A Month of Many Changes

Our little gardener (we later discovered that the spray bottle contained floor cleaner instead of water at grandma's house, so all of the plants had to be rinsed with water)


Gerritt discovered one of life's pleasures - ice cream!


Gerritt's 1st photo of Mommy while using the camera all by himself


Gerritt loves to go to the playground


The little princess in her carriage

Well, Sophia has been rolling around so much, we had to move her back to sleeping in her crib. She even tries to stand up occasionally so our beds are not safe for her anymore unless one of us is with her at all times (which, of course, is not always practical). She protested for the first night she was back in the crib & then got used to it again. For about a week now she has been sleeping on her tummy. Every time I lay her down for a nap, she immediately rolls on her belly. So funny! Yesterday night Sophia slept the longest time ever - from 7:30 pm until 5 am. I worked last evening, & my husband put both kids to bed by himself. Unlike me, he prefers the "tough love" method, so he did crying-it-out with Sophia. The night before she cried for 30 minutes & last night for 10 minutes. What can I say? We are more than ready for Sophia to start sleeping longer at night.
She learned to clap this week & likes to do it when music is playing. She also likes to shake her head side to side (Gerritt went through the same stage). I've read it has something to do with balance development in the inner ear. So, no worries. I actually found that I worry less about Sophia than I did about my firstborn.
Gerritt is going through a major monster truck obsession. He wants to watch monster truck videos in the morning & at night & knows most of the trucks' names. Blue Thunder, Grave Digger, Batman, Superman, Maximum Destruction, Madusa, Captain Curse, Suzuki, Monster Mutt Dalmation, Brutus, El Toro Loco - just to name a few! He just glances at the TV screen & immediately knows the name of the truck. Sometimes he wants to sleep with his toy trucks, so I've been known to remove them one by one once Gerritt is asleep. My husband likes to use the trucks as rewards & bought several for Gerritt after he went poo-poo in the potty for the first couple of times.
I had a Nurse Practitioner job interview yesterday. As much as I like my job as a nurse & its flexible hours, I couldn't pass up a job opening at Planned Parenthood just 5 minutes away from my house. If I get this job, I will be working 3 days a week (normal business hours, no evenings, weekends or holidays). I just want to be at home every night to put my kids to bed & spend more time with my hubby. I will have to make new childcare arrangements, however, since Sophia's daycare is too expensive & can't take her for the whole 8 hours. I am keeping my fingers crossed...
This past month has been about many changes for me. In January I had extensive testing done at the IBS Treatment Center due to my history of multiple intestinal problems. It turns out I have severe reaction (food sensitivity) to eggs; moderate reaction to whey, goat milk, oyster, almonds, kidney & lima beans, bell peppers; & low reaction to pinto & soy beans, whole wheat, spelt, pineapple, & cranberry. No wonder I wasn't feeling well! I used to have scrambled eggs & bean & rice burritos several times a week & I put cow or goat milk into multiple cups of tea I was drinking daily. I was also diagnosed with Klebsiella oxytoca pathogenic bacteria & Ascaris parasite. It was such a relief to get scientific validation & to know my symptoms were not all in my head. After being treated with anthelmintic medication Mebendazole as well as Berbercap (an antibiotic) I am feeling significantly better. I have more energy & started to exercise regularly for the first time in over a year. I have discovered a beautiful 5-mile trail near my house & love to go hiking there. I've been living with constant fatigue for so long, I forgot what it's like to feel good. Even such seemingly small tasks as taking the kids to the mall or to a friend's house were too much work for me & would leave me feeling exhausted afterword. Now it is like a fog has been lifted from around me. I am up to doing anything!
My friend Lisa referred me to her acupuncturist Sharon Gray who specializes in the treatment of IBS & food sensitivities. So I had the acupuncture treatment a couple of weeks ago as well as the nutritional counseling. In Chinese medicine, the gastrointestinal problems reflect qi ("chi") (or life force) imbalance, mainly "spleen" deficiency (note, this terminology doesn't imply something is wrong with my spleen, this is just a Chinese term for one of the major invisible pathways of qi). When qi flows freely through the meridians, the body is balanced & healthy, but if the energy becomes blocked, stagnated or weakened, it can result in physical, mental or emotional ill health. Acupuncture & proper diet (qi-nourishing foods) aim to restore the body's proper qi balance.
I loved the acupuncture treatment (it always leaves me feeling so relaxed) & increased my knowledge of the qi tonic foods. They include some of my favorite ones such as brown & white rice, sweet root vegetables (winter squash, parsnips, turnips, carrots, etc.), dates, sweet potatoes, potatoes, oats, beef, coconut, grapes, lentils, mackerel, rabbit, microalgae, licorice, shiitake mushrooms, tofu, & chicken. According to Chinese medicine, blood is essential for nourishment of an entire body. These blood-nourishing foods contribute to healthy body & mind: aduki beans, beets & beet greens, dark leafy greens (collard, kale, swiss chard, dandelion, broccoli raab/rapini, spinach), grapes, sardines, apricots, kidney beans, beef, chicken egg, figs, liver, nettle, parsley, & sweet rice. More recipes for me to discover!

Sophia is 9 Months Old!

Our Valentine's Day dinner at home


The lounge lizard - Daddy's name for Sophia because she likes to stick her tongue out


Two peas in a pod


Sophia loves the swing!


Such a handsome boy after a bath!

Sophia turned 9 months old yesterday on Valentine's Day. It is hard to believe how fast the time has flown by. It seems she was just born yesterday. The biggest development is that she got her first tooth this week (on the bottom right). Finally! She has been teething for months it seems. I can't wait to see her "toothy" smile! We've celebrated with wine, a bowl of muscles steamed in coconut milk, & chocolates, of course!
Sophia can hardly sit still & often ends up on her tummy while trying to reach a certain toy. A couple of times she was reaching so hard, she fell flat on her face, which made her cry, but, thankfully, she quickly learned to be more careful. She also loves to roll from her back onto her tummy & back (repeat multiple times). The moment Sophia started to really reach for things we moved her from sitting in the corner of our L-shaped couch to the thick blanket on the floor. She often rolls back & forth so many times that she ends up rolling off the blanket all together. :-) It is almost impossible to pin her down for a diaper change, so I have to be really creative (I usually sing a song or give her something she is not supposed to have like a phone to distract her).
Sophia has now moved to sleeping with us for naps & at night permanently. The expensive organic crib mattress is not getting much use... Sophia used to sleep in her crib during the day, however, has been refusing to be left alone there for the past 3 weeks. She drifts off to sleep quickly & peacefully as long as my husband or I are there next to her in the big bed. I usually gently rub her back, massage her ears, run my fingers through her hair, or hold her hand. I cringe remembering the countless hours we've spent rocking Gerritt to sleep in a rocking chair; putting him down in the crib & then going back & picking him up again because he woke up (I couldn't put him down unless he was deeply asleep or exhausted). Torturous! Why haven't we moved to cosleeping with him sooner? It is interesting to observe people's reactions when I tell them that Gerritt slept in his own crib until he was 2 years old & then moved to cosleeping with us. They usually roll their eyes since for most it is the opposite sequence (baby moves from parents' bed to his own crib/toddler bed). I now can't imagine sleeping without one of my kids next to me. It feels so natural. I sleep with Sophia most of the time, while my husband cosleeps with Gerritt. Gerritt is going through his usual I-need-only- Mommy phase & has been requesting for me to hold his hand while he drifts off to sleep for naps & at night. I usually hear, "Mommy hold hands..." in the sweetest, impossible-to-refuse voice. It is not always possible when I am at home alone with both kids. I just can't spend 20 minutes holding Gerritt's hand while Sophia is alone in the living room, so he had to cry himself to sleep a few times (he usually falls asleep 10-15 minutes later).
Sophia has learned to sit up from a laying position this week. I put her down for a nap, lay down next to her, tell her it is nap time, & what does she do? She sits up fast like a spring, then turns around & grins at me. It's almost like she says, "I have other plans, Mom." So sometimes I have to hold her down for a few seconds, otherwise she'll just keep sitting up. When Sophia is truly tired, she will cry & protest for a couple of minutes & then drift off to sleep. If she is not tired, then she'll just keep on struggling to sit up. Then I bring her out of the bedroom & wait another half-hour. I remember Gerritt going through a stage like that - he even slept being bent at the waist for a few weeks (also when he was 9 months old!).

Lamb Shank & Fennel Heart Soup

This is one of our favorite recipes to prepare when it is dark, cold & raining outside. This soup is as flavorful as it is colorful. It contains such blood-nourishing foods as dark leafy greens & qi-nourishing foods as carrots, turnips, potatoes, & shiitake mushrooms (read more about Chinese medicine & its uses of food in this post). It is time-consuming to prepare, however, one doesn't have to be present for most of the cooking.

Ingredients:
3-4 Tbsp of extra virgin coconut oil
3 lamb shanks
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large carrot, sliced
3-4 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 large fennel heart, cubed
1 medium turnip, cubed
2-3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
4-5 medium shiitake mushrooms, sliced
15 oz. of tomato-based sauce of your choice (tomato basil marinara, spaghetti, roasted garlic or the like)
6-7 cups of greens (mustard, turnip, spinach, bok choi, collards, beet & the like), torn in bite-size pieces (I really like Trader Joe's Southern Greens Blend)
2 Tbsp Italian seasoning
Sea salt & pepper to taste

Part 1:
Brown the lamb shanks in oil in a 5.5-quart soup pot. Add enough filtered water to leave room for vegetables later on. Bring water to a boiling point, then turn the heat to low. Simmer the lamb shanks for 5-6 hours until meat is tender & falls off the bones. Cool the broth to room temperature, then put the pot in the refrigerator. When the broth is cold enough for the lamb fat to float on top, collect the fat & throw it away.

Part 2:
Move the broth from the refrigerator to the stove. Add all of the remaining ingredients except the greens. Bring the pot to a boiling point, then turn the heat down to low. Cook for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the greens last & cook them for about 3 minutes taking care not to overcook.
Serve with rustic bread & butter (or butter substitute).

P. S. This recipe is also wonderful when prepared with ox tails or beef instead of the lamb shanks. Many stores do not carry ox tails, so be prepared to order them in advance. You will probably have more buying success at stores like PCC Natural Markets & Whole Foods, or your local independent butcher.