pregnant and the following night in the hospital. The country became boring quickly. I realized before the first year in our new home was over that I was not meant to live in the country long term. I was bored once the novelty wore off. I began to hate the place. I only had a couple of friends at church. Michael got a new job in Kentucky where he could be home every day. After him being gone so much for more than four years it was amazing! The only problem was we lived in Indiana. He was spending over 3 hours on the road daily.

In December of 2009, Bella was born. Ivy turned 9 in January. We moved to Kentucky to be closer to Michael’s work in February. Our lives were once again in upheaval. This time the pieces fell into place much faster. It did not take us long to feel at home. I had always wanted more kids so having Bella meant the world to me. I still had my list in my thoughts. The next one was personal confidence. I know this is something that woman struggle with after children. I had just had a baby a few months before that. I honestly felt more confident in myself after having her. I made out a short list of the things that bothered me the most about myself physically and then took action. I had a ton of dental work done. I had already begun working out when I quit smoking. I got back in the swing and picked up the pace. I chopped off my hair and donated it to locks of love. I promised myself that I would start taking more of an interest in myself. For the very first time since I had kids I cared about how I looked. I always tried to look acceptable but I knew that in the end it did not matter. I was certain that I wasn’t pretty so why try too hard. I decided that I should wear whatever made me happy. I started to notice that I was the issue. I was being too hard on myself. There was nothing truly wrong with me that wasn’t easily fixable. I started to take the time to do my hair and make-up every day. I began to feel a little more like the girl I once was.

The next one on my list was to be able to provide for the future of my family. I started thinking about returning to work. I knew my job options were slim since I never attended college. After a lot of thought and research I made a choice to go back to school. I knew going in that it would not be easy but at the end I would be able to financially care for my children for the first time. I kept this goal in the front of my mind as I nervously attended my first classes. I honestly could never have dreamed how much I would learn in college that had nothing to do with the classes. It changed me in unexpected ways. I am more confident, adventurous, social, and cultured. I have learned about art, people, science, writing, history, math, public speaking, and picked up many other skills. It has inspired me to take other chances in my non-educational life. It has affected me so deeply.

Today I had a chance to look back. It was startling to remember who I was just a few years ago. I have changed in so many ways. I am now a mother of two and a non-smoker. I am in good shape. I can run and not just around the block. I am proud of who I am. I have many real friends who want nothing but my company. My marriage is better than it has ever been. I got my adventurous spirit back. I am social, friendly, and open. I am more educated. I now know that I can do anything I want to do. I feel like I am the person I was always meant to be. I wish I would not have wasted so many years worrying about failure or what people would think. I wish I could go back and tell myself that not ever trying is the real failure. Hard work and perseverance has paid off. In the end it does not matter what anyone else thinks. It only matters that you do the things that make you happy. If you are proud of who you are you can stand up to the masses and say “If you have an issue with me, please feel free to kiss my ass!”

Life offers you a Thousand Chances; all you have to do is take one!

The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is. – CS Lewis

Potty Time!

Bella, my 20 month old, was standing in our living room this afternoon. She started pulling at her shorts and yelling. I thought maybe they were bothering her so I pulled them up and straightened them out. She flipped out, threw herself on the floor & began screaming. I took her shorts off thinking they might be hurting her or something. She immediately jumped up and ran down the hall to the bathroom yelling "MA!!!!!MA!!!!MA!!!!" all the way. I ran after her. She started knocking on the bathroom door. I opened it for her. She ran in, took off her diaper, and proceeded to urinate all over the floor! I was standing there in shock by the series of events that had just occurred when she began to cry. I told her it was OK. I said "It's no big deal. We can clean it up. It's fine. You did a really good job!" I started cleaning up the floor. Bella just stood there. I looked over at her and she was staring longingly at the toilet. I asked her if she wanted to sit on the big girl potty. She just looked at me. I picked her up and sat her on the toilet. She was so happy, grinning at me while sitting on the big girl potty. I guess the time has come to begin potty training. Here I was worrying about when we should start training her. I guess she had other plans.

Bella's Art Work

This is all the way down my hall!! She was coloring earlier. We put the crayons up and moved on to evening activities. Well Obviously we missed the red, lol.