Yum.

Fall is my favorite season, partly because I adore all the flavors that prevail this time of year. Last week we were fortunate to find this incredible recipe for acorn squash, courtesy of Chef Kirsten Helle at Mesa de Vida. You should head to her site and read her amazing story, she has had a personal wellness journey that is super inspiring! You can also sign up for a subscription to her meal planning service, which is where this recipe came from. Every week, I receive a plan with recipes and shopping list for 5 dinners. It has made our menu selections more interesting, we are eating out less and throwing away less food. And the recipes all just happen to be nutritious and health-conscious. Perfect.

This amazingly simple recipe has been declared by my husband as the "best thing ever made out of squash." I hope you like it as much as we have!

Roasted acorn squash with a sweet-garlic glaze

2 acorn squash (or 4 small), halved and seeded
Olive oil 
1 pinch Kosher/sea salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste (**I am not a pepper fan so I used cinnamon)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbs pure maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. After you cut each squash in half and remove the seeds, lay them cut side down on the cutting board. Slice across into 1" thick slices. Drizzle a baking sheet with olive oil to coat. (**I put aluminum foil on the sheet first to speed clean up). Lay the squash slices evenly on the sheet pan, season with salt and pepper and bake for 10 minutes.

Combine the garlic and maple syrup. Flip the squash slices and glaze with the maple syrup/garlic mixture, tossing evenly. Bake another 20 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy as a side dish or serve with quinoa and a green salad for a delicious vegetarian meal.

It was raining HARD this morning: pancake weather. Of course, in our house, sunshine is pancake weather too. So is snow. If we had the time, or if my son got to vote,  every morning might just be a pancake morning.  Leftovers are a great on-the-go snack or addition to lunch boxes, too.

Nutritionally, my problem with pancakes has always been the carb-heavy and protein-light nature of these lovely little things. Solution: Quinoa flour, milled from a complete plant protein. Quinoa is something of a wonder-food, and if you have yet to make the acquaintance of this seed it is high time.   I will not say you can’t taste the quinoa flour, because I can. I happen to like it, but even if you don’t like it the addition of spices and other tasty extras make these pancakes a hit.

This recipe makes enough for our family of four with leftovers; if my husband isn’t home for breakfast we usually have enough leftovers for another breakfast!

Quinoa spice pancakes with options

• 1 cup quinoa flour (I buy in the bulk bins at Natural Pantry, you can also find pre-packaged Bobs Red Mill brand but it is a lot more expensive!)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• ¼ cup coconut flour
• ¼ cup ground flax seed (1/2 cup if you prefer not to use eggs)
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sea salt (or regular table salt; sea salt has valuable trace minerals!)
• ½ cup rolled oats or a pack of instant oatmeal (optional)

Spices: all optional but lovely to add!! Feel free to vary based on personal preference

• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp allspice
• dash of cloves
  

Mix the dry ingredients. If you give them a whisk and some supervision, the kids might enjoy helping with this part! Mine also like to dump pre-measured flour etc. into the bowl before the mixing starts. Most of it ends up in the bowl. It helps to start with really clean counters so you can scoop the spilled part back in the bowl with no worries.

In a separate bowl or 4-cup measuring container, whisk together:

• 2 cups milk of your choice (dairy, almond, coconut, soy, whatever suits you)
• 2 eggs (optional – can also use increased flax as listed above)
• 2 TBS maple syrup
• 1 TBS coconut oil, melted (can substitute olive or canola oil)

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mix, and stir with as few quick strokes as possible. Note: you can also let the kids do this, and it will NOT be quick strokes, and it will NOT be a few strokes, and it will still be delicious. When I let both of mine help this takes quite a while and they still always turn out.

The fun part: Optional additions to fold in at the end, pick one or two:

• ½ - 1 cup chocolate chips (use the mini version if your kids try to eat the chips without any bites of the surrounding pancake – trust me on this one)
• 1 banana, finely chopped
• 5-6 dates, finely chopped
• ½ c – 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup pureed pumpkin or sweet potato
• 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, blueberries, or chopped strawberries or pears

Heat your skillet or griddle until a drop of water will dance on the surface. Spoon out ¼ cup for each pancake, flipping when the bubbles come to the top and pop cleanly, leaving a hole through the goopy batter. They should be firm on the edges.

Top with your choice of fresh fruit, real maple syrup, or your standard favorite pancake fixings.

Enjoy!

After a morning at the zoo, dashing into the store to pick up the one item I needed for dinner tonight and then realizing I needed a few more things for the weekend camping trip, I was a little frazzled, but hanging in there. Next, off to lessons. I had just finished teaching piano lessons for the day and I was focused on trying to miss the evening traffic when my son, who is a year and a half, decided to sit at the piano to bang out a few tunes. Didn't he know that we would miss the window of opportunity to make it home in 16.50 minutes rather than 27.58 minutes if we fought traffic just to stop and play the piano?

A wise friend once told me that I needed to make time to follow my son's lead.

Well, I actually should know this. I am a Music Together teacher and an Early Childhood Specialist certificated through the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association. I enjoy teaching infants, toddlers, and preschoolers the wonders of music in a warm non-performance oriented class. In fact, in our Music Together classes, I often ask of a child's suggestion of what other ways we can make use of the rhythm sticks or egg shakers, or I ask grown-ups to make modifications to their own movements, encouraging them to "follow their child's lead".

I wish I had the answer to having time enough to stop and play, other than to just do it and make time. There are always time saving ideas out there, and some really helpful ones, but it does really boil down to the fact that I have the same 24-hours a day as you. Play is so important to make time for, especially because I have found, and research supports, that it is one of the most effective ways a child learns - plus, it's super fun.

Music is an accessible way to play while learning and gaining so much. And the beauty is, #1 - you don't need to be musical to do it, and #2 - it's interdisciplinary and doesn't take more time. Use lullabies when you are soothing your child to sleep, sing songs during transitions such as washing hands and putting on shoes while using inflections in your voice to make it especially interesting, make music in the car - it's a great way to interact with children without taking your attention off of the road. Need more proof than the ABC song that children learn through music?

Best Beginnings published The Five Areas of Child Development on their website, so I'll briefly state how music supports each area:
1. Physical Health, Well-Being, and Movement Skills - music lends itself to movement, from finger play to large movement activities.
2. Social/Emotional Development - Songs of different tonalities (sounds), dynamics and content can evoke emotions, or can tell stories and teach us about our communities.
3. Approaches to Learning - Musical play is fun! It doesn't have rules or objective outcome, allowing everyone to respond organically to the music.
4. Thinking Abilities and General Knowledge - Many songs have sequencing or phrasing, and children's music especially asks questions for children to respond.
5. Communication, Language, Literacy - Verse variations and making up songs together and associating it with pictures acquaints children with books and familiarizes children with words.

Try it and see....
Here's some suggestions for the "Itsy Bitsy Spider":

•  Use interesting inflections in your voice, pause to create anticipation, or play around with accents (I always try Southern accents or English accents)
•  Develop fine motor skills by trying to make your finger spider climb different ways
•  Develop gross motor skills by becoming the spider and crawling around the room
•  Make up your own words, substituting "itsy bitsy" with "the big and hairy spider" or "the quick and nimble spider"
•  Make up your own variations, telling a story about what you are doing, and modeling it: "Big mommy spider came in the house today, down came the zipper of her coat to play, up came her child to give her/his mommy a hug, and the big mommy spider played with (child's name) again"
• The sillier the better - don't worry, you are at home, making time for play, enjoying your child all while they are learning and gaining so much.

Enjoy!

Okay folks…thinking caps on!  Are you an Alaskan resident?  Yes – keep reading. 

Do you have children?  This applies to you either way, so keep reading!  

We love traveling here at Alaska Baby Rentals and are always trying to find ways to help our Alaskan families have more fun and save money when they travel. One of our very favorite programs is Club 49 from Alaska Airlines.   Have you heard of it? 

Here are 3 reasons you should join:

1)    2 free bags.  Why pay baggage fees if you don’t have to?  The 2 free bags apply to each Club 49 ticketed passenger and this is an average savings of $50 per person!

2)    2  annual one way certificates at 30% off flex fare prices

3)    Weekly sales to destinations both within Alaska and to the outside for Club 49 members only

The Club 49 program is FREE which is awesome and the only stipulations are that you are an Alaska resident and that you have joined the Alaska Air Mileage Plan. 

We also highly recommend that you register your child for the airline mileage plans by the time they turn age 2, if not before.  Our children have quickly earned enough miles on their own mileage accounts to be redeemed for a ticket and that means more family trips! 

If your children are also registered for the Club 49 program, they also get all of the benefits listed above, which means lots of FREE bags! Wahoo!   After we joined, both of my kids were so excited to receive their “card” in the mail with their name on in it.  And on a regular basis, our 4 year old asks when our next trip is so she can start packing her “bag” that she gets to bring with her Club 49 card! 

As an additional tip on flying Alaska Airlines, they have two rows designated on most flights as “family rows” that they can block to keep your family seated together, so when you are checking in, ask about this and they are usually extremely accommodating. 

No, we were not paid by Alaska Air to write this, nor were we compensated in any way, however given the hot topic of traveling by air with children, we appreciate the things that Alaska Air is doing to make family travel more fun for everyone and want to recognize them for the positive efforts! 

Any questions on family travel or gear, let us know and we will be happy to help!  Looking forward to hearing about all of your family travel adventures! 

Author Sarah Phillips Knechtel is a mom of two little ones, family travel enthusiast, entrepreneur and the founder and co-owner of Alaska Baby Rentals at www.alaskababyrentals.com

A great way to get in some veggies and protein! Serve with raw vegetables for dipping (celery, carrots, peppers all work well). As a snack, this recipe will make 3 servings.

Spinach Dip
Serves 3

10 oz box frozen spinach, thawed
1/2 c fat-free sour cream
1/2 c fat-free cream cheese, softened
2 Tbs chopped red onion (more to taste)
3 canned chili peppers, chopped finely (optional)

Thaw spinach and squeeze out water very thoroughly, it works well to press between some paper towels to really get the water out. Mix with remaining ingredients in a food processor or blender. With my older, less powerful blender it works best to do the sour cream, cream cheese first, then add peppers and onions, then add in the spinach a little at a time.

Happy Snacking!!

As a parent, I find my daily tasks divided into categories based on whether or not they can be accomplished with kids. I have 3 categories: Things That Are Awesome To Do With Kids; Things That Might Be Easier Without Them But Are Very Possible To Do With Kids; and Things That Must Be Done While Kids Are Gone or Sleeping.  Tonight, I enjoyed a couple of hours to myself to go for a hike in the mountains of Anchorage, and to accomplish a super fast, quiet, and complete shopping trip with no kids “helping” in their own particular way.

Tasks migrate to different categories as the kids age and go through different phases… For example, I have now reached a glorious phase where it is possible to accomplish a trip to the bathroom by myself. Cause for celebration. Odds are, if you are reading this, you are either a parent or know a parent and can relate to this one; to non-parents, it must seem absurd that the task “Go to the bathroom alone” would suddenly appear on the Things That Must Be Done While Kids Are Gone or Sleeping list, and not move to the Things That Might Be Easier Without Them But Are Very Possible To Do With Kids list for several years.

Luckily the list of Things That Are Awesome To Do With Kids is a very long one, and seems to be continuing to grow as they do… laugh, play, learn, paint, watch bugs, plant gardens, find worms, collect dandelions, snuggle, drink hot cocoa, make pancakes, eat pancakes, build forts, paint toenails, read books, eat leftover pancakes, sing songs, make up stories, finish the leftover pancakes… the list goes on and on.

When our daughter was an infant, before I had discovered the community of Stroller Strides, exercise was firmly on Things That Must Be Done While Kids Are Gone or Sleeping list.  To exercise, my husband and I would take turns staying home alone with her while the other one went to the gym. This dramatically cut down on the awake time we could spend with each other. We would regularly load her into the stroller for walks, which were a lovely part of our day – but not much of a workout.

After our son was born, it seemed that not only was exercise going to stay permanently in the category of Things That Must Be Done While Kids Are Gone or Sleeping, but also that it would be increasingly more difficult to find the time to leave both of them in someone else’s care. We moved to Anchorage when our son was 3 weeks old, and thanks to a double stroller were able to continue our tradition of going for walks. For other exercise, I tried to motivate myself to get to the gym at the only time of night that was possible, but by the time I made it there was so exhausted I’m not sure I was accomplishing much on the elliptical machine.

Because of Stroller Strides and the nationwide community of active moms who are part of this growing movement, exercise has now become something that is in all three of my categories. Yes, I enjoy a great, focused workout without my kids, allowing me to give all my attention and energy to the task at hand. Yes, sometimes it would definitely be easier to exercise without the company of both of my children; however, I now realize that it is entirely possible to get regular exercise – good, complete, total body exercise -  with them.  And yes – exercise is also one of the Things That Are Awesome To Do With Kids. I love that my kids do planks. I love that one of my son’s first movements after he started walking was to show me his “shuffle”.  I love their voices cheering me on from the stroller. I love how quickly an exercise flies by when I am able to look at two of the faces I love most in this world while I am working on staying fit. I love that I know how many seconds a verse of some of their favorite songs will last so that I can time my intervals with nursery rhymes.

Whether you are a mom or a dad, whether you are an aunt or an uncle or another caregiver – make exercise something you can add to every category of tasks. Your body – and your kids - will thank you for it.

Tonight I ran my longest run ever. I have reached a point in my training where every time I add mileage from here on out, it will be a new personal distance record, and that is a fun place to be. I ran on the amazing Anchorage trail system, finishing on the coastal trail. Every time I run on that trail I am so amazed to live here, and now that I am home and fed and cozy, I am struck by how much I have to be thankful for. Tonight, after my 15 miles, I am grateful for:

·      Living in a city where so many people of every age, ability, size and shape head outside to be active on a Sunday afternoon

·      A trail system that allows me to put in lots of miles without worrying about traffic or plotting my own route

·      Legs and feet that can carry me for that many miles, and a mind and spirit that can keep propelling me onward

·      Friends who will take care of my kids for the afternoon, despite battling a sinus infection, for the small price of a batch of cookies

·      A daughter who remembered and reminded me to take care of my arms where they are still chafed from last week’s long run (FYI for runners who are parents of small children – diaper cream is a very effective remedy!)

·      Couples out together who are older than me, showing me how sweet life  will be when my husband and I both have grey hair and still like to hold hands when we walk

·      Families out together riding their bikes who encourage their littlest family members with every pedal, building strong happy little people

·      Bikers who remember to warn me before they pass!

·      Breath-taking views of Cook Inlet and the mudflats, snowy mountains in the distance, sandhill cranes and a riot of green leaves and flowers

·      A dinner of freshly caught, wild Alaskan king salmon grilled by my husband with lots of  “help” from the kids

·      The support of an amazing network of friends helping me meet my training goals and inspiring me to keep going – from 13 miles onward tonight, a slideshow of inspirational women in my life kept playing in my head

·      Ice baths, even though 15 minutes feels longer than all the miles that make them necessary

·      Making it up the big hills

·      2.5 hours of time to myself

·      The unfailing support of my own dear family.

A couple weeks ago, trying to get motivated and out the door in the morning for a training run, I asked my husband to remind me why I wanted to train for a marathon. He gave me some great answers, but the one that really stayed with me (and got me out the door) was this: I am doing this because of how proud my kids and my husband will be, and how proud I will be of myself, when I cross that finish line.  I have had several friends sidelined by injuries and illness in the past month, and I know that there are no guarantees – but I also know that I am giving 100% to reach a goal, and I love that feeling.

Every family has  THOSE days – the days when your kids are the ones that woke up on the wrong side of the crib, when snacks and toys and tantrums are flying everywhere, when you are on the receiving end of looks from strangers that range from the sympathetic smiles of other parents to the evil glares of those who appear so anti-child that they themselves must have sprung into being fully adult like an ancient Greek diety.

Today we had one of THOSE days.  Part of it is that we have moved from having a kid and a baby to having two headstrong kids…  now that we have two (very strong) full sets of opinions and desires, our parental job description needs to include a new duty: referee.  This is a new one and we are slowly finding our way.

Today we also had Stroller Strides – I was teaching, both kids were riding side by side in the double jogger. Nine days out of ten, teaching with both of them along for the ride is a blast. They entertain me and the other moms with their observations and song requests, and welcome their little friends as they arrive for class. On that tenth day – like today – they spend most of the class trying to out-grump each other.  One of the most amazing things about working out with a group of moms who also have young kids, however, is that every one of them understands that it is always someone’s turn to have THAT DAY.  There is nothing quite like that support system, and it has seen all of us through these trying days with far more grace than we would otherwise have mustered.

Today we also had to go get groceries. We really, really had to after a weekend spent playing and eating and not shopping.  The only vegetable left in the house was frozen green beans and some celery, and I’m pretty creative but can only do so much with those. So, despite our morning, to the grocery store we went. Game face on, determined to get through it as pleasantly as possible, knowing it might not end well.

We made it – sort of. We did in fact get all the items on the list, and made it all the way to the checkout line before the meltdowns came. About half of our groceries had made it over the scanner when the storm came. One thing I will say for my kids – they have some impressive lungs. Hopefully some day their volume will serve them well.

Here is why any of this is relative to this blog: I was okay. Not that I enjoyed the screaming, or the looks from the other occupants of the store – but I didn’t join the kids in their screams, or sit down on the floor and cry along with them.  And I realized on the drive home that over the past couple years with Stroller Strides I have built not only physical endurance, but a reserve of emotional endurance and patience that I did not have when regular exercise was not part of my life.  With every lunge I have done, I have strengthened my quads – and my tolerance. With every mile I have run, I have strengthened my heart, my legs – and my ability to remain calm.

A friend of mine interviewed my last night for an article, and asked me what changes Stroller Strides has made in my life.  There have been tons of changes, a lot of them physical, but the most valuable change is that I am emotionally stronger because of the support given and received in this network of moms who meet together to build the Strength for Motherhood®.