Eat Your Veggies

My friend Shannon sent me a fabulous recipe awhile ago that I want to share. She knows I'm a big fan of avocados, and thought I would like it. Boy, was she right! This pudding became an instant hit at my house.

Here's the original recipe.

Here's mine:
1/2 medium sweet potato, cooked
1 medium avocado
2 tbsp cocoa or carob (sometimes I use 1 tbsp of each)
Maple syrup to taste
Liquid of choice for blending (I use soy milk, coconut milk or water)

Plop everything into the food processor. Blend until creamy.

I tried the dates that the original recipe calls for, but they were too hard to blend well, even after soaking. I've also used a banana instead of maple syrup to add the sweet kick. Some people like using rice syrup or other ingredients to get the desired sweetness.

Here's a peek at the finished product:

And. . . a picture of my husband, stealing my pudding. He totally took advantage of my hands being occupied with the camera.

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.

Recent Quotes

Winifred, never confuse efficiency with a liver complaint.
George Banks, from Mary Poppins 


The little choices we must make
Will chart the course of life we take;
We either choose the path of light,
Or wander off in darkest night.
D. De Haan


An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.
G. K. Chesterton


Two glad Services are ours
Both the Master loves to bless
First we serve with all our powers
Then with all our helplessness

These lines of Charles Fox have rung in my head this last fortnight - & they link on with the wonderful words "weak with Him" - for the world's salvation was not wrought out by the three years in which He went about doing good, but in the three hours of darkness in which He hung stripped & nailed, in utter exhaustion of spirit, soul & body, til His heart broke. So little wonder for us, if the price of power is weakness.
I. Lilias Trotter

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.

PostPartum Care Pack

I thought about titling this "PostPartum Pamper Pack" to maintain alliteration. But the word "pamper" has a connotation of excess, unnecessity, selfishness, luxury. No woman caring for her body after delivering a child should be labelled selfish. Extraordinary postpartum care should not be a luxury.

I had a rather horrific time with my first born. I plan to have things go much better this time. Three and a half years ago, many of things that added to my pain were out of my control. Some, however, were in my realm of influence. I didn't do a very good job taking care of myself. Ignorance was a major contributing factor in my lack of self-care. Pride, exhaustion & deep feelings of abandonment sealed the deal.

So I've started compiling a list of things I want after my son is born this Fall.

This list is not intended to be a shopping list for anyone but myself. I don't expect any loving (Mom), generous (Mom) or compassionate (Mom) person to buy this stuff. I'm sharing it for two reasons:

1. Give what little wisdom I have to those who have a wee bit less experience in this area.

2. See if I'm missing anything. If you notice something that I left off, that you think is important, please tell me!

Also, please note: Many of the things on this list are going to be new to me. I didn't have them with my first son and in hindsight wish I did. I could be wrong. I might get some of them and decide I wasted my money. Tis better to have good  care resources available and not need them, than to need them desperately and not have them.

Peri-Stations (I'll have one in each bathroom I use. One upstairs, one downstairs)

• Peribottle
• Super-thin pads
• Perineal cold pads
• Tucks pads or Postpartum bath herbs. Probably both. I'll see which I need more at the time.
• Bottom Spray
• Depends. Yes, adult diapers. A lot of people recommend them for the first couple of days. They are a bit more forgiving than underwear, are meant to be disposed of, and the new ones don't make the crinkly noise of traditional adult diapers. We'll see.

I know a lot of these overlap with one another, and may seem like overkill. But if your perineum looked and felt like mine did, you would error on the side of caution, too.

Breastfeeding Supplies

• Milk band So much better than writing notes!
• Bamboobies These sound lovely. I figure nothing can be worse than the bulky cotton ones or the crinkly disposable ones I used before.
• Some sorta nipple cream. I can't figure out if I'll stick with lanolin, or try some vegan organic stuff. There are lots of options
• Soothies I'm not sure if I'll stick with this brand. Some people love 'em, some people don't. But I plan on having some kind of nipple gel pad available.

Breastfeeding Stations (every place around the house I sit to breastfeed)

• Pillow and/or Boppy
• Pads, cream & gel pads listed above
• Water bottle
• Clif Bars
• Cloth diapers for burp cloths
• Books. Maybe. Lots of people recommend them. I anticipate being too tired to read. If I do grab a book, though, it will be Calvin & Hobbes or something equally stimulating.

Etc.

• A belly band. There are so many options, though, I don't know what to chose. I might just end up getting a really big ace wrap. The extra support will be lovely, I just know it!
• Handheld fan. I remember sweating for about 6 months after my son was born. While I thoroughly enjoy perspiring while exercising, I loathe it while sitting still.
• Rapid release Tylenol For the inevitable headaches

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.

He Understands

My heart was so blessed to read about my Jesus this morning:

"He is now waiting until His enemies are made His footstool." Hebrews 10:13 HCSB.

He understands waiting.

I felt such peace, camaraderie, satisfaction, wonder & joy when I discovered again, anew, that Jesus really is a great high priest who understands my heart.

I'm just waiting for the child of my heart, born through adoption, to be placed in my arms. I don't deserve that baby. I have done nothing to be worthy of the promise I wait for.

Jesus does deserve for His enemies to be made a footstool. He has earned it. He is worthy of that honor. So I'm thinking His wait is worse than mine.

My spiritual socks were knocked off my feet a few months ago by another realization of just how much He understands. But I don't want to put all my pearls in one post. :) So stay tuned for "He Understands II," coming in a few weeks.

In the meantime, I hope you are equally touched as you ponder that no matter what promise you are waiting to be fulfilled, you have not waited as long as Jesus has. He understands the pain, frustration, hope, despair, faith, grit, and strength that go into waiting expectantly. He understands.

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.

Making Protein Palatable

My midwife recommends I follow the Bradley Diet. It calls for consuming protein, LOTS of protein. Since I'm not a super-big fan of meat she further recommended getting a powdered protein and drinking it once a day.

Suzanne, my happy, though delusional, midwife said to just mix it with a glass of juice each day. That dear man of mine picked  up a pack of powdered rice protein about two months ago. I tried it with orange juice.

I choked.

I poured in more orange juice.

My stomach flip-flopped.

I threw in more juice.

My eyes watered. I pushed it across the table. My sweet M tried his valiant best to swallow it also. He soldiered through about 75% of it. It was so awful that I decided to find my way around powdered protein.

Two months later, though, I feel like I need the boost. It's pretty toasty warm here in the middle of the U.S. of A. I was starting to swell ever so slightly. I'm staring down another 3 months of heat, so I decided to brave another try. I picked up a pack of RAW Protein. I tried it with coconut milk this time. (The stuff that Silk makes.)

I choked.

I determined that should I ever have an absorption disorder and require protein daily, I would rather have a g-tube than have that junk slide down my throat. BUT. . . I didn't want to be wasteful.

So I added Hot Cocoa Mix. Then I added Coffee. (organic decaf).

I took a sip.

It was yummy!

Woo hoo! I discovered the secret for making protein palatable! I'm sure the raw folks out there are shaking their heads at how I destroyed the "raw-ness" by heating it up. But a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.

A choice, A view

I had my 20-week prenatal appointment with my midwife (Suzanne) two weeks ago. I'm just now posting about it, though, because apparently all the posts in May needed to start with "why."

The visit was good. I still marvel at the beauty of home visits. I looked at my own urine strip, since I'm not color blind and am blessed to be literate. I heard my son's heart tones. I laughed as the little booger kept dashing away from the doppler. He's already so much fun. I learned that my blood pressure is just as perfect as I expect it to be. We chatted for awhile about a variety of things. Due to pregnancy brain I can recall dreadfully little, these two weeks later.

However, I do remember one particular choice that was given to me: What do you want to do with the placenta? These are my options: Suzanne will dispose of it, we can plant it, or we can eat it. We can eat it as it is, or Suzanne can dry it and place it in capsules for us. Hmm. . . I needed to talk to my man. Since he loves researching absolutely every decision he makes I figured he would want a little bit of time to make up his mind then discuss it with me. Though it is my organ, since I will no longer be attached to it, I am pleased to let him own this aspect of childbirth.

It turns out he didn't need to research anything. He knew immediately what his answer was. And it turns out we will make the same decision that the hospitals of America make for us. But it is so different this time. Because it is our choice. What a delight to have a choice over my own body. I wish I could help other people see that our decision to leave the hospital setting isn't dangerous or wildly radical. It's full of health, wisdom and love. And it's available for others too, not just the crazy few.

Now, something a bit more lighthearted. The view from my front seat:

That's my dear son, holding the coffee cup that he hijacked from me. He did let me have one more sip after taking my mug away. I'm so glad I drink organic decaf. He needs nothing else to hype him up. And, of course, beloved Bear is safely belted into place. I don't remember anything else I saw that day. This view was the most beautiful one.

copyright (c) Elizabeth, Bug's Beef. All rights reserved.