Moving Towards Minimalism

I have given myself a new official title: Manager of Stuff.

I can very easily spend most of my days managing stuff. Picking up stuff, putting stuff back where it goes, cleaning stuff, charging stuff, drying stuff, making decisions about stuff, organizing stuff, and nagging my family about stuff. Some days I feel like the walls are closing in and I'm just surrounded by mess. And rightly so, right?? I've got 4 messy kids and a husband who likes his stuff.

Now, I'm not one to get sentimental about things and hold onto them, but man oh man, STUFF sure has a way of accumulating without me even noticing. And I'm really a very simple girl at heart. I love an organized home. An unbusy schedule. I love minimal décor, clean lines, organized drawers, etc. I hate junk drawers, cluttered counters, and stacks of papers. And yet here I am, surrounded by too much unorganized stuff.

We had a speaker at Mops talk to us about purging items from our home and decluttering. She challenged us to get rid of a certain amount of items, and after I did that, it felt so nice. But it wasn't enough.

And then I stumbled across the YouTube channel The Minimal Mom:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeLICYOqHfIrfSAQq1TT7PA
And her blog TheMinimalMom.com 

Go visit it for a second and tell me you don't feel inspired to become a minimalist! This Mom has paired down so many areas of her home for her family of six and she says there are so many benefits to becoming more minimal. After browsing her blog and YouTube videos, I had a major AHA! moment. The more stuff I have in my home, the more chaotic it feels. The more stuff I have, the more I have to take care of. The more stuff I have, the harder it is to keep my house clean. 

If I can get rid of anything unnecessary that is causing me undue work or worry, WHY NOT!?

There are a few areas in my home where I'm already pretty minimalistic. Each child only has 2 pairs of shoes. I don't own many pairs of shoes myself. I don't stockpile a ton of food. I don't own many kitchen gadgets. I bought one of these boxes for each child and into them goes special sentimental items I want to keep, such as hair from their first haircut, sweet cards they have made for me, and baby dedication mementos. Other than that, I toss most of their schoolwork and artwork. I can be ruthless when I need to be.

However, there are others areas that I'm not so good at! For example, I think I have too many clothes. I love having lots of pretty items hanging in my closet to choose from, but at some point this Fall I realized it was actually getting hard to choose an outfit in the morning because I had TOO many options! 

So I'm challenging both myself and you guys! Particularly during this holiday season of excess, I think we could all benefit from getting rid of stuff. I took 20 minutes this morning and filled 5 bags full of items to donate. It was mostly toys, books, and clothes. Give yourself a small set amount of time and see what you can come up with to give away! And let go of the guilt. You really don't need the stuff.

I get it, having stuff makes us happy. But at some point it can be requiring more energy from us than it's worth. Would you consider yourself a minimalist? A hoarder? Somewhere in between?

Jenna's 4-Year Checkup

Jenna had her 4-year well check yesterday. She is growing well, and staying right around her perfectly average growth percentiles. 

Weight: 35 lbs, 5 oz (53%)

Height: 39.5 inches (47%)

BMI: 65%

Compared to her big brothers at this age, she is 4 pounds heavier and a couple inches taller than Ryan was, and 2 pounds less and the same height as Lucas. 

My only concerns that I discussed with her doctor were her skin. First, Jenna has something called molluscum contagiosum that causes small raised pink bumps on her skin. It is a harmless viral rash that can continue for up to a few years.

Second, Jenna has a group of blood vessels on her left cheek that formed a couple years ago. It is always there, although it can look lighter or darker depending on her skin/time of day. I forget what the doctor called it, but basically he said it is harmless but may not go away or completely fade.

Third, Jenna has eczema pretty badly behind her knees and on her sides under her armpits. We have tried some different moisturizers but they make her cry from the burning. So I have a new list of lotions to try, along with hydrocortisone. My poor girl has such sensitive skin!

Finally, I mentioned to the doctor that Jenna's skin always seems incredibly pale. I was pretty sure that it is just her natural coloring, because it's not like Adam or I are exactly tan...….but still. A mom always worries, right? The doctor said the only possible cause would be anemia, so we went ahead and did a quick blood draw to check her iron levels. The results came back and look fine to me, so I'm thinking Jenna has just been blessed with very very pale skin!

Finally, Jenna got some booster vaccines.

Poor girl was so tired she took a late afternoon nap and then slept in an extra hour this morning. Being poked and prodded at the doctor can wear you out!

Jenna: Four

Happy 4th Birthday Jenna Mae Nullmeyer!

My dear girl, you are growing up too fast. Sometimes I look at you and I just want to reverse time so I can experience the last 4 years with you all over again.

This past year you started preschool, got your first bike (with training wheels), learned to write your name, and began doing your own chores (sometimes!).

One of my favorite things about you has always been how content you are. Most of the time you really are just happy and go-with-the-flow. You don't get bothered too easily, and you are easy to please. You are excited over the simple things, and it doesn't take much to put a big smile on your face. Case in point: Just this morning I blew up some polka-dot balloons for Jenna before she woke up. When she saw them she said "Oh Mommy thanks for giving me the best birthday ever!"

I feel like we have a special bond, being the only girls in this family. You love to say "I'm not the only girl in this family!!". You also love to say that we are just alike, since we often have the same taste in foods. You always always call me "Mama".

You do have your moments...such as when you scream at your brothers, get sassy about obeying, or get whiny and forget how to use your words. 

You are definitely not as high-energy as your brothers, but you do enjoy playing with them.

Sometimes they can be annoying, rough-and-tumble older brothers, but other times they can be incredibly sweet and protective towards you!

You talk constantly to me during the day. As we are doing things, you are always talking about them, rather than just doing them.

You love being "tricky". You will often make up a little lie, such as telling me you have a tummy-ache. Then I will act sad about it and your whole face will light up as you shout "Tricked you!!". I call you my tricky tricker and you think this little game is SO funny.

Some of your favorite things right now: making your toys talk to each other, going to the store with me, telling "pooky" stories (you are SO good at this!), and playing with your friends at MOPS. Your favorite foods right now are plain oatmeal topped with cream, cucumbers and dip, and Nutella sandwiches.

You have such a sweet, kind, gentle spirit. If we are playing a game and you win, you try to change it so that I can win.

I've been saying this since you were in my tummy, but you really are such a special blessing to our family. Happy Birthday my girl, I love you so much!

A Photo Every Hour

Here was my day yesterday, hour by hour!

6am - As I'm making my coffee I'm thinking about the fires burning in California.

 7am - Miss Jenna Mae is sitting on the counter enjoying a bowl of oatmeal.

8am - I sit down to my breakfast and make a quick list for the store. My lists always end up ripped and scribbled on, but I make it work.

9am - It's hard to tell by this picture, but the sky is so smoky I can look directly at the sun (probably shouldn't!)

10am - Back home from Target. Can you spot the tiny Christmas trees!?

11am - I very quickly unload and make some homemade buttercream frosting. Put it between graham crackers and flash freeze them. Jenna brought them to preschool to celebrate her birthday!

12pm - I make it to Ryan's class reading party just in time. He was too busy chewing to stop and smile.

1pm - This is the face of a toddler who won't nap.

2pm - Preschool pickup! Those are NOT the pants Jenna went to school in. She had her very first tiny accident in her pants!

3pm - Back at our house there are 6 kids. My 4, plus cousin Lyla and some random neighborhood boy who we don't know.

4pm - I help my sister out by picking up Emma and Jacob from school. A glimpse of my future....driving teenagers around town.

5pm - Lucas got his first Stitch Fix!

6pm - Turkey tacos, spanish rice, and a game of Uno for dinner.

7pm - Adam and I attend a very short CPR class at our local fire station. It is almost like a mini date night where we get to practice putting tourniquets on each other's arms. Ha!

8pm - Wrestling on the living room floor.

9pm - The last child just went to bed and I attempt to read my newest library book for a few minutes before Andrew wakes up.

Good night!

Bulk Cooking

You all know how much I love planning out my meals. I find that having my dinner menu planned out for the week makes things so much easier. However, cooking dinner each day is still a stressful time for me. Andrew doesn't sleep much these days so he's usually a cranky mess come 5pm. The boys need help with homework, Jenna wants me to play with her......and I'm supposed to cook a dinner from start to finish amidst the chaos. I'm sure most of you parents with little kids understand.

So last week I decided to try out bulk cooking. I figured I could save a lot of time by cooking a large quantity of just a few foods all at once, rather than smaller quantities each night of lots of different foods. On Sunday I pre-cooked a bunch of ingredients to have on hand for dinners throughout the week. My idea was to mix and match the ingredients to come up with 6 different dinners. Here is what I prepped on the weekend:

I prepared: 1 pound of pasta, 4 cups of rice, 1 pound of dried pinto beans, 3 pounds of meat (2 lbs ground beef, 1 lb ground turkey), 4 diced bell peppers, 2 diced onions, 3 heads washed broccoli, bunch of washed kale, 6 cooked shredded chicken breasts, and 6 boiled eggs (for breakfasts). Oh and I also bought a 5 pound bag of russet potatoes but did not pre-wash or cook these.

Here are the 6 meals, plus the pre-prepped ingredients I was able to use for each:  

Dinner 1: Chili, Baked Potatoes (Ground meat, Pinto Beans, Diced Onions, Diced Peppers, Potatoes)

Dinner 2: Chicken Rice Soup, Grilled Cheese, Kale Chips (Chicken, Rice, Onion, Kale)

Dinner 3: Goulash, Roasted Veggies (Ground Meat, Pasta, Diced Onion, Diced Peppers)

Dinner 4: Chicken Burrito Bowl (Chicken, Pinto Beans, Rice, Diced Peppers)

Dinner 5: BBQ Chicken, Mac N Cheese, Steamed Broccoli (Chicken, Pasta, Broccoli)

Dinner 6: Taco Tater (Potato, Ground Meat, Pinto Beans, Diced Pepper)

As you can see, I tried to keep the meals fairly simple, while still having a good deal of variety. And I think I accomplished that! I did find it incredibly nice at 5pm to have my proteins already cooked, and most of my veggies diced/washed. It gave me a good head-start to getting a healthy homecooked meal on the table. I think I will try this again sometime soon, with a different set of ingredients. Have you ever tried any form of bulk-cooking?

Chatterbox

I always assumed that Andrew would be a late talker. Probably because his big brothers were both a bit delayed with their speech. But also because I figured he would take on the classic "baby" role in the family, and let everyone else do the talking for him.

Boy was I wrong! Andrew has had a huge language explosion this past month, and he is now officially a chatterbox. He is now to the point where he will try to repeat anything we say. He has names for all of us (Mama, Dada, Ry-Ry, Googy for Lukey, and Nenna). He yells "Hi Papa!" anytime my Dad comes over. He asks specifically for cheese, milk, wawa, jew (juice), chip, bar.

 Andrew is not shy about getting what he wants. He demands to go "outside", "upstairs", "stroller", and "bath".  He tells me "poop" when his diaper needs changing. He can name a few animals and their sounds. "Roar!" And Andrew still screams at me to "GO!" when I stop at a stoplight.

 "Bup, Bup, Bup". This is the word we use when our toddlers learn to scoot down the stairs. If I tell Andrew he needs to "bup" he will sit down and say the word while he scoots. He not only says everything, but he is really receptive. The other day I put him on the couch with a stack of books and he looked up at me and said "Read books couch?"

Just yesterday after Jenna left with cousin Lyla to go to school, Andrew said "Girls School?" He kept looking at me and asking this over and over. I confirmed to him that yes, the girls were at school.

I can't believe I am having little conversations with my 20-month old. Andrew is such a fun (and loud!) little guy.

Dinners 10/20 - 10/31

SATURDAY: Cobb Salads

You can't tell, but there really was lettuce underneath my cobb salad toppings! In addition to the romaine lettuce, I included rotisserie chicken, cucumbers, croutons, tomatoes, feta cheese, bacon, and boiled eggs. I think the glass contained a half of a margarita that Adam made for me.

SUNDAY: Sausage and Peppers with Whole Wheat Penne, Steamed Veggies

I tried this new recipe for sausage and pepper pasta and it was delicious! I think what made it extra tasty was the homemade sauce, which included tomato sauce, tomato pasta, Italian seasonings, and red wine. I steamed broccoli and cauliflower to go with it.

 MONDAY: Baked Beef & Bean Chimichangas, Salad

 These chimichangas were good, but not fantastic. I had high hopes for them.....beef, beans, taco seasoning, and homemade enchilada sauce. I even thought Ryan might like them since the beans were mashed up and not very noticeable. Unfortunately they just weren't a big hit. I made a side salad of the usual lettuce, cucumber, and tomato.

TUESDAY: Fish Sticks, Mashed Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts

 I tried out these new fish sticks I found at the store for an easy fish dinner. Can you believe Adam was grumbling about this meal? Because I made fish sticks? I think my family is spoiled with my cooking!! I mean, the mashed potatoes were HOMEMADE. And even though nobody else likes brussels sprouts, I thought they were fantastic roasted and topped with parmesan. Oh well, can't win them all.

WEDNESDAY: Cheese Tortelloni, Chicken, and Pesto Veggies

This was a yummy one-pot meal filled with diced chicken, cheese tortelloni (Costco), Asparagus, and Cherry Tomatoes, all mixed together with pesto. I thought it was full of great flavor.

THURSDAY: Burgers, Potato Wedges, Carrots and Dip, Pickle

I normally buy whole wheat burger buns, but these brioche rolls were calling to me at the store, so I splurged a little on them. They were fantastic with the burgers! On the side I roasted some potato wedges. I also made a quick homemade ranch dressing to dip the carrots in, and added a pickle.

FRIDAY: Dinner out at Chipotle. I got a veggie burrito bowl. Mama needed a break!

SATURDAY: BBQ Shredded Chicken Sandwiches, Cheese Tortelloni, Steamed Veggies

This was kind of a use-up-leftovers night. We still had a couple brioche rolls, so I cooked some chicken breast in the crockpot with BBQ sauce and made little sandwiches out of it. (I wasn't super hungry so I only had about 1/3 of a sandwich. On the side we finished off the cheese tortelloni and some freshly steamed broccoli and cauliflower.

SUNDAY: Taco Casserole, Chips and Guacamole, Apple Pie

This is the taco casserole that was brought to me by a friend after I had baby Ryan, and I've been making it and giving away to other families ever since. It's simply layers of corn tortillas, cheese, and a ground beef/rotel/taco seasoning mixture. Very hearty and delicious! On the side we just had chips and guacamole. I tried not to stuff myself, because we had homemade apple pie and ice cream for dessert! My Mops table got together to make pies last week but I had to miss due to a sick child. My sweet friends brought me a pie anyways, and it was so good!

MONDAY: Thai Chicken Stir-Fry, Brown Rice, Edamame

 Jenna keeps asking me to make her "those green things that pop out of the green thing". I finally figured out she meant edamame, so I planned an Asian dinner. Jenna went to town on the edamame, and must have eaten 20 pods! I tried out this recipe for a Thai stir-fry, and added chicken breast for protein. I cleaned out the veggie drawer and included cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, onion, bell pepper, and fresh basil from my garden. The sauce was pretty light and mild. I served it with brown rice.

TUESDAY: Flemish Beef and Beer Stew over Egg Noodles

I was bringing dinner to a friend on this night, so I made a big batch of this stew. It's a bit different than my usual meat, potato and carrot beef stew. This recipe uses brown ale, and lots of meat and onions, as well as bacon for flavoring. It's definitely a different flavor but I really love it. We ate it over whole wheat egg noodles with parsley sprinkled on top. This recipe seems to be almost the same one.

 WEDNESDAY: Meatball Mummies, Pizza Sauce, Salad

I planned on making chili on Halloween, but changed my mind that morning to just make something simple yet festive. I saw this idea on the internet for wrapping meatballs in pizza dough, and then including little eyeballs to make a mummy. Well, I did my first ever Grocery pickup at Walmart that day and added candy eyeballs to my list. They ended up being out of them, so they subbed orange sprinkles! Not quite the same. So my mummies had no eyeballs. I served them with pizza sauce and a simple salad. It included romaine, kale, arugula, basil, parsley, and mint all from my backyard! Topped with cucumbers and tomatoes.

Whew, that's a lot of cooking! For next week I plan on doing something a little different with my menu and meal prep. Stay tuned for that!