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
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