The MomGate MG1

So I want to say... the first piece of advice I give any friend who is pregnant or wants to be... Follow your Instincts. *YOU* know your baby better then any well wisher be they inlaw, friend, grandparent, book, or some wacko off the street who thinks they are a better parent then you. Once I decided to follow that philosophy life was better at home. I kept trying to get DS to 'conform' to what the books and my friends said he should be like. DS is an individual with his own personality. Sure he is a clingy mommas boy right now, but that won't last forever. And honestly, how many parents wish they held their children LESS when they are all grown up? They are only so little and dependant on you for such a short time, why force them to grow up faster?

My first biggest beef was with breastfeeding. Now I am an avid lactating mommy but it was not easy to get to the comfortable spot I am in. When I first started with DS I really didnt know anyone who breastfed. My mom didnt, my MIL didnt, really didnt have many friends with kids and the ones who did weren't lactating mommas. So I was kinda doing it without a whole lotta support. When we finally hit the 8week mark it was no longer painful and hard, it began a whole new set of bonding that I do miss with DS. However, since DS was clingy from the getgo (I think he had some medical problems to do with GERD. The Ped didnt believe me but looking back I really think that was half the problem) folks said it was because I was breastfeeding and holding him too much. I am sorry but I feel that breastmilk is the best food for a growing baby, although some can't do what I did it was just the right fit for our family. after I started ignoring those comments I became comfortable in a natural process and no longer got antsy and tried to find a place to hide to feed my son.

At 6 months folks said, okay he is starting solids, time to wean him. I said no way. Not only did I love the experience, it was comforting to both of us when he got sick, or hurt himself. Sure he had to eat more often then a formula baby, but I also got to cuddle him while I slept. Of course snotty comments would follow about me coddling and spoiling, and how he'd never sleep through the night. Once more, ignored!

10 months and DS started sleeping through the night. We had to take a rougher approach then most attachment parents because of the fact I was losing my mind. DS wasn't happy if I was home and he wasnt occupying my entire attention. And he was starting to get too heavy to carry around in his Moby wrap all day. 3 days of sleeping on the floor in his bedroom finally saw him sleeping through the night without needing to cuddle in bed with his parents. A milestone that folks said would never happen because I held him too much and I nursed him too much... What is with all the 'too much' when there are so many kids out there with 'too little' be it affection, food, shelter etc.

Then a year came along and the same thing started. Heck I would get people completely shocked that I was still nursing at a year. When did breastfeeding become everyone's business anyway? DS wasnt ready to wean, I wasn't ready to wean, so we didnt.

At 18 months I stopped BF around people, was too tired of the stinkeye and the negative comments. Neither of us were ready to wean and DS nursed more for comfort then nutrition. Of course no one seems to remember that it is recommended to nurse for 2 years. Of course about that time I was pregnant with DD. And while some folks tandem nurse a toddler and a newborn I knew that wasnt going to be for me. And if I ended up with another one like DS that would be simply torture. So at 20 months, 2 months before DD was due, I weaned him. We did it gradually, I didnt make him and I quit cold turkey. It wasnt easy, but it wasnt impossible. It helped to remind DS that now he could eat chickies and pasta and fruits... and lots of other yummy stuff. He only asked to nurse once after DD was born, and I let him try, but he lost interest right away. See, they all grow up eventually =)

Now with DD, since she is so much easier then DS was... I am not getting the negative feedback... even though I am not doing anything different for DD. I hold her a lot, I nurse her, I sleep with her by my side. She used to sleep all night with DH and me, but she much prefers her space when she sleeps. Sure she doesnt need me as much as DS did, but I am grateful since DS is still a clingy boy and loves his momma above all else. Folks just need to remember, DH included, that kids arent copies, they are unique manuscripts with their own personalities, their own ways of doing things and my mantra, something a friend from WoW told me...

This too shall pass.

So DD has always been easier then DS was... DS was to be blunt, demonbaby. People were VERY surprised when I said I was pregnant with number two... since they knew number 1 was such a handful. The differences in their personalities are so very apparent. While DS is high maintence, DD is very low key (usually) and while DS thinks sleeping is unimportant, although he gets VERY crabby when he goes without, DD seems to enjoy it.

Well as you may have read... after Vegas it was rough, no one wanted to sleep. Partially because of DD's eczema, the time shift and a cold we all picked up. But Sunday DD ended up taking an almost 3 hour nap by herself and then went to bed... and slept for 8 hours! She did wake up about 3 times but I was able to rub her back and she fell back asleep. After 8 hours I figured she was hungry and just pulled her into bed with me. And last night she did the same! Sure I still wake up at every little whimper and cry but its a huge step forward for us! She even put herself to sleep last night with just about 5 minutes of fussing. I guess with her able to put the pacifier in her mouth on her own helps, when she can find it that is. Also since she is turning over on her own, the fact that she can sleep on her belly probably helps too.

Pretty soon I guess we will have to consider when to move her from her PacknPlay to a crib in her brother's room. Okay maybe in a couple more months =) I kinda enjoy having her so close... they grow up so very fast.

Well as I said in the last post our food budget was VERY low last week and yesterday was D&D day... and we spent more then we meant to on take out... so we are going to be eating leftovers tonight and probably tomorrow start the ramen menu. I am interested in trying this out as we have some various items in the freezer that need to be consumed before I have to start worrying about freezer burn. Not a fun thing for sure. I hate throwing away food because it just makes me wince from the cost.

Anyway - unfortunatly the slugs ate the majority of my garden... with DH not watering enough while I was in Vegas.. so alas we dont have the bountiful vegetable plants it looked like we were going to have earlier this summer. Very sad =( but maybe I can find some good deals at the farmers market in the next couple of weeks because I am planning on making Christmas Presents again this year and I make a tasty salsa =)

Monday: Leftovers from Takeout Sunday
Tuesday: Beef Ramen Pie
Wednesday: Sweet and Sour Pork Ramen
Thursday: Garlic Chicken and Ramen
Friday: Ramen Vegetable Stirfry

Alright so yesterday was grocery day - and our budget was VERY low this week due to some unforseen expenses and the fact DH is making about 200 less a week during the summer months. Thats one big problem with working for commission - when the business goes down (Aka schools out for the summer and they are DH's biggest buyers) so does the pay. I decided next week I would focus on a week of ramen inspired meals - cant beat the price on ramen as many college students know. Well while I was there - I found a few cheap cuts of meat however they were nearing the end of the shelf life. (still had 3 days to go but wasnt going to risk it!) So instead of what I planned for dinner tonight I decided to whip together a cheap and easy beef and broccoli.

• 3/4 pound lean beef (I used 4 small steaks that are used for sandwiches ala steakums in solid form)
  
• Marinade:
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (I didnt have rice vinegar so I used red wine vinegar)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• Sauce:
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon water
• Thickener:
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water
• 1 pound fresh broccoli (I actually used frozen broccoli that I had stashed in the freezer)
  
• 2 garlic cloves
• To Cook Broccoli:
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar, or to taste
• Other:
• 1 1/4 cups oil, or as needed

2 packages of ramen noodles the seasoning packages removed

Preparation:

Cut the beef across the grain into thin slices. Add the marinade ingredients, adding the cornstarch last (use your fingers to rub it in). Marinate the beef for 30 minutes.
While the beef is marinating, prepare the sauce and vegetables: for the sauce, mix together the oyster sauce, soy, and water in a small bowl and set aside. In another small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water thickener and set aside.
Wash and drain the broccoli. Cut the stalk diagonally into thin slices. Cut the flowerets into 3 or 4 pieces. (Or use a package of frozen broccoli - like the ready to steam bags you can pop in the microwave - just take off a minute of cook time) Crush the garlic.
Heat the wok and add 1 cup oil. When the oil is medium-hot (between 300 and 325 degrees F.), add the beef. Blanch the beef by letting it lay flat for 30 - 40 seconds, and then stirring to separate the pieces. Remove the beef when it changes color and is nearly cooked (the entire process takes 1 - 2 minutes).
Remove the beef from the wok and drain on paper towels.
Clean out the wok with paper towels.
Add 2 tablespoons oil to the wok. When the oil is hot, add the crushed garlic and stir fry briefly until aromatic.
Add the broccoli, sprinkle the salt and sugar over, and stir fry briefly, turning down the heat if necessary to make sure it doesn't burn. Add the 1/2 cup water, and cook the broccoli, covered, for 4 - 5 minutes, until it turns a bright green and is tender but still crisp. Remove from the wok and drain. (if you go the microwave route you dont need to add water to cook the broccoli)
Clean out the wok and add 2 more tablespoons oil. Add the broccoli and the beef. Add the sauce and cornstarch mixture in the middle of the wok and stir quickly to thicken. Mix everything together and serve hot over cooked ramen.

Variations: *Add carrots and onion if desired. Boil in the wok with the broccoli (you'll need to add more water). I think it would be tasty to add some bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and or bean sprouts as well, but as money is tight all we had was the beef and broccoli.

It was actually VERY tasty although I doubled the sauce since we like a lot of sauce with our meat. Even my son who can be picky at times loved it. I can see many variations to this simple and cheap dish. Even adding some infused pepper oil or chopping up some jalepenos to add some spice. I was very pleased with the outcome and even more so since the entire meal cost about $6.00 for 4 servings. Most of the ingrediants I already had stashed in the cupboard.

Well I was thrilled when my DD turned out to be a good sleeper. Until recently. Suddenly she can't settle herself down for naptime and bedtime is often a struggle. Part of it is the fact she is trying really hard to figure out how to crawl but boy I forgot how painful the lack of sleep can be. See DS didnt sleep more then 3 hours straight until about 10 or 11 months. It was so bad I cancelled my WoW subscription and resented my DH for months that he could play. We haven't reached that point with DD yet but man... this is rough. Kick kick kick kick... thats what she does now - sleeping or awake those little legs are moving. And her favorite thing to kick - yup you guessed it, mommy. She will kick her way from my tummy all the way up my ribs to go for the throat. Giggling all the while. While it was cute the first couple of days... now it is wearisome.

She will spend lots of time in her stationary jumpy thingie just bouncing away happily... and just when you think she is ready for bed... she decides she needs to kick in her sleep too. I dont mind the not napping during the day (more then 20 minutes at time) unless she has a rough night and I NEED that nap. Like today, she was up a LOT last night. Sure she isnt feeling well and it isn't her fault... but man after a while you really start to gripe and complain. Okay maybe *I* just like to gripe and complain. Still... I have to remind myself... that DD is NOTHING like DS and I should be thankful I can still function!

ALright... so I am an avid World of Warcraft player... and I am one of those epeople who LOVE to roll alts to play as many race/class combos as I can. So recently I've been leveling some low level alts to 60. And now I am unsure as to which I am going to level up past there. Using just rested exp of course - makes it so much easier. I dont have as much time to play but I try to devote an hour to an alt everyday. With 3 80s to do Tourney Dailies on sometimes that hour doesnt happen! But weekend I can usually get a couple hours in to play.

So right now I could level a Pally a Druid or a Shaman. All are at 58 or 59. I really missed my druid on alliance... but I already have a healer and thats how I want to play my druid and my shaman. So I guess I will level my Paladin... time to learn how to tank. SInce I have never had a melee char... it should be interesting. Of course I have some wonderful people to give me pointers on tanking... so I guess I shall have to update my progress on occasion =) AS soon as I get his mining to 300 - Outland here I come!

Well here goes for another week of budget friendly meals. As our stomachs are still tender from a very rough stomach bug it will probably be bland for many people's tastes.

Monday: Buttered Noodles with fresh steamed vegetables
Tuesday: Cheesy French Bread Pizza with a garden salad
Wednesday: Kiebalsa with Saurkraut and Cucumber Salad
Thursday: Shrimp Scampi
Friday: Creamy mushroom Beef with Noodles and steamed carrots

Most of these are recipes I have come up with on my own - mainly utilizing the scraps from my cupboard. With money so tight you really have to be careful not to overextend yourself. Therefore we do eat a lot of pasta - the trick is trying to find different ways to cook it. Next week I know I am going to end up buying a case of Ramen - as that is the cheapest pasta out there and DS LOVES the stuph. However I wont be adding the MSG seasoning packet but instead using my own seasonings. SO look forward to next week's Ramen Week!