Nighttime Escapades

Well, it looks like the bed-time war has begun again, although unintentionally.  I planned to work on it again, just haven't done so.  Last night though was bad.  But not in the way you would expect.

The Babe went to sleep next to me.  She prefers to sleep on top of the bedspread.  I awoke around one o'clock due to my insomnia, but figured I'd be asleep soon.  Around 2 a.m., the Babe sat up in bed.  I pulled her toward me to get her to lay back down when I patted wetness- a lot of wetness.  She had completely soaked through her diaper, which in itself must have held a few gallons.  So off to her bedroom for a change, and decided she needed to spend the rest of the night there.  Didn't want to have her sleep on the wetness she left behind.  In theory, sounded good.  The Babe though wasn't really thrilled at the prospect of sleeping in her own bed.  Something about her room or bed she must not like during the night. 

Anyhow, I laid awkwardly on the floor next to her, trying to get her to sleep.  We gave her more juice (yes, counter-intuitive after she leaked, but the amount wouldn't cause it again at that time of night).  She just couldn't or wouldn't go to sleep.  Finally, around 3:30 a.m., I asked if she would sleep in my room if we moved her bed.  A quick yes, and promises to sleep, led us to transfer her mattress.  Did she then go to the land of nod?  No.  She kept saying she needed to snuggle and couldn't sleep.  After another 45 minutes of this I determined it was not happening.  So back to her bedroom with her mattress and instruction to sleep.  The gate went up, and I left her.  Within minutes, she called out that she had peed and needed another diaper.  Mmm-hmm.  Nice little tactic.  Let her win that one briefly, and then that was it.  I guaranteed I wasn't returning, and I didn't.  What was her next move?  She started to call out, "Daddy, you're a genius!", over and over.  I tried not to laugh too loudly from my bedroom.  As tired as I was, I could still appreciate the humor of her behavior.  However, neither my husband nor I responded and eventually she fell asleep.

So now there is no going back.  Tonight she will be in her own bed.  For now, I have a comforter to wash.

Patience

I've never been a particularly patient person.  I don't like to wait, and when I was younger perfected the rapid knee bounce just for that reason.  As I've gotten older, I've gotten better about it.  Today in particular I am proud of my restraint. 

The Babe and I went to the kiddie pool with friends, and then played on an indoor gym set.  After a while, the other mother and I agreed it was time to go.  The Babe didn't agree.  This time she didn't have much choice.  Imagine a large indoor pool (lap lanes, water slide, kiddie pool, etc.) with many well behaved children and retirees, and my child the screeching banshee.  Somehow she has recently perfected a high pitched cry/scream.  It is deafening if too close to your ear- believe me, I know!  Anyhow, I carried her out, got our stuff from the locker room, and then made our way to the lobby to sit down.  After snuggling with a juice box she calmed down.  I just needed to let her cry/scream it out for a bit, and be prepared with drinks.  No, not drinks for me (although sometimes surprised I haven't become a raging alcoholic).  I always have a sippee cup or juice box with me for these occasions, but more because I assume she's thirsty.  They soothe her too, which worked today.  Eventually we got out, and home.  Forget any errands, those can wait, as apparently I can, too.

An Ode to Shout

I have a need to shout out my love for Shout.  O.k., now again, truly sounding like a 1950's housewife here, but I love the product.  I must disclose I am not receiving anything for this statement, although in full disclosure, my husband does work for the company that manufactures it.  However, they do not know of this love, nor did I know they made the product when this romance began. 

At the moment I am doing a load of the Babe's laundry.  The need to "Shout it Out" isn't as great as it once was, when every single item of her clothes had to be sprayed due to food residue or leaking diapers.  For a long time, she had loose blow-out diapers, courtesy of the food allergies (didn't know it at the time).  That got under control, but can't avoid colorful foods.  Especially when the Babe has avocado on almost a daily basis.  I still use Dreft to launder her clothes, but that alone does not work on stains.  While I don't use fabric softeners for concern of aggravating her eczema or creating a new allergy, I have used Shout since she was an infant.  But for it, I would have had to buy her a new wardrobe every few weeks.  So I am one trigger-happy Momma!

Spuds A-Plenty

The Babe started something new, asking to "grow me up".  She stands against a wall, hands me a toy block, and apparently, wants me to pretend to mark the wall to show how tall she is.  I'm guessing this must have been something on t.v., but perhaps soon we'll start marking the wall for her. 

In other Babe related news, mealtime frustrations abound.  She hasn't eaten any beef I've made lately, other than ground beef.  Last night was brisket, today was beef shish kebob.  Who knows what tomorrow food rejections will be.  However, she may just turn into a potato.  She has had potato chips, french fries, and mashed potatoes today.  I believe in variety (and different forms of potatoes don't count), but somehow she hasn't gotten that message.  The preferred meal is a protein, starch, and vegetable.  Right now, she seems to either eat only a protein or a starch, but that is about it.

Well, enough whining on my part.  I at least enjoyed tonight's dinner.  Here's my very simple beef shish kebob (another use for stew meat).

Beef Shish Kebob
1 -1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat
1/4 Cup lemon juice
1/4 Cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 small garlic cloves minced
1 tsp dried oregano

1. Mix all ingredients but the stew meat to make a dressing.  Put meat in a ziplock bag, pour marinade over the meat.  Place bag in refrigerator for 3-12 hours.
2. When ready to cook, prepare 4 metal skewers.  Divide meat between skewers.  You can add vegetables to skewers if you want (e.g. cut up onion, mushrooms, red peppers).
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Put prepared skewers on baking sheet or over a pan (to catch meat drippings).  Cook 45 minutes, or until cooked through.

One More Minute

"Just one more minute!"  This is said with her finger held up, and a gleam in her eye, as my little one tries to finagle more time.  She'll also demand "twenty more minutes".  As I said yesterday, this must all be part of Toddler Time.  She has no idea what time is, except in context of her favorite shows.  Somehow, she often knows what will be on next (clearly, a sign of too much tv watching).  Today I needed to do something at the bank.  The representative was very nice to give her some paper to go with the crayon the Babe lifted from a table in the lobby.  When I finished, the Babe informed me that she needed one more minute.  Kindly, the banker gave the Babe some more paper and a pencil to take with so the Babe could continue her "work".

From the bank, we then went to the post office, and lastly the Bookmobile.  Yes, the joys of being a stay-at-home Mom.  I feel very accomplished today for running one hours worth of errands because it meant three times getting the Babe in and out of her carseat. 

As previously mentioned, I will not take the Babe to the library any time soon.  However, the Bookmobile is safe on occasion because there is limited place for her to maneuver (although plenty to get into).  So today, she decided she wanted to read.  She sat on a padded step that is meant to reach higher shelves, grabbed a paperback, and proceeded to entertain the very nice librarian.  She started to read to him, "once upon a time, there was a little ghost".  Don't know where the ghost came from.  Usually, if she tells a story, its "once upon a time there was a little mommy".   Then, she opted to remove the books and make a nice stack in front of the librarian.   While I was done within minutes, the Babe wasn't.  One more minute somehow morphed into fifteen.  Luckily, no one else was on the Bookmobile, so they seemed to not mind the entertainment. The Bookmobile had to leave very soon thereafter, and the Babe finally (I really don't know how) agreed to leave. 

While I can't always indulge her in "one more minute", we did take the time to appreciate the tulips blooming outside the post office, and at each of our stops there were no tears because I gave her time to leave at her own pace.  So far, today has been a good day!

Toddler Time

Toddler Time is apparently any time.  Today my daughter asked for lunch at what most would consider dinner time.  That is because she has a set menu (at least in her mind) of what lunch is- sliced turkey, avocado, and potato chips.  Ok, also hummus, but she's not getting that until Passover is over.  She already had these foods once today, and would have been happy to have them again.  I gave her some other foods to temporarily appease her, and then dinner.  And this lunch also works for her for breakfast. 

So while food is a universal language, apparently its universal as to time, too.  Our stomaches do not know time, only hunger.  It is with maturity or our own societal norms that we may train ourselves to conceptualize what is breakfast, lunch or dinner.  For example, I don't think hamburger or steak is breakfast food, but I know this works for others.  A lot of people enjoy pancakes for dinner, while others would disagree.  So, in my toddler's world, if she wants food, time does not matter (well, she's not getting it at 2 a.m.).  I'm generally just happy that she's eating.  Cereal for dinner and potato chips for breakfast... ok, not on a regular basis, but I'm not going to necessarily say no, either.

Gobble, Gobble, Gone

Last night we once again had turkey.  That was it though.  We are now Turkey-ed out, after three nights in a row.  I thought I'd be nice to my husband, and attempt a home-made barbecue sauce.  First off, I don't like barbecue sauce.  This was just for him.  So I combined apple cider vinegar, Kosher for Passover Ketchup, brown sugar, and some garlic powder.  I didn't measure, just guessed.  I cooked it down, put it in a mug, and served it to him with his dinner.  What was funny was when he walked in the door he commented on how the house smelled like vinegar.  He didn't seem particularly enthused about my creation.  That is, until he started eating it.  When he finished it off (I didn't make a huge amount since it was an experiment), he asked if there was more.  Sorry, nope!  He said it was addictive.  Looks like I'll be making that again.

One Thing After Another

Yesterday I hosted the second Seder.  There were several mishaps along the way, but the meal turned out.  During the course of the Seder, the story of the Israelites exodus from Egypt is retold, including the ten plagues.  Last night, we experienced a few.  Heavy hail poured from the sky just as we were about to start the Seder, and our lights flickered (=darkness) for a moment.  There was a little bit of blood, and as my sister said in jest, wild beasts (= kids running around).  Thankfully, it stopped there.  Here are some other things that happened during the course of the day.

The main course was a 16.88 lb. turkey.  I've made turkey before, although not my favorite thing to make.  However, I think it was the first time without any one here to assist.  It was a beast to get into the pan.  I planned to use a bag to cook it in since that keeps it moist.  After tough maneuvering, I finally got it into the bag, only to have the bag break.  So out came another bag, and I finally got it in.  Next was getting the beast into the oven.  I realized I needed to take an upper rack out, and thought I might be able to raise a rack.  When I tested that, the bag touched the upper heating element on my oven, melting plastic to a little bit of the turkey.  That meant removing the bag, cutting away some of the turkey, and just tenting the turkey with foil rather than a bag.  Oh, and scraping away some melted plastic from the element and smelling burnt plastic for about an hour.  Yum!

Before starting on the turkey, I made potato kugel, since I knew the cooking temperature for the turkey wouldn't be hot enough to do both at the same time.  Of course, the kugel stuck to the pan.  Sadly, a little was lost along the way.  Rather, 2/3 of what I made stuck, but somehow everyone had kugel.  On top of the cooking issues, we sprung a leak under our kitchen sink.  We are still under warranty for our home, so called the builder.  Now just waiting for a plumber.

The most entertaining mini-disaster last night was getting a bottle of wine open.  My husband is an expert bottle opener, but he wasn't home from work just yet.  So I asked one of my guests to open the bottle.  This is where the blood comes in- she cut herself on the opener, but not too badly.  Just a few drops.  However, that wasn't the problem.  She got the curly-cue of the screw into the cork, when the corkscrew broke.  No- not the cork.  The metal screw sheared off leaving about a centimeter of metal sticking up.  We spent the next 20 minutes trying to pry it out with pliers, and then eventually got it with another corkscrew.  Four adults around the island taking turns was amusing.

The rest of the evening wasn't particularly eventful.  I did spill a boiling hot bowl of soup right behind my nephew, but thankfully neither of us got burned.  In the end, we all ate, dinner actually turned out well, and we got to enjoy each other's company.  And no major injuries, illness or damage occurred.  Now I can enjoy not having to do anything... well, other than entertaining the Babe and finish cleaning up my kitchen.

A Passover Specialty?

Ludefisk Turkey anyone?  Ok, that sounds absolutely disgusting.  It also does not exist.  However, the idea popped up in a conversation this morning with my mother.  Clearly my coffee hasn't kicked in (and she doesn't drink any), so we must have been getting a little goofy. 

This bizarre idea started out by me telling my mother that the turkey I plan to make for tonight's Seder had not defrosted.  I thought three + days in the refrigerator would have been sufficient, but was clearly wrong.  When we checked it late last night, it was still solid as a rock.  So here's the first unusual thing I did.  I went on Butterball's website.  Butterball does not sell kosher turkeys, nor do you combine butter (dairy) with meat or poultry in Kosher cooking.  However, I am aware they have a hotline, and thought there might be a tip on faster defrosting on their website.  Sure enough, they even have a calculator.  So based on my 16.88 lb turkey, I needed over 4 days to defrost it.  Well, I don't have four days now.  The other option was to defrost it in cold water.  Again, based on their calculation, that would require eight hours.  So I got up at 6 a.m. to start the process.

Now back to the idea of Ludefisk.  My mother reminded me that I needed to rinse the turkey off before I cook it (something I had planned).  I told her of course I was going to wash it, to which she hesitantly told me not to use soap.  I sarcastically responded that I was going to use soap and water, and then relieved her worry and said I was joking.  Then after a moment I proceeded to tell her I planned instead to use bleach, wouldn't that work?!  You could hear her horror across the phone.  And that is where I came up with Ludefisk Turkey.  Ludefisk is a Scandinavian dish made specially for Christmas.  It is cod soaked in lye.  It is toxic if not prepared properly, and supposedly is an "acquired" taste (aka absolutely disgusting to 99.9% of the population).  So bleach or lye with turkey- DO NOT TRY!  One, it would probably kill you.  And two, if it didn't, it would be beyond disgusting.

"Meeting New People"

I mentioned Friday that the Babe had a minor procedure.  It required sedation, and she did really well.  Here are a few funny things, plus one or two serious, about the day. 

En route, she was wondering where we were going.  We avoided telling her anything about what we were doing (how do you tell a toddler she's having minor surgery?!).  So as we were approaching our exit on the highway, my husband mistakenly told her we were going to meet new people.  Well, duh!  That is now her new code-phrase for doctors.  Quickly we tried to change the subject.  Once we got to the surgi-center, the Babe started talking about being at the dentist.  She's never been to the dentist before, and I have absolutely no idea how she thought we were at one.  I don't want to scare her from future dental visits, so tried to explain we weren't at the dentists (don't know if that stuck or not). 

Prior to her being taken in for the procedure, the nurse gave her a sedative.  Have you ever seen a drunk two-year-old?  It certainly relaxed us momentarily as we laughed at how happy she suddenly became, as well as her movements.  She was sitting in my lap, and would go from resting her head on my shoulder to slowly bowing forward, or vice versa.  It was as if everything went into slow motion for her, and her limbs were very relaxed.  At one point, she was having a conversation with the nurse forehead to forehead as the Babe smiled really big at her (minutes prior, she wasn't particularly happy with this nurse either).

Besides the waiting, the worst part was watching some virtual stranger carry my child away from me.  However, as soon as we got to rejoin her post-op, the Babe immediately sat up and moved as rapidly as she could to get to me.  She's been a bundle of energy ever since we got home yesterday.

Here's the serious point for other parents of allergy babes.  Post-op we were told she would be given juice or water, and could also have popsicles.  We told them the juice/water combo would be great, but no to the popsicles.  Unless we could review the packaging, many popsicles are made on equipment that has also run products containing dairy.  The popsicles may just be made of fruit juice, sugar, and water, but they still pose a hazard to our dairy-allergic child.  While this facility handles many children, including those with allergies, this was one risk that they may not have realized on something that seemed so simple. 

The Babe continues to amaze us with her energy and resilliance.  Yesterday and today have been just like any other day, with the adults trying to keep up with the kiddo!

Gesundheit

The torch has been passed.  The next generation in my family now knows and uses the word, "Gesundheit".  The word is German, usually said after a sneeze, meaning, "good health".

This morning we woke the Babe up extra early because she was having a minor medical procedure.  It required no liquids after 7 a.m., and she drinks a ton during the day.  So around 6:45 a.m., I woke her up for some juice and water.  She was barely awake, drinking a little bit.  My husband was in the bathroom, and blew his nose.  First thing in the morning, if you're within a block's radius of him, you can probably hear this.  He is not particularly old, however, he sounds like a loud horn.  So even though I thought the Babe was asleep, she mumbled, "Gesundheit!", in response to what she might have thought was a sneeze.  It was very cute, and very funny.  A good way to start a long day.

The Thrill is Gone

So not what you're probably thinking.  I'm thinking about the holiday Passover.  Passover is just days away, and I am not mentally ready for it.  Usually I'm excited by the holiday, and planning the various meals.  The cleaning, not so much.  This year though I can't seem to get into the mindset.  It might be because the Babe is more definite on foods she likes and dislikes, and seems to have the same meal over and over every day.  There will be no hummus for 8 days- not sure how she'll like that.  And I haven't come up with any ideas for substitutes or alternative foods for her.  Granted I have a list of various salads and meals in mind, but nothing is particularly exciting me at the moment.  I am looking forward to going shopping Sunday or Monday to load up on fresh produce.  I intend to buy more than the usual, and maybe some things not on our usual rotation. 

One things I'm debating buying are fresh beets.  I've avoided cooking with fresh beets because I don't want to permanently stain anything (like my countertops).  However, I may attempt a beet salad or roasted beets this year.  I like them, but am leery of doing any damage.  So if I try it, I'll let you know how it works out.  Other than that, I'm looking forward to lots of fresh citrus, avocados, and roasted vegetables.  Not that we don't have them in our diets regularly, but my goal is to get creative.  I am not two, so therefore I do not want the same meal over and over again.  Here's hoping for tasty meals that the three of us all enjoy. 

Social Butterfly

I have a little social butterfly.  She starts conversations with total strangers, waves as people walk by, and in general, is a super-friendly kid.  The other day when we got to enjoy the brief warm weather, she was playing on her little slide in front of our house.  An older man was walking by, and while standing at the top, she yelled, "Hi, Neighbor!  I'm on the slide".  I have no idea who he was, but she must have figured he was a "neighbor".  At the mall, she'll wave at any kid under 6, say, "Hi, I'm ___.  What's your name?"  And she did this to the grocery store clerk, too.  Clearly we need to start working on learning about stranger danger, but for now her innocence and openness are very cute to watch.

Red Light, Green Light

So we may not be able to take the Babe to the movies or other entertainment venues because they serve food, but we do have options.  This past weekend we had one warm, lovely day that we did our best to take advantage of.  Outside we went to blow bubbles and play on her little slide.  Later, the three of us took a ride to the lake, and walked along the Marina.  It was great to enjoy a little of fresh air with the Babe and my husband.  Although we've lived in the area for a little over six months now, he hasn't had time to explore much.  This was his first time there, and he enjoyed the view as much as we did.  On top of that, the Babe was having fun looking for ducks, and running ahead of us. 

We now have a new game with her (that serves more than just for "fun").  Red light, green light.  She'd run ahead, we'd yell red light, and she'd come to a sudden stop.  Then green, and off she'd go.  This helps while in public, especially when we reach the street.  Rather than yelling stop, and hoping she listens, she has fun and doesn't realize its a command, not a game.  I'm proud that I found a creative solution (and hope it continues to work).

Avoiding Landmines

I have a lot of adrenaline right now. That's because ten minutes ago I gave the Babe her first taste of almond milk. I'm doing a challenge at home. This is based on her last test which showed she's not allergic to tree nuts. Her allergist instructed monitoring her the first time giving it to her. So as I'm writing this, I gave her round 2 (15 minutes in). She said she doesn't like this milk, so looks like the test is over. Of course I'll continue to monitor her the rest of the day. If she's ok, then at least I can have almonds. I hate trying new things like this, but it has to happen sometime.

Again, I really hate this. It's like walking through a field that may have a landmine, but you won't know until you cross the field. Could we just continue to avoid it? Yes. But one less limitation is a bonus, giving hope that she'll continue to outgrow some, if not all, of her allergens. Right now we can only hope.

Oily Bits

You may recall that yesterday I said you couldn't, or rather shouldn't, eat off my floors.  That changed last night when my husband washed the floors (after I did a lot of other cleaning around the house during the day).  Well, its once again changed.  The Babe had some small noodles with dinner, the size of a jeweler's jump ring, with some margarine.  She would take small fistfulls, and then somehow shake them out over the floor.  Small, oily noodles on my clean wood floors.  Not so happy, but not a shocker.  They have been picked up, but some spots have little oil rings.  Since we will be having friends over tomorrow, looks like I'll be doing a mini-floor washing tonight.  Just what I want to do (after reading a book, going to sleep, and a few other things).

Household Standards

Once upon a time, my husband liked to clean.  Sound like the start of a fairy tale?  Not quite.  When we first were married, it was not particularly pleasant.  Granted, I liked the fact that he washed the sheets and towels, and was better at cleaning the kitchen.  We had a deal, I did the toilets if he did the vacuuming.  We split up other aspects of housecleaning, as we both worked full time.  And he was much better at this.  He would polish the faucets, and get the grout clean in the shower, and then give me instructions on how I didn't do it properly.  Ahem- then do it yourself!  Anyhow, time passed, we moved, and I stopped working outside the house.  I became the person primarily responsible for the house.  And somehow my (sometimes obsessively) neat husband lost that shine, or rather that need to shine the faucets.  And put away his dirty clothes.  And wash a dish or stick a glass in the dishwasher.  Granted, there are times when he does do all of the above, and more. However, now he works super long hours, is exhausted by the end of the day (and weekend), and we would rather spend our limited time together with the Babe than cleaning the house.

So if you happen to come over to visit, the house may appear neat.  But don't go looking for dust bunnies.  They do exist, but please, just don't look.  I continue to keep up with the laundry and cleaning the toilets.  I'm just not the one who irons their sheets (I know someone who does this- and enjoys it!) or washes the windows weekly (with a toddler who loves to touch the glass that would keep me busy all day).  Our house is clean, I just wouldn't recommend eating off my floors. 

Must Have Coffee

When the Babe was a few weeks old, my husband bought a onesy for her that said, "Sleep is for the Weak".  I have a very cute picture of her in it, and its a funny joke.   However, not so funny now.  When she was an infant, waking up every three to four hours to nurse her didn't actually bother me.  I had plenty of energy, and wasn't drinking any caffeine.  Night feedings continued for many months, and for the most part, didn't bother me. 
Now, I seem to have a sleeping problem.  There are certainly a few external reasons for it.  On nights that I get the Babe to sleep in her own bed, she finds her way back to me by 2 or 3 in the morning.  Other nights she's sleeping right next to me, either laying sideways so she can try to push me out of the bed or kick me in the face, or else beside me trying to absorb all my body heat.  But even with her as a BIG factor in my sleep issues, I'm still finding myself waking in the middle of the night and its not because of her.  She's on the other side of the bed, curled in a ball, sleeping soundly.  (And if you can tell, we have not resumed the battle of the bed.  This will happen in the next few weeks, but we have some stuff coming up that will interrupt any progress we might make.)

Now, I wake up for no known reason, or to go to the bathroom, and it takes hours to sleep again.  It doesn't help that I keep my IPod next to me waiting to play a game or check email.  However, I do put it down...eventually.  I try, and I try, and I try, and I just can't sleep.  So an hour or four later, I finally fall back to sleep.  So now, I think I shall have my second cup of coffee (my limit) for today.

Gluten-Free Matzo

If you saw my post last year, about this time, I was trying to figure out what to do for Passover.  There are several traditional foods eaten during the Seder, a religious service combined with meal, that covers the Exodus from Egypt.  One of the key items is Matzo, a thin sheet of unleavened bread.  Some compare it to a cracker, others to cardboard.  I am one of the rare people who actually enjoy eating matzo.  Granted, by day 5 or 6 of eating it, its not necessarily liking me.  Its generally made of just wheat and water.  From start to finish, it must be made in 18 minutes or less to be considered Kosher for Passover.  There are a few other acceptable grains, but to be gluten free, the only grain acceptable would be oat.  And there are only 2 known distributors of Kosher for Passover gluten-free oat matzo in the world (at least that I have found).  One is out of London, and the other is Lakewood Machine Shmurah Matzoh out of New Jersey. 

Last week I was in Skokie, IL at Hungarian Kosher Foods.  They had most of the Passover groceries out and on the shelves.  I asked about gluten-free matzo, and they hadn't arrived yet.  The man who I asked seemed knowledgeable on the subject, and said that last year they only received 10 boxes.  Ten Boxes.  That's not cases.  Hundreds shop at this store for Passover, and I'm sure more than ten families have gluten issues.  However, it didn't matter.  We were not buying it, because the cost of one box exceeds the cost of 10 boxes of wheat matzo.  I am not exaggerating. 

So what just made my day?  The UPS man rang the bell.  No, it wasn't him.  It was what he was delivering.  I was expecting a package from Amazon, but that wasn't what I got.  Instead, inside was a box of Lakewood Matzoh.  At first I wondered if I accidentally ordered it, but then I realized where it came from.  My in-laws sent it so the Babe could experience a normal part of the holiday.  Super thoughtful of them.  Now I will be guarding it for the next week and half until the holiday to prevent it from damage, and then carefully rationing it out to last us through the holiday.

Yummy Cookies

I am a happy girl right now.  That is because I just had several chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven.  Did I mention I'm kind of on a diet?  I guess its kind of, because although I worked out today, and counted every calorie up until about 8:30 tonight, I hit a wall and decided I just had to bake these cookies.  I came across the recipe a few days ago while trying to plan some meals.  Somehow the page just flipped right there to the wheat-free chocolate chip cookie recipe.  Knowing I had all the ingredients, it sounded tempting. 

The recipe is from the cookbook, "Veganomicon," by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.  I highly recommend this cookbook even if you are not vegan.  If you happen to have it, its the Wheat-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies on page 237.  The nice part of making these is I didn't need to use bean flour or xanthan gum.  My husband's comment was to enjoy them tonight as they won't taste the same tomorrow.  I told him that shouldn't happen since without the bean, and just oat flour, it should taste as good tomorrow as tonight.  Of course, tomorrow I'll be back on the calorie counting wagon, so I may not have them...well, more than one.

Saved by a Pancake

I'm loving the Bisquick Gluten Free Pancake Mix.  Thank goodness the Babe got over the rice allergy, since rice flour is in it.  I do have a recipe for making gluten free vegan pancakes that got much use before the rice allergy disappeared.  On occasion I do haul out all the ingredients to make it, however I like the ease of making them from the mix. 

Last night I made stew.  If you've been reading my posts, you know we're sick of stew around here.  However, I haven't made it in weeks.  No, really.  So last night, after the stew had been simmering away for an hour and a half, my husband said he didn't want it.  Like he has a choice.  Granted, he's not two, but if I'm cooking, he better eat it, especially since it was a weekend evening.  Of course, we'd been watching some food shows showing the best of pizza and also "Man vs. Food".  Basically, we spent two or three hours drooling over foods we couldn't eat last night.  And while we wanted to make a last minute call to the sitter so we could go out, we knew she was busy.  So when he said he didn't want it, I kind of agreed.  What to make last minute?  How about pancakes?  All around "YES". 

Here's the funny part.  The Babe generally eats 1 or 2 at a time, on a good day three.  Never more than three.  So she was sitting at the table last night, and quickly consumed one.  Then another, and another.  Before we knew it, she had six- a full adult portion.  Yippee!  About an hour and half later, she had half an avocado and some turkey (at her request).  Clearly she did not have enough to eat earlier in the day, or else she finally got an appetite.  As our former pediatrician told us, toddlers eat like snakes.  They can go days and days eating very little, and then out of the blue, consume huge quantities.  While the image isn't flattering, it is true. 

Date Night

My husband and I go out about once a week for what some might call "Date Night".  Its not necessarily so we get some quality time together, although that is sorely needed since the Babe doesn't go to bed until late and he's been working longer hours.  Its more so I get to eat "real food", or rather, food I didn't cook and food that doesn't fit within the Babe's restricted diet.  Let us say it is usually filled with eggs, dairy and/or wheat. 

Last night we enjoyed Chinese food.  First off, yum!  We finally found a local restaurant that was good.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, and can't wait to go back. That though is not the point of this post.  Its what happens after we get to enjoy "unsafe food".  Our routine is to wash up in the restaurant, washing hands and rinsing out mouths.  Then, once we get in the house, the Babe usually runs towards us in delight that we're home and wanting to share all the fun things she did with the sitter.  At which point we say hi and dance around her.  She knows the routine, so by now isn't surprised that we then go upstairs.  I proceed to wash my face and hands thoroughly with soap, brush my teeth, and change my clothes.  Afterwards, I return to her for hugs and kisses.  However, we still watch her, just in case. 

Last night I was a little more leery.  I don't know why, worrying that I may not have gotten every possible food particle off me.  Its not like I went face first into my food or slathered it on in sheer delight.  Its just that niggling little thing that after a few hours eventually goes away.  So that is what our date night is like- dinner followed by scrubbing down.  I may not be prepped to perform surgery, but I'm ready for hugs.