Rethinking my Strategy, Meal-Plan Monday, and Time Out Tuesday

Well apparently I am going to have to rethink my strategy for my Monday routine...as you can see, I never got around to blogging yesterday, as we were on the go from 8am on. But it feels so good to know that I got all of my errands done, Lane had his checkup, and we made it to our weekly playdate. Lane made a new friend! I am SO excited to have found another mom with a baby Lane's age(actually, born on his original due date!). Since I missed posting yesterday, I'm going to go ahead and post for both Meal-Plan Monday and Time Out Tuesday.

I don't usually "plan" our breakfasts, I just keep fruit, cereal, milk, and oatmeal on hand for weekdays, and I usually have some sausage and bacon for the weekends. I was buying lunchables, frozen lunches, and things like that for Rian to take, but his job is now providing lunch(Yay!!!) and I eat leftovers or fruit, cheese, and crackers most days when I'm at home, so that should cut down on our budget too! So, here is our dinner menu for this week:

Monday:
Leftovers

Tuesday:
Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry w/Steamed Rice

Wednesday:
Dinner and Game Night w/friends

Thursday:
Bertolli Skillet Meal w/Garlic Bread(Have you tried these? I LOVE them! They are SO easy and yummy, and the perfect amount of food for the 2 of us. And actually I found the Great Value(WalMart) brand version of these, and they are $2 cheaper!)

Friday/Saturday/Sunday:
We are going to California, so Friday and Sunday's dinners will be on the road, and Saturday will be eating at one of our families' homes.


This morning, since Lane is sleeping SO well(for the moment, lol) I am going to go ahead and take advantage of some good "Me" time. For me, that means coloring my hair(WHY do I already have grays? I'm only 25!), and exfoliating my face and using a mask. I have some commercial ones that I use right now, because they were given to me as free samples from Sephora. If you're a beauty addict like me, you HAVE to join Sephora's Beauty Insider program. One of the only things I refuse to skimp on is my makeup. I wore Bare Minerals for years, and switched back to Clinique a few months ago, and the Clinique has made a huge difference for my skin. Anyway, you get points for each dollar you spend there, and can use those points for deluxe samples, in addition to all of the samples they give you with each purchase!

 If you don't have any commercial products, you can still easily do a mini-facial like this at home. There are tons of recipes out there for DIY facial products, and a lot of them over the years, but there are only a few that I really feel compete with the commercial ones, and these work for all skin types. So light some candles in your bathroom, put on some soothing music, and pamper yourself! I recommend exfoliating, then applying the mask, and letting it sit while you soak in a nice warm bubble bath. Don't forget to bring a bottle of water with you!

Exfoliate:
Mix a small amount of olive oil and sugar in a small bowl so that it forms a thick paste, then apply to your face and gently rub in small circles. Rinse off with warm water. This is my favorite substitute for my St. Ives Apricot Scrub(reminds me of my teenage years, but still my favorite ever!)

This one can be a little rough on skin, so if you have super sensitive skin, you can make some plain instant oatmeal, with less water so that it is very thick, and combine it with a small amount of olive oil and honey, then apply to face as above.

Mask:
Mix some honey and plain yogurt in a bowl, apply to face(avoiding eyes) and let sit for 10-15 minutes, then rinse off with warm water. I love this, the honey is VERY soothing to my stressed out skin, and the yogurt exfoliates and moisturizes. When I use a store bought mask, I use the Mint Julep Mask from Queen Helene. It's an old standby you can find at WalMart or any drugstore, and I love the how refreshing it is.


I'm off to pamper myself! Enjoy your Tuesday, and remember, happy mom=happy kids, so take TIME OUT to take care of yourself!