Starting Over Is Not Easy ... Mother Baby Child Blog
I was over 35 when I gave birth to Baby Max. My middle son was 11 years old and my older son had just turned seventeen. It wasn't easy starting over again ... Mother Baby Child is a blog to share parenting experiences, as well as what marriage is like after being a single mom for so many years. Get info on having a baby, raising children, babies, tweens, teens, homeschooling, mom blogs, work at home mom. business marketing, Christian and celebrity moms blog posts.
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. ~ Philippians 4:13 (KJV)
"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV)
Day 2: Thankful For Sons & Husband | 30 Days Of Gratitude
I am having a laid back day today. Getting a lot done here on the computer, but totally grateful that everyone is calm and happy to hang out with one another. I look to the left (because I am sitting in the seat furthest to the right) and see 3 handsome faces doing their own things. One deep into the television, one looking so serious while texting on the phone and the youngest turns to look back before the other two ... I guess he felt like looking my way at the same time. There is an inexpressible feeling of love that overwhelms me. Just love with all it entails summed into one pang in the heart. How blessed we are to have one another. This one moment recognized as yet another gift from the Lord. I'm thankful for my guys!
November is here and I want to share my gratitude as this is the time year. I am always thankful for the family, friends and blessings; even more so when I look back from November 2012 until now. I want to thank you for subscribing to Mother Baby Child and thank you for all of your awesome mom blog posts, friendships and tutorials, too. I have learned so much from you. Plus, you have stuck with me through another year and even the time when I was building my new business and I could not blog; I appreciate your support at Google+ and Facebook, too. I just wanted to thank you Subscribing and members of the Moms Community for thinking enough of my mom journey.
"Wishing you all a happy November! May it not fly by too quickly like all other months!"
I know this is very last minute, but I welcome you to post your Day 1 to share with all of us, too!
This is not a radical anti-establishment / horrible Monsanto post, that will come later. Mine is a story of guilt and anger over processed foods, genetically altered, pesticide & fast foods ... How could we let them do this to us? How could I ignore the facts and God's will?
I have struggled with my weight since having children (18 years ago). This is not because I didn't eat my veges or couldn't lose weight, but that the "bad foods" always took over my willpower; especially when it came to choosing which foods to buy according to our budget (I love a good deal) and portion sizes. As a result, it would take me years to lose weight after having a baby. I also fed my family professed foods, genetically altered foods, fast foods, corn syrup and pesticide infected meats and vegetables that I thought were healthy.
Sustainable Food Movement - Pesticide Free / Healthy Organic Foods Movement
This chapter of my life is titled "My Personal Struggle". It involves guilt ridden realizations that motivated me into taking responsibility for the food choices that I have made for my family and dedication to breaking the cycle.
It really broke my heart when my husband gave our baby a hotdog for the first time. I swore that I wasn't going to do "THAT" to "THIS" child, but who cold blame him? I fed the baby a chicken nugget, crackers and cookies, so many times, and gave him toddler baby formula (soy) after he weaned from breastfeeding. In fact, I put the hotdogs on the store list despite knowing that they are not good for us (even our preferred store bought beef hotdogs). Prior to this baby, my entire family and I have been feeding children and eateneating "bad foods" for generations. It was only my step mother's health obsession (as I was growing up), my grandparent's gardening and fostering my love of vegetables, my mother's "fat" prejudice and going to the farmer's market when I was young, that confirm that I am right about how I feel regardless of whether I ever read an article, food label or warning about the type of food we eat in the United States. Ironically, it was also these family members that embraced processed foods, fad dieting, chemicals, pesticides, fast food, etc, as fell as fostering larger food portions, eating everything on my plate whether I was fool or not, and sweet foods made from unhealthy flours, sugars, etc. I would never blame them because that is how life transpired as we became more industrial in this nation, but they could have done better despite the food fads (like turning off the TV and educating themselves on how to keep "things" as simple as what they had learned from family members on the farms and remembered from their radio listening childhoods. Instead of preserving the "old school" and flower child ideals, they sold out to the bigger, larger, more is better, brainwashing that our corporations and government has supported for decades!
Healthy Food & Lifestyle | Taking Responsibility & Making Changes
I heard the "rumors" about genetically altered foods; knew the benefits of exercising and eating healthy, since I was a child. I know that cigarettes cause cancer, as well as Aspartame and other chemicals in our foods. I remember reading about the first case of BSE when I was a kid (1980s) and especially the Mad Cow Disease epidemic in 1993 because that was when my son was born. It wasn't long after that my mother bought 1/2 a cow from an organic farm near our city and gave me plenty to last. My guilt is in knowing all of the basic health information and ignoring it, as well as not researching and learning more about the "rumors" ... especially since I was a biology student for so many years. I have no excuse for not feeding my children natural / organic foods except for the fact that it was easier, cheaper and, sometimes, more fun to be irresponsible about our health. I also have no excuse for all of the years of smoking, drinking and, various forms of, gluttony after having children. I was just sick with regret for all of the years that I let my children eat processed foods and fast foods, and then anger for feeding them pesticide foods that I thought were good for us once I decided to drop the other bad foods and make more healthy choices.
"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Even non-Christians know this scripture quote about our body being temple, yet we ignore it as easily as we ignore God's other instructions and laws. It starts from the top of the food chain and ends in our hearts. The problem that we are having (others and my family) is that the government and corporations have made it virtually impossible to go "back to basics" in this world. I am not only referring to our food sources, but also the generations of change in products, utilities and leadership in this nation.
My husband and I have been making changes since the beginning of this year. It started with childhood and adult experience, listening to people trying to educate us on what is wrong and right according to the Bible, health, etc. I sat and watched Fresh The Movie when they made it available online and free in January 2012. I highly recommend attending a viewing or buying this movie if you can ... it is safe enough for children to watch and educational for those who are interested in a healthier way of life. The problem that I have had since watching Fresh The Movie is the extreme guilt of what I have done to my body and the health of those I love, as well as anger towards the impact of media, corporations and government for the choices they have made for us. For example, soy, potatoes, tomatoes, apples, corn, ice cream, pet food, etc. genetically engineered? Why is our infant formula, flour, syrup, oil, pet food, processed foods, etc made with non conventional ingredients? Why does a bottle of vitamin C taste like salt, plus have sodium and Yellow 6 in it? Why does Monsanto's genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rBGH) infect meats, dairy and pesticides on the vegetables needed to eat and make flour, corn meal, coffee, etc. Why does our local food get shipped to other states and out of the country ... why do we eat imported foods when the exact same foods are exported from our country?
Most importantly ... why is it so hard to find and buy organic foods; especially 100% organic local foods and at the same market value as the "bad foods" that companies and the government approves for us? Why can't I find non-GMO (GMO - Genetically Motified Food) in some cases? Why does the government let Monsanto have such control over our foods and fund industrial farming? I even have to screen every single farmer and take tours in order to buy local organic foods. In many cases, such as pork and certain vegetables, only natural is available and this upsets me.
Change is not easy! On the other hand, it should not be this difficult for those who chose to shop for natural / organic food and products. Our family is making this change despite the costs and time; including growing some of our own foods, exercise and educating our other family members. I am wondering if you have been considering or have made the change to Organic Foods and healthier life changes? Please comment below and follow at networks; I will follow back so that we can learn and share with one another.
Please make sure to register at http://www.freshthemovie.com to learn more about the sustainable food movement and how you can improve the quality of food that you are feeding your family, too!
From My Home To Yours ... I Am Even More Thankful This Day Because of You
Thanksgiving Day always brings back the fondest memories of my step-mother. She made every holiday special, but Thanksgiving was one that we were sure to spend at home with family and she always cooked a gourmet galore. She was pleasant about it, too :)
It must have been difficult for her because both sides of the family ate A LOT of food and she cooked everything on her own. I peeled the onions and did little tasks that she requested, but I mostly watched. I watched as her petite arms flipped the almost 30 pound turkey upside down, so that it could cook properly in a paper bag, "it keeps the breast moist" she said. I watched as she flipped it right side up to brown the skin perfectly for our enjoyment. From homemade pies for dessert to cream cheese stuffed celery appetizers and creative cranberry recipes, she gave her all to make it a Thanksgiving dinner to remember. I had a rough childhood, therefore I am extremely thankful for these Thanksgiving memories and can only pray that I have given my children wonderful Thanksgiving memories of their own.
Happy Thanksgiving to all of my blogging and blog reading friends. I am thankful for your friendships and all of the memories that you have shared with me over the past few months. Thank you for helping my blog grow. Enjoy this special day!
Clean your turkey in cold water. Some people like to soak the turkey in salt water, but this is only necessary if it is very bloody. Most store bought turkeys do not require soaking in salt water. Make sure to check for feathers that need plucked out out. Pull some of the excess fat from around the nexk and inside of the turkey (don't rip the skin).
Rub your turkey down with olive oil or butter (do it well as if you are applying sun screen). This seals in the juices (clogs those pores) and will keep it from sticking to the roaster, paper bag or other pan that you are using.
Peal a few fresh garlic cloves.
Poke small slits near the area where the wings and legs touch the breast / body and maybe top / bottom of breast if you love garlic flavor.
Put garlic cloves in those slits. This will add incredible flavor to the meat and require just light spicing to the skin.
Stuff the turkey in the body and neck area. This also helps flavor the meat.
Lightly spice the breast with garlic powder, onion powder, season salt.
Flip the breast face down in the turkey roaster. This will help make your turkey breast juicy. By cooking the turkey with the breast down, the juices from the dark meat cook into it, thus keeping your turkey breast from drying out and adding more flavor.
Lightly spice the bottom (now face up) garlic powder, onion powder, season salt.
Cook the turkey breast down until the last 1/2 hour.
Flip the turkey breast upwards for the last 1/2 hour to brown. Since it was cooked upside down, the risk of drying while it is browning has been reduced.
* You do not have to flip the turkey breast downwards. You could just cover with the roaster lid or use tin foil to cover it (some prefer a tin foil roof). My step mother used to cook the turkey in a paper bag. It was easier to flip this way and then she would rip the bag open to brown the top for the last few minutes.
* You can put an onion in the turkey if you are not going to stuff it and the onion flavor will cook into the meat. Some cooks stuff their turkeys with an onion, celery and carrots - OR - apples and onions.
As a single mother, I never would have expected that God would bless me with another child and a loving husband that would make the package complete. I laugh as I sit and remember how my sons were trying to set me up with Adam Sandler. They decided that he and I were most compatible, and that he would make the perfect Dad because of how cool he was in the movie 'Click'. Yes, they wanted me to marry Adam Sandler :) I tried to laugh that one off, but my one son was much younger at that time and was VERY serious about it. My older son was just worried that I would be alone when his brother and he moved out of the house. Little did we all know that God would step in and answer their prayers; although it was not Adam Sandler and they were pleased with the unexpected match that God made for us.
I really did not and do not mind being alone, because God has always been there for me, but it's so much nicer to have a husband that loves me. A man that thought it was important to be a father and role model to my sons. A partner in every respect. This was very unexpected ...
My Aunt would always explain that God promises a spouse (Isaiah 54), but I did not care like she did. I couldn't understand why she was so worried about it. Her marriage did not work out with my Uncle, so I kept telling her to just move on in life and be happy with being alone. Like me! One of my close friends said that I was her inspiration because she always felt hurt that her marriage did not work out and that she was a single mom. She really struggled with being alone. She said that I was a rock that she wanted to be.
That was unexpected ... I didn't realize that I had become so stone cold and had made myself not want something that I grew up dreaming about. I now realize that I had just lost faith in that one thing to the point that I did not turn to God about it at all.
In my heart, I figured that I had just messed up too much for God or had blown off the nice guys he sent my way, and this is why I was a single mother and not married again. I had totally set my mind that I was fine being a single mother. I told my older son not to worry about me; that I would be just fine if I was alone later in life. By the time I met my husband, I was all business at work and business at home. I was totally uninterested in being in a long term relationship or married (had been like that for years).
My life took such an unexpected turn ... I am glad and thank God for loving me enough to show me that I am worthy of this type of love, too :)
In Motherly Love, Mother Baby Child
This blog post was inspired by Five Minute Friday: Unexpected
This week's Wordless Wednesday is a video of my Grandfather :)
This is my 88 year old Grandfather speaking on behalf of his friend that was honored last week: African-American photographer Charles "Teenie" Harris, who was born in 1908 and died in 1998. Both very accomplished men through the generations. I think that he did a great job!
