My Starving Kids

Well, it finally happened.  Another kid went home and talked about my kid's lunches, Hattie's to be exact. You think this day would have put a big smile on my face and made me think, "Wow, someone noticed the healthiness and love I pour into my kid's lunches."  Here was the conversation I had with Hattie's friend's mother.
I was dropping Hattie off at a birthday party.  The mom asked if I would like to eat anything.  I told her no because I didn't feel very well.  I went on to tell her that I feel yucky most weekends and think it is because we tend to cheat with our meals when we eat out, and we had done so the night before OR I felt yucky because I get carsick from reading my phone while Eric drives on the weekends.  This was her next sentence, "Yeah, J- said that she feels so sorry for Hattie because the food she brings for lunch is disgusting, and she thinks Hattie is starving to death."  She went on to tell me that Hattie wouldn't be able to eat any of the food at the party and she would get in trouble for eating any candy.  I didn't smile.  I cracked up laughing. I know Hattie's lunches look very different to the kids around her, but Hattie mostly likes the food.  It is out of the norm compared to the other lunches in her class.  I've talked to my girls about this and told them that we eat differently than some people.  It doesn't make any of us wrong or right, it is just different choices.  I also assured the lady that I don't punish my kids for eating something else.  In fact I tell them that we eat whatever other people serve us, but at home we can choose our own food.  We eat gluten and sugary stuff at church every Wednesday night.  We also don't scrutinize over what is eaten at our church fellowships each month.  We eat what we want.  I still chuckle thinking about what J- said.

For the record, the girls have not lost weight.  I go visit Hattie during lunch, and she is eating.  Neither of the girls finish everything, but they admit it is because they run out of time (socializing too much).  I did have a major dud this week.  Cucumber slices with turkey between them are not yummy.  I apologized to them and said, "Mommy isn't always going to get things right.  Now we know to scratch that meal off our list."

Here is our menu for this week.  I even included some gluten!

Monday- Rotisserie Chicken and cheese quessadillas, homemade refried beans in a thermos (in slow cooker right now), apples with dip

Tuesday- Rotisserie chicken, spinach, and hummus pita sandwiches, cucumbers and ranch, and melons

Wednesday- Baked potatoes (Emogene's birthday meal), and apples and dip

Thursday- Red bean soup in the thermos (red beans and rice without the rice), smoothie with spinach added, and melons

Friday- apple sandwiches, pickled quail eggs, spinach and feta salad, seeds mix

I hope this helps someone other than me.

The Mother Hen

The Salon is Open

Hattie opened her salon today.  She provided hair fixin', massage, nail painting, and exercise.  She offered each service for 25 cents or 2 for $1.  I'm not sure she did the math on that one.  I spent 75 cents by the end of the day.  I'm sure you can guess which service I passed on.  I think she is pretty creative with her ways to make money, because there is NO way I'm passing up a massage at that price.  Hattie gives hand massages for free during church.  She just grabs your hand and starts massaging it without you asking.  It is awesome.  Eric and I are trying to get her to think about becoming a physical therapist.

 Lydda borrowed 25 cents from Eric to get her hair done.

 This was Hattie's money and supply cabinet.  

We were told if we looked in it, we could never come back.

 This is the exercise room.  I didn't visit it.

I had my nails done. Hattie provided the nail drying.

I spent the other 50 cents on a back massage and foot and leg massage.

Eric said he paid 25 cents to have someone beat the tar out of his back.

I enjoyed my massage.  Someone can't handle the pain.

I sure hope she is open next weekend too.

This Week's Lunches

We bought an enormous 11 pound pork roast and slow cooked it all night.  It will be our main dish for 3 days (four meals).  We will probably get sick of it, but we saved some money.  We ate it as tacos for lunch and dinner today.  Tomorrow night it will be in omelets, and Tuesday night, homemade BBQ sauce will be added.  Lydda is already complaining.  She didn't eat any of the meat for either meal today.  That child really cracks me up with her vegetarian ways.  She survived today mostly on homemade salsa and chips.  She had beans too.  Protein entered her body.  All is good.

Here is our lunch list for this week.  We are fans of a chicken salad found at a small grocery store near us.  I bought it as a treat for the girls and for me.  Eric also made the girls' favorite homemade pecan crusted chicken tenders.  You'll see both of these in our lunches this week.

Monday: chicken salad and 1 chicken tender, raisins, carrots and ranch

Tuesday: turkey and cheese wraps, apples and dip (almond butter mixed with Justin's chocolate hazelnut spread), nuts, smoothie, spinach and feta

Wednesday: apple and almond butter sandwiches, smoothies, nuts and dark chocolate covered almonds, tomatoes and thai cucumbers

Thursday: cucumber, tomato, and turkey stackers, grapes, hummus, carrots, pickled quail eggs

Friday: Taco Soup (a favorite), pickled quail eggs, smoothies

I hope this helps someone.  The girls are loving the lunches and I love knowing they are eating healthy.

My Hubby, Vector

He refuses to bring home the Squid Launcher.  Fun ruiner!

John Lennon?

- by Lydda

I see John Lennon. Do you?

Volleyball STAR!

Emogene has worked so hard and is improving so much in volleyball.

Her coach has been encouraging and Emogene was determined.

Serving it over the net was such a hard thing for her, but she finally did it and keeps doing it.

I'm so proud of her determination and dedication.

A Weekend of Change

She was super nervous and stalled the process A LOT. 

Introducing the brand new Hattie!

She got glasses last weekend and got her ears pierced (again).

The ears were a treat for doing so well on her last spelling test.

She has to work extra hard to do well, and she did it!

Yummy, Scrummy, Deliciousness, Iciousness!

Did you know that my husband loves me?  Not only does he tell me, but he shows me everyday.

He made me such a delicious lunch the other day.  I smiled at him with my mouth full of food, my eyes rolled back in my head, and imagined this meal served in heaven. 

We cooked a pork roast in the crock all day the day before.  We ate lettuce wraps and soft corn tortilla tacos with it for lunch and dinner.  Eric then made me an omelet with the leftovers. Do you see that salsa on the side?  Homemade by ME!  The Pioneer Woman has the best salsa recipe.  My best friend tried it for the first time and went coocoo over it.

Why is my omelet green you ask?  That would be the spinach I threw in the blender with the eggs.  I will probably do that for my class on Dr. Seuss Day.  Spinach is much better for them than food coloring.    

I'm requesting this meal for next week as well.  

A Rare Picture

What!  A picture of me!  That almost never happens on here.

Guilty!

Why yes, I do still treat my kids to horrible sugar candy ring pops. 

I'm sure they will have the cavities to go with it.

They were being good and still during Emogene's volleyball game too.  Worth it!

They also had a fruit smoothie, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and dried bananas and strawberries.

They pigged out!  Then the game started.  In hind sight, I should have waited to break out the snack bag.  

We did avoid the concession stand though.  It helped that the concession stand was closed.

Pretend Play

We went to a birthday party and pretended for 2 hours.  The girls loved it!

They were waiting to put on a play for us.  They said it was Romeo and Juliet.  

Emogene said, "Romeo and Juliet or Gnomeo and Juliet?"

She was relieved to hear it was Gnomeo and Juliet.  Emogene said, "Oh good!  We don't have to die."

When it came time for Juliet (Emogene) to kiss Romeo (2-3 year old Nathan), Emogene said, "I can't kiss him!  I don't even know him!"

Nathan's sister said, "This is Nathan.  Now you can kiss him."

It was so funny.  Emogene told me later that she didn't actually kiss him.  

Next Week's Lunches

I didn't take a single picture of last week's lunches.  I figured you didn't need a picture.  If you want to try to make the same lunches, you can just look at the list.

I have found a favorite snack the girls beg for daily.  I have never tried them, because they sound nasty to me.  They are PICKLED QUAIL EGGS!  I know! Strange kids!  They are a bit pricey too, but I searched the ingredients and it is all good for them things.  They get three in their lunch bag.

Here is our next menu:
Monday- Fruit smoothie, nuts, ham and cheese roll ups, a little hummus and cucumbers
Tuesday- Balsamic chicken thighs (leftover from Monday's dinner), carrots and ranch, apples and almond butter
Wednesday- Spinach, apple and feta salad with ham rolls, boiled egg, cucumbers and ranch
Thursday- tuna fish salad, grapes, smoothies, nuts and seeds
Friday- I'm giving in to the kids on this day.  Baked potatoes, cheese, bacon, cantaloupe and honeydew

This might help you or not.

This week, Emogene said, "Since you changed how we eat, I noticed I have more energy and feel better during volleyball practice."  Eric and I high-fived each other when she left the room.

I have plans for a pulled pork lettuce wrap next week.  Yummy!  We are having them for supper tonight.

John McEnroe, Watch Out!

Not the best picture, but it'll do.

We took the girls to a Tennis Carnival.  It was free and the rackets were provided.  I thought, why not?  They've never played before, and I love tennis.  

It was a lot of fun.  Emogene and Hattie played together, and Lydda was in the youngest group.  Two of the coaches asked about Lydda.  They said she had talent.  I imagined them saying "Child Prodigy."  To top it off, Lydda LOVED it.  I decided tennis was going to be our new thing.  We were told about a tennis program every Saturday that provided the racket and only cost $2 a child.  WOW!  I was in!  We have gone three Saturdays in a row.  We leave the house at 7:45am.  That is a bit early for a Saturday, but Eric and I are both in agreement, our girls need to be active.  I'm not insistent that they do an organized and competitive sport, but I am insistent that they stay active.  It helps that Eric and I love to play tennis.  We aren't good, but we have fun.  

The joke is on us a little though.  Lydda refuses to get out there and do any tennis.  Here are her reasons:

1. The racket was the wrong color.

2.  The net was wrong.

3.  It was the wrong tennis.

4.  She only wants to play as a family.  (This is my favorite excuse.)

We went out and bought rackets for all the girls.  We dug out our 15 year old rackets from the garage and started playing at the old high school by our house.  I'm not sure if they are getting good at the sport, but we manage to laugh a lot.  It must be pretty hard to hit yourself in the eye with the ball while serving, but Hattie has mastered it.  We will keep playing and trying to improve.  Maybe one day Lydda will join the Saturday practice.  We will keep trying.

Wednesday and Thursday's Lunches

I have had a great week of lunch creations.  Not too many complaints either.

What did I discover after my first week?

I found that I need to buy more fruit for next week, or buy more for after school snacks.  

The girls raided the fridge after school and went straight for the fruit.

I needed strawberries for lunches twice and was out of them.  Thankfully I had bought a bag of dried strawberries as a special treat for the girls.  I used them for three days.  

I also gave them a lot of cantaloupe for breakfast and almost ran out for lunch.  Two cantaloupes will be perfect for next week. 

  

This lunch was a good one.  It included a basil cashew chicken salad, carrots and ranch, hazelnut butter with dried strawberries, and a fruit smoothie.

I LOVED the Greek olives I included on top of the salad.  It was a teenie sample packet I bought.  Em and Hat both ate one and hated them.  I was sad.  It was going to be a great snack item for them in the future.

The smoothie was a favorite for both.  They both complained it wasn't cold enough though.  The next day I added two extra freezer packs.  Emogene's was just right.  Hattie's was too frozen.  They eat an hour apart.  I'll have to put less packs in Hattie's lunch bag.   

I loved the plastic jewel toothpicks the most in this lunch.  I made sure they saved them to use again.

They had ham and cheese rolls, fruit smoothie, grapes and cantaloupe with a honey vanilla yogurt dip. and nuts and dried fruit.  I included a water and Larabar in their lunch bag each day as an extra snack if they were still hungry.  They rarely ever ate it.

 I have a friend that wants to know what I'm fixing so she can make it for her kiddos, so I thought I would post it here for others.  I'm not the best at it, but I'm trying to have fun.  Here is my menu for next week.

Monday: apple and almond butter sandwiches, cheese slices, cucumbers and ranch, and a boiled egg.  I'm going to surprise them with some gourmet popcorn they love too.

Tuesday: ham and avocado wraps for one (ham and spinach wraps for other), strawberries and cantaloupe, nut mix, and dark chocolate covered almonds

Wednesday:  hot meatballs in a thermos, zucchini "noodles," carrots and ranch, gourmet popcorn, and grapes

Thursday:  rotisserie chicken and cheese kabobs,  nut mix with dark chocolate covered almonds,  cucumbers and ranch, dried apricots

Friday: rotisserie chicken, hummus,  fruit smoothie, spinach salad with feta, cucumbers, and balsamic dressing

Maybe this will help someone other than me and my friend Lara.  Now I can start my grocery list.

Have a wonderful weekend.  I'm going on a date with my hubby:).  What are you doing?

Tuesday's Lunch

I "mustache" you a question.  Will they eat all of it?

We bought a rotisserie chicken from Walmart to use for lunches this week.  Today, I used it to make cheese and chicken skewers made with cute mustache toothpicks (Walmart).  Eric made a honey mustard dipping sauce.  They also got cucumbers and a little hummus for dipping.  I then added cantaloupe and yogurt.  We are trying to stick with plain Greek yogurt, and then add our own flavors.  Hattie sneaked into the fridge and ate all our fresh strawberries today.  It was a healthy snack, but I needed it this week.  I had some dried strawberries in the cabinet that I added with some honey too.  I made myself a little bit to try it and it was good.  They got to take a look at the lunch before I packed it away.  Emogene and Hattie were excited.  

How can I make it better?  I was planning on cooking our own chicken in the slow cooker this past weekend to use all week.  Eric wasn't a fan, so I went with what he wanted.  We are going to use the rest of the chicken for a cashew chicken salad the girls loved the last time we made it.  We did take the leftover chicken carcass and make our own chicken broth in the slow cooker.  It simmered all day.  We will freeze it in bags.   

I also had plans to make our own hummus.  Do you know how hard it is to find tahini in Walmart?  I gave up and bought already made hummus in the deli section.  I checked the ingredients and found nothing strange.  I'll have to try making it myself another week.  I already have the chickpeas.

Although the girls have access to a microwave, I'm trying to send things that don't need it.  It wastes the time they have to eat, and Hattie is having trouble packing up her lunch and being ready for her teacher.  The other day, the class waited for 10 minutes in line outside of the lunchroom before Hattie emerged.  I had to talk to her after school.  She confessed to picking up after a couple classmates and sneaking to the bathroom because the playground bathroom is "creepy."  She promised to try and be faster and ready when her teacher is ready.  I'm hoping our new one container lunch will help her.

A Car Ride

While my van was in the shop, we "enjoyed" Eric's car for a few days.

Here is a little tidbit, Eric's car doesn't have air conditioning.

We had an early tennis lesson planned on Saturday morning.  I had mistakenly let the girls take control of my phone to watch a movie.  The complaining began 1/2 a mile into our journey.

"We can't hear our movie!  Roll up the windows!"

For the sake of science, we decided to humor them and conduct an experiment.  The results: 3 seconds.  That is the amount of time it takes for Lydda to have a new complaint, "Well now I'm hot!"

Eric and I start snickering.  We rolled the windows back down.  

As a treat, we stopped at Starbucks and being the awesome mom that I am, I let Lydda have a cookie for breakfast.  Hey, it doesn't happen often.

Apparently, it is difficult to eat a cookie in a windstorm.  She had lots of complaints about that.

It was over 80 degrees outside, and I was enjoying the breeze.  I wasn't rolling up the window.  

Thankfully, she remembered Wubbie and mummified herself to get away from the breeze.

Hattie wished she had remembered a blanket because she was freezing.  My kids are weirdos.

We also had lots of discussions about cup holders.  They wanted us to hold all of their drinks because they didn't have any.  Kids these days are so pampered.  We didn't give in to their demands.  Instead, we taught them how to put it between their legs.  Our ride to tennis practice was chocked full of learning and oddness.  

Hattie's First Dress

Hattie had a plan to make her own dress.

  (I promise I buy her clothes.  She has dresses hanging in her closet. ) 

Here was how the conversation went.

She shows up in my room wearing her creation.  

"Daddy said I can wear my new dress to get snow cones."

I give a look to Daddy.

I announce,

"I'm thinking we should go to the drive thru snow cone place.  They have my favorite flavor."

I was out voted!

She did decide to stay in the van while Eric and her sisters went to order the snow cones.  

I'm so proud of her for trying to sew.  She did it by hand.  I'm sure this will not be her last handmade outfit.

It's a Girl!!!

My sister is giving me a niece.  Collins Reece is due to arrive in December.  

I can't wait!

Strike a Pose

Outside Play

I was able to get her out of pajamas today!

Dog Torture

"Look, Mommy!  Sheldon has on his panda costume."

Good thing Sheldon loves Hattie.

Our First Project

Hattie had to bury a jar and try to catch some insects.

First, we caught a non-insect, a spider.  We caught it within an hour of placing the jar in the ground.  It was very encouraging.  Hattie then checked her jar for 4 days in a row with not one creature to surprise her.  She was getting a bit discouraged.  We knew she would still do great on her assignment, but she wanted something better to put on her project sheet.  One classmate found a snake!  I DIDN'T want anything that cool, but I wanted her to find something more. 
The last project day arrived.  Hattie ran to her jar as soon as we got home.  She walked back into the house with a her head hung low and a frown on her face.  She then went to take a hot soak in the tub. 
I went to wash dishes.  SUDDENLY a creepy orange and black insect appeared in my kitchen sink.  I had no idea what it was and at first thought it to be a spider, but after a quick leg count classified it as an insect.  What do you think I did?  Did I squish it and send it swirling to its watery grave? 
Nope!  I scooped it up with a lid and ran outside to put it in Hattie's jar.  I then ran inside and told her she better hurry up in the tub because I had a feeling her jar had a surprise in it.
Her project ended with a smile on her face.  I call that a success!

What will project #2 be and will mom have to intervene?  We shall see.
 

I'm Having Fun with Lunches!

I've decided to become one of those people that takes pictures of their kids' lunches. 

You are so lucky!

Eric and I have been trying to eat better and have started slowly changing the way the whole family eats.  I am finding that diabetes runs in our family and our families aren't strangers to obesity.  We want to give our children the best chance at a healthy life and now is always a good time to start.

I've never liked giving my girls the bags of convenient snacks to fill their lunch box, but I did it anyway because they were sooooo easy.  I LOVE chips and crackers and basically junk just as much as my kids, so I was slowly ridding our house of them.  I didn't want that temptation around for me or my girls.  Then, I found a blog called 100 days of Real Food and loved what I saw.  I knew that if I felt creative and had fun fixing lunches, then I would be more likely to pack healthy foods.  I also had a facebook friend that posted pictures often of super fun lunches for her kiddos and was a little envious.  I went to the store and then online and purchased the supplies (silicone cupcake holders, smoothie holders, BPA free lunch containers, and fun toothpicks from Walmart and Party City).  I then sat down and started making my menu.  Our first day to try it out was today.  We didn't actually have school on Labor Day, but I still wanted to fix them.  It also gave Lydda a chance to eat what her sisters will be eating.  Lydda still eats the cafeteria food in preschool.  She'll enjoy lunches made by mommy starting next year. 

Here was our trial run.

(Click on the above links to find the supplies.) 

They each got a smoothie (Greek yogurt, almond milk, banana, mango, strawberry, and spinach), tomatoes and carrots with ranch dip, sunflower and pumpkin seeds with walnuts, a LaraBar, and some egg salad.  They always drink water with lunch.  I need to order some water holders so we stop buying bottled water.  We are becoming environmental nuts.  I LOVE IT!

I won't lie and say they ate and liked it all, but they did respect me and try everything.  They also left the table feeling full.  The smoothie was the crowd favorite.  I also usually split the LaraBar between Emogene and Hattie for lunch.  They are sweet, and they have a hard time finishing the whole thing.

I bought the triangle shaped silicone cupcake holders over a year ago from a neighbor selling them for a school fundraiser.  I was so excited to start using them.

The smoothies were put together the day before and frozen overnight.  I bought 8 smoothie holders (popsicle molds).  I got up and ready for church at lightning speed and had time to do lots of prepping (smoothie making and cutting up the cantaloupe I bought for lunches later in the week).  We even made it to church early.  My mom was SHOCKED! 

I bought lunch boxes big enough for the Zipl*c containers to fit on the bottom and not get tipped over while they carry it.  The plastic container doesn't leak, but I didn't think they wanted egg salad all over the smoothie holder.  I had the girls practice taking it out and opening the lunch container.  I added the water, napkin, and fork on top.  I also put a small frozen bottle of water on top to keep the lunch box cold until lunch time.  This bottle of water is for after school.

Many friends and relatives tell me their kids won't eat a lot of what I give the girls.  It is a work in progress at our house.  Hattie will eat pretty much anything I give her.  She will even say, "I don't like it, but I'll eat it for you Mommy."  Melt my heart.  Emogene will gag down certain vegetables.  Lydda loves eggs and not meat.  She likes to pretend she is a vegetarian.  She hasn't convinced me yet.  I give them small portions of the things I know they don't like too much and they know I expect them to try everything.  Eric and I have also talked with them in length about the reasons why we choose our foods carefully.  They know we are thinking of their health and want what is best for them.  This has really helped them to keep an open mind about the foods we cook. 

Eric and I have a bordering on insane love of spaghetti squash.  He makes a casserole (spaghetti squash au gratin) that I will eat for days.  It tastes very similar to hash brown casserole.  We aren't able to fool our girls because they are around us when we prepare and cook.  Plus, they are pretty positive we wouldn't be serving a potato dish.  I told them what my friend told me when she tried it, "You are right!  It tastes so much like potatoes.  My girls would eat this."  This gave them happy thoughts, and they knew they were expected to at least give it a taste.  They each ate all of it knowing they would be offered another piece of pizza ( We were cleaning out the freezer of our leftover junky food.).  Lydda announced that she loved it.  Hattie said it was "ehhhh." Emogene said, "I have to admit, the squash wasn't bad."  They all left the table not wanting any of the pizza, because they said they were all full.  I'll leave you with that happy mealtime experience.  I will suppress the others (cauliflower grits, turnips, and beets).   

Do you pack your kids lunches?  Give me some tips.  I love new ideas.