March

March was jam packed full and we could all probably use an entire month to recover from it! The kids had an eleven day break, which we kicked off with a weekend trip to Denver. We spent a lovely day there with Grandma and Grandpa J, then enjoyed the rest of our time playing with the Sleights. The day we returned to Albuquerque, we were joined by Grandma Naomi. She stayed for two weeks and we worked non-stop to cut out wedding invitations for Sarah and Cassie. We did a couple other projects as well, including the making of a dress with Mercy, and still had time for a family fun day to El Malpais and several leisurely afternoon walks.

Matthew was able to secure funding for his summer WIP project and had a short WIP trip to Texas. He also purchased a more substantial gun safe and, with the help of Jeb and Stirling, managed to get it upstairs.

Mercy did a session of swimming lessons, the boys went to two birthday parties, all three kids participated in the Pinewood Derby, and Cassie and I went to book club and a fun Relief Society painting activity. We enjoyed a delicious Brazilian dinner at the (Danny) Brown's house, Cassie, Matthew and I went to a wedding reception, Matthew attended two different ward conferences, and I did an almost ridiculous amount of cooking and baking. 

As always, we enjoyed all the bits of silliness tucked in between the getting things done.

Mission Prep:

This month my health and fitness goal was to count calories. I did great for about a week, then spring break started and Naomi was here and I definitely fell off the wagon. In hindsight, it was probably a poor goal for this particular month. It did, however, remind me of serving sizes and how much one can consume when mindlessly snacking, so I was able to take that into account and reign myself in when there were so many macarons and other delicious foods always available. I don't often feel like I am making much progress when it comes to loosing weight, but exercising every morning with Cassie has definitely helped me get more fit and I do feel generally more healthy, so that's something. I only made it to the temple once this month, but considering how busy I was, I'm pleased I made it at all.

Meals:

Chicken noodle soup

Navajo tacos (Cassie)

Chicken tikka masala

Hamburgers

Macaroni and cheese

Venison Ragu

Chicken pot pie

Waffles and sausage

Frozen pizza

Venison Bolognese

Corned beef with cabbage, potatoes, and carrots

Carrot soup and biscuits

Roast asparagus

Guacamole and chips (Cassie)

Smoked pork loin and mashed potatoes

Clam chowder

Grilled cheese sandwiches