What's for dinner?

Growing up, I can remember my Mom getting so frustrated when we would complain about what she made for dinner, or not eat the food she prepared.  And I never understood why she got so frustrated.

I now understand.

Abby is a picky eater.  And Lexi is only 1 and still is a little limited by the food that she can eat. 

Dinner seems to be a battle every night.

I know that Dr's and Pediatricians are now really recommending that you don't force kids to eat ALL the food that is served them.  That we need to let them learn to listen to their bodies, and decide what and how much they want to eat.  I have totally agreed with this, I think this is a great tool to help fight childhood obesity.  The rule at our house has always been, that Abby just has to take one or two bites of every food on her plate.  She has to try it before she can say that she doesn't like it.  (That being said, if she doesn't eat but a bite or two total during a meal, then she doesn't get any snacks.  I'm no fool, and I know when she is really not hungry, or just being stubborn.)

I've also tried to not "cater" to her wants and desires.  She can either eat what is for dinner, or go hungry.  I'm not going to make her a special meal.

However, even with all these guidelines that I've set up, dinner time seems to be falling apart.  It's almost like the line between following the rules, and breaking the rules has gotten a little blurry.

Example:

If we are having spaghetti for dinner, Abby doesn't like the sauce, so she just eats the noodles, with some cheese on them.  I thought this was a nice compromise.  But slowly, it's progressed to even more than that.  If we are having taco's for dinner, she just wants a quesadilla.  Now a quesadilla requires some of the same ingredients as taco's, just a different method of preperation.  Another compromise, but the line is getting pretty blurry now. 

It's just gotten easier to do it this way, there is less of a battle at dinner.

But dinner still isn't easy.  It seems we are constantly negotiating.

Me:  "Abby, just eat three more bites, then you'll be done"

Abby:  "No, two more bites"

And so on.

I'm so frustrated.

The situation is even futher complicated because right now Cameron and I also have very different needs at dinner.

Cam is trying to not eat carbs after 4pm (something to do with his weightlifting, I'm not sure of the exact reason for this diet change).  And me, because the baby is now occupying all the space that used to be for my stomach, have little room for a heavy meal.  I also get horrible heartburn if I go to bed with food in my tummy, so I try to eat a light dinner (i.e. salad) so that most of the food is digested before I go to bed.

It now seems that there are multiple meals being prepared every night.  A salad for me, a protien for Cam, usually chicken or some other meat, and then some sides that the girls will eat.  Although the situation with Cam and I is only temperorary, I'm afraid that there is going to be some habits created that will be hard to break. 

Any tips on getting kids to eat the meals that are prepared for them?  I'm not going to have hot dogs and chicken nuggets every night for dinner, just to please the girls.  I want real, good, healthy food.  And no more crying and tantrums at the dinner table.

Rights

I was given a handout with these rights on it, and it's been a good reminder to me.  Enjoy.

SAMPLE LIST OF BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS

The right to have and express your own feelings and opinions.

The right to refuse requests without having to feel guilty or selfish.

The right to consider your own needs.

The right to set your own priorities and make your own decisions.

The right to change.

The right to decide what to do with your own property, body and time.

The right to make mistakes- - - - -and be responsible for them.

The right to ask for what you want (realizing that the other person has the right to say no).

The right to ask for information (including professionals).

The right to choose not to assert yourself.

The right to do anything as long as it does not violate the rights of someone else.

The right to maintain your dignity be being properly assertive- - -even if the other person feels hurt- - -as long as you do not violate the other person's basic human rights.

The right to be independent.

The right to be successful.

The right to have rights and stand up for them.

The right to be left alone.

The right to be treated with respect and dignity.

The right to be listened to and taken seriously.

The right to get what you pay for.

The right to initiate  a discussion of the problem with the person involved and to clarify it, in borderline interpersonal cases where the rights involved are not clear.

Pasta dish

I made this dish a couple of times in the last few weeks.  It's pretty good, and healthy.  I don't really have an exact recipe, I just kind of put some ingredients together.

• Turkey Sausage (or regualar sausage)
• Penne noodles (or I'm sure speghetti would work well too)
• Canned, diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings (Basil, Oregeno)
• Spinach

Brown the sausage.  Set aside.  In the same pan, poor the canned tomatoes in and let simmer.  I used the back of a large spoon to break up the tomatoes even more.  While the tomato sauce is cooking, cook the noodles as directed.  A few minutes before serving, add the sausage, spinach, and pasta to the tomatos.  Cook a few minutes, till the spinach is wilted.  Serve, and enjoy!


P.S  I just made this recipe up.  I think I was served a similar dish by my sister-in-law several years ago, and just kind of put together this recipe from what I could remember.  So I'm sure there are many changes or additions to the recipe that would make it even better.

Changing how we define ourselves

Today I was reading a blog, and the writer talked about changing the way that we define or describe ourselves.

She wrote:  Sometimes we choose labels unconsciously with little things that we say to others like “I let X person take care of the finances” (trusting) or “I need coffee to start my day” (coffee addict)...

...Changing labels will start by changing the words that we say to ourselves and then being aware of the comments we make about ourselves. It doesn’t mean things will transform over night; but I can certainly imagine that if I say these things repeatedly about myself they will become true, simply because I will unconsciously beging to believe them…just like I believed some of the negative things I heard as a child.

This got me thinking about some of the labels I've given myself.

• I love sweets, and crave them all the time
• I'm not a kid person
• I'm short on patience
• I'm super forgetful
• I'm feel miserable all the time (refering to the aches and pains that come with being pregnant).

And how much I wish I could change these labels to:

• I love eating healthy
• I enjoy kids
• I'm learning to be more patient
• I am organized so that I will be less forgettful
• I feel good, and have a healthy pregnancy

I'm going to challenge myself to try to change the labels I've given myself, and hopefully, work on becoming the person that I WANT to be.

For the Mothers of Boys

I'm sure this has happened to all of us, but to catch it on film?  Priceless.

ENJOY! 

http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/2011/02/28/baby-pee/

Strogaburgers

Here's a great and healthy recipe I tried this week--my friend also has a great blog about eating healthy, and this and all of her recipes rock.

Enjoy!

http://eatplaylove4life.blogspot.com/

Strogaburgers
1 pound lean ground turkey
6 slices turkey bacon, sliced  (I confess I used the real stuff.) 
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 TBSP flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. paprika
Dash pepper
1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup
1 cup fat free sour cream
Whole wheat hamburger buns

Place ground turkey and bacon in skillet. Cook and stir until meat is browned. Add onion and cook until tender. Spoon off excess fat. Blend flour, salt, paprika and pepper into meat. Stir in soup. Cook, uncovered, on medium-low heat about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring often. Serve in buns. (The Orowheat Sandwich Thins were great.)

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you

(Philippians 1:3)

My heart is so full today, and I want to write about it. 

I have a new favorite song.  Call it my theme song.  Here are the lyrics.

I have a dream, a song to sing
To help me cope with anything
If you see the wonder of a fairy tale
You can take the future even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I’ll cross the stream - I have a dream

I have a dream, a fantasy
To help me through reality
And my destination makes it worth the while
Pushing through the darkness still another mile
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I’ll cross the stream - I have a dream
I’ll cross the stream - I have a dream

I've been really enjoying this song for awhile because it affects me on many different levels--the personal changes I'm making in my life and so on.  But, this song took on a whole new meaning when...

A friend of mine passed away suddenly yesterday.

We weren't best friends, but good casual friends.  She cut my family's hair and she made me feel great whenever I saw her.  I am heartbroken.  I just talked to her on Monday.

How short life is!  How fragile it is!  Do I have my priorities straight?  What really matters?  People matter!  Love matters!  Have I told my family and friends how much I love them lately?  Do I focus on the important things, or do I get caught up in the nonsense of day-to-day things?  

And what of that dream?  Well, I hope you don't mind me relating the gospel to an ABBA song, but it seems to fit for me.  Because I have a dream of that final destination, I can push through the darkness of this for still another mile.

And yet, I know my friend.  I can hear her voice saying to me, "Becky, why are you so sad?  It's just me.  I'm just fine.  Don't you worry.  Go on now, be happy."  And so I am trying to be happy.  I trust Heavenly Father.  I know He knows what's best.  And I am so grateful to have rubbed shoulders with this wonderful woman for a few short years.

Thanks for listening.  I just want you all to know that I love each of you, and I appreciate your influence in my life as well.