Now Boys!

Now boys at daycare, I know my daughter is very sweet. And mighty cute, too. BUT, I need you to stop biting her- it makes me very upset to see that incident report when I pick her up. And she tells me owie, owie all night while pointing at the red marks on her arms.  Dont forget that her verbal skills are far beyond yours, and she can rat you out because she can say all of your names. I know who you are, and so does her daddy- so KNOCK IT OFF!

Ode to CostCo

Oh Costco,

purveyor of everything bulk.
Without you I might sulk.
Army tank sized shopping carts,
Oh No this isn't like you other marts.

Ladies in white coats, your tastes are ample,
for dinner tonight I will have food samples.
A bale of Charmin, a gross of tissue,
glad I've got the truck so space isn't an issue.
Blueberries- of course I need at least 5 pounds,
mixed with my 36 pack of yogurt, love how that sounds!
Finish with a barrel of almonds and fruit snacks,
I guess I probably need 100 packs?
Food in bulk and bulk galore,
You'll always be my favorite store.

Peach crisp

Peach (Rhubarb) Crisp Recipe

On Saturday night we went to a friends house for dinner and I made a peach crisp to bring along, it is a really good recipe, so I thought I would share, it is really easy to make dairy and egg free. The recipe is actually for a Rhubarb crisp, but I went to the farmers market on saturday morning and the Colorado peaches were excellent so I bought a bunch and changed the recipe a bit. I have made this with straight rhubarb and with rhubarb and strawberries together many times - you kind of have to modify the sugar and such depending on what fruit you use, I cut the sugar way back and added lemon juice because the peaches were so sweet. This recipe is a good ole stand-by from my Great Aunt Jayne.

Topping:

2-3 c. chopped peaches (or rhubarb, strawberries, blueberries, use what is tasty and abundant)
1 c. sugar ( I never use this much- used about 1/4 c with the peaches, more with rubarb- start low and taste as it cooks)
1/3 c. water
2 T cornstarch
1/2 c. pineapple (optional) ~ i've never added this because I never have it around

Crust:

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1 c flour

1 c brown sugar

3/4 c oatmeal (I use quick oats).

1/2 c butter, softened (Fleishman's unsalted margarine is dairy- free)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease/ spray a 9x13 pan. Mix together the first five ingredients (topping) in a saucepan and cook until thick and bubbly. Taste as you go and add more sugar or some cinnamon to make it tasty.  While this is simmering, mix together the last 5 ingredients and press most of it into the pan. Save a bit for topping. (if you forget to save the topping like I always do- I just sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon to make it look pretty). Once the topping is thick and tasty, poor it over the crust and sprinkle with the remaining crumbles you saved behind.  Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown- this totally depends on your fruit and pan- but about 15- 30 minutes will usually do the trick. I am so not a recipe girl, I dont measure any of this or time it out and it turns out yummy, this is a recipe you cannot really mess up.

Bday Parties

Sunday we went to a birthday party for a friend's 2 yo boy.  Lauren LOVED his ball house toy that they have in their rec room- we had to beg her to come back upstairs and join the party. Believe it or not- this is always in their house- not just a special set up for the party. She is so funny, she sings "Happy to you...." for happy birthday and was singing it the whole way home and even included the little boys's name- Garrett. So sweet!

Fantasy Draft - CANCELLED

So, Jeff and I were all geared up for our fantasy football league draft today at 1:30. We got Lauren down to nap just in time and each logged on to a computer, only to find out it is CANCELLED! What! It is rescheduled to occur during my haircut on Wednesday, while Jeff will be alone with Lauren trying to get her ready for bed. Sounds like we are going to auto-draft this year- bummer!!

Let go Rockies!

We are coming off a really busy weekend, I will poist some of what we were up to. This picture is from Friday night- we went to the Rockies game and it was a blast. This was taken at the Wynkoop where we stopped for dinner and a beer on our way to the game. At the game Lauren made a buddy with a boy named Ayden who was sitting in front of her. Ayden was 4 1/2 and was completely enamored with Lauren, he cried when we left at the start of the 7th. I thought he was crying because his dad made him give Lauren's toy back that he was playing with (little mermaid camera- would have happily left it for Ayden, his dad said no)- but he said it was because he didn't want Lauren to leave- so sweet!

Dentist

Ok, the day is here. This morning Lauren is going to the dentist for the first time, I am super nervous for her. I hope she doesn't get too scared or mad~ they are going to clean her little teeth and apply floride.  Jeff is going to sneak out of work to make the appointment, Lauren and I will need the moral support and he needs to hear from the dentist some tips on teeth brushing (he thinks it is fine to skip it or let her do it herself, bet the dentist will disagree).

Update: The dentist appointment went well, she was a good cooperative little girl and only cried a little bit. Her teeth are in great shape and they told us we are doing a good job cleaning them! Whew! Only thing, we are supposed to try to floss her teeth- HAHAHAHA, not sure how that is going to go.

Zoo Trip

This weekend we are staying in Denver and are planning on taking a family trip to the zoo. I found out that this weekend is the appreciation day at the zoo for my hospital, and they gave us free tickets to go to the zoo and they have lunch and dinnered catered for employees and their families. Yipee- guess that seals the deal- we are going on Sunday! We will go in the morning and then have a birthday party in the afternoon- busy day. :)

Chomp!

Yesterday Lauren got bit at school – it was a bad one. Her class is full of biters, Lauren is the only one that doesn’t bite (that is what her teachers tell us). She has been bit before, but never left much of a mark. This time a little boy got her on her sholder- in that little soft skin above the back of her arm-pit, YOUCH!! She was wearing a tank top and had that delicate area exposed. They had to ice it, and when we picked her up it was still swollen and very red with broken skin. Poor baby, she must have cried and had a bad time with it because she kept telling us about it last night. Why do kids do that??


On a better note~ this morning when I was helping her get dressed she looked me in the eye, put her and on my cheek and said “Mommy, I love you” and smiled. I cried (happy tears of course) and she said it again and hugged me and held me tight. What a loving little girl! She has been saying “I Love you” for a couple weeks, but this was in just such a loving context I was overwhelmed. I wish I could bottle that moment forever….