organizing

I am always looking for ways to make our house a bit more organized. Papers seem to appear and get stacked all over the counter and kitchen table. The end of the school year is a particularly challenging time with tons of papers and school work returning home. This is a picture of all of Abigail's work that came home during the last week of school. What do you do with it all? Don't even get me started on all the art projects, pictures, homemade cards, progress reports from after school activities...it can be very overwhelming. Do you feel like you need to keep every single piece of artwork your child has ever created? Do you feel guilty when your child finds their creations in the recycling box? This has happened to me. And, I don't feel guilty about it. I explain that there are so many paintings and pictures that I can't keep them all. I always have at least one special picture from each of the kids on the fridge. When a new one comes home, the old one comes down. I explain that I do keep some of them and put them away for when my child is older. I started this system of organizing around 2 years ago. I bought each of my children their own paper organizer and divided the sections into what works for me.

Each child has a different colour. Abigail - red, Nathaniel - orange, Jesse - green. They stay out of reach above my scrapbooking table.

Here is a look into Abigail's folder. I have sections to sort school report cards, activity progress reports (certificates from dance, soccer, swimming reports etc.), artwork, and each school grade has its own compartment. In the back of the organizer I have place miscellaneous items (favorite baby clothes, ultrasound pictures etc.) I don't have another place for them right now so this keeps everything in one place.

There can be a lot of papers that your child brings home. My advice is that your child doesn't need every single piece of work they did at school. They also don't need to see all the paintings they created during their preschool year. So, I choose a few art pieces for the year (this is easy when you have a boy that isn't particularly crafty, but is a challenge when your girl loves to create). My criteria is that it needs to show their own creativity and progress during the year. I do not keep spelling or math work. I figure my children don't want to see how they printed numbers. I do keep stories (like the one above) because they show how my child has used her imagination to create something original.

Here is a peak into Jesse's folder. He has one or two pictures (mental note - keep some more of Jesse's art pieces) and mostly memorabilia. A favorite outfit, 2007 coin collection and the newspaper from the day he was born. I hope this idea will help some of you.

neglected

It is usually during the summertime, when there are lots of yummy fruits to bake with, that chocolate desserts get neglected. Here is a recipe I came across a few weeks ago and couldn't wait to try. It is a yummy combo of rice krispie squares, peanut butter fudge and chocolate fudge. Because of the peanut butter, it can be tricky to find a place where you are actually allowed to share this snack. And believe me, you need to share this with good friends. It is so good but makes so much. Maybe this would make a good treat to take to a family reunion (if there are no peanut allergies) or share them with your neighbours. You'll make friends for life!

Peanut Butter Fudge Treats - from Joy the Baker

First make the Rice Krispie layer...
Rice Krispy Treats
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 package (10 oz., about 40) regular marshmallows
- OR -
4 cups miniature marshmallows
6 cups Rice Krispy Cereal (or any puffed rice cereal)

1. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat.
2. Add Rice Krispies cereal. Stir until well coated.
3. Using buttered spatula or wax paper evenly press mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Cool. Make Peanut Butter Fudge.

Peanut Butter Fudge
recipe from Alton Brown
1 cup butter, plus more for greasing pan
1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar
Microwave butter and peanut butter for 1 minute on high. (I used a 4 cup glass measuring cup.) Stir and microwave on high for 30 more seconds. Stir to ensure all the butter and peanut butter is melted and incorporated. Add vanilla and powdered sugar to peanut butter mixture and stir to combine with a wooden spoon. Pour over the Rice Krispy treats in the pan and spread evenly. Let cool in the fridge while you make the Chocolate Fudge.

Easy Chocolate Fudge
2 Tbsp butter
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1 2/3 cups sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla
Combine butter, milk, sugar, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil; cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in marshmallows, chocolate, and vanilla. Beat for about 1 minute, or until marshmallows melt and mixture is thoroughly combined. Pour over peanut butter fudge, spread evenly and place in the fridge to harden and cool. Cut into 1-inch pieces or smaller.

new looks

I usually don't blog on the weekends, but I wanted to show off the cool haircuts my kids got this morning. The boys needed short hair for the summer and Abigail was contemplating cutting off enough hair to donate to Angel Hair - an organization that uses donated hair to make wigs.

I was able to get them all appointments at the same time. The boys were talking about which chair they would sit in before they got there. Luckily they were free and right beside each other. Jesse got the firetruck and Nathaniel got the motorcycle.

This was Jesse's first official haircut. He did amazing sitting patiently for the hairdresser. He had his own video to watch but I didn't notice him watching it a lot. Jesse had a number of firsts today. First haircut, first lollipop and first time really watching tv.

Abigail hadn't decided how much she was going to cut until she was in the chair. I thought the 10 inches that are needed to donate would have been too short, but she was okay with it. It helps when her friends and cousin have short bob haircuts. Once the hair was cut, Abigail was a bit teary, but quickly fell in love with her new look.

The after...a genuinely happy girl.

There's the hair. I love the new look. It makes her look so much older.

And as the boys waited for Abigail, Jesse tried out all of the special chairs. The last was to go for a motorcycle ride with his brother. He was sure to hold on tight. I'm trying not to think of my boys as teenagers riding motorcycles. Let's move on to the after shot of my cuties.

All ready for summer!

cooling off

Southern Ontario has been experiencing a heat wave all week. We have been lucky to have had lots of opportunity to cool off. We have been to the public pool just down the street, played in our sprinkler, enjoyed our neighbour's slip 'n slide and celebrated the end of school at a pool party. These pictures I took on Tuesday. I wasn't up to braving the public pool with 3 kids, so we got out the sprinkler and then went sliding at the neighbours. I love watching how my kids have grown in their comfort with water. Abigail has always loved water and willingly dunked her head underwater when she was 2. She absolutely loves swimming. Nathaniel is much more tentative and still remains cautious when getting his hair washed. He is showing much more comfort in the water this year and isn't requiring us to hold him in the pool. I'm still not sure about Jesse. I thought he seemed to share similar characteristics as Abigail, especially when putting his face in the water to make us laugh. But so far this summer, he is showing a bit more caution than she did. While his brother and sister are polar opposites in their feelings about water, he may end up being a combination of the two. We shall see.

Things didn't start off very well for Jesse. Abigail accidently sprayed him in the face. The whole sprinkler experience was basically over before it even got started.

Jesse did a whole lot of crying while Nathaniel and Abigail enjoyed cooling off.

Nathaniel totally shocked me. This is the kid that doesn't like getting his face wet. But he was the most excited to run through the water. Yeah, his tongue was out most of the time too.

Jesse watching as Abigail gets sprayed by Nathaniel. These are the kinds of moments that you only get when you sit, observe and take lots of photos.

Jesse was still not enjoying himself around the sprinkler.

Nathaniel trying to spray me.

Finally, Jesse found something of interest. The swing.

Now, that is much better.

Then we were off to the neighbour's slip 'n slide. Again, this is the boy that doesn't like getting his head wet. He absolutely loved playing on the slide. He asks everyday to go on the slide.

Abigail showed so much concentration when she prepared for her running jump onto the slide. We had a really hard time getting off. I am really looking forward to the summer and having lots of fun with the kids outside. Here's hoping Jesse starts enjoying the sprinkler a bit more.

father's day

Finally getting to pictures from our Father's celebration on Sunday. The day started with the kids giving Andrew their father's day card and a print of 5 trees that I got framed. I love the playful nature of the art. It is from an artist that I found on Etsy.com. You can see her artwork here. I loved how it represents our family. Eventually it will go above our piano. I noticed that we will now have 6 pieces of artwork that all contain trees. All in our family room. I obviously have something for trees.

In the afternoon my family came over. The kids and dads went to the pool down the street for a swim. We had supper and the kids played inside and out.

The boys found the trains.

The girls were upstairs with the dollhouse that rarely gets used anymore.

My sister, Christine, enjoying the weather outside.

My mom, also enjoying the loveliness of the day.

My dad bought himself a GPS that Andrew was checking out. Now, if you know my dad you will agree that it seems a bit strange for him to buy a GPS unit. We call him the human GPS. He only needs to drive to a place once and he will likely always be able to find his way there again. Even years later. And in a different country. When Andrew and I were first married I had to realize that all men aren't made this way. Growing up as a kid I never remember getting lost or having to ask for directions. My mom was the one in charge of the map and we always got to where we needed to go. To be fair to Andrew, he isn't directionally challenged, but he does not have my dad's amazing sense of direction.

Anyways, it was great celebrating all the dads.

banjo puppets

Awhile back I was reflecting on my blog about wanting to be the kind of parent that supports my children. I hope I can stand beside them as they discover their passions. I hope my children feel strong and supported in being able to follow those dreams. Well, it wasn't even a week later that I was reconnected with a highschool friend that is doing just that. Following his passion and making it his full time gig - Banjo Puppets. My friend Joel Brubacher has always been a creative guy - in music making and puppetry. I remember his puppets from highschool. I remember going to London with him to see a puppet exhibit at the Children's Museum. It thrills me that he has followed his passion and is striving to make it a success. On Saturday he was performing at the Multicultural Festival in Kitchener, so I brought Abigail and Nathaniel to see his show. It was a wonderful blend of his puppet making and music making talents. My kids were focused on his show the entire time. It was adorable, thought provoking, deep and funny at the same time. (I wish more of my photos turned out but I ended up bringing my crappy camera along.) My kids loved Randy the carrot and his guitar playing. I loved when Ms. Sugar Beet joined Randy in a little duet. After the show, Joel set up some of his puppets. They are so much fun. We brought home 2 for our house and the kids went right to town making up puppet shows.

Nathaniel's first of two shows was about a busy street. The second was about a construction site.

Jesse was happy to make the puppets eat everything in sight...coffeetables, people's heads.

If you are into supporting local artisans and their passion for their craft, check out Joel's shop on Etsy.com here. So worth a look.

these are a few of my favorite things

I have so many pictures to go through from this weekend. They will have to wait till later on in the week. But this morning I did this fun little exercise while the boys played picnic on our back deck. I had to think "What things am I loving right now?" I stayed focused on food related items and here are my top 5.

#1 - Breakfast burritos. I have had these for lunch 3 days in a row. I certainly don't have time to make them for breakfast and they make a great meal, especially with the warm weather that we are having. They are easy. Warmed Whole wheat tortillas. (I put mine in the microwave for 15 seconds.) Some grated cheese. Scrambled eggs (1 egg per tortilla). When the eggs are just set I stir in chopped tomato, fresh cilantro and some chili paste. Salt and pepper too. Spoon this onto the cheese and top with chopped avocado and gourmet baby lettuces. (I use this great blend from a local grower.) Roll up and enjoy.

#2 - The boys adorable divided plates. This was their lunch today. Tortilla with pea butter and honey, mango, cucumber and milk.

#3 - Local, organic strawberries.

#4 - My new microplane. I finally treated myself and bought the best zester in the world. It is amazing for zesting citrus and making the most feathery pile of parmesan cheese. Totally worth the money. It was around $20 and the one you see on cooking shows.

#5 - Pecan Butter Tart Ice Cream. I just discovered this ice cream at our local Superstore (Loblaws). And with Canada Day so close it is great to splurge on a Canadian treat.

Why not think about some of your favorite things and capture them with you camera. Or make it a beginning of the summer project with your kids. I'm sure they would love to get a hold of your camera. Older kids could help create a little booklet, write out the words, or even just colour pictures. It would make a great keepsake. Have fun!

summary

It has been a busy week. I haven't felt an overwhelming need to blog and had to stay focused on why I do this. I always want this to be a place where I can share about our family and document the big and little stuff that is happening in our lives. I never want to feel that I HAVE to post. I may put a bit of pressure on myself to sit down at the computer but then totally get into my space to reflect on what is happening in our lives. Today is a little bit like that. I really should have a shower. I have a layout about Jesse and the frog that lived in our sandbox that I want to finish up. But I was going through my pictures from the week, choosing the ones that I will put in my photo a day album, and felt that I wanted to share some of the images that capture what happened in our family this week. Here goes.

I made some rhubarb muffins Sunday afternoon. I needed to use the rhubarb I got from our local buying club. Jesse helped himself to the streusel topping and ate from 3 different muffins.

The boys have spent lots of time playing outside (when it hasn't been raining.) They have been busy with a big pile of scrap wood. Here Jesse is transporting the pile with his trucks. Later, Nathaniel had a cookie store with each block of wood being a different flavour. Lots of interesting cookie ideas.

Monday was our diaper service day. Here are all the diapers neatly piled on Jesse's change table. I have been wanting to capture this memory for a while. I have felt really good putting Jesse in cloth diapers and finally got a picture of it.

I love that the weather is finally warm enough that we can have lunch outside on the back deck. This was the first time that we have done this. I am so looking forward to summer and being able to do lots of these carefree activities.

Abigail had her last swimming lesson on Tuesday night. She passed! It looks like she is celebrating her achievement, but she is dancing to the Bananas song. This is the "go bananas" part. Love how much she enjoys swimming.

Jesse and Nathaniel have been pulling out every blanket from Jesse's drawers and making
beds with them. Usually they dump them all in Jesse's crib and pretend to go to sleep. Here Jesse got all of Abigail's Webkinz, laid them on our bed and piled the bed high with his blankets. Then he decided to have a snooze with the animals. Although he wasn't interested in laying down for long. It was hard snapping a picture of him when he wasn't moving.

Yesterday Nathaniel helped me bake lots of treats that we will bring to friends tonight for supper. He got many licks from the beaters and was on quite a sugar high for part of the afternoon. I have to say that I need to get those desserts out of my house because they are far too tempting sitting in my fridge. Anyone else needing a sugar fix?

breakfast for dinner

I have no qualms with simplifying my supper routine and eating more traditional breakfast foods for dinner. I grew up eating crepes and waffles for lunch or supper. We often have crepes for Friday night supper when I am tired and need a break from menu planning. Everyone else enjoys it too so it is a win/win all around. It has been a long time since I made granola and yesterday afternoon the mood struck so I went with it. Nothing beats a bowl of fresh fruit, yogurt and homemade granola. When I'm really hungry in the evening, I'll even have a bowl of yogurt, granola and some chocolate chips. Yum!

Here's the recipe that I use. I always double it.

Mostly Oats Granola - Yields 11 cups
from Simply in Season

6 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup raw wheat germ
3/4 cup slivered almonds or other nuts
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
Combine in a large bowl.

1/2 cup liquid honey
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Mix together and pour over oat mixture. Stir well. Spread in a thin layer on baking sheets. (I use 4 sheets when I double it.) Bake in preheated oven at 325 degrees F. for 10-13 minutes. Stir and bake another 5-10 minutes. Stir again and bake 3-5 minutes. Watch carefully to prevent burning. Cool. Store in airtight containers.

thank you

A big thanks to Eric and Beth who told me about Eva Cassidy. What a beautiful voice! I've got her on my playlist and am enjoying her beautiful music. I hope you all do too.

i'll say it again

Boys are dirty! I certainly don't have a daughter that is against getting dirty. But she has never sought out getting completely mucky. My boys are a different make all together. Nathaniel will throw himself into a pile of muck. He enjoys creating it, getting messy in it and trying to bring his younger brother along for the whole experience.
It all started innocently enough. The boys were playing in the backyard while Abigail had a swim at the pool down the street with neighbours. I was between watching them and trying to finish up supper. Nathaniel asked to "garden" and got out the shovels, buckets and weeder. Somehow water got mixed into the equation and it all went downhill from there. (Although in the world of a 2 and 4 year old, the party was just getting started!)

It looks like my boys are just doing their usually digging.

Until you get a bit closer and realize Nathaniel is bathing in mud.

"Mucky!" Normally I might celebrate a bit more when Jesse has learned a new word. Jesse was a bit more reserved in his first real go with the stuff. I think he knew that his sandals weren't suppose to get covered in mud. But he sure did enjoy the feeling of dirt between his fingers.

It was now a free for all. I had to really fight my instinct to get them out of the dirt. I allowed them a bit of freedom.

And then I called it quits. The shoes got hosed off. The boys were carried to the tub. I hope they will thank me later when they realize their mother, who doesn't really like getting dirty, allowed this experience to occur. You're welcome boys!

Oh, and Nathaniel...I am sorry that I yelled at you this morning when you insisted on walking through the house with your sandals that still had mud caked on the bottom. The HUGE trail of dried mud was not what I needed when we were trying to get out the door for school.