Freezer Meals

Hi Friends!

Babies are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday so I am trying to keep busy here at home until they make their appearance. As you've seen through my instafriday posts, I have been working hard making some freezer meals to eat once the girls arrive and I thought I would share them with you! 

The easiest way I have found to do meals is to start a few months out and plan one freezer meal a week. It is easy for me to just grab double the ingredients and make up an extra pan for supper while I am at it. Most of these I made multiples of (but some I just split into two smaller pans instead of one big one to freeze). I have done a whole day where I do a bunch in a day but it was very physically taxing and also hard to face a gigantic grocery bill! I think there is something like 17 freezer meals in our deep freeze right now- I have a meal plan to get us through for about four weeks. 

Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole

Baked Mommy Mac (with added ham)

Chicken Spaghetti from the Pioneer Woman

Macaroni and Beef with Cheese 

Beef Stew

Chili (I use the recipe on the back of the seasoning packet- just beef, tomatoes, beans)

Banana Bread

Pumpkin Muffins

Freezer Meals Pinterest Board

Other fast meal supplies on hand:

•  Taco Kit with ground beef in freezer
• Spaghetti and sauce with ground beef in freezer
• Pancake mix and syrup
• Muffin mix 
• Dry soup mixes
• Canned soup
• Canned fruit
• Frozen vegetable steamers
• Frozen pizza

We also have a ton of frozen meat in our freezer so I have scheduled easy things into my meal rotation like pork chops and brats. 

A few other things I made but didn't have room to freeze (but would be good frozen!)

Unforgettable Chicken Casserole  (I added half a box of elbow macaroni)

Crockpot Steak and Potatoes

Sloppy Joe Casserole 

Mexican Cornbread Casserole 

Also here are the links to my previous freezer meals posts:

May 2011
Sept. 2009 

I hope these come in handy and maybe provide some inspiration for you! I am a full believer in being prepared and hopefully this helps us at least get one hot meal in a day. What do you do to prepare for new babies in your house? 

InstaFriday

Happy Friday! 

It is cool and rainy here today, a nice break from the 100 degree heat index yesterday. Whew! I knew I wasn't crazy when I made chicken casserole for dinner last night with pumpkin cake for dessert. I am ready for fall! 

I got my 12x12 prints for Michael's scrapbook in the mail this week. yay! I put together the collages in google's Picasa program and then I upload them to persnicketyprints.com. The 12x12 prints are only $1.99 and are excellent quality. I like printing them this way because the pages are thinner and it is super quick to put together a collage- just a few minutes if I am feeling lazy/uncreative. 

I don't have a lot of tips but here is what works for me:

-  highlighting major events of the year (usually trips, birthdays, holidays, weddings) that I want to put on a page

-go through each month and pick the favorites for each month for a page

-sometimes even minor events will get a whole page if there are lots of cute photos- I try and do a page of Michael's yearly portraits as well as family portraits

-I always put the month and year on each page (helps immensely when assembling the book!)

-I try and write a few blurbs about what was going on to jog my memory. Sometimes I will go back to my blog for refreshers and even cut and paste text. 

The biggest source of inspiration is this website: Memories on Clover Lane. She has some great tutorials! 

I do enjoy doing shutterfly books for special events like a trip or Christmas but it is hard for me to wrap my head around doing one for Michael's whole childhood. I like doing the pages because I can work on it here and there and keep adding to the scrapbook when I get them printed. I also originally started doing this when Trace was little so I could do two pages at once- one for each boy. I am not quite sure what the future holds in terms of scrapbooking with the twins on the way but at least Michael has a good start on his childhood scrapbook! 

In other news, we've been trying to keep busy this week but doing projects and watching some movies. Michael has been dreaming up all these projects he tells me about in detail and I am happy to indulge him! I have loads of random craft supplies on hand so if it is worth a few minutes of entertainment...I am in! 

And in baby news...

I've had a weird week with feeling very anxious about my blood pressure and the baby girls arrival. I have dealt with anxiety in the past and the symptoms I was feeling were pretty consistent with that but it was worrying me that maybe something else was wrong. Luckily at my appointment yesterday, my doctor was happy with my blood pressure and told me to hang tight until Wednesday, when the girls are scheduled to arrive via c-section. I was so surprised to hear this- I even had my hospital bag in the car, ready to be sent to the hospital and deliver the babies right away. I know, I think I am losing it! The next five days seems like an eternity but I know I just need to get out of my own head and relax until the day arrives. I have a facial scheduled, will get a pedicure next week, my mom is coming a few days early to help, and I have a final NST/BPP scheduled on Monday for peace of mind. I think I can make it! I appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers and it just seems so unreal and surreal to me that it is all actually happening! 

InstaFriday

Happy Friday!! 

Last Saturday, I asked Michael what he wanted to do in the morning since Scott was busy. He said he want to go to the mall to play and eat pretzels. I figured that was an easy enough request to make so we found a close parking spot and I waddled my way through the big mall. I had to hit up Bath and Body Works and Scheels so it was a good trip even though I swore off going back weeks ago! I love that the playplace is open earlier than the mall so we were able to beat the crowds a little bit. Also- fun bonus...Michael was telling the pretzel man how his mom was having two babies and he gave me a free drink! Score! :o) 

I buckled down this week and completed about 20 pages of Michael's scrapbook to be ordered today. I am actually ordering about 80 pages total because I had a ton done that were just sitting on my computer! I figured if nothing else gets done, at least he'll have a good record of the first four years of his childhood! The process actually went a lot quicker than I anticipated and I kept busy by watching youtube videos (organized jen on the screen there) at the same time. I will share the album with you when my prints come! 

Michael was a big help to me this week by getting out and inspecting all the baby toys. I had forgotten just how many I had and I am sure there are more in the storage room when you think about all the little people things I have. I have a problem! I love those sweet little baby toys and getting them out reminded me of all the fun times Michael and Trace had playing when they were babies. It is so, so fleeting. 

And finally, baby update!

I had my final (!!) growth ultrasound this week and the girls are closing in right around 5 lbs (4 lbs 13 oz and 4 lbs 15 ozs) and had grown almost a pound in two weeks. I had another great NST also. 

However, I had been feeling a little off this week so I wasn't really very surprised at my OB appointment yesterday when my blood pressure was high and stayed high the second time they took it in the office. My very nice doctor who is delivering the girls (and who I just met!) had to deliver the bad news that he was sending me to the hospital for labs and monitoring. I know I have been so blessed with this pregnancy so far but to hear this bad news just send my little world crumbling and I tried my hardest not to lose it in the office (hormones!). He assured me everything would probably be fine but things do get riskier the further a twin pregnancy progresses and we do still want them to keep cooking so hopefully they can go right the regular nursery after they are born. 

I am thankful for having excellent care and appreciate him being proactive with monitoring rather than wait until an emergency happens. 

So I headed over to the hospital and up to Triage. I was asked in the elevator by someone if I was in labor- lol, yes with my big belly and winded breathing it probably seemed that way. 

At the hospital it was pretty routine monitoring, with the girls being on the monitor for two hours and my blood pressure being taken every 15 minutes (by the automatic cuff of death that feels like it is going to squeeze my arm off!). The worst part was lying on my back for so long (my poor hips!) and watching delicious meals being prepared on food network while I was starving. All in all, everything ended up being just fine with my labs coming back perfect and my blood pressure staying nice and low while I was resting. The girls continued to respond well on the monitors even though they liked to bounce around and get lost from time to time. 

So I am very thankful that things are still going pretty well. I want to be sure and make it safely through the next two weeks so hopefully the girls will be nice and big and ready to come home with us. I am keeping up my resting routine and just taking it easy! 

So that was a big update...less than two weeks to go! 

Have a great weekend! 
-----------------------------------

p.s. Movies watched this week:

The Gladiator 
Can't believe I've never seen this one either but so good! I felt bad Joaquin Phoenix's was such a jerk because I really like him!

The Immigrant
Very good, better than I expected! Was recommended by Netflix after watching Joaquin Phoenix in The Master a few weeks ago. I'm not big Jeremy Renner or Marion Cotillard fan, but I liked them in this movie. The Master was a very weird movie but was spurred to watch it after listening to a very interesting interview between Terry Gross and Joaquin Pheonix a few weeks ago (Terry Gross can do no wrong by me!). 

Thanks for Sharing
My sister in law recommended this to me and I really enjoyed it. It was an unusual movie as it dealt with some very serious topics, then would switch to a very funny scene, and then back to a very sweet romantic scene. I loved Tim Robbin's character and also Josh Gad's character, even though it hard for me to take Josh Gad seriously since I can only hear Olaf in his voice! 

Newsies
I haven't seen this forever but I loved the music and the dancing! 

Prefontaine
I'm not sure why I picked this, other than it was starring young Jared Leto. It was a solid movie about an Olympic runner. 

I also finished season four of Downton Abbey this week and was very sad to see it end. I have a feeling January will be here quickly when the next season airs on PBS and I like watching shows with a week in between to mull it over. I especially loved the guest appearance by Paul Giamatti in the last two episodes. 

Michael's New Room

Finally, I'm sharing Michael's new room with you!

He has been sleeping in here for a few weeks now (since after my shower in July) and the transition has gone well. His bedroom is our former guest room on the lower level of our house and we have not had any problems with him sleeping on a different floor than us. We did install a video monitor so we can keep an eye on him and also for us to avoid running up and down the stairs to check on him. Usually we are watching TV downstairs after he goes to bed anyway so he feels safe knowing we are close by. 

The theme of the room is Star Wars! 

Scott had a bunch of cool posters he had been saving since high school so we framed them up and put them to use in Michael's new room. We also purchased a set of Star Wars sheets from Pottery Barn Kids. Scott's mom made the pillow cases and my sister in law's mother made the blanket- very nice treasures! 

As with the nursery, we wanted to use things we already had and not do too much work to make this a new space. We didn't paint since it was already a nice neutral and used the queen bed that was in the guest room already. We also moved Michael's dresser and IKEA bookshelf downstairs from his old room. Scott bought the organizers from IKEA during his hockey trip to MN this May and besides the poster frames (also from IKEA) and sheets, that is the only new thing we bought for the space. 

I really like the organizers and so far it seems easy to get toys put away again. I mostly wanted them for keeping all the little pieces of sets together- like Playmobil, Legos, etc. We do have a few bins that are just totally random things and that is fine too. I made the little labels and had them printed at Walgreens into 5x5 prints and laminated them with laminating sheets. They are stuck on with velcro so they can be moved around or replaced. I think they are really cute and hopefully don't make me seem too neurotic. 

This room has two closets for good storage. One is a hanging bar only and the other has floor to ceiling shelving which is good for storing for bigger toys, linens, and clothes bins out of sight. I almost wish every closet in my house just had shelves- seems so much more practical than so much hanging space! 

On Michael's dresser is his ipod touch and dock with his favorite tunes (right now it is Frozen and Star Wars) that he listens to while falling asleep and his basket of personal care items like bandaids and fingernail clippers (very simple beauty routine when you are four!). 

We are really happy with the way it turned out and it is a fun place for Michael to spend time in and play. I miss having a big comfy chair to read to him in but it is nice we can both snuggle together in his big bed. He is growing so much bigger every day and can't wait until he is the biggest brother in the house! 

InstaFriday

It is hard to believe another week has come and gone already. I am struggling being home since school has started...it is a weird adjustment to the go-go-go of the beginning of the school year to essentially doing nothing at home all day. I know these days are long but the weeks are short and I keep reminding myself how lucky I am to have this time to rest and grow babies. 

I've been trying to keep up with Michael even though it is getting harder and harder. I get very tired walking so we can only go places where it is short walk from the car the destination. We have been trying to still make it to the library (he does a good job playing while I browse and catch up on People weekly) and to the drive through for treats. At home I usually try to sit near him while he is playing (although I can't sit on the floor anymore-it is too hard to get up!) and listen to him chatter or talk to him while he is playing. It is a very bittersweet feeling to know that his time as an only child in the house is almost up but I am also excited that he will get to have two sisters. I just know he will be an awesome big brother but at the same time it means he won't be my baby anymore. 

My dad took Michael to the state fair again last weekend and Scott and I had Saturday night and Sunday morning to ourselves. We treated ourselves to a movie in our theater and then a breakfast buffet in the morning. We wanted to get up early so we could order off the menu but we both slept in past nine! It was actually nice to spend some time together as we had to wait a while for the table. It was very delicious and an end of pregnancy tradition for us to do...and it seemed popular and lots of women at the restaurant were very pregnant also! 

Michael has been playing outside quite a bit now that it seems like our back patio is getting shaded sooner in the evening. It is so fun to watch him...it reminds me of all the days we spent out here when Trace was a baby! 

And in baby news....

This week was my first week for two doctor's appointments which I will be doing for the next three weeks until the babies arrive. I had a non stress test and biophysical profile ultrasound on Tuesday and then a regular ob appointment on Wednesday. Both appointments went well, babies are moving and responding well and my blood pressure (and weight thank goodness) is staying down. I am still amazed that my feet are not swelling but I am pretty dedicated to my afternoons spent on the couch watching movies and resting. Next week I'll have a growth ultrasound and will finally meet the doctor who is scheduled for my surgery- I have never met him as he is new to the practice and figured that might be good to do! 

The waiting is taking its toll on me for sure- I feel tired all the time even though I am doing hardly anything. It is getting harder to do the little tasks around the house like emptying the dishwasher or laundry- both which require lots of bending over. I've been trying to schedule things in the mornings when I have the most energy and then spend the afternoon resting until it is time to pick up Michael. I've also been trying to do a good job making dinner each night since I have the time on my hands but even that takes a lot of energy with the planning, prep and clean up. I guess I am just being a big whiner today. :o) Being pregnant with twins is definitely different than a singleton and I try and remind myself that not everyone gets to go on such an incredible journey. 

34 weeks with  (a little less than) 3 weeks to go! 

----

p.s.: forgot to include the movies watched this week:

Rounders
Super good! I don't even like/understand poker but enjoyed performances by Matt Damon, Edward Norton, & John Malkovich.

School Ties
Pretty good prep school coming of age story, mostly enjoyed watching young Matt Damon, Brendan Frasier, and Chris O'Donnell. 

Legends of the Fall
Can't believe I've never seen this! Major Brad Pitt eye candy and also pretty scenery.  

The Usual Suspects
Scott and I watched together- very good crime thriller with Kevin Spacey. 

Park Avenue
Documentary about class warfare in the U.S....not exactly what I was expecting but enlightening overall. 

Bronies
Loved it! All the boys reminded me of students I have at school and I just wanted to hug them all. A fun watch! 

Nursery 3.0 tour

Welcome to my nursery 3.0 tour! 

I am calling it 3.0 because this is the third time I've revamped this space for little babies to join our family. It started out as a guest room, then a nursery for Michael, then a shared room for Michael and Trace, then Michael's big boy room and now a little girl's nursery. I am really excited the way it turned out especially since I lacked a vision for the space and wanted to work with what I had and on a small budget. 

All of the furniture is the same we've had in the past. We added a second crib in an identical style which luckily the furniture store had in stock 5 years later thanks to it being a popular model. The rocker was redone by my mom when I was expecting Michael and the daybed was moved up to this room for Michael's big boy bed when we were expecting Trace. We do have the luxury of having lots of space in this bedroom and I like the cozy addition of the bed for playtime, snuggling and hosting overnight visitors. It also had a trundle underneath so we will probably keep it for when the girls are bigger. Basically we just have no where else for it to go besides storage so if it fits...we keep it! 

My sister gifted me the tulle pom-poms for my shower and they are hung in groups of three over each crib and in a group of two over the changing table. I like how they are like a little stand in for a mobile and they sway softly when the fan in the room is on. I think babies will like them! 

This decal was ordered as an impulse purchase from Dali decals a few weeks ago. I knew I wanted something on the walls but I just wasn't sure what. I like it and thinks it ties the room together pretty well! 

The curtains were made from fabric and iron hem tape by myself and I am also happy the way they turned out. It was proving to be too expensive to buy four long panels for the windows in here and I just did not want to shell out a hundred plus dollars on curtains. I had a really hard time choosing fabric and ended up with this neutral toile which serves its purpose of lightening up the space (they are backed with blackout curtains clipped behind) and adding a slightly girly touch. My mom also helped by making crib skirts in the matching fabric. I chose the pinks sheets because I wanted some elements of pink in the nursery but not all pink and I think it has a nice balance.  

This corner needs to be updated as the print is obviously Michael's. I would love to do a little frame collage here or a big print but I am just not sure what yet. 

The bedspread is mine from my college days and I really like it in this room. It is green, pink and blue and I also like the way it brightens the space (used to have a dark brown comforter on the bed). I have kept it in the closet for many years, afraid I would never get to use it again so I am happy that it is out and being useful again!

The closet is not really very organized but it was a feat just to get it cleaned out after years of storing Michael's stuff. It is nice to have a large place to store things where we can shut the door and keep them out of sight. 

In the wire baskets I have extra bedding, lots and lots of swaddle blankets (I must have 10 aden and anais- love them!) and extra burp rags. I have my bigger floor, stroller and flannel blankets on the shelf as well as my supply of newborn diapers ready to go. 

On the floor we just have our extra carseat bases stored (need to go to the garage), extra boppy, 2nd high chair and a bin of random baby things I've stored that I don't need right away. 

On the high shelves above we have our stash of diapers, bottles, liners, nursing pads, wipes and other baby things. It is not a very big stash but hopefully it will get us started! 

This is also the same dresser we've had that matches our cribs. We also bought the changer that goes on top since we are tall and this gives us some extra height but there is neat storage underneath. I love the soft minky changing pads and having a basket of supplies handy. 

Newborn outfits and gowns. 

Gender neutral newborn gowns from Michael and Trace. 

Burp rags and random care items (disorganized). 

Two drawers of 0-3 clothes and 3-6 clothes. 

I can't believe I have so many clothes already! I have not bought them anything except two special going home outfits. We are very blessed! 

Random things: happy bouncy seats that need to be put together. 

Wicker hamper for laundry...lots and lots of baby laundry. :o) 

Here is a close up of my changing table set up- we will put diapers in the basket also so we have wipes, diapers, lotion all ready to go. Another nursery essential is the music player- we use my old ipod shuffle on a dock for lullabies. 

Thank you for joining me on my nursery tour! I think we are all ready for the babies to arrive! 

Click here for nursery 1.0 and 2.0 photos 

InstaFriday

Hi Friends!

It has been a very strange week around here with school starting back up and me not being there. I officially started my maternity leave at the beginning of the school year so I could rest up and get ready for the girls to arrive. I felt like it would be easier in terms of sub plans and also it is just plain hard for me to do anything...even the smallest tasks seem like they take an enormous amount of energy. When you add in the shortness of breath that comes from even talking, the endless sweating, the inability to sit or stand for more than a few minutes....well, you get the point. I am trying to stay positive but I also know my limitations and know that only being at school would make things take a turn for the worst.

I did go in for open house nice and paid the price for the next two days by being physically exhausted. It was so nice, however, to see my students and parents that dropped in to say hi and wish me good luck. I know they will be fine without me and January will be here before we know it! 

So I've just been at home and bored all week, trying to take it easy and wait for baby girls to arrive. In theory, four weeks (a little less now) seems like a long time but I know it will go fast. 

I had an ultrasound and non stress test appointment this week and both went well. I am 33 weeks and baby A is 3 lbs, 13 oz an baby B is 4 lbs even. The ultrasound tech thinks they will be long babies no matter what! They are busy bees in my stomach, especially baby B and I think she will be real stinker when she arrives. I was hooked up to the monitors for just a few minutes and they proclaimed, "Happy Babies!" which meant their heart rates were good and responding well with lots of movement. I will continue to have these every week until I deliver along with bi weekly ultrasounds and ob appointments- it is a lot but I am thankful for good healthcare. 

I am feeling nervous because I know lots of people who have delivered around 34-35 weeks with twins but I am just trying to stay positive. It is really a mental game being pregnant with twins-the worry and anxiety are overwhelming but so is the feeling of absolute bliss. I still cannot wrap my head around what it will be like to hold two baby girls in my arms. 

We made it to Costco to stock up on household products last weekend. I would say we are pretty ready! This will last us for probably a year. It seems weird but it is nice to know we won't need to run out for toilet paper or Tide at a crucial moment. 

And finally, my sister found my name at the ISU alumni booth at the state fair last week. All my friends had been posting theirs and I felt left out! Mom and Denise took Michael to the fair one day last week and had a good time. I am thankful that they took him so I didn't have to go- not sure I would have managed that one! 

In other news, I've been trying to watch some movies I've never seen before on Netflix since I have the time on my hands and might never again. So far this week I've watched: 
My Left Foot
American Psycho
Philadelphia

I recommend them all! My left foot was very interesting and thoughtful, American Psycho had excellent eye candy with Christian Bale (and awesome 80s soundtrack) and Philadelphia made me ugly cry but was so good (can't believe I hadn't seen it before). 

That's all that is new with me! Have a great weekend!