Thankfulness 2013 - Baking

I am sitting in our cozy "library" sipping tea while Jenna reads on the futon behind me.  It is snowing outside.  Our guests for Thanksgiving should be on their way to our home.  I am glowing, I'm sure of it!  How often does it happen that I am COMPLETELY ready for guests?  This is awesome!

I spent the morning baking pies and cookies, and now the house smells of cinnamon and ginger. 

Apple Crumb Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Gingersnaps

 

I did a few errands, and got home just in time to meet the girls' bus.  They got out of school 2 hours early today, and don't go back until next Tuesday, as our school district takes the first day of Deer Season as a holiday.

I am extremely thankful for this down time before our family arrives and the cooking and chaos starts in earnest.

I was also thankful to learn that my repeat mammograms, which were slightly abnormal in May, look OK now (even though the process left me somewhat sore!)

Thankfulness 2013 - Canning

All those root crops that I brought in a few weeks ago, have been in bags in the refrigerator, waiting for me to do something with them.  We have eaten a few potatoes, and plan to eat a lot more in a couple of days.  I realized yesterday, that I needed to get them out of there in order to make room for a turkey and a couple of pies!

Yesterday I peeled, chopped, blanched and froze the parsnips.  Today I cooked, peeled, chopped, pickled and canned the red beets.  I also cut up, peeled and cooked the pumpkin from our garden, I just need to mash it up to be ready to bake into pies tomorrow.

 

It is a lot of work, but I get a lot of satisfaction out of eating things that I have tended from seed to table.

Tonight I am thankful that we have SO MUCH fruit, vegetables and meat put up for the next few months.

J is feeling better, and is heading to school tomorrow as long as there is no snow day.

Stella puppy, however, is one sick dog.  She has been vomiting all day...I've never seen so much stuff come out of such a small dog who hasn't eaten for 24 hours!  She had to get another bath tonight, and I've been mopping and washing dog beds and towels all evening.

Sigh.  I think I'm done for the evening.  Even if I'm not finished...I'm DONE!

Thankfulness 2013 - 2nd Grade

I spent a couple of hours this afternoon in L's 2nd Grade classroom.  Her teacher asked me to read a book to the class and do an activity.  I chose one of our favorite books (we have SO MANY favorite books!), Too Many Pumpkins, by Linda White.

I saved pumpkin seeds from the 2 jack-o-lanterns that we made, as well as a couple of acorn squashes that we recently ate.  I searched on line and found an example of artwork using colored pumpkin seeds as leaves in a picture.  Last night I spent about half and hour dying pumpkin and squash seeds red, orange, yellow and brown.  I passed around hand fulls to the children, who used them to fashion a variety of colorful pictures.

 

The kids were delightful - attentive, interested and involved.  L repeatedly snuck up behind me and hugged me.  I had a great time, and I think they did too!

Poor J stayed home on the couch, watching movies with Grandmom.  She is feeling MUCH better this evening - even ate a little bit of applesauce and rice (her first solid food since Sunday breakfast.)  Her temp was still up a little, and her belly still seems to be a bit tender.  We will see how she feels in the morning and decide about school for tomorrow.

I am thankful this evening, for the fact that J is improved.

I continue to be amazed and thankful that both girls have adapted so well from cyber school to public school, and they continue to enjoy themselves there.

Thankfulness 2013 - Ice

It was COLD outside today, and the weather reports are calling for even colder temps overnight, as well as 2-6 inches of snow Tuesday night - just in time for Thanksgiving traffic!

JP and I had to check and change the chicken's water several times during the day, as it had the propensity to become solid quite quickly.

J and her friends got very little sleep last night.  Once everyone had left, she complained of being cold and not feeling very well.  The thermometer confirmed that she was running a fever.  She slept for several hours in the afternoon, and spent the evening lying on the couch with a bucket.

Once again, I am thankful for the outdoor wood burner, which keeps the house toasty and keeps the mess outside.

I am also thankful that J's party went so well.  Now we are just hoping for a speedy recovery for her!

Thankfulness 2013 - J Bird

Today was J's long awaited Birthday party.  The theme was Secret Agent/Spy.  The guests were welcomed to the house by this:

 

They worked on a decoding a series of spy related words, before I set them loose on the scavenger hunt for their gift bags.  The first clue was a sheet of vellum that when matched up over a certain page in a certain Harry Potter book outlined the message "This clue is laid where fowl play happens."  The second clue (in Pig-Latin, since I don't know Chicken-Latin) was in an Easter egg in the chicken house.  It read "Find this clue where babies rock."  The third clue (in the tree house) had a riddle that led them to the tractor in the barn, where they had to decipher a code, which told them "Dear Spies, Find me near the big water."  The final clue was taped to the side of the pool, and written in mirror image, telling them "If you traverse the laser beams, you will find the prize."

Here are the laser beams, which Lauren helped me activate this afternoon.  The goodie bags are all the way at the back!

We tried to make it a little bit difficult!


After dinner, and the arrival of the final guest, it was time for cake and presents.  This year, J chose a Smore's Ice Cream Cake from Cook's Country.  It has a baked graham cracker crust followed by a layer of chocolate fudge, then marshmallow cream, then chocolate ice cream (I used chocolate peanut butter swirl).  I added another layer of chocolate fudge on the top.  Halved marshmallows are the crowning glory, and the whole thing spends less than a minute under the broiler to make them squishy and golden brown.  I have to say that the whole concoction was not overly memorable.


J opened her presents, and will be taking a shopping trip soon, based on the amount of cash and gift cards she received!



The girls headed back downstairs to play "Defuse the Bomb", where I tied black balloons to their ankles, and they tried to step on and pop each other's balloons.  **I'll try to add a video here if I can get it edited.**

After they were clad in jammies, they snuggled up to watch "The Spy
Next Door."

Right now, I am thankful that the ruckus has calmed to what sounds like 2 voices fighting sleep downstairs.

I am also thankful for my beautiful daughter, who was much wished for, and has been a delightful addition to our family.  Although she is beginning to reach that very trying tween age, she is *usually* lovely, polite, intelligent and inquisitive.  I sat outside her practice room during voice lessons on Friday afternoon, and marvelled at her beautiful voice as well!

Enjoy the pictures!

Thankfulness 2013 - Numero Uno

I keep meaning to revisit my yearly November Thankfulness posts, but *my goodness* time is getting away from me this year!  I just realized a couple of days ago that next week is ACTUALLY Thanksgiving!  I have begun my planning and preparation for the feasting, but we have quite a lot going on even before that happens.

For example, J is having her Birthday party tomorrow evening into Sunday AM (it's a sleepover party.)  She decided, just last week, that she wanted the theme of her party to be Spies or Secret Agents.  This week I did some last minute web searching, and got a few fun ideas for games, etc.  However, I still need to put together 4 or 5 good clues for a Secret Agent scavenger hunt which will eventually lead the girls to their gift bags.

Today, L's class put on a Thanksgiving play for the entire 2nd grade, and for the parents.  She played the part of Sarah Josepha Hale, the woman who fought for 38 years to have Thanksgiving become a national holiday.  The kids all did a marvelous job, even though L at least, was terribly nervous ahead of time.

On Monday, I will be reading a book and doing a craft with L's class AND taking the van in for an alignment.  Next Wednesday, I will have my repeat Mammograms, since they were abnormal 6 months ago.  Wednesday evening, JP's sister and crew will arrive for the feasting!

As I was folding the laundry this evening, I was thinking about how lucky my girls are to get NEW clothes.  When I was growing up, most of my clothes were hand-me-downs from my older cousins, or thrift store finds.  While the girls still receive some second hand clothes from their friends, and we find a few things here and there at the thrift stores, most of their clothes (especially for J, the oldest) are new.  I am extremely thankful that we have the means to be comfortable, and not have to worry too much about making ends meet (although, as a born and bred Mennonite, I have thriftiness in my blood!)

JP fired up the outdoor wood burner this evening.  He is trying to get the floor warmed up downstairs with the radiant heat before the sleepover tomorrow night.  As of an hour or so ago, we are running on all wood heated water!  The temperatures are supposed to drop precipitously tonight, and stay low for quite some time, so the fires in the wood stove mornings and evenings will no longer quite be enough.  I am thankful for the work that Dad and JP do during the year to make wood available to feed our fires and keep the house toasty warm all winter long. 

One of my girl friends texted this evening that her middle child, who is only 5, fell and required stitches on her chin tonight.  It sounds as though her Emergency Room visit was rather short, although stressful (what 5 year old does well with getting stitches in her face?)  I realized that I have NEVER taken one of my children to the ER (knock on wood.)  Although we have had some medical issues and even minor surgeries for both of the girls, I am so thankful that we've never had to make an emergency visit to the ER for stitches or casts or surgery!

I am in the middle of making J's Birthday cake, a Smore's Ice Cream Cake.  Every layer has to be spread and then frozen before continuing.  I have 3 layers down, and 2 to go.  Those will happen tomorrow.  At this very moment, I am thankful that my back and hip are feeling better so that lying down and getting comfortable in bed are no longer excruciating.  That being said, I'm going to bed.  G'night.

One More Thankfulness Post

I'm getting my last post on thankfulness in right under the wire.  In less than an hour it will be December, and then in the blink of an eye, it will be 2013, and all the things I planned to accomplish this year will still be on my "To Do" list.

It has honestly been difficult on some days to find just ONE teensy thing that I was thankful for.  That is why this is such a good exercise for me, a naturally pessimistic person.  To find some good in some little thing makes me think hard about my interactions with others each day.  Consequently, I have found that I am trying harder to listen to others, and even JP has commented that I seem to be yelling less.  That's BIG!

So...even though it would be really wise for me to continue this exercise indefinitely, I will not.  Some days I would rather do something besides blog, believe it or not, so for the sake of adding a few minutes of "free time" to my day, it will go by the wayside.  Perhaps I will re-visit my thankfulness in February, the cruelest of months.  It could possibly help me be a less bitter person in the dead cold of winter!

Tonight, the whole family drove into town to enjoy the "Open House."  This is the 3rd or 4th year that our little town has rung in the Holiday season by having the shops stay open late, had fires on the street corners to warm your hands, and carolers on the courthouse steps.  It has been fun in the past, and we usually meet up with our buddies and walk around together.  The whole experience just oozes "community."

This year it was really busy.  I mean, so busy that there is no room to even get inside the door of several of the little shops on Main Street.  It was so crowded that we couldn't walk down the sidewalks, but had to veer into the streets.  The line at the Hot Dog vendor was close to a block long, and the one at the Coffee Shop was all the way out the door.  Crazy.

I promised J that she could look for a prize at 10,000 Villages tonight, since I coerced her into getting a vaccination at her Well Child Exam on Wednesday.  She found a cute leather ring there that I gladly bought for her.  Unfortunately, by the time we arrived home, the ring was missing, and J's heart was broken.  We back tracked a little and made a couple of phone calls, but it hasn't turned up.

It hurts me to see my girls hurting, either physically or emotionally.  I want to make it better, which isn't always possible.  In the end, it soured the whole evening for me, probably for all of us.  Perhaps a similar little ring will find its way into the girls' Christmas stockings in a few weeks?

So what am I thankful for today, after our downer of a finish?  I'm thankful that JP got home while it was still light outside, and that we all sat together in our bright little Library to chat and joke and play games on the computer.  I'm thankful that I ran into my friends in town tonight, and that the girls danced down the street arm in arm with their friends.  I'm thankful that the weekend is here, and though I don't plan to sleep in tomorrow, I should be able to watch the sun rise from our little tree house while I'm on the look out for deer.  I'm thankful that we had a good day under our belts before disappointment struck, and I'm thankful every day for my beautiful girls and my loving husband.  I have a lot to be thankful for, and I plan to be mindful of that, even if I'm not writing about it every day.

Once More Before the Snow Flies

We actually had a little more frozen precipitation yesterday, nothing sticking or accumulating so far.  Perhaps that is because we have these gorgeous sunny and warmish days in between.  Every morning feels like winter lately, and the chickens' water is frozen, but the sun warms up everything nicely by afternoon.  It won't last forever, but today was absolutely beautiful.

L threw a fit at lunch time because 1) she wanted to eat her lunch outside, then 2) she wanted to change into short sleeves and capris, then 3) she was starving.  Of course the whole time I was dealing with the screaming fits, I was not getting lunch made.  I hope she remembers these days when she has kids of her own!

Some time after lunch and Science lessons, we hopped in the van and drove down the lane to wait for J's bus.  We waited, and waited, and then I finally realized that we were there a full hour early!  An hour later, we tried again, and on the way up the hill we unanimously decided to dress in orange and go for a walk.  We typically save our walks for Sundays during November, but since my Dad was called out of town to attend to some of my Grandfather's estate issues today and tomorrow, no one was hunting on our property this afternoon.

The dogs were thrilled, as there were plenty of new smells to whiff.  Kali looked a bit stiff in her coat with hunter orange stripes.  Stella sported a neck bandanna of the same color.  The three of us wore our orange hats.  We walked and walked, careful to keep inside the boundaries of our own property.  It was amazing!

I am so thankful that we had the chance (and took the opportunity) to take a lovely long walk all around Poplar Ridge during hunting season while the sun was shining today. 

So Much for "Nothing to Do!"

I am canning turkey tonight, and when this canner-full cools down, I have a few quarts of chicken and turkey stock to can.  I am very thankful that I finally learned to use the pressure canner last year, after many years of fearing it.  (I'm also thankful that my Mom lets me borrow hers just about whenever I ask!)  Frozen left-over turkey never ends up being a crowd pleaser, but these jars of poultry are tender and perfect for dumping into chicken and dumplings or whipping up into my favorite curried chicken salad.  As an added bonus, the dogs enjoy the juice poured over kibbles.

Before the pressure canner, I froze all my green beans.  Last year, when the beans in my garden went absolutely crazy and I couldn't even give them away fast enough, I ran out of room in my freezer.  That was the turning point, since pressure canning is apparently the only safe way to can beans.  Now I'm even considering canning dried beans, will they cook as they can?  I need to google that!

So I ended up with some work to do tonight after all, but it is not difficult.  I have also tried to time it so that all is finished well before bed time.  I think that the girls are on the verge of coming down with something, so we all need some extra rest right now.

I need to go work on a Subtraction Facts Chart for L.  The addition one turned out nicely. 

Here goes nothing...

Waking Up is Hard to Do!

Getting out of bed was hard this morning...mostly because I stayed up too late mopping the floor (it's SOOO much easier when people aren't walking all over it), and partly because I REALLY enjoyed having a few days off from school and work last week!

So here I am again, up late ironing and blogging.  Will getting up tomorrow be any easier?  Nope.  At least I don't have any chores hanging over my head until the next weekend.

I enjoyed being with my kids yesterday.  We played with toy animals in the morning, read books and magazines together until I nearly fell asleep after lunch, and carved our Halloween pumpkins in the afternoon.  Yes, we carved pumpkins, but we convinced ourselves that these were Holiday Pumpkins.  Thus was born...the St. Nick o'Lantern:

Too many times, I tell my kids that I'll do something "later".  I'm thankful that we just did whatever came along yesterday, since today was all schedules, school and work.  True, I was grumpy after dinner, when I realized that the cleaning up still needed to be done (pumpkin guts all over the kitchen floor...ewww!).  Tonight, when I look back, I have no regrets.

Tomorrow morning when the alarm goes off, I might feel differently...better get to bed!

Hunting Buddy

I spent a little over an hour this morning hunting from up in the tree house.  I startled a doe and yearling when I first went outside, but they were the only deer that I saw the whole time.

About 10 minutes after I got settled up there, I heard a commotion on the deck, and noticed Lizzie Kitty knocking on the window.  I let her in, and she kept me company for a while, purring and taking over my chair.  She got bored after half an hour and knocked on the window again to be let back out.  She maneuvered her way down the tree, and a few minutes later, I saw her attacking a pile of dirt down below.

By 8 AM, when JP was due to leave for work, my coffee had run out, and so had my patience.  While the tree house wasn't as cold as JP's tree stand out in the woods, I still wished for my long underwear and more hot coffee.  This morning I am thankful that I don't depend entirely on this meat for food, as we would surely go hungry.  I'm also extremely thankful for my warm house and hot drinks to return to.  Finally, I am looking forward to one bonus day that I can spend with my kids...so let's get the party started!

P.T.S. (Post Turkey Syndrome)

So here we are, the festivities are over, and it is time to look ahead to Christmas and L's Birthday.  Although we were able to unload a few of the left overs yesterday, the fridge is still packed with turkey, dressing and taters.  I am still working on washing and putting away towels and sheets.  Things are winding down toward the return to normalcy.

Luckily, the girls have one additional day off school tomorrow, for the first day of deer (rifle) season.  I am planning to head up to the tree house at 6:54 tomorrow to look for that big buck I've been watching for the past several weeks.  Last year the regulations changed to make the first week of hunting for antlered deer only, and those guys tend to make themselves scarce.  I can't go after does/antlerless deer until Dec. 1st.

It is quiet right now in the house.  JP is working on his medical records, and the girls are working on a puppet show downstairs.  We went to Outback this afternoon to finish celebrating J's birthday, so with those doggy bags plus the turkey left overs, there is no need to cook.  I am thankful for a quiet evening, with no pressing schedule.  It is a nice way to ease back into the routine of school and work!

Switch-Up

This morning, JP's family left for home.  Several hours later, 2 car loads of our friends arrived.  My good friend, who moved away this summer, was in the area for the Holiday.  We invited them, along with the available ones of our remaining group of friends, out to Poplar Ridge for a post-Thanksgiving get together.

It was really great to have part of the old group back together again.  We could compare how our children and our selves have changed in the past 4 months since we've been together:  taller, more talkative, greyer hair, etc, etc.  I am thankful to have friends with whom the passage of time means nothing - that we can start up again where we left off after time apart!

We had a post-Thanksgiving Buffet for dinner, with everyone bringing left-overs from the feast to share.  Wish you folks out West could have stopped by for the evening, it was fun.

After everyone departed for their respective homes, we were left completely drained.  I fell asleep on the couch watching first Indiana Jones, and then again while waiting to see Mumford and Sons on SNL.  (We are getting TV reception again...can't believe it!)

So...to all of our friends and family, both near and far, we wish you safe travels to back to your home, or an easy return to normal after the departure of loved ones.

And as promised, here is a picture of the finished concrete (can you see the snow flakes falling in the foreground?)

Turkey and Concrete

The sky was blue and bright this morning at 8 AM when the concrete truck rolled up our hill.  An hour and a half later, it was raining and cold.  We managed to get the pad poured in the lean-to, and still have time to eat two ENORMOUS meals today.

For brunch:  sausage patties, scrambled eggs, bagels, shoe fly pie and coffee.

For dinner:  turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, corn, applesauce, roasted butternut squash soup, and rolls

Later tonight we'll break out the pumpkin and pecan pies!

The forms that JP built yesterday



Starting to pour



After we screened the pad



JP floating the pad



 I'm thankful that the concrete project worked out, and so did dinner.  Were there ever any doubts? 

JP's left over turkey castle

They are calling for snow flurries tonight, so we finished in the nick of time.  I'll post pics of the finished product tomorrow.

Thanksgiving...A Day of Rest?

Oh yeah...today was the day of turkey and feasting and being together with family.  I almost forgot, since e sorta skipped it.  JP's family arrived this evening, so we will feast and make merry tomorrow, while the rest of you are having turkey sandwiches.

Today, I cleaned.  The downstairs is spotless, and the girls hung up the Thanksgiving clings on the French doors.  I also cleaned out the Egg Cart'n.  It is not sparkling, but it's pretty good...good enough for peeps, should we get some in the Spring.

The girls ate a picnic lunch up in the tree house.  They ran all around the property with their walkie-talkies, having marvelous adventures.

JP prepared an area under the barn lean-to for a concrete pad to house our new outdoor wood burner.  The concrete truck is coming tomorrow at 8 AM.  We got an estimate from a professional, which was significantly more than we thought we could spend.  We asked another local person to give us an estimate, and he never showed up, or returned our calls.  So, JP and I are pouring concrete tomorrow morning before we cook our turkey, bake the rolls and mash the taters.  Hooray!

It was lovely tonight to sit with everyone and belly laugh while watching Kung Fu Panda (scaDOOOSH!)  I am thankful tonight for the opportunity to just sit and relax, I don't do it often enough.  I'll be even more thankful when the concrete is poured and hardening, and we are sitting down to a huge turkey dinner tomorrow afternoon!

These Little Moments

I traded some of my pretty pink and brown eggs at the Farmer's Market for some even lovelier pears - buttery yellow with red cheeks.  I almost didn't make it there before closing.  Both dogs found something nasty to roll in this morning, so I added "Give both dogs a bath!!" to my list of things to do today.

I was a guest reader for L's class today.  I did this on line, so no one had a clue that I hadn't yet brushed my teeth for the morning, or brushed my hair for that matter.  One of the little girls told me afterward, "Thank you for that beauuuutiful story.  That was the most beautifullest story I ever heard!"  How's that for gratitude?

The tree house trim is all painted.  Done.  I'll post pictures when it is up...things are looking very sherbet-y up there:  peach and periwinkle windows and doors, and lime green walls.

It was a lovely, warm and sunny November day today.  I had only a few minutes to soak it up, to charge up my batteries for the long, cold nights.  I hung some laundry out too, the days that I can do that yet this year are limited.

I am thankful for all the little, special moments today:  the gorgeous pears, the gushing first grader, the sunshine, the sense of fulfillment in finishing a job, and even the fresh smelling dogs.  It's all good, and I need to remember those things when the days seem otherwise dark.  That's hard to do!

I need to go check on the turkey.  It's been out of the freezer and in an ice chest since Monday night.  Luckily, we don't need to cook him until Friday.

General Confusion

While I am trying to keep my life in order at home, it is falling apart at work.  I feel majorly stressed tonight, partially because I just finished doing 2 hours of paper work here, after doing my regular half day at the office.  This is all temporary, but it is happening at the start of the Holidays, which is stressful enough on its own!

Consequently, I am struggling tonight to find something that I am thankful for.  Just the fact that I am done at the office for another week is a pretty good thing, and the girls are done with school right after lunch tomorrow for almost as long.  Those are certainly things to be thankful for!

I'm off to the Wood Shop again...hoping to find some relief in the monotony of painting and listening to the Lord of the Rings on CD.

Here's hoping that none of you are feeling overwhelmed by the upcoming Holidays, and wishing you all peace and warm fuzzies in the arms of your families this week.

???

Something big went down at work today that I am not at liberty to discuss.  Suffice it to say we will be short staffed for an indefinite period of time.  I am already being asked to "think about whether or not you can give us some more hours."  (Which will only happen IF my Mom is able/willing to put in more hours teaching L, and IF JP and I decide that is the best thing to do right now.)

SIGH...

...Just when I thought we were marching right through the Holidays without a glitch!

I spent a couple of hours after the girls went to bed tonight painting Tree House trim pieces in the Wood Shop.  Luckily I was using low VOC paint, so in the solitude I was actually able to clear my head, instead of becoming a bit high and nutso.  I can probably knock the rest of the trim out in another night.  That just leaves the floor to install, and we can call it finished.  Furnishing it will take a while longer, but I don't feel quite so rushed to make that happen.

My middle brother called this afternoon.  He just had hernia surgery on Friday, and is recovering in a recliner in Texas with a bottle of pain pills and an ice pack.  I felt a bit bad that I didn't call him first, although I did try one time (still having some cell phone issues, mine is officially dead after its washing machine ride.)  BAD big sister, BAD, BAD! I think that I was able to answer some post-op questions for him, does that make up for it a teeny bit?

I'm thankful, in any case, that I got to talk to him today, and that his surgery went well and he is recovering as anticipated.

Happy Healing Thoughts to you, my Bro!

Twinkle, Twinkle

JP conceded that J could get her ears pierced when she turned 10.  I have been promising her that I would get mine pierced along with her.  This weekend, even though J isn't quite 10 yet, we decided it was time.  JP bought sterile piercing needles and studs on line, read up on piercing, and became our piercing "expert."

J shed a few tears, but thankfully, I was a good role model for her, as I went first.

Now both of us have little twinkling birthstone studs in our ears.  J's do not seem to be bothering her at all, but my ears are aching and throbbing.  I'm starting to think that 40-something is too old to get your ears pierced for the first time!

As I sit here tonight, snuggle up with my family as we watch one of our favorite movies, Totoro, I am thankful for a great weekend with my family, a sunny day to paint in the tree house, and a 2 1/2 day school week coming up!

Happy Birthday 2 U!

J had her 10th Birthday Party today, even though her birthday is not for a couple of days yet.  She invited 4 of her friends, but unfortunately one was unable to make it due to illness.  J put a lot of planning into her party, and decided that she would like to invite the Mary Kay Lady to come and do a Spa Party.



Facial Masks





Relaxing at the Poplar Ridge Spa



 



Painting Nails



J wanted to have a chocolate tasting, so we picked 6 different "gourmet" chocolate bars, and the girls tried a small sample of each.  We found some interesting varieties, like the one with potato chips in it (found that one at Target.)

After that, it was cake and present time.  The cake was also specially chosen by J:  chocolate, with a peppermint cream filling and chocolate icing...YUM!

The girls played in the tree house, and put together the new Hex Bug habitat.  It was altogether a fun day, with amazingly few fights.

I'm so thankful for my J-Bird, who is inquisitive, helpful and bright.  I waited a looooong time for her to join our family!  Happy, happy birthday to my precious JEM!