SURPRISE!

Many of you know by now that I have a bun in the oven, drank the water, am developing a new release, have a mini me in the making, got knocked up, and am in the family way, so if you don't know…SURPRISE!

I have had no motivation to do anything….like the Amish Friendship Bread that was ready to be baked Sunday, yeah, still on the counter. This threw a monkeywrench in the diet thing…since I don't feel like eating anything and if I do, it's probably not good for me. And exercise, please, all I wanna do is take a nap. So the official diet has been suspended until after junior is born. This doesn't mean prepackaged food and pop, we'll still try to be healthier about our food choices. And blog, who wants to get off the couch. So I apologize in advance to my poor blogging until this morning sickness passes, oh, in about a month to two.  Meal plan is still going well as I know I have little munchkins and a big munchkin to feed. This week's may be in the crapper though. Jeremy has to work Tuesday and Wednesday night, then he and Grace are going ice fishing and won't be back until Saturday.

Now back to my nap.

Latest Quilt

I've really had to get my heine in gear doing this quilt, I think the triangles are well....trying!  Baby is due the beginning of February, so really any time now that kid could make her appearance.  The top is nearly done, and I plan on tying the quilt together.  Just a peak for the mom....  

Impressive, would you guess that's a cell phone picture?

Ice Fishing

My father-in-law took some pictures of the last ice fishing expedition and they were so full of expression, I just had to add them.  He used the timer setting on his camera and set it on the ice, the angle is wonderful!

First Weekly Meal Plan

My first go at a weekly meal plan. Since I usually do my grocery shopping on Saturdays, my week will begin there.
Saturday: ham, sweet potatoes, veggie
Sunday: corn chowder, rolls
Monday: rib steak, potatoes, veggie
Tuesday: Hawaiian chicken, brown rice, veggie
Wednesday: grilled ham sandwiches, french fries
Thursday: broiled fish, salad, veggie
Friday: leftovers

Some of these things were in the freezer (ham, rib steak) that we wanted to eat up before we forgot about them and they got freezer burnt.  I realize some of these things may not be the best for our Mayo Clinic Diet (ham, rib steak J )

Breakfasts will be yogurt, fruit, toast, and homemade poptarts (for the girls to take for pre-breakfast at preschool). Lunches for Jeremy and I will be leftovers.

With the Mayo Clinic Diet there's a 2 week plan where, if you adhere to certain guidelines, you should lose 6-10 pounds in those weeks. I think the hardest will be no sugar except that found naturally in fruit. The others will be easy enough, 30 minutes of activity, no eating out, lots of fruit and veggies, whole grain, avoiding fats, no snacking except fruit and veggies. Aaaaaaaaaaaaand here we go!

Readin'

I just finished reading "The Last Song" by Nicolas Sparks. Because it's Nicolas Sparks, you know it's going to be a good read and you know it'll make you cry. This was the case for this book. At least the crying didn't come until very near the end and I was safely ensconced in bed, crying my eyes out. Now onto "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer; a true story about an educated young man giving up everything and living in the wild. Of course, I've been reading these on my nook, which I so love! You can adjust the font size and you don't have to hold a book open, so it works awesome at the gym, I can walk and read at the same time.

I'm nearly done with the body of Anna's sweater.

The sweater has now become Grace's as the size is way too big for Anna. All I have left is the sleeves. I did a gauge swatch, honest, but we all know gauge swatches lie, they lie horribly! It will eventually become Anna's…..in a couple of years. J

I'm starting a batch of Amish Friendship Bread tomorrow. I figure if I start it tomorrow it will be all ready to bake by next Sunday. I plan to bake it all up and freeze it. Usually nobody will take the "friendship" cups of starter, so I'm not gonna let it go to waste. I may even bring in some baked bread to share with my coworkers.

Resolutions?

I think I have finally caught up from the holidays and settled back into some sort of normal routine. I thought I'd lay out some of my goals for 2011 and share them with you.

To be a better parent: Now this one sounds broad and perhaps hard to approach. I have come to realize I may not pay as much attention as I would like….I say, "Hold on, just a second" too much and the seconds become minutes and then I've forgotten they want to show/say/do for me. This also entails little things like making sure they brush their teeth, helping them make the bed, and things I usually take over because it's just easier. The key word would be PATIENCE!

To eat healthier: It's not like I go to MickeyD's on a regular basis. But to limit the amount of crap and prepackaged food in the house. And try to eat more fruits and veggies on a regular basis. In fact, Jeremy and I will be starting the Mayo Clinic Diet, which really isn't a diet, but more of a way of life. This is also to get the girls on a pathway to a healthy life. This branches off on another path. I usually send the girls to preschool with a toasted-prepackaged waffle for breakfast. I'm going to start making something healthier for them to eat. After some help from a friend, I've figured I can do muffins, quick bread, homemade waffles, coffee cake. After scouring some websites, I've also come up with homemade "poptarts" and mini apple pies. The trick will be to find the healthier recipes and to cut back some sugar.

To blog more: I usually don't have much of anything exciting to say. I'll try to be more creative with my posts, take more pictures to show growing girls.

To get back in touch with Dave Ramsey: This includes paying off the Bug, which is entirely doable if we don't blow the extra money that comes in, "Dang,it burns a hole." Be more conscious of my purchases, asking myself if I really need this when I go to pick it off the shelf. I already have a working budget each month, I plan to keep that going as well. We already use the envelope system. Seriously, go get a Dave Ramsey book and read it. I wish my dad would have made me read it sooner.

Making a weekly meal plan: Planning the meals for the week and shopping accordingly will cut down on some food waste. Then I only have to ask myself "What's for dinner?" once a week instead of every day.

I will check in with my goals on here periodically so you know my progress and you can hold me accountable. Let's make 2011 a wonderful year!