The weather has warmed up and it’s feeling like spring. We’ve been able to spend most evenings outside and let the kids burn off some energy. The landscape isn’t turning green yet (except for the weeds, that is) so it’s still quite ugly outside but hopefully before long we’ll see things turning green.

It’s slightly embarrassing to admit this, but I purchased fish when I went shopping for my first time ever. I’m never been a huge seafood fan and cooking it has always kind-of scared me. The first recipe we tried actually turned out pretty well. Shaun said it was one to make again. I’m looking forward to testing out some other recipes.

The weekend started with a concert and then a fantasy baseball draft (which was at our house) and this week is the last of membership drive for our concert series association and the final concert of the season. I’ll still have work to do as memberships continue trickling in but the big push and long few days will be over.

We are starting on our third week of wheat free. The little guy’s face is looking smoothing and the eczema isn’t raised at all. Occasionally it turns more red but nothing too bad. It’s hard to know if it’s the lack of wheat, heater not being used, him getting older etc. I guess the true test will be seeing what happens when we reintroduce wheat into our diets at Easter. (Or rather my diet seeing that he still doesn’t care about solids and I try to wait until longer to introduce wheat directly to the kids.)

Suppers:

• Salmon and Asparagus
• Fantasy Baseball  Draft at our house – snacks
• Egg Roll in a Bowl
• Ladies’ Bible Study – bringing chickpea and corn salad
• Leftovers

Lunches:

• Bean Tostadas
• Sesame Toasted Quinoa with Chicken and Bell Pepper from 42 Simple & Healthy Dinners
• Curry Chickpea Salad
• Lettuce Salads

Breakfasts:

• Oat Flour Pumpkin Waffles
• Pumpkin Smoothie (We just liked this okay. It really needs added sweetener.)
• Cutie Smoothie

Goals:

My goals this week are going to be simple. Only 1 day of the 7 do we not have something extra going on and a couple of the days will be really long ones.

• Concert Series Headquarters
• Print ballots prior to the last concert Thursday
• Make graphics and re-read this week’s posts
• Continue 28 days of Pilates and 30 day plank challenge (half way there)
• Keep the house halfway put together and everyone fed. 🙂
• Reading, jewelry making and anything else is a bonus

What’s on your menu? Any big projects you are tackling this week?

Linking up to Menu Plan Monday

It was a fun week for our family! My sister had her third baby (my first niece) on my mom’s birthday. I can’t wait to get to hold her. She was a tiny thing. Two days later another sister got engaged on my little brother’s thirteenth birthday. Hooray for growing families!

Coming next week I’ll have a series on kitchen tools, appliances, and essentials that I thought my sister might find useful as she and her fiance plan their registries. You might find an idea or two on the list for your own kitchen or to use as gift ideas too.

She wanted to have a picnic on the living room floor.

We have started our second week of being wheat free. Our little guys face is looking better but I don’t know if it’s from no wheat, the heater not being used as much, or him just getting older. I guess we’ll see if there continues to be improvement and observe what happens when we add wheat back in at the end of the experiment.

Suppers:

• Chicken Enchiladas and flourless peanut butter cookies
• Turmeric Chicken Soup with Cabbage and Coconut
• Chicken Chow Mein over brown rice
• Leftovers

Lunches:

• Chicken Nachos
• Greek Salad
• Salad
• Baked Potatoes

Breakfasts:

• Oatmeal Blender Pancakes
• Granola (using this cooking method) and Yogurt
• Smoothies

Goals:

• Continue 28 days of Pilates and 30 day plank challenge
• Read from Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job & Your Dream Job and  Mansfield Park
• Deposit Record and work benefit concert for our concert series association
• Continue to spring clean/declutter the house
• Planning for the Herb Festival
• Continue scripture memory with my 3 year old
• Write 3 posts

What goals do you have? Anything tasty on your menu?

Linking up to Menu Plan Monday

The week is over! I’m happy to have the pledge drive over with – the radio station my husband works at is fully funded for the next year. (They had their biggest day ever on Friday.) I also got through a big project for the concert series association which should give me some down time I’m looking forward to for the next couple of weeks. It’s a fun volunteer organization to be a part of, but certain times of the year are crazier than others.

The Oklahoma wind is something else.

A certain little girl’s aunt got her hooked on mustaches. We all had to wear them.

We took a short day trip Saturday and it was nice to just get away and not have the lists of things I needed to get done staring me in the face for a few hours.

We also started our no wheat experiment. Yesterday was day number one. We are going until Easter to see if we notice any difference in the baby’s eczema. I haven’t had any bread cravings yet, but it has only been one day. Besides, I fit in a lot of recipes with flour that I wanted to try and needed to make before we began. We’ll see if it makes any difference. If not, we’ll move on to trying something else.

Suppers:

• Soy Sauce Chicken Soup x 3
• Snacky Supper – Popcorn, chips and salsa, mango ice cream
• Chicken nachos
• Leftover Roasted Chicken and Indian Pea Pilaf (Pea Pilau)
• Gone
• If we run out of the leftovers we’ll make a stir fry of some sort

Lunches:

• Sweet Potatoes and Peas and tomatoes x3 (not for Shaun)
• Salads
• Roasted Chicken and Indian Pea Pilaf (Pea Pilau) (recipes coming)
• Hummus and Veggies

Breakfasts:

• Egg Puffs (left out the meat and used some arrowroot instead of flour)
• Fruit
• Oatmeal Blender Pancakes

Goals:

• Deposit Record for the concert series
• Restart 28 days of Pilates and begin 30 day plank challenge
• Read (some of) Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job & Your Dream Job and  Mansfield Park
• Blogging schedule for the rest of March and April
• Price mason jars, make earrings, and mail registration form
• Work on memory verses with our daughter
• Budget Meeting
• Place Azure Standard order
• If I have time: scripture cards, write guest post

What goals do you have? What are your favorite wheat free meals?

Linking up to Menu Plan Monday

Week one of pledge drive for the radio station (and my husband getting home from work an hour or two later than normal) is over. Today starts week number two. Hopefully they will make their goal on Friday and be funded for the next year.

After a busy week and trying to get lots accomplished on Saturday, a relaxing Sunday afternoon was nice. The amazing weather put it over the top. The kids loved spending the afternoon outside. Unfortunately, it didn’t wear them out enough that they crashed. They both fought bedtime hard, thanks to the time change. It was a good day to spend as a family before we head into the busy next 7 days.

Starting this coming Sunday we are going to eliminate wheat from our diet until Easter to see if it makes any difference with our son’s eczema. Don’t know if it will end up making any difference or not, but it’s worth a shot. Have any of your children had eczema?

(Using up quite a few meals with wheat this week.)

Suppers:

• Homemade Pizza
• Spaghetti
• Homemade Frozen Pizza
• Leftovers
• Guacamole

Lunches:

• Salad
• Salad with quinoa and mexican spiced black beans (similar to this)
• Leftovers
• Sweet Potatoes

Breakfasts:

• Monkey Bread (Cut the butter and sugar coating in half)
• Pancakes
• Oatmeal

Goals:

• Membership Drive Worker’s Books put together
• Deposit Record
• Finish the 28 days of Pilates
• Start Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job & Your Dream Job
• Carry overs from last week if I have time:
  Business Registration Packet Mailed
  Herb Fest Form Submitted
  Submit a Guest Post
  3 Scripture Cards

Once I get through the Worker’s Reception for the membership drive of our concert association next Sunday, I’ll have a 2 1/2 week break before another busy week obligations with them. At least the pledge drive will be over by then.

What goals are you hoping to accomplish?
Do you have any favorite wheat free menu ideas to share?

Linking up to Menu Plan Monday 

March came in like a Lion. Sitting on the couch covered in a blanket as freezing rain comes down outside. Brrr. It’s a good time to get my fill of soups on the menu.

My husband works for a Christian radio station and their annual pledge drive starts next week. He’s the production director and has been working long hours the past week getting everything ready to go and will be working a little later than usual during the drive. At least these these long days are only once a year. Another positive is that local business and restaurants donate food to feed the staff and volunteers during this time, so I just have to worry about food for my daughter and me. Hooray. I foresee a supper of guacamole in our future.

The local concert series association, of which I’m on the board, is also ramping up for their membership drive. I’m the secretary so this is the most time intensive part of the year for me. Combine that with other projects and let’s just say, we have no lack of things to do in our house.

Both soups were different and fantastic!

Suppers:

• Dinner with friends
• Small groups (homemade pizzas)
• Bible Study (taco salad)
• Black Bean Burgers
• Gaucamole, leftovers, snacky suppers with stuff in the fridge

Lunches:

• Avgolemono Soup (basil instead of parsley)
• Chinese Soy Sauce Chicken Soup
• Leftovers
• Sweet potatoes

Breakfasts:

• The rest of the Cinnamon Sugar Oven Pancake
• Healthy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (sweetened only with bananas and applesauce)
• Fruit

Goals:

• Input memberships/checks for the concert series
• Keep plugging away in Mansfield Park and start another book from this list. (Read a little from Mansfield Park but didn’t get another one started last week)
• Call the Herb Fest contact (e-mail and no response last week)
• Really finish 3 scripture cards (this has been on the list for weeks now and I still haven’t done it)
• Exercise. Plan to at least do the video from the 28 days of Pilates every day. Today is day number 15, so I’ve been keeping up with it. Good thing since they are only 5-10 minutes.
• Submit a guest post
• Fill out business registration paperwork

Eeek, that list looks a little daunting especially considering Shaun will be working late every night once again. I’ll tackle what I can.

What’s on your menu? Any goals you are hoping to tackle?

Linking up to Menu Plan Monday