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Taking Advantage

Things do not run as smoothly as they used to in our household as they did before Bug came along.  Laundry is oftentimes sorted to be washed, but actually lays on the floor for a few days before the washing actually takes place.  Clean laundry (if there is any at the moment) is usually sitting, folded on the dressers (or the living room table), waiting to be put away.  Toys are usually all over the floor and dirty (and maybe clean) bibs are in every corner of every room.  This sounds like a mess, right?  Well, it is.  It is not a lie, folks.  THIS messy picture I've painted for you is our life and although it's been an adjustment, I've grown to love...like...deal with it.  

Let's face it.  Having an infant who's curious about anything and everything around her is not easy, especially when she's outgrown the play-in-your-own-crib/playmat-by-yourself stage and has entered the hey-play-with-me-you've-been-waiting-for-me-to-be-interactive-and-now-i-am-ALL-THE-TIME stage.  Yeah, that's right.  Maybe with my future children, I'll be more of a pro at getting it all done, but with this first one, I'm trying to take advantage of every moment she wants to hang out with me because one day I know she'll want to trade me in for her friends.  The only consolation about the mess mentioned above is that at least the clean laundry is folded, even though it's still waiting to be put away, at least the bibs are in the corner of the room and not in the middle, and the toys...well, there's no consolation there because they are just...everywhere.  Ha.

One thing I still have not gotten used to is the new semi-homemade way of cooking.  Our days of completely homemade meals have long been gone (and I'm sure hoping will return).  These days, Bug wants to play all the time that by the time I'm done playing, giving her a bath, and putting her to bed, it's almost too late to make a completely homemade meal.  So, I've turned into Sandra Lee, Miss Semi-Homemade.  Trader Joe's has been my saving grace with these meals and although sometimes I'm sad and afraid to admit it, I take advantage of all their pre-cooked, pre-mixed, frozen foods.  Check out what I managed to collect to whip up a creamy pesto pasta...

I was going to even cook my own chicken breast, but when I went to buy some, Trader Joe's has real grilled chicken breast that they put out every day (neither processed nor frozen!).  So I bought some.  Then when I went to get mushrooms to add to it, I saw they had packaged sliced mushrooms.  So I bought that too.  I'm so lazy.
Trader Joe's jarred alfredo sauce, mixed with pre-made pesto.  Again, so lazy.
 Ta-da!
 Mmmm...seriously.
Perhaps I take advantage of Trader Joe's too much because all of the employees recognize Bug, but what I take advantage of even more, is the opportunity to spend time with Bug.  And although we're not doing semi-homemade meals all the time, (Yes, I still make homemade meals a few times a week), semi-homemade meals give me the opportunity to have some fun bonding time with Bug.  Sometimes we're too busy feeding her, changing her, and putting her to bed, that we miss the opportunity to just take advantage of all her cuteness.

Now THIS is what I would have missed out on if I hadn't made a semi-homemade meal. :)  I wouldn't trade it for anything!  This is one of the few candid moments of me and Bug I found on the camera.  (Thanks to Dad for capturing this.)  Usually I'm the one taking the pics.
(Thank you, Tita Ingrid and Tito Peter for my new Baby Einstein musical turtle!)

God Bless,
Kat

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