Saturday, 8/20

A short post tonight as we continue to prepare to leave Lincoln. We soaked up a gorgeous day with Grammy and Pops. The weather was delightful. It still feels like summer but with a hint of fall in the air. The boys blew bubbles, read stories, played "bonk the ball" and checked out a soon-to-be playground.

Two bubble wands are always better than one.

Bubble Bubble Bubble

Imagining what each piece will be when it is all put together

Reading with Grammy before bed

JJ and Pops

Grammy working away to keep everyone fed. It is a full time job.

 I got to go to an amazing yoga class, taught by my favorite teacher. She meshes the asana practice with pranyama, and the spiritual/psychological practices of yoga to create a wonderfully integrated class. Match that with a heated room and floor and you had me at vinyasa. ;)

Today she was speaking about Vedic Astrology, or Jyotish, and the energies in the world in the next few days. She talked about Mars and Saturn in Scorpio and how the energy from this will be the strongest on August 24th. This means that this is the day that Saturn and Mars will be the closest together. This is a time when it is important to do yoga, meditate, breathe and look at where you are, what you are doing and where you wish to be. I don't pretend to know much about this but I am fascinated and am looking forward to reading more, but I digress.

I took E over to see his friend from our old neighborhood and say goodbye to her. They have spent a lot of time together in the last four and a half years and he was pretty sad about it. He was also upset about leaving our "old home". Change is hard for all of us but it seems to be especially hard when you are 5. There wasn't much I could say to calm him but we talked about the trip in the van we were going to be taking, that his bed and lunch box and backpack were going to meet us in Connecticut. We talked about the flag football team that he was going to be playing on, the new church that we were going to be part of, and how to tell a girl from a boy cardinal (no idea where that came from).

A and E - July 4th, 2012

A and E - July 4th, 2016

 

 Also, note to self... limit the number of raisins M gets in the next week while we are traveling. Or better yet, maybe just skip them all together. Not pretty.

Thursday 8/18 and Friday 8/19

I'm hoping to chronicle our sojourn east from Nebraska to Conneticut. Here is installment number one. Once we get settled in, it will be back to the posts on lifestyle and vegan cooking and baking.
 


The house in Lincoln has been closed on.
Mower, 5 bottles of wine, and a washer and dryer included.
Happy housewarming.

Patrick and the three little boys (5, 3, and 7 months), the geriatric dog and I are staying with my parents for a few days before heading out.

We have completely overrun their home with toys and suitcases and snacks and sippy cups and the massive amount of towels that we use.

I brought the boys over to their grandparent's house yesterday while the movers (who arrived almost 5 hours earlier that we were expecting) loaded our possessions onto a huge truck. Patrick had packed and taped and labeled and bubble wrapped and had things mostly ready to go. The dumpster had been loaded and pickup up early that morning.

Thursday morning, E had a melt down. He is so sensitive to the energies that are flying around and he had been telling me for a couple of days that he "just didn't feel very good". He couldn't identify what it was but I can relate. The house was in complete disarray. He starts Kindergarten when we get to Connecticut. Dad is starting a job and mom will be staying home. Everything is changing. Quickly. Although, as grown ups, we have known this was coming, it seems like a shock to his sensitive system. Thursday, late in the morning, he came upstairs to find me and told me he thought his tooth was a little loose. I looked in his mouth and sure enough, the bottom front tooth was loose with the adult tooth pushed through right behind it. He is so proud of that wiggly tooth. Big boy growing up.

M (the middle one) is tired. He is off his game. He doesn't understand what is happening. He has great language but lacks the ability to tells us when he gets tired or frustrated without screeching or whining. His brother is constantly competing with him and it's hard to be 3. He says we are going to "Necticut" but has no idea what that means. He loves his Pops and is spending as much time as he can sitting on his lap at his desk, reading stories, playing games and helping him get the mail. Pops isn't getting much work done but hopefully we can give him some time tomorrow to write up his appraisals.

M and Pops on the computer.

The boys had a contest with Grammy to see who could find the biggest, compost worthy cucumber hiding in the garden. I took them to the pool to splash around and do something fun while dad cleaned out the house as the movers finished up.

Grammy and the boys with the wagon full of "cucumbers the size of dead bodies"

We have had several tough "see ya laters" with more to follow. Saying "goodbye for now" to our current church family and to our amazing friend Steve and his son Alex was so sad. I am dreading driving away from our families but as my mom said, "everyone is healthy and safe. No one is being sent overseas. It is all about perspective." We have promises of visits from our parents, my aunt and uncle, and Steve and are looking forward to those visits. I don't promise to have our house in order by that point. Ha!

Meeting Steve and Alex's puppy, May Be

We also got to see Uncle Chris today on his way through town from Salt Lake City. He has an important fantasy football draft. He let the boys and I test drive his Jeep. I have to say I was pretty proud of myself for not killing the standard transmission. All that driving in the Neon for years apparently paid off. Looking forward to finding something like that when we get to our new home.

After a rough evening with tired boys we are all quiet for now. Tomorrow is a new day.

Mothering

Mothering

By Kate Collins

No rest for the weary postpartum mother bird

as she flies off to find another tiny morsel.

The two demanding mouths in the nest remind me of my own brood

Always hungry

Always needing something

Always chirping at me.

She designed her nest to fit in the comfortable space between the downspout and the red brick of our house.

Not too tight but secure

Safe from the rain

Safe from the wind 

and out of reach of predators - squirrel, cat and human alike.

My boys and I watched in early June as she flew back and forth 

hundreds of times

collecting bits of plants to weave together.

I love the long pieces of dried prairie grass that hang down from the nest

They blow in the wind just a bit.

The nest is high enough that we can't see in

The little boys and I speculate

One egg?

Two eggs?

Maybe more.

And then the back and forth stops.

She sits.

She wiggles down in the nest for the first test of patience 

and she waits.

Just when it seems that the eggs have won the stand off

she flies away

only to return with a tiny bit of a worm

dropped into the nest. 

And she sits some more.

The flights out and back become more and more frequent

and it seems to me that she is constantly on the hunt for food,

because she is.

Every time I step out the front door

I only have to wait for a moment to see two little tufted heads pop up

with their eyes squeezed shut

and mouths open almost 180 degrees.

It is as if their jaws aren't hinged.

They cheep and chirp when they sense their momma close.

Both babies (I imagine them to be boys - brothers) clamoring for more food, more attention.

I ask my own boys, "what do you think she is saying to them?"

My oldest answers, "she is telling them to take turns".

And it seems he is right. 

She feeds one and then flies off in search of more tidbits of food for the other

Back and forth.

We watch them get bigger each day.

More feathers

Bigger heads

Stretching up and out of the nest just a bit more than the day before.

And then one day while I am holding my own baby and watching his big brothers in the yard

one of the baby birds gets up over the edge of the nest.

He tumbles out and catches himself on the very edge of the downspout.

I watch him climb back into the nest,

apparently not quite ready to make the jump out into the unprotected world.

He shakes his head and ruffles up his feathers and settles back into his safe little home.

His mother didn't see this little daredevil make his first move,

or maybe she was watching from afar with her heart in her throat.

When she comes back, she drops a grub in his mouth

as if nothing has happened.

I feel solidarity with this momma robin,

The work of keeping our children safe and fed,

of helping them grow,

of giving them a safe place to try new things,

and the courage to eventually set out on their own.

And one day both little birds are gone. 

I haven't seen the momma return either.

The nest is quiet,

the grass is blowing.

The now adolescent birds are out testing their wings

and the mother is enjoying her success...

with a little sun on her back,

wind in her feathers,

and perhaps, 

her very own worm.

Frozen Mint Chip Birthday Dessert

For the last 20 years, my mom has made a mint chocolate chip ice cream dessert for my birthday. It was adapted from a Better Homes and Gardens recipe I think. I really wanted to veganize it but I specifically didn't want it to taste like coconut. After several attempts at the sauce and multiple ice cream varieties, this version was a smashing success. And better yet, the chocolate sauce was edible off the spoon on its own. Yum. I didn't get great photos of it, it disappeared too quickly. Maybe next time...

Ingredients:

Crust-
Crushed chocolate wafers - 1 pkg (I used one package of Enjoy Life Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies and 1 package of Chocolate Graham Teddy's from Whole Foods)
1/2 cup vegan butter melted (I used Miyoko's cultured vegan butter)
1/4 cup sugar

Ice Cream- 
3 containers of NadaMoo Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Chocolate Sauce-
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used the semi sweet chocolate chips from the bulk bin at my local grocery store but any vegan variety would be fine. You could use Enjoy Life brand as well.)
1/3 cup vegan butter (Miyoko's cultured vegan butter)*
1 cup powdered sugar
2 - 2.5 cups oat or cashew milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp sea salt

* I tried several varieties including using Earth Balance but I found the flavor to be "off". Miyoko's was the best choice. 

Directions:
1. Heat the oat milk or cashew milk to a simmer. Let simmer slowly for 20 minutes or until reduced to 1 1/2 cups.  STIR FREQUENTLY.
2. While the milk is reducing, crush the chocolate cookies in a ziplock to crumbs.
3. Stir together crushed cookies, sugar, and melted butter.
4. Press the mixture into the bottom of 9x13 pan and set in freezer for 15-20 minutes.
5. Remove crust from freezer and tear open the cardboard containers of ice cream.
6. Lay the ice cream on it's side and slice into 1/2"-3/4" rounds.
7. Lay over crust filling in gaps as needed to completely cover.
8. Place back in the freezer.
9. To make the chocolate sauce, melt the chocolate chips and vegan butter in small sauce pan on low heat.
10. Add powered sugar and 1 1/2 cups of evaporated milk from above.
11. Cook and stir 20-25 minutes until slightly thickened.
12. Stir in vanilla.
13. Cool sauce completely.
14. Poor over ice cream layer and freeze until firm.

A-MAZ-ING.

Noodle Soup

I have always loved a good, homemade chicken noodle soup but I ALWAYS left all the chicken in the bottom of the bowl. (Sorry about that mom.) This recipe hits the spot and maintains a great flavor. Yum. My mom and I tossed around the idea of exchanging the pasta for wild rice and maybe adding mushrooms but I suppose then it would be mushroom and wild rice soup. Another soup for another day.

Not-Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients

• 10 large long celery stalks (you will need 3 cups sliced)
• 3 cups sliced or chopped carrots
• 3/4 to 1large white or yellow onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 heaping cup)
• 2-3 large garlic cloves, finely minced (about a tablespoon)
• 2½ cups diced potatoes, cut into ½ inch cubes
• 10 cups water
• 3 vegan bouillon cubes (I used Rapunzel brand with sea salt.)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (optional)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2-3 tablespoons nutritional yeast to taste
• 1 cup rotini noodles

Instructions

1. Chop all veggies.
2. Add the water to a large pot and bring to a boil, add the bouillon cubes and whisk to dissolve. Add all of the veggies and seasonings including thyme, salt, and nutritional yeast. Stir and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn to low heat, cover and simmer 20-30 minutes or until vegetables are soft.
3. Add the pasta and bring back to a boil. Leave the lid off and turn the heat to medium-high and cook until the pasta is al dente. 
4. Remove from heat. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and black pepper.

Newborn Fog

Yes, it is a thing. I am living in it. At least this time I saw it coming.

2 weeks of no driving after a c section and then 4 weeks of very limited activity. Add that to less sleep than would be desired, a new human to get to know, being in constant demand for nursing, a body that feels unlike the one you are used to, bleeding, soreness in all the wrong places, incisions, milk production, clothes that don't fit...

The days  and nights begin to all run together. Dirty diapers, feedings, burping... it doesn't matter if it is 2 pm or 2 am, the activities are the same.

And in the outside world, things continue on as they always have. Presidential debates continue, celebrities make the news for outlandish decisions, coworkers go to work, friends go to the bars or adult restaurants, life happens. Friends and family stop by to see the baby and then they leave to return to their day to day routines that include regular meals, sleeping for more than a few hours at a time, and reading books that don't rhyme and have animal characters that talk. 

And eventually, as a new mom, you step out of your house, blinking in the sun, feeling a little shocked at the first breath of fresh air. It all feels new, and different, even if it is exactly the same. It is so hard to believe that the last 2-3 months have left you behind, that the world kept turning even when it felt like yours was standing still. And slowly, you find your way again in this new normal. One day at a time.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Popcorn

This recipe is vegan and MSPI safe. Sometimes, you just need a treat.  In this case, we had a friend who generously spent a lot of time making us vegan, MSPI safe, freezer friendly meals to eat after our new baby was born. Well, he's here and her meals have been a life saver! Thanks Sam! We have a fun little policy at our house that we never return a container empty. In this case, what came to us as vegetable soup (soooo delicious) is returning in the form of peanut butter chocolate drizzle popcorn. Can I just say, "oh my!?" I made one batch and couldn't stay out of it so I had to make a second batch. Ha!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Popcorn

Makes 12 cups

1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 T Earth Balance
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
8 cups plain organic popped corn
3/4 cup chopped vegan dark chocolate or chocolate chips

In a saucepan, combine the honey, sugars, Earth Balance, and sea salt, and heat over medium until the mixture comes to a boil.  Add the peanut butter, and stir until combined.  Remove from heat, and add the vanilla, stirring.  Pour over the popcorn and gently mix.  Spread out onto a lined sheet pan, and allow to cool.

Melt the chocolate and drizzle the chocolate over the popcorn, and allow to cool and harden.

Break into small chunks and store in an airtight container.