The Life Changers of 2012

December 31st, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Life - (8 Comments)

At the end of last year I wrote about The Life Changers of 2011 – the books, blogs and other ideas that effected my life in a positive, meaningful way.  I’m here today to do the same for 2012!

Of course, the biggest life changer for us this year was addition of this guy to our family:

Kaz 6 months

Weed Number Three…

June 30th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Parenting - (19 Comments)

is a HE!

Allow me introduce our newest addition, Baby Casimir!

Weed Number 3

Casimir, who shall also be known as Kaz, is the little man who has filled our hearts to the very brim with gratitude and love. He made his grand entrance on Thursday morning, June 28th (via VBA2C, 10 days after his due date!) weighing in at 8 lbs 14 oz and 22 1/2 inches long.

Just a quick post to announce that he’s here! We are getting settled into our new life as a family of five, I’m off now to eat, sleep, nurse, repeat.

So yesterday was my “due date”, and here I am today, still pregnant.

40 weeks pregnant

This comes as no surprise really as I have never had a baby arrive before 40 weeks. This babe appears to be reading the notes the other two left behind, which must instruct all fetuses to stay put until I start making threats to name them Newton or Elphaba.

While we wait, I’m doing all sorts of important stuff around here. You know, like cleaning, doing laundry, playing Spider Solitaire, cleaning again, and most importantly, making cookies.

Oatmeal Cookie Ingredients

I’ll begin today by explaining that we’ve been eating a lot of the Same Old, Same Old for dinner around here lately.

From what I can figure, any and all brain power that was formerly used for coming up with something new and creative for dinner (or the blog) seems to have been temporarily diverted to growing a baby. A baby who is getting pretty big I might add, and lately has a fondness for doing what can only be described as extended side angle pose in utero.

Barbie Doing Extended Side Angle Pose

I did Barbie’s hair. You like?

A New Green Machine

April 8th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (15 Comments)

Guess what?!

Brand New Vitamix

OK, to be fair, unless you are a food nerd who reads a lot of foodie blogs, you might not be able to guess and/or be squealing the same way I did when the UPS man dropped this guy off last week.

On the right? Our old blender. The lean mean muscle machine on the left? My Our new VITAMIX!

Thanks to the fact that my birthday was last week (33! WOOT!) AND that Zak was finally bitten by the Vitamix bug AND a 20% Off coupon from Bed, Bath and Beyond that saved us a bundle, we bit the bullet and welcomed this majestic marvel into our appliance family a few short days ago.

Attack of the Snacks

March 14th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Short or Sweet - (14 Comments)

Once upon a time I ate one snack a day, usually between lunch and dinner. But now at nearly 7 months pregnant, I’ve stopped counting how many snacks I eat everyday. I need more fingers if I want to keep track.

Today I’m in the mood to hand out some awards to a few of my most favorite snacks in recent weeks. Snickity snacks that are awesome if you eat 1 or 11 snacks a day. Snacks that please the palate whether you’re gestating or not. I think this paragraph needs the word “snack” in it one more time, don’t you? Snack. OK, that’s two more times. Snack.

Sweet Salad Memories

March 1st, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (9 Comments)

As a self-proclaimed Salad Lover, I’ve come to see that the pregnant version of myself is not at all a Salad Lover.

No, these days I’m more of a Salad Avoider.  I’m able to stuff leafy greens into sandwiches or the occasional glass of green juice or green smoothie, but my regular salad days are currently on hiatus – much like my days of wearing pants with a button and zipper.

We Put the Crunchy in Granola

February 17th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (12 Comments)

Today, I’m bringing my homeschooled children along with me to a prenatal exam with my midwife.

Hi, my name is Alison and I am a former mainstream, rural, middle class girl turned still-middle class, urban, hippie (but not hip) stay at home mom.  Nice to meet you.

Before we head out today, I’m making some granola!  Of course I am.

No matter where you happen to fall on the lifestyle spectrum, chances are good that you’ll like this stuff.

Please allow me to introduce you to my crunchy granola friends:

Maple Pecan Granola Ingredients

Four New Things To Try Sometime Soon

February 9th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (5 Comments)

It’s been a busy week playing catch up after being out of town for a few days, so I’m here today to share a couple of random things worth trying if you’re looking for something new to do with yourself, your mouth or even your hair.

First!

Try Brushing Your Teeth in the Dark.

Thanks to a couple of flashing firefly toothbrushes, one of our new favorite new activities is scrubbing the pearly whites with the lights off.

Bathroom Dance Party

It’s a dance party in your bathroom! You’re totally invited to join us and pump up the volume while you pump out some toothpaste.

I have just returned from Iowa! Did ya miss me? Did ya happen to see a 5 month pregnant woman running through the Atlanta airport last night in an effort to catch her connecting flight back to New York on time?

If you did, let’s just pretend that wasn’t me.

No, instead let’s chat about Iowa! I was invited to speak at a conference called Women Blazing Trails for the non-profit group, Iowa Women in Natural Resources at the Springbrook Conservation Center in Guthrie Center, Iowa.