Giving a Meal

When I first signed up to bring a meal to a family in need, I really didn't know what I was doing.  All I knew was that I wanted to help!  After the Peanut was born, though, several people brought meals to me, which really helped me see the best ways to do it.  I thought I'd share some suggestions here, in case you're wanting to help out a friend by bringing them a meal!

Meals are a great gift for people who are going through a difficult time (death of a family member, someone in the hospital, etc.) or who are facing a major life change (having a baby, for example).  It's a wonderful way to bless someone!  And it's such a blessing to give someone a meal.

Here are my suggestions when bringing someone a meal {and then I'll give you an example of a meal I gave - - you can copy mine or make your own!}:

Know about any allergies or dietary restrictions
It would be terrible to make a meatloaf for a vegetarian, or tuna noodle casserole for someone who doesn't like fish!  Find out if there are any allergies or other dietary restriction in the family before you plan your meal.  It will save everyone a lot of grief.

Be on time
...and coordinate a time!  Find out when the family usually eats dinner, and have the meal to them on time.  If it's something they'll have to pop in the oven (which I recommend), make sure they have enough time to preheat the oven and bake your meal before their normal meal time.  If you are running late, call and let them know when you'll be there so they don't have the little ones strapped into their high chairs for 30 minutes promising them food that is coming (yes, this has happened to me!).  If you are notoriously a late person, you could always deliver a meal early to go into the fridge or freezer for that evening or another day!

Include all of the food groups
Grain, Meat, Veggie, Fruit, and of course a dessert!

Double what you're making for your family
This is the best way I've found to give someone a meal.  Make double of what you're making for your family, and bring it over before dinner time (or the next day, if it'll keep).  It's so much easier than making an extra meal on top of what you are eating!

The meal I most recently gifted was ziti, salad, bread, and brownies for a family of 4 plus an infant.  I made a large ziti for their family (9X13), which I actually ended up thinking might have been a little too much food for them, and a smaller one for us (8X8).  I have shared the recipes for the ziti and the brownies before.  A bagged salad and a pre-sliced loaf of bread made this meal complete!

I was also sure to label everything that I made - - and I wrote instructions on the ziti of how to bake.

 

Then I bagged everything up (the ziti didn't fit) and headed over!  Notice everything was in containers that nobody would expect to have to return.  Not even cheap tupperware - - it gives a new mother or someone going through a tough time an extra step: dishes.  Ideally, if they wanted to, they could bake this, use paper or plastic dishes and silverware and not have any clean-up afterwards!

 

There you have it!  Happy giving!

York Peppermint Patties Brownies

Oh.  My.  Goodness!  So easy!  So yummy!

Ingredients:
- York Peppermint Patties
- Brownie Mix
- Whatever the Brownie Mix calls for

Step One:
Mix up the brownie mix according to package instructions.

Step Two:
Pour half of the batter into greased pan.

Step Three:
Place York Peppermint Patties on batter in pan.

Step Four:
Pour the rest of the batter on top of patties.  It won't spread as naturally as the first layer because you don't want to move the peppermint patties around as you spread the batter.  Bake according to package directions, and enjoy!

Ziti Recipe



Yummy, Yummy Ziti!!

 

This is where I got the original recipe, though I made some changes.

Ingredients:
1/2 box ziti or other pasta of choice
Splash of Vegetable Oil
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 pepper, chopped
2 tsp minced garlic (or 2 garlic cloves)
3/4 jar of spaghetti sauce
4 slices provolone cheese
1/4 cup plus a little more sour cream
1/4 cup plus a little more ricotta cheese
1/2 bag of mozzarella cheese (6oz bag)
A few shakes of grated parmesan cheese

Step One: Cook Pasta
Like normal.  Nothing to it :)

Step Two: Make Sauce
Put a splash of veggie oil in a saucepan and toss in that diced onion and chopped pepper.  Cook until they're soft.  You might want to put the pepper in before the onion to let it cook a little more - - your choice.  Then add the garlic and cook another minute or two.  When that's done and all mixed together, pour in the sauce and let it heat up.

Step Three: Layers
In a greased 8X8 pan...
1st Layer: Pasta
2nd Layer: Provolone Cheese
3rd Layer: Sour Cream
4th Layer: Ricotta Cheese
5th Layer: Sauce
6th Layer: Mozzarella and Parmesan Cheese

You might also want to try adding Italian Seasoning and/or bread crumbs!

Step Four: Bake!
Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes (uncovered), until cheese is browning!  It's so yummy!

Happy Cooking!

10 Reasons why I love NOT Owning a House

Sometimes it's hard looking into the future and not knowing when we'll be able to buy a house.  So it helps to look at all the things we love about renting, and to enjoy it while we can!  Because once we buy a house, none of these things will ring true - - probably ever again!

#1 - I feel safe
When I hear the neighbors next door, it makes me feel safe knowing that someone is there.  If I screamed, they'd hear.  When I hear a noise in the apartment, I can convince myself that it was the neighbors and not get freaked out.

#2 - It's less work
When something breaks, we don't have to fix it!  One call to maintenance and they're here unplugging the toilet, replacing the window lock, putting new batteries in the smoke detector (yes, I've called them to do this), or even installing our window air conditioner (all things we've actually had them do within the past year)!

#3 - It's less expensive
When something breaks, we don't have to pay for it (unless we broke it because of misuse, of course).

#4 - It's less expensive
We don't pay property taxes.

#5 - Did I mention it's less expensive??
Rent is significantly cheaper than a mortgage - - AND we're not in debt because of a house!  We're not paying interest each month, we're just paying to live here.

#6 - It forces us to simplify
Because we don't have much storage space, we don't have much stuff!  When we don't have room for something in the storage area, we have to get rid of something.  And I love it when that happens - - because it makes us think about how we might be able to bless someone even when we don't have much ourselves!  Baby clothes, furniture, DVDs, and games are all something that other people might be able to use that we just don't have the space for.

#7 - It's easier to clean
Smaller space means less time cleaning!  AND I don't have to worry about cleaning/painting the outside of our home, because that's done for us!

#8 - It's more sociable
When I go to get the mail, I run into my neighbors because we share a mailbox.  When my son plays in the back yard, he makes friends because we share a backyard with our neighbors.  It's much easier to get to know each other than if we had our own house.

#9 - There are rules
I know this may seem like a reason to want a house, and sometimes it is - - but I think that the rules put in place can actually be beneficial for our family.  For example, there's a no smoking in the apartments rule.  Now, we're not smokers - - and we don't plan to be.  But even if we wanted to, we'd have to take it outside.  In the dead of winter?  No thanks!  There's also a no pets rule.  By now we would have adopted a dog.  Trust me - - we don't need a dog right now.  Thank you, rules!

#10 - It will make me appreciate having a house even more when we get there
Right now is not the right time for us to own a house.  And that's okay!  The time we spend renting is preparing us for what's ahead.  I'm glad we are where we are right now, and I'm glad we're headed where we're headed!

Best Feeding Method for my Family

DISCLAIMER: This post includes MY opinions about what works best for MY family in terms of feeding.  I don't judge you, you don't judge me.  Okay?  {By reading on you are agreeing to not judge} :)  Thanks!

When my Peanut was born, I planned to try breastfeeding.  Once breastfeeding was going well, I made it my goal to nurse him for 6 months (and in the back of my mind, if I made it to 3 months I would consider that a huge success!).

Well, the Peanut got his first taste of formula at 2 months, 2 weeks, and 5 days old.  And let me tell you, it's the best thing I've done for our family since coming home from the hospital!

I love that I exclusively breastfed for as long as I did.  I'm proud of myself for making it that long - - significantly longer than I made it with the Love Bug!  I know that "Breast is Best."  I'm not arguing with that - - it just makes sense that the best nutrition for my baby would be what God gave me to feed him!  Doy, people.  God knows what He's doing!  But for my family, right now, a combination of breastmilk AND {brace yourself} formula is best.

When I was exclusively breastfeeding, I was in a slump.  I don't want to go so far as to say I hated breastfeeding, but... well, I hated breastfeeding.  I formula-fed my firstborn, so I was used to being able to look into my son's eyes while feeding him.  I couldn't do that while breastfeeding.  I also couldn't leave the house without pumping my brains out, which made it so difficult to do anything that made me feel like a normal human being.  I didn't like being the only one who could feed him, because I also wanted to be able to make dinner each night, regardless of when the Peanut needed to be fed.

After two months of feeling more like a milk maid than a mom, I finally talked to my husband about introducing formula.  Here's what we came up with:

I would nurse him when he woke up first thing in the morning (usually between 6-7am)
He would get bottles of formula all through the day, until 7pm
I would pump during nap time
I would nurse him at bedtime (7pm) and throughout the night whenever he woke up (usually between 11:30-12:30 and 3-4am when we started out)
The milk I pump is being saved in the freezer for the day he does turn 6 months old and I really am done with breastfeeding all together - - that way, he'll still be able to get at least a little breastmilk after I'm done.

OH.  MY.  GOODNESS.  What a difference it made!  Not only am I happier, but my kids have their mama back.  I can now cherish the time I spend holding my Peanut for his feedings.  I can look him in the eye and he'll even stop once in a while to smile at me.  He's still getting the nutrients of my breastmilk, without making me feel like a milkmaid all day long.  I can bring him to the babysitter and go to work without pumping while I get dressed in the morning.  And hubby can feed him, too!

Happy baby AND mama after first taste of formula!

This is what is working for our family.  I know that Breast is Best, and that's why he's still getting that milky goodness, too.  If you're considering stopping breastfeeding, I encourage you to consider a similar schedule, where you nurse half the time and use formula the other half.  Be aware of what it will do to your milk supply, though!  I anticipate I'll be done nursing and pumping by the time he's 6 months old (which is the way I want it - - but make sure you are okay with what it will do to your body).  Do your research!  Here are some links that really helped me:

Breastfeeding vs Formula Feeding Infographic
The Common Misconceptions of Formula Feeding Mothers
How I Stored 300 ounces of Breastmilk in 3 Months
Timeline of a Breastfed Baby

Happy feeding - however you choose!

The Things I Love Most About My Husband

Picture Source: http://www.msruntheus.com/above-all-love-each-other-deeply/

1. He's goofy
2. He's tall
3. His goatee (even though I complain about it a lot)
4. He is a wonderful father
5. He and I fit together like two puzzle pieces
6. When he tells a 15-minute story that anyone else could tell in 2
7. I can beat him at Killer Bunnies ;) ;)
8. His purity
9. His dedication to our family
10. The fact that he cannot pull off a polo - - and he knows it
11. How he provides for our family
12. The kids he gave me
13. His family, my in-laws
14. His idea of a good time is sitting at home watching Netflix
15. He steps in and helps with the kids all the time
16. He is sensitive to my needs: emotional, physical, spiritual
17. He trusts in God
18. He's the hottest man I know!
19. He's my best friend
20. He's my favorite person to sit around the house with
21. He likes my cooking
22. He takes care of all of us
23. He cooks for us once in a while - and enjoys it!
24. ...and there's so, so much more!

Happy 26th birthday, my love! XO

Family Prayer Board

"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them." ~ Deuteronomy 4:9 (NIV)

We have been trying so hard to pray as a family.  It's hard sometimes, though, to remember what we should be praying for - - and who we should be praying for.  I feel like so often I tell people I will pray for them - - and I always say a quick prayer right then, but I don't always follow through and continue to pray for them.

I came up with this idea while changing my son's diaper, actually - don't ask me why.  I wanted to make a display where we could write down things that we should be praying for.  Whenever someone asks for prayer, or whenever we have something that we should be praying about (or praising God for, certainly!) we now have somewhere to write it down.

All I did was bought a chalkboard from Staples, then used white paint to write "Prayers" on it.  Now we can write our prayers on the board, and we see them all the time.  Whenever we see it, we can say a prayer.