Charis' Birthday

After much ado...Charis had a birthday party! It was attended by Yia-Yia, Papa, Great-Grandma Fritz, Auntie M, Uncle Tim, Aunt Beth, Gideon, and Elise (and of course, Mommy, Daddy, Charis, and Judah). Uncle Jed and Aunt Lindsay had to cancel at the last minute. We sat down to Burgers with all the trimmings, Corn on the Cob (we eat a lot of that at our house in the summer), Grandma Donna's Bronco Beans, and Loaded Roasted Potatoes (because there wasn't enough cheese or bacon in the rest of the meal). We were also celebrating Father's Day, so the meal did double-duty.

Charis of course had little interest in food (an interesting side note: Judah kept pointing to my corn and saying "THAT!" so I handed it to him, certain he'd be frustrated by it and hand it back, and he proceeded to eat it all. There's a first time for everything!), and seemed solely focused on the good part: opening the presents. I didn't write down all that she got, but I can tell you that it included this book she's unwrapping here and a bunch of other books and art supplies (We love Color Wonder stuff, and she got a lot of it!). Auntie Moriah also got her a plastic pizza set.


Another favorite was this dollhouse. Formerly Moriah's, it not only folds up for easy storage, it came with every accessory you can think of: the essentials, like beds, tables, chairs, people; but also things like birdcages and topiaries, which are a must for the modern dollhouse. There is also a stable for the horses, so it's realistic. Here, you can see Moriah helping set it up and Judah, Charis, and Gideon just itching to tear it up. Mostly, Judah and Gideon wanted to be a part of the actual dollhouse, sitting on the second floor or standing on the front porch.

But the piece de resistance, the present we'd been talking about for weeks, was the DORA BICYCLE. We've been telling story after story about bikes--Charis asks for one almost every night at bedtime. So we've told her (as I think I've mentioned in an earlier post) about Mama and Daddy's first bikes, and we've also made up stories about Dora bikes that fly, disappear, and transport the user to the magical ExplorerLand with Dora and Boots and Tiko and the gang (where Swiper will inevitably try to take the bike, but we will stop him with a well-put "Swiper, no swiping!" To which he will reply "OH, MAN!" and skulk off). So when she actually SAW the bike, she was ecstatic. Thankfully, she still thinks it is cool.

Now, along with talking about the bike for months, we've also been talking about her cake--her Dora cake. My mother had purchased a Dora-shaped cake pan for us to use, so I planned
to try my hand at cake decorating for her party. But the day before, Abe and Shaun hacked into my kitchen ceiling, leaving behind them a trail of drywall and dust, rendering the kitchen useless for much of the day. Obviously, the Dora cake was out. But I promised her a Dora cake--what would happen if we didn't have one? I didn't want to find out. So while Abe's mom watched the kids for a while on Saturday morning, I drove around town in search of a substitute Dora cake, finally finding that I could order one (for pickup the next day) at Dairy Queen. Disaster averted. Sigh.

We finished the day (a 90-plus degree day) outside, with the kids splashing in the kiddie pool and many of us running through the benefits of another present, a sprinkler ball from Tim and Beth. And also seeking shade. All in all, it turned out to be a great day, and despite my worries from the day before, mostly dust-free!

Oh, It Has Been Too Long

I've been meaning to post these updates for a while now. I have more pictures I would have liked to show, but even with these five (apparently huge) picture files (which eat up all of my allotted space for this post), I think you can get the picture.

Here's Muirne supervising. We had just had the basement "damp-proofed" (tarred), the last step before backfill.



Here's Abe backfilling. I could tell you that he did it all by hand, but that would be a lie. We had Vic the Septic Man come back with his excavating equipment and, well, un-excavate. We have great mountains of dirt way back in our yard, so no shortage of backfill medium. I was thinking at the time, "This is great! Now I don't have to worry about the kids falling into the dirt hole!" Until I realized that if they did fall, they wouldn't roll down the softly graduated dirt mound, they'd drop a very steep eight feet down into the not-so-soft basement. I was glad the next weekend when the basement was covered.


Here's my kitchen ceiling. On Charis' birthday. The day I was supposed to be cooking and cleaning, decorating a Dora cake, and preparing to host 15 people (thankfull, all family, so very forgiving of messes) for Charis' birthday party sit-down dinner. I didn't get a very accurate shot of my kitchen, but as you can probably imagine, it was less than sterile. Dust covered every surface. Tim stayed a while after the day's work was done (referenced in the next picture) in order to "save our marriage." Suffice it to say I was not pleased that Abe would choose to tear into my kitchen on a day when I needed it to be, oh, crumbling drywall-free. To his credit, he really didn't know that the project they were doing that day would require ripping part of my kitchen ceiling out. But I was in no mood to hear that at the time...






Here's the view from the outside on Charis' birthday. They tore the exterior siding and insulation out in order to install a beam (in the open spot near where my kitchen ceiling was). This particular picture isn't too exciting, but I realized I didn't have another picture of the basement with a ceiling (also called "deck" or, if you're asking me, "first floor" over it), so that's the function this picture is meant to serve. It was a relief to gain that--no only safer for the kids, but it also made entry into the house much easier, removing the need to walk all the way around the front.

The final picture I had room for belies the amount of work it required. It required two very full Saturdays: on one Saturday, the large back wall went up (which I helped lift, thank you very much), and the next Saturday, the two side walls and some interior walls went up. I wish I had room to share the interior pictures in this post, because they merit looking at--the bathroom walls are framed, but not up, awaiting the installation of the tub/shower fixture. Also, the laundry room walls are framed and up. My laundry room will have a huge beautiful window in it, and before the guys framed that back wall, we had a big discussion about the laundry room and its dimensions, which ultimately were altered from the original plan. According to the original plan, it was much smaller, with basically room for the washer and dryer and a little space for hanging things, but after talking through it, we realized there wasn't another suitable place for coats and boots and things to go, so we expanded the laundry room to essentially become a laundry/mud room, with lots of room for outdoor gear, hanging racks, shoe cubbies, etc. It is directly adjacent to the main entry, so hopefully, it will facilitate mess containment efficiently.

My favorite part, also not shown, is the window that is mounted in our basement stairwell which began life as a sliding glass door. It will be a fixed window, not able to be opened in any way, and exists solely to let more light into the space. Our current plan is to leave the stairwell open (as opposed to walling it off) so that light will be able to bleed into the rest of the addition. Code does require that a door figure into the equation somewhere, so our current thinking has the door at the bottom of the stairs instead of the top. Unconventional, I know, but I think we'll ultimately be much happier with it that way. It will seem so much more open and also aid the flow.

But we keep making progress (and I think you probably understand that when I say "we," I do not mean me at all), and this week (or next Tuesday), we're slated to receive the floor beams for the second floor, so those will be installed, then the second floor walls, then the ceiling of the first-floor part, and then the roof of the second-floor part, and so on, and so on into eternity, I think. Because even though we keep making progress, we've got a LOT to do still....

Blog alert

I've decided to create another blog for my food entries. From now on, I will be posting my Menu-Plan Moday lists, favorite recipes, and food photos here.

Enjoy A Pinch of This!

Menu-Plan Monday Redux

Obviously, I didn't get this week's meals planned early enough to actually post them on Monday, having only returned from Ohio on monday afternoon. But this week I'm going to try something new: I'm going to plan for this week AND next week. It's ambitious, I know, but sometimes I get a little bit of a panic attack when it's Sunday or monday morning and I just don't have a fresh dinner idea in me. So here are the tentative menus for this week and next, bearing in mind that things do change and either one of these weeks might not happen as I plan.

This Week:

Monday
Spaghetti

Tuesday
Grilled Chicken Salad
Bread

Wednesday (Happy 4th!)
Brats
Corn on the Cob
Pasta Salad

Thursday
Slow Cooker Ribs
Hashbrown Casserole
Steamed Peas

Friday
Fried Rice

Saturday and Sunday
Leftovers/Whatever I didn't make on the other days

Next Week:

Monday
Crock Pot Meatloaf and Baked Potatoes (which are FANTASTIC from the slow cooker)

Tuesday
Teriyaki Pork Loin
Asian Sesame Salad

Wednesday
Sweet and Sour Chicken (or Pork, if there's a lot leftover)
Rice

Thursday
Tacos/Taco Salad
Mexican Rice a la Nina's Taqueria

Friday
Crock Pot Turkey Breast and gravy over noodles
Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

Saturday and Sunday
Leftovers, etc.

Menu-Plan Monday

It's that time again. This is the week of my birthday, and I REFUSE to cook on my birthday. Yes, I do enjoy cooking, but it's the principle of the thing. My birthday is my time off for good behavior. I am still trying to decide where we should go to celebrate. So there are only three meals listed this week, because of the birthday, of course, and also because Friday evening will be a travel evening, so we won't have dinner at home. We're headed to Ohio for a wedding! Yippee!
So, for what it's worth, here is my plan for the week:

Monday:
Chicken with mixed greens, feta, toasted almonds, and raspberry vinaigrette
Garlic Bread

Tuesday:
Chef Salad
Corn on the Cob

Wednesday:
Chicken Pasta Toss with garlic, olive oil, parmesan, and fresh basil
Garlicky Green Beans
Peaches and cherries over shortcake

Thursday:
Someone else cooks and cleans up for me

Friday:
More than likely, we'll grab something at Chez McDonald...

Saturday:
Free food at wedding reception

Sunday:
Birthday celebration with my family

Last, I wanted to share with you my version of the Not-Zagna that was on the menu last week. I was so pleased with it--it was half the effort of actual lasagna, but with all of the flavor.

Cori's Two-Saucy MockZagna

1 lb ground beef (with additional crumbled Italian sausage, if desired), browned with 1 minced onion and 3 cloves of garlic, pressed
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 lb. short-cut pasta (I used rigatoni, but whatever)
1 c. ricotta
1/3 c. parmesan
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella
2 Tbsp. fresh basil, chiffonaded, or 2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning

1) Brown beef. When it has lost its pink, add the onion and garlic, and let that work for a minute or two.
2) Prepare pasta according to package directions, reserving 1/3-1/2 c. of the water for the ricotta sauce.
3) To the beef mixture, add the spaghetti sauce and the stewed tomatoes (smush the tomatoes up with your hands before you add them), and let this sit over medium heat until you need it.
4) In the bottom of a large bowl, mix together ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, basil, salt and pepper to taste, and add the pasta water. Stir well.
5) Add the pasta to the ricotta sauce, then add 1/3 of the spaghetti sauce to that; toss to combine.
6) Spoon additional spaghetti sauce over the top and sprinkle with additional mozzarella, if desired.

So easy, and so YUM! If you put a lid on the pasta pot to bring the water to a boil faster, the whole shebang can go from start to finish in 20 minutes or so!

The Charis Post

My little girl. It seems just days ago we brought her home from the hospital, and now, she is a walking, talking, three year-old wonder. We just celebrated her birthday (another one? they just keep coming), and in her honor, I offer this yearly assessment of Things That I Love About Charis Ruth.

1. Her spirit. This was her first year for VBS, and she was just in the preschool program. VBS started on the 18th, and Charis turned 3 on the 16th, so that officially put her in the 3 year-olds class--just barely. As you can imagine, she was the very youngest in her class. Anyway. I was there helping with the 1st graders for the week, and every morning, all of the kids--from age 3 to fifth grade--started the morning in the sanctuary with songs and announcements. On the first day, I pointed her out to the leader of my little group. On every subsequent day, Charis was easily identified--she was always the one dancing in the aisle, trying to walk over to other sections to see friends, crawling on the floor, heading up the stairs to the platform...you get the idea. I suppose I could be embarrassed about it, but she has such life in her, and this was her first time in the sanctuary having to show any measure of decorum, so a little rambunctiousness is to be expected, and to her credit, she did improve over the course of the week. But still, even when she wasn't jumping on her leaders, you can just see that spark of spirit.

2. Her kindness. She has absolutely no qualms about inviting anybody to our house: "Would you like to come in my house?" And of course, that goes double for people she already knows and likes. Today, on the way back to the swing set, she passed her kiddie pool. "Can we play in that?" she asked. "Not tonight," I said. "But this week is supposed to be very hot, so I'm sure we'll get to play in the pool soon." She paused. "Is Gideon coming over to play?" "Well," I said, "not that I know of, but I suppose we could call and see if they want to come over to play." She nodded and did a little jump. "YES!!! Call them! Because I love Gideon! And I love Beth! And I love Tim! And I love Elise. I love ALL of the Elises. And ALL of the Tims. And ALL of the Gideons. And ALL of the Beths." Later, after we had chatted with our neighbors, Charis said, "Our neighbors will come inside with us?" She didn't understand why they would go into their own house, when they could come into the house with her. That is what she's all about. Even during VBS week, on the very first day, she showed this kindness. Her little friend Travis is also 3--3 turning 4, but 3 nonetheless--and was scheduled to be in her group. Well, when Travis arrived, he was in quite a state. Not quite ready to leave his sister and mom. Seeing him upset, Charis (I learned later) went over and grabbed his hand and said, "You can sit with me, Travis!"

3. She's actually a pretty good sharer. (For a 3 year-old.) In her Wednesday night church class, one of the last things they learned this spring was the concept of "Sharing and Caring." It was implied to them that sharing is one way to show people you love them. Well, Charis embraced this concept wholeheartedly. Very often, I will hear her exclaim, "I'm sharing and caring with Bubs!" Indeed, we hear about it every time she shares with Judah. She does occasionally turn it around in her favor, as when she takes some sort of food or toy from Judah's hands and announces that "Bubs shared and cared with me!" or when Abe has something she wants, and she says something like, "Daddy, you need to share and care." But still. She's pretty good.

4. Her helpfulness. Like tonight, when I left the cap on the tub of Balmex loose, and when I wasn't looking, Judah got into it and started to finger paint. She was kind enough to help me wipe things up. Or tonight, when she got a bit of ketchup on the carpet, she told me right away and cleaned it up all by herself. She's also a handy go-fer--particularly if I need her to bring me a toy or a dish or a diaper or anything. She is very accommodating.

5. Her maturity. She is growing so fast. She can now tell me when she's sad, or even explain to me why I made her mad (Usually, because I didn't 'share and care' as she would have liked) She's also developing reasoning skills, which is fun to watch. The other day, we were coming in from outside. There is a hill leading into our "way back" yard, where the swing set is, and it is marked by the two tracks that get driven over when trucks or trailers go in and out of the yard. Charis calls them "paths" and will often stand in front of them and deliberate over which path she should take. On this particular day, Muirne (the dog) was sleeping in the shade on one of the "paths," so when we approached, I asked Charis, "Which path should we take?" Without hesitation, she said, "Well, Muirne (though she says it "Nurna") is on that path, so we should take the other one!" I thought that was pretty good.

6. Her joy. It is infectious. She laughs like little bubbles breaking on the surface of a pond. She smiles rays of light. She dances like music. Her kisses are little butterflies that alight on your nose and brighten your week. Her joy is pure magic. I think she might be a tiny bit fairy.

7. Her independence. She does an amazing job at entertaining herself, whether with a video, books, toys, or art supplies. I really never have to worry about her "getting into" anything or being bored--she's always got something to do. Also, she is usually very bold and comfortable in leaving us, or when we leave her, whether it is with a babysitter or in her Sunday school class. It is nice not to have to worry about that. At one point, they stopped giving us pagers from the nursery because they knew they wouldn't need to page us for anything. She's easy. For her birthday, she was given Auntie Moriah's (whom Charis calls YaYa Grace) dollhouse and accessories, and she can honestly play for minutes on her own. But on the flip side...

8. She loves to play with others. Especially the game she calls "Hello," where she holds one character and you hold the other, and your characters say hello. "Hello! How are you today? Do you want to go to the store with me?" And when Gideon or Katie and Travis come over, it is all she wants to do to interact with them. On the other hand...

9. She loves to cuddle. We went through a phase where she was far too busy to cuddle. But now, very often, if you are sitting still, she will crawl up right beside you, just to be near. And when she goes to bed, she loves to nuzzle next to me, pressing her forehead against mine. "You sleep with me for two minutes?" she'll ask. And I'll try to say no, but it's useless. Because I know she'll look into my eyes, kiss me on the nose, and say, "'Love you, mama. Love you so much."

10. She is my Charis. She is such a gift. Even when she is a handful, even when I would just like her to sleep a little while longer so I can have another minute of peace before the chaos ensues, she is a gift. Even when she tells me I make her mad, she is a gift. Even when she uses her lemonade to "clean" the table and carpet, she is a gift. Even when she needs to be punished for her astonishing deliberate disobedience, she is a gift. Why? See reasons 1-9. Need I say more?

Menu-Plan Tuesday?

Well, I didn't get this all chosen and posted on Monday as I would have liked to. I am way behind on blogging, and this is the only post that seemed doable this week. Upcoming posts will be about Charis and her THIRD BIRTHDAY, and also construction updates. But for now, today, when I am wiped out from a morning full of first graders at VBS, a menu-plan post is about all I can manage. When I emerge from my semi-comatose state, I will have lots to say. Lots.

Monday:
Charis' Birthday party leftovers (so, see, you didn't really miss anything)

Tuesday:
Grilled Pork Steak
Rice Pilaf
Leftover Corn on the Cob

Wednesday:
Dinner at Abe's parents' house (beef BBQ sandwiches, I think)

Thursday:
Rachel Ray's Not-Zagna (because we never had the rigatoni I'd planned for last week)

Friday:
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Rice

Be "Exasperation"

Years ago, on Sesame Street, I think, they showed a sequence where people displayed different emotions, and the off-screen children would announce what faces they were making (HAPPY! SAD! EXCITED!) in order to teach children either a)how to read these expressions on others, or b)how to become a bad actor. Our family took to playing this game in the car, but our version went like this: Stephen (7 years younger than I) would tell mom to "BE" whatever, and she would show that emotion. "BE SLEEPY! BE SURPRISED! BE WORRIED!" Our favorite was "BE . . .COOPERATION!" Anywho, for a while, my brother's version of these emotions was uncannily near in appearance to how my mom displayed them. I always thought that was funny, especially since my mom's version was a bit (as you can imagine if you know her) over-the-top.

Kids. I chuckled. So impressionable.

Fast forward to the present (my brother, now 23, displays emotion very appropriately), and I've got my own little impression-master named Charis. She has always been big into making faces--I blame the large mirror in our living room and the fact that her mother is a bit of a ham--so various expressions of happiness or fatigue or even cooperation are normal around here. But the other day, I was mildly frustrated by something--say, the tightness of the pickle jar lid or the crumby mess that was on the floor where moments earlier there had been animal crackers--and uttered a sound that any one of you would recognize, sort of a throaty "rrnnrnrnrnggggghhhh!" Well, dear, sweet, impressionable Charis happened to be nearby.

So now, whenever Charis wants to convey that she is somewhat less than pleased about something, as today in the car on the way home from Meijer when I wouldn't allow her to have any of the mini-donuts she picked out, she emits that same sort of rrrrrnrnrnggghh! in a distinctly 3-year-old way, and does so repeatedly until you have acknowledged that you understand she is frustrated.

Kids. SOOOOO impressionable.

Retail Therapy

(Is it odd this is my second post that references therapy? I like to think I am as balanced as the next girl, but perhaps this is not the case.)

Let's just first get this out of the way: Ikea is a balm to my soul. And so is chocolate fondue.

Periodically--perhaps every six months or so--I take a road trip with My mother-in-law and my three sisters-in-law. Usually we go to a nearby Amish community and stuff ourselves with pie and stuff our trunk with antiques and cutesy stuff, and usually, we have at least one child with us. THIS particular trip was a departure--oh, boy, was it. We traded Amish country for Greater Detroit, antiques for inexpensive Swedish household goods, pie for chocolate fondue, and we left our children at home. Perhaps we will never go back to the old way. This trip was delicious.

We left at about 2 on Saturday, drove to our hotel (listening to as varied a mix of music as you can imagine) and checked in, then set out to find dinner. What a trial. I will spare you the details, but the short version is that we spent nearly as long as our trip from home driving over the same three streets trying to decide where to eat. We have a couple of selective eaters amongst our ranks, so many restaurants got rejected. We passed a restaurant called Steve and Rocky's about twelve times (Note to Steve and/or Rocky: There's very little indication to outsiders what kind of food you serve and its level of palatability {is that a word?}, so you'd do well to add some sort of description to your sign: perhaps "All-American Cuisine" or "Bistro" or "Wing Emporium" or whatever it is that you serve. We would gladly have frequented your establishment, but alas. We didn't want to take our chances on a Frat-boy name like Rocky and the hash he would sling), and never went in. Eventually, on our third circuit around the mall, we accosted a woman and asked her for a recommendation. She directed us to a restaurant called Diamond Jim Brady's (which, incidentally, we also passed twelve times, owing to its proximity to Steve and Rocky's), where we gorged ourselves on some really really great burgers and turkey clubs. Our sandwiches were the most tame thing on the menu (and also the cheapest), but I think we probably enjoyed them more than we would have anything else at the time. I recommend Diamond Jim's burgers if you ever get the chance to partake!

After dinner, we headed back to the mall where we indulged our Paris Hilton sides and tried on amazingly expensive party dresses at Lord and Taylor. When the store closed, we headed to a fondue restaurant we'd passed earlier called The Melting Pot, where we had the most marvelous time. We ordered plain dark chocolate fondue and a flambeed turtle fondue, which were accompanied by bananas, fresh pineapple, strawberries, pound cake, brownies, oreo- and graham cracker-covered marshmallows and cheesecake. I kid you not--we couldn't have been more pleased. We preferred the dark chocolate fondue (it was so fantastically scrumptious when combined with the cheesecake that all you could do was swoon), but, as you can imagine, ate both with devotion.

It became evident that if we ate anything more, we'd burst.

After paying our bill and taking a "Souvenir Menu," we headed back to the hotel and, more specifically, its hot tub, where we spent a good hour. We then returned to our room and played The Ungame until 2 a.m. It's a good way to get to know your family, I tell you. The men might hate it, but the women will love it.

Our free hotel breakfast in the morning included make-your-own waffles, so we of course fueled up before we hit the reason for our visit: Ikea.

Ikea is 311,000 square feet of retail bliss. There's no way for me to describe to you the hours that were there (though I can tell you we were there from 11-5) other than to say we were the proverbial kids in the candy store. If we had an Ikea that was conveniently located and didn't necessitate a hotel stay we would almost certainly be less enamored of it, but for us it is a treat to be savored, so there was hardly a nook in the store that we did not thoroughly investigate. I left the store much poorer than I arrived, but it was all worth it.

Running late, we opted to eat at the ever-so-fast Fazoli's for dinner, and we opted to eat in so we could have the opportunity to eat their free breadsticks until we were bleeding out our eyes. Which we very nearly did.

And though every moment of the trip was a delicious, relaxing treat, possibly the best part was opening the door to my house and greeting the two sweet-smelling, very excited munchkins I had left the day before and hugging them thoroughly. Being away for a while makes coming home all the sweeter.

(Also, our basement is now covered by the first floor, which was framed on Saturday, but I will save pictures and details for a later post!)

Menu-Plan Mondays

Well, here's another list of what we plan to eat this week! Last week, we ended up switching and things ended up a little differently than I'd planned, so I think we only actually ate two of the meals I'd planned to make. Ah, well. At least there was a plan in place in case I needed it! I have never kept track of the differences between the plan and actual meals consumed, but I'd bet that most weeks end up varying a bit from the original outline. At any rate, here's this week's list.

Monday:
Shredded Beef and Black Bean Burritos (from leftover Italian Beef from Friday)
Salad

Tuesday:
Sloppy Joes
Tangy Broccoli Slaw
Corn on the Cob

Wednesday:
Western-Style Pork Ribs
Baked Mac'n'Cheese
Sugar Snap Peas

Thursday:
Italian Pasta Salad with Chicken, Basil and Spinach

Friday:
Chicken Sausage
Rigatoni

Saturday:
Leftovers

Sunday:
We celebrate Charis' birthday with Abe's family. She's terribly excited to have a party! Her cake will be a Dora cake from the pan my mom purchased for us (I've never done one of these before. We'll just see.). For lunch, we'll have Burgers; Roasted Potatoes, Loaded; Corn on the Cob; and veggies and dip. Dessert will of course be cake and ice cream!

All the Riches

What a beautiful and interesting evening with my daughter.

She didn't eat much at dinner, so, of course, was hungry right at about bedtime. She sat down in front of me moments before bedtime, thoughtfully cradled her chin in her hand and tapped her face with a finger. "Hmmmm. I'm hungry. Hungry, hungry. What should I eat? Think. Think, think, think. What should I eat?

I know!!! Eggs. I should eat eggs, mama!"

Then, when we finally made it up to bed, and I had just tugged her pajamas past her ears, she informed me, "I waked up in the morning!"

"You did!" I replied.

"Yeah! Jesus woked me up!"

"He did? What did He want you to do?"

"Not know! He waked me up! He waked you up, too!"

Snuggling through our bedtime routine, she kept asking for "one more song" (of course). The last couple of nights, she has asked for "EyeEyeOh" (Old MacDonald), so we sang that one, and tonight, for the first time, she requested "ABC." And she knew almost all the letters! She got hung up a little on LMNOP, but really, what kid doesn't?

I kissed her goodnight, and left the room. She started crying, which is not totally out of the ordinary lately--more often than not, it's a sneaky way of persuading you to let her stay up a few minutes longer, or postpone bed by claiming hunger or something--so I let it continue, figuring that she'd get the picture and be asleep in moments, but that was not to be. Tonight, the crying escalated until I heard her slide out of bed. I rushed up the stairs, hoping that I could contain her and her sobs before she woke Judah. Somehow, he slept through her sobbing in the hall before I made it up there.

I snatched her up and sat her on the end of the bed. "What's wrong, Charis?

"I sad."

"Why are you sad?"

"I crying."

"Were you scared? Or hot? Or lonely?"

Her eyes widened. "Scared!"

"Well, we need to pray and ask Jesus to take away the scared, okay?"

We prayed, and I lay next to her while she calmed down. Her eyes fluttered, centimeters away from sleep, and before turning over, she lifted her head off the pillow and kissed me on the nose. When I thought she was asleep, I sat up to leave. She sat up too, kissed me again, and I told her that I loved her so much, but I needed to go downstairs so she could sleep. "We pray first." she said. So we did.

And yes, it is more than an hour and a half past her bedtime, but she's asleep now. And I had to run down and blog all of this before I forgot a single thing. What a treasure.

Menu-Plan Mondays

I stumbled upon a blog called "Organizing Junkie," the author of which hosts something called "Menu-Plan Mondays." In essence, every Monday, people link to a post on their blog with a list of what they're planning to fix for dinner each week.

I've been doing this--planning meals by the week--fairly faithfully for a while now, after growing tired of the daily battle of "What on earth are we going to eat tonight?" I usually just write my plans in my calendar, and then I have a guide to go by. To be truthful, it doesn't always work out that I use every menu idea for that week, owing to abundances of leftovers or changes in plan or changes in cravings or weather, but it's nice to have it in black and white every day. And it's really not that hard to do--for me, what works is an Excel Spreadsheet that I've formatted with categories of food (Beef, Poultry, Pork, Sides, Veggies, etc.), which I use as a master menu from which to pluck meal ideas. It only takes me about 10 minutes a week to plan, which saves me endless hours of staring into the freezer looking for dinner to jump out at me. It also makes grocery shopping far more efficient--I can pare down my list or even tailor my meals to what's on sale that week. So the beauty of it is twofold. At least.

Anyway, I checked some of the plans listed on the blog (orgjunkie.blogspot.com), and felt inspired by ideas from people who are not in a rut--or are clearly not in the same rut I am in--and thought I'd add my two cents' worth. I don't feel compelled to add my name and menu items to the massive list on Orgjunkie's blog, especially since some of my ideas were culled from blog posts alredy there, but I thought I might post them here. If nothing else, it's a gastronomic record for future enlightenment.

Monday:
Spinach and Sausage Ravioli "Lasagna"
Homemade Brothers' Bread

Tuesday:
Ham and Cheese Panini with Cucumber Ranch Cream Cheese
Salad

Wednesday:
Asian Pork Tenderloin
Rice
Steamed Peas or Broccoli

Thursday:
Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Pasta Salad with Spinach and Feta

Friday:
Italian Beef
Garlic and Parmesan Potato Wedges
Salad

Funny Face

Yesterday, Charis was fnishing a cookie in the living room, and Judah was in the dining room having lunch. I was seated next to him so he wouldn't have to eat alone, when all of the sudden, I got the urge to snap a couple of pictures of him. I don't seem to do random pictures often enough, I think. Anyway, No sooner had I turned the camera on, than Judah started making faces. I promise you that none of these expressions were prompted in any way. Yes, it appears our son is developing his personality!

Also, the other day I was testing his language comprehension. I wanted to know if he understands simple words like ball. Well, he does. We were sitting near the toy basket, and I said, "Judah, would you hand me a ball?" So he reached over and picked out a red, white and blue mini-volleyball. I was pretty impressed. Then I said, "Judah, would you hand me another ball, please?" He looked at me for a second, then turned back to the basket and plucked out a partially-hidden Winnie the Pooh ball. I was stunned!

When Charis was his age, I thought she was brilliant. And old. I thought that, at the ripe old age of 14 months, she should know things. And she did. Judah's age has sort of snuck up on me--I still think of him as such a baby, even though he is turning into a full-fledged toddler right before my eyes. So when he shows the intelligence of a young toddler, I am amazed; not because I think he is not intelligent, I just forget that he is able to do age-appropriate things, and that his age is not 9 months! It all goes by so fast.

Of course, big sister wanted to get in on the action. (Maybe that's where he learned the faces...)

Moving Right Along

Well, it's all happening so fast! Monday, Vic's Septic came and pumped out our tank, and shortly thereafter, Vic (I assume) hauled out the big digger and made us a big hole for our basement.
It did not take him long--he was done by 3 pm. That Vic is really something. After the hole was dug, cousin Brad, Abe and Shaun dug trenches for the footers so they could be inspected the next morning--Abe and Shaun dug until no light remained, but they got it done. On Tuesday, the inspector came by and gave the go-ahead to pour the footers, so Mr. Cement Man showed up and filled the trenches with "mud." After a break to let the footers set up and to let the guys go get the wall forms, Brad, Jed, and Abe began putting up the wall forms to pour into. At around 5 pm., our egress window was delivered, and on Wednesday, the guys fit the window into the wall forms and began drilling into the existing basement walls to anchor the new walls when they are poured. Then, on Thursday morning, Mr. Cement came back with more cement for the walls, and the walls were poured and leveled by about noon. I was away from the house, so I didn't get pictures of the actual pour, but we now have basement walls! They have to sit for a day or two before the forms can come off, then the walls must sit, untouched, for a week before we start framing things on top of them. After the forms come off, though, Abe and the fellas will cut a big hole in our existing basement wall and toss that concrete out of the egress window. Then, they have to dig out a bit more dirt and gravel to make room for a basement floor, which will apparently be poured at a later date.

Suffice it to say that it's been a long week. Well, frankly, it has been a long couple of weeks. Because of the noise and activity, the kids haven't had the naps they normally get, which means I don't get as much done. It also means my sanity drips away, too. Let's be clear: naps are mostly for moms. But yesterday, Abe's mom took the kids all day, so not only was I able to get a lot of houswork done that has really needed to be done, Abe and I were able to get out for dinner and Shrek the Third. (pretty funny.) I am feeling somewhat rejuvenated today!

But I think it will be a long summer...

Charis Sings to Us

I love it. Up until recently, Charis has known songs only well enough to be able to fill in a few key words when we sang them to her. Now, the tables have turned. Now she sings, "God is so BIG! So strong, so miney, nothing g-God cannot do!" She also likes to sing "This Little Light of Mine," especially where we don't hide it under a bushel or let Satan blow it out. Another favorite is "Happy Birthday"--when we play in the sandbox, she makes a cake and puts it on a plate, then usually sticks a fluffy dandelion in the top for the candle, sings the song, and blows it out. This may explain the proliferation of dandelions in our yard!

Another topic of conversation has been bikes. Charis is getting a Dora the Explorer trike/big wheel for her birthday. We just call it a bike. But now, every night at bedtime, she wants me to tell her stories about bikes. We've had flying bikes and magic bikes, and she also loves to hear about our first bikes. I tell her about how I unwisely decided to ditch my training wheels and rode straight into a hedge, and Abe tells her about when he got his first bike as a kid--he had two to look at; one was a super fast, light bike. He loved it. the other, to hear him tell it, was slow and heavy. Charis' eyes got so wide when he told her it weighed "a thousand pounds." Then he disclosed that he had actually faked falling on the heavy, slow one so his dad wouldn't think it was a good bike for him...unfortunately, that was the very bike his dad decided to purchase. We all laugh. Charis asks for these stories again and again...and she won't even get her bike for another month! Poor soul.

Judah is growing like gangbusters. He says "Uh-oh" a lot, and is very quick to use the sign for "all done" when he's through eating. He is getting so bold and adventuresome--he loves going down the slide, but loves trying to climb up it even more. And swinging--he apparently thinks the higher, the better. He also seems a bit of an alchemist--what happens when I dump dog food into the dog's water? He has become increasingly vocal--we're just not quite sure what it's all about yet.

He is also getting to be a BIG boy. Yesterday, for the first time, I put a pair of Judah's pants on Charis--they seemed a little short, but otherwise, fit fine. All the same, I was surprised that 3T pants were that short--until I looked at the tag and discovered they were not #t, as I had thought, but 18 month pants. I never thought I'd mix up their clothes...

Stage 1

As I may have mentioned in a previous post or two, we're embarking on a humongous construction project this summer. It will dramatically increase our home's value for resale, and it will also increase our square footage, which, as the kids and their toys keep getting bigger, sounds pretty good to me.

The breakdown: in exchange for ripping down our leaky, crumbling, mostly worthless 7.5x26 ft. back porch, we'll be getting a 12x29 ft. glossy, beautiful main floor addition, including main floor laundry (!!!!) and a full main-floor bath (our old one, part of the back porch, was only a .25 bath--the sink didn't work--and not insulated, so using it during the winter months meant one cold tushy), as well as 12x29 ft. of basement space and a 12x15 ft. addition to Judah's bedroom upstairs. In the process, we'll also be gutting and remodeling our kitchen and roofing and siding the entire house. I am excited beyond belief, while still trying to be realistic--we can expect this project to be a huge drain of time, resources, and energy, and fully expect it to drag on well into the fall.

But as Confucius said, The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. So my first step last week was clearing out the back porch (formerly a dumping ground of coats, shoes, recyclables, and (most of all) random miscellany. Before I could do that first step, though, I had to clear out the front porch (formerly a dumping ground of random unused furniture and, of course, miscellany) and mop it. Those two steps took all of Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, I did all of the laundry--ALL of it. This includes sheets, blankets, towels, and the many things I've postponed washing because they weren't necessary--the neat sheet the dog sits on in the back seat, etc--because I knew that, on Friday, my washer and dryer were moving up to the front porch, and I had no idea how long it would be before I would be able to use them again. (They're still unhooked.) On Friday, I got the crazy notion that I should clean out the basement. Now, this is where it really got surreal. I can't adequately explain to you what a dumphole our basement had become (Don't know where to put it? Shove it down in the basement! No one ever looks down there!), but suffice it to say that I pulled the lawn tractor and trailer up to the house so I could carry a big load of junk out to the burn pile. I cleaned it out, for real--I even removed the carpet. Somehow, the kids stayed asleep for two hours, and I was able to do more than I ever dreamed possible--enough to make Abe mutter a mild expletive of amazement when he returned home that afternoon. I also ground and browned 5 lbs. or beef for sloppy joes for the workers on Saturday. By the time Saturday rolled around, I was bushed.

As you can imagine, Abe's week was also chaotic, trying to get, well, let's be honest here, I don't know what ready for the big demolition. He worked every bit as hard, and probably harder, than I did, and just want the record to reflect that.

Saturday was...an adventure. Abe's dad, two Tims, a Dave, a Jim, and a Shaun all came to help destroy our porch. It is unfathomable how much joy men get out of demolition. All I can say is that, with the mere mention of the word, Abe's friends were all too eager to come help.

The first blow was struck at about 8:30 or 9 am, and I nearly fell out of bed. I went outside to see what the noise had been, and found our contractor, Shaun, sheepish. Abe apologized for him. :) The porch was gone--I mean, to the dirt--by about noon. After setting out and cleaning up the guys' lunch, I took the kids out to Abe's parents' house so they could get naps--a frustrating and highly unsuccessful endeavor--and returned by about 3:30. Abe worked into the evening. He is a dedicated worker, he is.

So here are some snapshots from the day, if you care to see them. Some are blurry (I couldn't very well re-do shots), so they're not necessarily the best quality, but they should give you an idea!

before:

going...

going...

gone!!

Before and After

before

after

what a difference a little jewelry makes! :)

Photos, round 2

Charis being shy, Judah being (apparently) awed

Lorie's handsome Isaac

Grandma reads to Charis

Proud Grandpa with his favorite grandkids

Photos, round 1

visiting with Stephanie on Wednesday

From L to R: Aunt Gee, Judah, me, Charis, Uncle Jim, Grandma, Aunt Marilyn, Dad visiting at Aunt Gee's house

Judah and Grandma cuddling

Judah admiring some sort of Australian animal

Charis dances at the zoo

Therapy, Thy Name is Blog

Tee hee! Tee hee!
It's time for my padded room, I see!
I like to speak in poetry.
This recap of the week will be
a fluid, rhyming therapy.

Tuesday--what a funny day.
Time to laugh, and time to play--
"I've missed you, since you were away!
Too bad that I just can't stay.
It's off to softball . . . just today."

But Wednesday was a big fat hit.
Mop the porch, control the fit.
Work, work, work with polish and spit
Then off to choir to sing, that's it--
But what? My child got mad and bit?????
Sigh and sit. And keep your wit.

Thursday. Time to clean some more.
Move some stuff, sweep the floor.
Abe works late, and that's a bore.
So I'll do laundry (my favorite chore),
Or spend some money at the store.
Or bang my head against the door.

Friday brought a lot of dust.
And a lot of dirt and trash and rust.
I cleaned the basement--a big fat must
before today, you'll have to trust.
But I worked too hard and nearly cussed.
I shouldn't have so impulsively fussed.

This morning was the loudest din--
It very nearly did me in.
The tractor roared, the hammers scoffed
We pulled our crumbling back porch off.
Oh, so much wood and dirt and brick
But then, the part that made me sick
Was when the worker threw aside
A concrete lid which tried to hide
The septic tank that lurked beneath
The tacked-on bathroom. What a treat.
No one knew the tank was there.
We've got city sewer, and not a care!
But now the back yard smells like poo.
And tomorrow's Sunday--what can you do?
We'll have to get the septic pumped
(Let's hope our budget isn't sunk)
Before we dig a basement tall
And pour the concrete for the walls
And frame some rooms, and roof and side
And lay some hardwood 12 feet wide
And paint and trim and tile and buff
And hope our money is enough.
'Cause when it's done, our house will shine
And I'll be glad to call it mine.
And while then, these days will seem so sweet
This week I'd rather not repeat.

Happy Trails

Well, last week sure turned out differently than I thought it would! On Monday, I had an email from my dear friend Stephanie, who is currently hiking the Appalachian Trail, saying that a close family friend had passed away and she was going to come off the trail and try to make it home for the funeral. The idea crossed my mind that this might be the perfect opportunity to drive back home as well--perhaps I'd see Steph, and I'd also get an opportunity to meet a little man named Isaac who was born to another dear friend, Lorie, almost 3 months ago, and also a chance for the kids to see their grandparents and other extended family. I was still on the fence about the matter when my mom called me--she and my dad were on their way back home from visiting my brother and had pulled into a rest area when who should they see? Stephanie. The odds of that happening, of their meeting by chance in a random city in West Virginia, are so very slim that I took it as a sign I was supposed to go home. So the next morning, I packed up the car, buckled up the kids, and headed for my parents' house.

I won't bore you with details, but I did eventually get a hold of Steph, and we arranged to meet the next morning for breakfast. The kids stayed home with Grandpa while Grandma had to go back to work. It was wonderful! Not only did I enjoy a kid-free outing with another adult, it was with Stephanie, one of my favorite people of all time. Later that day, we learned that two of my favorite relatives, Jim and Marilyn, were in town from South Carolina. We all jumped in the car and headed for my great-aunt Gee's house to visit with them and my grandmother, and also to see Gee's daughter-in-law and grandkids. Except for Jim and Marilyn, whom I have not seen for several years, we see the others maybe twice a year, so it was a great family shebang, and nice to visit when we're not centered around a holiday. Then, we were invited back to my grandma's house for dinner, so we were able to extend the visit and share a meal. It was just a wonderful day.

The next day, Aunt Connie invited us to the zoo, so Charis, Judah and I picked her up and headed out to look at the animals and have lunch and a troll through the gift shop (with Aunt Connie, there always seems to be a prize at the end!). It was apparetly one of the highlights of Charis' life, because ever since that day, she asks if we can go to the "zhou" and see the animals. On a side note, the zoo had an excellent area called the "Australian Adventure" which I enjoyed very much. At the time, I was reading Bill Bryson's book about Australia, In A Sunburned Country, and was feeling a great deal of fondness for the land down under. I would recommend almost anything written by Bryson (I haven't read all of his stuff, but close), but read with this asterisk: he's a little rough around the edges with his language and whatnot, and a little coarse at times, and his ideas about the beginning of the world are definitely not mine, but other than that, he is delightful to read. More than any other travel author, he makes you feel that, beyond having read a simple travel narrative, you have actually traveled to the places he writes about, and it's always special when a book has that sort of transporting power. Back to the day's events, we capped off the evening with a tasty, gut-busting meal at Max and Erma's with Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt Connie. Good day.

On Friday, I took the kids to visit my dear friend Lorie and her two beautiful (in a handsome sort of way) boys, which is always a treat, not the least of which because her house is very kid-friendly, so it's a bit of a break from the constant redirection I do at the houses of people who don't have small kids. Visiting with Lorie is always easy--we just pick up where we left off, which is a very valuable thing in a friendship. It helps that we've been friends for--gasp! I just did this math for the first time--17 years. Wow.

Saturday was reserved for Grandma. The kids spent ample time with Grandpa all week, but were only able to see grandma in the evenings, so what a wonderful thing to have a bit more time for them to enjoy each other! I don't think we did anything dramatic, but how often do the kids just get to "hang out" with my mom and dad? Not often enough.

Sunday was very similar, except that we also celebrated my dad's birthday (which was actually on Monday), so we had a big lunch, and Charis sang "Happy Dithday" A LOT. Then Mom, Charis, and I headed out for a bridal shower of a family friend. Now, this is the little girl I used to practice french braids on way back in the day, and now she is apparently old enough to marry, which will make you feel old in a hurry. Charis enjoyed her first bridal shower, especially because they served fresh strawberries and had a trampoline she could jump on. We didn't get back home from the shower until sometime after 8, but still found time for cake and pizza with the whole gang.

Monday, dad made a birthday breakfast, and we ate, then the kids and I hit the road back home. We arrived at about 2:30, at which point I began writing this blog. Now it's Friday. My next blog will be about how we passed this week. Oh boy.

Actually, I just tried to go back and add pictures, but it won't let me. So my next blog will be pictures from the week. Then the one after THAT will be this week's craziness. And I think I also have a blog in me somewhere about Gas prices. Stay tuned.

Word to your Mama

Judah is getting words! So far, he has mama, uh-oh, this, that, and dada. And he has a lot of babble, which our pediatrician describes as "learning the music before you know they lyrics." Sweet!

The best Thank You

Dear Charis. She's so wonderful, generally kind and helpful. She loves going to church. But I cannot see to get her excited about praying--she is just not amenable to the idea (no pun intended. okay, maybe I intended the pun just a little), and will in fact say "AMEN!" while I am praying in an apparent attemt to curtail my conversation.

For a week or two, I've been asking her who she wants to pray for each night, and her standard response, as I mentioned in an earlier post, is Diego. Dora's adventurous cousin. One night I did end up praying that somehow God would use Diego to help His children learn about and appreciate His creation, but I'm pretty sure that line of reasoning was lost on my two year old, and Abe mentioned that he didn't really think it was a good idea for me to be praying for a cartoon character. So we've been encouraging her to pray for others with needs--a growing baby in the belly (you know who you are), mommy's friend Stephanie who is thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, Great-grandma who fell and bruised her kidneys and may have broken a rib... but still, she thinks it is sort of a game, and continues to be silly even as I am praying.

So I told her that a very important part of our day is saying Thank You to God, who gives us all good things. I told her that we need to appreciate what he gives and does for us, and named some of her favorite things--food to eat, friends to play with, our family, a nice home, a church to belong to... After I had finished my mini-speech, Charis looked at me for a minute, as if piecing together what I had just said, looked up towards the ceiling and said, "THANK YOU, GOD!"

Doctor, Doctor, Mr. MD

We've been to the pediatrician's office a couple of times in the past two weeks. Fun stuff.

Visit #1: The kids had both had cold-like symptoms for about a week and a half when we woke up that Wednesday. Both were still couchy, snotty, drippy, and late in the afternon, Charis' eyes looked a little bloodshot. "Do they look pink to you?" I asked Abe. "Not really. I think they're okay." "Okay, I guess she can go to church tonight, then!"

When we picked her up from her wednesday night class, the conversation changed. "Do her eyes look pink to you?" Abe said. "Oh, dear." I replied.

That night, I called Abe's mom to see if she would be available to go with me to the pediatrician's office. I asked Charis if she wanted to talk to Yia Yia on the phone. "Charis, tell Yia Yia what color you eyes are." "BLUE!" "And...?" "PINK!"

When I called the pediatrician's office the next day, they asked me if her ears also hurt. I asked, and she said no, so we went to the appointment, and I figured pink eye was it. But no, she also had an ear infetion, so obviously she has a high tolerance for pain. We were prescribed eye drops (a two-year-old's FAVORITE THING) and ten days of amoxicillin (free at our pharmacy!). I spent the rest of the afternoon on the phone with the parents of all of her classmates apologizing for any sickness she may had unwittingly spread.

Thankfully, perhaps due in part to my hyper-sanitizing, no one else got the funk.

But we returned to the office today for...

Visit #2: Judah's 12-month well-baby. He is in excellent health, right on track in everything! He was 23-odd pounds, and 29-odd inches, 50th percentile all the way. He got shots, which made him very clingy and needy the rest of the day, poor kid (and mom). We're glad he checked out okay!

One more thing: Charis has learned a new trick. The other night, I was putting her to bed, reading her a Curious George story, when she said randomly, "Two mommies!" What on earth...? I wondered. I looked over at my beautiful, precious, flawless daughter, and her eyes were crossed like some sort of goofy teenager. It completely creeps Abe out!

Fun on a Friday

One thing I will always look back on fondly is our Friday Afternoon Fun. It's never planned, but occasionally we'll all end up on the big bed, tickling, wrestling, laughing, and just generally being goofy. Here are some photos from a recent Friday.

channeling Mr. Potatohead

let's put our heads together and see what we come up with

junior birdgirl

no...they love it.

Judah's party and other stuff

Well, I've been waiting to post because I sincerely believed I could upload the many videos from Judah's birthday party (including every digital representation of him eating his cake), butI have tried, and failed. So rather than wait any longer, I thought I should at least mention his party, even if I don't have the most fun pictures to show for it.

It was a "traffic" theme, with decorations including red/yellow/green balloon stoplights and other red/yellow/green things. He had cupcakes made by Grandma Donna (devil's food and angel's food--for whichever way people were leaning that day) frosted red, yellow, or green, with m&m stoplights on them. He LOVED his chocolate cake! Judah had about 28 guests, counting the kids. Other food included: bbq cola meatballs, ham and pickle roll-ups, veggies and dip, and various chips and snacks. Judah ate loads. This picture, above, is Judah opening an outlet cover for his bedroom. Arguably his favorite gift all day, it was also the only one he could really get close to, since his big sister and her bigger friends did all the unwrapping for him. He didn't seem to mind.

It being a theme party, he received many theme-related gifts--lots of books about trucks and also actual toy trucks. He also received quite a few items of clothing and some bath toys, which we have been putting to good use!

A present...for me to open!?!?!?

Um...no. Just an empty bag...

The next day, we dedicated Judah at church. Both sets of grandmas and grandpas were there, along with a great aunt and a lot of other aunties and uncles.

It was a busy weekend, and I wish I had better pictures to show for it, but most of them are on actual film. Can you imagine that? How...dark ages.