Crunchy Bunch

Super Sale! 50 - 70% Savings Storewide!

2011-08-08T09:58:00.000-05:00

In order to completely revamp our product line, I am currently offering everything on the site at a superb discount:

50% off all babywearing items, and 70% off EVERYTHING else!

Visit http://www.crunchybunch.com today to take advantage of these awesome savings (WAY below cost), and be sure to let your friends know, too!

Plus, as an extra bonus, every 10th order - from this date on - will receive free shipping on their entire order! (it will be refunded to you)

Crystallized Ginger Recipes

2010-07-26T13:49:00.004-05:00

Last week I gave you a recipe for making your own crystallized ginger. Today I'm giving you some recipes that call for crystallized ginger.

Gingerbread Scones
(I don't remember where this one came from)
2 cups flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter
1 egg
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 - 1 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Cut in butter. Add egg, molasses, milk, vanilla, ginger, and raisins; stir just until combined. Pat into 8" circle on ungreased cookie sheet. Using a floured knife, cut into 8 wedges. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Note: The original recipe didn't call for crystallized ginger, but I think it makes a great addition.

Soft Ginger Cookies
(from King Arthur Flour)
1 stick butter, softened
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg
1/2 cup soft diced ginger (crystallized ginger may be substituted, finely chopped)
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup light molasses

Cream the butter, sugar, spices, salt, and baking soda until well blended. Beat in the egg and ginger, then the flour, alternately with the molasses. Refrigerate the dough for several hours or overnight; it needs to be stiff enough to handle easily.

Roll half the dough about 1/4" thick on a floured surface. Cut into whatever shapes you like. Transfer cookies to an ungreased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until they're puffy and the edges are firm. Remove them from the oven and cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Run to the kitchen and get started! Don't forget a glass of cold milk. You're gonna need it.

Homemade Crystallized Ginger

2010-07-20T13:17:00.019-05:00

I love adding little pieces of cyrstallized ginger to my gingerbread man cookies and gingerbread scones, but it's so expensive! At least it is in my town. I can't remember how much it is at Whole Foods, but it really doesn't matter since the nearest one is about 3 hours away. On the rare occasion I'm there, I buy a big bag. I searched the internet and found a recipe that sounded good. It was! I tweaked it just a tad and here it is.

Ingredients:
10 oz fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
2 1/4 cups sugar, divided
1/4 cup water

Directions:
Combine ginger, 2 cups sugar, and water in a large, heavy pan. Bring to a very slow simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. The ginger will become translucent and the sugar will crystallize on the edge of the pan. Sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar on baking sheet. Lay drained ginger on sugar. Toss the ginger in the sugar when the ginger has cooled enough to handle, about 10 minutes. Store in airtight container. The syrup that's left in the pan can be used on pancakes.

A word of caution: if you're used to the store-bought kind, try a SMALL piece of this. It'll light you up. I don't think I'll dump a cup of this in my gingerbread man cookies. Maybe half a cup. Or maybe a fourth.

And now for some pictures. Because I like pictures :)

Scrape the skin off the ginger with a spoon.

Unpeeled ginger and peeled ginger.

I sliced it as thin as I could.

Simmering.

Just out of the pan and HOT.

All done!

I Accidentally Stole a Watermelon

2010-07-13T15:30:00.004-05:00

I know what you're thinking. "How can you accidentally steal a watermelon?!" Well, I'll tell you in a minute. My husband asked the same question when I sent him a message last week asking him to go by the grocery store and pay for it. He e-mailed our family the conversation he thought he would have with the manager. Our family thought this was hilarious so, against my better judgement, I've reproduced this hypothetical conversation below. I hope it brings you a chuckle.

Hubby: My wife accidentally stole a watermelon from your store this morning.
Manager: Oh yeah? How did that happen?
Hubby: I have no idea. My wife told me to go pay for it.
Manager: So she can get out of jail?
Hubby: I don't think so.
Manager: We don't have a way to ring that up.
Hubby: Silence.
Manager: How much was it?
Hubby: I have no idea.
Manager: What was the bar code?
Hubby: You've got to be kidding!
Manager: What kind of melon was it?
Hubby: I have no idea.
Manager: Are you sure she "accidentally" stole just one?
Hubby: She only mentioned one.
Manager: I guess she got it from the box outside?
Hubby: I don't think that would be an accident.
Manager: I don’t think so either.
Hubby: So how do you want to do this?
Manager: I have no idea!

So this is what happened...
After an hour at the library and an hour at WalMart (where I had to park half a mile from the store in 98-degree weather) with two kids, I stopped at Krogers. I was pushing one of those buggies with the car on the front. The kids were "driving" and honking at the other customers. I put the watermelon under the buggy to leave room in the buggy for shopping bags (save the planet!), strawberries, cherries, lettuce, bananas, onions, tofu, brisket, chicken, cheese, 3 gallons of milk, and eggs. After unloading (what I thought was all) my groceries onto the conveyor belt, making sure there were still two kids in the "car," and handing over my loyalty card so as not to be overcharged $30, I began sacking my groceries. (I was excited to do this because it meant there was no way the brisket was gonna end up on top of the bananas.) I ran my credit card through the machine, signed the electronic dotted line, and went outside to load stuff in the car. I got half the groceries unpacked when I saw that @%#*$% watermelon. No way was I gonna leave the groceries (including the butter and chocolate I had gotten at WalMart) and take two kids BACK into Krogers to pay for a $7 watermelon.

My sweet hubby did swing by Krogers and pay for the watermelon :)

Where to Begin

2010-07-05T20:12:00.006-05:00

Homeschooling can be expensive, but it doesn't have to be. My daughter will be starting first grade this fall. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on a boxed curriculum, I decided to create my own. There are several places to find a curriculum or scope and sequence for various grade levels. You might be able to get one from your local public or private school. Here are some websites I consulted:

A Beka scope and sequence nursery through grade 12
Time 4 Learning scope and sequence preschool through grade 8
BJU Press scope and sequence preschool through grade 12

I found a couple of textbooks at Goodwill and the Women's Shelter Resale Shop. A friend of mine who is no longer homeschooling gave me some books. Most of our "textbooks" will come from our public library and university library. I picked up a math workbook at the Women's Shelter for $0.59! And it just happens to be the level we need! If I hadn't found that, I was planning to buy the workbooks from Horizons. My cousin uses their math curriculum so I got to look over hers and I really liked it. I may use it next year.

The following sites have a variety of worksheets, activities, and crafts. Some of the activities would be fun for kids to do on the weekends or during summer, not just for homeschooling. Some of the sites are geared toward younger kids.

A to Z Teacher Stuff
Easy Fun School
Family Education
TLS Books
Hotchalk
The Home School Mom
Super Teacher Worksheets
DLTK's Sites

If you've been homeschooling for a while, you probably have a list of favorite sites. If you're just getting started, I hope these will help you. I think I've got a science activity/experiment for every week! I'll probably be posting some sites by topic later. Having them categorized is helping me find what I want more easily.

Homeschool Mom

2010-06-28T15:27:00.004-05:00

I've been scouring the internet for free materials to use with Olivia, so I've got homeschooling on the brain. I stumbled across a site the other day with the following ad for a homeschool mom. Some of the responsibilities and characteristics apply to all mothers but other parts are more specific to homeschool moms. I had to share it!

Now accepting applications:
Family seeking fun-loving, godly homeschool teacher. Applicant will be responsible for providing total educational development and daily personal care for children of multiple ages. Applicant will assume the following roles: cook, housemaid, nurse, taxi driver, administrative assistant, accountant, athletic coach, social director, computer technician, household and automotive repairman, gardener, course instructor in multiple subject areas and grade levels, and various other responsibilities. This is a full-time position — approximately 120 hours or more per week. Qualified candidates must be able to work well under pressure, multi-task, and prioritize work loads while maintaining a friendly, enthusiastic attitude. Quick thinking, good memory, and a varied background in extensive subject matter are a must. Promising candidates will be resourceful, adjust easily to distractions, and display creative, hard-working leadership abilities. Organizational and problem solving skills are a plus. Previous teaching experience and/or college preferred, but is not required. If you're interested in working in a fast-paced, ever-changing environment, this is the position for you! For more information on this exciting opportunity to earn fulfilling, one-of-a-kind rewards, please apply in person today.

I also found some great homeschooling advocacy products at CafePress. Here are a few of them that I may just have to order.

You might be homeschooled if... t-shirt
You know you are a homeschool mom when... t-shirt
My mom is the principal... t-shirt

There are also bumper stickers and t-shirts that say "I have seen "the village" and I don't want it raising my child."

In the next few weeks I'll share some websites that have free materials and activities. These are not just for homeschooling. They have worksheets that could be used if your child needs extra practice. Some of the activities and experiments would be fun to do with your kids during summer or spring break.

Music for Children

2010-06-23T12:08:00.004-05:00

We love music - listening to it and playing it. I started playing the clarinet in the 6th grade and played it through high school. I also picked up the alto sax in high school. I can play tunes on the guitar and mandolin but never learned the chords. (That's one of the many things I'd like to do.) Hubby plays guitar (chords and melodies) and took some piano lessons. We used to play guitar and mandolin together quite frequently...before kids. Kids seem to take up a lot of time! And it's hard to play when a 2-year-old is plunking on the strings. Hopefully we'll be able to play more as the kids get older.

Olivia and Jesse like listening to music and playing around on the keyboard. Lately Olivia has shown an interest in reading music and picking out tunes. I've been helping her with the notes - we've been talking about their names, where they are on the keyboard, and how many counts they get. I plan to include music in our homeschooling. I want to study music not only for its own sake, but it will help her with math. Whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes = fractions! Music and math are closely related. Scales follow a pattern of whole steps and half steps. Chords are also mathematical. It's not uncommon for people who do well in math to do well in music and vice versa.

I've been trying to expose Olivia (and Jesse, too, when appropriate) to a variety of music. Olivia has been to Phantom of the Opera (Dallas), Riverdance (Orange), Lord of the Dance (Tyler), Oliver (community theater), The Little Mermaid (university theater), and others. Both kids have been to programs the library sponsored that featured bluegrass, harp, and opera. We have plans to take them to Beauty and the Beast (university theater).

You might check with your local university or college and see what they have to offer. They probably have child-friendly performances. They may also offer Kindermusik or music lessons. If you're not in the Nacogdoches area, these sites will give you an idea of what you may find in your area.

Below are a few websites I found this week that I plan to use when working with Olivia. Although my husband and I have lots of sheet music, not all of it is suitable for beginners. These sites offer a variety of music - from quarter and half notes in the key of C to more complicated pieces.

Blank Sheet Music Print blank sheet music. You can add treble clef, bass clef, time signature, and key signature.

Music Tech Teacher Lots of things to print, including treble and bass notes and ledger lines on the staff, sharps, flats, major scales, rhythms and rests.

8Notes Free sheet music of varying degrees of difficulty and for a variety of instruments.

Take a Piano Sheet Music Break Free piano music of varying degrees of difficulty, as well as lessons.

Homemade Yogurt

2010-06-15T16:09:00.003-05:00

I'm making my first batch of yogurt tonight! I've been wanting to try this for a while, but I thought you had to have a yogurt maker. I looked at several yogurt makers online and was unsure about which one to get. Luckily, before I ordered one, I found the directions for making yogurt in a crock pot. Since I already have a crock pot, it makes sense to try this method first.

Here's what you do (this and more info can be found here)...

Plug in your crock pot and turn it on low. Add 8 cups (1/2 gallon) of whole milk. Cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.

Unplug your crock pot. Leave the cover on and let it sit for 3 hours.

After 3 hours, scoop out 2 cups of the milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup store-bought yogurt with live cultures. (After you've made a batch, you can keep some of your homemade yogurt to start a new batch.) Dump the contents back into the crock pot; stir to combine and replace the lid. Keep it unplugged and wrap a heavy bath towel around the crock pot for insulation. Go to bed or let it sit for 8 hours.

In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened, but it's not as thick as store-bought yogurt. If you want, blend in fruit. Chill in plastic containers in the fridge. It will last 7 to 10 days. Save 1/2 cup as a starter for your next batch.

My yogurt is currently at the "let it sit for 3 hours" stage. At 11:30 I'll add the 1/2 cup of store-bought yogurt. In the morning I'll have homemade yogurt! I don't know about you, but I get tired of buying all those plastic yogurt containers that don't recycle (at least they don't around here). I've been using some to store things like beads, crayons, and marbles for the kids, but I've still got a huge pile in my laundry room. (I wonder if a local daycare might be able to use them for crafts?) I also like to save money when I can. Today I bought a quart of yogurt for $2.28 and a gallon of milk for $2.68. After some calculating...If I end up with 2 quarts of yogurt, I will have paid $0.67 per quart (plus $0.29 for the yogurt I used as a starter). Not bad!

Potty Training in 3 Days

2010-06-08T22:47:00.002-05:00

Do you believe it? I'm thinking about trying it. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about elimination communication. I was going to begin a modified version the next day. However, one (or more) of us has been sick for two and a half weeks, so I didn't think I could focus on it. (Some of us are still ailing.) Since then, I've read about some other potty training methods. I didn't know there were so many!

Here's the 3-day training method in a nutshell. (Actually, it's 3 days of intensive training, but there are 3 months of follow-up.)

The month or so before you start, make sure your child is exhibiting signs of readiness, clear your schedule for 3 days, make up a "potty dance" for successes, start educating your child about using the potty, and buy/borrow several potty chairs (one for every main room and bathroom).

The week before you start, show your child a stack of diapers and explain that starting Saturday (or whatever day you're starting) he won't need them anymore and he can be naked and diaper-free. (Oh, yeah. Did I mention this is a bare-bottom approach?)

On Day 1 of potty training, your child goes naked below the waist. Eat pee-promoting foods and drink lots of liquids so your child gets lots of practice. Watch your child - when he starts to pee or poop, whisk him to the potty. Perform your "potty dance" for any amount of success. If your child has an accident, remind him that pee/poop goes in the potty and have him help you clean it up. Tell your child it's time to use the potty before nap and bedtime. A diaper is ok for sleeping.

On Day 2, follow the same guidelines as for Day 1, except that everyone gets to leave the house for 1 hour in the afternoon immediately after a success. Your child wears loose pants with nothing underneath. Bring a travel potty and a change of clothes just in case.

On Day 3, follow the same guidelines as for Day 1, except that everyone gets to leave the house for 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour in the afternoon immediately after a success. Again, your child wears loose pants with nothing underneath. Bring a travel potty and a change of clothes just in case.

Thereafter, your child will probably take himself to the potty. For the next 3 months, your child goes naked below the waist at home and wears loose pants with nothing underneath when he goes anywhere else. Diapers or training pants are ok for sleeping.

For further details, click here. There are also some books about this method. Here's one. Here's another.

One of my reservations about this approach is the naked factor. I might be able to handle 3 days of nudity, but 3 months?! (If Jesse were a girl, I'd just put him in a dress.) Another reservation stems from the fact that I have carpet in most of my house. Maybe my sister-in-law will let me move in for 3 months. She has tile everywhere...

Down Under

2010-06-03T23:17:00.002-05:00

Under the weather, that is. A couple of weeks ago we went to my parents' house for a few days. You may remember my sisters were visiting and our zoo trip was cancelled because several people were sick. Well, we brought their "crud" back with us. Olivia got sick the following Saturday. She had fever for a few days. She's still coughing but seems to be mostly over it (so she's wrapping up her second week of the crud). Jesse got sick at the beginning of this week. He started off with a terribly snotty nose and now he's got a little fever and is coughing. Probably due to the drainage and his inability to blow his nose. Anybody know how to get a 2-year-old to blow his nose?? Hubby's been straddling the fence between "well" and "sick" for a couple of weeks. I woke up with a sore and swollen throat Tuesday. It's still pretty sore, but not too sore to enjoy my ribeye for supper.

In the past two weeks we've bought 48 lbs of oranges, 12 lbs of apples, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, mangoes, pineapples, and watermelon. We've been eating some and juicing some. We've had chicken noodle soup. Actually it had rice instead of noodles, so I guess we had chicken rice soup. We've also been drinking lots of water and tea. You'd think we'd be done with the crud by now. Alas, that is not the case. It looks like this would be a good time to buy stock in "Throat Coat" tea.

Happy Birthday, Kathy!

2010-05-27T20:49:00.003-05:00

Today is your day!

Happy birthday, Kathy! I hope you're having a wonderful day and a wonderful week.

Elimination Communication

2010-05-26T10:01:00.006-05:00

Elimination communication (EC) is something I first heard about not too long ago. Monday I checked a book out from our library because I wanted to know more. It's "The Diaper Free Baby" by Christine Gross-Loh. The general idea is that babies are born with the instinct not to soil themselves and we can learn to communicate with them about their toileting needs, like reading their hunger cues.

EC involves observing your baby's body language and patterns, cueing your baby (holding your baby in a certain position and making a certain sound that she associates with peeing or pooping), and changing her as soon as possible after a miss so she doesn't get used to sitting in a wet or dirty diaper. Some people start EC at birth, while many start at around three to eight months.

If EC sounds interesting to you, I encourage you to read this book and read it now. I enjoyed it and it made a lot of sense. I only wish I'd heard about this when Jesse was younger. He just turned 2, so it's a little late to start EC (at least as described in the book). I'm planning to try a modified version tomorrow. I was telling hubby about EC the other night when he interrupted me and said "Before you go any further, we're not having another baby just so you can try this." I laughed and told him that's not why I want another one!

What a Week!

2010-05-22T19:02:00.005-05:00

I'm sooo tired. I've been really busy this week. Monday I took the kids to my parents' house. My sister and brother-in-law were visiting from California so we spent a couple of nights with them. My other sister and her daughter spent Monday night there, too. We were planning to go to the zoo Tuesday, but 4 out of 9 of us were sick so we just hung around the house. We got home late Wednesday night.

Thursday was full of the usual post-trip chores like unpacking and washing clothes, as well as menu planning and grocery shopping for Jesse's birthday party. I bought groceries to feed close to 20 people. My refrigerator was so full I wondered whether I'd be able to close the door. I also did some cleaning.

Friday I cooked. I made 2 batches of bread, fruit dip, veggie/cracker dip, strawberry salad, 2 cakes, and icing. I put together a fruit platter and a veggie platter. I cut and stacked the cakes to make a dump truck. Yes, a dump truck. My little birthday boy loves cars and trucks and his dump truck is his favorite. I also embroidered a dump truck on a t-shirt for him.

This morning I made another batch of bread, deviled eggs, cheesy bean dip, and ice cream. (Ok, hubby kept the ice cream maker iced and salted.) We then had a great party with wonderful family and friends. It was a nice way to end this crazy week.

I had to include a picture of the dump truck cake. I worked hard on this! I needed a little more time to make it nicer, but it's not too bad. Jesse liked it! I can't believe my baby is 2.

Green Period, Revisited

2010-05-10T00:01:00.004-05:00

Ladies, this is mostly a reminder prompted by the fact that it's about time to hit the pool, lake, or beach. If you didn't read my earlier post about reusable menstrual products, you can read it here. It's an overview of what's out there. I mentioned some of the advantages of reusable products (less waste in landfills, no risk of TSS, money savings), but I thought of another last week. I somehow neglected to mention "wicking" in my other post. When you wear a tampon, any moisture present outside your body wicks up the removal string. Chlorine-laden pool water, for example. A menstrual cup doesn't absorb, so there's no wicking. Just another thing to recommend the Diva Cup (or other brand of your choice).

Please see my other post for links to more information, or just search the internet.

Am I a Sacking Snob?

2010-05-03T22:38:00.006-05:00

This evening I ran into town for groceries at two different stores. I'm a little particular, some might say neurotic, about the way my stuff is sacked. I've had sackers put large cans of pineapple juice on top of my bananas. If I'd wanted bruised bananas, I'd have gotten the black ones to begin with. I also like to keep refrigerated items together, especially when it's 80 or 90 degrees outside. I figure the cold stuff will stay cold longer if it's all huddled together. Also, when I get home I let the toilet paper and soap loiter in the trunk until I get the milk and butter safely stowed in the fridge. It's easier to do this if it's not mingled with non-refrigerated items. I rarely have too few shopping bags (I always take reusable ones), but just in case I were to have a shortage, I place those items on the belt last that are easiest to carry without a bag, like milk or bags of potatoes.

Because of my idiosyncrasy and my skepticism of the intelligence of some cashiers, I have a habit of placing my purchases on the conveyor belt in the order in which I want them bagged. I always leave eggs and produce for the end so they aren't crushed by heavier items, unless I anticipate a bag shortage (as mentioned previously), in which case the milk and potatoes are banished to the end of the line. I put all the refrigerated/frozen stuff together. I group things like soap, toilet paper, and tooth paste. This usually works well. The typical cashier scans the item closest to hand, bags it, then repeats. However, tonight I did not have the typical cashier. In fact, I had two atypical cashiers.

I spent some time in the parking lot of the first store rearranging my purchases because the cashier had desegregated my cold items and bath products. One bag held butter, tooth paste, and soap. Another held butter, cream, and apples. While I loaded my groceries from the second store I noticed the sacker had bagged my 3 gallons of milk (which were at the end of the line!) and put all my produce in one bag - lettuce, tomatoes, two avocadoes, bananas, two containers of strawberries, and two containers of raspberries.

Maybe next time I'll separate my purchases with bags so the cashier can fill up the first bag until she gets to the second one. Then she can fill up the second until she gets to the third, and so on. To be fair, I should mention that some sackers are excellent. If only I could tell by looking at them...

Tofu, Anyone?

2010-04-26T21:07:00.003-05:00

Last week I was perusing the grocery store when I came across some organic tofu that was 50% off. I had never tried tofu. I didn't even know where to look for tofu until that day. Since I love a bargain and I've heard it's good for you, I decided to get some. I got home and thought "What do I do with it?"

I poked around the internet and found a few recipes that looked good. The lasagne sounded really good, but I'll have to pick up a few ingredients before I try it. I decided to try a grilled tofu sandwich and a tofu stir-fry.

For the tofu sandwich (this was NOT gluten-free), I placed two slices of bread on a cookie sheet. I spread a little mayo on each piece. I then put tomato slices on one piece and tofu slices on the other. I sprinkled a little sea salt on the tomatoes and a little garlic powder on the tofu. Under the broiler it went. It was pretty good, although I couldn't taste the tofu. Is that good or bad? The garlic and tomatoes made a nice combination. It might be good with a little Parmesan cheese.

For the stir-fry (gluten-free), I kinda cheated and used a bag of Asian-style frozen vegetables from the grocery store. I sliced the tofu into cubes. Then I heated some olive oil, sauteed the veggies, again with sea salt and garlic powder, then sauteed the tofu. It was ok, but nothing outstanding. I could taste the tofu a little more, but it's pretty bland.

Do you have some good tofu recipes you're willing to share?

Junk Food in Disguise

2010-04-19T20:15:00.006-05:00

I like to feed my family home-cooked meals and give my kids healthy snacks. Yes, we like to have our cake (or brownies, cookies, ice cream, pie, etc.) and eat it, too, but we don't make a daily ritual of it. Since I'm home with the kids all day it's easier for me to dish up from-scratch meals than if I had a paying job, but sometimes we find ourselves having oatmeal or scrambled eggs and toast for supper.

There are times when the kids have eaten all the grapes and cottage cheese and we've had apples for 4 days straight and I'm looking around for something for them to snack on. I can always find raisins in the pantry, but most people like a little variety - my kids are no different - so I keep an eye out for non perishable snacks.

I don't think all parents buy junk food on purpose. Sure, there are parents who don't care. But some people just don't think about checking the label. I wasn't raised to read the ingredients. It's a habit I've gotten into over the years. There are times you have to give a product more than a cursory glance to know exactly what you're getting. I happen to have 2 packages of "fruit snacks" marketed for preschoolers. They were given to us and have been sitting in the pantry for a while.

A glance at the first shows "Fruit Snacks. Made with REAL FRUIT." Looks good, right? Here are the ingredients: juice from concentrates, corn syrup, sugar, modified corn starch, fruit puree, gelatin, citric acid, lactic acid, natural and artificial flavor, ascorbic acid, coconut oil, sodium citrate, carnauba wax, tocopherol acetate, red 40, yellow 5, blue 1, vitamin A. There are 15 g of sugar in one serving. The second says "Juice treats. Naturally flavored." The first two ingredients are corn syrup and sugar and there are 17 g of sugar in one serving. Why would I give these to my children?

So in addition to raisins, I've been trying to keep other dried fruits on hand: things like dates, papayas, apricots, and pineapple. I've also found fruit leathers. I like these kinds of snacks because you can store them for an extended amount of time in the pantry (stock up when they're on sale) and they're easy to throw in a bag before you head out the door.

Pop, Pop, Fizz, Fizz

2010-04-12T23:34:00.006-05:00

I don't drink many soft drinks. Once in a while I'll have a ginger ale or root beer and, on those rare occasions, I look for the drinks with all natural ingredients. My brother-in-law came across some fizzy drinks I have to tell you about (if you haven't already discovered them). I think he found them at Big Lots. My father-in-law then went searching for them and found some other flavors.

Some are made by Santa Cruz; these are all organic. They found Ginger Ale, Lemon Lime, Raspberry Lemonade, and Root Beer. So far I've tried Ginger Ale, Raspberry Lemonade, and Root Beer.

The others are made by R. W. Knudsen. These aren't organic, but they have natural ingredients and no added sugar. They found Lemon Lime (80% fruit juice), Orange Passionfruit (85% fruit juice), Jamaican Lemonade (90% fruit juice), Ginger Ale (80% fruit juice), Boysenberry (100% fruit juice), Cranberry (100% fruit juice), and Raspberry (100% fruit juice). When the can says "100% fruit juice" they've added enough sparkling filtered water to reconstitute the juices. Of these I've tried Orange Passionfruit and Raspberry.

I particularly enjoyed the drinks with fruit flavors. The ginger ale and root beer were good, but if you prefer a bite to your ginger ale or a LOT of fizz to your root beer, you might be disappointed.

All the drinks I've tasted were mildly fizzy with a light flavor. They also didn't feel heavy in my stomach, if that makes sense. Another bonus: each 6-pack was $2.00. That's only $0.33 per can!

Happy Birthday Rachel

2010-04-06T15:35:00.002-05:00

Today's the day to wish our very own Rachel a most wondrous and bliss filled birthday!

Happy Birthday Rachel! We are all so grateful for you =D

Appliance Rebates

2010-04-05T19:05:00.003-05:00

Just in case you haven't heard, you may be able to get a rebate for replacing an old, functional appliance with a new energy-efficient one. Rebates (ranging from $45 to $1600, depending on the appliance) are available for refrigerators, freezers, room air conditioners, washing machines, dishwashers, central air conditioners, air-source heat pumps, and hot water heaters.

You need to reserve your rebate beginning April 7 at 7:00 am. You can apply for up to 2 per address, but they have to be in different appliance categories. You must purchase your appliance from April 16 through April 25 (April 16 through 60 days from reservation or waitlist request for central AC, heat pumps, and hot water heaters). You can get a $75 bonus rebate for properly recycling your old appliance.

Texas Rebate Guide LOTS of info here.
Eligible Appliances Here you'll find links to qualified models for each appliance category.

Once a Month Cooking

2010-03-29T21:27:00.008-05:00

(aka Freezer Cooking)

I just read about this and I love the idea. Basically you cook a bunch of food in one day, freeze it, then eat it throughout the month. This should save you time and money.

Save time: Instead of spending an hour or two every evening preparing supper, you set aside a day (or two) to do LOTS of cooking, assembling, and freezing. (It's just as easy to cook two chickens as it is to cook one. The same principle applies to hamburger meat, pork chops, and many other things.) Then you can just grab a meal from your freezer, thaw it, and pop it in the oven. This should free up some time each evening for you to play with your kids, talk with your husband, or read a book.

Save money: Almost always the unit price is cheaper when you buy in bulk. But if you throw half of the food out because it went bad before you could eat it all, you haven't saved any money by buying the economy-size package. With OAMC (once a month cooking), you can buy that 10-lb package of hamburger meat, knowing it'll be used to make meatballs, meatloaf, and spaghetti. You also won't have to order pizza or swing by the drive-thru for supper when you know you've got supper thawing in the fridge.

Even if I never get to the point where I have 30 meals in my freezer, I can use these ideas on a small scale to make my life a little easier. I can make a double batch of lasagne (or soup or chicken casserole, etc.) and freeze half of it. I think I'll try cooking and freezing a week's worth of meals and work my way up to a month. I'll have to see how many freezer-friendly recipes I have. I'm sure I'll have to add some new ones to my collection. I'll share them with you if I find some good ones.

In the meantime, here are a few websites to help you get started.
Once a Month Cooking World
Freezer Cooking
Momsbudget.com

Reusing and Recycling in the Garden

2010-03-22T23:16:00.004-05:00

Spring is here! (Although you couldn't tell it yesterday when it was snowing.) It's time to be gardening. I've been doing a little, but I hope to do more. I did get my tomato and pepper plants put in last week. I had to cover them up before the snow came, but they all survived. I use plastic milk jugs that have had their bottoms cut off to protect them. The plants are small enough that these work perfectly. I had these left from last year and will store them in case I need them next year. If they get crushed or ruined I can recycle them. I read about cutting them into strips to use as plant labels, but I haven't actually done it. I usually just plant my seeds, try to remember what I put where, and get a surprise when they sprout.

I use livestock panels to support my tomato plants. I've been using them for years and will be able to use them for years to come. I also use them for cucumbers, beans, and peas. I've also used cane poles that I cut beside the road to our property. I've used pantyhose with runs in them to tie the tomato plants to the panels, but I don't wear pantyhose much anymore so I usually use plain ol' twine.

I read about using egg shells to start seeds that dislike transplanting. I haven't tried this - I toss all my egg shells into my "compost bucket" - but I love the idea. I've used the peat pellets, but they didn't decompose as quickly as I expected. When you get ready to transplant your seedlings, you crush the egg shell a little (so the roots can grow), then plant the whole thing. What I don't know is how you water the seeds and seedlings while they're in the shells without drowning the little fellas.

Of course composting is a great way to recycle kitchen scraps. I keep a "compost bucket" on the counter by the sink. It's just a plastic bowl with a lid. I throw apple cores, egg shells, orange peels, etc. into the bowl, then dump the contents on my compost pile when it starts to get full.

How do you reuse and recycle in your garden?

I Love Homeschool

2010-03-15T23:52:00.005-05:00

Some people weigh the advantages and disadvantages of homeschooling before making their decision. In a previous post, I mentioned that my husband and I had always planned to homeschool our children. We didn't even discuss it. We simply both agreed that it would be best for us and our kids. That being the case, we didn't make a list of all the pros and cons. This is only our first year to homeschool, but I'm already noticing advantages I hadn't thought of before.

My cousin homeschools her two children. Her husband is currently traveling a lot for his job. They don't have to enroll their kids in school, pull them out a few weeks later, then repeat the process elsewhere. They just take their school supplies when they move. As soon as they unpack, they're ready to pick up where they left off.

Last week I took the kids to my parents' house for a couple of days. Mama, Olivia, and I went to "The Phantom of the Opera" in Dallas. We saw it on Thursday at 2:00 pm. It's about a 3.5-hour drive from our house. If Olivia were in public school, I'm sure she would have gotten an unexcused absence that day.

I'm enjoying the flexibility homeschooling allows. I'll probably discover other perks as we continue this journey.

Rip Van Winkle

2010-03-08T22:47:00.004-06:00

There's a homeschooling group in my area that gets together for various activities. I found out that they were meeting at the park last Friday, so I made a point to be there. I wanted to meet some of the mothers and let Olivia meet some of the kids. The catch: they were meeting from 1:00 to 3:00 and Jesse usually has a nap around 2:00.

We left the house right after lunch and got to the park at 1:00. A few of the homeschoolers were there. Some others trickled in later. Olivia had a great time swinging, sliding, climbing, and running. Jesse also had a great time swinging, sliding, climbing, and running. I talked to one mother. She wasn't even with the homeschooling group! She does homeschool, after all, but just happened to pick that day to go to the park. Jesse, at 21 months, wants to play with the big kids, but doesn't understand gravity. So I spent the hour we were there chasing him around, making sure he didn't kill himself. He almost fell down the steps to the slide. If he had, he would've hit his head on 4 or 5 steps. (Sometimes I wonder whether he'll make it to his 2nd birthday!)

We left the park at 2:00, ran a couple of errands, and got home around 3:30. Of course, Jesse fell asleep in the car. When we got home, I woke him up getting him out of his car seat. I hoped he'd finish his nap because he'd been up since about 7:30. That little rascal didn't go to sleep until 4:30 or 4:45. I wondered whether I should just let him stay up until bedtime, but we were planning to go back to town that evening and he really needed a nap. As it turned out, we didn't go back to town. Suppertime came and Jesse was still sawing logs. Olivia's bedtime came and Jesse was still out. (He was breathing - I checked.) I began to worry he'd get up around midnight and want to play. Finally, hubby and I went to bed. I didn't hear a peep from my little boy until 7:30 in the morning. I couldn't believe he'd slept for over 14 hours!

Gearing Up for Gardening

2010-03-01T23:38:00.004-06:00

This weekend I spent some time preparing my raised beds. I had mulched them with leaves after last year's garden withered, but I still had some weeds get through. So I worked on eradicating the weeds and loosening up the soil. My next task will be mixing in some composted chicken litter and/or composted kitchen scraps.

I also need to make some notes on my calendar as to when to plant my seeds and transplants. I have a hard time remembering what gets planted when, so I did a little internet research. Below are a couple of websites you might find useful. You can also check with your county extension office. They probably have a planting guide for your area.

Another thing I need to do is make a shopping list. I've got some seeds left over from last year, so I need to go through them and see what I've got. Then I'll know what I need. I didn't start any tomato or pepper seeds, so I'll have to buy transplants in a few weeks. I know I need some new gloves because mine have holes in them. I don't mind getting my hands dirty, but some of my weeds are blackberry vines and stinging nettle. I hate stinging nettle. If I can't fix my rake I need to get one of those, too. Otherwise, I think I'm in good shape.

I'm considering trying square foot gardening. One of my friends mentioned this and I had never heard of it. I already use raised beds, so SFG would be an easy adaptation. I've included a couple of links in case you've never heard of it, either.

Spring Planting Guide for Vegeteble Crops (Texas)

When to Plant What (This site contains a link to help you find the average last spring frost date for your area. This will help you determine when to start your seeds.)

Square Foot Gardening

The Square Foot Gardening Foundation

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

2010-02-24T23:20:00.009-06:00

Motherhood is an interesting journey, to say the least. I don't think anything prepares you for it. There are moments you hope you'll never forget and some you wish you could. Here are a few of mine.

(I've been saving this idea, so these stories happened a while ago but they're still funny...now.)

The good...

There are so many things I could write here. That soft, downy head. Little fingers wrapped around one of yours. A toothless grin. A little head on your shoulder. Hearing a sweet voice call you "Mama."

The bad...

One night Jesse woke up crying. I snuck into the bedroom, groped around in the dark, and plucked him from his bed. I hugged him up to me and slipped my left arm under his bottom to support him. To my surprise I felt warm, soft flesh. I cried "Jesse! Where's your diaper?!" His diaper was in his bed, nice and dry, so I put it back on him. Then I put some shorts on him (I'm a fast learner) and ran back to the living room to fetch hubby. I nursed Jesse while hubby stripped the bed. After Jesse went back to sleep, I pulled the rug out of the bedroom so I could work on the puddle.

The ugly...

I heard Jesse wake up from his nap one day and went to get him. I walked into the bedroom and discovered Jesse had been face painting. We don't have any face paints. I'll leave it at that.

Motherhood Olympics

2010-02-15T23:48:00.005-06:00

With the Winter Olympics in progress, I've been thinking about some new events for 2014. Here are my thoughts so far...

Diaper Derby
In the qualifying round, each mother must change a dirty diaper. Points will be awarded for cleanliness, form, and speed (timing will begin when the mother picks up the child and will end when the child is fully dressed). Points will be deducted if the diaper is put on backwards and/or not securely fastened. The top 10 mothers will advance to the final round.

In the final round, mothers will change diapers in the back seat of a car. Points will be awarded as described in the qualifying round.

Tug-of-War
Each mother will attempt to settle a fight between siblings over a toy. Points will be awarded for speed and originality.

Tandem Feeding
Each mother will feed a baby while eating her own lunch. Points will be awarded for speed and accuracy. Points will be deducted for putting utensils in the wrong mouth.

Grocery Shopping
Each mother will be given a grocery list and two children. One child will be between the ages of 18 and 24 months, the other between the ages of 4 and 7 years. Points will be awarded for speed and accuracy. Points will be deducted for purchasing items not on the list. Mothers can earn bonus points by returning plastic bags to be recycled or by bringing reusable bags.

Do you think the International Olympic Committee would be interested?

Topsy-Turvy Tomatoes

2010-02-08T23:50:00.004-06:00

Have you ever tried growing tomatoes upside-down? I haven't. I saw pictures years ago of hanging tomato plants, but it wasn't until last week that I gave them another thought. My husband's uncle said he was thinking about growing his tomatoes upside-down this year but didn't know how to keep them in their pots. He doesn't have internet access so I did a little research for him.

People seem to like growing them in 5-gallon paint buckets with handles. Drill a hole about 2 1/2 inches in diameter in the bottom of the bucket. Set the bucket, right side up, on something so as not to cover the hole. Gently insert your seedling into the hole so that about 2 inches of stem is protruding from the bottom. While holding the plant in one hand, pack material around the plant to keep it from falling out - something like newspapers, coffee filters, or sphagnum moss. Continue to hold the plant while you add soil to the bucket. Add enough soil to cover the roots by about 2 inches, then add about 2 cups of compost, then fill the bucket with soil to within an inch of the top. Hang your bucket on something STURDY and water thoroughly. If the soil settles to more than a couple inches from the top, add a little more soil.

Water and add fertilizer to the top of the bucket. Keeping a lid (sitting loosely) on the top will help prevent moisture loss, but must be removed every time you water your plants. Some people grow herbs in the tops of their buckets. Check the soil level every few weeks and add more if the level has dropped much.

I don't think I'll try growing my tomatoes this way this year, but I may try it sometime. If you've tried it, I'd love to hear from you. How well did it work for you? Did it work better than growing your plants in the ground?

WalMart Woes

2010-02-01T22:21:00.003-06:00

This evening I was at WalMart. As always, I had my reusable shopping bags with me. I've never had anyone give me trouble about them...until today. Naturally my bags were buried underneath my purchases, so I unloaded a few things onto the conveyor belt to get to them, telling the cashier that I had brought my own bags. Meanwhile, she's swiping stuff and putting it in plastic bags. Grrr!

I bought several bath towels and she said "I can't bag these. It'll take too long." Huh?! Fold them in half and stick them in the bag! So I did it myself. She likes the plastic bags because they're already hanging on the little racks for her. She was also counting the minutes (13, to be exact) until she got off work and lamenting the fact she was called in from the garden section to check out customers.

WalMart has huge boxes as you walk in the store for recycling plastic bags. They sell reusable bags. They were also (and may still be) giving you a free reusable bag with goodies if they failed to ask you whether you wanted to apply for a WalMart credit card. So why the attitude?

Sorry...I just had to vent :)

Is It Spring Yet?

2010-01-25T00:15:00.003-06:00

The other day I got a couple of seed catalogs in the mail. Nice, big, THICK catalogs filled with flowers, herbs, fruits, and veggies. When I sit down with a seed catalog I find tons of plants I just HAVE to grow. 10 varieties of tomatoes, 5 kinds of carrots (Don't YOU want to grow some purple carrots?), 3 colors of basil, etc. I have to force myself to face reality: I only have so much time to tend to plants. I've also got laundry, cooking, grocery shopping, kids, and a husband.

One of the catalogs was from my favorite seed company, Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply. If you're looking for organic seeds, check them out. They have a huge selection and wonderful prices. They have more than seeds, though. Peaceful Valley also carries bare-root plants, gardening tools, greenhouse supplies, natural insecticides, beneficial insects, bees, fertilizer, seed starting supplies, and books.

I plan to have a modest garden this year. My rosemary is thriving. My oregano, peppermint, and sage are still alive. I would like to add tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, cucumbers, zucchini, yellow squash, basil, parsley, green onions, marigolds, and zinnias. Maybe some sugar snap peas? I may also include an "experiment." Something I haven't grown before, just for fun.

Note to self: Just because there are 2 dozen zucchini seeds in a package doesn't mean I have to plant 2 dozen zucchini seeds. Ditto for yellow squash.

Dr. Mom

2010-01-18T20:40:00.002-06:00

As a mother, I'm on call 24 hours a day. Olivia, 5, usually doesn't need me during the night. Jesse, 20 months, is not quite weaned. Occasionally he'll sleep through the night, but more often than not he'll get up once for a snack.

It looks like I'll really be on duty tonight. Olivia is sick. She was fine this morning. It was nice outside, so the kids went out and played. They had a great time running around and playing in the sand pile. They came in and had baths. Jesse had lunch but Olivia wasn't too interested. At the time I thought she just wasn't interested in what we were having. This afternoon we ALL took naps. That RARELY happens. Then Olivia vomited. My poor baby! I hate when my chidren are sick.

We visited my parents this weekend and my sister and niece came over. My niece had a cold so I was prepared for the possibility that my kids would catch it. I started listening for sniffles right away. I was not expecting puke. I got Olivia cleaned up, changed the bed clothes, put her back to bed, and washed all the dirty stuff. That's where she's been ever since. I've checked on her several times and she's had some water. I don't think she feels like trying anything else just yet.

Hubby's going by the grocery store and he'll be picking up some fruit and other things for her. I'll be giving her lots of fluids, Vitamin C, echinacea, and TLC. Hopefully she'll get over this quickly. And hopefully Jesse won't catch it.

Hot Potato!

2010-01-11T16:47:00.002-06:00

I read some interesting things about potatoes the other day. They taste good and they're fun to grow, but I had no idea they were therapeutic. Apparently, potatoes have many uses. Have you ever heard of these?

For heartburn: Juice 1-2 large potatoes (with skins). Take 3-4 tablespoons half an hour before meals. To improve the taste, mix with another vegetable juice (such as carrot or beet) or add it to soup. The alkaline juice neutralizes stomach acid and relieves upset stomach, heartburn, and peptic ulcers.

For healthy intestines: Wash and dice a large potato. Steep it overnight in 1 cup of water and a pinch of sea salt. Strain and drink every morning on an empty stomach. Repeat for several weeks. This helps cleanse your intestines and reduces the amount of acid in your gastrointestinal system.

To eliminate toxins from the body: Eat one large, plain baked potato with the skin five times a day for 2 days. Drink plenty of water. (I would be sick of potatoes after this!)

To improve liver function: Peel a large potato and boil the skin in 1 cup of water for 5 minutes. Strain and drink the tea. This can relieve gall bladder problems, thereby enhancing the liver’s ability to clear waste products and toxins from the body.

For pain relief: Boil 1 lb of potatoes in their skins until tender. Place in a linen sack and mash. Apply the sack to the affected area, placing a towel underneath the sack if it’s too hot. Attach tightly to the body with a woolen blanket. Remove only after it has cooled down completely. Potatoes retain heat for long periods of time, allowing the warmth to penetrate deep into the tissues.

For inflammation: Raw potato slices bring fast relief from swelling (and itching) caused by contact dermatitis and insect bites. They are also effective for bruises as well as sties on the eyelids. Peel and slice a potato and apply a slice to the affected area until the potato warms up. Repeat as necessary.

For slow-healing inflammations and wounds: Grate 2-3 raw potatoes and moisten with milk. Wrap in a linen cloth and apply to affected areas.

Happy New Year!

2009-12-29T21:44:00.003-06:00

2010 is just around the corner. I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, but I thought I'd try it this year.

1. Lose 20 pounds. Well, at least 15. Okay, I'll be happy with 10. Why did I look better 6 months post-partum than 19 months?

2. Get ready for my spring garden. I was a slacker last year. I want to start my seeds on time, prepare my soil, and keep weeds at bay. I like being able to walk outside and gather a salad. I don't like paying for organic veggies at the store.

3. Prepare for 1st grade. No, I'm not going back to school, but Olivia will be starting 1st grade. I'd like to get a schedule worked out and a general idea of what we'll study. I won't make detailed lesson plans for every day, but I think we both need a little structure.

4. Build a house. We've been planning to build a house for almost 7 years. I've got my fingers crossed that THIS will be the year.

5. Finish my house plans. See #4.

6. That's enough. If I can do #1-5, I'll be happy.

What's on your list?

Reflections

2009-12-21T13:22:00.003-06:00

During the holiday season, we tend to look back over the year that's ending and look forward to the one that's about to begin. We spend time with family. We count our blessings.

We're a family of four living on one income, but we pay off our credit cards every month. Our vehicles have 140K, 280K, and 320K miles on them, but they run (most of the time). Our mobile home shrinks a little more each year, but we've got a roof over our heads, hot water, air conditioning in the summer, and heat in the winter. We've got a fridge full of food and plenty of clothes in our closets. I'm relatively healthy, have a loving and faithful husband, healthy and happy children, and a caring family. I get to stay home with my kids, watch them grow, and help shape them into little people. I've even got a little extra money for hobbies (all I need is more time!).

I hope your life is even half as good as mine!

Dapper Diapers

2009-12-14T08:37:00.010-06:00

I impressed a friend of mine the other day. I was looking at some pictures of his new baby on Facebook when I spied a cloth diaper peeking out of Baby's onesie. Here are the comments that followed:

Me: Is that a bumGenius I see??
Friend: Why yes it is. I'm surprised (a) that you know what they are and (b) you can tell from that picture.

What can I say? I'm a cloth diaper junkie. I always get excited when I find out someone uses cloth diapers. My husband wasn't surprised when I bragged about them to my pregnant dental hygienist. He used to kid me about spending so much time on DiaperSwappers. Several people have asked me "Why do you use cloth diapers? Why don't you just buy disposables?" Here's why (in no particular order):

1. Cloth diapers are cheaper over the long run. When you use disposables, you're literally throwing money away.

2. Cloth diapers are better for the environnment. According to one site "It is estimated that roughly 5 million tons of untreated waste and a total of 2 billion tons of urine, feces, plastic and paper are added to landfills annually. It takes around 80,000 pounds of plastic and over 200,000 trees a year to manufacture the disposable diapers for American babies alone. Although some disposables are said to be biodegradable; in order for these diapers to decompose, they must be exposed to air (oxygen) and sun. Since this is highly unlikely, it can take several hundred years for the decomposition of disposables to take place, with some of the plastic material never decomposing." Also, "when flushing solids from a cloth diaper down the toilet and washing the diapers in a washing machine, the contaminated, dirty water from both toilet and washing machine go into the sewer systems where they are properly treated at wastewater plants. This treated wastewater is much more environmentally friendly than dumping untreated soiled disposable diapers into a landfill."

3. Cloth diapers are healthier for Baby. Possible health hazards due to disposable diapers include toxic shock syndrome, allergic reactions, male infertility, asthma, urinary tract infections in baby girls, and immune system and hormone system impairment.

4. Cloth diapers lead to earlier potty training because the child feels wet. The chemicals in disposables absorb so much moisture that the child never feels wet.

5. Cloth diapers are so darn cute!

Desperate Housewives

2009-12-07T10:11:00.005-06:00

I've never seen the show and don't know what it's about, but I wanted to borrow the title. A lot of people think we live lives of leisure. You know - lounging on the couch with a good book, munching on bonbons, sipping champagne - that kind of thing. Well, maybe some do. But most of us are also stay-at-home moms. Our days are filled with changing diapers, kid-wrangling, cleaning, grocery shopping, refereeing, cooking, washing little hands and faces, laundry, cleaning, giving piggy-back rides, picking up toys, reading books, and cleaning. (Yes, there’s a lot of cleaning.)

Sometimes I get to escape for a little while. Once in a while I walk to the mailbox by myself. I get my teeth cleaned twice a year (20 minutes each way with nothing but the radio making noise, a few moments to look at a magazine in peace). Occasionally I ask my mother-in-law to babysit while I get groceries (no kids crawling in and out of buggies, no shoes getting kicked off in WalMart, nobody asking me to buy something on every aisle). When the kids are asleep, I might curl up with Agatha Christie or Ngaio Marsh (ignore the laundry, forget the dishes, no 18-month-old crying because his ball rolled under the couch, no 5-year-old asking me what M-a-d-a-g-a-s-c-a-r spells). When I’m really lucky, I get to go on a date with my husband!

Most days I don't know whether I'm coming or going. I would love to lounge on the couch with a good book, munching on bonbons, sipping champagne (actually, lounge on the couch with a good book, a bag of chocolate chips, and a glass of milk), but I’ve got laundry to cook, supper to bathe, kids to fold. You know what I mean.

Where's the Beef?

2009-11-30T22:47:00.005-06:00

Probably not at my house. We have some property out in the boonies where we hunt deer and trap wild hogs. I'm so used to eating venison and wild pork that beef tastes funny to me. (I use venison and pork for burgers, meatloaf, meatballs, spaghetti, steaks, sausage,...) Once in a while I'll buy some ribeyes if they're on sale. I also buy chicken, but I make sure it's just chicken. It's sad to have to read the ingredient list on a package of drumsticks.

By harvesting our own meat, we don't have to worry about the animals being cooped up in feed lots and/or shot up with growth hormones. The deer and hogs graze and forage on natural food, roaming wherever they want. We field dress and butcher the meat ourselves, so we know exactly how the meat was handled from start to finish. We're not buying meat that has been trucked into town from halfway across the country. And if you've ever witnessed the destruction hogs cause, you'll know we're doing landowners a favor by eliminating some of them.

While it's a lot of work to process a deer or hog, we like having quality meat for our family. An added bonus is our children learn about self-sufficiency (and anatomy!).

Gobble, Gobble!

2009-11-23T21:35:00.003-06:00

It's almost Turkey Day. I thought I'd share some of my favorite recipes with you that would be great on your Thanksgiving menu.

Cranberry Relish
(Traditional cranberry sauce is too tart for me to eat more than about a spoonful. This relish is neither too tart nor too sweet. It's good warm or cold. It's also great on toast.)
4 cups fresh cranberries, cleaned
2 cups chopped dried apricots
1 cup chopped seedless golden raisins
1 tablespoon orange rind
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 1/2 cups orange juice
1 cup brown sugar

Combine all ingredients except sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat. Simmer 10 minutes until cranberries have popped and are tender. Remove from heat. Stir in sugar. Cool. Store covered.

Pumpkin Cake Roll
(An alternative to pumpkin pie, this is delicious.)
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup canned or cooked pumpkin
1 teaspooon lemon juice
3/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
confectioners' sugar

Filling:
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Line a greased jelly-roll pan with parchment paper. Grease the paper; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs for 3 minutes. Gradually add the sugar; beat for 2 minutes or until the mixture becomes thick and lemon-colored. Stir in the pumpkin and lemon juice. Combine the dry ingredients; fold into the pumpkin mixture. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with walnuts. Bake at 375 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly touched in the center. Cool for 5 minutes. Turn the cake out of the pan onto a kitchen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Gently peel off parchment paper. Roll up the cake in a towel jelly-roll style, starting with a long side. Cool completely on a wire rack. In a mixing bowl, combine the filling ingredients; beat until smooth. Unroll cake; spread evenly with filling to within 1/2 inch of the edges. Roll up again. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour before cutting. Refrigerate leftovers.

Herbed Cheese Ring
(If you're bored with plain ol' rolls, try this. It looks more complicated than it is.)
1 package active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water (110-115 degrees)
1 cup warm milk (110-115 degrees)
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon each dried oregano, basil, and rosemary, crushed

Filling:
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Topping:
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons sesame seeds
4 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add milk, oil, honey, egg, salt, whole wheat flour, 1 cup all-purpose flour, and herbs; beat until blended. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Punch dough down and turn onto a floured surface; divide in half. Roll one portion into a 15”x10” rectangle. Combine filling ingredients; sprinkle half over dough. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seams to seal. Place seam side down on a greased baking sheet; pinch ends together to form a ring. With a sharp knife, cut 1/2” slashes at 2” intervals. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Brush each ring with egg; sprinkle with sesame seeds and Parmesan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks.

Better Things to Do

2009-11-17T00:09:00.005-06:00

TV. If kids are entertained by two letters, imagine the fun they'll have with twenty-six. Open your child's imagination. Open a book. ~Author Unknown

In Beverley Hills, they don't throw their garbage away - they make it into television shows. ~Woody Allen

Television is an invention that permits you to be entertained in your living room by people you wouldn't have in your home. ~David Frost

If the television craze continues with the present level of programs, we are destined to have a nation of morons. ~Daniel Marsh, 1950

It's been years since we had a tv. We didn't watch it much when we did have it. Just a movie once in a while. When our daughter was little we got rid of it. We didn't want to raise a couch potato. Watching television is mind-numbing, certainly not something children need to be subjected to for hours at a time. Everyone knows that children are sponges, soaking up everything they're exposed to. Their little brains and bodies are still developing. Kids need to be learning, exploring, exercising, using their imaginations, and spending quality time with their families. For better or worse, these little people will grow up to be mothers, fathers, teachers, doctors, librarians, bankers, dentists, and presidents. What kind will they be?

Here are a few things to think about...How can a child be healthy when he spends hour after hour parked in front of the tv? How will he learn to interact with people when his best friend is a piece of furniture? How can he make a worthwhile contribution to society when he needs a celebrity to tell him what kind of toothpaste to buy? There are other questions I could ask, but do I need to?

- Read a book. My husband and I love to read. My daughter loves to read, too, and my son is learning to appreciate books (he's only 18 months old and doesn't yet have the attention span to sit through a whole book). The library has a wealth of information to offer you.

- Go outside. Look for caterpillars, chase butterflies, dig in the dirt, swing, "poison" armadillos. Olivia makes "armadillo poison" by mixing dirt, grass, green onions, rosemary, and peppermint (I've told her she'll have to find a substitute for my green onions). Sit in the hammock with a book and soak up some Vitamin D.

- Play games. Olivia likes to play Go Fish, Old Maid, and Checkers. I can't wait for her and Jesse to learn to play 42. It's my favorite game. It'll be so nice for the four of us to huddle around a card table playing 42, sipping hot chocolate, when it's too cold to go outside.

- Plant a garden. Good exercise, good food, good education for the kids.

- Make something. Sew, knit, crochet, draw, work with wood, paint. Be creative. It's satisfying to spend time working on a project and have something to show for your effort.

- Go somewhere. Go to a library, museum, zoo, or arboretum. Take a picnic lunch.

- Learn to play an instrument. My husband and I used to play music a lot before we had kids. I hope music will be something we can enjoy as a family when the kids get bigger (we don't seem to have time for it right now). By the way, people who play music tend to be better at math.

- Cook from scratch. It'll take a little more time than opening a box, but it's worth it. This is time you can spend with your children and the food will taste better and be more nutritious. It's hard to beat a loaf of homemade bread fresh from the oven.

- Perform random acts of kindness. This is something I need to work on myself. Take a meal to a sick friend. Help an elderly person with housework or yardwork. Volunteer at the library. Let your kids see you do something good simply because it's good. Let them be involved so they'll learn about charity and unselfishness.

In the Blink of an Eye

2009-11-09T00:39:00.011-06:00

I can't believe it's been almost 5 years since my first child was born. (My daughter's birthday is Wednesday.) The last 5 years flew by faster than 2 years of graduate school. Here's Olivia soon after she was born.

Here she is when she was about a year old. She's changed so much. She's been walking for 3 months, has several teeth, and knows a lot of words (although she doesn't say many).

This is at her second birthday party. She knows some of her numbers!

For her third birthday she got a tricycle. Unfortunately, it's hard for her to pedal it on our dirt road. She now has a bicycle, too, but it's also hard for her to pedal.

At 4 years old she's such a grown-up little girl (sometimes!). She's a good mother to her babies.

Now my baby is almost 5. She's doing kindergarten work. She can read fairly well (except for having trouble with words like "gnashed" and "pterodactyl") and can count to 100 with just a little help. She has a very active imagination.

It really is amazing how fast they grow up. Watching them evolve from helpless infants into independent little people is awesome. I bet the next 5 years go even faster.

Shower Shenanigans

2009-11-02T14:01:00.007-06:00

That's it. I'm going to quit taking showers. At least not after my husband leaves for work or before he returns. It seems every time I take a shower, disaster strikes.

To the best of my recollection, the first major ordeal was when Olivia cut her hair. I think it was about a year ago. She would have been 4 or close to it. She had NEVER had a haircut. One day while I was showering, she took her little scissors and cut bangs and shortened the hair framing her face. I was speechless. Luckily, she did a pretty good job.

Another time, Jesse played Picasso on the end of the bookcase. And on the wall. The bookcase and wall are off-white; the crayon was purple. I didn't even try to wash it off because it'll probably happen again. I figure I'll scrub it off or paint over it before we sell the house.

More recently I got out of the shower to discover Jesse had eaten half an apple. You might wonder why this made the list of "ordeals." I wouldn't have been upset if he'd just eaten half an apple. He had gnawed on 6 or 7 apples for a grand total of half an apple down the little red lane. We had apple juice that night.

Last week Olivia poured a tea kettle full of water all over Jesse (don't worry - it wasn't hot). In the living room. Jesse was drenched from head to toe. Water was all over the recliner and carpet. And Olivia had tried to tell me "Jesse had a diaper leak."

Yesterday I discovered Olivia had cut Jesse's hair. I'm not sure when it happened, but it must have happened when I was in the shower.

I don't spend a lot of time on my appearance. I don't wear makeup. My mother cuts my hair about once a year. Some days I don't even take the time to comb my hair. So I didn't think spending 5 or 10 minutes a day on the most fundamental personal hygiene was too much to ask. Apparently I was wrong.

It's Better to Give Than to Receive...

2009-10-26T10:27:00.007-05:00

...especially when your house is overflowing with stuff!

I need your help. Olivia's 5th birthday is coming up and I bet her relatives are going to start asking me for gift requests/suggestions. She has a lot of "stuff" and doesn't need any more. Some of it was cheaply made and broke quickly. A lot of it she just doesn't play with or use. I'd like to avoid these kinds of gifts.

I've got a few ideas but could use more. We like to go to the zoo, so I thought a zoo pass would make a good suggestion. If we had museums around here, passes to those would be nice, too. We've got a library card. I should find out what plays and/or musicals are coming up at our college and community theaters. Maybe ask for tickets to those?

Olivia loves to get mail. She has a subscription to Ranger Rick, but I thought about suggesting subscriptions to other children's magazines. When we get through with them we can donate them to the library or give them to another child (like my niece!).

Other ideas? I can't stop my family from bringing gifts, but maybe I can give them some carefully chosen ideas so we don't amass any more junk.

Into the Mouths of Babes

2009-10-19T15:03:00.003-05:00

If you're like me, you pay attention to what you feed your children. For those of you who'd like natural alternatives to over-the-counter teething medicines, here are some things to try.

- Soak a wash cloth in water or chamomile tea and freeze it. Let your little one chew on it. (Don't throw away the tea bag! See below.)

- After making chamomile tea, let the tea bag cool, then let your little one chew on it.

- Mix 1 drop of tea tree oil in a glass of water, then rub on gums.

- Get a Baltic amber teething necklace for your little one to wear. Although it is a teething necklace, it is NOT to be chewed on! It just needs to be next to baby's skin.

- Dilute 1 drop of clove oil in 1-2 tablespoons of a carrier oil such as almond oil (or other edible oil). My father-in-law mixed some for Jesse in grapeseed oil. Clove oil must be diluted because it is STRONG and can burn when applied full-strength.

- Let your little one gum on cold fruits or veggies. My mother-in-law gave her kids carrots to gnaw on until they had teeth that hit (because then they could bite off a chunk of carrot and choke).

- I just read about pickles for teething. Apparently the cold and the vinegar soothe the gums. I don't know what's in store-bought pickles, so you may not want to try this unless you make your own pickles. By the way, homemade pickles taste better than store-bought anyway (big surprise, right?).

- Wrap an ice cube or crushed ice in a handkerchief, wash cloth, or cheesecloth. Tie it closed or use a rubber band. If you use a rubber band, watch carefully in case it breaks.

You'll probably find that what works best for you may not be what works best for your neighbor. Jesse loves to chew on ice now (he's 17 months old) but didn't like to when he was younger. I think it was too cold for him. So wrapping an ice cube in a wash cloth didn't do much for us. Our favorite was the clove oil diluted in grapeseed oil.

These ideas should get you started. Hopefully at least one will help!

Like Mother, Like Daughter

2009-10-12T22:52:00.002-05:00

Olivia may not look much like me, but she is definitely my child. Sometimes she says things and I feel like I'm listening to myself. I've noticed we both use "otherwise" quite a bit. Olivia also breastfeeds her baby doll. The doll sleeps in Olivia's bed or in a crib nearby. She also has a sling to carry her baby.

She sees lots of candy and cereal at the store that she wants me to buy. Sometimes it's something I don't mind getting, but more often than not I have to tell her "that has lots of artificial flavors and colors in it." The other day I heard her ask my parents if their bread had articifial flavors and colors in it. I couldn't help laughing!

We had to replace our shower recently because it was leaking. My husband took the pieces of the old one outside and was wondering what to do with them. Olivia told him he should recycle them.

Like me (and her daddy), Olivia loves books. For the past couple of years we've been going to the library almost every week and checking out around 8 to 15 books. Saturday I checked out about a dozen for her. We returned close to half of them this evening because we'd already read them several times (in just 3 days!). I remember one day (a while ago) Olivia was supposed to be taking a nap. I went to check on her and she had fallen asleep in a pile of books. There were probably a dozen on her bed and on the floor. I went straight to the living room and told hubby she is definitely our child and sent him to have a look. Then I took a picture. I've got it around here somewhere...

For better or worse, kids are sponges that soak up our speech and behaviors. We would do well to remember this. I want my children to grow up thinking breastfeeding is normal. I want recycling to be second nature to them. I want them to love books and learning. I want them to be patient with and kind to others. It will be much easier to teach them these values (and others) if I practice them myself.

Gluten-Free Gluttony

2009-10-07T10:29:00.008-05:00

My post is a bit late this week because I had to go out of town for a funeral :(

I've seen gluten-free products on the shelf but never paid much attention to them. Recently my father-in-law started a gluten-free diet, so I've been noticing them more. He's found some cereal and bread that fit into his gluten-free diet, but was lamenting that he doesn't have any "goodies" to eat. He had bought a package of wheat-free Newman-O's but apparently they're not gluten-free. Olivia and I wanted to make him some cookies, but all my recipes call for flour. So the other day I bought some gluten-free all-purpose baking flour. I substituted it in one of my favorite cookie recipes and it worked pretty well. The cookies were a little crumbly (no gluten to hold them together!), but they tasted great! By the way, I made some gravy with the gluten-free flour since he was having dinner with us and it made excellent gravy.

There are desserts that are flourless, like custard, ice cream, and fudge. The Healthy Flourless Chocolate Cake recipe I posted earlier is gluten-free. But sometimes you just crave warm cookies and a glass of cold milk. Here are a couple of recipes to get you started.

Nutmeg Meltaways
Taste of Home
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups gluten-free all-purpose baking flour (the original recipe calls for regular flour)
3/4 cup ground almonds (about 3 ounces), toasted
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg

In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, and vanilla. Gradually add flour; mix well. Stir in almonds. Shape into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 300 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. Combine confectioners' sugar and nutmeg. Gently roll cooled cookies in sugar mixture.
Note: If using gluten-free flour, the cookies will be VERY fragile. Handle with care!

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
(I forgot about this recipe until today.)
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda

In a mixing bowl, cream peanut butter and sugar. Add egg and soda and mix for 2 minutes. Roll into walnut-sized balls and place on a buttered cookie sheet. Create a criss-cross pattern with a fork. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

It's a Boy!

2009-09-28T14:43:00.009-05:00

Or maybe a girl. I can't determine the gender of a butterfly. This is a gulf fritillary.

My husband found a chrysalis the other day. We brought it in and put it in a gallon jar, then put a coffee filter on top with a rubber band around it. He also found a caterpillar that had just started turning into a chrysalis, and one that looked like it was about to attach itself, so they went in the jar, too. We'll have 2 more butterflies this week!

Since we're homeschooling, I thought this would be a great experiment for Olivia. (Of course, any kid will enjoy watching a caterpillar turn into a butterfly.) We can cover a multitude of subjects. For example, I'm going to have her draw the life cycle of a butterfly (science and art). We can read about butterflies and passion vines (library skills, reading, and botany). We can also read about harvesting passion fruit (gardening and economics).

We took the new butterfly out of the jar.

Here you can see the upper sides of its wings.

It landed on my robe for a few seconds.

This is the gulf fritillary's caterpillar. Here you'll find some other pictures of the butterfly and caterpillar, as well as a passion flower.

The passion vine (or passion plant) is the only larval food plant for the gulf fritillary. This is a young shoot. The vines send runners underground and the plant spreads like a weed.

The passion vine produces passion fruit. I read that the fruit falls off when it's ripe.

Crunchy Bunch Closeout Sale

2009-09-28T10:45:00.002-05:00

Crunchy Bunch is having our closeout sale! Everything is on sale AT COST!

Babywearing, Organic Clothing, Organic Toys and more.

From now until it's all gone, save in time for the holidays <3

http://www.crunchybunch.com

Tote Bag Tutorial

2009-09-21T22:15:00.024-05:00

Last week I mentioned some bags I made. They were so easy and quick I decided to write up a tutorial. You'll need 1 yard of 45" fabric. Your bag will be about 18"x19" when you're finished, depending on the width of your seams and how generous they cut your yard.

Cut a 4" strip from the short end (the 36" end) of your fabric. You will use this strip to make your handles.

Press the strip in half length-wise, wrong sides together.

Fold each edge in toward the crease (shown in photo), fold in half along the crease, and press.

Sew about 1/8" from each edge. Cut your strip in half and you've got 2 handles.

Fold your fabric in half along the 36" side, right sides together. (Your resulting rectangle will be about 36" by 20". Sew the 3 open edges, leaving enough space for turning your bag right side out, about 4-5". Turn your bag right side out. Stitch the opening closed. This will be the inside of your bag. Fold the "inside" down into the "outside."

Turn the top edge down 1" and press. (I turned my bag so the top edge was toward me, so I was turning it up. That's why my photo looks upside down.)

Insert handles under the edge and pin in place, leaving about 5-6" between the ends.

Stitch about 1/8" from the top edge to hold them in place.

Fold them up and pin. Stitch about 1/8" from the top edge all the way around your bag. Stitch about 3/8" from the top edge also.

This step can be omitted if you wish. Turn your bag wrong side out and stitch across each bottom corner. This will give your bag some width and help hold the lining in place. Turn your bag right side out.

Here's the bottom corner from the outside.

Here's another view of the same corner.

Ta da! You're done! You've got a new bag for yourself, or fill it with goodies for a gift.

Finding a New Purpose

2009-09-14T22:18:00.010-05:00

One of my relatives sent me some quilting goodies a few weeks ago - books, patterns, fabric, rotary cutter, cutting rulers, etc. Among these items was a bag she made. In this bag were fabric and directions for making 3 more. Last week I finally hid out in my "sewing room" and played. Now I'm on a sewing kick.

I looked through my fabric stash to see what I might find. This stash includes a bag of clothes that my post-baby body will never fit in again that I kept because I liked the fabric. I have 2 wrap skirts begging to be reincarnated as quilts or bags. I found a skirt that I transformed into a purse (I had already altered it from a jumper to a skirt). I've got enough fabric left to make another purse.

I have plans to convert a denim maternity dress and red and white checked shirt into a dress for Olivia. I browsed the internet the other day in search of a pattern to make a dress I can just slip over her head. I didn't find what I had in mind, but I came across a great tutorial for making a toddler dress from an adult button-up shirt. I swung by Goodwill today and picked up a shirt just to try this because I thought it was so cute.

Another thing I'd like to do is sew a toddler dress from a pillowcase. That is, if I had an extra pillowcase that was pretty. My extra pillowcases are just plain white. But you can use some fabric cut the size of a pillowcase as a starting point.

So many things to do, so little time!

Strange Recipes

2009-09-07T18:27:00.003-05:00

I'm trying a new recipe tonight. When I came across it I thought "It's got WHAT in it?!" Not to be intimidated, I decided to give it a try. It brought to mind a couple of other recipes that some people may find weird, so I decided to share them with you and see what you think. As soon as I finish typing these, I'm off to try "the recipe." Are you curious yet? I'll share the recipe at the end.

This first recipe isn't all that weird unless you ask my sister-in-law. She thinks it's gross because it combines fruit and meat, but I bet most people don't share her aversion. I think it's wonderful.

Apricot-Stuffed Pork Chops
10 dried apricot halves
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 garlic clove
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons molasses, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 pork chops with a pocket cut in each
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons flour

Chop and mix first 4 ingredients, 1 tablespoon molasses, salt, and pepper. Spoon into chops. Brush with remaining molasses. Place on rack in greased broiler pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until done. Remove chops. Add 3/4 cup chicken broth to pan; place over medium-high heat. Stir together cream and flour. Stir into broth and cook 3 minutes or until thickened.

This next recipe is, in my opinion, a little strange. I would have never thought of putting tomato soup in cake, but it's pretty tasty. You can't taste the tomatoes. It just tastes spicy.

Tomato Soup Cake
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1 10-oz can tomato soup
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in 2 tablespoons hot water
1 cup raisins
1 3/4 cup flour

Combine all ingredients in the order they are given, blending well. Bake in a 13x9-inch greased and floured pan at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Ok, here's "the recipe." As I said before, I'm about to try this one. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Healthy Flourless Chocolate Cake
http://healthyindulgences.blogspot.com/2009/05/healthy-chocolate-cake-with-secret.html
Makes a single 9" layer cake, which can be halved and stacked for the taller cake you see in the picture (follow the link).

1 15-oz can of unseasoned black beans OR 1 1/2 cup cooked beans, any color
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons unsalted organic butter OR extra virgin coconut oil
3/4 cup erythritol plus 1/2 teaspoon pure stevia extract OR 1/4-1/3 cup honey plus 1 teaspoon stevia
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon water (omit if using honey)

Mint Chocolate variation:
2 teaspoons mint extract (in place of 2 teaspoons vanilla)

Spray a 9" cake pan with extra virgin olive oil cooking spray, or just grease it with a thin layer of butter. Dust cocoa all over the inside of the pan, tapping to evenly distribute. Cut a round of parchment paper and line the bottom of the pan, then spray the parchment lightly. Drain and rinse beans in a strainer or colander. Shake off excess water. Place beans, 3 of the eggs, vanilla, stevia (if using) and salt into blender. Blend on high until beans are completely liquefied. No lumps! Whisk together cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat butter with sweetener (erythritol or honey) until light and fluffy. Add remaining two eggs, beating for a minute after each addition. Pour bean batter into egg mixture and mix. Finally, stir in cocoa powder and water (if using), and beat the batter on high for one minute, until smooth. Scrape batter into pan and smooth the top. Grip pan firmly by the edges and rap it on the counter a few times to pop any air bubbles. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cake is done when the top is rounded and firm to the touch. After 10 minutes, turn out cake from pan, and flip over again on to a cooling rack. Let cool until cake reaches room temperature, then cover in plastic wrap or with cake dome. For BEST flavor, let cake sit over night. If you are stacking this cake, level the top with a long serrated knife, shaving off layers until it is flat and even. Frost immediately with healthy chocolate buttercream frosting before serving.

Healthy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Makes enough to thickly cover one layer, or fill and frost a halved stacked layer.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted organic butter, softened, OR 7 tablespoons nonhydrogenated shortening
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon erythritol, powdered, OR 1/4 cup xylitol, powdered
5-6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons half and half OR coconut milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of sea salt
Good-tasting pure stevia extract, to taste

Optional addition for a glossy finish: 1 fresh organic egg yolk

Cream the butter in a small bowl until fluffy. Powder erythritol or xylitol in a coffee grinder or Magic Bullet for a minute or two, until extremely fine in texture (reminiscent of powdered sugar). Let sweetener settle in grinder before opening the top. Stir powdered sweetener into butter with a spatula, then beat until smooth. Slowly blend in the cocoa powder, vanilla, and sea salt. Beat in the half and half and egg yolk, if using. Add stevia, starting with 1/16 teaspoon. You'll probably use less than 1/4 teaspoon. Just keep tasting and adjust sweetness to your liking.

3 years, 18 months and counting!

2009-09-02T10:59:00.003-05:00

In relation to Rachel's post on Monday, (and to toot our own horn ;) ) as of yesterday Isabelle and I have been nursing for 3 full years! Beautiful Blissful Birthday, Belle! <3 And in 2 more days, it'll be 18 months of nursing for Sebastian =)

I have loved (almost!) every moment of our nursing relationship and I look forward to many more years with each of them. Tandem nursing, especially, has been one of my most enjoyable nursing experiences. I love how they look into each others eyes, hold each others hands, and, yes, bicker over whose side is whose or straying hands! :P Every moment is unique and absolutely adorable. As for the "almost" above, I'm still not a big fan of the night wakings, hehe ;) Both Belle and Sebastian get up on average once a night still for a few moments. :)

Gynosaur.com has some cute little breastfeeding achievement buttons you can display on your blog, in a forum signature, etc. I use them and think they're super cute :)

15 Months and Counting

2009-08-31T23:27:00.006-05:00

I attended my local La Leche League meeting the other night and the topic was weaning. It occurred to me that Jesse is almost 16 months old, the age at which Olivia was weaned. I would have nursed her longer if it hadn't been for some medical issues. When she was Jesse's age, she was sleeping through the night and didn't nurse too often during the day. I think she was only nursing before her nap and bedtime, so I didn't feel too bad about weaning her. First I cut out the before-nap nursing. I held her, hugged her, and kissed her, then put her to bed while Mr. Bear (her wind-up teddy) played "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." Sometimes I had to go back in the bedroom and wind him up again.

(I have to interject something here. One day trajedy struck - Mr. Bear died. I searched all over for another bear like him, but to no avail. I finally settled on a pink rabbit with a pull cord. Have they quit making them?)

After a week or two, I started working on the before-bed nursing. I enlisted my husband's help with this. He would put Olivia in bed and play his guitar. They both enjoyed it. After a couple of weeks with this routine, she would go to sleep with just the rabbit playing music.

Jesse still gets up at least twice each night to snack and loves to nurse during the day. I don't foresee weaning in our near future! If only he would sleep through the night...

Older SIGG Bottles Contain BPA

2009-08-28T12:16:00.008-05:00

Reusable aluminum bottles are an eco-friendly alternative to wasteful plastic water bottles. My children had some from SIGG and loved them! They claimed to be not only eco-friendly, but healthier as well, assuring everyone that there was no BPA (Bisphenol A) found in their bottles, as there is in plastic.

So I was so very disappointed to hear that if you purchased a SIGG water bottle before August 2008 (we did), the liner in that bottle may actually contain BPA after all...

SIGG has posted an image and description of the new vs. old liners. If your liner looks like the OLD version, you can contact SIGG to have it replaced with a NEW version.

New SIGG EcoCare Liner

* Dull pale yellow coating

*Special powder-based co-polyester liner certified to be 100% BPA and Phthalate Free

*Utilized in the manufacturing of SIGG bottles since August 2008

Former SIGG Liner

* Shiny copper bronze finish

*Proprietary water-based epoxy liner thoroughly tested and showed absolutely no leaching of BPA

*Found in SIGG bottles manufactured prior to August 2008

While many people are outraged over the perceived misleadings, SIGG has posted a letter from their CEO to try and explain just what they were thinking: http://www.mysigg.com/bulletin/

In the meantime, you can find some wonderful BPA FREE bottles over at Nubius Organics, such as Kleen Kanteen, EcoUsable, EarthLust, Crocodile Creek and more. (I think I might just have to get one of those gorgeous EarhtLust bottles, myself!)

To Be or Not To Be A Homeschooler...

2009-08-24T15:03:00.008-05:00

...for me there is no question. Before my husband and I were even married we knew we would homeschool our children. Olivia is almost 5, the age at which most children start kindergarten. I had considered just starting her with 1st grade next year, but she told me "I want to start kindergarten when I'm 5." I don't want to squelch her enthusiasm, so we're about to start our homeschooling journey.

I know many people will ask me why I homeschool. Some already have. (My parents were probably the first. They were both public school teachers.) There are so many reasons. I thought I'd share some of my reasons, and some advantages of homeschooling, and then ask you to share some of yours. It's nice to have a good defense when you're attacked.

They're MY children. I have the right and responsibility to teach them. I'll have the freedom to spend as little or as much time helping them with a particular concept as they need. I'll also have the freedom to "teach" them in as structured or unstructured a manner as we find necessary. My kids will be safe, well-fed, and loved. They'll grow up with a positive self-image, confidence, and a strong sense of family.

We won't waste time driving to and from school. When my husband takes a business trip, we may be able to tag along and visit interesting places. (Olivia and I went with him to Austin a couple of years ago. While he was in meetings, we went to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and the Children's Museum.) We won't have to keep up with the latest fashions. We won't have to worry about negative peer pressure, teasing, or bullying.

This is by no means an exhaustive list. These are just a few things I thought about while I was sitting here. I'd love to hear your reasons for homeschooling and/or other advantages you've thought of.

Dinner ( with a slight detour to the ER)

2009-08-21T02:59:00.001-05:00

I might be the slightest bit obsessed with Julia Child. Since seeing the movie Julie and Julia I have wanted to try some recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking. One problem, I had dropped my Le Creuset French oven and none of my other pots were appropriate for the first recipe I wanted to try. Luckily Sur LA Table was willing to exchange my pot ( this shocked me because I did not have a reciept).
So last week my 4 year old and I went to the store to get all of the ingrediants to make Beef Bougione. I was so excited even taking pictures as I browend bacon to render the fat, browned the meat and vegitables, added the wine and stock before putting everything in the oven and starting to work on the vegitables that would be added later. I have to admit that the recipe was a bit more labor intensive than I had expected. With 45 min left to go I took the pot out of the oven to stir and tasted the sauce. It was dreamy and I had a smile from ear to ear in anticipation of the most amazing dinner ever!
Just then I heard some words that as a mother you never want to hear, "Mom, can you help me get this out of my nose?" My 4 year old had apparently shoved something up his nose. When I asked what it was he said that it was from his brother's bed. This could be anything as at any given time there are lego's and many small items in or around his brother's bed. After a short inspection I was fairly certain that the "foreign object," was a piece of foam egg crateing from his brothers bed. SO after I turned off the oven and pulled everything out, i shed a quiet tear for my meal as I scooped up my son and head to Children's Medical Center in Plano.
When we get to the Hospital we are quickly brought through triage and brought to a room. A Dr. walks in and takes a look and says she will be right back. She reneters the room and brings a paramedic with her. i am not sure if she was a new Dr. or new to the hospital but the paramedic seemed to be coaching her as to what buttons to use to turn things on and such. The first attempt to remove the "foreign object," was to use suction. Not only was this unsuccesful but my 4 year old was now screaming and would not let anyone near him. 2nd attempt was to use a tool to try to retrieve it, also not successful and now the 4 year old was really pissed off.
As the Dr. is giving me information to refer me to an ENT for emergency surgery the paramedic interrupted. He said there was one more thing that they could try, it was rather unconventional but would not hurt him and might work avoiding surgery. At this point anything was worth a try. In walk a dream team of paremedics and nurses 6 to be exact, all male except for the Dr standing in the corner and 1 female nurse. The instructed my son to keep his mouth closed tight and used a tube and a sudden burst of oxygen into the other nostrill to cause the lodged "foreign object," to become disloged and a pojectile hurdling across the room until it reached a stopping point. ME!!!! SO I have this disgustin bloody,snotty HUGE foam piece stuck to my shirt. One opf the paramedics proclaimed that it was the coolest thing he had ever seen. That he was tempted to shove something up his nose just so they could do that again. I asked him to hold his comments in front of the impessionable 4 year old that had already done so. My son was fine and was very glad to get a popsicle from the paramedics for his ordeal.
We got home and I went right back to cooking my dinner. I warned my husband that no matter how it tasted he was going to eat every bite and proclaim how it was the best meal he had ever eaten. Dinner was consumed at about 10:30 last night and was delicious. Next time I hope I can make it through without a trip to the ER>

I Love My Crock-Pot

2009-08-17T18:27:00.004-05:00

We celebrated my father-in-law's birthday the other day. As it is also his and my mother-in-law's anniversary, I thought it would be nice to give her a day off so I volunteered to cook dinner. I decided to cook a roast in the crock-pot (orange-glazed carrots, strawberry salad, and rolls for sides). Saturday night I put the roast in the crock-pot with a cup or two of water, a generous sprinkling of seasoning salt, and three sprigs of fresh rosemary. I turned it on low and left it until the next morning. Meanwhile I made rolls and embroidered a shirt.

One thing I love about my crock-pot is that I can let it work while I'm busy with other things. While the main dish is cooking I can prepare the side dishes, clean the house, do the laundry, or go to bed. The next morning I'm ready to pack hubby's lunch. Or I can get things going in the morning and have hot supper on the table that night.

I like that it frees up my oven for other things. I have one oven and there's not enough room for a huge pan of roast and rolls or veggies, too. It's also more energy-efficient to leave the crock-pot on for 10 hours than to leave the oven on for 4. And it doesn't heat the house up as much as the oven.

The other thing I love about it is that it tenderizes the toughest piece of meat. I used a spoon to cut the roast I cooked the other day. We eat a lot of venison and wild pork - both have a tendency to be tough - but they both end up melt-in-your-mouth tender in the crock-pot. In addition to roasts, I like to cook stews in my crock-pot. I can fit a whole chicken in it. I love that machine.

I was blindsided by High Frutrose Corn Syrup

2009-08-12T19:48:00.003-05:00

Earlier this year I read a number of articles about the danger of High Frutrose Corn Syrup(HFCS). Obesity aside the nonprofit Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) tested products containing HFCS and discovered that 17 out of 55 had measurable amounts of mercury in them. Dr Lars Friberg, Former Chief Adviser to the World Health Organization said " there is no safe level of mercury, and no one has actually shown that there is a safe level. I would say mercury is a very toxic substance." The speculation is that since mercury is used in the production of caustic soda an ingredient used to make HFCS leaving mercury in the HFCS. The Corn Refiners Association claims that this is an out dated way to make HFCS, but there is no regulation on where the HFCS comes from. So where as that might be an outdated method of HFCS production here in the US, if the HFCS is purchased from abroad who is to say what method they are using to manufacture the HFCS.
SO even though I was scared to death of the HFCS, I figured I make most of my own items and my kids do not eat a lot of candies and we only drink all natural juice so I thought we were safe. Boy was I wrong. I was making one of my kids favorite meals, honey mustard chicken. When something caught my eye on the mustard bottle: High Frutrose Corn Syrup. In Mustard!!!! So I went through my refrigerator and pantry. I was shocked some of the items I found HFCS in were:
Salad Dressing
marinades
YOGURT ( this was the most shocking to me)
oatmeal bars
cereal bars

There were many flaws in the tests, they only did one test of each product , they can not determine 100% that the mercury levels came from HFCS ( yet it is the only ingredient all of the products had in common), and they did not differentiate what type of mercury was present. I know so many people that have chosen to avoid vaccinating their children because of the trace amounts of mercury in the vaccines, yet there is measurable amounts of mercury in the food we are feeding our kids, foods geared towards kids. I am hearing so much about BPA why am I not hearing about this from the FDA or EPA? I am not telling you to avoid these products I am however telling you to look at your food labels. I was shocked and had no idea I had been feeding this to my children. If you would like to see the list of the 17 products that contained mercury you can do so here: http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/news/20090127/mercury-in-high-fructose-corn-syrup are any of these products in your pantry?

Breast is Best

2009-08-10T08:54:00.005-05:00

August is World Breastfeeding Month and August 1 - 7 was World Breastfeeding Week. In honor of WBW, Baby Blues compiled a selection of breastfeeding strips. If you haven't seen them, you should. They're hilarious!

I'm probably preaching to the choir, but I wanted to remind you why breastfeeding is best for mother and baby. I think most of us breastfeed because it's the natural thing to do - cradle a newborn in your arms and he'll look for a breast - but some people need a little more persuasion. If you or someone you know is straddling the fence on the breast/bottle decision, here are some things to keep in mind. Or if you're having one of those days when you're tempted to throw in the towel (baby's biting, you're tired of soggy nursing pads, etc.), remember that your baby nurses for a short time in the scope of his life. It'll be over all too soon.

Benefits for mother

helps the uterus contract after birth to control postpartum bleeding
helps mom lose weight
lessens postpartum depression
more rest than formula feeding moms because you can nurse while sleeping
lower risk of Type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, uterine cancer, and ovarian cancer
save thousands of dollars a year since you don't have to buy formula
protects against osteoporosis and hip fracture later in life
reduced risk of mortality for women with rheumatoid arthritis has been associated with total time of lactation
breastfed babies are sick less, reducing healthcare costs in doctor office visits, prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, and hospitalizations
breastfeeding is more convenient - the milk is always available, sterile, and the right temperature
during times of disaster, you don't have to worry about finding formula

Benefits for baby

antibodies in breast milk offer protection from germs, illness, and even SIDS
lower risk for ear infections, stomach viruses, diarrhea, respiratory infections, asthma, diabetes, leukemia, necrotizing enterocolitis, and other diseases
lower risk for childhood obesity
reduced risk of chronic constipation, colic, and other stomach upsets
breastfeeding promotes facial structure development, enhanced speech, and straighter teeth and reduces risk of tooth decay
enhanced vision
higher IQ's and improved brain and nervous system development
reduced risk of heart disease later in life
increased bone density
are hospitalized 10 times less than formula fed infants in the first year of life

Benefits for the environment and society

reduced cost of healthcare by promoting healthier children and mothers.
reduced insurance premiums for both parents and employers
reduced global pollution by decreasing the use of resources and energy required to produce, process, package, distribute, promote and dispose of materials created by the manufacture and use of artificial baby milk
reduced tax burden on communities and government to ensure children are properly fed
reduced absenteeism in the workplace due to children's illnesses

Find these and other benefits at the following sites. Or simply google "benefits of breastfeeding."

http://www.llli.org/FAQ/advantages.html

http://www.motheringfromtheheart.com/Benefits.htm

http://www.womenshealth.gov/breastfeeding/benefits/

http://www.examiner.com/x-12080-Atlanta-StayatHome-Moms-Examiner~y2009m8d9-Info-101-Benefits-of-breastfeeding

http://www.nrdc.org/breastmilk/benefits.asp

http://www.promom.org/101/

Serendipity

2009-08-06T14:22:00.002-05:00

Serendipity... no not the movie! Have you ever wondered if some people are just meant to be in your life? This past Monday I was sitting in a lobby waiting for a focus group to begin. When in walked an old friend of mine. Now had I lived in Dallas all of my life this would not have been so strange, but I met this girl in Tokyo.
I went to high school for 2 years in Tokyo when my dad had gotten a job over there. In November of my senior year my 1st love broke my heart and a month later my parents announced they were getting divorced and my sister, mother and myself would be moving back to the states as soon as details could be worked out. Needless to say I was in a really bad . Without going into too much detail I started to spend some time with my mom's friends son. Unbeknownst to me he already had "hooked-up" with another girl. SO very quickly she and I realized he was a dog and became quick friends. We spent the next 3 weeks being the best of girlfriends. Shopping and gossiping and all that but then I moved back to the states and she went back to college and we lost touch.
Two years later my dad had moved to Hong Kong and I went to go spend New Years. AS we were getting off a bus who was getting on? My friend from Tokyo. Her parents had also moved to Hong Kong and so the next few weeks it was like no time had passed. We again went shopping and hung out and just had a great time. But when the trip was over the distance in the states we lost track of each other again.
Flash forward another 10 years. I am waiting for a focus group to start and who should walk into the lobby for the same focus group.? We screamed so loud when we saw each other that the people putting on the group had to pull us aside. They felt uncomfortable sending us both in since we knew each other so I got sent home, but not before we had exchanged information.
Three chance meetings in three different countries. Something about that makes me think that it is more than just a coincidence. This time we are not going to loose touch!!!

Bread Making

2009-08-03T10:36:00.006-05:00

Last week March wrote about the sad state of cooking in America. After a comment I made about her post, she asked for tips on making bread. I thought there may be some others who could use a good recipe and instructions. Many people are terrified of making yeast bread. Don't let it scare you. Homemade bread is sooo good. Like anything you make yourself, you control exactly what goes into your bread. I have several recipes I love. I chose this one because it was sitting on my counter from the last batch I made. You'll find the basic directions, then some notes/tips.

Homemade Bread
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees)
1 tablespoon warm milk (110-115 degrees)
2 tablespoons oil (olive oil or coconut oil work great)
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Combine the yeast and sugar in a large bowl. Add the warm water and milk; let the yeast and sugar dissolve and foam. Stir in the oil and salt. Stir in enough flour so the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover with a damp towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Deflate dough and knead for a few minutes until smooth, then form into a loaf. Place in greased loaf pan and let rise until almost doubled in size, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest in pan for a few minutes. Remove to a wire rack. Store in airtight container after it has cooled. This recipe can easily be doubled to make 2 loaves.

General Info
Bread is primarily made of flour, yeast, sugar, salt, and liquid. The yeast digests the sugar, producing carbon dioxide that makes the bread rise. Salt helps control this rate of rise. Honey may be used instead of sugar (or a combination of the two). Milk and/or water are the most common liquids included. Bread made with milk has more food value and a more velvety grain. Bread made with water only has a wheaty flavor and crispy crust. Some type of fat or oil is usually included; it helps the dough stretch and improves the flavor. Eggs are sometimes included; they add flavor, richness, and food value. You can add nuts, seeds, fruits, spices, and other ingredients after you're comfortable with a basic recipe.

Notes/Tips
* You don't need a thermometer for warming the liquids. Remember your body temperature is 98.6 degrees. As you're warming the liquid, drop a little on your wrist. If it's neither cold nor hot - you can't even feel it on your wrist - it's about 99 degrees. Let it heat a little longer until it feels warm, but doesn't feel VERY hot, and it's probably around 110-115 degrees. If you think you got it too hot, let it cool a little. Err on the side of not quite warm enough. Your dough will take longer to rise, but you don't want to kill the yeast with liquid that's too hot.
* When covering the dough to rise, a damp towel keeps the dough moist. You can use a dry towel, but the exposed surface will be a little dry.
*80-85 degrees is the ideal temperature range for rising. Dough will rise at a lower temperature but will take longer. At higher temperatures you risk killing the yeast.
* I like to use white whole wheat flour (sometimes called pastry whole wheat). It's made from hard white wheat instead of hard red wheat. You get the same goodness but it's a little milder in taste and texture. You can use any combination of flour you want - 100% whole wheat, half whole wheat and half all-purpose, etc. Just be aware that the taste and texture will be different.
* The amount of flour you add will vary (on a humid day you'll need a little more) so recipes give a range of flour (like 2 1/2 to 3 cups). Stir in enough that the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl - just enough to make it kneadable. Too much flour will make your bread stiff.
* To knead dough, turn it onto a floured surface. Fold the far side up over the close side and press down with the heels of your hands. Repeat this, turning the dough clockwise (or counterclockwise) as you go. You'll develop a rhythm after some practice.
* You can mix in fresh or dried herbs when you stir in the flour.
* Before baking, after the second rise, you can brush milk, melted butter, or beaten egg white on the bread and sprinkle with seeds or Parmesan cheese.
* When you remove the bread from the pan, you can rub butter on the crust and it will stay soft. This makes it easier to cut.
* Use a serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to cut bread. An electric knife works great. Just turn it on and move it straight down.

The State of Cooking in America

2009-07-30T09:04:00.004-05:00

I love to cook! OK I got it out there. I feel like I am standing up in a meeting and this is something I should feel a little ashamed of. I do not know a lot of other people that cook. We have all gotten busier and conveniencefoods are in our grocery stores and on most corners in most cities, but I choose to take a few extra minutes to cook dinner most nights at least one big breakfast a weekend and dessert for my family each week.

My absolute favorite thing to do is gather the troops and head to our local Half Price Books, hit the kids section so all 3 have something to keep them busy and then camp out on the floor in the cookbook section going through the volumes as if I was a kid in a candy store. The place that I sit is the "Vintage Cookbook" section. I love the cookbooks from the 50's and 60's the best. They are charming and most of them from a time before everything came out of a box. I am very rarely interested in more modern cookbooks.

A few months ago I came across an article while searching for recipes on line: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/17/AR2006031701969.html?sub=AR
The article in the Washington Post describes that both food companies that provide recipes either on-line or on their boxes and cookbooks have had to "dumb down," because most Americans plainly do not know how to cook. They chalk this up to a number of reasons : the number of woman in their 20's mothers that worked outside of the home, the practical extinction of home economic classes in middle school 20 years ago, the mind set of a computer generation that want everything fast. I can go on and we can speculate about this all day.

With this in the back of my mind I talked with an editor friend of mine about one of the few modern cookbook authors that I truly enjoy. She is British and I wondered why her books are released in the States almost a full year after they are released in Europe. Surely it did not take a whole year for the conversions. He danced around it for a while before explaining to me that they had to add more steps in the American version. That basic culinary terms that can very easily be understood over seas need more explanation here. So basically they take it down a notch or two.

I know we are all busy. Some work outside the home and some juggle PTA, sports and the basic day to day of having a family and some juggle all of the above. But I am issuing you a challenge. 1 day a week get into the kitchen with your kids. Teach your kids how to break an egg or make a cake. Visit the farmer's market and make a meal together. Help our children to know what saute means or how to "cream" butter all terms that have been taken out of cookbooks because it is deemed too hard for us to grasp.

Green Period

2009-07-27T16:00:00.018-05:00

This post is mainly for the ladies. Gentleman, please share this information with your wives, sisters, daughters, etc. Feminine hygiene products are kind of a taboo topic, but here are some things you should think about if you haven't already.

There are contradictory articles about whether disposable feminine hygiene products, even tampons made entirely from cotton, contain dioxin. There's no question that tampons and disposable pads take up a lot of room in landfills. The cost of these products adds up over time. Many women get "diaper rash" from pads. Also, tampons are associated with toxic shock syndrome (TSS).

Reusable menstrual pads (aka "mama cloth") are a safe, green alternative to disposable pads. They can be made from a variety of fabrics and in different sizes and absorbencies (from liners to post-partum). Most have a snap to hold them in place, while some are "lay-in" types. Many women report that their periods are lighter and they no longer experience cramping after switching to cloth pads. If you cloth diaper and/or use family cloth, just launder your mama cloth the same way. Otherwise, you can rinse it in the sink and wash with dark towels.

For women who prefer tampons to pads, there are menstrual cups (Diva Cup, LadyCup, The Keeper, to name a few). Worn internally, menstrual cups catch your flow instead of absorbing it. You may only need to empty it 2 or 3 times a day (maybe every 2 or 3 hours) depending on how heavy your flow is. After emptying, you can rinse it or simply wipe it out, then reinsert it. Between cycles wash with hot soapy water and store it in the fabric pouch that came with it. Menstrual cups come in 2 sizes - one for women who are under 30 and have never had a child, one for women who are over 30 and/or have had a child.

Mama cloth and menstrual cups can last for years. This means far less waste for the planet and more money in your pocket. (You may be surprised at how much a pad or cup costs, but remember it will last for years. You'll pay more up front, but you'll save money over the long run.) They're also healthier for your body. You may think these products sound "gross," especially if this is the first time you've heard about them. They're no more gross than disposable products. I encourage you to seriously think about these alternatives before dismissing them.

For more information...

Green Families Search for "diva cup" and "mama cloth" for TONS of information. From fabrics to troubleshooting, these ladies discuss it all.

iHerb offers both sizes of the Diva Cup. Use the code NEM401 to save $5.

eBay offers the Diva Cup and the LadyCup.

Etsy is a great place to find mama cloth made by work-at-home moms.

Tea Time

2009-07-20T16:50:00.006-05:00

Tomorrow my daughter and I are going to a mother/daughter tea party. One of my friends (who is taking her 3-year-old) told me about it. There's supposed to be a string orchestra, dance lesson, and cake. We're all looking forward to it.

Since this is such a treat I wanted to make something special for the girls. I decided to put together a goody bag. First I made each girl a bag embroidered with her name and some flowers. I included a tea cup and saucer (purchased at the Women's Shelter Thrift Store), peppermint tea, homemade cookies, and some homemade tub tea. I've included some tub tea recipes below.

Even if you're not going to a tea party, you might like to create a goody bag for a special person in your life. It could be for a birthday, anniversary, new baby, first day of school, or "just because." Any excuse will do! Make your gift to suit the occasion or recipient. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

For the cook: Fill a serving dish with kitchen towels, recipe cards, utensils, and apron.
For the gardener: Fill a flower pot with trowel, seeds, gloves, and sun hat.
For a new baby: Include onesies, burp cloths, diapers, bibs and use a receiving blanket to wrap it all up.

http://www.cranberrylane.com/recipes-bath-products.htm
Cranberry Lane’s Tub Tea Blend (makes 8 tub teas)
2 T lavender flowers
4 T rose petals
4 T marigold petals
6 T cleavers herb
1 T strawberry leaves

Mix all ingredients. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Use 2 T per bath. Place tub tea in mesh or fabric bag. Fill tub with water. Allow tub tea to gently infuse bath water while you relax.

http://www.cranberrylane.com/recipes-bath-products.htm
Chamomile and Oatmeal Tub Tea (makes 8 tub teas)
(soothes irritated skin)
6 T chamomile flowers
4 T oatmeal flakes (quick oats are best)
4 T marigold petals

Mix all ingredients. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Use 2 T per bath. Place tub tea in mesh or fabric bag. Fill tub with water. Allow tub tea to gently infuse bath water while you relax.

http://www.elementsbathandbody.com/recipes
Lavender Tub Tea
½ c dendritic salt or alberger salt
2 t lavender EO
Mix and set aside.

1/8 c honey powder
1 c powdered goatsmilk or powdered buttermilk
2 c whole oats
½ c Epsom salts
¾ c baking soda
3 c lavender buds
3 c sea salt

Mix all in large bowl. Combine the dendritic salt and EO blend and complete mixing. Place ¾ - 1 c per 3.5x5 muslin drawstring bag.

Stand and Deliver

2009-07-13T16:08:00.005-05:00

I suppose that since several people I know have recently had babies or soon will, I was thinking about pregnancy, labor, and childbirth while I was deciding on a topic for today. Many people are a little apprehensive about childbirth. Ok - some are terrified. I think most people are afraid of the pain. Your body has to do a lot of stretching to accommodate a baby. But labor and birth are natural functions of the female body. Women have been having babies for thousands of years and, for most of that time, without epidurals.

Don't take it lying down. One of the best ways to reduce labor pain and help baby descend is to MOVE. Stand up, walk around, rock, get on all fours. During both of my labors the pain was terrible if I was on my back. My second labor (home birth) was better than my first (hospital birth), partly because I was always moving and almost always upright. My midwife examined me once and I didn't get up before the next contraction hit. Gravity is your friend. Let it help you.

When it's time to push your baby out, you don't have to jump in bed. Your baby will be born more easily if you stand or squat. Your pelvis opens more in a squatting position than in others. And again, gravity is your friend.

Here are some more tips for easing labor pain. Your local library should have some books to help you understand what happens to your body during labor and childbirth. Knowing what to expect reduces your fear. What to Expect When You're Expecting is a popular choice, but I don't think it's nearly as good as some others out there. Ina May's Guide to Childbirth is good. Go to your library and check out everything listed under "natural childbirth." If you haven't already, read Alex's post about water birth.

A fun ice cream recipe that gets the whole family involved

2009-07-11T09:53:00.005-05:00

The weather report said it was 104 yesterday and the grim report says tomorrow is going to be 108. So I wanted to come up with some fun cool activities that I could do with the kids. I love to make ice cream. I even won the ice cream crank off 4 years ago wearing my middle son at the time. SO I have altered a fun ice cream recipe for those of you who do not do diary. This is a fun way to get everyone involved and burn off a few calories in the process:

Vanilla
2 c. soy creamer (or any non-dairy milk)
2 c. soy milk (or any non-dairy milk)
3/4 c. sugar (or Splenda/other sugar substitute)
2 T. arrowroot
2 t. vanilla extract (choose a high-quality brand; none of that imitation stuff either!)

Mix 1/4 cup of soy milk with the 2 tablespoons of arrowroot and set aside.Mix the soy creamer, soy milk, and sugar together in a saucepan. When the mixture has just started to boil, take off the heat and stir in the arrowroot slurry. This should immediately cause the liquid to thicken (not a lot, but a noticeable amount; it will be thicker when it cools).Stir in vanilla extract.Set the ice cream mixture aside to cool.

ICE CREAM IN A BAGGIE:Once cooled put in ll ingredients in a zip-loc baggie Put in a gallon-size Zip-Loc bag and zip closed: 2 T. rock salt (baking aisle in grocery) the filled and zipped sandwich bag from above ice cubes to fill bag about 3/4 full Shake and roll filled bag over and over until frozen (about 30 min.) As the ice melts it does leak a little so do outside

Super Summer Savings Sale!

2009-07-09T20:11:00.002-05:00

Super Summer Savings Sale going on NOW at http://www.crunchybunch.com!

Find babywearing, organic children's clothing and more at awesome prices!

Plus ~ save 20% on ALL EclipseSpa products! Check it out =D ♥ ♥ ♥

Tomatoes

2009-07-06T00:25:00.005-05:00

It seems like tomatoes are the home gardener's favorite crop. It's no wonder, either. Tomatoes can be expensive, especially organically grown ones. Store-bought tomatoes tend to be white inside and almost flavorless. Home-grown tomatoes are red all the way through, they're soft and juicy, and they taste better.

Tomatoes are usually easy to grow. One year my dad had over 70 tomato plants. He ate tomatoes; he gave them to us, his neighbors, and church members; he froze them; I canned them and one of his neighbors canned them. My father-in-law, who lives next door, grew some huge tomatoes one year. He and I both started our tomato plants from organic seeds. His did great - he had healthy plants that produced lots of fruit.

Mine, however, didn't fare so well. For some reason I have a hard time growing tomatoes. One year it was nematodes. This year it's a calcium deficiency induced by water stress. Yes, that means I didn't water them like I should have. (I take much better care of my kids - they're growing like weeds!) We have gotten some tomatoes from our vines this year and we have many more that will be ripening soon.

My husband found this website to help diagnose common tomato problems. Hopefully you won't need it, but if your tomatoes are anything like mine, you just might.

Join the EclipseSpa Team!

2009-07-02T16:22:00.002-05:00

Join EclipseSpa as an Independent Spa at Home Tonight Consultant

Are you looking for a great part-time job to make extra money? EclipseSpa wants to empower 25 women with a wonderful opportunity to make extra money and have fun selling organic bath & body products for women and men to create the spa experience at home.

Email Katherine Clay for more information and to get started today!

Why EclipseSpa?

EclipseSpa creates organic and natural bath and body products that people can use to relax & rejuvenate right at home. Our products will remove the days effects and re-introduce you to the body you live in....connect with it, feel it, reward it.

We use only the best ingredients science has to offer to soothe and protect your skin, leaving it velvety soft after you bathe or shower. Our natural fragrances have the power to transform your emotions, and heal your body.

EclipseSpa is committed to sustainable practices and providing the best ever natural and organic bath & body products for you to turn your bath into an organic spa experience. Plus, we hand-pour all of our 100% soy wax candles in house using only the freshest and purest essential oils for eco-friendly light and comfort.

Our Business Opportunity Offers:

* No quotas
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* Create your own demo kit by purchasing products on sale along with your personal discount
* OR purchase a "Sample Kit" that contains 5 retail size products of your choice to use for demo's.
* Share our Spa at Home Tonight story
* Receive a 25% personal discount on all our products
* Receive referral rewards for any new consultant you refer and has 2 months worth of commissionable income
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Supermom

2009-06-29T00:27:00.009-05:00

On more than one occasion I've been sleeping with Jesse lying right beside me (or on me) and Olivia has woken me up to tell me she wants breakfast. I'd have had to wake Jesse up to move. Meanwhile, hubby was snoozing away. When I asked her why she didn't ask Daddy to get her some breakfast, she said "He's sleeping."

Was I angry? Of course not. Why would I want to sleep a little longer? I'd had a good 5 hours of sleep. Olivia knew that Jesse gets me up several times during the night and, therefore, must have thought it would be easier to wake me up since I'm used to it. She might have even suspected that I require less sleep to function.

The other day hubby was writing a letter to include with some pictures I was sending to his aunt. Olivia was playing at the kitchen table where he was writing. I was in the bathroom, hands in the toilet, washing out a dirty diaper. Olivia walked through the bedroom and into the bathroom and asked me to turn on the computer speakers. When I asked her why she didn't ask Daddy (who was sitting right beside her!) to turn the speakers on, she said "Because he's too busy."

Was I aggravated? Of course not. All I had to do was finish spraying off the dirty diaper, wring it out, drop it in the diaper pail, flush the toilet, and wash and dry my hands. I don't even have to think about it; I just turn on autopilot. You may think all hubby would have had to do was put down his pen. Wrong. I know what an undertaking it is when he writes a letter. Olivia's request would have completely broken his concentration.

Joking aside, Olivia is much more likely to ask me for help than her daddy. When Jesse wakes up in the middle of the night, it's me he's looking for. When they get hurt, no one can comfort them like I can. There are some things mothers just do better. I've often told Olivia that no one loves her like her mama. I carried these children for 9 months, gave birth to them, nourished them, and cared for them 24 hours a day. No one can take care of them better than I can.

Faster than a streaking toddler, more powerful than a stomach virus, and able to leap tall building block towers in a single bound. I am Supermom!

Green Cleaning

2009-06-22T00:09:00.008-05:00

A conversation I had with a friend the other day prompted me to write about green cleaning. Alex extolled the virtues of vinegar & baking soda for cleaning counters, faucets, and appliances in an earlier post. I thought I'd include some other uses for these products. I'll also mention a couple more common items that can be used for cleaning.

I hate mops. They disgust me, so I threw mine out. I have a stack of cloth diapers (Gerber flats from WalMart) that I use for cleaning floors, counters, sinks, toilets, etc. I fill my mop bucket with about a cup of vinegar per gallon of water. I wash the floor with the diapers and vinegar-water. When the water gets dirty I start over with clean water and more vinegar. There's no need to rinse. I also replace the diapers as they get dirty. Then I throw them in the washing machine.

Shake baking soda into your toilet and scrub. Add vinegar, let it foam and soak, then flush later.

You can use vinegar as a fabric softener instead of dryer sheets. Just add a cup to the rinse cycle.

Use hydrogen peroxide to disinfect your cutting board. It's used as a teeth whitener (hold one capful in your mouth for 10 minutes daily, then spit). It also removes blood from clothing. This last tip I learned from my midwife. She should know!

Speaking of laundry, here's a recipe for detergent you might like to try. One of my good friends posted it on her blog, along with a cloth diaper laundry recipe.

Everyday Family Laundry
(Add 2 drops of essential oil for fragrance to water before adding clothes)
1 bar finely grated Fels-Naptha Soap (you may use other bar soaps such as Ivory, Castile, Zote)
1 cup Borax
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1/2 cup of Oxygen cleaner powder, such as Oxyclean

Mix all ingredients well. It will look like yellow & white granules. Use 1 tablespoon for light, small loads & 2 tablespoons for large loads. Store in recycled, air tight containers.

Here are some websites with other tips and information:
Vinegar Kills Bacteria, Mold, and Germs
Natural Remedies for Disinfecting Your Kitchen
Vinegar Tips
More Vinegar Tips
Hydrogen Peroxide Uses
More Hydrogen Peroxide Uses
Lemon Tips

Beat the Heat

2009-06-15T12:00:00.005-05:00

I don't know about you, but I've been staying inside with the air conditioner lately. This time of year, I look for "cool" recipes. I've been going through my recipe collection (I've got TONS of recipes) and have selected a few of my favorites to share with you. The first is for a salad, but it's a little more special than your regular green salad. Next is a recipe for ginger ale. I don't like soft drinks, but I do like good ginger ale. I like Reed's Ginger Brew but it's around $1.50 a bottle. This recipe allows me to enjoy inexpensive ginger ale without artificial ingredients. Finally, I'm including my homemade ice cream recipe. If THAT doesn't cool you off, nothing will.

Strawberry Salad (I don't know where my aunt got this recipe.)
lettuce, torn
strawberries, sliced
celery, sliced
green onions, sliced
pecans, chopped
raspberry vinaigrette dressing (I bought some Annie's Naturals Lite Raspberry Vinaigrette when it was buy one get one free.)

Toss the first 5 ingredients. Serve with raspberry vinaigrette. You could make your own raspberry (or strawberry) vinaigrette. There are lots of recipes on the internet.

Ginger Ale
http://www.biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Cheese/Ginger_Ale_Ag0.htm (I changed the directions a little. Grating the ginger is difficult, so I put it in the blender.)
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon active baker's yeast
1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons fresh ginger root
juice of one lemon
cold fresh pure water

With a funnel, add the sugar and yeast to a plastic 2-liter bottle. Thinly slice the ginger root against the grain (or you'll have ginger "strings" in your drink). Put in a blender with lemon juice; blend, adding a little water if necessary. Add this to the bottle. Pour more water into the blender to rinse out the dregs; pour into the bottle. Fill the bottle with water, leaving about an inch of head space. Screw cap on securely. Invert repeatedly to dissolve the sugar. Place in a warm location for 24 to 48 hours. Do not leave at room temperature longer than necessary to feel "hard." The excess pressure may cause an eruption when you open it, or even explode the bottle! (Been there, done that.) Test to see if carbonation is complete by squeezing the bottle forcefully with your thumb. If it dents in, it's not ready. Once the bottle feels hard to a forceful squeeze, usually 24 - 48 hours, place in the refrigerator. Thoroughly chill before opening. Crack the lid of the chilled ginger ale just a little to release the pressure slowly.

Rachel's Ice Cream (6 quarts)
3 cups sugar
1 quart cream
3 - 4 tablespoons vanilla (I never measure, so I'm guessing)
milk

Pour sugar into ice cream freezer. Add cream and vanilla. Stir until sugar no longer sticks to the bottom. Add milk until it reaches the fill line. Freeze according to manufacturer's directions.

Simplicity

2009-06-08T11:04:00.006-05:00

Our living room was hit by Hurricanes Olivia and Jesse for the umpteenth time. They have accumulated LOTS of toys in their short lives. We surveyed the damage and cleaned up the debris with a large dust pan (bought just for that purpose). We scooped up stuff and deposited it in storage buckets. We corralled all the ping pong balls and golf balls. We reshelved books. Meanwhile, we had a discussion about which toys seemed to be their favorites. We've discovered that the best toys are the simplest ones - things like balls, blocks, boxes, trucks, and dolls.

We got a new freezer the other day. One of its best features was the box it came in. First it was a post office. Now it's a house for the kids. Olivia takes wonderful care of her baby doll, while Jesse drives trucks around the living room. They both love blocks. And Jesse is obsessed with balls. "Ball" was his second word ("Mama" was his first).

Last week we went to the recreation center for a puppet show, only to discover the schedule had changed. The presentation was now a geography lesson by "Professor World." You see where this is going, right? We walked in to find a 4-foot globe. Jesse pointed to it and exclaimed "Ball!" He does the same thing in the produce section. They're not cantaloupes, oranges, apples, and onions. As far as he's concerned, they're all balls.

For birthdays and "just because," Olivia and Jesse have received tons of fancy toys that light up, make noise, spin around, and do other silly things. They play with them a little, the novelty wears off, and they're banished to the toy shelves. There they sit, played with once in a blue moon, while the boxes they came in are worn out from play. I try to keep this in mind when I give gifts. For her first birthday, I gave my niece some books and edible treats (snacks saved her mom some grocery money and didn't take up room in the house for very long). For her second birthday, I gave her a bath towel with her name embroidered on it and a dress.

Stick with B's and you can't go wrong - books, balls, blocks, and boxes.

Changing Blog Look ~ Comments welcome!

2009-06-04T15:26:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone! I think that our blog could use a little makeover ~ make it cleaner, easier to read and navigate. As you've probably noticed, I've made a few changes already and I'll be making several more over the next few days. What I'd like to know from you is:

** What features of our blog look do you like and which would you like to see improvement on?

Any and all comments about our blog look are most welcome :)

Thanks for your input, I really appreciate it!

The Power of Words

2009-06-01T12:35:00.010-05:00

I don't know why, but yesterday I was thinking about a conversation I had with Olivia when I was pregnant with Jesse. Olivia (then 3 years old) asked how the baby ate. I explained that when I ate, my body turned the food into nutrients for the baby and sent it to him through something called the umbilical cord. I told her that before she was born, she had an umbilical cord where her belly button now is, and her little brother or sister would have a belly button, too. Several weeks later we were having cookies after she had been “helping Daddy” with his power tools. She said “I’m having cookies. You’re having cookies. The baby’s having cookies." I replied "Well, kinda." Olivia promptly told me "The baby’s having cookies through the electrical cord!”

Okay, she didn't get the word right that time, but her vocabulary is impressive. We have some alphabet books that start something like "A is for apple, B is for ball, C is for cat." One night Olivia was telling her daddy "A is for anaconda, B is for badminton." I think there was another word further down the alphabet, but I can't remember what it was.

Yesterday Olivia was showing her Aunt Julie some tub toys. One was a turtle. She told Julie that at first she thought it was a box turtle, but then she saw the flippers on each side and decided it must be a sea turtle. Another, as she informed Julie, was a bottlenose dolphin.

Kids really do soak things up like sponges. For the last year and a half we've been taking a weekly trip to the library, where Olivia will check out 8 to 12 books. (She's also been watching videos on the National Geographic website.) I don't think it's possible to read too many books. My husband and I both love to read, although we don't get to indulge in as many books as we'd like. I don't know whether the obsession is hereditary or acquired. (My parents and hubby's parents all enjoy reading.) I took this picture of Olivia in February. She was supposed to be taking a nap and, when I went to check on her, this is what I found.

Here's Olivia in January of 2007 and Jesse in March of this year. It looks like he's gonna be a bookworm, too! A library is a wonderful place for a child. So many books are within those walls and the library is constantly getting new ones. You can also get books through their interlibrary loan program. One of the best gifts you can give a child is a love of reading (and a library card!)

The Healing Benefits of Coconut Oil

2009-05-30T15:36:00.019-05:00

Ok, it's no secret ~ I *love* coconut oil! It has *so* many uses, and the really good raw stuff, is really good for you! I use it for so many things ~ a butter replacement on my children's popcorn, a skin moisturizer (I have eczema that flares up now and then), in my hair, on owies, you name it!

I came across this article I wish to share with you that explains some of the benefits of coconut oil. Yes, I know it's from a company (Vivapura) that carries a coconut oil product for sale, however, I have found it to be very accurate. As always, of course ~ do your own research and don't take my word for it ;) Of course, I personally stand behind this company 100% ~ they're a fantastic example of ethics, purity, and really tasty foods! I picked up some of their dried jackfruit once and *oh*my*yummers* =D If you get a chance, do check it out!

Coconut Oil Health Benefits

The Healing Benefits of Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has been used as cooking oil for thousands of years.

Popular cookbooks advertised it at the end of the 19th century. Then came the anti-saturated fat campaign and the promotion of polyunsaturated fats, such as flaxseed, canola, soybean, safflower, corn, and other seed and nut oils plus their partially hydrogenated counterparts (margarine, "I can't believe it's not butter", etc.) as the way to go.

Indeed, saturated fats have been supposedly causally linked to high cholesterol and heart disease, multiple sclerosis and other bad health conditions. I don't know how anyone came to this conclusion, since it would be hard to find a person in America who has a high saturated fat diet. Why? Because nearly all commercial foods, including bread, crackers, chips, dips, many candies, zero cholesterol coffee creamers, all mayonnaise and all salad dressings, many pastries and ice creams, most dietetic (for weight loss or diabetes) "foods", many cereals, and nearly all crunchy snacks contain either polyunsaturated or partially hydrogenated fats (which contain some margarine and some of the unsaturated fat mixed together).

These foods are often advertised as healthy "all vegetarian," "no-cholesterol" foods. Even the so-called saturated fat in commercial meat is partly unsaturated because most cows are fed corn and soybeans, both of which contain unsaturated oils. Are there any people who live on saturated fats who are healthy? Yes! People who live in tropical climates and who have a diet high in coconut oil are healthier, have less heart disease, cancer, colon problems and so on, than unsaturated fat eaters. Two such groups of people include those from Melanesia and the Yucatan. These people are slightly hyperthyroid because of the thyroid stimulating effects of coconut oil plus a diet which includes protein (fish) and adequate fruit (stimulates thyroid function).

Can you eat unsaturated fats and get away with it?

It all depends. The Eskimos ate cold-water fish, high in unsaturated oils BUT they also ate the whole animal, including the animal head, brain, thyroid glands, etc. and got the hormones from these glandulars. This caused them to become hyperthyroid, 25% higher than Americans, and they were classified as "pathologically hyperthyroid" by standard medical definition. However, this so-called pathological condition allowed them to burn the unsaturated fats in the foods they ate. If you are not an Eskimo and eat mainly an unsaturated fat diet, you may be in trouble.

Now you know why I wonder how anyone can associate high cholesterol or saturated fats with heart disease, multiple sclerosis or any disease. Over the past 40 years, Americans have increased their consumption of unsaturated fats and partially hydrogenated fats and have decreased their consumption of saturated fatty acids and butter. Lauric acid, the major fatty acid in coconut oil and breast milk, is rarely present in the American diet.

Yet saturated fats are still being called the health culprits while grocery stores abound with many kinds of seed and nut oils. Many have been told that if the unsaturated oil is unprocessed, it is safe. This is untrue. The harmful effects of unsaturated oil lie in their unsaturation, or the presence of many double bonds, which are very labile and easily peroxidized (become rancid inside the body). Details of this are given in the report on unsaturated oils. Here is a summary of the health benefits of coconut oil. In general, coconut oil stimulates thyroid function and has wonderful antiseptic properties.

The Stability of Coconut Oil

Unsaturated oils in cooked foods become rancid in just a few hours, even in the refrigerator, one reason for the "stale" taste of leftovers. However, according to Peat, eating fresh unsaturated fats is even worse, because once inside the body, they will oxidize (turn rancid) very rapidly due to being heated and mixed with oxygen. Not so with coconut oil. Even after one year at room temperature, coconut oil shows no evidence of rancidity even though it contains 9% linoleic (omega - 6) polyunsaturated acid. Peat theorizes that coconut oil may have antioxidant properties, since the oil doesn't turn rancid and since it reduces our need for vitamin E, whereas unsaturated oils deplete vitamin E.

Anti-Aging Effects of Coconut Oil

Many researchers have reported that coconut oil lowers cholesterol (Blackburn et al 1988, Ahrens and colleagues, 1957). In 1981, Prior et al. showed that islanders with a diet high in coconut oil showed no harmful health effects. When these groups migrated to New Zealand and lowered their daily coconut oil intake, their total cholesterol and especially their LDL cholesterol - the so-called evil one - increased. The cholesterol-lowering properties of coconut oil are a direct result of its ability to stimulate thyroid function. In the presence of adequate thyroid hormone, cholesterol (specifically LDL-cholesterol) is converted by enzymatic processes to the vitally necessary anti-aging steroids, pregnenolone, progesterone and DHEA. These substances are required to help prevent heart disease, senility, obesity, cancer and other diseases associated with aging and chronic degenerative diseases.

Weight Loss Stimulating Properties of Coconut Oil

In the 1940's farmers tried coconut oil to fatten their animals but discovered that it made them lean and active and increased their appetite. Whoops! Then they tried an anti-thyroid drug. It made the livestock fat with less food but was found to be a carcinogen (cancer causing drug). In the late 1940's, it was found that the same anti-thyroid effect could be achieved by simply feeding animals soybeans and corn.

Anti-Cancer Effects of Coconut Oil

In 1987 Lim-Sylianco published a 50-year literature review showing the anti-cancer effects of coconut oil. In chemically induced cancers of the colon and breast, coconut oil was by far more protective than unsaturated oils. For example 32% of corn oil eaters got colon cancer whereas only 3% of coconut oil eaters got the cancer. Animals fed unsaturated oils had more tumors. This shows the thyroid-suppressive and hence, immuno-suppressive effect of unsaturated oils. (Cohen et al. 1986).

When Albert Schweitzer operated his clinic in tropical Africa, he said that it was many years before he saw a single case of cancer. He believed that the appearance of cancer was caused by introduction of the European diet to the Africans. Many studies since the 1920's have shown an association between consumption of unsaturated oils and the incidence of cancer.

Antimicrobial (Antiseptic) Effects of Coconut Oil

Coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acids such as lauric (C-12), caprylic (C-10) and myristic (C-14) acids. Of these three, coconut oil contains 40% lauric acid, which has the greater anti-viral activity of these three fatty acids. Lauric acid is so disease fighting that it is present in breast milk. The body converts lauric acid to a fatty acid derivative (monolaurin), which is the substance that protects infants from viral, bacterial or protozoal infections. This was recognized and reported in 1966.

Work by Hierholzer and Kabara (1982) showed that monolaurin has virucidal effects on RNA and DNA viruses, which are surrounded by a lipid membrane. In addition to these RNA and DNA viruses, in 1978, Kabara and others reported that certain medium chain fatty acids, such as lauric acid have adverse effects on other pathogenic microorganisms, including bacteria, yeast and fungi. These fatty acids and their derivatives actually disrupt the lipid membranes of the organisms and thus inactivate them. This deactivation process also occurs in human and bovine milk when fatty acids are added to them.

For further reading try the

Coconut Oil White Paper by John Kabara,

an internationally recognized expert in tropical oils.

Take the Time

2009-05-25T16:07:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned. My dental hygienist is expecting a baby this summer and, between her scraping and my spitting, we chatted about babies and how expensive they are. She knew my second baby was born at home (see my previous post) and said she supposed I had saved money by having a home birth. I told her that since my insurance doesn't cover home births, I had not saved any money, but it was worth every penny and any more children I have will be born at home.

At some point she said "Formula is so expensive, but what else can you do?" My answer was immediately "Breastfeed." Neither of my children have had a drop of formula. Breastfeeding has saved me LOTS of money (and breastmilk is ideal for infants). I also told her about our local La Leche League.

I was telling my husband about our conversation and he interjected "So did you convert her?" Trying not to smile, I asked "What do you mean?" He said "You know what I mean." I had to admit that, yes, I did mention cloth diapers. One of these days I'd like to calculate how much money I've saved by using cloth diapers. It's not just about the money, though. I feel good that I'm not throwing away a lot of paper and plastic and chemicals. Nor am I exposing my baby to the chemicals in disposable diapers.

You never know when you'll have the opportunity to expose someone to new ideas. Take the time to talk with people. You may be able to impart some knowledge and, if you'll listen, you may learn something yourself!

Summer Activities

2009-05-18T00:48:00.002-05:00

Several weeks ago Alex wrote about summer classes and programs for her 4-year-old. I've been looking into activities for mine here in Nacogdoches. For those of you who live elsewhere, your city may offer similar activities.

The Nacogdoches Public Library hosts a variety of summer programs for kids. These are things like puppet shows, yoga for kids, musicals, and plays. Last summer a local chemistry professor presented "Chemistry is Fun." It was like a magic show using chemistry. When we start homeschooling I'd like to re-create some of the things he did. Our library also has story time in English and Spanish. I've been thinking of taking Olivia to the Spanish story time. Young children pick up languages so easily - this would be the perfect time to expose her to it.

Our Recreation Center also offers a variety of activities for kids, including twirling, t-shirt workshops, painting workshops, dancing, drawing, sculpting, swim lessons (starting as young as 6 months), and gymnastics. We're signing Olivia up for gymnastics and she'll have her first class today. She's really looking forward to it. This will be her first experience with any kind of class.

Although we don't have a zoo, Ellen Trout Zoo is just down the road in Lufkin. If you want to travel a little further you can visit Caldwell Zoo in Tyler. I took the kids there Friday and met up with my mom, sister, and niece. They have two white tigers that are just beautiful! Olivia likes animals and going to the zoo. I wasn't sure how Jesse would react to it, but he had a good time. The first thing we did was watch one of the workers feed the penguins. Jesse walked up to the glass and watched them swim around. He laughed and squealed at them. Olivia and Jesse also particularly enjoyed the tigers and snakes. We'll be visiting Cameron Park Zoo in Waco in August.

Before you know it, it'll be time to pick blueberries and peaches. Olivia loves picking fruit...and eating it! Jesse loves eating fruit, too. We've been enjoying the blackberries. We haven't picked enough to make a cobbler, but we've picked enough to eat out of hand.

I'll be watching for more things for kids to do. If you've got some other ideas, I'd love to hear them.

What is in a mole?

2009-05-17T20:19:00.005-05:00

March is our guest blogger this week, filling in for Alex. Here's her intro: "My name is March and I am a SAHM/Professional Volunteer. I have 3 boys, ages 8,4 & 2." Thank you March!!

James my 8 year old son has been growing his hair out almost all year. I really try to pick my battles and so let it get shaggy. I guess the heat finally got to him last week and so my DH took all 3 boys to get haircuts . When James came home with a partial crew cut, something stood out from behind his ear. A large mole that was not there when he started growing his hair last year.

Of my 3 boys 2 were cursed with my fair skin, but James has beautiful Olive skin like his dad. When he was a baby I was diligent about slathering him in sun screen, but as he got older and never burns it became more of his responsibility or when I remembered. James has had one sunburn in his life. So to see this rather large mole that had developed so quickly had me in a panic.

I called our Dr. The Dr already jokingly thinks I am crazy. Most people by the time they have a 3rd child have calmed down and don't call the Dr. at the drop of a hat..not me. My philosophy is that I would always rather the Dr. think I was crazy then not go and it be serious. When the Dr looked at the mole he told be I made the right decision by coming in. The mole was larger than the eraser on a pencil. He said that if a mole is larger then the eraser on a pencil it should be looked at . He used the ear scope to show me the shape and color.

As of right now the mole is fine but the Dr. has told me to watch it and asked if I knew the ABC's of moles. I didn't and I found them very helpful so I thought I would share them with everyone :

A-Asymmetry- Generally if the mole is symmetric there is not as much need for concern, but if it is asymmetric it should be checked out by a Dr.
B- Border- if it has an unusual border-scalloped or notched it is suspicious and should be checked out by a Dr.
C- different Colors with in the mole are suspicious and should be viewed by a Dr.
D- diameter- any mole larger than a pencils eraser or greater than 6 mm should be viewed by a Dr.
E-elevation-if the mole is elevated or raised from the skin it should be viewed by a Dr.

Also if you notice any sudden changes to any of these you should consult your Dr.
James' mole fits two of these criteria. The mole is larger then a pencil eraser and has multiple colors within it. It also developed quickly so the Dr. was very glad I had it checked out. He told me to keep and eye on it ( a 2nd use for my ear scope) to watch for any changes and feels that we will remove the mole probably when James is 13 or 14.
From now on 8 or not I am slathering him from head to toe is sun screen!

HUGE SALE @ Crunchy Bunch ~ Up to 50% Off!

2009-05-13T09:54:00.003-05:00

I'm having a Moving Sale! Yep, that's right ~ crazy ole me just doesn't want to lug as much stuff as I possible can across the country... weird, right?? lol

So help me out my friends ~ you get some awesome children's organics and babywearing at DIRT CHEAP, and I don't have to carry them around! It's a Win-Win =D

Here's the details (why do they call them de-tails? they don't have tails to begin with! anyone know??)

* ALL Bamboosa products are 50% off!
* ALL SOS From Texas items are 50% off! (Organic onesies, bibs, receiving blankets, etc.)
* ALL EclipseSpa products are 35% off!
* ALL Babywearing items are 30% off! (Kozy's*, Moby's, ZoloWears and more)
* ALL Earth Mama Angel Baby & Nature's Baby Organics are 30% off!
* ALL Under the Nile organic items (clothing, bibs, blankets!) are 30% off!
* Nurtured Little One organic hooded towels and shopping cart covers are 30% off!
* ALL Under the Nile TOYS are 25% off!

and much much more, throughout the store! Just add the items you desire to your cart to see the savings! I promise you, absolutely EVERYTHING on my website is at LEAST 20% off, and you don't even have to mess with any coupon codes!

Discounts are good through May 31st, 2009.

* Just a quick note ~ I just got an email from another rockin' retail momma who would like to buy out my stock of KOZY's ~ so if you're desiring one, get it TODAY, 'cause I'm letting her have them VERY SOON!

Baby's First Year

2009-05-11T08:07:00.014-05:00

Today is Jesse's first birthday. I can't believe it's been a year since he was born. At that time all he could do was sleep, cry, nurse, and dirty his diapers. It's amazing to me how much babies change, grow, and learn in their first year of life. Jesse has learned to smile, laugh, and "talk." Although he doesn't say them perfectly, he can say "mama," "ball," "balloon," "bite," "dog," and "woof." He learned to hold up his head, roll over, sit, creep, crawl, stand, walk, and climb up the couch. As he gained more mobility he was able to explore more of his world and explore it faster. He's gotten six teeth (and learned not to bite Mama!), grown from 8 lb, 12 oz, to 20 lb, and from 22.25 inches to 28 inches. He's learned to hold toys, get his hand to his mouth, and get a spoon to his mouth. He can play peek-a-boo and patty-cake, pat his sister, give hugs, and throw balls (and anything else he can pick up).

As Jesse's mother, I'm proud of and impressed with how much he's grown and learned in the last year. I feel blessed to have had him, so I've done my best to keep him healthy and happy. At the same time, I'm a little sad that my baby isn't as much of a baby anymore. I've enjoyed his first year (well, not the sleep deprivation), but now that it's over I'll try to enjoy the next one...and the next one...and the next one...

Here's Jesse the day he was born.

And here he is today. (Still my baby!)

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-09T14:33:00.003-05:00

Okay, Mother's Day is not until tomorrow, but happy early Mother's Day anyways! The sun is shining, a breeze is blowing, and it seems like it's going to be a beautiful week. I am so excited to share this Mother's Day with my stepmother. She is a wonderful woman who is so kind and loving to everyone she meets.

My little brother and I were discussing what we were going to do for our stepmom tomorrow. We're both feeling the economic crunch so we decided to get creative but cheap.

Wal-Mart has tote bags that come in sets of three that would be perfect for three little grandchildren to paint. The bags are around $6 for a set of three and you can buy a set of fabric paint or markers for under $10. Especially if you go to Michael's to get the paint and use the 60% off coupon that comes in the weekly mailer or the Sunday paper. These totes are the perfect size to throw in the car and use to go shopping or the the grocery store. That's three less plastic bags you would be bringing home.

We also decided to cook dinner at home for her. Several grocers are having sales on meats, seafood, and various fruits. Lobster tails are $5 a piece at one of the stores by our house so we're going fancy and cooking lobster. I don't know any restaurant that sells $5 tails. Strawberries make a great dessert and are on sale all over the place this weekend. Like Rachel suggested with the blackberries, put the berries in a bowl with some cream and you've got yourself a mighty fine dessert. Simple, elegant, and heartfelt.

Moms always seem to do everything. That's why they're superheroes, but this year, why don't you give her a coupon book for a gift? Ideas of coupons could be a coupon for doing the laundry, dishes, cooking dinner, or even a coupon for watching the kids for a few hours so mom can get some relax and recharge time. These coupons could be designed and printed at home for very inexpensive. Or better yet, just do the things with no coupons. Let mom sleep in and then wake up to clean laundry and a yummy breakfast. Again, those berries and cream would make a fantastic breakfast! (I keep going on about them because the berries are starting to be so fresh and fragrant and so delicious! Thanks Rachel for reminding me that it's berries and cream season!)

I think this Mother's Day is going to be a great one. I hope you all have a wonderful day and get lots of snuggles and loves! Happy Mother's Day!

Summer Fruit

2009-05-04T13:20:00.007-05:00

It's getting to be time for fresh summer fruit. I'm not sure what that late freeze we had will do to this year's crop. We've been picking a few blackberries (they grow wild around our house), but they don't seem to be as abundant as usual. Maybe we'll have more in the coming weeks. We usually pick peaches in June and July and blueberries in June. I'll be looking for a place to pick strawberries this year.

I remember last year Olivia saying she wanted to go pick blackberries and asking me to come with her. At that time I was 39 weeks pregnant. I grabbed a couple of big bowls and waddled outside into the heat. We ambled along the road looking for berries. Olivia would holler "There's one! Mama, get it." So I would. Then she would eat it. I soon discovered she wanted me to do the picking so she could do the eating. In case you've never picked blackberries, they grow on vines that sprawl along the ground. LOW to the ground. And there I was looking like I'd swallowed a watermelon. I couldn't even see my feet. But, of course, I picked a bunch of berries for her.

There's nothing wrong with eating while you pick, but sometimes it's nice to do something else with your fruit. I don't know how many times we've filled our bowls with blackberries, poured milk over them (sometimes with a little cream), and made supper out of it. You can also make fruit smoothies with any fruit you want. Bananas, blueberries, and strawberries are a good combination. We go to a pick-your-own blueberry farm and pick LOTS of berries. You can put them in quart-size ziploc bags and freeze them. Later just get what you want to put in your smoothie (or yogurt, cereal, muffins, scones, etc.) and return the rest to the freezer.

Below I've added a couple of my favorite recipes.

Peach-Blueberry Cobbler
Topping:
2 cups pastry whole wheat flour
2 ½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon nutmeg
1 stick butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 egg
2/3 cup milk

Filling:
3 cups peaches
2 cups blueberries
½ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch (I use arrowroot powder.)
½ teaspoon nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Butter a 9-inch square baking pan.
Topping: Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter. Beat egg with milk and add to flour mixture all at once. Mix gently, just until combined. Let it rest while you make filling.
Filling: Combine peaches and blueberries in large bowl. In small bowl, mix dry ingredients. Add sugar mixture to fruit and stir gently to combine. Turn fruit into pan and sprinkle with lemon juice. Set aside.
Turn dough onto floured surface. Pat dough into a circle about ¾ - 1 inch thick. Cut with biscuit cutter and “cobble” them together over fruit. Sprinkle top with sugar, if desired. Bake at 350 degrees until topping is browned and fruit is bubbling and thickened, about 40-45 minutes.

Variations: Substitute 5 cups other fruit (or fruit combination). We like to use blackberries.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins
1 ½ cups pastry whole wheat flour
½ cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg, slightly beaten
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup milk
1 – 1 ¼ cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Streusel topping:
½ cup chopped pecans
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Make a well in the center. Place egg, butter, and milk in the well. Stir until combined. Gently stir in the blueberries and lemon zest. Fill each of 12 muffin cups ¾ full with batter. Make streusel topping by combining pecans, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and lemon zest with a fork. Pour in melted butter and stir to combine. Sprinkle topping over each muffin. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes until muffins are browned and firm. Serve immediately. (These are good without the streusel topping, too.)

The Importance of the In-Arms Phase by Jean Liedloff

2009-05-02T09:54:00.004-05:00

The Importance of the In-Arms Phase

by Jean Leidloff

In the two and a half years during which I lived among Stone Age Indians in the South American jungle (not all at once, but on five separate expeditions with a lot of time between them for reflection), I came to see that our human nature is not what we have been brought up to believe it is. Babies of the Yequana tribe, far from needing peace and quiet to go to sleep, snoozed blissfully whenever they were tired, while the men, women, or children carrying them danced, ran, walked, shouted, or paddled canoes. Toddlers played together without fighting or arguing, and they obeyed their elders instantly and willingly.

The notion of punishing a child had apparently never occurred to these people, nor did their behavior show anything that could truly be called permissiveness. No child would have dreamed of inconveniencing, interrupting, or being waited on by an adult. And by the age of four, children were contributing more to the work force in their family than they were costing others.

Babes in arms almost never cried and, fascinatingly, did not wave their arms, kick, arch their backs, or flex their hands and feet. They sat quietly in their slings or slept on someone’s hip - exploding the myth that babies need to flex to “exercise.” They also did not throw up unless extremely ill and did not suffer from colic. When startled during the first months of crawling and walking, they did not expect anyone to go to them but rather went on their own to their mother or other caretakers for the measure of reassurance needed before resuming their explorations. Without supervision, even the smallest tots rarely hurt themselves.

Is their “human nature” different from ours? Some people actually imagine that it is, but there is, of course, only one human species. What can we learn from the Yequana tribe?

Our Innate Expectations

Primarily, we can try to grasp fully the formative power of what I call the in-arms phase. It begins at birth and ends with the commencement of creeping, when the infant can depart and return at will to the caretaker’s knee. It consists, simply, of the infant having 24-hour contact with an adult or older child.

At first, I merely observed that this in-arms experience had an impressively salutary effect on the babies and that they were no “trouble” to manage. Their bodies were soft and conformed to any position convenient to their bearers - some of whom even dangled their babies down their backs while holding them by the wrist. I do not mean to recommend this position, but the fact that it is possible demonstrates the scope of what constitutes comfort for a baby. In contrast to this is the desperate discomfort of infants laid carefully in a crib or carriage, tenderly tucked in, and left to go rigid with the desire for the living body that is by nature their rightful place - a body belonging to someone who will “believe” their cries and relieve their craving with welcoming arms.

Why the incompetence in our society? From childhood on, we are taught not to believe in our instinctive knowledge. We are told that parents and teachers know best and that when our feelings do not concur with their ideas, we must be wrong. Conditioned to mistrust or utterly disbelieve our feelings, we are easily convinced not to believe the baby whose cries say “You should hold me!” “I should be next to your body!” “Don’t leave me!” Instead, we overrule our natural response and follow the going fashion dictated by babycare “experts.” The loss of faith in our innate expertise leaves us turning from one book to another as each successive fad fails.

It is important to understand who the real experts are. The second greatest babycare expert is within us, just as surely as it resides in every surviving species that, by definition, must know how to care for its young. The greatest expert of all is, of course, the baby - programmed by millions of years of evolution to signal his or her own kind by sound and action when care is incorrect. Evolution is a refining process that has honed our innate behavior with magnificent precision. The signal from the baby, the understanding of the signal by his or her people, the impulse to obey it - all are part of our species’ character.

The presumptuous intellect has shown itself to be ill-equipped to guess at the authentic requirements of human babies. The question is often: Should I pick up the baby when he or she cries? Or should I first let the baby cry for a while? Or should I let the baby cry so that this child know who is boss and will not become a “tyrant”?

No baby would agree to any of these impositions. Unanimously, they let us know by the clearest signals that they should not be put down at all. As this option has not been widely advocated in contemporary Western civilization, the relationship between parent and child has remained steadfastly adversarial. The game has been about how to get the baby to sleep in the crib, whether or not to oppose the baby’s cries has not been considered. Although Tine Thevenin’s book, The Family Bed, and others have gone some way to open the subject up of having children sleep with parents, the important principle has not been clearly addressed: to act against our nature as a species is inevitably to lose well-being.

Once we have grasped and accepted the principle of respecting our innate expectations, we will be able to discover precisely what those expectations are - in other words, what evolution has accustomed us to experience.

The Formative Role of the In-Arms Phase

How did I come to see the in-arms phase as crucial to a person’s development? First, I saw the relaxed and happy people in the forests of South America lugging around their babies and never putting them down. Little by little, I was able to see a connection between that simple fact and the quality of their lives. Later still, I have come to certain conclusions about how and why being in constant contact with the active caretaker is essential to the initial postnatal stage of development.

For one thing, it appears that the person carrying the baby (usually the mother in the first months, then often a four- to 12-year-old child who brings the baby back to the mother for feeding) is laying the foundation for later experience. The baby passively participates in the bearers running, walking, laughing, talking, working, and playing. The particular activities, the pace, the inflections of the language, the variety of sights, night and day, the range of temperatures, wetness and dryness, and the sounds of community life form a basis for the active participation that will begin at six or eight months of age with creeping, crawling, and then walking. A baby who has spent this time lying in a quiet crib or looking at the inside of a carriage, or at the sky, will have missed most of this essential experience.

Because of the child’s need to participate, it is also important that caretakers not just sit and gaze at the baby or continually ask what the baby wants, but lead active lives themselves. Occasionally one cannot resist giving a baby a flurry of kisses; however, a baby who is programmed to watch you living your busy life is confused and frustrated when you spend your time watching him living his. A baby who is in the business of absorbing what life is like as lived by you is thrown into confusion if you ask him to direct it.

The second essential function of the in-arms experience appears to have escaped the notice of everyone (including me, until the mid-1960s). It is to provide babies with a means of discharging their excess energy until they are able to do so themselves. In the months before being able to get around under their own power, babies accumulate energy from the absorption of food and sunshine. A baby therefore needs constant contact with the energy field of an active person, who can discharge the unused excess for each of them. This explains why the Yequana babies were so strangely relaxed - why they did not stiffen, kick, arch, or flex to relieve themselves of an uncomfortable accumulation of energy.

To provide the optimum in-arms experience, we have to discharge our own energy efficiently. One can very quickly calm a fussing baby by running or jumping with the child, or by dancing or doing whatever eliminates one’s own energy excess. A mother or father who must suddenly go out to get something need not say, “Here, you hold the baby. I’m going to run down to the shop.” The one doing the running can take the baby along for the ride. The more action, the better!

Babies - and adults - experience tension when the circulation of energy in their muscles is impeded. A baby seething with undischarged energy is asking for action: a leaping gallop around the living room or a swing from the child’s hands or feet. The baby’s energy field will immediately take advantage of an adult’s discharging one. Babies are not the fragile things we have been handling with kid gloves. In fact, a baby treated as fragile at this formative stage can be persuaded that he or she is fragile.

As parents, you can readily attain the mastery that comes with comprehension of energy flow. In the process you will discover many ways to help your baby retain the soft muscle tone of ancestral well-being and give your baby some of the calm and comfort an infant needs to feel at home in the world.

Copyright ©1991 by Jean Liedloff

Summer break camps

2009-04-30T20:11:00.002-05:00

Summer vacation is quickly coming upon us and I've been looking into several places to send my almost 5 year old son for classes. We are going to start homeschooling him this fall and I want to supplement my teachings with outside classes so he can have regular social interaction in a class form. In doing so, I've found several programs that run year round and would be nice for the summer time.

Did you know there's a Lego Learning Center in Southlake? It's the only one in North America and according to my son, it's super cool. They have several spring, summer, and winter camps. They also have regular sessions throughout the year and camps specifically for homeschoolers. They learn several skills including math, engineering, and fair play.

The Fort Worth Zoo has camps meant for homeschoolers, but anyone can attend. The children are in groups according to age and learn about various animals and their habits, etc. The Heard Natural Museum offers a similar course, but seems to focus more on local flora and fauna. How cool for a 5 year old to get a zoology class?

There are several local gymnasiums that have weekly drop in classes for under a couple bucks per child. These free play classes are always super fun and non competitive. You might also look into local music schools for summer programs and there are now cooking classes for children as well. I know that Whole Foods, Central Market, and Market Street offer cooking classes for children ages 5 and up. They also offer parent and child classes for ages 3 and up.

We're trying really hard to get our kids out more, but I find it difficult to motivate myself to go farther than the local park or the mall. It's often too hot or too cold outside for the kids and to be honest it's hard for me to get all three kids ready and out the door. So this year we have made the resolution to get our children more involved in activities outside of regular playdates or the play area at the mall. I hope I've given you a few ideas for your own kids and maybe we'll even see each other there!

Here a Cluck, There a Cluck

2009-04-27T11:24:00.004-05:00

About 4 years ago, I decided to get some chickens. My husband and dad built a nice chicken house. It's of moderate size with several roosts and nest boxes. I think we started with about a dozen chickens. Over the years racoons, hawks, snakes, and cats wreaked havoc in our chicken yard. When our numbers dwindled, I'd buy a few more. Last year we had a terrible time with the coons, and eventually lost our last chicken to a hawk. Since I was busy with a new baby I didn't bother to replace them. Lately, though, I've been considering getting back into the chicken business.

We have an area fenced off around the chicken house. Originally we had a garden there (the fence was to deter deer and rabbits). The chickens roamed around the garden, eating all the pests off our plants. They didn't do too much damage to the plants. Since the chickens could fly over the fence we opened the gate and let them run around the yard, too. A little before dark they'd head back to their house. We had to shut them up at night in order to avoid serving an all-you-can-eat buffet to the racoons.

Chickens are fun to watch, especially banties (they're a miniature variety). No chickens are noted for their intelligence, but banties seem to be a little smarter. Olivia enjoyed feeding them and watching them (and chasing them). Jesse enjoyed watching them, too, even though he was tiny when we lost the last of them.

When you have chickens, it's nice to be able to run outside and grab some eggs. You know what they eat and that they run around outside all day, so you know they produce good eggs. Likewise, their meat should be healthier than what you can get at the grocery store. Also, chicken litter makes wonderful organic fertilizer.

What a day

2009-04-23T18:11:00.002-05:00

I am so exhausted that I can't see straight. One child has a high fever and puked red juice and grapes all over my parents carpet. Another child has a mild fever and two teeth just breaking the gums. Of course, she doesn't want to be outdone by her brother so she's puking all over the carpet too. This is a result of her over eating everything in sight. The third child is fine, but he's warm and I have a sneaking suspicion that he might not be feeling good as well.

Some days as a mother are just hard. Just honest to goodness back breaking, exhausting work. I am covered in puke, but haven't had the energy to change and I've been scrubbing said puke out of the carpet all day. I need a break. But, I'm a mom and this is what we do. I'm sitting here typing this rant and I'm listening to my daughter cry because she's feeling ignored since I'm not holding her. I want to cry, but as soon as I look at her she breaks into a huge grin and her gap toothed smile makes me smile too.

I love my children. Yes, it's hard to have three small children. Some days are harder than others. But, everyday is filled with so much love. My pukey child only wants me to hold him and snuggle him. He hates the cold washcloths I'm using to bring down his fever, but he trusts me when I say it'll help him feel better and allows me to lay the cold cloth on him. I am so tired but I feel so loved that I will find the strength to get through this day so when I lay down tonight I will know that I did my best in caring for my sick kids.

Mother's Day is coming up and I want to remind everyone that moms are special every day. Not just on that Sunday in May. We all work so hard and I want to tell every one of you that I'm proud of you. It's not easy to be a mom. It's long hours and selfless dedication, but the rewards are great and it takes a strong woman to be a good mom. Happy early Mother's Day and happy late Earth day!

Off to a Good Start

2009-04-20T09:19:00.007-05:00

I recently read "The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood" by William Sears, M.D., Martha Sears, R.N., James Sears, M.D., and Robert Sears, M.D. I was in the middle of it when I came across this article which states that 18.4% of 4-year-olds in the United States are obese. 4-year-olds!

Although "The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood" is directed to parents (particularly those with young children), the information put forth would be beneficial to everyone. At the beginning of the book, the authors list 10 changes every family must make. The rest of the book is devoted to explaining how and why to make these changes. I've listed them below, along with some examples.

1. Shape young tastes early.
2. Feed your family the right carbs. (fruits, beans, peas, nut butters, soy foods, veggies, whole grains, yogurt)
3. Feed your family the right fats. (avocado, flaxseed oil, nut butters, nuts, olive oil, seafood, seeds)
4. Feed your children grow foods. (avocados, beans, blueberries, eggs, flaxseed meal, nuts, oatmeal, salmon, spinach, tofu, tomatoes, yogurt)
5. Feed your family fill-up foods. (apples, beans, beef, cheese, cherries, eggs, fish, grapes, nuts, oatmeal, olive oil, oranges, salads, soybeans, vegetables, whole-grain breads and pasta)
6. Begin the day with a brainy breakfast. (A brainy breakfast includes protein, fiber-filled carbs, omega-3 fats, and minerals such as calcium and iron.)
7. Raise a grazer.
8. Feed your child's immune system. (chili peppers, cold-water fish, flaxseed oil, fruits, olive oil, nuts, spices, vegetables, whole grains, wild game meats)
9. Raise a lean family. Get active as a family.
10. Teach your children to be wise supermarket shoppers. (mainly shop the perimeter, buy whole grains, buy mostly grow foods, read labels carefully)

The authors note that by not feeding your children anything containing high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils ("trans fats"), or any color additive with a number symbol attached to it (e.g., blue #1, yellow #5, red #40), you'll have gone 90% of the way toward de-junking your child's diet.

You can find a wealth of information at http://www.askdrsears.com/.

Earth Day Sale at CrunchyBunch.com! Save 20%

2009-04-16T16:16:00.003-05:00

Just a quick announcement to let everyone know that we're having a fabulous STOREWIDE sale in honor of Earth Day!

Head over to http://www.crunchybunch.com and save a whopping 20% on everything ~ yes, even clearance! Just use coupon code "EARTHDAY2009" at checkout :)

Thanks and enjoy your most beautiful day!! <3

You are beautiful just the way you are.

2009-04-16T15:34:00.003-05:00

I recently went with a friend to her breast augmentation consultation. She has lost lots of weight over the past couple of years and in the process she lost a big portion of her breast size and firmness. So, she has made the decision to "buy her self image back" as she put it.

While we were at the doctor's office, there were several brochures and medical magazines on different procedures that were available. One magazine called for a "mommy makeover". It had a checklist of various items ranging from belly firmness to breast floppiness. If you checked one or more box then you were instructed to see the corresponding surgeries that would make you look beautiful again.

I was appalled by that article and survey. I am a young woman with three small children. I often have days where I lament the loss of my pre-baby body. I look at my breasts and wish they were perky again and I didn't have that "mommy apron" belly. But you know what? I GREW humans! I made life three times in my belly. I have love scars not "war wounds". I am proud of every stretch mark. My husband cherishes my fleshy hips and thicker thighs because he knows I'm eating well and nourishing his children while I'm pregnant and then while I'm nursing. I am a woman and I am a mother and I wouldn't change that for anything. I've learned to dress a little different and use some more drastic tricks to reshape or hold in various jiggly bits, but I'd rather buy less revealing clothes than have a major surgery that takes away my memories of carrying my children.

My friend feels she needs this surgery to make her feel like a woman again, and that's okay. I don't judge anyone for feeling that they need to have a procedure to make them feel attractive. You need to be happy with yourself and if cosmetic surgery makes you happy then go for it. My issue is doctors trying to make me feel ugly for having children. I was not one of the women who bounced back and lost all the weight and extra skin in three months. My daughter is 10 months old and I'm still a little bigger than I'd like to be, but I know that those extra pounds cushioned my baby in utero. I feel that my stretch marks are a road map of growth. I know which ones are from which pregnancy and I remember what months I got them in those pregnancies. They're badges of honor and I'm proud to carry them.

3...2...1...Blastoff!

2009-04-13T11:22:00.000-05:00

Let me start by reminding you that we use cloth diapers. Then you'll understand how I can devote a whole post to dirty diapers. The other day Jesse had THREE dirty diapers before naptime. Back in the good ol' days (before solid foods were introduced), I could treat wet and dirty diapers the same: toss them in the diaper pail, wash, dry. As long as your baby is exclusively breastfed, you don't need to rinse the diapers. Everything comes out in the wash. So easy! By the way, sunlight is a free and easy stain-remover. Now I have two choices...use a diaper sprayer or *gulp* dunk and swish. Looong before Jesse started solids I asked my husband to install a diaper sprayer. I LOVE it. I didn't realize how much until we spent a few days at my parents' house without one.

You can find "real" diaper sprayers for around $30 or more (on eBay and other sites), but I had read that many people make their own for less. Referring to this picture, Hubby bought some things at Lowe's and swiped the kitchen sprayer from my sink (I never used it for dishes). Apparently we don't have a standard toilet supply line, so he spent quite a bit of time collecting parts to make everything fit together. He thinks it would have been just as efficient to install a "real" one.

If you have a standard flexible toilet supply line and prefer step-by-step directions, here is a tutorial I recently found. Hubby thinks you should have a turn-off valve between the T-fitting and the diaper sprayer, as does one of the tutorial's commenters, because a kitchen sprayer isn't meant to have constant pressure. Either way you go, you won't be sorry. When Jesse has a dirty diaper, I turn on my sprayer, hold the diaper over the toilet (seat up), and spray away. Then the diaper goes in the pail until wash day.

Yay! Spring is in the air!

2009-04-10T07:53:00.002-05:00

I recently went to the grocery store and came home with a bounty of vegetables and fruits. Everything is becoming in season and everything is super cheap! Yae! We got cantaloupe, all kinds of berries, bell peppers, even artichokes for super cheap. Artichokes are one of my favorite vegetables, but they're normally very expensive so we aren't able to buy them fresh on a normal basis. Having freshly steamed whole artichokes was a special treat!

I highly recommend growing veggies and fruits in your garden like Rachel does, but if you've got a killer thumb (like me), then the grocery is the next best place. The Farmer's Market in Dallas should be filling up with lots of yummy goods right now also and they are usually inexpensive and it's a fun experience. I find that stores like Sprouts, Natural Grocer, and Whole Foods have great produce for a fair price and good selection.

I love springtime and all it's bounty. I get to cook with fresher ingredients and our menu is so varied according to what's in season. I like to ask my 4 year old what color he wants to eat today and we buy our veggies accordingly. He has fun and feels more involved in our menu planning. Don't forget to start going outside to grill. Get vitamin D from the sun and save some electricity!

Nursing in Public

2009-04-07T00:24:00.004-05:00

Earlier I was trying to remember the last time I saw someone nursing in public (other than at a La Leche League meeting). It was March 2. I remember because we were at Dr. Seuss's birthday party at the Nacogdoches Public Library. Before that...I can't remember. I don't feel we should run away and hide to nourish our babies, nor do I think we should bare all. I've breastfed my babies at weddings, funerals, the library, WalMart, restaurants, school, church, the mall, picking peaches, garage sales, relatives' houses, friends' houses, anywhere we happen to be. It can be done discreetly. Here are some ideas to help you.

* Nursing covers are available from several sources. I haven't tried these. One reason is that I don't think Jesse would tolerate it. You could just use a receiving blanket.

* A plain ol' t-shirt works great. Pull it up enough to allow you to get the baby latched on and you won't show much skin.

* A nursing tank underneath a button-up shirt is a nice combination. You can use the button-up shirt to cover what the baby doesn't. It doesn't even have to be a nursing tank. You could use a regular tank and pull it down or up for access.

* Nursing tops are also available from several sources. I would not recommend the kind with two layers. By the time I get the layers separated and Jesse hits his target, he could've been halfway finished if I'd just pulled up my shirt.

* When wearing just a button-up shirt, try lifting it from the bottom (you may need to unbutton a few bottom buttons) instead of unbuttoning the top. It's easier to stay covered, especially if your baby gets distracted and pulls away quickly.

* Wear your baby while you breastfeed. Mei tais, wraps, ring slings, and pouch slings let you feed your baby while you wear him. Usually the baby carrier helps you stay covered.

Kefir grains

2009-04-05T09:56:00.003-05:00

This week I am going to go boldly where no one in my family has gone before. I am going to start using kefir grains. Or is it growing kefir grains? I am so excited and a little overwhelmed by my "natural" decision. My hubby is extremely skeptical to say the least, but he's humoring me at this point.

I have started to look at healthier things to eat and drink and thanks to our very own wonderful Crunchy Bunch Kathy, I have started into looking at eating some things raw. I started drinking kombucha which was an adventure in itself and has taken several tries before finding one that I could almost like. This journey into raw, healthy drinks got me on the road to kefir milk. My son is lactose sensitive and I thought that using kefir milk might work for him as a drink on a daily basis since it acts as a catalyst to help the body digest lactose. Kefir grains can feed, grow, and ferment on the milk of any mammal and even some milk alternatives such as soy milk, rice milk, or coconut milk. I am excited to try making kefir milk from coconut milk since I'm hoping the natural sweetness of the coconut milk will help cut the sour, fermented taste of the kefir milk.

I've read that you can use kefir milk in smoothies or even add flavorings to the milk itself. Some of the additives I want to try are agave nectar, honey, fruits, and maybe some vanilla bean. Several countries sell kefir milk as an all day beverage and it seems to be very popular all over the world. I've also been told that you can eat the grains themselves. These are very good since they have lots of probiotic bacteria. The milk has the same benefits as well.

Do you use kefir grains and/or milk? Do you have any tips or recipes for me to try? I am extremely interested in hearing your stories or recipes so please, please share! Otherwise, wish me luck and I'll keep you updated! Hopefully, soon I'll have enough grains to share with everyone!

Baby Steps

2009-03-30T15:59:00.005-05:00

It is with mixed feelings I make the following announcement.

My baby is walking.

Jesse's been "cruising" for a while, then he started taking a step or two by himself. We excitedly watched while one or two turned into four or five. Then, Wednesday, he just took off. He walked halfway across the living room. He walked down the hall. He walked all the way across the living room. My parents were here most of the week and got to witness this milestone. Needless to say, Jesse hasn't gotten all the kinks worked out. He still needs to grab something to help him to a standing position. When he stoops to pick up a toy he usually falls over. Sometimes he forgets to watch where his feet are stepping and trips on something. Fortunately he doesn't have far to fall.

With the excitement and pride of watching my little one learn to walk alone comes the concern for his safety. (Of course all of us are always concerned for our children's safety, but how much trouble can they get into before they're mobile?) This really started when he began pulling up on things a while ago. I had stumbled across the story of a child who was killed when he pulled a chest of drawers over on top of himself. Before reading that article, I hadn't thought much about it. I've since moved a table that Jesse could very easily pull over on himself. I tied Olivia's play kitchen (it's in one large piece) to her bed so he wouldn't pull it over. Lately I've been more careful of how many toys are scattered around the living room that he could trip on. I know kids will get hurt sooner or later and you can't protect them from everything, but some things are more dangerous than others, such as televisions, stereos, computers, chests of drawers, bookshelves, and any other heavy item that a child could knock over (or off something) on top of himself. Hopefully writing this will prompt me to reduce the potential hazards in my home. Maybe it will enourage you to think about yours.

Natural Remedies

2009-03-27T01:27:00.002-05:00

Sick germs love my family. We seem to be constantly being hit with colds this winter. I am nursing and refuse to take medication for my illnesses (plus decongestants can dry up my milk). My children are too young for most over the counter medications so we have turned to alternative methods of treating our sniffles and coughs.

My favorite is a cup of hot tea and honey. Sometimes, I just warm a cup of plain water with lemon and honey and that does wonders for soothing a sore throat. Gargling with salt water is icky but effective as well. I have recently started using a saline solution that I run through my sinuses. I use a gigantic syringe, but I've heard of Netti pots that do the same thing. The saline up the nose is amazing! I couldn't believe how much it helped and how much better I felt. I also overdose on vitamin C and echinacea when I feel a cold coming on. Today I had over 2000% of the daily recommended value of vitamin C and it's the first time in a week that I've felt like a living person. Thank you Odwalla!

My kids have started using a product called Sinupret for kids and I've found that while it doesn't prevent a cold, it does shorten the length of the cold and the severity of it. When combined with Emergen-C, we can knock out a cold fairly quickly with no significant interruption of our normal daily activities. They also like warm water and snuggles on the couch.

I love water. Water in all forms. Especially in steam while I'm sick. I've been known to lay on the floor of the shower and let the water fill the bathroom with steam and just marinate there. The steam helps loosen the congestion and relax my achy muscles when I have a fever. Drinking plain water is the easiest natural remedy for a lot of ailments. It helps flush toxins from your body and keeping hydrated is so important for everyone at all ages.

Chamomile is a wonderful tea for soothing nausea and upset stomachs. Lavender is relaxing for the mind and body. Ginger is great in several forms for soothing nausea. You can find it in sucker form, tea, candied, etc. Zinc helps reduce the length of colds as well. Zinc is found naturally in pumpkin seeds, beef, salmon, and potatoes. Mint teas are great for helping a cold or viral infection flush out of your system. Keeping things moving is key.

I hope everyone is keeping cozy warm and hopefully haven't been suffering from too many colds or the flu.

And the winner is...

2009-03-25T14:03:00.010-05:00

*drumroll please!*

The winner of our Organic Mei Tai giveaway is....

Stefanie S.!

A super duper huge big awesome Congratulations to Stefanie and her little one/s!!! =D

Stefanie was one of several who entered our contest using the alternate entry form ~ glad to know it worked properly! Yay me! ;) hehe

As a side note, I apologize for the delay in announcing the winner of our giveaway. Mommy things came up that required my attentions away from the computer for a bit (I'm sure you can all relate!).

Stefanie, I'll be sending you an email to find out which color you desire, and where to send your new organic mei tai ~ be watching for it!

And as a great big huge THANK YOU! to all who entered, I will be sending each of you a $10 Crunchy Bunch Gift Certificate via email! (So please make sure I have your email address ~ if I don't, I can't send it to you!)

Again, thank you to all who entered and Congratulations to Stefanie! I really enjoyed reading all your babywearing stories and gardening going-ons and everything! =D

(Winner was drawn using Random.org's third party draw. Each person was entered the corresponding number of times according to the number of entries they received via the giveaway details. You may view the entry and winner details here: http://random.org/draws/details/?draw_id=527)

The Infamous Zucchini

2009-03-23T21:55:00.011-05:00

Spring is officially here! Have you planted your garden? I finally got most of my seeds planted. I'll try to get the rest of them planted this week. I've always been sort of an infracaninophile (a great word - look it up), so I feel like sticking up for the lowly zucchini. I'm sure you've heard the joke about locking your car door, not to prevent theft, but so people won't leave their extra zucchini in your car. I'll admit I got a little carried away planting it a few years ago - 2 dozen plants is too many! I was new to gardening and it never occured to me that just because they put 24 seeds in a package doesn't mean you have to plant all 24. You can save some for next year.

Another word to the wise: check carefully for zucchini under all leaves. Don't complain to me when you discover a green club in your garden. To the left is one that got away from me (next to my then 8-month-old Olivia). There are many jokes about zucchini, but there are just as many good uses for it. I dug out a couple of my favorite recipes in anticipation. These recipes call for other goodies you've probably got in your garden.

Garlic Zucchini Frittata
(from Taste of Home magazine, April/May 2003)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium zucchini, shredded
6 eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1/4 cup sliced green onions

In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute for 1 minute. Add zucchini; cook for 3 minutes or until tender. In a bowl, beat eggs and mustard. Pour into skillet. Sprinkle with bacon, salt, and pepper. As eggs set, lift edges, letting uncooked portion flow underneath. Cook until eggs are nearly set, about 7 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat broiler. Place skillet under the broiler, 6 inches from the heat, for 30-60 seconds or until the eggs are completely set. Sprinkle with cheese and green onions. Broil 30 seconds longer or until cheese is melted. Cut into wedges. Yield: 4 servings

Zucchini Casserole
(My husband already had this recipe when we got married. I don't know its origin. The measurements aren't very precise, so you can adjust things to your taste.)
1 1/2 or 2 small zucchini, sliced or cubed
5 eggs
several slices chopped onion
2 tomatoes, diced (I usually use a can of Rotel)
salt to taste
paprika to taste

Butter a glass dish (about 1.5 quarts). Beat eggs in pan. Add remaining ingredients. Cover with foil. Place in a larger dish and add enough water to come about halfway up the side. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour to an hour and a half.
Variations: You can add some precooked meat, if you like. We like grated cheese on top (add this when the casserole is done). Sometimes we sprinkle cheese crackers on the top (they give it a nice crunch).

Other Ideas
1. Substitute zucchini for cucumbers in your favorite Sweet Pickle Relish recipe. I didn't notice the difference.
2. Substitute zucchini for cucumbers in your favorite Bread and Butter Pickles recipe. I didn't notice the difference.
3. Add some zucchini to your spaghetti sauce.
4. Saute zucchini, yellow squash, and onion (all thinly sliced) in a little butter or olive oil. Try including garlic, too.

What is baby food?

2009-03-22T20:25:00.004-05:00

My youngest child is 9 months old and eating EVERYTHING in sight. She was gnawing on beef jerky this morning. Yes, you read that correctly. Beef jerky. We have not had to buy this child a single jar of baby food because she only wants to eat "grown up" food. A girlfriend of mine asked if I was "allowed" to feed the baby food that didn't come from a jar. So, I explained to her how to make homemade baby food and it got me thinking that maybe some other mom might like some of the tips that I've found have worked for us.

Our family uses infant cereal. We know all about the dirty secrets about it, but I find that it's an easy transition food when we start feeding the babies table food. We normally use the rice formula and then progress to mixed cereals and ones with fruit in them. However, that's the extent of our prepared baby food buying. Mashed up bananas are great for infants. We give very ripe avocados to her; which are extremely nutritious. My daughter liked to scrape sliced apples with her bottom teeth and chew soft pears too. Baked/microwaved sweet potatoes, yams, and white potatoes are great also. Eventually we moved on to meat sticks and peeled turkey dogs.

I've also made baby food that looks like commercial baby food. I suggest investing in a small food processor. You can get the tiny ones for around $15. I would take some of whatever we were eating and mash it in the food processor and viola! Instant baby food. Macaroni and cheese is so easy to make for all of the kids for any age. Mash up the baby's portion, and give the older children the whole pasta.

It's so easy to make baby food. We use Cheerios and fruit leathers for easy snacks for her. She loves to suck on any dried fruit and as of this morning, dried meat. Remember to have a baby try a new food at least 15 times before giving up. It can take a lot of times before they decide they like it.

Kindergarden

2009-03-15T23:55:00.024-05:00

(I included pictures of some of our neat visitors. These were taken 2 years ago.)

Yes, I meant to spell it that way. Gardening is a great teaching tool. One thing kids can learn is how vegetables and other plants grow. Let them prepare the soil, plant seeds, water, pull weeds, harvest the crops. Depending on their ages, you may need to help with some steps. You could even give them their own garden space and let them decide what they want to plant and where they want to plant it. (Tiger Swallowtail to the right)

Olivia likes to plant seeds, but not all of them are big enough for her little fingers to handle. So I let her plant the big seeds and I do the little ones. Sometimes I let her try the little ones, too. Sunflower, borage, nasturtium, and squash seeds are big enough for little kids to plant, as are peas, beans, and potatoes. Radishes, cucumbers, zinnias, and marigolds are great for children because they germinate quickly. Lettuce and basil also germinate quickly but have tiny seeds. (Zebra Swallowtail - really hard to photograph!)

If you plant some flowers, you can watch for caterpillars, butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds. We had lots of butterflies and bees around our zinnias, sunflowers, and lantana (buy lantana as a bush). What better way for kids to learn about the life cycle of butterflies than by watching it? Have the kids see if they can identify the butterflies. They can look for caterpillars and may be able to find some cacoons. If you find a cacoon, put it in a jar with a lid and airholes and watch the butterfly emerge. (Giant Swallowtail)

Here are a few other things you can do...
1. Build a bean teepee. Make a teepee with cane poles. Run some twine horizontally around the poles, leaving a door, to make a "web" for the beans to climb. (I'll see about getting a picture.) Plant your beans around the base of the teepee. Watch them grow!
2. Grow a sunflower house. Plant your seeds in a square (or other shape), leaving a door. When the sunflowers grow you'll have a house.
3. Eat the veggies! Don't forget the sunflower seeds. Also, some flowers are edible (nasturtiums, borage, and squash blossoms to name a few). Use herbs for seasoning and teas.

Bee on a sunflower

American Lady and Spicebush Swallowtail

Below are pictures of the gulf fritillary and its caterpillar. The passionflower, an interesting-looking plant, is its only larval food plant.

Traveling with children

2009-03-13T09:50:00.004-05:00

We're on an extended road trip and have been driving for hours with our children. All three of my children. My oldest is only four and a half and my youngest is 8 months old. While I'm no expert, I thought I would give some tips that we found worked for us while on the road for a long time.

Snacks, snacks, and more snacks. We had both boys get their little backpacks and fill them up with all the snacks they wanted. We purchased shelf stable chocolate milks, graham crackers, NutriGrain bars...anything they wanted (that was healthy of course). This helped a tremendous amount to keep them happy because they don't often get chocolate milk or NutriGrain bars. So they felt that they were having something super special and I got another hour of no crying! We usually give them dried fruit, but this time we let them pick which one they wanted and they felt grown up because they put them in their own bags and kept them by their seats.

We also used a DVD player to help them zone out. Bad mommy, I know, but it helped so much! We brought along paint with water books and let them go at it with those...my oldest son was also engrossed with his handheld gaming system.

Another great tip was to let them get out every three or four hours and stretch their legs. We'd go to the play area at McDonalds and let them run around for at least half and hour. The release of energy and boredom was awesome. We made sure to let them run around for a significant amount of time so they didn't throw a fit when it was time to get back into the car.

We've been having a blast while driving around and seeing new things. I highly recommend taking a road trip with your children. Even if it's just to somewhere close like Austin. The drive can be fun and educational. We saw windmills from a wind farm and later some oil rigs so we talked about the differences between the two and how they affect our day to day living. Not to mention that all of us were blown away (ha, ha) by how big the windmills were!