38 weeks (pic included) and some other stuff

 

It has been a good week in the Turnage household. The lilacs are blooming (B calls them 'li-li' for some reason), the grass is very green and was very long due to all the rain we have had, and the sun is finally out again. Of course, it was 34 degrees out when I woke up this morning but the sun is shining and the sky is blue! It has been a productive week for me since we stayed inside a lot due to the rain. I had been letting the housework lapse a bit because it had been so nice outside but now my house is once again clean and (mostly) organized.

In other news, W finished 1st grade math! He has been working really hard to get it done because he wants to start his new math book. I am hoping his enthusiasm lasts a long while.

 W has been enjoying the 'Betsy' books, this one is no exception. Great book!

A and B getting creative. A is constructing a tower and B is building a dinosaur barn. With a silo. He likes silos.

And here I am! 38 weeks huge now. According to my pregnancy app, there are 12 days left until my due date. Whoohoo! Now if only Baby T would come close to his due date, we will be all set. I feel ready: my house is clean, all his clothes are organized, washed, and put in his dresser, I have a few freezer meals ready to go, and my bag is packed. Just waiting on little man to be ready, which should be sometime in the next 2-4 weeks.

Another view. More belly to see here. Not that you could miss it, lol.

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She is just too cute. Don't let that cuteness fool you though, she can throw quite the tantrum when she doesn't get her way!

Meal Planning Conundrum, or How Do I Plan Meals Around A Birth?!?!

I have a conundrum. I am sitting here trying to plan out meals for the next, um, __ number of weeks. The number is the problem. Usually I plan on doing the shopping every 2-4 weeks, depending on what is happening in our lives and how much extra freezer space we have (on a side note, I think we may have just about outgrown our chest freezer and will soon need two. But that is just a side note and has nothing to do with this post). Two weeks would land me on my due date, three would be right at 41 weeks. So, do I plan for 1, 2 or 3 weeks? We don't have the freezer space for 4 weeks so that is out. My freezer is packed full with freezer meals and breast milk (the meals are for us big people after baby comes, the breast milk is donor milk for baby). So the question becomes, do I want to do it week by week and drag my very pregnant self out with three little kids every single week, or do I plan for two to three weeks and hope baby stays put until I can get out again? Grrrr....nothing sounds appealing at this point. Hubby usually shops with us if we do multiple weeks but he has been working a lot lately so that isn't a good option right now.

My other problem is finding meals that do not require, A. much effort, B. the oven, and C. are actually healthy. Oh yes, and D. meals that the family will enjoy. I have been feeling very...lazy, unmotivated, sluggish? And have no desire to put a huge amount of effort into cooking lately. This has resulted in meals that are not necessarily the healthiest. Translation, mama has been serving hotdogs and chips (with a veggie, of course) instead of making a meal. While the children (and my husband) have been quite delighted with this fare, I am not. Winter is so much easier because I can make a nice soup and call it a day but soup is a little warm for these hot Summer months. 

BABY UPDATE:

I thought I would toss this in as well, for my baby obsessed friends - you know who you are :)

Baby is doing great. Moving around like a crazy little man and poking my ribs and happily squishing my bladder. I can tell he is getting big! Not complaining, but everything is giving me heartburn now. Even ice cream. No joke. I am now 37 weeks, 5 days pregnant and am getting lots of regular contractions. Before you get excited, I had regular contractions for 6 weeks with Miss A so that is not an indication of anything other than pregnancy for me. Delivery could easily be a month away yet, if my past history is any indication. While I am kind of hoping for June 5th (selfish reasons - 5 is my favorite number), I am expecting him to come between the 10th and the 20th of June.


                                                                                                                                                                           

Beginning of the school year, planting seeds, and a belly pic

The first week of school has arrived!

Now, I know you are scratching your head and looking at the calendar. To answer the unspoken (technically unheard) question, yes, it is indeed May and yes, we are starting school. The beauty of homeschooling is that I can do whatever I want :)

Let me explain my reasoning.

We live in WI, the frigid North. When the lucky, toasty kids down South get to learn about insects and flowers and actually see and touch them, we have snow. No bugs. No flowers. Not even a blade of grass to study. Just cold, ice, snow, and barren trees. So, I am doing some science and our nature study at a time of year when my kids can learn about nature by seeing and touching it, not just reading about it from a boring old textbook. While I am at it, we are doing math, reading, and some other fun Summer-y projects.

This week's big project is planting seeds and watching them grow. Now, learning about flowers and plants is actually part of W's curriculum but I added the planting seeds part. Ulterior motives. All his books have him do is read about seeds but my garden needs to be started and my beloved children need to learn how to help me so I don't have to work as much (like I said, ulterior motives - child labor, bwahahahahahaa!!!!).

How To Plant A Garden, Step 1: Eat Pop Ice. Ok, not exactly but the boys didn't complain.

They took turns putting in the potting soil. Most of it actually went into the egg cartons. W was a little concerned that some got on the ground until I explained that it was just plain old dirt and some getting on the ground wouldn't hurt anything.

Smoothing out the soil and making it even.

Planting seeds! We planted watermelon, summer squash, peas, and beans. The boys like the beans the best. Why, I have no idea.

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Watering the planted seeds. You can see my ice water melting in the sun in the background. I was rather disappointed when I went to take a sip later.

Mission accomplished! The little seedlings should be ready to plant in the actual garden in a couple of weeks. More, um, school work. Tee hee hee.

Enjoying a bounce or two after their 'strenuous' work.

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I asked him to smile for the camera. This is what I got.

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This is what Missy was up to while the boys and I were hard at work in the heat of the day. Sleeping in front of a fan. Life is rough for the baby of the family.

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Post bath, watching Veggie Tales. The boys were, of course, filthy and Missy joined them in the dirt shortly after we finished the planting. She missed all the real work. Little slacker.

As promised, a belly pic. Ok, not a real one but I thought it was cool. 36 weeks 5 days! According to my pregnancy app, I have 22 days before my EDD. I am so glad the weather has been on the cooler side so that I am more comfortable. Pregnancy and heat do not mix well! Next time I will post a real belly pic. Promise.

Review: Tide Free & Gentle

A couple of months ago I received some Tide Free & Gentle to review for a website. I decided to write a review here as well.

I have a child with sensitive skin (W) who will get irritated using many of the regular detergents. Whether it is the dye, the perfume, some weird ingredient, or a combination of the three, I have no idea. Up to this point, I had not used one of the dye and perfume free detergents on the market, opting instead to make my own laundry detergent. Since I am über cheap (haha), I wasn't all that interested in trying a product that would cost more for the same result as my own detergent. However, when the opportunity to test some out for free came along, I took it.

I was very impressed.

Although I had low expectations in the beginning, Tide Free & Gentle lived up to its claim of getting clothes clean and taking out the stains (see claim here). Not only did W do just fine, but our clothes came out nice and clean. No irritation, no nasty skin breakouts, nothing. In fact, you couldn't tell the difference between the two detergents. The only down side is that this detergent does have a chemical-ly (is that even a word? No? Oh well.) smell to it. That I didn't really like but the results were great.

Now, the big question here is, will I switch? The answer is no. I would recommend this detergent to anyone who needed a good, dye free detergent for sensitive skin or a new baby and has no desire to make their own. Since it works just as well as my own, homemade detergent, I will keep using mine since it is more cost effective. I would gladly use Tide Free & Gentle if I could not make my detergent for some reason. It is a great back up and I am glad I know what to use if necessary!