Three Ways FitBit Misses the mark big time for Attachment Parents

 

I have wanted a FitBit forever. Actually, I have wanted a FitBit since before FitBits were around. Back when Jawbones had just come out, Self Monitoring was something strange only heard about on NPR features, and I was trying to beat my old records on Daily Feats with my first edition smart phone. 

When The Ogre asked me what I wanted for my birthday this year, I spelled it out and lo and behold this is what I unwrapped: The FitBit Flex.

I have worn it for a slight twelve hours and so far this is what I have to say:

FitBit DOES NOT Understand Attachment Parenting!

1. We Carry Our Kids

Fit Bit tracks how many steps I take and adds calories burnt. I had to put in my weight and height in order to assist FitBit with this function. It is ten A.M and I am about 40% through the recommended 10,000 steps for the day. However, FitBit fails to recognize that a good 3,000 of those steps were done while carrying a child. And while my toddler may fall low on the charts, many API babies are roly poly butterballs of breastfed goodness, which leads me to my next complaint:

2. Yes, They are STILLLLLL Breastfeeding

Have you been around Attachment Parents? There is a lot of boobage going on in this crowd! I would love to see some breastfeeding stats for this group but, suffice it to say, full-term breastfeeding is the norm. Breastfeeding tends to continue through the 2nd, 3rd and even up to the 5th year (and beyond in some cases). Which means we need extra calories to maintain our weight, something FitBit doesn't seem to consider. Oh, and breastfeeding doesn't stop for anything! Which leads me to the third failure:

3. We are already Sleep Hacking Experts

We have been hacking our kid's and our own sleep since birth! FitBit, you may think I am sleeping, but what you don't know is I have learned to wake without moving. There is a toddler under my arm, my spouse is sandwiched up to my back, the cat is on my head, and another kid could be using my leg as a pillow. As I am not a glutton for punishment I will never be the first to move. Those 13 wakings you tracked last night? Though the number surprised me (last night was what I would call a "good" night of sleep) I know, based on the times marked, you missed several of my non-stirring wakes, but that's okay, so did everyone else in the bed!

****Please note, while I did notice these incongruencies for how the FitBit FITS with my lifestyle, I do like the device overall. I don't really expect the device to take all of my lifestyle choices into account and figure, no matter what your lifestyle is, the FitBit probably exhibits some faults. Well then, time to go log some more steps, Goodbye!*****

 

FREE ORGANIC FOOD

Many of you ask how to get high quality, organic food for a good deal, complaining that coupons often don't pertain to organic food.

The answer? Many different ways. A little here, a little there.

Today I want to tell you how to get FREE organic food (I just placed my order, my gluten free baking cupboard will be stocked with garbanzo bean flour, corn meal, and buckwheat flour soon!)

First, if you don't have an account on Gilt use my referral code (this will give you $25 to spend)

http://www.gilt.com/invite/1010115950a4jjadaj4z

Then go to the "City" tab. This will take you to Gilt City. Select "National" and the Jet.com deal for $15. With this deal you will get a promo code for three months free membership and a $30 credit to shop with. (Fyi, all membership is free on Jet.com at this time, but the $30 credit you can not beat!)

Some notes about Jet.com: Shipping is free for all purchases through the end of the month and purchases over $35 in general. Prices are EXCELLENT for food. The products I bought were all significantly cheaper than Whole Foods (including bulk bins) and Amazon (including Subscribe and Save). Also, often times when you order two of a product the price goes down (and continues to go down as you order more multiples but the items I have looked out go down most significantly at the 2 item mark)

You will get the jet.com voucher within a couple hours. I filled my cart right away and then just waited for the code to come through then applied it.

I plan to use Jet to price compare even without this deal, especiallly with that free shipping!

Please let me know if any of this does not work as stated. I did not have a referral code for Gilt but I think this should work. If you already have a Gilt account use the code "Welcome30" as I did to get 30% off your purchase.

One more note, this is only for first time Jet.com users!

Any questions? Holla!

Corn for your pie hole

 

Corn out your ears???

I was going to title this post, "Put that in your corn hole!"

Luckily, I double checked the definition of corn hole and found out, GASP, it isn't quite the same as Pie Hole! 

Thanks for the save, Urban Dictionary!

So, without further ado, here follows my post on what to do when you find yourself overloaded with corn.

 

FREEZE!!

August in Minnesota, and September too, means lots of fresh corn. 

There is nothing like a fresh cob from a roadside stand or farmer's market. And nothing like boiling, roasting, grilling it up that first night. As the clock ticks those sugars quickly convert into starches making the kernels bland and boring.

No worries though, you can trap your that fresh corn flavor with a quick, easy FREEZE!

There are many techniques but I have tried two this season. 

 

 

1. Freeze the cob whole. If you have a chest freezer you can seal it in a bag and toss it in. I don't have a deep freezer so I saved some room by cutting off the ends and peeling off the outer leaves. Want fresh corn on the cob once the snow hits? Plop the frozen ears in a pot of boiling water add on a few extra minutes.

  

2. If, like me, you have limited freezer space, you can cut the corn right off the cob and freeze it. Of course you can do a quick blanch first, but if you like to cut corners it isn't ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.

How to cut all that corn off? Here is a hack for you:

  Check out this website for a way to construct a "makeshift bundt pan" for this very purpose out of items you likely already have in your house.

WHAT DO I DO WITH ALL THAT CORN?!?

One use? Just heat it up for a quick side. The other night we were entertaining and I had made cabbage rolls for The Ogre to bake as I would be arriving home from work at the same time as our guests would be arriving.

A less than picturesque photo of the corn and bell pepper leftovers

 (from the fridge a day later, but you get the idea!)

The Ogre had the cabbage rolls ready for us to eat, but had forgotten to make a side. He was able to create a fresh-tasting side by cooking up a batch of kernels with a dash of another of our freezer staples, diced pepper.

The batter

Ahh, but you see now we have leftovers of the corn. Again, what to do? Luckily I found this SUPER YUMMY corn bread recipe which calls for frozen corn. I substituted this corn and bell pepper concoction and was super pleased with the results. The Ogre thought them the best corn muffins ever. Of course I substituted gluten free flour. I also used a bit of maple syrup as the honey ran out. 

(Side note: I recently heard about the excessive amount of sugar in American recipes and a suggestion to 2/3 the sugar in recipes. I have been doing that, including with this recipe, to no detriment thus far!)

Is it just me, or would my mom's face look lovely in butter?

I also used this new Land O'Lakes European Style Butter which may have had an impact on the rich flavor of the corn muffins. (Disclosure: I did get the butter for free as a member of BzzAgent. Let me know if you would like a dollar off coupon to try it yourself! Lot's of baking opportunities coming up)

Muffiny Goodness

 

**Beware, a corn heavy diet can take quite a toll on the CORN HOLE.... hmmm I think it is all coming together now.... teeheehee  

 

No corn but a hankering for the flavor? Try this delicious cornmeal pancake recipe, as pictured in the foreground. Super yummy even heated up one and two days later. Note: I did add a bit of Xanthan Gum to the gluten free batter which worked wonders. Though The Ogre (excellent pancake flipper that he is) also took over at that time so who knows which made more of the difference)