All growed up

Well, she made it to 14. It seems like yesterday I brought her home from the hospital and now she is just 5 years from leaving me. At least I have 5 and not 1 or none, I guess. I just can't believe that it's going by so fast. I don't have pictures from her being a baby because I don't have a scanner up and running. But I do have some pictures from a few years ago and looking at those helps me understand how much and fast she is changing.
Sydney last year on her 13th birthday. We went to IHOP before school for her birthday breakfast.
She is the pirate on the far left with the knife in her mouth.
Tea Party birthday when she turned 10 years old.

Sydney at the 4-H dance. I thought she was big then.

Gratitude

I just want to express my gratitude for all the wonderful people in my life. I feel sometimes like I just can't do all of this... you know, school, kids schedules, homework for everyone, food, tidying up, laundry, groceries, church assignments, showering, etc., etc., etc. And there are times when I whine like a big baby about all I have going on. I imagine most people would say, or should say "You chose this. Get over it". But they don't, not to my face anyway. They just send me kind words, ask about how I'm handling it all, offer to be my new housekeeper, allow my kids to stay at their house a couple of days a week while I'm trying to get home from school, fill in as a surrogate grandma on grandparents day when the real grandma's couldn't be there, volunteer to bring dinner, give endless rides home to the kids when I can't make it on time, hang out in jammies and watch mindless tv for the night because I just can't think anymore, study with me, and just show one kindness after another without complaint. My heart is so full. I don't deserve to have so many nice people in my life but I am indeed very, very grateful for all the support I get. It is sometimes so much easier to feel sorry for oneself, but it is not possible to feel that way for very long when you are grateful. I love all my dear family and friends!!!

Scat Jazz Lounge

The other night we decided to try something new with Lindsey and Les. We found a place downtown Fort Worth called the Scat Jazz Lounge. The place is kind of behind some buildings. You walk a little down the alley and then take an elevator to the basement. There is a jazz club at the bottom of the elevator. This night there was a trio on the piano, drums and cello and a woman singing. She was incredible. I can't remember what they were called but I would go back and see them again. The dance floor was small but many people were dancing throughout the evening. It was a very laid back environment and a nice place to just kick back and listen to good music for a few hours. I can't wait to go back again.

Our life so far

Well, I officially started my grad school classes last week. We have 3 classes this semester and they all meet on Tues. and Thurs. I am super excited about all the classes because we are really getting into the meat of what we are doing now. I have stuttering class, a language disorders class, and a neurological disorders class. For the neuro class we already have a test coming up next Tuesday and I am having to brush up on my knowledge of the parts of the brain because are playing pictionary on Thursday and the subject will of course be the brain. Luckily, I love learning about the brain so hopefully this won't be too bad. According to previous grad students this is a very difficult class so I am trying to stay on top of things by studying ahead of time for tests. I have three therapy clients so far. I have met with two of them and it's been great fun. I will meet my third client next week. My graduate assistant duties aren't too bad yet but I know I will eventually have a lot to do. It's in exchange for tuition so I can't complain about it. I feel like I am running around like a mad woman sometimes trying to get everything done. It's very different having multiple therapy clients. I can't imagine what it will be like in the real world when I work for someone. Of course, I won't have classes to manage at the same time so hopefully it will be easier on some levels.

Scheduling has been tricky to say the least. I have my first client at 8:45 so I have to drop kids off my 7:30 so I can allow for morning rush hour traffic. I like to have 30 minutes to set up the therapy room also. Then I don't meet with my next client until 2:30. It's a half hour session so I get done at 3:00 and I run out the door because I have to get back home because the kids get out at 3:10. I have made arrangements for them until I get there but I still have to rush because they are just with a friend. I hate to put anyone out. Tuesdays I won't be done until late in the day so that's going to be difficult with the kids but I think I will have it worked out. Really the only day that things are great are on Fridays. No school on Fridays, just occasional diagnostics.

Amy is helping out by trying to get home early on the days when I have to stay later. She also takes one night a week to cook dinner. That is a great load off.

The kids are adjusting well to all the scheduling conflicts and so far they are not greatly affected by mom's stress. It's much easier to get everything done with all three in school. I hope we can keep up once the homework assignments start coming home.

That's our life at the moment. You never know how things can change so I say at the moment. I love my busy life. It is a good life.

Happy to report...

so far, so good with everyone in the house. I'll start with Katie. She loves school. She informed me that she thinks her teacher is the nicest teacher in whole world. She had a little bit of a rough start the second day. Brother's class at the start of the day is next to hers so they walk together. He tried to leave her in her classroom but she held onto him and cried. She didn't want to go without him. She is a little attached to brother and sister. So today I walked her to class again so brother didn't have to tear her away. She did well. She ate in the cafeteria for the first time (meaning she didn't take a lunch box) and she seemed to like that a lot. She's catching on to the routine fast. Katie also had her first gymnastics lesson last night. None of the other girls that were signed up for class showed up so she got a private lesson for her first time. It was wonderful. She was so proud of all she did and can't wait to go back. And the best part of her week so far... She got mail!!! She got a letter from Aunt Bitsy which she was thrilled with. She is writing a letter back as we speak. Thanks Aunt Bitsy. I think this will be a great opportunity for her to practice reading and writing too.

Jack loves his teacher. He has a male teacher again and that is great for him. He loves going to school and seems happy. All who know Jack know he's a man of few words so this is really all I have. He has also begun Tae Kwon Do classes again. He goes two nights a week and is having a lot of fun. I love that we have something for him to do that doesn't require running all over North Texas every Saturday to watch soccer games in the heat, rain, and wind. Not to mention just having the weekends free. Great choice Jack.

Sydney has a great set of teachers from what we can tell. School is just school to her at this point so not much happening there. She's in Chorale now and excited about choir. She feels like being in Chorale means it will be taken more seriously.

Aunt Amy has her school stuff down. She's figuring out Fort Worth traffic which isn't bad compared to many places but can be frustrating when you are trying to get places on time and you don't know the patterns yet. Our buildings are across the street from each other but we don't see each other at school. I don't think we'll see much of each other this year.

My school schedule is nuts. I have a lot going on and my brain in on system overload. But I love school. I am excited to be learning and especially love that I am finally taking some neuro classes. The brain is a fascinating subject. I only have 3 clients so far for therapy but that could change as things go along. I am scrambling a little to figure out how I will be all the places I have to be and do all the things I have to do but I think it will work out. My sweet friend is cleaning my house for me and came today. She did a fabulous job and it feels so good to have a clean house after such a busy week. I think we will get through this.

Jesse is hanging in there trying to help fill in all the holes. He is a very patient husband and a great dad. Couldn't do all this without him.

LIFE IS GOOD.

This is the last time I will have a first day of Kindergarten

And this is Sydney's last year in Middle School and Jack's last year in Elementary school. Way too many last's for me.Katie gets to wear uniforms this year. I love this little jumper dress. She was so excited to go to school in her new clothes.

Sydney looks so grown up these days.

Katie was just walking ahead eager to get to her new school.

The fifth graders at Jack and Katie's school have a unique honor. They are allowed to use bean bag chairs for the year and have short tables they sit at. They also get to remove their shoes each day. They love it!! He has his soft black bean bag ready to go for the first day.

Katie was at her desk ready to learn right off the bat. I couldn't pull myself out of the room but she was ready for me to go. I stood outside the door crying for a little while trying to leave. It was a sad day.

This one goes out to Sylvia and Valerie

When Jesse takes Katie for an adventure I never know what they will come home with. Today they set off to release the frogs they caught the other night and came home with more fish for the aquarium and leeches. YUCK!!! Then later that day Jesse found snakes in his garden and we always seem to have frogs around. Katie is a little more fearless than I like but she's learning all the time so I guess it's all good.

Katie wants mail

Everyday when I check the mail box Katie asks if there was anything for her. EVERY DAY. It makes me so sad to tell her no but the fact is she just doesn't get mail. If there is anyone out there that would like to send Katie mail she would be sooooooo thrilled. Just drop her a line when you are not too busy. She is such a cute kid.

First day down....

and a heck of a lot more to go. Today was the first day of orientation for the graduate school program at TCU. We were given tons of information in a short amount of time. At times I wondered what in the world I was thinking by taking this on but then I would take a deep breath and tell myself I can do this, I can do this, I can do this. I have a slight advantage at the moment over the others starting the program with me. I've have been at the school for two years already and know how things operate. I have also already had clinical experience and that is a huge plus.

I hope not to bore with my grad school tales over the next two years but I may not have a whole lot else going on. I will only be taking 3 classes a semester but also will have 4 therapy clients and that number will increase as time goes on. I also work as a graduate assistant in exchange for my tuition being covered. I am so excited to finish and become a licensed speech-language pathologist. I am also excited to be in school again and learn more about my field. I really love what I have chosen and feel lucky for that. Not everyone gets to do something that they love.

Dang Good Blueberry Bread

I am trying to get in some good cooking before school starts. It's the thing I miss most after school starts. This is one of my husband's new favorite bread. Thought I'd share. The best part about this one is it's actually pretty healthy.

Almost Unforgettable Whole Wheat Blueberry Bread


Baking spray or vegetable oil spray
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
2 cups white whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons flaxseed meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups plain nonfat yogurt
2 cups frozen wild (small) blueberries*, or fresh, if in season

*Note: To avoid too much streaking, be sure to keep the blueberries frozen until right before you add them to the batter.


1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease two 8 1/2” x 4” loaf pans with the spray, and set aside. In a small bowl, stir the walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and 1/4 cup of the regular sugar together to blend, and set aside to use as a topping.

2. In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, flaxseed meal, baking powder, and salt to blend, and set aside.

3. In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar on medium speed until light, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla, and mix on low to blend, scraping down the sides of the bowl between each addition.

4. Add the yogurt and beat until almost smooth. Add all but about 1/4 cup of the flour mixture, a little at a time, mixing on low just until no white streaks of flour remain.

5. Add the frozen blueberries to the remaining flour, toss to coat the berries, and gently fold the berries into the batter by hand with a plastic spatula. (The batter will be thick.)

6. Divide the batter between the greased loaf pans (if you have a scale, it should be about 1 1/2 pounds of batter per pan), spread it into the bottom of the pans, sprinkle the topping (generously) over the batter, and bake for 60-75 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.
7. Let the bread cool 30 minutes in pans, then transfer to racks to cool completely before wrapping. Store cooled bread wrapped in foil at room temperature, up to 3 days, or refrigerated up to one week.

Great movie

I went and saw Julie and Julia tonight and I have to say I LOVED it. It makes me want to rethink my life and go to cooking school. Or at least by Julia Child's French cook book and try my hand at some of her recipes. Also, I really think it's time to break down and buy some really GOOD knives. It just seems like if you are going to be a great cook, you need really good knives. That's on my list of things to start saving for. Anyway, it was a great movie and once again Meryl Streep was amazing.

Katie and Amy's room

Jesse's sister Amy is moving in with us for 9 months while she goes to TCU. She and Katie are going to share a bedroom because they just go together. So we bought bunk beds for Katie's bedroom and we have been working hard to get everything organized. Hopefully two girls can fit in there for the 9 months. We haven't bought a comforter for the bottom bunk yet but that is in the near future. Katie's quilt is a one of a kind so we'll just do a brown comforter to go on Amy's bed. I think it's turned out pretty cute. Katie's very happy with everything. She's working on a trash can and picture frame to go in her room also. I will post pictures when they are complete.

Sweet Potato Cornbread

Occasionally a recipe comes along that is too good not to share. Just made this one tonight and it was a huge hit with the family. We had it with homemade chicken and sausage gumbo. It could go with a variety of dishes.




2 large orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, or 1 cup canned sweet potato purée
4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 1/3 cups yellow cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cayenne pepper
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, diced


1. Prepare the mashed sweet potatoes; using a microwave on high power for 8-10 minutes or an oven at 375F for an hour, bake the sweet potatoes until tender and then put through a ricer to create 1 cup of purée.

2. Preheat oven to 375F. Butter a 9x9-inch baking pan. In a large bowl, whisk the mashed potatoes with the eggs and buttermilk.

3. In the bowl of the food processor, blend cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, sea salt, ginger and cayenne pepper. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

4. Add the cornmeal mixture to the egg mixture; stir until just combined. Spread in the prepared pan. Bake the corn bread until deep golden on top and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack.

Thoughts

I don't usually get philosophical on my blogspot but I was just thinking this evening after some new friends left our house after having dinner together. It is so fun to meet new people and have things change in life even if the changes are sometimes hard. I was thinking about all the people that have come and gone in my life and about the people I have left behind as I've gone away. I wouldn't trade knowing any of those people or any of those experiences because each have served to enrich my life in one way or another. I wish there were time to write about all the people that have touched me in one way or another but that would take far too long. Suffice it to say that I am getting over my dread of change. I used to loathe change but I am understanding that with change brings new adventures, challenges, experiences, relationships. I hope that I never go back to being that little girl who was afraid of anything new. This is a much better place to be in life. I remember about 10 years ago one of my very best friends moved far away and I was so devastated. I didn't want to make new friends because I didn't want that to happen to me again. I eventually got over it and have improved greatly over the years with accepting these changes in my life.

In short, I am grateful for all the people in my life new and old. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to be close to so many people and when those people are no longer close in proximity I can see how having been so near has touched and enriched my life. I am grateful now for the many changes I have gone through and look forward to the future.

Just the other day...

I was teaching Sydney how to ride a bike. Then came Jack and he took off. Now it's the final time I will have to teach a child to ride a bike. It's bittersweet this whole raising children experience. My heart aches with each and every step they take to gain an independent life. I can't think of anything in my life that brings me more joy and at the same time causes me more pain than watching my children grow up. Will this ever get easier???

 

South Padre Island

We took a family vacation to South Padre Island, TX this year. It was so much fun. Katie had never been to the ocean and Jack hadn't been since he was too little to remember so it was a first for both of them. They are all such beach babies. They played on boogie boards non-stop. Katie loved digging in the sand looking for creatures. Jesse is such a fun dad when it comes to this sort of thing.

Jesse and Katie's crab release

Everyone at the alligator habitat. We never did see that alligator.

Jesse and Katie playing chase on the beach

Bitsy and Kalani on the jetty

Laura and Benson walking in the sand


Amy and Leanne

Katie

Mary,Jack, Leanne, Kalani, and Amy

Leanne and Jesse

Sydney at the jetty

Mark, Amy, Jesse and John went deep sea fishing

The fish they brought home were wonderful!
The whale wall at the convention center

PaPa and Benson looking at the ocean

Photo Shoot for Derek and Angie

So excited that I was able to take some pictures of my friend Angie before she had her baby. These are a few of my favorites. Since she doesn't blog, I will post them on my blog.