For several months now Bo has wanted to go to school and would occasionally ask me to actually go. Recently, though is has been asking me everyday. I have been saying that I should just do his preschool workbook with him two or three days a week, but it is so easy to not do it because 1) I am not organized or set up 2) don't keep a regular calendar or schedule and 3) don't have the supplies to teach him properly.
So Monday morning I will be going to my local teacher supply store to get a few things to help keep me organized and on schedule. I also want to get a craft/game/song/activity book to get ideas from and use in our "little classroom".
Now, I am going to through this disclaimer in here...Just because I am going to be teaching Bo preschool does not mean I am going to Home school him, but it also doesn't mean that I won't. We haven't decided yet as to what we are going to do once he starts school. I feel there are advantages to both home schooling and public school or a private school. So I guess we will cross that bridge in a year or two.
Now to make things flow at home there are a few changes I will be making to help me stay organized. The first is I will be moving my craft stuff to the guest room closet. That way the closet in out family room can be dedicated to storage for preschool stuff and my Pampered chef office stuff. It will also work better if I move my craft stuff because Bo will be able to sit at my desk in the family room and Joel will be able to read books, color or play toys and I will be able to keep and eye on them both.
I need to work on a "schedule". Something I really suck at. I like having the freedom to do whatever whenever, BUT I know that if I want this to work and be effective I will need to have a schedule in place. I need to decide how long we want to do school, what days we want to do crafts, what field trips we want to take, when we take breaks etc... That is why we will be going to the store tomorrow, so that I can properly plan for the coming months.
Any thought, ideas or suggestions on what curriculum to use, good Dayton field trip destinations, themes, crafts etc..? I am open to all ideas!
Bo is so excited to do school, he really wants to learn! I am excited that he is excited!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Beef Noodle Bake
Tonight I didn't know what to make for dinner, I had a pound of ground beef thawed, and I stared at my cupboards thinking "nothing sounded good." So what did I do? I got online to see if I could find a recipe that sounded good! I found Beef Noodle Bake! It was a huge hit and I must say as I was making the sauce I could have eaten all of it! YUM! So here ya go! Let me know what you think when you try it!
1 pkg Egg noodles cooked and drained
1lb ground beef (Season with your favorite seasoning while browning, I used a southwest seasoning)
1 small onion chopped (I did not have an onion and it tasted fine without it)
2 8oz cans of tomato sauce
1 cup Sour Cream
4 oz Cream Cheese softened and cubed
1 tsp. sugar
2-3 cloves minced garlic or substitute garlic salt
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Brown ground beef with chopped onion and minced garlic until meat is no longer pink. Add cream cheese cubes, tomato sauce, sour cream and sugar. Mix until creamy. In a 9 x 13 pan place half the noodles in bottom of pan and add half the sauce on top of the noodles. sprinkle half the shredded cheese. Repeat layers. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.
Serve with fresh green beans or a tossed salad!
Enjoy!
1 pkg Egg noodles cooked and drained
1lb ground beef (Season with your favorite seasoning while browning, I used a southwest seasoning)
1 small onion chopped (I did not have an onion and it tasted fine without it)
2 8oz cans of tomato sauce
1 cup Sour Cream
4 oz Cream Cheese softened and cubed
1 tsp. sugar
2-3 cloves minced garlic or substitute garlic salt
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Brown ground beef with chopped onion and minced garlic until meat is no longer pink. Add cream cheese cubes, tomato sauce, sour cream and sugar. Mix until creamy. In a 9 x 13 pan place half the noodles in bottom of pan and add half the sauce on top of the noodles. sprinkle half the shredded cheese. Repeat layers. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.
Serve with fresh green beans or a tossed salad!
Enjoy!
Cooking Light!
Ok in my pervious post I talked about the "Cooking Light: Holiday cookbook" and I must say after spending about an hour looking through it my mouth started to water! I haven't tried any of the recipes but man they sure do look good!
couple of cool things about this cookbook:
*Provides you with full menu +additional options for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, dinner for two and more!
* It has a section with recipes to make jams, syrups, cookies and more to use as gifts. It also give recommendations on how to wrap and package the items you make!
* It has an appetizer, side dish, main dish, breads, soups and salads, vegetarian and dessert sections.
* There is a Holiday Entertaining section. Basically your personal party planner with menu, entertaining and decorating ideas!
* The recipes use normal ingredients non of that fake butter stuff. The quantity is what is different compared to the original recipes!
I am seriously in love with this book I am sure everything will taste fabulous! You can get it now on Amazon for as little as $1.99 used. Yes I will be buying mine tonight! I know I will get a lot of use out of it.
If you own this book let me know what you think of it and how you have used it!
couple of cool things about this cookbook:
*Provides you with full menu +additional options for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, dinner for two and more!
* It has a section with recipes to make jams, syrups, cookies and more to use as gifts. It also give recommendations on how to wrap and package the items you make!
* It has an appetizer, side dish, main dish, breads, soups and salads, vegetarian and dessert sections.
* There is a Holiday Entertaining section. Basically your personal party planner with menu, entertaining and decorating ideas!
* The recipes use normal ingredients non of that fake butter stuff. The quantity is what is different compared to the original recipes!
I am seriously in love with this book I am sure everything will taste fabulous! You can get it now on Amazon for as little as $1.99 used. Yes I will be buying mine tonight! I know I will get a lot of use out of it.
If you own this book let me know what you think of it and how you have used it!
New cookbooks!!!
I love to bake bread but sometimes it takes so long and usually when i think of baking bread my day is half over. My friend Sarah recommended this book and I just bought it on Amazon!!!
It is called "Artisan Bread in Five minutes a Day: The discovery that revolutionizes home baking"!
I am so excited to try it and the book should arrive by Friday hopefully!
I also checked out a cookbook from the library today called "Cooking Lite: Holiday Baking"!
I am going to browse through the book and see if it would be worth buying. I am curious to see how they make the deliciousness of the holiday season "lighter". I am not willing sacrifice normal healthy, quality ingredients for plastic fake garbage. So I will be spending the rest of my afternoon browsing this cookbook and maybe get adventurous to try a recipe this afternoon...we'll see.
What are some new recipes or cookbooks you are trying?
It is called "Artisan Bread in Five minutes a Day: The discovery that revolutionizes home baking"!
I am so excited to try it and the book should arrive by Friday hopefully!
I also checked out a cookbook from the library today called "Cooking Lite: Holiday Baking"!
I am going to browse through the book and see if it would be worth buying. I am curious to see how they make the deliciousness of the holiday season "lighter". I am not willing sacrifice normal healthy, quality ingredients for plastic fake garbage. So I will be spending the rest of my afternoon browsing this cookbook and maybe get adventurous to try a recipe this afternoon...we'll see.
What are some new recipes or cookbooks you are trying?
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Make your own Kabobs!
Do you ever get sick of having the same old same old at your BBQ's? I know I do, I can only eat so many burgers, brats and hotdogs before I am so sick of them I never want to eat them again. Tonight we had a BBQ and we did something different for most people. We did make your own kabobs! So I thought I would share with you how to build your own kabobs and give your guests a unique fun experience!
Meat:
You can use pretty much any meat you like. We use Chicken and Steak. Cut meat into 1 inch x 1 inch pieces, place in ziplock bag and add your favorite marinade. I really like the Lawrys marinades that you can get at any major grocery store. You will want the meat to sit in the marinade for a good hour or two. The longer it sits the more tender and flavorful the meat will be!
Veggies:
The possibilities are endless when it comes to veggies. Some of our favorites are:
onions
cherry tomatoes
Bell peppers (all colors)
Zucchini
Squash
The key to the veggies is when you cut them up, don't cut them to small otherwise they will fall off the skewers when they get tender.
Fruit:
Yes we use fruit! There is something about the sweet with the meat and veggies that is to die for! YUM! My favorite fruit is Pineapple and I have been wanting to try Mango!
Once you have everything cut up and marinated place each different item in a bowl and set up an assembly line. Then using skewers add whatever items you want and place on a hot grill! It's that easy!
TIPS***
1) Soak you bamboo or wooden skewers in water at least 30 minutes prior to grilling. This prevents the end of the skewers from burning.
2) When adding the items to the skewers be sure to separate each meat pieces with a veggie or fruit. This helps cook the meat evenly and prevents burning of the veggies.
3) After you have eaten and are done making the kabobs. Throw the remaining meat, fruits and veggies into a grill basket and cook them. More than likely the raw meat juices have come in contact with the fruits and veggies so be sure to cook them if you want to save them...Otherwise throw them out.
Side suggestions:
Rice Pilaf
Potato salad
Chips
Fruit salad
Really you can have anything as a side!
So there you have it! Make your own kabobs! Give them a try and be sure to tell me how they turn out! Happy eating!
Meat:
You can use pretty much any meat you like. We use Chicken and Steak. Cut meat into 1 inch x 1 inch pieces, place in ziplock bag and add your favorite marinade. I really like the Lawrys marinades that you can get at any major grocery store. You will want the meat to sit in the marinade for a good hour or two. The longer it sits the more tender and flavorful the meat will be!
Veggies:
The possibilities are endless when it comes to veggies. Some of our favorites are:
onions
cherry tomatoes
Bell peppers (all colors)
Zucchini
Squash
The key to the veggies is when you cut them up, don't cut them to small otherwise they will fall off the skewers when they get tender.
Fruit:
Yes we use fruit! There is something about the sweet with the meat and veggies that is to die for! YUM! My favorite fruit is Pineapple and I have been wanting to try Mango!
Once you have everything cut up and marinated place each different item in a bowl and set up an assembly line. Then using skewers add whatever items you want and place on a hot grill! It's that easy!
TIPS***
1) Soak you bamboo or wooden skewers in water at least 30 minutes prior to grilling. This prevents the end of the skewers from burning.
2) When adding the items to the skewers be sure to separate each meat pieces with a veggie or fruit. This helps cook the meat evenly and prevents burning of the veggies.
3) After you have eaten and are done making the kabobs. Throw the remaining meat, fruits and veggies into a grill basket and cook them. More than likely the raw meat juices have come in contact with the fruits and veggies so be sure to cook them if you want to save them...Otherwise throw them out.
Side suggestions:
Rice Pilaf
Potato salad
Chips
Fruit salad
Really you can have anything as a side!
So there you have it! Make your own kabobs! Give them a try and be sure to tell me how they turn out! Happy eating!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Birth Story!
Wednesday September 29th at 8:00 in the evening my mom, Jason and I arrived at the hospital for me to be induced.
I was being induced with a Foley Bulb. I had never heard of it before but it sounded less painful than getting straight cervadel and pitocin. Basically the Doctor places this bulb looking thing on my cervix and water is pumped into it and it will dilate me to 4 cm and the bulb would fall out. Then if contractions haven't started on there own by then I would then start a low dosage of pitocin. I started the evening off with having some blood drawn for lab work and then the Foley bulb was put in place. One of the labs came back and it showed I was low on Potassium, so I was given a supplement to last through the night and then when they start my IV in the morning I would be given potassium through that.
After talking with the doctor and nurses they said that even if the Foley bulb came out in the middle of the night they would not start pitocin or do anything really until at least 8:00 in the morning. So at 11:00 my mom went home to get some sleep and would come back in the morning. Jason and I then tried to get some sleep...Jason slept a bit but I had a hard time actually sleeping. The anticipation alone was enough to keep me up but I also had to pee every hour or so.
At about 3:00 in the morning the "contractions" that I had been feeling from the Foley bulb suddenly disappeared...I woke Jason up and told him that I think the bulb fell out. He said to try and get some sleep because they weren't going to do anything anyways. I managed to sleep from 3 till 5:00 when the nurses came in to draw some more blood and to remove the Foley bulb. I then couldn't fall back asleep and the nurses suggested that I take a shower and order some breakfast before they start me on the IV and Pitocin. By 7:00 I was eating breakfast and Jason was taking a shower. He then went downstairs to get some breakfast for himself.
The doctor and nurses came in at 8:00 and discussed how everything would go for the day and checked me to see how I was progressing. I was 4 cm 60% effaced and the baby was at -2 station. They then started me on a low dosage of pitocin at 8:15....My labor is officially starting. The contractions I was having were very mild and extremely manageable...I was even like "they can increase the pitocin" My mom and dad arrived with Bo and Joel at about 8:45 and they hung out for awhile. My dad took the boys home at about 12:30 so they could eat and get in a nap.
The nurse was increasing my pitocin every hour or so, but my contractions seemed to pick up for a bit and then die back down, every time the doctor checked me I was always about the same 4-5 cm 60-70% effaced and the baby was at -2 station. Uhg....at about 3:00 in the afternoon the midwife came in to check me to see if I had progressed enough for them to break my water. I was 6cm 70-80% effaced and the baby was still at -2 station. She did break my water and I could instantly feel my contractions get harder and stronger. I knew I wanted to get an epidural but I didn't need it just yet but I decided to have them call the anesthesiologist so that by the time I did need it they would be up there. Well after about 15 minutes she was there ready to give me the epidural so I went ahead and got it. I felt like it took awhile to start working...I could feel it working on my right side but not so much on my left. My contractions were getting stronger and closer together, still manageable for the most part, but definitely increasing in intensity. After about 45 minutes or so of trying to get my left side numb and under control I decided to have the doctor adjust the epidural. Contractions were starting to get to the unbearable stage. The doctor explained that I was having a Hot Spot, were the epidural was not reaching that part of my left side for whatever reason. She then adjusted it and gave me another dose of the medicine. The midwife checked me again and I was pretty much the same. 7 cm 80% effaced and the baby was at -2 -1 station. I was getting really frustrated.
The epidural was still not working on my left side. My contractions were really intense and I was extremely uncomfortable. The anesthesiologist said that she could try removing the existing epidural and placing a new one. I was nervous about doing it because the doc said it may or may not work. I knew I wanted it to work while I was pushing and the thought of not having one made me a little nervous. Jason then said to just do it. So by this time it is 6:00 and the doctor gave me a new epidural and gave me several doses of the medicine. 6:20 the new on is placed and is still not working...The contractions were unbearable and I was in sooo much pain on my left side. I was at the "I can't do this anymore" panicking stage.
It is now 6:40 and the nurse asks me if I have the urge to push I say no but i can't really feel anything. My right side was really numb because I had so much of the epidural trying to get my left side numb. The nurse then says she is going to check me since I can't feel anything.
The next 5 minutes were a whirlwind. The nurse was like "Holy cow we have a baby. She is at +3 station." My doctor was in a C-section and non of the staff doctors or pediatricians were there. Since it was taking me so long to progress they were all off seeing other patients. In a matter of 5 minutes there were so many people in and out of my room. I was in so much pain. It hurt so bad I couldn't cry and I felt like vomiting. It was chaos in my room, the door was open and people were walking in and out. Since I was delivering early they needed to have the staff doctors and pediatricians in my room just in case anything went wrong. My doctor walks in and she throws on a gown says push and she catches the baby. Seriously one push that's all it took. 6:55pm and she was out!
My doctor places her on my chest and things are looking good. Everybody was crying, Jason, me, my mom, the baby...All was looking good. Jason leans over and we both decide on her name Quinn Kaia Bindewald, needless to say my mom was happy! Quinn was perfect weighing in at 6lbs 12ozs 18 3/4 inches long.
The doctor got me all cleaned up and then Bo, Joel, my dad and brothers came into the room. Bo was very happy to see his baby sister. Joel was a little uneasy and wasn't sure what was going on. They all stayed for about 20 minutes and then my mom and dad took them all home.
At about 7:00 Jason ordered us a pizza! After we were done eating I got up and took a shower and Jason started moving my things to the recovery room.
I felt amazing. I was not sore and I did not feel like I just had a baby. I was tired however. Jason got Quinn and I all settled in the recovery room and then her headed home to sleep. I was able to nurse Quinn almost right away after giving birth and she was a pro! I nursed her once we were in the new room and then we slept.
Quinn was doing great. She did loose a little bit of weight and when we left the hospital on Saturday she weighed 6lbs 5ozs. It was so great to be home...Sleeping in my own bed. When I woke up Sunday morning my back was a little sore and my stomach muscle were sore from getting up so much during the night. I still don't feel like I had a baby, I have been out and about and up and moving. Adding the 3rd child has been an easy transition. The boys are in Love with Quinn. They want to hold her and kiss her and hug her! Bo wants to go buy her toys...LOL
My mom left on Thursday morning and it was great having her here to help with everything. Jason's mom is getting here on Friday night and it will be great having her here as well!
Anyways, I think that does it. Uffda!
I was being induced with a Foley Bulb. I had never heard of it before but it sounded less painful than getting straight cervadel and pitocin. Basically the Doctor places this bulb looking thing on my cervix and water is pumped into it and it will dilate me to 4 cm and the bulb would fall out. Then if contractions haven't started on there own by then I would then start a low dosage of pitocin. I started the evening off with having some blood drawn for lab work and then the Foley bulb was put in place. One of the labs came back and it showed I was low on Potassium, so I was given a supplement to last through the night and then when they start my IV in the morning I would be given potassium through that.
After talking with the doctor and nurses they said that even if the Foley bulb came out in the middle of the night they would not start pitocin or do anything really until at least 8:00 in the morning. So at 11:00 my mom went home to get some sleep and would come back in the morning. Jason and I then tried to get some sleep...Jason slept a bit but I had a hard time actually sleeping. The anticipation alone was enough to keep me up but I also had to pee every hour or so.
At about 3:00 in the morning the "contractions" that I had been feeling from the Foley bulb suddenly disappeared...I woke Jason up and told him that I think the bulb fell out. He said to try and get some sleep because they weren't going to do anything anyways. I managed to sleep from 3 till 5:00 when the nurses came in to draw some more blood and to remove the Foley bulb. I then couldn't fall back asleep and the nurses suggested that I take a shower and order some breakfast before they start me on the IV and Pitocin. By 7:00 I was eating breakfast and Jason was taking a shower. He then went downstairs to get some breakfast for himself.
The doctor and nurses came in at 8:00 and discussed how everything would go for the day and checked me to see how I was progressing. I was 4 cm 60% effaced and the baby was at -2 station. They then started me on a low dosage of pitocin at 8:15....My labor is officially starting. The contractions I was having were very mild and extremely manageable...I was even like "they can increase the pitocin" My mom and dad arrived with Bo and Joel at about 8:45 and they hung out for awhile. My dad took the boys home at about 12:30 so they could eat and get in a nap.
The nurse was increasing my pitocin every hour or so, but my contractions seemed to pick up for a bit and then die back down, every time the doctor checked me I was always about the same 4-5 cm 60-70% effaced and the baby was at -2 station. Uhg....at about 3:00 in the afternoon the midwife came in to check me to see if I had progressed enough for them to break my water. I was 6cm 70-80% effaced and the baby was still at -2 station. She did break my water and I could instantly feel my contractions get harder and stronger. I knew I wanted to get an epidural but I didn't need it just yet but I decided to have them call the anesthesiologist so that by the time I did need it they would be up there. Well after about 15 minutes she was there ready to give me the epidural so I went ahead and got it. I felt like it took awhile to start working...I could feel it working on my right side but not so much on my left. My contractions were getting stronger and closer together, still manageable for the most part, but definitely increasing in intensity. After about 45 minutes or so of trying to get my left side numb and under control I decided to have the doctor adjust the epidural. Contractions were starting to get to the unbearable stage. The doctor explained that I was having a Hot Spot, were the epidural was not reaching that part of my left side for whatever reason. She then adjusted it and gave me another dose of the medicine. The midwife checked me again and I was pretty much the same. 7 cm 80% effaced and the baby was at -2 -1 station. I was getting really frustrated.
The epidural was still not working on my left side. My contractions were really intense and I was extremely uncomfortable. The anesthesiologist said that she could try removing the existing epidural and placing a new one. I was nervous about doing it because the doc said it may or may not work. I knew I wanted it to work while I was pushing and the thought of not having one made me a little nervous. Jason then said to just do it. So by this time it is 6:00 and the doctor gave me a new epidural and gave me several doses of the medicine. 6:20 the new on is placed and is still not working...The contractions were unbearable and I was in sooo much pain on my left side. I was at the "I can't do this anymore" panicking stage.
It is now 6:40 and the nurse asks me if I have the urge to push I say no but i can't really feel anything. My right side was really numb because I had so much of the epidural trying to get my left side numb. The nurse then says she is going to check me since I can't feel anything.The next 5 minutes were a whirlwind. The nurse was like "Holy cow we have a baby. She is at +3 station." My doctor was in a C-section and non of the staff doctors or pediatricians were there. Since it was taking me so long to progress they were all off seeing other patients. In a matter of 5 minutes there were so many people in and out of my room. I was in so much pain. It hurt so bad I couldn't cry and I felt like vomiting. It was chaos in my room, the door was open and people were walking in and out. Since I was delivering early they needed to have the staff doctors and pediatricians in my room just in case anything went wrong. My doctor walks in and she throws on a gown says push and she catches the baby. Seriously one push that's all it took. 6:55pm and she was out!
My doctor places her on my chest and things are looking good. Everybody was crying, Jason, me, my mom, the baby...All was looking good. Jason leans over and we both decide on her name Quinn Kaia Bindewald, needless to say my mom was happy! Quinn was perfect weighing in at 6lbs 12ozs 18 3/4 inches long.
The doctor got me all cleaned up and then Bo, Joel, my dad and brothers came into the room. Bo was very happy to see his baby sister. Joel was a little uneasy and wasn't sure what was going on. They all stayed for about 20 minutes and then my mom and dad took them all home.
At about 7:00 Jason ordered us a pizza! After we were done eating I got up and took a shower and Jason started moving my things to the recovery room.
I felt amazing. I was not sore and I did not feel like I just had a baby. I was tired however. Jason got Quinn and I all settled in the recovery room and then her headed home to sleep. I was able to nurse Quinn almost right away after giving birth and she was a pro! I nursed her once we were in the new room and then we slept.
Quinn was doing great. She did loose a little bit of weight and when we left the hospital on Saturday she weighed 6lbs 5ozs. It was so great to be home...Sleeping in my own bed. When I woke up Sunday morning my back was a little sore and my stomach muscle were sore from getting up so much during the night. I still don't feel like I had a baby, I have been out and about and up and moving. Adding the 3rd child has been an easy transition. The boys are in Love with Quinn. They want to hold her and kiss her and hug her! Bo wants to go buy her toys...LOL
My mom left on Thursday morning and it was great having her here to help with everything. Jason's mom is getting here on Friday night and it will be great having her here as well!
Anyways, I think that does it. Uffda!
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