Photo Dump

Jack is officially pulling up on furniture now--a mere one week after he learned how to sit up on his own. They say second children learn to move fast and boy is that true with this little guy. Unfortuantely going up, up, up means a lot of going down, down, down. He's a tough little guy though and hardly cries when he topples over.

All this standing and cruising means that we have to say goodbye to footie sleepers and hello to big boy pajamas. Its a bittersweet moment for this mama.


Xavier on a hike with Dad. That's his tiger backpack behind him.

The family and friends at cousin Matthew's 4th birthday party.

Tot School -- #3

This past week in Tot School we've been focusing on shapes. Here are the boys having a little fun with circle-shaped stickers from Kroger. Those baggers never listen to me when I ask them to only give Xavier and Jack one sticker each and instead usually give them about 10. Fortunately, Xavier only puts stickers on people right now. Jack doesn't seem to mind.


Xavier continues to love doing "crafts" which means using scissors, glue and paper in any permutation. I cut out simple shapes from construction paper--sets of three. I asked Xavier to pick out certain shapes and then we sorted them. We worked on the concepts of small, medium and large as well as shapes. Then we glued them to the paper. Xavier still hates to get his hands sticky and instead points and tells me, "Right there!" to indicate where a piece should go.



In the realm of practical life, Xavier is learning how to set a table. He's been "cooking" his Wonder Pets for quite some time now. This morning while I was doing housework, he put them in bowls, set out napkins, forks and knives, and told me to, "Come see, Mom." We had a nice imaginary Wonder Pet snack.



I scored some .25 cent watercolors during the Target back to school sale. Here's Xavier with his first attempt at using them.

Yogurt: Set It and Forget It

I've been on a scratch cooking kick lately. The thing about cooking from scratch is that once you start doing it, it becomes progressively easier. No, really. You know that you have the basics in the house: flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, yeast, milk or milk powder, eggs, oils and butters, and spices. It means that whipping up a batch of muffins, pancakes, bagels, or cookies is just a matter or measuring out what you already have on hand. It is almost as easy as dumping a box mix in a bowl and adding egg and oil. But with scratch cooking you know exactly what you are feeding your family.

Xavier has loved to help cook since he was about 18 months old. I'll measure and he'll put things in the bowl. He "stirs" and then I stir after him. He can put paper cups in the muffin tin. He likes to watch things bake through the oven's glass door. One of the easiest ways to scratch cook is to find catch-all recipies. I have a basic bread recipie that can use honey, brown sugar, or any other kind of sweetener, as well as butter, olive oil, veggie oil or any other fat as the, well, fat in the recipie. I also have a basic muffin recipie to which I can add overripe bananas, raisins, even leftover mashed sweet potatoes. Scratch cooking is a great way to use up leftovers and boost nutrition at the same time.

A few weeks ago I found an online recipe for yogurt that didn't involve getting a yogurt maker (which just means one more one-use gadget cluttering my small kitchen) or using a heating pad (I'm a little squeamish about using non-cookware for dairy products). Instead this recipie used one of my favorite tools: the crockpot! Here's the recipie itself. I find that letting the yogurt sit a little longer than 8 hours (say 10-11) produces the best results. I put the finished product back into large and small yogurt containers I've saved from store-bought in the past. Just make sure to use a sharpie and masking tape to label the "use by" date on each container.

Now here's how you can extend the recipie even further. If you have fruit that is just this side of overripe, puree it in the blender and freeze into ice cubes. When you're heading out the door, pop a cube into a small single-serving container, fill up with yogurt, pop it in the diaper bag, and you're good to go with a snack.

Another way to extend the useful life of your yogurt, mix it at a 1:1 ratio with water and you have "buttermilk." Make pancakes, pound cake, salad dressing, veggie dip or any other recipie you have that calls for buttermilk. In the past I've always avoided them because really, who buys buttermilk? What do you do with the leftovers?

Lastly, don't forget to freeze a few cubes of yogurt (equal to 1/2 cup) for using to make your next batch of yogurt.

Work

I've been on a rabit trail lately about the American tradition of work. It all started when a mom at the library recommended checking out DVDs (free!) for some at home date nights with my husband. She and her spouse had just finished the Showtime series on Henry VIII called The Tudors. Starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Henry, this was high on the racy sex factor and not so much with the history. Tim and I made it through about 2-3 episodes before deciding this just wasn't worth our precious quiet time together.

But the idea of watching premium cable series through the library's DVD program triggered my memory of rave reviews of HBO's John Adams series. So I requested that and received it the next week. We both really liked this one. More history, more character development, etc. It makes me want to read the biography that the series is drawn from.

Two things stood out to me: one was how Abigail Adams seemed like a great role model for the modern homemaker. She was educated, thoughtful, supportive, hard-working, and loving. She also worked. She may have planned meals but she also scrubbed windows and floors too.

From there I ended up checking out a book from the children's library entitled Home and Child Life in Colonial Days. It was clearly too advanced for Xavier -- in fact it was just an abridged version of an adult book. But I found it fascinating. Again what impressed me was how much work occupied time back then. Even social events were centered around work: spinning, building, land clearing, and quilting just to name a few. It was considered patriotic to be self-sufficient when possible and neighborly helpful when needed. Pride came from providing for your family and your accomplishements, not from material possessions or leisurly pursuits. The latter illicited enjoyment rather than pride.

All of this makes me realize how little we actually do during each day compared to our forbearers. Sure I do a few loads of laundry a day but that mostly consists of putting things into a machine and pressing buttons. Same with washing dishes. Same with vacuuming. How much of my day do I actually spend engaged in actual work versus leisure (web surfing, talking on the telephone, reading books, sending e-mail).

The past few days I've been trying to find the joy and peace in work, actual work. Not just spot cleaning on the fly but planning and executing. The funny thing is that while I still get about the same amount done each day, I've found that my entire attitude with respect to work has changed as I try to be diligent but not perfectionist. How? I give whatever I'm doing my full attention and when I'm done, I'm done.

I've also tried to be more mindful about what I find satisfaction in. Is it the neatly made bed and tidy room or is it the fashionably painted bedroom and coordinating bedding?