Late Bloomer Homemaker

Moving Back to South Carolina

2008-08-02T12:18:00.000-07:00

Well, as luck/fate/the gods would have it, John's job here in CA evaporated and we are moving back to SC next weekend. John has obtained new employment with a law firm in the Hilton Head/Bluffton/Ridgeland area and we are glad to be heading home.

I can't believe I have to repack everything that is here in CA with us. It seems like I just got unpacked. Alas, life moves on and so do we. :)

Will blog when we get resettled. Blessings!

Yummy Veggieish Dinner I Made

2008-07-16T21:24:00.000-07:00

This is an amalgum of several veggie casseroles I have seen and/or made over the years and it is, we think, the best one yet. Here is the recipe:

1 20 oz bag frozen cauliflower
1 10 oz box chopped frozen broccoli
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained and rinsed
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 - 3/4 c. mayo

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Defrost veggies (I do this in microwave)
Mix all veggies and garbanzo beans with cheese and mayo. Put in one or two pyrex dishes and bake at 350 for 30 - 45 minutes.

This makes enough for us to have the casserole as a main dish with garlic bread for one dinner and then to have the casserole as a side dish to another dinner.

Enjoy! :)

Back from 6 Week Cross Country Trip

2008-07-11T17:34:00.000-07:00

Well, we are back from our trip across the country. Some might say that I am insane to drive across the country by myself with two one-year olds. But...... I love, love, love driving and have children who currently travel exceptionally well and who are exceptionally sweet. Papa had to stay here and work, study and take the first of 4 exams for the CPA exam. He passed the first test and is scheduled to take the next section at the end of August. Yeah Papa!!!

The catalyst for this trip was my sister and her husband's purchasing of our truck. The children and I drove it out to my sister and then we, as part of the sales purchase price, received my sister's husband's car which we drove the rest of the trip and home.

Here's the trip in a nutshell: We left on a Tuesday and arrived at my sister's house on the following Friday. On Saturday we all piled into my sister's minivan and drove to my Aunt's family's cabin where we spent Memorial Day weekend. On that Monday we drove and spent the night with my cousin and her family and then on Tuesday we went on down to my Aunt's house. Tuesday night we were back at my cousins' and then Wednesday we were back at my sister's house. We stayed with my sister for another 2-1/2ish weeks and had a wonderful time. The children had a great time with their cousins and exploring new toys. While there, I was able to catch up with a good friend from high school and meet her husband and children. At the end of the time at my sister's I drove to Charleston and spent one afternoon and night with my dear friend and her children. Then, it was on to my in-laws' where we stayed for 9ish days. While there, we were able to see Papa's sister and her husband who were visiting (they live in Thailand) as well as several other of Papa's sibs and their families. At the end of our stay Papa's parents had their 50th wedding anniversary. One of Papa's brothers had a great party at his house. He had put together a DVD of slides of his parents' life over the last 50 years and set it to music. It was wonderful. It was also great to get to see Papa's cousins and uncle. We missed Papa at this and the next family event the following day. Papa's family reunion is once every 2 years and is fairly large. It is generally held at the home of one of the relatives and is held outdoors. It's a potluck picnic and is great fun. While there we got to see lots of relatives, specifically including another Guatemalan cousin. From my in-laws' we went back to my sister's for a couple days and then on to my parents for a couple of days. While at my parents' home I was able to catch up with several friends and had a great time. Then, we headed back home to Papa. We spent 2 nights and 3 full days on the road but we got home.

When we got home Papa saw that his children had acquired new skills and grew while they were gone. Joshua started talking and Maria started walking! Lots of changes from when we left. The car ride back was not quite as quiet as the car ride out.

Here are several pictures from the trip. Enjoy! :)

In an autoglass repair shop in Flagstaff, AZ getting a crack in the windshield fixed. The kids are sitting on a picnic/stadium blanket I took with us and are eating cheese puffs.

I missed in this picture of the kids sleeping in their carseats in the truck. I was trying to show them holding hands. They often fell asleep holding hands on this trip. It was so sweet. It's hard to take pictures of what's going on behind you while you are driving. :)

Cheese sandwiches and milk in a hotel in Tucumcari, NM on night 2 of our trip out to the southeast.

Joshua and Maria are exploring a Clifford the Big Red Dog exhibit and having a grand time. Maria is practicing her newfound skill of walking.

Joshua having a great time playing with his cousins' toys.

Joshua sporting an outfit painted by my Aunt whom we visited. She paints wonderful children's clothes and items.

Maria sporting an outfit painted by my Aunt. Again, you can see how cute the clothes she paints are!

A turtle in a pond at a nature center to which we went.

Joshua walking with Mimi at the same nature center. So cute!

Ah, the joys of sleeping in the same play pen. :)

And, finally, fitting everything that I brought on the trip out in a truck into the new car, including some additional items I picked up while on the trip. As you can see, I left a space for me for driving and a space for the kids in their carseats and filled up basically every other available space in the car.

We are happy to be home and getting back in the swing of our life.

Have a great weekend!

Pics from last 6 weeks or so

2008-05-21T20:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't blogged in a long time. We have been very busy. As I type I am sitting in a hotel in New Mexico 1/2 way across the country between CA and TN. I am traveling with the kids by myself to TN and then to SC for a vacation and to attend a family reunion. It will be fun to have everyone meet Maria. We will get to see John's sister who lives in Thailand too.

The trip so far has been uneventful. The kids are doing very well and we are all having a good time. I, as those of you who know me know, LOVE driving across the country. It is beautiful and there are so many wonderful scenery changes. I will post pics from this trip when I get back (in July) and can get the pics off the camera.

In the meantime, here are a few pics from the last 6 weeks. Enjoy.

Trying to get a good pic of the kids when Maria first came home in their Guatemalan outfits. This is in the backyard. It quickly disintegrated and this is the best pic I got. Will try again later.

On a picnic at the local state college. We walked 11 miles round trip to the festival and then home. We were tired.

The sign for the gardens.

Waiting in line outside Forestiere Underground Gardens. The tours only take 20 or so people at a time.

Inside the gate waiting to go underground.

In the underground gardens. They are amazingly cool (temperature). They were built by hand by one man.

Maria looking sweet as ever in an outfit from her Great Aunt Betsy.

Joshua looking more grown up and no so much like a baby in an outfit from his cousin, Grant.

Playing outside on the porch

Getting ready to beat the 100+ temps this summer (and this past weekend).

Maria in an bathing suit from her friend Marcella after having had a dip in the kids pool.

Yosemite

2008-04-15T10:53:00.001-07:00

I can't believe we have the good fortune of living within an hour and a half's drive of at least 3 beautiful national parks: Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Forest. Growing up it required a lot of planning and scheduling to be able to come out to these and other national parks. It feels somewhat unbelievable to be able to take an afternoon and go over and enjoy a park.

Sunday we took the afternoon off and went to recon Yosemite for some later hiking, biking, and camping trips. It was a beautiful day and we were only gone 6 hours from door to Yosemite and back to door. Also, it only took 1/2 tank of gas. Yeah! Here are a few pictures from our first trip as a family of 4:

First real view of the valley, Half Dome, and Bridalveil Falls. It was breathtaking! You come upon this view just as you exit a tunnel. There are parking areas on both sides of the road but it's a wonder there aren't multiple accidents exiting the tunnel every day.

John & Joshua using the "man" sling.

Mama & Maria using the "girly" sling.

Picnicking in the back of the truck. We were all hungry by the time we stopped for the first view of Half Dome. We decided picnicking in the back of the truck was just as easy as continuing on to a picnic area so..... we pulled out the blankets and the cooler and all piled in the back (beagles and all). We had a nice lunch of string cheese, herb roasted turkey and cheese sandwiches, homemade herbal tea and fruit cups.

Once we finished lunch we headed on down to the valley floor where we took these pictures. Since we were on a recon mission and afternoon outing we didn't identify each of the falls but they were beautiful. We look forward to getting back to Yosemite many times this year and exploring.

Here are the beagles excitedly, albeit erroneously, anticipating being let loose on the valley floor.

I believe this is Bridalveil Falls.

No idea which fall this is but it was beautiful

Again, no idea which fall this is but it was beautiful too.

The giant rock on the right is El Capitan and I'm not sure about the name of the fall on the left.

Each time I visit a national parks or other wilderness areas I am am reminded of the power and beauty of nature.

Getting in the Groove

2008-04-10T15:24:00.000-07:00

So, I think I am getting the hang of having two toddlers in the house (though you may want to check back with me when Maria becomes completely mobile). :)

After getting John out the door to work we all got breakfast, cleaned up from breakfast and then had some indoor playtime until morning naps at 11:00 a.m. The kids slept until 12:30, giving me time to clean up a bit and prepare lunch. John came home and joined us for lunch outside on the patio. After lunch and cleanup the kids played outside and I got the organic potting mix put in my 4X4 garden. I also got another load of laundry folded from the line and hung out a new load of clean, wet clothes to dry. It's nap time again for kiddos so I am blogging.

I have just balanced the ckbook and am happy to say that since we got on a written budget we are doing well. We had a little extra because the final adoption expenses were just a hair less than we had planned. When mom was here we went to Costco and I stocked up on some meat, graham crackers, animal crackers, and other things I don't generally buy that will make my life easier as I get the swing of two toddlers.

Yesterday I put up the fireplace bumper and got the rest of the cushiony floor squares put down on the patio. This afternoon I plan on getting all the computer stuff back in the guest bedroom so there are less cords out and about for little people to get into.

Only a few more days of tax season and then I won't be a "tax widow" anymore. Yeah!

Will post pics tomorrow or this weekend. :)

Spring Break, Easter and Home with Maria!!!!!

2008-04-07T20:18:00.001-07:00

I haven't posted in a while because we had family in from out of town for spring break and then we went out of town for Easter. After we got back from Easter I was very busy getting everything finalized for my trip to Guatemala to pick up Maria.

John is, as you can imagine, very busy at work as it is the height of tax season. My mom, Mimi, was able to come and stay with Joshua while I was gone to Guatemala. Mimi left today and we are all sad. It was wonderful to have her here and Joshua really enjoyed having her to play with. Maria also enjoyed getting to know Mimi.

We had a wonderful trip and are home safely.

Tonight I survived preparing dinner for two children, cleaning up dinner, two baths and bedtime on my own. We started dinner at 5:30 and everyone was in bed by 7:45 so I think I did okay. It was definitely interesting.

Joshua and Maria are doing really well together and, knock on wood, both are sleeping through the night in their own cribs in their room. When they wake up it is incredibly sweet because they talk to each other from their cribs. Joshua has already begun to worry about Maria when she cries and has, several times, brought her one of his special toys to help comfort her. Tonight when I was rocking her he brought a book for me to read them together and then he brought her lovey to make sure she could get to sleep. Very sweet. He was so proud of himself for helping comfort her!

Here are a few pics from Easter, Guatemala and arriving home.

Building with blocks on the coffee table

Goodies from the Easter Bunny

Checking out eggs found on Easter egg hunt

Saying goodbye to Mama as she leaves to go get Maria.

Tummy and teething time in the hotel in Guatemala.

Hanging out in the hotel in Guatemala

Sleeping on Mama in the Guatemala City airport

Waiting to board plane and head home to US

Watching Auntie Anne at the hotel in Atlanta.

Meeting everyone at airport.

Puppies hiding out under table and resting in peace away from two toddlers.

Kitchen Budgeting

2008-03-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I am not the greatest at this yet, but I am on a mission as our food budget is very tight. We are working to get out of all our debt as quickly as possible and, to that end, we don't have cable TV, walk many places, and have a very tight food budget. For us, our stomachs were an easy place to blow the budget out of the water. When we are tired, stressed, want to celebrate, etc. (you get the pic. we love food) food is what we used to do. Obviously this was not good for our health, waistlines or budget.

Turns out that cooking from scratch, planning ahead and watching coupons/circulars isn't that difficult and is often fun for me. Also, I enjoy cooking and am able to make at home for lots less $$ many snacks that we used to just blow through (graham crackers, cheese crackers, etc).

Being that I am new at this process and still working out the kinks I don't have much advice. There are many wonderful blogs and articles on keeping the kitchen budget under control. Here is a link to one that has links to many others: http://www.cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/2008/03/recession-proofing-your-diet-food.html

Enjoy and happy reading. :)

Time at the Park and Other Weekend Adventures

2008-03-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from our weekend trip to the park. Joshua enjoyed exploring everywhere in the park and literally ran around for 2 hours non-stop. When we got home he ate dinner, had a bath and crashed, all within 45 min.

In the driveway ready to go.

Watching the ducks and geese

Fill 'n' spill is a great game

These 2 are of Joshua exploring the CA history maze at the park.

Ready to go home with the sun/bug shield on. Also, note the paniers (one full) on the sides of stroller. These will be very useful when Maria is in the 2nd/rear seat of the stroller and her feet are in the stroller basket.

Beautiful blooms around our neighborhood.

Napping in the sun

Crickett

Murphy

Around the house, playing:

Cheers. :)

Spring Fever and Preparing for Planting

2008-03-08T16:00:00.000-08:00

Today has been beautiful and we have spent as much time outside as possible. It feels great to be almost completely recovered from our colds. Everyone is feeling much better, though we still have a few runny noses.

Since 1/2 of our stuff, primarily the stuff from the garage and attic, isn't here yet, we don't have our yard toys. Today the gardeners recommended by the landladies came and did trimming, mowing, and general clean up of the front and back yards. Generally, they put down some kind of fertilizer and weed killer. I asked them to not do this since we have little people and beagles. They also took down an old dead pine tree. Now we have wood seasoning for use in the fireplace next winter.

It is amazing how much better the yard looks! Joshua had a great time running around in it and exploring new areas. Anyway, now that the tree is down I can see how much sun per day that portion of the yard is going to get. I am excited to plant a small vegetable and herb garden in that area, as well as putting up some retractable laundry lines in the same vicinity. (Note: it's amazing how quickly stuff dries when the air isn't humid).

I remember last year my brother-in-law, William, reminded us of Square Foot Gardening (http://www.squarefootgardening.com/) and I am excited to try it here. The beds are raised so I won't be having to dig up and till dirt or add stuff to it to make it the right mix. Plus, I have no idea what has been put on the yard in the past and I am going to be growing stuff organically. I may also do some things in containers.

here's a picture from the Square Foot Gardening website of what I am aiming for:

This configuration gives you 16 different square foot growing spaces. Depending on what you are growing, you will have 1, 4, 9 or 12 plants in each square foot (I think that's what I read).

Colds, Ginger Honey Tea and the Beagles

2008-03-04T14:29:00.000-08:00

The last few days have been busy with colds, laundry, cooking, and general house stuff. I made my first herbal remedy this past week. It seems to be working and is pretty tasty. I took fresh garlic and sliced it thinly and covered it with honey. I covered the dish and put in the fridge overnight. I then grated some fresh ginger and made a tea to which I added the garlic honey and some fresh lemon slices. It is supposed to help fight colds and flu. It is a sweet, spicy "tea". I have also made some garlic/ginger honey and, after straining, add that to whatever tea we are drinking. Joshua likes the cooked tea mixture in his sippy cup. I add a couple tablespoons to a full sippy cup of water and he drinks it all down.

Needless to say, our house and each of us currently smells like garlic.

Here is a picture of Joshua from today with his sunglasses on. This is the first time he has kept his sunglasses on when we put them on him. Right now he is running around the backyard with his sunglasses on playing with sticks and dirt and grass and such. I am blogging from the backyard where table where I can see him and play with him and, of course, wipe his nose as necessary.

The life of a dog at our house is pretty easy as you can see from the below picture.

This is the beagles sleeping on our pillows on the bed. They enjoy spending time either on our bed, lying in the sun in the backyard, chasing squirrels along the fence in the backyard, and sleeping on the sofa.

Here is a pic of the large mac 'n' cheese I made this week. We ate a small part of it for dinner one night with salads and then I put the rest up using the FoodSaver. I put one day's lunch in the fridge and put the rest in individual portions in the freezer for lunches. This mac 'n' cheese had a surprise ingredient. I baked a butternut squash and put the butternut squash meat into the cheese sauce before mixing with the mac. It was pretty good but I think next time I will use 1/2 butternut squash and 1/2 cauliflower. The butternut squash has a somewhat sweet flavor that can overpower the cheese.

Well, it's almost time for nap and to fold clothes that have dried on the line. More later. :)

The Nursery

2008-02-28T08:33:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pics of the nursery showing the changing/rocking area and Joshua and Maria's cribs/space.

The four square pics on the walls are a series of paintings (I have lithographs of them) done by my friend Mimi Whaley, a local artist in Charleston, SC. Here is a link to her website if you want to check her out: http://www.ameliawhaley.com/. You can, from the home page read about Mimi, how she came to be an artist, and visit her Gallery. The paintings I have are shown in her Children's Art section of the Gallery.

Walking, Weather and Aromatherapy

2008-02-27T15:35:00.001-08:00

It has been beautiful here the last few days and we have been outside alot. We have started walking Papa to work in the a.m. and walking to get him in the evening so John and I can get our exercise. Walking has become much easier with the addition of the stroller. I am now walking somewhere between 4 and 7 miles each day, depending on whether or not Joshua and I go to park and/or run errands on foot.

It is really nice living within walking distance of drug store, office supply store, grocery store, Costco (a fair distance away), etc. Also, if we walk mostly during the week, we may have enough gas money in the budget to go somewhere like the mountains or lake on the weekends.

Interesting trees on our walk

A few pics from the park

Today I hung a load of clothes and a load of diapers out to dry in the sun. I really like the smell of clothes dried on the line, although it does mean ironing for John's work shirts. The sun is a great stain eraser for the diapers too.

I have been reading and doing internet research on eco friendly cleaners to make at home using baking soda, castille soap, etc. and adding in some essential oils for disinfectant and/or aroma. I'm going to give a couple of the "recipes" a try later this week. Will let you all know how it works out. Also, I am finding that aromatherapy is very interesting. I will add it to my list of interests. It seems to dovetail well with herbal healing.

Preparing for Maria

2008-02-23T14:55:00.000-08:00

We have exciting news: our world is about to change dramatically again! Yippee!!!!!!

These are the most recent pics of our beautiful daughter.

We got word about a week ago that our adoption of Maria is final under Guatemalan law and that her birth certificate showing us as parents is completed. Now, we are just waiting on the final steps, including 1) 2nd DNA test to make sure there was not baby switch since the intitial DNA test matching surrendering mother and baby and 2) US Embassy appointment to finalize on the US side and obtain VISA and Guatemalan Passport. If everything goes smoothly we expect to bring Maria home sometime in mid to late March. She will be approximately 13 months old when we bring her home. We will have "Irish twins" since they will only be 5 mo. apart.

We never really used a stroller with Joshua as I just wore him in an EllaRoo wrap, and still often do. So... in preparation for having a second 20+ lbs to carry around, I have gotten a double stroller. It's a really cool double stroller as it takes up no more room than a single stroller. It is from Phil & Ted's of New Zealand. We took it on an outing today and it works like a dream. I couldn't even tell I was pushing a stroller. Yeah!

I still plan on wearing Maria and/or Joshua at times, but as I only have one back in this life, I want to make sure I am prepared to protect it.

We have also been finalizing the nursery to accomodate 2 children. We have 2 cribs; I have hung up all her clothes and put up her shoes; I have gotten a couple "girl" crib sheets; and I got matching sage green striped dust ruffles for their cribs.

We got 2 Phil & Ted's Me Too seats (see pic) to use as high chairs at our breakfast room table and to take with us if we travel. The seat has a 5 pt safety harness to fasten the child in. Joshua already loves his because he is up at the table with us. Also, we have Maria's carseat ready to go.

We already have all the cloth diapers and wraps we will need.

Yeah, our family is almost complete and Joshua is a big brother!!!!!!

Art Museum Party, Cooking, etc.

2008-02-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of pics from the art museum gala we went to last weekend. John's office sponsored a table and sent several people from work with their choice of date. We had a wonderful time and spent the evening enjoying the activities set up by the art museum. The gala was themed Carnival and around the Indiana Jones movies. There were people dressed up in everything from mummy costumes to black tie.

Monday was shopping day and I found 25 lbs of oatmeal for $11.00. So.... I have been working on getting the rolled oats put in various ways. Yesterday I made some really yummy granola bar bites (see below for recipe). John took a 1 gallon zip top bag full of them with him to work and I have a 1 gallon zip top bag here in the fridge. I used my FoodSaver to make "bricks" of rolled oats and put them up in the pantry. I also made two big batches of granola (see pic). Now we can have cold cereal with milk some mornings instead of cooked oatmeal with fruit.

Joshua was having a good time emptying his toy bucket and putting items in a smaller bucket.

Chewy Granola Bar Bites (adapted from a recipe for Chewy Granola Bars on recipezaar.com):

Ingredients
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 - 1 cup butter, softened
4 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped almonds (optional)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
6 cups rolled oats, regular (not quick cooking)
raisins to taste (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350° and lightly grease or spray 11 x 17 cookie sheet.
In large bowl, beat brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
Blend in honey, vanilla and egg.
In separate bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
Add flour mixture gradually to sugar mixture and beat until combined.
By hand, stir in almonds, chocolate chips, raisins and oats until well mixed.
Press mixture firmly into sheet (once I got it all pressed into the bottom of the greased sheet, I put my cutting board on top and pressed really hard to get it even on the top), and bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes, or until light golden brown.
Cool completely and cut into 1 in. squares.

I found that these were really yummy the day after they were made. I store them in fridge in zip top bag.

A New-1/2 Made Up Recipe

2008-02-14T16:13:00.000-08:00

Here is my version of a recipe my mom used to make when we were little (see below for mom's version). My toddler likes spicy food so he will eat this too.

Meat/Veggie Mix:

1 can Glory Seasoned Tomatoes, Corn & Okra
1 can tomato soup (I use Campbells Healthy Request since the Glory veggies have salt too) (don't add water)
1/2 lb. gound beef (browned and drained)

Topping (see below for alternative toppings):

1 cup cornmeal
1 egg
3/4 c. milk (or however much it takes to get the consistency you like)
some shredded cheese

Brown ground beef and drain. Add soup and veggies and simmer or cook on low for a while until the flavors blend a little. Pour mixture into an 8X8 casserole dish.

Mix together egg and milk and add cornbread and mix in cheese to taste. Pour cornmeal mixture over meat/veggie mixture.

Bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes (or until topping done)

The meat/veggie mix freezes well so sometimes I will make double receipe of mixture and freeze it in smaller casserole dishes or zip top bags. Then when you are ready to use, thaw it completely, prepare and add topping and bake. (I haven't tried freezing it after adding topping and baking.)

Alternative Toppings:

Bisquick Garlic Cheddar biscuit mix with a little extra water to get a less thick consistency so you can pour it over the top

can of Pilsbury or your favorite brand of fridge bicuits

Mom's recipe was ground beef, tomato soup, and bag of frozen mixed veggies topped with fridge biscuits or homemade biscuits. Perfect for little people who prefer a blander taste or who don't like okra.

Recycling and Garbage

2008-02-13T18:19:00.001-08:00

A random observation:

When we arrived at our new home in CA we discovered that we have 3 HUGE garbage cans: blue for recycling (all unsoiled paper, all metal, all plastic, all cardboard, small appliances, etc.), brown for yard waste (grass clippings, tree prunings, etc), and gray for household garbage (you know what that is). Well, where we used to live recycling was not easy and we did not do it.

I can't believe what a difference recycling makes in the amount of household trash we have. Additionally, I am cooking almost entirely from scratch so we don't have as much packaged food as before. We used to fill up a 13 gal trash bag at least once a day. Now it takes us a week to fill an 8 gal trash bag! Wow, it is amazing.

The Last Few Days

2008-02-10T19:18:00.000-08:00

Some pics from the last 3 days:

On the way to a b-ball game

At the park, first time in a swing

Our stuff is here - YEAH!!!

The following are all on the Wine Trail we went to on Saturday. It was a beautiful day (70ish, clear and sunny). We visited several wineries with our friends and met some interesting people, as well as tasting some good wine and some not-so-good wine. There was also lots of CHOCOLATE!!!! It was great fun! The wineries all had displays from local artisans, local musicians playing, and lots of great food: merlot soaked tri-tip, Cold Stone Creamery ice cream with dessert wine topping, etc.

For those of you (like myself) who have never been on a Wine Trail, the idea is that many local wineries have wine tasting combined with music, food, artisans, etc. and everyone buys a glass (in this case for $20) and you travel from winery to winery with your glass tasting whatever strikes your fancy. And, of course, you can buy bottles or cases of whatever you like enough to want to take home.

Scenes from the Wine Trail:

Here is an ingenious way to travel the Wine Trail with your glass. This guy and his friends made these wine glass holders for the Wine Trail.

Wine tasting going on.

Old grapevines-60ish years old

Picking ripe navel oranges at the last winery. Yum! Joshua was especially excited to have a new "ball" to play with.

Friday Activities

2008-02-08T15:30:00.000-08:00

Today was a day full of firsts for Joshua and me. We went to the local library for a toddler hour of story time, music time, and toy time. WHAT FUN!!!!! Then we went, with many of the same families, to the local park to play. It has been a beautiful day and Joshua wore himself out. When we got home he ate lunch and then has been asleep for the last 3-1/2 hours.

It was exciting and a little scary to meet the moms and dads at the library activity. I discovered that all of us are transplants to this area and even met people originally from Australia and Boston. I look forward to getting to know them more.

It is really fun to watch Joshua as he learns to interact with other kids and to explore his world on foot. Today he had a great time at the park playing with his ball and generally exploring the bushes, dirt, and paths.

Tonight is Pizza night at our house. I got several at a great sale in January so we have enough to get through mid-March. After we use them up I am going to try my hand at making and freezing them myself. I want to try a few with very non-traditional ingredients like a maccaroni crust. I saw that in a magazine somewhere a few years ago and thought it looked interesting.

Our furniture and stuff from one of our moving PODS comes tomorrow!!!!!!! We will be able to sleep on a bed instead of the cushions we have been on for 6 weeks and will have a sofa as well as all the kitchen toys. It will be fun unpacking this weekend.

Cooking Experiments for Freezer

2008-02-08T06:03:00.000-08:00

So... since I've been awake for over an hour I thought I'd post some pics from my recent cooking
experiments. Here you go......

Enchiladas (I've made 140 in the past couple of weeks) for the freezer. After they freeze on trays I put in zip top bags and freeze them. Very easy to pull out and eat for lunches with a salad or side of veggies. I got this idea from
http://erratichomemaker.blogspot.com/

Twice baked potatoes with various stuffings. I made 24 for my first experiment. After these freeze on trays I wrap them individually in plastic wrap and then freeze in zip top bags.

Random Pics from June 07 til Jan 08

2008-02-07T12:16:00.000-08:00

Here are a few random pics from our pickup trip in Guatemala in June 07 through end of Jan 08. The pic with 2 babies is from our trip to Guatemala in June 07 when we picked up Joshua and visited with Maria. We hope Maria will be home sometime by April 08. Will keep everyone posted.

Joshua & Maria in June 07 in Guatemala

Joshua in carseat in Jan. 08

Joshua at beach in July 07

Joshua at piano in Dec. 07

Joshua at
Christmas Day
dinner Dec. 07

Cheers. :)

My First Blog 2/7/08

2008-02-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

Today with the encouragement of my friend, Brigette, I am starting my blog. Please be patient with me, as I have no idea what I am doing. :)

I picked the title of this blog because, as with everything in my life, I seem to be about 5 - 10 years behind others my age. I married at 29 and worked as a paralegal until I became a mom at 38, and am just now, at 39 becoming a homemaker and stay at home mom. It has been my dream since childhood to be a wife and mother and I have finally arrived!

Though I have wonderful examples of homemakers in my mom, mother-in-law, sister and sisters-in-law, I feel like I have no idea what I am doing. Having been in the working world for so long we got used to eating out and, generally speaking, I put my cooking, cleaning, and home organizing skills on hold. I must say that I am very out of practice. I actually googled "how to be a homemaker" last week! There are many wonderful women's blogs out there with wonderful advice and ideas.

We have recently moved to CA where John has taken job. Our yard has a grapefruit tree and a lemon tree! So, as you can see from the picture of Joshua playing in the grapefruits, I need to find multiple ways to use citrus fruits.

I have rekindled my love of cooking and am enjoying testing out recipes for food, most recently enchiladas, twice stuffed baked potatoes and graham crakcers. Also, in reviewing many blogs of homemakers I have discovered what is now referred to as OAMC (once a month cooking). I also discovered a wonderful website for recipes http://www.recipezaar.com/.

Though I enjoy cooking and find it creative and soothing, I would rather spend my time playing with my son, Joshua, who lights up my days. So..... on the weekends when Papa is home to play, I cook meals for a week or two and freeze them. Then, during the weekdays I don't spend the entire day in the kitchen and I can play with Joshusa more.

I am still working out how to get all the laundry done, keep the house clean, etc. I am a cloth diapering mom (love, love, love them!!!) and generally dry our clothes and diapers on the line rather than in a dryer.

So, there it is, my first blog post.