St. Patricks Day Recap

I didn't get to post yesterday, so I'm hoping all of you had a great St. Paddy's!

What a great day we had!!! The bigger kids and I built leprechaun traps the night before, and read a few St. Patricks Day books. In the morning, the little owls awoke to find notes from the leprechauns who got away from their traps, and consoled themselves with new St. Paddy's Day socks. W did his best to be a leprechaun, running around in green pajamas and stealing the "treasure" out of the traps.

We had shamrock bread for breakfast (I baked three huge rolls so that they connected like a shamrock), green beans with our lunch, Irish Potato candy for our snack, and a special surprise called "leprechaun stew" for dinner.

What is leprechaun stew? The kids asked the same thing. I told THEM that it was a secret recipe left in our kitchen by some leprechaun chefs. I'll tell YOU that is was steamed cauliflower and broccoli, seasoned with salt and pepper and garlic, some milk and butter, and then the whole deal is pureed (like cauliflower mashed potatoes, with broccoli added). Super yummy, and the kids each ate triple helpings. This Owl Momma felt like one tricky little leprechaun!

What's Working Wednesdays

So today, in our little owl nest, our new lamps are what's working! Really, I didn't realize such a little thing like ambient lighting could make me so happy. We used to have table lamps, but both of them, with their glass bodies, suffered mortal injuries (at my hands, no less... never throw blankets down the stairs if your lamps are along the staircase and your aim isn't very good).

So, the kids went with me today to pick up new lamps. Check them out here. All three lamps are now assembled and strategically placed around the living room. Let's hope Owl Poppa likes them when he gets home from work!

Mini-Celebration!

Yesterday was K's half-birthday! She is now officially 4 and a HALF.

Tyra?

J and K were taking turns playing photographer (they LOVE taking photos with my camera). When it is finally J's turn, he says "Okay, K, now look FIERCE"

Note: While I myself love old cycles of ANTM, my kids have never actually watched this. Which makes the above even funnier!

This says it all

It's been THAT kind of day. He's totally done.

Writer's Block

The novelty of blogging hasn't quite worn off yet. I frequently find myself thinking throughout the day "wow, I could blog about that." And yet, when I FINALLY have a few minutes to sit down at the computer (or to sit down at all, lol) I have NO IDEA what to write about.

What's Working Wednesdays

One night each week we have our Family Night... Family Night must be capitalized, since this is a big event we all look forward to. What does Family Night look like?

• Supper is a meal we can all make together so that we are all working in the kitchen together. The favorite so far has been individual pizzas (including making a mini pizza for W).
• We all sit down to an early supper, and then
• we get to do a fun activity together as a family. So far we've had a few movie nights, and a game night.
• Special snacks, picked up just for family night.

This isn't TOO much different from a normal night, but the kids love the hype of Family Night... They look forward to it all week, they are extra kind to each other on Family Night, they willingly help out around the house earlier in the day so that we'll be ready for Family Night (Family Night can't begin til afternoon and evening chores are done). It makes me happy to think that we are building these sweet memories together, and reinforcing that spending time with one another is something we value in our family.

Besides building memories, Family Night is giving us a platform for other family-building activities. Starting tonight, allowances will be given on Family Night. I also hope to make Family Night into part family meeting, where we can talk about things that have been going on in the family, air our grievances, brainstorm about family issues, etc.

This weeks plan: pizza, popcorn, and a movie