It Comes In Like A Lion

I think about this saying every March.  Growing up in the desert southwest this usually only applied to the wind, March was always windy.  Yesterday was the first day of Spring, and yet today while having lunch with the girls at school, the cafeteria ladies opened the blinds to show snow flurries.  HUH?  Are you kidding me?!  I have had all the grey, dreary, rainy/snowy days I can take.  

The weather hasn't been the only lion around here.  I have been absent from this space for some time now.  The reason is that my health has not been that great recently.  I have been to several doctors in the last month, had countless vials of blood drawn, a minor procedure, and one scary trip to urgent care one night.  I am doing better but am still awaiting another procedure and more follow ups to make sure the medicine is working.  I am of course hoping for the best outcomes.  On top of all the doctor appointments Hannah and I have had the flu.  She was down for a full 7 days before she went back to school and then it was my turn. I can honestly say that I can't remember ever being that sick.  I've had the flu before, even on a cross country road trip, but this was some bad mojo. I can say that being sick with a deployed husband and no immediate family around is something no one should have to experience. Thankfully today I am feeling much better.  

Hopefully the rest of the saying rings true... and goes out like a lamb.    

The Week in Lunches 2/25-31

Here is the lunch round up for this week.

On Monday the girls picked different lunches.  For Hannah I packed: Hummus, pita chips, grape tomatoes, yogurt with frozen raspberries and apple slices.

Kaitlyn had apple rings with peanut butter and granola, pretzels, yogurt with frozen raspberries and a muffin.

On Tuesday the girls took leftover pasta salad and diced up chicken, yogurt with frozen berries, mandarin oranges and a mixture of 3 different bags from our Nature Box.

On Wednesday I made them a silly monkey sandwich with PB and apple butter for Kaitlyn and PB&J for Hannah, yogurt with frozen strawberries, a muffin and banana chips.

On Thursday Hannah requested hummus again with pita chips, cucumbers, apple sauce and a few Girl Scout Cookies.

Kaitlyn had pepperoni slices, a Laughing Cow cheese wedge, crackers, cucumber slices, apple sauce and Girl Scout Cookies.

All week long the girls have been celebrating Dr. Seuss at school. In honor of his birthday (tomorrow 3/2) I packed the girls a Seuss inspired lunch from a few of their favorite Dr. Seuss books.  A "B" PB&apple butter/jelly sandwich for The B Book.  I read this book so many times for them I could recite it without having to look at the words.  Ham dices in a green egg for Green Eggs and Ham.  Goldfish for One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, and apple slices with the number ten in stickers for Ten Apples Up On Top.  

Have a great weekend!

A Week of Birthday Fun

Confession:  I always say that my birthday is not a big deal but in fact I really do look forward to it.  Not for any profound reason its just that its MY day. I think Hannah summed it up really well in the car the other day.  We were discussing my birthday and and after the conversation was over Kaitlyn says:

"I love birthdays" and Hannah replies, "Yeah, cuz you get cake".  A girl after my own heart.  

This week was my birthday but also my husbands birthday.  His birthday was Sunday and I was so happy to see that his troops helped him celebrate with:

a nice birthday sign,

delicious (so I hear) Pancit noodles,

and of course a care package from home.

Wednesday was my birthday and while the morning was spent at a doctor's appointment and the evening at the girls' Girl Scout meeting, in between was a little celebrating with: 

birthday cupcakes with my favorite girls,

a wonderful visit from a friend that brought me a present and turtle cheesecake,

a wonderful surprise gift from my husband,

a delicious dinner of Garlic Citrus Roast Chicken and

these really yummy potatoes that my daughters go crazy for.

On Thursday the celebrating continued with a trip to the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival.  Head over to my friend's blog and read about our adventure.  We always have a great time and sometimes it is at the expense of other people's hard work.  To our defense we do appreciate the time and effort that is put into these quilts but sometimes you just have to say "Really!"

To wrap up my birthday week, today I was treated to a sushi lunch with 3 amazing ladies.  We had sushi and seaweed salad and laughed until it hurt.  It doesn't get much better than that.  

Until next birthday...

The Week In Lunches 2/18-2/21

This has been a very busy week around here. Lots of activities and birthdays.

Here are the girls lunches for the week.

There was no school on Monday but the girls had a field trip with their Girl Scout troop to the food bank.  They toured and learned lots about the food bank and even helped stock the shelves.  After the tour the girls headed to a local park for lunch and a little play time.  I packed the girls a PB & Apple butter flower sandwich, veggies sticks, yogurt with frozen raspberries, a cereal bar and a few marshmallows.

On Tuesday I packed the girls a toasted PB & apple butter sandwich stamped with one of our toast stamps, pretzels, blueberry breakfast cake, a GoGo Squeez, and a Mini Dipper with Nature's Bounty and Dark Cocoa Almonds from our Nature Box.

Wednesday the girls had a PB & apple butter sunshine sandwich, sour cream and onion corn puffs, cucumber slices, grape tomatoes, apple sauce with frozen raspberries and a Mini Dipper with Nature's Bounty and Dark Cocoa Almonds from our Nature Box.

Thursday I packed the girls a basic lunch of PB & apple butter sandwich cut into 4 squares, veggie sticks, yogurt with frozen strawberries, Blueberry Nom Noms from our Nature Box, marshmallows, and a GoGo Squeez.

Mama got a lunch on Thursday too.  A friend and I went to the quilt show (more to come on this) and while they offer concessions there I feel there is a time and place for a hot dog and a quilt show just isn't it.  Baseball game for sure but not a quilt show.  I packed myself a chicken salad sandwich, pretzels, a cutie and a cereal bar.

On Friday the girls got chicken salad, crackers, tulip shaped cucumbers, grape tomatoes, yogurt with frozen raspberries, and a cutie.  No PB & apple butter you ask?  Well, I will tell you my girls are not picky eaters, in fact they are really good eaters and open to trying new things. They just have very specific ideas about what you eat cold and what you eat hot.  Room temperature or cold leftovers is not an option.  If I sent it it would just come right back home untouched.  We are working on a few things thanks to the Momables website and a few new recipes I've come across.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

The Week in Lunches 2/11-2/15

 Here is the lunch round up for this week.  

On Monday I sent my "love bugs" and cute buggie lunch. They each had a PB&Apple butter ladybug and heart sandwich.  I tried to put antenna on the ladybug but they didn't work.  They also had heart cucumbers and heart grape tomatoes, blueberries and blackberries on heart picks.

Tuesday was Mardi Gras so I sent the girls a fun Fat Tuesday Lunch.  They had a PB&Apple Butter "King Cake" sandwich, veggie sticks, yogurt with frozen strawberries and sprinkles, blueberries and blackberries.

On Wednesday I sent big hugs and kisses for lunch.  The girls had PB&Apple butter heart sandwiches with fruit leather X & O's, sour cream and onion corn puffs, cucumbers and grape tomatoes, kiwi and blueberries, 2 cherry yogurt pretzels, and a Mini Dipper with Nature's Bounty snack mix from our February Nature Box.  I also sent them a Vitamin C packed smoothie made with frozen mango and pineapple, a banana, almond milk and a little orange juice.  The flu and strep throat have been going around and I am doing my best to keep us healthy.  

Happy Valentine's Day!  Thursday was a very hectic day for this mama.  I have been having problems swallowing food recently and I had to have an endoscopy done.  I was so nervous, especially without my husband.  I had a really good friend go with me but I was still so nervous.  I did manage to make them a heart filled Valentine lunch.  They had a PB&Apple butter heart sandwich with a fruit leather heart, sour cream and onion corn puffs, heart shaped marshmallows, frozen raspberries and frozen yogurt hearts, a Cutie and a special Valentine chex mix that we made to send to Jef.  There was just a little leftover so I saved it for them.  Not pictured was a sweet note I wrote on a Valentine napkin for them.

For Friday I was really feeling the need for some warm, sunny weather.  I sent the girls their favorite "snack plate" with pepperoni slices, crackers, a Laughing Cow cheese for Kaitlyn and a cheese stick for Hannah, cucumber slices, grape tomatoes, yogurt with frozen raspberries, a butterfly muffin, Go Go Squeez, and a Mini Dipper with Vanilla Macaroon Granola from our Nature Box.  

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

The Week in Lunches 2/4-2/8

Here is this weeks lunches for the girls.

On Monday I only had one lunch to pack.  Hannah came down with a cold over the weekend and she needed one more day on the couch before heading back to school.  Kaitlyn had 2 heart PB&Apple butter sandwiches, pretzels, yogurt with frozen raspberries and sprinkles, blueberries and Blueberry Flax Granola from our Naturebox in one of our Mini Dippers.

Tuesday was a hectic morning.  I was ready to send Hannah back to school when she woke up with a mystery rash that started spreading pretty quickly.  I packed Kaitlyn a lunch but to be honest I have no idea what I sent.  I really don't remember much about Tuesday.

.

On Wednesday I still had one lunch to pack, Hannah stayed home one more day just to make sure no more mystery rash appeared.  Kaitlyn was packed a toasted PB & Apple butter sandwich using one of our toast stamps, frozen blueberries with yogurt and sprinkles, a piece of Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake, a GoGo Squeez, and a Mini Dipper with Blueberry Flax Granola.

Ah, Thursday.  Hannah was so happy to go to school that she gave a WOO HOO! and a fist pump as she walked out of the door to the car.  Such a funny girl.  I packed the girls to small heart PB&J sandwiches with sprinkles, sour cream and onion corn puffs, frozen blueberries with yogurt and sprinkles, and a Cutie.  

TGIF! and I mean it.  It was an extremely long week for me for many reasons. The girls had a field trip Friday morning to The Mariners Museum.  I had promised Kaitlyn that the next field trip they went on I would go with her and her class. This child never forgets.  I told her this last year after the field trip to Jamestown when I walked with Hannah. Unfortunately, I had a doctor appointment with a new doctor and I couldn't go.  MAJOR MOM GUILT!  So I tried to pack as much love into their lunches as possible.  They had a heart PB & Apple butter sandwich with a heart fruit leather, pretzels, 2 marshmallow hearts, frozen strawberries with frozen yogurt hearts, and raspberries and blackberries.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Caught In The Act

The other day the girls were outside playing and brought this to my attention.

"Mom, something ripped up your chair cushion!"  

There is a neighborhood cat that roams around and hangs out in our backyard some.  I thought it was probably him until the other day.  The girls came running into the living room yelling, "MOM, MOM, MOM, IT'S NOT THE CAT, IT'S A SQUIRREL!"  Apparently a squirrel decided to tear up my cushion and use the stuffing for bedding for his/her nest.  Dang squirrel!  Today Hannah (who has been home with me all week due to a cold and weird rash) comes running up to me, "Mom, the squirrel is back in the chair!"  So I  grabbed the camera and sure enough this is what we see.

Dang squirrel! I sent Lexi outside to chase him/her away but I know he/she will be back.  I will have to throw the cushion away but its kind of funny to watch for now.  

I think this is a squirrels way of giving a one finger salute.