Worth a thousand words

Not much to say, just some cute pictures of the kids. Not the cute picture I wanted (all of us together), but some fun individual shots showing their personalities.

Charlotte: loud

We were driving and Claire started fussing. Charlotte patted Claire's carseat and said, "It's ok, baby. Don't cry, baby." over and over. When this got no response she shouted at her, "Be quiet, baby!"

Carden: without pretense

We're at a restaurant and Tyler orders a burrito without cheese. The server accidentally puts cheese on the order. Tyler repeats the "no cheese" part and the guy quickly fixes it. No problem; we move on. Carden goes back in line and tells him earnestly, "I know how it feels to make a mistake." A few days earlier we're in the parking lot at Target and he sees someone walking on crutches about 25 feet away. He shouts out, "Hey, you need some help?"

Seth: trying really hard to be happy

"Mom, I know what the three wise men brought. Frankincense, gold, and murder."

I'm just here for the food

We've had lots of great Thanksgivings over the years, but this was the first one that was just about the food. Joel and Mandi were in town and we had a great Thanksgiving with them. Joel is a fabulous, creative cook, and we had a great time cooking together. We didn't worry about centerpieces, the antique gold china stayed in its box, the mismatched serving bowls worked just fine; it was all about having some fun in the kitchen. Here's what we came up with:

Brined turkey with roast vegetable gravy

Mixed sweet potatoes and yams, cooked in orange juice and cream

Some of the best rolls I have ever eaten (and I ate about 10, just to be sure)

Butternut squash panade

Mashed potatoes

Autumn salad

Carrot and cumin tart

Corn on the cob (Seth's one request)

Green beans with tomato-mushroom topping

Apple tart tatin

Homemade pecan pie

Pumpkin pie

Peach-ginger fizzy punch

All for four adults and four kids. I think I used up every piece of tupperware I owned! Well worth it, though.

Of spooks and substitutes

Having a baby two weeks before Halloween tends to put a crimp in family activities--or at least require a bit of modification. I worried that the kids would be disappointed that some of our usual festivities (pumpkin patch, elaborate carvings, lots of community activities) were going to be severely curtailed this year. But I hadn't counted on a dedicated dad and the influx of helpful relatives who stepped in to fill my place and take my kids all over town.

Grandma braved the crowds to attend the school parade and took Carden and Seth to a performance of "Stellaluna" done by professional puppeteers. Uncle David and Aunt Julia lent artistic skills to help carve the jack o'lanterns. Aunt Marianne treated the boys to see "Where the Wild Things Are." Grandma took all three kids to join their cousins at the trick-or-treating event at This is the Place Pioneer Park. Tyler toted our giant pumpkin, a potluck dessert, a bowl full of candy, and three costumed children to the church trunk-or-treat evening. Great-granny Wilcox took everyone to dinner before Carden's Halloween piano recital.

The only downside to all this frivolity was the lack of photos. It was a bit more than I could ask to say, "Here's the jackets, snacks, diaper bag, costume accessories, and directions to where you're going. Oh, and take lots of pictures too!" But having so many people to share the fun with was well worth the small trade-off.

A new addition

She's finally here! Eleven days ago, to be precise, but the announcement was, as usual, held up by our inability to name the poor child. But with 90 minutes to spare before the state deadline, we settled on Claire Ellen Crockett. Claire because we all liked it (especially Charlotte, who accepted it as second choice once we said we weren't choosing "Billy"), Ellen because it's the middle name of one of my grandmothers, and Crockett because, at this point, it's expected.

She's a different look from any of our other kids, dark hair and a different face than we expected. She sleeps almost around the clock, except for that precious hour of awake time--at 3:00am. But we're working on that. The kids all love her in short spurts. Charlotte loves to hold her, but after about 30 seconds she starts shouting "Take it! Take it!" The hardest part was trying to protect her from the coughing and sneezing since she was born during the week that all of us had nasty colds.

For those interested in stats:

7 pounds, 9 ounces

20 inches long

2.5 hours of labor (60 minutes of which the epidural didn't work)

Born October 12, 2009

1:51 pm

Jam

We have made a lot of jam this year. Of all the harvest activities, I enjoy jam-making most. The kids love it, it tastes better than store-bought, and it can be done in 30-45 minutes with minimal cleanup. This year we made about 50 jars, which should carry us through the year: four boxes of apricot, raspberry, blackberry, mixed berry, plum, and plum berry now stacked in the basement.


I was making a batch last week while my nephew Isaiah was visiting. He and Seth brought in a bowl of blackberries they had picked and announced they wanted to make jam. I told them I was out of jars, so we wouldn't be able to do it. They went back outside and returned a few minutes later, not dissuaded.


"We're going to make jam by ourselves. Where's the smasher? (a small wooden tool for smashing the berries)"


I got distracted and didn't supply the requested smasher. They go back outside.


"Where's the sugar, Mom? We need sugar now."


"I thought you needed the smasher."


"No, we just used a rock." They proudly show me a bowl of smashed berries, plus a few extra bits of leaf, grass, twigs, etc.


"Oh. OK, here's the sugar." I dump a big scoop into their pot. They go back outside.


"We need some bread. Our jam is done."


Tastier than mud pies, I guess. Anyone else for jam?

Extreme nesting

The kids watched "Lady and the Tramp" last week and "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" this week. In both films the scenes with the expectant mother depict her sitting placidly in a rocking chair knitting baby booties, blankets, or sweaters. She hums.

This makes me wonder where I went wrong. I am in the process of:

Freezing pesto. Seth is a champion basil picker.

Refinishing the kitchen table. The varnish had completely worn off, so every spill soaked into the wood, requiring a good scraping after every meal.

Dehydrating pears. Supposedly easier than canning. Definitely tastier.

Making jam. Apricot, raspberry, blackberry, mixed berry... And the plums are ripe this week.

Canning tomatoes and applesauce. Now I know the real reason we didn't send Seth to kindergarten--he's too helpful to lose.

Planting trees. The 50% off sale was too good to pass up. We added a linden, honey locust, tulip tree, and ash. A friend said perplexedly, "But I thought you already had trees in your yard. Any more and the Forest Service will be annexing your property."

Helping with the enrichment activity, PTA carnival fundraiser, and soaking all Charlotte's old baby clothes in vats of Oxi-Clean. I swear that stuff was clean when I put it away two years ago.

I am not humming.

School days again

Carden has been in class for almost three weeks now, but Seth began today. Both are excited for new teachers, new classrooms, and new adventures.

It does look like we've shipped Carden off to the gulag; the school is under construction this year to add 12 new classrooms, so hopefully next year they won't need these portable rooms in the back parking lot.

Here's his new backpack, loaded down with all the essential school supplies of a 2009 student: tissues, hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, and hand wipes. Oh yes, and a small pencil box. Looks like we're more concerned about the germs he'll bring home than the grades.

Seth is getting one more year at home/preschool, and he's excited about being the "old man" in the classroom. I think he'll do great with a bit more time under his belt. Now, if we could just get a few more pounds under his belt, we'd really be doing well!

And Charlotte, Angus, and I will continue to hold down the fort. I have high hopes for our free time, but I won't say what, for fear someone will actually hold me to all my lofty goals.