Feeling Crafty & Thrifty

It seems like ever since I became a mom that I have a hawk eye for finding toys on the side of the road that no one wants anymore.  I found Nugget's John Deere riding toy in the neighbor's trash pile and all that was wrong with it was that it needed a new charger and battery ($60ish), I found old school Tonka metal dump trucks, and yesterday, what at first I thought was a major score, a train table compatible with the Thomas wooden trains.  Nugget is a huge, and I mean huge Thomas fan.  She knows the Roll Call song, knows the name of every one of Thomas' friends, and could probably watch the show 24/7 if I let her.  So when I saw the train table on the side of the road on our way home from daycare, I did a 180 attempted to load it up in the car.  In my adrenaline rush I failed to notice that the tabletop was trashed, there were parts missing, and the table itself wasn't in the best of shape, but dang it, I got that table in the jeep complete with the kids, packages I needed to ship, and groceries, and I was proud!

After finding the train table online with a little Google-fu, I discovered that when it was new it was selling for almost $200.  In the end, I'm not going to be able to salvage the top, there's just too much yucky sticky stuff on it, but I can save the tracks and bridge it had on it and keep the table base. The table base needs a good cleaning and tightening of the screws.  What I'm probably going to do (and hopefully I'll find time before August which is Nugget's birthday) is buy some plywood, either felt or low pile AstroTurf, some sand, plexiglass, and type of paint that I can make to look like water and make Nugget her very own one-of-a-kind train table.  When my brother and I were kids we had our own HO scale train set and I built most of the buildings, so this should come natural, right?  Well, after hauling that damn table home, I am determined to make this work!  haha

Follow amy's board diy train table makeovers on Pinterest.

Invasion of the ladybugs!

Say hello to our leetle friends...

Our house has apparently become a haven for Japanese lady beetles this winter.  I first noticed them in November when they were all clustered at the peak of the ceiling in our livingroom and until I used the binoculars on them, I thought I had a black mold problem.  The peak of the ceiling is at least 20 feet tall, so unless I got out a ridiculously tall ladder and ventured up there with my hand vacuum, they weren't going anywhere.  Eventually they disappeared and I thought that was the end of them.  The end of them that is until last week.

For some reason, they are drawn to Nugget's room.  They are EVERYWHERE.  On her humidifier, in her dresser, on her windows, on the floor, on her owl nightlight; it's beyond ridiculous!   I tried crushing them, but they leave a brownish-yellow stain and also let out a unpleasant odor.  Did I mention that they bite?  While reading Nugget bedtime stories the other night, one crawled up my pant leg and chomped down on me. So yeah, other than bug bombing the house (which is not going to happen) I guess we are going to be stuck with our invaders for awhile.  I think I'm going to have the hubby crawl around on the roof come spring and look for places these little buggers are coming in and plug the holes with caulk.  Maybe until then I can get a few carnivorous plants and start feeding the lady beetles to them for fun or is that a tad twisted?

My little guy is growing up

I installed "big boy" car seats in both vehicles today and put the "bucket" seat in the basement for now until I decide what to do with it.  It's bittersweet to me because this means that in a little under two months, Hank will be a year old.  My "baby making" days are behind me, and as much as I loved being pregnant, it's not worth the risks for me or any potential spawn.  My age, risk of birth defects, the sizes of the babies, and injuries to me outweigh my desire to be pregnant again.  The hubby and I did talk about it, and if by chance I still have the baby itch in a year or so perhaps we could foster/adopt a child.

I've also had to run around the house and start re-baby proofing everything.  Hank is pretty mobile and cruising next to any object that he can pull himself up on and walk around.  He's also managed to get into Nugget's crayons on her art table, the pantry, and the cats food dishes when I've had my back turned for a moment.  There are few things freakier than looking at your 10 month old with rainbow colored teeth.

Other than that, I am getting tired of being cooped up in the house because it's too cold to take Hank out to play with Nugget.  I know she's feeling the same way.  We've been doing lots of dancing to the Spotify playlist I made for her to help beat the boredom and make car rides more fun.  Her favorites are anything Yo Gabba Gabba, Elmo, and Pharrell's "Happy."

Bargain Hunting the Geekius Domesticus Way

Raising kids is expensive.  I knew this when we had Nugget, but I didn't have any idea of a dollar figure.  Cribs, diapers, clothes, pjs, toys, car seats, high chairs, the list goes on and on.  According to a study that came out last year, it costs an average of $241,080 to raise a child from birth to age 18.  That figure doesn't even include college or trade school, which is insane to me.  I'm not a extreme couponer, but I do like the satisfaction of getting a good deal when I can.

Enter Amazon.com and Warehouse Deals. I honestly hate the word "pre-owned" as it just sounds cheesy as heck but if I can buy something that's new and the packaging may be damaged but the item is okay, sign me up!  I bought Hank's bedding, lamps for the house, and now Hank's big boy car seat.  My biggest saves so far were Hank's bedding ($60 less than original price) and his car seat ($50 less than original price.)  So yeah, I can live with the fact it doesn't have a box or the box has extra tape on it.  All the item are backed by Amazon's guarantee, return policy, and best of all, Amazon Prime shipping.  I'm the first to admit I love the fact I don't have to drive to the store and have it arrive a day or two after I order it.  Granted, Prime costs $79 a year, but if you factor in Instant Video and if you do a lot of online shopping, it almost pays for itself in the long run.

I've also been utilizing the heck out of craigslist too,  Nugget is a huge Thomas the Tank Engine fan and I'm pretty sure I've seen every movie on Netflix and Prime Instant video.  The wooden trains are not cheap, and I know how much she loves them.  I've been able to score quite a few of them via craigslist and get her lots of track too.  Next on my craigslist search, Tidmouth Sheds and Sir Topham Hat.

So yeah, while I may not have a basement full of toothpaste and mac and cheese boxes, I do know how to save a buck or two when needed, and as Martha says,"It's a good thing."

Random Food Ramblings

One of the many things I've been working on is cutting down processed and pre-made foods in our house.  You may notice that I said cutting down versus eliminating.  Although I love to cook, I need a break every now and again and love me a frozen pizza, and I'll be honest, I am a sucker for Rice-a-roni.   Eating healthier is something that I have been thinking about lately, especially because of where I work and having two small children.  Growing up, my mom didn't do a lot of cooking from scratch.  Sometimes I wonder if it's because as a child of immigrants, she helped make the sausage, unknowingly raised her pet rabbit to be dinner, and just got burnt out on it and felt Hamburger Helper was the way to go.

When I'm at work I've noticed so many people (especially families) buying prepared foods as their primary meals. As I said, I do love me a pizza or even orange chicken from time to time, but I can't imagine not cooking meals from scratch or even semi-homemade. I realize that people lead busy lives and may not enjoy cooking but it seems like even those people could prepare meals in a crock pot with little or no effort. I love to cook but I also know how much money I save when I cook from scratch versus popping a Hungry Man in the microwave. Many foods that claim to have no preservatives are loaded with sodium, and that's not exactly healthy either. I also like knowing where my food is coming from and how it was prepared.

Waiting for the Thaw

Winter has been pretty harsh in the Magical Mitten State.  There have been more days below twenty degrees than above, and according to the meteorologists, this has been the snowiest winter in Michigan since I was four years old.  I am not a snow hater.  I chose to stay in Michigan rather than move to a warmer state, it's these temperatures that are driving me crazy.  Nugget wants to go out to play, but in order for me to do that, I have to bundle Hank up so he looks like Maggie Simpson or the kid from A Christmas Story.  As you can see from the photo to your right, being not old enough to walk and talk, leads to not so fun times getting hauled around the yard by your older sibling.  Nugget was having a blast though!

Due to all this time being trapped inside the house, I have a major case of cabin fever.  When I'm not dancing around the living room, drawing pictures of owls, Mommy trees & baby trees (long story), being climbed on like a jungle gym, I've been looking through my gardening books and seed catalogs.  Nugget even got into the act and was showing me all the things she wants to grow this year.  Now that she's two and a half, she's really into nature, plants, flowers, and wanting to grow strawberries.  I actually bought a strawberry pot and planted it for her and we did get quite a few berries.  Unfortunately, she didn't always wait until the berries were ripe, so our yield wasn't as good as it could have been.  I'm thinking this year will be different.  She told me today that she also wants to grow corn in a flower pot like we saw in the Burpee catalog and lots and lots of flowers.

I am hoping to get the raised veggie gardens I wanted to build while on maternity leave last year built this year too.  Our garden last year produced, but to get maximum growing power, I am definitely going to have some beds near the middle of our backyard so they are away from the tree line and more in the sun.  Much like remembering to update this blog, making sure I actually get the garden built is going to entail staying on my own butt and harassing myself to make sure it gets done,

Hank the Tank is here!

"I'll make you an offer that you can't refuse."

I kept joking that I was keeping Hank in until Ely made it from Chicago.  True to my word, I went into labor the day after I picked Ely up from the train station in Ann Arbor.  I went into full on labor about 4 in the morning and Henry (Hank the Tank) was born 04.28.2013 at 2:59 p.m., nine lbs., five ounces.  If only it was as easy as it sounds.

I had decided to try to go the all natural route after having to do the emergency c section with Nugget.    The hubby got a big chuckle that even though Hank was almost out, I was crying for an epidural.  Because of his size, they had called in extra doctors to aid the midwives in the delivery.   I had passed the glucose test, so I did not have gestational diabetes this time, and they didn't do too much extra monitoring like they did with Nugget.   To make a long story short, there was a decision made whether to break Hank's clavicle or tear me.  I'm glad in the end poor Hank didn't have to endure a broken bone even if the healing longer than I had planned for,  We are so very lucky to have C.S.Mott Children's Hospital in our backyard.  I don't know if I would have wanted to deliver anywhere else.

Having two under two has been a bit crazy.   I honestly feel like The Walking Dead but I wouldn't change a thing.  Nugget is in love with her little brother and wants to help in any way possible.  I should probably try and get some sleep, because these moments are far in in between!

May the force be with you

Now that I'm in the third trimester with Baby Smudge, I've started to get the urge to decorate his room.  I found polka dot crib bedding on clearance just because someone ripped the zipper on the bag, started looking at paint chips to decide on color, and been shopping on Etsy to find some cute prints to hang on his wall.  I'm leaning towards either a very pale icy blue or a grey for the walls.  As for the room "theme" itself, well, i went back and forth on space vs. robots, and this may be the one chance I have to do it, so I'm going with a Star Wars/space theme.  It would be so easy to go hog wild and let the theme overtake the room, especially with my love of Star Wars.  I'm trying to tame it down a bit and I found great prints of the Millennium Falcon, an AT-AT, and R2-D2 from Noodlehug that I'm going to place in white frames.   The next part I'm having trouble with is trying to decide what to do about the mobile.  I'm going to take an existing mobile and make it Star Wars worthy.  I keep going back and forth on whether I want to buy model kits of a few of the ships and hang them from the mobile or find Star Wars amigurumi dolls to hang from it instead.  I've still got ten weeks to decide and he won't be technically moved into his room until I go back to work (hopefully three months) so I have a little bit of time on my side.  Hopefully by the time he's ready to move into his room Elise will be ready for her big girl bed so I won't have to buy another crib. Other than that, I'm checking out craigslist everyday to see if I can find a ddresser to refinish for his room like I did for Elise.  I'm thinking as much as I'd love to have that done before he gets here, it's going to end up like Elise's dresser and not be done for many months unless I'm feeling super energetic (which my energy levels have been depleting rapidly) and motivated.  

Han Solo Bobble head!

  

Brrr...

It's been a bit chilly here in the Magical Mitten state the past few days.  It's times like this that I really look forward to spring.  I also start thinking about gardening, flowers and vegetables.  As I've mentioned before I've become a Pinterest junkie and there are lots of great ideas for gardens on there and it's easy to get lose hours looking around if you're not careful.

I decided last fall not to renew our CSA membership and to focus on growing our own.  I enjoyed having a working share but didn't feel like I would be able to put in the hours at the farm with two little ones under the age of two and enjoy my spring and summer like I wanted.  I also wanted to ensure we would be growing exactly what we wanted to eat.  I have thought about joining a meat/eggs in the future but right now, I want to focus on growing my own little farm in the back yard.

So we're doing this again?!?

I've always wanted to have more than one child.  My brother and I are three years apart and I've been of the belief that two to three years would be a good age difference between siblings.  Well, a funny thing happened on the way to that goal... I'm 13.5 weeks pregnant.  This means there will be 20 months difference between Elise and the new baby, or perhaps I should say just baby.  Elise is growing so fast and running around like crazy that it's hard to think of her as a baby anymore.

Of course with all the excitement of a new baby comes a small twinge of dread.  I am not looking forward to hearing the phrase "Advanced Maternal Age" and definitely not looking forward to the glucose tolerance test and the possibility of being diagnosed with gestational diabetes again.  On the other hand, I weigh ten pounds less than when I first found out I was pregnant with Elise and the gestational diabetes diagnosis really made me look at what I ate and make changes for the better to my diet.  Here's to hoping after this birth I end up weighing at least 10 pounds less than I do now!

Baby Elise's 1st birthday!

Elise modeling her birthday onesie & tutu.

Birthday parties.  There's so much made now about babies having blowout birthday parties to the point that they are hyped almost as much as a Sweet Sixteen party.  I have to admit, I felt a lot of pressure (most of it put on by me) to throw Elise a great party, not that she'll remember it or anything like that.  I knew that I wanted to keep it somewhat low key,and somewhat low budget, so I decided on inviting just immediate family and our neighbor who adores Elise and has watched her on several occasions. 

I have become a Pinterest junkie, so finding cute ideas and themes was easy.  After looking around, I knew I wanted to do a sock monkey theme.  I also knew that because of my work schedule and other events going on prior to her party, I wasn't going to be able to hand make or design all of Elise's decorations.  Etsy has many people who design invites, thank you cards, banners, food labels, and favor tags based on almost every theme available.   After conversing with the designer I chose Designing for Peanuts and she priced out a package for all my needs.  She made pretty much everything a breeze and was a great communicator.  I would definitely consider using her again whether it's for another birthday or a birth announcement. 

Smash cake and party hat!

Finding pink plates and utensils was easy.  Target and Party City have very reasonable prices for both.  Luckily Elise wasn't messy when eating her smash cake, which the hubby was kind enough to make as I was running around cleaning the house like a mad woman.  I'm thinking a tarp or an outdoor cake eating near a hose reel may be necessary for any other 1st birthdays we may celebrate in the future.

The menu consisted of pulled pork (I used a pork shoulder that was ten lbs. and was under $15 at my local grocer), baked beans, broccoli slaw, potato salad, orange fluff, and banana bread.  I did go crazy at Trader Joe's and bought quite a few banana products; banana chips, apple banana squeeze apple sauce, flattened bananas, and we made dark chocolate covered frozen bananas to serve as a treat before cupcakes and ice cream.

My pork got rave reviews.  Everyone was under the impression I slaved over it all day.  My secret?  Ten hours of slow cooking in the crock pot with chicken broth and a few grinds of Trader Joe's African Smoke grinder.  Once the ten hours were up, I let the shoulder cool, cut the fat off, then shredded the meat.  The morning of the party I put the shredded meat in the crock pot again with a bottle of our favorite bbq sauce and a splash of Worcestershire sauce. The best part is we had leftovers and it always tastes better the second day. 

I think she had fun. :-)

So all in all, birthday party, great success.  Is it bad that I'm already browsing Pinterest and getting ideas for next year?

It's crazy what a difference a year makes.

Elise being a ham bone.

Sweet baby Elise will be a year old in just a few days.  I can't even remember what life was before she came into our lives.  The past year has been a whirlwind of activity; late night feedings, crazy looking diapers to change, learning how to use the breast pump and trying to make time to pump at work, and just getting to know Elise.

This past weekend my mother watched Elise and the one night that we didn't have anything planned, I didn't know what to do with myself.  I watched the Olympics on the tele, but honestly I was bored and wanting my baby back at home.  I'm sure in time I will appreciate time apart and just some "me time" but for now, I'll take all the baby talk and messy diapers I can!

Baby of the Cloth

I had decided even before I was pregnant that I wanted to use cloth diapers.  Most people I knew thought I was crazy.  "Why would you want to wash a diaper when you can just dispose of the stinky mess," they would ask.  For me, it wasn't even an environmental issue (well, partly it was) but more of a cost savings for us.  After pricing out what we would spend on disposables each year and a one time buy of a Bum Genius 4.0 with snaps diaper ($17x24 diapers), my mind was made up.

Bum Genius 4.0 in clementine

I decided to purchase 10 newborn AIO Bum Genius diapers in addition to the 4.0s after reading reviews on various websites that the 4.0s may not fit a newborn baby so well.  This turned out to be a good decision and Elise wore the AIOs until she hit about 14 lbs.  When she hit 12 lbs. we put her in the 4.0s at night with a doubler as she was soaking through the newborn diapers and once we did that not only was she not drenched but she started sleeping through the night.

Many websites recommend using Rocking Green detergent to wash the diapers and get the "funk" out.  I have used Method Free + Clear and haven't had too many funky diapers except when Elise started solids.  Once things got a little stinky every once in awhile I would add a tiny amount of bleach to the load or a squirt of dish soap for very stubborn odors.

A few things that I learned this go around that I will remember with the next child (if we are lucky enough to provide Elise with a sibling):

1. Buy a few more of each kind of diaper.  Not only will this save your sanity when you are up every few hours, it will also mean less trips to your washing machine.
2. There will be times you may have to use disposables, despite how much you don't want to.  We lost power for five days and were staying at the grandparents' house so it was a no-brainer.  Also if some day cares do not like cloth diapers and only use disposables.
3. Never wash a load of diapers with fewer than 8 diapers in a load.  They just don't seem to come as clean.

Christmas time is here...

Gallery Greetings Holiday Card

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Precious Sleep

The one piece of advice that I received the most after the birth of Baby Elise was,"Sleep while the baby sleeps!"   Easier said than done.  While I am sure that most people when exhausted can fall asleep at the drop of a hat, I am the type of person who when I'm awake, I'm awake even if I'm running on empty.  It doesn't matter how tired I am, I can not fall back asleep unless I over indulge in Jagermeister, which would not be a pretty sight. I felt like there was so much to do and not enough time to do it.   It also doesn't help that the baby can't really communicate with you.  The hungry cry, the "Change my diaper, I'm soaked," and the "I'm just crabby" cries all sound the same at first.

Eggplant Fever

Beautiful and delicious!

One of the great things about belonging to a CSA is the fact we get fresh, in season produce every week.  I never did get our own vegetable garden in this spring so shopping at roadside produce stands and the CSA is how I've been buying the majority of our vegetables this summer.   The CSA had a bumper crop of eggplants, tomatoes, and various peppers, so I decided to find some new interesting applications for our harvest.

She's here!

Baby Elise joined our family exactly four weeks ago today at 4:46 p.m.  She decided not to arrive on her due date so we had to make a trip to the hospital for a non-stress test to make sure the baby was okay.  Due to the gestational diabetes my midwife had told me that if she didn't come before 42 weeks that they would induce me by rupturing my membrane to get things going.  I left the hospital feeling frustrated.  I wanted to avoid having my membranes ruptured as much as possible.  Up until this point I was all "Water birth, no drugs, all natural."  Little did I know that this labor would be anything but normal or natural.

Registering & Getting Ready for Baby

Well,  Baby Elise should be arriving in 25 days.  We've already had the baby showers and we're at the point of doing the final preparations of getting her room and all the needed supplies before she comes home.  I had a great time seeing my family and friends despite the fact that I am not always comfortable being the center of attention.

The showers were the fun part, registering however when you're not around babies all the time can be a stressful experience.  Did I register for all the things I need, did I register for enough or too many big ticket items (keep this in mind for people who go in on group gifts),  will everything I register for be available by the time the shower rolls around?  I decided to register at Babies R Us and Amazon.com.  I have had nothing but wonderful experiences with Amazon, plus we have Amazon Prime, so free two day shipping is always handy.  I waffled between registering at BuyBuy Baby & Target, but settled on Babies R Us because there was no BuyBuy Baby close to my out-of-state relatives.  Thinking back on things, I wish I had registered anywhere besides Babies R Us.

Gestational Diabetes Fun

It's been a month and a half since I was officially diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes.  My sugar levels have been pretty normal so far, except for the few cheat days I've been allowed (work picnic, baby shower, Memorial Day BBQ.)   Even when I cheat I haven't been able to make myself be terribly bad, I haven't had a piece of cake since my diagnosis.  I've never really been a sweets craver except for my Americone Dream ice cream, I do miss tortilla chips like crazy though.

I've lost 8 lbs. since being on the low carb diet, which seems crazy to me.   The diet is pretty restrictive, for example, breakfast can't exceed 30 carbs,  two hours after I need to check my blood sugars and then I can have a 15 carb snack.  Lunch and dinner are 40 carbs and my snacks after each meal and blood testing are also 15 carbs.  I have found that if I eat closer to 20 carbs for my late night snack that my fasting blood sugars are below the 94 that the dietitian set the limits for.  I have done some reading and found that if you don't have enough carbs your liver will produce extra for you at night and that can spike the sugar levels and cause an increased reading in the morning.

I do have a list of forbidden foods that I'm looking forward to eating once the baby is here.  I want a rootbeer float and onion rings from A & W (there is one on the way home from the hospital.  I joked with the hubby that I want him to stop off before we get home with the baby.)  I have also wanted sushi, so that is also on the hit list.  Lastly, a large bag of lime flavored Ann Arbor Tortilla Factory chips and a bowl of guacamole and a tall glass (or pitcher) of lemonade would rock my world right now.

My midwife told me that as long as my sugars stay normal that there should be no problem with having the baby as natural as possible, which is the ultimate goal.  I would feel like a failure if I had to have a C section (unless the baby is breech or is in serious danger) or if I had to use painkillers.  Hopefully nothing changes before now and mid August. *keeping fingers crossed*

Views from my garden...

We've had two warm and muggy days here in the Magical Mitten State.   I was able to enjoy the A/C and do some nesting because a co-worker wanted to take my shift.  I also was able to snap some pictures of my garden's spring blooms.  

Eventually what I hope to have is a cottage-look garden.  Lots of foxgloves, columbines, perennials that will spread and fill in for minimum maintenance. I have a long way to go, but I think that by documenting the garden in photos this year will help with planning the mass planting for fall bulbs and next spring's perennial planting.  Hopefully next year I can work on my shade garden where my hammock hangs too. 

Columbine

Please excuse the lack of proper mulching and sad looking yew behind the columbine.  When we first moved into the house, the yews had been gnawed down by the neighborhood deer population.  Thanks to spreading coyote urine around the yews, it looks like they may actually resemble a bush someday.