Dinosaurs

After having one of the longest colds I can recall, I have begun feeling guilty that I haven't been doing enough with the Babe.  This summer has not been one filled with playdates and playgrounds.  When we moved to this area last August, I had a list of kid-friendly (and allergy-safe) places we could visit.  I didn't think we'd do it all at once, but there were plenty of museums and parks to find entertainment.  Yesterday we finally went to one of those places on the list.  It is the Dinosaur Discovery Museum located in Kenosha, Wisconsin.  It sounds much grander than it is, but it is a nice little museum located near the lakefront, and it is free.  Who can do better than that? 

Before we went, I asked her if she wanted to go see the dinosaurs.  No, she is of course afraid of dinosaurs.  However, when she mentioned seeing the dinosaur fossils she became very excited.  Somehow, she has made the distinction in her head that dinosaurs=scary big animals, dinosaur fossils= fun.  How does a two-year-old know the difference?  Television, of course.  There's an animated children's show called "Dinosaur Train" that has dinosaurs roaming different time periods.  Then there were some other programs that had visits to museums where they saw dinosaurs and fossils.  So to her there is a definite distinction between dinosaurs and dinosaur fossils. 

At the museum, she enjoyed the exhibit.  We perhaps spent ten minutes looking at the display (one large room of about 20 dinosaurs), then to another area where she could color, and the finale was the gift shop.  Because to me, no museum visit is worthwhile without a visit to the gift shop.  We probably spent more time getting to and from the museum, but it was worth the trip.  And as we left, the Babe confirmed that she was a "super-de-duper good girl", which I can only agree.

You Want What?!

The other day my husband and the Babe were playing in our basement while I rested.  When they came up, he had her tell me her latest.  She said she wants a pet, she wants a hedgehog.  A what?!  That's right, she wants a hedgehog.  She's not yet three, and I have no idea how she has ever seen a hedgehog (in person or on t.v.), let alone knows the animal's name.  I can't recall any of the children's programming mentioning one, although I do happen to zone out to a lot of them.  Now that I'm thinking about it, could Zaboomafoo or the Wild Kratt's had one?  Possibly, but still don't know why she would want one.  So, after this latest revelation, a few days later, our sitter was over.  She was so excited that the Babe told her this, because apparently once upon a time our sitter had a pet hedgehog.  I kid you not.  So then I wondered if she had told the Babe this, and somehow the Babe thought this would be fun.  But no, no mention of it.  The only person I know who has had a hedgehog did not put the idea in the Babe's head.  Its been several days now, and she is still asking for one.  Courtesy of our sitter, I suspect I know where I could get one, but its not going to happen!  At this young age, I'm sure the Babe will latch onto wanting something else in the near future that will replace this current request, and no harm will come to us or a hedgehog.

Soup Success

Get those violins ready.... I had to make dinner tonight.  For some reason, I had the illusion I was getting better for about 2-3 hours after taking my newly prescribed antibiotic.  It was downhill from there.  However, during the temporary reprieve from the worst of my symptoms, I put together a pot of chicken soup with vegetables.  The best part of dinner was watching the Babe eat (the soup was good, too).  That's right- she actually ate dinner.  Not only did she eat the noodles I made, she ate some chicken, she had some broth that I put in a small bowl separately, and shocker of shockers, she ate several pieces of cooked carrots.  Truly a success.  Now if I dare attempt to repeat this meal in the next fourteen days I highly doubt any of this will happen again.  However, for now I will enjoy the fact that she ate well and ate a variety.  And now, I am off to lay down.

Doctor's Visit

Apparently a doctor's office can be fun...if you're not the patient!  Normally the Babe repeatedly tells us why she doesn't want to go to a hospital, or cries at the mere sight of an examining table.  Today I had to go to the doctor for this cold that just won't go away.  While waiting, I was sitting on the paper covered table and the Babe had a very strong desire to sit up there with me.  If it was for her, just the sound of the paper crinkling will set her off in hysterics.  Today, she was happy to sit in the chairs, do her version of ballet in the waiting room, and climb up onto the table.  And she certainly had no shyness with the cute doctor.  Of course, when we got home she told me how she was a good girl at the hospital.  And yes, she was a good girl.

Time for a Plan

Some people have sick houses, I think I have a fat house.  Ok, not a fat house, but a house that is contributing to our weight issues.  With each home, we learn something different about what design, layout, and products are favorable to how we live.  This house is great, except for the easy access to our pantry.  We have a somewhat open layout, so our kitchen leads to where the table is, and off of that is our family room where we spend most of our time.  Its one big open area.  We can sit at our table and watch t.v., or just lean outside the door of our pantry while snagging some chips.  This is probably how I've gained about ten pounds since moving into our house.  That's right, blame the house, not my inability to not eat chips or second portions of dinner.  Our last house had a great closet in the laundry room that I utilized as a pantry.  So if I wanted a snack that didn't come from the fridge, I had to walk across the hall, open the laundry room door, and dig.  The less convenient, the less likely I was to snack. 

So now I'm trying to find something to motivate me to stop eating and start moving.  I haven't quite figured it out yet, other than the fact that I don't like the number on the scale.  Once I get over this cold, I hope to start using the treadmill again (see the hidden excuse to delay).  As for diet, its impossible not to have chips in the house because of the Babe.  I just have to stop eating them too.  While I can't have egg white omelets or yogurt, I can still have salads and lean poultry.  Time to make a plan.  I like lists, I just need to stick to them.

An Offer I Can't Refuse

I went to bed last night looking forward to a nap today.  Silly, but as I mentioned yesterday, I am sick.  Not terribly sick, just annoyingly sick.  And somehow either due to my current symptoms, or the effects of the OTC cold medicine I've been taking, I can't sleep fully through the night.  So I've been up since 1 a.m.  The reason I am looking forward to a nap, besides my failure to sleep during the night, is my husband made a most generous offer to me just before we went to bed.  Saturdays we may do some things together, but he spends as much time as he can resting on the couch.  Well, knowing I am sick, rather than the three of us running errands together, he volunteered to do them alone with the Babe.  And these aren't quick errands either.  I am hoping he sticks with his offer later this morning.  I am so excited.  Maybe that's why I couldn't sleep.

Blown Away

My nose is starting to hurt from all the blowing I have been doing today.  Despite that, I have cleaned a bathroom, done a load of laundry, baked chocolate chip muffins, watered the flowers outside (and the Babe), and more.  A Mommy's job is never done, despite the onset of a cold.

One thing I've been reminding myself of lately is how when you get married, you think you may be able to "train" your spouse.  I didn't have that illusion, but apparently in some ways my husband has trained me.  That sounds so sexist and demeaning.  Believe me, I have a strong will and mind of my own.  However, when we got married housekeeping was not my number one skill.  It still isn't.  In some ways my occasionally persnickety husband has gotten his way as to how things are done around our house.  One specific area is loading the dishwasher.  Well, we still disagree as to how certain things are placed.  What he did instill was to pre-wash everything.  That's right, I hand wash with a sponge and soap every piece of silverware and dish that goes into the dishwasher (ok, 98%).  You should know when we first got married, he did the dishes most nights that we ate at home.  I will give him credit that it does prevent food build-up on dishes, although its not necessarily environmentally friendly.  I load and unload the dishwasher daily because we eat all our meals at home due to the Babe.  That's a lot of dishes washed.  I'm not complaining though because what I do in a day is nothing compared to what my grandmothers' did when they raised their children.  The floors were swept, vacuumed or washed regularly (more than weekly), everything was dusted almost daily, three full meals made (plus desserts) most days, and they didn't complain.  Well, that I know of.  Different times meant different standards.  So by today's standards I hope I at least do average.  Then again, who am I competing with?

Little Oops

While I am now not actively trying to potty train the Babe, if she asks or there is the opportunity, we go to the bathroom together.  Today that meant putting her in a pull-up diaper just before we went to run an errand.  Can you see the error of my ways?  Clearly they were not meant to be on for extended periods of time.  Oh wait, it was less than an hour after being in it, and she was standing (or rather bouncing around) next to me while I made a return at a department store.  Next thing I know she tells me she leaked.  She was in shorts so that is not a good thing.  I grabbed a wipe, and swiped at her legs where I could see two lines of liquid working their way down.  No one else seemed to notice, thankfully!  As soon as I finished my transaction, we went to the restroom where I put her in a regular diaper and fresh pair of shorts.  Except for this one blip, we had a nice time out running a few errands. 

Temporary Hiatus

I've shamed myself into silence.  Sorry for not posting, but after I failed to follow-through on my last post, I wasn't ready to say that I didn't do it.  I was going to do it, I had the big-girl panties out and the protective pants ready to go for the Babe, but my husband commented he didn't think she was ready for it.  That's all I needed to not go forward.  So here we are in potty-training limbo.  I still have time on my self-imposed deadline, and I really do want her trained in the very near future.  I'm not entirely sure though that she is ready right now.  She likes the idea of going on the potty, but only wants to go on it sporadically, and then just to throw paper in the toilet.

Now that I have outed myself, I can move on to other topics.  Like how about making it through today, despite being up since 2:30 a.m.?  Or that we had an overnight playdate with a little friend and his mommy. No, that wasn't the cause of my lack of sleep.

The overnight playdate started late afternoon yesterday.  Both our husbands had out of town business trips last night, so timing was good.  Initially there was some competition for toys, and off and on through the visit the kids would get a case of the "mine's".  But they were pretty good at sharing when asked.  Because I knew that we would have up to 24 hours with two little ones who are both only children, I tried to have a few activities planned in case we didn't actually get beyond our backyard.  Pictured below is one of the craft projects we did.  It was relatively inexpensive and the kids had fun.  With two foam visors, the kids attached foam stickers to decorate them, and later wore them outside.  This was decorated by the Babe all by herself.  Its a jungle out there!

Training Day

Potty training took a temporary hiatus.  I opted not to push it for a few days and regroup.  After our first marathon day, the Babe was a little less inspired and not so quick to go running to the bathroom.  By day three, I realized I needed a new strategy.  So taking some friends advice, I went out and got waterproof pants to put over regular cotton underpants.  Looks like tomorrow we'll see how much the Babe likes wet underwear.  Let the accumulation of more laundry commence!  I have twelve pairs of underpants for her, and I suspect all twelve will be put to use.  Wish us luck, because I think we're going to need it.

Laundry Daze

Apparently these three things don't mix well: a full sippy cup, a pull-up diaper, and a long nap.  I had my suspicions before attempting this maneuver, but took a gamble and lost.  Ok, I was happy to have the Babe take a nap, which was part of why I was willing to ignore the little voice in my head telling me I was headed for trouble. 

Last night was date night.  The Babe was still sleeping when the sitter got here, and for some reason I felt it best to wake her a few minutes later.  Good plan, because lo and behold there was a giant wet spot on her bed and the Babe was soaked.  This was the first time the sitter got to give the Babe a bath.  I got her started, and then proceeded to wash the Babe's sheets and mattress pad.  Guess what number load of laundry this was for that day?  Number 5!  And it was the second time her sheets had been washed.  Somehow, laundry seems to just grow around here.  I had done 3 loads of laundry only the day prior, plus put away a few additional loads.  I was more than happy to leave after that.  Not that we had any exciting plans, other than dinner and a few errands.  So today's goal...(not even thinking about potty training, but still working on that)... is that there be no need for laundry.

Status update

I have not given up, but yesterday was an unsuccessful day in our house.  From about 8:45 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., I lifted the Babe 15 times on and off the toilet, and not once did she do anything other than waste toilet paper.  She wanted to use it, but somehow didn't.  My only results for my effort was an aching back.  That would be why I temporarily stopped for the night.  Fear not, the quest has not ended.  As soon as she wakes up, we will begin again. 

A Gift Occasion?

You've heard of Push Gifts?  Well, I think there should be Pish Gifts.  Push gifts are the latest fad- have a kid, get a diamond tennis bracelet or other piece of expensive jewelry.  Ok, I didn't get any, but I was more than happy to have a baby.  I think in our house it was an either-or, and I opted for the child.

Now that I've spent multiple times getting said child onto the potty, and off again, and on again, I'm thinking there should be a reward for Mommies who potty train.  Hence, Pish Gifts.  Don't think I will be successful in that department though because my husband surprised me with something nice just a few days ago.  However, a new books, perhaps.  Hmmm, I'll just go buy it myself.  That is, once I can leave the house and not put someone on the potty every 30 minutes.

Lots of Flushing

Today is the day we test our plumbing.  Oops, no, today is the day I try to potty train the Babe.  In our first hour, she was put on it three times.  Unfortunately, between the second and third attempt, I missed that window and she wet her diaper.  No luck on any action on the toilet other than filling it with paper and flushing.  But fear not, I have all day.  Hopefully by the end of the day we have success at least once.  My goal is to put her on every 30-60 minutes, depending on what she consumes during those time periods.  Reminder, I don't want to do this but we're getting closer to her birthday and I will not have a 3 year old in diapers. 

Putting things in writing seem more permanent.  I become accountable.  So I'll take a giant leap here and say it.  My goal is (not really, but its in writing now) to have the Babe potty trained by the end of summer.  Big girl underpants, here we come!

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July!  We saw some fireworks last night from the comfort of our car.  The Babe was more interested in her little flag, than the fireworks.  Well, until we decided to leave.  Then she kept wailing that she wanted to see the fireworks and didn't want to leave the "party house".  I have no idea how she thought we were at a party house.  We were by ourselves on a well-lit parking lot that others had stopped at, too.  Anyhow, of what we saw, the display was beautiful.  It doesn't have quite the same effect when you're not sitting on a blanket somewhere swatting at flies.  It was a last minute decision to go, so at least we weren't disappointed by the experience.  Today is equally mellow.  The Babe and her daddy played in the sprinkler for a bit this afternoon, and then we've just been relaxing most of the day. 

This year hasn't been too festive, by choice.  While we were invited to two different places to celebrate the 4th, I didn't want to be on the road with the Babe today.  Based on past experience, the 4th is a busy day for traffic, and for emergency rooms.  So we'll enjoy the quiet for now, and anticipate lots of booming going on around us tonight, like last night.  We didn't see any fireworks from our house, but who knows what tonight will bring. 

Expect the Unexpected

When I wrote earlier today about the Babe's "Allerversary", I knew I was setting my self up for trouble.  Can we say glass half full?  Anyhow, we were finally going to friends' house today.  It has been over a year since the Babe has had a playdate or visit to anyone's house other than family.  We are not intentionally isolating her from the world, its just working out that way.  And today just re-confirmed that for us. 

Our friends live about an hour and half from us, and have been great driving to us when we get together.  In part, they were still settling into their home and concerned about having it safe for the Babe.  We finally were able to pick a date, and off we went.  Ahead of time our friends inquired about safe foods, what to have, and read labels to me.  I was comfortable with the menu, and was not concerned about that aspect of our visit.  However, two separate aspects came into play.  One, they lead a normal life and eat normal food.  They are neat people, but with a young child, you never know what goes where.  That was actually not my greater concern.  They have a cat.  I'm allergic to cats, and we don't know yet about the Babe.  When we got to their house, all seemed fine.  The Babe was having fun with her little friend, the adults got time to visit, and we were going along well. 

The kids ate first, then the adults.  While we ate, the kids sat in an adjacent room, and were bouncing on some upholstered furniture.  All was fine, until it was time to get ready to play outside.  I went to get the Babe's sunscreen from my bag, and when she turned to me, I saw it.  Lots of bright red spots all around her mouth.  Not just one or two.  Immediately got the Benadryl, a wet paper towel, and hustled her outside.  Got her hands and face wiped off, and worked on getting her to take the Benadryl.  Thankfully that was what it took.  After a little bit, the hives eventually went away.  We changed her clothes, let her have a few more minutes of outdoor play, and off we went home. 

Here's the funny, or not-so-funny, part of this.  We all expected this.  No, we didn't intentionally expose her to something hazardous.  We just suspected that no matter the effort, she was bound to react to something.  Unfortunately, she did.  We actually got to spend an entire two hours with them before this occurred.  That was great.  The sad part is we probably won't go back, but happily they will still come to us.  So, if we get to know you, please don't take offense if we don't come to visit.  We are happy to entertain here.

Allerversary

Tomorrow is our Allerversary.  Yeah, not a real word, but I think you get the concept.  It will be 2 years ago tomorrow that our universe shifted, and we learned of our daughter's food allergies...the hard way.  It was July 3rd, and we thought we would get to relax before dinner.  Nope, not at all.  It became a very long night, and a long weekend.  We didn't know all that she was allergic to, only dairy was clearly off the menu.  The emergency room physician mentioned she may be allergic to several other foods, such as eggs, wheat, etc. (referring to the 8 major food allergens).  That weekend my husband strongly suggested I avoid eggs, too, since he thought she was probably allergic to it.  I was hoping he was wrong, highly doubtful, but avoided that and a few other things that weekend.  [I gave up whatever she was allergic to since I was still nursing.]  Sure enough, he was right.  Our house has been dairy-free and egg-free since July 4th.  It is also free of everything else she is allergic to, too, but those are the big ones.

Besides being life altering, those first few weeks are very difficult.  You can't have an allergy test for several weeks until your system has calmed down.  Once the allergy test comes in, there's relief at having an answer, and sadness at what the answer is.  We went home and dumped a lot of food.  I know a lot of other families with this feel hopelessness, not knowing what to eat.  I knew there would always be fresh fruits and veggies, plus chicken and beef.  Please note, there are people allergic to every kind of fruit, vegetable, and animal (hopefully not all at once).  We are very fortunate at what she is not allergic to.  So once I knew what we were working with, I got online and started looking up recipes that were allergy free.  Eventually I discovered what grains were gluten free, and recipes for baked goods that were also safe.  The first six months baking gluten free weren't too wonderful, but eventually I got the knack and it improved.  I also lost a lot of weight in the beginning.  The negative is once you figure out what you can eat, the pounds come back. 

Anyhow, we're just at the two-year mark.  We're hoping that in the next few years more of her allergies start disappearing.  However, don't ask if her allergies are getting better.  Its not like we feed her a little bit here and there and just watch to see if she reacts.  That would be a game of Russian Roulette, and also child abuse.  The only way to know is through blood work and skin tests done by a doctor.  That generally is done only once a year.  So sometime this fall we'll get her retested and hope there is an improvement.  The difficult part is knowing that very often the numbers go the other way even though we've avoided everything very carefully.  In the meantime, we will continue to try to keep up with our bundle of energy and marvel at how wonderful she is: how bright, how beautiful, and how sweet.

Vanilla Raisin Cookies

While in Florida, I mentioned working on a cookie recipe.  I finally made them the other day, and am on the fence as to whether I like them.  I ate them, so they weren't that bad.  However, every time I made them they came out a little differently.  So here's the recipe.  You'll want the dough to be somewhat tight.  I found the tighter the dough, the better it rose.  And it yields 18-24 cookies, depending on how big you make them.  As I mentioned in a previous post, these are gluten free cookies without xanthan gum.

Gluten-Free Vanilla Raisin Cookies
1 3/4 C Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tbsp. ground flaxseeds
1/4 C Vanilla Soymilk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 C raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda.  Set aside.
3. In another bowl, combine flaxseed and soymilk.  Let sit for a minute. Then mix in the granulated sugar and brown sugar.  After fully combined, add in the oil and vanilla. 
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry.  Stir until the dough is fully combined.  Add in the raisins.  Spoon/drop cookies onto prepared baking sheets. 
5. Bake 10-12 minutes.  Let cookies rest out of the oven for 5 minutes before removing from baking sheets.  Then, let them cool. 
* They taste much better cooled down than hot out of the oven.  Believe me.  Burning my mouth on a hot cookie hasn't stopped me before, but with this recipe, try to hold out.