Berry Picking

After last year's adventure to the berry farm during which Leah shit her pants, I wasn't sure she would be too excited about returning again this year. She remember the big storm and asked many times if there was going to be thunder. (Her biggest fear at the moment!) We went right AFTER a storm this time.

We got there nice and early and before the crowd and the heat. Strawberry picking was slow since Leah wasn't much help. Too many mushy berries for her. It was tough work for me with a 20lb baby strapped to my back as well. We quit and headed to the raspberries which was much easier. There was room for Jonah to explore and to munch on dropped berries and Leah & I could pick standing up.



Seriously, Leah is pro raspberry picker. She knew just which ones were ripe and exclaimed "Mom these red ones are just flying off the trees!" If she was a bit taller I'd rent her out to the farm to pick berries!


We ended up with WAY too many berries considering Paul won't touch raspberries. It was a challenge to use them up. We did strawberries with french toast, ice cream, & in a dish with sugar, made strawberry pie, and made some fab freezer jam. MMM good summer eats!

FFF - On the Farm

Last weekend I decided it was time for a little FFF. Forced Family Fun!! I gave Paul the option of picking the activity and handed him a list of "50 fun things to do in Saint Louis with your kids!" He was hoping to score tickets to the Cardinals game but there were no good deals to be had so he opted for a trip to Purina Farms instead. Dogs & cats instead of hot dogs & beers.

As far as family activities go, this one was much more exciting for the kids than it was for us. Small place, lots of farm animals, dogs & cats, a dog show. We managed to pick a stormy afternoon to go so the place was pretty empty which was nice. Gave us lots of quality time to feed the pigs & chickens while trapped in the barn as the thunderstorm passed over. The highlight of the day for Leah was watching the cows get milked. I didn't really appreciate the obvious comparison between the milking machine and my breast pump however.

All in all a good day and we came home with two sleeping kids!

This chicken had a crush on Paul!

CSA

We took the plunge and decided to join a CSA this year. What is a CSA???

"Thinking about signing up for a CSA but want to learn more about the idea before you commit? Read on.

Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season. "

This morning a big box of veggies arrived at our doorstep. (Somehow I also volunteered to organize the local pick up spot!) So swiss chard, spring greens, yellow squash, zucchini, cabbage, lettuce and some other goodies will be on the menu this week! Fortunately I we are splitting this huge box with another small family so hopefully nothing will go to waste!


I'll have to post again on how the "trying new veggies" project goes for both Leah and for Paul!!

2 Man Band

This was Jonah's idea. Those are dog dishes. This is 10 seconds of a 15 minute performance.

What We've Been Up To

Not sleeping enough! Lack of sleep equals overtired momma who doesn't feel like blogging. I feel like napping! Not that I've been doing that but whatever. I have taken a few photos over the past few weeks. The weather has improved around here and we are staying busy as usual.

The GIANT eyeball at Lumier Sculpture Garden. Even more interesting in person!

Fun times in the inflatable at our friend Carter's birthday party. Jonah LOVED it!!

The fountains in the Childrens Garden at MO Botanical Gardens are always a hit!

Jonah meets a peony at MO Bot. Gardens

Band Festival Parade with Grandpa Gene in Mason City! Fun weekend at Grandma & Grandpa's. Should have taken more photos of rugby, karaoke, bocce, good times!

Jonah crawls where he wants to now. Including into the cupboards and the fridge!

Family Photos

Last night we headed over to a local park for our mini photo session with Nicole Welch. She is a member of our moms group and was nice enough to agree to take photos for our group. I was REALLY hoping for at least one shot of the kids together and both smiling! These were better than I had imagined! THANKS!!!





oh and these are just the sneak peek I nabbed from her blog. Can't wait to see the rest!

Hopscotch

9 Months

It took nine long months to cook this little booger and as of today he has been causing me sleepless nights for nine months! Oh how we love him though. So what has he been up to??

- for the last month he was doing a cool army drag type crawl. It wasn't pretty but it was functional. Yesterday he figured out how to do it the "normal" way.
- known around the house as "Fuzzhead" and "Booboo"
- adores being outdoors, riding in the Ergo, funny voices & the bathtub.
- eats almost anything. Loves bananas, beans, melon, cheese & any type of cracker. Not so fond of broccoli or yogurt.

And here he is today. Eating dirt.

My how she's Grown!

Since I'm posting Tulip Time photos. How 'bout one of Leah on each of her three trips to Tulip Time?!

Tulip Time '09

This past weekend was what has become my annual trek back to my hometown of Pella, IA for the annual Tulip Time Festival. It's quite the celebration of Dutch heritage (I'm half Dutch!) and a great opportunity to stuff your guts with great treats, watch some fun parades and have a generally good time!

Being a good mom, I made sure Leah had her fill of vet bollen, poffterjies, stroepwaffels, ice cream, cotton candy and other good stuff. I had a tasty Dutch Spiced Beef Sandwich and Paul enjoyed Pella Bologna with Gouda. I guess it was only fair that I let Leah fill her belly with junk since I insisted on dressing her and Jonah is Dutch costumes for photos!

I think we had a good time. It was great to spend time with family and catch up with some old friends who were in town too!

Leah the Explorer

Last week Tuesday Leah was sick. Poor girl lost her breakfast just as I was ready to haul her out the door to school. I quickly cleaned her up and she said "can we go to school now?" NOPE! I threw my plans for the day out the window and did my best to keep my girl entertained. Our morning project was to make a "treasure box". She covered a plastic grapes container with tissue paper squares, foam letters, stickers & ribbon. I told her she could put her treasure it in. She declared that she didn't have any treasure and needed a map to find it. Someone has been watching too much Dora the Explorer!! So guess what I had to do during nap time?? Manufacture a map and a treasure! I'm glad she can decipher my drawings and that stickers suffice as treasure.




We did some outdoor exploring that day too. I was bummed that I didn't drag the camera along because we spied a heron over at the neighborhood pond and a momma duck and 10 ducklings on our way back!

Water Table

Leah got a water table for her birthday! It's a nifty one that works as a picnic table too when you put the cover on. Oh how I love multitasking toys! We've had some fab weather this week so the water table got put to use. Yes, these pictures are of Jonah. He might like this toy more than Leah does! Oh and he LOVES bowls and cups!






and this is what Leah did when she had enough of the water table.

The Wheels on The Bus

. . . . go round and round. Round and round.

HA! Now it's stuck in your head too! That song has been stuck in my head since Thursday when Jonah and I joined Leah on her first ride on a school bus! (I guess it was Jonah's first ride too!) The big event was party of safety week at preschool for Leah. She's been asking a lot about why she doesn't ride a bus to school so this was a special treat for her. I'm not sure she was entirely thrilled about the actual ride due to not having a seat belt but she said she had fun! Guess it doesn't take much for the three year old set. We'll see how she feels when she has to ride the bus every day!

Ma Ma

Since Paul swears that Leah said "Dada" first it sure is nice that Jonah is saying "Mama" first!!

The Perfect Photo

So it's really hard trying to get a decent photo of two kids. At least a decent one where they are both looking at the camera and making a "normal" enough face. See, here are a few cute "not perfect" photos.

Who needs a bed?

A few weeks ago Leah, out of the blue, started asking to take her daily nap on the floor. I'm not sure if it's because that's what she does when she is with the sitter or because she saw a friend do it. As long as she takes a nap, I don't care!!! I relocated a few things in her room and in the process made a cozy corner with stuffed animals that Leah has claimed as her nap corner. Notice her nap routine: oodles of books, empty water cup, pink bunny & fuzzy duck blanket. Oh and this is just for naps. She sleeps in her bed at night. And yes, that is a very large blue stuffed pony.