Little Man Has Strep……….Thanks Grandma!

Fever

Sleeplessness and night waking

Irritability

Refusal to drink from a bottle (a sign that it hurts to swallow)

Throws the BoBo across the room…..

Screams so loud it wakes even the neighbors…good thing that’s grandma!

Symptoms of Strep…………….OUCH!   Little man has certainly had happier days. 

Kendry woke up in the wee hours of the morning burning up. I searched the house for our "digital" thermometer. Is it just me or are there other Mother's out there who has like 50 digital thermometers in the house and none of them work properly! Geez! The temp was only 99.7 so not terrible, but the screaming, clinging, and fingers in the mouth made me think more teeth are on the way.  

So, this morning, Grandma took him to the Dr. - As she sat in the waiting room, he just snuggled up to her for a few minutes and then that was enough of that, the whining started. Didn't want to sit in his own chair or play in the kids area. He just wanted Grandma. And of course, she was just fine with that!

Here is Grandma’s version of the rest of the morning:  

As I was holding him, waiting for us to be called back, I was gazing at the Magazine rack looking at all of the magazines I could be reading. I can't tell you how long it's been since I have read a magazine or even opened the cover of a book while not being interrupted by little man! And, I really wanted to get up and get one. But I didn't. Holding Kendry in my arms like that was better than any relaxation time I would've had. I hated the circumstances as to why, but I loved it.

As soon as we got called back they checked weight  22 lbs….then he promptly tumbled off the scale and everyone in the place gasped! , temp (97.9……what) - then for the ears....
Ears were clear.... WHAT?????

Next, the throat. The Dr. made this face and said well, let's test for Strep! WHAT????? Oh crap. I knew then and there that yes, Grandma….you gave little man STREP! Geez! Poor Little Man!
So, after the diagnosis for Strep, we went to the Pharmacy and headed home. He was so pitiful! All he wanted was to sleep on the couch and of course, he wanted his Momma......but school started today so we won’t see her for several hours!  YIKES

I love you Kendry! I hope you feel better soon…..like within a few hours please!

Welcome Home Mommy

Grandma Can Maybe Sleep Like A Baby Tonight

Why is this an expression?!  Sleeping like a baby does not connote a deep, peaceful slumber at our house.   Kendry is a toss and turn fitfully and in short spurts sleeper.   He still has got his days and nights confused.  He will go back to sleep if someone is right by him and he gets a drink of milk….if you’re not there…he’s out of the bed in minutes walking around the house looking for you! 

Grandma has been sleeping with him for 5 nights while mommy has been on a work retreat to Las Vegas!  So tonight grandma said she wants her room back. She wants to get ready for bed without tiptoeing around.  She wants to read in bed with the light on. She wants to watch a few minutes of TV before she hits the sack. She wants to be able to say goodnight to grandpa without having to SHHH him for being too loud. She wants to sleep at night without you thrashing around, putting your cute little feet in her side, or plopping your little head on top of her head!

Mommies turn tonight little man…if anyone out there in blog world has any suggestions for a good nights sleep, please let us know.  

No Judgey stuff, we aren’t going to let him cry himself to sleep….ask Uncle Jason how that one works!  He truly gets hysterical, which only makes things worse. 

 

Tres Leches Cake Boriquena Puerto Rico

The Tres Leches cake is a delicious cake traditionally made in Latin America. Its name is derived from the three types of milk that are used to flavor the cake. There are many recipes that will instruct you to use cake mixes but this cake is best when made from scratch.

Things You'll Need

• 5 Large Eggs
• 1 cup of Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 cup All Purpose Flour
• 1.5 teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/3 cup Milk
• 12 fluid ounce Can of Evaporated Milk
• 14 ounce can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 1 pint of heavy whipping cream
• Butter for greasing pan
• Flour for pan
• 9 or 10 inch Round Pan
• Electric Mixer
• Several mixing bowls
• Round deep serving dish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Separate egg yolks and egg whites into separate bowls.   Beat the egg whites in a small bowl using an electric mixer.   Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar until the mixture begins to firm up.   Set to the side.   Beat the egg yolks with an electric mixer with 1 cup of sugar until the mix is light and fluffy.

Stir into the egg yolk mixture the baking powder, vanilla extract, 1/3 cup milk, and flour.

Carefully fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Fold it in until it is well mixed but be careful not to overdo it.

Flour/Butter the bottom of a 9 inch round pan. Spring form pans are the best.

Pour the mixture into the pan.

Bake the cake for about 25 - 30 minutes. Since ovens vary check the cake with a cake tester and make sure it comes out clean.

Take the cake out and cool for at least 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to fully loosen it from the pan. Turn the cake onto a deep serving plate. If using a spring form pan you can simply loosen the top and place the cake with the bottom of the pan directly onto your serving dish. Let cool.

In a medium bowl mix the evaporated milk, the sweetened condensed milk, and 1/4 cup of the heavy whipping cream.

Using a fork poke holes all over the top of the cake. Very slowly pour the milk mixture over the cake. If it is not absorbing the liquid well, poke more holes into the cake. There will always be liquid left at the bottom so make sure you have a deep serving plate.

Beat the remainder of the heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer until it reaches your desired consistency for spreading onto the cake.

Frost the cake. Add slices of fresh fruit topping if desired.

It is acceptable to serve the cake immediately, however, this cake is the most delicious when it is cold and when it's been refrigerated overnight.

Hunk a Hunk of Love …..Month 14 Today

Dear Son,

You are 14 months old today but I prefer to call you one.  So when people ask me I say he’s one….then add actually 14 months.  I imagine it will be hard to keep up with the number of months you are when people ask. Can't I just say one and one-and-a-half until you're two? I never know what number people want to know though when they question your age.

Anyway, this last month you've really got the hang of communicating. You know that your whiny growl will get you whatever you want so you usually do that first.  Sometimes you really like to stomp your feet and put your arms in the air…that is when you want to be picked up.  So your cute little tee-shirt that says “Pick Me Up….I Like Older Women” is really a hit! 

After the growling and stomping, then I try to get you to use sign language to tell me if you want milk, to be picked up, to go outside, or whatnot. Signing has not come easy, you loved clapping and waving bye-bye…but all of sudden you have stopped doing both of them.

You have learned how to throw a ball this month.  You also love to throw whatever you have in your little hands down the basement stairs and watch it tumble to the bottom.   Then you quickly say “uh oh” knowing someone will retrieve your lost treasure.

Summertime has been so much fun because you love water.  I was so surprised that you were not afraid of getting wet one little bit.   You just let the water splash all over you while you dance and play with the droplets.

 

 

 

We have let you have a sweet treat now and then ice cream, suckers and…. You love it. Cotton Candy was a big hit with you, after just a few little tastes you were yelling and laughing so loud everyone around you stopped to see what was going on…. I think you were on a sugar high.  I normally don't like to let you eat sweets. Unless you count fruit. But your favorite foods aren't too great for you either. You LOVE French fries….that’s any kind McDonalds, Chic-fil-A, and yes, even Garlic French fries. It's horrible that I even let you eat some but I understand your fascination. They are one of my favorite foods too.

Your stats for this month are:

Weight – 22 lbs

Height – 30 inches

People always tell me how tall they think you are, but both of these stats are just in the 25th percentile for your age.   Whatever you are we love you just the way you are. More than you will ever know. Well, maybe until you have your own child some day. I think that's when you'll really get it.  Your Nona told me that she loved me and my brother as much as I love you and I have a new found respect for what she went through as a single mom for those early years of my life. Thank you for being my little friend, my bragging rights and my reason for loving life so much.

Love You To The Moon and Back,

Mommy

Tembleque ~Puerto Rican Style Coconut Pudding

 

I’m not Puerto Rican.   (Shocking, I know ~ la dolce vita.) But with enough influence from those who are we decided to give this dessert a try. This elegant dessert from Puerto Rico - the name means "quivery" - is a treat for the eye as well as the taste buds….yes, I licked the pan!  It’s name in English means trembling, due to its gel-like, trembling.  I was so excited to try this simply because of my love of banana cream pudding and when I found the recipe I thought it sounded exactly like the recipe for banana cream pie aka coconut! 

I was also craving something sweet to remind me of sunnier, childhood days of carefree times in the shade with my grandmother, so I decided to make tembleque.  Tembleque is a coconut custard, and it’s extremely easy to make.  It can be served in small custard dishes similar to pudding, or inverted and taken out of a mold like a panna cotta.  We put ours in custard dishes so everyone can have their own little treat!

 

Ingredients

• 7 ounces cream of coconut ( approx 1/2 can)….not coconut milk!
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 4 tablespoons sugar ( or to taste)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping

• ground cinnamon, and or flaked coconut

Directions

1. In a double boiler combine milk and cream of coconut,corn starch, and sugar mix very well.
2. Stir constantly on medium high until mixture begins to boil and gets thick. Add vanilla
3. Let boil a couple more minutes still keep stirring, then you can either pour into individual dessert cups or a mold.
4. Let cool on tabletop, then refrigerate.
5. Top with garnish of ground cinnamon, and or flaked coconut.
6. Enjoy!

Tradition

 

Spaghetti

Messy, Twisty

Slurping, sliding, falling

Between my plate and mouth

Delicious

Splashin’ on Sunday

We headed to the splash pad today for some fun in the sun and to help celebrate Mylie’s 2nd birthday.   Kendry was totally in love with the splash pad.  The best thing about it is it’s free.  Next time Mommy will wear something that works with water!

The party started with pizza…”I think I like it Grandma!”

That is not a swimming suit Mommy!

As soon as you let go….I’ll do this myself!

No Fear….

Oh wow…I love catching the water!

Some big kid knocked my down twice…do you think I cried…Nope, just jumped up and on to the next water toy!

After the water fun we had cupcakes and Kendry played with Mylie’s presents.

Childhood, in so many ways, is about learning to navigate the world around us…so when the Red Balloon lifted off into the air we found our way to the car and off to find another adventure for the day!

Splash Pad….we’ll be back soon!

13 Months of Love for Kendry

Dear Kendry,

Stats: At 13 months you weigh 21 pounds, 5 oz. (50%), 30 inches tall (80%) & have an 18 inch head (55%). You are wearing size 6 shoes… you have a collection of very nice shoes. 

Yes, we are many days behind on our blogging.  You have been keeping us so busy getting into everything and anything in the house.  At 13 months you are still the most amazing thing that has happened in our life.

This month you have been through a lot – the emergence and disappearance of your two top teeth.  A bout with some kind of virus.   AND No you are not sleeping through the night (thank you very much…for the wrinkles, bags under my eyes, and probably even some gray hair). And through it all we are so in love with every minute of each and every day and night.

One word to describe you is: Busy! Just a spunky little firecracker! You are always walking, clapping, waving bye-bye.  You love playing “Chase” around and around, taking turns doing the chasing. You are fast, little dude! You just squeal in such a high pitch whenever someone says, “I’m going to get you.”, and off you go running! You are still in love with the Sprout Channel, especially Patty Pig, Nina, Star, and the Wiggles.   You are a very fine dancer!

I can’t believe you still refuse to call me Mama, Alieee is what you say whenever we try to get your to say Mama!.  You have started to say something that sounds suspiciously like “No” on occasion. Oh dear, I must say that to you more than I think! And you shake your head very quickly No No No…whenever you are getting into something that is dangerous! Uh-ua and oh-oh (when you drop something) and you love to say “Hi”!  When the dog barks you always say Alieee…we think you know he is barking because mommy is coming home from work!

I can tell you understand so much of what we’re saying. You respond to words like “Get your bobo” and “Give Grandma a hug” and “Baby down”….you find a pillow and lay down!  So cute.

However, you are extremely stubborn and impatient like your Mama, you've started throwing mini-tantrums this month. The minute we redirect you or tell you a simple "No!" the feet start stomping and you drop to the ground on your butt and holler like we just told you Santa wasn't real. I mean, seriously Kendry. You just can't walk down the basement stairs, and you can't play in the dog's water dish or eat his food….. I promise, it's for your own good.

You’re favorite thing ever right now is to kiss EVERYTHING. You wake up kissing, you go to bed kissing. You’ve learned how to give real kisses where you pucker your lips and follow through. You kiss our hands, our faces, our feet, the couch, the animals, the window, your reflection, your stuffed animals and you even kissed the lady on the back of the magazine.  You especially love to hug and kiss other children. You’re still working on blowing kisses. You’ll put your hand up to your mouth and make kissy noises but haven’t figured out the last step of actually “blowing” it yet.

I love watching you learn new concepts and experience new things for the first time.  I don't want to wish for the days to pass any quicker than they already do, but I can't wait to do arts and crafts projects with you when you're older.

I love spending my days with you and teaching you new things every day. I love you to the moon and back Little Man.

Saturday

 

Where or where are we on this beautiful Saturday afternoon?  

Bugs, bugs, spiders, bugs, bugs, flies, bugs bugs, more freaking' bugs! If the heat isn't bad enough, there are flies nipping at you as soon as you step out of the car, spiders (hundreds) in the bushes along the trails, and gnats all along the shoreline. In short, if you don't like bugs and heat.....you won't like it here.
If you can get passed the bug infestation…Bison, antelope, deer, mice, birdies, and very few people….make Antelope Island a place you will remember.   The roads are long and have a lot of scenery to look at and it is fun to play "Spot the animal”, we only found a few, I’m sure it was because the heat was more than most animals wanted to be baking in!

The ranch at the end of the road is shady and interesting.   The ranger was cool....he told us that there were a few baby deer, some horned owls, and a porcupine creeping in  the local wooded area. We, of course, did not venture out into the brush.   We hate bugs, spiders, and especially the fact that a snake might be hidden in there waiting to strike.

This time I did not drink any brine shrimp...(a family joke) they are really not my cup of Dr. Pepper! 

A view from across the lake.

 

 

 

Very few animals today………to dang hot!

The Ranch was nice and shady in spots!  

We finished up our trip with famous “Buffalo Burgers”. 

All in All we had a good day…..but I still hate the bugs!

Oh The Pain

So today I go to see our favorite family physician at the local clinic, I called early today to make an appointment.  When making the appointment, of course, they always ask and what are we seeing you for…I say I broke my little toe yesterday.  I just didn't have the energy to explain to her how I like to practice a holistic approach to healing called DENIAL!   Appointment girl said “Yesterday??”…yes, it was yesterday..do you have any appointments for this afternoon?  Appointment girl…Dr. can see you in 30 minutes…ME..I’ll be there!
The thing is, I've got really lovely toes, but I also have a life-long habit of ramming them into stationary objects. My pinky toes are always reaching out and grabbing the corners of furniture.And yesterday I was just passing through the kitchen on my way to catch that speedy little grandson who is on his way to the basement stairs  when suddenly the pinky toe on my right foot lunged at the kitchen table chair and grabbed hold of its wooden base.
It all happened so quickly that it wasn't until five seconds later that I remembered hearing a CRUNCH! And then the pain settled in, a throbbing, soaring pain. Hours later the entire right side of my foot begins turning black. Is that not the most pathetic thing you've ever heard? I mean, it's not like I can go around bragging about the wild bear I wrestled to the ground. People ask me why I'm limping and I want to go, "I was trying to get away from whatever that problem was at the Maverik! Just couldn’t get back into my car fast enough!” When really I got my foot whooped by an inanimate chair.
I thought I'd just treat it at home, stick a bag of ice on it every other hour and pop a few Tylenol here and there. Except I forgot I was living with the fastest little one year old on the planet. Who doesn’t give a darn about where his little feet land…it can be on top of my pinkie even if it is lifted up on top of a pillow…  Yes,of course he just follows me around, trailing my every move, and treated my toe like the wounded sheep most vulnerable to wolves. It was like radar…let’s step on Grandma’s toe!  Cute, right?
The bruising and pain only got worse, so I decided I had to give in and have the doctor take a look at it, just give me one of those stylish $50 boot shoe and I’ll be good to go. Good news is that my toe is still attached to my foot, although there is a clear spiral fracture on my little piggy that cries “Wee Wee Wee all the way home”!  

This is a spiral fracture…and this is not my toe!  I had never heard of a spiral fracture and said to the Dr….”What”  All I could pictures was the Spiral Jetty in the Great Salt Lake…and how in the world could my toe look like that????

 
Geeze I must have really wrapped my toe around that chair! 

Now the bad news is that I have to wear an incredibly unfashionable boot for the next three weeks, and OMG, the immobility is DRIVING ME NUTS.  Seeing a podiatrist on Thursday….updates soon!

Party Again