Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: February 23-March 1, 2025 post!

Before I launch into this week’s Food and Fun, I’ll backtrack to share the tail end of last week. :)

Our family all gathered on Saturday evening to celebrate Justus’ birthday (a week late, thanks to illnesses). Justus requested Italian Cream Cheese Chicken and Butterscotch Bars and we were all excited about this meal!

There were 19 of us, and the meal was simple and good.

Being altogether was the best.

And that was our Saturday evening!

Big Family Food and Fun: February 23-March 1, 2025

We enjoyed our traditional Breakfast Cookie Bars on Sunday morning before church.

Last week, I had made a big pan full of Taco Rice Skillet, so I rewarmed it at a low oven temp for our Sunday Lunch gathering. I also warmed White Queso in my smallest crock pot, cooked Corn on the stove, plus got out tortillas, chips, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, and cheese. Friends who joined us that day brought Shredded Pork and Fresh Fruit. It was such a delicious feast!

HAVE I TOLD YOU HOW MUCH I LOVE SUNDAY LUNCHES?? (I love Sunday Lunches.)

There were 29 of us gathered to share our meal and share life together.

After such frigid days, we were all so invigorated by sunshine and warmer temps. All of our kids played outside (and got muddy but we didn’t care). It was so sweet to see the kids enjoying their time together. Meanwhile, we grown-ups got to encourage and support each other as we visited inside.

Matt and I enjoyed Community Group time later that afternoon (a small group of us who meet regularly to focus on what scripture says about Jesus’ life and how we can be more like Him). Elias and Malorie watched a movie with our kids during that time so that we could have uninterrupted adult sharpening time.

I baked four Frozen Pizzas for dinner that night for an easy way to end our full day.

Malorie came into the kitchen that evening to conduct some experiments for her online college classes. A small crowd gathered to participate.

Oh wait. A large crowd gathered. I’m not sure what Malorie would have done had she not had all this help to collect her data.

Monday was a very big day for our family. I had to get out the door early with Auggie, so I served a simple breakfast of Yogurt, Granola, and Berries for Parfaits before school.

An Auggie Update

Auggie and I drove to Omaha that morning for a follow-up visit to Children’s Developmental Pediatrics. This boy has gone to specialist after specialist during his two years of life as we seek answers and help to better meet his extra needs. Children’s Hospital has been everything wonderful for us, referring us to every doctor we’ve needed and never giving up or brushing off our concerns.

They’ve given him Feeding Therapy so that he could learn to eat. They’re giving him Speech Therapy so that he can learn to talk. And on this day, after yet another very thorough appointment, the Developmental Pediatrics team finally landed on a diagnosis for him: Autism Spectrum Disorder with Global Developmental Delay.

Yes, I cried when the doctor said the words. But they were tears of relief to finally have answers. We need this so that we can move forward to get more of the help he needs!

What a big, big morning for this precious little boy.

The day wasn’t over yet.

Matt and I spend the afternoon processing Auggie’s appointment and diagnosis and talking through next steps. We also worked on preparing for our evening. God had led us to a Christian Therapy Team – an answer to SO MANY PRAYERS as we’ve sought help for our kids. Monday night they were to come into our home for the first time to meet everyone and as we launch into participating in their Family Mending program.

To make this happen, I had dinner ready at 4:30 that afternoon: Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips, Mashed Potatoes, and Green Beans. We tried to get everyone fed and into the living room by therapy time at 5:45.

Emotions were running HIGH for our kids that night – and they all either acted super squirrely or super naughty during our meeting. We actually appreciated that the therapy team could see some of their behaviors – because so often, our kids mask their true needs/struggles around others.

This night was just the beginning of many hours of therapy, homework, and guidance from the Therapy Team. I’ll share more as I learn more. It’s all a lot to process, but we welcome it so that we can help our family be all that God has planned for us to be.

Bedtime Snack

Somewhere in the afternoon, I’d taken several bruised apples (thanks to a kid who dropped an entire bag of them) and turned them into Applesauce Bread. We sliced a loaf to eat after the therapist team left, and tried to get all the hyped up kids calmed down for sleep that night. Phew, what a day.

Tuesday morning, I sliced the remaining loaf of Applesauce Bread for breakfast, plus got out Bagels for those who wanted that instead. I scrambled a dozen eggs and rationed them so everyone could have some.

Meanwhile, Anna was propping clementines into the small space between the countertop and the cabinet. ;)

Auggie and I headed off to Speech Therapy that morning. He was less cooperative than he typically is – likely because he was wary after his big Developmental Pediatric appointment the day before? By the end of the session, he’d finally warmed back up to spending time with Miss Marissa.

Little Sweetheart had joined the crew at home with Matt so when Auggie and I got home, I grabbed her up. She enjoyed many little bites of Lolli’s Applesauce Bread. :)

If Auggie could vacuum all day (and turn the switch on and off over and over), he’d be pretty pleased.

My niece was driving through Lincoln that afternoon on her way home from visiting family. She stopped by so we could meet her sweet new baby.

Eva and Arrow stopped by to say hi also. We got some cousin pictures, but my favorite, by far, is this one in which Arrow decided to try and take a bite out of his cousin to see if he was as sweet as he appeared to be.

Aww, here’s Pop having some Arrow playtime.

After school, I took Brayden, Kiya, and Keith to hand out food at our weekly Food Distribution site. There was a lot of food to hand out that day and a huge crowd that went through the line. The kids did great!

Back at home, Matt had fed the kids an entire pan of Burritos that I’d made with Sunday’s leftovers. He was working on this second pan of remaining pan of rice/meat mixture as we continued to put burritos together to feed kids. This meal was a hit, for sure!

We’d brought home several packages of buns from Tuesday’s Food Distribution, plus a very big and exciting bonus: EGGS. At the end of the evening after we’d handed out food to over 100 families, no one had taken a bag of pre-cooked eggs that had been donated by a restaurant. (Items are set on tables and clients can choose from a variety that we set out. The cooked/frozen eggs didn’t look very appetizing, I guess?)

We were blessed to bring them home, so on Wednesday morning, I set out the buns with the eggs along with sausage patties, ham, and cheese so everyone could build a Breakfast Sandwich.

Then, I used what was leftover to put together more Breakfast Sandwiches for the fridge and freezer for grab-and-go breakfasts. I was so shocked by how many eggs were in that bag! I got 22 sandwiches prepped for our freezer!

My friend, Charlene, came to visit that afternoon and we had a wonderful time catching up! That evening after homework, Brayden wanted to help make dinner. He cooked hamburger meat and added sauce. Then he put together two bags of salad.

I boiled noodles and warmed up leftover corn. Then we enjoyed a Spaghetti Dinner.

We all headed out for a short walk around the neighborhood so that we could take advantage of the nice weather before it got dark. Afterward, we came in and worked on our Family Therapy Homework. Our assignment/goal this week is to work together to establish Family Expectations (rules) so that everyone is on the same page and very clear on what behaviors are accepted. We are couching all of it in scripture so that we can emphasize that all we do is a reflection of Jesus’ love for us.

Thursday morning, I put a Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast with Carrots into the crock pot to slow cook all day.

I had a lot of fresh greens in the fridge, so I made a batch of Chocolate Cupcakes with Spinach, using 1/3 pound of spinach – which is a lot. Can you see how these are tinted green before they are baked?

But after they are baked, they look like regular chocolate cupcakes!

Mid-morning, we took the four littlest kids to a Sensory Storytime at a bookstore.

Eva and Arrow met us there, and Auggie went straight over for a hug.

The rest of the kids followed him to gather around one of their dear sisters-in-law and their favorite nephew. :)

When we got home, I made a double batch of Angela’s Egg-Free Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies for our breakfast the next morning.

That afternoon, I spent time with Little Sweetheart while putting together an activity to help us continue to work through our Family Therapy Homework. Matt and I decided that a theme verse for the basis of the “Family Expectations” page that our therapist team asked us to put together is 1 John 3:16. If we can all recognize how much our Father loves us, we will move forward in love for others. I created this simple poster plus wrote the word LOVED on cards for the kids to put together as we met together that night.

Then, I cut the poster into puzzle pieces so that even the littlest kids could participate in our discussion time.

When the kids got home from school and finished homework, we enjoyed our Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast and Carrots. I buttered and toasted some rolls to help fill the kids’ bellies.

Later, we sat in the living room, talking through our L-O-V-E-D cards, which had scriptures to go with each letter. This was a loud event, not one that was calm and precious like one would hope. But it went as well as it could go, I think, with this many high need kids of such young ages. Brayden, Kiya, and Keith are at least catching on to what we are trying to teach.

Friday morning, we finally got to eat the Angela’s Egg-Free Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies I’d made. The kids were so glad to finally dig into them!

After the elementary kids headed off to school, I spent time in the kitchen prepping ahead. I made a huge Lasagna plus a regular-sized one for our upcoming Sunday Lunch.

Meanwhile, I baked 14 pans worth of bacon to finish off a box I had in the fridge. Now we have lots of prepped bacon in the fridge for breakfasts or sandwiches.

Matt had taken most of the littles outside for a walk while I finished my work in the kitchen. Then Anna and I (plus Little Sweetheart, who had been dropped off somewhere in there) headed out to join them.

I took the girls inside to fix their hair before the preschool bus came for them. I asked Acacia to watch Little Sweetheart and keep her safe while I fixed Josie’s hair. Acacia took her job very seriously.

That afternoon, I headed out and got a haircut – which felt like a lovely treat. Then I went to Panera to have some quiet, alone work time. See those wrappers on the table? Yes, indeed, I had packed a couple of special chocolates in my computer bag to enjoy with my coffee.

Eva texted that day to share that she needed to use up some potatoes and cream, so she’d made a pot of this Potato Soup. YUM. I’ve been making this version of Ham and Potato Soup all winter, and kind of forgot about my original Potato Soup recipe. Now I’m hungry for the original and need to make it before the weather gets too warm…

I’m so thankful the moments of quiet I was able to snag that afternoon, because as soon as 4:00 hit, it was incredibly intense for Matt and me as we managed the evening. Two of our kids had appointments with their therapist right after school (this was good, but also a lot for them as they processed some hard memories throughout the rest of the night). Meanwhile, everyone was hungry at 4:30. Auggie had a very scream-y day/evening and we couldn’t figure out why. The three little girls were exhausted from their week and couldn’t regulate their emotions. Dinner, simple as it was, felt chaotic. (We made Orange Chicken with Sliced Pears and a Salad.)

To end our evening, we attempted to continue with our Family Therapy Homework. We reviewed our L-O-V-E-D cards, reminding them about how much God loves them and delights in them. Then we worked together to put together the scripture puzzle I’d created the day before. We practiced learning 1 John 3:16, reminding them that because they are so loved, they can live confidently in that love and therefore, love others – in our home and out of our home.

Saturday morning we ate Cereal for breakfast, plus I made a double batch of Peanut Butter Honey Puffs.

We took the kids to Library Sensory Storytime where they got to listen, play, sing, and dance.

We got back home to enjoy a crowd of Malachi’s friends who were gathering to spend the weekend together. These buys have been friends since they were all little boys. :)

Thanks, Allan, for being such a good sport and reading a book to Malachi’s little sister. :)

Lunch that day was an assortment of random leftovers. But I also made a big package of hotdogs to stretch our meal since we had several extra guys joining us.

The rest of the day was spent cleaning, giving kids their baths, and getting our home ready for our time of Sabbath rest. I’ll share more about our Saturday next week!