Thursday, June 28, 2012

F.or Y.our I.nformation

I have started writing for 2ndGreenRevolution again.  It is a great outlet for my environmental rants.  My newest posts have been about camping and if it is actually a 'green' activity or not and about how we avoid our kids becoming greedy consumers, with many more to come in the near future.  So please check it out, it is a great website/blog. 

Also I recently switched over to Flickr.  I kept getting annoyed with Shutterfly and their poor upload.  So I made the switch.  Here is the new photo site.  I am slowly uploading all of our photos on to this site, so if you go now and take a look you will see some sweet newborness. 

And a preview to the many cute photos that will be up next week.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

To help or not to help?

I have encountered a couple of situations lately that have left me wondering what is wrong with our society.  When did we stop helping other people's children, or when did it become wrong to do so.
 (because every post needs a photo)
Scenario 1:
I was at an indoor play area in the mall.  I was staying close to Leland because he thinks he is a big kid, when in reality there are real big kids running around like terrors.  He happened to be by a girl and I saw her toe was bleeding.  I was thinking, she really should not be spreading blood everywhere, so I asked her where her mommy/daddy was.  She pointed to where her dad was and I picked her up and carried her to him, again thinking she shouldn't walk through the entire play area with a bloody toe.  And he seemed offended by the whole situation.
Did I really do something wrong?  What should I have done? Let her walk there? Gone to get him? But I saw he had another child in a baby carseat, so I really thought my solution was best.  He didn't say a word to me, jsut gave me a very weird look and so I walked away.

Scenario 2:
I was at a park with the two girls I nanny and Leland.  One fell and started crying.  She wasn't hurt, just upset she fell.  I was walking to get her and another mom was closer and went to her and then asked "Can I pick her up?"  I was so confused by the question.  Because if I was that mom I wouldn't have asked, but would have gone and picked the kid up and carried them to their person.
Again, is this wrong?

When did it become okay to look the other way when someone's child is hurt?
Or what is the protocol when helping someone's child?
Am I the only one that thinks we should just help any child in need?

I guess I am just doing what I would want someone else to do for Leland.  And maybe that is against the norm. 

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Night terrors

Leland is now experiencing night terrors.  They are horrific.
Nothing else can quite rock me to my core like a night terror from Leland.

He has this cry that is awful and I can't get him to stop because he is still sleeping.  I have to slowly and quietly talk to him in his ear until he wakes up and takes his binkie back or nurses back to sleep. 

It is scary.  His eyes are half way open and just staring off to neverland.  He has already had a few and I hope that the future ones are kept to a minimum.

It is safe to say he is definitely dreaming.  Maybe he just has a very good imagination?

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Summer

 Summer is here, it is way too hot.  It being June and already reaching 100 degrees is not a good sign.  We may just have to start escaping to the mountains on the weekends.  

This summer I am nannying a couple of girls I have known since they were born.  Leland is in heaven since he likes older girls.  It has been fun thus far.  Leland has also gone down to one nap because he just has to stay up and play.  He is still tired at his regular nap, but screams if I try and put him to sleep.   Instead he goes to bed right after lunch (around 1) and then goes to bed earlier.  He is still adjusting to this and is just now starting to take a longer nap, more than two hours. 
 One fun activity we have done is sidewalk paint.  Super easy: equal parts water and cornstarch and add some food coloring.  Leland really enjoyed it.  He liked to dump it out and then spread it around with his hands (similar to the mud). 
 It is an activity that we will have to repeat for sure. 

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Magical Mud

Last week I was watering the garden with a helper.  I sprayed some water in a dirt pile and Leland thought it was the best thing ever. 
It is amazing to watch this little person grow and to see how wonderful little things are- like mud.  It makes you take a step back and wonder what is really important in life.  It also makes me want to slow down a bit and not get caught up in unimportant things. 
Because really, he is the most important thing. 
Mud stomping.  Leland also loved it since he is a dirt connoisseur and what better way to eat dirt than when it is wet.  The worst part about it was the clean up- he did not like that one bit. 

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Camping

We went camping for two nights last weekend with some friends.  Leland loved it.  He was dirty the whole time of course.  He loved playing in the dirt, finding rocks and sticks.  He is an outdoor kid that is for sure.  
Every time I leave Denver and head West I have this horrible feeling that going back to Denver is the wrong thing to do, but I still do it for some reason. Hopefully we can soon leave this growing city for a slower pace, small town.
Grover: the camping dog.  This dog usually barks at anything and everything.  I didn't hear him bark once for over 48 hours, crazy.  He is also a great potty escort. 
Ella is a future rock climber. 
The best part about traveling is extra cuddles from Leland. 
Ella and Lucy, Ella has a caterpillar on her jacket, hence the two of them actually smiling for a photo. 
Running laps- it made for a good night sleep.
Leland so desperately wanted to keep up with the girls.
We had lots of fun, but I am still worn out from camping.  The first night Leland slept terribly and so did I, he also went to bed late and woke up early.  Thankfully there was coffee and that he slept much better the second night.  Hopefully we can make it out a few more time this summer. 

TAT: Future Letter to your Child

This week I am actually co-hosting Toddle Along Tuesday with the delightful Mama G from Growing up Geeky.  Melissa started TAT and I have been following it from the beginning.
This weeks topic is a letter to your child in the future.  I am going to pretend that Leland is about to graduate high school for this letter. 

Leland,

You will at some point think I am wrong about everything and that is okay as long as that period doesn't last forever.  I may not know everything but as you go through life please keep the following tidbits in your head, because these are the truth and are things I have to remind myself every so often.  Some of these things I didn't learn until you were born, but I hope it doesn't take you that long.   
- Always smile: it is often infectious, and can help your own mood when you are not so chipper.
- Never take yourself too seriously: rarely what you are doing is actually as important as you hope.    Take a step back and see how it is part of the bigger scheme in life, then relax.
- When you think you have hit rock bottom, look around and you will most likely find you still have it well, life is still good.
- Be kind, cruelty will never get you anywhere.  Same goes for complaining.
- Mistakes happen, learn from them, don't repeat.

Leland I hope you have a wonderful life and I hope you don't regret anything.  Also I will always be here for you and love you no matter what decisions you make.

Love,
Momma








This week's Toddle Along Tuesday topic is letter to your kid in the future! Let's see what you would like your little one to read in 10, 15, or 20+ years. There are no rules here, except that you link up a relevant post (old or new) rather than your whole blog.




Sunday, June 17, 2012

Father's Day

This is Jeff's second Father's Day, last year we were still pretty new at the whole parenting thing so I wasn't quite sure what type of dad he would be. 
Now I know a bit more.

Jeff is a great dad because:
- He always lets me sleep in on the weekends
- He can't stand for Leland to cry at all (I have toughened up a bit)
- He still calls Leland baby and would prefer to carry him all day (someone is having a hard time realizing their baby is not a baby anymore)
- He will give Leland food off his plate, and share his food (this is kind of a big deal)
- He is always there to take over when I am about to crack
- He wakes up in the middle of the night for some much needed exploding diaper assistance

It has been very interesting seeing Jeff with a kid since he had minimal experience before Leland.  I am looking forward to the continued parenting experience with him and to see how we overcome the many issues of parenting. 

Friday, June 8, 2012

Garden Update v.2

 Bean sprouts coming up.
 Peas!  Peas are very challenging to pick.  I have the hardest time finding them, they blend in very well.  I will stare in one area and finally find one a few minutes later.
 Lots of lettuce
 Soon to be broccoli.
 Collards with tomato plants in the background.
 Our grass patch.  To the back left are beans, back center will be summer squash and back right are the ever growing peas.  The very back is the pile of dirt that has been taken off to allow for planting areas. 
 We have a rose or two that pop up. 
 In front of the peas are winter squash.  In the very front are carrots- they are doing very well. 

This years garden is so far a success.  I cannot believe how well it is doing.  I think we are just learning more and being able to learn from past mistakes.  This year the biggest mistake was where kale was planted.  It isn't getting enough sun, so it is not really growing.  It is tiny, but with how well everything else is doing, I am okay with that minor fail.  I am already thinking about next year's garden and what we will do.  Not so many collards, good lord that is a lot of collards, and I don't even like them.  Kiwi bins will become play areas for Leland, since he is always getting into them.  Probably will just have snow peas next year, since those are doing better thus far.  And of course more tomato plants!  Maybe even add in some peppers.

But it is a lot of work.  It was a lot of work for Jeff in the beginning, with the digging up the yard and planting all the seeds.  Now the work isn't so bad, some weeding and watering.  Neeming some plants to help get rid of pests.  It is starting to pay off though, and hopefully there will be a little less work next year since he won't have to re-dig up the yard.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Overnight oat waffles

This is a really delayed post because I have been obsessing over these waffles for months now.  They are seriously the best waffles ever.  They have ruined my love for pancakes, they are that good (and I really use to love pancakes).  There is a whole pound of butter in a double batch, so you don't have to add extra butter at the end.  I like to top mine with strawberries and maple syrup.  You should definitely make these this weekend. 

I make a double batch and then freeze them, so I can enjoy them for the entire week. I just reheat them on the toaster option in our toaster oven (best appliance ever, I use it all the time since we don't have a microwave).  

Leland also really enjoys them, which is awesome since they are an easy breakfast (once they are frozen). Leland enjoys his plain or with some yogurt. 

Overnight Oatmeal Waffles






(original recipe from One Lovely Life)
Serves: I usually get about 10 waffles, we have a large waffle iron though, so you may get more.  More the merrier!
Ingredients
  • 4 cups thick cut oats
  • 4 cups buttermilk
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 pound melted butter
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 4 Tablespoons maple syrup or honey
  • 1 tsp baking powder (this is for high altitude, you sea level folks may want to bump this up to two, same for the baking soda)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Other additions that are delicious: coconut flakes, ground flax seed, coconut oil in replace of butter
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, combine oats and buttermilk. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
  2. When ready to prepare waffles, stir eggs and melted butter into the oat/buttermilk mixture. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add in flour mixture and stir till just blended. (Batter will be quite thick).
  3. Cook in waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions. You may want to leave them in a bit longer than normal to crisp a bit more.  When freezing I make sure to not get them too crispy in the waffle iron so they can get nice and crispy in the toaster oven without burning. 

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Lately...

So now we can go back to real time posts...

Leland has been sleeping in his crib until the early morning hours, like 4 am.  It is still a debate every night if I should just go get him when I go to bed, so I can have a snuggle buddy.  But eventually he will want to sleep in his own bed, maybe he is already making that decision.  That also means he is cutting out a feeding or two, another good thing right?  I can also fall asleep now without him nursing, definitely a good thing. (Okay scratch that, I think this was only happening because he was sick.  The past two nights he can been up at his normal 11pm time, but doesn't necessarily nurse, I just bring him to bed at this time.  So I still an not dependent on nursing to fall asleep SCORE!)

Leland loves to be pushed around on his Thomas.  His friend Henry loves to push it.  We showed the boys how to combine their two loves, it was a good break for the parents.

Leland can now climb up onto his slide and go down on his own.  Someone is a big boy now, or so he likes to think.  (He may also throw tantrums when you tell him no.)

Leland's communication is getting better and he is understanding more and more.  Leland is now signing more.  He signs bath, all done, milk, no (when I tell him no he repeats the sign), dog, and sometimes all gone and please.  Hopefully he keeps increasing his signs since he shows no sign of talking soon.  The only consistent word he uses is MA for food. Sometimes he will say something that actually sounds like a word and I get excited, but it is never if rarely repeated. 

At night when I put him to bed, I tell him, night night and we waves goodbye.  He then has to point to all his friends that sleep with him.  It is the cutest thing ever. 

Leland has also been a bit more picky about what he is eating.  He often refuses to eat veggies (unless in pesto form), but will always eat fruit and cheese.

He really is just the best kid ever.  No bias here.  

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Paonia

After Glenwood Springs, we headed to Paonia.
This place is destined to be my future home.  There are only a couple of places that feel more like home than this place- Table Rock Lake and Sheridan, MO.  Paonia reminded me of Sheridan so much, expect it actually has a downtown with businesses. 
While we were in Paonia, we checked out the relatively new National Park (since 1999), Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and went on a hike around Black Canyon.  That point on the right was our destination. 
Leland slept the whole hike there and back.  He had a brief awake time while we ate lunch. 
My favorite flower along the trail. 
A lizard is hiding out on the rock.  He has a bluish belly. 
The canyon bottom and river. 
Jeff's uncle Bobby
Bobby and Ruby

Being his cute self. 
Group photo! (Leland is hiding in the ergo)
Photo op before we headed back home. 
His favorite thing at their house, the pig!
Flying!

This trip was much needed, it was soo relaxing, even with a sick baby.  There were no plans, no one to see.  We just decided what to do each day as it came.  Very slow pace.  Another reason we need to get to the Western slope as soon as possible.  Hopefully it isn't too much longer before we can leave the city and move to a much smaller town.