Scattered Sundays and Meal Plan for May 29th – June 4th

Well, I had a bit of an awakening this week, and I do believe my head has properly been removed from my ass. Last week I talked about an overall feeling of blahness that I was feeling. I thought a lot about it at the start of this past week, and really chewed on what you all said in the comments. The weather was stunning this last week, and B and I were able to take some extra-long walks on Monday and Tuesday. Few things give you more time for reflection than a rhythmic pounding of feet on the pavement. And what I boiled down is that I really love blogging and I love sharing and learning with you all. Love it. That is why I do what I do, but I haven’t let that be my guide lately.

So, I had a come to Jesus talk with myself and came up with a list of excuses that I have been telling myself over the last few years. Excuses about why this place hasn’t moved to the level I would want. I can make you a list of my thoughts and action items, but I shared it already with a friend late in the week, and I think my words with her ring very true.

Boom. I’m in it to win it. The word for the rest of the year for me is intention. Be deliberate and work with intention, and stop the inertia. If Jack told me he couldn’t learn a new skill because he didn’t know how to do it already, I’d likely lose my mind and tell him that is crazy talk. I’m done with my own crazy talk.

What does my renewed motivation mean for you all? In a word – nothing. Nada. Zilch. All the work I am doing now and going forward shouldn’t impact my readers. It’s more behind the scenes work cleaning things up, and putting a new shine on the place. If anything, you’ll hopefully be able to find things in a more organized way.

For anyone who said “whaaaaaaa?” when you saw the word SEO, you’re not alone. The term SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and is a science/art of making sure your posts are found by search engines. In the past, SEO heavy posts were a nightmare to read and felt artificial and clunky. Things have changed (but are still super complicated to learn at least for me), so when I am updating old posts and writing new ones, my content will stay in my voice. On my terms. Nothing fake or forced.

For those of you who follow me on Pinterest, by next Sunday(ish), there should be a whole new look to my boards. I hope things will be easier to find, more organized, and look a bit more professional. If you don’t follow me already, go ahead and start and then you too can be impressed by the transformation from clunky to polished. My Facebook and Instagram followers – nothing will be changing too much there for now. I’ve always shied away from the live/video aspects of those platforms for one very specific reason. I don’t like watching people on video. It makes me uncomfortable for some reason, and it’s just not my thing. And I think I look and sound weird when I see myself on video. But, this is the year of learning new things, so we shall see. If I were to do any video, what kinds of things would you want to see? Someone on Facebook yesterday requested a video tutorial on this homemade bread that I posted. Other requests?

Moving off of that, I think we need to discuss something that has been lurking around the edge of awareness for years, but no one ever brings it up. So…are meerkats incontinent?

Source

Or do they just have overactive bladders?

We bought this collapsible wagon last week at Costco (cheaper at Costco if you have a membership), and it rocks our world. We have a wonderful solid wagon that was a gift when Jack was younger, but it’s too big to haul around in the car. This wagon folds up pretty compact, and was great for hauling Bennett and his wee little friend around at baseball. We made lap after lap around the field. After lap.

And then I used it at the farmer’s market while other people carried their plants around like suckers.

Remember the missing binky from last week? The one we thought Bennett had hidden when he found out we were taking the pacifier away? Well we finally found it.

It is propped up on the plug in for Bennett’s video monitor, wedged between the back of the dresser and the wall. Sneaky little squirrel hid that like a boss. We had to buy a four pack of toothbrushes yesterday, because he keeps stealing and hiding the ones in the bathroom.

What do you do when you find an ant invasion in your bathroom, and your repair-oriented husband is away? You find the crack where they’re coming in, and um, you shove a plug of Play Doh in there.

Next week on June 1st, I’m starting a month-long focus on really healthy eating, targeted exercise, and crap like that. My friend Mary is going to do a guest post for you all on physical fitness. She’s amazing and has lost an incredible amount of weight in the last 18 months and is living with a whole new outlook on life. She is my hero. Let me know if you’d like to join us in our “extra clean eating” month.

Meal plan time!

Monday:: Pasta, grilled asparagus.

Tuesday:: Chicken satay, grilled asparagus, and salad.

Wednesday:: Grilled chicken (made the previous night) over salad.

Thursday:: Chef’s salad with a new savory biscuit recipe I am trying out.

Friday:: Popcorn and movie night

Saturday:: We’re having dinner at our  neighbor’s. We met them last year when Troy noticed her walking up the hill with her son in the stroller. We had been having a garage sale that day and had a bunch of baby clothes. Troy invited her in to the dark garage and she actually went in. I couldn’t believe it, but her lack of ever listening to true crime podcasts allowed for us to meet a new friend! 🙂

Sunday:: Family dinner

Local butcher: $15.71 for sausage and ground turkey to make a bunch of meatballs to eat and freeze. And then I made another trip to pick up a case of local chicken. $124.75.

Costco: $92.57

You should have seen Jack’s face when I agreed to buy the Pirate’s Booty. There are two packs of asparagus under the kiwi.

Fred Meyer: $68.62. Such a good reminder to me that ready made food is expensive! The Tillamook was on sale for $4.99, and the expiration date wasn’t until November, so I stocked up.

And another trip – $19.72

I had a coupon for the puff pastry. The Kettle Chips were on sale – the Fred Meyer app had a $1 off coupon, and they had mailed out a $1 off coupon last month. Ibotta had a $1 rebate, so I ended up getting each bag for $.50.

Smith Brother’s Farm – $19.15. That bacon is my everything. And that fettuccine was delicious!

What are you having this week?