Coleslaw Attempt

As one who's allergic to soy, the primary ingredient in most mayo... which in turn in a key ingredient in most cole-slaws, I haven't enjoyed that traditional "patriotic" dish in years. This year, thanks to the new 1000 Gluten-Free Recipes (Carol Fenster) given to me for Christmas by my Aunt Robin, and in honor of the Fourth of July, I am trying it out. We get so much cabbage through our CSA that I'm at a loss for what to do with it... you can only stuff so much of it into salads, you know? (p.s. I'll be doing these the old fashioned way, with knife & cutting board, rather than w/ a food processor)

Two recipies from which to choose:

Cabbage Coleslaw

(serves 4)

1 small head red or green cabbage, chunked & quartered

1 med. carrot, peeled & cut into 1" chunks

1 sm. yellow onion, quartered

3 T cider vinegar

2 T honey

1 t Dijon-style mustard

1/4 c canola oil

1/2 t celery seed

1/2 t salt

1/4 t freshly ground white pepper

1/4 t paprika (for garnish)

1. Working in batches, shred cabbage in food processor. Transfer to serving bowl. Similarly shred onion & carrot together and transfer to serving bowl.

2. Add remaining ingredients to processor & blend. Pour over coleslaw and toss to coat thoroughly. Sprinkle with paprika.

3. Cover tightly & refrigerate. Serve chilled.

Red Cabbage Coleslaw

(serves 8)

1 head (3 lbs) red cabbage, washed, cored & shredded

1/2 c chopped onion

1/2 c mayonnaise (I use safflower, canola or other non-soy mayo)

3 T cider vinegar

1 T honey or agave nectar

2 t Dijon mustard

1 t celery salt

1 t celery seed

1/4 t freshly ground black pepper

2 T chopped fresh parsley, or 1 T dried (for garnish)

1. Combine cabbage & onion in a med. serving bowl.

2. In small bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour over cabbage & stir with spatula to blend thoroughly.

3. Garnish w/ parsley. Chil for 2 hours or overnight. Serve chilled.

I shall give a full report post-production. :)

--Christina

Nursery Fun

Now, this will not look too impressive, but that's because most of the nursery furniture & fixin's will start as... scrappy and end as... classy. I hope. :) The two biggest furniture items I've been lookin' for used are a dresser that we could also use as a changing table, and a wardrobe/armoire, so that we can save the closet in there to use as storage (as it's one of 2 closets in a house with no attic or basement storage, and the only one available to guests when they come). Other furniture-- rocker or glider, crib, and shelves are either optional or will be new purchases.

My friend Ashlea is into refinishing or repainting furniture, and had offered to re-do any one baby piece as her gift to us when I first told her I was pregnant. So I took her along with me to search for the perfect dresser. Most were too narrow, too tall, too short or too expensive. We stopped in at the Preston Hwy Goodwill just because we were driving by, and Ashlea spotted It:

Ta-Da! Not only does it have the perfect sized drawers, it even has a tall armoire portion, wherein I may house a hamper or a cloth diaper pail. It was the perfect heigth and width, too. Just in need of some love and sprucing up. As we started just pulling off the badly-done paint, we realized that it hid a gorgeous finish... too bad the previous owners had ruined with paint! We also saw the original tag on the back, and it was intended as a child's dresser- go figure! Anyway, it is currently at Ashlea's being stripped, sanded and painted in accordance with the nautical theme we've chosen for "the Children's Rooom." Yes, one day Eowyn will have to share her "nursery" with any and all siblings, until we get another house. ;)

We also got some cute shelves and coat-hangers that my sisters will help me sand down & paint & make generally more cute... Goodwill is the place to go! (the most expensive shelf was $2.50)

Today I went to Hancock's fabrics to look for PUL, the fabric I'd need to create "wet bags" for our cloth diapers. They didn't have any, but were beginning a Fourth-of-July Sale that had most of their cottons 50% off, all their Simplicity patterns for $1 (usually those run about $13!), and many of their novelties (aka ribbons & buttons) reduced, too! So I decided it was time to snag the fabrics I'll use to sew all the baby bedding & room decor. I got everything I need to make 2 crib sheets (one navy, one red), 1 red flannel winter crib sheet, an over-the-rail organizer, and a quilt, plus patterns to boot! Can you make out the sailboat fabric and the eyelet? I can hardly wait to get my sewing machine back (a friend's borrowing it) and get started!

In a few months I'll post pictures of the finished products!

Family Planning or... Non-Planning?

As a new mom, I've been reading lots of books on lots of parenting styles... attachment parenting, "babywise" parenting, "gentle mothering," etc. I think Ryan & I have pretty much decided what will happen in Top Porch under Szrama Papa & Mama Rule, and that will be another post entirely. :)

One of the issues that's come up sort of tangentially in reading these things is the issue of birth control. I've thought about this one a lot for the past few years, reading different perspectives and trying to process each in light of Scripture. I'll try to post my musings here, without being TOO specific so that my Grandma & Mom can still read this. :)

On one hand, there's the post-modern consumer view that holds children as a convenience item, to be "fit into" the parents' lives if/when/however they deem best. That can mean delaying parenting as long as you want, having only one or two children because that's all your schedule can allow, electing to have any children born raised by others in day care so that neither parent's careers & social lives suffer, bottle-feeding merely because it's more convenient for the mom, not disciplining in love because "it's too stressful," and even having abortions whenever a child wouldn't be convenient or desirable. In this mindset, children are little more than an after-thought, even if they are deeply loved and often spoiled. In many ways, this view of parenting puts children in the same category as pets-- there for your enjoyment, when you want them, if you want them, how you want them... or at worst as a burdensome byproduct of something you enjoy. Obviously, this is not Biblical. Children are made in the image of God, created uniquely by Him, and always on purpose. Abortifacients of any kind are unquestionably wrong: abortions, the morning-after-pill, IUDs, even some forms of The Pill. Scripture devotes a lot of space emphasizing the nuclear family- mom, dad, children- as crucial in our call to bring EVERYTHING on earth in submission to God's Kingly Rule. Biblical parenting takes time, effort, love, prayer, pain, and a LOT of wisdom.

On the other extreme, we have the "Quiver Full" movement, whose party line is that children are an unqualified blessing from the Lord, and that the blessing on Adam & Eve to "be fruitful & multiply, to fill the earth & subdue it" is a trump-card-command to every couple: have as many children as you can, or you aren't obeying God. This means that all birth control of any kind is wrong, as it impedes God's created norm: married couples having sex and so having babies. Christians are told that they must trust God for the opening & closing of the womb, letting Him decide how many children they have, how close together, and when. Not to do so would be rebellion or doubt of His goodness. In this view, children are THE goal of all marriages, the epicenter of God's plan for the salvation of the world. I said it was an extreme; clearly, I don't buy into it.

Let me briefly try to outline where I stand & why: Scripture is very clear that it is WELL-RAISED children who are a joy & well-aimed arrows; and that the converse is equally true-- undisciplined children are a heartache and no credit to their parents or their parents' Lord (see most of Proverbs). We are told in 1 Tim 5:8 that we are worse than unbelievers if we don't provide for our own families. Doesn't that include spiritual & emotional provision, not just food & shelter? I've seen the results of forgetting that each child is a BIG investment: I know two very large families who both adhered to the "Quiver Full" movement. In both families the mom was exhausted and left the raising of the younger children, as well as most of the house & garden work, to her older children. These kids -who never looked well-kept- though very bright, could barely spell, struggled with simple math, and were either emotionally immature or volatile. In one family, the older daughter completely rebelled and turned her back on her parents' faith, vowing to never have children, so bitterly short was her own childhood. In both families, Mom & Dad just didn't have time for them all. Does that sound like "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate." (Psalm 127:4-5) to you? Let each parent count the cost before he puts his hand to the plow!

It seems to me that each woman & man is given different resources by the Lord, and must steward them well. Not every woman can handle 9 children well. Not every man makes enough money to support 5 kids, nor has enough time to invest in 12 sons (come to think of it, neither David nor Jacob were very good at that one). It often actually HURTS the Kingdom when such parents pursue unqualified fertility, and leave themselves no energy for personal holiness or mercy ministry. As this blogpost points out, “Be fruitful” isn’t the trump verse of the Bible. If we were looking for the trump verse, it would have to be Jesus’ words to love God and love our neighbor. He already told us the main thing. (Question to myself: How well am I doing that?) How can we avoid one verse becoming the measuring stick of the condition of our hearts and the vehicle in which churches and groups are built upon?" One of her readers also had some good insight, from a husband's perspective:

"About the Birth Control, We were on the one extreme, absolutely no prevention, for a number of years, many of them while being single. After my wife and I had eight pregnancies in six and a half years, we started wondering about this whole concept. We now have six with us and three with the Lord. I love my children and I hope for some more, but I also know that if we do nothing, my wife will be pregnant almost solidly for the likely, next 14 years! Besides being emotionally draining, it is about to drive her insane with all the hormonal changes that her body is going through. We are now at the place where we are open to more children, but we must first put a little space between the children to allow her body to rest. No, I am not talking about ten years either! But an understandable amount of time.

Paul tells us to “dwell with our wives according to knowledge.” It falls to us husbands to hear our wives and to seek God’s face for what is the right road for us. No, it may not be the right choice for you, and I won’t hold you to what God is asking of me. But we must not make the choice glibly or selfishly."

There's quite a body of scientific evidence that children spaced 2 years apart are healthier, as their moms' bodies are able to fully replenish after giving every spare resource to Big Bro or Big Sis. Not to mention the health & ministry potential of the mom (and dad) being at stake! Knowing what the first 5 months of my own pregnancy were like, I know that it would be in some ways irresponsible of us to repeatedly put me "out of commission" for 5 months at a time, leaving my husband without a helper, my children without a mother, and my house in shambles. Ryan & I were fed & clothed throughout the pregnancy, but only barely, and I can't imagine doing it with a 2, 4, 6, and 8 year old to care for as well. They're a lot more high maintenance than Ryan is. :) So I'm praying that subsequent pregnancies are easier on me- maybe if they're boys?-, and if they aren't, I guess adoption will be our way to increase our family.*

What if farmers farmed according to this mentality: "Well, I haven't really looked into when the frosts are this year, but I'm planting in trust and faith. The Lord is in control of the weather, and I'm trusting Him. He commanded me to work 6 days a week, and I'm working now. If all the crops die, that will be His will, and if they succeed, that'll be His will, too. I'm in complete submission to Him." It sounds slightly ridiculous, though Christians would all agree that God IS in complete control of the weather, and that even our best guesses and observations (almanacs) can be overturned in a second by His will. Can you trust God and still try to "control" certain aspects of your gardening? Absolutely! God-honoring men & women have done it for hundreds of years. As Oliver Cromwell said, "Trust God, and keep your powder dry!" In other words, trust & submission to God does not negate doing the best you can with what He's given you on your end.

How does this apply to conception/family planning? Well, there are methods of birth control that allow a couple to space children, not out of selfishness or for convenience's sake, but for wholly godly reasons. Taking out all abortifacients-- which, yes, does include some forms of The Pill-- (and many doctors admit that we don't exactly know how "The Pill" works anyway), there are still plenty of options. My favorite, you could say, is known as the "Fertility Awareness Method." I like it because it works WITH a couple's bodies as God made them, instead of against them as chemical methods of birth control do.... I have enough of my OWN hormones to deal with, lol. (Some helpful websites: FAM, NFP, and 2 helpful books) I also feel like it allows more room for God to maneuver if He chooses, since there's nothing really preventing pregnancy, though of course He can overcome anything, even IUDs and abortions. Does the use of these methods & others like them require husband-wife communication? Oh yeah. ... Does it require abstinence at times (if you refuse even all barrier methods of contraception)? Yes again. Is that self-control and thoughtful, intelligent use of what the Lord has given you, aka a brain, knowledge of your own body? Yes! Are any of those things EVER condemned in Scripture? No way!!

Well, there you have my humble opinion on such things. Many godly people have differing opinions; even in our search for balance, we don't all exactly sit at the same spot on the see-saw. Hopefully this will help people think through things, though, and maybe come to a more Scriptural conclusion (even if it doesn't match mine, if you're thinking & reasoning according to Scripture because of something I've written, I'm happy!)...

Next on my list to tackle: parenting styles! :)

*[NB: keep in mind that I write all of this as a healthy, young wife with no indication of infertility, to couples in similar situations-- if I'd had trouble getting pregnant, or was getting older, you can bet we'd be welcoming babies to come whenever we could get them!!]

Third Trimester, Here I Am!

Thought you might like some photo updatage of the baby girl... yes, yes, we'll all be glad when I can stand aside and take pictures purely of HER! :)

I'm feeling great overall-- my most persistant complaint is low back/sacrum pain, but my chiropractor helps a lot, and I think the Pilates class I started today actually is, too. I wasn't expecting that! I start Aqua Aerobics tomorrow, hihihi, so I'll be finally getting some non-impact exersise. It's gotta beat going up & down those stairs at VBS like I did all last week. Phew!

So far, no swelling or scary symptoms... just goin' on like I have been, remembering that there are some things my abs just don't want to do anymore, lol. I may be starting my "nesting" bug, I don't know-- I am organizing and sorting and looking for baby furniture. Ashlea & I found a great dresser (which will be a changing table) at Goodwill today, after not too much searching. We'll do some work on it, and voila! Now to find an affordable armoire to refinish... I love being pregnant, and I think I will love holding her in my arms even more. :)

Marriage to the Man :)

I came across this article, written by a wedding planner on "warning signs" she sees in couples as they plan their weddings (I of course thought of The Wedding Planner where she pegs those whose marriages will fail based on the color of the bridesmaids' dresses and the couple's "song"). It's pretty interesting-- I highly recommend reading it and thinking about it, whether you are about to get married, are a newly-wed, or are a veteran. It got me thinkin, anyway. (I'm so glad I let Ryan choose his own cake! ;D)

We celebrated my groom's first Father's Day last Sunday, and it was so fun! I made GF Monkey Bread for breakfast, and his favorite meal (Hobo Casserole), and closed out the day with homemade strawberry ice cream (again his favorite)- we tried adding chocolate chunks this time. Éowyn got her daddy a CD she thought he'd like (the newest Casting Crowns CD), and I made the card. =D She also featured in a bookmark we made together for him-- her sweet little ultrasound picture at the top!

For our entertainment, I interviewed the Dad-to-Be. My friend Lauren's wedding shower was the previous day, and as a shower game they'd interviewed the groom (q's like "What's his favorite dessert?" "What was the name of his first pet?" "What's his favorite meal that you've made?" "What was your first date like?" "What's been his favorite of your dates?") and then asked the bride the questions to see how well she knew her intended. Lots of us there were like "Woah! I don't know if I could answer all these about my husband!" So I interviewed mine and have tucked away the answers into my brain and journal-- a girl's gotta know these things! Plus it was fun to ask him and see if I could guess his answers. Couples need to be students of each other-- my goal is to be an expert in Ryanology. And it's not like it's an onerous task; Thompson Dating Rule #1 is: "Only date those whom you find interesting and attractive" (not kidding- it really is one of The Three Rules)!

Celebrating Ryan's entrance into Fatherhood was an extra blessing for me as his wife because it made me look around at all the little ways he shows love and care for me now, and not only give thanks for that, but realize what a loving dad that means he'll be! I thought of how he got me a sprayer head for our hose as a surprise, so I don't have to wear my thumb out watering our garden every morning. I'd never mentioned it and hadn't asked for it, and one morning I went out to water the plants, and voila! there it was! (hehehe and I totally soaked myself in the face trying to figure out how to use it. THAT was funny.) I remembered how he went to Blockbuster & got me Meet the Robinsons when I had a random hankerin' to watch it last week. Surrounding me are the walls recently-painted to suit my tastes, the best wall being the red one... the wall he had to give 4 coats to get the color to stick... I thought of how he took me out to dinner at Los Aztecas on my whim last week, just because I was tired after VBS and it sounded so nice to eat out (we ended up going with another couple & some other friends and had a great time). Oh yes, and the way he vacuums every Sunday after Care Group so I don't have to worry about it. Things like that are so small and so mundane, which is precisely what makes them reassuring and heart-warming. I love Éowyn's daddy, and can't wait to watch him love her like he lavishes love on me, her mama.

I'm wanting to love him better-- to pray diligently for him, and to ask him every day what one thing I can do to help or serve him that day (advice I received from an older happily-married friend). We've had fun reading these silly quizzes in Babytalk and Parenting magazine, too. They get us talking and analyzing each other and just being goofy...such as the "What's Your Dad-Style?," read over Blizzards at DQ one sticky night. Apparently Ryan is a mix of "The Consciencious Provider" and "The Clueless Wonder." lol. Hmmm. So is he a Clueless Provider or a Consciencious Wonder? =D Other fodder for conversation lately has been the Bradley Childbirth material & stuff we get in class... more "what do you think of ___" type questions.

Well, my Lovely is in Denver this weekend and I am all alone. Well, not really alone-- Miss Princess reminds me of her little presence with sweet kicks (just got one) and not-so-sweet acid reflux after every meal... and this morning woke me up at 4 a.m. to eat... of course I couldn't go back to sleep, so I'm headed to bed now (I already had a 90 min. power nap). I'm already waking up every night to feed the baby, and she isn't even born yet!

Missing you, Ryan, and glad you're coming home soon,

--your happy wife

Diaper-Induced High :)... how you could save, too!

So... I just had the fun of researching, price-shopping til I'm dropping, and then buying my very first 2 orders of cloth diapers!! I know, you can tell I'm a mom now. :) I'm also keeping a hawk's eye on craigslist.com for a dresser I can use as a changing table...

After hounding all my cloth diapering friends for advice, I've decided on doing semi-disposable (gdiapers) for the first 6 weeks (you know, when I have no desire or energy to do laundry), then mostly prefolds (the old-fashioned white ones you used to have to pin) with cute covers, along with some "pocket diapers" (like a disposable except you still stuff them with a prefold, and then wash both) for babysitters, lazy days, and church. These are the most economical... the savings compared to disposible diapers (especially if you buy them new and use them for 2 or 3 babies, as we plan on doing) are in the 1000s of dollars! Being a minimalist, list-writer, and penny-saver, this is a fun project for me for sure!

Anyway, I caught one deal on craigslist for a combination of pocket diapers and covers, and even though the diapers are used (and so probably won't last as long), the whole lot of 12 diapers was only $50 (that's a great deal, FYI), and the variety will help me decide which brand fits my babies best... I'm not sure if our firstborn will be a long skinny baby like me, or a tubbier one like Ryan. Makes a difference! Then I was able to snatch up some deals at diapers.com, along with coupon codes... for $37 I got a gdiaper starter kit and 2 fuzzibunz pocket diapers... WOW!!

For anyone wanting to duplicate it, here's how I did that: first, orders originally over $50 qualify for free shipping (a bonus), then, new customers can input a "referral code" for $10 off (just email me and I'll give you mine), and THEN you can fill out a form & mail it in to turn down the free Parenting Magazine subscription for a $15 rebate! So basically you get $25 off whatever you ordered, plus free shipping. Very nice. So now I'm feeling quite excited and will be having BIG FUN when it all gets here!!! One friend recommended trying it on a baby doll, and I think I will, just for kicks!

Off to check out a dresser...

On the Agenda for Next Month...

...making my own laundry soap! Several friends have suggested it, and after seeing prices of washing soda & borax (the two prime ingredients), it would be stupid of me NOT to try it... especially since these recipes don't look time-intensive or hard! (especially making the powdered variety)

If anyone else wants to try, here are two sites! Making Homemade Laundry Soap and 10 Homemade Laundry Soap recipes.

I have read you can also add Oxyclean to the mix if need be... or I guess you could just throw it into the washing machine as usual.

Good word after VBS is over

“Be content to be nothing, for that is what you are. When your own emptiness is painfully forced upon your consciousness, chide yourself that you ever dreamed of being full, except in the Lord.”- Charles Spurgeon

Fuzzibunz Diaper Giveaway!

All you cloth-diapering moms out there, here's a giveaway you might want to enter!