The boring and senseless...

I used to hate football.  I thought it was the most boring and senseless game in the entire world.  Why would men want to run around and tackle each other, all to get a little ball to their end zone?  Seriously?  What's the point?  Then I had a son.  Noah will run around, tackle his sister, giggle like a girl, the run around again...all for no other reason than he loves it!  It's amazing to watch.  I don't think that's the reason I now enjoy watching football.  I guess I just enjoy watching the strategy of a well-executed play, the iron will to push through a crowd to gain one yard.  I don't have a favorite team.  I usually just go for the underdog.  Or whoever has the saddest story.  I'm a shmuck for a sob story.

Friday night, we went to a Fall Carnival at a local church.  It was so much fun.  There were inflatables (aka. bouncy castles), hay bale mazes, face painting, games, and lots of snacks and drinks.  And it was all free!  Joel even won a $25 gift certificate to a really good seafood restaurant here in Ankeny.  The fire department brought a fire engine for a little while for the kids to look at.  Hannah thought that was the best thing in the entire world.  Why is that?  Because it's red and shiny?  She was fascinated.

I wish our church did something like that.  I'm torn.  Joel and I really like our church but the kids programs are somewhat lacking.  There are a ton of kids in our church.  Seriously, more than adults.  And most are pretty young.  Yet it seems like there are more programs for the older kids and adults than for the little kids.  Maybe I notice it more because my kids are so little and there's nothing to be offered to them.  Then there are other churches that have amazing kids' programs and do lots of community outreaches to show how great their kids' programs are but their pastor isn't as good as ours.  So what's more important?  Ugh.  It's too much for my brain to comprehend so I will just watch football on TV and Noah tackling Hannah in our living room. :)

Black Bean Soup

For all those who love black bean soup, here's my recipe.  I found this in an America's Test Kitchen Healthy Cookbook (I LOVE America's test kitchen stuff!)  I've made many black bean soups before but this is by far the best.  It tastes very similar to Panera's black bean soup, which I could eat all day/every day.  Enjoy...

Black Bean Soup
1 Tbsp canola oil
2 oz bacon (about 2 slices), minced (this needs to be raw.  I made the mistake of cooking it first so I had to start over...oops)
1 large onion, minced
3 celery ribs, chopped fine (my kids hate all things green so I minced these too)
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces (or mince it if you have veggie-haters)
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (I like spicier soup so I was liberal with this measurement)
4 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 Tsp fresh lime juice (I didn't have a fresh lime so I used the canned stuff...couldn't tell the difference)
salt and pepper


1.  Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering.  Add the bacon and cook until rendered and crisp, about 3 minutes.  Stir in the onions, celery, and carrot and cook until the vegetables are soft, 10-15 minutes. 
2.  Stir in the garlic, cumin, and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Stir in the beans and chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and cook until the beans are very tender and the broth is flavorful, about 30 minutes.  
3.  Puree 1 1/2 cups of the beans and 2 cups of the broth in a blender until smooth, then return it to the pot.  (I thought this was the weirdest thing to do but it really made a difference!  You'll get veggies in there too but it's fine)Stir in the lime juice, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.


To make ahead:
The soup can be cooled and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 1 month.  Thaw (if frozen) and reheat over low heat (do not boil).

That's all, folks!

Hannah being a little cheeseball.   I had to add a picture of my kiddos even though this post has absolutely nothing to do with them :)

Seriously, cutest boy ever!

I ran my 4th and final 5K over the weekend.  I did the Des Moines Race for the Cure.  I pulled a muscle in my leg earlier in the week so it wasn't the best run but it wasn't terrible.  And at least I finished!  One thing I learned about downtown Des Moines...it's super hilly!  My word!  Even Joel and my sister said this was one of the hardest courses they've had to run.  In order to get to the finish line, you had to walk/run up a pretty steep hill.  Not cool.  Plus there were a lot of little enormous HUGE hills all throughout the course.

I really wanted this race to be my best in honor of my friend Aimee who died of breast cancer earlier this year.  Between the hills and the leg, it wasn't my best.  Still...it was better than I could have done 6 months ago!  I'll keep running through the winter and start running 5Ks again next year when it's warm again.  My sister and husband seem to think we can run the DSM Marathon relay next year.  It's always nice to dream...

Joel, me, and Salli post-race.  We didn't die!

Croup, Croup, and more Croup

Hannah had croup last week.  It was miserable.  She had a temp of 103 and was coughing like crazy.  I really thought she had strep throat.  So off to urgent care we went.  After shoving a swab down her throat (she did NOT like that), listening to her lungs, and looking in her ears, the doctor heard her cough and immediately said she had croup.  I was shocked.  I didn't think it sounded that "barky" but apparently I don't know what a seal sounds like.  She had to drink some prednisone and she was good to go.  That stuff was awesome!  Within an hour her cough sounded more dry but she was talking like a smoker.  Apparently croup also causes hoarseness. Who knew?  Well, google did but I didn't look that up until later.

Her fever continued on Friday but by Saturday she was much better.  No more fever, just coughing.  Pretty soon Noah started coughing too.  I read online that croup hits kids from 18months-5 years old.  Guess how old Noah is?  Yep, he JUST turned 18months.  After a few days of his coughing, he started to bark.  And I noticed stridor in his breathing (that's when he breaths in and it sounds like he's struggling a bit.   Kinda like trying to get a full breath through a straw).  I really didn't want to make another trip to urgent care since the wait is eternal so I called one of those grocery store quick care clinics.  They're supposed to be able to treat all the easy stuff, right?  Apparently croup isn't as easy as a diagnosis as one would have thought.  When I asked the nurse if she could diagnose and treat croup, she laughed and said no.  OK...a simple no would have been just fine!!  At least I called first!  Then as I was looking for other places I could take him at 7pm on a Thursday, I saw that our pediatrician's office is open until 8pm during the week.  When did this happen??  I must have missed that memo.  So I called and Noah could be seen still that night.  Maybe the fact that I basically told the secretary Noah needed to be seen and didn't give her much of a choice.  When my kids are sick, mama bear comes out to play.

Of course when we're waiting for the doctor, Noah's acting completely fine and laughing at everything.  The secretary kept shooting me mean looks.  I ignored her like a good mother does.  Finally the doctor came to see Noah.  Yep, he had croup.  So more prednisone for him.  The doctor asked if I'd rather Noah had the liquid form to drink or a shot.  Uh...liquid please!  Who wants to give their child pain!?  I understand his point that Noah may just throw the medicine back up but hello!  Let's try the liquid first.  He did fine.  Just sucked it down then giggled.

He's doing much better now.  Both kids still have a cough but we've had the cool mist humidifiers cranked up in their rooms so they can breath easier.  I think there will be mold soon from all the moisture :)

However, I do want to know who chose the name "croup"?  It seriously sounds like an STD.  Like, "my croup is acting up again".  I feel like I need to whisper when I tell people my kids had croup.  It makes me feel dirty.

Random thoughts going through my head...

Sometimes I have the strangest thoughts going through my head.  Here are some from the past few days.  Enjoy:

• Why is croup called "croup"?  It sounds like an STD.
• Desitin does not taste good
• There's a reason pathologists sit alone in small rooms.  Their social skills are seriously lacking.
• Why are boys so excited about running around naked?  
• My daughter has lots of hair
• I think some little monster is eating all the food in the house at night.  That's why I can't make dinner
• I love Hannah's preschool
• "Cancer Sucks" is not a good breast cancer motto.  Seriously?  How dumb
• I'm going to be running tomorrow in a race while wearing a purple shirt with a picture of toilet paper on it.  I'm going to look like Barney just came out of the bathroom.  
• Lady Gaga's songs make no sense
• Why does Noah eat so well for other people?
• I think the dryer ate some socks
• I think my Diet Mountain Dew had some baby backwash in it.  Nasty.
• I don't like it when my patient faints on me.  It's not a good time.  
• I have no time to watch TV and it really doesn't bother me.  
• Why can I never find a AA battery when I need one!?
• I really like the new picture of my kids that I posted on my blog but Noah looks like he has a mustache.  
• I need to wipe Noah's face a little better so he doesn't look like he has a mustache

And that concludes my thoughts.  I have no more.  

Pumpkins and Fire

I love going to the Pumpkin Patch in the fall.  We've gone every year since Hannah was born.  Last year Noah was only 6 months old so he didn't get to do much.  This year however, he was all over the place!  That boy is such an active one.  The pumpkin patch we go to is a couple miles away from us and it's all free!  They have a corn pit, petting zoo, hay bale maze, and other little activities for the kids.  And of course there are lots of pumpkins.  We went with Joel's parents and 3 of his nieces so we had lots of people in our group.  The kids loved it.  Noah would have stayed in that corn pit all day if we'd have let him!

Noah loved being buried in the corn pit!

Hannah needed in on the burying action

Noah almost strangled himself trying to get in the cage with the animals!

We also went to the Ankeny fire station to check out their open house.  Both kids LOVE fire trucks.  Probably more Hannah than Noah right now but since Noah loves to explore...it was a win/win.  I thought they'd just have the fire engines out front for us to look at then we could wander the station.  Nope, it was all decked out in kid-friendly activities.  There were fire trucks and ambulances to look at and climb in but there was also a "stop, drop and roll" mat, a puppet show, a pretend house with a fire so kids could practice getting out safely.  They also let the kids use a fire hose and fire extinguisher.  There was way more activities than we could do!  I thought Noah would get into everything.  He did but it was ok.   Apparently this wasn't the first open house Ankeny has done.  Who knew?  So all the dangerous stuff was taken off the trucks and the electronics were disabled.  It's like the firemen knew Noah was coming!  :)  

Hannah showing off her fireman's helmet

Noah thought the ambulance was the best thing ever!

Trying on the jacket and helmet

Noah was absolutely mesmerized by the fire hose demonstration.  He stood and watched it for such a long time!

Hannah loved using the hose

The fireman even let Noah try.  Then Noah did not want to stop.  He wasn't too happy when mommy came and grabbed him.  He'll get over it.