Bucket Swing

Today it was finally warm enough to enjoy the park if only for a short burst of fun. Gracie enjoyed her first cruise in a bucket swing. Bring on the Spring! We need the sun!

Happy Birthday Jeter!!

Happy Birthday Jeter! I can't believe your a year old already!! Enjoy your first bite of cake!

Bath Fun!

Produce & Pesticides: The Dirty Dozen & The Clean 15

Consumer group Environment Working Group released their annual consumers guide to produce and pesticides. The dirty dozen are products that you should try and buy organically if possible due to their high pesticide residue. The clean 15 are products that are relatively low in pesticide residue making them safe to buy non-organically. This list is available for download online to carry in your wallet for quick reference when you are shopping.

Dirty Dozen:

Peaches, Apples, Bell Peppers, Celery, Nectarines, Strawberries, Cherries, Kale, Lettuce, Grapes, Carrots, & Pears


Clean 15:

Onions, Avocado, Sweet Corn, Pineapple, Mango, Asparagus, Sweet Peas, Kiwi, Cabbage, Eggplant, Papaya, Watermelon, Broccoli, Tomatoes, Sweet Potatoes

Copy Cat Game

Gracie LOVES her brother! If he is home she wants to be where he is! Their newest game is, "I Scream, You Scream."

I Will Sleep When I'm Dead............

I've decided Gracie is trying to kill me. At least that's how it's starting to feel. My little princess will not sleep. All night every night it is the same routine. We are in a co-sleeping, nurse snaking nightmare. I don't know how to fix it. I know it's my fault, but now what? Everything you read is a cry it out method or a spin on the cry it out method. That is heart wrenching to go through in my opinion. Is it worth it? Will my child stop trusting me? I'm so confused, but I know that we can not continue on this way. I would like to sleep again, and I think it would be beneficial for her to have a solid 10-12 hours of sleep as well. Regardless I'm ready to put out the call for help. Nanny 911 please come help me!!

This morning I yelled from the kitchen to the bathroom at Jonah. "Please hurry up and come out here and eat your shirt!" Jonah and I laughed until we cried. Ah sleep! Glorious sleep! Someday we will meet again. All tips and suggestions are welcome. Our long journey to a solution begins.

A Little Sunshine

My Monthly Wall

Today I am feeling the weight of being a single mom to deployment. Finding myself having to rely on the help of those around me is always a humbling experience. I hate asking for help. It is something I have never been good at. I always feel super guilty, and after the fact feel as if I have to come back with ten fold the kindness in return.

Today after three cancellations I attempted a dentist appointment with the help of a friend watching Gracie in the waiting room. Forty minutes in and my teeth had not even been cleaned yet. Gracie was quickly melting and I ended up having to leave and reschedule. It feels like this is a common occurrence for me. Every time I attempt to accomplish something it backfires. After all the prep and work of getting there, then nothing.

Today I am hitting my monthly wall. My wall of needing my husband home. Some weeks the days just flow along and we see the calender shrink bringing us closer to his return. Other weeks everyday feels impossibly long with no end in site. I am relishing in this wall with Chocolate Ice Cream and Lays cheese chips! One hundred thirty six days down. Only two hundred twenty nine to go!!!!

Vegan Mac & Cheese

In my search for the ultimate comfort food, Vegan Mac and Cheese, I came upon the following recipe. Although it tastes nothing like traditional mac & cheese it was very good. Nutritional yeast is the primary ingredient making it rich in vitamins and very filling. Gracie inhaled this. Jonah did take a bite and said, "Hmmm, not too bad." This makes a lot! Serve with a simple mixed green salad.

Vegan Mac & Cheese

1 1/2 cups plain soy milk
1 cup water
1/3 cup Bragg's liquid amino's (tamari or soy sauce)
1 1/2 cups nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. vegan margarine
1/4 block firm tofu
1 Tbsp. spicy brown mustard (any kind will do)
1 lb elbow macaroni noodles

Cook the noodles. Drain and set aside. Blend all ingredients until smooth in a blender. Mix into noodles and place in a 9X13 pan. Bake covered in a 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes. Optional step: Top with seasoned breadcrumbs and place back in oven uncovered for approximately 10 minutes until golden brown.

The Black Bean Burger Standoff..........

Tonight I made Black Bean Burgers. Gracie & I both found these very delicious. Jonah on the other hand would not come near his. He had to at least take one bite before I would make him an alternative meal, but this was not happening. He refused! He cried! He whinnied! "I'm starving to death! Your so mean Mama! How could you make me eat that garbage!" After three long hours of listening to this, and watching him stare at this one tiny piece of burger he was asked to eat. Well...........I caved! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as Gracie & I did!

Black Bean Burgers

1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1/4 cup tofu (or 1 egg)
1/4 onion, chopped in Cuisinart
1/4 green or red pepper, chopped in Cuisinart
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
2 Tbsp. E.V.O.O
1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp. Bragg's Liquid Amino's (or soy sauce)
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. salt

In a large bowl, mash the black beans. Then add all your ingredients and mix together, hands work best. Adjust your seasoning by tasting at this point. Form into patties. Bake in a 350 degree oven on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes. Then remove from oven and pan fry with just a non stick cooking spray until golden on each side. These will be soft and tend to fall apart if you are not careful. To avoid this you can freeze them prior to cooking. Top these with all of your favorite toppings; Avocado, Alfalfa sprouts, Tomatoes, Grilled Onion slices, Mixed Greens, etc. You won't need ketchup. Enjoy!

Vegan Pancakes

These are very yummy! They have a better flavor than any egg based pancake I've ever made. These are the kind of pancakes you can eat plain just for snacking.

1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup. soy milk

Snow Day!

Ok, so I realize it 2 degrees outside with a wind chill of negative 21, but seriously another snow day!! We just got done with a two week Christmas vacation off from school to send our kids back for 1 1/2 days to have them home again! Jonah has been up since 8 a.m. and it feels like a twelve hour day already! Of course we are stuck inside so our long day of bouncing off the walls begins! Did I mention how much I HATE KANSAS WEATHER!

Gracie "Gravy" according to her brother is thrilled with him being home. She is chasing him around the house as fast as her little legs can go squealing in delight. Time to pull out all of our games and bake some of Gran Gran's famous sugar cookies. I will make it through this day! I will make it through this day! I will make it through this day!

Love Is...........

My new Haan Floor Steam Cleaner! This amazing piece of equipment was my Christmas present from my husband this year. It is now official that my husband has purchased me more home cleaning appliances than diamonds! If we can't afford diamonds I guess that cleaning appliances come in second best. He knows me all too well!

This simple floor cleaner is my new favorite thing, along side my Dyson of course! Every time I use it I feel like I am doing something good for my home and my family. It is so simple and I love that I no longer have to deal with filling up a mop bucket and pushing around a dirty mop on my floor! This is a must have for anyone with hardwoods.

http://www.haanusa.com/

Don't Eat The Black Snow!

We have had our fair share of snow this winter season. As I look out my office window right now more snow is trickling down from the sky. I am not a fan of snow or the cold, and would rather spend my winter months with my feet in the sand somewhere warm. When I suggested that the whole family up and move to a beach house for the year that Kevin is deployed.........well, let's just say Kevin wasn't as excited about the idea as I was. So, here we sit. Stuck inside to keep from getting frostbite from just stepping outside in this Kansas winter weather.

But despite how I feel about it, Jonah loves the snow! Tomorrow he heads back to school after a leisurely two week Christmas break of digging in the snow. Everyday he has been outside shoveling away. Not shoveling the driveway or the sidewalk, but he does shovel. I just haven't figured out what exactly it is that he is shoveling. At the end of the day if I look out the window I see every garden tool we own decorating our yard. Three rakes, a shovel, two snow shovels, a hockey stick, a soccer ball, and a tennis racket. As the snow melts more surprises appear in the snow.

Despite our large corner lot yard filled with a vast array of beautiful white snow to play in, Jonah has no interest in all of that snow. He is always laying or digging atop the nasty, black, snowplowed snow that comes up over our curb and onto the edge of the yard and our driveway. If I look outside I can guarantee there he will be. Rolling around in that nasty snow, digging a fort in it, and almost always with a piece of it in his mouth! Yes you read that correctly. In his mouth!

I always open the door and yell at him to get that nasty snow out of his mouth, but he assures me he isn't eating it. "Mama! I'm not eating it! I'm just tasting it!"

White Bean Sauce

This is a delicious and amazingly simple recipe. It can also be used a million different ways.

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
Juice of 1/2 lemon or lemon juice in a bottle works just as well, approx 1/4 cup
2 Tbsp E.V.O.O.
2-3 Cloves Garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. dried Italian herbs

Blend all ingredients together in a Cuisinart or food chopper. Store in fridge.

This makes a to die for pizza sauce. Generously top a homemade pizza crust with this sauce, and then top with loads of caramelized red onions. Bake at 400 degrees until crust is golden.

Toss this sauce with hot fettuccine noodles, smoked sausage, asparagus, Gouda cheese, and a splash of heavy cream.

Serve this sauce with pita bread that has been sliced into triangles, tossed in E.V.O.O., Italian herbs, and then baked at 350 until golden.

Beer Bread

I had been curious about beer bread for sometime, so I finally decided to give it a try this week. Both of my kids ate it so I guess it was a hit. Beer bread is fast and easy without all of the prep time as with traditional yeast bread. This recipe has a sweet almost cornbread like flavor. I omitted the butter, but I'm sure that adds a nice flavor as well. This is perfect with your favorite bowl of chowder.

3 cups flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup. sugar
1 12 oz can beer
1/4 cup melted butter

Mix all of the dry ingredients together. Add your beer and fold it into the dry ingredients just until it is all incorporated. Pour mixture into a loaf pan and top with your melted butter. Bake at 375 for one hour.

M.I.A.

I apologize for being M.I.A. for so long. Getting back to my blog is always in the back of my mind. My wireless has now been down for a couple months and this a huge part of my M.I.A. status. The phone call to fix it takes hours. Time I do not seem to have, or the patience if we are being completely honest. Gracie is so busy, that keeping her out of trouble all day seems to be all I have the time or energy for.

Christmas has come and gone and although it was wonderful spending time with family, it is always even more amazing coming home! We spent New Years Eve alone, and I drank a single glass of white wine while reading Night Of The Living Eggnog to Jonah at record speed before Gracie woke up for the thirteenth time in two hours. It's amazing how times change.

We find ourselves missing Kevin a lot these days with the holidays here, and so much time stuck inside with the weather not allowing us to escape the walls that creep in around us tighter and tighter with each passing day. We still don't have a definite date for his R&R (Rest & Relaxation Iraq Vacation), but the hope is the end of March or early April just around Gracie's first birthday.

With Kevin already down almost thirty pounds I decided that it was time for me to shape up for his return home. I'm not one for New Year Resolutions, but then again maybe it can't hurt. So, I am committing to at least 20 minutes of exercise a day in anticipation of his return. I know, I know, I don't need to lose weight. I am just concerned with getting rid of my baby soft tummy and firming up a few other spots as well. I am taking my measurements, and although I won't share the stats, I will share the results once he returns.

Goal # 2 is to eat what Gracie eats. It's so amazing to me how much time and energy we spend making sure our kids have balanced healthy meals, but when it comes to ourselves we are lucky to eat a handful of Doritos(or the entire bag), and a piece of last years Halloween candy for dinner! Raising two vegetarian children poses it's own set of challenges, and when I went back to work after Jonah turned two I quickly fell off my healthy meals lifestyle. Kevin likes to say that I am the unhealthiest healthy person he knows.

Since Gracie now wants to eat everything we are eating it is my new goal to only cook meals that she can also eat. It only seems fair to our little princess who looks longingly at whatever we are eating. That means dairy free Vegan cooking is once again at the forefront of our diet. Jonah is happily snaking on Homemade Vegan Cinnamon Rolls as we speak for a late night snack. Dinner was Homemade Vegan Pizza topped with Spinach, Black beans, Roasted Tomatoes, and NO CHEESE (Jonah of course had cheese). Breakfast was whole grain toast spread with Avocado. Yummy! It will be an ongoing challenge to come up with tasty vegan recipes that not only my kids will love, but my husband will also love once he returns home. I hope to share all of the delicious recipes with you along the way. I realize this is a far stretch for some of you. I promise to only share the super yummy ones!

I hope that through this blog I can hold myself accountable and stick to my goals. We will see together how far this journey takes me. Happy New Year!