Menu Plan Monday!

Hello Monday!

Last week went fairly well, we actually have an extra meal to work in some where since we took our family to the fair one evening last week & ate junk there.  Pretty much breakfast & lunch weren't really followed, but I did refer back to my own post a few times over the week when I thought "what's for lunch?" which was helpful.

Here's what's up in this weeks menu & again, I'm linking up with Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.  Do you visit her site?  I like to click on a few of the other participants links and find new recipes to try.  :)

{Linking up to Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday}

Monday, August 27th:
Breakfast: Oatmeal
Lunch: Hot Dogs with cottage cheese & fruit
Dinner: Rigatoni Bake with green beans

Tuesday, August 28th:
Breakfast: Cereal
Lunch: Egg Salad Sammies, steamed veggie & a fruit
Dinner: Pulled Chicken Sammies with corn & baked beans

Wednesday, August 29th:
Breakfast: Toast & yogurt
Lunch: Quesadillas, cottage cheese & fruit
Dinner: Meatloaf with baked potatoes & green beans (I am wishing for fall...)

Thursday, August 30th:
Breakfast: scrambled eggs & toast
Lunch: meatloaf sammies, fruit
Dinner: DIY pizza & fruit salad

Friday, August 31st:
Breakfast: French Toast
Lunch: PB&J sammies, cottage cheese & fruit
Dinner: Pasta Alfredo with steamed broccoli & french bread

Saturday, September 1st:
Breakfast: pancakes
Lunch: Lunchable (either home made or store bought), fruit
Dinner: Burgers with mac & cheese and steamed carrots

Sunday, September 2nd:
Breakfast: english muffins
Lunch: Sandwiches, cottage cheese and fruit
Dinner: Fried Rice with steamed veggies

Shhhh....

I used to fill my days with noise.

Always music and often TV (but never at the same time).

Then I had a kiddo.  And I cherished my quiet time during naps.

Ben's doorknob (I had no idea how bunged up our door frames were til I uploaded this pic...).  I dare not enter his room and risk waking him with the click and/or flash of the camera - he looks adorable, you'll have to take my word for it.

 Then I had another kiddo.

...and doing chores are noisy.  And while a babe is peacefully sleeping in a blissfully silent house... he shall startle quite easily at a sudden loud noise.

...and cry.

...for a long time.

...and so, we're rocking the New Age music channel on DirecTV this afternoon.

Menu Plan Monday.

This week I'm back to planning full days of meals - breakfast, lunch & dinner. Not necessarily because I need a plan, but I often forget to buy stuff for lunch and this forces me to pay attention to what's in our cupboards so we aren't eating PB&J's every day.  I've also menu planned for two weeks rather than one but I'll share next week's menu next Monday.  I'm trying to save some money on our grocery bill and I'm hoping that more than a week at a time planning will help trim that bill a bit.

{Linking up to Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday}

August 20th:
Breakfast - Oatmeal
Lunch - Grilled Cheese Sammies, Cottage Cheese & Fruit
Dinner - Brats with home made potato salad & green peas

August 21st:
Breakfast - Cold Cereal
Lunch - Frozen Nuggets, Cottage Cheese & Fruit
Dinner - Santa Fe Crock Pot Chicken with Steamed White Rice

August 22nd:
Breakfast - Toast & Yogurt
Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Spaghetti with garlic toast & green beans

August 23rd:
Breakfast - Scrambled Eggs
Lunch - Banana Dog Bites, Cottage Cheese & Fruit
Dinner - Red Beans & Rice

August 24th:
Breakfast - French Toast
Lunch - Leftovers
Dinner - Pineapple Chicken Bites, Mashed Sweet Potatoes & Rolls

August 25th:
Breakfast - Pancakes
Lunch - Ham & Pineapple Skewers, Cottage Cheese & Fruit
Dinner - Taco Soup, Corn

August 26th:
Breakfast - Bagels & Cream Cheese
Lunch - Mac & Cheese, Cottage Cheese & Fruit
Dinner - Egg & Sausage Scramble with Toast

One Month.

Matthew,

You celebrated your one month birthday on August 1st!  I intend to do some monthly photos of you each month with the same props.  I took some at the beginning of the month in brother's wagon but I don't like the way they turned out.  I have another, simpler idea that I think I'll use starting in September.

You sleep a lot, but that's normal for your age!  During the day, you can be found swaddled and in your swing.  You love your swing.  We had one for Ben and Ben hated it so we sold it.  I had a hunch you'd love a swing and I found one for a rockin' deal on Craigslist and got it.  You do love it and I'm glad we got it!  You also love to be swaddled but you're a houdini & would bust out of any blanket, no matter how snug we got you. We ended up buying some of those swaddling blankets for you which have been amazing.  Night time you sleep in your crib.  Some times you sleep up to 5 hours between feedings.  During the day you go about 2 - 3 hours between feedings and eat for a minimum of 15 minutes, but mostly it's about 20 minutes to a half hour. 

Daddy used the tape measure on you the other day and we're thinking you're right about 22 inches.  Since you've burst out of your newborn sized clothes already, I think the hospital must have gotten your length wrong when they measured you at birth (since you measured 22" at the hospital and I know you've grown since then).  We have no way of knowing for sure, though...  we did a estimate weight on you (I weighed myself and then myself holding you) and you're right about 12 pounds, according to mommy's bathroom scale.  You love to eat!  :)

You love taking baths.  I'll admit that we don't give them to you as often as we did Ben,  but when we get you in the tub, you're quite happy to hang out and enjoy the sensation.  It took your brother a long time to warm up to the idea so it's fun watching you enjoy it!

You're starting to be awake longer periods during the day, which is lots of fun.  You've given us a few beautiful smiles (I haven't been able to capture one on camera yet, though!) and you're starting to gurgle & coo more.  Just like your brother, you seem to love sneezing and coo after each one.  Unless you're already tucked up in your crib or in your swing, every time brother goes to sleep, you & he have special brother cuddles before he goes to bed.  It's very sweet and Ben loves it.  I think you must, too!

According to Babycenter.com, these are the skills to be on the look out for this month in development:
Most babies can:

• lift head when lying on tummy - check
• respond to sounds - check
• stare at faces - check

Some babies can:

• follow objects briefly with eyes - check
• vocalize with oohs & ahhs - check
• can see black & white patterns - I think so.  You go super cross eyed at high contrast items

Few babies can:

• smile/laugh - partial check.  you have smiled a few times.  no laughing yet, though
• hold your head at a 45 degree angle - I don't think so

Love,
Mommy

Humor.

LOL moment of the day: Ben asks to watch the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD this morning so we popped it in (I think he only asked because there's a baby on the cover of the DVD).  If you know anything about this method, you can imagine there's lots of footage of crying babies who need soothed.  Lately, Ben has been pointing out things he has the same of: (seeing a steam roller at a construction site) "I have that same steam roller!" or (after seeing a toy of his on TV) "I have that same car!".

Today during the movie and a crying session, Ben says "I have that same baby!"

Love that kid.