Monday madness and skinny meat balls

I am in shock- I slept 'til just before 5am! I did wake up twice to do a dummy call, but it was straight back to sleep until the early morning bottle feed. Then- to my utter surprise, after half an hour awake, bubby and I slept again until just before 7:30am. I am still in shock, and incredibly grateful! And guess what- I do feel energised! I just needed over 9hrs to give me that longed for boost :)

I needed that sleep- today was utterly hectic. We left the house at a bit before 9am, and I didn't sit down to stop until 3pm. Hubby is very stressed- end of Tafe, exhibitions, deadlines etc will do that. He came in this morning and mentioned something about me wanting to go shopping and to be ready by a certain time. I couldn't remember if I'd asked to go shopping yesterday. Lack of sleep for weeks has deadened my memory a bit. It was only at the shops I realised- I have my non teens car while she's in Japan- I didn't need hubby to drive me anywhere. We are both pretty flustered at present. At the shops, hubby then reminded me I had to take my teen back to this very place for her driving lesson. I cried inside- back to back visits to my least favourite shopping centre. I also had to edit hubby's writing before taking my teen back- with very limited time. No pressure! I was glad I used my second trip wisely and printed off photo's for my little mum in Tasmania. Between that and bubby, I was kept busy. 

Once home, bubby was very unsettled and undecided if she was hungry or not. Who could blame her- it was after 12:30. It took me nearly 2 hours to settle her down to sleep- she had only napped briefly during the 2 car trips and was waaay over it all. Then, something strange happened. When I stopped and checked Instagram for pictures of my daughters Japanese holiday, I saw a picture of babies enjoying a play together, and I cried. Just like that. I had to go up and sit on my bed and just bawl.

Admitting I feel lonely is kind of sad, but a healthy thing to acknowledge. After I cried, I prayed. Then, even in my sadness, I felt peace. I know of many women who need a friend at this time, so I got onto contacting them asap. I need to be a friend first, and I can't always let lack of sleep, the demands of a bubby or my hubby's current busyness disconnect me from the life of connecting with precious ladies I miss. 

I have dear friends; dear friends that are busy, or unavailable for many valid reasons. Sadly, these friends don't have a little baby, so getting together isn't always easy, or possible. I could easily let this consume me, but I won't. This is but a season, and I will make it through with a sweet soul still. My little bubby deserves that much from me.

I haven't had the chance to over-eat today. I managed a small cappuccino in Tweed, then I came home to a huge pile of dishes- and it was only 12:30! After doing them, I made myself a simple lunch- 4 rice cakes with avocado on top. Bubby was waaay too unsettled for me to even consider seconds. 

So, so glad I made breaky in advance today. I have enough for 2 more days in the fridge. It's vital to be prepared when trying to eat healthily. Sometimes, you never know what the day will throw at you. 

Breaky: 2 tablespoons of oats, topped with soaked chia seeds, blackberries, protein powder mixed with milk, then sprinkled with cinnamon.

My simple lunch: Half an avocado on 4 rice crackers. 

When bubby finally went to sleep, I started on dinner prep. As my teen won't eat meatballs, I decided to make skinny ones instead by shaping them around skewers. 

The mince is simple to prepare: to approximately 300gms of mince, add breadcrumbs, veggie stock powder, salt and pepper. Then the fun part- using clean hands- mix by squeezing together.

Mould handfuls of mince onto skewers. I ended up with 9. Place in the fridge for half an hour before cooking.

Hubby came home just in time to feed bubby. Most grateful on many levels, especially as she is going through a blowing raspberries with food in her mouth stage. I was able to get dinner cooked. I cooked rice by the absorption method while I grilled the skinny meat balls. They only needed turning once. When the rice was cooked, I added steamed veg, butter and soy sauce and mixed it all through the rice. It ended up being a sticky rice dish of sorts.

I didn't eat the rice. Instead, I steamed peas to go with my spinach, cabbage and red capsicum. I added a splash of sesame oil too. Just right! And guess what- my teen ate the skinny meat balls. She just won't eat round ones!

Now, to the daily food consumption. I must confess that I ate a very generous portion of cheese after last nights post :) It was good!

Breaky: see top, plus a coffee at 7:30am

Lunch: Cappuccino at 11:30 followed by avocado on rice crackers at 1pm.

Afternoon tea: 20gms nuts at 3pm, followed by miso soup and 3 small slices of bacon at 4pm. I had to get bacon in somehow! I grabbed some as it was on special today. As I was portioning it out, I couldn't resist a sample :)

Dinner: above, at 5:30pm.

There you have it, my busy Monday. Now, let's hope tonight gives me an even better sleep. Here's hoping! Until tomorrow, thanks for reading :)