Ode to a Kitchen-aid

O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid how lovely are your baked goods.
So sweet and savory every one I'll eat them all to the last crumb.
O Kitchen-aid, O Kitchen-aid how lovely are your baked goods.

O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid How lovely are your pastries.
So light and airy sweet and fresh it all turns out the very best!
O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid How lovey are your pastries!

O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you've done so many good things...
Cakes and breads and cookies too... Frostings, pretzels to name a few...
O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you've done so many good things...


O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you really are the greatest
The time has come for us to part & I'll miss you with all my heart
O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you really are the greatest!

O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you don't know how I'll miss you...
Someday I'll have my very own, and none will take you from my home.
O Kitchen-aid O Kitchen-aid you don't know how I'll miss you...

Dear Royce,
Thanks for the loan *sniffle*
I was good to her. She was good to me, bad to my waistline.
Love, Dea
P.S. Steve is now convinced buying me a Kitchen-aid will be the best gift he ever bought himself. Thank you! :)

Reflections....

Oh sweet little Joy of mine! It makes me sad to think almost 5 months of your life have passed and I have hardly recorded a thing but now when I sit down to do so all I can come up with are brief descriptions and random thoughts...

-The first month of your life.... you slept and ate pretty standard baby behavior. I adored you and loved feeling your tiny snuggly body against me. - The second month of your life you slept and ate and smiled... I had to remind myself you were supposed to get bigger that no matter how badly I wished you could be tiny and snuggly forever you would grow and be a greater joy to me for it.
-The third month of your life you woke up a little more you realized there were lights and colors and sounds and you wanted to see all of it! I called this the age of awareness...We learned to play!
- The fourth month of your life... you stopped sleeping and you started teething. 2 weeks without a REAL nap unless you were cuddled up with me... I didn't mind that but I sure missed getting things done. You laughed for the first time and I cried!
-Your nicknames are Bug, Bug-a-roo, Dude-a-roo, Jeriah-roo and Buggy


-I love reading to you, I never expected I would... I told myself "its important that you read to him" and dreaded the actual task... I was sooo thrilled to find out I enjoyed it!

-You love to play games and when Mommy sings her Jeriah songs to you!

-In the last month you've discovered what a fun guy Daddy is and he cracks you up! He introduced you to your orange Dr Seuss friend Mr. Melvin.

-You're becoming quite the little Chatterbox. Babbling on about so many little things. You have to put your 2 cents in especially when we go to Mommy's group! I think you're telling all the other babies how good life is!

-You're on the super speedway to milestone land... already rolling over tummy to back and you're so so close to going back to tummy! You're a great supported sitter and you LOVE to stand! You have a ton of strength in your legs and love to jump in the jumperoo. You'll fuss to get out but you keep jumping its the oddest thing... Like you're trying to suck every second of fun out of it.
Please don't grow too fast Bug! Every day you seem bigger especially your baby Flintstone feet! I'm so excited for the future to see you walk and talk to feed you real food! I do wish sometimes tho that I could stunt your growth for another year or so and just enjoy who you are right now today. I don't think its possible that I can ever remember all of the many many things that make up the wonderful boy you are!

30

I never really remember my birthdays very well. It seems sad to not remember a birthday especially a BIG birthday like your *GULP* 30th!

So for posterity sake here is a (hopefully brief) account of my interesting, rough , pretty stressful 30th birthday. Ok that might be a slight exaggeration but it wasn't really a "Happy" birthday tho it's had good memorable moments.

Birthday regret #1: Steve took me for sushi on Monday. It had been a year since I had sushi. It was fun and I did get to show Jeriah sushi and describe the joy of raw tuna on rice. Monday night I was kicking myself for wanting sushi for spending that $50 we'd carefully saved on something that I was then wishing I could throw up and put an end to my misery. I dunno if the sushi was bad i dunno if my post pregnant body can't eat sushi but i thought about going to the hospital i felt so bad and the only thing that stopped me was i didn't think i could drag myself off the bed to get dressed and wake my baby up and get him ready to go with me. Thankfully i made it through the night and my mom (ever my hero) came over Tuesday to help me with my baby.

Birthday regret#2: This is more Jeriah's regret than mine... Jeriah regrets Mommy's sushi dinner as well and he spent Tuesday night and all day Wednesday making sure Mommy knew it. My sweet happy baby who coos and squeals and smiles and flirts spent most of the day looking at me with a boo boo lip or screaming. I tried everything i could to make that boo boo lip go away. Even more sad is he'll probably spend tomorrow at it too. Baby Mylicon drops do work.... sometimes. Jeriah wishes Mommy had wanted pizza or steak for her dinner out with Daddy.

Birthday Lesson #1: No more sushi until I'm only eating for me and since I believe in extended breastfeeding this could be quite sometime but after Monday night... I don't think I'll mind.

Birthday THANKS #1: Charel Thank you for scooping up your nephew and making him eat his toes, folding him in half and riding the bicycle! You helped him and me. Thanks for new clothes to sissy I need them! :)

Memorable Birthday Moment #1: Jeriah did have about an hour of calm where I wrapped him in the Moby wrap strapped him to my chest and we baked my birthday cake together. It was the sweetest thing to me. I wish someone could've taken a picture of us, although if someone else had been here they probably would've been holding my boy. Teaching my babies to cook and to enjoy it to love and appreciate food is so important to me. Baking my birthday cake with my sweetest boy strapped to my chest was priceless and perfect! I hope I can do it every year!

Birthday THANKS #2: I'm very thankful my family came over. I was so grateful to see someone else by the time my mom and Steve got there I cried! My Mommy bought me some new (very needed) nursing clothes, mixing bowls and replaced my old rolling pin (a bottle of wine) with a brand new REAL rolling pin. We ate delicious red velvet cake too!

Memorable Birthday Moment #2: After Charel worked her tummy magic on my baby I gave him a bath and for the first time all day I got to see my sweet little boy. He smiled and he played. He splashed and he was himself. Jeriah loves bath time. He loves being in the water so much I'm afraid if I put him in a real swimming pool he'd swim away from me. He likes water just like his momma. After bath time we did our bedtime routine we snuggled and nursed and said prayers.

Birthday wish #1: All day long I wished for a cool swimming pool. I wanted to feel the cool water envelope me and watch the water sparkle blue above my head... *sigh*

Birthday THANKS #3: a sweet sleeping baby!

Birthday Lesson #2: My husband wants to buy me a KITCHEN-AID!!! HOLY MOLY!! Sooo excited what a wonderful husband I have! When he told me his plan he added on. If i buy this it will be your birthday/Christmas/Anniversary present etc... (like I'd care I'd have a freaking kitchenaid!!!) I was on cloud 9! Then he told me he could buy me all the extra accessories for my kitchen aid until I was 40. I paused there aren't THAT many accessories. Then... I realized I'm 30 and 40 is only 10 years away and there are THAT many accessories. Then I felt old.

Birthday Thanks #4: My husband helped me not feel too old by reminding me what its like to makeout like a teenager :)

At the end of the day I still wish for a swimming pool but not to escape more to refresh and renew to rinse away and relax after the day... I did find an alternative however in another piece of cake and a glass of my OLD rolling pin.

Hooray for Boobies!

Take that Mr Pediatrician! I haven't told many people this but at Jeriah's 2 week well baby check up I was advised by the pediatrician that he was underweight and it was suggested that I supplement with Formula. Jeriah weighed 1/2 an ounce less than the dr would have liked him to! I politely smiled and nodded knowing full well I wasn't going to give my baby a drop of it unless it became absolutely necessary. EVERYTHING I had observed from my baby showed me he was getting enough to eat. Sometimes it seemed like he could eat forever and he was going thru plenty of diapers! I knew a half an ounce could easily be made up for its 2 tablespoons for pete's sake. Jeriah was only 2 weeks old my Milk had only been in for a few days and I had a clogged milk duct to contend with I decided to keep doing what I was doing and wait and see how he grew I kept reading and researching and found some evidence and studies to support why Jeriah weighed a little less than he should and I just kept right on doing what I was doing feeding him whenever he wanted as long as he wanted. I even failed to tell my husband about the dr's advice. (he forgave me and understood why i'd held back!) I was so thrilled today when at 2 months old he weighed 10lbs 14 oz!!!

Jeriah is a wonderful little eater and has been since he was born and I love feeding him! I love snuggling him and I love the way he's so eager to eat! He flirts with me when I feed him he makes me laugh and nothing is better than a big baby smile when obstructed by a nipple and a dribble of milk on the chin! I'm so thankful that this time Mommy knew best and that he GREW and is of average height and weight! If the Dr had used the F word again at this appointment I was gonna have to find a new pediatrician! :)

God's creation of a Mommy is a perfect complete one that does miraculous things!

Summer Salads... What Goble's Gobble!

Steve and I eat salad for dinner at least once a week and I don't mean a small salad next to our main dish. We eat SALAD for dinner. Big lucious fancy dinner salads like you buy at restaurants. We love salad around here and have found its pretty easy to come up with different delicious variations. Lettuce is kind of a blank canvas afterall.

Here are some of our favorite variations... All of them start with a big pile of your favorite lettuce, some kind of protein and lots of other exciting toppings you love! Combined together you get a big bowl full of exciting texture flavor and fun!

Taco Salad:

Make seasoned ground beef like you would for tacos.

Add tortilla chips, olives, chopped tomatoes, canned kidney,black or pinto beans, chopped cilanto, green onion, grated cheese, you could even SPICE it up with some jalapeno slices.

Dress with salsa, sour cream, guacamole... whatever you like we like 1000 island.

Chinese Chicken Salad: (pictured)

Grilled or shredded Chicken

Add Cucumber, mandarin oranges, thinly sliced red onion(I use my potato peeler)or chopped green onion, broccoli florets, beans sprouts, bell pepper, shredded carrots, chow mein noodles and almond slivers

Dress with a bottled toasted sesame salad dressing you like.

Italian Steak salad:

I buy a small inexpensive steak marinate it in some balsamic viniagrette and grill it on my counter top grill. Once cooked I slice it thin and toss it in the salad

Add cherry tomato, sliced cucumer, red onion, fresh basil and chunks of fresh mozzarella.

Dress with an Italian dressing or a nice viniagrette.

Greek Salad:

Start with cooked Chicken or Steak:

Add greek olives, red pepper, cucumber, tomato, pepperoncinis, red onion and the all important feta cheese(if you're me)

Dress with a Greek viniagrette.

Chef Salad:

Your favorite lunch meat ham, turkey, salami etc cut in strips and some of your favorite cheese.

Add tomato, black olives, cucumber, bell pepper, broccoli and/or cauliflower, any fresh veggie that you love! Don't forget some chopped hard boiled egg!

Dress with your favorite dressing!

Summer is here and for me that means I wanna eat light and fresh food. Salad always fits the bill. These are light fresh and exciting but still filling and satisfying.

Mommy Lessons... Selfishness

I don't think anything in life (even marriage) has shown me quite so vividly how selfish I am as this little person that now consumes my days, my nights and my heart. It happens every night around 3-4am Jeriah wakes up and I dutifully sit up grab him from his bassinet and soothe and satiate all of Jeriah's little needs... all the while counting the seconds through blurry eyes struggling to stay awake watching the silly TV I never wanted to put in our bedroom and now CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT cuz it keeps me awake for the 1 or 2 or 3 hours it takes me to feed my little bug and get him back to sleep! Every night he wakes up and I pick him up and love him I feed him and kiss and snuggle him its really the sweetest thing being his mommy and yet even tho I know "the formula" required to put him back to sleep I inevitably ignore a step in my selfish hurry to go back to sleep. Jeriah likes to eat from both sides... twice and each side can take him about 20-30 min ( That kid loves to eat!) he must have a clean diaper and he must be swaddled! Sometimes tho I seem to think that if he conks out after eating that I can just put him back in his bassinet... and I can but it will only last about 15 min and then I have to wake up and do whatever it is I didn't do in my selfish hurry to get back to sleep! When i obey the formula i can usually be back to sleep in about an hour! :)

Despite my selfishness however the sweet little bug decided to try sleeping through the night at 6 weeks old :) 7 whole hours. It's too bad I woke up 3 times to make sure he was ok and didn't get 7 uninterrupted hours of sleep myself. I'm absolutely in love with my fancy bassinet that vibrates, has a mobile, music and a night light! He's a happy baby in the morning when he wakes up and he can and will coo peacefully in his bassinet as long as the mobile is running. I can usually squeak out another hour of sleep doing this interrupted only by having to restart the mobile :)

He's a pretty chill little dude this bug of mine!

Jeriah Arrives!

About a year ago Steve and I decided to trust the Lord and see what would happen in terms of starting a family. I was scared I was so scared. I cried and came up with ridiculous ideas and plans to make it fit into my idea of ideal and I felt defeated because I didn't see how it could ever be what I'd always imagined. How could we even consider starting a family right now? Well we could of course but we weren't in any kind of place for it to be what I'd hoped it would be. We lived in this tiny (albeit wonderful) 1 bedroom apartment and we still need 2 incomes and on and on. I prayed and I cried and Steve hugged me and reassured me ( I love him have I said that?) God showed me how He had provided for other friends how He'd given them houses and the ability to stay home with their babies. He also gave me a cryptic answer to my questions and fears...

"The Lord will provide"

Thus far in all of my wondering, praying, worrying and trusting that is the only answer I've been given. Even now one year later with a life much changed and still filled with uncertainties...

"Yet one thing secures us whatever betide, The promise assures us the Lord will provide"

This is the birth story of Jeriah Daniel Goble...
Saturday April 17th was a busy fun filled day. I'd been showered with love by my sweet church ladies. I had an adorable froggy cloth diaper cake, many other wonderful gifts and delicious treats. I had a bag full of tie dyed onesies to rinse out and a bed piled high with the outpouring of love. My mom and I set to work and put it all away and got everything organized and ready for baby to come. We went out for dinner at Sizzler and I loaded up on salad with veggies and fruit and a small steak. (I'm so glad I ate a big filling dinner it would be my last meal for about 24 hours) We came home and relaxed. We watched some TV and did our usual thing.
We went to bed around 11:30. I couldn't sleep so I stayed up for another hour watching TV. I had been asleep for about an hour felt a little gush so I woke up, went to the bathroom, changed my pjs and went back to bed thinking the boy was just rocking out on my bladder but, I kept feeling those small gushes. My brain started working and I started wondering so I called the doctor. My doctor was still on vacation I spoke to his partner on call and explained everything to her. She said she couldn't tell me if my water had broke over the phone and that we'd have to come in to be checked. I started getting stuff together. I put on real clothes and started getting last minute things together and let Steve keep sleeping. Eventually having the light on and my activity woke Steve up and I told him what was going on we finished getting stuff together. It was about 1:20 Sunday morning I wasn't really feeling anything I thought maybe I might be having small little contractions but it certainly wasn't anywhere near horrible. We climbed in our van and headed for the hospital.
We got to the hospital and when I got out of the car I KNEW my water had broken. I walked into the ER said "I think I'm having a baby today" and was directed upstairs to the Labor and Delivery check in which was halfway thru the hospital and up the elevator to the 2nd floor. I made Steve walk behind me. (In retrospect I'm a little surprised they didn't offer me a wheelchair or any kind of assistance. I didn't NEED it but still) We got upstairs checked in and shown to a room a nurse came in we explained everything and donned the highly fashionable hospital gown, peed in a cup and all the other lovely trappings. Steve and I stopped to pray trusting that God would hold us thru the night and be with us come what may. I climbed into bed and they started checking me hooked me up to machines I was pretty sure at this point I was contracting but not badly just little twinges. Steve and I started debating when we should call everyone. It took the hospital 2 hours to confirm anything. It was confirmed my water had broken that I was fully effaced and only 1 cm dilated. I was hooked up to the fetal monitors etc but my contractions weren't really strong enough to register so they started me on pitocin to get my contractions going. I asked if this was necessary cuz I'd read horror stories about hard labor and nightmarish deliveries because the pitocin works too well. I was assured it was only to establish a contraction pattern and make them consistent.. I'm thankful they didn't try to rush it they kept it on low and didn't turn it up. After awhile I was having contractions every 4 min and that were a min long.
By 8am I was dilated to 4cm just trooping along I could breathe thru every contraction and was talking laughing smiling etc. The nurse and Dr. on call kept telling me they needed to make me more uncomfortable that I was still smiling. In the same breath they told me how well I was doing. I think this is probably when I start hearing another mommy on the floor screaming cursing crying etc... SCARY!!! That was intimidating to me. I felt so bad cuz all I could think was oh I hope I'm not like that! Then I felt bad knowing it very well could be me in a few hours and I wouldn't care who heard me! I prayed for her. I was probably almost as relieved as she was when I finally heard her baby cry. I did this for many other mommies struggling to bring babies into the world that morning. When I had to pause and get thru my own contractions. I was singing "Be Thou My Vision" and "Jesus I am Resting Resting" I know there were other songs on my heart that day I know God supplied the words and focus for me every minute but these 2 stick out. I also know my constant answer was drumming in my mind "This answers all questions the Lord will provide."
By about noon my family had arrived and they were keeping Steve sane We'd also been in touch with Steve's family in Michigan and I took great comfort knowing my church family had been told and were praying for us too . I got to talk to my Auntie and she prayed with me. I was 6-8cm dilated and I was starting to feel the need to push. They told me to fight it and that was the hardest thing at that point!!! I knew I was tired I hadn't slept all night and I knew the BIG SHOW was still ahead of me I asked for some IV drugs so I could relax a little and rest up. That took my mind off the need to push and let me half sleep between contractions which I was still managing pretty well just breathing and trusting the Lord. Each time I'd have a contraction I'd blow out a breath slowly and count each breath up to 10 I knew it would peak around 6 or 7 and then it would go away sometimes I had to puff out an 11 or 12 but it worked for me.
I don't remember feeling the drugs take effect or any effect they had. Finally I was fully dilated except for a little bit and the Dr. was across town but I needed to push badly. I was starting to lose my cool focus. We started pushing my nurse was just trying to bring him down and maybe get him crowning The Dr was on her way and would be there in 10-15 min. I vaguely remember thinking that this was really going to take long enough for the Dr to drive from the other hospital. I wasn't going anywhere though and really had no idea what to expect I just knew that BIG SHOW had begun. I had Steve and my Sissy. I made sure she had the camera ready to go.
My labor and delivery nurse was so wonderful and encouraging the whole time. She was sweet and fun and a blessing. I enjoyed her very much. We laughed and smiled together even fully dilated and ready to push I was smiling. There was another Dr. on standby but no one thought I was quite there yet. We did some controlled slow pushing or just like hoo hoo hoo breathing and then she let me really bear down and push once. We did a slow controlled push and at the very tail end of the contraction my nurse told me to stop but Jeriah wasn't stopping and I couldn't.
Suddenly I just felt a huge burst and gush and heard a tiny little cry and I realized it was over. In that minute I also remember thinking to myself "THATS IT I could totally do that again!" I also knew instinctively there was no way he was 9 or 10 lbs! My nurse said he shot out like a rocket. There was no delivery of head then shoulders one minute there was pushing and the next second there was my baby. Pushing was the hardest part by far only because I felt like I had no control I think at that point it was truly just my body doing what God had made it to do. Steve kept me focused when I couldn't think or control my breathing or actions he encouraged me. He brought my focus back to the work before me even when I didn't think I could do it anymore. The BIG SHOW only lasted maybe 15 min but when I needed him he was there! He was my husband and no one else but him could've kept me going. I was probably in active hard labor for 30 min tops to my recollection.
My mom and Steve ran into my nurse the next day I guess I was the talk of labor and delivery for 2 days because I had been so strong and so calm the entire time. When I finally did see my Dr. he told me I'd had such an easy time I could probably have 10 kids. I don't remember seeing Jeriah's face for the first time or it even really sinking in at that point it all kind of went fuzzy maybe I was finally feeling the drugs! I think I remember just saying "I'm your mommy" and struggling to introduce him to his first meal. (Thankfully he got the hang on that the next day) I remember my family swarming around taking pictures. I remember introducing Izaiah to Jeriah singing the little song I sang to Izaiah... "Hi Jeriah this is Izaiah" I remember Izaiah smiling and reaching out to touch his cousin. I remember the way my Dad took Jeriah in his arms and held him close to his face and quietly whispered to him! I remember my family's joy! I remember the Dr. fixing the tear Jeriah made in his rush to get out. I remember the taste of cold sweet REAL sugar Vanilla pudding! :)

Obviously in the 2 weeks since Jeriah's arrival we've learned much and we've fallen in love with our son. I don't think its possible to fully comprehend how much our parents love us until we get to experience that love ourselves. How much greater still is Our Father's love for us! Jeriah's arrival was perfectly overseen by my Father in Heaven! The timing the provision the strength! As Steve and I look back we see God's hand on everything. We continue to rest in Him and trust him. Our jobs may not be as secure as we'd like, We'd like it if I could quit my job and work from home to be with Jeriah. We're in a REAL place of submission and reliance on God's provision. We have no plans nothing set up and a date to return to work looming on the horizon and no idea what to do with our Bug. When I think about the weeks ahead my mind spins and I replay those words that have echoed in my head and in my heart for the last year... "Yet one thing secures us whatever betide, The promise assures us the Lord will provide" I have no idea what the Lord's provision will be it could be the opposite of what I want but I know as with all things it will be what is best and it will amaze us.