Love + Reading

Usually this is a spot reserved for the girl and me. And that is always the book we read right before naps and bedtimes. This day I needed a place to put the boy for a moment, so there I plopped him. Never to be left out, the girl scrambled up next to him. "Wowa? Wowa?" she asked. The Lola book. So I gave it to her, and she opened it up and read it to him, pointing out different pictures.

"Wowa! ... A daddy. Happy! Wowa... Love you, love you!"

I'm happy to lose my spot to the boy. I can't resist that face anyway. Or those toes. Or the hand rested on his sister's knee. Or... you get the idea.

***

This is a photo from last week. I felt like sharing, as I just spent some lovely quiet reading time with Mary before her nap while Dorian tried to fall asleep and Thomas slept blissfully upstairs. They are at this moment all three sleeping.

SHHH! I never said that. Forget I said that. SHHH!

At Least Someone Likes My Cooking

They told me he doesn't eat. I guess he just likes my cooking?

Dorian is visiting us again today.



It was a recipe given to my by some online person long ago and called a Pennsylvania Dutch Omelet.



You take some baked potato and crumble it in a frying pan with some butter (or leftover oil from last night's perogies, whatever floats your boat). Brown them up. then take three eggs (or more - you have to work out a good ratio of potatoes to eggs depending on the size of your pan), beat them, and pour them evenly over the potato. Wait for it to cook enough that you can curl up all the edges without any runny egg escaping. Here's the tricky part. You have to flip the whole thing. I use a plate. I've saved this plate specifically for this purpose, as it fits in my pan. Put the plate over the omelet, hold it firmly, and flip the pan. Then put the pan back on the element and slide the omelet in.

If you want to skip some scrubbing later, immediately rinse the runny egg off the plate with cold water, or it will cook on a bit.

The side you see should be nicely browned. Shred some cheddar cheese evenly on top and wait for it to melt a bit. The eggs should be done cooking by now. Just slide the whole shebang onto another plate and eat. Or share it with a baby and a toddler, if you have some hanging around begging food off you.

Best Friends

Every Day is Laundry Day

You wouldn't know it by looking at the piles of laundry that dot our home, but I actually like folding laundry. I love holding the little people clothes, smelling them, feeling the texture, remembering what its wearer was doing when they wore it. I love sorting out all the cloth diapers and their parts from the rest of the clothing, knowing my babes don't have chemicals on their skin and I'm doing my bit to keep the landfills from growing even bigger.

And I love the presents Mary brings me while I'm folding.

Daddy's Garden

Except Mary thinks they're aaappooools.

Here's the only red one!


We miss you, Daddy!

Cousins

The kids had a playmate today. Their cousin Dorian, who falls right smack between them in age, spent the day with us. I'll get my brag out of the way first: I got all three to nap at the same time. Sure, it only lasted 15 minutes. But those were some pretty blissful 15 minutes.

We ate lunch.

Oh my, could that face be any yummier? Look at the noodle! Look at the full cheeks! Usually it's all about Mary and Dorian, because Thomas has spent most of his time so far imitating a rock. But Mary was napping, so lunch time was all about the boys.


They craved each other's food, even though it was the exact same thing.

We were led to believe that Dorian doesn't eat. But he liked Uncle Scott's noodles. He made a huge batch before he left for the week. He's such a good daddy (and uncle... and husband, too, I guess).


Even Susan wanted in on the action.

We played outside, too.


Dorian doesn't have a yard. He likes Mary's playhouse.


Mary likes having a playmate who can play.

Dorian found pinecones.


And Thomas just hung out. Maybe next time, little buddy.

New Toys

I'm in love. Most natural toys, Haba, PLAN Toys, and the like, are far out of my price range, or only available in the US without paying sky high shipping rates. I'm not fond of the big box stores for a variety of reasons, but Toys R Us finally got on the natural bandwagon and released this line of Natural Wood toys (that's the brand name). They're cheap! This fire engine was $20. Thanks to Aunt Zoe for the gift card with which we purchased it.

It's sturdy, smooth, and smells oh so yummy. And I had three kids here today and it was the one toy they all wanted to play with. We've lost a fireman, though. I'm sure he'll turn up.

She.