Archive for the ‘my family’ Category

Tomorrow is the first day of school for Addie and Ian. Addie is starting Kindergarten, and to be honest, I can’t tell if I am completely freaked out, desperately sad or in complete denial that I have a child old enough for public school. But underneath all that, I am actually excited to see my baby moving up in the world.  But mostly  because she is really excited about moving up in the world. She’s been talking about it all summer, and has been losing sleep over what her teacher will look like, where her class will be and what friends she’ll meet. There has been the typical nervousness too, and so to make things extra special we decided to put on a fancy schmancy “Before School Dinner.” I got the idea from Nie Nie’s  blog post 2 years ago, and I thought it was such a great way to get everyone involved in the celebration of starting a new school year. And with Ian starting pre-school as well, it seemed the perfect timing.

So Saturday night I sat them down to help me plan.

Me: For your back to school dinner, Dad and I are going to make you your favorite dinner. You can pick whatever you want! What’ll it be?

I’m thinking they’ll pick like homemade pizza, chocolate cake or mac and cheese. Something they actually eat 100% of the time.

Ian: (without hesitation) Green eggs and ham!

Me: (wondering if I even could figure out how to make it) Are you sure? What about homemade meatballs, or hamburgers? Maybe fancy cut french fries?

Addie and Ian: Green eggs and Ham!!!!!

But then I got to thinking: That’s actually kind of a brilliant idea for a back to school dinner! You know, school really is about just learning to try new things, reading good books and have fun in the process. Perfect! A (very loosely) themed Dr. Suess dinner.

So, considering we put it together in about an hour, there wasn’t anything too elaborate here. But it was a lot of fun.

The kids came up with the menu for the most part. I added in this theme, which we’ll keep trying to memorize through the school year.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”

Our kitchen is all very white at the moment…and nice clean slate for when I can start decorating…but this garland from Bonne Nouvelle gave just the perfect color splash.

But the real triumph, was the green eggs and ham. I know, I know. They look very…um….not pretty. But since when were green eggs and ham supposed to look appetizing? Ken made Mont Saint Michelle style eggs (think puffy omelette’s with German pancake flavor) and added green food coloring. And the ham was topped with a green brown-sugar glaze. They were delicious and to be perfectly honest, they were a hit.

And of course, there was real food for the adults. Fresh garden veggies….delicious.

We spent a bit of time letting them each tell the table what they were most excited about and what they thought they were going to learn this year. We even had an after dinner ball complete with capes and wooden stick horses for escorts. Letting the kids pick the party events was such a blast.

But all in all, it was the first of what will be a very fun tradition for the kids. It put me in the right mood too, considering that I’m most likely going to cry my way home from taking Addie to her first day. There is something about those “firsts” that is that interesting mix of wonderful and meloncholy. I guess that is where the word “sentimental” fits best.

We’ve been so lucky to have a garden this year. Our yard was, well, in ruins when we purchased it. And with a little love, we (well, my strong and burly husband) were able to knock out a few mangly briars and dead trees to reveal a once-upon-a-time-this-was-a-garden area. The children have had so much fun watching their seeds grow into edible treats. Garden’s are magic for kids. And to me, it’s like watching my own children grow.

Granted, we didn’t start the cherries from seed. But we brought a rather untamed one back to life. Oh, they’re yummy!

But there’s more growing than just snap peas and cherries here. Grown garden, grow.

Hello!

Sorry for the unannounced Blog break…we went on a very much needed vacation. Visiting family, and traveling to Disneyland for the first time with the kids. In fact, they had no idea we were going, and didn’t find out until they got on the shuttle from the hotel. It really pays to have children that can’t read signs yet.  Vacations are always good, and it’s nice to be completely unplugged with the people you love the most.

We enjoyed sandy beaches:

Watched as the kids enjoyed their first trip to the Happiest Place on Earth, while I was once again inspired that a pencil drawing of a mouse can transform the world:

Enjoyed yummy California fruit:

And lovely Farmer’s Markets:

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer. I’ll be back next week!

We have a tradition in our family that sort of just happened by accident. When the babies turn 1 they are initiated into the world of chocolate. Ok, if you were to ask my husband, he’d whisper so that I can’t hear and tell you he’s been sneaking licks of cocoa since solid food started. But since I don’t know that, the first birthday is a really fun moment.

Ella has never seen a cupcake before cross her high chair tray.

“Why are they taking pictures? This is no different than green beans and Cherrios!”

“Oh, wait. This is SO not green beans and Cherrios!”

“This is something else. What is this stuff?”

“Oh Ya. I’m sold. Being 1 is going to be so great.”

“Oh Ya, Baby! Chocolate here I come!”

*Note to overly cautious parents: we don’t feed our babies chocolate for breakfast. Just birthdays. Well, if you are my husband, for dinner when mom’s not looking. No worries.

Flowers in her hair has become her new thing. We moved into a yard with all sorts of magical wild flowers and ‘weeds’ that we continue to discover. Good thing we enjoyed them yesterday before today’s snow storm. Yes….snow storm. Please send your condolences.

-Butter and Milk-

-royal bouquet-

-she stands-

-bedtime artwork-

-my favorite smell-

-true love-

-toes feel everything-

-always together-

Theses three sets of chubby cheeks make me a mother this Mother’s Day.

I can’t think of a better gift.

And if you haven’t seen it already, this video simply made my mother’s day. This sweet soul inspires us all to live up to the calling of Motherhood.

May your weekend be full of many snuggles and hugs…to and from mothers and children of all ages!

Happy Mother’s Day!

This picture took like all year and at least 107 tries. How hard is it for you to get a family picture?

Ten months beautiful.

Ten months yummy.

Ten months divine.

We moved in about a month ago, and the very first thing we did was put in a tree swing in the back. Well, not we exactly….my monkey husband who climbed 30 feet up a tree and even chopped off a huge limb (in his dress shirt and slacks mind you….it was that urgent!) to give the rope maximum swinging power. My kids have spent hours on this thing. It reminds me of this print, but with much more action.  And it makes me so happy to see them swinging up to the sky without a care in the world. And somehow when I watch, I remember my carefree moments as a child, and realize that they aren’t so far away. Better yet, they can still be had….mixed with the typical mothering-worries of course….but there are so many moments of bliss in every day.  I am thankful for reminders from a tree swing.