Teething Cookies for Baby

Deacon has been chewing on everything he can get his hands on right now. Poor little guy, his molars are on their way in. I happened to find a recipe at keeperofthehome.org for a healthy teething cookie so I just had to try it! Turns out baby D loves them!

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Teething Cookies for Baby

2 Tbsp honey (not suitable for babies under one year of age)
1 Tbsp molasses
2 Tbsp oil (Coconut oil or butter is recommended)
1 egg yolk, beaten
1/2 cup rice or millet flour
3/4 cup flour of your choice (spelt, wheat, kamut, barley)

Stir together the honey, molasses, oil and egg yolk. Mix the flours, and add to make a stiff dough. Since flours differ, if it is too thick, add a Tbsp of milk. If too soft, add a bit more rice or millet flour.

Roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into rectangles 1 x 1 1/2 inches. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 F until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.

Makes 4 dozen cookies.

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I used a combination of brown rice flour and whole wheat flour along with coconut oil. I actually had to add about 4-5 tbsp's of milk to my mixture because the mixture was pretty crumbly and not forming into anything so you may have to do that. I rolled the dough out a little bit thicker than 1/4" so I baked them for about 25 minutes. I also didn't get 4 dozen cookies out of it since I rolled it thicker and I cut them a bit larger than 1 x 1 1/2".

I tried one myself and they are pretty hard but they mush/gum up nice. I thought maybe my little guy wouldn't like them. They are not very sweet at all, I would maybe even add 1 more tbsp of honey next time. That didn't seem to bother Deacon, he had 3 yesterday! He really liked them! I have to admit that made me feel kinda good, hehe.

In'N Out Secrets

I am really trying to eat healthy, but I have to admit I am a sucker for In'N Out Burger. After months of waiting we finally got one down the street from our house! Danger...danger. Hehe.

Well, I knew about a few of the 'secret menu items' - but I had not heard about them all, til today. Malachi found them, and I thought I would share.

**In-N-Out Burger has a secret unpublished menu for insiders who are In-The-Know. Next time you're there (tomorrow . . . or maybe tonight), order a bag of these off-the-menu specials:

"3-by-3" = three meat patties and three slices of cheese.***ooohh a triple decker!***

"4-by-4" = four meat patties and four slices of cheese. *Malachi loves this one!*

"2-by-4" = two meat patties and four slices of cheese.****got cheese?***

*Note: You can get a burger with as many meat patties or cheese slices as you want. Just tell the In-N-Out Burger cashier how many meat patties and how much cheese you want and that is what you'll get! For instance, if you want 6 pieces of meat and 10 pieces of cheese tell them you want a "6-by-10." ****Wow who has a mouth that can fit around a stack like that?****

"Double Meat" = like a Double Double without cheese.***No cheese, eh?****

"3 by Meat" = three meat patties and no cheese.***That's a lot of meat!****

"Animal Style" = the meat is cooked and fried with mustard and then pickles are added, extra spread and grilled onions are added. ****This one is MY FAVORITE! I get it almost every time I go, hehe*****

"Animal Style Fries" = fries with cheese, spread, grilled onions and pickles (if you ask for them). ***Yum, yum I always forget about this one.***

"Protein Style" = for all you low-carbohydrate dieters, this is a burger with no bun (wrapped in lettuce). ***This is what I should get ;)***

"Flying Dutchman" = two meat patties, two slices of melted cheese and nothing else - not even a bun! ***How do you eat this one? With a knife and fork? I don't want melted cheese all over my hands!***

Fries "Well-Done" = extra crispy fries . . . even better than the regular! ***That's what I'm talkin' about!****

Fries "Light" = opposite of fries well-done, more raw than most people like 'em ***No thanks!***

"Grilled Cheese" = no meat, just melted cheese, tomato, lettuce and spread on a bun. ***What?! No meat?***

"Veggie Burger" = burger without the patty or cheese. Sometimes we call this the "Wish Burger." ****Boring.****

"Neapolitan" Shake = strawberry, vanilla and chocolate blended together.***I think I will stick to a one flavor shake.***

The friendly employees of In-N-Out Burger will take your special order without question, if you use the right terminology. The printed receipt will have your special request typed on it just as we said it.

Try it!

Penny items at Staples!

If you can make it to Staples between today and Wednesday the 9th you can get some items for just a penny! Today I made the trip up the street and was able to get all of the above for $1.14 +tax.

*(2) Purell hand sanitizers = $.01 each (limit 2)
*(2) 8 packs of pencils = $.01 each (limit 2)
*(10) Folders = $.01 each (limit 10)
*(4) 1" Poly Binders = $.25 each (limit 4)

**The limits are per customer so I could have scored some more stuff if Malachi would have been with me. I think what I got will do though! :) I read somewhere that people are bringing their whole family in with them and using each person (even a 3 year old, hehe) to get their 'customer limit' - so if you really need to stock up then bring the whole fam down, hehe.

It was nice to get in on a deal like this because it seems like I am always searching for a folder/binder for random things and now we will have some on hand. You can always use pencils, and at a penny each I couldn't pass up the hand sanitizer!**

CVS week of 6/29

Oops, I forgot to post this last week, sorry. I did two transactions (2 different stores) and here is what I got:

Transaction #1:

*2 CVS brand liners
*2 CVS brand tampons
*2 Coppertone sticks

-$1.00 CVS feminine product coupon
-$1.50 CVS feminine product coupon

Total after coupons: $12.44
ECB's used: $11.99
OOP: $.45 + tax (on a gift card)
Earned: $13.98 ECB's

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Transaction #2: **I really wanted to get the mascara and my store didn't have any left :(

*2 Sure deodorants
*Physicians Formula mineral mascara

-$1.00 Phys. Form coupon
-$2.89 (BOGO free Sure coupon)

Total after coupons: $9.88
ECB's used: $9.49
OOP: $.39 + tax (on a gift card)
Earned: $10.99 ECB's

**I was pretty happy with the week. I was able to get a few of the July freebies and I was happy to get in on the free sunblock deal! I hope that helped someone else! I always love free makeup and it has been fun lately because I have been able to try a few different brands that I usually would have never even thought to try. I think I am going to start a bag of stuff to donate!**

I ♥ Breastfeeding...

Before I ever even found out I was pregnant I was sure of one thing, I wanted to breastfeed! Once I found out I was pregnant I researched it even more and was totally confident that was the way I wanted to go! I didn't know how long I wanted to do it, but I knew I wanted to. When I had Deacon and we began our 'nursing relationship' I have to admit that it was very hard and there were times that I wanted to give up...(oohh the pain). The pain went away and when it was gone I had the joy of knowing that every bit of nourishment my child was receiving was coming straight from me, his mommy. How amazing is that? How awesome that God designed us to be able to provide nourishment for our babies! I love nursing, I love the bond it has created with Deacon and I. I love that nobody in the world will ever have that with him. Its a special time for us to relax and enjoy each other. My world can be totally chaotic, and sometimes all I need to do is take a breather and sit down and nurse my baby. Now I am feeling that it all has to end and I am so full of emotion I feel like I can't breathe.

I have loved the convenience of nursing. If Deacon was hungry I could offer him something to fill him up. Now that he is older and is eating big boy food, he doesn't just rely on me anymore and it's nice sometimes, but still hard. Every day I have to figure out what I am going to feed my baby and how much, and is this healthy, etc. I am really going to miss the days of just sitting down and knowing that everything my baby needed he was getting from me.

A few weeks ago I started to give Deacon some whole milk. He had a tough time figuring out the sippy cups, but I finally found a cup he is able to drink from. Once he really got the chance to taste cows milk he seemed to like it. I was happy and sad at the same time. I don't want to be replaced...sniff sniff.

Weaning... wow I never thought this time would come so fast, and I have no idea how I am going to stop. I have read through my nursing books and when I read them I just shake and am so full of emotion that I can't even cry. I don't know what my problem is besides that I am just scared to stop. Then I think, why do I have to? Who is telling me that I have to? Nobody really, I guess I had decided myself that I would stop nursing when Deacon was a year old. I just never knew how hard it would be.

When I took him to his 1 year well baby check I asked the Dr. about stopping and he told me to just stop one feeding every three days and within a week I should be able to completely stop, ha - yeah right, easy for him to say. I have done this every single day since Deacon was born. This is what we know. How do you just stop? I sit and nurse my baby and I can look down at his sweet face looking up at me and I know I am the only one that can provide him with this satisfaction, how do you stop something so special?

Nursing my baby has been one of the greatest things I have ever done, and with every day that passes I am one day closer to stopping :( I am so thankful to God that I have been able to to do this, and for so long, but when it comes to stopping...I need help, I don't know if I can do it. I kind of wish that it would be his choice and not mine. I read about babies just losing interest in nursing. Although that would probably make me sad, I think it would be easier. The pain of stopping scares me too.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Sharing the love from my inbox...

• Enter to Win a Free Earthbound Farm Cookbook in honor of their 24th Birthday, Here, everyone who enters will get an instant printable coupon good for $1 off any two Earthbound Farm organic products!

• Sign up at Ideal Bite to receive easy eco-living tips which are delivered in a short, sassy email each weekday. Also if you look on the side bar there is a link to enter to win 1 of 5 Ideal Bite Wine Totes. All you have to do is answer 5 questions!

Sweet CVS deal:

Buy (2) Coppertone Suncare Products and receive a $10 ECB - limit 1. I had read that the Coppertone face sticks and chapsticks were working towards this deal, so yesterday I had to try it out! I got 2 of the Coppertone Water Babies UVA/UVB Protection Sunblock Sticks, 30 SPF for $4.99 each and I received $10 ECB's back! Pretty sweet deal!