Something to add to the list

The Things-I-Want-to-Have-in-Our-Yard-When-We-Settle-Down list that is.


Citrus trees! Definitely orange, tangerine and grapefruit. And hey, why not a lemon, also? Oh, and of course lime! (Could this be influenced by all the fresh fruit we are picking and eating in California right now? Exactly.)


Ah, but what if we live in a climate that is deadly to these trees? We will just have to have a sun room, or greenhouse, or something. We'll find a way to beat Mother Nature. All to have fresh citrus.


See? W1 agrees with me.

W1's latest observation.

First, a few updates:

1. W1, L1 and I flew to California on Wednesday for a little vacation at my parent's house. R1 stayed home for some good interruption-free working time.

2. W1 is mostly done being ill. He apparently had strep throat and fifth disease at the same time.


On Thursday, W1, L1 and I took a walk outside and picked some oranges. I cut one of the oranges into wedges for W1 and L1 to eat (in a very, very messy fashion. It's a good thing we were outside.)

Upon his first taste of the orange, W1 said:

"Mom, it's just like orange juice"

Ah.

An astoundingly accurate observation, wouldn't you say?

A Saturday spent in pursuit of:

1. Other people to buy our unwanted stuff. We participated in our neighborhood yard sale and spent many boring hours in the front yard. The extra fridge that has been sitting in our garage since we moved in (an embarassingly long time ago) is now gone, however. We are one step closer to a garage that we can park in!

2. A healthy W1. He has had a couple of rough weeks. He now has strep throat, so we spent Saturday pumping him full of Amoxicillin, Tylenol, and Gatorade.

3. The perfect apple fritter*. Some time ago, R1 and I discovered that really good apple fritters are hard to come by in Rochester. We had a tip on a good place, so we had to see for ourselves. The verdict was: the best so far in Rochester, but still not quite up to par.


*If you happen to share our obsession, it was the Ridge Donut Cafe off of E. Ridge Rd. Their glazed donut holes are pretty tasty, too.

Salad, anyone?

We are enjoying the first harvest from our garden this year.

Green leaf lettuce

and spinach.

Both were started from seeds in pots with a little help from W1 and L1. I was trying to remember exactly when we started these so I would know how long they have been growing. Around the first of May is my best guess. We did have to pull the pots inside a couple of nights to protect them from frost.

So, we are eating a lot of salad. The fresh spinach really tastes good, no bitterness at all.

I have discovered that balsamic vinaigrette is my consistent favorite dressing. I have also discovered that W1 and L1 really don't like balsamic vinaigrette, or any other dressing they have tried.

Ketchup it is, then*.


*or if anyone has a better idea for a kid friendly dressing...

It was the calm before the storm.

This afternoon was idyllic.

L1 took a nap.
W1 took a nap.
I took a nap.

L1 was at the very end of a cold/ear infection and feeling much better. I was looking forward to things returning to normal, and being able to get out of the house tomorrow.

The kids woke up from their naps. We made snickerdoodles together. Then we ate snickerdoodles together.

Then W1 got really whiny (this is not altogether unusual), and didn't want to eat dinner (also not unusual, and snickerdoodles might have had something to do with it).

After dinner I headed out to a Provident Living interest group meeting. R1 called me a few minutes after I left with the news that W1 threw up all over the couch.

Oh.

Well.

He usually gets over his illnesses quickly. As long as he keeps his germs to himself, it'll be no problem.

And hey, look, it gave me something to blog about.

And another reason to want a new couch.

A jam-packed weekend

We were camera-less this weekend, and I am once again too lazy to give this to you in paragraph form so...

This weekend we:

• Had a picnic at Powder Mill Park and fed the fish at the hatchery.

• On the way home from the park, we accidentally stopped by Eastview mall and bought some Lindt truffles.

• I participated in a Relief Society service project and only got a little sunburned.

• R1 took the kids to the zoo and got to watch the elephants take a bath! (the highlight, apparently)

• Planted most of our garden, putting in way too many zucchini plants. So, if you find random zucchini on your front porch, or stuffed into your mailbox, it wasn't me.

• Had movie night, or W1-watches-the-movie-while-R1-and-K1-try-to-entertain-L1. This usually only lasts 30 minutes. I don't think W1 has ever seen the end of most movies...

• Took a spur of the moment camping trip to the Finger Lakes region. We camped at Finger Lakes National Park, and hiked part of the gorge trail in Watkins Glen State Park (which is gorgeous, if you haven't been there, you should go).

• Watched L1's slightly runny nose escalate into coughing and then a fever. I guess I know what we will be doing the next couple of days.

I hope your weekend was just as fun and frantic.

What on earth have we been doing?

• Enjoying a Saturday of both kids sleeping in until a miraculous 9am. (This never happens.)
• Making multiple trips to the Lilac Festival. Kid's music during the day, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy on Wednesday, and a magic show Friday night.
• Mowing the lawn.
• Suffering through the return of K1's seasonal allergies.
• Camping (R1, L1, and W1, that is. K1 enjoyed a blissful night of uninterrupted sleep at home.)
• Twice making K1's new favorite easy recipe.
• Prepping our garden area, and trying to keep W1 and L1 from playing with the horse manure.
• Enjoying the return of outdoor grilling season!
• Playing in our new sandbox. For hours. And then tracking lots of sand into the house.

Do I have pictures to prove any of this. Um, no. We are big slackers.