Motherhood

I recently finished reading the book, "I was a Really Good Mom before I had Kids. Reinventing Modern Motherhood." It will have you laughing out loud! It is a hysterical look at motherhood. The authors are two moms who say all the things you think, but never want to express out loud.

One of the quotes from the book that has really stayed with me and had me thinking is this one: "So many of my friends are having three and four kids, and I'm like, 'why is three the new two?' It is hard to realize that two is our limit." This is exactly how I feel. When I was growing up most families just had 2 kids. Only a few of my friends had more than one sibling. Now it seems everyone wants more than two. Many of my friends have three or are currently working on number three. Being a female only child, having two little boys still rocks my world. Sometimes I pinch myself to make sure this really is, in fact, my life.

Then I think about my dear grandfather (father of 2) who said in his 80's that he wished they had had more children. My own in-laws have expressed the feelings that they wish they had had more than 2 children. I think about the Quiverfull movement, http://www.quiverfull.com/, the biblically based group that holds the belief that children are a gift from God and asks the question, who are we to refuse a gift from God? So many people desparately just wish they could have one baby.

Then I think about the fact that if I did have another baby it would be another boy. This, of course, reminds me of my dear aunt Emily (mother of 3 boys) who is famous for her quote "the only thing worse than 2 boys is 3." She is kidding, obviously. But I would end up with another boy. The selfish part of me wants a little girl so I can dress her in all the divine, beautiful little girl clothes. So I will get to pick out a girl name and take her to ballet. So I will have a daughter to share the mother-daughter relationship like my mother and I have. Who will call me with cooking questions? Who will call me with questions when their own child is a baby? I will never get to be "chief meme." I currently pray for wonderful daughters-in-law, but they will probably call their own mothers with these questions.

Then I think I of all the stupid specifics of how my 2 children fit nicely in the back of my cute little Outback. I don't want to drive a minivan or a huge SUV with a 3rd row. I just want to keep driving my Outback. Currently we have 1-on-1 parenting. If we added a 3rd we would have to be split up on roller coasters and ski lifts. 4 in a family is just such a nice even number.

I think of how blessed I am to have 2 perfectly beautiful and healthy boys. This is all that really matters. I don't have good pregnancies and each of my deliveries have had their own scary moments. We are so blessed that everyone is safe and healthy. I will be 35 in 3 years. I am no spring chicken. I am resolved that we are not going to have another baby. But, these are the things that go through my crowded mind. Many of my friends want 3 children. Sometimes I just wonder why I don't want any more? Who am I to refuse a gift from God?

What do you all think?

Bike Riding and other events

Will got a new red bike for Christmas. He is old pro riding it now. He was especially excited to get a matching red helmet. We have a really great park very close to our house with a paved, level path that is great for riding. It goes by the lake and has 2 play areas along with soccer fields. They boys love that park.

We took the tricycle and tried to get Ryan to ride it. As you can see, he was not all that into it. He just kinda sat there on it.
This is Ryan showing off his latest injury. He got a gash under his eye from the corner of the bathroom counter. The day after that he fell on the sidewalk and scraped up his chin. He is much more accident-prone than Will. He is such a tough-guy, though. Just picks himself and keeps on going!

Well, you are probably all sick of me raving about Deceptively Delicious. Have you gotten the book yet? I'm waiting for some of you to start cooking out of it so we can discuss. Sara? Gini? Stace? I have made the Applesauce Muffins twice now because we love them. Ryan ate 3 in a row one day. I love them hot with butter. Will says they have "bumps" in them. (He is having a texture issue lately.) I think JW liked them. I have all the ingredients to make the banana bread, so that is next on my list to make.

Let me leave you with an article to read.

http://www.mothering.com/guest_editors/quiet_place/quiet_place.html

Peggy O'Mara is the editor and publisher of Mothering Magazine. Her articles are always wonderful and insightful. The title of this one is "Trust Yourself." It is a long article but is worth reading. It is so hard knowing all the right decisions to make for our children, isn't it??

Am I doing enough? Am I doing too much? Does my child watch too much TV? Is my child too commercialized? What about schooling? Is my child on track? The questions are endless and we can drive ourselves insane searching books, talking to teachers, doctors, "experts." We can also drive ourselves insane comparing them to others. We must stop. We must listen to our children and trust ourselves as mothers. Peggy says- so what if the decision you make for your child is not "popular." Each child is an individual. Children by nature are non-conformists. Your child might not be doing the same thing as your friends child. But, the common thread here is that we all want what is best for our children. This article was very timely for me and I need to read it again. I think you will find it interesting as well.

More Recipe Reviews

I have made a couple more recipes from Deceptively Delicious. A few nights ago I made the meatloaf for dinner. It called for ground turkey. Now, I must say I think ground turkey is okay for some things, but not meatloaf. I used it anyway like the recipe said, but it's just not the same. Something about the texture and color. Just not right. I will make the meatloaf again, but next time I will use ground beef.
Yesterday I made the brownies. I thought they were wonderful. I followed the recipe exactly, making no changes. It calls for pureed carrots and spinach. I steamed them both in the microwave and then used my little blender/chopper thing and it was so easy. The brownies were very dense and moist- almost fudge-like. The chocolate flavor is very rich. The boys loved them because, well, they were chocolate. I loved them. JW was only skeptical once he found out what was in them. I will make those again many times.
I also got out my smoothie maker yesterday in my attempt to eat healthier. I made a banana/blueberry/yogurt/ flaxseed smoothie. I use frozen blueberries because then you don't need to add ice. (Ice is pointless in a healthy smoothie because it just waters it down- always opt for a frozen fruit.) I use fat free vanilla yogurt and for liquid I add a small amout of orange juice. You don't have to have a smoothie maker. You can use a blender, hand-held blender or whatever you have. Now, I know some of you are asking- flaxseed? Yes, I buy whole flaxseed and grind it myself in a small coffee bean grinder. It works perfectly and freshly ground flaxseed is maybe the healthiest thing on the planet because of the omega-3's. Never eat flaxseed whole. It defeats the whole purpose. Your body cannot break it down and it just passes through whole. You can put ground flaxseed in anything. Oatmeal would be perfect. Will didn't care for the smoothie because he said it had too many "bumps" in it. Ryan drank his through a straw and seemed to like it. I was very glad to see him drink it since he is a pickier eater. Lately he discovered Cool Ranch Doritos. I won't be buying those again!
Well, that is what I've made lately. I bought some more carrots this morning to puree and I plan to try the applesauce muffins this weekend. I'll keep you posted. Happy Cooking!

My New Favorite Cookbook

How many of you have heard about this book? I am so excited about this book. Thanks to my dear sister-in-law, it is one of my favorite Christmas gifts. Maybe my top fave! For those of you who don't know, I have a huge thing for cookbooks. In my previous life I was a cookbook editor and when we moved, JW lost track of the boxes labeled "Ginger's cookbooks!" My ultimate goal in life is to have a huge kitchen with built-in bookcases. By then I'll probably be too old to cook- ha!

Well, Decepetively Delicious is based on pureeing vegetables and fruits and "sneaking" them into regular food you make for your family. I like to think of it less as being sneaky, more as just being healthy. I mean, I've been putting carrots and zucchini in my meatloaf for years. But she takes it to a whole new level, like spinach in brownies.

The only thing I have made so far is the Pink Pancakes (page 143.) You take a basic pancake mix and add grated apple, ricotta cheese and beet puree. Everyone loved them! My kids love pancakes, so I knew it would be an easy transition from the frozen ones. She suggests roasting and pureeing whole beets, but I just pureed canned beets. So easy. I originally thought the addition of ricotta cheese a bit strange, but have since seen 2 recipes for Ricotta Pancakes. One was in the latest issue of Food and Wine, so maybe it is all the rage. JW and I thought they were best with a fruit syrup like Smuckers, but Will liked them with plain pancake syrup. I added more pancake mix than she calls for in the recipe because I thought the first batch was a little mushy. That is the only change I made. I am making her meatloaf tonight so I'll let you know how that goes. So, run out and buy this cookbook and let me know what you think. Happy Cooking!

Happy New Year

The past few weeks have been a wonderful whirlwind of family, friends and holiday gatherings. We were able to spends lots of time with both of our families. We even got to see some family that we had not seen the past couple of years. Thankfully, everyone stayed well and this was really an enjoyable visit. We even got to have a really nice dinner with some friends we don't see very often on New Years Eve. But, it is nice to be back and we look forward to getting back on a schedule next week when school starts. 2008 is going to be an exciting year for our family. I wish all good blessings to your family as well.
Here are some of my favorite pictures from the past few weeks.

Cousins at Christmas morning breakfast

Ryan and his beloved BB

John and the boys
A special visit from Santa


My precious baby nephew- the cutest, fattest baby in the world!