What We've Been Into, Upto and About this Month (February Edition)

I know February is only 2 days shorter than other months, but for some reason it seems to fly by every year and before we know it March is upon us.  We hadn't seen rain in ages until these past two days, so February felt more like springtime with 70 degree days, crystal clear skies and lots of outdoor play time.  There may be some drawbacks to Southern California, but the weather isn't one of them this time of year!  (We won't talk about October when it is still over 90 here and dry and smokey and the rest of the country gets fall!)  Here's what has been happening in our kitchen, on our bookshelves and elsewhere this month...

Reading:
Reading for me is often feast or famine.  I seem to have seasons where I fly through books and then other seasons where I don't have any interest in reading anything; where I feel tired and drained and can't seem to make progress in a book.  These past 2 months I've actually read quite a few books that I really enjoyed & would highly recommend.  Since I didn't write a post in January, here's what I've made my way through in this new year.

Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis by Kimberlee Conway Ireton I wanted to read this one because it's written by a friend of mine, and I adore her, her family and her writing.  I loved this book.  Kimberlee and her family attend the church I am "under care" of in Seattle (has to do with the ordination process), and I've known them for a long time.  In her memoir she shares her journey as a mom of two, wanting to be done with having children when she finds herself pregnant with twins.  She is honest, funny, and incredibly thoughtful as she sheds light on what postpartum depression can look like, where God is in the midst of all this, how her faith community literally carried her through the twin's first year, and how there is no shame in asking for help when depression strikes.  After I read it I knew other moms needed to as well, and we chose it as our book club book for MOPS this semester.  I can't wait for our discussion night in May to hear what others thought!  I also may have loved this book because I know so many of the people she mentions, and I know where she changed names, which is just fun as you read a book!

Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan This was one of our January book club selections and while I couldn't make the discussion I really enjoyed reading this book.  I think most of the group did as well.  It's the perfect style of mystery for me--nothing creepy or gory but more of a puzzle, like The DaVinci Code or other Dan Brown style books, which I really enjoy.  It's a super quick read that merges the world of technology and ancient literary traditions if you will.  Definitely a fun read!

The Rosie Project:  This was our February book club selection and almost all of us really enjoyed it.  All we kept saying about it was it was "adorable," it was a super cute romantic comedy in book form (rumor has it a movie might be in the works, it would be such a sweet movie if that happened!) Don, the protagonist, is a gentleman with Aspbergers and has decided to find a wife.  His quirks and routines endear the reader to him almost immediately, but he struggles to get to a second date with women. Through the help of some interesting friends, a few twists of fate, and a lot of learning and growing on Don's part, he embarks on quite the journey towards finding love.  It was the perfect February read!

When We Were on Fire by Addie Zierman I had been waiting and waiting for this memoir to come out.  I have loved Addie's blog "How to Talk Evangelical" since I stumbled upon it over a year ago, and this is her story in book form.  Addie is almost my exact same age, and grew up in an evangelical culture much like the one I found myself in.  It's her story of journeying from being an "on fire" high school student to dealing with depression and alocholism in her early 20s, to finding her way back to making peace with the Christian community again.  It's a story of what can happen when we are perhaps a bit too over-zealous in our faith when we're young, without the developmental ability to sift through what might be good vs. incredibly harmful (manipulative or even abusive) theology.  I loved this book.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett: Do you ever have those books that you know you are supposed to love because everyone else did, but you just can't get into them?  That was this book for me, for years.  Every time I visit my parents I pick this up off my mom's bookshelf and try to read it.  And every year I couldn't make it past chapter 1.  This time around I picked it up and made myself sit and read for a full hour, to get into the story, and I found that once I did I flew through it.  I will say it's still not my favorite book, but it was beautifully written and had some incredibly engaging characters.  It's been out for a long time though, so most of you have probably read this long ago!

The Antelope in the Living Room: The Real Story of Two People Sharing One Life by Melanie Shankle Apparently reading people's memoirs this year has been a theme of mine.  Melanie writes a blog I've followed for awhile (BigMama) and this is her second book.  Her first book was an hysterical story of parenting and this one is on marriage.  I love reading other people's stories, it makes my own experiences seem "normal," like "oh they have that discussion in their house too??" Yes, her hunting husband actually hung an antelope head in her living room while she was away.  She's real, she's funny, and she weaves the grace of God through the whole book.  Definitely a fun read!

Apparently I'm on a roll for 2014!  That seems to be almost as many books as I read in all of 2013!  Next up on the list are Grace Based Parenting, The Invisible Thread, Ender's Game, and Think Orange (a family ministry book).


Watching:
Of course the Olympics garnered quite a bit of our attention during February, but actually not as much as I thought I would watch.  I think I get frustrated with having to watch snippets of whatever NBC decides to show me.  And with a child who wakes up about 6 (and sometimes throughout the night still) there is no way I could stay up til 11 multiple nights in a row! My must-see TV for January and February have consisted of Nashville, Parenthood and I just watched the pilot of About a Boy on NBC and thought it was adorable.  I never actually watch these shows "live" since they don't start til after 10, but I play them over the course of the next week while I clean the kitchen or fold laundry.  Charles and I are also still plugging through The West Wing and have made it to about the mid point in season 5 (out of 7 seasons--we are getting there!)  Season 5 is where the writers changed and I'm sad to say I can tell a difference. The pace is slower, it's not keeping my attention quite like it did, but I still love the characters and we're committed to finishing!

I found myself home alone for both 3 days weekends this winter and watched several movies in the evenings while he was gone.  Craigslist Joe was a documentary I watched and LOVED.  A guy decides to live for a month based solely on what he can find on Craig's List--shelter, food, rides, volunteer opportunities etc.  It completely restored my faith in the kindness of strangers.  When Charles was gone over Valentine's Day weekend the college girls I hang out with hooked me up with The Proposal and He's Just Not that Into You--two very cute romantic comedies.  Last night we finally watched a movie I've been wanting to see for awhile now--The Way Way Back.  I loved it.  It was by the same studio who did Juno and Little Miss Sunshine, two other films I really liked.  Back in January I watched The Butler with my parents and I think I was the only one who truly enjoyed it--I think they thought it was a bit choppy, but I enjoyed the history and the story.  I honestly think that is more movies than I watched in all of 2013...apparently this winter has found me with more free time since I'm reading more and watching more (or maybe I've given up having a clean house with a toddler and have stopped trying as hard!)

Listening: I just discovered Mat Kearney (I know, WAY after the rest of the world) and can't get enough of his music.  He along with Ed Sheeran (another new discovery for me this winter) have made up my Pandora playlists these past two months.  Anyone else have any other similar artists I should check out?

Cooking: I learned how to make my own chicken stock from a chicken carcass this winter and my husband could literally eat homemade chicken noodle soup every single night.  It is amazing to me how different it tastes than the canned broth. I started by using the bones from the roaster chickens you buy in the deli, and would make broth in my crock pot overnight, and then soup the next day (also in the crock pot--SO simple!).  Last week I got brave.  I bought a raw chicken and was determined to figure out how to cook it myself.  I discovered on pinterest that you can cook a chicken in a crock pot, so I went ahead and gave it a try.  It was SO good.  A tiny bit dry, but I put it in way too early, which was my own fault.  This is the recipe I followed and would absolutely do so again!  So I cooked the chicken Saturday, made the broth overnight in the crock pot Saturday night and then turned it into soup Sunday after church.  My $6.00 chicken fed 7 of us Saturday night and gave Charles, Aidan and I soup for a few days.  Totally worth it!  In January I was super sick two different times and this homemade soup was all I wanted to eat--so soothing.  I feel quite domestic saying I make my own chicken stock--that is definitely not something I thought I would EVER do!


Travel: New Year's found us in the Fresno area visiting with my sister and her in laws, and probably infecting all of them with our germs since both Aidan and I were battling a nasty bug that week but didn't realize it until we were already there.  Lets just say I rang in the new year in bed with a fever...my two year old right next to me with the same fever.  Good times.  Aidan and I headed back to Minneapolis at the end of January for 9 days when my mom had surgery.  It was so unbelievably cold you could not leave the house.  My out-door loving toddler did not understand why he couldn't go play outside.  (Because mommy does NOT love the -15 wind chill thank you very much!)  My sister brought her girls up for a couple days and the kids had a ball.  Aidan asks daily when we're going to have "shoe parades" with Lily & Brooke (the kids kept trying on my parents shoes and parading around the house in them). Our next trip is at the end of March for a quick weekend trip to Denver to see my grandparents.  They have been asking for Aidan to come back to their house (he was last there a year ago) and I am really looking forward to seeing them and all my cousins who live in that area (with all their little ones--to let the next generation of Hansons play together--or steal toys from one another and scream at each other...)

Around the Blogging World:
My two favorite blog posts I read this month were:
Why Our Response to Coke's America the Beautiful Matters by Beth Woolsey
I LOVED this post--for the record I loved the Superbowl ad, and was shocked when I learned how much controversy it caused, but this response to that controversy is spot on.

Save Your Relationship: Ask the Right Questions by Glennon Melton Doyle


Whew!  It's been a busy two months!  I'll be amazed if anyone is actually still reading this!  I mostly write these posts because I really do love getting to look back and see what kinds of things make up my life in various seasons.  So until next month, happy savoring of the little things that make life beautiful my friends!

As always I'm joining the link up at the lovely Leigh Kramer's page!

The Best of 2013

I love the idea of a new year.  Each Christmas break I generally find myself motivated to examine the different areas of my life and make goals for growth in each area.  I take time to journal and pray and think about this next year.  This year was a bit of a different story.  For the first time I feel as if I haven't stopped running since Thanksgiving.  I haven't done any reflecting, goal setting, menu planning, house cleaning or preparing for a new year.  I feel as if we've been in survival mode around here a bit--running from one event to another, traveling, preparing for Christmas, hosting others, grading a massive stack of papers, hosting parties, preparing for Aidan's birthday and other things I'm sure I am forgetting.  Rather than entering the new year fresh and ready to take on a new task, I find myself limping across that starting line.  December 31 found me in bed with a 102 degree fever, and here it is 3 weeks later and I've been battling sickness #2 of the year.  Forget menu planning and organizing, it's been Mickey Mouse chicken nuggets, chicken noodle soup and Mac n Cheese around here!  I love taking time to look back over the past year and record some of the high lights, but I never got the chance to do so in all the busyness.  I have a few minutes free right now, and thought I'd take a quick look back at some of my favorites from the past 12 months.  None of this is earth shattering, but mostly I enjoy having this written down so in the future I'll remember the words, sounds, songs, and events that shaped this year.  So without further ado, here are the things I loved in 2013.

Books:  This has always been my favorite category to look back at, and many of you know I've tried reading the number of books each year that correlates with my age.  Yeah well, then I had a toddler.  I didn't come close to the 32 books that would have been my goal this year, but that's okay.  I made it through 17 books this year, and most of them were really good.  I started and stopped a few others, realizing that I now had such limited time to read I wasn't going to waste it on a book that didn't hold my interest.  But I finished 17, and out of those, here are the top 5 I'd recommend:

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

Bread & Wine by Shauna Niequist  

Sister of my Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

When We Were on Fire: A Memoir of Consuming Faith, Tangled Love and Starting Over by Addie Zierman 

I wasn't the only one who did a lot of reading this year though!  Aidan is turning into quite the little story-listener and here were his 5 favorites from the year--and mom and dad loved all 5 too, no annoying kids books on this list (you know, in case you need to ever buy a gift for a 1 year old boy--these were all well tested in our house!)

The Little Blue Truck

Steam Train, Dream Train

Good Night Good Night Construction Site

Bear Snores On

The Good Night Train

Movies: I saw exactly 2 movies in the theater this year, one in January and one in November.  Hello, life with a child!  In January I saw Silverlining's Playbook and LOVED it, and in November we saw Catching Fire which I also really really loved.  I guess Jennifer Lawrence is a common theme of this year for me, she was phenomenal in both films.  We ended up not renting a ton of movies this year either because we got sucked into watching The West Wing back in May, and have been working our way through each season.  We're up to the middle of season 5 with a couple more to go, so that's been taking our priority when we have tv watching time.  We did rent Lincoln and Argo, and if you haven't seen them they are both absolutely worth it.  But most of America probably saw them in the theater, so yes, we are way behind the times!  (I do have a Pinterest list going of everything I want to watch but Netflix on-demand streaming doesn't let us watch the newer movies which is dumb in my opinion...so I'm still waiting for most to be available).  

Meals: I love beautiful meals, and more than that I love the conversation that happens around them.  It was a year of learning to cook new things, reading a few fantastic books about food, and experiencing a couple of fun outings to restaurants we hadn't tried.  Probably our "fanciest" meal was our 4th anniversary dinner back in March to The Castaway restaurant in the hills above Burbank.  We both enjoyed incredible steaks, wine and appetizers while watching the lights come on all over the city.  But I have to say I think the meals that stand out the most this year were the spontaneous ones we ended up sharing with friends.  One Friday back in August, only a couple weeks after we moved in, I texted a friend at 3 and said "you guys want to come over for hot dogs tonight?"  Two hours later our two families were together enjoying hot dogs, potato chips and watermelon, and it hit me, we have friends that live close enough now and we have a home large enough that we can do that.  And that's a dream come true.  The thai food trips after play time at Gummy the Bear with two different friends--I took Aidan the other day just the two of us and he kept asking where Luke and Sienna and Joshua were, I love that he equates going to get noodles with his friends.  The spontaneous backyard bbq held with other young families from church one Sunday afternoon.  And probably my very favorite meal of the year was our MOPS Bread and Wine night.  About 15 of us read Shauna Niequist's book and each cooked a different one of her recipes so we could taste them all.  The food was incredible but more than that I hadn't laughed so hard in a very long time, as each of us relished a night away from our kids, our homes and responsibility.  My soul was so richly fed that night--laughter mixed with the sound of clinking forks and the splash of wine in a glass as we shared stories around the table.  

Best Pinterest Attempt:  I realize this could be food related or not, so I'll share both.  The best pinterest recipe I found that is now in the regular rotation around here are these Oven Tacos  They are super easy, and incredibly delicious.  When you bake the taco shells with the filling inside, the shells soften enough that Aidan can eat them without me worrying about how hard they are and Charles went nuts for them.  We'd highly recommend them! 

The one "activity" idea from Pinterest I tried this year was this thankfulness banner in the month of December.  Aidan LOVED it, he kept asking to write on leaves (and every night when we asked him what he was thankful for the first thing he always said was "Adelaide and Ezra!"  He loves those kids!) I used her free printable to get the leaf template and cut them myself, which ended up being a LOT of work, so I might look for already cut leaves next year :)  But the fall colors made a gorgeous garland in our kitchen that I was sad to take down.

Travel: It was a year of taking advantage of the "kids under 2 fly free" rule!  2013 started with us in Hawaii with Charles' family, which was amazing and beautiful.  In February Aidan and I went to Denver to see my grandparents and other family members for a long weekend.  In April he and I met my parents in Sacramento and visited childhood friends and family both there and in Reno.  In June Charles headed to Costa Rica and Aidan and I spent 2 weeks in Minneapolis and Iowa with my family.  In July I hopped a quick flight up to San Jose and met my sister and her in laws at their home in Santa Cruz for a week while Charles was house boating at Lake Shasta.  The end of September brought another mid-west trip for Aidan and I--to Minneapolis and Kentucky this time to meet up with Charles' family.  Then we began a long stretch (2 1/2 months!) of not getting on an airplane until Christmas in South Carolina.  Our child LOVES seeing the suitcase come out of the closet and knows the drill at airports that's for sure.  He doesn't ever sleep well on vacation and it's usually exhausting for me, but totally worth it to see so many people I love.  This year's goal is to make it to the Northwest, there are WAY too many people I love in Portland and Seattle who I haven't seen in WAY too long!  I don't know when, but it's my goal!

Music: It wasn't the most eventful year music-wise.  I spent a lot of time listening to Elizabeth Mitchell and other folksy kids artists, and in December I introduced Aidan to my favorite Christmas song, The Little Drummer Boy.  Big mistake.  He's asked for it on repeat every day.  It is no longer my favorite Christmas song.  I discovered Daughtry's song Waiting for Superman, and for some reason I absolutely love it.  I don't know if it's the words, or sound but it is a great one.  I discovered the Derek Webb Pandora station and can't get enough of it.  Mellow, beautiful, worshipful songs that are a great way to start the day. 

Outings: I have tried getting out and exploring with Aidan as much as I can this year, now that he can walk and play it is so much fun!  And we've tried going on some fun family adventures when we can carve out the time.  The zoo was probably our most frequented spot, that season pass has more than paid for itself.  Aidan is obsessed with the play ground there, and I have to keep reminding him that the zoo also has these things called animals that we are going to see first.  I have found the gorillas to be my very favorite, and I really could stand and watch them for a long time.  Aidan and I are slowly learning the names of all the gorillas in the exhibit and he'll now point out Kelly (the big daddy gorilla).  We've found some amazing parks and play grounds around LA--any playground under the "Shane's Inspiration" design will be fantastic--all handicap accessible, lots of sensory things to experience, and ways to play at various skill levels.  I just found out they are building one about 1/4 mile from our home, complete with a splash pad and it will open this spring--we are quite excited!  We found Carney's Hot Dogs and enjoyed eating delicious dogs inside a choo-choo.  We stumbled upon the LA Holocaust museum by accident and were both in awe.  Trips to the train table at Barnes and Noble and Underwood Farms were our other favorite locations.  I love living within 30 minutes of SO many different options!

It was a year of learning, exploring, and growing, and we are looking forward to what 2014 holds for our family!

Leavin On a Jet Plane...Traveling With a Little One

Over the past two years that I've had Aidan, one of the most common questions I have gotten (besides "is he sleeping yet?") is "How in the world do you travel with a baby so much??"  The most common comments are "I would never try that!" Since I've been asked a LOT by moms for tips or things I've learned while flying a lot with the little one (by the time he turns 2 in January he will have been on 18 separate trips--and yes when I write it all down like that it DOES sound crazy!)  I thought I'd consolidate some of the tips and tricks I've picked up here and there for anyone who is doing any holiday traveling with a little one.

Booking Tickets:

So if you already have tickets, it's a little late for this topic, but there are a few things to try & keep in mind when choosing flight times. 

• I've tried both early morning flights and later afternoon flights, and I will say the early morning flights, while more brutal on me because I hate getting up when it's still dark, tended to be easier on Aidan.  The flights we've had that didn't leave the east coast until 3 PM or later just made for a REALLY long day for him, and made navigating his nap schedule with having to be to the airport early much more difficult.  However, the plus side is that if the flight is long enough you will eventually hit bedtime on the plane and hopefully he'll crash in your arms and sleep a good portion of the flight.  But leaving early is much easier--he'll arrive at our destination with daytime left to explore his new surroundings, he will nap on the plane, and babies are just generally happier in the mornings (at least mine is!)  So go for an earlier flight if possible and just know you'll be tired but it is better than being awake almost all day and then boarding a 5 hour flight across the country at dinner time! 
• Remember, it's free to take a baby on your lap until they are 2 years old, but you will need to pack the birth certificate to prove to the ticket agents your child is under 2!  I used to NEVER get asked--I probably got asked one time in 2 years of travel with Aidan, but now that I'm traveling with Asher I've been asked a LOT to prove he is under two.  So I always take copies of both my kid's certificates just in case.  Apparently an official shot record with the child's name and birthdate on it is also acceptable as an ID form but one time I didn't have either document with me and it was a problem for Southwest Airlines. 
• Don't be afraid of a lay over.  The layovers I have where I only get about 30 minutes are stressful.  Not only do you need to schlep baby and all your gear to your next gate but your little one will want down and to crawl or run some of his wiggles out.  30 minutes is not enough time to let him do this!  An hour and a half is a perfect amount of time to get to your next gate without sprinting, and let baby explore the airport, watch planes, get out of your arms for awhile, but it's not so long that your travel day feels unbearable!  I try my best to break up all my flights about half way. 

Car Seats and Packing:

If you're traveling with a husband or helper, it's not quite as big of a deal, but if you're on your own with an infant in arms,  the packing AND organizing of the diaper bag is a huge thing because once you have a baby on your lap in an airplane seat, you often won't be able to bend down enough to see the contents of your bag--you'll have to know where everything is by touch.  So a few things to keep in mind when packing.

• First, baby gear like car seats and strollers fly free--you can check these items at the ticket counter when you check the rest of your luggage and you won't have to pay for them, you'll just pick them up on the luggage carousel at your final destination (It's 2 pieces of baby gear per baby that goes for free).  
• Car Seats: You have probably heard that if there is an empty seat on your plane you can bring your car seat on board and have that empty seat for the little one without paying for it.  This is true, but my experience is that in this day and age there are usually very few empty seats on planes, so I haven't found lugging my heavy car seat along with everything else I'm carrying through the airport just in case there might be an empty seat (only to find out that there never is).  Make sure the people who check your car seat put it in a plastic bag!!  We have arrived at our final destination with a sopping wet car seat that had apparently sat outside on the tarmac during our lay over in a monsoon rain storm.  They have plastic bags both at the inside ticket counter and the outside curbside check in spots.  I have also learned the hard way that if an airline accidentally leaves your car seat on the run way in Denver, when you land in Burbank at 10:00 at night they will have a loaner car seat they can give you until they get yours back.  They're cheap and not awesome, but you won't be stuck at the airport. 
• For toddlers who will have their own seats on the airplane, technically the FAA does not require them to be in a car seat, however, while a pain to carry, putting your child in a car seat just as you would in a vehicle is by far safer than letting them sit in the seat on their own.  The lap seat belt just slides through the belt path on a car set, you put your weight on the seat with your knee and pull tight, just as you would install it in a car.  Your kiddo will also appreciate sitting up that much higher so he can see out the window easily and I've learned from many first hand experiences that it is actually much easier for a child to nap on the plane if they are buckled into their regular car seat just like they would nap in a car.  They are less wiggly, and there is something about being in the familiar that is helpful.   I've told friends to take car seats and they didn't and told me later they would NEVER make that mistake again--their kid would NOT hold still in the regular seat and settle into a napping position.  So for 2-3 year olds I always took the car seat on board.

There are 2 items that I absolutely could not survive traveling without--everyone has their "must haves" and these are my 2 when it comes to flying (especially since I usually travel without my husband).  My Beco baby carrier (this is my 3 year old niece modeling my carrier with her baby) is the number one item I used while traveling with Aidan until he was about 13 months old.  (He just got too heavy at that point to carry him and my carry on items by myself through big airports so I stopped using this when he started walking).  You NEED something to carry baby in through the airport and to keep him contained until you have your luggage and things situated on the plane.  If you are wearing your baby in a carrier you do NOT need to take them out at security--they will have you walk through a regular metal detector with baby attached to you and then they will swipe your hands to check for explosive material.  Both my boys would sleep in it if I have a nursing cover over him as well, so you can use it to induce naptime once on board by standing in the back and bouncing. This is also how I got away with never traveling with a stroller the whole first year--I just wore him everywhere we went at our destination--now that he's so much heavier that doesn't work but for the first year any hands free baby carrier is a must have when traveling! (Note, you are actually not allowed to keep baby in the carrier for take off or landing, but it is awesome to have one for mid-flight or the getting on and off the plane process.)

The second item that is my must-have once my kids got too big for the carrier to be comfortable is a contraption called a Go Go Babyz Travelmate.  Sounds ridiculous, I know, but it is brilliant.  If your little one is still in an infant car seat, this isn't necessary for you, but as soon as you start traveling with a full sized convertible car seat you need help.  Those things weigh a TON and I can barely lift it let alone carry it through an airport.  A Go Go Babyz is a set of wheels that straps on to your carseat through the belt path, turning it into a stroller of sorts.  I wouldn't use it as an actual stroller at a destination, but you can wheel your little one through the airport with incredible ease.  You do have to remove him at security, but then ask the TSA agent to hand check your car seat (so it doesn't have to fit through the metal detector) and you'll walk through the metal detector with your munchkin.  When Aidan was old enough to walk but still young enough to be considered an "infant in arms," I kept him in his car seat until we got right to the door of the plane.  Then I'd "gate check" the seat, and they would bring it right back to the jetway at our destination.  Now that he has his own airplane seat, I take it on board.  On a full sized airplane (Southwest flights...) my car seat is narrow enough to wheel him right down the aisle to our row so he stays constrained til we get to our seats.  They aren't cheap, but it is the absolute best money I've ever spent on a piece of baby gear just because those car seats are so darn hard to maneuver.  I got mine through Amazon and it works fantastically.

Other things I always take on board the airplane in my carry on: (sometimes I need some of these things, sometimes I don't, but here's my standard diaper bag packing list for flights):

• Enough diapers for 1 day--you know your baby's diaper-filling patterns, so plan around that with a couple extras.  I WAY over packed diapers my first few flights and ended up cutting way back for subsequent flights since they took up half my diaper bag.  If you find yourself in a pinch there will be another mom somewhere on board who can help!  
• A pack of wipes--great for diaper changes but also for sticky hands, spills, and the unfortunate day when my child threw up all over himself upon landing in Burbank one flight...I think I went through the whole pack of wipes and then carried him naked off the plane...
• One extra outfit for my kids packed in a zip lock baggie (so if there is a major accident or spilling of anything on him you can put the soiled clothes in the zip lock when you get the new outfit out).
• My nursing cover or light swaddle blanket.  Even if you're not nursing it's nice to have something to cover their little faces and bodies if they fall asleep--for warmth, and to block some of the light.
• Portable white noise.  If you have an iphone with a white noise app that works great. This is to place near his head when he does fall asleep because the captain will inevitably come on the intercom to point out some landmark as soon as your little one drifts off.  I've found having white noise near his head really does help him stay asleep longer with all the noisy intercom announcements.  
• A few toys.  Don't go overboard here.  Most babies will be completely entertained for quite awhile practicing putting the arm rest or tray table up and down.  They'll be fascinated by the pictures and bright colors on the safety information card.  Aidan liked to rip pages out of the sky mall magazine (hey when stuck at 10,000 feet with a 9 month old, you go with whatever entertains them!).  Ask the flight attendant for an empty plastic cup--they will chew on it, put things in it, crinkle it etc for a good 10-15 minutes!  I usually make a quick Target run before a trip to get a couple new books he's never seen before and one new easily portable toy.  That way whatever you pull out for him is new and exciting, but you certainly don't have to do this! 
• Now that he's a toddler, I pack some books, a sticker book for him to work on, and then the portable DVD player with some of his favorite movies.  He has flown enough he now knows he can't have his DVD player set up on his tray til we're up in the air and he hears the "ding" stating we're at 10,000 feet.  So we read books, look at the Sky Mall catalog (there are lots of kitties and doggies in there!), and do stickers until we're airborne (and then again when we're in our descent).   Play dough is also a great airplane activity for toddlers. 
• Snacks for BOTH of us!!  He loves his puffys and yogurt melts, and these will keep him busy for a LONG time!  Especially if I make him fish them one at a time out of a cup or my hand!  Don't forget food for Mommy!  Your hands will be full, so I've found that power bars with good protein, PB&J sandwiches, or pre-sliced fruit are the easiest since you'll need to eat with one hand.  Again not an issue if you have daddy traveling with you!  Most flights won't feed you any more, so if you're traveling a long distance, pack a lunch--wraps, sliced fruit, cheese and crackers with salami, all great airplane food.  You ARE allowed frozen ice packs on board, so you can use those to keep food cold or cool off your baby formula or breast milk. Note: You ARE allowed to take baby-related liquids on the flight--bottles of formula or breast milk that's been pumped and they are NOT limited to the 3 ounce rule other liquids must be.  Simply make a separate bag of the baby-related liquids and let them know when you get to the check point that you have baby formula or milk with you and they will screen that separately. 
• Sippy cup for him, water bottle for me--take them empty through security and fill with the drinking fountain when you get to the gate.  Babies little ears are sensitive on flights with the pressure changes so the number 1 way you can keep those open is to either nurse, feed, or let them suck on a sippy cup straw during both take off and landing. 
• My kindle.  He will end up falling asleep and so I like to have my kindle reachable for when he does.  I can read one-handed until he wakes up and wants to play again

All this really does fit in our diaper bag with careful planning (with the exception of a lunch box--now that he's in his own seat he technically gets 2 carry ons, so mine are my purse and diaper bag, his is the lunch box).  There are things others will tell you to pack, which you are welcome to, however I found they just took up space & I decided I could function without them.  For instance, I don't ever pack an extra shirt for me.  Some say this is a bad idea, but I've never really needed it and don't tend to have space.  Instead I dress for travel in 2 layers (a tank top under a loose long sleeved or short sleeved shirt).  If there's an oops on mommy's shirt I have another layer without taking up diaper bag space.  I also don't pack clorox wipes any more.  I used to try frantically wiping down all the germy plane surfaces he'd be touching but then I realized it was pretty futile.  He always went straight for the one thing I hadn't wiped down and it didn't end up seeming worth it.  I figure he's had his shots, he eats healthy, I just need to be ok with him exploring the plane even if it does kind of gross me out!

We have all seen the families with the stroller, pack and play, car seat, diaper bag and luggage trying to check in, and we have all sworn we wouldn't be "that" family and that when it was our turn we'd be the ones to travel super light.  The reality though is that there are certain things you need to have in order to make the vacation a success--baby needs a place to sleep, needs to be safely buckled into a car when you arrive, and may need a way to be contained at meal times.  Unless you're traveling to visit people who already own all these items, you'll need to take these things with you.  The good news is you can check most of these things on a plane and don't have to haul them through an airport.  It is worth asking whoever you are visiting if they have a friend they could borrow a few baby items from.  If they ask around at church or in the neighborhood it's amazing how many families do own extra baby gear!  (I haven't ever had to fly with a pack and play--everyone I have gone to visit has been able to borrow one from somewhere, or my parents went to a second hand children's shop and got one for about $25 to just keep at their house--and most hotels have portacribs you can use for free so call and ask before you haul one across the country).  To save suitcase space I don't pack enough diapers or baby food for the whole trip.  Wherever I'm going has stores, so I pack enough diapers, wipes and food for the travel day and the first day at our destination and then head to a store to stock up on anything I didn't want to use suitcase space on.

Other Random Tidbits:

Ask a flight attendant when you board if there is a changing table on the plane.  Southwest flights all have them in the front lavatory, they are fold down things over the toilet.  If there is no changing table on board you have a few choices.  If you're with other people from your family just have them stand up and lay baby across your two seats to change him.  You can always lay your changing pad or mat on the floor at the back of the plane if you need to in a worst case scenario.  

He may cry.  And it's okay.  No one will die from listening to your baby cry, and most people on the flight have been in your shoes (even if they shoot you dirty looks and act like they haven't).  You can always stand and bounce with him in the back of the plane if you need to, or walk him up and down the aisle to let him make new friends.  Sooner or later you WILL land and get off the plane and you will survive.  I've been amazed at how many people really are willing to help especially if you're alone. I've had other moms offer to hold him so I could use the bathroom or get situated, a flight attendant made him a rattle with a plastic cup, lid and pack of pretzels, a business man played peek a boo with Aidan over the seat back for WAY longer than I'm sure he wanted to, and countless people offered to help me put my luggage up above, let me use their tray table for an extra surface for my own drink to keep it away from little hands, and helped me get my luggage back at baggage claim.  

Why is all this worth it to me?  Because I want my boys to know their family as much as possible, and if that means every 6 weeks or so I deal with a travel day, well, it's worth it.  We survive the flight and then he has a blast with cousins or relatives.  Yes it can mess with his sleep schedule, and I do my best to follow his tired cues to know when to put him down (rather than a clock), and within a day or two he adjusts and we're back on a normal routine.  But to me, it's all worth it.  Happy travels my friends!

Sometimes Heading off the Path is Better

We are learning a lot as we continue setting out to explore this enormous city we live in, and today we learned another valuable lesson when it comes to exploring this morning! Thanks to the super cool book I wrote about last time we went out adventuring, we found another new place to play today.  We thought we'd take advantage of the gorgeous November weather (okay, it's almost too warm for me!) and packed up to head down to the Beverly area of LA to Pan Pacific Park, a public park that had a train theme to it.  Seeing as how our little guy is obsessed with choo-choos and we've had a lot of fun exploring the variety of public parks LA has to offer we thought we'd check it out.

The playground was pretty cool, although I'm not sure there was anything about it that made it exceptionally stand out from other playgrounds we've been to.  It did have a "train" to drive, but it wasn't quite what we had pictured.  Aidan did love "driving" but it didn't hold his attention for all that long.

 The choo choo to drive

Peek a boo!

He was too busy telling me what letters were on the sign to look at the camera apparently.

 

 The Pan Pacific Park

Exploring with daddy

Unfortunately, there was a little boy at the park who had a little ride-on car that my little "driver" got obsessed with and could not get over the fact that it wasn't his to ride.  So once he saw that and was told no, he wanted nothing to do with the rest of the park.  We had to change scenery, so I suggested we go exploring down some of the paths in the park.  We couldn't figure out what kind of "garden" we ended up in, but upon more exploring realized it was part of the Los Angeles Holocaust Museum.  It was very cool, a 2 minute walk across the park we had been in. 

So we kept exploring the museum, and found some powerful outdoor memorials...

A wall where you could places notes or thoughts into little holes, like a wailing wall.

Outside were huge pillars with some of the history written on them year by year throughout the WWII era. (That would be Aidan there in the background playing with the water fountain....hey whatever kept him occupied was fine with me!)

We wandered inside just to look, and found that it was a free museum and we were the only ones there at the time.  We obviously couldn't spend much time looking at anything with a toddler running around, but I snapped a few photos and we definitely would love to come back minus the little one.

Part of a display about the Jewish faith and monotheism.  This is a Hebrew scroll of part of the Old Testament which I thought was so beautiful.

It's a museum with very little to read, they really encourage you to do the audio tour (which we obviously couldn't do today), but this was the display of people who resisted the Nazis--Miep Gies, Anne Frank and Oskar Schindler being some of them.

Back outside crunching the few leaves that had fallen.

Our initial plan was to finish at the park and then drive over to have lunch at The Grove, but when we looked at our maps we realized The Grove was just across the park, so we loaded Aidan into the stroller and set off for a quick 5 minute walk.  We arrived at The Grove to find a ginormous Christmas tree.  I feel like it's a bit early for this especially since it was 80 degrees, but it was beautiful against such a blue sky! (Aidan was 100% NOT impressed by the way.  I had told him there was a Choo Choo at The Grove (a little trolley that runs up and down the shopping plaza) and he was busy looking for that.  Which doesn't start running til 1 PM by the way--we were there at 11:30--so needless to say someone was a tiny bit cranky about not seeing the choo choo AND not getting to drive the "little car!" at the park...whoops!)

I love the fountain here, I could watch it for quite awhile.

So could Aidan :)

We had a bit of drama figuring out where to eat--we were going to eat at The Farmer's Market but we ended up at Johnny Rocket's instead...not super unique but a place we all enjoy that was going to be fast, relatively inexpensive and with high chairs :)

Um and they have butterfinger milkshakes.  Definitely a plus!

Aidan is now officially a bit fan of "mook shakes!"

So today we learned is that sometimes the original "adventure" isn't all that cool, but at least in LA if you walk a few minutes in one way or another you will undoubtedly find something else worth exploring, which is such an awesome thing about our city.  We're looking forward to what our next opportunity to explore might have in store for us!

Aidan's Adventures

One of the things we're trying to be really intentional about as a family is having adventures together. We realized recently how easy it can be for a weekend to roll around and instead of thinking about what we want to do with our time we just kind of let it pass and pretty soon the weekend is over without us doing anything meaningful, memorable or fun together.  Aidan and I head out on a lot of adventures throughout the week--both of us get a little stir crazy just sitting at home so I am thankful there are a TON of places I can take him within 30 minutes of us that often don't cost a lot (definitely one of the perks of living in LA!).  However, daddy doesn't get to come with us very often, so if we wanted to start making some family memories we needed to be intentional about our Saturdays together.  It turns out that our first MOPS speaker of this year was a woman whose life's mission and passion was just that--helping families have fun, educational adventures together around Southern California.  Susan Peterson was an AWESOME speaker and shared her book with us, Fun and Educational Places to Go With Kids and Adults in Southern California.  She talked about the importance and value of getting out and having experiences together as a family, and exposing our kids to a variety of places and situations.  She was a homeschooling mom of 3 active boys who hated just sitting at home, so when her boys were young (they are now in their 20s) she just started taking them places, anywhere she could find, as part of their education.  She started writing down all the places they went and eventually it became a book (which is now in its 9th edition and 846 pages long!).  She motivated me once again to continue thinking outside the box and be willing to try new places and things (which isn't necessarily my strong point!).

So this past weekend, even though I was fighting a cold, we decided there was no time like the present to start working through her book (at least the LA County places!) and try a new place or two together. After taking it easy for the morning to rest a bit, we set off. We ended up choosing a free public park but it caught our attention as we flipped through the pages because it's name is Aidan's Place, named after a little boy with disabilities who passed away.  What's awesome is that her book is broken down by county, and then into categories.  So I went to the LA County "Great Outdoors" section to find a park or outdoor adventure for us, and then I went to the LA County "Edible Adventures" section to find somewhere fun for us to eat dinner.  Such a great book--if you are living in Southern Cal and need a gift idea for a family--this one is awesome and available on line--she tells you EVERYTHING you need to know about visiting a place--how much it costs, how long you'll spend there, if it's good for birthday parties, how to get there, hours, recommended ages etc!  Anyways! Enough with the sale's pitch :)  We started our adventure at Aidan's Place, a park in West LA, just off the 405 in Westwood Park. It was a fantastic park--fully handicapped accessible, which also means great for a toddler because there are fewer things for him to fall off of or have trouble maneuvering on his own.  It also has an amazing sand play area that is set up for kids of all abilities to be able to enjoy this sensory experience.

This kid LOVES to drive anything and everything!

I loved that the little boy whose name this park has spelled Aidan the same way we do!

Beautiful random park in the middle of a big city!

A great sand play area--kids who are in wheel chairs can still access the sand in buckets atop those platforms.

I love that I snapped the camera just as he was making the "thank you" sign to a little girl who gave him back his bucket!

After about an hour and a half of sliding, scooping, driving and running around we packed up to head to our next stop on the adventure--dinner inside a choo choo!  (We knew this would be a hit with the train-obsessed toddler!)  We headed to Carney's, which I'd never heard of but is apparently a famous LA landmark known for their hot dogs (and other yummy, but not so healthy dishes!)  There are two Carney's, which we learned the hard way. One is NOT as close to our house, on Sunset Strip, which of course is where we went.  The other is in Studio City, which is the one I thought my iphone was taking us to.  Whoops!  (she did tell us that in the book, but I wasn't paying attention when I pulled up Yelp's reviews....) Oh well, it was fun to see another part of LA--although the toddler stuck in his car seat while we navigated Sunset Blvd's Saturday afternoon traffic was less than thrilled...

 They took 3 train cars and turned them into a fast-food type restaurant that sells a variety of hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, chili-cheese fries (which they are famous for--and they were delicious!) and some healthier options--wraps and grilled tacos.  We would definitely visit here again, Aidan thought it was so good I had to go order him a second hot dog (which he ate--yikes!) so he'd leave my food alone! 

It was a gorgeous fall day, and we are all glad we had an adventure together--now we're looking forward to our next one!

Monthly Menu (October 2013)

Hey friends!  So meal planning seems to be coming up in a lot of conversations I've been having lately with folks (perhaps because in our crazy busy world we all have to be strategic about thinking through meals in order to make them happen!).  Several of you saw my random instagram picture with my cookbooks out and asked me if I'd share what I came up with and how I go about putting together a monthly menu, so I thought I'd share on here what I'm cooking this month, but also a bit about how and why I do put time into meal planning for our family.  Feel free to try any recipes--if you click on each recipe name it will take you to the recipe itself--either at another website or it will take you to my personal recipe blog, a blog I started awhile ago in attempts to organize and keep recipes in one spot.  I don't tend to use it as much any more (thanks to Pinterest) but I added several of these to that page for this month so you can find them if you'd like to try some of these.  Happy cooking!

The "Why?"
One of the questions I get is "why do you take the time to menu plan?  Don't you just buy a standard list of ingredients and then just cook what sounds good each day?"  I know that method works for some folks, but it really does not work for me.  Quite honestly, I menu plan because without a plan in place at the start of a week I get a little stressed.   We have a lot of evening commitments with my husband's job and various things I do at the church, and we have a little boy who likes to be entertained as much as possible, so if I waited until 4 every afternoon to see what inspired me or sounded good we would end up eating quesadillas every night of the week because they are simple and I know my child loves them :)  I love waking up in the morning knowing what is for dinner so if it's something that will be more labor intensive I can start prepping during nap time, or I know what kind of meat to pull out of the freezer to start thawing.  I also menu plan because if I'm inspired to make something like a soup, chances are there are going to be a few things on the recipe list I don't have.  I have tried substituting things and sometimes that works great, and others it's a bit of a train wreck, so I've learned sticking relatively close to the recipe works well for me!  To make multiple trips to the grocery store each week for random items I don't have takes a lot of extra time and usually results in way too many impulse buys that I don't need.  So for me, I need a plan in place by Sunday evening of what meals I'm going to prepare that week and what items I'll need from the store for one shopping trip I usually do on Monday morning.  We are not big "lunch meat" sandwich folks in our house, so most of our lunches are made up of leftovers from the night before (I LOVE leftovers!), so some families may only need to cook 3 times a week and eat left overs the other dinners, but our left overs usually go to lunches.  That means I do need to cook dinners most nights, but if the meals are simple I don't mind.

The "How?"
Everyone has a different menu planning method.  Some do theirs by the week, others by the month.  Everyone has different ways of narrowing down recipes and choosing what meals they'd like to make as well.  I have gone through cycles over the years of how I go about this, but what has been working really well for me this past year is to sit down during the last week of the previous month and come up with a menu for the whole month.  Why?  Mostly because I like to drag all the cookbooks, pinterest pages etc out once instead of every week.  It takes a bit longer to do 4 weeks of menus at once, but once you get a system in place it doesn't have to be super time consuming, and I love having it done and out of the way.  I can usually finish it all during one of my kiddo's naps (and he NEVER naps longer than an hour and a half on a GOOD day!)  I don't make 4 weeks of grocery lists at once.  I tried that for awhile and it took WAY too much time for me, so I have my meals chosen a month at a time, and Sunday evenings I'll look at the next 5-6 recipes and make my list for that next week.  

It can be overwhelming looking at the sheer numbers of recipes out there while trying to decide which ones to make.  Thanks to the internet the possibilities are endless!  I love cookbooks but sometimes I get so focused on yummy looking pinterest recipes I never open my cookbooks, and that makes me a bit sad :)  So the way I choose recipes (and have for about a year now) is to have each night of the week be focused on one type of food all the way through the month.  So for instance, some months every Monday is Mexican food at our house and Thursdays might be a night focused on various kinds of chicken dishes.  This particular season finds me in Pasadena working with a Fuller class every Monday & I don't get home til almost 7.  I needed to have dinner ready for my husband and little one much earlier than that, so for the next two months, every Monday night in our house will be a crock pot meal that Charles can serve to himself and Aidan when Aidan needs to eat.  My "themes" for each night change throughout the seasons as our schedules change and as the type of foods we like to eat throughout the year change.  I don't usually assign a night to "soup" in July, and December isn't usually when I have "a summer salad" night of the week.  Some of you are thinking I put WAY too much time into thinking about this but to me it's really fun coming up with new categories, and then it makes my recipe choosing SO much easier because I've narrowed it down a bit (instead of looking at all my food pins on pinterest I may only go to my "soup" board or the "sandwich" section of my latest cookbook).

For this month, here are my "categories:" 

Sundays are always leftover night where we clean out whatever needs to be finished before the next week starts. 
Monday: Crock Pot Meals
Tuesday: Family Favorites (I love trying new recipes but I realized with all the new recipes I try I forget to make some standby favorites like teriyaki burgers, meat loaf and roasted sweet potatoes, the lettuce wraps we love etc. So this month I dedicated one night a week to pulling out a favorite I know all 3 of us love that I know how to make easily). 
Wednesday: Soup & Bread
Thursday: Mexican food
Friday: Italian inspired foods
Saturday: Fancy sandwiches (we only have 2 Saturdays we're home this month).

Does that mean I always cook my soup recipe for the week on Wednesday?  No, things shift around.  Life gets busy and maybe my meatloaf that needs to cook for an hour needs to wait for another night that week while my pasta dish from Friday could be made in 20 minutes.  So we eat the pasta on Tuesday and the meatloaf on Friday and it's great.  I already have al the ingredients for both dishes so it doesn't matter what night they are consumed.  But it helps immensely in selecting recipes and then in having a bit of a structure to our week so I know we're eating a variety of things.  

Okay, without further ado here are the recipes we're trying this month.  I should say our family doesn't have any particular food sensitivities.  We're not gluten free or vegetarian or have any other specific dietary needs or allergies.  We try to eat balanced meals and round out each meal with salads or roasted veggies, but some nights we eat a super cheesy, creamy comfort-food enchilada recipe and I don't worry about it knowing the next night we might have a meal that is more heavily based on vegetables or a ground turkey chili.  Just wanted to throw that disclaimer out there since in our food-sensitive society we all have various preferences and needs!

October 1-6

Tuesday's Family Favorite Meal: Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps 
Wednesday's Soup Supper: Colorado White Chicken Chili 
Thursday's Mexican Food: Chicken Chimichangas
Friday's Italian Dinner:  One Skillet Lasagna
Saturday: Dinner out with friends!
Sunday: Leftovers

October 7-13

Monday's Crock Pot Meal: Crock Pot Kid Friendly Turkey Chili  

Tuesday's Family Favorite: Mom's Meat Loaf and Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Wednesday's Soup Supper: Italian Wedding Soup from Cooking With all Things Trader Joe's

Thursday's Mexican Food: Annette's Enchiladas from Bread and Wine by Shauna Niequist

Friday's Italian Inspired Meal:  BBQ Chicken Pizza from Don't Panic, Dinner's in the Freezer

Saturday's Sandwiches:  French Onion Grilled Cheese

Sunday: Leftovers

October 14-20

Monday's Crock Pot Meal: Crock Pot Honey Garlic Chicken 
Tuesday's Family Favorite:  Bacon Apple Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad
Wednesday's Soup Supper: Taco Soup
Thursday's Mexican Food:  Butternut Squash Quesadillas (one of my very favorite fall food recipes!)
Friday's Italian Dinner: so I'm at the women's retreat Friday & Saturday nights--I'll have to leave Charles and Aidan with something yummy so they don't starve!

October 21-27

Monday's Crock Pot Meal: Not So Sloppy Joes

Tuesday's Family Favorite: Teriyaki Burgers (SO SO delicious)

Wednesday's Soup Supper: Hearty Red Lentil Soup 

Thursday's Mexican Food: Classic Taco Salad (use whatever meats, beans, toppings you have in the house!)

Friday's Italian Dinner: Penne with Chicken, Broccoli and Gorgonzola

Saturday's Sandwiches:  The Pioneer Woman's Veggie and Cheese Bagel Sandwiches

October 28-31

Monday's Crock Pot Meal: Real Pork and Beans

Tuesday's Family Favorite: Chicken Gyros 

Wednesday's Soup Supper: 3 Bean Minnestrone

Thursday's Mexican Food: Baked Tacos (one of my favorite Pinterest finds this year!)