A Bewitchingly Ordinary Life!

When I had my first son I decided to be a stay at home wife and mom.  It was a dream!  I was June Cleaver!  As a 3 month old David slept soundly in my Mai Tai, dinner in the crock pot and I washed a window, I thought "I don't understand how people don't keep up on housework!" Well because you KNOW that I know it all.  Or at least I thought I did ;)  The months rolled on, David became more mobile and things got a little tougher but I was still queen of the house.  And then.... 2 pink lines.  Most ladies who have ever been pregnant, know what that means.  2 lines that change your life forever.  I was pregnant again.  David was 10.5 months when I found out.  I was so excited.  Life had gotten more perfect.  The days rolled on, not a lot of morning sickness.  David turned a year old, I was 7 weeks, we announced it that day.  Yippee, yay, everyone was excited. About a week later, the morning sickness set in, fa...

I will never forgot the day when I found out I was pregnant for the very first time.  It was such a rush of emotion.  Fear, happiness, contemplation, all wrapped up into one.  It wasn't the most opportune time, but let's face it when is it really?  At the heart of it all, I was ecstatic.  I was going to be a mother, and Eric a father. Several weeks later I could tell, things were not going well.  One night we found ourselves in the emergency room.  An ultrasound had been ordered.  Eric was made to leave and I was left alone in a sterile room with just the technician and myself.  She barely spoke 2 words to me.  I saw the baby and the screen was then quickly whisked around so I could see no more.  My heart sunk.  The doctor came in and said we see the baby, but no heart beat.  But don't worry.  It's still early! But I already knew in my heart.  I was nearly 8 weeks and the heart should have already been beati...

I sat staring at the blank blog page for a few moments, wondering where to even begin.  There is much more emotion surrounding this time than I even imagined.  I had wondered what it would be like, what I would feel, what Aaron would feel, do, say. Weaning.  There were days that I thought the moment would never arrive.  Then there were days I wish I could have stopped time because I felt like we were on a journey where we had been hurdled through space and time and light speed.  I wanted to stop it, stop time and breath in the moments, trying to imprint the memories so deeply in my mind that it would always remain crystal clear. Though this time can be quite intimate, I also want to share it publicly for many reasons.  First, because it is a tremendous thank you of gratitude to some very strong women who saw me through from dream, to reality, to sustaining.  Beth, Anna, Jennifer, Dagmar, Solimar, Aisha, Rikki and Nicole!  Women who lifted me u...

More often than not the path as a parent that I want to take becomes so entangled that I lose sight of how I really want to connect with my sons.  I tend to find more peace and be in-tune with them when I'm calm, understanding and willing to step out of my own comfort zone and lose what "society" tells me I should do. One way I have begun this journey is by watching Alfie Kohn's Unconditional Parenting DVD.  I've know WHAT I wanted to do since my boys were born.  But DOING it in day to day life can be  quite another thing. This past week I REALLY resolved to jump on and begun consciously parenting and being the parent I know my boys need.  And with good results and peace in my own soul! Below are the 10 basic principles of Unconditional Parenting.  Though this is just a glimpse, I highly encourage you to read the book or watch the DVD for full understanding!  Also after the 10 principles I'll add some You Tube clips/excerpts from Alfie Kohn's l...

As I stooped to pick up a load of laundry, I gazed around my house at the utter mess.  Yes, I said it.  Utter mess!  A sink full of dirty dishes, several laundry piles, toys scattered in the bathroom, the living room, the boys room, our room and the kitchen.  A bowel of goldfish sat on the toy shelf, pretty sure the bathroom needs a good scrubbing, beds unmade...and laughter.  The sound of two little boys building towers and houses with legos as they laughed and pretended they were blasting off to the moon to visit Martian Mickey Mouse. Messes tend to irritate me.  Just ask my husband.  I suddenly become Mr. Hyde and vow to throw away anything in my path!  But today the first thought that popped into my mind without even thinking was ... "I wouldn't trade this for anything.  I can barely remember life before this life, nor do I really want too." That's right!  Sure life was fun, we had more money before children.  I did a lot m...

I have been having a grand time finding, making enjoying cast iron recipes!  Because a few people asked, I thought I'd share these [somewhat] healthier versions of old favorites!   WHOLE WHEAT CINNAMON ROLLS   DOUGH 2.5 cups whole wheat flour Pinch of salt 2.5 tsp baking powder 1 tsp cinnamon  3.5 oz melted butter 2 egg yolks 3/4 cup milk -Whisk yolks, butter, milk -Combined in dry ingredients  -Mix until dough is soft -Turn/knead on lightly floured surface -Roll out to a 12x10 rectangle [cutting off uneven edges]  FILLING 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 cup brown sugar 2 tbsp sugar [raw sugar worked beautifully!] 1 tbsp melted butter -Mix all filling ingredients until blended -spread evenly over dough -I found that almost making a double batch of the filling works better to spread   ICING   1 cup powdered sugar 2-3 tbs milk - Stir milk, 1 tbsp at a time, into powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached -I also ...

Bittersweet.  That's the only term that fits it best.  Watching David and Aaron's milestones come and go as the months and years go by.  Bittersweet as the my family journey's through this thing called life, wishing many moments would last years. Today is a bittersweet a day, a finality as a milestone has come and now gone.  For our family, early one, we did the family bed.  It worked well for us and brought about an amazing bond.  Amidst criticism and snide remarks like we were spoiling them, creating bad habits, letting them control us, not being "parent-directed" and creating dependency that would surely never end.   For the past 4 years we have 1 then 2 then back to 1 little one in our bed.  We did the side car crib method to create more room and it was fantastic!  It kept them close, which made nursing a breeze, yet gave them and us the space we needed. For the past 4 years I had forgotten what it was like not to have a wee ...