This is the year...

I started looking back at the last (almost) 6 months and I got discouraged by the feeling that we have "not done anything" this year. Knowing very well that this is not actually the case I decided to take a closer look and note some of the things we have indeed done, big and small.

This is the year...

1. We looked down at our hands and truly admitted that our thumbs are not even the slightest shade of green. 
As a result we drastically reduced our flower bed in the front yard, replacing the large patch that has been meant for nice and colorful flowers a much smaller patch with some green and white striped grass, oh and our lawn grew a couple of feet too. We no longer try to convince ourselves and others that we are able/willing to keep a nice and colorful flower-filled patch in front of our house staying nice and flower-filled. Just trying to keep the stripey grass and the new patches of lawn from dying was an accomplishment in itself. Also, we hired out lawn guy back so now our lawn gets mowed and our hedge and palm tree get trimmed on a much more regular basis and we are all much happier as a result of it!

A Winning Attitude

The other day at about 5 in the afternoon my 3 year old and 5 year old were running around the house burning off excess energy. They would start at the front door, yell "ready, set, go!" and take off running towards the fireplace. The first few rounds they did just that, running back and forth between the entry and the living room. However, after a while my 5 year old suggested they make it a running competition and my 3 year old gladly accepted the challenge.

Back at the front door, they lined up, yelled "ready, set, go!" and off they went! 

Brownies with fudge icing

This brownie recipe came about because I got a craving for donuts....logical right? Well, I really wanted donuts but was not about to start a hunt for some dairy free ones at the store because I knew I most likely would come up short and be disappointed. Therefore I searched for a dairy free donut recipe in order to try to make some. Well, I do not have a fryer so I modified my search for the baked kind and I came across a recipe on brooklynfarmgirl.com which seemed very promising.

I made a couple of modifications and decided to try to bake them in a brownie pan since I do not have a donut pan anyhow. Despite them not having any resemblance to a donut they turned out a success if I may say so myself.

They are a cake-like, not fudge-like, allergy friendly and very good brownies! They are quick and easy and they are dairy free, corn free, egg free, nut free and salicylate safe. They could probably also be chocolate free if you use carob powder, and gluten free if you substitute the regular flour for gluten free. And even though they are free of a lot they are full of chocolaty flavor and they were a hit with both kids and adults at our house.

Not Just Any Oatmeal Cookie

I baked some yummy oatmeal cookies last week and I want to share the recipe with you. You have to keep an open mind about these because they are quite good, despite their somewhat odd list of ingredients. Most importantly, they are the perfect protein boosted treat/snack for my food sensitive children.

The original recipe for Lady A’s Oatmeal Cookies can be found on my friend Kristi’s Baby Food Steps blog here. She gets all the credit for coming up with these! Also, if you want to learn more about salicylates which is the latest food sensitivity we are tackling then take a look here. Kristi explains it better than I ever could.

Back to the cookies…I have made them exactly as the recipe states on Kristi’s blog, and both our family and our friends liked them. My only “complaint” was that they were a bit too sweet for my taste which is why I came up with this modified version:

Lady A’s Chicken Oatmeal Cookies with Applesauce and Maple Syrup

Homemade Chicken Liver Pâté

I have wanted to learn to make liver pâté from scratch for quite a while and now seemed like the perfect time since neither my kids nor I can eat the store-bought kind anymore. I grew up eating pâté on bread and my kids have eaten their share as well and really like it.

The original recipe is from zerowastehome. However, since we have various limitations including dairy and salicylates** I had to make quite a few changes and here is what I came up with:

Homemade Chicken Liver Pâté

2 oz chicken fat (can use butter if dairy is not an issue)

2 oz homemade lard (can use butter if dairy is not an issue)

1 lb organic chicken livers

Like a Child

I wish I could dream like my children. Their dreams are so attainable and are not weighted down by reason or worries about all the things that might not make them happen.

I wish I was as easily amused as my children. A milk moustache, little brother having a crumb stuck on his nose, mamma dropping a spoon so cereal splashes all over the floor. Little things that can be so funny to little minds.

I wish I could laugh like my children. Their laughter comes from a place deep inside their bellies, it rumbles through their little bodies and come out into the world with such vivid gusto.

Progress Report

I am finally sitting down to write another blog post, despite my month-long dry spell, I am determined to get back to it. Since almost a quarter of the year has passed I decided that a recap of my progress in relation to my New Years Challenges would be suitable. I am simply walking through the challenges and how I am doing with each one:

Challenge 1 - Organization, organization, organization!

I am extremely proud to say that I FINALLY feel like I have made real progress when it comes to organization. This is mostly due to the fact that I spent the better part of spring break on a solo organization mission while my husband and two oldest kids were away at my in-laws. I will touch more on the specifics of this later, but all that is important to note is that my house is mostly organized and it is "20 minutes from company-ready" which I will also explain later. It is a huge relief and though there are some smaller projects here and there to tackle still, the HUGE ones are done!! So stop on by :) (As long as you give me 20 minutes heads up....)