Tommies

Quick, grab some fresh tomatoes from the garden (or sneak into the neighbors garden) and make this for dinner-

Roasted Tomato Spicy Pasta
2 lbs of heirloom, pear, or cherry tomatoes, cut into the same size pieces
1/4 olive oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (or more if you like spice)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
6 cloves of garlic chopped
1/4 cup freshly chopped basil leaves
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano leaves
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 black pepper
1/2 lbs angel hair pasta
Garlic bread

Mix the olive oil, tomatoes, red pepper flakes, garlic, vinegar, salt and pepper in a glass casserole dish. Roast at 350 for 40-45 minutes, stirring a couple of times.

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Add the roasted tomatoes to the pasta, add the basil and oregano. Dig in.

Joyful pile up

My horoscope in the UDK today said "Don't start another project, finish the one you already started and it may be lucrative". Pahhleese! I feel like they don't even know me. :)
I did actually finish a project over the weekend. I got to sit in my little spot next to the window and feel the breeze and my little helper and I finished his apron. He wanted a semi-truck (he calls it a Sam-eye Truck) on the front instead of a train. We found some old buttons to use as the wheels. It turned out pretty good. It looks homemade, which is kind of what I was going for. I do a lot better when I stop trying to make every seam perfect.

And it's already covered with avocado. Just as an apron should be :)

Well, I'm off to start working on a new project-a crewel kit that I got in the mail this afternoon.

Real

Photos of children where the house in the background is perfectly clean. With Mom's that have on make-up and look as though they have showered in the past 2 days, telling stories of the overly thoughtful husbands or evenings out with friends or some crazy time-consuming project at work that they have somehow pulled off while caring for their children and not placing them in front of the TV. That is what blogs these days are made of. And to be honest, I just can't take the pressure. My house could always used some tidying. My bangs are always looking a little messy. If I have on make-up it is usually because I didn't get to wash it off my face from the previous day. I run on 50% coffee 25% sleep and 25% willpower. Even if I have the time to fold the laundry I rarely get to put it all neatly into drawers. My idea of a date night with my husband is drinking a glass of wine and falling asleep with my head on his lap while he watches some sporting event on TV. I haven't had my hair cut by a professional in 2 years. I get my news from the Daily Show and NPR. I have homework to do, 5 sewing projects to finish, crunched up Dorito bits on the floor of my car, nothing in the house to eat for dinner and I can't remember if I brushed my teeth this morning.

But it's still just as good.

32 things to do in my 32nd year

1. Make Christmas gifts for everyone in my family
2. Take a painting class at the art center
3. Put up a clothes line
4. Sew the bags with Susie
5. Have another baby
6. Take swimming lessons with Henry
7. Play the banjo
8. Surf
9. Take Henry to see some waterfalls
10. Plant a vegetable garden
11. Finish the painting by the back door
12. Paint and tile the kitchen
13. Foster a dog from the animal shelter
14. Paint our front door orange
15. Purchase a pair of rain boots
16. Put in a grey water system
17. Read 3 classics and 3 new authors
18. Pay off my credit card
19. Take my last class and walk down that hill
20. Use the library
21. Celebrate Eva’s 102 birthday
22. Be a better listener
23. Run the Chicago Marathon
24. Learn reflexology
25. Add this and this to my bike so that we can go car free
26. Plant lavender along our back walkway
27. Catch fireflies with Henry
28. Really do up the house with Christmas lights
29. Get one of these and take weekly photo walks with Henry
30. Prepare a 5 course vegan dinner for my family that even my Dad will love
31. Replace our 100 year old wood floors
32. Make a granny square quilt for Henry

I think. I might. Like it.

I found this table on the side of the road today and I grabbed it. I wasn't sure if I liked it and I am still not sure if I like it, but it is nice to have a light on that side of the sofa.

It doesn't even remotely match the table on the other side of the sofa but I feel like that unmatchiness might be so bad that it actually works. Maybe?

Humph!

Dear globe on Etsy. You're killing me. I am trying SO hard not to spend money. We have a wedding coming up that has turned into one of the most expensive 2 day outings that I have ever been a part of and I just cannot feel good about buying something for fun (so fun!) when I just spent over $500 on tuxes, a sport jacket, a white dress (isn't that bad form? oh well, it was on sale) and khaki slacks for the rehearsal dinner that Henry will stain within 10 minutes of our arrival. I won't go on about the expense of this event (gas, food, hotel fare, present...) even though I really could, because it is close to my bed time and I am trying to relax but I will just say that if you are still available for purchase in July, I am going to buy you and justify it by saying that it is for Henry's room. So...stick around.

I found some other good stuff for Henry's room this weekend. Including a Jenny Lind twin bed frame that just needs a little white paint and it will be ready for our big boy. These are some other things that I have been eyeballing for his room-

Rainbow ribbon thing

Cardboard deer head

Peace flags

An elephant (and I plan to make a peacock and a giraffe to match)

A whale shaped chalkboard

The letter H

Granny squares (my Grandma would be proud)
And a map. He has been really interested in understanding places lately.

Summer

I’m gearing up for summer. I admit, I am not quite ready for spring to end. I feel like I just pulled out my flip-flops and I could handle at least 3 more weeks of pink peonies on my dining room table but what can you do? Summer vacation is quickly approaching. I am not ready. I have piles of work to do and I need to find Henry’s swimsuit (I think it may still be in the suitcase from our last vacation). But that will happen in the next few days, it all comes together in the end, right?

Yesterday I asked Henry “Do you know what mountains are?”
“No.” He said, “Wait, they are big hills, right Mama?”
“So big,” I said, “that there is snow on the top. So big that it makes your brakes smoke when you drive down them. So big that you have to ride a train to get to the top.” I said with a smile.
“Are we going to ride a train?” He asked.
“Uh-huh. We sure are.” I said.
“A real train? I have never done that before Mama. It will be a new imperience.”

“You mean EXperience baby.”

“Yes,” he said “EXperience. I like new experiences. I just like new interesting stuff that I am curious about.”

I love that.

To help with the spring to summer transition we have been busy enjoying some of our favorite parts of summer like sun tea, picnics, staying up later, planting geraniums, running through the sprinkler, riding in the car with our arms out the window, wearing flowers in our hair, eating fresh basil, walking bare foot in the yard, and homemade ice cream. This weekend I am thinking strawberry ice cream with pink sprinkles. I love this idea for kiddos.

Perspective

Henry is turning into such a big boy now. He is my light and the happiest part of every day. Watching him change over the past 3 years has been so incredible. That he understands what I say and I can have a conversation with him about almost anything is so amazing. He comforted me last week, when I was feeling sad. He hugged me and said “It’s okay baby.” This is a person that 2 years ago was just learning to speak and walk. Getting older is strange. You gain this wonderful perspective of how special and glorious your life is. You realize that every single day is precious. But at the same time, you only get that perspective from the knowledge that time is passing and that your life is not forever. It is a bittersweet truth and I have felt it's heaviness the past few years. The only way that I can come to terms with it is to try my hardest to enjoy every day. To never wish for the weekend on a Monday. To close my eyes and feel the breeze. To smell the flowers and hug my babies and laugh with my parents and focus on the moment as much as I possibly can. I am not always good at it. There are days that I feel sad that I am getting older. And that people around me are getting older. But every second that I think about that is a second that I am not here with them. So I remind myself at the end of the day that even a mundane day with nothing special happening is still something special. It is a day that when I am old I will be glad that I had, and a day that I will wish I could do again.

Freebee

I pulled this guide out of my wallet at the store the other day and the guy standing next to me leaned over and asked "What does it say about broccoli?"

Other things you should buy organic is coffee (and free trade) and baby foods and juices.

Big big boy bed

Clearly I am in the mood to ramble on tonight (nothing new on this blog) so I thought I would share my most recent point of indecision. One of many, oh so many...

Henry's bed.

So, he is in a crib bed right now. It's his crib turned into a toddler bed. But he is tall and has nearly grown out of his bed. What next? Well, obviously a twin bed is next, but when I change the bed I will have to change the whole room. All the baby stuff will have to go. The stuffed animals and bumper pads with the ABC's and the letters hanging on ribbons...I'm okay with it. It was never really our style to begin with. I have been leaning towards a Jenny-Lind bed. I love them. I don't mind sharing, just between you and I, that a sibling for Henry is in the works. Not, in the works as in "in the works" but it's on the horizon. And this sibling will have to share a room with Sir Henry. I would like to buy a Jenny Lind crib for this future sibling so a matching bed for Hank seems like a good option. I think Jenny Lind will work for boys or girls. What do you think? Not boyish enough?

Bean

Unapologetic

I working on a paint-by-number painting. It's awesome.

Latest

My version of heaven. Almond Joy cupcake. It was that good. A Happy Birthday wish to my number 18.

Ringing

I've gone ring happy. I'm not sure what has come over me. Maybe it is that there is no size involved. I got this one on Friday. Lovely. Spring has me thinking a flower ring would be nice. So do I go with-
Chrysanthemum:Or Rose:Or both?

Happy bits

Today my friend Emily gave me a globe that she bought at a garage sale on Saturday for a dollar. It's perfect.

I also forgot that I ordered a book from amazon that was on back order until it arrived this afternoon. Many birthday gifts are going to come from this book.

Lastly, a package from the UK was in my inbox this morning. This lovely pin was in the box and now it adds the perfect bit of Spring to my gray purse. Her etsy stuff is amazing. Check it out. I think I want this one next.

A long story short

It's been a while...I know. Visitors, illnesses and just general busyness has kept me away. So I thought I might try to get back into your good graces with a super long post about really nothing at all. We are all good. Henry is enormous....his hair is just as blond and poofy as can be and it seems to attract attention wherever we go. Wade is good. Building some cool stuff with recycled wood, including an art easel for Henry. He has become quite a painter. In fact, at school when other kids are working on their stations Henry will almost always ask to paint. We have some beautiful art around here now :) Wade has also been busy doing design work for the school's 5K/10K run. The Easter bunny brought WAY too much candy to our house this year and I have been doing a terrible job of staying away from it. I've also been staying busy with my normal activities--sewing, cooking, watching movies, reading, staring at cupcake cookbooks for hours...and coming up with schemes to start a cupcake shop/bakery in downtown Lawrence. Believe it or not it's coming along much easier than I anticipated. So we'll see...

Tonight I had an urge for Chinese food but I can't actually get Chinese food because A) Not vegan B) I can't feed that stuff to my child and feel good about it (that reminds me of a funny story. Henry and I went to the park last night to work off the slice of pizza the size of our face we ate for dinner. A little girl whose mother was sitting on the park bench on the cell phone (happens every time I go to the park) latched on to us and began to play. Henry and I were pretending to drive the firetruck to a fire. The little girl hopped into the drivers seat and Henry asked "Where is the fire?" "McDonald's!" she yelled. She pretended to drive to McDonald's. Then my friend that was with us asked "where is the fire?" "At Old McDonald's" Henry said. And then he started singing the song. My child thinks McDonald's is a farm with a cow (moo moo) and not a fast food restaurant. You have no idea how happy this makes me. Back to Chinese food...) C) MSG gives me a headache. So I decided to make my own spring rolls tonight and boy where they fantastic. I combined two recipes and did a little improvising (I am terrible at following recipes) to include the food we already had at home. I used tofu, carrots, cabbage, red bell peppers and green onions. Yum. It started like this

And ended like thisWhat else? I bought 2 yards of this fabric last weekend so that I can attempt to make a purse from my Amy Butler book. I would like to buy this instead and save myself the time, but I just can't justify spending that much on something that I will probably ruin in a few months. I also bought some of this and this to make more pillows. It's getting a little insane with the pillows around here. Pretty soon my husband is going to make me start selling them.

What else??? Well, against my better judgment I joined facebook. I have caught up with a few really good friends that I haven't heard from in years, which is great. But I have been also tracked down by some people that I haven't heard from in years and really prefer it that way. Facebook is a weird experience for me and I don't know how long I will stay on it. Besides I hear that twittering is all the rage these days. Always a day late and a dollar short... :) I tried to take a photo of myself for my facebook page so I went into the bathroom and did this. Eye closed. Camera in my face. Why am I an idiot?

Oh and I almost forgot. I took #'s 1, 9, 13 and 18 off my list. I still have a long way to go, but I will knock #'s 2, 5, 6, 8 and 10 off this summer. And if I could only convince Wade that this is worth $45 (it SO is...for my birthday...) I could work a little on #22.

Hope you all are doing well.

Oh...and these are for Lisa (pay no attention to the insanely messy house) I thought you might appreciate that one of us has the attention span for yoga :) ---

5 things I actually did this weekend

1. Got vomited on twice (Henry says it best "Sometimes you just have to yak")
2. Made doggie treats for Bagel and Archie
3. Called my sisters a million times
4. Played a lot of High Ho Cherry'O, Memory, Geo Tracks, pretend grocery store and wrote out a lot of letters for Henry to mail to his "fwends" (so watch your mail, we wrote letters and drew pictures until we ran out of stamps).
5. Not 1-5 below

But on a positive note. When Henry is sick he goes to bed at 7:00 instead of 9:30. So I get to watch the KU game for the first time since last March. On a not so positive note, I am watching it alone because Wade is the bathroom puking. Good times.

5 Things to do this weekend

1. Go to the grocery store and spend NO MORE than $100.00
2. Update my facebook profile (it’s looking pretty shabby compared to my sisters)
3. Finish painting and recovering my dining room chairs
4. Make 2 more pillows (and then I am done…I swear)
5. Make pumpkin bread and cinnamon rolls

What are you up to

Tiny

I was one of the parent helpers today and Henry’s preschool. It was so fun to spend the morning with such a sweet group of kiddos. And I really loved getting a glimpse into what Henry’s mornings are like there. The place has so many windows, the natural light alone is enough to make me smile. I love that someone always brings fresh flowers and that they have a bin for recycling and a bin for composting. Walls covered in kids paintings and drawings and a table covered in glitter and paint splatters and shelves of art supplies and a huge papier-mâché globe hanging above the tiny tables with tiny red chairs and the sounds of kids playing and laughing. And the snippets of conversations that I overheard-
Ben- I am working on this leeky oil pipe.
Henry- Me too. I have a tool.
Ben- Don’t worry. Oil is not explosive, just flammable.
Henry- I will not worry. I don’t mind if it is fwamable. Smelly stuff doesn’t bother me. I have cats.
It's a special place.

Someone had put a quote on the window over the sink. I read it as I cleaned a million tiny, colorful, plastic cups and pitchers. It was something like this-

“The world needs worthwhile people. To make that happen we need people that feel worthwhile.”

I’m flubbing it up, but it was something like that. And I thought for a while about the mission of the school, building character and confidence for these sweet kiddos so that they can go on to be everything that they want to be in life. And I thought about the mission of a parent. Raising a child that believes in himself. That challenges himself. That is loving and kind and sensitive. That understands that he is part of a community and contributes and gives of himself. It all, for that moment, seemed wrapped up nicely in that quote. We are all worthwhile, whether we recognize it or not. As a parent it is my job to make sure that my child recognizes it. And in that room, at that time, the heaviness of that responsibility didn’t bother me at all. I guess maybe that is what happens when you are part of a community, supporting each other with a common goal. Or maybe that just happens when you love someone so much that all you see is the promise and possibility. Either way, it felt really good.

Check it

I was telling my friend Kenna about our experience having Henry at the hospital. I mentioned that we are going to try as hard as we can to have our next baby without intervention, possibly at home, hopefully with a midwife. She brought me this movie. http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/ It was fantastic. I recommend it to anyone who is pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant. I have strong opinions about it because of my experience with Henry’s birth so I won’t say much except that it is so important that as a woman giving birth that you exercise your power in the birthing process and at most hospitals it will be an uphill battle. Kenna got it from our local library.