wrong car

I went to the wrong car tonight after knitting and even put my key in the lock. I walked up a hill to where I had originaly tried to park to a white car that was nothing like mine. Anyhoo, Liesl slept in the bed untill 5:40AM last night and Porter slept there untill 7AM. Porter really likes the new bed and I found him resting in it a few times today. I hope tonight goes as well as last night.

new bed

The kids were so excited tonight to get a new bed. We moved Porter's twin bed upstairs and my parent's brought over my old full size bed for the kids room. The idea is that they will sleep together better and be out of our bed. I hope tonight goes well and they stay in their bed all night.

This morning we walked up to the Mission and had breakfast with some friends. I love breakfast and the Zen Breakfast with rosemary potatoes minus the egg whites is my favorite. We walked to Bird Park after breakfast and played for a while before we went home and cleaned house. I made some of this amazing raw chocolate pudding for dessert tonight. It was so easy and so tasty I can't wait to make it again.

twenty and one

Twenty is the number of miles we rode last night and one is the number of times Liesl has nursed today. Jason went and picked up the kids early this morning and I thought that Liesl would want to nurse right away but I got up and gave the kids breakfast when they came home. Liesl did not ask for milk until a little bit later but I told her she had to get dressed first and after she got dressed we started playing with a puzzle and she did not ask again. Liesl nursed around two this afternoon after her nap and did not nurse this evening because she fell asleep in the car.
Today we went and closed an account at our old bank, went to see Horton Hears a Who and went to the South Park Walkabout. This was the first time we took Liesl to a movie and she did really well. The theatre was quiet and at the right moment she said "oh no" and made everyone laugh. It was a cute movie and I am happy I decided to go see it.

ride

It is 12:27AM and we just got home. We rode for 3 hours all the way to Point Loma and back. We stopped at the Pink Elephant for a drink with some friends and then went to the Commonwealth Cafe for some food. I wish I did not eat because now I feel like crap and just want to pass out from exhaustion. I am so glad the kids are spending the night at my parents house because I don't think I could drive. I had so much fun tonight I can't wait for the next ride in April.

this and that

Today I took Porter to school then went over to JoAnn's and GTM. I found some cheep fabric and I am going to make a few summer dresses for Liesl. After shopping we went over to a park close to Porter's school for a playgroup. There were a lot of people there so after I picked up Porter we went back and hung out for a few hours. Porter did not want to stay for lunch today so I did not make him. The teacher aide thinks that he was a little off on Tuesday at lunch because his teacher is on vacation this week. It was a fun day and I am looking forward to tomorrow. I am taking the kids to playgroup in the morning then at 12 my friend is going to watch them for a few hours so I can go run some errands.
Tomorrow night we are going on a Critical Mass bike ride and I am really looking forward to it. We could not get a sitter so we are taking the kids down to my parent's house and I know they will have a fun time.

beach

We went over to Coronado today with some friends and had a great time!

Porter making a sand angel.

two links

Go over to my sister's blog for a big announcement!

I love this post titled Plant vs. Animal over at The Gluten-Free Vegan Blog.

markers

I am not a huge fan of markers so I have never bought them for the kids. Liesl loves markers and only wants to play with them if they are around. My friend bought her some markers for her birthday so I let her play with them.


We went to an easter party on Saturday and Liesl spent most of the time inside with the markers. I think she had a good time!


Today I gave Porter and Liesl a spoonful of raw honey and Porter loved his but Liesl tasted it, took it off the spoon and wiped it on her dress.

Easter

It was hot today so we went swimming at my parent's house and then had a little egg hunt for the kids. Porter and Liesl each ate about half of a chocolate rabbit and complained of a stomach ache afterwards. It was a fun day.

tonight

My friend is coming over to watch the kids in just a little bit so we can go out. I am tired from being outside all day at an Easter party and swimming at my parent's house. I have to go get ready now.

today

Today my friend Sara came over and we walked up to Hillcrest for brunch. We went to City Bagel so I got the vegan cream cheese for the kids and avocado and tomatoes for me. Liesl saw my avocado and started asking for some so I shared. I have 15 lbs of avocados in my kitchen right now but they are not ripe yet and poor Liesl keeps asking for one. The last time we had them she ate one or more a day so I feel really bad that I can't give her one just yet. I went to a bead store today because they were having a 60% off sale. When I was 15 my Mom took my sister and I to this bead store by our house and I would make necklaces with beads and string. I moved on to macrame and bead necklaces and I did that for a long time. I even taught it when I worked in Maine at the teen camp. When we moved last year I found my bead box and took a look at it just a few months ago. I made a few necklaces with what I had and sold some in my mom's store so I decided to buy some more supplies. I like making the necklaces but they are not really my style so I don't wear them. Anyway, I found some nice beads for a great deal and the kids slept in the stroller so it was nice and easy to shop.

dress

I decided to make Liesl a dress tonight and it did not take that long but then I tried to make some blommers. It is 12:56AM and I am almost done but I will have to finish them in the morning. My eyes hurt and I am getting frustrated.

crafts

I made two shirts recently, one for a friend and one for Porter. Porter was watching Yo Gabba Gabba one day and asked if he could have a Muno shirt like the boy in the show. I showed him the shirt I made and he said it was supposed to be on a blue shirt and have a body.
Porter did not have a fever he just wanted to wear it all afternoon.

I made this shirt for a birthday gift for my friend's son Rowan.

Food

After reading this post about these vegetarian sausages I decided to go ahead and make them. They were so easy to make and so tasty I can't wait to have leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
In the steamer basket.

I put them on a roll with some onions and peppers.
Jason added ketchup to his and Porter just ate his with ketchup and no veggies.
Today I made a raw sunflower seed sandwich spread. I bought a chard wrap from the Peace Pie guy at the farmers market a few weeks ago and loved it but had no idea what it was made out of. The next time I saw him I asked and found out it was sunflower seeds so I had to try and make my own. This is a photo of the one I bought. I just put mine on some bread and it was really tasty.

This is how I made mine but you could add other things like celery, carrots, kale or peppers.
It is so easy you just blend it up!
1 2/3 C raw sunflower seeds
juice of two medium lemons
4 mushrooms
1/4 onion

co-sleeping

We are a co sleeping family and it works for us. Porter slept in his bed until this winter when it was cold in his room and we felt bad making him sleep in there by himself. My mom asked me last night if I we ever "cuddle" and if it bothers me that the kids sleep with us. We do get to "cuddle" all the time on the couch and in bed next to the kids so that is not a problem for us. We don't love or hate having the kids with us but for now it is working. Four in a queen size bed leaves little room to stretch out so I don't know how much longer we will do it. Most mornings we are woken up by Liesl asking for food or a show but the other day she woke up and said "hi everybody", it was so cute. Porter will wake up and say "I love you mommy" and it just make is all worth it. Eventually we are going to put a full bed in the kids room and work on having them sleep in there together.

Jason was reading a book to Porter last night and Porter had to use the bathroom so he asked Jason to "pause the book".

gas

Can you see what is wrong in this photo?


Update
I just looked at this photo a little closer and figured it out. There are two prices one for cash and one for credit.

birthday party

My sister came down and we had a little celebration for Liesl. It was fun and Liesl loved all the extra attention.

party

Birthday kids, Liesl and veganmomma's boy Rowan.

Super Liesl!

Porter, Audio and Dane were playing so well at the park today. They were taking turns riding Porter's bike and running after the rider. After a while they went and sat at a table and they played with the cars Porter had in his backpack. Porter was hogging the cars a little bit but each boy had at least two cars so he was sharing some of them just not his favorites.

Liesl playing cars with the boys.

Happy Birthday Liesl!

I can't believe Liesl is two already. I found the birth story I wrote shortly after she was born. In a way I feel like she was Charlotte then and did not become Liesl until we started calling her that at 8 weeks so I will not change the name in the story.

The only time Liesl has ever been chubby.

Charlotte’s Birth

I went for a NST at Mercy Hospital on Monday at 12PM. Sara the midwife called me at 4:30 and said that the beck up Dr. at Mercy reviewed the test and said that the placenta was showing signs that it was no longer working. Sara said that I needed to come in and have my water broken as soon as possible. Jason and I got to the birth center at 5:30 and Roberta broke my water at 5:45. Contractions started almost right away and I got in the tub probably a half hour later when I was 4 cm. dilated. Labor was really hard and I felt that I never got a break it was just one contraction after another. My uterus started pushing so I asked Roberta to check me and I was 6 to 7 cm. I don’t know how much time went by but it did not seem like much and I had to push. I did not feel like I was ready to do it. I felt like I could not move and my uterus was pushing the baby out. I could not grab my knees and push so I just laid there pushed a couple of times and the baby was out. I remember Sara saying that the head was out and the next thing I knew Charlotte was on my stomach. I was bleeding a lot afterward because my uterus was not contracting so I lost a good amount of blood and they gave me a shot of Pitocin. We went home at 12:45AM and I felt pretty week for the first couple of days but I am getting better. Porter came in the room right after Charlotte was born and has been a great big brother.

Porter and Liesl waiting to eat their cup cakes.

zoo

We went to the Zoo today and had a really nice time. We took a differnt rout this time, one I used to take all the time and it was a really nice change. We got to see two pandas and Liesl really liked them but she started to scream when we were leaving. I asked her if she wanted to go back in again but Porter said he wanted to see the yellow snake. Porter really likes the albino anaconda in the reptile exhibit so we went to check that out. We went to the children's zoo and the kids had a good time runing around.



Porter and Liesl checking out the otters.

Religion Part Three

This is my last post on the topic for a while.

I don't think going to church and believing in a god is a bad thing. I think going to church and religion is great for a lot of people. The social aspect of a church community can be wonderful and so many people benefit from being a part of one. I like the traditions surrounding religion and celebrate the christian holidays with my family. People around the world have done wonderful things and equally horrible things in the name of religion. We all believe that we are right so, how can I say I am right and you are wrong? I am going to continue believing what I believe and I am happy and content with it. I am determined to raise ethical, honest and kind children without sin and hell as a threat. I am going to read Parenting Beyond Belief and think it will help Jason and I achieve our goal as parents.

new toy

Some friends of ours are moving to Berlin next week so we stopped by their house to say goodbye. They gave the kids a little ride on electric 4 wheeler and the kids love it. Porter is really good at driving it but Liesl just pushes the button and gets mad when it goes into a wall or tree.


Porter making his funny face.
Porter is really into numbers, letters and Spanish. He will just randomly say a word and tell me it is a Spanish word. He asked my how to say "there" in Spanish, I told him I did not know but would look it up for him. He told Jason the other day that "medium" was a Spanish word. Porter just says random words and thinks they are in Spanish. It is cute and I think I should get out the few Spanish books we have to read to him.

easy weekend pancakes

Porter has been asking my to make pancakes so I thought I would be a good mom and make some. I found this recipe at Vegan Yum Yum and they turned out well, plus I got to use my blender so it was really easy.

dress

Jason and went and exchanged my Valentine's day present while our friend watched the kids for an hour. The shirt Jason bought me was cute but not really my style so I exchanged it for a tank and a dress. The sitter is coming over in an hour and we are going to just go hand out with some friends for a while. I want to go on a bike ride too but Jason is not that into the idea.

one glass of Bitch please

Wednesday afternoon we met up with some friends at our local park for a whine hour. Six moms and one dad came so we had a really fun time. Kelli brought a bottle of bitch that we all enjoyed.

Here are a few pictures of the kids at the park today.

another time

I am going to think about part three for a night. I started to write it but it is not finished so I will try and have it done by tomorrow.

Religion Part Two

Five years ago I started taking yoga with my mom and little sister. We would meditate and I would get the same feeling as I would get when I would pray. This made me realize that that peaceful feeling I would get while praying was not from god. A short while after I came to this realization I became pregnant. I know a lot of women feel that when you become pregnant it is this miracle of life growing inside and so much greater than yourself. I did not feel like it was anything other than the natural biological process. I became pregnant because I had sex, not because of this miracle of god that made the sperm swim to the egg. Despite all of these feelings I still held on to the belief in god because that is what I grew up with. When Porter was 4 or 5 months old my sister and I baptised our sons together. I remember standing up there and thinking that I did not believe anything the pastor was saying. Jason and I like and appreciate the traditions of religion so that is why we had Porter baptized. After baptizing Porter I really realized that I just don't believe in god anymore and it was hard to admit to myself. When you grow up believing something it is really hard to come to the realization that none of it is true. I was taught that it is hard to be a christian and stand up for your beliefs in this horrible secular world. Instead, I find that it is hard to not believe in a god and afterlife. It is easy to believe that when you die you go to heaven. There is a comfort in it and a peacefulness that you get if you believe. It is hard to go from believing that to believing that when you die you die, that is it. There is no mythical heaven where we all hang out and play harps with the angels. My mom, older sister and I were driving on the freeway and we passed a wreck where the lady in the car was injured. My mom and sister started talking about how they just pray that that never happens to them and that they pray that god sends his angels around them to protect them. I was thinking to myself that they don't know if that lady was praying the same thing. It does not matter how many angels are around you or how much you pray to god accidents happen. I realize that it is a comfort to them and it is easy and safe to believe that because then you don't have to deal with uncertainty. I would love to walk around this world believing that I was going to go to heaven and that god was going to protect me and that he will answer my prayers. I am not into fantasy and imaginary things and I just can not wrap my mind around this god that is all around us. I remember my mom telling me that god knows everything that I do. I remember my parents telling me not to drink or have sex before marriage because the bible says so. I am determined to raise moral, good, loving children without religion and the idea of sin. There might be a part three.

Religion Part One

I was baptised Catholic like my mother but, I was raised in the United Methodist church like my father. I grew up believing that god answered prayers and I remember many nights praying that my bedroom would be full of Cabbage Patch dolls when I woke up. We were semi regular church goers and at one point both my parent's got really involved in the church. I think I was a junior in high school when they went through that faze and they stopped drinking alcohol for a year. I remember thinking it was funny that I drank and my parent's didn't. My sister and I were active in the youth group and we did a lot of fun things. During one of the youth pastor's talks he said that god does not like gray, you are either black or white. I remember thinking that I was gray, I would party Saturday night and go to church Sunday morning. I could not be one or the other so I just went along thinking that I would be a good christian one day. We went on a youth group trip down to La Paz to build a church and my whole family went too. On the last night we got to stay in a hotel instead of the church and we had some free time to wander the city. My sister and I, along with some friends went to a liquor store and bought a bottle of Tequila. We got so drunk that night we even managed to get the youth group president who had never drank before to join us. Three of us were throwing up all night and it was just a mess the next morning trying to get to the airport. I don't think my parent's knew at the time what went on but we did tell them at some point. After I graduated from High School I pretty much stopped going to church until I met Mike, my first real boyfriend. I don't remember how active we were but we did go to church together. I went to a big non denominational church a few times to check it out but I was not that into it. So anyway I spent my early 20's for the most part inactive but thinking that I would eventually got back once I had kids. Part two tomorrow.

Natural Path Mama

My sister started a blog so you should all go check it out and say "Hi".

Sunday

It was a beautiful morning so we walked up to the Hillcrest Farmers Market for some produce and raw treats. The kids had a great time running around and it was just nice to be out. When we got home Jason took the kids outside to play and I made a tofu scromble for the first vegan potluck at the lovely Vegan Momma's house. I made a deal with Jason that I would not make him come if he stayed home and cleaned the house. The potluck was fun and full of so much tasty, yummy, delicious vegan food I can't wait for next month. The house was nice and clean when we got home, yay! This eveing my parent's came over with their friend who had been visiting from Merced. We ordered pizza because I have a fridge full of veggies but nothing to complete a recipe. I made a vegan chocolate pudding cake from How it all Vegan that was so good we ate it all. Anyway, tonight is the season premier of Dirt so I am going to start watching it.

Peach blossoms and baby birds

There is a hummingbird nest in my parent's blood orange tree we have been watching.

Blossoms on the peach tree.

Liesl and I by the blood orange tree.

The Business of Being Born

We received The Business of Being Born on Netflix yesterday so I watched it last night. It was a really good movie and I think that anyone who is pregnant or thinking about having kids should watch it. I am just so happy that my mom had me at home so I knew another side and that I did not have Porter in the hospital. I think that if I had Porter in the hospital with all the drugs and intervention I would have had a cesarean. Porter was 10lbs. 8oz. and it took all I had to push him out, I don't think I could have done it if I was on drugs. I will never know though and I am just so happy I had him at the birth center.