Creamer Family Todd~Angela~Edie~Isaac

Pre-Road Trip Scramble

2008-07-21T17:09:00.000-07:00

The kids and I will be making the day-long trip to Portland, OR tomorrow. I am doing my best to organize, pack, prepare and basically remember everything that the kids and I will need for the next 10 days. My plan is to leave as close to 7 am as possible so we can make it to my mom's house around 9 pm or so. My kids are good car travellers as long as they have a steady dose of movies on the portable DVD player. There are only a few circumstances where I allow them to watch movies to their heart's content and being the only adult, driving in a car for 700 miles, fits the requirements. We have made this trip the last two summers and as long as the kids have movies, snacks, books and something to draw on, we do alright. I, on the other hand get to indulge in too many Cokes, fun snacks I wouldn't normally eat and lots of my favorite music. I will be bleary eyed by the time I reach my final destination tomorrow, but I think I will be prepared in time tonight to enjoy some quality time with Todd and get to bed at a reasonable time. I will miss Todd very much until he flies up to Portland on the 30th to spend the final weekend with us and to join in the drive-home party. It will be so nice to have his company, even if I have to suffer through some of his favorite music. I will have fun pictures and stories to share while we are on our trip.

To The One I Love

2008-07-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

Todd and Angela in the beginning

Todd and Angela now

Our Wedding Day

Dear Todd,

Today is our ninth wedding anniversary and I wanted to tell you, and anyone else who reads this blog, how lucky I feel to be your wife. We have been on a great adventure together during the past twelve years that we have been a couple. Together, we endured a long-distance romance where we only saw each other on the weekends, faced the roller-coaster of parenthood early on when our firecracker daughter came into our lives, took the chance to move away from Windy City of Chicago to the small Santa Cruz beach communities to begin your dream of owning a civil engineering firm. We have bought a house together, added our amazing little boy to our family and have delved deep into the venture of business ownership. Those are some of the big milestones we have accomplished together, and there are thousands of smaller ones that make my days as your partner so wonderful. Here are some that have a lasting memory. I remember my first Mother's Day, when Edie was a fussy, 7 month old. The two of you left me alone at home to take a nap and returned with a new pillow for me. You endured one hour of crying Edie two evenings a week so that I could go to an exercise class. You always make a big deal of birthdays and Christmas and surprise me with amazing gifts that I would never buy for myself. You came home from work in the middle of the day to bring some food and movies to Edie and me when we were both so sick with the flu, we couldn't move. I loved it when you would drop by and surprise me at work and when you didn't come by, had dinner ready for me when I got home. It is thoughtful when you buy me a new CD and leave it in my car for a surprise. Your have creatively come up with scavenger hunt dates that were so fun (and made some of my friends jealous!). You secretly had the living room painted while I was gone to make me happy when I got back, and worked really hard on the patio to make it look beautiful. I could fill a book with happy memories of our time together.

I know that I can always count on you to take the garbage out, to make sure my car goes in for an oil change, to do the handy-work around the house and make sure the chill is gone from the sheets at bed time. I am so lucky to have found a man who works so hard to support his family and who loves his family so deeply.

Thank you Todd for our life together. I look forward to many, many more years together.

Love always,

Angela

Catch Up

2008-07-10T15:45:00.000-07:00

Todd at Pebble Beach & Spyglass

Isaac and his best buddy Ben at Vacation Bible Camp
Edie and her friend Emily at Vacation Bible Camp
Isaac on the Boardwalk merry-go-round

I have some catching up to do here. I can't believe that Summer is half way over for Edie , who starts her new school on August 25th. The days have been slow paced and filled with lots of friends. I wish I could say that they have all been filled with sunshine, but really, I live in Santa Cruz. Here is the short list of our activities the last few weeks.

1. Edie and Isaac both spent a fun-filled week at Vacation Bible Camp which managed to pack enough activities into a four hour morning to completely exhaust both kids every day.

2. We enjoyed a fun evening at the Boardwalk with friends. We took advantage of local night which boasts 75 cent hot dogs and drinks. Hot dogs really only taste good when you are either surrounded by carnival rides or baseball fans. Isaac rode the Pirate Ship for his first time and quickly let us know that he wasn't going to go on it again. He also got to accompany our friend's 15 month old son on his first ride. It was Isaac's moment to shine as a big boy.

3. We had a fun 4th of July at a friend's house where we ate an assortment of BBQ'd fish. The kids were in bed and asleep by 8:00 pm which was before the illegal booms of fireworks could wake them up.

4. Todd got to golf Pebble Beach and Spyglass for the first time and had a great rounds at each course. Todd's said Splyglass was much much tougher than Pebble Beach....

5. I have made three more batches of yummy jam. I couldn't just stop at strawberry, so I made strawberry-fig, ollallie berry-strawberry and plum. The figs and plums came from the trees of two friends and the strawberries and ollallie berries were picked very close to my house. I think I'll have to do some peach or apricot next. I will have reminders of Summer all year long.

6. Edie has had several play dates and sleep-overs which have all been great. I really like spending time with her and her friends.

7. A family BBQ with my Supper Club. We all contributed delicious dishes and enjoyed spending time with each other and our families on a relaxed Sunday afternoon.

I hope that the second half of the Summer is as great as the first. I'll let you know!

I Need Some New Reads!

2008-06-26T21:39:00.000-07:00

To those of you who read this blog:
I have been spending some luxurious time with the written word in the days since school let out and my days are less scheduled. I have reacquainted myself with the "grown-up" section of the library and am racking up some frequent-flyer points on my library card. The problem is that there are just too many choices and not enough time, so I am asking my friends if you would throw a book suggestion or many my way, so I can narrow down the selection and enjoy some more curl up on the couch, beach, grass time with a good piece of lit.

Thanks!

PS-I'm not into sci-fi.

A series of (unfortunate) Events.

2008-06-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

We had a very strange day on Saturday, along with the majority of Santa Cruz County residents. It started out like any other Saturday. The kids were up at the crack of dawn because they are only allowed to watch morning TV on the weekends. They storm into my room at about 6:45 (they are supposed to stay in their room until 7:00, but they just can't wait) and ask if they can go downstairs to watch cartoons. Either Todd or I roll over our sleepy-head enough to tell them "yes", and away they go thumping down the stairs into TV-land. Todd and I get up around 8:00 when they start wanting breakfast and off we go on our day. This Saturday was normal enough until about 10:30, considering we were checking out the area in the near distance for remains of smoke that was consumed by fire on Friday and still hearing helicopters and sirens to remind us of the fire-zone we live in this summer. The predicted temperature for Saturday was another sweltering day, so our plan was to escape to the beach with a friend of Edie's. We planned to meet at the beach after lunch. We ate lunch and started noticing clouds blocking the blue sky we planned to enjoy at the beach. We then got a call from Edie's friend telling us that it was raining at their house in Santa Cruz. We all thought it would pass soon and packed our car up to go. As we were getting in the car, our friend calls again and tells us that they saw lightening. We still count on a quickly passing storm and head off. Rain drops start falling on our car as we drive about 10 minutes to the beach. The sky is looking really dark too. We pull into Manresa beach parking lot and see lots of people in the parking lot and many cars leaving. Weird, but no rain drops here. The temperature is barely above 60 degrees compared with the predicted 90, but we start down the stairs to the beach anyway. As soon as we got down to the bottom, the lifeguard shouts on her megaphone that everyone needs to get off of the beach because lightening just struck 1/4 mile off shore. So, we go up, call our friends and let them know the status and we feel the rain starting again and see bolts of lightening. Time for plan B. There are no appropriate movies showing. Plan C. Let's go to mini-golf at the Boardwalk. We hear that there is hail just a few miles from us. There is more lightening and some loud thunder. We pick up Edie's friend and her dad and head to the Boardwalk. The traffic going to the Boardwalk is a nightmare. The only parking within many, many blocks is $20 in a motel parking lot. The temperature is up to 79 degrees by now. There are hoards of people going to the Boardwalk, but we notice that none of the rides are in use. Is it a power outage? Closure due to lightening? All we know is that mini-golf isn't going to happen and we better go onto plan D. Plan D- ice cream and tattoos. The traffic is too bad to go to into Santa Cruz for plan D, so we resort to plan E which is go back to almost where we started from and get some ice cream at Dairy Queen. Our day was more successful from that point because we decided to just have a simple BBQ at our friends house and not try to plan anything else that could go haywire! It was a memorable day, but not for anything we did, but all the events that led up to a really fun, but completely unplanned evening with our friends

Just Like Papa

2008-06-19T09:21:00.001-07:00

Do you shave your legs too Papa?

Eastern Delight

2008-06-18T20:09:00.000-07:00

I love to try new types of food especially foods and recipes from India, Thailand and parts of Africa. I love the combination of the aromatic spices that make the food smell as good as it tastes. My mouth waters for curries, cilantro and coconut and cashews. My family does not share in this passion, at least not yet. I made an Indian dinner tonight and SURPRISE!, everyone liked it. The kids had compliments and Todd went back for seconds. I am sharing the family-friendly menu that made us all happy tonight and gave me hopes of meals to come that the whole family enjoys.

I wanted to use the veggies from my CSA share this week. This recipe was included in the weekly newsletter. (Click on recipe title for link)

Indian Spiced Roasted Cauliflower and Potatoes
I omitted the jalapeno to make it milder.

I think this recipe is from Parents magazine. I tore it out years ago and have it in my recipe binder.

Tandoori-Spiced Chicken served with yogurt-cucumber dip
serves 4

2 Tbs light soy sauce
1 Tbs orange juice
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp grated orange rind
1/4 tsp red-pepper flakes
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs ( I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
2 tsp olive oil
2 red bell peppers, cut into strips

Yogurt-Cucumber dip
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1/2 cup shredded cucumber
1 Tbs chopped mint
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt

1) In a large bowl (or large Ziplock bag) combine soy sauce thru red-pepper flakes. Add chicken and allow to marinate. (I left the chicken marinating for about 6 hours)
2) Heat oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken and brown on both sides. Add pepper strips and cook until veggies are softened and chicken is cooked through.
3)Combine all ingredients for cucumber dip.

Serve chicken with bell peppers and yogurt-cucumber dip

I served these dishes with cantaloupe, but mango would be really great.

Our Day Away

2008-06-16T10:01:00.000-07:00

Todd outside Eberle winery

On the grounds of the Hearst Castle

Todd's parents offered to watch Edie and Isaac on Friday and Saturday while we went to Cambria for the night. We left Tulare at 9:00 am and it was already over 90 degrees and by the time we arrived in Cambria, at the coast, it was in the mid 60's. It was refreshing to get away from the heat, but our bodies were in shock from the difference in temperature. Fortunately, the sun came out while we had lunch and the air warmed up a little. After checking into our hotel, we drove a few miles up Highway 1 to the Hearst Castle in San Simeon. The Castle is a strange place. It literally is a Sleeping-Beauty looking castle that was built on a coastal California ranch. It is decorated as oddly on the inside as the setting and architectural style on the outside. The rooms we saw are filled with priceless antiques from all over Europe, but there is no contiguous theme in the rooms. The pieces were chosen and are arranged in a very eclectic way that simply suited what W.R. Hearst liked. I can't say that I truly liked the inside rooms that I saw. They were all very dark and stale, but the outside grounds were beautiful and the view was breathtaking.

Todd and I had a delicious dinner that evening in Cambria at a place called Robin's. The eclectic menu was a good match for the all of the strange pairings we saw at the Castle. Todd had a 4 course African dinner and I had chicken curry. Unfortunately, the rest of our get-away wasn't as fun as it started out to be. I couldn't sleep until 4 am, so getting up on Saturday was not easy. I always have a hard time sleeping in a hotel, but this was exceptional. We started out to go wine tasting on Saturday, but my tummy was not happy and Todd was still dealing with vertigo. We did our best and tasted some delicious wine, but it was not as fun as we were hoping it would be. We will have to schedule a re-do soon

Water Wonders

2008-06-16T09:12:00.000-07:00

Todd and the kids on Father's Day

Maria, Edie and Isaac at Sunset Beach

Edie at Spa Fitness pool

Isaac drying out after "swimming" at Spa Fitness

I have a bit of catching up to do since my last post. Maria left a week ago and I am finally adding the picture of our beautiful morning at Sunset Beach in Watsonville. We got to the beach before 9:30 am and it was already clear and was getting warm. Maria and I spent the next two hours watching the kids play in the wet sand. Isaac got wet early on and needed to warm up in my lap in a towel, but Edie made a friend and was having a blast sitting in a low spot in the sand and letting the tide wash over her legs. By the end of our time there, she was completely soaked and had to ride the short drive home wrapped in a blanket. I wish that all of our beach mornings were that clear and warm.

The next few days last week went by in a blur between our weekly playgroup, Edie going on a sleepover and going to the pool at our local fitness center. Isaac let me know that he is NOT going to take swimming lessons this year. He still has memories of last year's sessions where I made him stay in the water with his teacher for the whole lesson even though he was begging, sometimes, tearfully, to get out. He timidly walked into the small, 2 1/2 foot deep, children's pool and announced that he was swimming. His feet never left the bottom of the pool. Edie, on the other hand, was swimming like a little fish and was begging to go into the "big", lap pool. When we went over to the lap pool, Isaac dried off and sat in my lap while we watched Edie play around and swim a few real laps.

We left last Thursday evening to drive to Todd's parents house in Tulare to stay the night and then leave the kids for a night while Todd and I had some time to ourselves in Cambria and Paso Robles. Todd's parents have a pool in their back yard and the kids had a great time swimming there too. Even Isaac ventured in for his first time and loved it, as long as was had Nana or Daddy to hold on to.

The Super Strawberry, Part 2

2008-06-08T14:59:00.000-07:00

We are having lots of fun with Auntie Maria. Maria, the kids and I started our day yesterday at the strawberry patch close to our house where we picked about 12 pounds of strawberries for eating and jam making. The kids picked many and ate many too. It is just too tempting not to nibble when you are sitting in the middle of hundreds of beautiful, fragrant, shiny, red berries. It is such decadence to have the choice of one berry over another. We can actually find the perfect berry, not once, but many times over. The jam making happened today and the warm jars are cooling on my counter top. This was Maria's and my first canning experience. It wasn't tricky or difficult. I am feeling pretty pleased with us right now since all the jars sealed and we have now preserved one of the pleasures of June in eight 1/2 pint jars. The recipe we used is in the June issue of Bon Appetit. Here is a link to the recipe. Mixed Berry Jam We only used strawberries, but the recipe can be used for any berry, apricots and peaches. Yum!

After the strawberry picking yesterday, we quickly went back to the house, changed out of our berry smudged clothes and delivered Edie to a birthday party. We left Isaac with Todd and then made our way out for some girl-time. We attempted to go to Capitola to sit out on a restaurant patio to enjoy the sun, but there wasn't a single open parking spot, so we went into Santa Cruz to do some people watching while enjoying an appetizer and a drink. Santa Cruz lived up to it's reputation. We were seated on the patio area in front of Aqua Bleu and had prime view of a car that was painted purple with an orange flame running down both sides and was missing it's hood. The car was a cross between Grease Lightning and Joe Dirt's piece of junk. The owner of the car was a greasier, less handsome version of "Kenickie" from Grease. He was dressed for the part too. The whole time we sat at our table, which was about an hour, most people who passed by stopped to check out the car. "Kenickie" was never too far away, and would saunter over to his car if someone got too close. It was so funny to watch this scene over and over again. In addition to "Kenickie" we saw lots of interesting and unique "fashion" choices and smelled the Santa Cruz "perfume". After we left Aqua Bleu, we walked down to Marini's candy store for a little treat and saw something bizarre and gross, but must have some kind of appeal to a certain type of taste bud: chocolate covered bacon! Yes, the whole strip of cooked bacon was covered in a thick layer of milk chocolate. I guess it is for those who can't decide if they are craving sweet or salty. I don't often get the chance to really sit and enjoy the diversity and character of Santa Cruz. Yes, it is kind of weird, but I like it because it is anything but cookie-cutter homogeneous.

I have been thinking about the jam the whole time I've been typing, but I think I'll at least wait until the jars have cooled to break one open!

Auntie Maria is Here!

2008-06-06T14:25:00.000-07:00

My sister, Maria, is visiting from Seattle for the weekend. I drove the increasingly treacherous Highway 17 last night to pick her up at the airport at 10 pm. Hwy 17 is under construction during the night-time hours on the Northbound side. The Northbound lanes is closed, so both North and South bound traffic use the Southbound lanes with only orange rubber cones between them. It was a white knuckle ride to the airport, but I made it there unharmed. I have sympathy for anyone who has to commute Hwy 17 in during construction. After getting through the long line of cars at the airport, I got Maria and we made it home in time to crash into our beds.

The kids woke Maria up at 7:00 am so she could go with us to drop Edie off for her last day of school. She said this is the earliest she has ever been awake on a non-work day. Obviously, she doesn't have kids yet! Isaac, Maria and I enjoyed a short, but quiet morning before returning to school for the last-day-of-school picnic. It was a bittersweet moment for me since this was Edie's last day at Twin Lakes Christian School, but Edie ran around with her friends like she will be back again tomorrow.

Summer is officially here in our household. Hold on to your hats!

Proud Mom Moments

2008-06-02T16:50:00.000-07:00

This is my moment to be the beaming, proud mommy. My little girl, Edie, has done some amazing things in her short lifetime, but this week packed many shining star moments that I would like to recognize. We had our awards dinner for Girls on the Run last Thursday and she and her 17 teammates were rewarded for their commitment and hard work during the 2 1/2 month season as well as their fast running on May 17th, race day. Yesterday we had closing ceremonies for softball. Edie played with the Cabrillo Gals which is a great organization for teaching the girls the basic skills to play the game and encouraging good sportsmanship over competition. The girls played a "round-robin" game with the other 8 years and younger teams where each girl had a chance to bat and to field for one inning. Afterwards, they had the awards ceremony where Edie was awarded the Spirit award trophy for her team, "the Blue Tunafish". This was a big surprise and honor for Edie. She plays with such a great team of girls, she was shocked that she was singled out for the award. Today was the awards ceremony for her school. Edie was presented with the Presidential Fitness award. I think I am raising an athletic girl! Fortunately, she is into reading, science and art too. I was just overflowing with love and pride for my daughter that I had to share!

The Field Trip

2008-05-31T11:24:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of experiencing a field trip with Edie's third grade class yesterday. They had an all day trip that included a tour and activities at the art museum in Santa Cruz, a BBQ lunch at Natural Bridges Beach and a photo scavenger hunt in Santa Cruz. Brave parents took 3-4 kids in their cars and guided them to find the clues and get back to school first to win the contest. I, and another mom, was the "hot-dog"lady. Isaac, Karsen's mom and I arrived at Natural Bridges at 10:30 to set up the BBQ lunch that included hot-dogs, oranges, pretzels and drinks. We had to light the BBQ and have the hot-dogs ready to go when the 26 kids and the parent-chaperones arrived. I'm sure it was humorous to watch two moms who only cook on gas barbecues fill the BBQ up with briquettes, realize that those briquettes do not have lighter fluid on them, put those briquettes back in the bag, load the BBQ with the "easy-light" briquettes and then try to light them in the wind. We loaded the BBQ so it took awhile for the flames to settle and the briquettes to turn white-hot, but it worked and the hot-dog roast was a success according to the once-hungry kids and parents. We then moved on to the s'mores. Another mom and I cooked the marshmallows over the hot coals on skewers while a dad removed the hot marshmallows between the graham crackers and chocolate. It worked well and nobody got their fingers burned. The kids had fun and returned to the school very tired. I think the parent drivers and chaperoned were even more worn out though. Todd and I have many field trips to participate in when Edie transfers to Linscott for fourth grade. They go on at least one trip per month. We will use the summer to ready ourselves!

The super strawberry

2008-05-28T16:08:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed a really fun evening with my Supper Club last night. It was my turn to host this month. I decided to go with a strawberry themed menu since the local strawberries have been so good and they are a reminder of summer that will be here soon. All of the recipes had some sort of strawberry in them weather fresh, dried or as jam. It wasn't easy finding main dish and vegetable recipes that have strawberries as an ingredient, but the ones I found tasted delicious. There were nine ladies cooking in my little kitchen. It was crowded, but after tasting this dinner that we made together, as well as the other meals we collaborate on month after month, I believe the phrase "too many cooks in the kitchen" is meant to be a positive statement. This supper club has become a special monthly ritual that I have participated in for over five years. Our group spans in age between 30's to almost 60 years. We include working-out-of-the- home women and working-at-home-women, single and married, with children and without, women with grown children and those with babies. We have political and religious differences too, but every month we come together in one of our homes to create something amazing out of a pile of carefully chosen ingredients and we pick up our friendships where we left off the month before. Food is a vehicle. In this case it has been the vehicle that brought me together with this group of women whom I have shared many funny, intimate, informative evenings with. I plan on growing with this dear group for many years and dinners to come.

Click on the recipe titles below to see the recipes we made.
Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder with Dried Strawberry Chipotle Chutney (we substituted grilled pork tenderloin for the pork shoulder)
Asparagus Strawberry Salad
Baby-Frisee Salad
We also had the Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake from www.cookinglight.com The link that goes directly to the recipe doesn't work but, it is listed by that title on their website. Delicious!

Enjoy!

Calming Fires

2008-05-26T18:29:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to report that the fires are gradually coming under control. We still had the string smell of smoke yesterday morning, but the winds have again blown it away and left us with a beautiful sky and sunshine. My friend Kim has been sending e-mail updates the last few days and she is happy to say that her home as well as the entire camp she lives at is safe. Unfortunately, the camp across the road from her lost a few cabins. She sent some pictures of the fire that was on three sides of their home. It is truly amazing how fire seems so alive and chooses its path in a way that is incomprehensible to us. It almost dances from one spot to the next, but leaves a path of destruction. Kim got to go home today. She will go back to her familiar surroundings. The land around her will have the scars of fire, but her ministry is to help the people rebuild.

Wild Fires

2008-05-22T13:38:00.000-07:00

I experienced something profound today. There is a wildfire burning in the Santa Cruz Mountains that is so close to the homes of people that I know that they have evacuated and just need to wait and see what will become of their homes and all of their things. I got a call this morning from Kim, the women's ministry director at my church, because she had planned to be at the last MOPS meeting this morning. Instead, she was busy packing her things into her truck to leave her home. She was trying to decide which things to take with her. As I drove to the church I could see the orange-y, smokey sky above me. While at the church, I heard updates about our friend's home and that she could see the burning fire from where she was. I am at home now and the whole sky is smokey and everywhere it smells like I am surrounded by a giant campfire. My house stinks and I am worried about Shadow, our bunny, who is outside. It is really strange to see an orange glow where the sun is trying to get through. Disasters happen all over the world and my heart goes out to those who have been touched by tragedy, but it feels so different to actually be surrounded by the smoke of a wild fire. It is much more real and tangible. What would I take if I had to evacuate? Would I remember to take my precious photos, my computer hard-drive, my children's blankets? When Kim was talking to me this morning and she was trying to decide which shirt to take and which dishes to leave. I was reminded of a Scripture that she has taught to me. Matthew 6:19-21 says "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. (and fires burn) But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." I really hope that her home and the camp that her husband directs will be safe, but most importantly, that she, her husband and all others affected by this fire are safe regardless of having their earthly treasures with them.

Mild Monday

2008-05-19T15:52:00.000-07:00

Today has been so ordinary and calm compared to the weekend. It is a welcome relief. On Saturday we had the Girls on the Run 5k and the neighborhood garage sale. On Sunday we went to the Boardwalk to see the Chinese Acrobats perform and to ride the rides and then to Costco. There were the regular chores of laundry, recycling, cooking, general picking up, child and bunny care mixed in too. We had two days straight of falling into bed and falling asleep immediately. Isaac even fell asleep during the quick drive between the Boardwalk and Costco and then again when he and Todd went to the gas station to refill the gas tanks for the barbecue. I had a great weekend with my family, but boy, did it wear me out!
In contrast, today I got to go to my favorite kick-butt-boxing class, take a leisurely shower, catch up on a few phone calls and enjoy my time with Isaac. He was so cute when he was holding Shadow on the rocking chair and singing lullabies to her. My kids have some unstructured time to play "on the hill" with the neighbor kids and just have fun.
I so look forward to these days when the most important thing I need to do is decide what I will be cooking for dinner or if I am going to read my book now or later. Summer is coming, so this should become the norm, and not the exception.

Race Day!

2008-05-17T15:08:00.000-07:00

Edie's and my day started early this morning. We were up at 5:00 am to get ready for the Girls on the Run 5k race. The race was in Vasona Park in Los Gatos. Luckily, the race started at 7:00 am since the high temperatures for the afternoon was about 100 degrees! I have been one of three coaches for the Girls on the Run program at Twin Lakes School and we had 18, 3rd through 5th graders on our team. We had 11 weeks of Tuesday and Thursday after school practices that included a wonderful curriculum teaching girls about a range of relevant topics as well as train them to run 3.1 miles at our finishing race. The girls played all kinds of fun running games while while tackling interesting subjects like bullying, gossip, healthy habits, good sportsmanship and being part of their community. It has been such a reward for me to watch my group of girls become a supportive team and do their best when they run. I have been on such a high today after being able to run the race with the girls, cheer them on and see how exciting it is for them to be a part of a such a big event. The girls have worked so hard and this was such a fun and exciting way to reward their efforts. There were over 700 Silicon Valley Girls on the Run girls participating today along with many parents, coaches and friends. It was a proud moment to run my daughter to the finish of her first race. I hope there are many more to come. For now, she has to work hard to keep up with me, but I'm sure that I will be the one in the dust before too long!

Our New Baby

2008-05-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

We have a new baby in our family. She is tiny, gray and fuzzy with big ears. Her name is Shadow and she lives in a very fancy hutch. We brought our baby bunny home today after a week of anticipation since we first picked her out. We brought her home in a cardboard box and she was scared and did her best to hide in the corner. The kids are so excited to have their first pet-able, hold-able, love-able pet. The fish we had a few years ago did not compare to the furry cuteness of a bunny. I spent a while this morning putting the hutch together. I am pretty proud of my handiwork. I even have two blisters on my palm to prove how many times I twisted that screwdriver. Shadow is happily munching her hay in the private room of her new condo. She will be in the house for a few days while we are having this heatwave, and then we will move her hutch outside to our back patio where she will have lots of fresh air, and the little poops will always land outside. It will be fun to watch her grow and become a part of our family.

Happy Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

I started out this Mother's day waking up on my own, which is a huge treat for someone who is normally joined by at least one child in my none too big bed. Isaac's gift to me was a day free of belly-button poking. You can only imagine what a relief that is! We went to church and then to my favorite brunch spot, The Bittersweet. The food is great, but the real treat is the dessert selection. There are mini versions of chocolate mousse, creme brulee, chocolate cake, bread pudding, pecan tart, sugar cookies, and on and on and on. It is enough to send someone into a blissful sugar-coma. I started out with my usual plate of healthy fare like salads, fruit and ham, but next year I think I will do what I always want to do which is start and finish with the desserts. These treats along with the Champagne make for a memorable meal.

Edie and I wore our matching outfits today even though it was too cold to go without a sweater. I am happy that she still thinks I am cool an stylish enough to want to match with me. She is getting so big so fast! It is hard to believe that this is my eighth Mother's Day. I remember my first Mother's Day when Edie was seven months old and Todd took her to the mall and bought me a pillow. This was quite a gift for a mom who only asked for a little alone time for a nap. I got my nap that day and I got some precious alone time today too. I am very lucky to have married Todd, because he not only gave me the gift of my two beautiful children, but he reminds often that I am doing a good job raising them too.

The Pirate Party

2008-05-11T20:47:00.000-07:00

Arrrrrg Matey!

We went to a really fun birthday party on Saturday after Edie's awesome softball game. The party was for Isaac's friend Marco and it had everything a big or little pirate could ask for. Marco's parents set up camp fr the party on a few very beautiful campsites at New Brighton Beach. They had the grounds decorated with pirate ships complete with tall masts and flags, we all wore pirate hats, and there was plenty of good food and drinks. The kids went on a treasure hunt and found a big box of pirate loot. It was hard to leave the fun, but little pirates need their rest after a fun afternoon of ship sailing and treasure hunting.

Isaac's New Trick

2008-05-07T10:46:00.000-07:00

Isaac has discovered how to skip! On Monday this week he was trying it out and by Tuesday he was getting good at it and today, he is an expert. When I watch him skip today, it is as if he never couldn't do it. I think this is a special milestone for him. I can remember exactly I was with Edie when she got her first tooth and I remember many of her other "firsts" vividly, but this first with Isaac is an occasion to write about. It has been easier to remember the lasts with him like his last night in a crib, the last time he nursed or the last diaper he wore. I suppose this happens with the youngest child. It is easier to look backwards with them instead of forwards like with the first child. He is four now. He can hit a pitched ball, spell his name, dress himself and now skip. What will happen next?

You are What You Eat

2008-05-03T19:36:00.000-07:00

If you are what you eat, I guess I am a vegetable. I have been having fun lately trying new recipes to use the wonderful variety of veggies I get each week in my share from two local farms. I have a subscription to a CSA (community supported agriculture) from Two Small Farms which is made up of one farm in Watsonville and another in Hollister. Since the Watsonville farm is on the coast and the Hollister farm is more inland, we get an amazing variety of produce from two very different climates. Tonight I made a really yummy dish from the June issue of Bon Appetit that was made with bok choy, mint and cilantro, from this week's veggie box, that were combined with soba noodles, cucumbers and a peanutty dressing. I flagged several other recipes from this issue I hope to try soon. Most of them really feature seasonal produce. I am excited for the local farm to open its strawberry fields for U-pick. There is a berry jam recipe that even looks easy enough for me to try. My family and I have been eating many things that I never would have thought to buy at the store like mustard greens, agretti, spigriello. We have found that cooking greens of any kind taste great blanched, squeezed dry and then sauteed with a little olive oil and garlic and then stuffed in quiche, put on a pizza or eaten as is. I bet that even Popeye would branch out if he tried some of these yummy variation on the green, leafy vegetable.

Happy Birthday Todd

2008-04-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

Todd, Isaac and Edie have fun by the fountain in the City Center of Redwood City in front of the City Hall building.

Happy Birthday to you Todd! My wonderful husband is 34 years old now. The first birthday I celebrated with him was when he turned 22. Some things have certainly changed since then. We celebrated the 22nd birthday at a quaint bed-and-breakfast in Wisconsin, alone, and we celebrated the 34th birthday in the quaint town of Redwood City in California, with an eight year old and a four year old tag-along.

We had fun exploring Redwood City and having a yummy lunch. We capped it off with a trip to Stanford mall to buy some new jeans and then went back to Santa Cruz for some pizza at Kianti's. While the way we celebrate birthdays has certainly changed since the days before children, the Key lime pie that I make every year for Todd is still the same.

Lots of Work and Lots of Fun

2008-04-29T20:25:00.000-07:00

Shandell doing her magic with the flowers

Isaac's best buddy Ben camping out on the floor with his snack and DVD player.

Here I am with my co-emcee, Susan and Shandell after a long day. We still look pretty good!

You would think by the title of this entry that I am writing about the daily fun chore of raising kids. Well, I'm not. Saturday was the culmination of some really busy weeks where I didn't know how I was ever going to cross everything off of my to-do list. Saturday was the second annual Women's Conference at Twin Lakes Church. I think it was pure adreneline that got me through because I got one of the nastiest colds that I have ever had on Wednesday and spent most of the next few days and nights blowing my nose and trying to breathe. Thankfully Todd's parents came to town to rescue Isaac while I spent the entire day at the church helping with the set-up. Isaac's best buddy, Ben, camped out with his mommy, my buddy, Shandell, for the whole day while she and I worked. Isaac definitly would not have been as patient as Ben was. I had lots of fun getting ready for this event and more fun at the event itself where I was in the presence of 140-something other women who choose to take a day away from their families and daily responsibilities to "live, laugh and love" and learn together. It ws such a treat to be in a beautifully decorated room and listen to wonderful worhip music and eat yummy food without a child on my lap and poking me in the belly-button! Luckily my decongestant worked well enough to get me through my time at the mic, so I didn't sound too stuffy and my nose healed enough to prevent the "Rudolph" look. I need a rest now, but I'll be ready for next year!

Sleepover Hangover

2008-04-19T20:38:00.000-07:00

Edie had a sleepover last night with a friend who is a very sweet and polite little girl. The girls had a great time playing outside, watching the movie, Enchanted, eating ice-cream, jumping on the inflatable mattress and generally being silly active kids. Then the time came for them to go to bed. I am shocked how two kids who normally go to bed by 8:00 pm can have tons of energy to not only be coherent, but playful and wild at 10 pm, 11 pm and beyond. I think they would have been awake all night if I had not turned the night light off and told the girls to "put the Legos away and go to sleep!". This was at midnight. This meant that Todd and I did not go to bed until midnight. Midnight is two hours past the time my body likes to go to sleep. Sleepovers are fun, but a day of grogginess needs to be planned for the following day.

Instead of the prescribed day of rest for all involved in the sleepover, we had Edie's softball game to go to. Her team, the Blue Tuna Fish, played a team that gave them a good example of good fielding. These girls had little hesitation when they went after a ball. The Tuna Fish are a young, adorable team of First, Second and Third graders. They are improving with every game. Some girls are consistently hitting a pitched ball instead of using the Tee. Edie likes to play third base and is getting pretty good at it. It is exciting to see her skills improve.

I think it should be an early night for Todd and me and a few more weeks before we invite the next "sleepover hangover".

Memories of Isaac's 4th Birthday

2008-04-18T21:04:00.000-07:00

Isaac has a lucky birthdate. He was born on April 4th, 2004, or 4/04/04. He almost missed this special date since he was born just 80 minutes into that new day. We wanted to plan a memorable party to celebrate his "golden birthday". Isaac's good friends from his playgroup and Gee Gee joined us for a tour of the Scotts Valley police station and fire station. The kids loved the police car, motorcycle and spraying the fire hose best of all. Isaac's favorite things were the two huge photo poster boards of his head that Daddy made on the plotter and hung on the balcony to welcome his guests to the party.

It is amazing to me how much Isaac has grown and changed in the last four years. I also love that he is still little and likes to be held, rocked and sung to and carry his "bean" around. Isaac is in the in-between stage of not-quite baby and not-quite big boy. I have so much fun doing big boy things with him like playing catch and doing tough puzzles. These activities will soon ease out the more babyish ones, but for now, I will try my best to love every second of my little four year old before the big boy takes over.

Check out my video. Click on "play" and turn your volume on!

Summer Fun Came Early

2008-04-16T20:06:00.000-07:00

We had a great day on Sunday. The temperature was in the low 80's, so we decided to take a little trip to Pacific Grove and play in the tide-pools. We hopped from rock to rock checking out the little creatures living in the shallow pools. We saw hundreds of tiny hermit crabs, some orange starfish, lots of squishy, green sea urchins and a few bigger crabs that scuttled away from us to hide between the rocks. Isaac, who just turned four, was scared to navigate the rocks on his own, so he was carried by Dad. That moment made me remember just how small he is. Edie's bravery was squelched when she fell on a rock and got some small cuts from barnacles. The humourous part was when Isaac was trying to steady himself and ended up pushing me into the water. Luckily we were there at low tide because I was sitting in water!