some changing table changes

When Liam was born, we had the changing table set up downstairs in his room. This worked great except for the fact that he slept upstairs in our room for the first 6 months of his life, making nightime diaper changes a real pain: either we'd stumble our way downstairs or make do on the floor of our bedroom.

This time around, I knew I definitely wanted two changing stations: one upstairs and one downstairs.

We moved our old changing table (actually more of a potting bench that Gabriel made as an entertainment center for our first apartment) up into our bedroom, along with a small diaper pail, a shelf for diapering essentials, and a lamp.

Gabriel came up with plans to build a new changing station/storage unit for the boy's room downstairs, and we purchased the accompanying storage bins on our Ikea Trip.

But then I found this great old buffet on Craigslist for FREE!!!

It needed a bit of work, but was a solid piece with a lot of potential. As we drove away after picking it up, Gabriel kept saying I can't believe they just gave this away...

Some sanding, several coats of paint, new glide tracks for the bins, and two new drawer pulls later, we have this:

It goes perfectly in their room, with plenty of space for all of the diapering essentials, some toy storage, and a place to put the fish tank.

I made a new diaper changing pad from some soy-based foam, wool batting, and leftovers from the Ikea fabric I used to cover the new rocking chair cushions.

I have a few more finishing touches before their room is done. When it is, I'll post some pictures.

at the creek

Spending time down at the creek was, by far, Liam's favorite part of our camping trip this past weekend.

The water was cold, but in the afternoon sun, it felt wonderful.

The boys spent the afternoon throwing rocks into the creek.
Lots and lots of rocks.

Even the big boys got in on the action.

They had a rock skipping contest, won by Mr. Tony.

We preferred to watch all the action from the comfort of our camping chairs.

And the cool water helped ease my swollen feet...

Sage got pretty brave. Rochelle got pretty nervous.

Liam was good out in the water as long as he had Daddy's hand.

This was his kind of day.

And now for a peek at all of that rock-throwing action:

camping trip

We spent this past weekend camping at Devil's Den. I asked my doctor about it beforehand, and since I was only dilated 1/2 cm, he gave me the go-ahead and even said it was a great idea!!! I really like my doctor...

We joined the Franco family and the Colliers, friends of Tony's through work and now friends of ours. As soon as we discovered our common interest in self-sufficient farming and simple living, the conversation came easy.

The weather was perfect, which meant the camp sites were all booked. We ended up at one of the walk-in sites for the first time, and it was like seeing the light for the first time. The hike from the cars to campsite was a little under a half of a mile, and once we got across the cold creek, and lugged all of our gear, along with my 38-week pregnant belly, up to our site, the comparative solitude and peaceful setting more than made up for the amount of work it took to get there.

This was just a small portion of the necessary stuff for the weekend.

The guys made a number of trips.

Back and forth.

But eventually we got it all there, got the fire going, and settled in.

After breakfast Saturday morning, everyone headed off to hike the Yellow Rock Trail and admire the view from the bluffs while Rochelle and Sage played at the creek and explored other parts of the campground.

Liam was super excited about riding in Daddy's backpack.

When I say everyone went hiking, I really mean everyone but me. I plunked myself down in the chair and didn't go far. I had my knitting, a water bottle, and plenty of snacks, which meant I was more than happy to stay put.

Later in the afternoon, we all went down to the creek for some rock-throwing fun.

Liam and Sage shared a wagon ride.

These two had a great time getting into trouble together. Here, they are exploring the outhouse. Nice.

There was plenty of sunshine. Plenty of room to run around. And plenty of time just to sit and enjoy the campfire.

ricotta loaf and creamy spinach dip

For nearly the past year, we have been getting all of our milk fresh from a local farm just across the state line in Oklahoma.

I could go on and on about how much we have been loving the raw, creamy goodness those jerseys produce, but instead let's talk about what has been just as wonderful:

Milk delivery night.

We get our milk through Tony and his Dayspring connection (yes, it's about knowing the right people when it comes to sourcing raw milk...), so every other Wednesday he brings us our milk order and our families share dinner.

It has been a great excuse to get together with some of our best of friends on a regular basis. We share good food, good conversation, and Liam gets a chance to burn off some of his energy running circles around Sage.

Last night I made spaghetti, a side salad, and a loaf of ricotta bread. A friend from church, Ben Hill surprised me that same afternoon with a bag of spinach straight from his garden. It screamed creamed spinach at me, so I obliged.

Rochelle requested the recipes, and I thought I'd go ahead and post them here for anyone else who is interested.

Ricotta Loaf

This recipe is from Rose Levy Berenbaum's The Bread Bible, which has been my go-to cookbook for most of our bread recipes lately. I substituted in a portion of whole wheat flour, which increased the rising time a smidge, but as far as yeasted bread recipes go, this one is still fairly quick. It produces a soft, light loaf, perfect alongside a plate of pasta and a scoop of creamed spinach.

ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon instant yeast
• 1 cup + 1 1/2 tablespoons whole milk ricotta
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 cup lukewarm water

1. Mix the dough. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine both flours, sugar, and yeast. Add the ricotta, butter, egg, and salt. Mix on low speed just until a loose dough comes together, about 1 minute. Cover bowl with a towel and allow to rest for 20 minutes. Mix with the dough hook on medium-low speed for 10 minutes.
2. Let the dough rise. Place the dough in a large bowl lightly-coated with oil. Cover the bowl and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I've learnede to just keep an eye on the dough instead of the clock. If it takes less than the allotted time, or takes much longer, what is most important is adequately risen dough.
3. Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees a full hour before baking. If you have a pizza stone, preheat it along with the oven, along with the bottom half of a broiler pan placed on the rack beneath the stone.
4. Shape the dough and let it rise. Divide the dough in half and shape each portion into a round loaf. Place on separate squares of parchment paper. Alternatively, you can make a sandwich loaf by shaping the entire thing into a log and fitting it into a parchment-lined (or well-greased) bread pan. Either method, cover lossley with a kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled or 1-inch above the rim of the bread pan, approximately 45 minutes.
5. Slash and bake the bread. With a sharp knife (I use my serrated tomato knife), make a 1/2 inch-deep slice down the center of each loaf. Transfer the loaves still on the parchment paper onto the hot pizza stone (or place on a baking sheet if you don't have a stone). Toss a 1/2 cup of ice cubes onto the broiler pan and quickly shut the door (the steam helps the bread with its initial oven-spring and produces rounder loaves...). Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the bread is golden and an instant-read thermometer reads about 200 degrees.
6. Cool the bread. Set the bread on a wire rack and cool until barely warm.

Creamed Spinach

I slightly modifed Amanda Hesser's creamed spinach recipe found in The Cook and the Gardener: A Year of Recipes and Writings from the French Countryside, and came up with this creamy spinach dip.

ingredients:

• 3 pounds washed spinach, stems removed
• salt
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 ounces soft goat cheese
• freshly grated nutmeg
• a generous handful of shredded asiago cheese (parmesan would work, too)

1. In a large saute pan, heat 1/2 cup of water over medium heat. Add the spinach and wilt, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain the excess moisture, chop roughly, and season lightly with salt.
2. Wipe out the saute pan and melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the chopped spinach, stirring lightly to coat. Pour on the whipping cream, bring it to a boil to thicken slightly, about 2 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat, stir in the goat cheese and a sprinkle of nutmeg.
4. Transfer mixture to an oven-safe dish, sprinkle the top with the grated asiago cheese, and broil until cheese is lightly browned.
5. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Easter fun

Bubbles from his Easter basket

Candy necklaces and camping chair from Grammie
And the quintessential Easter outfit from Tia Molly

Good Day

the hunt

Liam LOVED hunting for Easter eggs this morning. In fact, he loved it so much that we did it another 5 times...

Here's a clip of round 1:

easter eggs

Today has been a great Saturday.

We went to the opening day of the farmer's market at the Fayetteville Square. Liam was wide-eyed the entire time: so many dogs, so many musicians, so many people.

We bumped into some friends, too.

And we came home with mesclun salad, bacon, and spring onions. Not bad for the first market of the season.

After grocery shopping at Ozark Natural Foods, we also stopped at Target for some before-baby-comes-necessities, and then for treats at Starbucks (thank you kindly, Jared and Allison...).

In the afternoon, we dyed easter eggs together. Liam made a huge mess, which means he thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

This is his new camera-smile.
He managed to dye more than the eggs...

Two dozen eggs later, we called it good.

The eggs on the left are store-bought white eggs. The ones on the right are from our own backyard hens. It was fun to see the different shades the two kinds of eggs created.

Now we are headed off to church for the Great Easter Vigil.