Beating the Winter Blues with an Impromptu (Birthday) Celebration

I've lived in the Chicago area all my life and I've always hated the winters here. I hate being cold. I really do. I pretty much try to spend as little time outside as possible in the winter. My winter hibernation was never really much of a problem until I found myself at home with 2 little kids. Being inside in the same environment day after day with the same toys, activities, and people leads to bored and restless children. I try break up our time at home with trips to Grandma's, running errands, and play dates. Sometimes we play for a while at the library and then bring home books, movies and music. But some days are just stay-at-home days, and for those days, I am always on the lookout for interesting indoor activities to keep my 2 1/2 year old occupied.

Yesterday was one such day. I nanny a 2 1/2 year old boy a few days a week, and this particular week he was scheduled to come over 4 days in a row. In a row. So far he has loved coming over and hasn't showed the slightest signs of boredom at our house, but after being here 4 days in a row, I knew I needed to plan to prevent it.

My first step was to get a carseat so we could get out of the house (today we're going to the library). But taking kids out is a hassle, especially in the cold when you have to buckle them all in their carseats and navigate them through the parking lot, keep them from loading up the grocery cart with goldfish crackers or taking every book off the shelf at the library!

So, I knew I needed to think of some fresh activities for home to break up the time we did spend there. After a little conversation with my daughter, I had a plan!

Our family has a lot of birthdays in February, so my daughter kind of has birthdays on the mind. At one point, as we talked, she told me that it was her B's birthday (Her B is her special blanket, you know, the one that she can't go to sleep without). What a silly girl! But I guess she has a silly Mama too, because later that day the "big" kids and I threw a little Birthday Party for B.

First, Cadence and I made a birthday cake. Cadence requested a Frosty the Snowman cake, so we made him a head and a body (2 layers each).

A few hours later, when Phoenix came over, we decorated Frosty. Ok, I'll be honest, I didn't let the kids touch it for a while. You just can't kill those perfectionist impulses--even for a silly birthday cake for a blanket! I frosted the cake and used candies we had around the house to decorate him. M&M eyes, a strawberry nose, tootsie roll arms, and broken up pieces of chocolate for the mouth and buttons. 

Since the kids were the whole reason we were making this cake, I thought I should let go of control and let them have fun decorating it. I got the sprinkles and they were thrilled to shake, shake, shake those little sparkles all over Frosty. So cute.

Here are the kiddos with their cake and Cadence holding the guest of honor, her B. They were so proud of their work and that made them even more excited to eat the cake!

We sang Happy Birthday to B and then Phoenix and Cadence blew out his candles. Actually, Phoenix was so excited that he blew out the candles before we even started singing so I had to light them a second time!

After we ate our cake, each of the big kids got to help B open a gift. Earlier (I forget to get a photo of this), I gave each of the kids a box and had them find a gift they'd like to give B. Then, trying to stifle my perfectionism, I worked with them to wrap the gifts in some super cool Sesame Street wrapping paper. 

This process took a while. Phoenix spent about five minutes just running around the house with his newfound Sesame Street sword. Even after that, it took a while for the kids to focus on the task. They kept getting distracted and playing with the toys instead of looking for one to give as a gift. Once we were using the tape to wrap the gifts, though, I had their full attention. I think Cadence and Phoenix could have easily each used a whole roll of tape on those presents. 

All in all, everyone had a lot of fun. Having spent a couple hours engaged in structured activities, the big kids were content to play on their own for a good hour when it came time for me to make dinner. Not only that, but they were both very excited to tell their daddies all about the cake they made, the gifts they wrapped, and the candles they blew out!

Homemade Baby Food--It's Easier Than You Think!

My little guy Isaac is 8 months old now, so I've gotten back into the practice of making homemade baby food. I do it partially because its so much cheaper, but also because I know it's healthier. Honestly, though, I don't think either of those reasons would be enough if it weren't so incredibly easy to do!

Store-bought baby food can cost upwards of $0.30 per ounce, depending on exactly what you buy (brand, store, organic, etc.). I read somewhere that, ounce for ounce, it is the most expensive food you'll ever buy. However, if you make it yourself, you can easily save as much as 75%, depending on the cost of your ingredients. Here, I'll show you how to make vegetables that came out to about $0.08 per ounce. Now that's what I'm talking about! 

As far as being healthier, it's as simple as this--when I'm the one making the baby food, I get to choose exactly what goes in it. Store-bought baby foods often contain added sugars and salt or modified food starches that are used as fillers & thickeners.  When I make the food myself, I can skip the salt and sugar, use whole grains, and even use steamed organic veggies if I want to!

I love that I can use quality ingredients to make my baby's food healthier and tastier than store-bought options. Seriously, have you ever tasted baby food? Not a lot of flavor in there. I remember when I was about to start Cadence (my first baby) on solids, her pediatrician told me that baby's tastes buds are fully developed. "If you think it tastes bad, she probably will too," she told me. That knowledge, combined with my determination to raise well-rounded eaters, emboldened me to experiment with cooking for my baby. She often ate the exact same thing as the rest of the family--just pureed.  I've pureed spaghetti, soups, smoothie, chicken with rice & veggies, chili, risotto, and a variety of vegetables, and fed it all to my babies. 

Today I'm walking you through making some veggie baby food using Green Giant's "Digestive Health" blend of yellow carrots, spinach, and white navy beans in a garlic herb sauce. I bought a couple boxes of these for our family to try and they weren't a big hit...so I thought I'd give them a try with Isaac instead of just throwing them away. Lucky boy, I know!

Prepare vegetables as usual. Really, you can make them however you would when serving them to your non-baby family members. The Green Giant blend is steam-in-the-bag preparation. Easy as that!

Next, put your veggies in your food processor (or blender) and puree.

Puree it for 10 or 20 seconds and then check its consistency. 

Add water, one tablespoon at a time, until you've reached your desired consistency. I like it thick enough that it doesn't run off a level spoon, but not so thick that it will stick to a spoon held sideways. It's really up to you (ok, and your baby)!

Continue to puree the food until you've reached your desired texture. The longer you puree it, the smoother it will become. When your baby is just starting on solids, you'll want the food to be as smooth as possible. You can slowly introduce more texture in the food as time goes on.

Now the food is ready to eat. You can serve it immediately, refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze to use as needed. For convenient freezer storage, spoon the pureed mixture into ice cube trays and freeze through. 

To store, remove frozen cubes from tray and place in a labeled freezer bag. 

To serve, grab a cube or two and warm in the microwave. 

It's as easy as that!

A Mindful Christmas (and some low-cost gift wrap ideas!)

Christmas is such a wonderful time of year! We all love the nostalgic decorations, music and traditions, parties and dresses, delicious cookies, and time with family and friends. Lately, though, I've had more and more conversations with friends about some unwelcome things that have also become commonplace this time of year: overspending, selfishness, and stress.


With that in mind, this Christmas season I've been trying to be more mindful to resist being drawn in by these sneaky distractions. Let me explain a little.
At home with my family, there are few things I want, but as soon as I walk through a store or flip through a catalog, my "wish list" is suddenly pages long. I am content with what I have until I see all the things I could have--and then I want them. And this bothers me: not just because of the wasted money or because of the accumulation of things that ultimately end up in land fills. It bothers me because of what it does to (or says about?) my heart.

So, this year, I am trying to remember my contentment even when store displays present gorgeous chunky sweaters or glittery Christmas decor. For me, part of this involves identifying wants verses needs and resisting the urge to buy things I don't need.

Really, my goal is to nurture a family that never takes what we have for granted. I want to model gratitude and contentment for my children; I want them to grow up in an environment where the most meaningful things in life are celebrated and pursued--knowing & following Jesus and loving one another. I want us to be a family that simply thinks of things less--to be content to go without when things aren't affordable or necessary, and to be willing to give generously to those who are in need.

Pursuing this doesn't mean we have to give up the beauty, frills, or fun that give life its sparkle. It doesn't mean we have to slash our preferences or desires in the name of a simple life. This is not a martyr's cause. It's just a quest to be mindful of what we have in light of it's cost (financially, spiritually, and environmentally) and in light of other's needs. And it can be fun!

Let me give you an example of one way I've started living this out this Christmas.

I'm a little quirky, so I like all of the Christmas gifts I'm giving to be packaged in matching paper and trimmings. For me, the gifts under the tree serve as one more opportunity to add festive decorations to our home at Christmas!

Earlier in the year (summer, maybe?), I saw an idea for DIY gift bows using produce bags--you know, the red netted bags that onions, potatoes and oranges come in. I started saving those bags whenever I happened to get one. I thought they'd look good with gifts wrapped in kraft paper (instead of printed gift wrap) and I thought about buying some kraft paper, but then thought of something better. I decided to save all my paper bags from grocery purchases and see if I could make those work. I had some raffia on had that I added to some of the gifts for a little variety. And, I have to say, I'm happy with how they turned out!

I didn't end up with enough red bags for all of my gifts, so I reserved them for gifts being given to my husband's side of the family (that way all the gifts we bring to his parent's house on Christmas eve will match). Then I used things I had on hand for the rest of the gifts: a roll of tulle and glittered floral stems that I'd bought at a garage sale.

So I have my gifts beautifully wrapped, laying under the tree, decorating my house this Christmas season!

As our family seeks to grow in this area, I'm eager to hear about others' experiences. What are some ways you and your family keep your focus on loving God and/or loving others?  What are some ways you and your family foster contentment, generosity and frugality in your lives?

Finding Fabric on the Cheap

If you’re anything like me, part of the fun of crafting is making something for less than you could buy it in the store. Sometimes, though, with sewing projects, the cost of fabric makes this a challenge. I’ve found a couple good (and some surprising) places to find fabric that won’t cost you a whole lot.

My daughter holding a pillow I made her out of furry fabric I got at a garage sale.

• Clearance isles (maybe this is obvious, but its still a good place to look!) at your local fabric store. This is an especially good place to look if you don’t need large pieces of fabric, as there may be only a few yards left a particular fabric. Keep an eye out for sales on clearance items. I actually just got some fabric for an upcoming project at 50% off of the clearance price! 

• Walmart stores that carry fabric usually have a section of fabrics that are priced $1/yard. Depending on what you’re looking for, you may be able to find what you need there.

• Thrift stores & Garage Sales have become one of my favorite places to find fabrics both because of the price and the variety. I’ve bought sheet sets, table cloths, cloth napkins and window treatments, all for as low as $2 each. This is a great way to incorporate vintage materials, patterns, and color schemes into a project or decor. Here is some of the second-hand fabric that I’ve acquired recently. 

In this collection is a skirt, two dresses, and an window panel. The key to finding good second-hand fabrics is to think outside of the box and simply look for textures and patterns you like!

Healthier Banana Muffins (A Recipe Makeover)

A couple weeks ago bananas were on sale for $0.10 each, so I bought about 40 of them. I figured whatever we didn’t eat I could freeze for smoothies or baking. Last night I made a large batch of banana muffins to use up some of them up since I’d already filled a gallon sized freezer bag with peeled, very ripe bananas. 

I used Esther Nelson’s recipe from Allrecipes.com for Banana Sour Cream Bread, but since I am calorie-counting (trying to loose that baby weight!), I made several tweaks to make them healthier and removed 40% of the calories!  

You can see that adding almond meal in place of some of the flour did add some calories, but I thought of it as somewhat of a substitute for the walnuts as well. I love using almond meal--almonds are so good for you, and the almond meal makes everything so moist!

The recipe says that it makes 32 servings at 263 calories each. I ended up with around 40 muffins at 125 calories each. 

I wasn’t sure how they would taste because I've noticed that whole wheat baked goods often require more sweetener than those with white flour. In fact, I almost added more sugar at the last minute. But, I held off, thinking I could always find a way to dress them up if they ended up needing it. And I'm glad I did! They're good--not too sweet, but they don’t taste like cardboard either. 


If you want to make them healthier like this but want to offer others who are less health-conscious a way to dress them up, you can serve them with peanut butter or honey to spread on top!

Cozy Autumn Acorn Squash and Brown Rice (A Recipe)

The more I cook, the more I realize something about myself: I love season-inspired menus. Grilled veggies, smoothies, and sorbet in the summer. Chili, soups and roasts in the winter. And all things pumpkin in the fall! And since I love pumpkin, when I saw acorn squash on sale for $0.49/lb, I picked up a couple, brought them home, and ended up with the following concoction that our family really enjoyed. I hope you do too!

Ingredients

2 small acorn squash, washed thoroughly 

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 1/2 cups brown rice

3 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups pulled chicken*

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion

1 tart apple

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon sage

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg  

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Prepare squash (taken from A Veggie Venture)

• Preheat oven to 400 F.
• Lightly coat entire squash in olive oil and place directly on top rack in oven. 
• Place a foil-lined baking sheet on lower rack to catch any juices from the squash
• Cook for 50-90 minutes, until squash is soft (it should cut like room-temperature butter). Since my squash were on the smaller side, they only took about 50 minutes.
• Allow squash to cool before cutting open to avoid burns, especially from steam.
• Remove skin and seeds and cube or mash as preferred.

Prepare brown rice according to package directions using broth instead of water. 

Prepare pulled chicken: warm chicken through

*This recipe assumes you have pulled chicken on hand. After reading a section in Everyday with Rachel Ray, which gave 5 make-ahead-and-freeze ingredients to be used in 20 meals, I’ve become quite keen on making large batches of stuff and freezing meal-size portions for later use. I’ll share more details on that in a later post! 

Make the Dish

• In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. 
• Add chopped onions and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring.
• Lower the heat to medium-low and add chopped apples and seasoning.
• Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are beginning to caramelize (about 10 minutes).

• Add rice, pulled chicken and squash to the and onion apple mixture until heated through.

• Garnish with fresh sage or mint. Serve with steamed vegetables and a crusty bread.

DIY: A Baby Carrier Costume for Baby!

I’ve got a little guy this Halloween and I wanted to make a costume for him (both for fun and to save money), but I wasn’t sure what to do. Since he’s only 4 months old and he can’t walk, crawl, or sit up, I wanted to be sure to make him a costume that would be visible when he was being held. Mommy’s arms or baby carrier have a way of covering up those cute little costumes! 

So, in hopes of some inspiration, I did a Google image search of baby costumes, diy baby costumes, mother-baby costumes... Soon enough, I had some ideas! My next step was to go to some thrift stores to see what materials I could find, and make a more specific plan from there. By the time I left Goodwill, I knew exactly what I was going to do: use a stuffed animal to make our baby carrier into a costume for Isaac. 

It was easy and inexpensive, and exactly what I was hoping for! Here’s what I did:

Start with a stuffed animal that is approximately the size of your baby. I found this plush pig at Goodwill for $0.49. 

You’ll also need a Baby Bjorn style baby carrier, some type of well-fitting hat for your baby, a strong needle, thread, scissors, and safety pins. (You’ll be able to disassemble the costume when you’re done with it and use the hat and baby carrier as usual again) Since I already had a baby carrier, hat, and sewing supplies at home, this costume cost me $0.49 plus tax! 

First, we’ll divide the body into 3 sections: the head, the front (including arms and legs), and the back. Using a pair of sharp scissors, start at the bottom of the animal’s neck and cut a line straight down the back, about 1-2” behind its limbs. 

Continue cutting across the animal’s rear end and then up the other side. Stop cutting at the neck. Then, cut straight across the top of the back to where you started cutting. You can scrap the back piece--we won’t be using that. And go ahead and take out the stuffing, setting it aside for later. The animal should look like this:

Next, we’re going to remove the head to use as a hat. For my stuffed animal, it worked best to cut along the seam connecting the face to the body. Depending on how your animal is structured, you may need to cut yours a little differently. 

Because we’re using furry fabric, we aren’t going to finish the edges, but you’ll want to trim any jagged edges for a neater look. 

You can remove some for the stuffing from the animal’s head, but don’t take it all out right away. For my pig, I left stuffing in his nose so it would hold its shape. 

Now it’s time for your baby to help! 

First, thread your needle. I chose to use a thread that was NOT the color of the hat so that it’s easy to see when it comes time to disassemble the costume.

Place the hat you are using on your little one (If you can prop him or her upright it will make this step easier). Take your stuffed animal head and fit it on top of the hat. You’ll want to play around with it a bit to figure out the best placement for it (you may want to play with the amount of stuffing you use at this point too). Once you’ve got it the way you like it, grab the hat and head, pinching them tightly between your thumb and index finger to keep the head in place on the hat.

Take your needle and thread, and sew 3-5 stitches right where you are holding them together. This is called tacking.

Put the hat, now with the attached animal head, back on your baby’s head and adjust it as necessary. 

Repeat the previous steps about 5 times, working your way around the hat, until you have secured the two pieces together.

And that’s the hat!

Now for the body (you’ll need help from your baby in this part too).

Put your baby in the baby carrier facing away from you, folding down the front as shown.

Take note of where the top of the crease is when your baby is in there. You’re going to want to make sure the animal costume comes all the way up to this point. You can either safety pin it in place or just use a safety pin to mark the spot that you want to sew them together. Make sure it’s centered!

Now, take off the baby carrier and tack the costume to the carrier all the way across the top (you only need to stitch through the exterior layer of fabric on the baby carrier). 

Next, you’ll need to try it on again with your baby to figure out how far down to attach the bottom of the costume. 

If your animal has a round belly like mine, you’ll want to use some of the old stuffing to fill it in. To keep the mess minimal, you can put the stuffing in a plastic bag or pillow case, or you can do what I did and make a quick little pillow to hold it. However you do it, stick that stuffing under the costume before you determine where to attach the bottom.

Pull the costume down and either safety pin it in place or just use a safety pin to mark the spot that you want to sew them together. Then, take it off and tack in place. I didn’t need to stitch across the entire bottom edge; I just tacked it in one spot. The shape of my pig didn’t require the sides to be attached, but if your animal’s sides are falling forward or inward, you may want to tack those in place too. 

And there you have it! A cute, inexpensive, visible costume for your sweet little baby this Halloween!

Making a Moby-style baby wrap

I’ve always loved the idea of wearing my baby on me as much as possible. I’ve used a Baby Bjorn carrier and a sling with both our kids, but I have complaints about each one. 

For starters, the Baby Bjorn, being more structured, doesn’t have the snuggly mommy-and-baby-are-one thing going on (and for me, that’s a big draw for wearing my baby!). Plus it seemed like no matter how tight I got it, my little ones would still flop around at least a little. So I couldn’t do things that required a lot of movement without flopping the poor little baby all over. And I don’t know if other mothers have mastered it, but I was never really able to breastfeed with a baby in there.

My sling is much cuter, much more snuggly, but a bit less practical. I can’t wear it for very long before my back starts to feel the strain. Even worse, with a baby baby who still can’t sit up, its definitely not a hands-free carrier. I find that I usually have at least one hand supporting my little guy whenever he’s in there so he doesn’t fall out. That is not very conducive to the multi-tasking I find myself doing all day long. 

After hearing great things about the “Moby Wrap” I decided to look into it. I saw it at Target for $40, looked online to see what it was all about, and decided to try and make one myself to see if it would work for me. 

I was able to use fabric that I already had at home so it cost me nothing but the time I put into it, and I have to say I love the final product! It’s snuggly, completely secure, and doesn’t strain my back at all. It does take a little bit of time to put on and take off, but not any more than the Baby Bjorn does.

It’s basically one long piece of fabric. Six yards long, actually. And you can make one even if you don’t sew! Some versions (and the one I made) have an approx 2' piece of piece of accent fabric in the center. This is nice because it makes it really obvious where to start the wrap when you put it on. If you want this, you’ll need to do some sewing, but it is possible to make without sewing at all if you’re ok with it being a little more rough around the edges.

No-Sew Directions:

You’ll want to purchase 6 yards of a jersey or t-shirt-like fabric that doesn’t fray. If you’re not sure whether a fabric will fray or not, find the cut edge of the fabric and pull on it to try to get it to fray. 

Once you’ve purchased the fabric, leave it folded in half lengthwise (it comes that way). 

Follow these directions to wrap it on yourself. 

If the wrap feels too heavy or bulky, you can take it off (again, leaving it folded lengthwise) and cut it lengthwise along the crease. You’ll have two 6 yard long pieces of fabric--two wraps!

   

Sewing Directions:

You’ll need 6 yards of fabric total. Five and 1/4 yards will be your main fabric and then you’ll need 3/4 of a yard in another fabric for the center panel of the wrap. When you’re picking out fabrics, think of this as your accent fabric.

I chose gray for my center panel and black for the rest of the wrap. 

1. First, cut your large piece of fabric in half so you have two 2 3/4 yard pieces. 

2. Next, pin one end of each of those pieces to each end of your accent fabric (wrong sides together). Sew these together. 

3. Now fold the fabric on itself long ways to make a 6-yard-long rectangle with the wrong side of the fabric facing out. Pin the long edge and one of the short edges. Once you’ve done this it should resemble a really long, skinny pillow case.

4. Turn your “pillow case” inside out.

5. Now fold the two unfinished edges down inside the “pillowcase” and pin them there. Run your sewing machine across here, doing a top stitch to finish it off.  

And... you're done! Time to put it on. I like this YouTube video for a demonstration of how to wear the wrap.