JUNE 2008
06.27.08 | DINNER ON THE DECK
Here's another of my submissions to the food group on flickr.
And here's Soni taking a very big bite!
I've gotta make it short today. I'm running around getting ready for a fun weekend. I'll see you back here on Tuesday. Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
06.26.08 | FUN FOR NOTHIN': A LEMONADE STAND
Have you seen Sew Liberated's new photo group at flickr called “Fun for Nothin'?” The idea is that it shouldn't take a lot of money to help your kids have fun. A little imagination and energy go a lot further than a bunch of expensive toys. I love this concept, and the photos over at the flickr group are just great.
Our form of “Fun for Nothin'” the other day was a good old-fashioned lemonade stand. I knew the kids would enjoy it, but I didn't realize how many great life skills it would help teach, including counting money, making change, customer service, cleanliness around food, taking turns and responsibility.
In order to bolster business, I made a some phone calls to a few of our friends in the neighborhood, and soon we had a whole group of neighbors hanging out on our lawn in the afternoon sunshine. We even met a few new neighbors who have little kids, so that was awesome.
The kids made $5 on the venture and I donated the $2 I had given them as change to start, so they made a total of $7, or $3.34 each. Not bad at all.
06.25.08 | SIX
This weekend, my twins will turn six. Six? When the heck did that happen? Over the past six years, I suppose.
This is newborn Ani, looking for all the world like a middle-aged businessman, ready to pick up her tiny briefcase and ride the bus to work.
Ani was happy as a clam to come out of the womb. She'd been squished in there by her bigger twin, and was more than ready to be on the outside and nurse like a maniac.
Bryni, on the other hand, was not so happy to enter the real world. She held this scowl for the first I-don't-really-remember-how-long, and just seemed generally unhappy to be alive. She sure was cute though. And she looked like my momma, which made me very happy.
And here's our Sonja, the best big sister in the whole wide world. For a few days, she called both the babies “B,” short for Bryni I guess. I remember her looking back and forth from each one to the other, checking on them to make sure they were okay. Tucking blankets around their chins and bringing me diaper after diaper after diaper.
I can't believe that eight months before this day, I thought to myself, “Gee, Sonja's getting really BIG now. I guess it's time to make her a sibling.” I was insane.
With a lot of food and a lot of love and a little mental anguish, our babies grew...
and grew.
Always curious, always cute and always ready to pose for a photo.
And always the best of friends. Or mortal enemies. Depending on the moment.
I remember so clearly the instant I saw those two tiny heads on the ultrasound screen. “Yikes,” I thought. “This is going to be interesting.” I had no idea.
No idea how draining it would be to nurse two while chasing after a two-year-old. No idea how gorgeous these children would be. No idea how much they would fight with each other. And no idea how they would fill my heart to overflowing every single day.
06.24.08 | FRATERNAL TWIN CRAYON ROLLS
I made these crayon rolls for my twin great-nephew and great-niece. They were so easy and fun to make! Seriously, you have to try this.
I've seen them all over the craft blogosphere and flickr. I looked at a lot of different tutorials and ended up using this one at Skip to My Lou.
I followed it step-by-step, except that I omitted the interfacing. I'll admit it — I'm a little afraid of interfacing. I know I'll try it someday, but these really came out fine without it.
Since I used eight jumbo crayons, I changed the dimensions a bit. For mine I used three pieces of fabric (one of one type and two of the other), all 6" x 12 1/2". I meant to add rickrack to the “girl” crayon roll, but forgot. Oh well. I made each of my pockets 1 1/2 " wide.
Here is Eleanor's.
And here is Brody's.
I'm planning to make another “girl” crayon roll for another little lady we know. And, eventually I'll make some mega colored pencil rolls for my girls. Stay tuned...
06.23.08 | TWELVE
Eric and I celebrated our twelfth wedding anniversary yesterday. He brought me these gorgeous roses, and for the first time ever, we hired a “real” babysitter. It was so great.
We went out for dinner, took a drive into the hills around Helena and strolled around the capital area. Oh, and then we went to Dairy Queen. And we also did a little shopping at Target. The perfect evening.
And here we are back in the early 90s. Yes, Eric did have hair back then. And yes, I had just one chin.
You know, I truly do love him more now than I did then.
It was so simple then: I just wanted to be with him ALL THE TIME. Snuggle, snuggle, laugh, laugh. Watch Star Trek. Skip class so we could snuggle. Snuggle some more. Drive to Seattle. Snuggle again. Laugh, fight, laugh, fight, snuggle. That was pretty much it.
Now it's so much more. There's still a lot of snuggling, and many laughs every day and, yes, a little fighting now and then. But there's so much more.
There's so much love and there are so many memories:
Him feeding baby Bryni with a cup when she wouldn't nurse because I was worried that she'd get nipple confusion.
Him leaping out of bed like Superman one night when I thought my water had broken.
Him leaping out of bed when Bryni stopped breathing.
Him saying this when I got into a fender-bender: “The car is not important. What's important is that you didn't harm one little hair on your head.”
Him working so hard so that I could stay home for eight years to raise my daughters.
Him becoming a bona fide hero to my girls. Beloved Daddy. Protector. Provider. Everything.
In 1996, I couldn't have imagined all that we would go through. It's been a wonderful ride, full of ups, downs and even a few sidewayses. It's been harder than I thought it would be, and infinitely more wonderful.
We haven't made a million dollars (yet), but in twelve years, we've built a happy home, a strong marriage and this bundle of little girl goodness:
Not bad. And we've only just begun.
06.21.08 | PART ONE: HOW MY GARDEN GROWS
Amazing what a little water and sunshine will do for plants. Who knew?
Here are some of the container flowers on the deck.
Here are the pretty white flowers in the front garden.
Here are the short — but robust — peas, also growing on the deck.
And here is the view up into a tree in the sparkly evening light.
PART TWO: BACK TO BAKING
It's not exactly the time of year I usually get the urge to bake, but for some reason, I've got it! So yesterday, I took the crew to our local health food store and stocked up on everything from vital wheat gluten to millet. (Don't worry, I don't know what they are, either.)
When we got home, the girls went outside to play with the neighborhood kids (the iris-destroyer among them), and I got to baking.
I made a double batch of granola from this recipe.
And bread from this recipe.
They both turned out quite delicious. This is the first bread that I've made in my bread machine that actually rose to the appropriate height. And the granola is just majorly tasty.
Gardening and baking — a weird but wonderful combo for the first day of summer.
06.19.08 | PART ONE: A MOSAIC IN THE ROUND
I can't believe what a slacker blogger I've been the last couple of days! Today Eric told me that it was June 19, and I was like no, it's the 16th! I guess I didn't think that time would pass if I didn't blog. Apparently it did. How annoying.
Anyway, today I'm posting an extra big blog to try to make up for it!
I hope you're all doing well and enjoying some summer sun. It's been nice here, and sunscreen has become the bane of my existence. Can't complain though (even though I just did). Life is good in the warm Montana sunshine.
I made the above mosaic from a few of my flickr faves. I went with a circular theme and thought it was kind of pretty.
I'm still pretty a-flick-ted with the flickr flick-ness, but I'm trying to cut back. Really I am.
PART TWO: A SUMMER DINNER
Here's a pic that I submitted to Juliette's food group on flickr. (Oops, flickr again.) I made this rice salad the other night with stuff I had hanging around: brown rice, olives, chickpeas, green onion, dried cranberries, roasted red peppers and roasted zucchini. I poured a light vinaigrette over it all, along with a little balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper of course.
I actually roasted the red pepper and zucchini myself, if you can believe that, and they came out pretty nicely. The zucchini kind of fell apart, but it was still quite tasty!
Here's a close-up in my pretty green bowl.
PART THREE: NOTHING LIKE A BABY
There is nothing like an adorable newborn baby to make me get a little productive with the ol' sewing machine. I met Alyssa and her baby boy last week at MOMS Club, and we had a shower for them this week, so I just had to make him these Chickpea bibs.
And since he barfed on me five times when held him at the park the other day, I made him this burp cloth. I know it will be useful.
06.16.08 | GARDENING WOES AND WOWS
First the woe: This beautiful white and yellow iris bloomed in our back garden the other morning much to the delight of my girls and me.
I assumed it was going to be purple, but it came out this luscious banana milkshake color and I couldn't have been more excited.
Believe it or not, a few hours later, a little girl from the neighborhood PICKED OFF THE PETALS! Four-year-olds! Erg!
But you know what? There will be more iris I'm sure. And I'm certain that our little neighbor girl is a sweet little cherub deep down. Sure she is.
And I kind of felt bad later about the mini-lecture I gave her. “Now Madison, Molly is very angry that you picked the petals off of her flower. Why did you do that?”
She had no good answer for me. It was probably because the flower was stunningly gorgeous and she's four. Good enough reasons I guess.
Now for the wow: Let's take a walk around the side of our home to the front garden that is faring a little better. I thought it looked so lovely in the evening light with the sprinkler gently showering it.
And water droplets are always gorgeous in my opinion.
Ah, the woes and the wows of gardening. I hope you're having more wows than woes. I sure am.
06.15.08 | A HAPPY FATHER'S DAY
To my Eric.
And to our dads.
06.14.08 | AN EVENING GAME OF TAG
The girls were so restless after several days of rain that we forced them outside the other night even though it was already past their bedtime.
They protested and fussed, and as you can see, had a terrible time in the cold, cruel outdoors.
I love seeing them play together. They don't know how lucky they are to have their sisters.
This one's a bit of a goofball.
Pure silly-ness — it's good for the soul.
06.12.08 | I'M GETTING THERE
To where am I getting? Ripple wonderland of course. Just 14 or so ripples to go. Keeping the colors balanced has been a nightmare, and I don't think I've quite succeeded, but overall I like it a lot, and am withholding final judgment until I see it complete. It's a fun process at the very least.
And here it is draped over the arm of the couch pretending like it's done.
06.11.08 | FIELD OF DREAMS
There is a field near our home that has been designated a city park for almost 20 years.
This is how it looks today. It's beautiful, but it's not yet a park.
We got a survey in the mail recently asking what we would like to see happen to the piece of land.
In our dreams, there will someday be playground equipment, a large grassy area where we can play Frisbee, maybe even bathrooms and a drinking fountain.
But you know what? It's a pretty great place now, just the way it is, full of luscious grasses, gopher holes and even a few prickly pear cactus. I guess I'd like for it to be a “real” park someday, but I really can't complain.
It was actually my idea to take this little walk last night. “Just a walk around the block,” I said to Eric. “I don't want to be out there until 9 o'clock.”
I know how my husband can be. A little evening walk can turn into a major expedition where we end up high in the mountains wishing we'd brought water and sustenance and maybe even the car.
So about a half an hour after we'd left, I told Eric I wanted to head back. “What do you mean?” he said. “You said we have until 9 o'clock.”
Funny guy. Lucky for me the weather was on my side: it was time to go home.
This was what the sky looked like at the beginning of our trek.
And this was how it looked toward the end.
So we gathered together, said good-bye to the field of dreams and headed home.
06.10.08 | A FATHER'S DAY POST, A LITTLE EARLY
Father's Day is still a half a week away, but I couldn't resist sharing these photos and some of Ani's sweet thoughts about her Daddy.
The other day I was instant-messaging Eric, and Ani wanted to join in.
“Tell Daddy this,” she said.
“I think Daddy's my best friend when I grow up.”
“I love the shorts he wears.”
“And I love his hair.”
“I love potatoes, and my Daddy does too.”
“And the best is that he loves me.”
He sure does.
06.09.08 | FARMERS MARKET
On Saturday morning, we ventured out to our local Farmers Market. We always get there too late to get the good stuff, and c'mon people, it's June in Montana, there's not much to get yet.
But it's always fun to see the people, and smell the Kettle corn, and just absorb the funky vibe.
06.08.08 | RABBLE ROUSERS
Being an at-home mom, I feel a lot of pressure (applied only by myself) to craft with my kids. I have the time, for heaven's sake, and aren't I supposed to enjoy it? Other moms seem to enjoy it. The kids certainly enjoy it. And sure, I enjoy it too. Kind of.
I'm one of those moms who doesn't like a lot of mess, if you know what I mean. That doesn't mean that we don't have a lot of mess, it just means that it is kind of slowly driving me insane.
I think I've done pretty well, considering my aversion to mess, with allowing my kids to craft to their little hearts' content, though, and I definitely provide them with the materials and space to create things. I don't often “lead crafty endeavors” with them, though, and this fact has lead to some motherly guilt over the years.
But once in awhile I stumble upon a project that I think I can face. It needs to have not-too-many materials and not-too-many steps and create not-too-much mess. Those are my requirements, gol-durnit! Lucky for all of us, this butterfly project that I found on Sycamore Stirrings via The Crafty Crow totally fit the bill.
My kids absolutely loved this project! They loved it so much that they've made about 47 butterflies over the past week. A whole rabble. (That's the right term. Seriously. Google it.)
So try it out with your kids. If you want to. And if you're up for a medium amount of mess. But don't feel guilty if you're not.
06.07.08 | RIPPLES AND RAINBOWS
Here is the progress I've made on my crocheted ripple afghan. It's been surprising to me just how difficult “random” can be! I spend the entire time that I'm working on each ripple debating which color to use next. It's kind of aggravating and awesome all at the same time.
And here is a rainbow that arched over our neighborhood the other night. What a perfect metaphor for life: Without both sun and rain, we can't experience one of nature's most beautiful spectacles.
And here is a mosaic that I made with some of my flickr favorites. I had no idea what an affinity I had for rainbow-y bright colors until I started favorite-ing photos in flickr. Trust me when I tell you that this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my rainbow-y faves.
The center photo in this mosaic is called “Little Painter Molly.” I found her while playing the flickr game last week, and I've sort of decided to make her my mascot.
I love what soulemama (and many others) say about the fact that, indeed, we are all artists. Every single one of us. Picasso said that all children are artists, and that we just have to remember to be artists as adults. I've been remembering my inner artist these days. And nurturing her.
Whether I write, or take photos, or sing with my choir, or color at the table with my girls, I am an artist. And so are you.
06.06.08 | THE FOOD GROUP DAY 6: MONT-MEX COOKING
By my two, and only, June Food Group posts, you might think that we only eat Mexican-style food around here. And notice I say “Mexican-style,” because I know that what we make isn't truly “Mexican” by any measure. In fact we should probably call it Mont-Mex since it's as Mexican as this Montana girl can get!
We don't eat Mont-Mex all the time, but when we do, we really enjoy the chipotle sauce that you see above (just before it was blended into delicious-ness). I got the recipe in our local newspaper in a food column by Mariela Petroski.
Mariela is a Helenan who almost made it onto the show “The Next Food Network Star.” I couldn't find the exact recipe online, but here is another one of her recipes on our newspaper's website.
I've written the recipe for the chipotle sauce down, but now I just have it in my brain and I'll just give it to you like I make it: In a food processor (I use the mini food pro seen above), combine three large spoonfuls of mayonnaise, one large spoonful of sour cream, a big splash of olive oil, a handful of cilantro, three or four chipotle peppers in adobe sauce (they come in little cans), a few cloves of garlic, a little salt and a bunch of pepper. Blend.
Last night, to go with the chipotle sauce, I made these no-meat enchiladas. I filled them with refried black beans, brown rice, chickpeas and a little sour cream. I didn't show you the picture of them being built because, well, you can imagine how refried black beans look when they're smeared on a tortilla.
I topped them with cilantro, green onion and cheddar cheese, and then baked them at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. They weren't knock-you-over-dead delicious, but they were definitely a good weekday meal for the fam.
Here is an enchilada with a few toppings and the ever-present chipotle sauce. Yum...
06.05.08 | COLOR+COLOR
I've fallen in love with happythings' color+color group on flickr today. The color combo for this week is yellow and purple. I can't believe that I'm so late to this party. The mosaics that happythings creates from each week's submissions are nothing short of amazing. I could look at them all day long. And, uh, I kind of did today...
And just in case you weren't convinced by my other posts, here is another photo of one of my daughters holding a worm.
Ani named this worm “Oh” and said she could talk to him. “What's that Oh?,” she said as she held him up to her ear. My little Ani loves all creatures, and I love that about her.
06.04.08 | CONTAINER GARDEN IN THE RAIN
I worked on my little deck container garden last night. Here are the flowers I put on the table getting soaked in this morning's rainstorm.
My container garden has been sorely neglected these last few weeks, and most of the things we planted back in March are dead sadly. But last night I replanted some peas, lettuce, spinach and tomatoes, and I put these pretty flowers in pots. It was good for my soul to beautify this little corner of my world.
Now, mind you, our deck isn't big or anything, but this is what I'm calling the “garden area.” Hopefully peas will grow up that trellis, and spinach and lettuce will overflow out of the other long container. The round pots are filled with flowers. I'm hoping to grow some herbs here as well.
This is the “eating area” obviously, and we have the other chair to pull up for our fifth family member.
Speaking of our youngest daughter, Bryni lost her first tooth yesterday. It had hung on by a single disgusting thread for about a week, and she finally just yanked it out.
She doesn't look much different because her permanent tooth had already grown into that spot. But you moms know how I feel — my youngest child lost a baby tooth. *sigh*
06.03.08 | THE FOOD GROUP DAY 3: FISH TACOS
When I first heard of “fish tacos” many years ago, the name totally grossed me out. I don't know why, but a “fish taco” just didn't sound yummy. Boy was I wrong.
I grilled up some fillets last night, and we had these fish tacos with corn tortillas, brown rice, chickpeas, tomatoes, olives, cucumber, green onion, cilantro and a yummy chipotle sauce. They were goo-ood.
PART TWO: YES WE CAN
I'm so excited that Montana was the state to push Barack Obama over the edge in the delegate count tonight! Here's my buddy Barack waving to me at the Great Falls rally last Friday.
Okay, maybe he wasn't waving to me exactly. But he was waving in my general direction...
06.02.08 | BLOOMING
I took these successive pictures of one limb of our flowering tree every few days or so this spring. Sadly, the blossoms are already gone now, having fallen victim to the spring winds and rain. The girls stood under the tree the other day and pretended it was snowing, as white petals fell around them. It was magical.
Speaking of magical and speaking of blooming, here's my Sonja at her last violin recital of the year. She played Minuet III beautifully, and we were very proud of her.
