52 Weeks of Joy: Week 13

This week wasn't joyful in the extreme. It was more of a "getting by" kind of week. Sometimes having kids isn't all outside baths and the bow game. We're alive. That's joyful. We're together. That's joyful. We certainly don't have the most stressful or biggest problems...but when you've got sick kids it can be rough. We just want our little girls to feel better, as any parent would. We've been to the doctor/express care three times (or more...can't keep the days straight...) this week to find out we've got bronchitis/pneumonia floating around the house. And we're already planning to go back at least once next week. So this week, medical professionals bring us joy.

Last night we went to the Express Care at the local hospital; Miriam had a high fever. She was a trooper. We entertained her with Sesame Street on Daddy's phone during the waiting times. Turns out there's not really anything appropriate on TV at 10 PM for a two-year-old. Huh.

Feel better soon, little Squeaker.

Fabulous Father

Fathers are fabulous. Especially Miriam and Vivian's father. He's playful and cuddly. When he gets home from work, Daddy is always happy to see them and cheerful, even when he's had a stressful day. He's definitely the "Good Cop" in this house. Miriam has already figured out to ask Dad if Mom says, "No." Bonus: he changes diapers. And we have lots of those around here. But he still does some very Funny Father things on occasion. For example, Miriam pranced out into the living room after Daddy changed her diaper. She was wearing a one piece outfit that had snaps in the inner legs. Mom did a double take and said, "Oh my, Miriam, what happened?!?" Somehow Miriam's whole outfit got twisted around her body twice before Daddy buttoned it all back up. Check out these pictures; can you see the twisting? At least each leg got a leg hole, right? Pretty funny.

"Thanks, Dad!"

 Viv didn't know what to think about that fashion statement either.

Nana and the Viv

  Cheers to Fabulous Fathers. We're blessed to have one in our house.

52 Weeks of Joy: Week 12

Today we offer you a joyful equation. Don't worry, you won't need to do any actual math to figure this one out.

Miriam + Watering Can = Child Joy > Parent Joy

 Oh, Mudpies, you are really something.

52 Weeks of Joy: Week 11

Sorry! Didn't get these up last week!

It's been a HOT week here. But it's MARCH so we refuse to turn on the A/C. The girls don't seem to mind. Turns out if no one tells you that it's too hot it doesn't bother you quite so much and you don't whine about it. You actually end up loving it! Perhaps there's a lesson for the parents of these two cutie pies here. A few pictures of them enjoying the heat...

Miriam's new favorite toy is the watering can. We've got some well watered weeds and grass...and deck and fence and sometimes Vivian.

 Miriam also likes to "cook" for us. Would you like a bite? MMMMMM...very tasty!

If this little smile doesn't give you some joy, we're not sure what will!

Wanted to share this blue sky with you, too. Yeah, the kids are cute A COMPLETE MESS from playing outdoors for hours. But that sky!

OUR 1st Day of Spring

It's not officially spring yet, we know. But our spring arrived last week. And we are LOVING it. How did we know it was our first day of spring? Some things were similar to our pre-baby days...

No pants.

Enjoying a frosty cold beverage outside.

 Water to splash around in.

Even a flower in bloom.

 God is good. He knew we were ready to be outdoors!

Can we both fit in here?

This may win a world record for "longest time to wash a child's hair".

A few curls

We've got a new game! Well, actually these pictures were taken a couple weeks ago when the weather wasn't quite as warm. But it will come in handy during rainy days, too. We have three signs: People, Animals, Food. Throw some plastic play food, people figures, and fake animals into a bucket. Mix. The girls reach in (Miriam with her eyes closed because otherwise she's only picking out her favorite things) and pull out an item. They run around placing the item in the correct area of the room. Vivi isn't totally getting the game yet, but she's having fun!

On to more important news. Does Miriam have her mom's ridiculous hair or what?

Vivian, on the other hand, has CURLS in the back. Mom's pumped and praying Viv gets to keep them. Vivian may never get a haircut. Here's a picture. It's not the best, but she's not one for posing or sitting still.

Artists

We've got some artists in the house...

...who love to be messy. They both also had to taste it. Yuck. Paint made in China. Double yuck.

Finger paint...no...

...this is body paint.

Which means we needed to:

Wanna make finger paint? We're going to give this a try next time. Then we won't have to worry about keeping it out of their mouths quite so much. It might even have some skin enhancing qualities. Brighter complexion, exfoliation, slow down the wrinkles, you know. Just added bonuses. And we're going to use a bigger piece of paper.

52 weeks of Joy: Week 10

This "false spring" weather that we've had around here recently has been pretty joyful! Lots of time to play outdoors, to watch the plants begin to grow, to listen to the first brave birds, to discover worms, to draw with chalk all over the driveway, digging through the sandbox, pulling last year's weeds out of the garden (better late than never)...we're having fun!

Wanna see things growing, too?

Chives

Mint

Crocuses

Many, many tulips

Other things around here are growing, as well. But we won't bore you with pictures of all of them. Lilacs are budding, hydrangeas are massive already, day lilies are already poking through the mulch. It's amazing...and hopefully no nasty March blizzards surprise us. Because some of these plants surely won't make it. They've just been too brave so early. 

As a side note, can we just say how much easier it is to take a clear picture of a little plant as a opposed to a little kiddo? It's amazing what stillness can do for a photo.

Know what else is growing? Vivian's feet! Finally! Size four!

 No way!

Lent...

Lent isn't the best time of year, but it's a good time of year. We need this time of year to prepare, to clean ourselves out, to make room for Easter and others. 

However, it doesn't seem like we suffer much on Fridays in this family. We're not eating meat, but we're sure eating good! Perfect opportunity to try out some new meatless recipes. We all really enjoyed this one for meatless Reubens that was originally found in the USA Weekend magazine-thingy. It comes in our Saturday or Sunday paper. Anyways, we wanted to share it with all of you. It's Monday...you've got the whole week to get the ingredients. No pictures of the finished product (must have eaten them too quickly). Even good as leftovers warmed under the broiler. So if you're avoiding meat on Fridays, like us, or just want something a little healthier for dinner, try it!

Reuben Burger

1 cans (15.5 oz each) pinto beans, drained, liquid reserved

1 c. bread crumbs

2 eggs

1 t. pepper

1 t. garlic powder

1/2 c. mayo

2 T. cocktail sauce

6 buns

1/4 c. oil

6 thin slices Swiss cheese

2 c. sauerkraut, drained

Mash beans with fork in bowl so that about half of them are mashed up and the other half are mostly whole. Mix in bread crumbs, eggs, pepper, garlic powder. Add enough bean liquid for mixture to hold together without being wet. Divide into 6 equal 4" patties. Mix mayo and cocktail sauce in small bowl for a yummy special sauce and set aside. Warm buns in 300 degree oven for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties and cook, turning only once, until a crisp brown crust forms on both sides, about 8 minutes total. Top burgers with cheese slices a minute or two after flipping so it can melt. Spread the bottom of each bun with some sauce, set burger on top, pile on however much sauerkraut you'd like, cap with top bun. Serve. 

Try not to go back for seconds, it's Friday, after all. But we probably did.

52 Weeks of Joy: Week 9

Last night and today, we went to a nearby water park with the girls. It was a great little trip. They loved it and we loved it. In fact, we all loved it so much we did not take one picture. Almost impossible. But we were too busy to take pictures. Too busy running around, splashing, eating Amish Peanut Butter (you will not thank us later for telling you about this when you no longer fit your pants...try it...delicious), slipping down water slides, giggling, floating on our backs, meeting other fun kids, shopping the Amish bulk foods store, chasing the chubbiest and skinniest pairs of legs, dumping buckets of water on each other. These babies loved it. Tim said his favorite part about the trip was that the girls just got to play and we got to say 'YES!' a lot more often than 'no.' It was about them and us spending family time together. Not a whole lot is going to be more joyful for us than that.

So to make up for the lack of pictures, here are a few from last summer when the girls were wet and littler. Hope that satisfies you. :-)

Dripping wet Vivian.

Miriam's about to be very wet!

The Bow Game

We've recently started playing a little game around here that the girls really enjoy. The Bow Game. Easy and practically free. Supplies: gift bows and colored paper. Mom and Dad hand out the bows. The girls (Miriam) match them to the colored paper. Bonus: our bows see the light of day outside of the month of December.

The layout.

No silver paper = use a silver spoon. Oh, and NEVER let Goodnight Moon out of your sight.

Miriam loves purple but there are only two purple bows in our collection. Bummer!

Plenty of red bows though.

Two babies sitting still and looking at the camera at the same time? Probably not. Ever.