Happy Halloween from Cole

If he asks you, "trick or treat?" I'd stick with the treat option. His tricks are pretty smelly... :)

Frugal Feast Friday: seafood quesadillas

Families pinch their pennies tighter than the ears of an 8-year-old these days, so I thought I’d start a series on inexpensive, easy-to-make recipes. I chose easy-to-make ones because if you called me a "beginner" in the kitchen, I'd call you "too kind."

For example, I made biscotti once. The dessert was fine. The hand mixer was not. I fried its motor combining ingredients. And that’s a good day for me. 

In every recipe for this series, I plan to use products I find on sale. Shredded cheese was a bargain at 2/$3 at a local grocery store. Therein lies my inspiration. 

Note: I didn't include that store's name. BUT if any grocer, food supplier, kitchen-product sales person care to sponsor a post, I’d share the name, many times, them as long as readers are aware. E-mail me up, let’s make a deal.   

Anyways, this post’s recipe I modified from Redbook Magazine. PS: I modify every recipe. I never have all the right ingredients. I can’t help it. 

So: 

The Par-VENT-ing rendition of Redbook’s Shrimp and Crab Quesadilla

6 oz crabmeat (I sprung for the real stuff even though imitation is cheaper. The recipe called for 8 oz, but crab comes in 6 oz packages)

10 oz shrimp (Again, I don’t follow directions. The recipe called for 8 oz, but since I didn’t have enough crab, I supplemented with shrimp.)

1/2 cup corn kernels

1/2 cup chunky salsa

1/4 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese (The recipe called for pepper jack, but I didn't have any... whoops)

8 tortillas

extra sour cream, salsa and shredded lettuce for topping

1). Peel and slice shrimp.

2). Combine all ingredients in large bowl.

3). Cook quesadillas on medium heat in a non-stick skillet.

4). Top it with a second tortilla and flip when cheese has melted. If the bottom tortilla puckers, flip ASAP. Leave it longer and it may burn. Experienced chefs probably already know this... :)

4). Use a pizza cutter to slice tortillas into four or six pieces. Top with lettuce, salsa and sour cream.

  

The recipe serves about six.

So I know this is “frugal” feast, and I spent $10 on meat for one meal, but I wanted to mix it up my entree. Worth it? Not if you consume all of it in one night. 

The leftovers had a more shrimpy/crab taste which = mmm. The first night I made it, the cheese and salsa overwhelmed the seafood flavor. Chicken or beef would have tasted just as nummy. In the future, I’d maybe combine all ingredients the night-, or at least a few hours before, allowing more time to blend so the shrimp- and crab flavor could take center stage.  

If I make this again: I’d add more vegetables like sliced olives and diced onions. I’d also garnish with fresh tomatoes too.


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Stuff I never thought about: the breast-milk bind

For two days, 130 miles separated me and my baby and given North Dakota's weather, snow, sleet and heavy winds covered nearly all of them.

While we were in Fargo for my husband's surgery, I gave my mother-in-law every ounce (and in some containers, less than that) of milk I'd stored when a feeding tube nourished baby in the NICU. I was fortunate to have the extra supply, another of the few *PLUSES* for babies born with health complications. Without the stockpile, we'd have fed him formula, which is fine. But what if baby gets used to and then prefers the powder on his palate? How do I beckon him back to the breast?

I like to breastfeed. I like the supposed health benefits and I love how inexpensive it is... the only cost to me is the increase in MY calorie consumption. A week or two worth of formula costs $20-$25 or more than $1,000 per year. The added benefit is the bonding time with mother and baby. My kid must hang out with me... I'd better get my fill now before he hits his teenage years and pretends to not know me :)

Because of my NICU supply, I knew I had enough milk reserve for two days, but did I have enough for three days if Mother Nature delayed us?

That's why I now have about four days worth of reserve and I plan to make more. According to La Leche League, if a mother needs to produce milk for two babies, she usually can. So to pump and save at least once each day wouldn't take away from my child's nourishment needs. Store some yourself so this situation doesn't happen to you.

Breast milk is produced on a supply and demand basis, so once the milk is used, the breast makes more, according to LLL. It doesn't run out after a specific number of ounces per day.

That's why some women donate and others store. To store an extra feeding, considering you have a decent pump, only takes about 15 minutes. Those reserves may come in handy if mom is ever sick, gone for longer than expected or enjoys one too many cocktails the night before.  

I hadn't considered this dilemma until the weather got wacky and plans threatened to change. Just thought I'd share. Hope it helps.

Any of you ever been in a breastfeeding bind?

Baby's first er, uh second slumber party

Today, my husband has surgery.

The nearest hospital performing such a procedure is 100 miles away, so the little tyke is crashing at grandma's. It's his first slumber party since the NICU.

While I'm sure he won't notice our departure, i.e., he'll probably have more fun without us, I'm already teary about leaving him.

Please tell me this is normal and will go away.

If one night is tough, how will I handle summer camps and college?

Bath time photo-try

photo-try: n. a combination of pictures and poems. name and idea stolen from Rebecca Woolf at girlsgonechild.net

The boy wails with lungs now healthy

as bathtubs spout a scare

Soap suds and bubbles cause his lament, 
a muppet cloth won't console him

Even his great comforter,

the plastic binkie,

before Johnson & Johnson it trembles

And while the towel dries his body 

In daddy's hands he is warm.

teaching my son the human races

One of my biggest fears, living and raising a family in North Dakota, is failing to expose my children to different cultures. Not only do I live in a state who's population is more than 90 percent white, but it's also mostly Christian and predominantly German- and Norwegian white. 

Don't get me wrong, living in a state so small and area so rural has SUPER advantages for child-rearing, namely, my child will never have to walk through metal detectors on his way to school. Check mark in the pro column. 

I grew up in a bigger city and at age four, still touched the head of a little black girl at Sesame Street Live. I wanted to know what her hair felt like. Even with my upbringing, I didn't and don't know nearly enough. 

I don't want my son to walk the graduation stage without ever meeting someone who's skin tanned faster than his does. 

So what to do? 

* Cable TV, movies, media is a start. Watch a show with black people in it. And if I'm feeling really civil rights-y, I can throw in "The Color Purple" or "How to Kill a Mockingbird." I guess that has potential. The problem is, reality TV is seldom (if ever) realistic. I don't want him getting the impression that these over-the-top personalities represent any one culture as a whole. And he won't have much by way of real people and local examples to teach him any different. 

* Art: I can't think of any other offering here that would expose him to more cultures and perspectives. Even if the project is a little cheesy, like: here, make a fan. That's what Asian people do... A project like that at least it opens the door for opportunities to explore that fan and the reasons and culture behind it. He and I can read books on the topic or research "Asia" on the internet. In fact, I like that idea. I'm pretty sure hand-held fans don't represent modern Asia, but perhaps making one represents an opportunity to explore another heritage. 

* Travel: Duh! It's the bottom line frightens me. On our budget, traveling to relatives and friends in Colorado and small-town Iowa will have to suffice. As much as I'd love summer vacations in India, Egypt and Ireland, something tells me they'll have to discover oil in LaMoure County first. 

So what would you do? How did you grow up? 

I'm with baby 24 hours a day, but sometimes I feel I neglect him

Do you feel you spend enough time with your children?

I sort of wrote about this before when I asked how often you hold your babies. A facebook friend asked the same question yesterday: even if you spend all day with your children, is it enough? She said she stays at home with her child, but is often preoccupied with schoolwork and studying. She said she feels guilty when her daughter plays alone while my friend betters herself in the books. 

Then today, I read this post  and one of my favorite Momaha.com bloggers wrote about living in the moment. Most days, she attempts punctuality and efficiency, but for the last week, she took life as it came. The blogger said she learned to enjoy the everyday moments, because she’ll never have them again. Her daughter will never be 6 years old again and may not always want to give her extra hugs and kisses. 

Those two posts combined are like a sign, or rather, a punch in the groin. 

I spend everyday with my baby, usually 24 hours a day. I mostly don’t mind nursing him, although at 4 a.m., I sometimes wish he’d eat a little faster. But I won’t always have the luxury of maternity leave and napping (almost) whenever I please. I won’t always have the free time to watch his little face or the **occasional** “Say Yes to the Dress” while he eats. Soon, I’ll have to make phone calls or stir spaghetti in a race to do the laundry and get some sleep before the next work day instead. 

Today, I opened his baby carrier and tried to hold him hands-free as I hung clothes in his closet. After a few minutes, I put him in his crib. Even at 7 lbs, my back ached. 

I love my son so much, I want to spend every minute with him, looking at the face which after four weeks, already looks like a new person compared to pictures of Day 1.

And while I don’t love scrubbing my kitchen as much, I do like living in a clutter- and dirt free home.

And blogging, I love it. It gives me a chance to research parenting and write about it. Plus, I can chronicle my life with my newborn and share stories with family and friends far away. But with every minute in front of my Mac, I feel guilty I’m not spending those minutes with my boy.  

So what do you do and do you have any advice?

How much time do you spend interacting with your children and can you accomplish your other daily tasks as well?