Creamy

I finally chilled my ice cream bowl so I could make homemade ice cream for the kids. I can't believe how many ice creams contain corn syrup. Vanilla ice cream was my first choice, but Blake vetoed me so chocolate it is. I found a super simple recipe at this great blog (BAKEDBREE.COM).

I loved the fact I got to use my fancy cocoa from Penzeys Spices:


The kids feeling how cold the KitchenAid ice cream attachment gets after being chilled in the freezer for days:


You just add all ingredients together and pour into the mixer. Twenty minutes later you have ice cream:


I forgot the vanilla extract, but it still tasted good:


The kids didn't even notice my mistake:


*Andrew says the ice cream is too cocoa-y. I don't care since I don't eat chocolate ice cream!

Cheese

I gave Andrew tickets to a cheese making class at Sur la table for Valentine's Day. We made ricotta cheese and mozzarella cheese. The ricotta was made into an ice cream with chocolate shavings and sugared orange peel (yum!). It was a fun class with tons of people and lots of kitchen chaos.

Us at our station:


One of our team members stirring the mozzarella:


Andrew putting the cheese into the strainer to separate the curds and whey:


Time to heat up the cheese so we can stretch it into the mozzarella balls we see in the store:


Our ricotta and personal mozzarella cheese balls to take home:


Andrew's sister was in town and Papa David was such a great sport for watching all the cousins while we cooked and Ellen and Sandy hit up two farmer's markets. Super Grandpa!

What a gang:

Saturday

I am trying to remedy some of the empty, muddy spots in the backyard with seeds that will someday become plants. It is a lot to ask of a packet of seeds. First, they have to survive the birds. Next, they have to survive the kids. Lastly, they have to get reliable water from a certain somebody. Tall orders.

Buying soil:


Andrew just pulled out two loaves of sourdough bread that he made from his starter. I loved walking by the back door and smelling those loaves baking only to be stunned by the smell of chicken manure in the front courtyard when I rounded the corner. Pregnancy nose can be a blessing and a curse:


I need to dig deep within myself to find the energy to dig deep and plant these suckers:

Patched

Almost every pair of hand-me-down pants have holes in the knees. It is so close to summer so I thought I would just patch the knees and hope for the best:


I bought basic patches and sewed a zig zag stitch around the edges. Pants are so hard to work with since you have to keep the front and back separate:


They didn't come out looking too great so I think I will save them for non-preschool days so as not to embarrass him in front of his peers (clothed head to toe in designer frocks). Too bad I didn't see this picture as inspiration:


I moved a chair out of our bedroom and made a mini sewing station. Once this post is done, I am going to peruse the web for baby girl clothing ideas. Probably a bag of worms I shouldn't open.

Calistoga

We drove, we gathered, we conquered the hot pools at Calistoga. We stayed at the Carlin Cottages and had a blast celebrating Ellen's good friend's anniversary:


Here is my photo album.

Trade

We traded city for wine country.  Extra family will be showing up.  Hot pools of water for adults and kids.  Recipe for relaxation.  Good life.

Afterwards

I had a really fun Valentine's Day yesterday. It was low-key and just how I would have wanted it. The magic kids bring to the table (literally) is so much fun. I loved how much Blake enjoyed opening his Valentine's cards from his schoolmates.

My sister bought the kids these shirts. They say "Dr. Love" and have a red sucker in the pocket:


The evening started with a heart-shaped pizza from Pizza-My-Heart. Got to love those guys (and free delivery):


Valentine's were opened. My Nana sent Blake this card and boy did we get a bunch of laughs out of that one:


Reade holding up his card:


My baby bump being ever so pleased about the box of chocolates delivered by my husband:

Valentine's

Happy Valentine's Day. May your day be filled with bits of celebration and chocolates.

Blake's Valentines came without envelopes so I had to create our own. Blake came home with quite the booty from preschool (some people added candy against the rules, but we didn't complain):

Productive

Another blogger who does fabulous things in the same 24 hours a day I have to try and get all the laundry done in (forsaking the cleanliness of my kids).

Anneliese from Aesthetic Nest:

She cooks...


She parties...


And sews wonderful clothing...


Business woman turned housewife = massive productivity. Go girl.

Party

Our friend's daughter turns three in eight days so we were lucky invitees to her third birthday part. The theme was mermaid pajama party. Breakfast was served for dinner and there was no shortage of yummy food to eat. Here is the birthday spread:


Psycho Donuts were also on the menu:


Wild flavors:


I put makeup on and tried to pull myself together, but I still look tired and worn out. The kids in their pajamas. My thrift store mission was to find Little Mermaid jammies for the boys. I found two sets in somewhat fitting ages:


Even the adults were getting wild. I believe the words out of her mouth were, "If you post this on Facebook I am going to unfriend you immediately." Am I safe with my blog?:


Dancing their hearts away on the Wii:


Happy friends before the cake cutting:


Happy Birthday!

Girly

I caved. I took the boys to Thrift Town in Fremont so I could pick up something *secret*. I found exactly what I was looking for, I love that thrift store chain, and thought I might as well check out the baby girl stuff while I was there.

Some My Little Ponies made their way home with us. I love to watch Reade brush their hair in his not-so-gentle boy way. Here they are after I brushed their hair and wiped them down with a Clorox wipe:


This jumper was so fun to find because I love the brand (Loved Baby) and at 99¢ I knew I was getting a deal ($18.00 retail price):


And who can resist some diaper covers (will or will they not fit over the tiny cloth diaper?) at 29¢ each:

Weeks

Sorry baby #3 for being late with the photos. It doesn't mean I don't think about you all the time:





In preparation for spring, I bought a couple of my favorite skirts from oldnavy.com that are super comfy when I am pregnant. I have squeezed myself into a size medium for the last two pregnancies, but thought it was time to order some in size Large for comfort and kindness to others. I was even more excited to find out the skirt was white and navy instead of black and white. At $16/pop I couldn't be more thrilled.

Cheap Date

My child is a printable mask junkie. It is a cheap craft that allows him complete control over his imagination. I have wised up to printing out colored ones so I don't have to color each and every one in for him:


Giving me that special Superman look:


Too bad the activity always ends in tears when I decide to cut him off from the computer/printer. The sky is the limit in his mind.

Pliney

Andrew's co-workers have a tradition of driving up to Santa Rosa to taste the limited edition of Pliney the Younger at Russian River Brewing Company. This year we tagged along to see what all the fuss was about. We went up on a Monday to avoid the hour(s) long wait to get inside and we are happy to report we got in after only waiting a half hour. We by far had the largest group of small children with us (sometimes causing comments and stares) and some husbands showed their age/tolerance ratio. Long, but fun day:



Click HERE for the full photo album.

Shades

The sun comes out and suddenly my children demand eye protection. What good, fair skin children they are.

In the car:


This is how Reade wore them around the nursery while we shopped for plants in the dead of winter (aka, there was nothing worth looking at):


Blake asking to be in the picture. Reade's bruise is from when Blake threw a Lego board at his head the other evening:

Seen This?

I saw this for the first time today so excuse me if I bring up old, viral memories:

Extraction

Andrew put some bookshelves next to our china hutch last night. We left the room for a second and then heard Blake yelling that he was stuck. I guess he wanted to be under the china hutch?