This Vintage Chica

I Think We've Found Our Sport

Sorry friends.  I didn't mean to be gone from this space so long.  And didn't mean to worry any of you.  (Thank you to those of you who checked in).  

Has it been a week?  Really?

So what have we been up to?

Swimming, swimming, and more swimming.

I have been a bit reflective today.  You know how you put your babies to bed and then when they wake up they seem to have grown almost overnight?  Please tell me it happens to you too. 

Well, Im feeling it.

My boys are big.  Bigger than I would like them to be.

The oldest boys are 7 now and have gotten to be quite competitive.  Well, they have always been quite competitive.  But the races to finish our cereal have been compounded and everything seems to be about who can do whatever it is we're doing the fastest.  S and I have purposefully avoided making the boys play a sport before now.  They tried soccer and it was OK.  We asked them if they wanted to try t-ball this past Spring.  Not much enthusiasm.  But one evening a few weeks ago, S happened onto this video.

And that was all she wrote. 

Almost immediately as soon as the last bell of the year was rung at school, they began bombarding us with questions about when they could take swimming lessons.

I have to say I had reservations.

I didn't want them in a program that grooms them for a team at the age of 8.  And before we know it we'll be traveling all across the state to this meet or that.  You know what I'm talking about.  Im just not quite ready for that yet.

But we seemed to have found the perfect program.

And the perfect coach.

This guy is great.  He is positive and encouraging.  Calls them out when they are "chickening out" and is the perfect combination of tough and kind.

I watch my boys as they watch and listen to him.  You can see his words reflected in their actions almost immediately.  They believe him when he says "I know you can do it.  Just set your mind to it.  Now let's go!"

And they do.

And I watch.

And am amazed.

He motivates them like I can not.  Even if I uttered the same words he does, they are different coming from him.  He is their coach.

And now this guy thinks he's the next Michael Phelps and wants to know if they let you into the Olympics at 7.  "Mom, do they have an olympic event called "the frog kick" he asks.  "No, I don't think so, but it might fall under freestyle (wink)."  He laughs.  Because he is big now.  And he gets my little jokes. 

He's big now.

And he has found his sport. 

He has a coach.

He has lofty dreams. 

Big goals.

And I believe in him.

Dad: Happy Father's Day!

Things I learned from my dad...

• Girls who know how to use power tools are cool.
• If you are going to fish, you need to know how to take the fish off of your own hook.
• Everyone should have a nickname...or three.
• A girl old enough to drive should know how to change her oil, top off the fluids and change a tire.
• Respect animals - always.
• Geometry, Physics, Algebra and Calculus are relevant and have a purpose in daily life.
• If you want to be a good driver, you have to be willing to hit a few potholes on a country road.
• Skip the training wheels, learn how to ride a bike without them.
• It pays (sometimes in doughnuts) to get up early.
• Always have a few dollars on you when you set out on the road.
• Patience.
• Don't wish for a family you do not have, love the family that was given to you.

I love you Dad...Happy Father's Day.

Semi-Homemade Oreo Cookie Ice Cream

I love being able to throw a semi-homemade recipe together quick-like before having people over.  When the questions comes "Oh, did you make this?", I can smile and say "yes, I did".  Knowing full well it took me all of 10 minutes...maybe.

Such is the beauty of semi-homemade.  My mother is the queen of semi-homemade.  Seriously, she could have written an entire cookbook full of semi-homemade recipes and quick dinner ideas.  She worked...a lot.  But she still loved making things with us and for us.  She completely understood that yes, it was about the food, but making memories was the most important thing of all.

Oreo Cookie Ice Cream is one of those such recipes.  We made this recipe for birthdays, sleepovers and sometimes for no good reason at all other than to make it.  I like recipes like that.  And still to this day is one of my brother's any my favorites.

Oreo Cookie Ice Cream

Ingredients:

• 1 box of cheapest vanilla ice cream you can find (You know the kind that comes in a rectangular box, not the kind that comes in the tub.  I guess you could use fancy Ben and Jerry's or something like that, but the recipe does not hinge on the kind of ice cream you buy.)
• 1 container of cool whip
• 1 package of Oreo cookies (you can do this with mint oreos or the fun seasonal oreos too, but this is the "hinge" part of the recipe...they must be oreos)

Directions:

1. Cut open the box of vanilla icecream and let the icecream soften in a large mixing bowl.
2. Put 1/2 of the Oreos in a large plastic bag.  Seal the bag and let your little one crush the oreos by hitting the bag with a mixing spoon.
3. Each person must eat one of the extra Oreos each.
4. Once the icecream is softened but not melted, stir in crushed Oreos and 1/2 of the container of CoolWhip.
5. Each person must eat one of the extra Oreos each.
6. Refreeze the icecream.
7. When ready to serve, garnish with one Oreo if there are any left.

Enjoy!

Craft Hope: Final Count

For the past several weeks our routine has been a bit different than normal.  Yes, about 2 p.m. Scout moves to the front windows and hangs out until she hears the squeek of the mail truck tires.  Then she starts to whine to be let out.  I break from whatever it is Im doing and yell "Wyatt, mail's here!"  He comes tearing down the stairs running toward the kitchen silverware drawer.  I open the front door to let Scout out and Wyatt meets me at the front door with a table knife.  The mail carrier gives Scout a treat.

And then boxes start to come.  He makes one trip, two trips back to his truck, sometimes three.

Wyatt has become masterful at opening boxes with a table knife, knowing now exactly how to find the open edges and slide the knife under the packing tape.

This has been our habit for the past four weeks or so.

The Craft Hope deadline has passed.  The dolls are in.  And boy are they IN!  387 sweet dollies have arrived from all over the US and 12 countries including Australia, Canada, Brazil, Morocco, Japan, and Scotland.  They are now getting to know each other and readying themselves for the next leg of their journey to Nicaragua.

 

And the notes...the notes that came along with the dolls have been just as amazing as the dolls themselves.  Notes from 3 year old little girls and notes from 76 year old women.  Some of you rallied your sewing or craft groups to participate.  Some made dolls with their children and talked about poverty and those with less.  And some learned to sew for the first time through this project, reconnecting to the women in their families who made dolls long ago.  One woman made two dolls in honor of the two sons she is picking up at an orphanage in Africa this week.  And one woman who thought she was not going to be able to have children found out she was expecting the day she finished her doll.  She considers her doll to be very special and hopes the doll's  new owner gets their deepest, special prayers answered too.  How wonderful is that?

One of the things our Nicargua missions group talked about last year that has stuck with me is the thought that these children that live at Casa Bernabe deserve the best that we can give them.  Although it might be our nature to want to give them the holey t-shirts we no longer wear, or a mismatched set of sheets that our grandmother gave us eons ago and are now about threadbare.  We tend to think that it really doesn't matter what we give them, that they will be appreciative of whatever they can get.  And there is some truth to that.  They are extremely appreciative of anything we bring down with us.  But really...as children just like yours and mine...don't they deserve the best?  As children who have survived physical abuse and poverty and who knows what else...Don't they deserve the best of everything?  The best food?  The cleanest water?  The softest bed?

Looking at these dolls spread out all over my living room, I know that these children will be receiving the best. It is so clear that those of you who made dolls, took extra special care in picking out fabrics and planning out how you would paint or stitch the eyes on.  They truly are a reflection of your hearts and your regard for these children.

Thank you for that.  Thank you for everything friends.  From the very depths of my being, thank you. 

We had hoped for maybe 30-40 dolls for the Casa Bernabe Orphanage.  But you all blew me away with what arrived on our doorstep.  We will not only have enough dolls for all of the Casa Bernabe orphanage (leaving some with the staff for the children that yet to arrive), but we also have enough to take with us when we visit a daycare and feeding center in the Managua city dump (La Chureca).  So please know that the doll you made WILL find a home with a child who will love it.

I don't leave for Nicaragua for two more weeks, but that will give me plenty of time to pack them up and then work on my own packing.  And of course, I'll be posting while I am down there.  So stay tuned, the story is not over yet.

Thank you again for being the hands and feet of all that is good in this world.

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P.S.  The newest Craft Hope project has been posted.  This time its hats and booties and baby blankets for infants in an orphanage in three villages in India.  The deadline for Craft Hope project 3 is July 25.

Holding On Until Summer: Shell Necklace

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Very soon...6 days to be exact...we will be in full summer mode around here.

Our days will be spent eating popsicles and lounging at our beach.  But until then we're giving ourselves just a tad taste of what is to come.

Wyatt and I have been making homemade lemonade popsicles.  Yum!

Sun tea is on the porch brewing itself.

And I made a new necklace for myself after seeing this from Martha in my inbox.  My rendition is much easier than Martha's and doesn't require a drill.  I find shells all the time that have holes already in them.  Check out the post over at The Magnifying Glass to learn how the holes get there.  I have had a spool of blue and white baker's twine and haven't used it for anything else other than wrapping  birthday packaged up until now.  I love the red and white twine...but I am really loving the blue and white.  Especially paired with dainty sea shells. Just string the twine through the holes and tie a knot above the shell and continue all along the length of the twine.  It would make a sweet bracelet too I think.

As I wear this necklace today it is a little reminder that summer will be here soon enough...to not rush things...to be right where I am and not to wish these precious days of time with only one little one at home away.

6 more days.

For the Love of Blackberries

This morning we picked the first of many blackberries we will be picking this year.  These five little morsels were oh so yummy next to my asiago bagel with cream cheese, my current favorite breakfast.

Last year I think I transplanted them from the front flower beds to this berry bed to late in the season, so we didn't get many berries.  But this year, as you can see, the bushes are loaded.  And they are still blooming.

I have been scouring my cookbooks for blackberry recipes in anticipation.

Oh, and what are those wine bottles turned upside down on the bamboo poles, you ask?  They are bottles we finished off a few weekends ago with friends repurposed to scare the birds away.  I'm thinking every bottle of wine that gets finished over the summer, we'll do the same.  We should have quite a collection come September.

Got any good blackberry recipes?

Celebrating 7

This blog post could also be entitled...how the heck did I get to be a mother of two 7 year olds?!?!

I know mothers always say this, but ... wow, it goes by fast.

7 is such a cool age.  These boys are full of big questions lately.

Huge questions about the world and space and creation.  They are completely aware that they are small and the world is huge.  They are beginning to navigating that age old question of who am I, what are my gifts and what will I do when I get big.  I have to say, I'm still asking those same questions at almost 36.

Earlier this Spring, when the ducks were all laying eggs and the boys were studying the differences between the different types of animals in school, one of the boys asked if all animals come from eggs.

No all.  You can cut a worm in half and make new worms.  But most of the time...yes, animals come from eggs.  Sometimes the eggs are in the mamas body and you never see them, and sometimes they are outside the mama's body like ducks for example.  The egg is the mamas contribution to the new baby.  (At that moment, I said a little prayer that I could answer any questions that followed)  But luckily I have science minded little men like their mother.  So, they followed with questions about whether people come from eggs.  Yes, I answered again.  People start out as eggs inside the mama's body.

"So you had two eggs in your body when you had us, right mama?"

Well, this is where I had to stop what I was doing in the kitchen.  Turn and look at them.  And explain something I wasn't sure they would get.

You see, we don't really know for sure.

Identical twins come from one fertile egg splitting into two.  This produces two babies with the exact same DNA.

And fraternal twins come from a mother releasing two eggs at once and both eggs being fertilized separately.  This produces two separate babies with separate DNA.

They got it...you could see the little synapses being formed in their brains as they wrapped their little minds around this huge concept. 

When I was pregnant, we were told the boys were fraternal because they had separate amniotic sacs and separate placentas.  But now there is evidence that if the egg splits early enough in development, identical twins can have this separation in utero.

Our pediatrician thinks they are identical because of their similar growth patterns.  For example they walked within a few days of each other, they got teeth in the same order withing a few days of each other, etc.

The only way to know for sure is to have their zygosity tested.

We have never really cared either way, so we have never had their DNA formally tested.

But at 7 years old, you are able grasp how cool it is to have a brother the exact same age, a brother that looks so much like you that people get you confused.  And they would like to know if they are identical or fraternal.  Like I said, when you are 7, you are full of big questions.  And those questions require answers.

They are really starting to become their own little people, each with their own tastes and preferences. And I can imagine to them this means something.  Whether they really are their own people and exactly how similar and different they are to their brother.

They are very similar: both friendly and outgoing, both athletic and coordinated with a love of the outdoors.

But there are many differences:  one is very nurturing and a peacekeeper, the other has an amazing sense of right and wrong and cares a great deal about the concept of justice.

It really is amazing.

We won't know for several weeks whether they came from one egg or two, but for sure we will be checking the mail every day for the big news.

So, now's your chance.  Take a guess.  And I'll let you know when the results come in.

Identical or fraternal?

Happy birthday my big boys!!!  Im looking forward to the years to come and watching each of you grow into the amazingly talented, individual people you are.

Easy Teacher Gifts

 

School is almost out here.  I think we might be the...very...last...kiddos...in school.  Our last day is not until June 18th.  Ugh!  The boys aren't the only ones having a hard time staying focused on homework and finishing up the school year.

I've had it in my head that I was going to make each of the boys' teachers a simple beach blanket.  But time is running short and to be honest, I haven't had time to brush my teeth.  The blanket just wasn't going to happen.

And then yesterday, I saw Erin's teacher gifts... using her great coffee cozy tutorial she paired the cozy with a Starbuck's gift certificate and "wrapped" it in a coffee cup. 

Brilliant!

I cut about 16 cozies out yesterday.  The one above is only the first one finished.  Today I need to go pick up some more hair ties so that I can finish the other 15.  We don't have many hair ties around these parts with four men folk and me with new shorter summer hair.

Friends, these go together so fast and are a bit addicting.  Its just the kind of thing you'd never make for yourself, but would love to receive as a gift, I think.

OK, gotta run to the coffee shop.  Oh, and I just might have to grab a vanilla latte for myself while I'm there.

Yay for easy teacher gifts!  And yay for coffee on a Wednesday morning.  Happy Hump Day!

In The Garden: Early Summer

I know Summer does not officially start until June 21st, but it sure is starting to feel like Summer in the garden.  School is just about out - 16 days left to be exact.  And just like the boys, there is much anticipation in the garden.

Wyatt and I pulled up the last of the peas this morning to make way for edamame beans.  They were so yummy last year we just couldn't wait to plant some more this year.  Not one made it to the table.  All were eating right there standing in the garden with dirty hands.

This morning we spied:

the first morning glory,

the first of Charlotte's babies to emerge,

the first green tomato babies,

the first summer squash still holding on to its blossom,

first figs on Ian's fig tree,

and the first red-ish blackberry...soon to be oh so yummy and dark purple. 

Now, if I can just get those boys home from school to help me in the garden.  It looks like its going to be a bumper crop.  What first peeks of summer are you getting today?

(P.S.  Yesterday was my Grammer's birthday!  Happy Birthday Grammer!)

Quilting Lessons

I've been dying for some sewing time as of late.  As I pass by the sewing room on my way upstairs, my sewing machine and I glance at each other for just a minute.  We both sigh.  And then I return to whever crisis is screaming loudest.  With S in and out and the boys' end of the school year activities I just haven't been able to fit any sewing time into the schedule.  I promise old friend...soon.

Carole, one of our mentor moms from our MOPS group is an amazing quilter and bag maker.  We share a love of vintage table cloths and I often joke that I want to be her when I grow up.  She made me the quilt in the photos above.  When I found out she quilted I immediately dropped to my knees and began begging for a lesson.  I was in the middle of the Virtual Quilting Bee and full of questions about seam allowances and which side to press to, etc.  That was over a year ago. 

I finally wore her down and we were able to coordinate schedules.  We started work on a collaborative bowtie quilt.  I can not share our project yet - its a big secret.  Shhhh! 

But I can show you the quilt Carole made for me (above).  Wyatt has dubbed it "the bird quilt" around here as there are two fabrics in the quilt with birds.  Carole picked out the blue and green colors even before seeing our house.  She is good like that.   And the blue and purple print there in the corner is a vintage table cloth she cut up.  Love that so much!

Things I learned so far in quilting with Carole:

• Use quilting thread
• Accurate measurements are important.  But having the right tools to help you measure accurately is just as important.
• If you are piecing squares you can sew multiple squares without stopping and cutting the thread until you have sewing several pieces together - this is called strip piecing.
• Use what's in your stash.  This forces you to put together fabrics that you might not usually choose.  And it makes for a more interesting quilt in the end.

Thanks Carole, for the quilt.  Thanks for the quilting lessons.  And for the quilting confidence booster. 

See you next week for another lesson.