Shoe Box O’stuff December 30, 2009

I have been thinking for weeks about a ‘Works For Me Wednesday‘ post, but either everything I think of seems too lame to post, or I think someone else must have posted it already.  This week I decided I was going to post something anyway, whether it was too lame, or a repeat.  It was my idea, one that though I’m sure there are lots of others who do it themselves, I came up with it for myself, on my own.  So here I am on Thursday (a day late of course) with my Works For Me Wednesday tip for you.

I am a mom on the go.  It seems that we are always Go-Go-Going somewhere, and it seems like I am always forgetting something. When the Popo was born, it had been 10 years since I had a little in tow, so it took some getting used to all over again.  It didn’t take me long to figure out I had to come up with some kind of always have on hand package.  I would find myself out to eat with my parents and no baby food/spoon/bib, bottle, or sippy cup.  We would have a doopie diaper and no wipes.  You know those moments… the ‘I thought I grabbed that before I left the house’ moments.  My solution to this problem was to make an emergency box of sorts to keep fully stocked and in the car.  Yes, I could have just as easily stocked a diaper bag, but especially after The Baby came along, I had enough to carry and wasn’t big on a diaper bag.

My solution:  The Shoebox of Stuff

Between the two front seats in my car is the perfect little cubby for my ‘Shoebox of Stuff’.  I bought a rubbermaid/Sterelite plastic box with a cover for about $2 at Target or Walmart, and stocked it up with enough for my two littles: a few diapers, wipes, bibs, sippy cups, a few snack items, and whatever else I could think of that should be in there in case of ‘emergency’.

My box has been a life saver.  I can’t even begin to tell you how often I have had to grab a diaper out of that box to change a diaper while I was just running out for a quick errand, or how many time having that bib in the car was a great save when we stayed for dinner at a friend’s unexpectedly.

I also learned very quickly that it wasn’t a bad idea to keep all of the items in the box on hand as extras at grandma’s and auntie’s in case we stopped by for a quick visit and stayed longer than expected, which happens all the time with us.  So there you have it… it works for me!

Menu Plan Monday December 28, 2009

We’re living here in this tropical paradise of sorts, gazillions of miles away from all that is familiar, where I can rarely find anything even remotely close to what I would be buying at the grocery if I was back home, shopping in my cozy neighborhood Stop & Shop.  I finally sat down and attempted to make a menu for the week.  While I’m sure you will not find it terribly tantalizing to the taste buds, as it is very simple, it was all I could do for now.  I’m going to go ahead and post it in hopes that I stick to it somewhat for the rest of the week.  While it is Monday morning now at home, it’s almost bedtime here….

Breakfast

1. pancakes, bananas
2. cereal, apples
3. oatmeal, mangos
4. cereal, apples
5. oatmeal, bananas
6. cereal, apples
7. eggs, plantains

Lunch

1. veggie lasagna, salad
2. straw hats
3. fried rice
4. shepherd’s pie (veggie meat)
5. squash stew
6. spaghetti
7. pineapple fried rice

Supper

1. humus, carrots, crackers
2. carrot salad
3. egg salad sandwiches
4. potato salad, fresh veggies
5. falafel, fresh veggies
6. quinoa salad
7. mac & cheese, fresh veggies

I struggled enough just trying to come up with things to eat that weren’t daily repeats, so it would have likely pushed me over the edge if I tried to list the days with meals broken up by day.  Really, I was trying to get some kind of grocery list together so that I can just buy a month’s worth of food stuff so we aren’t constantly running to the grocery store, which is what seems to have become our routine.  At any rate, here you have it and I hope that now that I have shared it with the internet, I will stick to it, at least somewhat.

Oh, and in case you are wondering, I am trying to get into the habit of having the heavier meal at lunch time because we have been eating the evening meal later and later every day.

Straw Hats December 22, 2009

A few years ago I was introduced to straw hats, otherwise known as haystacks.

Sometimes they have them as a theme for the potluck at church, but the first time I really remember having them was when we were visiting a good friend who lived in Ohio.  If you like tacos, or Mexican dishes, surely this dish will be a delight to your taste buds.

The reason I’m writing about them today is because I have been terribly homesick, and a large part of that is missing some foods that are everywhere back home (could not be any more easily accessible) but here, they can’t be found anywhere.  In the last week or so I think I have prepared straw hats three times, and eaten them a fourth time courtesy of my neighbor who is also from the western part of the world.

If  you’ve never had them before, here is the recipe… if you know what they are, put them on your menu for the week, because I’m sure that you’ve been missing them, even if you don’t know it!

1 lb of ground meat

taco seasoning to taste

1 can of baked beans

bag of Fritos

fresh cucumber, cut into small pieces

fresh tomato, cut into small pieces

red onion, diced

sour cream

cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Brown the ground meat, adding taco seasoning to taste, mix in baked beans
2. Spread Fritos on your plate, cover with meat/bean mixture
3. Sprinkle cucumber, tomato, and onion over meat/bean mixture
4. Sprinkle shredded cheddar over the top
5. Add a dollop of sour cream
6. ENJOY!!!

• We tend to follow a mostly vegetarian diet, so we use a veggie meat substitute like Morning Star.  *Disclaimer here… I once made this when my meat-loving best friend was visiting, and she LOVED it with the crumbles!
• I am currently living abroad, and it has been very difficult to find any sort of taco seasoning.  The link I provided is a recipe I recently came across and while I have only used it once so far, it was delicious in the homemade salsa I whipped together the other day.
• I usually use the vegetarian variety of B&M baked beans, I have found that those have the best flavor for the end result., which is a kind of spicy-sweet mixture.  It is impossible to find any variety of vegetarian baked beans here, so we have been eating them beanless, but I have added a bit of brown sugar so we still have the same flavoring.
• I have seen these made with the addition of kidney beans, corn, and diced mushrooms to the meat, and those were just as delicious (though my favorite is just adding corn).
• Again, where we are currently living, I haven’t been able to find Fritos, so we have used a variety of other chips as a substitute.  Nacho Doritos have worked well, along with Tostitos corn chips.
• Cheddar cheese and sour cream are EXTREMELY difficult to come by here, so we have been enjoying the meal without them.  Surprisingly, they are still just as delicious as the original!

You can see that there is a lot of room for customization if there are items that you would like to add, remove, or just change, and there is a lot of room for substitution.  Some like to eat straw hats with lettuce on top as well.  Play around with your favorites or creative cooking ideas and see what tastes good to you.

If this is new to you and you try it out, let me know what you think.  If this is an old dish in your home, and you have some suggestions on different ways to prepare or different things to add, I’d love to hear your ideas!

Kid’s Day Out December 20, 2009

My friendly neighbor and I decided to make a kid’s day out today; a picnic on the school grounds, special treats and fun running around.

It was a great idea in theory, the only problem is that in reality, by the time we got over there, I was in no mood.  After I returned home late last night from a trip to the mall, I stayed up even later, well past my bed time, skying with my mother about her upcoming visit.  To add to the bad day in the making, Popo was still awake at midnight, and she was up by 8:00 this morning…  AND she refused to take a nap this afternoon.  The Baby was rudely awoken from her nap when it was time to leave, and all of these things led to a group of cranksters, which leads me to my point.  Yes, there is a point to all this.

Hot Belly Mama recently had a post on the grayness of motherhood. The main idea of that post mostly centers around the decisions we make with our babies (i.e.- feeding, sleeping, diapering), but she also writes about how we, as mothers who are human, can tend to get a little defensive when we are discussing out parenting philosophies and choices.

I have been thinking of Hot Belly Mama’s post over the last few days, specifically related to the topics she discusses, but today something came up that made me think about it in broader terms. Because Popo was so tired today, she was excessively fresh and lippy, talking back and screaming. I myself was exhausted from being up too late, so I admit that part of the problem was that I just didn’t have the energy to deal with that specific problem when it arose. In a sense, I was choosing my battles with her today, but more front and center is my belief that children are allowed to be angry or frustrated, sad, upset, or just plain tired the same way we are as parents. I think that when you are aware that a behavior is stemming at least partially from a physiological issue (lack of sleep), you are not a bad parent if you let it slide for the moment.

I think that there are some rules that should never be broken, tired children and parents or not, but that sometimes, as a mom (or dad), you have to look at the big picture and make a decision as to whether sticking strong to your ‘normal consequences’ for any given behavior will just make the problem worse. Today I found myself defending my ‘lax discipline’, as it may have been described, because someone else thought there was a better way for me to do it. Parenting is not like doing a puzzle, there is not only one way to make a piece fit into the picture. Sometimes it can feel like a day is nothing but battles, and especially on those days, you have to sit back and think about whether or not there is a different way to solve this problem, or if you should even bother to classify the given situation as a problem. Some days the answer is yes and some days the answer is no.

We all have different ideas on what good parenting is, we all do things differently. That doesn’t mean that any one specific way is the only right way to do things. If you find yourself challenging someone’s parenting style, just take a minute to remember that certainly there must be some things that you could be doing differently as well…

A Milllion Miles December 19, 2009

Wow, long time no write!

I was just thinking today on my way home from a trip to the mall, that I really need to get back here a little more often… or at all for that matter.

When I finally arrived home, I checked my email, and lo and behold, a new comment was waiting for me; I think that was a sign.  So now it is 2:07 a.m. and here I am typing away to bring you up to speed.

Have you ever done anything crazy with a pinch of impulsive mixed in?

I sure have.  Sometime over the summer, probably in early to mid-August, we (hubby and I) made a kind of spur of the moment decision. That was, Plan B for the completion of my BSN was developed and put into action.  Here I am now, half way across the world, a foreign student in a new school, away from my hubby, extended family, and friends, welcoming new experiences.

Here I am in the Philippines, making my goal become a reality.  Hopefully in two years (the length of time is still debatable) I will return to the States ready for another new chapter to start.  But for now, I am here learning lots of new things, seeing lots of new things, doing lots of new things, eating lots of new things, and loving lots of new things.  The decision to come here was difficult to make on some levels, but on others, it couldn’t have been any easier.  I’ve been here now for just over two months, and so far it’s been pretty great.

I’ve been trying to keep a handwritten journal of sorts, a record of my adventures, but even with the pen I have been slacking.  Just before I signed in tonight, I thought maybe I should try to start the new year off with a resolution of sorts, to post once a day… but I figured I should be more realistic and aim for at least once a week, both here in the cyberworld, and with paper and ink.  I would really love to look back and have a regular record of our experience, especially for The Manchild and the babies.  I have also been encouraging the Manchild to keep his own journal, because I think it will be amazing to look back in years to come and see the different perspectives we had throughout this time.

So here I leave you for the evening (or wee hours of the morning), before I fall asleep, hoping to be back sooner and more regularly with some adventures to share!