WFD?

That's: Whats For Dinner.  A question often asked on my moms online board.  Not usually a question at our house.  I try to meal plan each week.  It helps me spend less at the store, and helps us not eat out as often.
In a perfect world I do this on Sunday , after I cut coupons and look at that weeks ads.  That way I can plan to use whats on sale.  But with the crappy weather and Mr.C tutoring , I never know when I'm going to get to the store.  So I have been trying to plan at least a week and a half in advance.
I have a list of meals that everyone likes, and just choose from there.  I usually try a new recipe once or twice a month.
A good idea that was given on my moms board was to assign each day of the week with a meal category.  Like, Monday's would be Italian, Tuesday's meatless night. . ..  etc.  Then it would be easy to plan for the whole month.
Meal planning is great so you don't end up with a ton of leftovers.  I try to plan meals with the leftovers.  Such as, if I make a roasted chicken on Monday,  Wed or Thurs, I'll make chicken noodle soup, or chicken fajitas with the leftover chicken.   And if I know I am going to make something that makes a lot of leftovers, then I just assign one day for leftovers.   Soup and sandwich night is a cheap eat night.  And if I know Mr.C is not going to be home for dinner, I make something he won't eat!
So WFD this week?  Tonight is porcupine meatballs with mashed potatoes and corn.
Tues: Pancakes, bacon, and pears
Wed:  Chicken Parmesan sandwiches
Thurs: Homemade Runza's
Friday:  Chicken broccoli Alfredo
Sat:  Quick stew
Sunday: crock pot rotisserie chicken

Now off to make my list and get to the store before the storm hits.

Winner, Winner , Chicken Dinner!

I made a great dinner last night.  At least that's what my girls told me.  Yes, they tell me if I have made a good dinner each night or not.  Even Weston ate two platefuls!
I made my own take on lasagna soup.  It was super yummy, and I will have leftovers for lunch all week.

Lasagna Soup

1lb ground turkey breast (could use ground beef)
1c chopped celery
1c chopped carrots
1/2 c chopped onion (more or less to your taste)
1 pop can size V8 juice low sodium
2c beef broth (could use veggie or chicken)
1-2 cups water
1 can petite diced tomatoes
1/2 can pre made spaghetti sauce (again, could use more)
then I just threw in my normal spaghetti spices,  garlic, oregano, onion salt, a little sea salt, pepper, Italian seasonings.
I let simmer for about 1 1/2 hours.
1/2 box of mini lasagna noodles (I cooked them before I put them in the soup, right before serving)
and sprinkle with mozzarella or Parmesan cheese at the table.
and served with a french loaf of bread, and an asiago bread loaf.

Ryann told me it was "delicious" in her squeaky toddler voice.

I am loving all the soup's I have made this winter.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do when it starts getting warmer!  And with all this soup/stew making, I have found that I am in dire need of a dutch oven.  I keep borrowing my mom's.  Those suckers are expensive, so I'm going to start shopping around and reading reviews for a good one.

And because I was uploading pictures, here are some for your viewing pleasure:

The girls playing outside

One of Weston, because he's a cutie!

My little climber!

And this just cracked me up,  they were all tuckered out.

Potty Dance!

I think I can say its official, Ryann is potty trained!  Yay!  she made it all day without an accident.  I'm sure we will still have some when we are out and about, but that's OK.   And she really did it by herself.  I figured I would just let her do it when she was ready.  She was constantly putting on underwear by herself, and she even does the whole bathroom thing by herself!  She is so independent.
Now she refuses to wear a diaper to bed, but she is not quite ready for that.  So I promised her I would get her some pull-ups like Mary the next time I go to the store.  I really need to find some cloth night trainers.  For both girls.  Even though we only use one a night, that still adds up.  Even the cheap brands are $9 a pack!
So now with only one in diapers I think going back to cloth full time will be much more manageable.  In a week or two, I think I will do a major overhaul on our cloth diaper stash.  I have a bunch of all in one's that my washer is just not getting clean.  But they were so easy to throw in the bag when I had to pack for two. I'm going back to fitteds/fleece, and flips for Weston.  Time to start scouring diaperswappers for my favorite fitteds.   So now the question is, sell them now online, or wait for the next diaper consignment sale?

I'm back

Wow!  I really fell off the wagon.  We got so busy with the holidays that I just didn't have the time to write at night.  Then I just couldn't get back into the swing of things.  But just like working out, I just need to make myself do it every day.
So our updates :  Weston is almost a walker!  He is taking a few steps here and there.  Thank God, because I don't think I can carry him much longer!!
Ryann is almost potty trained.  We went to the mall tonight and she wore her panties and didn't have any accidents.  She even went #2 on the pot this afternoon!
Mary is as crazy as ever.  She's happy  to be back to preschool and dance.  And is signed up for kindergarten round up!

Here are a few pics of our Christmas:

Hope everyone else had a great holiday season.