Meal Planning Monday: October 20th

I really don't feel like arguing about dinner this week. That's why there are so many bowl options for dinner. If we weren't going to the NU Soccer game, we'd be having Burrito Bowls. I think bowls are such a great dinner choice for families, you add or remove anything to make the dinner of your dreams. It also makes me feel like I'm at Chipotle which I always love. 

I'm not sure if I'm crazy or smart for making dinner for the NU Soccer Game. I'm over buying expensive stadium food and then arguing about eating it. I know our kids will eat quesadillas so hopefully it will be a win. The nice thing is that they are relatively clean, so they could eat in car seats on the way home. I'm hoping to avoid a mess like a ketchup smear over a white shirt (mine obviously.)

			Grocery List
Sunday	Leftovers	Eat What You Find
Monday	Salad/Bowl Situation	Sushi Bowls	Tuna Rice Cucumber Avocado
Tuesday	Salad/Bowl Situation	Fish Taco Bowls	Fish Rice Tomatoes Avocado Sour Cream
Wednesday	Find it in the Freezer	Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken and Fried Rice	Orange Chicken Fried Rice
Thursday	Snack Dinner	(At NU Soccer Game) Quesadillas Cucumbers Fruit	Tortillas Cheese Turkey Cucumbers Fruit
Friday	Quick and Easy  (Make your own Nachos or Pizza)	Na’an Pizza	Na’an Marinara Sauce Cheese Toppings
Saturday	Sandwich/Soup	Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese	TJs Tomato Soup Bread Cheese

Thriving Thursday

I'm not really sure what to call this post. I think I want to also make it reoccurring. Maybe a guest spot on the blog. Whatever the case, I wanted to share something that are making parenting a little easier and less stressful for me this week.

1. My friend, Flo, told me to create albums of your kids doing things that make you smile. This way when your kids are doing the opposite or driving you crazy, you can remind yourself of the many times that they are completely awesome. Elliott is absolutely obsessed with Bo and wants to play with him all the time, however Bo is a "These are the Rules of the Game" stage. Elliott never understands. But you can bet, that I've snapped pictures every time they are playing nicely together.

2. Maybe this post should actually be "Flo is the best mom ever". Because the second thing that is keeping me together is also from her. She taught me how to make this ridiculously easy Cinnamon Apple snack. Our kids go insane over it. They eat it plain, on yogurt, waffles, plus a million other things. All you do is cut up apples into cubes, put them in a skillet with about an inch of water and tons of cinnamon, then cook until the water is gone. Add to your snack list now.

3. Do laundry every day. You guys I hate putting away laundry. So I do a load everyday and then I can put it away quicker. It's no longer this long process of sorting into categories, I can quickly fold and put away laundry and it's done. Do laundry every day. Or actually whatever chore you hate, do it every day (if possible) that way you will typically spend less time doing it.

4. Wash your face while your kids brush their teeth. I don't know about you but at 9pm the very last thing I want to do is wash my face and my skin care routine. I've started to do it when my kids are in the bath or brushing their teeth. It's changed my life. Also, my kids see me taking care of myself which will hopefully instill the same idea of self-care.

5. We have been struggling with dinnertime. It's the one time of the day that we all can sit down and actually talk to each other. Bo is constantly on and off of his chair and we're nagging him for all of the things that we wish he was doing. "Sit on your bottom" or "Use your fork" could be Bo's new names. It's actually pretty easy- I found these spiders in my drawer of tricks and a piece of scrap. Bobby puts a spider in anytime Bo is clearing the table or saying please or thank you. Bo loves earning spiders and seeing how many times he can fill it up. It's very teachery and something that I worked hard to keep out of our house, but its exactly what is making dinners a truly enjoyable time for us.

What is helping you survive to make this week the very best that it can?

You've Got This. 

Navigating Parent Teacher Conferences

As a previous teacher, I've conducted a lot of Parent Teacher Conferences. However it wasn't until last year that I became the Parent in the Conferences. I made sure that Bobby was able to come with me because I was so nervous and emotional about what Bo's sweet teachers would say about him. Obviously, what we were told was no where near what I was expecting to hear.  Conferences are tough. These are our babes. We have conferences this week. Writing all of this was a great reminder for myself too.

After a couple of conferences as a parent and close to a million as a teacher, here are some tips that will hopefully help lessen your fears and worries.

Before

1. Write down what you think is the worst thing you could hear. I just recently did this with an OT Evaluation. After I wrote, I laughed at what I wrote. First, it was not a possibility and secondly, it really wasn't that bad.

2. I've had parents know themselves and ask for a brief summary of what we are going to talk about. This helps prepare themselves for the conference. Personally, I am a person that takes a long time to process my thoughts and emotions. I need to hear something and then think on it. If I don't (especially when it comes to my kids), I end up crying. If I have a brief summary, I'm able to be more in the moment and thoughtful about what is being said.

During

3. When your child's teacher tells you what they are working on, before you get upset or angry, ask one of these questions: Usually, the your child isn't the only one.

• Is this something I should be worried about?
• Are other children in the class working on this too?

4. Ask for specific ways that you can help at home. If they are struggling with sharing at Pre-School or Adding in 2nd Grade, they can always use a little extra help at home. Be sure to ask for specific phrases or strategies, so you can support directly. Teachers and Parents alike both hate hearing "That's not how we did it at ________"

After 

5. Make sure to celebrate your child's successes afterwards. Your kid does a lot of amazing things at school. I've watched too many parents zero in on the challenges rather than the successes. It's heartbreaking. 

6. Follow Up about what was talked about. Put it on your calendar specifically to check in and see if progress is being made. That way, you can make adjustments to continue to support. 

Taking Care of Your Friendships

Oh you guys. I have the best friends. They are truly the most lovely caring people that I could ever wish for. Whether my friends live across the country or across the street, I don't get to spend as much time with my friends that I wish I could. Friends are what get us through it all. It is so important that we have our squad to keep us sane and happy.

Being a good friend is something that I strive to do and work at every day. So since I can't always make face to face time for my friends, here are somethings that I've done to keep my friendships strong.

Friendship Survey
Remember Secret Snowflake or Santa at work. Wasn't it so great to have someone buy you presents that you love throughout a whole week? Who says you can't have the same kind of love at other times of the year? I just saw somewhere on Social Media where someone created a Friendship Survey. They collected all of the same information about your favorites so that you can send goodies to your favorite friends. I immediately created my own and sent out. If you want to use mine to send to your friends, click here!

Schedule a Call
Raise your hand if you say, "I'll call you later this week to catch up" and never do.🙋🙋🙋This happens all the time. One of our good friends literally schedules monthly calls in his calendar. At first it sounded insane, but now my calendar looks very similar. Put those calls and texts in your calendar, it's the only way for it to happen. Also, I just talked to a sweet friend that lives on my block on the phone this week when she was driving from downtown. Seriously the best fifteen minutes I've spent in a long time. Cars are great times to catch up!

Send a Quick Text in the Moment
Who doesn't love a text that says "Thinking of You. Miss You!"? When you glance at a picture or something reminds you of your friend, be sure to let them know. Also, our phones are great at reminding of us about photos from the past. Send those pictures!

Other Great Ideas: 

• Put Birthdays in the calendar (Kids Birthdays too!)
• Send $10 for a glass of wine when you know they need it!
• Send paper cards. Who doesn't love a little mail?
• Respond to Instagram or Facebook posts with a comment. 
• Put kids to bed and then meet for a glass of wine

How do you keep your friendships alive?

Meal Planning Monday: October 13th

Our freezer is currently overflowing with someone of our favorite meals so this week, so we are eating almost entirely out of the freezer this week. The way that you can build up your freezer stash is by making a recipe and eating half while freezing the other half. These are some of favorite favorite dinners.

			Grocery List
Sunday	Find it in the Freezer	Tomato Soup	Crusty Bread
Monday	Find it in the Freezer	Swedish Meatball  Casserole Take Out of the Freezer and Put in Crock Pot	Salad
Tuesday	Find it in the Freezer	Chili Mac	Salad
Wednesday	Find it in the Freezer	TJs Orange Chicken and Fried Rice
Thursday	Find it in the Freezer	Skyline Chili	Spaghetti Onion Cheese
Friday	Make One, Freeze One	Chili Cornbread (This is seriously the easiest cornbread recipe! Two ingredients. No eggs!)	Ground Beef Onion Crushed Tomatoes Jiffy Cornbread Mix Creamed Corn Sour Cream  Cheese
Saturday	Find it in the Freezer	Na’an Pizzas

Dinner Themes: 

• Snack Dinner
• Sheet Pan
• Crockpot
• Soup/Sandwich
• Italian
• Mexican
• Grill
• Sandwich 
• Leftovers
• Salad/Bowl Situation
• Casserole (Make one, freeze one)
• Take Out
• Instant Pot
• Quick and Easy  (Make your own Nachos or Pizza)

Support When You are Solo Parenting

I'm headed out of town to celebrate my best friend this weekend! I am so excited to eat dinner without someone eating off of my plate, drying and straightening my hair, having a full 3 minute conversation where I don't say "wait one minute", and maybe sleeping in past 7:03.

It's also Bobby's first weekend with the kids by himself. The teacher in me starting writing what looked to be parenting sub plans. But then, I deleted. Bobby is more than capable and knows what the routines and procedures at our house are. Plus, I think it's fun for the kids to have a little of extras that they don't usually get with both us. (Lunch today is Tony's Burrito Mex. If you live in RV, you know how much Bo loves Tony's)

I've solo parented my fair share and I just wanted to share a couple of tips with all of you in case you are solo parenting or your spouse is going to solo parent.

1. Pretend like you are on vacation too. You have to be your best self during this time. If that means a coffee or a dinner out do it. One time, the kids and I went out to dinner just because I needed someone else to serve me.

2. Let somethings go. You are the only person there so you don't have the option of switching when things get rough. (They get rough). You have to be calm and collective. Let me be clear- I'm not saying parenting is babysitting. But sometimes you have to pretend that you are babysitting and these are not your kids. In this situation, this is not parenting, this is surviving.

3. Have a plan. Make sure the plan includes getting out of the house. I left a list of fun things for Bobby to do plus, some tips about doing all of them. Getting out of the house could include going to Costco or looking at the toy aisle at Target. Be sure to get outside too. Go for a walk, ride a bike, containment is key though. (Stroller and snacks = sanity)

4. Premake breakfast, lunch, and dinner. If you know that you want to have  Mac and Cheese for lunch. Make it at about 10 when everyone is happy and playing. If you wait until 12:15, chaos reigns.

5. Find friends. Your friends want to help you out. Ask if you can bring a 6 pack over and play at their house. A change in pace will help everyone still love each other at the end of the weekend.

But beyond all, enjoy your time with your kids by yourself. It is such a treat to make these meaningful memories that your kids will talk about years from now. Also, be sure to give your spouse a huge hug when they come back.

You Got This. 

(Drink a glass of wine in bed at 8pm.  That will convince you that you are rockstar parent)

Setting my Heart On Fire

It's the little things in life that make me the happiest and calmest lately. Isn't it so great how a new candle or a new strategy can make you breathe a little easier. Lately, I've been noticing the small things around me that make me smile and feel my very best. Some are so ridiculous that it hurts to share, but gosh darn do they make me happy.


1. I love pictures in our house and I love taking pictures of our family. But I hate that all of my pictures get stuck on my phone and I never see them again. Right now, these digital screens that show all of the pictures that we take are making me beyond happy.

2. A new planner that I'm actually using EVERY day. Who would have thought? I've tried for years and it's actually happening.

3. The sweet women at the Post Office. Gosh I love them.

4. Aviator Sunglasses from the Kids Section of Old Navy. Mom life means losing lots of sunglasses and bending down a lot. Who knew that I should just shop in the kids' section to make sure they stay on my head?


5. I am the worst at drinking water.  I need to have a system that makes me drink water and know how much I have drank. This is so ridiculous that this scratch piece of paper makes me happy. I put the water bottle on the number that I have drank.


6. How good your favorite outfit can make you feel. My favorite outfit is Jeans and a White Shirt. When I wear that I feel like I can take on the world.

7. Switching over your closets from Summer to Fall. Hello sweater friends, I have missed you so much!

8. An empty inbox. Anyone else clean out their inbox everyday? Makes me feel like I've gotten everything that I needed to do done. Just another way that I trick myself into feeling good.

9. Shopping in a friends' closet. I'm heading to DC this weekend to visit my bestest friend. I hate all of my clothes and honestly don't feel like shopping. My sweet friend is letting me look through her closet for something fun to wear.

10. Walking around my house with a bucket and picking up everything that bugs me has become a past time that I can get behind. I pick up every little toy, bobby pin, piece of trash, anything that doesn't belong and put it in my bucket. Once the bucket is full, I put that item where it goes.

These things plus a million more give me "That can't eat, can't sleep, reach for the stars over the fence, world series kind of love. " (It Takes Two, anyone?)

What super small things make you ridiculously happy?

Have a great day, friends.