Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Tuesday night memory

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and my maternal grandmother, who passed away from breast cancer when I was 8 and she was 60 or almost 60.

My mother's mother always seemed to me to be a very quiet person. I don't remember her voice, I remember her presence. Grandpa always sat in his chair in his living room, well positioned to see the TV and the door where people would come in. I remember Grandma seemed to spend her time in the kitchen. The kitchen had a fun wallpaper on the walls with cooking utensils as part of the motif.

She had one of those enameled wood and metal tables that had leaves that pulled out to make it bigger and two chairs with bent chrome legs. She also had a stove from the late 40s or early 50s. I think the tile was a speckled tile and maybe the cabinets were pink, but I cannot remember that clearly now at all.

What I remember most is waking up in the morning and going downstairs to breakfast in that kitchen. For some reason, I always remember going to breakfast, but not necessarily what I ate. I think there was eggs and cereal and toast, and juice in small glasses.

I remember Grandma making breakfast or lunch for us, but not what we ate. But I just remember her quietness and letting us be the kids we were. We would do a lot of dress up in my mother's and aunts' old clothes upstairs, hide in the lilac bush outside because it conveniently had an open space in the middle, once you navigated the spindly branches that surrounded the space enclosed in green. I think the grown ups knew we were in there, but chose not to pay attention to the fact that we were. I remember the heady smell of what I think were large spirea plants that flanked the porch step.

I remember Grandma doing laundry and hanging up the clothes on the clothesline and running between the clothes as she hung them. It seemed she went about her daily business, but made sure we were fed and bathed when we needed to be. I don't ever remember a cross word from her, I think Grandpa handled that if we got into stuff we weren't supposed to.

I think Grandma was also quiet about her cancer, though the perception of an eight-year old is probably not the most reliable sort of information. I don't know that she let on to us grandkids much about it. And maybe that was the best way, so I could remember how she was quietly there, but taking care of us when we needed it.

Guest blog--Mr. Wild

While walking into our local hardware store today, I was stopped by a complete stranger and asked a question. Normally, in our small town of the rural Midwest, I find this manner of open conversation friendly and charming. After all, we live in a small town and we should expect to be civil to all that live here. The question was directed at my political bumper sticker on the back of my car, a sticker that supports the Democratic candidate, Barack Obama. I was asked, “So, I see you are going to vote for Obama?” To which I assumed the individual was interested in my views on the matter, after all this is a small town where people talk to each other. My answer was a simple “Yes.” I was then offered little opportunity to engage this person in political dialogue as he said, “You will live to regret it,” and walked away with a smirk on his face, confident that his jibe would hit its mark. Seeing that this person was more interested in doing the talking than listening, I chose to ignore the rude and insidious nature of the individual. Upon my inspection of his vehicle for bumper stickers of any nature, I discovered that he chose not to display any. I wish that I was given an opportunity to stop and talk with this individual. I might have asked, "Why did you not put a bumper sticker on your car? Could it be that you are afraid to commit to something that you will live to regret?" I did not place a bumper sticker on my car in the past two presidential elections and now I wish I had. In retrospect, I did live to regret my choice of presidential candidates in the year 2000. I regretted my choice so much that I chose not to vote for the man in the year 2004. Can you imagine the conundrum that people would have if I had kept a bumper sticker from each of these elections on my car? Or maybe it would point out the obvious, that voting with the Republican party is not so much a grand thing anymore, it’s just old. With this said, I hope that all residents of voting age reflect on their choices ahead of them, never regret placing a bumper sticker on the back of their car, and, if you do place a bumper sticker on your car, carry a political pamphlet or two to place under the windshield wiper of the guy who told you "You will live to regret it".

--Mr. Wild

Saturday, October 25, 2008

I love my kids

Well, yes, no surprise. I really should, shouldn't I?

I just absolutely love what they come up with, too.

This morning, as I was getting ready for work, I come out of my bedroom to find them, what else? Sword-fighting. Of course, it was with wooden swords, and my dear daughter managed to have the short sword and the shield and my son had the longer sword.

They weren't pounding on each other. It was more strategic. My son was being nice and giving his sister a chance to glance the blows away from her. Just briefly, I stepped in to help her use the shield for more than decoration. I showed her how to hold up the shield to stop his sword, then lower it to take a swipe at him.

So then, I returned to the bathroom to dry my hair. When I came out her brother was shouting, "Wow, she's getting really good at this!" And apparently she was, blocking with the shield, thrusting when he stepped back. He was being a good sport about giving her a fighting chance.

Fortunately, before I left, nobody got major bruises or injuries, nor did it melt down into a whiny, crying, complaining session.

Which is why I think I love my kids. It is so wonderful to see them playing together at something they are both enjoying.

It reminds me of Princess Alice and Prince Max in this book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0794508987.
They played at being knights and seemed to get along as brother and sister.

It's so nice.

Friday, October 24, 2008

A life of diets

I grew up in a large family with many much older siblings. As a child, I remember that my family, none of which were overweight in any way, were always on various diets and health regimes. My Mum had stayed really skinny through all her other pregnancies until she had me. After that she apparently had never shed the baby pounds. So my mother and my sisters were always following some diet. This was the '80s and the '90s. Diets were the "in" thing.

There was the Banana and Milk diet, where for 3 days all you ate were 3 bananas and 5 glasses of whole fat milk (no skimmed in those days). This never resulted in weight change, but apparently shrunk your stomach so that you could start the next diet all ready to loose weight! There were bowls of homemade coleslaw and very grainy wheat bread. I remember one of my sisters making homemade healthy bread and needing to knead it so much that she was actually throwing it against the cupboards that lined our kitchen walls. There was not eating after 6pm. There was only eating half of anything, half a slice of bread and half an apple. There were calorie counts and point allowances.

Then the exercises that had to be done. There were sit-up competitions, and skipping/jump-rope competitions in our large kitchen. We walked a lot, though my Mum always walked a lot, in fact my whole family always walked a lot. Often daily walks of one hour or more. We walked beaches and woodland parks. We ate chicken and everyone only drank white wine. I was too young to drink, but I remember the white wine everyone else drank reluctantly. We went to saunas and did workouts in the sitting room.

It was in some ways fun. A family event which never really accomplished anything. Although I do have good memories of it all the obsession with weight and the obvious desire to be thinner, always thinner is not a great memory. Even now my Mum will ask, "So how's the weight?" She lives on a different continent and yet she feels she has to ask. The last time she asked I pointed out that it really was none of her business. To which she responded in a huffy voice "Oh, not good, then." And to some extent, she was right. I would like to loose a little weight and if I was exactly the weight I wanted to be I probably would not have been put out by the question. I probably would have answered in a glowing voice, "Just perfect!" In fact, I may have even told her before she had to ask. She has said she just can't bear to loose her beautifully thin daughter that she had at my wedding. But guess what? That was 6 years and 3 children ago. And I'm not exactly lost just because I'm one size bigger.

Through out my life I have had many anorexic and bulimic friends and acquaintances. It is part of our life in our society. I am sure no one reading this does not know of someone who has suffered or is suffering from an eating disorder. I have known too many people who have deprived themselves of food until they were skeletal thin, irrational and irritable. Still they look in the mirror and think, just one more pound and I will be perfect. Or who are scared to eat in case they put it all back on. As a result of these experiences, I can not bear to be really thin and I find it really hard to listen to anyone who is presently obsessing about their weight. Even though, right now, I need to loose some baby weight of my own.

This is so much something I don't want for my children. I don't want them to feel fat when they are 5 because they are surrounded with people who talk about weight all the time. I want them to eat healthy and exercise, but not because they feel guilty. That guilt only makes you want to rebel against it, exercise less and eat more. Society in general is so obsessed with weight and eating habits, that all I can do is try to not make it an issue at home and hope.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Monday Night Memory

It's almost midnight. Though I'm a full time working outside-the-home mom, and have been for quite some time now, almost nine years, I do have some interests and talents that are sometimes attributed to full time stay-at-home moms.

The first Halloween costume I made for one of my children, was for my first child, my son. He was going to be ten months old at the time. Not old enough for trick or treat, but still, I felt the occasion warranted a costume. He had just recently learned the sound of a lion, a little "Rawr." What could be cuter than a lion? I choose this pattern. I stayed up late a couple nights in a row and my husband and I were hot gluing on the little ribbon mane at the 11th hour the night before he was going to wear it.



Perhaps you will agree it was well worth it. I took him into work so the women I worked with could see his costume. He proceeded to crawl across the floor, and had his tongue hanging out and would appropriately roar on cue. I went over to a couple of friends' houses for candy and pictures. There have since been lots of cute costumes, but I was very proud of this first one I did. Since then (except for one year when my daughter was a six month old and I was still not getting full nights of sleep), I like to make the costumes my kids have for Halloween. Sometimes my husband gets into the act and makes a whole costume (it's a bit of work with two kids and costumes to get it all done), sometimes we recycle old costumes I made in a year past.

Sometimes I make costumes for my husband and I and it's not even really for Halloween.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Autumnal bliss

Strikingly varigated red, orange, yellow-green trees glow in the morning sunlight on my drive to work each day. I'm not normally much for morning, but I love to look at autumn colors in the bright sunshine.

When the sun hits the upper part of the trees that are red-orange-gold in the early morning and the lower parts of the neighborhoods are still in grey in the early morning rising sun, nothing strikes me as more lovely or awe-inspiring.

On the drive home, if it is late enough, the clouds are a deeper blue. Tonight they were tinged with vivid pink along the edges--not the silver lining, but the vivid pink lining.

I wonder at how nature knew that these colors go together. They harmonize and inspire awe at the same time. Nothing beats the bright vivid red, next to fiery orange or warm golden yellow. The deeper maroons, purples and browns set a sedate backdrop for the brighter colors to look more splendid.

I should take more time to walk in the woods or under the trees and enjoy what I like about the colors of fall. And I should take my kids with me, to see if they have the same wonder that I still carry for this season. Although I know, technically, the growing season is ending and leaves are dying, this last hurrah gives me a zest for life.

I suppose I need this boost in my appreciation and happiness at the changing season just before being cooped up inside because of the cold, wet, blowing and blizzardy snow and winter.

What's Next?

Really there are odd things going on in our house. My kids are watching pretend TV. This is the game they are playing, lets pretend to watch a pretend TV. What is the world coming to? What does this mean about my parenting? Are they watching too much TV or are they deprived of this very 21st century entertainment? The game consists of them arguing over what show they are pretending to watch! I mean for crying out loud, pretend Thomas and Friends or pretend Dora! They sing the theme song (probably means they actually watch too much TV). Sit down and fight over who controls the imaginary remote! This is not a fight they ever see in our house, I'm glad to let my husband have it and we never are watching TV when the kids are up anyway! Then horror of horror the TV runs out of batteries, yes batteries and they are all sad until my son replaces them and it can all start again.

I have to say when the fight gets out of hand and children are crying and I am called on to trying to decide who's turn it is to pick an imaginary show I do wonder what next! What truly unimaginable task shall I be required to do as mother of three?

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Best. Frozen. Lunch. Ever.

Confession about my diet. Probably not the best, nor the cheapest way for me to eat my lunch. I am so rushed in the morning that to slap together a sandwich with a side of carrots or apple, really seems like it just takes too long. I am good taking leftovers, they are just in a container, which I dump in my lunch bag and go.

In lieu of leftovers (considering I might have just had that leftover for supper the night before, I might not be too into it so soon), I find I like to get frozen dinners for lunch. I usually go with what is on sale and I try to buy the "healthier" choices, or the "dieting" choices, such as SmartOnes, Michaelina's Lean Gourmet, or just Michaelina's Budget Gourmet. I can't stand Swanson. I tried Kashi once. It was okay, but not spectacular. I suppose it was without preservatives and healthier. I'm betting the sodium is still high, but I don't have high blood pressure, so I figure I'm okay there.

I rarely get Lean Cuisine, because I figure $3-4 is expensive for a frozen lunch. However, if I forget lunch, then I spend $5-7 going out for lunch, not to mention the gas if I am going someplace. I suppose I should know better, and that the more expensive frozen dinners are still going to be less than my take out.

Recently, Lean Cuisine was about $1.50/meal ($1.50 is cheaper than the kids' school lunches at $2.35), so I bought a whole bunch and a huge variety. It's been ages that I've gotten it. I've had three different ones this week. Shrimp and Angel Hair Pasta, Lemongrass Chicken, Thai-style Chicken.

I have to say, this stuff is pretty darn good.

Usually frozen meat is tough and chewy and lacking meat flavor. Usually the vegetables taste nothing like vegetables and look funny. The only saving grace is usually the sauce on it. I've eaten many a Lean Gourmet or Budget Gourmet and thought, well, that was just okay. I suppose I'll go back to left overs.

Lean Cuisine chicken is very tender, better than I can do at home. The shrimp I had was not precooked. I could tell, because it wasn't red, it was gray and frozen at the top of the container. It cooked right up during the microwave process. Today, the Thai chicken actually had a red sauce that reminded me of being in a Thai restaurant. It wasn't incredibly hot, but it was delicious. Seriously.

Sodium is still a little high in these dinners. I rarely add salt to my own cooking (although I know canned tomatoes and beans I use often have way too much), so I figure a fair enough trade off. It claims it doesn't have artificial flavors or preservatives. I'm not sure, what is potassium chloride, calcium lactate, and lactic acid? And the chicken tenderloins have "chicken flavor" added with a long line of different and strange ingredients.

Despite that, it was tasty. I'm thinking they might have earned some brand loyalty from me. We'll see how this goes. Considering that it is cheaper than eating take out, and, potentially, could be cheaper than my kids' lunches, then I'm doing pretty good. At least it can be a nice break from the leftovers and just as easy to pack. Open bag, throw in frozen dinner and a fork and voila! Instant lunch!

Monday, October 13, 2008

Monday Night Memory

I remember walking into the State Historical Society on a field trip as an elementary school kid. It was housed in a large Beaux Arts type building, white and colonaded. Old and kind of musty. But fascinating for me.

This was the "old school" museum, where everything and anything was out for all people to see. A wall of typewriter varieties. The Indian room, back when they called them Indians, with cases full of the different tribal dress and tools. I think that room also had the glass-encased stuffed and mounted animals of every variety and continent you could think of. Big and small, mammals and birds. More than just the fauna of my home state. I seem to recall animals of other continents. Canoes hanging from the ceiling.

The big slice of log with the dates of the Constitution and the Mayflower landing and other historical dates on the poor log. It was in the basement at the entrance to the room full of vehicles. Not the best location, but we school kids knew exactly where it was and would hurry to see it again.

In the vehicles, the huge conestoga type wagon was awe inspiring. The many shiny old cars. Mostly from the 1910s and 1920s, but I wouldn't know that until now.

The airplane that hung over the rotunda opening that you could lean over the rail and look up or down to see other floors covered with nearly every item you could imagine of historical significance, or otherwise.

I just remember the place feeling BIG. And it inspired awe in me. And a hunger to keep reading and looking at the "stuff" for as long as I could. Needless to say, my group had to keep coming back for me, because I would linger in all the stuff.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Squash in the afternoon

I love squash, I just never seem to cook it quite right. So, if you have a lovely squash recipe, I would love to see it. My favorite squash recipe is below:

Squash Casserole

1.5 lb yellow squash
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz. sour cream
1/2 c. chopped onion
4 oz of croutons (plain)
2T butter

Cook cubed squash and onions in salted water til tender (about 12-15 minutes). Drain. Add soup, sour cream, mix well. Add croutons, reserving some for the top. Pour into a 2 quart baking dish. Dot with butter and sprinkle croutons on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Way to go, Joe

I am finally commenting on the VP debates:

Finally, someone to stand up for the fathers of this country. Joe Biden, whom I did not realize was a single father for a while after having lost a wife and daughter, sticks up for being counted as a PARENT in his family's life.


Sorry, Sarah, you do not get the kudos for being the "working mother" and "having it all." So many of us have been there and done that. I would rather you say something about how your husband helps out. BUT, you have never said one thing about how your husband helps raise the kids. He's just out there snowmobiling and having fun. Maybe that's why your daughter is pregnant, because he was nowhere around the kids while you were working. Not good. Both parents have to do the parenting.


I'm sorry, but more men need to stand up and say, "I am part of my children's life and I am proud of it. I don't want the long hours at the office, and heck, I might stay home with them because having a PARENT at home is important to us, my wife and I, PARTNERS in this experiment we call our family. You should not look down on me for this choice that we think is best for our family and for me."


I am so proud of Joe Biden, raising his sons well in the face of tragedy and still managing to find time to serve his country. More info go here.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

A Moment In Time

My youngest daughter will turn 1 very soon, in a couple of weeks in fact my son will stop telling everyone he meets that his little sister is zero. He will no doubt announce proudly to the world that she is one!

This morning she totters a couple of steps towards me and then drops into a lob-sided crawl zooming across the remaining distance. I lift her up and she snuggles into my arms. She is still only an armful, cosied in safe and sound. I breath in her baby smell which she still has. She giggles and smiles as I kiss her soft forehead on our way up the stairs. I pop her into her bed and pull her warm blanket in close around her face. She is warm and happy as she drifts off into her sweet slumber. No worries for now.

I know as I walk out and close the door that she is almost one year old and soon will not have the baby smell and will not be able to cuddle up in an armful. Soon she will be asking questions and running off to play. Not as soon but still soon she will take a backpack and run into a classroom excited to be at school. Still further away but still not that far away she will drive her beat up car back to school after her drivers test or her minivan full of sleeping children back home after a visit for Sunday dinner. She will always be my baby, my last little one. But it is only for this heartbeat in time that she is truly a baby and I will miss it when it is gone.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Environmental question....

This is going to be a bit indelicate, topic-wise, but it has crossed my mind a few times. I am wondering if anyone will read this and have an opinion.

There's lots of talk and studies and discussion for new parents about whether to use cloth or disposable diapers and how they affect the environment. It seems most discussions point to the fact that cloth is better for the environment because they are reusable and not filling the landfills (not to mention Diaper Genies which individually wrap each diaper in plastic to "keep the smell out.").

So, I wonder, why isn't there more discussion on cloth or reusable feminine hygiene products? Mainstream media certainly has not picked up on this.

"Ewww, ick." I know. It's difficult for me to fathom. I think older women, the generation before me, may remember belts holding things in place. So, I wonder what's out there in washable products.

Lo and behold, there's a whole bunch of things. This site states that women will "throw away 10,000-15,000 disposable pads or tampons in her life." Interesting.

So I found this site with pretty pads. I wonder though, if you risk a mess with these things. There's other products, too, but I won't go into it here. Because even me, I have an indelicate limit. But you can see what they are out there. You can continue to search this topic on your own.

But, I am saying I am surprised that with the diaper debate, this one also does not come up in the same breath. It seems similar to me. And I wonder if the waste produced by women's disposables could add up to more than what came from a baby. So, ladies, why aren't we hearing anything about those products and their benefits for the environment? It has just always made me wonder.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Color, Color Everywhere

The idea that your favorite color can determined your personality is maybe not so strange. After all, your personality would affect what colors appeal to you. Well, now a company called CareerBuilder.com will actually analyze your preferences and tell you about your personality and therefore which jobs are best for you.

So I did the free trial. It is kind of like those Starsign questionnaires that I used to do as a teenager to determine who was my perfect match. A Leo born into the Monkey year or a Sagittarian Dragon? Possibly the color career choices are more likely to be useful. So here is a bit of what the program determined about me.

Apparently I am a Creator. (A nice positive introduction.) My key words are:

Nonconforming, Impulsive, Expressive, Romantic, Intuitive, Sensitive, and Emotional

Does this sound like me? I think anyone who reads this blog would nod affirmative. My secondary key words are:

Independent, Self-Motivated, Reserved, Introspective, Analytical, and Curious

Again pretty spot on. Well, maybe there is something in all this, but I wonder, Wild, did you get a similar response? How many descriptive words would I think support some aspect of my personality? Still it was entertaining.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Brrr.....

In an economy where we all need to watch our money, it makes for strange habits here in the WC household.


We were freezing, and no one was really admitting it to anyone else. I checked the thermostat and it was reading 65 degrees F. I knew it was cold, but it seemed wrong to start up the heater. If we could just squeeze out one more day not having to use it. It was pretty warm at the beginning of September and we used the air conditioning a little the first couple of weeks. I was hoping we'd be temperate for a few more weeks and just let the sun heat us and the air cool us.

Mr. Wild finally said to me, with his sweatshirt zipped up to his chin, "Are you cold? Because I think we should turn the heat on."

"Yes, I'm cold and I'm so glad you said that."


"Were you going to wait until I said I was cold before you turned the heat on? Do I really have that much influence over you?"


"Well, I didn't want you to think I was a wimp. I just figured I'd wait for your go ahead. I didn't want to start up the heat before you thought it was time. I know how conscientious you are about the heat costs. But it is 65 in here today."

I think Mr. Wild thought I was silly. I don't know what I thought, except I thought I should be able to stand this cold a little more. Like it should be 60 in here before I cave. I want to save on natural gas and on money.

The cold air made me finally go into the basement, drag up all the covered plastic bins and pull out the winter clothes and put away the summer ones. My daughter was a good sport about trying on footie jammies her brother used to wear and his old turtlenecks. I am hoping she will now have more long sleeved clothes to send her to school in.

Ok, I have to admit, fall is finally here.

Post Party Blues

The party is over, the ice cream stand is closing and it is raining. I am having a serious case of post-party blues and post-summer blues today. All week I've been in denial that summer is really, really over. Yes school had started and the weather was cooler but the seasonal ice cream stand was still open, the plants in the garden were still growing and we had a couples night out with some of our favourite couples to look forward to. It was a fun night, the food was great, the craic was good and the new babysiters were brilliant! But now the party is over. The ice cream stand is closing today and the weather is dull and melancholic. I need to harvest the herbs in the garden, get out the winter clothes and stock up in supplies. Who knows when we will have a good reason to go out again and probably by Tuesday I won't even mind. But today I'm sad with the blues:(

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The Challenge

I've run across this challenge twice now. It tries my patience, tests my mettle, and strains my confidence. I am always at a loss as to how to deal with it when it rears its ugly head.

It is the challenge of getting your child to eat school hot lunches.

"Why don't you just make them a lunch?" I hear you saying.

Do we really want to make a lunch five days a week, 32 weeks out of the year? I'd really rather not.

On the other hand, my husband is appalled when our children admit to throwing away most of their perfectly good hot lunch at school. "It's a waste of money," he says.

Foods that we thought our child once liked are suddenly horrible nasty things. With our son, he just refused to eat them. He didn't cry, or whine, he would just come home hungry and eat a huge snack. He did eat fewer foods in kindergarten than he does now in 3rd grade. It's hard for me to remember him in kindergarten, but I think he's eating a much larger variety of foods now.

As for our dear daughter, who started all day kindergarten, the hot lunch has become a HUGE issue. And I mean HUGE. We started off by assuming she'd like stuff she ate at home. One of these was taco meat. We assumed the meat for nachos, tacos, and walking tacos would be acceptable to her. She also likes corn chips, so we thought we'd be safe. No such luck. In addition, she doesn't like gravy. She can ask for no gravy, but apparently was not fast enough or loud enough to have the lunch ladies hear her. This progressed into a small crying fit after school one day. She started out by saying she missed me while she was at school and started to cry. I was taken aback, because I've been at work even when she was a baby. Her daddy has been at home for her. I couldn't imagine how being at school would make her miss me. But that's what she stated.

It turned out the hot lunch process was fast and intimidating to her. And if she didn't get her hot lunch sorted out how she wanted it, she would get upset and cry. One side of me felt sorry for her in this new situation. She would beg for her "own lunch" and broke down crying in my arms. The other part of me worried that if we catered to her "own lunch" whim, she would never learn the hot lunch process and get confidence in herself. Then was when I saw visions of packing lunches every stinking day and that frightened me.

I backed off a bit. Instead of saying that she would "try" a new food, I will put down that she is taking cold lunch. But, if it's a food that she really likes at home, I was not going to give in. Today was one of those days. It was French Toast Sticks with syrup. She loves breakfast for dinner and waffles and pancakes and syrup! How could we go wrong? But, it took a lot of prep time. Last night we went over the menu, twice, and described in exact detail what she could expect. Then, this morning, she started crying about missing me because she had to eat hot lunch, and I got her calm and had to build up her excitement and interest in lunch again.

Today, we have reached a milestone. She didn't miss Mom at all. The sticks were good, and the tri-tater was good, she left the ham on her plate (she loves ham, so I don't know what gives), she skipped the juice, and had the doughnut. Ok, not the best nutrition, but she felt a little better about the process.

Tomorrow is cheese pizza. Wish me luck.