Things I've learned this week...

So on Monday evening, Pooh arrived to start what we hope is his new family life with us.  Though we've had him short-term on numerous occasions, this now feels fairly official, as his case should be transferred to us this coming week (we are officially on long-term respite for the moment).  Anyway, for most moms, by the time their kids are two, they've learned bit by bit about how to manage life with a little.  For us, it's pretty much sink or swim, but we are enjoying the ride:-)

Through the course of this week, I've learned lots of things!  Here are the top three:
1) Always always always, no matter how short the anticipated trip, pack a change of clothes in the diaper bag (for the child, not the parent, though a change for the parent might not be a bad idea - see #2).  I think our gym somehow provides a natural laxative for Pooh - it's been rare this week that either P-daddy or I have gotten through a workout without having to change a dirty diaper.  The very first day, his diaper (Huggies, no less - I'm going back to the cheap stuff!) leaked and of course his clothes were then a mess.  But at that point, he'd only been in the house for about 10 hours, and I'd forgotten the change of clothes.  Nothing like walking a toddler through a crowded gym in a wet unsnapped onesie.

2) Never never never get dressed for work before breakfast.  While it seems logical that one could easily change clothes at home, it's just not as realistic as it might seem!  Working on a schedule already thrown off by having an extra person around the house and a carpool arriving at a particular time may make that impossible.  But it's okay, if any of my students noticed the streak of oatmeal down my pants, they refrained from mentioning it.

3) No matter how quick the trip, or how few items you are picking up, don't even consider not getting a cart.  Even if it's just a jug of juice, and you have plenty of time so you don't mind letting a child wander through the store at his own pace holding your hand.  You need both hands to pay, and Pooh um, I mean any random child will grab the opportunity to play hide and seek.  If you are lucky you and your child will stick out like sore thumbs in your grocery store; maybe you shop at a store like Fiesta, a local supermarket that caters to the largely Hispanic neighborhood, but you and your child are light-complected and blonde-headed.  Then it will be clear to the nice employee following your child around when you find him that you belong together.

FINALLY!!

Today, I got home from work to find a legal-size envelope in the mail from our foster care agency.  I got so excited that I opened it first, even before the free samples and coupon envelopes!  Sure enough, it was our official license - yay!  This was amusing to me since we have yet to actually talk with our FYS (Family and Youth Specialist) and as a matter of fact, don't even know who that is.  But no matter - when I texted B3, she got so excited that she called Pooh's (isn't that better than the Pooping Machine?!) cps worker, who said it was fine, since we have our license, to do an extended respite.  So we are respite parents for the next 7 days!  This is gonna be fun :-)

Meanwhile, I'm really enjoying making a menu for the week.  Not that we follow it religiously (as a matter of fact, I have a hard time getting P-Daddy to follow it at all!), but it's convenient for me when I'm packing my lunch and getting ready for the day.  And it helps me to think about what's in the fridge and what we have to eat.  This weekend, we made several things:  a big pot of crockpot black beans, crockpot chicken (cause Fiesta had chicken leg quarters for $0.39 a pound!), and cilantro pesto pasta.  Those things are making up a large portion of the week's menu, which appears below.  You'll also notice I added a "C" line to each - that's my attempt to think about cleaning, and to plan at least a quick pick-me-up of different areas on different days.

Monday:
B:  SCO w/ peaches, apples, and banana
L:  spinach frittata, roasted veggies
D:  cilantro pesto pasta w/ chicken
S:  applesauce, carrots, watermelon
C:  kids' BR

Tuesday:
B:  eggs, black beans, tortillas
L:  cilantro pesto pasta w/ chicken
D:  turkey sandwiches, carrot sticks
S:  yogurt, red peppers, cherries
C:  parents' BR

Wednesday:
B:  SCO w/ peaches, apples, and banana
L:  black beans w/ brown rice, avocado, boiled egg
D:  out with students
S:  applesauce, peaches, carrot sticks
C:  bathroom

Thursday:
B:  SCO w/ peaches, apples, and bananas
L:  roasted veggies, chicken
D:  pb&j sandwiches, carrot sticks, red pepper strips
S:  yogurt w/ blackberries, cucumbers
C:  living room

Friday:
B:  eggs, black beans, tortillas
L:  chicken taco salad
D:  potato nachos
S:  popcorn, oranges, jicama
C:  hallway, floors

Saturday:
B:  fruit and yogurt, cold cereal
L:  picnic:  sandwiches, finger fruits and veggies
D:  out to dinner or order in
S:  banana, yucca, cottage cheese
C:  laundry

Sunday:
B:  pancakes w/ fruit
L:  veggie frittata, ww bread; red, white, and blue fruit parfaits
D:  brown rice and lentil casserole
S:  red peppers, carrots, yogurt w/ blackberries
C:  kitchen

Staying out of the kitchen

I mentioned in an earlier post that P-daddy and I spent a couple hours in the kitchen earlier this week in order to avoid having to be there for the rest of the week.  So far, that's working pretty well.  In the 100 degree heat in Texas, no one wants to heat up the kitchen, and in our little apt with no central air (window units in all rooms *except* the kitchen!) we really don't want to be in the kitchen for long!  So I loved that LifeasMom's Ultimate Recipe Swap this week is all about great summer recipes - I'm getting lots of ideas for summer meals and treats!

One of my all-time favorite summer recipes is a cold black bean salad that my dear friend Erin introduced me to.  I've made a few changes, and I don't follow an exact recipe (it's very forgiving!), but here's the basics:

Black Bean Salad
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained (or use 2 if you want)
1 small red onion, diced
2 medium bell peppers, diced (I like to use 2 contrasting colors, preferably sweet) 
2 tomatoes, chopped
chopped cilantro (how much is dependent on your taste)

Place everything in a bowl.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Dress with either vinegar (red wine vinegar is my favorite in this recipe) or simply lemon or lime juice, then stick it in the fridge to chill.  Serve with additional toppings, such as avocado, sour cream, or grated cheese.  Good on its own, or on tortilla chips.  We sometimes even use the immersion blender to mush it up a bit as bean dip.

Yum!!  That's definitely on my menu plan for next week!

More menus, and an update!

First the update:  Last night, P-daddy and I had a lovely talk with the director of our agency, who has to approve all the homestudies.  She just had some residual issues to clear up, which we did successfully, and she said she'd approve and pass it on, and we should be licensed by the end of the week if no other issues arrive!  Yay - finally!

And now the menus:
Last week, we did...sort of okay on the menu front.  It was super-helpful to me to have a menu there on the fridge, so that I could look at it in the morning when I was packing my lunch, and know that I was taking enough food.  We didn't always stick to the dailiness of it, and we ended up eating meals on the 'wrong' day, but it was nice to at least have the ideas there for us.  On the weekend, not so successful, but that was more due to the fact that the PM was in the house, and he ripped the menu off of the fridge sometime early on Saturday.  Note to self:  post menu high enough the grabbing hands can't make it disappear!

Yesterday evening, P-daddy and I spent a couple hours in the kitchen, in the hopes that we can spend almost no time in the kitchen the rest of the week.  We chopped and packaged carrots and peppers for lunches and snacks, sauteed a mixture of cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage, cooked a large pot of curried lentils, made brown rice to go with the lentils,  and made spinach frittata (well, okay, P-daddy made that earlier in the day).  Then I cleaned out and rearranged the fridge so that everything would fit, and we now have most of the week's food ready to go, or at least pretty easy to prepare.  We'll have to do some cooking/prepping on the weekend, but I hope to combine that with next week's food prep to keep us out of the 100 degree heat in there!   Here's the plan:

Monday:
B:  eggs, black beans, avocado, tortillas
L:  spinach frittata, mango
D:  brown rice w/ curried lentils; cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage mix
S:  yogurt, peaches, cucumber

Tuesday:
B:  SCO w/ fruit
L:  brown rice w/ curried lentils; cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage mix
D:  turkey sandwiches, carrot sticks
S:  applesauce, red peppers, cherries

Wednesday:
B:  SCO w/ fruit
L:  spinach frittata, cottage cheese, bread
D:  carrot and potato dumplings, side salad
S:  yogurt, celery, banana

Thursday:
B:  eggs and beans, tortillas
L:  brown rice w/ curried lentils; cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage mix
D:  turkey sandwiches, carrot sticks
S:  yogurt, blackberries

Friday:
B:  SCO w/ fruit
L:  pb&j sandwiches, cucumbers, carrots, apples
D:  eat out or order in
S:  applesauce, nectarines, red peppers w/ hummus

Saturday:
B:  cinnamon rolls
L:  salad w/ tuna, tomatoes, and onion
D:  homemade pizza or calzone
S:  yogurt, cucumbers, banana

Sunday:
B:  yogurt and granola
L:  black bean and corn salad, avocado, tortilla chips
D:  MSF spicy black bean burgers, avocado, mixed veggies
S:  applesauce, oranges, carrots
Anyway, we are trying again

Sweetness...

From the very beginning of our relationship, back before we ever had a real date and when we were trying to figure out if we even wanted to, P-daddy and I talked about foster care and adoption.  It seemed that both of us were on the same page in our desires to eventually foster and/or adopt, with each of us individually considering it before we ever even met.  I'm not sure how long it would have taken us to get around to actually starting the process if we hadn't met my niece B3's adorable foster son last Fall.  He was then just over a year old, and we've had the wonderful opportunity to see him grow and change for the last 9 months.  When it became clear that he would likely come available for adoption, P-daddy and I jumped at the chance, found an agency, and started the licensing process.  Since January, we've provided respite for this child about once every 6 weeks to 2 months, and he's a blast to have in the house.  From his first visit, we've referred to him as the Pooping Machine due to the number of dirty diapers we have to change - maybe we are giving him too much fiber with all the apples, bananas, pears, oatmeal...

Anyway, the PM stayed with us this past weekend.  We've started to notice over the last couple of visits that he is bonding with us, which is, of course, a very good sign!  On the last visit, this was evident more in his wanting one of us for comfort, or crying when we were leaving (not a problem since his attention span is about 3 seconds long and he's very easily distracted by anything fun!).  This past visit, though, oh this was special!

On Sunday, we left him in the nursery when we went to church - they have tons of fun toys for him to play with, and he's generally quite happy there.  When we returned, he dropped everything when he saw us, ran full-speed across the room yelling "Daaaaadddddyyyyyyyy", and flung himself into P-daddy's waiting arms.  It almost brought tears to the eyes, it was so sweet!  It gives me joy to know the men in my life love each other so much!