Babsland

The Costumes

2011-11-02T06:23:00.002-05:00

Introducing....the Baseball Player and the Ballerina Bunny Rabbit:

I am glad her official ballet tights and slippers were again utilized for this event since she doesn't want to go to dance class anymore. I initially disappointed Calvin in my inability to find an official Cardinals jersey...he would have preferred a "Freese" (is that how you spell it?) one. He luckily got over it.

I was super-duper proud that my children allowed me to convince them to turn their candy in to their dentist yesterday who gave them money and a new toothbrush for their efforts. Now, I don't have to worry about them eating too much, T and I don't have to turn into thieves and eat it ourselves, and I don't have to hear 10x a day "Mom, can I have a piece of candy?" despite my continued efforts to only allow them 1-2 pieces a day. No, this is a much better way.

The Pumpkin!

2011-11-01T20:59:00.001-05:00

I don't know why I don't blog any more. I think it is Dexter's fault. But alas, here is the first installment of Halloween festivities: Pumpkin Carving, which we squeezed in on Sunday between church, rehearsal, and a gig. No time to luxuriate on that tradition this year. I didn't even roast my own pumpkin seeds...left that with the babysitter to entertain the children with.

The most remarkable thing is that this was the first year I can remember that we only did one pumpkin and we didn't have to spread newspapers over the kitchen floor because the children were both big enough to stand up at the counter and not make a complete disastrous mess. And yes, I think my new "thing" will be to carve my pumpkins while wearing concert black, sans apron. Martha Stewart, eat your heart out.

My Little Athletes

2011-09-19T06:26:00.001-05:00

For those of you who know the parental units of Babsland well, you know that we are not naturally inclined in the athletic realm. We have other gifts...like blowing into instruments to make sound. (That is good lung exercise too. And my spinning instructor says I have a naturally good core which MUST be from my superior breathing skills.) In our adult wisdom, Mr. Babsland and I are TRYING hard to be physically active ourselves, and we have been trying to expose the children to sports and give them opportunities to run around and develop better habits than Mommy and Daddy. Yes, we take walks as a family, but when it comes to playing with the children we automatically gravitate to scrabble rather than soccer; crafts instead of football; playing school instead of shooting hoops. Which is why we have to resort to community organizations for help.

The children are loving them some sports this fall.

Calvin has been so thrilled to play baseball for the first time in the local "fall ball" league. He seems to have caught on very quickly to the skills of the game, and he loves all of the rules and lingo...and the uniform and equipment...and the masculine camaraderie. His favorite position is catcher, just like Grandpa.

Suzana opted for soccer. Initially Mama was kind of disappointed she didn't want to continue in ballet, but I let go of my vicarious whimsy and realized that soccer is really probably a better option. She looks so dang cute in her shin guards and comes home from her games all re-cheeked with hair tangled.

We are so grateful to those other parents who can coach and teach our children the skills that we lack. Community is so important.

Oh, Suzana!

2011-09-17T05:38:00.002-05:00

She is 5 today.
I wanted to post pictures from her day of birth, but instead I'll post a set of picture of the last day of her being 4. I caught her outside "writing in her journal." It was a perfect afternoon. I wonder if there is a little poet trapped inside of her waiting to get out...just as soon as she masters handwriting and spelling. I won't suggest it to her, because then she'll never ever write a poem. Sometimes she is reminds me so much of myself, it hurts. However, she is funnier, smarter, and more daring than myself. She has a great life in front of her. Just as soon as she has her granola.

Happiest of birthdays to you, my dear daughter.

Two HUGE Milestones

2011-09-05T05:33:00.000-05:00

The Babsland family encountered two huge milestones on Sunday. Call it our way of celebrating Labor day, especially since Mr. Babsland doesn't get the day off.

First, we bought a Wii. Not only that, but we hooked it up and played it. Anyone who knows us, also knows that this purchase came after months of debate and contemplation. We asked ourselves all the important questions: Is this going to turn our brains to mush? Are we going to do anything else? Can we use it to bribe the children? Is it educational? Is it really the best use of our money? In the end we realized that we could no longer rob ourselves or our children of the pleasure of video games. Not only will this help in their creating conversation with other children, but it will teach them coordination, it will create good family fun, and it will help break the monotony of cold, gloomy winter days and hot, steamy summer days. Since neither Mr. Babsland or myself grew up with any gaming system (you know, like atari and the like), this is a pretty big deal and I think we are as excited, if not more so, as the children. Don't worry, we have strict rules about it's use. You can only play Wii on days that you practice, and you should ONLY practice on days that you eat. That should be motivation for all of us.

Secondly, since Dexter can't play the Wii, we (meaning Mr. Babsland) let our dear doggie sleep outside his crate for the first time since we adopted him a year ago. I am so proud of our furry little family member. He found a dandy spot and stayed there all night...hasn't even budged this morning since I got up to get ready for my morning run and dash off this blog post. He is a good dog, even if he is obnoxious during the day.

Making-it-Up

2011-08-12T09:06:00.000-05:00

Look what some one was so excited to receive from Grandma when Daddy got home from Virginia.

She couldn't even wait for a proper lesson from Mommy.

Nor could she wait to practice on Daddy (no picture available.)

She threatened Calvin, but he communicated quite effectively that he would have nothing to do with it.

Glamorous...sort of.

Kindergarten and 2nd Grade: Day 1

2011-08-11T08:54:00.005-05:00

I lost it yesterday...several times; including a solitary moment alone at the grocery store. So, today, I am not doing too bad, eventhough I couldn't look at my husband, because doing so would have caused me to completely fall apart. So, I have quite a list of things to do today to keep me busy and occupied.

It is time. The time is right. The summer was good and busy and full and joy-filled. But let's get on with it, folks.

Presenting Miss Suzana on her first day of Kindergarten and Master Calvin on his first day of 2nd grade:

(At home on the front step)

(At the bus stop, little Miss Attitude)

(Walking to his class, Mr. Confident)

(I felt very privileged to get this hug, as she had previously said she absolutely would not hug me on the first day of school. She barely looked back after walking through the door.)

(Me and my boy...he about knocked me over, as he has since the day he was born)

I can't wait to see how they grow this year.

Hilarious Hat Day

2011-07-28T19:07:00.004-05:00

While I can't be credited with coming up with "Hilarious Hat Day," I did have the amazing fore-sight to stick some el cheapo foamy visors in my basket while we were at Michael's on Sunday picking up a jigsaw puzzle and other cheap crafts to keep us occupied.

Today, the children decorated their hats.

That big green thing on Calvin's is a grasshopper he made with the previously mentioned cheap crafts procured on Sunday.

What was their favorite decor item? I am so glad you asked. Are you ready for it?

Here it is:

Dog biscuits.

Thank heavens for re-discovering the magic of a hot-glue gun.

Crazy Hair Day

2011-07-27T08:36:00.004-05:00

For some people this wouldn't be so crazy, but it was for us. I used a ton of product on Calvin's hair to get it to be all spiky. Suzana had 4 piggy-like creations in her hair...and they stayed in for 3 whole hours. They were very proud.

Christmas in July

2011-07-26T15:58:00.003-05:00

Or, alternately, "How Playmobil Saved Our Lives."

The confluence of this crazy July heat-wave and the entertainer-in-chief being at Wintergreen made for some stir-crazy children and a desperate Mommy. Suzana is now happily re-creating her favorite fairy tales with her new figurines and Calvin is creating extravagant outdoor adventures with his camper and accoutrements. Priceless investment.

Painted house

2011-07-23T08:33:00.010-05:00

No, this is not another tree house post.

For some time now (make that a year!), Suzana has been talking about re-decorating her beautiful natural wood doll house. I have put it off as long as possible. I consulted the toy expert at the local toy store where I bought the house, oops, I mean where they have a house like the one Santa and his elves made for Suzana few years ago. The toy-lady assured me that many many little girls want to paint and paper this house and that they do so and that it'll be okay. Those toy stores should offer counseling services.

So, this is the week.

We started with a few pieces of furniture.

And then started in on the house.

Calvin was delighted to help and was extremely agreeable in following Suzana's instructions and desires. He is going to make an excellent husband some day. We were limited by the paints we had in Mommy's and the children's craft closets, but all things considered, the house turned out okay. Mommy had some control issues that she had to let go of, but the children were remarkably understanding of her neurosis.

Woodworking 101

2011-07-23T08:26:00.004-05:00

Every tree house needs furniture.

Built by children.

With Dad's help.

And yes, Calvin was quite thrilled about learning how to use a drill for the first time.

He is a VERY smart man. He allowed the children to distract him from cleaning the garage to engage in this project. Meanwhile the dutiful wife finished the dirty garage work in time to make hand-made lemonade for the resident carpenters. Good thing he took me on a date that night.

New Room

2011-07-17T19:19:00.014-05:00

Pardon me for being absent, but I have been busy helping my husband procure power tools and over-seeing that no fingers get cut off or holes drilled into knee caps. With special help from a library book, my super-star husband built the tree house this summer that he and the children have been talking about since last summer. I am awful proud of him.

It is a hit.

Why do children get along better in tree-houses than on solid ground?

Food must taste better up there too. Numerous popsicles were consumed in it prior to its completion, and several meals have been gobbled up in the last day.

The dog feels slightly left out...

...but, I think he'll be alright.

I don't know what Thomas is going to do now that this little project is all wrapped up.

They have been getting up in it since Thomas started laying the floor. But now, Mommy can worry a little less about them falling out. They have already asked if they can sleep in it. Calvin suggested mosquito netting to combat the bugs. Any ideas 'bout where I can get some. Doesn't OFF have a new product that you just hang on yourself? I thought that could work. Mosquitoes do love my babies.

And now that I have new fodder for blog posts, maybe I will start writing again more regularly. They have been keeping me busy, those two. And between them, and gigs, and traveling, and sewing, and running, and wiping off sweat, I just haven't had time for this frivolity of mine. I have missed it. Maybe now that the children have a new room for themselves in which to play, I will have some "new room" for my own play.

Piggy Tails

2011-04-16T05:00:00.000-05:00

Suzana's been growing her hair out for a while now, and this week, she and I discovered that we could put two pig tails in her hair. It is her new favorite style. So, I snapped a shot of her the other morning before she left for pre-school. (Dexter couldn't decided if he wanted to be in the picture or not. He kept barking at the camera but he wouldn't get out of the way, so it was hard to get a perfect shot.)

When I picked her up from pre-school, her hair looked nothing like this.

DQ FUN

2011-04-15T13:00:00.003-05:00

After our last busy philharmonic weekend (which meant the children spent lots of time with babysitters) we decided on Monday evening to take a family field trip to the new local Dairy Queen for dessert. Just for fun. We were all very silly.

Snacking

2011-04-03T14:05:00.000-05:00

I know spring is approaching when the children decide with increasing frequency to eat their afternoon snack outside:

Three little teeth

2011-04-02T16:43:00.001-05:00

Three teeth went missing this week.

Calvin pulled his out on his own on Tuesday after school. Finally. It had been barely hanging on for several days. I think he was inspired to do the deed by his little sister...

...who got her top two front teeth virtually knocked out on the playground at school.

Tuesday was a traumatic day. Mommy stayed calm taking Suzana to Urgent Care, and nursing her wounds. (Luckily no stitches were needed in her lip). Mommy even stayed fairly calm while the dentist looked at Suzana in the early afternoon and I finally got a good look inside her mouth since picking her up from pre-school, and was confronted by what certainly was not a normal presentation of her teeth. Until, that is, he muttered the following "No good options here. We'll have to extract her top front teeth." Then my tears wouldn't stop. Suzana wasn't thrilled when I told her the news either, but was pacified rather quickly when I reminded her about the tooth fairy and promised ice cream after the procedure.

She didn't really eat or drink much for two days and wouldn't even take pain medication. She drooled a lot and wouldn't talk. I was starting to freak out more and sorely missed my vivacious spunky little girl. But then, because I had to, on day 3 we ran some errands, and I let her ride the carousel at the mall. When she told me she was hungry and suggested a donut, I knew she was going to be okay.

Now, it is apparent that she is quite proud of the gaping whole in her mouth. She likes that she looks more like Calvin. She is telling and showing everyone about the ordeal. And, did you know that it didn't even hurt when the dentist took out her teeth? Praise God for laughing gas, numbing gel, and novacaine, and an amazing pediatric dentist with the gentlest approach.

Calvin, after the thrill of the tooth fairy visiting him, and the initial caring brother reaction, started to get slightly annoyed by all the extra attention his sister was getting. Even though, she did share her orange sherbet push-pops with him:

Sew Springy

2011-04-01T20:15:00.004-05:00

I got a fancy new sewing machine last year when the 40 year-old one I had inherited from my mother broke-down. I haven't had much time or inspiration to use it, until recently. I decided to make Suzana's spring church/recital/Easter dress.

I had the grand delusion that she and I could have a bonding experience picking out the pattern and fabric together. That didn't work out so well, so I made the executive decisions.

While I was cutting it out, I kept thinking "What have I gotten myself into?" I really haven't sewn that many things in my life. But I figured if I just took my time and really followed the directions I couldn't screw it up that badly. AND, I knew that if I really got frustrated I could just box it up and send it to Mom and she could take care of it.

But I surprised myself. As I sat bent over my sewing machine, I realized how much I had learned about sewing her just by watching her sew all of my nightgowns and church dresses when I was a little girl. Sure, I took a sewing class here and there when I was a young teenager, but I had never really gotten into it. I kept having these flashbacks to watching her sew all of those different things for me, and how much pride I had for my mom's sewing skills when people would ask me about my dress and I could say "My MOM MADE IT!" And they would in turn gasp in surprise and admiration.

Whenever I stole a few minutes in the afternoon to sew, my children would soon wander into the room and stand real close to me, one on each side, looking over my shoulders and asking countless questions about what I was doing and how I was doing it, and what this and that were for. Just like I used to do.

So, here is the finished product.

My mom will, in fact, need to take a look at the zipper when she comes to visit in a few weeks, but it is functional as is. I am hoping Suzana can and will wear it for two years and not be completely embarrassed, which she shouldn't be. Have you seen some of the outfits SHE puts together? However, I will not be entering the county fair anytime soon.

The Games We Play

2011-03-26T14:13:00.000-05:00

I have always been slightly obsessed with games.

Like when I was little, I couldn't wait until I was old enough to play Boggle with the rest of the family. I looked on jealously as they all played Risk. I had stars in my eyes when Patrick and Alicia were in high school and got together with their friends to play Trivia Pursuit for hours on end on weekend nights (at least that is what they claimed they were doing!). I am not ashamed to say that one of my favorite games as a little girl was Memory...and it is still on my top 5 list of favorite games to play as an adult.

While Thomas and I were dating long distance we played Scrabble over the phone. He has tried to teach me chess, and I like it, but am quite stinky at it.

Before Thomas, a guy I dated gave me Connect Four for a gift because I loved playing it...and loved winning even more.

Playing games was a great way for me to connect with my grandmothers when we didn't have anything else to talk about: Authors, Dominos, Checkers. And, I remember as a teenager, our youth group would get together with the senior group at church to play games and it was always so fun.

I was so excited when I started buying games for the children...ones that I never had but would play at other kids' houses, like Hi-Ho Cherry-O, and Chutes and Ladders.

And how proud I have been that Calvin and Suzana have both become such excellent game players.

The last time we were in Columbus, Omi had cleaned out one more corner of her basement and found all of their old games from when Thomas was growing up. They were games that I had never heard of. They were so retro and SO 70s. The kids fell in love. We brought the Magnificent Race home with us and I think they have played it everyday for the last two weeks. I myself have yet to learn it, although they have taught several babysitters how to play already.

Dexter will be next to learn.

Graduation

2011-03-25T15:47:00.001-05:00

Cue Pomp and Circumstance.

WAY back in January, I started going to an obedience class with Dexter, titled "Family Friendly Dog I." It was my Sunday afternoon ritual for the winter and he and I both looked forward to going every week. Me for the moral support. Him for the special treats. Me for the chance to air my grievances and frustrations. Him for the chance to play with his Golden Retriever girlfriend Ellye.

Don't tell Dexter, but he just might be smarter than me. It took me a couple of classes to realize that it was about training me more than it was about training Dexter. In the process, he learned some pretty good manipulation skills. I learned to keep treats on hand at all times for bribery purposes. By the way, he was the star of the class, if I do say so myself. He made me look GREAT.

Sunday, Dexter graduated from puppy school. He and I both need to do some additional studying, which I hope will more easily happen with spring trying hard to assert itself. So, while I still have a lot to learn about dogs and specifically, this crazy mutt, Dexter has officially graduated from puppy school. Now, if he would just stop acting like a puppy...

Light Bright

2011-03-24T21:40:00.000-05:00

When I was a little girl, I LOVED my Light Bright Toy. It and my Alphie were two of my favorites when I was a pre-schooler. I distinctly remember sitting on the blue carpet under the built-in formica desk in Alicia's and my room, spending hours making Light Bright pictures while Alicia and Patrick were away at school. It was the perfect venue: light enough so I could see what I was doing, but dark enough to make the designs really sparkle. It was like Christmas lights whenever I wanted.

So, last fall when I saw a used Light Bright at a local consignment sale, I snatched it up for the children. Last month, I finally got around to ordering some new design papers for it from Amazon. The toy quickly moved up in the children's "this is a great toy" continuum.

She reminds me so much of myself sometimes. She does and says things that I remember doing, saying, and thinking when I was her age. Except she is way funnier and much more stylish. Fodder for another blog entry when I have more time.

And yes, I have been playing with the Light Bright too.

Coming Home

2011-03-23T21:33:00.003-05:00

A few Fridays ago, Dexter got loose from our backyard during his morning romp and we didn't notice until he was long gone. Three hours later, after many trips around the neighborhood at increasing circumferences, phone calls to animal control and the vet, a kind woman found Dexter and called us. He was over a mile away. He laid down for a few minutes, worn out. Then he was ready to go again. (For those of you who haven't met our canine, he has A LOT of energy.)

We were all glad and relieved to have him back, but one little girl in particular had some special hugs for him:

How many?

2011-03-23T21:24:00.003-05:00

How many times have I taken a shot similar to this one and how many more time will I take one in the future? Why do I think it is so adorable to see my children snuggled up reading books?

Either by themselves (today after lunch):

Or with my groom (a few weeks ago):

Too Cute

2011-02-27T18:12:00.000-06:00

Not sure when this happened, but I remember it happening. I think it was morning and everyone was having a hard time waking up.My babies.

O, Pioneer!

2011-02-26T16:17:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago when I was starting with yet another sinus infection, Suzana was wiped out, and the weather was gorgeous, AND we had nothing scheduled, Thomas took Calvin to Angel Mounds for a Pioneer exhibition. I really wish I could have gone. They brought back some great cornmeal with which we have made our favorite buttermilk cornmeal pancakes, and corn meal mush. Dad, you'll be happy to know that the children did not like the must hot as a cereal, or fried the next day. I on the other hand, was in heaven.

Calvin got to drill a hole:

Make cornmeal:

Make a real rope:

They also got to see a blacksmith at work and bring home a neat S hook, which recently fell from its perch and broke my favorite mug that I got at the beach when I was probably 9 years old. Oh well. That is why we modern folk believe in Krazy Glue.

Shingle me this

2011-02-26T15:47:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday night, while we were practicing violin, Suzana started complaining about her fingers hurting. Silly Mommy chalked it up to yet another attempt to cut short a practice session. Sunday, she kept complaining, and we saw some bumps, but I made her practice anyway. Both Thomas and I thought she must have gotten bit by some strange bug. The spots multiplied. We took the children to Owensboro to hear the NSO that afternoon. Monday morning, the spots looked worse and so I kept her home from pre-school and immediately called the doctor. I thought the good man would give me some powerful creme and send me on my way. But, he took one look at her muttered something like "uh, I need to go double-check something. I'll be right back." He returned a moment later and announced, "Shingles. Suzana has Shingles."

After discussing the disease with me a bit, writing an anti-viral prescription, and instructing me on how to care for her, we headed home, with the realization that my week was going to be completely different than I had planned.

Suzana has been a trooper. I think shingles in children are must be a lot milder than in older adults. And I think she has been secretly delighted to have so much Mommy time, which I agree has been nice. Things were slower this week. But I am glad it is Friday and grateful that she is almost 100%.

We watched lots of new-to-her movies, like the full length Disney version of Sleeping Beauty and Pinocchio, which I can never convince Calvin to watch. I tried to get her more interested in reading. But what she really wanted to me to do with her was play and color. Here are some samples of her creations. Dexter ate the other ones.

Rainbows and flowers and people seem to be a recurrent theme these days.

This is our family: Calvin, Suzana (who wants her hair to be that long and luxrious), Mommy, Dexter (in purple?) and Daddy.

This is Suzana wearing the skirt that Grandma made for her (Not sure where the hat comes from, but the girl does like to accessorize.) next to an apple tree and ladder and a sunflower. I LOVE the scale of everything. Ah, and the word "cat."

Christmas in February

2011-02-25T17:44:00.007-06:00

I cannot believe I haven't posted any shots from our Christmas festivities.

And I thought I had nothing to blog about...

Our Christmas Eve couldn't have been more perfect: church, snow, intimate meal with just the four of us for our first Christmas Eve alone.

Not sure what is going on here or when exactly it happened, but there were some pregnancies and deliveries. I remember laughing pretty hard.

Our Tannenbaum ...........................and home-made cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

Playing in their new castle on Christmas morning before we left for...

...Tennessee!

The boy cousins in the hot tub.........................and all the gals on the couch.

Many games were played...................................and MANY puzzle pieces pieced.

Then, on to Ohio!

Uncle Paul and Aunt Valerie got C a microscope...Omi and Papa got him Buckeye Gear!

Suzana got a pony and some Buckeye gear among other things. Here I am giving a computer tutorial to Omi and Papa.

We didn't take so many pictures over the holidays because we were too busy having a good time and savoring [almost] every minute with each other and our families. And we were back in time for our own New Year's festivities, which included going to bed at 10:00. So far, 2011 has been fast and furious.

Spring Fever

2011-02-25T15:02:00.005-06:00

Last Friday, the weather was gorgeous, (the high was around 60) as it was several days last week. So, when Calvin got home from school, we packed up some snack in their backpacks, leashed the dog and journeyed to our favorite spot in Newburgh: The Ohio River.

None of us REALLY wanted to come home. It was so wonderful to be outdoors and it was hysterical to see all the other people who had the same idea. And, the other thing that tickled me was to see their little po-pos up in the air, crack exposed to the warm sun, as they scavenged the shore.

I got some great shots of the kids, although Suzana didn't cooperate as well as Calvin did. Good thing we soaked up the warm sun that day, because we haven't had another one to take advantage in several days. And today, the high is about 37.

Snacks and photo opp.

Reading his insect book.

Soaking up some rays.

"Hmmm...where is a good rock?"

They were working SO HARD to hurl rocks into the river. I think I heard them grunt a few times.

My sweet girl. Your should see her shirt. It says "Could I be any cuter?"

My new all time favorite picture of Calvin.
Dexter was over stimulated and alert to all of the activity. Cutest, most annoying dog ever.

Belated Valentines

2011-02-25T14:54:00.007-06:00

Valentines was BIG around here this year. I even volunteered to do the craft at Calvin's class's party. Won't make that mistake again. Ever tried to do a craft with 27 first graders?

Suzana is still going crazy with drawing hearts now that she knows how.

A few weeks before Valentines, I told the children I would be going to the store and I would buy them some Valentines to give to the children in their classes. "Which ones shall I get?" I asked. Don't judge me. The pre-packaged Valentine cards are easy, cheap, and every where. Also, they take NO time to cut and fold and assemble. But that would have been WAY too easy for my kids.

Calvin wanted to make his and quickly convinced his sister that she should do the same.

So, instead of spending 5 dollars, I went to Hobby Lobby and spent 25 on much needed supplies.

I told them they were on their own.

Then, for every spare minute between February 1 and February 12 (the day of the parties), they made cards. It was actually great. And I know that in this case, giving my children what they wanted instead of what I wanted was for the best. Their cards were the most creative in either class and they did them entirely on their own.

They inspired me to hand paint the the Valentines for my true loves, and I bought the children each a poster for their room: Suzana got a ballerina and Calvin got OSU.

Then, I baked red velvet cupcakes.

The children made lots of cards for Thomas and me too. Here is the one I found at my breakfast spot:

Here are some by Suzana:

Things are so busy, Thomas and I finally got to share a bottle of wine at 8:30 that night. We'll have a romantic dinner some other time.

Lots of love to everyone as you wait out these last cold days of winter before spring arrives.

Black Beans and Rice

2011-02-19T19:50:00.003-06:00

Love my Cooks Illustrated Magazine...sometimes their recipes seem a bit involved, but this one was perfection in a pot. Even Calvin, who has been claiming to detest black beans for years now, was converted. I did not cook the rice with the beans, but everything else I followed exactly. I doubled the recipe. Oh, and I was out of red wine vinegar so I used white wine vinegar and rice vinegar.

Published March 1, 2011. From Cook's Illustrated.

SERVES 6 TO 8 AS AN ENTREE AND 8 TO 10 AS A SIDE DISH

Serve this recipe as a side dish or as a main course with a simple green salad. It is important to use lean—not fatty—salt pork. If you can’t find it, substitute six slices of bacon. If using bacon, decrease the cooking time in step 4 to eight minutes. For a vegetarian version of this recipe, use water instead of chicken broth, omit the salt pork, add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste with the vegetables in step 4, and increase the amount of salt in step 5 to 1½ teaspoons.

INGREDIENTS

	Table salt
1	cup dried black beans , rinsed and picked over
2	cups low-sodium chicken broth (see note)
2	cups water
2	large green bell peppers , halved and seeded
1	large onion , halved at equator and peeled, root end left intact
1	head garlic , 5 medium cloves removed and minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons), remaining head halved at equator with skin left intact
2	bay leaves
1 1/2	cups long grain white rice
2	tablespoons olive oil
6	ounces lean salt pork , cut into 1/4-inch dice (see note)
1	tablespoon minced fresh oregano leaves
4	teaspoons ground cumin
2	tablespoons red wine vinegar
2	medium scallions , sliced thin
1	lime , cut into 8 wedges

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Dissolve 1½ tablespoons salt in 2 quarts cold water in large bowl or container. Add beans and soak at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours. Drain and rinse well.
2. In large Dutch oven with tight-fitting lid, stir together drained beans, broth, water, 1 pepper half, 1 onion half (with root end), halved garlic head, bay leaves, and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook until beans are just soft, 30 to 40 minutes. Using tongs, remove and discard pepper, onion, garlic, and bay leaves. Drain beans in colander set over large bowl, reserving 2½ cups bean cooking liquid. (If you don’t have enough bean cooking liquid, add water to equal 2½ cups.) Do not wash out Dutch oven.
3. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Place rice in large fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until water runs clear, about 1½ minutes. Shake strainer vigorously to remove all excess water; set rice aside. Cut remaining peppers and onion into 2-inch pieces and process in food processor until broken into rough ¼-inch pieces, about eight 1-second pulses, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary; set vegetables aside.
4. In now-empty Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon oil and salt pork over medium-low heat; cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned and rendered, 15 to 20 minutes. Add remaining tablespoon oil, chopped peppers and onion, oregano, and cumin. Increase heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Add minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice and stir to coat, about 30 seconds.
5. Stir in beans, reserved bean cooking liquid, vinegar, and ½ teaspoon salt. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to simmer. Cover and transfer to oven. Bake until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, about 30 minutes. Fluff with fork and let rest, uncovered, 5 minutes. Serve, passing scallion and lime wedges separately.

Pita PS

2011-02-09T21:01:00.002-06:00

Some have requested the Pita Bread recipe. I got this out of one of Calvin's Highlights Magazines...unclear about which volume it is. I don't see a date! Anyway, I am sure you could google pita bread and find more elaborate instructions. This is pretty simple. Good luck!

Ingredients:

2/3 c. lukewarm water

1 T. sugar

3/4 t. instant yeast

2 c. unbleached flour

Directions:

1) In a large mixing bowl, mix together water, sugar, and yeast. Add flour and stir well.

2) Turn out dough onto floured surface and knead for 10 minutes.

3) Return dough to bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let raise in a warm place for 2 hours (or in the refrigerator overnight)

4) After it has risen, divide dough into 8 balls. Roll out each ball until 1/4-inch thick.

5) Preheat oven AND baking sheet to 500. Place flattened dough on baking sheet and back for 3-5 minutes until puffy and golden brown.

6) Remove bread to cooling rack. Cut, fill and enjoy!

Pita!

2011-02-09T14:40:00.001-06:00

One snowy day, while we were getting new carpets, we made pita bread for the first time per my son's suggestion. It was fun, easy, and delicious. We must do it again soon.

(I have noticed that I always get as excited as the kids do for the first day off of school due to weather and have a ton of ideas and patience. Subsequent days? Yeah, not so much. )

The unfairness of it all

2011-02-08T14:08:00.004-06:00

The pictures don't do it justice. Suzana, when she started her quiet time today, took advantage of the folded-out futon, moved the ottomans into position and had a jumping fest. I tried to get video but sadly failed. While she was doing this, I was getting some laundry started, and I was composing in my head a great blog post about how differently I am parenting my 2nd child than my 1st child, blah, blah, blah. But shortly after this picture was taken, she had a little melt-down, I yelled (as I have often done with Calvin) and Suzana finally succumbed to a nap on the futon. So, I thought my point was null and void, until I started typing, and now I realize I still have a point.

Yes. I am parenting Suzana differently than I have parented Calvin, despite their 28 month age difference, which is nothing considering the 5 years between me and my brother, or the 18 years between my mom and her youngest sister, or the umpteen years between my dad and his youngest brother. When Calvin was Suzana's age, he wouldn't take a nap for a million dollars, but I worked HARD to get him to have a solid hour of quiet time in his room while his baby sister napped so that I could recover at least 5% of the energy expelled in our morning activities. And he did it. Suzana has been known to voluntarily take naps, but to get her to spend time in her room for "quiet time?" Forget it. I never would have let Calvin get away with having quiet time downstairs even though that is exactly what I was going to let Suzana do today.

They are different people. Not only are the gender differences becoming more and more apparent as they interact with other children, but other differences are emerging too: their learning styles, senses of humor, levels of independence, interests. And at the same time, I see how similar they are in their love for music, crafts, books, imagination, helping, puzzles...

And, let's face it. You learn a lot the 1st time around. You learn a lot the 2nd time around. My parents' favorite thing to say to my siblings when I got to do something at a younger age than they had been allowed was "Times have changed." When I was a kid, I just appreciated the sentiment because it meant that I got spoiled and didn't have to wait for permission, stuff, etc, then way Patrick and Alicia had to. They must have really hated that. Calvin has been complaining a lot, being in school all day, about all the things Suzana gets to do with me during the day, like having lunch with friends or popping by Daddy's office. He forgets that he used to do lots of special things with Mommy and Daddy. All that he can remember is the here and now. Suzana grins like the Cheshire cat when she knows that Calvin is jealous.

Parenting is such a strange job.

In other news...

2011-01-14T13:25:00.000-06:00

...it snowed here this week.

After taking all last week getting used to being back in a routine, we got to relax again this week when school was cancelled two days in a row. We took advantage of the snowy weather for some winter recreation which included a walk down the street to a neighbor's house where the children engaged in a snow ball fight, mini-sledding down the driveway, and general goofiness while me and the other mom chatted.

Then, the children helped me make cookies. And when I say help, what I mean is that they hovered like vultures around the mixer until it was time to lick the batter.

On the 2nd day, I took the children sledding down a real hill for the first time. Calvin LOVED it and caught on quickly, advancing from the small hill to the larger, steeper one all by himself. Suzana got fed up when snow got shoved into her mitten. Calvin and I convinced her to let us sled longer though. I hadn't gone sledding in such a long time. It was SO fun. I was so proud of Calvin being so brave and adventurous; and I'd like to think he was proud of me acting less like a mommy and more like a child for a change. I know I was proud of me.

Then, we came home to make snow angels with Dexter:

And, then attempted a snow man, but we are calling it our snow ghost. Suzana did most of the work, although Calvin did lend his hand to the face-making.

The rest of the time we snuggled together for warmth.

Too bad Thomas had to work.

Doggy Mama

2011-01-13T13:13:00.003-06:00

Suzana's mothering instincts have been fully kicking in lately. Not only is she playing with dolls a lot and saying she wants to be a mommy when she grows up, but at times she can be heard bossing Calvin around. As you can imagine, he does not like this so much.

Lucky for Calvin, there is another creature in the house who has become the focus of Suzana's need to take care of something. I am not sure whether Dexter likes all the smothering attention or not, but at least it keeps him occupied and is theoretically turning him into a more docile dog.

Suzana can be found feeding him his food by hand, climbing in his crate, covering him with blankets, or squeezing him with oversized hugs.

Dexter knows he is well loved, and adores Suzana because she is an easy, unassuming target when she has food and he is looking for an extra snack.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T00:01:00.001-06:00

Christmas.

Merry Greetings to all of you, far and near.

To our many friends spread around the world, have fun celebrating all the meanings of Christmas. And know that you are in our hearts. I wish I could write long luxurious letters and send dozens of photos to everyone, but that I impractical.

May the holiday continue to grow in depth and meaning for all of you grown-ups.

But, don't be too serious.

And not too childish either.

Such a fine line, don't you think?

Love came down at Christmas.

Merry Christmas, Everyone.

Bon-Bons

2010-12-23T18:45:00.001-06:00

I wouldn't say that Peanut Butter Bon-Bon's are my favorite Christmas cookie, but growing up, they were a huge part of the baking tradition and I always got to help, which made them extra special. This year, I have done a lot of my baking while the children were otherwise occupied, but Suzana was home one Friday morning to help me dip the bon-bons.

She was very good at it:
Some may think me crazy or irresponsible for letting a 4 year old close to a pot of boiling water with hot melted chocolate in it, but we had fun and she was careful, and so was I. Life is way too interesting for one to be overly cautious. Because, what really might happen is much more powerful than the small chance of disaster.

Dressing Up

2010-12-23T06:40:00.000-06:00

Thomas was home alone with the children the other night and he always succeeds in getting them interested in something new.

Suzana dressed up:

(My Mom made this dress for me when I was 6 and was a flower girl in my Uncle Tim's wedding)

Calvin dressed down:

(Daddy's Tie)

White Christmas

2010-12-22T18:30:00.002-06:00

First, the dog did this:

(He tore apart the old pillow he has been sleeping on)

Then, the children did this:
I can't tell you how much delight filled the house.

They took ALL the stuffing out and had a blast. Until some one got hurt. They even cleaned it up without complaining too much (although Calvin did accuse me of punishing them because they had to clean it up.) Don't worry--I helped. Anything that keeps them moving and giggling for multiple successive minutes is totally worth the mess that follows. Dexter, finally, was tired last night.

My Little Nutcrackers

2010-12-16T15:33:00.005-06:00

I picked up a bag of nuts and a metal squeezy nutcracker yesterday at the grocery store when I went to get baking soda. It was the first time I had seen the nuts and the tools at the same time. Calvin has been begging for nuts every time we see them at the store. He was just slightly excited when he saw them sitting on the counter this morning.

So on this wintry day with both children home from school, while I attempted to bake cinnamon bread, the children tackled a bowl of nuts.

Dexter chased and demolished the strays.

I fondly remember, as a very young girl, sitting around cracking nuts in the wintertime. I was always amazed at the ease with which the adults could crack and extract the nut meat. I always managed to get a mouthful of the bitter shell. Calvin had that experience today and spit it out on the plate.

They enjoyed identifying and eating all of the nuts.

As for me, after dealing with all of the nuts, I am enjoying the dozen red roses my husband brought home to me tonight.

Another photo-less moment

2010-12-15T14:42:00.002-06:00

As I type this, Suzana, clad in her official (real) ballerina uniform, is prancing around the front room to the magical music of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker. I, on the other hand, am also in the middle of unclogging bathroom drains. The dichotomy of these two parallel universes astounds me.

Especially as I remember distinctly, being 4 years old and doing the exact thing that Suzana is doing now (except I was probably wearing my Mom's knee-highs, with ribbons tied around my ankles, black patent leather shoes, and my nightgown.

What was my own mother doing while I was lost in my own little ballerina world?

sprinkled

2010-12-13T21:16:00.004-06:00

Calvin baptized Dexter today.

In the kitchen.

While I was making dinner.

Hence, no pictures.

I am hoping that Dexter "joining the Christian family" (Calvin's words, not mine) will inspire him to behave better.

HO HO Zen

2010-12-07T19:55:00.012-06:00

How did it get to be December already?

It is not that I haven't had any stories or pictures to share, it is that I have had too many. Do you buy that?

Life is speeding up and attentions are being split in all directions and I find that this blog is low on my priority list. Maybe I think I think that if I stop writing down all the things that are memorable in our lives, that somehow time will slow down. That if I can't go back and look to see how things have changed and progressed then I won't get all sappy and nostalgic and emotional...

Which is complete baloney, because if I don't continue this archive, I will regret it when the children are eventually adults and they will be mad at me for not keeping better track of things. I already feel like a super-slacker in that department; besides this blog I am not very organized when it comes to memorabilia.

So, again, I am going to try to do better, even though when I think about how much things are changing around here right now, I get a lump in my throat and writing about it just might make me cry, which might short out my computer. If my computer shorts out then I'll have to buy a new one. When I get a new computer, I'll have to learn how to use it and all the fancy new things it can do, which will deter me again from writing this blog. And, if you give a mouse a cookie...

So, we drug our children to the Peppermint Pops concert this last weekend. My friend Kaylee sat with them while T and I performed. They were pretty thrilled to find Santa backstage and Kaylee was smart enough to have her camera with her and snapped this shot of us prior to the concert.

We also said good-bye to a babysitter that we have used basically since we moved here; at least since Suzana was an infant. It was surreal to realize how much life has evolved for all of us. Will the children remember Abby, who took such good care of them for so many hours while Thomas and I rehearsed and performed over the past 5 years?

Since my last post...Calvin got a new violin and despite his efforts to be more of a boys' boy, he can't help but ooze music when he picks up his instrument...even when wearing a Colts hat. Suzana gave a knock-out Thanksgiving program at pre-school and we were lucky to have Grandma and Grandpa at the event and for a lovely Thanksgiving. She also went to a Nutcracker Tea Party with Mommy and Grandma (Calvin was a great sport and went to, although he was the only boy). The children are still obsessed with books. Suzana has been channeling Mary Cassatt and Calvin got to open the first advent present in Santa's pockets this year.

Somewhere along the lines this fall, I found that I am not completely bone-tired exhausted at the end of the day like I have been for most of the past 5 years. I don't know if it is my new exercise regimen or the children's maturity, but it is a bit disorienting. I am busier than ever, but in a completely different way; and Thomas is home less to relieve me.

So as we rev up to Christmas, I find I am still clinging to the spirit of Thanksgiving, grateful that our life is so full, our home is warm, and that not having a clue is okay for now. In fact, I think God for the gift of grace, that I can honestly say that I am in this moment fully, and not worried about what is going to happen tomorrow or what transpired yesterday.

Has anyone written "Zen and the Art of Mommyhood" yet?

More is more

2010-11-03T06:08:00.000-05:00

The more she changes, the more she stays the same.

Here is how she did her own hair on Saturday afternoon (okay, I did the big pink bow and she added all the other clips and bows later):

Here is how she wanted her hair done at Mollie's House of Beauty over two years ago:

Caged

2010-11-02T06:04:00.000-05:00

Honestly, this was all their idea. I had nothing to do with it. I thought Dexter would be more upset by them invading his special space, but he seemed kind of jazzed about the whole thing.

The Dog and the Lady Bug

2010-11-01T05:56:00.003-05:00

Going Solo

2010-10-18T12:44:00.006-05:00

Both of my children love performing, but ironically, my independent Suzana tends to be a bit shier about it than Calvin. Here is some rare footage of Suzana performing solo, a rhyme she learned in pre-K last week. I asked her several times over the weekend to recite this for people, but she stubbornly refused.

Text:

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate

The first one says "Oh my! It's getting late!"

The second one says "There are witches in the air"

The third one says "But we don't care."

The fourth one says "Let's run, and run, and run."

The fifth one says "I'm ready for some fun."

OOH-ooh goes the wind

And out goes the light

And five little pumpkins roll out of sight.

A-Maze-ing Pumpkin Sunday

2010-10-11T14:35:00.004-05:00

Yes, it is almost the middle of October, which means T is on Fall break, we had a free Sunday(10-10-10!), and oh, yeah, it was 90 degrees here. While we did not participate in the annual West Side Nut Club Fall Festival here in Evansville last week, yesterday, we decided to spend the beautiful afternoon down in Henderson, KY, at Cates Farm, to pluck our pumpkins and partake of some our own Josenhans' fun fall festivities. Calvin had gone there last year for a Kindergarten field trip but it was rainy so his class didn't get to do much. He was excited to go back. Suzana's pre-school class will take a pumpkin patch field trip in a few weeks, but we wanted to do something as a family, and get lost in the corn maze together.

It was seriously more elaborate and difficult than we had anticipated. We all got over-heated and finally had to cheat by cutting through some rows to get out of the labyrinth; however, we went out the entrance instead of the exit. We were over it.

They had lots of fun activities like this water pump race (complete with rubber duckies) and the corn shelling station. There was also a super fun slide, a trivia wall, a giant pumpkin bounce house, free pop-corn, a "sand-box" filled with corn kernels, and much, much more.

We also got to take the obligatory hay-ride which was extra fun since we coincidentally met up with our friends (Erin, Jeremy, Trevor, and Evan) and went on the hayride together. (Sorry, no picture...I am Erin has a suitable one I can post later?)

We ended our excursion with a walk in the pumpkin patch where each of us hand picked our own pumpkins that are now neatly sitting on our front step, waiting to be carved.

It was a great day, despite some of the whining. We have learned that the whining is generally when the children are tired, and that is simply a sign of a successful fun family activity.

What do you call it?

2010-10-07T19:23:00.006-05:00

Do you know what this is?

Suzana says it looks like a giant donut. She would say that: she loves donuts.

I haven't blogged for a while about things I have created in the kitchen, but I thought this was extra inspired today. I used frozen pumpkin that I had put up last fall. I adapted a recipe given to me by my friend Gretchen (Thanks!). I used some frozen cranberries that were leftover from last year's holidays (I always buy extras because I love cranberries so much). And, I made a lemon glaze for extra goodness. I squeezed its creation in between various errand running, child duties, and baby crocheting (...did you know it is baby season? I have gotten VERY behind in my crochet duties.)

So, I call it Pumpkin Cranberry Cakey Bread with Lemon Glaze.

I also call it Yum.

Accelerating Hodge-Podge

2010-10-05T20:31:00.004-05:00

Time has sped up dramatically around here recently. I never wanted to believe people, in my early days of motherhood, when they would tell me how quickly time went, blah, blah, blah, and promised myself that I would never, ever, utter those words to another young mother. But here I am telling you, dear readers, that I confess that it has come to pass. I am not sad about this phenomenon, but am trying to figure out how to live and to again re-balance all the parts of my life. And, despite this drastic acceleration, the current speed does not take away from those countless, seemingly endless days....

Everyone is growing around here. We have had Dexter for two months now, and sometimes, I really do feel like his is my third baby; so, now I will bore you with all the Dexterisms: he can now climb up the slide, slide down the slide, run like a crazy man, and has figured out how to climb onto the kitchen counter-tops. When the peanut butter comes out, or when I am slicing apples, he howls at me as though he's never eaten before in his life. Despite all of this, he has calmed down significantly in 2 months and has doubled his weight. He still likes to lay on my lap in the evenings. He does not like baths and grooming. As I type this, he is having fun chasing a cricket around the toy room. We are all quite attached and he keeps our life interesting. He loves playing outside with the children, who love their new quasi club-house- under-the-swing-set built by the T-man himself. The children take out back-packs suitcases and anything else they can to help them play.

After Calvin's big book recital, Suzana was the one who had grown enough to graduate to the next size violin. She went from the micro-scopic 1/32 to the tiny 1/16. Everyone's ears in this house are relieved and happy. At the same time, the cold has finally arrived, which means the beginning of hot chocolate season.
I thought I would have all sorts of extra time for accomplishing lots of things this year with Calvin in school all day, but it seems like I have less time and my to-do lists don't even get written down. I feel like I am hopping from one thing to another, hoping that I don't forget anything in the process. But I am accomplishing a lot, just not the "stuff" that I had perhaps initially thought. I am taking care of myself and my family, and you can't really measure that. It has only taken me 6 years to come understand that and for the time being, to be at peace with it.

I figure that if I am wearing out my children to the point that they can fall asleep like this, I must be doing something right? I remember there were a few years when they were younger...like when Calvin was between the ages of 2.5 and 5 and Suzana from birth to 3, that I wanted and could have fallen asleep like this, but rarely had the luxury.

Today, Suzana zipped up her coat by herself for the first time. She was beyond proud of herself. That needle on the spedometer just keeps on moving to the right.

The Show Must Go On

2010-09-22T11:24:00.001-05:00

Calvin successfully gave his Book I Suzuki Violin recital last night. He played 3 pieces: Minuet 1 (Bach), Happy Farmer (Schumann), and Gavotte (Gossec). We were all extremely proud of how well he played. He was a true professional in all ways. Admittedly, I got a bit teary.

I would have taken more pictures, but chaos ensued as soon as we arrived at the venue. Somehow, that is beyond Thomas' and my imagination, Calvin fell and busted the side of his lip on the bottom of a church pew. I won't lie to you: there was a lot of blood. I scooped him up and ran into the women's room. We we used yards of paper towels to try to stop the bleeding, while very concerned and helpful friends of ours went in search of something cold to put on his lip. Suzana meanwhile, got very upset to see her brother in so much pain, and would only let Miss Maria take her away from our family unit. Have you ever heard Calvin scream? He is quite good at it; he can really let it all out.

Anyway, our energies were taken away from grabbing the best seats and whipping out our cameras for pre-concert pictures. We weren't even sure that Calvin would play. Once the bleeding stopped and the initial pain wore off, what the boy was most concerned about was that his nice shirt was all bloody and people would see it.

(Post recital)

We alleviated his fears, and he played like a superstar. Momma, Dadda, and Sis were all extremely proud of him and his co-hort Katie, who started with him when they were three and who also played her recital marvelously.

He really did look dapper before the recital, as did his sister. I couldn't resist taking a shot of them as we walked on campus. I wonder, if Thomas and I had met when we were youngsters, if we would have looked this cute.

Today, the poor guy had to get 4 baby teeth pulled. Afterward, I took him to get a milkshake, just like my mom used to do when I had stuff done to my teeth. I was again so proud of him for being so brave. I sat staring at him and cried: after all the turmoil I remember of those teeth coming in, now they are gone...I miss my babies.

Four Year Old Pink Princess Mommy

2010-09-20T19:39:00.007-05:00

Suzana turned 4 years old on Friday, a milestone she had been anticipating for close to two months. I found myself getting more emotional on her birthday than I had for any previous birthrdays of either child. I am not sure why...the reasons are hard to pinpoint exactly, but in short, my baby is growing up, farther away from babyhood and closer to being a kid like Calvin.

Except, this girl, is so girly. When I first started raising a girl, I wasn't sure how girly I wanted her to be. I decided to wait and follow her lead, assuming that she would show me how pink, glittery, and frilly she wanted to be, and then, whatever it was I would temper it up or down a few notches. I don't remember how quintessentially girly I was when I was four, but I wish sometimes that I had indulged my girly-ness more at an earlier age without feeling guilty or embarrassed.

But, I want my girl to run and jump in her princess dress and high heels.

I want her to play with dolls and ponies and then turn around and build things that rival the creations of her big brother. I want her to paint and draw and play the violin and dance, and then I want her to climb to the top of the jungle gym, slide down the fireman's pole, get dirty and sweaty, and yell at the top of her lungs. I want her to explore everything and find her truest self. Today, I read "A Bad Case of Stripes" to her. I love that book.

Happy Birthday, silly Suzana. Your sense of humor, though currently in a potty phase, continues to grow with you and is a huge blessing to this family. You are demanding and creative and keep your brother on his toes.

We partied hard to celebrate her birthday: we made mini-cupcakes and celebrated with her pre-school class;

had home-made cinnamon rolls for breakfast followed by a few presents;

played at the park with friends (it was a GORGEOUS day); she took a much needed 2 hour nap (for the first time in weeks); then the four of us had birthday pizza at Turonis followed by cake at home and a few more gifts. Suzana loves playing Mommy, so the big gift was a nice doll with real hair and some accoutrements. She has named her Ella and has bonded with her already. She also adores her first princess dress and a real purse filled with all sorts of essentials.

I am so proud of Suzana for sharing Ella with Calvin and so proud of Calvin for wanting to play with his sister's doll.

Our Trip to Ohio

2010-09-15T07:18:00.000-05:00

The children and I abandoned Thomas this weekend (so that he could play the opening philharmonic concert) and three of us went to Ohio where we met my parents; reconnected with aunts, uncles and cousins; and showed the children where Grandma grew up. I decided to do this back in June, when on a trip to buy groceries, we found ourselves at Aldi with a black-bumper Amish couple. I noticed the children notice...or at least I noticed and hoped that they noticed. For most of my life, whenever I see conservative Mennonites or Amish, I have a fantasy about running up to them and hugging them and screaming "I AM ONE OF YOU! Even though I don't dress like that, I understand you, and know you, and I am not a crazy tourist, and I am so glad to see you. Do you know my grandparents? Uncles? Aunts? Cousins?" I restrained myself that day, but wanted to dispense much information to my children about being Anabaptist. And then I remembered that there was going to be a Miller reunion in September.

I hadn't been back to Sugarcreek for almost 5 years, since my grandparents' funerals, and I hadn't seen many of my other relatives for the same amount of time. While not everyone was in town, I feel blessed that I got to see as many people as I did, though regrettably, the time was way too short. The sights, sounds, and smells of Amish country haven't really changed much since I was a little girl, save for the new fancy road, and the swanky tourist hotel. Upon my return, I still feel woefully out of place: not a tourist, but not a local. Something in-between.

I was pleased that the children got on so well and so quickly with their second cousins, Blake and Braydon, whom the met on Friday night. And then the whole collection of second and third cousins that they met on Saturday afternoon. They also fell in love with Amish peanut butter, and ate their fill of noodles and goodies. We of course brought baby swiss home with us and when Calvin saw it in the refrigerator he enthusiastically declared "YUM! Mom, can I have some?"

Playing in the playhouses with Braydon and Blake after dinner

Children playing at the reunion

They took quickly to my Aunts and Uncles, which warmed my heart. They even played their violins for them and gave them hugs; both things aren't always easily coaxed out of my children. Children inherently seem to know what being related means and why it is important. Yet one more perk of having children: they teach us to remember all of the things we once knew when we ourselves were children but seemed to have forgotten somewhere along the line. As I say on the header of this blog, "Learning again for the first time."

Aunt Miriam reading to Suzana

I wish I had had more time to talk longer with more people, but hopefully this visit was merely an appetizer for additional trips to come. As I have mentioned in previous musings, it sure is hard to keep up with so many relatives. My parents each have 8 surviving siblings and I have approximately 15 cousins on each side. Between mine and Thomas's families, our relatives live in nearly 12 states, 5 of which account for just our siblings and parents. Our holidays are always packed and we don't even get to see everyone in our immediate families. This modern age is great in so many ways, allowing us to pursue careers that were out of the question in previous eras; but being so spread out certainly comes at a price. This was my 2nd family reunion of the summer, the first one being on the Showalter side in August. I continue to marvel at how eclectic and varied all the members of both sides of my family are, and for some reason there is comfort in knowing that I can go so many places and find people that I know and love and to whom I am related.

My brother commented on facebook while I was gone that my nephew (his son David) mused one day that he wishes he was Amish. While I don't know if I would myself like to be Amish, I know from where that statement comes; and I surely am thankful for that part of my heritage and how it informs my inhabitance of this modern worldly world. And despite the fact that I married a non-Mennonite and am not even living in a Mennonite community, I try so hard every day to pass on the cultural elements of my heritage to my children that will hopefully not only keep them unique, but help them be better Christian citizens of the various eclectic communities they will inevitably be part of as they grow up: to be good stewards of the earth; to take care of people; that they don't have to have the latest technology or the highest fashion; spend meal times with family; pray; make music together; play games together; make more with less.

Me and my Great Uncle Mose and Great Uncle Henry. Great Aunt Barbara is in the background.

Thanks for a wonderful and meaningful weekend, Millers!

PreK First Day

2010-09-08T06:06:00.003-05:00

Suzana started pre-school on Tuesday. The three weeks since Calvin had started had been long and lovely. She was so excited to pick out her out fit for the first day, and as always, do her own hair. She has worn that sparkly headband approximately everyday for the last 3 weeks.

Calvin was just as excited that Suzana was starting school with the same teacher he had when he was four. I heard him say something like "Tell Mrs. O'Leary 'Hello' for me, okay Suzana!"

Dexter was frustrated that we made him stay inside while we had our photo session. See him peeking through the door?

[And what did Mama do on her first morning in over a year without either child? She volunteered at Calvin's school, which also brought smiles to her little boy's face. She is so glad that she does not yet embarrass him and lets her hug and kiss him in front of everyone. ]

Suzana was pink-cheeked when I picked her up from school, where we ate a picnic lunch before going to her violin lesson. She felt like a very big girl yesterday.

[And let the record show that Mama was less exhausted last night than she had been in a long time, despite the 5 AM spinning class she attended that morning.]

A Walk in the Park

2010-08-30T20:16:00.006-05:00

We took our first trip to Audobon State Park across the river in Henderson, KY, on Sunday afternoon. The children took their walking sticks and were our tour guides, lecturing us on topics ranging from "finding the alphabet in nature" to "woodpeckers." They had to tell their parents on several occasions to be quiet so that we wouldn't disturb the caterpillars who were getting ready to make cocoons. Calvin and Suzana are very serious nature lovers. I brought snacks.

Suzana wanted nothing to do with the hole in the tree, which Calvin thought was the coolest thing ever.

It was a fabulous way to celebrate the patriarch's birthday.

Dexter

2010-08-23T21:28:00.000-05:00

Our dog has some serious character.

He can be hyper and crazy for most of the day, but then I can find him like this:

And, at the end of the day, after the children have gone to bed and Thomas and I are ready to relax, the dog has already established lap rights for both of us. He falls asleep on one of our laps and will stay there until we go to bed.

He loves socks.

He loves to be chased.

He loves people. I took him on a walk on Saturday morning and came across a couple of yard sales. He was so enamoured with the yard sales that he refused to walk away. I literally had to pick him up and carry him for 200 yards before he would walk again.

He is also smart. He already knows the commands "Sit" and "Go Potty." We are working on "Leave it." I think we say it approximately 500 times a day.

We can all be so irritated with him at times during the day, like when he doesn't know when to stop playing, or when he sneaks off some where he is not supposed to be, or when he grabs the children's toys...or today, when he tried to eat Suzana's violin bow...while she was practicing, but at the end of the day, he is so incredibly sweet and has already become a part of our family and we already love him.

But, I still hope our house doesn't smell like dog. Please tell us if it does.

My Ballerina

2010-08-22T22:09:00.004-05:00

I never got to take ballet class when I was a little girl, but I did take gymnastics and I fervently danced around the living room to many of my mom's records, often times costumed in my pajamas, Mom's knee highs, and my Sunday shoes. (And, I do know there is a picture of this somewhere.)

So, when Suzana started to verbally express interest in dancing, it didn't take me long to do something about it.

(Suzana in her class uniform...I love that the girls all wear the same thing! And they look so adorable)

Saturday was her first "Creative Movement" class.

When we got home, she asked if she could "go again tomorrow."

Sorry, Sweetheart. You have to wait an entire week to go back, but we can practice if you want!

My camera isn't sophisticated enough to get good pictures of her leap-frogging, skipping, and jumping around the room, but she was obviously very beautiful as she did it and was taking it very seriously. She was sweaty when she came out of the room.

Meanwhile, Calvin didn't want anything to do with this dance stuff:

I took him for a donut while Suzana had her class, but that couldn't distract him from, in his mind, the very girly ballet school...never mind that it is run by a man. I told him he could take the class too if he wanted, but that didn't go over so well.

My Scout

2010-08-18T13:09:00.000-05:00

Calvin became a Tiger Cub this summer.

And boy, is he thrilled.

So far there have been a couple of den meetings, a bike rodeo, visit to the volunteer fire station, and most importantly, last Saturday's fishing expedition to a near-by pond. Thomas is the parent-in-charge of the scouting activities, which is good for both he and Calvin. For example, Thomas was in boy scouts as a youngster but has no recollection of doing some of the out-doors-y stuff that is in store for the two of them this year. I did my part by helping to assemble the uniform and apply patches. (I must admit that I tried sewing them on by hand, quickly got discouraged, and made Thomas go fetch the special adhesive they sell at the scouting center.) When Calvin wore the shirt for the first time and he came home and was getting ready for bed, I kind of grabbed him gently by the shirt because he wasn't following directions or focusing on the task at hand and he stopped, dead in his tracks, and said "Momma, you NEVER grab a boy scout by his shirt. Never." Okay, then.

Calvin was so thrilled that he got to touch all different types of bait on Saturday and was extremely proud of himself for catching a 7 inch bass of some sort.

I love when he gets back from these things and his eyes are all lit up and his cheeks are rosy and positive energy is just dripping from every pore on his body as he gives me a very loud and fast detailed speech about all of the adventures.

I was even more impressed this time that he didn't even mention the marshmellow roasting and the s'mores until the next day whenI was looking at pictures.

Now, at night, he and Thomas are reading their way through the Boy Scout Handbook. Suzana is jealous of all the cool things Calvin gets to do as a scout. But, as for me, it is so satisfying to watch from a distance for a change, as my boys venture into their own world.

Conked out, part deux

2010-08-17T10:55:00.000-05:00

My sweet silly Suzana is growing. In so many ways. I love this picture. If I was a painter, I would paint it. I just think it is so perfect.

For the second time in a week, she fell asleep on the steps, while on time out, in the middle of a temper tantrum. Like the first one, this one was brought on by a food conflict between she and I. She demanded a snack, I told her she could have fruit, that wasn't good enough for her, so she threw a fit. Part of me is worried that my daughter is so fixated on food. That apple didn't fall far from the tree, now, did it?

But, to her credit, there have been a lot of changes lately, and on top of that I think she must be in a growth spurt. She has always liked breakfast, but she has been eating three breakfasts lately. And she seems more tired than usual. This summer, I was ready to phase her out of naps, and now suddenly she seems to need them again, for her sanity.

We are finally at home for more than two weeks for the first time since spring, and that must feel strange to her. The swimming pool is closed. Calvin is away all day at school and so is Daddy. For the past week she has been complaining about tummy aches, but has no other symptoms. Poor thing is stressed out.

I miss Calvin while he is gone at school all day too, but I am so excited to have days alone with Suzana. It reminds me of when it was just Calvin and I for the first two years of his life and I really got to know him. Suzana, since she was born, has been subject to Calvin's likes and interests and routines. The two of them have become so close and play together so nicely, but his loves are her loves. Sometimes, as I watch them, even though I know they are such different people, I get the impression that they don't know where each other stops and starts. Now, I get to know her and she me. Calvin isn't around to laugh at her antics or egg her on, so she has to figure out how to act without him. I have to learn how to talk to her since Calvin isn't around here chattering for all of us.

It is no wonder that she collapses like this. Growing up is hard, whether you are an almost-four year old or a thirty-something year old.

Wish I could get away with throwing tantrums and collapsing in slumber wherever and whenever I desire.

The Composer is Dead

2010-08-16T14:16:00.005-05:00

A few months ago, the children were obsessed with Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf."

This month, they discovered "The Composer is Dead", story by Lemony Snicket and music by Nathanial Stookey. It was commissioned and recorded by the San Francisco Symphony and it is a gem. We listened to it in the car countless times on our last trip, and it made Thomas and me snicker each time we heard it. It is witty and funny both musically and verbally.

The children are in the process of memorizing the whole thing, narration and all. Thomas and I aren't quite sure how we feel about Calvin's burgeoning conducting skills. Believe it or not, he is actually getting some pretty decent stick technique.

Suzana is newly fixated on dancing. Thankfully she got this stylish tutu from her cousin Sadie. The first time she put it on, she danced to Johnny Cash. This weekend when she donned it for our in house production of "The Composer is Dead," the dog had a fit; we hadn't really heard him bark until he saw this ladybug-butterfly creature running around. Dexter was utterly confused.

Just be warned, if you come visit, you are probably going to have to listen to this at least once.

Our new little one

2010-08-12T07:55:00.004-05:00

We've been tossing the idea around for a while now. The kids started getting increasingly excited and impatient with us. During our busy summer schedule, we kind of agreed that August might be the right time to take the plunge.

So, we went and got supplies on Tuesday.

Picked one out that afternoon.

And on Wednesday afternoon, brought him home.

Nothing like the first day of school to get a new puppy.

Meet Dexter:

We rescued him from the Warrick County Humane Society. He is about 3 months old, but we don't know for sure because he was brought to the WHS as a stray. Poor baby. He is a beagle mix of some sort, most likely part pug. We think he is awfully cute.

Thomas, Suzana and I picked him up while Calvin was still at school, but we met him at the bus-stop with the new puppy in hand.

What we know about him already:

1) He likes socks

2) He is more of a lap dog than we anticipated

3) He loves to be outside

Thomas and I feel like we have entered a new level of adulthood. While both of us grew up with pets, this is our first pet as adults. We are learning a lot. The children adore him and are in love with him already. Dexter is a bit overwhelmed by the new situation, but is going with the flow. He was so happy to see everyone this morning, as we were to see him.

Good boy, Dexter.

First of First

2010-08-11T13:16:00.004-05:00

Where do I start telling the story of Calvin going to first grade?

We met his teacher and saw his room on Monday at the all school picnic.

He requested pancakes for breakfast.

He didn't come downstairs until I told him it was time to get ready for school.

He was as chipper and eager as I have ever seen him.

He brushed his teeth, got dressed and made his bed promptly.

He kept asking if it was time to go to the bus stop.

I tried to get him to tell us that he wanted Mommy and Daddy to take him to school, but he insisted on riding the bus.

Every first grade boy needs a princess to help him get to the bus-stop, right?

We walked home after the bus rolled away.

I was fine.

For a minute.

Then I cried,

thinking about how strange it would be for me and Suzana to spend the day without Calvin. How quiet the house would be.

How bored and lonely we would be.

Then, I got over that, and got quite a lot done today with my girl.

But I sure was glad to meet the bus in the afternoon, and see my boy with his backpack climb off the bus with a grin on his face.

I think the cafeteria experience might have been his favorite thing.

We'll start packing lunch next week.

He had no homework tonight, but Mommy did...several forms to fill out.

Tonight, I told him he could read a few chapters of Boxcar Children before going to sleep.

That was at 8:00.

An hour and a half later, I went to check on him, and he was still awake.

Not sure what chapter he was on. When I closed the book, I think the page number 112 caught my eye.

We'll see how he does on day 2.

Conked Out

2010-08-11T13:08:00.003-05:00

The busy summer finally caught up with Suzana:

She conked out while on the time-out spot yesterday afternoon. Why was she in the naughty spot you ask? Well, following a fun afternoon of swimming on the last day of the pool being open, I treated the children to some ice cream. When Suzana wasn't looking, I swiped a spoonful of hers. Wouldn't you know that she NOTICED? Seriously, she looked back into her cup and realized a teaspoon of ice cream was missing. I immediately apologized and told her I should have asked, etc, etc, etc., but she would not be pacified and wanted me to give her the ice cream back. She continued yelling at me all the way home. I was on the verge of spanking her, but realizing that she was mostly just tired, I opted to ignore her tantrum and put her in time out. I went and caught up with Thomas, and I think she must have fallen asleep mid-scream.

I know I was wrong to steal ice cream from an almost 4 year old, but in my defense she takes forever to eat it and it was melting. Also, I figured "I bought the ice cream, aren't I entitled to taste it to make sure her flavor is okay?" And why couldn't she just be grateful that I had taken her for a special treat.

I mean seriously, why are females SO irrational????

What I did on my summer vacation

2010-08-09T19:36:00.007-05:00

Umm...so I am back. We have been a little busy in Babsland this summer. And if you are seriously going to read all of the mundane details that follows, you might wanna grab a drink and a snack. Actually, it all started in April when I quit my short lived job (I think I worked for all of 12 weeks before calling it quits, but that is another therapy session, oh, I mean blog). Upon returning to full-time Mommy-hood I plunged in with both feet and much enthusiasm. Suddenly, it seemed like taking time to write blogs was more of a distraction than a necessity. I didn't want to think about how what I was doing with the children (or what the children were doing on their own) was blog-worthy. I needed some space to just savor my mommy-ness. Writing a blog seemed like work, and I obviously didn't mesh well with that grand experiment, hence very little blog writing.

But as we enter the end of summer, I do feel an urge to archive our lives over the past three months. I have told Calvin several times over the past few weeks "Calvin you should really write down all the great things you did this summer." His response was "why, Mommy?" And then, I realized that I was the one who needed to write all of this down.

We put approximately 9000 miles on the car starting with our trip to Pittsburgh at the beginning of May and ending with our trip to Murfreesboro this past weekend.

1) May 25-June 2: We left the afternoon of Calvin's last day of school and went to Seabrook Island with the Josenhans Clan. That was the first time we had all been together for any length of time since I joined the family 8 years ago. The kids got to play with their cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents.

Then we came home for a week an a half

2) June 13-20: Traveled to H'burg for time with my parents while I played at Bach Fest, which was highlighted by my performance of Conzertstucke at the end of the week. Meanwhile, Thomas spent the better part of the week down in Oklahoma at a Clarinet Workshop. The children were excited to do lots of stuff with grandma and grandpa like: picked cherries off the cherry tree, went to the children's museum and the library and visited Shenandoah Caverns.

Suzana fell asleep during the first movement and was a bit out of it at the conclusion of the concert.

Everyone says Calvin looks so much like Thomas, but I think the resemblance to my Dad in this picture is uncanny.

Then we came home for 2 weeks, during which time we hosted my big brother's family for a day, which was a hoot. 'Twas so fun to see the cousins playing together and have some nice time with my brother and his sweet wife.

3) July 2-11: Traveled to Columbus to spend a festive July 4th weekend with Thomas's folks. Those Buckeyes know how to celebrate independence day complete with a big ole parade and several delicious picnics and of course amazing fireworks. It was the first time we let the children stay up late enough to watch them. Thomas and I left the children in Columbus for a few days and escaped to Chicago for a long weekend (oh, and he had a conference and he really did go to the meetings.) It was so great to walk around a big city, eat delicious food, see great art, hear great music. The children were highly entertained by Omi and Papa and I don't think they even finished everything on their list.

Then we came home for 8 days.

4) July 20-August 2: Wintergreen...where Thomas and I fell in love and where we have continued to return every summer to play in the music festival. We dropped the kids at Mom and Dad's and played some concerts. I also got to spend significant time in Harrisonburg where I savored Jess's Hot Dogs, Klines Ice Cream, and my Mom's good cooking. The children were again highly entertained, especially with a special field trip with Grandma and Grandpa to Washington DC to the Natural History Museum. I got to go to a Showalter family reunion where I saw some 2nd cousins that I hadn't seen in...well...a long time. Hope some one got some good pictures.

Then, we came home for 4 days.

5) August 6-8: Murfreesboro, TN. My brother's big birthday. They started celebrating before we got there, but we were so glad to help him celebrate and it really was the perfect ending to summer. We spent Saturday on a boat at Cave Hill Lake followed by an amazing dinner at the Capitol Grill in Nashville. I have three words for that dinner: a maz ing. On the way home on Sunday, the 4 of us stoped at Cheekwood in Nashville for the Chihuly exhibit. I hadn't seen any of Chihuly's outdoor installations, so this was a special treat for all of us. And, if you have never heard an almost 4 year old girl screaming "Chihuly" while running through a garden, well, let me just tell you how hysterical it is.

Love that smile, Patrick.

Calvin and Suzana staring at the "Sunset Boat"

In between all these festivities, I did lots of laundry and packing and unpacking. We went to the pool almost everyday and ate lots of popsicles to try to stay cool. I ran several times each week, and while I am no where near my brother's marathon ability, I feel great and am slowly getting faster and running farther. There were dentist appointments, friends who had babies, violin practicing, gardening, applesauce making, phone calls with friends. We went to the county fair. Calvin started Cub Scouts. Thomas became familiar with his new responsibilities as head of the music department and it was strange not to have him around as much as we are used to in the summer.

Now, Calvin is getting ready for first grade in a few days and Suzana and I will get some much deserved time to ourselves. I hope she doesn't get bored. It is going to be weird to sit still again.

Told ya I'd do it

2010-06-08T13:50:00.004-05:00

Baby Booties.

I started and finished both of them yesterday. Super easy. Super cute. Don't you just want to eat'em up? I think it might be time to invest in some fancier yarn that is actually made from natural fibers.

I do need to work on my bow tying technique, don't think?

For my fellow crochet fans out there, I will try to post instructions to these and the hats soon. I got the patterns/instructions from a great book I found at the local library and it is all single crochet in a spiral. I did have to go buy some stitch markers.

Va-ca-tion

2010-06-05T17:22:00.002-05:00

We were too busy at the beach having fun, working on our tans, building sand castles, taking walks, catching up with everyone and perfecting our swimming skills to take many photos...I left that duty to my MIL and SIL. Additionally, I was busy learning how to crochet baby hats:

Everyone I know seems to be "with child" these days and since I don't have the time or patience to sit and knit entire comforters for everyone, I have started doing hats. Booties will be my next endeavor along with fancier hats and eventually...sweaters! (Okay, well, give me 20 years on that one). An added bonus is that I can easily do these while in the car on all of our 10-12 hour car rides this summer. And, yes, I think I might be slightly obsessed.

At any rate, in addition to playing in the garden, crocheting is is yet another excuse not to practice Konzertstuck, which I really should do since the concert is 2 weeks away. There are just so many fun things to do in the summer!

Party on dude

2010-05-19T13:01:00.006-05:00

Calvin's Birthday Party with his Kindergarten Classmates:

Cake: homemade red velvet with plastic dinosaurs and dinosaur candles

Activities: homemade shrinky dinks (see all the kids staring into the oven?), the pot game (as in a cooking pot, not the drug) a penguin pinata, and lots of balloon popping and squealing. It wore Suzana out.

When we asked Calvin if the party was what he expected, he said "Nope. It was way better than I excpected."

May 3: The morning of his actual birthday. We opened a few gifts in the morning followed by a breakfast of cinnamon rolls. (Not homemade; definitely not channeling Martha Stewart that week). He had a birthday treat at school which I personally delivered. Then, he had a rehearsal, dinner at Cracker Barrel (his choice), and swimming lessons (see the goggle picture?). Then, we came home and had ice cream and FINALLY opened the rest of his presents, which he had been patiently been waiting for all day long.

One week later, we celebrated by birthday. I am pretty sure that in my parents' photo albums there is a picture from about 1978 of my Dad blowing the candles out on a chocolate cake, and it looks incredibly similar to this one. Thomas took me out to dinner that night and the next day, Suzana and I crashed on the hammock, worn out from all the excitement.

It has been a particularly celebratory month. Cheers to all. I didn't even mention my parents' birthdays. Happy Birthday Dad (last Wednesday) and Mom (today).

Strawberrilicious

2010-05-19T12:02:00.004-05:00

Calvin and I picked ump-teen pounds of strawberries in about an hour at the local berry farm near our house last week. I am not sure who enjoyed it more: me or him. When I was a little girl, I looked forward to strawberry season all year and was so excited the year I was old enough to help Mom pick berries for the first time. I loved feeling Calvin's little body lean against mine as together we reached to pluck bright red berries from the earth and plop them into our buckets. He was done picking before I was, but he was a good sport about hanging out until Mommy was done. I got a bit compulsive about picking...it seemed like such a shame to leave any of the red berries at the patch.

I made 2 batches of freezer jam that day.

And that night, we dined al fresco and had strawberry shortcake for dessert.

I must have been channeling Martha Steward that day because I think I also hung laundry out to dry.

Calvin takes a break from playing and cooking to do his homework on the hammock. On second thought, that might be his nature journal. He and Suzana were doing some sort of nature-imagination game that afternoon

My family was just a little excited that night. And I went a little crazy with the camera.

Another First

2010-05-18T19:08:00.005-05:00

Eight years ago today I married my true love. While Thomas marked today with a lovely, heartfelt written card that made me cry, I forewent the greeting card this year (okay, well, maybe I forgot) and decided to engage in another first: making rotkohl and rouladen for the first time.

Yes, it took me 8 years to make my husband's favorite meal. I guess I was scared to recreate a German meal that Thomas grew up eating cooked by a real German. Thanks to Gisela I got both of the recipes a few years ago, but still the prospect intimidated me. Any of you readers who know Thomas, may or may not know that anything served with gravy makes my man exceedingly ecstatic. I myself am a bit perplexed as to why I have not attempted before this date, to use these specific foods to seduce him.

Alas, it was refreshingly fun and easy and Calvin even helped with the red cabbage. Our mouths watered most of the afternoon as we smelled the little beef rolls simmering in their gravy.

At dinner, I looked at my handsome husband and at our crazy children: Suzana was acting like a cat and Calvin who was planning the menus for the beach, and I realized that in another 8 years of marriage, Calvin will be 14 and Suzana will be 11. Yikes. I can't imagine how much fast the next 8 years are going to go and all the adventures that will present themselves. The rotkohl and rouladen turned out just as good as it should have and we were all licking our lips; now I can continue to make this for many of the special occasions that we will observe for the rest of our marriage.

A few weeks ago, we got to attend my cousin's wedding. She is approximately the same age I was when I got married and she and her husband are celebrating their honeymoon in Cali just like we did AND they used the same scripture from Colossians that we did. Calvin and Suzana were the perfect mini-bride and mini-groom in their roles as ring bearer and flower girl. Needless to say I got a bit weepy. I wish we had a digital shot of our wedding day to post, but that was before either of us owned a digital camera. Maybe my mom can send me a picture to post at a later dat, for now, you'll just have to take my word for it that we were the happiest couple in the world that day, just as we are today, 8 years later.

Happy Mothers' Day Birthday

2010-05-09T21:19:00.005-05:00

Mothers' Day 2010: Dad, Me, and Mom 30 some odd years after my birth

Every 6 years, my birthday falls on Mothers' Day. This was the year. It was a special treat to be able to have breakfast with both of my parents this morning. As we drove in the car for a stop-off at my in-laws on the way home from Cousin Kate's Pittsburgh Wedding, I had the idea that this year, it would be appropriate on this double holiday to create the following list:

30-something odd things I have learned from my mother

(in no particular order, and not indicative of my age...)

1) Don't play with the pie crust too much

2) It is okay to make a mess

3) The messier something is, the more gratifying it is to clean

4) Buy fresh ingredients

5) Usually, home-made is better than store-bought

6) Let children be children

7) But, treat children like the intelligent creatures that they are

8) Make sure that music is a part of your life

9) Make sure that you are always ready to experience God

10) Pray

11) Be generous

12) Be a gracious host

13) Be a grateful guest

14) Fold laundry directly out of the dryer

15) Hang sheets and towels outside to dry whenever possible

16) Know your heart

17) Speak your mind

18) Be nice to yourself

19) Getting pedicures is not frivolous

20) Massages are necessary

21) Exercise makes you feel better

22) Too much sugar not only makes you fat, but makes you feel awful all over

23) Laugh loudly

24) Don't overcook your meat

25) Let children help with grown up jobs

26) Peanut Butter should always always always be in your pantry

27) Be strong

28) It is okay to wear old clothes, not wash your hair and not put on make up to go to the market

29) When you do get ready to go out, look spectacular

30) Never buy clothes/shoes at full price

31) You have to ask in order to receive

32) No matter what, family is a necessity

33) Being Mennonite is something to be proud of

34) Digging in the dirt is vital

35) Take food to people in pain

36) Making your bed makes your house feel cleaner

When I was in nursery school, somebody gave me a pin that said "Mother Knows Best." I remember that for some reason, I wore it all the time. I don't know if I just liked having a new accessory or if I was trying to grasp the overused truism. The pin is long gone, but the lesson has been ingrained in me for all of these years. Any one know where I can get a couple of those pins for my children? I keep learning little tricks from my Mom. I am certain that this list will continue to grow in the coming years. Happy Mothers' Day.

Birthday Number 6

2010-05-03T21:28:00.002-05:00

Six years ago today, I gave birth to my oldest child, Calvin.

It was a beautiful West Texas Monday, very similar to the perfect Southern Indiana Monday we had today. So, I wax extra "poetic" this evening as I think about the significance of this birthday.

I did not really become a mother on that day.

I thought I should have.

Was confused that I didn't feel like one in those early days, weeks and months.

After all, he was born a few days before my 29th birthday and Mother's Day, which coincided that year, as it does this year. In my naivete, I thought those were signs that I had become a card carrying member of the Mommy club. But I was wrong.

I think there are some women, who are born mothers, even before they bear children.

But, despite my desire to procreate, I have not been one of those.

Motherhood has not been easy for me.

I am growing into motherhood as my babies grow into themselves.

As I get to know my children and see them discover all of their own God given gifts as they discover the world around them, I become more of a mother.

This is the first birthday, in 6 years, that I truly feel like a MOM.

It is a great feeling, and I am grateful beyond measure.

I never thought I would long for Calvin to be an infant again, but lately I have found myself daydreaming about his early days of discontent. He has become so much easier and happier with every hurdle he crosses, from crawling, to walking, and now reading, playing the violin and shootin' hoops. I have the perspective now to see why he could be so grumpy and sleepless as he has already grown into a person who thrives on interacting with a crowd of people, of being on stage, of learning and discovering, of conquering, creating, planting, digging, learning, reading, talking...the seed is growing into a beautifully complicated plant. Sorry for the overused metaphor. My baby was not a bad baby; he was just bored.

Today, I long for my beautiful baby boy, no longer a baby, who has taught me more about myself than I could have ever learned otherwise. Even though his endless questions literally tire me out, they also make me smarter...or at least make me realize how much I really do know and how creative I can be in fabricating answers during those RARE occasions that I don't know (!).

Happy Happy Birthday, my dear sweet boy. I am so lucky to be your Mom. I will post your official birthday pictures another day. This day, like the day of your birth six years ago in Texas, has worn me out.

New Playroom

2010-04-26T21:48:00.003-05:00

The children sure have been playing together nicely lately. Last week, for example, they played outside in the backyard for 1.5 hours without any adult intervention, no screaming, no calls for snacks, nothing. I really didn't know what to do with myself.

Then, a few days later, the weather turned, so they found a new playroom.

And today, they had a picnic lunch in it.

It is their absolute favorite retreat.

We had no idea our master bedroom clothes closet could be so much fun.

Missing

2010-04-25T21:21:00.003-05:00

While eating corn on the cob at a church dinner tonight, Calvin lost his tooth. I had discovered his loose tooth over a month ago and didn't realize it had gotten so loose. This Mommy was not emotionally prepared for the tears that crept up at our dinner table where we sat with friends. "Are you okay, Barbara?" Kathy asked, and I completely lost my composure. I am pretty sure my children thought I was nuts.

Calvin glowed with pride as word spread around the fellowship hall.

I put the baby tooth in my wallet for safe keeping and when we got home, he washed it off in a paper cup of water before putting in a small envelope for safe keeping beneath his pillow tonight.

I sure hope the tooth fairy shows up tonight.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T14:30:00.005-05:00

How to have a Josenhans-Showalter Easter

1) Dye Eggs on Good Friday

2) Get up before the sun on Easter Sunday and find the baskets the Easter Bunny left and then hunt for the filled plastic eggs, indoors.

3) Eat Jelly Beans for Breakfast (if your name is Suzana). Otherwise, eat cinnamon rolls.

4) Take the requisite pictures of everyone in their Easter costumes.

5) Go to Church, flower the cross, and PTL.

6) Hunt for more eggs.

7) Eat some chocolate

8) Play a gig if you are a brass player

9) Come home and cook all afternoon for the evening feast which goes against my tradition of Easter Lunch at Grandma's house.

Josenhans' Easter Menu 2010

(oh country ham, where art thou?)

Lemon Lamb Shanks (recipe courtesy of Omi)

Twice Baked Potatoes

Roasted Asparagus

Salad

Citrus Tart

Transportation

2010-03-31T21:23:00.003-05:00

A car seat.

A sled.

Not quite sure whose idea it was.

Made us crack up.

I pulled her across the street to the neighbor's house in this contraption.

She thought she was the queen bee.

When I get stressed

2010-03-23T21:50:00.000-05:00

When I get stressed, I cook. The corollary of that is that when I get stressed, I eat. But lately, I have found that cooking is perhaps the more important part of that equation.

Lately, I have found a few extra spare moments on the weekends to make cookies with the children. I have this groovy new cookie scoop that makes the process more fun and quicker. And, it is getting more fun to bake with the children because they are becoming more capable of helping and knowing how to listen and follow instructions; of course the bribery of cookie-dough is a very powerful tool and I am not afraid to use it. Here are a few shots from the last two batches:

Yes, Suzana is wearing her new swimsuit to make cookies. That was probably the 4th wardrobe change of the day. Yes, Calvin is wearing his heavy coat while Suzana is in her swimsuit. He was too busy to take it off.

I just never get tired of these cookie-batter-licking shots.

Aunt Valerie and the Yogis

2010-03-23T06:35:00.001-05:00

Aunt Valerie was a life-saver this week.

We were so busy that we didn't have time to take too many pictures.

She let the children poke and prod her till their hearts were content.

She read with them and to them and did all sorts of crafts and games.

She fed them, bathed them, drove them to school, took them to the zoo and a concert.

And then, she taught them Yoga:

After all of that, she would stay up late so the grown-ups could talk and de-stress together, all while being away from the love of her life. (Incidentally, Suzana has now requested a solo visit from Uncle Paul.)

Thanks for being our hero this week, Valerie.

siblings

2010-03-22T21:26:00.003-05:00

I just love this picture of my babies:Everyone always says that Calvin looks like Thomas and Suzana looks like me, and yet in this picture, they look just so much like each other.

This was taken at church for the directory. Calvin was going crazy that Suzana was posed on his back, and I don't really care for his hand position, but I love that I totally see his thoughts in his expression: "Why is my silly little sister on my back? I am going to act annoyed, but I secretly like it, cause she really is cute, and now I am going to say something really witty to the photographer while I lay here, and when I get off this table I am going to touch all of the really cool equipment that she has."

And Suzana's quintessential expression: "Ha! I am on Calvin's back and I know it is driving him nutty. I love him so much! And I am so unbelievably cute and funny and I can't wait to jump off of this table when the pictures are done and run down the hallway chasing Calvin and Daddy."

The Butterfly

2010-03-02T06:54:00.002-06:00

Way back in October, we captured some caterpillars and put them in a big glass jar with parsley sprigs. After a few days, they changed into their chrysalis phase. In my research, I found out that these were Black Swallowtail Caterpillars and that at the end of the season, when they turn into cocoons, they go dormant for the winter and hatch when it is springtime.

We set them aside and basically forgot about them, except to check on them every now and then to see if anything has changed. So we have been waiting patiently ALL winter.

The other night during dinner, in mid-sentence, I froze and pointed at the jar saying "Oh my goodness!"

We moved the jar from its perch on the red cabinet and put it on our table in the middle of our roast chicken and mashed potato and gravy feast. I think the children stopped eating at that point as we sat and stared at and talked about our new "pet".

But it didn't take long for the anxiety to set in on this mother. What were we going to do with this one butterfly? It was too cold to put it outside and we didn't know how to get nectar into the jar without it flying out. We asked around, and brainstormed ideas and when nothing became apparent, we decided to not to do anything.

By Saturday morning, the butterfly had calmed down a bit and I told my husband that I thought it would be more ethical to let the butterfly outside to die in its natural habitat instead of in the prison we had inadvertently created for it. At least that way, it would experience a little bit of what being a butterfly is. When we checked on it on Sunday, it was where we had left it outside and it was still alive. Thomas moved it to another perch. In the meantime, we have left the other cocoon outside in hopes that it will wait until warm weather arrives. The artificial warmth of our house coupled with the increasingly longer days (hallelujah) must have confused the first one.

I could wax poetic and be overtly emotional and go into a discussion about all the layers of symbolism, analogy, and meaning, but I won't, except to say, that the most important thing is that spring is indeed just around the corner, and that is a blessing for all of us, butterfly or human.

My Readers

2010-02-28T15:51:00.001-06:00

They are just so darn cute sometimes.

Twilight

2010-02-10T05:43:00.000-06:00

I have no reason to believe that Suzana even knows what a vampire is. Or does she....?

It is extra disturbing that this is an autoharp case.

Funny thing is that we were looking through pictures the other day and found pictures of a younger Calvin sitting in my horn case. Must be cozy.

The Elevator

2010-02-09T05:32:00.004-06:00

I was wondering when they would figure it out. It took 4 years of living in this house, but the children finally discovered the most obvious way of using the balcony in our vaulted living room:

There have been a few close calls...like Calvin wanting to pull up Suzana. One day, they went mountain climbing. After leaving it up for a week, we parentals decided we should disassemble their engineering feat. We'll see how long it takes to reappear.

FIRE!

2010-01-20T08:30:00.003-06:00

We've had a few rough days around here, so yesterday afternoon when my dreamy husband came home from work, I took a few minutes to sit in a chair and stare into space. Magically, the children played on their own without screaming at each other. I was tuning everything out but heard a few tid-bits that amounted to something like "Dad, we need some sticks, we need to make a fire." And Thomas's response "We aren't going to make a fire right now, how about you just make a pretend one?"

I forgot all about this exchange until we returned from Suzuki group class later that evening. I looked down as I walked through our toy room, and this is what I saw:

I laughed.

Guess the Little People needed a fire to stay warm and sing their songs around. It appears that they might be holding hands. The red paper Calvin used to make the fire is an old Suzuki recital program. I am going to pretend that it being crumpled up and "burned" is not an indication of his feelings about violin (although, after the last few practice session, I think we both feel like burning the violin itself.)

What do you think they are singing?

Sometimes I really want to get into my children's heads. Sometimes.

Elusive Smoke

2010-01-15T07:42:00.001-06:00

Suzana learned today that like bubbles, you cannot catch smoke.

You really should have seen how hard she was concentrating. The incense was sitting in that little red thing on the counter top. The smoke didn't show up in the photos, but it was snaking up quite beautifully and distinctly. Yes, I know I should have moved the matches. (By the way, that "Joe Blow" red wine was on sale at Schnucks' this week, and is it really quite tasty.)

Gisela sent us some incense for our Raucherman (uh, help me out, not sure on the spelling on this but it translates "smoking man;" you put incense in it and the smoke cleverly exits the little statue; a favorite decoration around the holidays), but since the little hunter was already put-up with the Christmas things, I burnt the incense without any festive Germanic adornment.

So while Suzana faced the harsh reality of the elusiveness of smoke, I learned that:

1) You shouldn't burn incense cones in a plastic container.

2) It sure is funny to watch your 3 year old try to catch smoke. I answered the phone while watching Suzana and I started laughing while talking to the woman from the lighting store who was calling me to tell me my order had arrived. I told her what was so funny. She was probably wondering why there was smoke in my house and why I was letter my daughter try to catch it and why on earth I was confessing all of this to her, a perfect stranger. But when you have stayed home everyday for several years with young children, talking to adults, even ones you don't know, is a special treat.

A Few Cute Words

2010-01-14T09:11:00.002-06:00

Note: There are no pictures to accompany these vignettes as they would be completely inappropriate.

I wasn't even going to post these little conversations from the last 24 hours, because I didn't want to embarrass any of us, but the more I think about them, the more I laugh, so I thought I needed to share them. I think I was also inspired by the inappropriate headline on the front of today's sports section of the Courier and Press written by a sports writer whose brain was either 1) clueless or 2) in the gutter or 3) both. If you're curious, you can go look it up. It made Thomas and I chortle even before we had our first cup of joe.

Anyway, last night, after Thomas got home from work, Suzana had to go to the bathroom. When she is done doing her duty, she loves to call out, at the top of her lungs "Daddy, come to wipe!"

As Thomas was resting, I went in to help, and I said "Mommy will do it. Daddy is resting, and I love wiping your cute little butt."

Suzana: My butt is not little. I am not a baby. I am a big girl and I have a big butt.

Me: Oh honey, trust me, you do not want a big butt.

Suzana: No. I have a big butt. I am not a baby and I do not have a little butt.

This could have gone on for sometime. I chose just to let it be a snigger about it for a while.

Then, this morning, I got in the shower after Thomas left for work but before Calvin had risen. I was still in the shower when he eventually got out of bed, and he came in the bathroom and said "Mom, will you give me breakfast in your underwear?"

Well, I did put on a robe, but the poor boy was hungry and he knew he had made a few too many large messes in the kitchen lately to attempt breakfast on his own. Poor guy was hungry and didn't want to wait for Mom to get ready.

Dear Clorox

2010-01-08T20:15:00.001-06:00

Dear Clorox:

Thank you, thank you, thank you for inventing those nifty disposable disinfecting wipes. I really do love them. For example, cleaning out the refrigerator is one of my least favorite of all household chores, but because of your great innovation, I can now let my 5 year old and 3 year contribute significantly in accomplishing this task. It really cuts down on the amount of time it takes me to scrub down the 'fridge.

Most Sincerely Yours,

Babs

Pink Snow Bunny

2010-01-08T07:06:00.000-06:00

Pink Coat? check.

Pink Hat? check.

Pink mittens? check.

Pink boots? check.

Pink nightgown? check.

Pink legs? check.

Seriously, this girl should get a job with the USPS. She just HAD to go out after breakfast this morning (it was probably only 20 degrees outside) so that she could mail the letter she had written at the breakfast table. She would not and could not be deterred. It must have been VERY important.

Too bad she forgot to take the letter with her when she went outside. She was very upset upon realizing her mistake, and never did get that slip of paper in our mailbox.

Christmas Wonders

2010-01-07T19:15:00.007-06:00

Our holidays were so jam packed full of celebrations that I cannot really do justice in attempting to explain all the people we saw, all the delicious food we ate, all the songs we sang; miles driven, hugs given, toys played with, rules broken, traditions followed; conversations had, toasts made, etc, etc, etc.

But, here are a few choice pictures (in no particular order what-so-ever, just to completely confuse you regarding our itinerary) with brief explanations. They only begin to skim the surface of the depth and breadth of our very meaningful holiday.

S and C fell in love with Chihuly at the Columbus Museum. Upon returning to Kindergarten on Monday, Calvin gave a mini-lecture to his class about what he saw and learned.

Doing puzzles with Grandpa and cooking with Grandma.

Christmas Day Dinner Aunt Fern reads babsland excerpts with Calvin.

Daddy helped build Frosty. Shiver (not pictured) was added later (he was much smaller).

Singing with Omi and Papa

Opening presents and playing a mini recital

Played with Rachel and her children at COSI. Suzana tried out the astronaut potty.

For all the pictures posted, there were many more taken and even more not taken, except in our minds' eyes.

In closing, let me add, with much humility, the following anecdote: Initially, we weren't so sure we wanted to go anywhere for Christmas. But after celebrating an intimate Thanksgiving alone, we decided that perhaps, a Virginia Christmas with my parents might be nice. Then, while we were at it, why not break up the return trip and visit the Josenhans' in Columbus? The funny thing, was that I think both Thomas and I thought we were doing our parents such a HUGE favor by coming home for the holidays. It didn't take us long to realize that our little family benefitted from the visits more than our parents did, who bent over backwards to make the holidays beautiful and festive. It was great for me to have a Virginia Christmas (complete with tear jerking Mennonite a capella singing) again after many years, and Thomas loved being at home too, especially for the rouladen and to share in the Bucks' Rose Bowl victory with his Dad. So thank you Harley, Sadie, Gisela, and Paul, and all the other relatives and friends we saw over the last two weeks. And to those who we didn't get to hug in person, know that you are indeed missed and deeply loved.

Prokofiev and the Boat

2010-01-07T18:53:00.004-06:00

The children are obsessed with the music/story of Peter and the Wolf. And when I say obsessed, what I mean is, they listen to it at least once a day, act it out, recite the lines, and sing practically the entire score. Usually, this occurs while I am cooking dinner, which always makes things interesting as they abscond with my various cooking utensils (wooden spoons, rubber scrapers, whisks, and yes, even the turkey baster) for their production.

Today, I found Calvin climbing over furniture in a whole new way that I had never witnessed before. I accusingly asked him "What do you think you are doing?" I should have known that he was working out new staging for Peter and the Wolf.

When they aren't processing triumphantly around the living room celebrating the capture of the wolf, they can be found playing in their boat, which has taken over the living room. On Tuesday, they had lunch at sea (their idea, honestly), while Mommy had a lovely, quiet grown up lunch in the dining room.

The best thing about the S.S. Josenhans is that I can throw almost anything in there for quick clean up of the toy room at the end of the day. You wouldn't believe some of the stuff that they need for their adventures.

Santa plays the violin

2009-12-15T14:16:00.001-06:00

Saturday was the annual Suzuki Christmas Program at our local Barnes and Noble. I think it is Calvin's favorite performance of the year, and he has been working on his carols for approximately 3 months, perfecting his fingerings, bowings and intonation and trying to get them up to speed. No, we aren't sick of them at all. How could you ask such a thing? (I don't think sarcasm translates well in this context...some people really do like Christmas music year round, but I am not one of them, and if I hear Jingle Bells one more time, I really can't promise what I am going to do.)

Perhaps the biggest thrill, besides the Twinkle parade, is being able to wear a Santa hat while performing:

But, the performance did bring many smiles to many people, including myself, Thomas, and Suzana.

Calvin stood with Katie, his group lesson buddy, with whom he started violin three years ago. I couldn't seem to snap a shot without Katie's scroll being in the way. (Sorry, Gretchen).

Calvin often gets post-performance let down and was very grouchy afterward. Plus, he was hungry, so this made for a very unpleasant ride home. Thomas and I told him how proud we were, blah, blah, blah, and this is the rest of the conversation:

Calvin: Mom, why were you smiling at me so much the whole time?

Me: Calvin, I was proud, and your music was making me happy.

Calvin: Well, you were smiling at me too much. I wish you hadn't done that!

Me: Sorry, Calvin, I will not smile at you the rest of the weekend.

Thomas: Calvin, you were playing Christmas music and people get happy when they hear Christmas music. Music makes people happy, that is why we do what we do.

Calvin: C'mon, Dad. No it's not. That is not it at all.

We never did get Calvin to elaborate on his statement.

Ahh...jaded at 5.

Shoveling

2009-12-14T14:10:00.000-06:00

It "snowed" here a few weeks ago.

Go ahead, laugh at my son. We sure had a hearty chuckle, as we watched from inside while he dutifully "shoveled" all of that snow off of the driveway for us.

He was so proud of himself, and deservedly earned a mug of hot chocolate.

He is really hoping for more substantial snow fall over our Christmas journeys to visit grandparents in Ohio and Virginia. Could some one PLEASE arrange for this? (as long it is not on the days we are on the interstate).

Turkey Days

2009-11-30T12:50:00.007-06:00

Thomas and I made an executive decision this year to stay put for Thanksgiving. Knowing that the following weekends between now and Christmas would be saturated with gigs, we wanted a little down time before the end of the semester. So, we had a quiet Thanksgiving, just the four of us. This was our first major holiday since getting married that didn't involve either set of parents, so it was kind of a big deal, and I would be lying if I didn't say we missed our extended families, but at the same time, we were still able to celebrate gratitude...in the comfort of our own home. We were, however, very busy.

First, there was the cooking and eating of the feast:

(I brined a free-range organic turkey and it was crazy delicious)

(We used the good china and crystal)

(Calvin next to the turkey (one of many) he made at school)

"Hi Everyone!"

The first fire-in-the-fireplace of the season:

Then, there was the long over-due painting of Calvin's room:

(C and S "helped" a lot: here they are sanding the wood work and putting on the first coat of blue. Truthfully, while I intended this to be a project for T and I to do together, he ended up doing most (umm, make that all) of the work. We all love C's new blue room with white trim)

And the selecting and cutting down of the Christmas tree (which, because of the aforementioned gigs, we have to put up early, otherwise it won't get done before our own Christmas activities):

(This was not a picture perfect outing to the tree farm; the children tired quickly of wandering around looking for the tree that met their father and mother's high standards, and C was disappointed that he wasn't allowed to use the saw; S didn't want to wear her coat...or walk.)

We'll put up the tree tonight, Monday, just in time for the filling of our advent Santa's pockets on Tuesday morning. We are still eating holiday leftovers. The weekend also involved a few trips to the river, a wee bit of shopping, and cleaning up the house. No one really wanted the holiday to be over, but now the children are counting the days until Christmas; but hopefully they will go into that holiday prepared with gratitude. I know Thomas and I are.

Mommy Eats Raw Fish

2009-11-18T06:06:00.005-06:00

Mama Babs needed a special treat on Tuesday, so while she and Calvin were at the grocery store, she couldn't resist the brightly colored, beautiful sushi when she walked through the meat section. Before she could reason her way out of doing something nice for herself, she grabbed a box of spicy tuna rolls, chop sticks, and an extra package of soy sauce.

When she and Calvin picked up Suzana, Calvin said "Suzana, guess what Mommy is going to have for lunch?" Suzana just stared at him blankly while she munched on her apple."

"RAW FISH! YYUCKK!"

Then Babs heard her little girl say "Mommy, I don't want raw fish for lunch."

"No, Suzana, that is okay. Mommy bought hot dogs for you and Calvin."

When the three of them sat down to eat upon returning home (of course, Babs prepared their gourmet hot dogs with broccoli on the side before she popped the lid off of her sushi box), the children stared inquisitively at what their Mom was eating. Suzana requested a bite, and informed her Mom that she wanted it dipped in the wasabi infused soy sauce. Against her better judgement, but too tired to fight a battle, Babs relented and Suzana took a tiny bite of the roll; Suzana only got a little bit of the rice, but the wasabi was a bit of a surprise and she couldn't get to her milk fast enough.

Then, Calvin had to try, except he requested using the chop sticks to hold the roll instead. This time, Babs said "No." He took the same sort of tiny bite that Suzana did and had the same kind of reaction.

The two of them happily returned to their hot dogs, which incidentally were special for them since Babs rarely purchases that processed meat.

Babs knew that if she really wanted her kids to like sushi, she should have gotten a less controversial roll for them to try their first time, like a California roll, and not have given then wasabi.

But while she is usually obsessed with expanding their culinary palette, she does not want them to like sushi; because, it really is nice to have some special treats for herself that her children want nothing to do with.

Falling in

2009-11-04T20:52:00.004-06:00

At dinner tonight, Calvin asked us "What would happen if you didn't have children?" Being the smarty-pants that I am, I quickly answered "Well, you would never have grandchildren." But then Thomas and I both looked at each other and explained to Calvin and Suzana how boring our lives would be if we didn't have children. No one to hug, no one to bake cookies for (even though they said I could still make cookies for Daddy), no one to each lunch with. I am extremely curious what prompted my son to ask this question. I hope we made it clear to both of the children that our lives would be miserable without them, despite the fact that I complain about picking up their coats off the floor, whine about their inability to listen or follow directions some days, and that Thomas and I fantasize about being able to get up and having slow mornings on our own terms without having to fix breakfast for the natives or fend them off to play on their own while we finish our coffee and paper.

For sure, leaf raking is one chore that is so much more incredible satisfying with children around. We had a perfect afternoon here, so after the requisite after-school apple cider refreshment, we head out to the front yard:

My big boy LOVES raking.

My girl loves her new pink chap-stick that Calvin bought for her today (but she calls it lipstick) and she held it in her hand THE ENTIRE time we were outside raking.

Then, she pretended her rake was a horse.

Then, they ran and jumped....

Then, I sucked 'em up.

While they moved on to homework on the front step. Check out that cool new secret agent watch on Suzana's wrist. They each got one at Wendys today and are ultra excited about them even though they don't really know what a secret agent is.

One last disclaimer: While I am a woman of many skills and talents, most of these outside chores I leave for Thomas. He has more time for it while I am ironing underwear and cooking gourmet meals. But I do enjoy it immensely when given the opportunity. I am just saying, he is doing most of the leaf work, not me, which is certainly not reflected in these pictures.

New bike

2009-11-02T13:30:00.002-06:00

It is not pink, but it is all hers:

When my mother-in-law was here a few weeks ago, she was telling me all about these little 2-wheeled bikes without training wheels that all the little European children ride everywhere. I didn't really get what she was talking about, but when I dropped off some junk for a local rummage sale the following week, Calvin spied this little wooden bike and said "Look, Mommy! This is a bike like Omi was talking about." I really couldn't believe it. Obviously, his young, fresh, imaginative brain had understood right away what Omi was describing, while my cob-webbed, detailed filled brain, just couldn't process the descriptive information. I worked at the sale and kept my eye on the bike and at the end of my shift, paid for it and brought it home. We couldn't wait until Christmas to give it to her, and Suzana is quite pleased with it.