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Wow! Where to begin? Lots of things happening lately; just no time to record it all.
For starters…
1) We’ve been sick. I think we actually had two separate colds in the same week and they really wiped us out. We’re better now – except McKay. His nose is still running (for three weeks straight now) but it could be related to teething. His last cuspid is pushing through. I’ll be so thankful when this round of teething is over! We should have a long break after this. That kid is a teething machine!
2) We booked our tickets to India for this fall. Ben and I and Mike and Sarah are going to India and the Maldives in October for 9 days. Should be a fascinating trip. I’m not expecting it to be relaxing or luxurious but more interesting and meaningful. We’re going to meet up with several people Ben knew and taught when he served his mission there. We’ve had several lunch/dinner dates with M&S to plan the trip. Just the planning has been loads of fun.
3) Ben is working long hours so I”m basically a single parent. This year actually seems much more manageable. It’s still not fun to do it all alone but I’m starting to adjust and I guess with the kids being a little older things are getting slightly easier. McKay is probably still just as needy as a newborn but I’m pretty used to it now. Things that have helped make this year better: I signed up for netflix, joining the gym, Sadie’s in preschool, Jax now skips naps so he’s usually asleep by 7:30 or 8 just like the other two, I’ve been using babysitters more (three times in the last three weeks – wowsers!), and staying busy. We go on outings usually every day.
4) Sadie and I have been touring the elementary schools in the area. We’ve found three we love – one of which knocked my socks off! I’m so happy. I thought the schools in this area were sub-par but they’re actually really good. I hope we can get her into the one that’s our favorite, but any of the three would be great. I can’t believe she’ll be in kindergarten this fall! I’ve loved having her in preschool but I don’t think I’ll feel the same way about elementary school. Hard times up ahead 🙁
5) I’ve been annoyingly persistent about doing educational stuff with Sadie and Jax. Sadie has had a hard time learning all her letters and their sounds. She’s got over half of them down but we’re still working on some of the challenging ones (lowercase q, p, b, d especially are so confusing). When she was younger I tried to teach her but she turned a deaf ear to me so I gave up after a while. She has a lot more interest now that she’s in preschool so I’m trying to do as much as possible while we have momentum.
6) Ben and I have been asked to go on Trek this summer with the youth in our church. Basically what that means is we dress up as pioneers and walk 30 or so miles in three days in the blazing Florida summer heat – no cell phones, no showers, no cabins. It’s suppose to be a really neat, meaningful experience where we contemplate the sacrifices of our ancestors. Should be interesting 🙂
7) McKay turned 18 months and that means he can start attending nursery on Sundays at church. This past week was his first Sunday due to illness the previous week. He loved it! He is so, so, so overly attached to Ben and me that it’s overwhelmingly annoying. I still carry him around the house all day, he still wakes at night, he follows me from room to room crying if I dare to set him down…I just don’t know what to do with him. He had started sleeping through the night a few months ago, but with this round of teething and the two colds he’s back to getting up twice or more a night. It’s ALWAYS something with him. He’s seriously like a newborn still! How can I let a sick baby cry, though? He’s had a fever for like 8 of the last 14 days. So, I’m trying to patiently endure until he’s healthy again. Back to the point – he’s so overly attached I decided a few months ago to do something about it. Part of that means getting babysitters more regularly and having him go in the kids room at the gym. He usually cries for less than a minute and then they says he’s happy and independent. Well, that’s just what happened at nursery on Sunday. He cried for less than a minute and then had a splendid time. I’m told he especially loved singing time. It’s frustrating that the only time he’s independent and social is when I’m not around. Not sure what to do about that….
8) I’m really trying (and failing miserably) at eliminating processed foods in our diets. Once upon a time we ate really healthy. Seems like since McKay’s pregnancy and birth I’ve just been in survival mode instead of thriving mode. There are things about the kids health lately that are worrying me a lot – so many colds, Sadie has terrible eczema on her legs, McKay seems to have mild digestive issues, difficulty focusing, etc. I just feel like we could be healthier. Every night I pray for the health and well-being of the kids and every night I think, “How can I pray for their health when I just fed them macaroni and cheese for dinner?” So, this past weekend I finally decided to really commit to drastically reduce our consumption of processed foods and sugars and increase vegetable consumption. This has proved to be much more challenging that I expected. Really, I have no idea what to feed them! Ideas anyone? I have also been giving them probiotics, vitamins, and omega-3 supplements. Hopefully I’ll be able to make this course correction to better health.
There’s more to say but sleep is about to overcome me so that’s all I have to say for tonight.
Now I will go check on my sweet sleeping babies, cover them with blankets, kiss their foreheads, and give silent prayers in their behalf.
Shannon - Wow! You have had a lot going on. It is hard to be a single parent most of the time. I have been too. It’s no fun. I am so anxious for Bret to be done with this program.
India! How exciting and you’re brave! Will your parents be watching your kids for you?
I’m happy to hear you’ve got some good choices for kindergarten for Sadie. It is a big step to send your child to elementary school for the first time. I’ll admit I cried. I cried the first day I took her to school and also the first day I let her ride the school bus. I hope all of you transition well to the big change this fall. When does school start for her?
Christy - Wow–you are one busy person. 🙂 Did you know that I love you? I do.
Okay, the question that peaked my interest is the one about what to feed people. Maybe I should have studied dietetics after all. It’s one of my life goals to feed myself and family healthy and balanced meals/snacks. Here are my suggestions:
-oatmeal with milk and bananas (this is one of little M’s breakfasts except I use baby food bananas and omit milk)
-fruit and toast (fresh or canned fruit for that matter, just don’t drink all of the syrup)
-whole fruits blended together with ice and OJ (this is the only kind of smoothie I can do for Matt… use any fruit you have and need to use up. One of our favorite combos is bananas and strawberries with orange juice)
-cheese and crackers (whole grain crackers?)
-grilled cheese
-carrots or celery and peanut butter
-banana with peanut butter
-raisens
-fresh tomatoes with a little salt (or cucumbers)
-Cracker + thin slice of cheese + tomato + avocado + salt and pepper
-pasta with butter and salt or parmesan cheese
-roasted veges in the oven with olive oil and salt
-roast marinated chicken with veges in oven and serve with uncle ben’s brown rice (whole grain, you can cook it in 10 mins)
-thinly slice a good cut of beef and lightly coat it with olive oil, minced ginger (I get the stuff already minced in a bottle), minced garlic, soy sauce, and a little bit of worstershire sauce. saute, serve with uncle ben’s brown rice again and steam some frozen broccoli or peas or mixed veges or corn…
-apple sauce (get the kind without added sugar, you won’t be able to tell a difference in taste)
-tacos! (have you ever substitued the hamburger with black beans? it’s really good too, or add some in with the hamburger)
-fajitas
-my enchiladas (saute about 3-4 cups of diced vegetables–onions, peppers, carrots, zucchini, anything, I even used leftover cabbage once and nobody could tell; add a can of diced tomatoes, cooked meat chopped up (mom’s canned chicken?), and a small can of enchilada sauce. sprinkle a little shredded cheese on top after you’ve filled all the tortilla shells with the mixture. Matt can’t handle a ton of extra sour cream or cheese so this is how I do it)
-stir fry
-minestrone soup! (beans, crushed tomatoes, zucchini, onion, garlic, basil, oregano, carrots, grean beans, and little pastas)
-will they eat mom’s thai curry with chicken, onions and peppers?
-call me crazy, but what about rice and beans? don’t millions of people live on rice and beans? Matt and I like using broth to cook the rice in and then flavoring beans with onions, tomato, and other spices. On his mission the people would add a beefy flavored soup packet into the beans.
Now this is just an idea. It takes work but it’s a way to have ready-made food on hand without extra preservatives and you know exactly what goes into it–canning your own food. We canned our own peach jam, apple sauce, tomatoes and chicken in the fall. This year I want to can pears, peaches, jam again, homemade tomato soup and homemade salsa. Maybe mom could come up one day and help you do a huge batch of your own soup or spaghetti sauce or salsa. It’s a lot of work for one day but then you have 10-20 ready-to-use cans of your own good cooking! The USDA has a great home food preservation guide with a ton of recipes that are safe to can at home. Here it is: http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
Good luck!