Yeah, those are Halloween paper plates. Don't hate, it's what we had on hand. Sheesh.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Get Us Out From Under, Wonder Woman...
It's not Sarah's birthday today, but when it is, we'll be in Virginia and I have no interest in attempting to create a requested specialty cake for a birthday girl in a kitchen that isn't my own. So today we sang Happy Birthday and ate some Wonder Woman cake. It was just a taste of what's to come in just 9 days, when my youngest turns five. Yowsa. FIVE.
Yeah, those are Halloween paper plates. Don't hate, it's what we had on hand. Sheesh.
Yeah, those are Halloween paper plates. Don't hate, it's what we had on hand. Sheesh.
Art in the Garden
Something died in one of the rain barrels Jeremiah and I made last spring. I'd been noticing a bad smell when I watered from that one, until it became a full-blown stench and then, when it finally eclipsed bong water in wretchedness, it dawned on me that I was smelling decomposition. So, I had no choice but to do what I needed to anyway, dump the barrel. They both needed a good hosing out, as I'd fallen off the schedule of throwing in the mosquito larvae killing doughnuts and things were sort of out of hand out there.
As Jeremiah and I aborted thousands of unborn mosquitoes, I decided it was time to do something more interesting with the plain, gray, BRUTE barrels I had accidentally placed in focal points of my garden. Then, I decided this improvement should be left to the children. Mostly. When they left for the beach I sanded and primed the barrels (now mosquito and carrion-free) and then I added a field of blue. Now the girls have returned to us, and today was a beautiful day, made right for barrel-painting. Here are a lot of photos of the artists and their work.
As Jeremiah and I aborted thousands of unborn mosquitoes, I decided it was time to do something more interesting with the plain, gray, BRUTE barrels I had accidentally placed in focal points of my garden. Then, I decided this improvement should be left to the children. Mostly. When they left for the beach I sanded and primed the barrels (now mosquito and carrion-free) and then I added a field of blue. Now the girls have returned to us, and today was a beautiful day, made right for barrel-painting. Here are a lot of photos of the artists and their work.
Kate & Sarah Vacation Sans Parents
The girls are home! We missed them, but we had a relaxing week. Here are a few shots of what they were doing while we were enjoying some peace and quiet.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
We're Starting to Get the Hang of This
We miss the girls. Yesterday was fine until it was time to go home, and I didn't get to go pick the kids up. That time of day is often more stressful than my entire workday. Sometimes they're fighting with each other, or just petulant for no clear reason. They don't want to do this or that, but they do want to whine. One day last week, when I told Sarah what I'd made her for dinner, she wept inconsolably until I just sent her to her room. Sometimes they're king-ka-maya-maya adorable, though. Often. So, just going home to a quiet house was a bit of a downer.
However, I had some quiet time, which is rare. Then Jeremiah came home and we celebrated the fact that we could just, go for a walk at 7PM instead of the usual "winding down" ruckus in which we must engage, by going for a walk.
Much to our delight, the new Oakhurst Market has finally opened! Just down the road from us, less than half a mile away (oh-oh-oh-wuh, it's just a, it's just a...) is a market that sells exciting meats, cheeses, local veggies and various baked goods as well as ice cream! Local milk, local yogurt, and some well-traveled beers and wines. After chatting with all the neighbors we bumped into there, we picked up a Pine Street chorizo salami and some ice cream we'd never seen before and rushed home before our dessert could melt. Then, we made a caprese salad with basil and tomatoes from our very own garden, picked moments before going on the plate, and mozzarella cheese we'd gotten at the Decatur Farmer's Market. It all was a mighty fine dinner that required no application of heat. All that deliciousness coupled with the fact we were able to Skype with the girls earlier, made for a great evening. Not bad for a school night.
However, I had some quiet time, which is rare. Then Jeremiah came home and we celebrated the fact that we could just, go for a walk at 7PM instead of the usual "winding down" ruckus in which we must engage, by going for a walk.
Much to our delight, the new Oakhurst Market has finally opened! Just down the road from us, less than half a mile away (oh-oh-oh-wuh, it's just a, it's just a...) is a market that sells exciting meats, cheeses, local veggies and various baked goods as well as ice cream! Local milk, local yogurt, and some well-traveled beers and wines. After chatting with all the neighbors we bumped into there, we picked up a Pine Street chorizo salami and some ice cream we'd never seen before and rushed home before our dessert could melt. Then, we made a caprese salad with basil and tomatoes from our very own garden, picked moments before going on the plate, and mozzarella cheese we'd gotten at the Decatur Farmer's Market. It all was a mighty fine dinner that required no application of heat. All that deliciousness coupled with the fact we were able to Skype with the girls earlier, made for a great evening. Not bad for a school night.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Saturday, July 09, 2011
That Aint Right
Today the kids left for the beach with Steve and Joy. They were all hugs and kisses when they got up this morning (at 6AM) but when that car pulled into the driveway, Kate stopped mid-sentence and said "Gotta go" and ran out of the room. Sarah was waiting for them outside, and actually had herself all buckled up and ready to roll without even kissing me goodbye. I kept a stiff upper lip.
So today was our first day of freedom from kids! Whoooooo-hoo, party! We...let's see here...we got adjusted, hit a couple farmers markets, had a training session with the dogs, cleaned the kitchen and the girls' bedroom, did some laundry... Yes, it's been a non-stop throw down. Here is what our children are doing now:
And here's what we've been doing this afternoon:
Next, we'll go feed Steve and Joy's dogs and pick my bike up from the shop where it spent an entire week getting a tune-up. We did decide we'd go out to eat. And we have been cussing loudly right in the middle of the kitchen a lot. Well, I have, anyway; it's fun!
So today was our first day of freedom from kids! Whoooooo-hoo, party! We...let's see here...we got adjusted, hit a couple farmers markets, had a training session with the dogs, cleaned the kitchen and the girls' bedroom, did some laundry... Yes, it's been a non-stop throw down. Here is what our children are doing now:
And here's what we've been doing this afternoon:
Next, we'll go feed Steve and Joy's dogs and pick my bike up from the shop where it spent an entire week getting a tune-up. We did decide we'd go out to eat. And we have been cussing loudly right in the middle of the kitchen a lot. Well, I have, anyway; it's fun!
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
The Countdown
This Saturday Steve and Joy will take my children with them to the beach for an entire week. This will be the first time we've been away from Kate and Sarah for this long. I know a lot of parents for whom this sort of thing is old hat and they unanimously assure me that this is a blessed event about which I should be fully giddy. While I am looking forward to the time alone with my husband (who's that guy in my house? He's kinda cute...), I will miss my girls an awful lot. So I've been vacillating between making ambitious plans and feeling wistful.
Meanwhile, Kate and Sarah are beside themselves with excitement and are counting the hours until they launch. We will probably begin setting things aside to pack this evening. Sarah is very concerned that I will miss her far too much, and end up crying all week. Yesterday she explained to me that she will leave Piggy, with whom she sleeps every night, here with me, so that I can sleep with her and if I begin to miss Sarah too much, I can just kiss Piggy.
Monday evening, as we sat with Steve and Joy and the girls at the dinner table, toasting the birth of our nation, Kate demanded the floor. "Quiet please! Quiet please!" she said, holding her hands up in the air to silence our prattle. "I have something to say." We'd just taught the girls the Interrupting Cow knock knock joke, so it took poor Kate a few attempts to speak without us mooing at her. "First, I apologize for interrupting your conversation. I just wanted to say that I am very excited about next week and, I wanted to say, Aunt Jo Jo and Uncle Steve, thank you for inviting me to go to the beach with you." That's right. That's my kid right there. Never mind that she'd been in time-out just an hour earlier for disobeying me, now she was a super star. Between leaving me Piggy and being gracious (un-coached), those girls are just trying to make me not want them to go. They're tricky that way.
Meanwhile, Kate and Sarah are beside themselves with excitement and are counting the hours until they launch. We will probably begin setting things aside to pack this evening. Sarah is very concerned that I will miss her far too much, and end up crying all week. Yesterday she explained to me that she will leave Piggy, with whom she sleeps every night, here with me, so that I can sleep with her and if I begin to miss Sarah too much, I can just kiss Piggy.
Monday evening, as we sat with Steve and Joy and the girls at the dinner table, toasting the birth of our nation, Kate demanded the floor. "Quiet please! Quiet please!" she said, holding her hands up in the air to silence our prattle. "I have something to say." We'd just taught the girls the Interrupting Cow knock knock joke, so it took poor Kate a few attempts to speak without us mooing at her. "First, I apologize for interrupting your conversation. I just wanted to say that I am very excited about next week and, I wanted to say, Aunt Jo Jo and Uncle Steve, thank you for inviting me to go to the beach with you." That's right. That's my kid right there. Never mind that she'd been in time-out just an hour earlier for disobeying me, now she was a super star. Between leaving me Piggy and being gracious (un-coached), those girls are just trying to make me not want them to go. They're tricky that way.
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