Six More Places to Find Me

I have been a guest postin' fool lately. :)

In case you don't get enough of me here or in case you missed the wisdom I've shared elsewhere (ha!), here are few more articles I've written:

• Helping Families of Hospitalized Children at Keeping the Kingdom First
• Irish Twins at The Finer Things in Life
• 10 Things You'll Need With Irish Twins, also at The Finer Things in Life
• Make Christmas Clutter-Free With Consumable Gifts at Money Saving Mom
• Make Christmas Clutter-Free With Charitable Giving at Money Saving Mom
• Keeping Christ in Christmas as a Public School Family at Life as MOM (<- If you'd pop over and read this one, in particular, I'd be appreciative. I'm starting to worry that I may have missed the mark in making my point, based on the comments...)

The Stock Exchange

Please don't forget! Less than a week remains until The Stock Exchange. Post your best recipes, tips, and tricks... or, post a question you've had about making your stock- surely someone amongst us will have the answer. Link back here, at Parenting The Tiniest Of Miracles, this coming Wednesday, November 25th.

Please spread the word! I'd love for us to glean a wealth of information from each other.

"Meeting" Other Preemie Families

Sadly, premature births are not uncommon. And I have the pleasure of meeting other preemie moms in real life rather frequently. Happily, these are often moms of babies born between 33 and 36 weeks... not quite the same scenario as my 24 week early arrival!

One of the great joys of writing this blog is that I get to "meet" other preemie parents, all of whom have their own unique stories and journeys.

Yesterday was a day that really brought that connection to the foreground...

Kristie McNealy talked about how prematurity affected her family...

Phoebe recalled her first child's sudden and dramatic entry into the world too soon...

The Murray Crew mama of quads- FOUR preemies!- and I reminisced about shooting commercials for two (rival *wink*) Indianapolis children's hospitals...

Chic Crafty Chick shared about her miracle baby... her unending faith and a doctor's stubborn doubt.

Heather writes about her experience giving birth far too early with her first child. (Happily, her second was born full-term just two weeks after my third!)

I could go on and on about the inspirational stories that I've had the pleasure of reading.

Yesterday was Prematurity Awareness Day and I urged you all to educate and empower yourselves.

I, for one, am committed to working for and supporting preemies every single day. This beautiful online community has helped introduce me to others with the same determination, faith, and perseverance.

That works for me.

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This post is linked to Works For Me Wednesday, hosted at We Are THAT Family.

No, Really, You Shouldn't Have...

Mine is not the kind of blog that regularly receives awards. And that's okay! Because, you see, this site is not the most creative, funniest, most frugal, yummiest, cutest, or any of the other bloggy award categories I see fly around. I love seeing bloggers I admire receive awards, but it is not something I have ever really expected or aspired to.

So when I received this award from Matt:

(If you can't read it, you're not alone- I couldn't either!)

... I was surprised.

Here's what the award is for-

"The award acknowledges a blogger’s effort to transmit cultural, literal, ethical and personal values every day."

Wow. I am incredibly flattered to receive such an award. I can think of few other descriptions that would make me feel more proud. That being said, I- like the recipients before me- feel humbled by this and unsure whether I'm really worthy of that description. Nonetheless, I thank you, Matt, and I am honored to pass the award on to a few other fabulous bloggers. The original rules stated that you should name 15 worthy blogs. But that's a LOT. And so, like Matt, I think I shall name about half that many...

Here are a few blogs that I think accomplish the above and why I think so. If you haven't already, you should really check them out!

1. Neonatal Doc- This blog is no longer updated, but the archives are amazing and inspiring. These are posts written by a neonatologist that cover all manner of ethical dilemmas and decisions. I am forever intrigued by his posts.
   
2. The Finer Things In Life- Amy celebrates and encourages others to celebrate all the wonderful small and simple things in life... like home and family- values I think are so important.
   
3. Mom of Littles- Crystal writes three blogs and this is the newest of them. Her Biblical Womanhood certainly fits the bill too, but I love Mom of Littles for the inspiring values she offers to mothers raising young children.
   
4. Life As MOM- Jessica offers practical advice for keeping a happy (and sane) home. A mom of six children, she has down-to-earth, ethically sound recommendations for being a more joyful mom.
   
5. Like Merchant Ships- Meredith's gift for hospitality is unparalleled in the bloggy world, in my opinion. She practices cheerful frugality in beautiful ways.
   
6. Kristie McNealy, MD- A great blog for informative and straight-forward articles and breakthroughs regarding all manner of issues affecting preemies.and premature birth (among other interesting stuff!).
7. Freebies4Mom- What? A freebie site? Heather's blog fits the bill because she truly strives to offer ethically-appropriate deals and suggestions every single day. I have never once seen her advocate doing anything anything even remotely "shady" to save a buck.
   

So there you go. Seven exceptional blogs written by individuals with strong value systems. Who else should have been on my list? Please share with me in the comments-- I'd love to check out something new!

Giveaway Review... Don't Miss Out!

Just in case you missed it, this whole past week I teamed up with four amazing ladies to put together a Valentine's Exchange of Inspiration and Ideas. It's been a wonderful week and a whole lot of fun!

To wrap up the extravaganza, I will be drawing one name to determine the winner of some Valentine's sparkles. What woman doesn't deserve a little bit of bling?




To make sure your name is in the pool of entrants, be certain you've visited all five posts this week:

Monday: Kate shared some Valentine-y meal ideas over at A Simple Walk.

Tuesday: Laura hosted a special Gratituesday about things we love to be thankful for at Heavenly Homemakers.

Wednesday: I shared fun ways to celebrate Valentine's Day with little ones right here.

Thursday: Jessica hosted a Sweetheart Treats Recipe Swap over at Life as MOM.

Friday: Amy rounded out the week with a special Finer Valentine Things Friday at The Finer Things in Life.



Leave a comment or link up and you'll receive an entry. Participate each day and you'll receive five entries! It's that simple. You have through Sunday night, February 15th, to leave your comments. I'll be drawing a winner Monday morning. Why in the morning, unlike every other giveaway you've probably seen? Well, because I'm just about dead to the world by 8 pm every night. But I'm one of those obnoxiously chipper morning people. :)

Good luck! Thanks to all of you who have already participated this week and helped to make our celebration a success.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Not Another Ho-hum Salad

Truth: I don't like salad. I really don't. I absolutely adore those restaurants that allow you to choose between soup and salad because I just think soup is so superior. In all honesty, if the only option is salad, I usually just pass. At events where you're automatically served a salad, I tend to nibble and push the stuff around my plate. I am one of those people. I truly don't understand women who claim they're happy making a meal out of salad. That's just not me...

But last April I attended a wedding and was served the salad course along with everyone else. I nibbled. And nibbled. And my eyes grew wide. I plowed through that entire salad. I was so thrilled by the unique combination of flavors, such a far cry from the "lettuce and tomato with balsamic viniagerette" to which I was accustomed. I still talk about that salad... just ask my mom.

It took me awhile to hunt down a recipe that replicated all the delicious flavors weaving through that salad but, now that I finally have, I'm going to save you the legwork. Without further ado...

Baby Greens, Pear, Bleu Cheese, and Candied Pecan Salad
(the recipe I found calls for walnuts, but I the one I fell in love with had candied pecans... use whatever appeals to you!)

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 cup olive oil

• 1 5-ounce bag mixed baby greens
• 2 large ripe pears, halved, cored, thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese
• 1 cup candied pecans (I bought mine candied, but they can be easily made by simmering in a simple syrup)
  

Preparation:

Whisk first 4 ingredients in small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss greens in large bowl with enough dressing to coat. Divide greens among 6 plates. Top with pear slices, dividing equally. Sprinkle with cheese and candied pecans. Drizzle lightly with remaining dressing and serve.

Delicious! Once you dress this salad, it's best eaten right away. Now this! This salad I would choose over soup...

For more great recipes, check out the Recipe Swap hosted at the Grocery Cart Challenge!

To go along with today's Progressive Dinner stop, I am giving away one copy of FishMama's Guide To Cooking With Children ebook. To enter, just leave a comment. One winner will be selected on Sunday, Dec. 21st.

What salads are you serving up this holiday season? Or are you serving a soup? Either way, we'd love to have you share! Post your recipe on your blog and come back and link up with us. Don't have a blog? Feel free to tell us what you're fixing in the comments!

Don't miss a course! Be part of our Bloggy Progressive Dinner all week long!

Slacking and Celebrating All In One Week!

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I've been in kitchen slack-off mode. The name of the game right now is just coming up with meals that I can stomach putting together and that my family will eat. That is my only goal. Given my truly un-ambitious streak right now, this makes it a strange week for me to do my very first Menu Plan Monday post for Org Junkie... but, hey!, why not?

So here's what'll be happening in our home this week:

Breakfasts: cereal, oatmeal, or English muffins
applesauce or yogurt
milk or juice

Lunches: sandwiches, soup, lo mein, bagel pizzas, pasta
fruit
milk or water

Suppers:
Mon. 12/15- (ultrasound day!) Frozen Chicken Parm dinner, pasta, broccoli
Tues. 12/16- Hot & Sour Peanut Noodles
Wed. 12/17- Grilled (ahem, grill PAN) Chicken, mashed potatoes, salad (this is a fabulous
salad, people... be sure to join us for our Bloggy Progressive Dinner this whole week...
I'll be sharing my salad recipe on Wednesday)
Thur. 12/18- Grilled Ham & Cheese Sandwiches, soup
Fri. 12/19- Veggie Omelets, Toast, Applesauce
Sat. 12/20- We're celebrating C's 3rd Birthday! Tradition holds that the birthday child gets his or
her favorite foods at the party so we'll be having macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, and grapes.... and
cake, of course! Poor girl never gets a party on her real day... Christmas Eve.

For a lot more interesting menu plans, head on over to Org Junkie! To start joining us on our Bloggy Progressive Dinner, be sure to head over to Five J's where Joy is serving up drinks today!

JL's P.S. Fest 12/13/08

p.s. I think FishMama's idea of using ice cubes to water a tree is brilliant!

p.p.s. Jen's suggestion for an Exersaucer alternative looks great for families on the go!

p.p.p.s. I think Judy's craft idea for empty yogurt bottles is one of the cutest things I've ever seen!

p.p.p.p.s. Make sure you stop by all this next week and check out our Bloggy Progressive Dinner!!!

Recovery Break

I feel my presence both online and on this blog has been a bit sporadic for the last few days. I'm sorry about that. Until C. and I both manage to fight these fevers and head-colds, it's not likely to change much.

Please check out the button on my right side-bar for more information about an exciting party we have going on next week! Parenting the Tiniest of Miracles will be part of a bloggy progressive dinner and we would all LOVE to have you participate.

Also coming up soon:

• an update on what a high-risk, after-preemie pregnancy looks like so far
• I'll talk about spending Christmas with a child on the brink of death, far from home...
• a special celebration as our little girl turns the big 3!

Thanks for hanging in there with me!

JL's P.S. Fest: 12/6/08

p.s. These Candy-Cane Cookies shared at A Simple Walk sound yummy and festive!

p.p.s. Amy's latest baby blanket that she knit up looks so cozy... I really need to get better at knitting!

p.p.p.s. This post on Simplifying Christmas over at Life As MOM was a great reminder to enjoy the season... without being preachy.

p.p.p.p.s. Happy 3rd Blogiversary (a day late) to Angie at Baby Cheapskate... hers was the first blog I EVER read! Excellent material over there... make sure you stop by with well-wishes for her!

p.p.p.p.p.s. Here's another great post on the beauty and simplicity of the Christmas season at Amy's Finer Things... great ideas!

p.p.p.p.p.p.s. I think the whole concept behind Style Klutz is brilliant! I really enjoyed her tips for walking in high heels this week!

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Happy St. Nicholas Day! Did you get any treats in your shoes this morning?

JL's P.S. Fest: 11/15/08

p.s. Well, first and foremost, Happy Birthday to my daddy! Have a great one! (btw, when I asked A. what he wanted for Christmas the other day, he said- without hesitation- "Papa!" :))

p.p.s. This post over at Frugal Chick.net reminded me how much I adore this tool for cleaning my floors!

p.p.p.s. With my recent obsession with vinegar, I loved reading about this use for peroxide over at Here's the Diehl.

p.p.p.p.s. I love a good soup recipe... and the Apron Queen's looks like one I could whip up with what's on hand!

p.p.p.p.p.s. My boy adores a good cornbread... this one from Mimi's Jewel Box of Tips and Treasures has a nice festive touch!

p.p.p.p.p.p.s. These Christmas crafts shared by One Krusty Mama look like a great way to spend a chilly day with the kiddos...

What great links have you found interesting this week?

JL's P.S. Fest: 11/8/08

p.s. This site keeps us entertained on many a gloomy November day-- fabulous tracing pages!

p.p.s. This free 8" X 10" photo deal (which expires later today- hurry!!) at Walgreen's, shared by Heather, enabled me to get my hands on the portrait shown below in record time!

p.p.p.s. Since I wrote about using up Jello this past week and using up Kool-Aid a couple months ago, I like this recipe for play-dough from Lisa at As Thyme Goes Buy.

p.p.p.p.s. I spend a LOT of time in my apron! I find this toile bib apron at Rick Rack Attack absolutely adorable!

p.p.p.p.p.s. Like Lisa @ Blessed With Grace, we have enjoyed these fabulous board books for years!

(That's little C, second to the left, and our son all the way to the right- aren't they so cute hand-in-hand with all their cousins from their mommy's side??)

JL's P.S. Fest: 11/1/08

p.s. I'm excited to try these homemade dryer sheets shared at Cents To Get Debt-Free...

p.p.s. Erin's guest post on Getting Press for Your Blog found at blogcoach is chock-full of fantastic tips!

p.p.p.s. While it is not my choice, I found this post by Erin on daycare refreshing and insightful.

p.p.p.p.s. The other day I told you about my passion for Christmas decorations... Wildwood Mama's creative use of a tree-topper is something I'll have to think about!

p.p.p.p.p.s. Since I really don't like sweet potatoes, this recipe posted at Heavenly Homemakers may be just the ticket to work them in...

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I absolutely love all the fresh, great ideas I get from all of you! Thanks!

JL's P.S. Fest: 10/25/08

p.s. These Thai Turkey Tacos shared at Newlyweds! look like a nice change of pace!

p.p.s. On the topic of food, this Homemade Samplin' Platter looks dangerously delicious... good stuff happening over at A Simple Walk!

p.p.p.s. We've been stocking up on lots of free Jello and salsa thanks to this tip at Money Saving Mom!

p.p.p.p.s. I loved Matt's reflection on his little girl growing up over at The Playpen...

p.p.p.p.p.s. I love the idea of this DIY Stain Spray shared at Blue Castle... I make all my own household cleaners and need to venture into the laundry realm...

p.p.p.p.p.p.s. Jennifer's explanation of how she is able to stay home is great (Hint: Like most of us stay-at-home moms, she's not "lucky".)

JL's P. S. Fest 10/18/08

p.s. While I can't claim to always buy local or organic, I thought this cartoon shared by Candace was pretty thought-provoking...

p.p.s. This Pizza Braid recipe that Amy shared looks delicious... and beautiful!

p.p.p.s. As a Yankee who has lived in the South, Shannon's note to Yankees about the word "y'all" cracked me up...

p.p.p.p.s. These Bake-Ahead Egg Patties seem like sheer genius to me... thanks to Julie for sharing the idea!

p.p.p.p.p.s. No doubt about it, this Italian Cheese Bread recipe created by Tammy is my go-to dish for every family gathering I attend. Everyone loves it!

p.p.p.p.p.p.s. Don't forget to email me (micropreemies (at) yahoo (dot) com) if you're interested in writing a guest post to appear mid-November!

JL'S P.S. Fest 10/11/2008

p.s. These Peanut Butter Pear Muffins look different, but tasty! A good use for the masses of pears hanging from my tree right now...

p.p.s. Heather's sweeps listed over at Freebies 4 Mom have become my 4 pm tradition!

p.p.p.s. I absolutely adored Monica's idea for a Family Music Night. I know my kiddos would have a blast!

p.p.p.p.s. We may have to try this Orange Plunge-sicle recipe from Ryann since it's supposed to be in the mid-80's this weekend... HOT!

p.p.p.p.p.s. Jennifer F.'s reflection after Mass is a beautiful post that made me think...

Preemie Talk in Cyberspace, #2

I feel so fortunate to have stumbled upon the blog of a neonatologist and I find this discussion on the value of life at 24 weeks gestation vs. 8 years of age so thought-provoking!

I was so comforted by Shannon's advice on potty-training and I hope some of you are too.

This new, fabulous site is perfect for helping friends and families coordinate their visits/support when a loved one is in the hospital... online scheduling... brilliant!

I love these recommendations for answers to "combat" arguments we often hear from those in favor of abortions. Actually, I really like the entire American Life League website.

Know of any other links that may be interesting and relevant to the readers here? Email me at:
micropreemies (at) yahoo (dot) com!

Preemie Talk in Cyberspace, #1

I am utterly fascinated with this view on keeping very premature babies alive...

I wish I could find more capable knitters to whip up a few of these hats.

Since I'm far more adept at crocheting than knitting, I might try my hand at a few holiday preemie hats. How cute are those?

Someday, I think I would love to volunteer as a baby cuddler.

I think the women who provide these beautiful burial buntings to grieving parents are performing a wonderful ministry and I admire their strength. I don't know that I'd be able to complete the project...

Know of some other great preemie articles or projects? Send them my way! I'd love to share them.