And so it begins..

Starting yesterday, we have 22 days between the closing date on our new house and the end of our lease. 22 days to strip carpet, refinish hardwood, paint the interior, design and install a new kitchen island (complete with plumbing), make some minor changes to the footprint of the kitchen and finally.. actually move in! All without hiring any contractors. Can we do it?

Not to waste any time, we started work immediately. I began work on prepping the windows for paint - they had not been cleaned in such a long time that the caulking around the edges had turned black and were mostly water damaged. Scraping is the name of my game. Adam began the demolition of the pantry that is in the middle of the main living area. The house originally featured a fireplace in that spot (?), but the previous owners decided to change that into a pantry. My wish is to have a much more open floor plan where I can see the living room and breakfast nook from my perch in the kitchen so we decided to remove the pantry, build a bitchen island and rearrange other cabinets to create some food storage.

This weekend we'll be tearing up the carpet and prepping the kitchen for renovation.

Follow along as I share about our new adventure as second time renovators. I've also teamed up with a group of awesome bloggers who will be guest posting here - we have a great mix of recipes, family tips and DIY projects.

Polish Apple Pancakes #Wordlesswednesday

Growing up, these were called simply "placki" (platz-ki), which means pancake - but the real name is placki z jablkami (apple pancakes - platz-ki z yab-calm-y).  Forgive the horrible mix of phone and actual camera photos.

A New Mama's Tale for Nursing On The Go {re-run}

Welcome to the 2013 World Breastfeeding Week! Below is a story I'd like to share from when Penny was 2 months old and our experience with learning how to nurse in public. 

Last year, Penny and I took a family trip across the country from the Pacific Northwest to the Gulf Coast for my brother's college graduation from the University of Alabama. Penelope had just turned 2 months old. This was my first vacation with the little one, and unfortunately my husband wasn't able to make it due to work. Luckily I have the great support of my parents, and we were accompanied by my other brother and SIL + 8 month old nephew (bottle fed, I'll explain in a bit why I make the distinction). After the 'Bama graduation we drove to Pensacola, Florida for a week on the beach. Pretty amazing vacation, but definitely tiring! Even with the extra help from family, managing this little miss for a trip of this proportion had a little bit of coordinating to do - specifically when it came to feeding her.  Penelope is exclusively breastfed and in her first 2 months I had only nursed in public a few times. Although I became more and more confident each time I did it, this vacation opened my eyes to what feeding my baby on the go really means.

For starters, I'll give the disclaimer that the entire reason why I had any trouble because the most efficient way for me to nurse Penelope at the time was by using the football hold, which is not the most "travel friendly" hold. We were able to do cradle and cross cradle just fine, but football hold keeps nursing to 20 min per side, while any other hold is upwards of 40 minutes. Not sure why. In a restaurant, park or other public area, this is not functional for me.

This was a fairly low key trip, with visits to the beach and a little bit of sightseeing. But everything was accompanied with nursing session, or three. Here's some of the situations we found ourselves in:

• In a restaurant: still haven't mastered the whole eating while nursing thing, especially since I'm such a novice at cradle/cross cradle.
• At the beach: during the hottest part of the day, both of us are already uncomfortable and now to stick my little one's head under a cover and eat. We did what we could to keep air moving around under the cover, but there was not much to be done. Now this 17 month veteran BF'ing mama would have no problem discreetly nursing without a cover, but back then it was still very much a production and I was concerned about my privacy. And trying to do this while sitting on a sandy towel, and the empty beach loungers close by look so enticing but are a whopping $25/hour.
  Here's a little aside: why do I need to concern myself with a nursing cover on the beach where 90% of the women out there are showing more cleavage than I am?!

• On the airplane: I nursed her at take off and landing in order to help with her acclimation to change in air pressure. It worked great. But trying to fanangle this in a coach seat? Almost impossible! Luckily I sat next to my mom and we just put the arm rest up to give me more room.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love nursing my baby. I am committed to breastfeeding as long as she wants, and don't intend to keep nursing an "at home only" event. But in each of these little scenarios, I also watched my SIL whip out a bottle for her son with ease and fed him in no time flat, with little fuss and no muss about silly covers and ways to hold her child. Not going to lie, as I fumbled once with getting Penelope into a comfortable position where I tried football hold while sitting at a picnic table, I got jealous. I thought about how much easier my life would be to get Penny on the bottle with milk from mama. I just hadn't introduced the bottle in time for this vacation. Note: On the contrary, not having to deal with bottles is AMAZING! I never did end up giving her a bottle. The only way Penny gets milk is directly from me - which again, this seasoned mama wouldn't have it any other way. 

Oh and the stares I got! I am positive that breastfeeding is no more out of the ordinary in Florida than it is in Washington State, but I certainly got a few looks from "the hot babes" on the beach and even was admonished by a man at graduation while I nursed with a cover - "miss, you can't be cold on a day like this!" After my confused look, it clicked for him and he says, "oh, is there a child under there?" Why, yes, there is! "I've never seen a woman breastfeed in public." And he walks away, chuckling at what I'm sure is the darndest thing he had seen that day.

But, even if I had been on the ball and started giving her a bottle in preparation for this trip, there's a few reasons why I still would have chosen to nurse her on this trip instead of having the convenience of a bottle.

• I wanted to be able to give her the emotional comfort of nursing while we're in a strange new environment (and certainly new climate!). Even though we were on the go a whole lot more than we are at home, she at least got the consistency of the breast.
• In terms of nutritional value, breastfeeding gives the highest source of nutrients. Makes sense, its the freshest way, right?
• Lastly I didn't have to worry about all the accessories that comes with bottle feeding. Pumps, bottles, ensuring supply, cool packs, the ability to warm a bottle after being kept cool, etc. When the time comes, I pull out my cover and away we go. My SIL, despite the convenience of the bottle, would find that she can't find little Zeke's bottles because they were moved around, or she ran out of juice/formula/water.

So although I've battled the silliness of finding a comfortable position in skinny booths, jumped in shock in mid sentence when she chomped down a little too hard, had to cut feedings short because it was time to go (and consequently ended up having to nurse more often!) and dealt with feeling like I'm sweating all over my child, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Because above all that, I had the happiest baby on this trip. No night-time crying or fussing, and a perfect angel during the day. I can't say that the entire reason behind this stellar behavior is because of nursing, but I'd like to think that my choice in consistency versus convenience did make a difference.

What was your experience with taking your little one out on a big trip for the first time? 

Do you have any funny stories or tips to share? 

This post was originally published on A Little Bit of All of It.

Bear's First Birthday Bash prize giveaway

Welcome to Bear’s First Birthday Bash! Hosted by Spit Up is the New Black

Ashley over at Spit Up is the New Black is celebrating that big mom milestone – her little Bear is turning one this month! To celebrate, she’s gathered together a group of amazing brands that offer wonderful products perfect to kick start a little one’s special second year (where did the first year go?!). I am excited to be partnering with her to offer one lucky reader a prize suite valued at $680!

#BearsBdayBash Prize Suite

• For the car – Is that car seat carrier getting a little heavy? It just might be time for a convertible car seat (rear facing is still recommended until age 2) and the Combi Coccoro Convertible Car Seat is a great choice!
• For those first steps – Before you know it, she’ll be running around! For those first steps, Pediped has a line of shoes called Originals. The Pediped Originals Betty – Silver shoes feature leather soles for ultimate flexibility (if the winner has a boy, he/she may select a boy version).
• For the outdoors – The cream of the crop of children’s folding chairs, the Kelsyus Go With Me Chair is perfect for kiddos ages 3 months through 75 pounds!
• For the first (or second) birthday – Looking for that special way to commemorate your child’s birthday? Petite Lemon will personalize a birthday t-shirt or bodysuit with your child’s name.
• For dress up – Looking for a prop for your little girl’s first birthday photos, or are you starting to fill up the closet with dress-up clothes? Oh So Pretty Designs makes adorable custom baby tutus and headbands and is giving away a set!
• For meal time – Sick of the sticky high chairs when going out to eat? The guzzie+Guss Perch Hanging High Chair comes with a travel bag and just slides onto the table (great for Grandma’s house too!)
• For the tummy – Have a picky eater? Can’t get in the vegetables and fruits he needs each day? The winner of this prize suite will receive two (2) Gourmet Baby Squoosh Samplers. Each pouch delivers one full serving of fruit and vegetables with no added sugar or salt.
• For the closet – I have loved shopping at Gymboree since the day I found out the gender of my child. A $75 gift card to Gymboree could certainly help build that fall wardrobe!
• For your java – The guzzie+Guss Universal Cup Holder hooks on to just about anything – from the stroller to the grocery store shopping cart and fits my cup perfectly. Java moms, this is a necessity!
• For juice or milk – Keep your toddler’s beverages cold (or warm) with the Pacific Baby 7oz. 3-in-1 Bottle with Handle/Sprout Set.

ONE lucky winner will win ALL of the items listed above! To enter to win this suite of prizes, please use the Rafflecopter below. Open to residents of the contiguous US states, ages 18+. Giveaway closes 8/31/13 at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!

This giveaway has ended, thanks for playing! Check out more Pierogie Mama giveaways here!

 This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook or Twitter. Prizes to be fulfilled by Combi, guzzie+Guss, Pediped, Kelsyus, Gymboree, Gourmet Baby, Oh So Pretty Designs, Petite Lemon and Pacific Baby. Color and/or style of prizes may vary. Prizes will be shipped separately. Neither Spit Up is the New Black nor any blog in which this giveaway is posted is held liable for lack of prize fulfillment. Open to residents of the 48 contiguous United States, ages 18+.

If you were born in 1986, these books were likely read to you.

What is your favorite memory of elementary school? Mine was reading time, either read to us by our teacher or librarian. Here's a list of books that were my books that were read to me - I'm sure there's a few you can recognize too!

Buford the Little Bighorn (Bill Peet)

c/o Bill Peet website

is about a bighorn sheep who's horns are waaay too big for him but finds an amazing way to use them.. Sort of a spin on the ugly duckling story. A fun fact that I learned - Bill Peet worked at Disney for 27 years and was a part of Fantasia, Sleeping Beauty, 101 Dalmatians and Peter Pan! He was my number one favorite children's author, with other books such as Eli (where you can really see his Disney artistic skills shine through), The Spooky Tail of Prewitt Peacock, and Merle the High Flying Squirrel.

c/o Laura Numeroff

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (by Laura Numeroff) starts out with a little mouse who comes to visit, and he simply asks for a cookie. But you can't have a cookie without milk.. which begins an avalanche of silly requests!

And you can't talk about books that lead to crazy avalanches of ridiculous events without thinking about There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (Sims Taback) and of course, The Cat in the Hat (Dr. Seuss).

Then there were the two books that changed the way I saw the classic fairy tales - The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (both by Lane Smith).

Finally, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judy Barrett. And as you know, they recently remade this into a movie too! Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Single-Disc Edition)

Are we elementary school cohorts from the 1990's? What are the books you remember? 

Will you share them with your children?

Disclosure: The Pierogie Mama is a participant in the Amazon Affiliates program. 
Clicking on the above links helps support the writing on this blog!