NOTES FROM EM

time.

2011-02-03T09:58:00.000-05:00

One of the most significant changes in our life in the past year, is that my teeny tiny, itsy bitsy, (really she is just down right huge) baby started kindergarten. Which was a big deal in and of itself. However, thats not the change I'm talking about here. I am talking about having to get up at 6.30 in the A.M. every. single. morning. If left to our own devices everyone, yes, even my 2 year old, would sleep until 8 in the morning.

It. was. glorious.

Fortunately for them, the girls think its hysterical when I get "frustrated" you know the whole "eat your freaking breakfast my dear" and "if you don't quit your whining about __________ (really you could put anything in that blank, your hair, who touched you, you don't like the way someone looked at you, or my personal favorite, drinking milk, there is a whole other blog post on that one) then I'm going to ___________( shave your head, give the dog away, never, ever give you sugar again) "

Before you call child services on me, remember I said my kids think its all a silly game where mama just goes"so crazy" and they are all laughing hysterically. Passive aggressive much? Or am I a child whispering genius? Who knows? They will be in counseling one day for something, it might as well be because I made my oldest drink milk and my youngest stop poking my oldest.

All of this "crazy" is directly related to the wake up time. No one wants to get up and no one wants to be the one to wake up all the others. I'd even like to say that its getting better, but honestly its not, Sadie Parker is a dead weight of 57 lbs to carry out of bed in the morning. I count that as my weight lifting regime now.

I know others have it worse, but for us, this is about all I can take on the sleep scale of complaints.

Now, off to recover from the early morning by going to a PTSO/PTA meeting. oh buddy, yes, I will be blogging about that too......

best. quote. ever.

2011-01-12T11:21:00.002-05:00

"I accidentally changed my mind"

things i want to remember... or not to forget.....

2011-01-07T13:35:00.000-05:00

~as drew smashes the garlic clove with the side of the knife.

"daddy are you spanking that garlic?"

~ruby loves doughnuts, all things tiny and small, taking silly pictures ~she does not like BSF, going into dark rooms, or not being held (mostly by me). She likes to freak out about being left during her nap. Which is both sad and a little bothersome. And no, I have never nor would I ever leave her during a nap.

~ and she mostly loves doing whatever her sister 'Kar-Ker" is doing.

~SP started school this year, and it has been a major adjustment to all of us, especially the 6.30 wake up call. She is a sweet helper, and slightly bossy, but mostly with all the best mothering intentions possible. She gets so overly excited when Jin, the Asian boy who spoke zero english at the first of school, says anything at all that she can understand. Its the first thing she tells me when she gets in the car. And of course I/we only take her and pick her up from school, no bus for us. I mean I freak out about much less, Im sure thats no surprise to any of you that are left out there in wandering blog reading land.

~She love, I mean LOVES Taylor Swift, so much so that ruby even knows the words to "Romeo and Juliet", she is a great ballerina, and becoming a more proficient reader. drew and I try to take turns reading her chapter books. At the moment I have introduced her to Ramona Quimby. She is loving how naughty she is....

~with all this said, I do want to start blogging again. I want to always remind myself of what our/my life is/was and I want my girls to know one day as well. I know I wont remember on my own, so be patient with me in getting back on the wagon. I'll get there again, it just may make take some practice........ in the mean time, here we are in all our crazy glory......

Christmas Cards

2009-12-31T09:11:00.008-05:00

If you sent our family a Christmas card, this is where it started out.

On either side of our front door, so that we could see you coming and going.

The "hanger" is just a ribbon that I glue gunned buttons too, hand sewed some cute paper clips to, then tied a pretty bow at the top, and voila, your very own card hanger.

Now that its New Years Eve, we take down all our decorations and pack them away. All except for the Christmas cards, they go in a bowl and sit on our dining room table. Each night at dinner we take one or two cards and pray for those people or person who sent us that card. This is a tradition that started when I was a child with my family. We really enjoy remembering friends that are close and far.

This year I was reading somewhere (to remember where would only prove to my ever shrinking brain cells, that they are in fact, still shrinking) about this program for St. Jude's Ranch. The ranch is a place for the healing and caring of abandoned, abused, and neglected children, and there is a way for us to help. The recycle card program works like this....

The children participate in making the new cards by removing the front and attaching a new back. The result is a beautiful new card made by the children and volunteers. The benefits are two-fold: customers receive "green" holiday cards for use and the children receive payment for their work and learn the benefits and importance of "going green".

Its a win, win for all parities involved.

* just as a disclaimer, I will NOT be sending photo cards of you all and your families, just those without family photos.

Merry Christmas, Christ is born.

2009-12-25T20:37:00.002-05:00

O Holy night, the stars are brightly shining.

It is the night of our dear Saviour's birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees! Oh hear the angel voices!

Oh night divine! Oh night when Christ was born!

Oh night divine! Oh night! Oh night divine!

Chains shall he break for the slave is our brother,

and in His name all oppression shall cease.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we;

Let all within us praise His holy name.

Christ is the Lord, that ever, ever praise we.

Noel! Noel! Oh night;oh night divine!

Noel! Noel! Oh night; oh night divine!

2009-12-18T17:01:00.002-05:00

(original date, Dec 9, 2009)

If there were such a thing as a merit badge for vaccinating your almost 5 year old. .... I earned it today.

Let me start by saying, yes we vaccinate, I know you may not, but we choose to do so, on a spaced out schedule, but nonetheless, we vaccinate. Thats not without saying that I have had my freak outs about filling a 7 lb baby full of antibodies when she was just days old. I left crying and angry with myself that time. Hence the spaced out schedule.

Back to my morning.

1st round of h1n1 vaccine last month, a shot for Ruby and the mist for Parkey.

All was well, Rubes didnt even cry.

There is a learning curve with the mist, but this time around it went really well, no wrastleing to the ground forcing the liquid up the nose routine.

We went back today for the booster h1n1, a shot for Ruby and since there wasnt a mist, a shot for Parkey, but she didnt know this was going to be an option.

ok, let me say that I really try to do a great job at not cussing in front of my children, but today was a huge exercise in self control for not only myself but for SP as well.

Ruby was a champ, never even saw it coming. Looked at me with the expression of "what just happened, oh wait a sticker, ok great"

Sp started screaming, yes SCREAMING in the bathroom, not even in the patient room, telling me all about how she...

"was NOT getting a shot today"

"I will NOT do it"

"I wont stand up, I wont go back in that room, I will NOT let you hurt me"

"I'M gonna spank YOU Mama!"

and in my brain was : "oh no she DID'NT"

(this was the line for me, like I said, she's 5 and doesn't cuss, but this was as close to a cuss as she can get, you DONT tell Mama what's going to happen, and you definitely DONT tell Mama she is getting a spank)

well..... that didn't go over to well with me, I have long ago lost all sense of embarrassment with my children. Happened way to many times over and over, so I wasn't going to let this bother me, for the sake of saving face (because we as mothers know, there is no such thing), it was all about the attitude at this point.

Besides every time we go to the doctor some kid is crying, but I just dont remember those other kids being as articulate as mine was being at this moment. Coupled with the fact that we are in the bathroom, I know you all have sung in the shower at some point, so you can attest to how great the acoustics are in a tiled room, all that applies here as well.

Kicking me and still screaming at me, I pick her up and carried her back into the room, which is no small feat when your child is in the 99th percentile for height and weight. All the while telling her "get your ass into that room and put your big girl panties on we're getting that shot weather you like it or not" "take a deep breath, in your nose and out your mouth, deeeeep breaths, its going to be ok, this is how we protect you from germs, deeeep breaths."

which worked for about 17 seconds.

more kicking, screaming, limp fishing, hitting, yelling at the top of her lungs, restraining, until... it was over, and SHE DID'T EVEN KNOW IT HAPPENED.
the nurse of steel declared, "Done!"
and in the hallway, not so under her breath "good grief"
SP looked up at me and said "She did it? Its over?"
Me "yes, all done, what do you think?"
SP beaming with pride "I didnt even feel it!"
Me" Imagine that!" and on the inside, "well, this is a maybe on the list of future counseling sessions conversations for her" and "oh crap, Ruby! are you here?" (she was, I was just so caught up in how to exorcize the demon out of Parkey take care of my eldest, that I was lucky the youngest was just following me around in the room)

I know that as soon as we walked back out into the waiting room on our way out, we were given the "was that your child screaming/what kind of mother are you/cant control your child/ was it really that important?" kind of stares.

and me (again on the inside) "YES it was, worth every bit of not being sick for a week to ten days, with potential for hospitalization due to after effects of the swine flu, and no I do not feel one bit of remorse from doing what we feel is best to protect our children, and yes, I am apparently raising a super drama queen, but by God she is going to be a healthy one"

2009-12-18T16:41:00.000-05:00

we're all about moderation at our house....can't you tell?

the day after Thanksgiving meal.

2009-11-27T12:17:00.000-05:00

I know that I missed a meal in the mix of all the holiday food preparations. But to us, the night before Thanksgiving is a low key event, pizza, pb&j, sandwiches, etc... however, For the day after thanksgiving...... this adds a twist to a traditional mexican encheliadas with the cranberry sauce, Don't, repeat dont let that throw you off.

before you begin to read this recipe, stop , go to your ipod/itunes/cd player/tape player/ and heaven forbid your record player/ and put on some cheery Christmas music, because like it or not {we, love it} its christmas time!!!

Layered Turkey Enchiladas.....yummooooieeee

ingredients

1 lb. turkey breast tenderloin, cut in bite-size strips
1 16-oz. pkg. frozen sweet peppers and onions stir-fry vegetables
1 10-oz. can enchilada sauce
1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
9 6-inch corn tortillas, halved
1 8 oz. pkg. Mexican blend shredded cheese (2 cups)
Lime wedges (optional)
Cilantro sprigs (optional)

directions

1. Position oven rack toward top of oven. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In extra-large skillet cook turkey in 1 tablespoon hot cooking oil over medium heat 4 minutes or until no longer pink. (I sub chicken all the time, and since you might have some left over turkey lying around, just use it) Add frozen vegetables, enchilada sauce, and cranberry sauces. Bring to boiling. Sprinkle salt and pepper.

2. In 2-quart baking dish layer one-third of the tortillas, then one-third of the cheese. Use a slotted spoon to layer half the turkey-vegetable mixture. Layer one-third tortillas, one-third cheese, remaining turkey-vegetables (with slotted spoon), and remaining tortillas. Spoon on remaining sauce from skillet; sprinkle remaining cheese. Bake 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cut in squares. Serve with lime and cilantro. Serves 4. {we serve this with sour cream & have rice as a side dish}

I'll be posting about our thanksgiving a later time..... still recovering, in a great way.
Thankful to all who read, and all who comment, and all that don't.
Freedom in it all, and thankful that we have that freedom.

Week of Thanksgiving meal #2

2009-11-24T15:09:00.002-05:00

Olivia, this is for you girl.

This is 100% kid friendly meal, I realize that not all kids would eat the previous meal, so I am posting one that most will. This is super, and when I super, I mean extremely, easy. I substitute the beef strips for chicken that I have cubed, and then follow the rest of the recipe. I will say, that if you are anti bread, that substituting the pita for a large piece of lettuce would be scrumptious. And maybe even dare I say, more adult friendly.{original recipe by Parents Magazine}

Meal #2

Ingredients

1 pound beef stir-fry strips
2 teaspoon Greek seasoning
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 soft pita breads, warmed
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 cup thin strips cucumber
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup ranch dressing

Directions

1. Cut beef into small pieces.( If necessary) and toss with Greek seasoning.

2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add beef, half at a time, and cook, stirring 2 to 3 minutes or until browned.

3. Divide beef among warmed pitas. Top with tomato, cucumber, and feta. Drizzle ranch dressing over filled pitas. Serve extra ranch dressing on the side, if desired

Thanksgiving week of food meal #1

2009-11-23T08:53:00.006-05:00

I don't know about you all but I always have a hard time with making meals the week of Thanksgiving. I have this weird feeling of not wanting to make anything all that good in preparation for the upcoming feast. Some kind of self depravation, which is silly, but none the less, stays with me. I might never admit to it, but I think that maybe the meal on Thursday will taste even better, the butter smoother, the turkey juicer, and plumpier cranberries.

( I know its not a word, but it should be)

With that being said, I thought I'd post about the meals I will make this week in preparation for our gorging on Thursday.

Tonight I'll be making a Martha Stewart all in one bowl dish, the ingredients in this are not typical of a traditional Thanksgiving, so there shouldn't be much overlap with this meal and your Thanksgiving meal.

Tomato and Sausage Risotto

Let me start by saying wilted spinach is not a friend of my palette, but the flavors of this dish are o.u.t.s.t.a.n.d.i.n.g.

So fresh and warming, the perfect one bowl winter time dish.

Its easy to assemble, but take a wee bit of time just because your constantly adding water and stirring the Arborio rice. Which may I say, is so creamy in texture but not in taste.

(prep time is 10 minutes, totally time is 55 minutes)

If this dish doesn't wrap its arms around you and make you feel loved and cared for in the true sense of the phrase "comfort food" should, just don't bother ever making anything else I recommend, we have different taste in food.

ok, here we go.

Serves 4

1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, in juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed ( I use chicken sausage)
1 small onion, finely chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 bunch flat-leaf spinach, (10 to 14 ounces), washed well, tough stems removed, chopped (about 7 Cups)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (optional)
2 tablespoons butter

Directions

In a small saucepan, combine tomatoes (with their juice) and 3 cups water. Bring just to a simmer; keep warm over low heat.
In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add sausage and onion; season with salt and pepper. Cook, breaking up sausage with a spoon, until sausage is opaque and onion has softened, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add rice; cook, stirring until well coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine; cook, stirring until absorbed, about 1 minute.
Add about 2 cups hot tomato mixture to rice; simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until absorbed, 4 to 5 minutes. Continue adding tomato mixture, 1 cup at a time, waiting for one cup to be absorbed before adding the next, stirring occasionally, until rice is creamy and just tender, about 25 minutes total (you may not have to use all the liquid).
Remove pan from heat. Stir in spinach, Parmesan, and butter; season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately (risotto will thicken as it cools), and sprinkle with additional Parmesan, if desired. (I recommend keeping the parmesan on the table to be grated in just before eating, the nutty flavor really complements the creaminess of the rice.)

Now the last step is while you are sitting at your dinner table, gently lean over your bowl and just smell the creation set before you, let the slight white wine tang resonate in your mind, and feel the love of good food.

2009-11-22T20:34:00.004-05:00

Im having a bit of a blogging dilemma.

There are a few subjects/ideas that I would like to express my thoughts and opinions about/on, however, I have no desire to offend any potential reader.

The thoughts are not about specific people, so I feel safe in that. But they could be potentially loaded commentary and depending on a readers interpretation, could be to close to home.

any thoughts?

2009-11-06T17:40:00.002-05:00

Dancing with the Stars has nothing on us.

2009-11-01T07:11:00.001-05:00

p: "is it time yet moooooooom, I cant wait anymore!"

me: "no honey, its still not time yet, remember I set the timer so you'll know when all of our friends will arrive, keep looking at it"

p: "but mom, its not going as fast as I want it to!"

ooooooo the anticipation of not knowing what in the heck is going on .

Did you know that peacocks love ladybugs?

Yep, thats my child trying to eat chocolate through the plastic wrapper.
And being that Ruby can not have chocolate right now, this was not a great holiday for her on the food spectrum. But more on that later.

Holding hands with Lila.

One of the most exciting things for Parkey was that the "real live Wonder Woman!!!" was there.
She sent me over first to see if we could take a picture with her, I gave her the thumbs up sign, and she ran over as fast as she could. This is a new idea for us, woman super-hero's, her little friends who are boys are discovering batman, spiderman, etc and are continually playing super-hero.... so this was to her delight.

At the neighborhood pre-trick or treat party.

The first few "treatings"
Ruby and I had been practicing all day saying "trick or treat" and she finally got it, and once she understood what saying those magic words got her, she was in.
She was a toddler on a mission, she didn't even want us to hold her because she thought she could walk faster if she did it on her own.

Fortunately the neighbors were gracious for a first time treater, more candy than this fluffy mama needs we could ever eat.

I realized at the end of the night that most of my pictures were of Ruby and that was for two reasons.
One I love , love, love this costume on her, and yes she will wear it again next year as well.
Two because , Sadie Parker was so beyond excited that it was Halloween, she wouldn't stand still long enough to take her picture.
She created her own costume, she had plenty to choose from, and I even offered to buy her one, but she was insistent on being a "fairy princess" which is exactly what she was, and she was ready two hours before game time.

After all the rainy fun, we came home and had chili with some friends and family.
Which turned out to be a great idea, mostly so that the kids could wiggle out the mass amounts of sugar they had consumed over the course of walking through the neighborhood.
Ruby discovered cotton candy and suckers, and loved them enough to lay down on the ground in that big old costume of hers and pitch a fit when I told her we were all done "open" candy.
It was such an accomplishment that I gave her another candy.

Later, while getting ready for bed, I asked Parkey what her favorite part of the night was and she answered,
"meeting the real Wonder Woman, and passing out the chocolate mustaches to the kids"
(more on that later as well.)

stuck in the middle with you

2009-10-31T23:11:00.000-04:00

you. all.

I died when I saw this picture of us.

I really did stop breathing for just a moment in time.

My dear sweet friend Olivia graciously took some family pictures for us last sunday, and this and the header are just two of them.

I fully love this picture, as much as you can love an non-living thing.

Please get her to take your pictures.

We've never had pictures taken , and its always been something I've wanted and this was beyond what I even knew I wanted.

The Mr. and I were standing holding hands, and Ruby did not like that at all. She is actually pushing Drew away from me so that he wouldn't be touching me. Funny, yes. but a super sweet picture that I died for, absolutely.

Its only Tuesday.....

2009-10-27T19:39:00.000-04:00

What, isnt this the way you are supposed to use sticky notes?!?

She went to bed with both arms in the sleeves of her shirts, but woke up with only one.

hmmmmm......

Yes, its already started, thanks to PBSKIDS.ORG

(how sweet is Rubes on her tippy toes wanting to see what all was happening)

Sweet night night's with good old Dr. Seuss.

2009-10-26T17:00:00.003-04:00

It is happening already, at the age of 4 years, 9 months, 7 days, and about 6 hours.

She has decided who she wants to be, may I please introduce you to.....

"Parkey"

Now, she wont correct you if you call her Sadie Parker, but you will most likely be told that she likes to be called Parkey.

Which started out as Parkey Parkerson, just like you can do with any name, such as Mommy Mommerson, or Ruby Ruberson, or Snarkey Snarkerson, etc... ( I really could go on and on, and sometimes I do)

I think that is really might just be my fault, I've call my kiddos so many different nick-names, and endearing terms, that who can blame her for thinking that a name is interchangeable. She has even done it with the Mr. and myself, formerly Dada and Mama to Papa and Mimi. And I will even admit to my "youthful" days, to telling people my name was "Towanda Lucinda Jane."

That was a name that gave me great license to be/do whatever I wanted.

I digress.

So here is this little baby of mine, telling her teachers and all her classmates to call her Parkey.

Which I must admit has thrown me off a little. I mean if your personal nickname became what everyone called your child, that would take some adjusting to. Lets just hope this isnt a yearly event of change, we might be dealing with personality disorders at that point.

I will also caution you about the nicknames you give your children, make sure they are ones you really like and that you wont have issue with if they decide to keep and define themselves as such.

I am curious as to what a Parkey can/will do in life. We poured over the names of our children so much and named them very intentionally. Both girls have family names from both sides of our families, and we still to this day really love them. Names you know, but aren't heard of that much. So maybe SP is doing that herself, choosing a name that means something to her. I'll give her this much, you will more than likely never meet another person named Parkey.

And for the record, its fine if you still would like to call her Sadie Parker, I still do.

the phantom has struck again.

2009-10-16T10:04:00.006-04:00

Neighborhood halloween festivities have begun.

And while I know some of you all don't celebrate, be it you don't have children, or you just disagree, we enjoy and have a great time.

A bucket is left at your front door with the following....

A friendly ghost, with a poem, and candy in a bucket.

The instructions are to pass along the fun, secretly, to your neighbors, mostly those with children.

Parkey has a great time planning out who her ghosts will be delivered to.

Watch out fellow neighbors, you might just be spooked!

Boo.

boing

2009-10-07T16:43:00.001-04:00

Curls for days, upon days.

banana montage

2009-10-07T11:42:00.000-04:00

"Hey-o nana?"

(ummmm, hello banana?)

"Uby!"

(yes, this is Ruby and its very serious business)

"si-yee nana"

(oh, Banana, you are just too silly)

"Pee-boo nana!"

(Peek a boo, banana!)

"oooooo nana."

(ohhhh you banana)

"hmmmmm. All-de nana"

(all done banana)

And her mothers thoughts are ...

Just look at that face!!!!!

Don't you just want to squeeze it and smooch it and never stop!

2009-09-30T16:50:00.000-04:00

Hello world wide web, let me re-introduce myself.
I'm Emily, a stay at home mom, with two little girls, and an amazing husband.
I feel the need to reestablish who I am and what I've been doing with myself this past month.
The thing is, there is nothing in particular that has stolen my time, other than life, which as been super enjoyable lately.
The girls started school, obviously, since thats been my last post for over a month, which has given me a little bit of time to focus on other areas. The other areas have mostly been sewing, which you can view on my sewing blog if you'd like, but no worries if not.
Other events of the past month....
my birthday, which was mixed in with a week long stomach bug for the girls. Thankfully the hubs gave me a re-do on that, even though I didn't need a re-do. It was just nice being with my family, the people I love most, even if they were sick, we were all together. I was thankful just to have a family to take care of.
So I need to finish my 32 list. Suggestions? I have a few other ideas, but I'd love to know what you all would challenge yourselves to.
And ohhhhh the weather, after what felt like the 40 day flood, it has ceased raining, and the cool air has descended upon us, and it is a GIFT, we LOVE it, and are trying to soak it all up while we are healthy.
Which is another thing, swine flu has been a little consuming for me. We haven't had it, but I am scared of getting it. So there has been lots of had washing, and days of not going out. I know paranoia never serves anyone all that well, but PTL, we have not been oinking at our house yet.
And lastly, the thing I've been somewhat emotional about is that Parkey started ballet this past week.
I am so grateful that we are able for her to take ballet lessons and go to pre-school. I never did either of those things, (don't worry, I very obviously wasn't deprived) and no its not a mother, living through her child kind of psychotic thing. I am just so happy for her to be able to partake in something she loves so very much, and through the love of Christ, we are able to give that to her. She loves it so much and is beyond excited to be apart of something so fun.
I know, no picture. boooooooo.
But I will be back in action soon.
Very soon.

First Day of School.

2009-08-25T20:05:00.003-04:00

This was the beginning of the end in more than one way in relation to school.
It was Parkey's last first day of preschool. She is in PS 6 and that is as far as it goes.
Next year it will be kindergarten, and you all will have to send me all the well wishes and help scrape me up off the floor.
For Ruby it was her first day ever of preschool. To look at her here, she is as happy as can be. She never really flinched when I took her to her class, and she was ready to play. I however don't think she realized that I was leaving her there. I had taken her last week to meet her teachers and see her classroom, and she loved it. When I went to pick her up today, she was super ready to see me. Not sad, just wanted nothing to do with her teachers or classmates anymore, and was telling everyone goodbye as soon as I held her.
As for Parkey, she was happy as a lark, she and her bff, Giselle, were reunited for two days a week of bliss. And when asked about school, all answers were surounded with Giselle. What they played, where they sat, who stood in front of the line, what she had for lunch.
Sweet friends!

My sweet tired girl.

Parkey-isms

2009-08-20T17:06:00.001-04:00

"squirrel down" which means scroll down.

Drew: Parkey, why was your bedroom door closed this morning?
P: I came in your room last night, and I tried to tell you to quit snoring, and you didn't quit, so I just said, "oooookaaaay, I'll just close my bedroom door", so that's what I did.
Drew: nothing to say, because he was laughing so hard

SP (in the mirror this morning)
Oooooohhhh, I'm so cute, I look just like Molly! (our favorite babysitter)
Ohhhh, I am so cute, just like her!

25th Year at Pawley's Island.

2009-08-20T15:02:00.013-04:00

oh yes, there is still more

2009-08-06T13:58:00.001-04:00

Before I can even begin to think about all the other subjects I'd like to blog about, I still have more of our life in pictures to share.

Grandparents, your welcome.

Other than the chicken-fil-a (as we call it) cup in the background, isn't this pizza just so delicious looking.

Its homemade pesto, with a homemade wheat and white crust. YUUUUUMMMMM, is all I have to say about that.

Our sweet friends the Pearsons, stayed with us for a night on their way to New Jersey for Mathew's fantastic new job. Sadie Parker loved, loved, loved Abby being here with her, and now prefaces almost every question with "do you think Abby would so-in-so?" Which is great when it comes to trying new things, such as me saying " Sure, I do think that Abby obeys the first time, and every time." or "Yes, I do think Abby eats only vegetables all the time!" ( I know sarcasm doesn't translate sometimes, but believe me when I say, I'm being totally sarcastic at this point in time). But not so great when it comes to some of the independence issues, Abby is 3 years older than SP, and therefore can do more on her own.

I hate to say that it was a rough night form them, Abby had a migraine, and their son Noah had the croup, but we loved every bit of them taking the time to stay with us on their month long journey from California .

But here is the even bigger news, Parkey went to two days of cheer leading camp. And don't you know that you are a bonifide cheerleader when you complete the course?!?!?!? Drew rolled his eyes when I told him I'd signed her up, and I told him that it wasnt for us, but for her. My friend Grace also told me "I didn't take you for the cheerleading type" I told her "she'd be correct, but that I loved my child more than I disliked cheerleading, and my child loves her some cheerleaders"

"readyyyyyy..... O.K."

"We're number one, cant be number two,

We're gonna do, the best that we can do!"

She comes by it honestly, her grandmother was a great cheerleader.

addendum: I had a lapse in the midst of children pulling at me to get off the computer, that she has several relatives who were cheer leaders, one of which was my dad. Yep my dad back in the 70's at his high school, with his best friend. It was all about the girls in the short skirts.

And give me a minute to brag on the hubs, just a bit.

Look at this place. Isn't it just picture perfect?

This is just one of the properties he takes care of.

It has been in magazines before, with much more professional pictures of course.

Foof even had her bridal portraits taken here.

But isn't this just dreamy, just like my man. Yep, I couldn't resist.

even more catch up.

2009-08-04T15:06:00.001-04:00

First let me start by saying "thanks a ton " for all the feedback about my last Cuckoo's Nest post.

Totally helpful and encouraging. Please feel free to post a comment later if you'd like.

Onward.

A fun play date with Dada at the girls school playground.

We have to taste everything....

and then show off how full our bellies are.

Then wash it all down with some germ laden water.

And how sweet are sisters who love each other?

And it wouldn't be a date with Dada without going by the garden.

Sadie Parker's sunflower's.

And a little worker bee loving on a sunflower.

A little side story.

When the Mr. and SP came home from the garden one day, it was announced to me that Sadie Parker had "pet" a bee. Other than making my eyebrows go up into my hairline, there was no response from me.

She had apparently ask Drew if she could touch a bee, and he had obviously said yes.

So they got really close and held out one finger and stroked its back and just not the stinger.

Who'd have thought that it could be so easy? All I know is if it were me, ~~there is not a chance in hell that I would have let her anywhere near a bee, let alone touch it,~~ I would have just distracted her onto something else. Thankfully she has two parents to teach and nurture at least two of the million and one ways nurturing can be done, bee petting and all.

Opinions Please.

2009-08-03T15:22:00.001-04:00

http://cuckoosnestclothing.blogspot.com/2009/08/petal-dress.html

thanks.

Pseudo-camping and Elkmont.

2009-08-02T11:17:00.001-04:00

The Mr. has been DIEING to go camping as a family.

I laugh every time he mentions it. Not at him, just at the vision of us with all our crap that it takes to maintain our family. Such as a noise machine to sleep at night, all the lovies, the battery operated tooth brushes, the pack-n-play, the phone chargers, and so forth and so on, you get the point. I also know that SP has a hard time sleeping at my mothers house, because she wants to be at home in her bed, at her house. What was it going to be like out in the woods, over an hour away?
It really was all my doing. I happened to mention that I would like our family to camp once we were able. I really like the imagery that comes to mind when I envision ourselves outside by the camp fire. Here was the division of conversation, to me "once we were able" to me meant when everyone was potty trained, and would not just wander off into the woods, say like in three years. To Drew that meant, tomorrow.

He tried is hardest to rent/borrow/steal a pop up camper so that we could all go. However, that was not in cards for us. The next plan he came up with was for he and SP to go and camp and Ruby and I meet them at their camp site the next morning. And that is what we did.

Who knew how much fun it would be licking the tent screen?

I have posted in the past about my summer vacations at Elkmont as a child. I wish I knew where some of those pictures were so that I could compare the Elkmont I knew to the Elkmont of today.

This is the entrance sign to the housing area, you can click on the picture to make it large enough to read what is written about the history and the future of the homes.

Drew was kind enough to let me wander around and reminisce with he and the girls. It was such a sweet thing for me to recall time spent, and to know that what I remember of the place, was very much as it was today. Not the dilapidated parts, just the placement of things, and the places I played.

The playhouse cabin.

Here is "oh so cozy" the house where we stayed most of the time, which is now, "not so cozy"

The only group shot. Do you like my crab/claw hand?

( I like can I touch?)

The swimming hole was still there, as were all the people playing. Another visitor over heard me telling Drew that "its so funny as a kid, this place was HUGE to me, and now its just like a little pond" the gentleman was quick to tell me that the dam had been taken down, so it actually was smaller than it had originally been.

So.Super.Cold.

But lucky for us, Ruby has no fear. Great. Drew was already predicting about our upcoming trip to the beach and Ruby's fearlessness. I was predicting that I would need a vacation from our vacation, if this was going to be her m.o.

And last but not least, a craw daddy.

July has come and gone.

2009-08-01T15:34:00.000-04:00

I know, its been waaaaaay to long for me to have not posted anything at all.

Im so sure you all have been waiting on pins and needles to hear from me. Yes, I know sarcasm well...

Part of the delay is that I learned about a new photo editing program that I really wanted to work with. I was waiting to post until I could edit my pictures, which I realize at this point just isnt going to happen in a timely manner. So here we are, in all of our unedited glory.

This encompases the last week. I wish it were more, I have several july 4th photo's and just general fun photos to post as well. I guess those will just have to wait.

Onward.

Ruby's latest obsession is brushing her teeth. Not just brushing them, but dancing and walking around while doing so.

Her other favorite past time is eating. Specifically sweets. She has mastered the word "cookie" loud and clear.Here she is with a cupcake at Lila's birthday.

A little bit of cooking. Just two more kids and we could be an AT&T commercial.

Do you think that they would pay us for that?

SP is wearing Drew's vintage Dukes of Hazard t-shirt as a nightgown. Awe-some.

I'll have to get a frontal picture one day for you.

A little love from the garden.

A trip to Greenville to see some sweet friends.

Blue Steel

Blue Steel wana-be

Rosie, and Jillian a.k.a. "chub-illian"

Pool time.

Pop time.

Sharing time.

Chill time.

Worms in my bed.

2009-07-16T15:41:00.002-04:00

Oh my sweet Mr.

He saves the day often around the homestead. He is a true Mr. Fix-it.

In fact our dryer had stopped working yesterday at lunch, and by lunch time today we were up and running.

Now if that doesn't do it for this stay at home mom/laundry queen, I don't know what would.

I know that I am not alone on this one ladies. Our laundry breeds at night while I'm not looking, so much that I end up doing a load a day so as to keep up with all of its offspring.

Back to the point.

Drew. fixed.the.dryer.

And while I was goggling what dryer set we needed to buy next he was goggling what part he needed for the repair.

I love this man so much.

So much so that I promise when he sings this song, specifically the " I like can I touch" part with his hands all cupped up, I wont swat him away anymore.

Sticky Bun's for breakfast

2009-07-09T14:03:00.001-04:00

My neighbor Kevin has a fantastic job, and I love him for it. Mostly for this recipe I'm about to share with you. For ChristmaChanukah last year his company gift was a cookbook compiled of employee's recipes.
Let me preface it with, we don't eat like this at all. However with July 4th company and California company, a good gooey breakfast is in order.
This seems to easy to be as good as it is, but folks, I don't mess around with food.

1. Pkg of frozen dough balls ( I bought Kroger brand)
1. Box of butterscotch pudding, not instant
1/2 c. of pecan pieces
1. stick of butter
3/4c. sugar
1 t. cinnamon
THE NIGHT BEFORE
In a greased bunt pan, place 16 dough balls evenly around the pan.
Sprinkle evenly with dry pudding mix, and then pecans.
Melt stick of butter, and mix well with sugar and cinnamon.
EVENLY spread the schmooey mixture over the dough balls.

Place bunt pan on a cookie sheet. Cover pan with a clean dishtowel, and let rise overnight.
The next morning preheat oven to 350 degree's, uncover dishtowel, but leave bunt on cookie sheet, bake for 30 min.

When done, turn out onto a pretty platter, and stand back so as not to get in the way of the hungry savages. They will last all of 5 minutes, and no one will utter a word. Just moans of deliciousness, as a dribble of goo dribbles down ones chin. That's when you know you've found a good recipe.

she can't, she won't, and she dont stop.

2009-07-07T18:47:00.003-04:00

Remember this post?
Well, its only taken three months since that post, to get to this one.

go, Rubes, go!

Drew assures me that I sound NOTHING like this, but something tells me there might be a little white lie buried underneath his words. If you don't hear from me in a while, just assume that I'm meeting with my vocal coach, a la Singing in the Rain style.

2009-06-30T16:46:00.002-04:00

floors vacuumed.
floors moped.
floors polished.
stainless polished.
laundry done.
beds made.
bathrooms tomorrow.
dusting tomorrow.
windows tomorrow.

just whistle while you work.
(if only I could whistle.)

got anything to add to my list?

2009-06-25T15:53:00.002-04:00

ummmm.....
I don't want to offend anyone, but my strawberry-laura-ingalls-wilder-preserves are ballicious!

So if you see the whisper of a grown woman with an infant feeding spoon in hand, sneaking by the fridge just to have a small taste of strawberry goodness, and tip toe away so as to not ruin the fiesta her taste buds are having, its OK for you to to think she's odd, but she is not wrong.

Pesto and Preserves

2009-06-24T13:57:00.003-04:00

Since the garden has been picking up its production we've been working on some foods to freeze/save. There are only so many times in a week one can eat sugar snap peas.
Ruby has started eating them raw, which isn't a bad thing, its just funny to me to see my 16month old, chewing and chewing and chewing, like its greed cud.

We've had an abundance of basil, and what do you do with 428 lbs of basil you might ask? Why, pesto of course. I've been making the master chef, Christopher Kimball's 'The New Best Recipe" cookbook Classic Pesto recipe super easy and great for SP to help with, she's is great with a food processor. And with pesto, the options are endless...sandwiches, soups, pasta, pizza and one of our regular staples Chicken Pasta Pesto, a.k.a. Green noodles.

This is one of the few original recipe's I have. While its not going to impress the socks off of the cyber world readers, it will score points with the mom's of young children crowd. Easy and quick, and kid's think they are eating something crazy, noodles that are green.

1. box of whole wheat smallish pasta. cooked and drained.
2. rotissery chicken, picked into bite size pieces.
3. roasted red peppers or sun dried tomatoes, chopped.
4. feta cheese crumbles.
5. one jar of pesto.

mix all together and serve, hot or cold.

There are several ways this can all be done, you can cook your own chicken, and make your own pesto, but if you need quick and dirty, just buy all the ingredince and just act like you made it all from scratch. No one has to know.
This make a ton, so be prepared to eat on it for a while, or be kind and send some over to your neighbors house.

Another venture I have attempted is strawberry jam preserves.
I made this with the inspiration from my friend Katy, she's the kind of girl who gives meaning to the word 'Foodie.' She showed me the less sugar preserving method, and I tried it.
I was a little unsure as to how this would all turn out. I wanted fresh strawberries, but there was n-o-t-h-i-n-g in this world that could have made me go out in the middle of June. and pick fresh strawberries. with my kids. That insane thought lasted for all of 3 seconds. Then when I came to my senses, I convinced myself that fresh frozen strawberries would work just as well.
So I thawed them out, measured and proceeded to "can." All in all, it was an easy process, but understanding it all, and deciphering the directions was not easy, but they sure turned out pretty. I've not tried it yet, its "setting-up" at the moment, but I'll report back once I know if they are worth it.

So shiny, so fresh, so sparkly, so ..... prairie girl?
Drew came home and used the adjective "Laura Ingalls Wilderish"
Then asked me where my prairie dress was.
Funny, real funny.
Its going to be even funnier when I don't share my shining strawberry jam preserves.

summer time fun.

2009-06-19T15:59:00.007-04:00

We've started out out summer with a flurry of activity, which was not in my original plan. Funny how things never go according to an original plan, not since the beginning of time.

All this to say, it went like this.... Sarah's wedding, Costa Rica, Birthday camping for Drew, Girls trip,teaching vacation bible school, and now a wedding. After all is said and done, that only leaves about 6 weeks until family vacation, then school to start again. I am determined to not let the rest of it slip away, not that the events of summer thus far haven't been great, and made for great memories. For some reason or another I'm nostalgic for the summer days of my youth, and I'm wanting that for my children. Days of swimming, ice cream, hot summer movie nights, family game night, riding bikes, going to the cabin's on Elkmont, ohhhhh how I loved going there in the summers.
I'm h-bent to slow down and take in the time together with the girls, and drink in the rest of this summer. Here are just a few highlights of the "nothing-ness" I am craving.

Sprinkler time, and silly face time with great friends.

Pajama snuggling time. Yes, I realize there is an iphone involved, its the closeness that is desireable.

Coloring for the first time, then tasting crayon for the first time.

4th of July mini sprinkle doughnuts for no reason other than "just because"

A garden flower in your hair, and an overflowing heart consumed with the joy of family.

Mas Costa Rica.....

2009-06-19T09:29:00.013-04:00

Oh yes, there is more......
Part of the fun of this trip was using all of our combined broken Spanish to communicate with the general public. Rosie loving all things Hispanic, was great with putting together enough for us to not get lost, which happened, and to prevent us from eating anything that would kill us.
With that being said, onto the food portion of our trip.

On the first day we went straight to the grocery stores to load up, and little did we know it would be one stop shopping. There were more consecutive rows of alcohol than any other product in the markets, and all of it was so pretty.

Some items we just had to make our best guess as to what it was, and by the end of our trip we were able to use our deductive reasoning skills to make some pretty good choices. While we didnt purchase any Froot Loops, we at least knew what they were.

We dubbed this "brain fruit" but for all we knew it was a vegetable.
Of course Drew and Tim were the ones to cut it open and take a big ole bite without any reservation. Seeing as Tim once ate baby octopus soup, I knew that his adventure for food would be fully explored here. As for the brain fruit-could-be-vegetable, it was not good, so much so that Drew spit it out and made a bunch of grotesque noises to express his disdain.

It was interesting to me that in every market most of the meat was what you see above. It is a beef/cattle country, but there were feet upon feet of these sausages, all coiled up. Some refrigerated, some not. Needless to say I would not let any of our group eat unknown, unrefrigerated meat.

This was the first moment that I realized I needed to stick with totally recognizable food. I was searching for polenta to make for dinner, and came upon the Corona product.
I grabbed one and threw it into the basket then started to "read" the label. It didn't take long for me to notice that the density of this tube was not normal for polenta, but since I usually make mine from a dry mix, it didn't set off any alarms. Upon further inspection I came to realize that this was lard, straight up cooking lard. Yep, lard.
I cant even imagine my surprise to slice off a piece of it and proceed to cook it. I know I wouldnt have gotten that far, but still. yuck.

Drew was enamored of all the Defenders that were on the road. There was even a Defender pick up truck, that was never sold in the US. We kept talking about how long it would take to drive one back home, and the estimated length of travel was 8 days. That kind of put the kibosh on his desire for one, but the idea is still in his head rattling around. I can see it back there.

Back to the food. Fish taco's on fresh corn tortilla's. One of Drew's favorites.

Sweet Rosie.

This was on the beach in Tamarindo, and it was completely different than Liberia, where we were based. Whiter sand and clearer water.
(as a side note, I bought those ear rings in Memphis, and LOVE them, and so did all the locals)

This is one of my favorite memories of our vacation.
This little girl was walking from the deck of her parents restaurant to the beach carrying all these balloons. I thought she was so cute and I had to take her picture, and casually started talking to her in my "kitchen-sink" Spanish. It was so sweet, she was showing me her balloons, and told me the colors of each one. I asked her how old she was and told me. She also was telling me ( I think) about the swing her Papa had hung in the tree for her. She was a little shy but very willing to try to communicate with me. She probably was thinking I was some kind of moronic adult who didn't know how to speak well. But it was all joy for me.

The end of the day beach picture. A beer. A towel. A nap. What more does one need?

So we went to Costa Rica.....

2009-06-12T08:52:00.005-04:00

At the end of May Drew and I and our friends Tim and Rosie went to Costa Rica.
We joked that it was a mission trip, a mission to ourselves. Not that mission trips are a funny thing, we just felt like we needed a time of respite.
We were gone for 6 days, and it was the perfect amount of time. With a two hour time zone change, we could sleep till 8 and it felt like 10, and then we had the whole day before us.

This is the view from one of the balconies off our condo.
There was such a wide variety of landscape, white beach, peppery beach, jungle, mountainous volcano's, vast flats of farm land, and of course the ocean.

I quickly remembered the difference in how I like to vacation and how the other three like to vacation.
I like to sit on the beach with a drink and a good book and read and nap.
They like to explore and venture out. Apparently it was a easy decision, three "against" one.
I am glad that I went on all the excursions but, really,what mother of little kids, wouldn't want to just lie around for a good amount of time with a piña colada ?
Here are a few pictures from the trip.

One day we drove , and I use the term loosely, two hours, to Rincon de la Vieja Guanacaste Region. Which was great when we got there, except that the hike we were planning on going on was closed. I guess that's what you get when you think its a good idea to hike up to a volcano top.
So we went on a different trail that had a wide variety of terrain. Here are a few pictures from that venture.

Drew and Tim on the swinging bridge. There were these Ficus trees that were nothing like we had ever seen before, this root system was easily 20 feet wide surrounding the tree.

Some flora.

Some more.

This is the caution sign to warn hikers about the danger of the hot lava and water.
I hate to think about the moron that caused them to put up the sign.

I mean, what would make a person think that it would be a good idea to touch bubbling boiling water?

Or hot, moving mud?

Here is the growth since the volcano's last eruption. There are these huge rocks, 3 ft. in diameter, randomly placed in the field. Which I'm guessing used to be more forest like. We felt like at one point we'd be in the deep jungle, and then in like.... prairie land.

In the beginning of the hike, I commented that the terrain and the plants were seemingly very much like East Tennessee, and that held true until Drew found the monkeys. That's when we knew were weren't in just any mountian range.

If I die, 10 years earlier than I should, this little/monstrosity of a guy is the reason why.
Somehow for some dumb reason or another, I ended up at the front of the group while we were hiking, just for a short while. Within a mere flash of a second that came to a screeching halt .
As I distractedly reached out to steady myself on a small tree because the rocky path sloping downward, it wasn't until I was about 1 inch away did I notice this dude.
Yes, I screamed-had a heart attack-cussed-and almost blacked out all at the same time.
I am not a wimp, but this was to close to the wild for me.
Drew and Tim tried to tell me that he was more scared than I was, but I am not convinced.

Tim and Drew braving the frigid waters.

You cant tell from this picture, but this is where we lunched. There was a 30 foot waterfall to the right of us. It was very peaceful to listen to the water and eat our pb&j with limon pringles.

It was interesting getting to the forrest, we had to go through a working ranch, and pay the equvalant of a toll, just to get to the park.

The mountianous range in the back ground was the volcano where we had gone.

A great cause for a giveaway!

2009-05-27T16:34:00.003-04:00

My college and church friend Rebekah is raising money for their adoption process.
She is doing this by making various super cute items and selling them on her etsy page.
At the moment, she is hosting a giveaway of two delicious hand towels, made from some of my ALL-TIME favorite fabric, Alexander Henry's Lemons. I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to support my friend, and support good design at the same time. Check her out and leave a comment and you could be the proud owner of two new hand towels.

Go to her blog to read about their journey, and her etsy site if you'd like to support them and know that all the proceeds are going to further the Kingdom.

holy picture post, bat man!

2009-05-18T15:54:00.024-04:00

Get ready, hold your horses. This is a UBER picture post.

We spent last weekend in Memphis for Drew's sisters wedding, sweet Aunt Sarah.
However, on a previous trip to Memphis for Drew, he fell in love with all the locally owned doughnut shops. And being the kind soul that he his, he didn't want his girls to miss out on all the doughnut fun.

Before I could even spell d-o-u-g-h-n-u-t, Parkey had wolfed a powdered sugar confection down, and this was all that remained.

Rubes takes eating with a much more serious intent.

Uncle Grant, now affectionately known as "Dada Grant" was loved by Ruby. She had zero hesitation going to him and being held by him. It was super sweet. I think that he and the mister resemble each other a good amount, that Rubes was immediately comfortable with him. Or it could be that they are each the 2nd child in their perspective families, and they share an unspoken bond.

Ruby enjoying the pictures on Grants arm. Sadie Parker wasn't aware that tattoo's are permanent, and then she wasn't aware what permanent was either. She then became concerned that her Dora the Explorer temporary tattoo was going to be on her hand forever and ever, and that was troubling until I told her to wash her hands for lunch. Only then did she start to understand the difference.

"De-dah" and Sarah.

Clay and Sarah went to Disney World for their honeymoon. To quote Sarah "I know its not the typical honeymoon, but I figured we have the rest of our lives to sit around and look at each other." I personally think it was a great choice for a honeymoon.

Grant and Nana.
I love this picture of them.

Katherine, Grants girlfriend, and Wendy.

Officially Uncle Clay.

(are you all still with me, half way there.)

Uncle Ben and Ruby.

Sarah getting ready.

Amanda, Ben's wife was a bridesmaid, and looked so beautiful in her dress.

Beautiful Sarah, she reminded me of a time gone by.
So classic and stunning.

The Miller clan.

The Jr. Miller clan.
(watch out, this may be a future Christmas card picture, everyone's looking the same way!)

The newlyweds.

I know this picture is fuzzy, but it was beyond a happy moment for Drew and I to see SP dancing with her Dedah. She wore him out! He also discovered that when a 4 year old says "Watch this!' You have to brace yourself, mentally, and physically.Otherwise, your not going to know what just happened.

One happy flower girl dancing the night away.

Well, that is until she decided that she was "just soooooo tired" and fell asleep in my lap for 45 minutes literally 10 feet away from the d.j.'s speaker. Super impressive.

If you made it to the end, thanks for hanging in there.
And I promise it will be a long time before I spring this many photo's on you again.
I know I ribbed Foof for all the picture taking, but I must tell on myself. I filled my memory card on my camera by the time we got to the reception. I had to go back and delete some pictures off so that I could finish the night. Never done that before, but so glad for a reason to do so.

2009-05-05T12:26:00.000-04:00

back to the questions.
"why do I like smocked dresses so much?"

The basic quick answer is that, quite simply, I love them.
They symbolize all that is young, fresh, and sweet on a little girl.
There's a very limited amount of time that a child would/should wear a smocked outfit, and I have planned for the tiny's to wear them as much as possible, until they tell me they don't want to anymore, or until they literally grow out of them.

But the long answer goes like this.
As a sewer I know how much time goes into making a smocked outfit, and I don't take that lightly. I really love the craft-woman-ship that goes into construction.

Also, there is something modest and traditional that I'm drawn to when a little girl wears a smocked outfit. I knew that I soon as I had my own little girl, that I would forever be in the battle of explaining the difference between femininity and sexuality. Those two concepts are so blended now, that very few young girls, teens, and even grown women know the difference.

I want my girls to know the difference.

I want them to be comfortable wearing feminine clothing and feeling fully female, without any connotation of sexuality. I think it all starts at a young age, feeling comfortable in the body that you were given is always a battle, and if there are tools or concepts that I can impart on my children I will do just that. And I think that one of those tools is modesty.

My mother, (don't worry, my mom, sister and I have had numerous conversations about this, so it wont hurt her feelings) was not the most girly girl, she was a super tom boy and had two older brothers to keep up with. Of course she would dress up for church and weddings. But when it came to knowing girl things it was kind of up to me to figure that out on my own. One because I probably didn't ever really ask, and when I did ask about all things female, I would get the answer that worked for her, which was influenced by a lifestyle of running with the boys.

I will never forget secretly shaving my legs in the 5th grade, feeling like I wasn't supposed to take part in that for some reason or another. But seriously, do you know what its like to be on the verge of puberty and be the only girl in the whole class who didn't shave her legs?
No, this wasn't one of those"if everyone jumped, would you?" It was the one thing I felt like would define me as female, the start of my womanliness. I didn't get in trouble at all, the response was kind of a "oh, you want to shave your legs.....ok"

Now, as for shaving the pits, whole other battle. I had to beg, and I mean beg to be able to do that. I asked my mother, and she told me I had to wait and ask my dad when he got home from work. Yeah, it was weird, and to answer your next question, no, my parents aren't the weird kind. At least not like that. I had to humiliatingly show my dad my lone arm pit hair, and get his permission to shave it.

Ladies do you remember being in middle school and so desperately not wanting to give anyone any reason to point out that you were different or odd. Can't you just picture me wearing a long sleeved shirt under my short sleeved shirt, in the dead of summer, to not run the risk of anyone seeing my single underarm hair. I remember telling those who asked if I was hot, "no, I'm actually a really cold nature person." Which is a complete and udder lie, such a lie, that as soon as I uttered those words, I would begin to sweat. I would then race to the bathroom between classes and lock myself in the nearest stall to re-apply the deodorant I had buried in the bottom of my purse. Which of course my mom gave me, yep, it was Men's Speedstick. Oh yeah, another great embarrassment. All the boys on the bus though loved my perfume, which was actually the woodland scent of my men's deodorant. Once I started making my own money babysitting, I would immediately high tail it to the nearest store and look for the pinkest, and most feminine deodorant, and purchase two, as to not ever be without.

Why all this talk about armpit hair and deodorant? It leads to this. I started reading teeny-bopper magazines, and watching Mtv, and subconsciously my idea of what was feminine became distorted for sure.
My father was a constant, and we had a relationship, so you cant blame it on absentee fathering.
It was a skewed mass of information, that I thought one was the other. To be female, means you had to be sexy and attractive. This is the lie from the pit of hell that I want my daughters to know and call out before it gets to them. And how does that translate to my 4 and 1 year old,
that's right, you guessed it, smocked dresses.

I just think that if I start now impressing upon them that beauty is not an outwardly thing to obtain, that its is an internal heart issue. Lord willing, we can hopefully avoid some of the battles that I had to fight. I know that I probably could have grown up in a convent, and still had to struggle with some of the things that growing up in a broken world entails. However, if my children can learn from my experience, it makes me grateful to the Father for giving me my lifes experience.

It all comes down to this, truly only the Lord knows that paths that He has chosen for my children, and I pray daily that their journey leads to Him. I know that I am 100% accountable for them here on earth, and I want to stand before Him and tell Him that I was conscious and diligent in raising my children in His light.

So back to the smocked outfits... simply, in my mind they are about modesty.
Not that other clothing isn't, but for my interpretation this works for us.

That and they are just so damn cute!

parkey-ism's

2009-05-05T10:30:00.001-04:00

sp: Mom, your so skinny!
me: Oh, thanks honey, that's so sweet ( not true, but still sweet)
sp: Mom?
me: Yes....
sp: Whats skinny mean?

me: Those are cute as a button.
sp: I'm cuter than a button.

sp: dada, I'm OVER not having a mini-van.

2009-05-01T14:42:00.000-04:00

Dear May,
Where did you come from?!?

Rubes in the garden

2009-04-25T18:13:00.005-04:00

We tagged along with Drew today while he was watering at a clients house and I just so happened to have my camera. Here are a few shots of Ruby in the garden. This property is amazing, 7 acres, in the city limits, and yet you feel so secluded. Its also where Foof and Eric were engaged. If your a professional photographer (only in my dreams, I don't even edit my pictures) , this is the place of your dreams.

This is my favorite, so concentrated on whats in her hands, and content with where she is and what she is doing. I hope that for all of us.

Bugs and Banana Bread

2009-04-24T15:20:00.006-04:00

Yesterday was a fun filled day with my fantastically great friend Olivia and her two boys.
The kids play, play, played and where exhausted at the end of the day, which was great for the mom's. I guess that's what 6 hours of play time will do to a tiny.
Here are a few pictures of one of the most random play things, but they were a huge hit for all the kids. We have been saving paper towel rolls and toilet paper rolls for our garden. (I think were planting the seeds and then placing these in the dirt vertically to protect and support.) I had pulled them out of the pantry, where we were saving them and then the playing began.
As you can probably guess SP is pretending to be a bug of some sorts. Notice all that mess in the background, I didn't even wince at displaying this picture, because to me, all that mess means a house full of happy children. Well, that and two babies who thought playing with TP rolls meant eating them, and then crawling away as fast as possible while a mom chased them down and dug it out of that babies mouth. A fun game for them, a not so fun game for me.

Here they are being used at binoculars.
Unfortunately, all the pictures of the other kids were not very good, blurry and unfortunate faces were made. Not that these are ace pro, but a good representation of what went on.

On the in between, Olivia and I worked on her new sewing machine, which was great fun! Her mom had some lady give her a machine, and she in turn gave it to Liv's. So we just spent some time working it all out.

Olivia has a friend who is adopting a baby from Africa, and was having a garage/bake sale to raise some much needed funds. Have you all looked into adoption? It isn't an inexpensive endeavor at all, upwards of 20K! I had all these left over bananas that the Mister brought home from his boy weekend and couldn't think of a better cause than to help with the bake sale. I baked muffins and little loaves, and hoped and prayed for this little boys life, and the blessing of a family that was coming his way. If you are in there area of town today, stop on by and pick up a few muffins, and support a fantastic cause. And if not, pray for them to have a successful endeavor this weekend.

A fun surprise.

2009-04-21T16:47:00.018-04:00

Since the boys were out of town this weekend and Foof was sad, mom flew her down for the weekend!

Talk about a great surprise! Parkey didn't leave her side for one minute except while sleeping. I didn't tell her that Foof was coming , I wanted her to be totally shocked and excited, and buddy, she was! We had the happiest little camper. She didn't even mention Drew being gone.

Foof likes to ~~pretend she's in the paparazzi~~ take a lot of pictures, and most of the time that's great.

Here are just a few of the 540 she took on Friday.

Ohhhhhh Littles, she loves her some Foof!
Liza knows that Foof is her aunt too, and is just about as attached to her as Sadie P is.

A happy Rubes at Tomato Head, sitting outside on the patio. Her newest hobby is looking at squirrels, and actually "saying" squirrel.... it sounds like "curl." But there is a lot of shrieking and excited waving of hands. We were unaware that the Dogwood Arts Festival was going on at the same location but it ended up being a great way for us to spend some time on Market Square where it all took place. A lot of fun things for the little girls to see.

Attack kissing. She loves it.

The way Ruby loves is by nuzzling her head on you, and if your really lucky , forehead to forehead.

Foof and Rubes.

"where'd the squirrel go?"

Sweet Honey, Rubes and Me.

There was a TON of excitement over this display of paint. Its one of the few times that SP has sat still long enough to have her face painted. She picked this design out all by herself, and talked Tio into letting her have it done.

SP has said that she wants to be a "singer girl" among many other things, when she grows up. So like any good mother, I saw an opportunity for her to sing into a microphone, in a deserted room, and thought that she would love it, right? Can you tell what she was really thinking?

How else do you end the day at a festival? Why, with a funnel cake given to a 14 month old by her aunt, of course.

The lone group shot.

not what I thought, but I can roll with it.

2009-04-15T11:34:00.006-04:00

I'm not sure what I really thought I was looking for when I opened up myself for whatever questions there might be. I have been longing for some "challenge" in my life, about myself, some kind of thinking through why I do what I do, or in what fashion , or how, etc... some kind of self-exploration. A "renewal of self." I think that will have to be a venture all of my own.

But this works too!

So yes, Mr. Miller you are crazy. I have no measure of the maintenance of my "youthfulness." I've heard it said that the time period that you meet your spouse, is the current vision you have of them, and remains the way you remember them. Being as it is that you met me when I was just a pup, at19, means that is the kind of view you have of me. And the fact that you've known me for almost half my life, is a little crazy and a lot of fun. Thanks for letting me grow up with you.

Rosie, everything I know about facial hair, I learned from you first hand.

As for the food comment, I really only cook 2-3 times a week. I make enough for us to eat the meal twice, but never twice in a row. That's not how the mister rolls. For example, Monday and Thursday is the same meal, Tuesday and Friday is the same meal, Wednesdays we usually have family dinner with my mom, and brother. Saturday is a free for all, or out to eat, and Sunday we eat such a big lunch that dinner is usually a heavy snack of some sort, or popcorn. We love to have dinner guests, if your standards are low as for what the meal is like. Its usually a little bit of a mad house, it takes Parkey truly about an hour to eat her dinner. I have been starting her dinner about 20 munutes before Drew and I eat so that we can finish at the same time. Its a little maddening.

Ok, the smocked question is a whole other post in and of itself. Its much more than the clothes to me.
And the garden has not been as active lately, we've been super busy, and that has hit the back burner, but is now at the head of the list. So updates on that a little later.

but whats a post with out a picture? why not a good post at all......

Easter

the neighborhood hunt

lazying in the hammok

questions?

2009-03-27T17:03:00.004-04:00

I never thought about this before, but do the proverbial "you" have any questions for me?
I don't pretend that my life is so grand/exciting/fantastic/put-together/ or fill in the blank, but I know there are several subjects that I've never covered, that one might be curious about ( or not). Or it could be that you just might want to "stick it to me" in some form or fashion, and that's an option for you as well. Even if its just commentary, that is welcome too!
I'm open to it all, I think self exploration is a good processes, as is honesty.
Feel free to leave an anonymous question ( or not) of any kind, and I will collect them for a week, then try my best to answer them the only way I know how... Emily Miller style.

pioneer woman burger.

2009-03-25T16:04:00.002-04:00

I don't eat red meat, I haven't since I was 13. It had to do with a book report on how animals were processed, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, that will pretty much turn any impressionable 13 year old into a vegetarian, which I was for several years. But there is just something about the smell of bacon cooking that will snap a person right on out of that.

When a recipe calls for red meat, I will always substitute ground turkey, like this one.

It has a fantastic contrasting flavor of blue cheese and caramelized onions and Tabasco mayo. If that doesn't wet your taste buds, I don't know if you and I could eat at the same table. This was not hard to make at all, and ~~whatever man is around will territorially push you away so that man's work can be done~~ you cook it on the grill. How easy is that?

three minuntes

2009-03-25T12:07:00.002-04:00

pre-walking

2009-03-20T12:11:00.003-04:00

A short little video clip of Ruby "pre-walking"
She loves it, and as you will see, is annoyed when there is an object obstructing her pathway.
The Mr. and I had a bet that she'd be walking by now.
I admire his optimism on the subject, however he was the looser.
So I will be collecting "my night off, no strings attached, starting at 5.30" very soon.

G'ville is for friends

2009-03-13T11:48:00.012-04:00

Rubes and I had a great few days in Greenville last week.
We stayed with Rosie while her husband was out of town for the week. Its not so fun to be by yourself with three kids without your husband around. Ruby and I thought it would be fun to go and help out and break up the week for them, so we took a mini-road trip.
Mostly we took care of the kids, and the house. However we did take one day to spend at the Mecca of all shopping venues...IKEA. Oh my heart be still. I only spent $30.00 there, but I needed the trip just to take it all in. I loved every bit of it.
It was great for me to just process the gargantuan place that is called IKEA. It was also good that we had limited time to spend there. It gave me incentive to save my Drew's hard earned money for a year and then head back up there with a U-haul.

Sweet Jillian, who is 4 months younger than Ruby.
The girls really loved each other.
Jillian is truly the happiest baby I know. She never cried, and was always ready to be your personal cheerleader with her mad clapping skills. Its always interesting and fun to me to see Ruby discover new things, one of those being a new friend.

The other being front loading washer and dryer.
This was hysterical to see her excitement when the machine would start, she all but crawled into the opening.

Dueling sewing machines.
We had some good sewing time when the kids were asleep. We figured out the fabric, design and style for their screened in porch.

Jillian loving on Rubes.

Jillian is a great lover. Can you see the grip she's has on Ruby's face as she kisses her?

Rubes nuzzling Jillian.

And again, trying to pull Jillian closer, but frustrated that she wouldn't move.

This might have been the funniest event of the whole week. The girls were both in Jillian's crib playing, while we were getting ready to leave the house. Jillian doesn't crawl yet, but she sits up fantastically. Ruby would "cruse" around the perimeter of the crib until she was right in front of Jillian. Then without any hesitation, she would proceed to "sit" in Jillian's lap. It was about the funniest thing we have ever seen the two of them do. Jillian didn't mind at all, but when we would move Ruby off of Jillian, Ruby was not a happy camper.

the new age of marital therapy

2009-03-08T22:27:00.005-04:00

-gardening is good for our marriage
-you think?
-yeah, how great is it that we can talk and have uninterrupted time together?
-I agree. to bad it has to be over manual labor.

freshly sifted soil, mixed with compost

the compost pile

fire wood stacked for next winter

boooooo

2009-03-08T22:07:00.003-04:00

Yes, we've been gone for toooooo long.

I don't really know what happened, other than life.

I will do my best to show in a few pictures what we've been up to.

Rubes expressing her dissapointment in my lack of blogging.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A lazy afternoon in the sun.

A family portrait, by none other than little miss. sadie p.
Drew was just glad to be portrayed with "longish hair." As for Parkey's hair, it somehow ended up straight, don't really know what was happening there.

The artist herself.
Maybe her hair portrayal above was induced by us having blown her hair dry after washing it the night before. As you can imagine, that is always an adventure. Talk about poofy hair, we decided she would have been the "hair queen" if she was alive in the 80's.

2009-03-03T16:13:00.000-05:00

new items to see at the Cuckoo's Nest

cause and effect

2009-02-23T20:06:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm sad to say that my 1980's Halfinger house shoes bit the official dust last week.
They started out as my mom's shoes back in the day, and at some point in my first pregnancy, I ~~stole~~ acquired them from her. I LOVE these house shoes. I mean they might just be the one article of attire I would retrieve if my house were on fire.
I have received so much grief from those who have been given the opportunity to see me wear them. But I've stood firm, (pun) and planted my feet on the foundation that these are the most comfortable shoes for wearing in the house. Yes, they may have been truly falling apart at the seams, note the hole in the front toe, and down the side. Nonetheless, I would wear them loud and proud, until I couldn't.

I was making Rubes yogurt-milk, and shaking the thick liquid, when the lid stopped working and flew off, but the shaking continued. Hence the mess.

I was not upset until I felt my feet become soaking wet, and I knew it was over. My relationship with my beloved Haflinger shoes was over. I knew we could not survive milk and yogurt soaked shoes. I knew no matter how much I cleaned them, they would forever smell of sour milk. And that was not ok with me. As much as is pained me, and overjoyed Drew, I threw them away.

( R.I.P. faithful and beloved house shoes)

It wasn't until I went online to look for a new pair and realized that would cost me $125.00, that's right folks, you read me correctly $125.00 for the exact same shoe. I think that even spending $30.00 on house shoes is to much for me.
So I started thinking and I thought that since the previous shoes served me so well, I should go back to place where I got them, Honey's closet. And wouldn't you know it, there were the cutest red house shoes waiting for me to show them the same love I had shown the previous pair. I made sure that she had plenty of other pairs to choose from before I made my "purchase," so as not to leave her with cold feet.

Thanks Honey!

fast friends.

2009-02-21T11:12:00.006-05:00

Since Ruby isnt walking yet, I think that Liza has found a friend in common.
They are both on all fours.
Liza loves to be in Rubes room, its the smallest and it heats up the fastest, and it has the lowest window that they can both look out of. This has become a new favorite past time for the both of them. They will be so quiet, and just stand there looking at the tree's and the random bird, just contemplating life as they know it. Its really sweet.

Another reason that Liza really likes Ruby right now is because of her relationship with food.

When Ruby is done eating, she shakes her hands in the air and any residual food ends up on the floor. Liza stays close and waits in anticipation for the rainfall of food coming her way.
Also, When Rubes is in her booster seat she is in a much better position to pet Liza .

But I think mostly that Liza like Ruby the best is because she cant tell Liza what to do. Which makes for a great playmate if you ask me.

As a side note, can you all see the gap in her two top teeth? It is super cute, and super big, like 1/4 of an inch. Drew's grandmother had the same gap, so we don't really think its going anywhere.

oh the flashing red light of "hot doughnuts now"

2009-02-21T10:30:00.004-05:00

This valentines day was a fun event for us.

We had a crafty play date. We "celebrated" as a family. And Parkey had a party at school. Which by no means is a small event.
Most of her classmates gave "gifts" along with each valentine. For example, from one little girl she received a gift certificate for a free 14" pizza and drink at a local restaurant.
A little out of control.
We do not ascribe to that kind of celebrating. I/we made cute little snail valentines that had lolly pops for the shell back. I thought it was just enough.
Its about the love people.

Why these pictures you might ask?
Well, the girls were given "one free doughnut" valentines cards from Honey.
This is Rubys first time eating a doughnut, at least that I know of.
She wasnt much into the hat, but once she had a bite of the delectable goodness, she quickly forgot all about the hat.

And Parky, as coy as ever.

do you see it???

2009-02-20T20:56:00.003-05:00

There in the back!

Its coming, its coming, oh you think you can hide, but not from the curl.

There was a little girl,
who had a little curl,
right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
she was very good indeed,
but when she was bad she was horrid.

-- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

a little bit of valentine fun

2009-02-15T15:44:00.009-05:00

We had a great time this year with valentine crafts. Parkey and I planned a play/activity time with two of her little girlfriends.
The agenda was as follows.
1. Ice cookies, and add sprinkles. Eat left over icing off knife, then put knife directly back into the icing container to retrieve more for licking. Repeat. No worries, its only RSV season.
2.Color on pink paper, add in some cutting and glitter glue and voila, a valentine visual delight.
3. Eat more iced cookies.
4. Make foam lady bug clothes pins.
5. Glue and stick together valentine princess wands.
6. By this point, some of the crew had just moved onto a spoonful of icing with sprinkles on top.
7.Play princess dress up, and run around working the sugar out of their little bodies.

All that remained of the play date.

I feel like I need to go on the record and say that not every day, nor every play date is this involved. We have plenty of pajama and sesame street days.

The rest of the day was great as well. I feel that I love my house the most when it is full of friends and squeely children and laughter, just fellowshiping together. I seem to not notice all the things on my to do list to feel comfortable enough to have others over.
We had some other friends stop by after lunch and stayed and played for a while. Then came back, along with a few others, for dinner.
I am so thankful for my friendships, especially when they don't care to come over for casual chili dinners, and just hang out, no pressure and no pretense. I feel that this is when we are able to learn about and love one another the most. Yes, our day was busy, but it filled my heart to the brim.
Praise the Lord for his provision and care for our hearts.

we love food.

2009-02-14T17:00:00.004-05:00

Drew and I love food.

We love to eat it, make it, smell it, shop for it, research it, read about it, taste it, and enjoy it.

Drew is much more of an adventuresome eater than I.

{I read a book at 13 on scaring you into becoming a vegetarian, and I have never really recovered}

Here are some recent meals we have enjoyed thoroughly.

sesame seared tuna steaks, garlic smashed broccoli, and roasted new potatoes.

grilled shrimp, blanched green beans, filet, and steamed mashed sweet potatoes

i know this isn't food, but having good beverages always adds to the meal.
dont you just love that ice bucket? deal of the week, $5, yes folks, I said $5 at the local Goodwill.
Who doesn't love a bargain?

caramelized onion, blue cheese and walnut tart

grilled cedar plank salmon, steamed mashed sweet potatoes, and blanched green beans
(they were so good we had to make them again)

and this is my favorite meal as of late.
valentine breakfast in bed made for me by my lovelies, drew and sp
homemade biscuits, drizzled with honey, OJ and hot tea.

and p.s. we don't eat like this all the time.
there are several Long's grilled cheese and chic-fil-a days in out house.

Im the official party pooper

2009-02-11T20:22:00.003-05:00

OK, here is the last of the birthday for sometime, at least for the next week. Mom's a.k.a. Honey's birthday was on Saturday. Here she is holding Ruby outside our house after Ruby's party, which was Honeys actual birthday. Thanks mom for sharing your day with Rubes. So I'll take the guess work out of it for you all. She is 53, can you believe it!
I am 31, so to save you from all the math, yes she had me at the young age of 21. Yikes you think? Well, that's where your wrong. She and my dad had already been married for two years before I came along. Young yes, but are you ever really ready at any age to have a child? Nothing can ever prepare you for that which lies ahead, no matter what book you read, seminar you attend, people you listen to (or in my case tune out).
She and I are alike in many ways, which is smooth and rough at times. Were not afraid to butt heads, in the same coin, we can jive together really well.
Yes, I said jive, I figured it was a word from her generation.
Its been great having a young mom, and over the past ten years, she has morphed into a great and dear friend. I consider myself the lucky one in that venture.
If you ever get the chance to meet her, take it all in.
You will be the one who leaves with more than you came with.
Love you mom.

Ruby's Birthday Party.

2009-02-10T16:43:00.009-05:00

One of the benefits of have two children, is that you learn what would have been a better choice at times with your first child, and then "correct" with your second.
Parenting is always going to be a learning process, but I don't want the girls to feel like we treated them all that differently by the things we have done for them. However, with birthday parties, SP's first one was too much for me. So many people, that we all love, but I couldn't relax and watch her as much as I wanted. This time around for Ruby, I was much more careful to be able to be in the moment with her more. It was really a sweet time for me. (not that its all about me by any means, but I just wanted to be consciences of being fully present)
Without further blabbering... her party.
Yes! Butterfly themed, I made these butterfly's out of modeling chocolates, let them dry over night, and then placed them in the icing, supported by m&m's. So very easy, as long as you don't have little littles underfoot. They were really good and seemed to be a big hit.
That was all I made, I bought chicken salad at the B&B, and had all Ruby's favorites. Bread, goldfish, grapes, blueberries, and all natural puffy cheetos's.

Checking out all the festivites, and enjoying her hat.
Doesnt she look cute in her b-day bib?

Waiting so patiently for her birthday cupcake.

Enamored with the candle.

Enjoying the wings of her butterfly.
She did not want to give up the wings, I tried to take them away and she immediately grabbed it right back out of my hand.

Sweet Dada, loving on the birthday girl.

So happy to have Nana here all the way from Memphis.

And of course Parkey had to check out all of Ruby's new gifts. She went straight for the phone that she had given Ruby as her gift.

365 days

2009-02-04T10:36:00.042-05:00

To me this is only a minuscule amount of the joy this past year has brought to our lives.
My heart is so full and is gushing with love for this little creature. It was hard to narrow down the pictures, so I tried to get one from each time period.

Ruby Ellison Miller
born 2.4.08
12.15 p.m.
8lbs. 5oz.

The birthday girl in her birthday suit.
Waving to us in excitement over her impending bath venture.

two-fer

2009-02-03T15:53:00.004-05:00

Two post in one.
First, Rubes graduated to a "big girl" car seat. That is, one that is stationary and is forward facing. I don't think she really knows what to think of the change of scenery, but I'm sure she will get used to it pretty quick. All I know is that I am so thankful to not have to carry her and the bucket car seat anymore. All of that was getting to be to much for me. Carrying Ruby in the bucket and keeping up with Parky while out, was some serious work.
I just think that she mostly does not like being in her red puffy coat strapped in her seat. She cant move so well when wearing it, and therefore is not the happiest of campers.

The next item up for blogging about is Ruby's first birthday is tomorrow, and in celebration of that, a birthday bib.

A little of this, and a pinch of that.....

2009-01-31T11:19:00.004-05:00

This has been my latest venture, homemade whole wheat sandwich bread that is actually really good. The original recipe is from here, and modified here, and now what you see is my version. This seems like it might be really time consuming, but its really just a bunch of waiting, and very little hands on time is required. You will just need a good mixer and your ready.
There is something really wholesome, and pleasing to me about making this bread for my family. I feel some sort of wave of peacefulness come over me, with a feeling that I am hopefully serving my family well. I wish the same for you.

ingredients
2 c. room-temp water
2 Tbs. canola oil
2 - 4 Tbs honey (I use 3)
3 c. whole wheat flour
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp instant yeast
1 Tbs table salt
plus oil, or butter to grease loaf pans

Directions

In your mixer, fitted with a dough hook, combine
2 c. room-temp water
2 Tbs. canola oil
2 - 4 Tbs honey (I use 3)
Stir until honey dissolves

Add
3 c. whole wheat flour
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp instant yeast

mix on low until rough dough comes together
let it sit in bowl for 20 minutes

After 20 minutes have passed, sprinkle with 1 Tbs table salt and knead in mixer with dough hook for 15 minutes on 3 or 4. (OR knead the dough for 7 minutes in mixer and then for about 10 out side of the mixer. I've never kneaded it outside of the mixer and it's always turned out well, and if you want to add mulberries or whatever, add in the middle of this process)

It's a really sticky dough, however it should pull away from the sides of the bowl and become smooth. Put dough in an oiled bowl and let rise till double in size (40 minutes - 1.5 hours or so - I always put mine in a preheated, 200 degree, oven that's been turned off to speed up the process.)

After it rises, turn it out onto a lightly floured (all-purpose) surface. It will be extremely sticky at this point and it helps to have a wet spatula to help get all the dough out of the bowl.
Divide the dough in half and knead for a minute into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes. In the mean time grease your pans.
After 10 minutes have passed, roll the heck out of the dough (sprinkling with all-purpose as needed to prevent sticking to rolling pin). Once you've rolled it out getting all the air bubbles out, tri-fold it like a letter and role it out longways. (When you fold it, try to make it slightly narrower than the width of your pan - it will widen when you roll it some more.)
Next starting at one end roll the dough into a cylinder (like you would a sleeping bag) put in your pan and let rise. Do this for the other loaf, when the dough rises above the rim just slightly of the pan, preheat your oven to 350 (oven rack at the lower middle position).
When they have risen and you can push into the dough and the dimple stays or pushes back out very slowly, bake for about 40 minutes until dark brown on top.

Turn out onto cooling rack when they are ready and let them completely cool before cutting.

I usually make this recipe 1 1/2 times per batch, and freeze one of the loaves for later in the week.

the last of the birthday.... i promise.

2009-01-28T17:16:00.008-05:00

why not celebrate big?

the "amazing princess cake"
she had no idea, and it was so fun to see her excitement when she saw it for the first time.
she "couldn't believe it!"

We had a family dinner with my mom, brother and grandparents, Daddy Jim and Libby.
Dinner was homemade pizza, apple sauce, and homemade chocolate peanut butter ice cream.

Uncle James a.k.a. Tio

Daddy Jim

Rubes enjoying her pizza.

Parkey was so enamored with the doll cake topper. It had a spike to hold it in the cake upright, and she was convinced it was a leg. When she told everyone about her princess cake, she immediately told them that the doll only had one leg.
Its so funny what they get excited about.

The last conversation that she had as a 3 year old went like this.
Drew was reading a book about monkey's when he was putting her to bed.

SP: Whats that thumb on the howler monkey's foot for?
D: Its so it can hang upside down on the trees, like this (pointing to the picture)
SP: I wish I was a howler monkey so that I could hang from the tree too. I know, we need a fairy
god-mother so that we could be howler monkeys. No, no, no... I know what we need, we need a fairy god-monkey. That would be great.

oh my big girl.

baby no more, she's almost 4!

2009-01-19T16:50:00.004-05:00

Yay and boo-hoo, Sadie Parker is turning 4 on Monday. There isn't any baby-ness to her at all.

I could blog forever about that, so I will wait and do it at a later time.

As for now, here are the pictures from her birthday party we had last Monday, the 19th.

As you all know, SP loves to cook, so we thought that a "cooking/icing" party would be so much fun for her.

And it was.

The tables were a joint effort in decorations. The Cupcakery had all the basics, and I was a little nervous as to what that meant. But when I arrived, I saw that they had purchased the exact same plates and cups that I had wanted to buy, but wouldn't let myself. That was a great surprise!

We brought the balloons, because whats a party without balloons. Which later proved to be great entertainment for Rubes.

Each plate had candy harts, sprinkles, and sugar dots. There was a choice of strawberry and vanilla cupcakes, and strawberry and chocolate icing.

So many choices!

The joy and delight of being sung "happy birthday" to almost did her in.

It took some coaxing, but I was able to get her to eat some of the actual cake part.

Just wanting to lick the butter cream icing off the top.

Who could blame her?

Decorating cupcakes.
I kind of think that while SP loves to cook and put things together in the kitchen, this party might have been better saved for when her friends were a little older. (no, this isn't a "my child is so much more advanced than yours" comment. There are some areas that she definitely is not skilled in, that her friends are proficient in)
There were just more fine motor skills involved than I realized.
SP had a fantastic time, and that was the point.
Mission accomplished in that regard.

Rubes ready to go in her big-girl apron.

Family picture.

Watching through the observation window.

Wishing to be on the inside of all the "fun."

The girls in all their apron glory.
We couldn't quite get them all together enough to fit in one picture, however this is the bulk of them.

The beloved Barbie "vet."

Why she's wearing a blue jean mini-skirt is beyond me.

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary....

2009-01-14T15:12:00.002-05:00

how does your garden grow?

....oh the possibilities!

When Drew was reading this book, I knew that it would change our way of our thinking about food even more.

Its a great book, very fascinating, and we already agreed with the majority of the principles in the book, they just weren't as obtainable to us. As in, our farmers markets are not year round, and the local produce places are very limited, and what they do have available is not inexpensive to say the least.

I know that we are a little "off" when it come to the mainstream thinking about food, but we feel that we are being responsible with the information we do know to be true.

Stay tuned to see if this will be a successful project, or if it will be a ~~freak out on my part because its to much to manage.~~ one time deal.

We have had successful gardens in the past, just not on this scale. (the remnants of last years endeavor are still notable in the above picture, see the "raised" box garden on the right?)

So if you call me late summer, and I don't answer. Please know that's its not because I don't want to talk to you, but its probably because my phone has been planted somewhere in this mess, and is the beginning sprout of an apple tree.

the run down

2009-01-09T15:09:00.001-05:00

January is always a big month for us.

It usually takes me a little while to catch my breath between the Christmas/New Year holiday, and the start of January.

Its our wedding anniversary, Parkey's birthday, other family birthdays, then shortly after its Ruby's birthday.

Lots of planning and celebrating going on. All fun, but still all some amount of work.

But before I get to all of that, I wanted to re-cap our fantastic Christmas.

Foof and Eric came in, which was great as always.

One of the best gifts I received was from Eric, he drew my stocking, and filled it with some pretty great things. The most amazing of which, were hand made croissants for my freezer, and for only me to eat.

These things are AMAZING! I need to get the recipe from him to post here. He said they weren't hard to make at all, but the guy does have his PhD in biochemistry-engineering-super-smartness. I mean, he discovered a gene that no one had ever laid eyes on. He's the real deal in greatness.

They are the flakeyest and the moistest concoctions, a true treat for my taste buds.

foof, rubes and mom.

The other great gift was to Sadie Parker, she had a generous secret Santa benefactor. Do you remember this post? Well, the Lord had a fantastic surprise in store for her, and it was just as exciting for me too!

After reading the American Girl Doll post, an aquaintance of mine emailed me telling me that she had A.G. Bitty Baby twins that her daughter didnt like to play with at all. She wanted to give them to Parkey, along with all their clothing, furniture, and toys. She felt like since they werent using them, and they were hardly touched at all, that she wanted someone who would love them to have them. I was blown away! I was in an excited awe as I read this email, and so beyond thankful that she wanted to make SP's Christmas wish come true. I was very humbled by the joy that the the Lord wanted for my family, even if it was over baby dolls. I felt like this was a gift to me as well.

I would love to sing my thankfulness to our benefactor from the roof-tops, but I dont know that she would be comfortable with that, so from myself, and the happiest "little mother" on the block, many, many thanks! You have given hours upon hours of joy, imagination, laugher, entertainment, and love to my child. She is in love with her Santa gift, and was speechless when she saw what he had brought her. She didnt know what to touch first, so much so that it took her a while to open her other gifts, all she wanted to do was take care of her babies.

I wish you could have been there to see her in action. Thanks to my mother you just might, Honey gave her a double baby stroller so that she could walk her twins. So when you see us out with "Katy" and "Carter" please ask her about them, she is a proud mother, just as she should be.

The babies waiting for SP

Pointing in disbelief at what she had been given.

Not knowing what to do, completely speechless.

Beyond excited

(notice all the wrapped presents, still under the tree.but baby Carter is having his diaper changed)

Ready for a stroll

Ruby had a great time too! She mostly loved the wrapping paper, and the crinkely sound that it made.
She was given some great toys as well. However, her favorite toy was SP's cash register, all the beeping buttons. So exciting to an 11 month old.

Can we pretend its still the middle of December in regards to my posting latency?

2009-01-02T16:25:00.007-05:00

Here are a few more pictures and one ~~majorly funny~~ potentially therapy inducing Sadie Parker experience.

But first the fun and easy stuff.
We went to Memphis for Uncle Ben's graduation from the Police academy, as well as an early Christmas for the girls. We were busy, busy, busy, but with great fun and family.

Once of Parkey's gifts was face paint crayons.

I turned her into a kitty, and she turned me into ....?

Yes, I do love my child.

Ruby really liked all the wrapping paper, but once the baby doll inside the paper was revealed, the sequels were in full force. I really haven't ever heard her respond so "vocally" to a toy like this before. It was really fun.

Aunt Sarah loving on SP, isn't her hair amazing?! ?

This is the soon to be Uncle Clay. Sadie Parker loves him, not just because he's a great guy, but because he's not afraid to play with her. Like down on the floor, full contact playing.

This next section is at the Children s Museum. It is a fantastic place that we love to take Sadie Parker whenever we can. She loves most of everything they have to offer, however we had a not so great experience this go around.

But first the good parts.

The child sized grocery is a huge hit.

The dentist.

Driving the ever so coveted mini-van.

Note that Drew is in the back pretending to be a whiny child.

Nice.

OK, here we go.

There is this caged sky scraper maze that has child size holes to navigate through, and its probably about 30 feet tall in total.

I see Drew and Parkey headed towards this contraption, and knowing my child, I say

"Drew, I don't think this is such a good idea, she is going to freak out when she gets to the top"

"Honey, she's fine, look she is so proud of herself"

(and she definitely was proud to go up, its just the getting down that's the issue)

"OK, well, your going to have to be the one to rescue her when the freak out commences"

And folks, the freak out commenced, in full force.

Still so excited at this point.

And here we are, after 30 minutes of crying and freaking, recruiting a 8 year old boy to retrieve her, then having a staff member squeeze, and I'm talking squeeze herself up to SP, all the while saying "Come on girl, get down here, I get you a treat if you come on down"

All of this only pushed her more into the corner and made her more fearful. Nothing was going to get her out of there.

Drew and I were coaxing, and directing, and supporting, and trying not to freak out and laugh at the same time. Praying big time.

But it just got to the point to where she was shaking, and she had become paralyzed by her fear of coming down. It was really bothersome to me to have my child's fears take over to the point that there is a physical response that it not a chosen one.

At that point, I was ready to cut open the mother freaking wire that was around her and get her out.

No chicken wire is going to stand between me and my child!

At that point, Drew took his shoes off, and proceeded to twist and turn and contort his 6'3" body through the maze. He decided that he was going to be "her knight in shining armor, to rescue her" since he was the one ~~who got her into this mess~~ encouraged her to go up.

And here they are, on their way down. Once they were on the bottom section, SP wanted to do it by herself, and once again was so proud that she "did it"

Hopefully that will be the memory she holds onto out of that situation.

We are now taking donations to the Sadie Parker Psychological Fund.

Here we are with Ben and his wife Amanda after the graduation.
It was a full weekend, lots of family, and time with our friends the Myatts.
It was non-stop, but great fun.

New Header

2008-12-19T15:51:00.000-05:00

This is our Christmas card picture.....
Can you believe how much my girls look like Drew?
A little unfair.

In other news, is anyone else having blogspot issues, the majority of my "tools" are gone, any suggestions?

Santa

2008-12-19T15:18:00.002-05:00

So this year was the first successful visit that Sadie Parker has had with Santa.
She and Wendy (MIL) went to the Pink Palace in Memphis to see all the Christmas festivities and such, and Santa was there. They stood in line for a while, and apparently Parkey, was a little unsure, but decided it was worth it. She marched right up to Santa, and told him " I dont like candy canes, but can I have two for my mom and dad?" (isnt that sweet?) So then they took her picture with him, and its a pretty good Santa picture. I wish I could post the previous years pictures, but they are on the other computer. Maybe I will later. Sorry that its a picture of the picture. I know, Im low on the technical stuff. ANYWAY.... Santa asked her what she wanted for Christmas.

SP : a cash register and an American girl doll.
Santa: What else would you like?
SP: looked at him funny, and said "what do you mean?"
Santa: well, I know you will like whatever you get.

OK folks.... how great is it that she only wants two things, but how not great is it that those dolls are $100.00!!!! I think they are fantastic, they have great accessories, they encourage reading, and creative play, and they are a good kind of hobby toy. Believe me when I say, they are a hobby, and we all want our children to have good hobbies.
Since seeing Santa and telling him what she wanted, she has told everyone who asks, that she is getting those two things for Christmas.
We are going to have one sad little girl on our hands. No doll in the budget this year.
So here's the question, Do we tell her she isn't getting that doll for Christmas, or do we still play along, but strongly suggest that she might be getting other things instead?
I have tried the "you have to be 4 to get an A.G. doll" route, and she doesn't buy it. Maybe I'm not selling it well enough.
I don't want to demystify her and all the Christmas fun, and I don't want her to be "scarred" or really upset either, so suggestions please, I am begging for some good advice here. Let me have it.

But SaNTA, just in case if your reading, ... could you fix this little issue for us so that it doesn't have to be an issue please? Samantha or Kirsten please, and yes, Parkey has been a very good girl.

hide and seek

2008-12-17T15:46:00.005-05:00

Now that Ruby is on the go, she is all over the place. I never really know where she might turn up. Yes, I watch her like a hawk, but sometimes I do have to wipe the occasional bottom, or fix the Cinderella dress so that its not scratchy. Its funny to me what she is attracted to. Of course its not all the millions of toys that are around her. Its the odd things, like the air uptake vent in our hallway, or the bathroom cabinet doors. I often wonder if she has been wanting to explore these things all along, and I have just been shaking some silly toy in her face instead. She probably thinks that I have no clue as to what is going on. Oh well. So much for fancy new toys, give this girl a spatula to play with any old day of the week.

Cranberry Goodness

2008-12-17T15:33:00.006-05:00

Can I tell you about one of the most wonderful things I have ever put in my mouth?

This.....while looking kind of scary and like there might be to much going on, is one of the best holiday foods I have ever had the delight of tasting.

(This is the only picture I have of these treats, they don't last long enough to have a valid photo shoot, notice the bite taken? that's because it was the last one around.)

Our fabulous neighbor, Kevin, made these for us last Christmas, and they lasted about 4.2 minutes in our house.
I am not much for nuts, and dates are kind of odd at times. But I am telling you....
MAKE THESE TODAY!!!!
Make two batches because you are going to want to share them because they are so good, but also keep them all to yourself because they are so good.
Most people eat them as a desert, but they have been known to make an appearance as a breakfast treat as well.

Cranberry Caramel Bars

1 cup fresh cranberries

2 tbspoons + ½ cup of sugar

2 cups and 1/3 cups flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 cups old fashioned oats

½ cup light brown sugar

1 cup butter melted

One 10 oz package of chopped dates

¾ cup chopped pecans

12 oz jar of caramel sauce

Preheat to 350. Stir cranberries and 2 tbsps sugar in small bowl, set aside. Combine 2 cups of flour, baking soda, oats, remaining sugar and brown sugar, stir in butter till crumbly. Reserve 1 cup of flour mixture. Press remaining flour mixture into bottom of lightly greased 13 X 9 baking dish. Bake at 350 for 15 mins. Sprinkle baked crust with dates, pecans and cranberry mixture. Stir together caramel sauce and remaining 1/3 cup flour. Spoon sauce over cranberries, sprinkle with reserved 1 cup flour mixture. Bake 20 minutes longer or until lightly brown. Cool and cut.

its official...

2008-12-11T11:19:00.005-05:00

Rubes is a woman on the GO!

its only taken 10 months and 6 days to really "get" it, but she's "got" it now.

Udouj/ You-dodge

2008-12-10T22:52:00.006-05:00

We have some great friends, the Udouj's, who we have known since before Drew and I even knew each other.
Drew had to pick up some plants near where they live, so all the girls (including Betty, the bernina) piled into the truck and off we went to Greenville.
Drew and I consider it a blessing that the four of us get along as well as we do. Not necessarily that anyone of us is harder to get along with than the rest, we just know that its not that often is it that four different personalities can mesh well. And out of that group, I would probably be the one that would be the hardest for the others to get along with. I digress as well as insult myself.

Rosie and I spent a fair amount of time sewing, and now, SP and Ellie have matching shirts.
Which, by the way, are featured at Jack n Jill.
We also made five Christmas stockings for all of their family.
Of course, I didnt take any pictures of them. But none the less its always great to sew with friends.
We also went to some great local restaurants.
LOVE me some Pita House or Hut. Who knows what its called, but give me some freaking falafel.

Ruby is trying to figure out how to crawl, so she spent a fair amount of time on the floor with Jillian, the youngest Udouj. They are 4 1/2 months apart. Ruby LOVED having a baby around. It was as if Jillian was a toy for Ruby to play with.
I'm not really sure why they are naked, but it sure is cute.

I hope and pray that this friendship is a constant in our lives. I say that selfishly for many reasons, but for one main one. I know that I can have any conversation with Rosie, and I will always be told the truth. The truth about myself, about a situation, about my family. Not that others are aren't telling me the truth, I just consider it a blessing to have someone who knows me so well, and isn't afraid to love me well enough to tell me what I need to hear, and for that to be reciprocal. The good and the bad. Don't worry, Drew definitely tells me what I need to hear as well, but he loves me differently than a friend does.

I hope that I can be a friend to others as Rosie has been to me.
Bold and loving.

yes, i know, i know

2008-12-10T22:30:00.013-05:00

I dont even know where to start.
turkey day was great.
I love my family, there are so many of them to love. All with unique personalities and attributes that are all of value.

This is my grandfather "Daddy Jim" why we call him by his first name, I don't fully know the answer to that one. But why fight an old man on a name he has been called for at least 33 years?
He call's Parkey "Pinky" because her hair is apparently pink to him. Its sweet, and funny all at the same time. I'm just thankful he wants to interact with my kiddos.

Lovin' on Foof.
One of the more fun events of that week, was Eric and Foof being here for almost a week.
We really miss them, but had a great time just being around them.
Parkey could not get enough of Foof.
She really misses her, and just wanted to be by her side as much as possible.
There are a few cute pictures over on their blog.

This is where the girls spent most of the meal, in my lap.
You would think that might mean that I didnt get a chance to eat that much, but let me tell you...
I wore my big girl pants for a reason, and they fit me by the time we left.

Brothers-in-law

Tio and Rubes

As I have mentioned before, cousins are a big deal to Parkey.
Here is my cousin Leah, who is 16, and cute as can be.
Sadie Parker wanted to follow her around as much as possible.
They played with Leah's American Girl Dolls, that she had in storage.
SP is ALL about some American Girl Dolls.

Libby and Parkey reading a book at Libby's house.

Grantie Jamie loving on Rubes.

school day pre thanksgiving

2008-11-25T16:19:00.008-05:00

Today was Parkey's Thanksgiving feast at her pre-school.

When asked what she was thankful for, she replied
"for my baby dolls."
This girl does tend to mother everything, so it usually a good thing to have a baby doll around, so that her mothering doesn't stray to those who don't need to be mothered by her.
i.e. Liza our dog, Ruby, me, Drew...

I came to help with the lunch, and it was a blast.
All of the kids in her class we very intrigued as to who I was, and what exactly it was that I was doing there.
But once they realized that I was there to pass out food, and to read to them, I checked out ok.

Oh yes, THIS is the ever elusive Giselle.
Sadie Parker's "bestest friend in the whole, whole world"
I am so surprised to have captured this picture, she is extremely shy.
Its actually taken TWO YEARS for Giselle to even look at me.
I was really excited to have this picture.

A turkey cookie made earlier in the day.

Eating the turkey cookie.
After lunch I read four thanksgiving books to the class.
It was a blast.
It was so fun to see all these little brains processing what it was that I was reading.
They were actually really quiet and listened relatively well.
It was nice, as a parent to see my childs class in action. To see the interactions between the groups of children. And all the boys! We dont have boys at our house, so that was really funny for me to see these boys who just ate without abandon, food everywhere. And to watch the way they played with each other and their toys, its all loud and rough. Its a whole different world than what I'm used to with only girls. I had to smile.

I know this isn't thanksgiving related, but I had to take a picture of this clever invention.
This is called "the cozy box."
Only one person at a time can be inside the box.
Its a great place to rest, and regroup, and have a little time by yourself.
There are many classroom fights over this box, which I think its hilarious that three year olds are fighting over something that allows for a time out of sorts.
I love it.

And this is the picture that SP took of Rubes and I at Long's Drugstore, after school today.
Apparently we needed french fries with ketchup.
Yep, I gave in, my child now eats ketchup. BUT only about twice a month.
Dont you just love my colored custom made macaroni necklace?