changes

this has been a busy and emotional few weeks for us. hence the lack of blog postings. we moved into a little apartment for 6 months while we renovate our house. the renovation and dreaming about what our house will be like in half a year has been a oh so much fun. the apartment is okay, it is small but not too small. it has terrific morning light (as you can see in the photo above). the kids had a bit of a rough adjustment though, but it seems that in two weeks time we are settling into new spaces and new routines.

then my step-father passed away unexpectedly and it has thrown us for a loop. still feeling a mix of shock and denial and sadness. he was a amazing soul that put a smile on everyone's face that knew him. he always called me 'pumpkin baby' and occasionally 'curtain climber' and used his made up word 'bacocina' in place of tons of other nouns, just for fun.  he made amazing hamburgers and tacos.  he loved to go 'runnin'.  he will be missed by the many people that he knew and most of all his family.

happy mother's day

I found this picture today. it was tucked away in an old box and I happen to open that old dusty box today and find it.

i don't remember this day but I remember a poloroid taken just before or after this one that has hung on a small bulletin board in my mom's room for as long as I can remember. It was taken closer up, of just our faces mainly. but just like in this picture, we look really happy. warm sun and flowers surround us. maybe it was mother's day.

today is the same sort of day. sunny, flowery, beautiful and happy.

i am a very blessed mama.

easter baskets

the easter bunny had fun putting the kids easter baskets together this year.  calvin's had a super hero theme due to the fact that he is obsessed with super heroes.

his basket included a couple of batman books, batman toothbrush, spiderman pencils, some mama made pants, a pack of lizards, a little wooden pirate ship to color, a chocolate bunny and these little superhero guys.

maeve's basket was filled with things i thought she would like, no theme for her.  two books (marshmallow and the country bunny and little gold shoes), a rainbow play silk, piggy paint nailpolish and remover, a wooded horse to paint, a set of little clippies for her hair, princess pencils and mama made pants.

everything was put into the baskets from last year.  i love the thick felt and fringed grass of the baskets.  overall it was a successful easter filled with family, good food and chocolate!

a fairytale...

the royal wedding is done. for me, it lived up to the hype. i loved every minute. well, maybe not all the singing. the hats were awesome though. my favorite was princess beatrice. or maybe posh spice.

i love all weddings, partly because of the design and decor, but mostly because of the tradition and commitment and love marriage represents.  even though the royal wedding was full of design and decor, the love and commitment of those two crazy kids shone through all the 'stuff'.  may they live a long and happy life together.

ps. did you know that the british monarchy has a flickr stream? look here.

dough balls!

we usually make pizza on friday night.  it is a meal everyone loves and i like it because i don't really have to plan for that night, which is nice at the end of the week.  i do spice it up by making different kinds of pizza, which is usually a result of whatever we have in the fridge that needs to be eaten.

last week i decided to do something a little different and make pizza dough balls with the kids.  i used a ball of trader joe's dough and ripped it into 9 equal pieces.  i flattened each piece out and let the kids put the toppings in the middle (chopped bell pepper, graded zucchini, salami, grated mozzarella cheese).  once the toppings where in, i wrapped the dough around them and placed the dough ball seam side down on a baking sheet.  i brushed the top of each one with melted butter mixed with chopped garlic.  then i baked them at 425 for 15ish minutes.

after they were done, we dipped the balls into marinara sauce (which was a huge hit!  my kids love to dip!) as we ate them.  (sorry i forgot to snap a pic of the cooked balls as we were eating them and then my husband came home and ate all the leftovers very quickly).  i got this idea from somewhere out there in the internets, but i can't seem to find it to link to, sorry.

ps. if you lived in the dorms with me freshman year, then you might remember calling random people (before cell phones and caller id) and asking them to answer "pizza survey" questions about dough balls.  i was so excited to finally make them! (with the toppings on the inside :) 

Easter bonnet

happy easter!

spring table

we finally set up our spring nature table.  it has been in constant use ever since.  the little nest with eggs i bought here last year.

we have a collection of bird houses.  calvin just made the tissue box one on the right at an art class we are taking.

maeve has a love/hate relationship with the wind up toys.  she wants me to wind them but is scared and cries when they start to go.  i kept the sun that calvin painted and we had in our winter table because i love it and it fits spring too.

the felted eggs at the far end i bought from an etsy shop last year.  i still need to find the books.  for some reason they were not in the box with our spring stuff.

changing the seasonal table is something i so look forward to and so do the kids, i think.  it feels like a rite of passage, especially for spring, marking the end of a long cold winter and the beginning of a season filled with green, outside and sunshine (plus a little bit of rain).