Monday, November 22, 2010

More pictures from our walks

Little Miss Sunshine loves collecting leaves, especially the red ones.


 Same walk, different day. We went with some friends and made it all the way to the top. It's a beautiful walk, about 2.5 miles one way.

LMS showing off the skirt and leggings I made her.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

More pretty fall foliage

I took these photos while out running in our neighborhood.


I love all the colors the leaves change, and I love the crunch of stepping on fallen leaves.

And here's a shot of 3 hot air balloons near our house one morning not too long ago.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Pretty fall foliage

We went for a walk on a path out by the apple orchard, and it's very scenic.



LMS found some large leaves that she called feathers. She held them on her head so she could be one of Cinderella's horses. We discussed the fact that Drusilla and Anastasia also had feathers on their heads, but she didn't want to be one of them.

Then it was my turn. LMS took a pretty good picture of me :)

Blurry action shots of LMS running down the hill on the way back to the car.


Listening for a baby critter (ala Wonder Pets).

Flying down the path.

And yes, she is wearing her Aurora dress from last Halloween. She would wear that or her Cinderella dress every day if I let her :)

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Food issues and why my posting is so erratic these days

On LMS's last day of soccer we skipped the "banquet" (pizza and cookies), since we couldn't eat any of it. I should have had something prepared, but I've been off my game lately. There's still something that's making me fuzzy headed and messing with my energy levels and attention span.

The supposedly "safe" candy I bought to trade out the unsafe stuff LMS got turned out not to be safe. My stomach's been killing me and LMS has yucky poopy again.  Which means that no store-bought candy is safe.  Grrrrrr. What are we going to do for all the candy-centered holidays? It's easier to downplay it now while she's young and at home so much, but what about Christmas with family, or other times where other kids are eating stuff she can't? 

I've been hoping it wasn't going to be an issue for her, but the week of Halloween has shown that I do have to be careful and not get sucked into the mindset of "it's just a little bit" or "one piece won't hurt". It does have an effect on her, and it's one that neither of us enjoys, especially since it takes so long to clear up.

Since we'll be spending Christmas with her grandparents (and all her cousins on daddy's side) I'm going to have to think of things to put in our stockings so she doesn't feel left out. It'll probably be small toys, nuts, oranges, and some vegan candies. I've seen some recipes for vegan candies, so I'm going to have to try some of them to see if they'll work (translation: edible and yummy).

For the most part, I don't mind not eating what everyone else does, but I'm a grown up and I can be rational about it. LMS is just a little kid. She usually does very well, but there are times where I've had to tell her she can't eat something and she gets upset. I don't blame her- I like m&ms too. That was her favorite part of going grocery shopping: getting a package of peanut or peanut butter m&ms and sharing them with mommy. Ok, the sharing part wasn't her favorite, the m&ms were  :)   I do miss peanut butter m&ms....

Last week we cut out soy, not that we actually ate much soy, mostly just soy sauce (gluten free, of course). It's rather discouraging though: there's only a few things left that we could cut out. Of the major allergens, we're only still eating peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish. So I guess we've only cut out half the list, it just feels like more.  We've cut out gluten, corn, oats, dairy, eggs, and soy. Every time we eliminate a food, I feel better for awhile, then start feeling crummy again. Eliminate another food, and start the cycle again. I'm really hoping this is the last time we have to go through it.

In the meantime, I'm trying to get stuff done while feeling crummy, and a lot of things are being left undone. Hopefully things will improve soon.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Sunday Funny


As I was fiddling with this photo, LMS looked over my shoulder and asked:

"Why don't I have any arms?"

"You put them behind your back."

"Oh."

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Pumpkin Waffles


Gluten free, egg free, dairy free, corn free, oat free.

The weather has gotten cooler, the leaves are changing (must take lots of pictures very soon!), and fall is here. Fall makes me think of pumpkins- I love anything flavored with pumpkin- pie, cookies, muffins, ice cream (so yummy, but I won't be eating any this year unfortunately), and waffles.

I followed the recipe here, and I have to say her website is a goldmine of recipes I can actually use (ie, eat without getting sick).

I used the smaller amount of salt in the recipe, but should have used more- the waffles were a bit bland. Howevere, we put unsweetened applesauce on top, and they were yummy!

I had a brain fart and had the first batch cooking in my Belgian waffle maker before I realized this wasn't actually a Belgian waffle recipe. I've made waffles several times since then, using the regular waffle maker, and they've turned out better. They were just too thick and dense to make a good Belgian waffle.

The picture is from the first time I made these waffles, and we used store-bought applesauce. The last two times I made them we used the applesauce I made a couple weeks ago. Sooo yummy!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

It's hot air balloon season

Last Sunday I was putting stuff in the car before church when I heard a loud noise. I thought it was just a car being turned on next door. Then I heard the noise again, only it was above me. I looked around, then finally looked up, and coming through the trees next door, right above our house, was a hot air balloon! I ran in and got LMS, and she was very excited to see a hot air balloon.

Saturday morning I was laying in bed, telling myself I needed to get up and get moving, when I heard the noise (the burner) again. I raced downstairs, grabbed my camera, and stood on the front porch and took some pictures.

To give perspective, that's our flag that hangs on the porch and the trees are between our house and the house next door.

I need to find out who's running the balloon rides- I would love to take a ride in a hot air balloon. My sixth grade science project was on hot air balloons, and I've been fascinated with them ever since. LMS keeps talking about going for a ride, too. Though I think she expects to go in a pink princess balloon. Haven't seen any of those around...

Monday, November 1, 2010

Backyard photo shoot

Saturday before we went to the mall for trick or treating, LMS and I headed out to the backyard for a quick photo shoot. We were trick or treating when I finally realized we'd forgotten to put on the black necklace. Oh well.

inspecting the flora and fauna

twirly

twirly
  
love the smile

the dimple!
Saturday she was looking at her face in the mirror, and she said "Mom, I have a hole in my face!"
"Nope, it's just a dimple."
"Oh."

cute kiddo

chasing leaves
(time to rake again, ugh)

trying to catch leaves

still trying

more chasing

waiting

success at last!