38 years, and counting...

Today marks the 38th anniversary of my dear parents. They celebrated by recovering somewhat from jet lag (they flew in from Israel last night), babysitting Jane so I could go to Costco in peace, unpacking and repacking for their flight out tomorrow and eating out at Dan's favorite local restaurant, Q Thai Bistro. I'm not sure what the highlight was...
They certainly deserve some kind of award or certificate so I sent them one of these.

Happy Anniversary, mom and dad!

An unexpected holiday

Dan doesn't usually get Memorial Day off, so when he called at 2:00 this afternoon to tell me he was coming home, I was pleasantly surprised. We decided we needed to get out right away so we rounded up a bike for me and rode to the nearest park with a carousel and expensive ice cream, among other things.

What's a moonuwal?

Hannah has been going through a phase (at least I hope it's a phase) of making up words. She has a huge vocabulary (of real words) and she is old enough to know how to speak clearly and audibly so we know she is speaking serious nonsense. Instead of asking what to call something, she creates a phonetic conglomeration, as I like to call it, and that's what it is. She's so confident about it, it makes me wonder if she knows something I don't.
Pointing to a wire whisk,
"That's a what, Hannah?"
"A moonuwal. That's what it is."

Like a cat

This happened before we left for Ireland so I forgot about it.

Hannah was in a strange mood the morning of our departure, maybe because we were focusing our attention elsewhere. She was walking around the place, a little mopishly. I was busy organizing and planning last minute details when I heard the bathroom door close with some force. I remember thinking, "OK, she must need some private time."
Some time passed, and I remembered that I should probably check on Hannah. I went into the bathroom and I couldn't see her. I looked in the tub and as I pulled the shower curtain back, my eye caught a personage of small proportions between the liner and outer curtain. Hannah was lying on the edge of the bathtub, perfectly balanced and she appeared to be sleeping.

I fetched the camera,I pulled back the curtain, took this next photo

and then she opened her eyes. I don't know if the sound of the camera woke her or if she was never in fact asleep, that she was just pretending, but it appeared to be the former. Either way, she seemed quite comfortable perched up there for a significant amount of time. So far, it is the strangest place I have found her "sleeping".

Yu-u-um!

I just pulled this beautiful golden loaf of Rosemary bread out of the oven. You know how bread recipes always tell you to let the bread cool completely before cutting into it? I never do that. NEVER! The best part about fresh bread is eating it while it's so hot that you can barely put it in your mouth without burning it. Mmmm... it's the best! So that's exactly what I did with this bread. Even though the bread is for dinner, I cut off a big chunk, put a tidbit of butter on it (I've been good all day!), and savored every buttery, flakey, rosemary-ey bit of it. I hope Dan gets home soon because just writing about it makes me want to go in the kitchen for more.
Since this bread is so mouthwatering, I thought I would share the recipe. Of course, you have to love Rosemary to enjoy this treat. I adapted the recipe from the menu I got from Pickity Place while I was in New Hampshire. I think I've got it perfected.

Rosemary Bread
1 pkg dry yeast (or 1 1/2 T.)
2 T. finely snipped Rosemary
1 c. warm water
1/8 to 1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
3/4 tsp sugar or honey (I like honey)
1 tsp table salt
1 1/2 c. white whole wheat flour (I like King Arthur)
2 c. unbleached flour (approximately)
kosher salt

In a large bowl, sprinkle yeast and 1 T. Rosemary over the warm water.
Let stand, about 10 minutes. Mix in sugar, table salt and white whole wheat flour. Gradually beat in enough white flour to make a stiff dough. Knead for about 10 minutes, adding more flour, if necessary. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover and let rise until doubled, about one hour. Punch down. Cover and let rise again until doubled, about one hour (if you're short on time, you can skip this second rise and go to the next, but I love the soft texture of well-risen bread).
Turn out and knead about 10 strokes. Shape into a loaf and place in buttered 8"x4" loaf pan. Brush top of loaf with melted butter and sprinkle with 1/2 T. of remaining Rosemary. Let rise until doubled, about one hour. Brush loaf again with butter and sprinkle with remaining Rosemary and some kosher salt. Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes. Let cool (a little bit) on a rack.
Enjoy!

Roots, rocks and logs

I went trail running today to get ready for my 10K trail run next weekend. I dodged many a rock and root while traversing some of the narrower trails in our nearby Forest Park. I felt pretty good as I hurdled one large log at the beginning of my run, but on the way back, that same log seemed twice as big and I had to negotiate my weakened stride a bit.
Overall, I really enjoyed the trail. I hope to be able to explore more trails in my running shoes before next week.
Here is a look at the elevation profile of the trail I will be "racing" on:

I figure as long as I can get up that first hill, I'm golden. But can I run uphill, nonstop, with an elevation gain of 500 feet in less than one mile? That is the question...

Going out

Yesterday, we were getting ready to go out to eat with my parents before they flew out to Israel. Hannah told me she was hungry so I explained to her that we would be eating out at a restaurant. She said,

"OK... What's a restaurant?"

Evidently, we don't take our girls out much.

Man's best friend? Duct tape.

Dan and my dad were getting Jane dressed after her bath last night. Apparently, Jane's diaper tab ripped off so the men did the most logical thing- they grabbed the duct tape.

This is what I saw when I entered the room. I didn't say anything. I just got the camera.


Of course, it did the trick. I had a really hard time changing that thing this morning.
I guess we'll know what to do now if Jane tries to take her diaper off again.

We are proof

Here are a jillion photos of us a) to prove that Dan and I did in fact travel to Ireland to take the photos we've posted (rather than pirate the photos off of the Net) and b) to make up for all of the photos we aren't in.
Here we go...


a church in Galway


downtown Galway




Cliffs of Moher


Dingle


side of the road at a dilapidated castle


Dan will take any opportunity to skip a rock.


viewpoint- time for a snack



This is where I got my first tick ever, even after all those years hiking and backpacking. Man, I'm proud!


Gallarus Oratory


boat ride to Innisfallen Island


Monastery ruin on Innisfallen Island


we rented bikes to ride around Killarney


The drive through the Gap (of Dunloe). See the winding road in the background?


The ferry from Killimer to Tarbert.

There. We do in fact exist.

40 shades of green

"40 shades of green," is what my dad said after looking through all of our photos from Ireland. Apparently, it's the name of an old song, but it is right on the money. I have never seen so much beautiful green in all my life.
We have been home for two days and I'm still on a high from our nearly perfect Irish holiday. We saw so much in four days, even though we didn't plan much for the trip.
We stayed in the west and southwest parts of the country. The weather was ideal, the food was delicious, the people were grand, the cities were charming and the land was breathtaking.
If anyone out there has ever thought they might go to Ireland, or even if you haven't, it is a worthy goal to get there any way you can!
We would have liked to spend more time there, but we couldn't wait to see Hannah and Jane. When they saw us they were so giddy and happy and they wouldn't stop hugging us. It was everything a homecoming should be.

As much as I wish I could show every photo, it's just not possible at this time. However, I have a good number of images on my photo blog that you can check out.

This morning Hannah said, "Mommy, I want to go to Ireland." I'll be more than happy to take her there in about 10 years.

So long to these messy mugs

We think we're ready to leave these two classy ladies. Papa is here, grandma comes in the morning, and they will probably be getting all the cookies they want while we're gone. They're happy, we're happy.
This time tomorrow we will be flying over the Atlantic.
Be back soon...
and thanks mom and dad!!!

Erin go brea!

Dan beat me to this post, but I am going to write about it anyway.
We couldn't pass this opportunity up. We are taking advantage of a promotion that will get us to Ireland for almost nothing. This week, Dan and I will explore the western Irish coast and countryside. I have never been to Ireland and I've always wanted to go since my dad showed us slides from his mission for FHE when I was younger.
At first, the thought of going made me nervous, traveling overseas so spontaneously, but I am really starting to get excited for the adventure.
We're not sure yet where we're sleeping but I'm sure we'll find something. The grass looks quite nice, in case we have to sleep under the stars.

Redeem me, please!

I realize I wasn't being very fair to Jane in the previous post. I also realize that I probably won't be able to find anyone to watch my children in the near future.
Jane really can be a sweet little ball of joy when she wants to be. She is full of spunk and vitality and that's what we love about her.
Jane can give us a good laugh. Dan has recently taught her to give daps (props, knuckles, what have you) followed by a downward thrust of the elbow, fist intact, and a resounding "Yes!". Although, from Jane, it sounds like "Wes!".
Audiences love it. She entertained a row of single adults sitting behind us at church by first shaking hands, then giving a high five, then daps. Sure, it was a bit disruptive but oh so funny.

What does a Jane say?

Sometimes, I wonder whether I am raising a child or training a wild animal.
Jane has been displaying many subhuman behaviors lately.
One of the most frustrating of these is that over the past few days, she won't wear a diaper. If she is at all aware of it, she will take it off, leaving us to chase her, tackle her to the ground, and cover her before something messy happens. This morning however, we couldn't get to her in time. She had taken off her diaper and as if she knew exactly which buttons of mine to push on a Sunday morning, she squatted and peed on our carpet right in front of me. She had no shame.
Jane has an aversion to clothing in general, except for dresses. We've had no fun trying to outfit her lately. I say we because it takes two of use to dress her as she kicks, screams and hollers (note the photo above). Unfortunately for her, we can't let it be. Tonight, Dan prepared a list of household rules of behavior for the girls. One of the things on the list was:
"Little girls must wear underwear, diapers and clothes at all times."
The rule was mostly for Jane even though I'm not sure it took. The second part to that rule was for Hannah.
"Girls must wear shoes outside"
This is not a problem for Jane. She loves shoes. So give Jane any shoe, a flowy dress and let her run free and natural underneath it all. She'd be a happy little monkey.

Something else Jane refuses to do is use a spoon while eating her cereal. She'll use her hand to scoop up as much milk and as many soggy Cheerios that her little hand will hold. She stuffs what she can in her mouth, but most of it dribbles down her chin and neck. We are looking for ways to make breakfast a tidier and more civilized experience.

Jane also likes to scream and climb and run amain in all matters and circumstances. Sometimes, I think she is just crazy- so does Hannah.
I know in most cases our little Jane is indeed not a animal, but just a child...
maybe a feral child.

Girls' weekend

Here I am minutes after my new haircut, one of the many pleasures of my weekend with the Dyer girls in Park City, Utah. You can see Katie in the background doing a marathon salon session just for us. She was great, in so many ways.
We beautified ourselves with more than new hair styles. We gave makeovers to our toes, faces and wardrobes, all without breaking the bank.
Aside from the external improvements we made, we had the opportunity to get to know one another in some cases and get reacquainted in others, sans kids. It was a great get-away.

Things I learned today

Some things I learned from my kids today are...

~to stop and smell the roses... and the tulips, and the wisteria, and the ivy, and the broken pieces of brick lying on the ground.

~that there's no sense trying to understand Jane when she asks for something and then adamantly refuses it, asks for it and refuses, over and over and over again.

~that the steps to one of the local synagogues are the actual steps where Cinderella lost her glass slipper.

~that getting a fat lip from trying to put Jane's pajamas on her should not be my primary motive for letting her wear her dress to bed.

More congratulations

Today, we found out that my brother, Joel, and his wife, LeighAnn, had their baby this morning. It's their first, and her name is Bailey Abigail. LeighAnn was about 9 days late. I feel for you, LeighAnn. That's how late Hannah was. Oh, the agony! I'm so glad the wait is over for all of you.
I can't wait to get my hands on her!

College Grad

Congratulations, Kerianne! We expect great things from you...
No pressure though.

If you want to see more of Keri, go here.