Aw, shucks.

Ok, so what is it called when you remove all the peas from a pod? Shucking, right? No, that's corn. Food for thought, that one.

Anywho, we got a large bag of fresh peas in pods (not sugar snap peas where you can eat the pods, but actual peas, as in the kind you can buy frozen in the bag.  This was a new addition to our produce bin, along with some bok choy, so I decided to make a huge pot of soup.  This will work great for meals for the week!

After the littlest people were down for a nap, I had Logan get to de-podding the peas.  How very Montessori if us! He, of course, loved it.  When I was finished getting everything else in the pot I went over to join Logan and partake in some team work, as he called it.  We chatted a bit, and then got into a nice groove and out of nowhere he says "Mommy this is my favorite part of today".  Me too.

Since the peas shoot out of the pods occasionally like cannon balls, you can only imagine the rogue peas strewn throughout my kitchen. Pea-retrieval turned out to be an excellent job for a 4-year-old! The best part was Logan finding a pea and saying "get back here you little fella!". Freaking love that kid.

Meet the Coolest Kid Ever. His shirt says so, and so does his mommy.

New friend

When I was a kid I would have LOVED a walk of chalkboard.  I am picturing future play of "school", countless art masterpieces, and buying stock in chalk.  I am excited.

As were the kids when they saw the bottom half of our breakfast bar all chalked up.

It didn't take long before the entire wall was colorful, full of fun, life, letters making words, and pictures of imagination coming to life. 

Like this little friend!

Logan: Mommy did you see my sea monster? 

Me: Logan, that is a really friendly looking sea monster! I love his smile!

Logan: Do you know where sea monsters live? 

Me: Um, in the sea? 

Logan: No, mommy.  Actually they live in dark sea monster forest-es. 

As for the deets on the wall, I didn't want to splurge on actual chalkboard paint, so I used black paint that I already had (about a half a cup) and mixed with one tablespoon of powdered non-sanded grout.  VOILA - chalkboard paint.   This fairly large-ish area barely required any paint, and didn't need any prep in terms of sanding, priming, etc.  Total bonus.  So I was left with just under a half cup of paint, and ended up walking around my house chalk-board-painting all sorts of stuff. 

So, go now! Chalk it up! 

Rhubarb-banana-oat muffins

I have some friends that live on the west coast and have the luxury of getting Community Supported Agriculture boxes all year.  In Iowa... that's just not going to happen.  So I was stoked when we got our first ever CSA box from a local farm this week! Better yet, they DELIVER.  Not only am I excited to have healthy, local produce delivered to my door for a little Wednesday pick-me-up, but now I get the little challenge of figuring out how to put every last bit of this goodness to use. 

How yummy does this look?! 

So I put a post on Le Book of Faces (fancy talk for Facebook) to figure out what the heck I can do with Rhubarb. I mean, I know pie, but I didn't want to make a pie. I wanted to make something a little more healthy and a little less indulgent.  From what I hear, Rhubarb has been sparse this season, so I joked that having 3 cups of Rhubarb in my fridge was like having a bag of baby unicorns right there in the crisper drawer. 

I did a quick google search for "Rhubarb muffins" and found a few recipes... but nothing I fell in love with.  I generally like to stay away from white bleached flour, and white sugar if possible, so I sort of just sifted through a few recipes to figure out the measurements of the dry vs. wet, and decided to come up with my own recipe.  Oh, and I had some bananas on the counter that were screaming to be baked into something, so I knew I had to come up with something fairly versatile. 

Rhubarb-Banana-Oat Muffins

(And by default, these are vegan)

• 3-3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 2-1/4 cups packed brown sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1-1/2 teaspoons Baking soda
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 overripe bananas well smashed
• 2 tablespoons ground flax mixed with 6 tablespoons hot water (or 2 eggs instead)
• 1-1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk (or buttermilk, coconut milk, etc)
• 1 cup vegetable oil (or any kind of oil)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups finely chopped rhubarb

Pre-heat oven to 375. In a large bowl combine the first 6 ingredients (I use a large whisk). In a sepearate bowl, combine the wet ingredients and fold into the dry mixture until everything is well moistened (don't over mix or you will be eating playdoh). Add the rhubarb by gently folding in. I used a small ice cream scoop to scoop batter into lined tins.  Bake for 16 minutes or until tested clean. 

This recipe yields 48 muffins.

And they are delicious.  The rhubarb gives the muffin a tangy kick, 

while the banana gives some sweetness and keeps the muffin super moist. 

And I wasn't the only person that loved them! I ate 2. Ok, 3. Ok I ate 4! In my defense, they were kind of small, plus it's almost Mother's Day, 

and also baby unicorns?! 

But the little people loved them too. In fact, the twins ate two each, and the bigger child o'mine ate his and said "Oh mommy, you really got this one right. Nice work". 

Ha. 

Top Three

Once again, I have kinda been a bad blogger.  This just means I have been busy with other stuff.  Undoubtedly, topics are most definitely swirling through my head quite often, and while I know what I want to write about, I rarely have the time. When I do have the time, I sit at my Mac, fingers at the keys, and nothing comes out.

Writer's block happens.

But then there are nights like tonight when the twins were cute and fun, and Logan read half a book to me. Like really READ. A. BOOK. (Note to self: video Logan reading me a book), and I made it to the gym, the house is clean, emails have been emailed, and my husband put away 7897897 pounds of clean laundry that have been sitting at the top of the stairs taunting us me.


I noticed a couple of months back that dinnertime was lacking a bit of conversation. It's easy to get caught up int...

***

And that's where I left off typing this draft, oh... about 3 weeks ago.  Is that not ridiculous? I have been insanely busy and overwhelmed, and not in a oh-I-got-so-much-accomplished-I-was-so-busy kind of way.  More of a need-4-extra-hours-in-a-day kind of way. But today I stopped to sit and type, not because I have something brilliant or witty to say at this moment, because frankly I am tired, and worn down, and completely overwhelmed that I could potentially cry at any given moment.  I sat down to write because as I was putting my vacuum away, I spotted Parker and Cooper sitting quietly next to each other playing. Cooper had a book, and Parker had a truck.  The didn't spot me watching them, so I tucked around the corner a bit and watched as Parker stood up and took the two toddles over to Cooper, bent down and gave him a giant hug.  This is likely the kind of hug that only brother's can give. Maybe even the type of hug only twins give.  Cooper's face lit up being in his little brother's embrace, and as a response to the hug, Cooper lifted up Parker's shirt and kissed his belly button.  (Cue tears from Mommy).  It was a split second interaction, one that I easily could have missed, and likely one of many that I do miss.  I love that we are raising affectionate boys.  They love hugs and kisses, and give and get them often.

And Logan. He never ceases to amaze me with his wisdom and thirst to drink up the world around him.  He is not only doing well in school, he is thriving; soaking up all that he can.  Today he sewed a pillow. Yesterday he learned about the birth of a baby, and actually told me all about the different parts of the umbilical cord. He also had his first t-ball game, and had his first homerun.  I am giddy with excitement to have my boy home with me all summer.  I want to lazy-snuggle in bed in the morning, no rush, no repetitive requests to brush teeth. Just breathe.

I am extended a little thin. That I do know. Most of that which is bogging me down right now is likely my own fault. Let's face it, I am about as type-A as one gets (controlling much?). But at the same time, if I had advice for any new mom it would be to soak it up. Even if your day sucks. Even if you yelled today, or cried, or both.

Play Ball!

Monday evening brought that spring-like weather that makes me lust for summer bonfires, ice cream cones, and flip flops.  Not only was the weather fantastic, the sunset was spectacular, and I took this opportunity to remind myself to take photos of my own kids.  I spend so much time shooting and editing photos or OTHER peoples kids, that this often gets overlooked.  I am ashamed, really, as I vow to never look back at this time in our lives and wish I had more to remember it by.

Monday night was a big night for Logan - he started T-ball! This is kinda a huge step in the life of a a little guy, right?  I know it is about baseball, yadda yadda, but I just couldn't stop focusing on my little man in these pants!

 


He actually loved it. He loved catching, pitching, batting and all of the other baseball terms that are used whilst playing baseball.
{Note to self: learn baseball terminology/rules}

The twins loved this night like a fat kid loves cake. They love the grass, throwing stuff, and I believe Parker snacked on a weed. A weed, not some weed, big difference.

Exhibit A: eating dandelions 

What I know for sure is that Logan had a blast, the twins played so hard the slept through the night {THEY SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT! EVEN COOPER!} and we got ice cream. It was a good night. 

I just really kind of love this photo. 

Parker is checking out his brother's hat... 

And goes IN for the swipe!

Logan is catching!

Got it!

And a good throw!

And Cooper wants out.

Parker was indifferent. 

Until he realized the good fun of throwing stuff!

And retrieval!

And throwing again.

Cooper got in on the throwing/retrieving action.

He means business, this kid. 

Sat for a break. This is probably one of my favorite Cooper photos ever. 

Or maybe this one. 

This is Parker spotting his big brother. I just love it. I also love that the twins are wearing two of my most favorite shirts from when Logan was little. 

Ah, and they're fighting. 

And Parker won!

So Cooper decided he would sit and look cute. Don't you just want to scoop him up and squeeze him?

Batter up!

Ending the night with a treat of ice cream was... well, the ice cream on top of the cone. 

I love this face. 

Macky and cheese

Who doesn't love a good 'ol bowl of Macaroni and Cheese, or as my oldest son calls it "Macky and cheese"?  It's about as comfort-foodish as comfort food gets, and in this house it gets gobbled up so fast my arm gets sore from scooping it onto the plates.

Today I was in a hurry to get lunch together, and literally only had about 5 minutes before I had to leave to get my son from preschool.  I opened the fridge and grabbed some fresh carrots, shredded cheddar cheese, almond milk, olive oil, and some plain rice pasta left over from dinner last night.  Now I could have easily used whole wheat pasta, gluten free, semolina, whatev's, and same goes with the milk. Whatever pleases your palette! For me, I prefer my wee little Parker to be hive-free, so we opt for the egg-free/cow's milk free stuff!

I started with the sauce. I poured about a tablespoon of olive oil in the bottom of a saucepan and added some shredded cheese and a splash of almond milk and start stirring. It got all melty and I got all happy! I added a bit more of each until it was a creamy melty goddess of gooey and then added the secret ingredient - shredded carrot! I then tossed it all together with the pasta and poured it into a baking dish and popped into a warm oven to buy me some time.

Meanwhile, I informed Logan on the way home from school that we would be having his favorite lunch and he exclaimed "MACKY AND CHEESE! WEEEEEE!". That is a direct quote.

When the kiddos were good and hungry, I switched the warm oven to broil and let this bad boy crisp up and get all bubbly.  I can tell you... it smelled amazing. The carrot gave it a yummy crunch, and some obvious vitamin power.  I served it with apple's and cucumbers, and was immediately instructed that this needs to be added to our lunchtime rotation.

and it came out looking like this:

Okay, not the best photos, I know. Best I can do with the iPhone and 4 hungry kids. But I will tell you that this was probably the creamiest macky and cheese I have had.  It was my first time making it with the almond milk and I must say, I am a huge fan.  Our other household favorite for this yummy classic is the Squash Macaroni and Cheese which I talk all about on the most recent episode of Green Corridor Living!

Boys and 31

A few weeks ago, we headed back to Brian's Dad's house for the day.  Our boys dressed in their Sunday best, and if you couldn't tell, Logan picked out his entire outfit down to the argyle socks.

I took the opportunity to take some photos of my 

happy guys since they had all their clothing, 

they didn't have Cheerios stuck to anything, 

and they nobody was in footie jammies.

Instead we had owl hats and fun, spring-like ties.

And eyes that I could get lost in.

Oh, and eyelashes for days. 

And sweet middle kiddies who give me coy smiles.

And who think I am funny!

And has a comb-over. 

And a Punky!

Who makes me work for a good photo. 

And is cute regardless.

And oh so serious... 

We did some exploring!

This past weekend we celebrated my dear husband turning 31! Logan and I made dark chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting - all from scratch - and they were Ah-Mazing!

Every kid needs to learn the art of licking the beaters. Especially when they are 

covered in whipped butter and sugar. Mmmmmm.... 

Don't you want to just roll around in this bowl? No, just me then?

Last year, I started the tradition of giving Brian food with his age on it. 

Don't ask me why, but for his 30th he got a pizza with "30" in pepperoni. 

This year was 31 in cupcakes! 

This is the face Logan made when I told him "Daddy is 31 years old! That's old!"

The boys got Daddy a new pair of jeans for his birthday, and I went to a specialty store and got my hubby a yummy sampler pack of some fun beers that I knew he would appreciate - including two Hopslam which is normally $20 (minimum) for a 6-pack. I think he liked it!

(PSA - Do not pay any attention to the basket of clean laundry on the counter)

That night we got a rare adult night out with some friends.

 We enjoyed a dinner, drinks, laughing, gas station wine, and a shot that had

 something to do with a rooster. 

Um, it's March?! How did that happen? Also, it is going to be in the 70's next week while my boy is on Spring Break. I see the park in our near future! Happy Spring!