We are playing Candyland, which Lorelai always wins, so we call her the “Candy Queen”.
In the middle of our second game Lorelai asks, “What are you the queen of?”
I say, “I don’t know.”
She yells, “I know! You’re the “Queen of drinking wine and coffee!”
Today was the third day of first grade for our little guy.
We promised him, after walking him into his class EVERYDAY last year, that we would walk him into class for the first week and after that we would only walk him to the door.
Today, the THIRD DAY Of SCHOOL,we only got to walk him to the door.
The new principal was blocking the doorway through to his hallway and only letting students through. Now, I am all for keeping strange adults out and keeping our kids safe, but this was ridiculous. Especially since there was no notice to those of us who take the time and effort to walk or drive our kids to school AND get them safely to their classroom.
And, they are in FIRST GRADE, for goodness sake!
If he wants the 3-5 graders to walk to class without parents, I am all for it. Get them ready for middle school.
But, my first grader, who still holds my hand as we walk into school?! Who still gives me kisses and hugs in front of his classmates?!
He doesn’t need to learn his independence on the THIRD DAY OF SCHOOL!
Luckily, Ryan was there with me. I was livid. I didn’t even get to say goodbye to Reece as he was ushered through the door…tears falling.
I looked at Ryan and said, “I need to know why this is happening.”
He went right over to the new principal, introduced himself, and asked.
I won’t go into detail, but the new principal said that it was to help the kids gain their independence.
I wanted to help my guy get through the first week before we worked on independence.
While he had the chance, Ryan also asked the new principal about the email that I sent to him almost 10 days ago questioning a decision they made about informing incoming first graders about their teachers. The new principal claimed that there was a lot going on and that he thought he replied, and it’s been busy…yada yada yada.
I still haven’t received a reply to my e-mail, which he said he would look for and reply to today.
The bad news: I am not a fan of the new principal…and we aren’t even a week into the school year.
The good news: I don’t have to be the bad guy about not walking Reece into to his classroom.
Just venting.
home is…growing pains.
*To top it all off, Reece’s class was somehow dismissed almost 10 minutes early and he was left to walk away without the teacher even acknowledging that a parent was there to pick him up! I guess that’s how they teach them to be independent.
our garden has really produced this year.
early on we had bowl after bowl full of strawberries, handfuls of raspberries, and our first real harvest of blueberries (which we are still collecting by the handful every few days).
our greens came on strong and have added to ryan’s green smoothies almost every morning.
we have also made collard greens from the garden multiple times in the last few weeks.
our bush pickle cucumbers are producing enough for me to produce a quart of pickles each of the last two weeks and there are still many more flowers and babies on the vines.
we had an issue with our green beans so i am not sure how many we will get, but we still have a couple jars of dilly beans from last year!
i collect a few cherry tomatoes each day from my trailing cherry tomato plant that is hanging in a basket.
our san marzano and roma tomatoes are a little late to fruit, but it looks like we will get a great crop. considering the fact that we started these plants from seed in our house, i am super impressed that they made it! i am looking forward to harvesting and canning a bunch…maybe even pickling green tomatoes late in the season.
we winter over some of our herbs…thyme, basil, mint, and chives. they are doing well…in fact, we took a bunch up to the lake and still have a bunch to harvest. we have tried drying herbs, but usually end up making pesto from our basil and using the rest of our herbs fresh when we cook.
i planted a few different types of basil this year. our usual sweet italian basil, a purple basil (which is supposed to taste like sweet italian, but i thought it would be fun to have purple pesto), a variegated basil, and a thai basil.
with all of that being said, i decided to try to make a thai basil pesto with our beautiful thai basil.
thai food is tough for me…i like the flavors of the herbs and spices, but i dislike coconut and peanut. most of the thai basil recipes called for peanuts…and in some cases, coconut of some sort (oil, water, or shredded).
so, i made up my own recipe…
put it in your food processor, pulse a few times. then, blend until smooth.
place in airtight containers and freeze or keep in refrigerator.
home is…coming up with your own recipe.
this is not a foodie blog.
HOWEVER…
we like to eat.
we like to eat healthy.
we like to cook.
we like to try new things.
now that our summer has slowed down a bit, we are enjoying slow mornings, unplanned weekends, and finds in our garden and the local produce stands.
which leads to trying new recipes and, although the days are warm, time spent over a stove for canning of fresh produce.
first things first, we are trying to introduce our kids to more adventurous foods…meaning vegetables.
so, i tried feeding them a rainbow.
they love earning a treat, so they had to try every color to get ice cream.
i made sure to include some foods that i knew they would eat, but some that they would need to “try”.
it ended up that baby girl really loves avocado, and the little guy was willing to try everything on the plate.
so, i tried it again…
i knew baby girl would eat her newly “liked” avocado, so i added it to her plate along with the strawberries, carrots, mango, pineapple, broccoli, and blueberries (along with chicken nuggets) that she would eat.
the little guy, a little bit more set in his ways, received blackberries, which he requested, added to his plate.
once again, they did great eating some of each color and asking for seconds of their favorites.
another key was small portions. if there is just a couple of bites of each food on the plate it is not as intimidating…and they can always ask for more.
while i am not going to serve their dinner like this every night, it is a fun way to get them to try new foods.
i’ll be back soon with a garden tour, and some of the canning recipes i have tried!
home is…ROY G BIV!
we were in northern idaho with family last week playing at my aunt and uncle’s lake house. i had over 1000 photos between my phone and big camera. i’m only sharing a few here…
playing, smiling, paddle boarding, sailing, talking, waterskiing, running, eating, jetskiing, collecting, laughing, boating, teaching, fishing, learning, swimming, jumping, loving, exploring, celebrating.
home is…a week of lake life.
We celebrated the little guys seventh birthday recently.
Seven.
That’s big.
He’s awesome.
Physically, he can do anything he sets his mind to.
Rock climbing, bike riding, baseball, skiing, snowboarding, swimming…pretty much anything he tries, he is good at.
When I asked him what he wanted to do on our upcoming trip to the lake he replied, “I’ll try anything.”
And, he will.
He’s reading. Not voraciously into books quite yet, but I imagine it will only be a matter of time.
He’s brave. It’s hard to remember what it was like to go to a new, big school and have to make ALL NEW friends. He did a great job this year.
His favorite class (and teacher) in school this year was music. Music. What an awesome thing.
He loves his sister. Sometimes, it’s not cool to show his love, but most times he does. He reads to her, lets her play minecraft with him, shares his legos with her, and indulges in the play that she leads. He is the best big brother she could ask for.
As tough as he is, he has a real sensitive nature. He loves fiercely. His feelings can be easily hurt.
One on one time with him is amazing. He has awesome thoughts and ideas that he doesn’t always get to share unless we get time alone with him.
He loves science, nature, and exploring the outdoors.
He knows a lot about technology and is not afraid of it…he knows more about iPads and iPhones than I do!
He is creative and thoughtful.
He has boundless energy that can sometimes get him into trouble, but most times is just hard to keep up with.
He keeps us on our toes.
He tests boundaries.
He loves his family.
And, we love him. Like crazy.
I asked him some questions this morning to get a feel for how HE feels at seven.
To be part of his life EVERYDAY and watch him grow is one of the biggest joys of my life.
home is…seven of the most rewarding years of my life.
We bought our first house with him in mind.
He was born less than one week after we were engaged.
We drove 6 hours, one way, to pick him up…I had to drive the last hour so Ryan would not speed.
His biological mom’s name was Jo-Jo.
His biological dad’s name was Fast Eddy.
He was a grumpy old man as a puppy.
We got married when he was 10 months old.
We used to run across creeks and hide behind trees to make him learn to swim.
More times than not, when he would throw a fit about getting into the car (usually in the middle of nowhere Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas or Nebraska) we had to get in the car without him and drive down the dirt road, with him in hot pursuit, just to get him to decide to get into the car with us.
He taught us about tough love.
He introduced us to people and places we never would have met or seen without him.
He took us on adventures I will never forget.
We ran through high mountain parks in snow-thunderstorms together.
We “got turned around” (you are only lost if you are never found) after dark on logging roads in Idaho together.
We woke up with a snow covered wall tent at 10,000 feet in the Rocky Mountains more than once together.
He traveled from coast to coast with us.
He stayed at Hotel Monaco in Chicago (even took a bath in the tub) and Super 8’s all over the country.
He swam in rivers and lakes from New York to Colorado to Oregon.
He chased birds where most will never get a chance, or be good enough, to chase birds.
He stopped me from walking in on a burglary in progress in our home.
He taught me patience.
He taught me unconditional love.
He taught me to be a mom before I was a mom.
hunting in the colorado flat tops {9/2005}
bella beach {7/2011}
walk around the block {2/2012}
almost lost him {3/2012}
the three amigos – Oak, Ben & Odyssey {4/2006}
snuggles {3/2012}
sleepy face…he was so sick in march 2012 {3/2012}
such a gentle boy – sharing with baby teal {12/2013}
reece’s first hunt {11/2010}
mt. hood {8/2010}
grand river seminar with mike gould {10/2005}
always
just hanging on the deck {10/2011}
dog of instagram {8/2011}
loved to dig a hole to rest in – idaho {10.2006}
pillow we bought for ryan’s parents
grand river seminar – idaho {10/2011}
getting a bath {2/2014}
family dog {8/2011}
dog pile {3/2011}
chukar hunting {1/2009}
He couldn’t hear.
He couldn’t see.
He was in pain.
For the last week he barked each time he had to go out to go potty because he needed help standing up to go outside.
Last night, after he barked for help I slept on the floor with him.
His last night with us.
This morning, I carried him outside so he could go potty.
He was stubborn. Always.
He didn’t want to have to be carried outside to go potty, but his body was failing him.
It was time to let go.
Fourteen and a half years.
Our family won’t be the same without him.
Rest in Peace, Grand River Hoji Ben.
home is…knowing all dogs go to heaven.
Each June there is a balloon festival near our house. On Saturday morning we woke up at 5 am to go see the balloons launch.
As we walked down to the launch field these balloons flew right overhead.
Once onto the field, we got right next to the balloons as they filled with hot air.
There were drones with cameras flying next to the balloons. The little black spot in the photo below is one of the drones.
They slowly drifted south of the park.
Such a beautiful sight.
home is…an early morning filled with balloons.
today i got to spend the morning fishing with a bunch of kindergartners and it was perfect…well, almost.
there was one kid who fell in the water. he was in our group. luckily, he just got wet. the teacher wasn’t surprised.
the little guy rode the school bus for the very first time and liked it. he was nervous, but got right on and waved from the window when we arrived at the fishing hole. {although, he did tell me that he will only ride school buses on field trips until he is in college}
sunshine and blue skies overhead, jumping fish, and happy kids.
our group of three boys each caught a fish.
the mom leading our group was, obviously, a fisherwoman. between the two of us we had no problem baiting the hook, casting the line, holding the fish, and getting the hooks out of the mouths. so much fun!!
the boys were as patient as three kindergarten boys will be. luckily, there were salamanders to look for, osprey overhead, and other groups to compare fish with!
they eagerly watched the fish get cleaned and were excited to take them home. {the pond is stocked with trout and there is no catch and release}
baby girl came along and had just as much fun watching the boys and playing with all the kids. i can’t wait to go again with her in two years!
i absolutely love being able to be a part of these opportunities with them. i am one blessed momma.
home is…a sunny day at the fishin’ hole.
summer break starts on friday, but we got a head start today when we picked the little guy up from school and drove straight to the pool.
i have the feeling that this is the summer that these kids of mine really become little swimmers. it’s going to be awesome!
home is…summer at the pool.
stephany taddeo 