Funny Boy

Shorty needed a crib of his own for a short time, to help take care of an owie in his hoof. We don't have a separate stall we can dedicate, so we had to get creative and McGyver the available space to make a special enclosure. By using the trailer, the barn wall, and the existing paddock gate, all we had to do was put up a little electrical tape on one side, and we had a short-term space of his own.

He peeks out from his space when I come with his pellets.

He's still close to his friends, so he's not lonely, but he's on better ground (so he can wear his "slippers", aka boots). Also, he gets all his own food, so there's less competition in the paddock with the other animals.

There was a moment of panic as Mommy went to feed him one morning, because he seemed to be missing! As I approached the space, I could see the fence was up, but where was Shorty? Turns out he had simply hopped into the box. It had been a frosty night, so he just decided to get right in (yes, it was chock-blocked securely, just in case he did this). He's a sweetie-smarty-boy.

A Little Work, A Little Fun

We love weekends! We made Grandpa's famous Salt-Crusted Prime Rib for a fun dinner with friends. Here it's ready to go into the oven. Aleaha was a great helper.

We got some chores done at the "old house", and both girls were helper-stars.

Then they both took a little break for playtime.

Later on, we took a walk around the grass field before the sun went down, and Aleaha spotted the rising moon in the East

 

It was fun to chart its movement as we finished our walk and got back to the house.

Meals on Wheels

Our dog doesn't have it so easy. He's not as physically close-by to us as he was previously. Mommy feels badly for him, so I try to find little ways to let him know I'm thinking of him. To let him know he's loved.

So, I cook for him. I try to bring him a hot dinner each night, made from leftovers. Since I'm using the four-wheeler as I go to the barn to feed animals each night, I call this Spiffy's Meals on Wheels.

Here's what he got the other night. I thought it looked pretty ok! Chris called it Cheese-Broccoli-Sausage Skillet.

Overheard

Miri, said while on the way to school, after eating her breakfast much too quickly:

"Uh, Mommy, I think I'm going to throw up. For real life!"


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Mom:  "Hey, Miri, will you pick out a can of cat food to give the kitties this morning?"

Miri: "Sure, here give them this one, with the purple on it. They like Grape."

Being Good

We were meeting with our real estate agent recently, and it was That Time of Day. You know, the time aka "The Witching Hour" from babyhood.....after school and getting close to dinner time, when little ones get hungry and tired and have a tendency to get really irritable. (Uuuuuh, grown-ups do too, come to think of it.)

But our agent is savvy and she was ready to keep them entertained with coloring books and activities. Between these projects and the little DVD player we brought along (thank you, Scooby-Doo), they stayed busy and relatively quiet for 90 minutes.

And then we left the agent's office and went straight to Shari's for dinner. Whew!

Rapunzel's Got Nuthin' On This Girl

She wanted to sleep with her braids in overnight, so that her hair would be wavy the next day. And we had to be very careful when styling it, because her vision was that it would be wavy but not "all poofy and out to there and wild". After being frustrated at trying to manuever a hand-held mirror to see the back of her hair (a trick every girl needs to master at some point), Mom offered to take a picture to show her what it looked like. She was duly satisfied with the outcome, thankfully.

Will You Be My V-A-L-E-N-T-I-N-E?

Valentine's Day with little kids is something you can't just skip over or skirt. You gotta do it up right. (I hope they remember that we did this stuff.....for all the things working parents miss in their little kids' lives....I suppose that's a reason we keep the blog!)

We made roughly one thousand mini-sized Red Velvet Cupcakes to take to Aleaha's school. These were from a box mix, because, well, isn't it obvious why? They were going to be eaten by 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders, for starters. And we were making them on a weeknight. So heck-yeah, a box mix and frosting-from-a-can was the way to go.

But!! Wait!! That didn't really suit Mommy's self-inflicted, Type-A tastebuds. And we were afraid we wouldn't have enough for everyone to take a few. So as soon as those minis were out of the oven, we whipped up a dozen regular-sized from scratch. Which were so much tastier. Even with canned frosting and too many sprinkles. And then we had something adult-worthy to pass out to teachers.

Now, it turns out roughly a thousand cupcakes is just a tad more than what was needed for a class of about 19 kids. Who knew? Better to be prepared with a bounty than run out, right? That was clearly my thinking. But then you've got a few less kids because some are sick, a few kids who can't participate in treats, and the so-polite adults who say "no, thank you".... And pretty soon you've got a half an SUV's worth of cupcakes to schlep back home.

Oh well. No regrets.

It took us a couple of nights of work, but we got all the Valentine's made. Aleaha helped Miri complete her set. (It's so damn handy that she can read and write now!)

The classroom was perfect chaos as the kids passed out their Valentine's to each other. Isn't that the way you remember your Valentine's parties in grade school?? 

(Sidenote: Notice how every girl is wearing pink or red or purple, except Aleaha, who is in bright green? She defended it, however, because it was a brand new t-shirt and it has a design in the shape of a heart on it. So there.)

Aleaha reveled in her received notes and treats...

... and in the passing out of the mini-cupcakes. This is a tradition from her daycare, and it's a lovely thing. She was very much looking forward to this part. As her mom, I completely get that. Pride in your work and a hospitable outlook! 

I felt lucky to be there that day to witness and participate in their revelry and energy. Even if it was fueled by too much sugar and Red Dye #5.

Later that night, after taking a kajuzzi to help wind down, the girls wore their new jammies.

Sugar-pies!

All dressed up and no place to go

We were just relaxing at home. Here's Miri in one of her regular get-ups: Horse shirt (because each day lately she either wears a horsie item of clothing or an entire Western-themed outfit), necklace, tights, Dora the Explorer boots (3 sizes too big), and her favorite "dentim" skirt.

Life at the Barn

We have these cool feeders that allow us to pitch hay and pellets from within the barn. The animals don't have assigned stalls, but here is how it usually goes....

There is Jake enjoying his feed in one stall....

... and here is Arby in a stall ...

...and here is the 4-headed, 16-legged, 1-maned, pellet-loving creature known as Weensie-Shorty-Teensie-Mamma. (Yeah, they got a double ration.)

Shorty, sporting the latest in hay accessories. (Hay-rings? Hay-extensions?)

Cake Makin'

We decided to make a little Sunday treat together. Aleaha picked the recipe from a book, and it entailed chocolate cake, a jam filling, and chocolate icing. She's pretty much a pro at this.

Miri knows that one of the best parts is licking the bowl and spoon.

The final result looked OK, but it was a little dry. Aleaha was mainly disappointed that we didn't have raspberries to decorate and serve with it, like in the cookbook picture (uh, not in February, m'dear). The recipe technique was one we'd never heard of before (mixing in softened butter to the dry ingredients, then adding the wet ingredients - strange. Maye they meant melted butter? It was a UK English cookbook translated into US English). We won't do this one again. Plus, we like DEEP dark chocolate, and this wasn't. But it was still fun nonetheless.

Visit to Cousin Sylvie

Sylvie recently spent a little time in special care, and Aunt Shelley was fortunate to be able to go see her. She's such a trooper - strong, smart, and able young lady!

She hugs the teddy from GrammaBon tight as she braves through it all.

Among the collection of things Aleaha assembled for me to give to her was a "Friendship Rock," which Sylvie seemed to understand. It's a chip off another rock that Aleaha collected long ago....but now each of them has a piece of it.

While on the way to visit, Aunt Shelley ran into multiple traffic challenges -- missed the proper exit; landed in the wrong part of the city and had to backtrack; and then had to wait through the Morrison drawbridge. I just wanted to get there to see them!!