1st grade. new school...

on our way

feeling a little nervous

more at ease

and there is another jaden m. n. in his class?!

(we talked about how he might need to initiate play with other kids since he's new and kids sometimes have a hard time noticing the new kids when they're busy)

this is his report:
he asked a group of 3 kids if he could play tether ball with them. since it was 2 on 1 he thought he could even the teams out. they said no. it broke my heart. i can't even explain the sadness this brought my soul. when i told micah this evening he said, "i want to go play tether ball with him!"

he wrote a note to a boy in his class asking him if he wanted to play with him. the kid wouldn't accept his note. my heart is in pieces. jaden sneaked (snuke?) the note into his backpack. today, the boy thanked him for the note and said he would like to play. but they didn't.

he tried. he'll have to try again and again. it builds character right? right?!

nie thursday and friday

thursday:

• from the grill: salmon w/ soy sauce and ginger glaze, fresh asparagus, red pepper and pineapple
  
• passion....'nuff said
  

friday:

• yoga
  
• made a conscience effort to appreciate my time with my children all week (admired my baby in my arms during each feeding, read "one more book," laid down with them upon each request, etc.)

asher, 10 months--LOVE those curls!

• filled the pool (and water balloons) and watched them play and play and play

nienie tuesday and wednesday

tuesday:
whole wheat pancakes for dinner with fresh strawberries and 100% maple syrup.

today, i'm baking pumpkin chocolate chip cookies (in my apron!) and maybe i'll get some pictures of it.

recipe as requested:
from phoebe
1 c sugar, 1c shortening, 1c canned pumpkin (small can), 1 egg, 1t vanilla
2c flour, 1t baking powder, 1/2 t baking soda, 1t cinnamon, 1/2 t nutmeg, 1/2 t salt
1c chocolate chips, bake @ 350 for 10 min., makes 4-5 dozen

on a side note:
today i asked beckam if he could count in spanish.
his response:
"no, but i can count in swahili."
("swahili, huh? do you know where they speak swahili?")
"in africa!"

nienie

it was in a conversation between darlybird and phoebe that i first heard the word "blog." that was about two years ago and once i started reading, i was hooked (though it took me a while to come around and start my own). i think it was on the topic of the walmart shirts on darlybirds blog that i first clicked on cjane in the comments and discovered cjane enjoy it. then later, again on darlybird a comment from nienie piqued my interest and i found her. then i learned they were sisters! it's a small blogging world afterall. but then a good friend from home emailed and said he found my blog and had started one himself. on his was a link to his wife kelly's and soon i had this great network of inspiring and entertaining blogs I read regularly. it was funny the day nienie showed up on kelly's blog and i learned they were long lost VT friends. then, the godparents to her children show up on our cousins blog. a small, small blogging world.

that nienie though. she is so interesting and entertaining. her romantic view of life kept me coming back again and again for my dose of nie. reading the nieniedialogues is like watching a sitcom (think "the donna reed show" or "leave it to beaver" starring ms. june cleaver) but in real life. it's fascinating really. and sometimes a little hard. because she has 4 little children: ages 6, 5, 3 and 2 (i think) and she makes it all look so EASY and FUN and BEAUTIFUL and HAPPY and ROMANTIC and HEALTHY and CREATIVE and CLEAN and...you see what i'm saying? but i've learned things from her. and i'm still learning things from her even now while she's away. she finds JOY and HAPPINESS in her home. at home. with the laundry, with the cooking, with the cleaning, with the children, with her crafting. what brings her the most (the most.) satisfaction and enjoyment are within the walls of her home. she doesn't look for it elsewhere. if you've chosen to stay home with your children, that's a good lesson i think. and sometimes it can be hard. i want my children and my family to know and always remember the joy and happiness they bring me every day. if you clicked on her link you know that she and her husband were in a private plane crash on august 16th and both suffered severe burns. they are in a burned unit and will be there for awhile. our hearts ache for them. they are all in our prayers. please keep them in yours and visit cjane enjoy it (and you will enjoy it, i'm sure) for more details, updates and ways to donate to their recovery.

and in honor of nie, domestic goddess, i'm celebrating by doing something nie-ish every day for let's say a week. maybe more. and i'll keep you posted:

monday:
fresh baked bread and this veggie pasta (and FHE)

if you have a breadmaker, you should make this bread. thank you kelly.
i used the express setting. perfect, delicious and ready in 1 hr.!

from the mouth of jaden

jaden wanted to stay outside and play on the play equipment while I took beckam inside to preschool. when i told him i'd rather he came in with me just to be safe he reminded me that i'd let him stay out there last week with addison. i said "yes, because you had a buddy with you." his response (said with such conviction and confidence):

"mom, i always have a buddy with me. you know jesus and them."

it made me laugh out loud. so cute.

keepin it real

i just sent this email to my brother and thought i might share this snipit from it.

Turning 30 has been interesting. In some ways I feel like I've been planning a trip to Hawaii for 30 years, dreaming of the beauty and blissfulness of it all, saving all my money to get there, having traveled across the US to catch my flight, flying across the ocean for days and then upon my arrival discovering it's nothing like I expected but more like.......the Mojave Dessert (sorry Sandee). Being a mom is a much, much, much harder job than I ever imagined!! (I was much better at it before I had kids, dang it.) With trying to provide them w/ all the fun and enriching experiences I want them to have comes the reality that they have their own little developing personalities that sometimes get in the way of the "fun and enriching" along w/the incessant housework and meal preparation (a lifetime more of these two things seems absurd)--Oh, it can be such a challenge for a perfectionist such as myself. Of course there are many rewarding "moments" but there are so many other moments that feel much less than rewarding. I'm so thankful for my incredibly supportive and loving husband who gets me through those other moments and is always standing by to listen, encourage and cheer me on when I feel like the biggest loser. Anyway, I'm always striving to find the joy in each day instead of looking in the future because I have a funny suspicion that I'll look back one day and long for today. Life is funny that way.

I think Gordon B. Hinkley said it well:
"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just ordinary people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is just like an old time rail journey. . .delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."
Thanks Sue.