T.G.I.F. and a Recipe

Warning: This post contains a sprinkling of images from our week. They may or may not have anything to do with the content of the text.If you are a parent, you have at one time or another worried about the food your child is consuming. From the moment they come into this world you ask yourselves questions about their food intake. Or at least I did and still do... Are they getting enough? Are they getting too much? Do they have a food allergy or intolerance? Why do they love something one day and despise it the next? Are they eating too much sugar? Are they eating enough veggies? Are the additives and preservatives affecting their behavior? And the list goes on and on...
I am committed to having healthy, fresh food in our house, and I try to limit the amount of fake, processed foods that we have. We make a lot of things from scratch and enjoy cooking together. I have not made the switch to organic, but the more I read the more I contemplate it. I do try to ensure the milk that we consume is from cows not treated with hormones.

Each day, I attempt to provide a nutrient filled breakfast, a home-packed lunch, and a wholesome dinner though that doesn't mean my children always eat what I cook. I believe that children not only will eat when they are hungry, but also that they will gravitate towards the nutrients that their body is craving.

My husband and I encourage our children to eat what is on their plate, but we do not force them. We encourage them to be adventuresome and to try new things, but we certainly don't expect that they clean their plate. In our eyes, that is one sure way to encourage over-eating. All of that being said, what's on their plate is what's for dinner. There are no other options. If they don't eat then the next meal is breakfast. And we expect them to sit at the table and talk about their day and listen to each other.

When it comes to food, my precious number three child is the one I "worry" the most about. He typically eats a great breakfast and a fabulous lunch, but he rarely touches his dinner. Some nights he doesn't even touch his milk. Really, he will sit down take one look and say "all done." I take comfort in the fact that he is not filling up on junk, and one day he will eat supper with us. Truly, there is not one vegetable he will eat. The moments are even rare when he will taste something green. I do worry about this though his pediatrician does not.
Well this morning, I made a new recipe for zucchini muffins, and he ate them. I am always comforted when he gets something green in his body even if it is trapped in muffin form.

I have my grandmother's delicious recipe for zucchini bread. As I was making it back in the fall, I was appalled at the amount of sugar and oil in it so I vowed to try something new. I used the Happy Healthy Mama's recipe though I did substitute sugar for agave nectar. We we all loved it! Mary Frances even suggested that I make them the next time we provide "Friday Treats" {a.k.a. snacks} for her class.

And just to to keep it real ~ I made two batches... When mixing the ingredients for the second batch I was so distracted that I completely forgot any sweetener. Those are even edible but taste a bit like baking soda. I think will be really good with honey, maple syrup, or my sweet friend Anne's apple butter.

Hope you have wonderful weekend plans. We are thrilled to have our first overnight house guests coming this evening...

Ice, Ice Baby

Greetings from Park City Utah,

First, I'll show you the getting there, and then I'll tell you what we are doing here.









Since 2008, Frank and I have been blessed to have an opportunity to go skiing every few years. Frank is involved with the Financial Services section of the ABA, and every two years they have their annual meeting in Park City. Four years ago, Frank invited me to go with him.

I was just thrilled to have a getaway with my hubby. I was ecstatic that his parents were willing to keep our little ones who at the time were almost 2 1/2 and 6 months. I have to admit, I was a little nervous to hit the slopes because when I sat down to count the years since I had skied it was a larger number than I would have liked. The last time I had skied was when I was a senior in high school and I had only been three times total. That hardly counts as being a skier. Frank hadn't been since college. Though skiing was something we had both enjoyed in our younger years it wasn't something we had ever been avid about, and we had resigned ourselves to being beach people ~ less risk of injury there.

That winter we had a ball. There was plenty of snow and the skiing was awesome. We realized it was something that we still enjoyed. Not only was it fun ~it was something we could do together where we could be outside and active.

So we had the opportunity to go back in January of 2010. Frank's parents again graciously volunteered to keep our now three little ones who were almost 4 1/2, 2 1/2, and barely 1. Again, though there was much more ice than snow, we had a ball and thought maybe just maybe, if we could make it work we would bring our two big children with us in two years.

Amazingly, we were able to make it work. This time my mother so kindly stepped up to the plate and is keeping Walker and Betsy so that Mary Frances, Stephen, and I could accompany Frank to Park City. Thank you ShuShu!


Here they are leaving us for ski school ~
Frank and I went on our way and went down a few runs {again there is more ice than snow} before checking back in with the kiddos to see how things were going~


The had a great teacher ~ she was perfect for them!

After a full day on the slopres we are all exhausted ~ ready for a nap and some dinner!

Room to Run

I've always felt like New Year's Eve was over-rated ~ too much hype, not enough delivery.

For many of the last several years Frank and I have spent this holiday at the lake. And let me tell you the lake delivers... It's easy! It's fun! It's comfortable ~ low-key and no stress! Sometimes we've spent the holiday alone, but mostly with friends. Good friends! {who always do a better job posting about an event than I can do} Friends who you can be COMPLETELY yourself with. Friends who you can cancel your New Years Plans with ~ not just once but twice ~ {once for Frank's cousin who was being deployed to Iraq and again for the eminent arrival of our sweet baby girl}. Friends who know you almost as well as you know yourself. Friends who also have four children ~ the same age as ours. Friends who understand the laundry, the meal-planning, the tantrums, the accidents, the laughter, the need to be outside and to have room to run, room to play, room to be children...

Without further ado... Reader beware ~ For those of you who want pictures there are a lot! I told you it was fun! It was also relaxing ~ if you can imagine that with eight {yes, you read correctly} children six an under. It was entertaining. I think I am safe to say that it was a special time for all. In my eyes, it delivered...


























I hope you have friends like this!

Cheers!

Yesterday, we closed the chapter on yet another year. It was a good year. It was a full year for my dear family. It was a sweet and precious year for us. The year was long and short all at the same time. It was a year we will likely never forget. Just like any family, we've had our ups, and we've had our downs. We covered a lot of territory in twelve short months. We've had our trials and our tribulations. There have been moments I will cherish forever and some I hope that everyone will forget. There has been laughter and there have been tears. We have been loved by and supported by many. Above all else there has been love and joy. And if I'm being honest, there have been many moments when I wanted to throw my hands in the air and scream I can't do this. But I did! We survived and are stronger and hopefully more lovely for the experience. I could share stories and lessons for days, but I won't because they are mine...they are ours. Some have been shared along the way. Some have been shared in person. And some have already been forgotten.

The highlights in pictures ~

{I will limit it to one per month ~let me hear everyone say "thank you"}

January:

February:

March:

April:

May:

June:

July:

August:

September:

October:

November:

December:
Now remember, a picture only tells you part of the story...for one reason or another each of these pictures resonated with me and my memories of the year, yet they only catch a glimpse of what was going on in our life. You will notice that I did not include one picture of our house because while that was a very prominent part of our year it was by no means the only thing that was going on in our life. It is and was certainly a blessing, but it was by no means the only blessing bestowed unto us over the last twelve months.

The beginning of a new year gives you a chance to pause ~ to reflect on the past and to look towards the future. To see where you have shined and to see where you have failed. As I glance over our last year the one thing I can be sure of is how loved we are ~ loved by each other, loved by our family, loved by our friends, and most assuredly loved by our Lord.

Happy New Year! May you and yours have a Blessed New Year!