Because We Need to Eat - April 11-15

I've been slow to get this post up because I've actually been reading a book and managed to finish it in four days. I totally recommend The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. So heartbreakingly good! Sadly, meals needed to be made but I did really enjoy getting back into reading. Here's our meal plan:

Veggie Pizza - K actually said "Thank you for making this, Mommy!" so I call that a win. We had a pre-made pizza shell, spread it with pizza sauce and parmesan cheese, added someh sauteed veggies (red & yellow peppers, zucchini, broccoli florets, and red onions) mixed with pesto, and topped it with mozzarella and feta cheese. It made up for me eating ice cream and chips while the girls were napping.

Roast Beef with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans - This is such an easy slow cooker recipe. The beef is so yummy I was even sneaking bites while I was waiting for Mark to get home. 

Sausage & Peppers Penne - This is a Mark creation. Cook up some ground sausage and sautee red and yellow peppers and onion. Add pasta sauce and penne and you are good to go!

Perogies with Frozen Veggies - Our back up Friday meal. I just realized we didn't buy any

bacon. Usually we top the perogies with bacon, cheddar cheese, and sour cream. 

Spinach Omelette - This girl loves her omelettes. This week I also added some cooked broccoli and feta cheese just to mix it up a bit.

Grilled Cheese & Veggies

Chicken & Apple Balls - We didn't end up eating these last week so it will be a quick meal when we get back from our walk. Hooray for better weather!

Cheese & Crackers

Fruit & Pretzel Fish - I love these pretzel fish.

Pancake Muffins

I took it easy with the snacks this week. I wasn't feeling up to baking anything. Luckily, K will survive and so will I!

Because We Need to Eat - April 4-8

I have arrived as a parent. Yesterday I knelt in poop and it didn't faze me - not one bit. I probably shouldn't really be proud of that but I am. In the midst of a day with a non-napping baby which equals no down time for momma, I dealt with poo and took it in stride. Maybe this isn't the best topic to start off writing about meal planning but it's out there now. Here's our meal plan for the week:

Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry - Mark is the stir-fry king so I was a little hesitant making his recipe but it turned out well. K has developed an aversion to onions so I cut them up in big wedges for her to pick out. 

Crock-Pot Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti  - We made this back in December and it is super tasty. It's best to eat right away or else the cheese sauce dries up a bit. 

Stuffed Peppers - This is from the Suppertime Survival cookbook and K loves it - even though it has rice in it which she tends not to love. Such a great way to get some serious veggies in.

Breakfast Burritos with Hashbrowns - Breakfast burritos are another Mark dish. He does a great job of sealing them in the frying pan. I will prepare the scrambled eggs and hashbrowns ahead of time and as soon as he walks in the door he will do his burrito magic. We put salsa, sour cream, and grated cheese in with the eggs. 

Tuna Melt with Cucumber - Click here for more info. We were at a surprise party for my aunt on the weekend and were sent home with a bag of cut up veggies. I've always wanted to have some pre-cut veggies available but never really get around to cutting them up. K has started asking for snacks (as in cookies or granola bars) right before dinner so yesterday I gave her some cut-up peppers slices instead. Even if she spoiled her dinner it would be with veggies. She ate them without any complaint. Mom win!

Chicken & Apple Balls with Veggies - click here for more info.

Cheese & Lentil Wedges  - This recipe comes from the Baby Led Weaning Cookbook. It's one of those recipes that I may or may not make depending on how I'm feeling but I have a whole bunch of red lentils that we should eat up.

Banana Bites - click here for more info. A good alternative to the granola bar.

Pancake Muffins - click here for more info. I still have some in the freezer.

Morning Glory Muffins - Also from the Baby Led Weaning Cookbook these muffins are sugar-free which may explain why it takes K forever to eat them. I feel good about eating them, though. They are packed full of carrot, apple, coconut (obviously I did put sweetened coconut in), and walnuts. You're also supposed to put dates in but they are not my favourite.

Because We Need to Eat - March 28 - April 1

Easter was busy and I'm not sure that I did the greatest job of slowing down and reflecting on the cross. Thankfully, we have grace and I'd be oh so lost without it. I will have a post up soon about the Easter traditions we've started with K and some other exciting things that are on my mind.

This was another weekend where we didn't make it out to grocery shop or really meal plan so it's a mish-mash of easy meals and stuff we had in the freezer. The good part - our grocery bill was only $60.

Alpine Chicken with Broccoli & Potato Wedges - So this "from the box" chicken isn't actually called that (chicken stuffed with ham and cheese) but it was when I was kid so it will remain so now. The broccoli was steamed and the potato wedges were from a bag. Still delicious, though!

Spaghetti - It may appear as though we eat spaghetti every week. We don't! We actually haven't eaten it any of the days it has been on the plan. Tonight's spaghetti is extra special, though. Mark got a free sample of organic, free-range ground beef from a farm that was going door-to-door. My husband is not one to turn down free meat, apparently! I'm not sure that slathering it in pasta sauce is the best way to appreciate it but I'll probably add some onions, carrots, and celery to the meat, too.

Slow Cooker Taco Chili - A few weeks ago I made slow cooker chili and we had leftovers so we're eating those up with some tortilla chips on the side.

Broccoli Quiche - K's fave and super yummy.

English Muffin Pizzas - Tasty! I served these with apple slices. K has just recently started being interested in apples. I did peel hers and sliced them pretty thin. I put C down for a nap and came back downstairs and she'd polished off her whole meal. I think she was making up for being a toddler and not eating much on the weekend.

Crackers & Cheese with Frozen Veggies - Uninspired. That's all I will say.

Peanut Butter Toast with Squash - Take note of the vegetable and my $60 grocery bill.

Clementines & Bunny Crackers - The Easter bunny brought K some of those Annie's cheddar bunny crackers and the honey cookies. They will be making appearances at snack time this week.

Smoothie  - Again this week because I need to use up the plain yogurt and eat more fruit myself.

Carrot & Pineapple Muffins - I really like these and I only used half a can of the crushed pineapple so I am making more this week.

Because Easter Decorations are Pretty

I love Easter for many reasons but among them are Easter decorations. My Easter collection is beginning to rival my Christmas decorations but I'm okay with that. Hopefully my husband is, too! Here is a quick peek:

Because We Need to Eat - March 21-25

We did eat last week, I promise. I had a cold and so did K which tends to wipe us out. Needless to say, fast food was ordered and vegetables may have been lacking. This week I am trying to make up for it with lots of veggies mixed in with our meals. Most of the dinner recipes came from the Suppertime Survival Cookbook and K's lunches were from the Annabel Karmel cookbook. 

Meatballs with Green Beans & Rice - These meatballs are made with quick rolled oats, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, salt & pepper and of course, ground beef. Here's the recipe for the sauce:

• 1 cup bottled BBQ sauce
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice
• 1 tbsp prepared mustard
• 1 cup water or orange juice

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease baking dish and place meatballs in dish

2. Combine ingredients and pour over meatballs

3. Cover and bake for 30 minutes

Harvest Vegetables with Chicken & Penne - This is a simple baked chicken dish with lots of veggies (onion, green & red peppers, zucchini) added to a pasta sauce and served over penne. It was super yummy and the chicken was nice and juicy.

Baked Turkey Enchiladas - I don't often cook with regular turkey so I'm going to try to find some turkey breasts at the grocery store. Apparently this would be great with leftover turkey from Easter. 

Spaghetti - Our go-to Friday meal. 

Grilled Cheese & Pepper Strips - Quick and easy and an all-time favourite of both of us.

Spanish Omelette - This omelette is made with diced potatoes, onions, red pepper and frozen peas. 

Pasta Shell Confetti - This pasta includes some sauteed carrots, zucchini and tomato. The pasta is cooked and stirred into the vegetables along with some heavy cream and grated Parmesan cheese. 

Tuna Pita Pockets  - K enjoys eating these, although I had to make sure she wasn't eating it upside down. This week I added some grated cheddar cheese and if I had more time I might have put in some grated carrot.  

Carrot & Pineapple Muffins - This recipe is from Annabel Karmel's book and is one of my fave muffin recipes. 

Crackers & Cheese - In case, we are busy...so it will be a definite snack this week. 

Smoothie  - check out my recipe here. 

Because the Laundry Needs to Get Done

Doing laundry doesn't bother me. Folding laundry doesn't bother me, either. Putting it away, though. Good grief. I'm terrible at it. Strangely enough, I would rather put away the girls clean laundry than my own. This week, laundry is the focus of the Declutter Challenge my mom, sister, and I are trying to do. You can see my sister's progress on her blog - Grieve Family Adventures. 

We do laundry every day. Now that K is potty training it means we don't have to do diaper laundry every other day. Yay! However, it also means that we have more kids laundry to do. Boo! We get cheaper electricity rates after 7:00pm and on the weekends so we can usually get a load or two done and in the dryer by the time we go to bed. By doing a bit of laundry every day it frees up some time on the weekend to have fun or do other chores. 

Here is our laundry schedule:

Because Potty Songs and Potty Videos are Fun for Me

Two weekends ago we started potty training K (detailed post coming soon). We talk about the potty all the time so why not sing about it? And while we're at it, why not watch some potty tv?

We subscribe to Google Play music so I quickly put together a Potty Playlist by doing a quick "potty training" search. Here are some not-so-super annoying potty songs:

• When You Have to Go Potty Stop and Go Right Away - Daniel Tiger's Neighbourhood
• Potty Party - Splash 'N Boots
• Potty Time - Patty Shukla
• Potty - DeeDee
• Wee Go Potty - Rocknoceros
• Potty Train - Curtis Maloney
• Potty Time - Toozigoots
• Potty Time - JBunny & Grizzly Gold
• Potty Song - Lil Genies

If you are thinking about potty training your toddler I recommend subliminal (or overtly blatant) messaging/brainwashing ahead of time. 

We love Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood and I mean love. I probably like it more than K, to be perfectly honest. I just like how nice all the characters are, the catchy music and important life lessons. CBC Kids has full-length episodes posted on YouTube. Here is the potty episode.

Because We Need to Eat - Mar. 7-11

I've been eating a lot of chocolate recently. And cinnamon hearts. Those are yummy. I am finding it to be very luxurious to eat some chocolate or candy while lying on the couch when both babies are sleeping (or at least quietly playing in their rooms). Add a glass of red wine and it would be amazing but then it would have to be night time in order to be acceptable. Sigh. Sadly chocolate, cinnamon hearts, and red wine are not appropriate meals for my family so here is our meal plan for this week:

Tacos with Sweet Potato Fries - This week I made the tacos without the famous Taco Kit from the grocery store. I'm talking whole wheat tortillas, grated carrot mixed in with the ground beef and my own taco seasoning (1/2 tsp cumin, coriander, and chili). That justifies the store bought sweet potato fries, right? 

Veggie Pizza - Another fave cookbook is this Looneyspoons cookbook. As you know, I am a huge pizza girl and this one makes me feel healthy. It has pesto, zucchini, broccoli florets, red onion, feta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. I did realize that I didn't put a pizza crust on the shopping list so I may attempt to make my own pizza dough tomorrow. And maybe I forgot the pesto, too...

Hasselback Chicken with Potato Au Gratin - Check out this Tasty video for the recipe. The potatoes are compliments of my mother and is one of our last freezer meals.

 

Spaghetti - Because it is Friday and we may eat out anyway. 

Baked Potatoes with Broccoli Cheese Sauce - Mark bought a giant bag of potatoes so I thought I'd try to use some up with lunch this week. Since the potatoes need 45 min to cook in the oven we'd have to have this on a day when we are home in the morning. It may not happen.

Peanut Butter Banana Wrap - Yes. This is a wrap with a whole banana in it. I feel like K will like it but who can say?

Chicken Apple Balls - This is from my Annabel Karmel cookbook. Chicken meatballs with onion and apples. Yum!

Breakfast Granola Cups - These look so good and are hopefully easy to make!

Mini Carrot Muffins - Nothing beats a mini muffin! Especially one with vegetables in it. 

Now that I am looking at this meal plan I feel I may have been a bit ambitious. It's okay. There's always peanut butter and toast. 

Because We Need to Eat - Feb. 29 - Mar. 04

Let's potty train the toddler and sleep train the baby. Sure! Great idea. It hasn't been terrible and I will write about both of those things in the near future but sometimes I wonder why I do this to myself and still have expectations of feeding all these people. But here is the meal plan for this week:

Ravioli Bake - Have you seen those Tasty or Tip Hero videos on Facebook? I decided to try one of them this week. Mark couldn't find the large frozen ravioli so we had cute mini ones and I didn't add enough pasta sauce or fresh basil. But there was lots of cheese and K had thirds. That girl loves her pasta!

 

My Finished Ravioli Bake - Cheesy!

K's Dinner with the Mini Ravioli

Honey Lemon Ginger Chicken with Green Beans & Rice - If you can ever find the Suppertime Survival Cookbook, buy it! I found it randomly at The Real Canadian Superstore probably 10 years ago and it is one of my go to cookbooks. This is one of Mark's favourite chicken thigh recipes. I just cook up some green beans in the frying pan with butter and put some rice in the rice cooker and we are good to go.

Ham & Broccoli Quiche with Tomato Cucumber Salad - click here for more info about the quiche. This is a super easy salad to make and is one of the few things I can whip up without measuring anything so excuse my lack of measurements.

• Cherry Tomatoes - halved
• Cucumbers - chopped
• Feta cheese - crumbled
• Ranch Dressing

1. Mix the first three ingredients together and add Ranch Dressing to taste.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew - I haven't made this one before but Mark was pleased when he saw it on the menu which is always encouraging. 

Bacon & Eggs with Broccoli - Okay the bacon was really for me. I made some cheesy scrambled eggs which K gobbles up and some frozen broccoli which she ate without any fuss. Broccoli must be back on her list this week.

Bow Ties with Cherry Tomatoes - This pasta dish is from Annabel Karmel's The Healthy Baby Meal Planner. You can eat it cold or warm.

Tuna Melts - Make some tuna salad, put it on an english muffin, top with mozzarella cheese and put under the broiler for a few minutes. Delish! K loves frozen squash so she'll eat that with it and I will have some baby carrots. 

Sweet Potato Waffles  - These are a snack experiment for this week. K woke up randomly asking for waffles so she may really enjoy these if I get around to making them. 

Banana Muffins - This recipe also comes from The Healthy Baby Meal Planner. There's no sugar in them which is healthy but I tend to add chocolate chips in a few for myself. 

Because She Needs to be Kept Busy #1

While I was still pregnant with C, one of the things on my list of "things I must do before my life gets crazy with two kids under two" was to make busy boxes to keep K occupied while I was nursing the baby. I ended up making 5 boxes to keep things fresh for K. In reality, I could have just made this first one and she would have been fine because C was super efficient at nursing and would take 20 minutes max. I've been spoiled with this baby. Most of the contents of the boxes were purchased at Dollarama, Walmart or The Real Canadian Superstore. I would definitely recommend hitting up the dollar store first because a few things I purchased at the grocery store I found cheaper at Dollarama. Oh well. Here are the contents of Busy Box #1:

1. Plastic Cupcakes - These were found at the dollar store and K would ask to play with these over and over again. If I had a box full of cupcakes she would have been in heaven. 
2. Mini Board Books - I bought a box of 12 of these books from Walmart and split them up between the boxes. These are Sesame Street themed but I also have Disney Movies and Paw Patrol
3. Plastic Dinosaurs - K has started to get more interested in these now that she has been watching Dinosaur Train.
4. Stickers & Construction Paper - These were another Dollarama find. I liked these stickers because they were easy to remove from the plastic. The construction paper is the perfect size for these boxes. K enjoys taking them on and off the paper which makes me a little crazy. 
5. Flashcards - From the dollar store again. They are made by Fisher Price and have lots of different shapes and colours. K really likes looking at these and naming the objects.
6. Popsicle Stick Shapes - These were made using coloured popsicle sticks and velcro dots with adhesive on them. The idea is that K would make different shapes with these but I think she is still a bit too young for that. I found the idea here. 

Because We Need to Eat - Feb. 22-26

This week we did not do a big grocery shop. Because of C's baptism and a birthday party and Chinese New Year's party on Saturday groceries just did not happen. We have milk and few fresh fruits and veggies from last week, along with more freezer meals and frozen fruits and veggies to eat up so here is our "No New Groceries" meal plan for the week.

Pasta Bake with Caesar Salad - this is a recipe that I put together from two other recipes. K is being a bit funny with vegetables these days so next time I would probably mince instead of chop up the carrots, however she ate the leftovers today without picking out the carrots. Toddlers...so confusing!

  

• Package of ground turkey
• 1 small cooking onion, chopped or minced
• 2 medium carrots, chopped or minced
• 1 celery stalk, chopped or minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 3/4 cups of dried macaroni
• 1 650 ml jar of pasta sauce
• 1 1/4 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 F
2. Cook pasta according to directions, drain and set aside
3. In a large saucepan or frying pan cook meat over medium-high heat, for 8-10 minutes or until no longer pink; drain the fat
4. Add celery, carrots, onion, and garlic and simmer, uncovered, for 12-15 minutes
5. Combine pasta sauce and 1 cup of cheese in a large bowl. Add cooked pasta and meat mxture. Stir to combine
6. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart casserole dish and bake, covered, for 35-40 minutes
7. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted

Creamy Chicken Casserole - This was a freezer meal that we haven't tried yet but it is pretty basic and easy.

Slow Cooker Pizza Bake - Looking forward to this one because of the pepperoni, I'm not going to lie. 

Spinach Omelette with Peas & Carrots - K loves omelettes but doesn't like when they are too hot (temperature-wise) but has trouble being patient and waiting for it to cool down. I use an omelette pan which makes this super easy. I put in one egg, some defrosted frozen spinach, cottage cheese (sometimes other cheese), and a sprinkle of garlic powder. We had some parmesan cheese leftover from C's baptism so I put that on top once the omelette was cooked. 

Cheese & Crackers with Frozen Broccoli - I know. It seems weird but it is easy. I sometimes put cream cheese on the crackers instead of cheddar cheese. The broccoli is for a token vegetable. 

Mini Pancake Muffins - I used a boxed pancake mix but if you want a from-scratch recipe click here. All I did, after mixing the pancake batter, was add an egg. K helped and put a frozen berry (cherries, blackberries, blueberries) in each muffin. I baked them in a mini muffin pan at 350 F for 13-15 minutes. Super easy and K scarfed down 6 of them. 

Berry Banana Smoothie with Pretzels - I really want to try to add greens to my smoothies but haven't worked up the courage yet. Soon...possibly! Here's my recipe:

• 1 cup of yogurt (I used plain Greek yogurt this time)
• 1 cup of frozen berries
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup of milk

1. Place all ingredients in a blender
2. Blend until smooth
   
   
   

Because She is Born of Water and the Spirit - C's Baptism

Infant baptism can be a bit of a controversial subject but I'm Presbyterian and that's what we do. I know it doesn't mean that C now has a free pass into heaven but we understand it more as God grafting her into His family and that one day C will have to make her own decision to follow Jesus. Not only do we, as parents, promise to raise her up in the Christian faith but our congregation also makes a covenant to support us, as parents, and to love C. It's pretty awesome! 

Mark and I were also asked if we would share our faith stories during the service which was something we hadn't done before. That was also powerful. I was able to really think through my life and focus on some tougher times that I've just glossed over in my memory but in reality were a major moment of surrender for me. When I was working on my testimony my minister referenced Luke 14: 31-33 and encouraged me to think of a time when my will was at odds with God's and when I finally decided to surrender to Him and His plan for my life. Again, it was pretty awesome!

C's baptism was also an opportunity for us to celebrate with family and friends so we invited people back to our house for lunch. What to feed 20+ people when we just had K's birthday party less than a month ago? Well, soup and buns of course. 

The Menu

1. Italian Turkey Soup

2. Tomato Basil Soup (I need to ask my mom for the recipe so stay tuned...)

3. Chicken Noodle Soup

4. White and Whole Wheat buns with butter (no cold cuts this time as we were trying to keep costs down)

5. Caesar Salad (we still had salad dressing and croutons left over from K's birthday, so why not?)

6. Red Velvet Cake (store-bought, on sale from the Real Canadian Superstore)

7. Vanilla cupcakes (I have a nephew with a chocolate allergy)

8. Vanilla ice cream

9. Italian Soda, Coke, Sprite, and Water to drink

This menu worked really well. We had a little bit of soup leftover. We froze some and are planning on eating the rest for lunches this week. We had way too many buns since I bought a large bag from Costco but those we froze, too, and may work well for garlic bread. 

The Decor

1. God Bless Clare banner - I bought this from Target for K's baptism and have been able to reuse it multiple times as it wipes off with water. Although, I may need to use a magic eraser soon to remove the chalk pen residue. I'm trying to improve my chalk lettering so I used this pin for my alphabet inspiration. 

2. I am a Child of God printable and a picture of my darling girl - You can download this printable for free here. I put the picture frame on a cake stand because we had a bunch of crockpots in front of it and I needed that cutie to be seen!

3. Tablecloth - I used two dollar store table cloths. The pink was leftover from K's party and I folded a white one into thirds and put it in the middle of the table. 

I tried to keep it simple since I have the tendency to go overboard and with two kids, I just don't have that time anymore.

The Gifts

Our church does something quite special for baptisms. It was my mom's idea so that make it extra special. A blanket is given to the child to remind them that God wraps them in His love. Here's a picture of C with the blanket my mom made. It has minky on the back so it is extra soft and cuddly.

My sister and her family also gave C this Jelly Cat bunny and this book, "Little One, God Loves You" by Amy Warren Hilliker.

C's baptism was a beautiful day in so many ways but the most important thing for me to remember is that God has loaned this beautiful, smiley girl to us and I need to be thankful and cherish each moment with her. 

Because We Need to Eat - Feb. 15-19

Right now the baby is sleeping, the toddler has pulled every book off the bookshelf but is sitting, reading each one, and I have sufficiently tidied my house. Breathe. I know this moment won't last but I am breathing it in. 

Lask week hit our family like a mack truck. C caught some sort of bug and had a cough that could break your heart. Then the stomach flu came for me. Are moms even allowed to get sick? In the midst of trying to recover from that, K developed a fever and a cough. And despite all of that we still tried to go to church and we still went to my sister's for Family Day. After four sleepless nights I'm hoping we learned a lesson. 

Needless to say meal planning wasn't our main focus but that is life. So, instead of pretending like I have it all together every week here is our pieced together plan.

English Muffin Pizzas with Edamame

Two of my favourite things! I could eat edamame like chips. 

Italian Turkey Soup with Garlic Bread

Since I wasn't in the mood for eating we didn't get around to making this meal. Let's try again!

Macaroni & Beef with Glazed Carrots

Again, this meal wasn't eaten last week. This time we'll have brown-sugar glazed carrots. This recipe is so easy and uses baby carrots so no chopping required!

Meat Pie with Sweet Potato Fries and Cauliflower

This is a store bought meat pie, frozen fries and cauliflower. This is a Friday meal. It will keep us from eating fast food but to be honest it will be really yummy.

Cheese and Crackers with Strawberries

Nothing fancy here.

Tuna Wraps with Squash

I like to sneak some grated carrots in the wrap. K usually finds them eventually and picks them out but it is worth a try. She loves frozen squash, though, and often asks for seconds.

Peanut Butter Toast with Cottage Cheese and Pineapple

We have a play date on this day so I will need something fast to feed her. She won't eat the cottage cheese. It's a texture thing but I will keep giving it to her.

Blueberry Breakfast Bars

I definitely wasn't about to tackle these snacks last week so they are on the list for this week since I still have all the ingredients. 

Banana Bites

K really likes these and they were pretty easy to make. Considering all the frozen bananas I have in my freezer it's a good choice for Frugal February.