Mrs. Independant - part 2

In my last Mrs. Independent post I explained how Soraya wants to put her shoes on by herself. Well, we have now moved on to picking out our clothes for the day. I shouldn't be surprised as for awhile now she has enjoyed standing on a stool in my closet, tapping her index finger to her chin saying "hmmmm, pick....pick." I wonder where she got that from? Did she possibly watch me try and decide what to wear one too many times :)

So we now have moved on to picking out our own clothes. Today she was adamant about wearing the same t-shirt from yesterday that had a sparkly BFF on it. Along with some navy blue sweatpants. I had to convince her that we could put a long sleeve shirt under the t-shirt and you could still see the sparkly BFF as it was too cold to just wear a t-shirt.

So here is a picture wearing her well thought out outfit. She is also wearing her puppy dog "pack pack"

Snow Day!

Thanks to a couple more feet of snow Chad had another snow day yesterday! It was nice just lounging around the house, getting some things done, and Chad getting in a little more studying since finals are next week. Chad took Soraya out to play in the snow. All of the dad's on the block were shoveling their driveways while the kids played so I took a few pictures. Soraya LOVED it! We had to make her come inside after an hour because her cheeks were bright red and since her gloves got soaked she took them off then had freezing cold hands! But at least she had a good time! Jack made it out for a bit and was mesmerized with the snowflakes landing on his eyelashes :)

Oops!

Well, I was checking my email while Soraya was taking a bubble bath and Jack (freshly bathed) watched his mobile. Next thing I know Soraya is yelling that it's time to get out! I run in and she had pooped in the bath tub. She said "Raya poo poo in the tub" and then she started crying. She was clearly upset about her accident. So I got her out, wrapped her in a towel and told her it was ok. I didn't want her to feel any worse about the incident. So I let Chad clean it up when he got home :)

Graham Crackers

When we started potty training we bribed Soraya with crackers. She could have 2 crackers every time she used the potty. Well, we were going through a lot of crackers. And in my opinion, even the "healthiest" cracker in the super market still is not nourishing to the body. It is more harmful than helpful. So, I decided to make some homemade graham crackers. I just made them for the second time today and they turned out even better than the first time! They are actually pretty good. I enjoyed dunking them in some raw milk :)
Graham Crackers
41/2 c. spelt flour
1 c. butter
1 c. buttermilk
2 c. rapadura or sucanant
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Mix flour, butter and buttermilk and let stand at room temperature overnight. (Use a glass bowl and cover with a plate). Next morning, mix rest of ingredients and add to four mixture. Roll out as thin as possible and cut with a cooking cutter. Bake at 350 until crisp.



Tips

• My hardest problem is rolling them thin enough. I still think I can get them thinner. The harder I push though, the more they tend to stick to the counter.
  
• I don't have any cookie cutters...so I use a shot glass :) Works great!
• They seem to stick less to my stone than cookie sheets.
  
• 15 minutes seems to be the right amount of time. They will crisp up some as they cool, so take them out when they are golden brown.
  

Mrs. Independant

Well, I now have to give Soraya ample notice when we are going to leave the house. She wants to put her shoes on all by herself. It is interesting to observe the learning process of such a huge milestone for a toddler. She started practicing on Sunday. She found some of her summer shoes in her room and put them on by herself. However, that evening when we went to leave it took 15 minutes and 2 tantrums to get out the door. She now wants to do it by herself every time. However, she still can't get them on by herself half of the time. So she tries, lays down and screams. I ask if she wants help NO! I ask if she wants to try again NO! And she cries the some more. She kicks her foot up and the half on shoe flys off and hits her in the head. She cries some more. So I finally pursuade her to try again and sucess! She got it. But now we are wearing our summer shoes in the winter....no big deal. It was just her and I going to Jessie's house so I could carry her. Well, Chad calls later in the evening and Jack is crying because he is ready to be fed and put to bed. So I tell Soraya it is time to go and the tantrum starts all over again trying to get her shoes on by herself. Fifteen minutes later she is still crying and I know Jack is probably crying for Chad, so I convince her to carry her shoes. So it works and I get her out the door....this time it works...not sure about the next time...

Beer Day

I sure love living by the college calender. Getting those random holidays off that you don't get in the real world, like MLK day today. So since Chad has today off, it is Beer bottling day. And so far it has been a family event. This is the first time he has bottled beer since we moved which posed 2 problems.

Problem #1- We no longer have a dishwasher, which is how you sanitize the bottles. Chad is Mr. Sanitizer himself. So he wants them sanitized at the last possible second and stored in an airtight, sanitized container. So we asked friends Dave and Amy who live down the block and they happily agreed to let us use their dishwasher for a few beers in return.

Problem #2- We had to get the bottles to Dave and Amy around 10 in order to have them back by Soraya's nap time, which is prime bottling time. Well, Chad didn't even start looking for the bottle until 9. We found about 200 bottle with the labels still on...but couldn't find the 80 that he used in his last batch which we had already scraped the labels off of. So during Jack's am nap the scraping began. We had one side of the sink full of hot water soaking bottles. Once Chad and I scraped the label off of a bottle with a razor blade we put it in the other side of the sink where Soraya dumped out the water, rinsed it off and put it in the tub with the other finished bottles.


Soraya also made sure the bottles that were soaking were stirred.


So we get the bottles ready in time and Chad takes them down to Dave and Amy's. Well, they couldn't fit all of them in their dishwasher in one load so then we call Rod and Amy who live a few minutes away and Soraya and Chad drive over with the rest ofe bottles to get a load going in their dishwasher as well, costing us a 6 pack.

We then get both kids to sleep for their naps and we start bottling.

First you sanitize. Chad sanitizes EVERYTHING!


Then you syphon the beer from the carboy to the bottling bucket.


Chad didn't want to waste a drop!


I was the bottle filler.


Chad was the bottle caper.


All done! Just in time for Jack to wake up!

Roadtrip

Well, time to get caught up with the blog. I tend to get a few days behind. We went to meet our new niece, Marissa, this past weekend. Soraya talked about her all week and was excited to give her some baby shampoo. But when we got there, she was much more excited about Marissa's toys, which I should have expected. Jack found her crib to be very exciting, as he wanted to look at all of her stuff instead of sleep :) But it was a nice visit and I was glad to finally get to meet her! The drive home was interesting. Jack cried off and on the last hour of the drive, and poor guy, we had to make two stops, which stretched things out even more. Soraya had to go potty, she now wears no diapers ever, so we had to stop at a gas station in Wadworth, about 20 minutes from home. I know what you are thinking...gas station...well we had her little potty seat that sits on big potty seats so I didn't think it would be too bad. So I go running in with toddler in one hand and a potty seat in the other and of course...there was someone already in the ladies room. I stand there for a second...knowing Jack is in the car screaming (poor guy) so I try the men's handle..it was empty..after a few seconds of hesitation we go in...i know not only gas station bathroom but now mens gas station bathroom! Soraya happily trots in and I yell "don't touch ANYTHING!" She goes, without a hitch, thankgoodness it was #1 and not #2! So we get back in the car and head on down the road and we had to then stop in Copley to pick up our milk (we get raw milk from a farm co-op that we have to pick up weekly). But Jack survivied, poor guy, you just wish he could understand why he was stuck in that seat for 3 hours and why no one picked him up even though he was crying. So we get home feed the kids, put them in bed and I hit the hay at 8! I was exhausted!

Jumping Jack wearing daddy's hat. This is his new favorite hang out spot :)

Mama Carol with baby Marissa

Close up of Baby Marissa

Soraya "swimming" in her "boat" while I tried to pack our bag for the weekend.

Killer Meatloaf!

I had a request for my killer meatloaf recipe so I thought I would post it here. It was SO good. I used to hate meatloaf and had to drown it in ketchup to cover the taste. But this one is SO good you don't even need to dip! Soraya loved it as well. We ate 3/4 of this thing last night!

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped (used food processor)
1/2 a green pepper, finely chopped (used food processor)
1/2 c. water
1/4 c. tomato juice
1/4 c. spaghetti sauce
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp. mustard
1/2 c. rolled oats
1 egg

Mix all ingredients and put in a baking dish. Mix 1/4 cup ketchup and 1 teaspoon mustard and spread over top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

I am a big fan of homemade ketchup and mustard. More natural and less sugar. But since baby #2 I've been too lazy. So I used organic ketchup and mustard in this recipe.

I served it with brocolli and the coconut flour blueberry muffins I posted about last week.

I got the recipe from the most amazing cookbook that my in-laws gave me for Christmas! You can purchase it at: http://www.grassfedcooking.com/book/wholesomehomecooking.html

She did it!

Well, I think we've had a potty training breakthrough! Last night before bed Soraya wanted to wear her froggy panties to bed, since baby Jack wears diapers. So, we followed her lead and went for it...and she made! She was dry this morning when she woke up! So I think we are pretty much there. We have one potty trained little girl :) I know accidents will happen..that is expected...but she sure amazed me how quickly she caught on. She's worn panties to the grocery store and to church, so I think we are going to attempt the YMCA today. We'll see how it goes!

By the way...I kept trying to edit yesterday's post and wasn't able to...I meant to explain how every time she is "on the phone" she says pretty good...hence the name of the post. Wonder who she hears say that on the phone all the time??

Pretty Good

I was on the phone for awhile yesterday morning trying to set up Jack's eye appointment. So Soraya picked up her phone and started making phone calls. She has been "on the phone" constantly since yesterday! She has her pink barbie phone and has had conversations with Granma, Mama, and daddy. With daddy she discusses school and not pee peeing in her panties. With Granma (my mom) she discusses how baby Jack is awake. And with Mama (Chad's mom) she discusses "playing toys" how papa is doing dishes. And she has told everyone about baby Marissa! Too cute. The funny thing is though that she still won't talk on the real phone! I'm sure she will some day.

Well, I'm not planning on much activity for the next few days. We already have a foot of snow and are getting 2-4 more inches today. Then FREEZING cold the rest of the week. Do you take your kids out in the freezing cold? If I pre-heat the car and just go to the YMCA so they are only going in and out once. What do you think? I still can't decide. Maybe we will just hybernate the rest of the week.

I've decided blogs are much more interesting with photos. So if I dont find one that goes with my post then will just pick a random one. Here is one with Mama.

Jack's Eyes

Well, I made an appointment today for Jack's eyes :( It doesn't look like they are going to straighten out on their own. We still have one more month...they say it can take up to 6 months...but "normally" they are straight by now. We've even tried chiropractic care, which has helped to improve them, but not fix them. So we have an appointment in early Feb with a pediatric eye doctor that works with the Cleveland Clinic. We've decided to take Soraya to get tested too just incase, since it is probably hereditary. My good friend is an eye doctor and she said it could be treated with glasses, a patch or maybe surgury. Lets hope for the glasses! All along I was hopefull that they would just straighten out on their own but it isn't looking like that is going to happen so we will see what happens February 11 at 8:30 am. If my mom can't come along...anyone want to help take 2 kids 2 and under to the eye doctor??

I'm an Aunt again!

I am SO excited to annouce the birth of Chad's brother's baby! Baby Marissa came into the world around 4:20 this morning weighing 8 pounds 1 ounce and 20 1/2 inches long! Can't wait to meet her. I'm bummed I have to wait a whole week!

Can you even call this sleep?

So, I'm up but not really awake. I don't even think you could call last night sleeping! Here is what happened:

10- I go to bed
11- Jack wakes to eat
2:30 - Raya wants her binkie, then her other binkie to hold, then her diaper changed
3- Jack wakes to eat
5:30- Jack wakes from rolling over. Pat him back to sleep
5:45- i get back in bed
6- Jack awake again, end up feeding him a bit to get him to back to sleep
6:15- Jack awake AGAIN, I send Chad in...his turn...
6:30- Jack still screaming, Chad gives up, I go in, feed him a bit more and pat him to sleep
7:30- Chad comes walking in with Raya, Jack is in his crib talking and Chad has to leave so I get up.

We were actually pretty lucky too because Soraya has been overtired since Christmas and waking at 6:30 every morning (instead of her usual 7:30 or 8, and that is also why she woke in the middle of the night). This is the first morning in 2 weeks she slept past 6:30! Yipee for the extra hour of sleep. I needed it after that night. (Chad thought I looked half asleep in this picture so I thought it was appropriate for this post :)

Then, as I groggily watched over the kids, in the first hour Soraya spilt a whole cup of milk, a full bowl of blueberries and burned her hand on the stove. Wonder what is in store for the rest of the day...

Recipes

So as I mentioned in one of my first posts, I really enjoying some other women's blogs (located on the left of my blog!) And most of them have to do with food. I love finding a new really yummy really nourishing recipe.

Now for those of you who don't really know me...i can be a food nut! When my daughter turned 6 months old I went on a mission to find the HEALTHIEST foods possible. And I ended up finding out about Weston A. Price. Long story short, he was a dentist who traveled the world for 10 years studying different cultures and their diet and the affect it had on their teeth. The trend was the more of the "white man's food" that was in their diet the worse their teeth were and the less healthy they were. The cultures eating the most natural, least processed foods had perfect teeth and near perfect health. If you want to know more you can go to www.westonaprice.org. I highly recommend it. And if you have any questions for me let me know...I LOVE talking about this stuff!

So anyway, the foods we don't have in our house are sugar, margerine, anything processed that comes in a box, soda, pasturized milk and so forth.

What we eat a TON of is raw milk, grass fed eggs and meat, butter, coconut oil, cheese, spelt flour, and the newest food I've just tried is coconut flour.

So I thought I would post the newest recipe I tried yesterday. Totally yummy! I found it at: http://www.cheeseslave.com/2008/10/08/coconut-flour-blueberry-muffins/

I will probably from time to time post my newest yummiest finds in case any of you out there are like me and always on the hunt for a new recipe!

Blueberry Honey Muffins

Makes 6 muffins

Ingredients:

3 eggs (pastured if possible)
2 tablespoons butter, melted (raw, grass-fed if possible)
2 tablespoons coconut milk or whole milk (I used whole raw grass-fed milk)
3 tablespoons honey (raw honey if possible)
8 ounces organic fresh or frozen blueberries (please do not use conventional blueberries — it’s important that they are organic) *
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla (organic, additive-free)
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder **

1. Blend together eggs, butter, coconut milk, honey, salt, and vanilla.
2. Combine coconut flour with baking powder and thoroughly mix into batter until there are no lumps.
3. Drain blueberries and dry with paper towels. Add to batter with a spoon.
4. Pour batter into muffin cups. Bake at 400 degrees F (205 C) for 15 minutes.

* If you can’t find organic blueberries, I would use banana or some other fruit instead. It is important to buy organic berries.

Getting back in the groove

Well, after 2 weeks of bliss, I have to return to the daily grind. Chad had 2 weeks off off school and it was wonderful. We really enjoyed just spending a lot of time at home with the family- stress free! So it was great, the refreshing break we needed, now its back to the real world! It's quite the adjustment. I was getting pretty used to having his help to juggle the 2 kids. But we are getting back in the groove...figuring out how to hold jack while getting raya's pants down, sitting her on the potty, getting them back up, and lifting her up to the sink to wash her hands! Quite a tast to do 2-3 times per hour. Next up, taking the two to the grocery store...I really enjoyed only taking one or even getting to go by myself one time!