She talks!!

More proof that my baby is growing up, (sniff, sniff). It's funny, speech never comes gradually at this house, there's nothing and then they explode with new vocabulary. Anyway, here's Lilia saying, "1..2...3". So she's hasn't just started talking, she's skipped to counting also, what a genius. :) Granted I am counting to three ALL the time around here. I had no idea she even knew what I was doing till I was taking off her socks one night and I started with, "1" and she ended with "two!... threeeeee!" They are such sponges!

Sickness

At a women's retreat a couple of years back, something that the speaker said comes back to me at times like this:
"When the kids are naughty or sick, and your husband needs your help, remember, these things are "get to" moments not, "have to's". You get to wake up at 3am with a sick kid, because if they weren't there you would be childless, and when your husband is sick and can't help out, you GET to pick up the slack because if he wasn't there you'd be alone with out your husband..."
So I remember this bit of WISE advise when I'm going on my 4th week of sickness being slowly but thoroughly passed around my family. Lilia, no kidding, started getting sick when my parents were here at the beginning of March, it mushroomed into high temps, sleepless nights, and barking coughs, this went on for 2 weeks, then Sofie woke up one morning with a temp and held that high temp for 3 days! And still 2 weeks later she isn't 100% and will have a temp every once in a while. And now my poor Mike has started spiking fevers and even stayed home from work on Friday. And, by the way, Lilia, after a full course of antibiotics and 4 weeks still has a runny nose and cough. For some reason John and I are escaping this latest rash of illness, though I have been battling a head cold.

It's a "get to" situation, right?

Forcing Spring

I SOOO can't wait for spring to be here, that I've decided to dust off the "spring time" recipes that I have. So last night we had Tuxedo Pasta, I may not be able to pick my own asparagus, (there would have to NOT be 3-6 inches of snow on the ground, and oh, I'd need an asparagus patch :) ) But I can sure enjoy the feeling of spring in my own kitchen!


Tuxedo Pasta

6 oz. large bow-tie (farfelle) pasta
1/2 Tbsp butter
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces
4 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
½ lb asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
½ cup copped orange, red or yellow bell pepper
2 tbsp dry white wine or lemon juice and grated rind of 1 small lemon
3 tbsp fresh basil
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese, divided

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, melt 1/2 tablespoons butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and mushrooms; cook until light golden brown, about 5 minutes.
Add asparagus and pepper; continue cooking until vegetables are tender, about 3 minutes. Add wine and lemon juice; simmer 1 minute.
Remove from heat; stir in lemon rind, basil. Toss with hot pasta. Place on serving platter; sprinkle with ¼ cup cheese. 4 servings

Grandma and her girls

Sofia and Lilia are just two of my MIL's 9 grandchildren, but they all get special attention from her. The girls (and John of course, I just didn't get a picture of him) LOVE their Grandma.

Lilia was under the weather that day. She wasn't even sleeping here though, just enjoying snugglin' up with her Grandma.

He has Risen!

He has risen indeed! Happy Easter everyone. We had a wonderful Easter today. We started off with attending our church, and then had a wonderful Easter brunch with Mike's family.

Sofie in her Easter Dress that matches Lilia's

Oh, John-John, what a smile

Lilia, matching her big "Sosa"

The In-Laws, part of our brunch bunch

Glory to God in the Highest! Only through His son, Jesus Christ, does any of this have meaning.

Um...It's still snowing...

(If you can look past the fact that it is March, this shot is of my back yard. Truly beautiful)

Spring in the North

Spring has sprung, the birds are chirping, the temperatures are rising, it's snowing so hard you can't see ....

Welcome to spring in the North. This is doing nothing for the cabin fever we've all been experiencing since February. This morning Sofie asked, " Mom, is the snow EVER going to melt?"
I don't know Sofie, I don't know...

Easter Eggs

This morning we dyed and decorated Easter Eggs. The kids had a lot of fun and only cracked a couple of shells.... They can't wait to have them for breakfast in the morning.

Hair Issues

I'm the mother of two girls, there are going to be hair issues all the time. Lilia is the one with the current hair issues. She has decided that it has not been a worthwhile meal experience until at least some of it gets rubbed in her hair. Yesterday morning it was the milk from her breakfast cereal. Tonight it was the piece of buttered bread, that she didn't eat. This is compounded with the fine blond head of baby hair that she is sporting. Needless to say she has a bath in her very near future, again...

Yesterday's milk...
Today's buttered bread...

Taking Bibles to Church

The whole thing innocently started with a revelation for Sofie. Yesterday she runs up to me with my old college NIV Bible in hand... "Mom! Do you know that all my Sparks verses are in the Bible?!" ( For those of you who don't know, Sparks is part of a scripture memory club that Sofie attends on Wednesday night at our church, they also sing, play games, listen to stories...)She had been reading in the beginning of John and was recognizing some verses she had memorized.

So the rest of the day she is voraciously reading, trying to find more verses that she recognizes. Now at this point my heart is soaring and I'm so impressed that she is sitting on the couch laboring through being a beginning reader trying to read the John 1.

Well then this morning (Sunday) we are all getting ready for church, we are getting shoes and coats on and heading out the door. Now for those of you who don't know, it's stressful to get 3 kids out the door on Sunday morning. In the midst of all this Sofie asks, "Mom, can I bring the Bible to church?"

I say "No, it's big and heavy, you might forget it somewhere and we'll lose it, No." To which she starts to cry and promises to not do any of the things I listed. And I realize the absurdity of it all, I'm making my daughter cry because I won't let her take a Bible to Church! So then I, thankfully, was able to do a reality check, change my answer and let the poor girl bring her Bible to Church. The absurd twists and turns that parenting takes, huh.

The 100 Acre Wood

My kids love to dress up, that's no secret. And I know I've taken quite a few pictures of them all dressed up, but it just so cute! So when I was told that they were going to play 100 acre wood, I dropped my laundry folding and got the camera....Sofie was Kanga, Lilia was Roo (even though she had on the Piglet costume) and John was Tiger.

Hats

I was making supper this evening and this is what Lilia was doing. It was so cute I had to take a picture.



She was trying on every hat that she could find. Of course then pulling them over her head completely.
So after the photo-op was over I had to take them away lest she throw herself down the stairs...
which then results in this kind of picture....

Again?

Hello! I haven't posted in forever! Nothing is going on is the problem. I am so SICK of winter (snow has been DEEP on the ground, here, since we came back from Atlanta after Thanksgiving) and every day is just a waiting game to see if maybe today we might make it all the way up to the freezing mark. Supposedly today is the day, but I'm not holding my breath. The thermometer says 19 degrees right now. Which actually is warm, comparably.

Anyway, I have thought I would post an absolutely hilarious moment Sofie and I had the other day.

Sofie's laying on the couch reading Frog and Toad. I'm sitting there also looking at a magazine. Every once in a while she pulls me out of my concentration to ask me what a word is...

Sofie; "Mom, what's this word?" and point to it.
Me: " I can't see it, spell it to me"
Sofie: " A-G-A-I-N"
Me: "Again"
Sofie: "A-G-A-I-N"
Me: "Yep, Again"
Sofie: little pause, "A-G-A-I-N!"
Me: Now looking up from the magazine in confusion, "Yes, Again"
Sofie: "Mom why do I have to spell it again?! I just did!"
Me: "No, Sofie, the WORD is 'again', I'm not asking you to spell it again!"
Sofie: "OOHHHH!"

Our very own Abbot and Costello moment for you....