Andrew: 11 Months

Happy 11 Month Birthday Andrew!

A few words to describe you at 11 months are: impatient, fussy, messy, playful, and loud!

It's so hard to believe that you will be 1 next month. It doesn't seem like we've been a family of 6 for that long. Wasn't I just pregnant? Wasn't I just in the NICU with you, as a tiny newborn? Wasn't I just up all hours of the night with you? Oh wait, that was just last night.

Obviously you are still a pretty bad sleeper. I won't repeat everything in this post, but basically you don't nap much and you sleep in bed next to me at night, waking up constantly to nurse. You have been sick with a cold this past week and you have actually been taking some great naps! When you wake up you have a completely different personality! Instead of whiny and clingy, you are happy and playful and really goofy. It's amazing what a little quality sleep can do for a baby.

You've got this perfect little curl along the back of your neck, but I have no plans to cut your hair soon. It is still super light blond, and I hope it stays that way.

You are a pretty good eater, but you definitely have your likes and dislikes. If I serve you something you don't like you will either throw it on the floor or shove it all to one side of your highchair tray. You love any type of meat or chicken, but dislike green beans and avocado. Unfortunately you are dealing with some ongoing constipation and I hate seeing you in pain, so I am trying to figure out some different foods to feed you.

You've developed a fear....of one of Jenna's dolls! She has an "alive" doll that moves her feet and talks, and the thing just creeps you out. You will sit and stare at her and then crawl over to me, sobbing in fear. Sorry, but it's kind of funny!

You took your first official unassisted steps this month, at 10 months and 12 days old. Since then you only take a few tentative steps every now and then. You're much quicker doing your crab crawl. (one foot and one knee).

Andrew, you are such a special little addition to our family and we love you so much. Happy 11 months!

This Guy

This guy. He doesn't get a lot of airtime around here, does he?

That's partly because he refuses to let me take his picture. Partly because he's kind of a private person. And partly because I have 4 kids and they kind of consume my life.

But recently I had a few new friends over who had never seen our playroom. They were exclaiming over how amazing it was, and I was like "Oh this old thing? Yea, my hubby built it." And they were shocked! And rightly so. I got to thinking about how much Adam does for us around here. And how often he is asking me WHAT he can do for me around here.

Ladies, are there any more romantic words than "How can I help you?". I think not.

Adam had Monday off of work and the first words he said were "Which project do you want me to cross off my list today?". He (and my Dad, thank you Dad!) proceeded to work outside in the freezing cold all day, installing new lights in our backyard.

The previous weekend he got it in his head that he needed to cut a hole in our hallway closet wall and create a storage area under our stairs. Apparently I complain a lot about not having space for everything. I came back to find a cute little door complete with a knob and hinges. And every day I seem to find something new to store in there.

Every single night Adam searches online for furniture that we need. He knows what I want and also knows I probably won't spend the time to look myself. So he does it, and sends me pictures. 99.9% of the time I say Nope. And then he comes across exactly what I'm looking for, like our new (used) pottery barn table and chairs!

 Or he just builds me what I want. No big deal.

On Sunday I approached him with a stack of decorations and pictures and told him I wanted to do a gallery wall in our hallway. He immediately grabbed his hammer and some nails, and came up with this. It's not quite done but I love it so far!

Just last night he installed a coating on our master shower window that obscures the glass so people can't see in. Previously we had a little curtain up, but it blocked out all the light. I walked in there this morning and wow, what a difference! 

I could go on and on, bragging about how much Adam does for us around here. About how skilled he is. About how his acts of service truly serve our family.

But if I did that, he may never let me write about him on here again!

Dinners January 12-18

Here's another roundup of dinners from the Nullmeyer household! I'd love to hear what you all have been cooking lately.

Friday: Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup with Kale

This tortellini soup is on regular rotation around here in the Winter. I like that it's similar to chicken noodle soup, but the cheese tortellini gives it that extra cheesy flavor. And the veggies make it extra healthy. This is great with extra parmesan sprinkled on top.

Saturday: Chicken Sausage and Veggie Sheet Pan Supper, Bread, Fruit

This sheet pan supper was a winner! I used the spice mixture from this recipe, although I didn't have all the veggies on hand. I used Aidell's Chicken and Apple Sausage (I ate this while on the Whole30 and still love it, so it's a new favorite), bell peppers, and potatoes. The flavor was delicious, and just as tasty the next morning mixed with scrambled eggs. I also made a quick no-knead loaf of bread. Strawberries were on the table but I only got one before the kids ate them all.

Sunday: Taco Casserole, Chips and Guacamole

Adam took the boys out for a little "boys" dinner, so it was just me and the two littles eating this meal. I tried this new recipe called Cheesy Low-Carb Taco Casserole, and it honestly wasn't my favorite. It was a mixture of riced cauliflower, ground turkey, tomatoes, cheese, and taco seasonings. I went light on the cheese, so it wasn't super cheesy. Jenna wouldn't touch it, but Andrew loved it! On the side we had chips and guacamole.

Monday: Bean and Bacon Soup, Cheddar Biscuits, Cucumber

This Bean with Bacon Soup was a yummy Pioneer Woman recipe. It made such a huge batch that I've been eating bean soup for most of my lunches this week. On the side I made our favorite Whole Wheat Cheddar Garlic Drop Biscuits. The kids love them because they kind of taste like my homemade cheez-its. Jenna and I also had some cucumbers.

Tuesday: Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry over Quinoa, Raspberries

I made a quick stir-fry using up the veggies we had on hand, which included broccoli, carrots, and onions. I also cooked some chicken with it, and covered everything in hoison sauce and a little sesame oil. The kids had rice but I had mine over quinoa. Raspberries on the side because the kids love them!

Wednesday: Patty Melts, Fries, Southwestern Chopped Salad

I realize this is the ugliest looking patty melt ever, but it did taste good! It was just a burger I cooked up and topped with melted Havarti cheese. I had mine on rye bread. On the side I made frozen fries from Trader Joe's, as well as homemade sweet potato fries. I had the kids try both and they all liked the regular fries best. (To be honest, so did I!). I also served this salad from Trader Joe's that I love.

Thursday: Shrimpin Dippin Broth, Rice, Green Beans, Garlic Bread

This was definitely a special dinner for a Thursday night! Have you ever eaten at Bubba Gump's? They have an item on their menu called Shrimpin Dippin Broth that is fantastic. Many years ago I found a copycat recipe and I make it about once a year for Adam and I. You eat it over rice and it soaks up all the broth and it is just amazing. We had green beans on the side, and I made some quick garlic bread using whole grain sourdough. The kids basically ate rice for dinner, but that's ok. It almost felt like a date night for us! Except for the 4 loud kids......

I've got chicken cooking in the crockpot right now to make these tonight:

I feel like we ate some really good food this week! I'll likely keep it simple tomorrow night, and then I'll be back at it on Sunday, meal planning and grocery shopping for next week. Good thing I like food. Otherwise cooking for a family would feel like such a chore! What are you all eating this week?

2 Things - The Bigs

As a follow up to yesterday's post, here are a couple silly, weird, cute, or memorable things about my two "bigs".

RYAN 7 yrs 9 mos

-Ryan has learned the "s" word. As in, the word "stupid". He knows he isn't really supposed to say it, but according to him a whole lot of things are stupid. Especially homework.

-Ryan is really proud of how fast he is. And he is SO fast when he runs! I remember his pediatrician commenting on his strong legs as a baby, and telling us that he would be a fast runner. Well, he was absolutely right. A couple kids at school have started commenting on how little Ryan is. Adam told him to say "Yea, but I bet you can't catch me!".


LUCAS 5 yrs 7 mos

-Lucas loves organizing! He will randomly go into our hallway closet and organize everyone's shoes and socks. When he puts his laundry away he first starts by taking everything out of his drawer and putting it back in neat stacks. He will sometimes even do this for his brother's drawer!

-Lucas eats SO much after school! Just yesterday he came home (After eating all his lunch at school) and ate 2 bowls of tortilla chips, half an apple, animal crackers, a big cup of orange juice, 2 yogurt tubes, and a bowl of cinnamon shredded wheat cereal. And then just a couple hours later he ate 2 servings of ground beef at dinner. Growth spurt??

2 Things - The Littles

Every once in a while I like to document the weird, cute, silly and strange things my kids are doing. Here are a few for my "littles".

JENNA 3 yrs, 2 months

-Now that Jenna is nearly 100% potty-trained, she is quite particular about her cleanliness. If the slightest drop of peepee gets anywhere near her, she must immediately strip and take a bath. The trouble is, this happens multiple times during the day. It's not uncommon for her to be naked.

-Jenna is in love with sunflower seeds. We keep a bag of Trader Joe's salted sunflower seeds in the freezer and she calls them "Daddy's seeds" because Adam also loves them. Every single day she requests her "Daddy seeds" in a certain little blue cup, and she never tires of them.

ANDREW 10 months, 2 weeks

-Andrew is obsessed with our TV remote control. The minute he sees it he shrieks and lunges for it. If I give him another remote, like the one for the DVD player or for the sound bar, he literally tosses it on the floor and starts crying again. He wants the one specific remote that we don't want him to have. Maybe he secretly delights in changing the channel when we're trying to watch TV!

-Andrew has started making fish lips. He sucks in his cheeks and makes a smacking sound with his lips, like a fish. He loves it when we do it back to him.

Stay tuned for 2 things about "The Bigs".

Exploring the American River

This afternoon we took a little family trip to the American River. There is a spot in Auburn (Or Foresthill?) where there is a really tall bridge called the Foresthill Bridge. It's actually the tallest bridge in California, at 730 feet.

We parked and headed out to explore.

We chose a calm spot by the river to skip rocks. There were other parts of the river with white rapids!

Just me and my blonde baby....

And my Minnie Mouse girl! Right after I took this picture she reached up and got her lollipop stuck in her hair. Ha!

What do you think Adam was telling Lucas? I'm guessing it was either "Don't jump in the water" or "Don't throw rocks at people".

Daddy taught everyone how to skip rocks.

I took a short video. Adam is so good at skipping rocks! I practiced a few times and actually skipped one once. In my defense, I was wearing Andrew.

After that we went on a little hike. After a while we turned around because it was getting really overcast and some people warned us the trail was about to get a lot steeper.

We drove over to the other side of the river. The trail going down to the water was much too steep for Jenna and myself, since I was still carrying Andrew. So we stayed behind while Adam took the boys down closer to the rapids. (Note to self....don't even try to take your 3yr old to the porta-potty while wearing your baby. It doesn't work).

 He took some great pictures!

It was a fun way to spend a few hours together as a family! What other local areas can you recommend for us to explore?

Week of Dinners January 1-6

I don't know about you, but I feel like I didn't do a lot of cooking in December. I definitely ATE a lot. Especially cookies. But healthy homemade dinners? They were a little scarce. Obviously I fed my family every night but there's just something about the holiday season that makes cooking dinner so much harder. Am I right? So come January 1st, I was more than ready to try out some new recipes and get back in the kitchen. Here were our dinners from last week:

Monday: Baked Lemon Garlic Chicken, Whole Wheat Couscous, Steamed Veggies

I tried out a new recipe for lemon garlic chicken. Adam thought it was okay, but I loved the lemony sauce, especially on top of the couscous. Ryan and Jenna did love the chicken, so I'd call it a success! On the side I steamed cauliflower and carrots.

Tuesday: Crockpot Stuffed Pepper Soup, Salad

This was another tasty new recipe! This Stuffed Pepper Soup was delicious served over brown rice.  It was so good, in fact, that I forgot to snap a picture until I was halfway through dinner! On the side I had a small salad of romaine and cherry tomatoes.

Wednesday: Ranch Pork Tenderloin w/ Gravy, Potatoes, Roasted Veggies

This recipe for Ranch Pork Tenderloin was pretty good, but I think I've had tastier versions of pork tenderloin. The gravy was delicious though! On the side I made yellow potatoes for Adam and a sweet potato for myself. Then I blanched and sautéed some green beans and added in lots of garlic and cherry tomatoes. I don't like raw cherry tomatoes but when sautéed or roasted with garlic I think they're great.

Thursday: Egg Roll in a Bowl, Ramen Noodles, Fruit

This Egg Roll in a Bowl recipe was another new one, although I've made something similar before. I basically cooked ground turkey with a bag of coleslaw mix and a bunch of Asian ingredients. On the side I cooked some brown rice ramen noodles I picked up at Costco last year. They're honestly not our favorite but I refuse to waste them! No veggies tonight....instead I just put out some grapes and mandarin oranges.

Friday: Salsa Chicken Tacos, Broccoli

Salsa chicken is one of our go-to recipes. It's just so easy! I put a few chicken breasts along with salsa and homemade taco seasoning in the crockpot. Set it on low for 7 hours, and voila! Spicy juicy chicken ready to stuff into taco shells, serve over rice, or even roll up inside enchiladas. I had mine topped with cheese, plain yogurt, and tomatoes. Again, I don't love the cherry tomatoes but they were ok in the tacos. I'm ready for it to be tomato season again! On the side we had some good old steamed broccoli.

Saturday: Turkey Burgers, Corn, Pickle

I'm not going to lie....I was tired of cooking by Saturday. But do you know how expensive it is to eat out with 4 kids? It's not something we can do every week, so I must keep cooking! I made this recipe for The Juciest Turkey Burger. And it was pretty darn juicy! (The secret is butter). I had no inspiration for side dishes, so I opened a can of corn. For some reason I failed to fix a vegetable. Oops! Jenna and I added pickles to our plates, but the boys don't like them.

I received the new Pioneer Woman cookbook for Christmas and I am anxious to try some of the recipes. I have only had time to crack it open once, but I plan on finding more time soon. I love looking through new cookbooks for ideas! What's for dinner at your house this week?