I am the most wonderful, lovely, enchanting person in the whole world, just ask my six-year-old son. If you don't already have an enamored fan, get one. It's quite intoxicating, I highly recommend it.
The other day, my little admirer whispered, "I WISH you were my age." I assured him how much I would like being in his class and playing together at recess. I saw the dreamy expression as he envisioned this idyllic world. then asked him, "What if the other kids started teasing you and saying I was your girlfriend?" The cow eyes disappeared instantly and he bared his teeth and furrowed his brow in a very fierce game face. I imagined he was going to defend my honor and challenge anyone who would dare tease us. Through clenched teeth he vowed, "If they did, I wouldn't play with you anymore!"
Good to know my limitations.
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
Wyoming
I've been asked "how do you like living in Cheyenne?" I must say, the thing that has stood out the most about moving here is not the relentless wind, nor the fact that the day's high temperature dropped 30+ degrees from the delicious autumn Texas weather, but how nice the people are. In my experience, Texas has always had the friendliest, most considerate population of any place I ever lived. You can strike up a conversation in the line of a grocery store with a complete stranger and it not be weird. Here, the people are not just nice, they are also helpful and warm and friendly and welcoming. It's almost creepy; like Stepford Citizens or something. We're basking in their old time hospitality.
That job thing? Still waiting. Now it's possible that The Job will take us eventually to Virginia, but we are hoping that Divine Intervention will intercede on our behalf and we will be able to go back and live in the Second Friendliest State EVER. If they'll have us, now that I've downgraded the Friendly Quotient of the entire population of the second largest state in America.
That job thing? Still waiting. Now it's possible that The Job will take us eventually to Virginia, but we are hoping that Divine Intervention will intercede on our behalf and we will be able to go back and live in the Second Friendliest State EVER. If they'll have us, now that I've downgraded the Friendly Quotient of the entire population of the second largest state in America.
Wednesday, 29 September 2010
The Cabin Story
I don't even know where to begin the explanation of how our family moved from our modest 3 bedroom home into a cozy 1 bedroom vacation cabin. "Cozy" is a word the British use when describing extremely cramped living conditions. It sounds so much nicer than "confining" doesn't it? Here it is in a nutshell: we sold our home and the job we were waiting on wouldn't be available for some time, so we had an interim period of about a month with the question, "What to do?" The options were, drive 1,000 miles to Wyoming and wait for the job to come available in Texas so we could drive back, or rent a furnished place in Texas and wait. We opted for wait.
Our new abode was a one bedroom cabin with bunk beds in the same room as the kitchen/dining room. We were ecstatic to find there was one dresser and a very small closet as well. It was actually a real blessing that this particular unit became available the day before we needed it because most of the "cabins" are studio apartments with no separate bedroom like this expansive floor plan offered.
Here a few things I learned...
-Cooking must be kept to a minimum as the smell of your dinner will greet you at breakfast.
-Locking the bathroom door during your shower is no longer a viable option unless you want to clean up the aftermath.
-You can't sneak a bowl of ice cream after putting the kids to bed, as they are only 2 feet away from the freezer.
-Free wireless internet is not a good medium for watching Netflix instant downloads.
-Fleas and mosquitos love the great outdoors and those who live in it.
I have to mention this one quirky thing about our cabin. On the bedroom ceiling, there was a perfect glow-in-the-dark mural of the night sky. It wasn't those cheesy little stick on stars. This constellation wasn't even visible in the daytime. It was a startling, amazing wonder when we turned out the lights in our "master suite";the ceiling disappeared and the Milky Way and Big Dipper appeared. It was SO impressive, I have to give you the link so maybe you can get a feel for how wonderous it was:
http://darkskymurals.com/dsm/Gallery.php
So I'm sure you're wondering what happened next. The contract we were waiting to go through was delayed. After a month, we had to pack our remaining things into our 4 door sedan and drive 1,000 miles to Cheyenne, Wyoming where Dan's mom lives. Here we are STILL waiting for the job to materialize. Sheer madness.
Our new abode was a one bedroom cabin with bunk beds in the same room as the kitchen/dining room. We were ecstatic to find there was one dresser and a very small closet as well. It was actually a real blessing that this particular unit became available the day before we needed it because most of the "cabins" are studio apartments with no separate bedroom like this expansive floor plan offered.
Here a few things I learned...
-Cooking must be kept to a minimum as the smell of your dinner will greet you at breakfast.
-Locking the bathroom door during your shower is no longer a viable option unless you want to clean up the aftermath.
-You can't sneak a bowl of ice cream after putting the kids to bed, as they are only 2 feet away from the freezer.
-Free wireless internet is not a good medium for watching Netflix instant downloads.
-Fleas and mosquitos love the great outdoors and those who live in it.
I have to mention this one quirky thing about our cabin. On the bedroom ceiling, there was a perfect glow-in-the-dark mural of the night sky. It wasn't those cheesy little stick on stars. This constellation wasn't even visible in the daytime. It was a startling, amazing wonder when we turned out the lights in our "master suite";the ceiling disappeared and the Milky Way and Big Dipper appeared. It was SO impressive, I have to give you the link so maybe you can get a feel for how wonderous it was:
http://darkskymurals.com/dsm/Gallery.php
So I'm sure you're wondering what happened next. The contract we were waiting to go through was delayed. After a month, we had to pack our remaining things into our 4 door sedan and drive 1,000 miles to Cheyenne, Wyoming where Dan's mom lives. Here we are STILL waiting for the job to materialize. Sheer madness.
Monday, 27 September 2010
Freestyle Baking
We are living in a one bedroom cabin. It's a long story that has nothing to do with baking, so we'll have to dispense with that tale for now. The important thing to know is that all our household goods are in storage and I was needing to bake 100 sugar cookies for church last Saturday. Luckily, my Momma lives nearby and I volunteered her to let me bake them at her place. She agreed, even though she wouldn't be at home to help. No problem.
My recipe box is in storage, but I had the presence of mind to send an e-mail out to friends and family asking if they could give me my favorite recipe days in advance. From the faraway reaches of England, Tina answered my culinary call and I was able to access it using Mom's computer, quite handily located in her kitchen.
The cookie cutters are all packed away, so I examined all the glasses in the cupboard and picked one that would make the perfect sized cookie. That is only the beginning of the "McGyvering" that goes on in this story. For example, I couldn't find a rolling pin at first, but thought, "It's OK. I'll cover the dough in wax paper and then use Mom's hair spray can to roll them out." Luckily, it didn't come to that, as I found a rolling pin while looking for the electric mixer. Good thing too, because I never did come across any wax paper.
The butter flavored Crisco had been forgotten at our one bedroom cabin 15 miles away, but I had $3 and a very handy Dollar General store nearby that helped to reconcile my oversight.
Upon returning from my shortening run, I began the process of mixing the dough. I vacillated a while between doubling or tripling the recipe since there were so many cookies to make. I settled with just doubling, as I didn't think the bowl was big enough to accommodate 15 cups of flour. So, let's see 1.5 cups of butter becomes 3 cups of Crisco. I laboriously poked shortening into a one cup measuring container three times to ensure the recipe was EXACT, because precision is key to premium results when baking, right?
I think it was at this point that I realized I had left the sugar at the cabin and began rummaging around for enough sugar to make ONE HUNDRED cookies. While I was at it, I figured I'd pull out the electric mixer and opened every cupboard and cabinet door in the kitchen in a fruitless search for the elusive mixer. Oh, but look! I found some vanilla extract, another thing I had forgotten to bring with me. Located the sugar, not the mixer but came across a rolling pin then got back to the recipe.
OK, where was I? Oh yes, I had measured out three cups of shortening, which got me thinking I had tripled the recipe because it was three cups, right? So, um, the recipe called for 2 cups of sugar, multiplied by three, came to SIX cups of sugar, but the one cup measuring container was all mucked up with shortening, so I used the 1/2 cup measure which meant I would need to add 12 half cups of sugar. I counted very carefully TWELVE half cups of sugar into the bowl and only then realized that I had doubled the butter part of the recipe yet tripled the sugar. After concluding I had no business actually applying math in real world situations, I tossed in a stick of butter and kissed accuracy goodbye . Since the mixer was a no show, I used a potato masher to cream the first two ingredients together. By-the-way, I'm only just now getting feeling back in my right hand, so I don't recommend this method of mixing to anyone who isn't already visiting a gym regularly.
At this point, I had to reassess what proportions the ingredients should be. Since the boat had already sailed on doubling, I decided I'd shoot for somewhere in the neighborhood of two and a half times the recipe; then added 10 eggs and a 5 lb sack of flour. Yes, things were feeling a bit "I Love Lucy-ish" by then, and I only hoped I'd have the strength to hand mix those nightmarish proportions into something that resembled cookie dough. It was a miracle on the level of turning water into wine that I was able to mix this disaster into a yummy ball of dough that was the perfect consistency for rolling and cutting. The story ends happily-ever-after with smiling church kids smearing butter cream frosting on their very own cookie and decorating with sprinkles to suit their hearts desire.
As I have proven what a forgiving recipe it is, I've included it for your baking pleasure. Please be sure you have all ingredients on hand as well as a potato masher, hair spray canister, wax paper, and a medium sized drinking glass to avoid any minor inconveniences.
Easy Sugar Cookies
1.5 cups softened butter
5 cups plain flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
Mix butter and flour and make into crumbs. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix into crumbs. Add vanilla extract. Add eggs a little at a time and bind all mixture together to make dough. Roll onto floured surface and cut into shapes.
Bake in preheated oven at 350f oven. 8-10 minutes.
Butter Cream Frosting
4 oz butter
1 lb powdered sugar
1/4 c milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix together ingredients until smooth, spread over cooled cookies and decorate
My recipe box is in storage, but I had the presence of mind to send an e-mail out to friends and family asking if they could give me my favorite recipe days in advance. From the faraway reaches of England, Tina answered my culinary call and I was able to access it using Mom's computer, quite handily located in her kitchen.
The cookie cutters are all packed away, so I examined all the glasses in the cupboard and picked one that would make the perfect sized cookie. That is only the beginning of the "McGyvering" that goes on in this story. For example, I couldn't find a rolling pin at first, but thought, "It's OK. I'll cover the dough in wax paper and then use Mom's hair spray can to roll them out." Luckily, it didn't come to that, as I found a rolling pin while looking for the electric mixer. Good thing too, because I never did come across any wax paper.
The butter flavored Crisco had been forgotten at our one bedroom cabin 15 miles away, but I had $3 and a very handy Dollar General store nearby that helped to reconcile my oversight.
Upon returning from my shortening run, I began the process of mixing the dough. I vacillated a while between doubling or tripling the recipe since there were so many cookies to make. I settled with just doubling, as I didn't think the bowl was big enough to accommodate 15 cups of flour. So, let's see 1.5 cups of butter becomes 3 cups of Crisco. I laboriously poked shortening into a one cup measuring container three times to ensure the recipe was EXACT, because precision is key to premium results when baking, right?
I think it was at this point that I realized I had left the sugar at the cabin and began rummaging around for enough sugar to make ONE HUNDRED cookies. While I was at it, I figured I'd pull out the electric mixer and opened every cupboard and cabinet door in the kitchen in a fruitless search for the elusive mixer. Oh, but look! I found some vanilla extract, another thing I had forgotten to bring with me. Located the sugar, not the mixer but came across a rolling pin then got back to the recipe.
OK, where was I? Oh yes, I had measured out three cups of shortening, which got me thinking I had tripled the recipe because it was three cups, right? So, um, the recipe called for 2 cups of sugar, multiplied by three, came to SIX cups of sugar, but the one cup measuring container was all mucked up with shortening, so I used the 1/2 cup measure which meant I would need to add 12 half cups of sugar. I counted very carefully TWELVE half cups of sugar into the bowl and only then realized that I had doubled the butter part of the recipe yet tripled the sugar. After concluding I had no business actually applying math in real world situations, I tossed in a stick of butter and kissed accuracy goodbye . Since the mixer was a no show, I used a potato masher to cream the first two ingredients together. By-the-way, I'm only just now getting feeling back in my right hand, so I don't recommend this method of mixing to anyone who isn't already visiting a gym regularly.
At this point, I had to reassess what proportions the ingredients should be. Since the boat had already sailed on doubling, I decided I'd shoot for somewhere in the neighborhood of two and a half times the recipe; then added 10 eggs and a 5 lb sack of flour. Yes, things were feeling a bit "I Love Lucy-ish" by then, and I only hoped I'd have the strength to hand mix those nightmarish proportions into something that resembled cookie dough. It was a miracle on the level of turning water into wine that I was able to mix this disaster into a yummy ball of dough that was the perfect consistency for rolling and cutting. The story ends happily-ever-after with smiling church kids smearing butter cream frosting on their very own cookie and decorating with sprinkles to suit their hearts desire.
As I have proven what a forgiving recipe it is, I've included it for your baking pleasure. Please be sure you have all ingredients on hand as well as a potato masher, hair spray canister, wax paper, and a medium sized drinking glass to avoid any minor inconveniences.
Easy Sugar Cookies
1.5 cups softened butter
5 cups plain flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
Mix butter and flour and make into crumbs. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix into crumbs. Add vanilla extract. Add eggs a little at a time and bind all mixture together to make dough. Roll onto floured surface and cut into shapes.
Bake in preheated oven at 350f oven. 8-10 minutes.
Butter Cream Frosting
4 oz butter
1 lb powdered sugar
1/4 c milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix together ingredients until smooth, spread over cooled cookies and decorate
Saturday, 28 August 2010
Select a Language
As I was giving Logan a much needed bath after having walked all over the D.C. mall today, he playfully put some bubbles on his chin and then used his fingers to "shave" the soap off. I narrated what he was doing in Spanish, telling him he was "razurando". He corrected me and explained he was, in fact, shaving. "That's what I said, 'razurando'" I assured him, still speaking in Spanish. "Ooooh. I didn't know that," he marveled. Then he wondered, "Mommy, how you know EVYTHEEN?" I was about to demure that I really didn't know everything in Spanish, but he interrupted my denials by figuring it out all by himself. "OH, I know. You in 'Spanish' mode."
Which is really only hysterically funny if you've watched Toy Story III and are picturing Buzz Lightyear while HE was in Spanish Mode.
Which is really only hysterically funny if you've watched Toy Story III and are picturing Buzz Lightyear while HE was in Spanish Mode.
Thursday, 19 August 2010
Asphalt Surfing
Dan has started running in the mornings before the day's high causes the ground to spontaneously combust and/or the humidity requires one to don an underwater breathing apparatus. Hannah has wanted to go with him and actually awoke him (and thereby, ME) the other morning at 4 am, dressed and ready to go. That is an error she will not likely make again, to be sure.
This morning, at a MUCH more civilized hour, Dan was ready to go for his run and both children wanted to tag along; Hannah on foot and Logan on bicycle. When Logan arrived home, he looked like he had been in a brawl. He explained the brakes hadn't worked on his bicycle and so he tried to stop himself using his feet, but it was too late (an investigation into pilot error is pending). Dan and Hannah arrived a little later and filled in the details:
It all started well enough as Logan impressed Dan by riding his bicycle safely down the frighteningly steep 11% grade road without incident. They arrived to the park where a nice, sedate pedestrian trail meanders between fields and mature trees. Dan felt this would be a good place for him to have a run, as the park is closed to traffic and no one else was there. He took off and Logan decided to keep up, engaging the turbo boosters on his Spider Man bike. At some point, he wiped out on the asphalt, totally compromising the money-maker. The bloody upper lip that swelled up quite dramatically as well as multiple abrasions on his face give him impressive looking street creds .
Oh, and today was Meet the Teacher Night at school...perfect timing.
This morning, at a MUCH more civilized hour, Dan was ready to go for his run and both children wanted to tag along; Hannah on foot and Logan on bicycle. When Logan arrived home, he looked like he had been in a brawl. He explained the brakes hadn't worked on his bicycle and so he tried to stop himself using his feet, but it was too late (an investigation into pilot error is pending). Dan and Hannah arrived a little later and filled in the details:
It all started well enough as Logan impressed Dan by riding his bicycle safely down the frighteningly steep 11% grade road without incident. They arrived to the park where a nice, sedate pedestrian trail meanders between fields and mature trees. Dan felt this would be a good place for him to have a run, as the park is closed to traffic and no one else was there. He took off and Logan decided to keep up, engaging the turbo boosters on his Spider Man bike. At some point, he wiped out on the asphalt, totally compromising the money-maker. The bloody upper lip that swelled up quite dramatically as well as multiple abrasions on his face give him impressive looking street creds .
Oh, and today was Meet the Teacher Night at school...perfect timing.
Sunday, 8 August 2010
Guardian Angels
There is no way to spin this next episode so that I come off as a slightly ludicrous yet endearingly charming mommy. No, this story smacks of borderline neglect.
We're in Texas, and it's summertime. The high today was forecasted to be 99 degrees Fahrenheit (38C). Hannah wanted to go outside this afternoon. In Texas; during the summer. Can you already see the tragedy beginning to unfold?
The rest of us decided to stay in the comfort of our air conditioned house and watch A Little Princess, but that movie just didn't appeal to Hannah the Anti-Princess. She asked if she could go outside and read her book. In my head, I'm kind of annoyed because I really enjoyed reading A Little Princess with Michelle and Kimmy years ago when they were Hannah's age and I wanted Hannah to watch the movie so that she would have the desire to read the book too. But no, she would rather go OUT in the HEAT in TEXAS where there is no air conditioning to read Harry Potter than watch the boring movie mommy picked out. And no, I do not have issues. All right, maybe I do...
We started the movie, then Michelle called and we had a nice long chat. Afterwards, I went back to watch the movie and it was already to the part where Sarah Crew is a hungry pauper that gives her food to a little street urchin. Logan was off playing quietly and I thought about Hannah. She was STILL outside. Huh. Wonder if I should go have a peek? That thought was discarded as I figured Hannah would come in when she was ready. Then Kimmy called and we talked for about 30 minutes and got caught up. Little Jack will be 3 months old tomorrow, the same day that Kimmy is starting back to work after maternity leave. And John has gotten a new position at work with a raise as well. After our nice little catch up, I got back to the movie (which I had put on pause because Dan had fallen asleep on the couch sometime during the first phone call). Not too long after that, there was a knock at the door. I got up and saw it was Hannah. I opened the door and she stood there all forelorn then sadly spluttered that she had been stuck up in a tree for ever so long and couldn't get down because there was a bee hive nearby and she knows that nearly all wild bees in Texas are likely to be Africanized. So she sat outside and called for us but we were too far to hear her (in our tightly closed, air conditioned house). She prayed for us to come check on her, but no one came (even though Mommy had been prompted on two seperate occations to check on her). While she was stranded, she cried and thought that probably by bedtime, we would come looking for her. Finally, after at least an hour and a half, she slid off the branch she was on, skinning her tummy. It was the only way to escape her prison and avoid the bees.
When she told us her story, we hugged her and cooled her off and cuddled her overheated little self. Dan went out to retrieve her book and took some pictures of the bee hive in the tree where Hannah was stranded. His heart gave a jump when he saw how close her reading limb was to the hive and how very badly she might have been hurt had the bees attacked. We are so thankful that the Lord shielded her from harm and brought her safely home to us.
We're in Texas, and it's summertime. The high today was forecasted to be 99 degrees Fahrenheit (38C). Hannah wanted to go outside this afternoon. In Texas; during the summer. Can you already see the tragedy beginning to unfold?
The rest of us decided to stay in the comfort of our air conditioned house and watch A Little Princess, but that movie just didn't appeal to Hannah the Anti-Princess. She asked if she could go outside and read her book. In my head, I'm kind of annoyed because I really enjoyed reading A Little Princess with Michelle and Kimmy years ago when they were Hannah's age and I wanted Hannah to watch the movie so that she would have the desire to read the book too. But no, she would rather go OUT in the HEAT in TEXAS where there is no air conditioning to read Harry Potter than watch the boring movie mommy picked out. And no, I do not have issues. All right, maybe I do...
We started the movie, then Michelle called and we had a nice long chat. Afterwards, I went back to watch the movie and it was already to the part where Sarah Crew is a hungry pauper that gives her food to a little street urchin. Logan was off playing quietly and I thought about Hannah. She was STILL outside. Huh. Wonder if I should go have a peek? That thought was discarded as I figured Hannah would come in when she was ready. Then Kimmy called and we talked for about 30 minutes and got caught up. Little Jack will be 3 months old tomorrow, the same day that Kimmy is starting back to work after maternity leave. And John has gotten a new position at work with a raise as well. After our nice little catch up, I got back to the movie (which I had put on pause because Dan had fallen asleep on the couch sometime during the first phone call). Not too long after that, there was a knock at the door. I got up and saw it was Hannah. I opened the door and she stood there all forelorn then sadly spluttered that she had been stuck up in a tree for ever so long and couldn't get down because there was a bee hive nearby and she knows that nearly all wild bees in Texas are likely to be Africanized. So she sat outside and called for us but we were too far to hear her (in our tightly closed, air conditioned house). She prayed for us to come check on her, but no one came (even though Mommy had been prompted on two seperate occations to check on her). While she was stranded, she cried and thought that probably by bedtime, we would come looking for her. Finally, after at least an hour and a half, she slid off the branch she was on, skinning her tummy. It was the only way to escape her prison and avoid the bees.
When she told us her story, we hugged her and cooled her off and cuddled her overheated little self. Dan went out to retrieve her book and took some pictures of the bee hive in the tree where Hannah was stranded. His heart gave a jump when he saw how close her reading limb was to the hive and how very badly she might have been hurt had the bees attacked. We are so thankful that the Lord shielded her from harm and brought her safely home to us.
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