Growing Up

I think every parent likes to consider what their children will grow up to be, especially when they get into mischief! Given the current trends of the munchkins, heres my guesses of the moment.

Given Liam's fondness for biting his mommy, I'd say that he's practicing to become a piranha. Or maybe he'll be a politician. He is a shameless flirt and loves to ham it up for his many admirers.

Brigham likes to say that he wants to be a cookie maker when he grows up. He certainly loves helping me out when I'm baking, especially when oppurtunities to then like the bowl are included. That or an informant for the KGB- his fondness for tattling on his big brother is a regular feature of our days.

Ben declares that he wants to be a dinosaur hunter. He even got a bit of dinosaur bone to add to his rock collection recently and carries it around a lot. If he doesn't do that, maybe he'll go for world domination, he can be so bossy.

F.I.N.E

I've been avoiding this ever since the fire. Throughout that whole experience of fleeing our home, and then coming back to what's left of a wildfire is never something you imagine will happen to you. For a long time we were all in shock. We kept being asked how we were doing, and all I could do is shrug my shoulders and say "Fine."
Because we were, right? I mean, we had so much to be grateful for: the love and support of all our family and friends ( thank-you for all the prayers, they helped!), we got to stay with loved ones instead of the evacuation center, our home survived the destruction, and when we were allowed back home the worst damage that we had was a cracked window and some ash in the bathroom. Yet still, no matter how hard I tried and how many times I said it, I did not feel fine.
Both Jason and I have been having survivors guilt-why we were so blessed when so many of our neighbours lost everything? It's still a shock to see the aftermath of the fire. I'll be driving down our street to go home and get disoriented because none of the old landmarks are there. The church and our beloved library are gone. I`ve been trying to keep it together to not panic the kids. I was only `fine`.
As Donald Sutherland says in `The Italian Job`` fine stands for Freaked-out, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional. That was a much better description of how I felt for a long time.
About two weeks ago, I realized this. I wasn`t fine, I was F.I.N.E, and I was sick of it. I couldn`t let this continue, so for a few days I babied myself to work things out. I`d been avoiding the site of the church and library. Now I went and looked at them, for a long time, and yes, I finally let myself cry. My apologies if I`ve been so reclusive lately...I think that I needed some space for a little while.
It`s helped though, because now even though things are far from normal around town, at home they are. I`m laughing more now, and feeling much better. We`re not Fi.N.E. anymore, now we`re all doing okay.

Sew Smart

Lately I've been hunting for good crafts and art projects to do with the boys. Doing them together makes for some good fun, and keeps us occupied without just resorting to the TV or computer. My latest find? Homemade sewing cards!
Briggy and I attempted them for the first time this afternoon. I wasn't sure how much he'd enjoy this activity, but he loved it. He insisted on sewing all five cards that I had made. What surprised me was how he found his own ways to sew creatively. His Mum thought that there was only one to sew up the cards, but boy did he prove me wrong!
As Brigham said (proudly stitching away) :"I'm a good sewer."
Indeed he is.

Plank Pose or Push-Ups?

Liam is on the verge of full mobility right now. He loves to watch his older brothers play, and you can tell that he desperately wants to join in the fun. He spends a great deal of time either on all fours rocking back and forth, or in the position seen above. We just can't tell if he's practicing his yoga, or building muscles. What do you think?

Timeless Fun

Remember Mr. Dressup? It was one of my very favourite TV shows while growing up. Indeed, one of my childhood ambitions was to get my hands on that man's tickle trunk. The possibbilities were endless! I never caught an item that showed up on the show more than once. The one thing I couldn't undestand though was how he'd just open up the tickle trunk and effortlessly pull out the required costume-never rummaging the way I had to with our own trunk of dressup clothes.
Such magic only strengthend the idea that dress-ups wielded a strong enchantment, and I played dress-ups a lot as a result. My kids are not much different. Although we don't have the possibilities of the tickle trunk, Ben and Brigham get quite inventive in finding what they need and often raid their parents clothes as a result. My shoes are a popular borrowed item. Scarfves coming up as a close second. Here are some pics from one of their latest forays. Enjoy!

Poem of the Month

Don't get me wrong-I enjoy salad. But when it comes to making them myself, I come up with something rather uninspired and often unappetizing as well. Such was the inspiration for this poem.

My Salad's Are Insipid

My salad's are insipid,
My meatloaf is a bore,
And as for my spaghetti-
No one ever asks for more.

I truly am a lousy chef
And my dishes never please.
But at least I can do one thing right...
I make great mac and cheese!

You Want S'More?

Marshmallows are a much-loved treat in our house. Last year for at least three months Briggy would beg, each night, for marshmallow pancakes in the morning. S'mores also happen to be my favourite dessert of all time... I just always hated the graham cracker component.
Not particularly tasty, they always seemed like crunchy cardboard. I'd eat 'em anyway though as a means to get to the delectable gooeyness that was toasted marshmallow and chocolate. Now though I have at last found a solution: homemade graham crackers.
I just baked some today and they're much more tasty- chewy squares with a hint of cinnamon. Much, much better! It wasn't long before we began to explore a bit and finally came up with a s'more cookie. A homemade cracker with marshmallow topping and topped with chocolate chips. Not as gooey as the real thing, but still pretty good. Behold the results.


My munchkins love marshmallows!


Out latest culinary creation.

*The witch would like to thank her wonderful mother-in-law whose finding graham flour for us made my quest to better s'mores possible. Love ya!