As Sacha alluded to in the last post, we had a blast making a gingerbread house with some buddies this weekend. My grandma (my dad's mom) used to be very big on gingerbread during the holidays. We always did a big day of making gingerbread cookies and we would also usually put together a gingerbread house at the same time.
When she passed away, I ended up with all her gingerbread paraphernalia, including this great, heavy cast iron molds for a gingebread house. I never had any idea how much work she must have put into getting everything ready for us until last week, when I finally did it myself!
Thanks to some help from my lovely wife, who was home with laryngitis all last week, we made it into a big project with the kids - mostly Mateo - who helped shop for candy decorations, make the dough, press it into the molds, etc. Then, we had some friends and my brother and his girlfriend over and we all put it together, well, together! We had a really fun time. It reminded me of all those times we'd get together at my grandparents' house and laugh and laugh as we consumed massive amounts of sugar and cookie dough!
We had a fun rest of the weekend, too. We lit Hanukkah candles with the kids for the first time on Friday and Sunday nights (accidentally forgot Saturday - oops!) and that was fun. Sacha found some catchy Hanukkah music and we danced and played Go Fish while the candles were burning. We had a funny moment on Friday night, in which I was attempting to explain both Hanukkah and Christmas and how people celebrate God in all kinds of different ways. I wasn't getting complicated or anything, but after a few seconds, Mateo cut me off and said "Did anyone hear a fart?" We just about died laughing. Clearly the religion stuff was not as interesting as bodily functions!
Then, on Sunday, at the invitation of my grandma (my mom's mom), Mateo and I went to an organ concert at her church. They have this huge amazing organ and it's named after my great-grandmother, which is pretty neat. The concert was all Christmas pops music and Mateo was transfixed for most of the time. They had moved the organ console to the middle of the stage, so he got to really see what the organist was doing. It was very cool! We left at intermission, as the wiggles had started to set in, and I took him out for a sweet treat before coming home. We capped off the night with latkes and homemade applesauce and sour cream for dinner, and then a surprise visit from Apa, who had been away for the weekend and came home early enough to see the kids before bedtime.
Whew! Today has already started with a bang - our roof is being fixed as we speak and there's no rot underneath it. This is a huge relief. They're almost done and then we'll have no roof worries going forward. Unfortunately, we also got our first quote on building a new sewer line and holy crap, it is going to cost a boatload of money. Good thing we've started listening to a relaxation meditation at bedtime, because we are going to need the stress relief!
Monday, December 14, 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
December pictures
Here are some different pictures of our December.
Our near constant pose every day: watching the construction next door.
Projects with scissors. Fun!
Our new cat Yarn receiving some Natalia cuddles.
Natalia thought that the flour was more tasty than the gingerbread dough!
Gingerbread construction!
Making the molds for the house.
Working on building the house.
The completed project!
Our near constant pose every day: watching the construction next door.
Projects with scissors. Fun!
Our new cat Yarn receiving some Natalia cuddles.
Natalia thought that the flour was more tasty than the gingerbread dough!
Gingerbread construction!
Making the molds for the house.
Working on building the house.
The completed project!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Out of work for a week
On Monday, my throat felt a little bit sore and at the end of the day I had the foresight to get some sub plans prepped, just in case. By an hour after school, my voice was 75% gone. Yesterday, it was 80% gone and I really tried not to talk. And today I really have NO voice, and have whispered less than 50 words total over the course of the day.
Honestly, though, if I have to be home sick, at least I don't feel horrible! I would take this over a cold or fever any day.
Being on my own personal silent retreat has been, well quiet! The first day, although I couldn't talk, I was a whirlwind of activity. I bought Mateo two more sets of nighttime underwear, emailed the roof person, went to the library, bought a coupon book for the metro area, went through the coupon book and put them up on the fridge so we would actually use them, and this was all before lunch time! I might not have had a voice, but I had a decent amount of energy.
Today, I have been a bit more low key. Alayna and I went out for a nice date tonight, and I did lots of writing, while she did lots of talking. It's wonderful that we can enjoy each other so much, even if I can't talk! I just hope my voice comes back soon.
Honestly, though, if I have to be home sick, at least I don't feel horrible! I would take this over a cold or fever any day.
Being on my own personal silent retreat has been, well quiet! The first day, although I couldn't talk, I was a whirlwind of activity. I bought Mateo two more sets of nighttime underwear, emailed the roof person, went to the library, bought a coupon book for the metro area, went through the coupon book and put them up on the fridge so we would actually use them, and this was all before lunch time! I might not have had a voice, but I had a decent amount of energy.
Today, I have been a bit more low key. Alayna and I went out for a nice date tonight, and I did lots of writing, while she did lots of talking. It's wonderful that we can enjoy each other so much, even if I can't talk! I just hope my voice comes back soon.
The three trials of our house
The kids and I were hanging out with some friends today and one of them asked how we were all doing. Great!, I said. And we are. Things are good. Good, good, good. Except, I somehow forgot about the relatively major home ownership issues that have cropped up recently. I think I might be in denial, because I didn't even think about the fact that I could have mentioned them until I was driving home. We're hoping 2010 will be a better year home-wise, because the last part of this year has held more than its share for our poor casa.
1. The unbloggable thing, which is moving slowly towards resolution. Very stressful, but thankfully not as disruptive as it could have been.
2. The roof. We have a great roof over 95 percent of our house. The last 5% is a flat roof over the porch and front room. When we bought this place, the inspector mentioned that we might need to replace it at some point, but we figured that was a ways off. Turns out, 2009 is a perfect time to replace it, because it is buckling and leaking and in bad shape. We've gotten three quotes on fixing it and the last guy, upon climbing down the ladder from checking things out, informed me that he had been able to lift up the roofing material and plywood with his hand. That was a great moment. We're just crossing our fingers and praying that there's no major water damage underneath. If there is, at least we're catching it now, but ugh. It will be costly.
3. The sewer. In addition to the new house being built on one side of us (which has been all the entertainment I thought it would be, and more), our neighbor on the other side is about to start some major remodeling to his house. In the process of getting plans together, he had his sewer line scoped and the contractor discovered that we have a shared sewer line, which is a no-no. Said contractor reported this to the city and now we both need to get new sewer lines. As there is no access on our street, we have to go all the way through said neighbor's yard to connect to a main line. Again, stressful and expensive. Argh.
Bad things come in threes, right? So, hopefully, nothing else is about to come out of the woodwork!
1. The unbloggable thing, which is moving slowly towards resolution. Very stressful, but thankfully not as disruptive as it could have been.
2. The roof. We have a great roof over 95 percent of our house. The last 5% is a flat roof over the porch and front room. When we bought this place, the inspector mentioned that we might need to replace it at some point, but we figured that was a ways off. Turns out, 2009 is a perfect time to replace it, because it is buckling and leaking and in bad shape. We've gotten three quotes on fixing it and the last guy, upon climbing down the ladder from checking things out, informed me that he had been able to lift up the roofing material and plywood with his hand. That was a great moment. We're just crossing our fingers and praying that there's no major water damage underneath. If there is, at least we're catching it now, but ugh. It will be costly.
3. The sewer. In addition to the new house being built on one side of us (which has been all the entertainment I thought it would be, and more), our neighbor on the other side is about to start some major remodeling to his house. In the process of getting plans together, he had his sewer line scoped and the contractor discovered that we have a shared sewer line, which is a no-no. Said contractor reported this to the city and now we both need to get new sewer lines. As there is no access on our street, we have to go all the way through said neighbor's yard to connect to a main line. Again, stressful and expensive. Argh.
Bad things come in threes, right? So, hopefully, nothing else is about to come out of the woodwork!
Monday, December 7, 2009
'Tis the season
1. We got our Christmas tree this weekend. It was beautiful, albeit freezing, outside and we decided to learn our lesson from last year and go while sun was shining. (Last year, we passed up a beautiful sunny day because we had other things planned and then ended up cutting down our tree in the icy rain and mud the next day.) We went to a much less crowded place this time and found a great tree.
Sacha and I have been compromising on tree types since we got together nearly 9 years ago. She likes doug firs and I like the nobles, so we alternate years. Then, this year, we discovered the grand fir. It is like a cross between the doug and the noble - perfect! Luckily, we're fast decision-makers, so we found our tree without too much going back and forth. We're enjoying the ability to do it quickly now, before the kids get old enough to get involved in deciding! I am totally into this cutting-d0wn-the-tree-yourself thing. It takes about 5 minutes and is fun for all involved. While I was sawing, Sacha and the kids went across the trail and found a tree that was just Mateo's height, which wowed him about as much as you might expect. Now it's home and all decorated and the whole house smells delicious.
2. Sacha and I have a (now, not so) secret affinity for Christian music. Neither one of us is exactly Christian, but the music is just so uplifting most of the time! So the local station is on our preset list in the car and we found ourselves listening to it on the way home from getting the tree. Turns out, these days it's all Christmas music, all the time! We were all feeling very Christmas-y as it was, so that just added to it. We turned the chorus of "Ding Dong Merrily On High" - "Gloooooria, in excelsis deo" - into "Glooooooria, in excelsis tickle Mateo!" and that was quite well received. He kept saying, that's not how it goes!, but then begging for more.
3. This time of year always brings up my feelings about Christmas itself. As I mentioned above, I wouldn't call myself Christian, but I do believe in God and I love the rituals of the Christmas season. There's something about celebrating new life and hope in a season of cold and darkness that gets me every time. This has been especially true since we've had the kids in our lives. All those songs about welcoming baby Jesus and celebrating his birth always make me think about our kids' births and our feelings of joy and euphoria when they came into the world...and beyond that, how every child should be celebrated and welcomed that way on their first day.
Anyway, all of this is to say that Christmas is feeling particularly fun and celebratory this year. Now that Mateo's old enough to get excited about it, he's taking us all along for the ride. Every time we dare to turn the tree lights off, he notices and asks to have the tree turned on again. And now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go turn on the tree before he wakes up from his nap!
Sacha and I have been compromising on tree types since we got together nearly 9 years ago. She likes doug firs and I like the nobles, so we alternate years. Then, this year, we discovered the grand fir. It is like a cross between the doug and the noble - perfect! Luckily, we're fast decision-makers, so we found our tree without too much going back and forth. We're enjoying the ability to do it quickly now, before the kids get old enough to get involved in deciding! I am totally into this cutting-d0wn-the-tree-yourself thing. It takes about 5 minutes and is fun for all involved. While I was sawing, Sacha and the kids went across the trail and found a tree that was just Mateo's height, which wowed him about as much as you might expect. Now it's home and all decorated and the whole house smells delicious.
2. Sacha and I have a (now, not so) secret affinity for Christian music. Neither one of us is exactly Christian, but the music is just so uplifting most of the time! So the local station is on our preset list in the car and we found ourselves listening to it on the way home from getting the tree. Turns out, these days it's all Christmas music, all the time! We were all feeling very Christmas-y as it was, so that just added to it. We turned the chorus of "Ding Dong Merrily On High" - "Gloooooria, in excelsis deo" - into "Glooooooria, in excelsis tickle Mateo!" and that was quite well received. He kept saying, that's not how it goes!, but then begging for more.
3. This time of year always brings up my feelings about Christmas itself. As I mentioned above, I wouldn't call myself Christian, but I do believe in God and I love the rituals of the Christmas season. There's something about celebrating new life and hope in a season of cold and darkness that gets me every time. This has been especially true since we've had the kids in our lives. All those songs about welcoming baby Jesus and celebrating his birth always make me think about our kids' births and our feelings of joy and euphoria when they came into the world...and beyond that, how every child should be celebrated and welcomed that way on their first day.
Anyway, all of this is to say that Christmas is feeling particularly fun and celebratory this year. Now that Mateo's old enough to get excited about it, he's taking us all along for the ride. Every time we dare to turn the tree lights off, he notices and asks to have the tree turned on again. And now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go turn on the tree before he wakes up from his nap!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Love
We are all smitten by our new cat. We loooove her. Her name is definitely going to be Yarn, and Mateo is very, very proud to have named her.
She is the sweetest, cuddliest cat we have ever had. She's definitely still adjusting to our home - she spent most of the day hunkered down a dresser in the bedroom - but she started coming out more and more as the day went on. And, we were all greatly relieved when she demonstrated that she does, in fact, know how to use a litter box.
When I went in for a few minutes by myself after Sacha came home, she trotted out, jumped up on the bed, and snuggled onto my lap. And she purrs whenever we come into the room. She is showing all the signs of being the lap cat of our dreams! Yay for a new kitty!
She is the sweetest, cuddliest cat we have ever had. She's definitely still adjusting to our home - she spent most of the day hunkered down a dresser in the bedroom - but she started coming out more and more as the day went on. And, we were all greatly relieved when she demonstrated that she does, in fact, know how to use a litter box.
When I went in for a few minutes by myself after Sacha came home, she trotted out, jumped up on the bed, and snuggled onto my lap. And she purrs whenever we come into the room. She is showing all the signs of being the lap cat of our dreams! Yay for a new kitty!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Introducing...
...our new kitty!
It all started with a mouse in our house yesterday. After finding said mouse, we began to think more seriously about getting another cat. After hearing the adage that seeing one mouse usually means there are more in the wings, we decided to get back into the cat business, and fast. Two trips to the Humane Society later, we found our girl! She is 6 years old and mellllllow. Very mellow. We hope she will be a lap cat, but also a hunter!
She let both kids hold her on their laps and drape toys all over her in the little visiting room when we met her. That was when we knew she had to be our cat! She seems sturdy and lovable and calm. We brought her home and she is peacefully getting acclimated in our bedroom.
The Humane Society people seemed a bit surprised to see us again, once they pulled our records up in the computer. Perhaps this is because we've gone through four cats in the last five years. Of those, one ran away, two died in freak circumstances, and one was a beloved stray that we eventually brought to the Humane Society before Mateo was born, since he was quite the scratcher and pretty aggressive. We could use some better luck for this kitty!
Mateo suggested the name Yarn and we think it may stick.
Here she is! This is taken from the website, so excuse the random background...
It all started with a mouse in our house yesterday. After finding said mouse, we began to think more seriously about getting another cat. After hearing the adage that seeing one mouse usually means there are more in the wings, we decided to get back into the cat business, and fast. Two trips to the Humane Society later, we found our girl! She is 6 years old and mellllllow. Very mellow. We hope she will be a lap cat, but also a hunter!
She let both kids hold her on their laps and drape toys all over her in the little visiting room when we met her. That was when we knew she had to be our cat! She seems sturdy and lovable and calm. We brought her home and she is peacefully getting acclimated in our bedroom.
The Humane Society people seemed a bit surprised to see us again, once they pulled our records up in the computer. Perhaps this is because we've gone through four cats in the last five years. Of those, one ran away, two died in freak circumstances, and one was a beloved stray that we eventually brought to the Humane Society before Mateo was born, since he was quite the scratcher and pretty aggressive. We could use some better luck for this kitty!
Mateo suggested the name Yarn and we think it may stick.
Here she is! This is taken from the website, so excuse the random background...
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