End of the season

Today was the last day of baseball season. The weather cooperated, the kids were hitting good, and they had an excellent final game.

At the beginning of the season Grayson was a little afraid of being catcher, but towards the end he started to really like the excitement of that position.























We sat near the dugout, and Grayson liked hanging out with dad between innings.


A cupcake and a trophy, what more could you want?

Grayson's coaches wisely decided to pass out trophies and have a treat immediately following the game. It seemed a more fitting way to celebrate than forking over a bunch of money for a pizza party at a later date. Earlier in the season Grayson had said he didn't want to play baseball again, but now he's decided he's a baseball player. I guess I won't get my Saturday's free next spring after all.

"Guerdon"

It's official....I'm a total nerd. I spent my Friday night watching middle schoolers duke it out in the National Spelling Bee, and was excited to have caught it on TV. I watched amazing 12 and 13 year olds correctly spell words I would never spell right, using their knowledge of Greek and Latin root words to help them along the way. I've always figured I just need a computer with spell checking abilities. There's just something really compelling about kids with the kind of drive and dedication these kids have. In the end it was won by a 12 year old boy from Texas, his final winning word was "Guerdon". (Interestingly, the spell check on my computer thinks this word is spelled wrong.)

Flashback Friday- Men's Fashions

I think we've become too casual. When I look at this picture of my dad and his buddies I just have to smile. I love their style, and how swank they look. I wonder where they were going. Hot dates maybe? Then I think back to my own dating days, and the fact that Paul usually wore cargo shorts and flip flops. Ah, too have lived in the 50's!

But then of course their athletic wear did leave a lot to be desired!

(Sorry Dad!)
***UPDATE*** My Dad called and said that's his 8th grade basketball uniform.

Wisdom

While we were eating lunch today Rowan announced that he knows how to tell the difference between boys and girls. My curiosity piqued, I asked him how he could tell. He said you can tell if someone is a girl or not by how they eat. "What do you mean?" I asked him. He said, "well, when girls eat they just put one thing in their mouth at a time, and boys like to put lots of stuff in their mouth."

Our morning went something like this....

Here is a brief sampling of conversations I had with my children this morning:

GRAYSON
Grayson: I hate school
Me: OK, eat your breakfast
Grayson: I'm not going to school
Me: Please find your shoes
Grayson: School is stupid, I'm not going to school
Me: There's only 12 days left
Grayson: I hate school
Me: I know, but go and have fun anyway

Repeat conversation 67 times, then drop grumpy child off for smiling neighbor to drive to school.

FULLER
(This conversation was inspired by an old mix cd I played in the car this morning)
Fuller: Who is this singing?
Me: ELVIS
Fuller: Mom, I don't think this is ELVIS
Me: This is ELVIS, no one sings "Viva Las Vegas" like Elvis
Fuller: Are you sure?
Me: Yes, I'm sure. Why?
Fuller: Because ELVIS is really famous
Me: So?
Fuller: This song is really horrible
Me: Fuller, how dare you insult "The King"!
Fuller: Mom, I don't think this is Elvis

Oh where have I gone wrong with this child?!

ROWAN

Rowan: Mom, do I not have school today?
Me: You're all done with school for this year.
Rowan: Am I on Summer vacation?
Me: Yes
Rowan: Can I do whatever I want today?
Me: No, but we can have fun, and you don't have to go to school.
Rowan: Mom, do I have school tomorrow?
Me: No, you don't have school again until after the summer is over.
Rowan: Can I do whatever I want tomorrow?

Repeat conversation several times. Apparently this whole school being over thing is going to take a little getting used to.

Crafty Me

If you happened to drop by my house in the last week, I apologize for the mess. It really wasn't my fault. I blame Paige, and her darn cute aprons. I totally caught the apron making bug from her. I borrowed a pattern from her, and spent the last week and a half making these little aprons for my nieces. (I'm going to stash them away for Christmas presents, so I hope they aren't reading this.)





Then of course I had to make one for myself.


Then this weekend I decided to try a new project, and made this cute little handbag. It was much easier than I thought. I think I might make another one!

Here are a couple of older projects that I don't think I ever posted:
A couple of baby sweaters.




And some tote bags I made my nieces last year for Christmas.


I think this may be the end of my craft surge, since the boys will soon be home all day demanding that I feed and entertain them.

Flashback Friday- Style Edition

How is it possible that I looked so chic, and stylish at the age of 3...

And then just a few years later I was pleased to wear an outfit like this in public?

The sad thing is I totally remember this outfit. I loved it, especially the fact that both the shirt and socks were striped. I do still think the NIKE shoes I was wearing are cool. But really, what was I thinking?

All good things must come to an end

Yesterday was Rowan's last day of preschool. I just can't believe how fast this year has flown by. He has had such a great year. He had the world's best teacher, made lots of friends, and gained a little more independence. Now if only he'd learn to sit still, we'd really be doing good. He is very proud of his diploma, and thinks it's really funny that Paul and I are referring to him as "the Graduate". On the way home from school yesterday we were talking about what he had liked the best about preschool, which was pretty much EVERYTHING! He said he was a little sad, and was going to miss preschool. I asked him what he was going to miss the most and he said "Teacher Jill of course, 'cause she's the nicest!" I totally agree, thank you Teacher Jill!



Rowan's teacher got this cute picture of him enjoying their end of school party.

Our dog Buster

-Hunter of stuffed animals
-Shedder of hair
-Friend to lonely children
-Chewer of #2 pencils
-Destroyer of shoes
-Food stealer extraordinaire
-Companion to the sick
-Massive kisser and snuggler
-Willing scapegoat
-Photo model for Grayson
-Our fourth child

A magical place...

...where you can make friends with a colorful cow


.. or shop in a store where everything can be paid for with imaginary money


...or be a clerk in a grocery store


...or the cutest waiter you'll ever meet


..or be the captain of a ship on it's way to Hawaii


...or a sculptor working on a masterpiece


...or just a kid having fun with water.



But the thing Rowan liked best about his field trip to the Children's Museum, was being a rock star on the stage! That I believe may be his true calling in life!

Plan B

Sometimes things just don't go according to plan. Paul decided it wasn't going to be the best idea to take the boys to the camp out on Friday, so we adjusted and had a "camp in". We set sleeping bags and air mattresses up in the living room, and cooked hot dogs and marshmallows on the grill. Not quite the same thing, but still fun.


This weekend we also had another plan go awry. We had been planning on spending our "economic stimulus" money on something fun when it came. Well, the money arrived on Friday, and the air conditioning in our van decided to quit working on Friday as well. (Just my luck, the AC goes out on the hottest day of the year!) I guess my local mechanic needs that money more than me. Of course I feel blessed that that money arrived right when we needed it, but it's hard to be practical when you had something completely different planned.

But on the plus side, we got the first fruit of our (and by our I mean Paul's) labor.

The kids were really excited about seeing the radish pulled up, but quickly lost their enthusiasm when they got to taste it.

95 degrees

Flashback Friday- Childhood dreams

(I'm the one kneeling, third from the right)

Like many little girls who grew up in "Rosaria" one of my biggest childhood aspirations was to be a Rose Festival princess. That strikes me as very hilarious now, for some reason. When I was a kid they didn't just have the high school court, there was a jr. rose court, comprised of local grade school girls who were about 8-9. Two girls from my grade school were picked two years in a row. I even tried out one year, but I guess I just wasn't "princess material". So, my friends and I decided the best way to live out our princess dreams was to have our own contest. At least our odds would be better with just the girls from our neighborhood. So we put on our best, most fashionable dresses (this was the 70's so we really didn't have much to pick from), enlisted a couple of dads as judges, and held our own queen and princess selection in my neighbors yard. I was of course sure I would win, my dad was a judge after all. But when the queen and her two princesses were selected I was disappointed again, and angry. A friend of mine who didn't live on our street won, I was so mad at myself for inviting her over! Then the real scandal was revealed, the dads had secretly pulled the winners names out of a hat! They hadn't judged us on our princess like qualities at all! My dad says they should never have agreed to be judges, there was no way every one was going to be happy. Lucky for me he's too nice to remind me of what a brat I must have been that day.

Keep your fingers crossed!

Tomorrow is the annual Father/son camp out, and I know I should feel guilty about how excited I get at the prospect of all of the boys leaving me alone for a little while, but I just can't help myself. Unfortunately, Paul has been feeling a little under the weather this week, and he's questioning whether a sleepless night in the tent with three crazy boys is really the best idea. My response is, of course it's a good idea! But that's just the evil person inside me who wants to stay up late watching chick flicks and working on projects, and then get to sleep in. The nice person in me obviously wants Paul to feel better, but he needs to hurry up and do that before tomorrow night. I mean this not just for my happiness, but for the boys too. Please keep your fingers crossed that the sunny weather today will make Paul feel all better.

My funny Rowan

If you've ever spent much time around Rowan then you've probably noticed a couple of things, like the fact that he has more energy than the average child, and that he's a total character. Here are a few funny moments with Rowan-

- Rowan is really into robots right now, he thinks it'd be really cool to be part robot. When I was hugging him the other night he assured me that it would be ok if my arm got cut off because then I could just get a robot arm and I could still hug him.
- Lately the kids have been really in to watching Iron Chef. They are big Bobby Flay fans. Rowan has decided that he's an Iron Chef judge. He critiques his meals, lets me know how many recipes I got correct, and then shakes my hand in a very official manner.
- The other day a police officer visited his class. On the way home I asked him what he learned from the police officer. He said, "if someone comes to your door and offers you a dollar, don't get too close!" I asked him what else they talked about, but he said that was all they learned.
- Rowan would much rather hop or dance than walk. This is true no matter where you are or what the situation.
- When we were recently at a doctors appointment for Grayson, Rowan talked and sang nonstop the entire time. He insisted on showing two nurses and the doctor how good he is at hopping on one leg while he sings.
- The other night when he didn't want to go to bed he very matter of fact like told me that he couldn't go to sleep, because he forgot how, and didn't want to relearn it.
- Right now Rowan's plan for his life is that he is going to grow up and buy the house next door to us, so he can come over every day and play the Wii.
- And he loves singing this song, to anyone who will listen.

(Don't you just love how he can pick his nose and sing at the same time?)

My Favorite Meal

Comes from this wonderful book:


Balti Butter Chicken

2/3 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup ground almonds (we usually substitute peanut butter for this)
1 1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/4 tsp crushed bay leaves
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp garam masala
4 green cardamom pods
1 tsp fresh ginger pulp
1 tsp garlic pulp
2 cups canned tomatoes(stewed)
1 1/4 tsp salt
6 1/2 cup chicken, skinned boned and cubed
6 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 medium onions -sliced
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
4 Tbsp cream
cilantro to garnish

1. Mix the yogurt, ground almonds, all dry spices, ginger, garlic, tomatoes and salt in a large mixing bowl.
2.Add diced raw chicken to yogurt mixture and mix until chicken is completely coated- set this aside.
3. In large skillet or frying pan, melt together the butter and oil. Add onions and fry for about 3 minutes.
4. Add the chicken mixture to the frying pan and saute 10-15 minutes- or until chicken seems cooked.
5. Stir in about 1/2 of cilantro and mix well.
6. Pour in cream, mix in well, then bring dish to a boil. Turn down heat and let simmer a few minutes more.
7. Serve hot over rice, or with Naan or pita bread to did in the sauce. We prefer it just with bread.
8. Garnish with remaining cilantro- and try to fish out cardamom pods if possible- they are very strong if you bite into one

A few of the ingredients are not readily available. Paul found a little store in Beaverton called "Indian Food World", where he has been able to buy spices in bulk. If anyone here locally is wanting to try this dish, I'd be happy to share some garam masala and cardamom pods with you. Also, not all of my children think this dish is such a treat. Two of them love it, and one asks for a peanut butter sandwich.

I think this dish is best with hot fresh naan, but pita bread is also good. Also Trader Joes makes a good naan.

Naan

2 tsp active dry yeast
4 Tbsp warm milk
2 tsp sugar
4 cups plain all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup plain yogurt, beaten
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp melted ghee( ghee is clarified butter, which we don't keep on hand, so we just use regular butter)
flour for dusting
butter for greasing

1. Mix the yeast, warm milk and sugar and leave to become frothy. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour, and add the yeast mixture, milk, yogurt, eggs and ghee. Fold in all ingredients.

2. Knead the dough well. Tightly cover the bowl and keep in warm place until the dough doubles in size. Preheat oven to 400. Roll dough out on floured surface.

3. Make each naan slipper shaped, about 10 inches long and 6 inches wide. Place on greased trays and bake in preheated oven for 10 -12 minutes.


The spices in the dish and the lightness of the bread are a really wonderful combination, flavors you don't find too much in American cooking.

My favorite things about Mother's Day

-Gifts made with love by three sweet boys








- Lunch with my parents
- Breakfast in bed
- An awesome new planter for the backyard- proof Paul was paying attention when I dropped hints.
- A silly Spongebob card
- Getting to lay in bed and read while Paul spent hours slaving in the kitchen.







-Balti butter chicken

-Homemade Naan

- special snuggles and "I love yous"
- An extra fun "Dance Dance Revolution" dance party

Another sign that he's growing up

The Tooth Fairy is coming to our house tonight. It'll be her third trip this week, twice for Fuller and once for Grayson. When Fuller pulled out his tooth today he pointed out that now he only has one baby tooth left, and it's loose too. I guess the preteen angst, ravenous appetite, and new fascination with deodorant should have clued me in to how much he is maturing. For some reason the fact that he only has one baby tooth left is what really hit me. I really am going to have to let him grow up, there's just no way around it.

Flashback Friday

I've been having so much fun looking at the pictures I got from my dad. I thought I had seen all the ones from my childhood at one time or another, but I keep being surprised. This picture of my brother and I just makes me smile. I love how you can see toys strewn all over the place, and we of course chose to play with a cardboard box. I also love our expressions, you can tell we were having a good time!

Garden update

I've been finding myself really drawn to the garden this week. I guess I'm just looking for proof that it really is spring, even though the weather doesn't reflect it. Luckily there are lots of new things to see in the garden, and get excited about.
The radishes just keep getting bigger and bigger.


A little baby lettuce head.


Spinach


The onions are growing like crazy.


The pea pods poked through this week.


Even the little potato plants look cute.

Hopefully the weather will cooperate this weekend and we can finish the last of the planting. The kids are pretty anxious to get the pumpkin seeds in the ground.

"A delight"

Let me start by saying, I love my kids. I love all of them, even when it seems like they are purposely driving me crazy. Lately it has been the 11 year old that is making me want to pull my hair out the most. Preteen angst has arrived in FULL FORCE! We get lots of sighing, eye rolling, complaints about the complete unfairness that is his life, and just generally negative attitude. Sounds like fun doesn't it? This makes me a little scared for the years to come, especially since he is not the most dramatic of our kids, not by a long shot. Apparently my kids have the worst chores, smallest allowance, earliest bedtime and strictest rules of any kids who ever lived, ANYWHERE... EVER! So, today the kids brought home their Spring progress reports, and you can only imagine my surprise in reading that Fuller's teacher thinks he's "such a delight to teach!" Fuller is many things, but I'm not sure at this point in his life I would refer to him as "a delight" and use an exclamation point to make that point. I think I need to video tape him in full on argumentative, whiner mode and send it to her. Then she'd know how lucky she is that he saves ALL of that for at home. My hope is that in the Summer I'll actually get to see some of that "delightfulness", since he can obviously maintain it for at least 6 hours a day.

Guess who's allergic to Amoxicillin?

Yeah, that rash on his face is all over him.

We're getting a raise?

This morning I made Rowan's final preschool payment, which is our final preschool payment EVER. WOO HOO! Extra money every month! Well that would be true if that didn't also mean that now he's old enough to play sports. This weekend I filled out soccer registration for next fall, all three of the boys will be playing. So, I pretty much just signed away all of my Saturdays for next fall, plus a major chunk of change for registration and new uniforms. Isn't that just the way it always goes, just when you think you're going to have a little extra money, something comes up to take it away!

The most amazing gift!

I recently received the most amazing gift from my dad, and now realize that I didn't thank him nearly enough! So Dad, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! My Dad has done an amazing job of preserving family history for us. He has spent quite a bit of time collecting, organizing and scanning in family photos. He just gave me a CD with over 4000 family photos, dating back many generations. I have just started to scratch the surface in terms of looking through them, but here are a few of my favorites so far:



These are my dad's parents, I believe this picture was taken before they were married. I just love how men always wore hats back then.


Here's my dad and his siblings, he's on the left in the back. I love the little cap my Uncle John is wearing!


This is my mom and her brothers, I think she must have had to work hard to keep them in line.


This beautiful one of my mom on her wedding day is my absolute favorite!

Thanks again Dad!

Happy May Day

I was so excited when I dropped Rowan off at preschool this morning; they were going to make May Day baskets! I didn't know kids still did this. I totally remember making little paper baskets, filling them with flowers from our yard, and leaving them anonymously on our neighbors front steps. What a fun old fashioned tradition!