Daybook for September 2011

Welcome, September.

We'll be clinging to our last weekend of summer over the next few days.

Here are a few Daybook reflections as we prepare for the coming season.

(As always, thanks to The Simple Woman's Daybook for hosting the inspiration.)

Outside my window...there is a playground.  It is small, nothing fancy, but I have seen it turned into Tangled's tower, a movie theater, a scene from Toystory, a kitten house, a dragon lair and watched many other imaginative adventures take place.  Thanks to E-Bear and G-Bear for sharing their adventures with me.  

I am thinking...about how complicated life feels sometimes, when really the punchline is so simple: faith, hope and love, love, love.  At the end of the day, did I accomplish this?   Here is the real business of life.

I am thankful...that my residency application is finished and ready to be submitted.  Whew.  I just have to push a button and away it goes.  I realize as I submit it how many people I have to thank for getting me to this point in my medical journey.  My family, many friends, as well as several mentors and teachers who have supported me through a very unconventional path.  No matter where the path leads from here on out, I am blessed and have a lot to pay forward.

From the learning rooms...We once again find ourselves in the bathroom, as E-Bear gives the potty the old preschool try.  He doesn't need to be potty trained for his little school, but we are trying to strike while his interest is piqued.  We employ lots of Sesame Street podcasts, books and promises of chocolate.  I think I am terrible at potty training and my lack of self confidence certainly doesn't help the situation.  Given this, I am proud of E-Bear's valiant attempts and preliminary successes.  We face mountains at all stages of our life, don't we?

In the kitchen...I am trying to perfect my banana pudding recipe.  Believe me, when your husband is the grandson of Grandmother Johnson, no ordinary recipe will do.  I am getting closer.  If I am lucky, this becomes my signature dish.    

I am creating...personal statements, chocolate chip cookies, soda bread, meal plans, school strategies, application schedules, weekend itineraries -- whew!  It has been a big week.  

I am going...We are headed to visit the cousins this weekend, a huge blessing of being just an hour away.  We'll hit up a football game and a few playground playdates as well as plenty of crazed meals with six kids ages 4 months - 5 years.  You might not believe me, but the chaos couldn't be more relaxing or enjoyable.  I can't wait for the weekend.  

I am wondering...I am realizing that wonder is a funny thing.  My mind is exhausted from wondering these days: wondering about our future, residency, the kids' school year, our new life post-move, how to make the most of these youthful days.  On the other hand, I see the way that childlike wonder infuses my kids's lives with energy and happiness.  I think I am going to trade in my exhausting, adult wondering for the childlike kind.  Now if only I could find my receipt....

I am reading...The Way by St. Jose Maria Escriva.  No matter how tired I am, I can get through a page or two each night before bed.  The inspiration is still with me the next morning.

I am hoping...That the kids enjoy their new school year as much as they enjoyed finding their classrooms today.  We met both E-Bear's and G-Bear's new teachers, toured the classrooms and made a few friends at the playground. They both wore their backpacks, stuffed full with toys from our playroom.  "Just in case, Mom," they said.  We're excited for school around here!

I am looking forward to...a trip to Boston with T and the kids later this month.  We'll rendezvous with MoMo and Papa, Uncle T, Aunt K and our cousins.

I am hearing...Baby Bear rustle around in his bassinet.  Poor little kiddo is teething.  It's hard to sleep well when teeth are tearing up your gums.  What a trooper.  I'm here for you, dude.

Around the house...We have picture frames of all shapes and sizes hung on our walls without pictures in them.  How ironic, right?  They remind me of the boxes I still have yet to unpack, like the one containing my thank you notes.  My apologies if you have sent us a gift this summer.  Your generosity may go unacknowledged for yet another month.

I am pondering...how did it get so late?  I promised myself I would be in bed by 10pm.

One of my favorite things...is the Minnesota State Fair.  It ends this weekend.  We missed it.  If you go, eat a few Sweet Marthas for me and spend a few extra minutes at the Birth Barn.  I'll raise my milk glass to toast our past five years of fabulous family memories at the Fair.  

A few plans for the rest of the week:  We meet our new pediatrician tomorrow for Baby Bear's 4 month check up!  We get to enjoy four days together thanks to Todd's fellowship schedule!  We'll see the cousins this weekend!  School starts next week!  We have a lot of fun ahead of us.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

I love the reactions to the train - different as night and day.

Pass through the mountains

My applications for residency are due tomorrow.  The dance of being a wife, mother and medical student is behind me.  Before me, the leviathan of residency looms.  There are moments when I struggle to enjoy present joys while the future is unknown, moments when I am both certain and uncertain of the path to take as the roads before me diverge.

"Let obstacles only make you bigger.  The grace of our Lord will not be lacking: 'inter medium montium pertransibunt aquae!' -- 'through the very midst of the mountains the waters shall pass.'  You will pass through mountains!  What does it matter that you have to curtail your activity for the moment, if later, like a spring which has been compressed, you'll advance much farther than you  ever dreamed?" ~St. Jose Maria Escriva The Way, 12

The best place to rest is, as always, the Truth:

"I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; 

I will turn the darkness into light before them 

and make the rough places smooth.  

These are the things I will do; 

I will not forsake them." 

~Isaiah 42:16

Thanks to T for the visual inspiration.

Now that is a promise.

Baby Bear at 4 Months

Hey there, Baby Bear.

You know what your momma loves?

I love your belly laugh and your sweet little giggle,

your happy eyebrows and that great big smile,

and your big, brown eyes. 

 Thanks for working so hard to get my attention.  You make me feel like a movie star.

I love all your snuggles.  Be careful, because you may make your daddy jealous ;)

Just kidding, it just makes him want to nuzzle you more.

You're a man on the move, rolling over on your mat, splashing in the bath, giving your chew toys a nice big chomp.  Your smile delights even the crabbiest of Bears around here, so keep it up.  

We adore you.

Thank you, Lord for 4 months of our Baby Bear.

Grocery Bag

Whole, free-range chicken was on sale this week at our grocery store!  The deal was too good to pass up, so I have a chicken cooking in our crockpot this morning.  Crockpot chicken is a great, energy efficient (and low cost!) way of cooking a whole chicken.  I cook mine 8-10 hours on low, or 5 hours on high, until the internal temperature reaches 180 degrees.  The meat comes out wonderfully moist and practically falls off the bone.  After removing the meat, it's time to make broth!  I put all the left over parts back in the crockpot, cover them with water (10-12 cups), cook on low for 10-12 hours, and voila! homemade organic chicken broth.  I'll use broth and chicken in these recipes this week and stash the rest in the freezer.

Day One

Coconut Curry Shrimp from Everyday with Rachael Ray

with basmati rice and sliced peaches

The chicken is cooking today to be ready for tomorrow.

This recipe will be quick and delicious tonight.  I'll throw some bell peppers in too.

Photo and recipe from RachaelRayMag.com

Day Two

Chicken, red grape and pesto pizza from Cooking Light

with spinach salad

I know what you're thinking, but this pizza is awesome.  

Photo and recipe from MyRecipes.com

Day Three

Bourbon chicken 

with basmati rice and apples

This is a family favorite, way better than takeout.

Use broth rather than water to make a more flavorful rice, and save some for the frittata later this week!

Photo and recipe by Queen B

Day Four

Black lentils from The Indian Slowcooker

with homemade naan and yogurt

This is a hearty lentil recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks.

Photo and recipe from Indian as Apple Pie

Day Five

Lemon chicken frittata from Everyday with Rachael Ray

with lime & peanut coleslaw from 101 Cookbooks

In the frittata, I'll use rice left over from earlier this week.

Photo and recipe from RachaelRayMag.com

Photo and recipe from 101cookbooks.com

Blessings on your kitchen this week!

Grandfather Mountain

Ah, the road to Grandfather Mountain, 

could there be anything more beautiful?
It felt like the road to heaven.

It was quite fitting that we found St. Bernadette's at the foot of the mountain,
the perfect place for us to go to church before our trip to the top.

Looking into the the clouds from St. Bernadette's, we could see the mile high bridge!  

We couldn't wait to get up there ourselves.

After Mass, we made a brief pitstop for lunch and ice cream at the charming Old Hampton Store.  We enjoyed it so much, it deserves it's own post some other time.

Yum!

Next it was time to tackle the mountain.  The drive to the top of Grandfather Mountain is wooded and beautiful.  It really is amazing that you can drive to the top of it's spectacular heights.  During the course of our ascent, the temperature dropped 10 degrees.  E-Bear and G-Bear had to borrow mommy and daddy's sweaters :)  Nevertheless, we were all thrilled to get to the top!

There was so much to enjoy and so much to see from the top of the mountain.  

It was really very family friendly, in spite of the warning signs.

Freshly four months old, Baby Bear was the youngest tourist at the top.

He has scaled great heights for such a young guy!

The Blue Ridge Range sprawls across the landscape from the summit.  

On a clear day, you can see all the way down to Charlotte, NC.  

Of course, we had to pose for pictures at the bridge.  

The kids loved to run across the bridge, not seeming to mind the 100 ft. drop visible through the metal planks.  Yikes!  I had to hold my breath and remember the bridge is quite safe.

The mountain was a perfectly spectacular way to end our special trip.  

When we pointed ourselves toward home, our journey had one last treat in store,

because we left the same way we came:

We have such a beautiful country!  We were blessed to get to enjoy it's wonders in such a special way last weekend.

Our Tweetsie Railroad Adventure

Tweetsie at the station, picking up passengers.

As part of our family vacation to Blowing Rock, NC last weekend, we spent a day visiting the Tweetsie Railroad.  The attraction is a wild west themed amusement park nestled in the mountains and centered around a real railroad train, #12, called Tweetsie.  While planning our trip, T read a review of the park saying that it was the land of four foot tall people, meaning that it was dominated by children ages 4-8.  We knew then that the Tweetsie Railroad was the perfect place for us to visit.  We were right.

The park includes the Tweetsie train and it's track running around the mountain, as well as a western-themed town and two areas of amusement park rides, shows and other attractions.  We spent the entire day, from 10am to 5 pm, at the park, which gave us just enough time to do nearly everything once.  The park was large enough to keep us walking and active all day, but accessible for us to tackle without a stroller for G-Bear and E-Bear.  We brought a picnic lunch but certainly could have enjoyed the food at any one of a number of themed restaurants or food stands.

We found Tweetsie at the perfect time in our lives.  Thanks mostly to E-Bear, we are a family of train enthusiasts.  We love Thomas the Tank Engine & his friends, and our train table is one of our most beloved places to play.  An amusement park centered around a real-life train was just too good to be true.

We all loved Tweetsie the Engine,

each in our own special way.

As the above picture would suggest, Tweetsie's whistle is a real whistle, and her coal burning engine is real too.  Riding the train is a real steam locomotive experience and we loved it.  After our train ride, we watched a clogging show and then headed up the mountain via chairlift to try some of the rides.

One of the unique parts of the park is that many of the rides have maximum rather than minimum height requirements.  There are certainly plenty of rides that accommodate adults, but many more are for children only.  After about age 7-8 there are definitely rides that will be off limits.  Thankfully, that was not a problem for our half-pint crew.

We enjoyed the airplanes immensely.  G-Bear announced that she was flying to MoMo's house.  E-Bear chimed that he was going to Papa's.

The boats were next, complete with individualized bells to ring wildly.

G-Bear and E-Bear certainly impressed me with their bravery.  It seemed that the faster the ride, the more they loved it.  The "twister" ride and the "tilt-a-whirl" were two favorites:

Thankfully, T took tilt-a-whirl duty, because I definitely would have gotten sick.

After a wildly successful car ride with dad,

we tackled the helicopter, 

(which, by the way, ended rather badly...note to self, don't put the Bears in the same helicopter with the choice of going either up or down via pushing or pulling the restraint bar.  There are bound to be differences of opinion regarding which direction to go)

and finally, a lightning fast ferris wheel.

I might be smiling, but I was sure we were going to wheel right off this ferris.

Not pictured, but also thoroughly enjoyed, were the animal petting zoo area with goats, deer, ostrich, and llamas, the climbing tower on the top of Miner's Mountain, a miniature train ride, a playground, the carousel and several other attractions.

Our wheels started to drag just as the day was coming to a close.  We were pleasantly exhausted and thrilled with everything we had tried.  T and I couldn't have imagined a more perfect amusement park for our crew.  

We waved goodbye to Tweetsie as she pulled her last train load of passengers of the day.

"By, train!"  yelled E-Bear and G-Bear.

Like I said, definitely worth repeating.

Earthquaaaaaake!

I am pleased to report that we all survived our first earthquake experience today!  The kids and I were having a pre-resttime snack when the refrigerator started shaking and the floor started moving.  It is quite an unsettling feeling to have the ground move when it's not supposed to!  Poor T was in the basement of a large building, missed all the excitement, and didn't get to feel a thing.  Maybe next time :)

Reports are that there hasn't been an earthquake in the area for over a hundred years.  How did we get so lucky?  Quite the welcome to NC....

Our weekend in Blowing Rock, NC

This past weekend was a huge treat for our family.  It was, so far as I can remember right now, the first time we have taken a vacation away with just our little family.  We love going on trips and get-aways with family and friends.  But this weekend was different, relaxing and special in a new way.

Before our weekend, I would have never guessed that a place called Blowing Rock could be so wonderful.  Having retreated to the mountains of North Carolina, I now understand why they are so popular.  Our weekend was a perfect mix of amusement and relaxation, spectacular and kid-friendly.  It is worth repeating.  Take our word for it, the Ridgeway Inn is a friendly, charming value (with a great breakfast!).  It's in the heart of lovely Blowing Rock, and as we walked to a Friday night lawn concert we saw a multitude of other adorable Inns with tables set and beckoning.

On Saturday morning, as I walked around the town with my coffee in one hand and early bird Baby Bear tucked in my Ergo carrier, the mountains were already hard at work creating the restful, peaceful morning air.  We had a weekend of fun ahead of us that left us with tired and smiling.

Here's just a taste, because there's a lot more to share.

Thanks to G-Bear for this great picture of T and me!

There's more to come about a train called Tweetsie, a mountain named Grandfather, and our family enjoying them both!