What? You don't think she was helping me with the laundry? Oh, but she was! She's never been in a laundry basket before so she thought it was pretty cool, which allowed me to put away four loads of laundry without her fussing for attention.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Simple pleasures
Clara was a little fussy the other night, but then she got her hands on this sheet of newspaper that had come in the mail and she entertained herself with that for at least a half hour! It was pretty much destroyed when we finally took it away from her. She had managed to rip it into four or five pieces and totally crumple all of them. Who knew a piece of newspaper could be so fun?!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
Wow, we've really been packing our weekends full lately! Friday night was a Hawaiian-themed birthday party for my niece. My dad made a tiki bar and Jeremy got to be the bartender. We ate kabobs and fruit salad and sipped fancy non-alcoholic drinks with umbrellas in them. It was great! Saturday we bought an inflatable wading pool and put Clara in it. At first she was not a fan, but she quickly warmed to the idea and had a great time playing in there! Yesterday the three of us went out for brunch to celebrate Father's Day. It was a great, full weekend and now we probably need a few days to recover and feel rested again!
Here's our menu plan for this week...
Monday
Baked fish, zucchini and yellow squash, mashed potatoes
Tuesday
Spaghetti, salad, garlic bread
Wednesday
Hamburgers, pasta salad, grapes, carrot sticks
Thursday
Mexican tortilla skillet, applesauce
Friday
BLT sandwiches, honeydew, tator tots
Saturday
Empanadas, chips and salsa
Sunday
African stew w/rice
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Weekly shopping, part two
Clara and I headed to Rainbow this morning for Double Coupon Day and got all this for $27.94 and our receipt says we saved $28.89! The greatest deal was the feminine products...four packages for a total of $3.50!
So our total spent this week was $60.81 which means I'll need to reduce our budget next week by about $15. I hope there aren't a bunch of awesome sales next week that I'll miss out on!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Part of our weekly shopping
Jeremy worked from home today, so Clara and I ventured out this afternoon to run errands so Jeremy could have some peace and quiet.
See those three packs of Huggies? At regular price they would cost a total of $29.22 plus tax. I got everything in that picture for a total of $32.87! The boxes of cereal were $.83 each, strawberries were $1, the jar of salsa was free, and the six packs of baby food cost a total of $.12!
Tomorrow I'll be heading to Rainbow for Double Coupon Day! This week I am planning to go over our $45 budget because there are deals I just can't pass up, but I'll make up for it by spending less next week.
See those three packs of Huggies? At regular price they would cost a total of $29.22 plus tax. I got everything in that picture for a total of $32.87! The boxes of cereal were $.83 each, strawberries were $1, the jar of salsa was free, and the six packs of baby food cost a total of $.12!
Tomorrow I'll be heading to Rainbow for Double Coupon Day! This week I am planning to go over our $45 budget because there are deals I just can't pass up, but I'll make up for it by spending less next week.
A strange form of torture
Yesterday when Jeremy came home from work we decided to take Clara to the pool for the first time!
And then her first dip in the pool was so short mommy didn't get a picture of it. In this shot you can see a bit of concern remaining on her face. Daddy had just dipped her toes in the water and she did NOT like it!
Mommy gave it another try while daddy blew up her floatie toy. This time was only slightly better than the first dip.
She thought the floatie was just okay. Can you see the concern on her little face?
And then daddy helped her lean back in the floatie and put her hands down on the sides. That was good...until she fell forward. Then it was all over and nothing was going to make her think that swimming was fun.
So we're glad the pool was free and only a few blocks away! Hopefully next time will be better!
We changed her into her swim diaper (hee hee!)...
And put on her swimsuit borrowed from her cousins...
And then her first dip in the pool was so short mommy didn't get a picture of it. In this shot you can see a bit of concern remaining on her face. Daddy had just dipped her toes in the water and she did NOT like it!
Mommy gave it another try while daddy blew up her floatie toy. This time was only slightly better than the first dip.
She thought the floatie was just okay. Can you see the concern on her little face?
And then daddy helped her lean back in the floatie and put her hands down on the sides. That was good...until she fell forward. Then it was all over and nothing was going to make her think that swimming was fun.
So we're glad the pool was free and only a few blocks away! Hopefully next time will be better!
Giggles!
Clara loves to be tickled and tossed around! She gets big giggles and we think it's really cute!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
We had a full and fun weekend! Friends over for dinner Friday night, a day of card-making with my sister on Saturday, Fernando Ortega concert at church Saturday night, and lunch with friends from MI on Sunday!
Now it's back to work, cleaning, cooking, etc. But that's okay, we can't play all the time. Here's our menu for this week...
Monday
Jambalaya, corn bread
Tuesday
Tuna florentine, homemade biscuits
Wednesday
Church picnic
Thursday
Teriyaki glazed chicken, rice, egg rolls
Friday
Birthday party for my niece!
Saturday
L- sandwiches/leftovers
D- Fish, zucchini and yellow squash, instant potatoes
Sunday
L- Jeremy wants to go out for brunch
D- TBD
Now it's back to work, cleaning, cooking, etc. But that's okay, we can't play all the time. Here's our menu for this week...
Monday
Jambalaya, corn bread
Tuesday
Tuna florentine, homemade biscuits
Wednesday
Church picnic
Thursday
Teriyaki glazed chicken, rice, egg rolls
Friday
Birthday party for my niece!
Saturday
L- sandwiches/leftovers
D- Fish, zucchini and yellow squash, instant potatoes
Sunday
L- Jeremy wants to go out for brunch
D- TBD
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Playtime
Clara has a basket full of toys that she plays with every day, but lately she's been enjoying other things that aren't in her basket. This morning while I was feeding her she was very distracted by the pillow on our couch. She kept turning to it and laughing so I put her on the floor with it and let her just go to town. She thought it was great!
Over the top!
These pictures are just too much!
Clara gets much pleasure out of practicing standing, and if we lean her against the couch she can stand on her own for a bit. Of course we have to stay within arms reach to catch her when she falls, but for a minute she can manage on her own.
We captured these this morning...
Double Coupon Wednesday
This week I waited until Wednesday to do our shopping so I could take advantage of Double Coupon Day at Rainbow. I spent $40.23 and saved $24.62! I still have almost $5 left in the budget for this week so I'll be picking up a few more items before Saturday. The Poptarts were free (I know Poptarts aren't good for you, but we feel like we should have one every 5 years or so...to stay connected to our inner child!) and the boxes of cereal were $1 each.
Clara and Aubrey
Yesterday Clara and her friend Aubrey got together to play while the mommies visited. Aubrey is about six weeks younger than Clara.
This one is my favorite because it shows Aubrey in her posture of choice...legs straight in the air!
This one is my favorite because it shows Aubrey in her posture of choice...legs straight in the air!
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Clara has teeth!
This is for Jeremy's family in Wisconsin...thought you might enjoy seeing that Clara has two teeth now!
Monday, June 8, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
Here's our menu for the week...
Monday
Empanadas, pears
Tuesday
Breaded fish, baked potatoes, mixed veggies
Wednesday
Steak fajitas, chips and salsa/guacamole
Thursday
Tuna florentine, biscuits
Friday
Jambalaya, biscuits
Saturday
L- Sandwiches/leftovers
D- TBD
Sunday
L- Scrambled eggs, sausage, toast
D- frozen pizza
I also did a little baking yesterday and made us bran muffins and granola bars for snacks this week. The bran muffins turned out great, but I haven't tried the granola bars yet. I'm hoping they're delicious!
Monday
Empanadas, pears
Tuesday
Breaded fish, baked potatoes, mixed veggies
Wednesday
Steak fajitas, chips and salsa/guacamole
Thursday
Tuna florentine, biscuits
Friday
Jambalaya, biscuits
Saturday
L- Sandwiches/leftovers
D- TBD
Sunday
L- Scrambled eggs, sausage, toast
D- frozen pizza
I also did a little baking yesterday and made us bran muffins and granola bars for snacks this week. The bran muffins turned out great, but I haven't tried the granola bars yet. I'm hoping they're delicious!
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Refashionings
Yesterday I made a dress for Clara! The fabric started its life as a table runner, but a couple years ago we spilled a bit of wax on it and as hard as I've tried I have not been able to get it out. So I threw the runner in a drawer with the hope that some day I'd come up with a way to save it.
I had originally thought I would try to fix it and still use it as a table runner, but recently I bought a dress pattern for Clara and decided to use the runner for that instead. You can't see it very well in the picture above, but the runner had a border stitched around it, so I cut the dress pieces in such a way as to use that border and not have to hem the dress. And here's the result...
It's a pale green linen. It's just a little too big for her now, but by mid to late summer she should be able to wear it I think. I can't decide if I should jazz it up a little more with ribbon around the waistline or an applique or something. I think for now I'll leave it. Maybe when she's able to wear it I'll decide it needs something more.
I had originally thought I would try to fix it and still use it as a table runner, but recently I bought a dress pattern for Clara and decided to use the runner for that instead. You can't see it very well in the picture above, but the runner had a border stitched around it, so I cut the dress pieces in such a way as to use that border and not have to hem the dress. And here's the result...
It's a pale green linen. It's just a little too big for her now, but by mid to late summer she should be able to wear it I think. I can't decide if I should jazz it up a little more with ribbon around the waistline or an applique or something. I think for now I'll leave it. Maybe when she's able to wear it I'll decide it needs something more.
The table runner I already had, the pattern cost $1.99, bias tape $1.79 (but I have enough left to use for another dress) and the zipper cost $1.79... for a total of $5.57. Not too bad. And the next dress will only cost $1.79 for the zipper, plus the cost of fabric if I don't use something already in my stash. Love it!
Plus this was the first time I've sewn a zipper and it wasn't nearly as scary as I always thought it would be. I feel empowered now! On to the next zipper project...
Friday, June 5, 2009
Peek-a-boo
Clara has learned the art of peek-a-boo. She'll lift her dress over her face and then put it down for us to say "peek-a-boo!" It's really cute. Sometimes she'll do it with a toy or a blankie too if she's not wearing a dress.
Jeremy tried to capture this new accomplishment on video and he had a little success, although usually when we pull the camera out she focuses her attention on the camera and forgets about what she was doing before.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
House update
After three months of searching for a house we found out yesterday that our offer on this house was accepted! We still have to go through the inspection process, but assuming that doesn't turn up any major flaws it is looking like we will be closing on this house by the end of July!
We had originally hoped to buy a duplex so we could live in one unit and rent the other, but after making offers on three duplexes and not getting any of them we started to change our tactic. We looked at some single-family homes and were pleasantly surprised to find that we could actually afford a decent one.
And when we saw this particular house we felt like we couldn't pass it up. It has a two-car garage, three bedrooms and a large family room. Plus a deck in the back, a privacy fence, and a park at the end of the block. The lawn and landscaping definitely need some love, and the kitchen needs to be updated at some point, but otherwise it's really nice.
We're excited about it and are thankful that the Lord has provided even more than we had hoped for. The inspection probably won't take place for a couple weeks so we'll update again after that.
We had originally hoped to buy a duplex so we could live in one unit and rent the other, but after making offers on three duplexes and not getting any of them we started to change our tactic. We looked at some single-family homes and were pleasantly surprised to find that we could actually afford a decent one.
And when we saw this particular house we felt like we couldn't pass it up. It has a two-car garage, three bedrooms and a large family room. Plus a deck in the back, a privacy fence, and a park at the end of the block. The lawn and landscaping definitely need some love, and the kitchen needs to be updated at some point, but otherwise it's really nice.
We're excited about it and are thankful that the Lord has provided even more than we had hoped for. The inspection probably won't take place for a couple weeks so we'll update again after that.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Cherries!
We just bought Clara these cool feeders! It's like a mesh bag that you put chunks of food into. As you can see, she's able to hold it herself, and there's no fear of her choking on the food. Last night I put a few cherries in it for her and she loved them! I'm not sure her bib will ever be the same, but that's okay. So far we are really pleased with how great an eater she is. There's almost nothing she doesn't like. Hopefully she continues to be that way!
Summer fun!
We had the greatest summer weekend - a birthday party for my dad and my niece, a trip to the farmer's market, picnic with friends, frisbee golf, walking around the lake, church, and an open house! We were outside a lot enjoying the beautiful weather! We also made an offer on house #4 and we're eager to hear back on that. We could know as early as Wednesday. Will keep you posted!
Weekly Shopping and Menu Plan Monday
Yesterday Clara woke up at 5:30 AM. We weren't planning to go to church until 11:00 so I was able to go through the ads, plan our meals for the week, and do all the shopping before we went to church! Here's what $44.24 bought us this week...
Had I bought this all at regular price it would have cost $62.70.
And our meals for this week...
Monday
Pork chops, garlic mashed potatoes, mixed veggies
Tuesday
Tacos, tamales, chips and salsa
Wednesday
Pork kabobs (with peppers and red onions), brown rice, apple slices
Thursday
Jambalaya, homemade biscuits
Friday
BLT sandwiches, fruit
Saturday
L- sandwiches or leftovers
D- At my cousin's wedding
Sunday
L- omelets, toast, fruit
D- TBD...maybe we'll eat out
Had I bought this all at regular price it would have cost $62.70.
And our meals for this week...
Monday
Pork chops, garlic mashed potatoes, mixed veggies
Tuesday
Tacos, tamales, chips and salsa
Wednesday
Pork kabobs (with peppers and red onions), brown rice, apple slices
Thursday
Jambalaya, homemade biscuits
Friday
BLT sandwiches, fruit
Saturday
L- sandwiches or leftovers
D- At my cousin's wedding
Sunday
L- omelets, toast, fruit
D- TBD...maybe we'll eat out
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