What's for Dinner Wednesdays - Ham Sammies!!!

This is my family's new favorite dinner!!!

HAM SAMMIES:

Ingredients

1/2 Stick of Butter

1/2 Onion - chopped

3 tbsp dijon mustard

2tbsp BBQ sauce

3 tsp poppy seeds

1 pkg Hawaiian Sweet rolls

1/2 lb ham

5-6 slices swiss cheese

1. Melt butter in skillet.

2.  Add onions, mustard, bbq, and poppy seeds.  Stir and simmer.

3.  On a cookie sheet place foil then the rolls that have been cut in half length wise.  Layer ham then cheese.

4.  Take the mixture from the pan and put half on top of the cheese.  Then put the top of the rolls back on and put the last half of the sauce on top.  KJ doesn't eat anything with onions so as you can see I left the mixture off two of the sammies.

5.  Cover the sammies with foil and bake at 350 for 20 mins!!!

ENJOY!

We ate them with curly fries :)

Plastic and Us

So I'm an avid Documentary watcher... everything from childbirth, to politics, to food, and now plastics!  I think documentaries are a great way to gain new prospective and hear information that you might not otherwise ever find.  I understand that most documentaries are mostly one sided in their opinions and views but there is still a ton of great information out there.

A while ago I blogged about food and GMOs Click here to read it!

Well most recently our family (yes KJ watches this stuff too), has been watching documentaries on plastics and the effect of plastics on our planet and our bodies.  Yes you have chemicals from plastics in your body right now, and if you are prego your baby has them too!!!!  It has totally opened up my eyes to the problem of plastics.  Here are a few documentaries that I recommend, and are all streaming live on netflix.  'Bag It!' Was my personal favorite.

Homo Toxicus

Plastic Planet

Bag It!

If you have the time, watch all three... if you only have two hours, watch 'Bag it'.  IF you don't have any time at all I have prepared a quick list of things to do to help reduce your plastic use and the harmful effects on your body and children!

1. Say 'NO' to plastic bags:  This is such an easy fix... buy the 99 cent reusable tote bags and only use those for all your shopping trips.  We produce 500 Billion tons of waste just from the use of these plastic bags!  CRAZY.  Also most of these plastic bags end up in our oceans where turtles mistake them for jelly fish and then eat them.  If you want to kill a turtle go ahead and use those plastic bags next time you check out at the grocery store..... Just sayin'.....

2.  Stop drinking bottled water:  You realize that bottled water is tap water from other countries, right?  But we Americans spend money, fuel, and resources to import tap water.  Not only does it cost America fuel and money, but the bottle that it takes you 20 mins to drink takes over 300 years to decompose in a landfill.  Even if you recycle these bottles are down cycled so they only get two lives out of them before they are trash.

3.  Use cloth diapers:  Seriously they are just as convenient as disposable and way cheaper too!  It is estimated you will save 1200+ in your baby's first two years if you use cloth instead of disposable.  If you want to read my blog on cloth diapers click here.

4.  Limit the amount of plastic you use in your home:  If you were anything like us, as of last week we were using plastic tupperware for food storage and drinking from plastic washable cups.  After watching these docs we switched and bought glasses to drink from and glass storage for food.  Total we spent 28 dollars at Target to get rid of our plastics in the kitchen.  If you chose to keep your plastics please remember to NEVER heat them in the microwave.  The plastic WILL release chemicals and compounds into your food and you will eat them.  Also once your plastic gets that frosted, hazy or cracked look to it, it is time to throw it away.  That means the plastic is actually starting to break down and will release even more nasty stuff into your food and body.

5.  Look for BPA Free:  Plastic companies are not required to label all the chemicals they use to make their products... so you really have no idea what you are handling or giving to your children.  Today (mostly on baby toys) you can find some products that advertise as BPA free.  This is important, since BPA has been linked to caner, ADD, ADHD, infertility, liver problems, diabetes, poor brain development in children, and heart disease.... just to name a few.  If you must buy plastic toys or items for your babies and children LOOK for that BPA free sign on the product.

These are just a few simple things you can do to help our planet and your families health.  After watching these our family is limiting the plastic in our lives.  Go Green with us and remember the three Rs....

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Milestones

How do you record your child's milestones?  What do you consider a major milestone worth recording?  I think most parents know what the big ones are... first step, first tooth, first bike, first date etc.....

But what about all the little things that aren't major milestones but they are things that you want to remember about your children in 5 years, 10 years, or even 40 years from now?  I am giving you a list of 5 different ways to document milestones for each of your children that you will have forever to love and look back on for years to come.

1.  Traditional baby book:  Most brand new parents get their first baby book at the baby shower from a loving friend or family member.  These are great ways to keep track of your baby through the first year.  They usually have pouches for little souvenirs, places for pictures and lots of space for writing about your little one.  The only thing I found annoying about these was the book is very specific in it's pages. So if you don't need a certain page for something then that page just stays blank.... forever...  But for a quick way to record milestones it is a good way to go.

2.  Photo Albums (with space to write by every picture):  I LOVE having pictures of all the milestones, so I use photo albums much more than I used KJ's baby book.  We didn't even buy a baby book for ET.  But the photo albums with a few lines of writing at the sides is a great way to see the milestone and also know the exact date, age, or other info you want to add with the photo.  These take a little more work but still pretty easy to put together for the busy mom.

3.  Scrapbooking:  With scrapbooking you have complete control over ALL aspects of how you record your child's milestones.  The only draw back to this is you have to be super creative on your pages and it usually takes a ton of time to do.  I have two scrapbooks for KJ but I only work on them once a year and I dedicate a full week of locking myself in with my craft supplies to get it done!  They are amazing to look back at when they are finished, but good luck getting them done.

4.  Movies!!!:  We take lots of videos in our family, KJ loves watching our  home movies from years ago.  They are a quick and easy way to get moments on our computer and easily burnt on a DVD.  I am a Mac girl, so I use iMovie and iDVD to make all of our home movies.  Another piece of advise is to use a simple point and shoot camera instead of an actual video camera.  The quality is about the same, and you are sure to have your little point and shoot with you about everywhere you go and therefore will take more videos than if you had to remember to get out the video camera.  It is also way easier to upload from a point and shoot than it is from a video camera that uses those little tapes.

5.  Journal:  This is an idea that most people don't think of for recording milestones, but I LOVE doing this.  I have a separate journal for each child.  I write in them on a weekly basis or more if more is going on with that child.  What is great about this is I have the freedom to write about everything that pertains to that child.  So I am not restricted to just the major milestones... but the everyday things that I find funny or amusing.  Quotes that KJ says, or songs that she likes to sing, and right now all of the 'first' stuff for ET.  Another thing I really love about Journaling is I'm writing my feelings down along with my child's journey.  So when they are old and they read these they know exactly how I felt about them at that time.  Also, I don't find it is very time consuming.  I look forward to journaling usually at night when the kids have gone to bed.  But if something awesome happens during the day I grab my journal and make a note of it too!!  This is by far my favorite way to document my kiddos.

I hope I was able to give you all some ideas of how to better document your kid's milestones!  If you have any other special ways that you have found or use please comment below and share with all of us!!!

KJ's 5th BDay getting her  first big girl bike!

WHO Convention Weekend!

For any homeschooling families in WA it is convention weekend hosted right here in Puyallup!!!

Here is a link to the WHO website for all the convention details.  Hope to see you there!!!!

WHO Convention

Children and Technology

At what age do you let your children start having their own accounts for online stuff or technological gadgets?  Examples are Email addresses, social sites (facebook, myspace, pintrest etc), a cell phone, ipod, or laptop.

Today I had to ask myself these questions and not because I wanted to.  KJ has been in Texas for this past month and today I was told by her biological dad that he not only bought her an ipod, but also created a skype account, an apple account, a facetime account, and an email account for her, in her name.  Keep in mind she just turned 5.....  So does a 5 year old really need all those accounts?  

Thus far KJ has been using skype through our accounts (her dad's and mine).  And there has never been a problem using our own accounts, so I don't know why he felt he needed to create one for her.  If I was in total control I don't think I would have let her have an email account until at least the age of 9 or 10.  Legally, children under the age of 13 aren't suppose to have facebook accounts.  I think 15 or 16 would be a better age, but that is my opinion.  What about cell phones?  I have heard some parents say they feel better with their children having a cell phone at a very young age incase something happens.

Don't get me wrong.... I let KJ get online to practice her typing, and play online games on the PBS kids site, and if the ipod was only to be used for movies and games I wouldn't have a problem.

But what do you all think?  At what age is the internet and technology appropriate for children?  I am really struggling to be okay with my 5 year old having a gmail account.  I feel like it will be just one more thing I have to monitor, and be worried about.  Does anyone have any advice or opinions about this?  Am I over reacting?

KJ watching a DVD in the car with her headphones

Happy Anniversary!!!

Just a quick post to say I love you to Mr. D on our second year wedding anniversary!!!

2 years ago today we married on top of a mountain where we had our first date.  Since then we have been through a deployment to Afghanistan, a court battle with my ex, a career change, a move from TX to WA, had a baby, and lots of trips a travels in between!!  It has been a crazy two years and I can't wait to see what the rest of our lives has in store for us!

Teething!!!!!!

So little ET is now 4 months old and apparently teething.

His current symptoms:

Pulling at his ears

More fussy/grumpy than normal

no fever (thank goodness)

waking more during the night

pulls away during feedings (ouch)

more drool

swollen gums

Little ET letting me know he isn't having fun :(

So I wanted to share with everyone what we are doing to ease his pain the all natural way :)

Some pediatricians recommend small doses of infant tylenol but I don't like drugs so we aren't going that route.  You can get baby Orajel 'Naturals'... it is benzocaine-free, alcohol-free, and dye-free.  You can also try teethers that you can purchase from babies r us.  After watching a documentary on the toxins in plastics, I have tried to limit the amount of plastic ET is exposed to.  Plastic Planet Doc

But our favorite thing that helps little man, didn't even cost a dime!!  Take a wash cloth (or wash rag if your from KY, hehe) and place a single ice cube in the middle.  Then I took a hair tie but you can use anything they can't bite through, and tie off the ice cube in the center of the wash cloth.  That gives your little one a cold hard cube to chew on, the cloth soaks up any melting water, and his hands don't get cold like they would with a teether because he holds it where the cloth is dry and room temp!!  And an added bonus of it not being plastic and therefore more natural and cheaper than your average teether!!!

I hope this helps some of my other natural mammas out there that are going through teething!

My new love.... Aperture

So I have been taking these photography classes and I must say they are dramatically changing my photos.  Click here to see the courses :)  I can't wait to use them on my next shoot or even just on KJ and ET!!  Here is an example of what I'm talking about...

I have always used the normal automatic settings on my camera.  (I use a Canon 60D and I have two lenses... my kit lens which is 18-135mm and my newest lens the 50mm 1.8.)  But I don't really know anything about the technical side of my camera and how to successfully use the Manual mode.  So with these classes I am hoping to never use the auto modes again!!!  

Well last week one of our assignments was to play with our aperture and thus affecting our depth of field. So I took Mr. D and little ET to a nearby field and started playing.  I couldn't believe the difference!!!  I was expecting some difference but not this much.  Both were taken with the same 50mm lens the ONLY thing I changed was the Aperture.  Here are the two photos totally unedited.......

Click on the photos to make them larger :)

F/22

F/1.8

Pretty amazing huh?

The blurry background with the F/1.8 really makes Mr. D and ET stand out.  Like I said I can't wait to use this on future photos!  Let the learning continue!!!!!!!!

Continuing Education

I am a firm believer that we should never stop learning... including taking classes, picking up a new hobby, or just reading a book about something new.  

This summer I am taking a photography class.  It is a 30 day online course that gives the ins and outs of photography and how to use my expensive camera. Yes I have been a photographer for years now, but I really don't know much about the technical side of my camera.  So my mission this summer is to really know my camera and by the end of my class be able to confidently use my manuel mode with everything I shoot.  

So, what would be something that you would like to take a class on or learn more about? Growing up my mother and I used to take those community classes.... I even took swing dance lessons.  The possibilities are endless!!!!!

Get out and learn something new this summer!!!  I would love to hear what you all are interested in :)