Things I Never Expected to Say, Vol. III

You can't have corn chips. You don't have teeth yet!

~~~

You're four months old. Do you really still need to poop every time you eat?

~~~

Do you want your hand or do you want food? That is the question.

~~~

Apparently the answer is your turtle.

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How does your chewing hurt so much? You don't have teeth!

~~~

And now you're eating your spider.

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This looked OK when I bought it, but now I kinda want to dress you in these dresses ALL THE TIME. You're SO CUTE!

~~~

Why do you only try to touch your bum when it's covered in poo?

7QT: Non-political soundbites

—1—

Kathryn is going through a phase where her favorite toys are my clothing. She would much rather play with my sleeves, collar, or whatever else she can grab as opposed to her toys. Silly baby!

—2—

So I put her in this dress thing because it was 70+ degrees out. I bought it because it was $1.99 at the thrift store and she needed clothes. 

Wasn't quite expecting her to be SO DANG CUTE. I kind of want to dress her in nothing but these and turn all of her onesies into dresses like this. 

—3—

I like Lent and all, and I love the Triduum, but I will be very glad when it's over. It's just very tiring with all of the things we end up going to for RCIA since Shane is in charge. It will be nice to go to Mass 10 minutes away instead of 45. 

—4—

My Verizon contract is up soon. For a variety of reasons (namely cost), Shane and I had decided to remain on separate plans (the cost of the combined plan was higher than two separate plans. Yes, it was ridiculous) after our wedding 14 months ago. 

Instead of moving to a joint Verizon plan, right now I think we're going to sign up for Project Fi, a Google project moving into the phone plan business. It's a flat $20 for talk and text and $10 per gigabyte of data, and they reimburse you for data you don't use. (Which is great since I now work from home and hardly ever use even a full gigabyte.) It's currently only compatible with Nexus phones (5X, 6, and 6P), so I'll be moving from my Galaxy S4 (which has a better camera). I'm hoping that I can continue to use my old phone as a point-and-shoot camera since it's all I have. If not, we'll probably get a DSLR. (Which we want to get anyway, but haven't yet because they're expensive and we have to talk ourselves into spending that much money on one thing.) 

If anyone has a Nexus 5X, any suggestions for good cases? Otterbox doesn't make them, so I can't just say, "Otterbox is very good" and use them. I'd like to get a waterproof case (because Kathryn wants to chew on my phone, and she will someday be mobile in addition to grabby), but they don't appear to have an option like the Otterbox. 

—5—

I'm very ready for election season to be over. It feels like it's been going for over a year already and I just...really don't care enough to spend TWO YEARS out of every four thinking about this circus. I do believe politics are important, just not so much so that I want to immerse myself in it. (My husband likes politics. And spends so much time on it during the election season that he gets completely burnt out the rest of the time.)

—6—

I found this article today, "Why the Vocation Crisis is a Fiction". It makes an excellent point, and one that not enough people are thinking about — the actual number of faithful, practicing Catholic families, and the ratio of them to priests is up. Read the article for a more in-depth analysis. 

—7—

Just because it's funny. 

Happy weekend! You can find more quick takes at This Ain't the Lyceum with Kelly. 

Just so you know

Once upon a time, this baby who has very little hair...

Two days ago.

Actually had a full head of it. 

Her newborn pictures, when she was eight days old.

She promptly lost all of the hair on top of her head for reasons I don't really understand. For the record, the hair IS growing back. It's just not long enough to see in pictures yet. 

Five Favorites: Tasty meatless recipes

Seeing as I spent my entire Quick Takes post last week complaining, it does seem right to say that I'm not always so whiny. I've struggled with depression before, but that post was just taking several complaints from the last few months and putting them all into one post.

Anyway, today I'm going to link up with Ashley at The Big White Farmhouse for Five Favorites! Today's edition will be meatless recipes. We're over halfway through Lent, but Shane and I do meatless every week (except for major feasts and octaves).

(Sorry about the lack of pictures, I'm very bad at remembering to take pictures of my food. Even though I intend to write a blog post on it.)

1. Fettuccine Alfredo

This is a recipe that I make when Shane isn't home, because he's ridiculous and doesn't like creamy sauces or cheese. It's very easy, and doesn't require a roux like most recipes. And it's very hard to turn it into a lumpy mess!

You will need per two servings:

• 2 cups milk
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 cup mozzarella
• 1/2 cup Parmesan 
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 ounces fettuccine 

1. Boil enough water and a dash of salt to cook the pasta. 
2. When the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook till al dente, 6-7 minutes. 
3. While the pasta is cooking, put 3/4 plus 2 tablespoons of the milk into a pot and start it simmering. Whisk 2 tablespoons of the milk with the flour, and once the milk is simmering, stir in the milk with flour until it thickens, 2-3 minutes. 
4. Once the milk has thickened, add the mozzarella, Parmesan, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. 
5. Add the sauce to the cooked pasta and stir to combine. Serve while hot. 

You can add spinach, broccoli, shellfish, or chicken (if you aren't doing meatless, obviously). 

2. Mac and Cheese

This is actually the base I used to make my fettuccine alfredo recipe.

You need per 2 servings:

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Muenster cheese
• 1/2 cup Colby-Jack cheese
• 1/2 cup sharp white cheddar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 ounces pasta of choice (I like rotini or medium shells personally)

1. Boil enough water and a dash of salt to cook the pasta. 
2. When the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook till al dente, 6-7 minutes. 
3. While the pasta is cooking, put 3/4 plus 2 tablespoons of the milk into a pot and start it simmering. Whisk the remaining milk with the flour, and once the milk is simmering, stir in the milk with flour until it thickens, 2-3 minutes. 
4. Once the milk has thickened, add the cheeses and salt and pepper. 
5. Add the sauce to the cooked pasta and stir to combine. Serve while hot. 

You can add anything you'd like to this. If you would prefer different cheeses, feel free to experiment. This is just the combination that I particularly enjoy. I find that it has the perfect combination of flavor and melted texture for my liking. You can also add a dash of Worcestershire sauce if you'd like. I do when I'm just using cheddar.

If you prefer baked mac and cheese, you can slightly undercook the pasta, add a little bit of extra milk, put it all into a greased pan, top it with seasoned bread crumbs, and bake at 350 Fahrenheit for 10 minutes.

3. Shrimp Scampi

My family's recipe differs from the standard white wine version. It has a more citrus-y flavor, which I personally like. (My husband isn't nearly as fond of lemon in seafood as I am.)

• 3/4 pound (50-60 count) shrimp, raw/shelled/deveined  
• 6 tablespoons butter  
• 1 tablespoon minced green onion 
• 1 tablespoon olive oil 
• 5 cloves pressed garlic 
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley 
• 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest 
• Optional dash of hot pepper sauce

1.  Pat shrimp dry with paper towels; set aside. 
2. Melt butter in wide frying pan over medium heat. 
3. Stir in green onion, oil, garlic, lemon juice and salt; cook until bubbly. 
4. Add shrimp to pan and cook, stirring occasionally until shrimp turn pink, approx. 4-5 min. 
5. Stir in parsley, lemon peel and hot pepper sauce, if using. Serve hot.

We typically serve this over cappellini (angel hair) pasta, but you can use some other pasta if you would like.

4. Beer Battered Fish

We typically make Alton Brown's recipe for this. I think. My husband normally makes this one, so I'm not 100% sure. I know he adds garlic powder, and I think a touch of paprika. And if you'd like very interesting flavors, use Not Your Father's Root Beer for the beer. It adds a slight sweetness that is kind of nice. (I use kind of because I'm not really sure sweetness is the right word. It just adds...SOMETHING that makes it taste slightly different and takes it up a notch on the tasty front.)

5. Lentils with Spaghetti

This is another family recipe. Fun story: my third sister HATES beans of all kinds. Abhors them. That includes this dish. And my parents say you have to try at least one bite. She has had this dish served to her at every meal for four consecutive meals because she wouldn't even eat one bite. (Not because it's bad, she just REALLY doesn't like it.) Heaven knows what she would do with garbanzos and rigatoni. 

For four servings:

• 1 32 ounce can tomato sauce or pureed tomatoes
• 3ish tablespoons basil
• 5 cloves of garlic, cut in half
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 lb lentils
• Spaghetti 

1. Put the tomato sauce, basil, garlic, salt, and pepper into a pot. Save the can from the tomatoes. Cook until it simmers. 
2. Add the lentils and one canful of water to the pot. Cook until the lentils are tender. 
3. Cook and add spaghetti. Serve hot. 

I left the amount of spaghetti up to you. You can serve this more liquid-y as a soup (add extra water after the lentils cook if you want to do this), or like a tomato sauce for pasta (my preferred method). 

Those are some of MY favorite meatless recipes. (Not so much my husband considering the amount of creamy, cheesy, lemony items on here, but I still get most these once in a while!)

And, since Kathryn is cute, I'll finish with a picture of her in an adorable dress on our first 70 degree day! 

Things I Never Expected to Say, Vol. II

You can't eat if you have both of your hands in your mouth.

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Why are you eating your diaper?

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Don't eat Mommy's phone!

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Well don't shove your fingers down your throat!

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Don't bite Mommy's finger while I'm brushing your teeth.

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Kathryn honey, stop sucking on your hand so that I can feed you.

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Why are you blowing raspberries while you're nursing?

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You can't have corn chips yet, you're only four months old.

7QT: When things get hard

—1—

The root of everything is that I am a perfectionist. I had the tendency mostly under control before Kathryn was born (well, except for in design, but it made sense to me there). But since she's been born, I've had a very hard time with trying to be "perfect" — the perfect mother, the perfect housewife, just...doing it all and doing it cheerfully. 

But this tendency is making me completely miserable. I can't keep everything clean, and Kathryn is a stubborn little love who has her own mind about things like napping and letting me get work done (she doesn't like it). It's not even driven by anyone's opinion of me, and especially not Shane's. It's purely driven by my idea of what would make me "perfect". 

So finally, three days ago, my husband gave me a new Lenten practice. I need to do one thing wrong every day. On purpose. It's AWFUL. Which is, I suppose, the point.

—2—

This. And this. And just seriously. As a new mother, neither of these posts is actually helpful, and somehow they both manage to make this breastfeeding new mother upset — I don't experience this wonderful bonding time with Kathryn when she's nursing. I actually spend most of the time she's eating trying to keep her eating and get your fingers out of the way gosh darn it. The reason I chose to breastfeed was not because of the nutritional benefits or the ease or the bonding or any of it. I chose to do so because it is cheap. That's the only real reason I breastfeed Kathryn, and it sucks. It makes me feel terrible because there are so many GOOD reasons to choose to breastfeed or to not, and I only care about what is cheapest. 

I'm sure that I'm not the only new mother who doesn't find breastfeeding particularly bonding or pleasant, so seeing so much debate about something that you made a selfish choice for is very difficult. It just gave me more reasons to beat myself up for being a bad mother. 

—3—

When Kathryn was born, we had a rocky start with breastfeeding. She was three weeks early, my breasts at the time were almost bigger and heavier than she was, and I have flat nipples. For the first day and a half of her life, Kathryn couldn't manage to nurse for more than a few minutes. When they finally had me pump so that Shane could syringe-feed her until the lactation consultant could come, it was terrible. It's the one thing that they say is natural, and I couldn't feed my baby. The lactation consultant prescribed a nipple shield so that Kathryn could nurse on her own, and while it worked, I was warned not to use it for more than a week because she would become dependent.

Four months later, she still can't really nurse without the shield. One of my night nurses came in while I was feeding Kathryn in the maternity ward, and said, "That stuff is silly. You should nurse without interventions." As I was sitting there, with my baby who had only been able to start nursing with the shield in the last few hours and pumped milk so that when she got tired she could finish eating, she told me that I was nursing wrong. I was failing my daughter.

This still haunts me. She is dependent on the shield, because while her maturity is no longer a problem, I'm still huge and I still have extremely flat nipples. I feed my baby, but I can't do it naturally. 

—4—

We recently bought an ExerSaucer for Kathryn, because she started hating the bouncer and wanting to sit upright. Even on the lowest setting, when we first bought it last Saturday she could barely touch the ground with the tip of her toes. (Now she can touch with the balls of her feet. Yeah, it's not even been a week.) So I looked online and lo and behold, four month old babies shouldn't use these because it means you're basically a terrible parent, how could you possibly consider putting your baby in here so you can have fifteen minutes to work without having to hold your baby.

At the bare minimum, I need to be able to research and craft one Facebook post per day for the veterinary clinic that I consult for. This takes at least 15-30 minutes. That's the absolute barest minimum that I have to do, but I'm also redesigning their website, setting up their other social media, and maintaining their current site. And I can't really do it while I'm holding Kathryn. So yay for even MORE mommy guilt. Because I need to work, and my baby doesn't get 24/7 human interaction.

—5—

I do like to spend time with Kathryn, but it means that the apartment is messy. I don't always get the dishes done. Everything tends to have a layer of dust, and Kathryn's toys are all over the living room. Plus I had a mild case of influenza a couple of weeks back, and I'm still blowing my nose two-three times a day. And finding tissues from when I was sick all over. I grew up with a clean (well, clean-ish, there were five children in the house) house, so it bothers me that I can't even keep our small apartment clean.

—6—

Migraines suck. I thought having a baby was supposed to make them go away?

—7—

The fact that I just managed to fill an entire blog post with complaining and struggles feels remarkably self-pitying. But this is where my life is right now, and I'm going to state the obvious right now: 

Parenting. Is. Hard. 

I love Kathryn with all my heart. I love tickling her and blowing raspberries on her neck, seeing her smile, hearing her laugh. Watching her play with her toys or talk to her feet brings me such joy. 

But. 

Parenting. Is. Hard. 

And all of the joy and the smiles make it totally worth it. 

Parenting. Is. Hard. 

And Kathryn is worth it.