Sleep

Try getting any sleep in a hospital after giving birth to a baby.  It's impossible.  My daughter delivered her first child last week after a long labor.  She was exhausted going into the labor and delivery.  She had very little sleep the last two months of her pregnancy due to discomfort and anxiety.  After the child was born she thought she would at last be able to sleep.

The day after her delivery I sat quietly holding my new grand daughter as my daughter tried to sleep. I actually dozed off with the baby in my arms.   I was there for 4 hours.  Within that four hour period many people knocked on her door, all with good intentions.

Of course her nurse came in several times which is understandable to check her patient.
The lactation consultant came twice.
The photographer came to see if she was interested in having professional photos taken while in the hospital, leaving a brochure behind.
Someone from the kitchen popped in to let her choose from a menu for lunch.
House keeping came to tidy the room
Another person from the kitchen came to pick up the breakfast tray.
The pediatrician came to examine the baby and pronounce her healthy.
The obstetrician came to check on my daughter.
A hearing technologist came by to ask if my daughter was interested in having her baby's hearing checked.

That's 9 knocks on her door within a 4 hour period, not including the nurse who came more than once to deliver meds and ask questons.  It seemed that every time my daughter would drift off for a much needed nap someone would knock on the door.  She was a much better sport than I would have been.  With each knock she was very polite with not even a hint of frustration in her voice.  Had it been me I would have put a "do not disturb" sign on my door.

I know that one must be thinking "why didn't she sleep at night".  Well, after having a baby most women are exhausted and need to sleep but there is a certain "high" or exhilaration after delivering a baby.  No matter how tired a new mother is, I think the adrenaline in her blood keeps her alert for many hours afterward.  And let's not forget about all the pushing going on during delivery.  I don't believe many of us who have not given birth realize the exertion it takes to get a 5 to 9 pound baby out of the womb and into the world.  It's work, a lot of work that the body is not accustomed to.  Most women are terribly sore after the epidural fades, considering they even had an epidural.  And then there is the episiotomy or a big rip in the perineum to allow the baby to enter the world, which must be repaired.  This is very painful once the anesthetic has worn off.  Honestly the after affects of child birth is almost like being hit by an 18 wheeler truck.  Sleep is much needed and so hard to get.  There must be a reason for this, however I have not figured it out.  I've been through it 5 times myself and am still wondering why a new mother is not treated with more consideration.  Maybe it's preparation for the sleepless nights sure to come from taking care of a fretful baby.

The next day my daughter went home and was at last able to sleep for 2 hours at a time as the baby slept also. 

Country Life The Retirees: New Life!

Country Life The Retirees: New Life!: If you ask me, mammal babies are the prettiest of all species. We all love looking at baby dolphins, whales, monkeys, puppies and kitties b...

New Life!

If you ask me, mammal babies are the prettiest of all species.  We all love looking at baby dolphins, whales, monkeys, puppies and kitties but who doesn't love standing at the new born nursery window in a hospital gazing at all the perfect little human babies.  They are all beautiful with perfect little bodies.  The softest thing you can ever feel is the skin of a new born baby.

I cannot even begin to express the surreal experience of becoming a grand parent for the first time.  I had the very honorable experience this week of attending the birth of my first grandchild...my own daughter's first baby.  I think I was in shock throughout the entire experience as I watched my own baby bring forth her first child into the world.  I cry tears of joy as I write this blog.  It was not an easy pregnancy for her, but after being in labor almost 24 hours and pushing for one hour all her hard work paid off as the sound of her daughter's cry filled the room.

As my mom says,"all old hens think their little chick is the prettiest"....and I guess that goes along with the saying, "beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder".  I took many pictures and videos of this baby as it came into the world.  I let the parents get settled with their new baby and retreated for the night.  The next day I was able to hold my new grand daughter for a nice nap.  As I gazed into her certain to be blue eyes I thought to myself, "so what's all the hype about being a grandparent?"  I knew the answer to that but I don't know if I can even begin to put it in words.  It's more than carrying on the blood line and seeing the next generation of one's family spring forth.  I remember holding each of my own children when they were born and feeling like a lioness ready to kill and devour anything that posed a threat.  I think I remained that way well into their adult years and probably am still that way.  Looking at my new granddaughter my emotions run like a river.  What am I thinking about this perfect little human cradled in the bend of my arm?  It's love for sure, it's longing to be young again and produce more of my own, it's a certain knowledge that I never will.  It's like a period on a long sentence and a whole new chapter beginning.  It's such joy and delight that I never expected and still cannot express.  It's pride in my own child for doing such a good job. When she took her first breath outside her mother's womb and gave a little gasp and cry, I felt myself gasp also.  Her parents cried from the overwhelming emotion and I was standing there with tears in my eyes also.  Where did the time go?  I want those years back.  I want to be a young mother again and do it better this time.

I was so proud of my daughter for the long, never ending troublesome pregnancy and the perfect labor and delivery.  I felt incredible gratitude toward the nurses and doctor for doing such a wonderful job.  They were like angels moving about the delivery room performing each task like a symphony playing a beautiful musical piece, each note on key.  It was delightful to watch.  I could not have purchased the most expensive private seats to any performance any where in the world that would have equaled this performance.  The players were spectacular.  And what a fulfilling job, bringing forth new life every day!  Each time must be like a confirmation that human kind will continue to move forward.

I left the new little family to learn the task ahead of them.  I know this sweet little girl child will teach them as she makes her demands known.  They will suffer from lack of sleep for the rest of their lives as they care for and worry about their offspring, just as I still do.  But the rewards and joy are enough to keep us going and let us forget how tired we are.

I'm home now, only an hour away from them ready to jump into my vehicle and be by their sides if needed.  Of course that's just me thinking they might and knowing they won't.  They are perfectly capable of doing the job.  Whatever it is in becoming a grandparent is making me yearn for that child.  I'm a sucker all over again!

Sourdough Starter

I decided I wanted to learn to make sourdough bread.  This is not the first time I have made this decision.  I've tried several times in the past without success.  After searching the web for recipes I finally decided on one in a bread cookbook lurking on a shelf in my kitchen... Fleischmann's Yeast Best-Ever Breads.  It is a simple sourdough starter recipe to follow.  I mixed up all the ingredients and did just as it said, "put it in a container with a tight lid".  The recipe did not instruct me to put it in a much larger container than the actual starter.  I mixed up the goo and put it into a plastic container with a snug lid and placeed it in a drawer with my glass bakeware.  I was really excited when my husband returned from chopping wood  a couple of hours later, to show him the starter and where I had stashed it.  He loves sourdough bread so I was doing this for him. I didn't want him to come upon it by accident, open it and have a spill.  As soon as I opened the drawer I exploded in laughter.  The sourdough starter had become very active within two hours and had grown very large causing the "snug" lid to pop off and the starter was oozing out of the container and flowing like a volcano all over the dishes contained within.  Oh my it was a mess.  My immediate reaction was to clean up this mess which is exactly what I did before thinking to take a picture.  I transferred the remaining dough to a large cooking pot and placed it in my pantry where it is now bubbling happily!

From this sourdough starter I have made so many different types of breads, below is a sourdough flat bread.

A sourdough loaf bread

A sourdough flat bread topped with sesame seeds and loaded with Italian herbs

A rustic whole wheat sourdough baked in a cast iron dutch oven

Italian wedding soup served with sourdough Italian Herb bread

And this I am most proud of - Whole wheat sourdough hamburger buns.

An awesome burger made from the buns above

The recipes for all this bread is one basic recipe taken from   http://www.breadworld.com/   I just substituted white flour for whole wheat flour and then add whatever I want to the dough!  Last night we made a flat bread and filled it with chopped up hatch peppers and Italian seasoning.  It was like eating pizza.  Below is a picture of it after cutting.  I didn't think to take a picture of it fresh from the oven.

Now that the days are getting longer our chickens are laying again.  Apparently the black chicken who lays white eggs  wanted to start the laying season off with a bang!  I'm pretty certain this one has a double yoke!

And this is a mohair merino wool scarf I crocheted.

I'm now working on a mohair merino wool shawlette to send to a friend in Arizona.

Peace, health and prosperity to all.

Let's Face It, I'm a Foody!

I've always enjoyed eating good food, who doesn't?   Now that the children are grown and we only have two mouths to feed instead of 6, we can actually afford a little more expensive variety.   I can splurge on impulsive buys at the grocery store now.

I was in our local HEB  which is about 35 miles from our home.  It was 1 pm and I was hungry.  My protein filled breakfast taco had long worn thin and the aromas reaching my nose in the grocery store got my salivary glands flowing.   I actually was there to pick up some magnesium glyconate to help me sleep.  I have gotten into this irritating habit of waking up at 3 am and not being able to go back to sleep.  Maybe I need some Melatonin also.  Part of the problem could be from a pinched nerve in my lower cervical vertebra waking me up or it could be random text messages on my cell phone advertising loan money.  The pinched nerve is probably due to a knitting marathon I had going for over a year or maybe I went too deep into a yoga move, possibly cobra which I am not accustomed to doing.  Or maybe it is the black dog "Shadow" howling at the coyotes who are in mating season at this time.  The pharmacy did not have my magnesium so I decided  to browse through the store, of course looking for free samples

I came upon some wonderful Beemster Cheese, sampling two kinds, several times before finally deciding on one with field garlic in it.  I needed a good bread to go along with it so I helped myself to several generous samples of different kinds of bread at last choosing a sourdough square.  I had my mouth and hands full of bread as I encountered the free sushi samples.  The sushi maker asked me which I would like to try and I told her I wanted to sample all of it.  I then placed a couple boxes of sushi in my basket.  From there I ventured to the seafood isle where I discovered Atlantic Salmon at a decent price.  I really prefer the Steelhead Trout but it is rarely on mark down.  I asked for a pound of the salmon.  One can't be choosy about fish when they live in the Texas hills.  The Atlantic Salmon was farm raised.  I stood there a while wondering how it could be farm raised when it was suppose to come from the Atlantic Ocean.  I decided there must be fish farms built along side the ocean where they trap and raise the fish?  Sounds good to me.  It is much better than a cat fish or bass caught from the local creek.

From there I made my way to the chef center where a cute little chef was preparing pasta with Vodka Sauce and shrimp with french bread..  Did I want a sample?  Of course I did.  Also for sampling was some nice french bread cut into chunks that I could dip into a wonderful olive oil dipping sauce.  Oh my it was a delicious full bodied olive oil, not at all like the one I had in my pantry.  I stuffed myself for a while and then noticed that if I purchased a bottle of the olive oil for $9.99 I could also get the Vodka pasta sauce, a french baguette and a package of pasta free.  It looked like a deal to me.  As the the cute little chef was loading my basket with these goodies I mentioned to her with my mouth full that I was a "foody".  She said, "I can tell that by the things you have in your basket".  She probably meant by the amount of food I had in my mouth and the crumbs on my sweater!

Before going to the check out I picked up some ripe tomatoes and a package of raspberries, feeling very excited about how pleased my husband would be with my purchases.......and of course he was.  I left the store with several meals in my bag!  The salmon and salad would make one meal, the pasta and sauce another, and the bread, cheese and olive oil dipping sauce another.  Add a nice bottle of cab or merlot to these and who could ask for better?

HEB has this new deal, or at least it's new to me,,,,it's the meal deal where if you buy something you get all these other items free.  Last week we were there and bought a pasta sauce, got a box of yekky rice crackers,  some pasta, and a bottle of canola oil which I consider pure poison.  On our way out the door I dumped the "poison oil" into a food barrel for the needy.  I felt kind of guilty doing that considering the thought that if I couldn't tolerate the taste or smell why would I give it to a needy person.  I'm still pondering that.  I remember when I could purchase a large bottle of sunflower oil for $2.00.  Now the cost of sunflower oil has gone through the roof.  I don't know why...but it's got to be some sort of political ploy in my opinion.  I'm not buying it though.  I'll stick with olive oil and if I have to fry something that requires a lot of oil I'll just buy Wesson Oil or some generic veggie oil.  The smell and taste of Canola oil makes me nauseated.

I can't figure out why Canola oil(rape seed oil) is better for a person than corn oil.  And what's so bad about a little corn syrup.  As I recall my mother telling me that's how they made baby formula back in the day.  She mixed it with something and I thrived on it.  Honestly I don't believe corn syrup, corn oil, butter, eggs and real milk are bad for a person.  I think what's making us so fat and sick is fast food and packaged convenience foods.  In my opinion that's not even real food.  We drank fresh milk from the cow, with real cream on it and ate fresh butter, veggies from the field and corn syrup on our pancakes.  My grandmother fried the extra fat from the chicken, hog and cow and those were our chips.  I never ate chips of any other kind and didn't know what pizza was.  But I was very familiar with beans and rice, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy and homemade pies.  I never ate a doughnut or a hamburger with french fries.  I didn't even know such a thing existed  I never drank cokes either, just milk and water.  We were healthy. We ate real food!

We had every childhood disease that came along and no immunizations.  I stepped on rusty nails and never had a tetanus shot.  I got chickenpox, mumps and more than one kind of  measles.  I had a bad reaction from the first polio vaccine and lost the use of my legs for several weeks.  I was a lucky girl because eventually I got well and walked again.  Damn that vaccine.  I had my tonsils removed just because it was the thing to do in those days. I never went to a dentist till I was 16 years old.   I'm still here and pretty healthy too and I'm not a young chick any more but I feel strong.

I have progressed a bit, at least I get my teeth cleaned on a regular basis now.  I don't get a flu vaccine, I would rather fight the disease.  I have agreed to get the pertussis vaccine to protect my grandchild who is soon to arrive.

I still love real food better than stuff from boxes.  My husband makes an awesome granola with oats, flax, wheat bran, oat bran, sesame seeds, raisins, dried fruit and shredded coconut.  It is so wholesome and satisfying.  A cup of that for breakfast will hold off my hunger pangs till mid day!

The salmon turned out to be really good, seasoned with salt, pepper, a little cayenne and basted with olive oil and fresh lemon,  then cooked on the grill. For another meal I mixed the olive oil with olive oil dipping spices and toasted slices of the sourdough bread, then cut them in chunks for dipping.  Oh my it was good along with the Beemster Cheese.


A little fresh garlic added to the olive oil and spices

Before going home I stopped by my mom's to share the french baguette with some olive oil mixed with spices and a bottle of wine.  When food is good I feel the need to share.

I feel very fortunate to have indulged in such wonderful nutritious food and always think of those without.  Every day I send positive thoughts into the universe that no person will go to bed hungry.  That all little tummies will be full and satisfied.  We can only hope for a more balanced world.

Speaking of Chupacabra

This legendary creature has really captured my interest.  It's on my bucket list to set my eyes on one.  If I ever get outdoor cameras installed which is also on my bucket list perhaps I will see one.

I was cruising down the highway yesterday with my cruise control set at about 73 miles per hour.  I was in my own world, not a good place to be at that speed in a moving vehicle.  I had the radio off and it was just me and the sound of the tires humming on the asphalt road.  Suddenly a low slung creature with black and white spots and large ears appeared in front of my vehicle.  It had a long skinny tail, short hair and was carrying a large bone in it's mouth probably the left overs of a white tail deer who met it's fate with a bullet from a hunter's rifle.  I said to myself, "Chupacabra, this is a Chupacabra".  It was obviously a stray dog and definitely some sort of hybrid.  It resembled a coyote, yet had the markings of a dog.  Oh my gosh I was so excited and I couldn't get a picture. By the time I stood my Tahoe on its nose and managed to gain control, the creature had escaped the highway and run into the brush.  In broad daylight I think I saw my legendary creature!

I was so excited and kept wishing so badly I could have snapped a picture.  My mind and thoughts were totally on the illusive canine and I kept saying to myself, "I saw it, I saw it, I know it was one"    When I realized the chance for a snap shot was lost I quickly returned to my cruising speed still thinking of what I had just seen, not fully comprehending the flashing red lights indicating a red light and intersection ahead.  I approached the intersection at 70 miles per hour. Suddenly I looked up to see the red light just in time to screech to a halt sending the Tahoe on a head stand again.  A Volkswagen of all vehicles was approaching the intersection from my left.  The driver saw me and was defensive enough to judge my speed....hanging back until he saw if I was going to make the stop.  Oh my,  a Volkswagen,,,,,,my Tahoe would have creamed it.  When the light turned green I was frozen in time.  Eventually I looked up to see other vehicles approaching quickly from behind me and I kicked it into gear.  From that point on though I set my cruising speed considerably less at about 60 and forced my attention back to the road.

I was almost the victim of Chupacabra!  Not really but it was an exciting moment.  I wanted it to be my Chupacabra so badly but in hind sight I do believe it was just a wild dog.

Baby Showers.

What an awesome baby shower for my beautiful daughter.  After moaning and groaning for weeks prior to the shower about women taking over his house, my husband left town because all these women intimidated him.  After a wonderful day of eating and drinking and playing with baby items we had a slumber party.  There is nothing more fun than a slumber party with no responsibility except to laugh and have a good time.

According to the most recent ultra sound, in one month we will have a beautiful curly haired grand daughter.  How times have changed, thanks to technology.  There is no more waiting to know the sex of the baby or surprises at the birth of twins.  Technology tells us a baby's gender, how much hair it has, and if it is basically healthy.  Moms and Dads can plan the nursery color scheme and purchase all the clothing and paraphernalia in the color of choice months before the birth of the child.  I myself am thrilled with the information because I've been knitting and crocheting items in all pink.  I have dreamed this baby is going to have dark curly hair and dark eyes.  And I knew way before my daughter conceived that her first child would be a girl. Mothers just know these things. I have one month left to complete a car seat blanket for this child....pink of course.

With each new generation there are more new inventions for babies that are intended to make mom's life easier.  Some have been around for thousands of years, such as the baby sling.  However it has been improved upon greatly.  The door frame jumper has been around for at least 36 years.  I know this because I had one for my first child.  There are new variations of the walker which has it's own built in entertainment system.  Then there is the infant seat which has turned into a bouncer now with a built in entertainment center. A car seat is no longer just a car seat.  It is now a "system".  The infant car seat that accommodates a child up to a weight of about 35 pounds comes out of the vehicle and fits perfectly into a slot in the stroller.  Baby no longer has to be disturbed if it is lulled to sleep by the sound and motion of the vehicle it is riding in.  Mom gets to where she is going and just unlatches the car seat and slips it snugly into the stroller.  When baby out grows this "system" it progresses to a car seat that will last up to 65 pounds and from there it will go into a booster car seat which most recently is built into the vehicle.  There is the pack and play which is a variation of the old play pen.  This wonderful item folds up nicely and can be taken on overnight trips.  Another item that fascinated me was a cradle type "thing" bed height that is tilted downward a bit from head to toe designed for babies with re-flux....now why didn't I think of that?.

Of course disposable diapers have been around a long time.  I was in another country when my first two children were born .  Disposables were not available to me so  I was compelled to use cloth diapers.  What a mess!  But much better for the environment.  According to http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts.php over 92% of all single use diapers end up in landfills.  We should be ashamed but what to do about it.  I myself would not want to go back to cloth diapers.  The convenience of disposables is just too tempting.  I used disposable diapers for my next two children but the Diaper Genie had not been invented yet http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaper_Genie.  This is an awesome gadget for keeping the little balls of  excrement from smelling but they still go into landfills.

I was awestruck at the baby shower when a guest handed her 1 year old a vacuum pack of baby food.  All she had to do was unscrew the top and hand it to baby.  Baby just sucked his pureed food right out of that pack.  That was surely a new one on me.  As I watched this child suck his "organic" food from this container I thought "why didn't I invent that?"  I recently crocheted a bib with an elephant trunk on it that holds a pacifier with Velcro snaps so when baby spits out the paci it doesn't land on a germ laden floor!  The vacuum packed sippy container of baby food reminded me of when my own mother who had three children wanted to change my daughter's diaper.  It was a disposable one and I knew she was not familiar with how they worked so I proceeded to tell her how to do it.  She looked at me indignantly and said, "I changed a diaper once!".  So I left her alone to do the deed so as not to make her feel incompetent....she put the diaper on backwards.  Of course everyone present had a wonderful laugh on her behalf!

When I was 43, way too old to have another child in those days, I decided I would do just that.  I was excited about all the new items I would have for my baby.  Well I'm 63 now and I can't justify having another child in order to buy all the new goodies invented for baby, even if I could.  I will just have to be satisfied with a grand child and her belongings.

Speaking of baby showers I can remember when the standard meal was cake and punch.  Somewhere over time it became a little more substantial with tea sandwiches, maybe a dip and chips.  Now it's a full fledged meal.  My menu consisted of appetizers of veggie chips with white bean humus and a cream cheese, Gorgonzola cheese dip with baby carrots.  This was followed by roast beef, potatoes au gratin, spring mix salad and whole wheat rolls.  I chose a raspberry, lemon water punch which was very refreshing and pretty.  I had not intended to serve wine since the guest of honor could not imbibe but  some of the guests asked for it so I willing obliged.  I .made a wonderful cheesecake with an apple walnut topping for dessert.  Of course no party is complete any more without favors for the guests to take home.  I gave little cellophane bags filled with homemade cookies and tied with a pretty pink ribbon.  I ran out of cookies but had several bars of pretty soap I had purchased stashed away in a drawer.  I put two bars into each bag and gave those as favors also.

As I said, "times have changed"!