On the Move

Yep. Luke is under the table right now. I did not put him there, I put him on his play mat. Time to start baby proofing!

For Grandma Pederson

These are the cookies that I made for our Easter dinner at Church- easy and tasty:

Mexican Wedding Cookies (Makes 36)

Ingredients:

* 1 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup powdered sugar
* 2 cups flour, sifted
* 1 cup nuts, ground (I used almond meal)
* 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Form into 1 1/2" balls.
3. Bake on cookie sheet at 350°F for about 10-15 minutes or until set.
4. Sprinkle powdered sugar on while still warm.

Cinnamon Breakfast Cake

This is very delicious. I was excited about the simplicity of the recipe too, and how wonderful it made my house smell!

I adapted a recipe that I found to fit my own taste. I am amazed at how MUCH sugar people put into their recipes. Seriously!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups flour (I used 1/2 all purpose, 1/2 graham flour)

3/4 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups milk

2-3 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 pinch salt

1 large egg

TOPPING:

1/4-1/2 cup brown sugar, more if desired

2-2 teaspoons cinnamon

2-3 T melted butter

chopped walnuts or pecans (I used almond meal in the main dough instead)

1. Set oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Prepare a greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish.

3. In a bowl mix the flour, sugar, milk, vanilla or almond extract, baking powder, pinch of salt and egg until just combined, careful not to over-mix.

4. Pour into prepared baking pan.

5. Generously spread brown sugar and cinnamon on top.

6. If desired, sprinkle chopped walnuts or pecans over top.

7. Drizzle melted butter over top.

8. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until cooked through.

Bed Head

This is what Luke looks like when he wakes up from a nap:

So, We Have a Plan

After reading the comments from my previous post and talking with a couple of friends, I realize that I really need more structure in my life. When I have too much time that is not already appropriated for this or that, I go nuts. So I developed a plan with Baby Luke this morning as we ate breakfast. I am going to call it a "plan" because if I call it a "schedule" I will freak out about trying to keep it. I tried it out so far today, and I like it.

Here goes:

6:30- 7:00am- wake up and morning snuggles, change diaper, feed baby, etc..
7:00- 8:00am- morning prayers, chores- make Nathan's lunch, tidy up, eat breakfast
8:00-9:00am- exercise- walk or a video depending on Luke's mood and the weather
9:00-10:30am- Luke naps, mommy cleans, has 10 minutes of prayer/silence**, looks up Saint of the Day to read and prints out icon for Luke
10:30-11:00am- snuggles, read, change diaper, feed baby, etc..
11:00-1:00pm- social time (usually a trip out of the house for errands or for coffee)
1:00-2:00pm- noon prayers, lunch, fruit for Luke, music and play time
2:00-3:30pm- Luke naps, mommy cleans, has 10 minutes of prayer/silence**, work on fun project or read
3:30-4:00pm- snuggles, read, change diaper, feed baby, etc..
4:00-5:00pm- Luke plays on the floor, mommy does chores if needed, or plays with Luke, reads out loud, etc..
5:00-6:00pm- dinner prep and walk around the block if Luke is fussy
6:00-6:30pm- dinner with Daddy and evening prayers
6:30-7:00pm- playtime with Daddy, bath, clean-up, into pj's, eat and sleep for Luke
7:00-9:30pm- free time- hang out with Nathan, watch a TV episode, read, projects, etc..
9:30pm- bed for Mommy

I know it looks complicated, but really, its not. The times are approximate. It is what we have been doing for a while now. my hardest part of the day is the 4-6pm time frame when I am tired, Luke is tired and we are eagerly awaiting Nathan's return home.

**I really like this time of day. I began trying to be quiet and pray for 10minutes a day during Lent. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is an exercise for me to drop everything and be still. I was inspired by Met. Anthony Bloom's book, Beginning to Pray. It changed my life. It is, as the reviewers say, a modern spiritual classic. I so heartily recommend this book that I will send a free copy to the first two people who respond, who haven't read it. Don't put your address on the response, but let me know that you want it and we will work out the shipping details.

Still Trying to Figure Out What to Do With Myself

Luke will be eight months old in a day.

For the first three months of his life, I tried to cope with my new occupation. I tried to get enough sleep. I tried to keep my sanity. I tried to not do anything that might cause Luke permanent damage.

Three to six months- I slept better and developed some hobbies. I joined mom's groups. I cleaned out my closets and got rid of stuff. Still, I was mostly busy with Luke.

Six months to the present- Luke takes great naps (I hope that I don't jinx the nap situation by saying that!). I now have three hours of free time each day. I am feeling lost and overwhelmed by the idea of having free time and not knowing what to do with it. Truly, I want a job. I want to make money again, but there is not much available given the constraints that I have.

I have never been good with free time. The last time my life was this slow-paced was my senior spring semester at Biola. I had 6 units and a very part time job. I would wait anxiously for Nathan to come home each day to rescue me from my loneliness (not his job). I actually got pretty depressed.

Finally, I began working at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf for about 16 hours a week. I loved it. I could be creative. I could help people and get to know my customers. I could listen to my co-workers and be a part of their lives.

I am looking for something to do now (when I am not doing the important "mommy-ing") that is both creative and purposeful. Also, it needs to be something that I WANT to do. Something a little different from the mommy/housekeeper position that takes up most of my day. I have tried many things so far- crocheting (I need to work much longer on that before I am any good), cooking (good, but I there are only two of us to eat it), reading (this helps a bit, right now I am reading the oh-so-insightful "Pilgrims Regress"), and a bit of writing.

Anyways, I'll trudge onward. It feels weird to be trying to figure out my interests again.

Bright Tuesday

A glorious trip to Seal Beach to watch the waves. Now, Luke and his mamma are dancing to fun 80's light rock. Yep, he really is bopping around and trying to sing along. :)