Her Very First Meal

Lauryn has been talking about helping more with meals and wanting to do more cooking.  She's always helped me in the kitchen with measuring, stirring, etc. but now she wants to do more by herself.  We talked it over and decided tonight, for her first meal on her own, she'd make taco salad and bean dip.  It was hard for me to stand back and let her do it, and she did ask for a little help here and there, but she listened when I explained why things had to be done a certain way, she was very careful and she did a great job!  From making the meal and setting the table to putting leftovers away and cleaning up, she really did great and she loved doing it on her own.  When I mentioned her cleaning up after, because when Mama makes a meal, Mama has to clean up, she thought it was great that she was going to do that, too!  I told her that if she'd like, we could make one meal a week that was a "Lauryn Meal" meaning she'd do it all on her own.  She was thrilled!  I love that she's showing so much interest in the kitchen and I love how well she listened and got right into what she was doing.  I'm looking forward to more "Lauryn Meals." :)

 

[caption id="attachment_5024" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Browning the burger[/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_5025" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Stirring in the seasonings[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5026" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Cutting the lettuce[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5027" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Setting the table[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5029" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Lauryn approved[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5033" align="aligncenter" width="210"] Mama approved[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5031" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Helping clean up[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5032" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Drawing pictures of her recipe[/caption]

One Tired Mama

I am whooped!  Lauryn and I were up a little after 4 am because she had weird dreams and couldn't get back to sleep.  We fell asleep on the couch a little after 7 am and got a little more sleep but it wasn't enough.  Once we were up, we ate some cereal, showered and got ready for the day.  We went to the library and got a few new books, ran to the bank and then to City Hall to pay a bill.  After that, we visited my grandparents for a little while.  Lauryn was a character, as usual, and we had a really nice time.  We stopped at Leppinks on the way home and then shortly after that my mom came over for a visit.

I tried two new recipes tonight and they were both yummy!  I got both recipes from Pinterest.  Dinner was honey sauced chicken done in the crock pot abd poured over white rice.  It was really tasty but I think the next time I try it, I'll try a different cooking method, so maybe the sauce will thicken up a bit.  The second recipe was dessert.  Mini pineapple upside-down cakes.  They were made from scratch and are delicious!  Pineapple upside-down cake is my all-time favorite dessert and when I saw the recipe I had to try it :)  I am so glad I did!  Lauryn shared one with me before bed and she loved it too.

Tomorrow will be a little less busy.  I'm hoping to visit the preschool we want Lauryn to go to, drop off her paper work and check everything out.  Then I need to spend some much needed time getting this house clean.  For the most part, other than a few toys around, it looks clean enough but I have neglected a few things and don't want it to get out of hand.

Busy, Busy

Today I have a lot to do around the house. So far on my list is: wash bedding, clean bathroom, dust, sweep, mop, vacuum, make deviled eggs, sweep patio, make strawberry dessert and figure out what to make as a side dish to go with our burgers tonight. Since I went ahead and got groceries last night, that's one less thing I have to do today :)

So I fell off the "diet wagon" recently and now that the weather is getting nicer, I'm trying to get back on! I'm cutting down on portions, drinking less coffee (because I use tons of creamer), drinking more water and green tea, going on more walks and getting into the yard work. My goal is to lose 20 lbs. but I'm not giving myself a deadline. I hate the dreaded deadline so I'm just going to go with the flow and stay on track. I want to cut back on red meat, eat more salads - I love them so why not? - and get healthier for me and my little girl! No thinking about "dieting" and things like clinicallix, it's just me, getting in better shape so I can be happier with how I look :)