Big days

As you know, the little guy, G, is 3 now. Almost 3.5, in fact. Normally, I dont start my kids in preschool till they are 4. Im home with them and thats just fine with us. BUT, the little guy doesnt really have many kids his age around here to socialize with, so we decided to start him a little earlier.

The other day we had his "meet and greet". Just a chance to see his classroom and meet his teachers. A little sneak preview, if you will. And thats just what we did.

He crawled thru the giant caterpillar.


Rode a rocking horse that was not shaped at all like a horse, but rather a train instead.

We hogged the little club house and took pictures.

And he went down the slide.


Hes fast.


But this morning was the BIG day. The first day of preschool. Where I take him and then leave him and then pick him up again. How would he do? Would he have fun? Would he use his manners? Would he share? So many questions.....

But no time for me to worry over all of that because we have things to get done. Brushing hair is on the list.


Getting his sneakers on.

He politely refused help to put on his shoes, but when it came to tying, he then asked K to help him out.


Mandatory "stand still and look at me" picture.


He SO wants to be able to do everything by himself.


NOW hes ready.


And look. Amidst all the hustle and bustle, S made me a to go breakfast.


Looking for his cubby.


Putting his things away.

And I was worried that he wouldnt want me to leave....he got some puzzles and never looked back.

I went and ran some errands and came back anxiously awaiting to hear about his morning.

So, as we left the classroom, we began to talk about all he had done. But, more importantly as hes walking away, he says, mama? Here it comes, I think. Hes gonna tell me how much he loves me and that Im the best mama ever.....Yes, I say. You can ONLY step on the yellow squares till we get to the stairs. Right, I say. Of course.


I can totally do that.

Favorite things

K has been after me for quite some time to make these certain muffins that she just loves. Im pretty sure her exact words were...You always make blueberry. Why cant you make the other ones? (Please?)

So, the other morning I pulled out my trusty recipe box.


I started with some brown sugar. Really? I didnt start with brown sugar at all. I just liked the way it looked when I put it in the bowl.


I made up my muffin batter and filled the cups half full...then added some brown sugar filling.


About now is when J comes running in to the kitchen. Look, mom! Look! I was outside and look what I found for you!

Isnt it beautiful?

I took a break to give him a huge hug and to thank him, of course.

Then it was added to my small collection that began when we moved in here.

Okay, cool surprise, right? So, then I added the other half of the batter to the tops of the muffins and sprinkled the streusel on top.


Fresh from the oven.


Yummy good!


Something so simple, yet she enjoys it so much.

Bringin out the big guns

Ive been harvesting my melons and placing them in my lovely basket. Thats a good idea, right?

Well, after having this happen to 2 of my precious watermelons because my basket was just so darn full(and heavy)...

I decided that it was time to bring in some reinforcements. The R.G.W. Otherwise known as, The Red Garden Wagon.


This will make it so much easier for me to haul in all my good produce. Look at all that yummy stuff in there. Watermelons, red peppers, green beans, tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes.


And it will be even easier yet when I have someone else doing the pulling! Here we go...


PULLLLLLLL....



Okay, yeah, not so much.

lotta loupes

We have been watching these little guys for quite some time now.

Around K's bday they looked very pretty...very cantaloupey.


I was hoping for some ripe ones last week, but sadly it didnt play out that way.

Yesterday, tho, I went out for the daily harvest and just look what I found.


5 pretty little things.

I scrubbed up all 3 pounds and 6 ounces of it and let it rest a minute. Man, the whole kitchen smelled like melon.

And that was even before I cut it open.

I scooped out the seeds.


Cut it up.


And YUM.


You cant have this piece tho. I already promised to share it with someone else.

Yellows

A few days ago, a friend of a friend of a friend, offered up some sweet corn. They had some wind damage in their field and there was more than enough to go around. Now, who am I to turn THAT down?

Luckily, I received it just in time. I mean, I was having my friend danni come to visit. I needed things for her to do, right? And what better way to introduce her to the Midwest.

That didnt work out quite as I had planned. This is as close to the corn as we managed to get during her stay.

Well, okay, maybe we got a little closer.

Sadly tho, thats not the corn that needed to be processed! So, today, G and I went out on the patio to get things done. It was time.

He had other ideas first tho.

That left me to get started. That meant that I had to put my hand in that wet, yucky bag.

And touch those wet, slimy corn husks.

But soon enough, G came over to lend me a hand. Hes a very good helper. As long as you dont like to work in the quiet. Hes the opposite of quiet.

Once he began to help the speed at which things were moving made a drastic change, as you can imagine. But, we got her done.

Im gonna go now tho. I have to cut all that corn off the cob now. While hes sleeping. For some reason this part of the job doesnt seem to have the little guy written all over it.