Spring Cleaning

Our Spring cleaning this year was focused on the outside of our home. A couple of weeks ago, we did major work on the back yard, trimming back all the plantlife there (and anyone who has seen our yard knows there is copious amounts of that!). This weekend, I weeded and chopped and pruned until our front landscaping looked better than it ever has (especially before we moved in). Our palm trees actually look like 3 trees now, not a big bush! My back paid me back for all this work for the next few days. I found out in March that I have a protruding disc and some sort of bone spur or other growth in my lower back that are working together to block my nerves, hence the numbness and pain. I had physical therapy for 3 weeks, then they set me loose, telling me to call again if the pain returned...I might be calling soon, ouch!

Jered is back on the night shift for a week or more, which presents its challenges for scheduling, but is also nice sometimes as he can lift Will for me while he's home. Today we took Will to get his hair cut again at Pigtails and Crewcuts (5th time at the barber shop...he's like Rapunzel...but manly). He had a little breakdown at the beginning, but settled right down. His stylist told us that he did very well :-) We were happy, especially becuase he's been sick for a week now, and very congested and not his usual content self. He's not even wanting play outside (very unsual), so we are taking him to the doc tomorrow, just to make sure it doesn't get into his ears or chest.

We're also working on revamping our cooking routine. Last weekend, we went to the bookstore and bought Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld, a cookbook that uses healthy ingredients and veggie purees to make traditional dishes. We tried about 5 or 6 recipes so far, and they've all been fantastic. Jered called my spaghetti and meatballs tonight, "The best ever," and vowed, "we are never using beef for spaghetti again" (the recipe calls for ground turkey). We also made cheddar potato soup with cauliflower, pumpkin pancakes, turkey chili, banana bread with cauliflower, and carrot cake muffins. Everything is so delicious, and it's nice to know that I'm feeding my family healthy things. So when Will stuffs himself silly on banana bread, I know it's made with fresh fruits and veggies, whole wheat flour, and only brown sugar (no white sugars). It will also come in very handy if we get pregnant sometimes this year, as I have almost a 100% chance of getting diabetes again. Here are some pictures of Will before he stuffed himself on a carrot cake muffin (literally - he put so much in his mouth that he choked on it, silly boy) and our spaghetti dish tonight.