Good, better....getting better...

Pooping has come to a complete halt. That is, unless it ends up in the diaper. AND, he then wants to flush the poops down the toilet. AND, before the flushing happens, he wants to PEE in the potty and then have ME pour it in the toilet so he can flush AGAIN.

He is absolutely terrified of pooping in the potty. Doesn't matter that he's done it before.

Rationalizing that the poops end up in the toilet whether he makes it in the toilet, the potty or the diaper is completely irrelevant to him.

So we let him poop in the diaper.

At least he allows us to watch again.

***

There was a guy in my basement yesterday. He was supposed to come today when hubby specifically booked the morning off. Took a bit of panic about what was said to whom and why he's coming now instead of when it was scheduled, but at least the guy came and moved the gas pipe.

Hubby also manages to show up prior to the basement guy leaving. They talked, and MORE progress happened. We now have a hole in our livingroom floor where the new vent/duct will go.
See it? between the randomly placed pieces of furniture that WILL EVENTUALLY end up in the basement?

Trust me, this is progress.

AND, today, another guy is coming to move the AC unit outside away from underneath the porch to the side of the house. That is, his boss said he was coming. He's not here yet, but he will come, dammit.

AND, Bob is coming all next week to put walls up. AND, a couple of other guys are coming to finish the duct work downstairs that yesterday's guy started.

Could this be happening? Am I dreaming? Will the bulk of the dirty, dusty work be done prior to the baby's arrival?

Sure would be nice.

***

Took my crockpot out. I LOVE MY CROCKPOT! It's so easy, what with all the interruptions and toddler not napping and the dog freaking out at every noise coming out of the basement and what not. I stick the food in, I turn it on, and I forgetaboutit.

Made enough spaghetti sauce to freeze two jars for afterbabytime AND have enough for supper for all three of us.

YUM.

Confusion

I'm confused.

I thought that when the furnace guy was here, he said that we could move the ducts closer to the beam. That was one of the options.

Apparently I misunderstood.

Hubby spoke to the guy on the phone today and now the Wed-Fri work is no longer happening. Since what they spoke about is different from what I thought I understood.

Now the only thing that's happening is that the gas line will be moved.

We were supposed to have a whole shitload of other stuff happen, like a new vent, a plugged vent to accommodate a new built-in dishwasher, and the consolidation of the rest of the duct work.

I don't understand why nothing is happening.

I don't understand what has changed.

I don't understand why I have to talk to people and make decisions if they just get changed later.

I refuse to deal with any renos anymore. The baby is due in less than a month and I'm simply not in the mood.

* * *

And while we're on the subject of confusion, I made granola today. Used what looked like a fairly simple recipe from a Parenting magazine.

The granola tastes ok, but it looks crumbly, and doesn't stick properly.

Not sure what the problem was. Not enough honey maybe?

Will have to try again.

Chaos

In some ways it's amazing that while THIS is going on....




I can still make THAT for dinner...

Pasta dish

Grilled veggies from the garden, add pasta, and there's your dinner!


See recipe on quick Slow Food link.

Fresh ingredient supper

I used some of these...

...and all of these...

...plus some fresh oregano from the garden...

...to end up with this!


Recipe and instructions available here.

Experimenting with cooking and photography

I made two salads yesterday:

Quinoa salad


Potato salad with mustard vinaigrette

Recipes will be posted over at Quick Slow Food.

Tired

Had a lovely night of twitching toddler in bed, and kicking baby in tummy.

Mommy will need a nap later (too much caffein in system now). Feel like shopping. May go do that now.

Or, I may go down to the cool basement and look for the lost bin with the summer dresses in it. WHERE IS IT?? It's a two-bedroom bungalow for god's sake. There isn't much space. WHERE could I have put it? AND WHY isn't it where the other bins are? Could I have mislabeled it with baby gear?

Shopping sounds more fun.

Here's a quick little recipe idea for a hot day.

Food

I'm currently in a food photo taking mood. Check out our salad from last night.

Heart disease

A good friend was recently diagnosed with Angina.

Just before that, he was concerned about a spot on his lungs. The patch went on, and the focus was on lung cancer.

On Good Friday he admitted himself into the hospital with chest pains. The following week he got an angioplasty - he's 38.

Life has to completely change for him. Everything, from the eating habits to the lifestyle changes.

***
My hubby and I are fans of the whole food diet, organic diet, and less is more in general. This doesn't mean we don't ever eat junk. That being said, we rarely pick up fast food or eat chain food, too many mom-and-pop shops around to try out in Hogtown, but we have been known to buy oven-baked fries, or some PC prepared product you can shove in an oven with a blink of an eye.

But the bulk of our diet is whole foods. We like to cook, we like to eat, and we eat with gusto.

And, happily, so does our child.

***
Our buddy now is constantly asking us for advice. He bought a huge bag of flax seeds and sprinkles some on almost all the food he eats now. We encouraged him to grind them first, as per Rosie Schwartz's article in the National Post recently regarding the benefits of ground flax vs whole flax. (The article appeared in the newspaper and isn't available on the web.)

It's a start.

Our aim now is to help him stay away from the processed foods, even if they are stamped by some health authority. Whole foods are better for you anyway.

I am spurred to keep my food blog going, with a new emphasis. To help those who need to change their diet with tips and recipe ideas from a non-expert who lives a healthy life.

Easy chicken supper

This is a great recipe that takes only a little time to prepare. It's very versatile and you can add or subtract whatever you want each time you make it. While it's baking in the oven you can play with child/ren, rake the yard, clean the bathroom, or blog to your heart's content. I mopped the floors.

Pour good quality canned tomatos into an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with oregano, sea salt, pepper, and any other spices you want.










If you want less fat, pick skinless chicken. We pick chicken legs from the Mennonites (not officially stamped organic, but close enough), with skin and bone in. Season with whatever you like (sea salt, pepper, thyme) .










Bake in 400 F oven for 45 to 60 minutes or until meat thermometer says it's cooked.










Serve with a green salad, and/or any vegetables you want. We poured the tomato sauce over rice, but you can make egg noodles, or simply omit the carbs alltogether. Or you can use a good quality multi-grain or whole-grain piece of bread to sop up the sauce.










PS you can modify this recipe by adding onions, leeks, and/or garlic to the tomatos.

For more on food, go to Quick Slow Food.

The effects of non-organic meat on toddler poop

Disclaimer: If the mention of poop offends you, stop reading now.


We buy most of our meat from a reputable butcher. He gets his meat from farms who treat their animals the traditional way. Chickens from the Mennonites, beef from a farmer who is letting his cattle graze on pastures, no additives, antibiotics, etc.

Meat doesn't have to be certified organic to be good for you.

Did you know that a single pound of pre-packaged ground beef, purchased at a local supermarket, is made from up to 200 cows? I recall mention of this in Fast Food Nation, a book that describes in excrutiating detail the mistreatment and complete disrespect of animals grown to feed the North American public. (note: this is not a direct quote, only a vague recollection)

They combine beef from hundreds of animals and grind it together to make ground beef which is then packaged and sold at grocery stores, or shipped to places like McDonalds.

The traditional way of making ground beef is to go to a butcher, ask for ground beef, and the butcher then selects an apropriate slab of meat and places it into the grinder. One piece of meat (from one cow) becomes purer ground beef.

So.

The other day, we purchased ground beef from the grocery store. We just haven't had time to go to our favorite butcher.

I made chili and spaghetti sauce.

Both of which my toddler likes.

Then, he developed diaper rash.

He never has diaper rash.

He's never had diaper rash.

I blame the ground beef. I truly believe that this is true.

Ben pooped twice that morning, within 20 minutes, and I was barely able to clean him up from all that sticky, smelly mess. He didn't let me either, and once I saw the rash I realized why. All that rubbing must have hurt him.

So I threw him in the shower. The lukewarm water on his bum was tolerated better, and I was able to wash with soap, and rise off directly with the detachable showerhead.

Then I applied a thick coat of baby bum lotion (Gerber I think) to prevent further discomfort.

It just makes me so sad that our respect for the food on our table has become practically non-existant.

Rüeblitorte (Swiss Carrotcake)

Today I baked a Swiss style carrotcake.

What's different about this type of carrot cake compared to the North American ones is that
a) there is much less sugar and icing involved, and
b) there is very little flour included in the ingredient list.

The cake consists mostly of carrots, almonds and eggs. It's very moist and flavourful, and preferable without icing, or with just a touch of lemony icing sugar poured over it.

And, it tastes better the next day.

For details, recipe and conversions (grams to cups) see my food blog Quick Slow Food.

The challenge today was to let Benjamin help without causing me too much of a mess and grief. He's been a little on the rambunctious side, and after his little friend Sebastian was over for a visit, not exactly docile. In fact, the way Benjamin acts at home with visitors is the complete opposite of how he behaves when he's visiting other people. At home, he's rough, hyper, overly excited and not always nice to the other kid(s).

At their house, he's a model child. Go figure.

Note to self: find a way to positively reinforce good behaviour when he gets out of control.

Chicken with fettucine

Made this for supper the other night. With fresh pasta!!















Go to my Quick Slow Food blog for details.

My new friend: yeast

Yeast and I are developing a relationship. Didn't have one before.

Been baking bread, and fairly successfully at that.










Made pizza with my own yeast dough today. Details here.

Bread - attempt number 3

Well, I made more bread. This time it was whole wheat, and this time I didn't follow the recipe completely exactly. I cheated a bit here and there, and went more with "how it feels" than "what the book says".


The loaf looks good....not sure how dense it is considering I used an organic whole wheat flour...

Before rising...

After first and second rising....

Final product!

Visit my Quick Slow Food blog for recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.

Bread - attempt number 2

After my first attempt at baking my own bread a couple of days ago, I am trying again. Same flour, but instead of the quick rise yeast I'm using the normal one. And, I'm following the recipe on the flour bag, rather than the one in a book.






Visit my Quick Slow Food blog recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.










Well. The homestyle white dough is rising as I type this.


Before rising ...




After rising.








Hm...the bread is now doing its second rising, in the designated pans. I had to punch it down first...that was kind of fun...



Before second rising...







Stay tuned.

psss...I just peaked into the oven window....there seems to be some rising happening again....a little bump is visible through the tea towel....shhh, don't disturb my bread. Thankfully the little sickie is napping....

Well, the bread turned out yummy! I'm too tired to download the photos today but will post them tomorrow.

Benjamin saw them cooling on a rack on the kitchen table, climbed up on a chair, picked up a loaf and said

ooooooooooohhhh

He had some for supper with

butta

Can't wait to get a nice multigrain done next...or maybe a rye or sourdough...

Next day: I'm not any less tired than yesterday but did have an opportunity to download some photos, among other tasks. Why I'm not napping now while he's napping, I don't know. Tried, but couldn't shut the brain off...

Bread pictures: Here they are.....SUCCESS!

Visit my Quick Slow Food blog for recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.

Bad (drinking) mother of branded child

Yes, we let our toddler watch TV.

Specifically, he watches programs of our choosing, for a limited amount of time, either pre-taped, DVD or on the kids' TV channel Treehouse. He likes Mighty Machines, Thomas the Tank Engine, and similar programs. Thankfully he doesn't like Dora or Diego (I find Dora in particular very annoying).

We don't have any time limits or specific rules regarding TV. Yet. And yes, sometimes I allow him to watch more than I should, for various reasons most parents of toddler would immediately understand.

So imagine my surprise when this morning, upon seeing the treehouse icon, my not yet two year old actually says the word at the exact time he's looking at the word!


No...he can't read yet. I think this is clearly a case of brand recognition (GASP).

Fortunately he has not yet imitated the catchy little tune that they play between segments. You know..."♪ you're watching TREE...house ♪".

I was astonished, shocked and surprised, and immediately turned the TV off. My brain feels bombarded. Is he branded now? Commercialized? RUINED?

Perhaps I'm exaggerating a tad. It would help if I could remember the author, or the book's title, about a topic related to this situation. (Elisabeth Schor? Juliette Schorr? The branded child???) I would love to re-read her research results. But I can't for the life of me recall it, nor are the various search engines very helpful in that regard.

The reality however is that TV is a part of our life. Although hubby and I don't watch much, we do tune in and sometimes even tolerate shows that could best be described as idiotic. I even admit that I taped, during various times throughout my adult life, soap operas or other similar shows. Yes, taped them, so as to speed through the commercials. And you'll find me occasionally watching sitcoms like King of Queens, or Seinfeld, or Frasier, or even the one with Charlie Sheen in it...what's it called again? Something about two men?

Benjamin loves his videos. He knows which one he likes to watch, and picks them out at the library himself. He can have a mini-meltdown if he's not allowed to tune in at the exact moment he wants to.

But I redirect him often, and offer to play with him. As a SAHM (for now) I recently re-discovered Lego, and I have to admit I'm having great fun creating little vehicles for him (if it's got wheels, he's interested in it). We also read books, paint, do crafts, shovel snow and do an assortment of other things. He even has his own chores.

What does this have to do with the drinking part in the title of this post you ask?

Well...visit some mom blogs today and you'll note that almost all of them, particularly those of our American friends south of the border, have seen a segment on the Today Show a few days ago with Meredith making some comment about drinking mommies. You'll have to tune in to the various rants yourself to find out about it if you haven't heard. Try Notes from the Trenches (she's got 7 kids), or Mom, Ma'am Me (the first one I saw on this topic) for some of those rather funny commentaries.

Which brings me back to the drinking.

I enjoy my glass(es) of wine with some (many) homecooked meals. Given today's revelation however, that my toddler is now officially brainwashed, I can't help but think that Meredith would cast judgement on me too.

I know one thing for sure. We're having at least one glass of red wine with our T-bone steak tonight.

Cheers.

Bread

I am not a baker.

But recenty the National Post published an article, actually two I think, by Rosie Schwartz, called Sorting through the chaff. You can read the internet version here. It's about how Health Canada labels, or doesn't label, the food we buy in stores. Namely, what the real definition of whole wheat is, or should be. Specifically, the word "whole" in whole wheat is what is being debated.

Anyway. Some years ago the hubby read a book by James Beard called Beard on Bread. He made a couple of interesting breads from the book, and was given a slew of different kinds of flours and various sized baking pans by some family as a gift, all in the hopes of encouraging the hobby.

But hubby got busy with his job and continuing education and hasn't been able to practice the bread-making hobby much. So I figure, I may as well start doing it. Rosie's article kind of helped push me toward it too. Not that it was a big push, we like eating whole and organic foods, for taste and health.

Back to the baking. I just made a simple white bread dough using dry active yeast. Normally yeast and I don't get along, but apparently that's the yeast's fault, for being expired. I didn't know that yeast can expire. Beard and hubby helped educate me in that aspect.

I "proofed" the yeast as per baker Beard's instructions. Seems that our yeast was dead. Alive yeast was needed. So I stomped off to the corner store wearing heavy winter boots (new snow fell over night!) to buy some overpriced packaged yeast. (It's kind of like craving chocolate - when I want it badly enough, I go out and get it, no matter what the weather.)

So. The dough is rising as I type.


Before rising
About 1.5 hours later....looks bigger, doesn't it?

Stay tuned...






Ok. The first rising seemed to be working, although perhaps I should have waited even longer than the designated 2 hours.

Then, there's the situation about the second rising. It just didn't happen. May have been the inconsistent heat or humidity in the house, who knows.

I also decided to make two smaller loaves instead of one bigger one, but the dough looked kind of pathetic in the smaller pans that I had in the house:



After second rising, before baking...







...after baking.








I took a ruler to measure how high/tall/deep the bread "grew". Asked the hubby to hold the ruler. He of course was smirking away, and to counter the smirk he proclaimed that "it'll taste really good". Or something to that effect.



I snapped the photo and then sent him on his way before the ruler ended up someplace where the sun don't shine.

Maybe I'll try again tomorrow.




PS It wasn't till later that I found out that my mother NEVER EVER does a second rising. She just knocks the risen dough around a few times, throws in a few punches, and bakes it immediately afterwards. Her bread always looks like normal bread. Not like mine, all flat and dense.


Visit my Quick Slow Food blog for recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.

Tea cravings

Currently I drink massive amounts of decaf tea. This is mainly to keep from eating massive amounts of chocolate.

I crave comfort foods. Always happens when winter comes. And today, for the first time THIS winter, we have snow too!

note 1: It's been unseasable warm in the south-western Ontario area for the month of January, so a bit of fluffy white stuff is actually welcomed by some.

note 2: There isn't enough fluffy white stuff to warrant taking out the shovel, but it does look nice when rooftops and dead grass are covered with it.

So what's one to do when all this cool, wintery weather appears? Well, I made a pot of tea, and thought about the chocolate I don't have in the house.

Anyway, while shopping at Loblaws earlier, a place I rarely visit but had an inkling to do today, I hesitated picking up a nice container of orange-cranberry scones. Pushed the cart back to the display shelf a couple of times, but didn't cave to the crave.

Arg.

I should have bought them. Despite of the unpronouncable ingredient list.

I had nothing to eat with my tea, so I had to toast two frozen waffles. Spread them with unsalted butter, and maple syrup.

It was good, but the scone would have gone better with my seven cups of tea.

Maybe I'll bake another cake for tomorrow's emergency craving.


Visit my Quick Slow Food blog for recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.

Quick dinner idea

I made Chicken on spinach a couple of nights ago when I was in a hurry.

If you have chicken and frozen spinach in the house, and feta cheese (or any salty, sharp, or crumbly cheese), this meal takes minutes to make.

It bakes for about an hour, just enough time to accomplish a task off the to-do-list.

Visit my Quick Slow Food blog for recipes, food commentaries and cookbook suggestions.