Stuffed Mushrooms

Looks scrumptious doesn't it?  Last week I was in the grocery store and I saw stuffed portabello mushrooms in the refrigerated section at the grocery store.  They looked so good, but I knew I could make them myself and that they would taste even better than those.

So, I made them and seriously they were AMAZING.  Everyone in my house loved them and we will absolutely make them again.  Here is the recipe.

Six Portobello Mushrooms
1 lb. spinach (I used fresh, chopped up)
2-3 cloves garlic
10 or so artichoke hearts (more or less depending on how much you like)
1/2 onion - chopped
1/2 pepper - chopped (we used red, but any color will be yummy)
tomatoes
basil
pepper
salt
mozzarella cheese

Preheat your oven to 350.  Remove mushroom stems and scrape out the gills.  Brush bottom of mushrooms with Italian dressing and place in a 9x13 pan, lined with foil.

Sautee onions and garlic in olive or coconut oil.  Add spinach and cook until it has wilted.  Then add artichokes, pepper, a few generous dashes of basil, some salt and pepper. 

Spoon into mushrooms, top with sliced tomatoes and mozzarella cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes, until mushrooms are tender.  Eat hot and ENJOY!!!

He

It's 7:30 pm and I am itching to leave.  I want to bolt out the door.  It feels strange to still be here, in this place, in my home.

I rock Libby to sleep.  Something typically saved for Daddy, but tonight it was my turn so I sit and sing to her, rock her, love her.  I soak in the sweetness of my baby that really isn't a baby anymore.  And she is asleep.  I carefully lay her down only to have her wake right back up.  At that moment, Jeremy comes in and trades with me.  At this point she won't go back to sleep for me without nursing.  We all know this.  He rescues me.

I head out to the living room and find the other two ready to read.  I haven't done this in so long, I've missed it.  I've missed smelling their smells while they sit on my lap, long limbs tangled up, them trying to be as small as they can.  I've missed the sounds of their laughter at funny parts of the books, feeling their bodies relax into mine, and talking with them about what we read and their days.  While we do this, Jeremy does dishes and cleans the kitchen.  He rescues me.

All the children are sleeping peacefully and I just can't sit still.  I decide it's time to sweep and mop my kitchen, dining room and living room.  I move the furniture and Jeremy laughs and says, "Wow, you were serious!"  I clean, he cleans, we work together.  Sometimes talking, sometimes in the comfortable silence that comes with time, experience and love.

We finish cleaning and head downstairs to watch LOST.  I tell him that my head is about to explode and if they don't start giving some answers I am going to LOSE IT.  He laughs at me.  We snuggle, drink our chocolate banana shakes, and just enjoy being together.

We haven't had a night like this in at least a month.  I have been gone every night.  I have been working hard, trying to make changes.  I have been going to the gym and attending to my church responsibilities.  I am struggling to find a balance.  Being home only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights just isn't enough.  It isn't enough time to spend with my family, the people that motivate me.  

Every night when I escape the madhouse that is my house, he rescues me.  He comes to my aid, supports me, loves me.  He encourages me to leave, to be healthy, to be strong.  He does this even though he really wants me here.  He wants to hang out with me.  He doesn't enjoy doing bedtime duty by himself every night.  He doesn't like the quiet of the house, the lonliness that comes when I am gone.

It is a sacrifice for both of us.  While we search for the balance, he keeps picking up my slack and rescues me time and time again. And for that, and a million other reasons, I know I am the luckiest.

Busy

I have been so busy recently. 

Busy enjoying the sunshine

 

busy sewing, 

busy living

my

life

How about you?  What have you been up to?

This post is part of Beth's You Capture

It's No Wonder...

Seriously, how could I not love these kids (and their Dad) when they make me laugh this hard?







So, the first two videos were from our Church talent show.  Amelia's video is a little long, but she made everyone laugh so hard.  Then Seth and Jeremy practiced their talent for a day before.  Jeremy is such a sport.

I am so so lucky.

Handsome Men's Club

Seriously folks, this had me rolling. I love it. Have a great St. Patty's Day!!!

I Love Vegetables...seriously, I do!

A little over 2 years ago we dramatically changed the way we eat at our house.  Jeremy and I both grew up in Meat and Potatoes kind of families.  Every night dinner had some kind of meat, some kind of starch and a veggie.  Salads were for special occasions and filled only a small bowl.  Vegetables were an afterthought when we went to the grocery store, and we only bought the veggies we needed for individual meals.  Our fresh food consumption was very typical of those who grew up in our generation.

It all changed when we read the book Eat to Live by Dr. Jay Fuhrman.  We became educated about what animal products do to our bodies.  We learned about how increasing our fruits and vegetable consumption could help us not only be healthier but be stronger too.

These pictures are a pretty accurate depiction of the salads we eat on a daily basis. Yes you read that right, I said daily.  We eat mostly fresh vegetables, beans, fruit and whole grains.  We try to have 90% of our calories come from those things and 10% can be animal products (meat, cheese, milk, yogurt).  This helps us to stay healthier and be in better shape.

Living in Utah however, our options for fresh produce are pretty limited.  We love the summer when we can plant a garden and shop on Saturdays at the local Farmer's Market.  We love the taste of fresh lettuce, spinach, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, edemame, peas...the list goes on and on and on. 

We have such a short growing season here, so most of the year we depend on getting our fresh greens from the grocery store.  This is not something we love, but something we do because we have to.

Recently, I was introduced to Field to Families.  It is a program that brings fresh organic produce to those of us who live in an area that is cold more than hot. 

Field to Families is the brain child of one of my favorite Farmer's Market vendors, Preston Parker and Parker Family Farms.  I accost Preston at his booth weekly waiting for the sunsugar tomato plants and then the sunsugar tomatoes.  His wife and I have bonded over a shared obsession love of these fabulous tomatoes.

Preston wanted fresh produce year round, so he teamed with a farm in California and Field to Families was born.

Here's how it works.  On Tuesday, the organic produce is picked in California and put on a truck.  It arrives here in Utah on Friday and on Saturday you can pick it up.  Pretty simple isn't it?  Last week we got romaine lettuce, spinach, oranges, cabbage, broccoli, and tomatoes.  All for just $15!

We have also gotten leeks, green onions, lemons, avocados and kale in the past.  The produce is amazingly fresh and tastes oh so good.  To have good lettuce in the winter is just...in a word...AMAZING!

Now I know that there are other programs in the area that do something similar to this, but here is where it is different.  In the summer, you get LOCAL produce.  So, you are supporting a local farm.  Also, it is all organic!

Really, you can't beat that.

So, if you want some fabulous produce, go on over to Field to Families and sign up today.  You really won't regret it.

Oh, and if you want to read another review about Field to Families that is MUCH funnier than mine, head on over to Mrs. Looneytunes and see what she has to say.

*I did receive 5 free pick ups of produce in exchange for a review.  And after having those 5 pick ups, I can't imagine my life without them, so I will be purchasing pick ups for the rest of my life!

I have a 75% Success Rate in Childhood Survival (and other inappropriate things parents of dead children say (oops, there's another one))

A few years after Emma died, I remember a friend commenting that I was so nonchalant about her death.  At the time I didn't see how she would think that.  I mean, true Emma was dead, and true I talked about her, but I didn't understand why she would say that I was nonchalant about her death.

Then, I heard what those who didn't know this life, this life of loss, pain and grief, heard.  I heard what I was saying and realized why they thought I was so matter-of-fact, morbid even, about her death.

A few examples of what I, and other bereaved parents, have said:
Yeah, I was doing pretty good until my kid kicked it.
All of my kids are still alive and well.  Well, all but one.
You might not want to take my advice seeing as I only have a 75% success rate in keeping my babies alive.
(When asked how many kids I have) 4, 3 are here and 1 got sick of me and up and died.
When given plants and flowers after the death of her baby, my friend said:
I don't know why people gave me plants I'm supposed to keep. I can't keep anything alive. Look at why we're all here today.

Parents who have lost children don't typically blink an eye at this kind of thing when I say it.  Sometimes (if enough time has passed) they even laugh.

You see, after you face something as big and ugly and hurtful as losing your child, you have to find a way to cope.  For some of us it is being very somber, for others it is being very gracious, and for a select few it is being completely and totally inappropriate about the death of our children.   I know that I have made more than one person uncomfortable with my candor about Emma.  But I have to laugh, I have to lighten the mood, I can't live with the constant soul crushing pain all the time.  I just can't.  I don't think anyone can.

So, if you come across someone who is completely and totally inappropriate about the death of their child, just follow their lead.  If they are laughing, you can too.  You can't walk around somber and sad all the time and honestly sometimes laughing is a heck of a lot easier than crying.

Trust me.

Be Safe, Not Sorry.

It's been all over the news today, baby slings have been linked to infant death.  This has many parents concerned and I have been asked repeatedly about his today.  Most recently by one of my neighbors.  She is probably my Mom's age, and has made a few slings for her daughters.  She was worried about the slings I had taught her how to make. 

I assured her that those slings were fine.  As you know, I make ring slings.  I have worn all of my babies in ring slings and various other carriers.  As with any product designed for infants, you must exercise caution. When a Mom gets a sling she should know how to use it.  She should always keep her baby's face out of the excess fabric.  The particular slings that have been linked to the infant deaths were the bag-type slings.  Not the pouch slings, but more like bags with elastic and padding around the top.

I worry a bit that this story is going out and people are going to be afraid of wearing their babies and instead will stop wearing their babes and start putting them in the carseat all the time.  That is also not good for our babies for an extended period of time.

So, I want to share some safety points with you.

1. Your baby should never be down below your chest when in a sling.  If you are wearing your newborn and they are down by your belly, that is not safe for them. 
2. Keep your baby upright against your chest. This is the safest way for them to be worn and they will be most comfortable this way.
3. Keep any excess fabric away from your baby's face.  Remember they don't have great neck control in the beginning and can't move away from the fabric if they can't breathe.
4. If your baby is cradled, be sure that their chin is off the chest and that no fabric is around their face.  Clicking on the link above for the pouch sling will show you fantastic pictures of this.
5. If in doubt, ask your favorite sling maker (me!) about your particular carrier. 

Babywearing is fabulous.  It is great for Mom and Baby and just needs to be done correctly.  If you buy a sling online and don't know or are not sure how to use it, ask!  You can either ask the person you bought it from, a friend who knows about babywearing, or go to your local LaLeche League meetings and someone there can show you how to use them.

Don't be afraid, just be careful and enjoy wearing your babe.

Dang.

Last night while I was laying in bed, I had a great idea for a post.  I wrote it out in my head and just knew it would be the greatest post ever.  It would be the kind of post that everyone would talk about.  It would be linked to, tweeted about, and loved.  It would get hundreds of comments because it would strike a chord with people.

Only problem?  I woke up this morning and couldn't remember what I had written in my head.

Dang. I hate when that happens.

Ch-ch-ch-CHANGES

Okey dokey friends.  I am going to be mixing things up here a bit.  I am the proud new owner of a Flip video camera!!!  I am so excited about this and will tell you more about it later, but for now, just know that I am going to start sharing more videos!!!

As the Mama of many little ones, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.  So, I am going to start sharing them with you, in video form!  They are not edited, true to life, and just so me.

Today I want to talk about how we encourage creativity in our children.  Watch the video, see what we do, and let me know what you do!!!

and PS? I totally need to figure out how to make myself not look like a complete dork in the freeze frame before the video starts! HA!

March

I am just overwhelmed with all of you.  I don't know why it always surprises me, the goodness I find here, but it does.  Perhaps it's because I know how much ick there is out there in internet land and while it hasn't invaded my happy little spot, I know how easily it could.


Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your wonderful, sweet, kind, heartfelt comments the other day.  I truly was speaking from my heart and when that is so well received, it just brightens the gloom.

The last few days in these parts have been just beautiful.  It has warmed enough for the snow to start to melt and for us to venture outside.

I do love March.  I love the promise of Spring.  I love that even though it may snow again and we might get another 18 inches, it won't last for long.  I love that I can see the light at the end of the Winter tunnel.  I love the promise of warmth, growth and the smell of the dirt after a long cold winter.

The children and I have taken the opportunity to get outside and enjoy the weather.  We are lucky that we live close enough to Seth's school to walk to pick him up.  The girls and I have loved it, and so has Seth.

 In his Police hat he made at school. Telling me "put your hands up!"

There is a canal that we walk by on the way home and when it is not full, I let the kids play on the bridges that go over it.

We all enjoy this so much and I just love that it is only the beginning of a lot more time outside.

Welcome back March.  We have missed you.

I Spy

I Spy...

With my little eye...

Someone CUTE!