Goodbye June!

It's the last day of June already. That is simply amazing. We started off this last day of June with a trip to the doctor for Sam's 5 year well-check. So, now that I have his current height and weight percentiles, it's time for a stats post.


I asked Sam to answer the following questions:
Favorite food- Taquitos
Favorite color- Green
Favorite friends- Tyler and Henry
What do you want to be when you grow up?- Race car driver
What is your favorite thing to do?- Play games
What are you good at?- Riding my bike and math
What is your favorite toy?- Cars

Check-up Stats:
Weight: 40.2 lbs (47%)
Height: 42.5" (42%)
BMI: 15.6 (57%)

So, it looks like Sam's future as an all-star athlete are dwindling. He has gone from the 76th percentile in height at 3 years old to 67th percentile at 4, and now down to the 42nd. Perhaps he can be a jockey. Or a pianist, since he answered that playing the piano is one of the things he's good at. He doesn't know how to play the piano. And he's apparently tone deaf if he thinks he's good:-).
This year Sam has really progressed in many areas. Scholastically he is excelling. He loves to learn and likes to do workbooks for fun. He is obsessed with numbers, always counting and writing numbers. He is getting better and better at reading, too. As we drive around town, he will read the names of businesses or words on a sign, and it's quite impressive. He is sharp as a tack and picks things up very quickly. I hope that he will continue to do well with school. And that he'll continue to take pleasure in learning.
Recently Sam has really taken an interest in sports. Several months ago, Sam found a stack of Paul's old football cards. Ever since, he has played with them every day. He's even added to his collection, using money from his birthday to buy new baseball and hockey cards. He's becoming familiar with the teams and deciding which teams he prefers. For the past few weeks, he has really enjoyed watching baseball in the evenings with Paul. One morning he even watched SportsCenter instead of cartoons! Oh dear!
As I've admitted before, Sam is all mine, right down to his low patience and how easily he becomes embarrassed. Bless his heart; I hope that one day he'll outgrow these unpleasant traits that I've passed on to him. Sam is a very thoughtful and loving boy. He has completely changed my life and I can't imagine it without him. I am so proud of him and can't wait to see what he becomes.

Mmmmm

I've tried a couple new recipes lately that will definitely be making a repeat appearance. Last week I tried these stuffed peppers:
Even though they are meatless, they sure are filling!

Southwest Stuffed Peppers
Ourbestbites.com

4 very large or 6 medium sweet peppers (red, yellow, or orange)
1 Tbs salt
1/2 C white rice (or brown if you want to take the time to cook it), quinoa also works
2 Tbs olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 – 1 jalapeno, minced (or you could sub a small 3oz can of mild green chilies)
1 14oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn kernels
2 green onions, sliced
1/2-1 tsp chipotle chili powder (you can start with 1/2 and add more to taste)
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 black pepper, plus more to taste
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
1 1/4 C jack or pepperjack cheese, divided
3-4 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
tortilla chips, just a handful and more for serving if desired.

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare peppers by washing, slicing tops off, and removing insides. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon salt. Boil whole peppers for about 3-4 minutes, until they begin to soften. Remove from water with tongs and place on paper towels to drain.

Add rice to boiling water and cook until tender, about 13 minutes. Drain thoroughly.

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, and jalapeno (or chilies) and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add corn, beans, green onions, chipotle chili powder, kosher salt, and pepper. Stir until corn and beans are heated through, about 5 minutes. Place peppers in a baking dish. Remove skillet from heat and add rice, tomatoes, 1 cup cheese, and cilantro. Stir to combine well and give it a taste. Add additional salt, pepper, and chipotle powder to your liking. Then evenly divide mixture between peppers.


Top peppers with remaining 1/4 cup cheese (or more if you can fit it on there :) and crushed tortilla chips.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Last night I tried a different recipe for chicken skewers. I think I'll skip making the ones I made the other week again, and make these in the future:
They were super tasty. I doubled the recipe for the marinade and soaked some onions, peppers, squash, and mushrooms in it too. I let it all marinate for about 4 or so hours. Delicious.

Chili-Lime Chicken Kabobs
allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 lime, juiced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
cayenne pepper to taste
salt and freshly ground black pepper to
taste
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken
breast halves - cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
skewers

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, and lime juice. Season with chili powder, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper. Place the chicken in a shallow baking dish with the sauce, and stir to coat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat the grill for medium-high heat. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade.
3. Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill skewers for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken juices run clear

And then I made these little gems:
Not that these are new, but I did try a different flavor this time. Lemon.

A Modern Day Polygamist

Yesterday Sam asked me "how will I find someone to marry?" He looked rather concerned. So I told him "as you get older, you'll get to be friends with some girls and you'll find one that you really like. Then you'll decide to get married." He thought about this for a moment and then asked "what if I find more than one?"

Fireman Sam

Today the boys and I went with Nathanael's playgroup to the fire station. The firemen were kind enough to chat with us and show the boys (and girls) the trucks. Nathanael, for some strange reason was rather apprehensive from the moment we walked through the front door. He wanted to hold my hand, which is not typical, and didn't want me to leave his side. My favorite part was when I was trying to force Natey to stay seated on the front of the truck for a photo op, he started crying and screaming "dude! dude!"

5 years

My boy turned 5 on Father's Day. How did that happen? I'd like to freeze time right about now. While he's still sweet and innocent. While he still has his adorable baby voice. While he still thinks Paul, Nate and I are the greatest things in the world. But alas, time keeps on ticking, and before I know it, I'll be posting about his 6th birthday, and he'll be starting public school (oh the horror), where he'll be robbed of his angelic innocence. So, I'll enjoy these fleeting, sweet days with my son. Today, we celebrated his birthday with his closest friends. This year we went with a robot theme.
The boys made little robots to put all of their party goodies in.
Said goodies were contained in balloons that they got to pop. Everyone had their own technique for popping, but Noah's was my favorite.
Nathanael chose to smash his.Then it was time for a water balloon/gun war.

Afterwards the boys enjoyed a lunch of dino nuggets, grapes and cheese (gotta keep it picky-eater friendly around here), followed by robot cake!

I think everyone had a great time, and they all got along perfectly (mostly) for the whole 3 hours. I'm so glad Sam has such good friends. I think it's so important. It makes me happy (and comfortable) that these boys all belong to parents who I know well and trust. I'm glad that Sam has a gang of friends who share his standards and I don't have to worry about him learning terrible things from. I hope that they will be friends for years to come.

Sam, Tyler and Noah- May 2008

My baby daddy

Today is Father's Day, the one day this year afforded fathers to be honored and rest from their responsibilities. Oh, who are we kidding? They get time every day to rest from their responsibilities, when they get home from work. Nevertheless, today we will celebrate their contribution to raising the children. So Happy Father's Day, men.
This year for Paul I decided to go with a homemade sort of theme. I do not have original ideas; I steal from others. But I'm still pleased with my copy-cat creations. First, the boys participated in a photo shoot in our yard so that we could make a photo collage. This didn't go as smoothly as the pictures may suggest. I'm embarrassed to say that the whole ordeal may have ended in a few hurt feelings and bad moods.
Then, the boys and I went to World Market where they helped me pick out some fun treats that we took home and packaged in pop top cans, which previously contained pineapple:-).

Sam knows that when we buy a gift for someone, it has to stay a secret until they open it. He's good at it. Paul, however, tried to get Nathanael to spill the beans. Has the man no shame? He asked Nate what was in the present and Nate told him "a big picture of Natey." Later in the evening Nathanael revised his statement. "A mailbox. There's a bird in there. It's a duck. Says 'quack, quack'."
Happy Father's Day Dad. And Happy Father's Day Paul. I love you both.

Who doesn't love freebies and parties?

Have you heard about House Party? If not, you should definitely check it out. I was recently chosen to host a party for Expo washable dry erase markers. So yesterday some fine friends came over for snacks and play time, and left with learning boards and markers.
I love having friends in my home, and receiving free products is a great excuse to have people over. However, I think I bit off a little more than I could chew with the number of people I invited. Don't get me wrong; I was definitely happy to have everyone there. I'm glad each and every one was able to come. However, will I be inviting 30 people over to my house again any time soon? I'm thinking not. A small taste of the destruction:
Look, I'm not afraid to admit my flaws. I'm uptight. No doubt about it. So, when after the party my kitchen floor looked 100% worse than Nate's shirt in the picture below, I had a bit of a headache. And I took a nap.
But ya know what? The crumbs vacuumed up, and the toys will eventually find their proper homes, and I love having so many wonderful people in my life. So, I take it back; I'll probably do it again. And then I'll write another blog about how chaotic it was.

It's not a party until someone takes his clothes off.

On Sunday evening my siblings and I hosted a party in commemoration of our mother's 60th birthday. And by party I mean that we all made some food and then got together to eat it. Nathanael spent some time practicing his walking skills. You might have outgrown a walker when you can stand up and carry it.
Then he gave Max instructions on how to learn the alphabet.
Meanwhile, Sam was having a great time tossing the football with Uncle Paul, until the bad uncle riffled the ball into the poor kid's gut.
Mimi got a water feature for her deck as a gift from Robin and Chris. The boys took turns drinking from it.
And before long, clothing had become optional and a storm was brewing. Sam and Nathanael tried to hide from the lightening.
And apparently a brewing storm makes a perfect backdrop for family photos. I believe these may be the first pictures ever taken of us sisters. And Robin didn't want to take them.


Happy birthday, Mom, and may you have "many, many, many" more years.
"Hey, what happened to my diaper?"

Mr. Smarty Pants On His Head

I've started to have some concerns about whether or not Sam should be in kindergarten next year.

Maybe we should send Nate to kindergarten instead.

Now if only I could get these children to eat what I fix for dinner, we'd be in business.
The perfect summer meal:


Recipe courtesy of Our Best Bites
Grilled Chicken and Veggie Skewers

1 lb. chicken breasts, cut into small, bite-sized pieces
1 each yellow and green zucchini squash, cut in half (if large) and sliced
8 oz. small whole mushrooms, stems removed
1 red, yellow, or orange bell pepper (or combo of 2 or more), chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 small red onion, carefully cut into bite-sized chunks (try to keep as much of the pieces in tact as possible, but don’t stress it if they start to fall apart)
Sweet cherry tomatoes
1 recipe of Zesty Italian Dressing (below) or 1 bottle of Berenstein’s Italian Dressing

Prepare Zesty Italian Dressing:

1/4 c. white vinegar
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (this really doesn’t add much heat; it’s better with it!)
1/4 tsp. black pepper
4 cloves garlic
1 c. canola oil
1/3 c. Parmesan cheese (either fresh or from a can)
3/4 tsp. Italian seasoning (add more if needed)

In a blender, combine vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, mustard, salt, seasoning salt, black pepper, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Blend. While blender is running, slowly add oil in a steady stream. Turn off blender and add Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese. Pulse blender 2-3 times to combine herbs and cheese. Remove 1/2 c. of dressing for basting during grilling and set aside.

Place cut-up chicken in a shallow dish and pour a little less than half of the remaining dressing over the chicken. Place in refrigerator for 2-3 hours or until ready to use.

Place chopped veggies in a dish (a 9×13 pan works great) and pour remaining dressing (except for reserved 1/2 c.) over the veggies. Toss gently to combine. Set aside.

If using bamboo skewers, soak in water for about 30 minutes.

When chicken is done marinating, skewer veggies and chicken (you’ll have far more veggies than chicken, so keep that in mind when assembling your skewers; I use about 3 pieces of chicken per skewer, but as many vegetables as I can get on there). Preheat grill and then cook skewers for about 10-12 minutes over medium heat until chicken is cooked through and veggies are tender-crisp, turning at least once.