Mall of America

Preston and Mason and I went to Underwater Adventures today at the Mall of America.  Karly and DJ are off having fun this week camping and at EFY so we wanted to have fun too.  Mason wouldn't touch the starfish himself, he would grab our hands and touch things with our fingers.  Silly.









We stopped at Legoland on the way out and built a car or two, though I had to pry the car out of his hands before we left.

shot day

     Today Mason had a well-baby check and had to get four shots.  No fun.  I was impressed with the nurse, she was like lightning with those needles.  If there is such a thing as swearing in baby talk, then she was getting an earful sent her way.  One of the shot sites was bleeding a bit and Mason kept showing it to her in indignation and yelling; she loved it.  I took him to McDonald's to ease his pain with french fries and a playplace -  it worked. 
     I was remembering an instance from a few years ago that I have to get down in writing, I hope that I can do it justice.  We had just moved to Fredericksburg VA; it was January and actually quite cold and snowy - not common for that area though it did happen.  In Virginia, school closes at even the forecast of snow so the kids didn't have school that particular day, or for many days afterwards for that matter.  That day was different however because our furnace had stopped working.  We had just moved from Minnesota, so we were used to cold, but we definitely needed heat on that day.  I called the repairman while the kids huddled around the fireplace in blankets while they ate breakfast.  They loved it, kind of like indoor camping.  Within a hour or two a repair truck pulled up in front of the house - much to my relief.  I still had to unpack the majority of the house and I couldn't get it done when the temp was hovering around 20-30 degrees.  The man ambling up the steps with tool chest in hand was wearing overalls and a baseball cap, had a bushy white beard and hair and a kindly smile.
     After I let him in and showed him the furnace I went to sit by the fireplace with the kids.  He called me back pretty quickly and I ran downstairs.    He was chatty and we talked for a while about living in Virginia, he had lived there all his life.  Eventually he told me he had figured out the problem and wanted me to see what it was.  He had a wrench in his hands and guided me back behind the furnace.  He told me I needed to know how to fix it if it happened again to save another service call.  Excited at the prospect of actually being able to fix something like a furnace, I eagerly looked as he pointed the wrench at some knob-like thing (that's actually the technical name).  He then asked if I was watching closely - holding my breath with anticipation, I nodded my head that I was.  Slowly he lifted the wrench, glanced over at me, and brought it down on the knob thingy with a clang.  The furnace turned on.  All was well.  It was with a great sense of accomplishment that many times after that in the winter months while we lived in that house, that I was able to tell Jim and the kids: "don't worry, I'll go down and get the furnace started."  I will forever have a soft spot in my heart for that repairman.

more graduation stuff

I had a terrible time yesterday posting pictures - they kept disappearing, (ok, I still don't know what I'm doing, so I am trying again) though I did reformat the blog (I think) to make it easier to post pictures and actually write about them!  So here is DJ just leaving to go to the high school and catch a bus to the Target Center.  We actually dressed much nicer before we left, we had a few hours before we had to go!




I know, another Mason picture, but really - could he be any cuter!














This is at DJ's seminary graduation.  Doesn't Grandma look short next to him?!  She was able to come and visit and attend some of the graduation festivities.











This is DJ's graduation party.  It rained cats and dogs all afternoon so everyone squeezed into the tent.  We combined with 5 other families and their graduates for the party.  It was actually still nice, and the food was wonderful - so what else matters - really? 










OK, another Mason.  Whatever. 











I took the kids to the zoo a few weeks ago and thought this was a cute pic of the kids.

graduation!

Cute brothers here, Mason loves hats and can't stand to not wear DJ's.






















The opening of graduation presents - a new stereo for his truck!  Yeah, now he can listen to his Ipod while he drives.




















Just couldn't resist putting in another one of these.





















OK, this isn't a graduation picture.  We went to the zoo a few weeks ago and I wanted to put in a picture or two.

Some things come in twos

Today Mason had a fitting for his leg brace.  This leg brace has been an ongoing trial and tribulation.  Mason can figure out anything we throw at him.  No matter what we do to secure it on him for the night he manages to get it off, even with all the extra baby-proof bells and whistles we asked them to put on it.  We go in there after an hour of listening to him cry and say "stuck" and he is sleeping peacefully with the brace off to the side of the crib.  It's almost like he is saying "try harder.  really."  So we are now equipped with the new and improved Mason-proof brace.  We will see how the torture goes.  Here is a picture of the new brace next to the one they gave us in China.

The first night after we got Mason and had tucked him into the makeshift bed we had made for him on the

floor of the hotel room, we stared at him for a while and went to sleep.  Sometime later we were awakened by the ripping sound of velcro as Mason deftly removed his brace and then went back to sleep.  We gave up after about three nights.  Here he is on that first night.                                                                                                                                                                                                          

So this resourcefulness and stubborness reminds me so much of Kasey as a toddler that it is scary.  Example:  When Kasey was two and a half I foolishly thought I would potty train her without too much heartache and hassle.  Wrong.  After a very short time Kasey thought the whole thing was just bogus and decided not to poop at all. Ever.  She would go as long as she could and then, well. . . . I guess some things are better left unsaid.  But anyway, we had a very miserable and stubborn little girl who could hold onto poop like no other.  I even took her to the doctor, and was told after an amazingly horrible exam that Kasey had the strongest sphincter muscle that any two year old could have.  A dubious honor at best, but for some reason now it makes me laugh (sorry Kasey!!)  Anyway, the stubborn nightmare continued for many months, until her grandpa somehow talked her into sitting normally on the toilet and being like other big girls.  Voila!!  Potty training achieved.  Though Kasey has no memory of the whole episode, I have remained scarred and leery of potty training ever since.  One of the few scars raising Kasey has left me with!!  (Just kidding honey!!)  So now I am dealing with an amazing resourceful toddler who can outsmart me. . . again.  This gig isn't up yet, the new brace goes on tonight!

life's small joys

I really believe that the little things in life are what make us happy - so here are a few of the things that make me happy today.  Our cat Chester, quite honestly and in all modesty, the world's greatest cat.  Though he is now going on ten years old, he still regularly deposits the remains of many a mouse and bird and squirrel and rabbit near the front door.  Gross, but still appreciated.  We have no rabbits in our garden, and he has quickly dispatched any mouse that has ever ventured indoors at our house.  Though he is a documented stone-cold killer, and it would be nice if the birds would visit our feeder, he is the sweetest, most patient and loving cat we've ever had.  His favorite thing is to just sit in someone's lap and be petted while purring noisily.  The only thing that rattles him is our little tasmanian devil two-year-old.  To get away from the baby he climbs into the napkin basket on the table, where he is out-of-reach of little hands that like to smash him.  I know, it's gross to have him on the table, but really, how cute is that picture?  He also will find any box in the house, be it plastic, cloth or cardboard, and find a way to squeeze into it.  This morning it was a Tupperware container that was on the floor.
My second bit of joy involves cookies, always a picker-upper.  These are called cowboy cookies and are truly scrumptious.  Here goes the recipe:  
                                                                 Cowboy Cookies
2 c. oats
2 c. flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 c chocolate chips
1 c pecans or coconut

Stir together dry ingredients.  Blend butter and sugars until smooth, add eggs - beat again - add vanilla.  Stir in dry mixture half at a time.  Mix in chocolate chips and coconut.  Refrigerate 1-2 hours (I didn't do this).  Bake 12-14 min at 350.

The last bit of happiness is the ceramics project that DJ brought home yesterday.  He signed up for ceramics the last half of his Senior year, and talks about it every day.  This project is the final in a series of sometimes recognizable objects, but definitely my favorite.  He is portraying a giant octopus destroying a skyscraper.  At this point it is his magnum opus (to quote Charlotte's Web), and we are to keep it in a prominent place.  Eventually I will find an out-of-the way shelf.  But it makes me smile every time I look at it. 

The best dinner ever!

OK, I was checking out some cool recipe blogs and found a pasta dish that looked faboo.  It's called creamy pasta with asparagus.  It has cheese and bacon, so how could it possibly go wrong?  Everyone liked it (a major miracle at this house), and even Jim ate it, though he had to chop his asparagus into tiny bite-size pieces and hide them in the pasta before he could actually ingest them.  So, just wanted to share my minor triumph!!!

cookie time!

Since I have aptly named this blog after my first true love, I will have to share some of my favorite cookie recipes.  Today's recipe is snickerdoodles.  It makes a ton, they freeze well, and they are so easy.  Be sure and use real butter, they are so much better that way. 
                                 
                                                  Snickerdoodles
1 lb. butter              2 tsp. baking soda
6 c. flour                 1 tsp. cream of tartar
4 c. sugar                1/2 c. sugar
4 eggs                     1 T. cinnamon
1 T. vanilla
                               In a large bowl beat butter and sugar until creamy.  Add eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and cream of tartar and mix.  Add flour, mix until smooth.  Refrigerate for 2 hours.  Mix the 1/2 c. sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.  Roll dough into 2-inch balls, roll in sugar cinnamon mixture and place on cookie sheet.  Bake at 325 for 8-10 minutes or until ball is flat and cookie starts to split and loses its shine. 

      Now here is an example of the extreme cuteness of kids:  Last Saturday we were babysitting two little boys at our house for a few hours.  They are 4 and 6 years old - adorable little munchkins.  Anyway, after they had been here for a while, the 6-yr-old said, "You know, that baby doesn't look anything like any of you guys here.  I think maybe he's from Mexico."  Cute to the ness.  He knew something was up and was just throwing me an FYI.  It was greatly appreciated and duly noted.  I did then let him in on the baby's China connection.  We are still chuckling.