No boys allowed

Several days ago I asked Paul's mom if they could watch all three kids on July 6th while Paul was working at the plant. He's been going down on average one day a week to try to finish the machinery project he started last summer. I planned to have a freezer cooking day while the kids were at their house. On Wednesday night I got an email from KTE with the Annie rehearsal schedule for next week. Up until this week they've been having two rehearsals a week. Wednesday night I found out there will be five rehearsals next week. So I asked Nadia if it would be okay if her brothers went to Grandma and Pop Pop's house without her this Friday (today). She couldn't join them because she had a tennis lesson from 8:30-9:30. Thankfully she was fine with this plan (although she wants to go to their house some other day this summer). Paul and the boys were gone for almost twelve hours today. I don't ever recall having a day with just Nadia since Ian was born 5 1/2 years ago. It would have been fun to do "girly" things like paint our fingernails and toenails. The next time we get a "girl's day" we'll have to do things like that.

Today was a very productive day for me. We got home from the tennis lesson and library at 10:00, and I cooked non-stop for over four hours. I chatted with my mom on the phone for thirty minutes and then went back to cooking. Nadia helped me with a little bit of cooking. She stuffed some jumbo shells with ricotta and mozzarella cheese and also made some meatballs for the first time. She also helped me clean the bathrooms and picked up things so I could vacuum. When she wasn't helping me cook or clean she was either working on a 300 piece puzzle, painting a horse, writing a thank you card, riding her bike, playing on the iPad, jumping on the trampoline, drawing on the driveway with chalk, or playing with neighbors outside. In addition to cooking 13 meals, I vacuumed the carpets, mopped the kitchen floor, cleaned the bathrooms, recorded Nadia's 7th birthday interview (see below), and mowed the lawn. Whew. I didn't do a C25K workout today, but I feel like I got plenty of exercise anyhow as I was on my feet almost the whole day. Nadia and I also went on a bike ride together to the playground at the elementary school before we had dinner. She had spaghetti and meatballs, and I had a salad, like I've been having almost every night.

I had two freezer cooking days in 2010. I certainly made more food today than I did those two times.  Although tuna noodle is a favorite in our house, I didn't make it today because it's such an easy casserole to throw together. I decided to stick with things that are more time consuming to make. Once a week I make breakfast for dinner. Last night I made what I called "patriotic pancakes." I put fresh blueberries inside the pancakes, and then I topped them with fresh strawberries, fresh blueberries, and some white whipped cream (no syrup) - red, white, and blue! Nadia, Oliver, and I enjoyed them (I took the night off from having a salad). Also, one night a week we are usually out somewhere (ex. an amusement park), or I'll pick up a large pizza from Aldi's for $4.99 one night. All that to say, I think I made enough meals today to last two months if I make a few easy dishes along the way such as tuna noodle or a soup in the crockpot. Altogether I cooked for five hours today, and then I spent another 30 minutes this evening washing pots and pans. I got tired of cooking after 3 1/2 hours, but persevering another 90 minutes enabled me to make some more meals. Usually a casserole or soup from the crockpot lasts us two nights, so I think I made enough for at least 26 dinners. It certainly was easier to do all that cooking and cleaning with only Nadia at home. Here is what I made today:

lasagna (1)
meatballs (2 batches - one in the frig and one in the freezer)
meatloaf (1)
chicken bacon bowtie bake casserole (2)
split pea and ham soup (1)
beef noodle bake casserole (2)
jumbo stuffed shells (1)
ground beef in a bag for another casserole (1)
diced cooked chicken in bags for other meals such as quesadillas and my salads (2)

As a comparison, here's a link to her birthday interview last year.