Making Mommy Happy

It’s been a while!

shaylin — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 03:25:17 +0000

Life has changed just a little since the last time I blogged. I actually need to go back and see the date of my last post. But the biggest change has been the birth of our 3rd child, a sweet baby girl named Maddie.

So life is a little busier, but for some reason I just love the idea and fun of blogging. So here I am. Back. Again.

So the plan for Making Mommy Happy?

Goal setting and tracking

Menu planning and recipe reports

Tips and strategies for staying sane and having fun in mommyhood

And of course, updates and Mommy Moments!

Fall Happy Moments

shaylin — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 23:20:22 +0000

We didn’t get much of a summer here. Seems like it arrived late and left early. But that is okay – I love fall! So here are some of my happy moments:

Getting our credit card paid off! (I am embarrassed to say AGAIN – but this time we are much more determined to not use it again)
Being able to pay cash for an upcoming family vacation.
Listen to Baby Girls expanding vocabulary. She now says “I’m ready”, “I wuv you”, “Oh toodles”, and many other fun things! I think she says more than we realize, but she is a little harder to understand than our oldest.
Baby Girl learning how to say HUG! Which she yells when she wants out of the stroller, cart, or carseat. Very precious and very smart!
Lil Man started preschool again and he loves it! Bless his teachers though - it’s a class of 10 boys and 4 girls. They get some extra prayers from me when I drop him off!
I got 2 massive zucchinis out of my garden. It was actually a very depressing year for the garden, but I got a lot of baking out of those 2 zucchinis.
Baby Girl wanting to sit with big brother when he gets sent to time out. Not exactly helpful in the disciplining area, but sweet none the less.

What are the small things that make you smile?

Menu Plan 9/13 – 9/19

shaylin — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:58:56 +0000

It’s been a while since I have posted a menu plan. But don’t worry – I am still menu planning! I wouldn’t be sane without it!!! My schedule has changed with school starting and I haven’t really gotten into a good routine with grocery shopping or menu planning yet. I prefer to shop with only 1 child and right now I just don’t have that luxury in my schedule – so I haven’t set a new grocery shopping date.

Monday:

Ravioli (I am sneaking spinach into my kids!!!)

Tuesday:

Tuna Casserole (this is a new one and I am really hoping the kids and husband like it)

Wednesday:

Spaghetti with meatball (have I told you that my son will only eat the meatballs? Not the noodles? so we have to have the meatballs or he doesn’t eat!)
Pullapart Garlic Bread
Green beans

Thursday:

Pancakes
Hashbrowns
Sausage
Fruit smoothies (which will be green smoothies if I get to the store and buy some spinach!)

Friday:

Calzones (I made these a few weeks ago and I really liked them. I will take pictures and post the recipe after I make them!!)

Saturday:

Not sure – any suggestions?

Sunday:

We actually host a small bible study group at our house and we decided to do it potluck style each time. We haven’t decided on the menu yet.

Storing School Papers

shaylin — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:48:31 +0000

My son just started his 2nd year at preschool. And I still had a stack of papers that he had brought home from last year sitting in a pile in my bedroom. Not good! So I decided to finally do a project that I had seen on another blog months ago.

I made a storage system for his school papers!

There are a number of ways to personalize this or tweak it to fit your needs/personality, but this is how I did it:

I picked out a container. I chose one with a closeable lid because I don’t want spiders or dust on the papers. And I picked out some hanging file folders.

Next I labeled them with the school year.

And filled them with his papers!

On the front of each I will putting his school picture and eventually his signature. This year I used his classroom nametag from that year.

As for the larger items – I am going to buy an underbed storage tote and use that for 3-d projects. I have also heard it suggested to take pictures of the projects you just can’t keep but want to remember.

What are your school papers storage tips and tricks?

Menu Plan 6/25 – 7/1

shaylin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:17:57 +0000

So I was planning to do some freezer cooking so I wouldn’t have to cook on the hot summer days……but summer hasn’t really arrived here yet. We haven’t gotten above 80′ yet. So no freezer cooking to report, but I am glad to have been able to grill a lot lately!

And we are obviously halfway through this menu plan, so here’s the rest of the week:

Monday:

Breakfast! Pancakes, eggs, and sausage, with fresh fruit.

Tuesday:

BBQ Burgers (we buy a 8 pack of buns and only 2 of us eat them! So we get burgers again!)

Wednesday:

Homemade pizza ( I might get brave and try a grilled pizza, but we’ll see!)

Thursday:

Chicken Soup (I am making a double batch to take half to my sister in law who had a baby last weekend. That means they get to eat and hopefully I get to snuggle the new baby!!)

Join in the menu planning over at Organizing Junkie!

Breakfast for Dinner

shaylin — Sat, 29 May 2010 18:13:26 +0000

Meals can some times be a battle at our dinner table. We have a very picky almost 4-year-old and it is just tough when he won’t eat what we are serving. And if you’ve seen my menu plans, you know we aren’t serving anything weird. For me it ruins the part of the day that should be the best part of the day. I love having everyone around the table and interacting. It’s when we get a chance to pray together, talk, and just enjoy each other. I am hoping this is setting our family up for a routine of family meals that will be such a standard routine in our home that we will always have open conversations and interactions as the kids grow older. So you can see why it’s such a disappointment when we are arguing, begging and getting irritated when he doesn’t eat his meal.

But last night was different. We sat and ate as a family and it was pleasant! And do you know why? Because everyone like the meal. And it was BREAKFAST! So I had a little ah-hah moment and decided right then and there that we will be having breakfast for dinner once a week. Makes planning easy for me, and gives us at least one pleasant meal together without any bickering over food.

And….it’s one of the meals hubby helps cook! He’s awesome at the grill and helping with breakfast. He’s the master at pancakes! And that makes me happy!!!

Do you have a weekly “staple” meal that you ALWAYS have on the menu?

Menu Plan 5/28 – 6/3

shaylin — Fri, 28 May 2010 15:00:04 +0000

Friday:

BBQ Hamburgers (we have some buns that need to get eaten!)
Spinach salad (Again, we have some spinach that needs to be eaten!)

Saturday: Husband is at an event – so probably me and the kids.

Homemade pizza

Sunday:

Spaghetti with meatballs
Pull Apart Garlic Bread

Monday:

Family BBQ – no cooking for me!

Tuesday:

Breakfast for dinner. Scrambled eggs, pancakes (I think I am going to try to sneak blueberry pancakes in on my picky eaters!!) and fruit.

Wednesday: Husband is in class and we have church

Lazy Dinner! I have to admit….it is kind of nice having a lazy dinner once a week. I know it’s easy and I know the kids will eat it.

Thursday:

Taco Salads
Brown Rice with Cilantro (I am using a recipe I saw on $5 dinners!!)

Hot Deals

shaylin — Thu, 27 May 2010 16:44:11 +0000

Let me first say that I have absolutely no intent or desire to become a “deal blog”. I have some blogs I follow that keep me updated on all the deals I like. So I wanted to share those links with you.

Check out my favorites:

Money Saving Mom

Couponing to Disney

The Frugal Girls

And one of the best ways to follow these awesome blogs is to become a fan on Facebook or subscribe to their emails. These blogs have helped me to be a better shopper, gotten me some great deals on gifts, and have amazing recipes and ideas to stretch your money!

Do you have any deal blogs or frugal bloggers that you follow? I still haven’t found one who is based in the Pacific Northwest….

Freezer Cooking Day – preliminary plans!

shaylin — Wed, 26 May 2010 17:11:17 +0000

I am working on planning a freezer cooking day. I am a stay at home mom and while that means I am home to cook dinner, it is extremely hard to try to get dinner on the table when I have a 1 year old screaming at my legs or simply based on the fact that I watch other kids – so I have 5 kids under the age of 3 1/2 until about 4:30pm. There isn’t much cooking going on until they are all picked up!

Plus, summer is coming. We don’t have air conditioning in our house so there are some days it is simply too hot to cook. So I working on planning a freezer cooking day that will include a lot of items that can either go in the crockpot, be done on the grill, or just don’t need any heat to prepare!

I am just starting to plan but I hope to include:

Hawaiian Chicken (Crockpot recipe) X3
Orange Teriyaki Chicken (On the grill) X3
2 different breakfast breads (banana and pumpkin)
Blueberry pancakes
1 batch Brown Bag Burritos (these will hopefully be good for lunches!)

I have gotten my recipes from others who have done freezer cooking and 2 cook books called Don’t Panic – Dinner’s in the Freezer. I will post recipes after I actually make the recipes!

I’d love your ideas!!! Do you have a tried and true recipe that you love to make extra and freeze? Any prep day hints or tricks?

Menu Plan 5/21 – 5/27

shaylin — Mon, 24 May 2010 16:05:04 +0000

A little late. Again. But still done!

Friday:

Breakfast for dinner

Saturday:

Super Lazy: boxed pasta

Sunday:

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Monday:

Lazy dinner….Husband is at class.

Tuesday:

Enchiladas with brown rice (new recipe for the rice!)

Wednesday:

Chicken fettuccine Alfredo
spinach salad

Thursday:

Pizza

Did I ever mention that I had been kind of frustrated with how my pizza dough was turning out and come to realize….I had been making it wrong!! I was skipping a step in the recipe. My husband always bugs me to wear my glasses, but I am thinking I really should! I was skipping the part where you bake the dough and then take it out, put the toppings on and then bake it some more… I was just tossing all the toppings on the raw dough and cooking! But we still aren’t hooked on the dough recipe. So if you have one to share…..please do!