Monday, February 22, 2021

Menu Monday




Has anyone reached that part of the winter where they have cooked so much...yeah they are over it??  My planning brain is struggling.  We have food.  But WOW...I just can't some days.  I am trying hard to plan as much as possible to keep myself organized.  I work full-time from home (fortunately), but it's still a struggle.

Sunday
B - Sausage and Potatoes 
L - Taco Rice
D - Burgers and fries

Monday
B - Pumpkin Cake
L - Corn dogs 
D - pork burrito bowls

Tuesday
B - Cereal
L - Chili dogs w/ salad
D - Pizzas (make your own kits)

Wednesday
B- Breakfast burritos
L - Potato soup
D - Ukrainian pancakes and sausage

Thursday
B - Pancakes
L - PB&J wraps
D - Chili and cornbread

Friday
B - Quesadillas
L - chili fries (with leftover)
D -Teriyaki chicken and rice

Saturday
B - Waffles
L - Open
D - Goulash 

***This is important.....some days I change things around.****  I print a menu and keep it on the cabinet.  If something happens, I change the menu in pencil.  I make sure to keep track at the bottom of the menu of the meals that get moved, and we still have the ingredients for.  

This biggest thing to remember.... BE FLEXIBLE!!  I cannot express this enough.  Do not down yourself if you need to move your menu around.  You might be exhausted, need to work over, or a sports practice gets moved....all these things have happened to me in the last few weeks.  Flexibility is the key.  I also have given up some control in the kitchen and make sure that the kids are involved as much as possible in making meals.  Some day they will be able to cook the entire meal themselves!!  Whoohooo!!

I know I didn't share any recipes, but if you are interested, please email me.  renitakuehner@gmail.com.  I'd be happy to share a close variation of what we make.  I seriously do not really follow recipes well...lol

Hope that these ideas help and everyone has a great week!!!

Renita



Saturday, February 20, 2021

How are you doing right now?



As we are all surviving this pandemic, we may wonder how we will even make it.  Will our employment hold out?  Will we get sick?  The anxiety can be too much.  It's been just about a year since we started talking about this on an almost daily basis.  Would this COVID we were hearing about in China affect us?  A year ago we had no idea the impact it would make on our lives and change them permanently. 

I just wanted to share a couple of thoughts from my brain.....

1.  Make sure you are being open and age appropriate honest with your children.  Life may be totally backwards for them right now also.  Tell them we are doing all we can to keep our family safe.  Explain the recommended steps and why you are choosing to do them.  Let them know decisions you make are not made lightly.  Encourage questions if they have any.  Our kids are older, but they are delayed in many ways.  Some understand, and others do not.

2.  Know that they are going to be emotional.  I'm sure you have shed a few tears also.  We all face disappointments.  Our kids are watching us.  If we are not handling the changes well, and we are showing it, they will pick up on that.  Their outbursts may increase also.  Instead of arguing, walk away.  Both parties need to calm down.  

3.  Help them keep in touch with friends and loved ones.  I personally have set up Zoom art times and hangouts for the kids.  The girls even had a "virtual sleepover".  It was fun for them.

4.  Keep somewhat of a structure. But throw in a few surprises.  Maybe pizza for breakfast.  PJ day.  But make sure they know that they must keep up on their chores/household responsibilities.

5.  Remember the treats as you can.  Not just for the kids, but you too.  I figured out how to color my own hair...just because.  I also do times where I let the girls experiment with color in their hair.  They do crazy make up.  I've even gotten them a few courses on professional makeup application.  The boys we encourage with wooden crafts for Brayden.  Joey is doing some project building from Eureka crate and even signing him up for some drawing classes.

6.  Include some game/tv time.  Maybe follow a specific series as a family.  We have had several nights watching Mandelorian and even the new WandaVision show.  Get out the popcorn bar or hot cocoa bar.  Throw in some surprises.  I was doing Star Wars themed meals during Mandelorian.

7.  Find a way for your kids to help others virtually or online.  We have been mailing out cards to various ones in our Kingdom Hall.  They just have an encouraging message that we love seeing them on Zoom meetings or in Virtual field service.  This encourages our kids and helps others.  We never know the true struggles that others are facing with a smile on their face.

I do try to find self-care.  I feel defeated many days.  Special needs and mental struggles are hard without a pandemic.  But it's really been hard, especially when we hear about loved ones who are sicks and even when we lose loved ones.  Activities that were normal for us, even if they are open again I find that we are choosing to remain in our little bubble for our family's protection.  I do try to get up early and enjoy my coffee before the storm.  Read my Bible and pray.  I look at Psalms 55:22 a lot.  We know that we can rely on God, and throw our anxieties on him through prayer.  He is there for us, our rock.  The power of prayer can help provide us peace like a river flowing over us.  I know I am not as strong as a rock.

We all can only do what is best for our own families.  So we need to stop comparing ourselves to others, their situation is different.

I hope you are all doing well.
Renita





Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Snow Week....



This is how my week is going....we went from a snow deficit to having more snow on the ground than when the Blizzard of '78 hit. We received 14.5 inches of the powdery white stuff.



But since we are all working and schooling virtually we are not really affected.  We had been able to prep and make sure we were stocked so we did not need to go anywhere at all this week!  

Hope everyone is handling the snow well.

Saturday, February 13, 2021

Cold Weather Ideas



Since so many of us are on limited or not participating in outside activities due to restrictions.  I have older kids, so these are some options that we have been ingHere are some suggestions to look at:

1.  Help the kids get involved in the cooking.  This is a great time to really sharpen their cooking skills, and for you to learn some new cooking techniques.  Plan a themed cultural meal weekly or monthly.  Whatever your budget allows.  Have a cooking contest.  Can you "Nail" a recipe or project you find on Pinterest?

2.  If you are looking for social options, check out Outschool.com.  There are a wide range of virtual opportunities for kids to hang out with other kids who have the same interests.  Just search for "social group (kids interests)". I actually host several Minecraft meetups for kids of all ages and building levels.  The girls have really enjoyed this break up in their schedule.

3.  Have you checked out Kiwi Co?  I know this is not a free option.  But the kids have enjoyed these crates.  Currently we have subs to Eureka and Maker Crates.  They really break up the activities.  All the supplies are included!! 

4.  Find some great drawing tutorials on Youtube.  Make a goal to create some sort of art/craft everyday.  Look at reusing recyclable materials from your home.  You could also open the up the world on Pinterest.  One of my favorite drawing channels is Art Hub for Kids.

5.  Bring out those board games.  Maybe you are bored...get that "bored" with some of them.  Encourage your kids to create a new game using materials from an old game that none of you like.  They could re-write the cards and even change the board up.

Hope you can use some of these.
Have a great day!
Renita
renita@krazykuehnerdays.com


Monday, February 1, 2021

Will Phill see his shadow or Not?




Will Phil see his shadow or not???  I predict he will see his shadow this year.  Hey if we get more snow...I'm staying home anyway.  I'm ok with that.





Have a great day!!
Renita
renita@krazykuehnerdays.com