Weekly Menu

I bet you've been thinking I forgotten all about my blog, haven't you? In truth, life has been busy. I've been sleep training Georgie. (I know. There are a lot of opinions out there on this. I will write a post about it soon.) It has been stressful to say the least. But, we are making progress!

Georgie had his sixth month photo shoot yesterday and I am so excited! I think the pictures are going to turn out great. I can't wait to post some when the editing is done.

And now, the weekly menu!

Friday: Spaghetti and Salad

Saturday: Takeout

Sunday: Mother's Day Brunch and possibly frozen pizza if we are hungry at dinner time

Monday: Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries

Tuesday: Chicken Tacos

Wednesday: Veggie Stir Fry with Brown Rice

Thursday: Out for our anniversary

Friday: Chicken and Mushroom Pasta, Green Beans

A little blurry from my phone, but too cute not to share!

Finding Our Feet!

Georgie has finally found his feet! I didn't think it was going to happen for this little guy. I thought he was just going to skip this little step. I'm so glad that he found them. He wants to play with them all the time now. During a bath, during diaper changes, really any time will do.

So determined! Look at that hair!

Oh! Here they are again!

The Nursery

We didn't find out Georgie's gender before he was born. So, I wanted a gender neutral nursery that could be used for future children too. I also wanted a sweet nursery because babies are babies for such a short time. Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit were perfect!

We painted the walls  a soft butter yellow. The Peter Rabbit bedding is from Pottery Barn and was a gift from my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law.  The dresser is from Walmart. The glider is from a local furniture store and the brand is called Best Chairs (I think). It's very comfortable.

My favorite part about the nursery is the alphabet wall that I made. I used cute flashcards that I purchased on Etsy. They are hung with plain white ribbon and mini clothes pins. I saw the idea on Pinterest so I can't take all the credit. I love how it turned out!

The white shelves are from Target. Special thanks to my brother-in-law for hanging them! The little sign on the dresser is actually a peanut bag from a baseball game. It says, "Happiness is a Peanut". We called our little one "Peanut" from day one.

The crib and changing table were bought second hand from a good friend, so I know they were well taken care of and gently used. The gingam curtains and the white baskets are also from Pottery Barn.

I love this nursery. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out!

Georgie's First Easter!

Georgie had a very busy first Easter. We were up with the sun to get to the early church service.

Decked out in Sunday finest


Georgie was fantastic during the service. He slept through it all! Then back home for Easter basket treats. Lots of plates and bowls for solid foods! Also, a book!

He was excited about it!
 

We also had some delicious banana. I'm not sure Georgie thought the banana was quite as delicious as Mama claimed.

After lunch, a special nap with cuddles while Daddy read.

Then off to Grandma's house for a special dinner and fun family time.

After dinner we took a nice walk in the stroller and then off to bed! What a wonderful day to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord. Hope your Easter was just as special.

6 Months and First Solids!

We've been so busy around here lately. Nice weather plus Daddy being home for a few days means not much time for blogging. Here's a quick update:

Georgie turned 6 months old! Happy half birthday buddy. Where did the time go?

He also tried his first solid food on his sixth month birthday: avocado!

He liked them!

Sadly, he had a mild reaction to them so we had to stop giving him avocado after the second day (mildly swollen bottom lip). We moved on to bigger and better things! Bananas!

Surprisingly, he's not such a big fan of bananas. I thought all babies like banana. Oh, well.

Tomorrow, I'll update you on Georgie's first Easter! Happy Easter everyone!

Weekly Menu a Little Late and Playing Outside!

 

 

The weather has been so nice lately I've been taking a break from technology to enjoy the outdoors while I still can (going to be cold again tomorrow). But here's a quick weekly menu!

 

Monday: Cabbage and Ham, Biscuits (never made this last week)

Tuesday: Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Bread

Wednesday: Chicken, Bacon, and Avocado Chopped Salad

Thursday: Pierogies, Applesauce, Peas

Friday: Breaded Pork Chops, Green Beans, Baked Sweet Potato



Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real

Like Mother, Like Daughter does a weekly post every Thursday called Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real. It's meant to be a weekly encouragement and help in finding contentment in everyday life. I'm happy to join.

Pretty and Happy

 

Spring is here! Always so happy to see these flowers (weeds?) in my yard. They always surprise me, every year.

 

 

Funny

 

Poor Georgie is teething. I gave him an ice cube in one of those mesh food things and he did NOT like it. But the new texture and temperature was too much to resist. He kept putting it back into his mouth, over and over again. But his reaction never changed!

 

Hmmm, what's this?

Ugh, I don't like it!

Maybe if I try again... Nope, still no good!

 

Real

 This cute dog is the bane of my existence. Her name is Lily and she is the world's naughtiest dog. Her hobbies include, but are not limited to the following: barking while Georgie is napping, rolling around in the mud right after getting home from the groomer, digging through the bathroom trash, yanking on the leash during walks, and waking Mama up (not Daddy?) to go outside 45 minutes after nursing the baby. We tried to give her away, and her new family gave her back!

 

 

How can something so cute be so irritating?

 

Making Homemade Baby Food- Sweet Potatoes

We are getting close to starting Georgie on solids and I decided awhile ago that I wanted to make his baby food. It's cheaper and I know the freshness and quality of the ingredients. And I was told by other moms that making baby food is pretty easy.

First, I really like this book. It tells you step-by-step how to make each food and when to introduce it to your baby.

I decided to make and freeze sweet potatoes because the book recommends them as one of the first foods to introduce. I will probably introduce them as Georgie's second or third food. They are good in the freezer for 2-3 months.

So here we go...

1. Get ice cube trays and wash them well.

 2. Get some sweet potatoes and wash and scrub them. Pierce with a fork.

3. Line a baking pan with foil (lazy clean up) and heat your oven to 400.

4. Bake potatoes for 45ish minutes. While you are waiting, take your little one on a walk to enjoy the nice spring day. (See how bundled up he is, it's 50 degrees. I'm still a Florida girl at heart.)

Sorry for bad picture, very sunny! 

5. After your potatoes are finished baking, cut them half to let them cool enough that you can handle them. Then scoop out the potato into whatever you are going to use to puree them. I'm using a magic bullet. But the book says that a blender would work too.

6. Puree until very smooth. Check a few times to make sure it's all getting pureed. I had clumps sticking to the top.

7. Mush potatoes through a fine strainer to catch any bits of skin or fibrous bits. I didn't catch anything, but better safe than sorry for a very young baby.

8. Scoop into ice cube trays, cover with foil, and freeze for several hours. It took overnight for my potatoes to completely freeze.

9. Put in a freezer bag. The book recommends that you use quart size bags. By the time you get to the bottom of a gallon size bag, the food is no longer fresh from so much opening and closing of the bag. It also recommends you take a straw to suck out the air from the bag to keep it from getting freezer burned. Make sure to label and mark with the date. Pureed sweet potatoes look a lot like pureed carrots!


Tada!

Special thanks to a cooperative peanut!

Weekly Menu and Finally!

Friday: Tomato Soup and Chef Salad from the deli at the grocery store
Saturday: Takeout (I'm feeling like Chipotle!)
Sunday: Frozen Pizza
Monday: Chicken Stir Fry and Brown Rice
Tuesday: Taco Night
Wednesday: Cabbage and Ham, Biscuits
Thursday: Cheese Ravioli and Salad

Finally Spring is Here!

I Like Baby Bums!

I love baby bottoms. They are so cute. I think the outfits that have animals on the backside are the best. (Not inappropriate sayings, I do not like those.) Here is a tour of Georgie's cutest baby bum outfits.

The Puppy

The Giraffe

The Elephant

The Car (My personal favorite! It often goes Toot Toot. Hehe)

The Teddy Bear with a Football Helmet

October Skillet- So Delicious!

16 oz. package kielbasa
2 onions, quartered
2 tart apples, sliced
1 green pepper, chopped
2 T. butter
1/4 C packed brown sugar

Heat sausage in a skillet (cast iron is great) in a little oil until browned around the edges. Add the onion, apples, and pepper. Cook until tender. Add sugar and butter. Cook until a glaze forms on the sausage and veggies. So good! Serve with heavy carbs like mashed potatoes. Yum!

Weekly Menu and Nap Time



Reading to Georgie before nap time

Friday: Tuna Melts (didn't make them last week)
Saturday: Takeout (Chinese!)
Sunday: Frozen Pizza
Monday: Cashew Chicken, Rice, and Broccoli
Tuesday: October Skillet with Mashed Potatoes
Wednesday: Taco Bake
Thursday: Leftovers



Somebody is so, so tired.

You Might Have a Baby If...



 

 

 

You have brightly colored toys hanging from your bedroom ceiling fan.

 

 

 

Your living room floor looks like this 90% of the time.

 

You walk around with a "lovey" stuffed in your shirt so that it smells like you at bedtime and your little one will (please, please, please) sleep longer at night.

 

You put ham, broccoli, and potato bake on the menu but forget to put the ingredients on the grocery list. Duh! No wonder my grocery bill was so low. Breakfast for dinner instead!

And now, last but not least, you can't get enough slobbery wet kisses.

We can't have a post without a picture of Georgie. Can we?

 

Easy Slow Cooker Chili

This is an quick and easy recipe that I make often.

1 lb. ground beef or turkey
1/2 of an onion, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes
15 oz. can kidney beans, undrained
1 T. brown sugar
2 t. chili powder (you can add more if you like spicy chili)

Brown ground beef and onions in skillet. Combine everything in slow cooker. Cook on low for 3-5 hours. We like to top our chili with shredded cheese, sour cream, and sometimes avocado slices. I serve this with cornbread.