Want to taste summer?

After an August morning like this...
...I am especially glad I have some leftover Summer Stew for lunch. A few times a summer I make a light vegetable stew that my friend Allison Mitton introduced me to several years ago. I love to chop up the gorgeous brightly-colored vegetables, fill my home with the smell as they simmer, and eat the stew with some garlic toast for days. To me, it's what summer tastes like.

Allison's Summer Stew recipe is so simple,
I will share it here:

Cook over medium hear 5-10 minutes:
1/4 c olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1 onion

Add and cook 4-5 minutes:
2 medium zucchini
1 yellow squash
2 ears corn
1 red pepper

Add and simmer covered 10 minutes, then uncovered 5-10 minutes:
2 tomatoes
1/2 tsp oregano
basil
salt, pepper

"I was checking the, uh, specs...

...on the end line for the rotarty...girder...I'm retarded."

I totally feel like Tommy Callahan from Tommy Boy when it comes to most anything car-related. So I guess it's a good thing I'm married to Jonny. While he doesn't know everything about auto repair and maintenance, with some help from a Chilton manual, online sources, and Chris Jones, it seems he can pretty much always figure it out. (Thanks again, Chris!)

Jonny's latest repair was apparently a doozy. When he inquired about estimates to replace the head gasket in his '96 Toyota Tacoma, he learned that we could save over $1,000 if he repaired it himself. So he set out to do it. And was it ever a daunting task.

He told me about going to the auto store: "When you ask for a few bolts, they hand them over, no big deal. But when you say you need a head gasket, they get all excited and say things like, 'Yeah, man! Now we're talking.'"And then they all chat about the intense stuff you have to do for that repair.

After much research, many trips to trips to the store, and several evenings out in the garage for Jonny, I finally heard the sweet hum of the engine. I was elated! After witnessing a little of the major surgery going on for the last few weeks, I was wondering if he'd ever really be able to put all those pieces back together and revive the engine. It looked like an insanely impossible puzzle to me. Jonny could certainly tell you a lot more about the repair, but here you get the "rotary...girder" version. So if you'd really like to know more, go ahead and give him a call. Or you could meet him and the guys at Checker for some serious auto-talk.

So that's my man, cruising in his little while truck once more. Way to go, Jonny. Once again you've left me completely amazed and even more in love.

I you give a mom a paintbrush...

Sometimes I feel like I am in a Laura Numeroff book. I get distracted and change courses just about as easily as the mouse with a cookie, pig with a pancake, and all the rest. I'm sure many of you moms can relate. For instance, today...

I was staring at the green walls in Julia's room and trying to decide how to fill in some large empty spaces. So I peeled off the red vinyl flowers and moved them around a bit. When some paint came off with one of the vinyl stems, I was down to the basement to get the can of green paint. While down there, I noticed some blue paint and realized there were touch-ups needed in Gabe's room as well. So I did that first. Then, while touching up the green wall (at least I am able to return to task, unlike the mouse in the story!), I spotted Julia's white closet door that I've been meaning to fix up since we moved here. So on my way back up the stairs with the white paint, I noticed how banged-up the banister was. Painting that had me looking at the baseboard at the top of the stairs. I wanted to touch that up, but first I needed to wash it. And while I had the washcloth in my hand I went around and washed the wainscoting in the kitchen. Back to touching up the baseboard paint, I noticed how badly the hallway doors could use a little paint. Then I remembered my bedroom that has dings and scuffs all over the place.

But at that point, something had to give. Gabe was following me around, dangerously close to the wet paint spots. And Julia's all-too-short Signing Time episode was over. So I was back to playing with my little friends.

Until I noticed that the paint brush needed to be rinsed out. And being at the kitchen sink reminded me that it was time to get dinner going...

broken record

Julia and Gabe, mostly Gabe lately, ask for one song and one song only in the car. Seriously, Gabe is like a broken record. Almost every time we get in the car he says, "Dee, dee, dee, dee!" and fusses until I select number 7 on the Neil Diamond Greatest Hits CD and we all jam out to "Crunchy Granola Suite."

It is something of a nonsense song and the kids go crazy for it. (When I make granola Julia asks for "some crunchy granola suite, please!") Some of you may think I sound like a broken record myself. And I am, check out this post and the videos of Julia's earlier obsession with this song. Now Gabe has caught on and there's not much we can do about it. Sometimes he is crying and upset in the car. This song works magic. I turn it on and he is all smiles and head-banging like a madman.

He also loves to sing along. Check out half way through the video when he is a little frustrated that his favorite lyrics (the "deetle-eet-deet-deet") haven't shown up in a while. Also, notice Julia's action to one of the lyrics where she daintily touches her armrest when Neil sings, "I knew a man was out of touch." We only had to listen to the song four or five times on our way home from hiking in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Oh boy.

(It is a little loud. You may want to turn your volume down!)



P.S. This video doesn't even capture Gabe's usual excitement as the song begins. Sometimes he can't contain himself!

P.P.S. Speaking of broken records, their favorite song is now skipping in several places. Maybe it's time to introduce a new favorite. Perhaps Paul McCartney's "Silly Love Songs?" I could go for that. It'd be nice to branch out. I should make a whole mix of awesome jamming songs. Because I refuse to play any obnoxious kid music in the car. I guess I could go for a little Raffi and some Disney. But I will not play their Signing Time CDs in there. I will go crazy if that's all we listen to! I need to be smart about these things...

beet it

I love beets. They are very earthy, and yes, I do think they taste like dirt. So I was a little confused when Gabe, who eats dirt by the handful, didn't devour the pretty purple vegetable! Julia spit them out too. It was time for some deception. I made the "Pink Pancakes" from Jessica Seinfeld's book. I could really taste the beets in them, but the kids didn't seem to mind and gobbled them up. Sweet.

Looking at all the beet puree I in the freezer, I had another idea. Why not mix it up and add beets to smoothies with or instead of the usual spinach? The kids slurped it up. Then next day (I make them smoothies nearly every day) I put in sweet potatoes. They loved it as usual.

It's strange I hadn't thought of branching out beyond spinach in the smoothies before. But I am all about it now. I do want the kids to grow up eating veggies undisguised, so I will always put a few on their plates. But it doesn't hurt to sneak the good stuff in them as well. So beet smoothies it it. They taste earthy, and we all seem to be okay with that.

P.S. Julia actually does eat quite a few vegetables. Lately her favorite lunch is a ham, sprouts, and tomato sandwich. I am thrilled that she now loves tomatoes - they are my favorite after all.

Julia's First Race

If you are interested in reading about Julia's participation in the Alpine Days Toddler Trot, check out my post on our running blog. There are more than enough pictures and videos there to document the big event that Julia hasn't stopped talking about all day.

For Cortnie

This video is a few months old. When Aunt Cortnie tended the kids one day while I was at girls camp, Julia came home with ballet slippers. Thank you, Cortnie! She loves her dancing shoes, as you can see.

Only half, thank goodness!

Yesterday Grandma Julie, Jonny, and I ran the Provo River Half Marathon. It was difficult, but also really, really fun.

There's just something about races that I love. It's not winning - obviously. Maybe it's that certain excitement in the air. There's something about running with hundreds (thousands at this race) of other people who do it just because they enjoy it. It's physically and emotionally challenging, but so rewarding at the same time. I'm not quite sure why. And sometimes during races I wonder why exactly I do it. But I love running. I love feeling sweaty and salty after working hard. That smell takes me back to my childhood when my mom would come home after her daily 5-mile run. I guess my kids know that smell now too. Will Julia and Gabe remember being pushed in the double stroller during races and morning runs? Maybe. I hope so. Because those times are pretty special to me.

Anyway, if you are actually interested in knowing specifics about the race, check out our running blog. And referring to the post title, I don't think I will be running a full marathon any time in the near future. Not only would the actual race be extremely difficult, but finding the time to train would be just as hard right now. I'm good with a half or two a year. Hey, maybe then two halves would make a whole, right? Ha.

Daddy's Caddy

Julia and Jonny just returned home from the driving range. After they watched a little golf on TV, Julia said, "Daddy, maybe, maybe when I am older I go golfing with you. And be yours friend." Apparently she picked up that all golfers have a friend, or caddy, with them when they golf.

Well, Daddy couldn't wait until his little golf friend grew older, so they immediately headed to the range by our house. She had a blast. And I'm sure Jonny didn't mind whacking at a bucket of balls either.

Somtimes all it takes is a donut.

Julia has been in a big bed since her birthday in June. For weeks she stayed in the bed as if it were her crib. She wouldn't even get out in the morning - she'd call for us that she was awake just as she did before. Then some kind of revelation came to her and she saw how easy it was to get in and out of bed on her own. Finally, she could see what Mom and Dad were up to after her lullaby and bedtime prayer.

It was time for incentives, some positive reinforcement. So we tried a sticker chart. It is simply a picture of a bed with a sectioned path that leads to a picture of the reward. The first time it was an ice cream cone. Next it was some fairy dress-ups I bought from the Target $1 Spot. And the latest was a donut with sprinkles. (The sections on the path have increased in number with each chart. At first it was only 5.)

The charts weren't an immediate hit. Sometimes she would say, "Me just don't care, Mom." But as she is understanding that we don't mess around with bedtime, and she has reaped the chart rewards a few times, lately any bedtime defiance has definitely become the exception. It's heavenly.

So most every morning I happily remind her that she stayed in bed and gets to choose a sticker for the chart. It's a good system for now. I get just about excited as she does when she reaches the reward at the end of the path. (Because I am proud of her, of course. But it doesn't hurt that I get to share a donut with Gabe too.)

Anyway, below are some pictures of the celebratory outings. Check out the frozen yogurt she put together. The video is an interview after the donut outing. Anybody have any more ideas for small but substantial rewards? This girl will get to that coloring book on the new chart before we know it.

Increasingly Opposite

When Gabe was born one of my first thoughts was, "Hello, Mr. Julia." As a newborn he looked a lot like his big sister. And he acted like her too: He had two strong little legs that kicked like crazy inside and out of my tummy. He was no snuggler. He was alert and active. He required some serious "sleep training." He was almost always happy and smiley. (Here we are comparing newborn Gabe to a picture of newborn Julia.)
As Gabe has grown, the differences between Julia and him have greatly increased. He looks like me, while she is still a mini Jonny. He trips, falls, crashes, and gets a new bruise every day. I could probably count the number of ouchies Julia had as a toddler. He is even louder and more rambunctious than Julia was. And I thought she was pretty wild.

There are many more differences between them, but the one that stands out the most right now involves the vacuum. It was one-year-old Julia's greatest fear. Only in the last year has she come to terms with the monster. But Gabe? He is in love. Now that he is too big and not content to stay in his exersaucer while I vacuum, I am realizing just how fascinated he is. It is pretty counterproductive to try to vacuum while he is around. He chases the big loud machine like it is the ice cream truck. Once he reaches it, there is no use trying to clean the carpets anymore. He sits on it, hugs it, he was even trying to eat it the other day. Wish I had a video of his adoration.

What is it that he loves and Julia was terrified of - the noise, the vibration, the forward and backward motion? Whatever it is, Gabe is all about it. Makes me laugh and wonder every time.