All Hallow's Eve

Here are some pictures of our Halloween themed activities of late:

Our sweet neighbors brought Nehemiah a pumpkin treat bag about a week ago--with one of his favorite treats...a whole apple--Shazaam! ;)


When Nehemiah caught sight of himself in his pirate/Buccaneer outfit a few days ago, when we tried it on to see if it fit, "Argh!" was the furthest thing from his mind...it was more like "Aaaaa!" He was so freaked out!


Tonight we stayed far away from mirrors! Success!


This picture of my costume didn't come out really well, but I had a bun in the oven on my shirt. The bun even had a little pink bow on top!

Nehemiah has also really enjoyed our pumpkins--he's even attempted saying pumpkin, which is pretty funny.


PS--My camera is having a tough time lately--if you notice the green on the bottom of one picture, I am having similar problems in about 20% of my pictures--so sad! Anyone have any expertise as to what might be happening?

PPS--I made Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread to bring to the soiree we attended tonight. It always gets rave reviews, and is really easy! I've posted the recipe before, so link away! :)

Squash-ed!

This morning at my mom's group, we were talking about homemade soups, and I love squash soups, though I haven't actually made any from scratch. A few of the moms hadn't had any squashy soups, so I thought I'd dig through my recipes for one I clipped knowing it would be pretty quick and painless. I have yet to make it, but if you do, please leave a comment telling me how it is! I hope to make it soon. Sorry to not give entirely proper credit, but I don't remember where the clipping is from. It does say it is from the American Heart Association No-Fad Diet. :) Enjoy!

Curried Pumpkin Soup
Serves 4

1 tsp olive oil
1/2 C. minced onion
15 oz. can solid-pack pumpkin
1 1/2 C. water
1 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. cayenne
1 C. fat free half-and-half
1 Tbs. light tub margarine
1 tsp. sugar

• Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Pour the oil into the pan and swirl to coat bottom. Cook the onion for 4 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Stir in the pumpkin, water, curry powder, salt, and cayenne. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Stir in the half-and half, margarine and sugar. Cover and let stand for 3 minutes to allow the flavors to blend before serving.

I have to admit, that I am unlikely to use margarine or fat-free half-and half, as I prefer the more natural full of fat varieties. ;)

Cloth diapering update

I found a blog that has a tutorial (with pictures) on pretty much everything I posted about the other day. :) Here is that link, and one for diaper fabrics and patterns. :)

Ooo! Make sure you check out the Cloth Diaper Diva too, for tons of info on just about everything!

Cloth diapering

I have a friend who has a sister who wants to join the fold (ha ha...get it? cloth diapers...fold! I crack myself up (or maybe it is getting too late!)). Anyway, I remember how overwhelming it was for me when I was first looking into diapering options, so I thought I would sort through my thoughts and resources on the subject. My most important resource is hard to give anyone else access to; she is my good friend (also Erin) who has valuable experience, and I think that is the best place to start. With someone who has been there.

Reasons for considering cloth diapering:

• Monetary Cost was our #1--it saves SO much money!!!
• The Environmental Cost
• The Health Cost to your child--fertility risks in boys, crazy chemicals, diaper rash, etc.
• Who you are supporting--I choose to support WAHM moms and dads when buying most of my cloth diapering needs, and that gives me some warm fuzzies! :)
  

Having chosen cloth, and having used disposables on occasion, I can tell you a few other things about our experience. We use what are known as DSQ (diaper service quality) chinese prefold diapers with a Bummis Supersnap cover, oh and a Snappi (no more pins!). When we have chosen to use disposables, I have had far more blow-out experiences. A true blow-out, where the poop gets on the clothing, I have had fewer than 5 in the 15 months of cloth. In the few weeks worth of disposables, it is nearly a daily occurance. This leads to having to wash clothes, sheets, etc. just as often as I have to wash my diapers anyway...every other day--if you're curious. And for those worried about poop in your washing machine--yup, it gets there from clothes too! We have this great diaper sprayer that we got from the Potty Pail people, and we rarely have poop in our washer, because it all goes into the toilet--where responsible people put their poop anyway! ;)

Once you get the hang of cloth diapers, they really take about the same amount of time as disposable diapering.

A few tricks of my trade:

• Use cloth wipes--we recently put ours in a wipes warmer, and they pull up one at a time, just like the disposable ones, but they smell better, I know what is in the wipe solution, and they clean up messes SO much better than disposable wipes. I bet we use 3x the disposable wipes on a bad diaper than cloth.
• Cut up a piece of fleece into strips to line your diapers with. It is inexpensive, and fleece wicks moisture away from the skin and keeps your baby drier. It is also pretty easy to spray poop off of. I love it!
• I prefer the covers with snaps. They seem to hold up longer than the ones with aplix (or velcro) closures. You don't have to worry about them snagging on anything either.

A couple of negatives (to be fair and balanced):

• I'm not a big fan of trips over 5 or 6 hours with cloth, just because I don't like hauling the dirty diapers around with me. It is doable, and I bet there is a good system for it, I just haven't discovered it quite yet.
• The booty! I think it is cute, but with the cloth diapers we use, Nehemiah has quite the booty--which just means we have to look for pants that are cut generously. I don't think it is too much of a drawback--he still looks cute. Oh, and overalls are a great solution to this problem too! And if you still want cloth, but no booty, these pocket diapers are really trim and great--just more expensive!

I have tried a few other varieties of cloth (thanks to a generous friend, Susan, who shared some with me), and I really do like the Fuzzibunz pocket diapers a bunch. Especially if you are taking your child into the church nursery or somewhere that people aren't familiar with cloth diapers. They are intuitive to change and wash up well. Plus they come in cute colors and patterns!

Here are some other links to helpful sites (I know all the ones to this point have come from Punkin butt, which is where I have purchased all my diapers and supplies, and I can vouch for their service and quality, which is fabulous!):

• Green Mountain Diapers
• Tips and Reviews at the Diaper Pin
• Cloth diapering resource: The Diaper Hyena
• Love etsy? They have a cloth diapering blog with great posts and links to cool handmade diapers and products!
• Jillian's Drawers seems to have good starter kits with several different styles and a liberal return policy on them if you're nervous starting out. Or try their 21 day trial for $10!
• Just a fun urban baby boutique
• Wildflower diapers
• Sew your own diapers--many styles
• More diaper sewing patterns
  

There is a ton more information out there online, and I am sure I am missing a bunch, even from the corners of my sleepy brain, but this should get you started! :D

Pictures from the park

Who knew my favorite park was full of gorgeous photo ops?!

Beautiful Fall

I really enjoy taking pictures. I am by no means a photographer, even in an amateur way--I have very little actual knowledge of the subject aside from one class in high school. In that class however, I heard that if you take enough pictures, then anyone can be a photographer. With the advent of digital photography, it is possible! I also figured out how to make a photo collage, so that you don't have to look at countless individual photos. These are all in our yard. Enjoy!

Dandelions

Nehemiah's first fuzzy experience!

A Developmental Milestone

We have a nice little inflatable bath tub for Nehemiah that saves us water and is nice and cushy if he slips around a bit. He likes it, but I thought he might enjoy a bath in the "big person" tub.

At first, he wasn't sure what to do all alone in that much water. So he just stood there.



He seemed a little perplexed.


Eventually I tried a 2nd time to sit him down, and then he got really into it.

Update

I mentioned I was going to the doctor on Friday; my OB referred me for physical therapy and took a wait-and-see approach otherwise. I am glad that I have the ultrasound on Monday, because that will allay the smidge of worry I have about things as far as the baby/placenta is concerned.

Nehemiah's skin thing is clearing up also. He is finished with his course of antibiotics. You can still see where it was, so I am still keeping an eye on it. It is red, but no longer swollen and drawing, so I think he'll be alright. I am hoping it doesn't scar--Ben has had a few that have, and I guess it makes me sad that he could be scarred so young (silly, I know).

Otherwise, fall here is beautiful. It is my favorite season in the Midwest. The temperatures are comfortable with a sweatshirt, and the colors are awe-inspiring. It is a great reminder of God's faithfulness and constancy.

A Fall Baby Shower idea

I was doing a little internet surfing during naptime yesterday, and there was a lady looking for ideas for a Harvest themed baby shower...it got my creative juices flowing, and this is what I came up with (for any of you interested in such a thing)! If you're not planning a wedding/baby shower, there are still some killer recipes for great fall food! :)

You could assign each guest to bring a themed gift in their invite. Ideas...thankful for naptime, thankful for mommy, thankful for daddy, thankful for feeding, thankful for playtime, etc. I know it is more Thanksgiving-y, but it could be fun! :) Sort of like the showers where you assign everyone a time of day or night to bring a gift for.

Or you could have a game when you asked them why they are thankful for naptime/playtime/mommies, etc. It might be good advice for the mom-to-be.

As far as food...apple cider (sparkling or spice/hot or my favorite, caramel apple cider), and pumpkin recipes like chocolate chip pumpkin bread/muffins, and pumpkin dip.

Here's an easy recipe for pumpkin dip:
1 Large can of pumpkin
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese
2C. powdered sugar
Pumpkin pie spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg)
Mix together and serve w/ gingersnaps or 'Nilla Wafers

Ooo! I found another good harvest recipe in my recipe box!

Carmel Corn:
Pop 2 bags of microwave popcorn
1 stick margarine 1/4 C. corn syrup & 1 C. brown sugar (place on low heat, bring to boil and leave on low hear 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add: 1/8 tsp. bream of tartar, 1/2 tsp. each of salt and baking soda and stir)

Stir caramel through popcorn quickly. Place on a cookie sheet lined with foil in a 200*F oven for 1 hour, stirring after 1/2 hour in oven.

I also have a recipe for Pumpkin Pie Cake if you are interested.

You could make fancy caramel apples for favors--you know the ones...drizzled with dark and white chocolate with mini choco chips or marshmallows on the outside...mmm, mmm! I'd wrap them in cellophane and then tie them with pastel ribbon and a mini pacifier or other baby symbol from the favor section at Wal-mart or your local party store.

You could cut out paper leaves (and/or sunflowers) and have people write their advice for the mom to be and then string them on a banner.

One of my all-time favorite general baby shower ideas...no matter what the theme, is to get together a bunch of baby scrapbook supplies (you can even ask those among your guests who scrap or stamp or make cards to bring their supplies (cutters and tools, etc) to lend a hand). Then each guest makes a page or two with blank pages for pictures. I suggest going with the smaller 8x8" books because a 12" page takes too much time. Then the mama has a ready made memory and guest book of her shower. They always come out great and have lots of love and personality! If you have a few example pages printed out--even ladies who have never scrapped before get in on it! It's great for young and old, and if you are looking for scrapbook ideas, visit: http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/pg.asp

Hope this helps! Let me know what you decide! Fun stuff!

And for those of you who want even more; I've linked to my diaper cake tutorial (and other ideas) too. :)

Happenings

Today is my mom's birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!! I love you!

I also got to get out and see some friends at the weekly mother's and children's meeting at our church, which was nice and needed. And then I had a WIC appointment.

The nurses at our clinic are lovely ladies, and they were very concerned for me today. They thought I looked ghostly pale standing up and would only allow me to carry Nehemiah or my diaper bag, not both. They followed me around..even out to my car with whichever I wasn't hauling around at the time. They told me to call the doctor as soon as I got home this afternoon and to make an appointment. I was surprised. There have been several people comment on how pale and not well I look lately, but to have 2 nurses hemming and hawing over me made me think that maybe I'm not crazy and that there is more to this whole exhaustion after the wreck thing. Anyway, I called my OB nurse and they have an appointment scheduled for tomorrow morning. I'd really like to get to the bottom of whatever is going on so that I can get back to living life!

One of my friends came over for lunch and brought her little girl. She graciously did some dishes and swept my kitchen for me while I played with her baby. And then tonight, we had small group.

When we got home, a lovely thing happened. Ben put Nehemiah to bed entirely! It is the first time that I have not nursed Nehemiah and then put him to sleep. Ben read and gave him a bottle. Nursing has been much less comfortable now that I am pregnant, so I think even though it is a little sad that my baby is growing up, it will be a good thing for all involved for him to wean. Nehemiah didn't make a sound and went to bed peacefully. Yeehaw!

Thank you all for your prayers and sweet comments! I don't want to be too whiny on here, because in the midst of all this, there is still a lot of joy in my life.

--Speaking of joy, Nehemiah is starting to verbalize actual words these days...he says "Mo" while signing more, he can say No, Mama, Daddy, and today at lunch, when I handed him his cheese, he started grinning and saying "Chee, chee, chee;" so cute. When he had cheese at dinner, he started making the ending sound...zzz, zzz, zzz. Now if he can just put them together!

Pictures

Sorry all! I have been a bit behind in posting. I have had a perpetual headache since our car accident, and between that and my pregnancy, I am wiped out! I hate feeling this way--so like a slug!

Anyway, I at least want to throw some new pictures up here for you!

Caught in the act! My little mischief maker has turned into a climber! :)

Aww...too cute! I swear he'll walk soon!

Playing with Super P

Trying to walk a mile in Daddy's hiking boots.

Vintage Nehemiah...though if he's cutting any more teeth with all that chewing and drooling, then they are the last ones that he can...his 2nd molars! We'll see if anything comes of it!

Oh, and next Monday, the 6th, we get to find out Baby 2's gender if this is a cooperative little one! Here's hoping!