Happy 200th Post!

Wow! It's my 200th post today! Who knew I had so much to say?......Okay....dumb question. Quickly moving on......

Anyhoo - in honor of this glorious occasion, I'm going to share with you all a family favorite recipe. Over at the Booker homestead, we are all carbo-holics - especially my wee ones. My in-laws have this crazy healthy bread that they make and have for breakfast every morning. (There is no one on this green earth who I know of that eats more healthy than these two. Not one single thing that is not good for them ever enters their mouths. They don't even eat organic food out of cans because of the aluminum). So, I've gotten some fun recipes from them over the years, and I'm going to share this one with you now.

This is a very hearty and heavy bread, so we don't really use it for making sandwiches. It's the best eaten as toast with some yummy natural peanut butter and homemade jam slathered on. De-lish! I've adapted the recipe a wee bit, because I like my bread more moist than they do. So, I'll give you the recipe that I use, with the original in parenthesis. I also use my bread machine to do all of the kneading and rising for me. I know. I know. It's not TRULY homemade when you do it that way. But, I'm lazy in the kitchen, and I wouldn't make it nearly so often if I stood there and did the kneading all myself. You can do it all the old fashioned way just like you would make any other bread, if that suits you better. I take it out of the machine and let it do its final rise in a bread pan before I bake it. Okay, here goes.....

1 1/2 Cups whole wheat flour
2 Cups unbleached white flour (The original recipe calls for 1C. wheat, 1C white, 1C spelt, and 1C combo of other flours such as: quinoa, millet, rye, brown rice, etc).
1 1/2 Cups old fashioned oatmeal - NOT quick cooking oats (If you go by the original recipe, only use 1C of oatmeal because of adding all of the other flours. Clear as mud?)
2 heaping tsp. dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 heaping TBlsp. wheat gluten (DO NOT omit. Necessary to bind the flours)
3 TBlsp. wheat germ
2 TBlsp. oat bran
1 TBlsp. sesame seeds
1 TBlsp. poppy seeds
Approx. 1/2 cup ground flax seed (You need to grind it for your body to process it best)
1/3 Cup sweetener - I usually do mostly honey with some molasses mixed in
1/3 Cup olive oil
1 2/3 Cup water (The original recipe just calls for 2 Cups of water. The oil makes it moist)

If using a bread machine, put it on the dough setting and walk away for 1 1/2 hours. When done, put it over into a greased bread pan and let rise until twice its size. If doing the old fashioned way - just do what you do!

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. The top should be nicely browned.
It's the best!

I've Been Robbed!

Over the past couple of weeks, I've noticed something strange going on whenever I've tried to access my Discover credit card. Some places would accept it, but other places would tell me that I was being denied. I thought this was weird seeing as how it doesn't expire until July. I hardly ever use it, though, so I didn't really think too much of it.

Until yesterday.

I mentioned to Kev how I just tried to pick up a couple of groceries and I was not being allowed access. He suggested I call their customer service line, and come to find out.......some dude (or dude-ette for all I know) has been using my numbers to get gas over in Brooklyn, New York! Of all the nerve! I have no idea how they got my info, but for the past couple of weeks, someone has been swiping gas with my numbers. I'm not quite sure why they've only used it at gas stations, though. That's a little weird....but besides the point.

Our card company noticed and thought it to be out of the ordinary card use activity for me, so they put a hold on it, and that's why I haven't been able to use it! Frustrating as all get out, and I'm actually feeling a little violated to tell you the truth. But, those cards have now been cut and trashed so Mr. or Mrs. Farty-Pants over in Brooklyn will now have to find someone else to rip off. Yeesh.

Friday Fun

Well, tonight we headed out to rent a movie and instead found ourselves driving around Core Creek Park, Dunkin Donuts in hand, and just checking things out. We counted over twenty deer and then decided to take a little stroll around the river and have a look see. We found an awesome place to go and hike and have a picnic tomorrow, but the highlight of the evening was......drum roll please......the finding and keeping of yet another salamander for Kaden. This one is quite large and has been named "Joshua." Oh the fun! We researched online to make sure he won't kill our baby "Ant Ant," and the verdict seems to be that they will do just fine. Hmmmm...I wonder how many more we can find tomorrow?!

Yep. So, I've gone from having something cutesy as my table centerpiece to having two little salamanders AND two meal worms in another little plastic container right beside them - front and center. We also have a jar of mealworms in the fridge for our salamanders to dine on, but we've been told that if you don't refrigerate them they will turn into beetles. So, we shall see!

Peter and Shan.....are you still looking forward to coming for a visit? I promise that we'll move the critters when we eat! :0) But for now, science experiments are at work. Can two salamanders live together as friends? And will our meal worms truly turn into beetles? Stay tuned!!

When Mommy is Away....

When Kev got home from school today he let me scoot out for a few hours while he offered to stay home with the boysies. This was a very nice, unexpected gift, and I flew like the wind conquering all of the little things that have been on my list for weeks but that haven't been quite worth unstrapping two wee ones in and out of cars seats in order to get done. (Whew! THAT was a really long run-on sentence!)

So, anyway....I scored a brand new winter jacket for Jesse to wear next year at a whopping $6! Whoo-hoo! I found a couple of treasures at my little antiquey store that I love, did some returns, found a bathing suit that this body that has birthed two can somewhat handle, and purchased a birthday gift for a friend. Not too shabby for someone who hates to shop! Anyway, I digress from the point of this post.

Upon returning home, my apartment had been transformed! While I was away, Daddy and the boys set up our HUMONGOUS tent in the middle of the living room, put a camp chair in there for Kaden - along with ALL of his stuffed animals and tools for fixing whatever needed fixing, and there they sat - happily playing and eating pancakes for supper! Oh my word! It was so cute, and Kaden was so hyper and happy. Our neighbors from upstairs came down to ask us something and as soon as the door opened, they had to step right into the tent in order to even get into our apartment! So, they came in and had a little sit down for a few minutes with us right inside the tent. Fun fun!

It is very true that Daddy's and Mommy's play very differently with their children! I would have - you know - colored with them or read stories.......

My New Fave!

This, my friends, is the MOST delish coffee of all time! Green Mountain only puts it out for a few months, so one is required to stock up should they so desire to consume this beverage all throughout the year, but oh man - it is SO good!

One would argue that I am not a true coffee lover because this is flavored. However, I beg to differ. I can drink the strongest of brews with the best of you thanks to hubby working at Starbucks for those many months. I've actually gone from thinking that their "bold" brews tasted like sheep excrement (a proper term if I do say so myself, Scott L!) to rather enjoying them. So, I can honestly say that I like ALL coffee.

But this is by far, the MOST delish of all! Thanks to my phone call with Angie this afternoon, I am properly wired on this fantastic-ness.

P.S. Can anyone tell me why this picture is at the bottom of my post instead of up top where I asked it to be? Hmmmm.....still learning.

Dying Phones.....

So I just got off the phone with my dear friend Angie. It's no secret that I really don't enjoy talking on the phone, but when it comes to her it never seems long enough! As soon as I see her number on my caller ID, I immediately reach for the coffee, grind myself a strong brew, and settle in.

EXCEPT THE PAST TWO CONVERSATIONS MY PHONE HAS DIED MIDWAY into our solving all of the world's problems! I tell you what, if I was a swearing woman........ Just kidding. Kind of. Man - that burns me! Seriously. My phone only dies with her, because it's never usually off that hook for that long of a time!

I love our conversations. They always go all over the place with tons of little random rabbit trails everywhere! They might start with talking about her daughters sharing a room together, move to school choices, jump over to how things are going at her church, and end up with talking about how comparion to others destroys our own contentment! And that's just one bitty conversation! I love it!

So I sit here wired up on WAY too much coffee - I never drink midday - and feeling frustrated that my phone died midway through one of your sentences. But, I'm also thankful for you, dear friend. Although I have seen you only three or four times since our Bible School days, I love that we just pick up wherever we leave off. I love that you love me for who I am. I love that you are real with me about your life. I love that you're not afraid to share your struggles with me. And I love that you inspire me, you stretch me, you make me think, and you make me laugh!

You were the highlight of my day, dear friend. Much love to you!

Yackety Yack....

So, nothing new or exciting to report today. Just life as we know it.

It's beautifully sunny out today and is supposed to hit about fifty degrees. I babysit the wee ones, and I may just bundle us all up and head outside if we get a little cagey. As I type, the babies are sleeping and Kaden and Reid are up at the table giggling through snack. It's been a good morning. All three of the boys - Jesse included - had a little band going on this morning. Kaden played a horn, Reid banged on some drums, and Kaden frantically shook some maracas and managed to only konk himself in the head a couple of times. Little Meg - the only girl of the group - just sat propped up on the couch with her eyes as big as saucers wondering what all the rukus was about! It was pretty cute! I got some good video footage.

We'll go for a walk before naptime. When the boys wake up, Daddy is coming home early from school, and we're going to head out to a park for a few hours before bedtime. It's been pretty lazy and quiet around here since Easter. Yesterday, we did lots of painting, a little baking, a little laundry, a little digging of worms for our salamander, a little reading of books, a little riding of bikes, and a lot of usage of our imaginations. Today, we'll probably do a nice repeat of yesterday - only with a little Rita's thrown in for good measure!

Life is good.

Happy Easter!

Despite the unearthly hour of having to get ready for church today, I do believe that this was one of my most favorite Easters, thus far in my wee little life! Nothing overly amazing happened - it was just one of those days that was really good.

We woke both boys out of a dead sleep and put them in the car in their p.j.'s at 5:30 and headed off to our sunrise service. I had hoped that they would fall back asleep and get another 45 minutes of shut eye on our way. Kaden is used to getting up early for trips, and he usually goes right back to sleep within a few minutes. Not today though, my friends! Jesse found it quite exciting to be all cozy in his carseat in the pitch dark first thing in the morning, and he happily grunted and growled the entire way to church, thus keeping Kaden awake. Both boys were happy and content, though, despite missing some much needed sleep.

We had a really nice sunrise service followed by a delish breakfast. And then we had a great Easter service that was pretty packed out with everyone's family and loved ones. We had no practice after church, so we made it home around noonish, which is really nice for us. After a hodge podge of sorts for lunch, the boys went to nap, and I actually took an impromptu nap with Jesse which was really nice. We haven't done that for awhile.

Then, when everyone woke up, it was still so beautiful and warm we decided to go have a BBQ and picnic at Core Creek Park. We made yummy burgers, played on the playground, went exploring in the woods, picked numerous rocks, sticks, and leaves out of Jesse's mouth, and then came home - tired and grubby, but happy. Jesse is snoozing away, Kaden and Daddy just got done playing cars and now they're snuggled up on the couch reading, and I am off to snuggle with my hubby after Child Numero Uno hits the hay! A GREAT day!

Spring Days!

Today was SO gorgeous! Sunny and warm with crocuses and daffodils in bloom. It was so nice!

We hid a whole whack of eggs for Kaden to hunt this morning. He's been finding them all throughout the day! I know that a lot of people don't do anything commercialized with their kids for Easter, but we feel that there is no harm in having him go on a little hunt once a year. Here comes my justification: We've read the Easter story while using the resurrection eggs more times than I can count, we've talked and prayed together about Easter every day for weeks now, and we're making the resurrection rolls tomorrow, so I feel like we've balanced it pretty well. Kaden knows what Easter is all about, and he's just as excited to go to church tomorrow and celebrate as he was to hunt for his eggs this morning. So anyway, that's just what we do, and it's been fun!

We went to the pet store after Jesse's nap and got Kaden's salamander some wax worms seeing as how he's not enjoying his worms or crickets. Spoiled rotten, he is. Then, we went to a fun little Amish market and got some yummies for Easter dinner tomorrow and had a yummy little lunch. No big plans for getting together with people tomorrow. We have to leave our place at 5:30 in the morning to make it to our sunrise service, so we'll keep it pretty low key for the rest of the day.

So...it's been a nice family day. By the way - girlies from home, thanks for the fun phone call message! So nice that you were thinking of me while you were out and about! Is there a Panera in Bangor? Whoo-hoo! French onion soup, here I come!

Happy Easter, all!

It's a Sad Day....

Well, my dear friend Rachey left me today. Our week together absolutely flew by. She was my sanity out here when she and her hubby lived here. We were in the same program together, the same stage of life marriage wise, we both had babies while we were out here, we share the same loves and interests, and, well - I was just blessed to have her for those two years. This last year has been a little rough without her!

So, we had seven days of visiting, eating, going on adventures whenever one of the three kiddos wasn't napping, and just some really great talks sharing hopes, dreams, struggles, wisdom, advice - you name it. It was Heaven. And tonight I'm sad.

On another note......I just don't think it's going to work out between your wee one and my Jesse. I think she's looking for a guy who is, shall we say, a little less intense? She didn't seem overly impressed by his bathtime splashing, or by his toy bonking. Come to think of it, by the end of the drive to the airport today, she really didn't even want him looking at her, did she? :0) Just kidding! She did awesome with two crazies for the week!

Resurrection Rolls

Here's a fun snack to make with your kiddos that is both delish and also helps them to celebrate Easter in a fun and different way:

Ingredients: 1 package refrigerated cresecent roll dough, 8 large marshmallows, 2 T. melted butter, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1 T. sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Give each child one triangle of crescent dough and a marshmallow. (The roll represents the cloth that Jesus' body was wrapped in and the marshmallow represents Jesus. Just go with it, guys!) Have each child dip the marshmallow in the melted butter. (You can explain that this represents the embalming oils). Next, dip the marshmallow in the cinnamon and sugar. (These represent the spices used to anoint Jesus' body). Wrap the coated marshmallow tightly in the crescent roll - not like a typical crescent roll, but bring up and seal the marshmallow inside. (This represents the wrapping of Jesus' body after His death). Put the rolls on an ungreased cookie sheet and place them in the oven. (This represents Jesus' tomb).

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven, cool slightly.

When rolls are cool, the kids can open up their rolls (the burial cloths) and discover that Jesus (marshmallow) is no longer there! NOTE: IF the crescent rolls are sealed well, the marshmallow will melt and the roll will be puffed up, but empty.

HE IS RISEN!

Slightly cheesy, but fun!

Out of Comission!

Not sure of the spelling on that word........(commission?)
Anyhoo....

I haven't done any blogging for the past few days because my dear friend Rachel - who left me and moved to Indiana - has flown in for a week long visit with her little baby! Soooo, since I only have her for a few days, we need to paint the town as red as we can with three wee ones who are all on completely different schedules! I'm soaking in every minute that I can with her and am not doing much more.

So far, we've just done a lot of visiting. We went to Lancaster for the day on Saturday and did a little antiquing, we've played outside and gone to the school to feed the ducks, (Yesterday, the duck that I like to hold chomped right down on my lip! I guess he didn't want any kisses!), we've hit a few stores, watched a movie, ate lots, gone for a walk, and have just enjoyed being with each other. We have a list of things that we want to accomplish in the little time that she's here, and we've only just begun. :0)

Jesse has also managed to sufficiently overwhelm her daughter. He even made her cry in the bathtub with his voracious splashing! She is now tolerating him, at least; she just keeps her distance! I'm not sure what she thinks of all of these males in this house! A delicate rose among thorns....

Okay. We've off to conquer! Good times!

Our Newest Addition

Kaden is pleased and proud to announce that a new member has joined our family. He has his very first "real" pet. Last night at Tyler State Park, we found a little baby salamander and Daddy told him that he could bring it home to keep for his very own. This was oh so very exciting! We brought some of the leaves, rocks, and dirt that he had been living under back home with us, Mommy sacrificed one of her tupperware for the cause, and now we have the cutest little guy living on our kitchen table for all the world to see! I fear that he may not live long, as Kaden always wants to hold him and dig for him under the leaves, but we shall see.

And his name? Well, it's a classic: Ant Ant.
I have no idea, but I told him it fit perfectly.

(And Trishy-Poo....if you could give me a little brush up on how to post images, I'd like to do a little pic for you all to gaze at....but alas - I have forgotten that skill).

A Couple a' Funnies.....

A couple of weeks ago, a man in our church offered to snuggle with Jesse while we had worship practice. Upon handing Jesse back to me he grunted: "You can tell this kid's from Maine. He's as heavy as a moose!" We were so proud! :0)

Yesterday, Kaden asked if he could play one of his instruments while I was getting Jesse settled and ready for bed. I told him that he could play for as long as I was feeding Jesse, but then he had to stop because it would be too loud. Kaden's response:

"Okay. So as soon as he's done milking you, you want me to be done?"

Yeah. Something like that.

Learning to Slow Down

Again. Will I ever get this down?

Warning: Long and rambly post ahead. Feel free to skim! But, if you REALLY love me, you'll read every word.....:0)

I feel like all I am constantly doing lately is assessing and reassessing life. Since Jesse has entered our world, it seems like we have just been living in one big whirlwind, and I have just been hanging on for dear life trying to savor the ride but trying to still stay one step ahead of the game, as well.

For some reason, (okay for several) this past year has probably been the absolute craziest of our entire marriage. Between grad school for Kev, me finishing up my Bachelor's Degree, Jesse's birth and fussiness the first half of his life, losing our support system with all of our friends leaving, multiple little side jobs for the both of us, and then Jesse getting burned...sometimes we have felt like we can hardly take the time to breathe.

SO - this past week I got done one of my babysitting jobs. Doesn't sound like much, and financially, it's probably not the wisest move, but for the sake of my sanity and for the sake of my boys so that I can be a better mommy, it's what we've decided to do. And it's been a good move.

Kev and I always go into Kaden's room right before we go to bed and we'll often lay down beside him and scratch his back, or just look at him and talk about him, or - Kev's personal favorite....he'll try to make Kaden laugh in his sleep by saying all kinds of super dumb things. Kaden is SUCH a deep sleeper, we can dress him and undress him, and he doesn't have a clue! So, it's fun to try to mess with his head while he's so far gone! Anyway, a couple of nights ago after leaving his room, I just got totally weepy! Here is this huge kid with these legs that practically reach the foot of the bed who is becoming so independent and big. I just had one of those moments where I was like: "Where has his babyhood gone? Kaden is a little BOY now!" And Jesse is almost ONE already! WHAT IS UP WITH THAT? HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

And it just hit me so hard!

I got to thinking about this past year and how crazy life has been. I have tried so hard to savor him every step of the way; and I've tried to be intentional about having alone time with JUST him - talking to him, playing with him, and doing what HE loves. But I wonder if I could have done more. If I could have savored him just a tiny bit more. I know that I'm a good mom, and I know that my boys will NEVER question my love for them, but it's so easy to allow time to slip through your fingers. One day, you kind of wake up and realize that almost another whole year has passed. It's crazy!

I never in a MILLION years thought that I would be "one of those mothers" who would cry when their kids went to school on their first day. I pictured myself enjoying my newfound independence and throwing myself back into the things that I used to love but had let fall by the wayside during the childrearing years! There was a part of me that honestly wondered if I was even cut out for motherhood, and for many a year I had NO desire to join the ranks of millions of other diaper bag toting, snot and spit up covered, howling child holding mommies! Nothing about that even appealed to me! But - holy dyin - motherhood has done something to me. I love these kids so much, it is sometimes physically painful!

I love this quote that I found a couple of years ago. I have it in both of my boy's baby books:

"Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous! It is to decide FOREVER to have your heart go walking around outside your body." - Elizabeth Stone

Isn't that good? And OH SO true! So, anyway - after being all blubbery to Kev, I am - once again - stepping back, reassessing, and seeing where I can slow down and savor a little bit more in my life. It's not like I'm super crazy or anything, I just know when things start to feel a little crowded and I start to feel a little frazzled and I forget. It was really only one little moment with my sleeping little boy, but it was good for me. It was enough. So, there's the reason for me getting done babysitting. And today I let the laundry and the dishes fall by the wayside and we just played.

Saturdayz!

It's been a good day. A messy day, but really good, nonetheless.

It's been raining cats and dogs, but oh so warm! Next time I'm at Wal-mart I need to get Kaden some wellies so we can go puddle hopping! Because we played so much over spring break, Kev had to do some catching up today, so the wee ones and I entertained ourselves. Kev did work at home today, but I'm wondering how much he really got accomplished. We're a rowdy bunch.

Our morning began with Kaden making us a "bonfire" in a huge plastic tub. He poured tons of tiny toys into it for wood, and we sat around it with our graham cracker smores and coffee. Then, I tried out a new recipe for puffy paint. I don't quite have the proportions right, yet, as it lost it most of its puffiness after it dried. It was still fun, though, and once I perfect the recipe I'll pass it on. While we painted, Jesse happily chewed on some of Kev's song sheets at my feet and managed to eat a good chunk of it before I caught him. Good times!

When Jesse woke up from his morning nap, Kev took a break from schoolwork and we ran out and did some errands and got a snack. Both boys slept wretchedly this afternoon, but it's just as well. With the time change, and it being our longest day tomorrow, they'll both go down for the night at 6:00 and hopefully not be too affected by the lost hour.

Before supper, I gave them both a bath. Jesse managed to get a hold of Kev's coffee (it was cold, at least) and dumped it all over himself and the floor! So - to the tub we went. Jesse is quite the voracious bath taker and he literally soaked our bathroom floor with his splashing! During his entire bath, his eyes were red rimmed from always getting water in them, and he was constantly burping from all of his water intake! I got soaked from head to foot, and Kaden just shook his head and backed into the farthest corner of the tub to watch the show!

Now they are both p.j.'d up and smelling delish. The evening is winding down, the apartment is still trashed, and we are happy. It's been a good day. Well, I must be off. Jesse is about ready to ram a hanger down his throat......Lord have mercy!

Sigh!

Well, we are back home again. I do love my little haven here, but I had an instant feeling of claustrophobia as soon as we pulled into our yard. It was good for my soul to be out in the wide open spaces for awhile. I need it; it's in my blood. I even loved the perpetual smell of barns and horse manure in the air! Kaden, on the other hand, would loudly say "Ewww! Stinky poop!" whenever he got a whiff!

The boy's Great Grammy gave them each a little cash for Christmas, so yesterday afternoon, we took them on a train ride in Strasburg all through the Amish country. Jesse was free, so he generously bought my ticket for me! What a sweet chap! :0) We rode on the oldest working train in the state and got a fabulous history lesson as we chugged our way through the countryside. It was SO awesome!

After that, we just putzed around here and there, went for a scenic drive, and then we all went swimming in the evening. Today we just enjoyed our room until it was time to leave. While Jesse got his morning nap in, Kaden, Kev, and I did a puzzle and played Go Fish - in which Kev cheated, let me add - and then we hit the road for home. On our way home, we went to Kitchen Kettle Village and got tons of yummy samples from one of their stores, stopped at a market that sells bulk food supplies, stopped at a farm and bought some homemade root beer, and stopped at another house and bought a homemade chicken pot pie for supper. We're pretty much all about the food! We also played on a little playground and sat in some grass and watched some little goats play for awhile, too! Random - but glorious!

So, now we're home. I don't know about you, but when I come back from being gone for a few days, I can't just simply unpack. I have to dust and vacuum, rearrange a little, and do a little organizing too in order to feel settled back in! Slightly anal, me thinks, but it's just how I am. So, now that is done, all of my boys are abed, and I must hit the hay, as well. A mountain of laundry and an empty fridge await me in the morning!

Vacay - Day 3

Sheer bliss, I tell you.

The weather has been glorious - springlike really, the scenery soothes my soul, the food bloateth my belly, and this girl is ready to re-enter society refreshed and rejuvenated.

As I type, Jesse is napping in the next room and Kevin and Kaden are outside exploring and throwing a ball around. We used to not have the kids nap when we went away on vacay. We just threw their entire routine to the wind, but we have learned that our entire family does better if at least some semblance of our normal rhythms and routines are maintained. Besides, Kaden loves napping in hotels. He finds it quite exciting. Jesse still crabs just as much when we lay him down, but he naps nonetheless.

So, let me give you the breakdown of what we've been doing. Yesterday, besides a boatload of eating, we went to a few little outlet stores, drove around and explored, swam, and went for a little walk around our place. A highlight for me was checking out a couple of very awesome little antiquey stores - where I purchased FOUR (count them!) really cute little iron and wooden chairs to sit out on our porch for $5!! (Five buckaroos, Baby!) I only wanted two, but they all came together! Kev says that's really great since they're all decrepit anyway, we'll have spares for when they break. He doesn't appreciate a great bargain when he sees one!

Did I mention that we have a whirlpool hottub in our room? Seriously - for no extra charge, you can get a hottub in your room. Who wouldn't? So, while the boys napped yesterday, I did a little scrapbooking and Kev did a little hottubbing. Sheer bliss, I tell you! I put Jesse in it this morning. He loved splashing and grabbing at the water. I was sorely tempted to dunk him under and see if he could swim, but I figured I've given Kev enough stress lately, as far as this child is concerned!

Our little place overlooks a humungous field, and across the field there is a little one room Amish schoolhouse. I've been watching the kids play outside. I am so drawn to this whole lifestyle! Aside from having to wear a dress everyday and wear one of those funky little bonnets, I love much of what these people stand for and how they live. It really appeals to me. A lot of hard work, simplicity, and family. I love it.

Okay, Jesse will be waking up soon, and I must get really to go and conquer the rest of this country before we head back to ghetto-land tomorrow - you know - Filthydelphia, the city of brotherly Shove! Just Kidding!......kinda'

We Be Amish....

Don't ask. I don't know either. That was just Kev's contribution to this post....He's looney.

Well, Kev and I are sitting on our duffers at our fantabulous little getaway spot in Lancaster, PA. Aside from me getting us lost on our trip out - (we ended up at the Delaware border before we realized... not sure how that happened) - it's been wonderful! I've officially decided that I wouldn't be good at Amazing Race, though.

We have a wonderful little spot that overlooks wide open spaces of fields and fields, Kaden has a pool so he's stoked, and we are just soaking it in. No big agenda; just lots of family time together. Okay, it's late so I'm signing off. Even though it's vacation, our two little alarm clocks don't know the difference!

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Okay. My computer illiterate-ness still ranks high, but thanks to my friend Trish (whooo-hoooo! Did you see that? That's called a "hyper-link" thank you very much!!! Yee-haw!), it's not as high as it once was. Oh my! I'm quite excited about all that I have learned. Granted, I've forgotten a ton already, but she taught me some pretty cool stuff. My blog is still a work in progress - I haven't got it exactly how I want it yet - but it's coming. Anyway, many thanks to you, sweet friend! With four kids running around, we still managed to have a very nice brunch, a good visit, and a lovely little teaching session. Well, except for the paint incident in the kitchen where it looked like a murder took place....... All in all, the kids entertained themselves quite well!

So....it's been awhile since I've posted. Life has been TOO busy this past week. But, it's almost over and all is well. Allow me to give you all a brief (well, brief for me) update on the good things that took place. Today is the first day that Jesse is completely bandage free! We've been trying some homeopathic stuff on his hands, but today we just decided to let him be free. And we are ALL quite happy about this, let me tell ya. I can't tell you how much I love seeing those little chubby fingers again.

Spring break begins on Monday, and for one final last hurrah before graduation, our whole little family is going to go away for a few nights. We are all super excited and ready for a little change of pace. Life has been a wee bit crazy these past couple of weeks. Too crazy, if you ask me. So, we're all ready to just kick it for awhile and hang out as a family with no outside pressures vying for our time and attention.

Kev and I went on a date this past Tuesday, which was SO nice. It was good to catch up, reconnect, visit with no interruptions, fill our faces with yummy food, and dream about our future together. Well, maybe it looked more like "stress about our future," but it was good! I love that we never run out of things to say to each other....and when we do, it's a nice comfortable silence. And I also love being foolish and silly with him. We went to see a movie after dinner, and there were only four other people in the whole theatre. So, we were able to laugh, talk, and snort to our hearts content without getting into trouble! Good times.

Today is Kev's final Saturday class! We're both quite happy about this. A friend came for lunch, so that kept us occupied, and then I gave her a tour of the campus before the boys' naps. Kaden loves to feed the ducks, so we went and sat down by the pond for awhile. They're quite tame - a little freakishly so, and they were trying to eat out of our hands when there wasn't even any food in them! While I was putting Jesse in the backpack, one came over and nipped at his finger! Another one let me pick him up today. I was so happy that he let me snuggle him! I'm sure we made quite the sight - Kaden riding his tricycle all through the duck poop, and me just walking all over the lawn with Jesse on my back and a little ducky in my arms. Sheer bliss!

Okay, well that was a wee update. A little random and nothing overly exciting, but a little window into our lives nonetheless.....