Photography Dump :)

I've been going nuts learning new photoshop techniques the past day or so. >_>  Especially since my child broke my Nikon so I don't have a camera to take NEW pictures with.  And the leaves are starting to fall/change on our walnut trees.  GRR.

So, a three pic spam post!


My puppy Colby, grinning for the camera:



And Ms. Megan, the Corvette Cutie!

(This is probably my favorite picture I've snapped of her all summer.  And once I played in photoshop, I'm pretty damn proud of it.  The small size doesn't do it justice, click on it for the full picture!)




(Why so serious!!!????  Okay okay, :D, I just love the shape of her face and eyes, and this picture shows it so well.)

Recipe: Mocha Ganache Mini's

So I've been toying with an idea for a dessert recipe for awhile now, and I finally put it to the test tonight.  All I can say is... chocolaty bliss.  Yes, that is all.

I really think the mix of flavors came out AMAZING, and they are small enough that you can indulge in one and not feel TOO guilty.

Mocha Ganache Mini's

(Yields approximately 16 cupcakes.  Double recipe for an 8" cake round.)

• 4 TB butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
•  1 cup Hershey's chocolate syrup
• 1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

For the Ganache 1

• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 teaspoon STRONG coffee

For the Ganache 2

• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 4 ounces white chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 ts STRONG coffee

Directions:

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 1/4 hr

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

a.) If making CAKE: Butter and flour an 8 inch round cake pan, then the bottom with parchment paper.

b.)If making CUPCAKES:  Place 16 cupcake liners in pan.  If you choose not to use liners, butter and flour cupcake tin.

For the Cake:

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time.
Mix in the syrup and vanilla.
Add the flour and mix until JUST combined (overbeating will make the cake too tough).
Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 40-45 minutes for a cake, 20-30 minutes for cupcakes, or until just set in the middle and a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool thoroughly in the pan (or you can cheat and set them in the fridge while you make the ganache).

For the Ganache:

Use a double boiler (if you do not have one, fill a sauce pan 1/2 full with water, and place a glass bowl on top).
Add heavy cream, coffee and chocolate chips.
Allow to melt, mixing together until smooth and warm.
Pour (or spoon) ganache on top of cake or cupcakes, allowing to run down the sides.

Rinse out glass bowl, and make the second ganache.Add heavy cream, coffee and white chocolate chips.
Allow to melt, mixing together until smooth and warm.
Drizzle in a cross pattern across the top of the chocolate ganache.


Do not refrigerate.

Recipes: Chicken in a White Wine Sauce

Definitely a recipe that will go in my keeper box.  We had this for dinner tonight, and everyone cleared their plates, including Megan... which doesn't happen very often with my bird!





Chicken in White Wine Sauce:
3-4 chicken breasts
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine (I used a riesling)
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon italian herb seasoning
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
Parmesan cheese, grated 

Prep Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 45 mins

• Preheat oven to 350.
• In medium bowl, combine flour, paprika, salt, and peppers, and italian seasoning. Moisten chicken and dredge in flour mixture, make sure it's thoroughly coated.
• Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook a few minutes on each side, until browned. Add the broth and wine. Bring to a boil and then remove from heat.
• Place into a baking dish, and pour the sauce over the chicken.  Cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes or until juices run clear.
• Switch over to Broil, remove foil, and allow to cook for 5 additional minutes.
• While the chicken is broiling, remove 2-3 basters full of the wine mixture and add to sauce pan.  Mix 1/4 cup of COLD water with 1 TB of corn starch, and add to wine mixture.  Cook on low until the sauce thickens.
• Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese, and drizzle sauce on top of the chicken breast once on the plate.

I served the chicken with a long grain wild rice, and also drizzled a bit of the thickened sauce on top.  It was delicious!

Growth Spurt

Megan will be 32 months old on Tuesday. Holy. Crap.

I have been stressing over Megan's vocabulary, or more, the lack of it since Megan had turned two. Megan didn't even say "mama" or "dada" until she was almost two, the little stinker. If it weren't for the fact that her physical and muscle growth weren't so pronounced so early (sitting up on her own at 4 months, crawling at 6 months and walking by 9 1/2 months, along with amazing balance, and running and hopping by about 13 months), I think I would have had her tested to make sure nothing was wrong. (Yay, first time helicopter worry wart mom!)

Shortly before going on vacation for the summer, a few of my friends predicted being around other adults and children aside from me would do her a world of good. Starting with our vacation to Texas and staying with Malin's three kids, and then with her grandparents, she started pulling out new words pretty fast. Coming up to Michigan for the summer? I don't even know who this child is!! She's learning so fast! And not just new words, but shapes, colors, and numbers as well!

Megan can identify AND say the following colors: pink, blue, green, purple, black, white, brown, red, yellow, and orange.

Megan can identify (not say) the following shapes: circle, line, square, diamond, rectangle, heart, triangle, and star.

Megan can identify (and say 90% of) the following body parts: hair, head, eyes, eyebrows, nose, mouth, teeth, lips, ear (and other ear haha), shoulder, tummy, tushy, vagina, elbow, wrist, hand, fingers, nails, knees, feet, and toes.

Megan can count to 10, as well as put up the corresponding fingers for each number.

Megan can say (and she's starting to identify): A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I.

She can identify and say the following animals: Kitty, Dog (though she calls it a woof-woof), Horse (I just finally got her to say horse and not ho-ho, haha), Goat, Duck (though anything with wings equals a duck to Megan), and fish. (I haven't worked with her on animals too much yet).

She's starting to string together 2-5 word sentences, and becoming more and more clear. She's expressing excitement over seeing animals at the zoo!

Megan can say and identify the following family members:
Uncle ( My brother Austin, who is her favorite person ever)
Paw-Paw (My stepdad)
Ki-ki (Jordan's Mom)
Gei-gei (My mom)
Aunty Curly (My sister Carlye)
Anna (our exchange student from Germany who is like a family member)
G-paw (Jordan's stepdad)
While she has strange names for some of the family members, when you ask her who grandpa or grandma is, she will point at them and call them by the nicknames she's assigned them!

One of the biggest things she does that cracks me up is that she refers to herself in the third person.

If I say I'm going to cook, she says "baby cooks too!", or if I say I'm going to drink my tea, she says "baby drink tea too, mama!" She'll also say "Help baby!" instead of "help me". She also loves to say "Baby blows bubbles!" (And she says bubbles like boo-bulls, it's adorable.)

Overall, her vocabulary growth just since May has been ASTOUNDING. I'm so proud of her, and she's turned into such a quick learner.

Cars, Heat, and Your Child: Raising Awareness

As the temperature is rising into the triple digits around the country, it is increasingly important to raise awareness about car safety and your child.  Your cars temperature can rise upwards of 20 degrees in as few as 10 minutes due to the greenhouse effect that the windows create.  When it is only 60 degrees outside, your car can still reach temperatures up to 110 degrees.  Young children, who already have heat regulation issues with their body due to immature respiratory systems which causes their bodies to heat almost 3 times faster than an adults, can pass away in this situation in as little as 15 minutes.  When it's over 90, as it is here today, it would be only minutes before your car reaches upwards of 120 degrees inside.  Since the beginning of this year, 18 kids have died from hyperthermia (heatstroke) in unattended cars– a record high since record keeping began in 1998. And summer has only just begun.  In June alone, there were 10 deaths.

Raising awareness and spreading the word about hot-car death is extremely important.  Many of us like to think that it could NEVER happen to us.  We're loving parents, we use baby safety methods, we dote on our children, but sadly, most instances of hot-car death happens to your average parent who has had a shift in schedule, with crazy events happening in their life.  51% of hot-car death is caused by the caregiver forgetting that the child is in the car, while only 18% is caused by a parent intentionally leaving their child in the car.

Never leave your child alone in a vehicle, even with the windows cracked and the air conditioner on.  Even "just a few minutes" can cause a tragedy that will devastate you for life.  Would you leave a million dollars in your backseat?  Because your child is worth that and more.  Take a few seconds to look in the backseat every single time that you get out of the car.  Place reminders around you, such as these window clings, which sell for 13 cents on kidsandcars.org:

Place them on your car windows, in the window by your front door, anything to jog your memory.

They also have devices that can physically remind you as well, such as the The ChildMinder^® Smart Clip System with Single-Unit Key Ring Alarm Unit, which sells for 69.95 on http://www.babyalert.info/


This device replaces the normal clip on your child's carseat harness which turns on when you put your child in the carseat.  A separate clip on your key ring will set off an alarm if you move over 15 feet away from the car without your child, serving as an audible reminder.

Raising awareness about this rising issues is greatly needed.  Already the country is at 20 deaths and it just turned July, in 2009 there were 33 deaths total, and we have barely begun to see the extreme heat of the summer.  Always check for your child, even if you weren't the one taking them to daycare or to a grandparent's house that day, it only takes a few seconds, and it's worth your child's life.

 

Other Articles:

Tragedy in the backseat: Hot-car deaths

Leaving Children In Cars Becomes a Life Or Death Issue

Death of Child Remind of Hot-Car Danger


Why Are "Good" Parents Forgetting Their Kids in Hot Cars?

Tips To Avoid A Hot-Car Tragedy:

• First and foremost, always put your cell phone, purse, or briefcase, and anything else you'll need that day, on the floor of the backseat. When you retrieve it at the end of the ride, you'll notice your child.
• Seat your younger (or quieter) child behind the front passenger seat, where he's most likely to catch your eye. Many babies were behind the driver's side when they died of hot-car syndrome.
• Keep a teddy bear or other stuffed animal in the car seat when it's empty. When you put your child in the seat, move the animal to the front passenger seat, to remind you that your baby's on board.
• Ask your child's babysitter or daycare provider to always phone you promptly if your child isn't dropped off as scheduled.
• Make a habit of always opening the back door of your car after you park, to check that there's no kid back there.
• Never assume someone else -- a spouse, an older child -- has taken a young kid out of her seat. Such miscommunication has led to more than a few hot-car deaths.

• If you are bringing your child to daycare, and normally it's your spouse or partner who brings them, have your spouse or partner call you to make sure everything went according to plan.

• Invest in a device to help you remember small passengers. The Cars-N-Kids monitor plays a lullaby when the car stops and a child is in the seat ($29.95; carsnkids.com). The ChildMinder System sounds an alarm if you walk away and leave your child in the seat ($69.95; babyalert.info).
• Put visual cues in your office and home. Static-cling decals reminding you to check the car seat are available at Emmasinspirations.com and Kidsandcars.org.
•  
• And beyond double-checking to confirm that you haven’t inadvertently forgotten a sleeping child in the car, the NHTSA also warns of the related danger of a child entering an unlocked vehicle and becoming trapped. To avoid such a preventable tragedy, make sure to always lock your car and trunk (regardless of how safe your neighborhood is!) and keep the keys out of reach.

Statistics: 
(as provided by the Department of Geosciences)

• Total number of U.S. hyperthermia deaths of children left in cars, 2010:  20
• Total number of U.S. hyperthermia deaths of children left in cars, 2009:  33
• Total number of U.S. hyperthermia deaths of children left in cars, 1998-2010:  465
• Average number of U.S. child hyperthermia fatalities per year since 1998: 37

• See Monthly Statistics
  
  Circumstances
  • 
    
    An examination of media reports about the 443 child vehicular hyperthermia deaths for an twelve year period (1998 through 2009) shows the following circumstances:
    • 51% - child "forgotten" by caregiver (228 Children)
    • 30% - child playing in unattended vehicle (131) 
    • 18% - child intentionally left in vehicle by adult  (80)
    • 
      
      1% - circumstances unknown (4)

           Ages

• 
  
  Children that have died from vehicular hyperthermia in the United States (1998-2009) have ranged in age from 5 days to 14 years.  More than half of the deaths are children under 2 years of age.  Below are the percentage of total deaths (and the number of deaths) sorted by age.

  
  

  • Less than 1 year old = 30% (133)

  • 1-year old = 24% (108)

  • 2-years old = 19% (85)

  • 3-years old = 12% (54)

  • 4-years old = 6% (27)

  • 5-years old = 3% (14)

  • 6-years old = 2% (8)

  • 7-years old = 1% (2)

  • 8-years old = 1% (2)

  • 9-years old = 1% (2)
  
  

Sunscreen: The Good, the Bad, and the Irony

An article that was brought to my attention about current sunscreens, how harmful they actually are, and the overhaul that the SPF system will be getting come this fall.  I highly recommend you take a look at the article, as well as find your sunscreen HERE to see just what you're putting on your child.

Sunscreens: The Good, the Bad and the Irony

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Valuable information for Protecting Your Famiiy’s Skin This Summer

By: Ashley Ess

The FDA will be introducing new guidelines for sunscreen products this fall… not in time for summer of course, but thankfully, the non-profit organization Environmental Working Group has done exhaustive research for us in the mean time. In the new FDA guidelines, use of the term “waterproof” will be prohibited and the SPF scale will be overhauled, helping consumers understand the system a little bit better. As of now, many people are confused about the SPF system, in part due to the fact that the higher the sun protection factor a product has does not mean it will be a good defense from cancer-causing UVA rays. Basically, we are all in for a surprise when the FDA announces that sunscreens, ironically, aren’t actually proven to protect you from skin cancer and premature skin aging. Apparently, sunscreen has only been proven to protect skin from sunburn (http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/ct-met-sunscreen-safety-20100524,0,6689343.story?track=rss). As if all this information isn’t disheartening enough, new research says that a common sun protection ingredient which aids in premature skin aging, vitamin A (retinyl palmitate), may actually encourage skin tumors and lesions when applied in the sun (EWG). It’s no wonder why this hard-working organization only recommends 39 out of more than 500 beach sunscreen products.

The best sunscreens to wear are the simpler ones. Avoid hard-to-pronounce ingredients and lengthy ingredient lists, as these are usually the ones with unnecessary chemicals, preservatives and additives. The simpler, more natural sunscreens employ titanium dioxide and zinc oxide as their active ingredients (try the EWG top-rated All Terrain, Badger and California Baby brands). The choice not to use these and instead go for chemical sun protection is simple: titanium dioxide and zinc oxide both have tendencies to leave a whitish film on the skin. However, there are plenty of products containing these natural alternatives that blend into the skin fairly well. One of the most popular chemicals used in well-known sunscreen brands is oxybenzone, which is said to help some in protecting the skin from UVA rays, yet it also can be absorbed through the skin into the bloodstream and acts like the hormone estrogen; ultimately causing hormone disruption. The Environmental Working Group labels oxybenzone as “troubling.” As EWG states; “Scientists have called for parents to avoid using oxybenzone on children due to penetration and toxicity concerns.” The group does offer alternative options to oxybenzone and for anyone who chooses not to use mineral sunscreens. These safer options include avobenzone and Mexoryl SX (Encamsule) as their active ingredients.

All in all, products containing the zinc and titanium minerals have been proven to protect the skin from damaging UVA rays. They may not be able to be sprayed onto a busy toddler’s skin as he plays beachside, however. The extra work, though, of rubbing safer mineral formulas onto his skin will be worth every ounce of the peace of mind you will have knowing he will not be inhaling dangerous sunscreen mist and that he is protected by the next best thing to clothing or shade.

For more valuable information visit the Environmental Working Group’s website:

http://www.ewg.org/2010sunscreen/

For some quick facts about the dangers of sunscreens, follow this link:

http://www.ewg.org/2010sunscreen/9-surprising-facts-about-sunscreen/

For some great sunscreen tips click here.

Happy sunning!

New Title: Wrangler

I think I have officially traded in my title of mother for the title of Wrangler.  Being a single mom while my husband is deployed has been an eye opener both this deployment and the last! 

Today, Megan, Inara and Esme (our two kitties!) all joined me on a visit to the veterinarian.  We've recently taken a stray black lab into our house, so Inara, he is already a bit of a hellion, has been on her worst behavior and hisses and lashes out if you get within about 2 feet of her.  Due to this, I couldn't put her in big cat carrier I have that both cats typically go in.  So off to the vet we went, one cat each in their own carrier, and a 2 and a 1/2 year old along for the ride.  Trying to get them all into the vet clinic was an interesting experience.

I had to convince Megan to try to "help" me carry the big carrier (basically just holding the handle with me), then struggle to open the two doors to the inside, as the receptionist sat there and watched my humorous (I'm sure it seemed so to an outsider anyway) plight.

You truly do need more than two hands as a mother!  Luckily on the way back out, Inara and Esme both went into the big cat carrier together (as they banned together in fear of the ebil vet), and Megan could carry the little cloth/mesh carrier all by herself to be a big girl!

Animal Lover to a Fault

Today I had two strays find me.   I think theirs a sign blinking on my forehead that says "ANIMAL LOVER, WILL HELP STRAYS!!!!"

One is a male orange cat that is half shaved.  I don't know if someone was being cruel or trying to shave him for "heat control" because he's long haired.  But he stayed with us all afternoon while Megan played in the sprinkler, and I wound up bringing him in and putting him in the spare room for tonight.  I took pics of him and put up a found ad on craigslist.  If no one claims him I'll take him with me to the vet Tuesday and see if he's microchipped.  If no luck then, I'll find a no kill shelter in the area and take him there.  I wish we could keep him, he really is super sweet.

Then as I was leaving to go to the store, a young black lab came RACING over to me.  At first I was freaked out because he was half jumping and I had Megan in my arms, and held my purse out as a buffer (it's huge!) but he sat down immediately.  So I took Megan over to the neighbors, and had her watch her for a minute, and walked all up and down the street and knocked on doors to see if he belonged to anyone.  No dice.

I put him in my backyard (I couldn't just let him run around the neighborhood, he could have gotten hit, or hurt), and went to the store.  I wound up picking up the disposable litter box, and a huge water bowl and a small bag of food for the pup.  He's trained.  He knows sit, lay down and shake, and he's REALLY good with Megan.

I wound up checking him for fleas, and the cats are currently in time out in my bedroom (they were being butts to Megan), so I let him inside for a bit.  He was giving me puppy dog eyes. :(  He's now laying at my feet chewing on a bone I got him.

I put up a craigslist ad for him as well, and looked for any reports of lost black labs, but no luck with him either.  I'm really afraid that someone just let him out because they didn't want to keep him or are PCSing.    Hopefully he just got away and someone will claim him.

Pictures:

Fun In The Sun

I never realized just how much fun it could be to watch my child play and learn.  She is so bright and catches on to things so fast (we're going to be in trouble soon when she starts repeating things mommy and daddy say!), that I get so much pleasure just sitting back and watching her learn.

Yesterday, I bought her a slip and slide.  Knowing that she had more fun just playing with the water that shoots out of it, that's what I aimed for when buying it, and at a second glass I also picked up a little flower sprinkler out of the dollar section at target.  Which do you think she likes more?  The 30 dollar slip and slide?  Or the 2.50 sprinkler?

That's right, the sprinkler. :P

She has such a vast imagination, and can entertain herself for hours as she plays in the water.  Give her a bucket and a bottle of bubbles, and she would stay outside all day every day if I let her!

It just goes to show, the simplest things in life can give you the most joy and happiness!

A gorgeous Sunday afternoon spent playing in the pool and grilling hamburgers and hot dogs!  What a great vacation!

Picture Post!

There is nothing cuter than a toddler tushy in a ruffle bathing suit!

Vacation With A Toddler

Princess has blown me away these past two weeks.  We had the "pleasure" of driving from Colorado down to Austin, Texas.  I thought the car ride was going to be complete hell, as Princess does NOT like to be cooped up in the same spot for long periods of time.   She's full of energy and is at her best when she can run and skip and jump around all over the place!

I planned our trip out thoroughly, including buying a travelng dvd player so that I could bring all of our disney movies with us for another form of entertainment.  I planned rest stops and breaks by the length of each dvd.  When a movie would end, we would pull over and either get a snack, a potty break, or just get out and stretch our legs.  It worked miracles at keeping her happy!

She would only fuss as we got to the end of the day of driving, and then a bit again in the morning when we would have to climb back in the car.  I broke the trip into three days to get down to Austin.  We stayed at a hotel the first night in Amarillo, a good friends house the second night in Floydada, and then a hotel again the third night, and arrived at my mother in laws in the morning on the fourth day.  We spent a few days sight seeing around Austin, and then my father in law drove us to Lousiana to meet the rest of my husband's family.  (Another 6 hour trip, I thought Princess was going to lose her mind!)  We stayed there for two days (where I met my husband's cousin, and realized we are so similar.  I wish we lived closer, because I think she and I would be fast friends).  She's due with a little boy this month, so when we got back to Austin, I picked out her baby shower gift (which I will post here once her baby shower is over!).  I will give a mini spoiler though, and say that I featured some of her products awhile back in my blog! 

Teaser picture:

We drove back to Austin, and have been here again for the past three days.  My father in law bought Megan the coolest toddler pool in the world, and we've spent the past two days playing in it.  Megan even learned how to say "pool"!  Sadly, we have to start heading back home today.  My kitties have got to be missing us terribly.  It will have been almost two weeks that we've been away by the time that we get back. 

We're planning on staying in a hotel in Abilene tonight, getting to my friends again tomorrow in the very early afternoon, then staying with them until Friday morning, and leaving out to head home.  I'm going to drive the whole way in one shot, because I want to sleep in my own bed!

Overall, traveling with a toddler (at least with my precious toddler!)  has been mostly a breeze.  If anything, I feel terrible because I know she's bored out of her mind, but she's been a little angel in the car!

Single Parenting Can Be Lonely

I've been through a deployment once before, but at the start of that time period, I was a brand new mom.  Every day was a new adventure as I watched my newborn turn into a rolling, crawling and walking toddler.  There were small bouts of loneliness, but I had moved back to live in the town I grew up in, so I was a few miles from my family, and went out with other mom's and their children weekly.

I'm not saying that watching my child grow through this deployment is any less of a joy.  I love my daughter dearly, and she is a joy (most days :P) to be around!  But I will say that the growth isn't nearly as significant and mind blowingly fast as her first year of life.  Along with that, I'm in a strange city where my closest family is a 17 hour drive away, and I have very few friends.  Of the friends I do have, none of them are in the same spot in life that I am.  Their children are older, they're more independent, outgoing, or they don't have children at all, so I always feel the slightest bit awkward because Megan goes everywhere with me.

But I am lonely.  I miss my husband (though his companionship can be much the same as our child's some nights :P), and I miss having an adult conversation every night.  The worst thing about surviving through a deployment for me is the lack of conversation.  Luckily I do have the internet, and friends I talk to daily on there, but it's still not quite the same as sitting down with a glass of wine and chatting with a good friend, my husband, or my family.

It's okay to feel this way!  Single parenting (because you ARE single parenting while your spouse is deployed) is difficult.  If you're away from family you have no one to fall back on for a much needed break and stress relief.  That in and of itself can be lonely.  Take up a new hobby, go visit family, learn where things are in your city to try and find a safe haven for you to visit to get out of your house.  Getting out of the house is important.  I find that I go to the store a lot more than I need to because I crave adult interaction, and it makes my child happy because she gets stimulated by something other than our own house.  Take walks around the neighborhood!  Grill outdoors.  Change your scenery, stimulate yourself.  It will help ease the loneliness.  I promise. :)

When all else fails, take a trip to visit some close family or friends.  Get away for awhile, take a break.

Letters to Megan

 To my daughter on Mother's Day 2010:

Dearest Megan,

Today is a day that I will always think of you, because you are the reason that I am a mother.  I have a few quotes that I love that I would like to share with you, because I believe them with all of my heart.  The first is, "A Mother's greatest treasure is her daughter".  You are only 2 and 1/2 years old, but for every single day that I have had you in my life, I have thought that at least once. 

Megan Ellesse, you are my pride and joy.  I would jump around with shoes on my head (which I have done!) just to erase the frown from your face.  I would give you piggy back rides for hours, galloping around the house just to hear you squeal with delight.  I never tire of reading endlessly to you from our ever growing collection of children's books.  I can only hope that one day you will have as much love for the written word as your mother and grandmother do.  Inside a book, a story comes to life that can take your imagination anywhere.  And baby girl, you deserve to see new worlds, endless stories, and a doorway that opens to anywhere you want to go.

Mother's Day is not a day of gifts and lavish praises.  It is a day of love between a child and mother.  A celebration of the bond that we have, the joy we share in one another's company, and the endless love that will never fade.  Not a day goes by, my beautiful baby girl, that I don't thank the world for choosing me to be your mother.  I could not ask for a more special and unique daughter to share my advice, stories, and love with.

It is because of you that I am a mother, for the moment I saw your face, I realized a love that is more powerful than anything else that exists in this world.  The love of a mother for her child.
 

"When the sun is born, so is the day.
When the night is born, so are a thousand stars...
and a wish that has just come true.
When you were born, so was I."

The Crockpot is Your Friend

I love to cook.  Be it making dinner, or baking yummy desserts, I absolutely love to do it, and even more than the process OF cooking, I love to share what I create.  This produces a bit of conundrum with Mr. Combat Boots being deployed for the next year, as it leaves me making dinners for just Princess and me.

And toddlers?  They are so picky.  I can't make a well thought out dinner and share it with Princess like I can with Mr. CB's, because she's happy as a clam with chicken nuggets, pasta and peas.  (No dinner for Princess is complete without peas, they are her favorite.)  Unfortunately, this leads to my eating way more fast food than I would care to admit (and also adding on the pounds that come with so much junk food.)

Then I found a community called "What A Crock", and a new love of cooking was born.  I can get up, make breakfast for Princess, and sit her down in the high chair and proceed to make dinner right then as well.  This also yields enough that I can freeze meal sized portions in the perfect amount for both Princess and myself later on in the coming weeks.  This also saves quite a bit in the pocket book as cooking for one day yields enough food for up to five or six meals for a toddler and an adult.  Even for a bigger family, the recipes can be tweaked to yield left overs for pennies on the dollar.

If you don't have a crockpot, I highly encourage you to invest in one!  There is a whole new world to cooking out there, especially if you're a single parent without a lot of time on your hands, and you would rather be playing with your child than slaving away in the kitchen.

Princess at 7months, when her love of peas began.

BBQ Pulled Pork

Spice Rub:

• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 4 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons table salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground white pepper
• 1 tablespoons chili powder

If you like your BBQ on the spicy side, add this to the spice rub as well:

• 1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoons ground cumin

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

• 1 bone-in pork shoulder (I used a 5lb cut, and froze the leftovers)
• ½ teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
• 2 cups Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce

1. Mix all spice rub ingredients in small bowl.

2. Massage spice rub into meat. Try to use the whole rub. Wrap tightly in double layer of plastic wrap; refrigerate for at least 3 hours, though I would recommend overnight.

3. Unwrap roast and place it in the crockpot. Add liquid smoke, if using, and 1/4 cup water. Turn slow cooker to low and cook for 8-10 hours, until meat is fork-tender.

4. Transfer roast to cutting board; discard liquid in crockpot. Pull by tearing meat into thin shreds with two forks or your fingers. Discard fat.

5. Place shredded meat back in slow cooker liner; toss with 1 cup barbecue sauce, and heat on low for 30-60 minutes, until hot. Serve with additional barbecue sauce.


You can eat this on french rolls, straight out of the crockpot, with mashed potatoes! There are so many ways to enjoy this meal, and most kids will gobble it up!

This recipe was seriously, ridiculously, delicious.  I made this while my mother was visiting just before Mr. CB's deployed, and both of them enjoyed it so much that they were sneaking bits out of the crockpot because they couldn't take the smell anymore.

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Product Spotlight: Children's Books

I love to read.  My mother is a huge book lover, and passed the trait to me, and I hope to do so with Princess as well.  I think books are a huge part of imagination and are slowly being phased out with the introduction of the internet, movies, television etc.

I do my best to keep a rich library for Princess (and maybe for more later on in life!), that she can one day pass on to her children.  We have the classics ( "Goodnight Moon", "The Giving Tree" and "Guess How Much I Love You" being a few), and a few recommendations that I've picked up from other mom's out there ("Duck Soup", "You Are Special", "The Bellybutton Book").

Whenever I go for coffee with some of my friends, we end up in the children's section of Barnes and Noble so that Princess can play, and I usually wind up browsing for another book to add to our collection.  Today, I stumbled across a book called "Llama Llama Red Pajama" by Anna Dewdney.  I knew it was a keeper the second I opened up.  The illustration is unique, colorful and enticing, and the story is adorably cute with a great message.  Browsing Amazon later in the afternoon, I found two other books by the same author, and ordered them for our library as well.

Princess absolutely loves reading these books and looking at the pictures, and I highly recommend you pick up all three for your own collection as well!

 

Mirror Image

The second a child is born, after the initial "I created this child, they are mine" moment, everyone begins to do "the comparison".  You know what I'm talking about...

"Oh look at her nose, it's just like your momma's!"
"Oh, look at his ears, they're just like your Grandpa's!"

We try to find the pieces of ourselves that we pass on to our children.

Princess is my spitting image.  Other than her Daddy's long glorious eyelashes (and what a great trait to get!), she could be my mini-me.  If I placed a picture of me at 2 next to a recent picture of her, we could be nearly identical, barring the fact that I'm in 80's style clothing that is never ever going to be on my child.  (Thanks so much Mom.)

But traits aren't all physical.  There are ingrained traits that you may find your child has similar to you as well.  When Princess was in her first year, I would wake up at night to find she had one leg kicked over the covers, and an arm flopped over her head, deep asleep.  I myself do this, and I found it amazing that my child could do something so similar almost straight out of the womb.

Well, today, I found a piece of my husband's personality in Princess.  And boy did I know it was from my husband the moment she did it.  Having put her down for a nap, I lay next to her browsing facebook and twitter on my phone before planning on joining her for a nap myself.

After about ten minutes, Princess farted so loudly that she woke herself up.  She then proceeded to glare at me, and roll over and put her back to me like *I* had done it and disrupted her slumber.  So there you go Princess, you have some of your daddy in you too.  Now if only I can get a repeat scenario once Mr. Combat Boots is home from the desert, so he knows there's a little bit of him in our child too.

Like mother, like daughter.

Note to Self

When your child is running a temperature of 102.8, try not to panic.  Be calm, give motrin/tylenol on a rotating schedule to help bring the fever down, and monitor for more serious symptoms.

Easier said than done when it's your own child though.  Princess is currently sound asleep on my lap, in a Motrin induced slumber, with a fever that has gradually increased through the evening.  I'm fairly certain it's just a teething fever, as she's not showing any other symptoms of sickness (cough, sneezing, wheezing), and other than being slightly cranky, has been very playful.

It's never easy to have a sick child, and when you're the only one carrying the burden, it can become a very heavy load extremely quickly.  Unless it's a serious illness, I try not to worry my husband over it, as he has a lot on his own plate over in the sandbox.  Good news is great to share, it's a morale booster and spirit lifter, and keeps him thinking of home in a positive light so that we aren't another burden for him to worry over while he needs to be focusing on the danger in front of him.

So, chin up, back straight, I can be a single Mom, and Princess' superhero, and I can hold out for the next year on my own.  We've done it once before, and we can surely do it again, 102.8 fever to boot.

Baby Product Spotlight

While browsing through Etsy.com I stumbled across a seller named Lola Miren.  Her shop consists of the most adorable hand crafted bibs, onesies and blankets made out of retro patterns that are absolutely adorable.

Here is a sample of a blanket that I'm absolutely in love with:

This is her Arly Cerise (Light pink Alexander Henry Starling bird print embroidered baby blanket).  The description is as follows:  


"Our favorite blankie, named after Bianca's little Aussie Arly Cerise.

Perfect for tummy time, sleepy time, mommy time or just about any time. A special keepsake that baby can enjoy for years to come.

Our Arly blanket is best personalized for that little lady in your life. Please let me know which initial(s) you would like embroidered on the blankie (in the notes section upon check out). Of course it can also come plain. If you have other ideas share and share alike - we'll see what we can do!

Handcrafted with 100% cotton "Arly Cerise" upper and extra-soft white polka dot "minky" underneath. Unbleached batting sewn inside for extra warmth and "snug". White rick-rack trim. Lime embroidery. Approx. size is 29"x 29"."

Running at $42.00, it's a bit on the high end for your average middle-class parent, but well worth the memento keepsake and lovie that it could become for your child.

A sample of her other items include:

Parenting Advice and a Grain of Salt

When you have a child, be it your first or third, you will find yourself receiving ample amounts of parenting advice.  This advice will come from anyone and everyone, including parents, people with no children, grandparents, the gas station attendant, the checkout bagger... you name it.

This advice can range anywhere from telling you how you should feed your child (breastfeeding vs formula feeding), how you should discipline your child, how you should deal with your child's sleeping (co-sleeping vs crib-sleeping/etc), whether or not they should have a pacifier.  The list truly goes on and on.

Not too long ago, Megan and I went to Target to pick up a few odds and ends for around the house.  Now, Megan turned 2 in December, and I still let her have her pacifier (which we call a binky).  After doing a lot of research on pacifiers and toddlers, I found that they will actually do no harm to a child's orthodontic structure until they start getting their permanent teeth.  With this in mind, I have put off the fight with the Princess over her "Binky" until she is potty trained.  She has no other "lovey", no blankie, so the pacifier is all she has to calm herself and soothe.  She usually only gets it when cranky/tired or sleeping, and on this particular trip, cranky didn't even begin to cover my child.  While checking out, Megan told the lady helping us "thank you", and the lady reached right over and pulled her binky out of her mouth, while saying "You're too old for this, you just take that right out," and tossed the pacifier towards my purse in the cart.

Rather than starting a huge scene, I calmly pulled the pacifier out and gave it back to my child, who looked completely crushed that this woman had taken her sacred binky away.  The woman gave me a dirty look and went on to advise me against all the evil ways of pacifiers, right down to the fact that I was setting my child up for a life of failure.  I merely thanked her, took my receipt, and walked out of the store.

While inside I was seething, as this is my child, therefore my parenting decisions, it's best to just nod and smile where these advice givers are concerned.  They either:
a) have your child's best interests in mind
b) believe in the advice they are giving wholeheartedly
c) are just being a busybody and getting in your business

So just say thank you, take their advice with a grain of salt, and as my soldier husband would say "drive on".  When it comes to your child, you are their parent, their advocate, and the expert on what they need.  Do not let anyone make you feel guilty for making a parenting decision that you feel is in the best interest of your own child.  So long as you are not putting your child in harm's way, no one but you and your partner are to say when your child needs to give up a pacifier, a blankie, breastfeeding, or diapers.

Stick to your guns, because if you feel it's right, then it most likely is.

Mama Circus Act

It's amazing the things you find yourself capable of when you don't have anyone but yourself to help you.  Before children, if someone told you that you would be able to balance a child, a purse, a drink, a stuffed animal AND a huge bag of take out food all while walking across the parking lot, getting the car door open, and setting everything inside without dropping anything, you would have likely laughed in their face.

Yet, here I am, Princess on my hip, trying to keep hold of the string to her balloon so it won't fly away (as that would be a catastrophe), holding a bag of takeout food from Red Robin, a purple stuffed tiger, a drink for me, a drink for the Princess, my purse, and a cell phone.  Of course, the restaurant was completely packed so we had to park across the street, which I then had to navigate back across to get this huge load into the car while mentally crossing my fingers that the food won't fall.  Of course, through this whole trip, the Princess can't just hold on and sit still.  Oh no, not this little two year old.  She has to swivel every which way to see all the cars, the birds, you name it!

If someone were to ask me what the biggest help to a single mom could be?  I think I would honestly have to say, an extra pair of hands.  You realize once your partner ships out for a year worth of deployment just how much help they provide, even if it's only a pair of eyes and a ten minute distraction so that you can whirlwind through the kitchen and pick up all the dishes that have accumulated through the day, or to keep an eye on the little one so you can go pick up that food without involving the juggling act.

Motherhood truly is a Circus.

Department of Redundancy Department

I never quite got a full grasp on just how much children like repetition until my daughter hit the toddler years and actually started paying attention to her surroundings. This repetition is mostly found in learning, in television shows, in movies... especially in movies.  Put that sucker on repeat and it will soon become a fast favorite and a must have in your home.  As a mother to a 2 year old toddler, I'm going to give you one piece of advice:

Choose which television show and/or movie carefully.

Because you are going to have to watch it again, and again, and again.  And again.  There will be brief moments of bliss when your child suddenly attaches on to a new found favorite, and you get a day of reprieve, watching this new, different movie, that is blissfully not the one you have watched on repeat for the past three months.  But by day 2, I promise you, that movie will be just as dreaded, just as grating, and just as annoying.  So choose wisely, as your sanity is on the line.

The Princess' current movie du jour (more like month) is the Aristocats.  While this movie is thankfully short, it is chock full of songs and whiny voices (and to the mother of a toddler, you get a whiny voice enough in your day to day living, I promise).  Blindfolded and in my sleep I could spit out the cats names (Abraham de Lacy Guiseppe Casey Thomas O'Malley the alley cat), quotes ("Why, your eyes are like sapphires sparkling so bright. They make the morning radiant and light"), songs, and every single adult innuendo that will blissfully go over your child's head for many years to come ("If you want to turn me on, play your horn don't spare the thought...").

These lyrics, quotes and songs will come to you at all hours of the day.  Brushing your teeth, doing the dishes, in the middle of the night.  So please, take my advice, and choose wisely, new parents, what you let your child view and come to love and obsess over.  Because you have to "love" and obsess over it right there with them.

S@HM Insomnia

It's never a good thing to find yourself awake at 4:06am.  When you factor in a 2 year old child sleeping down the hallway who is likely to be up in four to five hours time, when you're essentially a single parent due to a deployment, you've got a disaster in the making.

However, here I sit at 4:06am, my husband is currently thousands of miles away in Iraq, and just down the hallway, a baby monitor away, is my sweetly slumbering Princess, who will indeed be up within a few hours time.  Why, you ask, am I up at this horrific hour?  Insomnia, also known as Night Owl Syndrom (NOS), runs in my family.  The Princess is doomed.  Not only does her mother have NOS, so does her daddy.

I can remember back to being a little girl, stuffing towels in the cracks of my door so that no light would seep out, and staying up until the wee hours of the night wrapped up in a book that was far too good to save for daylight hours.

And now, at the age of 25, I have a new vice.  It's called the internet, and it is only a click away, be it on the computer or my phone, which I call my hand held internet, as it's rarely used for phone calls.  So, rather than sleeping, I'm starting a "Mommy Blog", an idea I've always toyed with, but one I've never put in motion.

How appropriate that it should start in the wee hours of the night, with a slumbering cat on my lap, a picture of the Princess at the corner of my desk, and an email from my husband telling me about the latest sandstorm sitting in my inbox.

The Princess, Age 2