{ On a Weekend in February }

It's been a good weekend, y'all.

Started on Friday evening, when we babysat Julia--our friends' daughter and the only other baby/kid in our Bible study group. Julia is two and a half months older than Lainie, and let me tell you: Watching them interact is a hoot.

Julia crawls. Julia crawls fast. Julia explores, licks, tastes, opens, closes, pushes and pulls rapidly and thoroughly. Julia jabbers and growls and eats with gusto.

Lainie sits and watches, shocked, as though there is an invader in her home but that invader might actually be a lot of fun but she's really loud and it's kinda intimidating that this moving-growling-other-baby apparently is more skilled at playing with Lainie's toys than Lainie herself is.

It was so much fun to see what the next stage is--what Lainie will probably be doing in a couple of months! And it made me realize how very un-child-proofed our house is. *sigh* I am not looking forward to childproofing. Though Lainie was a bit intimidated by such an active playmate in "her" space, I think they had fun together.

Saturday I got a haircut, but there are no photos yet so we aren't going to talk about it. At least not photos I'm willing to post on the internet. There are a couple self-portraits Mike and I took on our date {see below} but we both look slightly crazed and incredibly anemic, so just use your imaginations.

Saturday evening Julia's parents, Travis and Krissy, babysat Lainie for us so we could go on a date. Because we are so young and adventurous and full of excitement and don't go on dates as often as we should nowadays, we chose to spend our date night at home...making dinner...followed by a little TV.

I can't believe we are those people!!!

I mean, I can, and it's not all bad, it's mostly really really good, and I think all of our other dates post-baby we've gone out, so it was really nice to just chill at home, just the two of us, but still!

In our defense: Lainie has been so hard to get to sleep at night {usually crying off and on for a couple hours} that the idea of a nice, leisurely, quiet evening at home, relaxing and enjoying a really yummy dinner and uninterrupted conversation without keeping things at a whisper and taking turns getting baby back to sleep, seemed divine. And it was! We made homemade macaroni and cheese--one of my absolute favorite comfort foods--followed by oreo-stuffed chocolate chip cookies. I saw them in Pinterest and knew we had to make them--what could be more decadent than a mashup of our two favorite kinds of cookies?




 Be forewarned: These babies are monsters. I think we were a little generous with the cookie dough, but regardless, each "cookie" is the equivalent of two chocolate chip cookies plus an oreo. They are ridiculously dense and filling.

And the ultimate "eat it with milk" cookie. They were a fun experiment, but I don't think we'll make them again--too huge, and rich, and just too much. As a matter of fact, we gave half our batch of 12 away!

 

Then we headed to a restaurant to meet up with Mike's parents, sister Amaryah, and her fiance Lawrence. Yes, Lawrence finally popped the question on Friday night, and Amaryah said yes! {We had to make a little detour to Travis and Krissy's so I could feed Lainie, since she is refusing all bottles these days, but that is another story for another day.} We had yummy drinks {Mike and I were too full for anything else} and hung out and talked weddings and watched the ferries twinkling across the water. It was fun because it's the same restaurant where we went on our first date, and on the night Mike proposed--we could see the pier where he asked me to marry him from our table. We couldn't be happier for A + L and are excited to see them transition from boyfriend/girlfriend to husband and wife. And I'm excited to see what Amaryah comes up with for their wedding...she works as an event planner, so I'm sure it will be a really lovely affair.

 

And then Sunday: I managed to get Lainie and I to the 9am church service on time {Mike was already there since he helps with setup} and for the first time, Lainie stayed in the nursery for the whole service! Apparently she cried a lot, but not to the point where they had to call us to take her. It wore her out, though, and she fell asleep within five minutes of getting in the car.

 

Now it's just a nice, quiet Sunday evening. Baby Girl is playing with her food. Mike is working {still crazy busy for a week or two}. I am slowly whittling down the monstrous pile of dirty dishes that used to be our kitchen. I'm hoping the kitchen will be visible by tonight. Because somehow, we have to get to the fridge, and that leftover mac and cheese...

{ It's the Most Dairy-Full Time of the Year }

A couple weeks ago, Miss Lainie had some symptoms--very mild--that her doctor says often indicates difficulty digesting dairy. She suggested I stop eating dairy for a few weeks and see if Lainie's symptoms go away.

What?!! No dairy? I have spent my entire life pitying people who, by necessity or choice, do not consume cheese...half 'n' half...butter...and all the lovely things made with dairy.

But I love my daughter, so after a day of mourning, I stopped eating dairy.

 

:: What? You can't eat dairy cuz of me? ::

 

I gotta say, the holidays are probably the worst time of year to eliminate dairy. It's not the little daily things, like a bagel with cream cheese and half 'n' half in my coffee, that bother me as much as the special, Christmas-only goodies I'm missing. I made four batches of soda cracker candy and a couple batches of nutella sea salt fudge, pretty much my favorite things ever...and it's all been either given away or sitting in the fridge, waiting to be eaten by others. By the way, I have a new definition of willpower: making the aforementioned treats and not even being able to taste them. Honestly, I don't think anything else has required such sheer determination. My explanation is that everything else I've abstained from, for whatever reasons, had significant consequences as an additional deterrent. The only reason I'm not eating dairy is because Lainie had some extremely mild, extremely short-lived symptoms that didn't bother her at all and which may or may not be caused by dairy...and when she isn't even bothered by it, I feel like the only reason I'm denying myself is out of principle and theory. Gah. It's awful. And I realize, to my embarrassment, how much I am ruled by my stomach. How often, how automatically, I shove food in my mouth to deal with {fill in the blank}. When I have to stop and read labels before shoving said food into mouth, and then not eat whatever I was about to consume, I realize how frequently I eat just for comfort...distraction...whatever. It's humbling, to have an unnoticed idol revealed this way.

 

I'm also super blessed by many friends who have already traveled the dairy-free road and give me tips and guidance. I was already cooking probably 70% Paleo--which is, among other things, dairy-free-- at Mike's request, though both of us were unwilling to give up dairy, so I'm already familiar with a lot of dairy-free recipes and resources online. A total blessing. But I really really hope Lainie isn't allergic to dairy! Or anything else, for that matter. Not being able to eat dairy is a walk in the park compared to, say, not being able to eat gluten. I don't even know how we'd do that. Little Miss has her six-month checkup after Christmas, and we'll talk to her doctor about what to do at that point. I'm praying she's not allergic anything and that we can go back to our good ol' creamy, milky, cheesy way of life!

 

Until then, I'll be enjoying coconut milk in my coffee {it's actually super tasty--I may keep doing it even if I can have half 'n' half again!} and Trader Joe's coconut milk ice cream {it's delicious}. See? It's not all bad!

{ Public Service Announcement }

In case you were wondering, alcohol-free wine tastes like

 

weird grape juice.

 

 

Since the alcohol has been removed, I guess that's actually what it is.

{ It's November }

Late last week, my laptop keyboard was finally replaced, so now I have a computer and internet when Mike isn't home. The enforced technology fast made me realize how much time I fritter away on the computer when I should be doing other things. As inconvenient as it was to have to zip through checking my email and all the little blogs/sites I like to browse regularly--on Mike's laptop, in ten or fifteen minutes between putting Lainie down for the night and going to bed myself--it was also refreshing. I could just do life during the day. No getting sucked into the interwebs.

But I am really glad to be able to blog again, and download approximately 647 photos off of my camera.

I'm making a point of not saying anything about the elections. Political conversations make me want to crawl out of my skin. The End.

It's amazing how much I can accomplish when (a) I get up at a decent hour, and (b) I spend time with Jesus early in the day. Lately Lainie has been waking up twice at night to eat, instead of just once, which makes it sooooo easy to sleep in until she wakes up. This morning she woke up to eat at 6:30, and instead of going to bed after she fell asleep, I took a shower. Read Acts 10. Spent time with Jesus. Picked up clutter. Made this amazingly delicious Paleo jambalaya. Made this amazingly delicious Italian sausage/chard/lemon lasagna. And washed the dishes, all before Lainie woke up at 10:30. Yes, I am proud of myself. Note to self: pride is a sin...

Speaking of Lainie, Little Miss Boo has her first cold. She is really stuffed up and sneezes continually. She hates having her nose suctioned, which is unfortunate for both of us because I've done it at least half a dozen times already today. She's still happy and sweet as ever, even when she can barely breathe through her nose--poor baby!

Let's see. What else happened while I was away?

I got a haircut. Postpartum hair loss is brutal and two-foot-long brown hairs everywhere drove me bananas. I refuse to believe it's a "mom chop," because isn't the purpose of that so the baby can't grab your hair? Lainie can definitely still reach my hair. I unwrap strands from her fingers on an almost hourly basis.

 

:: before ::

 

:: after ::

 

As you can see, we also went on a date. Fancy dinner out with our friends Lisa and Daniel. It was nice to dress up, enjoy a great meal in a classy restaurant--I had pear and gorgonzola ravioli--and not worry too much about Lainie. I don't think a mama ever gets to the point where she doesn't worry at all, does she?

 

And yes, my skin is vampire white by nature.

 

In spite of the fact that I have made pie crust approximately once before in my life, I agreed to make four pies for Lisa and Daniel's wedding rehearsal dinner last week: Chocolate pecan, pumpkin, apple, and strawberry rhubarb. In spite of my gross lacl of pie-making experience, they turned out quite well.

 

 

Though Elaina is still a teensy weensy thing by any estimation, she has put on weight. Look at these photos of her getting a bath--the first one was taken on October 10, the second on November 2:

 

 

She's plumping out a little! :-)

 

Tempted as I am to ramble on, I probably don't have much time left before Lainie wakes from her nap, and I haven't brushed my teeth yet today. I'm gonna go do that. Later!





{ In Which I Have a Birthday }

I know it was over a month ago...but I never got around to posting pictures. And it was a really fun day, thanks to Mr. Mike. And this weekend we're heading to Vashon Island for a little "babymoon," so I shan't be posting for a few days, and then Tuesday is our first appointment at Children's Hospital, so really, if I don't post something before we leave on Friday, it's going to be more than a week before a new post.

I think all that self-justification for a post about my month-old birthday was for me, not you...

Anyway!!

Mike planned a lovely, laid-back Saturday, just the two of us, doing some of my favorite things: waterfronts, exploring, gelato, flowers, new adventures in Seattle--of course without letting me know any of it in advance. And God blessed us with a gorgeously sunny day to boot!

We started off with coffee from Caffe Appasionato, the loveliest coffee shop I think I've ever seen, and then meandered over to the Fishermen's Terminal in the Ballard {Wallingford? sorta north Queen Anne?} neighborhood of Seattle. I'd never been there before. We walked out on the docks, admiring the boats and yachts.

I think this zippy little red number was Mike's favorite

Ohhhh, look, I don't look pregnant at all!!

BAM!!! Triplets, anyone?!

I swear it's the jacket...

Mike took me to the dearest little shop called Nellie's that serves toast with jam and cheese. Yum!!

Flowers at Pike Place Market

Gelato...need I say more?

I got raspberry and lemon, Mike got mango and coconut.

We ended the day at Arnie's, enjoying a delicious dinner as the sun set over the water. It was an idyllic day.

Even if it was in honor of my last "young" birthday. ;-)

{ Pretties }

On the agenda for this afternoon:

:: Swoon over ranunculuses {ranunculi?}

:: Thank Jesus and Mike that the blinds and curtains and valance are back in their proper spots, hung up in the living room!!

:: Work on baby registry...so far I'm a big fan of registering online, it's much less stressful than registering in stores. And with Amazon wish lists, you can add items from anywhere on the internet!

:: Make The Pioneer Woman's mashed potatoes and bacon-wrapped meatloaf for dinner with friends tonight...yum yum!

:: Resist temptation to eat ice cream casserole right now. It's the first time I've made it {Chelle's recipe} and it is seriously a pregnant woman's dream!

:: Go to the bathroom approximately every 17 minutes.

:: Thank Jesus for sunshine.

:: Drink red raspberry leaf tea.

:: Remember that I am eternally grateful to be married to a very smart man, who fixed my computer when it temporarily died of a very bad virus, but he was able to save all my stuff and my laptop, thus enabling me to take these pictures and write this post. Love you honey!

I'd better get started on that meatloaf...

{ What I'm Up To }

Blame it on pregnancy-induced nesting hormones run amok, thwarted by my inability to make a "nest" in the nursery 'til we get a few more projects done {a.k.a. clean out the second bedroom and transition it from office/dumping-ground-for-everything-I-haven't-wanted-to-deal-with-in-2.5-years-of-marriage to a room we can turn into a nursery}.

Blame it on loving to clean and purge and organize.

Blame it on #2, intensified by #1.

Whatever the causes, today I'm starting the house-wide de-clutter, clean, and simplify process described in Tsh Oxenreider's book, Organized Simplicity: The Clutter-Free Approach to Intentional Living. If you haven't read this, I highly recommend it. The content is deeper than I expected--for example, figuring out a family purpose statement, and an ideal purpose statement for each room of your home, before you even begin--yet it's a refreshing, exhilarating process.

Because, like, everyone wants a freshly washed-down freezer before they have a baby, right? And who doesn't need to clean and re-arrange and inventory their pantry while trying to figure out what to eat that won't make them puke?

She says this having only cleaned, organized, and inventoried the freezer and refrigerator.

via

Maybe you should check back in a few days and see if I still agree with those statements!

I'm taking it slow, not expecting to do one room per day, and I'm not proceeding in the order described, either...there is no point in reorganizing the living room when it is currently Construction Zone Central for Mike's new built-in desk. Over the hum of the dishwasher, I've been listening to old sermons by Pastor Mark, including yesterday's message {the Q&A at the end nearly made me pee my pants, even the second time around!}. Hopefully this whole project will take me less than two weeks...and by then, maybe we'll be ready to start tackling the soon-to-be-nursery!

This slow-cooker honey sesame chicken is in the crockpot, and I can't wait to taste it {thank you Pinterest!}. I'm a big fan of Asian cuisine, but at this point I just hope it turns out okay...I accidentally added cornstarch at the beginning, instead of after it's mostly cooked, AND THEN I completely forgot to mix in the 3/4 cup of honey, so just drizzled it across the top. *sigh* This pregnancy brain stuff is for real, folks!

via

Random side note: I'm also really excited that I bought way too much asparagus for Amaryah's birthday dinner last night, which means I have about two pounds of asparagus ready to broil and eat all by myself...and I assure you, it will probably only amount to two Nikki-size servings. I love asparagus!

And with that, I'd better get back to the kitchen. The pantry is calling my name...



{ Making Me Happy }

~ Talks with Mike

~ A cup of coffee {laden with cream and sugar} nearly every day--Mike is a master of the French press!

~ This darling cross-stitch by a fellow blogger who has become a dear friend, in spite of the miles that separate us: Isn't it the cutest thing you have ever seen?! I wear that outfit all the time--and I love that Mike's got Miss Peanut in the baby carrier!

~ A massage and chiropractic adjustment that "fixed" my badly-out-of-whack neck

~ Not throwing up very much :-)

~ This massage bar from Lush...I call it my pregnancy splurge. I slather it on my tummy every day, breathe in the lovely scent of honey and white chocolate, and hope it will help prevent stretch marks!



~ Musing over nursery decor ideas and paint chips

~ Is this not the most endearing doormat you've ever seen?! It makes me smile big-time! {Our previous doormat was stained by the contractors}

~ Cleaning out my makeup collection and throwing away the old, crusty stuff...why do I hang on to old makeup I've stopped using, when I know I'm not going to use it in the future??

~ Skinny chocolate chip buttermilk scones...thank you Pinterest!!

{ Thai Chicken Pizza }

This pizza!!

Ohmygoodness.

It is so good!

I love Thai food. It's probably my favorite cuisine, hands down. Mike loves pizza. It's probably one of his top three favorite foods. It's been quite a while since I've made him pizza for dinner, so I was looking for a new recipe and stumbled upon this gem from Tasty Kitchen. Unfortunately, I love it a whole lot more than the man I made it for {sorry, honey! More bacon next time, I promise.}. As in, Mike has had two pieces, there are three pieces left, and I've eaten the remainder. He likes it, but I love it. I am exercising a considerable amount of willpower in not going to the refrigerator and scarfing down another piece right this instant. I truly want to.

What makes this pizza sing is the sweet chili sauce. And the peanuts. And the fresh cilantro. And the zucchini. But mostly it's the sweet chili sauce.

I feel weird about posting a recipe when it already exists in at least two places online, so here is the link. Dax Phillips, creator of this wonderful dish, I have no idea who you are, but bless you for thinking up this pizza!

{ Balsamic Berry Quinoa Salad }

A few months ago, I started dipping my toes in the strange-yet-wonderful world of couponing. I still have a lot to learn, but that's another story. My point is that, as a result of the couponing websites I've visited, I sometimes get really random emails, most of which I delete without opening. Last week, I happened to open an email from Unilever, and inside was a recipe for balsamic berry quinoa salad. I'm always on the lookout for new recipes, and this one looked quite tasty, so I made it...and ate the entire batch in two days. Goodness gracious, it was delicious! I simply have to share it.

Balsamic Berry Quinoa Salad

source

Serves 6

~ 2 cups water

~ 1 cup quinoa

~ 6 Tbsp. Wish-Bone Light Balsamic Basil Vinaigrette Dressing

~ 1 large cucumber, seeded and diced

~ 1 cup strawberries {quartered} or raspberries

~ 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced

~ 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion, rinsed with cold water

Bring water to a boil over high heat in 2-quart saucepan. Stir in quinoa, then return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook covered for 12 minutes or until water is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff, then let stand covered 15 minutes. Combine hot quinoa with remaining ingredients in serving bowl. Chill, if desired.

I should confess: The salad I made had some key differences from this one. First, in my haste I burned the quinoa. Second, I used a balsamic vinaigrette dressing we already had, rather than buying a specific brand {and I only used 5 Tbsp, not 6}. I didn't seed the cucumber. At the grocery store, my box of raspberries sprang open and scattered on the floor as I was in the checkout line, so I ended up using frozen raspberries I had at home. And finally, I forgot to rinse the onion. Also, I think it's a scant 6 servings...but this is also a pregnant lady talking. I'm definitely at least doubling it the next time.

End result: Scrumptious. Darn it, I'm getting hungry again!!

Try it! I think you'll like it!

via



{ Turkey Sloppy Joes }

Yippee skippee--it's still snowing!!

After taking a break for the night, fluffy white flakes have been coming down steadily all morning. There are a couple inches on the ground here, with more predicted for tomorrow. The local school district is closed today, and kids are out sledding on the golf course behind our condo complex. It's just dreamy. {Especially since I have nowhere else I have to be, and we're good on groceries for the rest of the week.} This morning, in an unexpected burst of baker-ism--brought on, I think, by the enforced domesticity of the snow and no car--I spontaneously made raspberry muffins, and last night, I curled up on the couch and did some knitting while listening to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer from Books Should Be Free. I only recently discovered this treasure trove of thousands of free audiobooks--what an amazing resource! I'm not a fast reader, and if I can do something like knit or iron or clean the bathroom while someone reads to me, I'm on it! Unfortunately I think that's the only way I'm going to make significant progress on the list of books I want to consume.

This snowy, housebound weather has me thinking of warm, cozy foods: freshly baked muffins, hot tea, sloppy joes...and I have the perfect sloppy joes recipe to share with you. Recently my mom gave me a gift subscription to Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking magazine. It's the second time she's done so, and I am continuing to find it a treasure trove of great recipes. Since I've been nauseous for the better part of the last ten weeks, especially with any kind of food preparation, and especially especially with meat, I'm on the lookout for easy recipes with a lot of protein. Did you know that a pregnant woman is supposed to consume at least 90 grams of protein per day, and that poor protein intake may be linked to development of toxemia and pre-eclampsia? Yikes! So I was really happy to find this recipe for turkey sloppy joes that looked easy and delicious. And let me tell you--it definitely is! Tangy, with a bit of a bite, and slightly sweet, this is much more flavorful than I expected sloppy joes to be.

Turkey Sloppy Joes

source

Serves 8

~ 1 lb lean ground turkey

~ 1 small onion, chopped

~ 1/2 cup chopped celery

~ 1/4 cup chopped green pepper

~ 1 can {10 3/4 oz} reduced-sodium condensed tomato soup, undiluted

~ 1/2 cup ketchup

~ 2 Tbsp. prepared mustard

~ 1 Tbsp. brown sugar

~ 1/4 tsp. pepper

~ 8 hamburger buns, split

In a large skillet coated with cooking spray, cook the turkey, onion, celery and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the soup, ketchup, mustard, brown sugar and pepper. Transfer to a 3-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. Serve on buns.

 The only modification I made was to use an entire bell pepper {red, since it was much cheaper than green}. The extra veggie content didn't deter even Mike from wolfing down his dinner. I hope you all enjoy these sloppy joes as much as we are!

{ Christmas Goodies }

Much as I love Christmas candy, and fortuitous though it is that I'm not working outside the home, I'm not going crazy with the sweets this year.

My reason is that Peanut isn't very fond of anything in the general category of "making food"--though baking and candy-making are by far the easiest kinds of "food" for me to tackle right now!

Last year I made several kinds of candies and cookies, and Mike and I gave them in little gift bags to our nearest neighbors. We're planning to do the same this year. Though both of us love oreo truffles {recipe here}, they take f.o.r.e.v.e.r. to make--even with two people!--so I have decided to try all new recipes.

Yesterday I made two batches of chocolate nutella fudge with sea salt...YUM! If you want to give this creamy, delicious, hazelnutty, chocolatey, decadent, slightly salty treat a try, here is the recipe. Added bonus: her photos are much more appetizing than mine. I just have a point-and-shoot camera, but when I look at this I still want to lick my computer screen.

I've also made peppermint gumdrops, thanks to Bakerella's recipe here. In spite of generous administration of red food coloring, my gumdrops are definitely orangey, not red as I'd hoped. Oh well. They still taste like peppermint, and it's just fun to say that you've made gumdrops!

Right now I'm making oreo bark, in honor of the illustrious oreo--quite possibly Mr. and Mrs. Mike's favorite cookie. {Well.....favorite store-bought cookie. I don't think anything can shake chocolate chip cookies, or M&M cookies, from the #1 Cookie spot in Mike's heart.} I forgot to take photos...sorry. And I'm not sure why I'm so italicised tonight. Lots of things just need a little extra emphasis, apparently.

What are your favorite Christmas treats? Something your mom or grandma made? A delicious recipe you just found? Do tell!



{ Kaua'i ~ Part IX: North Shore Favorites }

At last: The last of our Kaua'i photos. Friends of ours are on the Big Island this week, enjoying their honeymoon, which reminded me that there are a few more pictures I want to post from our trip. Some of our favorite things from Kauai's north shore, our home-away-from-home for two lovely weeks this summer.

Favorite drinks: The martinis at Bouchons Hanalei, which they serve with the shaker--so you get a good 2+ drinks for the price of one! Note: Mike wants to make it clear that he only drinks girly drinks {such as martinis} when vacationing in the tropics. He wants everyone to know that this is the only circumstance under which it is ok for guys to drink girly drinks.

Favorite dessert: The caramelized banana deliciousness seen above, also served at Bouchons Hanalei.

Favorite stretch of road {for me, anyway}: The tiny one-lane bridges that dot Kauai's north coast.

Favorite beach: Kahalahala Beach, hands-down our favorite stretch of sand on the island. Big waves on one end if you want some excitement; a shallow pool for kids on the other end, and perfect waves for us in between. We loved every minute at this beach!

Looking back at Kahalahala beach from the lava outcropping you see in the photo above

Favorite evening walk on the beach: Dusk at Hanalei Bay, watching the sunset over the ocean as the clouds rolled in over the mountains.

Favorite lookout: This breathtaking vista of the Hanalei Valley was minutes from our condo. On a couple of occasions, the clouds lifted completely and we could see the tops of all the mountains rimming the valley. Stunning!

Favorite beach, take 2: Yes, we went back to Kahalahala. You would've, too.

Favorite beach boy: My husband. Notice how he mixed a mai tai and brought it to the beach in a water bottle. I love that man!

Nine posts, dozens of photos shared, hundreds more tucked away on my hard drive. Mike and I are so blessed that we were able to take this vacation, that we were able to have these adventures and make these memories together. I'm humbled by the Lord's immense grace in giving us the resources to make this amazing trip happen. It was better, I think, than either of us even imagined it would be.

Thank you, Jesus.