Weekly Menu

Here we go again!

Hot dogs, Cheese burgers & fruit

Super Nachos

Grilled Lemon Pepper Chicken Salad

Goulash

Homemade Pizza

Jayda's back

Jayda is home and all is right in our world again! She was more excited to see Paisley's new shoes and a silly tank top I bought her, than she was to be back home. I guess she takes after her mother and her obsession with tiny shoes. Seriously though, how can anyone NOT love teenie tiny shoes? Boggles my mind.

She was also bummed that she didn't get to go to Amy's today, she apparently has a new attitude towards going there. As just last week she told me she wished she could stay home every day. I guess we're all entitled to change our minds once in a while. And distance truly does make the heart grow fonder.

We're happy to have her home again and ready for a weekend AT home. It seems like it's been a while. I've got big plans for yard work and flower planting on Saturday. Funny the effect a 10 month old has on any plans one tries to make.

Speaking of 10 months old, Paisley is just that! Yesterday marked the occasion, with just 2 months and counting left of bottles! I keep trying to introduce a sippy cup into her life. But she's not having it, not interested at all. Not even with juice in it. She's also not interesting in trying to walk, or even stand. She's a stubborn little gal. Not going to rush her way through life! She is trying to say ball { buh } and Jayda {jaw duh}. Great, just what I need, another early talker! Must be a girl thing, and I have to admit it's much less annoying than constant"Uh Uh Uh's."

Other weekend plans may include a trip to Pierre on Sunday to watch Sawyer and Sutton H.S. Rodeo. Last chance for Sawyer to make it to state! Very excited for Sutton, who qualified last weekend!

New Kicks

diet yuck

I'm trying to convert from Coke, to Diet Coke. So far.... yuck

This might just be my ticket to being pop-free. If it tastes that bad, why bother?

That, and every time I reach for it, I think it's a beer can. But it's 9am and it's not, and my brain isn't quite functioning yet.

Highway to Heaven

A couple days ago Jayda and I were on our way to Rapid. As we were driving by the National Cemetery where my Grandpa is buried, I told Jayda, "maybe we'll stop on our way home and see where Grandpa is buried." Then I pointed to the cemetery and tried to explain what the headstones were. She looked over at me and said, "We get to drive to HEAVEN?"

Then I cried for the next 10 miles and tried to keep my car on the road.

We then went into an in depth conversation about how your body is put in a casket {box} and buried in the ground, but your soul and your spirit go to heaven to be with Jesus. "What's a soul? What's a spirit? How does Jesus get them out of you? Does it hurt?"

Oh boy.

I'm terrible at explaining these things. Hey, how about we talk about tornado's again?

No

OK, Uhm your soul  and spirit are what live in your heart and tell you to love Jesus and follow His word. They make you who you are.

"So he takes your heart out when you die?"

Well, in a less gruesome way, yes.

So, where should we eat lunch?

"I miss my old Grandpa and the old days."

Me too honey. We all do.

My four year old misses the "old days!" How funny is that.

Menu

Here is this week's menu

Grilled chicken salad

Taco Casserole

Ribeye steak with baked potato

Chicken Fajitas with tortilla chips

Spaghetti

Knows where she came from

Before I forget:

This weekend at a rodeo, Jayda walked up to Jed and I sitting in the grandstands.
Jed said, "hey, where'd you come from?"  {She had been off playing with Sophie and Gracie}

Jayda replied, "uhm YOU!"

quick little whipper snapper isn't she?!

Milestones

It's Friday, and it's beautiful outside. And I'm stuck INSIDE. Ugh. Last week I took a leap that could change that. I'll let you know how that turns out.

This weekend we are off to Rapid again, this time for Taylor's graduation! Very excited for her to accomplish this milestone and excited to see where her future leads her. It's such an exciting, yet difficult time in your life. So hard to know exactly what it is you think you want to do with your life. Ahhh the choices. I always admired my classmates that knew exactly what college they were going to, and what career path they were going to take. Even as a successful student, I had no clue.
I'm positive that Accountant was no where on my list, but then again, I didn't have a list. Softball was about the only thing I felt passionate about, and it wasn't exactly a career choice at the time.

I suppose it's the journey that we are supposed to embrace, as we find our way through life, rather than the plan we make for ourselves. But sometimes that journey is a difficult one, without a plan.

I'm a little bit sad today to hear that we won't have our summer babysitter. I'm bummed that Paisley won't know what it's like to get to stay home all day without being packed off to a babysitter. And sad to know that Jayda will wonder why she isn't coming back. I guess Patti Loveless said it best, "Life's about Changing, Nothing ever stays the same."

Dinner and a plan

A while back I listed a few of my goals for 2010. One was to lose weight, thus eat healthier. Another was to set up a budget and stick to it. {and incase you're keeping tabs, one was to graduate college. . . .check! done!} I've decided to finally do what many others probably already do, and start planning my family's weekly meals. I always wanted to, I just always seemed to be at a lack of a moments time to sit down, think about it, write it down and stick to it.

So, here is this weeks meal plan
Monday-Holiday, ate out {phew that was easy}
Tuesday- Grilled chicken & pineapple Quesadilla's with corn salad
Wednesday- BLT's with watermelon, strawberries & lettuce salad
Thursday-Grilled burgers or steak with grilled potatoes and veggies
Friday- I won't be home until late (annual meeting at work) so I'm thinking chicken wings and mac/cheese or whatever Jed feels like making

Weekends are a free for all. We seem to be gone more than we are home, so these will be our spontaneous cooking days!

While it may not be the healthiest meal plan {yet}, it is almost preservative free, loaded with fruits and vegetables, and nearly everything is grilled. Definitely going to get a new grill for me Jed. It's a start and so far it's destressed meal time about 100%. I don't mind cooking, as long as I don't have to think about it and figure out what to cook. This is my solution.
My goal is also to do 1 weekly grocery stop and eliminate a large portion of my walmart trips. I will still stop when I'm in town and get fresh fruit and the more expensive items that cost an arm and a leg here. But I'm also going to try to shop the sale bill for my local grocery stores and plan my meals around what is on sale that week. Yes, this is actually what I think about and do in my spare time. Stop mocking me. I'm a busy body, and must occupy my mind.

I'll try to post my weekly meals here, for any of you that might need ideas. Or for those of you that don't but just want to be nosy and know what I am eating that night. Feel free to toss out dinner ideas also! Always open to new ideas!

A tomato

Last week I was trying to think of something interesting to write about and couldn't think of much. Thus the bodily fluid post. Somehow I failed to remember the tornado that ripped through our yard. Minor event. Jayda called it a tomato for a few days, but has since mastered the pronunciation of TOR-NA-DO. That and all information concerning a tornado. She had a gazillion questions and we finally got to the point where we banned anymore questions.

Her swing set was torn to pieces along with a barn over at Bonnie's. Jed got to spend some quality time with Rio, his cow dog, in the well pit. I'll get some pictures up shortly.

My best guess at how Jed looked when he saw the tornado coming. Jayda and I got a good laugh out of it!

In a tornado related quote, on our way home from Hermosa this weekend, while driving near Newell, Jayda shouted from the back seat, "OH MY, look at what the tornado did to that house! There's junk EVERY WHERE!" Unfortunately {fortunately?} a tornado had not hit that house. . . . .

Jayda's swing set used to be here

It's new location

The tree's didn't fare so well

There used to be a roof on this barn

Tin scattered every direction