Meal Planning

So I recently decided to start meal planning for our house hold. For many reasons. . .

 

The main reason being was that our grocery bill started to get to be about $200 every 2 weeks - Where before my husband deployed, we budgeted in $150 for every 2 weeks and I usually spent less - Rarely went over. With the extra expenses that comes with having a little one, that was just not a comfortable amount for me. I had heard that meal planning actually saves money on grocery trips - So I thought I'd give it a shot!

Another reason I decided to give this a shot, was because I often found us trying to figure out what's for dinner at the last minute - And quickly having to defrost something to cook. I also often got tired of the same ol' simple meals we were eating. I never had the ingredients and stuff that I needed to try new meals. . . And doing a quick grocery run for those items just wasn't in our budget by that time.

So meal planning seemed to be the ideal situation for us.

Also in an attempt to save money, I decided to stop shopping at Vons - Which was just 2 minutes up the road and rarely busy - And start shopping at the Commissary on base again. I had stopped shopping there a couple years ago because of the crowds, long lines and the fact that I have never walked out of there with everything I needed. But I put all that aside to save some money for our family. . . Not to mention - They have early bird hours for the elder & those with kiddos. They open an hour & a half earlier for us. I got about 30 minutes before normal store opening and that way I can shop without the crowds, and check out at a normal register (it's all self check out during early bird hours) without having to wait in a line a mile long. It worked out perfectly!

I ended up spending $117.00 for 2 weeks with of groceries. I stuck to my list. And I walked out with all but ONE thing - And that was because I wasn't sure where exactly to look for it. Now, we still go to Vons for veggies, fruit & meat because we personally don't like the commissary's veggies, fruit or meat - But we still spent less then we have been - And we have a wide variety of meals to make!

Last week started our meal planning - And we did very well with sticking to it. I write out the days of the week and a meal next to each day, but I am not strict on making a meal on the exact day.

I will put a star next to the meals that I have recipes for - And if anybody is interested in them, let me know!

Week 1:

 

Saturday - Steak & Chicken with a side [it ended up being canned corn] [We do steak & chicken because I don't eat steak & DH doesn't always want chicken]

Sunday- *Crock Pot Lasagna & Garlic Bread

Monday - *Chicken Taco Pasta Salad

Tuesday - Left Overs

Wednesday -  *Tuna Caserol

Thursday - DUTY

Friday- Baked Chicken & Broccoli

 

Week 2:

 

Saturday - *Tater Beef Bake

Sunday - *Beef Stew [crock pot meal]

Monday - Chicken & a side

Tuesday - Tacos, beans & rice

Wednesday - DUTY

Thursday - Chicken & Dumplings

Friday - Left overs

My new recipes for these 2 weeks are: Chicken Taco Pasta Salad; Tuna Caserol; And I have to look up a new chicken & dumplings recipe because the one I had got thrown away.

The Chicken Taco Pasta Salad, as weird of a name as that is, was really good. And it made a lot. We had left overs the following day for lunch + I have some frozen in the freezer. The Tuna Caserol was okay - It's one of those easy go to meals. 

The Crock Pot Lasagna is really good and easy. And the beef stew is pretty dang amazing as well - It's DH's favorite and a meal that he makes. And yes, we had it on a warm summer night.

Photoshop Fun

I promise a regular post updating on the happenings of my little princess is coming - I just need to find the energy and time to sit and type it up.

In the meanwhile, an awesome friend of mine - Alysha - over at Supermom recently posted a Fix-It Friday posted and explained how she edited her photos using actions in photoshop. I've always loved her pictures & the way she edits and finally got around to asking her more about photoshop & the actions she uses. She was kind enough to write up a whole blog post on Photoshop Actions.

So today - I got down to business playing with some photos. So far - My favorite actions are the Boost & the 'Quick Edge Burn'. And of course, anything having to do with B&W. I can't tell you what actions I used for all these photos, as I was just playing around and decided that I liked how it looked - Not paying a whole lot of attention. I suppose I should start paying more attention to that, eh?

Anyways - Here's a few photos I've played around with!

I know for sure I used 'Boost' & the edge burn here.

This one ended up being my favorite.

Thanks again Alysha!!!

A Give Away!

Nope - Not from me, though.

A friend of mine who also has a super adorable March 2010 baby is having her 1st give away on her blog right now. She is giving away one adorable hair accessories from The TeaBagz Lady to THREE lucky winners.

Head on over to Yadda Yadda Mama's Blog for your chance to win!

Vacation :: Lake Havasu

This week has been hectic - And it's only Tuesday.

 

But the kiddo is in bed, and the husband is out with some buddies from High School - So now is the perfect time to get all caught up so I can jump back in.

 

 

Emmersyn had a blast & did wonderful the whole time we were at the lake. I enjoyed having a little extra help. And my parents enjoyed having her around - Especially my mom. They had an absolute blast with her!

 

 

 

 

We really just hung out, relaxed and enjoyed the nice weather & the awesome water. Emmersyn - She is totally a water baby. She loved sitting or standing in the water, loved going out for dips with me and loved swimming. I have the cutest video of her swimming in the river butt naked - But I don't feel comfortable posting it since she is naked. She wouldn't swim the way she did then when she had a diaper on. . . It was too funny!

We only went out on the boat a handful of times. Em wasn't too thrilled with her life jacket, mostly when we were not moving. She looked super cute in it, though.

 

 

 

 

She fell asleep on every boat ride, even if it just lasted while we were going. . . Though one day she fell asleep and was knocked out even once we got back to our little camp out area and were anchored. We just let her sleep, unzipping her jacket to make her a bit more comfortable. She slept for a good 30 minutes.

She was a trooper. We went into the trailer to get out of the sun & heat for feedings and naps. We then put a new swim diaper on & reapplied sunscreen. We kept her from getting sun burnt the whole time we were there - Which is good, obviously. The 2nd day we thought she was getting burnt, though didn't understand HOW since we were putting sunscreen on every 2ish ours. . . But that night, when the redness went away, we figured it was just from her being hot. Her little face gets red when she gets warm/hot here at home, so it made sense.

 

 

 

At one point in the trip, there were 4 dogs. My parents 2: Buster (the springer in the 1st pic) & Dalaney (a small jack russel). And my brothers 2 dogs: Brock (in the 2nd picture) & Callie. It was insane. But Emmersyn loved all the dogs. Buster seems scared, or taken back, but it's because Dalaney is way too overprotective of Emmersyn and is a b*tch and snaps at Buster sometimes if he gets close to the baby. She was in her kennel, but the poor old guy was still freaked out. 

Em had a great time with Pap, Grammie, Uncle Garrett & Aunt NayNay. She loves all the love and attention. That's me with her & my dad a few pictures up.

 

 

 

 

I am so thankful we were able to take this trip. It was just what I needed. It was a little break for me, without having to leave my baby. And I came home feeling much more refreshed. A huge thank you goes out to one of the people Will works with, for taking him to and from work (it wasn't out of his way, but is still much appreciated). Honestly, without him I wouldn't of been able to go on this trip. And like I said, it was very much needed!

The sunsets were amazing. And it was so relaxing watching them while my dad played his guitar.

 

 

Over all - It was a great trip. I can't wait for next year, when Emmersyn will be more aware of what's going on.

Stranger

Dear blogger & blog friends. . .

I miss you.

That little cutie up there is finally over her cold and now we're getting back into our normal weekly routine. We can't wait to get back to Gymboree tomorrow!

I tried writing up a post last week of our vacation, but failed when the sickly kid needed me to nap with her.

I see I've lost a follower. Such is life. I am sorry for being so MIA. I have barely read blogs, too.

Thanks for sticking with me. I'll have an update up soon. . . I hope.

Back!

Emmersyn and I got home from our vacation with my parents early - On Thursday. 

Life post- vacation is insane. As usual. 

My poor baby is also sick - Or teething. I can't figure out what's going on. So I won't be back with a vacation recap and pics (I still have a ton to edit) until she's better and I get back onto my routine (her schedule is all jacked up).

Life is full of up & downs

There's a lot going on in my life right now - And it all hit at once.

 

My mom's BFF since 7th grade found out she has cancer about 3 weeks ago - She starts chemo and radiation next week. About a week later, a 4 year old of a mommy who also has a March 2010 baby was diagnosed with Leukemia. And while surfing around on Facebook Monday night, I ran across an old friend that I grew up with & then grew apart from. . . Saw on her page that she found out in May of this year that she was Leukemia. 

I was in shock.

I still am.

I am not sure how to process all of this. I don't know why said friend and I lost contact. . . I sent her a friends request, but so far she hasn't accepted it. We were friends on there - But she deleted me [I am guessing, I didn't]. Normally I wouldn't care - But we were really good friends through middle and some of high school.

 

I guess this is all a part of growing up.

Marriage is hard.

 Getting married young is even harder.

Being married young and having a spouse in the military is even harder.

Add in a kid.

 

DH and I have had our up's and down's over the past 2 years. . . And it's been either good, or really bad, this past year. I won't go into much detail - But things are a little rocky right now. We seem to pull out of these hard times - And we're working on things we said we would. But it still sucks. My heart was broken again Sunday night and I was a mess. Marriage is hard work. And sometimes, it plain ol' SUCKS. But it's all worth it in the end.

 

 

My little girl is pretty awesome. Scratch that - She's pretty amazing. Or how about - Amazingly awesome? Yeah, I think that's fitting. I love her more then life itself. She keeps me going when I don't wanna go any more. She may give me rough days - But those pass. We have more good days then we do rough - And for that, I am thankful for.

She's growing up way too fast. Getting big and doing big girl things. She amazes me with the things she learns on a daily basis. Her new thing is sitting up. She wants to sit up EVERYWHERE. I've had to start using the over the shoulder straps on things like her swing & high chair now - Because she just keeps trying to sit up and lean forward. She's sitting up on the floor unsupported for some time. Though not perfect. It won't be long before she has it perfected.

 

Seriously - What happened to my itty bitt?

She'll be 5 months next week - WOW!

 

With all that said, we're going on vacation - Emmersyn and I. Daddy is staying home to work. We're going camping at the lake with my parents. . . And other various family. We'll be gone 8 days - Camping for 6. I am excited. But nervous. And anxious. All for different reasons. And this time, it [should] be an actual vacation for me - As my mom knows Em better then anyone else outside of DH and I and helps a ton with her. So that's awesome & exciting. I am ready. I need it.

I would love a date with my husband one of these days soon. I love my daughter - And she's such a great baby when we're out and about. She loves being at restaurants. But I think we need a date, just the two of us. But I still haven't left my princess for longer then 45 minutes. And really, the only person I feel comfortable leaving her with for more then 30 minutes is my mom. And she's 2 hours away. Not that I don't trust anybody with her - But as I stated above. . . She knows Em pretty darn well.

 

Maybe when we go to the desert at the end of the month, we can get her to watch her while we go out, even if we're just hanging out with friends who'll be in town. . . We'll see. We'll see if I can do it.

With that said. . . I'll be back to our house on the 7th of August. I am sure sometime that following week I'll have a nice long post filled with pictures for y'all.

 

August 13th is my birthday!

Have a great week!

 

 

Coffee

Lets talk about Coffee. . .

 

 

Truth be told - I was never much of a coffee drinker. I enjoyed a cup here or there, and the occasional Starbucks coffee as well. But it never did anything for me. As a person with ADD, it shouldn't do much for me.

I was always told that when I'd have kids, coffee would become my best friend.

 

I never believed them. Because well, coffee has never done anything for me.

They were right. For the most part.

 

We've always had a coffee pot. . . And we've had the same thing of coffee in our house for a while now. Why I bought a big ol' can of it, I still have no idea. But we're going through it now. When ever my parents come, they always make coffee in the morning. But again, I just was never into it.

Until about 3 weeks ago.

 

When I started on a morning routine with Emmersyn, where sleeping in until 10 am was no longer an option. . . I started making coffee in the morning. The first day I had a cup of coffee with breakfast in the morning - I was full of energy. I got so much done, was in a great mood and thus - Had a fantastic day. All because of a simple cup of coffee. Amazing.

Now, most mornings, when giving Emmersyn her breakfast I sit at the table with her drinking my coffee and eating my breakfast. I haven't been on any of my ADD meds since I got pregnant as they weren't safe during pregnancy & breastfeeding - And I just don't feel like I need them any more. So coffee gives me that bit of caffeine that was in my meds that kick my butt into gear every day. I only drink it during the week, though, when I am alone with the baby all day while DH is working. He isn't much of a coffee drinker, either, so I don't bother with it on the weekends.

 

I like my coffee sweet. I use Hazelnut creamer and sugar. Mmm Mmmm! I make a fresh pot every other day, since it's just me drinking it. I most defiantly prefer fresh coffee - But I am not gonna waste it so I'll just heat it up in the microwave the second day.

 

Do you drink coffee?

When did you start drinking it?

How do you like your coffee?

 

 

Have a fantastic day! 

All American Girl

Business first. . .

:)

My first ever guest post! I'll be featured there tomorrow [Wednesday]! I am pretty excited to get to guest post and hopefully this'll be motivation enough to get me posting more.

To be honest, I am still lost and confused about where exactly to 'fit in' in this blogger world. I am use to blogging about our day-to-day life, but that gets boring. And I find not many people tend to be drawn to that. At least, not in the boring way. I need to find a way to keep it fun and creative. . . 

For now, though, it's all about my little missy. Of course.

The song I'll be posting through out this post reminds me so much of DH & I. . .

Since the day they got married,
He'd been praying for a little baby boy.
Someone he could take fishing,
Throw the football and be his pride and joy.
He could already see him holding that trophy,
Taking his team to state.
But when the nurse came in with a little pink blanket,
All those big dreams changed.

This week has been a fun one for Emmersyn - And an exhausting one for mommy! My little piglet figured out how to foll from her back to belly. And she's a champ at it - Loves doing it. Yay! Right? Wrong. She doesn't like tummy time. And thanks to her reflux, I often find her in a puddle of spit up after only a few minutes on her belly. She insist on rolling over, though. As soon as I lay her on her back, she is rolling her little hiney over. I give her a couple minutes - And then she starts getting frustrated and screams at me. So I go to roll her over. . . Half the time, she'll resist and scream at me, but STILL doesn't wanna be on her tummy. The other half, I can get her flopped over without issues - But then she is right back onto her tummy and frustrated at me within minutes.

Exhausting.

And now he's wrapped around her finger,
She's the center of his whole world.
And his heart belongs to that sweet little beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American Girl.

I normally end up with her in my lap. Which all she wants to do then is stand. I know they say babies don't know what bored is, can't get bored, ect. . . But this kid gets so antsy and isn't digging anything we have for her. I've spent most my days the past week bouncing her back and forth between her play gym, a blanket on the floor with toys all around her, her jumperoo and my lap. 

What in the world am I suppose to do with a 4.5 month old?!

Sixteen short years later,
She was falling for the senior football star.
Before you knew it he was dropping passes,
Skipping practice just to spend more time with her.

My good friend out here, who's daughter is 10.5 months older then Emmersyn, will be home from a month old trip back to her home state of VA. And now that Em is getting older and summer is here, we're hoping to get together more often for the girls to play. A library out here has story time on Fridays, infants-2 years old, that we're wanting to go to together. We do Gymboree on Tues & Thurs, which last 45 minutes and always wears her out. . .  But what in the world are we suppose to do at home to keep her happily occupied?

The coach said "Hey son, what's your problem? Tell me, have you lost your mind?"
Daddy said "You'll lose your free ride to college. Boy you better tell her goodbye".

Another new & exciting thing in Emmersyn and mommies world is - BABY GIGGLES! Ahh. . . I love it. And the look on her daddies face when he heard it? Absolutely priceless. I wish I had a video camera. Or just a camera, period. It was amazing and melted my heart. She giggled at me. . . So between his look/reaction and her giggles, I was grinning ear to ear with tears in my eyes. She did it again last night and it was just as adorable and awesome. It's still hit or miss, but it's amazing!

But now he's wrapped around her finger,
She's the center of his whole world.
And his heart belongs to that sweet little beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American...

Gymboree is going great. Emmersyn is starting to show her little personality more and more each week, and I love it. Everybody gets a kick out of her little screams and grunts and cracks up each time she lets a shriek out. She doesn't seem to be a shy one by any means these days!!

And not to jinx things *knock on wood* but the past 2 nights she's slept through the night again!

And when they got married and decided to have one of their own,
She said "Be honest, tell me what do you wanted?"
And he said "Honey, you oughta know... Sweet, little, beautiful... one just like you. Oh a beautiful, wonderful, perfect
All-American..."

[Trey Ryan]

Emmersyn is no longer the baby on DH's side (though she'll always be my baby). His sister had this little cutie, her 3rd boy, on July 12th. Weighing in at a whopping 8lbs 2oz. And yesterday we got to meet him, as they took a day trip out here to see friends & stopped by for dinner and to hang out for a couple hours. It was great to see my 2 older nephews & meet the youngest little monster.

Now he's wrapped around her finger,
She's the center of his whole world.
And his heart belongs to that sweet little beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American Girl.
All American Girl. 

Emmersyn looked like a monster next to him -- And he felt light as a feather when I picked him up. It's hard to believe that she was that small just 4 months ago. Seriously - Where has the time gone?!?

She's amazing. I love her so much and absolutely adore being her mommy. . . Even if it's an exhausting job - It's the most rewarding jobs out there!

Here's all the kiddos. . . Ely is almost 10 (L), Ty is 3 (R) and then little Trey at 1 week old and Emmersyn at 4.5 months. She may be the only girl, but if she's anything like her mommah -- She'll be keeping up with them and then some in no time at all!

Emmersyn will be on vacation with completely no internet the 1st week of August. . . We're off to spend a week at the lake with my parents! 

Love Like Crazy

They called them crazy when they started out
Said seventeen's too young to know what loves about

I have a new found love of mornings. Especially now that summer is here, and I don't freeze when I walk out the door. But honestly, my new found love of mornings comes from my little girl. Who could not love mornings when you wake up to a gorgeous smiling angel? Even on the mornings [most since we gotta take DH to work] where I have to go in and wake her up. She greets me with the sleepiest smile, and then stretches that cute little body and gives me more big ol' smiles. I love it.

Be a best friend, tell the truth, and overuse I Love You
Go to work, do your best, don't outsmart your common since
Never let your prayin' knees get lazy
And love like crazy

Every morning when we get home from dropping DH off at work, I plop little miss in her high chair at the table. I then go around and open the doors & windows and open the blinds near the kitchen table. And we say "Good morning Mr.Sunshine!" And when the kitties come out to see us, we say good morning to them, too. I get her breakfast made and get my coffee going. If she's patient enough, I get my breakfast made and coffee poured. And then we eat. We sit at the kitchen table and eat together. I wake my computer up while I feed her and she watches a little big of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while I eat if she's being impatient.

I love it.

 
Always treat your woman like a lady
Never get to old to call her baby
Never let your prayin knees get lazy
And love like crazy

Every morning she's stripped down to her diaper - She's a bit of a messy eater, and I am okay with that. She spends the remainder of the morning in her diaper - Not getting dressed until after her nap, if she gets dressed at all. 

Yesterday I let her play in her birthday suit for about 20 minutes. I laid a towel down and let her have at it. Oh my - She had a blast. And when I put her on her tummy? Massive smiles. Lots of them. She is not a fan of tummy time (thanks reflux monster) but she was digging it this day. Maybe it was because she was naked? I'll tell you what - This kid doesn't like clothes. She's fine when I take clothes off her - But when I go to put them on? Oh boy is she mad. 

Let's be honest here, though - I don't like clothes, either. And if I were a baby, I am sure I'd dig chilling in my diaper all day. 

I got some adorable photos of her playing naked - I wish I could share them, but that just isn't the smartest of ideas this day & age. 

I really want to get her a kiddie pool. We live upstairs. We have a private garage. We're attached to people. However, the lady to the right of us in the 2 story 3 bedroom place is super nice - She's been here since we moved in. We talk occasionally. They have a small patch of grass between their driveway/garage and ours. I am sure if I were to ask - She'd let us put the pool there and would even let us use her hose to fill it up, since we don't have a faucet thing. But getting the 'guts' - Getting past the shyness - to ask is a task in itself. Who knows if I'll get around to it before the summer is up.