Updates, Sorry, Mom, my computer was down the week before Christmas...

The week before Christmas: Carter and Spencer both had parties at school and I was able to go to both (Carter's was Thursday, Spencer's was Friday). They had a lot of fun. Carter's school even had a surprise visit from Santa. Carter shook his hand and Miana sat on his lap... without crying!!

Late Thursday night, Don (Dave's brother) and Christina came into town. They came to our house on Friday and spent the afternoon with us.

Friday: I found out my c-section date... March 25, 9am!

Saturday we went to a tree farm with all of the Tarbets and picked out a tree for Gary and Vivian's house. It was a fun day, despite the mud and me twisting my ankle (very bruised and swollen).

Sunday: church, dinner with cousins, decorating the tree

Monday: Dave and I dropped the kids off with everyone else at Chuck E. Cheese and we went and did some last minute shopping. Stores were crowded and we went to 6 different places trying to find the perfect gifts...

Tuesday: Bowling! I was told that being 6 months pregnant and having an ankle that was still not healed, I was not allowed to bowl. So I watched Miana and took a few pictures... The boys did very well: Spencer getting a 65 the first game and about an 84 or so the second. Carter got a 69 the first game and somewhere in the 70s the second game.

After bowling we went back to Grandma and Grandpa's house for lunch and a pleasant afternoon. Danielle, Christina, and I went to the outlet mall just to walk around a bit and get Christina a new sweatshirt and a few other things. We bought the little girls matching outfits, but we will have to wait to give it to them, they only came in size 4T. :) Really cute, though!

Don and Christina: Disco maniacs

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It's not Christmas, but shows that kids can dance to all kinds of music!!

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Not Again... sorry, I just really love doing this!

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Getting into the Holiday Spirit

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The Tantrum of One Incredibly Independent Baby

Last Tuesday, Miana told me that she was poopy, I checked her and she wasn't. Ten minutes later, she was poopy. So, later that night, when she said she was poopy and she wasn't yet, I decided to let her sit on the toilet, just to see what would happen. She loved this!! She would sit there a minute or so, then try to get down (sometimes even saying, "down"), as soon as she was off I would try to put her diaper on and she would yell, "pee-pee!" like it was coming any second. So, I'd put her back on the toilet and repeat the whole process. We did this exact cycle several more times, leaving her on the toilet for around 10 minutes total. I was in the middle of making dinner and couldn't sit there any longer with her, so I pulled her off and put her diaper back on... thus starting the longest tantrum she has ever had. She sat on the floor of the bathroom and screamed for 15-20 minutes. She usually gets over stuff really fast, but this lasted forever! Here is my payback for that tantrum:

Note: the yellow color in the toilet is not from her, Carter used it seconds before she did...

Here is an example of my baby being independent and tell you a little something about her personality. The other night after dinner, I heard a noise in the kitchen. The boys had not cleared their plates earlier and the noise sounded like the baby playing so I turned to see what she was doing. She took the 2 plates off the table, stacked them together in her hand and took them into the kitchen, stood on her tippy toes, and slid them into the sink. She then looked around, saw another plate on the counter and took it to the sink. I grabbed my camera because I am sure someday I will need proof that she "cleared the table and cleaned up after dinner, JUST FOR FUN!" She'll never believe me...

A Quick Quote

While I was posting my last post, Carter walked by. He has been potty trained for quite some time and we have lived in this house for more than 3 years...

Carter: I have to go pee-pee.
Me: Okay.
Carter: We have a bathroom, right?


Um, yes, I think so.

A note about clothes...

After reading this post on Stacy's blog about jeans, I was reminded of the following email that Rae sent me years ago, here's just the first part:

THE BIRTH ORDER OF CHILDREN
Your Clothes:
1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.

I would add...
4th baby: your body is so stretched out that regular jeans are big enough to act as maternity clothes for at least half of the pregnancy, especially if you have a pair of Stacy's adjustable waist jeans. :)

Here's the rest of the email from Rae, just for fun:

Preparing for the Birth:
1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing.
3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your eighth month.

The Layette:
1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?

Worries:
1st baby: At the first sign of distress-a whimper, a frown-you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.

Pacifier:
1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.

Diapering:
1st baby: You change your baby's diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.

Activities:
1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
3rd ba by: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.
(I'll add 4th baby: lives in the car running around to take the other kids to various locations)

Going Out:
1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home five times.
2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.
3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.

At Home:
1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.
2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
3rd baby:You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.

Swallowing Coins (a favorite):
1st child: When first child swallows a coin, you rush the child to the hospital and demand x-rays.
2nd child: When second child swallows a coin, you carefully watch for the coin to pass.
3rd child: When third child swallows a coin you deduct it from his allowance!

GRANDCHILDREN : God's reward for allowing your children to live!!!!!

The Very Long Story of what happened on Aug. 25th

I do realize that the way I wrote the last post, it sounds like we just found out we were having a baby. No. We just found out that our baby is a girl. We have known since the end of July that we were expecting. We had an experience in August that has caused me to be more cautious in telling people this time then I normally am. Also, on top of this experience, we have still NEVER heard the baby's heart beat during a doctor's appointment. I wanted to make sure the baby was healthy before I shared publically. Here are some excerpts from the email I sent to my Mom telling her of the experience we had with the new baby on August 25:
"I had planned on taking Jaclyn to the airport, then going to my appointment where I would hear the heartbeat and have a quick sonogram. Then I would go to building next to my Dr.s office and pick up Carter's completed medical form, make a clothing donation, get gas in the car, and then return some DVDs to the video store, all while Denise (my neighbor) watched my kids. Jaclyn's plane got changed so she didn't need to be at the airport until after my appointment. So she came with me, but not wanting to be in the room with me while they did a ton of internal stuff, she waited in the waiting room. I went through all of the paperwork, laughing with the nurse practicioner about this being my 4th baby and maybe I should get a prize or frequent visitor's points. I then told her how blessed I was to have this be my 4th pregnancy and to have 3 healthy children from the last 3 pregnancies. She agreed that it is a miracle that I have had no problems in any of the past pregnancies. She asked how I was feeling and I said, "tired and sick, but I'm not as sick as I was with the other kids, I guess my body is just getting used to being pregnant. I'm quesy but I don't throw up too much. I'm mostly just tired all of the time." The doctor then came in and said, happily, "let's get a look at your baby!" She did a sonogram and her first question was, "are you sure about your dates?" I couldn't see the screen, so I didn't know what she was seeing. I told her that I was sure about the dates and told her that I had a dream that the baby was much further along than we thought. She said, "Well, I'm definately NOT seeing that." She then turned the screen so I could see it. all you could see was a small black dot, about 2 inches long with nothing in it. Then you saw off to the side one of my tubes that was cloudy. She explained that black area could be a yolk sac (the placenta and amniotic fluid) but that there should be a baby in it, she said also, that from the cloudiness, it was hard to tell, but that it looked like there could be a developing fetus in my tube. She then said, "I am not a radiologist, so I can't be positive what this all is, but I don't see anything here that looks like a normal pregnancy. I want you to go to the hospital today to get a better sonogram and have a radiologist diagnose what it is going on. They won't tell you anything, so you will leave the hospital not knowing, we want to tell you ourselves, but I won't let you sleep on this, we'll make sure you know tonight. We'll either talk to you on the phone or call you back into the office."
She called the hospital and made a rough appointment for 4pm, but told me that I was an add on, so everyone would get pushed ahead of me when problems came up, so not to count on getting in right at 4. It was now 3pm, I started crying as I called Denise to ask her if she could stay with the children for the rest of the day, she started to cry, being so worried for me and as we got off the phone she said, "I'll pray for you." I was then crying as I got into the waiting room and Jaclyn didn't know what to do.
She drove to the airport, we said good bye and I tried not to get upset as I drove to Reston Hospital. I called Vivian and told her what was happening and she said she would meet me there. I really wanted to get a blessing before we went in, but there wasn't time to get anyone there. (We didn't know I was going to wait at the hospital until 5:15 before they could even see me.) As I drove in the car alone I prayed that everything would be okay. I asked Him specifically for a miracle. I knew what He could do wasn't necessarily what He would do. I then told Him how much I wanted Dave to be with me. With Dave out of the country, I didn't have a way to contact him, I have to wait for him to call me, so I didn't think he would know what was going on until late that night. I got to the hospital, Vivian gave me a hug and it was just nice to have support. Miracle 1: At 4:30, Vivian's phone rang and it was Dave. He had called the house and Denise just told him that I was at the hospital and that his mom was with me. So he called her phone and I was able to tell him what was going on and he said that he didn't care how much it cost in roaming charges, that I needed to call him as soon as I knew what was going on. Why was this a miracle? Because I needed to talk to him. I needed to tell him what was going on. AND he never calls before 8pm when he's in Canada... NEVER. Now he knew to leave his cell phone on, which he doesn't do because of roaming charges when he's out of the country. I was extremely grateful for his call. I said a silent prayer thanking Heavenly Father for sending that impression to Dave that he needed to call home so that I could hear his voice before going in. Finally, the technician called me in and wouldn't let Vivian come with me. The technician was a nice, wonderful lady who handled the situation perfectly for me. She wanted to know if Vivian was my mom, and I said, "no. My mom is in Switzerland and my husband is in Montreal, so I called the next best thing, she's my mother-in-law" The technician said, "It's nice that she cares about you, not all mother-in-laws are like that. I told her that my in-laws are really amazing and I have been extremely blessed. She then asked about my kids. She wanted to know who was watching them and I told her it was my kind neighbor. She kept me talking through the whole first part of the exam and it was always about my blessings. She finished the first part of the exam and said to me, "it sounds like no matter what happens here today, you are a truly blessed person. You have tons of friends, family, and neighbors who love you." She told me that she saw the yolk sac, but also couldn't see anything inside of it. We moved to a different room with a different machine so she could do an internal ultrasound. They have a long skinny stick they can put inside to see what's going on better, but it's still a black and white image, like a regular u/s. She moved it around a bit and still could only see a yolk sac, but no image of a baby inside. She moved the probe in further (highly uncomfortable, had me put my feet down on the table and push off so my bum was in the air. As I'm sitting there uncomfortably, and doing gymnastics on the table, she said, "I need you to turn and look at the screen..." I turned and she said, "This is your baby." There it was. I said, "is it okay?" She said, "it appears to be." I started to cry, again. She had to move the probe in all kinds of horrible positions to be able to see it and could only get a heart beat when she was directly facing it. There was no way the doctor would have been able to do that with the equipment she had. I'm still a little sore from the whole ordeal but it was worth the pain. I even got to see it's little heart beating. She sent me out to the waiting room and said to wait because they would contact the doctor and have her talk to me on the phone there at the hospital. They called her, she got on the phone with me and said, "This a prime example of why if we aren't sure about something, we send you to the experts. We'll see you in 4 weeks at your next appointment. Congratulations."
Vivian started crying, I called Dave, he didn't cry but sounded like he might start. In the car on the way home I prayed again, thanking Heavenly Father for my miracles and blessings. All the way home I sang the song, Count Your Many Blessings... The whole day was emotionally exhausting and a huge testimony builder for me! I am truly thankful for the blessings I have and how the thoughts of those blessings help me through rough times. I am grateful that Heavenly Father watches out for little old me and knows what I need to learn and knows that I will be grateful for learning the lesson without having to actually learn the hard way."

So, you see, I didn't want to rush out and tell the world that I am pregnant, just in case. I have told many, many people, especially those that see me on a regular basis (I'm fairly obvious already, on Sunday I was told, "You look REALLY pregnant today." It's true, I do) but I needed to have this 20 week diagnostic ultrasound before I publically announced. We are excited and looking forward to our new daughter.

A quote from Spencer...

Today, we found out some exciting news and here is Spencer's response...

He pats my tummy and says, "Good job being a girl, Baby."

We are due April 2, 2009, it's a girl.

Hiding, Hair, and 18 month visit (okay, so she was 19 mnths)

This is our new favorite hiding place...

For those that don't think I ever do her hair, I do... she just wiggles a lot, so I can't get it to look nice and then she pulls it out in about 2 minutes or less. I was able to capture a couple times with it done but that's because she was busy drinking and didn't think about pulling it out yet. And no comments on how she's 1.5 years and still drinking from a bottle... I know, I know...

I took her to the doctor this week for her 18 month check-up, but really she is 19 months this week. She is 25lbs. 5oz., which puts her at the 50th percentile for weight. She was 32.5 inches tall which is 75th percentile for height. She's getting big!

The problem with a traveling husband/dad

My husband has had to travel a lot in the last 3 years. We are hoping that this will slow down soon because of his recent promotion. However, the travel has caused some problems with the children...
Problem 1: Spencer likes to play with friends all afternoon, come home, have dinner and then watch TV before bed. When Daddy is home, we have to watch "Daddy shows" and no more "kid shows." Spencer just about has a meltdown on nights when Dave is home. He has even said, "Why aren't you leaving?" or "Why are you here?" So sad that he actually prefers to have his dad gone... (he doesn't prefer it, actually, he loves when Dave is home... he just really likes routine too and gets upset when it is disturbed)
Problem 2: Carter thinks that Dave works at the airport or on an airplane. This came from hearing me say, "Come say goodbye to Daddy, he has to go to work. Give Daddy hugs, he's going to the airport. Be safe on the aiplane, Daddy!" I can see how that would be confusing.
Problem 3: Miana thinks that every phone call is Daddy. When she is pretend playing, she calls Daddy on the phone. She thinks that it is the only way she can talk to him. This is one reason she loves the phone so much, Dave is her favorite person and for most of her life the speaker on the phone sounds mostly like Daddy...
Problem 4: I miss him when he's gone.

Only one more trip this year and then he'll hopefully be around a bit more next year...

Politics and children...

We have had lots of political discussions in our home in the last week or so. This is because of all of the political information my kids are picking up from TV, radio, kids at school, and listening to me talk to various people. One day, Spencer came home and said, "I'm voting for John McCain." Carter heard him and quickly said, "I'm voting for Barak Obama." I then talked to both of them about voting, what it means, and that they should have good reasons for their choices. Neither one could tell me why they wanted that person. Last Thursday was a politically charged day for our family. Carter's friend at school told him, "I'm voting for McCain because Barak Obama is a lier. McCain used to lie, but he doesn't any more." That is a boy who just barely turned 5. Later that afternoon, I got the following email from Spencer's tutor. She is a huge Broncos fan and a McCain supporter. Subject: School Voted Today, "Okay, so I asked the boys who they voted for and why... Ryan said he voted for McCain because he's an old man, Spencer voted for McCain because his parents were voting that way, and this is the best... J.D. voted for Barak Obama because Barak O sounds like Bronco.... perhaps we should indoctrinate our children with something other than the Broncos! ha ha ha!" That evening, we were in the car and I asked Spencer about the school election. He shook his head sadly and said, "Mom (I could hear the dispair in his voice) my school voted for Obama." He seemed so sad and disappointed. He then added, "and JD voted for Barak Obama on accident." It was quite funny how he said everything... I then reminded both boys that you need to have good reasons for who you choose. Spencer asked me why I liked McCain and I told him that I thought McCain could protect our country better than Obama could. He then asked why I didn't like Obama. I told him because Obama wanted to take away our money. So, after that conversation, Carter would tell everyone that Barak Obama wanted to take ALL of money away from us. This morning I told the boys who won the election. Spencer got very nervous and said, "Mom, is he going to take away are money today?" I assured him that we were safe for now and then he said, "Will I still be allowed to play outside?" Oh, the things that worry small children...
For those of you that are worried about me indoctinating my children... I did also talk to both boys about respecting the President even when we don't agree with everything he does.

Halloween: Costumes and Jack-o-lanterns

My boys are really into Star Wars and I am really into theme Halloweens so... Here's Halloween 2008: Luke Skywalker, C3PO, and Princess Leia



Also, we carved Pumpkins: Here's Carter's glowing and Spencer with his...

Carter's Preschool Halloween Party!!

At Carter's school they do a Halloween party where they have the kids dress up, do a costume parade and then have a fun party that the parents are invited to. They had quite the feast (crakers, fruit and about 5 desserts)! The teacher read them a story while they waited for parents to set up the table with treats, it was a great party!

The story of the old shoes:

I never buy expensive shoes. Never. If they cost more than $30, they are not worth it. Sometime around 10 years ago, I bought these shoes, I think they cost about $25-


They were my favorites. They had just the right amount of heel to help me feel dressy, but it was wide enough not to feel clumsy. The straps made me feel feminine, which was a nice feeling after a long week of chasing kids. 2 months ago, the strap broke on one of the sandals. It was beyond repair and I was devastated. It was like losing an old friend. I then began my search for new black dress sandals. After searching online and finding nothing. I gave up the search for several weeks until my Mother-in-law and Sister-in-law took me shopping and were determined to find me some shoes. After 2 shoes stores, I think they realized that I had something very specific in mind and wasn't going to settle for anything less. That's right, I wanted MY black sandals. Some exactly like the ones that broke. We finally gave up the search after going into 4-5 stores. A few days later, I got back on the internet and found several pairs that were okay, all very expensive. I chose my favorite pair.

They were a pricey $75, which I was willing to pay if they fit well and if I thought they would last me awhile. So I bought them.
Here is the story of the new shoes:
First, I saw that they came in a very child-like box.

With cute little bears. I thought that was interesting, but that was it.
Then I opened the box, it slid open from the side, which was a very fancy way to do it. The shoes were covered in a beautiful tissue paper, which also made them seem fancy (I think everything seemed fancy because I had paid so much)
Next, I noticed the fancy shape holder inserts, they were very fancy with the printed bow on them (not the scrunched up paper that I normally see)

Then I started to turn them over...

... and found the most beautiful unicorn a girl could ever imagine!
And, yes! Their are 2 of them!!!
The artwork alone was worth the $75! Too bad they were a little tight and seemed a bit flimsy in construction. I had to send them back!

At least it made me laugh!

One of my favorite quotes...

What happens when you ask 6 year olds what they would transform into if they could be anything? Hilarity happens. Here is Spencer's response to his teacher's question of "What would you transform into?"

"I would transform into a bee because bumble bees can sting people."

(I noticed that some kids said their favorite foods, so they could eat themselves, i.e. ice cream or cookies... at least Spencer has some sense of self-preservation.)

Mob lynching, death to spiders...

So, there was a small house spider on our kitchen floor this morning. I don't like spiders and don't want them inside my house. I have adopted a friend's motto that if we are in their environment, we leave them alone (mostly) and if they are in our environment, I can do what I want with them... like smash them. Anyway, this morning, I got a shoe and smashed the spider, left the room to get toilet paper to clean him up off the floor and when I returned, I saw my 2 young children, each had a shoe in hand and were taking turns smashing the spider. Carter hit it, then Miana, then Carter, then Miana. That spider was dead, as dead as any one tiny creature could be. I almost felt sorry for it, falling victim to the mob like that, but then I remembered that I had smashed decently the first time, so it felt nothing of the other attacks... Fun times at our house!

Appreciation

First of all, for those of you who asked how you can get your own Miss Denise, here's the answer: There are tons of houses for sale in my neighborhood, buy one of those, move in, and I will be happy to share Miss Denise with you!

I have had various health problems lately (back problems, leg problems, nausea, seasonal allergies, a sinus infection, just to name a few) and so I have had to do a lot of "resting." (Yes, I used the quotes because those of you who have three or more children know that there is little time for actual rest.) I have, however, been unable to stand for long periods of time and for the majority of the last 3 weeks, I have not been able to sit at all. Which means I have spent most of the time lying down, either on the couch or on the floor. During this time, Miana has thought that I was down low so that I could play with her. When I am on the floor she climbs or sits on me, when I'm on the couch she brings me things. I have really come to appreciate her personality. She says and does the cutest things. I look at everything she does with wonder, amazement, and excitement. She, being the 3rd child, has often been overlooked because of all the hustle and bustle in our home. Early mornings are spent getting the boys ready for school, mornings are spent running errands, afternoons are her nap time, and evenings are for getting homework done. Notice in there I never mentioned housework or meals... Sometimes Miana doesn't even get a real breakfast because I am getting things done for the boys. She is often left to entertain herself. I have been grateful for the inability to do real housework the last couple of weeks because of the time it has given me to see who Miana is and spend time with her! I love my sweet little girl! Hooray for Sciatica!

Carter and the Green Tomato Relish

We have a wonderful neighbor who is amazing with my kids and takes care of me and my family. She is what the boys call, "our Miss Denise." Everyone should have a Miss Denise, really. She knows everything about everything and is always there to help. She has my kids help her in the garden and occassionally in the kitchen. She is the neighborhood "freezy pop" provider and you can often see her teaching all of the neighbor kids to stop, look, and listen before crossing the street. She teaches my kids to do their chores when I can't get them to pick up a single thing without a huge fight. She is a great blessing to me. This week she came over and picked the rest of my tomatoes (mostly green ones) and helped me pull my garden so it will be ready for a nice compost pile over the next few weeks and winter. She took the whole box of tomatoes home and then had Carter come and help her make Green Tomato Relish. Here are the pics she took and a couple that Carter took of our Miss Denise.

Journal Entry, Oct. 7, 2008

Today I got a note from Spencer's substitute teacher. He got in trouble because he peed on the wall outside at recess. Hummm, not sure how to handle that one, I never had the desire to pee on a wall. I have never wanted to pee in public, I have a hard enough time when there are other people in a public restroom who can hear me...
He informs me that he got sent to the principal's office and that he doesn't get to participate in recess tomorrow. I will suggest to the teacher that perhaps he can scrub the wall during recess... maybe not, he thinks cleaning stuff is fun... I'm not sure what to do.

Halloween Candy

We never seem to have enough and when I buy what seems to be enough, we end up with waaaayyyyy toooo much. I do usually end up buying extra the week of Halloween, just to make sure we are covered, but by then, all the good stuff is sold out and all that is left is the nasty stuff that no one wants (like little bags of pretzels, eye ball shaped candies, and generic stuff that tastes a bit like cardboard). So this year, I thought I would start early. I also knew that I would open it at some point before Halloween. I had intended to make it at least a week, possibly two before opening a bag. I bought several bags of candy this morning. I then left them in the car so I wouldn't be tempted this morning. I remained untempted as I got back in the car to pick up Carter. He got in the car and still, I thought nothing of the candy sitting in there. Carter asked about it and sat down. I explained that it was for Halloween and he seemed to accept that. As luck would have it, on the car ride home I begun to have an uncontrollable craving for a Kit Kat Bar. When we got home, Carter asked a simple question that led way to a moment of satisfaction and has caused me considerable guilt. He simply asked, "if I eat something healthy for lunch, can I have one candy?" What Mom is going to say no to that? It was insightful, well thought out, and precise. It was a good deal for me and for him. I agreed to one candy. I told him to please look for the red bag (the kit kats) and we were both happy. I have since eaten 4 of them (they were the little ones) and I have not yet had my "something healthy" at this rate I will need to eat a huge salad for lunch to make up for the little snacks... The "Halloween Candy" made it a whole 2 hours... (no, I didn't misuse the quotation marks)

Naked? Is that the right word?

This morning on the way to preschool, Carter was looking out the window. He commented on the different colors that the leaves are turning on the trees. He commented that some were yellow, some were red, some brown, and some still green. He then asked if sometimes they turn orange. I told him that that some trees do have leaves that turn orange in the Fall. He then listed all of the colors (the ones I just mentioned) and added at the end, "and blue, right Mom, sometimes they turn blue." I told him that I had never seen a blue leaf in the Fall, that mostly they are green and turn to red, orange, or yellow and eventually all turn brown. He then said, "In the Fall, the leaves are all the pretty colors and then in Winter, the trees are naked."

Well, um, yes, I suppose that is technically true.

Lost in Translation...

So, recently I have been looking into various options for a small family dinner in Switzerland for the next time I visit my parents. In my efforts, I have often had to translate pages from French to English (woo hoo for babelfish!) Sometimes I can get the gist of what is being offered and sometimes I have no clue wat they are talking about. Here is a menu I translated this morning Let's see if you find it appetizing!

MENUS OF THE SOIL

Suggestion I
Aperitif

Hydromel, Farm Juice of Apple, Mineral Water
Head of Monk, Bread to Figs
Bacon with Spices of First

Menu

Soup of the Monks of the Market, with the Chimney according to the Place
---
Trout muslin of the Lake
Shrimp paste
Fennel compote
---
Knuckle of ham of Crystallized Duck to Boletus
Graniture of the Market
Parmentier muslin
---
Dresser of Desserts
“Softnesses of our Mothers”


Suggestion II
Aperitif

Hydromel, Farm Juice of Apple, Mineral Water
Head of Monk, Bread to Figs
Bacon with Spices of First

Menu
Light cream with the Sorrel with Cumin
---
Pot with the Fire of the Lake to Chervil
Forgotten vegetables
---
The Poulard one of Perly to the Ginger in
Salt crust
Range of the Market
---
Dresser of Desserts
“Softnesses of our Mothers”


Suggestion III

Aperitif
Hydromel, Farm Juice of Apple, Mineral Water
Head of Monk, Bread to Figs
Bacon with Spices of First

Menu
Feast of the Monks
“Range of Medieval Mets Gargantuesques of which Pot of Pet peeve Powdered with Spices to the Evocative Names such as Safran, Coriandre, Honey, Almonds….”
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Mironto de Boeuf St-Joseph with Honey and Almonds
Muslin of Roots in Safran
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The Table of Softnesses of the Monastery


GREEDY MENUS OF THE LORDS OF THE MANOR
Small Castle of Oron

Sweet peppers with the Furnace, Tomatos Dried with Mint and Roasted Aubergine
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Gamba “Right Cooked” with Endives,
Fennel seeds
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Steaklet of duck to the Sweet wine, Juniper
Vegetables of the Market to the Olive oil
Cake of Potato to Boletus
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The Dresser of Softnesses of our Mothers

Menu
Castle of Chillon


Velvety Greedy of Garden peas,
Friolée de Lard Smoked
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Net of Poisson of the Market with
Red curry, Ginger
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Ox net Cooks Rosy, Citron Green and
Butter Tomaté
Apples Emulsion, Pistachio Oil
of Sévery
Trimming of the Market
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Fresh Carpaccio d' Ananas in Coriandre,
Granite with the Red Fruits


Menu
Castle of Romont
Foam of Lawyer, Tartar of Shrimps and
Oil Basil
OR
Gravelachs with Pink Bays and Coriandre
on Bed of Mesclun
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Mushroom fricassee of Wood
OR
Pot of Young rabbit to the Foie gras
and its Onion Jam
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Filet mignon of Pig to the Star anise and with
Black The
OR
The Guinea fowl with the Cream Way “Mother White”
Poêlée de Pommes with Shallots
Vegetables of the Market
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Refined Cheeses
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Resident of Dax with Chestnuts and Large - marnier
Cream Vanilla with the Ginger

Menu
Castle of Poker
Pressed Foie gras with Pears,
Fresh artichoke
OR
Carpaccio de Lotte with Small Vegetables
and its Purées
OR
Blue fin Tuna Tartar and his
Biscuits with Spices
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Pike pot Homardine Sauce
OR
Ruail drinking cup to the Foie gras
Mesclun, Oil of Sévery
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Calf square Thawed in Clavados
OR
Ox net in Crust of Sweet herbs
Trimming of the Market
Apples “Anna”
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Pot of Blue to Nuts and Grapes of Corinth
Greenery of Mesclun to the nut Oil
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Foam Normande with Caramel and
Apples Flambe
OR
Truffle with the Black chocolate 72%

SPECIAL OFFER “MARRIAGE”
Small “Passion”

Put in Mouth of the Chief
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Air of Soft Potato
Poisson of the Infused Market
Pesto de Ruccola
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The Steaklet of duck to Citrus fruits
Crystallized of Endives
The Trimming of the Market
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Refined Cheeses of Morges
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White Cake of the Grooms the “on White”


I think my personal favorites are "Head of Monk" "Soup of the Monks of the Market, with the Chimney according to the Place" "Dresser of Dessert:Softness of our Mothers" and the menu title of "Greedy menus of the Lords of the Manor", these are all very nice. I have come across the word Soil, used here at the top of the menu, many times. One restaurant boasted the highest quality soil. I am not exactly sure what that has to do with cooking... maybe I don't want to know...

Carter

Before I get into this post, I have a bit of business. In my last post I forgot to mention that I was in the middle of assigning parts and putting together the Primary Program. This has been taking up any additional time I've had for the past 2 weeks. Someday, I also hope to have an actual Presidency Meeting, that would be great! I am also in charge of Sharing Time this month, so I should be working on that as well. :)
Now, on to Carter. He has always been strong willed. One time, I told him if he didn't put his bike away in the garage, I would pick it up and throw it away. Of course, I wasn't going to throw it away, it's a perfectly nice bike, but he should not have known that, he was only 3 at the time. So he looked at me and said, "Okay. Throw it away." So I picked it up and put it on top of the trash can and there is sat for 3 days until he finally said, "I want to ride my bike, I'm sorry I didn't put it away before, I promise to put it away today." Which he did. Lately, he has been SOOO argumentative. Usually, it's simple things like I tell him that he can't play until he cleans up and he says, "yes I can. I'm going to play right now." Which then starts an argument about me being the Mom and he has to do what I say and him saying things like, "I can do what ever I want." Which is always fun from a 4 year old. In the past 2 weeks he has really starting arguing about everything, it seems like he does it just to argue. I think this because he has begun arguing about facts. Here are 2 examples: Spencer said, "JM is Jacob's brother." Carter says, "No he's not." Clearly this is true and Carter knows it, he just wanted to argue. The other example is from a few days ago. It was raining and I said, "It's still raining outside." Carter said, "No it's not. There's no rain."
This is driving me crazy! You can't have an argument when the person is completely ignoring facts. How am I supposed to have a normal argument with my 4 yr. old if he isn't playing by the rules... Cheater!

Sorry, no blogging... for now

I have had a lot going on, some things that I will blog about later (when I have time) and some things that don't require extra explanation, so here are my excuses for the last 1.5 weeks and the next little while to come...
No Posting Excuses: planning and attending Ward Pool Party, celebrating Danielle's birthday, being a single parent while Dave was in Montreal, watching kids so Jane could pack up, cleaning up, watering the garden, making meals for children, sleeping, watching Jane's kids again, grocery shopping, planning and attending Trent and Jane's going away party, being a single parent while Dave was in Montreal... again, having to say good bye to my brother and his family for 10 months, dropping my sister off at the airport and saying good-bye until next summer, spending a couple hours at the hospital, watering my garden again and again hoping to save my plants after several days of neglect, dealing with a difficult child (okay, really I have 3 difficult children), wondering and worrying if Spencer's new teacher is really going to work for him, stressing over needing to drive all the way to Ashburn to pick up a medical form that I forgot to get on Monday, needing to return over-due movies, make a clothing donation, get school supplies, fill up 2 cars with gas, pick up a few things at Rhonda's house, and go swimming one more time before school starts. That's not everything, but the big things that I need to do...

About a little girl... read the captions to get the stories

Eye Obsessed

So, got a new camera (thank you, DAVE!!) and have been completely obsessed with trying to take a perfect picture of an . think they are both disgusting and beautiful at the same time. Anyway, have fun guessing who these all belong to. :)

Bounteous Harvest 2: Cucumbers

I'm waaaayyy behind on posting. I took this picture of my first cucumbers back in July. Since then, I've harvested around 20-30 of them. My kids loved the first 5 of them, after that, they lost interest and I was able to eat them for several weeks after they did before I finally got sick of them. So now, I am giving them away to anyone who will take them. I have more pictures somewhere of Miana in my garden so I will find those and post them soon... Most of my cucumbers were bigger than these first ones.

Breaking the silence... with Chewy Box and the Bunny Hunter

I think I have posted before about my children and them calling things by the wrong name. I don't have time to find the post, so you'll have to look. But here are some that we have come across most recently, (even if I already posted about them)...

Some months ago, we were meeting Daddy at the video store. Carter says, "Are we going to Mythbusters?" Spencer, somewhat annoyed said, "It's not Mythbusters, it's Blackbuster."
I was reminded of this the other day when once again, Carter said, "and we can rent it at Mythbusters, right?"

My favorite thing is to listen to them talk about Star Wars characters. They discuss the big hairy guy, called Chewy Box and talk about the mean and scary, Bunny Hunter... ooohh, just hearing that makes me cower in fear, watch out for the Bunny Hunter (for those of you who haven't yet figured it out, that's Bounty Hunter.)

So next time you're in the mood to rent a movie, try the place where they don't like the color black(or is it a place where they investigate urban legends), and maybe check out the movie about the big hairy, chewy guy who fights with a man who hunts tiny, adorable rabbits.

UPDATE: I found the old post, it was in February click here

Curiosity and Science Sunday

I have a friend who has been working with Spencer on some academic things. There was a moment when I needed to describe Spencer's academic needs to his school and I asked for her opinion. She said, "Spencer always has an experiment going on in his head." I thought about this and what she meant and it's true. He's always thinking about something... how it works, what he could do with it, or perhaps what would happen if... He only pauses from these thoughts to play with friends.

The other day, he was playing outside and later that evening I went out to get something and found these cups all lined up on the deck. At first glance, they look like they are full of water.

Then I found this container inside the house on the kitchen table, empty.

If you can't see it clearly, it says, "Miracle Bubbles." I asked him about it and he simply said, "I just wanted to see." See what? What would happen? How much was in the bottle? I don't know, but the experiment seemed to be complete. The answers to the questions are: There was enough bubble solution to fill 9 cups about 3/4 full and if you leave them out all day, likely you will have bugs and spiders that investigate and eventually get stuck and die in the solution.

Due to Spencer's curiosity and our never-ending struggle to harness his energy for good, we have decided to implement Science Sunday. We don't do it every Sunday, but on Sunday afternoons when we are spending time with the family and we don't have other obligations (naps?) we think of an experiment we can do with the kids. This was Dave's brillant idea and I wish I had thought of it! Our first experiment was a couple of weeks ago, we made oobleck. Definition from Wikipedia: a substance that is used as a science aid to teach children about liquids and solids. This oobleck is created from cornstarch or potato flour and water in a ratio between 2:1 and 3:2. Though initially it acts like a viscous liquid, applying pressure quickly will make it appear to be a solid for a short time. The oobleck also behaves unlike conventional solids or liquid when thrown in the air, molded, heated, or vibrated.

They had a blast!! I love Science Sundays!