For praying out loud: Part One.

Why do we meal plan?
To make the week run smoother. To ensure that we are getting important nutrients into our family's bellies throughout each week. To ensure that at 4:00 when our kids start to remind us that they are going to be hungry soon, that we are not irritated (as much) with coming up with a dinner for them within a reasonable time frame.

What happens if we don't meal plan?
Perhaps more trips to the fast food joints in our area than we would like to admit. Frustration with our children every time they announce they are hungry. Pulling meals together only to find that you are missing one very important ingredient that brings the whole meal together. Getting to 4:30 in the afternoon and clenching your teeth when your kdis start nagging for food, and you realize the one meal you can make is actually going to take one hour to bake in the oven, and you will have to not only whip up that meal, but also manage to entertain, and distract, your kids while it cooks to keep them from nagging relentlessly. What? That's never happened in your house?

Anyway, this post is actually about a different kind of plan.

A Mom Plan. Because being a confident, controlled mom doesn't always just happen by accident. What is a Mom Plan? Anticipating, planning ahead, identifying what "habits" (for lack of a better term) will continue to repeat themselves in your house, and then creating a plan to avoid those things, and be prepared for those things. (I believe that this process comes more naturally for some moms than others. Some of you type-A moms out there are probably wondering why I would even take the time to post this. For the rest of you, read on...)

Sidenote: I am blessed with many wonderful influences in my life right now. I seek advice, and encouragement from the women around me on a daily basis. Here are just a few tips I have been taught along the way that I plan to implement as I carry out this (new-to-me) idea of creating my "Mom Plan"....

Ask yourself: What negative cycles do I see repeating themselves in my home?
(BTW, it's also a marvelous idea to reflect on the positive cycles in your home, and give yourself a pat on the back for those) One of our readers pointed out that when moms are tired, they will become very irritable very quickly and reach their boiling point much quicker. One plan of attack, in that regard, would obviously be to get more sleep. But how? Create a plan. I will be in bed by such-and-such a time even if the dishes are not done, I will set boundaries for myself, I will lay down when my child takes a nap, etc. Find what will work for your unique family, and life situations.

Try just adding one new idea to your "Mom Plan" each week.
Trying just one idea at a time will allow for two things.
One: You will not feel overwhelmed with trying to change everything at once.
Two: You can evaluate if what you are doing it actually helping you or not.

The phone call to my mom that started this thought process.
I cried to my mom this Saturday morning over the phone. "They're driving me crazy. I just made them a PB&J english muffin sandwich, and then they started begging for oatmeal, and Kipton was crying, and bleh blah blah." She lovingly, and patiently listened as I carried on and on. It was 9:00 in the morning and I felt like I had already suffered through a full day. When I was exhausted and at a loss for words she interjected, "I think you should rest. Take a nap, Alisha." :) (she also suggested I might be having my period soon...which was ruled out last week...TMI, I know) Her answer wasn't enough for me. We continued talking. She reminded me how she would stop everything (sweetly, I might add) when I was a kid, and pray, out of nowhere. She did too. I remember as a kid times when we'd all be worked up, and my mom would get down on her knees and make us pray with her. We always felt better after we prayed. Even if the problem was still in front of us, it didn't seem as big anymore. She prayed with me over the phone. I love my mom.

Anger has been my issue lately.
I always keep it real on here. I don't mean to beat this one into the ground, but anger towards my children for acting their age, is definitely one of my personal struggles in this season of my life. It was not always been my struggle. Three kids, under the age of five, all living under one roof, have managed to bring this side out of me that I never knew existed. It is the struggle that I have not quite come to the other side of yet.

My Mom Plan for this week.
Fight back anger with prayer and worship. Out loud prayers. Not mumbles under my breath, or yelling out, "GOD, HELP ME!" prayers. Just, earnest, stop everything, get down on my knees and pray out loud with my kids, kind of prayers. Each time anger rears its ugly head this week I plan to bring it before the Lord, before it gets out of hand. Rather than clenching my teeth and letting anger fester until I am yelling at my kids, I will stop. I will pray. I will listen to worship music that will remind me who is in charge. I am hoping to let you know how this goes for me throughout this week.

YOUR TURN
What's your struggle? What do you need to create a Mom Plan for? What is your Mom Plan? We'd LOVE to hear from you, and possibly even encourage you and pray with you as you seek to be the best mom you can be! Please take a second to share.

Oh yeah. I am going to post some meals this week too. :) All of them from my "Cooking Light: 5 Minute, 15 Ingredient" cookbook.

Prayer of a worn out Stay at Home Mom

Lord,
Ephesians 3:19 says that I can be filled with all the fullness of you. Filled? I have been just barely running on empty for far too long now. I got burnt out long ago, and fell into auto pilot...each day feeling like the same day. I tried hard to be productive and I tried hard to work so that my life would bear fruit, but I was on empty. I tried to give much, but I had little to give and the result was desperate frustration. If I am going to bear much fruit today, I am going to need you to fill me up first. Strengthen me today, through the power of your Spirit. Renew me today, and give me the focus and determination to carry out the work you have before me today. Instead of just barely getting dinner on the table, today, help me to be mindful as I joyfully set the table with a smile and love in my heart toward my family. Fill me up with you today, so that the mom that my children see is not tired and frustrated, but hopeful and strong.

Amen.

Have we talked yet about how you are loved yet today?

Man (or woman) alive, YES YOU!! I am so glad you happened the way you did!!! God created you for such a time as this, you know that?! Keep going, cause He is obviously NOT done with you yet! I just wanna squeeze your frickin' cheeks off! You're so awesome! So intricately made!


You rock. YOU are incredible. This is a testament to God more than it is to you because He made you, but still, the fact remains YOU ARE INCREDIBLE! You know that?

I just wanted you to know that, in case if you didn't.

Tomato-Cheese Ravioli Soup

Makes 1 (1.25 cup) servings.

I have to start by saying that these pictures do not do this recipe justice. This is always going to be one of our family favorites. This recipe came from my Five Ingredient, Fifteen Minute cookbook. I LOVE this cookbook. Did I mention yet that it is definitely my favorites of all my cookbooks? It is. Try this recipe and you will see why. This recipe has two easy steps.










Ingredients:
1 (14.5 oz.) can stewed tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz.) can chicken broth or vege broth
1/2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning (I always use it from an Italian seasoning packet, but I think the recipe intends that you just use regular seasoning)
3 cups frozen cheese ravioli (about 12 ounces)
1 small zucchini, sliced
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Step One:
Combine first three ingredients in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes.









Step Two:
Add ravioli, zucchini, and pepper; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heart, and simmer 7 minutes or until pasta and zucchini are tender.











Now, the question is: Will you use a fork or a spoon?!

Southwestern Meatloaf

Meatloaf is always a good freezer meal if you need one. Just cook it, let it cool, and wrap it tightly with aluminum foil. This meatloaf is particularly tasty, in my opinion.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped (for directions on how to chop and freeze lots of onion, or bell pepper at once, go here)
  
• 1 cup frozen corn (for directions on how to quickly, and efficiently, freeze corn on the cob to be used later, go here...Thank you Mummy Deals!)
  
• 2 pounds ground beef (90 percent lean is suggested)
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup plain yogurt (not nonfat)
  
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
  
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons ketchup, optional

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Line a baking sheet with heavy-duty foil.

2. Warm oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in corn; sauté 2 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl to let cool slightly.

3. Add beef, bread crumbs, egg, yogurt, cilantro, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper to bowl. Mix gently until well combined; do not overmix. Transfer to baking sheet and shape into a 12-by-4-inch loaf. (I spread mine out in a long rectangle piece of stoneware, and slapped some ketchup over the top of mine)

4. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers 160ºF, about 1 hour. Spread with ketchup (or additional ketchup), if desired, and let stand 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Can't get your kids to eat meatloaf? Slap some of the stuff on a bun and call it a hamburger. :0)

Makes 8 servings
1 serving=8 Weight Watchers Point Plus points

A Day in my Life: Part Two

(Click here for part one)

Okay, so as I was saying, The day wasn't totally shot. We would still have a great time, even if it killed us, because I have already gone through a lot of work doggone it! :0) I set out my perfect-for-outside blanket and piled on all the good stuff. I handed out lunches to the kids (cheerios on the baby walker for my littlest tot) and I got out my tuna sandwich. Ah...time to relax and enjoy the great outdoors...oh wait, there are bugs outside. Preston did NOT like that! Okay, there are lids to your lunch containers, so we'll just cover their lunches up between bites, to ensure that bugs don't get to our food before we do. Wait, not just ants, but mosquitoes too! Turns out we needed bug spray way more than all the sunscreen I used on the kids. Okay, so all the kids wanted to eat from their lunches was a few grapes and the two oreos I gave each of them."That's fine," I thought, "I didn't like my tuna sandwich anyway," so I ate Keely's bologna sandwich. Truly, we're still having a good time at this point. I did not yell at my kids for just eating the cookies. I didn't want to fight that battle today...my "perfect mom" day. :) I would not be yelling at the kids today, besides look at how cute they are...I busted out the inflatable "kiddy pool" and filled it up. Preston and Keely were all about sticking their feet in the thing. They did not complain even once about the ridiculousness of the size of the "pool" I got them; which is one of the things I LOVE about this age. I let them get their feet wet, literally, while I tried to hook up the sprinkler to the hose.

***(Sidenote: Turns out this is a great way to rinse off the feet of your children before they come inside the house, since they will inevitablly have grass all over their feet, and Chadwick suggested that they are great for when you are serving drinks that you want to keep cold. Pop a little ice in there and you've got yourself a little cooler) I turned on our hose, and the hose connector popped off spraying water all over our house. (I won't elaborate on this one, but just know that it was a lot of me getting wet while trying to figure out how to get it reattached and stay attached.) When I was done with my escapades, the sprinkler was working, but with little pressure. My four year old was quick to announce that he did not want this sprinkler-- he wanted the "big one", which really meant he wanted more pressure so it would shoot up higher. "Whatever, just enjoy the one we have," I told him. And they did.
While the two older ones played in the sprinkler, I gave the itty bitty his turn in the "pool". He liked it. I decided I didn't like the kids in the grass because of the mosquitoes. I don't think they got bit, but I did, and I didn't want to chance it. We went inside. I got Kipton down for a nap and cleared off the floor of the kitchen.

Did I mention that I have a point? I do. :)
I moved the table and the chairs to the living room, all the toys to the toy box, all the magnets back on the fridge, the trash in the trash can, etc. What's funny, is that the point of this whole story is what I am just about to share with you...a fun way to MOP your kitchen with the kids still in the house, and then an encouraging word! So, now we have come full circle. We're back in the kitchen. The kids were already in their swimsuits, and our floor was sticky in some areas, and needed to be mopped really, really bad. I decided to try a mopping secret I read in a parenting magazine before. I poured water on the floor and got out a towel for each kid and told them to "slip and slide", and showed them how to "mop" the floor with their towel. I joined them in the fun, making sure to get right up against the cupboards, and such. When we were done, I tossed the drenched towels in the washing machine, and got out the wet swiffer. I gave each of them a turn at using the swiffer, and then I went over the whole kitchen one more time. WALAH!!! My kitchen floor has not been this clean since we moved in...and the kids helped, which they loved! I would say that this whole mopping with the towel on your feet idea would probably be the most fun for kids between the ages of 4-9...just my guess.

Okay, so now for your encouraging word. One of my older mom friends offered me this insight one day, when I was feeling like a failure, and I have felt to relay her message on multiple occassions, because it meant so much to me. Here it is:

As a mom, you feel all of the ups and downs of your day. You know what you had hoped for and are discouraged, frustrated, and sometimes even mad when things don't work out like you planned. Kids aren't like that though. They remember the tiny pool that was so perfect for their baby brother, the picnic where they got to eat the oreos and mom did not make them eat the sandwich, and a sprinkler that felt perfect on a warm day. They remember coming in and sliding all over the wide open, kitchen floor and having a great time. Fond memories. I share this message, because I am one of those moms who is always putting too much weight in the things of the day that I considered to be failures. If you are also one of those moms, take heart. Your children won't remember it like you did. It was a GREAT day for them, and they would do it over and over again if we let them. (but I would rather never do this day again, I need a nap) :0) Love you mommas! Be encouraged.

A Day in my Life

Can I just share what kind of a morning I had today? I don't typically do that on our site, because this site is about meals. Today; however, was just one of those days and since this site is also about moms, I just had to share.

I woke up today, thinking, "okay, it's Friday and I have not made it to the YMCA all week. I WILL get there today." I was getting myself syked up and ready to go, and I was getting everyone else ready too, of course. I got to the part of making lunches for my kids (besides watching our children while we work out, my YMCA also feeds the kids if I am there between 11 am-1 pm and have packed food for them, and this was part of my plan) I was using my new lunch containers and I was feeling good about myself. I had just finished preparing the lunches when I looked up at my two children and saw the one thing I really hoped not to see today...SNOT! Lots of it. They've had colds all week long, which is why I have not taken them to the YMCA, and apparently they were not over them yet. "Noooooooo". (That's me) I let out a sigh, and decided that exercising could wait just one more day. "We've already got their lunches all packed nice and neat, so we'll just do a picnic in our backyard," I told myself. The day did not have to be totally shot. I looked over at the inflatable kiddie pool I had bought a couple of weeks ago at a garage sale, still in its package. I decided to be "Mom of the Year", at least just this one day. I imagined the kids playing in their swimsuits, and us all having a lovely picnic, as the sun shone down on us in our perfectly mowed backyard. (What? It could happen) I got out the swimmers diapers, put swimsuits on the kiddos after chasing them around the house, slathered up some sunscreen, pulled together the essentials for a great time: blanket, baby walker, etc. etc. I was ready to go, and the kids were getting more and more excited with each second that passed. Now it was time to blow up the kiddie pool. I took it out of the package.... Wait a minute! What's this? It looked like a DEMO version of a kiddie pool...you know, a smaller version of the real thing. "This can't be right!" I laughed to myself. I read the packaging one more time. Hmmm..." "Ring Pool" was the big font, but up in the left hand corner, it read, "swim inflatable". Sure enough...this was not a pool at all, it was an inflatable for a pool! Okay. That's alright. My kids won't care. They'll still have fun. (I imagined the kids splashing in the pool, and having a good time) Here we go. I blew the silly little thing up...if nothing else, my ten month will get some joy out of this thing...besides, it was 25 cents.

(To be continued...the kiddos need me right now. I promise to finish this story, though, and I promise it gets better.)