Six years of sweetness

Six years of joy

Six years of adventure

I love this man!

My sister and her husband came up to babysit so we could go out to dinner. It was a pretty nice day.

My in-laws came up for a visit on Monday. They are both great photographers, and my FIL offered to try to duplicate a photo idea I had seen on Pinterest and loved now that Quinn is steady at sitting up alone. I think he did a great job.

This is in our sunroom looking out into the backyard. I feel like she's telling her stuffed animals, "Friends, let me tell you about the wild and beautiful world I've seen out there..." Each toy has a story too. Minnie is from when Jonathan went to Florida for work. The owl puppet Jonathan bought for her for Christmas with the plan of using it for telling stories. The bear is from Doula Tara. The angel is from her great Aunt in Canada, it says the Lord's Prayer in English and French, Quinnie giggles at the French voice. And in her hand is her favorite, a panda.

He also captured some beautiful portraits. 

I can't believe she'll be nine months old on Sunday!

Oh, hey there chubba arms.

Thank you God for warm afternoons so that the rolls can come out to play.

It was a pretty special weekend; Jonathan's first Father's Day and Quinn was dedicated at church. Here are my two sweethearts waiting to go up front:

All of Quinn's grandparents were present which was a nice treat. It feels great to have so many people supporting our desire for Quinn to know and follow Christ.

We have been spending a lot of time outdoors on weekends and Quinn, Shinobi, and I have made many park visits during the week. It turns out she loves playing with grass.

We've got a baby storytime at the library with a friend tomorrow and a neighborhood play group. Then, hopefully berry picking on Friday and a coffee date. And two baby showers this weekend. I love the way Summer brings fun activities into our lives.

When I post on this blog, it is usually for this reason:

1. To store my memories in a journal-like format to later look back on and chuckle, reminisce, get misty-eyed, etc.

I'm actually dreaming of having my blog printed out as a book when I hit the five year mark, to make a Family History Volume I of sorts. I think it would be a nice way to record the blessed and beautiful life that God has bestowed upon us for future generations to read.

Sometimes when I post, I hope it has the added outcome that is:

2. To encourage or inspire someone else.

I want to share how I manage our home and meal plan. Years from now, I think it will be a fun way to look back on this phase of life. My sissy was up visiting this week and I shared it with her which made me think that maybe it can also encourage a fellow home manager to try a new way of organizing their time.

On Mondays, I write out the meal plan for the week and go grocery shopping. I have a Google Doc that contains all of our favorite meals and I use Pinterest for new ideas. I enter each day's meal on a calendar Jonathan and I share on Google Calendar so that he can see what's for dinner too. It's handy because we can both access these on our phones if we need to make decisions when we are on the go. I spent many years feeling overwhelmed on grocery day because I couldn't decide what to cook. Now, to keep it simple, I follow this pattern for the main course for dinners:

Monday - Brinner or something else easy

Tuesday - Something with chicken

Wednesday - Some sort of soup (often in the crockpot, Wednesdays are usually pretty busy)

Thursday - Something with beef or another meat

Friday - Homemade pizza

Saturday - Something simple like burgers or pasta or burritos, otherwise it's easy to get lazy and eat out

Sunday - Tuna or salmon melts

We'll have fruit and/or vegetables as a side or some homemade bread. I always get a head of romaine and cut the whole thing up at once so we have easy access to salad as a side dish. For breakfast we'll have breakfast sandwiches, eggs and toast, baked oatmeal, overnight oats, leftover pancakes from the weekend, or yogurt and homemade granola. I always have homemade granola around because we go through a lot. In fact, I buy oats in 25 lb bags now, haha. I'm not much of a lunch person. More of a late morning snack and late afternoon snack person, I must be part hobbit. For these snacks I have leftovers, pb and banana sandwiches, smoothies, fruits and veggies, etc. I generally don't buy convenience food with the exception of tortilla chips and salsa. They're typically expensive and not very healthy. I have a funny little rule that if I want a goodie I have to make it myself. It's a good test to see how bad I want a goodie! So I always have ingredients for baking treats ready and waiting for the random craving or when guests come over.

Each week, I get a whole chicken. I get a rotisserie one or cook it in the crock pot (so easy!) or roast it myself with root veggies in colder weather as it warms the house a bit. Tuesdays, I pick all of the cooked meat off (I've gotten quite quick at this) and save it in a container for meals throughout the week. I start my chicken stock simmering each Tuesday with the leftover bones to be used in our soup on Wednesday and recipes throughout the week. I pour extra into ice cube trays to save in a freezer bag for when a recipe needs just a little. I usually cook a big batch of black beans each week or so to have around for dinner recipes or snacks like salad, "yumm bowls", or burritos. I always keep some bread in the freezer, but enjoy making my own.

When I'm not in the kitchen during naptime, I have a schedule for my cleaning routine too. Every other day I wash diapers and hang them in the sun room, and I keep up with laundry and dishes as needed.

Monday - Vacuum (and grocery shop)

Tuesday - Wash towels and sheets, clean master bedroom and guest room

Wednesday - Clean Quinn's room and utility room, choose a random task*

Thursday - Clean living room, vacuum and mop

Friday - Bathrooms

Weekend - Yard work, vacuum

*random tasks include washing the car, cleaning the fridge, wiping light switches and doorknobs, wiping cabinets, washing windows, polishing shoes, and more.

I like this method because I feel like I'm always maintaining a decent level of cleanliness. Nothing ever gets out of control messy. If a fun social engagement or appointment comes up, I just skip the chore that week or do it on the weekend if necessary. It gives me flexibility and helps me to not feel overwhelmed. It also means I'm usually done "working" when Jonathan gets home so we can just have fun as a family.

So, that's what works for me right now. Quinn keeps me guessing so we'll see how this morphs in the future.