Amazing Summer Grilling Meal!!

What an amazing dinner! Noah and I are notorious for making a menu for the month. When we first got married, we would go to the grocery store and literally buy WHATEVER we felt we would need/want. This is problematic for 3 reasons.

1. We spent WAY too much money! Not only were we buying stuff that just "looked" good but we would buy just based on what was "name brand". 
2. We had so much un-used food! We would buy produce that would never get eaten, canned goods that have since expired, and frozen stuff that would get completely freezer burned. What a waste!
3. So much time was wasted. What I mean is that we would spend forever in the grocery store and then when it was time to make dinner, we couldn't decide on what to do. Nothing was ever planned, thus taking forever to decide what to make, making it, cleaning up, and storing leftovers.

What a mess! So the only solution was to plan out what we were going to do each night for mealtime.

Last night, on the menu was Tangy Grilled Chicken. This was a new recipe for us and to say the least I wasn't really excited about cooking and cleaning up and storing leftovers. So the time came that we were both hungry and no leftovers were available so there was no choice but to make this new meal. Am I glad we did? YES!! So here is what we did for dinner.

• Noah grilled eggplant and squash. This is something we had at a friend's house and decided it might go well with our meal. First, he sliced up the squash and eggplant. After putting them into a giant bowl, drizzled EVOO on them and tossed the veggies around. A little salt and pepper and grill time! 
• Uncle Ben's 90 Second Rice!!! This is one of the best inventions ever! The bags of rice may not be the healthiest thing ever but it's a time saver and a huge help. We tried the Whole Grain Medley (Noah was skeptical) and it turned out to be very good.
• Tangy Grilled Chicken

• 4 Chicken breasts
• 4 Tbsp. red wine vinaigrette
• The following are all for the Salad portion:
• 2 cups cucumber, peeled and diced
• 2 cups tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup green onion, sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 Tbsp. red wine vinaigrette
• Put chicken and vinaigrette in a zip lock bag, place in refrigerator, and let marinade for at least 30 mins.
• While chicken is marinating, create the salad by combining cucumber, tomatoes, onions, parsley, and vinaigrette in a mixing bowl. Cover and let sit in refrigerator.
• Remove chicken and grill until golden in color and until fully cooked.
• When ready to serve, top with salad.

This entire meal took about 30 minutes to cook (after marinating). Everything was AWESOME!!! I highly recommend this meal to anyone that is looking for a grilling meal and wants to have something that is moderately healthy. Happy grilling! 

The "in your face" bittersweet moment...

To take a break from cleaning topics, I figured I would write about something that is much more meaningful.

Last night, Noah was preparing for his Administration Praxis exam. As he focused, I continued to watch him, my hand on my belly, feeling the baby kick. After he was finished, Mac Dawg jumped up on the couch and we goofed off with our little inside jokes. Mac snuggling between us and the two of us chatting about all kinds of random things. After a little while, there was a short moment of silence. In that moment, it hit me. This bittersweet moment just "smacked" me in the face...things will never be like this again.

Please don't misunderstand me...having a baby was totally in our plan and Noah and I are both beyond thrilled about being parents come November. However, it was in that short silence that I realized that at no point will it be just Noah and I again. Even now a lot of our time (and my brain) is taken up with baby talk- what should go on the registry, the color of the nursery, baby names, day care, baby showers, and plans on traveling...

Having this change in forefront of my mind, I can't help but think about the past few years. Noah and I have been married for three wonderful years and so many amazing memories have been made. I will forever cherish those "alone" moments with my husband- having Family Guy marathons, hanging out with Mac Dawg in the guest bedroom, our hikes and fishing trips, the trip to Jackson Hole, skydiving, and so many more things. I certainly look forward to the future as the mother of his children. I'm only hoping that as a future mommy, I can continue to slow down enough to see my husband the way I currently do. I know time flies so incredibly quickly and I find myself trying to be a sponge to soak up all the memories possible. I love him with all my heart and am so very proud of him.

With all of that "mushy" stuff being said, my resolution is to make time for my husband, even after we are parents. I'm sure many parents are out there getting a kick out of my pledge but I think of it this way... My husband was here first and if it weren't for him, I wouldn't be carrying this miracle. I want to make time with my husband a priority. Don't worry, you are more than welcome to check in on my pledge and see if I'm keeping to my resolution. I won't be offended.

And I still maintain that I am a very lucky woman. I hope everyone has the chance to be as happy as I am.

Battling the Bathroom

So many people are petrified of (or despise) cleaning the bathroom. But for me, it's one of the best rooms to clean. Let's face it, it's a small room! It's so much faster to clean the bathroom than to vacuum the entire house. For those of you that HATE cleaning the bathroom, hopefully these tips can help you get in there, get the job done, and take the "chore" out of cleaning the bathroom.

1. Have a Cleaning Caddy! This is a must for anyone that doesn't have a cleaning service coming to their house. I don't know how people clean without having a little "toolbox" to tote along and house all the goods. This doesn't need to be huge, but it should have all the materials to help you clean. There are also two options. Some people only have one cleaning caddy, while I have two. I have one for our bathrooms (3 bathrooms on 2 different floors) and one for the kitchen- it holds more stuff. Here are the main things I keep in my bathroom caddy: Windex (or mirror cleaner), Scrubbing Bubbles wipes, Clorox toilet bowl cleaner, Tilex, rubber gloves, Kaboom, paper towels, and usually a harsher cleaner. *I'll go over my kitchen caddy later on.

2. Put stuff away as you go. This tip isn't just for the bathroom. I've had to learn that instead of wasting my entire weekend cleaning the house, if I do a little bit at a time, and it lessens the load. Instead of stepping over the piles of dog hair that the baby ripped off of him (and didn't try to eat), pick it up and throw it away. If you get the nail kits out to do your nails (you know, in your free time), when you are finished doing your nails, put the stuff away exactly where it should go. This rule shouldn't be that difficult. I mean we tell our kids to put their toys away...I have even started teaching the dog a command for "clean up". Why wouldn't we follow our own rules? Put stuff away right after you use it. It cuts down on clean time.

3. Check expiration dates. This one doesn't just apply in the kitchen. Expiration dates are put on all kinds of products- especially in the bathroom. *STORY TIME! I have a friend that was going to a festival/concert. He is very fair skinned and wanted to take sunscreen with him but ran out of time to go get some. He decided to just grab whatever was in the bathroom. (It was a bit old but still SPF 40) He was very careful to apply the sunscreen and turned out that he got FRIED! The sunscreen was about two years old and had the opposite effect. Morals of the story: 1. Wear sunscreen to protect against harmful rays. 2. NEVER use expired products. Even makeup and cosmetic items have an expiration- follow them. Even Bath and Body Works stuff gets funky after a certain period of time. Besides the fact that these leftover things can clutter up your bathroom, they can grow bacteria after so long. YUCK! Imagine using a mascara that you've had forever...gross. All kinds of bacteria and germs going so close to your eyes- yikes! Stick with the expiration dates and if you aren't using something, get rid of it. There's no reason to keep that around, in your bathroom, just to take up space and carry germs.

4. Combine bottles. If you shop like my husband tends to, you probably have 4 opened containers of nail polish remover, 3 different shampoos, 8 lotions, and countless bottles of Advil/Tylenol. Noah is notorious for forgetting whether or not we have soaps, shampoos, conditioners, etc. This means we always have a supply, but usually we have a ton of opened bottles and nothing ever gets used up. One big thing I've decided to do to minimize clutter is combine bottles of like materials. Obviously if the shampoos are different brands or scents, you may not want to combine those but nail polish removers, Advil tablets or capsules, rubbing alcohol, Peroxide, cotton swabs, and hand soaps can all be combined. One important thing to remember is that even though you have 4 opened bottles of Advil capsules, CHECK THE EXPIRATION DATES! Always do this first, then combine. *Another side note to this tip: This helps you know what you have and what you need. Most of the time when I'm going through stuff, I notice that I already had contact solution in the closet, even though I just bought two more bottles. This will help keep the clutter down AND save you money in the long run.

5. Do it weekly! This doesn't just go for the bathroom. I know that after I come home from a long day at school, the last thing I want to do is make dinner and vacuum the house, do the laundry, clean the bathrooms, dust, and clean the dog snootches off the windows. So I decided to break things down and do them one day at a time. I wanted to be able to handle all the majors cleaning chores that need to be finished throughout the week. Then I decided to break these "chores" down to once a day. It's important to do what works for you. Here's my schedule for you to use as an example:

• Sunday: I usually try to spend Sunday relaxing and gearing up for the upcoming week. The only thing I may do on Sunday is create the menu for next week. I'll go over this when I get to the kitchen blog.
• Monday: Dust. I really don't enjoy dusting at all BUT it only takes me around 15-20 minutes to do the entire house so I dust on Mondays, which tend to be my busy day of the week and least favorite day. *yes. I always have a case of the Mondays.
• Tuesday: Clean bathrooms. (Thus the Tuesday blog about bathrooms) By clean, I do not mean reorganize. That usually takes more time so I just go through and clean the sinks, toilets, wash mirrors, and wipe down showers (if needed). This usually takes me around 30 minutes to thoroughly clean all 3 bathrooms. 
• Wednesday: Clean windows. Mac LOVES to look out the window but clearly has no idea how long his puppy nose is. By about Tuesday it looks as though he's been trying to write in Chinese on my windows for all the neighbors to see. Cleaning the windows in my house usually takes about 20 minutes and it always looks so much nicer after they are done. The good thing about this day is that if I am running low on time or it's not too bad, I just spot check and clean what needs to be cleaned. ** Product recommendation: Windex is always good for windows but it tends to streak for me. I LOVE Invisible Glass! It never streaks and seems to really get all the dog snootches. **
• Thursday: Vacuum. Living in a 3-floor townhouse, this is my LEAST favorite thing to do but when Noah helps it goes very quickly. We have an upright vacuum for the carpets and a smaller Oreck for the stairs and vinyl floors. We divide and conquer. Noah usually takes the stairs and floors, while I take the upright for carpets. If we really focus we can get this done in about 20-25 minutes. It always goes faster if we remembered to clean up all the other stuff that usually lands on our floors as the week went on. 
• Friday: Steam floors. Once the vacuuming is done, this is always the next thing on the list. Besides the fact that I HATE having a sticky floor, I realize that before I know it I will have a crawling baby. I don't want him crawling around on a dirty kitchen floor. I usually steam the bathrooms, kitchen, sunroom, and foyer. This can be completely done in about 20 minutes, plus I always feel better after the food drops in the kitchen are cleaned off. 
• Saturday: Laundry. I always put laundry off during the week because I know that I'll just have a ton more on the weekends. It's easier for me to focus on laundry on Saturday, unless we have plans or will be going away. If that is the case, I can move laundry around throughout the week. Plus I put laundry to the end of the week so that I can get all of the towels (both bathroom and kitchen) into the laundry without forgetting things.

All in all, that's how I spend my week cleaning. Each day is no more than 30 minutes a day. I find that if I just get right into it after I get home from work, it always gets done. If I come home, plop down on the couch and watch tv, I am wasting time. Let's face it...we can easily spend hours in front of the tube but cleaning our home for 30 minutes is like a bad dentist appointment. Why is that? So while you're already moving from work, come in and get to it. It'll be done quickly and then you can relax...or in most cases, continue to work, make dinner, take care of the kids/dog, etc. A woman's work is never done...we might as well just keep the ball rolling.

Hope these tips help and you can create a schedule for cleaning that you can manage. I'd love to know if you already have a schedule...I'm always willing to adapt. :-) Have a great bathroom cleaning Tuesday!

Nesting...or in my case- PURGING!

Many women may find that while pregnant they feel the need to clean. It seems fairly normal and a part of life. We want to make our home clean and prepared for our future little one. In my case, however, I have always been someone that enjoys a clean house and the cleaning process. I always feel better after my house is cleaned and organized. I find that when I do have the chance (and motivation) to clean or reorganize my home, I enjoy being there. All in all, I've found that when I'm organized, I'm not nearly as stressed. I'm sure I'm not alone.

For me, pregnancy has put me into turbo mode for cleaning and organization. I have the luxury of a "free" summer with time to go through my house and purge superfluous stuff. I certainly wanted to clean and get things together for the future little one but I found that there was just stuff that didn't need to be there. Also, I realized that if I haven't used the item in years, I probably didn't need it.

If organization and cleaning, or purging for that matter, isn't necessarily your "bottle of Windex", I have a few pointers to get you started. I will also be doing a multi-parter going room by room in my house and documenting the progress. Stay tuned!

So here's the first 3 principles:

1. Leave emotion at the door. Yes, you may have spent a fortune on that espresso machine three years ago or maybe your favorite aunt bought you that really nice toaster oven but the fact of the matter is, DO YOU USE IT!? If the answer is no, then why do you have it in your house taking up space? My husband and I live in a townhouse with minimal storage and when we registered for our wedding, we had very generous friends. Granted, we are very blessed to have such amazing friends, but we also had too much stuff that we never opened or used. Going through cabinets and closets, you need to leave the emotion at the door. I realize this may difficult but if you aren't using the item, then are you really honoring the money spent or person that bought it for you? Probably not. So the best thing to do: get rid of it and get it to someone that will (whether selling it or giving it away).

2. Have a game plan! Like any good change, there has to be a plan. You may not have the freedom to work for two weeks straight but there is certainly a way to get your house back in order. I wanted to start with the future baby's room, which was my old office. I had to make the transition to the "man cave". I wanted to go through things as I moved so that I wouldn't have to do it again. Great idea right? Why do the work twice when you could easily do it once? Then I planned my attack of the rest of the house. Each day I would tackle a new obstacle and when I was finished, I was done for the day. Setting the goal of what to get done in one day was very easy to stick with- and it worked.

3. One alligator at a time. Like number 2, I had to realize that I wasn't going to get the whole way through the house in one day. Impossible. And even if it had been possible, I probably wouldn't have done a thorough job. So I decided I would take one room at a time. I obviously started with the office/future nursery, then to the guest bedroom, then the bathroom, then master bedroom, closet (yikes), and moved down the house. I knew that I could have done more than one room at a time, especially the ones that didn't have too much stuff to begin with but I didn't want to burn out and end up not finishing the task at hand. When I finished one room, I turned the lights off and the next day, prepared for a different kind of space. You need a break every now and again, doing one room at a time is totally feasible- especially when there is no need to be Super Woman.

So to sum up, I'd say if you want to start purging or reorganizing your house, it's just that simple. Think about what you want your house to look at by having your plan in mind, leave emotion at the door, and tackle one thing at a time. I'm going to be adding info to these cleaning sessions in the next few days/weeks. Please feel free to follow me along as I take you through some of the messiness of my own house and get how we got organized for our little guy.

His sacrifice

I've always known that Noah is a giving type of person. He wants to make people happy, solve any problems they may be having, and make the situation better. Even in Neville's best man speech at the wedding, he warned me how much Noah would spend on gifts and how he would spoil me over the years. I thought I knew that my husband was the type of person that would do anything to make me happy, but in the past week alone, I've seen a man wanting to make his family priority number one.

This week, I have to admit, I tortured Noah a little. Not on purpose, I assure you. Monday, we got up, went to a doctor appointment (which he hasn't missed one) and then spent four long hours at Babies-R-Us to create the registry. Four hours seems long, and I agree, but if you've ever done a registry, you know four hours is fairly normal. I even went prepared. I didn't want to get sucked into all the fun things we could get that would be a waste of money and it STILL took four hours. Anyway, I expected Noah to be very "blah" and disinterested in the registry because what guy wants to spend four hours looking through breast pumps and diapers? Exactly. But, I have to say, I was happily surprised. He was a rock! I started to get upset about which bed sheet we had to get for the bassinet versus the pack-n-play...Noah, got a store person and had it figured out and on the registry before I could even get worked up. He continually went from one wall to the next with a smile on his face and goal in mind.

Then on Tuesday, we went crib shopping. This may not seem like a stressful time but trust me, choosing a crib that is sturdy, effective, stylish, and fairly inexpensive is no easy task. We went to Baby Supermart in Broomall (highly recommend) and spent around 2-3 hours there just looking and comparing cribs, dressers, and chairs. Again, Noah did all of it with a smile on his face. I was getting overwhelmed (furniture is expensive!) and he just kept going. No negative comments, no whining, only motivation and determination. I have to be honest...I was a little jealous of how well he did it. I was the one acting a little bit like a baby...

As we left, the topic of day care arose to show it's ugly head. (if you think furniture is expensive, try finding a day care) Again, Noah took the conversation in stride. I started to shut down, get frustrated, and worried but he was just thinking. He finally said, "I will do whatever we need to do. I'll work an extra job or do whatever to make this happen. I love you and our little boy." In that moment, I knew things were going to be just fine because all I really need is my wonderful husband and healthy little boy. (and the Mac Dawg)

I'm sure some are reading this, saying to themselves, "well duh! He's the guy and the dad! He SHOULD be sacrificing! All he did walk around and scan things with a gun!" And sure, that's true. However, how easy would be to just shut down, make me do all the work, and do nothing. I have to hand it to my amazing husband and thank him from the bottom of my heart for not only providing for his family financially and emotionally but for doing it willingly. Me, the baby, and Mac are very lucky to have such a wonderful person as the head of our household.

Layettes, T-Shirts, and Bibs! Oh MY!

When Noah and I decided to start trying for a family, there were certainly things that may have slipped our minds. The cost of a child wasn't one of those things. We knew that starting a family would be very pricey and we would need to stick to a more realistic budget in order to make it work. However a few things we didn't necessarily consider were the registry items, how difficult it is to name the unborn, and how to agree on the nursery color/bedding/theme/etc.

I realize these things may seem trivial compared to the birth plan, what if's in delivery, how to parent, and the do's and don'ts of how to raise a human being but, at this time in my pregnancy those are the items plaguing my mind.

First, I had no idea how much stuff there is to choose from in places like Babies-R-Us. Between strollers, travel systems, clothing, bedding, formula vs. breastfeeding, pumps, diapers, wipes, monitors, pacifiers, bottles, wipe warmers, carriers, cribs, toys...is your head spinning yet? Mine is and I've been doing my research! There are so many choices in these super stores! Not only choices but there are also so many things. I had no idea that I would need to register for so much stuff?! And in all reality, do I need the video monitor? Do I need the diaper genie? Do I need a wipe warmer? To be totally honest, my mom didn't have any of that stuff and I turned out mildly normal. (no comments needed :-) )  The registry is a very overwhelming issue for me. I'm excited to do it but (if you know me) I need a project at all times so the registry has been the target of my obsession. Also, I have apparently started nesting. It's not so much nesting but "pitching". I just want to get rid of everything in my house! When standing in my kitchen, I seriously feel as though I should be on a hoarding show. We have so much stuff that we don't use, that I feel needs to go. I'm perplexed by that same issue with the baby registry. I want my little guy to have everything he could need without having to completely clutter my house with useless stuff. I am very lucky to have friends that have given me books and lists of what to get but I'm still wondering how I will fit everything into our modest townhouse.

Second, naming. *Sigh* Noah and I have agreed that because we have shared the sex of our future baby, we will not be sharing the official name until he arrives. We are very excited to still have a little bit of a surprise for our friends and family when the little guy is here. However, we will have to agree on a name before that time comes. When we found out we were having a boy, I was a bit scared. Not because I didn't want a boy. I think if you know me, a boy makes sense for my first child, but because for a girl we had things planned. Nursery color, names, etc...we were prepared. For a boy...nada! We had discussed names but hadn't totally agreed. Of course at that time, we weren't really concerned. Now, me being the OCD posterchild that I am, I am having a silent panic attack about naming our child. I never completely understood how difficult it is! We want to have an original name for our boy. Noah and I both had unusual names growing up and want our children to have the same experience. However, naming my child "ABCDE" (pronounced ab-sid-dee) isn't what I'm looking for. (Edgar, you knew you would be brought into the blog) The problematic last name could be a culprit but we are just making sure that we find a strong and lasting name for our child. I have so much respect for parents that do well naming their children. I tip my hat to you and ask...HOW DID YOU DO IT!?

Lastly, nursery color/theme/bedding. This is very closely related to registry but Noah and I have differing ideas of what the nursery should look like. He wants blue. I want green. He doesn't see the need for a theme...I do. Bedding is just a silly purchase (says many friends) due to SIDS risks. Jury is still out and when we finally do settle on a color/theme/bedding...you will all know.

Overall, these are my current obsessions. Perhaps I'm trying to focus on this so I'm not focused on delivery (yikes) but either way, when I start on something, it needs to be remedied before moving on. Wish me luck!!!