Our first animals at No Cow Farm: a baby chicken and a little cow.
Huge thanks to my cousin Sarah who had the chicken costume.
notes in a cookbook
So here's a super fun idea from my mom. Record when you made a certain recipe right in your cookbook. I was at my mom's on Friday and decided to make cookies with Mara, Sonna and Svea. I opened this well loved Shepherd of the Valley cookbook and found this page with our favorite oatmeal cookie recipe. And it made me laugh out loud.
First of all, I did the math and Annika and I first made these cookies over TWENTY years ago. What on earth. October 1991. I was in forth grade. Then again in 1992 and a couple times in September of 1993, once with my great life long friend, Jenny Snyder.
The best part is my own handwriting adding a bit more detail to the directions. I remember the first time I tried these on my own and I followed Genevieve's directions as they were written. Which left me quite confused as to when the eggs and butter should have been added. The dough was terrible and they didn't turn out. We were out of butter so I couldn't start over and I was so frustrated. Look at that arrow and sad face next to Genevieve's name! (She has now passed away, but man I love church cookbooks. I love that you know these people!)
Mara added our names with 2012 so that in another twenty plus years, we can come back and see what we made.
And then the girls took turns holding Baby Elsie.
My sister Annika just told me that Mara has been telling people, "My aunt was making these cookies all the way back in 1922."
motherhood
I've had a rough few weeks here. Just tired, not confident I will ever feel rested ever again in my life, and easily frustrated with a side of weepy. I know in my head it is just a season, but the day to day tuckers me out.
I was sitting next to a mom last week during Toddler Rhyme 'n Time at our library. She has twin boys a bit younger than Ivar. I asked how she pulls it all off and she said, "at some point my husband looked at me and said that no one was going to come and bail us out. We had to figure out ourselves how we were going to pull this off."
Sort of shook me out of it. And I decided to become proactive.
So today I made a list of things that might help me find my motherhood mojo again. Here they are in list form, mostly for my own sake, but maybe for yours too:
1. I will sit down for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sit. In a kitchen chair. Maybe for five minutes even. My breakfasts and lunches especially are eaten as snacks, never putting things on a plate, always grabbing more for Ivar, never actually feeding myself. I will dish up our plates and we will sit and eat together.
2. I will stop multitasking. For real. It's inefficient and I never have anything to show for large chunks of my day because I started to sort Ivar's clothes and put his summer shorts away, started to clean the bathroom, began to unload the dishwasher but nothing got done and now the piles I made of Ivar's clothes are all mixed up again, the bathroom looks the same and there are even more dirty dishes on our counter. I will decide on one task. And do it.
3. When Ivar is pining for my attention, I will give it to him. Undivided. I will stop whatever I'm working on and lay on my belly on the carpet and play with whatever he is playing with. I'll play hard. I did this today and he stopped dead in his tracks and watched me, amazed that I could be so fun. And it turned our whole day around.
4. I will drink lots of water throughout the day and take my multivitamin.
5. I will buy another cd player for the upstairs so that we can have music playing upstairs and downstairs. Because music helps me. A lot.
6. I will save my email for night time. Trouble is, I never have any energy then. But I really don't want my kids to remember me as that fun lady who always had her face stuck to a screen. That goes for watching Kathie Lee and Hoda too. Tivo.
7. I will be nicer to myself. More grace for me. And if I have to spend a day regrouping and not performing as an A+ Mama, that is okay too.
And now, it is 9:08 and I am going up to bed. Because an early bedtime tonight is the true key to a happier tomorrow.
photo shoot
We have neighbor girls who come over once or twice a week right after school and ask if they can play with my kids. Can you play with my kids? Let's see. It's 4:15, I have no idea what we're going to have for supper, Ivar is cranky, Elsie wants attention and I still need to unload and load the dishwasher. Yes, you can play with my kids!
Sometimes they bring their horses. Which is basically like hiring a petting zoo to come and hang out in the front yard for a while. Today they asked politely, "can we dress Elsie up in different outfits for a photo shoot?" And since I basically invented that game, that's what we did. But we only made it through two outfits before Elsie informed us that she was done. Models can be so temperamental.
**Stay tuned for Elsie's first photo shoot from the end of August with her cousin Josie. We got through lots of newborn outfits that day. And now she's in six month clothes!
Final call! Until 6 pm!
Folks, she is in my kitchen right now. Melanie, of Hopes Kitchen is in my kitchen! (With some awesome handmade halloween decorations behind her made by yours truly when I was just a wee one.) She's getting some html help from Rory. He's good at that stuff.
Now here's the deal. Remember that Hopes Kitchen is in the running for the top 25 Food Allergy blogs on Circle of Mom's? Well, Ms. Melanie is now NUMBER NINE!!! People! This is awesome!!!
The fun now is to #1 Keep her there and #2 See if she can eek up any further.
So TODAY! Before 6:00 when voting ends, click over on THIS LINK and give Hopes Kitchen another vote. (Even if you've voted already, you can vote once each day!) Time is ticking! GO, MELANIE, GO!!!
oh! nice day!
Ivar walked outside yesterday and yelled back at me, "Oh! Nice Day! Nice Day, Mama!"
And it was!
baby isaac
Today Kathy is taking her boards for med school. She started her tests at 7:30 am and will be done at 6:30 pm. I texted her this afternoon letting her know that I had changed seven diapers since she began her test. That's how long she's been sitting in that chair!
So proud of her. Can't wait to celebrate having this day behind her!
And, I'd like to dedicate this post to my Aunt Louie who said to me on the phone today, "Where are you? I check your blog everyday." So here I am. Thanks for looking for me, Aunt Louie.
Hope's Kitchen
So my friend Melanie (pictured below) started an incredible blog with recipes that are gluten, egg and nut free. It is a beautiful blog, full of heart with a simple mission to provide good food for families working around these allergies. The thing is, the recipes always look so good that her following is growing to folks with no allergies, but who just like good food. Check it out at www.hopeskitchen.info Pretty sure the cookie dough bites are the best idea ever...egg free!
There is a mom website called circleofmoms that has a HUGE following...6 million moms.
Each year they sponsor a contest for the Top Food Allergy Mom Blogs. The top
25 get a a little "badge" to put on their site and they keep a list on their
site so that many more moms can find help on these blogs.
Hope's Kitchen is in the running to be a part of this helpful list. It is a resource pool for
mom's looking for allergy friendly blogs. And she needs our votes!
If you'd like to vote, please click on this link and then look for Hopes Kitchen. This morning she was number 91 and tonight she's number 55! You can vote once a day and it is easy peasy...just click on the thumbs up button to the right of her bio. (it will make sense when you see it...)
And then vote each day!
hey. remember when...
This picture was taken on our 7 year anniversary. :)
I think I may have written about this before.About five years ago we were in San Francisco with our friends John and Shannon. We were walking around downtown after we had supper and I felt something hit my head. I brushed the spot where it hit and sparks and ashes flew from my hair.
A cigarette butt had been tossed from the balcony above. The guy was flustered and sincerely apologetic. He was just one story up and kept saying how sorry he was.
This moment now comes up with John and Shannon every so often when I feel there is a good lull in the conversation. I'll casually mention, "Hey. You guys remember when a cigarette butt landed on my head?"
And we laugh.
Well. I have a new one.
Friday night we loaded the kids up for a thrilling night of Menards, Arby's drive thru and a car wash. And in all honestly, I was excited about our Friday night plans. Menards felt like a good adventure and I do love an automatic car wash. And curly fries.
As we were driving down our road I told Rory my back was really itchy. And as we got our Arby's it was increasingly so. We ate our Arby's on a yard bench on display at Menards and were laughing at our sorry selves. Ivar was filthy from a day of play and had ketchup all over his face. Rory was trying to feed himself, hold the bag of food and feed Ivar while I kept walking around saying how I must have gotten bit up by something because my back was so irritated. I made Rory look and he commented that it was red, but probably from all of my scratching.
We left Menards after picking out a window and door and went to get the car washed. At this point my back was starting to feel warm. Sort of a burning feeling. The carwash was exciting. Ivar was terrified and squeezed his eyes shut most of the time, Elsie was crying and I kept rubbing my lower back.
It was only on the drive back to our house that Rory remembered something. Something that might have been helpful to remember much earlier in the night. And his recollection came out slowly and with horror. "Oh Becca. Ohhhh. Becca. I know why your back is burning. Oh Becca. You are sitting in battery acid. Oh my word. You are. I returned that big battery the other day and it left the seat wet. I forgot all about it. We have to get you in the shower. Immediately."
And then we were both silent and Rory drove a bit faster. My mouth hung open and I was strangely amused. Less at the fact that I was sitting in battery acid, and more at the fact that it took Rory two hours of errands to finally remember that he had placed a battery on that seat the day before, the cause for my complaining that had been a part of our whole evening together.
When I got out he saw that the metal stitching on the seat had been eaten away. And later when he poured a solution of water and baking soda on the seat to neutralize the acid, he had a volcano of bubbles that would trump any forth grade science fair project.
I have a little rash now with some bright red dots and bumps, but its actually pretty minor.
So when Rory came to bed that night I let him get comfortable and then leaned in, "Hey. Remember that time I sat in battery acid?"
some sweetness for your monday
Elsie,
You are growing so fast! At your two month appointment you came in at 13 pounds 15 ounces. The rolls on your legs are adorable. You are a good eater, and today we're trying to figure out what I am eating that is upsetting your tummy. Might be the peanuts and corn candy mix I munched all weekend. Or the apple cider we sipped each night. But today I am choosing a very basic diet with hopes that your tummy will stop cramping. You don't like having an upset tummy.
Your eyes are so bright and able to track us all around the room. We talk a lot to each other in coo's and goo's. And sometimes you startle yourself with how loud your talking voice can be.
In the morning I bring you into bed to lay on my chest. We can get an extra hour of sleep that way. I love the snuggle time and your sweet breathing that puts me back to sleep. If your head comes up I softly rub your back and coax you back to sleep. It is the best way to slowly wake up. (Though I am never quite ready to wake up.)
You are definitely my sidekick. You join me on Sunday nights for Bible study and get to be held by all sorts of new friends. The first night you had a blow out right on one lady's blouse. It was quite the first impression and later I offered to pay for the dry cleaning. But she didn't seem to mind. They all had babies once and love the chance to hold you in their arms, letting you grip their fingers, looking into your eyes.
This month we are going to decorate your nursery. I am so excited and have dreams and visions in my head that will be fun to create.
I love you to pieces, Elsie Rebecca. You are pure sweetness and I still can't believe I have a little girl. A daughter. What a joy.
Love,
your mama
harvest time
Earlier this week Ivar walked outside with me and said, "Oh! Nice Day!" And yesterday he was playing in the garage by himself when he put his mouth on the screen of the door and yelled at me in the kitchen, "Mama! Shoes On! Outside!"
So that's where we've been. And it's a good thing we've been soaking up each day, because today the temperature dropped and I quickly remembered the season that is just around the corner.
Here's what we've been up to:
+We go on cow hunts two or three times a week now. When cars go by our house Ivar seems to think they also are going on cow hunts. A truck will drive by and he'll point saying, "See cows?"
+One of our favorite farms to visit is just a mile up the road. I saw the farmers wife outside and thought I had better introduce myself so that she would know why that mysterious black jeep is always parked next to her pasture. She was so kind and invited us into her calf barn to see "Baby Cows!" It is all Ivar talks about now.
+Actually, he talks about baby cows and "Combines!" The combine came through our field on Saturday and Rory and I were so excited that we woke Ivar up from his nap. Ivar is the perfect kid to have on this adventure with us. At Elsie's 2 month doctor appointment there were three combines in the field working right out the lobby windows. Could you ask for greater waiting room entertainment?
+On Sunday morning Rory dressed Ivar and they were matchy matchy. Adorable. Jeans and blue plaid.
+We had Groves cousins over this weekend and jumped in leaves. Ruby calls box elder bugs Sweetie Pies. She seems to think they're adorable. We have a whole lot of Sweetie Pies around our house and I was grateful for the opportunity to reframe my opinions of these spawning bugs.
+While they were here Rory had his folks help him put one wall up at his build site. A barn raising of sorts... And the foundation and floor made for a great stage for Toby to show us his roller shoe skills.
+The landscape is changing around here with the corn down and leaves falling. Today I stayed in all day with the kids, read books with Ivar in a blanket fort and made chili and corn bread for supper. I love this time of year.
elsie's baptism
Annika, Jedd, Sonna and Simon are Elsie's sponsors. Sonna was quite nervous before the baptism, but I told her there was nothing to worry about. All she had to do was say, "Yes!" I promise to pray for Elsie. "Yes!" I promise to teach her about Jesus. "Yes!" I promise to tell her why I believe in Jesus and show her how to read her Bible so that she too can learn of God's love.
Elsie fell asleep just as the service was beginning, and startled her arms a bit when Grandpa Paul placed the water on her head. But she was very peaceful, just as peaceful as the water on the lake.
You can read about Rory and my decision to baptize and dedicate our kids by clicking here.
harrington family reunion
Just got back from four days on the North Shore with the Harrington family. It was so awesome that today I am feeling homesick. And I'm home! But Mat and Stephanie flew home yesterday, Uncle Mark, Aunt Jane, Yang Yang and Nui Nui had left the day before and now everyone is back to work and school. And I miss them!
There are nine kids in the Harrington clan, ages eight and under:
2 months old: Elsie
1 year old: Ivar
2 years old: Svea (turned two on Friday!)
3 years old: Nui Nui
4 years old: Nellie
5 years old: Sonna
6 years old: Simon
7 years old: Mara
8 years old: Claire
Pretty amazing to me. Mara and Claire used their time on the drive home yesterday to braid their hair together, as in, they put their heads together and braided chunks of each of their hair into one braid. These cousins love each other so much.
Much more to tell, and share. More later.
shopping for sunglasses
Anyone else have an identity crisis when you go to pick out a pair of sunglasses?
As I try on each pair I begin to wonder, Who am I? Am I girl who can wear aviators? Who can wear aviators? I saw that woman at Lake Harriet that day with an awesome pair of aviators, but maybe those were expensive. What makes sunglasses expensive? Isn't it just plastic and metal. Or what about these? The big purple plastic frames that are back from the eighties. Is it right that these are back so soon? And if I wear these does it look like I'm trying to keep up with the trends? Should I be? Is it bad that my favorite outfit is flip flops, hoodie sweatshirt and jeans? Should I try harder?And after I tucker out from trying so many pair I begin to look at myself in the mirror, without sunglasses. You look really tired. You've got some dark circles under those eyes. That's not hair gel holding that clump of hair together. It's spit up. You are a mother of two. How in the world? And I wonder if I'll ever feel like a grown up and how if I have two kids, I probably should know what my style of sunglasses is by now.
Then I start to look at all of the fine lines and wrinkles around my eyes. Annika recommended that night time face cream. You should get some when you're here. But it was like twenty-five bucks. Rory would probably love you more if you just saved that money...
Just grab a pair.
And in the end I seem to always buy the most non-descript pair of sun glasses that are sure to be sat on or lost within the next few weeks anyway. And then I'll be back in that same spot, having the same identity crisis.
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