Good Things to Come

I don't have anything specific to write about currently, but thought I'd update. However I am eagerly awaiting the end of my full time, unpaid rotation. I have enjoyed it so very much... but 40-60 hour weeks when you don't get paid and have a family can be rough!

I have so many exciting plans for this blog and thousands of unwritten post ideas that I have jotted down. How I am looking forward to getting back into the groove of things and working ALOT less :)

Only 2.5 more weeks until I am finished! Hooray!

Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream: 5th Time's the Charm

My husband and I got an ice cream maker as a wedding present some years ago. Since then I have tried to make ice cream a total of 5 times. I failed miserably every time. My ice cream was too icy (most common problem) or tasted horrible... or worst of all HAD COOKED EGG WHITES IN IT! A few days ago I dared to try again. I (of course) modified a recipe. It turned out fabulous!! Here it is. It makes about 4-6 servings. Or maybe I could sit down and eat the whole tub all in one sitting.

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup milk
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 5 oz semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 egg whites
• 3/4 cup white sugar

Combine cream, milk, cocoa, chocolate chips, sugar and vanilla in sauce pan and bring to simmer. Stir constantly until all chocolate is melted and mixed. Let it cool partially, then add the egg whites (you don't want it to be too hot or it will cook the eggs- GROSS). Stir to combine all ingredients. Cool in fridge for 5-6 hours. Put in your ice cream maker for ~ 20 minutes. It turns out like soft serve. If you want it to have more or an ice cream texture, then pop it in the freezer! Then of course... ENJOY!

Financial Blows and a Baby On the Way

In the past few weeks we have had some serious financial set backs...that we weren't really anticipating.  My car broke down, our garage door broke and the doctors office just gave us our bill for the OB visits and ultrasound (it needs to be paid in full by month #7 before the baby comes). The combo of these delightful surprises was enough to make us cut into our "house" savings account. Then we were quoted (by about a million childcare centers)  ~$400 a week for part time child care for both my children. Go ahead... you can faint at that amount. I just about did. Obviously we are looking into alternative solutions.

All this money..that seems to be distributed to everyone else but me... had me thinking about the upcoming costs of the new baby. Any online search will tell you that having a baby is ridiculously expensive. However I am convinced that it doesn't have to be that way (minus child care if your not planning to stay home and actual birth medical costs...I don't see any way around those two). 

With my daughter, we spent almost nothing on her. Both my husband and I  come from huge extended families, and everyone was oh so generous. We also got our fair share of hand-me-downs and gifts from friends. Other items were purchased from 2nd hand shops. But diapers and some formula to supplement my nursing were major budget busters. We also lived with my parents... which saved us a ton of money!

This time around, I hope to spend very, very little.  We saved almost everything from our daughter's baby days, so we aren't anticipating any major upfront costs. 

What we already have: 

• Crib/ mattress
• Bassinet (purchased before we got the pack and play...and I hated it!)
• Pack and play
• High chair
• Broken swing
• Umbrella stroller
• Car seat
• Lots of pink blankets
• Lots of girl clothes
• Pump
• Bottles 
• Toys

So here I am making a list of what we need/want for this baby and anticipated costs.

• Diaper bag- $0 (I plan to use a tote I already have that will function sufficiently) 
• Baby carrier- $5 (This seems like a must have item, when I have a preschooler to chase after- we got a Baby Bjorn in good shape at a garage sale!)
• Baby clothes -$30-$40 (Because we are having a BOY!- We are hoping for some hand-me-downs and then we will hit up garage sales and thrift stores for most of the rest)
• Not-broken baby swing- Up to $65 (We are hoping to fix our broken one, but the outcome isn't looking great right now. I searched out the 2nd hand stores and found that it will cost about $65. This seems like a frivolous purchase, but was such a life saver with my daughter- I can't imagine not having one)
• Pacifiers-$8
• Cloth diapers- Up to $80 (This is based on if I can convince my husband it's a good idea. He is currently rather resistant to the idea. Right now I am checking out options like Sunbaby and Assunta brands as well as sites like: Re-Diaper, for the more expensive brands. )

I am also hoping to nurse as long as possible and food process baby food (which I did some of with #1). 

My most likely very low estimate of upfront baby costs comes out to be: $198

How do you save money on baby costs? What are things that you think are essential and what do you think are frivolous purchases?

15 Things I Wish I learned in School

Recently I have found myself questioning some things my daughter is learning in preschool. Then I found myself thinking back on my own schooling. What I learned in school was purely academic for the most part, and I learned very little at home... although I was encouraged to read a lot and participate in a million extra curricular activities. So here is the list I came up with of what I wish I learned while growing up:

1. How to sew
2. How to create a budget friendly list to go grocery shopping
3. How to find a whole bunch of healthy recipes
4. How to cook those recipes
5. How to cook without a recipe
6. How to bake
7. How to plan a party
8. How to plan for guests visiting
9. How to choose which plants/flowers//trees/vegetables grow the best in my area
10. How to not kill plants (aka garden)
11. How to clean a bathroom
12. How to actually clean anything for that matter
13. How to organize clutter
14. How to put together a household budget
15. How to create a closet full of clothes/accessories that mostly coordinate and don't require too much attention 

I certainly learned to think critically. I can read and write. These are all good things...don't get me wrong. 

But now that I am trying to get a household to run and thrive, I find myself inadequate in so many skills. I google "how to" do about a billion simple tasks a day; it's embarrassing. 

I think about my grandmother. She didn't have google. She knew how to do these things. She either learned them at school in home economics or they were passed down from her mother. I find it hard to believe that I went my whole life up until a few years ago without these skills.

 I am slowly learning. Most days it feels like I am way behind where I should be (aka my house is a mess). Now I have to think about what I need to do to make sure my children don't find themselves in this same dilemma.

What do you wish you learned in school or at home? How are you ensuring your children grow up with adequate skills for adulthood?

Kitchen Sink Pumpkin Bread

I love everything about pumpkin. Pumpkin season is over, but I haven't given it up just yet considering I had one can left over in my pantry. I threw it together with a variety of other ingredients I came up with. Basically I was out of necessary ingredients (such as flour) but I wasn't ready to give up the bread I was craving. I'm so happy with how this bread turned out! It makes 2 loafs.

Recipe:

• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of oats
• 1/2 cup of vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 can of pumpkin
• 1 1/2 cups of sugar 
• 1 tsp of vanilla 
• 1 tsp nutmeg 
• 1 tsp cinnamon 
• A pinch of salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

I just kind of threw it all together into my kitchen aid mixer, poured it into 2 greased bread pans and baked it at 350 degrees F for about 45-60 minutes.  Let cool and enjoy!

7 Quick Takes Friday (14)

One:

I made an announcement last week that I am pregnant with #2! Check out my 3 year-old's reaction :)

Two:

Over the past month or two I have spent some time planting some vegetables/flowers. So far I haven't killed anything yet. I am holding my breath to see if my black thumb can keep these plants alive for the rest of the growing season.

Tomatoes Starting to grow:

Jalapeno plant starting to grow:

Sunflowers:

Three:

I have had the entire week off of school/my rotation. It has been wonderful being home. I have gotten so much spring cleaning done and spent some good quality time with my daughter, who will be staying home from preschool today. I think I also may have possibly caught up on sleep.

Four:

I start my final 12 weeks of my rotation next week. Then graduation! I am in disbelief that this is finally almost over! YAY!

Five:

My husband got me a sewing machine for valentines day. I made a fishing game for the hospital I had been working at over the past 12 weeks. I however am having a bit of trouble with the thread bunching on the bottom end. Any thoughts? Advice?

Six:

Speaking of sewing... Aren't these the cutest thing you have ever seen. Maybe I will take on this project for my daughter's halloween costume..

Seven:

The Google Reader button has officially disappeared from my gmail account. Has this happened to anyone else yet? I encourage you to follow me with Blog Lovin on the right side bar. I think I love it just as much as google reader!

Head back over to Jen's for more quick takes!

When You Give a 3 Year-Old a Sibling

When you give a 3 year-old a sibling.....

She will periodically stop what she is doing, cover her mouth, run straight for the bathroom and then spit into the toilet for at least 5 minutes

You will tell her that you are so sorry she is feeling sick, but that she should probably refrain from doing this when grandma watches her tomorrow (as you have not told grandma that your pregnant yet)

She will do it while grandma is watching her anyway.

After you spend an hour cooking dinner......

She will loudly state, "I cannot eat this! The smell makes me feel sick". Then she will run into the bathroom to spit into the toilet again.

Then you will decide that the time has come to tell your 3 year-old that there is a "baby in mommy's tummy".

She will smile and immediately lift up your shirt to check for "that baby in there".

Then she will ask you every question she can think of,  including:

• What does "that baby" do when you go to work? Does it work too?
• But how does "that baby" eat food?
• But how do toys get into your tummy for "that baby" to play with?
• Does "that baby" fall out of your tummy when you change into your jammies?

Then she will ask you who put the baby in your tummy.

You will tell her that you and daddy asked God to put a baby in your tummy. 

That will remind her that she needs to call daddy right away. 

She will take your cell phone, click onto favorites and hit the number to call your husband.

She will practically shout to your husband that she knows that Jesus put "that baby" into mommy's tummy!

When your husband comes home, you both will ask your 3 year-old if she thinks "that baby" will be a boy or a girl. 

She will tell you matter-of-factly that, "that baby will be a boy of course, because there is only 1 boy in our family".

Then you will decided that it's time to tell your daughter that at some point "that baby" will have a name. So you ask her what names she would like for the baby. 

These are the names she offers:

• Dada
• Skittles

You decide she may not be the best candidate for choosing the baby's name. 

All this talk about "that baby" will remind her that she wants to ask you if the baby can sleep in her room once it comes out. 

You tell her, that maybe eventually the baby can, but at first it will cry a lot.... so it will need to sleep in mama and dada's room. 

She will put her hands on her hips and say "Thats okay, I will just rock the baby back to sleep".

Then you will go to your husband's soccer game, where your daughter has a friend her age to play with.

You will over hear her telling her friend, "My mommy is so special because she has a baby in her tummy right now!"

You will cringe and hope that none of the other mom's/wives around have heard your daughter make this announcement, as you are still 1 week away from this news being public knowledge. 

Then you will smile because your 3 year-old is so darn excited to get a sibling!

How did you prepare your children for a new baby in the house? I'd love to hear all of your ideas!