The East Branch of the Sperdutos

Takin' a little break...

2010-05-14T09:29:00.003-04:00

I guess that's what I've been doing. We've had a crazy few weeks. I do have a long list of blog topics bumping around in my head, but I can't seem to sit long enough to get these topics in a form that any of you would be able to decipher! I should have some more time soon...but until then, I read a blog recently that really challenged me (yes, I know, I link up to this blog often...I'm ok if you just start reading hers and delete mine off your list--she updates frequently, I'm, well, a little AD...hey, what's that over there?). Anyway, I hope that next week, I'll be back on task (and working out!).
http://www.aholyexperience.com/2010/05/10-point-manifest-for-joyful-mothering.html
(you might need to copy and paste)
Hope you enjoy this post and that it challenges you as much as it challenged me!

How Not to Wait

2010-04-13T06:17:00.002-04:00

It's dark outside. Not night time dark. Not early morning dark. Not even the darkness of an eclipse. It's the darkness of smog, no sun for days. It's a darkness that creeps into the house. The kind of darkness that makes you turn on all the lights in the house in an effort to fight it. I find myself waiting for real Spring.

It feels, sometimes, that I'm always waiting. Waiting to grow up and go to college. Waiting to get married. Waiting to start having kids. Waiting to give birth (yeah, I did that a lot). Waiting for Tim's school to be done. Waiting to move overseas and then waiting to move back to the States. There's the waiting for babies to sleep through the night. Waiting for them to be self-sufficient. Waiting for them to finish going potty (I spend A LOT of time doing this!). Waiting for them to do their schoolwork. It always seems that I'm waiting for what's next.

I find it hard to live in the moment. I find it hard to simply wait on God. I have a hard time being still and waiting to hear what God wants to say.
So, here in the darkness of midday, I will try to "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him..." (Psalm 37:7)

Hairdos, Belly Dancing, and Other Pictures

2010-04-12T03:10:00.006-04:00

Since we no longer have a house helper, (yes, I hear you all crying your hearts out for me) the little girls have been having to entertain themselves more and more while I do school. I came in the other day to see the girls, for once, not in trouble. Ellie was combing Lydia's hair, and for once, they let me take a picture of them.

Before you all run screaming for the hills, it's NOT me belly dancing...it's Ellie's Belly Dancing. She really likes to try to take her clothes off to get ready for bed. She hasn't figured out how to get her arms out, though.

I took all the kids to the store with me the other night, as a treat for...well, for surviving, we went out for noodles at their favorite noodle shop. They love to eat it at the restaurant. I call it a restaurant, but the more accurate description would be carless garage.

And here, FINALLY, is a picture of Elijah's missing tooth. If you notice, the other tooth has already grown in...that's not because I waited so long to take the picture, the tooth was there before the old tooth fell out.

Lastly, I've not updated on my projects in a while. I have slowly...very slowly, been working on a quilt for Ellie. I have high hopes of finishing it before we need to take the big comforters off the beds...if that ever happens. It's a scrap quilt and is a little wild! Sorry it's so hard to see on the white background. Maybe when it's finished it will be easier to see.

Simplicity itself!

2010-04-07T00:46:00.002-04:00

We love (LOVE) veggies in our house. We like them raw, boiled, fried, sauteed, baked, and ROASTED! Roasted is probably my favorite way to eat some veggies. I would much rather have roasted potatoes than french fries. I'd rather have roasted green beans to boiled with bacon. And all I can say is, I'd rather have roasted asparagus than any other vegetable! Happily, roasting veggies is the easiest, ok except raw, to prepare vegetables. Four ingredients...yep, that's all you need!
Olive oil
salt
pepper
green beans or asparagus

Clean up the veggies. For green beans, trim the ends and cut or snap to the length you prefer. For asparagus, cut off the tough part of the stalk. Spread out on a large cookie sheet or roasting pan, drizzle olive oil over all the veggies, and salt and pepper. Toss together. Place the cookie sheet close to the top heat in a 450 degree oven. Roast until they have brown spots on them. Takes me about 25 minutes or so. I suppose the oven will determine the time. They won't be burnt, but they will look very done.
You can add garlic if you like, but it's tasty either way.

Potatoes can be done like this too...although you won't need to put them so close to the heat and it will take longer. Just wash and cut into 1 in squares (you can peel them or not). Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic or herbs. I love rosemary and garlic. I grind the rosemary into almost a powder since my family doesn't like the hard pieces. Roast them until they are brown on the bottom and have little brown blisters on top.

I mentioned a bit back about my once a month cooking...it's really more prepping than cooking, but so far, it really has made things come together much more quickly in the evenings. If it continues to be helpful, I will post more about what I do next month. Hope everyone is well.

When I Grow Up

2010-04-05T01:38:00.003-04:00

Isabella, as a 3rd grader, has been doing more and more writing activities. Her last writing of the year is entitled "When I Grow Up." I found it amusing and thought I would pass it on. I hope everyone had a blessed Resurrection Day!

When I grown up I want to be a famer. I want pigs, sheep, chickens, turckeys, horses, cows, goats, ducks, and a sheepdog. I need a sheepdog to take care of my sheep. I want chickens for meat and for eggs. I want the cows and goats for milk. I want the horses for riding. I want the turckeys and ducks for meat. I want the pigs for meat. I want the sheep for meat and cloth. I will need my children [to help] with the animals. I will need my husband to raise mony.

I don't where or when she decided that she wanted to be a farmer. Apparently, her family will have a lot of meat! I especially love her purpose for her husband. I literally laughed out loud.

Hope everyone is well!

Once a Month Cooking

2010-03-30T22:37:00.003-04:00

Menu Monday has been replaced (on Wednesday!) with Once a Month cooking this week! I thought I would try it to see if it would help me with some time management issues. I worked almost all day yesterday and all I really want to say is that I never want to touch a raw chicken breast again! It was a long process...more getting ready than anything else. I sent my dear husband to the store to buy 30+ chicken breasts. While many of you are imagining that this simply entailed a trip to Wal-Mart where he picks up 3 or 4 bags of frozen chicken breasts, this is NOT the way it's done here. Here the idea is fresh is best...and I do agree with that to some extent. I love fresh veggies and fruits and herbs. The ideal way to shop, according to the locals here, is just before you start to cook a meal. The idea of buying groceries for a week is outrageous! I get so many criticisms about how full my cart is when I head to the grocery store. On top of that, Tim had to pick out the chicken breasts and bag them himself. This week, they were unsplit and still had the tenders on them. So all I can say is, I have a great man who would go and do this for me!
So yesterday, I spent the day splits, cleaning, separating, and de-boning gobbs of chicken! In the end, I probably prepared chicken, pork, and beef for 15 meals. We'll see how that helps!
Last week, I mentioned my world famous (well, at least our house famous!) Baked Eggplant Parmesan. It's a great way to eat more vegetables and to save on the budget. When we were back in the US, we ate this a lot since eggplants were $1.45 each at Kroger. The first couple of times the kids picked at it, but now they eat it like crazy! Some people don't like the texture of the skin, so if you don't, just peal the skin before slicing. We can 2-3 eggplants in the US. Here the eggplants are Asian so they are different, thin and long, so we can eat 3-4 depending on how big they are. I don't have any specific measurements I just keep mixing the bread crumb mixture until I finish with eggplant.
For the breading: bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, a little salt, garlic powder, and shredded parmesan cheese (we don't use a lot because it's expensive and can only be bought in a couple of places)
I start with 2 eggs and some milk whisked together.
Slice the eggplant in half inch slices. Soak the slices in cold water for about 30 minutes, this takes the "bite" out of the eggplant. Then drain the eggplant.
Spread a little bit of Olive Oil on a cookie sheet.
Dip each eggplant slice in the breading mixture, then the egg mixture and then the breading again. Then place the breaded eggplant slices on the oiled baking sheet. When the sheet is filled up, drizzle the eggplant with olive oil and then bake at about 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy. It takes us two cookie sheets to bake all of ours.
I serve it with whole wheat penne and a good chunky spaghetti sauce.
Hope you enjoy this lighter version of Eggplant Parmesan!

Ready for Easter

2010-03-29T02:58:00.003-04:00

Sometimes, living overseas, I have a hard time feeling "in season." Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Fourth of July are not celebrated in the same way here. So as Easter is coming up I was getting a little mopey...no new Easter dresses for the girls and nice pants and vest for the boy. No Easter candy or seeing everything in pastels. No "displays" to remind me that its coming. Last night I was thinking about that when I overheard the kids singing in their room. Suddenly it hit me what they were singing: "What can wash away my sin, Nothing but the blood of Jesus." And now, while I still like all those other things, I am really ready for Easter.

Menu Monday

2010-03-22T21:25:00.004-04:00

I don't have a long post today, but if all goes well, I should be posting more than once this week!
This week, I'm working on eating more simply. It's easy for me to pick meals that take a couple of hours of preparation. See I LIKE piddling around in the kitchen. But I've been thinking lately, it's ok for me to spend the afternoon cooking once in a while, but perhaps I should come up with some "faster" ideas!
This week we'll be having spaghetti and meatballs, leftover split pea and barley soup with bread, bbq sandwiches with mashed potatoes and green beans, and burritos. On Tuesday nights, Tim heads out to a local English corner, and he usually eats in the stalls near there. I usually either cook fried rice or get noodles from the corner. This week, I'm letting them eat leftovers, and I'm having pesto pasta....I love pesto! Also, we are heading to a birthday party for a couple of our friends. I get to bring eggplant parmesan. So it's starting up to be a busy week.
In thinking about faster ideas, I've been thinking about those who have a cooking day once a month and cook many meals to freeze for the month. I'm wondering if any of you do this and if you do, what kind of things do you cook, beside casseroles, I have a hard time finding a lot of those kinds of things.

Menu Monday, a New Favorite and Pictures

2010-03-14T03:24:00.004-04:00

So my New Year's Resolution to post more on my blog has really been hit and miss. So here I am cramming a week's worth of blogging into one post. Sorry, I suppose it's a bit long...

This week we have decided to eat out a couple of times. One night we are headed to a local minority street for some "pulled noodles." It's really neat to watch the men make the noodles by stretching them out. And then we decided it was time to have some Mexican food at Peter's (whoo-hoo!). Other than that we'll be having split pea and barley soup, shrimp salads, and bbq chicken sandwiches. I figure that telling you all what we eat for breakfast and lunch is getting a little redundant. We'll also be celebrating a birthday at a friend's house.

And lastly, I'm going to try my hand at corned beef and cabbage on Wednesday. I figure that I might as well celebrate St. Patrick's Day. If it's worth eating, I'll post more details on it next week!

I have to admit that I love Rachael Ray recipes. I'm not a huge fan of her talk show, but I love her recipes. This week I stumbled upon a new(er) recipe of hers for Chicken Divan. I'm posting it below with a few changes.

about a 1/3 sliced almonds, toasted and then set aside until serving
1 qt chicken stock or broth
1 zested lemon or 3-4 tblsp lemon juice
2-3 sprigs fresh thyme, or about a tblsp thyme (I'm guessing, I didn't measure)
4tblsp butter, divided
11/2 cups white rice
1 1/2-1 3/4 lbs chicken breasts or tenders
a little more than 1/2 cup all purpose flour...again, I didn't measure
1 tblsp poutry seasoning
2 tblsp olive oil
a large bunch of aspargus (alas, I couldn't find it, we had peas with it instead)
6-7 button mushrooms
1/3 cup white wine (you can substitute chicken broth if you don't have it)
1/3 cup whole milk, half and half, or cream (I had whole, the other is expensive here)
generous tblsp Dijon mustard
2 tblsp fresh tarragon or 1 tblsp dried
2 scallions chopped

Bring 2 3/4 cups of chicken broth, zest of lemon, and 1 tblsp of butter to a boil. Add rice. Cover and simmer on very low heat for 18 minutes.

Meanwhile, season chicken with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Dredge in flour. Heat in a large skillet 2 tblsp olive oil and 1 tblsp butter. Over medium to medium-high heat, cook the chicken until the juices run clear. Remove from the pan and set aside, covering to keep warm.

While cooking the chicken (if you have more than two burners, unlike me) bring about 1-2 inches of salted water to a boil in a shallow pan. Add the asparagus and cook for about 4 minutes until just tender but still bright green.

In the skillet used to cook the chicken, melt 2 tblsp of butter. Add the mushrooms and saute for a couple of minutes. Whisk in about 2 heaping tblsp of flour and cook for about a minute. Whisk in the white wine and burn off the alcohol by cooking for about a minute. Then add the remaining chicken stock and the milk (half and half or cream). When the sauce bubbles and starts to thicken stir in the mustard and tarragon.

This really is one of the best recipes I've had in a long time. The only complaint I have is that I had enough meat for another adult, but no where near enough rice! Next time I will double the rice recipe. It sounds a little complicate, but it's really not. She said the recipe could be done in 35 minutes, and I think it took me about 45. I will admit that I re-wrote her directions because hers were not very clear. I hope that mine are clearer and that if you try this you will enjoy it as much as we did!

And last, but not least, here are some pictures from this last week.

Ellie's new make-up application technique. This is lipstick on the cheek.

You may not be able to tell from this picture, but Lydia's hair is very, very curly. One night after bath, I styled Lydia's hair VERY big. The 80's are back, baby!

This week I washed the girls' sheets. While they were off, Lydia grabbed the mattress saver and played with it. She was doing her "workout" on it. And when she was all done, she rolled it up neatly and put it on my yoga mat.

Menu Monday and More!

2010-03-08T07:30:00.002-05:00

We're back to Menu Monday. Finally, our house is back to "normal" whatever that might be. So it's back to eating actual meals instead of stuff just thrown together! So here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Oatmeal with bananas

Noodles

Lemon Pepper fish, spinach, rice pilaf

Tuesday

Bagels

sandwiches

Orange pork chops, mashed potatoes, veggies, applesauce

Wednesday

Eggs and Toast

Chinese

Chicken Divan, rice, asparagus (please, Lord, can I find some?) or peas

Thursday

Bagels

Grilled Cheese

hamburgers, fries, green beans

Friday

muffins

noodles

Broccoli cheddar soup, bread

Saturday*

Cereal

Sandwiches

Chicken Nuggets and fries

Sunday

Eggs and Toast

Eating out

leftovers

* I wanted to make a note, Saturday, March 13, is a day of fasting for our company as they are choosing a new president. Whether or not you choose to fast, please try to think about it on that day. It will be a decision that will change things all around the world! Hope you all have a great week!

Chinese food for any day

2010-03-03T06:10:00.005-05:00

Before we moved overseas, I attempted many times at Chinese food. I found it to be entirely intimidating...and most always ended in a plate of mushy, soggy food. After 5 years, I'm finally to the point where my dishes turn out...but only if I stick to the simplest of dishes. So I thought I would share a step by step on fried rice...a favorite of our kids!

First make a big pot of pice. I usually make about 4 cups of (dry) rice if it's just the kids and me, or add another 2 cups if Tim around. Always better to have too much than too little! You can make it up to a couple of days ahead. Use whatever kind of rice you like...just not instant. I'm not sure that anyone over here even knows that there is such a thing! It just won't do!

Next, vegetables. I'm using carrots and cucumber. Cucumbers here a bit different. You can use scallions, peas, fine cut broccoli or cabbage...whatever your family with eat. You'll also need garlic and ginger. Finely chop the garlic or press it and shred the ginger. I couldn't find ginger yesterday, so I used powder as a last resort. Fresh ginger is much better. You only need about an inch piece, peeled. A little goes a long way. In the grocery store, don't be shy about breaking off only what you need. I heard Martha Stewart recommend doing that, and have done it ever since, because I only use it every once in a while.

I used one and a half chicken breasts. First, I sliced them and then chopped it more finely.

Mix the chicken with soy sauce(NOT lite), and if you can find it Mushroom soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Let sit while you stir fry the veggies.

I once heard a Taiwanese chef on tv say that it is stir fry not "stare fry." The key is to constantly move it and not to cook too long, maybe 3 minutes at most! I only used a bit of oil for this part.

Pull the vegetables, add more oil and stir fry up the chicken. Make sure it cooks through...still will only take about 5-7 mins.

Put the chicken in with the vegetables in the separate bowl. Fry up some scrambled eggs, I used 2, with a bit of soy sauce. And add to the chicken and vegetables.

Now, add quite a bit of oil. I would say a quarter of a cup to a half a cup. I know it's not low fat...nothing here is! Add the rice and stir until its been well coated with the oil.

Then add soy sauce and mushroom soy sauce (again it's not necessary, but it makes the dish look quite a bit darker, so if you don't have it, yours should look a lot lighter.)

Stir fry until well mixed, then add all your other stuff.

Mix well.

And eat!

The key is to work at it bit by bit. I hope you enjoy!

The Reason for no Menu-Monday

2010-02-24T07:48:00.004-05:00

This week, there was no menu Monday. That's because Sunday we learned that Tim "might" be traveling. We live a life of "flexibility" that makes some things hard to plan. So I planned the menu...and then sat on it. And here it is Wednesday, and the menu has already been thrown out the window. We found out this afternoon that he would leave early tomorrow morning. So we decided to splurge (we've done really well on our budget this month!) and had Papa John's. Which, I would like to add, was well deserved after I made duck yesterday.

What a great intro to my horrific story: A Tale of Two Ducks. It is a tragedy. I recently watched Julie and Julia (or is it the other way around?) In the very end she has to de-bone a duck...which I will add is beautiful! I will try it one day...but not anytime soon. I was so inspired! I decided to make roasted duck with apple stuffing. (I know, Mom, I will never make you eat duck!) So off I went to the market. I even took my camera to show you all how said duck originally looked, but once I hit the market, it all went down hill. I knew I would have to buy the largest duck they had. After all, here they are sold with the head and feet...and everything inside! So I tell the first lady selling ducks I want the big one...it weighs about 3 lbs...I'm supposed to have a 4 lb duck. After checking around, and being told that they've never heard of a 4 pound duck, I finally decide to buy two. Once they weigh and I pay, I go about asking them to cut off the head and feet which is met with some confusion. When they find out I don't want the neck either, they just laugh at me. The lady asks me, what are you going to do with the ducks? I tell her roast them, she thinks I'm "lihai" or "clever."

I bring my ducks home and put them in some cold water until I'm ready to get them cleaned up and in the oven. What I did not realize is that the de-feathering process is not very efficient. As I start to clean the ducks, I realize I will NEVER get all the little feather bits out of the skin. So, I tell Tim, don't eat the skin. I will leave out the entire process of cleaning out the ducks...ick will suffice.

So finally they are rather clean.

Then I stuffed them.And baked them.Then we picked all the meat off the bones. Never was such a sad sight to be seen!

For the cup and a half of meat, I actually felt guilty that these birds were killed. I regularly roasted chickens in the US. It would feed our family for one meal and leftovers. I generally had the feeling of, why did they bother to kill this bird...there's nothing there.

Anyway, we will be eating this week and next, but it won't be very interesting. When Tim is gone we eat a lot of pb&j. The kids are already asking about popcorn and cookie night...so much for healthy eating. Hope you all have a great week!

Menu Monday

2010-02-14T07:50:00.005-05:00

This week we are still eating up all the vegetables and meats we bought last week. That's great for the budget, though! I'm hoping I can find some blueberries this week. That would really make my week!

Monday

oatmeal with bananas

pb sandwiches for the kids, salads for the adults

Split pea and Barley soup and bread

pineapple

Tuesday

bagels

turkey salad sandwiches

eat out

Wednesday

bagels

pb sandwiches for the kids, salads for the adults

chicken wraps with whole wheat tortillas

watermelon

Thursday

mexican omlettes in whole wheat tortillas

grilled cheese sandwiches

Thai chicken and vegetables

brown rice

mango (can't have Thai without mango)

Friday

whole wheat waffles

noodles with cabbage

jerk chicken

saffron rice

spinach

tropical fruit salad

Saturday

whole wheat pancakes

sandwhiches

sausage and barley soup

bread

apples

Sunday

muffins

eat out

kielbasa and corn hash

strawberries or mandarin oranges

As I was writing this, I was imagining some of the reactions to Monday's meal. Most people the thought of Split Pea and Barley soup conjures up the image of pasty, baby poo looking like food. I happened to try it at one of our favorite restaurants on a trip to HK, California Pizza Kitchen. Despite being a pizza place, they have the BEST salads and soups! Anyway, someone else ordered it and let me try. I was in love! Don't buy the canned stuff, I can't vouch for that. I do know that made with fresh vegetables, chicken both, and quick cooking barley makes all the difference. It will take a while to cook, though. And about kids, at first, they turned their little noses up to it, but now they love it! And speaking of barley, I have not found a better ingredient than barley to put into soups. Both rice and pasta bloated and disintegrate into such a mess. Barley only gets better and is a whole grain! Hope you all have a yummy, delicious week!

What to do on "One of THOSE days"

2010-02-12T07:34:00.003-05:00

We've all had "one of THOSE days." The first day back to school after break. The first day after vacation. When the police call and say that you have to come down and register...again. You go grocery shopping, and they're out of (fill in the blank). We all have these days.
This week, we got back from vacation on Sunday. I was being entirely too ambitious to think that I ought to start back to school on Monday. Add to that the police calling, and the normal 4 store trek to find all the things we use. And finally discovering, the store I usually buy flour at is out. On top of this, while you all are celebrating Valentine's Day, we have Chinese New Year's. It is the biggest holiday of the year. I kept hearing that every store would be closed. Turns out it's only the wet markets, but earlier this week I bought, like a good American, enough groceries to last a couple of weeks. But fresh veggies have to be prepared so that they don't go bad.
Fast forward to tonight. I finally started to feel like I had caught up. Around 4, I looked at my list of meals...sausage and barley soup with bread. The bread was not started and the sausage was not even made. It was NOT happening tonight.
The first thought at this point is, let's go out to eat. With the holiday, it might have been possible, but not likely. Many of you may have felt this way, too, with the economy. Ten years ago everyone just headed to Pizza Hut or Chili's. We are blessed that we have tons of really cheap restaurants, although I think when our gallbladders have to be taken out, we'll pay for it in the end! But tonight, we didn't go out. My great husband said, "I'll cook." I laughed (completely unfairly) because he's not much for following recipes...can do it, just doesn't like to. And it's not like our cabinets are stocked with hamburger helper! But fresh eyes did the trick. He poked his head in the fridge and out he came with dinner. My knight in shining armor!
We don't often keep our fridge or freezer stocked with "one of the THOSE days" meals...Do you all keep things and if you do what are your favorites?

Hopefully next week I will be adding a Thankful Thursday. I'm copying the idea from several other blogs that I've read. I am thankful this week, I want to add, that we waded through all the stuff I mentioned above and it's done and over! Happy Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year!

A Blog of Note

2010-02-09T22:27:00.002-05:00

This is one of my favorite blogs to read. She takes beautiful pictures and really captures the ordinary in a truly extraordinary, even sacred, way. This post was particularly special to me. I'll admit a teared up just a little. So I thought I would share the link...especially good for moms!

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2010/02/of-ending-of-beginnings-goodbye-to.html

Hope you enjoy!

Menu Monday...a day late

2010-02-09T07:39:00.005-05:00

So, I've found that when I get home from vacation late Sunday night, it's really hard to get my menu for the week up and running by Monday. So Tuesday night will have to do. We are, as many people are, trying to eat a little healthier. A feat not so simple in a country that believes that all meals should be soaked in oil. All has virtually no whole-grains...granted, vegetables and fruits are cheap and plenty--save blueberries, $3 for about a cup! Anyway, here's what we're eating this week.

Monday

eggs and toast

pb sandwiches

leftover beef vegetable soup

cornbread

strawberries

Tuesday

oatmeal

pb sandwiches (yep, not much variety, I'm working on that)

Paprika chicken, cabbage, potaoes with onion and red peppers

dragon eyes and mangos

Wednesday

omlette and toast

Chinese

baked eggplant parmesan with whole wheat pasta (yes, I found some!)

strawberry desert (not too much sugar)

Thursday

bagels

chicken sandwiches

shrimp pasta with vegetables

oranges

Friday

apple and blueberry (maybe) muffins

noodles

sausage barley soup

bread

pineapple

Saturday

biscuits and sausage (not really a low fat food, but Elijah's been begging for it)

sandwiches

chicken in whole wheat wraps with veggies

apples

Sunday

bagels

banana bread for meeting

eating out...or leftovers

baked sweet potatoes and broccoli

This week and next is the biggest holiday of the year here. Everyone is supposed to go to their home town and celebrate it with their family. This is our first year being in country during the celebration...so we're not sure how it works. We've heard rumors that EVERYTHING in town shuts down. We've recently heard that the big supermarkets are still open, but everything is more expensive. We don't quite know what to expect. I've been stocking piling food for the last couple of days and have one more store to go to before I will feel like I can survive even if everything shuts down. Hopefully I will have some pictures to post of the celebration later in the week.

Also, as I noted earlier, we don't have much variety for lunches. We have pb or our friend cooks lunch for us. I'm looking for suggestions for lunches...what do you eat or feed your kids...other than pb?

Idle Hands

2010-01-21T03:41:00.008-05:00

A while back I read a local magazine article about the DIY craze here. Alongside the article was an interview with a group of older ladies who told the reporter that this was not a new thing. One lady said that when she and her friends were young they decided that when they all sat outside with there friends to talk at night, they would always be working on a project too. They decided they never wanted to have idle hands. I found this really interesting and thought about all that I could get done if, instead of just sitting and watching tv at night, I also kept my hands busy on some kind of project. That was in October. Since then, I have knitted 2 baby sweaters, a sweater for Ellie (who wouldn't wear, so it got passed to Lydia), a sweater for Bella, sewn 14 dresses and 3 skirts, and patched up several shirts that would probably have been put in the trash. Now, I will admit that not of those things were done while watching tv...I don't watch that much tv. But with projects going, I found that while I waited for something, I could knit a couple of rows. I have found that I don't to watch every word that Bella reads while she does her reading and can sit beside her and knit while I listen and still be perfectly free to help her at any point.

Anyway, here are a few pictures of some projects that I've recently completed.

Striped sweater for Bella

Skirt for me

Simple dresses for the girls

Dress for Bella

None of these were fancy, but they'll be perfect for letting the girls play in and tear up all summer long.

Menu Monday

2010-01-18T05:50:00.003-05:00

I should have known this would happen. I finally decide to start something more regular on my blog and I have menu block...seriously, this almost never happens to me. Well, I've got most of my meals planned out and most likely we will have noodles or some other cheap Chinese food on the day I can't come up with anything.
Here's the true problem: I have the pre-vacation blues. I'm so excited about next week. All of the being warm, Indian food, Gloria Jeans, being warm, water parks, amusement parks, being warm, pizza, Thai food, being warm, aquarium, planetarium, TGIFridays, and of course, being warm! With all of this on my mind, everything I cook pales in comparison!
So, here's what's cookin' in the Sperduto house this week!

Monday

eggs and toast

sandwiches and popcorn

cheddar broccoli soup and bread

Tuesday

oatmeal

sandwiches and crackers

homemade chicken nuggets, roasted potatoes, green beans

Reese's pieces brownies (thanks, mom)

Wednesday

bagels

leftovers

chicken tacos and homemade tortillas

Thursday

eggs and toast

Chinese

beef and barley soup

Friday

Waffles

noodles

cheeseburgers, mac and cheese, cabbage

Saturday

pancakes

sandwiches

????

Sunday

leftover breakfast stuff

eat out

finish off the leftovers cause we are leaving!!!

Now that I've started this, I will immediately be taking a couple of weeks off. But hopefully, we get to eat lots of cereal and other stuff that's just too expensive to eat here. I'm off to clean up the table and work on my "no idle hands" projects (to be discussed in a later post!).

New Year's Resolution

2010-01-14T06:57:00.006-05:00

Yep, I know, it's already the 14th...but I had some really good ones! One was to read the Bible through chronologically. One to be more organized, including tieing a pen around my neck. One was to lose five pounds by vacation...well, anyway. One was to start doing some more regular "work" on my blog. I've seen several blogs where people keep up regular posts. I really feel inspired to do just a little more. So my good intentions have been slow in being realized.

Hopefully, starting Monday I will be posting a Menu Monday. I'm also planning to pick up some other topics, but it might taking me a little while to realize fully!

While I try to get some things together, here are some long overdue pictures. P. S. Those are some mighty fine Godiva chocolates which I got from my sweet friend for my birthday!

Christmas

New Year's Day Feast!

Sleepy Saturday!

2009-11-20T22:26:00.003-05:00

Today has been a sleepy Saturday morning. We've been doing our best to keep warm. Last night, we pulled out the extra blankets (thank you , IKEA, they are warm!). In fact, Isabella slept until after 7:30. She told me that she thinks its because she was warmer under the blankets. Before I am accused of not keeping my kids warm enough, I had to threaten her last night to actually sleep UNDER the blanket as she likes to sleep ON TOP of hers. This morning, though, all it took for Ellie to go straight to sleep was a few layers of clothes, a movie, and big, snuggly blanket! Of course, sleeping babies are just too cute, and as she will not be a baby much longer, I feel the need to take pictures! Enjoy! I sure did!
Lydia feels the need to "make" herself smile! Eventually, she grew tired of Ellie laying on her, she moved forward just a little and Ellie layed all the way down on the couch.

Too funny not to post...

2009-11-17T06:19:00.003-05:00

Alright, most of the time the funny stuff is about the kids...this is about some random woman I saw on the street today. After Sweatpants Day a few weeks back, I've been semi-good about getting dressed by a reasonable hour. Today I saw a woman who has embraced more than just Sweatpants Day! I was coming home from the market this morning around 11. Saw a woman out with her dog. As I passed her she was deep in conversation gossipping with another woman who apparently did not find this scene odd at all. The woman's dog was a white poodle with the ears and tail dyed NEON PINK! Folks, this is cruelty to animals! The woman herself was dressed in flannel, quilted pajamas (these are not clothes that could go either way...these wear PJs!!!) and big, fuzzy teddy bear slippers! I told Tim he couldn't complain anymore because I'm almost always out of my pjs by 11...and I never go out in them.
About the kids: I heard a really cute giggle coming from Ellie and looked over to see her putting her head down so that Calvin would lick her face ( not her mouth, Mom, don't freak out!) She was giggling and he was most likely enjoying remnant of the fried noodles she'd been sneaking from the table.

Caramel Apples and DIY Donuts

2009-11-16T02:45:00.005-05:00

As part of the glories of Fall, we made caramel apples. A friend of mine gave me a recipe that used honey instead of corn syrup...one of those many things that nutritionist say to avoid at all costs but is nearly impossible to completely cut out of your diet! We tried the recipe and it was ok...but smacked strongly of honey-flavor (shouldn't have been surprising) and so was not nearly as appetizing as I had hoped. Maybe I'll try a new recipe one of these cold days! Yep, those are chopsticks. I only had enough sticks for five.
Kids very excited about the camarel apples!

The end result!

And since we're wrecking diets, I decided it would be a good time to try a new donut recipe. (Thank you, Alton Brown!) So we made some DIY donuts. I made the donuts, and then we powdered them and dipped them in chocolate as desired. Some of the donuts I did myself, make a mock Bavarian creme and filling the donuts...there was no way I was going to let the kids get involved in that! They were enjoyed by all, except Lydia who isn't much of a breakfast eater and simply licked the chocolate off hers. A couple of hours later, she came back and finished it.

Elijah enjoying the DIY part.

Bella taking a dip!

Yummy!

These are the creme filled!

Like I said, Lydia was only interested in the chocolate. Ellie here is about to take advantage of Lydia's disinterest. Just so you know, I saved the donut. As the cold weather has really set in, I've got to find a new, low-calorie habit!

The Fort!

2009-11-13T08:02:00.004-05:00

So as all kids at some time, our kids have gotten into building forts. We've had to curtail this behavior some due to some swing-jumping, Tarzan-like incidents that ended in much crying and finger-pointing. But I got some cute pictures one night (before all the crying). So, enjoy...(Mom, I really am trying to be better about posting!) Some of the pictures are cut a little funny because apparently Lydia couldn't wear pants in the fort...who knows!

Here is Calvin, not so sure that he's into the whole fort thing. Interior decorating at it's finest. Bella is definitely Tim's child. She has lined up all the stuffed animals in a neat line. In other news, over breakfast a couple of weekends ago, the kids discussed and decided on who they would marry when they got older. We have some Canadian neighbors that they have settled on. Elijah has decided that either one of the younger girls will do for him. And Isabella has decided that the boy, who is 10 now, will be just the right age. She says that he will 23 when she is 20, so that will be good. Life is so simple at 7 and 6!

Pumpkin carving

2009-11-02T07:09:00.007-05:00

I was pleasantly surprise a couple of days ago when I went to our supermarket, much like Wal-Mart, and they were selling a pumpkin very similar to the kind we carve in the US. Needless to say I bought that straight away! Tonight was the first night we had free in a while to get to that carving. So here are the pictures from the night, thanks to Tim!

Sweatpants day...

2009-10-22T06:48:00.006-04:00

I made a New Year's Resolution a couple of years ago that I would start getting "dressed" everyday. By the time I had a couple of kids, my laid-back personality, which was already prone to "pajama days," had fully succombed to days on end of staying in my pj or sweatpants. As you can imagine, this did little for the way I felt about myself nor for the way I looked. Anyway, one day I wore make up, not something that I did very often in the those days (maybe once every 6 months) and a friend of mine made a HUGE deal about how much better I looked. I began to rethink my relaxed attitude toward dressing and make up. So then came my resolution....and I have to admit that I've kept it fairly well. I'm not always dressed early, but I do get there almost every day. But I noticed on a friend's post a couple of weeks ago that she was having a "sweatpants day." And suddenly, the urge to stay in sweats and just relax was back! So as Tim is gone for a couple of days (I didn't want to subject him to my day of frumping!) today was sweatpants day! I've satisfied my urge and am ready to get dressed tomorrow for Tim coming home. But today did not come without benefits. Here's a little of what I did on my slouchy day.... Played with Tim's camera...

Baked fresh bread...

The problem with fresh bread is that it's too hard to wait to eat it...

And finally, a sign that maybe I've gotten really used to living here...enjoying Ramen noodles with EXTRA hot chili oil...yep, sadly, that's oil floating there on top. I suppose that will play into next year's resolutions...

Tim's Birthday

2009-10-19T08:36:00.005-04:00

Today was Tim's birthday. After the last couple of crazy weeks, and leading up to a couple more crazy weeks, Tim decided that it would be better if we just celebrated as a family. So we enjoyed a quiet (ha ha) dinner. We went all out with lasagna...which it's really hard to come by all the ingredients. And then we had desert with a couple of close friends. Peanut butter chocolate topped cheesecake. Tim wanted a Reese's cheesecake so I did the best I could. Anyway here are a few pictures of our meal and a few pictures of Calvin.

Cooking

2009-09-30T08:18:00.005-04:00

Some of you may not know, but I love to cook. Baking is my favorite. Now I know that most of you only occasionally glance at this blog to see pictures of the kids, but I got a itch to bake...and then take pictures. Baking is one of the ways I relax. So here are the results of afternoon.

Plain bagels (Tim doesn't care for raisins)

Raisin bagels before I steam them

Raisin bagels after I steamed them

Raisin bagels baked

Soft pretzels

One of Calvin's favorite past-times, if a 6 week old puppy can have a past-time, is chasing the mop. He pounces after it. Jumps on it. Growling viciously and chewing while shaking his head widely.

A New Puppy and Bedtime

2009-09-28T08:37:00.004-04:00

Well, we have ventured to buy a new dog. He seems to be much healthier than our last dog. Much more playful and, well, chunky. Anyway, I thought I would post a few pictures since I never made it last time.

In other news, tonight before going to bed, the girls always fuss about what they are going to sleep with. Tonight Ellie chose a Star Wars action figure that had somehow migrated into the girls' room. I tried to trade her and give her the favorite Lamby, but there was no deal. She gently laid the little man on her pillow, patting him gently, and saying "night, night." So here are a few pictures of the two little girls in bed.

Elijah's 6th Birthday

2009-09-22T09:21:00.004-04:00

I can't believe he's 6. It seems like he should still be a little boy, but he is growing up now so fast. He wanted a Star Wars party and Darth Vadar cake...what does he think I am??? So here are just a few pictures from the party.

We have one little tricycle that we found in a random place. The girls sometimes fight over it. But lately they've been riding together. We found this too cute! Enjoy!!!

We are still here

2009-08-21T21:05:00.005-04:00

Sorry that I have not posted in so long. I have a hard time with our internet getting it to connect with publisher. So while I'm out, I'll try to upload some pictures I took quite some time ago at . Hope you enjoy.

Back on the East side!

2009-05-26T22:13:00.004-04:00

We are back in the East, and loving it...I know, no one ever thought they would hear us say that! We are actually having a "honeymoon" phase! Anyway, the house is nearly finished...IKEA is the most fabulous place EVER!!! Here are some pictures from our first week!

The Last Hoorah!

2009-05-13T13:21:00.007-04:00

We have had our last hoorah. After a week in Branson, we made a lightning bolt trip to AZ and back...not something I would recommend with 4 kids. Happily, we are all almost well again and hoping that we will stay well for the last few days. This is most likely my last post from this side of the world...I will be packing like a mad woman as soon as I stop procrastinating! Anyway, here are some pictures from our last couple of weeks (Mom, I'm going to upload them to FB so you can have them too!)

Story Writers

2009-04-27T15:03:00.003-04:00

After we went to the Disney on Ice, Isabella's school assignment was to write a story about it. The following is a truthful rendition--copied exactly the way she wrote it.

Once I went to disney on ice. I saw buzz, and the princesses, and Alice, and the Incredibles. The Incredibles went on vacation to disney land. In disney land they saw miky and miny mouse but then one day syndrome took miky and miny mouse to jail. The Indredibles found out that miky and miny mouse were gon. The Incretibles started to get to work when they found out they needed there soots. The Incretibles put on there soots and saved miky and miny mouse from jale. They saved disney land to. Now we can have a partty. The Incrtibles sved the day once agan. The End.

So we still need to work on some spelling and capitalization, but I think she did pretty well.

The birthday girl

2009-04-27T12:11:00.004-04:00

For Isabella's 7th birthday we decided to wait to have the party since Tim was not going to be home. But I decided it would be the perfect day to take them to Silver Dollar City since my Dad had some free passes and had been wanting to go with us. The kids had a great time. Bella was so brave and rode the barn swing (which is pretty intense), thunderation, and then powder keg (which leaves me a little weak-kneed!). Elijah rode thunderation 3 times...and has been asking to go back so he can ride again. And Lydia shocked us all. She had not been able to ride any of the rides until we got to Fire in the Hole (which really she only measured tall enough because her hair was sticking up!). We got in line and Dad and I started talking about whether or not it would scare her. We decided that it was too much so I took her out of line. By the time I reached the end of line to leave, she realized what we were doing and started crying the most broken hearted cry I've ever heard! So I decided I would take her in line and talk it up as the scariest ride in the world and thought she would back out at the last minute...she did not. In fact, she rode it and did great. She keeps saying, I want to go Fire in the Hole again, again. Anyway, that even Grandma bought a tiny cake for the kids to share. Enjoy!

Can you spell that please?

2009-04-20T10:32:00.003-04:00

Yesterday in church, Elijah sat with us in big church. He busied himself drawing pictures and writing. He drew a picture of a man standing on a hill. He labelled the man "Tim." And then wrote the name of the place where he was standing as "Loowevil." Too cute!

Disney on Ice and hanging out at the house

2009-04-19T16:43:00.008-04:00

This weekend, Grandma took the three older kids to Disney on Ice. I'm not really going to include pictures of the program but there are some pictures of the kids watching and traveling up to see it. Last week, I got the camera out and lay down on the floor--the fastest way to get the kids to come around. I'll admit that the pictures are not really all the good (my sweatjacket is in several of them) but it shows the kids playing "naturally."

Tim went fishing on Thursday and caught quite a big fish. Then while they were setting everything up to clean the fish, we got the kids to pick fish up...well, some of the kids. Ellie kept a distance, but we finally talked Lydia into poking a fish.

Resurrection Day

2009-04-13T13:30:00.005-04:00

Look at this I'm posting these pictures the day after I took them...that's pretty good for me! I hope all had a wonderful Resurrection Day. I pray that you all took the time to think about what the day really is about not just the chocolate, easter eggs, chocolate, new dresses, and chocolate (we got WAY too much if you can't tell). Enjoy the pictures!

Too funny

2009-04-06T12:05:00.002-04:00

As I was looking at my FB page this morning I noticed that one of my friends had posted a picture of herself with her new "beau." I read the title out loud which sparked a funny conversation. Elijah made some comment and I told him that he didn't know what the word meant. He said he did that it was something girls wear in their hair. When I said no, Isabella said that it was something that boys wear around their necks when they are on a date!!!!
This morning, Grandma let the kids go into her closet and play with her shoes, hats, etc. When I came in to see what they were doing, Elijah was having Lydia look at herself in the mirror. He told me they were playing "What Not to Wear!"

Learning to ride bikes and fish

2009-04-06T11:28:00.005-04:00

Grandma has been teaching the kids to ride their bikes on the few nice days that we've had. Isabella and Elijah have litterally taken off. They are doing great. These pictures are from one of the first days that they were riding. I'll try to get some pictures of them riding again soon...hopefully Wednesday will see an up turn in the weather!

And the kids have also been fishing.

At Al's a couple of weeks ago

2009-04-06T11:05:00.003-04:00

We made a trip down to Al's a couple of weeks ago, here are the pictures from our trip.

I'm sure no one's reading anymore, but...

2009-04-06T10:28:00.005-04:00

Yes, I know, I am the WORLD'S WORST BLOGGER. No, my posts are not inappropriate, just sporadic. Well, here are some posts of pictures over the last few weeks. Hope you all enjoy and don't give up on my blog!

If you can't tell what she's doing, she's using her toothbrush to put on mascara. Too cute!

How to have fun when most of your toys are packed

2009-02-23T10:47:00.006-05:00

We are almost all packed. That being said, that means that cabinets are empty and most of the toys are packed (no fear, we have left some out for them). Anyway, the little girls have been crawling into the cabinets but everytime I ran to get the camera they were out before I got back. I caught them this time. Enjoy!

This weekend the older kids participated in the Awana Games. It's local competition between churches. Our church came with the most kids so that our group had to be split. Our kids selflessly (or they followed their good friend H) volunteered to go to another team. Their team didn't win, but they don't know that. They had a great time and played well.

I'll do ANYTHING not to pack!

2009-02-18T09:37:00.002-05:00

Yep, I'm posting as a way to avoid packing!
No, seriously though, I had to post this. Lydia has been ill for the last couple of days. Just running a fever, no other real symptoms, but she says her head hurts...a fever usually comes with a headache, I suppose. Anyway, this morning Bella (yep, I'm pretty much expendible) dressed her in a hoodie. Lydia felt compelled to wear her hoodie, first because her head "was cold," but later she told me that she had to wear it because her "porehead would blow out." That's some headache. Happily, the ibprophen has kicked in and her headache seems not to be bothering her.
Anyway, back to packing!

Kids and packing

2009-02-17T12:08:00.003-05:00

Our approach to this move has been filled with potholes! I've been sick. The kids have been alternately sick. And Ellie decided that last night she was going to be a party girl. She woke up at 11:30 and stayed up PLAYING until 2:30. So that Elijah and Tim (and I suppose the people upstairs) could sleep, I got up and partied with her.

Lydia, poor, poor thing, started running a fever last night. No one knows why, just a random fever. So today she is quite pitiful!

Elijah, on a happier note, had a very exciting morning. He read all his math directions by himself. It's a big step for kids when they transition from just being able to read in their reading book to reading other things. He was very proud of himself.

Hopefully, I will have more pictures this weekend as Elijah and Isabella will be competing in an Awana Olympics. Bella was flying low profile this morning...no worries, she'll be back in a later post!

The Simple Things

2009-02-13T14:18:00.004-05:00

I get convicted that I get really "busy" doing things that I feel are important and often neglect the little, simple things. Today, in Isabella's reading she read about a little girl who had a tea party with her mom. The mom let her use her best China and spent all afternoon with her. I feel like a lot of time I don't drop everything just to spend some time with the kids. So we had a tea party while Ellie was done for a nap. I got down the cups and saucers. Boiled a little tea, added milk and sugar. And of course we had to have a little "cake," which was actually those little 100 calorie brownies (no, our cups aren't that big, those brownies are really that small). So cheers to a few simple minutes spent with the kids! Enjoy your loved ones today.

"I don't like it!" Big surprise!

Pinkies up!

Wild Animals

2009-02-11T09:26:00.007-05:00

Monday, we had freak weather for February. It was partly sunny and 70 degrees. This, of course, necessitated a trip to the zoo. So we packed up our wild animals to go see their wild animals! Some of the smaller animals were not out because it was still too cool for them, but the larger animals were out and about. In fact, it was the most active I had ever seen them. The kids really got a good look at most of the animals. Usually it's a little difficult to point them out as they are hiding in some shade. Anyway, I took lots of pictures of our little wild things. Hope you enjoy.

This is Ellie watching the penguins. This was the only thing she really took notice of since she's too small to see most of it. She was absolutely taken by them. She kept pointing, squealing and saying "this," her word for anything she is interested in.

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland!

2009-01-19T10:07:00.007-05:00

This is kind of our kids' first snow. At least the first they remember and have gone out to play in. Tim kept Ellie inside while the others' and I went out. We didn't stay long due to 20 degree temps (and the fact that I still only have one glove...I do have the yarn now!). They had a great time though. Really tickled pink!Such a ham!

A Tale of Two Posts

2009-01-19T09:49:00.005-05:00

Tim got me a fabulous new camera for Christmas. I have not used it enough, though. It's purple...how cool is my husband!!! Anyway, I've been trying to make up for my lack of pictures so today, there will be two posts, contain yourself Mom, of pictures. Enjoy!

the girl is having a serious bad hair day!

Lydia is trying to learn to dress herself--look closely!

I actually think that's pretty talented...let's just say I don't think I could get mine on backwards.

Daddy with Crazy Hair Sperduto

This is the inside of our window. We are thinking these are EPA approved or Energy Star rated!

Procrastination

2009-01-13T10:39:00.004-05:00

Through the Holiday season, I have found many things to pull my attention from the Blog. I wish I was one of those fabulously organized people, but God created me to be one of those easily distra--ooooh, what's that---ahem, I think I was saying something about wishing I was more organized. One of the many New Year's Resolutions that I have is becoming a "finisher." I often start projects and then find another project that is more appealing. For example. I wanted matching hat, gloves and scarf. I have finished the hat and one glove. Yep, just one. It was so tedious to knit the little fingers (and I need to buy another skein of yarn) that I am dreading knitting up the other glove. Tim says I should just keep one hand in my pocket, but really that skirts the real problem I need to finish it because the Bible says, whatever you find to do, do it well. I'm assuming that means finish it. Anyway, hopefully, this year I will be better about finishing projects and posting on my blog...we'll see. Here are some recent, you know, the last month or so, pictures...oh, and Ellie is walking, I mean running!

First Parade

2008-11-09T16:43:00.004-05:00

Isabella was in her first parade yesterday. Her dance studio always participates in the "take Santa to the mall" parade. Here are few pictures of us walking and then just some random "round the house" pics. Enjoy!

The other night I realized I hadn't taken pictures in a while, so when the kids finished their bathes, I grabbed the camera. Well, I guess I didn't wait for Ellie to finish. The last one Isabella took.And one last fun picture from the parade: a tricked out car...it was really cool!

A Slight Misunderstanding

2008-11-01T18:55:00.004-04:00

For centuries children have been misunderstanding the words of songs. There's the classic: "There's a bathroom on the right." And the unnumbered variations of the Star-Spangled Banner. Elijah is our singer. He loves to sing and sings constantly. He learns the songs that we hear on the radio. Some of his favorites right now are Slow Fade by Casting Crowns and Lose My Soul by Toby Mac and Kirk Franklin. The chorus of the latter makes reference to scripture in the line "I don't wanna gain the whole world and lose my soul." On the way home from Elijah's last soccer game, where he scored 2 goals!!!, we hear the song on the radio. After we came in while I was fixing lunch, Elijah was singing the song: I don't wanna gameboy to lose the store. I felt it was important to teach him the actual words and the meaning, but I'm not sure it's sunk in yet!

Too cute

2008-10-22T08:48:00.002-04:00

I haven't posted much about Lydia lately, but she said something the other day that had me in stitches. She has just learned to sit cross-legged, back in the old days we called it "Indian style" and now it's called "criss-cross applesauce." Anyway, the other day she sat on the floor criss-cross and wanted to roll a ball to me. She told me to "put my lap on." Now I've heard of putting your groove or funk on, but as a mother, I suppose I will just be "gettin' my lap on." Hope this made you smile

Pumpkin carving

2008-10-20T12:25:00.002-04:00

Fall has finally arrived! Lovely cool temperatures have moved in it looks like to stay. The leaves are falling off the trees, which is something new for our kids. They are obsessed with picking up the leaves off the ground. We decided to carve a pumpkin (although I use the "we" royally, I was the only one with the knife) Isabella took most of these pictures. In other news, Ellie's picture will not be taken for at least a few more days due to a close encounter she had an end table! We don't know for sure if she broke her nose, but most of the swelling has gone down and at least she doesn't look like Owen Wilson.
And Tim entered a new decade! Happy Birthday, Baby! I will be re-making your birthday breakfast with REAL Jimmy Dean's!

Apple picking

2008-10-10T14:31:00.004-04:00

We had a field trip to day to a local apple orchard. It was a lovely day! Another homeschool mom and I headed to the orchard with all our kids--7 kids and 2 stroller, loads of apples on the ground, bees buzzing round, horses and a cat! It was very fun! Here are some of the highlights!

Ballerina Princess

2008-10-07T21:57:00.003-04:00

Here's the sweet picture of a sweet ballerina princess. I got to watch her class. She (and I don't think I'm just biased) did the best in her class. One girl kept turning the wrong way and sucking her fingers. The others just weren't paying attention. She knew all the moves. I was proud.
This one with Lydia was just too cute to pass up...she's little wild looking because she just woke up. She thinks she's a ballerina princess too.

New Glasses

2008-10-06T11:27:00.002-04:00

Ok, so I'm not doing so well on acheiving my goal of posting every Thursday...it is one of many goals that I'm falling short of acheiving! Here is a picture of Elijah in his new glasses though. I will try to post a picture of Isabella in her ballet clothes very soon.

Baby Buddies and on being "Violated"

2008-09-27T08:21:00.004-04:00

Yeah, I'll explain the second topic first. Elijah, like Isabella, is having problems with his eyes. This week was appointment week: dentist, pediatrician and eye doctor all in the same week with a crazy trip to the library! Yesterday was Elijah's eye check-up at which he had to have his eyes dialated. Later when he went to soccer practice, I was worried that his eyes would hurt. When faced with the choice of resting his eyes and not playing soccer or toughing it out, I'm sure you can figured out which he chose. Before practice started though, he was telling another little boy about his day. He said, "I had to have my eyes violated."

Here are some pictures of of Ellie and Noah. We joke about them being "intended!" Hope you enjoy and have a great week.

Is anyone out there?

2008-09-21T20:44:00.005-04:00

Yes, I know, I am sure that no one is reading anymore except for my Mom who informed me that a girl in her office keeps a "Dog Blog" and adds to it EVERY DAY!!!! I do have 4 kids though, so I hoping to start working this into my schedule more often.

I thought I would start back easy by just posting some pictures of Elijah's soccer games. His first game they had had only one practice. One sweet little girl on our team scored 2 points...for the other team. Oh, well. Eljah though is really catching on. He got the ball several times and almost scored a goal.
Game 1
Throwing the ball in

His favorite thing: digging the ball out of the net.

He kept forgetting he was supposed to be playing the game, so he rested his arms on his head.

Getting to the ball

Game 2

Hustling to get the ball (he was much more aggressive this week)

Kicking the ball in

On top of this, the rest of us are doing well. Bella will be going back to Ballet tomorrow after the fun few days with no electricity caused last week's to be cancelled. Lydia is getting wilder and wilder. She's learned to jump with both feet off the ground and loves singing "Itsy Spiderman." Ellie is still army crawling, but has added pulling up to her list of skills. Also, I must add that so far she is the most skilled of all the kids at the "getting down" part. No free falling backwards for her!

At the zoo with Nana

Elijah's Spiderman cake...I didn't make it! :(

Eggplants and winter!

2008-06-21T12:27:00.005-04:00

This summer as we are staying in the parsonage, we have a very small (and weedy--my fault) garden. Mostly it's filled with herbs, but since I found a Japanese eggplant plant, I thought I would try to grow that too. Those are the kind of eggplants we had in China. I am so proud that even though my weeding skills are completely lacking, it's growing!

Also, although the weather has not been too hot here, I would hardly say that it warranted hat and gloves. We found some old winter things, and the girls wanted to wear them around. Bella liked the gloves because she said they gave her pink fingernails.In other news, Ellie is rolling all over the place. She often finds herself stuck in places. The other day she rolled up to the bookshelf and looked at the books as if she wanted to pick one out and read it. Of course by the time I got the camera, she was off to other adventures! So here are some cranky pictures. Hopefully, I'll get some of Elijah. He's been gone everytime I've gotten the camera out.

And baseball is almost all over...

2008-06-07T09:35:00.003-04:00

Elijah's last T-ball game was last night, unfortunately he didn't get to play. Earlier in the day he was playing on some monkey bars and busted his chin open. He got three stitches and a trip to the ER. How fun for him!
Isabella's last baseball game is on Monday. We have been so impressed with how much she has improved. She had two solid hits her last game. I'm hoping on Monday she can get to score a run too.

In other news, the pool is open. The first day that Bella and Elijah were in the pool getting their chins wet was major trauma. But we are doing lots better now. Bella is even swimming with floaties with her face in the water.

Lydia is at the tail end of being potty trained. We are so impressed with how well she is doing. She is growing up on us so fast. Her vocabulary is exploding although we don't always understand her. One funny thing she is when she needs to go potty. Instead of saying "pee pee in the potty," she says "pee pee in the panties." I don't really care which she says as long as she doing it right!

Elliana is also getting big. She's over 16 lb. She eats two jars of food a day with cereal. And she rolls all over the floor. She rolls until she gets herself stuck, a lot of times under the couch. Although yesterday she rolled over to our bookcase (the one that Tim built) and started browsing through the books. It was really cute. But as many of you know, by the time you get the camera they've rolled off somewhere else!

Summer baseball days...

2008-05-12T20:53:00.002-04:00

Well, I know that it has been a really long time since I posted...sorry, we have been so busy traveling around and getting set up. But the kids have started playing ball. Here are some pictures from Elijah's first T-ball game. He hit the ball twice. And he ran for the ball every time the other team hit it. He was really on top of it! We are really proud of him. Next week Isabella will be playing in her first game. I will try to stay a little more on top of things.

I know, I know...

2008-04-14T09:59:00.003-04:00

Sorry, I have not kept up with this recently. We have been in so many states in the last three weeks, I have more jetlag from changing time zones here than when when we came back from Asia! I do have pictures, unfortunately, no way to upload them this week. I hope that next week to be able to post some pictures. But for now, here is one of the last pictures we took in Asia.

In other news, many of you have already heard, but Tim has been accepted to the Ph.D. program at Southern Seminary. We hope to move to Louisville in August. It is nice to know what we are doing at least for the near future. I am really hoping that once we settle into one place here, I'll be better able to keep up with the blog.

It's Bacon!

2008-03-12T01:43:00.000-04:00

One of the great pleasures of living overseas is all the interesting translations. Well, as this is probably one of the last posts from overseas I thought I would put a picture of a package of bacon.

Elaborate Bacon (I'm not sure what makes it "elaborate"--although it was pretty lean)

Piece in heart Fragrance in mouth...is that a "piece" of bacon IN my heart? Will my arteries clog that quickly? And isn't a "fragrance" something you smell, ie not in your mouth?

These things, I will miss...except when it's important information that I can't figure out what they want me to do. Such as, "olymepics" on official banners. And an "Aboriginal Tribal Restaurant," I'm not really sure what they would serve. And I won't go to "Line up this" instead of "here" anymore. No more heads on my chickens. Ok, maybe I won't miss that. This week I have been thinking a lot about all the things I will miss here. And these are just a few of the things I will miss.

Play Ball!

2008-03-01T19:31:00.001-05:00

The kids are really excited because this summer, Isabella and Elijah will be playing softball and T-ball, respectively. Lydia feels a little left out though. She loves balls and likes to through a lot!
In our country, eggs are rarely refridgerated...something I had a hard time relaxing about at first. We have to wash the eggs as well since the sellers try to prove "freshness" by leaving evidence of the eggs last place of inhabitance. So sometimes the eggs will sit on the counter until we have time to wash them. A couple of days ago I was sorting Isabella and Elijah clothes in their room, when Lydia came in and yelled "BALL!" She threw something that I first thought was a toy, but then I realized it didn't bounce. I turned to look and see what "ball" she had thrown and lo and behold, it was an egg! It was really funny...a mess clean up but still funny. I'm looking forward to having counters she can't reach!

Each of them is unique!

2008-02-27T02:06:00.000-05:00

I decided it was time to start comparing the kids...not who's the best, but who looks like who (or is it whom?). Enjoy these "through the years" pictures.

All the kids about 20-21 months, in order...

All the babies within the first few months, in order...

Sorry for the pause...

2008-02-23T00:15:00.000-05:00

Things have been a little crazy between meetings, traveling, packing, and illness, we've felt stretched a little thin. Happily, the weather has taken a turn for the better and we have our windows open letting in a little warm air.

Elliana will soon be 2 months old. She's growing really fast. While we don't know how much she weighs and she isn't exactly "fat," she is already able to wear 3-6 months clothes. She is really long. The poor thing has a little cold, we are praying that she will be better soon.

Lydia is 21 months now and talking up a storm. This morning Elijah was trying to get her to say "spiderman" but instead, she said "diaperman." Her favorite words are "no," "cookie," juice," and "I'll get it."

Elijah is really getting taller. He is really excited about playing T-ball this summer. And still loves doing his pre-school.

Bella is continuing to do well in school, even though it's always a little difficult to get back in the swing of things after a vacation. But her reading skills are still exploding!

Anyway, here are some pictures that I took yesterday, hope you enjoy!

Long time, no blog...

2008-02-08T09:52:00.000-05:00

Sorry for my used to be regular readers. It has been quite a while since I wrote last...sorry. I hope that soon things will calm down, and I will be able to post some pics of the kid from Thailand. But for now, we are going, going, going. Tomorrow is a day off, so hopefully we will be down at the beach for a little R & R. Sadly, though, we only have a few more days left in Thailand...really hoping it will warm up a little before we go back!

Tigers

2008-01-26T02:18:00.000-05:00

It's amazing to think that Elliana is already more than a month old. She has slept through the night a couple of times. But even though she doesn't seem to be making it a habit, I'm still okay with her getting up once a night.
Tim took Isabella and Elijah to the Night Safari here with some friends. These pictures prove that they are pretty brave! One of the older girls got to hold the cub, but ours didn pretty good petting.

3 Weeks Today

2008-01-13T23:03:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, Elliana is already 3 weeks old. It seems like she was born last week or just a few days ago. Alright, so I guess it's still not been THAT long. Anyway, Tim and Elijah have gone back home. And we girls are just hanging out waiting for her passport and the boys to come back. So here are a few pictures of the girls. Hope everyone enjoys these!

Chick- ow!

Lydia's idea of fun is to pull all the shoes off the shoe rack. First, she piles them up, and then slowly she hides them all around the house...it makes for a lot of searching!

Let's all go to the movies...

2008-01-12T21:15:00.000-05:00

While we've been here in Thailand, the movie theater across the way was playing Alvin and the Chipmunks. As our kids have never been to a movie before, they were too young before we left the US and in China the only American movies they play are the most violent ones. That and they are played so loud that I leave feeling I have permanent hearing loss. So anyway, the kids had no idea where we were going when we left. And when I told them we were going to see a movie, they were a little confused because they didn't know that you could see a movie outside your home. They were shocked at the size of the screen! And they didn't have any concept that they couldn't talk in the movie. Isabella kept shouting things at me! But Elijah was the truly funny one. Isabella was mesmorized by the movie. Elijah though fell asleep less than half way through the movie. I guess he's not into the whole "talking Chipmunks" thing.
I will try to take some pictures soon of the girls and post them.

Can't always be right...

2008-01-08T10:31:00.000-05:00

So yesterday Elijah wanted to go on my walk with me. I'm not sure why walking around in a circle is fun for a four year old, but I like the company. One thing that you have to understand is that in Asia it takes MONTHS for them to take the Christmas trees down. As we passed one of the many Christmas trees still up, Elijah realized that the music was also Christmas music. He got really excited and said that today was Christmas. I told him that Christmas had already come and gone. And he, as a four year old, argued with me at some length. He finally asked if it were Christmas somewhere else, like another country. I said no. Christmas was over and done with EVERYWHERE! And then yesterday night, we were watching CNN and lo and behold. I WAS WRONG!!! Apparently, in Russia, they celebrate Christmas on January 7th (maybe the 6th with the time difference). On CNN they were showing a video clip from a Christmas mass. And so there it is, just when you think you are confident of something...CNN proves you wrong! And Elijah was right! Yesterday, it was Christmas in Russia.

More pictures...

2007-12-30T02:47:00.000-05:00

I realized as I was posting yesterday that I didn't have any pictures of Elijah with Elliana. So now we have some of those...unfortunately for him, she was not really happy about it. Anyway, so here are a few more pictures.

Elijah wants to hold Elliana a lot.

He's a great older brother!

Three cheers for sleeping...hip, hip, hooray!

Find something you're good at and do it!

In Elliana's case, napping!
So Lydia's a little bored, she's hoping this drawer will offer a little excitement.

A few baby pictures

2007-12-28T23:23:00.000-05:00

Well, most of these are still from the hospital but they are new. So far Elliana has been a good sleeper. She wakes up to eat, but then goes right back to sleep...I can't ask for much more than that! Anyway, I will hopefully take some more pictures soon and upload those too. Hope you enjoy these.

Merry Christmas!!!

2007-12-26T21:26:00.000-05:00

Well, so Christmas is already passed, but some of us spent it in the hospital. So we didn't fully "do" Christmas until the day after until Elliana and I got home. Some one thought that I posted the last blog, but that was Tim. We are really glad to be back home. So the following are just a few Christmas pictures of us opening our presents so the grandparents and great-grandparents can see. We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

Sleepers for Elliana

Sudoku...we are going to have to share this!

Watches

Elijah's t-shirt and the girls' jeans

An IQ booster book...are you guys trying to tell us something?

Kids' stockings

Lydia wants to wear the Stockings

Are we smarter than a 5th grader? I'm not so sure!

Lydia's animal boat and Elijah's Buzz Lightyear coloring book

New bags

Cinderella

Mama's French press

Grandma and Elliana

Welcome Elliana Noel

2007-12-25T01:51:00.000-05:00

The pregnancy we thought would never end has finally come to an end. On Christmas Eve at 8:05pm Elliana arrived as an extra special Christmas gift. She was the biggest of our children weighing in at 8lb. 13oz. and measuring 21in. Take a look at our newest little girl below (yes, all of that hair is real).

Mom enjoys the fruit of her labor

Lydia welcomes her newest competition...I mean sister

Bright eyed and bushy headed

It's my due date...

2007-12-21T04:25:00.000-05:00

And I'll cry if I want to. Alright, so I went to see the doctor today. He said that he felt sure that I would have the baby by the 1st of January. As you all can imagine that did not go over so well. It was a terrible sinking feeling when I realized that I am no where close to being ready. So all I can say is I'm still pregnant. We're going to try the Mexican food trick tonight. (Any excuse to eat Mexican is a good excuse.) I figure it's because I haven't been getting enough Starbucks...ha, ha, ha. Trying to keep a positive attitude.

And still...

2007-12-19T03:36:00.000-05:00

NO NEWS! Yes, I know I haven't actually come to my due date, but I think I more look at a due date as a deadline...therefore, I'm feeling like I'm cutting it close! Pat, Tim's mom, has made it. We, especially the kids (!!!!), are excited to have her here. We haven't yet gotten to take her to all the fun places (ie. night market, elephant rides). But we have fed her local Thai bbq and sticky rice. Anyway, there's not much more to say. I hope to have something really important to post soon!

And...

2007-12-14T20:30:00.000-05:00

Nothing to report! How sad is that? Pretty sad. The doctor said maybe next week...which would be right at my due date. But these things are never certain. So the waiting continues. The belly gets bigger. You know, the normal stuff. But Tim and I got a date two nights ago. It was a little weird to go to restaurant and not have to tell anyone to sit down, not yell, or sit down (yeah, I know I wrote that twice). We also got to walk around the night market and have wonderful Starbucks! The peppermint mocha is pretty good! The kids got to eat pizza and watch movies. Other than that, there is not much to say. I'll keep you updated!

The news...

2007-12-12T02:35:00.000-05:00

Well, there is none. I have 9 days to my due date. But no baby yet. I promise to keep this as updated as much as possible. We are just passing time here. One of our friends has offered to babysit for us, so tomorrow, the kids get pizza and we are going out to dinner. We are really looking forward to a little time out. And we may do some last minute Christmas shopping. The nice thing about being in a country where Christmas is not a "local" holiday, shopping is just as easy before Thanksgiving as on Christmas Eve!
Isabella has only a couple days more before she starts Christmas break. Elijah is confused because we say it is Christmas time but he can't open his Christmas presents. And Lydia is talking more and more each day. Lately she's been trying to say Elliana, which has turned into "Lana." And "sawasdeekah" (which is Thai for hello and goodbye), which turns into "wah wah kah." Here in Thailand, the kids have rediscovered hot dogs (thank you Dairy Queen!) and cold cuts (yep, they didn't know what lunch meat was).
One last funny story: in the mall across the street from our apartment, there is a Warner Bros. store. I'm not sure that Lydia has ever seen Tweety Bird, but there is a big Tweety statue in the display window. As we walked by it the other day, Lydia saw it and said "quack, quack, quack, quack, quack."

Ultrasounds are SO COOL!!!

2007-11-29T09:13:00.000-05:00

Yes, the hospital here got a new 4D ultrasound machine and so the doctor said I "needed" one. Either he's really changed his approach or he wanted to use the fun new toy! Either way, I am really excited about them. They seem really clear to me. All of these are face shots. Enjoy! I sure did.

Her hand is kind of blocking the left side of her face.

A nice side view.

We had a hard time getting her to roll over. I think she's a little shy.

Oh, and Merry Christmas!!!

Sunny, beautiful Thailand!

2007-11-28T03:28:00.000-05:00

We have finally made it to the last stage of the pregnancy journey: I'm in Thailand! After 2 days of no internet, we are finally fully set up. I've had my first check-up, and everything is fine. I also had an ultrasound. I am going to try to post pictures of those soon...it was 4D!!! Very cool. Well, after a long day out, I need to try to get some school done with Isabella. Hopefully I will have those pictures up soon...

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-22T20:38:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know I said that I would post soon. This is as soon as it got! So first of all Happy Thanksgiving. It's over here, but I know you guys are still finishing up. I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I am thankful to know that my turkey will be a little easier to buy next year, ha ha! I am also thankful that I have less than a month before Elliana is due. I am thankful for the great kids that I have and that they have all been healthy. I am very, very thankful to have Tim as a husband! And I am thankful that I will be in Thailand in 3 days! Anyway...

This was taken the day after Thanksgiving.

Isabella has lost another tooth. We tease her about losing all of her teeth at once. She has really enjoyed having a couple of days off from school for Thanksgiving. And she is really excited about going to Thailand. She reads like crazy. But she most enjoys math and science, this she inherited from her Daddy!

Nice new gap in her mouth!

Isabella's favorite book this year is Little Pear.

Elijah is loving his preschool work. He follows me around the house in the mornings asking if we can do his school yet--even on the weekends. Sometimes he will cry on Saturday nights saying that I forgot to do his school. He is starting to grow up really fast. We realized recently that he was just a little older than Lydia is now when we moved over here. It is amazing! He is now learning his letters and sounds, and can spell his name and recognize numbers 1-19 (20 seems to be the problem number for him).

Elijah's favorite book is a fairy tale book.

The boy loves his "heroes!"

Lydia is talking more and more. About half Chinese, half English. We have found though that she is shy of strangers and won't talk in front of a bunch of people. She is probably NOT excited about going to Thailand as Ayi won't be going with us. I am concerned that the three months we are there she will forget her Chinese. She is also into EVERYTHING. She likes to climb up the cart we have our microwave on and hang from it (when the door opens, she has an abrupt landing). She likes to go in the bathroom and get her tooth brush (or anyone's actually!). And most of all, she loves the cell phones!

She's our brown-eyed girl!

She loves to pose for pictures...except she HATES to sit still!

Busy with not much to show for it!

2007-11-02T04:45:00.000-04:00

Well, I am well-aware that it has been nearly a month since my last post. We have been very busy over the last month though. We've had some friends move into town, and so we have been helping them get set up. Along with that Tim's had a birthday, and although I did make him a cake, no picture was posted as it was the ugliest cake ever made. It was a German chocolate cake, which does not NEED to be pretty, but I like pretty cakes none the less. Other than that most of our busyness has been in daily activities, in other words, not very exciting.

Bella is over a 1/3 of the way done with her school year. It seems to be going by very quickly. She really enjoys it. She has almost finished reading the Beginner's Bible. She has conquered simple addition and subtraction, for the most part. She is really enjoying learning about the Ancient Egyptians.

Elijah also is cruising through his pre-school year. He is enjoying his school even more than Isabella did when she went through it. I am constantly amazed at the differences between our children. Bella was good at somethings but not as good at other things, and it seems that Elijah is her opposite. He is very good at some of the things she struggled with. It is a constant reminder to me that my children are not factory produced to be just alike!

Lydia also is learning at a break-neck pace. Over the last few months since I started up school with the other two, Lydia has been going down stairs to play with the other Ayi's (aunties) and children. She is the first of our kids to speak Chinese. She is talking more and more each day it seems...half English, half Chinese! It's really cute, I have to admit!!!

Well, we are off tonight to a friend's house. I'll try to post some pictures soon.

Haircuts

2007-10-08T06:19:00.000-04:00

Note: Just as I am about to write this blog, I go to check out one of my friend's blog while I am waiting to be signed in. Turns out her baby, Georgia, just got her first haircut too!

Lydia's hair has gotten very long in the front and in the back. In the front it was hanging down in her eyes. Yesterday, in a desperate attempt to help her look like her hair was fixed and not just shaggy, I pulled it up...four times in a hair band and two or three times in a clip. Out of great frustration then this morning, much to Tim's disappointment, I decided to give her bangs. Anyway, it didn't turn out great (mostly because she was shaking her head the whole time) but hopefully it will get her through the awkward stage! Below are the Before and Afters! It may be a little hard to tell the difference, since we always pushed her hair out of her face before we took pictures. Enjoy!

Before

After

Funny day

2007-10-03T01:53:00.000-04:00

On October 1st, the new month started with, unfortunately, no cooler weather! We keep hoping every morning that we will wake up to much more comfortable temperatures...but none so far. The kids will finish their first nine weeks this Friday. We are pretty excited to get to print out Isabella's first report card. Anyway, here are a few pictures of the kids to start the month out!

Isabella lost her second tooth. She is very proud of her gap.

Even superheros need a nap!

Elijah, while playing in his Superman, costume sat down for a bit and promptly feel asleep!

The girl just loves to have her picture taken!!!

Correction

2007-09-30T07:13:00.000-04:00

I realized from the comments made on the birthday cakes that there was a slight miss understanding. I appreciate all the encouraging comments about my "skills" as a cake decorator, BUT I cannot take credit for all the cakes that were pictured. I did make the Batman cake. But the girls cakes were made by a good friend, Robin Capps, while we were in the States. And she is a FABULOUS cake decorator. That girl has skill! Anyway, I didn't want to take credit for her beautiful work. October is Tim's birthday, and so I will be tackling a new cake. He really likes German chocolte, so I will be attempting one from scratch (including buying the coconut, cracking it open, and shredding it myself). It's a little intimidating, but I like trying new things...even though the carrot muffins didn't turn out so well :(.
Well, starting tomorrow is a national holiday here...which means the kids around town were in school Saturday and Sunday. In other exciting news, our small import store sold avocados this week. There is guacamole in our very near future!!! That should be a national holiday! Hope everyone has a great end of September!

Birthday Cakes

2007-09-28T08:20:00.000-04:00

Well, the weeks are slowly ticking by. I don't have much to say, but we are celebrating the fact that I have only 12 weeks left (only 8 and a couple of days here) until the baby's here!!! But anyway, as we have just had Elijah's birthday cake, I thought I would go ahead and post pictures of all the birthday cakes from the year (since I forgot to do that).

Batman...

Princesses...

And butterflies!

Man of Steel

2007-09-21T07:03:00.000-04:00

Elijah for his birthday got a Superman costume...wow! did he like that! He runs around the house now singing the Superman theme song. So here are the pictures (sorry, they're a little blurry) of him as the Man of Steel...move over Tom Welling!On top of all that cuteness, Isabella did the funniest thing tonight. Swimming season is almost over here. Tonight, we went to McD's to eat. When we got back to our complex, we went through the big gate which goes right past the swimming pool. As we passed, a man wearing a swim cap and a speedo came toward the pool. Isabella hollered out, so I looked down. She was covering her eyes and said, "I hate seeing people naked!"
Have a great weekend everyone!

School and skill

2007-09-20T00:49:00.000-04:00

Well, the school year is in full swing. We are about to wrap up the 7th week already! The kids really are enjoying their studies. I am amazed at how quickly Isabella's reading is improving and how much she now wants to read outside of "school time." And Elijah begs me every morning to start his school. You would think it was chocolate cake the way he begs to get started. Anyway, the following are pictures of them at their work.

Here is Elijah asking for the "lion story." Right now he is about anything that growls! He is memorizing a verse every week, reading Bible stories, reading poetry and nursery rhymes, reading stories, and, of course, doing his work book. The work book is by far his favorite. I think he feels very grown up to be following directions and busy about his work!

Here is Isabella and Daddy working on her math. Since Dad likes math and science, he teaches these subjects with her. I think math may be her favorite subject alongside reading. Besides these subjects, she also has history, handwriting, spelling, Bible, and read-aloud (which is where I read books aloud to her).

And like most kids, ours love to do art. We keep a poster of their art work (sorry, it's a little fuzzy!) up so that the work is up for others to see. As you might be able to see from this picture and the one with Isabella doing her math, we have a little school corner in our dining room. We have a small table and chairs, world map, US map, number chart, and all of our school supplies in this area. We use a white board to separate the school corner from the other distractions in the house during "school time."

So I've told you about the school, and now for the skill. Lydia has learned something new...we're not thrilled with it, but it is funny to see. As we have been working on teaching her to point to her nose, mouth, eyes and ears, she has learned something for herself. She has found that her finger fits nicely INSIDE her nose. She isn't picking, just sticking! I was sitting on the living room floor last night, when she walked down into the living room and across the floor all the while her finger up her nose. I have to admit, it was pretty funny looking. She was proud of herself and her find!

Disneyland and the Birthday Boy!

2007-09-15T04:46:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Elijah's birthday and as some of you know, we came to Hong Kong to celebrate...namely to go to Disneyland in Hong Kong! The weather was perfect. It was overcast most of the day with about 15 minutes of rain during dinner time which cooled everything off for the rest of the evening. Everything was so nice. We met up with some other friends who live in a different city and we all went together. The kids played themselves out! We stayed from the time it opened to the time it closed. It was one of those really memorable family vacations. Anyway, Elijah enjoyed his birthday, although he was a little confused since we haven't yet had a cake for him. We took well over 150 pictures yesterday, so the following is simply a sampling. Hope you all enjoy!

Blogger's block

2007-09-11T21:15:00.000-04:00

OK, so maybe it was more like the summer lazies! I know that I have had plenty to write about, but just sitting down to do it has been a little difficult to do. So here's all the news (from oldest to youngest) from the summer:

Isabella has hit a big milestone: she lost her first tooth. She also started 1st grade last month. She loves it and is doing well. She is really turning into a good reader. She tries to read anything with words on it! In less exciting news, she also got her first stitches. She fell and hit her head on a cabinet. But she was very brave and hardly cried once the shock of hitting passed. She was very brave when she got her stitches (once the doctor let Daddy come in with her).

Serious student takes a break!

This missing tooth! She's pretty proud.

Strike a pose!

Elijah has started preschool. He LOVES it! His favorite thing is his workbooks. Right now, he is a coloring machine too. He spends probably 2-3 hours a day coloring! He is also learning his numbers...a math teacher friend helped us with that the other day. He showed us a great trick that has really helped Elijah. In less exciting news for him, he got his first black eye...yeah, I know, this is starting to sound like child abuse, I PROMISE we did not inflict these things on our children. They really did fall. I was baking cookies and he ran into the kitchen to see if they were done. Instead he ran into the kitchen door frame...which is pretty sharp. It gave him a little cut on his eyebrow and a nasty looking black eye. It's almost healed now. And in 2 days he will turn 4 years old! I can't believe he is so grown up. We have a special birthday planned!

He's still working on smiling without closing his eyes.

The boy's got skill: winking is the new "trick!"

What a handsome boy!

Lydia is growing fast. Her eighth tooth is pushing through. She runs everywhere she goes. She answers to both English and Chinese. She will eat both American and Chinese foods (she loves broccoli!). She says several words, not very clearly sometimes, but we understand. Her favorite thing to say is "go go." We can't buy baby gates so we have to chase her out of rooms that we don't want her in. She also uses some sign language to tell us she wants more to eat or if she's all done. Her personality comes out more and more each day. One of the other funny things she does is that she shakes her head no to every question we ask her...I don't know that she understands, but she knows that it makes us laugh.

She loves having her picture taken.

Smiley girl!

"I promise not to sit still again like this for a week!"

So for Elijah's birthday, and a family vacation, to Hong Kong. How many kids can say "For my 4th birthday I went to Hong Kong!" And on his birthday, we are going to Disneyland in Hong Kong. The kids are really excited. I have to admit, I'm pretty excited too. I think that they are going to love it. So tonight we leave on a weekend of Mickey and Krispy Kreme doughnuts! We promise to take a bunch of pictures and post them when we get back.

This is our helper with the kids. She wanted to have her picture taken with them! Lydia, especially, LOVES her Ayi!

The Party was at our house!

2007-07-24T02:50:00.000-04:00

Last night we invited a couple of girls over to our house. I had met one of the girls at a local noodle shop, and she said she spoke some English. As I left that day she gave me her card, so I called her a week or so later and we went to lunch. After lunch, I invited her and her older sister to come to our house for dinner one night. That was supposed to be Thursday, but as many of you know Thursday was the day I came back from Hong Kong. We rescheduled for last night as the girls came. I was only planning for two girls to come, so I was a little surprised to meet FOUR girls outside of our apartment building. I was happy that I had decided to make a large pan of chicken pot pie instead of a small pie dish. Happily, there was enough food, I think two of the girls didn't like it, and we all had a really good time. The kids warmed up to the girls after just a few minutes, all except Lydia who was the center of attention from the beginning! She also started something new last night: spinning in circles! We had never seen her do that before, but it was very amusing. Below are the pictures from last night.

Kindergarten graduate

2007-07-23T21:48:00.000-04:00

Well, I am now finally posting this, although she has been finished for more than a week. Isabella has officially finished kindergarten! We are so excited for her and proud of her. She worked very hard to be ready to start first grade in the fall. She is excited to start first grade in the fall and has been looking at the new books with a lot of anticipation! Elijah also is looking forward to starting preschool. We think that he is definitely ready! The new semester will begin before we know it!

Congratulations!!!

The latest news from Hong Kong...

2007-07-22T22:56:00.000-04:00

As some of you already know, I ended up with some symptoms that combined possibly could have been a very bad sign, but in the end (after two nights in the hospital and 5 days total in Hong Kong) everything is fine. During this time, I got to go to have a "real" prenatal check-up. In the interest of making sure everything was alright, she sent me to another clinic that pretty much only does ultra-sounds...very cool! We found out that this will be girl number 3. We are excited to know. Knowing the gender always makes it feel more "real," I guess. I resisted the urge to buy a bunch of beautiful, imported, French baby clothes though! This took so long to report because I was really hoping to be able to download the video we got of our sweet Elianna, but I have yet to figure that out. So, instead, it's just the news that is news!

Beach Bums

2007-07-12T22:58:00.000-04:00

OK! Confession time...we live 2 1/2 hours from the beach and we have been twice in the last 2 1/2 years. Yesterday, we took the early bus down and the afternoon bus back and spent about 4 hours at the beach. Enough for me to get a little sunburned, and Tim, who refused to wear sunscreen, get quite a bit sunburned! Anyway, the following are the pictures of all of us having a good time...well, all but Lydia, who did not like the waves and cried almost everytime I took her out. Hope everyone is having a nice summer.

The Beard

2007-06-29T22:24:00.000-04:00

For the last almost 2 years Tim has worn either a goatee or beard...well, that came off yesterday!

This event spawned quite a story! I am the one who encouraged Tim to cut it, not because I don't like, I do. I have felt particularly warm this summer, which makes me assume that everyone else is really hot too! So for a "summer do" Tim shaved it off...how long that will last I don't know. But I told him he could grow it back if he didn't like it. A little while later Elijah came into the kitchen to announce that he too was growing a beard! This is medical mystery, but he very proud of the "growth" and tells everyone about it! Some friends came over last night to hangout (or maybe so the wife, who had heard about my beardless husband from her husband, wanted to see!). Elijah also informed them that he was growing his beard. They admired his "whiskers." And he informed them that his whiskers would be poking people soon, so they needed to be careful! So far, thankfully, no one has had any injuries from his "poky whiskers!"

And for more fun, here are a couple of pictures I took of the kids on a Saturday morning. Lydia is chewing a lot these days due to some new teeth, #7 just poked through. Isabella and Elijah are both benefiting from Isabella's ability to read, although he still prefers me to read "The Wild Things" as he calls it! Hope everyone is gearing up for a fun 4th of July...that will be our one year mark to begin the final countdown!

Lovely sounds

2007-06-24T04:39:00.000-04:00

This morning at breakfast we heard a sound that most of you all would curse to hear at 7:45, but to me it was a wonderfully familiar sounds. A lawnmower. Yes, I know that many of you hate to mow and the sound I have complained about once or twice in my life too. But this morning it was familiar. It was a "home" sound. It felt really normal. It made think of the Lovin' Spoonful's "What a Day for a Daydream. "

"And fall on my face in somebody's new mowed lawn."

Voting time already?

2007-06-19T04:28:00.001-04:00

Alright, so this is totally NOT political. Instead, I decided that I would post three pics of the kids when they were all about a year...you cast your vote to say who looks the most alike!

In other pictures...I noticed that the last time I posted Elijah got the short end of the deal. So we took a few more pictures and here they are!

Handsome boy!

Picking up!

The wild thing pretends to make fire!

Dr. Lydia

Big girl growing up fast

Not much to say, but...

2007-06-12T08:42:00.000-04:00

Well, I don't have a whole lot to say, but I have taken a few pictures that I thought I would share. I thought I would start out with the most recent...taken this morning...of the player yet to be named! I debated whether or not the wait would be worth it, but of course it was. I left the house at 7 this morning and didn't get back until almost noon! But I came home with a picture! So without further ado...

Head on this side...feet on this side!

The bright spot above the head is a hand,

the other hand is above the belly.

Girl loves her bath!

And loves to laugh!

Mom and the girls

Dad and the kids

Mom and the kids

Peek-a-boo!!!

Breakfast

2007-06-05T20:49:00.000-04:00

One of the easiest and most convenient breakfasts here is eggs and toast. As opposed to cereal it's cheap and easy to find. Tim and I prefer our eggs over easy while I usually scramble the eggs for the kids. But now that Isabella is growing up she wants to eat things the same way the grown-ups do. This puts poor Elijah in a bad spot. He doesn't care for change or new foods, and I have been too lazy to make his scrambled. Yesterday, I made him the perfect egg. The yoke was lovely and runny, while everyone else's had been broken or a little over done. What is his comment?
"Did you put orange juice on my eggs?"
Looks like I need to quit being lazy and scramble his eggs!