Mommy Needs a Vacation is Moving!!

I am excited to announce that Mommy Needs a Vacation

is moving to its very own home!!!

Please visit me at:

http://www.mommyneedsavacation.com/

Can’t wait to see you there! 🙂

You know you have a problem when…

You know you have a blogging problem that is. I am in the process of moving my blog over to a self-hosted website. I now own my own domain name! YIPPEEEEE!

However, it is a lot of work. Here is my list of you know you have a blogging problem when:

• You have no idea what your 3 and 1 year olds have been doing all day

 

• You are wondering if the kids have eaten a meal at all

 

• You are still in your pajamas at 4:50pm (well okay, that happens A LOT, but still…)

 

• You haven’t checked your email for the day (the horror!!!)

 

• Your eyes hurt so bad that they literally feel like they are going to pop out of your head and land on the computer keyboard

 

• Your computer battery has run down 6x during the day (YES, I had to plug it up 6x!)

 

• You have no idea what is for dinner

 

• The dishes are piled so high in the sink that you think it would just be easier to throw them out

 

• Your dog hasn’t been let out to pee since the morning

 

• You are thinking that you should NOT have bought your domain name and left it as is!

 

Stay tuned ~ I will be sending out the new website info soon! Thanks for reading! 🙂

It Takes a Village

I know all of you have heard this saying before: It Takes a Village. I have never believed it more than this past week.

I was away with my whole family this past week and EVERYONE chipped in to help with the kids. Of course it helps that my kids are  the ONLY kids so no one else had their own kids to deal with. Here are just a few things that I had help with (that by the way I usually do myself on a daily basis!):

• Putting down to  bed
• Putting down for nap (which have been non-existent since we got home)
• Dressing kids
• Giving baths
• Putting on sunscreen
• Making kid breakfast, lunch, and dinners
• Changing Diapers
• Wiping butt
• Taking to potty
• Wiping butt
• Reading stories
• Coloring
• Singing Songs
• Building sand castles
• Taking swimming
• Putting into time outs
• Pulling away from electrical outlets
• Brushing out hair knots (daily battle in our house)
• Wiping butt
• Wiping snot
• Washing hands
• Wiping faces

 You get the picture….

It seriously took a village to take care of my two kids. It was SO NICE to have all of the help. So now that I am home again by myself on solo mommy duty???? Well after just a few short long days I will tell you that I am completely and utterly

 

EXHAUSTED

 

It is like I forgot how to do this by myself!! What is wrong with me? Back to reality…back to mommyhood, back to SAHM to its fullest!!

 

*SIGH*

 

Time for a glass of wine… (AKA Mommy’s Sippy Cup)

Oh and by the way…we are all going f#&*ing nuts totally and completely crazy around here…

Gettin’ Dirty

Gettin’ dirty in the garden that is! WOW! What a fabulous weekend we had! It was sunny and 80 here in California and we took FULL advantage of it. Although we have a vegetable garden all year, we had a lot of work to do to get it ready for the spring/summer season.  I also needed to transplant some herbs and get some color going in my pots and flower beds.

Our herb boxes now contain:

• Basil
• Cilantro (my absolute favorite herb of all time)
• Italian Flat Leaf Parsley
• Oregano
• Thyme
• Sage
• Chives

Our vegetable garden is full of:

• Leeks
• Jalapeno Peppers
• Red Bell Peppers
• Anaheim Mild Chili Peppers
• Black Beauty Eggplant
• San Marzano Heirloom Tomatoes
• Brandywine Heirloom Tomatoes
• Hillbilly Heirloom Tomatoes
• Mama Mia Roma Tomatoes
• Red Cherry Tomatoes
• Yellow Pear Tomatoes
• Zucchini
• Yellow Squash
• Beets
• Cucumbers

My pots/flower beds now contain:

• Cosmos ( my fav!)
• Snap Dragons
• Yellow Marigolds
• Vincas
• Impatiens

 

Last spring I had just given birth to Bubba-Loo when my husband got the garden ready. So clearly with my lack of sleep, focus, brain power, constant nursing, and diaper changes, I did none of it. It felt good to get out there again this year! I especially enjoyed the aftermath ~ sitting back with a big glass of white wine and admiring the work!

And in case you are wondering, YES we are tomato obsessed! I will keep you updated with pictures as our garden grows!

Recipe of the Week: Whole Wheat Orzo with Shrimp & Asparagus

Guess what time of year it is???? It is asparagus season!!!!!!! WAHOOOOOO!!!  I love asparagus. I love how easy it is to cook, I love the flavor, and of course the health benefits.

This week’s recipe of the week is

Whole Wheat Orzo with Shrimp & Asparagus

8 oz of whole wheat orzo pasta (I buy this at Whole Foods)

1 lb. asparagus, chopped into 1 inch pieces

1/2 lb. uncooked shrimp

3 Tbls. olive oil

2 Tbls. fresh lemon juice

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:

In a large pot, boil water. Cook orzo according to package directions (usually 8-10 minutes). Save 1/2 cup of the orzo water (you will add this later to veggie/shrimp mix).

Drain orzo and run some water over so it does not stick together. Set aside.

In a medium pan, heat olive oil. Add minced garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add asparagus and reserved pasta water. Cook for about 5-6 minutes. Test your asparagus, some people like it crunchy, some like it softer and more well done.

Add shrimp to pan. Cook 2-3 minutes on each side. Be careful not to overcook! The shrimp will turn from white/black to white/pink very quickly! Add lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss altogether. Slowly add cooked orzo and feta cheese to pan and mix together. This is what the final product will look like in the pan:

 

It also looks very pretty in the bowl ~ I just was so ready to eat that I forgot to take another picture! Ha! Enjoy!!

Happy Earth Day!

I love Earth Day! In honor of this day, I wanted to share some great new products that I have been using at my house to reduce our waste and use less plastic. Not only are these products reuseable, they are just making my life SO much easier!! Less garbage, easier for storing food, and all around just making my life “cleaner”.

One of the first things that I did in my massive kitchen overhaul was to throw away all of our old yucky plastic Tupperware. Seriously, these things were old! Chipping, stained nastiness! I replaced them with Snapware Glasslock Tempered Glass Storage Containers. I actually got them at Costco for a fabulous price, so if you are interested in getting them, check there too. The great thing about these is that they can go in the dishwasher, microwave, and freezer! I am always making homemade tomato sauces and soups and to be able to store and freeze leftovers in tempered glass containers makes me do a happy dance! 🙂

Many of the new green products for our house I bought from The Soft Landing. I love this online store/blog. Fabulous products and great info. You can click on the above link to check them out or click on the right link to visit them!

One of the BEST products that both Miss Moo and I LOVE are Lunchbots! We got the small divided yellow Lunchbot and the bigger divided orange Lunchbot. They are stainless steel and have a divider down the middle to separate lunch items. They are easy to wash and are very durable!

When I did my household clean-out, I still had kiddie tupperwares from when Sadie was a baby. Nasty plastic that I am sure was chocked full of BPA. I replaced these with Kids Konserve Stainless Steel containers. I really like these containers as well and they come in three great sizes! Kids Konserve also makes other products that you might like.

My favorite purchase of all (well really I love all of these new products, can’t you tell?!) were the Kidishes by Duralex.

I had been using the cheapy plastic dishes from Target for kids. While cute and with dividers on the plate to separate foods, these are just not something I want my kids eating off of anymore. Out they went! We now use the Kidishes plates, Kidishes bowls, and Kidishes glasses. These dishes are more resistant, chip resistant, hygienic, and are dishwasher, fridge, and microwave safe. All of these dishes are made from tempered glass so if something does break, you won’t have shards of glass.  However, these dishes are literally impossible to break. Check out this demo video:

One last little change that I made was using wax paper bags instead of using the standard ziplock bags. My friend Ashley told me about these (thanks Ash!) ~ Natural Value Wax Paper Bags. I bought these at Whole Foods.

So on this Earth Day if you feel like making a difference and making some changes in your house, try some of these products! I love them all. Not only have they made things easier for me in my house, they are also good for the Earth! Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Also, if you are looking for fun Earth Day activities to do with your kids, stop by and visit my friend Sue over Motherhood and Me! She planned an Earth Day Party!

Wordless Wednesday: Hawaiian Style

Recipe of the Week: Quesadillas with Spinach & Mushrooms

Who doesn’t like a good quesadilla? I love quesadillas. I especially love them because you can put whatever you want in them and make them your own. This quesadilla recipe is one of our family favorites. It is easy, healthy, and has lots of fabulous flavor!! We just had them this week and I thought this would be a good fast, easy recipe for recipe of the week! I don’t know about you, but I need easy (the kids have been driving me crazy all day and I need something FAST for dinner) recipes. Enjoy!

Quesadillas with Spinach & Mushrooms

4 organic whole wheat tortillas

1/2 lb. organic white mushrooms, sliced

1 lb. organic baby spinach

2 cups pepper jack cheese

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbls olive oil

salt/pepper to taste

your favorite salsa!

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add sliced mushrooms to pan and sprinkle with just a touch of salt and pepper. Sauté mushrooms until soft and then add baby spinach a little at a time until all of it is sautéed.

In another pan, add one of the tortillas and heat through. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of the cheese over the tortilla and let it start to melt. Add 1/2 of the mushroom and spinach mixture to the top of the tortilla and evenly spread. Top with about another 1/2 cup of cheese and then 2nd tortilla. Flip quesadilla over to melt cheese and crisp tortilla. I usually flip over and over until I get both sides crispy!

Repeat the above step with the other 2 tortillas to make another quesadilla. Cut quesadillas into 1/8’s and serve with your favorite salsa!

Variations for this recipe: Add shredded chicken or beef. You can also use regular Monterey jack cheese if you are not a fan of the spicy stuff (but really the spicy cheese adds A LOT of flavor!)

This recipe makes 16 quesadilla triangles. We usually have this for dinner but also makes a great appetizer! Just a suggestion, but I highly recommend having a margarita or icy cold beer with these! Enjoy!

in the garden

I love books. I especially love children’s books. I wanted to share one of our favorites of the moment. You know they do change monthly, weekly, daily, perhaps even hourly. Sadie will want to read the same book over and over and over and over and over again until I just want to scream, chuck it out the window, pull my hair out. The repetitiveness is so worth it though since she loves books so much!!

One of the “moment” books we are stuck on I love. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.

It is called in the garden written by Leslie Bockol.

One of the best things about this book: it is made from 98% recycled materials!!!

It is available through innovativeKids. I love this website. It has great books, games, puzzles, and learning activities. My favorite section is the “Green Start” section. This section has all of the green books (garden, animals, five senses, etc…) as well as learning activities to do with your children. Here is what innovativeKids has to say about their green start series:

The green start™ series is designed to help give kids an awareness of the natural world and an understanding of how we are interconnected with everything around us. By giving kids a green start, it will be that much easier for them to incorporate environmentally friendly practices into their everyday lives as they grow.

The end of the book shares with you how to grow your own organic cherry tomatoes and gives organic gardening tips. I wanted to share these since we are entering prime gardening time!! We are a family of gardeners!

Handy Organic Gardening Tips

• Protect against pests naturally. “Companion plant” by mixing flowers (such as marigolds) or herbs (such as lemon balm) in with vegetables to repel pests.
• Plan your planting. Choose fruits and vegetables that are right for your climate and are naturally resistant to pests and disease.
• Use well-finished, stable compost. Compost (decaying organic matter such as dead leaves, kitchen scraps, or grass clippings) is easy to make, inexpensive, and full of nutrients for your garden. Check with your local nursery for tips on making and handling your compost.

 

Josh is very good about putting grass clippings in our garden beds. However, I really want to work on protecting against pests naturally and on composting. I will be doing more research on how to do this better and will share with you what I find out!

The end of this book also gives two yummy organic kid recipes. They are also two recipes that your child can help you make! YUMMY!!

Fruit Slush

• 2 cups organic orange juice
• 1 large organic banana (frozen)
• 3 large organic kiwifruit (peeled and chopped)
• 1 tsp. organic honey
• ice cubes

Puree the juice and fruit in a blender for 2 minutes. Add honey slowly while blending. Add ice cubes, blend until smooth, and enjoy.

Applesauce

• 1 lb. organic apples, cored, peeled, and cut into small wedges
• 1/3 cup organic sugar
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/3 cup water

Combine all ingredients in large saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 5-7 minutes, stirring, until apples are very soft. Transfer contents into food processor and puree.

I was not paid to do this post on innovativeKids. I just love their website so much and their products!!

Just Call Me Super Mom

I am classifying myself as a Super Mom today. That’s right- superhero STATUS.

I am awarding myself this Super Mom Award for the following reasons:

10. Traveled alone on a 5 hour and 20 min flight by myself with a 1 and 3- year-old.

9. Made it onto the airplane with a walking 3 yr old, a non-walking 1-year-old , cooler bag, pink duffel bag, my purse, which of course is a back-breaking size, and the Phil and Ted’s attachment stroller seat.  I , thankfully, did have some help from Robbie, an Alaskan Airlines worker who I think just felt sorry for me. Robbie, you are my hero. Oh did I mention for some reason there was no jetway so we were outside in the pouring rain and had to walk up some slippery ramp to get on the plane? NO JETWAY?? Ty-Ty had to sit on the cold wet pavement next to the plane while I folded up the stroller since of course he is not even standing yet! You should have heard the screams coming from this kid.

8. Cleaned up my $25 Venti Latte (some #^&!?/  knocked it off the tray table) that spilled into the seat next to us before the lady sitting there boarded the plane. The seat was of course soaking wet from my thousands of wipes that I had to use to clean it up. But hey, it was probably the cleanest seat on the plane, she should thank me. Did I mention the latte also spilled into my “dry food” bag and diaper holder thingy?

 7. Dried Miss Moo’s soaking wet pants (from a water spill ) in time to put back on her so she didn’t have to depart the airplane in her underwear. Yes I forgot a 2nd pair of pants for her. Rookie.

6. Talked a nice lady into watching my kids (sucker) so I could go pee in peace and without having the kids lick the walls of the nasty airplane bathroom.

5. Got a sick, teething, exhausted 1 yr old with a 101 fever to finally take a whopping 40 min nap after screaming for 53 minutes (I didn’t time it or anything). It was the kind of blood curdling screaming that you hear on the airplane and you are like, oh please, shut that kid up already!! Hey a 40 minute nap is better than nothing right?

4. Caught kid vomit in an airline cocktail napkin and successfully transferred the goods to a plastic garbage bag without spilling ANY of it!!! It did not get on anything! No clothes, no seat cushions, nothing! If that doesn’t classify me as a Super Mom, I don’t know what does!

3. Had enough will power to avoid the Mai Tai’s the flight attendants started serving for the last beverage service before we landed. I knew if I started drinking all hell would break loose.

2. Got the PILOT to carry Sadie Lady, the SCREAMING 3-year-old, down the stairs attached to the plane to get off. Seriously she saw the stairs and had a TOTAL meltdown. Clearly since I was carrying Ty-Ty, the cooler, pink duffel, my purse, and the 2nd stroller seat, there is NO way I could have carried her unless I grew a 3rd arm. Again, I think the pilot just felt sorry for me.

1. And the #1 reason I am a Super Mom is because despite all of that, I am still standing and breathing and still have 2 well and able  children. Now I am lucky enough to visit with my parents in Hawaii for a vacation trip. Still on Mommy duty like always, but now I get to do it in HAWAII with the help of my parents!!

All Moms are Super Moms. Just some days you impress yourself beyond belief and can’t believe that you have indeed SURVIVED and well, you just want to brag about it a little bit!