If you ignore it, will it go away?
Top 7 Things I am trying to ignore:
1) the kids' overflowing bags of halloween candy
2) the new? (or newly noticed) and very obvious (to me) long wrinkle on my forehead!
3) gray hairs
4) walls that really need to be wiped down
5) blinds that really need to be replaced/cleaned
6) slow drain in bathtub
7) more than several strategically placed piles of clutter
Top 4 things I am ignoring:
1) Matthew, while I am getting kids out the door to school
2) geraniums on the porch (can I winter them?)
3) Anything related to Christmas
4) husband's request to DVR VH-1's 100 Best Songs of the 80s.
What are you ignoring today?
Making Something out of Nothing
I was looking for canned goods for the school "canned goods for Thanksgiving drive" and found really nothing that I could donate. Instead I found a lot of foods that needed to be used but that were a little too random for the food drive.
green chiles
roasted red peppers
baja chipolte marinade
fusilli pasta
white beans
lots of black beans
salsa verde
diced tomatoes
dried blueberries
barley
random: plum sauce, thin rice noodles, sliced papaya, oat bran
It's kind of like going through your closet! It was very sad. I was thinking a lot, "What was I thinking?"
Well, I also needed to menu plan so I took my list up to my computer and got on the cooking light web site.
I typed in my pantry items and came up with the following meals for the week:
turkey tamale pot pie
roasted red pepper, zucchini and tomato soup with fusilli
curried barley with raisins and almonds
bean and bacon soup
chicken enchiladas with salsa verde
overnight oatmeal muffins
YEAH! I am so excited to try these new recipes and use up a few pantry items. Also, I made a grocery list to go along with it and a lot of the stuff for all the recipes I had on hand. My grocery list is like: zucchini, corn tortillas, buttermilk, almonds and more normal food to donate to the food drive.
So, maybe I can use some of my money saved from grocery shopping by using up stuff I already had to buy some new shoes and use the time saved by just running into the store for a couple items to go on a walk. We'll see how it turns out.
My great halloween crafts
If you are feeling the need to do some Halloween crafting, since it's so close to the big day, here are some very easy and manageable crafts. All take about 3 minutes and use supplies you may already have on hand.
This craft is called Painting Pumpkins. This is so much better than carving pumpkins (which I personally try to get excited about but deep down I dread it every year. ) I do really like Jack-O-Laterns, though, once they are carved and lit!
My kids have painted pumpkins for several years now and really enjoy it. These boys at playgroup thoroughly enjoyed it. It is great for all ages.
This craft is a lot of fun as well. Take orange paint, or mix red and yellow, and paint a circle on a piece of paper. Add a green stem and black eyes, nose and mouth. Let dry and cut out. Let your kids run around with them and call them pumpkinheads. You can even embellish with some Halloween stickers. Again, great fun.
A great fall soup for the crockpot
My sister Julie's sweet baby is almost a month old. Juju--I wish I lived closer to you so I could bring you and your family a big pot of this hearty, delicious soup. This has lots of protein and vitamin A and C, as well as fiber, iron and b vitamins to help you as you continue to recover.
Beef Barley and Vegetable soup (from Eating for Pregnancy cookbook)
2 Tbsp. canola or olive oil
1 medium onion finely diced
2 cups sliced carrots
1/2 c. uncooked barley, rinsed under hot water
1 pound beef shank (bone in (Note: I just used boneless round steak when I made this last week and it worked great)
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes (do not drain)
6 cups beef stock
1 zucchini, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
Using a large nonstick skillet, saute the onion for 3 minutes. Add carrots and barley and saute for 3 minutes.
Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow cooker, then add the beef shank, tomatoes, zucchini and stock. Cover and cook on high for 6 hours.
Remove shank from soup and remove meat from bone. Cut in small pieces and return it to the soup. Add more water or broth to thin soup and heat through before serving. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!
Chihuly
Installation at the Nolan Greenhouses
Installation at the Entrance
Installation at the Rose Garden
Caroline and I went down to the NY Botanical Gardens yesterday to see the Chihuly exhibit. Let me just say it was amazing and one of my all time favorite New York moments.
Usually before I go on an outing I research price, times, etc. I went down not wanting to fork over money to see the indoor exhibit and even went during free grounds admission time. I intended to just look at the outdoor pieces and not venture into the Conservatory. It took me about 5 seconds to realize that I wanted to see possibly everything I could of his while I was there.
It was well worth the $25 spent ($20 for me and $5) for her.
The pieces are amazing. I told Mark I enjoyed it so much because I could just enjoy it for what it was--beautiful glass. Usually when I go to Met or MOMA (which I love to do) I am so busy trying to analyze and remember details from Humanities, etc. that I forget to just sit back and enjoy. This was just truly amazing that way. My favorite pieces were in the reflecting pools of the conservatory.
If you live locally and have time to go down in the next week (it ends on the 29th) I so highly recommend it!
It was so fun to take a child because she just had such a great time looking for the "sculptures" as she called them. They are tucked around the plants in the conservatory. She used the digital camera. It was so fun for her to take pictures, and then for us to look at the pictures--how she saw the sculptures from her point of view.
After the conservatory and a short visit to the Children's garden, we took the tram to see the rose garden and Nolan greenhouse installations. This took quite a while and she was a little tuckered out by then. If you are short on time, you can see just the conservatory and it is well worth it.
Toddler troubles
So guess who's discovered he has an opinion--about everything? This little independent streak has taken me by surprise. My happy-go-lucky, easy-going boy has a new side to him! No, I want to stay home. I don't want to go to the store. I don't want to pick up the kids, no, I don't want my diaper changed. Whoa!
I read a book by Harvery Karp called The Happiest Toddler on the Block when we were having some struggles with this one's big sister. From this book, I can only remember these two bits of advice about toddlers:
1) Pay the toddler's bank account. This means to spend a few minutes each day having him choose what he wants to do and sitting down and doing it with him. By paying the banker first, he might actually play independently which will allow you to actually change the laundry, do the dishes, take a shower, make a phone call, etc.
2) A toddler needs 3 basic things each day: a chance to be outside, a story, and a creative experience (crayons, playdoh, etc.)
I liked his advice since it was managable. Drew some shapes on a page--check, backyard for a few minutes--check, Go Dog Go--check.
Today we ditched Karp advice #2. We focused on #1. He wanted to play cave under his blankie on the couch. It was a more creative way to pay the banker and we had fun snuggling. Small victory: he happily went with me to purchase the rest of big brother's Halloween costume.
Brand loyal
So there are a few brands out there that we are loyal to. I only buy Pampers, except last week when I bought Huggies on sale and couldn't wait until they were all used up.
I used to be pretty loyal to Colgate, but Mark was loyal to Crest, so we've been buying Crest and I really like it now.
Josh really loves anything with Prego spagetti sauce. But I made the mistake of buying Classico this week (2 for $4!) and to be honest it looked Classier than Prego. But of course he noticed. Did you make the meat differently this time? he asked.
So this is a big conflict for me since I am torn between what's on sale and what brand I am loyal to. Obviously, Prego lost out this week to the sale item--Classico. I guess what it boils down to is that I am really a consumer that likes sales and thus will buy things that I wouldn't normally, because it's on sale.
Another observation--it's best when the brand you like goes on sale to just stock up. Thus, the end of the conflict.
If anyone wants my "not opened second bottle" of classico and you live locally, it's up for grabs.
Saving us from Train Derailment at Meltdown City
Thursday things were a little edgy. By Friday we were having meltdowns. Caroline and Matthew had tantrums. Big ones. Despite hearing a great talk on motherhood at Enrichment, I was losing my cool. Several times the phrase, "All you care about is the baby," was uttered. The family train was headed for derailment and no one could save it except a weekend! A mellow weekend.
Mark decided that each child should choose a special activity with Mom or Dad for some quaility one on one time. He has fond memories of his parents doing this for him and his sibilings as a child.
Caroline chose to go shopping alone with Mom during baby's nap. We had a great time reconnecting. Josh chose to play Monopoly with Dad. When offered playground or duck pond, Matthew opted for duck pond with the family. He had a great time riding his big wheel. And we all got some fresh air and exercise. Sam had a fine time as long as he got his regular sleep.
I went from feeling I should be just divided into four equal parts (well, not equal since Samuel needs the top half) to feeling refreshed and ready for the week ahead. I'd love to hear other ideas on how to reconnect despite crazy schedules...
Happy Friday the 13th
Are you superstitious?
I am not really.
Although a black cat did cross my path as I was driving to a PTA meeting the other night.
Do you have any superstitions?
Here's hoping for lots of good luck today.
Haircuts
(This is Matthew eyeing the apple he was determined to climb up the tree to retrieve on Monday.)
Matthew had his first visit to the regular barber yesterday.
Background: Since Josh was 2 or so, I decided that haircuts should be a Daddy and Son outing. Luckily, Daddy agreed, and they have been going happily ever since. Well, they got off schedule earlier this summer, Dad needed a haircut sooner than Josh, so now I have been taking Josh and Matthew at the same time. Josh really didn't want to go again to the Kid's Haircut place. (Josh, I know it's a 20 minute drive, but it's right by a Burger King! And our darling Clara is so gentle with Matthew.) No, he wanted to go to the main street barber shop. So, Matthew got his haircut there as well.
Now I know why Kids haircut places are in business! The barber, although nice, was not your warm fuzzy toddler-friendly barber. He does cut his 2 year old grandson's hair (but in his sleep he said!) Yikes! They did get a lollipop. But, Matthew was so wiggly. Next time Matthew and I will head north to the land of car-chairs, smoke-free air, plentiful videos, cute murals on the wall, and a wonderful Colombian hairstylist, haircuts.
Charlotte
This is our very own natural Halloween decoration, Charlotte the garden spider and her magnificent web. It's been attached to our back fence for a few weeks now. I like to go observe what she's done to her web. She's caught a lot of bugs. Sometimes she sits on the web, and then sometimes she sits on the siding on the window. She's pretty magnificent. We like to watch her and our 2 monarch butterflies (Sylvia and Sally) in our backyard on these fun fall afternoons.
Favorite times of the day
Well, this is one of my favorite times of the day. Naptime!
I also like right after I have picked up the kids from school. They are so full of energy and they love to report what's happened that day. Afternoons have been great, esp. for Matthew. He loves to see his brother and sister when they come home. We cut back our after-school activities, and that's been a happy thing. Most afternoons are about playing in the backyard, making cookies, meeting friends at the park, etc.
Mornings (pre-carpool pickup) I like better now that we don't seem to revolve it around TV watching. Last year we choreographed all moments around cyberchase. Eat breakfast and get dressed before Cyberchase. Brush teeth, backpack and shoes and socks after Cyberchase. It's much better now. I have general signposts of what we need to do by what time (eat breakfast by 7:30 for example). But we are much less stressed. This is probably also because Sherry picks up my kids every day for school. (I pick them all up after school.)
Patricia (our RS president) advised last year in an Enrichment lesson about back to school, that things go much better when it's not all rush rush rush to get out the door. I've tried to adopt her mantra--"send them off with a good morning."
I also really like after dinner--when the dishes are done, homework is being completed, baths have taken place (but only every other day), everyone's in their pjs. It's story time, it's waiting for dad to come home, it's a good time of day.
(note: this image is a backwards clock--Mark used to have one in his apartment in Manhattan--a favorite gift for left-handers.)
Personal mantras
I have been thinking a lot of personal mantras, you know sayings you adopt in conversation, letter writing, giving advice, etc.
Here are some personal mantras that I have noted recently:
Mom says, "Bloom where you are planted."
Lindy (Mom's friend of 30+ years) says, "Twinkle and Shine"
Juliane said on Thursday, "It is what it is."
Susie says in her missionary letters "Be happy and CTR."
If you have a personal mantra you'd like to share, I'd love to hear it!
Living in the Moment
Do you ever yearn for days past? Sometimes when fall semester starts, Mark and I want to go back to college. I asked my mom a while back if she ever yearned for the days when she was raising a young family, and she said not really.
Come to think of it, I really don't yearn for any particular time period. However, Mark would say on some days he yearns for the days when we were first married without kids. These days were short. Only 10 months. I spoke to Julie about this yesterday. She has 10 kids. She said it would be nice to go back to the days when she and her husband were first married and just took their baby everywhere with them, including long bike rides. Now this well-traveled baby boy is getting married.
The thing about time is, especially as a mom, it's very easy to think "this is the way it's always going to be" in both a positive and a negative sense. In reality, kids change so often, that rarely does a phase last very long. It may seem like forever as you are going through it. I certainly thought that the 4 year-old tantrum stage might last forever. She turned 5! It's over! Now the fleeting stage of "baby was doing so well at letting me lay him down and walk away when it was naptime" has ended. That was a good phase, last month. Now we are nursing to sleep. Maybe it will change and go back. I do kind of yearn for those days from a couple weeks ago. Oh, the ebbs and flow of motherhood and parenting.
I used to say on my mission that one part of mission life would always be a little out of whack, to keep me prayerful. Either my companion was difficult, my area was difficult or I was personally struggling. Some days as a mom are like that. One child is usually just a little out of whack (crying, having a hard time.) This too keeps me prayerful.
When Sammy was born, my dear friend Carol wrote, "What more could you want. You have 3 future missionaries and a best friend." I have thought of that sentiment often, as that's where my future is headed--preparing these boys for missions (and daughter too if she wishes) and nuturing my relationship with Caroline (and my sons too) so that we are best friends. While certainly a lot will happen in between, I think I like living in this moment. This current moment with my four is filled with disappointment over the Yankees, the excitement of learning new words at kindergarten, the struggles of sharing toys and taking turns, and the challenge of baby learning to fall asleep on his own. Reflecting on the past, I am glad we are this far into our parenting journey, and looking into the future, I am glad we are still in this phase of young children. So, I guess I will take living in the moment.
Feeling a little giddy...
It's been a great 24 hours or so. First, LOST came back last night! We loved the episode. So happy our favorite show to watch together is back. Loved Juliet. And Henry/Ben! Loved the scene with Sawyer and Kate. Oh, so much to ponder! Then we had the most fantastic thunderstorm last night!
Then, I got to go to Amazing Savings today. The name speaks for itself. It is Amazing and their stuff is cheap. It just felt great to be back there! Sure, it's a little dingy. And I'd never buy any food-stuffs or cosmetics there. But oh, the treasures. Sticker books, scrapbook stuff, stickers, markers, a beginning sewing kit for our little curlilocks, blues clues toys for our blues clues obsessed 2 year old boy. Yahoo! Great stuff to keep kids busy and happy and then you don't feel bad when you toss it since it was cheap.
Then tonight is Grey's and the Office. Who knew a Wed.-Thurs. could be filled with such great things to look forward to.
October holidays
I love October. Always have!
So Oct. 1 rolls around and I start to get geared up for Halloween. Then by Oct. 31 I am always so burned out of Halloween. This year I decided I am not doing anything for Halloween until at least Oct. 10. I really love Halloween and don't want to get burned out this year.
We celebrated Yom Kippur this week with Monday off of school. It was a nice day. At the end of it, I wrote down 13 favorite moments of that day. One of those moments was Josh saying: "This must be your favorite time of the day. Nursing Sammy to sleep at night and singing him church songs." Yes, you are right. That is a favorite part of the day. I really loved Monday. (It was much better than today.)
Columbus Day is a big day in our town and at our school. It has actually turned into a "two-weekend" holiday celebration. We missed the carnival this weekend because of General Conference and will miss the parade since it's on our "sabbath" (Side note: Rebecca told me that this has been a sensitive way for them to address the awkardness of birthday party invitations on Sunday- "Sorry, we won't be able to make it. It is our sabbath.") I am looking forward to apple picking on Columbus Day. Except I am a little burned out on apples. We will probably just get pumpkins and a couple of apples. We need the pictures though.
In October, we also have the baseball playoffs to look forward to. And we've got a few Yankees fans in our house this year. Go Yankees!
Halloween at home in California was always a magical day. We'd wear our costumes to school for the school parade. Dad would come home early that night. Grandma and Grandpa would come over. Grandpa and Mom would take us trick or treating. Grandma and Dad would stay home and pass out candy. Then the sorting and the eating. It was always warm on Halloween night.
Oct. 3. Only 28 more days until Halloween. But I am not counting.
Introducing John....
Everyone: Meet John. He's my new nephew! He was born last week to my wonderful sister Julie. He is her 7th child.
I love being an aunt. It's a fun fun job. I don't get to see my nieces and nephews very often, but I think of them all the time. I love to send them little things in the mail, cards, birthday and Christmas gifts. (One year I sent my little Lizzy a fall leaf since she lives in the desert. )
I like being an aunt because you can love them like they are your own. I love them because they love my kids when we visit. My Sammy is lucky because he will have 4 other cousins on my side and 1 other cousin on Mark's side born this year. He is the oldest of them. Five cousins (4 for sure boys, one we will know in a couple of weeks.) We look forward to lots of fun times with John and the rest of the baby cousins to be born this year!
