We Take a Field Trip

I don't know what got into me:  I signed us up for a field trip.



Why does something so simple cause me so much anxiety?  Self, you have to loosen up!

We had such a great day!!  We left the house right about at nap time--that's the right time to take your baby out for a field trip, right?  I was counting on it being okay, because Zack loves to be outside, and especially loves to stroll.

We went out to Landmark Park for {Homeschool} Harvest Days.  The weather was beautiful, and it wasn't overly crowded.

We started with cotton picking...  At each activity there was some teaching.  That was nice.





I love the South!

Did you know that cotton has beautiful pink flowers?   I didn't!

The cotton patch was right next to the sugar cane.  It was so tall.

Then on to the pumpkin patch.   The kids learned about how pumpkins grow:  on vines.  I thought that was funny, since these pumpkins had obviously been distributed in an old corn field.  Also, they learned about boy flowers and girl flowers.  I'm waiting for that to come back up, perhaps during breakfast some morning?  

Everyone got a pumpkin...





Even Zack...

Here, he's showing you:

This is the only picture I snapped of them all before I realized I was standing in a fire ant bed.  In my flip flops.

Okay, so the South may have some drawbacks.

We got to pick peanuts.  We threw them in a tub for the animals to eat.



Zack pretty much chilled out in his stroller most of the time.

The kids used some old fashioned corn shuckers to shuck corn.  That was neat.  It must get in your nose pretty easy...and require digging out.  (that's not my kid.  But it could have been.)

The kids loved the feel of the corn in their hands.  The lady helping asked if we had been to the corn box.  Eh?   We made note to look for that later.  Too bad I didn't get pictures of the kids with their fun bottle drinks from the general store, or their rocks they bought at the Nature Center.  We spent a good deal of time shopping.  After said shopping, and a nice snack, we found the corn box.  What bliss!  We had it all to ourselves, and even though the kids started out somewhat carefully,

they eventually dove in.

(Yes, and I'm not sure why Zack loves to chew on clothes pins so much, but he really does enjoy it.)







And now they want a Corn Box.  Don't you?

Sweet Potato Pancakes + Busy Baby

Things have been incredibly busy around here!  (Do I say that in every post?) But, life has gotten a little better since we started having pizza again on Friday nights.  Oh, how we missed our pizza.  We take a little vacation from our diet every now and then, and have not suffered enough to stop us. :) For pizza, I've been using a whole wheat crust that the kids rave about, and say it's the best pizza they've ever eaten.  Whether they believe it's the best because a) they were pizza deprived for months on end, or b) because it really is tasty is up for debate.  

We all agree on this new pancake recipe, though.  These pancakes are Gluten-free and Dairy-free and we all love them.  

Sweet Potato Pancakes

(Adapted from this "normal people recipe")

Mash together:

1 1/4 cups cooked sweet potato (more-or-less one BIG potato)

1/4 cup coconut oil

2 eggs

Dump in:

1 1/2 cups gluten free flour (I like Arrowhead gluten free baking mix.  Bob's Red Mill gluten free flour also works great.)

1 t. Xanthan Gum

3 1/2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

1/2 t. cinnamon (or more to taste)

Stir the above mixture a little, then Pour in:

1 1/2 cups original flavor almond milk (or other milk substitute)

Mix it all together until smooth.  Add more "milk" if necessary to get the thickness you like.  Make it into pancakes on a griddle or skillet.  Or, fry them up in bacon grease for extra flavor :)

Zack has been a busy, busy baby lately.  He crawls all over the house, getting into all the things he shouldn't.  The other boys were at least happy to sit in their swing and watch a movie when I needed to get something done, but not this baby.  Thankfully the big boys are a huge help, and love to take turns playing with him.

Soccer is in full swing again.  This year we have 3 teams to cheer for.  The boys are having a blast.  Zack loves to play in the grass while Tim and I chat with friends and watch the game.

Hopefully I'll snag a picture of William soon, and add it to the set!

We Like Mushrooms

I totally can't believe I like mushrooms.  But I do.  Why?

a) They are sometimes beautiful.  (Sometimes they are gross.  I don't like those.)
b) You don't have to plant them or take care of them.
c) They are unpredictable...you have to go out and discover them.  And they grow so fast!  Sometimes we keep tabs on them during the day.
d) They have made my child SO happy.

Some stick around for only a day or two...like these:








Some take almost a year to mature.  Remember this one?


Now, almost 2 months later, it looks like this:


Weird!

Speaking of weird, look at this one from our neighbor's yard...


Friends have gotten into the mushroom-hunt with us...they email and text us pictures, they bring them over in bags.  We did some mushroom dissecting the other night on one from a friend.  That was fun, because "we" would never have pulled up (or cut up) one of our own.






Can you see the slug crawling in the middle of this one?


We foolishly left that mushroom on the counter for a little while while we did something else.  When we came back, the slug (and his 3 friends) had vacated the mushroom.  Fortunately we found 3 of them at the far ends of the counter.  Number 4?  It crawled up onto my toes while we were gathering the others.  Eew.

Happily, mushrooms aren't the only plant-life we have been enjoying.  Tim and William brought home some succulents yesterday.


They made a nice arrangement in my castle planter.


Hopefully we won't kill them!


We keep them up where Zack can't get to them.  He is ALL OVER THE PLACE.  He turned 9 months old the other day, and cut in a new tooth to celebrate.  That was 3 days ago, and today is is already back to drooling over yet another new tooth.

We put him in a booster set at the island now, and he loves sitting there with the big boys.




If you find any cool mushrooms, let us know!

Blueberries and Our Diet

It's the tail end of blueberry season, and we took our first-ever blueberry-picking trip.  I think I'm addicted!


The boys took turn pushing Zack around in the shade.


Trevor hunted mushrooms...


Blueberry-picking beats strawberry-picking hands down.  The bushes were so tall, the lanes so nicely kept and clean, and the berries were organic and so delicious!  Warm blueberries fresh of the branch is my new favorite way to eat them.


I got over-eager when we got home, and I froze every single berry.  They were so easy to sort and freeze that I got carried away.


So William and I went back the next day, *without Zack*, and picked some more!


*****

We have been swimming a lot...it has been SO hot, and all the boys LOVE to hop in the pool at Grandmother Beth's house.


*****

Also, we have been enjoying our new microscope!


Trevor has found all kinds of things to look at.  He gets so excited about each discovery.  His favorite is finding creatures--bacteria--and watching them swim around.


*****

Zack is ALL OVER the place.  Phew!  I'm still working on getting the house baby-proofed, a little at a time.  Now that he can crawl, he is quite a bit happier--Finally!  He did cut in one more tooth before we left Nebraska, bringing the total for that trip to 3, and now he is teething again.  He is into everything, but seems eager to learn and pays attention when we tell him "no".  He eats everything we offer him:  blueberries :), cherries, kidney beans, pickles, tomatoes, taco meat, and nectarines are some of his new foods.  He is still a ton of work, but now it is mostly because he is so BUSY, instead of because he is so fussy.  Thank you God!

He loves to do what we do...like brushing teeth, and wearing a hat.  He had a ball trying on Grandpa's hat on our trip.  He would open his mouth so big, and be so excited...




He's gonna miss that Grandpa!


*****

Trevor is still doing pretty well.  His OCD did seems to flare up for awhile...maybe due to the vacation?  

I noticed something new this week:  his skin is getting smooth.  He used to have little bumps all over his arms, legs, back and face.  He hated it.  He used super gentle soaps, but we never really did anything else about it, except hope it would get better someday.

This brings me to our diet...

When we started this diet (gluten-free, dairy-free) it was largely from reading the Eat Like a Dinosaur book, written by a husband and wife (the Paleo Parents) who openly shared about their family's health issues.

One of the problems they mentioned was their son's skin--it was bumpy like Trevor's, and after being on the diet it cleared up.  That really got my attention.

Before we started the diet, I made a list of all our little (or not-so-little) problems:  headaches, back pain, skin problems, emotional issues, sleep problems, OCD.  About 3 days into the diet, I noticed Zack sleeping better.  Within a month, I realized that I wasn't taking ibuprofen anymore.  I had been taking it at least once a day for headaches.  And now?  I can remember maybe 2 headaches in the last couple months, one from sinus congestion, and one from driving in the car with 4 kids. :)  Also, William used to take ibuprofen frequently for his back...he was alway complaining of it hurting.  I was on the brink of taking him to a chiropractor.  Now he rarely mentions it.

AND, Trevor's skin is cleared up.  I am convinced it is because we have some gluten sensitivities and have gotten our diet cleaned up.

The first month on the diet was hard...we missed our old foods, and didn't know what to eat.  Now, we sometimes still don't know what to eat, but we don't miss our old food as much.  Plus, we are experimenting with how much wheat and dairy we can handle, and still feel good.  We can splurge on a pizza once in a while, and not notice the effects much.  I'm glad about that, because it is fun to eat pizza :).

If any of this intrigues you, or you want to know more, check out the Paleo Parents website for inspiring stories and nutrition help.