How I get my kids to eat greens

My kids eat lots and lots of healthy stuff. More than most kids. Fruits, veggies, grains, meat - even new stuff. HOWEVER, they do not like greens. Of any kind. Except romaine lettuce with more croutons than lettuce.

Enter the green smoothie. I had never heard of such a thing until about a week ago when one of the real food blogs I follow posted a recipe for one. It's simple enough - just blend up a carload of greens, add some fruit, water and maybe a milk product and then hope for the best. So I did. Let me tell you that a green smoothie is really, really GREEN. Like slime green. It doesn't taste like greens, though, and that's the most important part.

Turns out that my kids will not only drink the green smoothie, but they DEMAND it! Each and every time they down a 4 oz. glass I estimate that they are getting 1 cup of raw greens, plus a serving of fruit and cultured dairy. Score!

Green Smoothie Recipe
5-6 cups Trader Joe's Southern Greens mix (pre-washed, pre-cut. easy peasy!)
water so that the greens start to blend
plain keifer - about 1/2 - 1 cup
1 large banana
1 cup or so frozen pineapple chunks

Put the greens and a bit of water in the blender and let it go until it's smooth. I have to poke my greens down and mess around a bit with it to get it to blend. Then add the rest of the fruit and dairy. Blend until smooth. Serve to your peeps and keep those fingers crossed!

Christmas Crafting

declan with a santa beard and hat

aubry in santa hat

nola rocking the santa face

nola created the ultimate christmas decoration -
flying santa and reindeer attached to the ceiling fan. love it!

Quote of the Day

"Math is kind of feeling like an old friend now."
-Nola, age 6.5

Who knew you could make THAT?

Today's surprising food creation was homemade TORTiLLAS! You know, the kind you can buy at the grocery store. Soft, yummy flour ones. Turns out, it's super easy, cheap and takes about as much time as buying them at the store.

Kitchen Stewardship has an excellent tutorial for making tortillas in different ways. I chose the first version - AP flour, water, salt and coconut oil. This was the first time I broke out the coconut oil, primarily because I didn't have time to let butter soften. Nor did I have time to let the dough sit in the refrigerator for 4-24 hours. They still turned out GREAT! I was surprised that the coconut oil tasted great in the recipe - just a hint of coconut, not off-putting at all.

I loved making the tortillas on the cast iron skillet while the other components of our fajitas were cooking. What fun and EVERYONE liked them!

Field Trip Wednesday

Today we went to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philly. The kids have been asking to see the dinosaurs, so off we went. I realized quickly after missing the turn to the museum exit that I NEED A GPS OR AN IPHONE, stat! Added about a half hour to our trip time - aargh!

We met our friends Terri, Zach and Max in the lobby and set off for the dinosaur dig. Everyone had a great time with the safety goggles and metal scrapers. We all found bones, but no one managed to get any out of the dig site. Better luck next time! The kids also enjoyed running on the dinosaur treadmill, climbing in a t-rex scull, and walking like dinosaurs.

I made Nola check out the authentic Egyptian mummy on display. She has been a bit scared of mummies ever since we studied them in history. Maybe seeing the blackened, mummified corpse cured her? (or not...)

Turns out both Nola and Aubry are afraid of butterflies - BUTTERFLIES!!! The museum has this wonderful butterfly exhibit where they fly around freely in a natural setting. Sometimes the butterflies even land on you! After Nola and Aubry heard this choice bit of information they could not get out of that room fast enough. Declan, on the other hand, flung his hand out toward the butterflies and yelled "land on you, land on you!".

We had a great time today. Looking forward to another field trip next week!

Who knew you could make THAT?

Well, today I made whey and cream cheese. You heard right. Whey. and. cream. cheese.

Who knew you could make that? Turns out, you can make those two things by taking yogurt, plopping it into a cheesecloth lined strainer over a bowl, and letting it sit on your counter for most of the day. The whey drips out of the yogurt into the bowl and the cream cheese is left in the cheesecloth.

What's whey? Good question. It's what Little Miss Muffet ate with her curds. Also, you can make funky lacto-fermented stuff to eat with it. More on that when I get around to it....

For now, though, I'm just gonna enjoy some cream cheese on a bagel!

Field Trip Wednesday

Been a looooong time since I posted on the blog. Things have been BUSY, but I'm not even going to try to catch up. Let's just move forward with things.

In our new homeschooling schedule, we've set aside Wednesday as our field trip day. Today we were going to go to the zoo (again) since it has been really nice here for the middle of November. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and it has been drizzly and yucky all day.

Plan #2 - go to the DaVinci Science Center. Unfortunately, the kids were slow as molasses this morning, so we didn't get out in time to drive to the museum, see the exhibits, eat lunch, and drive home in time for naps. Scrap that idea.

Plan #3 - go to Hendricks Farm and check out the pastured beef, pork, chicken, turkeys, cheese and raw milk. I've been learning more about traditional nutrition vs. modern eating and am interested in bringing in healthier dairy/meat choices to our home. Enter raw milk and pastured meats.

The farm itself was less than hopping today. We saw only the chickens and a very friendly turkey. I bought raw milk, a whole chicken and a dozen eggs for around $25. Not cheap, but at least there's nothing funky or industrialized in the products! I asked the store clerk if the farmers give tours - they do, but in the afternoons after they homeschool their children. We'll go back for that experience for sure.

When we got home, we had a taste test on the raw milk. Aubry and Declan loooooved it - smacking their lips loved it. Nola didn't care for it to drink, but she doesn't drink regular milk either. She thinks that she'll like it on cereal though. Greg said the milk tasted creamier and a little different flavor wise - like there was a layer on top (probably the cream). I haven't tasted it yet - I don't drink milk plain so it'll have to wait until I need it for coffee or cereal.

All it all it was a bust of a day for an actual field trip, but our diets may thank us in the long run!

How does our garden grow?

This past weekend we finally got started planting in our new garden. A couple of weeks ago, I got started on creating the bed in a pretty great location in the backyard. It's right up against the house on the south side so it gets sun pretty much all day.

To make the bed, I used bricks that Stacey graciously donated last fall (thanks, Stacey!). Then, I double dug the bed and mixed in compost (free) that Greg hauled over from the township's stash. After a quick trip to Home Despot, we were ready to do this....

the bed is loose, composted, and bordered nicely with brick. look closely and you'll see that clover had been using it as a litter box. guess a little fencing is in order....

aubry helped me make the garden grids recommended by my gardening bible, Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew. we used zip ties and each square is 12".

greg worked on fixing the broken outdoor faucet and getting the hose reel installed on a newly dug and flagstoned aisle between the garden bed and the bilko doors.

here i am modeling my new hat and showing off the garden grids and walking pathways. the garden has 3 beds with 16 spaces each for planting. more to come!

Easter Eggs!

It's been a looong time without a post! Here are a few pics of the kids coloring Easter eggs at the dining room table.

Declan wasn't supposed to be involved in this project, but he INSISTED by grunting, pointing and climbing up onto the table. After we gave him his own egg to destroy dye, he was as happy as a clam!

Aubry was very focused

Nola multi-tasked


Declan whined and got his own egg, which he promptly dyed brown.

This is what happens when you repeatedly poke a freshly dyed (brown) Easter egg.

March comes in like a lion.....

Last night we had our first real snowstorm of the year. It was so bad that the school district canceled school before I even went to bed! They do this auto-dial thingy where your phone usually rings at 5:50 AM to announce that school is canceled or delayed. I was grateful to get the call at 9:30 PM instead!

Anyway, we woke to a storm in progress and were just now able to go outside to shovel out the sidewalks and driveway. It's really cold, so we didn't stay out long - just enough time to shovel, make some snow angels and eat really clean snow. Then it was inside for freshly baked brownies!

catching snowflakes on her tongue

making snow angels in the driveway

nola liked doing a downward dog to lick the snow

Where did she come from?

OK. So tonight at the dinner table Nola comes out and says "Can I talk to you about some bus problems, Mom?" She proceeds to tell me that the "mean boys" on the bus have once again called her a name. This time it's "potato head".

Now, being the wonderful mom that I am, I talk with her about her feelings, possible solutions, and what actions to take next. When I asked her what she did about the name-calling, she said "I turned to my friend and enjoyed the ride". Seriously. She actually said that.

She seemed to like the extreme idea of not taking the bus home to avoid the "mean boys", but after thinking about this one for a while she came up with the following:

Nola: "Mom, I think that not riding the bus on Mondays would be ok. I think that I can do 4 days on the bus."

Me: "What do you mean 'on Mondays"?"

Nola: "Well, on Tuesdays I usually ride with xxxxx, on Wednesdays I ride with yyyyyyy, on Thursdays I sit next to zzzz and aaaaa, and Fridays is ALWAYS bbbbb and cccc, since they only ride the bus home on Fridays."

Me: "Huh? You mean that you ride with these kids on the same days each week?"

Nola: "Yes."

What's going on here? Doesn't she know that she's FIVE??? And who has a schedule of friends to ride with on the bus anyway? The best part of this whole thing was that NONE of the kids she named in her bus riding schedule are actually kindergartners! I am constantly amazed at this child's ability to make friends and build social networks anywhere she goes.

Later on this evening, she asked "Mom, can I talk to you about some of my other life problems?"
LIFE PROBLEMS? From a five year old?!? Turns out that she had a bit of a scare from some dogs on leashes while she was walking home from the bus stop. Nothing major, since she once again refused my offer to come and pick her up at the bus stop after school. (She prefers to walk home by herself.)

She's an amazing kid, that Nola....

The Month of Love

OK. Here's the reality here in Herding Cats land. My camera is holding all my recent photos hostage. Seriously. Have no idea why I can't get them onto the computer, and neither does Greg. No photos, then.

However, I do need to tell all 3 of you who read this blog that February is officially the Month of Love in the Dowd house (at least in my mind. Greg mocks me.). What does that mean? Well, for Jennie over at the Squeaky Wheel, it means that there's a lot of great cooking and kind words. For me, the month of love means...GET THE CRAP OUT OF THE MASTER BEDROOM!!!!

If I had a photo of my bedroom right now, you would be scared. Truly. No one in his or her right mind would sleep in this room. There are piles of kid clothes waiting to be sorted and donated/sold, piles of almost filed papers, and other piles of who knows what. You see, I made all these piles in JANUARY thinking that I'd blow through the sorting in time for February 1 (the kick-off day of the Month of Love). Apparently I forgot that I had 3 kids under 6.

I am now praying for a miracle. Valentine's Day is Saturday, and I'd like to give Greg the gift of a clean bedroom. Will it happen? I hope so. I just have to take care of the kids, teach an art lesson to the kindergartners, organize the preschool's 100 day celebration, take the kids to their activities and keep the rest of the house in some semblance of order. Cross your fingers for me!

New Year's Past

I was just over at The Squeaky Wheel reading my friend Jennie's post about our visit to Louisville for New Year's Eve a couple of years ago. I can't resist posting some of the photos we took while we were there. All of this will seem pointless unless you go here to read the accompanying text.

How did I get so laid back about Christmas this year?

I must say that this has been the least stressful holiday season I have ever experienced as an adult. Maybe it's because I'm older, maybe because we've decided not to go overboard with the presents, or maybe just because I've chosen to ignore many of the holiday preparations that agitated me in the past. (Like getting your cards out in time to reach you before the holiday - oh well!)

For instance, today I was planning on finishing up my holiday food shopping. I went to Trader Joe's early hoping to avoid the massive crowds that have been swarming the region as Christmas grows nearer. It actually WORKED - I was in and out (with a detailed list) in a half hour. Yippee!

Next, the plan was to hit the Wine & Spirits store for wine and, well, spirits. Not so lucky. It was 11 am and there was nary a parking spot to be had. Instead of getting frustrated, I opted to drive right on by and head to my third spot, The Head Nut. The Head Nut is a fantastic coffee/nut roaster that is packed with all sorts of spices, baking goods, teas, candies, ice cream and a coffee bar. This is one of my favorite places to go around here. Local and YUMMY.

Anyway, seems like many others had the same idea as me. I snagged the last spot in the lot and headed inside. Big mistake. You see, at the Head Nut, you have to choose what you want from the myriad of options, bring it to the front counter and have the 3 clerks measure/weigh it and price it. That is, unless you want coffee as well. In that case, the clerk has to leave the counter, make his/her way back into the depths of the store to measure, weigh, grind and bag your beans before returning to the counter to ring you up. On a regular day, this takes forever. Today the line snaked almost out to the exit. I replaced my tub of holiday sprinkles and beat a hasty retreat.

Why do I mention all this? Because it didn't bother me at all! Have no idea why, but the Christmas Spirit has mellowed me out this year. Hassles and mishaps seem to be rolling off my back like water off a duck. Keep it coming, St. Nick!

Back in the Saddle

getting the christmas tree

santa's little helpers screwing the tree into the base

hanging ornaments

voila! the star is on!

Please Touch (me) Museum

Yippee! I cannot begin to express how incredibly excited I am that the Please Touch Museum has opened its brand spankin' new doors in Philly. I was first introduced to the Please Touch Museum by my dear friend Jennie Burke and her sister in law (who lived in Chadds Ford at the time). I can't get out of the habit of calling it the "Please Touch Me" museum, since that's what I initially thought it was named! (Thanks, Jennie and Heather.....)

Now, the old PTM was cool, but had rough parking, a long drive, and was a bit worn to say the least. Going there was a very special treat saved for the entire family. Now, however, we feel like we're playing in a palace every time we go. Since it's open at 9 am, we can even jet over during a weekday morning before Nola has to go to afternoon kindergarten. If you're ever in the neighborhood, let's go!

the PTM is in the old Memorial Hall. it's very grand looking.

this is the vestibule. huge and grandiose. the statue of liberty arm is made out of recycled materials and kids can run around in the base.

this is a gigantic restored carousel from a park in philly that was relocated INSIDE the museum. it's really, really impressive when you first see it. rides are only $1!!

declan and daddy riding the traditional horse.

aubry insisted on riding the rabbit. she was very happy about it, too.

nola's favorite part of the museum was the aviation room. kids create their own flying things out of foam shapes, winch them up to the incredibly high ceiling, and watch them flutter down. this was a fun place for all of us, even declan!

Goodbye, Grandma

My dad just called to tell me that my Grandma Pete passed away. I'm so sad, but the lady made it to 94, for goodness sakes!! She was a spitfire and told the funniest off-color stories from her youth (one of the phrases she often used was "ass over teakettle" to describe someone falling).

In recent years, Grandma's memory wasn't what it used to be. I will fondly remember the story she told me while I was nursing Aubry and then Declan. It went down (every single time) like this:

I'm sitting on the couch getting ready to nurse the baby, Grandma's sitting across from me in an armchair. She notices what I'm doing.
Grandma: I didn't know you were nursing!!
Me: Yup, sure am, Grandma. Did you nurse your sons?
Grandma: Oh, yes.
Me: For how long?
Grandma (thinking): I don't remember. But you know what?
Me: What?
Grandma: I gave milk to Henry Ford when I was in the hospital after having one of the boys!
Me: What do you mean? / Really?
Grandma: Oh, yes - I had so much milk that they took it from me and gave it to Henry Ford. And you know what?
Me: What?
Grandma: They didn't give me one red cent for it, either!!!! And he could have afforded it, too!

She always seemed very proud that she was able to help out Henry Ford, but a bit indignant that no money was offered. I got quite a kick out of hearing this same story, the same way, every single time I was in the same room with her while I nursed. I'm sure I will remember this particular conversation with Grandma forever.

I really, really miss her already. It was time, though, and she welcomed it.

Goodbye, Grandma.

this is my absolute favorite photo of grandma.
she's the life of the party and drinking wine through a straw :)

It's official!

Yippee! Finally someone I voted for will be President! Good luck, Obama!

Facebook is bizarre

This is a totally random, picture free post. I'm sitting alone here today waiting for Greg and the girls to get back from Annapolis. Declan's napping and is thankfully feeling better after a looooong 2 days of high fever, snot, sneezing and coughing. So I decide to check out what's going on at Facebook

I look in my inbox and discover I have ANOTHER message from a random person from elementary/middle school in New Jersey. (The first came about a week ago - had a tough time remembering this boy from band/gifted and talented/english class.) This time it's a boy I had band with - he also played clarinet. Now he's living in Hoboken and is a professional opera singer. I actually do remember him because of the clarinet thing and the fact that he had really red hair and freckles.

My question is - how did these people remember me, think to search for me in facebook, and then have the motivation to send me a message? I can barely remember YESTERDAY, let alone people's names from elementary school. I don't really know what to make of it, particulary since I considered myself a pariah during those years.

Tree Hugger

Aubry is going through this phase where she tries to pick up the trees planted on the mow strip. She always asks "Can I pick up that tree?" and I always respond "You can try!". She used to try to pick up the telephone poles too, but stopped when the Verizon man told her to be careful or she'd get a splinter. Instead, she just says "The man says I get splinter when I pick up that tree", and keeps on walking.

This photo doesn't show it, but she's usually wearing a superhero cape....