Two Little Seastars

The weather has been a little more chilly where I live lately, which has caused me to bust out some of my warmer attire.  I am not much of a coat wearer.  I have too many things to hold between babies and bags and the bulk of a coat is just too much.  While scouring my drawers I came across a scarf my good friend Kaeli, from Kaeli's Kiwi's,  made for me.

 

It matches the colors schemes in my wardrobe wonderfully and I find that I can wear it with most anything I have!  It is so nice to be warm and snugly without the bulk of a winter coat!



My sweet Abigail modeling her "Made for Me" Sunday outfit



I also enjoy dressing my girls in theme Sundays from time to time. Such as: dresses Mommy used to wear, matching dresses and this past Sunday "made for me."  So many friends have made such adorable things for my girls, I was pleased I could put a whole outfit together!  Abby is rocking her pom-pom hat made by Kaeli, which kept her nice and warm this past chilly Sunday.  Isn't she adorable!
Now you may be thinking, "That is so adorable, I wish I could get some cute stuff too!"  Well, good things she has her own Etsy shop!  Stop on by Two Little Seastars and check out all the great things that Kaeli and her friend Britteny have made!


Disclaimer: This post was written with no compensation other than the warm fuzzy feeling I get about my good friend.  It was written solely because I love my friend!

Feeding

*SIGH*
Why is feeding your baby so hard?
I guess not all moms have this issue.  I have friends who feed there babies so effortlessly.  Their milk flows like never ending streams and their babies gain pounds each week.
Feeding has never been easy for me.  I have lamented on this issue before in my post Not Meant to Nurse  after the birth of my 3rd daughter.  I have since had two more beautiful girls and have struggled with their feeding as well.  I have tried every herb there is, pumped before and after birth, fed continuously and met with many lactation consultants.  To my frustration and sadness, my milk does not nourish my babies.  I have mourned 5 times as I have packed away the nursing bras and pump and pulled out the formula and bottles.  I have had to deal with the dirty looks and rude comments from mothers who don't understand.  I have had to deal with the guilt in my own heart when I read articles about how breast milk is the only way to feed your baby.  I have dealt with the frustration of having to remember to pack bottles and formula, only to show up at my destination lacking in one or the other. 
We have now hit a new stage in our feeding issues. We have begun making our own homemade formula with raw milk using this recipe recommended by Sally Fallon and the Weston A. Price Foundation.  Gathering all the supplies has been difficult.  I have continually misread directions and labels.  I have made quite a few batches incorrectly and had to toss the whole precious batch.  Just when I think I've done everything right, I end up realizing I mixed something wrong or added the wrong amount of an ingredient and have to start all over again. 
I just want to feed my baby.  I want her to have the healthiest diet we can provide.  I will never be blessed with the ease of breastfeeding.  Every bottle I make is one less bottle to worry about and brings us closer to that blessed last bottle when she turns 1. 
Lord have mercy!
I'm not sure that I have much of a point to this post other than to do a little venting.
I love my babies!  Abigail is such a beautiful, happy child.  She doesn't hold it against me that she can't nurse.  She forgives me every time she vomits up my formula mistakes.  She smiles and coos and snuggles without hesitation with her less than perfect mother.  I am blessed!
So as I am washing my bed sheets once more and remaking a batch of formula yet again, I will do so with love in my heart for the precious life I have been entrusted with, knowing I am doing the best that I can with the resources that I have. 

Maple Salmon

Don't you just love Elf?  I couldn't help but be reminded of this scene as I was preparing tonite's dinner :)

I have always tried to incorporate fish into our diet, but have never been very creative with it. The most I could come up with on my own was to fry some fish in my own bread crumbs and olive oil. Although this makes for a delightful Southern dish, I am sure there are many more healthy alternatives out there. I always enjoy following the suggestions on the Trader Joe's wrappers for cooking fish. But, *gasp*, my husband brought home some Salmon that had no directions! What is a girl to do?! To the Internet I go! Allrecipes.com pulled through again tonite. My husband usually gets food from work on Thursday nights, saving me the trouble of packing him a dinner, but tonite he stole from the girls leftovers so that he would have this salmon dish at work too! I was hopeful that the sweetness from the syrup would have been appealing to my girls, but alas, it was fish, so therefore they did not touch it. But let me tell you, it was one tasty dish! I felt like a master chef! This is such an easy marinade made with very few, common household ingredients. I followed many of the suggestions and omitted the garlic salt and doubled the batch. I also basted my fish half-way through the cook time. Many other suggestions included wrapping in tin foil to help keep things flavorful, but since I don't like tin foil, I basted. It turned out great. Once one the plate I covered it once more with the sauce. YUM!!!

So check out the recipe for Maple Salmon and enjoy!

Someday I am going to learn how to take good pictures of my own food. For now, I must borrow from others.

 



Picture taken from allrecipes.com

Won't you be my neighbor?

I was a surprise baby. Not an "oops" but a flat out Shock!  My mom had her tubes tied and then I was born three years later.  Crazy, huh!?  Because I was not in the plans, my brother and sister were a bit older than me.  Old enough that we didn't have a whole lot in common to play with.  So what did that mean for me?  I had to make my own friends.  My target?  The neighbors.  There was a sweet old man that lived next door with a quiet wife and children that did not live near.  If I ever caught him in his yard, I was over chatting his ear off.  Most days, I would find him in his garage tinkering on his old VW van (he offered it to me once I could drive, but I declined).  I'm not sure exactly what we talked about, but he would show me his tools and we would chat about life until mom called me home.  I don't think he minded. At least he never showed it.  He was at my wedding and has given a gift when each of my children were born. 
So why am I telling you about my neighbor?  A new generation of friends has bloomed.  My sweet daughters have now become friends with my neighbor.  Whenever we go visit at my mom's house, if I can't find them in her back yard, I know they are at the neighbors.  It's funny, they still seem to be the same age as they were when I was friends with them.  I know it warms their heart to have more sweet little girls to chat with about life.  I know it does my girls good to chat with an older couple. 
Today we stopped by my mom's for lunch. Caroline ran out of the van straight to our neighbors to show the teeth she had just lost.  I got so tickled when she came back.  They knew their name started with an "R", but had mixed up the sounds.  So she let me know all about her visit with "Mr. Rogers."  Too cute, huh! :)  She was pretty much right, that would be a good name for him!

Garbanzo Bean Salad

photo taken from allrecipes.com

 

Again, in a quest to find a recipe to fit the ingredients around the house, I found this lovely bean salad!  It was so simple to make and very tasty.  I admit, the girls didn't eat much of it; they pretty much just picked out the apples.  I did make a side of mac n' cheese to help fill their bellies.  If I were to make it again, and I plan to, I think I would at least add some sunflower seeds.  If you were wanting a little meat, I would add some cooked chicken and just make extra dressing.  This will be a new staple in my house for a quick lunch, especially for company!  Click the link to check out the recipe for Garbanzo Bean Salad!

Chicken Parmesan Bundles

Every so often I am behind in my menu planning (what, with 5 kids 6 and under? imagine that!).  I love to browse through Allrecipes.com typing in various items I do and don't have around the house and see what exciting meals I can come up with.  Many times I get the basic idea of a meal and then tweak it a little.   Yesterday I came across this yummy recipe for Chicken Parmesan Bundles.  Since I prefer to use a few pre-packaged items as possible, this is how I adjusted the recipe for our natural diet:
4 ounces Trader Joe's cream cheese
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 1/4 cups raw mozzarella cheese, divided
6 tablespoons Trader Joe's Parmesan cheese, divided
2 Tb. parsley
4 thin cut Trader Joes' chicken breast
1 egg
a couple slices of stale bread chopped into bread crumbs
garlic salt (to taste, optional)
Trader Joe's Marinara Sauce

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix cream cheese, spinach, 1 cup mozz., 3Tb. Parmesan and parsley. 
2. Pound down chicken breast until they are 1/4 inch thickness, easy to stuff and roll.
3. Drop a scoop of spinach mixture on flat chicken and roll up.
4.  Put your bread crumbs, left over Parmesan, and some garlic salt in a baggie. 
5. Mix an egg in a small dish.
6. Coat each chicken roll in egg and then shake to coat in bread crumbs
7. Lay seam side down in a baking dish and bake for 30 minutes
8. Top with heated Marinara sauce and some cheese.

Sugar and Spice

Homemade spice gifts from my garden

Today was fun in the kitchen day!  We were stuck in the house because one of the kiddos had a fever.  I decided to make the most of it and do some work in the kitchen.  I had to make some loaves of bread today anyways, so that must have got me started.  Plus I had some great looking pumpkins still sitting on my front steps that totally didn't match our Christmas decor :)  I love making my own pumpkin puree and all the pumpkin treats that go with it.  I had big dreams for today, but limited supplies of oil, so we could only do so much. I even felt generous enough to let the girls watch and help.  Serious patience...serious. 



Spices from the back, so pretty!

Two summers ago I had so much fun growing my own Oregano, that this past summer I decided to use my front flower bed to grow herbs and spices.  The two top pictures show my results.  After leaving a little behind for my own supplies, I was able to fill 12 baby food jars with my own harvested spices.  It was a long process, weeding, harvesting, drying and crushing the plants.  But the end result makes it all worth it! I look forward to expanding my herbs next year.  We did attempt at growing our own pumpkins from last year's seeds, but I think we started too late, because we never had any flowers turn into pumpkins :(


Pumpkin seeds to eat and for next year's garden

10 cups of homemade pumpkin puree

Lovely pumpkin bread with my new pumpkin loaf pan

 Our children are growing like weeds, our other little Sugar and Spices :)  Makayla has lost a total of 5 teeth, what a busy Tooth Fairy!  Caroline continues to grow in her reading skills, I am very proud of how far she has come this year.  We are trying to teach Sydney to potty train...trying...and trying.  Julianna has learned how to stand herself up on her own, we are just waiting for her to take that first step!  Abigail just smiles and smiles, she is so close to a giggle. Our 5 little blessings!


Our Little Family



We have 5, FIVE, daughters!  When and how did that happen? We are still in shock and awe of the blessings with which we have been entrusted.  Life is a pleasant, but sometimes crazy, busy; filled with lots of diapers and dishes, laundry and laughter, crying and chatter, playing and peace.  I am in love with my little family!

 

I have finally been able to get out of the house some.  I was so thankful to be Churched (a little "ceremony" where the Priest welcomes a new mother back to services) this past Sunday.  Although a bit crazy (there are no nurseries in the Orthodox church), it was so nice to be back worshipping as a family with our "family."

 

I have also been able to start school back with Makayla and Caroline.  It adds a nice business and structure to our day.  I know the girls enjoy having some constructive to do and I like that they are kept busy with some worthwhile.  They have been such GREAT helpers this time around, getting my breakfast ready and even attempting to prepare a bottle (without being asked...)  Even Sydney is ready to insert a paci any time Abby lets out a whimper.

 

Sydney is getting more and more independent everyday.  "No Help" is heard often as she attempts to clothe herself and drink from a big girl cup.  She is not yet willing to perform on the potty yet, but once she decides to, I think it will come quickly for her.  She is so sweet and kind, always thinking of others and being willing to help.  She still loves her "dee-dee" (blanky) and carries it around with her throughout the day.  She will leave it in the car when asked (thankfully!)

 

Julianna has surprised us all by starting to pull up in her crib!  She has been seen crawling a few steps from time to time.  We are pleased with the progress we are seeing in her gross motor skills.  She likes to feed herself, including spaghetti, so meals are a pretty messy time, but any help we can get from her is great!

 

Abigail poops, pees, eats and sleeps :)  A few weeks ago some friends from church came over and did a photo shoot, so I thought I would share some of my favorite pictures that they sent me.  If you like their work and would like to schedule your own photo shoot, check out their websites: www.pelikanportraits.com and www.reinieday.com/photography

 

Abigail Charity

Our birth story begins with 41 loooong weeks of pregnancy.  For those of you that have ever been over due, you can understand the amount of patience it takes to endure each and every day, moment by long moment. The last month of my pregnancy had been pretty miserable, filled with daily puking, boughts of sciatica and just general tired/whinyness.  We were scheduled to have an ultrasound and NST at 41 weeks and I was hoping that surely something would show up that just convinced the midwives to induce (note: inducing is not natural, which goes against the whole reason I was going to the midwife in the first place, but hey, I was getting desperate.)  Good for baby, bad for me, the ultrasound and NST went very well.  The midwives were very encouraging and gave me lots of tools to go home and work on to help baby move things along, as well as preparing my body as well as they could during the apt. (no details required ;) 
Since we were already in town and planning on going to church that night, we decided to stay in town at my mom's house instead of making the drive back home.  I was feeling some contractions, but nothing was regular or painful, so I chose to ignore them.  We had dinner with my folks and headed off to church.
Julianna has had a very bad case of what I call "Pewitis."  She just does not like sitting in the pew anymore, so she requires some extra attention.  Our church service involves a lot of standing with some sitting mixed in, which is normally fine, except for when I am contracting and everyone else is sitting down and all I wanna do is stand.  So I volunteer for Juls duty during church and we have a fun time walking around the back of the church.  We visit and chat as normal after services and begin making the trek back home. 
Once we are home I am starting to recognize some regularity with the contractions and feel some discomfort.  I let Josh put the girls to bed while I lay down and time contractions.  About 30 minutes in to things Josh decides it's time to head to the grocery store.  I give him a look and tell him not to dawdle.  After he gets home I tell him it's time to call the midwife.  I give her the details and she says to head on in.  We make our calls to get our children taken care of and head off to the birth center.
We have an hour drive and thankfully Josh sets the cruise control and we have a peaceful trip to the center.  Things pick up a bit in the car and I tell Josh that I would at least like to be at 3cm by the time we get there, just to ensure I am in labor. 
It just happened to work out that the same midwife who delivered Julianna was on call and we were able to be in the same birth room.  It was very comforting.  Once I arrived, the midwife informed me I was at 5cm.  I was very pleased!  She made some suggestions on how to get things moving more, so I took my spot on the birthing ball with the TENS unit on my back.  Josh and the nurse stayed by my side for quite a while and I enjoyed the distraction of listening to them chat with each other. 
After a while we decided to change positions.  I tried the bed, but was quickly convinced that the tub would feel better.  BOY did it!  There is nothing like a nice hot bath!  I had Josh sit next to me (not in the tub) so I could hold his hand. 
Things quickly got more intense and the nurse could tell I was naturally trying to push so she went and got the midwife.  Much to my chagrin, I was only 7cm (I was hoping for 9).  Let me tell you, I just love my midwife!  I told her I felt like my water was never going to break, so she quickly took care of that for me and then continued to massage my cervix until it was ripe for pushing!  It sounds painful, and it is, but there is nothing like a quick transition!  Within minutes I was holding my precious baby Abigail!  I know I uttered something to the effect of, "Finally, it's over!" 
I never imagined that I would have a water birth, but we did and it went great!  Although it seemed like a long 41 weeks, at least Abby blessed me with a beautifully short 4 hour labor!
And that is my story :)

Learning from Children

This week has been a bit chaotic for me. Whether it be from those early pregnancy hormones and sleepiness or just a plain overwhelmed Mama, there have been some "moments" this week. In an effort to help me cope with the ever increasing chores of an ever growing family, I have taught my oldest daughters to unload the dishwasher (minus the sharp knifes, so thankful to Corelle dishes!) When I remember to ask them to unload the dishwasher, it really is a blessing to have one less chore. Today it was even more of a blessing. I do strive to remember do everything to bring glory to God, even the mundane work of the house. The girls gave me such a positive reminder today! While I was working elsewhere I heard the girls singing church songs while unloading the dishwasher! What a humbling moment. I am so blessed to have such precious children to remind me of the beauty of enjoying God in every moment.