monday goals and menu plans {yard progress pics + nesting to-do lists}

It's a much different Monday than I'm used to here! :D

Instead of my usual living room, this is my view:

The kids are at VBS this morning, and my amazing husband is watching the youngest so that I can get some Starbucks time. :) {thank you, honey!!}

VBS means this week is going to be a little different than our normal summer week, but I really wanted to use the extra time I have to plan out a summer schedule for the kids. The first couple of days out of school they had no idea what to do, but last week they finally caught a little groove of play, eat, and swim. :) I wanted to let them go free for a couple of weeks before we did anything too structured each day.

This weekend was productive- we had the chance to get some work done on the "redo entire yard" part of my list! :D When we bought our foreclosure a few years ago, we knew the big yard needed lots of work. It's been decently kept, but it really needed some tlc after all the years of being rented/let go. 

Here's what this deep forest-like corner looked like when we started {or maybe worse, since this was a few weeks back!}:

And after many hours of hard manual labor {on the part of my husband and boys- I was the water bearer!}, here's the progress we made, which is exciting! 

They spent hours and hours digging up trees and even had to use the truck to pull out some of them- the overgrowth was so dense! I am so amazed at how much they did! Next up, we are raking and pulling out the borders to plant grass and put in a new fence. 

So the pre-baby to-do list is getting shorter. :) I'm excited about our progress- even though the baby won't care one bit what's done when he comes, I feel like it all has to be done before he gets here in 6-8 weeks! {It's insane and unreasonable, I know, but somehow it feels so necessary! Did I ever tell you I have a REALLY patient husband? He's such a good sport to deal with his nesting wife. :D}

here's the baby list progress:

• make quilt/bedding
• make 1 wall decor piece for over the bed
• paint crib and dresser {still working on this, but mostly done}
• wash baby clothes
• buy diapers, wipes, and nursing supplies {bought a package of newborn diapers/wipes two weeks ago!
• wash car seat + bouncer covers
• hang curtains
• order or find a pack n' play travel lite on Craigslist

and more we have to do:

• redo entire yard {many hours spent here already!}
• build a new fence
• mulch and plant flower beds
• host birthday party for Avalie {planning is this week!}
• finish painting house
• redo/finish girls room -needs 2nd coat of paint, and a bed makeover is waiting to happen in the attic
• redo boys room- paint/reorganize
• finish the stairs
• add light fixture to bathroom
• find a new-to-us washing machine to replace our 10 year-old one

So here's my to-do list for this week:

• plan Ava's first party
• make a loose summer schedule
• list two more items on Craigslist
• figure out house payoff schedule/timeline
• wash baby clothes we have, figure out additional clothes we will need to buy for his first few months
• work on planting grass in the corner
• make wall decor for baby room
• write a love note to my husband
• write a love/encouraging note to my oldest 
• take the kids swimming and to the library
• go to midwife appointment {every 2 weeks now- which means we are getting so close!}
• arrange Father's day plans/gifts :D
• buy summer homeschool books for each child
• make lots of dinners at home {I was super busy last week, and we ate out a lot!}

And here's our meal plan for this week:

 {keeping it SO light and easy- I don't want to do much cleaning...or cooking...hahaha!}:

east texas caviar {above} + rice

ground turkey tacos

turkey spaghetti + salad

sandwiches + chips

quesadillas + black beans

beans and rice

brown rice +/- lean beef {me}

zucchini pasta with homemade marinara {I hope I can find good zucchini at the store now!}

Summer is so different! :D I'm excited to try to attempt to hit all those goals this week!

What are your goals for the week? {if you say none, I don't blame you one bit! :D enjoy your summer days!}

Do you like zucchini pasta?
I had never tried it until last year- and I fell in love, hard!

Do you do any schoolwork/bookwork in the summer?
We've never done any before, but I think the kids will be bored shortly. :) They've been told they would do some new school work in their upcoming grade, and they were actually excited. We'll see if that sticks when the work is here! :)