Finer Things Club

We had our first meeting of the Finer Things club (like Pam, Toby, and Oscar do on "the Office") yesterday. We served blueberry tea and freshly baked cookies, looked at art books, listened to fancy music, and even used our real china (a wedding gift from the Captain's grandmother and grandfather... it had been their china. they also got us the cabinet too).

Vases with Friends

My friend Kristi invited us to decorate vases with them as a project related to last week's co-op on Greece. So we happily said yes. We love to paint! And we love our friends! I really like the way that they turned out (the vases and the friends too, I guess!!). The kids seriously got into the artistic process and I have been inspired to whip out the acrylics more often as it cleaned up more easily than I thought and they didn't make nearly the mess that I would have expected them to make. Sweet. Thanks Kristi!

Snow and Ice

Post from the past that got lost in the computer sabbatical!



On one hand, this "inclement weather" has really bummed us out. The Captain had to miss yet another Vanderbilt Fencing Tournament and I had been really excited about carpooling with a good friend to spend the day with a bunch of awesome mama friends. But on the other hand, the weather happened during the Captain's off week and our being stuck at home has led to cups of hot cocoa, snow cream, afternoon naps, catching up on laundry, and some much needed relaxing. Luckily the day with awesome mamas has been rescheduled for a time when I will be able to attend so it's all good.

So the first day of our winter storm brought lovely snow. With that lovely snow I made these little guys:

Strawberry Snow Cream Snow Man pops. Big hit, lemme tell ya.
(Natural strawberry flavoring, natural pink color, rice milk, agave, cinnamon, stir)
I personally preferred the "frappucino-like" snow cream that I made using natural maple flavor, agave, rice milk, and cinnamon. The kids, however, liked these little guys. And I liked having a use for my silicone molds since I have sworn off baking with them.

tiny bird tracks on my patio

my house, even more gorgeous covered in precipitation

looooove having the easel on the front porch. it's out of my kitchen and the kids are more likely to use it!

heading next door to check on our neighbors

incredible ice. destructive yet beautiful.

it's a good thing that the net on our trampoline was already destroyed because this ice storm just totally did it in. no idea how we are going to afford to replace it.

snow angels didn't turn out so well with all of that ice under the thin layer of snow

the limbs are so heavy from ice. i want to hug her.

this is the view out of my kitchen window. how lucky am i?

the bird house that my dad made He-Man

The beauty at my home just seems to be magnified by this weather. I often forget just how much beauty surrounds us. We are lucky to live out where the air is cleaner, the grass is greener, and bunnies romp and play. And when we get a huge snow like this, I kinda wish we had a hill to sled down but still, I'll take what I have!

Today I was grumpy. So grumpy, in fact, that when a friend and her kiddos came over for an already planned artdate, she politely suggested that they come another time. Glad I was able to snap out of it and that they stuck around. Anyway, physically I feel rotten but I knew there was something else going on and this evening, as I lay crying on the couch because no was was able to rub my throbbing foot, I realized the true root of my problem. Sunday is the fourth anniversary of mom's death. Last year was not too difficult. So, logically, I was thinking that this year would be even easier but I'm thinking maybe not so much. Of course, last year I was preparing for the birth of a baby boy and so I was rather distracted. That might have something to do with the difference. But honestly, I think it's the number. The four. I had decided at some point that on the 4th anniversary I would have finally obtained possession of her ashes. My big plan was to let the Donut pick out a plant or a tree and we would bury her placenta with my mom's ashes and have a special ceremony. I had this all planned out in my mind and it was lovely and special and was this perfect way to tangibly memorialize her. There was just something so poetic about the physicality of it all. But of course I don't have my mom's ashes and I'm no closer to having them than I was four years ago. One thing that I have learned through this experience is the whole burial/cemetery/grave marker makes more sense once you have experienced the death of a close loved one. I think that I would have particularly found it to be healing considering the way that her death and the aftermath played out. (I used to never understand why people buried their loved ones and then put up markers. Even made fun of it.) At any rate, I think that I've pieced together the mystery of why on earth I am feeling so totally nutso right now. Hopefully Sunday will be a nice peaceful family day. Maybe the kids and I will look through some old photos.

I'm Back, Baby!

My laptop has been returned safe and sound and is feeling much better. I'm excited to finally be able to blog again. I didn't save up nearly enough posts before the ole gal went in for her makeover. As always, I'm humbled that anyone would bother to read my blog and I thank you for the comments and feedback. Apologies for not reading your blogs or commenting for a while... it's just not the same on an iPod. Expect to see more of me around your little corner of the net very soon. :)

Frugal dairy free milk alternatives

So, He-Man has a cavity. Yes, we went to the dentist yesterday and as usual, they ooooohed and ahhhhhhhed over how blessed I am to have such wonderful teeth (other than the orange stain from the carrot juice... which can easily be fixed with baking soda it seems). Donut checked out just fine as well (despite our neglect and excessive juice consumption) but poor He-Man has a cavity right between his two top front teeth. (Pushing the boo button on Sam's remote). Anyway, to make a sad and long story short, I have been forced to brainstorm delicious drink options that won't add to the rotting teeth in my son's mouth. I am just praying that other people will jump on board with me and help me follow through with this. I don't know why but there is a lot of juice pushed on my children. So anyway, I have been experimenting for a while with taking the unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze milk and adding some things to make it more kid-friendly... like cinnamon, vanilla, agave, and stevia. This has been working out well but certain people like to keep buying the sugary rice milk anyway.

Today I decided to try something I'd been thinking about for a while. At Trader Joe's I get these cans of coconut milk for one dollar. I opened the can and put it in a quart jar with water, cinnamon, and stevia. And then I shook it. And tasted it. It worked. It tasted better to me than a certain coconut milk alternative drink that was recently put on the market (and I won't name it because I don't like to bash brands over personal taste and also because I adore their nondairy creamer and ice creams and keifer).

I'm really excited to have some sugar and dairy free drink alternatives for the kids. They enjoy these milks mixed with a little juice, in their cereal, and by themselves.

I'd love to read about your sugar free alternatives to juice and soda.

My Twaddle Problem

Yes I admit, I have a twaddle problem. (Is it just me, or does that word sound like it should mean something less than wholesome?)

Until recently, I had no idea what twaddle was. But it would seem that my twaddle problem has been with me for my entire life. And now it is bleeding over into the lives of my children. Perhaps it is genetic. I have never liked documentaries. High brow literature either bored me or went over my head. And I was completely shocked when in the seventh grade I experienced live classical music during a field trip and fell madly in love with Mozart (but that may have been because of the movie "Amadeus" though I did manage to make it through an extremely dull biography). I had high hopes that my children would rise above me but they seem just as bored with the documentaries I've tried to gently force upon them. Part of me is thrilled when I don't have to sit through it of course!

I admit also that I'm so foolish that I'm not even sure I know how to spot twaddle. Perhaps I have the definition all wrong.

When investigating Charlotte Mason in hopes of not appearing completely stupid when I attend a friend's upcoming in-home Charolotte Mason seminar, I came across some lists of twaddle free literature for children. I was dismayed to see that we had barely read any of these books. How humiliating. I say this only slightly sarcastically. As I've said here before, I generally have the kids just run up and down the aisles at the library, grabbing whatever suits their fancy. While I like this approach and to a certain extent we will continue with it, I have to wonder if we might not be better off with more intentional selections.

I made a list and together with my sweet librarian friend, we picked some "non-twaddle" books off the shelves. I made the comment to her that I may get them home and say, "Well, what's so great about these books" and she agreed.

So far we have read a Curious George book, The Story of Ferdinand and The Snowy Day. There are a few on the list that we might have read at some point in the past. I really liked The Story of Ferdinand and The Snowy Day. I am excited to see what treasures are hidden in these others books we have borrowed from our library! Still not sure about trading in our low brow television shows in exchange for something a little more "edumacational" but time will tell I suppose!