Cooking Connoisseurs

I developed an interest in cooking at an early age. Truth be told, I didn't have much of a choice the older I got. When Dad had his accident, Mom had to go back to work. That left me being the oldest and most experienced cook in the house. Dad could cook hot dogs and the random thing, but when mom worked late, it was me who had to make sure dinner was served and everyone was fed. I didn't mind. I took to the role naturally. Mom still feels like she ruined my childhood by relying on me so much, but I don't think that at all. It made me a very capable adult very quickly.

So, in short, there are skills that I want to make sure my kids grow up with and cooking is one of them. I started out doing baking (cookies, cakes, pies, etc.) for 4-H and that expanded pretty fast. But it's a skill that I believe all people need. Boiling and egg may seem simple, but you'd be surprised how many people have to google it. Imagine my happiness when Abby checked out a cookbook from the library and started bookmarking all the recipes she wants to try to make on her own. She said she wanted to learn how to cook. She made her first thing (with oven help from me, of course) last week and wanted to go with something called Caramel Shortbread. It called for sweetened condensed milk and that isn't safe for Alex so we had to improvise with making a substitute out of coconut. It probably didn't taste much like what the recipe was, but it was delicious! And she was so proud of herself! Bonus, you know?

So as we were about to take a bite of the dessert, I couldn't find Alex. He was hiding in his room moping. After a little mom-digging, I found out that he was sad that he didn't get to cook too. I told him the next dessert was all his. Next day (too soon for more sweets, but still), he chose to make Lemon Bars (his favorite) and he did it all on his own (minus the oven of course). He was so proud as well! It was great to see them get their hands "dirty" with flour and egg. Was it messy? Oh yes. Oh, very much yes. In fact, we had to dig out eggshell several time from batter. Was there flour in their hair? Yep. But you can't replace that feeling of doing something yourself. They already make their own breakfasts and lunches, so this is just a natural next step. The only problem? They want to bake every day. This does not help my weight loss goals. I suppose if my sacrifice is to gain a couple of pounds so they can learn, then it's worth it. Why don't I just not eat it? Um, not a chance. If I declined their offered desserts, they'd be devastated. Not worth it. Good job, my little cooks! I'm so proud and can't wait to see what they will whip up next!

Grandma's Birthday

I feel like I write the beginning to this post often. I was going to say that we had some uncommon visitors, but it turns out that they visit way more often than just "uncommon". Jeremy brought his whole family down for a wedding and was there the day of my mom's birthday. Every year, we celebrate Grandma's birthday by making her dinner and a cake. It's always been just a low-key thing, but I woke up to a phone call from Jeremy. He wanted to decorate mom's house with balloons and a banner decorated by the grand kids. It was a great idea, especially as it was a surprise for her. She, like me, doesn't really care much for her birthday being celebrated. But we have and always will celebrate Grandma and Grandpa (yes, even though he's gone). They are so important to us and always will be.

The kiddos had a great time decorating and playing together. Mom never can choose what she wants to have for dinner, so I generally choose for her. (Grrr...) I went with good ol' fashioned fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and green beans. It was delicious and I think Jeremy ate too much because he opted out of the cake. What was strange, was that in all of this, it completely slipped my mind to invite Jake and his family. I'm just so used to doing this every year with no one but us, that I forgot. So we invited them over that evening for cake and ice cream. Fun was had by all and I think that mom was happy. It's so hard, some days, to know if she is happy. I hope so, though. I gave her a gift card to Dillon's and Jeremy decided to take her to the local humane society and get her a dog. She's been wanting one for awhile now to keep Milo company. She's a heeler mix named Margie. Super sweet girl! Happy Birthday Grandma! You're the best!

Yes...the cake was tasty!

All the grandkids. :)

Miss Margie. What an active girl!

Father's Day 2016

Each year, the kids want to do something for Josh for Father's Day. Seeing as how tis the season for having children with me when I'm shopping every week, it's easy to let them pick something out for him when we go. They got a card (Darth Vader, of course), drew in them, and wrote nice little messages. Evie even drew two of the little people she can draw (think circles with four stick appendages) and said they were her and Daddy. It was cute and, for once, Josh actually liked the card and decided he's keeping it. Normally we avoid cards because he doesn't care for them and chucks them the next day. Not worth the money. They each picked a little something to give him and I think he enjoyed them. Evie spent the entire day wishing him a happy father's day and even made him a special bracelet from beads. It was cute.

It's funny, when I think about the difference between Mother's Day and Father's Day. For some reason, it always seems to be a bigger deal for the kids when it comes to dad. Yes. This makes me jealous. But I'm glad that they love Josh so much. It's great to see them get excited about a day to celebrate him. I woke before Josh and made him a batch of cinnamon rolls (his favorite) and made him homemade pizza (also one of his favorites). It was a good day for him.

Father's day for me, on the other hand, is bittersweet. I am blessed to have a great husband who works hard to make a life for us. He loves his kids and they love him back. But for me, a day where you celebrate your dad, it's tough. The last few Father's Days I've struggled. I usually begin the day with a flood of memories and end the day going for a long walk by myself to just compute all my feelings with no one around. This year, for some reason, was harder than last year. I kept seeing cards or gifts that I would have given my dad. I went for an extra long walk tonight. Happy Father's Day, dad. Wish you were here to hear that.

They Won!

Alex is in his fourth year of baseball. First year was T-ball, second and third was coach pitch and t6his year began the very first time of competitive baseball. This means that the kids do it all. Pitching, catching, and playing against other city teams. It's been a crazy time. Practice was long and hard and then we got smacked by spring rain troubles. It was bad. We got rained out of the first five games. And then the crazy began. We went from lazy summer to three games a week! Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday we've had games at 6:00 in the evening. The games last one and a half hours or five innings (which ever comes first). It's been hot and sweaty evenings with extremely late dinners. It's been...well...an experience. They boys are all age 9 and 10. Truth be told, they aren't the best team.

Okay, that sounded unmotherly of me. But Alex knows that they aren't top of the line. Actually, up until this moment, they'd lost all their games. Some games were somewhat okay, but mostly they've been creamed. Until tonight. They won! It was fantastic. As a parent, I got such a high out of seeing my boy cross that plate and make a score that helped the team win. I get so anxious when I go out to these games. Especially when he is up to bat. He even had a pretty sizeable game injury two games ago. He slid, but it went badly and he somersaulted across the plate. He made the run...the only run for the game. But he hit his knee. Hard. He got a good scrape through this pants and the next morning his knee had a golf-ball sized fluid sack on it. I had to take him him to the doctor to make sure it wasn't cracked as he was in a lot of pain. He's fine, but still really sore. I, along with every other parent there, were super excited for the kids. It may have been just one win, but they earned it! Good job, boys!

It's hard to see, but the little number one is Alex's run from the game they lost. He got the only run.

Team Bulldogs after a win! They were hooping like they'd won the world series.

My big kid in full baseball gear.

Easter 2016

Wasn't Easter just yesterday? I swear it was, but apparently it was almost two months ago. That is a mark as to how fast time is flying this year. The year is just one month away from being half gone! We had some special visitors for Easter this year. My brother, Jeremy, and his family came for spring break/Easter. It is always great when they come to visit. It makes for an enjoyable time. We were hoping that we'd have all the little cousins together for a big Easter egg hunt, but Jake's kids were sick and had to miss out. It was our first time having a big hunt with Jeremy's kids, Zach and Lexi. We also had Audrina, Jeremy's sister-in-law's little one.

The kids had a great time spending the days with their cousins. It was nie to have someone for them to play with for a few days of spring break. We even had some grown-up bonding times by playing some games while the kids watched movies. I even talked Josh into seeing Batman vs. Superman (which he was adamant to never waste a dime on) and we left the kiddos with mom (poor mom) to enjoy an evening out.

We went to the town Easter Egg Dash and Evie came away with over $7.00 in change from all of the eggs she got. It marks a year if finality for us. This was Alex's last year to participate in the dash, as he will be too old next year. It kind of makes me sad, but I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm not sure what that will mean for him next year. He will be the only one sitting out and I hope it doesn't make him too sad. Even Wesley will still be able to go. I think I'll make up something for him to feel included, like helping Evie get eggs. I bet he'd enjoy that.

On Easter morning, we had an impromptu Easter dinner with Jeremy and his family. We didn't plan it and it ended up being quite delicious. I even made my traditional bunny cake. The kids got some tasty treats from the Easter bunny and everyone had a great time.

Dorky kids, Spring, & Roller Blades

When the camera comes out, the dorky kids come with it. They see the camera and instantly make the goofiest faces they can. I don't remember if I was like this as a kid, but digital cameras weren't around back in the stone age. So when we got a picture taken, it was take what you get.
Spring has officially sprung and with it has come outdoor play. I am so excited to get out of the house regularly. I can feel the difference that the sun is making in my demeanor. I'm a hot weather gal all the way. I'd take 104 degrees over 40 degrees any day of the year. I prefer sweat to shivers. So the trampoline is getting lots of use these day and so are the new fun toys that Mandy was so kind to get the two older kids for Christmas - roller blades. At first, Alex and Abby were pretty much uninterested in trying them. They were used to roller skates instead of inline blades and had no interest in falling down a lot. Of course, Alex had his other reasons. After suffering from his concussion and other injuries, he was terrified that he'd fall and hit his head again. I can't blame him. It's scary getting a head injury like he did. But one day, they both put them on and gave it a go in the carport. One day later, they were little pros. It's amazing how fast kids pick things up. Fascinating!

Also, with spring has come the weather that is warm enough for tutus. Evie has followed suit with Abby's past obsession and wants to wear tutus all day, every day. Even when it's cold, she asks. I think children have the ability to shrug off the cold easier than me.

Happy spring everyone!

Finally!

Abby has been very slow when it comes to losing her teeth. By the time Alex finished second grade, he'd lost all of his eight front baby teeth. We are down to the last week of school, and Abby is no where near this progress. She lost her bottom front two quite awhile back, but the other teeth were showing no signs of leaving anytime soon. When her front top two teeth started to get slightly loose, I was kind of excited to see her lose a couple more. This was several months ago. I still attribute this to her thumb sucking habit. Over the weekend, she had snaggle-tooth syndrome. One tooth was hanging on by a thread and she wouldn't let me pull it for love nor money. And believe me, I bribed her several times. The other tooth, though loose, was just about a third as loose as the snaggletooth.

While eating their lunch, Abby had apparently bit down on her chicken quesadilla and hurt the NOT snaggletooth. I hear Alex run in to my room yelling, "Mom! Abby lost her tooth!" I automatically assumed the snaggletooth was the casualty. Boy, was I wrong! Apparently when she bit on her food, the unloose tooth started bleeding and Abby showed Alex by tapping on it. One good tap and out it popped! This, of course, leaving the snaggletooth to continue hanging on desperately. When the bleeding stopped from tooth number one, I told Abby I could "magic trick" the other tooth out without any pain. Magic trick = pulling with a frozen wash rag. One small tug later and out popped tooth casualty number two. Abby is now toothless and loving it. She actually decided that it was time to stop sucking her thumb because it feels awkward. I sure hope it sticks!