Picky!

Kate has always been a great eater. It was tons of fun introducing her to solids--I remember her eating slices of beetroot, avocado, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, steamed vegetables of all types, chopped fruit, bits of meat, cheese, all sorts of soups and casseroles. I patted myself on the back for doing such a great job introducing her to solids! She still has a pretty wide range of things she'll eat.

So I confidently did the same with Will. At first it seemed to be going OK. But it started going downhill quickly, and now he is just so PICKY! He basically eats bread, peanut butter, and yogurt, and not even the healthiest versions! I'll try to spread almond-macadamia nut butter on his bread, but he wants the sweet Skippy. He will eat scrambled eggs, oatmeal with toppings, mashed up curries, and bits of banana, so that's good. But I'm not very motivated to try different foods out knowing he is likely to reject them. He's enjoyed smoothies in the past but the other day, I made him a strawberry-banana smoothie and he turned up his nose.

I'm hoping he'll grow out of it! Anyone else dealing with pickiness?

The PAIR Project

What factors help a marriage survive and thrive? Here's info about an interesting research project on marriage. And here's an article about it in Psychology Today.

Children's activities?

How do you decide how many activities to sign your children up for? I'd love for Kate to start swimming lessons at some point, but that would involve driving to Moose Jaw at inconvenient times. Here in Caronport, there is children's soccer, ballet, and then ice skating is a big thing. I'd also love for my kids to play piano or another instrument. But our schedule would be crazy if we did everything! How do you decide what activities your children will do? Or do you let them choose? Do you set limits?

One nice thing about Caronport is that children at a certain age can walk to and from school, and can also get to activities by themselves. But even still, I want to keep things simple as much as I can.

The price of gas

I keep hearing about how high gas prices are, but somehow, I never realized exactly what we're paying. As you can see by the photo of our local gas station sign, prices are listed in litres. I don't think in litres, and I'm not great at math. Well, an American friend spelled it out for me today that we are paying over $5 a gallon for gas. Ouch. Of course, I hate to complain too much because I have Scottish friends who read my blog--like the rest of Europe, they're paying over $8 a gallon for gas due to the heavy fuel taxes there. Then again, it is far easier in most European cities to limit your use of a car or to live without a car at all.

Here's an interesting CNN article on how US gas prices compare to gas prices around the world. The writer says that because US gas has historically been so cheap, Americans (and Canadians I'm sure) have bought bigger cars as well as houses further away from work. As a consequence, when prices rise, Americans feel it more.

Victoria Day

It's Victoria Day! As expats, we often find ourselves celebrating holidays we've never heard of before. Or if not celebrating, at least getting a day off from work. Victoria Day is a Canadian holiday celebrated on the last Monday before or on May 24 in honor of both Queen Victoria's birthday and the current reigning Canadian sovereign's birthday. Apparently, it's also celebrated in parts of Scotland, including Edinburgh, but I don't remember this.

I'll be following this with interest

If you take a look at any of the posts in this series about Christian academics and evolution, I'd be interested to know what you think.

Not able to vote

A few months ago, the Caronport mayor, Royden Taylor, passed away. His obituary was even featured in Macleans magazine. Next week, Caronport will vote for a new mayor. There are two candidates, and between them, they have great ideas for improving Caronport's playground, making Caronport more environmentally friendly, bringing industry to town, etc. But because we aren't Canadian citizens, we can't vote. We won't be able to vote even once we're Canadian permanent residents.

The war against the dandelions

Every day, I dig out at least a couple hundred dandelions. And every morning, I look out and see the yard covered with a couple hundred more of them. Obviously, we were not very vigilant last summer and let too many of them go to seed. I don't want to use weed killer, since the kids are all over the lawn. I am very interested in corn gluten meal, however, a natural weed preventative that can be applied in the spring and fall. Here are some companies that sell it if you're interested, along with the product name. Has anyone used this before?

For those of you with older children...

What do you miss about having children under 5?

Chai Tea

Here's a yummy recipe for Chai Tea. I'm sure if you can't find every spice, it will still turn out well.

Chai Tea

Tea bags (8 or so) of Ceylon, Tetley, or another black tea
6 green cardamom pods
Piece of candied ginger
1 Tbsp. star aniseed (4 large or 6 small)
12 whole cloves (1/2 tsp)
1 or 2 cinnamon sticks, broken
1/4 tsp. whole peppercorns
2 bay leaves, broken up
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cups milk

Boil 6 cups of water with tea bags and spices for 10 minutes, then strain. Add 1/4 cup brown sugar and 2 cups milk. You can save the spices for making more chai later.

A tribute to my mother on Mother's Day

I imagine I'm not the only person who appreciates her own mother more now that she knows what parenting is like! There are many things I appreciate about my own Mom. Here are a few!

*She's always given me lots of freedom to explore the world, who I am, and what I believe. I've been able to find my way without feeling I needed to live up to certain expectations.

*She has always encouraged me to follow my dreams. She bought me a computer for grad school, and a suit when I started going on internship interviews. Despite the time and money involved, she totally thought it was worth it to pursue my counseling career. She is self-sufficient, and thought it was important for me to be as well.

*She is always looking for ways to serve others, whether it's participating in a Cancer Walk, or helping people do their taxes, or leading groups at her church.

*She loves the simple things in life, such as gardening, hiking, going to the beach, or get-togethers with friends.

*She did our taxes for us while we were in Scotland, and she continues to handle various US financial matters for us.

*She's frugal. We have Dutch heritage and pinching pennies seems to come naturally. She modeled so many ways of being frugal around the home and while traveling.

*Like all of us, she's had setbacks in life, but has been a great role model for making lemonade out of lemons.

*Like me, she's Introverted-Judging on the Myers-Briggs. It's great to have a mom who understands the joys and struggles that come with being IJ as a mother!

*She values family. She does a lot to help out my grandmother, who lives in the same town. She flew to Scotland after Kate was born, and Saskatchewan after Will was born, but doesn't complain about us living so far away.

Happy Mother's Day Mom! And to all the rest of the mothers out there as well!

My sweet daughter

Here's a photo of me and Kate when she was about 7 months old. It's fun to remember that time when parenting was simpler and less stressful. I remember thinking, "This isn't that hard! Why do people talk about parenting being difficult?" Friends mentioned that things got harder for them once they had a second child, or when their first child got more chatty or defiant, but I figured I'd breeze through that as well--ha!

Yesterday did not start out well. We were rushing to get out the door for a Moms and Tots morning brunch--then I realized Kate had wet her pants. I am already frustrated that this still happens as often as it does, and now it looked like we would really be late! Of course, I should have remained calm, but instead said in a stressed out voice, "Kate, go change! And hurry!" Well, that just led to a 15 minute power struggle in which I tried to get her to hurry, and she dawdled and dawdled, yelling much of the time. Finally, we got there, and I had a nice reprieve as I enjoyed a brunch with other moms, and the kids were taken care of in another building by childcare workers. Then we headed home for lunch. Will (adorable as he is!) is still a pretty picky eater, and quite a fussy guy. And is there anything more annoying than having your youngest screaming his head off, while your oldest continues to chat and demand things of you? Fortunately, Eric was gracious enough to work from home in the afternoon and keep Will so I could go with Kate to a special Mother's Day tea at her preschool and not have to care for Will as well.

Even still, I was muttering to myself as I drove to Moose Jaw. "I can't believe some people think being a stay-at-home Mom isn't a job!" "I bet those people get to eat their lunch in peace and quiet!" "I should get paid for this--and paid a LOT!" And then we arrived at her preschool and her class put on an event that reminded me what a privilege it is to be a mom. The kids started out by singing several French songs, complete with hand motions. Then Kate presented me with a photo her teacher had taken of us together, with a frame she had decorated herself. She led me through a buffet line of fruit, crackers and cheese, cookies, and punch, and "paid" for me with play money as her teacher operated a toy cash register. We had fun chatting together over our snack, and ended by creating clay sculptures together. We then made a stop at the Moose Jaw library before driving back to Caronport.

I sure do love my girl! She is one of the funniest, sweetest, and most creative people I know. I can hardly believe I get to be her Mommy! Hopefully, despite the stress of having two kids, Kate can see that love shining through every day. And hopefully, she'll forgive me for all the times I'm not as patient and loving as I should be.

Grow Organic

This is a really great intro to organic gardening and lawn care. I don't know where they got the stat, but they say in the intro that children exposed to lawn and gardening pesticides are 6 1/2 times more likely to get leukemia. The authors have a radio show and website as well. We added compost to the garden yesterday, but I still have a ton to learn about caring for the lawn and plants organically. Anyone have any tips, advice, books, websites?

Black Bean and Goat Cheese Tostadas

Black Bean and Goat Cheese Tostadas (from The South Beach Diet Quick and Easy Cookbook)

A fresh squeeze of lime gives a tasty, tart balance to garlicky beans and smooth, creamy goat cheese in this healthier take on a classic Mexican-inspired dish.

Ingredients:
4 8-inch whole wheat tortillas
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 15-oz can black soybeans (or regular black beans), rinsed and drained
3/4 c reduced-fat goat cheese, crumbled (I'm sure you could substitute other cheese)
1/2 head romaine lettuce, chopped (I used spinach leaves)
2 med tomatoes, diced
3 scallions, thinly sliced
1 lime, quartered
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Lightly spray tortillas with cooking spray and place, slightly overlapping, on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly puffed and browned, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

3. While tortillas are toasting, heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in beans and heat until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.

4. With tortillas still on the baking sheet, top with beans and cheese; bake until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with lettuce, tomatoes, and scallions. Squeeze lime over top and serve hot.