Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Orthodox Ornament exchange for the kids



Sophia signed up for the Orthodox Ornament exchange over at Sylvia's site again this year.  She had so much fun doing it last year (both making AND receiving the ornaments) and was really excited about doing it again !  Unfortunately, the kids have both been very sick and we were not able to do a whole lot of preparation and had to leave everything to the last minute (when she was feeling well enough to ENJOY making her gifts).

As an added surprise, her Baba was home from work that day.  He had taken that day off because we were supposed to be taking a long weekend away with the kids, but had to cancel because they were so ill.  He, very willingly, sat at the table with her for several hours while she made her crosses to send to the children!  I didn't think to take a final picture of the finished product after they were wrapped up.  But she was happy with them, she had tons of fun making them, and got to spend some unexpected quality time with her father - and that is wonderful !

She has already started receiving some of the ornaments this week and is SO happy to see what everybody sent.  What a difference a year in age can make....she is actually noticing and appreciating the ornaments as they come.   She is identifying the Icons that some used and asking "how" each was made as well.  She asks me over and over to check the cards and tell her the names of the kids that made them too.  What a great idea - hope we get to do it every year !

Monday, December 6, 2010

Happy St. Nicholas Day !

St. Nicholas

Today we celebrate the Feastday of St. Nicholas.  Last night I cuddled up with my two little ones on the couch and we read the Life of St. Nicholas together.  Before they went to bed, they eagerly put their shoes by the door for St. Nicholas.  Sophia fell asleep singing and humming "Holy Father Nicholas" !  This morning, even though they were up WAY too early because they are not feeling well, Sophia led them running to check their shoes.  In this house (just like last year), St. Nicholas likes to leave some gold chocolate coins and a few Orthodox books !  



May you all have a Blessed Feast Day.  Holy St. Nicholas, intercede to God for us !  

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

A gift for Demetri

My little boy loves to go to Church.  He used to be quite a challenge...but over the last year or so has really settled down and is a pleasure to take to services.  He LOVES to participate.  At home he initiates prayer throughout the day (meals, morning, etc), loves to chant the hymns he knows, venerates his icons, etc.  When we are in Church, he is no different.  He chants along with the chanters, sometimes even visiting them up at their chanting stands.  He says his prayers, the ones he knows...and mumbles along the ones he doesn't know.  He makes the sign of the Cross (well, almost) and does his metanoia (prostrations)...and he censes.  He ALWAYS censes.  He is always aware of where Father is, what he is doing, where he is moving.  If he can't see him, he asks to move around so he can catch a glimpse of him or we pick him up.  

He would use some of his favorite items as his "censor".  Seen here, he is using his favorite bear.  He uses our prayer ropes, necklaces, keychains, etc.  

But last week, he got the best little gift ever...


smiling and staring at his "censor" saying "just like Father's" !

during Vespers for the Entrance of the Theotokos


leavng the Chapel after Vespers




Sunday, November 14, 2010

Consecration of our Church

Our family had the lovely Blessing of attending the Consecration of our Church !  What a great experience and probably one that we will not have the honor of seeing again.  The services started Friday night with the Arrival of the Relics, Procession into the Church and Vespers.  Saturday morning started with the Consecration services and Liturgy.  It was beautiful.  My husband served in the altar and said it was such an honor to witness something so awesome ! My little girl was one of the Myrophores and I was so proud of how well she did !

The relics that were placed in the Altar table were those of St. George, St. Panteleimon, and the Holy Martyrs/Monks of St. Savas Monastery on Mt. Athos.  What Blessings !






Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Look who's TWO !



So my little man turned 2 this week - and as most parents say ... I can't believe it is going so fast.  We had a great celebration and he had lots of fun.  I cannot lie...we did not put as MUCH preparation and attention into the preparations of this party as we did for Sophia's.  Well, he is only 2....and only cares about eating the cake.  Plus we are still enjoying the wonderful company of my inlaws and prioritize "family time" over going crazy with party planning !  (At least that's our motto now, while he is still too young to argue)!  

Sophia picked out his "sports" theme and helped Mama decorate.  I made him a very lame baseball cake with the help of my mother.  We really had a great time and I am very thankful for my wonderful kids !  

Happy Birthday little man !  





The "big girls" having some fun with Sophia's animal masks !

Wow, this Birthday Boy stuff is VERY tiring ! 

sitting on his new "truck" bean bag seat !

FIRST BIKE ! from Yiayia & Popou

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Sweet Potatoes !!!


Our gardening experience continues to grow !  We finally got to pull our sweet potatoes out of the ground. Sophia was thrilled when her Baba took her out to do the dirty work !  We actually got quite a few, but not nearly the amount I thought we would.  We looked into it a little and realized where we made our mistakes.  Our biggest problem was that we didn't give them enough room to grow.  These vines can spread....like crazy !  So whenever we saw a little tendril making it's way out of my neatly-outlined area, we would just lift it and put it back with the bunch.  Actually, as they spread out and grow they continue to root themselves along the way producing more and more potatoes !  At least that's our new understanding.  The ones we did pull were delicious.  A few of them were too tiny to use, we really could have left them underground much longer but we haphazardly YANKED al of the vines above-ground assuming they were all "done" !
We are still getting quite a few peppers of all colors !  Our eggplant was very productive too !  Our biggest failure were the tomatoes - which obviously did not get enough hours of sun every day.

At least we are better prepared for next year !

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

One lovely blog....



How sweet !  Mat. Anna over at Praying with My Feet gave me a "Lovely Blog" award !  I'm honored if anyone is even reading....getting an award would never even cross my mind !

Allow me to share just a few of the lovely blogs that I follow : 


This is certainly not a complete list.... But they are all great blogs !

For those so inclined, here are the (obligation free!) rules to accompany this award:


1.) Post award on your blog
2.) Thank the blogger who sent it to you
3.) Award 15 other bloggers this Lovely award
4.) Tell them all you think their blog is Lovely

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Mother's Daybook

Outside my window

It is dark, quiet and rainy.  I like it like that....then I can pretend it is a "cool" night - which it is NOT.  But I have hopes that the Autumn season is around the corner.

I am thinking

that although I have been hesitating on this decision, that it is probably time to get my son a bed and move him out of his crib.  In one way, I am excited about this (milestone, sure...but honestly can't wait to get rid of that crib in there).  On the other hand, he is such a good sleeper (and very contained in that crib) that I worry what kind of trouble and excitement we will be dealing with when he realizes he doesn't have to STAY in bed anymore !  He is figuring out how to climb a bit and also the other night awoke with a blood-curdling scream because his leg was STUCK between the rails.  I ran in to find his poor body all twisted and trying to get his leg out.  I am SO happy that we don't let our children cry or scream alone...he could have really been hurt.  

Currently reading

Spiritual Counsels - Select passages from My Life in Christ -by Father John of Kronstadt

I am thankful

for being blessed with the most generous friends who have made it possible for us to be driving our family in a new-to-us minivan !  The extra room is amazing...and being able to actually fit a passenger with us is a luxury we have not had in a very long time !  Glory to God for all things. 

I am wearing

some new running shoes ! Nike Lunarglides+ 2 to be exact !  Thank you dad !!!  Can't wait to try my first long run in them ! 

I am listening to 

the sound of my son chanting "Ayiooooos Theoooooos" from his crib as he tries to put himself to sleep.  

A few plans for the rest of the week

We are enjoying somewhat of a routine these days...nothing rigid, but something that gives a flexible form to our day.  As I write this, we are at the end of our very busy week...looking forward to a great weekend filled with family time.  

Around the house

some MAJOR accomplishments in the decluttering area this past week or so !  Completely reorganized our bedroom closet ! Purchased some plastic bins and put all out-of-season clothing in the ATTIC, got rid of a ton of clothes and recycled some drawers to our kitchen area.  We can ALWAYS use more storage in our kitchen.  Soooo, that meant we had to re-do the kitchen cabinets and pantry too !  What fun !  While we were at it, we took out all the "baby" stuff from Demetri's nursery (except crib)...so he is left with only the crib and the toy storage.  Next, furnishing the little guys room !  


Sophia

is really enjoying the whole aspect of "learning".  Even though we have just started this whole process, she is asking to do more and more everyday.  I am not as organized with the plans as I would like to be, or with the materials...but we are taking it slowly and I am trying to be patient with myself. 
Poor little lady is still struggling so much with her sleeping at night.  God was merciful in making sure my son is a good sleeper because I don't know what I would do if I had 2 sleepers like her !  At this point, she will go to sleep in her room MOST of the time (with us sitting next to her bed)...but once she gets up a few hours later she is back in our room...it's a constant journey.  


Demetrios

is just into EVERYTHING at this point.  He is climbing on all the furniture, using everything he finds as a step-stool, experimenting with everything he can get his hands on !  He is a VERY active little boy !  He continues to chant constantly throughout the day, walks around with his icons in his hands, always looking for his cross.  He amazes me sometimes.  In the morning, I will often say "ok, come inside and let's say some prayers together".  He comes running with such excitement ! It is so cute to me !  

The domestic Church

Really enjoying the time spent reading with Sophia about the Saints, the Saint of the week, etc.  Establishing more of a regular routine with the children to include them in the morning prayers before they start their day and it is going well thus far.  

On my iPod

more of the same....I don't make many changes on that - probably going to delete this part of the daybook next time. 

From the kitchen

Tried out my belgian waffle maker tonight...breakfast for dinner.  It was fun and they came out pretty good. I am sure there are a lot of different recipes out there to try...I just tried a basic one I found and it was "ok".  

From the garden

I haven't posted much about it lately.  Our cucumber plant that was taking over our entire garden is gone.  It had started growing a LOT of cucs too...so I was actually sad to see it go.  We had an enormous amount of rain in short periods of time and our area doesn't get a lot of sun to begin with...I think they got waterlogged. They all went to mush, the leaves all looked rotted....we had to pull the whole plant.   We are starting to get a decent amount of peppers, enjoyed 1 eggplant so far and are getting some sweet potatoes too !  The herbs are doing well.  The tomatoes never got a good start (thanks to the cucs) because I don't think they ever got enough sun...we need to get rid of those too and start fresh I suppose. Probably have to move them to somewhere where they at least get a LITTLE more sun.  

A picture thought to share

Friday, September 17, 2010

School Bells Are Ringing

How is it that I can remember so vividly the day my firstborn came into this world...and yet it is already time to start thinking about her education???  How does that happen?  YIKES !

Well, the good news (for me) is that because of her "late" birthday...Sophia doesn't actually become of age to enter in Kindergarten for 2 more years.  The bad news (for me, again) is that the time is sure to pass by quickly.

We are keeping our options open for what will come at that time - private school? public school?  homeschool?  However, we have decided to start her off with a little bit of early education at home.  It seems the perfect match for us right now.

Most of her "friends", or kids she knows from other activities, have entered into preschool/daycare this year.  While we have decided not to enroll her at this particular time, I do feel there is great benefit to that path.

I am home with my children and willing to attempt this endeavor.  There are SO many other women before me that are so wonderful in sharing their resources, plans, ideas, etc. that I feel that I am not alone. (Mental note:  add some of the links to these resoures on my sidebar).   It's PRESCHOOL...so I can't really mess it up (right?).  It will at least give us a little experience with the unknown, so that next year we will know a little bit more about our options.  We both attended public schools.  I know how to research schools, interview schools, visit schools.  But I have never tried to teach my own child at home, so how could I possible draw from any experience in that area?  I think that this will be the perfect time to get our feet wet.  Will this work for our family?  Is her younger brother going to be too much of a distraction?  Can I organize our days well enough that this will be enjoyable?  Will my home fall apart?  Will it be fun?  Is our home conducive to learning?  All of these simple things are really unknown at this point. 

I had done lots of research (and continue to do so for possible future needs) and decided that for our first attempt at educating her at home, I was going to completely use the Letters of Grace curriculum.  Unfortunately, for a gazillion reasons that I need not go into here, the curriculum was taken off the web for a brief period of time and is only recently being pieced back together for the public to view and use.  I am so thankful for their efforts.  My little girl has just turned 4...following an EXACT agenda is not the most important part of this whole thing. (Right)?

We decided this would be our first week.  It's not exactly the beginning of the Liturgical year, but it worked for us (vacation and birthday parties included).  I loaded up the printer with ink, printed out our plans and it has been going well so far.  Aa is for Andrew (St. Andrew) is the theme of the week.
The Cross on the Hill is the spiritual book  and we've read it a few times already.  After reading it the first time in it's entirety, I found that it was a little easier for her to understand if I stopped along the way and paraphrased what was happening, asked her questions and answered hers as well.  Today she seemed to understand it much better. The book is geared for children a little older than she is, but easily adaptable. 

Sophia has been working on her writing of the letter, recognizing it everywhere (street signs, cereal boxes, etc), forming it out of her macaroni and cheerios, too !

Aa is also for Apple. So we have made some "apple" crafts.  Some of them I came up with myself (read: ultra simple) and others I copied from other bright and crafty moms. I saw THIS great apple craft on THIS blog and just had to do it.  EVEN I (uncrafty) made a few.  Sophia loves them and wants to make them for everyone.  I guess we can, since I will not have any other use for that entire roll of yarn (it's not called a "roll" is it?)  Oh well.



We had jotted down a bunch of books from the "recommended reading" list of the LOG site and found many of them at the library...she has really been enjoying reading time.  Luckily, my son still takes a pretty long afternoon nap - so we have been taking advantage of that. 

This week we also celebrated the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross - attended Vespers and Divine Liturgy.  We will also be celebrating the little lady's Nameday on Friday.  It has been a busy week !


Many Years to my little girl



Today we celebrate the Feast day for our daughter's patron Saint.  May she have many years. Xronia Polla!

We enjoyed a lovely day together today and tonight our family came over for some sweets after dinner to celebrate her special day.  We bought her a few new spiritual books that she had pointed out in a catalog and enjoyed reading them tonight before she fell asleep !  I think it's important to start family traditions when they are young -and learning the importance of your nameday and observing it in some special way  is an important thing for a child.

Many years to all those celebrating today !   



Monday, September 13, 2010

The Birthday Girl

Well, the little lady's birthday has come and gone....and was a lot of fun.  Nothing could make me happier than to see her smiling all day and talking all about it the next day!

It has also been very common to hear me say "Well,  you are 4 now sweetie...you have to (fill in the blank)"!  I figure I will try to use that one for as long as I can !

All finished setting up her ladybug picnic blanket

Sack Races - her favorite activity of the day 

Helping her brother play "pin the dot on the ladybug" !


Saturday, September 11, 2010

So far, So good.....birthday preparations

I have to admit that I am fairly exhausted, but not very stressed - which is good (and very different from last year)!  Last year, Sophia asked for a "monkey" birthday cake and of course I took on the challenge.  The end result wasn't too awful, but the process was just TERRIBLE.  I started AFTER dinner the night before the party -and had my family over that night for a separate gathering.  I had NO idea what I was getting myself into or how much work (or mess) it would be.  I think my sweet husband cleaned the kitchen for two hours that night...shaking his head the whole time.

This year, I planned ahead and decided I would make it the day before - and I stuck to my plan.  Early this morning we made our ladybug cookies:




Then I baked the cake.  (I had made and tinted the frosting the day before - a great decision because it was so much easier).  


I was SO nervous about decorating it, but I think it came out pretty good!  Most importantly, Sophia LOVES it and can't wait for her little party.



We prepared our favor bags, made some ladybug "birthday hats" and covered all of the tables in red/white gingham.  We are having a "Ladybug" picnic theme party, per her request !  We got some adorable material to use as a picnic blanket so that her and her little friends can have a real picnic on the floor !





We decorated our own paper goods (stay away from party stores at all costs)!  


She is fast asleep now after such an exciting day...so I set up a little surprise for her when she wakes up.  A new tea set ! I put out two settings so that she can serve her little brother some tea in the morning !  Some felt birthday cake and cookies to set the mood for the day, too !





More updates after the party !  

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

One down - Eleven to go !


Weeks, that is.   Eleven more weeks of training.

As some of you know...I run.  I don't run a lot.  I don't run fast.  I don't even think I run well.  But, I run, nonetheless.  It's one of the things that I do to try to stay healthy and in shape.  You may also remember that I decided to run in  my first race a few months ago.  It was fun.  Honestly, it made whatever running I was doing seem to have more of a purpose.  Does that make sense?  Running is boring, it's lonely sometimes, monotonous, and HARD.  But I find that if there is a goal sitting in front of me - I tend to do it more regularly and I try to do it better.

I have decided that, God willing, I am going to register for THIS race and try to complete my very first HALF MARATHON !  Crazy?  Probably.  I don't even know if I can do it.  I figure that the worst that can happen is that I get in better shape - even if I never make it to raceday !  I have the Nike + iPod kit that I use for running and they have programs online that you can follow.  I chose the BEGINNER training for half-marathon.  They set up the days and mileage for you and you have to follow the routine for 12 weeks.

The first week was HARD.  It started out with 4 mile runs, which is more than I have been running.  Saturday it finished out the week with a 6 mile run and I thought my legs were going to give out.  But at the end of the day, I got to say "I ran 6 miles this morning" !   THAT wasn't so bad !

So..wish me luck.  Say a prayer for me.  Hopefully, this won't be my last post (which would mean it was the only week I completed)!!!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Family Fun

First picture with her grandkids after our surprise arrival!


Well, we are home and finally back to our "normal" routine ! We had a WONDERFUL time on our family vacation and I am so glad that we decided to make the journey.  The kids made some special memories, we spent quality time with all of our family there, had tons of laughs...and of course, tears were shed as we left.  

Sophia got to see cows, pigs, goats, etc. at the 4H, we enjoyed a night out on North Street, ate tons of wings at Patricks, played outside in the fresh air every single day, shopped, visited all of our family, took walks, cooked out, celebrated our wedding anniversary, stayed up late, work up early, had tea parties, got the kids haircuts, shopped some more  and so many other fun things !

We arrived on the eve of the Feast of the Dormition...and attended the Divine Liturgy at our "parish away from home".  As it turns out, the next weekend was their annual Greek Festival !  We enjoyed some delicious dinner and my husband was sure to get a BOX full of pastries to bring back to the house for our snacking pleasure !  My little guy had a TON of fun on the dance floor.  He parked himself right in front of the stage, eye to eye with the bouzouki player..and danced his little heart out !  I will have to post the video of that one soon...he doesn't have much rhythm yet (to say the least) !



pulling her own suitcase every step of the way


on the mini carousel while shopping at the outlets 
plenty of outside playtime to practice our jump rope !

yummy.....ice cream from Scoops !
Mama and the little man
Baba and the kiddies




Sunday, August 15, 2010

Surprise !!!

YES !  We did it...gave my mother-in-law a lovely surprise after her rough week !  Glory to God for all things - the timing was just perfect. She had just gotten home from a busy day at work and was putting in a load of laundry when she saw the face of her son through the window!  Her grandchildren haven't left her side since we arrived and I think it is finally sinking in that we are REALLY here !  

We celebrated the Feast of the Dormition this morning at the quaint church of St. George and are enjoying a beautiful afternoon together - soaking in the beautiful Berkshire weather  (a wonderful change from the oppressive heat). 

I'm sure there will be plenty of pictures and videos in upcoming posts.  I got an awesome FLIP video camera from my parents for my birthday the day before we left...it is SURE to catch plenty of fun times!  

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Can we do it ???



Things are getting pretty exciting around here...we have a countdown ticking away to a big surprise.  I can't post this right away because my inlaws (hopefully) check the blog often !  In just a few short days, God willing, we will be sitting on their front porch as they arrive home from work !

My mother-in-law has really been having withdrawal symptoms from being away from her grandchildren these last few months - and we are definitely in need of a family vacation.   So we decided that we would try to pull off the ultimate surprise and buzz our little family up north to brighten up her summer !  At first, we enrolled the help of my father-in-law...of course we needed someone to "know" we were coming, to pick us up, to be sure she was home, etc etc.  BUT THEN we started to sense some weariness in his voice:  "Don't you think we should tell her?  She likes to prepare?  Half the fun is anticipating the arrival".  That sort of thing.  We decided that he couldn't be trusted !!!  So, we purchased our tickets and planned our trip for much earlier than he had anticipated !  We waited until the last minute to rally up some help - and Aunt Denise has come through with flying colors.

We've been slowly preparing the things that need to be packed.... and I have to really try to keep everything around here looking like we're NOT packing.  You see, we talk to my inlaws over the video conference almost every night.  Sophia would NEVER hold a secret for more than 10 seconds at this point.  I am bravely waiting until Friday, after which I don't think we will talk to her again until we are there, to actually pack it all up.

Can't wait to post some updates....hoping it all goes well !  REALLY can't wait to see their faces !

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Swimming lessons

Our little lady finished her first session of swimming lessons today...and she was so excited.  The session lasted 4 weeks and it was really only in this final week that she began to enjoy herself and have some fun ! She was having a difficult time in the beginning with the whole concept, but we are so proud of her for sticking it out - even when she was afraid !


Monday, August 2, 2010

Daybook Entry

Outside my window 

It is dark and quiet...and I'm pretending it's a cool night out there !  It  has been so unbelievably hot lately!

I am thinking

about how long it has been since I had a minute to sit down and read a blog, add an entry to mine, etc.  The last few weeks have just been so chock-full of activity that it has left very little time for sitting down at the computer.  A good thing in most ways !

Currently reading

I finally had the opportunity to finish the Gurus, the Young Man and Elder Paisios !  I am on to find my next reading adventure ASAP.

I am thankful

for my sweet husband.  Today is my mother's birthday...and although I wasn't feeling well, we still had my parents over and he cooked the entire dinner, cleaned the dishes and made very light work for me tonight.

I am wearing

a few new dresses this week....gotta love the sale racks !!

I am listening to

the birds chirping...coming from Sophia's bedroom (from her sound machine). Both my kids have small sound machines to block out some noise since our home is small...and they are light sleepers.

A few plans for the rest of the week

Nothing out of the ordinary this week (says the mother with two toddlers)!  Some classes at the Y, swimming lessons, playtime.  The Fast for the Dormition begins so we will be attending the Paraklesis nightly, as possible...
Preparing for a little family road trip coming up soon.  A much-needed vacation for all of us ! We might even have a "new-to-us" car for the trip too !!

Around the house

Boxes...and stuff.  I am desperately trying to clean out the kids closets and garage and get rid of more "stuff" we don't need.  I have given myself a deadline (which I won't commit to in writing)!  Let's hope it works out and everyone cooperates !

Sophia

Sophia attended Vacation Church School last week !  It was her first time and she had so much fun.  The theme was Joseph's Journey..which was good since it's a story she is familiar with.  She has made me read it over and over in her Children's Bible Reader.  She was actually a little young to attend, but it really worked out and I"m so glad she went.  The teachers were wonderful and very patient and understanding.  My koumbara's daughter was one of the volunteers and was the main reason she made it through the week.  Sophia is so comfortable with her and felt very safe when I left her there.  She doesn't attend public preschool so this was really the FIRST time I "dropped her off" anywhere for any length of time !  She did great !  On the last day, the group baked prosforo and she was delighted !!



Demetrios

Our little man gave us a rough week prior to the Church school.  He came down with Strep and was really not feeling well.  He recovered well and just in time...right before Mama was ready to pull her hair out !!!

The domestic Church

As I have posted previously, Demetri really enjoys watching everything Father does during the services. He imitates him from the pews.  He has always "chanted" on his own, even at home.  He doesn't pass an icon without asking to be picked up to venerate, has to touch every cross in the house.  But lately, he has really taken to "censing" the whole house...and chanting...and loudly !  I have taken a few short videos of this and really should post them.  He combines the English and Greek Version of Ayios O Theos and Holy God...making his own little hymn.  But the funny part of the story is that he used to use my chomboskini (prayer rope) to do this...but lately he has found a new favorite "censor".  (I really hesitate to admit this).  He uses the toilet bowl brush...he holds his fingers through the hole in the handle and swings it back and forth while walking around the house chanting.  It is quite a sight to see.

On my iPod

Well, nothing new on my iPod. Sophia, however, did score a new pair of "children's" earphones a few weeks ago.  She was always so irritated the cheap earphones I gave her kept falling off and she could barely hear the stories/podcasts because they didn't sit right on her ears !  I was a little hesitant that these kids ones would work, since they all seem to say for ages 6+, but they fit perfect, they are pink, and she loves them !

From the kitchen

Well, we are preparing for the Fast (for the Dormition of the Theotokos) to begin tomorrow...so that always means a change in the weekly grocery list and meals for the week.  I think I'm somewhat prepared.

On a different note, but food-related:  As I previously mentioned in this space..I love the idea of muffin-tin lunches.  Originally, I saw the idea on my friend's website....and while I didn't pay much attention to her next "step" in this type of lunch-making, it came to me a few weeks ago.  My kids (like her kids) love the fun presentation of the muffin tins, and I like the variety of foods they eat when I make them.  However, now that we are busier and find ourselves "out and about" more often, there are a lot of times the kids get hungry and need a good snack or even a small lunch.  I was getting into the habit of bringing a pbj sandwich, or crackers and cheese, or even (gasp) a pop-tart !  The kids were getting in a rut with lunch and starting to ONLY ask for pbj and macaroni for lunch.  That's not really them, since they have always had a pretty good variety of foods.   I immediatly thought of the healthy lunch idea I saw on her website...which was sort of a transition from the muffin tin idea. BENTO BOXES !!!!  If you don't know what they are, I will have to post some pictures when we get ours.  We placed our first order for our first Bentos last night !  Sophia is thrilled. I let her pick out hers and Demetri's !  Now, of course, I will have to get some accessories to make the lunches cute !  The theory behind the portion size, the variety of food and the fun packaging is just what the kids need to keep their interest in eating healthy and colorful foods !  Can't wait to start packing them.  Might even have to get one for myself !


In the Garden

The cucumbers are taking over.  Well, I shouldn't say "the cucumbers", I should say the "cucumber plant".  I don't have any cucumbers just yet.   The plant is out of control.  The leaves are so big that they are shading the adjacent tomatoes...and they are taking over the trellis and strangling the green bean plants Sophia planted !  I don't want to cut them back or anything just yet, because I want CUCUMBERS !  I will however, plant them differently next time.

On the positive side, everything in the garden is growing and looks healthy.   The kids LOVE going out to check on it and water it every day.  We had our first green pepper in a salad this afternoon and it was delicious !  There are a few more coming on that plant, a red pepper about halfway there, a tomato on the way and the eggplant plant is producing flowers and is gigantic !  I do need to post updated pictures.  I can't wait to expand the garden.  It's been so much fun and very little work, relatively speaking.  The look on Sophia's face when we brought in that first pepper was priceless...made it all worth it !   We've also made some great pesto with the basil too !

AND we found THIS guy in there too....I think he was one of the culprits eating my leaves (at least according to my facebook friends).  He is in my neighbors yard now :)





A picture thought to share 



Sunday, July 11, 2010

Up, Up and Away !

I am learning lots of new lessons in my small gardening adventure.  If you recall, I built a trellis for my plants that need some vertical support.  I couldn't wait to see them all start climbing !  When I compare the pictures from the above-linked post, I am shocked !  As you can see, they are really filling out !  I think all the rain we had last week helped a lot.  




In the back of my box, I decided to try a little experiment and plant some sweet potatoes.  I actually purchased these 6 little ones and  thought that I would be putting it in my Square Foot Garden box.  It was an impulse item.  We love sweet potatoes and when I saw it at the store, I couldn't resist.  Poor planning.  When I got home and read a little bit about growing them, I realized they wouldn't work in my box. They CAN be planted in a SFG, but would take up a few boxes at least...and I had decided to start with one box and had limited space to use.  I didn't want to waste them but I didn't really have any great spot for them.  The ground on the side of the house here is pretty sandy and the articles I read stated that they would do well in hot, sandy areas.  My dad gave me the idea to put them behind the box and see how it works !  They are really growing great.  I should have spread them out more but I wanted to keep them looking somewhat neat.  The other problem is that the south side of trellis is shading that half of the sweet potatoes.  I am not really certain that is a problem, but I am noting it as a potential issue.  


Speaking of potential issues regarding shading.  You will notice the large leaves on my cucumber plant ! They are growing like monsters.  I had NO IDEA how these grew !  I am really new to all of this.  Add to this ignorance the fact that we didn't have to go out to water for a few days in row...and this means that I didn't head out to the garden on those days when we had such yucky weather.  It didn't take long and the cucumber vines are taking over everything !  I think that if I was out there during those first climbing days, I could have trained them up a little straighter - and not over to the sides.  It's amazing how they send out those little thin "viney" things that grab the trellis and start spreading out !  You can see the my tomatoes are on the two boxes to the left of the cucumbers in the pictures and are REALLY being shaded and overshadowed by these huge leaves.  I don't think they are getting enough sun at this point.  Sophia's pole beans are also getting really crowded - they are on the right side of the cucumber plants.  A few of those vines have found a spot on the netting, some are climbing up the cucumber vines too !   I don't think there is much I can do at this point, but we will chalk it up to lesson learned.  We are enjoying the whole experience !  

Thursday, July 8, 2010

My little man in Church










I hesitated on whether or not to post any words along with these pictures, but it has been such a long road for our little guy that I thought it deserved a small post.  Learning how to behave during Church services (loooong and frequent services) can be difficult for little ones!  Learning how to get through it can be difficult for parents as well !  

We've had both of our children in Church since their 40 day blessing.   Glory to God for all things.  Sophia made it seem easy.  She made me feel like a very competent Christian mother.  Everything went just as I had envisioned it when I would try to plan how I would "teach" my children about our worship.  When she was younger, she spent a lot of time in my sling or other carriers.  She would stay in there most of the service, come out to receive Holy Communion and then sit quietly for the end of the service.  I was so calm and thankful.  My prayer was not interrupted.  My active participation in our Holy services was just as it was before she was born !  I only remember having to leave the Church to go to back when she needed to be nursed or changed.  As she got older and spent less time in a carrier...I didn't know what to expect.  But I knew what was expected of me, as her mother.   She was quiet, never tried to run away, always listened, never brought many "things" to play with and still doesn't know that the Church has a playroom/nursery upstairs.  I am very thankful.  

When Demetri came along, I have to admit that I felt pretty confident that I would be able to instill in him the same proper behavior that his sister had made look easy !  THIS was not the case.  I did things the same.  Talked to him the same way about services, treated him the same way when we were there and so on.  As all mothers know, each of our children can be very different.  He spent quite a bit of time in my sling as well, but as he got bigger he was less and less content there.  He just LOVES to go, move, talk, etc.  He is not content sitting in a pew for a few hours at a time.  It is so hard for him, which I completely understand.    So often I hear the comment "Oh, he is nothing like his sister" or "you have your hands full with him huh" or "boys will be boys"!  

 I admit that I have spent countless hours in the Narthex of our Church.  We sit up front and I can't tell you how many times I am walking from the front of the Church, to the back - over and over and over - poor Sophia, tagging along !   I often wonder if all the people standing in the pews along the way are thinking "WHY doesn't she just STAY back there"?  I'm sure at some point they have all said that at one point or another.  But, with Christ all things are possible !  Through prayer and His Grace, he is slowly learning to be still.  Through HIS struggle, I am struggling and learning too.  I am so thankful for this opportunity.  He is learning to love our Faith and our Church.  He can't WAIT to see Father come out of the Royal Doors.  He can often be seen pretending to "cense", using a komboskini (prayer rope, pictured above) as his censor.  He recognizes certain prayers and hymns that he hears often.  He can "chant" Ayios O Theos...well, some of it !  He has come a long way.  He still tries to run - but now instead of trying to run away from me, he is trying to run up to the altar.  He is either trying to approach the lower level icons on the Iconastasi, or he sees our Priest or his Baba.  In my mind, I am happy that his attention is THERE and not somewhere else...so I don't mind running up and getting him a few times.  

We still have such a LONG way to go.  He does.  I do.  We all do really.  I thought that in the event that any struggling mother visits my space here, I would post my own experience and struggle - hoping that it would serve as hope.   I tried to keep it short, particularly since I honestly had no intentions of writing anything when I put these photos on the page.  But then I looked at them and thought that he looked like a well-behaved little boy, participating in his own little way during a Church service.  I thought that they looked like a mother's brag book, showing off to her family and friends how "good" her son is during the Liturgy.  That couldn't be further from the truth and ANYONE from my parish can tell you that these were just lucky snapshots of rare, quiet moments.  I really don't have a free or steady hand to reach into my bag and grab the camera as I am chasing him around the church trying to get him to focus on the altar, or shoving a pacifier in his mouth to stop the shout of "NOOOO" mid-scream !  Now THOSE would be some funny and realistic pictures !    Sometimes it is hard to balance what we share here in public view, but sometimes sharing does bring us together.   This truly is a part of my own journey.