Progress update, etc.

So, I made this great list about what I intend to do. But how is it going?

Pretty well if I do say so myself. And it's my blog so I do say so.

Menu planning has been happening, 2 weeks at a time. It really helps to do it that way, technically I only have to go grocery shopping once every 2 weeks if I do it right. Of course, milk and produce still need to be gotten but that's a relatively quick errand.

Making double of some meals is also wonderful. I really wish I had started that earlier in my married life!! I now have a tuna casserole, tray of enchiladas, and a lasagna in my freezer waiting to be eaten. I really have to thank my husband for helping with this-he made the enchiladas and the lasagna (with the kid's help!) and that was totally appreciated! I also made homemade minestrone soup in the crockpot last week and I have some of that in the freezer also. Hopefully, I can keep up the momentum. This little bit of extra planning makes the evenings run sooooooo much more smoothly.

Cleaning is more challenging for me. I seem to do it in bursts-it's all or nothing. I am too tired at night after I come home from work to do more than dinner, dishes, laundry. So I am still figuring this part out. We did do a TON of cleaning this weekend, so the house is clean and it's amazing how much weight gets lifted off my shoulders. Of course, the cleanliness doesn't last long with 4 kids and snow, but at least it's clean for a few minutes.

Since the evenings are running more smoothly, I have more time to spend with the girls and that makes them happy. Which makes me happy. Big T and I went to a mother-daughter event at her school and we actually had a nice time. We made a project together (a topiary-great for my artistic daughter), ate snacks, and played a game. When I asked her what her favorite part of the evening was I expected to hear about the project. But she said "spending time with you mommy." Sometimes they can just make me all mushy inside. Here's another mushy moment:

So now I have been mulling over another idea. Among the blogs I read, this one has an interesting challenge going on right now. She calls it Eat From The Pantry Challenge. The premise is that for the month her family is only buying produce, milk, and perishables. When I first read this, I scoffed at it. I thought it was crazy. But the more I thought, the more it made sense. And the reason it made sense to me is that that wonderful holiday Pesach (Passover) is just around the corner. As I have built up quite a stockpile of such items as pasta, pancake mix, cereal, and canned goods, not to mention the chicken I have in the freezer; I thought it would be an opportune time to use these food items. I an NOT making rules for myself, I am just going to try to really work hard at planning my menus around these items. Wish me lots of luck-I'll keep you posted on my efforts. ( I know my husband will be REALLY happy, besides for the saving $$ part, he wants the closet where I keep the food surplus for a huge fish tank-now he has hope of getting it).

We celebrated 2 birthdays this past week. Big T turned 9 and Little T turned 6!! That is just plain craziness, where has the time gone? Big T has now earned her nickname, she is just 6 inches shorter than me! Granted that is not hard to do considering I am less than 5 feet tall, but still. She's only 9!! I kinda feel like I am growing up with her (as a parent). I don't know how to parent a child this old, I've never done it before!! Hopefully, I won't make too many mistakes!

But back to the birthdays. They each got to pick the dinner on the night of their birthday. Subway and enchiladas!! We've certainly branched out from pizza and hot dogs (although they are my husband's children-they usually ask for steak)! We are planning to have a small family party soon, so I plan to put some pics up then.

That's all for now. Hope everyone is having a good week!!

I usually never do this but. . .

. . . here is a "work in progress" goal list.

I noticed that a lot of my posts focused on feeling overwhelmed this past year. And I have been reading a lot of blogs lately that are discussing goals and ways to improve life in this coming year. So, even though I know that a mom who works full-time and has 4 kids can't eliminate all feelings of being overwhelmed, I am going to try some small steps. And since I remember things better when I write them, you get to read them.


1. When I cook I am going to try to double my meals and put one meal in the freezer for the future. I have started doing this on a semi-regular basis, but I would love to do this 2x a week.


2. Need to get back on the meal planning wagon. Maybe try planning for 2 weeks at a time? I have heard monthly planning is great but I just can't get there yet.


3. Clean my house more often-set up a regular schedule. You might need to sit down but. . . I do not have a cleaning lady. My house is pretty clean because I am constantly doing little things. I clean toilets when in the bathroom, laundry gets done constantly, etc. I am going to set up a schedule to get these tasks done (esp. mopping the floor-I hate it). Additionally, although the girls do do chores, I am going to make a more formal schedule for them as well.


4. As far as spending goes, the couponing has been going really well. I have been able to keep weekly grocery/drugstore shopping under $125. (In a city that has 10% sales tax!) I have been shopping at Jewel and probably averaging about $70 a visit. The rest of the money is spent at the drugstores (which net me coupons and toiletries at the same time). This includes diapers/pull-ups. I used to spend more than that just at Jewel every week. So I am proud of myself. But there are a few big purchases I would like to make this year (UGGS, Keurig) so I need to stop impulse shopping. This is especially bad at Target. I only buy things on sale, but even that adds up when it happens every week. I would like to put that money towards those bigger purchases.


5. Some sort of home organization-some things in my house just don't have a proper home and they need one (paper, toys). I need a bulletin board (I hope the husband is reading this)to help me keep important things in view.


6. Do something that keeps me anchored religiously. . . not sure what that is yet but when I find something, I'll let you know.


7. Lastly, and most importantly, figure out how to spend more time with my kids individually. They really crave individual attention and I think it is so important to give them a sense of self separate from their sisters (especially hard with 3 girls that are 18 months apart). I think I need to make some sort of formal chart for this as well, otherwise I will get lazy. And it will cut down on the arguments if everyone knows they have a set time.


Ok, that's it. Not a short list it seems. But hopefully I have put somethings already in place, and that will make the harder things a little easier to accomplish.


Wish me some luck and a lot of help from G-d, I think I'm going to need it.