Saturday, September 25, 2010

Late night snack


Not even 1 hour after we finished dinner, Ryan wanted a before-bed snack. He even brought the snack to me that he wanted. Any guesses as to what a 22 month old wants for a snack? Its definitely not what I would choose...green beans.


Who's kid is this, anyway? He ate two bowlfuls of those beans. He was actually asking for more when I cut him off and made him go to bed. As much as I just wanted him to go to bed, I didn't have the heart to nip his good eating habits in the bud. Haha! He is actually our little candy man. He can sniff the candy out of any hiding spot. But if he wants green beans, by all means, baby, its green beans you shall have!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Canning fool

I feel like I've been canning like crazy this summer and fall. And its not over yet. I have raspberries. So, I made jam. Earlier in the year, I made strawberry jam and syrup. (The syrup was an accident but it will taste awesome anyhow.) During the end of August, I bottled a total of 84 quarts of peaches!! That was divided by 4 people, who all helped, but still!


My sister-in-law Jenn went to Washington and brought us back boxes and boxes of peaches and pears. The peaches were huge! And so yummy! Here is one of the peaches in the box. It was ginormous!

It was dang near the size of my friend Lorna's head. Well, not quite but it sure seemed like it when we took it out of the box!

Our peaches turned out gorgeous. I love looking at my store room shelves and seeing bottles of yummy fruit to eat this winter. I especially love peaches and their season is short when you are eating them fresh.

One week later, I bottled 64 quarts of pears and made a batch of pear jam too! The pears were tasty and gorgeous as well. I love it when they are so white in the jar. The jam is divine as well. If you have never had pear jam, you must try some. It tastes like fresh pears. When my friends told me to try some, I thought it sounded gross but I have had a change of heart. Pear jam is my absolute favorite!

I'm not done canning, though. I was canning applesauce yesterday and have plans to do more. I bottled some mangoes earlier this summer too. I love the feeling of looking at my full shelves and seeing my hard work. It is really rewarding for me. So call me a canning fool. Yup, that's me. But, I'll be thinking of you as I eat my awesome fruit this winter!

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Happy Birthday Hannah!


Hannah celebrated her birthday a couple of weeks ago. She is the big number 4 now. I can't believe she is 4 already, although sometimes it feels like she is much older. When she was 2 or so, I took her in to the pediatrician's office for a well child check up. She looked up at him with her all-knowing eyes and he told me, "Wow! Look at her look at me with those all-knowing eyes. Makes her seem older than 2." I totally agreed with him. She is still that way most days.

Her birthday started off with a meowing surprise in the garage. My friend and neighbor had brought this little kitten over the night before as a gift for Hannah. I had no intentions of giving her a cat. We have 2 already. But, the second she saw this kitten, she knew it was hers. Forever. It is a little boy kitty. Hannah named him Jenny. I tried to tell her that this is a boy kitty and needed a boy name. Like Patches or Wolfie. (I really thought she'd go for Wolfie because she is really into the princess scene right now and that is the name of the boy cat on her Barbie Princess & the Pauper movie. No go.) So we now have Jenny, the tomcat. Although today as I write this, Hannah tells me that kitty is named Seraphina. (The girl cat from the same movie.)

Hannah went to dance and got to hand out treats to her classmates. She thought that was great fun. Then we came home and I had plans to bake her cake. My plans were to just do a simple 2 layer cake with pink frosting and candles. (The thought of decorating a cake gives me anxiety.) But in the end, we ended up with this princess crown cake. Its sad, I know. Thats what I get for a last minute idea. And whatever possessed me to place it on a plate that has edges with an incline, I'll never know. But, in the end, Hannah loved it and that is all that matters. I am not a professional baker and never will be but as long as my kids are happy then I'm happy. Those are sugar cookies around the edges decorated (with help from the birthday girl) with M&M's and Jolly Ranchers.

My family came over for Hannah's party that evening and she got lots of great presents from everyone! She is now well dressed and has lots of makeup and fingernail polish (thanks Beckie!) to go with it. Is giving a 4 year old makeup a good idea? We'll soon see! Anyway, Hannah also received this doll from Mommy & Daddy. She was one happy little girl that day. She has slept with that doll every day since. She got some awesome toys from Grandma & Grandpa and made a haul in money as well. Thanks everyone for the gifts and for your love and support on her special day!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Preschool's Cool!


Hannah started pre-school last week. Its a neighborhood/mom run affair with only 6 kids. We moms take turns teaching for a week at a time (2 days a week only). Hannah was so excited to start "school" just like Garrett. Each week focuses on a certain letter, number, shape & color among other things. Above is Hannah's painting on her first day. If you look closely, you can see they worked on the letter "A".

When Garrett came home from school that night, he asked Hannah what she did at pre-school. She told him they learned about letters, sang ABC's, learned about numbers, snipping (cutting), and did painting. Garrett's immediate response was, "Hey! No fair! We don't get to paint at all this year!" And this is probably true. There were no paints in his school supplies. Apparently there is no painting in the 3rd grade. I'm sure there will be lots of other fun things to do.

I really never thought I'd put my kids in pre-school. Garrett didn't go and he has done fine in school. I feel a little bad because Hannah will miss the school deadline by 7 days. I'm secretly a little worried that she'll be more than ready to go and by the time she does go to school, she'll be bored. I guess we'll just see what happens. For now, she is loving pre-school, loving the activities and the social fun. I am loving the 2 hrs a day with only Ryan and he usually naps during that time! Yes, preschool is cool!

Monday, September 6, 2010

Garrett's baptism


Garrett was baptized on Saturday September 4th. It was a gorgeous day with lots of family there. Blaine's family was all able to be there as well as my family. It was an exciting day for Garrett.
Look at that big grin! He was so excited. I felt bad because there was one little boy there who is so scared of water that he didn't want to get baptized. He finally decided to be brave and go ahead with it. Poor kid!
Family picture afterwards. Hannah did not want to cooperate. Ryan has no shoes and socks on because he felt the need to run around and be wild afterwards. Garrett is just happy to be there and have it overwith!
Thanks to all who came and to all who helped! It really was a great day!

1st Day of School


School started for Garrett on August 30th this year. He is in the 3rd grade. His teacher is Mrs. Wheeler (and we are thrilled she is his teacher!).
Last year was rough. Blaine and I were exhausted by the end of school. We were tired of trying to pass the 2nd grade!

This year will be better! Garrett's friends are in his class this year and his teacher is calm and organized, caring and firm. This will be a great year!


Good luck, Bud! (Doesn't he look thrilled?)