Saturday Stew Night

We always say that we love belly-warming stews, but in past years have gone whole winters without getting around to actually making them. (We have relied instead on varieties of chilis, which of course have their place on a winter's menu.)

I'm at the kitchen table watching Sweetie McPie organizing the makings of "beef and beer" a long time favourite stew involving -- you guessed it! -- beef and beer, seasoned with nutmeg, worcestershire, malt vinegar, etc, and topped with slices of crusty loaf spread with (stew-side down) grainy mustard, which gets nicely toasted in the oven. For this is a oven-safe-pot stove-top-to-oven dealio. Deeelishus!

I mention it because I feel we are on a roll. Last week, I made sauerbraten, and it was totally amazing. I threw several chunks of it into the food processor for Tim, and he loved it too. I would link to the recipe, as I used the one in the Complete Canadian Living cookbook, but it's not on the web site. A tragic oversight. An excellent trick in the recipe was to use crushed gingersnap cookies thrown in five minutes before serving to thicken the gravy. (I can link to the recipe I used for the braised red cabbage I served with the sauerbraten - it was also a winner. I've never actually cooked a Jamie Oliver recipe before; I found this one by searching on "red cabbage and bacon" a combination I thought would be an excellent complement to the stew... and bingo! Or, as Tim would prefer: B-I-N-G-O and Bingo was his name-O!)

Hmmm. McPie just lamented "It's too bad we don't have any cabbage"... perhaps cabbage is a natural sidekick for beef stew?

So, Saturday is now stew night (or Sunday, if we procrastinate), and I look forward to future experiments in belly-warming.

(That said, we will be travelling for many Saturdays of the coming winter: at least three of the next four weekends. Details to come. In short form: Nova Scotia/China; Huntsville winter fun; Caribbean cruise.)

In Appreciation of My Mother: A Domestic Lament

Dear Mum,

I apologize for all those years when I didn't put my dirty dishes in the dishwasher. I'm sorry I left dishes and every other kind of clutter on any surface of the house. I'm sorry for ever expecting you to make my toast when I was perfectly capable of making my own. I apologize for leaving behind a mess in the kitchen after making a lunch. I'm sorry for pouting when you said "I shouldn't have to ask you to do it"; I know that having to ask me to pick up/put away/clean up every little thing made you feel like a nag.

Mum, rest assured I am getting my just desserts, my karmic reward for every dirty plate I left behind. Every day, as I weigh the cost/benefit between nagging or just doing it myself, I know that I caused the same drudgery, back when I didn't know better.

I know better now, as I suspect my charges will too. One day. Years and years from now.

Thanks for not giving up on me. I won't give up on them, either.

Love,
Heather

Hello to you, and 2010 too!

The longer I put it off, the harder it is to return. You know? Like, where do I start, how to catch up? Not so much that nobody cares what I had for lunch, but prolly nobody cares what teeny miniscule milestone Tim hit today. Which is what's going on these days. Milestones. And also, napping.

Yep, I've given up my free time -- the one to two hours I can count on Tim to nap each morning -- toward catching up on my sleep. Our night-time sleeping leaves much to be desired (and let me tell you I've written many a blog post in my head about that), so I've been giving up blogging/cleaning/showering/emailing/reading/etc time to the pursuit of sleep. Tim does have an afternoon nap, but it is more variable in timing and length and location, so I don't count on it for free time. It's just a breather. Lately it's been happening in the stroller on the way home from the grocery store, which gives me an excuse to keep walking and thereby get some exercise.

Because I've given up working out, too. Okay not "given up" in the strictest sense... Just, well, see "napping", above. That used to be my workout time too. (Still get a couple w/o's in each week, but they are getting lamer.) Kid is way too active now to just put him down and work around him. We're in the "chase" phase of our relationship, so waking time is either play time, eating time, hauling around time (if I'm determined to get something done), or hoping time (hoping he stays put with the pots and pans to play with while I whip something up in the kitchen.)

At least half of my very-few readers can relate, right?

So, I nap with Tim most mornings, and it's actually a heavenly couple of hours, the two of us all cozied up. He's lovely; my favourite. But the rest of the day is busier, trying to catch up on those "lost" hours.

Anyway, I won't bother trying to catch up here; instead, I'll forge ahead with optimism and a new plan. How about I try to write something every day, even if it's only a sentence?

And I'll let you know that all is well. We're so good, we're piggin' out on peanut butter toast!

Packing up

I was originally supposed to pack up and leave to go home on Tuesday, but by Sunday I felt like I was just starting to get the hang of the vacation and Tuesday was coming too soon. So after a quick check of available flights, I called Westjet and switched to a Friday afternoon departure. Done. They didn't even charge me for the change!

So glad I stayed! The weather's been amazing, the boys have been super cute, we're really rocking the coffee-nap-beach-nap-pool-nap-supper-bed* routine. My mom has been ridiculously generous with her time, taking turns with Tim and Lucas so Julie and I can have small breaks from them. I've managed to go for several runs; today Julie and I went out and frolicked in the big waves of the ocean, like kids. It was awesome.

* This routine pretty much sums up what we've been up to each day. Although occasionally the boys just have two naps, and that, combined with the swimming and sun result in them going to bed around 6 pm... And up to play at 4:30 am. It's just a small glitch.

Also, Sweetie McPie is in China until Saturday night and I really wasn't relishing going home to an empty house. This way, when we get home there will be just one more sleep until Dad's home. (I have to admit I'm looking forward to spending a night in a QUEEN SIZED BED with Tim. The twin we're currently sharing is a bit... cozy.)

I'm been taking pictures like mad, but it's hard to catch the boys still. Especially Lucas -- Tim is more of a sitter; his cousin is constantly on the move. We did manage to catch them a few times today. Here, working together to try to get into the TV cabinet:

And all dressed up to go out for pizza and beer...

My sister is responsible for the matching outfits. It's not the only one they've worn this week.

Welcome to New Smyrna Beach

The shark bite capital of the world. No kidding.

But a lovely place nonetheless. Most importantly, it's warm. Well, it was yesterday and will be tomorrow. Today was chilly -- just the break in the sunny weather we needed for an excuse to go shopping. We shopped 'til we dropped, which wasn't actually that long but not bad for a couple of moms with their babies. Cross-border shopping out of the way, we can now get on with the vacay.

Yesterday we strolled on the beach, and I went for a dip in the ocean while Julie watched the sleeping babies in their strollers. The water was beautiful, though the surf was quite strong so I didn't go in far. (I'm all responsible about safety now, you know.) And I'm pleased to report that I did not get bitten by a shark. The pool was unheated and very cold, but we expect that to be remedied by tomorrow. There is a kiddie pool!

Also, I've been for a run already -- hopefully there are a few more to come. Discovered that running on a beach sucks. Even though the sand is firm, the slant of the ground is too much for the ankle. Guess I could've seen that one coming. Instead, I explored a nearby residential area.

Admittedly, it's pretty strange to be away from McPie and the kids. I'm pretty sure that this is the first time Tim has been apart from his Dad since he was born. Even with my mom and sister here to help (and help they do), I feel sort of oddly alone and bit anxious, I guess because I'm on my own for once as Tim's sole caregiver for the time being. But he's a great companion, and we're having a good time together. I'm even kind of not minding sleeping with him in a single bed (long story, and don't worry, the mattress is on the floor for safety).

Which is all good, because when we get home next week, Dad will be in China, and we won't see him for another four days. Yikes! I hope Tim is ready to take on the role of "man of the house."

Working in the workouts

I may have mentioned this before, but I realized in the first couple of months after Tim was born that "baby weight" probably actually refers to the weight you gain AFTER you have a baby, caused by not having the time or energy to exercise, and being stuck at home and prone to snacking. Luckily for me, Sweetie McPie took a leave from work just in time to help me get off the baby weight path, and back into a habit of regular activity. It was easy with two parents at home.

Then, when McPie headed back to work in September, I knew it was going to be challenging to keep up the workout regimen that we'd developed over the summer. Not only would I not have a co-parent, but I'd lose my workout partner. Not to mention that many of our workouts consists of hauling weights and other equipment out to the backyard, and the increasing cold weather was going to prevent that soon.

So I set a modest goal of "four workouts per week". No specifics on what the workout needed to consist of -- it could be anything that either made me a little stronger or got my heart rate up (ie: walking doesn't really count, even though I'm doing a ton of it these days.)

I've actually been doing pretty well at achieving my weekly goal. It's helped that we played frisbee up until last week, Sundays and Wednesdays. So I really only had to worry about two other days. (Technically, McPie and I were alternating Wednesday games, but he gave most of his to me, to give methe opportunity to get out of the house.)

For those two other days, I had to get a little creative. I did a few stroller-runs, which are quite awkward but did the trick. (Tim only barfed from motion-sickness once.) A couple of times I was able to lift weights in the living room while Tim napped. Constance helped occasionally after school, keeping Tim while I ran madly around the block. And when nothing else worked, I just held him in my arms while I did squats, and laid him on the floor under me while I did push-ups. These were Tim's favourite workouts -- he loved the up-and-down of the squats, and giggled like made and grabbed my hair when I lowered myself into the push-up.

Now, frisbee is over until spring, so we must hatch other plans. Last night, McPie came home and sent me on a 5K run. I was a km or two into the run when I realized how long it's been that I did a night-time winter run (years -- I was pregnant this time last year). Sticking to my planned route led me down the path beside an unlit parkway... and here I am wearing completely head-to-toe black. I was like a ninja, only at half-speed. I had to keep my eye on the yellow line of the bike path to see where I was going; not only was it very dark, but I wasn't wearing my glasses (not usually a problem in daylight!)

Ah well. The run was a success, and I expect that I'll be able to do an after-work run weekly. Later in the evening, I was complaining about how stiff I was from workouts earlier in the week, and McPie suggested I find a late-night yoga class that I could sneak out to weekly after everyone was in bed. It took a bit of surfing, but I found this. A 9:00 pm class is perfect! I plan to sign up when I get back from Florida, where I'm heading next week.

So, yoga, a run, and surely I can fit something in on a weekend day when everyone else is around to help... That leaves just one or two days during the week when I'll need to fit Tim into my regimen. I'm all set for the winter, and I'm saving plenty of $$ since I let my gym membership lapse last month.

Did I mention the vacation we're about to embark on? Tim and I are flying down to Florida and meeting up with my sister and nephew, and my mom (Baba Jr) for a week of baby fun in the sun. We're staying in some condos on the beach (the ocean side), with some family friends that we never get to see. Friends -- sisters -- we've known all our lives who also happen to have new babies. I think the condos have wi-fi, so I'll be sure to post updates. Check here for maximum cuteness. (Plus, my mom will be babysitting, so I'm planning some warm weather workouts!)

Little Andy

Mostly we skipped Halloween this year. The kids were at their Moms', so we just gave out candy to neighbourhood kiddies (and luckily had none left over).

Although too little for trick-or-treating, Tim did get into the spirit of dressing up. His taste in disguise was a little more sophisticated than we expected: