6 Months

today ginger, my neighbor's cat was hit by a car. i am terribly saddened by it and in fact when i got the news, i was at work and had to take a moment to get myself together. she was a beautiful and loving outdoor cat who seemed to have adopted my family as her "other" family--she came over daily and often snuck in when the door was open. we have found her many a times sleeping on one of the boy's beds or even on mine :)

i think i was struck so deeply today by ginger's death because 6 months ago (to the exact date and day of the week) tom died in a car accident. time has certainly helped ease the pain i feel but there is still a void. life has slowly returned to "normal"--meaning when the phone rings at 9:00 i no longer immediately think something bad has happened,  when i watch mythbusters i no longer associate the show with the call that i got, when we pray for our family to heal and find peace i no longer tear up...... there are however, so many things that will never go back to normal--which i suppose means there are new norms. thinking of ben is very hard for me. i cannot fathom why his daddy was taken from him when he so clearly needs him. when i hear of others who lose a loved one, i have much deeper sympathetic feelings for them than before. i also feel i have stronger connections to those who have gone through the process of losing a loved one so unexpectedly and so much closer to many of tom's friends. 

on my way to work today i flipped past a radio station that i never listen to and stopped for a moment. as that moment occurred, tom was with me. one of his favorite songs from when we were kids started to play--rocky raccoon by the beatles. tom had many old cassette tapes all lined up in shoe boxes. these boxes sat on a shelf in his bedroom. i was always so jealous that tom, 4 years older than me, was allowed to have all those cassettes, while i was stuck with "kid music". i remember the day that he let me borrow his most precious tape--the one that had rocky raccoon and obla di obla da on it! i was floating on cloud nine and played it loud and proud from my pink tape player! having tom in the truck with me this morning and remembering brought a smile to my face.

life is short and we never know how long we have. enjoy today. enjoy those around you. enjoy your family and tell them how much you love them--each and every chance you get.

My Hubby: The Chef

i plan the menus. i buy the vittles (thanks em for the reminder of this fun word). i usually do most of the cooking..... and i do all three of them because they are my hobby! yes, i know to some of you that is a bit nuts :) but i LOVE it! my husband is a darn good chef when i let him get the chance to play in our kitchen.  i picked out this recipe "Grilled Beef Braciole" with every intent to make it but josh made it for us! it was quite tasty :) my favorite part of the meal was that as we ate it, we critiqued it and talked about how we could make this recipe better and suite our tastes! i love that we are both foodies :)

Through the Window

I always wondered what life looked like through their eyes :) I love these pictures I took at the Zoo on Friday. They were in the "little log house" peaking through the window. I tried to get a better one of the boys together as they played but of course when one is ready, the other is not :)

Cleaning Things Out

it is hard for me to think about cleaning tom's things out. my parents and sister have done so much yet i cannot bear to do it and that makes me feel like i am a crummy sister and daughter. it hurts my heart to think of his stuff in a garage sale, or going to goodwill. there is no need to keep any of it--this i know--but the actual process of "getting rid of things" is hard for me. i have a tough time being in his trailer and on his property. i swear i have trouble breathing when i am there. i have never offered to help lynda and mom and dad because i am not actually sure i have the strength to help them. this huge admission allows me to let go of my personal guilt over not offering. they seem so strong to me. i hope it is okay i lean on them for now.

the adventures of harold, the trio

jack and i love to play :) tonight we played trios and got a little carried away with our role playing. i was the son (harold) and jack was the dad (thomas). i was the "unruly" son that wanted to be paid for everything (he was expecting me to watch my one-eyed sister becca). i kept stopping jack as "harold" begged for money to give him pointers on how the dad "thomas" should answer. josh in addition stopped him to give him pointers (our pointers consisted of things like, "you don't get paid for things around here that you are expected to do for our family" or "i already pay you by feeding you and putting a roof over your head"). as we got back into playing, harold continued to beg to be paid and this time, thomas (the dad) responded with "NEVER". this put josh and i over the top as we collapsed with laughter!

as we continued our adventures of harold and thomas, jack came across another "harold" (same guy....wow who knew there were two harold guys). he decided that one of the "harolds" would be the mom. i asked jack how he would know which one was which...he thought a few moments and then replied that the guy with his arm up would be harold and the guy with both arms down would be mom. i chuckled and put my arm up. he called on me and i did not answer....he got a glimmer of sass in his eye and said, HAROLD! i laughed and responded because he was right--i was being harold! ha! we spent the next 13 minutes or with me trying to get an arm up to be harold and then putting it down to be mom....he tried even sitting on my hands so he could talk to me as mom! it was hilarious and felt so good to laugh together. i love jack's sense of humor and vivid imagination!

eventually we moved on with "harold", "thomas the dad" "becca the one eyed sister" and the mom. i stopped interfering with my own arm movements and silliness of harold/mom. together we finished building the mansion and weight room (also used as a painting studio and workshop).

what a great night of playing with harold on his adventures! this guy in the picture was "thomas the dad" and the building was our "weight lifting room". we did not make the bugs today :) "harold" had blond hair...and obviously "mom" looked identical to harold. "becca the one eyed sister" had the same eye as the bugs :)

contented sigh....so tasty!

a contented sigh is the only way i can describe the delisciousness of tonight's dinner!

i used the mccormick bbq pork seasoning for the first time and it turned out amazing! the smell throughout the day was such a tantalizer! after it cooked through, i removed the pork and got rid of any  of the fat and other "icky" parts. i then shredded it with two forks and put it back in the sauce. i served it on french rolls (arnie's) that had been warmed in the over. mmmmmmmmmmmm

to go along with these yummy sandwiches, i made asian slaw. i could not find my aunt betty's coleslaw crunch recipe (aka asian slaw) but i did find a similar one. i took the recipe and my memory to create the one i listed below.  on the side i also served watermelon, strawberries and chips :) 

mmmmmm dinner hit special spot in my tummy tonight. that slaw is one of my favorites but don't make it often since i am the only one of us four that likes it :) good thing i sometimes make things for me too! :)

tb's rendition of an asian slaw 

dressing:
1/2 cup veggie oil
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1 T soy sauce
1 T sesame oil (makes it extra yummy) 
1/8 cup of white sugar

**Shake ALL together--i also let it hang out in the fridge for a while

cole slaw:
2 packs of ramen noodles (use "packet of seasoning" for other use) BROKEN UP SMALL
sesame seeds
1 stick butter
1 package slivered almonds
1 (or 2) of napa cabbage (also known as celery cabbage)
green onion
dried cranberries or cherries (optional i suppose but an amazing addition)

saute the first four ingredients (noodles, sesame seeds, almonds and butter) in a pan on the stove until they are "warm brown" (melt butter first for easiest sauteing)

let the entire sauteed mixture cool on paper towel COMPLETELY and then store in a air tight container

finely julienne the cabbage. slice up the green onion. mix these two together and toss with the dried berries. cover and store in fridge.

when you are ready to serve, combine the dressing, crunchy mix and cabbage mix together. ENJOY!

The 90's Called--They want their saying back!

true story (well....all my stories are at least based on truth and i attempt not to embellish too much)

i was making coffee this morning and out out the blue luke shouts over from the living room, talk to the hand! :D i looked at josh to verify that is what luke did indeed say...and yes he did. i asked where he heard it...and he said at his school :) we said no silly you don't go to school--where did you hear it? he said at brenda's from drew :)

i looked over again and teasingly said, you ain't all that and a bag of chips. luke did not miss a beat, he replied, talk to the hand.

oh my sassy and funny luke!

Kindergarten Roud Up Follow Up Post

(picture found through http://search.creativecommons.org/) 

first things first--i am a proud mom so this is a blog post that is full of jack's awesomeness. if you are not interested, skip :)

i called the school today to ask for that feedback i so desire. really, truly, i wanted to know the results of the assessment so we (josh and i) could make the best decision for jack....and for that small part of me that needs the reassurance that we are doing the right thing for our son.

the conversation started out rather interesting... the lady started to give me information and it just did not seem like my jack.... 1. he could count to 6 (ummm yes) 2. he could write j a c but not k (the k is a bit funky but still a k) 3. he knew all colors but brown (ummm jack likes brown and knows it) ...... by now i am thinking jack-o froze up! but then she got to number 4 and told me he is right handed.... nope!! that is not our jack-o! he is definitely left handed!!!!! so now she looks again and realizes she has a different jack..... relief on my part! that just did not seem like my guy! 

here is what she did say:
*he is left handed (yes we know)
*he writes his name in all caps
*he has a tri-pod grip (can't remember what this means exactly as far as how it will impact his handwriting)
*he named 3 of 4 shapes (and the one he missed was a rectangle...he called it a hexagon)
*he colored a circle blue but did not stay in the lines (he truly does not care...sigh)
*he knows all his colors
*he counted to 39
*he identified all 26 uppercase letters
*he identified 21 of his 26 lowercase letters
*he knew almost all of the sounds
*the teacher noted he is funny, bright and polite
*he scored well on his assessment

i am proud of our little jack-o :) he is on his way to kindergarten--which is where he wants to be! yay! 

Chapter Books!

i am in love with reading. josh is in love with reading. it is our goal to breed little fellas who are also in love with reading :)

today starts a new (pardon the pun) chapter in our life--chapter books! jack is a little sponge and LOVES to gain new information. i thought there would be no better way than to find a chapter book and read to him. i let him look through all the books at wal-mart (sorry for those non-wal-mart loving family members) and pick one he thought looked good. he had a ton in his little arms but i made him settle on one for now! :) he chose a non-fiction book that is connected to the magic treehouse series called knights and castles. it is the magic treehouse's spin off that tells about parts from it's fictional stories.

we read two chapters tonight (with luke as well) and jack seemed to enjoy it. i am not going to push him to read the chapter book but if he is interested and wants to continue to listen/follow along with me, then we will go on to more chapters. luke was not super thrilled with it as there were not many pictures :) but he was quiet and listened to all 35 pages (big margins). i did give luke a chance to pick two "luke books" after our two chapters. i think tomorrow, or the next time jack wants to read his chapter book, we will have 10 minutes of mom/jack time after luke heads to bed. that way we can get in the story book time with both boys and jack can also get some chapter book time.

do you have any suggestions for chapter book ideas--fictional or non-fictional--that jack might be interested in?

Epic Dinner Fail

ufda!

epic dinner fail tonight!!!!!

i have made the "steak tostadas with mango salsa" once before and it was amazing! i was so looking forward to a super tasty supper tonight..... oh dear the following is what turned my delectable dish into a disaster!

1. tostadas turned out to be OLD and way expired...and probably way expired (open since october)....oops i thought they were more fresh.... :) no problem i told myself--we would eat it on taco shells or tortilla chips

2. mango for salsa was not ripe.... sigh okay another bump on the road but again no big deal. i have fresh pineapple and i will use that instead!

3. limes....needed limes for my mango salsa.... had only one lime..... :) okay no big deal! i had an extra lemon....

4. i added cilantro to my salsa and gave a HUGE stir. i had noticed while chopping the cilantro that it felt "tougher" than normal and smelled a big odd....but no big deal! i took a huge sample of my salsa only to find that it tasted AWFUL.... that normally YUMMY cilantro that adds such great flavor was FLAT LEAF PARSLEY! :) oops! that salsa was not even edible......

5. black beans were good and the meat was great but when you added 1,2,3 and 4 together with the rest...dinner was terrible

sigh i guess even the best chefs have an off night ;)

Follow Through.... lack of :)

my follow through with meals this week has been terrible!

here is an updated one....

Sunday: Out :)

Monday:Out :) (me) and Josh/Boys chicken on the grill/hotdogs...fended for themselves

Tuesday: Out :) 

See I told you this was not a great follow through week..... three nights of "out" or on your own.... :) Oooops! 

Wednesday: Warmed Sandwiches, Chips and Fruit 

Thursday: Tostadas with Mango Salsa and Black Beans

Friday: Grilled-beef-braciole-with-grilled-tomato-basil-relish with Roasted Herb Rice a Roni and Bread

Saturday.... figuring it out still :) 

Sunday: Slow Cooker BBQ Sandwiches :) Chips and Fruit

The Round Up

today i was the mom dressed in a skirt and black mary janes riding down the slide with my boys on the playground at kindergarten registration :) both my boys were thrilled to be at the school, particularly the playground, but jack was absolutely ecstatic to be at school!

the whole event was pretty low key--parents went through their line and  kiddos went off with a teacher for an "assessment" and then you all met back up in a kindergarten room. we, josh and i, got absolutely no feedback...... which after getting no feedback at jack's preschool conference was pretty disappointing to me. it is probably due to his age (4.5 but 5 august 15th) but i have this incessant need to know if our decision is the best one or not.....i think it is good practice (for both preschool teachers and those screening for kindergarten) to provide feedback that is helpful to parents to make decisions with.  i have to call tomorrow to ask a different question and the one teacher in the room with the kids after their "assessment" said to ask the secretary if she will give me jack's "assessment scores/feedback". my heart of hearts knows jack will do great in kindergarten. :) he is adaptable, smart, hard working (i hope).........  i have to just trust myself, trust my husband and go with our guts and hearts.

jack loved  being there today :) luke even is starting to think school might be okay.... :)





we ended our round up night with a quick stop at the DQ drive thru to pick up a  a slushy to share :)

yay for a good time!

Menu for the Week

Here is my menu for the week :)  I am trying two new recipes this week.... Friday and Saturday so I linked them to their recipes for you. I also listed the recipes at the bottom for two other of my meals this week. 

Sunday: Chicken Marsala (with mushrooms and red peppers) over Angel Hair with Bread and Fruit 

Monday: Turkey Kielbasa, Wild Rice and Steamed Broccoli

Tuesday: Warmed Sandwiches (see recipe below), Fruit and Chips 

Wednesday: Popcorn Shrimp, Crab cakes (from a box), Tator Tots and Salad 

Thursday: Tostadas with Mango Salsa and Black Beans

Friday: Grilled-beef-braciole-with-grilled-tomato-basil-relish with Roasted Herb Rice a Roni and Bread

Saturday.... figuring it out still :) 

Sunday: Slow Cooker BBQ Sandwiches :) Chips and Fruit

Herbed Chicken Tenderloins OR Chicken Marsala--call it what you like :) 

A creation I came up with.... :)
NEED:
Chicken breasts (or tenderloins)--boneless skinless
olive oil
dried herbs of your choice
salt and pepper
sliced onions
sliced red peppers
sliced mushrooms
chicken broth
Red Cooking Wine (I used Burgundy; I have also used Red Marsala)
Dash of cornstarch
pat of butter

DO:
**heat a small swirl of olive oil in pan over medium-high heat
**sprinkle herbs over prepared chicken (cut off any "ickies")
**place in hot pan, sprinkle "Up side" with herbs, salt and pepper and cook about 5 minutes (should be browned)
**Flip and cook on other side until chicken is done.
**move chicken to plate and tent with foil to keep warm (might want to put on stove where it is warm but not cooking)
**add tiny bit more olive oil and onions/peppers saute for 5 minutes
**add mushrooms and saute 5 minutes more
**add about 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1/2 cup wine (or just do all broth)---I did not measure :)
**use the wine and broth to loosen up all of the yummy "burnt" spots in the pan--scrape them up with wooden spoon and mix it all together
**turn heat up and reduce mixuture by at least half
**add your dash of cornstarch and mix (will thicken a little bit)
**should be a sauce but a bit thick. swirl in the pat of butter
**serve over chicken :)
if you do not like the veggies, omit or substitute :) 

Warmed Sandwiches--This is a modified recipe from

NEED: 

Yummy SMALL potato buns (or something similar) 

Lunch Meat of your choice--I use ham for the boys but for Josh and I rare roast beef and Red Peppered Turkey breast slices are fantastic!

Thin Sliced Cheese (I use havarti, cheddar or colby jack) 

Mayo, Mustard, or both 

thin sliced Red Onion (optional) 

Melted butter 

Poppy Seeds 

DO: 

Put the mayo, mustard or both on one half of each bun 

Add meat and cheese, and red onion if you are using them 

Put sandwich together on a baking sheet 

Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with poppy seeds 

Cover entire pan with foil 

Bake in preheated oven (350) until Cheese melts and Sandwiches are warm (15 minutes?) 

Enjoy :)

Things the Boys Can Do!

i am amazed at how much knowledge my children have and how many things they can do on their own now...... here are some short lists of things that have stood out over the past 6 months or so......

Jack (4.5):
--sings abcs
--recognizes and can identify most letters (upper case and lower case)
--counts higher than 40
--can do one digit addition and subtraction
--recognize all shapes
--recognizes all colors
--recognizes numbers up 1o 10 and can identify them
--can tell many letter sounds
--can sound out several simple words
--can read our names (jack, luke, mom, dad, etc.)
--LOVES to learn about science--gravity, human body (including circulatory system, respiration, etc.), plant respiration, etc.
--good at computers--can navigate websites, and play games by himself--can use the touch pad
--good at building lego buildings
--can play lego wii (jack asked us to put this on here)
--great memory!
--very curious!
--can steer the tractor and truck on the farm
--knows his address (house number, road, "city", state, country)
--knows his phone number (when given the first number)
--can say the pledge of allegiance (thank you brenda at daycare)
--can jump high (jack asked this to be put on here too :D) 
--set the table, clear the table and put away dishes
--excellent vocabulary
--Nice manners 


luke (2 11/12):
--sing his abc's
--can count to 15
--can steer tractor and truck on the farm
--set the table, clear the table and put away dishes
--very good at spraying and cleaning the floor and table
--put on his own boots, shoes, etc.
--completely dress himself, except buttoning his pants
--stay in his bed all night long now (i hope) :)
--very curious! loves to ask WHY
--can sing lots of songs! and loves too! (wheels on the bus, row row row your boat, etc.)
-- can say his prayers
--knows lots of things about changing the oil in the vehicles, air compressors, tractors, engines, motors, etc. 
--can say part of the pledge of allegiance
--can get his own snack, and water from the fridge
--can jump really high
--knows his colors
--knows a few shapes (circle, square and triangle)
--can read his own name and jack's name
--knows the colors of various types of tractors (green=john deere, blue=ford, orange=kabota)
--excellent laundry helper
--knows how to feed cows
--excellent vocabulary (actually, though, regular, etc.) 
--has excellent manners!!

Angels

we had an interesting conversation tonight about angels. it all started when luke was convinced it was going to storm and thunder. he asked if he could go up to heaven and bowl with the angels. the conversation proceeded from there.... :) he and jack talked about how uncle tom was in heaven and that he must be an angel. luke wanted to know how angels go to heaven....and he said that God has a button he pushes so the person just goes right up. jack corrected him by saying, no luke the body gets buried and only their heart goes to heaven. luke responded with a nod and said yes but God pushes the button to get the heart to heaven. (which sounds quite logical to me). i asked luke if he had a favorite angel and he said the orange one. again jack had an opinion--he said no no no luke! there are no orange angels--they all wear white suits and have wings. jack asked then how the angels got their wings and josh and i both responded with we aren't sure. luke had an answer for jack, they just put them on. 

i had to smile as we talked about angels tonight :)

Great GREAT Grandma Nipper

 Great Great Grandma Nipper is 103.5--I feel strongly compelled to add the .5 because at that age you should get all the credit you can for your age. What is even more impressive than her age is the spunk she has! Grandma lives in a nursing home but up until the age of 95 she lived alone. Things changed when she fell breaking her hip and had to be moved into a place that could care for her physical needs. She was so alert when we visited over Easter Weekend--she listened as best she could (not sure her hearing aids were in :D), sang for us, smiled a lot and chatted. She has a GREAT sense of humor! Our boys are so lucky to have met her :)

 Meeting Great Great Grandma Nipper for the First Time! The boys were so sweet to her! :)

 

 Five Generations! 

Our Boys, Josh, Josh's Dad Gary, Josh's Grandma Hudson, Josh's Great Grandma Nipper

Two Little Peas in a Pod :) 

Grandma was singing to Luke :) 

Joe (Gary's Brother), Gary and their Grandma :)

We have longevity on my side of the family as well--My Great Grandma Yanikowski lived to be just over 100 years old. I was around 10 when she passed away but I remember her well :) It will be interesting to see how long we (Josh and I) live and what the future brings with all these great genes! I can see us 70 years from now living together in a nursing home, still madly in love and holding hands as we watch our cranked up too loud tv :)

Great Grandparents

Our boys are lucky enough to have three Great Grandpas, two Great Grandmas and one Great GREAT Grandma still living! When we traveled to Missouri over Easter Weekend, our boys were able to spend a lot of time with Josh's Grandpa George and Grandma Shirley. The boys had met them both 2 1/2 years ago but Luke had been 8 weeks old and Jack had been almost 2..... not even old enough to remember :) Josh's Grandpa George is AMAZING! He is 85 years old and acts much much much younger and is as strong as an ox. Grandpa George still cuts all his own fire wood,tends to cows that his son pastures on his land, cares for his house and lawn, as well as his wife Grandma Shirley. I am amazed at how much spunk he has for life and how he keeps himself so busy! He and Luke were two peas in a pod.  Grandma Shirley is younger than Grandpa George and has had some healthy problems that keep her from being as active as she would like. Even though it is hard for her to breathe and play with our boys, she spent quite a bit of time playing with Jack--they had a great time tossing around a ball, coloring and finding letters that Jack knew and chatting.   I love that our boys got to spend quality time with their great grandpa and grandma over the weekend :)

Josh and his Grandpa 

Grandpa George, Grandma Shirley, Cousin Amelia (Cara and Matt's Daughter) and our boys

Cori and Steve's Van got stuck in the grass at Grandpa George's farm...... from left to right pushing out the van is: Steve, Josh, GRANDPA GEORGE and Jason--three young men around 30 and ONE Grandpa! I told you Grandpa George was amazing! Jason's car also got stuck and sure enough, Josh and Grandpa George helped push it out..... :)

Luke with his Great Grandpa--I took this picture without them knowing it :)

Grandpa took the boys on a Mule Ride--Luke was in 7th Heaven! I hopped on back a little bit later and he took us Mudding through his woods :) We even went right through little creeks! :) 

Grandma Shirley and Jack were hard at work coloring at the Restaurant! :) 

In addition to getting re-acquainted with Grandpa George and Grandma Shirley, the boys got to meet their Great Grandma Hudson and Great Grandpa Larry for the first time! They are Gary's Mom and Step Dad :)  It was wonderful for them to get to know them and get some time to play--Grandma Hudson knew the way to Luke and Jack's hearts--tractors and cars! :) She had some waiting for the boys! 

The boys were thrilled that Larry had a big digger in the back yard! :) Here they are (below) driving and working the backhoe!

 Grandpa Larry and Grandma Hudson!

How to Successfully Travel Long Distances in the Car with Small Children

over the years, josh and i have traveled with our children many many many hours in the car! when we lived in mn, we had to travel 10-12 hours just to see our family and now that we live in mi, we are traveling less. however, we made the long journey to missouri over the long weekend. it was 8.5 hours there and 10.5 hours on the way home (bad traffic and extra stops attributed to the change in drive time). i have come up with many "tricks" to make the drive as successful as possible!

1. be proactive!!! plan plan plan ahead! i make a list (shocking i know) of any thing that will be packed for the car ride. i include things like lysol, paper towel and buckets (for mr. jack who tends to get car sick), dramamine and tylenol (for jack and headaches....kids and parents :D), toys, snacks, dvds, etc.

 2. get NEW stuff--does not matter what it is, but make sure it is new. this time around i bought some new toys (cheap things)--including buzz lightyear action figures :) i also bought new stringing beads, colorforms, magnetic tangrams, books on cd (dr.seuss), kids cds, "magic ink" coloring books, etc. i went on amazon and put in "travel toys/games for kids" and got lots of great ideas! i also have a friend who wraps all of the new things so her little one takes longer getting into it and enjoys it more....i did not want all the paper to deal with so i did not wrap them.

3. offer new things slowly--do not give them all at once or you will be done with the new and exciting things that keep the kiddos going! i gave them a new toy as soon as we got in the car but did not offer anything new for quite a while. i did not have a magic number for how long they had to wait, i just went with what i thought.

4. get creative and be okay with mess..... :) i allowed our boys to play with playdough on our way home and even though it was slightly messy, it kept them occupied for an hour! the mess was well worth that hour! :)

5. to prevent sickness, shake things up so the kids aren't always concentrating--we only let the kids watch a short movie, read for a few minutes, etc. before they are supposed to watch out the windows. the whole purpose behind the books on cd was so the boys could listen and watch out the window. 

6. snacks! i make sure to have snacks that the kids enjoy AND are good for "filling up a stomach" when someone is not feeling well. i also read online that suckers/hard candy are good for helping a tummy feel better so i packed dum dums. i also packed an entire thing of water bottles and two packs of juice boxes (apple and fruit punch). these kept the boys occupied AND helped us save money by having to get snacks/drinks when stopping.

7. clean up! i packed wet wipes (in addition to paper towels) and they came in handy LOTS of times for kids and adults--i made sure they were easy access the entire trip! 

our car rides were very successful :) it may seem a bit excessive on my part for doing so much but it really helped me have a much more enjoyable ride!

that bucket grandma hudson gave jack for easter was handy.... never had to use it but thought we might! 

paper towels, dual purpose--pillow and for any clean up :)

creative car games! buckets on your head, silly faces, count the cows, etc.... :) 

Happy Belated Easter

We enjoyed Easter in Missouri this year with Josh's side of our family :) 

Happy (Belated) Easter from the Boyer Family :)

Teaching vs. Discipline

tonight josh reminded me through his actions of something very important: our children cannot do things that we have not taught them. let me explain.

today was a tough day. our kids are tired and whiney from our 5 day vacation to missouri and i don't blame them. we were in the car 10+ hours yesterday and it was exhausting. we started with rambunctious kiddos this morning and then got slightly irritated kiddos and then by early evening we had full blown naughty kiddos who had a major case of the "i wants". jack was especially sassy and continued to yell "but i want, but i want"....i had enough and disciplined him by putting him the corner and telling him enough was enough (both boys were in the corner a lot today). i was tired of dealing with it and went to care for luke who needed a bath. i asked josh to take care of jack when his timer beeped. as i bathed luke, i overheard josh and jack. instead of just disciplining jack, josh was teaching him other things to say instead of "i want" when he would like something. it was a great conversation to overhear; it even included examples and non-examples (oh the teacher in me was so proud of josh) and it was a great reminder for me--my kids cannot do things that i have not taught them. sure i can tell him to stop saying "i want" but unless i give him something that can replace what he is already saying, i have not provided him with tools that will allow him and encourage him to change his behavior in the future! oh the mom light bulb went on :) cracks me up that i can do this all day in my professional life but when i am in the midst of a difficult day and right in the middle of "mom mode" i forget these wonderful tools that i already know! the lesson josh gave jack helped with some of the whiny-ness :) it did not change the cranky jack but it certainly did help for a little bit!

oh i am grateful that i am smart enough to step back and let my husband help me :) he reminded me today of the importance of teaching our children, in addition to disciplining!

bragging...and menu for the week

my hubby is an AWESOME chef....i must say he takes after me and has learned from me....and alton brown of course :) we just returned from a long long weekend in missouri and i wanted a tasty supper without the work (and did not want to eat out again). josh picked up fresh salmon from the store today and while the boys and i were out, he whipped up a super tasty supper! he baked the salmon in parchment paper with a smidge of butter, white wine, tarragon and dill. he served the fish with asparagus he roasted, wild rice, french bread and sliced strawberries. oh it was soooo tasty. i am lucky to have such an amazing husband :) he even started the dishes before supper!

Menu for the Week:
Wednesday: Salmon, Asparagus, Wild Rice, Strawberries and Bread
Thursday: Burgers, Chips and Fruit Salad
Friday: Chicken Tacos, Guac, Black Beans in Red Wine and Cilantro Rice
Saturday:Roasted Pork Loin, Asiago Potato Gratins, Broccoli, Bread and Fruit
Sunday: Ribs, Roasted Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes, Muffins, Tomato, Basil and Moz Salad
Monday: Grilled BBQ Chicken, Muffins, Veggie Kabobs
Tuesday: Breaded Shrimp, Crab Cakes, Homemade Fries and Fruit Salad
Wednesday: Homemade Stromboli, Chips, Applesauce/Salad

Many the Miles

Many the Miles this week!
5 miles Saturday
3 miles Sunday (with my neighbor who is new to 3 miles)
3 miles Monday (again with Shan who is new to 3 miles--wooo hooo go us)
3 miles Tuesday
3 miles Thursday (today)

Woooo Hoooo for me:) I did not want to run today but I did, even in 82 degree weather, and am glad I did!

Oh the Questions They Ask......... :D

we all know my boys are curious boys...... :) so it should not have surprised me tonight when i got lots of questions after luke found some feminine hygiene products! luke grabbed the product out of the drawer and asked what it was. i gave him the same answer i gave jack at that age: it is something mommies use. he was content with that answer but jack was in the hallway and taking all of this in. he was not satisfied with that answer....and called me on it :) he proceed to ask, why do mommies need them. i tried to explain, in my best "four year old" terminology that any lady might need one when they get older. that was still not enough and he questioned that. he asked if they were for "the butt".... and smiling, i responded yes :) i further explained that once a month ladies bleed, but they are okay. they do that because they can have babies but when there are no babies in the tummy, then the ladies need to use these products. that was finally enough to satisfy jack's curiousity and he went on his way playing.

i quickly walked into josh's office, where he cowardly stayed during this conversation and made eyes (bug eyes) at him..... like, uh okay--that was crazy to talk about with my four year old. josh said i did just fine.... but really i think he just grateful i covered that one :D :D

even though it was awkward, i am so glad our boys ask questions and i am glad i am brave enough to give real answers. i want to keep things simple and age appropriate but definitely still give real answers!