My Blog - Kirsten Oliphant

Piper at Eight Months

Has it really been 8 months since Piper joined our family, rounding us out at five kids?

Clearly, YES.

Back in the day, I used to chronicle every month of our kids’ lives. While I miss that, I also have felt a shift in how I want to blog about our family online. I’m not sure where I land on that shift yet, but just want a bit more distance.

This post, though? NO DISTANCE. All up close and personal with the Piper.

Or, as we call her, Peeps. Peepers. Piperoni. Chubs. Nicknames are pretty fluid in our family.

And, much like my grandma Nanny used to do, I often call her Quin or one of my other kids names, going down through the list until I final get to hers. PIPER. Such a fitting name for this cheerful, happy, bright-faced girl.

Her smile is half-crazy, but lights up her face and the whole room.

She has moved into that phase of frustration that all my kids had before they could walk. She’s not even crawling (our latest one!), but rolls around the room. She can get up on all fours, but just when she’s poised to move forward, she rolls instead. The rolling is hilarious.

I lost her the other day when I left the room for a few minutes. She had rolled under our wooden church pew (aka the laundry pew) where a towel hanging off the bench hid her from sight.

Speaking of rolls, she isn’t our roll-iest baby, but definitely our chunkiest. Quin still wears diapers at night, and she and Piper are wearing the same size.

Her favorite places right now are the floor (which can be dangerous with four other kiddos and three dogs), the exersaucer, and the doorway jumper. She’ll only jump for an audience, though.

The place where she may be happiest? The YMCA. Where other people go to work out and where I go to work on the computer, finishing books and getting work done on my OTHER site. The workers there fight over her when she comes in because (their words) she is the happiest baby in the room. She loves the padded play areas and spends her time exploring without fear of being stepped on by a Great Dane.

Her first tooth came through this week, also our latest at this milestone.

I don’t mind a bit that she’s slow with all the things.

She is, after all, our last. Something that still makes me sad, despite KNOWING this is right for our family. And for my body, which had four major surgeries birthing these little people, and another one to fix some of that damage this year. (More on that in another post!)

After the surgery, she had her first bottle (at just over six months) and now wants to trade in nursing for bottles. I’m trying not to let her, but boy– she can get frustrated when things aren’t fast enough.

Everyone in the family loves her and the girls fight over who gets to talk with her. It would be cute, but I’m so over fighting. The dogs (more on that later too) love her and she loves them. She will roll over to them if they are inside and they will lick her until I put a stop to it.

I can’t get over how fast the time has gone. It’s so over-said, but with good reason: The days are long but the years are short.

Baby Shower Tips to Keep You Stress-Free

After having approximately one million (okay five) children and attending one billion baby showers, I have a number of baby shower tips to keep you stress free! These baby shower tips will help you throw a killer shower or help you, if you are the mom-to-be, know what things you might say you’re into. Or NOT into.

Thanks to Basic Invite for sponsoring this post! All opinions are, as always, my own.

Baby Shower Tips to Keep You Stress Free

Cut Down on the Cooks in the Kitchen

I love this expression, which I’ve been trying to teach my kids. Planning a shower with multiple people can mean a better split of the costs (see the next tip for more on that), but it can also mean more power struggles, more conflict, and more difficulty planning. If you are asked to be one of more than three hosts, consider opting out of a full hosting, but ask what you can contribute instead. This might keep you out of the fray and actually make it easier to have fewer voices, but still allow you to participate.

Be Up Front about Costs

Even if you are planning with your besties, be clear about what the cost will be and what you can contribute. Money is hard talk, but it can become ugly talk when it comes to something like this. I once helped with a shower when Rob was out of work and said I could only help if it was affordable. I wasn’t clear about what that meant, exactly. So the other shower planners came back with a $150 cost per hostess PLUS the cost of the things we were making. That was beyond our reach at that time! And because I hadn’t been super clear, it caused some issues. (Which we worked out!)

It’s awkward to talk about money, but MORE awkward if you have to talk about it later on in the process.

Plan Based on the Mom-to-Be, Not YOU

Even though as adults, we know this more, it can still be hard. Especially if the mom-to-be has really different tastes! But it is HER day. Keep in mind that this is about her taste and her wishes, not yours. Even if you really don’t love what she chooses!

Make Invitations Simple

A lot of people have moved to online invitations, which can work really well. But there is something special about an actual card that you can hold in your hand and put inside of a baby book or keepsake album. The goal is to find baby shower thank you card that don’t LOOK cheap. You don’t want to blow the budget on the invites. (If you blow it anywhere, it should be on FOOD.) Here are a few examples I loved (they also have twin baby shower invitations):

more baby boy shower invitations

more baby girl shower invitations

If you ARE going to order cards, I love the options with Basic Invite because you can order a custom sample before you place your order. As in: a printed sample of YOUR invitation. Pretty neat, right? This will mean thinking ahead, but it would be neat to see this. And also, being someone who has had my name misspelled even on wedding invites, you can check for typos.

Don’t Make Your Own Petit Fours (aka: Hire Some Stuff Out)

I learned the hard way that petit fours (you know, those cute little decorative cakes) are NOT easy to make at home. No matter what anyone or the internet tells you. Just don’t. Some things you should not attempt at home. Hire them out. Or do what I did: make something else that you rock at making. My go-to recipe is my iced sugar cookies. They are adorable and turn out well every time. I have a set of baby shower cookie cutters I bought on Amazon that have gotten a ton of use over the years!

Think Outside the Box

Don’t feel like you HAVE to do games. I mean, don’t skip them if the mom-to-be wants them, but some of these guessing the baby food out of the diaper games are a little gross for some people. You can see my post on out-of-the-box baby shower ideas that has some games that I thought were REALLY fun (that I made up).

Remember that it’s all about the mom-to-be and whatever celebrating looks like for HER. I’ve had big showers thrown for me that were lovely and a few that were just family and more of a prayer time with food (food is probably the only MUST). It doesn’t have to look like the traditional punch and flowers with fancy dresses.

Stress-free baby shower tips include: think outside the box for games and activities! — My favorite baby shower game: Don’t Have a Baby. 😉

Make Thank You Notes Easy

One way that Basic Invite rocks with this is that they offer a simple address collection + free envelope printing. Basically, you share a link with guests to get addresses added to a list so you aren’t scrambling for them when it’s time to write thank-you notes. You can also order a baby shower thank you card through Basic Invite!

Another way to make this easy is to purchase thank you notes FOR the mom to be and put the envelopes out on the greeting table where you might have a guest book. Each guest self addresses his or her own envelope. Genius!

How’d I do? What did I miss? Let me know your baby shower tips in the comments! I’m sure I missed some and would love to hear your input! Or feel free to share horror stories. We all learn a lot from those!

Thanks again to Basic Invite for sponsoring this post! Like their invitations? Want to connect online? Find them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Should We Celebrate Mother’s Day?

It’s a little crazy that I’m even writing this post. Should we celebrate Mother’s Day? That’s a debate?!?

But it’s 2017 and everything now is a heated debated. Have you noticed that? There are no calm discussions, only people screaming about their point of view. I did not realize Mother’s Day was a debate until my Facebook feed filled up with posts about it.

I was a little surprised and in case you are too, I’ll break it down. The debate goes like this, essentially:

YES we should celebrate Mother’s Day because mothers deserve a celebration and no one is upset about Father’s Day and people are just too sensitive.

NO we should not celebrate Mother’s Day because it excludes those who wish to be mothers and cannot or who have lost their children. Plus there are women who choose NOT to have kids and also it’s so commercial and about 50 other reasons.

Normally, I read a few posts on either side and move on. But I wanted to speak into this because I have some strong feelings about that I think are missing in the debate.

So, whether you think we should or should NOT celebrate Mother’s Day, will you please keep reading? Great. Let’s get into it.

Should We Celebrate Mother’s Day?

In some ways Mother’s Day has gone the way of commercial everything. Here in Texas, giant white tents start popping up in grocery store parking lots selling flowers and candy and other things. There are commercials and aisles dedicated to it and all kinds of hoopla. Like all holidays here in the US, it’s a little out of control.

Personally, I feel about Mother’s Day a little bit like I do about Valentines Day: Aren’t these holidays celebrating things we should really be doing EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR???

Yes, we should be showing people we love them and respecting and honoring our moms every day of the year. Still, it’s nice to have a day set aside for the honoring of moms. I can tell you honestly that most days DO NOT feel like a holiday otherwise. It is nice to have just ONE.

Give me Mother’s Day please, and give all the moms a day to be celebrated a honored and maybe even to get to sleep in and have a few hours “off” or getting pampered or having a nice meal or getting a sweet, handmade card from your kids. Let’s do that.

The Other Side of Mother’s Day

But a few years back I remember seeing Mother’s Day from another perspective. A friend who had been struggling for a long time with infertility remarked that she always skipped church on Mother’s Day because it was too hard. I had NEVER thought of this, yet never stopped thinking about it afterward. (I even wrote this post about it.)

Rob and I tried for nine months to have our first son (and had another period of four or so months trying in the middle of our now-five kids). While this seems so short compared to so many people waiting and longing, when you’re trying to get pregnant, nine months is like a lifetime.

Every MONTH is actually a lifetime. You’re waiting and waiting and waiting and timing and then when it’s a no, the clock resets. Everyone who knows you are trying asks you about it and then you have to tell them. Other people get pregnant in that time and you have to think nice thoughts about that. It’s pretty terrible.

I can hardly begin to understand what it’s like to wait for years and deal with doctors and pills and invasive options, but I have some very small sense of how hard it can be while you wait. (Read more about our story HERE.)

So when I heard that Mother’s Day is now a debate, I GET it.

I have a small understanding of what it would be like to totally DREAD this day.

Whether you’ve lost a child through miscarriage OR lost a child after birth OR are struggling with infertility OR have lost your mom OR had a really horrible and damaging mother, Mother’s Day probably feels a lot like a slap in the face. A day you very much wish did NOT exist.

I can’t imagine any of the moms I know who struggle with this day actually making a fuss about it. They’d rather be invisible. Stay home. Try not to think of the deep, deep longing. They aren’t starting heated debates on Facebook about it.

No matter how the conversation got started, I’m glad it did. Because while my short answer is YES, we should still celebrate Mother’s Day, I think we should ADD something to it.

What We Should Add to Mother’s Day

I think we should add a huge dose of compassion and understanding that this is a really difficult day for many. I recently read this post from Lindsay Ostrom of Pinch of Yum. While putting Piper to sleep, I wept reading the post while she nursed.

This post is a MUST-READ. It’s all about what to do when your friend loses a baby. It’s raw and real and vulnerable and gives some real suggestions for those of us who have had the good fortune NOT to have lost a baby.

While the post isn’t about all the other struggles and issues that people deal with on Mother’s Day, it peels back the curtain on the layer of grief. It gives you a sense, if you didn’t have one before, of how incredibly gut-wrenching this day can be for so many.

I would like to suggest that we all do something on Mother’s Day beyond honoring our own moms and (for those moms out there) enjoying (hopefully) the celebration.

I want to suggest that we all consider any women we know personally who may be suffering and consider how we can bring some light into HER day. Even if that’s a simple call or text to acknowledge that it’s hard.

Again, please read Lindsay’s post. It is so practical yet heartfelt and applies to more than just the situation of women who have lost their babies. I think that some of those suggestions would be amazing for the moms who maybe even just found out THIS WEEK that they aren’t pregnant. AGAIN. Or who lost their babies this week. Or lost their daughter two weeks ago. Or lost their mom last month.

Should we celebrate Mother’s Day? YES. But we can also extend kindness and consideration to the people in our lives who may struggle with this day.

What do YOU think? Should we celebrate Mother’s Day? Is it too commercial? Too difficult? Would YOU want someone reaching out to you if it’s a hard day? Share in the comments.

The Best Fast Food for Family Travel

I never thought I’d write a post about fast food. Especially not the best fast food for family travel. I’m sure I’ll take some flak for this in the comments.

Because can you really say “best fast food”?

And how do you even qualify best fast food? For FAMILIES?

I’ll qualify this in a moment. But first: a story.

When Rob and I had been dating a few months, I already knew I wanted to marry him. (Cue the awwwwwwws.) He wasn’t quite on board yet (cue the boooooooos), but he WAS game for a road trip from Texas to Virginia. We drove out to have Christmas with my family, stopping to see friends and fam along the way. That trip was about 24 hours total in the car (not including the stops). THEN we hopped in the car and drove straight from Virginia to Kansas for a family reunion and 12th Night celebration with HIS family. THAT trip was about 30 hours in the car with ONLY stops for gas and the bathroom.

That was the beginning of travel as a key to our relationship. We are GOOD at road tripping.

Then we had kids. And for the most part, our kids are great travelers. I’ve driven to Virginia from Texas (or back) with three out of five kids when they were babies. Every other year we travel to Gulf Shores with my parents, a seven or so hour drive. This has given us a LOT of familiarity with being on the go. We’ve got this thing DOWN.

Now that we have three pretty little littles, it’s harder. Piper is the wild card and so far only likes it if the car is MOVING. Which is…a challenge. So long road trips are on pause for now. Still—we are in the car a LOT.

All this time in the car has given me some great familiarity with fast food chains. And I’ve got a list for you of the best fast food for family travel, whether that’s just being on the go around town or on a long car trip.

What exactly is “best” fast food?

When choosing the “best” fast food, I’m voting mostly with my wallet (because four kids eating actual food plus two adults adds up, yo) with some nod (though barely) to health.

Keep in mind, there is only SO MUCH HEALTH IN FAST FOOD. It’s comparative. Okay? Okay. If you don’t ever eat fast food, this is not the post for you!

My goal in sharing this list is to help busy families on the go. If you HAVE to go with fast food, this will help you keep the kids happy, YOU happy, and not break the bank. Because let’s be honest: when you go to McDonald’s and get a meal that costs almost as much as one at a reasonable restaurant, SOMETHING IS WRONG.

My List of the Best Fast Food for Family Travel

This list is in no particular order. All prices are subject to change and location. If you want more details, Fast Food Menu Prices is a site with a lot of info!

Sonic

One thing I love about Sonic is that I love an all-day breakfast. Plus: happy hour from 2-4pm most days with half-price slushes and drinks. You can also get special weekly deals via text when you sign up on Sonic’s Website or on your phone when you’re at Sonic.

Lil Grillers – $.99-$1.49

I don’t know if these are a temporary or permanent addition to the menu, but they are a small sized and reasonably priced grilled sandwich. You can get either a grilled cheese, chicken strip sandwich, egg and bacon, sausage and egg, or mini hamburger. These sizes are great for kids and honestly are probably the correct portion size for a normal adult meal.

Breakfast Toaster – $2.89

I love this sandwich. With bacon, egg, and cheese, it’s a great meal. Even better if you order it on their whole wheat bun or ciabatta, which is a nudge better for you than the Texas toast. (Sorry, Texas. Your toast is awesome.)

Jr Breakfast Burrito – $1.19

You’re going to find that I’m a SUCKER for breakfast. At most restaurants, it’s cheaper than a grilled chicken, and often better for you than a hamburger or fried menu item. MOSTLY. This small burrito has eggs, a little bit of sausage, and cheese. It’s called a “junior,” but like many junior items, is probably the correct portion size for an adult. My kids also love it.

Apple Sauce or Apple Slices – $1.00

These aren’t at all locations, but you can often purchase these on the side menu or have them come with a kids’ menu. Just a nice snack alternative to something fried!

McDonald’s

Can I be honest? For YEARS I would not set foot in a McDonald’s. Maybe because when I was growing up, that was about the only option and I burned out? I don’t know the exact reason, but a few menu items have warmed me back up. One being a drink.

Fruit & Yogurt Parfait – $1.00

My kids love this and it makes a better treat than ice cream. (Not in terms of sugars, but the fact that it does actually have real fruit. Again, “healthy.”) It’s a great price for a snack.

20 Nuggets – $5

This deal is great for my family, though my kids still scarf through it. In a pinch, this can cover a meal for the four kiddos at a good price.

Apple Slices – 2 bags for $1

Yep. Fruit. I love that fresh fruit is something you can actually BUY at a fast food place. Nevermind that it’s more than it would be at the grocery store. We are talking about convenience here. You can also buy clementine oranges!

Sausage McMuffin – $1.00-$1.29

I love these and so do all of my kids. They are inexpensive and have a good deal of protein. You can also take off the sausage. You’ll lose some of the protein, but it cuts calories in half and the fat more than in half.

Latte – $2.00 (special for a size small!)

I love lattes. When pregnant, for some reason I could not drink coffee without feeling nauseous, but I COULD drink lattes. The typical coffee joint is WAY too expensive for that habit, but lattes here are usually $1+ cheaper per size. If you don’t want added flavor (I like plain), you need to be super explicit in your instructions to add no sugar, no flavoring, add NOTHING. I love these!

Burger King

I have a love affair with the onion rings here, but overall, don’t hit up Burger King as much as I did in high school, when it was THE hang out. (Until they kicked us out and we moved to the 7-11 parking lot.) There are several $1 sandwiches, none of which I really love. But hey—$1.

Chicken Nuggets – $1.49-4.99

Like McDonald’s, Burger King has a good deal on nuggets which, in my opinion, taste better. Price varies and not every location has this deal, but our stores have a 10 for $1.49, which beats out McDonald’s for price. This is about the only thing we really order right now at BK.

Wendy’s

Can I just say how much I LOVE the Baconator fries??? I’ve been avoiding those, because they are neither super frugal OR in any way remotely healthy or even “healthy.” But they are really good. Just saying.

Chili – $1.00-2.00

I love the chili at Wendy’s. It’s a great grab and go with probably the best actual health you’ll find on a value list and on a fast food menu at all. Check out this screenshot for the small.

Spicy Nuggets – $.99

While not the price point of McDonald’s 20 piece or Burger King’s 10 piece deal here, I really love these.

Taco Bell

Back in high school, Taco Bell ran a special program in my school for lunch. I remember paying under $1 for tacos and some amazing thing that’s no longer on the menu, but I still dream about. Since then, though, I’ve basically avoided Taco Bell. I mean…I live in Texas! Why would I eat Taco Bell? (Especially when there are Taco Cabana’s around??) But here are a few tasty & affordable choices that mean I sometimes stop here with the kiddos.

Cheesy Bean and Rice Burrito – $1

This is a great option if you want protein, but want to avoid the fast food meats. It’s filling and it’s $1.

AM Grilled Tacos – $1

These’s aren’t my favorite breakfast, but they have eggs! And are $1! Simple and good.

Cheesy Roll-Up – $1

Another favorite of mine, plus a favorite of my kid who doesn’t like a lot of foods. It’s essentially melted cheese in a tortilla. Yum!

Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla – $1

I love these! Tiny, tasty, cheap. A little on the spicy side for my non-spicy kids. But overall, a hit.

There are PLENTY of other deals out there, but these are my personal favorites and the ones that work for our family. Do I think fast food is the best choice? Again, NO. But I hope these few choices come to mind the next time you are out and find that you need to feed yourself or a bunch of little people on a budget.

As far as other stops when we are road tripping…I think that’s a different post for a different day.

Do YOU have any fast food hacks or favorite fast food items for your family? What are your suggestions for the best fast food for family travel?

Low Carb Pancakes (Two Ingredients & Gluten Free!)

Sometimes you encounter a recipe that changes your life. Maybe you think I’m being dramatic. MAYBE I AM. But these low carb pancakes with only two ingredients and NO bananas are so amazing. So amazing that after seeing the recipe, I made them twice today. And took photos for a new blog post.

Did I mention that these low carb pancakes have TWO INGREDIENTS? (Plus salt. Which is a given.)

{Pssst! This post contains affiliate links, which means at no extra cost to you, any items purchased after clicking through may send me a commission.}

I got this post in an email today from Mary at Barefeet in the Kitchen and knew I had to make them. So many of YOU asked me about this on Facebook, I thought I’d create my own post. And if you want to see another version, check out this one from Hurry the Food Up, with a suggestion to use these as taco wraps. BRILLIANT.

I’m not a huge fan of the eggs + banana pancakes that are all the rage. Have you tried them? They are good for some people who want a grain-free pancake, but I like more savory things for breakfast. So these cream cheese pancakes are the answer. When is cream cheese NOT the answer?!?

Here’s the recipe:

cream cheese + eggs + salt = amazing low carb pancakes

I can’t even stand it. My kids liked them. I like them. My husband likes them. Valentina from The Baking Fairy said she even uses these as bread when she’s doing a keto diet. I just want to stuff them in my face. My kids like them with honey. I like them plain. Just straight from the pan to my mouth.

To make them, put 4 ounces of cream cheese in the blender along with 4 eggs plus some salt (I did about 1/4 teaspoon). Blend until fluffy. Let rest for a moment and cook on a greased pan or griddle. THE END.

Most gluten free pancakes or low carb pancakes require buying some kind of fancy flour. You may already have these ingredients in your fridge.

You should probably be a little more careful with your eggs though…

When you’re flipping them, take a little more care. I watched until they were starting to have bubbles and look a little more finished around the edges. Usually I undercook the first batch, overcook the second, and get it right on the third. These are more delicate than regular pancakes, so don’t expect a sturdy pancake when you flip them. Be kind and gentle. Or…you may make a mess.

Oh, and if you have drips, eat them too. Duh.

Low Carb Pancakes

4 eggs
4 ounces cream cheese
1/8 tsp salt

Add all ingredients in a blender. Blend until fluffy, 1-2 minutes. (I found they were fluffier if I blended longer.) Let rest for 1 minute.

Pour slowly (they spread FAST and get thin) onto a greased griddle or pan on medium heat. Cook 1-2 minutes per side. Flip the first time when they are starting to look settled and cooked around the edges.

I hope this changes your life like it did mine. You can go see the original post that inspired me to eat these all day every day (I mentioned I made them twice today, right?) right here at Barefeet in the Kitchen. She has a great video that shows the whole process!

If you are wondering about what we use, I have the Ninja blender and we have an awesome griddle like this one that goes over our gas stove. This was seriously one of the things I was most excited about when I got a gas stove!

So…are you going to try them? Let me know! Do you have any recipes that changed your life? Let me know in the comments!