birthday goodness...

Count those Good n Plenty's and you'll know how old I turned on Sunday.  Yikes!  Let's just say it's my last year as a 30-something.  Really?

It was a happy day anyway.  The Husband brought me breakfast in bed, his famous cheesy eggs and a tall glass of orange juice.  Pinky and I shared them while she chirped away happily and then toddled off to see what her siblings were up to.  I lingered in bed and read.  Princess and Cha-cha brought me beautifully hand-drawn cards accompanied by lots of hugs and kisses.  The Boy designed me a clever Lego cake on the computer.  Pinky and I snuggled together for an afternoon nap.

I woke to the smell of something vanilla-y baking.  Yum.  The Boy casually came upstairs and asked me how to make "cream."  I told him you had to buy cream and that we didn't have any.  He was crestfallen.  I wheedled.  He admitted he was making a cake and wanted cream for the top.  I told him frosting would be good, too.  He left the room and returned with a printout of a frosting recipe with odd amounts and measurements but amazingly accurate ingredients.  I asked him where he got it.  He told me he'd made it up.  I suggested looking in one of my cook books or online for a recipe .  He came back with a printed recipe that he'd googled.  We agreed it looked good and he left to complete his masterpiece.

. 

Didn't it turn out great!? It was delicious and he was so proud. I was proud. My sweet 11-year old boy. So thoughtful. We gobbled it up with cherry-vanilla icecream before the Husband made us dinner. Lasagna, salad and rolls followed by a family wii tournament. Not a bad way to celebrate the day, wouldn't you say?

Mom I love you
You make me happy
even when I'm cranky

blueberry baked goodness...

Cha-cha's "smooshy blueberries" of the last post made lovely blueberry baked goods.

First came the blueberry muffins, using this recipe.  And yes, they were "to die for."  A perfect muffin.  Moist, not too sweet, high rounded tops, coated with crunchy, sugary goodness.  Yum.  I froze a cup of blueberries and saved the extra streusel topping (there was lots) so that I can make another batch in a jiffy.  Mmmm... maybe tomorrow morning.

Next came the blueberry crisp using this recipe.  It was good.  Can blueberry crisp be bad?  Not great, but I didn't include the pecans, perhaps that was a mistake since it appears to be a major ingredient.  A generous scoop of vanilla bean icecream made it great.  Next time I'll try it with pecans or perhaps you have a great crisp recipe to share?

the perfect party...

The Husband's annual company picnic is one of the highlights of the year for our little family.  The kids ask about it all year - kind of like Christmas or their birthdays.

It's no wonder, it's a child's dream come true--complete with pink balloons to clutch...
  
rock walls to climb...

contraptions to bounce you into the treetops...

tattoos to decorate every appendage...

mini golf to play...

pretty pictures to be painted... on your face...

"pies" of whipped cream to be eaten... messily...

ponies to perch upon...

more time to climb...

play areas to explore...

ice cream and cotton candy to devour...

amazing balloon creations to love or battle with...

and more rock walls to climb!

Not to mention egg tosses and water balloon fights to join, pools to swim in, magicians to watch, d.j.'s and bands to dance to, and tables of favorite foods to eat... to your heart's content!

It's enough to make any kid silly with glee!  Makes Mom & Dad pretty happy, too...

borrowed bounty...

Grandma and Grandpa are away for a couple days so we've been selected to reap some of the rewards of their gardening prowess!

Last night, in the cool, dusky light of past-bedtime, Princess, Cha-Cha and I wandered the garden hunting and choosing.  We took turns on the wooden swing in the old apple tree until the mosquitoes found us.  Then, for good measure, we borrowed a few of the burgeoning buds from the front yard to brighten our kitchen table.  A perfect summer evening.

Mmmm...zucchini bread and buttery sauteed squash...

Thank you, thank you for all your sweet comments about my baby-to-be. I know I may come across as ungrateful to some. I apologize for that. I do realize that this is a wonderful blessing. This baby will be adored and appreciated, as all three of my other surprises have been and are.

I'm just a bit of a control freak and this surprise truly came out of nowhere! You've heard the quote "Men plan. God laughs." This feels very apropos to my life lately. I've been feeling like I'm on a runaway rollercoaster and just when I start to get a grasp I hit another free fall. This is a BIG one! It really is hard to not feel in control, I guess I just need to let go and enjoy. I'm working on it...

Birds chirping happily outside my window this morning when I woke up. Spring, is that you?

The sound of my tea kettle whistling away. A little peppermint tea to warm me up... my favorite! The weather outside has gotten chilly lately, time for tea! Now I just need to convince The Husband to start a fire in the fireplace... that would be perfect.

Autumn vistas so breathtaking that I dare not attempt to capture them in photographs. I could just never do them justice. These are around every corner this time of year. There is one down my street that greets me daily and I still have to remind myself to breathe every time I see it.

Cha-Cha asking for "mo wemonade, mommy!"

this view across the street as twilight turns to evening...

















Now, if only I could get rid of those unsightly power lines, that would be absolute goodness...

"I love the smell of fresh asphalt in the morning" says The Boy (with a satisfied sigh) to his sisters after an animated discussion about the dump truck we're driving behind. Where do they come up with these things? Snippets like this one elicit a needed chuckle from me and make a crazy, rushed morning so much more bearable!

... a twilight drive up and down my favorite street lined with old farms and deliciously beautiful antique houses... and Cha-Cha finally went to sleep... ahhh, a cure for toddler insomnia due to summer excitement...

the flip side of this...
cool, crisp sheets that have been chilling in an air-conditioned bedroom on a steamy summer night...

a little more...

...ahh dusk... beautiful in every season of the year but especially summer, the word itself is delicious... so is twilight... pretty words to describe such a magical time of day... the summer heat relents, the air gets very still, pink cotton candy clouds drift above, shadows stretch long and blue below, fireflies appear, dark silhouettes decorate the fiery horizon, a soothing calm settles in, it's almost bedtime for the children, it's almost quiet time for me... so good... this picture describes it well...

time for more...

...watching the corn stalks across the street grow taller and bend in the breeze... still not quite "as high as an elephant's eye by the fourth of july"...

some more...

... the feeling of warm, soft cotton clothing on cool skin after a day in the pool... have loved this since I was a little girl... still makes me happy...

introducing...

In an effort to recognize the goodness in my life I am going to start regularly recording some of the random little things that make me happy. Here goes...

...summer nights when it's cool enough to turn off the air, open the windows and be serenaded by crickets and awakened by happily chirping birds...