Baking with Izzy

I spent Sunday evening baking with my favorite little baker, Miss Isabelle.  We made Apple-Pumpkin Streusel muffins, from scratch.  I've only made scratch muffins once or twice, and they were nothing to brag about, but these muffins came out delicious.  I decided to enlist Isabelle's help, knowing that the result would be a messier kitchen, but a happier toddler. 

I measured ingredients and Isabelle dumped them into the bowl.  I gave the bowl a good stir and then let her take over the stirring job. 

She loved to stir it up, which she called "pa." 

Isabelle took her job pretty seriously!

She was pretty proud of herself for being my little helper.  I also gave her the job of sprinkling the streusel on top of the muffins.  Sprinkle = "Cackle," and she would say "cackle, cackle" as she sprinkled it on top.

It was hard to keep her from eating the mixture! 

Isabelle loved her Apple-Pumpkin Streusel Muffins.

Little Boy Blue

Ever since we found out that our little bun (or bagel) in the oven is a boy, I've been consumed with thoughts of blue: coming home outfits, crochet patterns, and baby bedding (because I don't think our pretty pink one will do for little Andrew!). 

I've finally made my decisions on most of those items, although the coming home outfit will wait for a while.  At the least, I'm considering making him a sweet little white sweater and cap to wear home from the hospital over whatever outfit we select.  I found a precious pattern in one of the crochet/knitting books I borrowed from a friend, and it's perfect for me--it's labeled Beginner!  It only uses a couple of stitches, which happen to be the only crochet stitches I know.  I've only tackled one crochet project in my life, and I still haven't finished it.  It's a simple blanket that has turned out to be so large, it could probably cover an elephant! 

I've also settled on a baby bedding.  We're going to make that too.  I fell in love with a fabric called "Over the Moon," and after checking online and discovering it to be very priced pretty steep, I ended up finding it at on an ebay auction.  My mom ordered it for me yesterday and we won the auction last night!  Damian's aunt is going to help me make it, which is great!  I'm intimidated at the thought of making the bumper pads, so it's a relief to have an expert seamstress at the helms! 

This is similar to what I've got in mind:  Yellow Over the Moon Toile.

I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of a little baby boy, after spending the last two years surrounded in pink and bows.  Fortunately, I've got 4 younger brothers, so I learned how to change those surprising boy diapers at an early age!

It's a Boy! Birthday Blessings

At 10:30 this morning, my mom, husband, daughter, twin sister, older sister, and I all crowded into the sonogram room at my doctor's office and heard the wonderful news, that the baby kicking me in the womb is a little boy.

It's not a fabulous picture, but it's a shot of our little boy nonetheless.  We're going to name him Andrew, after my husband and his father, who both share Andrew as a middle name.  Damian was hoping for a boy, but both of us would've been thrilled with a girl as well.  I love having sisters close in age, so the idea of sisters sharing secrets and playing dress-up was sweet.  Equally appealing was the thought of an adorable little boy to grow up and become a sweet, godly man like his father.  I think we're both just excited to know, and begin planning and calling this little boy by his name. 

Pregnancy Update

I'm currently 20 weeks pregnant, so I'm halfway there!  All the vital statistics look great.  The baby looks wonderful and my health has been fine.  I've continued to have morning sickness, so I know now that it's not going away.  I only get sick about once or twice a week, and the bulk of the nausea is gone, as long as I eat frequently.  We're going to try another morning sickness medication (Zofran) and see if that can keep me from getting sick.  If that doesn't work, that's fine.  I can definitely live like this, although I'd rather not.  =) 

Twenty-Nine, the last year in my twenties.

I turned 29 today.  It was so fun to celebrate with my mom and sisters, in addition to Damian and Isabelle.  It never really feels like my birthday unless I'm with my twin sister.  After all, we did share a womb.

My mom leaving the hospital with Dominique and I.  I'm the blonde on the left and Dom is the brunette on the right.

It's hard to be bummed about being twenty-nine when there is so much to enjoy about this stage of life.  I've had the college years, career years, newly-wed years (many of that overlapped), and now life is grand as a mother.  That's not to say that life is perfect or easy.  In fact, motherhood is the most exhausting phase of life yet, and it will only be more so in the years to come (although if you would've told me that when I was pulling all-nighters in college or when I was a full-time teacher and grad student at the same time, I would never have believed you).  But it's incredibly rewarding to know, regardless of what stage of life you're in right now, that you're exactly where God wants you to be.  Still, thirty will be hard next year, but, to quote Scarlett O'Hara, "I'll think about that tomorrow."  And I may just have to celebrate 29 every year from here on out!   



Our original birth announcement from 29 years ago, which ran in Baton Rouge.  Check out our birth weights! 

Thanks for Teaching Me How to Clean

I was cleaning the living room today, and all I could think about was how great a mom I have.  Mom, thanks for teaching me how to clean, AND for actually making me do it from a young age.  It's an increasingly UNpopular idea these days, but trust me, your kids will thank you later. 

Here's one of mom's tips for cleaning:  When you look around a room and don't know where to start, pick a spot (maybe even the easiest, cleanest spot) and work your way around the room, clockwise. 

20 minutes later, the living room was done and I could move onto something I really wanted to do. 

And when we would watch TV as a family (I remember watching a lot of Donna Reed, Mr. Ed, and Patty Duke reruns on Nick at Nite), she would have us clean up on commercial breaks.  When you've got 5 kids (later 7), if everyone in the house cleans up on a 3 minute commercial break, the house can get cleaned pretty quickly!  I still do that now.  I'm glad I don't have TiVo--how would I get anything done while watching football? 

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the dreaded Saturday Job List.  Mom would list everything that needed to be done, room by room, in a numbered list.  Then she would write numbers at the bottom of the page, tear them up and fold them, and shake them in her hands.  Each of us would pick jobs from her hands.  ::::Ooo, lots of excitement--ya never know what job you're gonna get today!!::::  We could even trade if we wanted to.  I liked to sweep, so I would often trade to get the sweeping jobs, or trade so that I could clean and vacuum the room and not have to wait on someone else to finish cleaning before I could vacuum.  When we were really little (kindergarten, first grade), I remember fighting over who got to vacuum.  Crazy.  I'm sure there were many times when we complained about cleaning, but we learned early on that in life, you may have to do things that you don't enjoy. 

My first semester of college, I was 17 and living in a townhouse in Baton Rouge, and about a month after moving in, I remember realizing that the shower probably needed to be cleaned.  I got the needed supplies and tackled the job, but then picked up my cell to call mom.  I wanted to thank her for raising me right and teaching me responsibility. 


On another note, check this out:

I'm sure we all clean house in a dress, apron, and heels.

Extended Rear Facing Car Seats: Something to think about

For our trip down to Louisiana on Labor Day weekend, Isabelle got a special treat.  For the first time in her little 20 month old life, she was able to see the road.  We finally turned her car seat into the forward-facing position. 

Most parents turn their children to the forward facing position at 1 year of age, the minimum age when a child is legally permitted to be turned.  There's definitely nothing wrong with that or with you as a parent for making that choice.  However, a friend of mine brought new information to my attention when Isabelle was about 11 months old, and I've been quite grateful for it.  I thought I would pass the info on to you so that you would be informed enough to make whatever choice is best for your family. 

The AAP's guidelines on child safety state that a child should remain rear facing until his first birthday AND he meets the minimum of 20 pounds.  However, they have considered changing their guidelines, and while they haven't yet, they have made a recommendation that children stay rear facing as long as possible or until 2 years of age (see this article on the possible policy change). 

Why keep your child rear facing?
New research shows that toddlers are more than 5 times safer when riding rear facing until their second birthday.  From what I've read, the primary issue is spinal cord injury, which is much less likely if the child stays rear facing.  Front collisions are much more likely to be fatal than rear collisions (which also happen at lower speeds), and a rear-facing child will be less likely to incur such a fatal injury. 

Toddlers' bodies are still developing, and while all of us would be safer if rear-facing, an adult is better able to withstand a spinal cord injury than a young toddler. 

In fact, most Western European countries have much stricter laws than the US when it comes to child safety seats.  Children are often kept rear-facing until 4 or 5 years of age.  Some states are also considering changing their policies when it comes to toddlers and rear-facing car seats. 

Here are two links that give more data:

2007 journal article from Injury Prevention
Car Safety Site

Why turn your child forward facing at 12 months?

• Because he has outgrown the infant carrier.  Get a convertible car seat.
• The child looks uncomfortable with his legs bunched up near the back of the seat.  It may look uncomfortable, but the child is fine.  Older children will usually cross their legs and sit "indian style" to get comfy.  If you're concerned about leg injury, know that a leg injury is easier to heal than a spinal cord injury.    
• So the child can be content and see where he is going.  Unless your child completely hates car trips, your child will most likely remain content while rear facing because he or she doesn't know the difference. 

So why did we turn Isabelle at 20 months instead of waiting until 2?
I started suspecting that Izzy might be getting too big for her car seat, so about a month ago, I installed her convertible car seat (convertible seats can be rear or forward facing).  Her convertible car seat was given to us by my brother & sister-in-law, so we were fortunate that we didn't have to purchase one.  I installed it rear-facing and was not happy with the result.  After driving around town for a day and noticing the way she slid around (and could even flip, given the right conditions), I asked my favorite Engineer to re-install it for me.  Damian installed it with the same results.  Her car seat, while called a convertible, doesn't convert well in my Ford Escape.  We switched back to her infant car seat until I brought her in for a checkup with the pediatrician.  At the checkup, I discovered that she had definitely maxed out the infant car seat on both height and weight, so much to my disappointment, we had no option but to put her back in the convertible car seat, forward facing (or we could've bought a new car seat, which isn't in the budget right now). 

I came across this great site called CarSeatData.org.  It allows you to put in your car make and model and find a brand of car seat that fits your car properly.  As it turns out, only two convertible car seats will properly fit in my vehicle when installed in the rear facing position.  One is an Evenflo and the other is made by Britax (the Marathon pictured above), which seems to be the top maker of safe convertible car seats.  If you're in the market for a new car seat, I would definitely check the site out first.       

I know in this day and age, we can be a little too safety conscious or germophobic when it comes to our kids.  While I don't advocate paranoia, I do think there's something to be said for making wise decisions for your family based on data and experience. 

Dis an' Dat: To Teach a Toddler

Isabelle, AKA "Da Belle," playing in the sprinkler for the first time.

Since I posted our YouTube videos of Isabelle's early attempts at phonics and letter identification, several moms have asked me how I taught her.  I thought this would be an easy way of sharing what I've done so far with her. 

I feel the need for a couple of disclaimers.  First, while I think my daughter is probably pretty smart, I don't know that she's a genius.  At 20 months of age, I don't think she has learned anything that your toddler couldn't learn, and I'm sure that your toddler knows many things that she doesn't.  She has no interest in learning her colors and isn't too enthused about numbers either (unless Daddy counts like the Count on Sesame Street, which she finds hilarious). 

My second disclaimer is that I really don't know much about teaching toddlers.  While I did teach high school English for several years and I did learn a little about phonemic awareness in my graduate reading courses, I've never been a pre-school teacher.  Anyone who has taught pre-school (at home or professionally) or any mom who has homeschooled her children knows much more than I do about teaching phonics to a child.

Doesn't everyone read in a laundry basket?

Introducing Phonics to an 18 month old
A couple of months ago, I had a conversation with my friend, Jessica.  She was telling me all about the pre-school she had taught at and how quickly her daughter learned the alphabet and phonics.  Jessica said that each letter was connected to an animal, and it really helped her toddler learn her letters.  My first thought was "I've got to buy that curriculum!"  It's an Abeka curriculum, by the way, and I'm not certain that I'll use it, but it was a springboard for my thoughts on the subject. 

I started thinking about animals and the alphabet, and I realized that if Isabelle could tell me that a lion says "roar" or a cat says "meow," then she should be able to tell me that B says "buh."  And while I don't expect her to identify letters or read a book just yet, this could make phonics and reading so much easier. 

So I started teaching her the various letter sounds.  It took very little time because I taught her while we were doing other things.  While driving in the car or shopping for groceries, I would ask her "What does B say?"  Pause.  "B says buh-buh-buh."  Eventually, she was able to answer my questions.  I try to make some of the sounds pretty silly.  For the F sound, it looks like we're blowing out candles on a cake, and she finds that hilarious, so she learned F after hearing it only once or twice.  Currently, she knows most of her letter sounds from A through M, although she forgets some of the ones we've learned more recently.

Troubleshooting
Some letters make multiple sounds, and at 20 months, that's not a concept she understands yet.  I've tried to teach her the slightly less common sound.  It's pretty obvious that A says A (long a) or C says C (soft c).  Instead, I want her to understand that A says ah (as in apple, the short a) and that C says "ck" (as in cow, the hard c).  But Isabelle has it stuck in her head, however, that C says C and that E says E (instead of eh), and that's OK.  She's not incorrect, and even if she were, my education professors always told us to "accept approximations"--accept it when children are "close enough," but continue to model what is proper, and eventually they will say it correctly. 

And we often just skip I.  It's the first letter of her name, so I really wanted her to learn it, but it doesn't make much sense to her, either because she confuses it with her actual eyeball or because it's a sound that she doesn't notice.  Telling her that I says i-i-isabelle doesn't help either because she doesn't notice the I in her name.  If you ask her to tell you her name, she'll say "Da Belle."  No I at all! 

Dis an' Dat
I've been wanting to purchase alphabet cards for the wall and an alphabet puzzle to help Isabelle learn to identify her letters.  In the meantime, we've used this program to help her:  Starfall's Alphabet and Phonics.  I haven't done it with her too often because I haven't wanted to overwhelm her, but the first day I introduced it to her, we spent about 15 minutes watching A & B several times.  Several hours after playing the game, she was able to identify the letter B correctly, and she continues to be able to identify it about 95% of the time in various scenarious.  She can identify A only about half the time. 

Fortunately, she's in a stage where she is constantly asking about "dis."  She points to everything in her room, in the house, and in books, asks "dis," and waits for us to tell her what "dis" is.  Damian and I know she says "dis" because she's a toddler, but we find it pretty funny, since dis an' dat are common Cajun expressions. 

Isabelle asks about objects, even those she already has a word for, but we tell her anyway.  One of her favorite books to ask "dis" about is a Baby Einstein book.  It's small, bright, and colorful, and every page has about 30 different things for her to point to and ask about.  Eventually, when I quiz her in her little books, I find that she has absorbed at least some of the words we've been telling her.   

She has started asking "dis" about her alphabet book, which really makes me excited.  I recently read that the average 21 month old learns 10 new words a day!  Now they won't be able to say all 10 of these words, but they can understand them.  I'm sure that for Isabelle, some of these words will include the very objects and letters she asks about.

Learning in the everyday moments
Most of toddler learning takes place simply by playing, exploring, and engaging in every day tasks, so I really spend hardly any time truly working with her on something.  She is often asking me these questions while I'm folding laundry or cleaning house, although I often stop to sit with her and read.  Sometimes she really wants me to read to her, but other times she just wants to ask about the pictures, and that's OK too. 

My friend, Jacque, made this wreath for Isabelle, and it's hanging on the door of her bedroom.  It has recently become a subject for "dis" questions, so now every time I close the door for her naptime, Izzy likes to ask me about each letter on the wreath.  I look forward to the day when she can identify all the letters.  Anything can become the subject of a letter hunt.  It's just a matter of taking the time to teach and learn in the every day moments.

Laundry Detergents: I Heart Allens Naturally

I received my latest gallon of Allens Naturally laundry detergent in the mail yesterday, and it totally made my day.  I know, I'm easy to please.  I'm ready for Isabelle to dirty up all of her cloth diapers so I can wash them in Allens.  Diapers are my favorite laundry to do, because I love folding them and having a drawer full of diapers, ready to go.  I know--I'm a dork, nerd, hippie, or whatever term you're thinking of right now.  It's OK, I'm used to it by now.

This is my go-to cloth diapering detergent.  I've been without it for a couple of months, and believe me, I can tell a difference. 

If you haven't heard me tell you all about my lovely laundry detergent, then let me fill you in. 

First of all, if you cloth diaper, it is best to use a detergent without fabric softeners, fragrances, dyes, brighteners, or enzymes.  These will build up in your diapers, which could result in either a reduction in the diaper's absorbency or a rash on your baby.  Neither of these scenarios are fun. 

The best way to know if you have a build up issue is to watch the end of your wash cycle.  If you notice bubbles and suds towards the end of the load, then the soap residue will remain in your diapers.  I have a front load washer with a glass door on the front, so it's easy for me to notice suds if I take the time to look for them.  I noticed suds last September, about a month into cloth diapering, and immediately switched detergents.  Another way to tell if you're having a build up problem is if the inserts or diapers don't smell very clean as you're putting them in the drier.    

There are a few cloth diapering sites that have charts rating various detergents for their efficacy in washing cloth diapers.  Diaper Jungle is one of my favorites.  When I was on my quest for a good detergent, not only was I looking for a 4 star detergent, but I also wanted one that would work well with my High Efficiency washing machine (front loader).  I love my HE washer, but since it uses less water, detergent build up is more likely, since there is less water to flush the soap out of the diapers.  I also wanted a detergent that was reasonably priced.  I decided on Allens and ordered it through the Snap-EZ website, where I'd also purchased several diapers. 

One gallon of Allens, with a dispensing pump.  The pump has a clip that allows you to only use 1/4 ounce at a time, or you can remove the clip if you don't have a HE washer.

The cost of one gallon of Allens, with a dispensing pump, is $50, with shipping included.  No joke.  $50!!!  My husband nearly flipped when I told him what I paid for it, but he was happy once I explained the cost per load.   

Here's the cost breakdown:

Regular washing machines:    
   1 oz. (or less) per load:  128 loads per gal.  =   39 cents/load

  High Efficiency machines: 
1/4 oz. (or less) per load:  512 loads per gal.  =  9.8 cents/load

Now that I have more cloth diapers, I only wash diapers every other day.  If I only wash cloth diapers with this detergent, it should last me well over two years--more like 2 1/2 years, in fact.  My last gallon only lasted 10 months, washing diapers every day, and using it to wash clothes as well.  That's still pretty impressive.  I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I've run the numbers before, and my Purex free and clear just can't compete. 

I'm thinking about saving money by making my own laundry detergent, once I run out of the detergent I have at home, but I would still use Allens for washing diapers, and possibly baby clothes as well. 

So, cloth diapering mamas, what detergent do you use?  Have you had an issue with build up when using a normal detergent, or do you find no difference?

August Update

Isabelle
Isabelle is a hoot as usual.  She spent about a week being grouchy as her canine teeth (cuspids?) started coming in, but after that initial discomfort, she's been back to her usual cheery self, with the occasional bout of toddler independence roaring it's ugly head.  She's even attempted to throw a few fits, but after just standing there and crying at me, she sees it does her no good and ends up complying with my instructions.

Otherwise, Isabelle has been happy and cheery.  She's learning new words all the time, and frequently surprises us with something she's picked up (some of the words she's learned this week are church, table, bible, chair, and giraffe--"faffe").  I think her understanding of emotions and compassion has really been developing.  Last week, as I was getting ready for the day, Isabelle was watching the end of Veggie Tales:  Josh and the Big Wall.  When the walls of Jericho came tumbling down, Isabelle shouted at the screen "Oh No!  Oh No!" until the scene ended with the Israelite's triumphant entry into the city.  At that point, she recognized it was a happy situation, so she started applauding for the vegetables.  It's been fun to watch her emotionally respond to situations.  She's understanding more and more all the time.

I catch Isabelle singing all the time.  She usually sings one of the pre-school songs that are on a CD we have.  The words are easy, and she just sings simple phrases like "Oh Dear" (to the tune of Oh Dear, What Can the Matter Be?").  Otherwise, she just sings songs to a random tune and inserts words she knows, like Mommy and Daddy. 

Isabelle is at the stage where she loves to imitate.  She'll carry a phone around on her shoulder and hold conversations in her toddler babble, attempt to sweep the floors, try to wear our shoes and clothes, or care for her baby.  A friend is giving us her daughter's play kitchen, and I'm looking forward to seeing the fun she'll have with it.

She's learning quite a bit too.  If you haven't seen our videos of Isabelle's phonics, check them out:



In this one, she identifies the letter B.  We'd worked on it for about 10 minutes that morning, and later in the day, she was able to point it out.  She's a quick learner and I love teaching her.




As a Family
This month, my husband has been hard at work completing what I affectionately refer to as The Never Ending Paint Job.  We've been painting the outside of our home in stages for quite some time.  This month, he's made tons of progress and probably has about 4-6 more weekends worth of work ahead of him.  Now that the temperature is no longer hovering around 100 degrees, he might be able to get even more done outside.  Last weekend, he had to deviate from the plan of painting to replace our hot water heater.  This weekend, we'll all be down in South Louisiana for a baby shower for my brother and his wife.  Did I ever mention how much I love baby showers?

While Damian has worked on the outside of our home, I've been working on the inside, trying to do some de-cluttering.  It's part of my preparations for the new baby, but it's also long overdue.  I love simplicity, and simplicity is hard to achieve when unwanted junk is hanging out in your closets. 

Gabby, Personally
I'm hanging in there!  I had a great couple of weeks recently where I felt so well that I thought my morning sickness must surely be gone.  I was in for a rude awaking, however, and spent a 24 hour period doing little besides getting sick.  I lost a couple of pounds in the process, but I'm sure I'll gain them back at my mom's this weekend.  I'm definitely looking forward to a weekend of good Louisiana food.

Spiritually, I'm doing really well.  I've had to watch a couple of friends go through some serious struggles recently, and as I've tried to walk with them in their trials, I think the Lord has worked in me too.  I've had a growing discontent with my selfishness and have drawn closer to the Lord in my quiet times.  Also, my day of getting sick constantly forced me to rely on the Lord for physical strength in order to follow through on some commitments I had that day.  I'd forgotten how extreme morning sickness causes me to be completely dependent upon Him, and that's definitely a good thing. 

I've started my hunt for a good desk to use for my sewing nook, but I've found nothing that will work so far. I don't know if it'll be done in time for my birthday after all, but we'll see!

As of our last checkup, baby #2 seems to be cooking nicely in the oven.  On my 29th birthday (September 20), we'll have another sonogram and hopefully get to see if this baby is a boy or a girl.  That will determine a lot of what will need to be done around here to prepare for the baby.  We have everything we need to outfit a girl (or two!), but if it's a boy, we'll even need crib bedding.  I have weird taste and rarely like themes, so it's tough to find something I like.  I've been eyeing a few bedding options from Pottery Barn Kids, but it's tough to decide between Kasey (in primary colors), A to Z, Patchwork Stars, and the organic and gender neutral Sweet Lambie.  Feel free to give me your opinion.