Cheerio!

The little lady finally got to try Cheerios the other day while we were out to dinner.  At first she didn't know what to do with them and they just stuck to her chin.

And plooped out of her mouth.

When one finally stayed in, she seemed a bit perplexed at what to do with it.

She seemed equally confused when I put one in front of her, surprising because if you did this with just about anything else she'd try to stick it in her mouth.

Small, moist hands make eating Cheerios that much more difficult.

She ate two without too much trouble, but after her third ...

... she promptly threw up all the dinner she had just eaten.  Every last bit of it.

Baylor was unimpressed by the events.

Hopefully she'll get the hang of solid foods soon!  

Master Baker

Blogger is being stupid again and giving me fits.  Grrrr.

Anyhow, the other day we spent some time with my mom and sister, and Baylor got to help them make some peanut butter cookies for some meetings my dad has scheduled for this week.  Any time he sees the mixer out, my little man knows he is in for a good time.

He got to help open the peanut butter ... "righty tighty, leftie loosie".

And he decided that there wasn't enough brown sugar in the mix ... better add more NOW!

He helped plop the peanut butter in.

And wanted to add more brown sugar.

He loves to lean his head over the bowl, breathe in very deeply, and proclaim, "It's delicious!"

Mollie and I had fun watching Baylor's antics and gazing at her reflection in the mirror.

"Umm, Oma, is it supposed to look like that?"

Once everything was all mixed up, Baylor decided to stray from the recipe a bit and add a Clementine.

Mollie and I also watched the birds a bit ... I just love my parents' Looker!

Baylor still wanted to add more Clementines to the mix ...

... but he settled for lining them up in a row ...

... and then getting to peel and eat one himself.  (Which was much better than earlier when he just bit right through the peel.)

The cookies came out wonderful and were indeed quite delicious.

Have a wonderful day!

Early One Morning ...

One morning, Mollie woke up earlier than usual and got to spend some time enjoying all the toys she wanted!

Two balls ... all to myself?!  Sweeeet!

She even talked to me a little bit!

Much like her brother, she likes to inspect things.

And she probably would have done more inspecting if she hadn't gotten tired so quickly.

I enjoyed my time with my little early riser ... and she enjoyed a little alone time with Mama.

I Pity The Fool!

Baylor likes getting into my jewelry box - probably because he knows he isn't supposed to - and the other day he asked to wear my necklace.

I thought he kinda rocked it ... y'know, like Mr. T?

Funny kid.

29: Two Turntables and a Microphone

So, this week has been busy, but I'm finally getting around to posting a few pictures from my big 29th birthday.

Mollie was all decked out in a little pink dress, enjoying the heck out of her brother's old toys.

Baylor developed a crush on my cousin's girlfriend, Katie.  He's really developing his moves ... look, he's already in her lap!

GiGi and Mollie made faces at each other.

After dinner, Mom broke out our old Fisher Price record player and Baylor found his calling.

Ladies and gents, meet DJ Li'l B!

Ooh, and my dad got some egg nog (for me) and I enjoyed a little on my special day.

It was gooooood!

The ladies and I lounged a bit on the couch ...

... and Grandpa E read Baylor a story.

It was a wonderful day!

"Geez, Nicole, You're 29 ... NOT 19!"

Those were the exact words running through my head when I scrambled upstairs last night at 1:00 a.m.  I had stayed up writing the last blog post and watching The 40 Year-Old Virgin on Bravo, and I have to admit I did so because I knew I was going to have an extra hour of sleep in there (thank you, daylight savings time!). 

In the weeks leading up to my birthday, I have had an increasing distaste for the sound of twenty-nine.  It's just so close to thirty, you know?  Would I want to be nineteen again, though? 

NO WAY!

Nineteen was a rough year for me, but it was the beginning of a lot of defining years in my life.  Don't get me wrong, birth to eighteen were a great foundation and most of the reason I am who I am today.  But nineteen through now have changed that shy girl into the person I am today. And yeah, I can really pinpoint it to year nineteen because that's when I went away to college and everything fell apart.  Quite frankly, I'm lucky to have made it to twenty-nine at all.

I have likely been depressed since I was a tween; the symptoms have been present for that long.  But it took going away to college and having my support system over an hour-and-a-half away to really bring it out in me.  Suddenly, I was left with just myself, with no one to boost me up out of the sadness within me.  I had come with no friends from high school, so I was starting fresh there, and my roommate was just that ... a roommate.  Sure, I was making new friends, but no one wants to be the girl who can't stop crying, so I didn't share my sadness with them.  I just called my mom sobbing ... a lot.  (Again, very sorry, Mom; I know I've probably scarred you for life.)  A few old friends and my boyfriend knew about the sadness, but they were all so far away.  I even remember one friend promising to come visit me if I could go a week without crying; that didn't happen until the second semester of my freshman year, and even then I may have fudged it a little.  Most days, I just wanted that to be the last day - either the crying had to stop or I had to leave this Earth. 

I finally got help, got diagnosed with ADD, and starting trying to figure out which medication would help me.  At first they thought I was bipolar - a common misunderstanding when ADD is coupled with depression - and put me on meds accordingly.  But since I wasn't bipolar, they wrecked my brain and emotions; at one point I remember sitting at my desk, sobbing, pouring out all the pills they had given me to try, and wrestling with myself not to take them all.  Who gives a depressed person a bunch of different types of pills to try and then doesn't take them away when they don't work?!

Anyhow, I called someone, they talked me down from the proverbial ledge, and I stopped taking the pills immediately.  And I threw the old ones away.  And it was a start. 

The day I learned about dysthymia in my abnormal psychology class was the day I was diagnosed with it, and though daunting the diagnosis was quite freeing.  Suddenly I understood that the fog I had been living in for most of my life had a name.  And it helped my therapist figure out what medication to prescribe me.  At that point, I was saddened to find out I would probably have to be on it for the rest of my life, but now I have embraced that concept, knowing those pills help bring out the person I really am inside - beyond the stifling cloud of depression.

(I hesitated sharing all this, but I wanted those of you out there who are struggling to find yourself or to find happiness to know that it will come.  It might take a while, but you'll get there.  You have to be proactive, though.  Find help, seek out those who will stick by you, never stop learning about yourself, keep looking ahead, and know that much better times are in store for you.)

So do I want to be nineteen again?  No.  That time of my life was traumatic and sad and an daily upheaval of everything I had come to know.  I'm glad, and grateful, to be here at twenty-nine knowing what I know, being who I am.  Would I like to have any part of that nineteenth year back now?  Maybe my abs ... my belly button is constantly frowning after two pregnancies, and the tattoo on my hip now has a c-section scar clipping its wings.  But I got that belly button and that scar from my two kids, so I really can't complain. 

The long and short of it is, I'm happy to be turning twenty-nine today.  Thinking back over the last ten years, I have experienced a lot - I stayed at Albion for two years, then transferred to MSU; my boyfriend and I broke up and got back together seven times, then he proposed and we got married, moved to Dearborn, moved back to Grand Rapids, and now live three doors down from my in-laws.  I've traveled a lot: Wyoming, Hawaii, Italy, St. John, Paris, Cape Cod, and Florida a couple times.  A lot of love has been added to my life; beyond getting married, I've become an aunt to three, a pseudo-aunt to two, and a mom to two beautiful, wonderful children.  I'm more self-aware than I was at nineteen, and everyday I learn a little more about myself.  And I'm finally deciding who I want to be ... and I'm learning to love who I am.

Baylor: My Boy These Days

He's 26 months old now ... can you believe it?!  He's growing up so fast and is developing such a personality!

He loves it when I sing ... probably the only person on Earth (besides Mollie) who enjoys it.  Right now he's really into oldies, "Wipeout" and "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini" are his current favorites.

He's super strong, too!  He weighs about 35 pounds and I swear all of it is muscle ... okay, and he's got a huge head, so that probably takes up about 8 pounds.  But still ... he's gonna be like Sparty someday!

He's really into cameras these days, and he has become a master of the self-portrait.

He loves being in the kitchen and is getting more and more interested in helping out. 

And old toys he had outgrown are now the best things on Earth ... now that Mollie is playing with them.

Don't worry ... she wants to do whatever he's doing, too.

And he has developed a particular fascination with couch cushions.  He likes to get "snug as bug in a rug" behind ours at home, and my dad set up a little throne for him to enjoy the Grinch upon. 

Baylor's amazing.  Yeah, he's two and that sometimes means he makes a bit of mischief, but he's still awesome.  Everyday, he and Mollie make me feel like the luckiest mom on Earth.

Easy Dinner: Pretzel-Coated Chicken and What-I've-Got Rice

I haven't gone to the grocery store this week ... there I said it.  I've limped along with what we've got in the house and a few "could you pick this up for me"s to my mom.  So it's no surprise that last night, with the ground beef all gone, I was left with some frozen chicken breasts and a petrified look on my face.  What to do?  What to do?

I looked around, looked at the available recipes I had, and came up with this mash up of food.  Let's just say, I'm glad I decided to buy little bags of pretzels to give to trick or treaters and then failed to actually do so.

The first recipe is of my own creation but was heavily inspired by a more elaborate recipe from Woman's Day.  They used three different "chips", but I only had pretzels so we made it work. 

Pretzel-Coated Chicken

Serves 2 (well, two adults and a toddler)

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cups thin pretzels (you can use sticks, but I had bats and jack o' lanterns)
2 eggs
1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce (estimation - I honestly just shook in a bunch)
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Heat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  (Yes, do this right away.)

In a food processor, reduce pretzels to fine crumbs.  Transfer to a wide, shallow bowl and set aside.

In a second wide, shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs and soy sauce.

Pound out the chicken breasts until thin (1/2" thick, give or take) and even.  Dip the chicken breasts one at a time into the egg mixture and then into the crushed pretzels, coating both sides completely.  Set aside.

In a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until very hot.  Add the chicken breasts and cook until they are browned on the bottom, about 2 minutes.  Turn the breasts, then place the skillet in the oven.  Bake for 8 minutes.

And you're done!  That's it!  It was quick, easy, and totally delicious. 

Now, for my next recipe/creation. 

Like I said, I haven't been to the grocery store in a while and I was just trying to use what I had to make dinner delicious.  My husband is no doubt tired of eating frozen peas or corn on alternating days, and I wanted our side dish to be super healthy.  So here's what I came up with.  I thought it was delicious and am totally planning on making it again!

Nicole's What-I've-Got Rice

1 package Uncle Ben's Ready Rice in Roasted Chicken flavor, uncooked
1 14.5 oz. can no-salt diced tomatoes, drained
1 15 oz. can dark red kidney beans, drained
1 handful of diced yellow onion
1 Tbsp. water

Combine all ingredients into a large sauce pan and cook until heated through and the onions are done to your liking.

That's it!  Easy peasy lemon squeezie!  Hearty and delicious, it really went well with the chicken and packed a lot of protein-rich energy.

I hope you enjoy it!  We surely did!  Best of all, both of these recipes can be made in a hurry (as long as your chicken is thawed). 

Distraction (and a Random Picture)

I'd love to write more right now, but I am trying to work my way through a book (!!!) in whatever free time I can find - which honestly isn't very plentiful right now.  The book is called Delivered from Distraction, and it's all about coping and making the most out of life with ADD.  I'm planning on writing a post about it as soon as I finish it ... though at this rate, it could be a year from now.  Oy!

Anyhow, I thought I'd share a picture of Miss Mollie with you in lieu of an actual post today.  Isn't she the cutest?!

She just loves that superhero/villain ball of Baylor's! 

So what are you reading these days?

Evening Play Time

Almost every evening, our little family of four settles down for some play time. 

Mollie, quite often, spends her time studying whatever her big brother is doing.

We read lots of stories.

And occasionally enjoy a little time without pants.

Our kids are a little weird in that they don't usually go up to bed until 9:30 - which means they don't make it into bed until about 10:00 - so we have a lot of time to spend together as a family.  It's exhausting but wonderful.

What do you do after dinner?