Oven Roasted Carrots

I usually cook carrots in with whatever roast or beef tips I’m simmering. But, sometimes the recipe just isn’t friendly to cooking veggies in with it. Having a newly-eating-solids baby that loves carrots, these are a great side dish that is soft enough for our toothless wonder to eat, and something the grown-ups can enjoy as well.

Ingredients:

5-6 carrots, washed and peeled
drizzle of olive oil
pinch of dried thyme or herbs de provence
pinch of salt

Steps:

Preheat oven to 400
Cut carrots in half and then cut the thicker ends in half lengthwise if they’re really thick. You want the carrot pieces to be about the same size so they cook evenly
Line a baking sheet with foil (for easy cleanup), put carrots on the pan and sprinkle with the olive oil, thyme and salt. Toss around to coat evenly and pop in the oven for 40 minutes.

Beef Tips in Awesomesauce

The word “awesomesauce” typically makes me shudder, but it’s really the only word I can think of to describe this recipe. And as usual, it’s pretty quick to put together and almost impossible to mess up.

Ingredients:

2lbs stew meat or chuck roast cubed
2 cloves garlic
2 cups beef broth
1/4 cup red wine, optional but it really takes it to another level (I used a pinot noir)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 packet brown gravy mix (I use Knorr classic brown gravy)

Steps:

Brown the meat and add in all the ingredients except the gravy mix. Simmer for an hour, uncovered and stir occasionally.
Add in the brown gravy mix and a 1/2 cup or so of water. Stir and simmer for a half hour.

Serve over rice or noodles.

This recipe is pretty rich so you probably want to serve it with a salad or a lighter side.

Saying goodbye to an old friend

Today we said goodbye to our sweet Melody who raced as Jetabb 
Catfish, but to us was also known as The Melted Cheese 
and Mel-Mel. Run fast and free at the Bridge, sweet girl. 

I'm sure your sister Harmony was waiting for you.

Thank you for sharing part of your life with us.

Flank Steak

I can not possibly describe how delicious this is.

What you need

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak

Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag and shake. Add flank steak and marinate overnight. Give to husband to grill or broil i the oven for about 4 minutes per side. Slice thin and enjoy!

A Healing Birth

Since the explosion of  The Business of Being Born, the politics of birth have become  a hotbed for debate in the Mommy Wars. That film is what opened my eyes to a world beyond hospital births. In fact, before I ever watched it, it never occurred to me that anyone would ever have a baby in any place other than a hospital with a doctor…at least on purpose. But I didn’t stop with the BoBB. I read blogs and books, including Ina May Gaskin’s Guide to Childbirth – a book that will make any woman want to start belting out I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar. Unfortunately, they don’t make superhero capes for a uterus yet (they definitely deserve one).

Armed with my new childbirth education, I carefully planned my daughter’s birth at a free standing birth center. The option of a water birth. Dim light. Home environment. Attended by a midwife. My desire for a 100% natural birth was only exceeded by my growing fear and suspicion of hospitals and the doctors chomping at the bit to cut my baby out of me. Long labor short, I ended up having to transfer to the hospital after 15 hours of unproductive and incredibly exhausting labor. I got an epidural. I got pitocin. And though I managed to avoid a surgical birth (in large part due to the efforts of the nursing staff and doctors), at the end of the 29 hour ordeal I was left exhausted physically and emotionally. I felt as though I had failed myself and my daughter. I felt my midwife had not properly managed my labor, kept me informed of what was going on or supported me – the exact opposite of what I thought I was getting when opted for a midwife attended birth. (Caitlin was in a posterior position, which can sometimes make labor much more difficult, painful and long. I didn’t hear anything about this until the midwife was updating the OB triage nurse at the hospital.)

Of course, the most important thing is a healthy baby, but that’s not the ONLY thing that’s important. It was a long time before I could think about my daughter’s birth without crying. Fast forward to this pregnancy and I still opted for midwifery care, albeit a nurse-midwife practice and a hospital birth.

My labor was fast and furious – 4 1/2 hours from the first contraction to the final push. I only spent an hour or so in the delivery room…I remember the midwife checking me the first time and was surprised I was dialated to a 9 already and telling me there wouldn’t be enough time to fill up the pool for a water birth. The pain was intense. Beyond intense. Even though I’d labored for only a short while, I felt as though I’d already run a marathon. But my midwife kept that, despite my cries otherwise, I *could* do this. She kept me updated on what my pushing was accomplishing…why I needed to try to push a certain way vs another. Where my baby was in the birth process and what work I still had ahead of me to do. She supported me resting when I needed to rest. And pushing when I needed to push. She was my partner.

And in the end, she was right. I COULD DO IT. I did it. I pushed my baby out into the world. And in that moment,  I felt the amazingly triumphant…the best natural high I imagine life can give you. And it wasn’t just because I did it without an epidural. And once again, I didn’t have the birth experience I’d planned. There was no water birth. I didn’t “embrace” labor and savor every contraction (unless by savor you mean shouting expletives and/or the occasional vomit). There was no music or back rubs. But this birth healed my soul because I was able to stay in control. My birth partners (husband and midwife) were truly partners…not dictating, not ordering. Helping, supporting and <most importantly> telling me what was going on when I had no idea because I was too busy being in $@&%*!# pain.

First photo: Mom and Baby Jack

Awesome Life Moment

Hearing Ina May Gaskins speak on childbirth issues: $50
Having her give you good luck belly rubs: Priceless

Meatsauce for Spaghetti

I love an easy dinner and this qualifies.  It doesn’t take long to put together, can simmer until whenever you’re ready to eat and is easy to freeze for future meals. This is one I’ve tweaked from my mom’s Spaghetti and Meatballs recipe…that recipe is OMGdelicious, but making meatballs is just too time consuming when you have a toddler running around. As soon as I get both hands meat-deep to make a ball, she’ll figure out how to pop the safety cover off an electrical outlet. So, until the kids are a little older, meat sauce it is.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 16 oz cans of diced tomatoes (or 14.5 oz…whatever they sell these days)
• 16 oz can of tomato sauce
• 12 oz tomato paste (two small 6 oz cans)
• 2 cups water
• 4 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 (generous) TBSP brown sugar
• 4 TBSP dried parsley
• 3 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground pepper
• (optional) large can of sliced mushrooms OR 2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced and sauteed in butter

What to do: In deep pot, brown the ground beef. Add the onion and saute until soft. Add in the garlic for a couple minutes. Add everything else and simmer for one-to-several hours.

This Makes My Brain Hurt

We have a fabulous children’s museum here in town. No, not a museum about children or filled with stuffed children (ew!)…a glorious entertainment place FOR children. Where you can let your child roam free and be fairly confident they won’t topple a reconstructed dinosaur or leave their fingerprints on a priceless oil. Basically, someone took a giant building and filled it with crap that kids would love spend hours getting into (with an educational spin to make parents happy).

When Munchie was younger we spent a lot of time in the designated “Toddler Areas”…a lot of time. And, though I’ve never been bashful about nursing in public, I appreciate that they have a private space for mothers or nursing pairs who require more privacy. I even used it once when Munchie was in her highly distractable stage and would pop off to look around at the slightest movement or noise. A feeding in that busy environment would have lasted hours without a quiet corner.

While many more mothers are choosing to breastfeed their children, it seems bottles are so ingrained in our culture as the way that babies are fed, that even a giant sign for an area designated for nursing from breasts would have a giant bottle on it.

I’m far from a ‘Nursing Nazi.’ I did breastfeed Munchie well past a year and I do believe it is optimal nutrition for babies and beneficial in many other ways, but I get that folks formula feed or feed breastmilk via bottles occasionally/exclusively or any combination of nursing/breastmilk/formula/bottles. As long as a baby is fed, that’s really the important thing.

But regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, can we all agree that if you are using a room for nursing, a bottle probably isn’t involved? If the museum wanted to be as PC as possible and keep the bottle, then call it a feeding room and I’d have nothing to write about.  But to put use a bottle…it just hurts my brain every time I see it. I’m not saying they should have a breast on the sign, but, heck, the International Breastfeeding symbol is free to use.

Dear Museum, this symbol makes more sense for a sign on a breastfeeding room. And it’s free to use.

Granted this falls into the “trivial” category of “first world problems” but it makes my brain hurt, nonetheless.

Vegetable Beef Soup

I love soup. Love, love, love it. I could eat it every day. Unfortunatly, my family doesn’t feel the same way, but this soup is always a hit. Though I tend to increase the amounts of all the veggies and my soup ends up more like a stew. Or casserole. But, hey, it tastes yummy no matter how “soupy” it really is. I also love this recipe because you almost always have the ingredients in your pantry and freezer. And you can always sub out some veggies for others, though I think this combo is perfection in a bowl.

Ingredients:

• 10 cups beef broth
• 1 1/2 lbs lean beef cubes (or use round steak or chuck roast and cube it)
• 2 tbs olive oil or fat of choice (coconut oil here, whoop!)
• 2 (17oz) cans of diced tomatos (or 1 28 oz can)
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup sliced celery
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 8 oz frozen whole kernel corn
• 8 oz frozen sliced okra
• 1/2 to 1 cup elbow macaroni (optional)
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp oregano
• 3/4 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 bay leaf

In a large stock pot, brown the beef in your fat of choice. Add everything else except the okra and macaroni (if using). Bring to boil and reduce heat to simmer for 1-1 1/2 hours. Add okra/macaroni, bring to boil and cook until done (usually about 20 minutes).

This recipe freezes really well, esp if you don’t use the noodles.

Toddler or Fraternity House? Same difference.

I’ve come to the realization that living with a toddler is pretty much the same as living with a fraternity house. Not *in* a fraternity house, but if you actual take an entire fraternity house and consolidate all the people and activities into one tiny body, you have a toddler.

>>Poop, pee and vomit can happen anywhere, anytime and -on occasion- simultaneously.
>>Unintelligible words or phrases are the norm.
>>Pay no attention to where you drop crumbs or leave partially eaten food. This food is fair game to be polished off any time you re-discover it.
>>Clothing is optional. And, when choosing an outfit, it need not match. Or be clean/free of stains. In fact, the hamper is an endless resource for fashion choices.
>>If something isn’t broken, break it by throwing it at someone or trying to ride it.
>>Falling down happens a lot.
>>Fight sleep.  There’s way too much fun to be had at 2 am.
>>Most messes can be dealt with by ignoring them until someone else cleans them up. Alternatively, you can toss a blanket over it.
>> Live like no one is watching, but know that everything you do is probably being recorded on a smart phone and can be uploaded to social media at any time for the amusement of others.