Here's Your Update!

Where to start, oh my goodness. I'm just going to go through my recent pictures and note from there. 

Well, I will start that we have gone gluten-free for Layla. It has been a relatively easy transition, other than my beloved bread making. GF bread just flat out sucks. No matter how many recipes I try and tweak...grainy, crumby, not fluffy, not good bread is what I get. It's frustrating. Really frustrating. The only thing that makes it taste good is making it into garlic bread...mask the ickiness. 

This was my poor pantry when I got rid of all things gluten. (Ignore the Pringles. We still had a day to go before starting GF and I needed them for the girls lunches.)

And now it's filled with GF flours...there are a ton of them! 

Layla going through the Food Network Magazine and writing the page numbers for the recipes she thinks look good. 

We have been fishing a lot lately. It's fun...until you don't catch anything! We went 3 times in two weeks and didn't even get a bite! But poor Jason...he is a trooper with 3 girls tagging along. He hardly gets to fish with always having to cast, recast, recast, untangle, put bait back on, recast, recast...I can handle fishing on my own...but our girls...they sure are needy. Now, they just look for fun things in the brush (hopefully not snakes or alligators) and ask to get in the water. It's still way too cold for that...but that's not for a lack of trying on their part. 

Oh wait...I forgot about the constant asking for food. It's funny. I feed them before we leave to go fishing...yet as soon as we get to where we are going and finally get our lines in the water...someone will ask for food. It never fails. 

What's next? Maybe just how big Mabel is...this is a good interpretation of how big she is. 

We have decided to take down the fence in the backyard. She just gets into way too much trouble back there. I don't really think China wants a dog digging her way over there. Plus, since we are renting it...that will save us almost 60 bucks a month! 

Talk about saving. We went through a little rocky period with our renters. They put in their 30 day notice and we panicked...well not so much panicked but we just didn't know what to do. We don't have a property manager, we are across country...we just didn't know where to start. The day I was going to call property managers to start the process, we got a call from one of the roommates saying he wanted to stay in the house. He wants to stay until we get back to it and even said if we get home before our August 2014 estimate, as long as we give him a months notice, he would be out by the time we are home. There was an elephant sitting on my chest during that entire week of not knowing...I can't even express the excitement and joy when he called. They have been amazing renters and Jason and I have talked multiple times about how much we hoped they would stay until we get back. It's not easy on us, we pay 400 out of pocket every month to cover what their rent doesn't. But the great news...our house price is rising and rising quickly. Within the next year, it's estimated to be worth more than we owe. Finally! 

Now onto Ava and just how big she is getting. She is into making faces, acting "stoic" and pretending like she is way older than she is. Here are a few examples of her "moods". 

Now Layla...she had the best report card yet a few weeks ago. She is FINALLY on par, where she is supposed to be. A lot it has to do with her communication and lack of it in school. She just flat out wouldn't converse with her teachers. She would get discouraged when they were constantly asking her to repeat herself because she talks so quietly. She thought that it was because they couldn't understand her. After months of working on this with her both at home, in class and in speech...SHE TALKS! And she now talks A LOT in class. She is also now more confident in her writing and sounding out skills. I am finally confident that she will be moving on to 1st grade and we don't have to make the decision of holding her back. She really just had to come out of her shell and believe in herself! Proud Mommy!

Finally, the best news for last. This week I am starting the process of getting approved for a tubal reversal. After 6 years...we want another Baby Hill. It's going to be a long process. I had to go off my meds yesterday and it will take about 2 months before I will be normal enough to have my fertility tested, Jason has to do it, too. Then our referral package will be sent to Walter Reed where they have to approve us. Granted we get the approval (we should since we had already gotten the approval before we left California). After we are approved, we will be put on their waiting list, that list ranges from 6 months to a year and a half. But it's worth it. I have wanted this for years, obviously since we started the process while we were still in Cali. Now, I just feel like it's such a perfect time in our lives. We have an established family, we have two perfect girls who would make great big sisters, we are much more mature and knowledgeable now than when we were 21 and 23 when we had the girls. I think that will make us appreciate the process and a new baby that much more. Jason and I were meant to be parents. 

When I got my tubal ligation, it was out of fear. Having a really high risk pregnancy, especially at such a young age and on top of that, being on bed rest and in and out of the hospital for several months while having a toddler running around...I just didn't think I could do it again. That was foolish thinking, it was fear and immaturity. Both of my pregnancies had complications, BUT they were complications that aren't likely to happen again. They were flukes. Because it happened in one pregnancy, does not mean it will happen again. 

So that is where we are at, y'all are now updated on our Hill shenanigans. It's an exciting time in our house right now. I always leave you with a good recipe, this one is extremely easy and turned out amazing...TORTILLAS! This was before we went GF. I never knew how easy it was to make tortillas until I tried it. You just can't beat fresh taste of homemade tortillas. Make them. Seriously. You will surprise yourself!

Homemade Flour Tortillas From All Recipes

Ingredients Edit and Save

Original recipe makes 2 dozenChange Servings

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 2 tablespoons lard
• 1 1/2 cups water
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Directions

1. Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the lard with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
2. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking the remaining dough.

A Few Notes and an Amazing Recipe

A few notes from this past week before I post the best meal I think I have ever made...if not...it's certainly a contender! I feel awful for bragging about it, especially since Jason's not here.

Note #1 - Layla came to me and said she wanted to clean the playroom by herself. I asked was this your idea...or Ava's? Her response..."I want to clean the playroom by myself. Ava said that I need to be nice to her or she will be mean to me for the rest of her life. So I'm being nice and cleaning the playroom."

Can you guess what comes next? Ava is really giving me a run for my money.

Note #2 - Layla had bloodwork done again on Thursday, the second time in a week and a half. She ROCKED it AGAIN! No fear and even laughed throughout. She is the biggest trooper I know. I still flinch when I have to get bloodwork done. It's simply not fun...but Layla has no fear.

Note # 3 - Don't wash the dog's beds. If you do, the next morning Mabel will get upset that you let Stella outside before she gets to and run back to their beds and relieve herself. She's a bitch.

Note # 4 - Speaking of Mabel, she got out of the house today by pushing her way through the front door as Ava was walking out. I run to grab the leash, ready for a battle. But, I didn't have to go far. Mabel ran next door, and just stood looking into their house. Two Boxers live next door and Mabel "plays" with them by running and jumping the fence line pretending to play with them. I think all she wanted to do was actually play with them! The Dad said he was scared to death when he saw Mabel at the door, but the daughter, who is 12, ran right outside and held onto her collar as I was running up. Poor Mabel...she just wants friends!

I think that is all I have for now...unless you want to hear about my Spring cleaning and cleaning out closets. Didn't think so.

So back to the dinner. I might be naive, but I have never heard of a bread salad before. And this from someone who LOVES to make bread. When I came upon the recipe yesterday, I HAD to make it. The acidity of the vinegar used, muted by the bread and the simplicity of the chicken...I don't know what it was, but it was the perfect blend of everything I love.

Crispy Chicken Thighs & Warm Bread Salad
Adapted from The Kitchn  (My changes are in parenthesis)
Serves 2 to 4

For the chicken:
6 whole (bone-in, skin-on) chicken thighs (I used Boneless, Skinless, it's what I had in the freezer)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon canola oil (I used Grapeseed Oil)

For the bread salad:
1 (16-ounce) loaf day-old sourdough bread, torn into bite-sized pieces (I used homemade French Bread that I had made 2 days earlier)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup red wine vinegar, plus additional to taste (I had enough red wine vinegar for the initial tossing, but used white wine vinegar to deglaze the pan)
3 tablespoons olive oil (Again, used Grapeseed Oil)
Reserved chicken drippings
3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1 cup packed arugula (I used fresh spinach)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

For the chicken, preheat oven to 475°F. Pat the chicken completely dry and season generously with salt and pepper.

In a large cast-iron or heavy skillet, heat the oil over high heat until hot but not smoking. Add chicken to the skillet, skin side down, and cook for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue cooking the chicken until the fat is rendered and the skin is crisp and golden brown, approximately 12 minutes.

Move the skillet to the oven and cook the chicken, still skin side down, for 13 minutes. Flip the chicken and continue cooking for an additional 5 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from the oven to a separate bowl and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes, reserving any leftover juices to add to the bread salad. Leave the oven on at 475°F.

While the chicken is resting, begin preparing the bread salad. In a large bowl, toss the bread pieces with melted butter until evenly coated. Spread the bread onto a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, about 8 minutes. (Bread can also be toasted ahead of time and re-warmed for 5 minutes in a warm oven just before serving.) (I also sliced up a shallot and added it to the bread while it was toasting.)

In the same large bowl used for the bread, whisk the red wine vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Return the warm, toasted bread to the bowl and toss with the vinaigrette until completely combined.

Set the skillet used to roast the chicken (with the pan drippings and tasty chicken fat!) over low heat. Stir in a few more tablespoons of red wine vinegar, if desired, making sure to scrape any golden bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer the warm drippings to a pourable container.

Add a few tablespoons of warm pan drippings, the pine nuts, and arugula to the bowl with the bread pieces, and gently toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper, add more pan drippings if desired, and adjust any flavorings to taste. (I use all of the pan drippings because I like my bread salad chewy and rich, and I add a bit more vinegar as well, because I love LOTS of tang.)

Arrange the bread salad on a large serving platter. Nestle the chicken thighs, either left whole or shredded, on top and serve immediately.

Oreos or Gluten? Not sure what to name this blog!

Just so you know...the girls will be getting off the bus at any moment and they are going to annoy me to death when they walk through the door. I have their favorite dinner, slow roasting in the oven and the smell is divine...therefore for the next 2-3 hours, they are going to constantly talk about how hungry they are. They don't understand that voicing how hungry there are...won't speed up the cooking time! Our girls are carnivores and they LOVE a good roast! I'm making what most would refer to as a "Sunday Dinner" tonight since Jason is leaving tomorrow for 2 weeks. Yesterday for lunch, we had his favorite, Mac and Cheese with sausage mixed in.

I haven't written in a few weeks because I haven't known what to say about what has been going on. For a long time I have known something is wrong with Layla's weight and it took me voicing my concerns for 2 years for her Dr to finally listen to me and do bloodwork. We got that bloodwork back a week ago with possible Celiac Disease being the culprit and a referral to a Pediatric GI. I can deal with Celiac disease or even a gluten intolerance. Yes, it will be a change and a big learning experiment (yes I meant to say experiment)...but we already eat pretty darn healthy and for the most part, from scratch...it's just my beloved bread making that is going to suffer. That is going to be hard.

The bloodwork is really hard to interpret and luckily, I have been blessed with other opinions without having to go to another Dr. The only test that indicates possible Celiac is the test that shows damage to intestinal tissue due to gluten. All the others she was within normal range. The GI appt won't be for a while...they aren't even scheduling new patient appts until June. Hopefully we can score a cancellation...but hopefully with enough notice...it's 2 hours away...on a good day. So until we can get in, I am keeping a food diary and a poo diary (I know, gross) so that I am prepared. I also have tons of print outs of research and different tests I want to make sure they do.

There are more serious possibilities being thrown around...but I won't dare talk about those unless I need to. Layla and I have an appt to talk further with her Dr on Thursday and also get more bloodwork done.

For reference, Layla is almost 6...she is in the 50th percentile for her height and only 2nd percentile for her weight...they call this failure to thrive...which I absolutely despise the term. All tests point to malnutrition...but we have to figure out why she isn't getting the nutrition since we are a healthy family. I make their breakfast every morning, no cereal, pop tarts, frozen foods. I pack their lunch everyday in a Bento box so that I can see what is left over when they get home. And of course...I make dinner every night. If we eat out...it's once a month. (That was my New Year's resolution!)

On a brighter note...or should I say on a "sorer" note...I joined Jason's work division's kickball team and am having a blast. It's the first time I have done anything like this as a wife. I have always tried to stray away from "mixing" with the wives...but I have to say I love them all...well except for two...they are really weird. It has made me want to get together more with them and actually participate in work related events. I actually went to the thrift store on base to get an application to volunteer there. It really has made me realize I have dug my own hole with not having friends because I don't put myself out there. I'm going to change that.

We had our first "mixer" games yesterday and won both! By the end of the day...I sat on the couch and couldn't lift my legs! But I'm much better today...I think I was flat out exhausted.

I am pretty sure that when I kick...I also yell "HI YA"...I made it to 2nd base on this kick...then scored with the next kicker. I'm cool like that! 

Anyway, with all the researching I have done the past few weeks on Layla...I have really slacked with my cooking. Not terrible...just have made easy meals...one night we had chili dogs...I wanted comfort and quick. BUT, I do have a recipe to share that Layla RAVED about! And she rolled out of bed just as I was starting it...hence her appearance! Who wouldn't love Oreo Pancakes...and they are HEALTHY!

Waking up to Oreos on the counter...who wouldn't be excited?

The amazing (according to Layla) final product!

Oreo Cookie Pancakes adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

(serves 1)

• 1/2 tsp white or apple cider vinegar (2g)
• 5 tbsp milk of choice (75g)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract (4g)
• 1 tbsp coconut or veg oil (sub applesauce only if you like the taste of fat-free pancakes.) (10g)
• 1/4 cup spelt flour (or all-purpose or gluten-free all-purpose) (34g)
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder (7g)
• 1 stevia packet or 1 tbsp sugar (or 1 tbsp agave and decrease milk by that amount)
• 1-2 crushed Oreo-style cookies or Healthy Oreos
• 1/2 container vanilla yogurt of choice (I used SoDelicious coconut) (80g) 

In a small measuring glass, combine first four ingredients and whisk. Set aside. Combine next 5 ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Place a non-stick pan, greased with either oil or oil spray, over medium heat. While it heats, turn your attention back to the food: pour wet into dry and stir until just mixed. (Don’t over-mix.) Then cook your pancakes (I did mine in two batches), adjusting the heat a little lower if necessary. Flip when bubbles appear and the sides are just cooked enough to flip without breaking. Meanwhile, combine the final two ingredients, then spread on cooked pancakes. Recipe makes 7-8 silver dollar pancakes, as shown in the photos.

Miss Mabel Mae

I told you in my last blog I would tell you about the nightmare Mabel put me through on her birthday. But I'm thinking I should just start with a little Mabel background.

- Never leave anything on the kitchen counters, and if you do, make sure the gate is up so she can't get in. (She could step over it she were smart enough, but she's not).
- I left a fresh baked blueberry lemon bread cooling on the counter. I walked in the laundry room to switch laundry loads, walked out. My homemade bread was just little crumbs.
- Don't leave chicken boiling around her. She will eat the chicken out of the boiling water, WHILE IT'S BOILING!
- Don't leave dishes in the sink OR a dish soaking, she will drink or eat whatever is in there.
- Refer back to always having a gate up.

(Forgot to put the gate up.)

- Never leave toilet seats up, she will drink the ENTIRE bowl of water and then leave slobber and a trail to where she goes to find trouble next.
- She's a wateraholic.
- The backyard. It's a mud pit thanks to her need to dig. You fill in a hole, 30 minutes later, it's a hole again. I swear she has a power...the power to not let grass grow.

(Said mud pit, right as you walk out the back door!)

- She runs laps around the backyard throwing tufts of grass EVERYWHERE. Basically, it's like a horse running and throwing up dirt, except she's not in a pasture or riding ring...she's in OUR BACKYARD.

- It has been raining A LOT. Mud pit for a backyard=a pissed mommy. I have given up cleaning the floors, other than sweeping.
- NEVER walk barefoot in our house, a mud pit means there will ALWAYS BE dirt on the floor, no matter how many times a day I sweep.
- Thank you, Mabel. You are such a gem.

(I didn't do anything.)

- Did you know Mabel has Mange. Yes, mange. Demodectic Mange to be exact. She got it from her Mom, the breeders didn't know the mom had it until Mabel was 7 months old. It was hereditary. At first we thought she just had bad allergies and her skin was getting irritated. Nope, She had Mange. It is not contagious and Stella and all other dogs she comes into contact with are perfectly safe. It's an adolescent type of mange, and she is growing out of it and looking MUCH better.
- Just to admit and say the word mange is HARD. It makes it seem like we are bad parents to her! But after dealing with it for 6 months, I know that we have treated it and it's almost gone. Plus, there was no way to prevent it, her Mom passed the stupid mite onto her.

(Here you can see some on her spots. It's not all over, just sporadic.)

- Like I said...NOT CONTAGIOUS.
- Ever wake up to a Great Dane standing on the side of the bed and wagging their tale. Wagging is an understatement. You should...it's such a great wake up call. From a dead sleep you shoot straight up in bed to "boom, boom, boom, boom, boom" as she wags her tail back and forth, on one side, hitting the bed, the other, the wall.
- Mabel can't sleep past 6:30. She doesn't have it in her. Hence the boom, boom, boom. If she's awake, we better be, too.
- Never put her in the bathtub to bathe. She doesn't do well. So when it's winter...have fun finding the warmest part of the day and then giving her a good scrub down with the water hose. There's a lot of shivering involved. Poor thing. But that mange has to be taken care of.
- Watch your water cups, or any cups for that matter, she will drink from them. Remember, wateraholic.
- She ate two holes in the wall. Not like "hey mom, I'm going to chew on the corner." It was more, "hey Mom, watch me do magic. I can eat a hole in the middle of the wall, no corner needed!"

There are MANY, MANY more Mabel "happenings" but I'm tired of reliving all this! Basically, it's like owning a horse, with bull tendencies.

On to her birthday night. She decided that when I put her outside for the last time before bed, it was a perfect time to run laps around the backyard. Fine, get it out...then come inside. And that she did, ran inside like a bull did a few circles around the house before flying down the hall and into the bedroom. All this WHILE flinging poo all over the house. That little sh*t had poo covering every paw and probably inches deep. How this happened, I'm still clueless considering I had JUST picked up all poo before taking the trash to the road! So, 7:30 at night, I am chasing her around the house trying to get her to the laundry room. She thought she was in a boatload of trouble so she was panicked..and panicked Mabel means MORE running like a bull around the house because she doesn't want to go in the laundry room. It was now 8pm and I was scrubbing carpets, cleaning and steaming the wood and washing rugs and dog beds. Happy Birthday, Mabel...you get to spend your birthday night sleeping in the laundry room...WITHOUT a bed. Now who gets the last laugh. Yeah, I still don't think I won that one. Dangit.

Yes, I just talked a lot of smack about my PUPPY. She is still a PUPPY! All 120 pounds. So these are all puppy stories. Everyone has them. I just think Mabel likes to remind me what it's like over and over and over and over. And she usually picks all the the "fun" ones for when Jason is gone. I swear, she has it in for me. But I love her anyway. She makes me laugh more than the girls do...that's probably because the girls are at school and I'm around Mabel 24/7. I just really would like to know...what is going on in that little mind of hers!

Snow Day...

A snow day for the Hill Family...never thought I would say such a thing...but we had one! I can't express our excitement (mine) when the rain changed over to snow. And it happened fast and furious. Our rain turned to snow and then to massive cotton ball snow all within an hour...what a sight to watch! Jason and I set up chairs in the garage to watch the girls playing outside. The screams from not only our girls...but from every kid in the neighborhood was such a great sound...not to mention mine and Jason's laughs of glee! It's not something we ever experienced growing up in Rockport!

This was all early in the evening. My camera took AWFUL pictures, it's like it protested being outside in snow! As of tonight, I have ordered a new, much better, Canon, that better like cold temperatures! Oh...and two Julia Child Cookbooks. I'm looking forward to the later!

And might I add, poor Jason. While these pictures were taken last weekend. Early in the morning, tomorrow, we hare supposed to have freezing rain. Poor Jason, he is out in the field and I just can't imagine what it would feel like being pelted with those icky things! 

I had a pretty blah week since Jason has been gone. Since my rib injury, I haven't been able to work out...at ALL for almost 2, maybe 3 months (It has been since December). Then try throwing yourself back into it...basically, I am so glad Jason is not here to see my granny walk! Not only do I moan and groan at every move of my body...I woke myself up changing positions in my sleep last night...multiple times.

Now, since I have started this blog, many days ago...(I couldn't finish it because my fingers were too sore from lifting weights to even type)...I have gotten my new camera. For those that don't know, I had this exact same camera many months ago...but on the first day of school for the girls, I left it in the car when it was storming and we were trying to run into the garage. In the excitement of getting home from the first day of school, escaping the thunderstorm AND trying to shut the garage door...I forgot to lock my car. That night, in the pouring rain, my awesome camera was stolen. You can bet that won't happen again. Don't worry, I still like where we live. 

Anyways, so I have my new camera...or the same...now! What a difference. I missed these great pictures without the attempt at "fixing" them before they go up.

So here you go, some good pictures of the girls. And let me tell you...I just LOVE taking pictures again! You have been warned!

Anyone remember these fun things...I know you do! Well, I am getting really annoyed with the darn things.  

My BEAUTIFUL Ava. I just love her freckles and missing teeth. One day, they will come back.  

My sweet, sweet Layla. She thinks she has a wiggly tooth...really...it's just a lie because I'm tired of wiggling her teeth 10x a day to find a wiggly one. I know, I'm an awful Mom! 

And you know who these beautiful girls are. Guess what they are dressed up for!

Stella turned SEVEN! 

AND Mabel turned ONE!

Did you know that Stella AND Mabel have the SAME BIRTHDAY! More on that later. And what Mabel put me through on her FIRST birthday. Think nightmares.

Blast From the Past

This is not what I was planning on posting today, but after getting caught up with all the old pictures...I couldn't resist. I logged into my Photobucket account today for the first time in years...and WOW! Basically, it tells the story of our life from the time Ava was born up until Layla was about 2...guess that's when I stopped uploading pictures there.

The memories that these pictures brought back are so special and I loved looking through them all. I can't believe they are still there. I'm really happy they are though...One of my old computers crashed and I never got to save the pictures off of it...but they are in Photobucket!

Care to have a blast from our past...

Ava's first Halloween!

Ava and Stella...Look how little Stella is! Well, and Ava, too!

Not surprising!

Ava and Snowy!

Poppa explaining his fake leg!

Ava's first birthday!

Fun at work with Daddy.

Mullet baby! 

Ava and Stella have ALWAYS had a special bond!

With stitches and staples...you end up like this. It's not fun tackling a metal bench while playing football!

Big Bear Lake.

Enjoying Big Bear with Pops.

First and ONLY stitches thus far!

At least the mullet is gone?

Here comes Layla!

Ava can sleep anywhere.

And here is Miss Layla!

Stella made another best friend.

One of Grandma and Buppa's many trips to see us in California.

Such a great big sister!

Dad meeting Layla!

Layla's first Christmas.

5 generations. The girl's GREAT, GREAT Grandfather.

Christmas Joy.

Wish I was still this tiny!

Playdoh...enough said.

Always a diva!

Two peas in a pod.

I guess that's it. I had some videos I wanted to post, but photobucket won't let me post to the blog. Boo! Honestly, I feel so refreshed and inspired (weird) for seeing all these old pictures of my girls...all while they were sitting at the dining room table filling out Valentine's for their classes! My, how things have changed.