Saturday, March 31, 2007

Strawberries!!!!!

I couldn't believe what was in our box next week! Strawberries!! And I could even sub in some more in place of more of those weird mangoes! Woo hoo! Bring on the spring!

Haas Avocado
Strawberries
Danjou Pears
Carrots
Cameo Apples
Roma Tomatoes
Russet Potatoes
Spaghetti Squash
Yellow Onions
Bananas
Strawberries
Green Chard
Red Bell Peppers
Red Butter Lettuce

I admit I was pretty disappointed that there was no spinach, in the box or to add on. We've become pretty accustomed to our steamed spinach with a dash of balsamic vinegar. SOOO good. The Farmer's Market starts in ONE WEEK! Next Saturday we have the chavurah, but it's a seder and in the afternoon, so I hope to go to the Farmer's Market in Boulder and just soak in the fresh, local produce! I have to see when the produce from our co-op becomes available too, so I can either "hold" or downgrade our box. This is such a fun time of year.

Meals:
Tofu Lettuce Wraps (Paul requested a repeat of this one!)
Pizza sauce p130 VwaV (freeze some and use some)
Sunny Southwestern Squash Pizza p104 Vive!
Garlicky Kale w/collards instead p120 VwaV
Miso-Curry Roasted Potatoes p68 Vive!

Thursday, March 29, 2007

snow

Yesterday it was 66 and sunny. I slathered on the sunscreen and we hit the zoo. This morning it is snowing buckets and the temp is 30. Gotta love Colorado.

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

my life


This is my life, in case you ever wanted to be a fly on the wall in our house. I love how firm Paul gets and how Mae hippity-hops around the room.

Ted the TriAthlete

Yesterday at swimming, Judy and I were talking about Ted's recent skill of bike riding without training wheels. She mentioned that he might enjoy kid triathlons, since he is such a good swimmer too. I found one on-line and in the home town of one of our China TG families! This sounds like a blast so we will give it a go!! Click HERE to read all about it!

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

soy milk & waffles

Well, we did it. We broke down and bought a Soyabella Soymilk Maker and I made our first batch last night. I flavored it with vanilla (+ sugar & salt, per the recipe that came with it) and we tried it this morning in our coffee and atop oatmeal. Mae had hers straight up and Sam had chocolate Quik in his. The verdict? Paul thought it was fine...the slightly grainy texture was more off-putting than the flavor. I found it way too sweet. Mae wouldn't drink it and Sam was only happy with it in hot chocolate. Not a huge hit, but we'll get there. I'm going to try different variations of adding barley or rice to cut the beany flavor and see if I can strain it some while pouring it out. The average price ends up being about $.10 per quart, vs the $3+ we've been spending at the store. Cleaning the head unit is a bit of a chore, but nothing too terrible.

And in frugal news, Ted and I went to our local thrift store today and found a $5 Waffle Iron. I've been looking into buying a new waffle iron for a while. Ted loves waffles and would eat 2-4 every morning if I let him. That can get expensive. That and the wheat issue (wheat-free waffles are even more expensive) made me want to make them from scratch. I've made them in the past and while it is a bit of a pain to clean up after, the process is easy and quick. Ours had died about 6 months ago and they are expensive!! So I was thrilled to find this model. I tried it out tonight and it made 4 batches (16 small squares) perfectly. Woo hoo!

Sunday, March 25, 2007

No more training wheels!


I'm not sure who is prouder-Ted or his parents!

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Zevvie & Round 2

Ted was the lucky recipient of Zevvie this weekend. This is his 3rd time with the big Z and he was very excited. We were Mall Rats today due to the rain and went to Build A Bear to cash in a gift card. Ted decided that he wanted a REAL Zevvie so the Build A Bear turned into Sam's lucky day. He chose a Husky, as close to Zevvie as he could find, and named him Buddy. While he 'washed' his new dog, Ted also 'washed' Zevvie. So cute. We had $5 left so Ted chose (appropriately enough, I think!) a Cat in the Hat shirt for Zevvie. After lunch, Ted and I went to Grand Rabbids to look for a real Zevvie as well as a gift for one of Sam's swimming pals whose bday party is tomorrow. We lucked out and found the ONLY real Zevvie in the place. Needless to say, he is thrilled. Lots of other kids in his class have gotten a Zevvie of their own too. Initially I thought it was a bit lame, but now I'm already getting nostalgic for the sweetness of preschool and hope it will be a nice reminder for him of his year as a Pre-K Wolf.

Are we gluttons for punishment? There is no school next week for Spring Break so we are trying the boys together again. All toes and fingers crossed, please!

Friday, March 23, 2007

Kugels & Knishes for Pesach! *Update*

Next week's box looks perfect for Pesach!

Broccoli (1.00 - ea.)
Spinach (1.00 - ea.)
Bananas (5.00 - ea.)
Grapefruit (2.00 - ea.)
Kiwi (4.00 - ea.)
Jewel Yams (2.00 - lb)
Collards (1.00 - ea.)
Yukon Potatoes (1.00 - lb)
Atulfo Mango (3.00 - ea.)
Navel Oranges (6.00 - ea.)
Carrots with Tops (1.00 - ea.)
Leeks (1.00 - lb)
Broccoli (1.00 - ea.)
Yellow Onions (1.00 - lb)
Yukon Potatoes (2 lbs-added to order)

Here are the meals:
Garlicky Kale w/ Tahini Dressing (w/ Collards instead) p120 VwaV
Cauliflower-Leek Kugel w/ Almond-Herb Crust (w/ Broccoli instead) p94 VwaV
Knish Madness p76 VwaV (Sweet Potato, Potato & Spinach-Potato)
Curried Tempeh-Mango Salad Sammiches p100 VwaV

I'm psyched to use all recipes from VwaV. And they are very Passover-oriented so we will be eating kosher this year! Yum.
  • Garlicky Kale (with collards instead) was really good. I love sliced garlic and I think it makes it less overwhelming while still tasting the garlic. Yum. The collards worked nicely in its place, although I boiled them for 25 minutes before sauteeing. I skipped the Tahini dressing and just did the garlic. It was great. 4 stars.
  • Curried Tempeh-Mango Salad (sans sammiches) was good but I think these 'special' mangoes are also less sweet than the standard variety. This was yummy but had a little too much 'bite' to them. Still good though. 1 star, unless I have a bunch of 'regular' mangoes to use up. I plan to use the others in a guacamole recipe I saw a while back.
  • Broccoli-Leek Kugel was not so good. Perhaps the cauliflower is really the key. I also used dried herbs instead of fresh. It was WAY to dill-y for me. But, not bad and I always enjoy adding a new Pesach meal to my repertoire. 2 stars.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Wolf Families


The theme this week at preschool is Family. Click on the pic for a larger view. He and Paul have been talking alot about this summer and seeing his cousins Henry & Max and Uncle Rod, so it was cute that they made an appearance. He seems to have some confusion about the cats' names, with Orestes just being named "Mean Cat" and Electra taking on Orestes' name. You can tell they are going by pronounciation (I love Oolie). I asked him why he had drawn everyone that way (he knows how to draw a person) and he said "I was making us the Bionicle family." Aha. There you go. Ted's likeness is clearly taken from the squid Bionicle characters...but who am I? Hmmm.

Crazy Tuesday

Yesterday was a busy day. Paul dropped Sam & Mae off at our friend Lisa's for the morning. I took Ted to OT at 9:15, followed by another acupressure class, a quick lunch at Einstein's (with Tofutti not-cream cheese), then soccer at 2. While he played soccer I met with his nutritionalist who looked over the results from the bloodwork. Turns out he is also 'sensative' to gluten. Not 'allergic' because the numbers were low (3.8) but they should have been not even detectable (other results were >0.1). So, we are going to try to lighten up on the gluten. She is very down-to-earth and said to not go crazy on it, to focus on the dairy right now. But when it's convienent, sub in something different for the carbs. This weekend I plan to make some waffles or pancakes for him. I'll freeze a bunch for the week. I'll even put chocolate chips in-that will make them a sure success! I'm also going to try baking a loaf of spelt bread and see if he'll eat that for his sandwiches.
Last night was our monthly Girls Night Out, with moms I've known for 5 years now. They are such a great group of women. We went to the Dushanbe Teahouse (I'd never been for dinner) and it was excellent. Yummy Indian-esque selections. And they had more vegetarian entrees than anywhere I've ever been. It was actually hard for me to make a choice!! That made for a late night though and I'm beat today.
In typical fashion, I still hadn't fixed two of the dishes planned for last week, so when I realized this week's box was on the doorstep today, I decided to fix BOTH meals now to get them cooked and make room for the new! So, tonight will be the Acorn Squash with Tomato Salad and tomorrow's Eggplant & Potato Curry from VwaV is already prepared and in the slow cooker pot in the fridge, ready to be heated slowly and make my house smell delicious all day tomorrow! I love spurts of energy.

Monday, March 19, 2007

April 7!

The Boulder Farmer's Market opens on Saturday, April 7. I can hardly wait. This means that we'll be able to start collecting our share from our co-op as well as other yummies that are LOCAL and FRESH. Woo hoo....I am ready for Spring. Ted and I chose some different varieties of tomato seeds and are ready to plant them in egg cartons over Spring Break. The last 2 years have been really hard on tomatoes here in Colorado, because it's been so terribly hot and dry. Hopefully all the moisture this winter will make for a wetter Spring and Summer. I remember the summers of '99 and '00 when we had tomatoes coming out of our ears. It was nuts! This year I hope to do some jarring (of some sort-not sure what I really mean) so we can have fresh tomato soup for next winter. Mmm. We also got a packet of strawberry seeds. We planted strawberries in a big planter one year and got a small harvest. Again, hoping it was due to the rain. We all love berries so much that it would be wonderful to have them just outside the door. I am really looking forward to berry season at the markets this summer. I've really missed them this long winter, although thanks to Paul's dad I am in the habit of adding frozen blueberries to my oatmeal in the morning. Not quite the same though... Ted also really wanted broccoli, baby and regular carrots and spinach (?!) so we got a small packet of those too, so we'll see how well our little garden will hold up next winter!

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Mae's new haircut

Pre-nap grumpy face aside, could she BE cuter?!

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Fun at the park

Mae had a blast this morning at the park with some friends from our monthly Chinese playgroup. More pics on moeltini. It was 76 today!

bye bye piggies

Tomorrow Mae is getting her hair cut. I am tired of fighting with her in the mornings, only to have her yank her cute pigtails out a half hour later. But I will miss the cute piggies. Today I did her hair in 4 piggies for our monthly Chinese playgroup at the park.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Feet

This week's FotoFun Challenge over at Double Happiness is Feet. I have lots of cuts pics of Mae's little feet but this one really does it for me. In this pic, we are stamping her footprint onto her adoption certificate (her 'signature,' if you will.) She didn't enjoy this, but the importance of the act wasn't lost on me. She was ours!!! For comparison, I included Sam's tiny minutes-old newborn foot too (we had a lousy camera when Ted was born and any feet pics of his are soooo grainy it's not worth it! Trust me-they look the same!)

wish list

Soymilk Maker
Juicer


Bummer. I have a wish list and my birthday is in January. Maybe an anniversary present, in July? These sound fun.

a full van

I had a full car today! 5 kids. We all went to Jamba Juice and when we got home they went upstairs to play Bionicles. Lucie left at 4 and Jack, Ted & Sam are watching Magic Schoolbus. So far, so good. I really like this age (5). Self-suffient and reasonable (to a point.) Good stuff.

more beets (Week 7) *Update*

This week looks good!

Yellow Onions (1.00 - lb)
Broccoli (1.00 - ea.)
Bunched Beets (1.00 - ea.)
Red Kale (1.00 - ea.)
Spinach (1.00 - ea.)
Haas Avocado (1.00 - ea.)
Bananas (5.00 - ea.)
Fuji Apples (6.00 - ea.)
Grapefruit (2.00 - ea.)
Valencia Oranges (6.00 - ea.)
Carrots (1.00 - lb)
Spinach (1.00 - ea.)
Yukon Gold Potatoes (3.00 - lb)
Kiwi (2.00 - ea.)

Here are the meals:

Beet, Barley & Black Soybean Soup w/ Pumpernickel Croutons p58 VwaV
Potato-Edamame Samosas (filling) p80 VwaV
Miso-Curry Roasted Potatoes p68 Vive! (side)
Garlicky Kale w/ Tahini Dressing p120 VwaV (side)

I need to get to the Indian market this week for 3 things. Asafoetida (hing powder) is root resin used in many of VwaV's Indian dishes. We also need tomato chutney (called for in the Samosas although I didn't miss it last time) as well as the standard mango chutney I love. It's kind of strange to have it so warm out yet still be cooking wintery dishes. But I'm enjoying the seasonal thing...it's fun. This has been such a good decision. We have 2 more months before we switch over to our co-op. That should be fun too.
  • Beet, Barley & Black Soybean Soup was sooooo good! Paul isn't much of a beets fan, so he didn't love it, but I sure did. The pumpernickel croutons were a scrumdeliumptious addition. This was easy and very Russian. Next time I will add some kale or collards to the soup-it could have used something green. 4 stars.
  • Potato-Edamame Samosa Filling was great as usual. I didn't have an onion though and the smell of carrots with mustard seeds doesn't smell very good. Next time I will be sure to have an onion or not fix it. Still tasted fine though. I plan to add some okara to a portion I saved and make burgers from them. Mmm. Only 2 stars without the onion.
  • Miso-Curry Roasted Potatoes were fabulous!! They were really good and I'll make these again for sure. I love easy, toss 'em in the oven recipes. YUM. 5 stars.
  • I ended up being lazy and just steaming the kale and tossing it into the leftover Russian soup. I really was craving greens in the soup and didn't feel up to creating the official side dish. Plus we're having it with collards in the next box anyway.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Sam's OT visit

Well, I like Mapleton better. Sam met with a woman in her early 60's, I'd say, for OT today. She was...distant and rather boring. She'd tell him what to do in a flat voice and then turn away to get something ready. There wasn't any fun in her voice. I will say though, that Sam didn't seem to notice. He had a blast. They did some of the same things Ted does in his OT, but more focus on 'mouth games.' We're going to go back next week for another session, this time with some food, and we'll see how that goes. I'm not impressed. He also ate 2 waffles this morning, so he may be coming out of it on his own anyway.
Oh, and I've had quite a few emails (from my own mother, no less!) informing me that I haven't explained Sam's condition and what is up? Sorry about that. Sam has always been a picky eater, but in the last year he has started having a severe gagging problem. He has to take TEENY TINY bites and has started refusing most foods if he's gagged on them in the past. He lost weight and our pediatrician put him on Pediasure and recommended an evaluation by a feeding therapist, all of which we did, and here we are. Truth be told, he is better now than he's been in months, but he still eats hardly anything. He would be content to drink all his meals, so thank goodness for Pediasure and Jamba Juice! Although, just yesterday he ate an entire corndog. So it is getting better.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Sam's Child Find Eval

Today after school Sam had his evaluation with Child Find. I am hoping that they will deem his food issues serious enough to provide services (so we don't have to pay out of pocket for both boys!) He did a great job (It is really fun to sit back and watch how your child thinks) and was very cooperative (earning him a trip to Jamba Juice!) They decided to do the next step, which is a 2nd, more detailed, evaluation as well as a school visit (to coincide with lunchtime). It sounds like the key to getting services is evidence that the child's problem is interfering with learning. Not sure we'll be able to get this past, but we might as well try, right? In the meantime, he has his first official OT appointment tomorrow. I'm curious to see how it differs from Ted's. Otherwise, a busy but good day.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

thank you


Here is the thank you card Wendy made for Ted. She had him write "thank you" and his name in black marker, scan it, and send it to her. Then she made this adorable card. It is already in cubbies at preschool for his friends, along with a picture of that child at the party, if she got a picture. I think there were 2 that slipped by without one. Isn't that cute?! And since I am so bad at thank you's, the cuteness factor helped me get to them right away. Thank you, Wendy!!

Today was a hard day. Ted's OT was rescheduled for tomorrow morning at 8:15, so I thought we'd have a leisurely morning, but no. It took everything in my power to drag myself out of bed at 9am today! What the heck?! I have been having terrible headaches and dosed myself up on iron and Excedrin. Ted was the model today for the acupressure college's class on asthma. He was so good and cooperative. Sam was a royal pain. So I told him we couldn't go to Jamba Juice because he didn't behave and he flipped out for about an hour after that. I dropped Ted off at Jack's to play before soccer and took the screamers home for nap. They both ate an entire Morningstar Corndog and a pound of so of grapes, plus 8+ ounces of soymilk, so I'm guessing part of their behavior was hunger-induced. Oops.

I got a wonderful long walk in tonight with Ole. I think I've been a little down lately because I miss my 'me time' that I (oh so quickly!) became used to last year when Sam started preschool. I had 3 mornings a week, from 9-1, to myself. I ran with Ole, ran errands alone, and generally had time for ME. I miss it. Although I would never change a thing, I am looking forward to next January when Mae will start preschool and I can have that time back. I realized on the walk that now I can have time to myself in the evenings again, now that it is staying light longer. I used to run at night when Paul got home and I can again. I was really excited about that, and with the understanding that it's all good from here: it's almost Spring, then Summer, then Fall, all seasons where I can get out at night. And when it gets dark again, in the Winter, it will be time for Mae to start school, so I can have some daytime. This was very uplifting. Ahhh...

Monday, March 12, 2007

ah, summer

I have about 2-3 memories of my childhood summers. One was the 2 weeks spent at my grandmother's. I loved these two weeks, even though I had to take a bath every single night! Oh the horror. Two doors down from my grandmother lived a girl my age and we spent almost every second together. Back then, two little girls could play all day long outside in the neighborhood. Bliss. Another memory is the pool. The Elks pool (bless my poor dad's heart for joining the Elk's Club just so I could swim!) I loved the pool, although I was (am!) a terrible swimmer. I went almost every day when I was little (with the huge family and their extended relations that babysat for me) and often after that when my mom stayed home with me. The only other memory I really have cemented is watching E.R. on TV while my mom tutored. Lazy days. And relaxing, if a bit dull. Last summer, I felt like Ted's summer activities were a little too scattered. I wanted him to have lots of fun, change it up a bit, etc. but I think all the change freaked him out. This summer he will do Sessions 1 & 4 at the JCC, 3 sessions at Sunflower Farm, and one week through CU Science Discovery. This last one sounds so cool.

Wild in the Woods!
Come join us at Chautauqua Park as we run through the forest, soak our feet in the stream, and play among the trees. Through a variety of games and art activities we’ll learn about the birds, wildflowers, insects, mammals, grasses and trees around the spectacular Flatiron Mountains.

Please note: Students need sturdy walking shoes, wading shoes, hat, daypack, waterproof windbreaker, a filled water bottle, a non-peanut snack each day, as well as sunscreen and repellent pre-applied.

The first two weeks of July he'll be in Iowa with his dad and Sam, hopefully meeting up with 'his favorite cousins' Max & Henry. Should be a fun summer. I hope to visit my folks and some friends in Chicago for a week this summer. We are trying to decide if I should go at the same time they are gone or a different time so that we don't need animal care.

It was 74 today-absolute heaven! Poor Erin (Henry's mom) got rear-ended, so the kids and I relieved her babysitter and stayed with Henry til she got home. Poor kiddo-he was not happy to be woken up from his nap. He got over it, thanks to a snack of cereal, pear and apple. What a cutie. My three were perfectly happy there, as usual, so it was a great afternoon.

Mae has been keeping dry as long as she is in a cloth diaper, so tonight (after the bazillionth time she took her diaper off) I put her in undies and let her loose. She sat on the potty about 20 times (producing nothing but having a blast) and everything was great til Paul stepped in a suspicious puddle on the floor. Oh well! I'm ready for summer for that too. Enough diapers already! Although I have to say that the cloth has served us well. I bought about $100-$150 worth of diapers in 2002 and I'm still using them now. Sure, I use disposables too (more so than I did with the boys) but nothing compared to what it would have been full-time. Now that Mae is getting close, I will do what I did with Sam and have her in cloth as much as possible. That seemed to help him out. I wonder what she will think when all 3 of the boys are gone for so long?!

Sunday, March 11, 2007

spring is in the air

Today was glorious. Low 60's, sunny and no wind. We spent the morning at the park and the afternoon outside with the neighborhood. All the kids ran around like maniacs and the adults caught up with each other after what seems like months of freezing cold. We're supposed to have 3 weeks or so of this great weather before another cold front (perhaps the last?) moves in. Heaven!! I wish I had had my camera this morning. We were on our way home from the park and since it is all uphill, Ted didn't want to ride his bike. So Paul sat on his bike with his hands on the double stroller, steering it, with Ted on his shoulders, while I pushed him up the hill. It was hysterical. I didn't even have my phone for a pic. Oh well. What a great day. I even managed to kick my killer headache, by around 4pm. Better late than never! Sam is back to normal and peed on his own today without crying. Hooray!

Saturday, March 10, 2007

going with the flow this week *Update*

This week at Door to Door, I decided to stick with the box as much as possible. Armed with my 3 favorite cookbooks and my computer, I found recipes to match what was in the box. I only subbed out lettuce (for another acorn squash), green onions (for yellow) and Red Delicious Apples (for Fuji-Ted's favorite).

Here's what's in the box next week:

Item: Quantity:
Acorn Squash 1.00 ea.
Broccoli 1.00 ea.
Green Chard 1.00 ea.
Acorn Squash 1.00 ea.
Celery 1.00 ea.
Cucumbers 1.00 lb
Eggplant 1.00 ea.
Yellow Onions 1.00 lb
Tomatoes 3.00 ea.
Bananas 5.00 ea.
Bartlett Pears 6.00 ea.
Kiwi 3.00 ea.
Fuji Apples 4.00 ea.
Valencia Oranges 6.00 ea.

Yum. Here are our menus:

Laura's Acorn Squash with Apple-Tempeh Stuffing
Eggplant & Potato Curry p79 Veg Slow Cooker
Red Beans & Greens p128 Veg Slow Cooker
Cucumber Salad
Tomato Salad with Balsamic Vinegar

You can tell spring is in the air because I actually am craving salad! I'm very excited to try the acorn squash dish. It sounds yummy and a possible contender for the Quorn Loaf's place of honor at Thanksgiving. I was sad that VwaV didn't have ANY squash, eggplant or cucumber ideas that sounded at all appealing. I'm bummed. But I will make her Tempeh crumbles for the acorn squash, so that will be interesting.

Last week was tough; Wednesday's box appeared on the roughest day of the week, the day after Ted's party, and everything was in chaos, both emotionally and physically (the house was a wreck). I didn't have the energy to cook and I was really worried about the produce. But happily, by Thursday I was craving a healthy meal and was able to steam up some spinach with balsamic vinegar and raisins and quickly throw together the sweet potato curry and save myself from a possible downward spiral into produce disaster. Phew! I guess it's like laundry: you can't fall off the wagon forever. Just start another load (or meal) tomorrow.

This week I am also working on two "uncheese" recipes for Grilled Cheese sandwiches for Ted. He is a big grilled cheese lover. It's funny; I had bought The UnCheese Cookbook (twice, actually!) months ago after getting into Vegan Lunch Box. I think it's going to come in so handy with the dairy issue! I'll let you know how they taste. Both use roasted red peppers and cashews, so those must be 'cheesey' in some way.
  • Red Beans & Greens was surprisingly good! I think the addition of liquid smoke really gave it the smoky flavor it needed. This was really yummy. It didn't smell very good when it started cooking this morning, and it had 2 onions and lots of celery (both yucks for me) so I didn't expect to like it. 4 stars.
  • Acorn Squash w/ Apple-Tempeh Stuffing was FABULOUS. I had the time so I let it bake the full 2 hours and the squash was sooo tender. This rocks and will DEFINATELY take the place of our fake turkey. YUM. The sausage crumbles from VwaV were a nice addition too-I think it might have been rather bland without them and the tart apples. 5 stars.
  • Cucumber Salad was ok. I grew up enjoying cucmber sandwiches: mini pumpernickel bread slices with a dab of mayo topped with sliced cucumbers and a sprinke of celery salt. This was trying to be like that, but it was too mayo-y (or perhaps the vegan mayo is too strong) and I should have just stuck with sliced cucmbers with celery salt. No stars. Won't do it again.
  • Eggplant & Potato Curry was ok, but not amazing. After the wonderful curry form VwaV this one was kind of bland. But it was great because it was a slow cooker one, so I prepared everything the night before and just put it on Low in the morning. So, 3 stars. I'll do it again if I need a hearty meal after a busy day and I have a ton of potatoes to use!
  • Tomato Salad-blah, way way WAY too much balsamic. Perhaps because it marinated overnight rather than just 2 hours. Next time I'll make sure to eat them the same night I prepare them. Bummer. 1 star but probably my fault.

more registration!!

Just when I thought I had finished writing out our address and doctor's phone numbers for the zillionth time for Kindergarten registration, we received our Religious School forms from Har HaShem. Oh, my aching hand! More forms (8 pages) and lots of gentle urging to volunteer. I signed up to volunteer for the Pre-K program during High Holy Days. That will be a nice break from services plus I can put Sam in that level and then he won't freak out that he's not with Ted. So, starting in September, Ted will not only begin going to school 5 days a week, he will also start Sunday school. M-F 8am start, Sun 8:30 start. Yawn. I think Saturdays are going to be a REAL Shabbat for us...as in, we won't do a THING but rest! Geesh. I am definately planning to ONLY do swimming with Ted...I think he would get too overwhelmed with much more on his plate. There is no homework in K-1 at Horizons, other than reading time, so at least he won't have that for a few more years. Geesh, it sure gets serious quick around here! I hope he likes it. The other moms and I have already discussed playing up how great it will be to see all their 'preschool friends' at Sunday school and planning play dates for afterwards and such. Hopefully it will be a fun activity and not a drag. Kindergarten Sunday school involves Caroline in some way (Ted's current Pre-K teacher) so it can't be too serious!

Chinese and Jewish

Click here to read this great article. Thanks to everyone who sent it to me. It means a lot!

Thursday, March 8, 2007

sweet dreams

At Ted's appt today, our doc prescribed Codeine for Sam, to help him sleep (and thus, not be in pain). None of the pharmacies carried it in liquid (i.e. kiddo) form, and we weren't able to get in touch with her to ask for something different. Tonight's on-call doc was kind enough to call in Tylenol with Codeine for him and he has been asleep for over 2 hours now. You can't understand how wonderful this is. He is sleeping!!! And I will join him. Whew.

Mikey likes it!

We tried Tofutti brand cream cheese out on Ted today and he liked it! He LOVES bagels, so I'm psyched. He's not into soy milk yet, but we're working on it. We had our first "you can't eat the pizza because it has cheese on it" today. He weathered it well, dipping plain pizza crust into marinara cheerfully.

day (& night) from HELL

I know I've used this title before....anyway, yesterday was a nightmare for Sam. The good news is that his kidneys, bladder and urethra are all doing their jobs and so his UTI was a fluke. Their suggestion was to encourage him to pee more; since he has a bladder of steel he doesn't pee as often as is recommended, so that may have contributed to it. It was such a long, hard day. We left at 8am and got checked in and settled at 9. They did his U/S right away which he thought was fascinating. Then a small wait and the VCUG. MURDER. He flipped out. They used the 'newborn size' catheter and they still had to hold him down. It took about 5 minutes to do the procedure-Xraying the area, injecting fluid into the bladder til it was full, then he had to pee and they took some more Xrays after to see that the fluid wasn't 'refluxing' back into the kidneys. It wasn't, so all was well there, but OH the drama. He didn't stop crying from that moment on. I had to carry him around. We met with the specialist, well, his assistant, which was actually a good thing because it meant the specialist didn't even need to see us. He passed out in the car and woke up when we got to the toy store. I can't believe he chose this drumset. Too funny. It was $25 so I caved, but I really expected him to choose an umbrella or pirate sword. He loves it (so do the others!) Then we got home and the REAL drama began. He hadn't peed since after the procedure around 10am. Around 8pm I started to really worry, not to mention frustrated as I had reached my limit of empathy with him. Just PEE already! I called our practice's on-call doc, who prescribed the same meds he had been on with the UTI, plus he wanted me to call Children's to see if they had any other suggestions. Paul had soccer so he was MIA; luckily we have great neighbors and Michele came up to stay with Ted and Mae while I drove to pick up Sam's meds. Once he had the drugs in him he was still pretty much hysterical, rolling around and crying. I figured taking him back to the ER would be more traumatizing, so I got him in the tub for a while, but he still wouldn't pee. Paul got home around 11 and we traded off holding him til he finally fell asleep on me around 3am. He slept til 9 this morning and while he's still scared to pee, he's not hysterical. He peed in (Mae's) diaper at naptime and seems ok for now. I expect he'll pee again at bedtime. Again, not good since we want him peeing more frequently but for now I just want him to not be afraid of it. He hasn't pooped since Tuesday night either. My head is KILLING me (my standard reaction to stress and lack of sleep.)

In good news, Ted had his 5 year well check today. He weighed in at 41# (50%) and 43 3/4 inches tall (65%). He was a real trooper with the shots (4) and did cry, but didn't struggle or scream or hide (which he did at the flu shot). We took the money G'pa Moeller sent for his bday and he choose 2 really cool Playmobile sets, Bank Robbers and, appropriately enough, a Police Officer. He must be Bionicled out!

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

phew

We survived! The party was so much fun. Thank goodness for K, our sitter. After Paul arrived we were evenly matched. Ted was a maniac and had a blast; he got really tired after about an hour. More pics on moeltini, courtesy of Wendy! We love you, Wendy!

0 Waste!

I'm not sure why Paul wanted me to roll my eyes (ala Gromit) but there you go. These two BioBags hold the ONLY (compostable) "garbage" from our bash today. The eco-products were a big hit with the other moms, so hopefully they will look into them too. Paul will drop these bags off at the EcoCycle bin behind V.G. Burgers tomorrow (thank you, VG's!). I was packing up when the cleaning lady came in and she about passed out when she turned the (backwards) trash cans around and found them empty. "Don't you have any garbage?" she asked. "No, thanks," I chirped brightly. LOVE it.

Breakfast Ice Cream


Dairy - shmairy! Ted's birthday breakfast:

1 Banana
1 C. Frozen Blueberries
1 C. Frozen Strawberries
1 Tsp. Vanilla

Thanks to Gaia for the recipe.

Monday, March 5, 2007

Life is good

Happy Birthday, sweet boy.

Cow's Milk

Milk. Ted is allergic to cow's milk. Not sensative, not intolerant...allergic! What the...(as Alex would say.) Our pediatrician was amazed, since he hasn't had any *ahem* signs of a dairy allergy. This is an obvious direct link to his asthma, since dairy creates more mucus anyway. If it is possible to take him off his daily Pulmicort, I am all for it. We were leaning that way anyway. Trust a woo-hoo Boulder nutritionalist to suggest this test. I love Boulder. Bring on the soy! (Happily, he is not even mildly sensative to gluten or soy-whew! Those would have been tough.)

I thought the following was interesting. I've put the symptoms that Ted has in bold.

What are the symptoms of a dairy allergy?
The symptoms of a dairy allergy can manifest themselves in the skin, the digestive system or the respiratory system. Skin reactions may include an itchy red rash, hives, eczema, allergic "shiners" (black eyes), and swelling of lips, mouth, tongue, face or throat. Digestive system reactions might include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, gas, bloating or abdominal cramps. Respiratory system reactions include a runny nose, sneezing, watery or itchy eyes, nasal congestion, wheezing, shortness of breath or coughing, and even anaphylactic shock. Some children may show reddish ear lobes or a glazed look in their eyes. Additional symptoms attributed to a milk allergy include bed-wetting, lethargy and inattentiveness.

FIVE

Ted is FIVE today. I remember the labor, the freaking out, the surreal trip on the gurnee to the ER...all in amazing detail. I guess, in the scheme of the things, 5 years isn't that long ago. Sometimes it feels like AGES (seriously, will I EVER get to pee alone again?!) and then there are the times, like today, that it feels like it has flown by. I know that 5 is still a little boy. Heck, a kindergartner is pretty little. But it's also so old. The understanding and depth that this little guy can comprehend amazes me. What a cool kid. What a great 5 years. Who would have thought he'd have a brother and a sister too? It's interesting to me how each child has their own 'place' in the family. It's entirely possible to consider each one in his own light (I think I thought I'd have to constantly compare, and while I do for some things like height and weight, in general, Ted is Ted and Sam is Sam. Mae, of course, is her own person in all respects. And if she wants to wear green socks and clogs in the snow, you'd better let her if you want to get out of the house at all. Seriously. But back to Ted...today he will celebrate his bday at preschool and then at home with us. He will get Bionicles, of course. And Tuesday is his party at the pool. He's requested bagels instead of pizza-love it. It's so fun to see his excitement over his birthday. And it's so fun to remember what went on 5 years ago. What a day it was.

Sunday, March 4, 2007

Happy Purim!

Chag sameach! Our temple has an adult Megillah reading and Purim spiel for adults that I went to last night. It was lame but funny, with a Star Trek theme that I appreciated. I love Spock. Anyway, today was the carnival at the JCC, run by a different temple but heavily staffed with preschool parent volunteers. I was in charge of setting up and tearing down the cakewalk. As usual, it was complete mayham. Ted did the cakewalk about 20 times before the person reading the winner had pity on him and gave him a consolation prize. Thanks to Wendy for spearheading it! I told her I would have gladly paid $5 for the cupcake he was eyeing, just to play a different game! It was fun but very crowded this year so we escaped and went to Wahoo's for lunch. Paul met us with Sam and Mae (who would have FREAKED out with such a crowd). Then Ted went to Alex's while I cleared up at the J. I'm glad Purim is over-it's a bit too chaotic for me! This pic is from our first Purim carnival at the J two years ago (Ted with Maggie, both age 3. Aww.) Chag sameach!

Gizmo flushes


This is hysterical. Not our cat, BTW, but a video that is circulating around. Too funny.

Door to Door *Update*

Next Wednesday's box:

Broccoli (1.00 - ea.)
Red Chard (1.00 - ea.)
Green Leaf Lettuce (1.00 - ea.)
Spinach (1.00 - ea.)
Spinach (1.00 – ea.)
Bananas (4.00 - ea.)
Grapefruit(smaller) (3.00 - ea.)
Carrots (1.00 – ea.)
Navel Oranges (6.00 - ea.)
Fuji Apples (6.00 - ea.)
Carrots (1.00 - ea.)
Green Bell Peppers (1.00 - lb)
Roma Tomatoes (1.00 - lb)
Russet Potatoes (3.00 - lb)

I subbed in carrots and spinach for zucchini, avacado & celery.

Massur Dal & Carrot Soup (VLB)
Ribollita (p52 Veg Slow Cooker)
Chickpea & Spinach Curry (p170 VwaV)
Samosa Filling (p80 VwaV)
Potato Stuffed Green Peppers
Sauteed Spinach

Two of these meals are repeats, plus we are in love with sauteed spinach. Not a particularly 'new and different' meal week, but a delicious one! Oh, and Samosa Filling is basically Aloo Gobi without the Gobi, so it's YUM and delicious on its own with chutney. Mmm.
  • Samosa filling-excellent, easy and delicious. 5 stars. great with mango chutney.
  • Sauteed spinach-always a 4 star side dish. Yum.
  • Chickpea & Spinach Curry-good, but I like it better with lentils. Still good though. 4 stars with the chickpeas.
  • Potato Stuffed Green Peppers-surprisingly good. Paul really liked them. The stuffing was like a fancy mashed potato mixture and the peppers were quite crunchy even after baking. The tomato sauce was a great touch and I added my nutritional yeast/sesame seed blend (aka fake Parmesan) and it was yummy! 3 stars.
  • Massur Dal & Carrot Soup-always delicious. This time I pureed it with my hand blender, which took a while but it was easier than doing it in batches in the blender. I love this soup so much. 5 stars.
  • I got too lazy to do the Ribollita so I just sauteed the chard with this recipe. It was ok. I think I don't love garlicky greens. I do love greens sauteed in balsamic vinegar, so I think I'll just stick with that. 1 star.

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Doolan

I love that the one member of our chavurah who is actually on staff at our temple has sons named Brendan and Doolan O'Brien. Love it. Anyway, Ted and Brendan are buds and now Doolie and Mae are beginning to pal around. They have been fond of each other for a few months now, but yesterday Doolie let us know just how much he liked Mae, by wrestling her to the ground. Ah, love. Chag sameach!

Thursday, March 1, 2007

...and blood draw!

I forgot to mention that Ted had 4 vials of blood drawn today to test for food sensativities. He was a ROCK STAR! Tara had told me about a prescription cream to apply an hour before, to numb the skin. I asked our pharmicist about an OTC version and she provided one. A quick call to Stacy S. about how to apply it and we were all set. He was really scared and weepy going in, but as soon as the needle (called a butterfly) went in, he sat up, said, "It doesn't hurt at all!" and proceeded to ask a million questions about red blood cells and platelets (thank you, Magic School Bus!) He zoned out after the 3rd vial and almost fell asleep. We went to Pump It Up! for a reward but he was pretty tired and actually napped today. After nap he seemed his normal self. We get the results in a week, at his 5-year Well Check. Too bad the cream won't work for Kindergarten shots.

wimpy mama

Tonight was an unusual night, bedtime routine-wise. We got home from Ted's swim class at 5:30 and began a game of hide and seek. Mae melted down soon thereafter and I put her in the bath, leading to H&S upstairs. Suddenly it was 7 and time for bed. Both boys melted into puddles, sobbing that they were hungry. Paul and I were divided; he felt that they were stalling on purpose and I felt badly that I hadn't taken the time to give them a proper dinner (although the boys had a decent meal around 4:30 in the car.) So when I went in to try and calm Ted down, he begged me for an apple. How can I say no to an apple? A chocolate chip cookie would be easy, but an apple? I gave in. Paul shook his head at me in dismay but I resolve to always prepare a meal for them BEFORE going upstairs to play from now on. Live and learn, right? (I also brought Sam a piece of bread, which he happily wolfed down. I am such a wimp.)

Pictures from a year ago



These pictures were taken on March 1, 2006. Amazing how much they grow in one year.