Baking Soda . . . A Thousand Uses

I dream of living a more simple life on some farm in Montana, growing my own food, living off the land and my animals (I just don't want to be dirty, hot, and sweaty all the time). I dream of buying local, all natural chicken, and organic produce. I dream of only using homemade laundry soap and slathering homemade lotion on myself and my kids. I dream of my husband eating more fruits and vegetables and giving up white bread and his MSG laden favorite foods. I dream of myself eating less sugar and shoving fistfuls of spinach into my mouth. I dream of my children only eating the fresh WHOLE WHEAT, FLAX, 25 GRAIN bread that I bake daily, and eating food from our land. Until my dreams become reality, I guess I will have to settle on the small things. **Sigh**

I have been trying "baking soda" as a deodorant for a week now, and I LOVE it! I swear it makes me sweat less and there hasn't been any detectable stink whatsoever! I just sprinkle a 1/2 tsp of baking soda into my hand and mix with one drop of essential oil (patchouli - not my fav scent, but it's what I have on hand right now) and mix into a dry paste, then spread under both arms. I have been putting it on after the shower at night and even one WHOLE day later, I am still fresh. Usually I sweat a ton, and the pits on all my shirts smell like a mix of heavily perfumed deodorant and nasty sweat, which never washes out! I smelled my church shirt today and it smelled perfectly clean, like I could even wear it again without washing it. I hope this new deodorant concoction keeps working for me. I am very happy and fresh!

Father & Son Day

Brennan took Geddy to the zoo. It was a wonderful day for both of them. Geddy is REALLY into dinosaurs right now, and Hogle Zoo is doing "Zoorassic Park," through the end of this month. Geddy loved the dinosaurs. They also watched the bird show. When I asked Geddy what he saw at the zoo he started jumping around and acting like a monkey and telling me about the monkeys in the cages. I was only a *little* sad I couldn't go - but Jennsen and I very much enjoyed sleeping until 11 am!

Jennsen 4 Months

Jennsen is growing like a weed. She weighs 15 lbs 6.5 oz (85%), length 25.75 in (93%), head circumference 40.80 cm (44%). I was planning on waiting until 6 months to give Jennsen food, but a few nights ago at dinner I just couldn’t resist giving her the perfectly pureed butternut squash soup we were eating. She ate it up! And it’s spicy. I mean, it has cayenne pepper in it and many other spices that make it very flavorful. She was leaning her head in to my finger to get more! I guess we are starting solids! She was terribly miserable the afternoon of her shots. She does not do shots! Brennan thinks she's kind of a whiny, grump lately and I admit she is starting to have her crying fits and bad days, but I still think she's as sweet as cherry pie.

(This picture is really freaky. It looks like Jennsen is levitating.)

Sleeping beauties.

My new favorite way to cook chicken

This is such a random post, but I thought I would post something since I haven't posted in over a month! I received a new cookbook (surprise) a few months ago. I tried one of the recipes, it was called Thai Spiced Chicken, I think. The recipe was good, but I really liked how moist the chicken turned out. The recipe called for broiling the chicken breast, which I have never done. I usually cook chicken on the stove or in the oven at 350. Anyway, I haven't been enjoying the way my chicken has turned out lately. I thought maybe it was the chicken I was buying, but I have bought all kinds of chicken from Costco frozen chicken to Smiths chicken. It was just not moist (a major requirement for me from chicken to cakes), and kind of chewy. This method of marinating and broiling made the chicken soft, tender, and my favorite - MOIST.

Directions:
Marinate chicken in large ziplock bag - a little oil in the marinade is good for this broiling method.
Pound chicken (while still in bag) to an even 1/2" thickness - an important step, so it cooks evenly and quickly.
Place chicken on baking sheet and broil (that's 500 degrees Fahrenheit!) for 12-15 min.
Check at 12 min.
Don't overcook.
Mine usually cook for about 15 min.
Slice chicken for fajitas, or whatever else!
Yummy chicken!!!