Menu Monday

We pretty much stuck to our plan last week and I must say, 2 of the new recipes were a big hit! The Skinnytaste enchiladas got 2 thumbs up from Ben & the kids even ate them. Those will go on our rotation! I also loved the mini pepper nachos for myself. I LOVE Mexican food and that was a yummy way to feel like I was cheating...except it really wasn't that bad! Go check out my recipes from last week and try those...you won't be disappointed!

 

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Monday: Mexican Lasagna

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Tuesday: Baked Honey Garlic Chicken & fried rice

 

Wednesday: going out!

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Thursday: Chicken Tortilla Soup (we never got around to making this last week)

 

Friday: pizza night

 

Saturday: Grilled chicken, baked sweet potatoes, roasted zucchini

 

Sunday: Super Bowl Sunday...we will be baking an assortment of tailgating foods! 

happenings

This has been such a cold & dreary winter. There has not been much to update on because I feel like we are trapped inside all the time! Here is what has been going on at the May house...

-A few weeks ago we had our follow up appointment at the cardiologist for Cheney's heart murmur. We were really praying for some sort of change that would move us in the right direction. During her Echo, we learned one hole in her heart had closed and the other had gotten smaller! Hooray! We will go back this summer but our cardiologist has high hopes that by then everything will have corrected itself. What a relief!

-We had a pretty good streak, but the sickies finally hit our house about a week and a half ago. Preschool germs are for the birds! Griffin and Cheney had bad colds and were so congested for about a week. Therefore, Cheney girl was not sleeping. Sad babies are just pitiful...I felt so bad for her. Of course while that was happening, Grayson got the stomach virus. Thankfully it was short lived & nobody else caught it. We are all on the mend & I hope it stays that way!

 

-In other Cheney news, I am questioning why we even have a crib for her. Sister is OBSESSED with her Rock 'n Play and hates her crib. Hates it.  This wouldn't be an issue if she wasn't pretty much too long for the Rock 'n Play now. Her feet hang off the end. We have tried countless times to put her in her crib at nap time & bed time and she has never slept more than half an hour. It's crazy! I'm a little nervous about actually making the transition...I feel like I will need lots of coffee.

 

-Our church just had the Compassion Experience going on for a few days. Compassion International came in and set up a walk-through experience of 3 actual Compassion sponsored kids & their lives. It was so neat. You got to walk through their life starting as young kids & see how being sponsored through Compassion changed their lives. I took the boys last night and wasn't sure how they would like it. Grayson understood as well as a 4 year old could and was asking lots of questions. This week we signed up to sponsor a 4 year old boy in Africa named Charles. I am so excited to start exchanging letters with this boy & learning about his life! This is such a great ministry and I am glad we can be a part of it.

 

....and just because they are cute! These 3 have been keeping me very busy!



Menu Monday

 

Monday: BBQ Chicken Pita Pizza

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Tuesday: Slow Cooker Chicken Gyros

 

Wednesday: Grilled chicken, roasted butternut squash, mashed potatoes

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Thursday: Chicken and White Bean Enchiladas with Creamy Salsa Verde

 

Friday: pizza night!

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Saturday: Chicken Nachos for the boys & Mini Pepper Chicken Nachos for me! I stole this recipe from Lynsey's blog...can't wait to try it!

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Sunday: Chicken Tortilla Soup

Menu Monday

It's another pantry/freezer clean out week here at our house! Shopping our pantry has become kind of like a game for me--we had a lot of stuff in there!

 

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Monday: Sloppy Joe's & French fries (I have leftover sloppy joe's in the freezer!)

 

Tuesday: Pancakes & bacon

 

Wednesday: Grilled Chicken sandwiches & roasted potatoes

 

Thursday: Chicken Spaghetti (another freezer meal!)

 

Friday: Takeout night

 

Saturday: BBQ Chicken Pita Pizzas

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Sunday: Greek Chicken Gyros



Cheney: 5 months old

My sweet girl, you are FIVE months old today!

The Stats:

Weight: 12.4lbs

Height: 24 3/4 inches

Clothes: some 3-6 month still fits & the rest is all 6 month!

Diaper: size 2

Eating:

You are drinking four 6oz. bottles during the day & you are still getting one bottle in the middle of the night. We are going to try and wean that one off now that you've put on a little weight! You are a great eater & typically don't get too fussy when it is time to eat. You tried rice cereal several times in the last couple weeks! You weren't too impressed. I am making you some applesauce this week & Daddy is putting your high chair back together so your eating adventures can begin! I know I will make some purees for you but I am really excited to start Baby-Led Weaning, too!

Sleeping:

I have come to the conclusion that you will sleep swaddled in your Rock 'n Play until college. We have tried many times to get you in the crib and you REFUSE to sleep there. We get 25 minutes max out of you. You are so silly because you are clearly too long for Rock 'n Play but I think you just love how cozy it is. You go to bed around 7:15-7:30 each night, wake up somewhere between 1-4:00 to eat, & lately have been up for the day around 6:30. It used to be 7:30. We are working on that...it is what your mama prefers! You are taking 2 good naps a day & sometimes a 3rd little cat nap before dinner. Our goal this month is to get you to the crib!

Happenings this month:

-you celebrated your first Christmas!

-You LOVE to stand. You just started being able to stand against the couch cushions & your chair all by yourself for a little while. When you get tired you just bend your knees and sink down. It's pretty funny!

-You are trying really hard to sit up all by yourself! You can manage for about 30 seconds and then you fall over. I know you will be doing it really soon!

-You tried rice cereal. You weren't too impressed but you figured out what to do pretty quickly!

-You are starting to get more interested in your toys. You can hold on to things. You love your teethers & anything soft that you can hold. You are also very fond of the walker & exersaucer!

-You smile so big at your brothers. You really notice them now (how can you not? they are in your face all day long!) and you think they are so silly.

-You discovered your feet & you love nibbling on your toes!

-Your little personality is really starting to coming out & you are so fun! You squeal when you're happy & are generally just the happiest baby!

 

Cheney girl, you are just the sweetest thing in the whole world! You have this whole family wrapped around those little fingers. Everyone who meets you just adores you & you frequently get compliments about those beautiful blue eyes! I am soaking in every stage with you because I know it will be go by so fast. We are loving watching you grow! Happy 5 months, baby girl!

 



Menu Monday

I am trying really hard to stick to our grocery budget & not waste food. I decided to clean out our pantry over the weekend and based our menu this week on using ingredients we already had on hand. I'm going to try & get better about shopping our pantry more often! It should also be noted that we stuck to our menu last week except for one minor mishap. The Pioneer Woman calzones were an epic fail for 2 reasons: I forgot the marinara inside AND they were just way too cheesy because of that. So, Chick Fil A was eaten on New Years Eve...how festive!

 

Monday: Sweet & Sour chicken with fried rice (we actually leftover fried rice from Pei Wei this weekend...even better!)

 

Tuesday: Poppyseed Chicken casserole with white rice & sautéed squash

 

Wednesday: Chicken quesadillas with black beans

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Thursday: Baked Chicken Parmesan, mashed garlic potatoes (have I ever mentioned that my husband hates noodles? WHO EVEN SAYS THAT?!), corn (random...but we already had it!)

 

Friday: Pizza night using this dough recipe!

 

Saturday: Salsa Crockpot chicken--we make this ALL the time & use it for tacos, quesadillas, & tostadas. It is so easy! I just put 3-4 chicken breasts in the crockpot, cover with a jar of salsa, & sprinkle in some taco seasoning. I cook on low for 4-6 hours & then shred the chicken. So easy & good!

 

Sunday: I usually don't plan this until Sunday afternoon before I head to Publix! 

I'm not a resolution person

I have never been a resolution person. Sure, I will make a list of goals each January because I feel like it's what I'm "supposed" to do, but I rarely think twice about them.  2 years ago I decided to just focus on one word or phrase for the year. My phrase for 2013 was "to be present." I prayed that over my life in so many aspects and I really liked having that kind of resolution.

 

At our last bible study in December, my friend Anna said she had done something similar but picked a word for her kids and prayed that over them for the year. I loved that! I pray for my kids daily but I am not always intentional with my prayers.  This year I want to change that. Not only do I want to be intentional but I really want to just focus on one thing with each of our kids. I spent time in December asking God what word He wanted me to focus on with each kid.

 

Grayson's word is confidence. Our firstborn has always been the shy one of our family. He can be easily intimidated. I know that feeling all too well because I was so similar to him growing up. I long for him to be confident in not only who he is but whose he is.  He has already gotten so much better in the past year about standing up for himself (and Griff!) but I want him to just keep growing in that area. I want him to be able to stand firm in what he believes in and be able to confidently stand up for himself. I want him to be comfortable in his own skin.

 

Griffin's word is rest. This may sound silly, but I will be praying restful sleep over Griffin this year. Griffin has never been a fantastic sleeper. As a baby, he was actually a horrible sleeper. He has gotten so much better as he has gotten older, but his main issue now is night terrors & bad dreams. There is nothing sadder than seeing your baby absolutely terrified. Griffy is a boy that appreciates his sleep & it just makes me sad for him that he doesn't get the rest his little body needs because of his pretty regular bad dreams. I want that spunky 2 year old to have a full night of restful sleep & kick those night terrors to the curb!

 

Cheney's word is beauty. That sounds so cliché since she is the baby girl of the family, but I promise it goes deeper than just wearing bows and cute clothes! ha! This one is really important to me. I want Cheney to know that real beauty is on the inside. The outward beauty that people are always trying to perfect can quickly become an obsession. I want our sweet girl to understand that God made her exactly how he wanted her and he made her beautiful. Her beauty and worth comes from Him. As a mama who has dealt with an eating disorder, this one just really make me teary thinking about it. I never want Cheney to feel like she isn't pretty enough or thin enough. She is fearfully & wonderfully made and I want her to know that AND believe that from an early age.

So these are my biggest goals for 2015. Praying intentionally over my children. What are your goals?