Peanut Butter and Poptarts: March 2013

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Happy Easter...

Oh death! Where is your sting?

Oh hell! Where is your victory?

Oh church! Come stand in the light!

The glory of God has defeated the night!

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Let's Eat...

On the menu for the next 7 days...

Market Street Quiche

with veggie side and fruit salad

Market Street has an awesome pre-made quiche that we eat quite often - it's located in the "foods to go" section of the store.

Rotisserie Chicken Pesto Pasta Salad

with fruit salad and garlic bread

This is a recipe I came up with a couple of years ago when I was craving pasta salad. In a large bowl, mix together cooked cheese tortellini, cooked asparagus tips, cheery tomatoes (cut in half), chopped rotisserie chicken (I just use white meat), pesto (I use pre-made pesto), season with salt/pepper and top with grated Parmesan cheese. Great served hot, warm, room temp or cold.

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

with refried black beans and mexican rice

New recipe I found on Pinterest

Turkey & Spinach Spaghetti

with garlic bread

This is a recipe that I adapted from a friend (secret family recipe) - I add ground turkey and a TON of chopped, fresh spinach. It makes a lot, so I freeze half of it for another night or take to a friend.

5 Can Soup

with tortilla chips

This is a Weight Watchers recipe that is super easy, cheap and low-calorie. Heat 1 can of corn, 1 can of black beans (rinsed and drained), 1 can of mixed vegetables, 1 can of Rotel and 1 can of Minestrone soup. I usually add 1/2 lb of cooked ground turkey too - but this week I will add the left over crockpot chicken from above. Top with grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese.

Cauliflower Crust Pizza

with salad

I've seen this all over Pinterest lately so I can't wait to finally try it! Hopefully Josh will approve! For the pizza sauce, I will save some of the sauce from spaghetti night (before I add the ground turkey to it).

Eat Out

My favorite meal of the week - no cooking or dishes required!

Monday, March 18, 2013

Peek-a-boo and Swinging with June...

June was an "only child" on Friday while my MIL took Lucy for the morning. We ran some errands, she took an awesome morning nap (and I got to take a nice long shower!) and we had time to play a little peek-a-boo after lunch...

On Saturday, we enjoyed some family time at the park. June loves to swing and thankfully she has an awesome big sister who loves to push her!

Approximately 3 hours later, our happy little June woke up from her nap screaming at the top of her lungs. Come to find out...another double ear infection (her third double ear infection in 5 weeks)! Boo. So thankful for our amazing pediatrician who offered to meet us at Kid Country on Saturday afternoon to check her ears and call in another round of antibiotics. Ear infections stink.

Friday, March 15, 2013

This Week's Meals (a wee bit late)...

In a perfect world, I'd meal plan on Sunday and grocery shop on Sunday evening or Monday morning. This week was not so perfect. Lucy girl has been sick with a virus (coughing and fever), so we've been homebound all week and this mamma has not been in the mood to meal plan. After we finished last week's dinners, we were able to manage for several days on random meals I pulled together and eating take-out once. I forced myself sit down and meal plan yesterday while the girls were napping...so here are the next 7 days of dinners at our house...

Shredded BBQ Chicken Sliders

with veggie side

Turkey Taco Soup

with warm tortillas

(Recipe adapted from a friend - will probably eat this for 2 meals since it makes a ton)

Chicken, Spinach & Artichoke Sandwich Melts

with french fries and fruit salad

(New recipe I found on Pinterest)

Taco Bake

with refried black beans and chips/salsa

(New recipe I found on Pinterest - not healthy, but sounds yummy and easy!)

Pesto Pasta with Chicken Sausage & Roasted Brussels Sprouts

with garlic bread

(New recipe I found on Pinterest)

Garlic Chicken

with wild rice and oven roasted asparagus
(One of my favorite new chicken marinades - I added a few tablespoons of soy sauce)

Eat Out!

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Videos of the girls...

No one can make June laugh like her sister. I mean, jumping over a bear is hysterical, right?!

Lucy is prepping June to be really tough and/or to have the ability to hold her breath for long periods of time...

Thankfully, no arms were pulled out of socket during the making of this video...

Monday, March 11, 2013

Papa Billy and Corinne...

Dad and Corinne came to visit last weekend...I love this picture of them with the girls!

Saturday, March 9, 2013

June Marie :: 7 Months

Happy SEVEN months sweet June Bug! Once again, what a fast month...

Size 3 diapers

6-9 month clothes

Sleeping

June wakes up between 7:30/8am, naps for 2 hours in the morning (usually 10am-12pm), naps for 2 hours in the afternoon (usually 2pm-4pm) and goes down for bed between 7:45/8pm. She's doing awesome with her naps and her afternoon nap coincides with Lucy's afternoon nap, so I'm getting a solid 2 hours to myself most days! June is still waking up most mornings around 5:30/6am, but after a little crying (and finding her paci) she'll go back to sleep. I'm VERY ready for this to stop. Hopefully soon. June wakes in the morning and from her naps very happy!

Eating

June is taking 4 bottles a day. Typically at 8am, 12pm, 4pm and 7/7:30pm. She usually eats about 6 ounces of formula (maybe a little more at her evening feeding). Thankfully, she is not spitting up much anymore, which has made feeding time (and post feeding time) a lot cleaner...I don't constantly have a burp cloth attached to my shoulder anymore! We officially started solids at the beginning of the month. It's been a slow start, but she's getting much better! She's not a big fan of rice cereal, so I've been mixing it in with her veggies and fruit. I try and give her solids at least twice a day, typically in the morning after her bottle and before her evening bottle. If our schedule is crazy, she may only get solids once a day. She loves munching on Mum Mums too...which is a great activity for her while we're eating dinner. I really don't like the baby food stage...it's a lot of work and more clean-up on top of washing bottles!

Activity Time

From the moment she wakes up to the moment she goes to sleep, June has her eyes fixed on Lucy. She LOVES watching Lucy play and desperately wants to get in on the action. I have a feeling that I'll have my hands full with these two once June is mobile. It really is the cutest thing when they interact and laugh at each other...I just love it and it makes me so thankful that they have each other! June still loves playing in the Jumperoo/bouncer thing and on her play mat. And now that she can sit up, she has fun playing with little toys that are placed around her...and most end up in her mouth. Her favorite toy to chew on is of course, Sophie the Giraffe. She is officially done spending time in the swing so we packed it up a few days ago. June loves bath time with her sister as well!

Milestones/Firsts

I would say that June is officially a sitter now! She's still a bit wobbly, but she can sit on her own pretty well for longer periods of time (compared to the beginning of the month). I don't leave her sitting up on her own yet, just incase she takes a tumble...or big sister interferes! No teeth yet, but still drooling a lot. June got her first (double) ear infection at the beginning of the month...and it returned again (in both ears) about 2 weeks later. We just finished our second round of antibiotics a couple of days ago. I would have never had known that she was sick the first time...no fever, runny nose, fussiness...nothing. We were at her 6 month well visit and Doc Meg spotted the ear infections. But, she definitely let us know when round 2 reared it's ugly head. She woke up around 11pm one night screaming at the top of her lungs and really didn't stop until 4am when she finally went back to sleep. It was rough and quite scary for Josh and I since it was the first time we'd ever seen her act that way...ever. I knew it had to be her ears again because nothing else was wrong with her and she didn't even have fever. Thankfully, we were able to get in to see Doc Meg first thing in the morning for more antibiotics and pain relieving ear drops! Ear infections....stay away. Thanks. {We are also very thankful that June does not need a helmet...this was confirmed at her 6 month well visit...yay!}

Personality

June is still the happiest and most easy-going and flexible baby ever. No lie. It's ridiculous...and I couldn't be more thankful. She's my little love bug and her gummy, right cheek dimple smile absolutely melts my heart. I'll be the first to admit it...I'm a softy for this girl.

Happy 7 Months Junie!! We love you little lady...a lot.

Friday, March 8, 2013

Endless Alphabet...

Lucy loves the Endless Alphabet app on the iPad. It really is an amazing app...she's learning what the letters look like and the sounds they make. I've seen huge improvement over the past couple of weeks...she's getting faster and faster...and having fun!

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

This Week's Meals...

Thin Crust Pizza

with Salad

(my favorite store bought brand is Newman's Own Thin & Crispy)

Chicken Pot Pies

pre-made from Market Street

Crockpot Balsamic Chicken

with angel hair pasta and garlic bread

(looking forward to trying this recipe - thanks for the recommendation CeCe!)

Pioneer Woman Sour Cream Noodle Bake

with oven roasted asparagus

Southwestern Egg Rolls

with Mexican rice and chips/salsa

Spinach & Black Bean Lasagna

with garlic bread

(frozen from last week - see recipe here)

Eat Out!

If you have some easy, weeknight meals...please share! I'd love to know your go-to recipes. I still dread sitting down to meal plan...surely it gets easier, right? It's like working out to me...dread it, but always feels good once it's done! :)