It's official

Yes, it's official, Emerson has decided to walk most places now. So she's crossing rooms, patios, spans of grass and streets... well maybe not fully. Looking at our poll, the majority of you guessed right! Kudos! She has also decided hockey is a sport she'd like to take part in. Pictures to come.

Best wishes neighbors!

So long good neighbors. We'll miss you! As you can see Griffin was VERY fond of Ian and Emerson of Cali. Thanks kids for being so great to our little ones. Have fun at your new home!

Rhubarb season!

For those of you who have a hill or two of rhubarb, I have some recipes for you! If you don't have your own hill, head to the farmers market. Don't forget the Mankato Farmer's Market is on Tuesdays & Thursdays 3:30-6 and Saturday mornings 8-noon. Here is the link for what is in season and when:
http://www.mankatofarmersmarket.com/inseason.html

RHUBARB CRUMBLE- MARGIE KRAUSE
My favorite and most-used rhubarb dessert. Especially good with the first rhubarb of the season, so sweet!

6 c. diced rhubarb (a gallon ziplock bag full)
2 eggs
6 T. flour
2 c. sugar
Mix together and put in a shallow pan.
Crumb topping:
2/3 c. brown sugar
1 ½ c. flour
½ c. butter
Mix and sprinkle over rhubarb. Bake till brown at 350, about 45 minutes. Serve with cream, whipped cream, or ice cream.


RHUBARB BRUNCH CAKE- JILL NICKEL

This is so good, it’s amazing! It’s the cream…… And fairly easy and quick to throw together.

1 box yellow cake mix
1 c. water
1/3 c. oil
3 eggs
Mix and spread in greased 9x13 pan.
Top with 4 c. rhubarb, sprinkle with 1 c. sugar, and pour over all a pint of cream. Bake 75 minutes at 350.


STRAWBERRY-RHUBARB COFFEE CAKE- BEV QUADE

A really good springtime goodie!

3 c. diced rhubarb
16 oz. frozen strawberries
2 T. lemon juice
2 ¾ c. sugar
1/3 c. cornstarch
3 ¾ c. flour
1 t. b.p.
1 t. soda
½ t. salt
1 ¼ c. butter
1 ½ c. milk
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
Combine rhubarb, strawberries and lemon juice. Cover and cook over med. Heat for 5 minutes. In a small bowl, stir the sugar and cornstarch together. Gradually stir the sugar mixture into the fruit mixture. Heat to boiling, cook, stirring constantly, for 4 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
Heat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 pan. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine 3 c. flour, 1 c. sugar, b.p., and soda and salt. Cut 1 c. butter into chunks; add to the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until resembles coarse crumbs. In small bowl, beat together the milk, eggs and vanilla. Stir this into the flour mixture. Spread half of the batter into the greased pan. Spread fruit mixture over top of batter, drop remaining batter over top of the fruit.
In small pan over low heat or in microwave, melt the remaining ¼ c. butter. Stir in the remaining ¾ c. flour and ¾ c. sugar until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle crumbs over the top of batter. Bake 40-45 minutes or till golden brown and bubbly. Cool to warm, then serve.


RHUBARB CREAM PIE- JANIS NICKEL
One of my very favorite pies in the spring!

1 ½ c. sugar
¼ c. flour
¾ t. nutmeg
3 slightly beaten eggs
4 c. diced rhubarb
9 inch double crust or lattice pie shell
2 T. butter
Blend sugar, flour, nutmeg, and add eggs, then rhubarb. Fill the pie shell, dot with butter, and cover with top crust. Bake at 400 for 50-60 minutes. Delicious warm

where the wildthings are- and we're not talking about the kids!

Keir found a painted turtle on his bike ride the other day. Both kids enjoyed looking and touching it. Then we let it go in the pond. It was beautiful! We have started illustrating some of our daily activities to help us along in the creativity side. The Creative Family book by Amanda Blake Soule (http://amandasoule.com/book/) suggested using inspiration when drawing and coloring... duh, why didn't I think of that! After the illustration is complete, I'll write our caption or story on the back with the date. Then we'll put our daily stories all together to make a book. Soule also recommends using bird, insect, animal books for reference when drawing. I better start on our collection!

In the background you'll hear what we hear at night. This is why we like to sleep with the window open in the summer!

Watch out Lance Armstrong, here comes Griffin!

The thrill of a new bike! This little boy LOVES to ride bike. We finally found one that fits him perfectly. He's quite good at riding his bike already. Only had a few spills going up the curb at an angle. I can see we'll be toting a long this bike on many trips to come.


Whooohooo Griffin!

Em Walking

Are all second children so determined? Our little Emerson walked before she turned 9 months! I love to see the thrilled look upon her face when she learns new tricks.

mama talk: Em's Giggles

mama talk: Em's Giggles

I needed to watch this again, so thought you may want to too!

garden grazing

The garden grazing has begun. I showed Griffin the spinach today and let him have a taste. Every time I turned around to see how his digging in the dirt was going, this is what I saw. Maybe we won't have enough for my spinach-using recipes? At least he'll be getting his veggies! Last summer I could hardly get him to stop eating the green tomatoes (he would spit them out after a taste)! Happy growing!

Huff

 
We visited my folks this weekend and where my Dad works they have these awesomely big machines. Griffin loves to see backhoes, payloaders, scrapers, excavators, ect. So Papa knowing of his excitement suggested they go see Huff. Here's pictures of their trip.

The joy of watering... for free!

How much fun for a kid to help water the garden! Here are a couple pictures of Griffin hard at work, giving the broccoli, peppers, and lettuce get a drink. Yes, it's a bit early for peppers, but I couldn't resist (now I'm keeping my fingers crossed the frost will stay away!)

My hubby and I had been wanting to buy rain barrels for awhile now and he finally pulled the trigger. We couldn't be happpier with them. We have two that hook up to the downspouts. One we put on the deck after I suggested it may give us a bit more water pressure. However, it's not enough to "sprinkle" the lawn. Oh well, my potted plants in and out will thank us as well as the garden. We even used the free water when giving the kids' outside toys a wash the other day. A little less wasted water at our house... yeah! Here's the site with our rain barrels (in case you want to use your free water too!): http://www.rain-barrel.com/collection_systems.html

Happy Mother's Day

My mom's buns are the best... that's why I'll share the recipe with you!


❖MY FAVORITE BUNS – JANIS NICKEL

Make the dough in a bread maker:
1 c. water
1 egg
3 ½ c. flour
1/3 c. sugar
1 t. salt
1 ½ t. yeast
1/3 stick margarine or butter

After the dough cycle is finished, form into buns or cinnamon rolls. Makes 18 buns or 12-15 rolls.

To form buns: First to get your ball of dough, squeeze off a clementine sized piece of dough by squeezing between your pointer finger and thumb (like milking a cow). Then form bun by tucking the dough around the bottom until all the bubbles are gone. Then set on pan and press down with palm of hand to flatten the top. For pull apart buns, put them close enough to touch. For regular buns, they do not need to touch, when they raise, they can end up touching.





Let raise for 1.5 hours to 4, until they are doubled in size.

Bake @ 350 for 25 minutes.



Carmel for rolls:
½ c. butter or margarine
½ c. ice cream
½ c. white sugar
½ c. brown sugar
vanilla

Heat in saucepan till incorporated, then spread in 9x13 pan, cool and place rolls on, raise and bake for 20 min, at 350 degrees. This topping never gets sugary or hard; always perfect!

Happy Mother's Day all you mamas out there!

playin' in the rain

You seldom think good thoughts when you hear a forecast for rain, but this morning's rain was a wonderful little warm shower. Griffin and I were lucky enough to get to play in it while Emerson was napping. Griffin had been waiting to use his umbrella, so we took advantage of our time together and mama got to take some pics while he enjoyed the moment.
It's fun to hear what's in that little head of his & how he's figuring things out... "It's a nice day out." "Under the roof we stay dry.""Emmy is too little to play hockey/ride a bike." "Look at mama's flowers!" and he often says, "What mama/daddy doing?"
The best Mother's Day gift! He walked up behind me sitting on the front step and gave me a hug from behind and said, "I yub you mama!"

#2 on potty

Yes, number two child goes #2 on potty (before my number 1 child). You say, "That's amazing she's only 8 months old!" My thoughts exactly as I watched in awe last Tuesday. Since then she's went about 5 times. It all started when I grabbed a random potty training book at B&N while Griffin played with trains. I skimmed the Table of Contents and ended up starting at the beginning. They went through the normal gibberish of how children in disposable diapers train much later than those in cloth. Hum, I thought, maybe this cloth diapering will work to our advantage for this way as well! As I read more, they recommended to start potty training when the baby started eating solid foods. They said, start a routine of of putting them on the potty chair at the same time every day or do it when they normally go. Lucky for me, Em always goes poo a the same time! Now everyday when I hear she's up, I run her to the bathroom and she usually goes in the potty chair! HOWEVER, this may not be the BIGGEST NEWS... Emerson took her first step! Lock your doors... or the cupboards!

Yummy Granola

Aunt Meggie gave us some granola for Christmas and we loved eating it on our yogurt (btw, we love Stonyfield Farm Organic Vanilla). Vanilla yogurt is good, but it's so yummy with a handful of this granola mixed in. Griffin loves it too!

I'm pretty sure this if the recipe she used:
http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=390

summer recreation

Ahh, we had a wonderful Saturday! It was a beautiful day in Mankato and all was well with the household, so off I went, leaving the kids behind with Dad. Mama out to do some garage sale perusing. I hit 5 places and found steals at 3, so it was a success! I also was able to get the grocery shopping done in peace... what a pleasure! After naps we headed out to Rasmussen Woods for a hike. Griffin loved to run up the wood chipped trail, look off a cliff, tromp across the bridge and climb up and down the steep hill side.

speaking of toot & puddles

For those of you with no children... skip this post! Mamas & Dadas HHHEEEEEYYYYYLLLLPPP (as Griffin says)!

Any words of wisdom on toilet training? And I do mean toilet... we've went through 3 pair of pants already this morning (however we did wake @ 5:45). Puddles on the floor (which I have him clean up). I see Grace goes every 20 minutes, but when I say, "Let's sit on the potty." He replies, "I do not like to sit on the potty." Every time he wants to do something different I try to get him to sit on the potty before we "can" do whatever it be. However the last 3 minutes he has been putting stickers on his calendar every time he goes on the potty and has earned 4... now 5 stickers. I doubt this excitement will last all day. So tell me your tricks mamas of toilet-going children!

Second question... no poo on the potty yet. He seems to be unable or uncomfortable with it. I just ordered Every Poops, we'll see if this helps. I'm worried he's going to have a problem since he holds it. Any thoughts?

For those of you with no children... skip this post!

the start of the growing season!

How exciting to see dew on the plants & grass this morning. It coaxed me out to see what has grown since we left on Friday. Here you see our spinach (Baby's Leaf Hybrid) and Sweat Peas. We also planted a mix of lettuce that is peaking it's little heads too. These three are great to grow in the early spring when it's too early for most other veggies, you can also get your broccoli, onions and a few others in now! They like the cold. Here's a link from the UofMN Extension telling us when we can plant what!

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG1422.html

cloth diapering while away

We went away for the weekend up to visit my family in the cities. After cloth diapering for about two weeks, I didn't want to put the kids back in disposables for the weekend since I was used to doing cloth. However I found it takes quite a bit of planning to prepare do so. I figured out after the kids took their naps that I should be washing all the cloth diapers. I didn't want them sitting dirty all weekend & so we'd have enough to use until we got home. We have 20 total. We usually don't use all of them because Griffin only uses them when napping or out of the house and I wash them every-other day. Do do prepare the diapers, I'd have to put the kids in disposables while washing them. Unfortunately I did not get the diapers washed and dried before we left, so it was back to the tossing of the diapers for the weekend. I also would have dreaded trying to get them washed before going to bed when we got home or while visiting up in the cities. So all turned out okay... but next time I'll be ready to try cloth on the go!

Trav is 30!

Yes, Travis is 30 today! Happy Birthday little brother! As some of you know, Travis and I have a special relationship only being 2 years apart, but then Travis has a personal relationship with all of his family and friends. We shared many years in high school & college hanging out together. He's more outgoing (and funnier) than I, so he always has me laughing. I do miss our special moments together since he's moved to Rochester and as I am tackled by the two little tykes. Trav is a great uncle to the 7 nieces & nephews of his and he never forgets to do a little rough-housing with each one of them! If you've met Travis you know he is very social and one of the friendliest people you'll ever meet; making him an excellent nurse. We love you, Travis! Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Grandma Janis!

My dear mother turns... 50something today. I thought I'd better not give out the exact age just in case she would mind all of you knowing. She is a very gentle soul, wonderfully creative, a great cook & hard working. I love her dearly as does the rest of my family. Thanks mom for being such a great mother and grandmother. We hope your day is filled with specialness & we look forward to celebrating with you this weekend!

Nappies going well

Emerson isn't jazzersizing... she's just sporting her new BabyLegs (similar to leg warmers). Then we don't have to worry about her little knees when she crawls & about fitting that bubble-butt in pants.


The cloth diapering is going pretty well. I was amazed when the shipment of Charlie's Soap arrived. It claims it's environmentally safe, safe, non-toxic while it works great on grease, blood, grass, blood, mildew, mustard, pine sap and poo! Currently, the last is most important. It is also flame retardant! Safe & effective for all fabrics including: silk, wool, linen, cotton and high-tech microfiber athletic and waterproof gear.
Uses only 1/8 cup per large washload, Contains no dyes, phosphates, UV brighteners or perfumes! Removes entrapped odors from microfiber athletic wear,
Hypoallergenic - Perfect for those who have sensitive skin, Will not fade your colors Non-toxic and completely biodegradable, Front-loader / HE compatible.

Can I say how great this sounds! I thought I'd just use it on diapers, but am switching 100%. Unfortunately there are only 4-5 retail locations in MN. Luckily I have about 120 loads left to get to one of them for our next jug.

Back to the cloth diapers (CD for short). I have felt very good about only adding 2 diapers a day to the trash (the night time diapers for both Griffin & Emerson). The cloth diapers fit pretty well. The only problem I've had is wet on the front of Emerson's pants after a nap the other day, a poo leg today and a little poo residue left in the pleated part of the elastic on the diaper after the wash. The first two accidents I'm going to chalk up to an inexperienced cloth diaper putter-on-er. I'm still not sure what snaps they should be on and what the fit should look like. Non-the-less my little mover, Emerson loves to roll and try to get out of diapering all-together.

So that's the update on cloth diapers!

Em's Giggles

Those baby laughs. I just want to bottle them for a dreary day. Here Emerson is looking at Luci. Luci was sitting on the deck smiling in the sun. Apparently Emerson thought it was something to laugh about!

BumGeniuses have arrived!

Did I spell that write (hehe, i know, right)? BumGenius', BumGenius's, I'm not quite sure... Mr. Rise would be ashamed. You fill me in on the correct spelling plz! Anyway, these diapers are cute! Emerson and Griffin (until that rascal is potty trained) will be sporting BumGenius in white, zinnia, blossom, buttercup, ribbit & grasshopper (unfortunately they were out of clementine). Pictures will be soon to follow. The diapers are in the wash & the kids are sleeping.

Does Grandma want them the experience of cloth diapers tonight (if she babysits)? Just like old times, but a little easier. I'm just dreading the first poo in the diaper. Many cloth diaper mamas train their infants to poo in the potty. We'll start on that! I can't even get my 2 year old to poo in the potty. Any suggestions?

The prize for pooing in the potty for Griffin is a Case IH tractor & plow. As we drove through the implement today to check out the cool machines it hit me that they would sell tractors! We have been discussing this prize for awhile now. So in we went and quite a selection they had! Mama hid it away until the task is completed. Go, Griffy, Go!

cloth diaper decision

Well we have committed to trying cloth diapers! After seeing that our trash can was 1/2 full of diapers every week, I feel obligated to seek a different outcome to the excess. After researching and talking to friends who cloth diaper, I have decided NOT to go the pin method, but with BumGenius diapers. The technology of cloth diapers these days! These come in one size (7-35 lbs.) and have velcro (for our little movers who make diapering a challenging sport!) They have a microfiber insert that goes in a pocket between a waterproof outer-layer and soft lining that keeps the kido dry. Can you believe it?! We'll see how it goes as the shipment should arrive in a few days.

http://www.bumgenius.com/one-size.php

Easter Bunny- a hit

or should I say the candy was a hit. Finally Griffin is back to eating regular meals now that he is no longer eating candy. I should have known that eating candy would decrease his appetite for healthy, nutritious food. And now that I think of it, he's back to acting normal again too. Easter night, Keir put him to bed and came to tell me of Griffins "spasms," His quick and high voice saying, "I need drink, I need a toy, Cover me up!" Luckily, the Easter Bunny only comes once a year!

Happy Birthday Troy!

My older brother, Troy, turns 35 today! Happy Birthday Troy! He is a great brother and uncle. As you can see in this picture he has boundless energy to entertain not only his 3 girls but whomever else is in his company. He's often the first one to go out to play with the kids and the last one in. He's fun, outgoing and very friendly, not to mention smart. Thank you for being you, Troy! We love you!

she stands alone

Em can do it! She can pull herself to standing and balance. She is amazed by herself...as we all are! She has the proud grins as she shows off her new tricks. Most of them she learned in March! Now on to April! What will she learn to do this month?!

new tricks

Well Emerson has developed leaps and bounds in the last couple of weeks. One day she gets a new tooth (see her new smile). The next day she crawls. Now she can pull herself to standing and Auntie Meg is trying to get her to stand by herself and walk (see picture). We spent 4 days with her cousins in the cities (thanks for having us Troy & Meg)! Griffin and Emerson both had so much fun with their aunts, uncles & cousins. Griffin & Em got to see their first Wild game and Griffin's favorite hockey player, Mikko Koivu.

Happy Birthday Taylor!

Can you believe it? Taylor turned 13 this month! We couldn't be more proud of the young lady she is becoming. Happy Bithday Taylor!

New Hobbies

Emmie has taken up playing with tractors and combines. Now she is sitting quite well, so can use both hands while playing and sitting. How much fun! She has also started exploring her tongue and the different noises she can make. Her two bottom teeth are close to popping through and she's been pretty pleasant through the whole teething so far. Meanwhile she is still close to crawling, but not getting more than a couple of feet and has learned the butt pivot (on hands and knees and sitting back to change directions).

Griffin is our next Top Chef. He loves to help in the kitchen. Here he is helping mom make stromboli... he does like to "sample" the ingredients. We have been enjoying the last two days of mild weather. He has walked home from the park and testing out the puddles on the way. Luckily we have a boot dryer and snowsuits are washable!

Hooo'd of thought?

Here are my last two-hoo sewing projects. A little friend to keep our Hallie company while she mends from appendicitis. One for Griffin too-hoo.

Here is Emerson trying to crawling. She's working hard at figuring it out and eventually gets frustrated. I keep telling her she needs to work on balancing on one hand, but she's just not sure how. She'll figure it out in due time. It's not like we need another mobile child at this time. It's nice that Griffin can play without close supervision 24-7. And now that we spend a lot of time in the basement it's nice to have Griffin able to roam up and down with out a gate to worry about. Looking back at Griffin's first year it says he didn't crawl until around 8 months, so she's ahead of schedule being only 6 months.



We were up at Troy & Megan's for Valentine's day. Grandma Janis had them busy at making cut-out cookies. Boy did they have fun cutting and decorating. Many tastings later, there were are few cookies left... which Mama had a good time testing!




Griffin and the Bishop twins had a great time at the Children's Museum. The "girls" (babies and Mamas) had a good time watching them climb, play in the water, work at the blocks, etc. What a great place. Emerson and Teagan were born on the same day, so it was a pleasure meeting Teagan and comparing notes. Those Bishop twins are good helpers with the babies and any peep they made one of them came running to try to help. Thanks, Becky & Eric, for hosting us for the night!

I yub you

Yubs to you this Valentine's Day. It is so sweet to hear those three words from Griffin's little mouth. I warms my heart every time he says it.

Here's a couple sweet shots of our little love bugs.




HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

winter, winter... warm up!

Grandma made the kids roll-brim hats while were there for a visit. Thanks!




I love watching Emerson grab her toes and play. She can be so happy and has lately started giving a big smile when you catch her eye from across the room. She is finally growing out of her 0-3 month sleepers, but is quite the little bundle. While laying on her tummy she likes to get up on her hands and knees and rocks like she's ready to crawl. I've started talking to Griffin about Emerson getting to his toys and needing to find an Emmy toy for her instead of just taking his toy from her. Emerson is now eating two "meals" a day. She is quite proud but still needs a bit more practice so most of it doesn't end up on her chin.

Griffin is ready for a warm up. I am hopeful that it's true we will be getting a heat wave of 36 degrees today. Everyone will enjoy our daily walks again... mom, the dogs and the kids! He has done relatively well this month as we haven't gotten out to play on the pond as much as we'd like, but he's ready for the fresh air and change in our day.

I have taken to some indoor hobbies this summer including baking, cooking and sewing. I started with a flannel baby quilt with the guidance of my mother. Thanks to Mary, Keir's mom, I didn't need to buy a machine but am using her Singer. I am still learning the tricks of sewing and have considered taking a class, but mom teaches me something new every time we get to Lamberton. I have also made a blanket for Em, rag quilt, and changing pad. I am currently working on a nuk clip and basket liner. I have been inspired by etsy.com and the cute baby things I see there! The internet has been a great place for inspiration and free patterns! Here's a picture of the rag quilt I made with much assistance!