May 17, 2012

Beans and Rice Month – Year 2

Last year’s posts:
Prep
Review

Our original inspiration

Beans and Rice month for this year has been scheduled and mapped! (May 20-June 9… that’s four weeks) Because I’m allowing homemade breads and a little cheese, it doesn’t seem like a big change from a typical diet that includes meat… but it really is. Maybe I’ll get the food even better this time and we’ll be able to incorporate this type of meal more often! It sure is cheaper

What else we will eat:
Vegetables and fruit (this includes salsa)
Spices
PBJ toast and Yogurt for breakfast (to encourage Brian to participate – I am hoping for some rice, raisins and milk for breakfast)
Milk
Eggs from our chickens
A minimal amount of cheese and sour cream
Tortilla chips
Homemade tortillas and bread – I don’t WANT this to be part of our menu, since it takes away from the purity of the idea… but it’s so much easier if you have tortillas with beans and bread with salads… so to limit how much we have, I have to MAKE it, which is a lot of work. :-) Favorite tortilla recipes or tips, anyone?

The Menu:
1. Herbed Lentils and Rice *New recipe. Will try it with less cheese than called for… and cheddar of course instead of swiss. :-)
2. Bean & Rice Enchiladas *Love this recipe! We’ll use less cheese and sour cream than usual on top for this month’s “fast” but these are delicious any time and I often have them in the freezer.
3. Middle Eastern Rice with Black Beans & Chickpeas
4. Majedra
5. Spicy Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup *Made this last year. It’s very spicy, but that’s nice if you’re tired of beans. We added rice to tone down the spice. A little sour cream would be excellent if you’re permitting yourself. I didn’t think I’d like it, but was pleasantly surprised.
6. Mexican Rice & Beans *I really love these with tortilla chips. Yum! Thinking of trying these this year. Also – I love cilantro, so added extra. :-)
7. Bean & Rice Tacos *You know – just like you usually make tacos, but with beans and rice and no meat. Haven’t decided how to make the beans yet. White, black, red, whole, refried, with canned tomatoes and cooked onions… or not. So many decisions, so little time!
8. Salad with Beans *A green salad with veggies and boiled eggs…. topped with beans and salsa.
9. Rod’s Spicy Kale N Beans *Never had this.
10. Chickpeas in Coconut Milk *Another new one
11. Warm French Lentils *Newbie
12. Roasted Vegetable Biriyani *Heard this was worth the effort. So it’ll be my “fancy” meal.
13. Black Bean Burger *I’ve had black bean burgers before, but this is a new recipe. They taste really good, but the texture is a little softer than you might like. Not sure if I’ll make hamburger buns or eat them with a fork.
14. Pita bread and Hummus (usually make regular and Roasted Red Pepper) *The red pepper hummus is a little spicy for the girls, but having two kinds is nice for us grownups. Both are delicious!

I’ll be shopping in dry bulk for the beans and rice – it won’t cost much for a month’s worth of food. I’m guessing the dry goods will be less than $20.

Note: Tortilla recipes here and here

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May 16, 2012

Family Fun

Great times with the warm weather the last few days! We got to go to a plant sale (and plant our first tomatoes), church, yard work, church, the beach and we spent $600 on brakes and shocks for our van! (ouch) Great, wonderful times. Beans and rice month starts on Sunday… time to make my menu!

A picture that makes me look skinny. And it's got my beautiful niece in it. A winner on both counts.
Maggie in the morning. You can see that michevious sparkle in her eye!
Anna in the morning - her sweet, orderly, stubborn personality... shining through?
What Maggie's hair looks like almost every morning.
Anna's first swimming lesson with her best buddy Shaylee!
Sitting in the water at the first lesson.
Chicken pot pie... it's pretty!
And very filling.
Book time with Pappy! (funny the places where Maggie wants to sit...)
I froze a bunch of pot pies too...
Jordan is so cute just out of the bath...
At the beach! Cannon Beach is our new favorite! Especially in the sunshine! This park was a great place to start the day.
Our two little kids are getting big!
This was a very high steep slide. Best for just looking at and not using.
Jordan didn't like this much. :-)
Beautiful day, beautiful family!
Trying to get a cute picture in between handfuls of grass...
I wore my new mother's day dress to the beach! Loved being girly with my girls.
It was windy enough for a kite for the first couple hours! First time for Brian, Jordan, Maggie and Anna!
Holding the kite...
We spent our time by the river/creek... quieter than the ocean and the tide was out, so it was very shallow and Anna found buckets of broken shells.
We even got to put Jordan down for awhile! (he eats sand by the handful) The water slowed down the eating and made him very happy... til he was cold. :-)
Then he went to sleep. This is the last time I'll carry him on my front for awhile... Carolyn was pretty squished.
Fort Davis
Silly, silly girl.
Skate park! (Brakes are on, I assume... I was changing a diaper while Brian was silly at the skate park with the girls)

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May 10, 2012

Jordan – Medical Update

Jordan with my dad

Jordan has had an ENT/hearing appointment and a vision exam in the last week or two. Results:

Eyes:
We are seeing an optometrist who specializes in developmental vision and vision therapy. As an added bonus, she is familiar with children from orphanage backgrounds. One of the biggest things I’ve learned is that vision is very directly tied to activity and mobility. Coordinated motion, like crawling is involved with developing the coordination and movement of the eyes. Moving around and looking from short to far distances also effects vision (positively).
Think about Jordan’s background – a lot of time in a crib, very little mobility or reason to be interested in things beyond the range of his crib.

I’m so happy to have found this optometrist! Thanks Hollie!

On his first visit in January after just a month home: A significant stigmatism (in one or both eyes, I can’t remember) and pretty severe farsightedness. She didn’t think he should get glasses asap, because of his background. She hoped that the change in his circumstances and the hopeful increase in mobility would really improve his eyes. Going straight to glasses slows/stops/changes their development and she wanted to see what they could do on their own yet.

Four months later – the eye appointment today: The stigmatism is almost gone! And his farsightedness is still there and significant but has improved by at least 20%. Hoorah! So she wants one more point of reference to see how his eyes are developing before she decides on if glasses (probably) and if so, what strength. The idea is that it’s not good to get too strong of a prescription, but that we want him to be able to see well enough to develop best.

One sidenote that we talked about – she said that his eye development is definitely behind his almost three years. BUT, she is really happy with how his eyes have changed since coming home. Furthermore, she says his eye development is ON TRACK for his developmental age, which is early toddler… you know, like 12-18 months. So that’s great. As he develops in his gross motor (and other areas too, I think), his eyes will hopefully keep up just great. His eyes move with coordination, both move at the same time, his eyes track things very well, his eyes work together even when she had him crossing his eyes. haha (toddler eye exams involve playing on the floor with little toys and her holding a few lenses and a light in front of him.)

So – another checkup at the end of the summer to see how his eyes might have changed. :-) I am to encourage him to look at things more than three feet away from him.

Ears/ENT

On hearing – his first behavioral hearing test (in the sound booth where they play noises and talk to him through the speakers) had him not responding to things under 50 decibels. This time it was 60-70 decibels. (yep – worse!) The first time he had a cold, this time his nose was dry. BOTH times he had fluid on his ears, according to the little air-puff machine they put in his ears. BTW – this is a much more traumatic appointment because he has to SIT STILL for more than a fraction of a second. Oh man, does he ever melt down when he’s restrained!

Anyway, we haven’t done the sedated ABR that measures brain response to what he’s hearing, but hopefully the issues with his hearing are:
a. Because of the fluid on his ears, which we can fix with tubes
b. Because he just isn’t interested in responding to voices and sounds coming through a speaker. (Who could blame him?)

The plan? Tubes. They’ll poke a little hole, put in a tube and suction the current fluid outta there. After a few weeks, we’ll go back for another hearing test. Really, I’m hoping that we’ll notice a change AT HOME. That’s where it really matters! I’m not looking forward to it – the early morning drive through traffic to OHSU, the fasting, the anesthesia, the groggy, confused, possibly nauseous boy afterwards. The hurting ears for a day or two. (they do hurt for a day or two, right? I can’t imagine they wouldn’t!) But I’m hopeful that this will really help with communication and interaction.

On nose and throat – yes, his tonsils are big. Are they big enough to warrant taking them out? Good question. Are they causing significant sleep apnea? We don’t know. I know he’s restless at night but I don’t know why. He hasn’t had infected tonsils since being home. (yay!) So… pros and cons friends… do we get them out or not? The ENT suggested a sleep study to find out about apnea. I’d rather just decide “yes” or “no” without the additional lifetime spent at the doctor’s office. :-) Although, it could be interesting to go to a sleep study. Maybe they’ll let me be the one that sleeps!? ;-)

Tubes scheduled for May 31st.

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May 3, 2012

Sunshine and Newborns!

Felicity Florence, my sister’s third baby and first girl was born early on May 2nd after just under two hours of intense labor. She weighed 8lbs. and 10oz, is 22 inches long and both Melissa and Felicity are doing great! I’m so excited she had a girl!!!!!

I’ll let the captions speak for themselves.

We had three days of sun and over 70 degree weather. It was awesome!!!
They thought so too!
They are pretty awesome themselves.
Little boy loving the awesome weather.
Water!!!! All day, water!
Oooooooh - DO NOT FORGET sunscreen! Sorry Maggie! She cried at night for two days when she moved her arms. :-(
Playgroup!
My little boy who is ALWAYS cold finally warmed up that weekend.
Little fried birdie. I did put sunscreen on and keep her in the shade 90% of the second day.... :-(
Everybody trying to feel Carolyn kicking.
She was putting away dressup clothes like Papa asked her to.
MY FIRST NIECE IS BORN! Felicity Florence!!!! Beautiful!
Three kids! A wee bit different than the first family photo... but so beautiful!
Jackson just turned 3. And Melissa just always seems to look this good after having a baby.
Grandma and granddaughter.
Did I post this one already?
Big brother discovering toes...
Little big brother discovering a little live dollie.
Grandpa holding Felicity for the first time.
Tiny feet!
Big cheeks!
Maggie holding a newborn for the first time.
Kiss!
First outfit!
In her Mama's arms.
Grandfather and Grandson.
Hard to get pictures with one kid at a time.
Tromping to the barn to feed the cats.

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May 3, 2012

How To Encapsulate a Placenta – with pictures

WARNING TO MY NORMAL READERS – YOU PROBABLY DON’T WANT TO READ THIS. There’s a little text and then pictures… you know, with a real placenta. REALLY. Placentas are bloody. Please don’t read this blog if you shouldn’t and stop being my friend. If you must… pretend it’s hamburger, ok?

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For many people, the idea of encapsulating a placenta is a ray of hope to decreasing many post-partum pains, discomforts and emotional swings.

Encapsulating your placenta can have the following benefits:

“Decrease in baby blues and postpartum depression.
Increase and enrich breastmilk.
Increase in energy.
Decrease in lochia, postpartum bleeding.
Decrease iron deficiency.
Decrease insomnia or sleep disorders.
Decreases postpartum “night sweats”.
The placenta’s hormonal make-up is completely unique to the mother. No prescription, vitamin or herbal supplement can do what one placenta pill can. How amazing is that?

The theory is you are replacing the hormones you lost during the birthing process. Each woman’s placenta is unique to her hormonal make-up. Also the first born male placenta is the most enriched.”
(From the tutorial I read at: http://www.cafemom.com/journals/read/1577334/Placenta_Encapsulation_Instructions_w_Pictures)

So… the pictures are gross, because organs are gross. But obviously, we thought it was a good idea, so maybe others will find this helpful as well.

Question: Why did we do it ourselves?
Answer: Because we’re cheap. End of story. We could have spent $150 to have it done, but the supplies cost about $35 and there’s all we need to do both of ours. It was an experiment… and I think it worked out. No gagging. No big mess. Kinda gross, but doable.

Question: What method did you use?
Answer: I used the raw method. You can steam it first, but who wants an extra step… especially one that might smell… at all.

Question: Why aren’t you using universal safety measures?
Answer: Because I was doing it for my very healthy sister and because I didn’t think of it until later. If you do this for somebody besides yourself, you should wear gloves. :-) And I did wash and bleach everything afterwards. The dehydrator trays in particular were much easier to wash by just leaving them all day in a water/bleach filled bathtub.

We bought:
00 capsules – used about 150 of them (filled 130 for Melissa and dropped a few and got a few dirty) – They’re not too big but I think you can get them smaller. We bought 500 for $7.98
A Capsule Filler Machine – It cost $24.99 and I don’t know how we would have done it without it. It holds the capsules for you and guides the powder into the capsules.

We also used:
- A colander or strainer of some sort
- A cutting board
- A sharp knife
- A dehydrator
- A food processor (though next time, I’d like to try a coffee grinder)

The process:

Find the container marked "Not Yogurt" - I should say not!


Uncap and look at the surprisingly small organ that is the most sophisticated life support system known to man. Try to ignore the blood.


See how one side of the placenta is rough and bumpy - that's the side that was attached to the uterus. Put into colander.


Rinse. Go ahead and touch it. You're going to have to before you're done.


After rinsing well, removing any obvious blood clots, put on the large cutting board. Cut into strips of equal thickness. (I cut the whole thing in half and then cut each half into little strips)


As I went, I put it back in the colander. Then I rinsed my cutting board, because it looked yucky.


Lay out on dehydrator trays, making sure the pieces do not touch each other. (For air flow reasons)


A close up, to satisfy the morbid among (amongst?) you.


Turn on the dehydrator at a lowish temperature... I used 110 degrees Fahrenheit. I left it there overnight and it was very dry after 24 hours.


Put gross placenta jerky into coffee grinder or food processor.


It took a long time to turn into powder. This is after a minute of running full speed. (I did it even longer afterwards) I put a towel over the top, because it was too powder/cloudy and I began to smell it.


Set up your cool encapsulator on a paper towel or something.


Put in the long parts of the capsules with the tray at the "tall height." Fill with powder. Tamp down with tamper if you want... but don't push hard, because you don't want to ruin the capsules.


Lower the height of the tray.


Put caps on. Push down hard enough that the lids "pop" over the little bump. You don't want these to pop open.


This is where I'm supposed to show you a picture of the clean capsules in a little jar, ready for the fridge or freezer. (freezer lasts longer) But I had to get lunch for the kids and didn't take one. So, content yourself with a picture of my daughter kissing her newest cousin. :-)

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