Monthly Archives: April 2012

Babywearing Woes

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Warning: I’m about to get on my soapbox.

Let’s talk baby carriers.  Did you know there are other options out there other than Baby Bjorn?  How did they corner the market with their inferior product?  Baby Bjorn currently offers 6 models of baby carriers on their website, but only 1 offers the support that baby’s hips need.  Dangling a baby from it’s crotch can cause hip dysplasia.  What, you’ve never heard of hip dysplasia?  Yeah, I hadn’t either.  Well let me tell you all about it.

That’s my Cupcake when she was just a few weeks old, sporting her harness.  She had hip dysplasia.  Hers was congenital.  There was nothing I could’ve done to prevent it.  It was just because of the way she was in my belly.  She wore this contraption for the first 12 weeks of her life.  And another brace for an additional 12 weeks at night.  The harness kept her legs out in a frog position 24/7 to allow  her hips to sit correctly in their socket.  This is the healthiest position for a baby’s hips.  Luckily for us, the harnesses did the trick and surgery wasn’t needed, but that isn’t the case for everyone.

So what does this have to do with baby carriers?  Some baby carriers do not put baby’s legs in this frog position.  I see people pinning Baby Bjorn’s left and right and recommending them to first time moms, but these carriers are NOT good for baby!  The one model that allows for the “wide” frog leg position can also be adjusted into the “normal” position.

Here’s an example.

See how baby’s legs are hanging straight down?  That position doesn’t allow the hip joints to sit correctly.  This can allow baby’s hips to dislocate.  Do you really want to dislocate your baby’s hip?  I didn’t think so!!

A better carrier choice is one that puts baby’s legs in the frog position.  An example….

This is an Ergo (my carrier of choice).  It has a nice wide spot for baby’s behind and legs to sit in and keep baby’s hip even in the socket.

You may notice that in the first example baby is facing out and in the second baby is facing in.  It’s true, you cannot face baby out in these wide carriers, but  this is actually a good thing.  If baby is facing out (s)he cannot look away from stimuli.  The world is a busy place and it can be very overwhelming for little ones.  Sometimes they need to hide.  Carrying facing in allows them to look away.  Also, when baby faces out it puts more pressure on the carrier’s shoulders and back.  Another option instead of facing out is, once baby is old enough, to wear baby facing in on your back.  That way baby can see what is going on, but can also look away from stimuli if desired.

And the wide carriers have a higher weight limit, meaning the carrier will last you a lot longer.  Cupcake still rides on my back in the Ergo at 23 months and 27 lbs and it’s not uncomfortable for me (even with carrying the baby in my belly).

Here’s a little more info from experts on hip dysplasia.  If you don’t believe me, maybe you’ll believe them.

OK, lecture over.  Back to our regularly scheduled blogging.

What’s your favorite baby carrier?

Check out this beauty!

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I thought I found the perfect dresser for Cupcake’s new room on Craigslist.  I emailed the seller and asked the dimensions so I could make sure it would fit in my car.  She said she’d email me back with them when she got home.  I get an email later that evening saying she sold it.  I was bummed.  I had been scouring Craigslist for weeks and this was the first good piece of furniture at a reasonable price I saw!

I really had my heart set on a low and long dresser for her.  So imagine my excitement when I stumbled across this beauty at Salvation Army for just $49.99!!!

It is almost exactly want I wanted!  It is SOLID maple and has so much space in it!  The drawer pulls are definitely not my taste, but clearly I need new ones since several are missing or broken.  And the curves on the bottom are a little flashier than I like, but for the price I can deal with it!

Six of the original drawer pulls are still in good shape so I’m thinking of listing them on eBay (although if one of my readers wants them speak up and we’ll make a deal!), but now I’m on a mission to find new drawer pulls.

Here’s the dilemma.  I need 15 drawer pulls.  I can’t decide what style will look good on this baby so I need your help!

Option #1

This fun arched pull?  They are a bit pricey at $5.38 each.

 

 

 

 

Option #2

This similar, yet cheaper arched pull?  On sale for $1.90 each!

 

 

 

 

Option #3

The bar pull?  Moderately priced at $2.70 each.

 

 

 

 

Or another pull all together?  I need something with a 3 inch hole spacing.  And no I’m not going to fill in the holes and drill new ones.  I don’t have the patience for that.  This dresser is taking up my parking space in the garage and Pete (my car) wants it back (and I’ve already started painting it)! 

 

I also think these glass ones are fun, but at $10.75 a pop I’ll pass!!

 

 

 

So tell me…….what do you like?

Nap Time Craft Time: Circle Skirt

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I’ve been wanting to do this project for a while.  I found a great tutorial over on MADE forever ago and just haven’t had the materials needed.  So the other day I was really itching to sew something and I saw that notions were 50% off at Joann’s.  Off I went to buy some fabric and colored elastic!!

I came home and got straight to work!  OK, I lied.  I came home and threw my new fabric in the washer, then the dryer and waited until nap time and then got to work!  I found some packaging paper to draw my template on.  Luckily Cupcake’s waist measurement was close to the example in the tutorial, so I didn’t have to do any math (not that I’m not good at math.  So here’s my (wrinkly) template pinned to my (adorable) fabric.

A few quick snips and I was left with this!

I was nervous that that inner hole was not going to be big enough to get over Cupcake’s cloth diaper booty, but I kept working……..  eenie, meenie, miney, mo…

Winner!!

Oh, oh, oh…………did I mention I brought out the big guns for this project?

This thing scares the crap out of me!  And I don’t even have to thread it.  It’s been threaded since the day my momma gave it to me.  It just makes me nervous!  So many dials……..  it’s just different………  but look what it can do!!

I serged both the waist and the bottom hem of the skirt to prevent my fabric from fraying (and it looks pretty!).

I pulled my elastic and started sewing……

Finished off the hem……

And ta da!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ain’t she cute?!?!?!

I couldn’t hardly wait for Cupcake to wake up from her nap to try it on!!!  And she loved it!!  You know you want to see some toddler twirls!!!!

Have you made any cute projects lately?

Let’s Salsa!!!!

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Who knew this would turn into a food blog?!?!?  It’s not.  It’s a mish-mash off all the things I do and I just so happened to make salsa and thought I would share.   So this recipe for salsa comes from my dear friend from college, Autumn.  I don’t know where she got it, but she was so kind in sharing it with me SEVERAL years ago and I’ve made it about a million times since!  It’s always a hit at potlucks and parties (with everyone except the hubby).  Strangely it was hubby who suggested I make it when I couldn’t decide what I wanted to make for a playdate I was hosting.  Good hubby!

Here’s how it begins.

Let’s go!  Toss some onion and garlic into the food processor.  I prefer sweet onion because white onions make me cry to hard that I can’t focus on the task at hand.

I love that I don’t have to chop!!

Toss in the best part!  I love me some cilantro!!!!!

Lookin’ good!!

Drain your tomatoes and Rotel and add it in!!

Give it a whirl.  This isn’t a layered salad!!

That’s more like it!

Transfer it to a bowl and give a lime a squeeze!

I know you want to dig in.  But don’t do it!!!!  It’s so hard to resist, but I promise it will taste a million times better after it’s refrigerated and the flavors can meld together.  So find something to do!  Empty the compost bin, mop the floor or better yet, rinse out your food processor bowl because when that tomato and cilantro dry it’s a pain to get off that bowl!!!

Salsa

1 large can or 2 small cans diced tomatoes, drained
1 can Rotel, drained
1 bunch of cilantro
1/2 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 lime

1. Chop onion and garlic in food processor.
2. Add cilantro and process
3. Drain tomatoes and Rotel, add to bowl and process.
4. Transfer to bowl and squeeze juice of lime into, stir to combine.  Refrigerate.

**These amounts are based on my taste preferences.  I don’t like a lot of onion taste, but I love cilantro and lime.  Adjust these ingredients to your desired taste!

So are you a salsa person or a guacamole person?  Or both?  Or heaven forbid, neither?

Pregnancy Post: Week 16

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How far along? 16 weeks

Total weight gain: 6 pounds (a little more than I would like!)

Symptoms: Round ligament pain………that’s about it.

Maternity clothes? I had to buy some new (to me) jeans because my jeans from my first pregnancy are WAY too big!

Food Craving of the Week: Sweets!

Sleep: I could use some uninterrupted sleep!  But at least I can still sleep on my stomach!

Best moment last week: An afternoon picnic on a beautiful day with hubs and Cupcake!

Movement: I feel little wiggles here and there.

Belly Button in or out? In, so far in!

What I miss: Running

What I am looking forward to: Hearing baby’s heartbeat at my appointment on Thursday

Weekly Wisdom: Maternity pants are more comfortable than the rubberband on the button trick.

 

Sneaky, Sneaky

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I did a little impromptu baking the other morning.  We were hosting a playdate and one of the mommas had planned to bring whoopie pies.  Well, she wasn’t able to make them.  Imagine the disappointment from 5 pregnant women when they found out whoopie pies weren’t coming.  I knew I was the only one who could save the day.  I was the only one who would have time in the morning to make them.   So, although I’m usually the involved mom I needed a little help with child control.  Hello, Curious George 2, streaming on Netflix!

I get working in the kitchen, Cupcake is happy seeing her favorite monkey from her favorite books coming to life on the tv, things are going good.  I opt for red velvet whoopie pies, based on the list of ingredients needed for them and their filling (I didn’t have heavy cream on hand and most other frosting recipes need it).  I had recently made the chocolate whoopie pies and there was a lot more batter in the bowl after mixing it up this time.  Uh oh…this is going to take longer than I thought!

So I’m scooping, and baking, and cooling, and transferring…………  I turn around after transferring some pies to the cooling rack to discover this………..

Where’d she come from?!?!?!  How’s she get a cookie?!?!?!  And does she already have one in her mouth?!?!?!

Silly momma left the first rack close to the edge of the counter!!!!  Duh!!!

So I had to let her eat the cookie she had.  I rearranged my messy countertop so the cookies could be moved away from the edge.  Oooohhhh……..that made her mad!!!  Girl’s got a temper!  I shuttle her out of the kitchen since the oven door is about to be opened.

Next thing you know……..

Yeah, this is her solution for shortness.  “I’ll just go get a chair, momma.  Then I can reach.”   And I thought the tantrum when I told her no more cookies was bad!  When I took the chair away and put it back in the living room the waterworks started, the screaming was ear piercing, and the flinging of a little toddler body was very dramatic.  What a diva!  Some snuggles, a bit of milk, and a reminder that her friends were coming over and the tantrum was over.  Phew!   I almost had the pies done by the time our first guests showed up, but there was one more batch to go when the arrived.  By the time I was ready to frost everyone had arrived and they were all staring me down, waiting to dig in.  And we ate way too many!

As if the cookies weren’t enough, this girl proved she has a sweet tooth just like momma.  There were 3 kids playing in the living room, we thought the other two were still hiding in the cubby.  Nope, they were being suspiciously quiet in the kitchen, behind the island where no one could see them from the living room.  But suddenly, Cupcake came running into the living room proudly yelling “cookie!”  She had recruited her tall friend to snatch the box of TimBits (donut holes) off the counter and the two of them had stuffed their faces!  Not only that, but Cupcake had about 8 donuts scooped up in her arms and was proudly showing them off!  My first instinct was to run and grab the donuts out of her hands……..unfortunately not to grab the camera.  But I did at least get a shot of the mess she made!

Yep, she’s got a whole donut in her mouth and every type of sugar and glaze all down the front of her shirt and pants!!!  Thanks for the comic relief, Toots!  I wonder why she didn’t take a nap that day…………………..

It’s the Little Things

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Some times the little things make a big difference.  And in this case even the hubby agrees!  At first he thought I was being silly when I started replacing our old beige outlets and switches with fresh new white ones, but they certainly have grown on him.  So as I paint rooms in the house I paint the off white trim white and I replace the old switches and outlets and their plates.  Now that the new guest room is a beautiful shade of Free Spirit it was time to update the outlets!  This was my nap time project.

See how much prettier they’re going to be?!?!?!  Down to the basement I went.  The breakers are labeled, but when you turn off the one that says master bedroom half of the lights in the master bedroom stay on, so I thought it best just to turn off everything that was tied to the upstairs!  I didn’t want to have to go up and down two flights of stairs more than once (Why am I getting winded already this early in the pregnancy? Even when still working out?!?!)  So first I crawled under the newly assembled desk (I’ll show you some pics later!) to work on the first outlet.  Not comfortable!!  I had to sit slumped over while I unscrewed two screws, loosened 5 more, unhooked 5 wires, reattached 5 wires, tightened 5 screws on the outlet, and then two more screws to attach the outlet and then add a plate!  Not the best place to start……..

But, tada!!!  Isn’t it pretty?  I didn’t realize it at the time, but these are tamper resistant outlets.  They have a plastic cover inside to help keep unwanted fingers and objects out of them.  Bonus!  At $1.19 a pop I think they’re a bargain!

I don’t really know how important it is, but I always worry about mixing up the wires so when I remove them I spread them out like this.

That way I put them back the way they were and hope that everything works when I drag myself back down to the basement to flip the switches and then back up to make sure everything works.  Usually I’m successful (I say usually because apparently you have to do something to the outlet that is connected to the light switch – ask hubby about that one).

These light switches had to go, too.

If you look closely you can see the previous owners painted the switch, but I guess they didn’t mind the beige on beige look.

With the outlet covers I just put up the inexpensive white, plastic covers because they’re so low and often hidden behind furniture, but you actually look at the switch plates, so I went with something a little different.

Not the fanciest you’ve ever seen, but I’m not a fancy gal.  I’m just happy they match the new doorknobs!

 

What are some little changes you’ve made around your house that made a big difference?

Blame it on the Rain

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Well, I guess I can’t blame it on the rain since it had stopped falling.  But I can blame it on the brain!  Pregnancy brain that is!!  The funny thing about my mistake is that I was JUST having a conversation about it with a friend of mine.  Over the weekend a friend of mine tried to bake whoopie pies.  She halved a recipe because it made such a large batch and when the pies were done baking they were flat.  She texts me in a panic about what went wrong.  My first thought was that she forgot the baking soda. She insisted she included everything. So I thought maybe it was just a bad recipe.  She said is was from Pioneer Woman.  So, yeah, I’m thinking the recipe was good and she just messed up the ingredients when she did her math.

So all this talk about whoopie pies made me hungry.  Darn, I did’t have enough flour to make whoopie pies!!!  That’s what I get for making homemade pizza earlier in the week.  So I just dreamed about whoopie pies.  Luckily for me the hubs had to make a grocery store trip, so I stressed to him several times to pick me up some flour while he was there.  (I really, really needed it because I have an Amish Friendship Bread starter that needed some, too!)  And then I remembered I was going to a banquet and I needed to bring a dessert.  Yay!!  A reason other than my sweet tooth for making whoopie pies!!!

Fast forward to banquet day.  I have to make the pies while Cupcake is awake because they’ll need time to cool.  So, here I am combining flour, cocoa powder and salt.

I cream my butter, shortening, and brown sugar. Add an egg and vanilla.

And mix it up.  I start adding my flour mixture and milk and I end up with this beautiful, delicious looking batter.  Makes you want to lick the spoon, right?  Yeah, me, too, except that darn pregnancy keeping me from consuming raw eggs!!!

I scoop out my batter using my small scoop, which makes perfect little pies in a uniform size.

Into the oven they go!  And then I start chatting with a friend on Facebook about whoopie pies again.  She says she wants her pies to come out fluffy like the pumpkin ones I made back in the fall.  I tell her I’m making chocolate ones right now from that same recipe book.  They come out nice and fluffy.  She asks what book I have.  I reply this one.

She’s excited because she just ordered that one yesterday!!!  And then I realize my terrible mistake!!!  The baking soda is still sitting on the counter!!!!  I guess it was the combination of pregnancy brain, toddler under foot, and trying to Facebook chat while baking that caused me to forget the very crucial ingredient we had been talking about for the last several days!!!!

So I add some baking soda to the remaining batter because it’s very obvious that my pies are not fluffy!!

See I’m not super mom after all!!!!

Luckily I caught the mistake early enough that I was able to fix it.  The pies without baking soda weren’t very pretty, but at least they still tasted OK.  (No, I didn’t taste 2 of them to make sure!!!  OK, maybe I did.)

So I let the cookies cool.

And then it was toddler nap time.  Time to whip up some filling.

mmmm…….peanut butter……..mmmmm…………room temperature (75 degrees with the windows open!!!) butter.  Wait, ew!  No, I don’t like to eat butter!

Whip it up and add some salt!  Yes, salt!  It’s the secret ingredient.

Add some confectioner’s sugar and mmmm……you’re drooling now, aren’t you?

And now you know why I did this step during nap time.  So I could lick the paddle without a toddler creeping in on my fun!!!!

I put my filling in a pastry bag and use my #12 tip to get a smooth coat of filling on my pie.  And then sandwich two pies together.

Are you  hungry, yet?

How about now?

Chocolate Whoopie Pies

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
4 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper. In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, shortening, and brown sugar on low until just combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes.
3. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the milk to the batter and beat on low until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the remaining flour mixture and 1/2 cup milk and beat until completely combined.
4. Using a spoon, drop about 1 tablespoon of batter onto prepared baking sheets and repeat, spacing them at least 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes each , or until the pies spring back when pressed gently. Remove from oven and let the cakes cool on the sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Salty Peanut Butter Filling

3/4 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
3/4 cup (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the peanut butter and butter on low speed until smooth and creamy.  Add the confectioners’ sugar and the salt and beat on low to incorporate.  Increase the speed to medium and beat until the filling is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.

Recipe from: Whoopie Pies by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell