we had our first snow of the year yesterday morning. this resulted in 8 am outdoor play and impassioned discussions on the merits of snow as breakfast. le sigh. it’s kinda hard to argue with a little Russian angel baby so… baby had her breakfast snow!
what do we think folks, do we like this early snow or does it get a big frown all over town?
in my mid-twenties I had designs on traveling to paris. then i found out i was pregnant with darla and that plan was shelved. now i just settle for taking her to french bakeries and planting seeds of she and i traveling to the city of light someday when she’s older. cherbourg is definitely my favorite little bakery we’ve encountered thus far in columbus. as you can see, darla starts out skeptical but is won over immediately due to the copious amounts of butter and jam involved with eating a delicious mini-loaf and bakery wit.
i do so hope to make a venture over to paris sometime in my future. there is no promise of a tomorrow, i know that, but i still would like to hope the universe has that in my path. maybe there will be a doula drought in the french province and i’ll be called into action. or maybe i’ll just keep that paris fund untouched for a few more years and finally get there. or maybe darla will need braces and the paris fund will have to go.
there’s no telling. but i’ll be waiting in anticipation to see what transpires with this here life of mine.
i’ve successfully avoided meat with bones in it for most of the 30 years of my life. i’ve had exactly two chicken wings and that was for my 12th grade lit project when i had to construct a diorama of grendel’s lair for beowulf. real bones got me that extra half a grade point, i’m sure of it.
anyway, i’ve been putting off the fact that if i’m not going to go vegetarian then getting a whole rotisserie chicken and putting that to use in our household makes the most economical and ecological sense. i had a coupon this week and thought “if you’re scared of it then that’s how you know you should do it.” so i got it and now know that i find a great deal of delight from picking chicken meat off the bone.
economical sense: this sucker cost me $3.99. so far i’ve made chicken salad, a dumbed down version of chicken schwarma on hummus, and chicken tacos. there is still plenty of meat left so i think i’ll be trying a chicken + bacon pizza and of course using the ‘pickins’ for making my own broth. this is good. literally and figuratively.
ecological sense: well, i think buying chicken breasts 2 at a time at the deli counter is about the worst packaging waste wise so i often opt for a trader joe’s frozen bag with a number of breasts that last us a couple months. this is an ok option but the plastic bag doesn’t normally get recycled because i’m too lazy to wash it out. with the rotisserie chicken it’s fresh and i’m in control of getting the most use possible out of the remains. the packaging of this chicken will be much easier to rinse out and will definitely make it into recycling, or possibly repurposed into a small green house for seedlings.
the long & short of it is that i think i’ll definitely opt for this approach again. i’ve found that i always enjoy being more involved with our food and this helped foster that. or…i might just go vegetarian and cut out the meat budget all together.
now, some taco pics:
^^^ i always sneak some veggie goodness into our taco meat: carrots, kale and onions get added. ^^^
^^^ real yum yum ^^^
^^^darla’s pickle taco ^^^
^^^ and just for grins, a shot of darla shotgunning milk from a travel cosmetic bottle because that was THE ONLY option for beverage conveyance that she was going to entertain. whatevs dude. ^^^
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i’ll be posting a few more eco-friendly posts this week in honor of being in the running for Circle of Moms Top 25 Most Eco-Friendly Mom Blogs. If you would be so kind as to vote for me, click on through to the badge below. Thanks! 
it’s officially may and it’s 80 here today so that means i’m making more popsicles. I just threw these together and i thought i would share for any of you who are making your own.
I am not a recipe follower by nature so popsicles and smoothies are right up my alley. I basically threw all this into the blender:
2 small handfuls of spinach
3 big organic strawberries
1 handful of blueberries
1/2 a bag of frozen organic raspberries
sprinkled in a bit of flax-seed meal and a 3 count pour of all natural ohio maple syrup {because it has one of the lowest caloric counts of the natural sweeteners but any natural sweetener of your choice would do}
then i added some cherry juice until the juice reached about the halfway point of the rest of the ingredients.
blend until smooth and pour into your reusable popsicle molds
and if you are too impatient for that then…just enjoy it as a bodaciously excellent smoothie. you’re welcome.
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i’ll be posting a few more eco-friendly posts this week in honor of being in the running for Circle of Moms Top 25 Most Eco-Friendly Mom Blogs. If you would be so kind as to vote for me, click on through to the badge below. Thanks!
we took advantage of that one spring day this weekend to start our spring planting. i’ve never started plants from seeds before so i’m crossing my fingers and darla gave the dirt special blessings and then turned to the window and prayed for hades to let persephone go back to demeter because “we just can’t have any more winter, you know.”
we’ve been boning up on our greek mythology.
i’ve got a nice plan, packets of seeds and garden materials ready to construct once the weather is done doing its thing. i’m sending out some earthy vibes hoping this little garden of ours comes to fruition and helps us on the way to meeting some zero waste goals for the year.
1. yeah child labor! 2. repurposed egg trays 3. finally getting to use my cute herb spoons my SIL gifted me years ago 4. a nice little variety of plants, herbs and flowers on that tray.
that was a nice little respite, huh? full schedules, sickness and family togetherness prompted me to tone it down for a bit over here. it was nice. we had lots of regular moments that make me happy to look back upon.
i don’t know if the break from technology and social medianess accounts for my newfound feeling of personal growth but for whatever reason it’s there and it feels DAMN GOOD. things feel hopeful and promising around here. A good friend shared this mantra with me and i’ve been living it these past few days: “i acknowledge progress in any amount, at any time.”
here’s a few everyday details that have comprised life around here:
filling out calendars — husbeau and daughter’s savory monkey bread — solo coffee shop dates — collecting pallets for garden planting — spending time next to my parents’ fire — building forts — secret sweet snacks inside said fort — a little girl who is determined to dress herself in her own style — and learning to wink — mother + daughter movie date — documenting the times the girl insists she can only eat her dinner underneath this umbrella — and happily {read exasperated but willing to indulge the creative whim} obliging — lots of food projects in which the girl exclaims “this is going to messy and fun!” — treats that are not pinterest worthy but this is real life — darla’s visit from the root children for the 1st day of spring. they brought her sweet plums, flower seed packets and some glow in the dark bubbles — HDT and moving confidently in the direction of our dreams.
other thoughts,
we’re all looking forward to movement forward and new challenges around here. spring feels promising, huh? i haven’t felt this free and unafraid in a long time. this feeling is reminding me that sometimes the worst events in our lives are really our salvation.
speaking of bad events turned good: i’ve wanted to jump on the internet and rant somewhere about the disgustingness going around the country in response to the steubenville case. i’m glad i held back and waited for a perspective moment. A friend shared this link yesterday and after viewing it i felt so hopeful. while things have been disgusting this week, the future of women looks pretty damn good. With our gender turning out promising young ladies such as Lena Dunham and Tavi Gevinson we ARE getting some things, lots of things, right for these young ladies. This vid is about a year old but it blows my mind that any organic thoughts on feminism i’ve ever had pale next to the ideas of this high school student.
It’s time we all just admitted that the evolution of women is what is going to take us to the next level as a global society and a species.
and lastly,
there’s been a death in my family. i’m lucky enough to be involved in a spiritual program at this point in my life, without which i would probably be a guilt-ridden mess at the moment. fortunately, i’ve been focusing a part of myself on the connectedness of the universe for months now and i can feel how much it makes a difference during difficult times like these. i can’t say i subscribe to the idea that bad things happen to bring us closer to our higher power but i think that through that being we grow from difficult times. i think of my own relationship with my daughter in comparison. I don’t push her down on the ground so she will get hurt and therefore run to my arms for care and soothing. but when the eventuality of life trips her up or she takes a risk and falls then I am there with arms outstretched ready to receive her if she should need me. if she asks it of me. sometimes she needs a hug, kiss and a minute protected in my arms. sometimes she just needs a reassuring voice saying “i am here” and she dusts herself off and moves on. i feel this relationship deeply with my spirit of the universe at the moment. i will probably need a little of both levels of reassurance in the coming days and i’m happy to know it’s there if i ask of it.
that’s what happens when i go away for a few days. thanks for reading friends. sending love and positivity out to you all.
i love postpartum visits! I have lucked out thus far and had really, really awesome clients.
i got to hold and cuddle a little baby this morning and at the end they gave me 6 pounds of nacho cheese as a thank you. SCORE!
i had shared with the couple that the only really craving i had during my pregnancy with darla was for fake nacho cheese product {other than the last few weeks when i had to have brown sugar poptarts with butter on the back every morning. so tasty}. nacho cheese product remains my achilles heel to this day. i love it. and now i can put it on everything!!!!
i really can. did you see that? 0 grams of fat per serving.
i LOVE birth work.
^^^i could do senses based just on this photo, as suggested by my friend katie, {yes, even taste was covered since darla found some sprinkles on the ground and then ate them} ^^^
but i won’t because i want to do them based on last night’s babes & bracelets at my house!
wine, pizza rolls, friendship bracelets and clueless. classic.
touch: tactile textiles…making friendship bracelets.
taste: pizza rolls and wine are good together. for sure.
sight: clueless, obviously. i watched it three times last night. in a row. LOVE THAT MOVIE.
smell: cookie dough baking. “whenever a boy comes over you should always have something baking.”
sound: the mighty, might bosstones. yeah.
ps. thanks to all the lovely ladies who joined and thanks to my husband for evacuating the premises. also, i have tons of floss and the movie still at my house so i will probs be recreating this event every single night if anyone wants to come join me.
i know coconut is controversial, but i love it. it’s my favorite part of the bulk grocery section. i’m dreaming up some coconut flake pancakes. yuuuuuuuuuum.
playing along again with Mary Catherine’s photo exercise. my senses were very pleased this week. i have doubles of a couple categories:
^^^touch^^^
1} that weird way plastic gloves feel really good and really gross at the same time. and the correlating feeling of accomplishment when the dishes are done and the stink sink has been scrubbed. 2} the feeling of laying down in bed for the night and just staring up at the ceiling. ahhhh.
^^^taste^^^
1} thursday was darla’s turn to bring snack at school. we made something especially scrumptious since it was her birthday treat. my trick is: if you like your cookies to be a little moist and soft in the center always bake them in a muffin pan. they turn out thick and moist. ughhh, just typed the word moist twice. a third time! dislike! dislike! 2} my daughter has a more refined taste palette than i. this is her portobello, spinach and goat cheese omelette – on a plate that i made in 1988 as the plate specifically states. i have to admit, the leftovers she didn’t finish were delicious.
^^^sight^^^
the sight of darla reading poetry books on a sunny afternoon. so she told me they were spell books but whatever. in a way, she’s right. bewitch her with your words, mr. whitman.
^^^sound^^^
1} hubster’s music collection. if you’re a regular reader you know we’ve been having lots of dance parties lately thanks to a mirror ball addition to our living room. it’s hard for me to determine if i like the daytime, sunlit parties or the nighttime, disco shine parties better. eff it. they’re both my favorite. 2} our new organ. darla has been happily playing away daily on the newest furniture addition to our already crowded house. i have to admit that i wasn’t too happy when this showed up – since i wasn’t consulted – but i had to let it go and accept that everything can’t be my way. darla loves it and that’s all that matters. besides, i wouldn’t want to deny the world it’s next papa garth because of my silly ideas of room flow.
^^^smell^^^
the smell of the cookies baking was a savior. see, i’ve been making a lot of meals with various beans and legumes lately and this house has been in need of some aromatherapy, if you catch my drift. pun! flatulence pun!
that’s all i got. thanks for checking in to see how my senses did this week. and now for a special announcement: i’m sending you lots of positive energy for a fulfilling and restful weekend. be excellent. all of you.
momjeanz 