Keeping Up With...Family Goals (Sept/Oct Recap & Nov/Dec Goals)

As I mentioned in my fitness goals post yesterday, I've been super busy and overwhelmed and haven't had time to updated these goals blogs.  A lot of the past two months have been dealing with things that are "on fire" and immediate and everything else can just wait.  We did set aside this past weekend to catch up on all the things that have slid around the house so I am making the time to update the goals blogs as well.  However, contrary to the fitness goals where I don't plan to do a lot over the next two months, I do plan to focus a lot on these goals over the next two months.

I also suffered a little bit from an identity crisis the past two months.  I have been a stay at home mom for a majority of the past 10 years and have almost always had a child with me when I do things.  Or I'm working around their schedule and using small amounts of time (nap time, TV shows, preschool, etc) to get my stuff done.  Now I have full days free, just about every day.  I also have a ton of things on my radar to get done, a lot of which I've been putting off for months (maybe years).  I had so much to do and so much time to do it and yet I got nothing done.  I finally figured out what was most important and started there.  I kind of wish I had done my Oct post separately.  I bet I would have gotten focused a lot sooner.  But I'm focused now and ready to kick butt the last 2 months of this year.

I have decided to combine November and December because I know I won't have time to update at the end of November since we are going away around that time.  And I'm not sure what I will do for next year, but I am leaning towards keeping monthly goals for both fitness and family.  I'm considering combining them into one post each month.  But I'm not really sure how it will work out.  For now I'm focusing on having a great time over Thanksgiving, our Disney trip and Christmas!

Here's how I did on my goals for Sept (with some Oct updates too):1.  Make progress on "Americanah" and read one other book (1 book in 1 month) - I did make progress on "Americanah" and I'm about 30% done with it.  I also read two books in the two months - "Everything, Everything" and "Bad Feminist."  I also started "BFG" and read 50% before if was due back to the library.
2.  Have family dinner every Sunday night and use AJ's conversation starters during it (4 dinners for the month) - We have really let this lapse over the past two months.  We have had dinners together most weekends but between the boys playing soccer and football being on TV we haven't really been talking.  We do a good job of talking to each boy every day about what is going on at school so we're still talking, but it's not as focused as this.
3.  Continue doing my week in review blog (5 new posts for the month) - I did 5 recap posts in Sept and 2 in October.  I fell behind on the recaps in October and am working on catching up on those this weekend too.  I'm hoping I'll be caught up by the end of this week.
4.  Continue taking one picture each day and posting on Facebook (30 pictures for the month) - I have kept up to date on these and did 30 in Sept and 31 in Oct.
5.  Watch a movie every Friday night (5 movies for the month) - I watched a ton of movies in September but none in October (balance, right?)  In September I saw "Sing," "Space Jam," "Power Rangers" (twice!), "Suicide Squad," "Bad Moms," and "Rough Night."  In October we did go to the movies to see the "Lego Ninjago" movie but didn't watch any at home.  Mostly because we were busy doing fun fall and Halloween events every weekend.
6.  Have one family board game night (1 special night for the month) - We didn't do this at all over the last 2 months, but we've played a lot of board games in smaller groups.  I've played a lot of games with the boys especially in Oct when they had days off from school.
7.  Start deep cleaning the house (3 rooms this month) - Started a few rooms but didn't finish any
8.  Have fun on my retreat and survive Adrian's trip to Dallas - I survived Adrian's trip to Dallas and he had an amazing time.  I had an awesome retreat weekend with my girlfriends and he survived the weekend.

The other things that we accomplished in October that would have been on my goals for the month were that we had a fantastic time celebrating fall and Halloween.  We went to as many events as our schedule allowed and have 4 huge bags of candy to show for our efforts!  We also finished up a very busy soccer season and each boy had a great time playing.  And I finished my sub application and license.  I just need to go to orientation next month and hopefully I'll be ready to start subbing in the schools in December.

Here's what I'll be focusing on the next two months:
1.  Make a little more progress on "Americanah," finish "BFG" and read "The Bell Jar" (2 books in 2 months)
2.  Catch up and then continue doing my week in review blog (9 new posts for two months)
3.  Continue taking one picture each day and posting on Facebook (30 pictures for Nov, 31 for Dec)
4.  Watch a movie every Friday night we are home (6 movies for two months)
5.  Have one family board game night (1 special night for the two months)
6.  Have a relaxing Thanksgiving weekend - enjoying food, decorating for Christmas & packing for Florida
7.  Have an amazing time in Florida
8.  Have a fun and relaxing Christmas and Christmas break
9. Go to the zoo for Wild Lights
10. Take AJ to see "Wonder" in the movie theater
11. Finish my subbing application and paper work and start subbing in the schools

Keeping Up With...Fitness Goals (Aug/Sept/Oct Recap & Nov/Dec Goals)

Did anyone notice that I haven't updated about my goals in a while?  I actually had goals for September and kept track (mostly) of what I did towards those goals.  But September and October were super busy and overwhelming for us.  We had a lot going on and a lot of adjusting to new schedules to do.  With all of that I never got time to sit down and write a full recap and set goals for Oct.  As a result I honestly kind of floundered through October with very little direction, especially in the fitness area.  I decided the last week of October that I needed to get my butt in gear and make a plan and I did, sort of.

It may sound like an excuse, but this time of year is really hard for me (and most people) to focus on their fitness goals.  I have a few holidays plus a trip to Disney in the next 2 months.  But here's the thing, I've gone backwards and gained weight and lost some muscle and endurance.  So I have to do something.  So I decided to do what I can for the next two months and at least stop the backslide.  My main goal is to maintain over the next two months and not let it get any more out of control.  I'm really going to buckle down in the new year and make it a super healthy 2018!

I also couldn't decide what to do about these blog posts.  Should I just drop them and pick them up in the new year?  Should I try to do a Sept recap (since it was mostly done) and then drop it?  Should I try to recreate an Oct post?  Does anyone besides me even care?  I had lots of thoughts about it!  Here's what I decided.  This post will be a recap of the last three months (Aug/Sept/Oct) and a list of goals for the next two months (Nov/Dec).  Then at the end of December or first week in January I will do a post recapping how this year ended and what I'm planning for next year.  I'm not sure if I'll do monthly posts or not.  They were definitely better than annual goals, I had way more focus.  But I know we're going to stay busy so I'm not sure I want to commit to two extra posts each year.  I'll see how it goes and let you know!

So here's how I did for the last three months:
1.  Lose 10 pounds (10 lbs in 2 months) - This went in the wrong direction and when I weighed in on Nov 1, I had gained 5 lbs since the start of Aug.  Blah!
2.  Do measurements at the end of the two months & maintain current measurements (0 inches gained or lost for three months) - I didn't even bother.  I'm sure I'm bigger.  My pants don't fit.  Some shirts don't fit right.  It's not pretty over here.
3.  Exercise a minimum of 30 minutes 55 days these months (55 days for two months) - I'm going to say this was another fail since I exercised 51 days in the three months.  I didn't even hit the goal with an extra month!
4.  Go to ten classes that I'm not teaching (10 classes for two months) - Another fail, although I started out strong.  I took 5 classes - Barre, Aqua Zumba, SS Circuit, Turbo Kick and Zumba with Jaime in September.  But then nothing other than my classes in October.
5.  Learn 3 new songs to add to my Zumba classes (3 songs for the two months) - I actually kicked butt on this one!  I learned and added 7 new songs over the three months - Roxanne, Despacito, Bailando Soca, 24 Hours in the Disco, Candela Pura, Si No Vuelves and Verano.  I also brought back some Halloween favorites - Thriller, Calling All the Monsters, Black Widow and Ghostbusters.  At least my classes haven't been repetitive!
6.  Add a few classes back to my schedule (teach 6 classes/week) - I was able to do this.  I'm up to teaching 3 Zumba classes and 4 Silver Sneakers classes each week plus Barre every other week.  And I subbed a bunch in September as well, which was part of the reason I couldn't get to other people's classes as often.
7.  Use MyFitnessPal to track my meals for 45 days of the two months - Another fail.  I finished with 21 days in August and September and no days in October.  Although I did try to eat healthy a lot more than just those 21 days, I didn't track that so it's not surprising to see the gains on the scale.
8.  Use essential oils to help boost my health & flavor my water - Another one I have kicked butt on!  I have actually done this everyday since mid-August.  I add at least one oil to my water everyday and I think it's helping as I've survived two times of the kids being sick without getting it myself.  Here's hoping I continue to stay healthy!

And here's what I'll be focusing on the last two months of this year:
1.  Maintain my current weight (0 lbs gained in two months)
2.  Do my measurements and maintain where I started this year (0 inches in 12 months)
3.  Learn 4 songs to add to my Zumba classes (4 songs in 2 months) - I plan to do both Thanksgiving and Christmas themed songs
4.  Exercise as often as possible - I know this isn't specific but I want to try to work out just about every day these two months.
5.  Use MyFitnessPal to track my meals for 30 days of the two months
6.  Continue to use essential oils in my water everyday and diffuse them as well to boost the whole family's immunity, especially before Disney

That's all I'll be focusing on in terms of fitness over the next two months.  Come back tomorrow to hear about my family/personal goals for the next two months.  I'm focusing way more on that over the next two months for sure!

Keeping Up With...Food (Meal Plan for Nov 6 - Nov 12)

We did a pretty good job sticking to our meal plan last week, and started eating healthy after Halloween was over.  We had a ton of leftover Jets pizza so we decided to have that on Halloween before trick or treat instead of cooking something.  And I got a great deal on a rotisserie chicken this week so we had that on Thursday with some sides to make the week a little easier on me.  It was really good and nice to have a fully cooked, healthy meal in under 30 mins.  You'll see two meals from last week bumped to this week and a few of our standards as well.

I'm noticing that we truly have a lot more time in our schedule with soccer being over.  Most nights we don't have to go anywhere, we just get home from either school or my Zumba class and we're home.  This week we have nothing at night, it almost feels like a vacation!  We also have a weird week with people being off during the week.  The boys are off on Tuesday because it's voting day and the schools are polling places.  And then Adrian has off on Friday for Veteran's day and the boys have school - date day!  We also have play tickets for Friday night (Waitress) and Saturday night (Midsummer Nights Dream at the high school).  It's going to be a fun week!

Here's what we're eating this week:
Monday - Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash Bake
Tuesday - Taco Tuesday!
Wednesday - Sweet & Savory Stuffed Acorn Squash - I have one I need to use
Thursday - Cheeseburger Meatballs and Parmesan Roasted Carrots for the adults & meatball subs for the kids
Friday - Sausage & Pepper Rustica - one of Adrian's favorites when we eat out
Saturday - Creamy Prawn Soup
Sunday - Buffalo Ranch Chicken & Potato Casserole - I will be out most of the day working at the church between service, childcare and facilities manager so I'll set this up and come home to dinner ready!

Water Flavor - Apple.  We have a few old apples that are about to turn so I'll be using them up in my water this week.  A little break from the citrus I'll be doing a lot going forward.

Overnight Oats - I made pina colada flavored oats this week loosely following the recipe I always use.  I got a drinkable Green yogurt as a freebie from one of the stores and went to drink it and it was horrible!  So I mixed that with some oats, chia seeds, syrup and chocolate chips.  I ran out of oats while making it so I'm hoping it's OK.  If not when I get more oats tomorrow I will add some more.  I plan to also make the Chocolate Peanut Butter later this week when I eat what I have and get more oats.

Keeping up with...Family (Weekly Wrap 10/20 - 10/26)

Friday (10/20) Day off from school!!  The boys let me sleep in until after 8am and Zak slept until after 9am.  He's still not feeling great so I think the extra sleep really helped him.  We had a lazy morning of watching TV and video games and playing Beyblade.  Then after lunch we packed up and headed to the zoo to meet our friends and go to Boo at the Zoo.  However we were disappointed to learn that the rides at Jungle Jack's were closed for the season already.  They are apparently remodeling the area so it was all closed off for the construction.

The boys had a great time playing at the splash park with Michael and Daniel while Katie and I caught up for a while.  Then I took AJ and Daniel to the Halloween 4D movie that was playing, Happy Family.  It was really cute, we all enjoyed it.  Zak stayed with Katie and the other boys and explored the aquarium.  When the movie was over, it was time for Boo and the zoo became crazy.  It was super crowded and the lines for candy were really long.  We decided to eat our dinner and then head out.  We tried another trick or treat trail I knew of but that was also jam packed.  AJ and Daniel didn't want to stay so I took them to Menchie's for ice cream.  Zak and Adrian stayed at the trail and had a fun time playing games, collecting candy and enjoying being outside on the beautiful night.  It was a failed attempt at some Halloween fun but thankfully we have lots more opportunities!

Saturday (10/21) We were up bright and early for soccer today.  Daniel had his last tournament this morning and his team won so they finished first in their bracket.  While Adrian was there with him, I took AJ to his game.  They lost to a very good team in a tough game.  Then Zak played and they won big again.  We all met back home after the games and our plan was to go to Creepside but all three boys were really tired, as were me and Adrian.  So we hung out at home relaxing and playing.  Daniel and Zak spent most of the day outside riding bikes and playing with our neighbors.

AJ had one more game this afternoon so Adrian took him to that so I could stay home with Daniel and Zak.  Unfortunately, they lost their final tournament game.  It was a tough tournament for them, the teams were better than them and their coach is overseas on a mission trip so they only have their assistant coach.  AJ had a fun season and wants to play again so we're really happy with the season as a whole.  When everyone got home, we grilled steaks for dinner (possibly for the last time) then got ready to head out to two different Halloween parties.  During dinner we had a big event - Zak lost his first tooth!!  He is so excited for the tooth fairy to come tonight!

After dinner, we started our night at the Jefferson Township Halloween party.  We go every year and it seems to get bigger and more popular each year.  We went and did the Haunted Trail first and all 5 of us made it thru the scary side this year.  Daniel and AJ were a little skittish but we managed to get them thru.  Then we waited to take a hayride thru the trail.  After the hayride the boys played some games and got a few prizes.  We were pretty much done after that so we let the boys play at the playground for a little while and then we headed out to party number two.

We went to a local ice cream shop, Cones N Concoctions, for their trunk or treat event.  It was their first year so I wasn't really sure what to expect.  It turned out to be really fun!  We got there just in time for the costume contest and the boys won 2nd place ($30 in gift cards to the ice cream place).  Then we went around to the trunks they had set up, there was about 15 and the boys enjoyed seeing them.  We finished up with some ice cream cones, which the boys got for free since they were in costume.  When we got home, it was late so we go the kids to bed and then I headed up soon after them while Adrian watched all of the sports that were happening tonight.  It was a long but fun day! 

Sunday (10/22) We were all really lazy when we got up so we decided not to go to first service for church and just have a lazy start to our day.  The boys had some video game time while Adrian and I did a few things around the house that needed to get done.  In the afternoon, we headed to Daniel's soccer celebration.  We enjoyed a yummy picnic lunch with  his team, including the amazing dirt cake that I made.  Then the coach gave out the first place medals to the team.  He had some nice things to say about how Daniel has improved over the season.  Finally we played a parents versus kids soccer game.  I opted to sit out and chat with a few of the other moms while Adrian played in the game.  They all had fun and the parents pulled out a win in the end!

 

After the party, we headed home to catch up on the football games that we missed.  We watched the Jets lose in a heart breaking fashion, they really tried to lose that game!  And then we watched the Cowboys destroy the 49ers.  While we were watching, the boys had some more video games and we also all grazed for dinner since we weren't super hungry after the large lunch we had at the party.  We finished up the football games and then got the kids settled in bed for the night.  We finished a few things that we needed to do around the house and then watched a few shows from our DVR.  New shows only started a month ago and we're already super far behind!  I'm sure we'll catch up eventually, we always do.

Monday (10/23) We all headed back to school after our long weekend.  I got everyone out on time and then headed to the district office to get my fingerprints done so I can start subbing soon.  I ran a few other errands and then headed into Zak's classroom to volunteer.  I played alphabet bingo with a few of the students and did a few things to help the teacher too.  I also got to see Daniel, he was in the library when I went down to talk to the librarian about my sub application.  It was a fun surprise for both of us!

When everyone got home from school, we loaded up and went to the Y for my Zumba class.  Then we ran home to have a quick dinner and then headed out to Zak's Cub Scout Halloween party.  We had pizza and lots of snacks, played some games and saw the boys in their cute costumes.  It was a fun family night and the boys loved playing all of the games.  When we got home it was late so we got the boys to bed, cleaned up a little, watched a TV show and then headed to bed ourselves.

Tuesday (10/24) Everyone got up and out of the house on time today.  After I dropped the boys off I headed to teach my two Silver Sneakers classes.  I had packed my lunch so I could go run multiple errands after class.  However as I was on my way to the first one, I got a phone call from the school that Daniel and Zak were being release early because the school had no power.  So I turned around and came home to realize that my house also didn't have power.  I walked up to get the boys and thankfully we all had packed lunches so we ate together in the dark-ish kitchen.  Thankfully about an hour later the electric came back on!

I enjoyed my bonus time with Daniel and Zak, we played a few board games and watched a little TV.  AJ got home and they played while I cooked tacos for dinner for all of us.  Then I headed out to work at the church for a few hours while Adrian took AJ to Cub Scouts.  I picked him up when we were done and got a few things done with people in the pack as well.  We got home late so AJ watched a show and had a snack while the other two were already upstairs getting ready for bed.  We watched a show on our DVR while also checking in on the World Series.  We don't really like baseball but of course are interested in the playoffs.

Wednesday (10/25) We got up and everyone got ready for school and then Daniel told me he wasn't feeling well.  We decided he was well enough to try going to school, especially since he had mandatory state testing this morning.  I told him if he didn't feel well after the test, he should go to the nurse and I would come pick him up.  At about 11am my phone rang and I went to pick him up for the day.  He spent the rest of the day on the couch resting, he has a horrible head cold as well as some stomach issues.  I got the other kids when the day was over and since I couldn't take Daniel to the Y, we had a relaxing night at home.  Adrian came home to have dinner with us then headed out to his small group Bible study.  When he came home, we got the kids to bed and then watched Survivor before heading to bed ourselves.

Thursday (10/26) We were all up ridiculously early today, around 5am.  Daniel wasn't feeling well, Zak was just ready to be up for the day.  I tried to get Dan to go back to sleep in bed with me while Adrian took Zak downstairs to play a game.  He eventually got AJ up and ready for school...but then we missed the bus because he was playing the game with Zak again.  Thankfully since we were both home, he drove AJ to school when it started.  I took Zak when his day started while Adrian worked from home with a sick Daniel so I could go teach my two classes.  I also ran a few errands that needed to get done this week.  Zak's soccer practice tonight cancelled because it was pretty cold so the guys all had a free night and spent the time relaxing, watching TV and playing board games.  I had a Zumba class to teach so I ran out to do that.  We got everyone in bed early tonight since we started our day so early.  Adrian and I caught up on the past 2 weeks of Will and Grace - loving the new version!  Then we also had a fairly early night since we had an early morning.  Hoping for better sleep tonight!

Keeping up with...Family (Weekly Wrap 10/13 - 10/19)

Friday (10/13) One more day of sleeping in while AJ is away at camp.  We got up and got ready and headed in to school for the day.  I was at book fair for one more day and I finished up around lunch time.  I headed home to do a few things and wait for the campers to arrive home.  AJ was wiped out when they got home but he said he had a blast.  He told me all about all of the different hikes and activities they did.  His favorite was the night hike and learning that we all have night vision and how it works.  After telling me all about his trip, he settled in to watch TV and video games since he went 3 days without any electronics.

Adrian and I walked up to pick up the other two boys and then I headed to the Y to teach my barre class.  I stopped to pick up subs and pizza for dinner after class because we had limited time to eat and freshen up before heading downtown for our first play of this season.  We saw "School of Rock" and it was pretty good.  It's not one of my favorites, but it was entertaining and kept me awake.  I thought the kids were really talented, they play all of the instruments themselves each performance.  We had a nice night out and the boys were thrilled to hang out with their sitter for a few hours!

Saturday (10/14) We were up bright and early thanks to Zak decided 5am would be a good time to start our day.  I actually fell back asleep and Adrian said he dozed a little on the sofa as well.  But then the alarm clocks started going off because we had an early (and long) day of soccer planned.  It started with me heading to our home field to fulfill our volunteer requirement in the concession stand.  While I was there, Adrian took everyone to AJ's first tournament game which ended in a tie.  Then they came to our home field for Zak's game.  I headed home so AJ could rest and Daniel could get ready.  Zak scored his first goal, we was even able to beat 2 defenders to do it!  He was super excited to tell me when he got home.  His team won big again, they are having a great season. 

Adrian grabbed a quick lunch and then headed out to Daniel's game.  He played his best game all season and was awarded the sportsmanship award for the game.  He wanted to get a pretzel with it but they were sold out so he got a hot dog instead.  Daniel's team didn't win, but they played a tough game.  They came home and rested for a while and then Adrian and AJ headed out to his second tournament game of the day, which they lost.  AJ played his best game of the season today as well and even though he's still worn out from camping he didn't complain at all about having to play today.

When all of the soccer was over, we all sat down to a dinner of pasta with shrimp and wine for the adults as well.  The boys mostly played and watched video games the rest of the night while Adrian and I worked around the house and watched football.  He watched a few of the early games that were good before we settled down to watch the Buckeyes.  It was a blow out so I was bored early and headed upstairs to bed but Adrian enjoyed watching it until the very end.

Sunday (10/15) We all slept in and started moving a little after 8am.  I decided relaxing and getting a few things done was a better option for me this morning so I skipped the early service for church and just got ready to go to second service to serve in childcare.  Once again when I got there, we had too many teachers so I went to service with Adrian.  It was another great sermon, I'm loving our new pastor and this series!  After church, I headed straight to the other side of town to another YMCA to renew my CPR/AED certifications.  I was there all afternoon, but it's done and I'm certified for another two years.  It was a long day but a good refresher.

While I was there, Adrian took the boys to their last swim lesson of this session.  They all did great, Zak even jumped off the high board.  Then when they got home, they did a bunch of stuff around the house and played some video games.  When I finally got home, we had a quick dinner, got the boys to bed and watched the recorded Jets game.  It was a frustrating game with two bad calls against the Jets, but I'm glad they stayed competitive and it was a fun game to watch.  Just wish they had won!

Monday (10/16) We are back to our normal routine today.  We got AJ up early and out on to the bus.  Then I got the other boys up and ready for school.  I dropped them off, ran a few errands and headed into Zak's school for the morning.  I reviewed numbers with each kid and then did some prep work for his teacher.  When I was done I headed home to get ready for a busy night for me.  I picked up the boys from school and headed to the Y for my Zumba class.  It was a small but mighty (and fun!) class.  Then we rushed home, ate a quick dinner of meatball subs and I was back out to my newest job, facility representative for my church.  I am helping out with after hours events, just making sure the church is opened for them, then locked up when they leave.  So far it's a pretty easy and fun job.  It was a late night for me though, I didn't get home until about 9:30.  We had snacks and watched a quick show before heading to bed for the night.

Tuesday (10/17) We got up and out on time again today.  Only two more days of getting to school on time for Daniel and Zak to have perfect attendance for this quarter.  Daniel (and I) have been working hard for this award!  After I dropped everyone off I headed out to teach my two Silver Sneakers classes.  Then I ran a few errands and ran home to eat lunch and prep dinner.  I had a dentist appointment in the afternoon and it was super nice to go there alone (it's the little things).  The visit was made better by the fact that my teeth look great and I'm supposed to keep doing what I'm doing.

After the dentist, I ran home to get the boys from school and then loaded them up for a pediatrician visit for AJ.  He had both his annual well check and his 3 month med check.  Everything looks great and I was again told to keep doing what I'm doing.  He talked more to the nurse than he ever has before, she was really impressed with him.  After the appointment, we ran home and I got ready to head to work at the church again.  It was jumping tonight and I had a fun time chatting with some of the other church members who were there.  While I was there, Adrian dropped AJ off to Cub Scouts where he learned about Native Americans.  When everyone finally got home, we got the boys to bed and then Adrian and I watched a few comedies from last week and headed to bed ourselves.

Wednesday (10/18) We got out to school on time again today, one more day for perfect attendance!  It was wear your clothes backwards day so Zak and Daniel enjoyed getting dressed this morning.  After I got everyone out, I came home and spent the day working on my application to be a sub in our district.  It took a long time but I got just about everything done today.  I'm waiting for my license from the state and then I will upload that and submit my application.  Then I have orientation, employment verification and a background check to do early next month and then I should be ready to go.  In between doing that, I got a bunch of stuff done around the house and talked to my mom.  We are starting to make plans for our trip to Disney in December and we're all getting excited for it!

After I got everyone home from school, they had some time to relax and play before eating a quick dinner and heading out to Daniel's first soccer tournament game.  Unfortunately Zak has a bit of cold/runny nose so I stayed home with him and AJ while Adrian took Daniel to his game.  It was a pretty exciting game, they won in overtime with penalty kicks!  They continue on in the tournament now, playing again Sat morning.  The rest of the evening we just relaxed, watched TV and headed to bed early.  I'm hoping Zak is OK when he gets up tomorrow, we have a field trip to go to!

Thursday (10/19) Everyone got up and out again on time today, including me who was going to school with Zak for his field trip.  It was his first ever field trip and we went to Pigeon Roost with all of the kindergarteners from his school.  We had so much fun!!  We rode on the school bus, learned about pumpkins, ran all around the play area, did a ninja obstacle course, got lost in the corn and spent time with 7 other boys from Zak's class.  When we were finished, we got to pick a pumpkin and take the school bus back to school.  The only downside was that Zak has a bit of a cold so he wasn't as into it as he normally would have been.  But he still had a great time!

 

 

After the field trip I was exhausted so I came home and relaxed before picking everyone up at the end of the school day.  That means that Daniel and Zak got perfect attendance!!  They are both super excited, they'll get their certificates in about a week.  Then we had a quick dinner of homemade macaroni and cheese before I headed to Zumba and the guys headed to Zak's and Daniel's soccer practices.  We all met up back home when we were done and watched "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" and "Toy Story of Terror" together.  We let everyone stay up a little later since there is no school tomorrow.  I made sure to turn off our alarms!

Keeping Up With...Food (Meal Plan for Oct 30 - Nov 5)

Last week we were a little thrown off our plans by a power outage at the kids' school (and our house) one day and a sick kid for a few days.  We also changed a lot of our plans for the weekend.  And Adrian and I decided we need to get our butts in gear and start eating better so we are doing that starting this Wednesday after Halloween.  So I switched a few things around to eat the less healthy food over the weekend and leave the healthy stuff for next week.  We normally have pizza on Halloween but we decided to have it last Saturday instead so we could also enjoy the leftovers.  The goal is to save enough for the kids to eat it as leftovers on Tuesday night before heading out for candy.

We actually have a fairly light week this week as far as commitments and hardly anything on the calendar this weekend (by choice).  We need a weekend to catch our breath and catch up on a bunch of stuff around the house that we haven't done for the past almost two months.  It has been a crazy fall around here and with the holidays and our Disney trip coming up in the next two months, we are taking this whole week to catch up, refocus and do some planning for the upcoming busy season.  I will also take advantage of the downtime to do some stock up shopping and some cooking so we have lots of leftovers and maybe some freezer meals set up too.

You'll notice a few leftovers from last week since I made pasta one night that I didn't feel like cooking, ordered pizza one night and made this crockpot ravioli which everyone loved.  The ravioli was such a hit with the boys that Adrian and I didn't even eat enough for dinner because the boys all wanted seconds so we gave them some of ours.  And of course there were no leftovers.  You will also notice the shift from not super healthy food at the start of the week to pretty healthy food at the end of the week.  And finally you will notice over the next few weeks lots of recipes using hummus, eggs and spaghetti squash.  My mother in law brought us a bunch of both things from the food bank so I need too use them up.  She also brought a huge box of oranges so I'll be using those in my water.

Here's what we're eating this week:
Monday - Spinach Tomato Tortellini
Tuesday - Sheet Pan Chicken and Brussels Sprouts
Wednesday - Loaded Bell Pepper Nachos
Thursday - Creamy Tomato Hummus Soup with Breakfast BLT sandwiches
Friday - Shrimp Fried Rice and Egg Drop Soup
Saturday - Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash Bake
Sunday - Cheeseburger Meatballs and Parmesan Roasted Carrots

Water Flavor - Orange

Overnight Oats - Banana Chocolate Chip and Pumpkin Pie  

Keeping Up With...Food (Meal Plan for Oct 23 - Oct 29)

I didn't mean to skip a week of meal planning but we have been super busy with soccer and fall fun that I just didn't have time.  I did meal plan for last week but just never had time to sit down and write out a blog post.  We had some pretty good food in between lots of activities and we ate fairly healthy all week.  Some of the recipe highlights from last week included Sweet & Spicy Cauliflower, Garlic Rosemary Pork and Potatoes, Zucchini Medley and Homemade Mac and Cheese.  All three kids liked the mac and cheese, and Daniel declared it better than the box!

This week is another busy one as we have Scouts, our last week of soccer, extra work for me and Halloween events 5 of the 7 days this week.  I'm making a plan for us and we'll stick to it the best we can but I also made sure to stock up on salad and sandwich stuff so if we need to we will fall back on that.  We also have a few parties where we need to bring things so I'm making my first dirt cake with a fall theme, spider snacks and witches' hats.  I'm also making these pumpkin chocolate chip bars and hoping Daniel will eat them for breakfast.  If not, I'll be making another loaf of the banana chocolate chip bread.

Other than all of that snacking, here's what we're eating this week:
Monday - Salads (before we head to a Cub Scout Halloween party with more food)
Tuesday - Taco Tuesday!
Wednesday - Chicken Parm Stuffed Peppers
Thursday - Sheet Pan Chicken and Brussels Sprouts
Friday - Loaded Bell Pepper Nachos
Saturday - Apple Honey Baked BBQ Ribs
Sunday - Spinach Tomato Tortellini

Water Flavor - Mango - Thanks Aldi for a reduced price for the mango this week!

Overnight Oats - It continues to be only me eating these so I'm not eating them very fast.  I have also bought peanut butter chips and butterscotch chips at Aldi so I'm enjoying experimenting with them for flavor.  This week I'm making the Banana Chocolate Chip ones but with peanut butter chips instead of chocolate.