ok.
i know it's been almost a month since this happened.
but, everytime i see it,
i get chills.
so beautiful and artistic.
and, yes, a little strange with the water.
but, i love how effortless she makes it look.
favorite lyrics.. have you ever wished for an endless night?
have you ever held your breath
and asked yourself
will it ever get better than tonight?
have you ever wished
to save a moment?
perhaps an
entire day
of life?
how bittersweet it would be
to return to this moment
and see the faces,
hear the laughs,
the voices
the shouts.
to touch the baby cheek
and the hair
or hold the small hands.
i wish for a way
to capture it
and hold it
to look back on and savor
and remember.
because in a blink,
it will be different
and changed,
never this way again.
ava and paul made these last sunday.
the recipe is from
a princess cookbook
ava got for her birthday.
and i pretty much love them.
they are a cross between
divinity
and
a perfectly
roasted marshmallow.
so delicious,
delicate
and easy to make.
but they bake for 1 hour
so give yourself time.
pretty princess puffs
ingredients:
3 egg whites 3/4 c sugar 1/4 t cream of tartar 1/2 t vanilla or almond extract 2-3 drops food coloring sprinkles
directions:
preheat oven to 250. line 2 cookie sheets with foil.
in a large bowl, whip egg whites with electric mixer until soft peaks form. with mixer on, slowly add sugar, one tablespoon at a time. add cream of tartar, vanilla or almond extract and food coloring. continue beating till stiff peaks form.
spoon mounds {about 2 T each..we used a cookie scoop} onto foil lined cookie sheets; space them about 1/2 inch apart. sprinkle with decoration of choice.
place both cookie sheets on the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour. then turn off oven and leave oven door closed fror 10 minutes.
remove puffs from baking sheets and store in an airtight container.
happy 4th birthday, bud. you're getting you first bike today. i'm so excited to see your face when we give it to you and to watch how quickly you learn to ride it. you make me laugh every day and also drive me nuts every day. oh, and bug your sisters every day {and spend a lot of time in your bedroom because of it.} but we love your guts. you are awesome.
your favorite joke of late:
what did the boy ghost say to the girl ghost? "do you believe in people?"
my tip is a little early this year. and probably not nearly as exciting as last year's. but educational in a different way.
so..no matter how much or how little you do, i highly recommend waxing. consider it a vday gift to your husband. or even to yourself.
behold.. my waxing tutorial in photos:
my first time i got waxed was here. and even though the lady was nice and sweet, it was horribly painful. plus, when i got home, i noticed some extra hairs. for $70, i want to be perfectly bare.
i gave myself a healing period of a month or so then gathered my courage and started doing it myself.
i bought the warmer and wax off amazon.com and that has worked for me since. this last time i was in a pinch and bought the wax at a beauty supply store and it was $25 + tax.. whereas on amazon it's about $20 total.
bonus: i've been waxing for about three years and have very sparse growth and can go a lot longer between waxing than i used to. hooray!
or so i thought. right? i saw this little staged scene on the edge of the kids tub and laughed out loud. captain bogg isn't as tough as he thinks he is, eh? but then ava caught me uploading the photo to my laptop and said, "oh, do you like that? i did that last night. i was making a movie..that guy is filming the pirate..." boo. what a let down. that's not nearly as exciting as what i thought it was.
oh, believe me, i know it's almost february and i am just now posting my word. but that just shows you how chaotic this new life of mine is and how appropriate my choice of word really is.
i am in a constant state of awe at women who have three or more children and homeschool with a baby as well as decorate and keep their houses clean and their children fed and in clean clothes.
on a regular,daily basis i find myself forgetting to breathe deeply.
i just go and go and go and go and then eat and go and go and go and go and then sleep.
and wake up and do it all again.
and so my focus this new year is on breathing.
stopping each day and breathing deeply.
and hopefully in time i will move beyond just surviving to developing the capacity to manage this new life with the kind of efficiency that will bring me peace and satisfaction.
it's been seven years since this little one entered our lives
{ava at 9 months old.}
soon it will be 8.. then 9.. and i am getting a little weepy. i didn't know my heart could ache with joy and sadness at the same time. i guess motherhood does that to you.
thank you peanuts for giving the world peanut butter. without you, i couldn't enjoy your creamy goodness. that creamy goodness of delight that makes every day just a little bit better. especially when i pair you with chocolate chips.
so, ava's afraid of the tooth fairy. she has not once put a tooth under her pillow.
basically it boils down to this:
she doesn't want some strange person, fairy or not, coming into her room at night while she's sleeping and digging around under her pillow. even if she leaves her money.
poor kid. i can see her point. but come on. it's MONEY. for icky, little teeth.
so, instead of putting her teeth under her pillow, she brings me a tooth she has yanked out. {ya..she pulls them out.} calmly hands it to me and i drop it into the mesh drawstring bag that is now The Tooth Bag.
five in all thus far.
what am i suposed to do with her teeth once they've all fallen out?
now, i've had some pretty sucky new year's eves. for example,
last year i had the flu.
two years ago we paused our boardgame and said happy new year.
three years ago we watched tv.
five years ago we co-threw a party and it BOMBED. i mean, embarrassing. bomb. of a party. luckily, my party throwing skills have improved.
so this year, at the last minute we decided to throw a party together. we're a good team.
pictured below: two crazy hosts
we moved furniture, we strung lights, we hung a disco ball, we cranked music, we threw confetti, we burned stuff at midnight, and had the BEST new year's eve. of all time.
pictured below: aftermath of partying
next year's will be even better. expect an invitation.
ingredients 1/2 cup butter, softened 3/4 cup white sugar 4 T cocoa 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 eggs divided 1 prepared 8 inch pastry shell, baked and cooled
directions 1. cream butter in a mixing bowl for 20 minutes or so. gradually beat in 1/2 c sugar till well blended. stir in cocoa, vanilla and egg yolks. 2. in a separate bowl, beat egg whites on high till stiff, gradually stirring in 1/4 c sugar. 3. gently fold egg whites into chocolate mixture till combined. then spoon the chocolate filling into the baked and cooled pie shell. 4. refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. 5. eat.
here is the Christmas card we "sent" out. so easy and fun that we might just do it always.
2009 in Photos: Ava turned 6 and got a bike Max turned 3 and had a Spiderman cake My brother, Taylor, came for a visit Ava lost her first tooth Paul bought a Sounders FC season ticket My brother, Kevin, and his family moved to Washington I gave birth to Mabel Jean on April 22 Max and Ava held her just a few hours after her birth My mom came into town to be my doula Ava performed in her first ballet recital Paul’s parents came to see Mabel and Ava’s ballet recital I turned 30 and had a big party at a movie theater We traveled to Utah for the Weaver reunion We were able to spend time with my Grandpa Weaver before his passing this winter Then we went to the Petersen reunion Mabel was blessed We bought a HOUSE!! And moved into it a week after the Utah reunion trip Paul turned 32 and celebrated at Red Robin Grandma and Grandpa Petersen came for a visit Ava chose soccer over ballet and LOVED it My mom and Grandma came for a visit Max took a sports class with the city of Renton We found a new pumpkin patch to go to Paul’s friend, Adam, took him flying and Paul discovered a new obsession We all dressed as pirates for Halloween We found a great new curriculum for homeschool called Calvert School Paul played ward volleyball and their team won the Stake championship Paul played in a very cold and muddy Turkey Bowl on Thanksgiving Day Mabel sat on Santa’s lap for the first time We decided to be cheap and cut down our tree in the Mt. Baker forest. The kids went ice skating for the first time and loved it. We took down our dead tree. And gladly put up an artificial one a nice family loaned us. We took Ava on a date to a Christmas chorale concert. Mabel turns 8 months old!