Who Needs A Rooster When You've Got...

small children
up with slightest hint
of morning's waxing light

don't leave me
winter darkness
or i shall trade you in
for the darkness
of more

coffee

It's Just That Age...

I've been posting a lot of videos of Joe lately. I was feeling a little guilty that I hadn't done many of Finley lately... until I realized it's just that Joe is in that phase where he has a good grip on language, but his pronunciation and voice are still, well, really cute. So, with apologies to Finley, here are two more featuring Joe:

Joe the Giant

and

Joe Feeds Zivah

And for those of you with dial-up, click here and here

Settling In

I am resigning myself to the fact that we will probably still be here for a while. We are starting (again) to make decisions regarding our property, not based on what will cause it to sell, but on what we want it to be while we are here.


This weekend, Chris put the finishing touches on a white oak countertop in the basement near the washer and dryer. I folded laundry on it this morning. Chris got a good deal on some raw lumber, and we are incredibly fortunate to have a fine craftsman in the family that builds stuff for us (thanks, Louie). He is currently working on building a stand out of the oak for the 55 gallon fish tank we bought off craigslist. My two goldfish will be thrilled to finally have a larger home.

We have decided to fence in a section of the yard. With stray dogs roaming the neighborhood, pooping in my garden, and terrorizing my children, it will be nice to have a bit more peace of mind. And I won't have to worry about Zivah wandering off when she starts toddling around. Chris is going to pick up some chain link fencing he found on craigslist this afternoon. We are going to put up a picket fence next to the house facing the street, so our yard won't look so ghetto will look nice from the street.

There is even talk of building a chicken coop. That's right. Raising poultry is legal inside the city limits here. I don't think we'll get a rooster, though. I don't want the neighbors to hate us entirely.

This weekend, I also built a little raised bed in the garden out of some old clay block we had stacked on the backside of the garage. I figured I could plants carrots in it. We might use the rest of the brick and block odds and ends to build a raised bed on the back of the garage... It might look a little crazy, but it would be nice to do something with the material to get it out of the way and have something useful at the same time.

I started some seeds on Friday, and was surprised last night to see the broccoli sprouting already. I had no idea they came up that fast.

Is It Here Already?

A week and a half ago, I spied some daffodils poking up through the earth. I would have been excited about it, but I felt like it was too early to see them. Yesterday, I saw a bunch of daffs in full bloom. Today, mine are almost ready to show. It is the sort of day where the clouds race through the sky. One minute, I am warmed by the sun, the next, a breeze deepens the chill of a cloud. There are moments full of fat raindrops falling.

As I suck down a warming bowl of split pea and ham soup, I don't feel ready for spring. (Am I crazy?) Perhaps it is because it always seems to happen so fast. My baby is growing, and before I know it, she will be crawling around in the grass while we sweat in the southern heat of summer. Slow down, I say. Let me cozy up with my baby for a few more months, her body helping to stave off the chill. Give me a few more months before the heat will take away the need to snuggle.

Oh well.

I had been trying my hand at sourdough bread-making. Something about a thick slice of homemade bread with cheese toasted on top... The first batch was wonderful, but apparently, I am not so good at keeping my starter alive. Somehow, even with regular feedings, it lost its bubble and quit rising on me. I may have to resort to making a fresh batch of starter before every baking, but that feels like I'm cheating.

Nobody's Fault But Mine

Seven months old, and she still wakes up two or three times a night. Then I end up nursing her back to sleep. Ugh. (She is a loud cryer when she wants something.) She is a hefty 17+ pounds, so there is no reason for it, other than the fact that I'm too tired (I won't admit laziness) to train her to go back to sleep on her own. A friend of mine said that with her third, she left the house and let her husband deal with it for a few nights. Sounds like a good plan to me. Now I just need to get Chris on board.

Zivah's got the sitting thing down, now. She's nowhere near crawling, yet, though, as I haven't made her spend much time on her belly. She'll probably say 'dada' before 'mama', since she likes making the 'd' sounds quite a lot. She hasn't figure out how to control her direction in the walker yet, though she moves around. Mostly pushes herself backwards.

Fed her green beans the other night. So far she has eaten squash, carrots, peas, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, apples, bananas, and green beans.

Shoe Drama

After blogging about my shoe purchase, the next morning, I put my new shoes on, expecting to enjoy them.

In the store, I knew I was pushing the limits of comfort. These shoes had a little more support than I was used to. But my mind was set on these, so I ignored my gut and told myself that once I broke them in, they would feel great.

The next morning they felt all wrong. I felt like I was standing on lumps, and one of the tongues kept rubbing on my ankle causing a raw spot. Argh.

I took them back.

Today, I went to another store. They had another pair of Keens that were similar, and felt much better on my feet. I bought them. I went home. I put them on. They still felt okay, but, ugh. They looked uglier than they did in the store. They would look awful with shorts. They were not the kind of shoes I have been wearing for the past four years. What have I been thinking?

I took them back.

This evening, I finally ordered online what I hope will be the end of this drama: a pair of North Face Mountain Sneakers. They are not at all what I had been trying to buy, but they are more... me. I think. I mean, they are $40 less than what I was trying to spend, they are comfy sneakers (instead of some half-dressy casual shoes), and they are green. That makes me happy.

Happy Saturday to Me

This morning, after the obligatory grocery run, I managed to leave two of my kids at home with my husband and go out for coffee with my good friend, Christi. It was nice to have an adult conversation with an adult other than my husband, discussing one of my latest reads (Speaker of the Dead by Orson Scott Card) and some random philosophical/theological musings.

When I got home, Chris had already fed the kids lunch, and as the kids were happily occupied outside (edging the rest of the garden), I was able to fix myself lunch without so much as one interruption. It was amazing.

When Chris took Fin and Joe with him in the minivan to his mom's house, I snagged the truck to do some shopping. There is something about driving our (it was mine before we got married, but now I have to share) eight cylinder, manual transmission, long-bed Chevy pick-up that makes me grin ear-to-ear.

Z and I went to REI, where I bought a new pair of shoes. After four years, my Simples look sad, and were starting to make my feet hurt, so they are being replaced by a pair of Keen Presidios. The reviews for these shoes are stellar, so I am fairly sure I won't be disappointed.

Next, we stopped to pick up a new earring. I needed a smaller gauge to fit in my upper ear. They were able to use the little green, stone ball from my old earring in the new one. I was ecstatic.

Now Z and I are back home, enjoying a peaceful house. (sigh) What a good day.

The Wheelbarrow

Last weekend, we had tried a bungee cord around the tire (the trick that had worked successfully on Chris's mower tires in the past). But the rubber of the wheelbarrow tire seemed too stiff, and the air kept seeping throught the cracks.

It was only after I posted our dilemna this morning that I realized we may not have had the outgoing pressure on the air compressor high enough. (It was set to a meager 75 psi.)

Fifteen minutes later, with interruptions every 30 seconds from Joe in need of a nose-wiping, the flat is fixed.

Warm Winter Days

Last Sunday was unseasonably warm. We took advantage of the nice weather to get some things done outside. Joe and Fin rode their bikes. Zivah watched the happenings, not entirely happily, from her stroller.

Since we have decided to expand the garden a bit, we measured and staked the perimeter, then I set about cutting the edge. Being a person of small stature, my body doesn't contribute much to the static application of force. In order to sink my shovel into the ground to any useful depth, I usually have to jump and stomp down, full force, with both feet on my shovel. After nearly a year of relative inactivity, it didn't take long to 'feel it'. I managed to edge two sides before calling it quits. I can still feel a little soreness in my abdominals four days later.

This weekend is supposed to be warm as well. I'm hoping to finish edging and get most of the sod out of the new area. The biggest problem, though, is that our wheelbarrow tire went flat and came off the bead. We tried all the tricks we knew to get it seated back on the bead and re-inflated, but to no avail. Anyone have any advice? It makes me crazy not to be able to fix something so minor on our own, and I'd hate to have to humble myself and take it somewhere to get it fixed.