Tuesday, July 14, 2009
J is home! J is home!
We survived the four days without him, and are sooo glad he's back. More on Bud's 4th birthday next time. Right now we have to get all of the furniture moved to the center of every room, and empty out all of the closets. The trim paintwork from the post-fire rehab didn't take (it's sticky), and they are doing all of the baseboards and some doors tomorrow. yeehaw.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Paint the Town
Yesterday morning we took a break from "normal" summer school to have an "art" morning. It began when Bud asked, "Hey, Mom, can we paint?" and I shocked everyone by saying "Yes!"
Although the easels were great fun, everyone ended up finger-painting. Wombles began that way, and had to be convinced that paint was "Not for Eating!!"
Bud gave me dear hand prints without my even asking:
And although Pixie painted the Eiffel Tower on her easel painting (complete with French flags...thank you, Madeline) she ended up getting in on the finger-paint action. With a different color on each finger...making Thanksgiving Turkeys (?).
Or maybe Pixie asked about painting. Either way, she is excited about switching out the artwork in the hall bathroom. The room is yellow with an array of variously sized bold red frames (Viva España). I fill the frames with the children's artwork...it is their "gallery." Pixie has been ready to switch out the lighthouse painting in the "big" frame for a new one...so we have the Eiffel tower. In my tribute-to-Spain bathroom. We'll have to have another paint day SOON!
Speaking of paint, we are almost done with fire-related painting issues. Next week we will be tearing the house apart so that all of the interior trim can be repainted...which means everything 2 feet away from baseboards, which means emptied out closets and rearranged furniture! On the upside, our exterior doors and railings were painted today, and they look great...and we didn't have to do it! Silver lining #437.
Monday is 8 months since the fire...and Bud's fourth birthday. We are gearing up, Lightning McQueen style. A trip down to Target in Ventura was on the agenda for today and was made all the more fun by having our 8-seater van completely full. 2 moms, 6 children, insanity. My friend came with me so that I could sneak away and get the last things for Bud's birthday without him knowing (J couldn't come with us). It was a huge service of love...four tantrums later we emerged and made it home victorious (after crawling through traffic on the 101). Although Bud saw something in the checkout line and yelled, "Mom! Thank you thank you for getting those Lightning McQueen racecars!!!" They are decorations for his cake, though, not the gift...so it was still a victory.
My friend also has said that she and her husband are planning on having our kids over for a meal tomorrow so that I can have a break. This sounds good, but I am not sure I can handle feeling more in debt to her than I already do. Besides the trip to Target today, :) during the school year she leads our neighborhood women's Bible study and is so incredibly gifted...and works so hard. So I constantly feel like I'm taking. How to give back?
Wow, it's nine and I need to do many things before heading to bed...like unloading the van from the Target trip while Bud's not watching, cleaning up the chicken pot pie that Wombles threw across the room while I stepped out after supper (Bud's was left on the table), checking out the new homeschool curriculum that came this afternoon, and eating dinner myself (this glorious dark chocolate that J's mom gave us just isn't going to cut it, after all.)
Oh, and spending a little while meditating on Romans 13:8:
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another.
Although the easels were great fun, everyone ended up finger-painting. Wombles began that way, and had to be convinced that paint was "Not for Eating!!"
Bud gave me dear hand prints without my even asking:
And although Pixie painted the Eiffel Tower on her easel painting (complete with French flags...thank you, Madeline) she ended up getting in on the finger-paint action. With a different color on each finger...making Thanksgiving Turkeys (?).
Or maybe Pixie asked about painting. Either way, she is excited about switching out the artwork in the hall bathroom. The room is yellow with an array of variously sized bold red frames (Viva España). I fill the frames with the children's artwork...it is their "gallery." Pixie has been ready to switch out the lighthouse painting in the "big" frame for a new one...so we have the Eiffel tower. In my tribute-to-Spain bathroom. We'll have to have another paint day SOON!
Speaking of paint, we are almost done with fire-related painting issues. Next week we will be tearing the house apart so that all of the interior trim can be repainted...which means everything 2 feet away from baseboards, which means emptied out closets and rearranged furniture! On the upside, our exterior doors and railings were painted today, and they look great...and we didn't have to do it! Silver lining #437.
Monday is 8 months since the fire...and Bud's fourth birthday. We are gearing up, Lightning McQueen style. A trip down to Target in Ventura was on the agenda for today and was made all the more fun by having our 8-seater van completely full. 2 moms, 6 children, insanity. My friend came with me so that I could sneak away and get the last things for Bud's birthday without him knowing (J couldn't come with us). It was a huge service of love...four tantrums later we emerged and made it home victorious (after crawling through traffic on the 101). Although Bud saw something in the checkout line and yelled, "Mom! Thank you thank you for getting those Lightning McQueen racecars!!!" They are decorations for his cake, though, not the gift...so it was still a victory.
My friend also has said that she and her husband are planning on having our kids over for a meal tomorrow so that I can have a break. This sounds good, but I am not sure I can handle feeling more in debt to her than I already do. Besides the trip to Target today, :) during the school year she leads our neighborhood women's Bible study and is so incredibly gifted...and works so hard. So I constantly feel like I'm taking. How to give back?
Wow, it's nine and I need to do many things before heading to bed...like unloading the van from the Target trip while Bud's not watching, cleaning up the chicken pot pie that Wombles threw across the room while I stepped out after supper (Bud's was left on the table), checking out the new homeschool curriculum that came this afternoon, and eating dinner myself (this glorious dark chocolate that J's mom gave us just isn't going to cut it, after all.)
Oh, and spending a little while meditating on Romans 13:8:
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Welcome Barbecue
We have had a wonderful Fourth, with many friends coming for lunch and staying through the afternoon. Also, our supper swap friends took Pixie and Bud with them to the Montecito village parade--PERFECT (It was at 11:30, and they were going to have to miss it due to our BBQ prep).
The family we are welcoming to SB and Westmont, however, was not able to make it as they are all sick...they called and canceled this morning. Too bad! We'll have to plan another fiesta in their honor again soon. And, that meant I got to make ANOTHER cake this morning to make up for the one I would NOT be presenting at the cookout! :) Jesse took them their cake tonight, along with some leftovers for those who are inclined to eat.
Hope you have had/are having a wonderful holiday...some of you have already watched your fireworks! We're planning to stay in and watch a movie. We are not yet of and age(s) where fireworks...work.
There was plenty of sparkle, however, at our home-grown Fourth parade and Doll song and Dance show. Awesome.
The synchronized dancing held up briefly. This is after I decided everyone was sunburned enough and we moved inside.
Finally, here's the outfit Wombles got himself into this afternoon (it was HIS idea to take his shirt off, and he dressed himself from there):
The family we are welcoming to SB and Westmont, however, was not able to make it as they are all sick...they called and canceled this morning. Too bad! We'll have to plan another fiesta in their honor again soon. And, that meant I got to make ANOTHER cake this morning to make up for the one I would NOT be presenting at the cookout! :) Jesse took them their cake tonight, along with some leftovers for those who are inclined to eat.
Hope you have had/are having a wonderful holiday...some of you have already watched your fireworks! We're planning to stay in and watch a movie. We are not yet of and age(s) where fireworks...work.
There was plenty of sparkle, however, at our home-grown Fourth parade and Doll song and Dance show. Awesome.
The synchronized dancing held up briefly. This is after I decided everyone was sunburned enough and we moved inside.Finally, here's the outfit Wombles got himself into this afternoon (it was HIS idea to take his shirt off, and he dressed himself from there):
Friday, July 3, 2009
Clarification
Briefly--
I just wanted to be clear that when I titled my last post "I'd rather be cakewrecking," I meant reading that blog and looking at some of the hilarious photos ("Happy Falker Satherhood,"anyone?). It usually makes me laugh. It sometimes makes me cry from laughing, and J comes in to see what's going on.
Anyway, when I posted that last link all of the photos were of Fourth-of-July cakes; appropriate, I thought, since I'm getting ready for a celebration this weekend and making two cakes to go with it. The next morning, though, there was a new posting on Cake Wrecks: all about "ladies' health" cakes. Who ever knew there was such a thing? But I assure you, my desire to be wrecking some cakes had nothing to do with any sort of minor--or major--surgery.
OK, here is the cake I finished tonight. It would DEFINITELY make Cake Wrecks, only you have to be a professional for that, and I'm just the amateur. It makes me laugh. The other one will be much more...normal.
In order to prove that I'm not taking myself too seriously, I will offer no explanations or disclaimers...which is pretty difficult. :)
Have a Happy Fourth!
I just wanted to be clear that when I titled my last post "I'd rather be cakewrecking," I meant reading that blog and looking at some of the hilarious photos ("Happy Falker Satherhood,"anyone?). It usually makes me laugh. It sometimes makes me cry from laughing, and J comes in to see what's going on.
Anyway, when I posted that last link all of the photos were of Fourth-of-July cakes; appropriate, I thought, since I'm getting ready for a celebration this weekend and making two cakes to go with it. The next morning, though, there was a new posting on Cake Wrecks: all about "ladies' health" cakes. Who ever knew there was such a thing? But I assure you, my desire to be wrecking some cakes had nothing to do with any sort of minor--or major--surgery.
OK, here is the cake I finished tonight. It would DEFINITELY make Cake Wrecks, only you have to be a professional for that, and I'm just the amateur. It makes me laugh. The other one will be much more...normal.
In order to prove that I'm not taking myself too seriously, I will offer no explanations or disclaimers...which is pretty difficult. :)
Have a Happy Fourth!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
I'd rather be cakewrecking
Well, we're having a wonderfully warm week--it seems like JUNE GLOOM might actually be over for the summer! That would be great. I am a summer-lovin' girl, an am ready for it to get here.
It didn't help that in the third week of May, I hopped in the car and drove out to Las Vegas to meet my sister and some other friends for a long weekend. Natalia and I spent a LOT of time sitting by the pool talking, flipping through magazines, and luxuriating in not being at work. It was AWESOME! I LOVE hanging out with my sister! ...I love her so much that I won't post the "Trophy wife" photo, although I really want to do so.
Here we are striking a pose:
And here is a haphazard shot I took of the sunset behind me when I was driving; there's something exhilarating about holding the camera out of the car window while you're heading down the highway.
Anyway, the point of this little (old-and-new? Remember? I'm catching up!) trip down memory lane is that it was deliciously warm in Las Vegas and I drove six hours home to land in May Gray. Which is followed by June Gloom. And I am rejoicing that "home" seems to have caught up with summer, perhaps even a little early!
The Vegas time was really fun, as well as giving me space to think, and to miss the children, and to remember that there is more to me than "Mom." Now, that had very little to do with Vegas as a town and a whole lot to do with having space and hanging out with Natalie, but there it is. I hope we can get together every year!
Side-note: The total of 13 hours alone in the car were so refreshing. Among other things: my music, Tim Keller, and the entire production of Les Miserables from start-to-finish without a stop (except intermission, which conveniently hit when I could stop and refuel). Aaaahhhhh!
This week we are on the ground and running again. We resumed out supper swap last night, which I may have mentioned before? Once a week we have supper with another family of dear friends here, and we take turns each week which of us is hosting. It's very nice to be back in our home and able to walk back and forth between. Here's a shot of our two eldest and their two eldest during after dinner dress up (did I mention it was dinner theatre?).
We are having a cookout this weekend--mainly to welcome the newest member of J's department at the college--but we'll throw in a little Fourth, too. I'm planning on making a cake using a recently acquired cake pan which is shaped like the United States. I'll definitely let you know if it qualifies for Cakewrecks.
Now, I have to head out--my summer reading this year is the Bible, and I'm trying to get the whole thing done in three months...which means I need to get some more in before I go to bed. Thanks for checking in!
Friday, June 26, 2009
So, Another Time Warp
The epic water fight we expected when I last blogged never materialized. It rained--hard--most of the day. Next time.
One week after the children and I arrived home, we were on the road up to beautiful Quincy, CA. We would have probably left on Friday, but found out that we weren't legal to drive because our smog certification had expired. SO I spent Saturday morning at our local homeschooling group's curriculum sale (picture a Wheaton church sale, if you can, only for books and other cool stuff!) We have provisionally decided to homeschool again next year--ahem, incorporate our own private school (California legalese talk). Next year, since Pixie will be in First grade, we'll have to jump the legal hoops. Any suggestions for a school name? I'm going to need one!
I am going to try to a little catch-up and a little current events at the same time...it'll take a while to get caught up, but I thought I'd sprinkle the old in with the new. So first off, here is one of my current ABSOLUTE FAVORITE pictures of our three, from D & M's wedding in April:
The wedding really, really was beautiful. Think a gorgeous garden and relaxed people (beautiful of course) and attention to detail. Think perfect weather and strawberry lemonade in mason jars (I hear. I was partial to the strawberry lemonade mimosa--also in a mason jar). Hear fun, delicious LIVE music along with the wind in the trees. And regret the smoked cheddar pimiento cheese sandwiches, if you were not thereto have some! We had picnic lunches in boxes and used linen napkins (carefully collected by the bride) that were so gorgeous that more than one person I know wiped chocolate on trousers because the napkins were too pretty!
Classic Bud--and classic Pixie
We have been back from Quincy for two days. Over the past two months I've spent more time away than at home, and I'm glad to be back and have summertime. The pace here in summer is delightful. Imagine an entire neighborhood where summer is spent with people catching their breath, working on projects, and taking things a little more slowly...a little closer to Southern-style. There's a gallon (well, almost) of sweet tea in the fridge!
Yesterday, freshly home from Q-town (the trip I will blog about in detail soon...I hope) we discovered that we had THREE artichokes ready! We (meaning J) have been fighting back the yard chaos since the fire, and now have a little garden going. We are using it more as landscaping around the yard than having a large garden plot, although we do have tomatoes in a raised bed and an herb garden.
Anyway, we harvested those artichokes and they were simply the best we'd ever had. So tender and tasty!! And we had it with home grown beef raised by J's parents....delicioso. We're sorry Joy and Ron couldn't join us for dinner...there will be no beef and fresh artichokes at breakfast tomorrow. We'll see what we can do, though. :)
OK, here's a quick moment with Wombles from this evening. J had just caught him eating the dirt. Besides his general...dirtiness...I'd love to point out the custom sandbox cover in the background. J made it while I was out of town, and it is PERFECT. I fear cats and critters no more.
Hope to have more soon--
thanks so much for checking in!
PS The honeysuckle is coming back!!
One week after the children and I arrived home, we were on the road up to beautiful Quincy, CA. We would have probably left on Friday, but found out that we weren't legal to drive because our smog certification had expired. SO I spent Saturday morning at our local homeschooling group's curriculum sale (picture a Wheaton church sale, if you can, only for books and other cool stuff!) We have provisionally decided to homeschool again next year--ahem, incorporate our own private school (California legalese talk). Next year, since Pixie will be in First grade, we'll have to jump the legal hoops. Any suggestions for a school name? I'm going to need one!
I am going to try to a little catch-up and a little current events at the same time...it'll take a while to get caught up, but I thought I'd sprinkle the old in with the new. So first off, here is one of my current ABSOLUTE FAVORITE pictures of our three, from D & M's wedding in April:
The wedding really, really was beautiful. Think a gorgeous garden and relaxed people (beautiful of course) and attention to detail. Think perfect weather and strawberry lemonade in mason jars (I hear. I was partial to the strawberry lemonade mimosa--also in a mason jar). Hear fun, delicious LIVE music along with the wind in the trees. And regret the smoked cheddar pimiento cheese sandwiches, if you were not thereto have some! We had picnic lunches in boxes and used linen napkins (carefully collected by the bride) that were so gorgeous that more than one person I know wiped chocolate on trousers because the napkins were too pretty!
Classic Bud--and classic Pixie
We have been back from Quincy for two days. Over the past two months I've spent more time away than at home, and I'm glad to be back and have summertime. The pace here in summer is delightful. Imagine an entire neighborhood where summer is spent with people catching their breath, working on projects, and taking things a little more slowly...a little closer to Southern-style. There's a gallon (well, almost) of sweet tea in the fridge!
Yesterday, freshly home from Q-town (the trip I will blog about in detail soon...I hope) we discovered that we had THREE artichokes ready! We (meaning J) have been fighting back the yard chaos since the fire, and now have a little garden going. We are using it more as landscaping around the yard than having a large garden plot, although we do have tomatoes in a raised bed and an herb garden.
Anyway, we harvested those artichokes and they were simply the best we'd ever had. So tender and tasty!! And we had it with home grown beef raised by J's parents....delicioso. We're sorry Joy and Ron couldn't join us for dinner...there will be no beef and fresh artichokes at breakfast tomorrow. We'll see what we can do, though. :)
OK, here's a quick moment with Wombles from this evening. J had just caught him eating the dirt. Besides his general...dirtiness...I'd love to point out the custom sandbox cover in the background. J made it while I was out of town, and it is PERFECT. I fear cats and critters no more.
Hope to have more soon--
thanks so much for checking in!
PS The honeysuckle is coming back!!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Three Weeks!
SO, it has been awhile...and I'm not really back even now. I AM back from four days in Las Vegas with my sister (thank you thank you, Jesse, for the vacation!), but I've left again three days later to go to Atlanta to see that sister married last weekend. It was a wonderful privilege to stand as matron of honor. I am so happy for Natalie and Kraig. I can't get photos up now, but for a sneak peek check out Catherine's shots on http://www.mylifephotoblog.com/natalie-and-kraig-2/ .They are gorgeous!
I'm hanging out in Georgia with my parents, the flower girl and the two ring bearers. The child wrangler for the wedding weekend had to fly home on Sunday in order to resume teaching Monday morning at 8:00am. I am pretending the flight home this weekend alone with the three does not exist (much like R.O.U.S's.) When I get home I will finally get to see the photos I took last weekend at the wedding, and then inflict my favorites upon you.
We have been going full-tilt and having a blast here with my grandmothers. There is a huge water war scheduled for tomorrow. Last time we were here (my brother's wedding five weeks ago!), my father, Pixie and Bud had a huge water fight with water pistols. Dad has bought some for mom, me, and Wombles...so tomorrow promises to be epic. Bud keeps yelling how there will be "SIX!!"
OK, I lied about photos....I leave you with a flower girl shot my mom took in the bride's room shortly bvefore the ceremony (and strongly encourage you to peek at my gorgeous baby sister and her wacky bridesmaids shots on the blog aforementioned).
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