Zucchini!

I planted zucchini and cucumbers the first week in April.  I heard they were pretty easy to grow and I wanted to try growing my own vegetables so I'd (hopefully) be more inclined to cook with them.  The plants are doing pretty well although I did have to spray them with a bug spray a couple weeks ago because some leaves were showing a little bit of damage.  I have had a few zucchini on each of my three plants, but so far only one has grown to full size.  The others have turned yellow and look like they're not going to make it.  I'm hoping I will get more as the summer goes on.  So far no cucumbers yet but I'm thinking it's just a little early for them.

May in Review

This past month we ended up focusing a bunch on Kinsey's poop.  Yep, poop.  And LOTS of it.  We kept adjusting her diet and oddly enough it seemed like it would get better on days she was home with us and then act up a little when she went to the sitter's house.  Turned out that was all just coincidence, because the pediatrician ordered some stool samples and blood tests that came back showing she had an intestinal infection.  She was given a 5 day run of antibiotics and her poop is back to the lovely solid texture and smell we know it to be ;)  I was relieved that it was an infection, actually, because the next thing the doctor was suspecting was celiac disease (gluten intolerance) and I wasn't looking forward to having to modify her diet for the rest of her life.  It would have been doable but since I am a very poor meal planner as it is, it certainly would have been a big challenge for me. 

With the infection I went through a few days of feeling like a neglectful Mom for not keeping her from putting her hands all over everything or crawling on the floor when we're out in public places, or for not preventing her from putting rocks in her mouth, or for not worrying when the dog was drinking out of the water toy she plays with outside.  I got over it when the pediatrician said to go ahead and have the dogs tested for the same thing, and if it comes back positive then we can treat the dogs and I'll know the source.  If the dogs are negative, then she said just let her be a kid and if it happens again, we'll start looking at ways to keep her from getting less germy.  I REALLY like this pediatrician.  She's not the one we've been seeing because she was the only one available when I needed to take her in.  I may try to switch to her if possible.

My Mom came to visit for an extended weekend.  We had a little barbecue with family which was nice.  We invited Kinsey's birth mother but she didn't come, and we were sad but we hope to connect with her again soon.  We were able to see her and her family on the week prior on Mother's Day which was nice.  Unfortunately Kinsey was a little cranky that day for some reason so we didn't stay as long as we would have liked.

Other than that we had our first swim of the season.  Kinsey and I went three times so far.  The pool is a tad cold but so worth it once you get used to the water. 

Chris (I don't want to keep referring to her as "the sitter" because she's not just our sitter, she's become a dear friend) took her to the zoo again this month. 

We almost took her to the botanical gardens until we realized the butterfly exhibit is closed until October.

Finally on Wednesday Kinsey and I went with another Mom and daughter to the Children's Museum.  It's a very cool place and appropriate for Kinsey's age, but I think it will be even more fun to take her when she's older and she can understand some of the exhibits instead of just seeing everything as a climbing obstacle ;)

This weekend we have a picnic to go to and are planning to chill out otherwise...probably some swimming involved too if I can get our pool cleared up.

At the end of this month my cousin will be having a kidney transplant...would appreciate prayer for her and her family.

Next month will be Kinsey's child dedication at church!  I'm looking forward to it simply because it is a very important event in her childhood.  We have several friends who are planning to come to the service so it will be great to share going to church with them.

We have been talking a little more about whether we want to pursue another adoption.  I think we're reasonably certain we are going to be called by God to do so but not certain about timing, age, agency, foster-adopt vs straight adoption, etc.  We're not there yet, but it's at least on our minds occasionally.

Here are the pictures from May.  I will probably add a few more over the next few days too.

What I Got For Free

I promise I'm not going to turn this blog into a coupon match-up site...haha.  I just thought this might help some of you interested in couponing get an idea of how much you can get for free.  This was all purchased from Fry's this week!  I'll be donating the toothpaste and toothbrushes because I get those for free all the time, and I already have enough on hand to last several months.

Feeling Thrifty

I decided to try hanging my laundry outside to dry instead of drying it in the dryer today.  It was painless, although a little more time consuming.  It would be easier if I had an actual clothesline instead of this drying rack, but it served it's purpose. 

This got me thinking about other ways I am thrifty, and curious about how other people are thrifty.  Of course, there is couponing:

We also use CFL bulbs, even though they aren't as attractive and don't work too well in our dimmer lights.

What ways are you thrifty?