Just a moment!

{this moment} ~ A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.

getting organized

I recently read a blog post about tips on time management. 
I made a 28 dinner menu plan.  4 weeks of dinners!
I've tried this before, so I hope I can stick to it.

Here is my plan:

M- Stuffed Squash
T- Chips and dips
W- Sushi
T- Meat (whatever is on sale) and veg (whatever is in season)
F- Spaghetti
S- Chili
S- Fish
M- East Indian pouches
T- Zucchini lasagna 
W- Fried rice
T- Shepherds pie
F- Shrimp pesto
S- Soup/stew
S- Risotto
M- Pot pie
T- Burgers
W- Meat (whatever is on sale) and veg (whatever is in season)
T- Quinoa casserole
F- Bangers and mash
S- Whole chicken with quinoa and veg.
S- Macauli and cheese
M- Wraps
T- Pizza
W- Tacos
T- Alfredo (shrimp/chicken)
F- Chicken wings
S- Curry
S- Meat (whatever is on sale) and veg (whatever is in season)

I tried to arrange it so I'm able to us similar ingredients a few days apart.  Like the spaghetti, chili and lasagna, or I'll be making rice for the Indian pouches, and then making fried rice (which is better with cold rice anyway!), or I make curry and mac and cheese with cauliflower.  I also arranged it so we didn't have a week full of beef, or pasta.  We have at least one vegetarian meal a week.

And don't worry, when I say 'chicken wings' or 'fish' there will be a veggie or salad to go with it.

I'll eat leftovers for lunch.


I also like tips numbers:
1. If you’re going to waste time, do it at the end of the day rather than the beginning.
3. Have daily planning sheets and fill them out the night before
8. Purge items from your home at least every three months

As well as the tip:  
Organize your day:
1st: essential
2nd: necessary
3rd: nice to do  

Some of the other tips we won't do.  We don't have the space for a million rolls of TP or garbage bags.  We don't give gifts or cards much, and when we do, they are hand made, or very specific.  We have a stupid tiny fridge so I can't make a lot to freeze. 

I'm going to go buy some white boards for the menu and daily list.

Lets see if this time I can get on top of it!

Sleeping arrangements

We've been co-sleeping, or more aptly, bed sharing, as some people call sharing a room co-sleeping too.

In principle, and in general, I love it.
My body on the other hand does not.

I really like not getting out of bed to feed Bunny when he wakes up to eat.  We had a bedside co-sleeper I found useless because I still had to rouse myself from sleep to get him.  And stay away until he was deep asleep to move him back.  What was the point of that??

I like smelling him, and feeling his (not so) little body.

Lately he's been waking up every time I move.  So I've been sleeping on one side all night.
He's nursing for comfort, because I move and wake him up.  He still wakes up once in the early morning for hunger.


SO, I'm going to slowly start transitioning him into his own bed.  And I mean slowly.
We don't even have his bed set up.

I figure we'll try it this way:

- Hang out on his bed.  Have a couple small soft toys that are bed toys.  I've seen it suggested that we sleep with his sheets before hand to make it smell like us.
- Start to put him down for naps. 
Right now we nurse to sleep, and most times he just stays in my arms, or we nurse laying down.  He wakes up when I try and move him.  I might have a tired Bunny for a few days!
- Continue to bed share until I'm feeling like it's time.  When will I have enough!?
- Start putting him in his bed at night, have Dada comfort him when he wakes.  Determine when to nurse.
-Eventually full on night weaning, with Dada being the bed time guy.  In the mean time, involve Dada more.

This plan might take days or months. 

We are not doing CIO. 

something has been bugging me

I've got a bee in my bonnet.
A bone to pick.
A beef.

I was talking to a pregnant friend the other day.  People had been chastising her for not asking for help.  I mentioned that she needs to get used to asking 'cause people don't follow through when they say they will once the baby is born.

I had immediate family come visit and help for a little bit.  

I had one friend come. 
One, once.

It took about 4 months for me to feel settled into my new roll. 
That was 4 months of feeling overwhelmed at one point or another during the day. 
I was (am) so blessed to have a pretty happy baby who napped and ate well.  With virtually no support I'm not sure how I would have coped if he wasn't.  Or if I had the baby blues, or worse, PPD.

I asked generally on facebook for help.  I didn't want to single out anyone.

What bugged me was that while pregnant people where SO excited.  It seemed sometimes more excited than me!  I thought that meant they where going to come help.

When J wasn't working I got to have a bath.  Cook dinner with out concern about burning it.
J has a pretty high stress job.  He helped a lot.  He was the one cleaning the house.  He was official Diaper Changer.

Obviously I got though those 4 months.  Things could have been better.  Things could have been WAY worse.


I am imploring you.  Have a friend who is going to have a baby? Go visit. Go give them company.  She will likely be a little brain dead, and not a great conversationalist, but adult company will be great!  Sweep the floor, do the dishes, bring food, hold the baby while she has a shower.  All of those would be amazing, one a blessing.
No need to stay for 5 hours (she likely doesn't want you there for 5 hours). 
Also:  visit after that first month!  She still has a baby, and dirty dishes.  She still needs to eat and bathe, and talk to another adult!

We still need our village.

Oh, and 6 months in, although I'm feeling overwhelmed a lot less frequently, I'm finding myself needing a break.  A break from being on all day and night.  A friend is coming over for a bit this morning to watch Lionel while I sit in a cafe and read a book.  What?  Yea, I could be cleaning the house, reorganizing the bedroom etc. etc.  Instead, I'm taking a much needed mental break. 

milestone week!!

We've had a jam packed week!

Lionel turned 6 months, and all of a sudden he:  can sit up on his own, roll over (front to back) and  has a tooth!!

isn't he lovely!!

Teething hasn't been too bad.  We have an amber teething necklace that he's had on since 2 months.  We use Hylands teething gel, and Boiorn homeopathic Camilla when he gets fussy.  We've had some wakeful nights.  But all in all Bunny is a pretty happy dude!!

We tried him on solid food on my birthday, and since, but his gag reflex is very ... good?  He gags so hard he throws up, so we're holding off for now. I bought some rice cereal, fortified with iron (and other stuff) that I'll mix with breast milk.  At 6 months babies iron stores start to get used up, so we need to get some from the outside.  I'm not concerned yet, but he does need to learn how to eat eventually.  Rice is supposed to be the easiest to digest.
I had grand plans of not feeding cereal, and doing 'baby lead weaning/feeding'.  Basically you allow your baby to feed themselves, super soft foods first.  This allows them to go at their own pace, touch and enjoy on their own.  We'll get there.

banana!

*edit*

feeling in Bunny's mouth it feels like tooth #2 is well on it's way.  Today Lionel is being clingy, and is wanting to nurse and rest with me.