Accidentally Delicious

In an effort to silence the call of our many sugary Easter treats, I chopped up a chocolate bunny a few weeks back.  I threw together a quick batch of cookie bars and used the chopped up rabbit in lieu of chocolate chips.  And because I can't ever seem to follow a recipe verbatim, I made some other changes to the basic recipe.  I used coconut oil instead of butter, lowered the sugar and added whole wheat flour.

And the results were surprisingly delicious!  (I say surprising because not all of my recipe alterations are successful).  The result was a cookie bar with just the right amount of sweetness and a hint of very complementary coconut flavor.  Think almond-joy cookie.  Yum!

If you're looking for a way to use up that leftover chocolate Easter bunny, try out my modified recipe below. 

Chocolate coconut cookie bars

1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 egg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cup white all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups chopped up chocolate bunny pieces, m-n-m's or chocolate chips

Heat oven to 375 F. Mix sugars, butter, oil and egg in large bowl.  Stir in flours, baking soda and salt (dough will be stiff).  Stir in chocolate pieces.

Press dough in ungreased rectangular 13 x 9 pan.  Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. The coconut oil tends to make these a bit crispier than a regular cookie bar so if I suggest undercooking a little. Cool.  Makes 15-20 bars (depending on how big you slice).

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Enjoy the coconut chocolatey lower-sugar goodness!

Processed pantry

I've been attempting these past few years to cook more from scratch and keep fewer boxes of processed foods around the pantry.

I'm finding there are some food items I just can NOT make from scratch myself.  Bagels, sausage, cheese, potato chips . . . these are all products I have no desire to recreate.  (I tried making homemade bagels once.  It was not pretty.)

But what I'm striving to eliminate from our family diet is the processed starchy snacks that are filled to the gills with refined sugars and additives.  So far, I've only successfully eliminated one major item from our processed food stock -- granola bars.

After trying a few recipes that left me with less-than-yummy granola bars, my sister-in-law gave me a winner.  This recipe is AMAZING.  Literally.  You'll never want to buy store-bought granola bars again!  These granola bars are EASY to make and the results are consistently good.  Even for me who is a not-so-accurate measurer these bars turn out great every time. 

Check out the recipe in full here at allrecipes.  Be sure to read the first couple of reviews for some excellent tips on making these even more delicious!  I've only made these the basic way but according to the reviews you can make several variations that sound fabulous.

Next on my to-try-to-make list is homemade wheat thins.  If cracker making goes well, I'll attempt homemade cheez its.  These look unbearably delicious and cheesy.  And there are only 6 ingredients.  Yeehaw!  Now the real test will be to see if the kids will accept the homemade versions over the store-bought stuff.  I'll keep you posted!

What culinary experiments are you cooking up these days?

Serving the sickies

Life has swallowed me whole lately.  And I've been so busy I've forgotten entirely about blogging. 

That's probably as it should be since much of my efforts in the past weeks has been taking care of sickly children.  And a sickly husband too.

The stomach flu finally hit our family and it proceeded to move through each of us (EXCEPT ME!) systematically.  I'm convinced I stayed healthy due to lots of Emergen-C vitamin supplement packets and the fervent prayers of my friends.

Everyone was pretty sad as they struggled through the flu but Clive was the very worst.  Poor little peanut was so whiny and lifeless!  At first, I answered the call to serve my sickies with fervor and adrenaline.  Didn't even mind the first few times I became a living vomit absorber.  In those moments my entire being was focused on helping whoever was ailing.  I had no chance or desire to think of my personal space or cleanliness in those needy moments. 

After a few days of this, I found myself tired.  Tired of serving others and cleaning up puke.  And I allowed thoughts of self-pity and entitlement to enter my weary brain. 

And then, just waiting for me in my google reader pane was this blog post by Ann Voskamp.  The title alone is enough to remind me of the deep lesson God taught me through this tiny ordeal of sickness.  Ann's post, "When the Grind of it all makes it hard to keep going" is not a pity party.  Not at ALL.  She's empathetic to be sure but more about embracing self-sacrifice with JOY.  I won't attempt to sum up her truth-based poetic thoughts but I'll share a few sentences that hit me hard:

While the Deceiver jockeys to dupe us into thinking otherwise, we who are made in the image of God, being formed into Christ’s likeness, our happiness comes, too, not in the having but in the handing over.  Give your life away in exchange for many lives, give away your blessings to multiply blessings, give away so that many might increase, and do it all for the love of God.

Reminds me of a favorite and relevant prayer by Martin Luther:

“O God, because I am certain that thou hast created me as a man and hast from my body begotten this child, I also know for a certainty that it meets with thy perfect pleasure. I confess to thee that I am not worthy to rock the little babe or wash its diapers or to be entrusted with the care of the child and its mother. How is it that I, without any merit, have come to this distinction of being certain that I am serving thy creature and thy most precious will? O how gladly will I do so, though the duties should be even more insignificant and despised. Neither frost nor heat, neither drudgery nor labour, will distress or dissuade me, for I am certain that it is thus pleasing in thy sight.”

Additionally, while my crew was in the throes of the stomach flu we learned of a 5 year old boy from our church who is going through intense physical difficulty.  He's been in the PICU for more than a month now as surgeons work on his twisted and failing intestines.  The little guy is almost done with surgeries now and is on the long road to recovery.  We've been praying for this little boy and since my own little girl is of the same age, this ordeal has been incredibly poignant for me. 

Vomited on?  Yup.  Whiny and demanding children?  For certain.  No appetites for a week?  Uh-huh.  But I count all those things as JOY when I consider the huge challenges and illnesses other children and families are trudging through. 

And I thank God that our troubles, big or small, are in His hands.  That regardless of the size of the difficulty, HE can be trusted, loved and praised.  And that He promises a proportionate amount of grace for the trouble at hand. 

How has your sickie season gone so far?

Unbroken bones

Ever feel like you're the worst mommy in the world?

I've succumbed to mommy guilt countless times but this experience takes the cake in terms of guilt-dom. As many of us newbie moms would attest to, many valuable parenting lessons are learned the hard way. Learning-by-making-mistakes is my most frequent, not to mention effective, mode of parenting.

Rewind to last Saturday afternoon. A nearby town was hosting an afternoon sidewalk chalk drawing contest and festival. A perfect mommy-Chloe afternoon outing. The festival was a small affair complete with every 21st century child's favorite activity -- inflatables. Chloe jumped 'til she was red in the face and then proceeded to her designated sidewalk block.

Chloe scribbled and scratched out a typical rainbow and balloons picture complete with the sweet chalky message pictured at left. (No, I did NOT coerce her to write that!) Then some friends joined us and the girls did more bouncing in the inflatables. (Seriously, Chloe NEVER tires of inflatable fun.) After that we all walked together to an old-fashioned ice cream parlor. And that's when the craziness began.

The ice cream parlor has a beautiful old marble counter and spinny bar stools. I, like the oft-times casual mom that I am, let Chloe sit and spin on the stools without thinking twice. I continued visiting with my mom-friend clueless to Chloe's danger. AND my wise friend didn't let her daughter spin on the stools. Let THAT be a lesson to you, Alicia!

Anyhow, the girls were happily licking their ice cream cones when Chloe spun too fast and went flying to the floor. She landed squarely on her elbow. Because was holding her ice cream cone, she didn't try to slow her fall with her hands. Instead all her 60 pounds came crashing down onto her elbow. Her elbow immediately swelled up in a strange place -- just below the joint.

We rushed Chloe outside and at this point I was utterly reliant on my friend, Shannon. She has nursing experience and took charge of the situation. I was like an ameba -- unable to think or move on my own without outside intervention. I was thoroughly scared and emotional realizing that if Chloe had broken her arm it was ALL MY FAULT. Cue mommy guilt and LOTS of mommy tears!

After a long ordeal at the ER, it seemed that Chloe was fine and dandy. Since Chloe as in zero pain the NP on duty diagnosed Chloe's injury as a hematoma in the soft tissue. Kind of like a bruise inside Chloe's arm. We were cheerful and all set to go home when the ER staff delayed our paperwork. We waited and waited and WAITED. Then the NP came in with a new diagnosis. They had found a "disruption" on the bone near the site of the injury on Chloe's xray. So, the NP casually said, "I think we'll splint her just to be safe."

In my mind I imagined a splint as two balsa-wood-type sticks used to hold the arm in place and then taped. Boy was I wrong! The splint turned out to be almost a cast just not quite so heavy. The ER nurse came in and started taping Chloe's arm without so much as a hello or explanation. And try as I might, I could NOT get the nurse to explain the process to us. Hence, I couldn't in turn explain things well to Chloe and she had a major meltdown.

Again, my mommy tears flowed this time in sadness at my utter inability to comfort my girl. She freaked out. Big time. It was almost as though Chloe became a completely different little girl in those moments of trauma and terror. She screamed, kicked (she had to be held down for the taping), and loudly cried her displeasure.

Chloe finally calmed down on when we arrived home. She did super well with her splint and eventually became proud of all the things she was able to do one-handed. (It helped that I often tote Solly around and could show Chloe all the things I do with only one hand.)

3 days later at the orthopedic specialists' office the splint came off and Chloe was proclaimed healthy. No break, fracture or "disruption" to speak of!

Overall the ordeal was a good one. Hopefully we won't have to endure any breaks in the future but if we do now I'll know what to expect! And I'll be much more careful the next time Chloe is lured by spinning stools.

By far the worst part was Chloe's unexpected reaction during the splinting. I've been told this is a common occurrence though.

Have you or your kids ever broken any bones? If so, how did they deal?

Chloe's Disappointing First Dental Visit

This morning the kids and I headed to the Small Smiles dental clinic for Chloe's first ever dental visit. We had read some dentist-type books and almost every mom I talked to (or that commented on FB) reassured me of what would happen on the first visit. According to them, the first visit would be a simple tooth-counting and comfort-building chair sitting experience for Chloe. And of course a brand new toothbrush to culminate the event. Sounded pretty non-threatening and even sort of fun!

This morning at breakfast, I was giving Chloe the expectation run-down again so she'd know exactly what would happen. Chloe is a sweetie but she is a girl that doesn't roll with the unexpected well. She needs time to feel comfortable and letting her know exactly what will happen seems to ease her fears.

Anyways, Chloe was excited about the dentist visit and said animatedly, "I sure hope I get a new princess toothbrush at the dentist!" She even dressed up her favorite teddy bear in baby clothes and brought him along for the occasion.

As soon as we walked into the clinic door, I had a foreboding feeling. The lobby was VERY crowded and felt more like a daycare center than the comforting low-key lobby experience I had envisioned. Nonetheless, the kiddos settled in to play while I filled out the paperwork. And then we waited. And waited. And waited some more! It was 45 minutes before Chloe's name was called.

After a brief introduction, the dental hygienist took us back and instead of asking us anything curtly stated she would start by taking x-rays of Chloe's mouth. Sphincter say what?!? I tried not to let my hyper-mommy-alarm bells go crazy and decided instead to go with the flow and see how Chloe did. My girl was all smiles until the hygienist shoved the x-ray slide into her mouth. And then Chloe lost it -- with good reason too. The hygienist did NOT prepare Chloe for what was happening and I tried my best to comfort her from out in the hallway. Needless to say, the x-ray photography session did not happen. Chloe kept crying and was obviously scared.

The WORST part was the hygienist's impatience and obvious frustration with Chloe's meltdown. She just kept telling Chloe to stop crying and to be a good girl or she wouldn't get a toy. Hello?!? What 4 year old is going to stop crying on a dime for a stranger who is doing foreign things and is telling her she's not being good? I was starting to get seriously ticked off. I asked the hygienist to stop and that we'd have to do the x-rays on our next visit.

Moving on, the hygienist brought us to a huge room with about 8 dental chairs all filled with kiddos having various procedures done. Again, the mommy-alarm-bells started ringing like crazy. Talk about a distracting, loud and scary place! Chloe, unnerved and whimpering by this point, was not trusting this hygienist chic. It didn't help that the lady lowered Chloe in the dentist chair without warning. Chloe's tears started again (and so did my tears - I hated seeing my baby girl fall apart) and I quickly saw that wisest course of action was to split. I told the hygienist we were going home and we'd reschedule.

UGH. What a yucky experience! I truly think the worst part of it was the hygienist's use of bribery and her scolding impatient manner. I spent the entire ride home reassuring Chloe that I was not mad at her and she was not "bad" for being scared. I think it was perfectly natural and reasonable for Chloe to be frightened given the circumstances.

We will NOT be going back to that crazy clinic again. We're taking my little girl's teeth elsewhere!

What have your kids' dental experiences been like?

Matt's almost successful attempt at bartering

Matt and I are currently uninsured. Again. It's a long story but let me just say that being a full-time graduate student family for four years has found us neglected in the crevices of our nation's insurance system many times.

I know, I know. It's a very risky business to be uninsured in America and we shouldn't take our chances. But Matt and I console ourselves that at least we're adults and can exercise preventative healthy practices to keep ourselves out of the doctor's office. And we make certain the kids are always covered somehow.

Anyways, Matt has horrific sinuses and is constantly struggling with allergies to boot. A few weeks back he acquired a mild version of H1N1 and as with every type of illness, it developed into a sinus infection. Matt often tries to muscle through a sinus infection or he'll ask his folks to get some antibiotics for him from Mexico. (Yes, we have resorted to foreign prescriptions several times. You wouldn't believe how much cheaper things are in Mexico. Wish I could go there for a tummy tuck. )

After two weeks of trying to get by, Matt couldn't take it any longer. We decided to pay out of pocket for him to visit the doctor. Matt's doc is a single guy who's very laidback and seems to be understanding about our financial situation. So, Matt thought he'd try bartering with the doc for some free medicine.

I've read a few articles on bartering and trading in the 21st century and I whole-heartedly dig the idea! Of course, bartering/trading will only work for service professions but I think the idea is fantastic. We've practiced trading on a small scale with some mommy friends by doing a babysitting swap group and it's worked out perfectly!

Well, Matt went in prepared to offer the doctor a personalized bound hard cover journal. (My husband is a man of unique hobbies. He built a book press in our basement and can publish and bind small books and journals.) I was skeptical the doc would take Matt up on his offer but proud of Matt for thinking so creatively and being willing to try!

Long story longer, the doc said YES to Matt's offer! He loved the journal and promptly left the examining room to get Matt some free antibiotics.

However, as the title of this post alludes, the transaction wasn't successful. The antibiotics the doc offered to Matt contained penicillin. Of which Matt is highly allergic. Bummer.

Now Matt is obliged to make the doctor a journal despite the fact that he didn't get any free meds out of the deal. Oh well. A handmade journal will certainly make for a good patient-doc relationship! I'm excited that the deal almost worked. Gives me hope and confidence that we can try bartering again in the future.

Have any of you ever tried the bartering method?

Smoothie recipes

I'm discovering that when cooking, some items require me to use a recipe. Take smoothies for instance. I can make the standard yogurt-strawberry- banana-orange juice smoothie without fail but as I venture into different fruit combinations it's not as easy as it seems.

Today I tried doing a peach blueberry smoothie using plain yogurt as the base. I added a dash of oj, some honey to sweeten and some ground flax seeds for extra nutritional oomph. Clive drank it down excitedly but Chloe was less than enthusiastic about my impromptu concoction and only drank 1/3 of her glass.

I'm convinced now that I must stick to a recipe when it comes to smoothie blending. Some fruits go nicely together while others aren't sweet enough or don't compliment each other well. I made a yucky pineapple kiwi coconut smoothie once that was awful!

The key might be in the ratios . . . I tend to overdo it on the plain yogurt and then I end up dumping in way too much honey to offset the yogurty taste.

I love the ease and accessibility of summer fruits for smoothie making. Help! Any smoothie tips or winning recipes for me?

Moisturizing question

This weekend I hit CVS and picked up some marked down moisturizer. I was pumped! It was marked down to $1.37 and I had a $1 off coupon. Woo-hoo!

Of course, it wasn't until after I got home and showed off all my purchases to Matt (my ritual after CVS so I can bask in pride at all my incredible deals) that I realized the moisturizer is actually a self-tanning lotion. How in the world could I have missed that?!? Sticker daze I guess. Thankfully I only wasted 37 measly cents.

Which leads me to my question . . . what moisturizing lotion/product do you use? I've tried several different lotions. I usually pick up something cheap from the drug store and it lasts me forever because I only moisturize my eye and neck area right before bed. I KNOW I need to moisturize daily and apply something with sunscreen.

What do you use? And how often do you apply it?

Do you resolve?

I don't have any official resolutions for the new year but I do have some large goals that I hope to achieve with God's help. Here are my top three:

1. Read my Bible regularly. I downloaded a schedule for reading my Bible in a year that I'm excited about. Instead of just plowing through from cover-to-cover, this reading plan has me reading a few chapters in various genres of the Bible each day.

2. Exercise consistently. We just purchased a one-year membership to a nearby gym/pool and I aim to get there 4 times a week. I'm not doing anything major yet. Just walking the track at a fast pace for now. It's an extremely kid-friendly place and only 3 blocks from my home so I have no excuses!

3. Eat more celery. Well, not just celery really. My goal is to be a wiser snacker. And to make sure I eat healthy and well at meals so I don't go wild with snacks. By eliminating chocolate and chips from my pantry and stocking the fridge with celery, cottage cheese and yogurt I hope to take control of my snacking habits.

How 'bout you? Do you resolve anything for 2009?

Waiting for my thyroid to die

Thursday I found out that I suffer from something called Hashimoto's thyroiditis. It sounds dreadful, doesn't it? It's an autoimmune disease. My body is attacking and killing my thyroid gland. Yikes!

According to my doc though, this is a common disorder. Once my thyroid burns out I'll have to take a synthetic thyroid replacement for the rest of my life.

The last few days my energy level has been incredibly up and down. I'm guessing the utter fatigue and contrasting adrenaline rushes are normal as my thyroid dies out.

Do any of you struggle with thyroid problems? I'm just beginning to research this so I'm open to any information and advice you can give me!

Sunhat poll

Yes, I am still alive. :) My in-laws are here visiting so blogging has become last on my list of priorities of late.

Quick question for you, how many of you wear sunhats regularly? I am a stickler about making sure Chloe and Clive always don their sunhats whenever we are outside. And of course they look doggone cute in them too.

I have a big ole straw sunhat that I wear occasionally but I don't always remember it. When I do wear it I've noticed that I am usually the only mom in the park wearing anything protective head covering. What's up with that?!? Why are we so concerned about our children's sun exposure but not about our own?

Hence my poll below . . .

Always eat your breakfast

I'm back on the blogging air after a frightening and surprising trip to the ER last Friday afternoon. And the moral of the story is to always eat your breakfast!

Ever since highschool I've suffered from minor hypoglycemia. I know that sounds fancy and complicated but it really just means that my blood sugar is testy. If I don't eat regular meals my blood sugar goes low and I get shaky and sweaty. Usually these symptoms go away when I eat. But Friday was a different story.

I had forgotten to eat breakfast (a common occurrence these days now that I'm busy caring for two little ones) on Friday morning but instead had a few cups of coffee. No big deal. I started to get the hungry shakes around noon so I ate a good healthy lunch. Still felt shaky and nauseous. I got sick but I felt better. Matt headed out with Chloe to go pick up his folks at the airport and I stayed home with Clive and hoped to nap off the sickies. No such luck!

Instead, I got sick a few more times and the dizziness and headache got worse. I started to feel numbness travel up my right arm and my jaw. What was that?!? That got me scared! I called Matt crying and realized that he was still an hour away from home. So I rang up my trusty friend, Melinda. She's a mom of 6 and has seen absolutely everything so I knew she could handle me. :) Five minutes with me and she called the ambulance! By that time I was in bad shape and couldn't even answer questions. !!!

An IV, potassium pills, more vomiting and a nap at the hospital put me right again. I was weak and dehydrated but I felt much better. I had suffered a serious drop in blood sugar. Thankfully, I was able to go home Friday night and the remedy is simple - eat! Never again will I take my blood sugar issue lightly. My family has taken great care of me; they are making sure I get plenty of rest and checking on my eating habits.

Thank the Lord for His protection of me! Things could have easily been much worse. I feel so silly to have caused such trouble and I praise God for His patience and care.

Whew! I certainly am glad that unpleasant experience is over! Do any of you struggle with hypoglycemia?

Fighting the weight fight again

I'm back on the diet and exercise wagon as I seriously strive to lose my Clive-pregnancy weight. Sigh.

Since my free time is limited these days and since Clive isn't on a regular daily schedule yet (we're still working on that!) my exercising habits have been hit or miss. Now that the weather's finally warming up a little I hope to do some walking in the coming weeks. I also have some post-natal exercise dvds on my bookshelf that I've done occasionally. AND I have a membership to a nearby gym. So, I have lots of ready and available opportunities to get fit!

What I've been focusing on this week is a healthier and more controlled diet. I've joined sparkpeople again and I'm using their tracking tools to measure my daily food intake. Slowly I'm making changes to bring my daily calorie level down. I'm also drinking lots of water and coffee (an appetite suppressant). The coffee isn't a part of sparkpeople's plan but I see it as my one indulgence. :)

What do you do to maintain a healthy weight?

Another first for Chloe: a UTI

Chloe is currently suffering from a urinary tract infection. Poor girl!

My grandma arrived for a weekend visit on Thursday night and Chloe's troubles started on Friday. We spent Friday at home since the snowy sidewalks and chilly weather made a walk to the gym impossible. In a period of 3 hours Chloe had FOUR potty accidents. FOUR! That's unheard of for her. My first thought was that Chloe was regressing since Nana was here and getting my attention.

After more and more and MORE accidents Saturday through Monday, the thought finally struck Matt that Chloe might have a UTI. Neither of us have ever had one so we weren't sure what to look for. The diagnosis seemed to make sense and when I called my trusty mommy friend, Dr. Melinda (she's not a pediatrician but she should be since she's had so much experience with her six munchkins), and she said UTI right away.

A quick urine test (it was an interesting experience getting a urine sample from Chloe) at the doctor's office confirmed the UTI and now Chloe is on antibiotics and lots of cranberry juice. I feel AWFUL that we didn't see the signs until four days after the symptoms started! I suppose that's all par for the parenting course.

Today I indulged Chloe a bit (a way to ease my mommy guilt) and let her wear her pjs all day long. She also got to watch Piglet's Big Movie (her recent favorite), eat pizza for lunch, play with some new play-doh, and read lots of books with me.

I'm fairly certain Chloe acquired the UTI because of bad wiping practices after going potty. Toilet paper just doesn't do the trick so I'm switching to wipes or a washcloth. The most surprising thing I've learned through this experience is in regards to bubble bath. I mean, hello, all toddlers like playing in bubble bath. Who knew it would be a leading cause of UTI's?

Have your kiddos ever had a UTI? How long did it take to go away?

Pink eye?

Has anyone out there ever had pink eye? The corner of my right eye began swelling yesterday and is red and a little sore today. No discharge though (I've heard that's a pink eye symptom).

What can be done to treat pink eye? I know it's super contagious so we're not venturing out to Bible study this morning. And I'm very bummed about that but I think it's wise not to bring my possibly-infectious self to a locale with 100 other ladies who could spread this thing to their kiddos.

So, today we're grounded. :( Thankfully Matt is home so he'll be able to get Chloe out of the house for a few errands. And today I'll have to put my indoor-creativity to the test! I made it to the craft store a few nights ago and I'm prepared with pipe cleaners, beads, and foamy stickers.

Sigh. When is spring again?

Always have a back-up

This week I've learned the hard way that you should always have a back-up pair of glasses in case something happens to your contacts.

I'm HORRIBLE about overusing my contacts and have managed to stretch out 2 boxes of contacts for almost an entire year! (I feel like in some weird way I'm helping save our family money by making my contacts last forever) When I got down to my last pair this week, I didn't think much of it. I told myself, "Add 'order new contacts' to your to-do list" but by the time I got downstairs the thought had flown out of my pregnant-absent-mind. Like I said, I usually use one pair of contacts for several weeks so I didn't really think I was in any vision danger. Until . . .

My left contact ripped on Thursday morning! I was frantically getting ready because Thursday mornings we all leave the house together at 7 a.m. I slapped on the right contact and away we went.

Let me assure you that life with only one prescription contact is very strange. I probably shouldn't have done any driving but I did. Mostly with my left eye closed. When I got home Thursday, I immediately got online to order more contacts. Come to find out there's a new law that makes your contact prescription only valid for one year! Grrrrrr.

I finally got in for an eye-exam today and my whole self rejoiced when I got to slip the trial pair of contacts in and see clearly out of both eyes simultaneously. YAY! And guess what, after 2 years my prescription is still the same. Stupid law.

Has anyone else ever been in my irresponsible vision predicament?

Gramma update

Whew! It's been a long few weeks, hasn't it? Feels like forever since I've blogged or even turned a computer on.

Chloe and I were able to spend 10 days in Milwaukee helping out with grandma. The fantastic news is that grandma is almost 100% better! Turns out she didn't sleep for several days on her trip to China and that threw her into a delirium. After 6 days in the hospital, with the help of some powerful sleeping and calming drugs grandma's back at home now getting her rest and getting back to normal.

Though it was a rough and tiring time, I'm so thankful that we were able to go and help out! (Many thanks to my mom who used her frequent flier miles to get us there so quickly). Chloe was quite a trooper and even though I reverted to mommy-survival mode (increased passy-use and lots more tv than usual) it was a blessing to have her along. A two year old can be very therapeutic.

I'm also overwhelmingly thankful that God heard our prayers by healing my grandma and bringing her back to us safely. She's an incredibly special lady to us and to God.

Thanks to all of you who prayed!

Gramma's comin' home and so are we!

MUCH thanks to all of that have prayed for an inquired about my gramma's health.

The very good news is that gramma is flying home this weekend! She's stable enough to fly and from all reports has recovered quite well. She's talking and joking, eating solids, off all medical equipment, and her scans are clear. YAY! Praise the Lord for caring for her and sticking right by her side during such a lonely and scary situation.

Upon her return, gramma will go directly to the hospital for assessment and then we'll learn a lot more.

Chloe and I are flying "home" to Milwaukee early tomorrow morning to try to help out and to smother my gramma and mom with hugs and love. I can't wait to give my gramma a big kiss!

We'll be staying in Milwaukee for about 10 days and I'll have computer access so I'll try to keep things posted so I don't lose my faithful readership. :) Please pray that we have safe travel tomorrow, that Chloe transitions well to the new surroundings and is flexible, and that Matt will get lots of studying done while we're away (and also that he doesn't break any of my dishes trying to cook for himself).

Another grocery question

Many thanks to all who commented on my last grocery shopping question! It was extremely interesting to read your comments and to observe how many of you buy the same grocery staples as I.

Since so many of you listed "deli lunch meat" as a weekly staple, my little brain started pondering a new question. How many of you purchase nitrite/nitrate/antibiotic-free lunch meat? I used to, but soon found it to be too expensive. (And now that I'm in my second trimester, my strongest snack cravings have been for good old-fashioned salami and cheddar cheese. Guess this boy needs his protein and fat!) I mean, at $9 a pound, we just can't afford to buy the good natural stuff every week.

So, what do you opt for at the deli counter?

Maternity Suit and Gym Membership

I found my perfect maternity swimsuit from the world of ebay. It's a plain (but modest) black suit that's made from fairly thick material. The best part is that I don't feel like a lumbering pregnant cow in this suit. It very discreetly covers my growing belly and upper thighs (YAY!). And it only cost $8.60 total - including shipping and handling. I heart ebay. What good-deal ebay purchases have you made lately?

With my new suit raring to go, we purchased an annual membership for me and Chloe at the natatorium. It's a city-run gym, pool, and exercise facility. The huge pool is what drew me in. There are lap lanes, a big kid-friendly area, a current channel, and a fun-looking waterslide.

Yesterday I paid my dues and Chloe and I started right away. I let her play in their kiddie tree house, dropped her off at the nursery (it's free!), and then I headed to the pool for some laps. Whoa, I'd forgotten how hard it is to do continual swimming laps! After about 4 in a row my heart was racing and my face was flushed with exertion. I did a few backstroke laps to rest and then finished up for a total of 11 laps.

Then I fetched Chloe from the nursery and she came swimming with me in the kids' pool. My girl is so brave! She said, "I walk" right away and did not want to hold my hand. I think she would have kept right on walking into the deep end if I would have let her.

Overall, it was a fun and worthwhile experience but I have some learning to do about how to pack for a gym excursion. :) I'll leave it at that and not embarrass myself by divulging how many things I forgot.

Today I headed out again and did a few more laps. In the fall their exercise/swimming classes begin and I'm pumped about doing one of those. I'm thinking yoga or low-impact aerobics for me and a beginning swim class for Chloe.

What do you do to stay fit in the fall and winter? Do any of you workout at a gym? Any tips from gym-goers would be much appreciated!