4 Weeks of New Recipes, How to Meal Plan

I've been married 2.5 years and I have about 25 recipes that I make all the time. Every now and then I try something new but I'm ready for a lot of new!! I decided to make a new recipe every day for 4 weeks. That's 28 new recipes!! That's a lot to simply look up and hope I have the ingredients for.

Good thing I know how to meal plan. I don't do it very often. Not sure why because every time I do I love it!! When I was pregnant, student teaching, and working, I planned out 2 months at a time, shopped for 2 weeks at a time and dinner was never a worry for me.

An alternate to meal planning if being organized scares you is to make a list of everything you know how to make and then store most of the ingredients. I always have chicken, beef, pasta, spices, potatoes, onions, and cans of beans and tomatoes. Then at the store I pick up sour cream or cream cheese and I can make almost all of the aforementioned 25 recipes.

But for this challenge, I need a plan!

Hurry and name (or find) 28 new recipes. It's hard, isn't it? Could you name just 4 though? Probably. I'll let you in on my meal planning trick: Pick 7 categories, one for each day of the week and then pick 4 recipes that go under it. Ex: Mexican- enchiladas, tacos, burrito, pork salad, etc.

These are my categories:

Mondays: Soups

• Minestrone
• Saugage totelini soup

Tuesdays: Breakfasts

• Dinosaur Eggs
• breakfast casserole (potatoe, bacon eggs, cheese)

Wednesdays: Chicken

• Cilantro Lime Chicken
• Buffalo Chicken

Thursdays: Sandwiches

• Sweet Potato and Black Bean Wraps
• Waffle Iron Sandwiches

Fridays: Beef

• Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Saturdays: Pastas

• Creamy Pasta with Spinach and Tomatoes
• Lasagna Roll ups

Sundays: Casseroles

• Turkey Veggie Casserole
• Chicken cordon bleu casserole

(I usually do this on a calendar because I keep my planner out all day. Just do whatever works best for you.)

When you meal plan it's better to over plan. I usually have a day where I just don't feel like cooking or we need to clean out the fridge. When I was in school taking a sandwich to lunch every day I had a designated left overs day. As a mom at  home I usually eat left overs for lunch. But the way I set up my meal plan gives me the ability to cook every night or to resort to left overs on the days I can't bring myself to get cooking.

I only posted a few of my recipes on here because it was taking too much time. I shopped for 2 weeks at a time, it was great!! I ended up spending the same amount at the store as I did when I was going once a week, so I just cut my grocery bill in half!! My 2nd two weeks I used an real life cookbook for recipes instead of the internet. I'm excited to see how they go!!

Pregnancy Series Part 3: Finding a Doctor

This is one of the most important things to do. Seriously! While many pregnancies and deliveries go well with no complications, many do not. When making the decision of which doctor to go to, remember that you are literally putting your life and your baby's life in the hands of your doctor (or midwife).

The easiest way to find a good doctor is to get recommendations from people you trust. If you are planning on waiting to announce the pregnancy until after you've seen a doctor, it can be awkward to ask for recommendations from friends because they get suspicious. Hopefully if they are good friends they will give you their recommendation and not ask any questions.

When you ask, don't just ask who is good, ask WHY they like their doctor. Even if you are best friends, you will probably like different things in a doctor. Some like to get in and get out, while others like a doctor to take their time, go over everything, give them a lot of reading materials, etc. My sister-in-law LOVES her doctor, and when she recommended him to a friend, her friend said, "I heard he was terrible!" So they got to discussing why some thought he was "terrible" and it was simply because he didn't allow doulas or legally binding birth plans (the kind that limits what a doctor can do in an emergency). My sister-in-law didn't want a doula or birth plan and he was an excellent doctor for her. But obviously, anyone wishing to have a doula or birth plan wouldn't like him. He wasn't a bad doctor, he just had different goals for delivery than some women. That's why it's important to ask WHY. (Remember when giving a review that it's best not to label as "good" or "bad" but just to explain what they did you liked and didn't like, including why you did or didn't. Sometimes you just don't click with a doctor but don't drive away potential patients).

My friend LOVED her doctor. And I mean she LOVED her!! She'd talk about her all the time. Due do scheduling conflicts she wasn't able to see her doctor for her 6 week check up  after the baby was born and she was so sad because it meant she wasn't going to be able to see her until her next pregnancy. Sounds like a glowing review, right?

So I went to her. She was a good doctor. She was nice. But I didn't love her quite like my friend did. I felt a little awkward asking her questions, though she never treated me poorly when I asked them. There was nothing wrong with her and I kept going to her. But then we moved for the summer and I started going to the OB/GYN I'd gone to for my premarital and 1 year check up (PAP smears and all the fun stuff that entails). I LOVED him! I felt so comfortable and at ease with him. I love the way he treated me, I felt like he truly cared about me and my baby. The way he talked, the way he dressed, the way he held himself... I can't say enough good things about him!

I can't pin point what exactly about these 2 doctors was so different. Part of it might have been the fact that one was male, one was female. I have only been to one female doctor in my life. (She was a dermotoligist who removed a mole off my back 5 years ago and the scar is still worse than my C-section scar from 7 months ago.) My pediatrician was male, my first OB/GYN was male... for some reason I feel more comfortable with male doctors. My friend on the other hand was rather uncomfortable when she delivered and the on call doctor was a male, not her female doctor. I didn't know she felt uncomfortable with men otherwise I would have taken her recommendation with a few grains of salt. (Can I change the expression like that?)

Most of what makes someone think they have a "good" doctor is personal preference. We all feel more comfortable around different types of people so it should make sense that we might prefer a different doctor.

Another note about listening to friend's suggestions: I had one friend who told me that a certain doctor did something during a friend's delivery that she wasn't supposed to. Well upon my own research, it really is ok for the doctor to do what she did, there are absolutely no complications with it (unless you're a cow. Like the animal. It's great being a vet school wife!) Remember that some procedures get emotionalized in the media and are put in a bad light when really it's not a problem. Check your sources. Ask a few doctors or nurses. Be careful with the internet though, anyone can put up anything and make it sound legitimate.

Another thing to do is call the hospitals and ask if they have a way to meet their doctors to make a better informed decision. Some may let you have a consultation but some may not. If you live in Utah, there is this AWESOME group called Intermountain Moms. The have a Facebook page (here) and YouTube channel (here). It's great because you can ask for recommendations, take virtual tours of hospitals and facilities, and even listen to some doctors talk about what they do what they do.

This is the OB/GYN who delivered my baby(click here). They have videos for lots of OB/GYNs and pediatricians. Take a minute to explore a few videos and explore their youtube channel. The have videos of nurses who answer commonly asked questions, it's great because I can search for a question and I don't have to call the doctor every time.

If you are not in Utah, call a few hospitals and ask if they have a Facebook page, YouTube channel, or Blog. Most of them will. They are great resources that are not used enough.

Things to keep in mind when choosing a doctor:

• Your health
• If you have some health problems, there are doctors that specialize in risky pregnancies. Find a doctor that is qualified and experienced in treating women with your health problems
• Doctor's Outlook
• You want to have the same opinion as your doctor on things like an episiotomy, medication, and emergency procedures. 
• Compatibility
• Like I mentioned before, do you get along and feel comfortable with the doctor?
• Man or Woman
• Some people have a preference and that is ok!
• Hospital Preference
• You might find a doctor that you love but not the hospital or vice versa
• Convenience
• How far do you have to go to see the doctor? How far away is the hospital?

Now I don't have a midwife, and the reasons my friends have explained to me for choosing to go with a midwife are all precisely the reasons I didn't have a midwife. Neither is wrong, it's up to you. It's your body, your baby, your pregnancy. Make sure you are happy, comfortable, and trust whoever is caring for you.

If you go to a doctor and you don't LOVE them, you can switch. Give it at least 2 or 3 appointments though, you never know what their day has been like. I can't stress enough, it is OK to switch. No one's feelings will be hurt, they want to make sure you're comfortable and taken care of. GOOD LUCK!

Any questions or other recommendations about choosing a doctor?

Why I Teach My Daughter to Share

A little bit ago an article entitled "Why I Don't Make My Son Share" made its rounds on Facebook.  I saw it re-posted at least 15 times. The first time I read it I agreed whole-heartedly and quickly re-posted it myself. Then all day something nagged at me. I liked parts of what the article was saying but I hated (strong word) how it used the word "share."

You can read this article here.

The opening paragraph discusses how the author's son's preschool doesn't force children to share. She describes a beautiful scene of children playing peacefully beside each other, politely asking for a toy and then patiently waiting until the other child using it is done. They can even save the toy for later, like if it's snack time then the child gets to go back to the toy he was playing with first. She ends the introduction by saying at first she was confused by the rule but now she knows exactly why they have it.

She tells 2 stories that make you horrified to be called "mom." Two women use the word "share" as code for "give my child exactly what he wants right now!" It's emotional and angering and a whole group of Facebook moms vowed to never make their children share ever again. Our children deserve to keep what is theirs to begin with! They need to stand up for themselves! We need to teach them to never let anyone walk all over them! (These are all true, by the way. But don't go lighting your torches and burning down Sharing's door just yet).

While I'm sure teaching children patience had something to do with the preschool's rule, I highly doubt that was the main motivation. I want to throw in my own theory and I could be wrong, but my guess is they had other motives. Anyone who has a 4 year knows that accidents happen. I mean the I-was-too-busy-having-fun-so-I-didn't-make-it-to-the-bathroom kinds of accidents. A way to encourage small children to empty their equally small bladders in time is to promise (and follow through) that they will get to pick up their fun where they left off. Just please go to the bathroom so we don't have to clean up another mess.

That being said, it sounds like a good policy and is working well for them. Children learn patience and the volunteers don't have accidents to clean up. That's great. But I want to share my own park experience.

My daughter is 8 months old and pretty much the only thing in the park she can really enjoy is the swings. There are only 2 baby swings and the last time we went to the park it was crowded! You'd think it'd been -12 degrees out for 3 months or something. Oh wait... Anyway, when we got there the baby swings were free so I put her in there and pushed her and pushed her and pushed her. Then another mom came and put her kid in and pushed him for a while. Then another kid came and quietly stood by the swings. After a few minutes, the other mom took her son out and the other kid got in. Her son had been in it for a decent amount of time. No words were spoken by either child or mom. Then I noticed a dad holding his little girl in his lap swinging on a regular swing. So I took Eliza out and he put his daughter in. Again, no words were spoken. We braved the slides until the swings were free again and she swung and swung until nap time.

That, my friends, is sharing.

Even though no words were spoken, I hope the children involved learned from their parents who observed other's wants and needs and accommodated accordingly simply out of the goodness of their hearts. I could have justified letting Eliza stay in the swing the entire time. She's just a baby, that's the only thing in the park she can actually do while the other kids could walk and weren't terrified of the slide. She was there first. She has an ear infection right now so I want to do whatever makes and keeps her happy. I'm sure each other parent could list why their child deserved the swing for the whole time. But you know what? It didn't matter. It made me happy to see other kids enjoying the swings as much as Eliza. I hope as she grows she will feel that same happiness that comes with kindness and empathy.