Articles from August 2010

I have been unhappy with our phone situation for some time.  We have a cell phone and a land-line, and the cost seems extremely high for how much we actually use our phones.  Since I am primarily at home, the thought of getting rid of our land-line seems illogical, particularly when I find cell phones more difficult for conversation.  Unfortunately getting rid of the cell altogether isn’t really an option either.  I could switch to a no contract cell phone plan (much cheaper) and have very limited use of my cell for emergencies only.  Has anyone gone this route? Any good plans/companies you would recommend?

Or we could eliminate our land-line?  It seems only those still in school or in transition are opting for this route.  Is it acceptable for a settled family of 6 to not have a land-line?  After all the taxes, our basic land-line still adds up to a hefty sum, and I’m tempted to just throw in the towel and go cell phone only.  The social pressure to keep a land-line is high.  Is it ridiculous for us to go cell phones only?

On the day that Caroline turned 4 months old, I began feeding her “solids”. I know, I know, in many circles it is considered best to wait until baby turns 6 months old before introducing solids, and with Christopher and Maria, I waited much longer before introducing “real food”. But Christopher and Maria were terrible baby eaters – they wouldn’t eat any pureed food, and until they could pick up pieces of food and put them in their mouths, nothing but milk passed their lips. Even then, they weren’t good eaters – all they wanted to do was nurse, which was fine since it worked for us, but frustrating. I desperately wanted to introduce them to the tastes and textures of so many wonderful foods: sweet potatoes, squash, sweet peas, avocado. I tried homemade foods, jarred foods, and the classic Gerber foods, but nothing seemed to fit the bill.

So, this time around, I decided to start at 4 months, and Caroline has been an eager eater! It may just be her personality, but what a thrill it has been for me! I should also mention that thankfully, we do not have any food allergies (yet!) in our family, so I do not feel that I need to be as cautious – if we did, I may have waited longer before introducing solids. Also, Caroline is still getting lots of milk from me, so I feel confident that she is getting the nutrients and protection that she needs.

I have tried a variety of foods with Caroline, and most have been successful. I’ve also done a combination of homemade foods and store-bought foods, and thought that I would do a little comparison, just out of curiosity In this picture there are three varieties of carrots: from left to right, we have homemade carrots, then Earth’s Best Organics jarred carrots, and then Gerber carrots. Visually and from a taste perspective (I sampled all three), I must say that (although I am biased!) the homemade ones were by far the best! The puree tastes like carrot and smells delicious, and Caroline liked it, too. The other two varieties were also eagerly eaten by Caroline, but tasted sweeter to me. However, they are certainly good options when I’m on the go or when I just haven’t had a chance to make a batch of baby food.

This time around, I was also very tempted to buy the Beaba Babycook – has anyone had any personal experience with this handy little device? It is basically a mini-steamer and blender all in one, which is appealing on many levels. From a convenience standpoint, you only have one little machine to work with, so mom can prepare the baby’s food much more quickly and efficiently. Additionally, the Beaba comes with a recipe book to ensure the proper steaming and blending time, so novices like me can feel confident that they are preparing the food correctly. Also, even when baby no longer needs foods pureed, the Beaba still acts as a handy little steamer to soften foods for your little one. Sounds delicious and nutritious! The only problem is that the price point is about $140, which seems high to me. I do own a steamer and a blender, after all!

One more product that I may just have to buy: this Baby Dipper baby feeding set looks amazing, what a great concept!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Monday morning! God bless all of you wonderful mothers and fathers as you start this new week!

Mary, Mother most Admirable, pray for us!

Did you read the interview at National Review with Mary Anne Marks, who delivered the 2010 commencement address at Harvard in Latin?

Here is an excerpt (and conversation that I believe all of the builders have had in one form or another–more on this in another post in the coming weeks):

KATHRYN JEAN LOPEZ: You are a Harvard graduate. Aren’t you surrendering all the possibilities that entails by entering a convent?

MARY ANNE MARKS: Yes, if one doesn’t see becoming a well-educated, intellectually alive nun as one of the possibilities.

She goes on to defend the Catholic Church’s respect for and support of the dignity of woman. Best wishes to Mary Anne! Can we give her an honorary builder degree?

There are smiles…

there is play…

and there are definitely plenty of kids!!

Thanks for the wonderful visit, Red and family!!

The other day, I was in the playroom with my girls. Maria, almost 3 years old, was having a great time playing peek-a-boo with her baby sister, Caroline, now 6 months old. I told Maria that I needed to take Caroline away for just a few minutes to change her diaper, and Maria protested, saying, “Mommy, please don’t take Caroline away, she’s my best friend!” Of course, these words melted this mother’s heart, and I imagined all of the fun that they would have together over the years.

How have you fostered friendship between your children? Specifically, how have you fostered friendship between daughters that are close enough in age that competitiveness and jealousy could sneak in? Sometimes, I think the best thing that we parents can do is to step away and let our children create fun together, without our involvement. We’re not quite there yet with our daughters, since Caroline is still quite young, but I have noticed that my children sometimes have the most fun together when I’m not in the same room! I’d love your thoughts on sibling interaction on this Friday morning. Happy almost-weekend!

Mary, Queen of families, pray for us!

What am I cooking tonight? We are going out to dinner!

What am I reading? Middlemarch by George Eliot, more New York Times lately, very few blogs

What are my weekend plans? We are at The Farm, so my plans include long walks, running, canoeing on the pond, reading, mass.

What are my prayer intentions for the day? My girls have a fever, and I am praying for patience (for me) and a quick recovery, so this does not spoil too much of their vacation time.

What is one product that is making my life a little easier? Ginger Snaps

What am I grateful for? Old friends.

What have I done for my marriage this week? push-ups

What’s challenging me lately? My temperament.  At the same time that we have been discussing temperaments, I have been reluctantly facing up to the obstacle of mine, which is to obsess and brood.  I need to get better at letting things go, but for now, when I am a situation that I perceive as full of conflict, sometimes it is just better for me to drop out and protect my own peace.

What is one task or project on my agenda for the week? Scrapbooking with my kids.  They have chosen pictures from the last three years (!) and we ordered prints, and now we are working on albums.  We will keep working backwards on this project until we get baby books done.

Something that made me think? Shopping at WalMart.  The low prices make many things so tempting, but one of the things that I bought — yesterday — is already broken, and I just always feel so dirty after the experience of shopping there.  Plus, when I do make the effort to shop independent instead, I have to make more trips to stores that are more difficult with the kids and pay more, so the whole thing is confusing and makes me feel kind of ill.  There are very few shops left on the main street of the small town I am visiting, but what mom can resist 25 cents for a pack of 24 Crayola crayons?  Should she?

It isn’t often that I enjoy a movie, particularly when I’m watching it in lieu of a Phillies game.  But on Saturday night Mr. Red and I watched Finding Neverland, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it.  If you haven’t already seen the film, I highly recommend adding it to your Netflix Queue.

And then today I came across an article, The Parent Trap: Art After Children, which was also excellent (h/t to Shannon), and hit upon many of the same themes of Finding Neverland.

“There is no more sombre enemy of good art than the pram in the hallway.” In fact, we didn’t have a pram or a hallway, but in the dark watches of the night I would sometimes look at the Maclaren Dreamer buggy in the corner of the tiny kitchen and think, is that it then? Will I have to go and get a proper job and never write again?…

…I remember reading that when the writer Tracey Chevalier had her first baby, someone told her that “every baby costs one book”; she said something to the effect that that seemed fair enough. But we should turn Connolly’s equation upside-down and say that maybe what’s in the pram – breathing, vulnerable life, hope, a present responsibility – is actually more important than good art. It might make us produce less art, but maybe it would be art with the future at its heart.

And we all know that kids and families make for some great writing material.  So even if you’ve never seen Finding Neverland, go read the article.  It’s very entertaining, well-written, and full of some great points.

And now on to the real reason for my post.  One of our readers, Ruth, asked about our temperaments.  Since I know all the builders in real life, I will give my opinion, and you are all welcome to agree/disagree with me in the comments.

Me (Red)–Choleric and slightly Sanguine

B-Mama–Sanguine and slightly Choleric

Kat–Phlegmatic

MaryAlice–Melancholic and slightly Choleric

Juris Mater–Melancholic and Choleric

Tex–Melancholic and Choleric

AWOL–Choleric

Am I right?

At dinner tonight Dash , our 5 year old, exclaimed, “You HAVE to make this meal for Daddy to show him what a good cook you are and how smart your brain is!!”

Let me qualify that by saying that when Mr. Incredible is out of town, as he is this weekend, we tend to lower some standards, especially around meal time. Usually we do a breakfast of scrambled eggs and pancakes for dinner. Tonight, after a rough day, even that seemed to require a Herculean effort. So I put some shredded cheese and canned black beans on taco chips and nuked them in the microwave for 30 seconds and served them up with salad in a bag from Costco.

A meal to show Daddy how great of a cook I am? Maybe not.

But I do think it shows exactly how smart my brain is!

Incidentally, if you are a melancholic perfectionist like myself, please take a moment to read this post by Mary at evlogia for some encouragement.

Grocery shopping has always felt like a battle I couldn’t win. Back home in Philadelphia, I paid sitters a small fortune or spent my nights at the grocery store so that I could shop alone and actually focus and go to several stores to get the best prices. I tagged along with friends to Costco and Sam’s Club to  stock up on essentials to avoid frequent bulky shops. During the past 5 months in Europe, I have had to shop almost every day for our family of five into a stroller basket because we have no car, then drag bags and boxes up three and four flights of stairs into our 1 bedroom apartments.

Those days are gone. Supermarkets and grocers in England have a massive grocery delivery business, because more people bike and walk. You order and pay online whenever, from wherever, and the groceries are delivered as early as 7am the next morning. Delivery is often free with promotions, but if not, it’s always worth it to do a lot at once and pay the $5-7 delivery charge. Much better than ruining my day with the kids, paying a sitter, or giving up my evenings with my husband. And if I order from a supermarket with high quality options for produce, meat and dairy but very inexpensive everyday generic options for the things I buy generic, I more than make up the cost of delivery by having the option of budget household items every time I shop.

PRESENTING… GROCERY HOME DELIVERY

Shopping

(Note: my son is not a Fairy, he's a "Manry" who kills bad fairies with his sword and razor-sharp wings--this is what happens when you're flanked by girls in the birth order)

Delivery

Unloading

Putting them away (a good day job for a Manry)

And now we’re off to the park. Check your favorite supermarket’s website today and see what you’ve been missing.

What am I cooking tonight? Bowtie pasta with marinara sauce, broccoli, and leftover birthday cake for dessert. I’m loving Barilla Plus pasta lately – lots of protein for my meat-averse daughter, and tastes great!

What am I reading? Just finished Dearest Cousin Jane, and next on my list is Death of a Pope (I’ll give you my take when I’ve finished reading it). I’m also enjoying my new Everyday Food magazine…

What are my weekend plans? Swimming at the neighborhood pool, catechist training (I’ll be a Pre-K or K CCE teacher again this year), and doing some last-minute back-to-school organization for Christopher – can’t believe he’ll be in 1st grade this year!

What are my prayer intentions for the day? I’m praying for my mom’s health, our neighbors who have been without air conditioning all summer (we live in Texas!), and that my children will start sleeping normally again! The big kids have been waking up at all hours of the night for odd reasons (not to mention the baby), and have been up super-early in the morning, and it really messes with everyone’s ability to function during the daytime!

What is one product that is making my life a little easier? Homemade play-dough. Okay, I didn’t make it, but someone did and  my children and I have been the beneficiaries of their kindness Mine never turns out this well – it gets hard very quickly and has a lumpier consistency. Does anyone have a recipe that they’d like to share? Play-dough is one of the few toys that both my 6 year-old and 2 year-old can enjoy together, and the homemade kind is much easier to get unstuck from the carpet than the store-bought kind (which I’ve completely given up on).

What am I grateful for? A great week of vacation with my husband and children. We all got to spend some much-needed time with daddy, and had lots of fun building sandcastles, jumping through the waves, catching lizards, and eating my mom’s yummy cooking. Oh, and Ed and I even got to go out for a belated 7th anniversary dinner!

What have I done for my marriage this week? The dishes But I’ve prayed while doing them, which is the real benefit.

What’s challenging me lately? I have a lot of friends locally that are going through tough financial times. They struggle to make ends meet, and have to make some rough choices to make things work for their families. I have a hard time knowing how to support these friends, and feel like Our Lord is challenging me to confront the questions that have been running through my mind.

What is one task or project on my agenda for the week? Quite honestly, I need to deliver the laundry that has been sitting in a basket on my bedroom floor for the past three days, organize the pile of stuff that is sitting on the piano, and clean the grime off of our kitchen table place mats.

Something that made me think? Saying good-bye to my parents and sister (we were on a family vacation with them last week), and not knowing when I’ll see them again. It won’t be too long, just a few months I’m sure, but it’s hard to live far away from family.