Sam is Nuts

This child is absolutely nuts. Over the last two days, he has thrown everything he can get his hands on, and when he's not throwing, he's coloring in his coloring book. I can't even begin to tell you how many time-outs he's had (for throwing, not coloring!).



He's learning new words every hour too. It's almost like I can't keep up with his new growth - brain cell, and otherwise. I have never seen a child who likes to color as much as Sam does. He crawls up in the "kitchen" chair and finds whatever writing utensil is around, then begins. Sometimes he spends an hour coloring. Especially over the last two days. Sam's pediatrician once commented that he's never seen Sam without a crayon in his hand. (Definitely right-handed too.)

Then he screams, "maMA" until I look at what he's done. Usually he describes it too.

In this particular one, he said, "maMa, maMa - Melmo eye!" As in, "I've colored Elmo's eyes." See how he colored the cat and the lady's face too? Very artistic, if you ask me.

Here's my boy watering our patio garden. What a white tooshy!

My little helper.

Menu for the Week

As promised, here is our menu and corresponding recipes for the week.

Monday

Chicken over mesclun salad mix (grown in my patio garden)

The chicken was marinated in Kraft Vidalia Onion Vinaigrette with roasted red pepper

and grilled on my GF grill

Homemade vinaigrette (olive oil, balsamic vinegar and Dijon mustard with a little lemon juice)

Sam is having leftover Mexican squash from this recipe

Tuesday

Quesadillas (w/already cooked chicken from above recipe)

Homemade salsa (see below) and chips

Wednesday

Friend's house for dinner

Homemade brownies

Thursday

Turkey burgers (see below)

Homemade salsa and chips

Friday

Hibachi chicken (see below) and fried rice (a la Benihana)

with sauces

Saturday

Leftover turkey burgers

Sunday

Leftover hibachi chicken

Many of you know I am a big fan of the Top Secret cookbooks by Todd Wilbur. I used lots of them in China whenever I had a hankering for some comfort food. I actually bought my brother the cookbook one year for his birthday (he lives in LA) and he said, "You know, I can actually go down to these restaurants and order a meal any time I want for less work?" It shocked me that he wouldn't want to save money by cooking them at home, but now I can totally understand. However, I still have a love of cooking and we use one of Todd Wilbur's recipes every week. My favorite cookbooks by Mr. Wilbur are Top Secret Restaurant Recipes, and Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2.

I've also included some Deceptively Delicious recipes. Jessica Seinfeld put out this book last year and it immediately was a favorite in our family. I usually spend one day every month pureeing lots of veggies and freezing them in ice cube trays (then transfer to clearly labeled zip lock bag). We love most of her recipes too.

And, as you can see, I've included a Rachel Ray recipe. That was the very first time that I ever cooked one of her recipes, but I liked it. I was just looking for something to do with my squash (I googled it) and that one came up. It was very spicy and good.

Recipes

Salsa

1 finely chopped tomato

1/2 finely chopped onion (sweet)

1/2 finely chopped green pepper

2 chopped jalapenos

1/4 cup organic vegetable juice

1/4 t salt

1 T finely chopped cilantro

1 T finely chopped parsley

Dash cumin

1 t chili powder

(Adjust seasonings to taste)

Cook tomatoes with onions, green peppers, jalapenos and veggie juice plus salt, cumin and chili powder in a medium saucepan. Once the onions are tender, add the cilantro and parsley - but only cook for a short time afterwards. You want the herbs to remain bright green and retain their vitamins! Put in fridge to keep cool.

Turkey Burgers (Deceptively Delicious - altered by me)

1 lb lean ground turkey

1/2 pound white button mushrooms (stemmed), finely chopped

1 cup Italian (seasoned) breadcrumbs

1/4 cup (or more) grated zucchini

1 T Worcestershire sauce

2 T ketchup

1/2 t salt

1/8 t pepper

16 whole-grain hamburger buns, for serving

In a large bowl, mix the meat, mushrooms, breadcrumbs, zucchini, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, salt and pepper until well combined. Form into patties. Grilled on GF grill until done. If you would like directions without the GF, let me know and I'll post them.

Hibachi Chicken (from Top Secret Restaurant Recipes, altered by me)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 large onion

3 medium zucchini

2 cups quartered mushrooms

2 T vegetable oil

6 T soy sauce (low sodium)

4 T butter

Salt

Pepper

2 t lemon juice

3 t toasted sesame seeds (toast seeds in a dry skillet for a couple minutes on medium heat)

1 package bean sprouts

Make sure everything is cut into bite-sized pieces, including the chicken. For the onion, slice it as if you were making onion rings, then quarter those slices. For the zucchini, first slice them into long, thin strips, then cut across those strips four or five times to make bite-sized pieces that are 1 to 1 1/2 inches long.

Spread 1 T oil in large frying pan over medium/high heat. Spread another tablespoon of oil in another pan over medium/high heat.

Begin by sauteing the sliced chicken in one pan. Add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of butter and a dash of salt and pepper to chicken.

Add the onion and zucchini to the other pan. Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon butter and a dash of salt and pepper. Saute the veggies as long as the chicken is cooking, being sure to stir both pans often.

When chicken has sauteed for about 2 minutes, or when it appears white on all sides, slide the meat to one side of the pan, pour lemon juice on it, then add mushrooms to the other side of the pan. Pour 1 tablespoon of butter plus a dash of salt and pepper. Continue to stir both pans.

After 6 to 8 minutes, or when the chicken is done, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds over chicken, then mix chicken with mushrooms. Remove chicken and veggies from their pans.

Pour bean sprouts into the same pan as you cooked the veggies in and cook over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon butter and a dash of salt and pepper.

Cook sprouts for only a minute or two, until they are tender. Just before serving, sprinkle 2 teaspoons of sesame seeds on them. Serve sprouts next to chicken and veggies. Serve with mustard and ginger sauces.

Mustard Sauce (also from Top Secret)

1/4 cup soy sauce (low sodium)

1/4 cup water

2 t Dijon mustard

2 t heavy cream

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well until combined. Chill before serving.

Ginger Sauce (also from Top Secret)

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 ounce gingerroot (a nickel-sized slice), peeled and chopped

2 T lemon juice

1/2 t sugar

1/4 t white vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend on low speed for 30 seconds or until gingerroot have been pureed. Chill before serving.

Bob the Builder at Tweetsie

We went to Tweetsie again today because Bob the Builder was visiting. Sam has one book that I bought at a Kroger in Raleigh with Bob in it. He is unfamiliar with the songs or the characters. That said, as soon as he saw a picture of Bob at the Railroad, Sam screamed, "Bob!" and pointed at the pic. Where did that come from??



They gave all the kids "hard" hats as we entered the park. Sam and I went straight to the performance area so we could get a good seat and I promptly began taking photos.

Then, at around 11am, Bob entered. He needed lots of help getting up on the stage. He was adorable. He sang songs and the kids danced and clapped and sang along with him.

Afterwards, we got to go to the meet-and-greet. We were first in line. Sam was kind of clingy while we waited and then when we got to see him, he got a little nervous. The other two pictures I have are of him facing another direction and trying to get away from the crazy man in a costume. Bill and I actually doctored the above picture a lot to get it to look better.

Here's another picture of him waiting to see Bob. Bill says he looks unhappy in this photo, but he was actually quite happy. I made a PB&J for a snack (it's $7.50 for a kid's meal at Tweetsie!) and he ate some cheerios while we waited.

Here's smilin' Sam just before the meet-and-greet. He was so happy to be able to smell the "bowers" (flowers).

On the way home, I met Bill at a Greek restaurant in town. Sam fell asleep and when I leaned in to wake him up, he jerked his head up and yelled, "BOB!" and then started crying. I laughed so hard and Bill's jaw dropped in surprise of the spontaneous moment. It was like George Clooney in "O Brother Where Art Thou" when he kept waking up and saying, "my hair!" What a hoot.

Peas and Water

It is getting a little bit warm over here. Yesterday, I took all of Sam's clothes off (save for his cloth diaper) and gave him frozen peas and ice water to cool him down.

It's a little known fact that you can give frozen peas to babies and toddlers - they are great for teething because of their cool effect on the gums, and they are soft enough kids won't choke on them.

They certainly did the trick for Master Samuel - he watched a little "koo koo" (Blue's Clues) and cooled off on the sofa.

Poll

Okay, I've added a poll to the sidebar that I'm curious about. I know there are about 40 visitors to my blog every day, from around the world. I also know that there are only about 5 or 6 people who regularly comment on the blog.

I am hoping that some of you who don't normally comment might commit to an anonymous poll.

Regarding the question: I have been thinking a lot about what to do to bring in a little extra money to help our family. I really don't know what I ought to do. I have prayed thoroughly about this. I love being a stay-at-home-mom, but now that we are buying a house, I know that a little extra income will help.

So, tonight I thought maybe I could make a cookbook and sell it. But, would there be any buyers? I could put my knowledge from the last seven years of cooking overseas (from scratch) down in writing, along with many of my own recipes that are tried and true.

Please answer the poll - but only submit your answer once. It ends on July 1st at 9:00 am.

Also, if you have any suggestions for what I can do, let me know. Please take into consideration who I am - or at least who you have gotten to know through this blog over the last couple of years, as well as our son's medical situation (and spontaneous hospitalizations which take up a great deal of time).

Comment comment comment!

Friend of Sam

We have been having a blast out in the park with Elijah and his mommy this week. We've gone out every day to walk around the greenway and take little breaks where the boys can eat snacks and mess around for a bit.

I wanted to share a few photos of Sam with his buddy. Elijah is very photogenic. Sam, as exemplified in the photo I posted a few days ago, is not. But, when I can catch a good photo of him, they're usually great. He's so adorable.

Here are Sam and Elijah eating crackers together. It was hard to get Elijah to look at me. They sat on this park bench for a short time - so I grabbed Bill's camera and got to work.

Here's Elijah stuffing as much cracker into his mouth as possible. Sam's busy doing something else with his cracker.

Again, Elijah has lots of crackers and Sam is walking around with his cracker. This is a little hill at the greenway that they love to climb up and run down. I should say, Elijah likes to run down it - I think Sam is too scared of falling. Sam will stand at the top of the hill and watch Elijah go up and down, up and down - just smiling the whole time.

Here's the money-shot. Since Sam was born, I like to work out my abs by laying on my back and putting Sam on my legs - extending them out and bringing them back in. Well, I added Elijah to my reps this week and he's about 5lbs heavier than Sam. It made it sooo much harder for me. My abs are so sore! Well, he loved it - Trish (Elijah's mom) grabbed my camera so I could get a picture of his little smile mid-exercise. Again, he's so photogenic.

Tomorrow we're going to the playground to play. Can't wait.

By the way, Nan, how did the brownies turn out? If any of you other blog readers out there have used any of my recipes, write a comment and let me know. If I can improve anything, I always like to know.

Why I Love My GF Grill

People often ask me what tools I have in my kitchen - what are necessities for my family and what are just bonuses. I have a list of necessities, but they are probably similar to every other cook's.


My bonuses are probably a little different though. One bonus item that my mother-in-law gave us during our first year of marriage was the George Foreman Grill. She gave us a very basic version, and it was when they first came out (so, a LONG time ago!).


We took that grill to China with us and used it all the time. In fact, we used it so much, the coating was coming off the plates. We had a converter sitting in the corner of our kitchen and just pulled that grill down whenever we had a hankering for some low oil food and plugged it in. We ALWAYS cooked salmon in it - a little olive oil and some lemon pepper seasonings made it delicious - since our area had a lot of salmon farms and it was readily available. Hamburgers were another favorite, or grilled chicken.


So, when we returned to the States, one of our priorities was to get a new GF Grill, but one with removable plates (this is the key to cleaning it well). Last Christmas, Bill bought me a super duper GF Grill, that not only had removable plates, but also had a different variety of plates. I wasn't sure I would need so much grill, but I loved it anyway.

Here is said grill. I keep it on the counter at all times. It's very easy to pop some plates in there and grill whatever I want. It has waffle, omelet, normal grill and baking plates. Sam almost always gets a grilled cheese and veggie (butternut squash, yellow squash, zucchini, carrots, etc) sandwich for lunch - done with the GF.

But, I've learned that it has so many other functions. I pulled out the omelet plates the other day and realized that I could cook one of the best looking omelets AND bacon AND whatever else I wanted all at the same time.

Here's an example of Sam's dinner from last night. A cheese omelet on the left (with cilantro and sea salt) and some broccoli cooking on the right. I could have thrown a slice of bacon or whatever in the middle plate too. What I like about cooking bacon with the grill is that it doesn't splash up everywhere, and if I use the right plates with it (i.e the grill plates with the whole GF tilted down), the oil drains off the bacon, leaving us with a more crisp, less oil-saturated slice.

Here's the finished product. Sam loves his omelets. He used to stay FAR away from eggs, but I realized I could make him a little omelet (I also add some milk in it, to make it more fluffy) in no time and he would eat it. I also throw some flax seed meal in the eggs and different veggies (like peas or carrots) sometimes.

And, here is Master Samuel eating his meal. He likes to mix his veggies and food into his yogurt and eat them together. It's a strange combo, but as long as he's getting his vitamins and eating his meals, I don't care.

So, that's one of my bonus items in my kitchen that I feel like I can't live without (though I know I can). It makes my life easier in so many ways. If you're interested, I'll post about a different bonus item some other time.

AND, I will definitely be posting our menu next week. I didn't realize so many of you would be interested. I might post our back menu from this week, because everything turned out so well. I love sharing good recipes - especially ones that you can use all over the world.

Erica - I LOVE that Elizabeth asks for my cookies. I miss you guys.

Win Something

A friend of a friend is starting a new company and is offering a free giveaway at her blog. If you leave a comment on her blog, you will be entered to win a really cute bag. If you post a blog about it, you can be entered twice!

She and her husband work together and just started their own website too. Check out their stuff - it's really well done. They are based in Greensboro, NC.

Crazy Hair and Great Recipes

What do you make of this hair?

[I actually already published this post and when I went back to review it, I noticed something. The child in this photo doesn't look anything like the one in my "drunk" child photo below. Even though that was such a terrible picture (for obvious reasons), you can also tell that he is sick by his pallor. He's pale and has little circles under his eyes. But, in today's photo, he's pink and pretty - he looks like he's got color in his face and body and just seems healthier. Well, he was definitely acting healthier too - he was in good form today with no fevers. Just thought I'd throw that in.]

I added this picture to let you see his defibrillator a little better. You can kind of make out the scar from between his nipples to just above his belly button. Well, that big hockey-puck-looking-thing at the bottom of his belly IS the ICD. He often bruises his skin around the corners on the right-hand side because he goes down the steps on his belly so much.

You might also notice his tattoo. We saw Dora and Diego (and Boots) at Tweetsie Railroad today. We only went for about two hours so Sam could see his beloved Boots. We rode the Old Number 12 and I actually DID get a cinder in my eye! It really hurt, but it wasn't on fire when it hit me. Everyone on the train was covered with ashes.

I wanted to share a few really yummy recipes that I've made recently. Many of you know that I love to cook. I love it even more when people tell me they enjoy what I've cooked. Well, last night I made the absolute best brownies that I've ever made in my life. I was looking for a great recipe to make brownies with using my Hershey's cocoa powder. Well, here it is (be careful, they're addictive!).

Brownies

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa or HERSHEY'S SPECIAL DARK Cocoa
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts(optional)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Place butter in large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH (100%) 2 to 2-1/2 minutes or until melted. Stir in sugar and vanilla.

(At this point, I changed and started using my hand mixer.) Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with spoon after each addition. Add cocoa; beat until well blended. Add flour, baking powder and salt; beat well. Stir in nuts, if desired. Pour batter into prepared pan.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Frost if desired. Cut into bars. About 36 brownies.


Another recipe that we love here at our home is one that my brother introduced to us. It's a Parmesan chicken bake and it is so easy. We actually keep Italian flavored bread crumbs on-hand all the time so I can make this at the last minute if I need it.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken

1/2 cup Hellmann's or Best Foods Real Mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1-1/4 lbs.)
Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs
Preheat oven to 425°.

1. In medium bowl, combine Hellmann's or Best Foods Real Mayonnaise and cheese. On baking sheet, arrange chicken. Evenly top with mayonnaise mixture, then sprinkle with bread crumbs - until covered.

2. Bake 20 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. I brine my chicken in a little salt and sugar before I cook with it - it makes it VERY tender.

I Can Stop Any Time I Want

We had a great day today. Sam has been relatively fever-free for more than 24 hours. The highest his fever got tonight was 100.8F. We even got out to the park this afternoon, where we played Frisbee with our friend Matt. And, the best part is - not one arrhythmia!!!




Sam is crazy about our stethoscope. He knows exactly what to do with it. Here he is taking his heart rate.

I thought this was hysterical. Where is he going?

And here's the big photo....the one he'll kill me for when he gets older. He's learned to climb up in the dining room chairs and sit at the "dinner" table (just a small table we're using for the dinner table). I tried to take some photos of my big boy sitting there, and this was the absolute funniest one. I laughed so hard after I took it. Bill helped me edit it a bit....

Cropped Photos

Obviously, we've been experimenting with the blog and photos since last night. Bill just showed me something really cool to do with the hummingbirds. So, I thought I'd post close-ups of them.

These are the same photos from my earlier post today. They're just altered by cropping them a bit.

Well, on to my details of the day. We tried to spend most of the day in the house - very low-key. Unfortunately, I had to run over to Samaritan's Purse this morning to get Bill to sign some paperwork for the adoption home study update. Once we left SP, we went over to Walgreens to pick up our new photo of the family (it has to be taken within three months) and then on to the post office to mail a few items. It feels like such a relief to get all of that done.

Once we were home, I had to pay lots of medical bills. Also, feels like a relief to get that done. It's amazing how expensive an ambulance ride to Charlotte costs - thank the Lord for insurance!

During all of that, Sam's fever shot up again to about 102.3F. I kept a close eye on him, listened to his heart rate, and tried to pin him down in front of the TV to rest a little. Since I only allow him one TV show a day, he got quite bored after the first one. I had to get creative by laying my head on his lap so he could play with my hair while he watched.

Later in the day, he started having diarrhea. Finally, some symptoms! Maybe it will help us figure out what he's got. Whatever the case, he's in bed now with a low-grade fever and we are praying for no crazy events to happen overnight. We're keeping him well-hydrated too.

Keep praying for us!

Pics of My Sickie

Just wanted to post a pic of my sick little baby. He seems very grumpy today and a little achy too. But, he's fever free for the time being. We're still doing Tylenol and Motrin when needed.

Also, I remember Shannon posting a comment about my plants. Just wanted to share some photos of my little patio garden. I had initially intended on transplanting these to the garden space at the house we didn't close on. Now, we've got a regular patio garden going. Tomatoes, basil, lettuce, beets, radishes, cucumbers, irises, a pecan tree (Sam and I planted it from a pecan at the house in Raleigh), and some miscellaneous items.

Who knew I had a little bit of a green thumb? I sure didn't.

Sick Again?

Sam woke up from his nap this afternoon and felt a little warm. When I took his temperature it was 103.1F. I was beside myself! He wasn't acting sick. His heart rate was normal. What in the world???

When I called the doctor's office (immediately), I started crying! I couldn't believe myself - I have never done that. But, I was so frightened.

We ended up going in to see his pediatrician and everything seemed normal. Yes, he had a fever, but no, there was nothing wrong with his blood work. He wasn't exactly running around, but he also wasn't listless either.

Oh, the frustration I have felt since Sam has been in my life. Love, yes, blessings, yes, joy, yes. But I have never felt frustration like I have with these fevers that come out of nowhere.

I brought him home, am keeping Motrin and Tylenol in him (we need to buy stock in the stuff!) and his fever never got below 100.9F before I laid him in bed for the night. About an hour ago - at 9pm - he woke up crying pretty hard. I was so scared that his defibrillator had shocked him. I grabbed the thermometer (per Bill's very intelligent suggestion) and headed downstairs. No fever - in fact, it was 98F - so I assume he just had a bad dream. Whatever the case, I'm going to give him more meds at 11pm, to make sure the fever STAYS down.

Keep us in your prayers. I hope it's not going to be a long night.

Friends and Family

Sam and I have had SUCH a busy weekend! It started on Thursday - with our trip to Greensboro. Then on Friday, we had a playdate with Sam's friend Elijah. Sam and Elijah got to play in Sam's new inflatable pool - they both went commando and it was adorable.





It was quite bright out!





Check out their tongues!





Elijah had such a great time in the water. Here he is having fun with his mommy!







Then, later in the day, Sam's cousin, Crawford, came into town for a few hours. We played with him at home and Sam learned a valuable lesson about why we don't throw wooden balls at little people's heads. Poor Crawford!





This is Crawford and Sam laying next to each other. Crawford is wearing an old onsie of Sam's. It's hard to believe he ever fit into it.




Here is Crawford smiling in Bill's arms. He really was a happy camper, despite being beat up by his cousin.

Right before this photo was taken, Sam said, "baby - ball" and pointed to Crawford's brow where he hit him with the ball. He was very sorry.

That evening, we went to a Contra Dance at the Apple Barn in Valle Crucis (pronounced Valley Crew-sis). We met some friends of mine who came in from Wilmington for the weekend. I met Beth and Abigail on Babyfit online. We saw them once before in Charlotte and then again this weekend. Abigail is only a few days younger than Sam.

Here's the beautiful Abigail after a long day of riding from Wilmington. They enjoyed the music at the Contra Dance, but had to leave early.

Beth, Abigail, Sam and me leaning over a railing at the Apple Barn. We had a blast!


To end the weekend, Sam and Abigail (and Sophia, Abigail's friend) got to color here at our place after brunch.

Love the hair!

Sam can't concentrate without sticking his tongue out. Apparently his father used to do the same thing when he was a child and I KNOW my father STILL does it.

And, as a bonus for you, we took some photos of Sam getting his hair cut two weekends ago.

It was a much more pleasant experience than the last haircut, but she took 45 minutes (way too long) and his bangs are uneven!


At least he enjoyed himself!

BFF

I appreciate all the encouragement that everyone has sent Bill about even attempting to change a cloth diaper! It's been very helpful to encourage a repeat, sans the mess.

I got a call today from my best friend (you may remember her from previous posts that she made for us during our darkest hours). Please pray for her as she and her family are going through a very difficult time right now.

Thanks.

Not for the Faint of Heart

We had a VERY funny cloth diapering first today. Do not read this if you get grossed out easily. However, if you want to laugh so hard you'll cry...read on.


Sam had a poopy diaper later in the afternoon. Bill brought Sam to me and said, "I think he has a poopy diaper." So, I thought he wanted me to change it. But, it turned out he just wanted instruction.

Bill took Sam to the bathroom (I would have done this laying Sam down on the changing cloth, but went with the flow) and I took Sam's diaper off of him. I showed Bill how we clean poop off the diaper in the toilet and instructed Bill to take Sam (who was standing on the bathroom floor) to the changing cloth to clean him.

I told him how to use the cloth wipes with the witch hazel and water spritzer. We had already gone over this once before, but he needed a little review. A few minutes later, Bill comes running in with Sam in his arms saying that Sam had poop on his arm. Then he said, "I think I have poop on my fingers too!"

Sure enough, Sam had a big smudge of poop on his arm - how it got there I have no idea - it was his upper arm! And Bill, bless his heart, has a big smear of poop on his finger. I set Sam down on the counter (before I realized there is still poop all over his rear end) and helped Bill wash his hand and Sam's arm. It was absolutely hysterical.

I'm crying right now laughing about it. I don't know what happened or where the breakdown was. In the end I had to take Sam back to the changing cloth and show Bill what to do. He calmly watched and then said, "I feel like it's all over me."

Priceless.

You're Not Going To Believe This

First, let me say that Sam has greatly improved regarding his virus. We have an appointment with his cardiologist next Thursday and will learn then what really happened to his heart during the 103F fever. Of course, I will post an update at that time.

We are wilting over here with no air conditioning! It's been in the low 90's, which isn't THAT hot (I know I know, at least we're not in Thailand, right, Mom?). But, it's pretty stifling inside the house. We have two fans and it was still a hot week. Sam and I played with plenty of water on our back deck.

In other news, I have bought cloth diapers for Sam. I have wanted to do this for a long time, but Bill couldn't get on-board. He was very concerned with my work-load already, since I have to care for Sam AND do housing and mortgage business AND adoption work. It has genuinely filled my days from the moment I wake up until the moment I go to sleep (and, with Sam, up to two times during the night!).


But, I know that we are on one salary now and I need to be careful with how I spend our money. I did the math and it really doesn't add up to keep using disposables. I used a calculator online to determine how much we were spending and saving. Here's the breakdown:

I will break even in 4.25 weeks or 0.98 months.
I will save $287.27 in 6 months.
I will save $516.12 in 10 months.
I will save $630.55 in 1 year.
I will save $973.82 in 1 1/2 years.

Now, add TWO babies to that, and I figured we have to do something different. Hopefully, Sam will potty train within the next year and those numbers won't be accurate. But, with Carolina (our adopted baby), the numbers are going to stay the same for one baby. Numbers don't lie and once I convinced Bill that I won't pressure myself and that we can do this, he agreed. I did not nag, FYI, I just brought him the facts and laid it out for him in logical terms.

Most of our housing issues are settling down now. I'm not spending all day on the phone with different people trying to set up appointments and making sure I have the right documents in. I made only three phone calls today to that end. Adoption issues are sporadic too. I got our homestudy via email today and we should be having the actual updated homestudy at our home within the next couple weeks.

So, I thought I would give cloth diapering a try and see how we do. Now, we are only on day two, but I am already in love with it. I can see immediately which ones Sam prefers (I got three different kinds in order to test them out).


I wanted to add that cloth diapering is nothing like it used to be. Even ten years ago, when I was a nanny and the little girl's family cloth diapered, things were different. The only real difficulty that I see is the washing and I believe that I have a good system now.

I took some photos of Sam in his snug-to-fit diaper today. This is one of his least favorites, which I was disappointed about. But, I believe they are a bit bulky for him. He really prefers the "prefolds," which are just a normal rectangular cloth diaper that I fold in third lengthwise and put inside a waterproof cover. Super simple, super cheap.



Oh, and I want to add that I am not being very strict about the cloth diapering. He wears disposables to bed for naptime and evenings. And, if I have a bad day or he has a bad day, we're switching back to disposables. Thanks to all the advice I've gotten from my many CDing friends - Shannon, Holly, Missy and Amelia - to name a few.