Thursday, September 22, 2011

Correspondence

Dear Fourth Grade Spelling/Vocabulary Book,

When you ask "What is the opposite of coffee?" the correct answer is not "Tea."  That makes no sense and brings up all of my Alanis Morissette irony issues. 

Signed,
The Black Fly in Your Chardonnay


Dear PA,

When you have to step in at my child's checkup because the pediatrician had an emergency, kindly do not recommend an unnecessary invasive medical procedure.  It makes me angry and my child hysterical.

Signed,
Tiger/Bear/Some Sort of Large Mammal Mom


Dear Pediatrician's Office/Pediatrician,

Thank you for not charging me a co-pay for our follow-up appointment.  And thank you for listening to our concerns and agreeing that the PA was wrong.  Now, go lecture her.

Signed,
Relieved Mother


Dear Kindergartner,

I am so glad you love school and are doing well.  But this morning when you said, "You can stop here, Mama," and walked up the school sidewalk by yourself, my heart broke a little.

Signed,
I'm Not Crying, It's Just Allergies

P.S. I still stood there and watched you walk in.  It's a free country.

Friday, September 16, 2011

I am stealing this idea

Graham's neighborhood party was rained out.  Twice.  So he just received his presents.  What did our neighbors buy the boy who has enough hand-me-down toys, strollers, and clothes to last a lifetime?  A gift certificate to our favorite pizza place for him to share with his family!  (Yes, they chose the place that makes dairy-free pizza.)

Isn't that a great idea?!  I am totally stealing it for first birthdays--whether the child has a lot of siblings or not.  Who doesn't appreciate a free meal?  Who doesn't miss the newborn days--at least the part where you get meals dropped off all the time?

Now, let's see how long I can hold off using it....

Monday, September 12, 2011

Yeah

I've been away so long I have to learn a new Blogger system!  Awesome.

I have a ten-year old and a one-year old.  *sob*

If you want a good birthday party idea for a ten-year old girl, search on Ebay for one of the American Girl mystery games that have been discontinued.  Mine was in a damaged box, so I got the game and a book for $20.  The girls loved it.  Loved it!  We did a Kit mystery and made the banana cake from Kit's cookbook.  They all dressed in character and really got into their parts.  It was hysterical.

Graham's party got rained out twice, so he had to make do with a cupcake and a new ride-on push car.  I think he's OK with it.

The principal at K's school has been using K. and me as examples of a child and parent who handle food allergies well and don't make unreasonable demands.  Uh, thanks?  I can't wait for the other families to find where we live and egg our house.  Or, God forbid, cheese our house.

I was just telling Alisa that with a Kindergartner and a preschooler in the house, I now have four hours a week with just one child.  I'll set my goals low: one blog post a month?  :)  Seriously, I don't know how you all do it.  You rock.

What I ate this summer*

*That was sent to me to try.

Kelapo Coconut Oil

We never had coconut oil before, except for the scary yellow-colored popcorn flavoring kind. And now we are hooked. HOOOOKED. Love the flavor, love the texture, love. We are using it a lot, especially in baking. And, yes, on popcorn. But it doesn't turn the popcorn unnaturally yellow! Score.

Enjoy Life Foods Double Chocolate Crunch Granola

Our family polished this off in one sitting. Granted, that's six people, but still. Chocolate granola with mini chocolate chips in it? Excellent. (I thought it maybe needed a touch more salt, but no one else was bothered by this.)

Enjoy Life Foods Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks

The package says something about these chocolate chunks being good "just for snacking!" Hahahah! *cough* Yeah, I totally ate them straight from the bag. These are perfect for making dairy-free s'mores, among other things, because they are flat on one side and don't roll around on the graham cracker like dairy-free chocolate chips.

Enjoy Life Foods Crunchy Cookies: Vanilla Graham, Sugar Crisp, Double Chocolate Chip, and Chocolate Chip

We loved these--liked them even better than Enjoy Life Foods soft cookies. The kids really liked the Vanilla Honey Graham cookies and I liked the Chocolate Chip the best. They were all good, though, and made delicious homemade dairy-free ice cream sandwiches. Mmmm....