Busy, busy, busy! Long days that fly by. Spent with four of my favorite people.
*****
last day of Friday School this year!
recovering from a late night at the boys’ spring concert
how? when? that tall??
bright blues, proud of climbing up the slide
who knew life could be so fun?
pigtails.
my helper
teeth.
scooch
highchair for a big girl!
*****
And lastly, this. Long awaited.
Is there anything better than a sunny day around 60 degrees, an old pair of jeans, and a trowel? I think not. The only thing that could possibly improve it is if a friend announced that she would make and bring you dinner. (I happily stayed outside even longer.)
I really and truly loved this past winter. There were so many special days with my four little loves, discovering magical worlds in our snow-covered woods, sipping hot cocoa on sub-zero days, reading Narnia in the winter afternoon sun… I didn’t want it to end. Maybe I’m God’s favorite kid, because it honestly seemed like it was never going to end.
Today, soaking in warm sun rays, listening to swallows make their annual nest in our birdhouse, smelling dirt and grass and the spicy scent of beebalm sprouts — I remembered how much there is to love in this season, too.
What’s this? Oh, you know, just my big boy shielding his eyes from the sun. Who knew that would be such a wonderful sight?
Eight months old! I can’t believe it. This smooshy girl is happily wearing 12 month clothes, while laying contentedly on the floor without even the faintest desire to sit, let alone crawl. A bottom tooth surfaced last Friday — tada! No fever or crankiness or anything. Just a little sharp spot.
She rolls everywhere and finds the teeniest bits of junk to put in her mouth. Jameson’s task of vacuuming has been bumped from do-it-because-Mama-gets-twitchy-otherwise all the way up to LIFE-SAVING MUST!!
She goes bananas when her daddy walks in the door, doing her very best to compete with mobile siblings for his notice. She is thrilled to be carried by Jameson from room to room, despite his seeming awkwardness. She knows how to turn on the drama, whether it be a cheesy smile or fake sob. Mostly, though, she’s just happy to be — be in my arms, be among her siblings, be here with us, being a part.
(Don’t know where she gets that double chin. HAHA.)
The snow has been epic this year, just the way I remember it as a child. We’ve trudged through snow that easily went above my knees, drifts up to my thighs, mounds in which little girls could easily get lost. Paths, forts, angels, trenches, you name it, it’s happened. Except for snow men. Because up here, in the North where it really actually snows for keeps until the absolute very end of winter, kids don’t just run outside and make snowmen. It’s too cold. The snow is flaky and light and as sparkly as fairy dust — and it packs like fairy dust, too. Once in awhile, the temp will eek its way towards 30, and I say, “Hey, let’s see if we can make a snowman! Or maybe just a snow ball. Or… Hey, wanna make snow angels?”
So, when the snow dumped once again on Sunday, and it was wet and heavy and horrible for shoveling, we finally got to make a snowman! Beatrice sang to him. She asked to marry him. William wouldn’t leave his side. Jameson was on to the next thing. Ha!
I was so glad. Finally. We finally got our snowman.
What’s funny about this is that two years ago this week, Jameson was taking the training wheels off his bike and zooming down our yard, wobbling and falling and getting grass stains. Ha! I love the North Country. It’s always beautiful. That’s about all you can be sure of!
*****
The rest of the week has been hovering around 40*. It’s practically summer! The kids get all crazy and wear their winter coats unzipped. You know what? They don’t have a clue that my forsythia bush is buried in a mountain of snow and ice, even though it usually would be budding. And they’re happier for it! Why wouldn’t they be? It’s another day that the Lord made, and it is good.
Fiona’s first “I’m hanging out with the kids!” day. She loved it.
It’s almost March.
In Northeast terms, that means it’s been five months of potatoes and carrots and onions and that disappointing tomato you were lured into buying at the grocery store because you just want fresh.
It’s also almost 9 years of dinner-making in my life.
Also, I love cooking — I really do — but time and budget and just season has required that I keep things simple. But that also means it’s easy for me to lose steam.
So, a bit of fresh inspiration is in order! Want to do a bit of late-winter sharing? How about I share a bit about my cooking and what we’ve been eating this past week or so, and you do the same! (Even if it’s eggs and cereal — that’s okay, too!)
I’ll start:
My “style”: No menu planning. Cook from the cupboard (in an extreme way, these days! Tight budget = creative [and sometimes very, very simple] dinners!) Read recipes as a hobby but never follow one when I cook. Some days I wish I did the opposite of all these things, but this is who I am for now!
Here are 5 meals I’ve cooked recently. (Not included: pb&j on nights when Ryan’s not home. I assume that “recipe” wouldn’t be world-changing for anyone!)
1. Jamie Oliver’s chicken in milk, which is being converted to a creamy soup tonight.
2. A white bean, garbanzo, spinach, bacon soup in parmesan-rind broth.
3. Grilled cheese sandwiches and homemade tomato soup.
4. Scrambled eggs, homemade toast, and salad.
5. A casserole of brown rice, ground beef, slow-roasted tomatoes from last year’s stash, and cheddar.
On the docket for the coming days:
Red lentil coconut curry on rice.
Homemade pizza.
Baked falafel with Greek salad and homemade pitas.
Split pea soup.
White beans and ham.
(With veg on the side, where applicable. :-))
Your turn! (If you have a blog, just post the link to your entry here in the comments. Otherwise, feel free to answer right in the comments.)
I wrote today’s date in my journal this morning and sort of choked on the truth: One more week of the month that I swear just started.
I’m glad to have taken a few photos of our doings, because these moments that I cherish? They are gone before I know it.
Basketball that is serious…
and just good fun. (Thanks, Dad, for taking these pictures!)
Playing at Nana and Papa’s house with cousins.
Learning to be a big girl.
Winning our hearts.
Being astounded by the whiteness, the brightness, and the bright blue sky reflected on fields of snow.
Brilliant.
Loving being a mother to this one, my oldest, as he leaves the world of Little Boy behind. But not completely. His freckles are still Norman Rockwell, and his hand always ready to hold mine.*
Orange is his favorite color. And never fails to be the perfect contrast to North Country skies.
And on stormy days, I can usually figure out where he’s wandered to.
Catching snowflakes on tongue. Letting them collect on my bare head. Loving that the world looks like it’s veiled, viewed through vellum. That’s what I always imagine, anyway.
And this. No words.
Okay, maybe one: bursting.
*****
*And, regarding that joyful son of mine? Last Thursday evening I was tucking them into bed, telling them that Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day!
And Jameson said, “Four party days in a row?!”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Well, tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Saturday is basketball. Sunday is church, and then Monday is the first day of a brand new week!!”
Are you kidding? This kid is the best. His melancholy brother and I are very blessed to have him in our lives.