Fishy Fishy in the Brook

We finally decided that Lola is old enough to experience that time honored tradition - fishing. She had received a fishing pole when she was only a few weeks old, and it has been sitting in the attic, patiently awaiting the day that she would be old enough to use it. The day was cool, and it looked like rain, but we had already told her the night before that we might go fishing, so there was no backing out. We went outside to dig up some worms, having to assure Lola that these worms were not her pet worms, but were special fishing worms.

We drove to the local kids fishing pond to find it completely silent. There were no other brave souls there that day, so we had it all to ourselves. We found a good spot and cast her line to the middle of the pond. After only a few minutes of patiently watching the bobber, she had a bite! Lola actually reeled the fish in pretty much by herself, and then decided that she wanted to net it at the shore. Between her and Daddy, they were able to get a very nice fish into our bucket! It only took an hour to get six fat fish for dinner. Lola did a great job reeling them in. Meanwhile, Rowan slept in the van awhile, and then tried multiple times to fall in the pond.

We took the fish to Gramma and Grampa's house to have for dinner later, and they were very yummy!

The rest of the weekend was great too. We took a quick trip to the "big city" to get some formula for our baby goats. The sun peeked out around noon, so we took the kids to the local park, where we met up with their uncle.


Lola gave her uncle a run for his money, running up and down the riverside.....



Rowan enjoyed climbing up and down the stairs, while Mommy tried to ignore the goose poop that he was inevitabley sitting in.

We then took the kids on the carousel for the first time. I don't remember the carousel being so fast! It had been years since I had ridden it, and it is the real deal, not like the hokey carousel at the local fair. Lola chose a horse on the outside, which meant that Mommy had to try to get the ring every time around. We never did get a gold one, but Lola loved it anyway! Wil stood next to Rowan on his horse, and reported later that Rowan absolutely loved the carousel.



What a big weekend! We all slept wonderfully into Monday morning, when it was back to the same old same old. With our busy lives, even the same old same old is an adventure!

Another Rainy Easter

Easter came and went before we even knew it. A few days before the big day, I had a very long, very rough day at work. I finally got home at about 8pm, surprised to find Lola still awake.

"Mommy" said Lola sleepily, "you said we could color Easter eggs tonight if I was good for Daddy today."

Oh no. I had promised Lola in a rush out the door that morning that we could do eggs later if she was good. That was before I had the 12 hour day from hell at work. Arg. What could I do though, those big eyes looking up imploringly, promising me that she really had been a very good girl all day.

So, at 8:30 pm on a Thursday night, we sat down to color Easter eggs. It was fun. This year she could just about do it all by herself. Good thing we are going to tear out the carpet though, as it is now speckled pink and blue under her chair.



The day before Easter morning was cold and rainy. We dressed the kids warmly, although Lola insisted on wearing her Easter dress, obviously chosen for her months earlier when I assumed that the weather would be at least decent. It was Rowan's first Easter egg hunt. Like his sister, I only had to show him once what to do, and he was off on an egg collecting mission.




Both kids gathered plenty of eggs, and ate way too much candy that day.

Easter morning was just as cold. The kids awoke to Easter baskets bulging with Dollar Store wonders that the Easter bunny had meticulously collected for the last couple of months. They played with their toys awhile, and then we dressed up and packed up to go to Gramma and Grampas. After a short visit (the Easter bunny had left a few things there too) we headed to Church for a lovely Easter service. We spent the rest of the day relaxing before having a fantastic Easter dinner with Gramma and Grampa, and Great Gramma.



The kids went to bed early that night, full of treats and happy with their fun-filled Easter day.

SPAM!! (a brief interlude from everyday blogging)

Found this recipe while surfing aimlessly. Maybe I'll try this tomorrow night. The bacon bits sprinkles sound like the perfect touch. I'm just sorry I couldn't find a picture.

California Spamoni Sorbet

1 sm Can spam (7 oz.)
1 pk Aspic
2 Avocados
1 pt Haagan daas lemon sorbet
2 Sugar cones
1 Jar bacos bacon bits

Blend up Spam and aspic until smooth and creamy. Do the same with the avocados. Retrieve your empty large Spam can (left over from main course) and press Spam mixture into the bottom. Add a layer of the lemon sorbet, then a layer of the avocado paste. Several alternating layers can be added to suit aesthetics and personality. Pop in freezer for an hour then scoop onto cones , sprinkle with Bacon Bits and enjoy.

And now I have four kids.....

Well, the minivan was plumb full the other day. I picked up my kids from day care, and they jumped in with the two goat kids that were already in there. An emergency c-section at work had left two critically ill newborn goat kids without a mama. So, they came to live with us until they can find a permanent home, which may or may not happen. Seems like no one is crazy enough to want two useless goats! So for the time being, it seems that we have goats.

They are the cutest darn things, Samson and Delilah. For the first few days they lived in our laundry room in a big dog cage. They had to be bottle fed every few hours, and they had absolutely no personal hygiene, let me tell you! I did so many loads of laundry that week! It was touch and go with them for a few days, and they even received transfusions for their weak immune systems. They couldn't walk at all for the first three days of their lives, unusual for baby goats. Samson actually lost a pound from birth weight while he learned how to nurse from a bottle.

Now, Samson and Delilah are growing babies bouncing around like crazy! They live in a temporary kennel situation outside, and are learning to drink milk from a "lamb bar", basically a cooler with nipples sticking out of it. This way I can feed them morning and night, and they can determine how often they want to nurse all day long rather than gorging themselves on 2-3 bottles a day. It has been very satisfying to see them not only survive, but grow and play!

I tried very hard to keep the real kids away from the goat kids for the first week. I guess being a vet I am slightly paranoid of what my kids might catch from random clinic animals. Soon, however, I could no longer keep Lola away from them, and she started helping me feed them (followed by a huge hand washing session, of course!).



Now that they are outside, Lola and Rowan really enjoy going out to see them when the weather is nice. I let them out and all four kids run and play in the green grass. What a beautiful sign of spring! It has been so wonderful outside lately. The kids have been out every day enjoying the sandbox and the swingset. We made it down to the park today, but Lola's pesky fever just seems to hang on and on, and sure enough it was back up this afternoon. Hopefully a good long nap plus the fresh air will help her out. I hope so, she needs every ounce of energy to enjoy this wonderful spring weather while it lasts!

The sun is made of swirling gasses

Today when I went to pick up the kids from daycare, I could tell two things. The first was that they had experienced an exceptionally good day, as their clothing was stained with paints and markers. Second, that neither one had taken a nap this afternoon. Lola bounced off the walls, alternating between happiness to see me, and crabbiness that she had to stop playing. Rowan made "UNGH, UNGH" noises and clung to me like a spider monkey.

I piled them into the car and we headed home. On the way home, Lola started talking.

"Guess what, Mommy?" she said.

"What?" I answered.

"Today my friends and I were playing on this log in the sea, and then the log fell into the sea, and we all swam, and found a pirate ship, and then we said 'ARG' and then we all went home and had snacks."

"Wow!" I answered, "You guys had a big day!"

"You know what else, Mommy?" Lola asked.

"What?" I replied.

"The sun is made of swirling gasses."

Wow. Now that was an interesting thing for my three year old to say. She must actually be learning something at that daycare! I then asked her what the moon was made of.

After an impatient sigh, she said "rocks, Mommy."

So, I finally decided to make a life changing mind altering decision. I said I would never, ever, EVER do it, but I did. I bought a minivan. A plain, white, nondescript minivan, just like every other soccer mom out there. Although the van is convenient and awesome, I miss my jeep. I was assured by my husband that when the kids leave the house, I can buy a fancy tricked out jeep and be cool again. Can one ever be cool again after buying a minivan, or does the minivan suck the cool right out of you, rendering you permanently uncool? I guess we shall see.

We decided about three weeks ago to hatch some chicks in our incubator. Since our rooster was attacked by two 80 lb black labs, and somehow managed to survive (a hospital stay and lots of vet treatments later) we wanted to see if he could still perform his manly duties. The dogs damaged his important bits and pieces, you see, and we weren't sure we could still have chickies. Well, last night the chickies started to hatch.....in our bedroom. We stupidly decided to put the incubator on my dresser, as our room has the most stable temperature in the house. We did not realize at the time that before chicks hatch, they will peep and peep and peep in their little eggs, which is not condusive to sleeping. We moved the incubator into the bathroom and set up a makeshift chick house with a heat lamp. Six chicks had hatched tonight when we decided to move them into the shop. Wil accidentely put the wrong waterer in their little pen, and five of the six drowned. I was devastated. Two more are trying to hatch tonight, but I think I am going to have to do the whole project over again now.






Lola and I made "monster pudding" yesterday by mixing up an instant pudding mix, and adding marshmallows, chocolate chips, banana slices and strawberry slices. Tonight the kids thoroughly enjoyed thier monster pudding!



Well, I am off to bed. I'm still bummed about my chickies. At least the peep peeps coming from the bathroom are telling me that soon I will have more!

"I'm going to sleep a one, NOT a two, ok Mommy?"

Lola doesn't usually fight bedtime anymore. We go through the usual round of "I have to go pee" or "I need a drink" or "Just a few more longers?" but usually bedtime is pretty quiet. Book, blanky, bathroom, brush teeth, and bed.....in that order. Lately though, when I have been putting her to bed, even for naps, she informs me that she is only going to sleep a one, not a two. No way, no how, not a two, just a one. That is that. I have noooooo idea what she is talking about. I just nod and say "Ok, honey, that's fine, a one will be just right." The only thing I can think of is that she has made the connection that since a two is bigger than a one, then sleeping a one must not be as long as a two. Who really knows. If I spent a minute trying to unravel the mysteries of every three-year-old thought process, I wouldn't have time to do anything else. Cute though.

So we are now the proud owners of a baby guinea pig. Wil thinks that the guinea pig must have been a really bad person in a past life, and is now serving out some kind of moral life sentence as the pet of a small hyperactive child. Of course, Lola is not allowed to play with the guinea pig without one of us hovering right over her, but still. On any given day you can find both children plastered up against the cage, making the kind of noise that would make any small animal curl into the fetal position. Rowan loves to poke toys through the wires, which the guinea pig has finally decided to ignore. Today his name is Buddy, but since we got it, it has been Banana, Lenny, Sabbo, Wil (Daddy loved that one), Sophia, and Guinea Pig, we will see how long the name Buddy lasts. Buddy recently received a big hamster roller ball, which we feel provides him some kind of armored protection from the kids and cats as he rolls around the living room. Poor thing...he must have really been naughty to deserve this! Just kidding, he doesn't have it all that bad.

A few days ago was the annual St. Patricks Day Dog Parade. Now, I love dogs as much as the next gal, but seriously. This parade tickles me so much. I have to laugh at the people driving by during this little ramshackle parade of kids and dogs dressed in gaudy green attire, skipping along behind a man playing a fiddle. The whole ensemble parades down Main Street, where maybe 10 confused onlookers watch from the sidewalk in front of the grocery store. The whole thing is wacky, but really really fun! Lola had a blast, getting to walk the dog all by herself for the first time. Rowan liked riding in the waggon, but really had no clue what was going on.

We recently got to go to the jumping place again, and Lola had a great time there. Rowan was big enough this time to enjoy the baby jump land, and he totally figured out how to climb up the rungs and go down the little baby slide by himself. He did not figure out how to go around again, instead fretting about trying to climb back up the slide, and causing a baby-slide traffic jam.




We got to visit some friends that we haven't seen in awhile, and got some cute pictures of the kids. Well, cute pictures of her kids. Mine decided to give us her very best cheesy smile that she saves only for those occasions when I would like her to smile nice. Oh well, it was fun nonetheless. Here are some pictures of the kids past and present. They are all very close to the same age.

On that same trip we went to the Gem Show, which I admit, I thought would be a complete drag. Wil was very excited to go though, so I sucked it up. It was really fun! Lola had so much fun looking at all the "jewels" and she got to pick out a geode and help the man break it with a special tool. When it broke, the guy realized that it was kind of a special one with these little pokey things inside that Lola shouldn't touch. She was bummed that she couldn't play with the pretty rock, but soon forgot about it after she got to "dig for gold" and found all kinds of shiny rocks to put in her little rock pouch necklace.



Overall, the weekend was very busy, and very fun and relaxing. I love it when we get to spend some good quality time together as a family. Well, I am going to bed. It is late and I have work tomorrow. I am definitely going to sleep a two, not a one.

Sack Rash

Another day, another diaper rash. Rowan has caught the lovely stomach bug that has been floating around the school and day care. Lola had it last week, vomiting sometime around midnight, and again after waking up in the morning. Why is it always carrots, by the way? Every time one of my kids barfs, it seems like it is carrots. I'm not even sure we had carrots that day....

Anyway, poor Rowan never did throw up, but he had it going the other direction. In fact, after changing his pants (not just diaper, but actual pants) eight times in one day, I finally just left him pantsless. Of course then I ended up shampooing the carpet. Ugh. I had to leave him with his daddy for about 4-5 hours one afternoon during the 5 day diarrhea extravaganza. When I returned home, Wil said, "Rowan has diarrhea."

"I know." I replied.

"He has diaper rash." Wil said.

"Oh, how bad?" I asked, as there had been no rash when I had left.

"Well, it is pretty red." Wil said. "He has sack rash."

Indeed, the poor little guy did have "sack rash." Ouch! Man, I never had this problem with Lola!

Lola has been really into helping me in the kitchen lately. The other night we were making fried fish. I put her favorite seasoning of all time, Johnny's Seasoning Salt, and some flour in a zippy, and added the fish. Lola jumped around wildly, begging to shake it up. What a good helper. I love how Rowan helps too, waving his toy ladle around with delight!

As most of you know, Lola has this weird obsession with all things octopus. She is super excited that the letter of the week in preschool is "O". The other night we had stir fry for dinner, which is a pre-packaged mix of random seafood, including tiny little octopi. I have told people before that Lola actually loves to eat octopus, which is totally weird considering that she thinks that most unfamiliar food on her plate is an inocuous attempt by us to poison her and give all her toys to Rowan. I finally got some pictures of her eating one of her favorite foods.




Rowan has been walking like a pro lately. He has pretty much given up crawling, trading scuffed knees for bumps and bruises on his head. Last night I handed him a ball.

"Ball" I said, as I handed it to him.

"Ball!" he replied, happily.

Wow. It starts. I am trying to memorize every little baby thing he does before it is gone. Like the way he pushes his chubby little bum past me in the bathroom, clumsily lifting his legs over the stool between my body and the cupboard as he tries to navagate a much more difficult path rather than just go around. Or how he starts looking for his Winnie the Pooh blankie at about 7:45 pm every night, eventually finding it and bringing it over to me, looking out over his binky and quietly awaiting our nighttime rock and read routine. This is the start of my favorite age. Funny how Lola never left it, and is still my favorite age!

Lola has been having a blast in preschool. I work with her a lot at home on reading, and doing projects and such, but you can really tell how much she is benefiting from preschool. It must be that she is doing something fun every day with her friends and without her parents. She can write her name, and some of her friends' names too. She recognizes several letters in the alphabet and can tell me which of her friends' names start with which letters. She knows all the planets in our solar system (!) and can tell you all about great horned owls. Every night I am serenaded with a favorite song from school, and after every meal she cleans up her messy plate and carefully carries it into the kitchen to put in the sink for me. I had my reservations about sending her to preschool at such a tender age, but now that I can see how much she is benefiting, I would never go back. In fact, Lola now gets to go to preschool for 3 hours 3 days a week, and we are looking at adding the 4th day soon.

Overall, we are doing well. Family status is excellent at the moment. I feel like we are finally settling into a routine and can really start having some fun now that Rowan is old enough to be more involved in family outings. I can't wait for summer!