Phone Foto Friday

Maybe that's a new thing: Phone Foto Friday....

Sick baby - from several weeks ago.  Cashed on the couch - a real rarity.

Dandeliions and bike races

Double Fisting for the 4 year old set

If I could bottle this....

Outdoor, GF pizza.

Tattoos and Pink Hair Doos - last week of preschool

Mema and J. for Grandparents Day at Kindergarten

My pinkie-pies at Kindergarten pick-up.

See Centerfold

Tough Mudder

So DH and I did this on Saturday:

11.5 miles.

27 obstacles.

Team of 16.

We scaled several 8, 10 and 15 foot walls.

Climbed several rope walls.

Did the monkey bars (at an incline) and swinging rings over 6 feet of brightly colored water.

Climbed over 6 and 8 foot tall hay bales, then 6 and 8 foot tall mud bales - slippery, oozy gooey.

Slithered through several dark tunnels in mud, on hands and feet (no knees and elbows - too tall)

Went through 2 electrical shock obstacles.  Yes, I got shocked.  Yes, it really is 10,000 volts.

Jumped off of a 30 foot structure into more ice water.

Ran more.

Jumped more.

Got dirty more.

This wasn't a 5k mud run.

This was the really deal.

60% of all people who start don't finish.

We did it with these people - yes we all have permanent numbers written on our foreheads.

Yes, I was worried it wouldn't come off.

No, I shouldn't have been.

I got so dirty, that the number was off by mile 4.

I finished.

I would do it again.

I laughed and almost cried and challenged myself to just keep going.

We finished strong.

One lucky...

Breakfast at my favorite Cuban restaurant.

A waltz/run/dash/game of tag through the sculpture garden.

Planting flowers with my mom and Grandpa J.

And a surprise horse drawn carriage ride by the river.

It was a good day.

Beyond measure.

Monday Meditation: I'm Glad You Came

Two weeks ago we started seeing subtle upticks in C.'s anxiety. Anger. Worry. Her own body ticks.

Last week I mentioned to her that her "special day" or her "family day" was coming up. She was excited about it.  And seemingly unrelated, 20 minutes later proceeded to have a meltdown.

These are not your regular 4 year old meltdowns.  These are earth shattering.  Angry. Personal. And sad.

Three hours later and with another meltdown beginning to implode I asked her why she was so angry (I asked out of desperation, not out of good momming.)

She said "Mom, I can't stop screaming. I miss my Guatemala Mom and my Guatemala sister." And then she wept. Crying is to impersonal of a word. Weeping is soul bending for all involved. She wept.

She has said very little about her Guatemala Mom previous to this month.  I would say that some of her emotions are a little delayed.  She is eager to be excited, but unable to process long term thoughts or consequences.  That's just who she is as a 4 year old right now.

The middle of this week I asked her what she wanted to do for her family day...

Nonchalantly she said "You can take me to Guatemala or maybe to the tortilla shop."

Yes, if only it were that easy.

When she gets into a more anxious cycle we choose to down play all activities on the weekends: church, birthday parties, shopping, etc.  We just stick close to home and to a routine.  She wants to be in control and tell us how the day is going to go.  Its a constant reminder that no, she is not in control, but Mommy and Daddy take care of her and we plan the day out.  And then we do just that. And let her in on the details. So she feels safe.

Tonight after a good day - a trip to the zoo, cotton candy, a ride on the carousel, car naps (her favorite) and a down tempo afternoon, we headed to the "tortilla shop" for dinner and fried ice cream.  She loved it.

At home, we did baths and blankets and  books.  We read her special book, her life book.  She sat still for the three books before it, but when we got to her book, she was squirmy and anxious.  She wanted to tell me how the story went, tell me how she had chicken pox (oh lord child, don't think I will ever forget that part) and where everyone was in each picture. She wanted to be in control.

In control of her hurt.  Her loss.  Her sadness.

Her favorite song right now on the radio, by The Wanted is "I'm Glad you Came."  Its fitting, and perfect and filled with true irony.  She sings it at the top of her lungs (with ALL the right pitch changes in the right places.)

The sun goes down,the stars come out,
And all that counts is here and now,
My universe will never be the same,
I'm glad you came,I'm glad you came.

C. loved the swing. Right away. 1st week home.

Chicken pox. Nap. On DH. Eyes open. Passed out.

First Family full day. J. waking up to be near C. - C. already knowing that having a big sister was going to be a good deal. (Mom looking like she already needed a nap.)

Photo Dump

Photo dump from the past week.

J.'s Tree project. She identified all the parts of her favorite tree and labeled them.

There is a lice outbreak at school.  I'll be damned if I don't do everything in my power to keep J. from getting it.  Including Minnie Mouse buns for three days for J. (with preventive lice spray.)

I "caught" J. practicing piano - I was just getting ready to sit down with her after school and she was ahead of me. Working hard.  (No flash b/c I didn't want to surprise her.)

J. and C. cuddling yesterday morning. I got up early to run and came home to see them snuggling and reading books.

A little rain walk was in order on Saturday.

This is where the "gloves" came off - rather - where their socks got wet.

A. trying on the polar bear outfit at the zoo.

Silly outtakes after cotton candy and before the carousel.

A. found her pony.  It had a purple saddle.  She would not budge.

We skipped church this morning and headed to the public zoo.  It was rainy and perfect for skipping the crowds and enjoying time together, We got cotton candy, saw the animals, rode the antique (and FAST) carousel and walked through the Conservatory.  The girls said the Conservatory was just like Costa Rica and we should plan to visit often so we can "get used to Costa Rica."  I'm good with that.

Hugs for C. at the Conservatory.  We are celebrating C.'s family day today.

Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Quick Bread

As much as I think the interest in Gluten Free everything is a passing fancy (like Atkins and low-carb, sugar free, etc.) there is a general interest in baking GF foods.  And baking GF foods is a LOT easier said than done.  The quantity of abject failures I have had in my lifetime are ridiculously high.  The big problem with baking anything GF is that it falls apart.  The gluten in wheat holds baked goods together.  Without the wheat gluten? Small, tiny, crumbs, everywhere.  Just ask the minister who served GF bread 18 years ago at my confirmation communion....

I had a moderate success this morning, that was also easy and a good replacement for one of our staples.

The girls LOVE those refrigerated cinnamon rolls.  A., now that she is gluten free is devastated she can't have them.  AND I can remember as a child wanting something fun and special for breakfast too.  Not that I didn't get it sometimes, but it definitely wasn't as easy and fun as refrigerated cinnamon rolls.

This morning I made an Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Quick Bread.

I used part of two recipes to create something that I thought the girls would love and ask for instead of refrigerated cinnamon rolls.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

3/4 cup white sugar

1/3 cup mayo (sour cream would work well, I used what I had on hand)

1 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. cloves

1/4 t. nutmeg

1 t. baking powder

1/4 t. baking soda

2 green apples peeled and cut into 1 x 1 inch pieces (good substitutions: 2 cups of any of the following combined or otherwise - dried or fresh cranberries, chocolate chips, pecans, dried oranges/apricots/raisins)

Mix the dry ingredients.  Mix the wet ingredients. Combine. Add the apples.

Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350.

I always do the toothpick trick for GF baking. Stick a toothpick in and if it comes out clean, you are done.  If its gooey - put it right back in.

Out of the oven,

Proof that it came out of the pan, without falling apart.

I iced it. Buttercream frosting that I had in the freezer.

Gluten Free baking has a tendency to be either really wet or really crumby and too dry.  The crumb quality is almost always smaller than non-GF baking. It definitely helps to add a sour cream or mayo instead of butter or shortening - it has xanthum gum (a gluten substitute) that works to hold things together.

We celebrated C.'s Family Day today.

Apple Cinnamon Quick Breakfast Bread was a great hit!