My View (vol. 25)

What I am reading: a lot of essays by students (end of quarter approaches!!); Sharing the Faith with Your Child (from birth to age six): A Handbook for Catholic Parents by Phyllis Chandler with Joan Burney

Last Sunday... just the Baldwin babes!

What I am eating: Boosken cookies my mama sent me. The taste of home is so sweet!

Meal Planning: Last week was mostly chicken and sweet potatoes/spaghetti and meatballs/ sides of  steamed green beans and broccoli/ eating fruit + cool whip for dessert. Grace enjoyed her first mandarin orange last night! She definitely preferred the cool whip. (And the Busken cookies that arrived yesterday!)

But this week!!! I am fixing lentil soup (plus ham for Will) of dinner tonight and tomorrow. We'll have spaghetti and meatballs again because Grace will eat meatballs (yay! more solids!), lots of tilapia, cornbread muffins, rice and/or potatoes, and I'll more than likely buy chicken drumsticks for Will. Vegetables too!

Breakfast usually looks like a scrambled egg with cheddar cheese and an english muffin or a bowl of cereal if it is an early therapy morning, plus milk and coffee. Grace always eats oatmeal, yogurt, milk and almost-always a scrambled egg + cheese. Lunch is a smorgasbord of leftovers, yogurt, and lately, pb&jam. Gracie is still into Earth's Best baby food, a colby jack cheese stick, a few slices of my daily apple and milk.

Not totally convinced over the meatball...

{This just in! I read Nell at Whole Parenting, and she is doing a link-up for meal planning! In case any of you need more recipes... because around here, y'all I'm all about the bass- the bass- the basics. My family recipes include: Put rice and water in rice cooker; press "on". Put chicken on tray; bake for 45 min-1 hour at 375 degrees. Cut up broccoli and put into bowl + 2-3 Tb of water - place plate on top and microwave for 3-4 minutes ... yeah: boss.}

A lot of grading to complete this week (my 6-8 graders are turning in their War of 1812 essays on Monday, just in time for me to finish grading their Bill of Rights essay); simple meals, simply delicious!

This week in history: We had visitors!

Trista and Bryan stopped by after a wedding for lunch! Such good conversation - AND they are moving closer to us in the next few months!! {Under 2 hours counts, right??}

Julie, Trista, Bryan

Trista has one of the most beautiful hearts! So blessed in her friendship

My wonderful college friend Tom, his wife Nicole and their sweet daughters stopped by one afternoon on their way home from New York!

The girls were not into more pictures, but we loved it!

My MIL and SIL Ellen were here of course, which was beyond delightful.

Snuggles!

Ellen and I got to consignment shop, and my MIL helped take me care of everything - from putting plastic on the windows to help keep the chill out of our rental, getting rid of meal moths who came to stay last week, taking care of poor Will (who got sick, again - fortunately just for the weekend!) - and still creaming us all in Hearts. Ellen also finished painting Grace's dresser! Isn't just divine?!

Will finished out his last week of OB/GYN on night shift and delivering a couple more babies. I continue to prep for class, nap when Grace naps, grade, try to write, teach presidents three through seven (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Quincy Adams, Jackson) and keeping the house clean-er. Failed on finishing thank you notes but... I napped and had minimal nausea (taking more medicine these days).

Grace started drawing/ coloring too!

My favorite day of the week was Halloween - Will woke up after his night shift, we dressed Grace up like a pumpkin, ordered pizza, watched Harry Potter (cleaned the house, la la la), and enjoyed spending more than 45 minutes a day with each other!

Getting ready to watch Harry Potter!

Daddy snuggles are the best

Prayers:  My parents flew to Italy yesterday! Prayers for their safe travels over the next two weeks. Prayers for the lonely and broken-hearted; prayers for the financially stressed; prayers for the faith seekers; prayers for the persecuted.

Special prayers for a few pieces I am writing, specifically on children with special needs. It's easy to say, "Grace is going to do great!" (and I firmly believe that- every day, she just wows us with her awesomeness!), but the attitude towards any type of disability is just so disheartening for me.

Especially being pregnant again and now being a high-risk pregnancy because my first pregnancy included a stroke - it is just a different world, and if you ever wanted to really freak a non-educated mom out about her fetus, talk to her as a high-risk patient. My frustration level brings me to tears some days, and as much as I love feeling my baby move inside me, I dread going to the OB office more and more. I have no health problems, I exercise, I eat well, I sleep, I drink water, I take my prenatal vitamins every day and I feel completely patronized every time I go into the office. I am not sure what to do; I've already talked to the office manager.

Next week I am going to: Get my grading done. Not miss my OB appointment. Take an actual belly bump picture!

I hope you're all having a good weekend! I see it is snowing back home... just rainy and cold here! Entertaining ourselves, nonetheless...

Oh, just playing with Dad's phone instead my toys...

Happy Saturday! Happy All Saints' Day today, and All Souls' Day tomorrow! We're going to the cemetery once it warms up to pray for the deceased.