Head Over Heels Mommies

So if you ladies don’t mind, I’ve decided that this might be a good place for some insight on relationships and stupid men (don’t get me wrong - i like men!)… But I’ve had a few very long term relationships and the last one which crumbled, crashed, and burned into a flaming pit of ash was a turning point for me. I am no longer THAT person. The last year and a half I have read, talked, read some more, prayed, tested myself, prayed some more and finally found myself at a great place - I’m really happy. However, there is still one thing that I would really love to have going on in my life that would just bring all that work full circle - and that’s a good relationship with a good man.

It seems “a good man” is hard to come by these days for a single gal like myself. The good, nice guys are either taken or well, not into women… or so it seems. I also happen to work in New York City and it’s not an uncommon daily occurrence to see a well-dressed, attractive man on the subway or walking by me, but then you hear them talk and I wonder which trucking company they used to work for before they got the suit job. And if it’s not the mouth, then its the fact that they are prettier than me and probably use really expensive face cream. I don’t want a man who uses more product than I do!

I would just like to meet a kind, loving, adoring, attentive man who truly cares about me - well and he has to be funny too. That doesn’t seem like a tall order, does it? So for now, I suppose I will continue to be the ever-patient one and just keep looking forward to the day when some semblance of a prince charming comes to sweep me off my feet. (I work for Disney - there’s no getting around the dream of a fairy tale ending!)

~Debbie~

Hi and Thanks for visiting us!! We are still tidying up the site and adjusting a few things, so we truly hope you will come back and join us real soon. We look forward to sharing the world of Mommy-hood with you!! Hugs and Smiles, Kristin and Debbie

This is one of my favorite side dishes. It is, however not a low - fat recipe. We usually save if for Holidays!

CORN SOUFFLE

1 box “Jiffy” corn muffin mix (8.5oz)

2 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 can cream style sweet corn

1 can corn (drained)

1 stick butter melted

Stir together and bake at 350 for about 50 minutes. It bakes best in a glass or pottery 2 Quart casserole dish. Enjoy!

The Holiday is over and now you feel guilty. DON’T. Don’t even think about it. The best thing to do now is to just let it go, move on and start fresh anew!

I recently read an interesting book called: French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. It was a non-Dietitian, non-scientific look at why French Women don’t get fat. It stressed many things, but one that stuck with me was that even though French women enjoy. . . tremendous indulgences such as pastries, sweets and of course wine, it is all done within the confines of lady-like moderation, and there is never a side order of guilt attached.

Personally, I think many American women would benefit from the non-guilt method of eating in moderation. I know I would be a more pleasant person! I really hate the guilt trip I play on myself after my day or days of debacle have come back to haunt me. I too suffer from Holiday or Vacation syndrome, you know. . . you tell yourself it’s only one day or one week, how much can it hurt. But it does, you start to eat things you wouldn’t normally eat, and your portions seem to get larger and larger, and you can actually eat all of it. . Before you know it, you are on a downward spiral and at the risk of sliding dangerously out of control

Try your best to focus on the Big Picture! Don’t beat yourself up if you had a peanut butter egg or a few jelly beans. Try more to focus on not overdoing. Let yourself actually enjoy your Holiday or Vacation with a few splurges, but remember to refocus again when needed.

Life is way to short to abstain altogether from the great pleasures of food and drink, but remember moderation and patience are key. So if you are having trouble with the struggle between wellness and hunger the day after the Holiday or your first day back from a Vacation one thing that always helps me, is I ask myself one question. When I think I am hungry and know I shouldn’t be eating something (sort of when my body is telling me, well for the past few days you overdid it, and now I am programmed for more food than normal), I ask myself; “Am I hungry enough for an apple?” I may be, or I may not be? It may be my mind thinking I need to eat something and my choices may be hindered, so I tell myself, if I am truly hungry and it is not mealtime . . . have an apple and move on with it!

Have patience and be happy with yourself! ~Kristin

I may not be a mommy yet but four years of saying everything with an “ey” on the end takes its toll! You’ve got…Sippy, cuppy, potty, leggies, kissies, huggies, toesies, shoesies, sockeys, and those are just a few. This stuff didn’t come with my college degree…and the more time I rack up talkin’ toddler, the less I remember what actually DID come with that degree.

You just forget stuff! LOL I think the only thing saving my vocabulary at the moment is the fact that I read a lot of books. At work I correspond with moms, some of my very best friends are moms, I volunteer in the Nursery (the under 2 room) at my Church, and I spend as much time with my niece and nephew as possible – I am surrounded by the kiddie environment on a constant basis! I am certainly NOT complaining! I adore the heck out of children – they are a continuous reminder of Heaven’s blessings. So please excuse me when my touch of Mommy Brain mixed with pure exhaustion kicks in and I can’t remember the simple things in life. The …umm…oh! Right!.. THE END!

Can anyone answer me this: Why on earth is eating dinner such a difficult task with kids?! I think even the calmest of parents can lose their cool when it comes to dinner time and the kids. Every night seems like a constant battle ground… “If you eat 3 more bites, you can have a sip of milk;” “If you eat 5 more bites, you can have a piece of bread;” “If you finish this corner, you can have dessert.” All these teeny tiny rewards “if you can eat this.” What are we training them for? Is there really anything of value being taught during those frustrating moments?

The direct threat of punishment doesn’t seem to do anything but upset them, thus decreasing their appetite; half the time, they cheat the ultimatums saying they ate 3 bites when really it was only 1; and if you ignore the fact that they’re not eating, by the time you’re ready to clean up, their food is cold, congealed, and hasn’t been touched. Another factor, which puts any parent or care-giver stuck between a rock and a hard place, is the country’s growing concern with childhood obesity. So is it really necessary to teach them to clear their plates? Does that teach them bad food habits if we make them eat everything we put on their plates? I mean they do have tiny bellies…can they really pack away THAT much food? On the hand, they are growing boys and girls who need to take in enough vitamins and nutrients to help their growing process. So what does one do?!

It such a sticky situation and it involves a boat-load of patience, some tolerance, and a whole lot of compromise…and if you’re lucky, maybe even some humor when they surprise you with insane reasons as to why they cannot eat what is on their plate.

As the proud Aunt of two amazing, adorable, and utterly perfect-in-every-way children (Really, I’m not biased!), I’ve come to realize that while I sincerely cherish each and every moment with them, there are just some moments that take the cake. One of those moments, I got to experience again a few nights ago and it reminded me how precious those times truly are to me. The other night I got to put the little man to bed. My brother had to run to the store for a few necessities for the week, but the kids needed a bath, so I hung out for a little while longer to give my sister-in-law an extra hand with bath time. After she was done getting Chase washed up, he had a few minutes to play and splash around with Delaney and then I scooped him up in a towel and carried him to his room. I dried him off, lotioned up his little leggies, got him all cozy in his jammies, and then I sat with him in the rocking chair.

The moment the lights are out, the night light is glowing, his lullaby music is softly playing and he’s ready for his bedtime bottle…it’s like a complete about-face from a few minutes earlier with the bath time commotion; the dinner antics; the “what needs to get done tonight?” panic mode. He just snuggles into the crook of my arm and grabs for his bottle and gulps away while his eyes get heavy. His precious little face glows in the tiny beams coming from his night light, and all is perfect in the world for that very moment. I rock him until he finishes his bottle and then I stand up and rock him for a few moments before putting him in his crib. Those quiet moments at bedtime are really indescribable times where you are just filled to the brim with love and joy and even admiration for the precious little bundle snuggled in your arms. There is a sense of complete calm… and for those few moments, you feel needed, loved, and appreciated – he doesn’t quite realize he appreciates you yet, but in that moment, we can simply feel it. In that moment, I would not trade places with anyone in this world.

Chase and Mommy

Welcome to my version of “In Home Date Night.” The “Friday Night Dinner” as my husband and I have affectionately come to call it, actually started way before Isabelle was born. We both work full time jobs, and share the cooking responsibilities. Don’t get too excited, when I say share, I mean I cook, and when it’s warm out, he would grill!

Even before Isabelle was born we filled our time (or so we thought) with hobbies and activities, so even though we had dinner together most nights, it might be an eat and run situation, because either I had a get together or was going to work out, or he went to play basketball with the guys. When Friday night came along it seemed like we rushed through the week so much that we didn’t really have a “conversation” about anything. Sound familiar? So Friday night would come, and we may not have had anything planned to do and we started ordering pizza a lot, because neither of us felt like cooking and we didn’t want to eat “regular week night food – its Friday” I know it sounds terrible, but it’s true! Well as we all know, pizza, though it is quite yummy, is not always keen on the figure.

Well, we decided to change our focus for Friday nights. Instead of the take out Pizza, we decided Friday night was our night to “re-connect.” We will most always have some sort of grilled meal, and my husband would do most of the preparation. It’s nothing elaborate, maybe salmon or steak on the grill with baked potatoes (sweet potato for me), and some veggies. This gave me a chance to unwind a little from the week, and sort of relax. I would open a bottle of wine and he might have a few beers. But the best part was sharing a relaxing meal and great conversation. Neither of us had to rush off to anywhere in particular, and we could just enjoy each other’s company over an awesome meal. By the way everything tastes better on the grill!

As you know, when you have a child, adult time is a hot commodity and it’s very important to share time with your partner connecting and sharing, so that your can re-charge (so to speak) to be the best parent you can be. So naturally when Isabelle came along “Friday Night Dinners” became even more valuable to me. We continue to have our “Friday Night Dinner” now, but we eat a little later – after Isabelle has gone to bed, so that we still have the chance to converse in normal adult language without interruptions, and constant encouragement for her to take a bite of this or that!

After dinner, sometimes, we may sit by our outdoor Fire –pit and chat and maybe roast Marshmallows for S’Mores. If it’s cold out, we may watch a movie inside or just sit by the Fireplace and talk . . . even if the talk is all about Isabelle, it is still him and I connecting! I am always amazed at how good it makes me feel to have one – on – one time with just him. I really look forward to it.

~Kristin

Going green may also inadvertently save you some green. I do quite a bit of traveling in my car for work and am really becoming bored with the same old CD’s. Most recently I was talking to someone about my job and they mentioned Audio Books. They also mentioned that most libraries have them to loan for free. Hello. . . why didn’t I think of that. I love to read, but don’t have as much time now as I did before Isabelle to take in a good book for hours at a time.

My mother was a Librarian at the Public Library in our town. And for many years of my adolescence, I spent filing books, helping people understand the then grand Card Catalog and finding the book they were searching for, and of course reading. . . a lot. Remembering then, that mostly the only time people had to “pay” for anything was when they returned their books “overdue” or they wanted photocopies of something. So it would seem that I have gotten lost in the craze of the “MUST HAVE NEW” thought process that many of us get into when we get into the real world and have our own money. I haven’t been to a Public Library in years. I buy books at the big bookstores, or my girlfriends loan them to me.

This weekend, I ventured out to the local Public Library in my town and was reminded of the greatness of it. There were people sitting and reading and mothers with their wide-eyed children just awaiting new adventures in all of those colorful books. Oh, and something I didn’t see in my time as “Library helper” - computers with free internet. Nice! But wait. . . all of these books, CD’s, magazines and movies. . . well, they’re FREE – provided you bring them back on time! And you are RECYCLING in the process, renewing your love of books and reusing the same books others have enjoyed.

I ended up loaning four Audio Books. I have a big road trip this week for work from Eastern Pennsylvania to Pittsburgh, so now I am equipped with “new” entertainment for the road and a fresh sense of excitement in “Reading.”

I also noticed a sign at the checkout desk for book donations. More recycling! So after my girlfriends and I have all read the books we pass around they can be donated to be RE-loved by someone else. Of course you could recycle children’s books by donating them as well. Even if you have a hard time parting with some of them, there are always a few that you may have gotten duplicates of or your cherub may have not really cared for so much. Save a tree, recycle it to your Public Library.

Most libraries also offer many services and programs geared towards children, including special “Story time” hours, or reading book clubs, especially over the summer months, to keep their little minds engaged in learning. So save yourself some green, and venture out to your local Public Library. . . you just might be surprised what you’ll find waiting for you!

~Kristin

Did you know that 3500 calories is equivalent to one pound of weight on your body!  That’s right! 

So if you could shed 500 calories a day times 7 days a week, that’s 3500 calories you could safely lose one pound a week!  This is not rocket science ladies!  This is a FACT!  Think about the many ways you yourself could take off 500 calories in just a day.  Start with all of those beverages.  Do you ’sugar’ up your coffee?  Do you drink lots of Coke, Pepsi or Iced Tea?  (Most 12oz sodas have around 130 calories per can).  Look at how many calories  you drink each day.  I bet you are surprised at what it is!

After you look at your beverages, look at the mindless snacking and really start looking at your portion sizes.  Measure out 1 cup of cooked pasta or rice and see what it looks like on your dinner plate.  It may shock you.  Everything adds up.  If you want a change, look inside yourself, you will find the answers!

My recommendation. . . start writing down what you eat and drink each day.  Even if it is for just a few days.  You can see where you need to cut back, and where you can remain the same, and still lose that weight you are hoping to lose.  Swimsuit season is just around the corner girls.  Make this year YOUR YEAR TO SHINE!!

Other tips and hints will follow in the coming weeks, but be focused on the fact that just because it is low fat, doesn’t always mean it is saving you.  There are still calories involved.  If you are eating more than the recommended serving size you may not be helping yourself.  And the 3500 calorie guideline stands true no matter what.  So watch your calorie intake!