Jimmy’s been eyeing my food lately, so I figured it was time to give him some of his own.
He liked it.
I foresee large grocery bills in my near future to keep up with this big guy’s appetite.
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Reason # 1,000,001 that I love being a mom: I have a great excuse to spend an hour outside on a sunny afternoon.
Three great excuses, that is (they also give me an excuse to eat Keebler cookies).
(One not pictured above because he was enjoying the afternoon too much.)
Just when I thought it was safe to let the girls play by themselves in their room…
…they pull down the curtains. I thought I had until Jimmy started walking before I had to bolt everything to the wall! Ten years ago, American history changed forever. It’s strange that my kids will grow up in a world with no World Trade Center towers, no undamaged Pentagon, no unbloodied Pennsylvania countryside. They will never know the innocence of an unattacked America. They have never known an America not at war. So often these days it feels like we are experiencing catastrophe after catastrophe. We aren’t safe abroad, we aren’t safe at home – we aren’t even safe in our homes. But it is possible to look forward to the future. Not because we could elect a President who would appease the international communities. Not because we could build structures impervious to bombs or planes or intruders. No, sin will always infect this world. But this world is not our home. We are here for such a short span of time – some much shorter than others – and then we will be in eternity. Can you look forward to your future? Who are you trusting for your safety? The government? The military? They may save your body, but they can never save your soul. Trust in the Lord, and the sacrifice of His Son for your sins. "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God” (Psalm 20:7). “Jesus is coming! His saints to release; – Daniel Whittle I try to do things with the girls’ hair, I really do. But I’m limited by the length of their tresses, my lack of hairdressing expertise, and the girls’ own reluctance to leave anything in their hair for more than two minutes. I buy clips by the dozen, and they all seem to disappear in a matter of a week. But apparently I haven’t learned my lesson, because when we were shopping recently I purchased a pair of floral headbands in the hopes that they would stay put for longer than the clips. When we got home, the girls begged to put them on, and I was hopeful we were about to experience a breakthrough. I placed them on top of their heads with all the pomp of a crowning ceremony. The girls looked gorgeous and were enthralled for a minute or two…and then yanked them off. Good thing I was quick with the camera.
I had a craving for pizza today, and as I happened to have some dough in the refrigerator, I enlisted the help of the girls to make my dream a reality (it’s okay to dream about pizza, right?). Although my original intention was to let the girls help me stretch out the dough and spread it on the pan, it became apparent after four over-eager hands started pulling and poking that I was in over my head. I nixed the girls’ involvement with that step and attempted to roll it out myself. I floured my rolling pin and got to work. But try as I might, my dough remained a humpbacked puddle rather than a flat circle. So I resigned myself to puddle-pizza and moved on. I gave the girls the green light to assist at that point, and they were enthusiastic oilers.
(Yes, that’s the same basting brush that the girls used to “paint” the exterior of the house, and no, I wasn’t 100% positive it had been cleaned since then. Added flavor, maybe?). They were also big helps with adding cheese…to their mouths, that is.
I had envisioned a “margherita-style” white pizza, but because I can never say no to salty meat, I agreed to add on a few slices of pepperoni at the girls’ request. That made Becky very happy. She is also a fan of salty meat.
After copious amounts of additional cheese, as well as some fresh basil (that counts as a vegetable, right?), I popped it in the oven and let the aroma of hot cheesy goodness fill the house. I could simply show you a picture of the finished product and let you assume that the girls and I successfully created a masterpiece. See – isn’t it pretty?
But unfortunately, it only looked pretty. Remember the “humpbacked puddle” I had going on? Well, it turns out puddles don’t cook as well as pancakes. So despite an additional 20-30 minutes in an extra-hot oven, my pizza remained stubbornly dough-y on the inside. Good thing I’m always a fan of chewy bread. And although it didn’t quite live up to my taste buds’ expectations, it was an enjoyable culinary adventure with the girls. They didn’t even notice it wasn’t up to snuff. They ate so much cheese and pepperoni that they were full by the time the pizza came out anyway! Did you think I forgot all about my little blog? Never fear; no one was sick or injured or even mildly concussed. Well, except me if you count sleep-deprivation (As of last week, Jimmy decided to abandon his too-good-to-be-true sleeping routine from 9pm – 8am with three-plus gorgeous naps in favor of….umm…no observable routine at all, and once-a-night waking. It’s driving me nuts). I haven’t been ‘round these parts lately because we had company staying with us this weekend, and I was utterly (and willingly) absorbed by our delightful houseguests. We had our dear friends Ashley and Uriah, along with Uriah’s brother Matt, his wife Kaitlyn, and their two-month old Ellee. And all I can say is it’s a good thing I have my own baby to cuddle, because otherwise I would have a serious case of baby-fever after spending time with their adorable bundle of joy. As it is, I think baby Jimmy was just as enthralled with her as I was!
See? He’s totally drooling over her. Other than baby-watching, we did some great boating with our guests and our friends Chris and Sarah. We tried a different lake on Saturday, and while it was quite scenic, it was also very choppy. However, that didn’t seem to dampen the girls’ insatiable appetite for snacks while onboard.
(Susie focusing on Skittles over scenery) Observant blog-followers (a.k.a. my mom) may notice that Susie was sporting a new life jacket in the above picture. Sadly, one of our beloved pink “boat coats" was lost, and we replaced it with this more grown-up version. Susie took it in stride. She’s gone from this:
To this:
Jimmy did well on the boat all day, as did Ellee. We definitely have future wakeboarders on our hands.
As per usual when we’re with our friends, we ate very well, including this fantastic offering from Sarah:
The girls were beyond excited to eat cupcakes featuring the “Despicable Me” minions, and in fact requested these little guys for breakfast, lunch and dinner the following day (I’ll leave it to your imagination as to whether I acquiesced to their demands):
We can’t thank our friends enough for making this a wonderfully enjoyable Labor Day weekend. And because this post wasn’t picture-heavy enough (come on, I have to compensate for my prolonged blog absence), I’ll leave you with some pictures of our photogenic friends!
Matt (such a devoted dad!) and Ellee
Wonder-mom Kaitlyn and Ellee
Ashley with our kiddos (in the middle of teeth-brushing and photo-viewing)
Chris and Sarah with cup-eating Jimmy and robe-sporting Susie
Kaitlyn and Ashley with the babes-in-arms – who knows how big those little ones will be the next time they meet! Weather according to Susie: “Rain comes!” as she tosses her dinner rice into the air. Metaphor according to Susie: “Last day, I saw a bee walking like a…bee.” Ethics according to Susie: “You never ever push anybody. That’s the Golden Rule.”
Ethics according to Becky: Me: “What’s the Golden Rule?” Becky: “If I ask you, share with me.” Biology according to Becky: Jim: “Does a bear poop in the woods?” Becky: “No, he poops in the forest.” Scripture according to Becky: Me: “Why did Moses get put in a basket in the river?” Becky: “Because he whined.” I took this video of the girls playing yesterday on the back deck (please pardon the badly-needed paint job, and also the fact that the girls are wearing their church clothes for play. I have to pick my battles.). They had been doing “Ring around the Rosie” until Becky suddenly lacked the muscle power to get up for the next round. Susie did her best to help: While watching the above scene unfold, I realized the dynamics were uncannily similar to those I witnessed a year ago. The girls were playing in the back yard and Susie found herself called upon to assist a helpless Becky to her feet. The girls now have better verbal skills (and better hair), but the rest is about the same! Last weekend (pre-storm), the kids and I went over to my friend Maria’s house to spend the evening with her and her mom. As always, we were treated to an amazing dinner and wonderful hospitality. We all can’t wait to go back – especially Jimmy, who was quite enthralled by Maria’s dog!
Maya (the dog): “I didn’t think the kid would take ‘Get a grip’ literally!” |
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