For The Birds

The boys decided they just HAD to make bird feeders today. They learned how to do it from watching "Special Agent Oso" yesterday and couldn't wait to smear peanut butter on pine cones.
We all got to work after naps. I thinned peanut butter with a little water and added a little pancake syrup to make a bit more "glue." The boys had already collected their pine cones from the yard. I found a few foam paintbrushes and took them, our glue, and a bucket of birdseed outside. This was defintely an OUTSIDE job.


The kids painted them and then rolled them in the birdseed. My job was to tie yarn onto each one. (Notice the lack of photos between painting and hanging them on the trees--my fingers were too sticky.) :o)
We now have yummy bird feeders all over the yard. I hope our feathered friends like the--after the wind goes down and they come out of hiding!

The Pug

Here's another Landen-ism for you.
A few years ago--probably around the same time Landen started comparing his bodily waste to landmarks--David's dad got a new tractor.
David told his toddler son, "We're going to call this tractor the 'Paw-Hog'!"
Landen, who was just started to speak English and part from the Landen-ese that we were so accustomed, immediately starting calling that tractor, "The Pug."
Soon it wasn't just that tractor. Any tractor with that style was now given that name. He even had toy Pugs. When I'd choose a tractor and ask if it was a Pug, David and Landen would just look at each other and roll their eyes. How ignorant was I to not know a Pug when I saw one?
I still can't tell.
Shortly before Landen started school, we wondered how his little farmer friends would take to this news that certain John Deere tractors were called "Pugs."
As it turned out, there was no traumatic day when he came home crying with the realization that there was no such thing. Somewhere between that first day and the last, the name just kind of faded out of our household.
Until today. Landen was having a spat with his brother over which tractor was his.
He went downstairs and came back up exclaiming, "Nathan! My Pug has more horsepower than yours!"
Oh, Pug. It's good to have you back.

Descriptive Language

This is gross, I'll warn you, but I just have to document it.
This morning Teresa looked in the toilet after she finished and said, "Baby poop!" That immediately reminded me of Landen's descriptions for the same when he was about 3 years old. Our bathroom was decorated with lighthouses at the time and after a road trip with Grandma, he learned all about the radio towers that dotted the countryside.
Soon after the trip, he started using quite vivid descriptions after using the toilet such as, "Lighthouse poop!" and "Radio tower poop!"
That kid surprised us with his words then and still continues to surprise us at 6 years old!

Stormy Weather

We had quite the excitement weather-wise in our area on Saturday night. There were huge tornadoes about 20 miles from my hometown where my parents live and more about 30 miles south of where we live.
When bad weather comes up, I gather up my cherished possessions (all three of them) and hit the basement. This is what I did Saturday night as David was out blading the gravel road outside our house. (That didn't seem like the opportune time to finish such a task, but whatever . . . .)
David came in the house to find us all downstairs reading books. He couldn't believe that I hadn't prepared more. I didn't have shoes or coats for anyone and I still hadn't gathered flashlights when the electricity went out.
To tell you all the truth, David only heightened my anxiety when he came in the house as the storm hit. All he worried about was the sump pump not working and other mechanical things that could go wrong with such a storm. Every time he required my help, it made me more and more frustrated that I couldn't stay in the same room as my children and throw my body over them if need be.
If our house blew away and I didn't have shoes or a coat, I could borrow one from someone. There's plenty of things I would miss if I lost them, but nothing I couldn't go on without. I couldn't borrow a Landen, Nathan, or Teresa.
I am happy and thankful for my husband who thinks of the things I do not. But, his actions also brought out the "Mama Hen" in me.
When there's danger heading our way, don't mess with the nest. Today's weather is much like Saturday's. We'll see what the evening brings.

New Plants

I have been planting something nearly every day this past week. I did a little online research on annuals and perennials last week (I am such a gardening nerd this year!) and discovered the sweet potato vine. I stocked up on those for my pots and will include coleus and vinca vine in them. If they do what they should (and survive the especially blustery day we are having today), I will have beautiful cascading leafy pots by the end of the summer.

The kids and I checked out our local greenhouse yesterday for some spikes to fill the backs of the pots. They didn't have any of those left, but we found some other really cool plants instead. Check out the Corkscrew Rush and the Chenille plant:

The only problem was they like shade, so we gave them their own home on the deck.
I've done a little research on the chenille plant, and that should cascade as it grows, too. The corkscrew will be a fun accent. We also found some fiber optic grass to fill in the perennial bed.
I want to show you my Hobby Lobby purchase, too. It changes every day as the kids rearrange it for me. It's fun and gives our outdoor space a little extra color. The ants on the bottom represent my kiddos--Landen and Nathan on the raft and Teresa with the watering can.


Happy Gardening!

Special Request

Me: "What should we have for lunch today?"
Nathan: "Hmm . . . let me think a minute. How about . . . hot dogs and macaroni and cheese?"

Wow--what a surprise!

What to do?

Yesterday's conversation was repeated with Nathan today. :o) Only two more days of school and I will have two who always have something to tell me. Soon Teresa will be coming up with her own thoughts, too. I am afraid her days of simply parroting our words are quickly coming to an end.
I either need to get some ear plugs or find a better hiding place!

My Shadow

Me: "Nathan, please stop following me around all the time."
Nathan: "But, I always have something to tell you!"

Stuck Like Glue

--landscape brick glue, that is!

When it comes to my wonderful husband, no project is simple. Along with his amazingly strong work ethic and perfectionism, my David also has the awesome ability to see things as they could be--not just how they are. He is always striving to make things better for our family, home, and farm. This strength comes with the price that most projects--that start out as something very small--can expand quite a bit before they are finished. His ideas are often so good, though, I cannot disagree with him. As long we're doing the work anyway, I can easily be talked into doing a little bit more to make it that much better. In this case, I got out the gardening gloves, picked up my shovel, and got to work.
Allow me to recap our recent landscape project:
Wednesday: We brought home shrubs, a palette of lanscaping blocks, and an oak tree, which was to go in the backyard.
Thursday: The clouds were still giving us rain on and off, but I HAD to get outside! David asked me to make a layout of the bricks. I couldn't get them quite right just coming off the corner of the house. Shortly after we started working on it together, David decided we had to go back to Aberdeen to get drain tile for our sump pump hose, landscape rock, and more bricks. My original tiny idea of two bushes planted beside the house had exploded into an entirely new vision. The construction was now going to extend to both window wells. He threw in a movie with the trip, so how could I turn that down? Besides, it was VERY exciting getting work done together outside that we have been putting off since we added on. We came home with a load of rock and another pallette of bricks.
Friday: Construction went on for most of the day. We dug and shoveled and moved bricks that each weigh as much as Nathan. This picture shows what I had in mind at first.

We took out some of the old bricks in the window wells, dug down to fill the edge with rocks, and added another layer of new bricks at the ground level.
We found a den of toads against our house. That kept the kids busy for the later afternoon and evening.
As our day was coming to a close, we were still coming up short on the bricks. David called Menards. They only had 80 left. We would be making an early Saturday morning trip. I made sure he threw in coffee.
Saturday: We were all in the pickup at 7:30am on our way to get our last load of bricks. While we were waiting for them to load, Teresa and I picked out another shrub to fill in our expanded project. After stopping for pancakes at my in-laws, we were back to work.
By the time we actually planted our shrubs last evening, I was pretty much exhausted, but we got it ALL done and planted our oak tree before calling it a night. We will still add one more shrub to the front of the house at some point this summer.
So, yes, it is now done and looks like it has always been there. It just blends in that well. Without David's vision and work, it would never have all of the different levels and details that it has. So, I am thankful for these strengths of his.


I just find them quite exhausting!

Rain is a Good Thing!

As excited as I am to see the sun this morning, I have to say I can't complain about our recent rains.
It was nice having David in the house more often.
I could tell my kids, "Ask your dad," and they actually could!
Meals were always on time, since we were all in the house at the same time.
We finally got around to purchasing a Bur Oak tree--a gift from his parents for our fifth anniversary. (We will celebrate our ninth next month.)
In the course of these rainy weeks, we were able to have TWO date nights!
I have a willing landscape designer to help me haul bricks, level them, and plant the new shrubs today.
I hear rumors that the rain gutters may go on the house this weekend. (Stay tuned for that one . . . .)
Yes, it is wonderful to work and play in our yard again today, but in the words of singer Luke Bryan, "Where I come from, rain is a good thing!"

Happy Place

I used to hope God that had a Hobby Lobby waiting for me in heaven. Permanent 50% off scrapbooking supplies and home decor. Oh, yes. I could handle that for all eternity!
But, now I found another happy place on this earth that I wouldn't mind wandering through forever. Parkview Nursery. I had my senior pictures taken on its property and have driven by it probably thousands of times, but I never actually stopped until today. Wow. It was awesome.
David and I have decided to put in a little landscaping project. This is quite humorous since all we actually know is where it is going. We each have designs in our heads, but have not sketched it out. We didn't even really talk about the size of the area until we were about ten minutes away from the nursery.
Nevertheless, the help we had at Parkview was amazing--despite the fact that it was raining while we were looking at all of the outside shrubs. I decided on some promised-to-be-easygoing plants--a couple of rose bushes, a small white-flowered bush, a couple of evergreens and a blueberry plant. Yes--I am trying blueberries again. This plant looks much more promising than the stick I tried last year! (And cost a bit more, so it BETTER grow!)
I suppose Parkview is probably no different than any other nursery, but I have led a sheltered life. My gardening experience has been limited to temporary greenhouses in department store parking lots. I have never seen so many acres and acres of flowering plants altogether in my life. It was a beautiful sight.
I am SO returning sometime when the sun is shining to buy my flowers. It is going to be a beautiful summer!
See what I'm talking about at www.parkviewnursery.com!

Spring Concert

Today was Landen's Spring Concert. As is shown by the picture, most of the concert was a tribute to the 1940's. It was really great. The music was fun, and I had even heard a few of them before. I love big band music and my kids are familiar with Glenn Miller's "In the Mood." Now we know it has words, too!
Grades K-5 joined together to sing the anthems of all the armed forces in remembrance of WWII. Tributes to our soldiers can always bring a tear to my eye!
I am so thankful for our school's music department and teachers. They not only give our children a love for music, but introduce them to music that bridges the gap between them, their grandparents, and their great-grandparents.

Changing the World

For Chris, a mother with a young family who is beginning her battle with breast cancer . . . and Jo, whose family now has two treasures in heaven . . . and moms everywhere. May God bless your day.

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.
(2 Corinthians 12:9)


"One Heartbeat at a Time"
By Steven Curtis Chapman

You’re up all night with a screaming baby
You run all day at the speed of life
And every day you feel a little bit less
like the beautiful woman you are

So you fall into bed when you run out of hours
and you wonder if anything worth doing got done
Well maybe you just don’t know
or maybe you’ve forgotten

That you, you are changing the world
one little heartbeat at a time
Making history with every touch and every smile
Oh you, you may not see it now
but I believe that time will tell
how you, you are changing the world
one little heartbeat at a time

With every, “I know you can do it.”
and every tear that you kiss away
So many little things that seem to go unnoticed
they’re just like the drops of rain
over time, they become a river

And you, you are changing the world
one little heartbeat at a time
Making history with every touch and every smile
Oh you, you may not see it now
but I believe that time will tell
how you, you are changing the world
one little heartbeat at a time.

Pie Day

Today is the pie social I blogged about a couple weeks ago. Yesterday was pie baking day. I decided to make Sour Cream Raisin, which seems to be a local favorite, and Butterscotch Cream. Chocolate Chip Pie was in the running, but I had already baked both pie shells.
My recipes for Butterscotch and Chocolate Chip were requested, so I will post both of those today. But, first, I will add my recipe for pie crust. I think frozen crusts taste pretty great, but I hardly ever remember to have any on hand. It is just as easy for me to whip up this no-roll crust.

Press-in-the-Pan Oil Pie Crust
1 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup milk
Heat oven to 425. In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt; mix well. In small bowl, combine oil and milk. Pour over dry ingredients and mix with a fork until well blended. Press in bottom and sides of 9 inch pie pan. Prick bottom and sides generously with a fork. Bake for 12-17 minutes. Cool completely before filling.

Butterscotch Cream Pie
1 BAKED pie shell
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
3 cups milk
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 T butter
2 tsp. vanilla
In medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt; mix well. Stir in milk until smooth. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
Stir about 1/4 cup hot mixture into egg yolks. Gradually stir yolk mixture into hot mixture in saucepan. Cook just until mixture begins to bubble, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into cooled, baked shell. Refrigerate 3 hours or until set.

(Both of the above recipes are from the Pillsbury Complete Cookbook.)

Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Pie
1 UNBAKED 9-inch pie shell
2 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325.
Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon into pie shell.
BAKE for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between edge and center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream, if desired.


David doesn't get too excited about sweets, but he loves this pie. We all do. Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all moms, and to everyone who is a "mom" in some way to someone. We thank you for your love and sacrifices!
I am feeling the love here today. My kids sang "Happy Mother's Day" to me and my husband made me a pot of coffee. He doesn't even like the smell of coffee, so that meant a lot to me!
Nathan has also been drawing lots of pictures for me. He asked this morning, "When is it going to be MY day?"
Even if my posts don't always reflect it, becoming a mother has been one of the biggest blessings in my life. Have a blessed day!

WalkMS 2010

Some photos from the walk . . .


We had 38 registered team members with most of them joining us today.

Last year Teresa slept on the way back and this year she insisted on walking the last block by herself. So, she and Grandma were in their own "team" picture. :o)

One More Sleep!

As Nathan would say, there is just one more sleep until WalkMS 2010!
I delegated the blowing up of 71 balloons today between my sister, mother-in-law, and husband. They were all willing helpers and I found I am excellent at tying them on ribbons!
As of tonight, our team has 36 members and we have raised over $1600!
It also sounds like God will be blessing us with a nice day in between the rain and wind we have been having.
Please pray for a fun and safe walk. Thank you all for your support!

When?

Some children ask, "Why?" constantly. Mine ask, "WHEN?"

"When can we go to (insert friend's name here)'s house?"
"When can we go to (insert relative's name here)'s house?"
"When are swimming lessons?"
"When are we going to get a big camper?"
"When am I going to get a DS?"
"When is Halloween?"
"When will the strawberries be ready?"
"When can we have corn on the cob?"
"When can we go to Chuck. E. Cheese's?"
"When will I go to school?"
"When are we going to have a babysitter again?"
"When does t-ball start?"
"When can we go camping and roast marshmallows?"
"When can we go to the beach?"
"When can we go to the Grand Canyon?"
"When can we get a drum set?"
"When am I going to be a baby again?"
"When will my name start with 'L' like Landen's name?"
You can probably guess which of these questions gets the answer, "Never."
Once in awhile, they do throw a "why" question in the mix. That is nearly always, "Mom, why don't you ever let us do what we want to do?"

From St. Thomas to All Saints

Judging by the many well wishes our family has received, I think it's safe to say the news is out.
After much consideration, our family has decided to move from the Catholic church we have been members of for nine years and become members of the Catholic church in the same town as our school beginning this summer. (If you are not aware of our geography, we are in the middle--about 20 miles from either town.)
It has been difficult to make the final decision, but with Landen in school forty miles from our church, it is more and more apparent that it is time.
St. Thomas has been wonderful to me and to our family. I started attending mass there when David and I were engaged. I could have chosen from four area Catholic churches at the time, but I randomly decided on Faulkton one Sunday morning. God definitely led me there as it was a pleasure to have Fr. Randy as our priest for several more years after that. David and I took RCIA classes with him and learned much about the Catholic faith. We have had wonderful priests to lead us since then--Fr. Todd, and since his sudden passing, Fr. Joji. I have made wonderful friends there as well. I'm thankful that we are not physically moving from our home so that I do not have to say goodbye to these friendships and will still be able to visit occasionally.
After our school closed five years ago, we decided that our children would attend our district school. I still hoped that it would be feasible for us to stay at St. Thomas, but it is becoming very physically difficult traveling so much in both directions.
We have visited a couple of times and already know several people in our new parish. Many of Landen's friends attend there, too. The only downside is the building and parish are considerably smaller, so our kids' sometimes less-than-desirable behavior is not so easily hidden when we are there! Oh, well. I'm sure it's nothing they haven't seen or heard before!
It is difficult to move, but I know that Church does not mean the building in which we worship. It is wherever we are.

No-Sense Lunches

After six years of being a MOOOOMMMMM!!!, I have just discovered the joy of no-sense lunches when Daddy is away.

On Saturday, we had watermelon and popcorn. I bought the first watermelon of the season that morning. As soon as I cut the first slice, Nathan & Teresa attacked it like hungry wolves. I added a little fiber with the popcorn and they were all filled up.
My sister-in-law tells me she and her kids have fruit and popcorn quite often when her husband is away. My friend Jill likes Doritos and applesauce for her no-sense lunches.
I can't believe I've just stumbled upon this now, but I'm loving it.
Today we are having whole wheat toaster waffles and strawberries. Mmm!

Good News

I read today, as I was sipping my morning coffee no less, that coffee drinkers are much less likely to develop dementia as they age. The article didn't say anything about Pepsi. I promised David I would take good care of him.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Today was the day. I just could not hold out any longer. I just had to plant something in my garden!
I do not like to plant too early. I do not like hauling out our huge heavy tarps and unfurling them over my tiny plants in the evening just to reverse the whole ordeal the next morning after the threat of frost has passed. I learned last year, though, that when you live in South Dakota, no month is really safe to start a garden. I believe it was June 2 the last time I had to get the tarps last summer. It was pretty silly since my frost-bit garden would have been the least of our concerns, but nevertheless, I had put in too much work to let Jack Frost take it away that far into the growing season!
Since David started planting corn in the fields today, Nathan thought we should plant our corn, too. I agreed. First I set up my grid in approximate square feet with stakes and twine. We then planted the sweet corn in rows beside the grid, but the rest of the plants will be planted in the squares. (This is the same sort-of square foot method I used last year.) I have already put in my order with David for a little shot of nitrogen when the farm sprayer contains the correct fertilizer. We don't want to repeat our fun-sized corn from last year, even if it was tasty despite its tiny size!
Yet to be planted in our garden are carrots, green beans, beets, lettuce, sugar snap peas, pumpkins, sunflowers, watermelon and cherry tomatoes. I also need to replant basil so I can make pesto again. Yum!
It still amazes me how the gardening bug has bit me these past few years. I like to think it is the genes passed down from my Grandpa & Grandma Joachim whose entire yard was a garden in the summer. My Grandma is nearing 91 and she still plants a smaller version of that same garden. My Grandpa Kallas has also had some garden success since he and my grandma moved to town--could it be 20 years ago? Wow--that seems totally impossible that it has been that long since we helped them move from their farm, but I remember I was wearing my New Kids on the Block earrings and my Harvard sweatshirt (a tribute to NKOTB's hometown) that day . . . so it must have been. Why DO I remember that?
ANYWAY, back to gardening. My Grandpa Kallas is the one who told me of the tradition of planting potatoes by the full moon on Good Friday night. It never fails, but every year we reach Good Friday and the ground is still too frozen to even think about planting anything in it. I wonder if people still do that or if the older generation just likes to laugh at young gardeners trying to chip away at ice in the dark after coming home from church on Good Friday.
My Grandpa also has asparagus in his yard and I am finally starting some this year. Asparagus takes a year to get a crop. Because I can be impatient with such things, it has taken me nine years to plant asparagus because I didn't want to wait another year to eat it. I could have been enjoying asparagus for eight years already if I had just done it right away.
Now I should have an asparagus crop just in time for David & my tenth anniversary dinner next June!

My Cousin Lino

Here is the 2010 Spring Play cast. Our performances were yesterday and everything went very well. I am very proud of the work they did to make this year's play a success!



Nathan wanted to go to the play for two reasons: 1.) To eat ice cream at intermission. 2.) To go up on STAGE!
All of my kids love to explore the play set and see where all the doors and stairs lead. They had plenty of time to do so while we were cleaning up. Teresa even got into a little stage makeup (which I found out after she was cleaned up, so I don't have a photo of that)!

Greatest Compliment

I've found that one of the greatest compliments I can receive--one I will remember for a long, long time--is when someone tells me I make what I do "look easy."
I suppose I cherish these words so much because so much of my life does not feel easy, although it probably should.
I realize our family is greatly blessed. After I started following and praying for very premature twins via CaringBridge almost two years ago, more and more CaringBridge stories started opening up to me. I now follow two pages--the twins who are now thriving--and a baby from my hometown with a rare blood vessel disorder who is also doing well.
This is not to say my "day" isn't coming. Any number of things could happen to our family, but that is in the Lord's control and not in mine. I will not ruin today worrying about any of that.
Despite these blessings, my plate nearly always seems full to overflowing with the responsibilities of parenting, being a wife, homemaker, and, at certain times of the year, drama instructor. (The latter is really more of an escape than a job.) It seems like my plate should contain a more manageable helping. I do not work full time away from home. I do not have the same number of children as many of my friends do. I do not have the medical struggles so many parents deal with on a daily basis. But, still, I often feel like a compulsive over-eater of these responsibilities which are set before me as soon as my eyes open each morning.
So, when someone tells me this overflowing-plate balancing act I perform on a daily basis "looks easy," it really does make my day. Maybe I am a better actress than I give myself credit for. :o)
Yes, my plate may be too much for me to consume most days, but thankfully it is balanced by the equally overflowing cup of love for this family and my friends for which I prayed and God so graciously granted. God is good.
Thanks, Robyn, and to all of my friends who make their jobs look easy, too. Your children show what obstinate toddlers can turn into. If mine turn out as well as yours, the future is looking pretty bright indeed.