Barefoot & Eloquent

Nonnie's All-Naturals

2011-10-23T18:41:00.000-04:00

Just this weekend I learned about a great new start-up company owned by the sister of one of my good friends. Natalie is the mother to adorable little boy Talon who has some health issues that make it necessary for their family to eat gluten and dairy free and also to avoid many additives. She has created her own house cleaning products, 100% soy candles and has recently added a line of homemade, organic pie fillings to her inventory! I just placed an order for both her pear and apple pie fillings as well as a peach and ginger scented soy candle. Her prices are very reasonable at $5.00 for the pie fillings and $12 for the candles. I'm so excited to receive my order and bake up some pies while I burn my yummy scented candle!

Natalie just started a Facebook account for her company. Please visit Nonnie's All-Naturals to learn a little more about her company and message her if you'd like to place an order.

Disclaimer: I have not received any free product from Nonnie's All-Naturals nor am I being compensated in any way for using the space on my blog to let you all know about her company. I'm just excited about this new company and thought I'd share the news and help a fellow mother get a start with her new business venture. Any opinions expressed are completely my own.

Thanks for reading!

Yummy, HEALTHY Dessert - Pecan & Grape Yogurt Salad

2011-06-06T01:02:00.001-04:00

I don't know about you, but I'm always on the lookout for dessert options for my family that are healthy and still delicious. While making dinner tonight I was munching on a few pecans I found in my pantry. I realized that if I chopped the nuts and combined them with some fresh grapes it might make a tasty combo. I tried it and it was! Then I got to thinking that I should try to make some kind of dessert using that combo. I've heard of similar desserts using a pudding or whipped topping type base that the nuts and fruit are stirred into. While that sounds delicious, I really wanted something healthier. I can't eat dairy or sugar right now, but my husband and son can and this dessert was really for their enjoyment so I decided to use some homemade, plain yogurt. I made this yogurt just last night from our raw cow's milk so it is really fresh and delicious! I also added a touch of real maple syrup to sweeten it up. I served it with dinner and both Josh and Evan loved it! They both had seconds. I guess that's a win!

Recipe

Ingredients:
Bunch of grapes
Pecans (or other nut), chopped
Plain yogurt
Maple syrup

The amounts of all the ingredients are based on your taste so add as much or as little as you want. Remember that the amount of yogurt you use will determine how "soupy" the consistency of the dish will be so keep that in mind as you are determining how much you want to use.

Just mix everything together and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Asian Style Chicken with Pineapple Fried Rice

2011-04-08T15:26:00.000-04:00

I'm making dinner tonight for a friend who recently had a baby. I remembered this last night at dinner. Today I looked in my freezer to see what was available and decided on chicken something. Yes, you heard that right. I had NO IDEA.

After a trip to the gym, lunch and then putting Evan down for his nap I got started. I knew I wanted to chop the chicken into chunks to make it cook faster so I started to work cutting the boneless, skinless breasts into one inch cubes. As I sliced I started to think about cooking the chicken in olive oil and Italian spices, but changed my mind when I realized that I had a pineapple that needed to be eaten. I quickly switched gears and decided to cook the chicken in Braggs liquid aminos (sort of tastes like soy sauce), with coconut oil, ginger, garlic, sliced onion and a bit of pepper. For the last 10 minutes of cooking I added some cubes of pineapple. I'm pairing this with rice cooked in water and pineapple juice, then sauteed with more pineapple and peppers in coconut oil and a dash of Braggs liquid aminos. Makes me wish we were having more than just leftovers for our own dinner tonight!

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed (I used three large breasts)
Onion, chopped or sliced
Fresh Ginger, about a 1 inch chunk from the root, peeled then pressed through a garlic press
Fresh Garlic, 3 cloves, put through a garlic press
Black Pepper, to taste
Braggs Liquid Aminos, to taste (I used appx. 1/2 cup)
Coconut Oil - 1 tbls, maybe a bit more if you like the coconut taste
Water
Pineapple cubes (as much as you like)

Throw everything but the coconut oil and pineapple in a baking dish and stir until the chicken is well coated with the spices and Braggs. Throw in the coconut oil in one spot. (It will melt after it heats up and disperse through the dish.) Add water so that it covers the chicken about halfway. Bake at 400 until done. In the last 10 minutes or so of cooking throw in the pineapple chunks and stir.

Pineapple Fried Rice

Brown Rice, cooked according to package but put a little pineapple juice in the water too (I pressed a few slices in a lemon press to get the juice out.)
Coconut oil
Pineapple chunks
Pepper chunks
Braggs Liquid Aminos
Black Pepper, to taste

Saute pineapple and sweet pepper chunks in coconut oil until they just start to soften. Add in rice, Braggs and pepper and saute until the rice is hot and everything is mixed. Easy!

Sorry, no pictures again. I'm in a rush to get my friends this meal so Evan and I are headed out the door with no time to stop for pictures.

Taco Crockpot Chicken Recipe

2011-03-31T23:00:00.000-04:00

And I use the term "recipe" loosely... I rarely measure ingredients, but rather tend to throw a little of this, a dash of that into a pot and turn it into dinner. Hopefully that doesn't throw you off if try to copy a recipe. Just add the ingredients to your "taste" and it should turn out fine.

Taco Crockpot Chicken

Ingredients:
Chicken (Any type, but whatever you use boneless, skinless will be easiest) - I used boneless, skinless thighs.
Chili Powder
Minced Onion
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Cumin
Red Pepper Flakes
Oregano
Salt
Pepper
Water

Put the chicken in the bottom of the crockpot. Throw in the spices until you feel like there's enough flavor on the chicken. (I warned you!) Add water until it almost covers the chicken. Stir. Set the crockpot to cook on low for 6-8 hours or high if you have less time. (Not sure how long it will need on high so just make sure to check to be sure the meat is cooked before you dig in if you choose to use the high setting!)

When the chicken is done you can shred it (It practically falls apart anyway!) and put it on a salad or put it into taco or tortilla shells with other taco type toppings and enjoy! It's also great if you serve it with a little cilantro lime rice (just cook rice and then refry it with cilantro, lime juice and salt thrown in. Yum!)

I ate mine on salad with a little olive oil and lime juice as dressing and Josh had his on a tortilla with various toppings.

For Josh's lunch the next day I threw some of the chicken into a lidded dish with leftover rice, frozen corn, chopped onions, raw milk cheddar cheese, salsa and homemade plain yogurt (made with raw cow milk) instead of sour cream. He said it was tasty!

If you give this recipe a try I'd love to hear how it worked for you and what you thought. Oh, and feel free to ask me any questions you might have too.

I want to be a blogger...

2011-03-31T22:34:00.001-04:00

But I'm so darn inconsistent with my posts!

My mom asked me to post my recipes that I usually create on the fly. I have a habit of telling her about them and rattle off the ingredients and instructions when she isn't in a position to write it all down. She suggested I post the recipes on my blog and she'll just copy my recipe the next day. Basically, we'll be eating the same menu, but she'll be one day behind me.

I'm not very good with meal plans... I like to have lots of ingredients on hand and create the meals at the last minute. Normally it works out fine, but every now and then it backfires on me and I don't feel like being creative. Then we eat out! (So I guess it doesn't really backfire. :) )

My next post (coming as soon as I can type it out) is a recipe for Taco Crockpot Chicken.

Stay tuned.

Why I Love Being a Mom of a Boy - Almost Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-01T20:36:00.000-05:00

I get to discover things like this and it makes me smile.

Isn't my kid creative?

Better Late...

2011-02-01T14:27:00.000-05:00

I just discovered the Stats tab on my dashboard! I know, I know... a little late to the game, but at least I found it! While clicking through the stats I discovered that my recipe for an alternative apple pie was one of the featured pies in this post over at www.godairyfree.org. How cool!

Curried Pasta Salad

2011-02-01T11:00:00.001-05:00

I've always enjoyed cooking, but since I've been married I've really taken off with trying and even creating new recipes. I'm going to try to post recipes that I've tried and enjoyed on this blog (hopefully with pictures!). Some will be original recipes and some will be things I've seen or read that other people have created, but hopefully all will be delicious! (Otherwise, why would I bother writing about them?)

On Saturday evening I cooked an herb crusted roast (I'll post that recipe some other time.) for our dinner. It's a favorite for our little family and is always met with approval when I tell Josh what we'll be eating. (Makes me feel good that my husband loves my cooking so much!) Normally I bake potatoes in the oven at the same time the roast is cooking, but this time I forgot. Whoops! I looked through my pantry and refrigerator for a good starch option that wouldn't take an hour to cook and settled on pasta. I knew I wanted some kind of sauce to flavor the pasta, but wasn't really feeling a marinara sauce and we didn't have any white sauce in the house. We were completely out of butter (we don't eat it often) so making my own alfredo sauce wasn't an option. I remembered that I had half a tomato, a small chunk of cucumber and a half cup or so of leftover steamed peas in the refrigerator and decided to make a pasta salad. At first I planned to add olive oil and Italian spices to give the salad a traditional pasta salad taste, but decided instead to spice things up and make it a curried pasta salad. It was a raging success! Josh loves it and has declared it one of my best recipes EVER! Win!

Here are the details if you'd like to try to make it yourself. It's super delicious and over all pretty healthy for you. If you are okay with eating pasta, that is.

Curried Pasta Salad

Wagon wheel pasta - I used half a box

1 medium onion, chopped small
Random veggie leftovers from your refrigerator - I used steamed peas, cucumber, mushrooms and tomato. Olives, zucchini, green beans or peppers would also be delicious additions!
Can of garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
3 Tbls. (roughly) Olive oil - next time I might try coconut oil
1-2 Tbls. lemon juice - I probably used 1.5 Tbls.
Garlic powder - to taste
Onion powder - to taste
Curry powder - to taste
Salt and Pepper - to taste (Catching a pattern here?)

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Transfer drained pasta to a large bowl and add the vegetables (Stop and celebrate that you've just saved a bunch of produce from going bad in your fridge and being dumped down the disposal.) and beans. Put the olive oil, lemon juice, and spices in a jar and shake until mixed. Then pour over the salad and stir until everything is coated in the dressing. At this point you can refrigerate the salad until you are ready to serve it or dish it up at room temperature. I've had it both ways and can honestly say that I enjoy it lukewarm or cold! It really is delicious any way you choose to eat it! Here's a picture to see if I can tempt your taste buds..

I know I'm not a food photographer. Please forgive the amateur picture. :)

Also, I rarely measure the ingredients in my recipes. I prefer to opt for the "Throw all the ingredients together until it looks and smells good" approach. Obviously I don't do this for baked goods, but for stove top recipes I'm all about winging it!

If you try this dish please comment back and let me know if you liked it and if you made any changes. I'd love to have some new ideas for ingredients to add and spice it up a bit more!

Resolutions - Yeah, sure....

2011-02-01T01:30:00.000-05:00

I don't make New Year Resolutions. There, I said it. I prefer to recognize that a change needs to be made in my life and make the change right then. Why wait until January 1st? At the end of 2010 I started mulling over some changes that I felt I needed in my life and made the decision to dive in and make those changes. Coincidentally, the New Year, resolution time, was just about to happen so this year I guess I'm making resolutions. Sort of.

Here's a list of the changes I am striving to make in my life:

1. Spend less time online. (I've fallen into a habit of playing way too many games on Facebook and way to little time tending to my housework and other hobbies.)

2. Get to bed at a decent hour. (I'm a night owl, but I know it's not good for me.)

3. Eat better. Make healthier choices with the foods I put into my body. (I feel like I got off the healthy eating bandwagon about a year ago and I can definitely see the change in my health and weight. It's time to get serious again!)

4. Blog more often. (Part of me really wants to be a blogger. Another part of me doesn't want to bother. I want to give it a shot and see if I like it.)

5. Get in some kind of physical activity at least once a week. (Could be the gym, laps at the mall or a walk around my neighborhood if the sidewalks are cleared of ice.)

6. Try to get my handmade jewelry business off the ground and make a little money from the hobby I love.

7. Reconnect with my inner child and re-learn how to play with toys, pretend and imagine. (Evan is getting to the age where he really enjoys having someone play with his toys along with him. He tries to get me to play, but I get bored really quickly because I just can't get my imagination engaged like I did when I was a kid. This year I want to relearn how to have fun!)

There. Hopefully getting all of this typed out will keep me motivated to keep at these necessary changes until they become my new habits.

Random

2010-09-21T03:02:00.000-04:00

I'm one of those people that keeps many tabs open in my browser until I've had a chance to write about them, forward, save, etc., etc. Josh thinks I'm nutso and that it's my own fault when my computer slows down or goes wonky. I say it's the price I have to pay for saving such valuable information. I'm a real martyr like that. No need to thank me.

One of my Facebook friends posted a status update that I really thought was inspiring. I'll copy it here:

On this day, God wants you to know

... that the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang the best. Do not wait; the time will never be 'just right'. Start where you are, work with whatever is at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.

How awesome is that?! The day I read this I was feeling pretty down on myself about my jewelry design because I had shown it at a festival and didn't sell a single piece! Many people loved the designs and commented on them, but not one single person made a purchase! I understood that it was more of a family festival and not a craft festival and that most people weren't looking to spend a lot of money, but I still felt pretty down about not making any sales. Then I read this and I realized that the festival was a learning experience. (I already knew that, but this quote really made me think about it.) I didn't have a wide range of prices on my products. Maybe if I had some lower priced items I would have sold some things. I'm thinking that I will try to add some inexpensive (but still quality) earrings, bracelets and necklaces to my designs. That way when I'm at an event like the one last weekend I'll have jewelry to appeal to a wider range of people. I'm taking this bit of knowledge gained as one of those "better tools" found as I go along.

Yummy New Pizza Recipe!

2010-09-20T02:19:00.000-04:00

This pizza is TO DIE FOR! (Yes. All in caps. It's really that good!) My friend Stacey and I split a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share. Sometimes we get something like just one butternut squash, just as we did this week. Rather than slice the squash in two and each of us only get a small piece we decided to share a meal together. I found this great recipe for Butternut Squash Flatbread with Cheddar and Pine Nuts (Oh, heaven!) and we decided to try it. It was wonderful! We made a few changes to the recipe to customize it to our taste (Read: MEAT). See below for the recipe and a picture that Stacey took of the finished product.

Butternut Squash Flatbread with Cheddar and Pine Nuts
(& CHICKEN TOO!)

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced (We added the chicken because we didn't want a pizza without meat, but if you prefer a vegetarian pizza you can leave the chicken out of the recipe.)
garlic powder, minced onion, onion powder, salt, pepper, thyme, olive oil

1 pound store-bought pizza dough, thawed if frozen (we used Trader Joe's herb dough)
1 pound butternut squash - peeled, seeded and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced (we used yellow onions from the CSA)
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (we also got these fresh from the CSA)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper (we used fresh ground pepper)
1 1/2 cups grated extra-sharp cheddar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Shape the dough into a large oval (we did round pizza shape) and place on a cornmeal dusted baking sheet. (We skipped the cornmeal.)

In a non-stick pan cook the chicken with the olive oil and spices listed on the second line of the ingredients list. When the chicken is done, set aside.

In a large bowl, toss the squash, onion, pine nuts, thyme 1 tablespoon oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. (We didn't measure the oil or any of the spices. We just added to taste - we both like LOTS of flavor!) Scatter over the dough, add chicken, and sprinkle with the cheese.

Bake until golden brown and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes.

Stacey and I both really enjoyed this pizza. My husband said he enjoyed it and then admitted later that he thought it was the worst pizza he's ever eaten. (????????!!!!!) But then, he's not a big squash fan so you can't base your decision to try this recipe off of his judgment. Evan ate and loved the pizza so that's something. Right?

Loving My Reality

2010-09-16T23:00:00.000-04:00

Lately I have been resenting my job as a housewife/mom. Not the loving my family part, but the work part. Ugh! Then I came upon this post through online linking from one blog to another and I am beginning to see it another way. I need to "fall in love with my reality." The author described very clearly some of the things I struggle with. The endless cycle of laundry, cooking, cleaning up from cooking, feeding Evan, cleaning Evan up after eating, changing diapers, disciplining him when needed, taking him out of the house, grocery shopping with a toddler in tow.... I need to stop fighting it and accept that this is my life and see it as a blessing. I GET to do laundry for my family, I'm PRIVILEGED to cook and clean to keep us eating healthy meals and living in a clean house. I'm BLESSED to have a son and to change his diapers, feed him and keep him happy while at the grocery store. (And if you know anything at all about my pregnancy and the struggle that we had to stay pregnant you would wonder how I could even forget that Evan is a blessing. A miracle!)

The next time I start my inner griping and mentally fight the list of things I have to do I'm going to try to remember this post and approach my reality with a thankful heart. Maybe if I change my attitude those tasks won't seem like work anymore, but really be the blessings that they are.

Funny how God has a way of putting a mirror in front of me so that I'm forced to examine my own heart. I'm so grateful that He loves me enough to bring me face to face with conviction.

Strawberry Picking

2010-06-10T23:40:00.001-04:00

*UPDATE - Pictures finally added!!!

*NOTE - I've been holding off on publishing this post for a week or more because I want to add pictures. Now I'm worried I'll never post because I'm terrible about getting pictures off my camera. I'm just going to publish now and hopefully add pictures soon. Sorry!*

I'm really making an effort to write more often. I think it's important to have a record of Evan's baby/toddlerhood that is more solid than my memory. I haven't been very good at taking pictures (We have them, just not tons.) so I'm attempting to keep a record here.

This past Tuesday we went strawberry picking with a group of friends. When I first heard about the trip I was excited because this is something I've been looking forward to doing with Evan. Once I started thinking about it I got a little worried that maybe Evan wouldn't behave and that it would be too difficult to try to pick berries and keep an eye on him. (He's been in a bit of a tantrum stage lately.) I decided to brave the trip and we would just leave if he got cranky and I was too stressed. Well, the day turned out to be an awesome experience! I'm so glad I decided to give it a try! Evan behaved so well and he had a blast eating strawberries straight out of the box as I picked them.

There were many other moms and kids who went with us and Evan had a blast walking back and forth between the different groups of people picking berries. He's such an independent little man! We picked for an hour or so and then all decided to stop and have lunch. As I was loading up the car to drive to the picnic area I left Evan in the stroller on the drivers side of the car while I was loading the strawberries into the passenger side. I heard him start to scream like he sometimes does when I go out of his sight. I finished what I was doing and walked back to the other side of the car. The stroller was not where I left it! It had fallen over and Evan was strapped in, upside down with his face in the grass. He was screaming his head off and I could tell he was scared. Poor kid! I got the stroller back up and took him out and hugged him and the little dude just hung onto me and cried. My heart nearly broke. Once he was calmed down I strapped him into his carseat and finished loading the car and we made the quick drive to the picnic spot. The farm had a nice grassy area between some barns and that's where we ate. I, of course, didn't think to pack a lunch for myself, but had a sandwich for Evan. After eating he went and played with the other kids as they fed weeds to some goats. He LOVED them!

Since we were on a farm there were trucks that would drive by and Evan tried to take off toddling after them whenever they passed. It kept me busy going after him and bringing him back. I love him so much, but boy does he keep me on my toes!

It was a great day and I'm so excited that he was well behaved. I won't be nervous to try this type of outing again! I love my boy!

Here are a few more of my favorite pictures from the day.

You know that feeling when...

2010-06-01T16:19:00.000-04:00

Someone links to your blog and you haven't updated in MONTHS? Yeah, me neither. I just won a giveaway from Becca over at The Paro Post and she linked back to my blog so I figured I ought write something here. You know, in case anyone follows the link. I wouldn't want you all to think that I don't write here.... yeah... right... :)

In an effort to update the two of you who haven't given up reading my blog, here's the scoop on what we've been up to.

The G family has been having a busy few months. We decided that we want to try to sell our two level condo and buy an actual townhouse (or even a single family home if we can find one in our price range). We want to have more children (None started yet!) and feel like more space would be important to have before we do that. We could fit another baby in this house, but it would be tight and both kids would have to share E's current room. Doable, but not easy. To get the house ready to list we've done a lot of updates including painting the hallway and two story stairway, sanding and painting the kitchen cabinets (WHY didn't we do this years ago?! They look like new!), putting a new subfloor and flooring in our bathroom, stripping and repainting the front door and a whole host of smaller jobs. We've also ordered new counter top for the kitchen, but it won't be here for at least another week and maybe a bit longer. When you combine all of that with keeping up with housework, spending time with E and each other and the various out of town trips we've taken the spring has just flown by and we are already welcoming summer! Hopefully we'll have the work done in a few weeks and can start looking at homes we'd like to buy once ours is on the market.

I need to get off the computer now. E and I spent part of the afternoon at the neighborhood pool and while he is napping I need to start a load of laundry with our swimming stuff and get his toys cleaned up and dinner started.

Happy Summer! Maybe I'll post again soon. Somebody link to my blog, please, so I'm forced to update!!!

Not Me!

2010-03-29T23:59:00.000-04:00

A blog that I read does a Not Me Monday posting carnival and this week I thought I'd join in. Not Me Monday is a place where you can confess something you've done that you're embarrassed about and want to own up to, while denying it at the same time. It's fun!

I know, what could I have done that I could be embarrassed about? It's not like I'm a mom with very little time and little sleep, right? And on that note...

I most certainly did NOT take a nap instead of showering while the baby slept this morning. When we both woke up, two and a half GLORIOUS hours later, I did NOT use diaper wipes to freshen up before heading out to run errands. Nope. Not me!

And there you have it. My mommy confession. I use my kid's diaper wipes instead of showering. But, at least I'm well rested... if only for today.

What did you NOT do recently? Head on over to My Charming Kids and link up your own confession.

Bad Blogger!!!

2010-01-13T01:10:00.000-05:00

My last post was on October 30th. That makes it nearly two and a half months since I last blogged! I'm sorry. *hangs head in shame*

I have an excuse. His name is E. He's nearly 11 months old and he keeps me BUSY! That and Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years also happened. It's a busy time of year, folks. What can I say?

So what's going on in the G household these days? Now that the holidays are passed and life has returned to normal we are back to organizing our home. We would like to sell as soon as we have saved enough for a down payment on a new home. With that in mind, we are starting to steadily pluck away at our "To Do" list of minor home repairs. I'm also working on decluttering and organizing. In order to help us save for the new house, we've also made the decision to cut our cable. After tonight (or sometime tomorrow, depending on when Verizon shuts us off) we will be cable free. It is a very freeing feeling to know that we will no longer be ruled by our desire to watch our recorded shows on the DVR! I imagine that we will be more productive and spend more time together as a family doing "family" things. Josh and I can play games after E has gone to bed and before bedtime we can all play together. E loves it when both Josh and I get down on the floor and play with him. I'm also hoping that I'll be better at getting housework done without television here to distract me.

Back in November I made the decision to start selling PD jewelry. It has been going well, although, not as well as I had hoped. I really wanted to have six home shows completed before 1/22/10 in order to win a $200 certificate for free jewelry from the company. I can use this jewelry on my display table so that I have more samples to show customers at home shows. Right now, I need one more show. If you are reading this (I don't know how many people actually do read my blog...) I'd love to do a home show for you! Partly, because I need the extra show (I'm being honest) and also because I think doing home shows is fun and I love getting an evening or afternoon away from home!

Well, it's late and I need to get some sleep. I've been burning the candle at both ends lately and really need to be better at getting to bed before midnight so that I can get some good quality sleep before E wakes up at 7am. Before midnight won't be happening tonight, but just because I've gone past my goal doesn't mean I have to stay up any later.

With that, goodnight!

Pedoodles Giveaway

2009-10-30T11:11:00.000-04:00

I've done it again. I've entered another giveaway, this time for a pair of Pedoodles baby shoes. I figure that I've been having some awesome luck with giveaways lately and that it doesn't hurt to enter. I'd really like to win these shoes too! If you'd like to enter, although I hope you don't because it will reduce my odds of winning, please go to this post at Mama Needs This and follow the instructions for entering.

So what are you favorite styles of Pedoodles shoes? I really like the Blue Bumper Cars style in their current line. However, they have some new styles coming out soon and I would LOVE to have a pair of their brown, tan and olive suede shoes for E's cute little feet!

For more giveaways on other cute items you should bookmark Mama Needs This or have the blog update to an RSS feed. She has had some really nice products up for giveaways on her blog!

Pray for Stellan!

2009-10-28T01:40:00.000-04:00

Stellan is the son of a Twitter user and blog writer that I follow. She goes by MckMama. Stellan is just over 11 months old and has been having an issue with his heart since he was in utero. He has periods where his heart beats VERY fast and there is danger of heart failure if the fast beating cannot be stopped. Usually it is controlled by various prescription drugs, but occasionally some SVT (the name for the fast beating) breaks through. He can have a procedure done when he is older (around 4 years old) to try to correct the problem with his heart. His parents and older siblings are just waiting for him to grow and praying that his little heart can hold out until then. (This is my layperson description of his condition, MckMama explains it very well on her blog.) Stellan was just admitted to the hospital tonight with SVT that managed to break through the drugs holding it back. MckMama sounds like she is staying strong, but I can imagine that going through this is not easy. Can you please pray for healing, strength, more time for Stellan to grow and for peace for the entire family? If you have time and wish to leave MckMama a comment on her blog I'm sure she would love the encouragement.

Thanks for praying!

Won ANOTHER Giveaway!

2009-10-25T14:15:00.000-04:00

I guess I'm on a roll! I won another giveaway! This one is from Mama Needs This and is a Toofeze Teether. I'm so excited! I guess all the entering of different giveaways I've been doing is really paying off. This teething toy is well timed too. E just got his first two teeth and I'm beginning to see signs that the next tooth is on it's way shortly. He should really enjoy having something new on which to chew.

Sugar, Dairy, Wheat FREE (!!!!) Apple Pie AND It's Delicious!

2009-10-16T22:49:00.000-04:00

As some of you might know I'm doing a diet that has some pretty strict eating rules. I can eat ONLY the following: fruits of any kind (except oranges), vegetables of any kind, meat of any kind (except pork), potatoes, brown rice and eggs. For beverages I'm allowed water, black coffee and black tea. That's it. It's really a lot of food and gives me tons of options, but I can't have anything processed or frozen or with any additives, etc.

Lately I've had a craving for a good dessert, but since I can't have sugar I wasn't sure how I was going to get that craving satisfied. Yesterday I started thinking... sweet potatoes are almost sweet enough on their own that they taste like candy, and so are fresh dates. What if I pureed them in a food processor, mixed them together and used them as a sweetener in an apple pie? I bought all the ingredients yesterday and this afternoon I made the pie. Josh and I just finished a whole HALF of the pie between the two of us! That's how delicious it is! I'm so excited! I love the fact that I now have a dessert option that is tasty, healthy and diet friendly, but, even more, I'm loving that I came up with an original recipe that is totally delicious!

It is important to know that I made the pie with rice flour because I'm not allowed wheat and it is dairy free as well. Keep in mind that I'm only allowed three types of oil; olive, coconut, almond. However, since my baby is allergic to nuts, any nut oils that I eat bother him when he breastfeeds, this makes the almond oil off limits for me. Here is the recipe.

Crust (I made with rice flour and coconut oil, but you can use regular flour and shortening if you don't have sensitivities to them.)

1 1/4 Cups Brown Rice Flour
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/3 Cup Coconut Oil
4-5 Tablespoons Cold Water

In a medium bowl stir together the flour and salt. Cut in the coconut oil until the mixture is in crumbs the size of peas. Add the water ONE tablespoon at a time to sections of the flour mixture. Gently toss the flour and water with a fork and then push to the side of the bowl. Repeat this until the flour is all moistened. Form into a ball. (Normally this would be where you would roll the dough and put it into a pie pan, but rice flour doesn't make for a very pliable dough.) Press the dough into a pie pan and form it to reach up the sides and cover the bottom. Using a fork, poke the bottom and sides to provide room for steam to vent.

Apple Filling

6 Cups Apples (you can leave the skin on or peal them. I left my skins on.)
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
2 Tablespoons Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 Teaspoon Nutmeg
1/8 Teaspoon Ground Clove
1 Sweet Potato, Baked
5 Fresh Dates, Pitted

Pour the lemon juice over the apples and let sit while you prepare the remaining ingredients. In a large bowl stir together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. Add the apples to the spiced flour mixture and toss until well coated. Dig the sweet potato "meat" out of the skin and mash, set aside. Using a food processor turn the dates into a paste by adding a small amount of water. (Approximately 1/4 cup.) Stir the dates and the mashed sweet potato together and then mix into the apple mixture. Pour into the pie pan with the prepared shell.

Crumb Topping (Again, you can use regular flour instead of rice flour if you would prefer.)

4 Fresh Dates, Pitted
3 Tablespoons Rice Flour (Appx.)

Process the dates in a food processor, dry, without water, until they are a thick paste, but not watery. Add the flour and process until dry, pea sized crumbs form. Spread over top of the pie.

Bake the entire pie in a 375 oven for approximately 1 hour. (May take a little less or more time.) You will know it is done when the topping has thickened and is bubbly. After about 20 minutes you may need to cover the top of the pie with foil to keep the crumb topping from burning.

ENJOY!

This pie underwent the very stringent "Husband Test" and passed with flying colors! Even without sugar it is incredibly delicious!

Please let me know if you try to make it and what you think of it. We love it here in the G House and will probably make it a regular in the recipe rotation!

*Note that the food processor I used is a small three cup machine that only cost about $10 dollars.

Size 10!!!

2009-10-15T15:21:00.001-04:00

I've been dieting for 3 weeks, trying to lose my baby weight and also my careless eating weight after the baby was born. (Shame on me!) In the past 3 weeks I've lost a total of 15 pounds! FIFTEEN!!!! Today I decided to try on my size 10 jeans, just for fun! They fit! Now, granted, they aren't an easy fit, but they aren't a hard-to-get-into-stuffed-sausage fit either. So yay! One small victory on my way to getting back to my smaller size. 15 pounds down, 25 (at least) to go.

Busy Life & a Trip to Look Forward Too

2009-10-09T10:54:00.000-04:00

Life seems to be busier than normal lately. Since the beginning of August we have been on the go (either me and E as a duo or the whole family) almost every weekend! Since August 1st I've made two trips to my parents house (a 4.5 hour drive each direction), a trip to Plymouth, MA to visit my friend Anne, two trips to Virginia Beach and one trip to Josh's parent's (a 3 hour drive). The few weekends we have been home we've had a wedding to go to, family visiting from out of town and housework to catch up on. Needless to say I feel like I rarely spend any time at home anymore! We have one more trip to visit my in-laws this weekend. Then we have a weekend at home with NOTHING scheduled. Later this month we have a visit from my sister-in-law (Which I'm REALLY looking forward to!) and then another free weekend before we make another trip to my in-laws for the weekend (Nov. 5-8).

For our November trip to the in-laws we get to do something a little different! We will get there on Thursday night, spend two nights with them, but on Saturday morning we leave our little man for the first overnight without us. (I'm a little nervous, but know he'll do fine and that my mother and father-in-law will take great care of him.) Josh and I are going to The Homestead in Hot Springs, VA to celebrate the two year anniversary of our engagement. The Homestead has always been a special place to Josh and as a young man he dreamed of someday proposing to his wife on the resort grounds. In November of 2007 Josh took me to the resort for an afternoon of strolling the grounds and dinner at one of the fancy restaurants. While we were there he proposed, I said, "yes", and the rest is wonderful history. We decided to go back this fall and spend the night and make it a delayed celebration of our wedding anniversary as well as our two year engagement anniversary. We had a three month old baby for our first wedding anniversary and didn't really do anything to celebrate so we are really looking forward to this!

I should end this post and get some things accomplished around the house before E wakes up from his morning nap. We leave later this evening for our weekend away and I have a lot I need to accomplish before then. (Shower, gym, dentist appointment, packing, cleaning... sigh...)

Diaper Sprayer NEEDED!!!!

2009-10-09T10:32:00.001-04:00

If there's one thing I love it's a good giveaway on one of the blogs I read. I rarely win, but I always try. Right now The First Time Around is giving away a diaper sprayer. Not only do I want this, but I NEED this! My kiddo has started to eat solids so his poos have gone from the wonderful, not smelly, water soluble poos of an exclusively breastfed baby to the smelly, clumpy, yucky poos of a toddler. Ewwww!!!! I've been scraping off the poo with diaper wipes and flushing it down the toilet, but it's making me dread diaper changes. If I win this sprayer I'll be able to hook it up to the plumbing of my toilet and spray the poopy diapers before putting them in the diaper pail. (I'm also hopeful that this will cut down on some of the stink in his room because of the pail being filled with diapers that haven't been washed off.) One of the options for extra entries in the giveaway was to blog about the giveaway. IF I have any readers you are the lucky ones who get to read what I've written and hopefully I'll win a sprayer for my time. If you cloth diaper and are in need of a sprayer you might want to head on over to The First Time Around and check out her giveaway. However, I don't really want you to enter as that will make the odds for me to win that much worse. :)

I won!

2009-10-02T16:32:00.001-04:00

Since I won a contest for two wetbags from Bummis and they linked to my blog from theirs, I decided I should probably get started on the blog I always intend to post to and never actually get a chance to write, well, anything. So here it is; the first post on my new blog. The baby is napping (his short nap of the day) and I should be thawing meat for dinner, starting laundry and clipping coupons. Instead, I'm web surfing and basking in the excitement of winning a giveaway. I don't win sweepstakes and giveaways very often so this is an exciting event for me!

I don't have time to make this a long post, but I will try to write more later. Since it is Friday and we've had a busy/rough/sickness-filled week, hubby and I are planning on doing nothing but veg in the living room and watch a few shows from the DVR once our kiddo goes to bed at 7:30. I'm so looking forward to vegging! Maybe while we morph into couch potatoes for some well deserved rest I'll work on another post.

Before I go, I wanted to give a shout out to Bummis. Thanks so much for the wonderful giveaway! I can hardly wait to try out my new wetbags when they arrive in the mail! Just in case you aren't a cloth diapering parent and don't know what wetbags are... they are a waterproof cloth bag that is made to hold wet/poopy diapers after they've been used by your baby. There are many other uses for them as you can see from this post. People are so creative!

Alright, I'm out until later when I'm couch potato-ing it up.