The Hodges Homestead

On Wednesday, we kicked off Ady's 6th birthday with a bang. No, her birthday isn't for a couple more weeks, but we scheduled the party early, because May is a very difficult month to have a party. The venue was The Wyndam Hotel, which has a really neat indoor splash pad. We really enjoyed celebrating two very special little girls (Ady's friend "E" turns six on May 1st) with our friends and family.

Our kids have varying degrees of finickiness. I wouldn't classify ANY of them as "great eaters."

Adyson is by far the best. Although she avoids most veggies, there are a few she likes; wouldn't you know it's the most unpopular ones she likes the most (broccoli, celery, green beans)? Hey -- not going to complain. She is just now getting to the age where she will willingly try anything once.

Cade has a padlock on his mouth. When it comes to trying something new, he goes straight for the "gag and abort" method. It's not worth the fight to me. He doesn't eat any veggies, but does like most fruits. I'll take what I can get.

Hunter... the child that I fed ONLY organic food until the age of one, is the pickiest of them all. NO FRUITS, NO VEGGIES, and for a while, no meat except a chicken nugget.

I have come to the realization that their level of pickiness is directly correlated to their level of stubbornness, Ady being the least stubborn and Hunter being the most. With Hunter, I have tried every method of supplementing his nutrition, until I finally gave in. Yes, I was the mom making four different meals (3 for the kids, and one for Dave and I) three times a day. Upon the advice of other moms, I tried making one meal for everyone. They claimed that, "when they get hungry enough, they'll eat it." Ady would. Cade would eventually. Hunter would starve himself to the point of not sleeping at night (and screaming for hours on end). NOT WORTH IT. I also tried the "Jessica Seinfeld" method of pureeing foods in advance. I didn't like a lot of those recipes myself.

Dave and I aren't picky, heck, we will eat anything in sight. We are both emotional eaters and binge eat when stressed. We also drank too much wine and coffee. We needed to create better habits for ourselves, so the kids would follow our lead.

At the beginning of the year, it was my goal to change this. I started by attacking breakfast first. By starting small and focusing on a diet of inclusion, rather than exclusion, I gradually introduced more healthy choices. I substituted regular yogurt for Greek. I made pomegranate juice a special morning treat. I whipped up a big batch of whole wheat banana flax seed pancakes on Sunday, and fed them throughout the week. I made them smoothies with all sorts of fruits and vegetables, and disguised their green color in Zoo Pals cups with lids and straws. I quit making the "special meals" and eventually weaned them all off V8 Fusion (not a horrible option, but really high in sugar). These were all HUGE victories. After I won over breakfast, I attacked lunch and dinner, respectively. Making small changes with some pretty big results.

I am finding that it's not much (if any) more expensive to eat this way because we are meeting our body's nutritional needs, so we are less hungry less often. I was previously making a trip to Target every two days for Goldfish, pretzels, and other nutritionally deficient snacks. The three of them can eat a whole box in one sitting and still not be full. If that box was $2.50, I am surely saving when the three of them share 2 apples and are full! Those numbers don't lie. Our only "splurge" is the grass fed meat. I've had to be smarter about serving it, but generally our family can make a whole dinner out of one pound of ground beef. Also, I opted for buying a whole chicken, instead of breast, which provides 2-3 meals.

The results have been noticeable. Cade who is most sensitive to sugar, is much more even tempered. His highs are not as high, and his sugar crashes are non-existent. Hunter's pallet continues to develop everyday, and although he still isn't a fan of any veggies, he will eat organic fruit/veggie pouches, Crasins, and is the biggest fan of mom's special smoothies (which are loaded with both). Everyone's overall health has improved and mom and dad are losing weight! The days of binge eating are fewer and further between, and we've switched to red wine (on occasion).

I know that this is a struggle for many families, and hope to shed some light on what works for us. It isn't overnight. It is constant planning and work, and I still have a lot to learn. I am convinced the results are well worth it, and encourage you to make a small change today!

Even though she is in heaven, I like to celebrate my Granny's birthday every year, since it falls on Saturday, I'll go ahead and start celebrating now. In memory of her, I want to write about some of the best childhood memories I have. Memories that are engrained in me so well that I can still taste, hear, and smell every part of them. I can still hear her voice, and the way she always called me "Baby." I can remember all the wrinkles in her hands and the freckle in her right eye.

I spent one weekend a month and many weeks throughout the summer with her and my Papa at their home in Poteau, Oklahoma. Life is much slower there. It is still nice to visit, but it won't ever be the same. It's still really hard for me to go back, because everywhere you go, there's a memory.


My Granny loved unconditionally. Compliment her on something, and there a good chance you were going home with it, even if it was the shirt off her back. She was loyal to her closest friends, and your worst enemy if you crossed her. She wasn't afraid to tell you if you had done wrong. A little woman with a loud voice -- she was a wild one, that Granny Sue, and I miss her everyday.

I have been planning for Ady's birthday for a couple months now. I wouldn't say that she gets special treatment, but she IS the oldest and she IS the only girl, so those to things always seem to work in her favor.

When I asked her what she wanted for her birthday she said, "A camera and a basket for my bike."

When she said that, I thought, "really?!" All she has been talking about for the past 2 months is An American Girl Doll.

What I think she really meant to say is, "An American Girl Doll. You know, the Girl of the Year, McKenna. And please don't forget her accessories, specifically the matching cast (from a gymnastics injury of course), and our matching pajamas... not the blue ones, the PINK ones."

Every parent want to get their child that "it" toy for their birthday. The one they ask for constantly. The one that will give them the most joy to open. But here's the deal, I am not spending $160 on this dolls and her books that Ady isn't even old enough to read on her own yet. It's not even about the money. Instead, I'm turning it into an incentive plan. When she learns to read that well, we will check the books out from the library. Once she decides on a character from the series that she likes, THEN we will talk about how she can earn it. I dread the disappointment of this conversation, but won't it make actually getting that doll that much sweeter?

So what's a momma to do?

Here is my idea, that I hope will make her just as joyful:

Her room has needed some attention for a while, but seeing as Dave and I have had our new bed for six months now, and I have still not purchased bedding for us, I thought it could wait. Her room is really difficult to design around, because her bed is WAY too big for the space and she has an awkward window and 4 doors. I just kept putting it off, never feeling to inspired -- that was until I found some bedding ON CLEARANCE w/sheets for $45. SCORE!!! I scooped it up, made a design plan, a list of what we can re-purpose, and what we need to buy. My goal is to do it for as close to $100 as possible.

The most challenging part about this is this all must be redone in less than 24 hours. On April 28th, the kids are going to Grammy's for one night. We have plans to go to dinner with friends, and then I will go to work making the big switcheroo. All resulting in the big reveal (and joyful surprise) the next afternoon.

She is the perfect age to appreciate and take care of a special space that is all hers. I can't wait to give her a room that is pretty, functional, and fun!

Oh, and don't worry, there will be plenty of "before and afters."

Something struck a heart chord with me yesterday.

Let me start at the beginning. I am not a good "anniversary person". By "anniversary person", I mean recording the dates of meaningful events of my life, to reflect on from year to year. Of course, I know our birthdays, but I record very little in between. I don't know the date Dave and I got engaged -- I don't really know the month to be quite honest. I don't know what age Ady cut her first tooth or when Cade switch to solids. The day to day of life is a little bit busy for us. As the kids get older, I seem to forget more.

I know all this can be taken to the extreme, (and no, we will not be celebrating the day that Hunter first poops in the potty for years to come). But as a parent, with growing children, I marvel at their baby books and photo albums. The greatest part about it is remembering where you came from, and dreaming about where you are going.

So here's the kicker (when I read this I could feel my stomach in the back of my throat):

While responding to a Facebook message of an old friend yesterday, I was reading the feed of our conversation that has gone on for years. This message (written by me) knocked me off my feet:

May 18, 2007
Hey ____! I really miss you! I wanted to give you an update on what's going on here. Yesterday afternoon things started going really bad with the baby and got worse and worse overnight. As is turns out, we lost it. I am super sad and so is Dave! Just makes me want to not take Adyson for granted at all- we are so thankful for her- not that we weren't before, but I def see things differently now. We really need some prayer sent our way! Love and miss you tons!

May 17th was a day that changed us forever. How did I not etch this day in my heart? Why are we so hesitant to talk about, remember, or memorialize this. It was so incredibly painful, that we have probably not spoken about it since it happened. It kills me. We have been going about our business for the past 5 years, acting as if nothing happened.

Our baby would be 5 this year. So many emotions go along with that statement.

From this day, on I vow to keep a journal, even if I only write one sentence in it a week. I vow to cherish the time in between those "memorized" dates, and make record of them. This time we have with our children is so fleeting. I can't stand to reflect on what I've already forgotten. In all the chaos of everyday life, we must have a reminder of those special moments.

Our Easter weekend didn't go exactly as planned...

Last Monday Cade and I got sick it started out as fever. I got a stomach bug, and he just seemed to be really uncomfortable. Tuesday, Hunter woke up with a fever too -- it turned out to be Strep. By Wednesday evening, we were all feeling okay (and had been on antibiotics for a while), and still planned on spending the weekend in Dallas watching our TEXAS RANGERS and visiting with our family!!!

But...Thursday morning, Adyson woke up with Strep. Not knowing how fast she would recover, we gave up our tickets for the suite, and decided we would spend a restful weekend at home recovering. We sent Cade down to Texas with Aunt Fannie and Chrissy, and had a nice quiet weekend at home <--- emphasis on QUIET!!!

We tried to make the best of our weekend at home. I promptly began planning our Easter menu, and decided to try out a couple new recipes. My family is always willing to be my guinea pigs -- bless their hearts. We had Stuffed Pork Tenderloin, scalloped potatoes, and strawberry shortcakes. Delish!

We spent time with family, went to church, and recovered. The Easter bunny must have been VERY busy, because we ended up with SIX Easter baskets when the weekend was over. SIX!?!