Surprises
Steve's traveling season has started, so we're in a continual pick-him-up/drop-him-off cycle around here. So today we piled in the car to pick him up as usual, and the kids thought everything was normal.
What the kids did not know was that we weren't picking up just Daddy, but also a much-beloved Grandma Amy here for a surprise visit!!!
Hazel was watching so intently for Daddy, she didn't even notice her dear Grandma walk right in front of her. When I directed her eyes over, Hazel just about fell on the floor laughing and hugging. So fun!!
We all went to dinner at one of our favorite places (Calvin ate a plateful of arugula dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. Weird kid), and tomorrow is bowling day. But there's more. While everyone is bowling, I'm going to the craft store. Alone. AND Target! Alone again!!! What luck!
Surprises are great fun. The kids are sure delighted with this one!
Labels: adventures, family
Snow day
I set off blithely today to got to the chiropractor who was going to fix my poor pregnant messed up pelvis. I was going to drop off the kids at my saintly
sister in law's house, then collect them post-adjustment. Well, nature had some very different ideas for my day.
I left the house in the beginning stages of a nice snowstorm. No big deal. I live in Utah, I've driven in the snow for 15 years--just another January day. 1/2 of the way to Emily's I was white-knuckle driving, sliding and fishtailing. 3/4 of the way there, my wheels were spinning as I tried to coax the van up a slight incline. Cars were sliding off the road on all sides. No traction, no visibility, scary times. Turning into her neighborhood, I got 100% stuck. But randomly, 3 people just happened to be walking along and cheerfully gave me a push and I was on my way again. I turned onto her street and did a complete 360 spin and BARELY missed a fire hydrant. Holy cow. I made it up her street by some merciful intervention of heaven, then collapsed in her arms and vowed never to leave again.
Honestly, I've driven in lots of snowstorms. But I've never been as scared as I was today. We were happily snowed in while the storm raged for the next few hours. Emily, being the amazing person that she is, set up their big camping tent and the kids watched a movie in it snuggled deep in pillows and blankets. She let them fill up shopping bags of cans from her pantry, then gave them monopoly money and let them play store. She even let them open an umbrella in the front room and play singin in the rain. I told you she was amazing!! Plus, she fed us and let us play for lots and lots of hours.
But if you stick two two-year-olds together for too long, things start to go downhill pretty quickly. Our kids adore each other, but oh, the sharing drama!! When we came home around 5, the roads were slushy but completely normal-snowy-day stuff. None of this snowstorm of terror stuff from earlier.
So no magic adjustment for the pelvic pain from hell, but that will come soon enough, I'm sure. Next time I leave though, I'll be sure to take a glance at the weather report first!!
Labels: adventures
The wrong job
I think I missed my calling in life. I
should have been in some kind of garage grunge band, instead of living the life of the suburban mommy. Steve bought Guitar Hero, and I was really mad at him at first...then I played it with him. Good grief, that thing is so incredibly fun! And, I'm completely awesome at it. Sarah--we have GOT to play this sometime with you and Scott!
Labels: adventures
Revenge
Montezuma's getting his, and getting it good! And that's ALL I'm going to say about that!!
Labels: adventures
Update from the beach
Hola, amigos!! I have a little secret---Steve and I are in Puerto Vallarta!! That's right, JUST Steve and I. Incredible, no?
This is the view from our hotel balcony. Aaaaaah.
We're here for a grand total of 4 days, so we've tried to make them all full of fun. Today was the best yet. We took a dune buggy tour through the jungly mountains. Steve doesn't hold back when it comes to the gas pedal, and we got soaked! So incredibly filthy by the end, but it was great.
After the buggy tour, we came back to the hotel, cleaned up, and headed to the pool for a while. Then, I went to a cabana over the ocean and got a massage. A massage! On the beach with the sound of the waves and the sun and ohhhhh, it was beautiful.
Back to my babies in the morning, and I can hardly wait. It's been hard to leave them this time. I know they're in wonderful hands, and we talk to them a couple of times a day, but there's something just not right about being away from them. Don't get me wrong, this has been amazing and restorative and so dang fun to spend the time with my darling husband, but oh, my heart just wants to hold my kids again!
So real life starts again tomorrow, and the fun of vacation is over. We've had lots of baby name conversations, and the list is now expanded from just Buster and Gomez to include Francisco, Cosmo, Desmond, and Sidney. Slight progress in the right direction, but I don't think we're there yet! I actually really really like Sidney, but I do know a lot of little girls named Sydney. Opinions, anyone??
Labels: adventures, vacation
Back home
And we're back from our flyingly fast trip to So. California. Somehow, through some marvelous combination of Steve's brilliant ability to work the system and really good timing, in the month of December we fly SIX people for the price of TWO!! Incredible, yes, I know. So we planned a spur of the moment trip to go to Disneyland with the kids and my little brother Thomas.
So much fun!! Disneyland at Christmas really defies description. Main Street with wreaths and garlands everywhere you look, a massive gorgeous Christmas tree, snow and icicles all over Cinderella's castle--it was pure magic.
Small world was my very favorite. I didn't know this, but the whole ride is redone for Christmas. They sing Jingle Bells, Deck the Halls and Small World, there are Christmas decorations
all through the ride, and it was so completely darling.
The whole day was just perfect, start to finish. By far my favorite day at Disneyland ever. So much fun!!!
The next day we headed to Legoland. Thomas is a self-confirmed Lego fanatic, and this was a high point for him. I took Chloe and Calvin and we did sweet little kid rides, and Steve took Hazel and Thomas and they worked the roller coasters. Calvin is still talking about the 'twain wide' and 'dwive a caw'. So fun.
In an eerily similar repeat of the
last time we did Disney and Lego back to back, Calvin hit the wall big time. Time to go home!!
If you were to look very very closely at the picture of the three kids with Lego Santa, you'll see a small blue bouncy ball clutched in Calvin's hand. A flight attendant on the way there gave it to him, and it was his favorite thing ever. Normally you'll find him walking around with a ball or two, and he always takes them to bed with him, but this one was something special. For the entire day at Disneyland, that blue ball was clutched in his fist. On every ride, through the parade, walking around, he NEVER let go. I was sure that it would be lost within minutes, but he made it through the whole day with that silly bouncy ball.
It made it to Legoland and through the first half of the day, but they had a huge playground there, and I think that it was somewhere there that he finally relinquished his grip on the ball. I was hoping he could make it through two theme parks without losing it, but that was too much, even for Calvin.
Anyway, such a fun trip, but so nice to be home again. Now we can settle back in to the preparations for Christmas and cozy fun at home.
Labels: adventures, family, vacation
Snow day
It snowed the other day, and it's gorgeous. The kids could hardly contain themselves through scriptures, chores and school in the morning--all they wanted was to be out in it. Right across the street from our house is a neighborhood park with a great big sloping hill, the perfect sledding venue. So we bundled them up and off they went!
No, I'm not a completely negligent mother to let my 2 year old out without a coat, hat, or mittens. I try, really I do! Dang kid throws so many fits, insists his coat is 'scawwy' and runs away when I hold up his mittens. I figure sooner or later natural consequences will teach him that
snow is cold and he'll give in. Until then, he was outside for all of 90 seconds.
The girls surprised me though. Last year snow play lasted for 1/2 hour or so, but this year Hazel was out for almost 3 hours, and I had to go bring her in for dinner. Rosiest cheeks ever!! She slept well that night!
There's something about snow days that makes me just want to bake and bake! So here are the gingersnaps we made.
Oh, and I made the yummiest soup the other night. I found a
recipe for potato soup, but oh. my. calories and fat. Ick!! So I made my own version.
Cooked about 5 slices of bacon and crumbled them, set aside. Cook an onion in the bacon drippings, deglaze pan with a couple cups of chicken broth. Peel and chop about 6-8 potatoes, add to pan. Cover and cook until soft. Puree with stick blender. Add milk/half and half/evap milk/ more chicken broth, whatever you want. Add a few squirts of hot sauce--not enough to make it at all spicy, but it just gives it a nice flavor. Add a couple spoonfuls of sour cream.
I served it with the crumbled bacon, sliced green onions, and cheese to sprinkle on the top. So yummy, easy, and perfect for a cold winter day.
The kids are out playing in the snow again (except Calvin, this time he refused to wear his boots, and I draw the natural consequence experience line at shoeless snow play). Gotta go get the hot cocoa ready!
Labels: adventures, Recipes
Some days are jewels
Every now and then, things click and a day is elevated from plain good to pure magic. There are
days, and then there are the days that shine in your memory as perfect. Yesterday was one of those days.
We went to
Sarah's for our biweekly history project. We made a model of the Nile, sculpted crocodiles and pyramids, flooded it and planted crops in the silt. The kids loved the project, and it was the picture perfect homeschool moment for me. I'm so glad we get to do these projects together--it makes everything so much more fun for the kids, and me, too. We planned out the next couple of months, but decided that we're going to hold off on mummifying a chicken until our boys are 11, 10 and 9.
After the project, we drove up the canyon--it was such a stunning fall day. Leaves turning, deep blue sky, warm but not hot...perfect. We hiked a ways then came to a gorgeous grotto, where we had lunch. Sarah's got more pictures of the grotto (I forgot my camera!!) The big girls sketched while the little boys played. Calvin mostly fussed, but there's gotta be a bit of reality someplace, right?
Amazing day. Once we came home, the littles napped, then the girls painted pictures with our new watercolor crayons. Meanwhile, I made a big batch of applesauce and started salsa.
Happy sigh. These days don't come along often, but when they do they give me faith that this path that we're taking is actually working. When I commented to my girls on what a great day, Hazel could only find Disneyland days to compare it to. And when you're 5, that's saying a lot!
Labels: adventures, homeschool
Playing catch up
You know how you don't blog for a while, maybe because you're out of town, then once you get home there's just laundry for days, then you are overwhelmed at the thought of all those missed posts floating around your head so it just becomes easier to not even bother?
Well, that's how the last week has been. Sorry!! So I'm not going to try to catch up or anything; I'll just dive in the middle and ramble. As usual.
We spent a few days at a condo in the mountains. 16 of us in a condo that sleeps 8. Good times. Thank heavens for air mattresses! We took the kids horseback riding one day. The man in the second picture owned the operation and I swear I'm not making him up. He really is just what he appears to be--no artificial mannerisms for rustic effect in this guy!
The kids swam for days and days--Hazel is finally able to swim for 6 feet or so underwater. I've avoided the whole swim lesson thing. If anyone can give me some pointers on how to do them with 2 younger siblings in tow, please do enlighten me.
So she gets swim lessons from me. I guess if I can homeschool her in history and phonics, I can homeschool her in swimming, right?
There's a little creek that runs behind the condos. The kids spent many happy hours splashing in the water. Chloe built fairy houses out of river rocks and fed the inhabitants lots and lots of pebbles. Calvin threw rocks with never-ending delight. Each splash found him throwing his hands in the air yelling, 'YES!!' in that darling toddler-speak way. Hazel played with the bigger boys and generally thought she was at least 5 years older than she really is.
But then, sniff, I realized that she really is growing up. She has been obsessed with the hope of having a 'wiggler' like her friends. She manhandles her gumline, hoping that she'll attain that measure of maturity, but it never materializes. Until last night. When I smiled and confirmed her first loose tooth, the look of joy that radiated over her little face was infectious. She couldn't stop smiling all night. In fact, she confided in me at the Thai restaurant where we were eating, "This is the most beautiful night of my whole life. A wiggler
and coconut ice cream!!"
Oh, and
Sarah, she is desperate that your daughter find out about her long-awaited loose tooth. Would you let E. know?
This last picture is just because I can. The curls melt my heart every single time I see him. So yummy!!
Labels: adventures, family
Mountain air
The weather has been sweltering. Stifling. Downright yucky. So we decided to flee to the mountains to enjoy a cool respite. What a blessing to be able to drive a quick bit and reach beauty like this.
My little brother came with us--the kids adore him.
We took a picnic of bread and fruit and cheese. The air was cool, and after a quick sprinkle, all the flowers released their heady scents; mint and sage filled the air. We went on a quick hike and counted wildflowers, chased chipmunks, listened to bird calls, and smelled all the different plants. Such a perfect day!!
Then, to celebrate Chloe's birthday, we came home and had a barbecue with lots of family. Grilled salmon, marinated in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and orange juice. Grilled veggies, baked potatoes, salad, and rosemary bread. Oh. My. Goodness!! So much fun.
I gave Chloe a present that she was thrilled with, but all the guests thought was just a little odd. A child sized mop, dusting cloths, and her own toilet scrubber! She is so excited to play Cinderella, and I'm excited to get these girls working more. But wouldn't you so much rather give a practical, yet very welcome gift instead of yet more cheap plastic junk?
Labels: adventures, family
Parties and fun
Chloe is turning four this week, so we had a birthday party for her yesterday. I love summer birthdays, because you can throw a party for little ones so easily. Lots of water, lots of kids in swim suits, and everyone is bound to have a great time!
Am I alone in thinking that the trend of $500 kids parties is a little scary? Do they really NEED a bounce castle? Or a pony? Does a party HAVE to have a huge theme? I've seen some pretty elaborate celebrations for tiny tiny kids. But you know what? The kids yesterday had just as much fun (I think) as at any of those much more expensive extravaganzas.
Note to self for the next party: Do NOT try to make a new frosting recipe, one that's a little on the temperamental side (a whipped ganache) and start it 30 minutes before guests arrive. I managed to make it stiff enough after lots of improvising, stuck the cupcakes in the fridge so the frosting would stay firm and crossed my fingers. What I did NOT take into consideration was the 102 degree temperature outside! So you give oozing chocolate frosting cupcakes to 18 small children...well...it's a darn good thing it was a water party!
Labels: adventures
And we're back, again!
Another loooong delay on my part, but with good reason, I promise! We were out of town (yes, again, I know). I always hate to advertise on the internet that we're going to be out of town, so it's just easier to wait until we're safely home again. Of course, all the people who read this and know me IRL already KNOW we're out of town, and so far none of you have broken in to steal our highly precious collections of random kids toys. But still. A little caution is always a good idea.
I know that we go on a lot of vacations. But please, lest you all get the wrong idea, let me explain. Steve travels so much during his work season, we have oodles and oodles of free tickets. Flying is very inexpensive for us. He's the king of
priceline, so hotels are very cheap also. He's self employed, so he has tons of time off in the summer, and traveling is one of his passions. Since it's something we value, we sacrifice other things to make it possible. For example, we drive some of the crappiest cars known to mankind. My van is known as the 'ghetto van', because it is! But they run, and they're PAID FOR, which means that we love them desperately and will drive them forever, if we can. So there are definitely trade offs to everything. Traveling is one of those things that we love to do, so we have found a way to make it possible.
That being said, we just got back from New York! Fun fun times. It was a quick trip, and my mom came with us and got to see the city for the first time. We did a lot of the super touristy things--Times Square, Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty, look at Ground Zero, Central Park...all very fun.
Steve the darling and wonderful got ticket for me and my mom to see
Wicked. So completely wonderful!!! He watched the kids while we went. Isn't he the greatest??
We got home late last night, and all the kids are very tired. So am I, for that matter! Traveling with three small people, to New York of all places, is not the easiest. Calvin especially is a challenge. He has this new and charming habit of throwing tantrums where he is only content to be writhing on the floor. If that surface happens to be a filthy New York street covered in I-don't-even-want-to-know-what, all the better. I'm really hoping he grows out of this darling stage soon!
So. Good times. We've a few more little jaunts planned, then we'll be staying put for the rest of the summer. Unless of course Steve can persuade me otherwise!
Labels: adventures, family, vacation
Last of the France photos
Here's the last of the photos from our trip. We woke very early and went to Avignon and saw the Palais des Papes.
We drove from there to Moustiers St. Marie, through some of the most beautiful countryside I've ever seen. I wish I could blog the smell of the air in this lovely field. So heavenly.
Moustiers is a little town high in the rocky crags of a mountain. So so beautiful.
We drove through the Gorges du Verdon (stunning) on our way to Nice.
We stopped in Grasse and visited some of the perfumeries and perfume museums, then went to Nice. We walked along the Promenade des Anglais, and had dinner at a fun little restaurant. I had rabbit! Tres bien, I must say.
The next day, I was oddly hit by overwhelming jet lag, so I slept much of the day. But it was rainy anyway, so it was ok. Steve explored Cannes while I slept. Then we came home to our darling babies!
Labels: adventures, vacation
More
The second full day of the trip we went exploring Aix en Provence. It's my favorite city in France. When I was 17, my grandparents were the mission presidents for my
church in Marseille, which means that they lived there and oversaw the mission there for 3 years. I got to stay with them right after high school for 4 months. It was a wonderful, amazing experience, so I was very grateful to be able to return. Aix is a dear spot to me, with many many happy memories.
We wandered around, saw the markets, explored the little streets and shops.
In so many of the little towns, you'll round a corner and stumble on a fountain, or statue, or little courtyard area. So beautiful!
We went to the little port city of Cassis for dinner that evening. The weather was windy, but crystal clear and invigorating. Cassis was one of the very prettiest places we went the whole time.
Don't worry, it was a short trip. Just a few days left!
Labels: adventures, vacation
The next day
We woke up early and took the train from Milan to Nice.
Such a gorgeous ride!!!
Unfortunately, jet lag overcame me and I missed lots of the view.
We rented a car in Nice and drove from there to Aix en Provence. Can I just say that the GPS is one of the best things to ever happen to travel? We would have been lost, very literally! without it. We stopped in a tiny town, Les Arcs, for lunch/dinner before heading to the hotel in Aix.
Labels: adventures, vacation
Europe rundown, part 1
We're home, and I'm so excited to share all the photos and memories of that amazing trip with all of you. I'm going to be that one obnoxious acquaintance who makes you sit and go through all their vacation photos. But since this is my blog, I can post photos mercilessly, and that's ok!
I think the best place to start the run down is just to go day by day. We flew into Milan and arrived at about noon. It was quite a long flight, but we managed to sleep enough so we were ready to go for the day. Steve has a good friend from long ago who is Italian and lives in Milan. Paolo met us at the train station and took us straight to the First Communion party for his little niece, Katrina. Oh, what a quintessentially Italian party it was!! Food, lots of hand gestures, noisy, lots of laughter, and a 95 year old Italian great grandmother--it was awesome!! Paolo had asked us to bring him some things from the States--pecans, canned cranberry sauce, and a rhubarb pie! We carried that bag from Village Inn all the way from Utah to Italy, and it arrived in perfect condition. The family ate it at the party, and truth be told, I don't think they were that impressed with rhubarb.
After the party Paolo, his girlfriend and their son took us all over Milan to see the sights. Statues everywhere,
the Galeria,
a famous mosaic of a bull in the Galeria. Legend has it that if you spin around on the bull's balls with your heel, you'll get your wish. Steve is always up for a spin on the bull!
The Duomo, inside and out.
Here I am, loving the Italian-ness of it all.
So much to tell, but it's late and I need to go to bed. Chloe gets her cast off in the morning. She's been so worried that the doctor will be mad at her because people have written on her cast. Heartbreakingly worried, despite all my reassurances.
It's been so wonderful to be back with my sweet little people. We've had a beautiful few days of lots and lots of lovin on them. So fun to be just with Steve, but it's even better to be back in the middle of life.
Labels: adventures, vacation
