Wonder Worker

Those who know me, know that every winter I battle an ever losing war against one thing.  Dermatitis on my legs-really bad.  Ugly sore and looking. I tried every lotion under the sun, putting it on 2 times a day.  Humidifiers going 24/7.  Drinking tons of water.  Nothing worked.

Then last week, a light bulb went off. I use lanolin for cracked nipples while nursing-if it helps that area, why wouldn't it be just as helpful with cracked skin.  Guess what- after 2 days, you couldn't see the ugly bright red spots on my calves.  Gone.  My legs were still itchy, but the sores were gone.  So, now my new moisturizing regiment includes lanolin and lotion.  My legs are grateful.

My Love Affair

 I love fall. Not only for relief of the cooler weather, change in color of the leaves, but also for pumpkins!

You see these beauties?  Got them for $13!  Aren't they gorgeous?  They are great decorations, but the best thing is they are all good cooking pumpkins.  Been told the bottom one, I can get 12 cups of pumpkin out of it!

What will I make with all that pumpkin?  Let's see, pumpkin bread, muffins, scones, cake, pie, cookies, and the best of all?  Pancakes! Don't get me wrong, I am a sucker for pumpkin pie. I even eat it for breakfast. Which makes me think of another favorite-Pumpkin (or pompuna-what we had in Bonaire) Souffle.  I'll have to make that again soon!

So back to the pancakes.   I recently found a recipe for Pumpkin Cinnamon Streusel Pancakes. They turned out so yummy!  Pete ate 2 (always a good sign of a good pancake).  I found this via Pinterest- this comes from Two Peas and Their Pod Blog.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Streusel Pancakes

Yield: Serves 4

 

Ingredients:

For the cinnamon streusel:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks

To make the pancakes:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 large egg
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. First, make the cinnamon streusel. In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Mix together with your hands or a fork, until you have a crumbly mixture. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, egg, pumpkin, canola oil, and vanilla extract. Add wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk until combined.
4. Heat a griddle or pan to medium low. Coat with cooking spray. Drop 1/3 cup of batter onto heated skillet. Add 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon streusel. Cook on the first side until bubbles begin to form, about 2-3 minutes. Carefully flip pancake over and cover very generously with cinnamon streusel. Cook for another 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Continue this process to make the rest of the pancakes.
5. Serve pancakes warm with maple syrup and butter.

Enjoy! Over the next few blogs, I'll share some other pumpkin recipes and other recipes I've tried!

The Help Review

Recently, I read the book The Help. It is a popular book right now as it has been made into a movie. I have yet to see the movie, but I hear it is pretty good and follows the spirit of the book.

Back to the book. I really enjoyed this book. It was a fast read. I thought the characters were well written. My favorite character was Aibileen.  She grew through the book, as did the other characters.  At the end, because of their experiences, each character had the guts to do something they probably wouldn't have done before.

As I read it, I had a hard time with the attitudes of the white people in the book. I know that is the way a lot of them thought and some still think today.  It challenges our thinking to makes sure we see all humans as equal, not dependent upon race or color.  It is easy to generalize a culture by what we observe and experience, but not everyone from that culture is the same. It is a good thing to remember the Golden Rule-Treat others the way you want to be treated.  Or even the commandment from Jesus-Love your neighbors as yourself.

There is nothing new under the sun

I recently got turned onto a site called Pinterest (I have a devil of a time trying to pronounce it-though it is very easy, pin-terest. I keep wanting to pronouce it pin-interest. Go figure). Any way, I have fallen in love with this site. It is a virtual bulletin board of things you want to keep track of on the web. Any site you go to, if something catches your eye, you can "Pin It".

You can follow other pinners as well. There are a lot of things that have been multi-pinned to the board. I like it because it is giving me some great ideas to do. I actually have done some of the crafts/art I have pinned. I created a whale pattern from one off the web-it is deceptively hard, made crayon art, curled my hair without heat, and have a bunch of other things I want to try.

I have 2 (hopefully) craft shows coming up, where I'll just be selling hand made items. I have made a couple of book wreaths, toys for boys (and girls), and my niece will be featured as well with some of her knitted very cute hats!

Yet again, I am going to try to keep up with my blog, though I am not sure when in my day, I'll fit my writing in.

Home Sweet Home

Our home...do you notice what is missing by the door (check out the earlier post)?

We have been in the house now for almost 3 weeks. There are still boxes piled around waiting to be unpacked. Josh is as I am writing this continuing to work on getting the books and DVDs unpacked and put away.

The kitchen is 98% unpacked. I have a couple more boxes to go. With my hip really bugging me, I haven't been able to do much of anything lately, and the doctor told me today to try to keep as much weight off of it as possible. So, there may be a bunch of stuff for my mother-in-law and mother to do when they are here for Peanut's birth in late July to help out with.

Here are a few pictures of our new home.

view of the living room from the front door

the fireplace in the living room

Our messy family room...
view of the back yard

Leftover Chicken

Tonight, I wasn't sure what to do for dinner. I had chicken enchiladas down-they were already pre-made and in the freezer. However, I needed to use up the chicken from Sunday. So, a searching I went for a recipe I could use. This is what I found- Cheddar Chicken Spaghetti. I of course modified it, as I am apt to do with any recipe I find. Result? Yummy! It is definitely a make again dish. The best part- there is leftovers to go into the freezer for next month. Whoo Hoo! Another big plus- this dinner was way under $5.

Without further ado-here is the recipe.

Cheddar Chicken Spaghetti

Ingredients

• 1 (7 ounce) package spaghetti, broken
• 2 cups cubed, cooked chicken
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided (I used 1/2 Mozzerella, 1/2 colby jack mix)
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
• 1 cup milk
• 3 strips of bacon crumbled
  
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon oregano, thyme, rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon parsley flakes
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the chicken, 1 cup cheese, soup, milk, bacon, spices, salt and pepper. Drain spaghetti; add to the chicken mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until heated through.

House Progress

We are now 4 weeks from closing. We wouldn't be here if it weren't for Josh's dad and stepmom-Thank you!!

We found a cute little ranch house over by the neighborhood where we used to rent, so we already know the area very well. One of the best things is the back yard, Pete will have a good amount of space to play in.

Even though we are closing mid May, we'll probably wait to move into it till the end of May (any one want to help us move?). There is some work to be done, and it would be easier to do it with out having us in it. My parents are gong to help us get the kitchen up to par. The house has been a rental for a long time, and the cabinets are kind of nasty.

It is hard to believe that we will soon be homeowners. We have seen God's guidance and work through this process, both on the house front and in our own lives. God is good!

My Boys

One of the best things about Saturdays, is watching Josh and Pete play together. I know that Josh loves getting to spend time with his little boy. Today, I put out a comforter from the guest bedroom out on the patio to finish drying. Pete immediately crawled under it, and it became his tent. He pulled Daddy down to enjoy it with him.

I am so thankful that the weather is warmer. Pete loves it too. He likes to go between the 2 patios and watching the birds and cars go by.

We have looked at a few more homes, but none were ones that we could see ourselves in. One had foundation issues plus a lot of repairs to be made to it, and the other two were nice and ready to move in, but way too small. We will keep looking. We'll be in our current place through July. At that point we will reevaluate what we want to do, if we haven't found a home to buy.

Waiting

A good word for today.

³Trust in the LORD and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
⁴Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
⁵Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
⁶He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.
⁷Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;

Psalm 37:3-7a

The Eve Effect

Last night I lay wondering about the first woman on earth. Have you ever thought of her? We are in a society that has books, advice columns, cook books, etc on most facets of life, she didn't.

She didn't have a midwife when her children were born. Other than knowing she would have pain in childbirth, she had no one to turn to when Cain was born. Did she realize she was in labor? How did she know what to do with the umbilical cord? Did Adam really freak out over the first birth? Was it instinct that had her bring her babe to her breast to nurse?

In a way without having all the help we do, she had a lot to figure out. But she didn't have to face the cultural norms or expectations that society places on us today. It is so natural, that when her babies cried that she brought them to her breast whether it be day or night. She had never heard of the cry-it-out method. Sleeping through the night? Probably not for a few years- most likely many years, as she gave birth to many sons and daughters.

It took Pete almost year before he really sleep consistently through the night. There are times that he has relapses, which many times revolves around teething, growth spurts, not feeling well or his schedule being interrupted. Most times I don't mind getting up with Pete, especially if I can offer him some comfort. I know it won't be forever. I do enjoy the midnight cuddling I get with Pete, one day he is going to be too big to be cuddled by mommy.

Little Brothers and Aunts

This past week has been full of events. Thursday afternoon, we found out that we are having another little boy. Oh! so much fun! I know Pete will love it when his brother gets big enough to play with him.

The same day I found out that my Aunt Vonnie was brought to the hospital on Wednesday night, at the time they thought it was heart related. A blood test showed that she had a heart attack, however none of the other tests showed the same result. It was eventually seen that she had a blood clot in her lung, which can present the same symptoms as a heart attack. She was put on blood thinners. During her stay, her heart went into arthemia (which she has had issues with for a while). The cardiologist put in a pace maker on Friday, she was been kept at the hospital to do more tests. She finally came home yesterday and happy not have to be poked and prodded every hour.

The other big event in our lives this past week, was putting an offer down on a house. I got home on Sunday from my business seminar, and went to look at a home that Josh and his dad saw on Saturday. We put in an offer Sunday afternoon, which we knew was the second offer to go on the house. Monday afternoon, our real estate agent let us know the owner was going with the first offer. Wednesday afternoon rolls around and we get a call from our real estate agent letting us know the first offer was rejected by the bank. So our offer was put in on Thursday morning. We are now in the waiting game to hear from the bank whether or not they will accept our offer.

On the Hunt

For those wondering, how for the past two months, we have barely been able to make ends meet and relying on the generosity of those around us, can we afford to buy a house. Let me first acknowledge the struggle within me as I have debated this very thing. There are times I feel like we are being presumptuous with this decision, and other times very humbled by God's provision.

So, in answer to that question, it is not by our own ability that we are in this current position. We found out within the last week, that there was money set aside for Josh quite a few years ago, for the very purpose of using it for a down payment. Without this blessing, Josh and I would not be looking to be homeowners for many, many years to come.

We know that we are not looking for our dream home, but a home that will allow us to get the rest of our debt down quickly, so we don't find ourselves in this position ever again. That means that we are looking at a very low price range for here in North Texas, and houses are limited if we want to be in a neighborhood that is good. We have been looking at a lot of foreclosed homes, the biggest issue we are running into here is foundation problems. We have seen a few homes that we like, but because the foundation is in need of repair, we are not be able to get a loan for the house. Kind of a catch 22-22.

This is a bummer as I saw a house yesterday with loads of potential, had the best kitchen out of all the houses I've seen. BUT it had foundation issues, and unless we had the cash up front-there is no use even trying to put in a offer.

I did see another house yesterday that is in short sale. It is priced on our high end of what we are wanting to pay. It was doable, the bedrooms were nice and spacious, however the kitchen left much to be desired. I think it could be worked out where the kitchen can be redone to open up more into the dinning room, making it bigger and more usable. The downside to this house was that the closing period was 120 days. We are now at 59 days before our lease is up. I had to put in our intention for leaving by yesterday. So, I haven't had a chance to talk to our management to see if there would be a possibility of renting for another 3 months. I am not sure how I feel about that as by that time, we will have a newborn in the mix. I would rather find a home that we can move into sooner, rather than later.

So, we wait and pray that another few houses come on the market that would suit our needs.

The Boys

My parents were here at the beginning of this month. We played in the snow and had lots of fun. One of the things that Pete picked up while Grandpa was here was the sign for "please". It is nice to have him sign please before asking to go somewhere, be picked up, or get more.

He also found out how much fun is was to look out our dinning room window. Every morning, we go to the window. He sits on the chair watching the cars go by in between drawing on a large piece of paper that I have the table just for him.
We are almost to the half way point with baby number 2. We find out in a couple of weeks what we are having. In a lot of ways it does feel real that we are expecting again, aside from the exhaustion, growing tummy, and wonderful heart burn.

In between then, we have to figure out what we are going to do about housing. We love the place we are in now, but the rent is going up and it is only a 2 bedroom. Which for the 3 (4) of us, wouldn't be too bad, but when family comes, it is a bit of a squeeze. We are going this weekend to look at a couple of homes. If we don't like what we see, we'll start looking at other apartments.

Josh has healed from his seizure last month. He has 2 scars on his head from the gashes, but they aren't really visible under all his hair. We have gone down to 1 car, since he can't drive. Thankfully, he is still part of the carpool he was in after his first seizure. We are looking for places near here and close to public transportation, as well as closer to his work.

My goal is to be better about posting (I've said that before, I know).