We like to eat!

 

Resolutions

Yeah, I know, the whole New year's resolution post.  But I prefer to think of it as new mama resolutions, things that will help maintain my sanity and balance both as myself, a wife, a pet-owner and a mama through this year and all the ones following.  They range from the simple to the more detailed, things like make time for myself in a calming way, either simply taking the time to listen to a quiet house with a cup of tea and no distractions, to spinning more in the evenings to celebrating life as a mama, much as some of the inspirational blogs I read do.  And of course make some dedicated time for sewing, knitting, and cooking.

As our Mr. Man keeps shooting through clothes in no time (in 18 mo sleepers already, holy cow!), he's been reaching the ends of a commercially purchased sleep sack in no time.  I finally put together a quick replacement in fleece with a separating zipper that is working well for now, but is none too pretty of an example of sew-manship.  That being said, it was my first time installing a zipper, and it went pretty well.  Hopefully on the next one I make, I will do a much better job and incorporate an excellent idea from finger thumb to add a front tab to avoid poking him on the chin.

Speaking of cute chins:

 

Wearing some of mama's knitwear, giving me an expression that is so his dad when I do something weird

Holiday Pics

Opening gifts with Grandma

Flag from Trinity Site, NM on first museum visit

Replica of Little Boy

So awhile back, one of the awesome blogs I visit, SlavetoSave, hosted a bunch of baby-themed giveaways, with some really cool stuff.  I entered a few of them, and I actually won something!  Been waiting to post, what with holidays and all, but I got it in the mail last week and had to take a pic. 

It's a Snuggle Me'z carseat cover in the Brody pattern, and it's really come in handy with the cold weather we've had lately.  Of course, this last week has been all about staying home and paying tribute to the many nap attempts that need to be made on behalf of proper day sleep, but hopefully I'll be able to go out again soon and show it off around the mall.

How food-adventerous are you?

Came across this list of omnivore foods and though it'd be fun to go over with Kyle and see what we have tried over the years, only bolding the ones we've tried.  How did everyone else do? 

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison

2. Nettle tea

3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile

6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue

8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi

15. Hot dog from a street cart

16. Epoisses

17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese

26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper

27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl

33. Salted lassi

34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float

36. Cognac with a fat cigar

37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat

42. Whole insects

43. Phaal

44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more

46. Fugu

47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin

51. Prickly pear

52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle

57. Dirty gin martini

58. Beer above 8% ABV

59. Poutine

60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads

63. Kaolin

64. Currywurst

65. Durian

66. Frogs’ legs

67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain

70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini

73. Louche absinthe

74. Gjetost, or brunost

75. Roadkill

76. Baijiu

77. Hostess Fruit Pie

78. Snail

79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict

83. Pocky

84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.

85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers

89. Horse

90. Criollo chocolate

91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab

93. Rose harissa

94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox

97. Lobster Thermidor

98. Polenta

99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee

100. Snake

ETA:  I realized that with the font color, the bolding isn't clear, so I italicized tried items instead.  Also, #36 bothers me, as I have had both some very tasty cognac, and a rather nice handrolled cigar, but on 2 separate occasions.  Make of it what you will.

Awesome blog opportunity

One of the many blogs on my google reader is Sew, Mama, Sew and this week Dec 2nd through Dec 6th, they're hosting their 3rd annual giveaway.  Many cool people with blogs, shops, and crafty-inspired items participate, so there's a pretty good chance of winning some cool hancrafted item or supply.  But the best part is the exposure of some pretty neat blog and new artists that I wasn't aware of.  Not only am I now hoping for some pretty sweet items to win, I now have a lot more blogs bookmarked and subscribed to for reading and inspiration.

Quick pics and update

Oz is 12 weeks old already, so crazy!  In that time he has grown to over 12 lbs, zooming through clothes and now in mostly 6 month sizes, smiles and laughes tons, and is really, really interested in everything around him.  So far, he loves baths with mommy, looking at the red chile-esque lights in our house, wearing clothes made by mommy (see pic), having us wash laundry a lot, and being rocked to sleep a lot.

Through some trial and error, we found out not only does he have "silent" reflux, but also a sensitivity to dairy, nuts, and possibly soy.  But with meds and cutting those out of my diet, he's tons better.  I do miss cheese though, but he more than makes up for it :)

Also he loves both sets of grandparents, as he's lucky enough to be near my parents a good deal, and Kyle's mom and dad came up for a nice visit a few weeks ago, and will soon see him again at Christmas.  So lucky to have both families nearby, so he will grow up with tons of love and affection from many different people.

Otherwise, have been being a 24-hr mommy, with not much time for other cooking/knitterly pursuits.  Did make a cute baby Jayne Hat, that Oz seems to like.  And slowly working on some cozy cabled socks for me, after finishing a basic pair of socks for Kyle.  And made a yummy butternut squash soup (from How to Cook Everything) the other night, topped with roasted pepitas and paired with crusty bread and chicken apple sausage from Sprouts (Cali friends, think Henry's, exact same thing).  The no-dairy, no-soy has been a bit of a challenge, cooking-wise, but luckily in this day and age, there are a lot of other options, such as rice milk or coconut milk.  Sadly no almond milk though, due to nut issues.  The ped assures me that these food items are more of a protein issue for him, and don't necessarily mean a later dairy/nut allergy.