Hits and Misses (Part Deux) -or- Turkey Lurkey Musings

Hope you all had a fabulous T-U-R-K-E-Y (M-O-U-S-E) day....Is this like the 4th of July for "Istanbul was Constantinople" (better ask They Might Be Giants). Hmmm, I'm seriously OFF topic. As our evening winds down, I just wanted to make a few notes in my online journal/web log/blog/etc... Just a little free-write to clear the cobwebs, you know?

Nice things about this year's celebration?
There were some great firsts.

• Holden's first Thanksgiving - obviously. And I did not get one picture... which is sad, because I actually did my hair AND put on make up, so you can only imagine I must've looked like a way hot mom -- especially the way I was muffin-topping in my Ann Taylor jeans. But this is about Holden (not me) - and he looked darling, and spent most of the festivities napping. Total HIT! (Minus the muffin-topping of course - that was a total Miss.)

• My first attempt at Pumpkin Pie...and I mean real pumpkin, from scratch. I used an organic pumpkin from the Nelson farm (the lady who taught me to make apple pie this fall); and I have to say I don't think I ever need to do that again (the organic part- sure, the pumpkin pie - not so much). Check it off the list. So Hit - Miss? Um, wash.)

• Cherry Pie - Miss. This one had the same fate as the banana cream from Sunday's festivities: looked like a total mess, but tasted fine. Though my coconut cream was a total HIT: DEEEEEE-LISH!) Not to be confused with the Groove is in the Heart - DeeLite.
  

So I'm kind of pie'd out (aren't you after my last two posts?)... But on the flip side, at least I've found something else to blog about besides breastmilk and attachment parenting.

So thankful for:

1. A pretty dang cute husband
2. An amazing son
3. Rolling pins
4. Flat irons
5. Fall wardrobes
6. The world-wide-intranets
   
7. Parents
8. Books, Books and more books
9. Cameras/pictures
10. The digital age
11. *NPR
12. Travel
13. *yoga
    
14. Car seats
15. Fro-yo (Fresh Twist)
16. Seventh Generation Products
17. Vinegar
    
18. Winder Farms
19. Blowouts (hair of course)
20. Lots of other things, but 20 seemed like a good number
    

*Please note the opinions expressed on Stuff White People Like are not necessarily those of Sabrena Suite-Mangum or Suite Spots. I do find the site pretty dang funny - but wish the 'commenters' would clean up their potty mouths.

Hits and Misses

Looking for a blog that tells you about how wonderful and perfect life is? Well, I don’t know what you’re doing here. Sure, I’ve made numerous attempts at trying to sound all ‘together-ish,’ but anyone that really knows me recognizes most of the time I’m a total mess (and have spent most of life trying to recover from being a mess.)

• 95% of the time, I’m always trying to lose weight. (But 99.9% of that time I’m fantasizing and often indulging in chocolate chip cookies, go figure.)
• My house has ‘stuff’ everywhere, when I really want to be a sleek minimalist.
• I love Crown Burgers French fries (hardly organic fare).
• My son takes three naps a day – in 45 minute to 1 hr increments (9:30, 1:00 and 4:00) – and I KNOW that sleep ‘experts’ everywhere say he should be taking 2 naps a day, max.

So in the interest of more self-disclosure, some hits (this is where get I brag about how awesome I am trying to be or cool things I’ve discovered) and misses (this is where reality sets in that I am not super-mom) from the past couple of weeks:

HIT: Fresh Twist
My brother-in-law-to-be just opened this new yogurt joint on Salt Lake’s East side (just west of the ‘Skyline Café Rio’). The décor is straight out of Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe pallet, and your indulgence is measured by the ounce: so you can take as much or as little as your heart desires. I recognize it’s not really ‘fro-yo’ weather, but kick the corporate red mango habit and buy local! Salt Laker's: Check it out on your next FHE escapade or ladies night out – 3300 So. and approx 3000 east (next to Citrus Grill).

MISS: Pie in the Face
So I’ve been working on my pie making, right? So I volunteered to bake some for Danny’s extended family’s thanksgiving dinner (last Sunday). I made four pies, and three of them worked out fine… but the banana cream looked like a disaster – consider it the ground zero of pastries. I’m not going to get into details, but it looked like a science experiment. Remember that scene in Better Off Dead when the green goo cralws off of John Cusack’s plate? Yeah, it was kind of like that… (wish I had the actual scene, this is the best I could find.)



MISS: Lavender Infused Whipped Cream

Sounded like such a good idea at the time – and I thought it would be awesome on the apple pies I made for the for Sunday. I ‘overwhipped’ the concoction … but from crisis comes opportunity, right? My miss actually became a:

HIT: Lavender Infused Butter
That’s right, my sister took my disaster and decided we’d just call it lavender butter and she’s been spreading it on breads, rolls and all sorts of delicious starches. She says it’s like honey-butter only better…butter.

MISS: Pottytunities
Sometimes EC works, sometimes I get pee'd on (yes, you read that right). I don't worry about Holden being potty trained - this is more about me learning how to read his signals, than abouttraining him at 9 months (and reaping the benefits of being more green). But you know what they say: If you EC you're going to clean up poop...if you don't EC, you're going to clean up a lot more poop. (I had to remind myself of this, today as I was cleaning up...well, you know.)

In other news, I am kind of sick of Julian Michaels endorsing EVERYTHING...

Soooo Excited!

If you can squeal like a valley-girl in the 80s, you should. Because that is how happy I am inside (and you should be too).

Why is Sabrena so happy? (And more importantly, why is she typing in 3rd person?)

Here, try the quiz:

a) She got tested for little piggy flu (H1N1) and "NO PIGGY FLU!"
b) It's a weekend and she's listening to Christmas music
c) She found natural cake/cookie decorations?!?!
d) All of the above

It's true (all of it). But especially 'C.' I was reading in Yoga Journal this morning, and they were talking about Gingerbread Cookies and recommended India Tree "for natural colored sugar sprinkles and food coloring derived from vegetable sources."

The Natural Candy Store has all sorts of delights too: vegan, organic, free-trade AND corn syrup free - just the tip of the ice berg. Thank you Yoga Journal, it's like I died and went to natural candy heaven. They (Natural Candy Store) even have organic marshmallow creme (wonder if you can make marshmallow squares with this?...even more importantly, I wonder if my husband would know the difference if we left out the animal tendons?!?!)

TMI? Yeah, smores have not been the same since I read about gelatin.

So the real reason I'm stoked about the candy/cookie decor is because Holden's 1st birthday is fast approaching, and I was trying to figure out how I was going to be ok with shifting from primarily organic eats for Little Bits to Red Dye No.4 on his birthday cake.

Problem solved! Thank you India Tree. I think I will start experimenting with your Winter Line straightaway.

Update from the Couch

So I've been feeling a little under the weather since Tues morning. I think it's just a result of a busy weekend and not enough sleep.

Maybe I have 'little piggy flu,' but there's no fever and I basically feel like I just have a lame cold. I could go and get it checked, but if I do only have a virus, I don't want to be around all the sick people at the doctor's office. I think I may have incurred the initial 'zap' taking Holden for his nine month well baby checkup. The pediatrician's office was a ZOO! Everyone in masks, kids hacking up lungs and sneezing all over the place. Crying and whining because their bodies ache. It was like a scene from Outbreak or something.



Mostly I am praying I don't pass it on to Holden (he's showing no signs of being sick). But I am thinking of bathing him in breastmilk just to be safe. (You don't know if I'm kidding, do you?) Well, it's been shown to kill cancer cells, what's a little bacteria?

Speaking of kidding, the other day my friend asked me what I clean my face with; and I said 'grapeseed extract and baby pee;' and I was a bit disturbed because she believed me without hesitation. It's official... what I've long suspected for sometime now:I'm the Weird Friend. Oh, you already knew this? Hmmm.

So in other mommy news:
Just wanted to let you know, Holden's clapping (adorable) and eating yogurt (apparently it's a cow's milk dairy product you can feed to your kid before a year.)

He and Danny have been having sleepovers and I've moved to Holden's 'big boy bed' (aka. a twin mattress on the floor of the nursery taking the place of a crib that was used for clean laundry that needed to be folded.)

Special thanks to my husband for staying home and taking care of me on Tues...and Wed was Veterans days, LOVE the bankers hours because "HUZZAH!" he got to stay home and take care of me on Wed too!

Also, since I was sick I decided I needed some chicken soup. So, for the first time, I made some from scratch. My noodles were a bit too thin (wide, but thin); but it was my first attempt so I'm sure it can only get better. (Of course I wore a mask - then spent half the day on the couch because I wore myself out.)

I think I hear 'little bits' getting up from his nap. Time for a 'Pottytunity" for the little guy.

My new favorite find..

Just discovered this website on recommendation from a 'Yahoo! Groups' mom: 'Continuum Family: Your Source for Natural Parenting Essentials' (and if that floats your boat, check out the Mormon version at the Progressive Pioneer.)

I also heart kellymom.com -- a recommendation from my Midwife, but certain to cause some quizzical looks from (the comment King) Darth Spencer ... and I do LOVE his comments. Especial the one about being green...

Speaking of web heroes: I want to invite that Progressive Pioneer (PP) over to my house for lunch. I would try to look cool by showing her all the things we have in common... like my awesome collection of canned goods, our love for yoga, home-made organic baby food... and we could swap stories about Infant Hygiene (EC), co-sleeping, baby wearing a 20-plus pound child and the benefits of breastmilk (I would try not to feel to sheepish about pumping full time since Holden refused to latch at 4 months)... and I would hide my Burberry and Coach handbags (as to not look too materialistic)... and turn the "organic" labels in my pantry facing out, and hide anything with HFCS or preservatives in the back of the cupboard...

Maybe she has some crafty all-natural ideas about how to re-purpose two pair of True Religion jeans that don't fit anymore (and by the time they do, most likely are NOT going to be in style).

Crap, what am I going to do with the Holiday candy?

I am not quite the bohemian attachment parent I aspire to be. That said, I think for the time being, I'll just be on stand-by jealousy of the PP and blogstalk her like a normal human being.

9 months and Counting

I have mentioned to a few of you that I've been going a little 'martha' lately. Here is a sample of the spoils from my canning escapades (pickled beets, chili sauce and a variety of apple sauces.)

But this post isn't about me trying to hone into my domestic diva-ness. I've been putting other things into canning jars. I've been keeping track of some of the things Holden does at this point in his life, or some of the milestones he's passed through October. He hits the nine month mark today, so I thought I'd jot a few of them down.



Holden's a big traveler (California, Seattle, St. George and we just returned from Boston)...he always travels 'first class' (ok, this is actually a coach seat-- my seat -- but his legs are so short it's like 1st class to him.) His car seat is next to mine, but we hit some clear air and decided to give the guy a little breathing room. He was much happier out of his seat. I was scrunched on the floor next to the bulkhead. We cashed in SkyMiles for three REAL tickets and I can't tell you how much I love NOT traveling stand-by.

Holden likes Monsters - well, the Green Monster at least. Here he is in the famous seats at Fenway park, and a money shot(?) of our family at the stadium.

Holden likes to drink from a straw... he prefers straws and cups (real cups, not 'sippy' cups mind you) for drinking (water mostly, sometimes milk.) Here he is at an Italian restaurant in Boston's historic North End. We would return to Little Italy the next day where he flirted with a table of 50-something ladies with thick New England accents who wanted to eat him up like matza balls.

Holden loves his Daddy. He lights up when he hears the door open at half-past-five on the weekdays signaling that "Daddy's Home!" Here the two boys are our first night in Boston. We were getting ready to leave the Marriott and take a stroll on the waterfront.
Avocado - Holden shows his ethnic roots (yes, I am one-quarter Hispanic) with his love of guacamole (or organic avocado - same thing when you're a baby, right?) The kid loves it - I put it in applesauce, with pure pumpkin...he's a green fruit lovin' machine!

And as I mentioned, with his avocado he loves pumpkin. But truthfully he just loves pumpkin (period). The Nelson's (of the apple picking fame!) gave us a few cooking gourds from their farm, so I've been serving it naked to Holden (the pumpkin that is, I wear clothes when I feed him, obviously). Here's my favorite 'punkin.'
Big Boy Bed: I've been trying to figure out if I should just lay this out, but you may as well know... Holden's been trying out a "big boy bed" because he doesn't like his crib, and I have weird issues with them (personal choice for our family, but it's not helping the situation)... Plus, we used a cot for nap time for him in Boston and he seemed to do great in it. So we took apart the crib, gave it back to my sister and laid a twin mattress on the floor in his nursery. He can climb in and out of it - we had pretty much baby proofed his room anyway, but it makes nap time super easy and has been a great natural extension and transitional 'tool' for our cosleeping journey ("Don't you judge me Earl.")


Holden likes peace rallies for a greener planet earth... he 'tolerates' his *stroller.

Other things Holden's into:

Late July crackers... they look like Ritz, and taste like Ritz, but they're (drum roll please...) You guess it! Organic! He can feed them to himself which is nice because they are a lot less messy than avocado-applesauce puree.

Cruising - not on State necessarily. But apparently 'cruising' is the official pediatric developmental word for holding onto stuff while standing up and moving from thing to thing...

He's doing great with his 'potty training'. My grandmother-in-law remarked that in her day they called it 'training the mommy' which I think I have mentioned before; but I am fine with him training me. We are getting better at reading his signals and he is getting better about understanding what the toilet is for... he even crawls to his Baby Bjorn sometimes to let us know 'it's time.' We're not ditching his diapers any time soon, but it is awesome to use the same one for multiple cycles... he's so green.

At the Zoo, he dug the zebras, muskrats and some odd looking chipmunk...

Oh, and he LOVES brooms and the vacuum. He is crawling so fast, I used to be able to vacuum around him. It's getting more difficult to dodge his little piggies.

The rest of the Boston pictures can be found on Facebook... you don't have to be a member to check them out. I have loaded the pictures, but will be editing the captions etc over the next little bit.

In other news, I feel like I am FINALLY finding a 'flow' in motherhood and staying at home. I love it, but I am not the best at it... though I feel like I try really hard. Danny is patient with me, and Holden is VERY forgiving.

Love you both!


*This was out last evening in Boston, and we had been wearing him the whole trip in the Ergo Baby. His diaper leaked on the pack so we thought 'a little time in the stroller would be fine'... but of course it was 90% cobblestone and outside of our jogging stroller he really doesn't spend much time in his stroller. Plus Boston is 'the walking city' not the 'stroller city' so we laughed about our weak attempt to use a pram (did I mention Danny ran into a couple of things?). Holden was a good sport though.

On the same token, I've shared our Zoo pictures...we carried him in the pack for most of that experience too. My mother-in-love, like many a mother- is a lover of strollers...so she asked he'd like to sit in it as we were nearing the end of the excursion (I like to bring a stroller to carry purses, coats, the diaper bag --great at airports-- etc.) At that point I thought that his diaper was wet, so I figured I'd just hurry and change in pants in the stroller (it's one of those Graco ones where the seat can lay flat - so it's nice for a quick pants-change.) So we decided to change his pants and then we could try out the stroller (though, I was still a little apprehensive. It's not like we're practicing tribal continuum parenting, but still )... So we go to change his pants, which turned out not to be wet - and as soon as his diaper came off he pee'd -- all over the stroller, partially on me and on the sidewalk of the zoo (I tried to direct his aim away from my clothes but was a little too late.) So we decided he could do with out the stroller ride for a bit...

Check out our Boston Adventures Here!