Where I've Been

I didn't actually set out to ignore this poor little blog. And I didn't mean to give up on Homemade365's homemade challenge. But life, well, it has had different plans for me. :)

Most of y'all know about K and her eczema issues. This has been a struggle for our family for over 5 years now. But we are finally getting close to a solution! Allergy testing revealed that out of the 96 possible food allergens they tested for, K was allergic to all 96 of them!!! Now, we're pretty sure that it must be a few big hitters that are making her system so over-reactive. For the last almost 2 months, we have been tinkering with her diet, trying to find the right combinations of foods that will keep her healthy and still allow her system to heal. Currently, K is completely without gluten, dairy, soy, egg, pork, nuts, beef, avocados, carrots, and I'm sure a few other things I can't remember off the top of my head (please don't worry if it sounds extreme... we're working with our doctors and nutritionists etc... she's in good hands). And little by little we are seeing improvements. I can't even begin to describe how amazing this is for us! It has not been an easy change for me to deal with, but helping K get better makes the whole struggle worthwhile.

But the progress is slower than we'd like (isn't it always?). Wheat is K's biggest allergen, and I have a suspicion than there is lots of accidental exposure occuring.... a few crumbs in the jelly jar, crumbs in the toaster, accidental wheat exposure at restaurants, that sort of thing. So as of tomorrow, everyone in the Owl Nest will be gluten free. No more wheat for this family. I'm looking forward to seeing if this helps.

Dealing with diet changes turned my world on its head. Right when I finally felt like things were hitting their stride, I had to change the way I approached everything about feeding my family. This was hard, and lead to more than one late night crying session. Change, even for a good reason, is still very, very hard. But I am finally getting back to a place where things feel normal, though my normal is completely different from what it was before. And that's good, I think. That means I'm growing. But the growing pains stink!


In the meantime, besides dealing with food, I've been working on a few of my New Year's resolutions (which I never did find time to blog about). I tried hard to make these attainable, and to have my list look more like a set of goals for 2010 and less like a set of "reinvent my whole life this instant" directives.

But, in an effort to re-motivate myself, and because I'm honest like that, here are my resolutions for 2010, along with a mini-update about how I'm doing so far.

1. Give up soda: ah, the saga continues. I lasted almost three weeks. Then it was a sip here, a sip there, and then WHAM back to making trips through the drive through for mega-sized 44 oz sodas. I have realized that this may have to be an all-or-nothing thing for me. SIGH. I'm currently working through this and have weaned myself to half a bottle of Coke a day. That's progress at least.

2. Run at least 2 5k's before the year is up: must start walking first! :) I miss my running days (also know as my pre-momma days... J is seven (and a HALF)... it's been a long time). I took a tour of the gym today. I think that's what I'll be up to this summer!

3. Read through my 2010 booklist: so far I have read a few of the books I set out to read. Making unsurprisingly good progress. I'll post my booklist later. This post is long enough already. I'll even try to remember to link to it.

4. Learn to knit: well, I have about 6 inches of a poorly knitted scarf to prove that I am trying. It's going to be a long road though :)

5. Write more: we've probably all noticed that blogging more isn't really happening. But writing is. I am working on a novel, reading books on writing (very typical of me... if there is a book on a topic, I will read it), and feeling creative and happy about it.

I am sure there were a few other resolutions, but I lost the list I wrote them on. I'll bet, though, that Get Organized and Stop Losing Things were both on the list :)


So, that is where I've been. Now that life has reached a manageable point again, you can look forward to more blogging. I'm sure I'll have some new gluten-free, casein-free (GFCF) recipes to share, some updates on the writing process, complaints about how sore and tired I am from working out, maybe some 5K results, and fun updates on the Little Owls. We'll be schooling through the summer, so look for updates on that, too. Thanks to those who've hung around!!!

Have a great weekend!
OWL MOMMA

A House... Maybe

We submitted our application Friday for a new place... as of Friday afternoon everything sounded fine. But we don't get the definitive answer til Monday. Say a few prayers, keep fingers crossed, do whatever it is that you do to send some positive vibes our way! I am so tired of not knowing what our address will be at the end of the month!

Not Much To Say

I'm just tired of reading the last post when the blog comes up! So it is time for something else.

:)

It's hard to think this morning... what I'd really like to do is focus on some schooling stuff, but the neighbor dogs are yapping and the birds in the yard are squawking and J and W are listening to a book on CD... loudly!

Anyway, I have realized that we probably aren't going to get much of anything done until we get the move finished. Things in the house are partially packed. We went looking at a few places yesterday. Still haven't found the perfect place yet but at least we're making progress.

This whole being patient thing is really hard for me. I want things done and I want them done now. I have all these ideas in my head of things that I want to try, and realistically they have to wait til we move. I keep reminding myself that NOW is probably not the time to take on more hobbies like making cheese or yogurt. As much as I want to. Accepting this has been hard on me. I am starting to feel like "living" is on hold while we look for a place TO live. KWIM?

My only plan for today is to help the kids get the playroom cleaned up, get through reading lessons for both big kids, and maybe make a loaf of cinnamon raisin bread. And to be relaxed and enjoy the day with these little cuties.

Still Whiny

My whiny mood is still hanging around, mostly because this excruciatingly sore throat is still hanging around. I have realized that I don't handle being sick very well or very graciously. Blech

So I am practically drowning myself in herbal tea and chicken broth, and I'm about to go gargle with more grapefruitseed extract. This is no fun at all.

In order to end on a somewhat happier note, I have found a new rental agent so hopefully we'll have a new place soon!

Hope everyone else is feeling okay!!!!

Pickles!

I love pickles! My favorite are the big Kosher-style dill pickles that you can get in the bulk barrels at the deli... drool! Our CSA share for this week came with 14 pickling cucumbers... so I decided to make pickles. I found the recipe online here. Since I don't own canning jars, I put the pickles in a glasslock container (that I got at Costco... I HEART Costco) and straight into the fridge. By today, they actually look and taste like pickles... YAY! They are bit on the salty side since I misread the recipe and added extra salt instead of sugar... oops! But still good, and pretty close to deli pickles. And I am sure the next batch will be even better.

The original recipe calls for a gallon of water, so I scaled the recipe back and adjusted for the fact that I used kosher salt instead of pickling salt (for Morton's brand, 1 cup plus 2 tbs kosher salt = 1 cup pickling salt). Below is the way I did it (with the exception of the sugar/salt mix-up)... I am really looking forward to making some more.

Pickles!

To a medium saucepan, add:
5 1/3 C Water
1/3 C vinegar
4.5 T
kosher salt
1/3 t sugar (not salt, lol)
Bring it to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a glass jar or container, add the pickling cucumbers (either whole or sliced however you want). Add in several peeled cloves of fresh garlic (I think we used 6 cloves and it was nice and garlicky). Add some dill weed or dill seeds or both. Cover with the boiling brine mixture. Cover and place in the refrigerator.

sickness update

Because I know you are all at home wondering anxiously how I am doing, I think I am feeling better. At least, on the ibuprofen I am feeling better! :) And I am 99% certain it's not epiglottitis ;) But either way, I did get the kitchen cleaned, the laundry folded and put away, the downstairs vacuumed, the diapers washed, and dinner cooked. I also took the kids for a drive and put gas in the car. I even got to wear another one of new skirts. So, not too bad for one (sick) day. K is still under the weather (she's napping now), and now J and Owl Poppa are complaing of sore throats. I am about to burn some lavendar and tea tree oil, open the windows for a few minutes, and put fresh sheets on the beds... I am determined to keep us all as healthy as I can!! Keep sending positive thoughts our way!

well it's official...

I am officially sick. Blech.

After setting the kids up with a movie yesterday, I got progressively worse. Fever, chills, burning eyes, the whole shebang. So, I sat huddled under blankets while they watched not one but three movies waiting for Owl Poppa to get home.

My tonsils are swollen and it hurts to swallow. I have a (completely ir-) rational fear of getting epiglottitis. Or in some other way losing my airway and suffocating. I do actually realize that this isn't likely, but it freaks me out anyway every time I get a sore throat or swollen tonsils. That fear is definitely worse than the illness. I had strep throat twice last year... it was terrible.

I am sitting here sipping hot lemon and honey with cayenne. This is probably the best sore throat drink around. And surprisingly tasty. And with the help of some ibuprofen, I am feeling functional this morning. As soon as I hit "publish post", I am going to go take some echinacea, keep up with my remedies, and conquer what I can in the house before getting worse again. There is all the damage from last night to clean up, and all the end of evening chores that didn't get done. I have to get a load of diapers washed or poor W isn't going to have anything to wear. And I think I'll throw dinner in the crockpot right now so we won't have to eat mac and cheese and poptarts for dinner again. :) My menu from yesterday has gone totally out the window... I think we're going to have chicken soup. But think how good it will feel to sit back and relax this afternoon with all the chores done. I might even get that nap.

Wish me luck!

Boring Posts for Saturday Vol 2

Today we went to the (different from last week) farmers market for eggs and milk. This time we were much more successful. We met my almost brother in law and his family there... the kids were soooo excited and keep asking me when he can be their Tio... I keep telling them to ask their Tia and leave me alone about it :) (Not really, I'm not really THAT rude)

So at the market we bought eggs, milk, grass fed flank steak (super yum), a loaf of organic sourdough bread, some hand-dipped beeswax taper candles, and a delicious and huge cinnamon bun that we split in the car. We might have to get there earlier next time. As soon as it starts to heat up (which is EARLY here in Texas), K's eczema starts bothering her... we had to leave when she got so itchy she couldn't take it anymore. I did spend some time perusing the gorgeous aprons... oh how I want one!!! With a full ruffly skirt and a pocket... someday!

Then we went to pick up our first summer CSA share. Our winter CSA ended a while back, and the summer one just started. We came home with lots of yummy squash, onions, fresh garlic, and tons of pickling cucumbers. We're going to learn to make pickles... Hooray! We got to chat for a bit with our friend who is the CSA drop off point (all the veggie shares are taken to her house, and then we pick up there). It was nice to squeeze a super short visit into our morning.

Next we drove around for awhile to let W take his nap in the car. I kinda wish it was easier to get him to take a nap at home, because I could really use a nap today. My throat is super sore, with pain referring to my ear. Blech. I have some remedies I am going to take as soon as I'm done with this post, but a nap sure sounds delicious and would surely speed the healing up, right? Maybe I'll put on a movie for the kids :)

While we were driving around, I decided to go check out the outside of one of the properties we were considering. We got lost trying to find it and drove miles out of our way down some country roads. At least the view was pretty. This house was at the top of my list because it is all tile inside and on almost an acre. It WAS at the top of my list... driving around it, it was clear pretty quick that the layout of the land just wasn't going to work for this family. SIGH... at least it narrows my search down a bit.

I did get to wear my new skirt today! I have been in the market for some skirts or sundresses... I am tired of always looking so sloppy in jeans and tshirts. So I went to the thrift store yesterday and found two cute denim skirts, two floral skirts, an adorable sleeveless sweater (K told me it was so pretty I just had to get it), three pairs of knit tights for this winter, and a pair of sparkly shoes for K. My budget for clothes for this month was $25. Total cost of the thrift store trip was $23.33... I was pretty proud of myself. :) It is looking like we'll actually be within our budget for this month!

And to round out this totally boring post with even more boring-ness, I will end with our meal plan for the next few days. This is only main dishes since I haven't thought out sides yet, that's how boring I am. Here we go:

• Tonight: casserole made with chicken, leftover gravy and mashed potatoes, veggies and cheese.
• Tomorrow: cheesesteaks with fried onions made with the flank steak I bought today, served on the sourdough bread from the farm market.
• Monday: cook a whole chicken in the crockpot... use the meat to make flautas with fresh guacamole, put the rest of the meat aside for the next few days, make chicken broth from the bones
• Tuesday: figure out something to do with the chicken from the crockpot
• Wednesday: tortilla soup... my favorite!
• Thursday: pork chops
• Friday: leftover or homemade pizza

Now, to go see about those remedies and set the kids up with a movie!

Boring Posts for Saturday brought to you by Mary, at Hope Echoes

Personal Want Ad

Female, married with three children,
seeking house for long term commitment.
Hoping relationship will lead to a forever home.
Should be interested in happy family dinners,
long hours playing in the back yard,
sweet dreams, and happy memories.

We're moving again. Since J was born, we have lived in 6 places, not including the time we've spent in hotels between houses. FWIW, J is only 6 and a half and we've been in this house 2 years. That's a lot of moves squeezed into his first 4.5 years. I'm tired of moving, but hoping that this next one will settle us down! I am taking a cue from those folks who write down everything they want in a partner, and then suddenly meet the person of their dreams... here is my house wish list:

• At least 2000 sf... our current 1500 is bursting at the seams with 2 adults, 3 high energy kids, 2 big dogs, and a fish
• Backyard should be sunny enough to grow veggies with a least a few trees for shade and for climbing, and maybe a hammock.
• Laundry area must be indoors... our current laundry area is in the garage and I hate it
• A new-ish AC system and double pane windows... Texas is too hot for anything else...oh and screens in all the windows
• Playroom in the downstairs
• Eat In Kitchen
• Fire place
• Two inch wood blinds throughout
• A nice front yard and good curb appeal
• Tile or Laminate in at least the downstairs, preferably throughout
• Garden tub, no jets in the bathtubs... no funky mold or damp smell in the house
• Neutral colors, no plaid wallpaper
• A place we can be for the next three to five years... with the way we move, that would seem like an eternity
• And since this is my WISH list, I'd like to be able to have a few chickens!

Compacting (Again)

In 2006, way back in the olden days when I only had two children lol, I used to frequent the boards at mothering dot com. It was there that I came across the idea of compacting. Sara at walkslowlylivewildly summed it up nicely here. I was SO onboard. I started in January of 2007, and lasted until we moved in April 2007. Not too shabby! Right around this same time, the San Francisco Compact folks were getting lots of press (it seemed like it to me, but I am sensitive to that sort of thing). S0 it was probably good for me to bow out then, anyway, lest I be accused of (finally) being trendy (don't worry, I'm not).

But the lessons I learned in that time were good for me. It was eye opening to not be able to buy anything brand new. It was work to have to search out something second hand. It was educational to have to decide if that item was worth the work.

I think for me, this is one of those things that seems like it would complicate things, but really makes my life easier. So I'm back on the wagon :)

Here are the rules I'm playing by. I plan to take this one month at a time and just go with it. I am accepting that some months may not be perfect, and that that's okay.

1. Avoid Buying
Is this a want or a need?
Is there something I can DO instead of BUY (I LOVE Cindysporch)?
Can I use something I already have?
Can I wait?

2. Avoid Buying New
Shop Craigslist, thrift stores, etc.
Barter, Borrow, Make something
Be patient
Exceptions: personal care items (includes shoes and underwear), food, supplies for projects or schooling (only after I have gone through step one to decide if we need it or can make due with something else), gifts for birthdays (unless I have time to make something)
If I have honestly exhausted all of the above means, and I am unable to wait it out, purchases should support local or independently owned businesses.

3. Food Rules (since this is something we have to buy)
Minimal convenience foods
Buy local and organic where possible
Shop the farmer's markets first
Minimize packaging, buy bulk, bring my shopping bags
If we do eat out (let's be reasonable folks... this is sure to happen... I can only make so many changes at once) we'll keep it to local establishments

My goals:
Embracing patience
Finding contentment in the present
Combatting my tendency toward instant gratification
Cultivate resourcefulness

... and saving a little money toward that Christmas tree farm in Maine won't hurt.

Commitments

My friend Janet at mami de PAZ is a thinker of deep thoughts. I always love what she has to say about what she's been thinking over. She is someone I admire because she works very hard to live out her beliefs.

I am trying to be more like this. I admit to being an idealist. My problem is that the ideal and the reality don't match often enough.

I love making plans at the beginning of each month. Budgets, homeschool plans, travel plans (I use the term travel loosely since I hate to be far from home). It's the follow-through part that I have alot of trouble with.

Actually, that seems to sum up most of my life. Big plans, little follow-through.

So I am attempting to turn over a new leaf!

I sat down and wrote out all of my values. From there I brainstormed ways to bring my life better into alignment with those values. In some areas, I am right where I'd like to be. In other areas, it is going to take some doing.

And now June is stretching out before me.... full of promise and, well, basically, just not all messed up yet :)

I do plan to post more about all the values things I have been working on, but right now I need to start cooking supper, lol... someone's gotta feed these kids.

I will leave y'all with a fabulous recipe (that has nothing at all to do with the topic above... but it's super yummy and worth trying).

Beer Bread Recipe

• 3 cups of flour
• 1/4 C sugar
• 1 T baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 12 oz bottle of beer (or a 12 oz can of soda)
• 3 T melted butter

Mix together dry ingredients. Pour in beer (or soda). Mix til it forms a sticky batter. Pour batter into a greased bread pan. Pour melted butter over the top and bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes. Try not to eat it all at once! :) You'll get different flavors from using different beers or sodas. You can also do this with whole wheat flour... it's a bit denser but still yummy! Or add a handful of shredded cheese and serve it with soup... oooh, now I'm drooling! Let me know watcha think.

Lazy Day Recap

Well, my lazy day wasn't as lazy as it could have been. We hung out, cleaned up a bit, finished up all the laundry, put clean sheets on the beds... standard stuff really, but not the laying around in my pj's that I had in mind. We're pretty sure we are moving soon so I have also been purging stuff... I'm one of those crazy people who LOVES downsizing... I find it super freeing to get rid of my stuff. And since I'm selling bunches of it, I'm enjoying putting a bit of cash in my pocket too! With the proceeds from selling my elliptical machine :) I took the kids to the thrift store. We came home with a few books and games (I went in search of sundresses for me, but no luck... if only I were a size 2, then the selection would have been awesome). Someone in the store gave me a coupon, so I saved $3, too. Bonus!

I have a lot of deep thoughts to share, and big plans I am working on, so hopefully I'll get some time tomorrow (Owl Poppa is home the next few days).

Lazy Day

I don't have anywhere to go or anything to do today. I will just be hanging out at the house, playing with the kids! Envy me! (or invite me over, lol)

Look What I made!

I'm pretty proud of myself! My grandmom made me some knitted washcloths that I love. She doesn't knit anymore, so I decided to make myself some. These are just single crochet squares, and I tried to make a fancy edging for them :) The colors look a bit washed out in the photos, but in person, they're really pretty. I think the large one is a bit too large and the smaller one is a bit too small, so there will probably be a version 3.0 at some time. In the meantime, I can barely bring myself to wash the dishes with them, but I guess I've got to break them in sometime!

Rainy Day Fun

Otherwise entitled, How Can We Pass The Time on a Rainy Day With No TV


Otherwise otherwise entitled, A Nearly Exhaustive Look At Our Day


This morning it was raining again. Not gentle rain like on Tuesday. Today we had a terrific downpour, complete with thunder and lightning. We HAD planned to work in the back yard today... SIGH I guess plans change. It was dark and gloomy, so we lit candles and snuggled up for some good books. But we all knew that could only last so long. And it was only last night that I announced to the kids that we would be keeping the TV off during the day from now on. YIKES


So what to do with three super active kids on a rainy day? Why, indoor bowling of course! We set up our little foam bowling set, and took turns bowling down the hallway.




Next up was lunch -- soup served in tea cups with tortilla chips on the side. During lunch, we read aloud from Little House In the Big Woods. So of course naturally we then had to play Little House.


And then K and I settled in on the loveseat to finish attaching Bianca's hair. Bianca is the Waldorf doll I made for K for Christmas. She'll get her own post complete with pictures at a later date. But due to running out of yarn, and waiting for a new ball of yarn to arrive, Bianca's hair has been incomplete. And today seemed like the perfect time to fix that. K helped, J watched, and W tried to jump on us repeatedly.


Somewhere in there we also played a few board games, did all of our lessons, baked two loaves of bread, baked a loaf of cinnamon raisin bread and a batch of rolls, made a pitcher of iced tea, emptied the dishwasher, got dressed, had some snacks, folded and put away yesterday's laundry (oops), and started another load running.


And just when I thought we might run out of things to do... the sun came out. The sky is a perfect blue with not a cloud in sight!!!! What happened to the ferocious storm of this morning? If it wasn't for the muddy ground and lingering puddles, I almost wouldn't believe it. So into the car to pick up our CSA share and let W take a nap... we had been postponing this (the car trip, not the nap) because the wet weather seemed dangerous for driving. And now that we are home, the boys have tumbled out of the house to go play in the mud, K is playing with chalboard in the garage, and I am about to go fix supper (chili and cornbread, yum).


So, we all survived, and we managed to keep the TV off too! Whew!

Garage Project

Here are a few "during" photos. The garage is all cleaned up (Owl Poppa can now walk around in there, and thus domestic happiness returns) and my project is halfway finished.

My plan is to rip out the hideous wood shelving and put in another super deep plastic shelving unit. With the available wall space, I want to make a workbench for J and a pegboard on the wall for his tools. The opposite wall, behind my furry model, I want to put up a display of kid artwork, and further organize the toys so that the kids are able to play. Lots of the boxes stacked on the floor and against the walls are things to take to Goodwill, so some of the clutter will be reduced. And in case you noticed, yes, our laundry area is in the garage, so that needs to be accounted for too. Part of the reason I want the kids to have a safe place to play out there is because, as I keep mentioning, I am always doing laundry! :) My sewing area is also in the garage (not because I want it there, but because there is no place else for it) so I would love to see that get some attention as well. But unfortunately, I can't make any more progress until Owl Poppa has his next few days off, unless I can convince W that the playpen is a really really cool place to hang out!

Monday Morning Blues

and reds and purples. :) The kids spent the later part of the morning coloring pictures of Set and Osiris, after reading a little bit about Ancient Egypt for History today. W mostly colored on himself.

And speaking of colors, Owl Poppa is home today, and spending the afternoon planting flower bulbs in the front flower beds. It's going to look so pretty when he is done.

I'm off to finish my over-ambitous garage organization project, trying to create an indoor play space for the kids, for when it finally gets too hot to play outside. It's one of those projects where you have to rip everything out, making a huge mess, before you can get the organizational part done. Unfortunately, I'm only as far as the Huge Mess Stage, and it's been that way for two weeks at least. Owl Poppa is a bit unhappy about having to dodge so much junk just to put his work shoes in the garage. So, I am going to work diligently this cool and breezy afternoon and try to finish it up for him.

Maybe I'll post pics of the finished project later (there will be NO before photos though. It is really that bad out there).