Week in Photos: February 23- March 2

I'm a little late in posting this past week; things were incredibly hectic as Aaron was out of town on business for the majority of the week.

One more birthday pic...

Getting ready for softball in February?  Meanwhile, Ezra is ready for hockey OR baseball... or a rain storm.

The boys discovered hair product.  Watch out world.

Speaking of hair, mama got a new 'do!  After three years and a bad encounter with a box (or two or three) of hair bleach, it was a long time coming. 

Little Miss managed to scratch her own eyeball- the same day I cut her fingernails, no less.  The quiet hum of the baby monitor was pierced with sudden agonizing wails.  I raced up the steps to find blood-filled tears welling up over her screwed-shut eyeball.  It was SO sad. 

Aside from the eyeball, it was kind of a banner week for the little gal.  She discovered her toes- even pulling off socks to reach them- and rolled over from front to back and back to front.  All for the first time.

On the food front, I began making kefir.  Despite the vast resources available on the internet, I am filled with questions.  No, I don't "trust my nose" to determine when the kefir is ready.  I have never smelled homemade kefir, and it is assuredly not the same thing as the store-bought variety I've had before.

Grace wanted me to take a picture of her plate after finishing some blueberry pancakes... I wish I could link you to the recipe but I've tried so many gluten-free, grain-free, carb-free, etc. recipes lately I have no idea which one it was.  Cool plate though.

And last, but not least, the kids have been really into drawing lately.  Yes!  I just love Isaac's style.  And Ezra has advanced to drawing the stereotypical first people.  It is a self-portrait, although I'm sure you could already see the resemblance without me telling you.

And that, my friends, was just a fractional part of what our week entailed.  You know the old saying, "The days are long but the years are short."  Amen to that!

Try Something Tuesday- Week 1

In an effort to embrace life more fully, I am opening myself up to new things, and this week it was... drum roll...   BEETS!

Background:  I honestly don't remember if I've ever even tried them before, maybe only the canned variety.  Something about them reminds me of cheap Italian restaurants with parquet bowls full of white iceberg lettuce, carrot shards, and a pale quarter of mealy tomato. Since I am changing the way I think about eating, though, I've got to expand my palate. 

The beets that we got from our CSA this summer went un-eaten, but I did take the time to peel and cut them (not knowing what else to do!).  They are the most beautiful color; I just can't get over it.  And you'd never know from looking at them on the outside! 

I did a quick internet search to see if there was a highly rated beet salad that included blue cheese, and here's what I chose, although I roasted the beets using these instructions.

Before I tried it, I joked with Aaron that at least we would feast with our eyes if it not our bellies!

The verdict:  I liked them!  At this point I'm not craving them or anything, and I did leave one on my plate, but I was mildly shocked that I not only tolerated them but actually enjoyed them.  I think the next time I make them I'd like to add some vinegar or something a little sharper.  They have a much milder flavor than I was expecting.

Week in Photos: February 16-22

As I was typing the title for this post, I noticed that the last two "week in photos" posts were labelled "January."  Um, hello, Sarah, this is February!  Oops.  Not like anyone is scouring my blog and wondering why the dates don't match with the days of the week.  I fixed it anyways.

A massive shift is underway in our household.  Amidst the chaos, Isaac finds some time to perform some procedures on his little sister, or experiments, or something.  I'm not really sure.

Like mother, like daughter.  I always liked organizing the crayons as much, if not more, than using them!

Sweet, sweet baby toes.  Why do they cause the irresistable urge to bite them?  I could rub baby toes on my face all day.  I know, weird.  But then again, maybe more people do it than I think, right?

I try to eat vegetables and fruit in season, but a birthday celebration calls for a little splurge on tomatoes and basil! 

Oh, the delightful period of life where you can pick out what you want to wear without a care to what others think- or what the weather is- or if it fits- or if the buttons match up, etc. etc.  Oh, to be three again.

Although it has been frigid this week, at least we had some sun.  We are like cats, drawn to the sunny spots in our warm cozy home.

I got to design a birthday party invite for a friend this week, for her daughter that I've never met.  Sad face.  I miss my west coast friends!  (Names have been blurred to protect against baby partycrashers.)

Turn your back for a second, and a pterodactyl might land on your baby's seat.

Me and my new red hat, hangin' with Moze.  That's Mozart for you un-classical kind of folk.  Hey, I actually look kind of like him!  Maybe that's where my musical genius comes from.  Just kidding!

And a happy birthday today to my two birthday buddy boys!

Week in Photos: February 9-15

SATURDAY: I don't have an actual picture I took on Saturday. I don't even remember what we DID on Saturday. I think we cleaned the kitchen. YEP. It was an all-day affair.

SUNDAY: After braving the "wintry mix" to get to church and Sunday school, we re-assembled a new-to-us Ikea bunk bed so that the three eldest children can share a bedroom.

Contrary to popular opinion, three children can share one smallish bedroom and LOVE IT. A sleep over every night? What could be better?!

MONDAY: Sharing a bedroom means lots of these (top secret meetings):

TUESDAY: Nothin' cuter than a baby wearing nothing but a diaper. Except a baby wearing nothing maybe.

Obligatory blog-shot of a green smoothie. I have one every day.

WEDNESDAY: National Pancake Day! At least that's what I was told, and who am I to argue. We have pancakes twice a week- they are they only way I can get sweet potato or butternut squash into my children! These are soaked oat pancakes.

THURSDAY: Grace made a spa for Valentines Day, called the 15 min. Spa. Sample of services offered: lemon slices on your eyeballs and saw massages. Grace said, and I quote: "We have 100% good reviews from our customers."

FRIDAY: Awesome taco salad that I made but forgot to take a picture of, so did when I remembered.

Valentines 2013!

Happy Valentine's Day! 

In typical last-minute Sarah fashion, here are four free printable Valentine options for you.

Click here to download your valentines.  You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.  I used images from the graphics fairy, one of my favorite places to find vintage images.

We made valentines for each other yesterday using good 'ole potato stamps.  Cut a potato in two, carve out the shape you want (hearts for us), squish around in paint, stamp onto paper!  Good times.

And my treat for all my sweeties:  Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

It's healthy too.

Have a super day with the ones you love!