Menu Plan Monday

Monday - Sloppy Joes, slop sloppy Joes
Tuesday - Taco Salad
Wednesday - Biscuits and gravy
Thursday - Chicken Fried Rice
Friday - Pizza
Saturday -
Sunday - Baked Ranch Chicken

The End of One Chapter, Beginning of Another

4 Days Old. Wasn't this just yesterday?

Grace will turn 3 in September. That means she will "age out" of First Steps, our Early Intervention program in Indiana. Our next recommended step for her development is the Special Needs Preschool.

I will be completely honest and admit that I DID NOT want Grace to go to the SN Preschool. All I could imagine was Grace being stuck in her "wheelchair" all day, having to go to school with kids who are severely disabled and/or have serious behavior issues.  Basically, I had a terrible view of a SN preschool, but I had never actually been to one.

Last week Jeff, Grace and I visited the preschool she could attend in the fall. I prepared myself for the worst and was looking for any small sign of the horrible conditions they were surely going to hide from me.

Thankfully my initial view of the preschool was very wrong. The kids were happy, comfortable in the environment and as well behaved as any preschool class. The teachers did a great job leading the class, but also took cues from the little ones and changed the game plan as they went. (They were a little more rambunctious than usual, so instead of expecting them to sit and do circle time, she took them outside to the playground to run around.)

I'm still in pretty deep denial about having a "special needs" child. Grace is normal in so many ways, but she does need some extra help in others. Deanna from Everything and Nothing in Essex wrote a beautiful post that put my attitude in check. Please read it here.

In the fall my last baby will be going to preschool. We'll start her out at the special needs program and see where life takes her from there.

I may need a large support group for that day.

Hey! It's Okay Tuesday!

It's Okay to...

• not understand why everyone hates dandelions. They are such a cheerful weed.
• be so ready for my kids to be out of school. And know I'll be ready for them to go BACK to school within a few weeks of summer break.
• wish that life, like some schools, required a uniform. Clothes shopping is the worst.
• think the best thing to do on super-nice days is throw the windows open and nap.

Check out Airing My Dirty Laundry to see what else is okay!

Menu Plan Monday

Nothing to major on this week's menu. It's so much easier to have simple dinners that my family will actually eat! And now that it's warm, I can't wait to break out the propane and propane accessories (name that cartoon!)  and grill out!

Here's what we're eating...

Monday - BLTs
Tuesday - Chicken Enchiladas
Wednesday- French Toast
Thursday - Stir Fry
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - BBQ Chicken
Sunday - Cavatini

what are you having this week?

Hey, It's Okay Tuesday!

It's Okay to...

• be a little sad my son doesn't seem to enjoy sports. He has no interest in playing baseball, football, etc. We agreed not to push him into anything he doesn't ask to do, but I still want him to fall under that grubby Little League-er stereotype. He loves to run and wants to do the Turkey Trot 5K with me this year, so maybe I have a little Cross Country runner on my hands!
• be SO ready for the weather to figure out what it's doing. My poor sinuses can't take anymore.
• STREAK! May is Pediatric Stroke Awareness Month. Many of you know that my daughter had a stroke before birth. Every single day in May I'm going to run a mile because my daughter can't. I'm also going to share a pediatric stroke fact on my Facebook account to help raise awareness.

Check out Airing My Dirty Laundry to see what else is okay! 

Menu Plan Monday

Can it really be almost May? After this month, I will have a second grader, a kindergartener and possibly a preschooler (more about this in a different post!) My babies are growing!

I've planned out the menu for the month using this template:

Mondays - Sandwiches
Tuesdays - Mexican
Wednesdays - Breakfast for dinner
Thursday - Asian
Friday - Pizza Friday, of course
Saturday - Mom's favorites
Sunday - Family Favorites

Figuring out what to eat is so much easier when start with a template to follow. I'm also changing my grocery shopping a bit this month. Normally I would make one giant list and buy the groceries to feed my family for two weeks. I only have to go to the grocery store twice a month, but it's a LONG trip and after the first week is over, we are out of bananas, lettuce, milk and other fresh foods and our grocery budget is emptied. So for May, I'm increasing our grocery budget by $100 ($600 instead of $500) and going to the grocery store weekly. The trips will be shorter, I can buy exactly what we need that week and we'll have fresh fruit/veggies more often.

Monday - Burgers (black bean burger for me)
Tuesday - Chicken tacos
Wednesday - Breakfast burritos
Thursday - Sesame noodles and vegetables
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Chicken Parmesan
Sunday - Pot Roast

What are you eating this week?

Are You Sleeping? (And a menu!)

Sleep is an elusive thing at the Rudd household. Our older two do just fine normally, but the little one...ah, that little stinker. She seemed to think that 3 AM was Dance Party time! WOO HOO! She'd finally go back to sleep around 6, which is just in time for me to get the other kids up and ready for school. This arrangement was NOT working for me. We tried co-sleeping. She LOVED sleeping in the "big bed". I did not enjoy sleeping with a bed hog. And we still had our 3 AM dance parties.

A few weeks ago, my older two were on Spring Break. I had them bunk together and started some hardcore "Cry It Out" bootcamp for my little night owl.

To my surprise, it worked! It was so much easier than I expected. She did cry for about an hour the first two nights, but now requests to go to bed. "Bed...sleepy...nigh-night"

I think we were both ready to get a good night's rest on a regular basis.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday - Fast food. We only eat it about twice a month and tonight was treat night!
Tuesday - Cool Ranch Chicken Tostadas
Wednesday - Taco salads
Thursday - Roasted Ranch potatoes and salad
Friday - Pizza Friday!
Saturday - Leftovers