march.menu.planning

So do any of you menu plan?  I do every month!  And now that we've officially gone on the Dave Ramsey plan, I'm planning for a month at a time and shopping for a month at a time.  It's a little crazy, I know, but we did it for February, and it was great!!! 

I just made my March menu (which I'll share with you in a few moments!), and it feels so great to have the month planned.  Before last month, I'd plan and shop for about 3 weeks at a time.  It didn't seem like such a big deal to move it to a month.

I rarely go to the grocery store other than to do my big shopping trip.  I always go alone.  Josh stops and picks up milk, bread, produce, and anything pressing (or that I forgot!) about once a week on his way home.  It is a dream.  I love that man!!

Now, I just have to put together my grocery list!  Here's what we're eating this month (and I try not to cook on Sundays...leftovers or you're on your own!). 

March 1-6
M: chili and cornbread
T: leftover chili
W: stir-fry (Josh cooks!)
R: venison pot pie (better homes and gardens)
F: super burritos (better homes and gardens)
S: grilled steak w/ potatoes and garlic butter (America's test kitchen)

March 8-13
M: slow cooker enchiladas (new recipe)
T: HMO (hamburger, macaroni, onions)
W: chicken manicotti (makes 2, we'll freeze 1!)
R: pork loin on the grill (Josh cooks!)
F: frozen pizza (Josh cooks!)
S:  creamy chicken and wild rice soup (leftover from freezer)

March 15-20
M: breakfast casserole
T: mexican wyoming
W: almond chicken and rice
R: spaghetti (crockpot sauce)
F: baked ziti (adding meat, new recipe)
S: bacon and cheese mini quiches (rachael ray for kids...Claire will help!)

March 22-27
M: creamy italian chicken (crockpot)
T: tacos with corn bake (I'll post this recipe soon!)
W: homemade pizza with this sauce
R: whole chicken sprinkled with rosemary (save the leftovers!)
F: pancakes and eggs
S: chicken and noodles (with leftover chicken)

March 29-31
M: roast and potatoes (crockpot)
T: stir-fry (Josh cooks!)
W: stroganoff (crockpot)

Now doesn't it feel better to know you don't have to look in the refrigerator and think, "What's for dinner?" I love it.

new.poll

I think after Myah's last comment, we're going to have to start a new discussion about who irons clothes for their husbands!  Myah...Josh emailed me from work to highlight your comment!  He was so excited.  He especially enjoyed the part that you capitalized!!! :)

Let it be known that I got up and ironed Josh's shirt today because he was running late for work.  I always iron his shirts when he's running late for work (which is only about once a month).  I do it because I love him.

I'm loving this. :)

laundry.laundry

It's my laundry day.  I've been thinking about laundry.  I've been talking about laundry.

This question came to mind:  Do you put your hubby's laundry away? 

I'd love to hear some discussion about this, but if you don't want to contribute, at least vote in my poll!!

valentine's.day

I know this is a little late, but I wanted to document our fabulous Valentine's dinner. Last year, we decided to eat in (after the kids went to bed) instead of eating out. We figured that we would make exactly the food we wanted (for WAY less $$$), not have to pay a sitter, and already be home at the end of the evening.

So this is what we made this year: A little asparagus.

Some tasty salads (lettuce, craisins, artisan blend cheese, Girards "Champagne" salad dressing...YUM...and....)

...some candied almonds for the top. Yum. Yum. Yum. These totally *made* the salad.

All for this awesome candle-lit dinner. Grand total: $25 (at the most...estimated).

We would have spent more than that just on a babysitter!

***Update to this post:  I just realized while reading this in my Google Reader, that I didn't even say the we had Lamb Chops and New York Strip Steak for dinner!  That was the best part!!!  (Obviously, I loved the salad a lot too!)  We also had fried rice.  It was soooooo good.

photo.shoot

(click on the collage to make it larger)

Meredith's photo shoot was a little cold, but she was a great sport. She loved it when I asked her to jump while I was taking her picture!

I think we're going to go with the upper left hand picture for her official age 5 picture, but I think my favorite is the one in the second column where she's jumping off the step! So much fun.

number.5

(click on the collage to see a larger version)

I cannot believe that 5 years ago we were blessed with this little girl! Time flies. Meredith is such an awesome kid.

My mom tells me that she is so much like me (this would include her bad attitude). She wears her heart on her sleeve. If she's mad, you know it. If she's excited, you know it. She can be Jekyll and Hyde all in the same minute.

Meredith's sweet side is super-sugar sweet. She loves to chat it up and has big ideas. She is a cuddle bug through and through. She is a people person when she's at church and co-op. I hear constant compliments on her great attitude (where is this at home?) and abilities.

Her not-so-sweet side...well, it's getting better! I am hopeful. :)

Meredith is extremely particular about her clothes (another trait she received from me). She has favorite shirts that she wants to wear over and over and over and over again. And to bed, too. We have to draw the line somewhere!

She loves creating anything and is really excited to play soccer this summer.

Meredith, we are so blessed to have you as part of our family. You are such a joy. One of our favorite things about you is your passion for whatever it is that you're doing! We love you so much.

going.home

We get to go home today! Yay!!! Hopefully, she'll be back to this Claire soon! (Self-portrait by the way...timers are a beautiful thing!)

up.and.down

Poor Claire is on a crazy roller coaster ride.  We're definitely spending the night tonight (Tuesday), and hopefully she'll be able to come home tomorrow.

She was doing so well this afternoon, and Meredith, Amelia, and I packed up Meredith's birthday presents and headed to the hospital.  Claire wanted to watch Meredith open her presents.  Grandma even brought a cake up to her room so that we could eat cake! 

As soon as we walked in, I could tell that she was getting ready to spike.  She starts shaking, gets pale, and honestly, she just looks pathetic.  Her temp was up to 104.6.  They gave her Motrin, then Tylenol a couple of hours later.  Her temp came down about a degree, and then they had her take a 10 mintue lukewarm shower.  She was not a fan of this!  She cried the entire time.  The best part was when she was back in her room and requested ice cream!  So funny.

Thanks so much for your prayers!  We appreciate them so much!!

bitter.sweet

Today is Meredith's 5th birthday.  I really want to do a post about her (and I will), but instead of completely celebrating today, we're praying today.

Claire had been spiking fevers all day on Sunday and Monday.  Last night, she got all the way up to 106.6, so we headed into the ER.  She was admitted, and she'll be there at least until this evening...probably until tomorrow morning since her temps are back up again.  I am ready for her to be back at home, but we'll do whatever the doc says. 

They're pretty sure it's viral, so we're just praying that her body fights it quickly.

happy.heart.day

Oh happy day.

aunt.jackie

Guess who's an aunt. Me.

Ok, well I've been an aunt since I married Josh. I married into 5 nephews on Josh's side. And I'm currently an aunt to 10 nieces and nephews on that side.

This one, however, is different. This is my sister's baby. This one has some of my genetics in her. Eden Brielle. Isn't that such a beautiful name? Isn't she such a beautiful baby???

She is so precious. Our whole family (minus Amelia) was able to visit her over the weekend, and it was so fun to hold her and spend time celebrating her with Jill and Andrew. Congrats you guys! We're so thankful to have her as part of our family.

Am I a proud aunt or what?!!