Let's Do Lunch...

I mentioned the other day that we recently went camping.  For each of our two trips we were in charge of providing a lunch for the group.  For the cub scouts trip it was suggested that we also set up "a make your own trailmix bar."  We set out the following:
pretzels                              peanuts                                    raisins                   big chunks of granola
crasins                              sunflower seeds                   almonds
yogurt-covered raisins       crispix                           honey-nut cheerios

The kids made their own choices, filled a cup and had a snack for the rest of the afternoon.  I'm thinking of doing this over the summer with my kids.  Add a piece of fresh fruit and call it an easy lunch.

For our other trip which was much a much smaller group I needed to find a lunch that would please young kids and adults alike and could be vegetarian or not.  Scott and I decided on "tacos in a bag."

We bought individual bags of fritos (or doritos or tortilla chips could also be used).  Before everyone opened their bag, we asked them to lightly break up their chips.  (The kids were especially fond of this step.)  We had set out all the possible fixings for a taco:  ground beef, black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, cilantro lime rice, salsa, sour creme.  Everyone opened their bags, piled in their favorites, closed the top of the bag and lightly shook their "tacos."  We handed them a spoon and said "lunch is served."

I think this might also be on the summertime lunch menu at our house.  Another favorite easy meal at home is our "ice cube tray" lunch.  It's a little strange but the kids love getting lots of little bits of food served in ice cube trays.  Here are some things I typically include:
nuts or seeds                    hummus                       baby carrotts                        corn
edemame                         pita chips                    cut-up string chesese              broccolli
apple slices                       sweet peppers                 chicken nuggets and ketchup         grapes

Happy Papa's Day!

Grown-up holidays are hard around here...we are so focused on the kids and so busy in our daily life that celebrating Scott's and my birthdays or Mother's and Father's Days doesn't really happen.  These "grown-up holidays" also happen to fall in the midst of our kids' birthdays so it always seems like we are thinking of how to celebrate for the kids and what presents to get them.  (And I hate to admit, but I am horrible at thinking of gift ideas for Scott, well, all grown-ups in general.)

So I decided to dedicate this post to Scott for Father's Day.  I tried asking the kids some questions about him (with little success from the girls)...

Jack
What do you love most about Papa?  Everything!
What is your favorite thing to do with Papa?  Go bowling.
What do you do that makes Papa happy?  Try all my dinner.
What does Papa do that makes you know he loves you?  He gives us dessert.
What is something that Papa does that is silly?  Take funny pictures of himself.
What do you want other people to know about your Papa?  He's the best dad in the world!

"Papa, I love you the best in the world!"  -Jack

Logan
What do you love most about Papa?  Because he doesn't hurt me very much.
What is your favorite thing to do with Papa?  Go to the beach with him.
What do you do that makes Papa happy?  When I sit down and eat dinner.
What does Papa do that makes you know he loves you?  He helps me and I help him.
What is something that Papa does that is silly?  He makes funny faces.

Des
What do you love most about Papa?  Ummm...
What is your favorite thing to do with Papa?  Ride bike.

Bri
What do you love most about Papa?   Hmmm...
What is your favorite thing to do with Papa?  Nothing

The kids and I are so lucky that Scott works nearby and is able to spend so much time with us.  Every weekday, he eats breakfast with the kids and walks the boys to school (and often the girls tagalong too).  He is almost always home for dinner and puts the girls to bed nightly.  And on the weekends, we all spend time together running errands or going to the beach.  Scott puts us first in everything he does.  He shows us everyday in a million little and big ways how much he loves us.  And we love him for it!

Happy Father's Day to my amazing husband!  You are an wonderful dad to our children and I love being a family with you!

Phony photos

I love my big camera but carrying it out and about with 4 kids in tow to capture daily life isn't practical for me.  I've started relying on my cell phone for daily life pics and dragging the big camera along for special events.  I feel a little like this is cheating...that these photos are phony (pun intended) and mere imposters of the better photos I could have captured on my camera.  But for now, for the life stage we are in, these will have to do...

So here is a recap of the past week or so in "phony" photos:

1. passionfruit flower in our neighborhood   2. Jack after just earning his Tiger badge   3. Logan in the trees   4.  the girls and I

1. Jack imitating a sloth   2. our elementary school tile fundraiser   3. Logan's gymnastics routine   4. one of the last school lunches of the year   5. Bri napping in the car   6. potato vine and bougainvillea flowers in our yard   7. Scott and the scooter   8. Ethiopian flag craft   9. Jack and a "start of summer" ice cream

1. Silly Logan   2. Jack and Des scootering   3. my girls amongst the flowers   4. Marley contemplating a dip in the kiddie pool

How I Wish...

Big things happen in mid-June for our family.  In mid-June 2002, Scott proposed to me.  Exactly two years later, Jack was conceived.  Exactly two years after that, Logan was born.  Two years after that we finally completed our adoption dossier for China.  And two years after that, on June 10, 2010, Des and Bri legally became members of our family. 

Here it is...mid-June two years later...I can't imagine what huge life-altering event might happen this month.  Hmmm, I think I'll buy a lottery ticket...

I'm not a very spiritual person, but the fact that my brother's birth date (in mid-June) coincides with all these amazing family events has not escaped me.  He died too young, many years ago.  I grieve for him all the time and for the relationships he and my children would have had.  Daily, Jack asks me 5 million questions about cars (what is X's top speed, is A faster than B, etc.) and I think to myself "this would have been Uncle Matt's territory!"  How I wish Jack could just call him up and ask him inane car questions...  How I wish Logan could go camping with him...  How I wish Bri could teach him Ethiopian dance moves...  How I wish Des could play hide and seek with him...

Matt, if you are reading this somehow, know that you are loved and missed.  Also, know that I'm buying a lottery ticket for your birthday and I would love a huge present!  ;)

A Slice of Life

Here is a little slice of life in Southern California:  scooters and bikes and my four beautiful babies!

Reading Aloud...

Right after Jack was born, someone gave me The Read-Aloud Handbook.
It is an amazing resource for parents who love to read and want to do so with their children.  This year I've started reading chapter books to the boys.  Logan loves to hear them as he goes to sleep at night.  I'm thinking that reading at meal-time or on a long car trip would also be great because they'd be more attentive than at bedtime.

Here are the books we've read this year:

• My Father's Dragon
• James and the Giant Peach
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
• Socks
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
• Born to be a Dragon (still reading)

And Jack is reading Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid to me!  It's very slow going but I love hearing his voice finally read me a story.

Back to camping!

Scott and I used to camp but have only done luxury camping since kids came into the picture.  But we thought it was high time to give it a try as a family of 6.  So, in May we camped twice, each for two nights.  It was a lot of work but so worth it.

The first trip was to a beautiful spot near a beach with Jack's cub scouts pack.  We had to rush to leave after school on a Friday to set up camp before dark.  On Saturday, I managed to take a nap (score!) with the the girls and we all spent time at the beach.  Because we were camping with a huge group (100 people) of which our kids were the youngest and meals were already planned, it didn't feel like a regular camping trip.  We never got out the stove and cooked.  And none of the kids except Jack got s'mores because they fell asleep too early.  I didn't even manage to get a photo all weekend.

So I was really excited that we had planned to go camping again two weekends later.  This time we went with 3 other families from our preschool.  We all planned our meals together and cooked together and ate together.  It was some amazing food.  Our kids had a blast riding scooters, collecting bits of nature, visiting the tidepools at the beach and just being kids outside.  On this trip I made up for the fact that I didn't take photos at the previous trip.  And here are just a few:

This trip was so much fun that immediately after getting home I contacted the whole preschool about a big camping trip in the fall.  Because things book up so quickly here, I've already reserved sites and gotten confirmation from 16 other families for Veteran's Day weekend!