Horsing Around in Solano Beach

We took some time off last weekend and went down to the San Diego area for a mini-vacation at the beach. On Saturday we spent the afternoon at the races, which was our draw to get us there, because Zinyatta was racing and we got to try all of the samples for the chili cookoff and test the salsas from the salsa competition. The kids loved playing on the playground and seeing all of the horses. Really, the best part though, was all of the rest of the fun we had away from the track. We stayed at one of our friends' house that is about 2 blocks from the beach, so we were able to go for a walk along the beach after walking down to dinner at a local taco shack, then we got up that morning and spent some time at the beach where the kids dug in the sand and Daddy buried us to our knees...For all of the things we want and think we need at home, it sure was simple being able to live out of two suitcases and a cooler. Oh yeah, and winning $160 on a trifecta made it all essentially a free trip. Not bad for 48 hours away from home.

Sac Town

We went up North last weekend to visit Uncle Eddie and Erika and Trace....who's Trace you ask? Oh, Trace Adkins. We got to see him in concert with Toby Keith and "Jaron and the Long Road to Love" (why doesn't he just call himself Jaron?). The highlight of the concert was the finale when both TA and TK took the stage to sing "Courtesy of the Red White & Blue". They brought a soldier in uniform up out of the crowd to sing the "Kick your Ass" line and it was awesome. The next day we went to the state fair to see the animals, ride the rides, and try some crazy confections like chocolate covered bacon (served frozen if you can imagine that). It was a fun trip and the kids just loved playing with Uncle Eddie & Erika. Thanks guys for inviting us to share the weekend with you. Here's 8 quick pages of highlights from the weekend:

Concert in the Park

We went to see Leann Rhimes last week in Beaumont with one of our friends from the area. Although she's not even remotely a country fan, she was a good sport and escorted us because she knew we are huge country fans in our house (refer back to our Stagecoach posts).

The afternoon was perfectly mild and we got there with plenty of time to lay out our blanket about 50 yards from the stage. What a great opportunity to see such a big name up close in concert. It wasn't too crowded either although the crowd behind us almost tripled by the time Leann took the stage. The kids had fun playing with their glow-in-the-dark wand/sword while we waited and we got to enjoy a nice evening of music and pizza in the park. Thanks Jill-b-sue.

Christmas in July

My nutty little girl decided to play dress up the other day and what better in our 100 degree heat than to try out her winter gear? Crazy kid.

In Over His Head

We are having a fun time with the kiddos at the pool this summer. Our ultimate goal is to try to get them both to swim without the aid of flotation devices. I'm sure Daddy has visions of going on rafting trips with them and boating and all sorts of adventures, but Mommy's vision is more along the line of getting to take them to the pool without having to get in and out thirty times to assist them....and a nice suntan wouldn't suck either.

So ahem, where were we? Oh yes, we want them to be able to swim. Well, along the path to this ultimate destination there are several obstacles. The first of which is them having the courage to float alone, without holding onto either of us. We worked at this all summer last year and they have pretty much accomplished that feat this summer. The next hurdle we are facing however is getting their heads in the water without them throwing a fit once they resurface (it's easy if you don't count the tantrum). Our solution with our little girl was to get her "swimming princesses" that Santa brought her last Christmas and have her dive for them. Thanks Sunshyne for that idea. But her brother has been more difficult. Granted, he IS a year younger, so I'm cutting him some slack, but man, he sure can throw a fit when he wants to.

The breakthrough happened last week when Daddy came with us to the pool. We brought the camera and our little darling wanted his moment of glory captured on film. It took Daddy several takes to finally get the timing of the camera down correctly (our poor little guy got several dunkings but was patiently cooperating). But we finally got our proof...

Heebie Jeebies

My little guy and I were washing the car the other day when he reached up toward the driver's side mirror and said "Mommy, there's cobwebs." In my best "I'm not going to give my son a phobia" voice I said "Oh, those are no big deal" and took a swipe at them with my itty-bitty, might-as-well-have-not-been-there cloth. Imagine my shock to see a clump of dirt the size of a quarter fall from the mirror. On IMMEDIATE closer investigation (note to self - dirt clumps do not live in spider webs), I realized that this was not only a large spider, but it's legs were tucked in toward it's body and it was a VERY VERY large spider.

I ushered my son as quickly as I could away from the car without trampling him and lept the stairs toward the kitchen to fetch a jar in what can only be explained as super-human majesty. In the process, I called to hubby "You've GOT to come see this", which must have sounded sincere since hubby was close on my coattails by the time I reached the car.

Now, as a side note, I hate spiders. Well, I guess hate is not the right word. I can appreciate that spiders are good for the ecology of the earth and eat flies and whatnot.....that being said, I abhor, nay LOATHE spiders. Ever since growing up in Northwest Oregon we have been on bad terms. You see, in Oregon, they not only have poisonous brown recluse spiders but also the less dangerous but much more ugly and unfortunately for me, much more prevalent in my father's wood pile "Wolf Spiders" (aptly named due to their color, hair and size). Did I mention I moved AWAY from Oregon? It wasn't just the rain. As much as I also hate black widows, they travel in solitude so once you kill or, in my case, catch one, there is unlikely to be any more of them.

Side note aside, I cannot squash any spider larger than, say, the head of a pin. I cannot bring myself to feel or hear that squish/cracking noise they make underfoot. I can, however, smash, slam, stomp, flick, catch (in a jar), and attempted in high school to freeze them to death. Adrenaline does weird things to a person.

Flash back to me quickly trapping this dirt clump spider into a glass jar for further inspection. After some review online I have concluded that what we found is an Orb Weaver. Now, this may mean nothing to you, but perhaps a picture will help:See his two devilish horns sticking out of his back? Coincidence? I think not.

Now, mind you, this creature was the size of a quarter WITHOUT the legs outstretched. It is closer to the diameter of a fifty-cent piece with legs. Go ahead, ask me, "Was I happy to have almost grabbed this beast?"

No. I was not happy.

However, I am now in a conundrum. It is too late for me to stomp, smash, or slam this thing. There is still the adrenaline in my system when I see him, but that reaction window has long passed. I am certainly not going to let it GO within a 20 mile vicinity of my home either (what if it returns with it's friends for revenge?). Alternatively I am not going to put it into my vehicle to take it elsewhere to release because what if I get to said destination and the spider mysteriously is no longer in the jar? I would have to sell my car. Right there. At said destination. Because I could never get in it again.

Then again, I cannot freeze this monster because in high school I took biology. In biology I remember we collected bugs. One of the suggested method for killing our biology collection was by putting them in a jar and then putting the jar in the freezer (or putting a cotton ball soaked in alcohol in the jar) and waiting for the bug to die. However, there were strict instructions to make sure that the bug actually DIED before removing it because inevitably, as was the case with our class just like all others, someone would try to stick a pin into their bug (or succeed) only to find out the little sucker was still squirmy. Picture me 30 years from now peering into my freezer trying to decide if my dirt clump spider was dead? No. Freezing is not an option. Nor is the cotton ball method.

So here I sit. Unable to kill this Orb Weaver and even now I look over at him in the jar every 22 seconds or so to make sure he hasn't mysteriously disappeared (I might have to move). I get the heebie jeebies just seeing him in there, watching me. Just THINKING about him watching me. I do not even like the picture of him on my website. It makes me uneasy. This whole business makes me unhappy.

We are at a stalemate.

Superman

My son came walking down the stairs this evening, proud as all get-out that he had dressed himself in his pajamas. I could hear him coming (3-year-olds are not quiet walkers, especially on stairs), but had to look when he declared "Mom, I'm Superman!"...I wasn't sure how to react when I saw him dressed like this:
I'm thinking that he just FELT like Superman for having dressed himself (albeit in mismatched jammies with the shirt on backwards), so my response was "You sure ARE buddy, you sure ARE" :)

A Greeting Card

Here's what my 4-year-old brought me on a homemade card:

"HAPEBRFDA"

Can you guess what it said?

Mah Boiz

I was happy to hear we would have such great attendance at my little man's 3rd birthday. This excitement was fizzled slightly when I found out that I would have to finish setting up and preparing for the party rather than go with hiking with the boys. Oh well, as it turns out, I needed the time to get everything together and they all lost their sunglasses that day so I saved myself a few bucks. Plus, we all got to play on the lake the following afternoon. All's well that ends well, right? Here's a nice pic of the guys before their hike:

My 3 Year Old Fireman

We had a super time playing with all of our friends and family last Saturday at my little guy's birthday barbecue. I suppose it's a little easier to believe he's three since he's already the same size as his sister who is almost 4.5 and wears the same size clothes and shoes. He's going to tower over her before she knows what happened. Happy birthday my little man~

Happy Birthday My Son

Seeing you sleeping on Grandpa's lap last weekend, it was hard to believe you've grown so quickly. I love you so much and wish you a wonderful fourth year. Love, mom

Another Zoo Day

Well, we visited again, and to spare you the slideshow of all of the cute pictures we got of the kids and animals (since I think we've done several in the past), I'll just show you this one pic of them with Grammy and Grandpa that we got on the turtle statue. It was a perfect day for the zoo and we had a wonderful time visiting with our family from up North.

...And Then There Were Two.

We have a pretty great group of friends from college and through the (gasp) TWELVE years since we graduated, they have gradually moved away and gotten married. Last weekend was the next in a series of friends to tie the knot. It was a beautiful service and all but one of the "fellas" was there. It really makes me feel old to compare this wedding to the first one and see how much we have changed, grown and aged. It won't be long before we're the ones footing the bill.

Best of Luck Jarrod & Ileen.

8 Years & counting

Well, if you think about the fact that we started dating back in 1995, really it's been FIFTEEN years that we've "been together" (as of fall of this year). I love you more every day sweetheart. I am thankful every day for you.

PSU 2010

Congratulations to my litte, I mean, OLDER sister who graduated from Portland State University with a degree in Geology last weekend. There were SOOOO many people there, literally thousands of graduates. She's been working toward this for a long time and it is quite an accomplishment to have kept up with studying when she lives over an hour from the school and has three tweens to take care of.Despite a miserably socialist, liberal and well, for lack of better word, poisonous keynote speaker, it was a nice ceremony. Plus we got to go to CPK afterward and spend time with family so I suppose it wasn't all in all a bad afternoon. Here's a pic of two of my beautiful nieces while we were waiting for the ceremony to begin:

What to Make

Here's a TOTALLY easy meat rub that I got from some magazine a few months back. This works on beef, pork & chicken:

1/4 cup Brown sugar
1/2 T Chile powder
2 t onion powder
2 t garlic powder
1 T paprika
1 t cumin
1 T salt
1 t oregano

Put it all in a Ziploc bag, drop in your meat and seal the bag. Press the rub into the meat by squishing the bag around in your hands for a little bit. Let sit for an hour or so then grill. Delish!

Congratulations

My eldest niece up in Oregon finished her confirmation in the Lutheran Church last weekend. I couldn't be more proud of my goddaughter.Isn't she beautiful? Congratulations Sweetheart~

What to Make

This recipe is SO easy that there's really only four steps. Just be sure you do them right.

It's mini meringues. They're fat free, only 11 calories a piece, require just three ingredients, and taste like the outside of a toasted marshmallow. Here's what you do:

Ratios: 1 egg white to 1/16 teaspoon tartar to 1/3cup sugar (increase as needed)

Easy Instructions
1 - Beat egg whites on high until frothy.
2 - Beat in cream of tartar and continue to mix until soft peaks form.
3 - Slowly beat in sugar and continue to mix until glossy and stiff peaks form.
4 - Bake on parchment lined cookie sheets for an hour at 225 degrees.

Detailed Instructions
Do this on a cool, dry day. Too much heat or humidity wreck havoc on the results. Take some fresh, room temperature egg whites. By that I mean no yolk, AT ALL and let them sit on the counter for half an hour before using, and don't use the ones in the carton - ask me how I know this. Put the egg whites into a large, clean, dry metal mixing bowl. Remember I said not to do this when it's humid? Meringues do not like water. Water = bad results.

Mix the egg whites on high until they just start to look frothy, maybe a minute or so on high. Then add in the cream of tartar as it continues to mix. Cream of tartar is an acid. It will make your meringues hold their shape and stay stiff in the end, which is a good thing.

Continue mixing on high (by that I mean do not ever ever ever stop the beaters from going through this whole process). Test the mixture when it approximately triples in size, that's right, I said TRIPLES, by dipping a teaspoon into the meringue. When you pull out the spoon, the meringue should make a peak on the spoon that folds over but does not run off of the spoon. At this point, begin SLOWLY adding sugar. If you add it to quickly your meringues will be gritty, which is no bueno. Once you have (did I mention gradually?) added all of the sugar, continue mixing until the meringue on a teaspoon makes a stiff peak that doesn't fold over. The meringue will appear glossy.

At this point you have two options, either cook as is, or GENTLY fold in any extract for flavor. Keep in mind that these meringues are mostly air (due to all of that high-speed mixing) so the rougher you are with the meringue, the more it is going to fall flat and ruin your results. I made mine recently with cocoa powder and banana extract and they tasted like chocolate covered bananas. If you don't like things that are delicious, then don't try this.

Put the meringue into a ziplock bag and seal it then cut off a tip and pipe the meringue onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Cook them for about an hour at 225 degrees. When they're done, either eat them all and sit around in a sugar induced coma or store them in a cool, dry place inside a air-sealed container. Really, at 11 calories a piece, you can eat several of these and still not feel too guilty about it.

More Fun At the Zoo

Recently, my darling children and I took their Nana on a morning trip to the zoo. Having annual passes is awesome for short day trips and lower stress levels. We heard that the polar bear exhibit had been updated and wanted to check it out for ourselves. The place was packed but we got to see zookeepers feed fist-sized meatballs to the tigers and watch the hippos party in the waterfalls and be more active than we'd ever seen them. Who knew Hippos went nuts like that for a little water massage? It was pretty cool. Note to self though: the zoo is pretty busy on weekends, it's best to go during the week when there are much smaller crowds.

Real Life Tonka Trucks

While we were visiting Bellingham, Washington, to drop Daddy off at his boat for his Alaska trip we spent some time at the harbor. My little man happened upon this green monster. He couldn't help but go climb up and get a closer look. Isn't this every boy's dream?

Within Reach

Hubby just returned from Alaska and I was delighted to see him and hear of his adventure with his friends. They took a fishing boat from Bellingham, Washington to Sitka, Alaska over a week long drive that ended in a couple days of fun ATV riding through the wilderness looking at all the neat wildlife. I have to say though, this might be my favorite picture. That's my hubby leaning off of the front of the boat, about an arm's length from one of the many porpoises that were swimming near the boat on their trip. What a neat thing for him to get to experience.

The Trench in My Driveway

Don't blame me.

Okay, DO blame me but it's not my fault.

Okay, it IS my fault, but my husband made me do it.

Well, to be honest, he didn't MAKE me do it - per say - but he wouldn't do it himself and he had the diamond blade power saw...at the least he's an enabler.

Our 20+ new cedar trees will thank me though and in 10 years there will be a wall of trees giving the house privacy from the road so all's well that ends well, right?

That's what happens when you tell your wife you aren't going to do it, presuming that it won't get done. He should have known I'd take matters into my own hands. He had it coming.

Our Local "Beach"

Sure, it's not the ocean, but it's a lake. Really, how much water do kids need? They're happy to play in our dog's water bowl. So it was a big treat to go down to the local beach club with some friends yesterday and spend some time in the sun.

A Beautiful View

What a darling snapshot, huh? Last weekend while my darling princess was off having lunch with the Disney ladies, hubby and I took our little man out into the forest one evening for some ATV riding. My son was exstatic to have us all to himself and relishes the ride between us through the national forest. Plus our pup got some much needed exercise. Here they are at one of our pit stops along the drive.

A Day Fit for a Princess

Recently, my little darling girl turned four years old. For her birthday, her Nana & Grandpa invited her to join them at California Adventure for a lunch with the Disney princesses and day of fun. She had a great time and on her way out of the park that afternoon, made a wish in the fountain to get to do it all again some day. She is so very sweet.

Kids are Great

I know that many of our guy friends (Brendan) are intimidated by our kids but really, kids are great. They offer many awesome opportunities and enrich your life more than most people know. Why, just last weekend at Stagecoach, they proved it to all of the guys who went with us.

This is for all of you who didn't want to go to Stagecoach because you thought it was just a bunch of boring 'ol country music....

Stagecoach 2010

Last weekend we went out to Indio and enjoyed the Stagecoach country music festival. We got to see Jason Aldean (my daughter's favorite), Billy Currington, Phil Vassar, Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland (Hubby's favorite) and Keith Urban. We had a fab time and can't wait to go again next year.

Not Quite "High" Enough

This year is the first year that my little darling is participating in the youth track & field program. She is LOVING it. I have to say, I was a little choked up to see her run with the other kids and be able to keep up and even beat some of them (who are all at least a year older). It turned into a bit of comedy of errors though to see her barrel though the hurdles, without even attempting to jump over then and then, well, let's just say she's not quite big enough for high jump...

Breakfast on the Boat

Yesterday we had a great morning. We headed out first thing on the boat and there was no one else on the water but us. It was so warm that we slathered on sunscreen to keep from burning even! Since it was so early, we hadn't even had breakfast yet. Thus, we made a quick stop at Mc-D's and ate on the boat. By 10 AM it started to get a little windy but we had already been on the lake for a couple hours so were ready to move on to other things and we took off for other adventures. What a great way to start our day.

What's So Great About the Ponies?

We are often asked that very question from people who hear that we spent the day at Santa Anita Park with the kids. They no doubt picture a bunch of over-age male spectators, smoking, drinking and cussing at their losing fillies. Well, in our experience, a day at the races is quite far from that image. Although there is a playground on the infield, we have never taken the kids there. Why would we? They already have a spectacular time. The things that they like the best are going to watch the horses line up before their races, cheering on "their" horses (chosen, no doubt, based on the number or color of the jersey), eating snacks, enjoying the sunshine, and getting a full day of undivided attention from Mommy and Daddy. By far, their favorite part is playing on the grass with us around the fountain outside the stadium between races. Here's some shots from our last trip...

Mayday

Uh oh.

The summer squash didn't like being put back outside. Neither did the basil. I guess it's a bit cold out there at night still. Do you think my little man will notice if I get new seeds and replant them? Rats.

On a brighter note, today we have about 10 bean sprouts and at least 10 pea sprouts popping up. I may need to get a bigger pot.

What to Make

YES. I made this.

Yes, the queen of setting the smoke alarm off to let me know that dinner is ready MADE THIS!
Okay, to be fair, I still set off the smoke alarm but that's because the ooey gooey goodness overflowed the pan and dripped on the bottom of the oven (silly me for not putting in a cookie sheet to catch drippings). It was totally - TOTALLY worth the 2 minute clean up.

This recipe was pretty easy (if you have a bread machine) and SO SO SO delicious. I'm talkin' "I made my hubby take over half of it to work just so I wouldn't eat it all" delicious. It's not exactly her recipe but I got the idea from the Pioneer Woman, she's amazing. Here's what to do:

Mix water, milk, egg, flour, sugar, salt, butter, cinnamon & yeast in your bread machine on the dough setting. "That sounds like a recipe for doughnuts" you say? Yep, it was. I did this part last night and just covered it and kept it in the fridge to make this morning.

Then this morning I woke up and rolled the dough out, spread out some butter on it then sprinkled it with a mix of cinnamon sugar. Then I rolled the dough and cut it to make cinnamon rolls. Next I melted a stick of butter (I never said it was GOOD for you), 1.5c brown sugar, 1T corn syrup and 2T of cream then poured it into a cake pan. I sprinkled some diced green apple on the syrup and topped it off with the rolls of cinnamon dough. After about 20 minutes in the oven I took it out, inverted it onto a plate and voila!

Here's hoping that today your ooey gooey goodness runs over like mine has~

Garden Update

We currently have 10 peas sprouts, five bean sprouts and three summer squash sprouts. All of those pots are starting to show green! Now if I could just coerce up the carrots and flowers....

A Princess Party

Last Saturday we had approximately 50 people over to our castle to help us celebrate our little princess turning FOUR! It was a very fun day and the kids had a great time. Thank you everyone for coming~

A Quiet Easter Morning at Home

Yesterday morning we woke up with no where to go. No one to call. Nothing pressing that HAD to be done. What a nice start to a quiet family Easter at home. The kiddos came in and crawled all over us in bed and we snuggled and cuddled a bit before Daddy headed down the stairs to make us all some waffles. After breakfast we all headed outside where it appears a rabbit had come to hide some eggs for the kids (and daddy) to find. There were 25 blue ones for a little boy, 35 pink ones for a little girl, and 45 green ones for the 30-something peter pan in our house. Much to her delight, and daddy's chagrin, my sweet daughter won the hunt by finding all of her eggs first. Her brother somehow lost two eggs (I'm guessing they were eaten) so we're not sure when he finally had all of his, but Daddy brought up the rear by finding his last egg after everyone else. What a very fun morning full of warm and cozy memories. I am so very thankful for our many blessings and the ability to spend days like this with such wonderful people.

Family Easter

We had a nice time yesterday visiting with our family down in Desert Hot Springs. Although the wind picked up later in the afternoon, the weather in the mid-morning and for our egg hunt was perfect. For those of you reading this from up north, feel free to come visit our beautiful sunshine any time.

Thank you Grandma Tanyon for having us all over to spend a day together. We had a great time.

What to Make

This is an Easter-style recipe: HOT CROSS BUNS!

I got the idea from The Pioneer Woman's Website. I modified the recipe for my bread maker and they turned out nicely. It was rather easy to do. Here's what you do:

1) Make cinnamon roll dough (sweet bread) in the bread machine, which requires some water, salt, sugar, flour, and egg.
2) Roll out the dough as you would for cinnamon rolls and sprinkle some cinnamon sugar and raisins over the dough then fold it in. Repeat this step twice.
3) Pull off bits of dough and roll them into balls then let them rise for 30 minutes.
4) Brush the risen dough with a wash of milk & egg white.
5) Bake the rolls for 16 minutes or so until golden brown.
6) Pipe frosting on top of them in the shape of a cross.

I made these the night before our family Easter party. I think if I were to do these again I would make a glaze to go over the whole roll and then pipe on thicker frosting or a colored frosting for the cross. The rolls were kind of plain without some kind of glaze. The flavor and texture were both good though and if eaten right out of the oven they would have been much better I am sure.

The Familliar Smell

There are few things in this world that are more recognizable of a smell than fresh cut grass or chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven. One of those things is the smell of dying eggs for Easter, more specifically, the vinegar used to help dye the eggs. All year long when I cook and a recipe calls for vinegar, I get comments from my hubby about the smell and how he thinks of Easter with just one whiff. Well, we're instilling that memory in our kiddos too. They had a great time making Easter eggs with Daddy tonight.

We Have Sprouts!

The peas have sprouted - The peas have SPROUTED!
Okay, there's only one, but it's sticking up out of the dirt and promises that it's friends will be here soon. If you look VERY close at the bottom of the picture in the center of the rectangular pot, there's a little green sprout. Look very VERY close....

Happy 4th Birthday Sweetheart

I know it's totally cliche to say, but I just can't believe it...where did the time go?

Can't We All Just Get Along?

Uncle seems to have finally found a common interest with my little man. They could even be heard laughing back and forth with each other. After a week of him avoiding the big burly guy, my son realized that he and his uncle both share an affinity for food. They sat down and broke bread together and all was right with the world if only for a moment. Now if they would just sit down to watch Dog the Bounty Hunter together then they might become inseparable.

Go Play Outside!

Yesterday we went down to the river to look for neat bugs and sticks and rocks with the kiddos. It was a beautiful day for a hike and we got to see lots of neat sights along the way. Of course, the kids' favorite part was stopping for snacks on our hike but my favorite part was seeing the kids get out and enjoy the day without interruption from phones or computers or televisions. Just good 'ol fashioned playing outside. Priceless.

Hanging on the Boat

Since Aunti and family are all visiting for the week, we took the boat out for a little cruise on the lake. It was a bit windy, but a nice day in general. My nieces had some fun getting to drive around since there were virtually no other boats on the water. We even got some fishing in and my little princess caught her first trout on her new fishing pole. She later reasoned with me that must have been a girl fish because it liked the princess fishing pole! I knew I put those stickers and that bling on there for a reason...