Happy Birthday, Michael!

Today is Michael’s something-somethingth birthday! 

We celebrated by sending him to Mass by himself this morning, taking a morning bike ride, going swimming, and playing video games.  Well, Michael played video games – he somehow figured out how to hook up his Nintendo games to our projector, so he could show the kids Super Mario.  He enjoyed it a bunch.  So did they. 

[You may be asking yourself, “How is it that Michael has his Nintendo and games, when Monica is such a freak about getting rid of stuff?”  I’m asking myself the same thing, but it’s Michael’s birthday, so I’m not going to ask him that today.  He’ll probably site the used-in-the-last-6-months clause, though.  And since he used it today, he’s right.]

I made this for his birthday dinner.  It was good.  Michael likes bacon.  And burgers.  When this recipe appeared on the blog last week, I knew that it was what he wanted for his birthday dinner. 

I made this for his birthday cake.  Also good.  But why is some of the recipe in cups and some in grams and some in milliliters?  Mysterious.  I doesn’t make any difference to the taste, though.  I will confess, my creation did NOT look like the picture on the recipe.  

We managed to eat a whole bunch of it despite its looks.

My local sister and brother-in-law stopped in to help later in the evening, too.

I’m so glad that Michael was born!  Happy Birthday, My Love!

Staycation day 4

Today is the last day of staycation, and we’re going to miss Michael when he goes back to work! 

Saturday, day 4 of staycation, was a home day.  Michael took the kids for a bike ride to the park in the morning.  I had taken the opportunity of the kids waking up late to take a morning walk on my own instead of a bike ride – mix things up a bit.  I didn’t go to the park because I was making jam.  Strawberry rhubarb and orange rhubarb.  And canning it.  I recently came upon this book, and have really been having some fun with it.  I made the pickled asparagus earlier in staycation, and then these jams.  Mmmm.  In theory I’d like to save them for when the weather gets dark and cold again, but I’m not sure that’s going to happen.  Everyone likes the jam so much that it might not last us the next few weeks. 

The rest of the family enjoyed the park, though, and the dire predictions of rain for the day didn’t come true.  Just shows you can’t trust the weather.  There was more moving of compost, as well. 

Michael and the kids made strawberry rhubarb pie in the afternoon.  I forgot to take pictures, but they all enjoyed it.  I had gotten some mini pie pans to use with the kids, so they each got to make a mini pie.  They’re really 2-serving pies, though, which we had to explain.  While they made pie, I sewed a new summer purse for myself:

using this tutorial.  It was pretty easy and quick.  We all hung out in the dining room together again, working on our various projects and enjoying our family. 

We had more salmon for dinner, although the friends who were supposed to come over ended up getting sick and not being able to come.  The girls especially are really enjoying salmon this year.  It’s quite cute.  We ate their pie for dessert, and it was a hit with everyone but Naomi, who doesn’t care for cooked fruit.  She had chocolate instead.

Rush hour explained

Naomi has carefully explained to Simeon that “rush hour” means the time when cars can go fast on the freeway, since there aren’t many cars.  When there are lots of cars, it’s called…I can’t remember the whole name, but “traffical hour” is in there. 

Simeon has picked this up quite easily, and will happily tell Naomi, “It’s rush hour, Naomi!” as we’re sailing down the freeway. 

It’s too cute to disabuse either of them of this idea.  Besides, it does make more sense their way.

Staycation Day 3

was yesterday.  Despite the forecast for RAIN, RAIN, RAIN, both Thursday and Friday had a significant amount of sun.  And only a small amount of rain.  So we went to the farmer’s market downtown and had some good fun.  Salmon, rhubarb, strawberries, beef jerky (one of these things is not like the others…).  The salmon is Copper River salmon, which only has a season of about three weeks and is totally delicious – more so even than other salmon.  It always comes around Michael’s birthday, which he doesn’t mind.  In the market is a fishmonger where they throw the fish, and we got to see our salmon thrown.  The kids were most impressed.  

Then we went and picked up the rest of the straw for our garden.  More on that in a different post.  I’m trying out a different technique.  Then we came home and had Quiet Time and proceeded to spend most of the afternoon outside enjoying the beautiful weather.  And spreading more compost, since the pile is depleted, but still there.  We’re nearly done, though, and I got a whole bunch of stuff planted Thursday!  More to go, but this spring has been so cold that it hasn’t seemed like a good idea to try putting things out early. 

Yesterday evening we had friends over to help us eat some of the salmon.  That was a lot of fun, and the kids all heartily enjoyed the salmon.  (I was realizing that, since I grew up in Texas, I hadn’t had salmon until much later in life.  It’s just not a Texas fish.)  It was great to see our friends – they are a lot of fun, and our kids do well together, too.   Prepping dinner on a weeknight with Michael home is really a breeze, particularly if he’s grilling most of the food. 

The kids are definitely enjoying long hours of each day spent outdoors.  Naomi spent quite a while practicing biking uphill – the large hill next to our house – yesterday.  And then she spent some time practicing biking up our driveway, which is even steeper.  The girls also cleaned off the plastic table for Michael, which involved the hose, so was totally fun.  Simeon did a lot of digging, whether in the compost bed or in the hole in the garden that I let them make, he didn’t care much.  Needless to say, he was pretty dirty by the end of the day – the sign of time well spent, as far as he’s concerned.

Staycation continues to be fun and both productive and relaxing. 

Staycation Day 2

Michael here.  I don’t know if we’ll keep this up daily, but here’s a quick note on day 2: The Day of Three Contractors.

First, the Door Works mechanic arrived to install a garage door opener for our garage:

I think I’ve wanted a garage door opener for that garage since we moved in, and we started the project of getting electricity out to the garage almost 2 years ago (July ‘09).  I was very happy to finally see the garage door opening on its own this morning.

While the mechanic was at work, the second contractor arrived: well, a deliveryman, actually, with 3 cubic yards of compost for our garden.  The kids were delighted to see it dumped on our front walk and spent hours playing king of the mountain on a pile of pit-washed dairy manure.  I reminded them what that pile actually was.  They told me that it was a tradition to jump on it anyway.

While we were shoveling, the third contractor arrived from Roto-Rooter.  Nothing was actually wrong: we just wanted to do preventative maintenance.  The cleaning went very well: he said the pipe looked great and will hopefully be good for many years.  He was fast, too: he came and went before the garage door mechanic was finished.

So, three contractors had come and gone by 11:00.  We spent the rest of the morning and afternoon working in the garden, taking compost to various spots, pulling weeds, chatting with the neighbors, and so forth.  The girls had their last choir rehearsal of the school year, and then dinner was provided by our favorite little Italian joint.  It was a golden day – the kids were happy to be playing out of doors, and we were happy to get so much done on our house!

Hannah on our modern age

At dinner tonight, we were discussing a particular pastry that the kids wanted to make.  They were distressed that we didn’t have a recipe for it, and Monica replied that we could certainly look up a recipe for it online.

Hannah remarked, “I’m glad we have a computer and don’t have to use our wits like people in Daddy’s time did.”

I couldn’t stop laughing – that quote works on so many levels.

Staycation Day 1

Michael’s taken some time off, and we’re staying home and doing things around our area.  And, to tell the truth, around the house.  Of course, the forecast is RAIN, RAIN, RAIN.  Oh, well.  Last week we had a whole bunch of nice weather, so I shouldn’t complain.

This morning, Michael took the kids to our local science museum.  They had a great time.  Lots of experiences to relate, funny stories to tell, and a butterfly landed on Simeon!  It sounded like a lot of fun, and they saw just about the whole museum.

I spent the morning creating a big mess.  And also some pickled asparagus. 

It looks a little scary, doesn’t it?  I’ll keep you posted on how it actually tastes.

This afternoon, after naps and quiet time, the kids and Michael did Dada’s legos, which is always a big treat.  It doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, it’s a whole lot of fun.  I think they played legos for two hours straight.  And while they did, I made a dress for Hannah.  We were all creating things together in the dining room, which made for a pleasant afternoon of family togetherness.

I’m optimistic that summer may actually come some day.  And when it does, Hannah will need some clothes.  Naomi gets lots of great hand-me-downs, so even though I’m sure I’ll buy and make things for her, I’m a bit more concerned about having some clothes for Hannah to wear.  She was highly enthusiastic about this dress, which was gratifying.  And it was a really simple pattern, so I put it together today!  I foresee that this will be a popular pattern for some more summer clothes…

Morning Bike Ride

Most mornings since the institution of morning bike ride in our household have not been rainy.  Some have been downright pretty.  If I had been on my game, I would have brought the camera along on one of those rides.  However, “on my game” is not an expression that can be used for me before…probably 9 a.m. (sometimes later), so I of course did not bring my camera on a sunny day.  I DID bring it on a non-rainy morning, though, so that you could see some of the fun.

Some of you may be asking yourselves:  “Isn’t Monica pregnant?  Like, 27 weeks pregnant?  Aren’t pregnant women supposed to avoid balance activities like biking?”  Yes, yes, and YES!  So here’s how we solve that dilemma:

It’s a recumbent tricycle.  I got it on craigslist last summer, and have really, really enjoyed it.  And you can see that we can attach the burly cart to the back for Sim, who rides a tricycle (but a kids’ one), so can’t keep up with the bigger bikes yet.

How thrilled is everyone to be going on a bike ride?  Naomi has a bell toy that she keeps in the garage, and she rings it as I back out the burly/trike combination.  This is something like the beeping that large trucks do when they’re backing up.  Naomi says it tells people that I’m coming.  On this particular ride, Sim brought along a maraca so he could join in the fun.

This one is the most enthusiastic biker every morning.  As long as we remember to put her hair in a low ponytail so that it doesn’t get all in her face.  Nothing so annoying as hair in your face as you bike!

Sim sometimes likes to get some running in beforehand, since it’s mostly fresh air for him, not so much exercise, since…

…he’s in the burly.  This particular morning, he still has a maraca so that he can provide musical diversion as we go up the hills.

Here’s my view for most of the ride.

Although, of course, sometimes they’re much farther up the road than I am.  I didn’t manage to get one of them standing on their pedals, but I’ll see what I can do sometime soon.  But the pink and purple with streamers really cracks me up.  Sim and I are much less pastel. 

Wetlands adventure

Last week we went over to the new wetlands that had been put in about a year ago at a local park. It was lots of fun.

It was chilly, and it had rained recently, so we were all bundled and booted. The hats weren’t really necessary, since it wasn’t really COLD, but Naomi wanted one to keep her hair back, and Simeon…just wanted one.

There are many fascinating things at the wetlands.

Some of them get into our shoes. Each of the kids had a shoe-emptying stop.

Naomi is our star dandelion picker this year. We go about and pick them so that they don’t go to seed (although we’ve fallen down on the job this week). She recently made $10 picking dandelions for the local aunt and uncle. They pay more per dandelion than we do, and didn’t realize what a very dedicated dandelion picker they’d hired. She was really impressed with the size of this one. We didn’t pick it, though. You know, take only pictures, leave only footprints.

Hannah brought her nature book and wanted to sketch.

I imagine that, once the small things that are planted on the perimeter grow up, a photo from this angle will look very different.

The kids all appreciated the logs placed strategically around.

You wouldn’t guess we’re in the middle of the city, would you?

Fallen logs = comfy nap spots.

Now, imagine lots and LOTS of duck pictures. Here’s just one, a representative of the ones the kids wanted me to take of every duck we saw. We saw more than 22 ducks (carefully documented by Hannah), so I’m not including all the pictures I took. Oh, and we also saw (and heard) a redwing blackbird. But the picture I took of him was not remotely close enough to show him in this format. We also saw a flicker, as well as the hole in a large snag (standing dead tree) that was probably its home. And there were all kinds of sparrows swooping and darting about.

Did I mention the kids enjoyed the logs?

The log climbing reminds me that Michael and the local aunt recently taught the children the Log Song.

They learned it while they were making the wood pile from the wood that was left after the cherry trees came down.

I had heard it vaguely sometime in the past, but hadn’t remembered it.

Now, thanks to Michael and my sister, I can hear it playing in my head as the children play on the logs.

“It’s log, it’s log, it’s big, it’s heavy, it’s wood!”

“Everyone wants a log. Come on and get your log.”

And Sim collected large pieces of gravel. Which I made him leave on the path before we went back to the car. You know, take only pictures, leave only footprints.

The kids were very interested in the wildlife.

And the logs.

It was gratifying to have them hold still to hear the redwing blackbird, or cheer when the swallows came swooping close to them, or notice small details of nature.

Nobody wanted to get in the car to go home, but we’ll get to go back again soon.

We had a great time there. It was pleasant and peaceful and natural and 8 minutes’ drive from our house.

Cute to hear with a 5-year-old lisp

“Is there any leftovew tandoowi chicken?”

Workday comparisons

My sister sent this link to me this week, and I cracked up at the questions – take a look when you need a laugh.  There are so many funny ones, I  can’t seem to pick a favorite. 

Biking

The girls are experimenting with standing up while biking.  It’s quite amusing to watch a little 5-year-old stand-up biking up the hill on a 12 inch pink bike with streamers.  Hannah is rapidly outgrowing her bike, which is all the more noticeable when she’s trying to bike standing up, because her legs can’t get all the way straight even when she’s standing.  Maybe a bike with gears is next…

Oven update

It’s working, thanks to the repairman who came this morning!  Whoohoo! 

Also, the kids really appreciated the 30 – 40 minutes of entertainment, and learned that, besides 2 kids, the repairman has 2 dogs, named Charlie and Lola.  They recommended this book to him, based on his dogs’ names.  And they probably got a whole lot more out of him, too, but I was not following the conversation in as much detail as they were. 

However, it’s definitely nice to have a functional oven, and I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking of all the things I can now bake.  Mmmm. 

What have you been reading?

We’ve been reading a bunch of the Gospel according to St. John, since it’s the Easter season.  We’ve done the road to Emmaus as well as a whole bunch of other stories.  Naomi was clearly considering this today as we had a snack, because she suddenly commented, “I bet if Jesus had said, “Amen, amen, I say to you,” his disciples would have recognized him.”

Things I’ve learned recently

1.  It’s not so great to have one’s oven stop working in the middle of a party…particularly in the middle of baking pies for that party.  (I had already learned that it wasn’t great to have an oven not working.  The party part I probably could have conjectured, but now I know it first-hand.  No need to try it out yourselves, folks!  It’s not fun.)

2.  One can warm up the oven sufficiently with the broiler (which was happily still working so that the chicken for the party could get cooked) to finish baking the pies.

3.  I wouldn’t recommend this as a regular method for baking pies.

4.  It’s annoying to have one’s oven out of commission for over a week.  Especially when it’s one’s new oven.

Here are some examples:

“Mom, can we have biscuits for breakfast?” 

“Sure…Wait!  No, sorry, oatmeal again.” 

OR:

Heck, I’m out of tortillas and bread.  That’s okay, I’ll make cornbread for…Darn, no I won’t.  Well, we don’t really NEED carbs, do we? 

OR: 

Roast chicken…requires the oven.  Okay, new menu plan for THAT night.

5.  Raspberry rhubarb pie is delicious, even when partially cooked in a normal way, taken out of the oven, and then cooked the rest of the way using the remaining heat from the broiler.  It’s probably EVEN BETTER when baked the proper way.  We’ll have to see.  Sometime soon.  I hope. 

6.  Bunnies don’t like their toenails clipped.  At all.

7.  I can clip bunny toenails, whether they like it or not. 

8.  Spring is good.  Okay, this isn’t really something I learned.  But I am appreciating it anew.  (Just ignore the weeds and enjoy the beautiful tulips and swiss chard.  That’s what we do.)

First Communion!

Today was Hannah’s  First Communion.  It was a joyful occasion – thank you to everyone who joined us in celebrating, as well as those who were with us in prayer.  Before Mass it was cloudy and a bit drippy out, but afterwards, the sun came out and it was gorgeous:

Hannah was dressed in a beautiful gown that Aunt Debbie had made for cousin Tricia’s First Communion years ago…Tricia’s graduating from college this month. 

MANY people complimented her on it, and she looked quite lovely.  I may be somewhat biased. 

Last night, as I was lying in bed and trying to go to sleep, I found myself thinking of how exactly to do the hairstyle we’d decided on.  At which point I told myself to GO TO SLEEP ALREADY!

I listened to myself, and I was able to pull off the hairstyle Hannah and I had discussed, thanks to the practice I’ve been getting with hairstyles recently.  Hannah, recognizing the price that beauty sometimes demands, said it was worth the pain (I’m not sure it was all that painful, but I think there were a couple of pulls) and the long time it took (which was about 10-15 minutes), because she really liked how it came out. 

Yesterday Hannah and I went for First Communion practice and to make flower baskets and banners to decorate the church for the occasion.  Each child made a banner for the end of his or her pew. 

Hot glue guns are fun!  Hannah’s banner has the Eucharist, an angel, and two of her favorite saints, Our Lady, Queen of All Saints, and St. Therese of Lisieux.  Also roses and a very lovely ribbon border that had roses on it.

We also had a great time with the flower arrangements.  Ours was made from flowers from our yard:  tulips, bluebells, and lilacs.  I don’t have a picture, but it was really quite pretty.

Fr. Daniel celebrated the Mass and Fr. Christopher preached, and  they both did a fantastic job of highlighting the importance of the Eucharist and our relationship with Jesus.  Fr. Daniel tends to emphasize how little he can relate to children, but he was really eloquent and not at all difficult to understand.  He told them that their Baptism day and their First Communion day are the two most important days of their lives because of the relationship they are building with Jesus, and that they should take care to nurture that relationship their whole lives.  Fr. Christopher preached on how we can easily miss things that we’re not expecting to see (because it was the reading about the disciples on the road to Emmaus), so we should expect to meet Jesus in the Eucharist, as well as in the people around us, so that we can see Him there.  It was a most beautiful Mass.

There were photographers taking family photos before the big event, so we’re hoping those came out.  Simeon had awakened early and was not impressed by most things this morning, so I don’t think he smiled for any of the pictures.  However, given his recent track record with “smiling,” we might be okay with that.  At any rate, maybe soon you’ll get to see a picture of all of us dressed up and all together, smiling or not. 

We had a celebratory gathering this afternoon.  No pictures were taken, but a good time was had by all.  Someone gave Hannah a book, though, so about 3/4 of the way through, she disappeared into her new book.

A couple of quotes from Hannah about the day:

“First Communion is like a birthday, only better, because you have Jesus inside of you.”

“I feel joyful and solemn.”

“I can hardly believe that I get to go receive the Eucharist EVERY TIME now!”

All in all, it was a wonderful day.  We are so blessed in our Faith and our family and our community, and are so happy to have Hannah as a communicant now!