It's A Dog's Life

Let the sun shine in!

2009-12-07T20:16:00.004-06:00

My blue days are over! Mostly. Until I'm pregnant again. Or until a catastrophe hits. Or, maybe, just until after Christmas. Yes, post partum totally sucked this time around, but it's over and I feel so much better. It's like the sun has come out to stay.

It was not part of my plan to wean Price (see previous post) but I ended up having to anyway. He was tearing me up, the details of which I will not go into here. Suffice it to say, I cried every time I nursed him and in all the 6 weeks I never got past the toe-curling stage. At first I was pretty disappointed that I had to wean him so early. I really don't like it when things don't go the way I plan them. But I'm so over it and am really liking the freedom of a bottle baby. Oh, don't get me wrong, it's the most inconvenient way to feed your baby, to be sure. I'm always washing bottles and there's more to squeeze in the diaper bag. BUT it's really great when you can say to your hubby at night: "It's been a rough day and I've got a rough day tomorrow. Do you mind getting up with him tonight?" Put that together with the fact that Price only wakes up once on the other side of midnight and it's no wonder my days are looking brighter.

The 6 weeks after Price was born were really tough and seemed never ending. To be honest, I don't know how I survived the first month. But I'm really glad that I toughed it out and made the surprise decision to not go on my anti-depressant. Now that I'm on the other side of it, the time really did go by quite fast. And even though I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel, I'm here now and basking in its brightness.

One month down

2009-11-12T20:39:00.002-06:00

Well, I already have one month's experience as a mom with two kids. It's been great, if you don't count the horrible post partum depression. I don't say this to garner sympathy, just to give voice to a problem that is sometimes swept under the rug. The more a topic is talked about, the less embarrassing or shameful or taboo it becomes. And I know there are other moms like me who read this blog, whether they admit to it or not...reading my blog, that is, not depression ;)

No motivation, no energy, no enjoyment, no fulfillment might sound typical of a new mom who's getting patches of sleep. Indeed, they are typical. But for me, these symptoms go beyond. It's difficult to explain it if you haven't experienced it. Thankfully, due to a series of conversations, evaluations and decisions I am feeling hopeful. And, no, I did not choose to go back on my medicine, which is a decision that surprised the heck out of me. Depression is not something I fool around with.

BUT...inspite of all that hoopla, I haven't failed to recognize the little miracle that has graced our home. Babies are something special in this house and even though I'm horribly blue it's hard to not feel grateful and somewhat cheered by the presence of my two little miracles. Price is a GOOD baby. He's not as alert or curious as Olivia was and he seems to be a bit more serious but he is just as good natured. He doesn't sleep through the night like she did (though we're hitting the five-hour stretch with more frequency) but he eats and goes right back to sleep...something Olivia never seemed to get the hang of. He cries only when he needs something and is quickly soothed.

Olivia absolutely loves her baby, so I don't have to referee anything there. The only thing I have problems with is keeping her from constantly touching him while he's asleep, lugging him around the house while he's awake and sitting smack on top of him in general. Also I'm feeling immensely better physically and I think my c-section is healing nicely, although I get really sore doing the simplest things. Today, for example, I unloaded/loaded the dishwasher, did several loads of laundry and swept. It all but wiped me out and I feel like I've done hundreds of sit-ups. It can be pretty frustrating and I constantly have to remind myself that I'm recovering from major surgery. Emotionally and mentally I may feel like my life sucks, but I'm glad to know better. I'll just have to ride this storm out and hope I can hang on to the life raft.

Olivia and Price photo shoot

2009-11-06T14:20:00.005-06:00

I hurt too much to chase a 2-year-old down and take a picture so my sister and I schlept the kids to the photographer's the other day for Price's one month and Olivia's 2-year pictures. They turned out WAY better than I thought they would. The photographer did a good job capturing Olivia's natural looks, though she didn't leave him much choice. She wouldn't sit still long enough to smile into the camera. Oh, the stories I could tell. Needless to say, by the end of the day the pictures confirmed what I have always known to be true. My kids are the cutest kids in the universe. But I'll let y'all be the judge. Behold a few of my favorite shots.

Welcome, Price!

2009-10-21T17:46:00.004-05:00

Price Aubrey Martin

Oct. 8, 2009

7:16 a.m.

7 lbs. 19.5 in.

It took me a few days to decide on a name, mainly because morphine keeps you from thinking like a...well, like at all. The c-section went fine and we're all adjusting to having a little man in the house. Olivia does really well with him most of the time. She has problems when he has a blanket she likes or when Aubrey is holding him and playing with him. She also does not like it when he pees on her. Oh, and when he's really crying and screaming because I'm not feeding him fast enough it breaks her little heart and she starts crying, too.

Like Olivia, Price is a very well-behaved baby. The only difference is that he wakes up every 2-3 hours at night to eat...Olivia would sleep for 6-8 hours straight. But he sleeps a lot during the day so as soon as I can actually move faster than .1 miles per hour, we'll work on reversing his schedule.

Mom and my sister and her 3-month-old were down for a week. It was good to meet my niece and mom was a huge help. She did all my laundry, grocery shopping and cooking. Ah, nice! My baby sister comes out next Friday and my dad will be here the first weekend of November when we bless the baby at church. So, all my family (with the exception of my brother) will be able to meet Price...who I here crying now. Must be suppertime!

Baby Update

2009-10-06T11:20:00.002-05:00

I have exciting news that, if given the opportunity, I will shamelessly rub in with all my other pregnant friends.

My c-section is Thursday instead of Friday!!!!

For no other reason than I can do it. The doc said it was available at the last minute if I wanted it and I said, "Uh, yeah." We're super, super excited. I'll ask Aubrey to post some pics of the new little one Friday or Saturday.

The only drawback that I see to this is pattern. You all know how I love patterns. Olivia's birthday is 8-7-07 (subtract one from 8, repeat twice...) and this baby's birthday would have been 10-9-09 (subract one from 10, repeat twice...) But, since I want the baby OUT I'll just have to get over it I guess.

News Briefs

2009-10-04T00:00:00.005-05:00

Well, I meant to get a lot of pictures up here but I'm not sure that it will ever happen. So, you'll have to satisfy yourself with this bullet list of newsworthy moments in the Martin household.

~Aubrey "finished" our family room. He only has detail work left to do but we're already using it. It is quickly just becoming another room for me to clean.
~I'm having a baby via c-section on Friday. I plan to stay conscious for this one. I've been having contractions for a month and every time I move it feels like he's going to drop clean out of me.
~Olivia is a non-stop talker. (Can you believe it?) Her favorite movies are Aladdin (a.k.a. Monkey Movie...she even says lines from it) and Peter Pan (a.k.a. Pan...she's obsessed with the flying).
~My mom, sister and niece are coming on Wednesday and will be here for 10 days. My baby sister comes the end of the month and I'm already compiling a list of things to do around the house while she's here.
~Fall weather is slowly creeping into my corner of the world. This morning I had hot chocolate and I'm actually sleeping under the covers.
~I'm nowhere near completeing all my baby sewing projects. Anyone surprised by this? Anyone? My friend Sara actually took over sewing super cute boppy covers. She's so dependable.

I hope that tides you over for awhile. I really do hope to get some pictures up before I go to the hospital, but that may be wishful thinking.

Where has time gone?

2009-09-05T21:30:00.002-05:00

Whew! It's been forever since I've updated this blog, and yet it feels like it was just last week. Time is moving very quickly in the Martin house as we prepare for the arrival of Baby #2, who will be here NEXT MONTH!! What the crap?

Olivia celebrated her 2nd birthday on August 7, which only makes time seem to go faster. I can't believe that she's as old as she is. It is so much fun to watch her develop and mature and discover things for the first time. She makes a big deal about everything and even the tiniest accomplishments are quickly followed by a very Southern, "I did it! I did it! I did it!"

Aubrey put the window in our new family room today. He first had to remove a door (it will take some getting used to not having it) but the new window looks FABULOUS! It lets in so much light. That was the last major piece of construction left on the new room. Over the next three weeks, he will finish the drywall, paint and lay carpet. That will get the room usable enough to set up the TV, etc., and then we can take our time with detail and trim work. I know it doesn't sound like a lot, but when you consider that the cieling needs painting, everything needs primed, the closet needs organizing...it adds up.

Olivia also moved into her big girl room a couple of weeks ago. She loves sleeping on the double bed and I love that she's out of the nursery and adjusted well before the baby arrives. She continues to make steady progress with the potty. I don't push her, though. I figure we'll really start laying the hammer down after Christmas.

Sorry there aren't pictures. It was either type an update or wait for pictures to load. Pictures take forever to load on my blog because of my camera. I'll get pictures of Olivia's birthday party, new bedroom and some sewing projects up at some point. Time may move fast in our house, but y'all know I seldom pace myself with it!

I'm an aunt!

2009-07-19T20:20:00.005-05:00

My sister Desiree had her baby Friday around 2:30 a.m. via emergency c-section. She came 3 or 4 weeks early because of a few complications, but mom and baby are doing really well. They named her Elsie Maline and she came in at a whopping 5 lbs. 6 oz.! Tiny, tiny! I know this picture isn't a great close-up of her, but it's the only one where her face is mostly turned to the camera. I think she looks a lot like her dad. She's my first niece on my side of the family. My parents now have two grandsons and two granddaughters.

No, I wasn't there for the birth. This photo is courtesy of Desi's best friend. But I FEEL like I was there for the birth. Mom is in Italy and my Dad was AWOL (actually he was watching a movie and couldn't hear his phone) so my sister Savanna and I were up quite late coordinating phone calls, getting in touch with people, etc. I didn't go to bed until Desi's hubby told me that they were able to get in touch with everyone they needed and my Dad was at the hospital. Whew!

In other Martin news, Olivia has a temper. My, oh my. She also "tee-teed" in the potty last night and today in church told me that she pooted. Typically that means that she broke wind, but now it means that she has to poo-poo. A couple of minutes later, you could smell it. When I crinkled my nose, she announced to the whole congregation, "Poo poo, Mommy! Poo poo!" What a gal.

In pregnancy notes, the swelling has begun. I am destined to yet again give birth disguised as a puffer fish. Oh, well. As long as I get healthy babies, it doesn't much matter to me what my body goes through. I'm also starting to wake up stiff and sore. That can only mean one thing: LESS THAN THREE MONTHS TO GO!!!!!! WOO-HOO!

Catching up...

2009-07-09T13:18:00.002-05:00

I'm into my third trimester now and I couldn't be happier about it. I have not been able to get my life in order with this pregnancy and it's been a really difficult thing. Since I've been pregnant, all projects have ceased; I've sent out ZERO birthday, Mother's Day and Father's Day cards; I've neglected the blog; I've neglected my writing; and I've scheduled and cancelled or just plain skipped over social engagements of any kind. And the weird thing is that physically, I feel about 1,000 times better with this one than I did with Olivia. Things are getting better, however, so for that I'm grateful. And with that lead in...

Happy late birthday, Aubrey! Aubrey turned 31 last Friday. What an old man! For his birthday present, I let him play electrician for the day. I just gave him his birthday money to wire the closet he's building in our soon-to-be family room. His mom and dad came for the day and the guys spent their time working on the lights while Olivia discovered her love for the word "Pop" (which is Aubrey's dad). She says it all the time now. I think she just likes the P sound (although I'm sure she likes her actual Pop as well!)

I'm really glad that I have Aubrey for a husband. There are worse people out there I could have married. I've known him since I was 18 years old. Can you believe that? Of course, he did not leave a lasting positive impression on me when I met him...most people don't. I'm hard to impress, even if I do know you. But when he made the hard decision to go on his mission, I thought he must be OK. But I still think he's kind of a punk. He still gets me riled up (on purpose), he still aggravates me (on purpose) and he still spoils me completely rotten. And now, thanks to his stellar example, Olivia smacks me on the hiney every time a bend over. Nice. Thanks for being such a great guy, Aubrey. Hope you had a happy birthday!

Simple Summer Suppers

2009-07-02T16:09:00.003-05:00

I love the summer not because of the heat, but because of the food. For my family, summer means light suppers full of fresh garden vegetables. It also means simple, simple, simple. This is a recipe that I tried out last week and everybody loved it; we had no leftovers. I loved it because there was hardly any prep work and the recipe is so versatile. It can be a great lunch or snack, too. I definitely encourage you to try this...especially if you're pregnant and tired and don't want to cook!

Turkey Cheese Pockets

2 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 Tbsp. mayonnaise or Miracle Whip

1 tsp. dijon mustard

4 slices shaved turkey lunch meat, finely chopped

1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 can refrigerated biscuits (10 biscuits)

Preheat oven to 400. Mix cream cheese, mayo and mustard in a small bowl; add turkey and cheese and mix well. Press out each biscuit to a 3.5 inch circle and place about 1-2 tsp. filling in the center of each. Fold biscuit over into a pocket and press well to seal the edges (fork works great). Bake 10-12 min. on an ungreased cookie sheet or until browned. Serve hot.

Trust me, these are good. When I made them, I used ham and cheddar cheese, but you could use ham and swiss or chicken and monterrey jack or whatever you want. I added pepper and herbs, too. You could also use different flavors of cream cheese (chive and onion would be soooo good). Next time, I'm going to try an all veggie pocket. Olivia LOVED these, so it would be really easy to sneak a vegetable in with the meat, too. For supper, I paired it with pasta salad and raw veggies. Healthy (each pocket has about 100 calories) and really yummy!

In Memorium

2009-06-26T08:48:00.004-05:00

So, I'm not a huge die-hard fan of MJ, but I'm a huge die-hard fan of Tracy, who I'm sure is taking his passing very hard. Poor thing. So, may I just offer these points of consolation:

1. He can stop paying Billy Jean child support for the kid who's not his son

2. He has been reunited with his nose

3. He for real can never grow old now, just more unrecognizable as his cheek bones become even more prominant

4. He lived long enough to see his music butchered on American Idol

5. His slightly effeminate voice and other-worldly dance moves have made him an unforgettable music icon

Oh, Wacko Jacko, how will we get by without you? At least you haven't done anything noteworthy in the past 10 years. I feel like you've allowed us all to begin the grieving process early. In fact, I've already finished mine. My only regret is that you never found your other glove. But for you, dear friend, I hope my coordinating selection of music will help ease your pain, Tracy. Feel better and rock on.

Mmmm...chocolate...

2009-06-16T14:03:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I woke up and suddenly realized that Olivia is old enough to do things like arts and crafts and baking. So, we made a fish. Then we made "Mmmm, Mommy, chocolate!" Chocolate is everything from chocolate milk to brownies, which is what we ended up making. She helped me stir the brownie mix, insisting on a new spoon after every turn (she even tried to put the dirty ones back into the crock by the stove that holds all my mixing things). This girl can really fling it, let me tell you. We had a really good time until I put it in the oven. She was mortified that we had to bake it, though she's a big fan of the finished result.

Here are some other things Olivia enjoys doing:

1. Dancing and jumping on Mommy's bed...picture Will Ferrell in Flashdance...
2. Calling her pink crocs. When it's time to go "dye-dye" we tell her to go find her crocs and put them on. She stands in the middle of the room and calls for her "cocs" repeatedly until we tell her where they are. Do you think she's lived with dogs long?
3. Wearing Mommy's high heels and bras. She wears my bra so that the cups go over her ears. She looks a lot like Princess Leia.
4. Sitting on the potty.
5. Kissing and pinching Mommy's fat tummy.
6. Taking bubble baths.
7. Claiming everything as her own. "No, Mommy, mine. Mine."
8. Hogging her Daddy. Don't try to come between them, he's another "mine".
9. Doing laps around the dining room table.
10. Taking her babies for walks in nothing but a necklace and her black Sunday shoes. And I mean nothing.

It's a lot of fun to watch her grow up because she's so independent. She's always been that way, though. She weaned herself, taught herself to eat and drink from a cup, taught herself to do all her puzzles and play with her blocks and taught herself to use all her appliances in her little kitchen. About a month ago she announced to us (in a rather passive way, really) that she was done with her crib. She sleeps in her toddler bed now and likes to sit on the potty whenever she has a wet or dirty diaper. She also buckles herself into her carseat and her high chair and prefers to get herself dressed. The latter one doesn't happen unless there's no where to go--she is prone to putting her pants on upside down or both legs through one arm hole. But heaven forbid you help her in any way. Unless you're grumpy, it's super fun to watch!

A Dog's Life

2009-06-09T18:28:00.001-05:00

We brought Sparky home today. Unfortunately, it wasn't the way we wanted to. He was just so sick and so weak that we decided not to delay it any longer and we put him down. He's buried in our backyard where I can see him from the kitchen window. This weekend I'll plant daisies over his grave. They are my favorite flowers because they are so happy and friendly, and so was Sparky.

Aubrey, Olivia and I stayed with him in the room while they put him to sleep. I could barely see him I was crying so hard, but I scratched his ears and stroked his head until he was gone. This is all part of being a pet owner, but it doesn't mean you're prepared for it or that it is easy. The decision was, in fact, very easy, but following through with it was super difficult.

Sparky was by far the sweetest dog we had. He was gentle and protective and extremely patient with Olivia. He was beautiful and I'm heartbroken that my kids won't grow up with him. I'm sure there are some who find this attitude a little difficult to understand. After all, he was just a dog. But he wasn't just a dog to me and his presence at the Martin home is sorely missed.

Sparky Update

2009-06-08T10:59:00.002-05:00

We went to go see Sparky after breakfast and I've been crying my eyes out all morning long. The vet said there was no improvement, other than the fact that he's stopped passing out. I think that we're going to have to put him down, but I'm not willing to do it until Wednesday. The vet said that he isn't eating anything and Aubrey and I couldn't get him to eat while we were there. If he would start eating, the vet would be more optomistic, I think, though damage has already been done.

If he gets himself well enough to come home, we'd have to continue to administer antibiotics to treat his spotted fever. He also has a heart murmur that will never go away. But that can be treated with a twice daily pill. But he's not eating or drinking, which means that he doesn't have any energy to get better and puts his kidneys in danger of shutting down. If he doesn't start eating soon, we can't bring him home. If we can't bring him home, we have to put him down. Aubrey said if he was left to his own devices, Sparky would probably go off somewhere and die. And he's right. I can't remember life without animals and I've seen my fair share of dying dogs, cats, goats, horses, chickens, bunnies, ducks, etc., and that's what they do. But I assure you I cried over every single one. Just because you're familiar with the circle of life doesn't make it any easier to watch. (I can't even watch Eight Below or Turner and Hooch). And it still doesn't mean you can't keep your fingers crossed.

Sad News

2009-06-06T14:55:00.002-05:00

Sparky is in the animal hospital this weekend in really, really bad shape. The vet told Aubrey that Sparky was to the point now where he could go to sleep and not wake up again. He has a really bad case of heartworms, kidney failure and he's showing symptoms of tick-carried diseases. The vet assured us that we had not neglected him (although I know that we should have been giving him heartworm prevention medicine) which helps me feel a little bit better. He's not sure, though, if Sparky really does have lime disease or Rocky Mountain spotted fever, but he's giving him antibiotics right now anyway and he's on an IV to help his kidneys, but the vet doesn't know the cause and effect of it all. Sparky's a purebred and, like all breeds, was born with inherent problems. Could bad kidneys be one of them? As for the heartworms, the vet said a full-force treatment for heartworms would kill him. By Monday, we should know more about his condition. If he's getting better, then the vet will look at options for treating heartworm, but if things don't improve we're going to have to put him down. It makes me sick and breaks my heart to think about it. Sparky is the sweetest dog we've ever had. Who will Olivia play with now? We got her sidewalk chalk for Easter and she really likes to use it to make Sparky look pretty. In fact, when Aubrey took Sparky to the vet this morning, he still had some green eye shadow on.

I bet Aubrey never thought he'd spend this much money on a dog in his life, but y'all know how I feel about my dogs. I'll keep everyone posted, as I'm sure you will all be sitting on the edge of your seats this weekend waiting for an update. Hopefully things will look up. Sparky's got a lot of zip.

We had a 50-50 chance...

2009-05-26T16:18:00.008-05:00

Several weeks ago, Mother Nature tossed a coin and today we found out what the results were. We are having a........

BOY!!!!

It's a mild statement to say that we are excited about this. Of course, Aubrey and I would have been happy with either a boy or a girl, and we've always said that, but when she told us it was a boy, we both flipped. It didn't take her all but three seconds to make the announcement, either. I assure you, he is a boy's boy from any angle. He was really cooperative this morning and showed off quite a bit. Olivia was laying in a ball with her back to us and wouldn't come out to play when they did the ultrasound on her.

I'm at 19 weeks and 1 day today and the baby is growing really, really well. Both of us look really healthy and I'm hoping for continued health for the last half of my pregnancy. The morning sickness is gone (angels are seeing gloria and hallelujah every time I cook) and my fatigue is coming under control. Like Olivia, this little guy is movin' and groovin' almost all the time. He's stretched across my belly so I can feel him at both ends. He wasn't curled up in the fetal position during the ultrasound and as I matched his visual movements to what I was feeling, I think he is stretched out most of the time. That will soon change, little buddy, that will soon change...

Anyway, now that I'm feeling better, maybe I'll get back to posting semi-regularly. In the meantime, enjoy these ultrasound pictures. They came out really well...he was so good, in fact, that the nurse got 17 excellent photos. (Olivia had two) (Oh, sorry about the format of this post. Sometimes blogger can be difficult.)

He is CLEARLY a boy. No questions about it.

Can you see his eye sockets, nose and chin? He looks like a skeleton baby.

Here he is all stretched out.

Here's his foot. He stuck every body part out in turn for our close examination.

Update

2009-05-01T13:11:00.002-05:00

So, it's May and you're all clamoring for an update, I'm sure.

I'm pregnant, I'm tired. There's your update. Sorry, it's the best I can do. Even though a lot of things have happened and a lot is on my mind, you'll just have to wait this little spell out.

Finally some pictures!

2009-03-28T16:25:00.004-05:00

The beginning of March, Olivia and I went out to Nebraska for my sister's wedding. We were really busy! I had to make my bridesmaid's dress, Olivia's flower girl dress, the wedding cake, the groom's cake (which I pawned off on my baby sister) and take pictures. Here are just a few pictures. I'll post more pictures of the wedding party, etc., when I'm done editing them and my sister has seen them. Olivia loves hats. Here she is in her new Uncle Tyler's cowboy hat. All the groomsmen wore cowboy hats and boots.
Here is the groom's cake that I pawned off on Savanna. She and her mother-in-law made it and it turned out AWESOME!!!! It's red velvet. Everybody was taking pictures of it at the reception and it put my wedding cake to shame.

Here are the cakes together. I have two incredible aunts that helped me A TON with the wedding cake (and another extremely talented cake-maker aunt who offered advice via the phone). It was a lemon cake that I made totally from scratch. A lot of work, but soooo good.

Here's a picture of me and Olivia before the wedding. She did so good walking down the isle with her little ball of flowers (and a cracker in her hand). I smocked her dress and it turned out really cute. Again, my aunts helped me by putting the finished touches on her dress and mine (i.e. sewing on Olivia's sleeves and all the hand stitching...they also pressed my dress and did the finishing stitches on that, too.) I am not kidding when I say my aunts are super amazing women!

I don't want to this post to be too long, so I'll tell you more about the wedding another time, when I post the rest of the pictures. Let me just say that I will NOT be that involved in a wedding again at 7 weeks pregnant, even though I was happy to help my sister. Still, never again. I don't care if the bride is the Queen of England.

An attitude of gratitude

2009-03-23T13:37:00.002-05:00

So, I've been doing a lot of contemplating these past couple of weeks about life, the world, the cosmos...all the big stuff. And I've come to a conclusion: one of the biggest problems with our society is that people aren't grateful enough for what they have.

If you're grateful, you don't:
*swindle millions from hard-working investors because you're own 7-figure salary isn't enough
*put your family in debt up to their eyeballs so you can keep up with the Jones's
*criticize the people around you
*look at the glass half empty

However, you will:
*be happy no matter what (almost)
*work hard and be pleased with your life
*love to be around and to be kind to people, who will have no choice but to love you back
*give others confidence because you have it yourself

I really could go on and on, but I think you get the point. I've definitely had some pretty trying times in life and with each experience, I've found that being grateful takes away much of the burden. I'm thankful for everything I have from the opportunity to be a mom (and even the challenges of getting there) to my quiet-running dishwasher. And I'm super thankful for my sense of humor. It's so much better living on the lighter side of life. What are you thankful for? I want to hear it.

Oh, baby!

2009-03-10T16:08:00.002-05:00

So, the rumors are flying, stories are circulating and the questions keep coming. Let me just take a moment to address everything at once: YES, I AM PREGNANT!

I found out that I'm pregnant the first week of February. I admire those moms who can keep it a secret until their belly pops out, but I can't. Since we have to jump through so many hoops, as soon as I find out, I just want to yell it from the rooftops! I'm 8 weeks pregnant and due Oct. 19. (I'm told, Tiffy, that this is extremely close to when you are due...all I can say is FINALLY!) I've been sick for a couple of weeks already. Good times.

I heard the heartbeat last week for the first time, which is one of my favorite things. The baby is so tiny and doesn't look like a baby at all, really, but then you hear this fast ba-boom, ba-boom, ba-boom and know without doubt that there's a living, growing, tiny little life inside of you. I love that feeling.

Now you've all heard it from the horse's mouth! I have lots of other posts about my sister's wedding and my trip back to Nebraska to put up and I have to update my blog background and music. No telling when that will happen though, as Olivia's nap times have become my nap times. All I can say is someday...

How good are you in the kitchen?

2009-02-20T10:33:00.002-06:00

You may recall that I a couple of posts back I reviewed a recipe from Shelf Reliance's THRIVE line. Well, that same company is offereing a recipe contest using items in your food storage.

The contest runs through Feb. 28. (I know, I'm late getting this info out, but my ridiculous new email set-up misfiled the email...more on my stupid server later...) You can get the full rules at http://www.shelfreliance.com/pages/contests, but I'll go ahead and give you the rundown here.

Prizes Include:

1st Place = One (1) Harvest Food Rotation System ($459 value)
2nd Place = THRIVE Fruits and Veggies Essential Package ($283 value)
3rd Place = Three (3) Cansolidator Pantry systems ($135 value)

To Enter:
1) You may submit your recipe through email to contest@shelfreliance.com
2) You can mail in your entry to: Shelf Reliance Contests, 810 N. 2800 W., Lindon, UT, 84042

Rules:
1) All recipes must be submitted by Feb. 28, 2009 by 6:00 PM MST
2) Multiple entries are allowed, but each entry must be submitted separately
3) All entries must include the recipe name, number of servings the recipe yields, clearly understandable ingredients and ingredient measurements, step-by-step preparation instructions, and cooking directions.
4) You must include your name, phone number, complete address, and e-mail address with each entry.

Judging:
All entries will be judged by a qualified panel of judges to select (1) grand prize winner, (1) second place winner, and (1) third place winner. Recipes will be judged on taste, creativity, and practicality.

Like I said, go to the link above for all the details, but it doesn't look like they're being too specific on what you want to make. Take it from me, that the prizes are well worth the time and effort. I guess now's the time for you to figure out just how, exactly, you can use that 10 gallon drum of wheat you have in your basement. And even if you don't win, your family will thank you for making all that wheat palpable. No prize can take the place of a happy family at the dinner table.

Olivia's Top Ten

2009-02-11T21:02:00.001-06:00

This is Olivia's reading chair. No matter where he is in the house, she'll drag him to where he needs to be (he's bigger than her, so sometimes, she'll push him in her baby stroller). She has a HUGE pink bear she does the same thing with in her crib. She also does this to Mom and Dad when we're on the floor with her. She's a great weight for doing sit-ups.

Well, Olivia is 18 months old and a few days. I haven't taken all of her 18-month pictures yet, but I'll post them when I do. I thought I'd do this post a little differently than my other Olivia updates. May I introduce Olivia's Top Ten, things you may or may not know about Little Livy.

1. Statistics: Height: 2'5" Weight: 19 lbs. 2 oz. Hair: Blonde Eyes: Blue

2. Favorite foods: green beans, spaghetti, peanut butter, pancakes, fish and crayons

3. Favorite books: "I Love You More," "Olivia's Opposites," her Backyardigans alphabet book and Daddy's surveying magazines

4. Favorite hangout: outside or the bathtub

5. Hobbies: brushing her teeth, finding her belly-button, pulling out her wipes one at a time and taking Baby for a walk

6. Favorite stuffed animals: Huffy the Huffalump, Winnie the Pooh, Pink Bear and Horsey

7. Favorite subject: recess

8. Favorite meal: pancakes with maple syrup and fruit snacks (she wants it every morning)

9. Favorite place to travel: anywhere she can run

10. Worst fears: helicopters, Pop's bird, the dark

Olivia is really growing up and her little (big) personality is shining through. She is quite the character and will never give you a moment's rest. Needless to say, I'm excited for the next six months!

Raspberry Goodness

2009-02-02T12:30:00.009-06:00

Shelf Reliance, a company that focuses on food storage and emergency preparedness, asked me to use their products in one of their recipes and post my opinion. Last week, I received powdered butter, powdered eggs, flour, white sugar and freeze-dried raspberries (all part of their THRIVE line) along with a recipe for Raspberry Cake Bars. My contact told me I could make the recipe or one of my own. I chose to make their recipe because I thought it would give me a better idea of the overall company.

I was really excited to do this because, as we all know, I feel my opinion on any given subject is invaluable to others (as do all good reporters), I LOVE to be in my kitchen and writing comes like breathing to me. How much easier could this be? In this post, I'll give my review of the recipe and in another post I'll tackle their products. There's a lot to say, but nobody wants to scroll through five pages on their computer screen. (Also, I want to apologize now for the lack of formatting amongst my paragraphs. I'm having issues with Blogger right now. Serious issues.)

THRIVE Raspberry Cake Bars
Crumb topping:

1/2 c. THRIVE white flour

1/2 c. THRIVE sugar

1/4 c. THRIVE butter

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom (optional)

Bars:

2 c. THRIVE sugar

3/4 c. THRIVE butter

1/2 c. buttermilk

4 Tbsp. THRIVE eggs (reconstitute with 8 Tbsp. water)

2-1/2 c. THRIVE white flour

1/4 tsp. THRIVE salt

2-1/2 c. THRIVE raspberries

Place 2 cups of raspberries in a bowl with enough hot water to cover and let stand 15 minutes, then drain off liquid and let berries dry. Preheat oven to 350. Reconstitute the butter powder for the crumb topping (1 Tbsp. butter to 1 Tbsp. water). In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon and cardamom. Cut in cold butter using a pastry cutter until crumbly. Set mixture aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar and butter with mixer until creamy. On low speed, beat in buttermilk and eggs until smooth. Stir in flour and salt. Spread in a greased 15x10x1 pan. Sprinkly with berries and crumb topping. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Dust with powdered sugar and cut into bars. (Cut 8 rows by 6 rows for 48 bars).

First, let me just say that I really liked these bars. They were moist and delicious. I knew right away that the butter was powdered, but I don't think it really hurt the taste very much at all. It sure didn't stop me from eating them four at a time! I didn't use all the raspberries it called for because I wanted to save some to try in other recipes (to experiment with their versatility), but you still got raspberry with every bite. I thought the raspberries were especially good. They weren't wimpy on flavor and they were bright red.

Second, I like the versatility of this recipe. You can use any berry you want on top: fresh, frozen or rehydrated. You can add oatmeal to the crumb topping and even substitute some of the ingredients. For example, blueberries go better with nutmeg so I'd use that instead of cardamom. Also, buttermilk isn't something I keep on hand, and neither is cardamom. But I wanted to make it with things I had (isn't that the whole point of food storage...to use what you have?) So, I skipped the cardamom (it was optional anyway) and used Olivia's vitamin D milk instead of the buttermilk. No doubt that buttermilk would have made these bars richer, but whole milk did the job just fine. Don't skip the powdered sugar, though. They make these basic bars super special. (But I bet they'd be just as good drizzled in icing!)

Third, this recipe makes a lot of bars. When it comes to recipes using food storage, you want to get the most bang for your buck. You want to be able to get a lot of food out of just a few ingredients. This recipe totally fits the bill. I made the bars on Thursday and I still have more than half left. In fact, if you took extra care, you could probably make them part of your freezer storage, too, and have sweet little treats on hand for everybody from neighbors to visitors and anything from A+ report cards to Tuesday afternoon snacks.

My only advice to those who make this recipe: rehydrate your berries in the morning and let them dry into the afternoon or let them dry over night. Berries retain a lot of water, especially if they're dehydrated. You certaintly don't want a soggy bar. Also, take care when reconstituting the butter. I was only half paying attention and it got out of hand very quickly. In fact, I wonder if I didn't add a little too much butter to the bars. Maybe that's why I could taste it. I didn't let my butter get cold before I cut it into my crumb mixture and it worked just fine. But if you have a preference, then reconstitute it with the berries and stick it in the fridge while your berries dry.

All in all, this recipe was incredible easy and very good. There is a little more prep work involved with this one than there is with an average recipe, but that's only because you're not using average ingredients. I definitely reccommend this to anyone looking for ways to rotate through their own food storage--or even those who aren't! Who said using food storage had to be all about putting unground wheat in your chili and eating five-bean soup for a week?

Happy, Happy, Happy

2009-01-29T09:47:00.005-06:00

My final installment in my dog series is all about Sammy, our American Cocker Spaniel. Sammy is also known around our house as Sam, Sam-a-lam-a-ding-dong, Sam-I-Am and Samilicious. Originially, these dogs were used to hunt birds. Today's dog (unless otherwise trained) doesn't really have those interests anymore, but they still have curiosity and a good sniffer.

This breed is called the merry cocker, and the name could not be more fitting. Sammy is such a happy dog. He's so happy, that sometimes we wonder if he doesn't have a screw loose somewhere. True to his breeding, he is playful (extremely so), nice, sweet and smart. It's been hard for us to teach him manners, though, because he is so energetic. He won't take two breaths to listen to you. Also, he's our canine baby and just like the baby in your own family we pretty much let him do whatever he wants. He's not a bad dog, just very undisciplined.

Sammy is always excited to see us outside. He absolutely loves to play catch and our backyard is big enough to give him plenty of room to run after the ball. He and Olivia often fight over who gets to play with the ball. Sammy is a jumper and jumps on everybody, even Olivia. That is why Sparky is so attentive to her when we're outside. He's trying to give her a break from Sam.

Sammy loves the water, especially in the summer when it's so hot down here. He'll go into the lake in our neighborhood, but he won't go into the baby pool we got him last year. Very curious. Cockers have thick, long coats that require a lot of care. I have a small confession to make. I don't take very good care of Sammy's coat. We just let it grow nice and thick in the winter and then we shave him bald in the summer.
Cockers are very social animals and don't usually make good outside dogs. That being said, Sammy is entirely an outside dog. But it's OK with him, because he has Sparky. Sammy and Sparky are really great together. When we first come outside, Sammy greets us and then runs off to wake up Sparky (who is deaf) to let him know we're there. He alerts Sparky to anything unusual in the yard and even wakes him up at meal time. This last one is particularly interesting because Sparky, being the Alpha dog, makes Sammy wait to eat whatever he doesn't. If I were Sammy, I'd wake Sparky up after I'd eaten. Besides being attentive, he is all over Sparky all the time. Jumping, climbing, biting, pushing. They're an interesting pair and I think of them as The Odd Couple. Sammy is everything Sparky is not. He also tries to play with Peanut (see above). When you see the two of them together like that, you can bet that Sammy is playing and Peanut is fighting.
Sammy has a really low, deep bark that sounds about four times his size, but he rarely uses it. As far as a watchdog goes, he's pretty good. But when it comes to guarding or protection of anykind, he's horrible. He's just too friendly with people and squirrels alike.

All in all, Sammy is the most playful and fun dog that we have and you never leave him without a big dopy grin on your face. He makes a wonderful pet and, out of all my dogs, he is hands-down the most reccommendable (I think I just made that word up) family dog. He's a lot of fun, doesn't bite (he isn't even ill-tempered) and--as with most cockers--he is EXTREMELY loyal. Give him a little and you'll be rewarded 100 times over and more.

Cruella's Desire

2009-01-26T12:56:00.001-06:00

Staying true to my dog series, let me introduce you to Sparky, the only one left of a pair of Dalmatians we used to own. Sparky is hands-down the sweetest dog we have. He's laid back, protective, fun to play with and oh-so-good with kids.

In general, people say that this breed is too energetic for small children. That may have been true of his brother, Scamp, but Sparky is the perfect gentleman. When we're outside playing, the only thing that concerns me is that he is a 60-lb. dog and Olivia is a 20-lb. baby. I also have to watch his tail. He's knocked Olivia down on more than one occassion (she does her best to push him out of the way and pull herself back up.) Sparky is also deaf, which is another reason Dalmatians aren't reccommended for small children--deaf dogs tend to spook and snap. That has never happened to us, although I do make a point to tell people he's deaf and I wake him up before Olivia plays with him to avoid any misunderstanding.

Dalmatians are SMART dogs. Just because Sparky can't hear doesn't mean we can't communicate with him. He responds very well to many hand signals--which took only minutes to teach him. His deafness also doesn't slow him down as a watchdog, which Dalmatians are very good at. (They used to run with carriages to keep away robbers and animals). His sweet personality turns absolutely viscious if he sees another dog even breathing on our property line, and his eyes pick up everything. He is also constantly guarding Olivia from Sammy, our ever-playful cocker. Nothing gets between Sparky and his baby girl as long as he's around. Olivia doesn't really appreciate this protective attitude, but I do.

Sparky's easy-going personality (which is very different from most Dalmatians...even his brother Scamp) means Olivia can pretty much do whatever she wants to him. When she was younger, she'd pull on his tongue, pull on his ears, pull on his tail and climb all over him. He responded with kisses (see below); he didn't even bark, growl or snap. Now she's tall enough to scratch his back and he loves her even more.

One thing that makes Dalmatians so loyal, I think, is their need for companionship. When we lost Scamp, Sparky needed to be with us 24/7. I don't care what you see on TV, it is impossible to share a house with a 60-lb. lapdog who sheds a new coat of hair every hour. That's when we got Sammy, and the two are never apart (more about Sammy later). Sparky absolutely does not do well by himself.

While I love Sparky and can't imagine Olivia growing up without him, I don't reccommend this breed to other families with young children. In many ways, Sparky is a very special dog. Perhaps if you introduced this dog to your family as a puppy, it would be OK. But if you're looking at an adult, I'd be very careful. I'm grateful that we go such a sweet boy with Sparky (again, his brother Scamp...totally different story...we named him Scamp for a reason). He is definitely a wonderful family dog for us.