Shopping Results and What to do The First Day – Month Under $300

I’m finally here! I know I’m late but I can finally take the time to write up this post. And prepare yourself, it’s going to be a doozy.

To start things off, my shopping trip yesterday. I have included my receipts below and I know the totals are higher than expected, but let me remind you, this bit is about groceries. My receipt includes other household needs (like dish soap and toilet paper). Therefore, I have marked out the things that weren’t groceries but left the prices. Below each picture I will put how much I spent on food or food related items and then will give you my total. Also, in the interest of full disclosure, I forgot to get the receipt for the gas but I spend $63.00. This amount would bring my total cost slightly above $300 for the day, but, it was well worth it.

First, I went to Walmart.

Walmart, trip one: $208.53

These trips costs also include the cost of formula for Row, and some snack items for B. Such as hot dog weenies, a box of packaged animal crackers, a box of packaged fruit snacks, and some Nutella to trick them into eating breakfast. There are also some extra veggies and fruits there to make baby food with. Those things weren’t on my shopping list from my previous post but I needed them for The Wardens. My total will still be under $300.

Sam’s, trip two: $66.09

After deducting the unrelated items, I added the two together to get a total of:

$274.62!

 

Now the fun part can begin!

After you get home with your groceries and you have taken the thirty minutes (or more if you have stairs or are alone) it takes to lug it all into your house, you can start putting things away or setting them aside. My trip lasted late yesterday so I simply put my meats on the bottom shelf of my fridge until morning. I put away the things that were already frozen and the dry or other cold goods. This morning, I got up and got ready to take care of the longest and most complicated day of this process. I promise the other days aren’t nearly this difficult!

A quick look at my tiny pantry trying to look organized without busting at the seams:

Teeny-tiny pantry

First, I got ready to separate and pre-prep the beef related meals. The bag meals for the Teriyaki Chicken and the Stew can be found in a link in yesterday’s post. I don’t have to explain those here. And you can scroll past the part where she talks about the shopping lists and such, we took care of that part already.

The other beef things called for certain amounts of beef per recipe. Because I want to save money, I buy my beef in the largest packages I can. Which just so happen to be 5lb rolls.

10lbs of beef

So, in order to get the meat I needed, I made a short list on a scrap piece of paper to take to the kitchen with me.

4lb – Goulash

2lb – Shepherd’s Pie

2lb – Spaghetti

2lb- Meatballs

Then I grab a sharpie, some gallon size freezer bags, plastic wrap, and get ready to go. (I use plastic wrap and plastic bags for several reasons; you can re-use the bags later, the wrap makes it easier to separate the meat, and double wrapping prevent freezer burn.)

First you need to label your bags. I only used three and labeled one “Goulash-4lb”, another with “Shepherd’s Pie-2lb and Spaghetti-2lb”, and the third with “Swedish Meatballs-2lb”

Because I plan on prepping the meatballs, I don’t care how the meat is. And because I want to keep my beef easy to package, I want to others to stay in rolls. This means that I cut about 1lb (don’t worry about being exact! Just guess about a fifth of the roll) off of the end of one roll to create my 4lb package for my Goulash. Wrap that is plastic wrap and toss it in your labeled bag. Make sure to squeeze the air out. It’s easy, just roll it!

4lbs for Goulash!

Next, you take the other roll and do the same to the end of it! That gives us our second pound for the meatballs and leaves us with 4lbs. Now cut that in half. Wrap each of those rolls and put them in your Shepherd’s Pie/Spaghetti Bag. Easy-peasy!

The two 1lb ends for the meatballs.

Easy-peasy!

Then comes the fun part. Take the two 1lb ends and dump them in a large bowl. Throw in some seasoning (whatever you like), some bread crumbs if you want, an egg, and anything else you think you might like.

It’s not an exact science!

Then, mix it all up until it’s nice and even. I used my hands. (Yes, they were clean, I wash them before and after every handling because meat is slimey.) You can use a spoon if you like but I’m from the south and here, cooking is hands on. Once it’s mixed well like this…

…we can start making our meatballs.

Meatballs! Meatballs!

And yes, I used my hands for those, too. They aren’t perfectly round because I didn’t measure or use an ice-cream scooper. Just use your hands! It will all be fine! When we are done with this, we can put them in their own bag and place them in the freezer! Make sure to lay them flat first so they don’t get squished. But once they are frozen you can move them. When I’m ready to cook with them, since this recipe has been doubled, I can just break off half and thaw them and use the other half when I’m ready!

Freeze flat!

Finally! We can clean up our mess from the beef. Make sure you clean everything really well because we are working with the chicken next. However, because chicken is SO NASTY (in my opinion), I just got in and got out. I didn’t stop to wash my hands just to take a picture. So, unfortunately, I only have an end result for you. However, I will explain how I got there.

Once again, I made a list of what I needed for each bag.

4 breasts – Teriyaki

6-8 breasts – Spanish Chicken

6 chopped fine – Quesadillas

4 chopped – Alfredo

And once again, label the bags. I only used 4 bags (two for each of the Teriyaki and Spanish chicken) and used plastic containers for the chopped ones. You can go to the previous post for the Teriyaki recipe. The Spanish Chicken recipe is also in a link in the previous post, however, I made it a freezer meal so here is what I did:

First, I trimmed the breasts of any extra fat. Then I placed them flat in the bag (4 in each). I then poured the enchilada sauce, taco seasoning, and about a half a cup of shredded cheese per bag. After that, I added in a half a can of drained and rinsed black beans to each bag and a half a can of whole kernel corn to each because I had some spare in my pantry. When I’m ready to cook it, I will thaw it about halfway and then dump it into my stew pot and cook on a medium heat while stirring (and adding a little water as needed) until almost fully cooked and then will turn the heat to low and allow it to sit until the chicken is easy to shred. This will then be served with soft tortillas and Spanish rice! (You can use your crock pot, this was originally a crock pot recipe. I don’t have a crock pot anymore/at the moment so I use a stew pot. Because I’m home all day, it’s fine. I just stir it more often.)

After that is done we can trim and chop the other breasts for the last two meals. Here are the end result containers of chopped chicken. Notice the two together are a darker color and chopped finer. This is because I seasoned them with cumin and paprika and a little season salt because they are going into my quesadillas and we like our tex-mex spicy in my house. The other container is for chicken alfredo, though, and therefore was seasoned much more lightly and chopped into larger pieces.

Tex-Mex Style

For the Alfredo

 

Whew! Finally! I can put this all away and go do something else! I had dinner with family tonight so I didn’t actually cook which means no recipe tonight, darlings. But, alas, I fear you might gladly accept that! A recipe added to all this mess would just be entirely too much. Tomorrow I have church and then possible lunch with Dad’s family that may even turn into dinner. If it’s late at night  before you hear from me again then you can bet it was a good day. But I WILL post again. I have to give my weekly roundup and weekend recap!

So until then, goodnight!

 

Menu, Shopping List, and Some Information – One Month of Food Under $300

The way I start my plan for the coming month is I sit down and make a list of meals that my family often likes or that anyone requests. After I have my list, I go through and weed out any that may require some special or random ingredient that could be more expensive, unless I have a reason for that certain meal (like company). I end up with list of meals that looks something like this: (P.S. this is my actual menu for the month of February)

1) Texas Goulash – x2&Freeze (4)

4lb ground beef, 4 cans of corn, 4 cans ranch style beans, 4 boxes mac-n-cheese, 2 cans rotel.

2) Chicken Spaghetti – x2&Freeze (4)

1 whole chicken(or 6-8 chicken breasts), 2 can cream of chicken, 1 small box velveeta, 2 cans rotel, spaghetti noodles shredded cheese

3) Stew – Freezer Bag (2)

1 green bell pepper, 2 onions, 2 cans corn, 1 bag baby carrots, minced garlic, 3 lbs beef stew meat, 2 6oz can tomato paste, paprika (noodles)

4) Teriyaki Chicken – Freezer Bag (2)

1 bag baby carrots, 1 red onion, minced garlic, 4 chicken breasts, 1 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce (served with rice)

5) Spanish Chicken –x2 Freezer Bag (4)

6-8 chicken breasts, 2 cans enchilada sauce, 1 bag taco seasoning, shredded cheese (served with tortillas and Spanish rice)

6) Shepherd’s Pie – x2&Freeze (4)

2lb ground beef, 2 cans green beans, 2 cans corn, 1lb potatoes, 2 cans ranch style beans, shredded cheese

7) Swedish Meatballs – Pre-prep Meat (2)

1lb ground beef, 2 cans mushroom soup, 1/2lb potatoes

8) Spaghetti – x2 for lunch (2)

2lb ground beef, spaghetti noodles, 2 jars spaghetti sauce

9) Quesadillas – x2&Pre-prep Meat (2)

6 chicken breasts, 1 can rotel, 1 can cream of chicken, shredded cheese, tortillas

10) Chicken Alfredo – Pre-prep Meat (2)

4 chicken breasts, noodles, 1 jar alfredo sauce

11) CrockPot Corn Chowder – x2&Freeze (4)

6-8 potatoes ,1 Can cream corn, 1 Can whole kernel corn, 2 Cups chicken broth, 4 chicken breasts, 1 onion, 1/4 Cups butter, 2 cups half and half

12) Frozen Pizza – 2 (2)

13) Chicken Strips – David’s (10)

I know that looks a little daunting but I will decode it in a moment. First, I need to give you some links! A few of these recipes have come from other blogs.

The Stew and Teriyaki Chicken come from the Melissa Fallis Test Kitchen where I tried all 5 of the recipes last month. The only one I personally didn’t like was the BBQ chicken. I’m only using two this month but they were really good and she gives amazingly detailed instructions!

The Spanish Chicken was something I stumbled upon on pinterest and I have hopes of adapting it to a freeze and dump meal just like the Stew and Teriyaki Chicken. The link is from a blog called “Healthy Food”. It doesn’t really show a recipe, but like I said, I’m just going to wing this one. I cook with chicken a lot so I’m sure this will be pretty easy to pull off.

Finally, the Crock Pot Corn Chowder was another I found on pinterest (most of my newer recipes are) and I haven’t tried it yet. This one is entirely new to me so be prepared for updated comments after I make it! The recipe comes from a website called “CrockinGirls” and since it’s something new, I haven’t yet explored their site, but the food looks great so I have high hopes!

Now, to decode my list (that is, if you haven’t figured it out already). I’ll use an example below:

2) Chicken Spaghetti – x2&Freeze (4)

1 whole chicken(or 6-8 chicken breasts), 2 can cream of chicken, 1 small box velveeta, 2 cans rotel, spaghetti noodles shredded cheese

On top, where it says “x2&freeze”- that’s where what I mentioned yesterday comes in. This simply means that I double the recipe and freeze half. Simple enough right? Now the number out to the side means how many meals this will last my family total. Therefor, My chicken spaghetti will have half in the oven and half in the freezer. When I pull the one out of the oven, Dad, myself, and B will all eat it for supper(and Row will share with me because he doesn’t eat very much). Then, it will get covered, and reheated as lunch the next day. Totaling 2 meals (Supper and Lunch) from 1/2 of the recipe. The second half will be the same way when I decide to use it again. Am I making sense? Ok. After that is pretty self explanatory  It’s how I compile my shopping list! I write out what I need to make the meal below each one so that when I’m ready to make my list I don’t have to try and remember everything, I just count it up!

After I have completed that step, I take a break. Ha! Seriously though, it makes your hand hurt! When I’m done with my break, I count everything up and make my shopping list. It’s really long but don’t let it scare you, remember, it is going to last me the entire month. And to make it as clear as possible, I mean I don’t ever go back for “something fresh” or whatever. I will have everything I need for every recipe. I don’t put spices down in my list unless I know for sure that I don’t have it and if the recipe calls for a lot or if it’s vital. Many spices I just fake with what I have because the recipe is still good if I use “Italian Season Blend” instead of “fresh cilantro” and “fresh basil”. I promise. It’s fine. In my grocery list below, I actually have quite a few of the ingredients on hand and therefor they won’t be on my receipt tomorrow, but I’m putting them on this list for you anyway.

Item	#
ground beef	9lb
canned corn	10
ranch style beans	6
mac-n-cheese	4
rotel	5
whole chicken	1
cream of chicken	3
velveeta	1
shredded cheese	3
green bell pepper	1
onions	5
bags baby carrots	3
minced garlic	1
beef stew meat	3lb
6oz tomato paste	2
paprika	1
chicken breasts	26-28
teriyaki sauce	1
rice	2
canned enchilada sauce	2
bag taco seasoning	1
large soft tortillas	20
spanish rice	2
frozen green beans	1
potatoes	3lb
cream of mushroom	2
spaghetti noodles	2
spaghetti sauce	2
penne noodles	1
alfredo sauce	2
cream corn	2
chicken broth box	1
stick butter	1
half and half	4
Digorno frozen pizza	2
box of frozen chicken strips	1

I am cheating a little with the last two items. Those are for lunches on days when things are busy or Sunday dinners because we are often not home until late on Sundays. But I promise, it’s not going to hurt my budget! Also, I need to add that there are more things on my actual shopping list but they aren’t relevant to this segment about the cooking. They are just household items everyone needs. I will be “editing” my receipt to exclude those items from my total tomorrow, however, I will be including my cost in gas, just to prove that this one trip is well worth it.

Also, yes, you saw that correctly, I’m buying 9 lbs of ground beef and nearly 30 individual chicken breasts. These are things I often buy in bulk at Sam’s and I separate and freeze them at home. Because I like to do a lot of my meat prep before I freeze it, this works just fine for me. For instance, in my menu you will see next to “Chicken Alfredo” that it says “pre-prep meat”. This simply means that I will take the chicken breasts, clean and trim them, then dice them to size for the recipe and put them in a bag or container, then I will season them with a few things before I freeze them. This means that when I am ready to cook, I can thaw it out in the fridge over night and dump it right into the pan without ever having to actually touch the meat more than once. I hate handling chicken so I like cooking like this much better.

 

Okay. Now for the shopping trip.

As I mentioned yesterday, I get a babysitter for this, and yes, it is absolutely necessary. I have two kids under the age of two and I’m going shopping for a month’s worth of food. I’ve tried to take them before. It was a disaster. It took me nearly five hours and by the end of it Row was screaming at me and B was trying to eat all the packaged food. There was not enough room for both of them in the cart so I had to carry Row with one arm while using to other to simultaneously push the cart, grab items, and keep B out of the products. So, I repeat, Babysitter. After I drop The Wardens off with their grandparents, I load my cooler up in the back of my suburban (we have a really large cooler and I still don’t have enough room sometimes), fill up with gas and off I go! Once I get where I’m going I make two stops. I usually shop at Walmart and Sam’s. (Please don’t judge me for this! They are my best options where I am.) I go to Walmart first, since the majority of my Sam’s purchase is usually cold or frozen. I use a shopping list app on my phone (ShopListFree for iPhone) that sorts my grocery list into categories. This makes it easier once I’m in the store to know where I need to go and to get everything in one trip without walking around like a chicken with its head cut off. All of this is very important so that the trip takes a minimal amount of time and I don’t miss anything. Remember, I won’t be going back. Getting everything is important. If you are doing this because of your schedule and not your location, then it may not be as big of a deal, but I know there are many people that live in rural areas like I do and have to shop this way. Lists are important.

It usually takes me about and an hour and a half to two hours just for my Walmart run. And after I check out, I take everything back to my car and arrange it so that none of it can slide or break, putting the cold or frozen goods in the cooler with a bag of ice. Don’t forget the cooler if you have to drive as far as I do. Trust me. After you finish your second run for the bulk items, then you can finally go home! I usually stop and get myself a reward from a fast-food place, because we don’t have any at home, and enjoy it on my trip back.

 

I hope that this wasn’t entirely too confusing for any of you! I know it’s a lot of information to take in, but I promise it will be easier to understand once I start posting the recipes as I make them instead of all at once. You will see just how truly easy it is!

I can’t wait to post tomorrow with the proof that this really works!

P.S. I almost always have food left over at the end of the month just because of those random meals out with my parents or Dad’s family that come around! Yay!

Intro to: “Feeding my Family of 4 for a Month Under $300” (Also D6 & D7)

Today will be short because it’s only an introduction to something I will be working on over the next week or so.

If you have read my “about” page, you have seen that I live in a tiny town with no options for shopping (at least not within a limited budget) and I might add, we live an hour from any other decently-sized civilization. If you haven’t read my “about” page, go now!

Did you go? Good, now we can really start. All of this may leave you wondering, “Well, how do you afford the gas to go grocery shopping? Wouldn’t that break your budget?”, to which my answer would be, “Yes, it would, especially since I drive a Suburban. But I don’t go grocery shopping often enough to cost me too much in gas.”. At this point you are staring at me like I’ve lost my ever-loving mind. I mean, really, how the hell do I not go grocery shopping!? I’ve got kids to feed!

Okay, let me clear things up. I said I don’t go grocery shopping often. Not that I never go. I go once a month.

That’s right! One day a month, I get a babysitter (yes, it’s necessary), put my big ass cooler in the back of my suburban,  grab my shopping list, and off I go to do my grocery shopping for that entire month. In fact, this introduction is coming right now because I’m going for the month of February on Friday! Yay! Isn’t that just perfect timing? It’s almost like I planned it…

How do I do this? Well, I buy everything I need for the entire month in one trip (the only thing I don’t buy is milk because we get that at the convenience store as needed) and that means I need to have the entire month planned out, to the day, to the meal, to the second!….Right?

WRONG

Wrong? Yep. I don’t have my menu planned for each and every day. I do, however, have a menu. This is what I will be posting tomorrow as well as my shopping list. I make a list of meals that my family likes. I then double or triple them as needed. I do a lot of freezer meals but I’m pretty lazy so that means I like to do things the easy way. I use easy recipes and easy methods. I figure up how many times one batch of food can feed us (I do a lot of leftovers for lunch) and shop accordingly.

One of my favorite examples is when I make chicken spaghetti, I double my ingredients  then I assemble one in my 9×9 baking dish and another in a foil catering dish (I bought 20 of them with 20 lids for around $10 at Sam’s). Then I place one in the oven, and cover the other and put it in the freezer! It’s that easy. When I’m ready to eat it, I get it out the morning of, place it in the cold oven (so it’s not taking space on my counter tops) and by the time I’m ready to bake it, it’s thawed out! Easy-peasy.

With that in mind, you can come back tomorrow to find my menu for this month as well as my shopping list for Friday. Then, Friday evening, I will post a copy of my receipt so you can see the proof! After that, I will be posting the recipes as I make them (screw that cooking once a month thing, I go with the flow!) and I will be posting the instructions on how I save them for later and how I go about re-heating them! This should be fun!

As a side note, I’ve been doing things this way for about 4 months now. I looked into many variations before I kind of stumbled into this method that works well for me. I understand that most people don’t live this far from a grocery store and that’s fine. But I do. And I have to keep my family on a VERY tight budget. This was the best way for me to do it. Another way this would help someone is any parent with a schedule too busy to shop often or think about meals every day could easily chose one day a month to shop and spread the work out accordingly. It really is a flexible plan!

 

Now! For D6 and D7!

D6 said “from some place low”….

A shot of my son’s toy shelves in his room.

D7 said to take a picture of fruit… this will have to do.

I didn’t have any fresh fruit (or fake for that matter) on hand so my smoothie raspberries would just have to be good enough.

Baby Friendly Recipe (That My 2-Year Old Also Loved!)

The other day my friend, Joanne, posted a recipe on facebook that caught my interest. It seemed easy enough and was really open to adaptations. Here is my version of what she made based on what I had left over in my freezer and pantry.

Fast and Light Baby/Toddler Meal

Ingredients:

*You don’t have to be exact on these and you can substitute just about anything! Have fun with it!

5-6 baby carrots- cut either into small rounds or thin slices (I did slices)

1 1/2 c baby twist noodles

frozen vegetables of choice (I had about 1/8 c of mixed veggies and some sweet peas that I used)

a pinch of salt

2 tbsp olive oil (or butter)

1 tsp cilantro (her original recipe called for pesto but season it however you want!)

1/4 c Orange-Ginger marinade or sauce

about 2 c water

Get out a small saucepan. Add water, salt, and olive oil/butter to pan and bring to a boil. Throw in the carrots and set the timer for 10 minutes. Once the 10 minutes are up, add the frozen vegetables (I ended up adding around 1/2 c total) and the baby twists. Set the timer for 5 minutes. When the timer is done, remove the pot from the heat, add cilantro, cover, and let stand for 5-10 more minutes or until everything is soft. Drain and rinse with cool water twice. Gently stir in the Orange-Ginger sauce. Serve!

This recipe made enough for me to feed both B and Row as well as store two more small bowls in the fridge for later.

Warden-Approved!

Give it a whirl! My kids loved it and it was so easy to make. I made it according to what I had on hand and to accommodate B’s lactose intolerance. Joanne’s original recipe called for pesto and a soft cheese in place of the cilantro and the marinade. She also used corn instead of peas. But really the idea is the same: carrots, noodles, small frozen vegetable, seasoning, sauce, and you’re rolling! Tell me what you thought or variations you tried!

Monday’s Aren’t All Bad… (and D5)

Seriously, this week’s bad moment award goes to Sunday!

Today’s post will be short, since it is, after all, late and I am tired from a long day. The Wardens chose today to refuse naps and scream loudly simply to enjoy the echo. And through all of that, yesterday was worse. Why you ask? Let me tell you a little story.

It begins in a sunny meadow. The Wardens were enjoying some worry free play while Mom frolicked alongside them.

Okay, so it wasn’t a meadow, it was my dead-weeds-back-yard and we weren’t frolicking, I was chasing B with a camera in one hand and Row in the other trying to get pictures. Then, B decides to play on the tire swing. I sit down near him with Row in my lap and begin snapping my photos.

Shit.

Literally.

Shit on my shoulder and on Row’s arm and in his hair.

A bird shit on us.

At which point I jump up, exclaim “Are you freaking kidding ME!?” and run into the house in search of baby wipes to clean us off.

So a happy Sunday full of pictures and a warm sunlight turned into shit.

I’m going to find that bird and shoot it. (Not really, I didn’t get a good look at the suspect. Now a vicious, shitting bird is loose on the streets just waiting for his next victim.)

 

On another note, today is D5 of the photo challenge and I was supposed to take a picture from “somewhere up high”. I am a mom, this is a mom blog, so what did I take a picture of? My kids’ messy room, of course! Look! Look, and relish in the fact that you aren’t the only person with toys and random boxes strewn across you child’s floor!

It will probably be an entirely new kind of mess tomorrow. We like to keep things fresh here.

My First Weekend Post!

Please excuse my bad posting etiquette. Dad is off work on weekends and we like to spend that time together collaborating about how The Wardens treated us over the past week. Today I will bring to you the things that happened this weekend and a roundup of stuff I have found and been following this week on the internet!

 

1)      I did wake up Friday to find shit in Row’s sheets. Joy. I think I jinxed myself.

2)      Yesterday morning I made pancakes for breakfast. Pink, vanilla cake flavored pancakes. Yes. PINK. B was not impressed and refused them entirely. Row, however, enjoyed both his serving as well as B’s.

3)      Row has started crawling with his feet flat on the ground. It seems to be a lot slower, however, he enjoys that it allows him to pass over toys without scraping his stomach.

4)      The Wardens have been sleeping soundly through the night for quite some time now. They share a room and it seems to work well for them. But I suppose they thought I was getting too comfortable because Row made me participate in a drill last night at 3am. I can only assume this drill was of his own planning seeing as B was in his bed with his eyes screwed shut and his hands over his ears. Row persisted though until I brought him a sufficient amount of food and a fresh diaper. We did this again at 6am. I think he is punishing me but I’m not quite sure what for.

 

Now for my internet finds!

 

First, a close friend of mine has also jumped on this blogging bandwagon with me and her blog is a joy to read! Her name is Tess and she is also learning the ways of Mom-Slave. Go check her out here!

 

Second, as I was scrolling through the “freshly pressed” list of blogs, I stubbled across this man’s story. I love that he is a stay at home mommy-man as he calls himself. He has a great sense of humor and obviously finds joy in the cynical side of parenting like I do. This one story in particular made me smile. If he sounds like someone you would like to check out, just click here!

 

Third, another close friend of mine, with a daughter the same age as Warden Row, found out about a month ago that her daughter Makayla has cancer. The cancer had spread to her spine and has damaged her nerves that control the movement of her legs and feet. She will be starting her second round of Chemo soon and will need physical therapy once the cancer is gone. She is only 9 months old. A mutual friend of ours has started a fund raiser for Makayla and her family and if you enjoy Pampered Chef’s products or are interested in helping, you can join this facebook event and purchase some products. All proceeds will go directly to baby Makayla and her family. Thank you!

 

And Fourth, If you are an animal lover you are going to love this. Copper’s Cat Commune is a home based sanctuary where Mimi and Matt Baker take in cats that may have missed the mark on being as healthy as society would like them to be. They specialize in Feline Leukemia sufferers and refuse to let someone put a cat down just because of this disease. They have a wonderful story and a beautiful home. Mimi Baker is a pet photographer and a vet technician. Her and Matt pay for these animal’s health care and food out of their own pockets and love them more deeply than anyone could love an animal. They are hoping to get recognized as a charity soon so they can receive help with the animal care. But until then you can join them in their journey of facebook and read all the individual back stories of each cat with beautiful pictures to match! I suppose I should mention that Mimi Baker is my mom and Matt is my step dad. They have had such an influence on my life and how I treat the rest of the world. I am very proud to be the daughter of such a caring and selfless woman.

D2 – “What You Wore Today”

D2 of the 30 Day photo challenge! Today I am supposed to post a picture of what I wore. So here it is!

P.S. Yes, those are the same pants as yesterday. No, I don’t care.  Yes, I do that a lot. Sue me.

What I wore today! Taken in the same doorway as yesterday’s photos. I like the light there. 🙂

The One Thing We Should Never Say to a New Mother (But We Still Do)

Picture this:

You’re at a family gathering and your cousin walks in with her new baby boy. He’s right at a month old and he’s bundled tightly in her arms. His tiny little fists drawn up close to his chest. His bubbly lower lip hanging open as he sleeps soundly. Your cousin is smiling brightly but her eyes give her away as she searches the room for a place to sit down. Finally, finding comfort on a small couch, she lets herself feel relief, but only for a moment. The rest of the women in your family soon find seats around her as they begin cooing over the sleeping baby and flooding her with seemingly sympathetic questions.

“Is he sleeping through the night yet…”

“Have you tried a bottle so we can baby-sit yet…”

“Does he cry a lot…”

“So you’re still using that pacifier…”

“Why isn’t he wearing socks…”

“Where’s his hat…”

“Do you want to get him sick…”

On and on they trudge. Their voices sound sincere but their questions are accusing and hurtful. With every remark your cousin tries frantically to explain herself, to sound strong in her opinions, to act like she knows what she’s doing.

The truth is, inside she is crying. She is confused and doesn’t know the answers because she is a new mom and she is still trying her best to figure things out herself. She tried to look nice today and on the surface, she does. However, with a closer look, you can see that her pulled-back hair hasn’t been washed in a few days. Her cute jeans are still maternity pants she is trying desperately to hide. Her shirt has spit up stains she has tried to wipe clean and hide with a jacket. She put on concealer and mascara but you can still see the circles under her eyes.

You know where she’s been. You were there not too long ago. You look at your own 2 year old and think to yourself “I should tell her that this is only the beginning. She has no idea what’s coming. It only gets harder.” But before you can get over to tell her, the baby wakes up. His eyes only open slightly, and he might still go back to sleep. He looks away to nowhere in that way that newborns do. Slowly, he lets out a tiny smile. In that little moment, your cousin begins to glow. She is smiling at him and it’s clear all over her face that if this isn’t the very first smile, that it’s still one of the firsts. She is sitting there thinking to herself, “This is what makes everything worth it.”

“Oh! Isn’t that cute! It must be gas!”…..

Your grandmother giggles and all the women follow suit.

 

Your cousin is crestfallen. Her entire demeanor changes as she sighs out and lets it sink in that the only reason the baby smiled is because he passed gas.

 

 

Have you ever seen this happen? Has it happened to you? Have you been the one to say that very line? I have. I can say yes to all three of those questions. Now I ask you, why do we do this?

I know from experience that when you bring that newborn home, you want so desperately to feel like he knows you. Like he loves you. You spend hours awake trying to make him happy if only for a few minutes. You feel like you are a cumbersome giant that could snap his fingers if you move just the wrong way. You feel like every second of your life is dedicated to him. I know that in a months time, most new moms have only had about 3 showers. And more likely than not, they spent two of them sitting in the bottom of the tub crying. Wondering how they got here and why no one warned them just how hard it would be. Not the same stuff we all hear, “You won’t get any sleep…” or “That baby is going to go through a LOT of diapers…” I’m talking about the emotional struggle. How hard it is to deal with the guilt that comes with not falling in love instantly. Dealing with wondering who this little creature is and why it wants so much from you. Trying to feel confident in yourself and show others that you are strong. Dealing with your husband asking you “What do I need to do?” when you don’t even know yourself.

I know I’ve been there. I also know that the very fist time that baby smiled at me I felt like he was looking into my very soul…

And I know that someone did say it was gas. I know that the second she said that, I died inside. Every second I spent with that baby had built up to that tiny moment where he recognized me. And it was shattered. Just like that.

“He doesn’t know who I am or what I do for him. He’s just a baby and he passed gas. That’s why he smiled. It has nothing to do with me.”

Why do we do this? Doesn’t that mother deserve her moment? Doesn’t she deserve to feel like everything she has been through was worth it because the baby smiled at her? I think so. So next time you, or I, see a newborn smile, don’t say “It must be gas.” Try instead, “Look at him, he recognized your voice. He must really love his mommy.” Is it too hard to do that? I don’t think so.

That mother will remember those first smiles for the rest of her life. You? You probably won’t remember that comment for a week. Save her the heartbreak. Because the truth is, I believe that baby is smiling at his mommy. Why wouldn’t he? He loves her.

D1- Introduction to the Thirty Day Photo Challenge

Today I wanted to start a thirty day photo challenge to keep things interesting on here. I found a few lists on Pinterest but ultimately decided on this one:

Because today is D1, I had the “Self Portrait” on my to-do list. I grabbed my camera, found some decent light (by opening the side door to my house and standing there) and started taking some shots! I had a few that I liked and they are all unedited. This is how I look every day. No makeup, raw skin by my nose from a recent sinus infection, zits on my forehead, and more freckles than I care to talk about!

The one decent shot

Funny faces are…. funny

We’re all a little mad here…

So try and keep up 🙂

Thank you for looking at my weird little self portraits! Come back tomorrow for D2!

The Other Patient

As promised, today I will tell you more about my husband, “Dad”. So here it is:

The Only 5 Things You Need to Know About Dad

1. He loves all things motorized. If it has a motor, says “vroom vroom” or looks like a smaller version of something with a motor, then he loves it. Period.
2. He has a pretty freaking amazingly awesome red beard. That I love and won’t let him shave.
3. He drinks more sweet tea than I do… which is a lot.
4. He works hard so that The Wardens can afford to keep me here as their slave 24/7.
5. He loves me and The Wardens more than anyone else ever could. I mean, he willingly comes home to this crazy house every day. That’s pretty awesome.

Enjoy this iPhone shot of him and his freaking amazingly awesome red beard.

Dad and his red beard

Now, today was only going to be about Dad but The Wardens presented me with an awesome impromptu photo session that I thoroughly enjoyed. These are the things they do to foster feelings of affection in me… today it worked. I am ashamed of myself. But not so much that I won’t share the photos with you!

B laying on Dad laying on the couch during his lunch break.

Look at those lashes! I’m jealous…

B holding me down for a routine affection session

It worked.

You see that, Momma? That’s what we call “outside”. I know it seems like a distant memory, but fear not, summer is near and we will have an array of activities for you to accompany us on.

No! I will not hold still for the camera! You don’t own me! I own you.

I told you no! I will not stand for this.

This is the proper way to make a crazy face. Now practice!

These are what The Wardens use to torture Dad and myself. Colors and noises are key in their effectiveness.

Contemplating new forms of torture

A shape sorting device. It’s new and they have yet to discover how to use it against me.

Intense focus

See? We have broken toys here. They are still useful!

Awesome technique, B!

Put the shape in my mouth? Like this? Okay.

If we work together, we can figure this out.