Our older son's birthday is at the very start of summer. Sometimes even before then for his school friends. This year, he was devastated because he caught a serious cold right before his birthday. His party? Canceled. :< We spent several days sequestered indoors, waiting for the worst to pass, and once we were getting better his best friend stopped by ... to let him know that his sister had died.
Wow. What a start. We attended the funeral, tried to help out the family, and then we fell back into old routines. Our daughter had her birthday (she's 8 now, and once again, 2 whole years older than her little brother) and the next day we found out our friend's mother died.
WTF already? Why? Things are not looking up here at home. I won't go into detail, because really it's nobody's business but our own, but it will get better eventually. :) The frog told me.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Baby Birds
This post is a little old now. Just forget to "publish" it.
I didn't realize that birds grew up so fast. We found a nest above our mailbox on May 16th.
May 18th, the babies hatched.
We went outside today, and they are flying! (And so are the parents, so if you come up our steps, watch out!)
I didn't realize that birds grew up so fast. We found a nest above our mailbox on May 16th.
May 18th, the babies hatched.
We went outside today, and they are flying! (And so are the parents, so if you come up our steps, watch out!)
Friday, April 25, 2008
Tangelos
Every time we go to the grocery store, I try to get the kids to try at least one new fruit or veggie. They were having trouble deciding when we stumbled upon tangelos - Disney Tangelos - so we grabbed up a few.
Tangelos turned out to be a pretty old hybrid ... the first dating back 3500 years ago in Southern Asia. The "Orlando" tangelo was developed in 1911 and is a mix between a tangerine and a pomelo. And if you can believe it, the Orlando variety is considered a cold-climate grower.
The most common fruit to compare this to is likely the orange. They are shaped more like limes, but have an orange peel and open to juicy boats of fruit. Very juicy. So juicy that peeling and pulling them apart left me a sticky mess, but the juice didn't burn like orange juice can (on me at least). The taste was more muted, but did not imo taste so much like tangerines. Honestly, none of us were really big fans.
If anyone wants a bag of tangelos ... we've got some. Well, I think we might finally have a reason to get one of those little juicer things. I think you'd get a heck of a lot out of just one tangelo, let alone a whole bag. We'll see how it goes.
Tangelos turned out to be a pretty old hybrid ... the first dating back 3500 years ago in Southern Asia. The "Orlando" tangelo was developed in 1911 and is a mix between a tangerine and a pomelo. And if you can believe it, the Orlando variety is considered a cold-climate grower.
The most common fruit to compare this to is likely the orange. They are shaped more like limes, but have an orange peel and open to juicy boats of fruit. Very juicy. So juicy that peeling and pulling them apart left me a sticky mess, but the juice didn't burn like orange juice can (on me at least). The taste was more muted, but did not imo taste so much like tangerines. Honestly, none of us were really big fans.
If anyone wants a bag of tangelos ... we've got some. Well, I think we might finally have a reason to get one of those little juicer things. I think you'd get a heck of a lot out of just one tangelo, let alone a whole bag. We'll see how it goes.
Monday, April 14, 2008
D-Cluttering
I looked around the house today and wow. Winter sure makes my house a wreck. In the family room, just looking around, I have a bottle of olive oil, a zoingo boingo, a fan, a suitcase, a 12-pack of bottled water ... I think I should stop now.
Meanwhile, my daughter comes through with a sponge she's cut into a chunky shape and turned into a doll. "This baby's going on sale!" She says, and disappears just as quickly as she came.
Her sale now consists of several grocery bags cut/torn apart, painted and adorned with bows until they really do look like cool little dresses. If they were made of fabric, they'd sell for $20 or $30. They're not, so they'll likely sell for zero, but oh well. Proof that it's time to get sewing machine. Her cousin has one already. I can totally see them starting a clothing line. lol And yes, if you know us, you will have to buy something.
There's a collection of little creations she's sure are going to earn her enough to buy the 9" Kirby plush toy she's been hankering over. It's 30 bucks. If I was a more indulgent mother, I'd probably just buy it for her, but I know that earning this toy is going to be a monumental point in her life. I can feel it building.
Anyway, it got me thinking though that we still have way too much stuff we don't need, that is only taking up space and not really adding to the quality of our lives. I think I might be ready for a purge ... maybe even (dare I say it?) a Garage Sale. *shiver* We'll have to see. (That's typically mom-speech for "HELL NO!")
Today we are supposedly fixing the van (to sell, as far as I'm concerned). The kids are grounded (Yes, I KNOW! But I spent twentyhours minutes driving around looking for them yesterday because they left and did not tell me where they were going. It's so unlike them that I was scared to death they'd been snatched up or tumbled down one of the hills, hit by a car or drowned in Isaac Walton by some crazy maniac. Thanks to Charlie's mom for introducing that idea to my psyche.)
They're miserable inside, and I'm miserable, too. Just filed/paid my taxes (yep, on April 14th) and I'm petrified I made some mistake and they're going to audit me. I feel this way every year, and it hasn't happened yet, but will you knock on wood and throw a little salt around for my benefit?
Meanwhile, my daughter comes through with a sponge she's cut into a chunky shape and turned into a doll. "This baby's going on sale!" She says, and disappears just as quickly as she came.
Her sale now consists of several grocery bags cut/torn apart, painted and adorned with bows until they really do look like cool little dresses. If they were made of fabric, they'd sell for $20 or $30. They're not, so they'll likely sell for zero, but oh well. Proof that it's time to get sewing machine. Her cousin has one already. I can totally see them starting a clothing line. lol And yes, if you know us, you will have to buy something.
There's a collection of little creations she's sure are going to earn her enough to buy the 9" Kirby plush toy she's been hankering over. It's 30 bucks. If I was a more indulgent mother, I'd probably just buy it for her, but I know that earning this toy is going to be a monumental point in her life. I can feel it building.
Anyway, it got me thinking though that we still have way too much stuff we don't need, that is only taking up space and not really adding to the quality of our lives. I think I might be ready for a purge ... maybe even (dare I say it?) a Garage Sale. *shiver* We'll have to see. (That's typically mom-speech for "HELL NO!")
Today we are supposedly fixing the van (to sell, as far as I'm concerned). The kids are grounded (Yes, I KNOW! But I spent twenty
They're miserable inside, and I'm miserable, too. Just filed/paid my taxes (yep, on April 14th) and I'm petrified I made some mistake and they're going to audit me. I feel this way every year, and it hasn't happened yet, but will you knock on wood and throw a little salt around for my benefit?
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Adventure the World blog
Nathan (ATW Creator) has also started a blog for Adventure the World. Stop by and say hello!
Adventure the World
Nathan has finally started putting his video game together at Adventure the World Guide.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Spring Garden '08
So, we've officially started our garden. Yeh, it's 34 degrees outside, but the seeds are out in force ... and so are the pellet starters. Lian was very excited to make them puff up with water, and thanks to Nate and Strata we have just enough seeds to make it worthwhile. Today Denn has the day off, so I think we'll wait until tomorrow to get started.
People who know me, know I like to plan things. Meticulously. To death, even. I make sure to take care of so many details, that sometimes I run out of time to actual DO what I've been preparing for ... so it's good that the kids are more impulsive.
On our way through Menards for some window tinting (hopefully our dog won't chew these off the windows!) we ran into the Burpee seed stand and have Organic Allsweet Watermelon (Strata), Catnip (Nathan), Organic Mammoth Sunflower (Strata), Organic Danvers Carrots (Nathan), and a selection of flowers.
I really wanted to try companion gardening this year, and I still might, but just in case we bought two other varieties of sunflowers in different heights and textures, plus a giant hollyhock to add some extra color. If I know Strat, she'll want some double impatiens later anyway, and I think it will all balance out. Wish us luck. Some unnamed animal ate all of Strata's flowers last year -- or perhaps some bitchy neighbor cut them up.
Add to that 50 Fiber Grow pellets (which are biodegradable and work to conserve peat bogs, people) and we're off to a great start.
I think. I hope. :)
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