5 years can be a lifetime...

Today I came across a five year old email between my then boyfriend and me. It was a break-up email (go ahead and laugh) and at one point in our exchange I told him I wanted to be married and have kids within five years. This got me thinking about what can happen in just five short years. 

Five years ago. In a candy bikini.

Five years ago I was working a job I hated. Five years ago I was living alone. Five years ago I was dating a guy that was shorter than me. And he had red hair. I repeat, he was shorter than me and had red hair. Five years ago I changed my life. 

After graduating college, I found work in parks and recreation - the same field as my hard earned degree. Well, okay, maybe not hard earned. Let's be real, Recreation Management isn't exactly neuroscience. But it was fun and let me be outside for at least half of every work day. So it felt like only working half a day. Which was basically the case. I started out really dedicated, worked late hours and did whatever my boss asked. I gradually came in to work later and later in the morning, sometimes not arriving until 10am. I simply couldn't drag my ass to work every day to do the same thing over and over. I seriously do not understand how people can do that. I've never been very good at that. I needed more change, more excitement, more vision. I just needed to breathe. 

So I quit. I had no plan, a tiny savings account, and a broken heart. I had been epically dumped (twice!) by guys that were all wrong for me. I wish I could say here that this lead me on some envious journey around the world, but no. I made it as far as Colorado to bum on my sister's couch for a few months before I came back to Washington to bum on a friend's couch for a couple more months. I became even more awesome when I moved back in with my parents. I took a job managing a wine bar and felt like the guy in high school that should have graduated two years ago but just keeps repeating his senior year. I didn't fit in. 

Aww! Look at us lovebirds!

I began casually dating a friend I had known in college which was interesting but unfulfilling - I've never been good at casual relationships. How do girls do that? I always get attached, even to guys that never interested me in the first place. Somehow the guy that I didn't want to date, ends up dumping me and I am left in a drippy sad puddle on the floor. So when I began casually dating my friend, I was worried by how much I liked him. I could feel myself begin to liquify every time my phone calls went unanswered or he was too busy to see me. Great, I thought, here comes dripping wet Amanda - saturated in insecurities. What had happened to me? I wasn't supposed to be 28, living with my parents, working at a bar and waiting around for some guy to call me. My big plan of quitting my career to seek out a new way of life wasn't shaping up the way I had pictured. 

My heart and soul.

Then I got pregnant. And that friend I was casually dating ended up being my best friend, father of my child and then my husband. It turns out that I didn't need a solo trip around the world to find myself or a critically acclaimed career to win the accolades of friends and colleagues. It turns out that what I really needed was to listen to my own voice. Five years ago, I knew what I wanted. Five years later, I have it. 

Finally, a handbook to my life!

I am so excited that my fellow commercial fishing mom and excellent writer, Jen Karuza Schile, has released her book, 'Captain of Her Crew: The Commercial Fishing Mom's Guide to Navigating Life at Home'. I absolutely cannot wait to read this book. If any of you know a commercial fishing mom/wife (and you do!), can I just say, please read this book. You will have such a greater understanding of our lives, our habits and all the things we are thinking about but couldn't begin to explain in a simple conversation. I can already think of a few people I'd like to give this book and say, "Here! Read this and please get off my back!".

You can find Jen's book on Amazon.com. You can also check out Jen's blog here.

solbites

I admit that I am a huge sucker for advertising. Which I'm fairly certain is the point of the entire advertising industry. For instance, take something as simple as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Easy enough to make yourself, and yet with the right packaging I may be inclined to buy a packaged PB&J.  Sounds silly, but when you see this product I think you will understand. Solbites are just basic nut butters, jelly/honey and crackers all wrapped up in a completely recyclable container. I found these cute little PB & J snacks during my latest trip to R.E.I. - my own personal mecca. I love anything convenient enough to keep in my car or purse for an emergency snack for Jacob that is healthy but I also don't have to immediately use for freshness. I also love a good ol' American-made product by a small company/entrepreneur. Two Rivers Foods (the parent company of Solbites) was created by a couple of guys in Colorado that after traveling the globe, wanted to introduce Americans to new and interesting flavors. Solbites is the first of their products and while I really appreciate what they have created, I'm failing to see the exoticism of PB&J. Either way, this is a win-win as Jacob is a big fan and I feel content knowing he is happily snacking on a healthier convenience food. Happy 4th of July!

Green Pancakes

Do you remember when Jerry Seinfeld's wife came out with her cookbook that 'secretly' sneaks vegetables into traditionally less nutritious foods? Don't worry, this isn't an endorsement. I am of the personal belief that we should try to teach our kids about healthy foods and establish food knowledge just as we teach the alphabet or numbers. However, I also come from the camp of 'do whatever it takes' to get your kid to eat the most nutritious foods possible. Enter dinner time with my 3 year old. I am lucky in the sense that he will usually eat what a cook for him if he is hungry at dinner time. My trick is to keep him from snacking in the afternoon and not mention what I am cooking for dinner. Otherwise, he will reflexively let me know that he will be eating cereal for dinner. Not exactly the broccoli and cauliflower I had in mind. Tonight was no exception as I casually mentioned to him that I was going to start cooking dinner.

"I want pancakes," says a small but affirmative voice.

At this point, I have been living as a 'seasonal single parent' for over a week and believe me, I am already getting tired. Uh...only approximately 10 more weeks to go. I have a mental conversation with myself and think, am I really going to let him eat pancakes for dinner? Yes, yes I am. But I will not lose the battle entirely. I quickly rummage through his snack drawer and retrieve a Plum Organics baby food package. I keep these handy for quick snacks and for his lunches at preschool. You may think it is odd that my 3 year old still eats baby food, but really it is just pureed fruits and vegetables. Much better than the other conveniently packaged snacks out there. Plus, he loves them.

I started with 1/4 cup of my favorite pancake mix*, Snoqualmie Falls Lodge NutraRich Pancake and Waffle Mix. To that I added 1/4 cup of water and mixed with a wire whisk. I then squeezed a packet of Plum Organics Spinach Peas & Pear baby food into the mix. I added small amounts of additional pancake mix until it reached the right consistency. To cut some of the spinach taste, I added a dash of ground cinnamon and a dash of vanilla extract and then cooked the pancakes like normal. The result was a barely green tinged (really only enough for me to notice because I knew of the special ingredient) and a delicious perfect pancake mostly due to my favorite brand of mix and enhanced by the familiar flavors of cinnamon and vanilla. Dinner was prepared and on the table in less than ten minutes. In the end, his plate was licked clean and both mom and son were happy.

*Note: I should add that this is my super lazy method of pancakes. Here is the basic recipe for pancakes that I use on a regular basis:

3/4 C oat flour
1/4 C whole wheat flour
1 T sugar (I use organic raw sugar, maple syrup or agave syrup interchangeably)
1 1/2 T baking powder
1 C almond milk (or 3/4 C if I am including a vegetable puree)
1/8 tsp salt
(Some people feel the need to add vegetable oil, in which case I would use 2 T for this recipe, but I usually don't add oil if I don't need to.)

Esquites!

The Esquites at Señor Moose.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, we visited the Zoo yesterday. What I didn't mention was our trip to my favorite mexican restaurant in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Señor Moose. The single solitary reason this place tops my list is for their Esquites, or fried corn. Esquites is classic mexican street food, usually served in a paper cone accompanied by a spoon. It is simply the best mexican dish I've ever had and it is so simple. It may not look like much, but trust me when I tell you to make this dish tonight. You won't regret it. Better yet, visit Señor Moose Cafe.

Esquites

Fresh corn cut from the cob (figure 1-2 cobs per person)
a little oil for sautéing (1tsp per cob)
salt to taste
chili de arbol powder (or cayenne), just eyeball it
1 tbl. mexican crema (or sour cream)
sprinkle of cotija cheese
fresh lime wedges


Cut the corn off the cob directly into a frying pan. Add a small amount of high heat oil such as canola or grape seed. Sauté briefly until corn is warmed through and just beginning to brown. Remove from heat and stir in the chili powder and salt. Top with the crema and cotija cheese. Garnish with the lime wedges. Squeeze the fresh lime juice over the Esquites just before eating. Serve with tortilla chips. Yum!


Note - traditional esquites is made with epizote, a mexican spice/herb. It can be difficult to find and use if you aren't familiar with it. If you need a little fresh green, I'd add cilantro.

Bittersweet Summer

Crew of the 2012 F/V Mystic Lady
and one little honorary crew member.

Every year the Pacific Northwesterners suffer through endless months of rain and gray skies, patiently waiting for our few summer months of perfection. I've had the opportunity to travel around most of our country and I can positively confirm that our summers here are the best. And yes, I am biased. So you can imagine the cruel irony of being married to a commercial fisherman who has not (and will not) spent a single summer at home since the age of 13 when he first began his fishing career in the Alaska waters. No summer family barbecues, picnics, parties, vacations or general merriment and relishing of the best time of year. Summers mark the beginning of my 'seasonal single parenthood' and seriously boring evenings at home alone after the young sprout hits the sack. It is infrequent phone calls from remote areas of Alaska, being the role of both Mommy and Daddy, no sex (well, it's true), exhaustion, loneliness, worry for my husband's safety (commercial fishing continues to top the list of the country's most dangerous jobs), and mostly the adjustment to having a part of me missing until he returns in September. The day he leaves in June, we stand at the mouth of the harbor and watch his boat head north. When he rounds the point and his boat is no longer in sight, Jacob and I make the short drive back to our house. That usually gives me enough time for a moment of sadness and a quick cry. The first few nights are always restless as I adjust to sleeping alone and to my irrational fears of break-ins and natural disasters. I usually spend a lot of my late night hours plotting our escape routes.

A sweet goodbye between father and son.

Now that I have made each and every one of you feel really badly for me and quite possibly depressed, let me tell you about the silver lining. I can watch whatever I want on TV including but not limited to: Real Housewives of anywhere, The Bachelorette, and anything on Lifetime which is usually banned from our airwaves. My house can be as dirty clean as I want and no one is around to judge me for laying on my couch rather than doing the dishes. I don't have to wear make-up or do my hair or wear any uncomfortable underwear for the sake of looking cute. And other than caring for Jacob, I am able to really focus on myself and indulge in my own hobbies and activities that I usually feel too busy for during the rest of the year. I've learned that it helps to set a goal for myself such as training for a 10k, start a garden, plan a wedding, or work on my writing. This year, Jacob and I have made an alphabet list of things to do. For example, for the letter A - ride in an airplane. C- visit a castle. G- ride in a gondola.  Z-visit the zoo. You get the idea. So far, we have already crossed 'Z' off our list. Now if anyone out there knows of a castle near by, let me know!

Pony Swing

Check out that bicycle! And dragon! And airplane!

Our adorable swing.

A couple of months ago my parents went for a weekend away to wine country in Walla Walla, WA. While I was supremely jealous, as I love both wine and beautiful Walla Walla (if you've never been, go!), I was at home celebrating my little J's third birthday. My parents were sweet enough to cut their trip short and show up at the last minute with the most creative gift/toy I have ever seen. A pony swing made from an old tire that they picked up at a small feed store on their trip. I love this. It is one part fun and one part 'green'.