Menu Plan Monday...On a Sunday

I am participating in Menu Plan Monday from I'm an Organizing Junkie. As I explained last week every other two weeks I don't have to make dinner, my mom does. And so I will plan my breakfasts and lunches for those two weeks. Here we go...

Monday - Breakfast - yogurt with granola
Lunch - provided by work (orientation)

Tuesday - Breakfast - Special K cereal bar
Lunch - provided by work

Wednesday - Breakfast - Toast with strawberry jam
Lunch - provided by work

Thursday - Breakfast - yogurt with granola
Lunch - leftover lasagna, spinach salad

Friday - Breakfast - Special K cereal bar
Lunch - soup, turkey sandwich, apple slices

Saturday - Breakfast - french toast
Lunch - homemade spaghettios, garlic cheese bread

Sunday - Breakfast - cereal
Lunch - macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, applesasuce


I also wanted to share a link for a giveaway. I'm an organizing junkie is giving away an awesome magnetic menu planning board. I wanted to make sure everyone had a chance to enter, these look awesome. I may buy one even if I don't win! I've become addicted to menu planning and let me tell you why...

1. I know at the beginning of the week what meals I am having, allowing me to plan when I am taking leftovers for lunch and when I need to have easy stuff on hand for lunch. It also makes it simple to plan a meal so I can have leftovers for the family on dance night.

2. I can make 1 grocery stop a week, maximum. I don't have to stop Monday and Wednesday and Thursday for 1 or 2 little things. I also use my coupon book for menu planning.

3. I always know the answer to the often asked question ''What's for dinner?''

4. I can build meals from leftovers throughout the week (like leftover roast) and ensure it gets ate before it gets bad. I also know what the weeks meal plan looks like so if I need to just put it in the freezer right away it doesn't go bad.

Those are just my top 4 reasons. I'm sure I could honestly go on and on about why I love meal planning but I'll leave it at that.

Funday

It's Saturday. That means we should do something fun right? I thought so too.

I'm going to take Alexis to the library. This is one of our favorite weekly activities that we do. I am going to see if Jaime wants to come along, but who knows.

I'm going to pick up my engagement ring. I had to take it in to be resized and they called to let me know it was done today. $50 for an engagement ring, including sizing. Heck yeah! (Oops, I shouldn't know that should I? Oh well, no secrets between us)

Then I think we are going to spend the night at his house, with his mom. She has been wanting us to come stay the night so she can play with Alexis and I just need to get out of the house. So we'll go over there, she said something about ordering pizza and playing dominoes. I have never played dominoes but they say you learn something new every day, right.

Tomorrow my older sister and her 3 kids are coming down and we are all going sledding. I'm not big on it anymore, I've had really bad motion sickness ever since I had Alexis. This apparently includes sledding, amusement park rides and riding in the backseat of the car. Who would've thunk it.

And then it's back to reality for me. I'm not a stay at home mom, even though the idea has a definite appeal to me, and I might be able to swing it when we have another kid. And I have to go back to work. Don't really wanna, but such is life, right. Gotta do what you gotta do.

I am looking forward to a new challenge. And feeling like I'm doing something good for the community. I'm working in the county dental office. They accept any and all insurance and also patients without insurance. The people who come in are generally in pain and I feel good when they leave and I know they are going to feel better. The group of girls that I work with are awesome. (How do I know all this when I start work on Monday? I did my externship there during school and fell in love) We get along great and they like to have fun. Plus we have dental students from the local university do there rotations here. It's fun to help them learn how to use an assistant and watch how they grow.

So all is good in my universe today. And I'm loving it.

A Wedding

In 5 months and 5 days I am getting married.

*Does a happy dance and squeel*

Now it's time to focus on the nitty gritty. What do I have figured out? This...

1. My half of the wedding party. It will be my daughter and youngest two nieces as flower girls, my little sister as my maid of honor, my best friend as my bridesmaid and my oldest niece as my usher\junior bridesmaid.

2. The wardrobe -- Flower girls - white sundresses
Ring bearers - black jeans, white button up shirt, red bow tie
Bridesmaid\Maid of Honor\Junior Bridesmaid - black dress, mid calf length, maybe a red sash...maybe
Groomsmen\etc - black jeans, red button up shirt
Groom - Black jeans, white button up shirt, red tie
Father of the bride - black jeans, white button up shirt (what's your opinion - tie or no tie?)
Bride - gorgeous wedding dress...still need to buy the veil and the slip so the picture will come, just not quite yet

3. The flowers - calla lilies and red roses

This is what I want for my bouquet. The guys will have a calla lily for their boutinerre, except the groom, fathers, and ring bearers. They will have a red rose. The mothers will have red rose corsages and the flower girls will throw red rose petals. The bridesmaids will carry this



4. The reception dinner - hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans, potato chips, pasta salad

5. The cake

Where this shows green, it will be red to match my colors. A very dear friend of mine (and my dd's uncle's gf on her father's side) works at Hyvee in the bakery and loves to decorate cakes as much as I do. She has agreed to do this cake for me.

6. The venue
-The wedding is going to be held in a small church in Nevada. Jaime has lived in Nevada all of her life. I have grown up aroudn this area and this is the same church my older sister was married in some 12 years ago. It is a sentimental choice for me, Jaime likes the smaller area and it has gorgeous stain glass windows. Plus it has a fellowship hall that we can use to have the rehearsal dinner (taking out the time of driving somewhere else after the rehearsal. And with small children, that is GREAT)
-The reception is going to be held at a company hall. My mother and brother-in-law both work at a factory in ames that has a rec building. I can get this FOR FREE. I have to pay a $25 deposit that I get back afterwards as long as I clean up after the reception. I can have my best friend's hubby bring his grill (a tailgating grill that can hold 100 hamburgers) and, if the weather cooperates, we can spend the time outside. Plus there is a basketball court and baseball diamond that the guests can amuse themselves (or the males can get themselves into trouble for not dancing with their significant others lol)

7. Photography - Currently I am going to have my sister, my daughter's nana (again on the other side) and other family members take pictures with their digital cameras. I will then have them email me ALL of the pictures (or I will give them CDs to send to me) and pick out my favorite. On top of that my older sister has a friend who will turn a photo into a canvas art for me. I'm thinking I definitely need a picture of Jaime, Alexis and myself.

8. Invitations. I made my invitations completely by myself. I am sending them to Staples to print them for me. My total budget at this point, including deposits is looking like this

$25 deposit for reception venue
$100 for the pianist (this is still not decided for sure)
$100 for the use of the church
$200 for the fee for the pastor
$150 for the use of the fellowship hall and kitchen
$45 for my wedding dress (and yes I've paid this already)
$83 for invitations (printing and mailing)

This comes to a total of $703

I still will have to pay for flowers, my daughters dress, my slip, my veil, food for the rehearsal dinner (my dad is paying for the reception dinner), the cake, and decorations. My goal had been to stay under $1000...I don't think it's going to happen. But I have a plan. And this plan includes sites such as Craigslist and Ebay. And hopefully this will help!

If you have any ideas on how to help keep the costs down, PLEASE PLEASE leave a comment below.

Preschool

Here in the good old state of Iowa this topic is getting discussed by everyone from parents to politicians.

Our governor wants to cut the amount spent on preschool program...This is where a good portion of people seem to stop listening. They hear this part of what he is saying and proposing and getting up in arms. But what they aren't hearing is the rest...and have the parents who CAN afford to help pay, help pay.

Now this is one of my soap boxes. And so, unfortunately, you are going to get kind of a rant.

People put their children into public school systems. They want to drop them off or put them on the bus, and not worry about them for the rest of the day. They don't want to pay anymore in taxes to help fund it, they don't want to pay more in enrollment and book fees, they don't want to write out a check to the local school district to help fund improvements. They want to be able to pay the same amount in taxes and be done.

On the flip side of the coin, these parents want their children to have the best education possible. They want state-of-the-art technology, a broad spectrum of courses available, and top notch teachers. They want their children to have small class sizes and every advantage possible given to them.

Time out. We want them to spend more on new books, new computers, new technology, more training for the teachers, new classrooms, and more teachers to teach the newer subjects, but we don't want to have to help foot the bill? This seems a little contradictory to me.

What better way is there to invest in our future than in our children? Why do we expect the state to pick up the majority of the bill? Why do parents not understand that to be state-of-the-art, to have the best, it costs MORE money?

I know that if I want a new computer with all the new capabilities, I am going to have to pay more to get it. The school doesn't get brand new computers with state-of-the-art technology donated. Definitely not enough to cover the whole school.

I wish parents would either put up or shut up honestly. If you have enough money to go out and buy yourself that brand new 52'' flat screen HDTV then you probably can donate some money to the school. Or better yet, start a fundraiser (or offer to donate if someone with more time can start it, since that seems to always be the excuse) to help raise money to go to the specific issue you want addressed (new computers, new textbooks). Or even just stand up at that next school board meeting (you do go, right) and say ''I think our school district needs to have ****. I am willing to help with finding the funding, what would we need to do'' Too many times the school administrators are hesitant to ask for more, because they don't want to get turned down, or told they ask for too much, etc. Stand up for them.

And more important, stand up for our kids. If we don't, who will? And if no one stands up for these children so they can get the best education that we can provide, who is to blame when they flounder later in life? It's not all on the parents in that case, but why not give them every advantage? School should be fun, but sometimes, the schools don't have the tools they need to teach and have fun.

My point is this. Don't complain because the school system needs funding. Don't assume the money is going to grow on the money tree in their back yard. If it won't grow for you, I promise it isn't growing for them either (and if it is growing for you, send a seed to your school, my school and one for me too please). Help out. It's still cheaper than a private school

HELP

So I am here to admit the following weaknesses

1. I am not an organized person. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
2. I am not a frugal person. I love to shop when I have the money to do so. And I'm not so good at saving.
3. I am not a domestic goddess. I hate cleaning, I hate laundry. (ok I LOVE to cook but we'll pretend that isn't part of this. You will understand in a minute)
4. I am not the world's best mom. I do my best in this arena however and I always love my daughter, even if I'm frustrated and ready to pull my hair out.


Now an example of what I mean for each.

1. I have great plans. And I will even go through and organize things. My desk for example. I went through and put my standing filer on my desk, I emptied my drawers and made one for my notebooks, one for books that I peruse frequently (the bible, early childhood activites, etc), and one for magazines that I need to read, clip articles I want, and toss. Now my desk is covered in papers, mail, clothes that need put away, items that need a home and don't have one. My drawers have become a catchall again to help with the eye sore. And I am ready to pull out my hair.
2. I went to the dollar store today to buy an alarm clock. That is ALL I needed. I walked out with an alarm clock, 2 packages of looseleaf paper, 2 small notebooks (one to carry in my purse for those oh crap moments in the car and one for wedding plans that can also go in my purse because people always call back when I'm away from home), a family organizer (for bills), and a small weekly planner (again for in my purse so I don't have scraps of paper with appointments in my purse).
3. I had my entire house clean on Saturday. Sunday I mostly sat back and enjoyed it, trying to keep up with a 4 year old hurricane, a 14 year old tsunami and 17 year old tornado. Monday I was mentally and physically exhausted and couldn't find the motivation to do more than the dishes. Today I'm disgusted with how long I've put things off and am waiting until I have ''more time'' tomorrow to do it.
4. My daughter does not want to pick up her toys. I do not want to fight with her. I do not want to listen to her scream. (If you read my previous blog post you know I took Grandpa to the doctor today and that is a day in and of itself. And it takes as much patience as it does with a small child because you want to help to pick up the pace but you know it will only frustrate them if you do and take away a piece of their independence that he is already losing)

None of these make me a bad person. I know this. However (and the reason I am devoting this much time and effort to explaining these downfalls of mine) this is the year that I plan to do better at all of these. And........that's right I have another list of how I want to achieve this.

1. Organize better
    A. With moving out of my parents house I will be able to set up an organizational system that works for ME and that will be the norm from the beginning.
    B. Until that time I am just going to give myself 2 days a week that I reorganize my areas. Thursday and Sunday. (Wednesday being the day that I am least likely to care about organization on any level with leaving home at 630am and not getting home until sometime after 6 if I'm lucky and Sunday being the day before the week starts)
    C. Make a conscious effort to put things in their homes, not just where I can put them down. Also make their homes be simple and easy to do.
2. Spend less
    A. Make a list. If it isn't on the list, add it to the list for next time. If, when I make up the new list, I still want then look at if it is something I need now, something I can wait until the end of the month to see if I have the money in the budget, or something I just want and can put on my Christmas\Birthday list
   B. Clip coupons. Shop from the coupons.
   C. Keep a journal of all items I purchase. At the end of the month add up the ''silly'' or ''unnecessary'' purchases and see how much money I ''wasted''
3. Clean better\more
   A. Set up a schedule. Stick to the cleaning schedule. Post somewhere easy to see, like bedroom door.
   B. Do not be afraid to ask for help. A 14 year old and a 17 year old should not be forces of nature to destroy, rather allies to ask for help.
   C. Use a basket system. (I will expand on this tomorrow when I start it)
   D. Do not allow things to 'wait for tomorrow' Tomorrow I will not want to do it anymore, additional items will be piled up, and I will have more reason to procrastinate.
4. Be a better mom (I do want to say that every mom wants to be a better mom, this is just the areas I want to work on)
   A. When we move out work on nutrition, and not being a short order cook.
   B. Set up a routine for in the evenings. Do not vary. Include bath, pick up, etc in this.
   C. Have a set discipline. Do not change based on who is home, even if they try to override it. Speak with my parents about how I am going to discipline my child and let them know I need them to respect this.
   D. Allow for special 'treats' such as baking cookies together, doing a puzzle, playing a game, on weekends when she has followed the routine and picked up her toys all week.


I am learning. My daughter may be 4 but I am 24. I am still learning what works for us. I am starting a new job, no longer going to school. Instead of going to school from 8a to 1230p, I will be working from 8a to 430p. I have to find things that work. If you have any ideas, thoughts, etc please feel free to comment. If you have a blog and you think it might help, or maybe even just give me someone I can feel for and laugh with, leave the link for me.

Home again

It was a fun day at the doctor with my grandpa. Actually, because I'm sure that came across as dripping with sarcasm, but it wasn't all that bad. It was pretty typical, no problems, no complaints. Yay.

Grandpa likes to take me out to lunch when we make these trips. Today he asked where I wanted to go and, after some thought (and with the knowledge that this 80 year old man does not want to pay a whole lot for a meal, nor will he hear of me trying to pay for the meal) I asked him if he wanted to go to Hardees. Now Hardees have gone out of this area and are just starting to creep back. They still haven't gotten any closer to my town than the capital 45 minutes away but, being we were already there, what the hey. And that is where we go.

I am not a big fan of fast food. My daughter loves it and I allow her to have it once in a while. She knows that I do not want her eating it all of the time, nor should she, and even at 4 years old I have begun explaining to her that fast food is not healthy and so it can't be eaten all of the time. I generally will wait until I get home to eat rather than eat McDonalds, even if it is her special treat. However this actually tasted good. McDonalds tastes crappy to me, but I liked their cheeseburger, even if it was coated in grease and swimming in calories, as every fast food hamburger is. More importantly, Grandpa liked it. He usually picks at his food, eats about half, and throws the rest away. He ate half, took the rest with us, and ate it on the drive home. I was impressed.

I had to stop at the dollar store on my way home because my current alarm clock is not waking me up. This is a serious problem and so I bought a new one. Maybe now I'll actually be able to wake up when it goes off instead of an hour later when someone comes into my room to ask when I wanted up.

I also purchased a half gallon of soy milk. I am allergic to the milk protein (not lactose, that's the milk sugar) and so if I eat anything with very much milk in it I end up sick. I really like cereal people! But it has gotten to where it isn't worth the yuck feeling the next day. And so I'll try soy milk and see what I think. Worst case scenario, I'll mix in half and half with my daughters milk and she'll never know lol

Menu Plan Monday....And More

I do want to let you know that until further notice (sometime in April ideally) I only make the meals every other two weeks. I currently live with my parents and when my mom's on afternoons I am in charge of dinner. When she works days she, in theory, makes the dinners. So while I honestly love to menu plan, she despises it and so...I will not post dinner menus for those weeks but I will post breakfast and lunch menus for me to take to lunch instead.

Anyway this weeks menu plan

MONDAY - Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn
TUESDAY - Leftovers (chili, potato soup, or meatloaf)
WEDNESDAY - Roast, potatoes, carrots (and maybe homemade rolls because they sound delicious)
THURSDAY - Beef tips and gravy, rice, green beans
FRIDAY - Tacos, spanish rice, refried beans, tator tots (for the ones who don't like spanish rice or refried beans)
SATURDAY - Date night
SUNDAY - Leftovers (chili, meatloaf, roast, tacos) -- Also apple streusel quick bread sometime for Monday morning breakfast

Also any leftover potato soup will go in the freezer on Tuesday, any leftover chili will on Sunday.


Today has been a mixed bag of tricks as far as weather goes. Rain, sleet, frozen rain, snow. It has not been pretty. However Grandpa got home before it got dark and so he and Alexis made a snowman. It was super cute!

I got my coupon binder put together today. I love it. It will be so much easier for me to find coupons and I love it.

Also, a quick note on the 52 weeks of organizing. I am going to tackle a few more things this week. Here is my schedule...

TUESDAY - I'm taking my grandpa to the doctor however I would like to organize the laundry area. Instead of laundry detergent, oxyclean, laundry sheets, etc all being on top of the dryer, along with loose change and other items that have been left in pockets, I would like to get it organized in the cupboards next to the dryer. And instead of having to sort the laundry every time I walk downstairs, I would like to have baskets put together for darks, lights, towels, and bedding

WEDNESDAY - This is Alexis' dance night but I will have all day to work on stuff. I would like to tackle the pantry cupboards, as well as my daughters toys. Does any child really need 5 baby dolls? Or 15 barbie dolls?

THURSDAY - This day is completely open, at least for now. I would like to clean out my closet this day. I have already completed Alexis' closet, and both of our drawers.

FRIDAY - This day is also open, except for a trip to the library and the grocery store. For this reason, and its my last week day before I go back to work outside the home full time, I'm just going to do general clean up and enjoy my daughter.

Hope ya'll have a great day!