Random Musings of the Day

Some new pics of the kiddos - Jonathan just HAD to rake a leaf pile and jump in - he wouldn't listen to any arguments that in a few weeks, there'll be LOTS more leaves. So the biggest pile we could muster was, well, not very big. But I think he still had lots of fun! And Matthew. Learning to climb. It's hilarious - somehow in the 5 days he's known how to get up there, he's already figured out the best seat in the house! Nothing like the corner of the wrap-around couch!

Have a question for all you moms out there. Why, oh WHY do kids have to dump toys? I just don't get it. All these random toys here and there - large toys, little toys, whatever. They aren't good enough. The only toy good enough is the one on the bottom of the toybox, or in our case, the canvas bin. At any given moment, the two of them can be found pawing through this bin in search of heaven knows what....wait - I think I even have a recent picture of that....

Why is the bin in the closet, you ask? Well, mainly, to try to enforce the old adage - "out of sight, out of mind." They are into this bin all day, rooting to find some elusive toy at the bottom, or, even more heinous, pulling it out of the closet and just dumping it. Makes my blood boil. Nothing, and I mean nothing about raising kids makes me more frustrated. Except whatever's going to happen this evening to make me eat my words.

Does anyone have any idea how bad for you buffalo wings are? Last week, we went out to lunch. We ordered the kids one of those little pizzas - personal size - and I thought I'd get a few bites of that, so rather than me ordering a full lunch, I just decided to order an appetizer, and in trying to pick a fairly healthy one, I chose the wings. Wow, they were so good. So, in all my naivete, I decided to make them for dinner last night. I bought some wings at the market, came home, started looking for recipes. That's when I found out - so much for low-cal! My heck! First of all, those babies are deep-fried! Then the sauce? Pretty much equal parts hot sauce and hello...BUTTER. Ummmm - no wonder they're so good? After about an hour of searching and assimilating some recipes, I finally had my plan, and it actually worked out pretty well. So here's the "south beach diet" version....

8 wings, separated at the joints with tips cut off

enough hot sauce to marinate (I used Crystal - just use your favorite) Put all this in a ziploc bag and stick in the fridge for less than 24 hours. I did it for 2. I can imagine if you leave it longer, they'll be hotter. But not more than 24 hours, because I think the vinegar/acid in the sauce at that point starts breaking down the meat.

Preheat oven to 400

Get another ziploc. Put in about a cup of Bisquick, a teaspoon of flavored salt (celery salt works well, garlic salt would work well, whatever you like) And if you really like it hot, you can add some cayenne pepper. Mix well. Get the wings, drain the sauce, put 3-4 wings in the bag at once and shake to coat. Lay them all out in one layer on a nonstick stoneware or regular 9x13 pan. Bake for 25 minutes on one side, flip them over and bake another 20-25 minutes. Yum. And low-cal, too. Well, if you don't eat the skin. I took the skin off as I ate. I tried to get it off when they were raw, but it didn't work out too well - half the meat was coming off with the skin! Plus the skin seals in moisture. So if you don't mind peeling it off as you eat (hey, your hands are going to get full of sauce anyway), it works much better that way!

Man it's been a long week - twice already this week, Matthew has been up in the middle of the night for 2 hours. Sunday night I'm not sure what it was. Last night, it was gas. Mark and I tried everything and were about to hang him upside down by his ankles (that was a JOKE, people), when it started coming out on it's own, spontaneously! After he gets it out, he was still screaming. So what's wrong now? Well, hmmm, we ate dinner at 5, it was now 1am, and he ate very little for a bedtime snack (about 10 pieces of cereal), so could he POSSIBLY be hungry? He was. Starving. So after some milk and animal crackers, off to bed he went. And off to bed we went. Thankfully, all was quiet after that, but having to do that TWO nights this week was not fun. Let's just say, we're very much looking forward to the weekend, which, this weekend, happens to be a three-day weekend because of the holiday on Monday! Thank goodness - we need the break! Lots of plans this weekend, hope the weather holds!

The Culinary Arts, Chapter 241

So I tried something new the other day. Acorn squash. The little dark green squashes that look like....well, acorns almost. I had picked one up at the farmer's market last week, and it was sitting there on my countertop, begging to be cooked and eaten, but how? Never having eaten or cooked one before I turned to...what else? The internet. Read about how they do better with a sweet preparation over a savory, herb preparation, read about how to cut, scoop seeds, roast, serve, etc... Armed with all this new knowledge, I sliced it in two, scooped the seeds and strings out, salted a bit, smeared the exposed halves with softened butter, and drizzled them with pure maple syrup. Into the oven for about an hour and 15 minutes. I have to admit, it did smell good. With the smells of Fall wafting through the open windows of the late mountain afternoon, the roasting squash added a warm, nutty aroma. I pulled them out of the oven and put a half on my plate and on Mark's plate - the flesh was nice and soft - easily scooped out with a spoon - couldn't wait to try it.....and YUCK!!! Okay, to be fair, Mark really liked it. So did Matthew. Jonathan refused to even try it (big surprise there....but I digress). As for me? Well, I've always been a texture person. And my idea of "delicious" does not in any way include a mouthful of what felt like stringy custard. The taste wasn't all that bad - slightly sweet, rather nutty, sort of like a sweet potato, but maybe not as strong. But oh gross, the texture was just sick. I couldn't eat but one bite. Not wanting to make too much of a big deal out of it, lest Jonathan copy me and have new ammunition for not eating, I just moved on to other stuff on my plate and fed Matthew little pieces of it. But I came close to gagging and spitting it out. Maybe a little harsh judgement for the poor little (cute!) acorn squash. But if you're a texture person, you know what I'm talking about. I'm starting to think that Jonathan inherited my issues with texture, and that is some of his problem with eating. I think I needed this kick in the pants - I hadn't eaten anything in awhile that gave me such a reaction - I think in the future, I'm going to be more sensitive to his ideas about food. So all in all - a good lesson learned. And I apologized to Mark - as much as he liked it, he'll have to order it in a restaurant if he wants it that badly from now on - Sorry, Mark!

Family Update

It occurred to me today, that I have now been blogging for about 6 months! So I guess that means it's time for an update. Let's see, where to begin?
Mark's still with the state - working hard everyday to keep this household running. Fortunately, his office is only 5 miles from our house, so his commute is minimal, and often he can come home for lunch. He's been busy lately out in the yard - we've got a ton of Fall projects we'd like to get accomplished - now just find the time to do them!
Jonathan turned 3 1/2 in September. He's very tall for his age, and still quite slender due to the fact that he still hasn't found a way to enjoy eating. I read recently that children who had reflux as babies are more likely to be picky eaters - well, if that's true, that's his problem. We work on this every day, but fixing meals is still a challenge for me, as is getting him to eat a balanced diet. But we're getting there! Things are better than they were even earlier this summer, so maybe in 6 more months, things will be even better! Jonathan is a bright and happy little guy - he counts to 30, okay, to 29, then he says "twenty-ten". But close. He knows all his colors, all his letters, all his shapes, and is starting to read. He is very observant, extremely opinionated, and in general, 3. We opted out of any kind of pre-school this year, but when Fall settles in for good, we're going to start going to some library programs for story times and crafts. Jonathan loves to go "out". Anywhere is fine, as long as we're going somewhere. He particularly loves the post office, where he can put the mail in the slot and help me carry packages to mail. He's had a big summer - carnivals, amusement parks, a big trip to Wyoming, first plane ride....lots of things to remember! Currently, he is very much looking forward to Santa Claus and having a Christmas tree in the house again.
Matthew is now 15 months old. When I started this blog, he was still breastfeeding and just a baby. Since then, he has been weaned, has learned to walk, learned to climb (heaven help me), and learned that Mommy gets very upset when he splashes in the dog's water and dumps the dog's food out. Yesterday, he climbed onto the kitchen table to get the dog's dishes that I put up there because he was into them on the floor. Can't win. Anyway, Matthew has come a long way in a few months too! He doesn't share Jonathan's eating pickiness - he's a great little eater. His worst problems now? He doesn't know his boundaries with his brother, and with the dog. He gets into an awful lot of trouble with his brother, and I'm learning how to break up brotherly fights already. The dog can take care of her own battles, and luckily, she's fairly gentle! Matthew defends himself by biting, and we're working on getting him out of that phase! Matthew doesn't talk much yet - he's only said a few words and they were just repeating something he heard us say. He's a little behind on that curve, but so was Jonathan at his age. He has a way of letting us know what he needs, though!
As for me, well, same old, same old about sums it up! I cook, I clean, I do laundry, I change diapers. I get smiles, I get hugs, I get wet, sticky kisses, and that makes it all worth it, no matter what! I found some Mommy friends here in town and we go out and have lunches and arrange play dates at times, so life is good.
So there's the update - I'll try to do these occasionally - after all, life does bring about a lot of change sometime, even in a few short months!

Monday, Monday - and Happy October!

Monday morning - there's a song written about that, I think. Well, here it is. There's only 52 of them a year, but you would think there's a lot more. After a marathon night where Matthew decided to wake up and stay up for 2 hours, and Jonathan bounced into bed with us at 6:20 am, we have arrived, kicking and screaming into Monday morning. In all seriousness, Monday's aren't really all that bad for me. True, the weekend is over, and Mark goes back to work, leaving me to fend for myself with my little guys. We try not to do too much on Monday - the boys are generally a little worn out from the weekend's activities, and I try to spend some time putting away stuff ("picking up the house"), making lists of things I want to accomplish during the week, reviewing everyone's schedules for the week, planning menus and trips to the grocery store or the farmer's market (which, sniff, sniff, will be gone next week until next Spring WAAHHH!!) and catching up on laundry. So all in all, I've learned to not set my expectations too high for that old Monday morning.

In other news, it's October!! Halloween month, and I have no idea about costumes for the kids. I guess it really wouldn't matter all that much - I just wish I had more imagination, and then, when I actually DO come up with some good ideas, wish I had the talent and the creativity to execute it!

We went to Morgantown, WVA on Saturday to do some shopping. Morgantown's about an hour away from us, but it has a nice shopping area - a new place with all these great stores all together - Target, Sam's, Walmart, Old Navy, Barnes and Noble, etc... We started some Christmas shopping and got the kids some stuff. It was a great drive - the weather was bright and crystal clear - we wanted to maybe see some early Fall color in the upper elevations, but not yet!

And, to welcome October, I managed to make an apple pie this weekend. We stopped on the way home from church yesterday morning to get some milk to make pancakes for breakfast, and the market had Cortland apples - the BEST pie apples ever. They're only around for a short time in the Fall, but they make a great pie - they're the perfect texture, perfect amount of juice, perfect sweet/tart ratio. Yum - to all you pie makers out there - try the Cortlands. You'll be happily surprised.

Has anyone read about that woman who has 6 kids, took them all to the grocery store one day, and sold the stuff they sneaked into the cart on ebay? I'm serious - the kids put stuff in the cart, and she didn't realize it until she got home. She was so mad, she decided to sell it on ebay, and in the body of the auction, she wrote about the whole experience. It was pretty funny - but ANYWAY - now, she has like a million people reading her daily blog, and she's been interviewed by newspapers, tv, magazines, and I think next week they're flying her to New York to be on one of the early morning news programs. AND she has a book deal. Okay, call me crazy. People are making a huge deal out of this - the publicity she's getting is staggering. But c'mon! I know people who've got 5, 6, even 8 kids, and that's their life. They do it, everyday, they don't whine about it or write about it, they actually ENJOY it, after all, it was their decision to create it in the first place. I'm not sure what's so special about this woman, except that maybe she's pretty good at writing, and people enjoy the humor. In a way, it's kinda cool. Learn how to make tons of money by writing about your kids squirting yogurt on the ceiling. Not bad. Get your 15 minutes, or in this case, a whole lot more, just by getting your blog discovered and having the interest in it spread like wildfire - isn't that everyone's dream? Sure, I think it'd be cool to have a million people reading my blog - but then there'd be a million people bored to tears!

Anyway - lastly, I give to you a picture of something you will NOT see too often - Jonathan napping. This is the child that takes about one nap per year. As a matter of fact, the last time he took a nap was perhaps last December, and that was because he had a 103 degree fever. I'm not sure what prompted this one - he fell asleep in the car on the way home from Morgantown, and when we got home, stayed asleep in the car for a half an hour or more. When he finally stirred, I got him out of his seat and carried him inside, and he told me to put him down. I thought he wanted to go play, but amazingly, he laid down on the floor, and slept for another hour and a half! Poor kid must've been beat!

So anyway, that was our weekend. I think, in honor of this particular Monday morning, I'm going to have a second cup of coffee and go snuggle on my brand new love seat (which, amazingly, made it through the first few days here with no spills, tears, rips or puppy accidents) and watch my kids play while I go through a bunch of mail I didn't read last week. TTFN!

Gripe of the Day

So you know a few weeks ago, I blogged about getting some stuff up for sale on ebay? Well, it took me awhile, but yesterday I finally scrounged up an hour, and got some stuff listed. Among the list, was a set of 3 Fuzzi Bunz cloth diapers. I originally bought these to try out on Matthew, and I loved them. Used them for a bit, but realized he needed the larger size, so I ordered the larges and set the mediums aside. Then I saw the market for used Fuzzi Bunz, and decided to list, like everyone else on the planet. Well, here we are, 24 hours later, I had bids up to $25.00 on the three diapers, and ebay yanked my listing because cloth diapers fall under the category of "used underwear". Give me a break! So I did what everyone else does - relisted and didn't say they were used. Didn't say they were new either - and I guess that's the unspoken language on ebay in the used cloth diaper department. I certainly understand ebay's concerns and why they have these policies. But for crying out loud - people, and I mean THOUSANDS of people buy, sell and trade used cloth diapers everyday. It's a huge business, and I'd be willing to use used diapers any day - just run them with a bleach cycle, then wash them in hot a few times and you're good to go. So here's what I say - if people are going to do it anyway, why doesn't ebay recognize this and provide a venue so that it can be done without being sneaky? Heaven only knows, they'd make a bundle of money - these things are a hot commodity.
In other news - we got a new love seat today for our living room! It just got delivered a few minutes ago - I'm going to have to go dig up a slip cover or throw to prevent the "usual" stains, crumbs, large sloppy wet areas.....sometimes I think I'm crazy getting new furniture with a 1 year old and a 3 year old, but you gotta have somewhere to sit! I'll post a picture later. Back to ebay - see if they caught up with me yet!

Thomas Comes To Town

As I'm sure you can tell from the familiar little train in the photo, we had Thomas Tank come to Cumberland this weekend. Actually, he's here next weekend, too - two straight weekends of Thomas - how will I survive? Actually, things didn't go as planned. Long story - I'll try to make it short!

Mark works downtown, right across the street from the historical railroad where Thomas was going to be. So we planned on me meeting him down there with the kids on Friday afternoon - avoid the crowds. Guess what? Tickets sold out for the whole weekend before I even had a chance to buy them. However, encouraged by my friends who had gone to last year's Day Out With Thomas, even if you don't have a ticket to ride, you can still take pictures, do all the activities, see Thomas, etc..., you just can't actually ride the train. Which, hmmm, goes up the track for 10 minutes and then comes back down. And once you're actually ON the train, you don't even see Thomas anymore...so at that point, I decided we were going anyway, no tickets and all.

So we get there, and first thing we do is go see Thomas. Jonathan is delighted, of course, there's Thomas, backed up to the Western Maryland Scenic Train (same one that takes fall leaf excursions) and then we notice the regular diesel engine on the OTHER end of the train, meaning that Thomas is indeed, not functioning as an engine at all here, which we pretty much knew, and that solved the problem of how they would turn the train around after only 10 minutes, well...if you're following me here, you realize that when Thomas initially leaves the station, he's actually going backwards. Then, when he returns to the station "pulling" the train, he's coming in looking like an engine, but of course, the train is actually being "pushed" by the diesel which is now in the caboose position.

All that to tell you this. We're standing there, taking pictures of Thomas. It's about to leave for the Friday, 4pm ride. Thomas goes Peep Peep! And train starts to move. At which my 3 year old becomes hysterical. Why? Because Thomas, heaven help him, is going BACKWARDS! Then, because Jonathan is hysterical, Matthew decides he's going to be hysterical too. So there we are, on the train platform, watching this cute little children's train leave the station, with both kids screaming like they've been seriously injured. People were actually looking at us.

So we went and did the other activities - the hay bale maze, the mini-golf, the moon-jump train, the gift shop. Oh, the gift shop. Enough said about that.

So the next day, I get a great idea. The cool, new Cumberland leg of the Allegany Highlands trail runs right along side the track that Thomas is using! So we take the kids for a walk on the trail, and the train will be right there beside us! More photo opportunity! More chance for Jonathan to see Thomas in true action! Plus, if we timed it right and did a walk downtown to the Farmer's Market, the Ford Model T/Model A show that happened to be downtown on the same weekend, AND a stop at the coffee shop for java and scones, we could be out for so long, we would probably see Thomas 2 or 3 times along the trail!

Saturday morning - off we go. Park the car and one of the access points to the trail, get out strollers, kids, diaper bag, snacks, drinks, "hurry, I hear T-H-O-M-A-S coming" (yes, we had to spell it, so it would be a surprise), up on the trail "LOOK, Jonathan, it's THOMAS!!" Jonathan turns around, smiles at Thomas coming (forward, this time, thank goodness), and watches entranced as the train approaches, and starts to pass us - engineer waving, little kids ON the train waving, train only about 10 feet away from us....a lovely, moment all parents treasure. Mark's taking pictures. And then the train makes some sort of noise, sort of like, oh, a grinding, squeaking, high-pitched air release thing - I have no idea what it was - it was actually a SERIES of noises, made ME jump. Guess what? Jonathan hysterical again. Grabs onto me, would've crawled under my clothes if he had the opportunity, screaming, crying, scared, blubbering "That SCARED ME!!!" As fate would have it, then Matthew starts.

To which my husband is now saying "Great idea, Bec"

Oh well - the REST of the day was good! And you know what? If the weather's nice NEXT weekend, we may just do it again! The walk. On the trail. Only this time, we'll know to get a little farther away!

Why Bother Cleaning?

You know, I ask myself this question a lot. Like today, for instance. I mopped my kitchen floor, closed the baby gate, turned on the ceiling fan for a quicker dry-time and busied myself elsewhere in the house. Fifteen minutes later, I walked in, relishing the clean floor, the invigorating aroma of fresh, clean floor, and the idea, that, for just that instant, I could actually eat off my floor. Then the trouble begins. In toddles my 14 month old, with a thick line of drool from his chin down to his sneakers. Followed by the dog, who, after giving a disinterested sniff at the drool that has now reached the floor, strides right through it. Now drool, as a rule, is not THAT gross. Unless, of course, it's post-snack drool, but in this case, it wasn't, so I wasn't all that upset. Nothing a paper towel couldn't handle. But this happens all the time. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING stays clean in my house for any more than an instant - unless I put up enough baby gates so my house resembles the Panama Canal. And then you hear little voices screaming "Mommy, let me out!" But I have to clean, right? So I think I've reached a monumental observation: I don't clean to make things CLEAN. I clean so that they're not dirty. I mean filthy. I think I'm beginning to realize that if I don't relax my standards a LITTLE, I'm going to go nuts, so there it is. You come to my house, you might see some crumbs under the couch - which reminds me - last week, I actually pulled out the couch and vacuumed behind it - and I swear there was food under there from all 4 food groups. But I digress --- where was I? You come to my house, there will be crumbs, there will be dust, there will be smeared drool on the kitchen floor. There will be handprints on every window that extends down under 3 feet. That's my life right now - I'm through expecting perfection from myself. Maybe Mark will get me Merry Maids for Christmas? Yeah, right!

Fall Desserts

Now doesn't that look pretty, and really, really tasty? They weren't. Poached pears - my first attempt. Got these really nice pears at the Farmer's Market and decided to try something new. Basically, you pare the pear (HA!), put them into a heavy saucepan and let a sugary-cinnamon syrup boil up around them for a few minutes. Then you let them cool as you baste with more syrup. I have to say, they make a really pretty presentation (and it would've been prettier if I hadn't accidentally knocked the one stem off), but they just weren't all that. Maybe it was the pears themselves - weren't that sweet. Oh well - I may try again if I find some better pears.
My apple dumplings on the other hand were YUM! (Sorry I don't have a picture, they were consumed before I could get the camera out!) Again, a produce purchasing error transforms itself into heavy calories - I had some apples that were just too mushy to eat normally. Was going to make some applesauce for the kids, but I've always wanted to try apple dumplings, so I gave it a go. Basically, pare and core the apple, plop it down on some pastry dough, fill the core hole with cinnamon and sugar, seal up the dough and bake. Oh, yes, there's a sugary/cinnamon syrup involved in this one too. Pour the syrup into the bottom of the baking pan, and it boils the whole baking time. Oh, my, these things were good. Better than pie - and I do love apple pie. And no wonder. I happened to be looking around for some nutritional information on apple dumplings - and the one from the Cheesecake Factory has over 1200 calories and something like 50 grams of fat. In one dumpling. Mine weren't quite that rich - but they still fall into the category of: seldom-made treat for special occasions only. On that happy note - off to the Farmer's Market! I only have a few weeks left - the last week is the week of October 9th. I am going to really miss getting all that fresh produce, grown in local soils!

The Money Pit's Last Gasp (I hope)

So yesterday, after an overnight low temperature of 39 degrees, we finally gave in and decided to cover the pool for the season. Sigh. We had a lot of fun in it this year, despite our woes.
It's not hard to cover the pool - opening it is much harder, more time-consuming and very messy. By comparison, covering it is pretty simple. After lunch, I ran out and vacuumed it, started draining the water level down and swept off the deck. Started gathering up splash bombs, inner tubes and noodles to be put away until next year. Mark went to the shed to dig out the cover. And that's when the fun began. The culprit or should I say culprits? Carpenter ants. Carpenter ants had invaded our cover and chewed holes in it. Well, too late reverse the processes I already started, we opted to just throw the old cover on the pool to prevent further debris from falling in, and to go out and buy a new one today. Cost of a new cover? Who knows. At least $100. And then we'll have to re-cover tonight. Fun times. Happy Monday everybody - hope you have a great week!

Mountain Living

I don't know what's inspired me - maybe it's the crisp, Fall air that blew in last night. Maybe it was the crystal clear day we had today, or watching the sunset work it's way up the mountain this evening. Regardless - I figured I'd share my thoughts on mountain living - something that's rather new to me, since I've only been here 3 years. I was born and raised near Baltimore, which is on the Chesapeake Bay. Mark was raised in Bethesda, outside of DC. Later on, we lived in Annapolis, making that our first residence after we were married. So for the first 34 years of my life, I spent it less than 100 feet above sea level. We moved out here with little in the way of expectation, not sure how we would like it. But since then, we've figured out a few things!
-Did you know that a mountain view increases your home's value up to $25,000? Our real estate agent told us that when we were looking at homes. Almost as good as a kitchen renovation, huh? We have a gorgeous mountain view from our home - we just need to do some serious tree elimination to see the moutain in the summertime!
-Having a head cold can put a hold on leaving town - I'm serious! When we first moved here, we went up to the next town called Frostburg for dinner. Frostburg is only about 5 miles up the road, but it is about 1000 feet higher in altitude. I had a nice head cold at the time. Well, dinner was great, but on the way home, back down the "hill" my ears wouldn't pop because of the congestion and I wound up with a lovely double-ear infection. So now when I have a cold, I confine myself to the altitude at which I live. Unless I HAVE to travel, then I dose up on decongestants....
-Living in the mountains means you MUST have your brakes checked very, very regularly. And if you ever start to feel a shudder as you brake - get that car in the shop immediately! We learned this the hard way when we had to shell out over $700 for all new brakes in our old Ford Explorer. Just getting out of our driveway and down the neighborhood access road means you either ride the brake all the way down the hill, or go down in low gear. It takes a toll after awhile!
-While we're on the subject of cars - parallel parking on a slope is no fun. And in our town, everywhere you go you're on a slope! Remember in driver's ed where you learned to turn your wheels into the curb if you're facing downhill? Never thought I'd have to use that. Use it all the time now.
-Cutting grass is a challenge. Our yard has such a slope to it that we immediately ruled out a riding mower. We bought a self-propelled mower and have to walk behind it - and we need to wear hiking boots to do it! Needless to say, we've taken some of our yard out of grass production - it just got to be too much. Not sure what the homeowner's association thinks of us for that one - but you can BARELY see it from the road. ;-)
-Okay - this one isn't confined to mountainous areas, but we've got bears. And in Maryland, the only place the bears live is in the mountains, so for us, this one counts. Bears are a constant worry, and a very real one. Last summer, Mark found bear poop in our yard, so we know they're around. What does this mean? No putting out the garbage the night before trash day. No putting the garbage out at ALL unless you know the trash guys are on the way. No bird feeders before November or after March. No compost pile. Watch the woods line as you walk out the door. Keep the small children and little pets close to the house! We haven't yet SEEN a bear here since we've moved here - let's hope that holds up!
-Mountain weather is VERY different from flatlands weather! In so many ways. Driving around, you'll never know if you're going to hit a patch of fog that has settled into a valley - and I mean fog so thick you can't even see the sides of the road. Then, just like that, you're out of it...crazy. Or, if it's really foggy and misty in our town, if you go 15 miles west, it could be perfectly sunny and clear. Or vice versa. You can turn around as you drive away and look back to what looks like the town completely enveloped in a cloud. Thunderstorms are also fun - thunder that reverberates and echoes from one mountain to the next and it seems like it goes on for half a minute or more. Weather that changes with altitude -- take snow for instance. When a snowstorm blows in, we could get 5 inches, but Frostburg, which again, is only 5 miles away will get easily twice that. Or more. Or it will be raining here, but snowing up there and a whole myriad of mixtures in between. Winter is not fun around here if you have to be out on the road. But nothing beats snow in the mountains - the ski resorts love it!
-I guess the best thing, though? Just the views in general. Where else can you walk out of the grocery store, the mall, or Lowes and look up to see a mountain towering above you? And whether the air is shockingly clear, like it was today, or the leaves are changing, or there's a mist, or a gentle snow falling, the exhiliaration the view provokes makes even the most mundane of tasks - like loading groceries into the car - a treat. It makes you linger a moment longer as you take the cart back to the cart corral.
So we've learned a few things in the time we've been here. I'm sure we'll learn a few more in time. One thing we didn't have to learn though, was to just appreciate the beauty. Despite the challenges, it's all worth it in the end, and with all the Fall colors coming, it's the best season in the mountains. Stay tuned for some nice photos in the coming weeks!

In Search Of: Perfect Pizza Crust

Oh, that elusive pizza crust. Why is it, that you go to Pizza Hut, Papa John's, even Domino's in their heyday, the crust has a totally different taste and texture than you get when you make it at home? I've been at it for 7 years now. I know how long, because I've been making pizza since we've been first married. So 7 long years of pizza dough. By hand. In the bread machine. Bought raw from Trader Joe's. Recipes from, literally, all over. Well, I'm happy to report, that I've finally found IT. Or, at least, a reasonable version of IT. That is, homemade crust that isn't too soggy, too crisp, too salty, too yeasty, not yeasty enough, too flat, too chewy, you name it. It tastes....like authentic pizza crust. And those of you that attempt pizza crust at home, you know what I'm talking about. So here it is - I found the recipe online, and only altered it slightly:

In the bread machine, combine:
1 C. water
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
3 C. all-purpose flour
Scant 1 Tbsp. yeast (I use bread machine yeast)
Set machine for dough cycle, 1.5 pound "loaf". After the cycle ends, I usually leave it in there for at least another 10 minutes because it rises more.
Roll to desired thickness (using flour on your hands and more to shape and roll), top and bake on the bottom rack of your oven at 385 for 18-20 minutes or until the cheese gets bubbly. Yum. This makes a lot of dough - if you roll it to the edges of a 15x11 jelly roll pan, you have a very large, rectangular pizza. And the crust is fairly thick. I usually split the dough into two portions, freeze one, and use the other to make a round, 12 inch pie on my pizza stone.
Tonight's pizza? Roasted red pepper seasoned with rosemary and oregano. The kids picked off the peppers - who am I kidding, trying to hide veggies in the pizza? And Ragu pizza sauce - in the jar with a green lid is WONDERFUL. Been using it for years. Good luck!

Random Thoughts

Whew - it's almost mid-September and I realize I have only made two blog entries for the month. I must be busy! Although I'm not sure with what - everyday life, I suppose. So, just some random thoughts running through my head the last week or so, along with some not-so-random "happenings".....
- We finally got around to contracting out our curbside garbage pickup. I can't believe we've been hauling our own trash to the landfill for three years. We thought maybe later on we'd pay someone to haul it for us, but then we decided, wait a minute. We're dealing with dirty diapers, NOW. If there's ever a time to pay for curbside service, it's now, baby! Our service starts on Thursday. So much for our Saturday dump runs - boy I'll miss that...NOT!
- I keep trying to clean my house, or at least get started. I'm not getting very far. By the time I do the laundry, cook three meals a day and clean up, pick up toys endlessly, and keep the kitchen and bath clean, I'm done. I think I need to be more efficient, but how...HOW?
- I have a ton of stuff to sell on eBay, but hmmm, here I go again. Where's the time? It takes more than a moment to list items, and I just can't get myself into the fast lane, here. If anyone's interested in a Medela breast pump, a full roll of Mannington laminate flooring underlayment, three used Fuzzi Bunz size medium in excellent condition or a space heater, give me a shout and make me an offer. Otherwise, they're going up for auction any day now.
- I'm starting to face the reality that my children are indeed, not going to be babies forever. I don't know if this makes me sad or not. In a way, it's a glorious thought - to have them a little more self-sufficient, to not have to worry that they're eating dead bugs or sucking the paint off some Fisher-Price toy. But oh my, the thought of not having a little guy to snuggle, to rock to sleep, to inhale the heady aroma of freshly-bathed baby....makes me want to cry. Am I done having children? Is this it?
- I love Fall. I love the weather, I love the colors. I love the Fall Festivals, the pumpkin farms, Halloween. I love the fact that Fall means Thanksgiving and Christmas - my favorite time of year. Tonight, a front came through and brought that clean, cool air we haven't felt since April. After 5 straight days of heat, humidity and off and on rain and mist, it is a welcome relief. Is Fall here to stay? I hope so. Although - more work - digging out coats, jackets, sweaters....
- Which brings me to my next point. I've lived in Maryland my whole life. And for my whole life, I've had to change around my clothes twice a year. Spring means washing and putting away fleece jackets, hats, gloves, scarfs, etc... Fall means dragging all the tank tops, swimsuits, beach towels, flip flops and all other summer clothes off the shelves and into bins to make room for the stuff we just put away for summer! Is this a regional phenomenon? Does everyone have to do this? Or do most people just have a lot more closet space than I do?
- I have the best ideas for my kids for Christmas presents - am I going to tell what they are in this blog? Heck no. Have I bought anything yet? HA! Funny. I'm lucky I can get out and buy groceries before someone drops dead from starvation in this house. But at least I know what I WANT to get. Now the task is finding it and either going to get it, or finding where I can get it with free or cheap shipping.
- Is anyone but me completely bummed by the rising cost of shipping in this country? I mean, I know gas prices are rising and will probably never go back down, and I know that's a big part of it, but c'mon. I find myself hesitating to buy anything online unless I can somehow get free shipping, just because I think it's ridiculous. Darn post office - they complain so mightily that email has hurt their business, but look what ebay and clicks-and-mortar companies and heck - all online purchasing has done for them. They're booming! And yet, they STILL raise prices, even for a little stamp. Heinous.
Well, it sounds as if Mark has finished giving Jonathan his bath, so it's almost time for teeth-brushing, potty and night-nights. Mommy MUST be available for kisses and "yullabies", so I better sign off for the night.

Matthew's Curls Go Bye-Bye!

Remember this hair? Long and curly?
Well, it's gone!

Yes, we finally broke down and took Matthew for his first haircut. We loved the curls, but it was getting to be too much - and the final straw was the syrup that (somehow) got into his hair on Friday (I have a feeling Jonathan knows EXACTLY how it got there). A sticky mess that perpetuated itself because it was everywhere, and I couldn't get it out short of giving him a bath. Well, I wasn't about to give him two baths in one day, so he had to wait for his usual evening bath. The next day found us at the hairdressers.

Was he good? No. He hated every second of it. Are we sad? Yes. The curls were just too cute! Do we regret it? Heck, no. He now looks a little older, definitely more like a little boy, and his new shorter hair is still very curly. The curls will be back in time - we just won't let them get as long this time. So, now, everyone, you can see for yourselves that we actually have two sons, not a son and a daughter!

In other news, it's hot again, making us extra-happy that we didn't cover our pool last weekend. Yesterday we spent over 2 hours out there and had a great time. Today is very humid but not sunny, so we'll have to see if it's a pool day or not. Right now we're looking to cover it up next weekend - there still may be some hot days this coming week. Going all the way to mid-September in Allegany County with an unheated pool is pretty good - ordinarily Labor Day is the defining end. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

A Trip to DelGrosso Park

Well, the holiday weekend started off with a "bang" - with a trip to Del Grosso Park - a local amusement park just over an hour away from us. Great fun, and cheap! And to make it extra-special - as soon as we got there, we had to take Matthew to the emergency services building, because apparently he had rubbed sunscreen into his eye....and it turned purple and puffy and looked awful! (The EMS guy bathed his eye and gave him cookies - he was all better about 45 minutes later). What a gorgeous day, though - perfect weather - mid 70's, sunny. Kids had a great time - and so did Mark and I! Oh, and by the way -- Jonathan would not leave the shooting gallery until he had tried it out. The gun was too heavy, the noises were loud, but at least he got to TRY.

The rest of the weekend was just as nice - Sunday we did chores - got some stuff done around the house - little things - like gluing a piece of wallpaper in the bathroom that's been bugging me for a month, and putting away "stuff" that's been lying around since July.

Then yesterday being the holiday, we started the day by taking a long walk on the Allegany Trail in the morning, then came home for lunch and spent the rest of the day cutting grass (Mark) and swimming (me and Jonathan) and napping (Matthew). Gotta love those 3 day weekends! Today we're headed out to Grandma and Poppy's house after lunch to stay for a few days....Mark's got a meeting in Annapolis tomorrow so we're going for a short visit. Hope to be home Thursday or Friday. We left the pool open so hopefully we can get one last weekend out of it next weekend - despite all our troubles with it earlier this summer, it turned out to be our best pool season yet! (Of course, it couldn't get much worse than previous summers!) Off to pack, and then off to the mall to get Jonathan's hair cut before we hit the road.

Gifts From the Earth

Now I know I said this wasn't going to turn into a foodie blog, but I just can't help myself today. A few weeks ago, I was reading a blog in the Washington Post Online - the food editor had presented a challenge: take $20 to your local Farmer's Market, and see how much you can get with it. Now I used to live near DC, so I know the prices there are a bit higher than where I currently live. But I was shocked at what these people could (or couldn't!) get for $20. So just for fun, I'll tell you what I got at my Farmer's Market yesterday, for $9.50: 13 ears of corn, picked about 2 hours before I purchased it, 2 huge sweet red peppers (at 2/$1.00 - the same ones that sell for $3.49/lb at the grocery), a huge red tomato, a quart of peaches, and a half peck of lima beans. Amazing - and I was going to get an acorn squash because I found a yummy-sounding recipe for roasted squash with maple syrup, but it's still summer - I'm going to give that a few more weeks!
So for dinner last night? Corn, lima beans. Homemade chicken strips. And tabouleh, with fresh tomato, and fresh basil from my garden. I'm going to be sorry to see summer come to an end - I just love the foods of summertime. Right now, besides the peaches, in my refrigerator, I also have apples, strawberries, watermelon that I cut up last night, a pineapple and grapes. MMMMM - eating close to earth just feels right.
Which brings me to a thought. We are so fortunate in this country. We are a prosperous nation, with all kinds of foods and retail goods available at our whim. We go to huge, brightly lit, heavily stocked grocery stores that make you shiver with cold because they're so air-conditioned. We are so used to all the products we use and eat and need being there for us - neatly arranged and attractively marketed. We even get a little disgruntled when they might be out of something we like, or we can't find it readily. Compare that to those nations where food is a luxury, where children are starving and where men fight for a sack of rice to feed their families for a month. Where produce sits and rots in the heat while people have to walk 20 and 30 miles to get there, swatting bugs the whole time, carrying children, nursing babies. Thank you God, that I don't have to fight for food to feed my little ones. Thank you God, for prosperity, for never having to go hungry, for having our basic necessities plus a whole lot more a short drive to Walmart away. Thank you God, that I can wake up in the morning, greet my family, and ask them what they would like for breakfast today, because I have OPTIONS. At my fingertips.
Just my thoughts for the day - I'm going to go see what Jonathan would like for breakfast --- with a smile on my face!

Catching Up

Wow - time goes by fast. All the sudden I realize I haven't blogged for over a week - sorry about that! We were out of town for 8 days - no excuse since I had computer access - I just didn't really have all that much time! Mark had a training class, which is conveniently near my mom and dad's house, so we stayed with them for the week. Mark and I were finally able to get out and do some fun stuff on our own while Grandma and Poppy watched the boys. On Tuesday night, we went to the Baltimore Orioles/Texas Rangers game in Baltimore. It was great - we got excellent seats - 11 rows in back of home plate - from the scalp-free zone - an area set up so people with extra tickets can sell them for face value or below. We got the tickets two hours before the game and saved a bundle of money on some pretty expensive tickets! It was a great game - the Orioles won, and we had a nice night out. Then on Wednesday, we went out to dinner and to see the movie The Bourne Ultimatum. Now I have to admit - The Bourne Identity confused me a bit - hard to get a grasp on what was happening until the latter half of the movie. And the Bourne Supremacy was totally confusing - I was lost for well over half the movie. So I wasn't too thrilled about seeing this one, but off we went. And seriously? This was the best of the three. You could've watched it without seeing the first two - and it was a great flick! Highly recommended. On Friday night, we all went out to Outback Steakhouse to sort of celebrate my sister's birthday - her birthday isn't until this week, but since we were there, we celebrated a bit early. Then we came home for cake and ice cream. Mark and I and the kids left the next day to come back home. It was almost 100 degrees and deathly humid - not the best travel day. So we're home --- for now. Starting to think about closing our pool for the winter - probably this coming weekend, unless the weather forecast stops us - if it's going to be really hot, we'll leave it open another week. Are you gone, Summer?

Blue Matthew

For a Friday, it was kind of a rough morning around here...Jonathan was up to his usual complaining about Matthew getting into his "stuff", and spent half the morning asking me to "take Matthew away!" And Matthew, of course, continued to obliviously plow through toys, not caring, nor probably knowing who's were who's, or what suffering he was inflicting. So I should've known that when it got really quiet in the living room that something bad was afoot. But for some reason, I ignored it for a few minutes while I wiped down some shelves in the refrigerator (how does HAIR get in the fridge?), and I even ignored it when all the sudden, I heard maniacal laughter from Jonathan. Eventually, though, I threw my rag aside and wandered around the corner, and look what greeted me. I'm guessing Matthew upset the crayon bucket, which also contained little stampers, and I could almost blame him for ALL the mess, including the mess on him, but then I noticed the stamp on the back of his shoulder, and the one up by his eye, and got to thinking...hmmmm....was someone decorating their brother? So I asked Jonathan "did you stamp your brother?" And Jonathan says "Yes, Mommy." What could I do, but take a picture for all posterity, and go clean Matthew up. By the way, it didn't come off too readily. He was still blue all through lunch, but I think we got it all in the tub this evening! Moral: when the kids get quiet, go see what they're up to.....IMMEDIATELY!

Song Lyrics

Did you ever have a song running through your head...relentlessly? Enough that you can't sleep (although I think some late-night caffeine may have contributed here a little, too....)? Anyway, I couldn't get this song out of my head tonight, and it was killing me. I could only "hear" small portions of the lyrics, I couldn't for the life of me identify the vocalist, and to make matters that much worse, I have no idea where I had heard it! Quite the predicament. But an hour online, and with the help of a few search engines and the few snatches of understandable lyrics I could remember, I finally stumbled upon Robert Plant's song called "Big Log". If you want a listen, here it is.... And bonus points for whoever can tell me where in the world I've heard it lately - must be on some tv commercial or something.

Graham Crackers and Flatbreads

Homemade graham crackers - that was my task for the day. Well, besides the usual. Why, you ask? Well, where to begin? A while back, Mark and I decided that we really needed to start eating a little better. We aren't in our 20's anymore, and one of us (ahem...) isn't even in HIS 30's anymore. I read somewhere awhile back that the three most important things you can do for your health are:
1. exercise
2. eliminate high-fructose corn syrup from your diet
3. eliminate hydrogenated oils from your diet
Okay, well, number 2 is hopeless. That's in almost everything we eat! But number 1 is easy, and number 3? Well? Okay, so we decided to try it. And I'm happy to say, that first of all, our kitchen had very little of it to begin with. The worst offenders? Crackers and cookies. And lo and behold, there it was, in graham crackers. The yummy graham crackers that I love and give to my babies on a daily basis. So a few months ago, when I stumbled upon graham flour at the local Amish market (gotta LOVE those Amish folks!), I bought my 2lb bag (for 40 cents) and then went on an on-again, off-again internet search for the perfect recipe. Today, I found it. Well, almost. Yes, it had vegetable shortening in it, but if you just substitute butter, there go the hydrogenated oils. I made them today, and let me tell you, they ROCK! If anyone wants to try, here's the recipe.
Also, today, I made herb flatbread to go with the chef salads we had for dinner - I got the idea from Quizno's - their flatbread salads look SO good, but they've got like 1000 calories and 56 grams of fat in each one....ummmm, is that a SALAD? So I did it myself, and I think we have a new addition to the "favorite recipe" box. Oh, and MUCH healthier, I might add.
So before this blog turns into a total foodie blog, which it very well could do, let me just tell you that after those two ventures, plus the chef's salads, PLUS the lima beans Mark brought from the farmer's market that I had to shell and cook, PLUS the watermelon that I cut up for snacks, not only did I spend about 3 hours in a hot kitchen, but had a royal mess to clean up after dinner. It was worth it though. We're trying to eat "closer to earth" these days, and it's working out great. So much farmer's market, so little refrigerator space! I'll be sorry to see summer end. Except for maybe the zucchini. And we, fools, grew those ourselves!

Onto the kids - it's no secret that Jonathan has a major obsession with all things train. Thomas ranks high up there, but nothing beats train tracks. We live in a town that makes half it's living by the rails, and trains rumble through here dozens of times a day. Every time, and I mean EVERY time we're out driving anywhere, we've got to alter our route so we run over at least 2 or 3 railroad crossings....the springs in my van are groaning from abuse! So the other night after dinner, we hit the Allegany Highlands trail - a cool new rail trail that has recently been added onto so that except for a few little spots, runs from DC all the way to Pittsburgh. We're out there with dog and double-stroller, enjoying the evening, when Jonathan decides he needs to get out and stand on the tracks for a bit. We let him out, he goes up to the tracks, thoughtfully looks both directions and says "Train tracks, Mommy...they're so beautiful!" How can you not crack up at the things these kids say?

And Matthew? Well, today he learned a new trick - how to climb up onto the couch. He hasn't yet figured out how to get down. Well, actually, I take that back. He CAN get down, but he usually winds up with a bruise somewhere and he has a screaming fit. Not that I can blame him. Just one more thing to add to my list: go yank Matthew off that couch before he cracks his skull....

Ages and Stages

Well, we had a major breakthrough this afternoon. I actually got to vacuum without Matthew turning himself inside out in hysterics. Major, MAJOR turning point! I knew from experience that his terrified fear of the vacuum would only last so long, but it was driving me crazy all the same - and every time I vacuumed, I'd have him on my hip while trying to vacuum under beds and around tables and chairs. Not fun. So today is a baby-step in the right direction. He still wasn't happy, but at least this time he just ran away rather than melting down.
Which brings me to question...will there ever be a "stage-free" moment? It seems like they give up one bothersome behavior only to pick up two or three more. And it's funny, you never can quite remember exactly when they give up a bad habit - it just kind of happens and then a month or two later, you're like "hey...he doesn't do THAT anymore". Take Jonathan for instance. For a long time, he refused to walk up the steps by himself. He HAD been doing it fine, but I guess after Matthew was born, he saw me carry Matthew up, and then he started refusing to go up without assistance. Most of the time, I couldn't carry him - I had Matthew, my purse, the diaper bag, maybe some grocery bags or four.... So then he started needing to hold my hand up the steps. This went on for months! Then all of the sudden, just today, I realized that he hadn't needed "help" for a good while now - probably at least a month or two. Here I never thought the day would come, but indeed, it did come, and I never even noticed.
So I know Matthew will think up something else to make up for finally accepting the vacuum. It's just the way they are, I guess!

A Sad Read

Sometimes it's easy to lose yourself in the drudgery of everyday life - easy to complain about the heat, the lack of A/C in the house, the husband who has to work late on the very day the kids have been climbing the walls all day. The double-batch of zucchini bread that turned out so awful it came out of the oven and went right to the trash can....
The last few weeks have had their low points, that's for sure. But then you stumble upon something that puts it all in perspective, and I'd like to share it, even though it's not the happiest thing in the world. I read this family's blog the other night - it's not long - it only covers a time period of a few precious months. Reading something like this was just the kick in the pants I needed when I was starting to feel a little sorry for myself. I am so grateful for my family, my children; my healthy, robust babies that bring me so much joy just by their very existence. I thank God every day for them, even when that prayerful thanks is followed by another prayer that God grant me enough patience to just get through another day.
So I leave you with this link. Whether or not you choose to read it is your decision - it is very sad.
http://babyleino.blogspot.com/

Matthew Walks!

Check out this video of Matthew walking!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvnwDw69sGc

NO MORE ZUCCHINI, MOMMY!!

Yes, the zucchini have grown out of control. We ate out for two nights in a row on the weekend, and all the sudden, the zucchini overtook the garden. I'm not even going to bother cooking up these, I've got two more in the fridge a little smaller, and these are just too big to deal with.

Boy, is it HOT. We've had a dry, coolish summer up until now - only a few really hot days here and there. But the heat is here, and here for at least a week. Last night it didn't cool off overnight that much, and our un-airconditioned house is over 80 degrees this morning, and it's supposed to be 98 today. But today's the worst of it - I hope! I think the pool might get a lot of use today!

A Few Things of Note....

Just a few things to tell - some of you know about my "wristwatch woes". If you don't, here's a synapsis - thought my Fossil watch had a dead battery - took it in, had it replaced. Worked fine for a week, then stopped keeping time, but second hand was still moving. Repair guy thought it needed to be cleaned and oiled to the tune of $30. Well, the watch wasn't hugely expensive to begin with, so I told Mark to buy me another for Christmas. In the meantime, I would wear my Seiko, and go buy another "everyday" watch at Walmart - just a cheapie. Which I did. Two days later, both the Seiko AND the Walmart watch both stopped running. But they would always start up again later. I was completely baffled, until I thought of an explanation - when I wash dishes, I lay my watches in a little wooden bowl on my windowsill in my kitchen. I assumed that the humidity was slowing them down, and when I would take them out of the window, they would work fine. Fast forward another week. By this time, I'm completely anal about checking all my watches - have them all laying out side-by-side, INCLUDING the Fossil which I thought was just dead. All working great. UNTIL Saturday. Wore my Fossil, and on the other wrist, wore my new, cool, magnetic bracelet. That night, took them all off and put all of it into a pile. Guess what? Fossil stopped overnight. Removed it from the presence of the magnetic bracelet, and VOILA - it works again. It wasn't the humidity. It wasn't dead batteries. It was the bracelet, which, for awhile, had been living in that little bowl on my windowsill. Glad I got that cleared up - it was driving me crazy!

And in other news, Mark has been singing a new song around the house lately: to the tune of "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover".... Mark sings: "50 Ways to Have Zucchini". Tonight's menu - kebobs - shrimp, pepper, onion, and of course, zucchini. On the grill. Marinated in herb-garlic stuff. And I've still got more zucchini the size of baseball bats, on the vine, in the fridge. Why don't the deer and chipmunks eat these, huh?.

A Trip to Idlewild Amusement Park, Ligonier, PA

Well, we've been hearing about it for a year or two now, and now that Jonathan is old enough to enjoy it, we went to Idlewild Amusement Park on Saturday. It was great fun! Jonathan loved all the kiddie rides - and they had tons of them. Supposedly, this park was rated #2 in the country for "little kids", even though they had all the big kid rides, too, as well as a ropes area and the huge "Soak Zone", which we didn't do. Plus, they have Storybook Forest where all the characters from all the children's books are there. We didn't get to that either - the place is huge, and between Jonathan wanting to ride rides, trips to the potty, getting snacks, more trips to the potty, drinks all around, diaper changes, more potty trips, AHHHH! But all in all, we had a great time - are seriously considering season passes for next summer - we'll see.

On Sunday, we didn't get much done because it basically POURED all day long! We needed the rain, but what a bummer - we had planned to spend the whole day in the pool with the kids. I got a few odds and ends done in the house, but we were all mainly in recovery mode from Saturday, so we didn't do much. We only have a few weekends left with the pool - it's stormy today, so I'm not letting Jonathan go in. Tomorrow's supposed to be 99 degrees - yep, we'll be swimming!

What Has the Humidity Done to My Hair?!

Sorry, Matthew, that's what life with curly hair will get you - nothing but grief. Just be lucky you're a boy - we'll keep it nice and short for you, but not quite yet! It's just too cute right now! In the meantime, Mommy apoligizes for passing along those genes. Mommy's been battling curls her whole life - you'd think they'd realize by now that they're not wanted and just go away!

My Babies SWIM!

Jonathan with his favorite "noodle" - ONLY the purple one will do!

The next Michael Phelps? He was actually kicking his legs and moving his arms!

Okay, they aren't exactly swimming. But boy oh boy are they loving the pool. Both of them! Jonathan even jumped off the diving board yesterday into my arms. He kind of took me by surprise - I was floating around holding onto a "noodle" and he was running around on the deck tossing things in and out and being cute. All the sudden he calls me over and says "Mommy, I want to jump in." I hated discouraging him - I grew up in a pool and LOVED it - I want my kids to be the same way. So I paddled over and THEN he climbs onto the diving board. Looks at me with a big grin and says "Mommy, come closer". The rest is history, and since then he's done it half a dozen more times. I more or less catch him, make sure he doesn't go all the way under. Enjoy the pics!

Zucchini, Zucchini, Zucchini

Well, the zucchini are coming fast and furious in the garden, and we've been eating it every night for a week now with no end in sight. I can't keep up with the ones that are getting so big - then I read somewhere that any "professional chef" wouldn't touch a zucchini over 5 inches long. HA! They're not THAT bad! Anyway - we've had it stir-fryed with fresh rosemary, stir-fryed with onions, stir-fryed with garlic and olive oil, zucchini pancakes and broiled zucchini with parmesan cheese and garlic pepper. Tonight I think it's going on the grill with some Old Bay seasoning. Anybody else got any other ideas? Email me if you do - if I don't keep changing the way I make it, I might go crazy.
Our banana peppers are coming in well - last night we had one cut up into our salad and it was a great addition. Tomatoes? Not so great - we have a small chipmunk problem! Mark has already caught five chipmunks this season. We re-locate them to a place we won't name and are very sure they don't (and can't) come back. But we think new ones are moving in as soon as the old ones get evicted! Ah, the joys of gardening!

The Money Pit Pays Off!

Ahhhh - Finally. FINALLY are we reaping the benefits of all our pool woes. Today, Jonathan and I hit the pool during Matthew's nap. The weather was perfect, hot, dry and 90, so out we went. He had a blast! Learning to swim already! I was a little apprehensive, thinking he would be afraid (this is the kid, after all, who FELL IN the slime water fully clothed before we got our filter working) but he wasn't afraid at all. I wasn't going to push it - I figured I'd let him set his own pace, and he was full-speed ahead from the getgo. I'm really proud of him, and we're both already looking forward to tomorrow!

I Can't Believe I'm Blogging About Going to the Dump

Ahhhh, the weekend is here....Mark actually made it home a little earlier tonight, and both kids are already in bed...whoooohoooo! (Although I suspect one might not yet be asleep and may make an appearance in the hallway shortly....).
So what're our plans for the weekend? Wish I could blog something spectacular, but alas, the only things we have planned are errands: a trip to the dump (ummm, where we live, trash pick-up isn't government funded, you have to individually contract it out, so, like most other able-bodied citizens of our county, we tote our own garbage out to the landfill about once a month -- good times!), a trip to Lowes to return a lot of plumbing stuff we didn't use for the pool, a trip to the watch repair guy to fix my watch (again!), and maybe even a trip to the grocery store. Like I said.....not much to blog about!
Have a great weekend, everyone!!

Daddy and the Boys

Just a few pics of Mark and the kids - they were actually taken in Philadelphia this past weekend, but you wouldn't know it! We didn't go to any landmarks, so you'll just have to trust me!

The bottom pic was taken in our hotel room. I couldn't resist the shot - it was so cute. Jonathan LOVES to read. He brings us books all the time and asks for stories, and he particularly loves to look at picture books and point out the pictures and then try to spell them. I only wish I had more time for him....here I am a SAHM, and so many times when he approaches me I'm either stirring a pot or changing a diaper or the like. It's sad - I wish I could just sit down with him, guilt-free, and just not look around me and see dust balls rolling around and the kitchen sink piled with dishes or the baby eating the dog's food. I keep telling him, Mommy will read with you later, and then I never get around to later. Sigh. I'll try harder tomorrow, Jonathan, I promise.

"How Would That Be?"

"How would that be?" - Jonathan's latest and greatest phrase. It takes the place of the usual toddler question - that question being "why". It's cute, yes, but hearing it 50 times a day can be tiresome. But I understand that he just wants more information, so I try to just give him more details and he seems happy with that. Like today - he wanders into the kitchen and says "Mommy, what are you cooking?" And I say "Scones", and he says "Scones? How would that be?" Hmmmmmmm. How WOULD that be? So I told him they were sort of like cupcakes. He liked that explanation. But he still won't eat them - after all, they have DRIED FRUIT - the HORROR!!!

Our Weekend Getaway

Well, we're back home from a long weekend away....we left last Thursday, spent the night with my mom and dad, and then took the boys and headed to Philadelphia for the weekend. Why, you ask? My best college friend professed final vows to enter religious life, and we went up to be there for her. We came back to my parents on Sunday, then spent another day there while Mark finished up some work in Annapolis, and just got home this afternoon.
Philly was nice - I hadn't been there in ages. We took in the Italian Market on Saturday morning, then headed to Valley Forge in the afternoon. Weather was beautiful, we had a great hotel, and the kids were awesome - they're such great little travelers!
I got a few pics, but haven't downloaded yet. I'm exhausted - and have to go help Mark get Jonathan in bed - it's not going to be easy tonight!

Ah, the Lazy Summer Days

Well, here we are - mid-July, days of cicadas and katydids, watermelon and corn, of bugs and watching the sun go down like a big, red, hot ball. I love these summer days. Long days of daylight, of finishing up dinner AND the dishes and still having plenty of time for a romp outside. Brings back a lot of memories of being a kid!

Last night we took OUR kids to the county fair. We'd never been before, so we weren't sure what to expect. Jonathan sure did. We asked him at dinner if he'd like to go to the fair, and he could hardly contain himself - he announced that he'd like to ride the Ferris Wheel. Now I ask you, how does a 3 year old, who hadn't been to a fair or carnival since LAST summer remember a Ferris Wheel, especially since he'd never even been on one? Mark and I had a minor scuffle over who would actually take him on it, but luckily, they didn't have one - I don't think either of us is crazy about heights! But they had other rides, and Jonathan just loved the bumper cars, the carousel and the little trucks. He didn't much care for the roller coaster or the "Flying Dumbos" - which were these big elephants that went up and down. And Matthew had a blast - with blue cotton candy. I'm not sure which child arrived home dirtier or stickier, but they had a great time - and so did we! Thank you summer, for picnics and fairs, for swimming pools and cotton candy! Enjoy the pictures!

A Trip to Cathedral State Park, WVA

So yeah, we've got a lot of cleanup to do, around the house, around the pool, in the house, in the cars....but so what? Dirt will still be there. It was a gorgeous day, and it's the weekend, so we packed a picnic lunch, grabbed our hiking boots and piled the kids into the car and went to Cathedral State Park in nearby West Virginia. It was lovely - all these old, old hemlock trees - some as old as 500 years. And yes, in the picture, that's Jonathan running down the path. He hiked over a mile today like a champ and had a great time! And Matthew? Rode on Mark's back in our Snuggli. Gotta love those things. Tomorrow we play catch-up - hope there's enough hours in the day!

So Where Was I?

Okay - remember I told you that we were actually filtering pool water? Well, we were, EXCEPT that we kinda noticed it wasn't going very well. We were definitely sucking air somewhere (perhaps two places) and everytime we went to vacuum, we lost suction and pressure. Not good. So we troubleshooted (troubleshot?) and finally found a broken skimmer pipe --- 2 feet UNDERGROUND. Let's make a long story short. It's fixed. Mark and I did some digging, some creative plumbing (we're actually really proud of ourselves) and we're back up and running. The next night (Monday) we actually got into a clean, clear pool. Honestly? I think the pool runs better now than ever since we even bought this place. So we've had problems all along. Still have LOTS of cleanup to do - we're working on it!

And a little sad news - my great-aunt died on Sunday, so I had to run down to Baltimore with the boys for the funeral this week - that's why I didn't get a chance to blog. We got back late yesterday afternoon.

Looking forward to the weekend - we're hopefully going to get this place whipped into shape - clean up all the mess both inside and out of the house! And maybe take the kids on a little daytrip to a cool park we found in West Virginia and do a hike and a picnic!

Well, we're up and running; the pool, that is. Last night, Mark and I were out there under the floodlights until 11pm, cutting, fitting and gluing PVC. We collapsed, dirty, tired, discouraged and half high on PVC glue sometime after midnight. We let the whole mess dry and cure overnight, and then had to put some finishing touches on this morning, and FINALLY, around 2pm, we fired her up. We still have a few minor issues that need to be fixed, but we actually filtered pool water for almost 8 hours today, and it's already looking close to swimmable. Tomorrow we do some more repairs and vacuum the bottom, and maybe by Monday (predicted weather: 98 degrees), we can actually get in the pool!

Lest you think the only reason I started this blog is so I can whine and complain, I have to admit, despite all our little troubles lately, life is good. We're very busy, and don't have a lot of extra time for relaxation, but when we do get to sneak an hour or two of fun, we have a great time and are really starting to see how enjoyable life can be with two little guys. Hopefully, the rest of the summer will be major-repair-free (and that goes for everything from lawn mowers to swimming pools to mailboxes....) and we can enjoy these long, lazy days of fresh fruits and veggies, picnics, sunshine and warm weather, and seeing life's little everyday things through a child's eyes, making it all that more worthwhile. :-)

The Money Pit Sucks in Even More $$$ - and Happy 4th of July

Can you believe we are STILL messing with this pool filter, and STILL NOT swimming? Yesterday, after hearing that our local pool store wanted $600 for the new CORRECT filter, I scoured the internet and found the exact one for only $390. Unfortunately, it was in a store in Owings Mills. But fortunately, my parents live right near there and they very graciously went to the store, bought it, and dragged it up to Hagerstown, where they met us for dinner at Cracker Barrel, and we drove it home. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!)
But today, we opened the box, and some piece - ummmm, let's see, oh yes, the "umbrella-fold lateral assembly" looks like it is mounted crooked in the tank, and starting first thing in the morning, I'm going to have to start making phone calls to the pool filter manufacturer. Stay tuned to see where all this is going..... (Oh, and in the meantime, ANOTHER trip to Lowes for PVC fittings, a new plug for the pump and a masonry drill bit to stick the outlet onto the brick wall of our house...$24)
And while we were at Lowes, we bought a new mailbox, because ours is falling apart. Never one to just mount a plain, black mailbox, I plan on using my non-existent artistic skills to paint something on there. I'll be sure to post a pic when I get it done!

Pool Update

Okay, so the last entry was from last night. Today, I dragged the kiddos with me to the pool store to buy all these fittings and pipes and bushings and unions and all this other PVC stuff I know nothing about. I think the shopowner took pity on me and really took a lot of time with me....good thing. The filter and new pump we bought the other day was the WRONG one for our pool. Would have been disastrous. So I had to special order the correct filter, and now we have to wait until it gets delivered on Thursday. So no swimming on the 4th of July. Oh well - last night it was only 45 degrees here overnight, so I'm not sure why we bothered to uncover it in the first place! Maybe NEXT summer we'll get everything right!

The Money Pit, aka, Our Pool

Okay - let me introduce you to our pool. We've lived in this house for 3 years, but actually, this is our fourth summer. The first summer, we moved in August, so we got a month's use out of it. Summer, 2005, the pump broke and we had to have it fixed to the tune of almost $200. Summer 2006? We didn't even bother uncovering it because Matthew was born in June, and me and the kids went down to my Mom and Dad's house for the rest of the summer. But OH, WAIT! Over the summer, the cover split, so we had to uncover it anyway in October, and RE-COVER it immediately with a new cover, about $75. Not to mention, we dumped half the contents of the cover INTO the pool, but had no choice but to just cover it up and hope for the best. So here we are, Summer, 2007. We just got back from vacation, so our pool was still covered, it was our main priority this weekend. Yesterday, we pull the cover off, not too bad! Hooked up the (fixed) pump, turned on the filter. Disaster. Filter had cracks in the bottom, water pouring out. Total cost of new filter PLUS a new pump, because what do you know, they sell it as a package....$575. And lest you think we're ready to swim, how's this - filter STILL not hooked up because we need more parts, and hardly any pool stores are open on Saturday evenings and Sunday. We had to change around the whole electrical system (parts for that...$35), AND we had to buy new sand...$39.

I can only hope, that in the coming years, my boys, and their friends, and their friend's friends and relatives and everybody's dogs get a WHOLE lot of fun out of this pool, otherwise, I'm filling it in and making it into a very nice vegetable garden.

Final word? Don't get a pool. Get A/C.