Playing Dead....

This afternoon, I walked into the living room to this sight. Awww..... the imagination of a child!

The Tale of Solomon & the Bike......

Our oldest son Solomon is very much like me. He does things in his time, with a bit of a stubborn streak. He is going to be 8 years old mid-June, and Peter & I have tried for 3 years to teach him how to ride a two wheeler. We have been completely unsuccessful. It has caused many fights & tears, and this year I decided it just isn't worth it. I have given my resignation as a bike trainer, and completely shut my mouth. I contemplated not even buying him a bike this year (we sold his old one in Colorado), but in April we found a bike without training wheels for $7 at a resale shop. WE took the bike home, stuck it on our front porch and Peter & I didn't talk about it. One of the tires needed to be pumped up, and we didn't have a pump. So it sat for a week. I think the anticipation was building for Solomon, because as soon as the bike was ready he jumped on.

Over the time period of three weeks, Solomon taught himself how to ride a bike. In fact, my birthday present from him this year was watching him riding his bike without falling! It was amazing! And so good to see the look of accomplishment on his face- it was priceless. He is now mastering the skill of braking, and not going so far down the block that I can't see him. Boundaries, boundaries, boundaries- once they start, they don't stop.

Now I am praying that teaching him to drive a car doesn't take 3 years. It's a good thing he is only 8.

Stream of Consciousness

I was looking through my pictures this morning- and the one above really struck me. Mainly because a little over 8 years ago none of these beautiful smiling faces were part of our family. In all reality they weren't even an idea in my head.
When I went off to college in 1998, my belief was I would go through school, find a job and work for the rest of my life. I didn't fathom getting married, let alone have 4 children by the time I was 28. Bottom line I knew nothing of what was to happen in the coming years. I thought I did, but I was clueless.
So here I am at the ripe old age of 30 looking back at God's grace in my life. There is no one like the Lord. He is mighty with compassion, loving when we don't deserve it, - He knit together 7 little lives in my womb, and chose to take 3 of them home to Him. 4 others He gave us the privilege of raising to the best of our ability, and rely on Him for the rest. He doesn't desert you- He is the keeper of promise. He sacrificed His son for all of us- so that we could go home to Him one day and experience the perfection of His presence. And in the meantime we enjoy His beautiful creation & fellowship with others. I don't want to take a minute of my time for granted, but I know that I will. And when I do I can count on Him to forgive me, and lead me back to where I belong. In His glory.
These are my thoughts right now, nothing magnificent and beautiful but true.

$1 for ice cream!!! I am there!

So the last couple weeks at about 7 PM we hear the charming tunes of the ice cream truck coming down our street. The ice cream truck is the icon of summer, you know the season is here when you hear little kids screams of delight or despair depending on their parents pocketbooks.
I am a professed no cash carrier. I never have it, and normally neither does Peter. And honestly most of the time when the truck goes by we haven't even eaten dinner yet. So our kids odds of a cold treat is minimal at best. But last night was a different story......

Right after we ate, we went outside for some bike/scooter riding and that is when we heard the Pied Piper tune. Solomon & Zeke start to jump up and down simultaneous with Peter pulling cash out of his pocket. Everyone's eyes light up- you would think we had never eaten ice cream in our lives! Then a minute and a half later we couldn't figure out if the ice cream truck was driving down our street or the next. Terror seizes all of us, until Peter reassures us that yes, the truck is on our street! Jack pot!! The truck comes, and the kids expect to all share 2 ice cream treats, because normally they are expensive. But this is a magical, beautiful ice cream truck that has WHAT!!!! A DOLLAR MENU!!! Since when did they start to do that!! It is amazing and makes us customers for life!!! Can you get any better than ice cream for $1!!!!!!

After each of our older children makes his/her choice and the truck drives away, Peter goes nuts. He realizes he could have just bought a dreamsicle for himself- but the truck is gone!! So he proceeds to stare Mary's dreamsicle down for the entire 15 melty minutes it took her to eat it. She loved the dreamsicle and probably all the attention that she was getting from Daddy. But all in all it was a wonderful 30 minute time period- these are the things that memories of made of. But I have a feeling that next time Peter will be prepared, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if he walks around with a dollar bill in his pockets at all times from now on, you know just in case. It is the start of a happy Summer!!!!!

Ella the Rockstar.....

This is Zeke when he is sick....

Zeke is our very vivacious, energetic 5 year old. I don't believe that he knows how to stop moving. It is just not in his genes- he can't sit still ever. When he was 18 mos. old he had closed heart surgery. Typically you are supposed to be in the hospital for a week, but Zeke was released in 4 days. The second day we were home, he climbed onto our dining room table grabbed the chandelier and swung as far as he could. I looked up and there he was, my little Tarzan with all his fresh stitches pulling with the motion. Yikes! Needless to say- he is hard to keep up with.

Saturday afternoon Zeke came down with a fever, and I just wanted to give you a look at what he is like when he is ill. It is pretty hard to tell the difference between a sick day, and a well day. Oh well- I'll do the best that I can, and hopefully we won't have to make too many trips to the hospital as the boy gets older.

The cupcakes...

So like I said in the previous post- Peter & I slaved for
about 6 hours painting these little wooden dolls to look like each of the little girls that attended Mary's party. So I just wanted to post a few pictures to remember our handy work, and remind myself that I can be crafty on certain days with enough motivation! Must remember this post in the dead of winter-when I intend to teach myself how to knit finally!!

Mary's 4th Birthday

This week brings us to our sweet darling Mary Jane's 4th birthday! It is so hard to believe that she is that old! I can easily remember the summer she was born- and she was such a good, sweet baby. She would literally play in her crib for hours, and sit in the middle of the floor watching the boys run around her with a huge smile on her face. Then she turned 1, started talking and has not stopped since! She is such a pretty little girl, but there is just something about her coy smiles, and widely spaced eyes that look at far away places that we have never been, that make her truly beautiful! Jesus made a completely different breed of girl with Mary Jane. But when you look into her eyes you can truly believe there is another land somewhere out there with fairies, princesses and tea parties at all hours of the day (oh yeah and people that never, ever sleep!)
Anyway back to the party! Since her actual birthday is so close to Memorial Day we chose to celebrate the weekend before, and since it is May I pictured beautiful blue sun filled skies. But that is not what we had, so we made the best of the rain. It was a very girly party full of bracelet making (or in some cases- necklaces), nail polishing and princess tea parties. We just had 3 friends, and it made the party down right pleasant! I think it is the first party I really truly enjoyed myself. The only downer was Peter & I painted these sweet little wooden dolls from Etsy like each of the little girls that attended the party, to put on top of the cupcakes. They were beautiful- Peter is super talented and made the hair very realistic! But the cupcakes were horrible looking- since it was so humid outside the cupcake tops were coming off and mixing in the cupcakes. So the frosting was pink with chocolate specks!! Oh well, you win some, you lose some!! What matters is Mary Jane helped me make the very bright pink frosting, and I am counting on her remembering that!!
We ended the party with a tea party on the front porch (with a little rain mixed in), and Mary had a fabulous time serving the girls tea (water), and eating cupcakes. It was beautiful all in all, and I am so thankful for the Lord's provision in adding Mary in our family. We are so blessed!

I made a mistake......

It is Sunday the day after Mary Jane's 4th birthday party (which I will write about tomorrow), and I have 1, no 2, but yes, 3 sick kids. Zeke has a fever, Mary threw up in the car last night (always a great time), and Ella is sick. So today has been a stay at home lots of sleep and movies kind of day. I am sad that everyone is sick, but at the same time I just do what I can, and sit on the couch with them and read a lot. So for some strange reason I decided to read the 7th Harry Potter book again. Do you ever read something for no good reason, when you have tons of the other better books to read? That is not the point though- the point is I read the whole 800 page thing in one day. Then I made a BIG mistake! I wanted to know if JK Rowling was planning on ever writing again, so I picked up my trusted computer and pulled up www.amazon.com. Amazon is like a labyrinth for me, once I start looking I can't stop. SO I was on there for the last hour typing in every author I could think of to see what books I needed to read.
Needless to say my list now goes on and on etc, etc, etc. I am now discontent with my current bookshelves. There is something in me that is hungry and gratified by written word, and I can never seem to get enough. Example- I am on my blog complaining about lack of literature when I have 3 brand new books sitting on my night stand. Enough is enough, I will now close. But my last thought for the night is that Peter and I are going to own a library instead of a house by the time we are 50.

Morning Conversation with Zeke and Mary

Every morning while I clean the morning mess our kids watch "Sid the Science Kid". They absolutely love it because every day it explores and experiments with a different scientific question. But it also includes catchy little songs and dances. In fact one day at a McDonalds we over heard a Russian man singing to his child what we thought was a folk song. Then we listened more carefully and realized it was one of Sid's songs from the show. It is an international spectacular! Anyway this morning the show was about sense of smell. Here is Zeke and Mary's conversation during the show. Teacher Suzy asks everyone what their house smells like.

Zeke: Mary, what does our house smell like?

Mary: (takes a deep inhale) Poop!

Zeke: (takes a deep inhale) You are right!!! Mom!!

Mary: Mom! Come change Ella's diaper!!

Bigger Better Camera

We had our good friends from Colorado come out to visit us last week. We had a wonderful time with them exploring the city, going to dinner and just hanging out. That's how you know that you have GOOD friends, when you can just hang out around the house doing the normal everyday tasks and everyone is content. You don't have to go out and spend a bunch of money, or try to entertain them.
One of the days our friends were here they left me with their camera. Their camera is much nicer then mine, and it something that I probably never should have touched. Because now I have major camera envy, and every time I pick mine up to take a photo I am dissatisfied. So the moral of the story is, if you don't have the money to buy something then don't touch it!!! It just leads to being discontent and longing for something that wasn't ever meant for you!! But I am more motivated to keep saving for my own camera that has more the features I am looking for. Above are some of the pics I took with the bigger better beautiful camera!

Hitting the road in 12 hours!

picture by Wade & Stephanie Carignan (http://www.carignangallery.com/blog/?p=80)


Tomorrow we are leaving for a week to go to Peter's hometown of Indianapolis. We lived there for 7 years in which we were married, received our first jobs, rented our first apartment, had 3 children, and bought our first home. It will forever be a special place to us, and no matter how much time passes it always feels like home.
Visiting Indianapolis is full of much joy and sorrow. Joy for obvious reasons- we are able to visit with almost all of Peter's family (that are pictured above) and our many friends. Our kids are comfortable there, and it is similar to slipping into comfortable shoes that are perfectly broken in. It is such a nice, hospitable place- in our experience Mid-west friendliness can't be beat.
The sorrow comes because no matter where we live or how hard we try, leaving Indianapolis is always hard! The worst part is knowing that time passes, and things change that we can't be a part of physically. Oh, if we only had a time machine that could transfer us back and forth!
But all in all, the time spent there is worth it! It is always so refreshing to visit with people who know how you think and feel, because of past time spent. And oh how we miss the faces!! The smiles and laughter, the sorrow and tears, the beautiful kids that grow older and bigger each time we visit (not to mention the new additions).
I am so thankful that we serve a God who gives us family & friends to help us through life. To rejoice with, to mourn with and most of all to serve & worship Him who loved us first! Love is more powerful than the separating miles. And for that I am thankful!

A reminder of what spring rains bring.......

What's the going rate of a tooth these days?

This story begins almost 2 years ago in our house in Colorado. It is almost 9 PM and we have a very excited 6 year jumping around our house exclaiming, "My tooth came out! My tooth came out!"
This joyous occasion connected to much anticipation with a good dose of nerves. Solomon had this loose tooth for about 3 weeks and he would wiggle it just a bit everyday. If anyone suggested (meaning my husband) tying his tooth to a piece of string and a doorknob or even eating an apple, Solomon would gaze at you with tears in his eyes. So we wait and wait until the day the tooth has falls out because of the laws of gravity. And Solomon is happy, especially because he gets to stick that tooth underneath his pillow that night and hope that something big appears. So we clean the tooth, put it in a special box and kiss the boy goodnight. And then Peter and I forget about it.
Fast forward to about midnight while Peter and I lay in bed. Memories of that excited little boy rush back, and we pull ourselves out of bed to find Peter's wallet. In our sleepy stupor we pull out a bill and stick it under Solomon's pillow, with barely time to remember to take the tooth. But we have done our parental duty, and we quickly fall back asleep.
Morning light comes, and that excited little boy from the night before is even more excited. So excited that we are baffled. I mean it's just $1!! Then we see what he is holding in his hand. A $5 bill- in our bleary eyes at midnight a $5 bill looks like a $1 bill. And Solomon has become a rich man overnight from a tiny little tooth! He quickly makes plans to pull out all his teeth, and make his way to the toy store. Now we have a dilemma on our hands. Solomon is going to expect $5 every time a tooth falls out! But like good parents we procrastinate until the subject is forgotten about, which brings us to today. Solomon had another tooth fall out today! And guess what he is expecting tonight!! I almost feel bad for him, to wake up to only 1/5 of the money he expected. But living does not come cheap, and these parents have bills to pay. I contemplated leaving a note from the tooth fairy explaining that because of the price of fuel, and the recession a tooth now has the going rate of $1. But I will do the right thing and fess up.......and do it right now before I forget!

Recipe of the Week 2

Cheddar Bacon Casserole

4 cups dry french bread (or toasted) cut into 3/4 in. square
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 slices of bacon, crisp cooked, drained and crumbled
2 cups of milk
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 T snipped fresh italian flat-leaved parsley
1/2 t mustard
1/4 t black ground pepper
1/8 t onion powder

In a large bowl toss together the bread cubes, cheese and bacon. Divide among or place all the mixture in a 2 qt. casserole dish. In a medium bowl whisk together the milk, eggs, parsley, mustard, pepper and onion powder. Pour over dry bread mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hrs. and up to 24 hrs. Bake, uncovered for 25-30 for individual baking dishes or an hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean for a 2 qt dish. Let stand for 5 min. before serving (will fall). Makes 6 servings- 374 calories per serving.

Ella feeds herself.......

We have a scary basement. The kind that you may find in Silence of the Lambs with creepy men hanging out in dark corners. But it offers a lot of storage and something the price of gold. A washer and dryer. Unfortunately to get to the basement you have to go down slatted wood stairs to a concrete floor and concrete walls. Translation- If one of my kids falls down these stairs an awful injury will occur. So I have to be really careful. I usually only do laundry while Ella is sleeping in her crib, and recently I have been strapping her in the high chair.
Yesterday while feeding her I heard the dryer buzz. So I think to myself- run down there really fast cycle the laundry so that we have clean underwear for the next day, and return in 2 minutes. So I put down the yogurt I was feeding Ella down (about 1 1/2 ft from her) and made a break for it. I cycled the clothes as quick as possible and ran up the stairs as pleased as punch with the time I had made. Then I saw Ella. She had somehow grabbed a hold of the yogurt and started to feed herself. It was a mess!! She had it all over her, and was sticking the spoon in any configuration she could into her mouth. She was so proud of herself! So I grabbed my camera and let her finish up. Here is the result. I had to wipe down that end of the table five times before I could remove the yogurt smears, but it was worth it. Thank God I could stick the little girl in the bathtub!!

The Land of Nomads

As I pointed out in my last blog, Mary is currently sleeping (if not residing) in a teepee. The boys have protested constantly and consistently, with such passion that I have given up, in and every direction you could think of (it also helped that we have company this weekend sleeping in the boys bunk beds). Has anyone noticed how hard it is to make the top bunk! That is work out by itself! But we will save that subject for another day.
So now the boys are sleeping in an orange and blue monster tent that looks like a giant fish. Possibly the fish that swallowed Jonah- because this tent is huge! Big enough to fit 2 sleeping boys. Zeke received it for his 5th birthday in December, and because of the size it has been set up and brought down several times. But now finds its home behind our couch wedged into the corner in the living room. You can hear giggling and story telling going on this very moment. Some combination of Star Wars and Winnie the Pooh, with Sid the Science Kids lyrics being belted out to add a little spice. I love my boys!

Every girl needs a teepee

We were strolling through Target (on an outing searching for a little bit Spring) about a month ago, when we came upon a tent shaped like a teepee. To tell you the truth, I am not sure who was more excited, Mary or myself. We both gasped and reached for it at the same time to stare at the card board box in amazement. But then reality hit- no one needs a teepee, and it was way outside of our budget. To add to that we have a monster shaped tent at home that was just bought at Christmas time for the boys. So we left our visions of tea parties and sleep-overs (in a teepee) in aisle F39 and moved on.
So two weeks later on a routine trip for groceries I brought home a surprise. We are now proud owners of a pink & green teepee complimented by flowers printed on the flap. We ripped it out of the box and set it up as quickly as possible without reading the directions. Then the 4 kids and I attempted to all fit in the small structure. It didn't work, so we all took turns going in and out, and laughing as Ella walked into the doorway and falling down over and over. She was so happy that she didn't cry, but she still hasn't learned the art of ducking your head. Needless to say the girls (and boys) absolutely love it. We have no use for Mary's bed anymore. She has slept in the teepee for 6 nights in a row cuddled up with her favorite stuffed elephant and her "Aunt Hannah" blanket. You have to appreciate the little luxuries in life sometimes, and the teepee has definitely made that list. I am so thankful for my husband's provision so that we can have little luxuries every once in awhile.
There is an exclusive tea party scheduled for early next week with a guest list that includes 2 beautiful little girls, 2 stuffed elephants and possibly 2 brothers if they decide the don't need to build a Lego empire at that time. It is sure to be top notch with cookies and juice.
And when Spring produces consistent mild weather we will move the teepee to the back porch where Pocahontas and forest animals can visit at their whim.

Lunch time conversation

Zeke and Mary sit together and talk about how old they are on a daily basis. Today's conversation went a little like this-

M: I'm 14
Z: I'm 16
M: I'm 20
Z: I'm 22
Me: I'm 29 (almost 30, in April!)
Z: No, you're not!
Me: Yes, I am

Zeke: No, Mom that's too old. You aren't old, you're young. You are too fun to be 29.

Oh, I love my kids and the everyday joy they bring. God has blessed us. I hope I never forget!

Recipe of the Week

I made this recipe twice this week when we had people over for dinner. I absolutely love them, and honestly they taste better the 2nd day after they have had time to set and solidify. Here's the recipe- it is very simple!!
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/peanut-butter-cheesecake-brownie-112867.aspx

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownie Babies

prep time-20 min

total time-50 min

makes 16 servings, 1 brownie each

photo by: Kraft

recipe by: Kraft

What You Need!

1 pkg. (19 to 21 oz.) brownie mix (13x9-inch pan size)

1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1-1/2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

20 maraschino cherries

Make It!

HEAT oven to 350ºF.

PREPARE brownie batter as directed on package. Spoon into 20 paper-lined muffin cups.

BEAT cream cheese, sugar, egg, peanut butter and vanilla with mixer until blended. Spoon 1 rounded Tbsp. into center of batter in each cup, pressing down slightly into batter. Bake 30 min. or until centers are set. Cool.

SERVE topped with COOL WHIP and cherries.

© 2010 Kraft Foods Inc. All rights reserved

A beautiful day

It's Monday afternoon and I couldn't be more pleased. Mondays are Peter's day off- and they are always a day of anticipation. Today we went to the History Museum with the 3 younger kids, and had a wonderful time. Zeke was so excited because he wanted to see George Washington's teeth. I think that he was disappointed when he saw them in person, but it was fun to watch him jump up and down at the thought.
I was very excited because on our way home we drove down Penn Ave and noticed all the diverse food stores located there. An italian grocery, an asian grocery, a middle eastern grocery, a bakery and a fish market to name a few. Soon you will find Peter and I strolling around picking up our groceries, and exploring the strip district. Maybe now I can find the ingredients for all the recipes I have been hoarding.
All in all the best part of the day is now- the house is peaceful and a homemade pizza crust is rising (recipe compliments of my sister)..... and I am sitting in front of this.......
if you can read the picture above my window, it says pray. And this picture is exactly what I have been praying for. A beautiful sunny day filled with fresh air coming in through our open windows. What more could you ask?
~Kristin

The View Through A Lens

I went to Target today to look at the cameras. I am trying to decide which one to save up for, and honestly I am completely stumped. All I know is that my camera is slowly but surely becoming more and more of a frustration then a joy. I love to take pictures, and am completely amateur, but there is something remarkably beautiful about looking through the lens and seeing what pops up. The camera has a way of making perfectly ordinary things look amazing- and prodding you to do things that you ordinarily wouldn't think of doing.
It is the ability to see the beautiful color and texture of things that the human eye cannot pick up on it's own. I look through the camera and suddenly the shape of Mary's fairy wings looks inviting and it is time to become Tinkerbell. Ella's sweet hats, and Zeke's shiny boots beckon you to go outside for a walk. Solomon's book covers just plead for you to huddle under a blanket and read. And I would probably never step foot into my dear husbands Jeep if I didn't look at it through a viewfinder.
I absolutely love and am completely endeared to whomever designed the magical camera. I am sure that God placed a camera in my life to help me do things that I might otherwise find a waste of time (because I have laundry and dishes or misc. cleaning of some other sort).
~K