Annika
Screams a lot.
Definitely entering the terrible twos, albeit a few months early. She has an opinion about how everything should be done and if I don't do it exactly right....she screams. (and by scream, I mean full on SCREAMING. Not fussing. screaming.) If I've done something to particularly offend her, such as say....put away the milk before handing her her milk cup - she shrieks, lays down, kicks her feet and screams some more. Or if I forget to immediately zip/button up her jacket - another fit. Definitely her first stage of trying to assert herself and the last couple weeks have been exhausting.
Laughs, runs, falls down, jumps, dances. You name it, she loves it.
Loves to copy her brother. Yes, they fight a lot, but they also are playing more and more "games" together with Saben telling her exactly what to do. Sooooo cute.
Climbs onto my lap with a book everytime I sit down. It took a while, but Annika definitely loves books now and would spend all day reading them if she could.
Makes a huge mess a million times day by poking, pushing, grabbing & spilling everything. She is always getting things off the kitchen counter (saben hardly ever did this) and is just a bundle of exploratory mess making energy.
Is definitely the clown, she tries to make us laugh all the time and loves it when we laugh at her.
Saben
Loves preschool & playing with kids his age
Talks constantly about absolutely everything, especially Chitty Chitty Bang Bang & rockets.
Asks questions about absolutely everything I say or do or that he sees.
Copies his sister whenever she is making a fuss so that he can get some attention too. (yes, he screams too)
Sings Chitty Chitty Bang Bang all day everyday. Even loudly as we go through the grocery store.
Is getting really good on the glider bike he got for his birthday. He loves going down the huge (5 ft tall) dirt jumps at Daddy's work and is so confident on it. He rides it all the way downtown with us and back home with no problem. (1.5 miles roundtrip) We love that thing.
Has eaten Salmon, salad shrimp, pork pupusas and steak in the last couple months. He also likes green beans, which mommy has almost never offered him because it was the vegetable I hated as a child. However, even I enjoy fresh ones sauteed with garlic.
Dad
Has been gone a ton - 4 out of the last 6 weekends including a 6 day trip to colorado.
Won his first ever downhill bike race and placed 3rd in the next one.
Is so hot and good looking.
Mom
Taking care of the kids by myself a lot
Declared "taking a break" on our basement remodel to protect our bank accounts and sanity
Planting our veggie garden & coddling my tomato starts
Helping others with veggie garden plans and my parents with a new landscape design.
Planning all the family vacations for this summer & some fun stuff for our anniversary. So sick of looking at calendars, cabin rental sites, camping reservations and hotwire. blech.
Joined a gym (in february) and loving it
Dreaming up crazy ways of making money (that would be fun for me), now just need to pick one and go for it. (write a book? become a professional blogger? garden consultant?) Or not.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
waffles
Tonite Saben & I were praying before bed. Usually I have to sort of prompt him to think of things to say and do most of the praying myself. As I was leaving Saben calls out:
"Mom, I have one more thing to ask God. I want to ask him to make our waffle machine make waffles faster."
We haven't even had waffles in a couple weeks, so funny that this is what he thought of and especially that its one of the first "prayer requests" he's come up with on his own. Last time we had waffles, we did talk about how we'd need another machine soon so that we could make waffles faster. Still....
"Mom, I have one more thing to ask God. I want to ask him to make our waffle machine make waffles faster."
We haven't even had waffles in a couple weeks, so funny that this is what he thought of and especially that its one of the first "prayer requests" he's come up with on his own. Last time we had waffles, we did talk about how we'd need another machine soon so that we could make waffles faster. Still....
Saturday, April 11, 2009
In the last photo below, Saben was saying something like this:
"Annika, you need to get these things on so that you won't get hurt when we go to fight. Come on, put the hat on. Ok, now here is your weapon....No put the hat back on. We need to go in our tent now so that we don't get wet, but keep your weapon..."
My two little warriors in their battle outfits.
"Annika, you need to get these things on so that you won't get hurt when we go to fight. Come on, put the hat on. Ok, now here is your weapon....No put the hat back on. We need to go in our tent now so that we don't get wet, but keep your weapon..."
My two little warriors in their battle outfits.
Friday, April 10, 2009
10 on 10
Not super inspired, but the day got super busy around noon and I spent all afternoon cooking....
Find out more about 10 on 10 here.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
clothes
First, there was the raincoat Grandma Young gave her. She always seemed to want to wear it, but I ascribed this to her love of puddle jumping that usually took place in the coat. Then there was her ballerina skirt. She always seemed to pull it out of the drawer when she went to find something to wear. Give a little hop & dance when I pulled it up over her leggings. Smooth her hands down over the tulle.
Then last week, we got some serious joy from these saucy pink silk pajamas. They had been in the drawer for a while, but I hadn't let her wear them because they are so light-weight and it was winter. This particular night, mommy was out shopping and Annika came running out with the terribly light-weight pajamas at bedtime and handed them to Daddy.
Thinking nothing, absolutely nothing, about the flimsy warmth giving qualities of the pajamas, he helped Annika into them. And she went nuts, smiling, laughing, touching them. Sooooo happy. Now she always pulls them out if they catch her eye and often throws fits if we don't put them on, even if its the middle of the day.
Last night, I bought Annika her first pair of dressy sandals so she'd having something to wear with her Easter dress. This morning I wanted to try them on to see if they fit, and they did not leave her feet for the rest of the day. She was running, jumping, laughing, pointing at them, saying "shoes!" over and over. It was so adorable and she kept at it for an hour.
Then I tried to take them off before going to the park. It quickly became apparent that this was NOT going to go over well, so I quickly gave in figuring they had to get broken in sooner or later. I tried again at nap time, and gave in again as she screamed and wailed. Decided it was worth getting a picture of the princess napping in her precious shoes.
Then last week, we got some serious joy from these saucy pink silk pajamas. They had been in the drawer for a while, but I hadn't let her wear them because they are so light-weight and it was winter. This particular night, mommy was out shopping and Annika came running out with the terribly light-weight pajamas at bedtime and handed them to Daddy.
Thinking nothing, absolutely nothing, about the flimsy warmth giving qualities of the pajamas, he helped Annika into them. And she went nuts, smiling, laughing, touching them. Sooooo happy. Now she always pulls them out if they catch her eye and often throws fits if we don't put them on, even if its the middle of the day.
Last night, I bought Annika her first pair of dressy sandals so she'd having something to wear with her Easter dress. This morning I wanted to try them on to see if they fit, and they did not leave her feet for the rest of the day. She was running, jumping, laughing, pointing at them, saying "shoes!" over and over. It was so adorable and she kept at it for an hour.
Then I tried to take them off before going to the park. It quickly became apparent that this was NOT going to go over well, so I quickly gave in figuring they had to get broken in sooner or later. I tried again at nap time, and gave in again as she screamed and wailed. Decided it was worth getting a picture of the princess napping in her precious shoes.
We did finally remove them tonight before bed, but she was screaming, wriggling, writhing even, huge sobs of despair. It was heartbreaking. Trying to get out the door to where they were, we could barely get it shut.
The annoying part is that the sandals are already looking scuffed from just one day of wear. Stupid cheap target shoes.
The amazing part is that she has never been this attached to anything - no toys, dolls, stuffed animals....
Speaking of dolls, she has been playing with this doll I got her a lot and seems to really like it, but its so funny....some nights she wants it in bed with her & on other nights she screams and holds it out to me yelling "doll! doll!" and I have to actually remove it from the room before she'll calm down. Just had the throw that tidbit in there.
My son has reached that oh so sweet stage of a boys life where spending 20 minutes running around with a friend shouting "Dog Poop!" is the funniest fun thing ever and sober stories about Christ's death & resurrection lead to games that involve the phrase "I'm whipping you!".
(not to mention "I'm going to punch you in the face!")
And yet he is still sweet, thoughtful and innocent and generally his testosterone is under control. I am so proud of him & sort of enjoy his little bursts of potty talk/violence because its a sign of him growing up, being a boy and he does a good job listening when I explain things that are innapropriate. He's so careful & measured in everything he does, its fun to see him let loose sometimes with these things. But mostly, it's just plain hilarious.
(not to mention "I'm going to punch you in the face!")
And yet he is still sweet, thoughtful and innocent and generally his testosterone is under control. I am so proud of him & sort of enjoy his little bursts of potty talk/violence because its a sign of him growing up, being a boy and he does a good job listening when I explain things that are innapropriate. He's so careful & measured in everything he does, its fun to see him let loose sometimes with these things. But mostly, it's just plain hilarious.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
First of all, Annika is scared of flying bugs. Extraordinarily scared. Or maybe just ordinary scared, I haven't really compared her to any 1 yr 9 month olds other than saben. (he was also scared, but ordinary scared) But...If you heard her, you'd think she had fallen and broken her arm. First...blood curdling screams. Full on screams. Then hysterical sobbing and sobbing as I hold her and comfort her until she finally calms. This happened about five times today and I can only guess what the neighbors are thinking.
Kyle was gone this weekend, 2nd weekend in a row. (for a bike race in port angeles....he got first place last week in Spokane and 3rd place this week. Woo hoo! Except really, he's just there to network, he's not a serious racer. thank goodness.) Yesterday, we went to the farmers market and Saben rode all the way there & back, all by himself on his new glider bike. It was really fun, even though the market was incredibly chaotic & crowded. I did score some leeks, shitakes & mizuna which I used for dinner tonite. More on that later.... The kids scored honey sticks and donut holes. My hair also scored some honey stick when Annika waved her honey hands in my hair.
The rest of the weekend was blissful under the warm spring sun (in the 60's...for the record when I read this later and have forgotten the awesome springy-ness of this weekend) We went to the park, I got to do some serious yardwork & lawn mowing....
Then tonite I was enjoying my filet mignon (on sale at haggens!) and sauteed shitakes & leeks with truffle oil on top of a bed of mizuna when Saben says "There's poop on my train tracks!". Oh bother. Sure enough, Annika's diaper had leaked & the goo was on her hands, on Henry The Train & on the train tracks. So I took a little break from my beefy feast & immersed myself in the poo cleaning. But the best part was sticking both kids in the shower and finishing my dinner in the bathroom. Yum.... Sipping red wine, finishing off my steak, while the kids splashed in our rubbermaid tub, climbed into it - swamping the bathroom & then drank the water they were sitting in. That's always sooooo cute.
And then somehow I was in a good enough mood to give the kids popcorn, let them stay up late watching CARS and wait for Daddy to get home so they could give him hugs. Am I an angel or what? Too much sun I guess.
Kyle was gone this weekend, 2nd weekend in a row. (for a bike race in port angeles....he got first place last week in Spokane and 3rd place this week. Woo hoo! Except really, he's just there to network, he's not a serious racer. thank goodness.) Yesterday, we went to the farmers market and Saben rode all the way there & back, all by himself on his new glider bike. It was really fun, even though the market was incredibly chaotic & crowded. I did score some leeks, shitakes & mizuna which I used for dinner tonite. More on that later.... The kids scored honey sticks and donut holes. My hair also scored some honey stick when Annika waved her honey hands in my hair.
The rest of the weekend was blissful under the warm spring sun (in the 60's...for the record when I read this later and have forgotten the awesome springy-ness of this weekend) We went to the park, I got to do some serious yardwork & lawn mowing....
Then tonite I was enjoying my filet mignon (on sale at haggens!) and sauteed shitakes & leeks with truffle oil on top of a bed of mizuna when Saben says "There's poop on my train tracks!". Oh bother. Sure enough, Annika's diaper had leaked & the goo was on her hands, on Henry The Train & on the train tracks. So I took a little break from my beefy feast & immersed myself in the poo cleaning. But the best part was sticking both kids in the shower and finishing my dinner in the bathroom. Yum.... Sipping red wine, finishing off my steak, while the kids splashed in our rubbermaid tub, climbed into it - swamping the bathroom & then drank the water they were sitting in. That's always sooooo cute.
And then somehow I was in a good enough mood to give the kids popcorn, let them stay up late watching CARS and wait for Daddy to get home so they could give him hugs. Am I an angel or what? Too much sun I guess.
Friday, April 03, 2009
Generally, Annika spends about 75% of her day in wet pants and goes through 2-3 pairs of pants each day. This girl loves water and is constantly dousing herself in it. A few of her favorites:
Puddles
She loves to stomp in puddles, run through puddles over and over, throw rocks in puddles... and my favorite - sit in disgusting muddy puddles. We went to our favorite nursery the other day and it was cold, rainy and she would not stop sitting down in the puddles - IN HER TIGHTS & skirt. I had dressed them in rain boots & rain coats, but somehow didn't anticipate the sitting down. It never seems to bother her either.
Water dispenser
So just when Saben has finally reached the age where he can go get a glass of water for himself from the fridge door dispenser - Annika reaches the age where if you leave the dispenser unlocked for even a few minutes, she'll find it, fill up multiple cups, put things (like sandwiches) in the water, dump water from cup to cup and finally dump it on the floor & splash around in it. Awesome.
Cups of water
Annika loves drinking from cups, but usually spills most of it down her shirt. I can't tell if it is on purpose or not because I usually start doing something nearby while she drinks.
I'd love to continue, but you get the general drift and the kids are fighting over the plunder from Saben's preschool easter egg hunt. Oh joy.
Puddles
She loves to stomp in puddles, run through puddles over and over, throw rocks in puddles... and my favorite - sit in disgusting muddy puddles. We went to our favorite nursery the other day and it was cold, rainy and she would not stop sitting down in the puddles - IN HER TIGHTS & skirt. I had dressed them in rain boots & rain coats, but somehow didn't anticipate the sitting down. It never seems to bother her either.
Water dispenser
So just when Saben has finally reached the age where he can go get a glass of water for himself from the fridge door dispenser - Annika reaches the age where if you leave the dispenser unlocked for even a few minutes, she'll find it, fill up multiple cups, put things (like sandwiches) in the water, dump water from cup to cup and finally dump it on the floor & splash around in it. Awesome.
Cups of water
Annika loves drinking from cups, but usually spills most of it down her shirt. I can't tell if it is on purpose or not because I usually start doing something nearby while she drinks.
I'd love to continue, but you get the general drift and the kids are fighting over the plunder from Saben's preschool easter egg hunt. Oh joy.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Random Pics
St Patrick's Day party
Mommy's clever idea to make up for lack of a bath tub
Cousin seth with Grandma
Cousin Seth with Great Grandma. (apparently he only sits still & doesn't cry when people kiss his head)
mirror mirror
Oh the joy of having a bathroom mirror for the first time in 10 months. I almost forgot what I looked like. Our friend built us this mirror and it is absolutely gorgeous. It made my day to get it hung up today.
If you look on the bottom of the counter, you will notice my husband's dirty q-tip. Apparently he believes that just because I have not purchased a suitable trash container, he can just leave them willy-nilly on the counter as he pleases. It is super gross.
On another gross note, I was reading back in my blog from last year, trying to remember when we started our bathroom remodel and I noticed that I TALKED ABOUT POOP ALL THE TIME.
Thank you for sticking with me through the potty training phase, I was grossing myself out just reading what I wrote back then. Why on earth did I tell everyone that I used prune juice to make saben poop? And that it was messy to clean up? GROSS!
Speaking of which, we started Annika sitting on her potty seat this week and I'm really hoping, praying, begging for an easier time this go around. Otherwise watch out, this blog will be filled with poo again before you know it.
On another gross note, I was reading back in my blog from last year, trying to remember when we started our bathroom remodel and I noticed that I TALKED ABOUT POOP ALL THE TIME.
Thank you for sticking with me through the potty training phase, I was grossing myself out just reading what I wrote back then. Why on earth did I tell everyone that I used prune juice to make saben poop? And that it was messy to clean up? GROSS!
Speaking of which, we started Annika sitting on her potty seat this week and I'm really hoping, praying, begging for an easier time this go around. Otherwise watch out, this blog will be filled with poo again before you know it.
Some days, I feel inspired to run ahead of the parking ticket person (did they ever get a new name besides meter maid?) and stick a dime in each parking meter that is empty so no one gets a ticket.
On other days, I watch someone get a ticket from "The Interceptor" (the little parking meter car has this in big letters above the bumper) and silently cheer that some lazy good for nothing finally got what they deserved.
Other days, I get stuck behind a Sherwin Williams truck and wonder for the 100th time why anyone would want to cover the earth with paint, why does it look like blood and lastly, why on earth do they still use this slogan that is so weird, even if it is their original one from eons ago. Then again, it did cause me to give them free advertising on my blog. Brilliant.
"Our historical logo is one of the most recognized company logos in existence. Created in the late 1800's, the logo's purpose was to represent the company's desire to help beautify and protect the buildings of the world. It was a symbol of a young company's enthusiasm, idealism and hope regarding its future and the possibility for achievement that hovered on the nation's horizon. Over the years our "Cover the Earth" logo has become a figurative emblem signifying integrity and service."
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
L-I-E
In the last couple of months, my son has become a quite proficient liar.
Did you hit annika?
No, she's screaming bloody murder because she hit her head.
Did you go potty?
Yes, I went two minutes ago. (funny how I didn't hear it and his pants are still zipped up...)
It started slowly with teeny lies and now we are up to 3-4 whoppers a day. I can usually tell when he is lying, but man....what to do.
I think I found a solution today, but I'm wondering what others have done....grandparents, parents, people who think they know exactly how they will parent someday.....
It's the whole catch 22
a) you're only 80-90% positive he is lying so its scary to just accuse him and go based on that.
b) if you get him to admit he is lying, and he tells the truth, how do you deal with punishment/rewards? Still needs a punishment for doing something wrong and lying about it, but on the other hand, a reward for finally telling the truth.
Argh. What have I gotten myself into? Can I just say this is 10x harder than training horses or dogs? : )
Did you hit annika?
No, she's screaming bloody murder because she hit her head.
Did you go potty?
Yes, I went two minutes ago. (funny how I didn't hear it and his pants are still zipped up...)
It started slowly with teeny lies and now we are up to 3-4 whoppers a day. I can usually tell when he is lying, but man....what to do.
I think I found a solution today, but I'm wondering what others have done....grandparents, parents, people who think they know exactly how they will parent someday.....
It's the whole catch 22
a) you're only 80-90% positive he is lying so its scary to just accuse him and go based on that.
b) if you get him to admit he is lying, and he tells the truth, how do you deal with punishment/rewards? Still needs a punishment for doing something wrong and lying about it, but on the other hand, a reward for finally telling the truth.
Argh. What have I gotten myself into? Can I just say this is 10x harder than training horses or dogs? : )
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
hand holding
I have always thought that if I were "rich", right after the live in housekeeper, I would want a personal shopper/stylist. Someone who knows my style and brings things for me to look at & pick to buy. My own personal curator.
Nothing makes me more miserable than a day of fruitlessly shopping - not seeing what I am looking for, or finding it but it being way out of my price range. Or post children, going out and having none of the styles looking familiar at all, let alone something I might actually wear. (embrace the leggings kari. you can do it!)
Anyways, I usually just give up and don't buy anything, especially when it comes to furnishing our house. So I was delighted when Orange Poppy volunteered to come up and help plan our basement colors, carpet, furnishings etc.
We spent a fun rainy saturday pouring over pictures, hitting up the fun stores here in town and she filled my head to bursting with fun ideas to give our space some character. While the husbands cared for cranky kids who wouldn't nap. Thank you husbands! I am so excited about what we have planned!
But then yesterday I went to pick the final carpet color and realized that somehow the neutral color I had planned did not match the rather neutral wall color we picked. (the gray carpet was too blue and the blue/green had too much yellow in it) And I wished she were back, full time, to hold my hand for the entire process.
Do I do a totally different carpet color? (beige instead of gray?) tweak the wall color? (but then it might look exactly like our bathroom we just did) Spend an extra $700 to get carpet in a better color? (we are buying dirt cheap carpet, so a slight step up isn't all bad...unless our basement floods again) Seriously, what is my problem? Why is this so hard? I guess that's why design centers exist - for people like me that get completely overwhelmed by all the choices.
Wish me luck and someday when we finish all this I'll post a photo tour. Still waiting for the bathroom towels I want to go on sale, then I'll post the bathroom tour...
Oh and I forgot to mention the 3 hours Kyle & I spent "thrifting" on Sunday. We came home with exactly one rather funny rabbit figurine for .99 and that was it. Obviously we need some training.
And now I've officially used up my boring rambling quota for at least 1 1/2 weeks. sorry about that. : )
Nothing makes me more miserable than a day of fruitlessly shopping - not seeing what I am looking for, or finding it but it being way out of my price range. Or post children, going out and having none of the styles looking familiar at all, let alone something I might actually wear. (embrace the leggings kari. you can do it!)
Anyways, I usually just give up and don't buy anything, especially when it comes to furnishing our house. So I was delighted when Orange Poppy volunteered to come up and help plan our basement colors, carpet, furnishings etc.
We spent a fun rainy saturday pouring over pictures, hitting up the fun stores here in town and she filled my head to bursting with fun ideas to give our space some character. While the husbands cared for cranky kids who wouldn't nap. Thank you husbands! I am so excited about what we have planned!
But then yesterday I went to pick the final carpet color and realized that somehow the neutral color I had planned did not match the rather neutral wall color we picked. (the gray carpet was too blue and the blue/green had too much yellow in it) And I wished she were back, full time, to hold my hand for the entire process.
Do I do a totally different carpet color? (beige instead of gray?) tweak the wall color? (but then it might look exactly like our bathroom we just did) Spend an extra $700 to get carpet in a better color? (we are buying dirt cheap carpet, so a slight step up isn't all bad...unless our basement floods again) Seriously, what is my problem? Why is this so hard? I guess that's why design centers exist - for people like me that get completely overwhelmed by all the choices.
Wish me luck and someday when we finish all this I'll post a photo tour. Still waiting for the bathroom towels I want to go on sale, then I'll post the bathroom tour...
Oh and I forgot to mention the 3 hours Kyle & I spent "thrifting" on Sunday. We came home with exactly one rather funny rabbit figurine for .99 and that was it. Obviously we need some training.
And now I've officially used up my boring rambling quota for at least 1 1/2 weeks. sorry about that. : )
Monday, March 16, 2009
Birthdays & food ramblings
We have entered the period of birthdays. Three of us in just 3 weeks.
Mine comes first and I had a lovely day celebrating last week. Kyle stayed home with the kids in the morning because Saben was sick and I was going to have to cancel plans to meet up with some friends. (awesome husband award) After enjoying a nice peaceful shower, I headed off for my birthday brunch/board meeting. Sounds boring maybe, but so nice to just hang out and not have the kids interrupting every 5 minutes.
While I was gone:
Saben: I need to get mommy her birthday present
Kyle: What do you want to get her?
Saben: one of those noisy things
Kyle: What? Where?
Saben: At the nursery
Kyle: Where is the nursery?
Saben: I know where it is...
Full of faith apparently, Kyle loaded the kids in the car and Saben directed him to the Garden Spot where we had seen some windchimes the week before.
Last time we were there, Saben had asked me to lift him up so he could rattle them (what exactly is the word used for "activating a wind chime" Chiming it? I know, TINKLE it. Much better.) After tinkling the chime, he asked me to buy one. Thinking it might be fun to have in the garden, I casually mentioned he could get me one for my birthday, never dreaming he would actually remember.... I can't wait to be even more strategic about this for mothers day, I had no idea it would actually work... hmmm.....
Saben picked out the giant $600 chime for me but settled for a cute little clay one (kyle forgot how violent our winds get, I'll have to be careful). Kyle got me a computer printer and annika "picked out" a little red flowered houseplant. : )
In the evening we went out to dinner at our favorite restaurant ever - Prospect Street Cafe. Whenever we go, we always ask the chef to do little tasting plates of whatever he feels like making. (Kyle knows the guy, he rides mt bikes when he's not cooking). They went all out for my birthday (we also had a gift certificate) and our meal went something like this:
Duck breast on a crispy wonton w/ hoison guacamole & mango salsa
A "BLS" sandwich - a scallop w/ bacon & shredded lettuce, sandwiched between two little crisp triangles of grilled bread
Shredded Potato pancake topped with horseradish cream, raw salmon & tuna and crispy leek shreds
Sea bass two ways - cooked on a bed of pureed potatoes & raw ceviche style (marinated in lime juice w/ serrano chiles)
Cold smoked pork loin medalions w/ maple apple shreds, a butternut squash ravioli and brown butter sage sauce
Duck breast slices w/ candied kumquats & kumquat sauce
NY Steak slices w/ risotto cakes stuffed w/ fontina
lamb chop w/ bean & goat cheese springroll (the springroll was much tastier than it sounds)
flourless chocolate cake dessert
It was incredible (yes, that's a 9 course meal) and I probably messed up some of the sauce/side combinations, so if Spencer finds this - sorry!
Every single bite is so fabulous, he cooks all his meats perfectly, has amazing textures in the sides, awesome sauces.... I never was a huge fan of raw fish, duck, or lamb and now those three are my absolute favorite. After tasting the steak compared to the lamb & duck, I almost wondered why anyone even bothers with steak. And I LOVE steak. (it was NY steak - not my favorite. Maybe a ribeye would have stood up to the lamb & duck) Last time we were there we had fois gras for the first time ever and I fell madly in love.... Then there was the green papaya salad, caviar...I could go on and on. Seriously, the only great perk of kyle owning the bike company is getting treated great by this guy. : )
Now I am scurrying to plan Saben's party next week...and finalize paint & carpet for our basement...and making green bread for st. paddy's day tomorrow. Phew.
Mine comes first and I had a lovely day celebrating last week. Kyle stayed home with the kids in the morning because Saben was sick and I was going to have to cancel plans to meet up with some friends. (awesome husband award) After enjoying a nice peaceful shower, I headed off for my birthday brunch/board meeting. Sounds boring maybe, but so nice to just hang out and not have the kids interrupting every 5 minutes.
While I was gone:
Saben: I need to get mommy her birthday present
Kyle: What do you want to get her?
Saben: one of those noisy things
Kyle: What? Where?
Saben: At the nursery
Kyle: Where is the nursery?
Saben: I know where it is...
Full of faith apparently, Kyle loaded the kids in the car and Saben directed him to the Garden Spot where we had seen some windchimes the week before.
Last time we were there, Saben had asked me to lift him up so he could rattle them (what exactly is the word used for "activating a wind chime" Chiming it? I know, TINKLE it. Much better.) After tinkling the chime, he asked me to buy one. Thinking it might be fun to have in the garden, I casually mentioned he could get me one for my birthday, never dreaming he would actually remember.... I can't wait to be even more strategic about this for mothers day, I had no idea it would actually work... hmmm.....
Saben picked out the giant $600 chime for me but settled for a cute little clay one (kyle forgot how violent our winds get, I'll have to be careful). Kyle got me a computer printer and annika "picked out" a little red flowered houseplant. : )
In the evening we went out to dinner at our favorite restaurant ever - Prospect Street Cafe. Whenever we go, we always ask the chef to do little tasting plates of whatever he feels like making. (Kyle knows the guy, he rides mt bikes when he's not cooking). They went all out for my birthday (we also had a gift certificate) and our meal went something like this:
Duck breast on a crispy wonton w/ hoison guacamole & mango salsa
A "BLS" sandwich - a scallop w/ bacon & shredded lettuce, sandwiched between two little crisp triangles of grilled bread
Shredded Potato pancake topped with horseradish cream, raw salmon & tuna and crispy leek shreds
Sea bass two ways - cooked on a bed of pureed potatoes & raw ceviche style (marinated in lime juice w/ serrano chiles)
Cold smoked pork loin medalions w/ maple apple shreds, a butternut squash ravioli and brown butter sage sauce
Duck breast slices w/ candied kumquats & kumquat sauce
NY Steak slices w/ risotto cakes stuffed w/ fontina
lamb chop w/ bean & goat cheese springroll (the springroll was much tastier than it sounds)
flourless chocolate cake dessert
It was incredible (yes, that's a 9 course meal) and I probably messed up some of the sauce/side combinations, so if Spencer finds this - sorry!
Every single bite is so fabulous, he cooks all his meats perfectly, has amazing textures in the sides, awesome sauces.... I never was a huge fan of raw fish, duck, or lamb and now those three are my absolute favorite. After tasting the steak compared to the lamb & duck, I almost wondered why anyone even bothers with steak. And I LOVE steak. (it was NY steak - not my favorite. Maybe a ribeye would have stood up to the lamb & duck) Last time we were there we had fois gras for the first time ever and I fell madly in love.... Then there was the green papaya salad, caviar...I could go on and on. Seriously, the only great perk of kyle owning the bike company is getting treated great by this guy. : )
Now I am scurrying to plan Saben's party next week...and finalize paint & carpet for our basement...and making green bread for st. paddy's day tomorrow. Phew.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Spiritual training
Saben: "Jesus dies and grows again, dies and grows again and dies and grows again! Over and over!"
Mommy: "Are you sure that's right?"
Saben: "That's what Mrs. Stevenson told us" (preschool teacher)
Saben: "In Chapel today (preschool) they had an egg. Each week until easter we open an egg and there is something inside about Jesus. The eggs today had teeny tiny things...like a donkey....and a metal cup that you drink beer out of!"
Mommy: "um.....do you mean a cup for drinking wine out of?" (he meant a communion cup I think)
Mommy: "Are you sure that's right?"
Saben: "That's what Mrs. Stevenson told us" (preschool teacher)
Saben: "In Chapel today (preschool) they had an egg. Each week until easter we open an egg and there is something inside about Jesus. The eggs today had teeny tiny things...like a donkey....and a metal cup that you drink beer out of!"
Mommy: "um.....do you mean a cup for drinking wine out of?" (he meant a communion cup I think)
Friday, March 06, 2009
Big questions
Saben has hit the "question stage" full stride lately. Here's just a sample of some of the things he's asked lately:
"mom, what's inside my tongue?"
"How do they make metal?"
"How do they get the metal out of the rocks?"
"What is the sky made of?"
"How do they make cars?"
Notice a definite theme about how things are made. Then yesterday we saw one of those big black beetles upsidedown waving his legs around. I tried to flip it over, but it just kept going upside down so I told him it was dying and was probably hurt.
Saben: "Mom, when I die, I don't want to lay on my back and wave my legs around"
Mom: "Don't worry, you won't do that Saben, that's just the bug"
Saben: "When will I die?"
Mommy: "When you are a lot older I hope"
This Morning
Saben: "Mommy, I don't want to die"
So we had a discussion about going to heaven when you die and how everyone will be in heaven with him when we all die because we love God, how God loves us, how no one will be mean anymore in heaven, yadda yadda.
Saben: "Will the chameleons be in heaven too?"
For some reason Saben always calls Aliens chameleons. Its so funny. So we had a big discussion about how we don't know if aliens actually exist, its just how we imagine creatures on other planets might look.
And then on to Revelations....
Saben: "Mommy, will we ever come back to earth after we go to heaven?"
"Will the old earth go away & be broken before God makes the new one?"
"How does God make the Earth? How does he make the sky? What is it made of?"
At this point I said I had no idea what the sky is made of and we'd have to look it up in a book or on the internet because its hard to remember how everything on earth is created or made. His very next question was:
"Mommy, I want to look on the internet to see how they make picture frames"
From God, heaven, death...to picture frames. Phew. We also touched on soldiers at this point, that's been an ongoing theme as well, trying to figure out why people fight eachother. It was funny because he was watching the superbowl with me and kept wanting to put them in "bad guy & good guy" categories. It was hard for him to understand it was just a game and both sides were good.
But seriously, my heart was bursting the entire time, I just love him so much and its so amazing to hear him asking all these questions. Listening to a child thoughtfully sort these things out is so beautiful and heartbreaking.
"mom, what's inside my tongue?"
"How do they make metal?"
"How do they get the metal out of the rocks?"
"What is the sky made of?"
"How do they make cars?"
Notice a definite theme about how things are made. Then yesterday we saw one of those big black beetles upsidedown waving his legs around. I tried to flip it over, but it just kept going upside down so I told him it was dying and was probably hurt.
Saben: "Mom, when I die, I don't want to lay on my back and wave my legs around"
Mom: "Don't worry, you won't do that Saben, that's just the bug"
Saben: "When will I die?"
Mommy: "When you are a lot older I hope"
This Morning
Saben: "Mommy, I don't want to die"
So we had a discussion about going to heaven when you die and how everyone will be in heaven with him when we all die because we love God, how God loves us, how no one will be mean anymore in heaven, yadda yadda.
Saben: "Will the chameleons be in heaven too?"
For some reason Saben always calls Aliens chameleons. Its so funny. So we had a big discussion about how we don't know if aliens actually exist, its just how we imagine creatures on other planets might look.
And then on to Revelations....
Saben: "Mommy, will we ever come back to earth after we go to heaven?"
"Will the old earth go away & be broken before God makes the new one?"
"How does God make the Earth? How does he make the sky? What is it made of?"
At this point I said I had no idea what the sky is made of and we'd have to look it up in a book or on the internet because its hard to remember how everything on earth is created or made. His very next question was:
"Mommy, I want to look on the internet to see how they make picture frames"
From God, heaven, death...to picture frames. Phew. We also touched on soldiers at this point, that's been an ongoing theme as well, trying to figure out why people fight eachother. It was funny because he was watching the superbowl with me and kept wanting to put them in "bad guy & good guy" categories. It was hard for him to understand it was just a game and both sides were good.
But seriously, my heart was bursting the entire time, I just love him so much and its so amazing to hear him asking all these questions. Listening to a child thoughtfully sort these things out is so beautiful and heartbreaking.
Monday, March 02, 2009
friendship
How to know you've got a great friend:
When your childless friends let you wash sheets with throw-up all over them in their washer & dryer. (because your washer & dryer were unhooked just 4 hours before you child decided to vomit all over her bed.)
When you friend loads the not-too-vomity but still yucky crib bumpers into the wash for you.
When your friend looks in her washer and see chunks inside that did not magically wash away and picks them all out herself instead of calling you over to do it. (and you feel like a complete moron for not shaking the sheets out somewhere before washing them)
When your seriously crazy friend also folds your kids clothes for you instead of just shoving them into the laundry bag.
Thanks Vale (and Abe), you are awesome!
When your childless friends let you wash sheets with throw-up all over them in their washer & dryer. (because your washer & dryer were unhooked just 4 hours before you child decided to vomit all over her bed.)
When you friend loads the not-too-vomity but still yucky crib bumpers into the wash for you.
When your friend looks in her washer and see chunks inside that did not magically wash away and picks them all out herself instead of calling you over to do it. (and you feel like a complete moron for not shaking the sheets out somewhere before washing them)
When your seriously crazy friend also folds your kids clothes for you instead of just shoving them into the laundry bag.
Thanks Vale (and Abe), you are awesome!
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