Breakfast

I've been eating a low-carb diet for the past month, a hybrid of Primal and Atkins.  So far it's cleared up my migraines, heartburn, nasal congestion/post nasal drip, and possibly much of my anxiety.

And just because I wanted to document it, here's my breakfast smoothie for today:

First, grab a small mouth quart canning jar since your blender jar is dirty.

Add:

A handful of slivered almonds
A scoop of gluten-, dairy- and soy-free protein powder
Four eggs from our henny-pennies
A chunk of zucchini from our garden
A teaspoon of powdered wild greens I harvested from my parent's farm
Half an avocado
As much spinach as I could cram in
Water
Stevia powder
Orange flavoring

Liquify in blender, pause, add even more spinach.  Consume other half of avocado with salt first, because, AVOCADO!  Split smoothie with the one you love and drink until your stomach feels all stretchy.

And then get on with your day.  Me, I'm working on a sewing room make over.  Stay tuned for actual pictures next time!

Highlight of My Night

Doozer:  (comes to me with a sport wrap used for ankles)  Please tie this on my head.

Me:  Okay.

Doozer:  Thanks!  Now I'm Jesus!

Me:  Oh, is that right?

Doozer:  Yeah!  Now I'm going to the back yard and make our dead duck and dead chicken alive again.  Bye!

Hurtful

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can make me think I deserved it.

-Alt Text for XKCD comic 1216

Working on this every day.  My kid self was hurt very badly.

Mmmm!

I'm quite happy.  Today my lazy self found some sourdough bread at Fred Meyer's that doesn't contain yeast.  What does that mean?  It means it was leavened the traditional way, fermenting the wild yeasts on the flours.  This makes it Traditional Food friendly.  I bought two loaves. 

Tonight I get to indulge in one of my favorite treats:  toast with butter and peanut butter.  Yummy-yum.  You need to try this if A) you love bread and B) you love butter and C) you love peanut butter.  My mom taught this snack to her kids and I've passed it to mine.

And the best part is this bread hasn't given me any heartburn the way grain products usually do.  I'm so excited!

Dinner from the Backyard

BuggaBoo and Doozer have gotten pickier about their food as of late.  It's been slowly coming on and it's annoying.  Pickier eaters make for a more expensive food budget; that doesn't work for us.

So we've set up a positive reward system for them.  As a team we pick four food for the kids to work on.  Each food has ten spots next to it for stickers, for a total of forty stickers.  These kids aren't allowed to shun a food, but once the sheet is filled they get a special prize.  This time around BuggaBoo and Doozer decided to work towards a new dessert.

Why ten tries?  It takes a person 10-15 tries in a short amount of time to like a new food.  Nearly every food can be likable. 

This time around the kids are working on lima beans, peas, corn, and dandelion greens.

Hold up, dandelion greens?  Yup!  They're free and grow profusely in our backyard.  They are also very nutritious.  I also want to work more foraged foods into our diet.  Dandelions are great for beginners, so the kids get to help with the harvest.  And they're useful in many different ways.

So far I've used the greens and the unopened buds.  Last night we had dandelion, cat's ear, and bok choy (all from the backyard/garden) sauteed with garlic with sunny side up eggs cooked on top.  Today I picked and cleaned the buds for pickling, first soaking them in a brine solution to cut down on the bitterness.  They're pickling in the fridge right now.  I hope to use them in potato salad.

Tonight dinner was homemade dandelion pasta.  I first found a recipe for spinach pasta, then I subbed the dandelions for the spinach.  I blanched the clean greens, drained, and then pureed them in the blender with a bit of water.  Since I had picked so many greens I doubled the recipe, and I'm glad I did.  I served the pasta with an "alfredo" sauce with lima beans tossed in.  That was the kids were able to get two stickers for one meal.

The pasta was a huge hit.  The kids ate it all and asked for more.  They asked me to make it again.  Doozer even thanked me for dinner.  The three year old, thanking me for dandelion pasta.  I was blown away.

The pasta didn't even have a hint of bitterness.  It was also very hearty and chewy, I was surprised at how little it took to fill me up.  I'm a really big eater, so this was great for me. 

I want to play around with a gluten-free version.  I found this millet/tapioca pasta that looks like it might be a good springboard.  And I would feel better about the pasta for the kids if it was gluten-free, since we all seem to do better on a gluten-free diet.

Tomorrow or such I'll let you know how the dandelion buds turn out.

Yes

Math and the Ready Mind

BuggaBoo found a first grade math book today.  Since he loves math he's been pestering his father and I for direction.  We've shown him how to deal with the equations and set him free.

He just finished a page of 16 questions.  Double column subtraction with no borrowing.  He scored 13 right out of those 16 questions.

Goes to show that kids will soak things up when they're ready for them.

Convos with Doozer

She's been sick the last few days, poor sweet one.  We've been snuggling a lot, which leads to interesting conversations.

While watching Dual Survival with me and witnessing a porcupine being hunted:

Her:  "I want to hunt a porcupine.  Tomorrow.  It will be delicious.  And I want to eat a baby."

Me:  "You want to eat a baby?"

Her:  "No, not a baby!  It will cry too much.  I want to hunt a giraffe.  And I want to eat a giraffe."

Me:  "Okay, we'll have to see about that."

Her:  "I'm not sick anymore, I can eat it!"

She is still sick, by the way.  She'll be in the middle of vomiting and still insisting that her tummy feels better.

On the other hand BuggaBoo has a bad habit of becoming demanding and whiny while ill.  I would use the term "man flu," but I actually find that distasteful and hateful.  But, geez, that boy can really complain!  I do think it's due to the fact that he still has issues with vomiting.  The best we can figure is he just has hair-trigger queasiness. 

You know how you can feel nauseous but still force it down?  I remember doing that all the time as a kid (and when I was making kids!).  Well, it seems as though BuggaBoo just doesn't have that ability.  Once he starts vomiting he doesn't stop.  So we keep some Zofran on hand and use that once his stomach is entirely cleaned out.  We wait until he dry heaves a few times to make sure if it's food poisoning or something like that it has a chance to get out.  So, usually after 12 hours of vomiting we'll dose him with the Zofran. 

Actually, we just did this with him.  Last Saturday he started puking at bedtime.  After vomiting 10-12 times that night I finally gave him a pill at 6am and crawled into bed with him to try and get some sleep.  After 4 doses of the Zofran we weaned him onto more typical remedies for upset stomach.  Once he's over the hump those usually work.  And this time he was only out of commission for 5 days instead of the usual 10.  Much better.

Contrast that with Doozer, who threw up yesterday, but acted mostly well all day besides napping and going to bed early.  She ate lightly.  Tonight she threw up, but I'm pretty sure it's because she had some yogurt curdle in her stomach.  She also went to bed at 4pm.  But, still, she's always in much better shape than BuggaBoo when she's sick.  I don't get how two siblings can be so different from each other.  And none of BuggaBoo's test explained anything.

Oh well, I guess I should wrap up yet another post about puking.  It's a popular thing around here.

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

Ah, the day we celebrate St. Patrick part of driving paganism from the land and replacing it with Christianity.

Hmm.....

Anyways, it's a good excuse to eat corned beefs with cabbage and red potatoes.  For full effects share with good friends.

Enjoy!

Dee-lish

Dee-lish, at 0:18.

Hanging out with my sister and trying a new concoction.  Base recipe found here.

1 cup double-strong decaf coffee.  'Cause it's 6pm, yo.
3/4 cup coconut milk from a can
3 tablespoons raw sugar
1/2 teaspoon maple nut flavoring, because I was out of vanilla AND almond.  Verdict:  exquisite
pinch of xanthan gum to prevent seperation
1 cup ice, because I doubled the recipe and I couldn't fit 3 cups of liquid and 4 cups of ice in my blender

Blend, pour, enjoy.

Ooooooh, enjoy.

Paper Bum Game

Doozer made up a new game today.

First, you need to pick up a flyer from the local auto part store.

Next, you need to sit in the middle of the dining room floor and rip the paper into tiny pieces.

You then place all the paper bits behind you near your bum, making a pile.

When The Hubby and I inquired why we were putting paper bits near our bums she told us, "It's because giants might come."

Sound advice, lady.  Sound advice.

Oh, she won, by the way.  And no giants came.

Hmmm....

Looking at my search stats for this blog you would think something was blowing up on the internet...

lds mother breastfeeding

 lds breastfeeding

 lds church breastfeeding

dye a stained shirt

breastfeeding and modesty  

breastfeeding in lds church
  
breastfeeding in mormon church

can you dye a stained shirt?

dairy free sausage gravy

dying clothes that are stained

My most viewed page this week?  Heck, this month?  Breastfeeding and the LDS Church.  Wow.

I'm excited to see what happens next.




Other good posts about breastfeeding and the LDS Church:

Breastfeeding history moment: LDS Sacrament Meeting, 1871 by Dr. Rixa Freeze at Stand and Deliver

Breastfeeding history moment: Mormon handcart pioneers by Dr. Rixa Freeze at Stand and Deliver

Modesty and Breastfeeding by  Heather at The Bee in your Bonnet

Snapshots

I want to get back into blogging but I am having trouble arranging my deepest thoughts into coherent posts.

Instead I've decided to record slivers of my life, those important and those trivial.

Enjoy.

----------------------------------------------------------

Today the kids and I applied red lipstick and kissed the sliding glass door and love letters to The Hubby.

Aspirin + acetaminophen + coffee = an amazing way to stave off a migraine.

I'm feeling accomplished for hacking the apple tree to bits.  I'm anticipating an amazing apple crop this year.  Now I need to know what to do with it.  I'll need to preserve it because our apples come on in August and they're a mealy type.  Not good for raw storage.

Looking forward to dinner tonight with dear friends.

Thinking about breastfeeding and unrighteous dominion due to this post.

Excited to pick up some Kool-Aid to try out a cheap lip stain idea.

For Dinner

My dinner tonight:

Beef heart stuffed with mushrooms, garlic, and bacon

Pureed turnips and carrots

Gravy made from home grown, home canned pear juice, bone broth, and onions caramelized in butter.  Liquify in blender.

Weaning

Well, I've done it.  Tonight is the first time since my first child has been born that I've been home and not nursed one of them to sleep.  I have weaned them, just like that.

It's certainly bittersweet, like a good marmalade.  I cried about it a few days ago, to a stranger, of course.  Part of my weaning process was to visit my sister-in-law sans children for a few days.  She was kind enough of hire a massage therapist/energy healer for me and I bawled my eyes out during my session.

For a few weeks I've been drinking sage tea and explaining to the kids that my body isn't making milk anymore since they're not babies.  A lie, yes, but I feel it's better than, "I just really don't want to nurse you anymore.  It's me, not you."  Like a bad break-up.

Anywho, BuggaBoo was quite upset about me drying up and talked about it a lot.  Many tears were shed and many hugs were shared.  Grieving on both sides was to be expected.

Doozer didn't understand as much, and I didn't expect her to.  I dried up during my pregnancy with Doozer and BuggaBoo trucked along in the nursing department.  There was no way Doozer was going to quit just because I had a decreased milk supply.

That leads me to my trip to visit the sister-in-law.  First, it was much needed Me Time.  Just wonderful.  Second, the kids got a bit used to going to bed without nursing.  BuggaBoo even came up with the idea to drink a cup of milk with molasses stirred into it before lights out.  After the first night it was reported to me that the kids were doing well.

Now we come to tonight.  My first out-and-out lie.  I told my children I have no more milk.  This is not true, and I'm actually a bit uncomfortable.  Not nursing for five days will do that.  However, with much tears (and screaming) on Doozer's part she did finally go to sleep without "nurshing."  BuggaBoo did awfully well with a snuggle.

And here I am.  I'm not sure where that is, though.  I'm crying because I'll never nurse these kids again.  But I'm so relieved because I'll never nurse these kids again.  Mothering seems to be so much of creating beauty with your children and then knowing when to rip it apart for the good of everyone.

To my children:  I loved nursing you.  I know it wasn't always a sweet and lovely experience, but I cherish the time you spent at my breast.  Thank you for nurturing my soul and I nurtured your bodies.  I truly grieve for our loss, yet I anticipate the dances of love we will join in the future.

I love you guys.

Living with My Own Lewis Carroll

BuggaBoo has been really getting into onomatopoeias.  For examples:

-He likes the yolks of his fried eggs to be "jubily".
        "Please cook my eggs so the yolk is jubily!"
-If something takes a rounded form he refers to is as "plumpy". 
        "Mom, your bottom is really plumpy!"
        "Why is my pillow all plumpy?"
-Today he asked me to cook his Brussels sprouts "slimy".
        "I like it when you cook my Brussels sprouts all slimy.  Slimy and chewy."

It sometimes seems I'm in the middle of the Jabberwocky (where is my vorpal sword when I need it?), and it always brings a smile to my face.

So, quick.  Brighten your day and use an incredibly, if possibly made-up, descriptive word.  I'm sure you won't regret it.

Flippin' Furniture

I've been having some fun flipping furniture lately.  I buy 'em cheap, paint 'em up, sand 'em down, and sell 'em.  Well, I've sold one so far, but I'm hoping for another sale today (just listed it).

Here's pics to make up for my blogging absence.  Enjoy!

Before, green and falling apart.  Purchased for $3 at a yard sale.  I was test-driving the yellow, but I didn't like it.  Oh, I was also testing a brown, but didn't go with that, either.

After, creamy loveliness.  Sold for $50 the first day.

Second project, simple oak dresser.  Sorry, that picture is in a different camera.  Just imagine a plain dresser.  After, distressed denim, complete with rivet-colored handles.

I have this one listed for $350, we'll see if it sells for that.


I leave you with Doozer, pulling a face.  Enjoy!

An Apology and An Explanation

I am sorry I haven't posted the update about my meeting with Tim Gunn.

The reason is once I showed him my dress and how it worked for breastfeeding he became very adamant that I protect my intellectual property through patent.  In his words, "This idea is so good people will steal it from you."

I'm not sure which route I want to choose yet, but until I make a decision I don't want to limit my options by posting the finished dress.  I hope you understand and are willing to be patient with me.

Thank you.

Just a quick note because I'm exhausted.

I met Tim Gunn today.  He is as amazing in person as he is as a TV personality.

And.

He LOVED my dress.  Exuberantly loved my dress.

That is all, because now I'm going to faint dead away.

Mock-up Done, Tweaking Needed

Alright everyone, here's a mock-up of my design.  It's not perfect, so you will get a glimpse of my beige bra against a beige dress and panty lines.  I'm sorry for any offense that may be stirred.  I found this heavy knit in the discount section of JoAnn's and it's working well for the mock-up.  The color is horrid for me, the final dress will be a rich jewel tone.

I'm very happy with the concept and the seaming work went together like a dream.  I was playing around with the idea of piping the seams, so I serged the seams on the outside and then top stitched them down.  I'm thinking of just sticking with understated normal seams, letting the subtleness carry the design.  Also, less work.  The final dress will have an all-in-one facing for the armholes and neckline.

I'm too tired to smile in this picture.  I think the dress is too tight.  I'm wearing borrowed Spanx but there are wrinkles around my tummy indicating that it needs more room.  The nursing overlays are a mess, but hopefully easily fixed.

Hmm.  Odd twisting is going on here.  Also, the upper overlay isn't long enough to cup under my bust.  The lower overlay needs a dart taken out of it to cup under.  And what is up with the neckline?

This is with the upper overlay cut away from the top three seams and repositioned to take out the twisting.  Much better.  I took out the excess from center front at the neck.I still need more length to the overlay to cup the bust but it's better than before.  Here's a picture of the shoulder showing how much I need to add to the overlay.

Now for the back.

I had a lapse of awesomeness and flipped the midriff inlay.  I think it's contributing to the fit problems in the bodice.  My next step in fixing the muslin is to cut out the midriff, flip it back to its correct orientation, abut the seams and do a zig zag stitch.  I can't properly analyze the fit until that's done.  I'm not looking forward to the work.  Also, too tight in across the hips and rear.

Things I love about this:

The seaming details make me feel so feminine.
The sleeves are perfect.
And, after I hem it 1 14/" it will be the perfect length.
I patterned all the pieces correctly except the nursing overlays, and I knew that would be trial-and-error.

Alright, I'm awaiting your comments and criticisms.

Edited to add:  I've flipped the back midriff area and then pined out a 2" tuck on the back bodice at the armpit level.  It's fitting much better now, but still needs 2-3" of ease around the hips.  Or more?  Do I need more than 3"?