Ponderings...

Well, I'm going to be 27 in a few days. That amazes me! I don't think that I'm "old" or anything, I'm just amazed at how time passes us by. It's little things...like hearing an old school Green Day song and then realizing I liked them in middle school when I was 12-13 years old. That was 15 years ago! Holy crap! Has 15 years really passed? It makes me suddenly feel like I'm in a time warp or something. I've been married for over 6 years, I have two children. I've changed so much over the years. Oh, I'm still the same me, I just view things differently. I remember thinking about my future before I married Trav, thinking about how life as I envisioned it would be. How different it has been than I imagined it! It's been wonderful, mind you, just different than I thought it would be. I thought that we'd end up in New York, doing street and teen work for the local church. Or perhaps we'd stay in the Florida panhandle and start a girl's home there. I thought I wouldn't be working, just being a stay-at-home mom to my children. I thought that I'd have more than two children after 6.5 years of marriage! Instead, we've been burned repeatedly by "the brethren", although we still hope to be in the ministry in some capacity. We've lived in 4 different areas of the country. We had two precious little boys. My views regarding nursing, the medical field in general, and working have changed. I want to keep my home, but I also want to work. I want to go back to school. I want to be a midwife and an herbalist. I've learned a few things about breaking out of the mold and being who I really am. I've learned about balance. Twenty-seven years. I'll be thirty soon. My husband will be thirty-two the day after my birthday. Thirties?? When did that happen? I love my life. I love the direction it has taken. I wouldn't change a single thing. Even the "bad" things that have happened in my life have been blessings in disguise, shaping my way though life, guiding me in different directions, meeting new people, going new places. I am thankful for them.

So, where do I see myself in the future? Well, I see us owning a home up north somewhere...hopefully Michigan. I see me becoming what I so desire...a midwife. I think I'll be doing homebirths only initially...maybe open my own birthing home after a while. I see myself having land, animals, and a garden...to be as self-sufficient as possible. I hope for more children. I'd love to be able to serve in the ministry in some way...beside my husband with him being a pastor or youth minister, perhaps. My future is wide open, and anything is possible!

Whew!!!

I got a lot of crocheting done on the way to Cali! I am working on some Christmas presents, and have actually completed three of them. I also crocheted my first "granny square" this week, believe it or not. I know that's a basic pattern for crochet, but I had just never done it. Now I'm hooked! I am currently working on two baby blankets using the granny square. Here are some pics. The camo is for a little boy (as well as the camo-lined sling...the camo was at the request of his momma). I also picked up knitting again after a long hiatus. I'm currently knitting a pair of w ool legwarmer/babylegs/knee protectors for Gavin in this awesome yarn! I finished the first one and realized it's quite tight, and won't fit him for long. So I'm going to have to get more yarn and modify the pattern to make them a little bigger. I learned how to knit in the round using the "Magic Loop" method, and it's awesome! I need to get some wool off of Etsy so I can make some felted covers for my sons Klean Kanteens. I can't find any wool that I like that will felt in Joann's.

I didn't finish my sewing projects before moving out here, but I brought my sewing stuff with me so I can finish them. I'm also working on a partial stash for my BFF, Lolo. Her babe is due in December. I'm making slings for her and her sister (due 2 weeks before her) out of this beautiful teal gauze with a silver stripe. I had gotten that material for a sling for myself, but I love my batik one so much, it's the only one I use anyway. All of this crocheting and knitting and sewing, all while trying to work and be a mom and wife...so much to do, so little time!
Gavin is has hit a whole bunch of milestones, all within the last week or so. He had been crawling backwards for several weeks now, and taking belly-lunges forward for the last few days. Well, last week finally brought his first real crawl. And already, one day after he figured it out, he's moving FAST, getting into stuff, and terrorizing the cats. Just these last couple of days, he's already started pulling up on things. So far he pulls up on us, the sofa, and the dining room chairs. He clapped for the first time yesterday. And on the last day of August, he cut his first tooth! He's also finally getting some hair on that bald head of his.

Well, we've been busy since my last post! I've got to get back on here more frequently! Well, for the record, I got the position in Walnut Creek, California. I started on July 28th, and I really like it! If nothing comes available in the Redding area any time soon, we'll probably just move up there and I'll sign on as staff. I didn't write for so long because we were so crazy busy, packing and getting things ready to move, moving, travelling out here, and getting settled in. It's been an adventure! We made it to Sacramento from Ellenton in five days! I got my license without any problems, headed to Oakland for paperwork, then settled into our new apartment. We were greeted by a German Shepherd named Charlie, who loved the kids and nearly licked them to death. There are several lovely parks in the area, and we've had great fun exploring them on my days off. We were also given a couple of kittens by a nice lady we met at a pet store...she rescues cats and had two litters born in April and was looking for homes for the kitties. So, we adopted Jasmine and Emma...Jasmine is the gray one and Emma is the black one. The boys have great fun with the cats, although we had to do some pretty intense training with Deklan to teach him to be gentle.

Deklan turned four the weekend we got out to California! My baby is four! Where does the time go? He's such a joy, and I'm so blessed to have been able to spend these last four years with him.

*sigh* This post ended up in sort of backwards order...messed up while uploading the pics. Well, I'll try to update more often than every few months!

Fluffity fluffy fluff...

So, I had this pair of pajamas that I almost never wear...Curious George long-sleeved t-shirt top and fleece pants. So, I decided to do a little recycling and repurposing and make a matching fitted pocket diaper and fleece cover for Gavin. So, here are the results!

This is the fleece cover...
This is the back of the fitted pocket diaper...it looks off-center, but it's just the camera angle...

This is the front of the fitted pocket. It's stuffed with a prefold.

I used the free Rita's Rump Pocket and Cover patterns. The pattern is easily adjustable, so instead of making it so that it fastens with a pin, I used Aplix to fasten..it's more "Daddy-friendly". I just finished them this evening, and I can't wait to put them on Gavin in the morning!

As for a life update, I've been in touch with Agostini, and they're trying to get me into a hospital in Walnut Creek, CA. It's just a bit east of San Francisco, and is a really nice town as far as I can tell. The hospital there is smallish, under 300 beds. We're just waiting for my references to come thru so they can schedule an interview. We've been packing and selling off some of the bigger furniture on Craigslist, and we got our storage unit reserved this week. I'm really hoping that the Walnut Creek assignment works out!

The boys are healthy and growing like weeds. Deklan is hilarious...he's starting to pick up things that he hears in conversation...earlier today he just walked into the living room and said "I give up", then walked away. ???? Silly kiddo. Gavin is trying SO hard to crawl, but he hasn't done it yet! He is teething, though. No teeth have broken the gum yet, but he's miserable, poor guy. Well, I guess that's about it...

I found an awesome use for carrot pulp!

This is a pic of my newest creation, along with my morning coffee and a glass of milk...yummm...

So, I have a gallon Ziplock bag in my freezer full of carrot pulp from my last juicing. I've been searching high and low for a recipe that uses carrot pulp...there are some, but nothing that really caught my eye. So I decided to take matters into my own hands. And hour or so of tinkering around in the kitchen yielded some pretty tasty results! So here, for your viewing (or baking!) pleasure, is my recipe for Carrot-Banana Breakfast Medallions.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
************************
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
3/4 c. dark brown sugar
2 eggs
3 overripe bananas, mashed
1 c. carrot pulp
1/3 c. raisins
1/2 c. walnuts, chopped

Instructions:

*Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with wax paper, spray with cooking spray and set aside.
*In a medium bowl, sift together first grouping of ingredients. Set aside.
*In a large bowl cream butter and brown sugar.
*Add eggs and beat well.
*Add banana and carrot pulp. Mix well.
* Stir in raisins and walnuts.
*Drop batter by 1/2 cupful onto baking sheet. Bake for approximately 25 min., or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool on baking sheet for 5 min., then remove medallions onto cooling rack.

These are great on the run or with a cup of coffee or milk!

It's been a while...

So, it's time to update my blog...it's been a while!! Here are a few recent pics of Gavin...Deklan is his same stinky self... "What?? The Red Wings are in the Stanley Cup Finals?? GO WINGS!"
He could stare at the fishtank for hours and hours... This is what you get when you sneak up on a baby and take a picture...
He's such a happy baby!!

So, things are going well on the homefront. I'm trying to round up some professional references for the agency, and I have to tie up some loose ends when it comes to paperwork. The whole CPR card fiasco is causing an issue yet again, so I'm just going to have to take the darn class again and get a card. I'm starting to get butterflies in my stomach. It's getting more and more real...the fact that we could soon be gone from Florida forever! Wow. I've lived here for so many years of my life!

I'm going to start perusing the local thrift stores looking for wool...sweaters, blankets, etc. Until we settle down and buy a home where I have a craft area in which I can learn to spin, I'll have to buy my yarn. I've been talking about knitting a couple of soakers for Gavin, I just haven't done it yet. I also need to make some fitteds for Trav to use, and a couple of fleece covers. I want to venture into the realm of PUL, but first I want to knock out these first projects.



I learned how to wear Gavin on my back with my ring sling this week! Not the best picture ever, but here's what it looks like. I tried with my wrap (Tibetan high back carry), but it seems that my wraps are too narrow...18 inches in width. I'm thinking I'll need future wraps to be at least 22-24 inches wide to successfully do some back carries. I'd rather use a wrap for back carries...just seems more secure. My sewing projects are piling up!! I really need to get them done so I won't feel like I have a gazillion things on my plate when we head to CA...I'll have enough to do as it is, settling down in a new place, starting a new job, etc.


WWWWaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttttiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggg for our stimulus check!!! Ack!

Well, I guess that's about it for now. I can't wait till I can post about WHEN and WHERE we're going when it comes to a contract!!

Gavin just pushed up for the first time!! I think this kiddo is going to crawl early...

Life in the ghetto

The bottom pic is what an intact tubing looks like. The top two pics are ours.

O.K. So I don't really live in the ghetto...we call it the 'hood. Typical low-income housing apartment complex. This is one of the sacrifices we made to come down and work with the business (knowing our income would be significantly less than what we were used to). It's not too bad, we think, as we first move in. It's gated, well maintained, in a decent area of town, etc. Well, we're so sick of living here now, we just can't WAIT to get out and get on our way to California! This morning I woke up and it seemed warm in the house. Well, it's not the first time our AC has bombed, so I didn't think much of it. "I'll just call maintenance when I get the kids up and dressed", I think to myself. Well, not two minutes after I realized there was an issue with the AC, there's a knock on the door. It's maintenance. He informs me that we'll be without AC for a while, they're not sure how long. I asked what was wrong. "Someone vandalized your AC unit, and cut the tubing to your AC. It's running, but it's not working." I ask how long...a day or two? He doesn't know. It depends on the weather (it's raining right now). So I think nasty thoughts about the packs of teenagers and pre-teens that lurk around our building, and go grab my robe. As I walked outside, I see my upstairs neighbors leaving their home. I ask if they are also without AC. Nope, it's just us. She told me how she heard a noise around 1:30am, and looked out her window to see the tubing flopping around like a snake. She called maintenance this morning, which is how they knew what was going on before I had a chance to call. I proceed out to the AC unit, where I find that all of the other units were untouched...only ours was vandalized. Someone had attempted to cut a large copper tube, but couldn't cut through it. It was, however, crimped completely closed. The tubing beside said copper tube was completely severed. My thoughts take me back three days to me calling the police on a pack of teenagers. They were standing outside of my building shouting and screaming profanity at each other late in the evening. Not only did it scare Deklan, but it also woke Gavin. I asked them nicely to be quiet or leave the area, I have children who are trying to sleep, etc. They were quiet, so I went back inside. As soon as I had closed the door, they started up again. I went back outside, and asked if any of them lived in this building. None of them do. I ask them to please go to their own building and cause a ruckus, but to please get away from mine. They glare at me and start swearing. I go back inside and call the police. They made a drive-by, and the pack dispersed. So, was it them who did it?? Maybe. Was it a random act of a vandal? Possibly. The point is...I WANT MY OWN HOME. So far since we've lived here, we've had our truck vandalized, our porch furniture stolen and then the new furniture broken, our water line broken, our gas line tampered with, our power tampered with, and now this AC issue. We've lived in two other similar apartment complexes, but even when the people were loud and their behavior questionable, they never vandalized. So here I sit, sipping my ICED coffee, windows and blinds shut and fans on, trying to cycle what cool air there is left and keep the hot, humid Florida air out, dreaming of California and saving for a downpayment on a house. We've moved so much since we've been married. Four times in six years. It's been by choice, of course, going on this adventure or that, but I'm SO ready to settle down into one place. *sigh* It's only a couple of years away!!

The moving sale went well! We ran it Saturday and Sunday, and made $420. Not too shabby!! I can't believe we made $420 on stuff we were just going to give to charity! I still ended up dropping off a trunk-load of stuff at Goodwill, the remaining things that didn't sell. This means we can now begin to PACK!! Woohoo!!!