The Vandervort Family Blog

Announcing our Next Adventure

2011-03-10T13:35:00.001-05:00

The launch of our new website!!!!

**Please update your subscriptions and bookmarks!**

My Baby's Bonnet

2011-03-08T22:09:00.000-05:00

(disclaimer: there will be a post about Ian coming very soon!)

My baby girl's bonnet is from an Etsy shop. For the life of me I can't remember the name... and can't find the email either.

We get compliments on it continuously.

I think it's just the pinnacle of girly-girl. I love playing with my boys, but I love dressing up my girl!

Lauren in the Jumperoo

2011-03-06T09:08:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to our Friends!

2011-03-05T13:24:00.000-05:00

We congratulate and welcome Melanie Rose to the world! Our dear friends Mike & Kim entered the new parents club yesterday and we couldn't be more happy for them!

Can't wait to meet her!

My kids are pretty cool

2011-03-04T17:27:00.000-05:00

I do complain about them a lot and I should be more careful about that. In the grand scheme of things, I have great kids. They are (mostly) well behaved, kind, loving, and very smart.

I guess it is just hard to be grateful for such good kids when they still know how to push my buttons and I'm operating on very little sleep.

But I'm trying.

I'm trying really hard to be smitten with my children even when my almost-four year old refuses to nap and the heaps on the I'm-so-tired-I-can't-see-straight attitude.

I'm trying to enjoy my seven month old even when she screams like a banshee to be picked up every fourteen seconds while I'm trying to cook dinner. And when she pulls those fine little hairs on the back of my neck.

I'm trying to be thankful even when my 2 year old throws himself to the floor in protest when it is time to leave the train table at the book store.

My kids really are wonderful. They don't run too far down the path in front of me. They don't get into things they shouldn't *very often. They can (and do) play by themselves. They do as told in stressful situations. They roll with the punches when we run out of chocolate syrup. I have it pretty easy, really. And I know that.

Sometimes I need to blog it to remind myself how nice our little (big?) family really is!

Lollitops

2011-03-03T17:05:00.000-05:00

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Lauren's Lollitops hat that I bought from Babysteals while she was still in-utero finally fits!

Babywearing

2011-03-03T14:04:00.001-05:00

I'm not sure how mothers of babies get anything done without a carrier. I've worn each one of my babies and Roger has also worn each of them.

Playing Soccer with Lauren in the Ergo 2/11

When we only had Ian, we mainly used a borrowed Evenflo Snugli carrier. Occasionally we used a Playtex Hip Hammock. After I was pregnant with Aaron, but still wanting to wear Ian, a friend of mine recommended the Ergo Carrier. I'm so glad she did! It is, to date, the best carrier I've ever used.

Lauren in the Moby 09/10

The same friend (along with a couple of other girlfriends) gifted me a Moby Wrap after Aaron was born. It took a bit of practice and watching YouTube videos to learn how to use it correctly, but I grew to love the Moby for my infant(s). If it weren't for the slushy-slop & coat-wearing during a Pennsylvania winter, I'd use the Moby a lot more. It is just too complicated to tie during the winter here. It is a great carrier for newborns & infants. I've never had my back hurt while using it.

Aaron in the Moby at age 12 months 10/09

This past fall, I ran into another problem: I had a 3 1/2 year old, a 2 year old, and an infant. I needed something that was quick to accommodate a lot of in-and-out type errands. I snagged a Maya Ring Sling from Craig's List & it was great until Miss Lauren decided she needed to see things and so the Ergo came back into the picture.

Aaron in the backpack 05/10

I would call my babywearing with my third child extensive. I wear her every single day...even when we don't leave the house. On my back or on my front, it doesn't really matter. She's most content when she's snuggled up to me in the Ergo. I can wear her for long periods on outings to the zoo or museum, I can wear her for a short hop through the pharmacy. I wear her to paint, to cook, to clean, to play with Ian & Aaron.

Lauren in the Maya Ring Sling 08/10

Roger wearing Ian on a hike 05/09

I've become so dependent on the carrier now (two free hands, one for each preschooler to hold) that I'm not sure I could do an outing without wearing Lauren... unless, of course, Roger or my sister wants to wear her! And they do. Auntie Emily takes every opportunity to wear Lauren (And Aaron, and Ian) that she gets. Likewise, I've also worn both of her boys too. No bonding with an Aunt quite like being worn in a Moby or Ring Sling. It's a great way to live & love!

Aaron in the Moby facing out while hiking 07/09

I'm not sure how I arrived at such a babywearing way of life, but I'm glad I did.

Ian in the Snugli at the pumpkin patch 10/07

If you're interested in my recommendations for a baby carrier, here's my two cents:

For infants anywhere/anytime: Moby Wrap.
For infants in the winter in the North: Ring sling or Ergo. (Although Ergo isn't technically for infants unless you have the insert.)
If you want to breastfeed while wearing a baby: Maya Ring Sling
For older infants/heavier infants/toddlers: Ergo carrier
For backpaking: Kelty Kids
For gifting: Action Baby Carrier (based on reviews. I can't wait to try one! We gave one to friends recently & I hope they let me try it sometime!)

I do not recommend:
Playtex Hip Hammock (really hard on your neck.)
Baby Bjorn (for the money, there are much higher rated options.)

What I'd love to try:
Mei Tai (based on friends' opinions)
Beco Carrier (based on friends' opinions)

Click on the babywearing label on the right to see other posts I've written on the subject!

Sweet Aaron Says

2011-03-03T12:46:00.000-05:00

Aaron was playing just now and I could hear him over the monitor.

He said, "And thank you for mommy who loves us so much. Thank you for daddy who loves us so much. Thank you for sister and thank you for brother who love me so much."

....

"You have to sing with us! You have to sing it! bye bye, I'm going to get a cake for you. From the store. A birthday cake. And a candle. You need to blow it out. It is chocolate."

...

"I'm back. Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you. Here's one piece. You have to eat it!"

What a sweet little guy.

I love him!

New Posts

2011-03-02T19:23:00.000-05:00

I have 3 new posts that need finished & published. I keep getting interrupted!

This week has been very busy. Last week was too. I hope that's not the new normal.

Tomorrow Ian goes to school at 9:00. Lauren has an ear check at the pediatrician at 9:30. Then Aaron has a lung check with the allergist at 4:10.

I need to get my dinner plan together right now. Yikes.

I just wanna relax on beach somewhere... or maybe just beside an indoor pool. Or something.

We went to Phipps Conservatory

2011-02-28T16:39:00.001-05:00

Grandma loves the orchid show at Phipps so we took her there today! Aaron lost his mind 3/4 of the way through & cried the whole way home. Good grief!

It was horribly overcast today so I was using the Canon with the lightscoop & flash... the quality isn't super.

Boy's Room: In Case You Were Wondering

2011-02-25T12:51:00.002-05:00

We got the decals for the wall from Amazon. (Hat tip to our friend John for the Amazon gift card for Christmas! We also bought a new kitchen food scale to help us with our weight management. Thanks!)

They stick very well, even though our house has textured walls.

We bought the paint from Walmart for $7.99. I didn't even know walmart had their own line of paint, but they do! I read some reviews on it and, admittedly, it doesn't have the highest quality. It is manufactured under the ColorPlace label for Walmart by Sherwin Williams. Most reviews say that if you are willing to do a couple coats it will do just fine for you. We did 2 coats of the "Spring Garden" color.

I think I spent $18 total for the letters & brown paint for their names (and Lauren's initials for her room.)

So all in all, it was a pretty inexpensive way to jazz up the boys' space. We decided to go for it before we moved them together to try and make Ian feel excited about the move. New paint, wall decals, his name on the wall... all ways to show him he wasn't moving into Aaron's Room, but into a completely new room for both of them. Due to illnesses and baby-fussies, it ended up taking us a month to finish the project. I actually think that was really good, though, because it allowed the boys/all of us to get used to the changes gradually. We finished the painting over last weekend. The decals arrived yesterday (& I bought & painted the brown letters yesterday, too) so we pulled it all together before dinner last night with a big, exciting finish! Ian & Aaron helped move Ian's things (bed, dresser, books, etc.) over & it all went great!

They are both over the moon about the new space. For less than $50, I'd say that's a major win.

New Boys' Room

2011-02-24T19:15:00.004-05:00

**UPDATE**
They slept all night. Somehow, Ian went to bed without his blankie and raggie, though, so when he heard Roger leaving this morning, he realize he didn't have them and came out to get them. It was too late by the time I caught up with him... Aaron was awake too. So we got up at 6:00. I know that's not horrible, but it is a full hour earlier than we usually get up. So today is going to be a long day. Now to figure out how naptime is going to work...

**UPDATEI**
Roger put the boys to bed at 9:30. At 10:15 he emailed me from the bedroom, where the monitor is, to tell me there nothing but silence. Too sleeping tots up in there! I know it will not always go so well, but the first bedtime together was a success! Praise the Lord!

At some point, I will hopefully replace these pictures with non-phone-camera pictures. It cost us a grand total of $33 for the paint & decals. The walls are green, though you can't really tell in the pictures. When Ian is ready for a bigger bed, we'll probably do bunk beds and change it up a little again, but right now, the boys are pretty excited about their new digs.

Since tonight's the night, though, I figured I'd put the photos up to commemorate the occasion... hopefully it isn't a disaster.

Sneak Peek

2011-02-24T12:07:00.000-05:00

I'll be back to blogging next week, hopefully!

Pumpkin Spice Breakfast Casserole

2011-02-22T11:06:00.003-05:00

Pumpkin Spice Breakfast Casserole
- 6 English Muffins, torn into 1 in. pieces *I used a knife and cut them. So much easier than tearing.
- 1 cup half & half
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar *I cut back on the sugar a little, it was too sweet for me the 1st time.
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie seasoning
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tart apple, peeled and sliced
- 2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces (best cut when frozen)

Butter the bottom of an 8" x 8" casserole, and scatter half of the English muffin pieces on the bottom. Place half of the apple slices over the muffin pieces. Whip together the half & half, eggs, 1/4 cup of sugar, spices and pumpkin puree in a small bowl. Pour half of the pumpkin cream mixture over the apples and muffins. Repeat the process, layering muffin pieces and apple slices, then covering them with the remaining pumpkin cream. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp of sugar and the butter pieces. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for one hour at 350º F, or refrigerate overnight and bake before serving.
Serve warm.

NOTES:

This recipe is from my friend Joanna Masters. We've both made it a couple of times and determined it needs a little extra liquid. I usually just add extra milk (we use 2% most of the time.) I've also made it a couple times with day old bread. It's still VERY good. And once I omitted the apple and it was STILL very good! I usually do it the night before and let it soak in the fridge until morning, then pop it into a cold oven and add a few minutes to the baking time.

the * notes in the recipe are Joanna's notes.

Let me know what you think if you make it.

Also, I do realize it's very funny for me to pull a recipe out of the coffers because I'm not feeling super, but wanted to blog something! Maybe I should make some Breakfast Casserole to help me feel better?

When mama gets sick

2011-02-19T20:21:00.002-05:00

I know my posts this week have been lackluster.

I've have been overcome by the crud that the rest of the family has been fighting. I resisted long and hard, but tonight, my face feels like I got kicked my a horse & I'm coughing.

So I'll be back to more meaningful posts soon, I hope!

Soccer Shots - Ian's turn to shoot

2011-02-18T08:17:00.000-05:00

Soccer Shots - Ian Dribbles

2011-02-18T08:16:00.002-05:00

Oliver's Labels

2011-02-16T16:16:00.000-05:00

My sister introduced me to Oliver's Labels at the beginning of the school year. We were both looking for an alternative to hand writing with permanent marker. Since Ian hands most of his clothes, especially outerwear, down to Aaron, I was looking for a way to uniquely label our things so we could use them for multiple children.

My favorite are the shoe labels. They are stuck like cement in the kiddos' shoes!

If something gets lost? The person who finds it will log on to Oliver's website & they will, in turn, let me know that our lost item was found*.

*We haven't lost anything lately, so it is my hope that this would actually work.

Here's the link to shop through my page. I will also put it in the side bar as soon as I remember how.

First time on the swings

2011-02-14T08:03:00.000-05:00

At Frick Park's Blue Slide Playground on 2/13/11

Fell Asleep at the Table!

2011-02-13T19:44:00.001-05:00

If you know the Vandervort kids, you probably know that they never sleep.

Ok, maybe that's not true, but what is true is that our kids rarely fall asleep anywhere but in their beds. It doesn't usually matter how tired, how much running, how late, etc. They just aren't the kind of kids to lay their weary heads down and just sleep.

We had a surprise visit from Emily & Adam & co. today. We went to 2 playgrounds (outdoor until we got cold, then to the indoor one) and they boys played straight through naptime. After we were done playing we went next door and had lunch/dinner. Neither Isaac, nor Ian, nor Aaron, nor Asher misbehaved at dinner. They sat nice and ate well. As Aaron was finishing up his meal, I kept looking at him thinking, man, he looks tired! He was holding his own, but then literally before our eyes he started to sway. I asked Roger to pick him up because I was afraid he was going to hit his head on the table.

He absolutely, 100 percent fell asleep in his high chair sitting at a restaurant.

Hilarious! And pathetic!

I wish I had snapped a picture of the rare occasion.

That is how hard they played today!

I can't wait until spring/summer & the daytripping with the cousins the warmer weather will bring!

Mom's Weekend Morning Out- Coca Cafe

2011-02-12T14:29:00.000-05:00

Lauren & I went for breakfast this morning with some girlfriends to Coca Cafe in Lawrenceville. It was tasty. The service wasn't fabulous.

I had almond french toast with lemon cream sauce and berries. And some almond coffee drink that was really good. And a side of bacon. Always have to have bacon.

Change 3 Things

2011-02-10T16:28:00.002-05:00

Who is with me? When you accept the challenge (by liking their facebook page) post on their wall and tell them I sent you! (*Just for fun... I don't get anything from them at all. I just think it's a cool challenge that anybody with kids in diapers can do!)

Change3Things

More Info from CottonBabies

Memberships

2011-02-09T20:08:00.002-05:00

Our Pittsburgh Children's Museum membership is expiring next month and I'm starting to think about what we should do for next year.

We always have a zoo membership. It is hands-down the best value membership for a family with young children in Pittsburgh. It is free to park, you can take your own food/lunch, it opens early, it has playgrounds, it isn't so big that you can't get through the whole thing before naptime, there's lots of shade. It's great. We even go in the winter when it isn't bitter cold. We had a zoo membership before we had kids!

I like the Children's Museum, but it isn't a great 1-on-3 outing. I just don't feel comfortable going there by myself with the kids anymore... too many nooks, crannies, exits, etc. And Aaron has gotten hurt there every single time we have gone. So I'm thinking that we probably should not renew a membership to somewhere that I don't like going by myself.

My Little Outback or other indoor playgrounds. We won't buy a membership there, but we do buy the day passes in bulk.

Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh? National Aviary? Phipps Conservatory? We've been members at each of these places previously, but should we switch back?

I prefer places that have only one entrance to the play area and not a lot of "visual blockage" in the middle. (Obviously that's so I can keep track of the boys even when they're running in different directions.) I like places you can take your own food and snacks. I like places with free or very cheap parking.

What are your favorite memberships? Where do you consider your best-value memberships?

A Morning in This Life

2011-02-08T14:37:00.002-05:00

Last week the mom of one of Ian's classmates told me that if she could ever help me to let her know. It was a kind offer. It is a good thing it was also a genuine offer. Today I took her up on it... (and she probably regrets having made the offer!)

Let me just run you through our morning.

6:55- Roger left for work. It woke Ian, who proceeded to wake Aaron. So we were up before the alarm.
7:05- I realized it snowed overnight & after checking, find Ian's school delayed to 10am start. Normally not a big deal, but today Aaron had his ENT post-op check-up, so now I'm going to have to take 3 kids to the doctor's office.
7:15 I remember that Ian's soccer starts today and is supposed to be from 11:30-12:15. Call Savannah's mom to find out what they're doing about soccer...she calls me back to tell me it is from 12:00-12:45.
8:45 Get everyone's coats, shoes, backpacks, etc. and buckle kids into car.
8:55 Turn van key. It doesn't start. Oh Crap. not today, Lord!!!

call Roger to alert him of the situation and ask him to call ENT to cancel/reschedule since we're going to be late at the very best
call AAA
call Savannah's mom to ask if she can take Ian to school, since he is a puddle of tears on the garage floor over missing school & soccer.
call mechanic to tell him we'll be stopping by (he's my friend's dad so he takes good care of us & knows we have 3 little ones & don't like to be without a vehicle...)
call my dad/mom to gripe.
call sister to gripe
get phone call from AAA telling me they are "delayed"

9:50 Send Ian off with Savannah for the very first time ever with someone other than me, Roger, or Papa... (Savannah's mom did call me when she got home to tell me he was fine at school.)

10:30 Still waiting on AAA.

11:00 Still waiting on AAA.

11:15 AAA finally rolls up and determines our brand new in October battery is deader than a doornail. He jumps us & recommends I don't turn the van off again until I'm at the mechanic.

11:30 Arrive at mechanic... he had already ordered the new battery & we were waiting for the supply store to deliver it. In the meantime he took the old battery out... and the clock ticks on...

12:10 I remind him I have to pick Ian up from school at 12:45. He reassures me that the battery is on its way. And the clock ticks on.

12:25 I call Savannah's mom and ask her to make sure Ian is safe & accounted for because I'm literally a hostage at the mechanic (with Aaron...thank God for iPhone games and Lauren...thank God for boobs.) and won't be able to make it back to pick Ian up. The shop is at least 15 min from school.

12:30 The battery arrives & is installed.

12:35 I take off down the road to get Ian.

1:10 We finally arrive home for a very late lunch.

Total drama. Thank Goodness for Savannah's mom. My head hurts. Why did we need another new battery? Why did it happen today with all the crap that was already going on and not tomorrow (or yesterday) when I had no place we had to be? I should also mention that Savannah's brother Dylan got sick at school today & Michelle had to go pick him up. While she was still looking after Ian. So she had to drag two 3.5 year olds in with her to pick up her son from the nurse's office. Total insanity.

*sigh*

It is seriously never a dull moment around here.

Steeler time.

2011-02-06T17:49:00.000-05:00

What are we going to do when...

2011-02-05T22:34:00.000-05:00

Lauren is old enough to want to play the iPhone too?

Meringue Cookies

2011-02-04T20:14:00.001-05:00

I needed a sweet bite today amidst sick babies and running to the doctor during naptime. I saw these cookies on My Bakingdom a few days ago and really wanted to try making them. We didn't have raspberry extract so I used vanilla. They were pretty easy to make...and to pipe it, since I don't have a large enough star tip, I used a plain circle. They aren't as pretty as the originals, but they are tasty!

Isn't he cute?

Oh one other thing happened. Aaron had a crazy asthma attack after only an hour of baking and we had to go to the doctor's office in a hurry. I decided to just switch off the oven and leave the cookies inside...and hope for the best. Good move! We returned 3 hours later to almost completely cooled pans of perfectly baked cookies.

Someday I will make the raspberry chocolate ones. These are delicious, too!

Dear Aaron could use a Prayer...

2011-02-04T18:31:00.001-05:00

He is very sick today.

High fevers and terrible coughing, wheezing, etc.

Having missed nap for a doctor visit, he's crashing on the couch before dinner

Another store-bought for homemade swap: Chocolate Syrup

2011-02-03T18:44:00.001-05:00

We ran out of Hershey's Chocolate Syrup today. Almost a crisis. The kids don't seem to be feeling very well today and keep asking for chocolate milk.

I've been staring down the list of ingredients on the Hershey's bottle for quite some time now. Willing it to say sugar instead of High Fructose Corn Syrup. (HFCS) Believe what you want about HFCS, but I personally have read enough to be in the "it's not good for you" camp. I try to eliminate it from our diets as much as I can. (This is partly why we don't regularly drink pop. We get our "fizzy" fix from seltzer.)

So on a whim, to avoid a chocolate milk crisis, I whipped up a batch of homemade chocolate syrup.

I adapted my recipe from this one:

After reading a couple of recipes and the comments on those recipes, I learned that chocolate syrup really needs milk in it, so I did half water, half milk. I also saved the Hershey's bottle and put my syrup in it, just for ease of storing & pouring.

Homemade Chocolate Syrup

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk (I used 2%)
2 cups sugar
dash salt
3 Tbsp. baking cocoa (I used hershey's powder)
1 tsp. Vanilla

Whisk water, milk, sugar, salt, & baking cocoa in a sauce pan over medium heat until boiling. Set timer & boil 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Cool completely. It will thicken as it cools.

I'll post a picture as soon as I can.

When I was Young...

2011-02-02T11:03:00.000-05:00

Eh, maybe I should rephrase that and say: before I had kids...

I could start a painting project in the morning and finish before lunch. I haven't really painted that many rooms, especially totally on my own, but there have been a couple.

And they did not take me days and days to finish. Not even a whole day to finish.

And this is the story of my life right now. I get precious few minutes to do projects so they take me forever to finish...if they ever get finished.

Right now I'm painting Aaron's room, our former guest room, a color that Ian picked. When I'm done, we will move Ian in with Aaron. Then I get to pain Ian's room for Lauren. I am very much looking forward to doing Lauren's room. I wanted to do Aaron's room, too, so I am, but it is annoying me. I only get to work on it in the morning and specifically when Ian & Aaron are both at school, so that means Wednesday mornings. And Lauren is only good for playing by herself for about 15 minutes at a time. At this rate it is going to be May before I'm done.

When we're all done with the painting and moves, we'll all start sleeping better again, right?

It is all about sleep. Everything is always about sleep.

Twerrible Towel

2011-02-01T19:40:00.000-05:00

Our Me-Me-Me Society

2011-02-01T16:29:00.003-05:00

I saw another example of our me-me-me society today at Ian's preschool registration.

Here are the details the school gave us regarding the registration process:

1. Registration is at 9:15 on February 1, 2011. You can arrive at 8:50 to take your child to his classroom before reporting to the fellowship hall. You must take your child to his class before you come to registration.

There was a 2 hour delay in the local public school district today so that meant preschool had a 10am start. I called to find out if registration was also delayed by an hour and it was. So that would only change the instructions above by saying "registration begins at 10:15, you can come at 9:50 to drop your child off."

But here's what actually went down:

We arrived at 9:45 (because we try to be a couple minutes early to everything.) When we walked in the fellowship hall, it was already packed with people. When we got our "number" for the "up" system, it was ELEVEN. There were 3 different age classes to sign up for so we were number 11 in our group. There were probably 25 kids in line ahead of us.

What makes me mad is this:

When the crap did they show up? And why were they given numbers before 9:50? If it says come at 9:50 and that registration doesn't actually start until 10:15, why were the people who got there at 9:30 given numbers? That's not fair. No numbers should've been handed out before 9:50, in my opinion. What's stopping people, eager to secure their child's spot in the limited class space, from arriving an hour early? Two hours? How important is it to you?!

There were only 14 spots in the class Ian was registering for and we arrived at the time when the numbers were supposed to be given out, but we got number 11. What if we had come on time for registration and been handed number 15? That's the waiting list. I totally get "first come first served." But not when I could easily have come much earlier too.

I didn't go any earlier because the rules specifically said don't come until 9:50. So I didn't. And because I was playing by the rules I almost missed out! The numbers for Ian's class were called all the way up to 19, and none of those parents arrived after the start of registration. None of them. One dad was rather upset, saying, "So my daughter has come here for 2 years already and now she's wait-listed for her last year because I didn't come an hour early? That's ridiculous."

I have to agree.

To me it is just another example of this sad place we live where hardly anybody plays by the rules anymore, especially when it involves their kid and getting a "good" space for them for school. I mean, how far are you really willing to go? How many rules are you willing to "bend?" How many times are you going to teach your children, by example, that bending rules and pushing others to the side just to get yourself ahead is ok?

And I wrote this even though Ian got his spot and he's all signed up for next year. What if he hadn't?

20 favorite things

2011-01-31T09:37:00.000-05:00

Suggested blog post... so here it is!

20 of my favorite things:

I'm intentionally leaving out my kids, my family, etc. Those are really obvious so I'm skipping them in the name of revealing more!

1. Homemade bread. (Probably obvious to anyone who is paying attention... I'm not sure if there are very many food things that are better than a slice of homemade bread with jam on it.)
2. Strawberry Jam. It has to be homemade.
3. Nature walks. As we call them in our little family, I love to put on my tennis shoes and get walking in the outdoors. As long and as far as possible.
4. History.
5. French Pastries and Parisian Bistro food. (I haven't really ever met a French pastry I didn't like, but my favorite is Tarte Framboise...raspberry tarte. I think my favorite Bistro food is just plain old poulet (baked chicken) with pomme frites (fries).
6. Disney World.
7. Slide-on New Balance shoes. They're tennis shoes, they're slip on... what could be better?
8. Buffalo Chicken. Wings, Tenders, Breast Sandwich...delish.
9. Water. Better than any other beverage. Great for bathing, swimming, keeping plants alive. I'm not too keen on it in the form of snow, but water is my favorite drink and I love swimming!
10. Goat Milk Soap.
11. Steak. Nothing better than a big, delicious steak on my plate with a baked potato (just butter).
12. Ohiopyle State Park. It combines several of my favorite things: nature, nature walks, water, small towns. Just a great place to visit in the summer & fall.
13. Small towns. I love quaint towns with a little main street that has shops and a wide sidewalk.
14. Wide open space. If I could live out in the country and still be close to the city somehow, I would. I love great big yards and maybe even some cows, fresh country breezes blowing across my face... ahh.
15. Capri Pants.
16. McGinnis Sisters' food market.
17. Pink. The color. And purple too.
18. Lilacs. My favorite flower by far.
19. Summer fruit season- strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, peaches, apples. Yum.
20. Pumpkin.

Might be my new favorite food blog...

2011-01-28T16:58:00.001-05:00

I stumbled across this Pittsburgh blog last night and was totally amazed.

Today I made her light wheat sandwich bread. Fabulous.

I will be making many more of her recipes soon.

YUM.

And the fact that the author's name is Lauren?

That's Burghilicious.

http://burghilicious.com/

Ian's Despicable Me Moves

2011-01-27T10:10:00.001-05:00

Ian learned these dance moves from the movie Despicable Me... and then there's Aaron, who needs some new moves, but is obviously feeling pretty good these days. We took this video before bath 2 nights ago. So funny.

Just call me Mrs. Fix-it

2011-01-26T21:39:00.000-05:00

This morning, first thing, I went down and started the load of Lauren's diapers that had been soaking over night. When it was done, I returned to the laundry room to run a second rinse cycle and noticed the mop sink wasn't fully empty from the first cycle, but it was going down so I kept moving.

We were late leaving for a playdate. Ian's ridiculous behavior delayed our departure from the house by thirty-five minutes this morning. Every single delay tactic he could muster. I finally got the kids all into the van & ran back to hang up diapers...I stepped into the laundry room onto the rug in front of the washer and promptly soaked my socks.

F.L.O.O.D.

Our washer drains into our mop sink. Personally I think that's kinda dumb, but whatever. Something was keeping the water from draining out of the mop sink and it overflowed. It does that occasionally. usually when someone mistakenly leaves a rag or something in it and the drain gets blocked. I try to stay upbeat about it because, hey, our laundry room floor gets washed...with soap!

But this morning I just saw doom and gloom. I noticed recently that our sink drains have been running slow too. And then the flood in the laundry room. The last time this happened our entire garage backed up with sewer water & we had to have Roto Rooter come after my handyman dad came and cut a piece out of our pipe. It was a major mess & hassle. That was 5 years ago. Enough time for the tree roots to grow back, right? Crap.

I'd also noticed our town's water/sewer authority "Ram-Jet" truck has been running up and down the road all week. So maybe the problem was actually with the street/town instead of us. Roger called them. They came and checked. All was clear on their end. Dang.

Before we tried chemicals (I don't really like using them) or calling a plumber or something, I decided to try the plunger on the mop sink on last time. Gave it a really good plunging. I think I was taking the day's frustrations out on it. I was praying while I was plunging. I was just about to get the Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (a "plugged sink" remedy my mom has used forever) and woosh! The water rushed down the drain & I could no longer keep any water in the sink!

Clear!

Praise God!

Why am I blogging about my clogged sink?

A long time ago I came across a quote (of Mason Cooley) that says, "Faith moves mountains, but you have to keep pushing while you're praying."

I love that quote. I kept a piece of paper I scrawled that quote on taped to my computer monitor all through college.

Today, I'm thinking, "You have to keep plunging while you're praying!"

French Dip Sandwiches

2011-01-25T22:17:00.002-05:00

I was going off of this recipe:

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/Easy-Slow-Cooker-French-Dip/Detail.aspx

I say "going off of" because here's what happened:

I went to walmart to buy the ingredients since there were a bunch of other things we needed like lightbulbs and shampoo. Walmart, unbelievably, was OUT of French Onion Soup. There wasn't a single stinkin' can in any brand, size, etc. Apparently there is a run on French Onion Soup? So I ended up with Lipton powdered french onion soup/dip mix and a can of College Inn lower sodium beef broth.

I bought a roast.

I bought the nicest looking sub buns I could find (they weren't super, but they were ok.)

I bought provalone cheese.

Then I came home and put the powdered soup mix through a wire strainer to get out the big pieces of onion because I don't like onions. (I don't mind onion flavored stuff so much, but I do not want to chomp down on a hunk of onion in something...gross!) Added the onion soup mix to the crock pot with the roast and the beef broth and an extra can of water. (I filled the beef broth can up with water and dumped that much into the crock pot.)

Then I remembered the beer in the recipe. The only beer we have is one bottle of some special kind Roger picked the last time he did a mix-n-match 6 pack. I don't think he would've wanted me cooking with it. So I left the beer out.

Flipped the crock pot on high (it was almost 1pm by this time) and hoped for the best!

At 4:40pm I turned the crock pot off and took the meat out so it could cool a little before I tried slicing it. Cut the buns in half, put them on a cookie sheet, cut the provalone slices into half-moons, turned the broiler on, then sliced the meat, put it on the buns, topped with cheese and into the oven.

Served with french fries and sweet potato fries, mixed veggies, the jus for dipping, & horseradish & mayo for Roger's sandwich.

They were very good.

The kids did not like them. Next time I will just cut meat like normal for the kids and not try to make them eat sandwiches. The kids love roast beef... not so much sandwiches. *sigh*

We will be having this again. I'd like to try it with the beer added... maybe... but I liked it the way it was today, too!

Let me know if you try it too!

Did you notice I changed the table cloth?!

Lauren's 6m Stats

2011-01-24T11:28:00.000-05:00

At 6 months:

your child is 16.875 pounds, and that is
at the 59th percentile for weight.

your child is 25 inches, and that is
at the 16th percentile for height.

Head circumference of 43cm.

Blueberry Bagels

2011-01-23T13:15:00.003-05:00

It must be blueberry season in Chile. The fresh blueberries in our stores are not insanely priced right now.

I tried my hand at blueberry bagels this morning. Making bagels isn't that hard, but I definitely need more practice. I've tried a wheat bagel recipe & now the blueberry one. They taste good, but didn't rise like I thought they should.

Note, if you try this recipe, Make sure you read the "comment" about the recipe on the bottom. Also, I would not recommend using fresh blueberries like I did... it was one heck of a mess. I wanted to just quit, but I couldn't let myself waste the fresh berries so I pressed onward. Just beware. I will not make it again with fresh berries... only dried.

http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/breadsbakery/r/blueberrybagels.htm

Blueberry Bagels

User Rating2 Star Rating(1 Review) Write a review

By Ashley Skabar, About.com Guide

Bagels are one of those breads that are often--but not always--dairy-free, but, like so many things, making them at home is so fun and tasty, and they freeze and keep well for rushed mornings.

Makes 10 to 12 bagels

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water
2 .25-ounce packets dry active yeast
3 T. plus 2 t. white granulated sugar (I prefer unrefined cane sugar)
5- 5 1/2 cups all-purpose white flour
2 t. salt
2 cups blueberries, fresh or dried (I prefer fresh tiny varieties)
Cornmeal, for pans
10-12 cups water

Preparation:

1. In a medium-large mixing bowl, combine the warm water, yeast and the 3 T. sugar, stirring gently until dissolved. Allow the mixture to stand for 5 minutes or until bubbly. (If no bubbles surface, this means that most likely your yeast is no longer "active"; discard your mixture and use fresh yeast.) Add in 4 1/2 cups of the flour and salt gradually until the mixture comes together into a soft dough. Fold in the blueberries gently. Add the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time until the dough is stiff but not dry. Turn out the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead until the dough is elastic and no longer sticks to your hands, adding flour as needed, about 7-10 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat, cover with a clean dish cloth and set in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 F. LIghtly oil a large baking sheet.

3. Punch down the dough and divide it into 10 to 12 pieces, depending on how large you want your bagels. Shape each piece into a ball and then, using your fingers, make a hole in the center, gently stretching the dough until the hole is the size of a large coin. Place the bagels on the prepared sheet as you work, then cover with the clean dish towel and let rise for an additional 25 minutes.

4. Lightly oil another large baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with the cornmeal. Bring the 10-12 cups of water to a boil in a large pot with the remaining 2 t. sugar. Working in batches (about 3-4 at a time), gently submerge the bagels into the boiling water and boil until they rise to the top, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer the bagels to the prepared baking sheet and repeat until all of the bagels have been boiled. Bake for 35 minutes, flipping after the first 5, until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

User Reviews

2 out of 5

Good ingredients, poor instruction, Member pineapple.express

While the end product tasted good, the entire process of making these bagels was incredibly stressful, mainly because the directions were very unclear and also gave a very inefficient method. I have a few recommendations: 1) Use high rise yeast. I found that the dough rose a twice as fast as the recipe said and made the job go by somewhat faster with the same end result. 2) Before you put the dough in an oiled bowl to rise you MUST mead it with a lot of flour. I'm not sure this recipe calls for enough flour in the initial mixing process. 3) Instead of punching the holes with your fingers, roll the dough out into strips and pinch them together into an O. This is much easier and it is how they do it in bagel shops anyway, I have now clue why this recipe wants you to do it differently. 4) Separate dough into very small sized bagels. Trust me, they with rise a lot! I also found that when you boiled the dough, it did not sink to the bottom of the pot. I was kinda confused about this, but it didn't seem to have a negative impact. Also, this recipe appears to be a little out of order. You want to mix the dough, mead it, put it in a bowl to rise, punch it down, separate and shape it, let it rise again, boil, and bake. I was a little confused about how it was written, but it wasn't to hard to sort out. I also put an egg glaze on top and sprinkled them with sugar before baking.

A Half Birthday

2011-01-22T22:49:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Lauren's half birthday today. (We celebrated half birthdays for all of our kids... I blogged about Ian's & Aaron's too. <--ok maybe I didn't blog about Aaron's, but we definitely celebrated it. There's a picture somewhere!)

So today I made a half birthday cake for Lauren--white cake with my mom's butter frosting. YUM. Grandma and Grandpa Spaceship just happened to come over this afternoon and we had Lasagna for dinner.

We also had a sunny day today! It was only a high of 11 today, but it was sunny! We took pictures of Lauren at her 6 month mark.

She's rolling everywhere. She can get up on her hands and her knees, but not both at the same time. She's scooting all over the house. She can maneuver herself from one side of the room to the other and pick up even the tiniest little shneebly of crayon paper and put it in her mouth.

She screeches and squawks like neither of the boys ever did. She loves pears, peaches, peas, green beans, and bananas. She does not love baby cereal of any kind. She screams at the table if we don't feed her as fast as she thinks we should. She can pick up puffs and put them in her own mouth (and eat them.) She can also eat single-grain oat cereal... aka organic (not general mills brand) cheerios if we break them into little pieces. We don't focus on food and we're not pushing her, but she wants to eat when we're sitting at the dinner table. If we don't offer her something to eat like a big girl, she gets really mad. She is breastfed and will not even entertain the idea of a bottle. (Neither would Aaron... until he was about 9 months old and he saw big brother drinking from a sippy cup... Aaron went straight to a sippy cup and never did bottles at all.)

Lauren's favorite place is in the Ergo carrier on my belly. She still hates the car. She sleeps in her crib for her naps and for the first stretch of the night (from bedtime until about 2am). She will suck on a binky, but really could take it or leave it.

She doesn't babble a whole lot, but blows a lot of raspberries. She enjoys being talked to, sung to, rapped to, and to play patty-cake. She adores her brothers (who adore her right back) and she thinks daddy is pretty cool too.

She's a delight! A very pleasant baby. I love my boys, but gosh, I love my girl! She's so special. So sweet. So snuggly. She's just fabulous.

I can't believe it's been a half a year already. By the time I publish this, she'll be closer to a year old than to a newborn. How is that possible? Wasn't it just yesterday that we first saw her little bean shape wiggling on the ultrasound monitor? Now she's looking at me with those big eyes, yelling at me to shovel food faster, and going all over the living room. Unreal.

We made playdough

2011-01-21T11:10:00.001-05:00

I used this recipe.

I let Ian & Aaron each have a sauce pot on the stove to which they added the ingredients we measured together.

Then I stirred them with the heat on until it was done.

I dumped it out onto parchment paper on the table and kneaded it until it was cool enough for the kids to handle.

And then they played and played.

For the record, I found the link for the playdough recipe at this awesome website.

Also for the record, I know we need to change our table cloth. And that we're still in our pajamas at 11am.

2011-01-20T16:41:00.002-05:00

Last minute tips

2011-01-20T12:48:00.002-05:00

A topic suggested by a friend. He & his wife just happen to be having their first baby in 6-ish weeks. Do I detect a little bit of freaking out? (I'm joking... or am I?)

So you're about to have a baby. What are my Last Minute Tips for you?

1. Don't worry about getting everything perfect.

I know you want to. I know you're making lists and lists and planning projects down to the last minute before you leave for the hospital. I did it too. The last 6 weeks before Ian's due date arrived, I spent every waking moment and a lot of the moments I should've been sleeping trying to get things perfect. I folded, refolded, organized, reorganized, cleaned, re-cleaned, paid bills ahead, packed my bag, repacked my bag, installed the car seat bases, put up the pack-n-play, assembled the swing, bouncer, exersaucer, laid out the diapers, bought 7 different kinds of creams and lotions, etc. I had it all ready. I was so ready that in the week after my due date I just sat around beached-whale style, twiddling my thumbs.

With Aaron, I had big plans to do all that again, but he came early.

When we brought the baby home each time the exact same thing happened: we were too dang tired to CARE about anything but sleep. It didn't matter whether the windows were washed or not. The laundry piled up faster than it ever did before and in mere days you couldn't tell I'd gotten every last piece washed & put away before the baby came. In fact, Aaron didn't even have a room for his first 7 months (and neither does Lauren for that matter) and in the long run we were much happier the 2nd & 3rd times around because we just didn't pressure ourselves to be perfect.

I also know that it doesn't matter that I'm saying this because people said it to me too. I still wanted everything perfect. But that's my first tip... don't try to be perfect because nothing ever is.

2. Make your wishes known before everyone is already at the hospital.

If you want to be alone (just husband, wife, baby and medical staff) for delivery, you need to express those wishes before you are in labor. It is the only way to save hurt feelers. And it is totally your prerogative to be alone in labor and delivery. I'm not sure if anyone told you yet, but labor and delivery is NOT pretty. It isn't fun. It is actually pretty gross and very exhausting. Just know that, before you invite a whole party into the room. And nobody in that room with you will ever look at you the same way once they've seen you birth a child.

3. Plan on being tired for a year at least. (I don't actually know how long it is before you get real rest because by the time Ian was sleeping well enough to afford us a decent night's sleep, we already had another baby.) You'll do best if you learn to exist in a happy way while you are completely exhausted.

4. Grow a thick skin. Stat.

You can't unhear things. And people say MEAN stuff. There is always someone who will think how you're parenting is awful. There will always be people who don't have any filter at all and will feel no qualms about telling you you're wrong. It's best to start growing your thick skin now... and march to the beat of your own drum. And just do what feels right for you. Brush everything else off your shoulders and move on. You can't please everyone all the time.

5. Let people do things for you.

As soon as someone offers something, accept it. This goes for letting someone vacuum your house, bring you meals, etc. This also goes for the hospital. Let the nurses change the diapers. You're going to change 3000 some diapers (per kid) in your time as parents so you might as well let someone else do it whenever you get the chance!

I'll admit this is a really hard one for me. I don't like letting people do things for me. And with breastfeeding it is really difficult to let someone care for the baby while I do something like...sleep. (Doesn't matter anyway, if any of the kids is awake, I am too. Even if I had soundproof walls in my bedroom it wouldn't matter.) But I'm trying to let more people do more things for me. I'm a work in progress.

I'm going to put the kids down for naps and come back to this hopefully. I think I've hit all the major things...

Sleep, Precious Sleep

2011-01-20T08:38:00.000-05:00

In the last month or so, I've been asked several times how Roger & I regularly manage to get all three children sleeping at the same time. I decided that, while I'm certainly no expert, I could blog about it.

It is no secret that our kids haven't always been good sleepers. In fact, they sucked at sleeping.

But it seems that we've stumbled upon a method to get all of our children down for naps and bed at the same time, most of the time.

First, we do not abide by the old adage, "Never wake a sleeping baby." Well, actually it depends on your definition of "baby." Beyond the newborn stage, we do not abide. Why not? In order to get all the kids sleeping at relatively the same time, they need to be tired at the same time. If Lauren falls asleep at 11am, that's fine, but if she sleeps longer than 20 minutes she won't be ready for an afternoon nap. So...I wake her. I don't startle her awake or abruptly wake her, but I do make an environment that makes it more difficult for her to sleep. (Read: I put her down.) Same story in the afternoons... We never let the boys sleep past 4:30pm. If we do, they won't go to bed before 10pm and that makes for a tired morning.

Second, we do the same routine every afternoon before nap and every night before bed.

Around 12pm, we have lunch. Then we watch a show and drink milk. Around 1pm, I take one of the boys (usually Aaron) to his bedroom, read a story or two, give kisses, and into his bed. Then I do the same for the other boy. Then I nurse Lauren until she's sleeping and she goes to her bed. Then...I don't make ANY noise. Yeah, yeah, yeah, your kids "should get used to sleeping through noise." Nope. Not in this house. My kids are incredibly light sleepers. If I want them to sleep, I don't make noise.

For bedtime, we do a bath most nights, the jammies, a show while eating a snack & drinking milk, do medicines (for Aaron), brush teeth, read stories, give kisses, into bed. Sometimes Roger does it all himself at bedtime (awesome to have daddy be so great at bedtimes & very useful too.) It really is a good idea to have more than one person able to do bedtime with your kids... you know, in case you have to stay overnight in the hospital or something...

We are by no means perfect. And our kids had to Cry-it-Out eventually, but this is what is working for us now!

Stay tuned, though, because we are about to move Ian and Aaron together and most likely will have to make some changes.

My Kids are Fresh Food Snobs.

2011-01-19T07:48:00.003-05:00

I didn't really think too much about it when it happened, but a couple of days ago my mom and I were at the grocery store and the following conversation happened:

Mom: "Do you need fruit? DelMonte canned fruit is 10 for $10 this week."

Me: "Nobody in my house likes canned fruit, but me."

Mom: "The kids don't eat canned fruit?"

Me: "Nope, they're so used to fresh that they won't eat canned."

Mom: "Huh."

Am I raising food snobs? My children will eat frozen fruits and vegetables. They eat a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables... more than any other almost-four-year-old and 2 year old I know. But they won't eat canned anything.
Read more »

Feeling Better

2011-01-18T12:33:00.000-05:00

Is it just me or does his face look different already?

Ian's Preschool Progress Report

2011-01-17T08:38:00.000-05:00

I know it's kinda hard to read, but our big preschooler got his mid-year progress report from his teachers. He's doing well, as you can see. :-)

Aaron's growth

2011-01-17T08:22:00.000-05:00

I'm going to do a post just for Ian in a second, but I wanted to get down Aaron's growth measurement from Wednesday.

In October, Aaron was 32.75 inches, 26 pounds and 48cm head circumference. (At 2 years exactly.)

On Wednesday January 12, 2011, at age 27 months, Aaron was 35 inches, 25.8 pounds, and 49 cm head circumference.

So he has grown! He didn't gain any weight, but added 2.25 inches in height. Excellent news.

Sunday Sweetheart & Trumpette Socks

2011-01-16T19:09:00.001-05:00

We might not get anymore sunshine before Lauren turns 6 months old, so these might just turn into her 6 month photos. (I hope not. Not that I don't like them, but I really hope we have another sunny day before next weekend...)

We took these photos of Lauren wearing her Trumpette socks from her Great Aunt Sam. There's a contest going on Trumpette's Facebook for the most "likes" or comments on a fan photo... so if you want to help Lauren win, you can go to her photo and like it (or comment.)

While we're talking about Trumpette socks, let me just go ahead and say that I love them and if I wasn't so cheap Lauren would have a whole bunch of different kinds of them. She's growing out of her 0-6 month size Trumpette socks and I'm so sad about it! *sigh* We've worn the dickens out of the pairs she got from Great Aunt Sam! PERFECT for dressing up her feet without wearing shoes. We're in the "don't wear shoes unless you have to camp.

So without further rambling, here's dear Lauren in her cutie-patootie socks. (and Carter's outfit from Grandma Spaceship.) Roger took these photos...if you notice, I'm in the background making sure she didn't lose her balance and crack her noodle on the floor. She's getting really good at sitting, but she's not 100% yet. Roger's a much better photographer than I am. He taught himself before he had kids, unlike me who didn't decide to learn to use the camera until I was juggling all these tots and the camera.

Adenoidectomy

2011-01-14T15:58:00.000-05:00

I didn't blog the last few days. We spent pretty much the entire day at Children's hospital Wednesday with Aaron. He was having his adenoids out. And then he stayed overnight with Roger.

He did well. He wasn't feeling very good for the first 24 hours or more, but has since perked up quite a bit. At first he wouldn't fall asleep. (More than usual...) Aaron is our best sleeper and he was refusing to lay down (or even to fall asleep while being held). He seems to have gotten past that now, though.

Our challenges are 1. Finding enough soft foods that are interesting to him. Aaron is a good eater. He has a very balanced diet. Have you ever tried to convince a 2 year old of anything? Convincing Aaron that he should try a food he doesn't normally eat, especially when he's not feeling well has been really hard! And just because he ate something the first time you offered it, does not mean he's interested in it again. (Read: jello, macaroni and cheese, popsicles, etc.)

2. Keeping him from getting too rambunctious. His discharge instructions said he could return to school on Monday (if he goes to school, which he doesn't...) and no exercise for 14 days. When was the last time you spent time with a 2 year old? He runs everywhere. He jumps around. His normal movements could very easily be considered "exercise." So how do we keep him from moving?

Happy Birthday, Roger

2011-01-11T12:02:00.000-05:00

We love you!

Winter. I loathe it.

2011-01-10T14:28:00.000-05:00

I used to love winter. I loved winter sports. I loved shoveling (to the point that I would shovel the neighbors' sidewalks when we lived in Erie just to be nice.) I loved being out in the chilly air. I loved winter. I didn't even mind driving on awful roads. It was just life in the snow belt. You either learned to love it or you were in misery for 4 months each year. So I loved it.

Then I had kids.

5 years ago, when I wanted to go outside (or in the car) during winter, I just threw on a coat & went. Now?

Multiply the following process by 4 (to include me):

Get up, wash, dress, eat breakfast.
Put on socks & boots.
Buckle into car seat.
Arrive at destination.
Stand out in the elements while I:

Put on coat.

Put on hat.

Put on mittens. (can't wear a heavy coat under car seat buckles...)

Hoist children from van because heavy, puffy coat renders their movements unproductive.

Drop something into dirty, nasty slush in parking lot.

Get salt/dirt all over my pants/coat trying to hold a child's hand with each hand all while wearing a baby.

Slosh through dirty slush into building while repeatedly telling children to hurry and they won't be cold once we get inside.

Remove coat, hat, mittens so as not to overheat and sweat while indoors.

Try not to lose any of the coats/hats/mittens while inside.

Repeat entire process to go home.

Clean salt & dirt from floor inside door repeatedly.

Hang coats/hats/mittens to dry so we can use them again in an hour.

See if cell phone I dropped in slush is still working.

Etc. Etc. Etc.

And you don't just do that once a day, you have to do it lots of times. And day after day after day. It's exhausting.

Winter is just plain old crappy.

I need some sun and warm to recharge my batteries.

One of my fave photos

2011-01-08T13:16:00.000-05:00

I think this is one of my favorite "parenting" photos of myself. I was carrying a tired, tantrum-y Ian through the cemetery in Philadelphia where Ben Franklin is buried. It was really hot, way past naptime, and I was 7 months pregnant with Aaron.

Since Monday

2011-01-07T13:14:00.003-05:00

I've been tracking my foods that I eat & trying to stay under a certain number of calories shooting for weight loss, taking into account that I'm breastfeeding right now.

I've been doing quite well, minus lunch yesterday when I was convinced the horrible headache I'd had since Tuesday was "diet" related. (So I ate a "big" lunch of leftover beef & noodles & my headache went away...huh.)

Anyway, it was cold and snowing this morning, the kids are all snotty, and I *really* wanted to make cookies. And eat them.

Oh and I also discovered a "friction" hole in the crotch of my ONLY pair of blue jeans. My Tommy Hilfiger jeans. The size up Tommy jeans I bought just after Aaron was born to replace the ones I wore a friction hole in the crotch of two years ago. (I now have just 2 pairs of pants that are non-maternity and non-yoga-type. This is not good, people.)

You know what the friction hole means? It means for the past 2+ years my non-pregnant self has been slowly creeping up on the scale. My thighs are wearing holes in blue jean material, --not delicate, thin material! Denim!--, just from rubbing together while I walk. Really. This is not good. Not good. It was gradual so not very "painfully" obvious. I knew it was happening, but with everything else going on around here it is hard to put myself first. Much easier to eat a lot and make comfort food when I'm perpetually exhausted from sleeping in 4-hour-or-less intervals at night for the past 4 years.

Oh the excuses!

Instead of making cookies, I got everyone dressed, weighed myself & found a 3/4 pound weight loss, and went to Sam's club to buy the things on our list... mostly just to get out of the house so we wouldn't eat all morning...

It worked. My desire to make cookies has waned and I'm still good on my calories.

When you're addicted to food, every day is a battle. I'm taking it one day at a time.

Someone* tweeted yesterday:

Being overweight hurts. Being on a diet hurts. Choose your hurt.

*I apologize I don't remember who...

GOSH, I WANT SOME BACON. AND BROWNIES.

On sibling relationships

2011-01-06T11:04:00.001-05:00

I've been running fewer errands lately in an effort to curb impulse purchases. So on Tuesdays & Thursdays we've been running any essential errands and coming home.

Aaron has discovered a whole new world of playing without Ian here! He gets the run of the house and doesn't have to fight for toys, etc. And he is loving it.

Interesting though, he'll come and ask me if it is time to go get Ian yet. So he misses him.

Isn't it just magical to watch the relationships between your children develop?

When Ian was 8-12 months old, I repeatedly said I wasn't having another child. Ian really sucked the life out of me during those months and there was no way I wanted to repeat it! Then Aaron came along. Almost immediately Ian loved Aaron. He was never jealous. He never tried to hurt Aaron. Ian has always loved Aaron. Then Lauren came along and it was the same thing. Neither boy was ever jealous. Neither boy has ever tried to hurt sis. If anything they are both too helpful for my comfort.

Ian and Aaron are now reaching the ages when they want to play with each other and be near each other. Built in playmates. It's wonderful. And, obviously, exactly how God intended our family to be in 2011.

Ian and Aaron go to school together on Wednesdays and frequently I hear a report from Ms. JoJo that they were inseparable. When one wanders to the other room to play, the other misses him and starts looking for him. When Ian went to his friend's birthday party at Chuck-e-Cheese and Aaron stayed home with Daddy, Ian wanted to know why Aaron couldn't come.

They are both very capable of having experiences without each other, but they prefer to do things together.

I love it!

Of course, they fight over toys and get on each other's nerves, but for the most part, it is a wonderful relationship. I can't wait to see how Lauren factors in when she gets old enough to run with the big dogs!

I should mention that it was much the same experience for me growing up and now I have great friends and pillars of support in my siblings. I have the greatest hope for my children that they might continue their close relationships into adulthood!

Remind me I said all this in 27 minutes when we pick up Ian and the ruckus starts up again!

Anyone know a decent bathroom contractor?

The Pacifier

2011-01-05T12:47:00.000-05:00

I don't really like that my third child sucks on a binky. Neither Ian nor Aaron ever did. No matter how hard I tried, the just wouldn't go for the binky. They didn't suck thumbs either. It was so nice not to have that habit to break.

But sometimes I have no choice, having a preschooler, toddler, and infant, to have the baby suck on a pacifier. At least she will because there would be a lot more screaming than there already is!

Plus, she looks so sweet.

I really did not want to wake her this morning to go pick up brothers from school.

Did I mention?

2011-01-04T16:37:00.000-05:00

I'm going to try and blog every day of 2011? I already missed the first 2 days so I guess we wait and see how well I do. I had 140 posts in 2010. Shall we just shoot for 200 this year? I think you'll be awfully sick of me if I do 363...

Some things I've been thinking about lately:

A friend I've known for a long time... back to junior high school at least had something tragic happen over the holiday & while I don't know exactly what it was (nor do I feel like I should know) I have been thinking of her and praying for her.

My daughter is going to be 6 months old in January. My husband is going to be 31 on 1/11/11. This is the year I turn 30. My sons are going to be 4 and 3 this year. Insanity.

I probably won't actively wean Lauren, but I think by the end of 2011 I neither be pregnant nor breastfeeding a baby for the first time since 2006. I'm kinda looking forward to it!

Last year I knew 25 (at least) ladies having babies. This year so far, there are 5 ladies in our friends and family who are expecting, the first of those babies due to arrive in February.

I have resolved to eat better, keep a log of everything that goes in my mouth, and hope for weight loss! My pants are tight and I'm ready. My plan is just to log what I eat (keeping myself accountable just by being able to see on paper what goes down the hatch) and do what I do until the weather gets warm enough to get out with the tots and put some miles on the jogging stroller. Then it is time to rock and roll... Mondays & Fridays I'll have the boys in the BoB and Lauren in the Ergo. Tuesdays & Thursdays I'll have Lauren & Aaron in the stroller and Wednesdays I'll have to figure out what to do with just Lauren. Oh that's just until school is out in May, then I have to re-plan.

I have resolved to enjoy my kids more. To be slower to anger. To just take each moment and savor it. To not watch the clock, willing it to move faster to nap & bed times. To just smile, laugh, and be a champion of positive experiences with my children. (For the record, I'm already pretty good a this, but my trouble times are in the morning when we're getting ready to leave and when I don't feel well.)

A post without a photo. I'm sorry!

Christmas Morning

2011-01-03T21:45:00.001-05:00

Totally forgot I didn't post these. They're not high quality. Oh well. And some of them are stills from the video. But you get the point.

Bracelet from Aunt Emily

2011-01-03T12:22:00.000-05:00

I decided I'm going to have to wait until she's sleeping to really photograph it, but you get the idea.

Learning patience and to share.

2010-12-29T16:43:00.000-05:00

Aaron: Play twains wif me, mommy?

Me: Yes, buggy, I'll plain trains with you in a couple minutes.

Aaron: You feedin' Mornin mouk?

Me: yep. I'm feeding Lauren milk. Ok?

Aaron: Ok. Pway twains done feedin' Mornin milk.

He's so sweet. I could just eat him up!

Lauren's Diapers

2010-12-28T13:03:00.000-05:00

All of our Bumgenius & Flips (plus one gro-baby...), Merry Christmas, Lauren!

Magic Soup

2010-12-27T22:14:00.001-05:00

On the downhill slide to four years old, Ian has become much more difficult at the dinner table. Don't get me wrong, I have been blessed with two of the best eaters I have even seen! I believe children all reach a point when eating good food that is good for them is not a fun thing to do...so what's a parent to do? (Take them to Mickey-D's for some nuggets? NO!)

I can't speak for what works in every house, but Roger and I have learned that sometimes getting our kids to eat the food I made for dinner is all about creativity and spin. (and positive attitudes! Trust me, there are lots of nights when all we want to do is yell and give time outs and take away dinner, which always comes back to bite us in the rumps!)

I really should start keeping track of our ideas because nearly all of them are successful tactics for us, we just have to use them sparingly. We've done "dinner winner," where the best eater of dinner gets a special treat like a popsicle or "your choice" from the candy bucket. Or just dessert in general since we don't eat dessert every night. We encourage them to line up their peas on the plate, if that's what makes the peas interesting enough to eat. We may have even discussed how much broccoli you'd have to eat in order to turn green like Luigi. We have a rule (as of a few months ago) that even if you don't want what we are having, you have to eat as many bites as you are old. Most of the time, once the actual eating begins there is no more argument or mention of not liking or wanting dinner.

Tonight, I think was one of my most creative, successful moments yet! (I do say so myself...)

Tonight, we were having Italian Beef Soup for dinner. It's a tomato-beef soup that I made up many moons ago. It's a family favorite. We have it for dinner all.the.time. With the exception of the potatoes, Ian loves it. The potatoes are another story... he doesn't like potatoes in boiled, braised, baked or mashed form, but will eat them as wedges or fries. Eh. Not a battle I care to fight. He doesn't need the potatoes anyway if he's filling up on tomato soup broth and veggies. He'll come around someday.

So anyway, back to tonight. Ian was the first at the table after the dinner bell rang. He even said, "Wahoo!" after I told him what we were having, but as soon as his bowl was placed in front of him he exclaimed, "I don't wan't that! Mommy! Get me peanut butter and jelly!"

Ahem. "First of all, that's not how you ask for something. Second of all, you can have peanut butter and jelly after you eat your 3 bites."

The scoffing continued.

Then he said, "Mommy? How do they make Buzz Lightyear?"

And in my stroke of pure parenting genius (haha) I said what popped into my mind, "Start eating your soup and I'll tell you. It's magic soup. It makes mommy and daddy tell stories."

He picked up his spoon and started eating. As I told him how they make Buzz Lightyears in a silly story, he kept eating. By the time I was done he was done. But he was not finished...

"Mommy? How do they make Barbies?"

"Do you want more magic soup while I tell you?"

"uh-huh!"

Bumpadabum! He ate all of his dinner. And seconds.

Creativity and spin. It's the key to parenting at the dinner table. It also has a lot of other applications when you have 3 under 4...but that's a story for another day.

Christmas Eve

2010-12-25T00:23:00.003-05:00

A "Church Clothes" photo & A "new jammie" photo. Stockings hanging, cookies out... And the rest has yet to be revealed.

This was actually after we got home from church, our first "successful" Christmas Eve service
since 2006
...nobody crying, mama didn't have to leave the sanctuary, etc! Lovely!

we only had 4 hooks, so Roger's and mine are on the same one.

Stockings knitted for us by my "Aunt" Peggy Groover.

Almost 5 Months

2010-12-18T20:44:00.001-05:00

Another post coming soon from a camera we gave to Ian to use... but for now, here's our almost-5-month-old in her bumgenius diaper.

A Lunch Date

2010-12-16T16:42:00.000-05:00

Today, Lauren & I went into the city to meet a friend for lunch! She was in Pittsburgh on business. We had never met in person before and it was really fun to finally lay my eyes on her in real life. And a momma's lunch out. Debbie got to eat her very first Primanti Bros. sandwich, a Pittsburgh tradition. What a nice lunch!

Snow Day!

2010-12-13T18:17:00.000-05:00

My Name is Lauren

2010-12-09T11:09:00.001-05:00

And I have huge eyes.

And a sinus infection.

Just like my brothers.

...anyone else notice that her hair has started to grow?

2010-12-02T13:30:00.000-05:00

It went from chilly to really stinkin' cold here overnight.

Lauren's 4m Statistics

2010-11-30T11:07:00.002-05:00

Lauren is a "healthy"
14 pounds 12 oz (75th percentile)
25 inches (75th percentile)
41 1/2cm head circumference (50-75th percentile)

Just for fun I looked up Ian and Aaron's 4 month statistics: Ian was 18 lbs 4oz & 25 inches, Aaron was ... apparently I didn't blog Aaron's 4 month well visit statistics so I'll have to do a little digging for them! (Found it: 14 lbs 8oz, 24in.)

She got all of her vaccinations today and is now completely passed out. Hopefully I don't bother her too much when we have to go get Ian from school in a few minutes. Poor Girl! Vaccination day is always a hard day.

She's growing well. We got the green light to start solid foods and "since she's breastfeeding exclusively" a nice pep-talk about starting fortified cereal to boost her iron levels.

The doctor noted Lauren's excellent head control, ability to sit unassisted for 15-30 seconds at a time, rolling both ways, chuckling, squawking, and mostly happy demeanor. She's sleeping great compared to her brothers, usually down by 9:30pm and waking around 4:30 to eat, then back to sleep until 7am (or later). I can't remember what all I said in her actual 4 month post and I feel like I'm repeating myself so I'll stop.

We got a prescription for Aaron to have an x-ray of his sinuses before his ENT appointment on 12/14...so that will be our next adventure.

Never, ever a dull moment around here!

Sleeping after her shots this morning

Happy Baptism, Lauren!

2010-11-28T16:15:00.000-05:00

Lauren was baptized this morning at Calvary UMC in Greenville!

Lauren & Papa before the service

Uncle Todd showing Lauren the Christmas tree

Someone told me

2010-11-27T13:21:00.003-05:00

If I didn't have an indoor clothes drying rack, I could just hand Lauren's diapers over the banister to dry. Adorable. I do plan on getting a rack, but probably not until after Christmas.

Aaron's First time in Cloth & Little Sis Photo

2010-11-24T08:54:00.003-05:00

I guess I should not say first time because there were some times as an infant that Aaron was in cloth diapers. Anyway. Here's Aaron... in his Bumkins All-in-One diapers. I bought these probably 2 years ago now... and they've been in the closet just waiting. Perhaps somehow I just knew I would eventually go for it? Sorry to be posting so much about cloth diapers, but I'm really trying to immerse myself & get really excited about it so I don't give up.

Right now it is a little like starting out breastfeeding: I know the benefits, I'm excited about doing it, but it is hard (for me) to get going. In a few weeks, I'll probably look back and say, "hey, this is alright!"

Of course now I'll just mention since I know you're curious... no, I didn't ever do bottles because I thought it was easier, but I definitely thought about giving up on nursing Ian. The first 4 weeks of breastfeeding Ian were awful. I stuck it out & I'm glad I did! Now I'm nursing my third baby!

Anyway, that was a huge tangent I just went on...

Here are the pics.

LMV sleeping on the changing table (through a diaper change)

Other things we're up to?

1. All 3 kids have snotty faucet-noses. (Nasty!)
2. I'm thinking about the Apple tarte I'm making tomorrow morning.
3. I'm making Challah right now for french toast tomorrow.
4. Missing Roger & wishing he was on vacation today.
5. Thinking about Aaron's ENT appointment scheduled for 12/14.
6. Trying a new thing where we only buy meat once a month...and really take advantage of our freezer space.
7. Going to Grandma & Grandpa Bishop's for Thanksgiving dinner.
8. Thankful for a great many things this year.

Happy 4-Month Birthday!

2010-11-22T20:53:00.000-05:00

Lauren is 4 months old today. Where has the time gone?

She is wearing 3-6 month size clothes. (No idea how big she is... well visit next week)

Lauren can log-roll across the living room floor!

She loves her daddy & will smile and coo at him for long periods.

She is chewing on everything in sight & drooling too.

The tear duct in her right eye is still clogged, despite putting prescription drops in it. (And breastmilk, I'll admit, I tried it.)

She is settling into a pretty predictable schedule for sleep: morning nap while we're out running around, afternoon nap when Ian & Aaron nap, cat nap in the evening, sleeping for the night around 9pm, up at 4:00 for some nunnies, back to sleep until 7 or so.

I'm sure there's more, but I can't think of anything right now.

Cloth Diapers?

2010-11-21T08:43:00.002-05:00

Am I crazy? Perhaps. It's something I always thought I wanted to do, but was afraid. So we're now on the third baby and I still want to do it. So I decided to avoid regret, I should try it.

So today, Little Miss Vandervort is wearing cloth diapers.

And it's cute!

Hopefully it goes well.

What are your favorite kinds of Cloth Diapers? What kind of laundry soap do you use for them? How many do you have? And little tips or tricks you've picked up along the way?

Life, in quotes

2010-11-14T14:41:00.003-05:00

I started a new tumblr blog to capture some funny quotes and mis-quotes from the Vandervort children.

Check it out here

Ian's Turn at the Allergist

2010-11-08T12:23:00.001-05:00

Ian's allergic to nothing! Unfortunately that means there's no apparent cause (other than the cold weather) for his rampant eczema. So onward we go trying to find a cream (or combo of creams) to help relieve his itchy legs. (He is currently 34.8 pounds (57th percentile) and 40 inches tall (60th percentile)).

And this is Lauren looking all... Rawr!

I don't want to brag...

2010-11-06T14:00:00.000-04:00

No really, I don't want to. I have to. If I brag about this it is admitting that Lauren is growing up so fast and I don't want to admit it. I'd prefer to ignore it. I want her to stay teeny forever. But guess what Miss Peach just did!

During tummy time these days all she want to do is roll over and back. Well today she decided that was old news so she put her arms & legs underneath her and got her belly off the floor! And then lunged forward.

Dear Lord, help us all. My not-yet-four-months-old daughter made forward progress on her own today.

*sigh*

Trick or Treat!

2010-10-30T20:52:00.000-04:00

We invited our friend Jessica over to ToT with us this evening. We didn't go to *that* many houses, but stopped when the boy's buckets got too heavy for them to carry. It was great! They had a lot of fun & so did we!

Ian was Buzz Lightyear, Aaron was Sheriff Woody, & Lauren was Bo Peep.

2010-10-28T19:39:00.000-04:00

Playing Outside

2010-10-27T18:20:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe

On October 27th in Pennsylvania

We were out in shirt sleeves

Playing in the crunchy leaves

Acting silly, as always

seeing nothing but blue skies and fall colors

Refusing to give mommy just ONE good picture

Telling secrets up on the hill

Waiting for Daddy to get home

Aaron's 2 Year Stats

2010-10-26T10:50:00.002-04:00

Aaron had his well visit this morning. He got his final 2 "baby" vaccinations that he'd missed previously because he was sick and/or I didn't want him to have more than 1 vax at a time. No more vax until he's 5 (except for the flu)!! Yay! That's become something I look forward to...reaching the point in childhood where they don't have to get shots every 2 months or whatever. Although it is hard to believe that Ian won't go back for another well visit until April! (And Aaron won't have another one until next October!)

They didn't tell me his percentiles today so I had to plug them into a calculator on the Internet just now so here we go:

At 24 months:your child is 25 pounds, and that is at the 14th percentile for weight.
your child is 32.75 inches, and that is at the 10th percentile for height.
your child has a head circumference of 18.9 inches, and that is at the 30th percentile for head circumference.

So thinking back a bit, at 18 months old, Aaron was no longer on the percentiles chart for weight. You may be thinking... why is Aaron gaining weight a good thing? It's a good thing because he was so sick through is first 18 months that he wasn't gaining anything. He was not able to intake enough calories to both gain weight/grow and fight off the sickies. So the fact that Aaron is now gaining weight and back on the weight chart means his asthma and allergies are being managed well enough for him to put on some pounds. That is really good. He's still teeny, but he's doing better.

Aaron now has a very healthy height/weight/head circumference ratio and that is super!

Aaron's vocabulary is incredible. He knows almost as many words as Ian does. (Which is why I'm not even going to try to put them all down. He speaks in full sentences (even if the words are all "out of order.") and we can understand him 80-90% of the time. His fine and gross motor skills are excellent. He's eating well and playing well.

He wears 18 months size clothes...and mostly hand-me-downs from Ian. It is really so nice for me to "relive" a lot of the outfits I really loved on Ian now that Aaron can wear them.

Aaron is a sweetheart with a stubborn streak, by far the laid back one of the 2 boys.

I think that's about it about Aaron for today...

2 year Photo Shoot & 3 Month Photo Shoot

2010-10-21T09:57:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow, Aaron will be TWO years old! (Unbelievable.) But even harder to accept is Lauren will be 3 months old tomorrow. Here are some photos I took this morning. (Ian was at school or he's be in them too, of course, he's 3 1/2 years old now.) By the way, getting a 2 year old to sit still & smile is... hard.

more coming

2010-10-18T09:32:00.001-04:00

I didn't help him paint this!

Tea Time

2010-10-15T19:13:00.002-04:00

Today I had a Tea Party for Grandma Bishop, Great Grandma Kelley, Aunt Sam, Aunt Pat, & Aunt Carol. I tried to make it kinda fancy!

The Menu Was:

Pumpkin Soup
Smoked Turkey Sandwiches with Dijon Mustard Cream Cheese on Wheat Bread
Pumpkin & Vanilla Scones with Apple Butter Whipped Cream
Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies
Grapes
Tea, Coffee, & Lemonade

Pumpkin Soup:

(This was originally a recipe from a magazine, but I've tweaked it over the years)

1 lb pumpkin (pr butternut squash)

canola oil

1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh sage

1/4 lb bacon or pancetta, chopped

1/2 of one large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 1/2 cups chicken broth-low sodium

3 1/2 cups water

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

Salt

Pepper

1. Roast pumpkin/squash until tender, scrape flesh from skin, puree in blender

2. Cook bacon in 4qt. heavy pot over medium heat until browned. Remove from pan.

3. Cook onion until softened, add garlic & sage, cook about 1 minute.

4. Add pumpkin, broth, & water. Stirring occasionally, simmer 20 minutes. Puree Soup in blender.

5. Stir in vinegar, salt, & pepper

6. Serve garnished with crispy bacon (sometimes I also garnish w/ roasted pumpkin seeds)

*notes*
-this soup tastes even better refrigerated overnight & reheated!
-Somtimes, depending on how watery the pumpkin/squash is, you need less/more water. Just add liquid until it is a consistency that you like.
-Pureeing the second time is optional
-you can use canned pumpkin, but the roast flavor is really superior.

"Light" Chocolate Chip Cookies

Eating Well Magazine

3/4 c. rolled oats

1 c. whole wheat four

1/ 2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 c. butter, softened

1/4 c. canola oil

1/3 c. granulated sugar

1/3 c. brown sugar

1 lg. egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. mini chocolate chips

Cream butter, oil, sugars. Add egg & vanilla. Add flour, salt, soda.Gently stir in chips.

Bake 8-10 min at 350 on greased cookie sheets or parchment paper. Store in airtight container with a piece of bread.

Serving Size 4 cookies: 98 cal, 12g Carbs, 1g dietary fiber, 5g fat, 1g protein, 7g sugars

Turkey Sandwiches:

I just made this up yesterday ;-)

Sliced Deli Smoked Turkey Breast

1/3 less fat cream cheese

Grey Poupon dijon mustard

wheat sandwich bread

Mix softened cream cheese & mustard, spread on all bread slices, add 2 slices turkey breast. Cut off crusts & into shapes (triangles, strips, or special shapes using cookie cutter)

Pumpkin Scones:

http://www.green-tea-health-news.com/easy-pumpkin-scones.html

I followed this recipe exactly for the scones. I served them with my own creation of:

Apple Butter Whipped Cream:

1 c. Heavy Whipping Cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. Apple Butter (no extras, just apples, spices & cider)

Whip cream until soft peaks form, add in vanilla, & gently fold in apple butter. Adjust with more apple butter if you need to. (I didn't measure this morning...)

For the Vanilla scones- I swore on my life that I wouldn't give out the recipe for these after begging for it from my friend & former boss Melissa. THIS is a very similar recipe. I did not use raisins. While traditionally served with vanilla cream or strawberry jam, today I served them with apple butter... AWESOME.

Lauren 2 Month- Statistics

2010-10-09T12:56:00.000-04:00

Lauren had her 2 month doctor's visit yesterday (at 10 weeks) and she is a healthy specimen.

She weighs 12 pounds 12 oz and is 23.5 inches long.

She got all her vaccinations yesterday and it is safe to say she felt like CRAP last night. She seems to be doing much better now though & I expect will be back to normal after a nice long nap.

I'll be back to update with her head circumference & percentiles as soon as I grab the paper.

Finally some sunshine

2010-10-07T12:40:00.001-04:00

I took advantage of our first sunny day all week to take some pictures of Lauren :-)

Mystery Trip: Triple B Farms

2010-10-02T16:56:00.002-04:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Pineapple Pork

2010-09-29T19:50:00.002-04:00

Here's a recipe for you to try. Straight from my electric skillet.

1 small pork loin roast (1-2 lbs), cut into bite-size pieces
1 can pineapple chinks (or tidbits) in pineapple juice (not syrup), drained, reserve juice
1-2 tbsp. corn starch
3 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
3Tbsp. lower sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. dark honey (or whatever you have, I have local buckwheat honey.)
salt
pepper
sesame seeds
rice
asian veggie blend (I use birdseye brand)
cooking spray

Sprinkle corn starch, salt, & pepper over pork & toss to coat while preheating a non-stick skillet sprayed with cooking spray (with a lid, I use my electric skillet). Place pork into skillet on high heat in a single layer & brown on both sides.

Add pineapple juice, vinegar, soy sauce & water. Simmer on medium-high, covered for 8 minutes. Uncover & continue simmering until the liquid is cooked down & thicker. Add pineapple & honey. Continue cooking another minute or two to heat the pineapple through. Turn off.

Serve with steamed asian veggies & rice. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

I know it sounds like a lot of ingredients that you might not have on hand, but I have found that we eat this for dinner several times a month and once you have the vinegar, soy sauce, sesame seeds, etc. you can make this as a "pantry meal." We keep pork roast & asian veggies in the freezer all the time.

If you try it, let me how how you like it! I threw this together one night after a long day out and about, hoping for a tasty, quick dinner. It took several times to "perfect" it, but I personally think it is quite tasty. I keep forgetting to take a photo of it, but next time we have it, I promise I will take one. It not only tastes good, it looks really nice on the plate! The whole thing takes about 20 minutes to make- if you're cooking your rice & vegetables at the same time as the pork. Yum!

Busted Lip. No joke.

2010-09-27T13:57:00.000-04:00

So gross. Aaron tripped & fell yesterday, smacked his face off the the driveway at a miniature horse farm up north (Mercer County.) His bottom teeth came very close to all the way through his lip. We took him to the ER in Sharon, PA. It was that bad... Quite a lot of blood & and a huge fat lip, but didn't end up getting stitches. I wonder if it would have been the same outcome if we'd been here in Pittsburgh at Children's...

This morning he woke up really grumpy and fussing that his ear hurt, so off to the pediatrician we went. Turns out Aaron's ear is fine, but his throat is red (strep negative, thank God!) and Aaron's pedi says he probably would have put a stitch in it if he had seen it yesterday, but today it was already healing & there's nothing we can do but wait & make sure it doesn't get infected.

Poor Aaron. I have so much mommy-guilt about his life.

Be Warned: the pictures are graphic & gross. They'll make your knees hurt.

A Day At Old Economy Village

2010-09-25T21:33:00.002-04:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Today we went with Grandma & Grandpa Bishop to the Old Economy Village in Ambridge, PA. It was REALLY neat! If you haven't been there, you should consider going.

A new naptime ritual & some smiles

2010-09-24T13:45:00.000-04:00

I got the camera today so I could capture a quick shot of the newest heart-melting naptime ritual. Ian already has such a deep love for his sister.

Lauren smiling at mommy 9/23/10

Aaron playing legos with Ian & daddy

Woody/Aaron laughing at daddy after bath

ERGO carrier Giveaway

2010-09-24T13:18:00.001-04:00

http://www.heavenlyhold.com/pages/contest.htm

Just click the link. You won't be sorry!!!

You know how I feel about babywearing, so go right ahead and try to win the Ergo. It's my 2nd favorite overall, first-favorite for older/heavier babies!

2 Months Old

2010-09-22T17:47:00.000-04:00

Already?! SLoooow down, Princess! I have no stats for her because her appointment isn't until next week.

Also, she was *so* not having the photo shoot today... maybe later we'll try again for some smiles.

So sweet

2010-09-21T18:46:00.000-04:00

Lauren at 2 months


Ian at 2 Months

Aaron at 2 months

Self Portrait & Baby Carriers

2010-09-16T21:30:00.001-04:00

I got a Moby Wrap from my girlfriends when Aaron was teeny. I love it. Best. Carrier. Ever. You might also see me in a Maya Ring Sling, an Ergo Carrier, a Peanut Shell, Patapum, or even the Evenflo Hiking Backpack. They all serve very specific purposes in my mothering and child wearing. But I'll never tell you otherwise, the Moby is my favorite of all of them.

**Just so you know, I only paid full price for one of these! The rest were either gifts or hand-me-downs. That's part of the beauty of baby carriers... they are good for multiple babies and/or sharing!

Occasionally, we have a sweet time.

2010-09-16T13:47:00.000-04:00

I just got done reading Ian stories for naptime. Aaron already had his stories & was in his crib. Lauren, who was in her crib, was fussing so I went and got her before going to Ian's room to read. We read stories & I said,

"Tell Ian night night, Lauren. Tell Lauren night night, Ian."

And he asked if Lauren could lay with him. So I laid her down (awake) next to him in bed (next to the bed rail so she could not fall out) and went to the living room to get Ian his water cup. I returned to fin him laying on his side looking at her, her eyes closed. It was so sweet. I wish I had the camera. (it is in the car still from our zoo trip yesterday and would've caused too much commotion anyway.)

It almost makes up for the ridiculous trouble Ian gave me while trying to get out the door to school this morning. I swear, that kid is so.... three.

Cool Fall Days

2010-09-09T16:54:00.002-04:00

Make me feel like baking bread.

It isn't relaxing when you have little fingers helping you.

It is kinda silly (and gross?) when you turn around and find them licking and tasting everything...

But it is nice to see the delight on your child's face when he's so proud of what he's doing.

Don't let me forget to take a photo of Ian's first loaf of bread after we're done. (It's rising now.)

**Update**

And homemade strawberry jam on our bread for breakfast. Yum.

A New School Year

2010-09-07T12:33:00.000-04:00

Today was Ian's Offiicial first day of preschool. He's in the two-days-a-week 3 year old class. This morning was 1/2 the class & parents, so Thursday is the big day! He'll go all by himself with the whole class. Lauren came with mommy to Ian's class. She was quiet as a mouse in her Moby wrap.

Something dawned on me this morning... my kids are going to learn patience one way or another... Ian was called last twice today because his last name begins with V. There aren't any kids with WXY or Z last names in his class...

He was his spirited self & had most of the parents smiling & chuckling. The teachers too. And Mrs. K even said, "I have a feeling you are going to have us laughing a lot in here, Ian."

Oh My.

Ian cried when it was time to go.

Aaron went to Kids Day Out this morning & he was fine. Never batted an eyelash at me going was happy to see me when I came back, but sad to have to leave.

I'd call this morning a wild success. Lets pray for continued love for school & happy mornings!

Friday.

2010-09-03T13:54:00.000-04:00

Aaron's New 'Tude & sweet sister

2010-08-27T23:49:00.000-04:00

Aaron has been asserting himself more lately... in the form of tantrums. He also gets hurt feelings & cries if we scold him sternly.

tantrum on the kitchen floor

crying because we scolded him for putting too much broccoli in his mouth

Sweet Girl