Shower time

I decided to get in the shower with Baby the other day and I generally try not to because I worry about her slipping and falling.  I put her bathtub in the stall with me and let her splash while I tried to compete for a Guinness record on how fast I could wash and shampoo/condition with a very low flow shower head.  She wasn't feeling well getting over a throat infection and then heading right into a cold.  She decided that splashing in her tub which is normally fun for her was not going to be so that morning.  She kept standing up in the tub.  As soon as I got the last of everything out of my hair I picked her up and held her to me under the shower spray.  Wouldn't you know she snuggled right in and stayed there and I kept putting us both under the spray so we stayed warm. 

After the shower was over I wrapped us both in blankets and took her to my room since I knew she was hungry and fed her.  I decided not to put a diaper on her right away.  Instead I put a towel down and we both got under the blankets and I let her nurse.  The skin to skin contact was just so incredibly sweet.  Sometimes I get so sidetracked with the kids routine that I forget to take the time to enjoy the little stuff like that.  I think I'll try to make that a more frequent occurrence.  Baby actually was breathing better for the nursing session and she enjoyed the snuggle time.  Her sweet little hands kept rubbing my stomach and she'd reach up to my face and touch my lips until she closed her eyes.  All in all I've gotta say it was a sweetness that I relished and I don't take the time to enjoy anywhere near enough.  I keep thinking that tomorrow that she'll still be my baby girl.  But, as I see everyday in Tot whose face is changing yet again she won't be a baby for much longer.  She has already taken her first steps in the past week and is taking more and more every day.  I need to enjoy every minute of her babyhood because in just a short while she's going to be a toddler and then she'll really be living up to her Daredevil nickname.  Hope everyone is getting ready to for a good and happy New Years!

I'm a smurf!

Well, my hand is. It looks like this today.....

The reason it does is because I found an egg dye kit that I had squirreled away from Easter and decided that today was a good day to dye some stuff.  My hand included.  So, after waking up this morning I threw some eggs in a a pot of water after I cracked one open just by trying to pick it up out of the carton.  And I was mad that I lost an egg and unfortunately let out an inappropriate word for Tot to hear and let his spongelike brain to add to the repository for future reference.   While the eggs were cooking and then cooling I grabbed a skein of wool that is slated to be turned onto a pair of longies for No Fear Baby. 

That was the first one I grabbed on my shelf and so began the process of unravelling it so I could turn it into a roll I could use to dye.  The job should have taken me 45 minutes to do but with Baby attempting to yank my pants down and Tot just being his overexcited normal self.  But, it took me two hours with all the distractions.  This is what it looked like when I got done.  Pardon the chair.  I need to strip it and repaint it but that's not on the list until Spring of 2011. 

If you do this make sure you wrap it around the widest part of your chair.  Or you'll be a fool like me and have to unwind ten minutes in and restart because you aren't able to get the wool off the chair at the end.  Then I secured it with some strands to keep the wool together without getting tangled up while working with it. 

Then I stuck the whole thing in a my wool lanolizing bucket, after I thoroughly wiped it out, in a cup of warm water and a cup of vinegar and let it soak while Tot and I dyed our eggs.

So when were done with the egg dyeing there's no sense in wasting good dye and another good activity.  So I gently squeezed out the water from the wool and took a section and stuck it in the dye and let it sit for a couple minutes to soak up the dye.  This is where Tot looked at it and said eww even though he was fascinated with what was going on and stuck around the entire time.  He just chose to not become a smurf.

When we did all the sections this is what it looked.

Then we stuck the whole mess into a microwave safe bowl and nuked it for three minutes and then gave the wool a rest for five minutes.  We repeated the heating two more times.  I let the bowl sit in the microwave for about an hour and a half when the whole thing was just cool enough to touch but still hot.  Tot came in and watched on this part because it was too hot for him to touch.  I hung it from my shower curtain rod with the lanolizing bucket underneath to catch any water drips.  So, it should be dry in a couple days and ready to wind into a ball to be made into something.  Although knowing Tot the longies will turn into a soaker for him which is fine because then it'll be that much better since he helped.  Maybe he'll actually wear them! 

So this was the afternoon with Tot.  It was enjoyable.  He had a good time and I'm a smurf.  I got a tantrum free afternoon to enjoy Tot and all of his silliness.  And it was two activities for the price of one.  All in all for a monetary cost it was under $10.  $1.78 for the eggs, $5.99 for the wool and $0.99 for the egg dye bought before the holiday.  It was fun and an activity I'd do again because Tot had fun.  He was excited to get in the thick of things with the egg dyeing.  I couldn't convince him to double dip the eggs but this is what we did anyway.  The eggs will still be good enough to eat and I think they'll have to be devilled eggs. 

And next time you're looking for a fun activity for the kids and don't mind a little mess give this a whirl.  The only part that wasn't safe for child handling was hanging the wool to dry.  Otherwise, Tot got right in the thick of things with his quick little three-year-old hands and had a blast!  Happy dyeing!

In a rut anyone?

If you're in a rut raise your hand.  ::waves and flails every body part that moves::  We're seriously having some trouble here.  We're all tired and bored.  I can't get seem to get unpacked because the kids require constant refereeing and separation.  More that Tot needs to be constantly monitored around Baby.  He loves her most days and loves on her with hugs and kisses but he still needs to be watched.  So, I want to finish the unpacking which is slow going.  I can't believe that the only thing I had time for with packing was to just throw things in and then think, rather mistakenly, that I'd have help with the unpacking. 
Hubs is incapacitated at the moment since he's training.  The whole single parent duty tends to suck some days.  This past week has been especially hard because Tot had his psychological evaluation and he's had a lot of tantrums just from his own brand of boredom.  It's time to rotate the toys here.  For myself, I really need to get the sewing machine unpacked.  I'm sorry to say it's still in it's box as I haven't been able to get to it.  On my own I've been able to unpack two boxes a day if I'm lucky.  So I am one burnt out mama at the moment.  I relish the day when Hubs is officially done training.  He's getting the kids and I am going to the bookstore and holing up with a good book and a hot chocolate or some other decadent treat.  Until then I'm supporting a very caffeine-laden-Coca~Cola-a-day habit.  I should buy stock which how much I've spent on six packs of them.  Which reminds me I need to put that on my shopping list.

Enchiladas and Cornbread, oh my!

I have had the worst craving for these two things. And most places I've been to usually make savory cornbread and while that's fine and dandy I just have never loved it. I'll eat it but usually regret it because it's just not the right flavor for me. So, I gave this recipe a whirl. It turned out really good and this dish was dairy free for those wondering. I used almond milk in lieu of the skim milk because that's what I had on hand and there was no flavor difference. To be honest it was the flavor I was looking for. A slightly sweet, but nice and dense cornbread. And I made it in my 2 quart crock pot!

I would never have thought you could make cornbread in a crockpot, but I don't have a working oven so I'm in a need to get creative mode. Hubs has tried a couple times to light the oven and it just doesn't work. A bummer because I love to cook almost as much as I love to eat. Scratch that, it's an even 50/50. I just hate the clean up. Anyway, try this sometime. I mixed the ingredients together and dumped it all in my greased crock and let it cook on high for almost 4 hours. It got a little brown on the edges which I actually like because it's kind of a carmelized taste.

Ok, onto the main star of the evening. I didn't do this dairy free because I had ingredients in the house that needed using up and I decided to cheat. I know I'll pay for it later as will Baby, but let me tell you it really was worth it. I also used prepackaged ingredients because I didn't have anything on hand. I haven't soaked a pot of beans yet and I don't have a pressure canner yet to do my own tomatoes. As for enchilada sauce I'm really about being lazy today so that's what I did. I've got a recipe from scratch though that I'll post once I dig it out.

Corn tortillas (6" diameter)

1 lb ground beef

1 large onion diced

5 cloves garlic finely diced

2 10 oz. cans medium enchilada sauce

1 10 oz. can of black beans drained and rinsed very well

1 can mild Rotel

8 oz. shredded Mexican cheese

In a skillet brown up some ground beef and chop it to the consistency you want. I did mine on the smaller side of being pretty well chopped up in there. I also used 93/7 beef. I hate using 80/20 beef 99% of the time so I use meat with less fat. (Part of the reason for this is that I hate draining meat and the other part is that the high fat meat is still pretty expensive and so much of it cooks out because it's fat which is a rip-off to me.) Anyway, once it's cooked turn up the heat for a minute and it'll cook off the grease, and throw in your onions then garlic. Once you hear the onions starting to sizzle turn the heat back down. Then add the black beans and just let things warm up for a minute. Turn off the heat and let it sit for little bit to cool off. Do some dishes. Or you can make some cowboy caviar which is what I did.

When the meat mixture is cool.....
Grease your 4 qt. or 6 qt.crock very well. I, surprisingly, remembered this step today! I've been notorious lately for forgetting to do so.
In the bottom scoop a little enchilada sauce then place tortillas to cover the bottom. I used 4 for the bottom of my crock. Then a spoon of the Rotel. Layer meat, another couple spoons of sauce, then cheese. Top with more tortillas. Do this until you run out. I think mine had three layers. Make sure you have some sauce and cheese left to round out the top of your tortillas there. Place on high and cook for 4 hours. I think I could have gotten away with it cooking only 3 hours but it was really good. It had flavor and a little kick to it. Garnish with whatever you like: salsa, sour cream, lettuce, olives. You get the idea!

Ok, onto the bonus of the cowboy caviar. I had this for the first time in my life just last month! Oh wow, what have I been missing. My good friend, the lovely V, is who introduced me to it. Here's what you need:

1 small can of black eyed peas drained and rinsed
a few stems/leaves of cilantro washed/dried and chopped (I just pinched and pulled off the bunch)
3 roma tomatoes seeded and chopped
2 green onions washed and chopped
1/2 large red onion diced
Pinch of kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
3 oz. of Italian dressing

Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl, cover and refrigerate. Serve with tortilla chips.

Ok, so I have a full stomach and after writing this I'm ready for a third helping! Happy eating.  And don't worry, I will be tinkering soon and coming up with a tasty vegetarian recipe for this as well. ;-)

It's been awhile

I've been dealing with a lot lately that I haven't had much time or energy to do anything other than get through the day. With the move some big changes have been in the works for us. Setting up a new routine...well, more of adjusting to not having a bunch of people around. Routine is still the same. Tot has started testing with the local school district because he missed the cutoff for Early Intervention. You see, we've known now for a while that he's got something going on but just don't know what. From the beginning he's always been very high needs. If you don't know what that is here is a great idea of what that means. With all of this as he's gotten older he also has some incredibly intense tantrums that involve head banging on the nearest hard object, throwing toys/cups, and screaming like a banshee. Ignoring does nothing other than exacerbate the problem. So, we've started on getting Tot tested. I'm hoping that with this we will get some hopeful answers as to what is going on with him and so we can all learn to cope with the tantrums and help him navigate through his emotions so that he can have more time to play and be happy instead of spending so much time frustrated and angry. So that's where we're at right now and that's part of why I haven't been around to write. And I'm off to feed Baby. Have I mentioned that she's learned how to crawl and sit and now she's working on cruising? Oh boy!

Hello Floor!

There finally is a place to walk here in the house that's more than a small barely passable path...at least in the living room. I'm having such a hard time trying to figure out what to do with all my kitchen stuff. I know I have a lot of it but it's stuff I don't want to part with. I can part more with paperbacks than my kitchen stuff and that's a lot because I love books as well and have a hard time parting with them. I'm almost ready to finish setting up the kids room. Then I work on the kitchen to finish setting that up. Our bedroom will be last because I'm the least worried about that room. Anyway, there's more to share but unfortunately Baby is getting upset that there's nothing easy for her to grab onto to try to stand and it's almost her bedtime.

The joys of moving...or not

So, we've arrived to our new destination. Which means we no longer share a residence with the in-laws and no longer live in the in-laws basement. Can you hear the world lifting from my shoulders?

The drive was long with Tot and Baby but not as bad as I was expecting. They did phenomenally actually. We stopped at a friends house about midway through the drive and stayed there for two nights to recover. When we finally arrived in our new area I have to admit I was incredibly tired and definitely needed a couple days of sleep. I didn't get that necessarily but our belongings did arrive so now I sit here in the midst of piles of boxes that badly need to be unpacked and well I just don't feel like unpacking tonight. Biggest reason is that I just feel like crud today. I woke up with muscle aches and non-stop coughing. Fun times since I think I woke Baby several times last night with the coughing. At least she's easy to put back down by popping a boob in her mouth. And yep I just said 'boob'. The word that is on my list of least favorite words. It drives me nuts, but that's another story.

Anyway, I'm checking in here since we've arrived. We have internet finally. And do you know what's funny? When we arrived I saw left on the counter for me to fill out was a rural postal route directions card! Now, to be honest I don't live in the middle of the sticks but I just thought that was funny because I've never lived anywhere that needed something like that to be filled out. The other funny thing is that I decided not to get cable because I can't justify the cost of satellite. We decided to go with Netflix though and so far two days into the free trial we love it! I curled up today with Baby and watched season 1 of Roswell since it was all I could do today with not feeling well. And Tot got his customary episodes of Bob the Builder (the one bit of children's programming I don't feel the need to bang my head constantly on a wall to watch). Right now, we're watching Planet 51 which so far is cute. And now I'm off to work on fighting my current fever. Next time I'll tell you about the chickens out back. And my new best friend here which is my mop. I love it! Happy Friday Night all!

Moving time

I can't believe that I'm packing up my stuff that I won't be using in the next couple of weeks. I have to put my etsy shop on vacation as well. But we move in less than a month to start the next chapter of our lives, one that has been long overdue. I've been trying to do this as economically as possible and as green as possible. I think I'm lacking on the green though. We've reused boxes though that we were able to get from the liquor stores and from businesses near where Hubs used to work since they literally threw their boxes away in a large dumpster. Amazing! You could go watch them throw the boxes and their garbage away everyday at the same time before they end their shifts for the day. We also grabbed packing peanuts and bubble wrap from similar sources to protect our breakables.
We're using a freight company for the move. When we arrive to our destination I'm hoping we can drop off the emptied boxes to our local recycling center. The peanuts and bubble wrap I'll have to repackage and post on a local site for reuse. One of the nice things about where we live currently is that one of the shipping stores actually will take your packing peanuts back for recycling. So it's cool that they keep getting used over and over. After all, it's styrofoam and where's it gonna go, right?
So, with that said this is most likely my last post for a couple weeks until we get situated and get the internet turned on. Once we get up and running I expect to have some new projects to share as well as some new recipes. For now, I'm going to enjoy the cuteness that is Baby and Tot. See you in the fall!

So, I've been inspired

It's something I've been thinking on for awhile now and I finally made a mock up today. I'm so excited because even Hubs gave it an approval of "cute!" as did my mom. So, I'm going to make a couple more this weekend while I'm still thinking on the design of things and then I'll be listing them in my etsy shop. Yes, I'm keeping you in the dark for a couple more days. I'm hoping that with my impending move that every little bit that I sell right now will help finance the move. And the time sitting down at my sewing machine today has been very needed. I have a couple other ideas that have rattling around up in the noggin and I'm hoping to start working on them this week since I have time to work on some projects. It's too hot to work at storage right now so when we get some cool days then I'll do the grunt work. For now time to let the creativity flow!

Ratatouille

There are so many variations on this. But, we had it for dinner tonight and it was fantastic. Very filling and vegetarian to boot for me as well as dairy free. I have to admit I've fallen off the dairy free bandwagon the past week and Baby has let me know with massive spit up the past couple days that she still can't handle it in any amount so I'm cutting it back out of my diet again.

Anyway, in a large pan sauté up a large onion sliced and 4 garlic cloves in olive oil.

Once they have cooked set them aside. Then add to the pan some more olive oil with 2 cups cubed eggplant, 4 green peppers sliced, 3 cups zucchini cubed, and 2 cups of fresh tomato. Let sauté for about 15 minutes. Add the garlic and onions back to the pan. Cover and let simmer until vegetables are soft. Add 1/2 cup tomato sauce to give it more broth. Serve over warm crusty bread. It's fantastic!

The Diaper Factor

I recently was given the opportunity to guest blog here.  It was a lot of fun!  And it was my first foray into guest writing for anyone.  I have to admit that I get some funny looks sometimes when people see that we use cloth diapers and other times I get questions.  I have to say I'll take it either way especially since it's summertime and I'm putting Baby in just tee-shirts and diapers.  I figure I've got two children with fluffy butts why not show off the cuteness on one of them while it's still ok.  I mean, come on, how many people get to run around in just their underwear and not get the side eye?  Very few, unless you're an underwear model on a billboard or runway.  And even then it generally sticks to those two venues.  So, I'll take advantage of showing off the cuteness.

When I was pregnant with Tot I started looking at the idea of cloth when we were trying to figure out how to keep expenses at a minimum because I had been laid off for the second time in a little over a year.  The layoff while pregnant came as completely unexpected at 14 weeks.  I was upset and angry because all I could think was who was going to hire a pregnant woman?  Yes, yes, I know.  Discrimination based upon pregnancy is illegal, but let's face the fact that it happens.  No one wants to hire a pregnant woman 99% of the time.  I mananged to find something but it was still stress inducing.  So, as I looked more and more at our budget I all saw cloth diapers as a way to save some money especially when I looked at the cost of disposables.  That cost was just an eye bugging moment every time we walked into the store and saw the prices and wondered how people can handle throwing money in the trash on a regular basis.  I mean, I had a pair of jeans that I wore because they were my favorite.  They were finally laid to rest during my sophomore year of college.  I had them since 6th grade.  They were faded and falling apart at the seams.  My newest pair I've had for the better part of 6 years now and they still fit after two children.

Hubs took a little convincing to get on board with the idea of cloth.  He was even talking to his family about it and that was where some of the negativity towards cloth started.  All that was thought of was rubber/plastic pants and old-fashioned diapers.  Hubs wore cloth because his skin was too sensitive to wear disposables.  However it took little convincing once Hubs saw what cloth was like now as I had purchased a few "daddy friendly" BumGenius diapers.  Tot was in disposables for the first two months because the diapers were one-size but don't really fit until 10 lbs or so.  Tot went into cloth and it was amazing.  I still had user error but I wore less blowouts even with our lack of getting the right fit while we were figuring out this whole new world.  I remember the turning point of saying I absolutely hated disposables and wanted to start using cloth asap.  Tot was around 8 weeks old and he was a poop machine and that's putting it mildly.  We were still getting the breastfeeding thing down and I was still overwhelmed in my new role as a mom.  But, Tot decided to just clear out one particular day.  His 8th blowout of the day (seriously) happened 5 minutes before Hubs walked in the door from work.  I was a wreck!  We got his clothes off of him but not before we really got poop all over him.  Then Hubs grabbed a trash bag and we carried Tot into the bathroom and proceeded to change him over the tub with the trash bag underneath him.  Then we had to hose him off.  Thank goodness for handheld shower heads!  Needless to say I was not pleased.  That was the day of 15 outfit changes because he spit up so much and had so many blowouts.  It was a very dark day.  But, it lead me to a resolve that we were going to use cloth and make it work.

Well, here we are over 2.5 years later and Tot is still in cloth.  We got the usual naysaying of "it won't last" and "why would you want to do that?"  And now Baby is in cloth and I have to say she has one of the cutest bums out there because it's covered in cloth.  But, I'm biased.  So, why do I want to use cloth....? 

1.  MONEY!  I have saved over $3000 in diapering and this includes water/electricity usage. 
2.  The skin factor....My kids get rashy in disposables.  Plus, I've recently seen photos of rashes that are happening to children using one very popular disposable brand.  My kids wake up with beautiful smooth skin and that makes me happy.  I don't have to waste even more money on expensive petroleum based creams. 
3.  No late night runs to the store.  I just throw the diapers in the wash and I always have a rotation of diapers on the table ready to use.  I really am the laziest person out there.  I hate even carrying paper towels into the house and am switching away from their use as well.
4.  No chemicals/synthetic fragrances against my kids skin.  I'm not the only one out there that hates the weird purfumey smell of disposables.  It's is an immediate headache inducing, nauseating smell.
5. Money.  Did I mention that?  It's a pretty important one for us. 
6. Less disposables in the trash to "decompose or biodegrade."  Sitting in a landfill diapers, nor other matter will break down.  At least not in my lifetime or for several generations after my great-grandchildren will come and pass.  The Earth is not of unlimited resources.  And those chemicals along with human waste leech.  And in case, you didn't know you are supposed to dispose of solids in disposables by flushing the solids in your toilet before throwing them in the trash.  But, I know many people do not take this step.  They simply roll up the diaper and put it in the trash.  Blech!  Then that reaches the water table.  Ok, enough soap boxing there for now. 

There is more for the diaper factor.  But, for now Baby is happily smacking her lips at me to get her fed.  Have questions about cloth diapering?  Ask me.  I'll be happy to compile a list and do some posting about them!

Too much time away from the serger!

I finally got to sit down the other night and make a fitted for Baby that had been sitting on my table mocking me for a few weeks.  I haven't gotten much time to do more than a quickie project here or there since Baby arrived.  She's a demanding nurser to which I'm happy to oblige.  But, I started out using the VeryBaby.com pattern with some modification.  It turned out great for my very first OS (one sized) fitted.  I can't wait to finish the other 10 or so sitting on the table.  They're laughing at me right now.  All those cool prints are laughing at me that I didn't tackle them as soon as I cut.  I give them the evil eye back.  It's a two way street, right?  I just need to add snaps one night this week and it's ready to go.  Ok, so here's the fluff love!

Skillet Cooking Part II

As I stated previously USE YOUR NOGGIN (aka common sense) when cooking with your electric skillet.  Emergency services should be on speed dial and proper fire extinguishing methods should always be readily available.  And if you don't have common sense get off of blogger and go have a talk with someone who can help you learn some.

Ok, down to business.

I decided to also try making hard boiled eggs in the skillet.  Again fill just over half way with water and your eggs. The eggs won't be completely covered but that's ok.  Put the lid on and let it boil.  Once boiling let it boil for about 10 minutes.  You'll need to keep adjusting so it doesn't boil to vigorously and crack your eggs.  I only did this with a couple eggs to try.  But, after ten minutes turn off the skillet and let the eggs sit there in the hot water for another 10-15 minutes.  When that's done take the eggs out carefully since the water is still incredibly hot (this goes with the common sense explanation above) and put in cold water.  Then peel and eat or stick in the fridge until you're ready to make something with them.

Mmmm....Guacamole

I used to hate the stuff.  For good reason. I hadn't had good guac.  A travesty for sure.  It had mayonaise in it.  Who does that?! Crappy restaurants, that's who.  Then I tried Wholly Guacamole and it's pretty good but it gets expensive for not a lot of snack.  So I made my own for about the same price but more of it.

Here's what you need:
3 ripe avocados
1/2 large tomato seeded and diced
1/4 large red onion finely chopped
The juice of one lime
A generous pinch of kosher salt
1/4 of a small jalapeno chopped finely
A couple leaves of cilantro very finely chopped
1 garlic clove mashed into a paste or 1/4 tsp garlic powder
Salt to taste

In a small prep bowl put in the lime juice and salt and set aside.

In your serving bowl put your avocados in and start with a couple mashes.  Then add the rest of the ingredients except for the lime juice and salt.  Mash it together until it's almost to the consistency you want.  When it's almost there add your lime juice and salt and mix in.  Add any additional salt to your particular tastes.  Serve with chips.  It shouldn't last past the snack time, it's so good.  I apologize for the poor pic.  I'll have to get a better one next time.  I couldn't resist snacking!  :-)

I went and edited the amount of jalapeno because using the whole one is very spicy.  If you don't want hot and just a good flavor try it amended.  It is fantastic!

Skillet Cooking Part I

So with where we're living I'm not comfortable sharing spaces.  It's been a hard road for us with this and that's a whole other story and not fully the highlight of today.  And a part of my hermit-like nature has been to figure out how to cook some things in an electric skillet.  One of my favorite things to eat is pasta.  And this is one of the things I've had to go use the regular kitchen for.  That was until I tried it in my electric skillet.  I don't recommend this as an everyday method but for once in a while when you need just a little bit of pasta it actually worked.  And I shouldn't have to tell people to use common sense, but PLEASE USE YOUR NOGGIN if you do this and have proper fire extinguishing methods available or at least 911 on your speed dial!

I filled up my skillet just over halfway with water and salt and set it on high to boil.  I stayed watching this like a hawk and it took a bit to boil.  When it boils add your pasta (only enough for one or two servings!) and put the lid on.  It's enough to feed the starving lactating lady and tot.  Cook for the desired time.  You'll need to keep an eye on everything very closely for the 7-12 minutes your pasta is boiling.  It will steam up your kitchen or cooking area.  When it's done turn off the skillet and carefully drain the pasta.

We're in the midst of crazy right now

I haven't written recently because I'm in the midst of purging and packing...with two children in tow.  I try to get done what I can each day, which really isn't much because I usually have one or both children on me.  The baby is a given with lack of mobility and the frequent nursing.  Tot is missing daddy who's spending long days training for a new career.  I must admit I'm suffering from a bit of depression looking at how much I've donated.  I did wind up getting rid of some things that I really didn't want to for either sentimental reasons or just because.  But, the moving trucks are so expensive and with the new higher salary it's still not quite enough to cover a moving truck and then deposits for a new place to live.  But, it'll be a new place to live that's not with family which is wonderful.  So, I'll figure out making ends meet.  Right now the main focus is keeping hubs confident enough to get through his training.  And the positive all the time is really hard because I miss seeing him.  Our schedules are so off right now.  But, it'll be worth it in the end.  And a new home with a place we can raise our children without as much advice, and the ability to cook and lead our lives the way we want will be wonderful.  Not dairy free but tasty nonetheless.

I really haven't gotten to cook much lately other than pasta because tot is on a kick of pasta and cheese lately. I am not getting much time to sew either right now since the one room living makes it harder to use the serger while the kids are sleeping.  I may put the baby in the moby today to get some sewing done so I can clear off my table.

Anyway, one of the things I can make for tot right now is an easy dinner.  I make pasta and vegetarian baked beans.  It's something my mom made for me and it's super easy even with the changes I made to it.

Make pasta for however many people you're feeding.

In a separate pot make heat up your baked beans.  I add about 1.5 TBSP of maple syrup to it and sometimes a pinch of dry mustard, although a dime size amount of spicy brown mustard will do as well.  It's just enough to give it a little something.  Stir until heated and keep warm until the pasta is ready.

When the pasta is cooked drain it.  Then pour into a serving bowl.  Add a few TBSP. of butter if there's a lot eating or a little if it's just you.  This is completely a drench to taste dish with the butter.  Then add some Italian seasoning, garlic powder, garlic salt (just a little salt will go a long way), and a tap or two of paprika (again a little will go a long way).  Toss this all together while the pasta is still nice and hot.  Place some on your dish and top with parmesan cheese.  Serve the beans along side the pasta or in tot's case on top of and you'll have a very easy summer vegetarian dinner.

There are some changes coming in the months ahead

We're slowly purging through our belongings in order to lighten the load for a move across country.  I'm trying to figure out a way that I can get a little bit of time to do the things I need to do while keeping two children and a husband happy.  We've donated a lot of things that could use more loving to our local Goodwill.  It actually felt like relief to be letting go of things that I'll either never fit into ever again with my post baby body or is so out of style that it probably never will come back. 

The tandem nursing has been interesting lately with Tot lack of desire to cover his teeth while nursing.  I've been limiting the amount of time he's nursing at bedtime because I just can't handle the pain from it.  I think this is fair to be honest.  Even with the headphones on I can't get past the teeth.  So he gets a couple minutes and then he's done.  I stay with him and offer him plenty of hugs and snuggles until he falls asleep and then I get up and nurse Baby until she falls asleep and I can put her down for her first shift of sleep. 

There are definitely some changes to come in the coming months once I figure out how to manage my time with everything.  I'm hoping to have a new look for the blog here and hopefully everyone will enjoy it.  I'm also hoping to be able to add to my etsy shop once I finish getting the majority of our stuff packed for the move.  I just have our area here at the house to pack up and about 30 more boxes/bins to purge through and get over to storage.  Plus, I'm still slowly working on my handmade Christmas projects so that everyone gets a little something since this year is going to be sparse to say the least with the move so close to the holidays.  Anyway, off to feed a baby.  Happy Friday!

It's been awhile

I've kind of been in a funk the past few weeks and haven't really felt up to posting.  Today I got to get some baking done and I feel my spirits lifting for a bit.  I made some cookies that are absolutely fantastic from the Rumble in the Kitchen Blog.  It's here for anyone interested. I'll shorten the link later when I have time to do it.  Right now I have tot playing next to me and baby is about to need to be fed in a few minutes so I'll make it short.

I've been having a hard time the past couple nights with nursing tot partially because I've been so tired with the couple of extra wake-ups  he's had this week.  He's learned to say a number of new words and when he does get more than three a day he doesn't sleep very well.  Last night he decided that nursing with his teeth was more comfortable for him.  He wasn't biting but he wasn't covering his teeth with his tongue and had a poor latch.  So, it's not a comfortable nursing session.  I do have to admit that putting on the headphones and listening to some music is helping very much with the agitation I've been feeling and it's been letting me relax enough to be patient and not get frustrated when tot decides to take an hour to unwind before falling asleep finally. On the other hand baby slept very well with almost 4.5 hours under her belt before needing to eat.  That much was nice so I could get some solid shut eye for a couple hours.  I don't expect sleeping through the night results like that on a regular basis so when it happens I'm pleasantly surprpised.  I'd honestly say that she is a better sleeper from the get go than tot.

As for the funk I've been in it's been a mentally draining couple of weeks.  I've been not wanting to do much because I feel like I'm under a hawk's eye all the time.  Plus, being a one car family is tough when there's things to walk to but not really anything of interest.  There's only so much I can walk to the grocery store or into town with all of it's very pricey shops.  The closest book and fabric stores are actually too far to walk to safely with two kids in tow.  If it was just me I'd get my sorry behind in gear and walk it but I don't trust other drivers to really care not to whiz past me at unsafe speeds even with one baby in a carrier and the other in a stroller.  I should know because I've taken the same roads at the same over the limit speeds, but I do slow down when I see runners and cyclists so they can remain safe.  But, not everyone subscribes to that way of thinking.

And now the move which is one of the big changes going on for us is only 5 months away roughly.  I'm still trying to decide what to keep and what to get rid of because this far of a move is expensive no matter how you look at it.  So, with all that in mind I have to just try to focus on one thing at a time which means I don't get as much done right now as I normally could or want.  Let me just get through these next couple days in my sleep deprived state with nursing tot to bed as he's learning new words and skills.  Happy Hump Day everybody!

A new winner being posted....

Ok, so I emailed the winner for the Earth Week Giveaway last week and never heard from her.  And I'm moving on.  I've gone back to random.org and had another winner picked.

Caroline!

True Random Number Generator


Min: 1

Max: 14

Result: 6

Powered by RANDOM.ORG


Caroline please claim your prize within 48 hours.  Have a great day!

It's a long road

Breastfeeding two children.  The tot is nursing before bed now as the only nursing session.  I'm just not handling the tandem thing as I was hoping.  I get fairly agitated with it and tot also likes to use teeth quite frequently.  However weaning is not going to happen without a fight on his part because he's so stubborn about keeping the nursing.  I think what I'm going to try tonight is putting on my headphones and listening to some music while I nurse him so that I can take away some of the irritation I feel with nursing him which is the sound of him nursing when he's actively doing it.  This is so hard because I really feel so conflicted.  Nursing has been such a great thing for him but at the same time it's also something I'm not enjoying and maybe that's because of the amount of stress we're currently under and also trying to make sure baby is ok and happy at the same time as well. The hubs gets his quality time in with her at that point and plenty of snuggles which he always enjoys.  He also falls asleep with her fairly quickly so it's hard to get him up to go to bed and hand her over. 

Tot is also not feeling so hot today so I'm guessing there may be an extra session in there as well.  So, the get-sick-child-better instincts will kick in and hopefully give tot whatever antibodies he needs to feel better and keep baby protected as well.  I will say though that after two and a half years I have finally gotten the pinching to stop on tot's part while nursing.  After several months of telling him it hurts and that he's done if he doesn't stop and offering him my hand to hold onto instead, which has turned into my holding onto him completely, we've been mostly pinch free for about a month.  So that is a success!  Happy feeding!

And the winner is....

Wilma!

True Random Number Generator




Min: 1

Max: 14

Result:

8

Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Edited to Add:  I've sent you an email.  Please respond within 48 hours to claim your prize or I will move on and draw another winner.  :-)

Earth Week Giveaway

I'm celebrating a couple things right now.  It's Earth Week and I'd like to do something for that.  My family has had some good news recently in the job department.  And I've been going through some changes myself and a lot of reflection.  With all of that I'm changing the look of my blog and I'm going to be adding some new changes to it over the next few months.  I'm always happy to hear ideas if you have any.  And with the changes I'm hoping to do a couple things.  One of the things being is to bring awareness on a couple issues.  The other is something I'll share at a later time once I get the idea fully mapped out.  I'm also hoping to be able to voice ideas here on our upcoming move later this year and how to really become more ecologically friendly when we get where we're going since we've fallen to the wayside a bit being where we are. 

Here is the giveaway though....

A pair of cloth diaper inserts from SweetBottoms. One overnight hemp insert and one regular insert.  The overnight insert is two layers but can be folded to give 8 layers of protection.  The regular insert is two layers and can be used just for that extra bit of absorption in your baby's diaper when you need it.

There are a couple ways to enter the drawing: 

Become a follower of my blog and post a comment here on how you and your family are becoming more green and what your plans are for Earth Day.

Post about the giveaway on a board where you frequent and post the link in a separate comment.

Post about the giveaway on a social site you frequent like Facebook or Twitter and post a link for that as well.

So, that's three separate entries to try and win this pair of inserts.

A winner will be drawn on Monday, April 26, at noon.  Please be sure to check back then for the winner and also to make sure there is a way I can get in touch with you if you are the winner.  I had trouble on my last giveaway with that.  So, I can't stress that enough.  Shipping is to the US only.  And I will be doing some other giveaways in the following months as well.  :-)

It's Earth Week

I won't be doing as much to celebrate this year because of living situations.  But, I am planning on doing a giveaway to at least celebrate.  I will decide in the next day of what the giveaway will be.  It will be a slightly selfish way to do things because I am also planning a move at the end of the year across the country and I need to lighten the load here.  I am still holding stock of some hemp inserts and fabric even and I'd like to draw more business in thed long run.  I'd also very much like earn more readers to my little slice of the blogging world as I continue to write more.  I'd love to see more comments and what others are interested in for both the blog and my shop.  I have a lot of ideas but often forget to keep writing instruments nearby so I can actually act upon them when I sit down for a few minutes.

I will update most likely tomorrow to see what I'd like to do to celebrate.  I consider cloth diapering as part of being green.  I'm not filling a landfill.  I know that the washing of the diapers opens up the debate to some on that not being as green either.  But, I'm already doing laundry.  CD's (Cloth Diapers) are my only load of hot aside from towels.  The diapers are now in rotation with two children and when I am done using them they will go onto someone else for more loving.  Anyway, stay tuned to see what the giveaway is.  Have a great night!

Orange Curry Shrimp

2 cups cooked brown rice cooked with:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried parsley

Then in a pan:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped however you prefer
1 lb of shrimp (I used the small precooked-deveined-no-tail-guys this time)
1 1/2 TBSP curry powder
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (I use the juice from the two oranges I zested...so really every bit of juice you get out of that is what you use)
orange zest from 2 oranges


Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, and stir in the onion until it has sweated. Mix curry powder, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup of the OJ into the skillet. Bring to a boil and let cook 3-5 minutes on medium high to let the flavors come together. Reduce heat, and simmer about 10 minutes until some of the water reduces. Stir in the orange zest and shrimp and continue cooking for 3-5 minutes depending on size of shrimp to heat or cook if using raw shrimp. Mix in the rice to serve. Garnish with more parsley and segmented orange slices if desired. Very tasty.

As always, adjust seasonings to your taste. We love the taste of curry. I recommend getting a good one that has more than just the three ingredients of coriander, fenugreek and pepper in it. We use one that we picked up from Whole Foods. But McCormick makes a decent curry if you get the one in the plastic jar surprisingly. The one in the glass jar only has three main ingredients and really is a huge disappointment.  The great thing about this recipe is that is an easy step into Eastern foods.  I'm sure it can be further modified to really get a true Indian flavor, but I don't have anyone that can show me more of how to authentically cook that way.  So, I just experiment.  Enjoy!

Repairing BumGenius Elastics

I've been meaning to make this post for a long time but, well...procrastination got in the way. I know there is a tutorial on Diaperswappers.com but I get a virus every time I visit that site and hubs is tired of running AV software on my computer. So, for those of you that have the fear of that site as I do then this is for you. And by the way, I'd love to visit the site without worrying about viruses because I have diapers to trade and am looking for a very specific diaper as well, but it's just not going to happen until I can go on there more than half the time without getting one.

If you're handy enough with a seam ripper and a sewing machine you can do this in about an hour for both legs. Add in the back and it's probably two hours from start to finish. The reason for that I've noticed is that the back elastic seems to have been caught in the sewing process so you generally have to open the entire casing, sew it back down then put your elastic through and close it up. And I am offering this service as of right now on my etsy shop for those that aren't inclined to sew or don't have a machine. But, that's another story.

So here it is without further adieu....

Step 1)
Take the diaper you want to repair the leg elastic of. On the outside of the diaper at the start of the leg curve/casing gently rip of the seam for about an inch on each end of the legs going towards the crotch.



Step 2)
When you turn the diaper inside out you should be able to see where you've opened up and some of the elastic showing as well. This will be what you're working with.



Step 3)
Cut your new elastic to about 4 1/2 inches long. (The diaperswappers posting I believe says that from the back of a ballpoint pen to the bottom of the cap is the length needed. I have a toddler who loves pens and I have no idea where he hides them or the caps.) Thread a hand needle with some thread. I used a bright color thread for this. And keep a small crochet hook on hand just in case your current diaper elastic breaks.



Step 4)
Take the threaded hand needle and sew the end of your new elastic to the end of your old elastic. Once you've done that you can gently pull the old elastic on the other end of the leg to bring through the new elastic. Make sure you don't pull too far or you'll lose the new elastic from where you started.



Step 4.5)
If the old elastic breaks while pulling to bring through the new elastic use your small crochet hook to help bring the new elastic through. What I did was use the length of old elastic still sewn to me new elastic. I sewed another piece of thread to the old elastic to make a loop I could grab with on the hook. I then gently pulled that through and kept on with business.



Step 5)
Turn your diaper inside out and sew the casing shut on where you started to pull through the elastic. A tip so you don't lose your elastic doing this is to actually lightly hand sew the ends of the elastic to the strip of serging inside the diaper. I don't do that because it is a pain in the butt and my hand needles don't like doing it. So I half turn the diaper inside out to start the one end and slowly make my way down the crotch of the casing to the other opening making sure I don't catch any other part of the diaper in the machine. I slowly sew down the casing line until I get to the other open end and then sew that shut as well making sure I have all of my new elastic up to where I'm sewing.

TIP: Use a size 10 needle in your machine along with good 100% polyester thread. I am using Gutterman now after mistakenly using Coats & Clark which for some reason caused wicking on me. I use Coats & Clark for other things, but not on my diapers.



Step 6)
Sit back and admire your like new leg elastic....then get cracking on the other side if it needs to be done. Don't forget to throw the diaper in the dryer to make sure the PUL seals around the thread.




Now, if you need to repair the waist elastic at the back... I don't have pics but can take some next time I do one. It's almost the same thing. You have to open up the seams (make sure the elastic wasn't sewn into the casing which usually is fairly obvious I've noticed) and have 5" (I'm still figuring this one out but 5 isn't too bad) of new elastic. Do your pull through and sew shut.

One more hint with your diapers.... Every now and then turn the diaper tabs inside out and clean them out. You'd be surprised at the amount of lint and nastiness that gets stuck in there! Enjoy!

There's no more butter!

I miss butter. I love butter. Butter is my very good friend. I use it in baking/cooking and on bread or toast. Since that is a no go right now I need something for my bread and butter or garlic bread cravings. And I'm also lacking fat in my diet to some degree because I don't eat much meat and now I have no dairy in it. So needless to say some days this past week I've felt a little funky mentally. I got it in my head that I really wanted some Italian bread one night last week. And hubs who really does try to come to the craving rescue went along with helping me figure out what would work. My solution to this was to make dipping oil. You know...the stuff you get served in really good Italian restaurants. This turned out pretty good although I'm still trying to debate the flavors I want when I grow tired of this combo. But, it has garlic in it so I don't know if that will happen. I might have to try and roast the garlic just a wee bit some time to see how that flavor is.

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 small cloves garlic minced very fine
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning blend
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

Mix all of these together and let sit for an hour before serving up for dipping. The flavors come together and you'll be fighting everyone else for it. Not the best picture but I was being pulled on by a toddler who wanted very badly to help.

Reusable Nursing Pads

So, I have heard wonderful things about Artsy Fartsy Foo Foo Milk Maids. These are waterproof nursing pads that are phenomenal. A friend gave me a pair last week as a gift which I've been lucky enough to try. I had originally been using the cotton ones from Dr. Browns which are completely worthless if you have a forceful letdown. I leak through them in seconds and since I'm a jeans an tee shirt kind of gal I had huge wet spots on my shirts. You have to have luck and agility on your side to snag a pair of these when she stocks and it is very well worth it. I have been too slow to snag a pair up because my internet connection always seems to go down right as I add them to my cart.

So, a few weeks ago I got tired of the leaking and having to keep my moby wrap on me even without the baby in there while in public. I decided to try my hand at making my own reusable waterproof nursing pads. Granted they do work. I used leftover PUL, hemp fleece and some flannel to make mine. They are not pretty by any means nor are they perfect circles like the Milk Maids. But, they did work and I now have two pairs of nursing pads in rotation. I have a pair of the Milk Maids and a pair of my own.

I originally had two pairs of my own but my wonderful hubs lost the first pair I made and I can't find them anywhere. So, someone at the laundromat probably looked at them and couldn't figure out what they were and trashed them. So my hard work went to pot. I used a pair of the Dr. Brown's as my template and just figured it out from there. From this, I have learned I can't sew circles any better than I can draw them. It's not easy! And to leave the sewing of circles to the professionals....for now. I have some things I'd like to sew that are circles but nursing pads are not on my list unless I'm in dire straights as I had been these past few weeks. For now if I need more I'm going to keep stalking Hyena Cart and I know I'll pick some up one of these next few stockings since I can start anticipating when the internet is going down here. That's a story all in itself though. Here's my feeble attempt so you can have the comparison. ;-)

Unpaper Towels

I made these for a friend because she's been so wonderful these past few months in helping me out with the kids. The time I put in on these which was actually two rounds of serging because I had timing issues with my machine and needed to take it in for servicing and I bought cheap thread....a mistake I'll never make again for sure! So, after all the trouble of getting these done for her I finally gave them to her. She loved them and already has mulitple uses for them in her home. I didn't think to take a picture of the back which is just ivory colored terry. I'll have to remember for the future. For my friend I just cut out 12x12 squares in the two fabrics and then serged them together. They are the perfect size for her kitchen and needs.

Now I just have to make the set for us to use and I already have the fabric picked out as a little bit of happiness for the hubs. He has a thing for chili peppers so I picked out chili pepper fabric. Now just to get the time to cut them so I can serge them up.

Got Bread?

So, after looking at a lot of bread in the bread aisle I can't seem to find a sandwich bread to enjoy when I want a sandwich. And being this past weekend had a holiday in it I of course had to have egg salad since I took the time to dye eggs with my over-excited toddler. So, I took the ten minutes to add ingredients to my bread machine to make some bread. I took the recipe from my Oster Expressbake breadmaker book and made it as follows:

1.5Lb. Loaf

1 cup water
2 TBSP coconut oil
3 TBSP almond milk (I think you can try this with any other milk like hemp or oat if you're nut allergic)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
3 cups bread flour
1 TBSP sugar
2 tsp active dry yeast

Directions:
Add measured liquid ingredients to pan.
Add measured dry ingredients to pan, except yeast.
Form a well in the flour and add yeast. (This machine says for the yeast to never touch the liquid while you're working with it)
Put pan in the machine and select the basic setting, crust color (I did medium) and the start button.

It does taste good. I think next time I need to warm up the coconut oil before adding it though because a little bit of it did clump up in one area. The bread does taste good though which is really the point of the end result.

I'm going dairy free for awhile

So I had been watching while my poor baby has been really gassy, uncomfortable, mucousy and rashy. I spoke to the pediatrician about it because it seemed to coincide with when I had dairy loaded meals or she got a nightly bottle. The doctor agreed with trying an elimination diet for a month to see if this would help. It's been a week of checking packages of everything I'm eating. I can honestly say that I did not realize how much that milk is in. I eat a lot of cheese and chocolate and bread. These things are pretty much all on the no go list now. I have to really search for dark chocolate that doesn't have milk solids in it. Luckily I found some at Trader Joe's and it's good but still doesn't quite hit the sweet tooth spot. As for bread for sandwiches...forget it! I have to make my own. Luckily I got a bread machine for Christmas. Today will be my first attempt making bread with almond milk. I'll let you know how it goes. So, I'm still mourning the loss of a huge part of my diet. On the positive side sweet baby is already starting to look less rashy and diaper changes are not as rancid and sickening. That is a definite upside. And breastfeeding is so important to me that losing the ability to eat some of my favorite foods is worth it for the baby to feel better. But you can be guaranteed that the day I'm no longer nursing or baby doesn't have any issues I'm having a donut or some peanut butter cups or a big Greek salad with extra feta. Until then I'll just dream of the foods I miss and hope to see continued progress of weight gain and overall health for her and myself. And I'll come up with ways to make the most of the new menu as I try to mangle my way through it.

I'm a nut to be excited

Over something so trivial. But I got to sit down and sew last night which was incredibly relaxing and I finished up some items for my kids as well as worked on some things for my etsy shop that needed working on. And today they have actually been listed which is amazing because while I was pregnant I was really too tired to do much. Ok i'm off for the moment to run a few errands.

The weight struggle

Our baby girl is still having some struggle with weight gain. I am now working with a lactation consultant to help me sort things out. I'm starting to add pumping sessions in where I can so I can supplement with my own breastmilk and get a supply boost as well.

We're still using formula to supplement and while it's not my ideal choice it's helping our daughter do what she needs to do which is grow. I do not envy any moms the diapers because the formula poops smell different to me and are stickier. And the expense of the cans are crazy that I just balk at the store when in the aisle. So we go in and have her weighed with the LC later this week to see if there's more/any progress. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for some positives for her and will keep chugging along between the formula and pumping which is my least favorite activity. My pump and I have a love/hate relationship. She pulls on my nipples that all I hear when her motor is working are expletives because that's what I'm thinking. And I coax myself to relax to get the job done as quickly as possible. When a session is done and I see however many precious ounces in the collection bottles I am thankful and think that I have to hook up with the bitch later on for another torture session. What can I say? I'm working on it.

Polenta with Garlicky Goodness (what else!)

So the hubby and I had a yen for this and it was delicious. Very filling and easy to make albeit a little time consuming. This can easily be made vegan or add some bacon for all you raging carnivores out there.

In a large pot you will need to put:
8 cups of water
At least 1 tsp salt (I just generously salt the water like I'm making pasta)

Bring the water to a rapid boil then add
2 cups medium or coarse ground corn meal for making Polenta.

Now, I've seen two different methods for this. One is to slowly add the meal to the water in a slow stream while stirring over the course of a minute or so. The other method is to just dump it in and still stir until there are no clumps. I've done both and haven't had an issue with clumps. The key is to really keep stirring this for a couple minutes while the water is still boiling. Once it's fully mixed after a couple minutes you'll see the texture start to change a bit. Turn down the pot to very low/low and put a lid on it. Stir it every so often (every ten minutes or so) for the next 45 minutes. Longer is fine too.

Now, the next part.....
In a large sautee pan put a generous amount of Olive Oil (4-5 TBSP roughly)
Add in:
3 medium onions sliced thin and start carmelizing them
2 small heads of garlic separated, peeled and sliced (the ones we used were barely larger than a US half dollar in diameter) also for carmelizing
10 oz sliced mushrooms to sautee and start reducing.
Add salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste.

{For the carnivores....This would also be the time to fry up some bacon and tear it into pieces like large bacon bits. Once cooked set to the side.}

Then once the polenta is near cooked add to the sautee pan 20 0z washed, patted dry spinach and let it wilt. Add more salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste.

Add 2 TBSP butter to the polenta pot or vegan alternative (is that margarine? I apologize that I don't know) and mix in thoroughly.

To serve:
Spoon polenta into a bowl and top with the mixture from the sautee pan {Add bacon bits here as well if you're using them}. We added some of the juice from the pan and was full of garlic and onion flavor which was wonderful. Enjoy! Serves 4 roughly.

If you have leftover polenta but nothing else fry up the polenta in wedges and serve with some herbed butter and parmesan cheese.

Tandem breastfeeding

So, now that my newborn is here we are tandem nursing. It is an adventure in itself and not always the most pleasant so far. My high needs toddler is still working through jealousy issues and my newborn is a lazy nurser who I have to figure out how to wake up to nurse. The baby is finally above birthweight at 6 weeks old and that was a struggle. Waking her at night was the biggest problem because the world could come crashing down beside her and she'd sleep through it. She right now is sleeping a four hour stretch and then wakes up. We, unfortunately, are being asked to supplement even though I know why she wasn't gaining in the beginning between being jaundiced and then sleeping so much in a 12 hour stretch at night. Our solution to the sleeping is sleeping with her and letting her have full access at night. So, she nurses after her four hour stretch for the rest of the night until the toddler wakes up. When he's awake then we start our day and get rolling. I'm still trying to figure out how to meet everyone's needs including my own. But, I just started reading "Adventures in Tandem Breastfeeding" by Hilary Flowers and I'm sorry I didn't start it when I got pregnant so I could have prepared myself better. I'll keep you posted on our journey! Happy lactating.

Turkey Meatballs

As a warning, we LOVE garlic here and use A LOT OF IT. :-) If you don't love it as much as we do adjust to suit your tastes. The flavor really is great in these though.

So, we shop at the Big Evil (Wal-Mart and it will only be known from now on as the BE) when we can't make it to the commissary for some things because we just can't afford to shop anywhere else and our local farmers markets are only open during the week. I don't have a car normally so going to shop there is not going to happen right now until we get a second car in the next few months.

Get your gloves ready though and enjoy.

3 lbs ground turkey
2 onions on the larger side of medium chopped very fine
3 heads of peeled garlic pressed or minced
3 eggs
1.5 cups of Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
4 TBSP Italian blend herbs
1 tsp each of garlic salt, onion powder, and salt
1.5 tsp of black pepper (we mix this up between fresh cracked and the stuff in the can)
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

In a large mixing bowl mix all the ingredients together until it's all nicely incorporated. Roll out the meat into balls and set aside. You should be able to get at least 40-70 meatballs depending on how big or small you roll them.

Fry these up in a skillet with extra virgin olive oil in it. Make sure you get some nice carmelization on them. You can cook them half through and set aside what you're not going to eat at dinner time for freezing. Cook the rest all the way through and add your favorite sauce or gravy and serve with pasta or on a roll as a sandwich. We've done both and it's oh so good!

For the ones being set aside for the freezer.... Let them cool completely before putting them in your freezer container. We use a food sealing system. So I stick them in the bag and let them freeze overnight. The next day I cut open the bag just below the seal and reseal them taking the air out so they'll take up less room. When I'm ready to cook them I take out the desired amount of meatballs and let them thaw in the fridge for a couple hours. Then I'll stick them in a pot with sauce even if they're not completely thawed and cook them on very low with a lid on it. Check them throughout so you don't burn the sauce and when they're done serve however desired. Enjoy! We usually do ours so that we'll have enough for leftovers the next day for lunch and then there's nothing to worry about in the morning before work or taking the kids out.