Lukas

Yesterday started like a normal day.

Lukas woke up with a big old grin on his face, as if to say "I'm happy it's your day to stay with me!"

We woke up, and got dressed. I made him a 3 egg omelet with spinach, and feta, and he promptly wolfed it down. We went outside and swung on his swing. He laughed, and kicked his feet, and was mad at me when it was time to go in. 

We went inside, and I decided to take him to the park. We load up, and head out. Lukas played for an hour. He was running. He was laughing. He was playing. He was mad at me when I said it was time to go.

We get home, and wake up daddy. 

Lukas plays for a bit. I pick him up to put him down for his nap. He feels warm. Take his temp 101.4. Not too concerned. He's had worse. Give him a half dose of Motrin (we ran out, so Patrick ran to Walgreens) put a cool compress on him. He falls asleep nursing. 

 

. 

I take him upstairs, and lay him down. Aspen goes upstairs, and start licking him, and he wakes up. I smack Aspen, frustrated that she would wake my sick baby. I'm thankful she did now.

He's up and I feel him. He is burning up. I take his temp with our temporal 103.6, take it again because it's rarely consistent. 102.5. Find another thermometer and take it under his arm. 103.4. Give him the rest of his dose of Motrin, and call his godmother, who is a nurse at Arkansas children's hospital. Tells me to watch him, and she would want his temp to go down under 100 with meds. She tells me the risk with high temps is seizures, and I start getting freaked out. Take his temp every 15 minutes, if it's not going down get his butt to the ER. 

Got a game plan.

We watch him. 102.4. 101.8. 100.4. I'm feeling way better about it. 

We make him some soup. He hardly eats, but he had a big breakfast. He's playing with his food, and smiling. He's drinking lots of fluids. I'm okay with how he's doing.

Patrick takes him upstairs for a nap.

I dose off on the couch. 

Patrick wakes me up around 5:15ish to tell me he's getting ready for work, and tells me to go up with Lukas. I get upstairs, and lay down. Patrick goes in the bathroom to take a shower. 

I feel Lukas. He is burning up again. I'm about to get up to get the thermometer when his little body starts shaking. His eyes roll back, and he's gagging on his tongue, and his face is white. I can't remember what your supposed to do in this situation. My thoughts are a jumble. I instinctually scoop him up, and start screaming for Patrick. I kick the door running to the car. I have no shoes. I have no purse. I have my baby in my arms. I hold him, crying the entire 3 minutes to the ER. His jaw is clenched up, and he is in a trance-like state. Patrick is driving like a madman. 

We get there, and she's asking me questions. I don't really know what I'm saying.

"Don't ask me things just fix my son."

The take us to a room, and take his vitals. 105.5. That's all I hear.

I hold my son who is screaming at this point. I nurse him, and he calms down. They give him Tylenol. 

We go to the waiting room. Patrick calls my sister in law and she brings me shoes, and my phone. I call his godmother again, and tell her he had a seizure. She tells me she is calling her mom, who is an ER nurse at the hospital we're at. 

Stacy (the mom) comes in. She feels his head. She says "he's still burning up. I'm going to find you guys a room." 5 minutes later we have a room.

Stacy tells us if we have any problems let her know. An overwhelming sense of gratitude floods over me.

The doctor comes in shortly after. Examines him. Looks for any other signs of infection. Ears-good. Throat- good. Snot-clear. He tells us that they are going to run some tests, because the only sign of infection he has is fever, and the need to figure out what's wrong. He says some other things, but all I hear is chest X-ray, catheter, blood work. That's what we're in for.

They take his temp again. 102.5. It's amazing how cool 102.5 feels.

An X-ray tech comes in, and wheels Lukas and I off to get the chest X-ray. "1 parent allowed." I hear.

As she's wheeling us down, she asks if I have ever seen a chest X-ray for an toddler. I hadn't. She starts telling me they are going to put him in this corset like shielding, and he's going to scream, but he'll be fine... Tears come streaming down my face. They tell me it's time for me to leave the room, so I do, and I cry as I hear him screaming for me through the door.

It's over. And I hold him, and he calms down in my arms.

Back to our room we go.

He falls asleep on my chest. 

A nurse pokes in and tells me she is going to get supplies for the cath, and blood work. She asks how I'm going to be, and decides that it would be best if Patrick handled this, as I'm crying. 

She comes back with supplies, and a helper to hold down my baby. I lose it. Out in the hall I go listening to my son screaming. And I cry. I go in after the cath, and he looks at me with those big blue eyes, pleading with me to scoop him up. I kiss him, and stroke his forehead, and then back to the hall I have to go.

Then the blood work.. I lost it. The sweet, young, nurse couldn't get enough blood, so she goes to get another nurse, and I hold him while we wait. He calms down. 

Then a very manly male nurse comes in, and puts in a hep lock.. Just in case they need to draw more blood or anything after. 

I hate "just in cases." 

Lukas falls asleep in my arms.

The doctor comes in, and tells me the results of his tests. Blood- clean. Urine- clean. X-Ray- consistent with a viral infection. We just have to let it run it's course. Alternate Motrin, and Tylenol every 3 hours to keep the fever down. Lots of fluids. Follow up with his primary care physician on Monday. 

The nurse comes in to take his temp. 97.7. Discharge is coming soon.

"When can we take the hep-lock out?"

"Mary will do that."

Hep-lock out. Discharge papers. We head home. 

We shower to wash of the hospital germs, and climb into bed.

Lukas slept. All night. No temp. No seizures.

This morning we woke up a tangled nest of three, and Lukas smiled at me a great, big grin. Like nothing ever happened. 

There is a special place in hell for you...

To the inventor of the toddler carrier seat for bikes,

     I would just like to know what kind of sick joke it is you are trying to play? Did you actually think strapping a wiggly toddler to the back of a self propelled two-wheeled vehicle was a brilliant idea? I bet you fall asleep every night laughing at all the yuppie first time moms and dads who fall for your scheme. 

 

       "Look honey, this bicycle seat is just as effective as the bike cart, and a third of the price. Why don't we get it?" 

   I'll tell you why you don't get it you poor, hapless schmuck- because toddler's wiggle when they get excited, and in order counteract the wobble to their wiggle you need more abdominal strength than the entire Chinese gymnastics team combined. 

  

  This is where the sick joke comes in... Chances are if you are a female, and you are trying to take a toddler for a ride in this sick torture device you probably birthed a child... Which means you probably don't have the abs of a Navy Seal... Which means after three minutes or so you probably have muttered every curse word you can think of, and maybe made up a couple for posterity. 

  

     You see this lady? She is a liar! She is not happy, and if she is happy it's only because she isn't moving!

         So to you, Mr. (Or Ms.- I don't discriminate) Inventor- There is a special place in hell for people like you. 

Good day to you!!!

A touch of Southern charm...

A long time ago, in a land far away my husband was a bachelor....

Not the sleaze-bucket kind featured on TV, (am I the only one in the world that finds that whole concept disgusting?!) but rather the my-house-has-hand-me-down-furniture-from-college-and-I-don't-know-what-to-do-with-it kind of bachelor... The answer to that question the majority of the time was burn it! Seriously... Any furniture that was upholstered in any way, shape, or form did not survive our union... With good reason! Anything laminate, we said adios to. What remained from his bachelor days were solid wood pieces, with good bones that needed some TLC. 

Presenting exhibit A... 

My wonderful husband loved this nightstand, and the matching dresser.

They were substantial, traditional, solid pieces. They were also in dire need of a face lift, so after much begging I finally got the go ahead to paint them.

First thing I did was remove the old hardware, and fill in the old holes with wood filler. I let the filler dry over night.

The next day, I sanded the crap out of the drawers and the tops of the dresser, and nightstand. I didn't sand the sides of the pieces because they were in pretty decent shape, and that's the beauty of chalk paint... There's not a whole lot of prep!

I used a home-made chalk paint, because I am not going to pay a bazillion dollars for something that will give me the same result (sorry Annie Sloan)

I went to Lowes and picked out a flat, indoor paint that tickled my fancy, and some plaster of Paris. 

When I got home I mixed one part plaster of Paris with warm water, and then 3 parts paint. It is important to mix the Plaster of Paris with the water first, otherwise you end up with a globby mess.

After I mixed my chalk paint I got to painting. I left the tops unpainted. I love the contrast of wood with paint. I only did one coat on these pieces because I liked how the blue from the old stain came through. 

FYI- this paint dries super quick... Like 30-45 minutes quick.

After the paint dried I took my trusty palm sander, and skimmed over the areas I wanted to distress.

 

Once I got the pieces distressed I stained the tops of the pieces. I picked a dark chestnut stain that contrasted the cream paint nicely.

Last, but certainly not least was new hardware! When I was getting the paint I saw these knobs that were everything I wanted for this piece. Classic. Southern. Whimsical. 

The pulls reminded me of the antique glass doorknobs, and I think they are perfect!

Actually, I lied... There was one more important step... Preserving the pieces.

To do this I used a plain and simple finishing wax by Minwax, and I got my inner karate kid on. Wax on, wax off....

All in all, I could not be more pleased with the transformations.

Until next time... À tout à l'houre!

So, I have a 1 year old...

It happened.

He's one.

This bundle of laughs and snuggles is one year old now. 

Sunday we had his birthday, and it was a big, wonderful, exhausting blur. It is a lot of work throwing a party with a baby! (Excuse me- toddler. Lukas is very sensitive about the "B" word now that he is one)

Lukas had a fishing birthday, complete with magnetic fishing poles for the kids to take home. 

 Word of advice- if you plan on giving out fishing poles, keep them away from little hands or you will spend hours untangling them. 

We had a fantastic BBQ. So much food! 

In keeping with the fishing theme we had cupcakes complete with fishing poles.

I loved how they turned out!

I made a cake too, and it was super yummy. Vanilla with an apple compote and whipped cream.

All in all, everything was pretty yummy. Lukas loved his cake! 

My only complaint would be that Lukas was exhausted during presents. I rushed through them in order to avoid a total meltdown. 

All in all we had a wonderful day, but I am thankful we only have to do it once a year... I'll probably need a full year to recuperate. :)

Until next time- love to all!

Summer salmon pasta

Confession- 90% of the cooking in our house is done by Patrick. It's not that I can't cook, (I'm actually quite proud of the culinary skill I possess.) but I work, and Patrick is a far better cook than I am. (Ladies, word of advice- Marry a man who can cook. And can cook well!) Patrick cooks with things like truffle oil, and saffron. I cook with love. No comparison.

All self-deprecating humor aside, we enjoy cooking together. I enjoy taking on the role of sous chef and letting him shine in the kitchen, but this recipe is not about him. This is my recipe, and it is knock your socks off yummy, and the reason that I could never give up fish. The best part is it is so simple. The way food should be.

To start you need:

*2 cups fusilli pasta

2- 4oz. Salmon fillets

1 bunch of asparagus

1 cup cremini mushrooms

1 cup sundried tomatoes (drained)

3 oz. of goat cheese

*You can use whatever pasta you prefer. I prefer fusilli or rotini because the cheese incorporates well into it.

Start your pasta water. Make sure you salt the water well to flavor the pasta.

Heat a sauté pan with oil (I use coconut, but olive works just fine too) to medium heat. 

Chop your asparagus into 1" slices. Slice your creminis, and chop the sundried tomatoes.

Season your salmon filets with a rub of salt and pepper. (And if you are feeling adventurous a tiny bit of cayenne gives a nice little kick)

When your water comes to a boil pour in your pasta. About halfway to al dente add the asparagus.

While the pasta is cooking start sautéing the creminis. Once the creminis are browned set aside in a large mixing bowl. 

In the same sauté pan, sauté your salmon filets until cooked through. Set aside.  I like to soak up the excess oil with a paper towel, but that's totally optional. Give the filets a rough chop and put in the bowl with the creminis.

When the pasta is al dente, drain the pasta and asparagus. Mix in with the salmon cremini mix. Immediately mix in the goat cheese. You want the pasta to still be hot so the cheese melts and incorporates well into the dish.

Salt to taste.

Next, the most controversial ingredient, the sun-dried tomato. Personally, I love them. I think they bring a great brightness to any dish, but not everybody feels the same way I do. My husband does not share my love for sun-dried tomatoes. So I put them in last. You could roast cherry tomatoes, and put them in as a substitute. Whatever you choose the dish is still delish!

This is by far my favorite summer dish. It is good hot, or cold, or here, or there, or in a house, or with a mouse... Or with a glass of sangria.

Wherever or however you choose to eat it it is delicious. I brought it last year to a potluck when we had our childbirth classes, and a room full of pregnant ladies and their husbands all concurred.

Happy meals (not the gross kind) lovebugs!

Dear Lukas- 2

Dear Lukas,

  I'm reflecting a lot right now. 

This is the last week before we celebrate your first lap around the sun, and as thrilled as I am watching you grow, I'm also a little sad at how quickly it goes by.

Today you stood unassisted for an extended time. You've been able to do this for some time now, but you just haven't trusted in yourself enough to do it. Your dad and I haven't pushed it. We knew that it would happen when you were good and ready, and not a moment sooner. So we waited. And today you stood. You stood tall. You stood proud. And then you fell to your bottom. And you did something wonderful. You clapped for yourself. You knew that you had done something great, and greatness deserves praise. I love that about you. 

Later today I was watching you crawl, and it hit me. You won't be crawling for much longer. Pretty soon you'll be walking, and I'll no longer hear the slap of your hands on the floor as you crawl from room to room. I'll no longer see your little butt wiggle from side to side when you are trying to crawl in a hurry. And with that thought as I happy as I was for your milestone today, I was sad that we are going to have to say goodbye to this phase in your life.

You have taught your dad and I so much in your short time on this planet. You have taught us what it really means to love whole-heartedly. You have taught us to see the greatness in the small things. You have taught us that life goes by in the blink of an eye, so live big. You did that. Just by being you.

Thank you.

You are loved. You are loved. You are loved. Always.

Skin smoothing scrub

When I found out I was pregnant with Lukas the first thing I did was went out and bought vitamin e capsules, and Palmer's cocoa butter. I applied both liberally daily, and yet my stomach was still covered in stretch marks. 

I don't care what your cousin's sister's best friend says, that stuff doesn't work. If you are one of the lucky ones who have the genetic predisposition to get stretch marks it is probably going to happen. If your cousin's sister's best friend did it every day and didn't get stretch marks, all that means is she probably wouldn't have gotten them if she didn't do that stuff either. 

Stretch marks happen. It's a fact. But they don't have to be forever.

See those deep reddish purple stretch marks? Those stayed around for a while.

Then I remembered I had used an under eye serum by Murad that had caffeine in it. It was one of those miracle serums that removed the red puffiness from my eyes, so I got to thinking.

If caffeine could do that for my eyes, maybe it could do the same for my stretch marks?

So I started experimenting, and I came up with a scrub that actually helps! I still have stretch marks, but they are now the same color as my skin... Huge improvement!

To start you need:

Coconut oil (extra-virgin whole kernel)

2 Tbsp Coffee grounds

2 Tbsp Sea salt

4 Tbsp Raw honey

Mason jar

Pour the coffee, sea salt, and raw honey in the mason jar. Fill the rest of the jar with coconut oil and mix thoroughly. Voila! That's it!

The ingredients in the scrub were thought out, and put in for a reason.

Coconut oil is extremely moisturizing, and healing. I'm not going to go into all the benefits of coconut oil, but I can't sing its praises enough! It is a wonderful product. Make sure that you are buying a high quality coconut oil. Some of the cheaper brands dilute the coconut oil with olive oil.

The coffee grounds really are the magic ingredient in this stuff. The caffeine in the grounds stimulates blood flow when rubbed on the skin. This blood flow starts the healing process, and this is when those scars start to heal. This is great for stretch marks, scars, even cellulite!

Sea salt draws excess fluid out and helps tighten the skin. This process is why people lose so much water weight when they get wraps.

Lastly, raw honey is super moisturizing, and contains tons of antioxidants. These antioxidants help neutralize free radicals that are responsible for the aging process. There's a reason Cleopatra bathed in milk and honey!

Not only does this scrub help, but you smell delicious too!

Happy scrubbing ladybugs!