Yummy Fake-A-Dillas (among other things)

I seem to be having a hard time writing posts with regularity with the addition of a second child in my life- who would have thought! Anyway, we seem to have wandered nicely out of peak fussiness, through 2 weeks of "I think she might be close to sleeping through the night," only to wander into the quagmire of teething and motor milestones. Apparently my children believe in teething early and often. I keep telling myself that the fact that Megan naps at all is still better than Charlie did at this age but the dashing of the "My baby slept through the night at 3 months of age" hopes is rather sad. I do keep reminding myself that at no point during Megan's life have I wondered if I was actually alert enough to drive safely while I frequently had the thought during the first 8 months of Charlie's tenure.

Anyway, Megan is cute! We have coos and grins. She has recently started to figure out how to get things into her mouth and is currently working on trying to grab on to her tongue- we have decided to wait to break the fact that is actually in her mouth already for another day. She adores her brother and her brother generally likes her. Thus far, we have had almost nothing in the sibling rivalry department except for occasional anger that I sometimes have to pick up the baby too soon after giving cuddles for a bumped head.

Charlie continues to progress nicely. He will start a Mother's Day Out program 2 days a week next week and I think he'll really enjoy it. We got him this book bag which was both surprisingly affordable, considering the source, and looks quite sturdy. He will be two next weekend and I think the festivities may be even more low key than last year. It looks like it may be family only and grandparents only at that. At the same time, I was thinking about what would make for a really good day for Charlie and playing with other kids still isn't really on his radar. I think a day with construction truck plates, lot of bubble blowing, and an extended park visit will really do it for him. In other news, Charlie has started trying to jump, sings the ABC song with a reasonable level of accuracy, and enjoys yelling "Hey, Becky (my given name), come back!" up the stairs just as I have managed to lay his sister down in her cradle.

Finally, the Fake-a-Dilla recipe. This makes sort of quesidillas that are fantastic make ahead fare.

First, get chicken breasts when they are on sale. Put them in your crockpot on low with a few cans of Rotel (or salsa if that's what you have on hand) and cook them until you can shred them with a fork. Shred and place in small freezer bags in portions that you think look about right for your family. We use about 1/2 a pint size bag for 2 generous servings and a little leftover for the 2 of us.

Second, Kroger sells a handy pre-chopped, flash frozen bag of green and red peppers and onions (a fajita blend thing). Get a bunch of those, or something similar when they are on sale.

Third, buy shredded cheese when it's on sale and the same for tortilla.

Finally, pick up a few extra cans of Rotel or whatnot when it's on sale.

Stick all this stuff in your freezer (except the canned stuff).

When you are tired and hungry and need a quick dinner. Pull the veggies and meat out and dump them in a pan, saute on medium high, covered, until it's all mostly thawed and then throw in a can of Rotel. Heat up a second skillet and put in a tortilla. Cover the tortilla with a good handful of cheese and then put in a few spoonfuls of the meat/veggie mixture and fold in half. As soon as the cheese is melted you have a Fake-a-Dilla. I serve it with the Birdseye Steamfresh Mexican Rice. Yummy!

Potty Training

Charlie has a hunk of diaper rash that is a completely raw patch. We've been battling diaper rash with varying success since his birth. So, I decided to bit the bullet and start us today. I may lose my mind by the end of the week.

To add to the fun, both Megan (I think) and Charlie are teething this week and their sleep shows it.

Apples and Oranges

I am constantly amazed by how different my children are. I wasn't expecting them to be clones or anything but I thought that the similarities would extend to something beyond that neither of them is fond of going to sleep and hating their car seat.

Megan isn't wild about any pacifier but consents to find a nuk acceptable in a pinch. Charlie was surgically attached to his avent.

When in the car, Megan finds the dulcet tones of The Police to be her happy sound where Charlie was only soothed by Baby Einstein.

Megan likes a nice meal followed by some energetic kicking, a session of flirt with Mommy, and then some "me time" in the swing. Charlie was all holding, all the time.

Charlie was a Buffet fan whereas Megan likes a nice Billy Joel ballad to soothe her soul.

Charlie felt that my boobs would go home in an insulted huff if he didn't visit with them for a good 45 minutes every hour or 2. Megan is happy to neglect them for a good 2-3 hours and then only gives them a passing 5-15 minute nod.

Charlie's butt has a level of sensitivity matched only by the Bronte girls. Megan's butt seems to be as hardy as winter wheat.

Megan is currently a better sleeper than Charlie which is just beyond sad.