Puddle Jumping, and This Week's Menu

December in Oregon is has nothing to do with the weather itself but rather the attitude of the person in it. Case in point: We've been getting amazing amounts of precipitation this month--magnitudes that I have never seen since we moved here almost ten years ago. There is a lot of lowland flooding, and the Tualatin River is astonishingly high.

Naturally, the rain is cold and wet, which makes certain people pretty miserable. And I admit, flooding makes people miserable. And achy joints makes people miserable. I get it.

But sometimes you've got to turn the drawback into a strength. Rain makes puddles. When was the last time you did some unabashed puddle-jumping? The Husband and I took advantage of some kid-free time last weekend and ventured out into Tryon Creek State Park. We hiked a short-ish loop and I got to field test my birthday present: a pair of (snow?) boots that are great for marching through puddles without caring about my feet turning cold and wet.

We stomped in puddles like a pair of hyper kids. We hid in tree stumps. 

We had fun.

Monday, Monday, back to the grind. I've got a week's worth of dinners planned out, and here they are:

This Week's Menu

Monday: Gyoza and stir-fried veggies with yakisoba noodles

Tuesday: Cajun Chicken Pasta and salad

Wednesday: Beef Roast with veggies and potatoes

Thursday: Indian Spiced Chicken Stew

Friday: Egg Salad Sandwiches

Saturday: The Husband's company Christmas Party!

Have fun out there in the wild weather!

Time ticks, life clicks

"The days are long, but the years are short."

Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

It's been so long, yet it feels like just yesterday. I've been a mom for almost five years, and with each additional month, the job seems simultaneously more serious and more, well, silly.

We've been blessed beyond anything we could ever deserve. We have a loving home, nourishing food, good health (and good health insurance), and job security. Praise God!

Our days are filled with playing, reading, coloring, and singing (and cleaning, folding, organizing, and cleaning up pee on the floor...again. [And Pinterest.])

And by fall it will be filled with Kindergarden.

How did we end up here? I'm not sure, but all I can do is hang on for the ride.

And make some vaguely witty remarks. ;)

Check Out My New Wheels!

I scored a sweet deal at the children's consignment sale I attended last week: a used double jogging stroller. Not that I'm using it. Oh, no, goodness. I break a sweat just thinking about it. The Husband is now using it to give me a half-hour of solitude every other day, which I use to cook in peace. Or peas, depending on what's for dinner.



The first evening they all went out for a jog was a cloudy one. It was a bit chilly, so we bundled the kids up really well before they went out. Thirty minutes passed. I was rocking out in the kitchen when I saw him jog back up to the front door, completely drenched. I was so focused on chopping veggies that I hadn't even noticed it'd been pouring! I went out to see if he needed help, and when I opened the front door I saw two very wet and pathetic looking children looking up at me with sad, rosy-cheeked faces.

So now we know to check the radar before heading out in questionable weather. And that the sun canopy makes a woefully deficient rain canopy.

Although I probably won't be taking that thing for a jog any time soon (unless there is chocolate involved somewhere along the line), I am looking forward to using it for regular walking type excursions. We haven't been able to much of that since The Husband sheared off one of the wheels on our last stroller while backing the car in the garage. By the way, I admire his ability to back the car into the garage. I can't back up vehicles to save my life, but he's been backing that thing in for almost a year and he's only ruined one stroller and one side mirror!

My roses are starting to bloom again.



Unfortunately, my big rose bush came down with Black Spot and I had to remove over half of the leaves. I don't know if I will be removing any more because I'm afraid it will die for lack of foliage. I've been really good at finding old spotty leaves on the ground, though, and I want to re-mulch the area this fall.

Garden 2010!

Last year we didn't do too much gardening. I was too nauseated and tired to keep up with it, and the potted herbs I had died a thirsty, hot death. I feel so guilty!

This year we are settled in as the time to plant came, so we decided to build a raised bed and try our luck again. Like The Husband always says, I'm the brain and he's the braun of the operation, so I designed the raised bed (okay, okay, the Pioneer Woman did) and he built it and filled it with a compost/soil combo that is specifically designed for raised bed gardening. I partitioned the bed a la Square Foot Gardening, and as the season evolves I've been sowing seeds and transplanting starters. Here's how it looks today:



From the top down, we have peas, three sisters (corn, beans, and squash), jalapeños, green and red bell peppers (starters), four different kinds of tomatoes (starters), cilantro, parsley, spinach, and lettuce. Every square is either seeded or filled with a transplant now, and we just have to wait for it to grow. GROW GARDEN, GROW!!

I started some starters in the house a month ago. I believe I had lettuce, jalapeños, basil, and thyme starters. They sprouted but were getting kind of leggy, especially the lettuce. Unfortunately we then had to leave for North Dakota, and they all died. My black thumb strikes again. Those poor baby plants.

Peas were one of the first things I planted; I sowed them straight into the ground (along with the spinach and parsley). They are doing so well, but I should have put in some kind of trellis when I sowed the seeds. The small plants are having problems finding the sticks I crammed in the ground Russian-Roulette-style (I sure hope I didn't impale any important roots). Hopefully they will find their way. I've also found a few aphids on them, but I've been hand-picking them off and so far there isn't any substantial damage to the plants. It's definitely something to look out for from now on.

The spinach and parsley have sprouted, but they're growing ever so slowly. Actually, with the exception of the peas, everything that I've planted has grown. ever. so. slowly. Most of it hasn't even sprouted yet. At this rate I'll be harvesting in time for St. Valentine's Day.

I am wondering if I am supposed to fertilize the garden. The dirt we used had compost in it, but I take after my grandmothers--I have the unrelenting urge to feed everything and everyone until they can't take anymore. And I know that plants have limits like people, but the thing is I don't know when I've gone too far with them. I don't want to overdo it. And I don't want to underdo it.

And this is the part where I usually throw my hands in the air and decide I've failed before I've even begun, because I can't do it right! And plant carnage follows soon after. But this year I have a different outlook. It's all an experiment, and I will try my best with the limited information I've got. After harvest time I'll re-evaluate and see what I should be doing differently. That's it. There is no valedictorian of gardening. I won't be given a report card with grades on it at the end of the year. I just have to do my best and eventually I will do well, but it could take years. And that's okay.

I've also put six strawberry starters in a strawberry pot.



I'm a little concerned I just paid $12 for maybe a pound of strawberries, if I'm lucky.

It's okay. It's an educational experience, an experiment. Even if I have to learn the hard way, I'll still learn.

It was really hard to get those plants into the little holes. If I do that again, I'm going to buy smaller starters.

Life and Death

Haven't posted in a few months. Life lives.

Oompa-Loompa was born on January 22. He came into the world here at our home; it was a beautiful waterbirth. A healing birth.



He's three months old now. He's really figured out how to function earthside, and he is a mostly happy baby now.

We celebrate.

Munchkin turned three years old in March.



She's had a few rough patches over the last few months, but she is still my sweet, caring daughter on the inside. I've been able to see how she deals with stress, and unfortunately she deals with it kind of like me: retreating to seclusion and shutting everyone else out. Oh, and crying a lot. I wish I could have some do-overs lately.

Nobody told me that the mommy guilt would hit like a Peterbuilt semi after #2 is born. I think that's been the hardest part of a handful of hard parts.

But every day is a new start. A clean slate. An opportunity to create more love in our lives.



The Husband's father (my father-in-law) is very near the end of his life. He will be departing within the next day or two. We went to see him earlier this month, and while I wish we would have gone sooner, I'm glad he got to see his grandkids one last (and, for Oompa, first) time. Hopefully The Husband will be able to make it in time to say goodbye himself.

We grieve.

It's surreal. The Husband is only 26 years old, too young to have to say goodbye to his father. Papa Gerald is only ten days short of his 56th birthday, too young to go, really. What a shame. I grieve for my husband, for my children, for his wife he leaves behind. So sad.

Ok, I had to get that out there. I feel better now. Thanks for listening.

Snowman for my Pumpkin

Munchkin is two years and nine-and-a-half months old. I can't believe it, because she still feels like my little baby. She still curls up in what's left of my lap and requests Mama Milk. When it's sleepy time she will fall asleep drinking Mama Milk and sometimes I just sit with her peacefully asleep in my lap, still latched on, just like she did when she was a newborn. And I remember that someday she won't do this anymore, that I will be giving her The Talk and taking her shopping for bras and pads, maybe even wondering how it came to be that this girl I cuddled not so long ago is now a teenager who won't talk to me.



I don't want to become complacent and take these fleeting moments for granted. So when a freak snowstorm hit us earlier this week, I woke her up early from her nap so we could bundle up in our scavenged snow gear and make a memory. She hadn't seen snow since we were in North Dakota last December, so I wasn't sure if she even had any memory to draw upon. But of course we read about it in books and she sees it on TV, so she had many expectations to test out. We made this little snowman. Of course it had to have two button eyes, a carrot for a nose, and a little pink scarf. She was so in love with it!



I tried to get her to lay down and make a snow angel, since she pretends to make snow angels inside on the carpet all the time. Unfortunately it was snowing huge, wet snowflakes and she didn't like them falling in her face. As soon as she laid down, she got right back up and refused to try again. So I showed her how it was done. Then I realized I was eight months pregnant and wearing a pea coat that was much too small for my girth. I hope the neighbors weren't watching me trying to get up!



We also "made tracks" in the snow and threw snowballs. After I finally managed to convince her to go inside (it was getting dark), we drank warm apple cider together in the kitchen, trying to warm up.

She's getting so much more mature, but she'll always be my baby.

Suburban Summer

When I dreamt of owning a house, one of the big kickers was that I could do anything I wanted with the plants in the yard. I could remove plants, or, more importantly to me, I could plant plants.

So when I bought some herbs at the garden center earlier this week, what did I do? I put them in pots instead.



This way I can bring them inside for the winter. There is a perfect spot for them in the storage room, which is a large room that was walled off from the garage. It has a large window that lets in lots of morning sun. Last time I had anything in a container, it ended badly. So we'll see.

The weather's been beautiful here: sunny and warm (although today was more "hot"). Gorgeous. Perfect for grilling hamburgers, which go well with homemade potato salad.



While we're not gardening or eating, there's always laying in the hammock:



Ahh. The life.

Unfortunately, we didn't get to do anything fun outside today because Munchkin had a fever and was cranky, too. I have no idea what kind of sickness she's getting, but I hope it doesn't last long. Poor girl. She likes to cuddle when she's not feeling well, but today it was like snuggling an oven in the desert. I just about melted; I can only imagine how she felt.

Irritatingly, I have misplaced my notebook with all my weekly menus and shopping lists. I can only conclude that it is not in this house, because I've looked high and low. I hope it's in the van. The last place I saw it was at Target two days ago when I was doing a bit of shopping. I hope that if I lost it that someone would call the phone number I put on the cover, because even though it's just a silly notebook with nothing really too important in it, I think I'd loose my mind if I didn't have it. It's a collection of my family's culinary history. It's interesting to see what we were eating six months ago, and how much our habits have changed.

Plus I can't remember what I'm supposed to cook on Saturday, but it has something to do with rice.

A few more pictures

I've taken a couple more photos of our new home. Only a couple because I've only gotten the kitchen/dining room completely settled, haha. Everything else is mostly good, but there are still a few boxes of decorations/art/pictures that I'd like to put up before taking pictures. All in due time. ;)

Before I get the new pictures, I have something else: Pictures of our old home. You may not care, and that's fine. But I wanted to take pictures for the memories. Sometimes I wish I had taken more pictures of the first apartment that Husband and I shared. I'm glad that I remembered to take pictures this time. It is kind of weird, though. Now that we're pretty much moved in, I just don't have the yearning to be back in my old home like I thought I would. And that's good! I do wish I felt more comfortable here, though. I'm still adjusting.

Anyway, here are a couple of pictures. They seem to sum up my photography skills: leaves something to be desired.



That's a corner of my kitchen. Don't you just LOVE the beat-up cabinets, old wood laminate countertops (you can't see it in this photo, but on the other side of the kitchen the front facing is falling off/non-existent), and faux brick backsplash? Gorgeous. Someday we're going to take the brick out and tile the backsplash, paint the cabinets white and put new hardware on them, and get some modern laminate countertop. But honestly, I don't really care as much as I thought I would.



An extremely poorly-lit picture of the dining room, taken from the kitchen. I'm glad our table fits where it does; I was afraid it would block the sliding glass door.

And a gratuitous picture of Munchkin at Husband's church softball game tonight:



They actually won, which ties their number of wins from last year: one. Hurray!

Miscellany Regarding Current Life

Here's a picture of my roses, as promised:



Roses aren't something I would have chosen to plant, as I am super-practical and I'm not feeding my family roses, but darn those are pretty.

Husband installed an over-the-range microwave today. It took him six hours. At one point I asked him alarmedly, "Did you just start a fire in the wall?!?" But in the end it turned out alright, and now I have a microwave to use! Now I just hope it doesn't, you know, fall out of the wall.

The weather's been great here and we've spent a LOT of time outside weeding the yard. That's our recreation. Weeding. It's fun and therapeutic. We aspire to have a food-producing garden, but we're sticking to weeding for right now. It's really hard to screw up weeding. I did buy some herb starts at the store today, but now I have no idea what to do with them. I'm scared to do anything, lest I kill them. I'm petrified, people. PETRIFIED OF GROWING PLANTS.

I'll get over it. ;)

Munchkin is still irrationally cranky. Can't tell if it's toddlerhood or the move or teeth or just because she wants to make hell. I don't know if it matters, because I can't change any of it. Going outside usually helps, and I will gladly oblige.

I used my new (used) washer and dryer for the first time yesterday and opened up the washer to find that I left a giant permanent marker in my apron pocket and ruined a whole bunch of white clothes, including Munchkin's awesome white sweatshirt that we got from Nicole. :( Craptastic! On the plus side, the washer and dryer actually work really well without added markers.

I've been feeling really here-and-there, this-and-that lately. Not in a hypomania kind of way, but just because there are so many little random things to do and take care of and I don't feel settled. I hope this soon passes.

Weekly Menu, now with Bonus Photo!

This Week's Menu:
Monday: Baked Teriyaki Chicken with Rice and Broccoli
Tuesday: Chili and Cornbread
Wednesday: Homemade Pizza
Thursday: Greek Pasta with Tomatoes and White Beans
Friday: Southwest Chicken and Mexican Rice
Saturday: Lemon Ginger Shrimp with Grilled Veggies
Sunday: leftovers or something quick to whip up



"Life into Death"

What's old is new again

I’d like to share the toys that Munchkin loves to love, because I enjoy seeing the toys behind the kids. Here’s an installment of playthings from my own childhood that are now part of hers.



I’m not sure what these are called. I remember that my grandparents had them at their house. They were fun to make different play-things with. They can really be anything that’s rope-shaped, like snakes or, well, ropes. (Although, I wouldn't actually use it as a rope because I would be sorely disappointed.)



Who can forget the ubiquitous Tupperware Shape-O toy? Everyone I knew had one of these. Munchkin is too young to figure out how the get the shapes in, but she’ll get there. I remember being frustrated with it when I was little, but now I can do it! Aren't you proud?



These don’t need any caption. If you’ve never seen one of these, you must have grown up on another planet.



This book is very special to me. My Grandmother used to read us this book when we spent the night at her house, and through her Japanese accent should would give each character it’s own voice. I saw this at Powell’s Books in downtown Portland, and snatched it up like a hawk. Munchkin seems to like it as much as we did.



My good friend Becky bought this for Munchkin’s first birthday. This is the modern-day Glo-worm, evolved from the long, lumpy original. This one plays lullabies, too.



When I saw this particular one at Target, I gasped in shock. My grandparents also had one of these for us grandkids, and originally it was my mom’s and aunts’ and uncle’s. Though, this is a cheap, plastic, China-made version of the one we grew up with. But it’s a small compromise.

Although I didn't photograph them, we also have LEGO toys and Play-Doh. But who doesn't?

The Ambivalent Nature of Springtime in Oregon

Someone please inform the weatherman that it is now spring in Oregon and all the clouds and rain should go away now. We had such a beautiful weekend last week, and now this cloudy, mopey mess is just driving me crazy and giving me spring fever. I'm tired of wearing sweaters and putting on jackets, tired of constantly monitoring the in-wall space heaters for blankets or bookbags or Munchkins in the way, tired of being closed up in my stagnant, dark, damp cave.



It's a tease, really. Dangling something just out of reach. Something we want so badly.



But, maybe...maybe...maybe we can just close our eyes and pretend it's sunny. Think of things that make us happy.

After my post yesterday extolling the virtues of frugality, I went crazy in the fabric store for the sole purpose of finding fabrics that I *might* make into clothes for Munchkin, should I find the time. I actually put quite a bit back on the shelves before leaving, which is good because I felt a little dizzy after I was told the total at the check-out. Ah, we all have our vices, I suppose.



Here is a set of earth tones. I love it, but I hope it's not too dark and heavy for summertime clothes.



Here's the girly set. You can't really go wrong with pink (at least I hope!).

Of course, drowning our sorrows in the fabric store doesn't erase life's difficulties. Husband had a demoralizing day at work today. One of his fellow engineers has been let go, five days before his wife is due to have their first child. (Actually, the only other office person to be let go in the last few years was also let go right around the birth of his child. How lame.) This particular person hasn't had the easiest time, it seems, adjusting to his line of work. I don't know if it's because he wasn't cut out for it, or if it was because he just didn't care to put the effort in. At any rate, he did a poor job and was let go. Husband is simultaneously relieved for his job and broken-hearted for his family. Unless he can get a job soon, his recently-purchased house may go into foreclosure. What an awful situation!

I don't want to end with such a dreadful tone, so here's a gratuitous picture of Munchkin. Sorry about the poor lighting (and subsequent blurriness). I live in a cave, remember?

Weekend Mash-up

This week's menu:

Monday: Tuna Fish Hot Dish (since we didn't have it last week)

Tuesday: Roast Chicken and Vegetables (we didn't get to it last week either)

Wednesday: Chicken Soup (broth is from last night's chicken carcass)

Thursday: Tortellini and Marinara Sauce with Broccoli and Garlic Bread

Friday: Taco Pizza

Saturday: Firecracker Salmon with Brown Rice and a vegetable

Sunday: Leftovers or canned soup and grilled cheese sandwiches

We had a great weekend here. We had decided to wait until the weekend to fully celebrate Munchkin's second birthday, so on Saturday we went to the Oregon Zoo and froze our butts off. Nah, it wasn't that bad. We brought Husband's golfing umbrella and I packed extra jackets and a blanket for Munchkin, so we were all set. While many of the animals were just as unimpressed with the weather as we were, there were a few that were great to see, like the zebras and the giraffe (which was, admittedly, inside, but he or she was looking out his or her observation window at all of the people on the deck outside. Lemme tell you whut, giraffes have HUGE heads!) and the fish, which are always a hit with Munchkin. Also, we jumped into the penguin exhibit just when they were starting the keeper's talk. I thought the keeper dude seemed familiar, and it turns out that he (and the penguins, of course) was featured on Animal Planet's "Growing Up..." series, which I watched ceremoniously when we had just moved to Oregon and I was pregnant with Munchkin. Yay! I met a pseudo-celebrity! 

Later that evening, Husband's sister and her boyfriend came over for dinner. She brought Munchkin a fairy costume and some books. Munchkin was impressed. We had yummy soup and chocolate cake, and talked about armageddon and government take-overs and gardening and religion. By the time I went to bed at 1:20 a.m., my head hurt from all the talking! I lurve TL and it was great to see her and Randy.

On the home front (har har), we had a heater dude come out to look at the furnace on Saturday, and he said that it needed repair but still was functional. Bummer, because I wanted him to say that it was an explosion hazard and it needed to be removed immediately. Oh well, I guess we're stuck with it for now. He was nice and didn't charge us, though. How awesome is that? 

We have the sewer line inspection and the appraisal tomorrow. These should be the last things we need to do before final negotiations and then the underwriting, which sounds like it'll be three or four weeks of hellish nothing. Just waiting and stewing in our excitement and anxiety. Ugh.