Homemade yogurt

Last week I visited my friend Katie and she was making yogurt...in a crock pot! I could not believe it. All things milk usually gross me out but I decided to try it myself. It is SO easy! We are still getting a little used to the taste. You have to add a little honey since there is no sugar added. Most yogurts you buy in the store are loaded with sugar. I figure we will save each week though in making our own yogurt. Just $3.25 for a half gallon of milk compared to the $10.00 we usually spend on yogurt.

Here is the simple recipe:

Heat a half gallon of milk (skim, 1 percent, 2 percent, whole...take your pick) in a covered crock pot on low for 2 hours.

Turn the crock pot off, unplug, and let sit covered for three more hours.

Then ladle two cups of the milk from the crock pot into a bowl. Whisk in a 1/2 cup of store bought plain yogurt (once you make the yogurt though you can just use a half cup of homemade plain yogurt). Then pour the mixture back into the crock pot.

Cover with a heavy bath towel for 8 hours or overnight.

What you will get is a much creamier and somewhat "watery yogurt" compared to Yoplait or a comparable brand. If you currently get your yogurt from a creamery it is pretty much the same consistency. Simply add fruit, honey and granola.

Schlagel Farms

I have been wanting to take Ian to a farm since the petting zoo at the National Zoo is his favorite. I wanted Ian to see the animals in their real habitat. So we wandered on down to Schlagel Farms which is about 45 minutes southwest of DC in Maryland. Their farm is totally geared toward children and Ian loved it! The tour starts out with playtime in a great big box of corn. Ian was a little apprehensive at first but soon dived right in. The hayride was the next big attraction followed by a maze and petting farm. Ian loved petting the animals and would still be there feeding the goats and pigs if I hadn't picked him up kicking and screaming and carried him to the car.

Forgot to add a picture of Emma's cloth diapers. They are so cute! Bulky, but cute.

And here is one in case you are having a bad day...

The weeks are just flying by. I can't believe I have already been back to work for a month now. Becky is still watching Ian and Emma during the week while I work. Have I mentioned how wonderful it is to have her around? The house seems so empty when she leaves to give herself a break on the weekends. And I miss all of her wonderful treats - cookies, muffins, granola...yum!

Life has been a little crazy lately as Ian is going through somewhat of a transition. I am not sure if it is the "terrible twos" or it is a reaction to me going back to work, but he has been awful at bedtime. So sweet during the day but come bedtime and he starts whining and crying. He does everything to stall and if left alone in his room will scream until he throws up. After I found myself cleaning his comforter for the third time at 9pm at night I decided we had to take a different course of action. We have slowly been getting back to normalcy (Ian going to bed on his own after we read him a book and say prayers). I think we are about halfway. We still need to stay in the room with Ian for about ten-fifteen minutes and then we say, "I just have to go check on something and I will be right back to check on you." He usually buys it. Sometimes he doesn't and bedtime takes a little longer.

Emma is growing up so quickly. She is already in six month clothes! She is rolling over - both ways- and is so fun to play with. If you smile she will smile right back at you. She loves to be outside, and loves to watch Ian. This past week was Emma's first week in cloth diapers. Overall I think it went well. Tim refuses to put them on her so I still have to buy disposables. Becky is slowly coming around. I love the cloth diapers and think they look so cute on Emma. They are a little bit more work but in the end will hopefully save us a lot of money. I am even using my Mom's old diaper pail- thanks Mom for holding on to it all these years! I can't help but feel so "green" everytime I change Emma's diaper.

Ian and Emma have been hanging out a lot lately, taking baths, and even sleeping in the same room one night!

FUN AT THE PARK:


BATHTIME:

WHAT USUALLY ENDS UP HAPPENING HALFWAY THROUGH DINNER:

Two Trips to PA in Two Weeks

I spent the week before going back to work at my parent's house in Pennsylvania. It was great timing as I got sick the day I left. It was wonderful to have my family there to help me take care of Ian and Emma while I had the flu. My mom let me sleep in every morning. I didn't want to leave! While at my parents house we took Ian to a creek nearby. He loved splashing around in the water. It was so beautiful out as well. Ian and Emma also got to spend more time with their great-grandparents which is always so special!






This past weekend we traveled to Pittsburgh to meet Matt's wife Elisabeth. Matt is in Afghanistan right now so Elisabeth traveled to Pittsburgh on her own to meet the family. Elisabeth is amazing and it was great to meet her. She spent five hours in the kitchen one day making dinner for all of us. She held Emma for me during the entire church service. And she is so fun to be around. We spent most of the weekend catching up with family. Hannah and Brock drove down from Cleveland. Hannah is going to be the most amazing mother. She attached herself to Emma for the entire weekend, so much so that I even had a chance to read a book. Imagine that! We spent the weekend preparing for fall and even roasted marshmallows over a fire one night. Emma finally got to meet her Chapman great-grandparents (Grand mamma and Grand pappa). Thank goodness for these wonderful times with family to get us through the work week!

Last week I went back to work. I try not to think about everything that I am missing by being at work and not at home with Ian and Emma. My sister Becky is living with us and watching Ian and Emma Monday through Thursday. I am so grateful for her. Last week I was worried that Becky was bored and that she was going to rethink her decision to watch Ian and Emma. However when I asked her she said that the moments that she gets to cuddle with Ian before his nap made it all worth it. And boy is she right. Ian is the best cuddler! The one difference I notice between Ian and Emma is that Ian loves to cuddle and always has. He would nuzzle into my chest when he was a baby. Emma on the other hand loves to look out and is not much of a cuddler.

Ian is going through a bit of a transition with me going back to work. He cries every morning as I get ready for work, holds on to my leg and whines, "No work Mommy, no work Mommy." It just breaks my heart. When Becky comes into the kitchen in the morning he says, "No Bebby. No Bebby." He is also rebeling at night. He refuses to go to bed and will use all stalling options: "more milk Mommy," "more read Mommy," "more pee pee Mommy." However, he is also showing his independence when I am around. Ian likes to do everything on his own. He says, "Go away Mommy, go away." He wants to fix his own meals, brush his teeth, and even take a bath on his own. Of course I don't let him, but he sure puts up a fight.

As Ian spreads his two year old wings, Emma is as sweet as ever. She is cooing and making the most adorable sounds I have ever heard. My heart melts every time I hear her. I really can't remember Ian going through this stage, probably because he just slept for the first six months of his life. Emma is all smiles when she is awake, and is still taking some great naps and sleeping most of the night with a feeding here or there. A huge development this week is that Emma's eye issue seems to be gone. She was having a lot of "eye gunk" which was possibly the result of a blocked duct. This could have gone on for 15 months, but suddenly this week she woke up one morning without any gunk and it hasn't come back since. Now I can finally get a gunk free picture for her birth announcement :) Emma still loves the pacifier, and has graduated from the bouncy seat to the bumbo. Emma is a very active baby and I caught her rolling from her back to her stomach yesterday. I can't believe how quickly she is growing. She was a champ at her most recent doctor's appointment and at ten weeks she was 10 lbs and 23 inches long. She outweighs Ian at this point by almost 2 lbs.

Ian and Emma have been having a lot of quality time together lately. Ian loves to lay next to Emma and be by her side.