Dessert

 Last night after dinner, the boys were requesting dessert. Instead, we offered a trip to a nearby park. They had a blast running and chasing each other on the trails. The light was beautiful; the perfect end to the first official weekend of summer. On the way home, Isaac quietly stated, "That was good dessert." Yes. Yes, it was.

Crafting On Firsts

Some exciting news for our growing family, presented by Noah (with captions by me)...

It is a GIRL! Noah calls her "Our Baby", which I love. Not "Mommy's baby" or "Mommy and Daddy's baby" but OUR baby.  And so there is girly crafting going on in this house for the first time, and lots of it. I actually made this little sweater before we found out the gender, but when paired with a simple little dress it instantly became hers.

In addition to the sweater, I have been cranking out wool diaper covers in cream and lilac hues. While I am not a fan of a lot of pink, I do love vintage looking floral prints. Thanks to my Mom (and newly appointed 'sewing assistant' aka seam ripper) visiting this past week, I had time to sew these sweet little peasant blouses and many burp cloths. When she wasn't helping me decipher sewing patterns, she spent countless hours reading with the boys, playing with playdough, and 'shopping' in their store, allowing me to make a small dent in my sewing list. Sewing is not my forte, as evidenced by the fact that I cut the fabric for these blouses the wrong way. You would think I would have noticed all those birds falling off their branches! At least it will look correct to me when I am cradling her in my left arm. Lesson learned...

I am short on words this morning, and currently being beckoned by a certain boy to come inspect his knight's castle. Happy crafting!

Something New Today

Oh, these Photo-A-Day projects! They seem like such a great idea, and really they are. In the past, committing to taking a photo a day has forced me to look for subjects I would not otherwise photograph. I love that. But the fact is that, like many new resolutions, I don't stick with it. Life gets busy and I forget. But what is more important than capturing those day to day moments in the life a child with a photograph? So here we are again at the beginning of the year, and I am going to try this again. I do better with some kind of prompt for inspiration, so I will try (really hard!) to follow the prompts of Fat Mum Slim, unless I am really not feeling it and then I will make up my own :) I am already a day behind, of course, so a few pictures cover both Day 1 and Day 2.

Today, the boys, wearing their new capes and crowns (and elephant pajamas), are knights fighting dragons with wooden spoons and pot lids, having a secret rendezvous in their castle with their doggies.

Spring Ramble

Time to break the blogging hiatus. I have plenty of excuses for not blogging lately, none of which are very interesting or exciting, so I will spare the details and just move on...

We are enjoying warmer days here and there, though Mother Nature has a nasty way of playing tricks on us and giving us nice warm days one week followed by snow and sleet the next. Isaac is mastering the new challenge of walking in the grass and dirt, and particularly enjoys eating the bits of bread that we have thrown outside for the birds and rabbits when I am not looking. Meanwhile, Noah is back to his favorite outside activity of mowing and raking. And while we don't have a sandbox, the boys seem content to dig in a corner of mulch for hours on end, filling and dumping the same bucket over and over again. Isaac only sampled the dirt once or twice.

The garden is in need of some fresh compost and soil (our compost bin doesn't produce enough for the whole garden) before it is ready for planting, so I am a bit behind in my spring planting. However, we do have a few seedlings growing nicely in the basement. I am keeping it simple and starting only basil, Swiss Chard, and a few varieties of heirloom tomatoes inside. The rest of the garden will be directly sown as soon as the weather is more consistent and we get our rabbit-proof fence back up, lest I make the same mistake as last year and feed all those nurtured seedlings to the rabbits.

Speaking of rabbits...I am pretty sure one of them lives under our back steps. Though we rarely see it, he or she leaves behind plenty of um...evidence. However, last night as we were eating our Easter dinner, I happened to glance out the big sliding glass door in our dining room and there it was, just a few feet away, nibbling on the bits of bread (the ones Isaac hadn't eaten) and joining us for Easter dinner. How many people can say the Easter Bunny joined them for dinner? :)

That brings this Spring ramble to a close. I promise to be back soon with an update on some new projects and the boys' latest antics...

~Jen

We're Still Here

It has been almost a month since I have written here. Once again, the days are full, but with what I don't know exactly. Keeping one eye on Isaac while trying to get anything else done at the same time is a full time job. From the moment he wakes to the moment he goes to sleep at night, he goes, goes, goes. Just getting his diaper changed and dressing him could be a sport in an of itself. Was Noah like this? I don't think so. Neither does my family, who got to experience his enthusiasm for life firsthand during the holidays. The only thing more exhausting than a curious baby that gets into everything, is that same baby in a non-baby-proofed house. He has a great sense of humor, darting behind doors, swinging them shut behind him, and then sitting behind them so we can't open them, all while giggling and squealing. But he is also very generous with his snuggles and kisses, and I have been known to be blinded by drool when he is in a particularly affectionate mood.

We had a quiet, simple Christmas this year. Because I prefer to give handmade gifts, my gift list was kept short out of necessity. Somewhere in those hours between the boys' bedtime and mine, I finished just a few gifts this year: a scarf for Curtis (OK...I actually finished this one the day after Christmas)...

A green gnome for Grandma.

And a soft doll for Isaac to snuggle with at night. Upon returning home after a week away, it was lovely to settle back into our familiar rhythm. For the past week or so, the days have been filled with wonderful play as a few new toys were introduced to old favorites. The tree blocks have been a big hit.

The boys are playing with each other more often now, and Isaac misses Noah when he is napping (Noah naps more than Isaac!). So do I actually, because Noah keeps Isaac happy and busy. Can you guess what game they are playing here?

We have a quiet couple of weeks coming up, and I have been doing some experiments in the kitchen...more on that next time.

~Jen

Weekending

This past weekend we packed up the family and headed North for a refreshing long weekend with family. Noah tried out his new wheels; an Irish Mail Cart made by Grandpa, with a custom paint job by cousin Adrianne. His legs may have to grow a bit before he can make it go by himself.Confession: I tried it too, and it was fun! I will spare you the pictures though.

Despite the hot and humid weather, we kept somewhat cool in the shade. I got in some solo swinging before being joined by Isaac. He was mesmerized by the trees overhead, and cooed and talked to them in his new sweet, high-pitched, puppy dog voice.Isaac is always aware of his brother and watches his every move. Noah likes to act goofy to get Isaac laughing. Together, they provide quite the entertainment.On Saturday, we all got dressed up for a country wedding, complete with sunflowers, an outdoor ceremony under a handmade arbor with storm clouds overhead, and a horse that really did not want to carry the bride down the aisle. Most importantly...two people in love and looking very happy indeed.The weather cooperated, just barely, waiting until after the ceremony before down pouring. Isaac snuggled with Curtis under the huge tent as we waited for the rain to pass.Before long, the sun came out again and I got a chance to visit with some of my siblings and extended family. Isaac charmed lots of people with his easy smile before getting a little sleepy. So what do you do when you have a heavy, sleepy baby and need to give your arms and back a rest? Hand him over to his Uncle Colin, who will walk him around the fields for a good long time before returning with a drool-covered shoulder and sore arms of his own.

Meanwhile, a shy Noah warmed up to his cousins while waiting for dinner, and they taught him how to be a little silly.

After his long walk, Isaac finally snuck in a little snack and snooze out on the lawn.

Speaking of being silly... Here Grandpa Ted and his brother Paul get a little goofy. I am envisioning this will be Noah and Isaac in about 75 years. Maybe minus the handlebar mustache.

And finally, some dancing. Congratulations to Tanna on Ryan on their beautiful wedding and the start of their lives together!

Each summer, our parents stand in a long line and buy boxes of peaches off a truck straight from the south. All weekend, those peaches ripened in the dark basement, until Sunday morning when they were the perfect juicy ripeness. So before driving home, I spent Sunday morning with my Mom, peeling and slicing peaches for freezing. My goodness, she was fast! I think she peeled and sliced about three peaches in the time it took me to do one. All those hours spent canning as a young girl, she says. I think it is some Grandma superpower or something. We will enjoy those frozen peaches in the months to come. For now, we also have lots of fresh ones to eat, and today I made peach cobbler. Tomorrow, peach pie. Isaac, wondering where the endless supply of arms and laps has gone now that we are back home, demanded that he watch the process from his sling.

So, despite being a little tired and having lots of laundry to do, I am glad to begin the week feeling refreshed by family, music, and lots of good food.

~Jen

On Becoming A Brother

One of my first thoughts after Isaac was born was how happy I was that Noah would have a brother to grow up with. Despite Noah's first words upon seeing his new baby brother being, "Bye, Baby", he has taken to being a big brother in his own easygoing style. Just as he pretty much ignored my growing belly during the pregnancy (other than the fact that it made snuggling with me more difficult), he accepted the fact that this new baby was part of our family. No big deal; one day there was no baby and now there is a baby. Right from the beginning, he was my little helper, bringing me my water bottle or the poppy (Boppy pillow) while I nursed Isaac. Other than an occasional "Hi, Baby" and suggesting that perhaps the crying baby would like to play with an egg shaker or sit in his swing, he ignored Isaac and went about his business of playing.

Over the past few weeks, however, Noah has slowly been becoming a big brother and it is truly touching to watch. I find myself stopping whatever I am doing to watch him interact with Isaac a little more each day. He now calls Isaac by his name instead of just calling him baby. At first, he pronounced it as two distinct syllables: Eyes Ick. Now the name rolls off his little tongue, and "Where's Isaac?" is the first question out of his mouth each morning. He 'cooks' things for him in his kitchen and brings him fruits and vegetables to 'eat.' He sits and chats to him while I make breakfast and tries to gently wipe spit-up off his face.



I am not jaded into thinking Noah will always be this easygoing about being a brother, but I think he is off to a good start. And I never I thought I would enjoy watching them together as much as I do.
-Jen