Pumpkin Spice Muffins

My friend made these delicious muffins for me when I visited her a few weeks ago. I loved them immediately, but knew they were not something we could have for breakfast every morning with all the butter and sugar in them. I figured I could make a healthier version that would still be delicious and satisfying. I also wanted to send some to my brother (a health-nut) for his birthday.

Here is what I came up with: 

Yield: 36 muffins

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

8 tsp baking powder

2 Tbsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves

1 tsp salt

8 Tbs butter

2 cups nuts, chopped (I used half walnuts, half pecans) 

3 cans pumpkin puree

1 1/2 cans evaporated fat free milk

4 eggs

6 tsp vanilla

Topping: 8 Tbs sugar, 4 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together dry ingredients through salt. Cut in butter using pastry blender until mix resembles coarse crumbs. Stir nuts into butter mix. Whisk together wet ingredients. Fold dry ingredients into wet, do not overmix. Place batter in greased muffin tins and sprinkle generous portions of topping on top (I originally did not put enough topping on, it really makes for a lovely crispy top). Bake for 20-30mins or until toothpick comes out clean from center. 

Enjoy with your favorite morning beverage and a piece of fruit! 

Baby Sign Language

I've started using a few signs with Evelyn in hopes that we can start to communicate more clearly with each other. We have a pretty good connection right now - I usually know what she wants/needs. She is SO expressive. :)

However, I know that as she grows it will give her a sense of independence to have a voice even when she cannot speak yet. I also want to avoid crying or screaming as a means to gain attention or desires. So, hopefully knowing a few signs will help her get the point across and avoid a few areas of frustration. From what I have read she can start to understand these signs now (6 months), but probably will not make them back at us until 7-10 months. Still, its much earlier than when she will be speaking.

I'm teaching her a few:
Food/Eat
Milk
More
All Done - I think she will catch this one quick. I find myself using it ALOT!
Sleepy
Change - for diaper changes

I will probably use more as time goes on, but for now these are the ones I have managed to remember and start incorporating into a daily routine. I just looked up YouTube videos to find out how to make these signs.

Our OK House

We bought a house here in Oklahom City, actually, we are in a northern suburb called, Edmond. We love our house. It was less than a year old when we bought it and so nice. There are still a few projects I have to do, but not too much.

Here are a few pics of inside and outside. Hopefully I can update them as we get truly settled in. Its nice to think we will be here long enough (5 years) to do that!

 Kitchen. I love, love, love my kitchen!

 Living room with E's swing in the corner

 Hallway, guest bath to the left, E's room to the right, study & guest room at the end of the hall. I'm hoping to "dress up" the hallway with pics or paint at some point.

 Guest bath

 Study, windows look out to the street/front yard

 Living room from other side of the room 

 E's nursery from the door 

 E's nursery from the other side

Her play area :) 

Solid Food

We started E on solid food this month. Our first pediatrician, in TX, suggested we start with avocado instead of rice cereal, and I really liked that idea. Also, it seems alot easier to prep avocado than rice cereal to me.

Our pediatrician now encouraged me to start now because "it takes a while for them to get the hang of it." She was showing SO much interest in everything everyone around her was putting into their mouths so I thought, lets just go with her natural inclination. I want her to enjoy meal time and encourage her natural curiosity (within safe boundaries, of course).

So we started with avocado. I set everything up not expecting her to eat much or any at all really. It was more for the experience. I know alot of babies really dont like it and honestly, just cant eat it the first time.

She was amazing! She loved the avocado and actually got some of it down, despite her natural sucking reflex causing her tongue to expel most of it. :) She opened her mouth for more when the spoon came to her mouth.

Wow! That's not too bad. :) 

I started with just avocado and breastmilk for the first week. Then added rice cereal to that. She liked both. I just used my baby food maker two nights ago and started feeding her sweet potato. She doesn't seem to enjoy that as much, so I might back off and try it again at some later date. The great thing is that its already made and stored in freezer friendly packs. I dont want meals to become a battle or traumatic at this early of an age, so for now, I'm cool with sticking to what she likes. We might try another type of cereal next week (barley, oatmeal, etc).

I love my baby food maker. I hope I get to use it. It was so easy to by one organic sweet potato, chop it up, and put it in the machine. It did almost all of it for me and SO much cheaper than buying organic baby food.

Report Card

I was thinking about going back to school today. It seems like everyone I know is getting ready for it, except Drew and me. This is the first year that has happened for me. Even though I have not been in school for the last 5 years I still thought about it every fall as co-eds prepared to return to campus and I prepared to welcome them with the gospel.

Sometimes I wish a still got a report card. I actually looked forward to my annual job reviews (maybe its the perfectionist in me?)...a little weird I know, but at least it was honest, clear feedback about a few things I could focus and improve over the next year.

Parenting is completely different. In case you didn't know there are no report cards in parenting...unless you count a visit from CPS, but that would be a complete fail in my book (not too funny either after hearing some of the stories from Drew's rotation on pediatric surgery this month).

I had tended to feel like I was doing a good job based on Evelyn's happiness, especially toward the end of the day. Did I stay on schedule? Did she get enough sleep? Enough stimulation or too much? Its not just hearing her cry or fuss that's hard on me its the feeling that I somehow messed up and caused her to be upset, because most of the time she is easy going, and usually its clear to me why she is upset.

But then I read this article (on whether parents are happier than childless people) and this one (how to raise a happy baby)

It made me think and was helpful to remember that
1. Babies just cry sometimes (especially to fight sleep)
2. I can't control anyone other than myself (and sometimes even that is too much)
3. I'm still learning as a parent and that means I will make mistakes (its the best way to learn)
4. God knows this about humans and still gives us children (?!?!?!)...so he also must make us all very resilient in those first months/years out of the womb.
5. I really love my daughter and even when I do mess up I can still communicate my love to her, and that is probably more important than adhering vehemently to the schedule or singing enough nursery rhymes in a day.

Catch Up

There are WAY too many things I have been meaning post on this blog. I think I'm going to have to let them go. I have more important things to do most days...you know, like feeding my child, changing her diaper, feeding my husband, feeding myself, (notice a trend?) and grabbing the occasional shower. :)

Its looking more and more likely that she will keep her beautiful blue eyes, thus increasing her father's conviction to buy several guns, and soon!

She is incredibly sweet natured, but also has a stubborn streak that she comes by quite honestly from both sides of the family. Over the last two weeks she has decided to stay up way past any decent bedtime, perhaps because she knows Mom wants company since Dad is working at night. Here she is all tucked in to our bed with me, just chilling. I'm slowly getting her bedtime to a more decent hour (the night i took this pic it was 2:30am!). Tonight she went down at 10pm, far more reasonable. I really shouldn't complain though, she sleeps through the night for a good 9-10 hours EVERY NIGHT! Hurray!

She grows like a weed! She has new rolls emerging on her little legs and arms on a daily basis. Two weeks ago she just had one on her thighs now they are too numerous to count, especially when she straightens her legs, which she is also doing more frequently... Oh my goodness, I'm going to blink and she will be graduating from high school I just know it! Wahhh! These are the thoughts that help me remember to treasure every second I get with her. I'm so glad I get to stay home with her.

I feel bad for Drew. He tries to soak up as much time with her as he can in his limited amounts of time at home. Between inhaling some food and sleeping there is not much time left for anything else before he has to head back to the hospital. I'll just need to be sure to take plenty more pictures and videos for him. So far we have been really fortunate in that he has been able to see all her new developments and tricks.

Holding Her Head Up!

Evie can hold her head up all on her own now. This means several things...
1. Its much harder to clean out her neck because we can no longer gently tilt her head back. She is strong enough to resist. :)
2. I can carry her in the wrap facing out in front of me. She loves getting to go for walks and the grocery store with me like this. I like it because I can carry her around hands free, get a few things done, and feel like I'm teaching her a little bit all at the same time.
3. She can sit in her special Bumbo chair all by herself now. I have a video, but I'm having a hard time uploading it. For now, here are some pics:

 This way she gets to sit with us when we eat at the table. This is our new dining room table. Our old one was a little small and counter height, which we figured would be difficult for her to sit at when she gets older. 

 I dont know if you can tell, but she is very curious about everything going on around her. She has some distinct pondering faces. :) 

Who? Are you talking about me?

She gets a little tired of sitting up after a few minutes, but at least the sides are soft enough for when she slumps over.