This weekend we’re heading up north to Mikado to visit Dave’s family and since our grass has been growing like crazy we decided to do our yard work tonight after dinner rather than dealing with a messy yard on Sunday. I’m not sure if it’s a rule, but Michigan residents have to cut their grass every weekend, it you don’t your neighbors glare at you and look down on your wild yard.
Anywho, after dinner we all headed outside- Dave to do yard work and Ajax and I to help. By help I of course mean that Ajax pushed his little car up and down the drive way a dozen times. Ajax was very curious about the lawn mower and kept pointing at it. He’s all about pointing right now. When Dave was done and the mower cooled down Ajax immediately wanted to try and push it as well. He might as well get familiar with it now because really we just had a kid for manual labor.
Ajax found a yellow ball in our yard and of course had to have it, hold it and then chew on it. I have no idea where this ball came from… it probably belongs to the dog next door. And of course, instead of taking the ball away from him, I laughed and took a photo.
So again, little man is working a few things out, testing a few boundaries with this temper of his. I think it’s a phase (one which should last approximately 18 years I’m sure), but he’s definitely seeing how far he can go. Everyone is trying to be consistent and calm, but when you’re watching a nino scream and kick out and hit his head against things, you have to wonder, how did I end up here, lol?
On Sunday Dave and I had a serious conversation and decided that it was time to let him cry it out, but we never got to put our plan into action as that night Ajax didn’t make a peep. He has since slept through the night for two nights in a row and goodness is sleep wonderful.
Ajax is really starting to get into his trucks lately. This one he got for Easter and has been zooming all over the house with it. He’s even starting to put things in the bed of the truck (like his sippy cup) and transport them around the house.
I ran to Rite Aid this morning while the nino was napping. Here’s what I snagged for a total of $2.99 (before tax it was only $1.94!). My total before coupons was $22! What’s even better is that Rite Aid will be mailing me a check for $8, so I just made $5 bucks!
This weekend I am proud to say that I have had a lot more energy and tackled a few spring cleaning chores that had been on my list (like cleaning the blinds, yuck). I had planned on visiting my Grandpa today but my energy level fizzled and we ended up playing at the house. The weather has been terrible- raining constantly, so we’ve been stuck indoors unfortunately.
I must admit little man has been quite the handful lately and has not been sleeping well at night. About two weeks ago Ajax started getting up anywhere from one to three times a night – he was teething and then he had a cold and now we have a habit. Dave and I are quite tired. Heck, Ajax is quite tired and therefore his frustration level during the day has been pretty high. He’s been throwing some whopping tantrums. We have tried to be consistent in how we respond to the tantrums – either redirecting his energy or getting him to move beyond his aggravation, but if all else fails then we put him to bed. This has actually worked wonders because it seems if he’s really that frustrated than most likely he’s tired and if he just lays down and rests for 10 minutes, he’s golden.
You know that line – “You can’t give a baby chili!” (of course you know that line from the 1983 classic, Mr. Mom, staring Michael Keaton). Well that’s what I was thinking when Ajax was angrily demanding Dave share his lunch… of course lunch entailed chili dogs with onions. You could tell that Ajax was not 100% on the chili (Dave was only giving him a tiny taste on his fork), but was not willing to admit it.
Ok, I know I’ve never posted pics of my grocery shopping trips before (because I never really do that well saving), but I made a goal of spending between $50 – 80 a week on groceries and I’m pretty proud that for the past few weeks I’ve actually been in that range! I’m a little embarrassed to admit that Dave and I (pre-baby) used to spend about $150-200 on groceries per week, for only two people! I just never paid attention to sales, I just grabbed what I wanted, usually I was in a rush and racing through the store and I rarely had a list or plan. Now, I’ve completely changed the way I shop, I take a look at the sales, see if I have any coupons to go with that sale, I also think about what I want to do for dinner for the week and I take a look at what I already have.
Anywho I just wanted to share my trip from this morning. Dave, Ajax and I were up at 7:30 am and out the door by 8:30 after breakfast. We hit up Meijer and Sams Club (I finally got my large pots for the front of my house and I think in a week or two Dave and I are going to have a work outside day while my mom babysits, so I should get flowers in them and placed this season).
My total at Meijer before coupons was $100.88, but after coupons I only spent – $37.80 (and that includes one ball for Ajax, lol)! Here are some of my highlights —
5 boxes of Max and Cheese- five packs = $2.49
5 boxes of Capri Suns = free
20 yogurts = $5.40 (I also got a Catalina for $2 on my next order)
I needed salsa for dinner as I wanted to make the chicken and white bean soup that we all know and love, however, I needed salsa. My family goes through a ridiculous amount of salsa. I did a run to Target and here’s what I snagged- my total was almost $40, but I only spent $16.89 and saved $22.12.
It was also a lovely day so we all played outside. Ajax is getting more comfortable with nature and yes, grass. Ajax just wants to be outside all the time, I can clearly see our summer plans.
Playing outside in the warm weather.Getting comfortable with the grass.Dave cut the grass yesterday and Ajax had fun throwing the clippings.Throwing stuffs!Getting really into throwing things.
Tonight when I was taking Ajax to bed we were standing in the living room saying good night to Dave and Ajax said – night night. Dave and I both looked at each other shocked! He said it clear as day and then he said it again- night night. His vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds it’s just incredible. He is constantly talking, hi ma, hi da, it’s so cute.
I finally got some pictures of Ajax walking (because we all know that he can walk). He walked from his car to me and then back to his car, and then to me and then to Dave. He was all over the place.
Ajax had a fever wavering between 101 and 102, which started Saturday night. It was like the top of his head was on fire. By Monday morning, however, the fever had seemed to break, but I was still worried so I made an appointment and today Dave took Ajax to the Doctors. The Doctor examined his ears (again, I was concerned he had another ear infection) and the nurse drew blood. The Doc said that Ajax was just getting over a virus and that he did seem to have a tiny bit of fluid in his ear, but that it was such a small amount the Doc wasn’t worried about it. Overall, a clean bill of health. Dave did report that Ajax weighed 23 lb 11 oz.
This photo was taken as I was trying to get Ajax ready for bath time. He put his shoes on his hands and raced through the house laughing, it took me a bit to catch him and get him into the tub.
Ajax was calling for Dave and then slamming the door shut.Really looking for Dave.
For some reason when a recipe calls for wine, I feel like the meal is instantly more fancy and yes, sophisticated. I’m not a fancy cook, I’m a semi, mediocre cook, who is also a busy working mom that lacks a sense of smell. I cannot walk into a kitchen and create a fabulous meal out of nothing (like my mother can), but I can follow a recipe!
I found this site called The Pioneer Woman Cooks and have been so pleased with the recipes I’ve found on it. The most recent one I tried was Chicken with Tomatoes and Garlic and it was great! Dave’s only complaint was that the recipe called for chicken legs and that meant it was on the bone. In the history of our marriage this was only the second time I had made chicken on the bone, the last time (which was years ago) I believe I had to de-bone the chicken for Dave…
Ingredients
8 pieces Chicken Legs Or Thighs
Salt And Pepper, to taste
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 can (28 Ounce) Diced Tomatoes
1 can (14 Ounces) Whole Tomatoes
2 Tablespoons (Heaping) Tomato Paste
Fresh Herbs: Basil, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary
8 cloves Garlic
16 ounces, weight Pasta (I Used Cavitappi)
Grated Parmesan Cheese, For Serving
½ cups White Wine (or Red Wine)
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Salt and pepper chicken legs.
Heat ovenproof skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and butter. When oil/butter is hot, add chicken legs to the pan. Using tongs, brown on all sides, about 2 minutes. Remove chicken from pan.
Pour in wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits. Cook for 1 minute. Pour in tomatoes with their juice and add tomato paste. Add salt and pepper to taste, stirring to combine. Bring sauce to a boil, then turn off heat. Add plenty of fresh herbs, 8 cloves of peeled (but whole) garlic, and the chicken legs. Put lid on pot and cook in the oven for 1 hour.
Remove pot from oven and allow it to sit on the counter with the lid on while you boil the pasta.
Cook the pasta to al dente, Drain and add to a large serving bowl.
Remove lid and check sauce. If it’s overly thin, remove the chicken from the pot and boil the sauce on the stovetop for 5 to 10 minutes. Check seasonings and adjust as needed.
To serve, pour sauce over cooked pasta, then arrange chicken pieces over the top. Sprinkle generously with fresh Parmesan and serve with crusty French bread.
Ok, so today I had a bit more energy and motivation (not much, but some). My parents came over and we all went out to lunch. At lunch we were placed in the children section of the restaurant, which was fine, but when a little girl near our table started to cry Ajax became frightened and started looking around. Then his eyes teared up and his lower lip stuck out and before we knew it Ajax was sobbing! As the little girl cried, Ajax’s cry intensified and he let out an ear piercing shriek. I had to put him on my lap and he didn’t calm down till the girl calmed down! lol.
After lunch we all went to the mall as there was a HUGE used book sale going on. My mom and dad watched Ajax while Dave and I searched for paper treasures. My parents let Ajax play in the mall playarea for children and he had a blast, he went nonstop for two hours. Oh and he was also walking all around unassisted. This kid can totally walk. My parents said he did great and played well with the other kids, but he kept going to the shoe area and tried playing with all the shoes. Ajax has a thing for shoes. Yesterday we went to the shoe store as he needed a pair of sandals and all he wanted to do was throw the shoes from the display.
I do believe Ajax is either teething or coming down with a small cold. Dave is just getting over something, so it’s going around. Dara said that it’s most likely teething, but to watch out for chicken pocks as he did have the vaccine at his last checkup.
Ajax crawled under the chair and then claimed to be stuck.Stranded in the kitchen.Mom had to save him from the chair.Some of our finds from the sale.
